Author's Notes:

Well this took a while. But revisions aren't easy to do. Hope you all enjoy!

There he stood. There he was. Twilight stood still, paralysed. All she could do was stare at the being in front of her, the alien from the videos onboard that extraterrestrial vessel. ‘M-Markovich?’ Her mouth agape. It was a shock to say the least. Twilight had thought that the image was from a time long before her own. But now that she could see this ‘doctor’ with her own eyes, Twilight could see that this ‘human’ looked about as old as he was in the ‘video’. “Y-you…” She took a moment to breath in before she continued, “how did you get here?”

Makoy raised his eyebrow. “How… do you know me?”

Twilight felt a presence to her right. She turned to see Rarity. “I beg your pardon if this sounds rude. But… when one sees you responsible for the death of your own kind, it’s rather hard to not to forget a moment like that.”

“Ah. So you have been to the ship I was ‘traveling’ in.” Makoy chuckled. “I am also surprised you got our technology to work. You aren’t exactly a first stage civilization now, are you?”

“What’s that supposed to mean, Professor Loopy?” said Pinkie Pie, quickly joining Twilight and Rarity. It was a rare thing indeed to see Pinkie Pie, out of all ponies, in a state of anger like this.

“Oh, don’t take it too personally.” He glanced at the walls surrounding them. “A primitive structure like this. A hut, if you will, shows your race far from being technologically advanced.”

“You’re calling us primitive beasts?” Rarity gasped. “How dare you! We are sophisticated beings, unlike yourself!”

“And we do have the capabilities to make technology. It may not be advanced as yours, Markovich. However, we pride ourselves in what we have.” Twilight flared her wings, adding to the reaction with a glare.

Markovich simply stared, folding his arms against his back. “There’s no need to get your feathers in a ruffle.” He smirked, and Rarity and Pinkie Pie glared at him in return. “And I really thought first contact with an alien race would go more smoothly.”

“It only hasn’t because of what you’ve done with the Xenomorphs,” said Twilight as she folded her wings.

He raised an eyebrow at her. “How do you know about the species XX121?”

“Please. That abomination of an ‘animal’!” Rarity faked a gagging noise before she returned her attention. “Your videos were simply horrendous! How could you do that to one of your own?”

“How? She went against the protocols that were strictly stated on our colony of the moon, Erebus. For breaking rule number two-three dash five, illegally distributing narcotic substances across the colony, the consequence is supposed to be harsh.” For a moment, he scanned their expressions. “Although you all are reacting very negatively to it. Of course it’s expected, but there’s something that you’re hiding.”

“Hiding? What could we possibly have to hide from you?” Twilight quickly saw the trap he had laid and hoped they could avoid the question.

“You saw something… didn’t you?” He took a step forward. “There’s something that happened on the ship I came in on. Those marines… brutes as they were. They were dealing with a problem that caused them to crash.” He rested his right hand under his chin, and his eyes widened. “There’s one here… that’s what you’re hiding.”

Twilight watched as he put the pieces together. He had figured it out so quickly! She could only look away, flustered yet angry that he had found out so quickly. She could hear him chuckling, to which she growled quietly. “There’s one on this planet. You know of the ferocity it holds, then. That’s the reason why you’re all so angry.”

“It’s a party pooper is what that fiend is!” Pinkie stomped a hoof on the ground.

“Well then, there’s an easy fix to your problem.”

“What are you talking about?”

Makoy smiled. “I have a remedy to the problem you are having with the Xenomorph. However, I must first speak with the leading power of your world. Unless this is an era of time I think it is, then just take me to the leaders of your country.”

Twilight’s frown deepened. “And if we don’t?”

“Then you’ll have to figure this problem out yourself. Although with how little you must know about this creature, I’m guessing you already have others you couldn’t save. If you want that number to stay as low as possible, then let me talk to your leaders, and I can propose a compromise to your situation.”

Twilight looked to the ground and considered the possible choices she had before her. Only a few seemed to speak up the most. The first option was the one he had proposed, but how could she trust him being so close to the other princesses? The other choices were to refuse but get no possible information on the Xenomorph. A rock and a hard place. Almost too fitting. She sighed and returned her gaze to her friends. “Do we have a choice?” Rarity, Pinkie, and Fluttershy seemed to be at a loss for words. They shortly brought their gaze back to hers and hesitantly nodded.

Twilight sighed and turned her attention to Markovich. “Okay… on one condition. You tell us what you know about the Xenomorph once you’re done talking with the other princesses.”

“Princesses? Interesting leadership choice… but yes, I will keep my word.” Markovich slowly nodded.

“Okay then.” Twilight turned to her friends. “Would you wait outside with Makoy for a few moments?” They acknowledged, but Pinkie and Rarity held frowns, whereas Fluttershy seemed a little too nervous to reply. Tense as it was, Twilight couldn’t blame her. They filed out of Zecora’s open door with Markovich at the end of the line. Once they disappeared, Twilight turned to Zecora. “Thank you for keeping an eye on him. We should be able to handle him from here.”

Zecora nodded. “Do handle this situation with care. I fear that he may lead you into a snare.”

“Don’t worry. I think this human won’t be getting off that easy.” Caution was not going to wander from her mind; Twilight was sure of that. She leaned forward and hugged Zecora. “Take care, okay?” Zecora nodded, and Twilight turned towards the exit. Whatever was to happen, she felt that Princess Celestia and Luna were more than capable in handling Makoy.

Twilight opened the door to her library and scanned the lobby. She sighed, a faint smile on her lips. Spike and Nyx weren’t here, or at least they were probably upstairs. She looked over her shoulder, and her gaze hardened at the sight of Makoy. She ordered, “Alright. Go sit over there on that couch. I need to go upstairs and get a letter ready for the princess.” She watched as he obediently followed her orders and sat down.

Twilight slitted her eyes. It was surprising to see somepony… or somebody who killed fellow humans and yet followed her whim. He was up to something, Twilight was certain of that. She looked upstairs and opened up her room’s door. Inside were Spike and Nyx, who were sharing one of Spike’s Power Ponies comic books. Nyx looked up first and smiled. “Mom!”

She slightly flinched as Nyx ran to her and hugged her. Twilight returned the embrace. “Hey there, Nyx.” She looked over the filly’s right shoulder and said, “Hey, Spike? Everything okay since I’ve been gone?”

Spike lowered his comic book and nodded. “Everything’s been quiet. Heck, I’d say this is a new record for Ponyville.”

Twilight smiled and playfully shook her head. ‘If only that were true…’ But she couldn’t worry them. They were too young to deal with problems as frightening and gruesome as this one. She let go of Nyx and closed the door behind them. After that, she moved over to her desk and opened a drawer, taking out a parchment before handing it over to Spike. “Could you take a quick message for me?”

He looked back up, a hint of an annoyed expression, but he simply shrugged. “Sure.” He took the parchment, and Twilight levitated a quill over to his right hand. She cleared her throat and then spoke. “Dear Princess Celestia. While I was in Ponyville today, Zecora brought me and the girls to her hut today. We discovered that she had a being that was… unfortunately somebody we’d hoped to never meet.” She looked back to Spike, who raised an eyebrow at her. “It’s nothing, Spike. Really.” Twilight breathed in before she continued. “Due to the importance of this being, could you please send a carriage to the library as soon as possible? Your former student, yet faithful friend, Twilight Sparkle.”

She nodded to Spike, who blew out a green fire that dissolved the paper and sent it towards Canterlot Palace. “So you’re still not going to tell us what you found, huh?”

Twilight nodded. “It’s not important to you two anyway. I don’t want you guys to worry over nothing.” She smiled and said, “By the way, I need you two to stay up here a little longer.”

“Why’s that?” Nyx asked, tilting her head slightly.

“As I said earlier, it’s nothing to worry about. There’s something in the lobby that needs to be kept a secret, okay?” Twilight watched as Spike just simply shrugged before picking up his comic book. She turned to Nyx and got a more hesitant nod. She kneeled down and ran a hoof through Nyx’s mane. “Don’t worry. I’ll be alright. Just stay up here with Spike, okay?” Twilight stood up and walked through the doorway and closed it quietly once more.

She walked down the stairs and frowned when she saw Makoy standing in front of one the bookshelves. He glanced over his shoulder. “Well, it’s certainly funny how similar our languages are. No wonder communication between our races hasn’t met with difficulties.”

“I still can’t figure out if that’s a positive or a negative for us,” Twilight replied, her gaze not leaving the book in his hand.

“Why are you so adamant about trying to make it harder for the both of us? There’s much that our two species can learn from one another. Sure, you aren’t as technologically advanced as my civilization, but maybe we could help you with that?” A page from the book he held crinkled as he turned to a new one. “It’s intriguing to see the stories you have. Almost uncanny at how the similarities check out between our race’s mythology.” Twilight was silent, unsure of what she should say next. He seemed to notice this and fully turned around. “Are you still mad about what you saw on the first video?”

“How can I not be?”

Makoy only chuckled. “You must understand that the company Weyland-Yutani adheres to a strict set of rules. We have to follow the mandates set by the company.”

“But why?” Twilight shook her head. She couldn’t even imagine following a directive that forced her to hurt other ponies. “What do you gain from hurting and killing others?”

“It’s a matter of what you’re willing to sacrifice,” Makoy simply said. “You see, a scientist must not be afraid of going to the extremes to get results.”

“In some cases, that may be true. But even then, a scientist must have an ethic code while they’re working,” Twilight insisted. “There’s got to be a line that we can’t cross.”

“Oh, so you’re a scientist as well? Judging from the books and your vocabulary, I thought there was something that I recognized.” His expression seemed to brighten, if only slightly. “This may be off topic, but what are your feelings towards religion?”

Twilight faltered a little. “Well… I don’t know why it’s so important to you, but I dabble on the subject here and there.”

“Huh… I feel like I should have seen that coming.” Twilight could only frown at his comment. “Religion is a culture of death, you know? In our civilization, it has caused nothing but harm to others. For centuries, our kind had fought with one another, claiming their religion was ‘the solution’ to all problems. And if you didn’t follow them, then you were subjected to torture and even worse things until you died or converted. Fortunately, I don’t bother with such nonsense.”

“You say religion is a culture of death, yet science can be the same if you lose sight of morality,” Twilight pointed out.

“Of course science is dangerous, but in the right hands you can improve people’s lives. It’s even better than what religion has to offer.”

Twilight shook her head. “Even still, we ponies have relied on the leadership of the princesses to guide us forward. That’s why faith is so important to us. It takes both faith and science to have progress.”

“How naive. So your subjects prefer to look at you as gods?”

Another question that surprised her. She looked at the ground, faltered by another question of his. “I… we aren’t technically strong enough to be gods.”

“All the more proof that there are no true gods.” Twilight took a step back, frowning at what he said.

“You know, I’m beginning to wonder if all humans are this caustic and cruel.”

“I’d hold your tongue if I were you. You claim that my species is cruel, yet what can you say about yours? You make it sound as if you ponies have no bad history, but I believe Zecora’s books differ from your opinions.” Twilight’s frown only deepened at what he was about to say. “Zecora’s books were clear on the fact that unicorns, pegasi, and earth ponies fought with one another long ago and that the details on a few known battles were particularly gruesome. If your species was really so pure at the beginning, then why were there battles for power? How can you tell yourself these lies when in reality ponies today are still bad?”

Twilight didn’t know what to say. How could she counter something that was true? Of course, ponies weren’t as bad as they were back then. But as encounters with ponies like Trixie, Suri Polomare, and even Flim & Flam had shown, ponies still had a long way to go. She flicked her ears back to her front door and saw two Royal Guards standing in the doorway. It was perfect timing. “Could you two escort this human to Princess Celestia?” The two nodded, so she ushered Makoy over to them. Like before, he didn’t hesitate and went where he was supposed to go.

The door closed as the guards left with Makoy. She let out a relieved sigh, then, hearing hoofsteps, looked up to see Nyx staring back at her. She gulped and shook a little. “Is that… thing gone?”

Twilight nodded to her adopted daughter, but frowned. “I told you to not come down here.” Nyx looked down to the ground. Twilight, however, brought a hoof to her daughter’s chin and lifted her eyes to meet her own. “I’m just glad you kept quiet.”

“What was that thing talking about? I know that some ponies aren’t good, but why was he being so mean to you?”

She glanced to the wall at her right and murmured, “Don’t worry about it so much. He was going to be mean anyway.” Twilight returned her gaze to Nyx’s and said, “I’m going to go down to the basement for a bit. Stay up here, okay?” Nyx nuzzled her right shoulder and nodded.

With that, she walked to the stairs leading down to the basement. As she descended downwards, what Makoy had said brought her back to reality. ‘Did I trick myself into believing that ponies are good? Am I really that gullible?’ It could be possible. But could she really accept that? How could she; a mare that had accomplished so much under the tutelage of Princess Celestia fall into a pit like this?

And how long had this been going on? It was a scary thought that she could convince herself of a thing like this. She shook her head. ‘I can’t let somebody like him get to me.’ She walked down the final step and scanned her basement. Her eyes rested on her saddlebag. Twilight blinked once before she moved over to it. She reached her right hoof into the pack and felt it brush past a metal object. She pulled it out and sighed at the device that held the remainder of the videos.

What other horrors awaited Twilight within this device? After the first video, she could only guess at how gruesome the rest of it was. She breathed in and summoned the courage she could. ‘I… I can handle it.’ She pressed the glowing button and watched as a graphic display showed up with the phrase ‘Video One’. Knowing that she had already watched the first one, she looked to an arrow on the right side of the three-dimensional screen.

She raised her hoof up to it, and the screen whited out for a second before showing the phrase ‘Video Two’. Twilight then brought her hoof to the words. She gasped as its screen widened against the wall, dropping it and backing away from the alien device. There were a few quiet beeps, then Makoy appeared on the screen. “Greetings again from Weyland-Yutani.” Twilight slowly stood up.

A couple steps was all it took before she sat down, frowning at the “doctor” on-screen. “Today is the day we shall show you what we have learned about the Xenomorph’s life cycle within these past couple of weeks.” He cleared his throat until images appeared on his right. “The first image you’ll see here is of a meter-tall egg.” A three-foot egg? That was big. Almost as tall as most ponies, if not a foot shorter than ponies her size. “When we first discovered these specimens on the former colony of Hadley’s Hope, we quickly contained them and brought them aboard our shuttle. Then a handful of scientists went to work. Studying. Measuring. Testing for what kind of materials this egg casing was made out of. However, we were unprepared for what was to happen next."

Twilight saw the video change from him to what appeared to be the lab he was describing. She leaned forward, watching four scientists surrounding the egg. It certainly looked off-putting, but still, Twilight was intrigued by the sight of this egg. But the egg began to move. The top of it bloomed outward like some kind of flower. She jumped back as a creature leaped out from within the egg’s slimy depths, attaching itself to the scientist’s face on the far right. It was so sudden.

“As you saw. The first stage of this creature hardly seems like a threat at all. But it can leap towards its designated target only within a fraction of a second and has the jumping capability to cover distances of over a dozen feet.” The video resumed as the scientist struggled to pull the spider-like creature off its face. Its screams muffled, Twilight covered her mouth with her right hoof. “We had this scientist moved to a containment chamber, but what came next hours later stunned us all.”

The video changed locations once again, Twilight still intently staring at the screen. Mouth slightly agape, she watched as the video fast-forwarded in time until the spider-like creature had fallen off. The human scientist got up and looked around like nothing was wrong. Twilight flinched as she heard it scream in agony, body convulsing as something looked like it tried to break its way out of the human’s chest.

Mere moments passed until she flinched again at the sight of blood spraying the walls and ceiling. There within the mess of the human’s chest was something small. Yet when she noticed its eyeless gaze, she gasped to see the same monster from before, but in a smaller, larval stage. “The first stage before this creature is called a Facehugger. As for this being, it’s the second stage before the full Xenomorph transformation. It is called a Chestburster.”

Although the names were a bit more literal than she liked, Twilight could see why they were designated as such. “As with human versions of the Xenomorph, they take on a more bipedal appearance but can still travel around on all fours with just as much ease. We’ve even clocked them at being able to travel at about sixty miles per-hour within a few short seconds. It can even crawl on any surface, so long as its feet have contact against a solid surface.” She thought back to the first day they encountered the Xenomorph. After seeing it run on the wall to her right, not to mention catching up with her with little effort, it all made sense.

“But that’s not all. After watching a human become impregnated, we decided to try the test on three different animals.” The video’s scenery changed again; Twilight’s eyes widened at what she saw. In three chambers, she saw three different animals. Two she recognized, that being a dog and a horse. The third test subject completely threw her off; she could not figure out what the one in the middle was. “These are the next three test subjects. Man’s best friend, the dog. Man’s closest relative, the chimpanzee. And finally, Man’s pack carrier, the horse.”

Twilight couldn’t bring her gaze off the horse. Sure, though ponies and horses were of different sizes, and this horse wasn’t as colorful as the inhabitants of her world, they were still nearly the same. She watched as three eggs rose from underneath the floor. All the animals looked on in curiosity, nearing the slime covered substances. The dog was the first to begin barking wildly, leaping up while standing on its hind legs. The chimpanzee screeched and yanked on the leash holding it to the pole, the ground cracking underneath where it was strung to. Yet when she heard the horse neigh in fright, it froze her to where she sat. ‘No… please, don’t do this. Don’t hurt it…’ Twilight only hoped that the camera would look away, but her plea would not be answered.

As the eggs all opened, the three animals got louder, and their movements only became more sporadic. The dog fell to the ground first, whining and yelping as the facehugger tightened its grip around its muzzle. The bar holding the chimpanzee broke, but it reacted too late. It grabbed and clawed at the facehugger on its face, but to no avail. But Twilight teared up when she turned to the horse. It was the last one as the egg sac opened. The facehugger jumped onto its muzzle, causing the horse to neigh franticly.

Twilight tried to cover her ears, but the cries of the horse seemed to echo in her mind. As she looked to the ground, tears dripped onto the wooden floor below where she sat. Shaking, she slowly looked up to the screen and saw the horse laying on its side, quiet and unmoving. It was the same with the chimpanzee and dog. “A little side note.” She watched as Makoy reappeared on the screen. “As the facehugger latches on, it knocks the victim unconscious due to the lack of air. It compensates for it and gives its host the needed air. But while it goes on, it begins to pulsate as it impregnates the host with its parasite, that being the Xenomorph.”

She could only stare at the man that was responsible for hurting these innocent creatures. She thought it’d be best to not show Fluttershy this part specifically, if she ever worked up the courage to do so. The video fast-forwarded in time again until the animals were slowly standing up. Yet as soon as they did, the dog fell back to the ground, whining in extreme pain, legs flailing. Twilight couldn’t help but imagine Winona in the dog’s place. It was only a moment later did its chest burst open. The chestburster screeched as it slithered out of its host’s body.

Then the chimpanzee began to screech, body convulsing before another chestburster emerged violently. But her gaze finally led her to the horse. She watched as it neighed, leaping up on its hind legs before falling to the ground. Twilight’s cries began to escalate in volume. Instead of a horse, she saw her friends and family in its place, each one of them screaming in agony: Shining Armor, Princess Celestia, Cadance, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy. When the alien embryo finally broke through its chest, it was Nyx whom she saw dying, causing Twilight to let out a bloodcurdling scream.

Twilight fell flat onto the ground, crying and shaking from the sight. She didn’t dare to look up at the screen anymore. “So now you see. This is how the Xenomorphs are birthed into this world. It certainly is a deadly process, but there is a beauty in it as well.” She didn’t dare to look up to Markovich. She couldn’t bring herself to. “This has been the life cycle of the Xenomorphs. I hope to see you all later.”

Her horn lit up in a magenta aura, the light encasing the power button on the alien device and turned it off before the next video could play. Twilight couldn’t handle it anymore. ‘Why… why did he do that? They couldn’t even defend themselves.’ She continued to sob. Twilight shook uncontrollably. How could she not after watching something so terrifying?

She raised her head. She bent her ears back and heard the squeak of the floorboards, but it wasn’t that which caught her attention. It was the quiet crying behind her. Twilight stood up and turned herself around, her teary gaze falling upon her daughter, Nyx, who was crying as well. “N-Nyx...” Nyx flinched and hesitantly met her gaze. “How long were you down here?” Twilight watched as the filly tried to speak, but couldn’t even utter a single word.

Twilight’s frown deepened. She was furious that Nyx had disobeyed her again, yet how could she take her anger out on her daughter? Watching the traumatic sequence of deaths was too much for somepony her age to handle. Twilight walked over to her daughter and gently wrapped her forelegs around her. “You shouldn’t have seen that… you’re too young…”

“I… I-I-I’m sorry…” Nyx shakily murmured, her cries a little louder.

Twilight only tightened her grip on Nyx. She shushed her daughter, running a hoof through her mane. “It’s okay… everything will be okay.”

“Mom… that thing… o-on the s-screen. It’s… n-not h-here… right?”

Twilight froze. How could she answer this question? If Nyx knew the truth, she’d be terrified, even more so than she already was. She looked her daughter in the eyes and murmured, “Of course not. There’s no reason to worry about it.” Twilight nuzzled her daughter and smiled. “Please don’t tell Spike about this, okay? He doesn’t need to see this either.”

Nyx slowly nodded before pressing the right side of her muzzle against Twilight’s shoulder. “O-okay…”

She looked up to the stairs as she heard footsteps. She saw Spike running down with a letter in his hand. “Twilight, you got an invitation from the princess.” He stopped at the top of the last set of stairs and stared at the two. He raised an eyebrow and asked, “Is everything okay?”

She rubbed her eyes quickly, ridding herself of the tears before nodding. “An invitation?” Twilight lifted the parchment towards her, the light from her horn illuminating the words.

‘Dear Twilight, Thank you for bringing this survivor to the palace in Canterlot. Although he has been rather quiet, we are certain we shall get something out of him. However, what’s been going on in Ponyville needs to be addressed. I wish to see you tonight along with my sister, Cadance, and your brother, Shining Armor. We shall discuss what the next steps should be now that the Xenomorph has been contained. Sincerely, Princess Celestia.’

Twilight blinked once and sighed. “You two will be alright if I’m gone for a bit, right?” Spike nodded while Nyx hesitantly did the same. She nuzzled her daughter and murmured. “I won’t be gone for long, okay?” Twilight let her go and walked up the stairs, letting out another sigh. She had to get prepared first before heading off. It was urgent that this information she had learned be told to the other princesses. ‘I know it will be difficult to watch their reactions, but they must know how the Xenomorph is created. It’s important… even with the terror that its birth can cause.’

With the last spray of the perfume bottle, Twilight looked at herself in the mirror. Odd to think about herself as beautiful, even though she’d never admit it. Her mane was tied into a bun with a couple strands of hair resting in front of her ears. She folded them back and continued to stare at herself from the mirror’s angle. She shook her head as a blush appeared. “Oh, don’t be so dramatic. Everything’s going to be fine.” Hardly did she imagine the idea of dating somepony else, since she had nopony at the moment.

But with one last look, she blinked and thought about the meeting tonight. Ears pointed up again with a frown on her muzzle. This meeting didn’t foretell anything bad necessarily. Although if she was to be honest with herself, Princess Celestia’s reasoning behind this was related to the topic of that monster. The Xenomorph, as she had most recently learned, could’ve been a creature of artificial life.

Even if it was just a guess based on the images from the video she had watched hours ago, the way it was born seemed to hint at something beyond the normal way a creature was made. ‘Then again, we have Spider Wasps that lay their eggs inside spiders. The larvae from the wasps hatch inside the arachnid and kill it.’

However, from watching this creature as long as she had, there was something that disturbed her about it. A creature such as this Xenomorph seemed impossible. It had a strength to surpass Applejack’s, and her friend was hardly a pushover. ‘Applejack can knock apples out of its tree with just one of her back legs making contact.’ The Xenomorph even showed the capability of striking with a terrifying velocity, catching Rainbow Dash with its spear-like tail. Rainbow Dash, out of all ponies, was the fastest pegasi she knew of. ‘How close Rainbow Dash had come to death… it’s so horrifying to see a creature with both strength and speed.’

So terrifying; a creature with such strength and ferocity that outmatched a Manticore’s. And a speed that even matched the cheetah’s from Zebrica. Although after what Markovich’s old video suggested, the Xenomorph could maintain this rate of speed for as long as it desired. It sent shudders down her spine. She closed her eyes and breathed in and out. ‘There’s no point in worrying now.’ Once the meeting with Celestia was at the forefront of her thoughts again, she reopened her eyes. ‘Right. There’s a meeting I have to attend.’ Whatever Celestia had to say, Twilight hoped there was a plan to get rid of the Xenomorph for good.

A knock on the door echoed from downstairs. She turned to the noise and thought it could’ve been her escort. Twilight exited her bathroom and scanned her room. She saw a blanket rising up and down, smiling to see that a familiar drake’s tail poking out from underneath. She quietly giggled at Spike, but there was one more pony she had to check on. Twilight moved over to another door and opened it to a new room.

Although it was a bit dark, she could see the bed at the far end of the room. Quietly, she made her way to the filly underneath the covers. Twilight smiled at Nyx, leaned down and kissed her forehead. “Good night, Nyx.” She turned around and headed to her front door.

Opening it up, she saw two Royal Guards. As soon as they saw her, they bowed and said, “Your Highness, are you ready to depart?”

Twilight stood still for a moment before she nodded. “Yes.” She followed the two to the carriage. One of them opened the door for her, and she hesitantly thanked him with a nod. She took a seat on the left side. It was a few moments until she felt the carriage move and the two pegasi take off. As the wind quietly howled outside the carriage, Twilight sighed. “Alright… at least I got some time to myself.”

She straightened herself and closed her eyes. ‘There’s so much going on. It’s not that I disprove of the things my friends and I have gone through. It’s just that what we’re all going through right now feels like more than we can handle. First it was the Xenomorph, and that thing is more than a hooffull to deal with. But we also have a psychotic stallion who possibly murdered Berryshine.’ Another pony committing such an act had not happened in a very long time.

However, two more factors had been added to the fray. Her eyes tightened as she thought back to the encounter with Makoy Markovich. ‘He came from the crashed alien ship. How did he survive when all the others didn’t?’ She shook her head. The question only continued to baffle her, and yet it wasn’t the only problem. ‘All that information I’ve gained. Was it really worth the things that I had to see? Was it really worth the death that was shown to me?’

She sat there in silence, the blustery wind being the only obstacle keeping her from a completely noiseless isolation. There was only so much she could do. And to top it all off, she wasn’t even a princess of anything. Sure, she had some influence since her brother was married to Princess Cadance, but even then it still didn’t amount to much. Normally, it hardly discouraged her from much.

A couple lights passed her by; Twilight looked out to see that the palace was a little closer now. She sighed quietly, the frown on her lips replaced with a smile. “There’s no need to worry yourself.” She placed her right hoof against her chest, breathing in before she exhaled, bringing her hoof in front of her as the trick she learned from Cadance worked. More lights flickered as the carriage passed the city of Canterlot below.

The carriage approached a landing deck. She hardly felt a bump as the guards finally came to a slow stop. She heard hoofsteps outside the right side of her carriage. The door opened, and one of the guards ushered her to exit. Twilight stood up and slowly made her way down the carriage’s few steps. She nodded her thanks to the two and proceeded forward.

Once she passed underneath the towering arch above her, the door to the palace opened, encased in a familiar magenta aura. Twilight smiled when she saw Shining Armor, a smile of his own as he adorned their uncle’s military uniform. “Hey, Twily!” She trotted up and hugged him. “Thanks for coming. Celestia was hoping that this short notice didn’t inconvenience you.”

Twilight shook her head. “Everything’s alright. I’m glad she sent for me.” If it was to get away from that horrible device for the time being, then by all means, it was a very well-timed escape. But the smile on her muzzle disappeared. “This is about the Xenomorph, isn’t it?”

Shining nodded. “Unfortunately.” He ushered her to walk with him. “I wish our meetings weren’t related to problems threatening Equestria. It’d be nice to hang out with my little sister.” He playfully nudged her. To which she replied with the same nudge; the two laughed moments after. It was nice, Twilight thought, that there were these small moments of joy. “So how are your friends?”

She sighed. “Applejack is doing alright. The doctor, Needle Pin, said she’s going to be released tomorrow morning.” She heard that Granny Smith was going to help her back. It returned that smile to her muzzle.

“And what about Rainbow Dash?”

That smile disappeared as soon as it came. “She’s… Needle Pin said that it’s going to take longer for her to recover. He thinks she’ll be ready after resting for a week.”

A hoof wrapped around her shoulders. Twilight turned to Shining Armor and smiled. “Hey, I may not know much about Rainbow Dash… well, besides the fact that she’s one of the fastest fliers I’ve ever seen, but she seems like a strong mare. And I don’t think she’s going to give up that easily.”

Twilight quietly chuckled. “Oh, you have no idea.” Her brother turned towards an open door, where she was greeted to a long table. She had seen the dining room before; with how big the room was, the white satin cloth over the gold colored table, it certainly screamed royalty. Celestia waved to her, adorned in a very brightly colored dress. The vibe Twilight received from it almost made her think Celestia actually was some deity.

When she turned to Luna, she received a nod from her. The attire she wore was darker with a few bright accents. It certainly brought out that night-like look.

But then she saw her sister-in-law, Cadance, waving her over, and Twilight couldn’t help but smile. Cadance, of course, was in her official Crystal Empire gown. Twilight took a seat next to her and hugged her. “Hey there, Twilight.” Cadance giggled.

“It’s nice to see you too, Cadance.” Twilight pulled away. She looked to Shining Armor, who took the right seat next to Cadance. “And how are you two doing? Have you gone back to the Crystal Empire yet?”

Shining nodded. “Yeah, but only for a little bit.”

“Besides, we still need to deal with this… thing, after all.” Twilight’s smile faded away. It was hard to even keep one, especially with such a terrifying monster out there. She felt a hoof rest on her shoulder. “Hey, don’t worry,” said Cadance. “I’m sure we’ll figure this out.” Twilight simply nodded.

“By the way, I noticed that the Luna and Celestia are here. So who’s providing the shield to contain the Xenomorph?” Twilight asked.

Cadance only giggled. “Don’t worry. Celestia left a timer on the shield. It shouldn’t be going out anytime soon. Luna should be able to reach it in time before it goes out.”

“Thank you all for coming.” Twilight turned to Celestia, who nodded at her. She smiled back and waited for Celestia to continue. “As everypony here knows, we have a creature to deal with. The Xenomorph, the name of which Twilight discovered, has been trapped for sometime.”

“We have not just called you three alone here because this should remain a secret,” Luna said. “The fact is, we have… ‘decided’ to speak with the being that Twilight brought here today.” Twilight froze. It didn’t take but a second to figure out whom Luna was talking about.

“What did Twilight find?” Cadance asked as she turned to her aunts.

“Twilight has found a… being.” Celestia’s frown deepened. “And although this being is not as cooperative as I’d like him to be, we thought that asking him to dinner was an appropriate idea.”

A knock on the dining room’s door echoed throughout the large room. Everypony turned to see the being in question standing at the entrance. Twilight stared at the human known as Makoy Markovich. “Greetings,” Makoy simply said, walking towards the dining table with his hands behind his back. He pulled the adjacent chair across from Celestia out, took his seat and slowly scanned over everypony.

“Now… Dr. Markovich,” Celestia began. “Would you be alright with telling us about your world? It’s simply for the process of getting a better understanding of your world’s cultures and customs.”

“Of course.” Markovich cleared his throat before he began. “Firstly, Miss Twilight Sparkle here has a slight head start on you because of the videos. But this is where I’ll fill in the blanks. We are a civilization that has recently ascended to the stars in exploration. There are a number of planets and/or moons under our colonization. The place we came from is a planet called Earth.”

“Earth?” Celestia titled her head.

“Yes. A planet that is filled with life. We’ve done our best to keep it habitable. It’s easier when more room is cleared up after you send thousands and even millions of your own kind off planet.”

“What’s the total population of your race?” Shining Armor crossed his forelegs over one another.

“About eleven point seven billion humans in total.” Twilight’s jaw dropped. Makoy scanned the ponies and chuckled. “Judging by your expressions. I can assume that the number of my kind’s population exceedingly overwhelms yours?”

Celestia simply nodded. Twilight glanced at a unicorn servant making her way towards her former mentor. She whispered something to Celestia before she nodded. She returned her attention to Makoy. “This may be off topic. But is your kind herbivores, or are you only carnivores?” She spoke the last word with a hint of concern.

“Both, actually. Omnivores, if you want the specific classification of our species’ eating habits.” Makoy chuckled afterwards. “Why? Is dinner arriving?”

“Yes. And I had a special part of my cooking staff, my charcuteries and other such meat-related cooks had some plates prepared specifically for you.” Twilight shivered at the thought of seeing any type of meat. It had been a very long time since she had heard about how Griffons prepare their meals, as well as other such carnivorous neighbors. Even in the world of her human friends, she had seen them eat meat. After seeing someone eating a hamburger and figuring out it was made from cow meat, she promptly pushed that plate away. Thank goodness that world’s Fluttershy introduced her to ‘veggie burgers,’ which reminded her of Equestria’s hayburgers.

Then the scent of food attracted her. She turned to the door and saw the first five servants with plates making their way towards the large dining table. When her plate came, she was pleased to see a salad in front of her. Twilight lifted the fork on the left side of the plate and brought a small portion of it to her mouth. She smiled at texture of it, the flavors of the asparagus, sugar snap peas, and bowtie pasta. Twilight took another bite.

However, a new pungent odor came into the air. She covered her nose as the smell of cooked meat filled the air. Twilight turned to see a griffon bringing the dish to Makoy. The human smiled and picked up a knife in his right hand and a fork in his left. She couldn’t take her eyes away from the sight; she watched as the knife cut into a part of the steak. Twilight was brought back to the video. She saw the horse die again. This cycle of violence seemed to keep going on over and over. She flinched as a hoof brushed her shoulder. “Twilight?” Cadance asked. “Are you alright?”

Twilight stared into her sister-in-law’s eyes for a few moments. She quickly nodded. “Y-yes. I’m fine.” If only that were the truth.

“This food is absolutely wonderful, Princess,” Makoy said. “My compliments to the chef.”

“So onto the topic at hoof here.” Celestia levitated her fork close to her mouth. “Where were you born on this ‘Earth?’”

Makoy swallowed another portion of his sirloin and looked up. “The country I was born in is called Russia. I was raised in a small town, Srednekolymsk.” This was new. Twilight had only heard him speak a language she understood. But the name of his hometown certainly had a different language to it. “But that part isn’t important. What is important is that I grew up there. I studied at a college in my republic, Yakutsk. I learned about the human anatomy and other such biological processes. Then a company picked me up and I’ve been working there ever since.”

“And what is the name of this company?”

The human stopped his cutting and stared down at the remaining half portion of his food. “My company’s name is Weyland-Yutani.” He turned to Celestia. “And you… are dealing with something that belongs to the company. Am I right?”

Celestia’s eyes widened. Twilight could see shocked expressions on Luna, her brother and her sister-in-law. “How do you know about that monster?” Shining asked.

“It wasn’t that difficult to understand. The ship I was on crashed for some reason. The planet we left was being overrun by the Xenomorph. As for who is to blame for that? Well, the United States Colonial Marines didn’t help the situation any further. They were the ones who brought one of those things here,” Makoy said.

Twilight furrowed her brow. There was something he wasn’t saying, a secret that she could tell he was hiding. She was going to get to the bottom of it. “So you say.” Celestia nodded. “So tell me, what exactly is this Xenomorph? We have learned that it is an extraterrestrial--”

“An extraterrestrial, yes, but it wasn’t naturally made.” Twilight frowned at Makoy’s interruption of the princess. “You see, XX121, or the Xenomorph, is a biological creation of another extraterrestrial species which we believe to be long extinct. The company has only just recently learned of this. I can tell you this much without revealing anything else: it is a creature, however hostile and devastating it may be, that holds a beauty that surpasses any of my home world’s indigenous species.”

Luna turned her gaze to Markovich. “You may find beauty in it, but we do not think the same. ‘Without revealing anything else’. What are you trying to hide?”

Makoy finished his sirloin steak and set his utensils down onto the plate. He wiped the corner of his lips with a napkin before he spoke. “You see, although we have learned that it is of an artificial origin, Weyland-Yutani has been given all rights to the Xenomorph. Therefore, because of our planet’s rules on ‘first discovery’ policy, the Xenomorph falls under Weyland-Yutani jurisdiction.”

Luna looked confounded, aghast. Twilight had never seen her so angry before. “Under Weyland-Yutani’s jurisdiction? This… beast has claimed the lives of eight ponies so far. And there could be more if we were not keeping it contained. If anything, this monster falls under the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of Equestria. You and your company have no power here.”

The human only stared at her. “Earth’s policy has extended towards all finds. And since I’m the first to happen upon Equestria… then technically Weyland-Yutani’s administration does have leeway here.”

“You cannot own a country that already has a ruling power!” Luna slammed a hoof on the table.

“Luna, that is enough!” Celestia lowered her eyes at her sister. Luna glared until she looked down at the table. “Dr. Markovich, I thank you for your time here. You can head back to your quarters now.” Makoy held his gaze with Celestia. He slowly stood up and took his leave, disappearing behind the dining room doors.

“Wow…” Twilight turned to Cadance. “Do you think Luna will be all right?”

Twilight then looked at Luna. The Lunar Princess obviously looked frustrated. But what Makoy had said too left a mark on her. ‘He was so smug about his claims. His company can’t own a nation. That’s completely ludicrous.’ She frowned as well, but answered, “I think she’ll be fine.” This was all just a reminder of what Twilight had seen on the videos: the hubris of Makoy. The fact that he not only tortured humans but animals as well. All of it had infuriated Twilight before. Her frown deepened as that anger came back. This night had been a long one, and this dinner even longer. The dinner had not been totally ruined, but as she looked down at her plate, still just a little bit of salad left, she pushed it away, her appetite lost. Only time would tell what else would be lost.