Jay wasn’t quite sure how long he and Celestia rested on the couch, and it didn’t help that he was distracted the entire time. His mind was muddled, feeling a sticky fluid drying on his leg throughout it all sparking thoughts and desires that did nothing to help him relax. Adding on to it was the fact that Celestia’s tail was waving side to side and filling the air with her divine scent. He was sure she was doing it on purpose but he couldn’t find a reason to ask her to stop.

Some time later, Jay tried to sit up when he heard Twilight knocking on the gate in the distance. Celestia, not able to hear it, pushed him back down with her hooves and wings, her muzzle still buried in his chest. “No, no moving.”

“Celestia, Twilight’s here. I can hear her knocking on the gate.” Jay said, trying to sit up again. What he didn’t expect was Celestia to shoot up and her horn to ignite, a spell being weaved in her mind. With a small flash, Jay noticed that his leg was dry and the ever-present scent in the room was gone. He stood up and raised an eyebrow questioningly to her.

Celestia smiled at him sheepishly. “When Twilight accepts what you are, I plan on telling her about us. I really don’t want her to see or smell anything. She’s like a daughter to me and she looks up to me as an idol. That would be uncomfortable for us both.”

Jay nodded in understanding. “I’m going to tell one of the Guards to bring her up here. Will you wait behind the door just in case she freaks out?”

Celestia nodded and stepped closer to him, kissing him gently before turning around and walked past the door, closing it behind her slightly as she waited. Jay quickly walked over and down the stairs, calling out to the first Guard he saw. “Private Spear, Twilight Sparkle is at the gate. Escort her to the stairs and then return to whatever you were doing.”

“Yes sir!” She said with an enthusiastic salute before trotting out the front door. Jay quickly made his way back up the stairs and shifted into Gene, then spoke aloud.

“She’s being escorted by Private Spear. She’ll be here in a couple minutes.”

From behind the door, he could hear her reply. “I’ll be listening. If she starts to sound angry, or you ask me to, I’ll step in.”

Gene nodded, though she couldn’t see. As he waited, he tried to think of how he would tell her. Unfortunately, his mind kept drawing a blank. Eventually, he gave up. Maybe he couldn’t decide how he would tell her, but he knew he would.

The virus heard the front door open as two ponies walked in, up to the stairs, and Spear spoke. “He’s waiting for you upstairs. Go on ahead, the barrier won’t stop you.”

He heard the sound of somepony climbing the stairs and, a moment later, he saw her head poke through the barrier as she looked around. Her eyes met his and she smiled, though confusion was still clear in her face. She walked the rest of the way up and into the room, standing at the entrance. Gene gestured to a couch across from him and spoke. “Please, take a seat. We have a lot to talk about.”

Twilight sat down, clearly nervous. She fidgeted in her seat for a moment before settling down, gazing at him with her wide eyes shining in curiosity. “A-am I in trouble?”

He frowned in confusion. “Why would you be? As far as I know, you didn’t do anything wrong.”

She sighed in relief as he watched, his confusion replaced by amusement. The Unicorn must have been nervous when she was summoned to the Expedition Point without a word of explanation. Gene cleared his throat and continued. “In any case, the reason I asked you to come here is because I’ve been keeping a secret from you. I consider you a friend and I want to trust you and tell you the truth.”

“Oh!” Twilight said with her ears perking. “I’m glad you consider me a friend. I see you as a friend, too! Thank you for trusting me. What did you want to tell me?”

“The secret’s not something simple, Twilight.” Jay said, his nervousness starting to surface again. “Just...when I tell you, keep an open mind and remember that we’re friends.”

“Gene, you’re worrying me. Are you sick? I might have a spell to help you!” Twilight said, her voice raising slightly.

His head shook. “I’m not sick, Twilight. I’m...I’m not really a pony. I never was.”

Twilight was silent for a moment, her mouth open as she stared at him. After a moment, a strained whisper forced its way out. “C-Changeling?”

To her relief and surprise, he shook his head again. “Not a Changeling. I’m one of a kind, the only one of my species here. I didn’t replace Gene. Before I came here, he simply didn’t exist. I made him up.”

“W-what are you?”

Gene breathed in, trying once again to calm himself only to fail. Instead, he shifted. Twilight recoiled lightly as the swirling tendrils enveloped him, soon vanishing and leaving behind a...creature. It looked like a Minotaur yet not. It’s limbs seemed more proportionate, no horns, and had a surprising lack of fur with the exception of the top of its head. It sat on the couch staring at her, a worried look in its blue eyes.

“I’m a Blacklight Evolved. That’s the name of my kind.” Jay said.

“What’s your name?” Twilight asked with her eyes still roaming over him, intellectual curiosity shining in her eyes.

“Jay. Jay Fontenot.” He said softly. Silence fell over the two as she stared at him, countless thoughts running through her mind. Behind the door, he could hear soft breathing from Celestia as she listened to them. Twice, her mouth opened as she tried to speak only to abandon the effort. A time later, she spoke softly, a tone of hurt in her voice.

“Why did you lie to me, to us, about what you are?” Twilight asked.

Jay chuckled mirthlessly. “Fear. Fear of being attacked for what I am. Fear of trusting others. Fear of being betrayed.”

She fell silent again with a glance toward the ground, thinking over his answer. A thought struck her and her head snapped up, looking at him in worry. “Does Snow know?”

“Yes.” Jay said to her relief. “I told her the first day we met.”

After another pause of silence, Jay continued. “So what’s happening now?”

“I think...I think we’re still friends, Ge-Jay.” Twilight said after a moment. “This is a surprise, but, if you were afraid, I can understand why you would hide yourself. You know I’m going to have to tell Princess Celestia and Princess Luna, right?”

“That won’t be necessary.” Jay said. The door to their side swung open silently, the movement drawing her attention. Celestia walked out, still bare from her normal regalia, and sat down next to the virus. The Alicorn smiled at her student.

“I know about him, Twilight.” She said. “Do you remember when Gene and Pinkie went to Canterlot?”

“Yes…” Twilight said, connections forming in her mind.

“He told me and my sister about him. Pinkie had, somehow, already known about him even though he hadn’t told her.” Celestia continued.

Twilight didn’t quite know what to say. Then another thought struck her. “Wait, why were you here, Princess?”

Both immortals sighed, not quite sure how she would take the news. Celestia, after a moment of thinking, started to speak. “Twilight, my student, you know that I am immortal. Because of this, my sister and I will outlive almost everypony.”

Twilight nodded in understanding. Sometimes, it hurt her when she realized that Celestia would have to feel the pain of losing friends time and time again, including herself. She was taken out of her thoughts when the Alicorn continued. “This includes any stallions that I may find myself interested in. My sister and I have both avoided falling in love with mortals so we could avoid the pain of losing them to time.”

Twilight nodded again. “But why were you here?”

“I’m immortal, Twilight.” Jay said, taking over the explanation. “I’m the one male that Celestia can let herself get close to. She doesn’t have to fear me growing old or dying because I can’t.”

The Unicorn looked at the two in confusion, her gaze switching back and forth as the gears turned. Finally, understanding hit her as her eyes slowly widened. Suddenly, several things came to focus; the way Princess Celestia was leaning against his shoulder, the way the two had a contented air around them while watching her in anticipation, the fact that Celestia wasn’t wearing any of her regalia, which she then noticed was piled in a corner. In all coalesced into one shout. “YOU’RE DATING?!?”

Celestia started giggling when Twilight flopped over, out cold, as Jay chuckled along with her. Jay recovered enough to speak after a moment. “I guess we’re going to have to wait for her to wake up, then. What are we going to do while we wait?”

Celestia turned her head with a smile, a seductive gaze flashing in her eyes. She leaned over on him, slowly starting to climb on him as her muzzle neared his face. Jay watched as her muzzle dipped toward his lips, himself leaning forward. Right before their lips contacted, his hand shot up and booped her on her snout, making her flinch backwards and almost fall on the couch.

“Not with your student unconscious on the other couch.” Jay said with a light chuckle.

Jay’s eyes widened in shock as Celestia gave him an honest-to-God pout. Ears folded backwards, eyes wide and watery, with trembling lips. It was such a heart-rending sight that Jay physically flinched at the look she was giving him. A moment of struggle later, he spoke. “Celestia, do you really want Twilight to wake up and see us furiously making out across from her?”

She blushed lightly and smiled at him. “Fine, you’ve made your point. When we get to Canterlot, I can’t wait for the first night.”

Jay paused, not quite sure if she was hinting at wanting to fool around or actually sleep with him. He opened his mouth to ask, then stopped. You know what, I’ll find out when we get there.

Celestia saw his confusion and giggled again, her melodious voice making him smile. She leaned forward and kissed him gently, then pulled back. “Come on, I’ll wake Twilight up. I know just how.”

Celestia rolled off of him and landed on her hooves, making him smile at the unusual way she stood up. Jay stood as well and followed her to the other couch, watching as Celestia leaned down and whispered into Twilight’s ear. “Twilight, Cadence is here.”

Twilight barely twitched, rolling over in her sleep as she mumbled. “Sunshine, sunshine…”

Celestia hummed. “That usually works. Let’s try something else.”

She whispered again, a tone of urgency in her voice. “Twilight, the library’s on fire! The books are burning!”

That did the trick on the Unicorn shot up, her muzzle smacking into the side of Celestia’s own. Jay winced at the impact that knocked them both over, Twilight groaning in pain as she held the end of her muzzle. “Ow.”

Celestia stood back up and shook her head, a small red splotch on the side of her alabaster snout. The virus turned back to Twilight and spoke. “Twilight, do you have a nose bleed?”

Her eyes crossed slightly as she looked at the hooves holding her nose, then looked back up to him. Her head nodded slightly to him. Jay spoke. “I can fix that. Move your hooves, please.”

Twilight dropped her hooves down and tilted her head back. His hand came out and wrapped gently around the end of her muzzle, gentle healing the broken vessel. His hand came down again and he smiled to her. “Go to the sink and wash your muzzle and hooves.”

Twilight nodded and walked into the kitchen. Jay turned to Celestia and reached out, wiping the blood off of the side of her muzzle with his thumb. The Alicorn held still as he did so, a small smile spreading from the gentle attention she received. When he was done, she turned and caught his lips on her own, a gentle kiss warming the hearts of them both. It continued for some time, simple affection fueling it rather than the passionate lust from before.

“Oh…” Came a gentle voice from their side. Both of them turned to see a blushing Twilight staring at them from the entrance to the kitchen. He noticed that the fur on her muzzle was matted and still wet. Turning back to Celestia, he saw her blushing lightly as well. Jay just laughed at the embarrassment felt by them both.

“Enough of that. Twilight, is there anything you wanted to ask me?” Jay asked, giving them both a welcome distraction.

Twilight nodded furiously. “YES! I want to ask you about your species! Can I leave to get some paper and come back?”

Jay nodded. “Of course.”

With a quick flash, Twilight was gone back to her library, fully intending to gather enough paper, quills, and ink to outweigh Jay. After she vanished, Jay turned to Celestia. “Are we leaving for Canterlot after the discussion session with her?”

Celestia nodded. “We will. We’ll most likely depart in a couple hours. Are you nervous about meeting Luna?”

“A little.” Jay admitted. “But not as much as before. I’m serious, though, Celestia. If I ever do anything to make you upset, don’t hesitate to tell me. Okay?”

“Okay.” Celestia replied with a bright smile directed his way.

“Now to wait.” Jay said. “It shouldn’t take too long.”

Celestia just laughed. “Oh, it will. She’s likely writing a questionnaire for you.”

The virus groaned and leaned his head against the couch, making the Alicorn mare laugh more.

A large, strange bear lumbered through the woods. It was purely a predator, far unlike the omnivorous cousins the bear had. Berries and the like had no place in this beast’s diet. In truth, neither did meat, for the creature was made entirely of interwoven roots. It was one of the few wooden constructs still active from the time of Discord. Unlike the Timberwolves, the nameless bear could not create more of its kind with branches. Roots were hard to gather at the size it needed and were even harder to weave together and infuse with ancient magic, creating an iron-like shell around the golem. The bear paused and raised its muzzle, sniffing the air twice.

A day, maybe a little more.

Unlike the constructs’ extended family, this beast was blessed with an intelligence. A mild one focused around hunting, but an intelligence nonetheless. It resumed its travel, scowling as it heard a Scorpius slaughtering a pack of flesh wolves in the distance. It sniffed again. It would not be long before the beasts reached and devoured the one that awoke them.

Then it stopped, staring forward in shock. Alongside the scent of pony and a dragon, it sensed a familiar scent, one that it had not smelled in a long time. One that drove the beast to grow and kick and bite in hunger, green drool flowing out of its mouth. The bear roared, its voice carrying through the woods and conveying a message. At once, the beasts of the Inner Forest abandoned their pursuit of normal food and charged forward, a horrible cacophony of calls and screams sounding out as animals were trampled or slaughtered in the mad rush to the greatest delicacy of them all.

Alicorn.

An hour. It took Twilight an hour to gather the materials she needed. By the time she was ready to return, Jay had gone into the kitchen and cooked a small breakfast for them all. An omelette, hash browns, something that was labeled as hay bacon, and fresh orange juice courtesy of a juicer in the kitchen. Moments after he had finished, a thought not his own sounded out in his mind.

“Liaison Jay, Twilight Sparkle is attempting to teleport into the upstairs living room from Golden Oaks Library. Course of action?” After a moment of understandable confusion, he realized it was one of the enchantments activating, the one that warded the upstairs from teleports. With a shrug, he replied.

“Allow her in.” A moment later, he saw a heard a peculiar burst of magic as Twilight arrived.

“Jay? Princess? Where are you?” The Unicorn asked curiously.

Before he could say anything, he heard Celestia speak from the dining room. “In here, Twilight. Jay’s currently cooking us all breakfast.”

Clops sounded through the upstairs as she transitioned from the carpeted floor of the living room to the tile floor of the dining room. “Oh! That’s nice of him. I’ll be sure to thank him.”

“I can hear you!” Jay called out in amusement, his smile widening further when he heard what sounded suspiciously like somepony falling. Celestia’s own suppressed laughter confirmed his suspicion that Twilight had fallen out of her chair.

After a moment, he heard her reply. “Thank you!”

Jay just chuckled and walked out of the kitchen, balancing their meals. Each plate was balanced on top of a cup, two of which he grasped in his hands and carried. The third, his own, was held in the grip of a tendril. The dining room was simple, twelve chairs arrayed on a large table. Unsurprisingly, Twilight had chosen to sit next to her mentor. When Twilight saw the tendril emerging from his back, her eyes widened and her quill began to scratch at her paper, surprising him that a hole wasn’t torn into it. Then he remembered the books he had borrowed in the past and how think Equestrian paper was. It was almost like parchment rather than paper from a tree.

Internally shrugging, he set the plates down and took his seat across from Celestia so he could see and speak to them both easier. Celestia seemed a tad disappointed until she realized why he had sat across from her, which she showed with a flash of a smile.

“Twilight.” Jay said.

“Mmhm?” Twilight replied.

“No notetaking at the table. Eat your food.” Jay said with an amused smile.

Twilight didn’t even look up as she started speaking. “But Mom, this is important! I can’t just-”

It seemed to click that she wasn’t at her parents’ house and she looked up, a dark red tint running across the bridge of her muzzle. She saw Celestia giggling quietly behind a hoof while Jay grinned at her. She pouted in reply before setting the quill down and grumbling. “My mother says that…”

Jay shook his head while Celestia quickly nuzzled Twilight, replacing the frown with a small smile. “Don’t worry, Twilight. You’ll have plenty of time to learn about me. If you don’t ask all your questions before we head to Canterlot, we can finish it when I return.”

Twilight sighed, nodding in understanding as she accepted it. “You’re heading to Canterlot?”

Jay nodded while Celestia took a bite from the omelette. “I am. I need to speak with Luna.”

Celestia’s lips curved into a satisfied smile as she remembered that Jay could took, soon taking another bite from her omelette. “Oh? About what?”

“I’ll tell you another time. For now, eat. Trust me, you’ll like it.” Jay said before taking a bite of his hashbrowns, happy that Equestria made forks similar to Earth’s. Twilight did the same, smiling when the taste hit her tongue.

“This is good, Jay. Where’d you learn to cook?”

“Home. Where I grew up, everyone learned to cook. A lot of the time, our food was spicy, but other times, like now, it’s not. I’m glad you enjoy it.” Jay answered with a small smile.

“At my home, Spike’s the one who cooks. I’ll turn pancake batter into doughy lava if I’m the one cooking. Maybe you and him could meet up and share some recipes? I’m sure Ponyville has a few things that your home didn’t.” Twilight replied. Celestia hadn’t said a word, happily munching her meal while Twilight and Jay ate at a more sedate pace.

“Definitely.” Jay said, thinking of how his home was another planet entirely. “I might take you up on that offer. I’ll definitely enjoy learning some new recipes. And Celestia, maybe you should breathe?”

The Alicorn paused, half of an omelette hanging off of her fork as the other half was in her muzzle. Slowly, a red tint spread across her face as she blushed. She chewed a couple times before swallowing. “What? It’s good. Not to mention the fact that few stallions bothering learning to do more than make a sandwich.”

Twilight nodded. “The Princess is right, very few stallions actually learn to cook.”

“Just Celestia, Twilight. We’re not in a formal occasion.” Celestia said, sounding as if it was something she had told her student before.

“S-sorry. It’s hard.” Twilight replied.

“Just try to remember it.” She replied with a warm smile to the Unicorn. The rest of the meal passed in silence as they ate and simply enjoyed the presence of each other. Twilight, as always, was ecstatic to see her mentor and was happy that she had found a special somepony as well. It was a plus that he could cook, too.

Before long, the somewhat late breakfast was over and the three relocated to the living room again. Twilight levitated up a large, unraveled scroll and smiled hopefully at him. He rolled his eyes and smiled at her. “Ask your questions slowly and one at a time, Twilight. I’ll do my best to answer them.”

Twilight’s eyes drifted closed as she breathed in deeply and then exhaled slowly, quenching her burning curiosity as best as she could. When she opened her eyes again, she looked calmer. “First and foremost, what exactly are you? I know you said Blacklight Evolved, but that’s just a name.”

“Well, I’m a virus.” Jay said honestly. When Twilight’s eyes widened, he continued. “But not a normal one. Blacklight is a virus. When Blacklight reaches a host body in enough number, it’ll migrate to the brain and absorb it, gaining whatever sentience and memories the host had. What’s left is called a Blacklight Evolved because it’s a form of Blacklight that evolved by absorbing a brain.”

A few moments after he stopped talking, her quill stopped moving. “So, that would mean that the host dies.”

Hesitantly, Jay nodded. “Yes.”

Twilight hesitated as well. “So... Jay died and, well, Jay was born?”

“Yes.” The virus replied simply. “The original Jay is dead but I have his memories and his personality, while also having more.”

Twilight thought for a moment, then asked continued her questioning. “I saw that you had a...thing coming out of your back earlier. What was that and where is it now?”

“First, it’s a tendril. It’s gone because, as a virus, I have absolute control over every cell of my body. I formed that tendril from my virus and when I didn’t need it anymore, I removed it.” Jay explained. “That’s also how I shapeshift. I change by manipulating my genetics, not by magic.”

“Genetics? Ah, hence the name ‘Gene Splice.’ That’s amazing, Jay. The sheer capabilities that ability opens up is astounding! What does it feel like? What genetic augmentations have you done to yourself?”

“He said one question, Twilight.” Celestia chastised lightly. Twilight frowned, then nodded.

“Sorry, Jay.”

“It’s fine.” He said dismissively. “I can’t really explain what it’s like sensing every cell and gene in my body. Imagine lying on a bed of a dozen materials and each one feels drastically different from the other. Now imagine being able to feel hundreds of millions of those in your body without feeling overwhelmed.”

“That sounds...amazing, yet impossibly hard to imagine.” Twilight said. “My second question?”

“Well, that’s a bit of a large list. I think the most significant thing is my organs. Since I became a virus, I don’t need things like a brain and a liver and kidneys. Originally, I removed all my organs. I recreated my heart, blood, and lungs recently to be more comfortable for my partners. Otherwise is my density. I’ve learned to optimize the shape of my cells and increase how much mass I can fit in the same area. Because of that, I actually weigh a couple thousand pounds at my maximum, with skin harder than steel and muscles powerful enough to lift hundreds of tons. I also have well over a hundred sense with the basic five much more powerful.”

“How powerful?” Twilight asked, her quill scratching furiously across a paper. Jay guessed it was full when she suddenly set it down and lifted another one with her magic, looking to him and waiting for him to continue.

“Well, I normally have my senses reduced because enough ‘noise’ can drown out my senses. If you have one pony nearby talking loudly and a thousand around you stage whispering, you’ll have a little trouble focusing on the one pony.” Jay started, then hummed as he thought about how to continue. “I can see up to a hundred miles away if nothing is in the way, I can smell Pinkie baking in Sugarcube Corner, I can hear your muscles rub against each other as you shift, I can feel minute differences in the texture of something I’m touching, and I can identify thousands of tastes easily, even if they are all mixed together.”

“What about new senses?” Twilight asked distractedly, trying to imagine all the ways his sense were improved.

“Well, I can sense electromagnetic fields much easier and also determine their strength and track it to the cause. I can see other spectrums of light such as infrared and ultraviolet. I can, well, know if something’s moving next to me, even if I can’t hear or feel it. I can feel light when it touches me and tell the difference between normal light and reflected light. Most of the others I can’t even try to explain.” Jay said, struggling to explain some of the sense. “Sorry.”

“Don’t be. You’ve given me quite a lot of information. I know you plan to go to Canterlot so can we do this again later?” Twilight asked, moving on to a fourth page.

“Of course, but what are you writing? I didn’t tell you that much information.” Jay asked, confused.

She flashed him a quick smile. “Theories, possibilities, experiments, and other things to do, including things to ask later.”

Jay nodded in understanding. “Have a good day, Twilight.”

“Have a good day, Jay. It was good to see you, Prin- Celestia.” Twilight said, cutting herself off.

“It was good to see you, too, Twilight. I might pay you a personal visit later this month. Don’t prepare anything for my arrival. I wanted it to be a personal affair, not a full-blown celebration.” Celestia said, cutting off Twilight’s panic before it could even begin.

Hesitantly, Twilight nodded. With another flash, she was gone. Jay smiled and turned to Celestia. “You know she’s going to have the library perfectly clean when you arrive, right?”

Celestia sighed. “Yeah, I know it. I’ve held onto the hope that she’ll become more comfortable with me but I don’t think that’ll ever be the case.”

Jay patted her shoulder comfortingly and smiled. “She just needs time, Celestia. She’ll come to see you as more than just a ruler in due time.”

Celestia returned his smile weakly. “You’re right, of course. I’ll try to be around her more often as Celestia the pony, not Celestia the Princess.”

“That’ll be a good first step.” Jay said reassuringly. “If you’re around here more often, that might be a good way to start it off.”

“‘If’?” Celestia asked questioningly with a smirk. “You can bet that I’ll be around more often. So will Luna and Chrysalis.”

Jay smiled. “I won’t mind that at all. Of course, I don’t expect you to come to me all the time. I’ll be popping by Canterlot from time to time.”

“I’d love that.” Celestia said, resting her head on his shoulder. “It’d be nice to be able to relax and enjoy your company rather than dealing with politics and nobles.”

The Alicorn laughed when Jay winced. “Yeah, that sounds horrible. I had to deal with something like it when I was working in the lab back before my infection. You know, getting grants for my research and trying to convince the damn politicians that yes, searching for the graviton is important and yes, it requires a particle accelerator.”

“I don’t exactly know what a graviton and a particle accelerator are, but I’ve had nobles asking me to take funding from schools just so they could have it. For Mother’s sake, they didn’t even want to use it for anything else, they just wanted it to have it!” Celestia groaned in exasperation. “Of course, some nobles are good ponies, like Fancy Pants. He’s truly noble and deserves every bit of wealth and fame he has. His wife, Fleur de Lis, is a model and is rather famous as well. She’s a kind pony and always has time to help my little ponies.”

“D-did you say ‘Fleur de lis?’” Jay asked in shock. When Celestia nodded, he continued. “That’s a symbol in Louisiana… A lot of things have that.”

“That’s...strange to even think about.” Celestia said. “Our worlds have quite a number of coincidences. First the song we sang, then this. Maybe there is a link we can’t find?”

“Possibly.” Jay mused. “Oh! That reminds me of something.”

The virus he was made of shifted and exposed the runestone he had kept within himself. “Do you think this is only activated when magic is fed into it?”

Celestia hummed in consideration and levitated the rune to herself. The aura brightened and began to imbue the rune with energy. After a moment, Celestia stopped. “It doesn’t seem to be reacting to magic, so I don’t think that’ll do anything.”

She levitated the runestone back to him and he replaced it within his body, smiling at the conflicted look Celestia gave him. It was torn between intrigued and disgusted. “That doesn’t look right.”

Jay shrugged. “Apologies, but it’s an effective way for me to store stuff.”

Celestia sighed and nodded. After a moment, she spoke. “Are you ready to go to Canterlot?”

“Yes, I am.” Jay said. “How are we getting there?”

“Teleportation.” Celestia replied, her horn beginning to ignite. Jay frowned in concern.

“Careful, my virus reacts unusual to magic.” Celestia paused, then nodded.

“I’ll be careful.”

A burst of power and a flash of magic later, the room was devoid of life. Just outside of town, several feet underground, Jay’s second form began to move. Dissolving into tendrils, it burrowed up through the ground and stopped just under the surface. The tendrils spread itself around the southern edge of town, between Ponyville and the Everfree. There, he waited for any movement.

Author's Notes:

Next chapter will be a special one! Look forward to it, or don't. Anyway, things are beginning to pick up now! As always, point out any errors if you see any I don't catch, as I currently have no form of editor.