Chapter 25:Party Of One
A new day had already begun for the flourishing group within the Ponyville library. Four members now stayed in the library, growing together, and learning together. Twilight read a book from her pedestal, while Orion read another book from his past in a chair. Leaving Owlowiscious to sleep until the night arrived, and Spike to color in a child's coloring book. They appeared to be going about their day in tranquility and peace, until they heard the party music.
Orion lowered his book to the sound of drums, streamer explosions and horns. Twilight looked to the door and put her book down, it was easy to realize what was happening. Pinkie Pie was playing music and she was clearly throwing a party of some sort. Orion closed his book and slowly got up behind Twilight as they strolled to the door. When Twilight opened it, streamers and confetti blasted into her face along with the music.
"Oh, hi Pinkie…!"Twilight greeted before Pinkie sang a song and offered an invitation.
"This is your singing telegram, I hope you find it well,"Pinkie sung as Twilight read her invite to her pet alligator's first birthday party,"You're invited to a party! Cause we think you're swell!"
She then bolted off in a stream of pink towards her next location to dispense an invitation. Leaving a baffled set of friends in her wake, processing what had just happened. It was clearly just Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie, but another question still remained to be answered.
"Well that's a relief… One party she's throwing distracts her from the other,"Orion pointed out while Twilight shut the door and began to read the invite,"You think we'll be able to pull off the party for tomorrow?"
"We may not be as professional as pinkie is at throwing a party, but I'm confident that we can pull it off,"Twilight admitted her confidence in this mysterious party for tomorrow,"It's all like how Pinkie would expect a nice party, plus it's a surprise. She likes surprises…!"
"Then she'll love the surprise that's coming to her tomorrow morning,"Orion stretched and pulled out a letter from the chest pocket of his outfit,"He agreed to come over to the party. Though the rest of the family can't. He chewed Igneous's ears off over the rest of the family not being allowed to go."
"Oh… Well, I'm sure they have their reasons…!"Twilight decided to try and stay positive in the matter.
"Yeah, but usually it's never a good reason… But her big old pops will be coming at least!"Orion buttoned up his long coat and got himself ready.
"There's some good news. Till then I suppose we should head over to Gummy's party,"Twilight suggested as she got a scarf on since it was a bit nippy out,"We handle the party we have today, and it should give us all the time we need to prepare tomorrow's party."
"Good idea. You hear that, Spike? Get a coat on, we're going to a party!"Orion shook Spike out of his coloring and got the baby dragon hustling for a coat.
"Geez… You sound like a strict dad…!"Twilight joked before getting her scarf on and being the first one out the door.
Orion shook his head and snickered before Spike was quick to run out the door. Leaving the hidden prince to close the door and follow the duo from behind. They all casually walked towards the gingerbread building, Orion stayed far behind to watch them as he did with his sisters. Making sure no harm ever came to them, that was and always will be what he was meant to do. Now it seemed that his obligation had broaden to the unicorn and baby dragon safety as well.
He watched them all the way to Sugar Cube Corner, at least till they entered. After that, Orion was willing to just let them go so they could all enjoy the party. He hung out by the punch bowl and the chairs, enjoying the tasty purple punch in small cups. Music began to play the moment the rest of the mares arrived for the fun, Gummy was then brought down to enjoy his birthday. Even though all he did was wonder around, blink, and chew on anything he could wrap his toothless jaws around.
Every pony immediately appeared to be having the time of their lives at the party. Rainbow Dash and Applejack were bobbing for apples in water, a classic party game. Twilight and Fluttershy were dancing in the middle of the room to the music, even Spike got to dancing. Leaving Pinkie to blast all around the room checking on ponies, and Rarity walking over to the punch. Orion sipped his drink and nodded to greet her until he swallowed his drink, as she too went for a drink.
"Pinkie outdid herself with this party, don't you think?"Orion asked, making simple conversation to distract himself for tomorrow's event.
"well she is Pinkie Pie, darling. No pony is better at parties than her…!"Rarity admitted while pouring her drink and raising it to Applejack and Rainbow Dash.
Just in time for Pinkie to finish checking on them, and letting them in on new prizes to be found in the bucket of water. They went in, and Applejack simply pulled out a spring attached tennis ball. Rainbow and the others seem to enjoy the little prank on the cow girl pony. At least until Rainbow went in, and got her whole muzzle engulfed in the toothless jaws of Gummy. Then it was Applejack's turn to laugh while the Pegasus flew and flailed around in a panic.
"I can tell that this is going to be quite the party for today."Orion finished his drink just as Rarity sipped her own all the way down with glee.
"This punch is simply divine…! Is this the same recipe you used for your spring has sprung party?"Rarity asked before freezing the moment she saw Gummy swimming in the punch.
"Nope! Something new!"Pinkie answered while Rarity spat her drink out while Orion simply shrugged his shoulders.
"Well… If it tastes good or just feels right. Just enjoy it I suppose."Orion decided and got Rarity to get another drink with him as well.
"It's Gummy's favorite!"Pinkie added a little extra special info about the punch, leaving Rarity to struggle with her punch.
"You don't say? The whole alligator bathing in the punch showed me a different picture."Orion joked before a nice bit of music started to play.
"Ooh! This is my jam!"Pinkie took notice and bolted off to the dance floor, allowing Rarity to rid her punch into a plant.
Orion took up an apple and went to sit down to watch the party rage on. Pinkie got down with Twilight and Fluttershy on the dance floor, possibly a bit too down. For her moves literally sent Twilight and Fluttershy flying in all directions the moment the music kicked up a notch. He chuckled at the party like nature of the pink earth pony, she was the splitting image of Precambria. Now if only her family would be here to see how far Pinkie has come since her time at the rock farm.
At least one of her family members would be arriving upon the morning. A nice and simple gift to the high spirited earth pony, for tomorrow was a special day for her. Till then, all he could do was casually enjoy the party all the way into the impending night. By then, the ponies were all exhausted from the dancing, the eating, and all the happy times they shared. Spike was sleeping in Orion's lap by the time that Twilight was ready to finally go home.
"Come on… I'm about ready for a long night of sleep now…"Twilight admitted and got Orion to stand up and carry Spike in his arms.
"We can leave whenever you'd like. This fellow is ready for a long slumber as well."Orion informed and looked to Spike before getting a small smile from a very weary Twilight.
He took the lead as they joined the rest of her friends in their departure. By the time they got outside, the night had settle in for a long and peaceful time. They all appeared tired, even Rainbow Dash struggled to stay flying all the way towards her cloud house. It was not a surprising however, that Pinkie was still energized and able to keep going after poking her head out the window. Simply to see her friends off before she would return to Gummy to finish up the party.
"You sure you guys don't wanna stay? There's still some cake left."Pinkie offered a place to stay for the night and some left over cake.
"We're fine, Pinkie Pie. Every pony is ready to drop, and they need to get to their beds,"Orion decided to speak for Twilight as she appeared almost half asleep,"We'll see you soon, and we look forward to the next party that comes around!"
"Oh, ok! We should do this again soon!"Pinkie called and waved them off before they all split up to head to their homes.
He shook his head, and waved off Pinkie Pie before they were on their way home. Some serious snoozing was required for Twilight and Spike, while he decided to handle some nightly chores. It was the least he could do since he simply enjoyed some tasty food and drinks. The rest of the time he was simply sitting around and offering some cheers for Gummy's first birthday. Though he wouldn't stay up too late, since there was a special guest arriving some time late in the morning.
Soon enough, that morning had arrived for the town of Ponyville, and the guest arrived. The morning train whistle came to the town's train station, very slowly, strangely enough. In fact the train itself was going very slow, and it was grinding roughly upon the tracks. Static and fiery sparks were erupting upon the iron train wheels, striking concern within the witnesses at the station. Finally the train came to a painfully slow stop and creak from possible weight encumbrance.
The train steamed and was fully docked before the doors quickly opened. Allowing ponies to exit in a sweat from nervousness from the bumpy and slow ride. The ponies evacuated the train, leaving one last stallion to stand at the door before stepping off the train. His glowing green eyes, mimicking green gemstones snapped open and began to glow. His very same uniform remained unchanged from the old days along side prince Orion himself, the bottom flaps to his long coat blew in the wind.
His hat laid low and covered the top of his head while the collar of his coat covered all but his eyes and bridge of his nose. He cleared his rough and scratchy sounding coat as he stepped off the train. Only for the train to suddenly bang and rock from the excessive weight the stallion clearly had. He looked back to the train as it rocked for almost half a minute. The train finally balanced out and was properly situated from the heavy pony it carried, the stallion looked to the concerned ponies.
"Apologies for the delay. I'm…sort of a hefty stallion."The mysterious stallion apologized before slowly walking forward to leave the station.
The ponies cleared the way to let the stallion proceed without any further issues. His eyes were enough to entice and respectfully clear the way all the way out of the station. The minute his gloved hooves touch the dirt ground of the town, he tested the dirt. Grinding and kicking up the dirt to study it, and learn about it's origins, it's health, and even the ponies that live in town. His very power glinted in his eyes before he took in all the knowledge the dirt and tiny rocks could offer.
"Most ponies here are friendly and honest… Life is high all around the town,"The mysterious one suddenly collected and went over all the knowledge,"Orion… Typhoon… Thunder… They are all here…"
"Tremoring! Over here old friend!"The stallion was called over by name, and looked to his left to see Orion waving to him.
The named stallion, now known to be none other than Tremoring Quake, closed his eyes. Feeling a bit flattered that he was seen as a friend after so much time had passed since they saw each other. He slowly walked his way to the prince in red garbs, taking notice of three certain fillies that surrounded the man. Curiosity was stricken within the pony of stone upon his approach. At least until Orion got the three fillies to settle down to start introductions.
"Greetings… If I didn't know any better, I would think these were your kids."Tremoring spoke while looking down and mesmerizing the girls with his green gem eyes.
"No. They're simply three little friends looking for their cutie marks. Their names are, Apple Bloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle,"Orion replied as the girls grew impatient to learn exactly who this new stallion was,"Crusaders, this is Tremoring Quake. The warrior of stone, and Pinkie Pie's ancestor believe it or not."
"Wow…! is it true that you're really made of rock?!"Apple Bloom was quick to ask the big question that would answer Orion's rumors about his fellow warriors.
"Is it true that you can shatter mountains with one swift hook?!"Scootaloo added another question to the alleged legendary strength of Tremoring.
"Can you really manipulate the very stone and foundation of any piece of land?!"Sweetie Belle gave her question before the three fillies gave the stallion three wide eyed, big smiles.
"They're really quite the curious ones. They can't help but be curious about who we are,"Orion explained the blatant and very positive curiosity the three fillies showed,"Don't be nervous, they won't think wrong of you to talk about yourself a bit."
"For the last two questions… Yes, I can manipulate the very earth,"Tremoring responded without showing any sort of change in emotion,"Let us walk to this party you're setting up for Pinkie, and I'll consider answering the first question by simply showing."
"Fair enough…! Girls? Would you like to lead the way to Sweet Apple Acres?"Orion asked and was answered by a group cheer from the girls before they took the lead in a rush.
Orion gestured Tremoring to walk by his side and follow the fillies to the farm. The pony of stone was hesitate to join him, but relented within a moment and followed. As much as the stallion wanted to simply go find Pinkie Pie, he did want to respect what they had planned for her birthday. Even if it meant not getting to see her for a bit, and pique the interests of other ponies. He sighed the moment they began walking through the town, taking in the sights of the town.
"Great… More warriors… Looks like I may have to delay my attack till one of the elements of harmony are by themselves,"The fiery eyes of another cloaked pony said to himself from behind the corner of a house,"I'll be waiting… Even warriors tend to make mistakes…"
The stallion slowly backed away and disappeared behind the house. Waiting till he saw his opportunity to go after an element of harmony at their most vulnerable. Leaving the warriors to talk and rekindled their friendship from their days as Equestrian Warriors.
"Was the ride over here bearable?"Orion decided to strike up a conversation with the pony of stone.
"Other than making the train go almost twenty miles an hour due to excessive weight, pretty swell,"Tremoring let Orion in on the fact that he accidentally crippled the train ride a bit,"The ponies were oddly tolerable of my being there on the train."
"Told you…! The subjects these days have gotten very tolerant of unique beings like ourselves,"Orion informed his friend, knowing of the history Tremoring had with ponies when it came to his condition,"They won't put you down just because your body is literally made out granite stone that's a hundred times more durable than iron."
"We will see about that, Orion…! Now care to tell me about Pinkie Pie for a change?"Tremoring asked and showed early symptoms of impatience.
"She just got done throwing a party for her pet alligator's first birthday,"Orion decided to let the rock pony in on her most recent activity in the town,"Today we're hoping to throw her a party for her own birthday. Hence the reason I messaged you and the Pie family."
"I see… Apologies for not getting the rest of the family to come. That dratted Igneous...!"Tremoring started to growl a bit with his words after being reminded that he was the only one that came for Pinkie's birthday.
"I'm certain they had their reasons…! Every pony is entitled to their own needs,"Orion stayed neutral before he heard the tightening of the leather glove on Tremoring's right hoof,"Your family I hear has been quite the workers. It makes sense they would choose work of a party."
"But that doesn't mean it makes it right! They should have taken a break from the farm for their own daughter!"Tremoring raised his right hoof in anger and slammed it down to the earth.
Only for his punch to the ground to cause a thunderous explosion in the ground. A long mushroom shaped cloud of thick dust erupted from the ground and reached to the sky. Dirt mixed with the clouds, confusing all the Pegasus ponies that flew across the Ponyville the ponies that walked the very ground of town were left in shock, and with ringing ears. Orion simply fanned away the dirt with one hand while the fillies sat their, mesmerized by the sudden show of strength.
"I understand that…ALL too well my friend…!"Orion sympathized while the dirt slowly began to settle.
"Astonishing how a stallion chooses to work rather than attend his daughter's birthday…"Tremoring grumbled while many ponies recovered from the sudden explosion, coated in a layer of dirt.
"Sorry about that folks! Personal discussions going on. My friend here is just a little triggered…!"Orion got the ponies of Ponyville to remain calm and carry on their day.
"Lets just continue on to this farm…! It's pointless to continue this conversation,"Tremoring decided to cut the bitter conversation short to prevent any more tension,"I came here to see Pinkie Pie and celebrate her birthday, and that's what I'm going to do."
"Very well…! Girls, lead the way. Try your best to shake off the surprise."Orion insisted in hopes of shaking the crusaders out of their overwhelming shock from the show of power.
Thankfully the girls were able to shake off the stallion's surprising strength. They took the lead, going slow to let the two warriors cool down before they got to the farm. The walk was dragged out into a whole hour before they had finally come to the dirt road's end. Before them stood Sweet Apple Acres and all it's apple oriented glory, Tremoring was some what impressed. Not just for the heavy life he felt around the farm, but for the knowledge he learned from a comrade about this specific farm.
"Impressive… To think this was once the home of Frosty before the Apple family demonized him."Tremoring gave his first impressions respectfully, yet some what dark.
"That narrow minded thinking of the Apples has long been forgotten, Tremoring,"Orion informed his friend of the new change that has happened for the Apple family,"They are actually quite honest and respectful. And they manage to keep their more enjoyable traditions going to this day."
"Good luck convincing Frosty Apples of that. Two thousand years and his hate for the family still boils through that frosted coat of his."Tremoring grumbled and walked on to catch up with the bouncy fillies.
"Geez you are just as abrasive as ever old friend…!"Orion sighed with no amusement for the old warrior's disgruntled attitude.
It wasn't much longer before they arrived to the barn of Sweet Apple Acres. Where Twilight and Spike were currently working on the party provisions and table set ups for food and drink. Tremoring froze for a moment to assess the unicorn with his green eyes, he felt her potent magical talent. He tilted his head before Orion arrived at his side and took notice of his interest in Twilight. He patted Tremoring's shoulder and continued forward to get Twilight and Spike's attention.
"Twilight, Spike! Our special guest has arrived at last,"Orion announced and spooked Spike off his stepping stool the moment he finished setting up the table clothe,"Please say hello to my friend, the pony of stone. Tremoring Quake…!"
"Coming…! Just a moment,"Twilight begged for a moment more and finished setting up the birthday banner before rushing to Orion and Tremoring,"It's a pleasure to finally meet my best friend's pops after so long…! Can I offer you some fresh punch?"
"That's really not necessary… There was plenty of drinks on the train."Tremoring was a bit taken by the sudden kindness she showed to him.
"Come on, lighten up their old friend. It's suppose to be a party. Just like Precambria's parties…"Orion whispered to his friend, and forced a relenting sigh from the stone pony.
He then decided to do so and walk towards the punch bowl that was already set up. He stopped and looked down to the baby dragon before offering a hoof. Spike was more than happy to receive a helping hoof after his little tumble from his stool. Only to feel the solid rock hard grip of Tremoring almost crush his claw before he was lifted up to his feet. Spike strained to take the crushing pain till his claw was released, just so he could wave and blow on his sore claw.
"Wow…! That's…quite a grip you got there. It felt like I got my claw caught in a rock!"Spike admitted with a chuckle while Orion simply rolled his eyes.
"That's because he is in fact made of rock. Go on, show them Tremoring. They have been calling bull honkey on that every time."Tremoring seemed a bit mused at being peer pressured into showing off what he considered a curse.
"Oh yes…! Please, I gotta see this…! An actual pony made of rock would be a discovery for the ages!"Twilight made her quill pen and note appear to jot down the details.
Tremoring sighed and cleared his throat before he slowly slipped off his right glove. Spike already widened his eyes to see no fur upon the stallion's hoof, only smooth sediment stone. Tremoring then rolled back his sleeve to reveal a forearm of complete stone. The crags, the slight minerals on the surface of his arm, and the rigid stone within the crags. He showed it all off for every pony, including the three fillies that came in with apples, only to drop them upon seeing the stallion's stone body part.
"Incredible…! An actual pony made of stone…! I can only imagine the density,"Twilight was already writing down details and notes on Tremoring's stone skin,"Can you please tell me, what kind of stone is your body made of?"
"It's a very dense form of granite, infused with microcrystals deep within the skin,"Tremoring explained his rock body like any pony from a rock farm family would explain it,"My clothes are made of those very minerals so they stay durable enough to keep this body contained…!"
"Wow…! He really is made of pure rock…!"Apple Bloom exclaimed before her and her friends rushed in and surrounded the stallion.
"Yes… And it's really not something to be impressed with. It's really a curse in the end,"Tremoring insisted but his words were lost to the fillies touching and hanging off his forearm,"Please, I don't want any pony to get hurt. My body has been a very troublesome thing that's destroyed and harmed so many ponies…"
"You might as well just forget about it Tremoring. These fillies are fearless,"Orion insisted that Tremoring simply relaxed and let the girls have their fun with his stone arm, allowing him to notice that they needed more sweet foods,"Spike! You mind going out and cooking more of those super nutty vanilla cookies of yours? We may need all the sweets we can possibly muster."
"No problem! Time for this baby dragon to get baking!"Spike more than agreed on the opportunity to bake his special cookies, as he quickly bolted out through the barn doors.
Suddenly Applejack came in along with Rarity, they seemed a bit winded. As if they had ran all the way from town to the farm, never stopping once for a break. Rarity held plenty more of her homemade decorations for the party, while Applejack had many apple treats for the tables.
"Sorry for being a bit late every pony, we think Pinkie Pie has been spying on us,"Applejack informed them about the reason they were late to the party preparations,"We were able to pass the cake off to Fluttershy, and she's on her way to Rainbow Dash as we speak."
"Though it did cost me another shower and some serious care for my mane…!"Rarity griped as she levitated the decorations around the barn to further prepare for the party.
"Well, we gotta do what we can to make this a Pinkie graded surprise party, just for her."Twilight instructed before they all took notice of the special guest.
"So to surprise her, you simply sneak about and avoid her? Not exactly the most subtle means of hiding a party,"Tremoring gave his opinion on their tactics for setting up a party,"Besides, Pinkie is not exactly the mare that can be completely understanding with a pony's strange actions that involve isolation…"
"Uh…thanks for the lesson… You must be mister Tremoring, right?"Applejack asked before they could give a proper introduction to the stone stallion.
"I am… And I'm curious to understand how you believe this surprise party won't have any back lash to your…friendship with my descendant granddaughter."Tremoring remarked while putting his glove back on and rolling his sleeve back down.
"Simple, she'll just bounce back since she loves surprises. Didn't you know that?"Rarity asked and was answered with the dirt cracking under Tremoring's hooves.
"Of course I knew that…! I've watched her grow up from a foal…!"Tremoring appeared to take offense to Rarity's remark that questioned his knowledge of his own family.
"Ok…! How about some more punch, Tremoring? You look like you need a cold one."Orion insisted to try and get the warrior to ease up on the abrasive attitude.
Thankfully they were all distracted by the arrival of Fluttershy and Typhoon Breeze. They took a good look around before shutting the barn doors and turning back to the crowd. Only for Typhoon to realize after a moment that Tremoring was in fact before him.
"Tremoring… Quake… As I live and breath to this day,"Typhoon spoke while Fluttershy went to stack up a couple presents they had gotten for Pinkie,"It has been far too long my friend… You appear to have not changed at all…"
"Nor you… That crazy long mane and tail of yours seems to have rubbed off on the Pegasus,"Tremoring commented after looking to Fluttershy and back to Typhoon,"Is she your descendant?"
"As a matter of fact, she is. Fluttershy is quite the gentle hearted mare of nature,"Typhoon replied before suddenly pulling out a small gift just for the pony of stone,"I was hoping for the chance to give this to you when our paths crossed again. It was so sweet of you to come to the party."
"Well I'm not one for just brushing off family for some meaningless work that can be done at other times,"Tremoring grumbled with the irritation for the rest of the Pie family not being able to attend the party,"I swear Igneous needs to get his priorities in line…!"
"Well all that matters is that you're here for her birthday. You look like you could use a break from stress."Typhoon made that clear before giving Tremoring his little gift.
Tremoring took up the wrapped up gift into both hooves, it felt soft and clothe like. He sat down as the group went back to getting things ready in the barn, he began to unwrap the present. It took only a gentle yank before the wrappings came off what appeared to be a neckerchief. It was cotton candy blue, and has bubble gum pink polka dots all over it. He recognized the neckerchief almost immediately, as he held the piece of cloth to his chest, for it belonged to the one he loved.
"Precambria's neckerchief… This is where it's been the whole time…"He hugged the neckerchief tightly, feeling an unknown warmth he never came to understand growing in his chest once more.
"I found it years after the cave collapse that… Took War Fire's life…"Typhoon foretold of how he came across the neckerchief while setting up a disco ball.
"War Fire… Crazy fire freak spared it… Just for you to find…"Tremoring sighed and continued holding the neckerchief before hollers were heard.
Applejack was the first pony to rush to the barn doors to check out the commotion. It was then that she spotted Rainbow Dash coming in hot down the dirt road with the cake. However, she hit a crucial snag on her way to the farm, and now Pinkie Pie was on her tail.
"Applejack! We have a problem!"Rainbow yelled as Pinkie began to close in on her.
Applejack responded by shutting the bottom door, but leaving the top door open. She tried to stay brave and wait till the last moment to shut the door the moment Rainbow Dash entered. Finally, Rainbow had just barely made it before Applejack was forced to slam the door shut. Orion braced, and managed to catch Rainbow Dash in his arms the moment she came through and crashed right into him. While Pinkie simply crashed against the barn door, it made Tremoring grow concern.
"Come now, do we really need to shut her out like that…! Pinkie is not one who-"Tremoring wanted to go on a rant, only for Orion to drop Rainbow and jump on his back and cover his mouth.
"Shush…! She can't know that you're here yet…! It'll spoil the surprise…!"Orion insisted that Tremoring remain silent for a moment as Pinkie knocked her head against the door.
"I… Don't… Care! She…is…FAMILY!"Tremoring growled into Orion's arm as they continued to struggle.
Tremoring felt a sudden burst of outrage building as he struggled against Orion. While Applejack smiled and did her best to try and get Pinkie to fool Pinkie and send the party pony on her way. Tremoring backed away and tried to slam Orion against a wall to shake him off. He then applied a barrage of back hooves to the prince's side before finding momentum to back flip over him. Orion was quick to shroud his shin in crystals to leg sweep Tremoring's back legs out.
He fell forward to his face, and Orion held his arm behind his back with one hand. While his other hand held his mouth shut, praying that Applejack could keep a strong poker face going. He then was surprised by Tremoring's head leaning back and cracking him in the nose. This allowed the stone pony to make a run for the door before Typhoon pounced on him. But he could only keep Tremoring's mouth closed, while the super strong stallion took the light weight Pegasus for a ride.
"I'm not going to be a part of this charade…! I want to see my descendant granddaughter…!"Tremoring muffled into Typhoon's arm before bucking him right into the ceiling.
"Can't you just commit to a little surprise party…?"Typhoon asked, feeling a bit winded as he peeled himself off the ceiling.
Orion recovered with a bloody nose before stomping his foot into the dirt. Before red crystals sprouted and went up like spiraling columns around Tremoring's hooves. He went full force over his hooves and slammed his back into the dirt he now left a deep little crater in.
"Yup! Construction! That's my story, and I'm sticking with it!"Applejack was currently finishing up her smooth talk that honestly just made her more suspicious.
"Pinkie-"Tremoring tried to speak, but a band of crystals sealed his lips shut.
"Okey dokey lokely…"Pinkie responded to Applejack's suspicion before slowly being on her way.
They waited several moments till Pinkie high tailed it back to town. Once the ghost was clear, Orion slowly released Tremoring from his crystal grip. While Twilight was kind enough to offer a rag for his nose and a bandage for his broken nose. Tremoring slowly stood back up, only to slam his hooves to the dirt and knock up a big cloud of dirt through the barn. This gave him the chance he needed to completely shatter the barn doors with a simple ram of his head.
"Gosh dangit! Tremoring you flank hole! Don't ruin the surprise party!"Orion called through the dust before he held his nose the moment his body registered the pain once again.
"Buck you…! I agreed to come and see Pinkie Pie! Not hide from her!"Tremoring hollered at them with a snort.
He let out another snort at the barn full of secretive and questionable friends he saw in his eyes. What he wanted was not a surprise party that included deceit and going behind one's back. What he wanted was to finally spend time with some pony he had not seen in a long time. A pony that particularly played an important role in finally bringing life to the family he cared for since Precambria. Now he needed to go get her back and make sure she knew that she was very much cared for.
He took a long walk down the dirt road to collect himself from the incursion. He spent an hour, walking slowly, knowing that if Precambria was here, she would know what to do. He took out the neckerchief that once belonged to her, and placed it to his chest. He sighed, before he finally came back into town, his next stop was to Sugar Cube Corners. The gingerbread building Pinkie spoke of in the letters she would occasional send to him about her life in Ponyville.
"Oh… Pinkie… Please forgive me for not being there… You need me… And I need you,"He held the neckerchief tight and flagged down Lyra Heartstrings for directions,"Excuse me. Do you know how to get to Sugar Cube Corner?"
"Yeah, it's by the center of town. Some other stallion showed up asking about it too."Lyra informed and made Tremoring tilt his head in curiosity.
"Really? Colt friend or something to Pinkie Pie perhaps?"Tremoring asked, interested in the idea of Pinkie having a colt friend.
"No way…! A stallion that stinks like smoke and sulfur? Not even Pinkie could make that work…!"Lyra responded and turned the pony of rock's curiosity to concern.
"What exactly did this stallion look like?"Tremoring was pushy for another question to be answered.
"Uh… Not sure. He wore a cloak and everything…!"Lyra answered and immediately got Tremoring storming off towards the center of town
He fast walked through town, such a description sounded like trouble to him. Orion spoke of the cinder ponies in the letters he sent to the rock farm, and the descriptions fit the pony. If another Cinder was in town and looking for Pinkie, there was serious trouble to be had. He walked as fast as he could, since running would result in Tremoring leaving craters in the dirt roads. His chest felt cold, and fear secretly grew from within, simply from the idea of Pinkie being in trouble.
He quickly arrived at the center of town and searched for the gingerbread building. It was an easy building to notice since it was simply a large home and business place made of gingerbread. He sighed with shuddered breaths before pacing himself to the building and bursting through the doors.
"Where's Pinkie Pie's bedroom?!"Tremoring asked upon entry to a scared and frozen Mr and Mrs Cake.
"Um… Can we help you with something, stranger?"Mr Cake decided to be the brave one and ask of Tremoring's reason for being here.
"My name is Tremoring Quake…! I'm looking for Pinkie. She's my descendant granddaughter…!"Tremoring answered and bewildered with Cake's with confusion.
"Really? Uh… Some stallion walked in and said HE was Tremoring Quake,"Mr Cake responded with shocking skepticism that forced Tremoring to do something crazy,"So I'm sorry if I find it hard to believe that another stranger could just come in and proclaim that he was one of Pinkie Pie's family members."
Tremoring only responded by taking off his hat and flipping his collar down. Allowing the Cake's to see what the true Tremoring Quake looked like, starting with his gem like eyes. They complimented his brighter white stone face full of crags, rough ridges and no mane. The couple widened their eyes with shock. His green eyes appeared to be peering deep into their souls. Slowly, Mrs Cake pointed to the wooden stair case that lead upstairs to the second floor.
"Thank you… That wasn't so hard now was it?"Tremoring snorted and went up the stairs, letting his face show for a bit.
He had to be cautious, for even his most gentle step caused the stairs to rumble and creak. His ears drooped with irritation before he was forced to go even slower up the steps. The stairs continued to squeak and strain painfully in his ears before he finally made it up after a minute. Only to enter a living room like place, where he saw Spike once again sporting a black eye. He rushed to the baby dragon as he laid barely conscious against a wall, groaning in pain.
"Little dragon. What happened here?"Tremoring tended to Spike while looking around the room that appeared to be set up for interrogation.
"I… I just… Got interrogated by Pinkie about her friends…! She gave me gems for it,"Spike struggled to speak as he rubbed his throbbing eye,"Then… Ugh… I was eating… and another one of those freakish ponies just… Gosh…why does this kind of thing always happen to me…?!"
"Stay here, and save your strength for now. Then go downstairs,"Tremoring informed the baby dragon of what to do when he had the strength he needed,"The ponies downstairs will treat you for your injuries."
Spike nodded, leaving Tremoring to looked to the next flight of stairs. He quietly went to the stairs, and once again took caution the moment he started to make his way up. He wanted to cringe every time he heard the stairs tremble and creak with the threat of breaking under him. He remained quiet, he could hear Pinkie Pie talking, and it sounded like she was talking to herself. He let out a deep breath the moment he made it up the stairs, and that's when he saw it.
He spotted the cloaked pony slowly approaching a very worrisome scene to be seen. Pinkie was appearing to be having a small party with nothing but a sack, a stack of rocks, and a turnip. She was talking to them as if they were friend's of hers, her old stream like mane and tail further showed worry. It was as Tremoring feared, she wasn't taking isolation well. Now he had this mysterious breed of pony coming in with the tip of his hoof lit up like metal from a furnace.
"So this one has clearly lost all sense of sanity… So I'll simply just put this mare out of her business,"The stallion said to himself before emerging from the shadows,"Then I'll just burn Moltorious's message into her decaying flesh…!"
"Hi! Are you here for the party, sir!? It's just me, Mr Turnip, Rocky, and sir Lintsalot!"Pinkie smiled crazily, but her smile disappeared the moment the stallion threw back his hood.
"I'm here to relay a message from our leader, but seeing as you've clearly lost it,"The stallion showed himself to be another cinder pony that glowed with embers."I'll simply do you a favor and put you down before you get any worse…!"
"But… It's Gummy's… After… Birthday… Party…?"Pinkie's eyes widened as the Cinder lifted his hoof to slash the throat.
She shut them the moment she heard the swing coming down towards her. Only to hear the solid blow of a punch ring her ears before an explosion of wood and gingerbread sounded off. She felt the force almost knock Pinkie to her belly before pieces of wood pelted her back. Slowly she lifted her head up and looked around through the cloud of dust that surrounded her. She could see sunlight immediately pour in from a hole that was now through her bedroom wall.
"Pinkie! Pinkie! Come on now, get up!"The solid rock hooves of Tremoring reached for her own hooves and dragged Pinkie out of the dust.
"Pops…?"Pinkie noticed the voice before she was now face to face with Tremoring.
"Goodness, you're an absolute mess…! Your mane and tail aren't even poofy,"Tremoring dusted her coat off while she remained fixated on the pony of stone that saved her,"Geez, I knew you couldn't handle being alone, but I never expected this from you…!"
"Pops…? You… Actually came to visit me…"Pinkie stumbled with shock the moment she truly knew that her Pops had come to see her.
"Of course I did…! We're family. And I've been missing you for a long time,"Tremoring admitted his own bit of loneliness from the days he spent without Pinkie,"Everything has been a miserable drag without you, child. I just really wanted to see you more than anything… Whether I was part of the surprise party or not…"
Pinkie sniffled, and let a tear streamed down her right cheek with joy. Her coat turned bright pink once more, and the moment she then wrapped him up into a strong hug. Her mane and tail twitched and trembled before suddenly blowing up into their old puffy state. Tremoring returned the favor with a gentle hug of his own, allowing the warmth in his chest to grow once more. It was like he was hugging Precambria once again, He let out a sigh of relief for the happiness Pinkie brought.
"You actually came…! What brought you here to Ponyville?"Pinkie Pie asked as she wiped away her tear and managed to let a smile grow on her once more.
"Your friends did. They wanted to surprise you, as part of a party they were throwing,"Tremoring let her in on the fact that there was a party just for her,"I however couldn't stick to the surprise. Not if it meant having to go behind your back and isolating you."
"There's a surprise party for me…? That's why they were being so sneaky around me?!"Pinkie found herself feeling quite baffled for not realizing the signs from before.
"Yes… It's your birthday today. Didn't you know that?"Tremoring reminded her before she had to slap herself in the head.
"Oh my gosh…! How could I have been so blind!? I was so concerned about Gummy's parties, I forgot my own birthday!"Pinkie groaned at her own stupidity for forgetting her birthday.
"They probably have it all done by now… We could go there now and say hello,"Tremoring suggested before the cinder pony finally returned and was flying in the air,"After I handle this walking pile of ashes…"
"A cinder pony that can fly?!"Pinkie exclaimed before the cinder threw his cloak off to reveal that he was Pegasus cinder pony.
"You have some nerve interfering with our affairs…! I was simply here to leave a message,"The cinder growled as his inflamed crags lit up nice and bright with fire,"Do you not know who you're dealing with stallion…!?"
"A Cinder Pony? Yeah, Orion informed me about you cretins trying to kill princess Celestia,"Tremoring answered the ashen pony's question before pumping up his arms and legs,"And now you dare to attack my family…! You should have thought about your approach a lot more than you did…! Because obviously you don't know who you're dealing with…!"
"Really?!"The cinder growled and opened up a mouthful of flames to shoot at Tremoring.
"Excuse me for a moment Pinkie…"Tremoring kindly excused himself for a moment before suddenly charging head first into the enemy's gut.
He carried the cinder clear out of the building, forcing them to crash to the ground below. He forced the pony of ash back before standing his ground, waiting for the cinder to get up. It looked to be quite a struggle for the Pegasus to get back up from the strong blow. He slowly stood up and stared back to the warrior of rock, it was clear that he was facing an Equestrian Warrior. Yet the nature that cinders had, provoked him to fight to the very end regardless of his foe.
"Wretched interfering warrior…!"the cinder pony growled and shot into the air before darting towards Tremoring.
The warrior simply ducked down, letting the cinder Pegasus zip right over him. The Pegasus growled and turned back to swing his back legs for a whirl wind kick. Tremoring simply jumped up to evade and kept his eyes peering deep into the pony of ash. Only to take a hoof to the center of his head, thankfully he was unfazed, and unharmed. While the cinder backed away the moment his hard hoof suddenly shattered into a cloud of ash against Tremoring's hard head.
He looked to his hoofless forearm before launching into the air. He let his left back hoof light up with fire before shooting down to give Tremoring a kick to the back. He put full strength into it and slammed his leg down upon the pony of stone's back. Only to promptly shatter his entire leg into yet another cloud of ash and embers. Finally he backed away once more and let a stream of fire loose from his jaws, Tremoring moved his head to the side just in time for it to graze his ear.
The stream of fire shot clear out of town and destroy the peak of a mountain in the distance. Tremoring simply tilted his head, a means of taunting the cinder's inability to harm him. It did in fact appear to trigger the cinder while his missing limbs slowly began to regenerate.
"Is that all you can do…? I'm starting to question this power you cinders possess."Tremoring mocked as fire sprouted from the regenerate pony of ash.
"We haven't even begun to show our real power…!"The cinder growled before flapping his wings that became shrouded in bright orange and white flames.
Instantly the inflamed pony blasted away at great speeds and surrounded Tremoring. He spun and maneuvered around the pony of stone before throwing sharp and lightning fast strikes. His slugs pelted the rock pony, but they failed to even make Tremoring move from the blows. At the very least, his quick attacks were tearing and burning holes in Tremoring's long coat. Finally, the cinder crashed into the stallion's back and unleashed a barrage of fiery fast punches
His hooves blasted holes in the ground all around the warrior he fought. Yet all he manage to do on the pony of stone was chip his ashen hooves and burn holes in Tremoring's outfit. If he had veins, they would be popping out through his head from the irritation this fight brought. Finally he flew circles around Tremoring and landed straight behind him to confuse the warrior. Before he then unleashed a much bigger wave of fire that made it's mark and overwhelmed Tremoring.
"You warriors have proven to over estimate yourselves…!"The Pegasus mocked before getting spooked by the face of Tremoring that casually emerged from the fire.
The Pegasus felt it's pure burning heart jump before he was able to jump back. Putting distance between him and the pony of stone that stood steaming, but uninjured. The cinder felt his head burning with stress for the fact that this was officially a pony he could not hurt.
"Great…! I just got this outfit steam cleaned before coming to Ponyville,"Tremoring groaned as he looked to his smoking and tattered up clothes,"I can't possibly find the time to fix this, especially since I'm attending a party after this."
"I suppose it's a big shame on us for not taking you pesky Equestrian Warriors into account for our deeds,"The Pegasus admitted their miscalculation when it came to the warriors,"Just days after princess Luna's return, all of you have chosen to resurface like roaches hiding under rocks!"
"And so did you abominations… What mad stallion could have possibly created ponies like you?"Tremoring asked before noticing the cinder's hot coal eyes trailing towards the gingerbread building.
"A stallion of great vision… Vision of a world of fire, battle, and glory beyond the ordinary,"The cinder answered his question with a response that only brewed more questions,"And before we can make such a world… We must burn this new one… Full of soft and weak ponies, full of this soft harmony and peace… Something that betrays what the real world is truly all about."
"Wow… Your master must truly be a pony of immense madness beyond the ordinary."Tremoring mocked before Pinkie emerged from Sugar Cube Corners.
"Pops…! Aim for his heart!"Pinkie called before the cinder then turned his attention to her.
"We'll see about that…! Till then, how do you like your Pinkie Pie? Smoked or grilled!"The cinder asked before taking a big inhale to light Pinkie up with a roar of flames.
Tremoring was quick to speed up and jump right in front of the flaming pony of ash. He then reared back are strong right hay maker, as the cinder filled with roaring flames. He prepared to unleash his fiery fury, but was then silence by an earth shaking punch from Tremoring. His hay maker smashed a gaping hole clean through his chest, blasting a wind tunnel of force that carved a massive trench in the dirt. The power was becoming clear as it shook the whole town.
Clouds instantly parted ways as the force widened in size, going clear out of the town. The very same mountain that endured the fire finally shattered and crumbled apart. Slowly it crumbled to pieces and rolled down into the distant forests before the punch force slowly diminished. Leaving Tremoring with a labored breathing Pegasus of ash panting and losing his embers. He looked down to the cinder before yanking his hoof out of the enemy, and letting him fall backwards into the dirt.
"What a dirty move… Turning to some pony you can harm with little struggle,"Tremoring spat while he watched the cinder pony slowly begin to die,"You may be a whole new type of pony, but you're no different from the trash I've faced in the past…"
"It is the past… That defines you and us… Those were the glory days our master loved,"The cinder chuckled as he spit out old blood,"And so we will bring those days back…! Starting with.. The destruction of the royal sisters… And the elements of harmony…!"
"And you will lose…! Just as vile trash always did…!"Tremoring defiantly denied the cinder any pleasure in the thought of fulfilling their desires.
"We shall see…! When the Grand Galloping Gala comes around. When we are ready to attack in numbers,"The Pegasus chuckled as his vision went dark and cold,"With the sisters and elements in one spot…! All of us! And even Moltorious will come for all of you…! And there will be no victory for Orion or his friends…!"
With his message finally given to Tremoring himself to deliver to Orion. The cinder pony could settle in the dirt, chuckling as his fire faded and his body began to crumble apart. His chuckles slowly began to fade the moment his face crumbled and disintegrated to ash. By the end he was another spot of ash that could be carried off into the wind, no longer a danger to any pony. Tremoring watched the ashes disappear into the air, and sighed with relief before turning to Pinkie.
"Sorry to keep you waiting. I'm ready to go if you are."Tremoring responded as if the fight meant next to nothing to him.
"Oh pops…!"Pinkie rushed to him and gave the stone pony a big hug for his heroism and never wavering will.
Almost an hour later, Tremoring was able to clean up and get his hat before they were back on the dirt road. This time they were more than willing to head back to the farm with more positive attitudes. He may have spoiled the surprise, but that didn't bother him in the very least. Ruining a surprise beat lying and isolating the ponies he cared for by a major margin. Suddenly Tremoring was able to spot Rainbow Dash coming in hot the moment they neared the farm.
"Hey! Sorry for the long wait, but I was just about to come and get the both of you,"Rainbow said the moment she landed right before them and the farm itself,"I'm guessing you already told her about what we were doing?"
"Of course I did…! All of you may have agreed to be all sneaky and secretive with her,"Tremoring proudly replied to the rainbow Pegasus that notice his burnt up and tattered outfit,"But I never agreed to that. I came here to see a member of my family, plain and simple."
"Well… Guess it's not much of a surprise any more, but we got something set up just for you Pinkie."Rainbow Dash decided to come to peace with their spoiled surprise party.
"I'd be happy to… I honestly want to apologize for a few things any way,"Pinkie hugged her pops with one arm,"And I wanna say thank you to every pony for inviting my pops over for my birthday…!"
"You got it, over this way then birthday girl…!"Rainbow gestured them to follow before taking to the air once more.
They did just that, and followed the rainbow maned Pegasus into Sweet Apple Acres. The barn doors were opened and the music was already kicking up. Rainbow Dash flew in as fast as she could before Tremoring and Pinkie were next to enter and get a nice surprise.
"SURPRISE!"Every pony shouted and some how managed to surprise Pinkie and Tremoring still.
It wasn't the fact that the party looked amazing for it being in a barn, or the fact that it was just like a Pinkie Pie party. It was the fact that they all still had friendly smiling faces after how he acted. It was as if they were able to easily forgive and forget the fight from early.
"Wow…! Best birthday surprise party ever…!Thank you… All of you,"Pinkie rushed in and hugged her friends for the party they put together for her,"How could I have forgotten my own birthday…!?"
"It happens at times. You were too busy wanting to entertain and set up parties for others, you didn't realize it was your turn to be the life of the party."Typhoon kindly explained for her before Tremoring came in to join his fellow warriors.
"I'm so sorry how sour and crazy I've been. You all really liked me so much that you all wanted to throw a surprise party for me."Pinkie couldn't stress how happy she was that her friends really wanted to make this the best birthday party for her.
"Of course…! We wanted you to be surprised and finally just enjoy a party instead of always building one."Orion added before patting Tremoring's back.
"Awe… You're all my best friends ever! How could I have ever doubted you,"Pinkie asked as she looked to the birthday cake and back to her friends,"Not only that… But you were all willing to bring pops down from the rock farm just for me…!"
"No problem Pinkie. We ourselves should have realized that you wouldn't handle us just blowing you off so much,"Twilight admitted their fault in creating the surprise party as well,"Tremoring made that point clear to us, and Orion confirmed it when his crystal vision saw you talking to a turnip, a sack and a thing of lint."
"Yeah… I'm glad I wasn't getting replaced by a turnip…!"Rainbow Dash admitted while they all shared a laugh together.
"Alright every pony, enough of this gab, now. Lets part!"Applejack insisted before cranking up the music to get every pony dancing.
And so the mares all party, just as Spike had finally got back to the barn. He held an ice pack to his brand new shiner to compliment the one that had just healed from the last attack. He simply headed over, and stood by the warriors that watched the party continue. Orion nodded as he watched the mares play around till Spike tugged on his pants leg again. Orion looked down and saw the baby dragon with a less than amused look on his face before Typhoon offered him punch.
"Another run in with the cinder ponies, right?"Orion asked while Spike gave him a nod before Typhoon helped him drink a little punch.
"He came for Pinkie Pie this time, and claimed that both the elements of harmony and the royal sisters were an obstacle to their purpose,"Tremoring decided to relay the information he received from the dying cinder,"He also came with a warning…! He sai-"
Tremoring stopped the moment he saw that Orion walked over to Twilight. His ears drooped and another sigh left his lips before he decided to give the message to Spike. While Orion had made it over to Twilight just in time to see her pulling out the pen and scroll. The moment he saw who she was writing to, he kept a close eye on what was most certainly a friendship lesson. One that he would have to see before he knew and understood what it meant.
Dear Princess Celestia
I am writing to you from a most delightful party. I'm not only having a great time with my friends, but I was also given an opportunity to learn a valuable lesson about friendship. Always expect expect the best from your friends, and never assume the worst. Rest assured that a good friend always has your best interests at heart.
Your faithful student Twilight Sparkle
"Another lesson for the archives of friendship it seems. Enjoying the party?"Orion asked as Twilight rolled up her friendship lesson to prep it for a trip to Celestia.
"I sure am… Oh…I wish we had known how to keep things from getting shaky,"Twilight admitted that she was worried that their secretive antics nearly drove their friend crazy,"And another one of those cinder ponies almost killed Pinkie Pie…! All because we distanced ourselves from her…"
"We couldn't have known they would strike so suddenly. Besides, we didn't exactly message Tremoring Quake for nothing,"Orion admitted with chuckle and a sniffle from his still sore nose,"I knew he couldn't handle the surprise party. He was ready to go see her right off the back."
"I guess so… For a disgruntled and kind of cranky stallion, I honestly like how devoted he is to his family,"Twilight admitted as she looked to Tremoring chatting it up with Typhoon,"He kind of reminds me of how Applejack is with her family."
"Precambria slowly but surely got that morale planted within that living rock's heart,"Orion confided before another tug of his pants drew his attention to Spike,"Yes…? Is there something we can help you with?"
"Other than giving you a friendship lesson to send to the princess?"Twilight asked while Spike growled a bit until he was slyly given the scroll.
"Tremoring wanted me to tell you that he is sorry about the busted nose to start,"Spike started out while gripping the scroll tight and getting a bit serious,"Also, before you blew him off. He wanted to tell you about a warning the cinder pony left him with. A bunch of them are going to make a move on every pony here and the princesses at the Gala…!"
"What?!"Twilight and Orion exclaimed the moment this disturbing information was relayed.
"Yeah…! He made it sound like there was going to be a bunch of them,"Spike added to the message out of growing concern for their trip to the Gala,"Plus they talked about some pony named Moltorious. Sounded like he was a lot worse…!"
"What do we do…?"Twilight was baffled and a bit scared, and it forced her to look to Orion for help on what to do.
"We go to the Gala regardless… We don't let these cinders intimidate us by any means,"Orion made it very clear what they needed to do when the day of the Gala came,"If they follow through… Then we fight…! We know how to beat them now…! So if they show up, we beat these ashen ponies into nothing…!"
This one was a bit strenuous and hard to crank out, but I did it folks. Season finally is almost here every pony! And it's only the beginning of the grand journey to come. So I hope you're strapped in. After The Best Night Ever, there will be a small break on the story so I can do an origin story for one lucky warrior, and to kick off a brand new story. So stay tuned, and stay pony every one.