My Little Tactics

Chapter Thirty Eight: Returns and Revelations.

The sounds of two sets of coughing could be heard as the smoke from their landing vanished. “That supposed to happen or did no one clean up down here while we were gone?”

“To be fair.” Twilight remarked between her own fits. “Spike doesn’t like to come down here and I told him to make sure to touch nothing down here while we were gone.”

“Still how does dust gather so quickly down here?” Dustan remarked as he looked around only to see that their arrival had apparently had enough force to knock down two different chalk boards and their erasers causing them to fill the air with their contents. “Oh, chalk dust.”

“Oh, I hope those weren’t anything too important, then again my back up notes should still be fine. If not them then my backup’s backups should be preserved.” Overly preparedness or not Dustan couldn’t help but find no fault in the purple unicorn taking such measures considering she had been tampering with long range teleportation.

The coughing fits, crashes, and other noises that came along with their teleportation though must have caused enough noise to warrant the number one dragon assistant to come down and check on things regardless of previous instructions as his rounded face quickly peered into the darkness that was the basement before he would light up a candle. “Twilight? Dustan? Is that you?”

The human stood up wiping chalk dust from his new suit as well as grabbing his luggage and bags before smiling. “Hey buddy, we are back.” Dustan wouldn’t lie, with his mana reserves feeling low like they were he was a bit wobbly but it was manageable as it must have been the same with Twilight, judging by how she stood up before she grinned.

Magic lit up her horn as she started to just about create a whirlwind of levitation before she ‘eeked’ some when a book nearly planted itself onto her face. “I am going to have to get used to normal outputs again.”

The tiny dragon came up with a smile looking at Dustan in his fancy suit as well as all of what he brought. “I take it you both had a good time at your home?”

“Yeah, we did. Helped me out a lot both physically and mentally.” He told the young one though Twilight was glaring.

“How do you know what I was doing?” She questioned of him with a bit of an accusing tone.

In response the dragon just rolled his eyes. “Twilight, I am the who helps you out, and the one who restocks the shelves. I may not know the exact details, but even I can start to follow trends. Though to be fair, I didn’t really put it all together until you called Dustan over to help out. That is when I understood. Especially when you both were gone for a few days.”

Twilight wanted to be mad, it was clear, but in the end she just sighed before chuckling giving the young drake a huge hug. “I am just glad to be back. Let’s head upstairs so that I can unpack.”

“I will be heading back to the castle myself, though Twilight could you please set up the meeting for me when you get a chance and let me know when it’s possible.” Seeing her nod Dustan couldn’t help but smile and whistle a bit of a tune as he started to head out of the library. Carrying his luggage up the stairs and out of the door of the library Dustan looked at the sight of Ponyville and couldn’t help but feel his smile grow wider. A sense of nostalgia came to him making him change the tune he was once whistling and once more since he had come to Equestria found himself whistling a certain tune.

Those that recognized him gave pleasant waves for the most part, minus the upturned nose of a certain mare. “Welcome back darling.” Rarity said with a smile before gasping. “Oh my where ever did you get those clothes? The stitching on them is just tre magnifique and the colors do so well for you, I always imagined blue was your coloration but this certainly proves it. Though it seems like you got into a bit of fight with an eraser, here let me help you with that.” Lightning up her horn, his suit and self were soon chalk free and back into pristine form. “There we go, oh it looks even better now!”

The black jacket over the blue suit was indeed something that Dustan enjoyed even if normally he wouldn’t. “I agree honestly and a friend bought it for me saying I should have something nice when I come back though he did let me pick.”

“Hmm something is missing though, not from the suit itself but from something.” The fashionista remarked as she looked Dustan over before finally figuring it out with a gasp. “Your cloak. It has become such a staple of your look that I can’t believe I didn’t realize that you weren’t wearing it. I know how much it means to you so what happened?”

“It was time to retire it Rarity. It had served me so well for so long, but honestly wear and tear was getting to it.” The smile still was on his face as he looked over the village, though Ponyville honestly was growing to be more akin to a proper town now since he had first arrived and the human briefly wondered if that was just the nature of this place or if it was because of him. “So since my journey started with my friend buying me that cloak, I thought what better way to send it off, then to give it back to my friend as a sign of our friendship and as a promise that I will return.” Giving a nod to Rarity one last time the human started to walk away. “I will have to commission you sometime soon to make a new cloak, and maybe an outfit or two. For now though I have to get going.”

As Dustan was leaving he wouldn’t see the smile on the designers face nor see the shocked realization come when she realized what he had said. “Gave it back?!”

The next visitor that that approached him was one he half suspected might pick up on his happy attitude. “Oh what has you so happy Dusty?” The pronking pink party pony of Ponyville asked with her mane lightly bouncing with her body. “You were gone a few days with Twilight.” She then gasped. “Don’t tell me you two…” She just initiated a few gestures that only had meaning to her even if Dustan knew what she was trying to insinuate.

Of course with how light his mood was and her goofy gestures he couldn’t help but laugh. “No Pinkie, Twilight developed a new method to a spell that let me visit my home. I got to resolve a few things and now I am back.”

Gasping for a second time did the pink earth pony stop in mid air for a half second before floating down. “Oh that means I need to prepare a welcome back party…oktalktoyoulaterbyebye!” With that last sentence did Pinkie leave a cloud of doppelganger behind as she went to plan the party that was to come, likely when Dustan least expected it.

Carrying his bags and case further down the road, it wouldn’t be until he approached the edge of Ponyville proper that the next visitor would dive bomb him and nearly make him jump out of his skin. “Fuck Dash, I didn’t expect you to stop in mid air in front of me like that.”

The prismatic speedster just grinned and folded her forelegs in front of her. “That was a new trick I have been working on. True it’s not as fast as I would like it to be but doing a mid air stop from a dive like that is pretty hard.” She then zipped around him. “But look at you big guy, looking sharp.” Giving a nod she smiled “Looking good in blue.”

Laughing at that a bit the human moved to set his bag of clothing down as he pointed at the hovering pegasus. “Careful if you said that to anyone else with how cool you are, they would think that you are hitting on them.” That got the reaction he was hoping for out of her, one of her first puffing out her chest in pride at the cool part then slowly realizing what it was he said and red filling her face.

His laughter didn’t stop her retort. “I didn’t mean it like that and you know it!”

Her pout was adorable to him though and he reached over to her and scratched her ears making her hover slowly descend to the ground as she closed her eyes, though as she felt her hooves touch the ground her eyes popped open and she swatted his hand away. “No, bad Dustan!” She reached up and gave him a playful shove though she did smile. “That was a good one; I didn’t expect you to say that.”

“Hey even I have moods to tease people. Plus it doesn’t help that your blush face and pouting face are adorable.” Patting her on the head he grabbed his stuff and continued on.

Rainbow Dash would blush even harder and shake her head before yelling out at him. “Don’t say things like that, it’s weird!” Before she flew off to wherever she went for a nap or her home.

Bags swinging from his step Dustan was making good time as he got to the forest and unlike last time where others had approached him, this time he saw a certain yellow pegasus walking along the path towards the castle. “Hey, Fluttershy!” The timid pony jumped and ran into a nearby bush from the sudden call as the human jogged over to her hiding place. “Sorry about that, didn’t mean to scare you Fluttershy.”

The bush to which he was speaking was shaking though it did calm as two eyes could be seen slowly opening in the foliage. “Oh, ok.” Then it seemed to register who it was as she leapt out and gave the surprised human a hug. “Dustan you’re back! I know Spike said not to worry but that just made me worry even more. I have been making sure Maya and Boko have been eating well while you have been gone.”

Hugging the animal caretaker gentle he smiled to her. “Thanks, that means a lot to me knowing you help to make sure they are happy. I wish I could give them more attention than I do but being a Lord is hard work sometimes.”

Releasing the hug and gently fluttering her wings like her name suggested she moved to set back down on the path and smiled up at him. “Oh it’s no trouble at all. I won’t lie; Boko is so nice and fluffy that sometimes I fall asleep against her for a short nap.”

Standing up and grabbing his bags and suitcase once more Dustan couldn’t help but to agree. “Yeah she is really soft that is for sure. Maya too, that shampoo you gave me a while back for each of them works wonders. Maya purring when she either lays against me or has me put my head against her tends to be really relaxing. I swear those two conspire against me as often when Boko wants to sit on my lap it means I am pinned down as I have to give her attention then Maya is right there to lie just far enough behind me that if I were to lie back my head would find itself perfectly resting against her.”

The approach to the castle was quicker then what the brown haired displaced would have expected as the conversation between Fluttershy and himself about the details and antics of their friends distracted them both quite well. Looking at the black stone bridge of Norite did Dustan smile before seeing the same black walls only now more decorated then before. Seems someone took the time to paint various murals onto the entranceway depicting various races all wearing different get ups all of which he recognized in one shape or another: A Squire Dragon, a Black Mage Pony, an Archer Deer, A Chemist Zebra, to name a few.

However it was the new flag that he recommended the design for that really made him smile. ‘I only really suggested those lines but they gave it color.’ It was a white flag with the black outline of a crystal in the middle with four lines at the diagonals to show light but each of those lines were a different color: Red, Blue, Green, and Yellow. ‘They put the colors of the four crystals.’ Dustan could see other changes as well, off to one side, where they had been clearing some woods was now a farm where he could see mostly earth ponies tending to the fields.

As Flutteryshy and Dustan approached the open gate the two guards, a Buffalo and a Pegasus pony, saluted them. “Welcome back Lord Warner and Lady Fluttershy.”

Giving a nod of his head before he would smile Dustan looked at the two guards and told them. “Thank you.”

“Oh, thank you so much.” The caretaker beside him said giving a small bow by leaning back almost looking like a stretching cat.

The pegasus of the two quickly flew off as the Buffalo stayed put. Heading into the town it was more lively then he remembered as the Buffalo seemed to be integrating rather well, though he could see some awkwardness behind their actions like at a food stall where the fluffy maned quadruped was fumbling with counting out money. From what Dustan understood they had a barter system before so it was a bit of a shock to go from one to the other. There were more Earth ponies then he remembered as well but if he had to take a good guess they belonged to the large farm he saw, were their more than one? He would have to ask that later to those that would know. What was more the human saw plenty more faces that were not there before as well as…a parking area? There were chariots in a small lot dedicated to them showing that nobles were now coming in and out of the castle, though the hope that nothing was up was not strong within Dustan as he thought about nobles.

“My Lord!” Merlene’s white and brown coloration moved quickly to land in front of him, the sky blue highlights at her wings and eyes made her form that much more distinct and noticeable as she gave a bow her yellow eyes gleaming as she smiled. “It is good to have you back.” She looked at him curiously then as if seeing him for the first time. “Why are you dressed up and what are you carrying?” Merlene had been his close confidant, his friend, his lead guard, and honestly he had missed her, Zecora, Side, Tremor, everyone from the castle, so when he gave her a hug she froze and gave a bit of a squawk a slight blush coming to her cheeks and beak. “M-my Lord?”

Giving one last squeeze before pulling back, Dustan smiled at her as he went and picked his bags back up. “It’s good to be home again.”

Blinking for a moment before shaking off her embarrassment she stood proud and smiled. “Welcome home My Lord. Where did you head off to?”

The Squire almost told her then and there but shook his head. “I am trying to plan a meeting to get all together so I can explain some things, where I was will be among them, just have to coordinate a bit to see when it can happen. You will be invited amongst others so don’t worry. You will find out soon enough, till than think of it as a surprise.” Sighing mentally he let his thoughts briefly wonder. ‘I hope they will all understand why I held back.’

“Just let me know and I will be there. Should I inform any others that such a meeting will be taking place?” Merlene had a point, should he ask for her to do that even if a date wasn’t announced yet?

“Let them know one is coming but that the date hasn’t been confirmed yet. I hope they will be able to make it when its time.” Unsure but confident that people could make it he smiled to the head of his personal guard.

Of course people can surprise. “What if I ask them if they will be free in the next couple of days and if so which ones? Would that be of help?”

Chuckling a bit, Dustan gave a firm nod. “Absolutely it would help. I will get you a list later after unpacking and unwinding.”

Giving a salute, Merlene soon fell into line to follow him as he went into the castle, though on the way many were waving and giving salutes to him welcoming him back. However once inside the castle proper, he barely took three steps before being tackled to the ground by a horse sized battering ram of fluffy feather that gave happy noises to see him again.

The nuzzling beak of Boko was hitting a few spots that were a bit ticklish and combine that with the feathers she possessed the White Chocobo soon had him laughing up a storm. “Ok girl, I missed you too.” Giving him a soft ‘Kweh’ Boko let up on the tickling but still didn’t get up off him until he gave her a nice big hug, only then did she relent. Except the universe conspired to keep him on the ground as soon the power of a large cat pounced him and pinned him back down slathering his face with licks. Part of Dustan wanted to remember a fact about large cat’s tongues being so rough they could lick layers of skin away or something, he was never sure about said fact though. “Hello to you too Maya, I didn’t forget about you.” He gave her a laughing hug that had the Coeurl purring heavily on him except she didn’t get off him. “Come on girl, I will give you affection in a bit, I need to get unpacked.” She wasn’t budging. “Fluttershy a little help?” The Squire asked chuckling however stopped his laughter when he saw Fluttershy backing up. “Wait what are you-”

“My turn!” The pegasus called as she leapt at him and that was the last thing he saw before yellow fluff piled atop of him.

Merlene closed the door behind her as Dustan sighed. He had given her the list, though it had taken till after dinner to do so. Now in some jeans and a t-shirt Dustan got up and went off to his room from his office, during the day while he was looking over some things, everyone had come to visit him. Tremor came to welcome him back and was reporting that no longer would he be conditioning the first group of soldiers that he had been as they now passed his acceptable standards. Dustan had suggested to at least continue to keep them active at least once a week so that they remember to keep themselves in shape and that it wasn’t a one and done deal. Liking that idea Tremor agreed and left. Steel was the next to come in, mostly to welcome him back and let him know the various stratagems that was currently being taught. Beyond that he didn’t have much to report to the Lord of the Everfree at the moment. Sturdy came and gave him a hoof bump to his fist bump and updated the Lord about various buildings that had been added, most of them being homes for the buffalos and the new Earth Ponies that had come to farm.

Turns out there were three farms. The first was the mixed farm he had seen growing various veggies thanks to a mix of different families having come to live in Luminary Castle. The second farm was taking over Eden’s and Zecora’s previous job to grow both the various special herbs for keeping monsters away, as well as more of the common ingredients for the reagents that the castle could use, like the ingredients for Salve. The last farm was for a small orchard of various trees, some of which he learned Applejack was not happy with. Amongst them were oranges, pears, lemons, cherries, and Peach though there were plans for more to be added later. Seems the soil of the Everfree was especially rich and reports from the farmers stated that one could expect those two fields to feed the entire castle in a month.

Speaking of Eden and Zecora, seems the two of them together had been making progress with Zecora’s hidden projects as they both came to greet him at the same time. Dustan couldn’t help but smile at the two of them and was happy to see the both of them doing well. Eden and Sturdy had gotten engaged while he had been away prompting him to smile and congratulate them. Zecora also said the same thing only much more rhythmic as it seems Dustan was the first they wanted to let know. Once the hugging was done, of which he felt Zecora’s strength as she gave a squeeze hard enough to boop her nose to let her know it was too much, he got an adorable blush out of her and really wanted to make a blushing newspaper joke or something along those lines but now wasn’t the time. Turns out the Remedy plant that he had given her was now bearing results. While she still couldn’t MAKE Remedy in of its self, she and Eden have been able to take clippings and seeds to plant and grow them and were experimenting on how to incorporate them in various potions, of which Hi-Potions had been discovered.

Dustan couldn’t help but congratulate them again for the progress and as they left gave them both another hug, though this time Zecora blushed and only gave a light hug likely remembering what happened just moments ago. Progress was huge for sure, farms, training, research and discovery. So many things in the few days he was gone, they must have all been bubbling up to this point and just had coincidently popped at the same time.

Mystic was up next saying he was improving on his casting and that many others were getting to his level and he felt soon that a few more casters would show up. He had also updated him on his thesis on Neutral magic and how he sent it off to, hopefully, be published. If it was published that meant he would have every qualification to take the Magister’s test. The Squire was incredibly proud of his friend and smiled asking him if he needed any help or anything, to which the speckled pony surprised him with a simple ‘nope’. Him displaying that level of confidence made Dustan both surprised and happy at the same time, getting that feeling and knowing that it would turn out great for him.

Scale Allure, Guild leader extraordinaire, was next to see him, informing him that they had officially moved into the castle and this was now the headquarters and that they would be paying him some taxes as per usual. She also explained that the visitors to the castle in the chariots were both her people’s chariots as well as various nobles that were coming to higher them. She also brought up the idea to pay for lessons for individuals that wanted to become part of the guild as well as those that were already a part of it. He mentioned put it in with her taxes to him and that would cover all their lessons. When she asked if he even knew what his castle was bringing in…he floundered. It was there that she had introduced him to Exemplary Finance: A matte grey pony in both coat and mane with thick glasses whose eyes couldn’t be seen because of that and a scale with a bag of money on one end and a stack of papers on the other weighing equally. Turns out when she had talked to some of the people in the castle things were being done haphazardly and she had told them about this accounting stallion and right away had gotten to overseeing things.

This was where things got a bit…weary for Dustan as Finance told him that between taxes to the crown, their current ability to sell, the planned income from the school as well as collected taxes from all residents, even the relaxed spending that was to come in a month from the fields paying off, they were only gaining a small income. The problem came from the fact that was maintaining, not repairing or upgrading. New buildings, new expansions, new anything were pulling from the castles coffers heavily as well as his own since they were tied together, of which Dustan didn’t know that. They would need another source of income.

After Scale and Finance’s visit, exhausted him but his day wasn’t over with just that. Next came the resident Forge Master Burly Bellows who came to introduce him to something new. It looked like a bracer with a flat metal bar. When prompted to put it on Burly told him to put it on his right forearm to which he did. There was a plate like button on the inside that the Forge Master told him that he could hit with his other hand or even against himself and when the Squire tried, the bar extended and then rotated out to create a collapsible buckler. The stallion was quiet proud of it as it was a tad lighter than his other buckler and could always be on him as it only took a second to fully extend to its shield form. For sure this was a welcome upgrade for Dustan even if his plans moving forward were not for much combat if he could.

Applejack had visited him last in the day, where he had learned about her dislike for the pears being grown on his property. When he told her that the castle needed it for various balanced diets as well to increase variety so that people could enjoy her apples more, she backed off on the subject as it was technically true and it did make him wonder why Applejack had such a problem with specifically pears. Something to look into another day, but for now Applejack’s real concern was Apple Bloom whom had been having some weird dreams lately but won’t talk to her about it saying it was normal and had to do with what she was learning. The Lord of the Everfree had no clue what it was but said he would ask her about them and help straighten things out if it wasn’t normal.

With that he was free to be in his room after he ate dinner and relax, pulling out the various chargers, of which the solar panels for went to his window ledges around the room and then set up his laptops. He didn’t know how long he had to plan for what was to come but he made sure to start familiarizing himself with various objects that were on the devices as he started to work.

The next day he found out when the Princesses could visit, it would be the day after tomorrow, and had looked at the list that Merlene had brought him. She would run out for him again that day to inform those on the list the day, which luckily all had free, and the planning was starting. He looked at the list of those that were coming and started to try to get things that he hopefully would need for questions from each of them. Dustan wanted each answer to be positive, but…that would have been impossible. So he did his best to do what he could to make it not seem entirely terrible. Note cards were written, torn and erased, then rewritten countless times. In the end, he had nearly secluded himself in his room even taking his meals there to prepare.

The next day was mostly the same with the exception of one particular visitor during the morning. “Hello Darling, I hope I am not interrupting anything.”

Dustan had pushed closed the devices before she had entered so nothing on them had been seen. “Hello Rarity, what can I do for you?”

The white and purple Unicorn pranced into his room with a smile on her face. “Well I was finishing up the outfit I promised you the other day when Merlene came to ask me if tomorrow was a good day for a meeting. I told her yes and asked why and only was told that you were setting up the meeting. So I made sure to do my absolute best while putting the final details on your new outfit and here I am.” Floating a couple of cases out of the saddle bags at her side she presented them to him. “Go on, open them up and tell me what you think.”

He wasn’t able to stifle a chuckle at her enthusiasm before open up said cases. The soft interior of said cases showed how much care Rarity had put into this as well as her presentation. However taking a look at the pieces of his new outfit as he took them out he couldn’t help but feel his Tactical Eye chime in on some and he smiled. “Wow, these are definitely a cut above the rest.”

The Fashionista smiled and took on a pose. “Well of course. Though I do have to admit, I had to get Spikey-Wikey’s help as I had to examine his cloak that you got him. That sent a lot of inspiration through me and just, I found myself incorporating designs and spells together that I wouldn’t have normally.”

Part of Dustan took what she said in and it made sense for her to be able to create these. Of all the people around she likely had the lightest touch of magic for what she did considering what she did. “Rarity, you and I will need to talk later but thank you. I will send payment over soon, and before you try to disagree with me. I am going to insist.”

She already had a hoof up to deny the payment when he said that before giving off a sigh and smiling. “Well if you insist. Though I do have to admit, while the designs are more simplistic then I normally do, these have to be my finest works. Yet I can’t even begin to understand why. THAT is what makes me excited. Oh wait, don’t try it on yet, in fact don’t wear it at all until tomorrow. Let your new outfit be a surprise for everypony, even me.”

Thinking about what she said, he could agree with that and put them back in the cases. “Ok I can do that.” Setting them to the side Dustan sat back in his chair and put on a smile for what he knew was going to be the tedious part. “Now, to discuss payment.”

An hour…it took an hour for them to come to an agreement on the price. Dustan would admit he got a slight victory in that he paid more than she had wanted him to pay, but Rarity proved to be a much better bargainer then him as the price wasn’t much more than what she proposed. In the end it left Dustan with a slight case of ‘How did she do that?’ syndrome after she left and he had a chance to take a look at the price he put down.

The day didn’t have much more to it than that, except Faithful coming in and bringing him a royal issue Signet Ring sent by Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. The ring was made then sent out as soon as the Castle’s Emblem was chosen and was enchanted so only he could wear it. Putting it on he found it had fit perfectly which did make him question how they had known that but in the end chalked it up to magic. Honestly this made signing some papers a bit less challenging as he could just stamp his ring in a bit of ink then press that to the parchment, but he still signed his name just in case someone tried to forge the symbol.

In the evening he was again left to his own devices and focused on what he would talk about and it was when he was heading off to bed, a slight bit later then he would have liked, that he felt he had did the best he could. Dustan hoped for an ending that had everyone understanding but he knew that they may not. Closing his eyes his dreams were empty that night, both thankfully and regretfully. Thankfully as it wouldn’t give Luna any ideas of what he had planned but regretfully as he was still hoping to go back to the classroom.

The Princesses were visiting, it was a big day, Castle Luminary had thrown up various decorations when it had been leaked that the Lord of the Castle had invited the Two Sisters over for a meeting as well as various other guests. There had been some nobles that had flown in via carriage or some other method who wanted to be a part of this, most though were for acclaim that they were there in case something monumental happened. Only some of the guest list had been leaked, mostly from hearsay of one pony or another having overheard one of the Lord’s Attendants going around and asking various individuals on when they were free before seeing that same individual come and ask them to show up at the same time and day that the Princesses were to show up.

It was to be expected that the Lord himself was to be there, as he called the meeting and most would agree that maybe one or two of his most trusted were there, a servant and a guard most likely or maybe the captain of his guard. Speculation was high, but for the most part, many knew the Elements of Harmony would be attending which lead some to think that some evil force had awoken that the Lord had discovered. Some were even suggesting that the Human who was the lord had something wrong with him, as he had been missing days prior with the Element of Magic herself and rumors from eloping to him being cursed were thrown around. Either way good or bad the term Everlord was being thrown around as a new title for him even if it wasn’t official or anything. Either way it must have been a big event as two guests had just arrived that had been on the rumor list. The Famous Orchestral pony herself Octavia Melody, complete with Cello case and all looking quite prim and proper wearing her white collar and pink bowtie, her dark gray mane looking silky smooth as did her lighter gray coat. In contrast was her Fiancée next to her with her unruly and spike two toned blue and electric blue mane headphones around her neck and her black rimmed violet lens glasses covering her face, though what anyone failed to realize was how shiny her coat was, looking just as silky smooth as her partners as did her mane. On her back she carried a small case, which most knew as her collapsible turn table with self contained sound system. They were no doubt there to provide music for the meeting was the general consensus.

Next came the first part of the Elements of Harmony, though for the most part they had been kept out of the papers so many didn’t even have a clue who they were, though for those in the know they knew the two pegasus on their way were Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy. The latter of the bunch could pass for a model, tall slender, coat and mane that just screamed love and care as did her wings, which most wouldn’t notice but other fellow Pegasi would, were just a touch bigger than normal. Her demeanor though lived up to her name as she kept yelping from various flashes of photography as the Element strove to stop them while posing for others. Rainbow Dash was the opposite of her companion, while had soft cream and pink colorations, Rainbow Dash lived up to her name as her mane was a living rainbow complete with every color therein. Her Cerulean coat, was vibrant as well sticking out while on ground level but would blend in quite well in the sky, of which she seemed to have an issue with leaving as not once did her hooves touch the ground while she was zipping from spot to spot to protect her friend as well as pose for the cameras where needed. It made some speculate that it was possible that they might be more, but those were the ones who also didn’t know of the two’s past friendship.

After that pair came two that were well known as what they could provide Equestria was already creating splashes in certain circles, or had been a splash for a long while: Rarity Belle and Applejack of the Apple Clan. The former was a Unicorn that would not look out of place if she was from Canterlot in her well maintained horn, glossy white coat and well done curls of her purple mane. She carried herself with a sense of grace that the Earth Pony next to her had no sense of. She had been making a splash in the world Fashion as of late and was rumored to be the personal tailor of the Everlord himself which by process of association did bring her attention from nobles. The orange coated farm pony with the blonde mane next to her though carried herself with simple form, one that was self assured in who she was in that she didn’t need to impress none of the paparazzi that were trying to ask her questions, and when she did respond her country dialect, which while charming, did nothing to endear those to her that she told to ‘Back off darn it!’

The last pair of the elements was actually a trio in that it was the last two of the Elements as well as a small dragon that came with them. Pinkie Pie, pink in coat and pinker in mane was hopping along in a strange fashion jabbering on making guesses on what could be happening though it often came back to some kind of party which she was excited on. Most reporters took that at face value on what was happening, while others could tell with how confused the mare was that it might not be the case. Either way the Pink pony zipped around at speeds that made most Pegasi jealous as she tried to answer as many of the questions as possible, most of which she could only answer ‘I have no clue, but its sure to be fun!’ She zipped here and there so much that often times she just seemed to vanish and reappear as if teleporting, of which seemed like that case as she once appeared under a reporters hat, which should have been impossible. When asked on how, it was Twilight Sparkle who ended up telling them ‘Just…don’t ask. Its Pinkie.’ Speaking of the titular Element of Magic herself, her three toned dark sapphire mane with purple and raspberry stripes worked well with her lavender coat that she wasn’t done in anything special. Then again she had been from Canterlot and many reporters knew how functional over form she was when trying to get many interviews from her over the years. The dragon with them had also been a known factor often accompanying the Element of Magic even before her risen status to an Element Bearer, and as such most disregarded the purple and green drake outright.

After that point many castle goers could be seen coming and going, many that were noted to live in the castle proper as higher ranking individuals, A large dragon, an older Minotaur, a few different ponies one even wearing a strange get up of a weird wide brimmed hat, but overall nothing the reporters took note of, except maybe one or two who had recognized them from the exhibition match. There were those individual paparazzi that tried to get interviews from the past event, and some that tried to use that to talk them up to see if they knew what was going on but all either declined or, like Pinkie Pie, said they had no clue. In the end nothing new was gained from talking to them and it mattered little anyways.

Soon a magical disturbance was felt as powerful magic was being called upon and soon with a loud pop the Two Sisters had appeared along with a one guard each. Princess Celestia, Raiser of the sun, Sunlight made real, Alicorn Princess of the Sun stood in all her glory well above even the tallest of stallion, her quad colored mane and tail stood flowing in the wind that didn’t exist showing off the pastel pink, blue, green, and purple as her majestic white coat gleamed as it did from her golden crown, shoes, and peytral. Likewise her sisters navy blue coat and dark spots stood out all the more against her sister, as did her dark as night crown and peytral though her shoes were silver. The Princess of the Night and Dreams was not all that seen but her work in Equestria was getting to be well known, especially amongst foals who thanked her at night and when they woke up, often saying that she came to them and banished their ‘bad dreams’. Her mane, a dark blue was littered with specks of light as if they were the stars from her night sky that she kept until needed and the amorphous halo of Purr-sian blue, which surrounded her mane like the ethereal plane that all dreams were conjured from. At their sides stood their Champions, Covered in white and gold came the first, a unicorn, though the figure was covered horn to hoof in armor so their gender couldn’t even be ascertained, nor their name. All that was known about the knight was their title: Knight of the Dawn. Likewise the twin Champion of the night themselves was likewise armored leaving a mystery to their gender as they walked with an authority that could only come from experience in battle, clad in blue and black armor: The Knight of the Dusk. While many clamored to get the princesses attention at best they got an acknowledging nod to their presence or a wave. Trailing behind the two knights and the two princess, the paparazzi tried to follow them but on the stairs upwards the Knight of the Dawn was the first to stop them and it was clear that even if they somehow got past them as the Princesses made their way into the private conference room that the Knight of the Dusk would not let them past that point. The presence of those two knights, known to be personal guards of the princesses and them alone, caused all ponies to not even think about intruding. They could only speculate on what was to be said or happen in that room.

Twilight Sparkle, Element of Magic, registered Magister, Student of Celestia, was looking forward to this meeting. She had an idea of what it was going to be about as Dustan had told her some of what he wanted to discuss back on his world before they had transported themselves back, though even then he had told her that he wasn’t sure what else he was going to say and that he needed to think and to plan so she had been looking forward to this. She had made sure to keep the facts she had come to know to herself but the true test had been hiding her newest fascinations from others. The marvel that was the Pen was so strong that she may or may not have sent the designs to a patent office so that she could get said object patented so she could looking to having them manufactured for everypony, NO, everyone! Surely this would be something that would revolutionize everywhere! Just thinking that thought alone had her shuffling back and forth giddily like a schoolfilly eager for her Hearth’s Warming Day gifts.

Speaking of being giddy, she was happy to see her teacher again and wanted to talk to her, but she was afraid she might babble out and leak the surprise early so had kept her distance, which was hard for sure. Many of the choices for whom was brought into this meeting didn’t surprise her. The Princesses were of course a given considering she had been ask to send them a letter about it after all. Her own inclusion was also a foregone fact considering she knew and was likely going to be asked to attest to certain facts later. Her other friends had not been surprising as she had told Dustan that she wouldn’t hide this from them. Mystic wasn’t a surprise as he was likely the sole human’s best friend so it figured that he would be included as well. Sturdy and Eden were a tad surprising but at the same time from what she knew were in Dustan’s call for council so at the same time it wasn’t a surprise to see them here. Faithful was surprising to her though, she knew of his past as it had been mentioned who he had worked for at some point during her classes for Neutral Magic but considering how apologetic he was for his former master and how much he lived up to his name for Dustan she trusted him and so must he apparently. Tremor and Steel were definitely not two she figured would be here. Tremor always seemed like he was waiting on something from Dustan while Steel always seemed to be considering something about the human. Zecora, that one wasn’t a surprise at all though it did bring a smile to her face after all even Twilight wasn’t THAT clueless so she wished Zecora good luck though considering what the unicorn now knew she knew that road was going to be a long and hard fought one. The most surprising two were Octavia and Vinyl Scratch. She honestly didn’t know if they had even talked to Dustan outside of the concert and even then only knew that Vinyl was the only one that did so as she was the one asking him questions. Had they interacted at all beyond that? If so that was a surprise to her.

Faithful left for a moment through a door to check on something and when he returned, she knew that it was time. “Mare’s and Gentlecolts, may I have your attention!” The unicorn called out in his cummerbund and tie. “I have the distinct pleasure to announce the Noble Lord of the Everfree, Masher of Malboros, Summoner of Eidolons, Master of Neutral Magic, and Master of Swordsmanship. Lord Dustan Warner.”

The door opened and even to Twilight the human struck a rather sharp image. Before them the Lord of the Everfree’s attire had changed, his short brown hair was now accompanied by a tunic stylized almost like a robe that was mostly gray with blue trim and lines that broke up its pattern. A new belt that seemed specifically designed with him and his weapons in mind, of which now his Harmonium axe rested in a proper hip holster at his left for easy access while his two swords were on his right properly strapped and same with his weapons were pouches for various items to be held and potion loops to hold vials and more. Loose fitting blue leggings barely made any noise as he moved though his boots, the same beige ones that he had been wearing since he had arrived and still didn’t seem to be showing any signs of wear, hitting the ground made up for their lack of noise. Clearly a blue undershirt was worn under his tunic as the sleeves went down to his elbows while his gloves, the ones she had given him, rose up high on his forearms. On his right forearm he sported some kind of bracer that was new that had a metal bar of some type lain on it, she would have to ask him about that later. His most distinct characteristic though, one that he had not been without and even on Earth had struck her as weird when he had given it up, was his cloak. Styled the same way as his old, it was a hooded cloak that went all the way to his ankles. The blue of this cloak was the same as the blue of his pants and tunic’s trim, but the cloak had a trim of gray instead and as the man turned to move towards the head of the table, she could see the distinct pattern that made up the emblem for Luminary Castle embroidered upon the cloak.

Apparently though his new look didn’t go unappreciative either as she heard Rarity make a comment that she knew it would look good on him. Then again Twilight should have known that she made it, the details were too good not to be her work, though even Twilight would admit that this level was something else. Fluttershy was even impressed asking Rarity what kind of stitching she used in it, the variety and level of knowledge that Fluttershy shown to do that surprised the fashionista a bit but she told her that they would talk later about that.

Applejack of course was not one for subtly as she called out, “Cleaned up right now didn’t ya?!”

That earned her a chuckle from him as Pinkie Pie went on with a ‘Wowie Zowie.’ Spike next to her whispered to himself about possibly getting himself an outfit like that but in purple and green of which the image wasn’t too bad in her own head either and might have to help her little brother out with. A surprising reaction came from Rainbow Dash whom she seen blush and rather surprisingly wasn’t flying and instead had her wing spread-oh…she was going to save that fact later to tease her about or when she pulled a prank on her. Vinyl’s reaction was to give Dustan a Diamond Dog whistle as her Fiancée just rolled her eyes and kept giving out a modest hoof stamp cheer as did the Princesses, Sturdy, Eden, Mystic, and Side Winder, whose presence she just realized was there. Tremor and Steel, just like she had thought before, said nothing. They seemed to be content with mulling something over in their heads as they continued to watch the man move to his seat. The least surprising reaction came from the Shaman of the woods. Twilight couldn’t help but mentally snicker some as she watched every bit of the white parts of Zecora turn red and her hooves start to shuffle around nervously yet she never looked away. Merlene was a tad bit of a surprise in that while she clapped, the Magister would take note of a slight red hue to her face as well and only because it mismatched with her sky blue markings did Twilight even notice.

“Ahem.” Dustan cleared his throat as he looked to everyone.

‘Well then, its time.’ Twilight mentally recorded to herself.

“Ladies and Gentlemen, I would first like to thank you all for coming on short notice like this.” Dustan looked around as the crowd was calming down, many were stopping their hoof stamps, Zecora seemed to be patting herself in the face a little too hard as it seemed to leave her cheeks red. Rainbow Dash seemed to be preening herself or doing something with her wings, though she likely was just restless. “I have called you all here to discuss some things, many things honestly and truth be told while I didn’t NEED to call a meeting for this, I rather get it in one instead of many separate instances.” Holding out a hand towards Twilight, the purple unicorn made her way over to him. “Recently Twilight Sparkle had found a way to let me visit my home.”

Many gasped out at this and many others smiled and congratulated him. “While that is fantastic news Dustan, and I would love to learn the details of how later, I assume that something happened during your trip there that prompted this?” Celestia asked as she looked him over with an appraising eye.

“Yes and no.” Tugging slightly at his new clothes, of which his Tactical Eye had told him when he looked at him that his new tunic and cloak registered themselves as a Silken Robe and as a Mage’s Cloak respectively from Tactics. “The only reason it was a yes is because in order to send me home Twilight had to teleport with me. You see there is a truth I have been keeping from all of you. A truth that while I have good reasons to hide, I won’t from you all any longer.” That got everyone in the room to lean forward slightly except for Vinyl and Twilight of whom the former seemed to lean back some as if slightly afraid of what was about to happen. “I have lead you all to believe that Humans exist somewhere out there on this world. In truth, they don’t, least not as far as I know and in fact I am not sure if they even exist in this universe as in truth I am not from this universe.”

No one said anything, in fact most of the faces around were either dazed at hearing that or in disbelief. “Wait Dustan, surely thou are saying this in jest?”

Shaking his head he would point to both Twilight and Vinyl. “These two here know the truth, Vinyl from when she connected me to the Music of Harmony and got feedback from my life as a result during the concert, and Twilight cause she went with me.”

“Vinyl is that true?” Octavia asked of her DJ lover.

“~Yeah.~” The sound of her voice came via her headphones projected via her magic. “~The feedback showed me a few things and while it could have been played off as a different part of the world I happen to catch a look at a globe via one of the visions and it didn’t match up.~”

“I can also agree, Equestria isn’t even on the map as I looked it over. Humans have extensively covered their world to a degree that caused even me to boggle at the numbers.” Twilight backed up Vinyl as she spoke. “So many innovations and so far advanced from us with just technology that I honestly can’t even begin to comprehend it.”

He could hear many around discussing the legitimacy of those claims as he went over to a nearby cabinet dresser and pulled out a bag and slowly pulled out his laptops. “These devices are computers, computational machines capable of running programs and numbers quicker than you can think of them.” Dustan would activate a program on them as he pointed them at a wall and caused it to enter projector mode to display upon the wall what he was talking. “As such I am going to be showing you all proof and various things from my world just so you know I am not lying about things and to show you that my claims are not exaggerations. With that in mind I have prepared something for each of you today to show. So…who wants to go first?”

It seemed everyone took a moment to adjust to what he was saying before Rainbow Dash recovered the quickest. “What is the fastest a Human can move!”

“Usain Bolt currently holds the record.” He told her pulling up a picture of the man in question. “Clocking just under twenty eight miles per hour or a little under forty five kilometers per hour. That is by foot at least.” Dustan pulled up a picture of a sleek aircraft. “The fastest a piloted craft can go in the air of Earth that we have done so far, Earth being the name of my world by the way, is four thousand five hundred and twenty miles per hour.”

The look on Rainbow Dash’s face was priceless as she just looked on in shock. “Excuse me?!”

Smiling Dustan pulled up a few clips of various flight tests of some machines his world had: F-16’s, normal commercial planes, and more. “Air travel for us humans is a daily thing and we are capable of traveling the world in a matter of hours at most a day depending on where in the world you are going. This is something normal people can afford to do as well all though the speeds I told you about before are not what those vehicles I just showed you are capable of.” Rainbow’s Wings popped out at that and he laughed as did many individuals around the table prompting the mare to blush and smooth her wings back down.

The next to raise their hoof was the Princess of the Night herself. “Thou said that thine kin achieved those feats in air.” Coughing for a moment to herself Luna switched her mode of talking realizing that most there were friends. “What I mean to say is that it seems like your wording leads us to believe that you have achieved faster in some way.”

“That is a bit of a tricky question without answering a couple of things first.” Dustan switched to a different folder to project things. “For my world, our Sun and Moon do not need to be controlled. Our planet orbits around the sun and our moon orbits around our planet thanks to gravitational forces keeping them there thanks to the sun being so much larger then my planet and the moon being smaller then my planet.” A couple of ponies looked astonished at that, Luna and Celestia looked more intrigued then anything. “That being said now you know a bit of the basics for what I am to say. As you all may or may not know, there is no air in space.” Some were surprised by that and looked to want to ask questions. “Humans have developed technology, while still rare and not available to common folks, allows us to go into space with a type of vehicle we call the Space Shuttle. It can go to the moon, it can orbit around our planet, of which needs to exceed speeds of over seventeen thousand miles per hour to do in order to make sure Earth’s gravity doesn’t pull it back down.”

“That is…incredible. It sounds like your people are much more advanced than our own as you have said. Soon you will tell me that thine- that your people can travel to the stars and planets.” Luna remarked which only made him smirk. Her face looked shocked to say the least.

“We have not physically landed on another world, but we have put a remote controlled machine onto a nearby planet if that counts. Also we have technology that allows us to observe nearby galaxies and more. Truth is Luna-” The human remarked as he pulled up stars and galaxies for photos. “Stars are just very far away suns. Of which are all various sizes and colors. Celestia may control this sun, but you control STARS.” That fact seemed to make the Alicorn of the night swell up. “But that is my world and my universe. I am not sure how the stars work here as was mentioned before that you two control the sun and moon here. Stars might be different, but who knows.”

Celestia spoke up then. “Hmm I think that answered a question I had as well so I will not raise my hoof coming up.”

“That is fine though if you think of something feel free to ask.” Clearing his throat he looked around. “Who’s next?”

“I would like to know about Earth Fashion.” Grinning Dustan merely pulled out some magazines for Rarity and held them out. Seeing them the Fashionista simply gasped and floated them over in her telekinesis and started to look through them. “Tre Magnifique!”

“In fact since Rarity spoke up so soon, I do have a few things for people here.” Pulling out a book he would whisper to Twilight who to levitate it to. “Fluttershy, that is a book that has pictures and studies of various Earth animals.”

The shy pegasus nearly squealed as she got her hooves on it clutching it to her barrel. “Oh thank you Dustan. I can’t wait to read it.”

“That being said, you should know something.” He really hated to break the pony’s heart like this but he didn’t want her to find out on her own or question why certain things didn’t work. “Earth animals…aren’t aware. They can’t speak to people like Equestria’s animals do; they act only on instinct with very, very, VERY few exceptions.”

“Oh.” The mare looked down trodden for a moment before looking back up with a smile and hugging the book. “Still, I very much look forward to reading about the animals of your world.”

“Next up.” Pulling out another stack of magazines he whispered who they should go to. “Is Pinkie Pie.”

“OH OH WHAT AM I GETTING!” Making grabby hooves at the magazines the Squire laughed.

“Those are various backing and pastry recipes that I am sure you will make use of to make people happy.” As soon as the party pony got a hold of them she pronked back and forth in excitement and stowed them away in her mane. “I have a couple of more gifts to give but let’s see some questions first so it’s a bit broken up.”

Side Winder had his hoof raised and was called on next. “Can humans teleport?”

“No, we are not capable of that. It’s a matter of Science Fiction for us.” The answer seemed to disappoint the Unicorn. The next hoof that came up was Mystics, he knew what was coming but still didn’t look forward to it.

Mystic smiled and adjusted his Black Mage hat. “What kind of magic can humans use beyond Neutral Magic?”

Sighing, he pulled up a folder of images. “Humans can’t use magic. For us it’s a matter of myth and legends even if some want to believe otherwise. I am the only one capable of it. Merlin is the most famous mythical figure to wield magic that most know of and he didn’t exist, or if he did then his legend has been muddled so much by time that no one knows anymore. Everything I have been telling you about humans, it has all been the sole product of technology, science, math, and ingenuity.”

Steel Brilliance took that moment to speak up without raising his hand. “I am very hard pressed to believe this until I see proof. Can you show us some of what your people are capable of math wise?”

Nodding, he smiled as he had been prepared. “Yes I can. From what I understand the Minotaur are currently studying Algebra correct?” Pulling up an equation in case the name wasn’t the same Steel smiled. “Ok good, this is the next step above that. You will find that after that is calculus, of which my own personal education didn’t cover.” When he showed the string of numbers and letters the Minotaur turned pale. “Of which this even the highest level humans can do, there is more but honestly I don’t know them well enough to explain it properly. Does that cover your question Steel?” The Minotaur general, a bull who considered himself most studious was clearly shaken by this and sat down just nodding in response.

“What about weapons and tactics?” Seems Tremor, slightly unnerved by the other elder teacher, spoke up next.

Sighing and taking a deep breath Dustan closed his eyes. “Humanity is not nor has really ever been a peaceful race. We have fought with ourselves for as long as recorded history and even now. There was once a point where many nations of our world were fighting against each other which was dubbed the second world war or World War II.” Opening his eyes he pulled up a picture of the Fat Man. “This is a weapon we created. I won’t go into the process behind how it can do what it can do as I rather not go into how horrible it is but let me tell you this. We dropped two of these on a nation that was against my particular country. That country surrendered after as these two bombs, each destroyed a city by themselves. One of those cities called Hiroshima had three hundred and fifty thousand living in it.”

As many went pale and gasped at that Dustan pulled up pictures, showing shadows burned into walls and a few others of the horrors this weapon caused. “That is, I can’t even begin…” Tremor stated but couldn’t finish his thought as his legs gave out, the pride of a dragon as the strongest race, whose might could only be challenged by highly powerful magic users had to admit that even they were not capable of something like that in one fell swoop.

“Humans have other devastating weapons but those were some of the most devastating that we used. It was so devastating in fact, that their use was wholly banned by the whole world after that which as you can imagine, is a feat and a half.” Dustan gave a bit of a sad chuckle. “A whole world all of whom has largely been man vs. man the entire time suddenly we had developed a weapon that is capable of wiping us from the face of the world if one were to drop but a few handfuls as the resulting radiation from them renders a place uninhabitable for a time after amongst other problems.”

“Great Dragon above, I am glad that your race is not on Equis now.” Tremor spoke clearly spooked by what he had been shown.

Coughing a bit, Dustan smiled and tried to get the talks back to positives. “That being said, humans are capable of building wonders.” Showing off various cities, land marks and more Dustan would have Twilight levitate a book to Sturdy. “In that book there are some of the techniques used to create those structures that you just witnessed Sturdy. While some may not work for you or those around you, it might give you ideas on how to improve and become an even greater builder then you are now.” Seems like the sights were helping getting others minds off of what was previously shown as Sturdy took a moment to look over a couple of pages before closing the book with a smile.

“You have shown us wonders, but what about culture. Music is the lifeblood of the soul.” Octavia called out now curious, though it was clear what her thoughts were.

Dustan didn’t need to be a mind reader to see that she thought humans were monsters and needed proof, but that want for them to be monsters was shaky, she needed it to not be true and he was ready to help her believe they weren’t. “We have many styles of music, of which I have a small playlist. Let’s start with something you will like Octavia, Classical and one of my personal favorites: The Hall of the Mountain King.” The buildup, slow and methodical seemed to draw in not only her but nearly everyone even Vinyl though the later had her mixer table out and had a button held down. Grinning he knew what Vinyl was up to and he was going to beat her to it. “And here we have that same music remixed into what Humans call Dubstep.” Playing that music had various effects, some ponies started to move more with the beat especially Vinyl who had was nodding her head and moving her body. Even Octavia seemed to enjoy it more knowing its source. “However my personal favorite genre, though there are MANY, is rock. Here are two of my favorites.” The first came a classic that he hoped they would all enjoy from Queen: Bohemian Rhapsody. After that he gave them a bit more with a bit of a harder sound from rock with Metallica’s Enter Sandman. The first song had the unicorns all lightning up their horns and waving back and forth which he snapped a small clip of secretly with his phone. The second had many there head banging including the likes of Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, Spike, Luna, and surprisingly Eden who seemed to get into it quite well.

As the music came down Octavia was busy scribbling notes on some parchment as was Vinyl though it was the latter that asked. “~And you said humans can’t use magic but clearly the Music of Harmony works well with them if they can produce that.~”

Laughing at that Dustan shook his head. “Nope, like me the Magical Music of Harmony doesn’t happen with humans at all. All those songs and more are created through imagination, hard work, and emotion.”

“How much do those laptops store Dustan?” Twilight asked clearly curious as she seen many folders on it though that did make others curious.

“Not sure how much it will mean but each of my laptops is able to hold one Terabyte of memory.” Clearly most had no clue. “It’s a lot more then I could show you in a day for sure.”

“With humans not bein’ able to use magic, it must mean all of y’all rely on hard work or those machines of yours right?” Applejack asked from her seat looking rather pleased that humans did things like Earth Ponies.

Grinning and chuckling, the next book went to her. “To be fair Applejack, humans have gotten to the point where we are genetically altering our foods to grow bigger, faster, and more plentiful. That being said I can honestly say our apples are nowhere near as tasty as what you produce. Regardless you may not be much for reading but here is a book for you about various farming techniques and such that you may or may not get any use out of.”

“Your right, Ah may not use it. Won’t hurt to read though, plus it would be awful rude of me to turn down a gift from a friend.” Applejack put that into her saddle back that she had brought with her, smart and practical of her for sure.

“That being said, the next gift is for you Eden, a book on the various plants and how they survive on my world.” Levitating the book via Twilight’s assistance he handed it to her. “While it may not do good here there are some similarities so who knows.” She smiled brightly and hugged it close to her barrel just like Fluttershy had and it was easy to tell she was eager to read it.

“Do you have anything on dragons?” Spikes question, came out of nowhere, clearly he wanted to know more about his heritage, and sadly it wouldn’t be here.

“Sorry Spike, in my world, Dragons, along with other species are myths and legends just like magic. Among those included are Pegasi, Unicorns, Alicorns, Griffons, and more.” That shocked all present except the two that knew a bit about him already and his past. “In the myths and legends we have all of those creatures tend to be noble and work for the good of others, though dragons and griffons have been known to not be quite so nice depending on the story. Of course any myth and legend that is popular is converted to more and more stories that differ from their base origins so it’s hard to say what the original myths were even like.”

“Before, you said you had various nations of your world correct.” The Princess of the Sun asked as he nodded. “While war happens, I am wondering what your princesses think of such actions.”

“Princesses, Princes, Kings, Queens, Dictators, Presidents, we have many different types of leaders just as we have different many types of governments. They all have pros and they all have cons.” Dustan told her as he did his best to explain the democratic nation he was a part of and how their government worked as well as a bit on the history and how the forefathers of his country separated from a monarchy. “In the end, many nations do not have leaders for very long.”

“Sir, if I may ask.” Faithful asked having been silent and stoic this entire time. “I have noticed when you speak you often use male terms and denotations amongst the things you speak of. Does that mean your gender ratio is more male based?”

He shook his head to that honestly not expecting that to come up. “It’s mostly even to be fair unlike in Equestria here. About fifty, fifty, though we are more male centric in that males tend to be the ones to do the courting, the ones whom various things are expected of which is the opposite of Equestria.”

“That explains it!” Rarity called out. “I had always wondered why you seemed never to notice anything, but so many mares have given you the moves Dustan and you never seem to notice. I thought it was biological differences before, us being ponies and you being human, but it’s also the fact that males are your world are the ones supposed to be doing that!”

Chuckling and giving her a nod. “Part of that is right yes, part of it is also because I have…honestly never been good at picking up those signals even amongst my own race. It took…” Swallowing a bit and taking a deep breath, he let it go and was…surprisingly calm. “It took my last girlfriend to practically spell it out for me before we got together.”

Dustan was looking at Rarity as she finally was happy with the answer she got so missed a couple of pondering looks thrown his way. “Thank you Darling and sorry for my outburst there.”

“Its fine. I am sure with how I am it might not have ever come up unless someone brought it up.” He told her with a laugh as his fingers brushed through his short hair. Pulling up his note cards on his laptop he looked over what was said and done and found a few more topics, but only one that was personalized. “Zecora.” The Zebra looked up surprised as he pulled up some things. “In my world there are places that use Shamans that work just like yourself as well as have many artifacts like what you own in your place. So I have a book for you that will go into details on them. Some…aren’t pretty but most are very mystical or so they say. While I can’t say that you should practice any of them from this book, it still might be good to give perspective.”

The book was floated over as the images on the wall were changed to more of a screen saver of stars. “Thank you very much for this book. Surely in the near future I will be giving it a look.”

Sighing a bit it now came to something else he was worried about. “Now that you all know where I am from. It’s time to talk about HOW I got here the specifics of my powers and something else I have been keeping a secret.” Pulling the pack that he had pulled the laptops from he kept it close to him as he looked to all present before unsheathing his sword. The blood red blade gleamed in the light as he set it on the table for all to look at. “In my world there is a place called a convention, different types of conventions celebrate different things. This particular one was for gaming and a type of animation. At this convention, or as I will refer to it from now a con, I ran into a being called The Merchant. In my world there was a rumor in some circles about this Merchant, someone who is dressed as a figure from a game, who will make people vanish and send them to other worlds.”

“So let me see if I understand.” Zecora called out as it seems she picked up on what he was saying. “This Merchant did as was rumored and sent you to this land?”

“Yes, but there is more to the story.” That caused a few of his guests to mutter to themselves but it was too low for him to hear. “Typically a Merchant mysteriously does what they do in those stories. This one was different though. This one wasn’t going to send me it seems, he was rather nice and we were getting along, until another Merchant showed up and seemed to either make it so people couldn’t notice us, or we were outside that space from there as well as completely paralyze me. He proceeded to lecture the former Merchant before using the wooden weapon of a sword I had made as a prop for the con and then changed it to steel or some other metal before he preceded to pin me to the counter of the stall by stabbing me through the chest. I watched as this sword drank my blood and life force becoming what it was and though the memories are faint the previous Merchant must have been the one to save me as he gave me another item, which I will talk about in a moment, and sent me here to heal me. When a Merchant sends someone to another world various things can happen: They can show up in a new body, gain new abilities, lose their previous history or name, regardless of what happens, typically the person isn’t who they were before. Same goes for me, I now possess the abilities I have been teaching others here, the abilities of Neutral Magic as well as Classes and Jobs.”

“So are you telling us that you are sharing secrets that were only meant for you?” The companion to his world asked as she had been taking notes this entire time almost like a stenographer.

“Yes and no.” Gathering his thoughts for a moment Dustan stretched and looked at them all. “First off, I think that there was some parts of this world which were already here even before I showed up. I was first convinced that the Merchant somehow altered this world however thanks to the Coral Sword that Merlene gave me, as well as talking to the Espers, I realized things existed before me. So unless they can alter the past as well I came to Equis that had elements similar to the game where I gained my powers. What is more, though I am helping to unlock these powers in others, their power and my own are not the exact same.” Looking to Mystic he asked him a simple question. “Tell my Mystic, when you first obtained the Class of Black Mage, you did so when you went to what we refer to for Neutral Magic as The Classroom correct?”

“Yes.” The speckled stallion answered. “I went to it in my dreams where there are armor stands fitted with various outfits, when I became a Black Mage I touched that stand and gained its primary abilities. Though I do retain other abilities I have learned though most are in a bit of a weakened state, which in my thesis I theorized was due to the connections being weakened between each stand when one is chosen but not completely eradicated.”

“So tell me Mystic, could you change right now while you are awake?” Dustan asked curiously though he knew the answer.

Shaking his head, the Earth Pony looked to him. “No that is impossible. One has to have the ability to tap into the Classroom it seems.”

“True, that is how it is for you and the others that learn.” The Squire let that sink in for a moment to Mystic who had nodded along with others who followed the question, though he could see Twilight’s eyes widening just a moment before his friends. “However, I do not have that restriction.” Switching to Black Mage mentally he noticed more than a few ponies twitch around him. “I can mentally make the switch between classes as I want. As some of you may have just noticed, I am now a Black Mage instead of the Squire I was a moment ago.” Moving around the room he gestured to a few. “However I am restricted in some ways the same as you are Mystic. I cannot learn abilities unless I get them in the Classroom. That being said, I have come to realize the Classroom can be summoned via a state of mind, of which I am not exactly sure what it is. I am close to it though, I can visualize and have the stands appear before my eyes while awake but I cannot interact with them and haven’t went to the Classroom in my dreams for QUITE a long while.” Shifting to Ninja, which made those that had twitched before relax, to move around easier he hopped back over to his spot at the head of the table. “I also have another ability which I KNOW others do not possess.” Looking to Rarity he asked her. “Rarity, did you know when you made this cloak and this tunic for me that you recreated some equipment of which I derive my powers?” That seemed to shock not just her but everyone gathered. “This means even though you don’t have a class, you performed Neutral Magic to do this.”

“What, but how?!” Both Twilight and Rarity called out loudly.

Smiling at both of them, he would explain. “Twilight, you have a hard time with Neutral Magic starting points as it requires such a minute level of magic that you can’t actually control it because of how much power you have.” Pointing to the fashion pony he smiled. “Rarity only possesses twenty five Mp in total, nowhere near you one hundred and twenty.” He couldn’t help but grin at seeing the confusion on their faces. “Twilight Mp stands for Mana points. A measure of one’s magical pool which they draw power from.”

Not only Twilight, but Mystic, Rarity, Eden, Celestia, Luna, and Faithful all looked at him surprised though it was Celestia who spoke. “You can measure that how? It takes very finely crafted instruments and a bit of a testing program to determine a Unicorn’s magical pool. Are you saying you can determine it in some way?”

“Yes and by sight alone.” Pointing to his eye he looked at each and everyone. “I possess a unique ability called Tactical Eye, of which is still growing stronger and stronger. I can use it to see the names, classes, health, magic, and status condition of others as well as a few other tidbits.”

Luna moved for a moment while he explained this and went to the door and soon she came back with the Knight of the Dusk. “Dustan, if possible and what you say is true. Would you give us a demonstration? No pony but myself and my sister knows the identity of our Champions.”

Looking to the princess he raised an eyebrow. “You sure, if I prove my ability it means that secret will be let out to everyone in this room.”

Thinking about this for a moment Luna seemed to want to say otherwise but it was her sister that came up with a solution. “Whisper it to the Knight’s ear if you would.”

“Yes that will do.” Looking to her Champion, who nodded as well, she smiled. “Our Champion agrees.”

Taking a quick look over said champion Dustan approached them and whispered. “Regal Gloom, Male, Knight of the Dusk, Zodiac Sign is Gemini, should I go on?”

The stallion in armor backed up quickly horn glowing as his sword was drawn. “This one speaks the truth princess and thus has a very dangerous ability.”

Standing up straight Dustan could see the Princesses looking at him wide eyed and a bit slack jawed. “There you have it. I can see Health as Hp or Health points, Mana as Mp or Mana points, and so on. I can look at everyone here and determine how big their reserves of magic are. Class changes in Neutral Magic also help to change that as I am sure some of you felt when I switched classes earlier in how my magic seemed to spike higher.” Moving back to the head of the table he chuckled and looked to Twilight. “As a Black Mage I actually have more reserves then you Twilight, the difference is you are a Harmonic Magic user so while might pool might be slightly less than your own, you likely would vastly beat me when it came to using magic as you also have Equis to draw from for your powers.” Rubbing his head he sighed. “That being said my ability is not infallible. Seems like some magic can hide and obscure some info from me, or maybe it’s because the person I am trying to examine is much too high level, a statistic we use here for determining base potential of someone’s abilities.”

“Oh, does that mean I have a level?” Pinkie Pie asked as she smiled.

Nodding he smiled with her. “Level twelve. Pretty impressive.”

“Oh, do me!” Rainbow Dash called flapping into the air to hover.

“Phrasing.” Dustan called instantly even before he realized what he was trying to say but laughed when the Pegasus turned red and flopped onto the table causing everyone to laugh. “Level nineteen, likely do to martial arts lessons. Which is…rather sad in some ways Celestia, as the guards being turned out of your program come out to level one or two. Literally Rainbow Dash alone could statistically take down a whole squad of new recruits without breaking a sweat.”

“Sister, we are definitely going to need to talk to the trainers when we get back.” The younger sister told her elder one.

“Indeed.” She remarked “If that is the case then a change is needed.”

With that settled Dustan reached into his bag for the other and last item of business. “Well now that my unique ability is settled comes the last order I had for the meeting, oh for anyone curious my level is fifty four. I need to tell you about the other item I was sent here with.” His tone, the seriousness which he spoke of caught everyone’s attention right away. He set down a blue teardrop looking stone with the astrological sign of Virgo buried within it. Dustan took note of everyone’s reaction, of which it was curious except for one which made him have a slight sinking in his stomach for. “This item is called by many names, the Holy Stone, The Zodiac Stones, Auracite, no matter the name it doesn’t matter as these stones posses very astounding abilities. Legends state it is capable of reviving people from the dead with no ill effects, while others claim they only are used to house demons, as well as other stories of which I won’t get into.”

“Dustan are you sure about that?” Celestia’s horn glowed for a moment covering the Auracite before she let it drop. “I sense some power in that stone but it is nowhere near the level of what you describe, nor do I feel any presence.”

“Really?” She would nod which confused Dustan a bit as he could definitely feel power in that stone. “Maybe it’s because of my connection, regardless, the reason I told you about its powers, is cause…they are true, both sides. Ones with pure hearts using them without selfish motives can perform miracles. While those who crave power-”

“Summon demons.” Luna finished for him.

“Yeah.” Tapping the stone he looked to everyone. “And this stone is likely the most dangerous of all as it contains the spirit of a being called Ultima.”

“NO!” The Princess of the Night called out and jumped back pressing herself against the wall of the meeting room. “That is the one she was looking for!”

“Sister, calm yourself.” The elder of the two went and gave her a nuzzle which did help to alleviate the situation. “What do you mean?”

Still Luna was shaking although she did move towards the table before she reached under her peytral and withdrew a violet stone that looked like it was two diamonds conjoined at the side with one slightly raised above the other and embedded inside was the symbol for Gemini. “This is where Nightmare Moon came from.”

The feeling in the pit of Dustan’s stomach dropped even further. “Zalera.”

That spooked his favorite princess as she went wide eyed and her already pale coat went even paler. “That is the true name that was told to only me. How do you know it?”

“As I told you Luna. I know a lot about the connecting source where a lot of this crossover to one another.” Tapping the Gemini stone he could feel the power within it flare up for just a moment before it died down.

Seems Luna noticed the little flare as well. “How did you do that?”

“Do what?” He called back to her only to see her shake her head for now. “Anyways continue with what you were saying about Nightmare Moon.”

“Right.” Sighing she seemed to think about a good long ways. “It was years before my fall, I had received this stone as a gift from an admirer, one who had looked at historical records and found that my astrological sign was that of Gemini. They did not say how they came into possession of it or if they had made it, but it didn’t matter as at the time I was just happy to receive a gift. As time went on and I grew more and more upset with my situation I noticed…the stone, Auracite as you called it, started to talk to me, whispering sweet nothings and promises of power. It asked only that it be allowed to share itself with me and that I promise to do one task for it. I would need to look for the other stones bearing marks like that one, the most important being Virgo.”

Sighing and looking at the stones he nodded. “Yeah. The evil in the stones have a base want to gather themselves together all to try to revive The High Seraph Ultima.”

“Yes, but I only learned the names of it after I had given in to Zalera. Our combined form was a result of…incomplete fusion.” Luna picked the stone back up and seemed to consider it for a moment before putting it back into its hidden spot inside her peytral. “When I felt the evil filling my body, I tried to use my powers to resist and reject it, and while I was somewhat successful, it wasn’t entirely. As a result Nightmare Moon came to be born a mix of our natures a true child of that demon.”

“They are called the Lucavi.” Sighing as he picked up his own stone and put it away “Demons of that order are called Lucavi. Thank you for telling me that Luna, it confirms that I am not wrong in my want to guard this stone from those that may wish to use it for the wrong purposes.”

At this point though Lunch had arrived, to which the conversation turned pleasant once more, all there talking about what had been happening, Celestia and Luna talking with Rarity about a possible commission for guard uniforms, though Dustan did add his own stating he would like possible clothing for his own guard or at least cloaks like the one she made him. Twilight and Mystic were busy talking about Neutral Magic and the Classroom and how she could go about trying to get better at it. Sturdy and Eden kept to themselves, though they did announce their engagement to all present of which got many congratulations sent their way. Vinyl and Octavia wished to talk to him later about possibly getting a few songs to copy and distribute for sale, and while Dustan wanted to, he had to deny them and instead said that he would give them to both of them if they promised not to sell it. They were songs that belonged to other musicians after all and it wasn’t right for him to make money off of them. They understood completely and whole hearted supported that decision stating ‘~Yeah, if it was me I wouldn’t want someone selling my music for their own profit either without letting me know.~’

Overall it was nice, everyone seemed to get along, though Tremor and Steel did leave after lunch was done without saying much, he kind of expected it though, what he didn’t expect was Applejack and what she was about to tell him. “Well Dustan, Ah’m glad you explained more about that Classroom and Magic and such as it makes a lot of what Bloom said clear. Ah mean just this morning she was saying a bunch of jibberish and held out her hoof. Next thing Ah know is that Ah am putting out one of our apple trees that she set on fire. Guess you will have to teach her how to control that partner.”

“Right of course I will Applejack.” Dustan smiled as he heard that glad that her work was paying off. ‘Nice, Apple Bloom can cast Fire.’ That thought barely finished crossing his mind before he stopped in his tracks. ‘Oh shit, Apple Bloom can cast Fire. I have unleashed magic using Cutie Mark Crusaders onto the world. That can’t be good.’

Author's Notes:

So I have to say this. I am sorry for this taking as long as it has. Too many things popped up all at once to mention so I wont even bore anyone with the details. This is on me for taking this long. Sorry, now back to your regular end credits card with your host...me.

Hey hey Dustan is finally back in Equestria and it seems he is doing quite a bit better. Lots of things were resolved, hopefully for the better, but knowing me its not likely.

Pinkie Pie: "Don't worry Noxxy, I am sure it will be alright in the end."

Oh...right, forgot you were in my head Pinkie. You know what, you can handle this one. *Leaves*

Pinkie Pie: "OH OH! Ahem, let me try to find the right tone." Clicks on a link to music.
The music starts.
Pinkie Pie in epic narrator voice: Next time on My Little Tactics. Dustan tests a new product with some explosive results that he got from a friend. Information is revealed, actions are taken. But a strange visitor catches someone off guard. What could that mean who could it be? Find out next time on MY LITTLE TACTICS Z!

Um Pinkie, where did the Z come from.

Pinkie Pie: "Shhh shh shh, its fine its fine."