Ever since taking in the Mane 6 as the six young infants had been called, life in Sandover Village had gotten a bit more livelier.
Twilight Sparkle showed to have a prodigious mind for her young age, always listening intently to Samos' teachings whenever he was lecturing Jak, Daxter, and Ben. Her aptitude for magic, as shown by her unicorn horn, was staggering as well.
Pinkie Pie was a bundle of energy who could never sit still in one place for too long. She also was a social butterfly and had pretty much-befriended everyone in Sandover Village. There was not a single person she didn't know the name of and hadn't thrown a party of some kind for.
Applejack was a hardworking child, always helping the Farmer out with his crops and herding his Yakkows whenever they ended up leaving their coral. She also had a natural affinity for nature and with Samos help, had even started growing apple trees near his hut.
Rainbow Dash shared in Jak's love of adventure, always tagging along with him, Daxter, and Ben whenever they got into trouble. Even as young as she was, she was proving to be quite the daredevil, especially with how fast she could fly with her pegasus wings.
Rarity was quite fashionable and had a knack for discovering treasure. She was also quite savvy, especially when doing trades or deals with others. While she was averse to getting 'dirty' on all the different outings with her siblings, she never strayed too far behind.
Finally, Fluttershy was an open source of warmth and compassion. The animals loved her and just about everyone in Sandover Village had a soft spot for the timid pegasus girl.
One beautiful autumn day, Jak, Daxter, Ben, and the Mane 6 were all playing together. The boys had since turned 12 years old, meaning their little sisters were 5.
As Applejack and Rainbow Dash ended up getting into a tussle with each other while Rarity just admired the leaves, Daxter had a question on his mind for the smartest of the six little ones.
"Say Twilight, you talk to Samos more than just about anyone else, right?"
"Yeah, what's up, BBBFF?" Twilight asked, using her nickname that was shared between Jak, Daxter, and Ben, meaning 'Big Brother Best Friend Forever'.
"Well, there's something about the way he acts that's been bugging me," Daxter pointed out. "You know how recently, ever since Gol and Maia left town, there's been a huge boom of interest in machines? Both the old Precursor stuff and anything new that can be developed?"
"I have!" Pinkie chimed in as she popped out from behind Daxter's shoulder. "Keira and I have been working on a 'Party Cannon' so that I can better set up my parties for everyone!~"
"What's your point, darling?" Rarity asked, having nestled into Ben's lap.
"Well..." Daxter lay back in the grass, his eyes on the sky, gathering his thoughts. "Anytime just about anyone in town talks about putting more time or resources towards studying either Precursor tech or developing new technology to harness Eco, Samos comes down on them like a ton of bricks, shouting about how those 'devilish machines' will tear the world apart, and that to do such things is disrespectful to the world the Precursors gave us, or something else like that...and the other Sages are in agreement with them."
"But?" Ben asked.
"The only exception is Keira, who, from what I can tell, Samos actively encourages to study and build new Eco machines, and to take apart any defunct Precursor tech she can find to learn how it works. The complete opposite of the stance he takes with everyone else...even though he grumbles about her interest in public." Daxter added.
"Well, he also seems fine with whatever stuff Pinkie Pie gets interested in. Like the Party Cannon thing she just mentioned." Twilight pointed out. "I also find all the Precusor tech to be fascinating myself! I only wish there was more to study!"
"Well, it just seems a bit strange, don'tcha think? It's the only time ever that Samos contradicts himself in anything." Daxter pointed out.
"Well, the other Sages have talked about how Samos is the only one gifted with even the slightest touch of future sight," Twilight pointed out. "It could well be that he knows that general use of such machines will prove dangerous...but Keira's knowledge of it will prove necessary."
"And mine too!" Pinkie excitedly added.
"Well, that's not why I think he does it," Jak pointed out with a smirk.
"Alright, leader boy," Daxter teased, poking fun at how Jak always took the lead in anything they did together. "If you're so smart, why is Samos encouraging Keira's interest in machines?"
"Hadn't you noticed? Ever since she started tinkering, she stopped cooking."
That got everyone laughing, even Fluttershy. It was true that Keira was absolutely hopeless at cooking, even when Pinkie Pie tried helping her out.
Later in the evening, Twilight headed back to Samos' hut to ask him some more questions when she noticed Keira working on something.
"Hey, Keira. What are you up to?"
Keira, who was a year younger than Jak, Daxter, and Ben and thus was 11 years old, perked up as she turned to the young Alicorn girl.
"Hey, Twi! I'm actually really glad you showed up, I've got something that I wanted to give to you and the others!"
Keira dug around until she pulled out three pairs of strangely configured hoofshoes.
"These are for Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity. I know they don't have wings like you, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy and would have a harder time moving through the trees or up higher platforms so I made these jump boots that tune in to your unique magic signatures since they are an energy type that's completely different from Eco."
"Wow! This is amazing!" Twilight gasped as she admired the inventions.
I found an old bit of Precursor tech called an Eco Converter, which was supposed to change one type of Eco into another. It never worked, but I was able to tweak it so it could turn your energy into a specific type of Eco." Keira said. "I've been able to build more, but you guys only generate so much of that energy, so I designed the jump boots to use your energy to generate Blue Eco to let you jump again in midair!"
"You have got to talk with me about what else you're inventing!" Twilight grinned. "Maybe I can help with them!"
Keira beamed right back at her friend, the two spending the rest of the day throwing ideas back and forth and just enjoying having someone else to talk to when it came to the science of creating new devices.
A year or so later, Samos had decided that his wards needed to be more in tune with nature, so he led them to a deep clearing in the Forbidden Jungle.
"Could somebody explain to me why we're going camping in the Forbidden Jungle?" Daxter complained. "Last I checked, this place was supposed to be forbidden!"
"Well, since you all spend your time goofing off, I figured I needed you all to better be at one with nature, it might teach you how to respect the ways of life," Samos explained. "And besides, I'm accompanying you so you don't have to worry about the 'Forbidden' part of the jungle."
"Well, there goes any hope of having fun..." Ben grumbled.
"What was that?" The Green Sage asked, giving a stink eye.
"Nothing, sir!"
After seeing they had found a good spot to make camp, Samos marked the area with his staff and tasked Keira, Daxter, Twilight, Rarity, and Fluttershy with setting up camp while Jak, Ben, Rainbow, Applejack, and Pinkie went to collect dead wood to make a campfire with.
"Heard Keira finally perfected those jump boots for you two and Rarity," Jak said to Applejack and Pinkie.
"I know! She presented them to me for my birthday last month!" Pinkie beamed.
"She said she was gonna figure out a way to make you some next, Jak," Applejack said.
"How's she going to manage that?" Jak asked. "I mean, your boots work by converting your magic energy into Blue Eco."
"She's experimenting with Eco Generators. She can't make them too large yet, or able to generate much Eco, but a small Eco Crystal in the right machinery components can create a recycling Eco field to generate small amounts of Eco." Ben explained. "With luck, just enough to let you jump in midair...and maybe even hover."
"How do you know this?" Rainbow asked. "I don't see Keira making a pair for you."
"She and Twilight drilled it into my brain since I have a hard time with this sort of thing," Ben admitted.
"Wait, she's not gonna make a pair for you or Daxter?" Jak asked.
"Nope." Applejack shook her head. "It's all for the three of us and you."
"Yeah, Twilight, Fluttershy, and I can already fly. We got that covered." Rainbow said proudly. "But now you guys can keep up with us!"
"You're gonna have to face facts, Jak. Keira likes you." Ben said as he gathered some wood. "I would say I'd be jealous...but I honestly see her like a little sister."
Before Jak could make a retort, the bushes around them rustled as several Lurkers lunged out. The group quickly spun back to back, using the sticks of wood they'd gathered as makeshift weapons to keep the Lurkers back.
"Back off, you big meanies!" Pinkie said, spinning two sticks of wood like nunchucks while making kung-fu noises.
As two Lurkers approached Jak from either side, he turned to face one. Applejack stood on her hands and bucked with both of her hoof-like feet like pistons, sending the Lurker flying into a nearby bundle of vines which promptly wrapped around and trapped it. Rainbow backed Applejack up by swinging her makeshift weapon at a Lurker that was approaching her from the front.
"Get along, little doggy!" Ben wooted as he and Pinkie rode on a Lurker, who was trying desperately to buck them off its back.
"Hope things are doing okay on the others' end!" Applejack said as she bucked another Lurker upside the jaw.
"I just hope we still have enough wood for the fire!" Jak added.
All in all, at least it was safe to say the camping trip wasn't boring.
Just some fun times between our heroes before we start the Precursor Legacy Saga!