Titus' head throbbed as the lamp on the ceiling assaulted his unfocused eyes with its bright rays so he closed them to acclimate to the lighting through his eyelids.

It hurt to breath, but he was alive.

Where am I? The low wood ceiling is a good indicator I'm not on the ship anymore. Someone had gotten him out of the ship, that much was evident so Titus brought his left arm up to check the data screen built into his sleeve, making sure to block the obnoxious lamp before opening his eyes. The screen came to life at the motion with alerts popping up as little boxes provided diagnosis and medical advice from his suit's sensors. Two broken ribs, a mild concussion, and a neck sprain - painful, but I'll live. Plus this wasn't the worst crash I've been in. About to let the arm flop back to the bed he realized how odd it was that he was still in his suit and helmet. Unless I just got here, why didn't whoever pulled me from the ship get my gear off?

The sprained neck sent its complaints to his brain in spikes as Titus slowly turned his head, taking in the room until he finally saw the creature partially sprawled on the bed with its head in his hand, sound asleep. He didn't feel threatened by its presence, in fact it reminded him of a dog that would do the same thing when he was sleeping or relaxing. Of course, the dog isn't a pastel color or sporting a horn in the middle of its forehead. Maybe this is some sort of experiment for genetic splicing and the person I heard talking to me is the owner. As the human slowly extricated his arm, careful not to wake the creature, he noticed it was shivering; he hadn't felt the cold because his suit was capable of regulating temperature to whatever the wearer felt was comfortable via the wristpad but upon closer inspection of the shivering creature the long hair was still damp and clinging to the body.

His arm now free, Titus was able to push himself up though he did so hissing through clenched teeth and took a few painful breaths while he looked around the room. It wasn't large but it had a rustic feel and enough space to comfortably fit what people would consider necessities; bed, chest of drawers, closet, mirror, and a chair. All the furniture seemed small, though, so whatever alien he was dealing with would be smaller in stature than he was which would also explain the shorter bed. From across the room he identified his holster as it lay on top of the chest of drawers and an old style glass bottle on the nightstand had also caught his attention. The bottle was closer at this point and he was parched.

Titus reached over and plucked the bottle up, turning it over in his hand to read the label. Never heard of Sweet Apple Acres brand before. He eyed the amber liquid, sloshing the contents in the bottle gently. Placing his gloved thumb over the opening he upturned the bottle, allowing his suit to get a sample of the fluid for analysis from the sensor built into the glove and a second later the reading came back and was displayed on his visor: both the cider and the dried saliva on the bottle posed no hazard. With his free hand Titus hurriedly popped the seal on his helmet so he could take a drink and lay the headgear on the bed beside him; it was the best drink he had ever had, the apple flavor was crisp and had no hint of the usual artificial flavors or preservatives in other brands and before he realized it his thirst had lead him to unfortunately empty the bottle before he could properly enjoy it.

Feeling refreshed, Titus swung his legs over the far side of the bed which placed his back to the door - not an ideal situation but disturbing the animal by exiting on the other side before he could get a gauge on his situation was less acceptable. Not in any need of a blanket, however, he leaned back and gently wrapped it around the creature that had shared the bed. No reason you have to be cold, my little friend. Sitting back up he leveraged himself slowly and with some struggle to his feet with the aid of the nightstand.

"Thou hath shown that kindness is a universal language. We-"

A voice came from the door behind Titus who grabbed the helmet to turn rapidly at the sudden appearance of someone else in the room. How did I fail to sense-? While his instinct had taken control unfortunately his body had other ideas on how fast he should move and he found himself partially collapsed with his back against the wall, his arm gripping at his ribs as his side exploded in pain. What he saw standing in the doorway was distinctly not human and was in fact a creature similar to the one on the bed though this one was larger in size, its coat was deep blue, had wings tucked at its sides, and the hair flowing down its back was quite literally flowing. The horn was longer and looked significantly sharper, as well. Still grimacing as the broken ribs felt like a vice against his lungs he put his helmet back on with his free hand and the visor sprung to life to display readings on the creatures before him.

"Forgive us, it was not our intention to startle thy so," it eloquently said as three more smaller creatures subsequently appeared behind it, all of which crowded up to get a look into the room at the commotion. The sudden movement had also woken the one on the bed and it stretched, yawned, and rubbed its eyes in a confused stupor as the blanket slipped from its shoulders and slid to the floor.

Titus was feeling outnumbered and cornered and the survivalist voice in his head that had been keeping him alive while he was on the run assessed the situation. One exit and not a lot of cover between me and my pistol.

Princess Luna was uncertain what to do to calm the obviously startled creature and with a glance around it didn't look like any other pony would know what to do, either. She had seen the cut on his forehead and the hair matted with blood when the helmet had been removed and the way he was clutching this side was also alarming so, to make the situation worse, not only was he startled but he was hurt, too. Oh, dearest sister, why did you ask me to handle this? What is it you want me to learn? We tried our best to avoid using the Royal Voice... perhaps it is our Royal Stature that he finds intimidating?

The Princess attempted to look smaller and less threatening by lowering her head submissively.

The blue one must have caught me glancing at the chest of drawers. The survival instinct noted the slow transition to another pose in the larger creature and was urging him to act. It gave the other creatures a look before lowering its head and now it looks like it wants to gore me!

He's even more tense now! I know him to be deceptively quick so I’ll have to restrain him if he makes any sudden movements. Luna prepared the spell in the back of her mind which brought a faint glow emanating from her horn.

Kark! It's too much of a risk to go for the pistol, but I've still got my 'saber... The human lowered his center of gravity as every pained muscle tensed and burned in anticipation, ready to dodge out of the way and deliver a counterattack with his blade should it charge him or whip out his blade and deflect whatever the creature was readying to fire at him. As the hand on his ribs slid subtly behind him a patch of the tetrahedrons of his suit in the small of his back parted in reaction to the programmed movement, partially revealing the hidden cylinder of silver and black.

"WAIT!"

Huh? I've heard that voice before... The voice was oddly familiar to the human and a lesson from his Master threw itself to the forefront of his memory. Master had said "Nothing is exactly as it seems, nor is it otherwise. Center yourself and your path will be revealed." Titus took a deep breath and let himself relax. Let go of your emotions and focus...

"Everypony just back up!" the small violet one that had just been asleep was suddenly shouting instructs at the others, its back turned to him as it waved its forelegs in what looked like a shooing motion, "Excuse me, Princess, but that means you too." It continued to usher and herd the other creatures out of the room until it, too, had crossed over the threshold into the next room at which point it turned back toward Titus. "There's some space. That's better, right?" it asked slowly and in a soft tone as if to soothe him.

Five pairs of eyes were locked on the human.

He nodded just as slowly as it had spoken and the orange, yellow, and cyan creatures behind the one that had spoken all whispered excitedly with each other. Titus focused on their whispers and sensed their feelings: general surprise, concern, and distrust – nothing openly threatening or revealing before they were quickly silenced with a wave of a foreleg and a shush as the violet one spoke again.

"It's okay, we don’t want to hurt you."

"Where am I?" Titus replied.

Twilight's eyes went wide, "Y-You can talk?! Who are you?" There were a thousand and one questions flying through Twilight’s mind at the moment and she had a hard time restraining the urge to blurt them all out this very instant.

I can sense the blue one is... strong. Is she a Master? He hesitated before responding, "My name is Titus." He had encountered alien life forms before, but nothing like these. Judging from this one's reaction they've never dealt with alien species before. I need to be careful how I proceed.

"Tie...tuss?" Twilight asked, struggling to get her tongue around the odd name. "Sorry if I said it wrong," she said with a smile of slightly worried sincerity, “I've never heard a name like that. My name is Twilight Sparkle, by the way. Um, what... are you?”

"I’m a human,” he replied, and then the apology completed a circuit in Titus's mind. "Were you the one talking to me while I was lying here?" the human asked and indicated toward the bed with a pointing finger.

Twilight nodded, "You could hear me?" She hesitated for a moment, trying to think of what to say next and at that point she saw him clutching his side, “Are you in pain? Is there something you need?”

“I'll be sore for a while, but I'll live. What I need is to know where I am.”

They had gotten nowhere in their attempted talks about where the biped was - Equestria was as alien to the human as the concept of "star systems" was to the ponies - and it took a bit of work but Twilight managed to convince the human to come out into the living room so they could all sit down and talk.

Titus reached for the holster as he was walking past the chest of drawers. “Hold, human,” a voice rang in his head which caused him to stop mid-reach and because it was so odd his brow furrowed as he shook his head to try and dislodge the feeling, “We wish thou no ill will, only understanding.” The dark blue creature, a Princess according to the Twilight creature, was looking at him through the door. Was it the Princess who was communicating with him?

“Thou art not mistaken, ’twas we. Thou hath no need of thy weapon,” the voice came again as she nodded to him, “Neither of them.”

She knows about... Titus was hesitant but left the pistol on the chest of drawers and placed the hilt of his lightsaber beside it. They had ample time to do harm, had they wanted to. He slowly removed the helmet as a show of additional good faith, tucking it under his arm before stepping into the living room though he had to duck slightly so his head wouldn't hit the top of the door frame which would have been exceedingly painful given the gash on his forehead. Immediately the human took in his surroundings: a comfortable-looking couch faced a padded armchair that had an end table next to it sat at the center of the room. Tucked into the wall was fireplace and there was also a desk and chair nestled into one corner. Two doors, not counting the one he had come through, lay on opposite walls; the farther door at the far end looked to lead to the center of the house, a staircase and book shelves visible from where the human was standing, while the closer had tile floors and cupboards which Titus deduced was a kitchen.

As the human looked about Twilight took the chance to observe the creature in front of her. It was tall with broad shoulders and showed a preference to walking around on its two hind legs, and at the end of its thick forelegs were a set of five claws or talons of some sort which she'd have to make further observations of if the human took its gloves off. Now that it was confirmed that the scaly skin was a protective suit and the thing it was carrying was a helmet the unicorn could examine its facial features.

The face was much flatter than a pony's because the nose hardly stuck out more than an inch, and it seemed to be mostly devoid of fur, the visible hair being a dark brown mane on top of its head that hung down to his shoulders - except where it was matted with what she quickly realized was blood if the cut on the forehead was anything to go by. The eyes were also much smaller but that didn't appear to affect its visual acuity as the almost chocolate-colored eyes scanned the room and she noted how they lingered what was probably long enough for it to study something before moving on to another item. The jaw was square-ish and she also caught sight of a set of incisor and canine teeth toward the front of its mouth when it had grimaced while holding its side earlier; Twilight made a mental note to inquire about diet when she had the chance. Gender-wise it was a tossup – while the suit it was wearing was slightly form-fitting, it didn't provide enough definition for visual confirmation, and even then this species could be genderless for all she knew. Everything regarding human – Humans? Humani? another point to clarify – was a new scientific discovery. At that point in her observations Twilight noticed the biped was staring at her.

"Please, make yourself comfortable," she indicated toward the furniture.

Titus strode to the desk and turned the chair to face the couch and armchair, folded at the waist and knees, and slowly lowered himself into the chair - the fluidity of movement the lanky human displayed was quite impressive to the ponies - though none of them outside of Luna recognized that he had selected the desk chair because it offered the best view of the room and placed a wall at his back.

The orange one in the hat carefully inched closer to him, a white box with a red cross on it in her mouth. I think it wants me to take it. Titus slowly extended his hand, palm up, and after a small hesitation the creature placed the box lightly in his grip where he unfastened the simplistic latch. An old-fashioned first aid kit? "Thank you," he said and looked it in the green eyes.

"Your welcome. I'm Applejack," she replied kindly with a tip of her hat, watching the human take out a length of bandage, a cotton swab, and the antiseptic with those stubby little appendages before retreating slowly to rejoin her friends who had found places to sit on or near the couch.

A long silence hung in the air, each party waiting for the other to say something though they mostly just watched as Titus cleaned the cut on his forehead and wrapped the bandage around his head.

Finally a nervous Twilight spoke up.

"I should probably introduce you to everypony else, shouldn't I? Um, I've introduced myself already but once again I'm Twilight Sparkle, a unicorn and local librarian," she hopped down from the couch and went around the circle introducing the ponies and dragon; each gave a form of greeting that garnered a nod from the human before she completed her round and hopped back up on the couch. Twilight then proceeded to explain the events up until the human had regained consciousness. “…and here we are,” she finished with a shrug of her shoulders.

Titus massaged the bridge of his nose with two fingers. Ponies? Portals? Dragons? Okay, those I've heard about but I need to get to the bottom of this. All of this information, along with the concussion, was giving him a headache. “You’ll have to forgive me, this is proving hard to process.”

“We imagine and understand if thou hath many questions.”

There certainly was one that popped to the front of his mind, “Can you reopen the portal?”

Twilight shuffled her hooves, “I-I don’t know. The spell was experimental so what happened could have been caused by any number of factors so I’d have to review my data and do some research.”

“In that case I’d like to return to my ship,“ Titus pushed himself to his feet with a bit of effort, “If it's still operational or fixable my sensor equipment might have additional data for you-” He suddenly felt quite dizzy and lightheaded which required he brace himself against the wall with one hand to keep from falling over. After just a moment he refound his balance and removed his hand from the wall, "Can you take me there?"

“We doth nay think thou should travel this night,” Princess Luna voiced, “Especially in thy condition and through the Everfree Forest at night.”

“The sooner I get my ship repaired-“

“On the marrow thou may return to thine vessel. Tonight thou will stay here and rest.”

The look on the Princess’ face told Titus that the last sentence was less of a request and more of a Royal Command and as much as he needed to get his ship back up and running arguing about it right now would only increase tensions and potentially delay him further. “Very well, Highness,” he said, bowing his head slightly.

“Twilight Sparkle? Before we depart we doth require use of thine balcony,” Luna hopped out of the armchair before turning to the human, “If thou would accompany us we would like a word alone.”

The two went up to the balcony at the top of the house, neither of them speaking a word, and upon reaching the elevated perch the Princess moved to the railing. “If thou would close the door behind thou we will begin,” Princess Luna instructed over one shoulder, spreading her wings and quickly leaping into the air where she hovered for a moment completely motionless before her horn began to glow.

Titus closed the door and returned his gaze to Princess Luna as she began to raise the front hooves she had stretched out beside her above her head. Dumbfounded, the human watched as the moon mirrored the motion of her hooves in ascending until the Princess was centered on the orb in the sky, her figure silhouetted in the moon's pale glow. If that wasn't just a coincidence of timing... that probably would have taken the whole Council and everyone in the Temple to do that, if they were even capable of such a feat in the first place!

With her task complete Luna glided down to land on the balcony gracefully before turning toward her audience though she was surprised by the reaction on his face - one which she knew was one of shock due to her time in his dreams - and cocked her head to one side curiously. "Is everything alright? Have you never seen the moon raised?" the Princess asked, dropping her formal decorum.

Titus rubbed his face as he tried to process what he had just witnessed. "No, Your Highness, not in that manner anyway. Where I'm from it-" he didn't want to imply it was unnatural for the moon to be raised in such a manner because it was probably in his best interest not to offend a creature that can hurl planetoids around, “It’s just different where I'm from.”

"Even with so many differences there are still similarities, are there not?" she posed another question to which he just nodded. "You were a peacekeeper: it was your duty to protect those that could not protect themselves. As a Princess and co-ruler of Equestria I have a comparable duty to my subjects," she had started moving confidently toward Titus as she spoke but he didn't seem startled by her approach so she didn't slow, "Just as you dealt with threats to your people, so shall I. Sit-" The command was forceful and she indicated toward a small bench next to the door, "For I wish to look into your eyes and heart for the truth as you answer these next questions."

Titus nodded and sat down which put his eyes on level with the Princess' own. She was incredibly close now because he could feel the breath from her words on his face but Luna didn't break eye contact as she began her questioning.

"Is there another agenda behind your appearance in Equestria?"

"No," he returned her stare.

"Do you pose a threat to our subjects?"

"No." It felt like he was falling into those large cerulean eyes of hers but the sensation oddly kept him from blinking.

"What will you do if the portal can't be reopened?"

"I... don’t know," he stumbled as stars were flying past him and soon he felt like his vision was enveloped by her.

"What is it like, waking up on an alien world and knowing that its inhabitants will always look at you in a particular way, no matter how long you are here?"

"Uh..." the complexity of the last question snapped his concentration and he blinked. Titus had to close his eyes for a minute to wait for the stars he was seeing to disappear, "I'm sorry Princess, the depth of that last question caught me off guard-" He opened his eyes to let her try again but the Princess' head was cocked to one side, a searching expression on her face and when Titus gave her a confused look she spoke.

"I'm sorry, the last was more out of personal curiosity and asking the other questions was but a formality at this point. I already know you have a good heart, Titus Marius Aelius, for I saw it in action in your dreams and nightmares while you were unconscious. I... I have a feeling my presence did not go unnoticed, as it usually does."

"Wait, you? You were what kept appearing in my peripheral vision?" By this point Titus was hunched over with his elbows on his knees as he stared at his feet, his brain churning at the thought. She was in my mind?

"I saw everything - from the day your Master took you into her tutelage to the moment the command was given to eradicate your Order, and I've seen what you've had to do to survive the Chancellor's Purge," the Princess' voice was somber as she spoke, her head and shoulders slumping as her task was not one she was overly proud of performing without his permission first, "You have my word that what I witnessed will remain in confidence and I leave what you will share up to you. I apologize for intruding on what should have been your most private of retreats but I hope you'll understand why I had to. "

Titus was almost mad at her for violating his privacy, seemingly probing every dark corner and digging up every memory he had wanted buried or left alone, but at the same time he had to agree it must have been the optimal strategy at the time to evaluate if he had been a threat or not. "I understand, Your Highness. You did what you had to do for your people and I can't be mad at you for that," he finally responded, still hunched over his knees thinking.

Luna broke the stillness by moving back a few steps. Once again silhouetted by moon she addressed him with her formal decorum as her wings spread to add emphasize her decree, "Titus Marius Aelius; on behalf of the Crown and with the power vested in us we hereby officially extend the Royal Welcome to Equestria to thou and doth declare thee to be a formal guest of the Crown for the duration of thine stay.” With the rest of her duties completed and now out of the way Luna moved to join Titus on the bench, the human scooting over slightly to give her more room.

"She..." the Princess fell quiet and looked away momentarily as she carefully constructed her thought, turning back when she was ready, "What I saw of your Master; she reminded me of my sister, Princess Celestia, and I wish pass on my condolences."

The human bowed his head in thanks, "You must have a wonderful sister, then."

"That I do, thank you. When word came from Twilight Sparkle of what was happening here my sister woke me expecting to have to explain everything, however she had stirred me from observing your dreams and it was I that provided information to her on you. I believe that because of that she felt I was best suited to be the one to oversee your screening, which I am grateful for the opportunity to meet someone like yourself who is not so different from me. This is an alien world to the both of us." Though he was curious what that might mean nothing else was said for quite a while and they both sat shoulder to shoulder to watch the night sky, crowded together on a bench too small for the both of them, though eventually Luna extricated herself with a sigh, "As much as I would prefer otherwise I have other duties to attend to and must be going. There is still much I would like to discuss, Titus Marius Aelius, so perhaps we might meet again under less formal circumstances?"

"Yes, I think I'd like that."

With nothing else to say Luna made her way downstairs with the human wordlessly following.

Twilight watched as the two headed up to the balcony and as soon as they had disappeared behind the door she trotted over to the desk to examine the helmet the human had left behind.

“You going to be okay, egghead?” Dash asked, flying over to the unicorn’s side.

Twilight gave a brief visual examination of the helmet and while she told herself she would only be doing a visual examination the temptation was too much and she carefully picked it up; it was much lighter than she expected for something of its size which lead her to develop the theory that it wasn't made with materials she would be familiar with. Less obvious than the reflective visor but still visible when she looked closer there appeared to be several lenses set to either side which she deduced were cameras or sensors of some sort. She was so busy observing the helmet from every angle so she didn't even register the concern in Dash' voice, “What do you mean?”

Applejack apparently had the same thought as Rainbow, “Far as the Princess' concerned, the human’s gonna be stayin’ here tonight.”

“Mhm,” Twilight was too engrossed and only hummed in acknowledgement that they were saying something. I can almost read some of the display on the visor. If I can just... get... my muzzle in-

“It has fangs, Twilight!” Rainbow exclaimed, gnashing her teeth for emphasis, “What if the human tries to eat you in your sleep?”

“Eat me in my sleep?” Twilight snapped back to reality with the last part of Rainbow’s sentence, dropping the helmet in her surprise which rolled under the desk out of reach.

“Oh no!” Fluttershy’s eyes went wide.

Applejack cut that off at the pass, “Whoa there, Rainbow. I'm urgin' caution but I don't think anypony is getting’ eaten.” At the end of her statement she thought for a second before shoot a questioning look at Dash, “What makes you think Titus is even interested in, uh, meat?”

Dash explained her reasoning, “Well, Titus is obviously a carnival-“

“Carnivore,” Twilight corrected as she squirmed under the desk to fish out the headgear.

“-Yeah. Whatever. The fangs,” Rainbow said as she pulled her lip down to show her teeth, “Four of 'em that I saw; those are the giveaway. On top of that, there's claws or talons hidden in the gloves for grabbing stuff.” That much was obvious and earned an unimpressed look from the group which went unnoticed as she was tapping a hoof to her chin, “Now that I’m thinking on it, the eyes are facing forward like a bird of prey or a griffon, for that matter, so that’s another point in my theory's favor.” Fluttershy, the animal expert and therefore the other qualified pony knowledgeable of predatory features, was nodding in agreement with Rainbow's observations.

“I noticed the rows of incisors and canines as well,” Twilight agreed, mimicking Dash’s pose unintentionally.

“I bet those hind legs give the human a long stride so it can get up to some serious speed to chase prey, though I imagine it’s pretty top-heavy so a pony could beat it in cornering…” the pegasus drifted off, her thought lost, and was now contemplating how a human would stack up in a race.

“Y’all saw, Titus was scared of us,” Applejack said, crossing her forelegs in frustration, “I don't want another Zecora incident so I reckon we oughta not go judgin’ before we get to know h-“ AJ paused and looked thoughtful for a moment before looking to each of her friends, “Uh, just to clarify but... anypony know if we're dealin’ with mare or a stallion here? I don’t feel right callin' Titus an ‘it’ and ‘the human’ or whatever else all the time.“

Dash and Twilight both looked to one another and shrugged.

“Um, it’s-” Fluttershy fidgeted when her voice drew the attention of everypony else. “I-It’s hard to tell, but I think he's a stallion b-but that's just my opinion though, andI'm not saying you're all wrong. Sorry,” she finished, shrinking back.

Applejack threw her hooves up in the air, “I don’t believe it-” The sound of a door upstairs opening caught all of their attention and AJ started for the door to the main hallway where the base of the stairs was, “Shucks, I’ll just go ask.”

“Don’t do that! It might be a touchy subject,” Twilight hissed, pulling the earth pony back.

"Why not?" Applejack shrugged the binding hooves off without much effort; if she had really wanted to go out to meet the descending hoofsteps her Earthpony strength would have easily dragged Twilight with her. Stopping just short of the door to the hall the farmpony turned back to Twilight as her annoyance at how big a deal this was being made into was becoming, "It's not like I'm askin' to see the equipment, so to speak."

“You can't just outright ask something like that, that insinuates we can't tell. And what if asking insults him or her? Remember that time at the bar when we were just getting over that whole Poison Joke debacle and those mares heard Fluttershy's voice and got super flirty? Fluttershy was embarrassed to the point of tears!" She had to stop to apologize for bringing up the whole thing again as it had been a real struggle just to convince the pegasus to go in the first place but after promises and assurances from everypony she would have fun on a Girls Night Out it had ended with Fluttershy being hit on by a group of rather inebriated mares before she fled back to her cottage and hid herself away for several days. Twilight ignored AJ as she pointed out that they actually couldn't tell so Titus would probably understand but Twilight shook her head and turned back to the living room in spoken thought, "Look, these are our first impressions on a advanced alien species so I can't stress how important it is to not be rude. To be safe we should find a way to subtly steer a conversation so that he, she, it, whatever, reveals the answer-”

"That's 'he,' to answer your question."

Having not heard the human reach the bottom of the stairs they all jumped at his appearance in the doorway; Princess Luna stood behind him, and Twilight could swear she heard a giggle.

The human let out a sigh and slowly walked to the guestroom, “If you don’t mind I’m going to call it a night. I’d like to leave as early as possible in the morning to get to my ship.” Getting no objection to that statement he bid them goodnight and retreated behind the guestroom door.

Rainbow insisted on staying the night to make sure Twilight didn't get eaten in her sleep.