Morning

When morning came, Ash woke up and first freed himself from the girls who were hugging him. Then he got our of his bed and went into the bathroom to wash up. He then went into the kitchen and made breakfast for the girls. The girls woke up, got ready, came down, hugged and greeted Ash. Then they ate their breakfast and started their day.

Ash checked the Gourmet Cells inside his body and found it to be 0.16% complete. He then flew towards FFB's house. (Short for Flim and Flam brothers).

Outskirt Of Manehattan

Ash landed in front of FFB's house and knocked on the door. Flim opened the door and greeted him, "Hello Ash. We have been waiting for your arrival. Shall we get going?"

Ash nodded and said, "Sure. Lets go."

They both went in and towards their work place. Flam was there and was tinkering with the metallic hand. When he saw Ash, he put the metallic hand down on a table and greeted him, "Greetings Ash. I am so excited to see what you will give us to make. This metal hand is a fantastic piece of work if I have to say my self."

Ash nodded and pulled out several blueprints from his pocket dimension and showed them. He then told them of his plans and what to make. He told them all the specific details about what to make and how to make it. It took half an hour explaining his plans to FFB.

Flim said, "Wow. I had no idea that we would be tasked in making such marvelous technology."

Flam said, "Indeed. These blueprints reveals technology that must be thousands of years ahead of Equestria."

Ash said, "If it's too difficult for you two then I can give you some easy projects."

Flim said, "Nonsense. We would be happy to take on this project."

Flam said, "I can't wait to begin working on some of these wonderful machines."

Flim said, "But there is one problem."

Ash asked, "And that is?"

Flim and Flam said, "We need materials for making these machines. Lots and lots of materials.

Ash thought about providing them with the required materials but stopped when something popped into his mind. He said, "When I came here, I saw several piles of scrap around this area. Can you extract material from them?"

Flim said, "Of course we can. Most of the scraps here comprise of iron."

Ash said, "Iron won't do. It is a weak metal. I need stronger materials."

Flam said, "Well, we do have a purifier. We can first extract iron from the scrap and then purify them into pure iron but that is all it can do."

Ash said, "What if I give you a way to convert iron into a stronger metal. Steel."

FFB look at him in confusion, so Ash pulled out a steel ingot from his pocket dimension and showed it to them. He said,"This is steel. A metal that is stronger than iron. I will show you how to convert iron into steel."

Ash then went over to the purifier and changed it a bit with his magic. With the change, Ash demonstrated how iron can be converted into steel. Flim and Flam looked over the process with wide eyes. They memorized everything Ash told them of the process.

After that, Film said, "Wow. I never knew there was a way to change something worthless into something valuable."

Flam said, "That is true but even with that, there is only a small amount of scraps around here. We still need more materials if we need to complete the projects."

Ash asked, "Do you know anyone who will sells ores and others things like that."

Flim said, "Of course we do. We know several ponies who mine for ores and sell them."

Flam said, "However, they only find iron ores. With the right price we can buy that from them but we don't have enough bits to purchase them."

Ash pulled out 10 gold bars from his pocket dimension and gave it to them. FFB took the gold bars with wide eyes and jaws agape. They have never seen a gold bar in their life. A gold bar is equal to 10,000 bits. So 10 gold bars equal to 100,000 bits.

Ash said, "Take these gold bars and convert them into bits first. Then I want you to buy as much ores as you can. You can also use some of the bits from this for yourselves. After that, extract the iron, purify them and convert them into steel. How long will it take you to do that?"

Flim came out of his shock and said, "Well, first we need to convert these gold bars into bits. Then we need to travel to different places in order to find the ponies selling iron ores. Then we need to get a transport to move all of the ores back here. It will take us approximately a week to get everything ready."

Ash nodded and said, "Then do that. If you need any help or need more bits then" he created an infected hornet from his hand and showed it to them. He said, "You can tell me by speaking to this special hornet. This hornet will tell me telepathically and I will come here."

The hornet flew towards Film and landed on his head. Flam said, "The hornet won't sting us would it?"

Ash shook his head and said, "No. It will not hurt you. Also, I will be leaving more of my special insects around your house for your protection. If you go somewhere and see some insects following you then don't panic. They will be my insects and they will follow you in order to protect you."

Flim asked, "Who would want to hurt us?"

Flam said, "Yeah. We are just normal business ponies."

Ash gave them a deadpan expression and said, "You two now hold 10 gold bars and when you go to a bank to convert them into bits, word about it will spread around. There will be several peoples who would want to get their hands on that much bits. Also this area is in the outskirt of Manehattan, so there is a high chance of someone will try to either steal the bits from you or kill both of you and then take the bits."

FFB's eyes went wide in shock at the news. True, there are some criminals who would kill them to steal their bits. They will need to be on the lookout for some shady peoples who have their eyes on their bits.

They thanked Ash for revealing that and for giving them a mode of safety. Before leaving, Ash told them, "When you are ready, call me okay." With that he exited their house and then created several infected insects from his hands. He then order them to spread around this house and look out for anyone suspicious that has ill intent for Flim and Flam. He also ordered a bunch of infected insects to follow the unicorn brothers anywhere they go and protect them. Ash then flew towards Canterlot castle. He needs to see what to do about his "Monster Hunter" squad.

Canterlot Castle

Ash landed outside the castle's door that was guarded by two solar guards. The guards took a battle stance and were about to engage the intruder but stopped when they saw that it was Ash. They then relaxed and greeted him. They also thanked him for saving their lives and stopping Discord.

Ash said, "It's alright. Now can one of you take me towards your guards' barrack. I have some work there."

The guards nodded and one of them lead Ash inside the castle and towards the barracks. After a while, they arrived at the barracks. Ash thanked the guard who then left him. Ash saw that the guards from both Solar and Night were working out in the area and Shining Armor was instructing them. Ash didn't want to argue with him and used "Life Erase" to erase his presence. He then walked towards a wall and leaned on his back and look over the guards in order to find potential members for his squad. While Ash was looking over the guards, he spotted Silver Streak working out in a corner of the barracks. He was alone and kept on exercising. He then heard what the other guards were talking about.

"Hey, did you hear what the princesses said a few days back?"

"You mean how Ash is looking for members to join his squad?"

"Yeah that and I think that Silver Streak over there has already been selected to join that squad."

"What's so special about that squad?"

"Yeah. It's just a squad. What will it do against us royal guards?"

"Hey you talking about that squad?"

"Yeah. Whats it to you?"

"Well, for one thing, that squad is very special."

"Special? In what way?"

"Well, I heard a rumor that whoever is picked to join that squad will be taught to become stronger or something."

"What? Stronger than the royal guards?"

"Yeah. It seems that way."

"Damn. Now I want to join that squad."

"You're not the only one. There are several other guards who are working out in order to get selected by Ash."

Wow. They're guessing game is good. But this had made it complicated for Ash. Now that everyone knows about his reason for selecting members for his squad, they all were over performing to get themselves recognized for joining the squad. Ash then used "Rinnegan" to analyze them. He saw how they performed, how their muscles moved, how much strain they put on their bodies etc.

For a while, Ash kept on looking over the guards and found several potential members but he still needs to find out about their personality and the right stuff. He observed them closely and saw how they behaved and talked with others. Through this, he found some guards who think that they were better than others and thought highly of themselves. So he eliminated them from the list. He found 57 unicorns, 94 Pegasus and 214 Earth ponies who cleared his inspection. He then marked those members with his magic.

Ash then deactivated his "Life Erase" and revealed himself to the barracks. Everyone stopped what they were doing when they saw Ash appearing out of nowhere. Shining Armor who was instructing his guards saw them stop and was about to yell at them. However, he stopped when he saw that every guard was standing on their spot and were looking at something. He turned his head in that direction and he scowled at what he saw.

Ash looked over the guards and said, "I'm sure a few days ago, the princesses have told you about my special squad?"

Some guards nodded and one said, "Yeah, we heard about it."

Another guard said, "According to the rumors, the ones who make it will be trained by you to become stronger then the royal guards."

Ash nodded and said, "That's right. Those who are selected to join my squad will be personally trained by me. They will be taught how to take down monsters of all sizes efficiently. I will teach and train them on how to become stronger and better then they could ever be."

The guards were looking forward to joining the special squad but their attention was diverted when Shining Armor shouted, "Who do you think you are coming here!? This is the barracks where the royal guards train to become stronger!"

Ash gave him a bored look and said, "In case you didn't hear, the princesses has given me permission to select members from the royal guards to join my squad."

Shining Armor said, "So what!? No one here will leave the royal guards and join your pathetic squad! We are already stronger than the other kingdoms! We don't need you so get out of here!"

Ash said, "Oh really? I have seen warriors from other kingdoms who are stronger and tougher. They can beat your royal guards with ease. And lets not forget about the Discord incident. I saw how inefficient the guards were against someone like that. They could not even touch him and yet here you are boasting that your guards can take on anyone."

Several guards looked down in shame when they heard that while the others look at Ash with hate. How dare he belittle them like this.

Shining Armor became angry and was about to say something but Sliver Streak came forward. He look at Shining Armor and said, "And not to mention that you are going against the princesses orders."

Shining Armor glared at him and said, "What are you doing here? You're not part of the royal guards anymore."

Sliver Streak smirked and said, "Looks like you have a short term memory loss, Shining Armor. If you've forgotten, then I quit the royal guards and joined Ash's special squad. I don't work for you."

Shining Armor scowled and said, "That doesn't give you the right to come in between this alien and me!"

Silver Streak said, "Oh but I can. Since I work for him, I can intervene with peoples like you who disrespect him. Also, his name is Ash, you twit."

Shining Armor was seething red with anger and Silver Streak face became serious and he continued, "Now why don't you step aside and let Ash pick his members? If you don't then you are going against the order of the princesses and I will be forced to arrest you for treason."

The rest of the guards were shocked to hear that and saw that Shining Armor's horn lit up and was ready to attack Silver Streak. Shining Armor said, "How dare someone like you think that you have the right to arrest me!? I am the captain of the royal guards! And treason!?"

Silver Streak said, "You really are an egotistical maniac. Not only are you going against the princesses orders but you are also about to attack someone who is higher then you. Tread carefully Shining Armor. If you attack now, then I can't guarantee that you will get away with just suspension or being expelled from your position. That is of course if you manage to get away from Ash first."

Ash was beginning to like this one more and more. Not only is Silver Streak standing up for him but also gave a threat to Shining Armor that will make him back down. The rest of the guards looked at them in suspense. The aura around Shining Armor's horn disappeared and he stepped away from them with an angry scowl.

Shining Armor said, "Someday, you will pay for this. You and that alien."

Silver Streak smirked and said, "Then come with all you got. I'm pretty sure we will be much more stronger than before when that time comes and you will get a beat down. And his name is Ash, you idiot."

This made Shining Armor snorted in anger. Silver Streak then said, "All right, everyone! Front and center!"

Every guard then ran into a position and stood in front of Silver Streak. The solar guards on one side while the Night guards on the other side. Ash then walked in front of them and saw that many were expecting to be chosen by him but he didn't want the cocky ones or those who think highly of themselves.

Ash said, "I have been observing all of you sometime ago and I already know who I want. However, those who I select will have the freedom of choosing to either join my squad or remain a royal guard. It's their choice. Now I have magically marked those who I saw with potential for my squad. If your hands glow come up and stand in the front."

Ash then activated his magic and several guard's hands begin to glow. Everyone were looking at the one's with glowing hands. The guards having glowing hands walk in front of every guard.

After all of the glowing guards gathered in front of the rest of the guards, Ash said, "Now before I begin, I must inform you all that I have not chosen you for your strength. I don't care if you are the weakest bunch of guards there were. The only reason I have chosen all of you was because I saw how you treated others and help them out of your own good will. That is a splendid quality I need in my guards."

Shining Armor saw who were the ones Ash selected and smirked. He said, "Well good luck with them. They are the weaker ones from the royal guards. I was thinking of expelling them as they didn't reach the standard of the royal guards."

The glowing guards look at Shining Armor in shock. To expel them just for not doing a good job or being inefficient was something they didn't expect to hear from their captain. Their shock turned to anger and were about to yell at him but stopped at what Ash said next.

Ash said, "Shining Armor. You can have the strongest guard in your royal guard but if he is just as arrogant and boastful like you then I would not select him. I wouldn't even pick him if he was as strong as the princesses. In his place, I'd rather pick the weakest of the guards than the superior ones."

The glowing guards were surprised to hear that. To choose a weak one rather than a strong one was something else. They began to look at Ash in a new light of respect. Shining Armor was furious at what Ash told him.

Ash then spoke to the glowing guards, "Now all of you have the choice to either join my special squad or remain in the royal guards. I am not forcing any of you. It's your choice but know this that I will be looking after each and everyone of you and make you much stronger and efficient than before. You all will become the sword of Equestria and will be dealing with monsters who are ravaging this kingdom. You don't need to be worried about facing them right now as you are not ready for it yet. However, when I see that you are ready to fight against the monsters, then I will send you and personally observe how you perform against them. If you face any trouble then I will help you. Now make you choice."

The glowing guards were first thinking of rejecting his offer but when they heard what their captain said about expelling them for being weak, they rethink about their situation and made their choice. They all saluted to Ash and shouted, "It would be an honor to join your squad, sir Ash!"

Shining Armor was shocked to see that everyone of them said yes. He thought that some of them would reject Ash's offer but to have all of them join the special squad just like that angered him.

Shining Armor shouted, "How dare you leave the protection of the princesses and join this alien!? I will have you all arrested for treason!"

The veins on Ash's face began to bulge in anger. Shining Armor was beginning to get on his nerves. Silver Streak saw this and confronted Shining Armor, "The one who is committing treason is you! How dare you stand in Ash's way when he has a higher position than yours! He works for the princesses! The only reason those guards joined Ash's squad is because of they were treated like shits by the likes of you! One more outburst like that and I will have you arrested for treason!"

Shining Armor snorted and said, "And who is going to arrest me!? You or that alien!?"

Silver Streak grinned and said, "Look around you."

Shining Armor raised one of his eyebrows and looked around. He saw that the other guards looked at him in defiance and glared at him. Shining Armor began to feel a bit of fear from the looks of their eyes.

Shining Armor said, "Why are all of you looking at me like that? I am your captain!"

Ash said, "So what if you're their captain? You think they will just keep on being mistreated by you and obey your orders? If you really think like that then you are a really pathetic excuse of a creature I have ever seen."

Silver Streak laughs and said, "And who do you think the guards would listen to? You, the captain of the guards who didn't face Discord and failed to protect the princesses? Or Ash, who not only beat Discord all by himself but healed every wounded guard and the princesses? I think the answer is very clear."

Shining Armor was getting furious when he saw his own guards looking at him in hate and defiance. He yelled, "All of you continue on with your training and exercise!" With that, he left the barracks in anger.

Silver Streak let out a sigh when he saw Ash's rage dissipating. As much as he wanted to see Shining Armor get his butt kicked by Ash, he didn't want to see any blood sprayed from his corpse or what remains of it.

Silver Streak said, "So shall we get them ready."

Ash nodded and faced his new members. He said, "I welcome all of you into my squad that is called "Monster Hunter". Simple name right? Now Silver Streak, is there an open area where Pegasus fly outside of the castle?"

Silver Streak nodded and said, "Yes there is."

Ash said, "Then please take us to that area."

Silver Streak nodded and lead Ash and his new members towards an opening. They arrived at an area where they saw a huge gate opened in the wall and several Pegasus guards were flying through it.

Ash nodded and said, "Okay. Now fly with me and I will take you all towards your new training ground."

The guards look at him in confusion because he didn't had any wings. Then their eyes went wide when he flew up in the sky without having any wings attached to his back. Ash flew above the ground along with the 94 Pegasus guards.

The one unicorn guard said, "Um sir. If you have not noticed, we can't fly."

Ash look back at them and said with a smirk, "I know. I will be taking you all with me."

The 214 Earth ponies and 57 unicorns along with Silver Streak looked at him in confusion at how he would take them all. Then suddenly they felt something pulling their bodies above the ground and then they began to lift off. They yelped in panic as they were floating above the ground.

Silver Streak said, "What is going on? How are we floating?"

Ash said, "You are not floating. I am simply pulling you all with me. Now relax and enjoy the flight."

Ash then flew out of the castle while he dragged the non-flyer guards with him. He used his invisible hairs to grab them. Ash flew down the mountain and the Pegasus guards followed him. He lead them towards a land that was closer to the ocean. He then landed on the ground and put released the non-flyers from his hairs. They all landed on their hooves and the Pegasus guards soon joined them.

They all look at the surrounding area but it was empty. Silver Streak said, "Ash. Why did you bring us here? There is nothing here?"

Ash said, "No there isn't but I will fix that." He snapped his fingers and several buildings began to build themselves. Soon the land was filled with several training buildings and camps. The guards saw all of this in disbelief.

Ash then said, "Okay everyone, listen up! All of you are now in my special squad and in this squad there are rules! You follow the rules, you won't get beaten by me!"

Ash's voice made the guards nervous and were now beginning to think that they made a very bad choice of join his squad.

Ash said, "Rule No 1! Everyone in this squad are now equals and you will treat your fellow members as family!"

When the guards heard this, they visibly relaxed. They thought that he was going to train them to the bone or something.

"Rule No 2! If you see a fellow member struggling with something, you will help them and always lookout for one another!"

The guards nodded at this. They were already looking out for each others when they were working under Shining Armor.

"Rule No 3! There is no rule No 3!"

They guards quirked their eyebrows at that. If it wasn't part of the rule then why say it?

"Rule No 4! If one of your fellow members hurts you, then you will forgive them if they are truly sorry!"

They smiled at this. Sometimes they did fight with one another but made up afterwords.

"Rule No 5! You all will follow my orders and complete any training I will give to you!"

They all nodded as they understood what he meant since he is their captain now.

"Rule No 6! There is no rule No 6!"

Again with that. The guards look at him like he was crazy or something.

"Rule No 7! You are forbidden to share any of my teachings to any outsider without my permission! The moment you inform anyone about my teaching, I will know about it and I will deal with you personally! So be very careful about it!!!!"

They all cringed and nodded in fear of facing his wrath if someone was foolish enough to do that.

"Rule No 8! You are free to question me about anything relating to your training!"

That was a good this since the previous captain, Shining Armor didn't let them question him.

"Rule No 9!-"

The guards saw this coming and this time they were prepared for it. They all shouted, "There is no rule No 9!!!"

Now it was Ash's turn to look at them like they were the crazy ones. He said, "Nooooooo???? I was going to say have fun but since you all don't want that then I can begin your training."

The guards eyes went wide and immediately began to say, "We're sorry!" or "We won't interrupt when you're speaking ever again!" or "Rule No 9 exists!" or "Your hot!" etc. Okay, that last one was unexpected but he ignored it.

Ash chuckled and said, "I was just messing with you. Now there will be a 1 hour free time so use that time to explore your new training ground okay?"

The guards shouted "Yes Sir!"

Everyone spread out and began to explore their new training ground. The buildings had several exercising equipment and machines they have never seen before. There was also a running track for them to test their speed and stamina on. There were also several beds for them to rest when they get tired. Some buildings were made for them to live in during their training. This new training ground was so much better than the one in Canterlot's Castle and everyone liked it.

After an hour, the guards gathered in front of Ash. He said, "Now that you all had the chance of exploring your new training grounds, what do you think about it?"

One guards said, "It's the best I have ever seen!"

Another said, "It has machines that I have never seen before!"

Another mare said, "The beds are so much softer than the ones we get to sleep in!"

All of the guards liked their new training ground. Ash then said, "Now, are you lot ready for some training?"

All the guards yelled "Yes Sir!"

Ash grinned and said, "Then I welcome all of you to begin your training for the "Monster Hunter" squad! First thing you all will be training for is strength!"

The Pegasus and Earth ponies were looking forward for that training but the rest of the unicorns were a bit taken back. A unicorn guard said, "Sir, we unicorn excel in magic. So having us training for strength is useless."

The other guards looked at them with disapproval eyes. Ash said, "In my time here on Equis, I have seen what the monsters are capable of. Unicorns may excel in using magic but when it comes to face a hoard of monsters, they won't give you the time you need to cast your spells. On top of that, the bigger ones just shrug off any unicorn magic like they were nothing to them. That is because you unicorns possess low level offensive spells. So having you train for your strength will give you an advantage against them. Also, in the future, I will be training you unicorns in advance offensive magic. As for the Pegasus, I will be teaching them how to fight in air and air maneuverability that will confuse the enemies."

The guards nodded in understanding. What he said is true. Their magic does not do much damage against the monsters. So having this strength training will give them an edge over their enemies.

Ash said, "Okay! Now lets begin your strength training!" he snapped his fingers and a pile of odd things appeared in front of him.

The others looked at the strange things with curiosity. Ash picked up a vest and showed it to the guards. He said, "What you see here is a Weighted Vest. It weighs about 5 KG." He wore it.

Ash then picked another thing up and said, "This one is called Weighted Legs Strap. It weighs 2 KG each." He straps them on to his legs.

Ash then picked up a pair of gloves and said, "These are called Weighted Gloves. It weights 2 KG each." He wore them.

Ash then picked up two straps and said, "These are called Weighted Wrist Straps and they weigh 2 KG each." He strapped them on to his wrists.

Ash then looked at the guards and said, "Now pick yours and get them on."

The guards began to take each on of those weighted helpers and wore them. After everyone wore them, they felt their bodies becoming heavy with all the weight they put on. Some were straining to stand with the additional 17 KG weight.

Ash nodded and said, "Now, I want to you to run with me on the running track. I don't want you to force yourselves to keep up with me. Just run the best you can and when you get tired, then rest for a while before join in again. This will increase your strength and your stamina. So lets go!"

Ash began to run on the running track. The rest of the guards then ran behind him. They kept on running and some of them got tired who then rested on the side of the running track. After they got their rest, they returned back and continued their running. For 3 hours, everyone ran while Ash kept running in front of them the whole time which shocked them. Ash didn't look like he was getting tired at all. The guards were drenched in sweat while Ash didn't have any. After a lot of running, Ash stopped and the rest fell on the ground in exhaustion.

Ash looked at them and said, "Good running you all did today. I know your bodies will ache for sometime but later on, you will feel like you could run all day long. Just give it time for your bodies to adjust to the additional weight. When you become adjusted to them, those weighted gears will automatically increase the weight by themselves. That will constantly make you feel heavy but in the end, it will be so much worth it. Just hang in there okay? Now for today, your training is finished" The guards moaned in approval as they thanked that their training is done for the day.

Ash continued, "Now why don't you all take a dip in the ocean and clean yourselves up. Then I'll take you all back to the castle to have some food. How does that sound?"

The guards nodded and went towards the ocean and cleaned themselves up. After they got cleaned up and dried themselves, Ash again flew in the air and again pulled the unicorns and Earth ponies with his invisible hairs. They all flew back towards Canterlot's castle and went inside.

Ash also felt hungry but he was with his squad members so why not eat with them. He said, "I'm feeling hungry so why don't I eat with you guys?"

The guards were surprised to hear that from him. On guard asked, "Why would you eat with us? You're our captain, so you get to eat with other high officers of the royal guards."

Ash said, "I choose who to eat with and I am going to eat with you guys."

The guards were shocked at that. Usually their former captain would eat with others close to his higher position. However, their current captain, Ash is going to eat with them. They were already seeing a lot of change happening in their future and they like it.

Silver Strike said, "You are very well welcome to join us for eating Ash. However, I have to warn you that the food tastes terrible."

Ash quirked an eyebrow and said, "Come on. It won't be that bad. You sound like we are going to eat some grub."

Guard's Cafeteria

Ash and his squad members sat at a long table. Their food were placed in front of them and they began to eat, except for Ash who just looked at his food with a raised eyebrow.

Ash said, "When I said that we were going to have some grub, I didn't literally mean it." The food that was in front of Ash looked like dried rice mixed with nuts, leaves and other leafy things.

Silver Streak took a bite out of his food and his face scrunched a bit due to the bad taste of the food. He said, "Well, what can you do? The higher ups get to eat good food while lower guards like us eat this ... whatever this thing is." He said disgustedly but still continued to eat his food.

Ash shook his head and said, "No wonder you guys are weak." He took a bite out of his food and found it to taste very bad. He said, "It tastes disgusting and has little to no proteins and nutrition in it. This is the reason you're not getting stronger since your bodies are not receiving the required proteins and nutrition it needs."

When Ash finished eating his food, he stand up and shouted, "Who the hell cooked this piece of crap!"

Silence took hold of the entire cafeteria when Ash said that. Everyone and even his own guards looked at him in shock. The food was bad- no, disgusting but they could not say anything since they were only guards.

From the kitchen area, one Earth stallion came out, when he heard what was said about the food. He looked over the guards to see who had the balls to say that. He then found who he was looking for. He walk towards Ash and said, "What did you say about my food?"

Ash looked at him and saw that this stallion had a pot belly and wore an apron and a cook's hat. He asked, "And you are?"

The stallion said, "I am Cook Grub and I make the food here. You have something against my food?" He said threateningly.

Ash narrowed his eyes and said, "As a matter of fact, of course I do. What are you trying to do huh? You want these ponies to choke up on your disgusting food?"

Cook Grub scowled and said, "What did you say about my food?"

Ash said, "That your food can give them food poisoning. I am more surprised that none of them died so far. Where I come from, even prison food is much better than this shit."

Cook Grub pushed his face forward and said, "You looking for a fight punk?"

Ash pushed his face forward and said, "If I wanted a fight, then you would be 50 feet buried below the ground."

As both of them were arguing back and forwards, the rest of the guards in the area looked at them and began to cheer. Some even started to make bets on "who will start the fight" or "who will win" etc. Others began to pool bits for the bets and look forward to what will happen.

Shining Armor was on the second floor, eating good food with other ponies of similar position to his. His eating was interrupted when he heard the guards cheering. He stood from his chair and went to the balcony to see what's all the commotion was about. He looked down and saw that the guards were cheering at two individuals. One was the cook while the other one made him scowl. It was none other than the hated alien, Ash. He saw both of them arguing and decided to stand there with an amused expression and see what's going to happen.

As Ash and Cook Grub's fore heads collided, they still argued with each others. Silver Streak looked at them in fear as this could turn out ugly. Not for Ash but for the cook. He looked around to search for something that would stop this but only found a spoon. What can a spoon do you imbecilic! Then an idea popped into his mind and took the spoon from the table.

Silver Streak then brought the spoon towards his mouth like a mic and announced, "Ladies and gentlemen. To the right, you will see the one who has been cooking for Canterlot guards for a long time. Standing at 7.4 foot tall, Cooooooook Grub! To the left, you will see the one who beat the crap out of Discord and healed every guard's wounds and the princesses. Standing at 9 foot tall, the captain of the newly "Monster Hunter" squad, Aaaaaaassh! Today, we will see these two going at each other as they demonstrate their cooking skill and make several dishes for the guards to eat. Who will win? Who will lose? That will be decided by the guards. Now, let the battle of the cooks begin!"

All of the guards in the cafeteria began to cheer at them. Ash and Cook Grub turned their heads slowly towards Silver Streak and stared at him with a raised eyebrow. Then they both pointed towards Silver Steak and said simultaneously, "Why are you the one deciding what we can do!??? But that is not such a bad idea. Lets go with that."

Ash and Cook Grub took their places in the kitchen while every guard watched them in suspense. Cook Grub said, "I will show you what a great cook I am."

Ash said, "If you were such a great cook then we would not been having this match."

Silver Streak said, "You both have one hour to make several dishes that the guards will eat. On your mark. Get set. GO!"

Cook Grub immediately began to cut ingredients, mix them and cook them in his own way. Ash on the other hand, simply walked towards the fridge and opened it. He then looked at what were the ingredients inside the fridge. He saw several eggs, wheat, fish meat, cheese, tofu, rice and vegetables. He took them all.

Ash first filled two pots with water and put them on the fire for the water to boil. Ash then took out a frying pan and poured cooking oil in it, filling half of it and put it on the fire. Ash then took out a huge bowl and he began to break eggs and poured its contents inside the bowl at amazing speed.

After collecting a good amount of eggs, he poured flour in it and mix them up nicely. He made a lot of dough. Ash then began to take several fishes and first cleaned them up. He then began to cut them up in big pieces.

Ash put the fish's head, bones and guts aside. He took the fish meat and marinated it in a lemon spicy sauce. Then he took the marinated fish meat and put them in the dough. The fish meat was now coated in dough and he threw them all in the frying pan. The fish meat began to cook in the boiling oil.

Ash then turn his attention towards the fish's heads, bones and guts. The guards were confused at what he was going to do with those since they cannot be eaten. Ash took all of them and threw them in a bowl and began to pulverize them into paste. After that, he made small meat balls from that paste and threw them in the dough. The meat balls were now covered in white dough.

Ash then looked at the boiling rice and saw that they were cooked. He then took them out and then put them in another frying pan. He then saw that the fish meat was done and took them out. He made Fired Fish.

Ash put all of the fried fish on a huge plate and put them on a table. He then threw all of the meat balls made from fish paste, into the boiling oil and left them to cook. Ash then took all of the dough and cut them into long thin strings. He made noodles and threw them into the second pot of boiling water. He then cut several vegetables and some fish meat and threw them into a new pot. He put several spices into it and poured a bit of water. After he was done with that pot, he made Curry.

Ash took half of the cooked rice and put them in several plates. He then poured Curry on them and made Curry Rice.

Ash then put several eggs in boiling water. He then cut several vegetable again and put them in a new pot and filled it with water. He left it to boil. Ash took the peeled skin of potatoes and cut them up. Then he cooked them and mixed them with spices. He also took out the fish paste meat balls and put them on the table. He made Cuisine A La Carte.

Ash then cut some vegetables and mixed them with the rice. He put several spices in it and began to cook them in a frying pan.

Ash flipped the pan several times to get the rice and vegetables mixed up nicely. This way, every part will be cooked and the flavor will spread in the rice. After the rice was cooked, he put them in several plates and put them on the table. He made Fried Rice.

Ash saw that the noodles and vegetable broth was done. So he took out the boiled noodles and put them in the broth and boiled them again. He saw that the boiling eggs were done and took them out. Ash peeled the shells off and put the boiled eggs in the broth. He also threw in some tofu. When it was done, he poured them in several bowls and put them on the table. He made Ramen.

He then took several vegetables and cooked them by steaming them. When they were cooked, he brought them out and put them on several plates. He made Dried Salty Vegetables and put them on the table.

Ash looked at the vegetable pot and saw that it was also done. He made Hot Pot.

Ash then took several corns and put them on a grill. As they were being cooked, he coated them in miso sauce that he brought from his world with his reality warping. He made Miso Flavored Corn.

Ash then took some dough and made a huge flat circular shape. He first covered it in some red sauce and then put several cooked vegetables on it. He then put some fried fish pieces on it. Then he covered it all in cheese. Ash put the entire thing in a large oven and left it to be cooked.

However, he didn't had time for the special food to get cook when Silver Streak said, "Times up! Please present your dishes."

Ash was unable to finish his special as he ran out of time. He took all of his dishes and put them in the cafeteria tables. he saw how much he made in one hour.

Fired Fish 287 Servings.

Fried Rice 279 Servings.

Curry Rice 268 Servings.

Cuisine A La Carte 254 Servings.

Ramen 275 Servings.

Dried Salty Vegetables 264 Servings.

Hot Pot 258 Servings.

Miso Flavored Corn 247 Servings.

Ash was impressed that he was able to make that much in just one hour. He then saw Cook Grub coming out with his dishes but failed to identify them. They looked just like the thing that he ate before but in different shapes. And color. That must be bad.

Cook Grub look around and saw that all the guards were drooling. He thought that they were drooling for his food and he smirked in victory. However, that was not true because the guards were drooling from the delicious fragrance coming from Ash's dishes.

Silver Streak was also drooling and announced, "Well now that the dishes are ready, everyone dig in!"

As soon as Silver Streak said that, he dived to the nearest dish made by Ash and began to devour it like he was starving for several days. The rest of the guards followed him and dived at the food.

Cook Grub was smirking as he saw the hungry guards charging towards the food. However, his grin fell when he saw that none of the guards were touching his food. Every guard was devouring the food that was made by Ash. He then heard what the guards were saying about the food they were eating.

"This is so good!"

"Yeah! I have never tasted something this delicious in all my life!"

"Even my wife's cooking failed in comparison to this food!"

"Try the fish! They taste great!"

"How can fish taste this good!? It always tasted bland!"

"Don't know! Don't care! More food!"

"The soup is great!"

"Wow! These fish balls are delicious! Even though they are made from fish's heads, bones and their guts but they are still delicious!"

"These long strings are marvelous!"

"These dried salty vegetables are making me more hungry!"

"You delicious corn! Marry me!"

"This is so much better than the things we were eating before!"

Cook Grub looked in shock as the truth sinked into his head. His food sucked. He then thought that everyone hated his food and began to leave the cafeteria. However, he stopped when he saw that someone was actually eating his food. That one was none other than Ash.

Ash took a plate of food that was cooked by Cook Grub and threw it into his mouth and ate it. He didn't like the taste but he didn't like wasting food either. He started to eat every dish that was made by Cook Grub and turn them into biomass inside of him.

Cook Grub and the guards looked at him in shock and surprised. Why was he eating the food that was disgusting? Cook Grub continued to look at Ash as he ate all of his dishes. Not a single dish or a piece of food was left.

Ash sighed that he was able to ate every bad food on the table. He then saw Cook Grub coming towards him with a sad face. He surprised Ash by bowing to him and said, "Forgive me of my arrogance and blindness. If I had known about this, I would have tried to make something else but I don't think that would have helped as my cooking such."

Ash sighed and said, "Please don't bow to me. I hate it when someone bows to me. Unless they are my enemies, then I have no problem with it."

Cook Grub stood and said, "Well, it looks like I will need to find another job. I'm pretty sure that I will be fired from this."

Ash shook his head and said, "No. You don't need to leave Cook Grub. I will teach you how to cook food the right way."

Cook Grub eyes widened and asked, "You will help me? But Why?"

Ash said, "Tell me. Do you like cooking?"

Cook Grub nodded and said, "Yes. I love cooking but I don't have that much skill for it."

Ash smiled and said, "That is all I need to hear. Now sit here and I will show you something."

Cook Grub sat on one of the chairs while Ash when back into the kitchen. A while later, he came out and was holding some things. Ash walked towards Cook Grub and put a bowl of cooked rice, a raw egg and a bottle of soy sauce on the table.

Ash said, "Now, can you tell me what these are?"

Cook Grub nodded and said, "Yes. One is a bowl of cooked rice. One is a raw egg and the last one is a bottle of soy sauce."

Ash nodded and said, "Good. Now tell me. If I ask you to make a dish out of these three things, how would you do it?"

Cook Grub looked at him in shock and said, "You got to be kidding me. I can't cook something with just these ingredients. I will at least need some vegetables to make it taste good."

Ash shook his head and said, "You don't need extra ingredients to make something taste good. Where I come from, we have made even the simplest way of making something taste good with such ingredients like the ones in front of you."

Ash saw that Cook Grub didn't buy what he said. So he needs proof, then he will get one. Ash said, "Don't believe me, then I will show you."

The rest of the guards were also looking at Ash with interest. They too want to know how he would be able to make a dish out of those three things.

Ash took the raw egg and said, "First, you take a raw egg and break it on top of the bowl of cooked rice." He broke the egg and poured its contents on the rice.

Ash then took the soy sauce and said, "Then you pour some of this soy sauce on the egg." He then poured some soy sauce on the egg.

Ash then took a spoon and said, "Finally, you mix the egg on top with the soy sauce. This will make its flavor spread out on the rice." He then used the spoon to mix the egg with the soy sauce.

After mixing the egg, Ash gave the bowl to Cook Grub and said, "There. It is done. Now why don't you eat it and see how it tastes."

Cook Grub looked at Ash then at the bowl of raw egg on it with disgust. He said, "You can't possibility expect me to eat this. It's not edible anymore. It's raw egg and you put soy sauce on top of it."

Ash said with a smile, "Just trust me and take a bite. I would never serve something bad to anyone."

Cook Grub looked around and saw that the guards were looking at him with expectation. He looked back at the bowl of rice and sighed. He grabbed the bowl and picked up the spoon. He took a scoop of the rice along with some raw egg and soy sauce. He brought it closer to his mouth and closed his eyes. With some hesitation, he put it into his mouth and began to chew it. Suddenly his eyes opened and went wide as the taste of the food spread inside his mouth. He swallowed it and took another bite and chewed it. He then took another bite and then another, and another. He was so lost in the taste of the food that he didn't realize he ate all of the rice.

Cook Grub looked at Ash with a shocked expression and said, "That was delicious. How? How can that be!? It was nothing more than cooked rice mixed with a raw egg and some soy sauce!"

Ash said with a smiled, "That is the beauty of making food in different ways. Look at the guards who ate my dishes."

Cook Grub looked at them and saw that they had satisfying expressions from eating the food. Ash said, "See that. I will teach you how to make delicious food so that the guards will look forward to come here everyday to eat your food."

*Ding*

A sound emitted from the kitchen and Ash smiled. He then looked over the guards and said, "I hope you all have some space in your stomachs cause I have a special dish prepared. Join four tables together for me to place the food on."

The guards nodded and started to push four tables together while Ash went back inside the kitchen. He opened the oven and smiled at what was inside. He took the huge circular food and walked out of the kitchen and put it on the table. Everyone was looking at what it was.

Ash said, "This is one of the most popular foods back on my world. It's called a Pizza." He used his wires to cut them into pieces and said, "Take a slice and eat."

Cook Grub took a piece and saw how the cheese just kept on stretching. When he took a bite, his eyes widen as the flavors explode inside his mouth. He quickly ate that piece and took another one. Soon the rest of the guards followed and began to eat it. Ash used restoration magic on the pizza to make it possible to eat it again and again. This way, all of the guards would be able to eat some.

On the second floor, Shining Armor looked at the human with a scowl. He thought that the human would lose against Cook Grub but that didn't happen like he wanted it to. Ash not only won but now got a lot of the guards to like him. From the corner of his eyes, he saw some of the higher ups like him, moving down the stairs and towards the delicious food.

Shining Armor said, "Where are all of you going?"

One higher up stopped and said, "The fragrance of delicious food calls for me."

Another said, "I want to see what it tastes like."

Another said, "That food is making me drool."

Shining Armor said with angry, "That food was made by an alien."

One said, "Yeah. So what?"

Shining Armor shouted, "That thing could have poisoned the food!"

A higher up said, "Shining Armor. You are just being paranoid."

Shining Armor retorted, "I am not!"

Another one said, "Besides, if the food had been poisoned, then why are none of the guards becoming ill?"

Shining Armor could not say anything, "He ... you ... will ... but .."

The higher up said, "I don't know what you have against the human, Shining Armor. He has done nothing but help us, gave up new armor and weapons that are much better than our old ones, beat Discord, healed us and our guards' wounds, healed the princesses, created his personal squad and now he has not only made delicious food but is also helping Cook Grub in how to cook. He has done nothing to warrant your hate. I suggest that you change your attitude or things will change drastically in the future." When he was about to leave, he said, "For you that is."

With that, the group of higher ups went down the stairs and joined the guards. The remaining higher ups also left with them. Only Shining Armor remained on the second floor with a shocked expression. His face turned to scowl as he saw the higher ups eating along side the lower guards. He turned around and sat on his chair and resumed eating his food. He will not join that human.

Shining Armor began to think. If he can get a higher rank, then things might go his way. He grinned evilly as he knew how easy it will be. Soon, he will be marrying the alicorn of love and he will become a prince. He began to laugh evilly as he thought how he would belittle the alien when he becomes a prince. He'll even order the human to stay away from his sister.

After teaching Cook Grub how to cook delicious food, Ash left and went back to Ponyville by flying with his Ki surrounding him.

Ponyville

Ash landed in front of his house and went inside his house. He found it to be empty. The girls must be with the others. Just in case, he mentally asked his infected insects about the location of the girls, They informed him that they were in different parts of Ponyville. He relaxed that they are doing fine.

Ash then exited his house and went behind it, towards the forest. He has another project for Equestria but first, he needs to find a good location for it. A very large location. After searching for a while he found it or at least a good south and east portion of the Everfree forest.

(Ash's house is between "The Park", "The School" and "The Rock Pile". Now the location for his project starts from "The Rock Pile" and stretches a good distance towards south and east."

Ash made some hand signs and slammed his hands on the ground as he said, "Earth Style Great Earth Walls". Several walls erupted from the ground and stood at 50 feet tall. A huge portion of the forest was now boxed in due to the walls.

Ash then snapped his fingers and teleported all of the animals and their homes from inside the box, to the outside. After the forest within the walls were clear of any animals, he first released his viral flesh and devoured all of the forests and plant life within the walks. Now that the land within the wall was cleared, he can now begin his project.

As Ash was about to begin with his project, he stopped and look at us, the Readers. He grin and said, "This is a secret project. So none can see it."

A string appeared out of nowhere from above and Ash grabbed it. He said, "By the power of pink, I summon the pink shutter!" He pulled the string and the view slowly began to be covered by pink shutters.

Ash pointed towards the Readers and said, "You!" He then crossed his arms in an X shape and said, "Shall Not!" He then stretched his arms wide and said, "Pass!" Then the entire view was fully covered in pink shutters.

The Readers were denied to see what Ash's secret project was. However, Ash did give them something to make them happy. Hug the pony!

Sugarcube Corner

Pinkie Pie was working in the kitchen of the bakery. Mrs Cake was also baking with her. Then all of a sudden, Pinkie's entire body went stiff. Then, some of her body parts began to vibrate at an alarming rate and then she jumped and hit the ceiling. Then she bounced on the walls and around the kitchen like a spring and then she fell right where she was a few moments ago.

Mrs Cake became worried and quickly came to help her up. She asked, "Pinkie dear. Are you okay?"

Pinkie shook her head and said, "My pinkie-senses is tingling. Someone was able to evoke the power of Pink! Who could have done that?" She then look through the window and over the forest with narrowed eyes.

Next Chapter: Chapter 22 Wedding, Allies And Monsters Estimated time remaining: 33 Hours, 34 Minutes