Starcraft: Queen and Country

by Wanderer D

First published 15th of November, 2018

A seemingly safe experiment is violently interrupted, sending three unwitting innocents through the Void to emerge into a universe at war.

The School of Friendship has new Teacher Assistants!

The Cutie Mark Crusaders have been welcomed into staff on a probationary basis in order to assist their sisters (and Rainbow Dash) with their classes. Today just happens to be the day for the School Trip to Canterlot Castle for a certain group.

When things go wrong and our characters are flung into the Void and come out in one of many worlds at war, what kind of challenges will they have to face? And if they survive... what will they bring back with them to Equestria?

Many thanks to Petrichord and GapJaxie for their feedback and assistance.

Prologue

2504, Somewhere In the Koprulu Sector █

At first, there had been pain. She could still remember it… searing pain so strong that it had dulled out any other possible reality. Living flesh, torn, nerves exposed… burning tears in her chest and legs… it had seemed like if part of her slowly stopped hurting, the pain would increment in kind in other areas.

When she had been moved, dripping blood, spasming and almost drowning in her own blood more than once until a bump or turn allowed her to throw it up.

What a weak creature she had been. Now there was no pain. She floated in the primordial, viceral source of life. Her blood had long stopped seeping out. It had long stopped itching and hurting. No more needles of pain driving like malicious stabs into her very soul.

Things were mostly quiet. Soothing.

Among occasional swirls in the currents, and random bubbling sounds, words echoed in a sort of dull echo around her. She could hear them just above the cadence of her beating heart, which was itself as loud as she could ever remember it being. Much like those very silent nights, when she would sometimes lay her head on her pillow, she could hear it... like drums in the dark.

Whatever liquid she was in, it enveloped her completely, and she knew that—in the darkness and gooeyness of the substance—she should have felt scared and disgusted.

Except...

The darkness was warm and welcoming. And lately, occasional pulses of light and energy flooded around her. There were voices too: some gruff, some growling, some hissing, some crackling… and one… one sweet... gentle, but powerful… so powerful, looming like an ocean slowly rising above the land.

Gentle and peaceful… building up… slowly... and behind it, immeasurable force.

She loved this voice. She wished she could sing to it. It reminded her of her past life… of fuzzy figures in her memory, full of power, magic, and purpose. But even more, this world where she found herself in… it brought back deeper, older, much more visceral sensations.

At first, she couldn't understand what the voice said. But, as she floated in the golden, warm liquid that reminded her—somehow—of before she was born, it slowly made sense. She was once again, part of something larger; she was once again within the womb of life, and outside, the voices continued; argued; changed from noise, to meaning.

And she knew the gentle voice. The one with true power; the one she owed her life and very being to.

She knew her as her queen.

But even more importantly, her mother.

Time passed. Days, weeks, months… years? It was all a haze, a continuous barrage of changes as her mind developed in ways that defied her original nature. Every day, she became more.

She didn't know how long she'd been there, how long the changes had been working on her; the tightening of muscle and the shifting of bones… her skin becoming armor-like, her teeth elongating, no longer designed to chew, but rather tear through almost anything. None of it painful, in fact, this change was welcome, it was as if she was being embraced into a new life.

At one point, she thought she would be scared. Maybe it was when her alabaster fur had parted on her back to let new, unseen appendages grow. Maybe it had been when she had felt her hooves harden, or her horn twist and split.

She couldn't see it, but she knew just how much stronger it was now. Before, she might have used as a desperate means to defend herself, risking her magic and a lot pain were it to break. Now? She could just feel the power, how its very composition remained the same, and yet… it wouldn't break unless incredible pressure—way beyond what she should encounter—was placed on it.

Or maybe, when she had considered fear before the physical changes had started. When she hadn't understood. When... she was scared and hurt and bleeding. Left for dead.

When she had been found and brought here to her mother. When she had felt her magic probed, her mind caressed by a gentle breeze of whispered words and encouragement for the first time in... in—

Ever since she had left her home.

Now, after almost dying for no reason, she had been promised a new life.

She felt it. It was the time to emerge. Time to see herself anew, for the first time ever. Time to evolve.

She expanded her new, chitinous, almost-bony appendages from her back, scythe-like, she thrust them up, piercing through the hard shell that had contained her until now.

She burst out, a screech of savage victory, strong, free, confident and with new purpose.

Her old life was but a memory. Useful, for future reference and conquest. For now, she had other objectives.

For now.

She could feel the summons, the mental caress of of her mother, welcoming her into her new life. Not as a stagnant, inferior and weak species, but as a true warrior. Thirsting for blood, to grow, expand her clutch.

And first and foremost to serve her Queen.

She was finally ready to join the Swarm.

Chapter 001

2504, Equestria █

Even as the morning sun rose in the distance, and the birds started their daily chorus, Twilight's School of Friendship was already a hub of activity.

Students of all races hurried over to their classes, but three young teenage mares, easily mistaken for students themselves, walked towards Twilight's office with a different purpose. They looked confident to the average passerby, but some that knew them better—and already en route to their classrooms—could tell all three were anything but.

"Well, Ah haven't seen you three so nervous since the last parade," Applejack said with an amused chuckle as they crossed paths. "What's goin' on?"

"Oh, hey sis!" Apple Bloom smiled, trotting forward to give her sister a hug. "This is our first day as part of the school's staff!"

"Yeah," Scootaloo added, eyes wide and shining, "Twilight said that with our track record helping ponies find their talent—"

"And griffons," Sweetie interrupted, "Don't forget Gabby!"

"And griffons, yes," Scootaloo amended, rolling her eyes, "she said we could work with her on a curry-culum?"

"Curriculum," Sweetie stage-whispered.

"That!" Scootaloo agreed with a nod.

"Well, Ah've got to admit, you girls have gotten pretty darn good at Crusdanin' for others," Applejack said, "So Ah guess it makes sense, but remember to think a bit about what you're doin' before tryin' to force everycreature into somethin' just to see if it'll stick!"

"Please, we're professionals," Scootaloo scoffed, while Sweetie and Apple Bloom giggled.

"Oh my, that does sound wonderful," Rarity said, having caught the end of the conversation. She trotted up to them. "And you do have a lot of experience with that! I've very proud of all of you!"

She smiled at Sweetie, stepping in to give her a quick hug. "So this is what you meant when we talked the other day?" she asked, keeping an encouraging hoof on her sister's shoulder.

Apple Bloom and Scootaloo shared a look, turning to face their friend, who grinned shyly. "Um… yeah. I just feel like we can do more, right girls? I was telling Rarity that I wanted to be part of something bigger… that we Crusaders could really change the world."

The other two Crusaders glanced at each other, then grinned, nodding in unison. "Of course we can!" Apple Bloom said.

"We'll show everycreature that we can help them find their talents!" Scootaloo added.

Applejack and Rarity chuckled, nodding at their sister's exuberant enthusiasm.

"Well, we'd better get goin'," Applejack said, tilting her stetson. "We have our own classes to attend to. You comin' along, Rarity?"

"Of course, darling," the unicorn said, smile unwavering. "Good luck girls, make sure to ask Twilight if you need any help with your plans! If there's one thing Twilight is very good at, it's planning!"

"Over-plannin', you mean," Apple Bloom amended with a small roll of her eyes.

"Better than no plan, that's for sure," Applejack said with a shrug as she walked past the trio. "Ah guess we'll find out later how things went for y'all."

"Sure thing, sis!"

"Bye, Rarity!" Sweetie called out, waving her hoof.

They waited until the waving and nodding was over and their sisters had turned around the corner before resuming their march towards Twilight's office.

"So, you think we weren't doing enough?" Scootaloo asked Sweetie.

Sweetie sighed, "Sort of? I mean… we're good at this right? And, don't get me wrong! I love helping ponies in Ponyville, but there's a whole world out there, right? When Gabby came all the way here to find us, it was because she had heard of us… we've reached outside of Equestria!"

"Ah guess that's true," Apple Bloom said, nodding. "And especially with how things are around Equestria right now, we have to make an effort."

Scootaloo rolled her eyes. "I mean, I'm okay with it as long as it's fun, right?"

"Well, of course it's fun!" Apple Bloom shot back, "It's our callin'!"

"Who's calling?"

"She means our talent," Sweetie explained, grinning at the pegasus.

"Oh! Yeah, in that case, yes. Yes it is!"

The trio approached the doors to Twilight's office, but slowed down to a stop, exchanging unsure glances when they could hear an angry voice coming from the inside. Just as they were about to knock, the doors burst open with a magical flash and a richly-dressed unicorn stomped out.

"You listen here, Princess, this is not the last you'll hear of us! Magic is a unicorn birthright and teaching any form of it to lesser races is a crime against Celestia and Equestria! Neighsay will hear about this!"

"I'll remind you, Mr. Tax Break, that Neighsay has no authority here, and has already acknowledged other creatures as worthy of education." Twilight's voice was cold. "We have no place for xenophobes in our school's donation roster, no matter how much you want to donate."

The unicorn sniffed, rolling his eyes. "Then the Princess—"

"Enough!" Twilight snapped, her magic bursting through and making the previously smug unicorn cower. "I am one of the Princesses of Equestria. And this school has the full support of Celestia, Luna and Cadance. None of which support or endorse your presumption of superiority. Now, I have things to do." Her eyes narrowed and she poked him in the chest with her hoof. "You are dismissed."

Wide eyed, the unicorn turned around and fled, leaving behind the three Crusaders, who glanced at each other nervously.

"You know," Scootaloo said, "I think I left my scooter parked in the wrong spot…"

"Oh, girls," Twilight looked surprised, and apologetic when she noticed them. "I'm sorry you had to see that. I swear these Unicorn First ponies keep appearing at every event or place that seems to have some influence." She sighed, motioning for them to step in and closing the door behind them as they did.

"Why do they think like that?" Sweetie couldn't help but blurt out, "I mean, haven't they seen what Zecora can do? Why think that unicorns—"

"It's fear, Sweetie," Twilight said tiredly, her eyes straying to her bookshelves as if they could contain the answers. "It doesn't matter what you prove, or how objective you are, as long as fear dominates their thoughts, it won't change anything—and xenophobia… well, it doesn't necessarily mean in this case that they're deadly afraid of griffons or yaks, but rather that they're afraid of what they represent: a possibility of losing status or advantages.

"It's simple ignorance of what, culturally-speaking, the differences are. There's many reasons unjustifiable behind it, and for all we don't understand them and are completely illogical to us, they are valid to them.

"It doesn't always make them monsters, but we can't just allow that ideology to perpetrate without pointing out its flaws."

There was a moment of awkward silence as they all digested that, then Twilight let out a slow breath, performing Cadance's breathing exercise to calm down. "Mr. Tax Break was a bit of a challenge, but I hope that someday we might speak again at a more amiable time and in more amiable terms and maybe, just maybe, come to a middle-ground." She smiled. "But, for now, that's not important. What is important is that you three are ready to start!"

She motioned at three folders that she levitated out of her drawer and set down on her desk. "Now, I know you three are used to working together, but when it comes to a whole school, you might not have that chance. So, I talked it over with the girls and we've got some assignments for you.

"First, Apple Bloom, you'll be assisting Rarity this week. She feels you're the best match for her early classes and could use some help with a couple of students in particular."

"Alright!" Apple Bloom said with a grin, she went over and picked up her folder. "What students?"

Twilight smiled. "She didn't say. I think she wants to see if you see the same things she does, that way it's not biased."

"Ah see…"

Twilight floated the next assignment to Scootaloo. "Scootaloo, you'll be working with Starlight Glimmer. I'm not entirely sure what she's planning, but she said you'd be a good match for it. Try to not take over the world."

Scootaloo sighed. "I guess Rainbow Dash is busy."

Twilight's smile didn't waver as she shook her head. "Sorry, Scootaloo, but don't worry, you'll get a chance to work with her too in the future."

Sweetie for her part had already levitated and opened her own folder, blinking in surprise at its contents. "I'm with Applejack?"

"That's right!" Twilight said, "You're going with her and her class to Canterlot University." Twilight grinned excitedly for a few seconds until a thought seemed to cross her mind, and she sighed with slight disappointment. "Normally, I'd go, but I have a meeting at the Town Hall. Mayor Mare wants to plan some international events and she wants my help to organize things that will appeal to everycreature."

"So why me?" Sweetie asked.

"Well, you've been to Canterlot several times with the girls and I, and also on your own with your sister. Many more so than Applejack, so she's hoping you'll not only find the class interesting, but also show the students around Canterlot with her. Take them to the Museum or Library, or maybe even Donut Joe's." Twilight smiled. "Follow Applejack's lead, but don't be afraid to make suggestions."

Sweetie smiled, nodding in understanding. "Got it!"

"Aww, she gets to travel?!" Scootaloo asked, "Come on!"

"Don't worry, Scootaloo, you'll have plenty of fun, I promise." Twilight stood, walking around her desk. "Alright girls, I'll walk you to your classes and take off."

The three young mares shared a smile. "Cutie Mark Crusaders Teacher assistants! Yay!"

Sweetie took a deep breath as Twilight knocked on the door to Applejack's class. She turned to look at Sweetie with a reassuring smile, and levitated a small bag for her. "That contains your train tickets, bits for food and emergencies, and also a checklist of all the places where you can go that I could remember."

Sweetie blinked, levitating the bag in wonder. "Wow, given the size of the checklist you must've made this really light!"

Twilight narrowed her eyes. "It's enchanted."

"Right."

Applejack chose that moment to open the door. She smiled at the pair. "Well! Ah was wonderin' what was takin' so long. Come on in!"

Twilight motioned for Sweetie to go in first. The pair followed Applejack to the front of the room, where they could face the students. Out of the nine or so students in her class, Sweetie was only really familiar with were Sandbar, Ocellus, Silverstream and Gallus. She had seen the other ponies around, but she hadn't had much of a chance to talk to any of them before.

"Well class," Applejack spoke up, "As y'all know, Ah got a new assistant! Some of you already know her of course," she said with a chuckle, "say hello to the class, Sweetie Belle!"

"Hello!" Sweetie said, waving her hoof. "I'm Sweetie Belle, nice to meet you all!"

"She's your assistant?" Gallus asked, eyes wide, "B-but she's younger than us!"

"Um, she's about my age?" Ocellus said. "And, if you've read—"

"But seriously, even if she's like—"

"A year younger than you?" Sweetie asked, eyes half-lidded in mild annoyance.

"Yes, that, how can she be an assistant?"

"Well—it turns out—that she's already graduated as a Friendship Student," Applejack said. "And she's learnin' the ropes for new things."

"Sounds good to me!" Sandbar said, leaning back on his chair.

"Everything sounds good to you!" Gallus said, but sighed. "Fine. Let's just get going."

"Yay! Friendship!" Ocellus shyly cheered.

"By the way, Applejack?" Twilight said, drawing all their attention to her, "I was wondering if you could deliver these to Professor Quantum State?" She levitated a small saddlebag over to Applejack. "It has some notes that he asked me about related to Starswirl's mirror and some other spells. It also contains a reference so he can contact Starswirl directly, if needed. I would send them through Spike, but he's out on a mission with Trixie at this time."

"Sure thing, Twi," Applejack said, throwing the bag on. "Ah'll make sure we get this to him."

"Thank you!" Twilight's smile could have reflected the sun. "He's in the Temporal Space and Development lab, and I'm afraid you'll have to drop them off before your own presentation starts. It's close to where you're attending Green Hoof's lecture today. His experiments are a bit extreme, so hopefully he'll take into account the calibrations and additional calculations I included for him."

Applejack chuckled, "Ah gotcha, Twilight, it's no problem."

"Alright everycreature," Twilight said, facing the class, "Enjoy your visit to Canterlot University!"

"I think I remember you now," Gallus said.

"Yay."

As soon as the class had confirmed they had everything in order, they had set out. Despite the fact that they all took classes together, the other students had quickly formed a pony-only group and set off ahead of them, leaving the griffon, hippogriff, changeling and crusader behind, with the only other pony being Sandbar.

Sweetie tried to ignore this, but given the earlier confrontation between Mr. Break and Twilight, the issue was still very fresh in her mind. She knew they didn't mean anything by leaving them behind, cliques were always a thing, but—she sighed.

Maybe she was reading too much into this. Sweetie knew that her current companions had bonded over several incidents, much like herself and the Crusaders. It was simply that they had made their friends and they didn't try to mingle, because there was really no reason to unless they were forced to.

It kind of made her wonder how she'd mix with all of them, if at all.

"Oh, come on, chill," the griffon said, flying over to hover in front of Sweetie as the group walked across town towards the station in the wake of the other students. He flapped his wings lazily, pushing himself backwards as they all walked. "Gabby told me about you Crusaders."

Sweetie perked up instantly, smiling at the memory of her griffon friend and latching onto a good chance to avoid those other, nasty thoughts. "What did she say?"

"Nothing too interesting," Gallus replied, waving a claw dismissively. "Something about butt marks and how you got her one."

"Wow, you got a cutie mark for a griffon?!" Sandbar asked, impressed.

"Yay!" Silverstream cheered flying at Sweetie's side. "That. Is. Soooo awesome!"

Gallus raised an eyebrow, looking unimpressed. "Really? Why?"

"I don't know!" Silverstream answered, grin never fading. "But it sounds fantastic!"

Ocellus rolled her eyes, then glared in slight annoyance at the others. "Didn't you pay attention in Twilight's—"

"Nope."

"Well, getting your Cutie Mark is a very big thing in a pony's life," Sandbar explained, unfazed by Ocellu's pouting and Gallus' grimace at the potential explanation. "When we discover our special talent, this mark appears, showing everycreature that we have taken the next step in the rest of our lives."

"So, it's like a magical tattoo that shows your inner self on your butt," Gallus said, "Yeah. I can totally see how that's special."

If he was offended by Gallus' dismissal, Sandbar didn't show it. "But that's not all!" the chill-sounding pony added, glancing at Sweetie, "How did you get one for a griffon? I thought only ponies had them."

"It wasn't easy. Gabby's just—" Sweetie paused, wondering how to phrase it.

"Good at everything?" Gallus said at the same time as Sweetie. The pair stared at each other, and the griffon rolled his eyes. "What? It's true. She's a pain that way. It annoys everygriffon"

"She's nice!" Sweetie said, glaring at him. "Don't you dare talk about a Crusader like that!"

"Yeah, yeah, I wouldn't want the Crusaders to be upset with little ol' me." Gallus smirked. He ignored Sweetie's annoyed look and turned around landing on the train platform as they joined Applejack.

"Well, about time you lot got here," Applejack said, "the other students already got into their car, you lot take the second one, we're about to leave."

"Yes, miss Applejack."

"Sweetie, keep an eye on them while Ah talk to the others, wouldya?"

The unicorn smiled. "Sure!"

"And once again, we're reminded that we need a foalsitter," Gallus sighed, jumping into the car, followed by the others.

"Aw, don't let Gallus get under your skin, Sweetie," Applejack said as they walked after the students. "He's really not a bad sort."

Sweetie sighed. "I know. He's just very different from Gabby."

"That's a good thing, sugarcube," Applejack said as the train started moving. "Ah know he can be sarcastic at times, but, if it makes you feel better, so can you." She winked and walked into the car where the other students were.

Sweetie shook her head with mild amusement and walked into the car, finding that the four students had already claimed a booth. Since it could only fit four passengers at a time, Sweetie sat by herself on another.

Gallus and the others laughed at something Sandbar said, and Sweetie sighed, looking out the window as Ponyville slowly receded into the distance. 'Maybe I'm just not that great at fitting in and making a difference without the others.'

The ride continued, and the four friends discussed topics of all sorts—laughing and making jabs at each other—and Sweetie distracted herself by counting trees. 'They're not snubbing you, Sweetie… they just don't know you. They're friends, when you're with the Crusaders you usually just keep to yourselves, right?'

Sweetie took a deep breath, leaning back on the seat and staring at the roof, wondering about her decision to join Twilight's school properly. It hadn't been that long since they had tried their hooves at tutoring and… well, it hadn't been a complete disaster, but it certainly hadn't been the best experience for all three of them.

It helped, somewhat, that their previous student had been an evil mastermind. At least that one failure couldn't really be pinned on them.

However, she had felt something special about it. A sense of fluttering fulfilment, as if a weight had been lifted off of her chest when she had found herself as part of something bigger. This School of Friendship was the Cutie Mark Crusaders taken to the next level. It was about helping; about meeting new friends and finding joy in unity and strength in numbers.

It really made her want to sing. It had been the main motivator behind her insistence to the others to give it a go as actual staff, not just tutors. Learn from their sisters and friends and help everycreature be... she looked down at the empty seat across from her and sighed.

'Do I really have it in me?' she wondered, turning to look at the international group again.

There was no international group, only a pair of large, excited, violet eyes.

"Hi!"

"Gah!" Sweetie backed away from Silverstream, who didn't stop smiling. It was like the weirdest mixture of Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie.

"How are you?!" Silverstream asked, taking Sweetie's hoof in her claws. "Did you find something really awesome to do on your own?!" She gasped, practically climbing over Sweetie to look out the window. "Look! Paved roads!"

Sweetie wiggled her way out from under Silverstream. "I'm sure you've seen paved roads before."

"But never one so long!" Silverstream countered.

Sweetie stared at her for a few moments, before she had to nod. "Okay, I'll give you that."

"So what's it called?!"

"Um, we just call it Canterlot Road?" Sweetie said, unsure if that was accurate outside of Ponyville. "Apple Bloom would be the one to ask, or Applejack, they sometimes take it to set up their stand at the Farmer's Market in Lower Canterlot."

"Does that mean that there's a Higher Canterlot?!" Silverstream clapped with excitement. "How much higher is it?!"

"It's not really like that," Sweetie said, "Canterlot is divided into districts, and Lower Canterlot is just called that because it's the lowest part of the city, and closest to the roads. That's usually where the Farmer's Market sets up because it has the biggest open plaza in the city.

"The upper part is too big to just call it that, so you have the four major districts: the Royal District, the University District, the Noble District and the Guard District." Sweetie took a breath. "The only thing that might be confusing is that there is an Upper Canterlot Road, which starts at the top end of the Lower District. That's where most of the really expensive stores are."

"Is it called the Guard District because only guards live there?" Ocellus asked, scooting over and sitting across from Sweetie.

"No, just like the University and Lower Canterlot, it's mixed citizens," Sweetie said, "but the Royal Guard Barracks are located there."

"So you're saying that the University District is called that because the university is there, not because it's all part of it?" Sandbar asked, sitting next to Ocellus.

Sweetie nodded, "Yeah, but the Noble District and the Royal District are different. Only the richest ponies live in the Noble District, and the Royal District is basically all Castle Grounds; the Royal Library, Royal Garden, Royal Opera House, Canterlot Castle itself—"

"We get it, we get it," Gallus said, sliding to sit to Sweetie's left.

His wings brushed on her side, tickling her, and she unintentionally giggled. She caught herself and looked up at the griffon, who was giving her a confident smirk. "Right."

Sweetie took stock of the situation.

Silverstream kept looking outside the window, bouncing occasionally at something new being spotted, forcing her to press to her left, Gallus, who had leaned over to tell something to Sandbar, upon noticing the situation, rather than move, had simply extended his wing around her, getting it out of the way. Across, Ocellus looked thoughtfully at the passing landmarks and Sandbar eagerly talked to the griffon.

The others seemed comfortable where they were. And surprisingly, so was she.

Maybe it was odd, but she felt a lot more comfortable with them, than the rest of the class so far. Maybe it was because she had been exposed to so much more than the other ponies attending the school… or maybe she was used to hanging out with creatures that were different, just like the CMC were different from other fillies and colts in school.

But one thing was for sure, she felt considerably better now about her decision.

Saying that Canterlot's Train Station was a large complex was an understatement. It didn't seem too big for a casual observer or visitor, but that was simply because of the way it was designed.

The platforms for arrivals and departures were not side by side, so arriving to a platform that seemed just big enough for the train's passengers to emerge and walk down a small tunnel into the city, did not really give a clear idea of just how many trains and platforms there were in the station.

The only way to see most of them, if you weren't a flying species, would be to go to the second floor of the control tower, where big windows allowed everycreature to look outside and really appreciate the sheer size of the place.

Of course, you would get into a lot of trouble for going in there to take a look around, as the building was heavily guarded.

"...and how would you know that then?" Gallus asked, giving Sweetie a suspicious look.

"We Crusaders tried to get our Cutie Marks in Freight Conducting."

"Ah," Sandbar said, "I think I heard about that one." Other ponies nodded their heads.

"Ah bet y'all did," Applejack said as she waited for the stragglers to grab their bags and catch up with them. "It was a right mess t'fix let me tell you."

Sweetie chuckled nervously. "Say! Look at the time! Don't we have to be somewhere?"

Applejack laughed, and nodded. "Alrighty, come on everycreature! Giddy-yup! This way!"

They walked down a ramp into the underground tunnel that took them to from the train station, to a large open area surrounded by buildings. "Now this here is the Lower Canterlot Plaza," Applejack said, waving and smiling at a merchant, who replied in kind. "This is—"

"Oooh! Oh!" Silverstream shouted, fluttering up, eyes wide. "This is where you come to sell apples at the Farmer's Market!"

Applejack blinked. "Uh, that's right—"

"Oh, so that is the main street that takes us to the Noble District and the Royal District," Ocellus added, pointing at a wide street, surrounded on both sides by expensive-looking stores.

Applejack chuckled. "Heh, it seems that y'all were learnin' somethin' on the way here," she said, giving Sweetie an approving nod. "Well, let me walk you around a bit and introduce y'all to some nice folk before we head over to the University." She started walking, and the group fell in place behind her, taking in the sights.

For most of the ponies in the class, not to mention the international group, this was their very first Canterlot visit, so everything seemed new. Sweetie stalled as she passed a jewelry shop, her eyes drawn to something.

Sweetie smiled, making her way into the jewelry shop. It was too bad that Scootaloo and Apple Bloom hadn't been able to come with her, but maybe something nice would make it up for them? 'I guess I'm more like my sister than I wanted to admit to myself…' she thought with a giggle as she selected three pins. They were a bit big, but the details on them were incredible.

"Wow, those are nice, sugarcube."

"Eeee! I. Love. Them!"

Sweetie jumped, turning around to see Applejack at the door, Silverstream hovering excitedly over the displays and several grinning students behind them.

Gallus stood to the side, not really showing most interest in the displays.

"Ah thought the deal was to not get separated?" Applejack asked with a smirk.

"Hey, Applejack… um sorry. I just- It's for Bloom and Scootaloo, do you mind if—"

"Go ahead sugarcube," Applejack said, chuckling. "We're heading over to Pear Cobbler's for a quick snack, you remember where it is?"

"I do!"

"See you there, then!"

"Huh." Gallus sauntered over to the display picking up one of the pins Sweetie had selected and eyeing it critically. "They look kinda flimsy."

The jeweler huffed, but Sweetie tilted her head and batted her eyes. "You don't think it'll look good on me?"

Gallus backpedalled, suddenly looking nervous. "I—I'm going."

Sweetie watched the griffon walked out and turned to the jeweler who was looking at her in amusement. "My sister taught me that one. Works every time."

Once the class had some snacks in them, Applejack took the lead once more, guiding them up one of the side avenues.

"Look! More signs!"

"Come on," Gallus said with a slow, dragged sigh. "You can't tell me that you don't have signs underwater."

"Oh, we do!" Silverstream said, nodding. "But they're not made of wood and ink! They're usually made of corals and shells."

"Okay."

As they walked, Sweetie did notice the stares. Ponies would stop to watch the odd group of creatures walking by. It was curiosity, most of the time, but there was plenty of wariness and, when it came to Ocellus, almost palpable antagonism.

"Don't let it bother you," Gallus said.

"But…"

"Look, I appreciate that you are thinking about us, but these ponies have never seen most of our species outside of hearing about them…"

"...or the invasion." Ocellus said, wincing over a glare directed her way.

"In any case," Gallus said, locking eyes with one of the ponies that was glaring at Ocellus until the pony cringed and walked away, muttering. "Most of the time it's not as bad as you think. Ponies are curious and afraid, but eventually they'll just leave or get to know us."

"You remember what happened to your friend, Zecora, right?" Ocellus said, "We just need to be patient."

Sweetie sighed. "I guess you guys would know better, but, it's just not fair."

"Eh. You should see how ponies fare when they go to our lands to live," Gallus said with a shrug. "Compared to that, this is downright friendly."

"If you say so," Sweetie said, ears flattening. "I just… wish there was more harmony and differences weren't a reason to hate or fear each other."

Gallus shrugged. "That's the whole point of the school, isn't it?"

Sweetie smiled. "Yeah. It is."

"Alright, everycreature," Applejack called, "We're almost at Canterlot University. Ah want y'all to stay close together now. There's a lot of ponies here travelling in groups and we don't want anypony to get lost."

"Um, Miss Applejack?"

Sweetie didn't miss Applejack's wince. "What is it, Gold Cobbler?"

"Swift Wing and Caramel Dust are both gone."

Applejack sighed. "Of course they are." She looked up at the sky, noting the sun's location. "Consarnit! We won't have a problem gettin' to the talk Ah wanted to go to, but…" she shook her head. "Sweetie Belle, you've been here before, right?"

Sweetie stepped forth. "Yeah, I came here with Twilight and Rarity last month."

"Do you know where the Temp—" Applejack paused, taking out the package, and reading out Twilight's note, "...the "Temporal Space and Development" lab is?"

"I know where the general magic development labs are, I think that's probably there."

"Listen, sugarcube, Ah hate to ask, but…"

"It's no problem," Sweetie said, levitating the package, "I'll drop it off, and meet you at the Department of Agriculture."

"Thanks, Sweetie Belle, Ah need to find those two quick as a whip or there'll be trouble. Come on, everycreature."

"Eh…" Gallus spoke up. "I think I'll go with Sweetie."

"Oh! Me too!" Silverstream cried out excitedly.

"I wouldn't mind seeing that as well," Ocellus added.

Sandbar looked at their teacher and whined, begging with his eyes.

"Fine." Applejack sighed. "But y'all stay away from the experiments, you hear?"

"Yes, miss Applejack."

"The eye rollin' is optional, Gallus." Applejack chuckled. "Alright! The rest of you, git! Side Swipe! You and Comet Burst fly up and try an' see if y'all can spot what bush them two lovebirds hid behind. The rest, help me search!"

The group had gathered plenty of attention as they fell in line just a step behind Sweetie. She remembered the campus well; Twilight and Rarity had come with her on a couple of occasions, trying to gauge her interest in future career options.

Rarity had taken her to the School of Business first, and Twilight to the School of Thaumic Studies, before the pair had quite amiably allowed her to finally drag them over to the Musical Arts school, where she had met with her pen-pal/mentor Octavia, who was often a lecturer at the school.

It was clear for all ponies where her interests lay, when it came to higher education, and they had all been very supportive of her choices. When the time came, all three would write recommendations for her.

Although it had been slightly annoying to be dragged all over, Sweetie now had a very good idea of where the main areas of the University were, and with the convenience of campus maps—and the occasional passerby—they didn't take long in finding the right building.

All the while, Silverstreams surprise and energy at everything around them made it almost worthwhile to stop and contemplate the most minuscule things, however, they had little time and so Sweetie had pushed them forth until they had reached the labs.

Eventually they made it to the TSD Lab, and after consulting with a grumpy, shifty-eyed unicorn in a lab coat, they were pointed towards Professor Quantum State's presentation, which was, at that time taking place. As the walked, Sweetie couldn't shake the feeling that the unicorn had been giving her companions very angry glares, but the professor's passionate discourse reached her ears just as she was starting to make up her mind about it.

"...and furthermore," the professor was saying as he paced in front of a crowd of scientists, students, and important-looking ponies, "the benefits of this mode of transportation will benefit every creature in Equestria, not just unicorns. Dragons, Griffons… Zebras and even beyond."

The unicorn scientist brushed his dark blue mane out of the way as he turned and pointed at the device. "This is a small-scale model, but functional! Imagine what we can do when we remove the limits from others? What we can achieve when we level the playing field to allow those that cannot cast magic through their horns to share their unique magic unimpeded by distance?"

Apparently that was the end of the presentation as polite clapping followed his last statement. Sweetie sighed. It looked interesting, but Applejack was probably already waiting for them, so at least now that he was done, she would—

"And now, I will demonstrate the device's effectiveness."

Apparently not. Sweetie Belle bit her lip, glancing at the clock on the wall before making her decision.

"Excuse me, Professor?"

Quantum State hesitated, looking up at the group. "Yes miss? I'm sorry but could you wait—"

"I really apologize," Sweetie interrupted. "I am just here to deliver a package from Princess Twilight, she requested that it was given to you directly."

Quantum blinked. "Oh!" he smiled, motioning for her to step over. "Thank you very much, miss, please, if you don't mind."

Sweetie nodded, levitating the package over to him. He smiled. "Thank you, miss?"

"Sweetie Belle," she introduced herself, "Nice to meet you."

"Miss Sweetie Belle, a pleasure, I'm sure." He smiled at the gathered ponies, which Sweetie now noticed included the unicorn that had directed her there. "As a messenger from the Princess, and accompanied by other creatures, how would you feel about helping me demonstrate the effectiveness of my device?"

Sweetie glanced at the machine. It didn't look like much. It was designed for probably about three or four ponies inside, and looked more like a metal bubble with seats than a machine of any sort. "Um…"

"Let me ask you, what's a place where you have never been before?"

Sweetie blinked. "Well… there's a lot of those… but I guess Griffonstone? Pinkie and the others have been there, but I've been curious since my friend Gabby came from there."

"And of course I'd love it if one of your companions could come with you," he added, "perhaps you, young griffon?"

Gallus blinked. "Um. Me? Why would I jump inside a giant metal ball? That looks like something the old Dragon Lord would use to play catch." His statement drew some amuse chuckles from the crowd.

"Because!" Quantum said, smile unwavering as he manipulated several crystals on a console, "I can take us to Griffonstone and back from there in ten seconds flat." The scientist raised his head with pride. "And since I and Miss Sweetie here have never been there, it would be nice for you to confirm that the location is indeed correct, when we come back."

Gallus stared at him. "From here. To Griffonstone. In ten seconds."

"That's correct."

Despite herself, Sweetie was intrigued. Her crusader spirit was being tickled. "Well… I suppose ten seconds is not much time…"

"Excellent! Please, step into the Quantum Sphere. Mister Griffon?"

"Gallus. Don't call me mister." The griffon narrowed his eyes. "Eh." He shrugged. "Why not?"

He followed Sweetie inside, taking a seat across from her, just as Quantum stepped in and took a seat too. "Now," he said as the sphere shuddered and several devices outside of it started powering up, "I have set the parameters already… for this demonstration I won't be using my own magic, but simply the ambient ethereal resonance of Equestria."

"Woo! Bring us presents!" Silverstream shouted.

Sweetie rolled her eyes. "Silverstream, it's only a ten second visit, we can't—"

Her voice trailed off as she noticed the unicorn from earlier gallop out of the crowd, his horn glowing with a spell as he charged the console.

"No! That's very sensitive!" Quantum shouted, standing up with clear worry in his eyes.

"Magic will only belong to unicorns!" the rogue scientist shouted slamming his horn straight into the console and releasing his spell.

For a split second, nothing happened.

Suddenly, the world screamed around Sweetie, like thunder and splitting rocks. The universe collapsed and expanded, pulling her every atom across it just as it compressed her into a singularity. She heard her magic whiplash around her, uncontrollable, crashing against other magics, fighting to stay attached to her ethereal core.

And then the world went dark.

[End Chapter 1]

Chapter 002

2504, Koprulu Sector █

The world returned in a haze of light, howling winds, and dust.

Everything around Sweetie was chaos; wind blasted around her as dark, gray clouds of dust whirled around. Flashes of red and white light pulsing through the clouds, flooding her senses with painful spikes of magical resonance.

She struggled to make sense of everything around her, but she could barely see anything at all past the swirling wall of gray particles.

She stepped back, until she hit something soft. Looking down, she could barely understand what was under her due to the chaos assaulting her senses. She could see a darkened shape, but other than that, the powerful winds and dust clouds made it all but impossible to see past her snout.

Thinking fast, she cast a shimmering, light green shield to fight the wind. Although the noise continued, she could now make out the huddled form of Gallus, curled into a ball and covering his head with his claws.

She didn't blame him. Without the shield (and several life-threatening experiences as a Crusader), she'd be down there too, trying to just wait the storm out and hope to survive.

A moment later, another shield surrounder hers and both their bodies, dulling down the sound and allowing Sweetie to breathe in relief some particle-free air.

"Miss Belle! Young Griffon, are you okay?" Quantum asked, stepping closer. "Thank you for raising the shield, miss Belle, I was too disoriented to think of it myself!"

Gallus had opened his eyes and was looking around wildly. "Where are we!?"

"I don't know. Maybe the Wastelands? Or perhaps the Saddle Arabian desert?" Quantum replied, staring grimly outside of his shield. "Wherever we are, we can't stay in this dust storm. My magic will eventually run out in these circumstances. We need cover, and I'm afraid that—as solid as I built it—my Quantum Sphere is too damaged to provide much protection at this time."

Sweetie shook her head, thinking fast. The Crusaders had been caught before in storms, and one thing that had always helped after she had learned the trick, had been her sister's gem finding spell. She concentrated, casting it and hoping to Celestia it worked. It wasn't as precise or strong as Rarity's, but it would suffice.

If there were any crystals or gems around, that is.

Surprisingly, she got a reaction almost immediately. Her magic was resonating with a large gem of some sort.

"I found some gems, maybe even magical," Sweetie said. "It might be a cavern!"

Quantum pressed his lips before nodding resolutely. "Come on, young griffon, let's go somewhere safer."

"Are you sure it's remotely safe to even walk around here?!" Gallus was panicky, looking around quickly and trying to peer through the wind and dust blasting the semi-transparent shield. He'd dealt with dangerous situations before, but this was entirely unknown.

"No, but I can't hold this forever," Quantum replied. "We'll walk slowly. Sweetie, you guide us in the direction we need to go. Young griffon—"

"Gallus."

"Gallus, you keep both eyes on our path. Make sure to warn us of anything that Sweetie or I might miss."

"Y-yeah." Gallus cleared his throat, standing up straighter. "I can do that. Yeah."

"We might still make a Crusader out of you," Sweetie said, grinning at Gallus. The griffon rolled his eyes, but she couldn't help but notice the small smirk.

"I'll pass, I value my life too much."

They walked slowly through the haze, wind battering hard against the shield. So hard in fact, that Quantum had to—quite verbally—initiate a second layer to his shield, anchoring magically to stick to the ground below their hooves and paws, before they were able to walk without being pushed around—maybe even toppled—by the natural forces working against them.

She wasn't sure how long they walked, but the storm was not abating. She could sense the crystals, but she couldn't pinpoint their location clearly enough, and at one point she had felt that they were walking away from them. Could the gems be moving?

It was probably an hour later, trudging through uneven ground and with barely any visibility, just as they were deflating and ready to give up that she heard it.

"What do you seek?" A voice, old and powerful, distinctly male with a slight echo to it made its way into her mind.

Sweetie paused, and the other two stumbled to a stop as well, staring at her.

She knew her eyes were wide and that her face had echoed the shock from hearing the strange voice. Forcing herself to calm down and concentrate, she felt the magical signature. From the looks of the others it wasn't something they had heard. It was very focused. Intensely—almost scarily so. And it was centered on her exclusively, because she had been following its owner. She just hadn't realized it.

"We seek shelter from the storm," she projected through her spell, hoping that the words would reach the voice's owner.

"Why do you follow me?"

"I don't know who you are, and we weren't trying to follow you specifically, I promise. I was using a spell to detect gems, in the hopes that we could find a cave, or underground passage to camp in.

"My name is Sweetie Belle, and with me are Gallus and Quantum State. We're here by accident, can you help us? We can't keep the barrier up much longer. We need to rest and wait out the storm before we can leave this place."

There was silence, and she wondered if whatever had contacted her was going to respond at all, but then a bit of resignation reached her through the link. "I know where you can rest. Keep tracking me, and you will reach a safe zone soon."

Sweetie nodded, then, realizing the creature probably couldn't see her, sent a new message through the link: "Thank you."

"This world is dangerous, Sweetie Belle. Were my mission not important, I would gladly lead you to a safer port, but I cannot—must not—get distracted. Your objective lies straight ahead."

It was true. Soon enough they found the entrance to a cave, and stepped inside. The shelter, however, did little to calm Sweetie after the dire warning in her benefactor's voice. Still, she again sent a new mental message. "Thank you. We're here."

"Remember. Leave as soon as you can. Adun Toridas, Sweetie Belle."

Sweetie Belle blinked, unfamiliar with the expression. "Adun Toridas," she repeated, but there was no reply. It was weird. The words sounded flat, compared to when they had been sent to her.

She sighed, dismissing the thought for now and glancing around. Quantum had already cast a long-lasting simple light spell which had floated up to the middle of the top of the cavern, and both he and Gallus were looking at her curiously.

"Something we're missing?" Gallus asked.

Quantum turned around and started exploring the cave. "This place was recently used by somecreature." He glanced over at Sweetie. "Perhaps whoever it was that you were in contact with?"

"Wait, what?" Gallus asked, eyes wide. "You mean you were talking to somecreature while we were lost?"

Sweetie grinned sheepishly, shrugging with a self-conscious sigh. "Yeah. I think he had the gems I was tracing. When he sensed me, we talked briefly and he led me here."

Her smile faded. "He also said this place was dangerous and that as soon as we could, we should get out."

Quantum State sighed. "Troubling. We still haven't even established how much damage the Quantum Sphere suffered."

"Hey, hey, are we going to be even able to find it again?" Gallus asked worriedly, staring at the storm outside. "The thing's probably going to get buried out there."

"Of course," Quantum said, his smile reassuring. "I have it pinned to my senses. It has my magical signature all over it."

"Which means?"

"That we can go back to it as soon as the storm is gone," Sweetie explained, then glanced at Quantum. "We should also cast a pin here to be able to come back if needed."

"I am more concerned about this voice that guided you here. All we know is that it was male."

"It was strange," Sweetie said. "I could sense a very powerful will behind it, and a strange feel to it, the only other time I've felt something like that was from Princess Luna, sometimes. His voice was... solemn, lonely. It had a weight to it, I could feel through it guilt, but also resolve."

"Tossing Luna's name casually like that," Quantum said with a chuckle, his smile faded, and he nodded. "Trustworthy?"

Sweetie shrugged. "He brought us here. He didn't demand anything, and warned us of possible danger. He said something else, too. In a language I have never heard before: "Adun Toridas"."

Quantum pondered that. "I have never heard those words. The language does not seem Equestrian."

"Well," Gallus said, walking over to a wall and slumping down on to his stomach next to it, "whatever language it is, he helped us get here. Now all we do is wait, and then we go back home."

"Oh! Camping!" Sweetie trotted around the cave, as if forgetting the earlier discussion. "I know all about it! Cutie Mark Crusaders Camping Masters!" She laughed and kept exploring around, poking her nose behind large rocks and gazing at the nooks and crevices inside the cave, leaving the other two behind.

Gallus followed her around with his eyes, smiling slightly at her antics, just as Quantum sat down with a heavy sigh next to him.

"She's quite the pony, isn't she?" Quantum asked, as Sweetie investigated a corner where apparently their benefactor had set down at some point.

"Yeah," Gallus agreed, nodding as he kept an eye on her.

"She took all of this in stride. If I hadn't felt her attempting that shield, I wouldn't have thought to try my own."

"Crusaders are always getting in trouble," Gallus said, smirking as she levitated things and explored yet another area of the cavern. "I'm not surprised that out of the three of us, she could handle being suddenly in a dust storm."

"Do I sense a bit of admiration there?"

"Yes." Gallus blinked and frowned. "No." He glanced at the elder pony with a slightly embarrassed air and a raised, challenging eyebrow.

Quantum laughed. "No need to read more into that, young Gallus."

"Just Gallus is fine, old Quantum."

"Point taken." Quantum rolled his shoulders before settling down on his stomach, mirroring Gallus' position. "Are you both students at Twilight Sparkle's School?"

"No. Sweetie, Apple Bloom, and Scootaloo are all honorary graduates. They recently took roles as assistant instructors for some reason." He glanced at Sweetie with some amusement. "The Crusaders are always trying to do something new. As far as I know they've made a lot of friends in high places."

"Interesting. I have heard that there's many exceptional individuals in Ponyville, but it appears that there's always something new around the corner whenever Princess Twilight Sparkle is involved."

Gallus chuckled. "You can say that again."

"Anyway, we should all rest. We'll have plenty of work once the storm subsides." Quantum groaned as he got up and trotted over to the entrance. "Sweetie Belle, help me set up some safety spells."

"Right!"

Gallus watched in silence as the pair of unicorns performed their magic, then rested his head on his claws and sighed as he relaxed. Might as well get some sleep while he could.

"This is really not good," Sweetie said, staring outside through the translucent spell that blocked the entrance from random roaming creatures—such as Manticores or the occasional cockatrice would be—and the harsh elements, like the dust storm from the previous night. Behind them, Gallus shifted and snored softly.

The storm had died out a little earlier; the last vestiges of dust settling down with a pit-patter that sounded almost like rain, and a long hush had followed, drawing both unicorns to look outside.

And now she and Quantum sat, staring at the night sky above. It was, all in all, a beautiful breath-taking scene.

"By Celestia's mercy!" Quantum whispered, "Is that another planet?"

A large, red orb with a brown-blue ring around it rose in the distance, huge and way too close for comfort. Above them, not one, but two moons traced the sky, and whatever stars and constellations were visible, bore no resemblance to the sky of Equestria.

"That's not only another planet, doc," Sweetie whispered in awe. "We're standing in another world."

"I-how?" Quantum asked, shaking his head slowly. "How is this even possible? As efficient as my design was; as powerful as the mana batteries were, or even the added blast of energy from that unicorn that attacked us, there's no way we should have left Equestria."

The elder unicorn started pacing. "There's no way we could have been sent that distance… all thaumic laws refute at least one law of physics, but there are some universal truths behind everything. The amount of power needed to catapult us this far cannot be produced by a hundred, or even a thousand unicorns, all synchronized, using the exact same spell and magical output. Not even with mana batteries."

"In other words, we're lucky to be alive," Sweetie said, then grinned, "I can't wait to tell Apple Bloom and Scootaloo!"

Quantum stopped, ears flat, but nodded. "Sweetie Belle, I don't know if I can take us back… not without understanding how we got here."

Sweetie bit her lip, thinking back on the many times the Crusaders had been trapped in what appeared to be impossible odds of getting out. "We'll need to rest. Tomorrow will be a long day, and we don't know if the storms will come back. The weather here is wild. We can ask Gallus to go up and see if he can see any weather patterns." She glanced at Quantum with a shaky smile.

"I-yes," he nodded, "w-we should probably rest."

The pair made their way further into the cavern, and it was soon after Quantum had dismissed the light spell that another set of soft snores joined Gallus'.

After tossing and turning, unable to sleep, Sweetie finally gave in and reached out. Her gem-finding spell stretched out into the night. "Are you there?"

There was no response, not that she expected something different, given her target's earlier comments about a mission of some importance, but she still continued, finding some solace in talking to somecreature, even if they never answered.

"I'm scared," she admitted to her unseen listener, head lowering down to rest on her hooves, "I've gotten in trouble before, but I've never landed in another world. I know it's silly talking to you, and that you have things to do… it's just—it makes me feel a bit better to know that somecreature out there in this strange world at least doesn't wish us harm."

Sweetie yawned, her eyes blinking owlishly at the dark room. "I know you probably can't hear me, but I wish I had at least learned your name. Good night."

She finished her spell and closed her eyes, feeling herself fade into dreams, although she thought she heard a word, just as she fell asleep completely.

Zeratul.

The light of the morning suns broke through the haze of the forcefield they had erected, slowly waking the trio up. It was hard to figure out if the suns were actually red or if it was just the atmosphere, which according to Quantum, could affect how they viewed the celestial bodies.

"You're telling me that we're in another world."

Gallus' voice was a study in calm. Either that or he was too freaked out to really react.

Quantum nodded solemnly. "As of now, we have no idea how we made it here, other than sheer luck, that is. I discussed this briefly with Sweetie Belle, but there wasn't enough collective power in there to send us here. I have theorized all morning and came to the uncomfortable conclusion that there was perhaps an additional level of action from the unicorn that attacked us."

He paced in front of the two. "Initially, I had thought his attack as something as simple as an attempt to destroy the console with a destructive spell of known parameters. Say for example, Fireworks' Final Flash, or something along those lines. Destructive enough to cause damage—for sure—but requiring little preparation from the caster.

"Then I thought the possible force-feeding of the batteries with an intentionally miscast teleportation spell! But that wouldn't make sense, because--as you know--the thaumic input of additional energy into a transdimensional spell that already has a foci established, more so through the use of a complex, stable, matrix disconnected from the original caster would simply burn out the matrix and dissipate, or, if the matrix is powerful enough as surely my Quantum Sphere is, it would simply store the additional energy or, worst case scenario, burn upon arrival."

"Yeah," Gallus said, rolling his eyes. "We all know that wouldn't happen."

"Indeed!" Quantum said energetically, turning to face the wall and drawing complex diagrams while Gallus and Sweetie shared baffled, confused smiles.

After a moment of peering at it, Sweetie's eyes widened in recognition, and Gallus shuffled closer. "So, uh, what's with the comic book?"

Sweetie giggled, making his feathers ruffle a little. "I don't understand all of it, but I've had Twilight try to explain teleportation to me enough times to recognize some of that. It's basically a very complicated way of drawing how we should have jumped, but didn't." She shook her head. "This is way to advanced for me, though. I have no idea what the rest really means…" she trailed off.

Sweetie leaned in a little peering at what Quantum was working on. "Now that I think about it, I'm sure I've seen something like that one over there when Twilight tried to explain to us Crusaders why we shouldn't use cursed books on the magical mirror she uses to travel to other dimensions."

"You mean the one he's just putting the last few pony skulls on?"

"That's the one. And the lecture was on top of having to clean up the library of tentacle remains by ourselves."

"Somehow, the fact that it seems so incredibly dangerous and you're still here is giving me a bit of comfort."

Sweetie smiled and nuzzled him on the cheek. "We'll be okay, Gallus."

"Yes, of course." Milliseconds after leaning in, Gallus had stepped back, putting a foreleg's distance between the two of them. "Let's not get too cheesy here, okay?"

"Aww, but you liked it!"

"Did not!"

"Anyway!" Quantum spoke up, drawing their attention as he stepped back from his illustrations. "As you can see here, the direct power influx from the explosion should have finalized at the control panel of the Quantum Sphere. Potentially with the intention of simply teleporting us into a rock or an active volcano, something that reflects poor understanding of matrices for a unicorn in a labcoat.

"Regardless, as the illustration here clearly proves—"

"Clearly," Gallus snorted, getting a giggle out of Sweetie.

Quantum kept walking down the long drawings with the patience of an experienced teacher, pointing with his hoof as he moved "—the force of the spell was intended to destroy only the console, and if I'm right, hide the fact that my device had been tampered with with a much more dangerous and volatile spell, which didn't eliminate us by uncoordinated timing between the reaction of the matrix interacting with an additional command just at the right time."

"So, blind luck," Gallus stated.

"Well, yes." Quantum gave him an unamused glance. "However we have discovered something important. It was through the implementation of a spell added to my matrix that this happened… which means, that the Quantum Sphere itself should have enough information for me to identify the spell, its purpose, and most importantly, given enough time, I should be able to pinpoint the thaumic timing of both spells interacting that caused this to happen."

He stopped, smirking at the diagrams, before turning to look at them over his shoulder. "As dangerous as this was, I can't help but feel exhilarated at the prospect of a whole new field of research… one that depends on less energy to achieve results like these."

"Right," Gallus said, narrowing his eyes. "So, some idiot tried to kill us and we discovered a new branch of science." He snorted and glanced at Quantum with an irritated grunt. "But, how about we first go figure out what happened and how to get back home, and then—when we're safe and sound in Equestria—you study this?"

Quantum smiled sheepishly. "Well, yes, of course," he said, earning another giggle from Sweetie. "Let it suffice that right now we have a course of action, and it should be undertaken as soon as possible."

"Well, lead the way." Gallus stepped to the side, motioning with his claw at the barren world outside.

Quantum's smile faded. "Right. Of course." He hesitated, then nodded to himself, turning to look at them. "Sweetie Belle, we should conserve as much magic as we can, in case your mysterious friend was right and this world is indeed dangerous."

"I don't think he had any reason to lie," Sweetie replied, stepping up next to him with Gallus at her side.

"Very well then." Quantum sighed. "Let's go, and keep your eyes open: we don't know what's out there, now that there's no storm to protect us."

Chapter 003

2503, Koprulu Sector █

As soon as they left the cave, they were assaulted by the realization of how different the whole world really was. Sheltered as they had been, their exposure had been limited, and now that there was no storm, the full weight of where they actually were started to affect them.

The sand under their hooves felt rough, less like the smooth, powdery stuff from Equestria's shores, and more like road gravel. Last night they had been too focused on merely escaping the storm to really think about the quality of the ground behind them. But now, all of their surroundings were new.

The air quality, the ground, the heavens above. It was all different, and now that they weren't exhausted, they could quite literally feel that they had left Equestria behind.

"It's the magical field," Quantum explained as they walked, gravel crunching under them with each step. "Equestria's field is all-encompassing, from the planet itself to the nearby stars. It's massive (to say the least) and it permeates everything within its boundaries. This planet, however, doesn't seem to be part of that (or any) macro-thaumic-spectrum, so the only magic is within us."

"I swear I could hear the parentheses in that explanation," Gallus groaned.

"Yes, well." Quantum coughed. "It is a fascinating topic."

"Yeah. I almost didn't fall asleep walking."

Sweetie giggled. "Aww, it wasn't that bad, Gallus."

"Well, professor, I have a question for you then," Gallus said, rolling his eyes at Sweetie. "If you're right and there's less magic around here, won't that affect our chances of getting home?"

Quantum kept quiet for a few minutes as they kept walking, guiding them to where his magical pin lay.

"Not necessarily," he said eventually. "As you might remember from our earlier discussion, the actual amount of magic wasn't as important in getting us here as the thaumic mechanism that did it. With a bit of time, I should be able to replicate the event and get us on our way back home."

"Yeah, well, how much time will that be?" Gallus asked, glancing up at the suns. "No offense, but this place gives me the creeps."

"Not long, I would think," Quantum said, "we're almost at the location of my Quantum Sphere. I should be able to gather enough information to at least apply a direct opposite thaumic—"

"So, soon. Thanks."

Quantum shook his head as Gallus bounced ahead, but continued on walking. The group eventually reached the base of a hill.

"We're almost there," he said. "When we are, I want you two to help me find all the pieces of the sphere. They're not all necessary, but the more we find, the better."

"Um, professor? I think that might be a problem."

Gallus' voice trembled as he quickly threw himself to his stomach. The two unicorns quickly made their way up and crouched behind cover, looking down the hill at the remains of the Quantum Sphere.

Huge, bipedal creatures, each three times as tall as any of the three travelers, and encased in strange, heavy—scarred and thick-looking—red metallic armor stomped around the debris of the Quantum Sphere. In their claws, they held massive instruments of some sort, their size and appearance indicating considerable weight, but the armored beings carried them without a problem.

The creature's movements were not fluid, however. They lurched occasionally, and stopped at odd moments, seemingly to stare at nothing, before continuing with whatever they were doing.

"What in Tartarus are those things?" Gallus asked, lowering his voice.

"I've never seen anything like them…" Sweetie whispered. "How about you, professor?"

"I have not either," Quantum admitted, "but they seem intelligent."

"And dangerous," Gallus whispered back.

He seemed a bit bigger, and Sweetie glanced at him in confusion.

Noticing her reaction, Gallus tried to shrug nonchalantly. "Defense mechanism. My feathers puff up when I sense danger." Clearing his throat at Sweetie's amused look, he glanced in turn at Quantum. "We really should hide."

"I agree but I do worry about what these creatures might do to—"

Whatever he was going to say was cut off by a roar and blast of sand. The trio looked around in surprise, confused and scared as something massive smashed onto the rock in front of them, shaking the ground itself.

They stared in open mouthed awe at the metallic monstrosity standing in front of them. It was made of metal, also painted red. The legs of the mechanical thing were thick and stank of oil and smoke, ending in a three-digit claw that dug onto the earth below it. The front of it was a large shield that was as thick as Sweetie was long, and it's two arms ended in what appeared to be triple long cannons of some sort on each side, above its "shoulders" were some sort of towers, as tall or taller than the creatures they had seen next to the sphere, with many holes on them, where Sweetie could barely make out pointy rockets of some sort.

"Magnificent!" Quantum gasped, earning an incredulous look from both Sweetie and Gallus, "A golem of this magnitude! And it contains a pilot!"

A screeching sound emanated from the metallic contraption, and sounds they didn't recognize came out from it. It was an unknown language, but worse, still, was the unearthly tone to it, as if whoever was speaking was half-babbling, half swearing.

It made motions with its weapon-arms, clearly indicating that they should move down to where the other creatures waited.

"I-I think we should do what it wants," Gallus whispered.

"Do not follow its instructions," Sweetie suddenly heard in her mind. "When I attack, run back to the cave."

"Wha—"

"Blachgrh! Dhortha thngat monfthagrrndthar!" the mechanical brute roared, slamming its cannon next to them and shoving it towards the waiting creatures, showering the trio in gravel.

"Mother fthar-whatever yourself, jerk!" Gallus shouted, coughing and brushing the dust and stones from his face.

"I guess it really wants us to move!" Quantum said, starting to go in the indicated direction.

"No! Wait!"

"Now!"

"This way!" Sweetie shouted, taking off back the way they had come.

"Sweetie!" Gallus shouted, bouncing after her, followed by a panicked Quantum.

"Smarghlbjrack!" the mechanical golem's speakers blared. Its arms started spinning with a loud whirr, which made the trio stop in surprise with wide, panicked eyes, just in time to see a figure emerge from wispy energy, onto the "face" of the golem.

The new creature's claw had some sort of green energy blade shimmering out of it, which it used to pierce through the thick glass that covered where Sweetie assumed the pilot would be.

"Run, Sweetie!"

"Come on!" Sweetie shouted, snapping out of her reverie when she heard the now-familiar voice in her mind. "Back to the cave!"

"What the hay is going on!?" Gallus shouted, gaining speed as they dashed through the terrain. Quantum didn't say anything, gasping and breathing hard as he galloped after them.

Behind them, a loud explosion rattled them, forcing them to stop and turn around. The metallic monstrosity was gone, and an angry ball of fire had erupted where it used to be. Even then, they could still hear loud popping sounds and explosions, so it took little nudging from Sweetie to get them on the run again.

She followed the magical pin she had set earlier, leading them towards the cave, and—hopefully—safety.

They made it back a lot quicker than the trip to the Quantum Sphere had taken, which was no surprise, galloping desperately as they had been.

Quantum collapsed into a heap, breathing hard and staring behind them, as if expecting the creatures to have followed them. Gallus was less winded, but his feathers were still ruffled and he prowled inside the cave, growling lightly, while Sweetie herself slid down against the wall, trying to catch her breath.

"T-that was scary."

The other two stopped their hard-breathing for a second to look at her. "That's putting it mildly," Quantum said, still unable to stand up. "And too much for my old bones. What possessed you to run away from that thing? It could have killed us all in an instant! We were lucky to make it here alive!"

"But now they have the Sphere," Gallus said, "we're trapped!"

"Even if they seemed questionable, there was the chance that we might have been able to communicate if we had gone with them," Quantum added. "Perhaps running wasn't the best option."

"Had you been captured by Duran's Terrans, you would not have lived long." A deep voice, echoing—almost as if was coming through a veil of some sort—reached them, making the trio jump in surprise. It had an odd quality, as if it had begun to reach their ears a few seconds before the words actually formed.

Dark smoke formed across from them and from it stepped out a bipedal figure, standing on digitigrade legs. It was twice as tall as any of them, wearing pieces of golden armor with green stones in them. Its head was plated, and its eyes glowed with green, magical energy. A ragged cape, deep purple where it wasn't torn, surrounded most of its blue-skinned body, with a long scarf-like cloth that covered the lower part of its face. It hunched slightly, giving him a menacing look, as if he were about to attack.

Despite his fear, Gallus jumped in front of his companions, flaring his wings and growling menacingly, just as Quantum forced himself up and braced for combat, his horn lighting up with power.

"Zeratul!" Sweetie suddenly shouted, trotting in between them and leaving them blinking in confusion. "It's you, isn't it?"

"En taro Adun, Sweetie Belle," the creature—Zeratul—responded with some amusement. "Even though we had spoken before, it surprises me that you would so quickly welcome me." He turned to face the others, bowing slightly. "I am Zeratul, Dark Prelate of the Nezarim."

"You helped us before, and saved us from those things, Zeratul" Sweetie said, smiling up at the menacing-looking creature. "Why wouldn't I welcome you as a friend?" She pointed at the others. "You already know my name, I'm a unicorn, this is Professor Quantum State, and that is Gallus, he's a griffon."

"Geez," Gallus drawled, sitting down and taking a deep breath. "You're just like your sister."

"Thank you!"

"I admit I was surprised when I saw you," Zeratul said, "Your species are not familiar to me." He turned to Gallus. "In fact, the Terrans have a type of ship they call the griffon."

"Those monsters?" Gallus asked. "None of them looked like me."

Zeratul shook his head. "They would not, and yes, now they would seem as monsters. Alas, they were not always like that. These terrans have been modiefied somehow by Duran. Not all terrans are trustworthy, but some—like Jim Raynor—are worthy of praise and respect."

Gallus didn't look convinced. He crossed his forelegs and gave the alien a sidelong glance. "How do we know you're not going to kill us, like them?"

"The metal monstrosity…" Quantum whispered, eyes widening as he studied Zeratul, "you're the one that attacked it! How did you destroy it?"

"Guys, guys," Sweetie said soothingly, turning to face them. "Zeratul led us to this cave when we arrived, and he warned us about it being dangerous."

"Well, he could have been a bit more specific. 'Dangerous' can mean just about anything back home."

"'Dangerous', young one," Zeratul spoke up, walking to stand next to Sweetie, "can mean a lot of things in this universe. But when a Protoss warns you, it usually means death."

"How are we getting home now?" Gallus asked, "Those things took the Quantum Sphere…"

"I'm afraid the remains of your machine were destroyed by Duran's forces," Zeratul said, shaking his head and turning his gaze to Quantum. "Little—if any—remains."

"Great!" Gallus growled, "So we're stuck here, alone, and with no way home." He looked away, annoyance and despondency evident in his body language. "Figures we couldn't go on a single school trip without things getting out of control."

"I take it that your arrival here was not intentional."

The trio looked at Zeratul and Quantum shook his head. "Unfortunately not, or I would not have allowed things to devolve into this situation! We arrived here quite by accident. A magical surge messed with my matrix and the next thing we know, we're here."

"I could feel when you arrived," Zeratul said, "If you travelled through the Void and arrived here alive, then you were very lucky indeed."

"Not all was luck," Quantum muttered, "but unfortunately, my device was the only way I could trace back our trajectory through this… Void of yours. As it is I don't think I can simply calculate how to return."

A heavy silence descended inside the cave, as the group considered their situation.

Gallus felt furious. He was trapped. Sure, it wasn't a tiny little size-reducing trap like what the Tree of Harmony had thrown his way before, but for all intents and purposes, it was basically the same situation. Worse, even, a whole world out there full of things that could kill him and the others, and no way to fight them.

He had been making a life for himself away from Griffonstone, enjoying time with his friends, and learning not only about friendship, but also different cultures and things. He had planned to do something after Twilight's school. Maybe learn a trade, or depending on his interests, maybe even study more and–his thoughts derailed when he heard the sniffling.

Sweetie had sat down and was staring at the floor. Her curly purple and pink mane covering her face as her body shook every time she took a deep breath. She was trying to be quiet, but the cave was too small for any real attempt at privacy.

She looked so vulnerable, it almost made his heart ache just by looking at her. He glanced around, searching for Quantum, but the unicorn scientist was standing next to the cave entrance, muttering to himself.

This left him and Zeratul as the only viable option, which meant that, since he knew Sweetie Belle better than the other two (which wasn't saying much), it fell on him to say something. He took a deep breath and shuffled closer to the sniffling young mare.

She had been taking everything in stride so far, and the Crusaders had done so many crazy things, it had been easy to forget she was actually younger than him. He approached her, then hesitated, glancing around for any other option. Quantum was still distracted, and Zeratul—the strange creature was watching them silently from the other side of the cavern, making no motion to help at all.

Gallus gritted his beak and scratched the back of his head, then sat next to Sweetie and wrapped his wing and foreleg around her. "H-hey, come on Sweetie Belle, we'll figure something out."

Sweetie turned and hugged him, letting out a loud sob. "I-I won't see my sister again! Or my friends! We're lost!"

The truth was that they were, and as far as he could tell, there was no way for them to even figure out how to get back, now that the Quantum Sphere was completely destroyed—if that Zeratul guy was telling the truth—but as much as he wanted to bemoan the fact, he felt worse for Sweetie.

Truth be told, he could see an upside to this. At least this wasn't Griffonstone. Silver lining and all that.

Still, thinking about his friends—Yona, Sliverstream, Sandbar, Smolder and Ocellus—made him feel hollow inside. As much as friendship was a powerful force, the lack of it was staggering. Even during his trial he had known the others were nearby, but now… now he was the closest thing Sweetie Belle had to a friend here.

"Hey, Sweetie, come on," he said, trying to think of something more substantial. "We can figure something out. Quantum's sphere brought us here, right? Maybe he just needs more time to do his calculations. We've got each other still, right?"

Sweetie sniffed, looking at him soulful green eyes.

It was then that they noticed Zeratul, who had approached and was now kneeling on one leg as he carefully patted Sweetie's head. "Your friend is correct, young Sweetie Belle. You must not give up hope, for it is a force that can lead you to many places. It will keep you strong, and help you in the most dire of straits... perhaps even to the answer that you seek."

Sweetie looked from Gallus to Zeratul, sniffling again, but this time, she wiped her tears with the back of her hoof and nodded.

Gallus felt immensely proud in her for some reason.

"D-do you know of a way out?" Sweetie asked, turning to their Protoss host.

Zeratul hesitated. "I-I do. I can help you three off of this planet, but I fear that I am unable to help you search for your home. I have a mission to complete, and my failure would harbor far worse a fate than being lost and away from home."

Sweetie hadn't expected Zeratul's callused claws to be so gentle. She leaned into it and looked up, swallowing and taking a deep breath. There was concern there. Empathy. Whatever else had gone wrong… she had found a friend.

She smiled and nodded as he stood up and stepped back, then leaned in and nuzzled Gallus, who went rigid with surprise. "Thank you, Gallus."

"Um, sure!" the young griffon said, quickly moving back and refusing to look at her directly. "No problem! That's what I'm here for!" He cleared his throat when he saw her wink at him. "Don't get the wrong idea! I don't want your sister to fail me because I didn't take care of you!"

Green eyes became watery again. "Y-you mean I'm not special?"

"No! I-I mean yes, you are buh—gah!" Gallus flew to the other side of the cave, facing away from Sweetie, who giggled.

"Young Gallus seems very flustered," Zeratul commented.

"My sis taught me a few tricks," Sweetie said, smiling a bit sadly. "I hope I see her soon so I can tell her all about it."

"It seems a very effective trick. I have seen terran females and… former... terran females use similar guiles to manipulate others of their species." He shook his head and looked at the others. "We should move. I have no doubt search parties are already active, and my ship is not too close."

"You said you could help us out of this world, correct?" Quantum asked, finally turning to face them. "I've gotten a good feel for the thaumic fields here. Perhaps we can do this faster." He smiled. "My talent is with teleportation magic. I can sense that when you talk to us, you are projecting your thoughts… can you project an image of the area near your ship?"

Zeratul considered the unicorn, before nodding. His eyes flashed, and Quantum suddenly could see the creature's "ship" it looked almost like the top of a magical staff would, shaped almost as an arrow, but with a rounded lower part, and the wings curving around and up, forming the "tips" and soft glowing green energy shining in between off-black metallic parts.

"Perfect! I can open a portal there," Quantum said after a moment, "I was saving my energy earlier in order to rebuild the Quantum Sphere but…" he shook his head sadly. "That is not an option anymore."

Zeratul's eyes were wide. "You… are able to do this?"

"Wow, I thought you needed a magical item, like the one that Neighsay had."

Quantum grinned. "If you want, I can teach you at least the basic forms, Sweetie Belle. I was, after all, the one that made that for him."

"Oh! Cool!" Sweetie grinned and nodded. "Teach me!"

Quantum nodded. "It will be a long time before you can do something like this on your own, and you'll need plenty of study. I have no doubt Princess Twilight will help you with it if you ask... but for now I'll let you perform the spell with me. Link your magic to mine, and try to visualize everything as I do it."

Zeratul was joined by Gallus as the pair watched the unicorns work. Slowly, tendrils of magic blended together and Quantum gently led the magic in a harmonious flow that coalesced into a shimmering ball of energy.

Before their eyes, the energy seemed to press together, light flashing for a moment before energy spiraled out for a fraction of a second, then retreated into a now flat, shimmery surface. Beyond it, Zeratul could clearly see the Void Seeker. "Incredible."

"A useful skill, no doubt," Quantum said, "Now, if you go ahead an—"

Whatever he was going to say was interrupted by the sound of thousands of bullets being shot in a second. The echo of the salvo was barely enough to soften the sound of Quantum suddenly becoming a mass of flesh and blood as the entrance of the cave exploded into pieces.

A piece of shrapnel flew through the air, slicing Gallus' shoulder just above the wing. The griffon roared in pain and fell to the floor hard, while Sweetie yelped and ran behind some rocks, her magic still holding on to the spell. "Run through the portal!" she shouted. "I can barely keep it open! I can't open it again!"

"But Swee—gah!" Gallus gasped in pain, collapsing again as the moment he had opened his wing, the flesh and muscle around the wound had ripped painfully.

"Zeratul! Grab him!"

Not wasting a second, the protoss picked up Gallus under one arm, then dashed towards the portal.

"Sweetie!" Gallus shouted as he and Zeratul crossed the magical gate. The protoss slid on the ground, turning around while still holding Gallus steady. They saw Sweetie stand up and prepare to jump through… only for her lower body to explode into blood.

Gallus' last sight of her were her wide, panicked, pained eyes as the portal flashed and disappeared.

Chapter 004

2503, Koprulu Sector █

She fell, her magic dying the moment blood exploded in her field of vision. What had happened? Why couldn't she stand up?

She felt herself losing her grasp on reality, the world looking slightly brighter and off-focus around the edges of her vision. She heard, distant stomping, saw large, thick, bipedal figures stomping around the cave, looking at some sort of… thing next to the entrance.

Wasn't the Professor next to it? She couldn't understand… slowly pain crept up, from just under her barrel, it was unbearable, but she could barely muster the strength to moan in pain, when what she really wanted to do was cry out. Scream.

'It hurts! Gallus! It hurts! Zeratul… Quantum… oh Celestia…' a fuzzy image took face in her mind. A kind smile. Soft, white coat. Twirly, purple mane. Loving words. "R-rari…"

A pair of large, metallic boots stopped before her, something heavy thudded around her, and everything went black.

For a few seconds before she completely lost consciousness, all she could hear was her heart and her breathing. It felt like a long time before she passed out.

They were sitting in Sweetie's room, facing the mirror of her vanity. Sweetie couldn't really make out her face, nor Rarity's but it didn't bother her. The world around her felt more colorful and full of meaning than normal, and yet, as much as she was aware of that, it was still on the back of her mind.

"So we talked about it all night, and we really think that we can help!"

Rarity looked at Sweetie Belle with a smile a she kept brushing her sister's mane. Sweetie could tell her sister was smiling. It made her feel happy and appreciated.

She hadn't told Rarity enough how much she loved her and how as she had gotten older, had grown to understand and appreciate all the things her sister did for her.

As the brushing continued, Sweetie felt a slight sense of dread.

"Hey, Rarity?"

"Yes, Sweetie?

"Promise me you'll never leave me?"

"Oh, Sweetie," Rarity held her close. "I'm already gone."

The sounds of machinery. Motors of some kind. Scrapping of gravel. Marching, steady footsteps. Bumps in the road. Sweetie shook awake when her head smashed on the side of the container.

She was too baffled to understand what was happening, and the pain.

She started screaming, her voice rough until she couldn't even breathe.

"Sweetie!"

She galloped across the arid, hard, cracked desert ground, chasing the voice that echoed in the air all around her. She couldn't see him. But he was there! He was there, just a few steps away wherever it was she was going. "Gallus! Don't leave me!"

"We can't wait Sweetie, the universe is changing!"

Sweetie slowed down as the world around her seemed to suddenly increase in magnitude. Green clouds of gas exploded from within the cracks; distant thunder and lightning shook and lit the world beyond her, incomprehensibly strong winds lifted pebbles and sand around her.

She was in the heart of a tornado that went up all the way to the two moons in the sky, both glowing bright red.

'What's happening?' Pain seared through her, increasing and decreasing in time with her heartbeat. She couldn't see anything. She couldn't move.

All was dark. She let herself go.

"We came through the Void."

Sweetie walked into the cavern, searching for Gallus or Zeratul, but only found a single unicorn.

Professor Quantum's back was to her, his horn glowing with a red-black aura as equation after equation was etched on the wall. There was something wrong with him. His movements were jerky as if he didn't have full control of his motor skills.

"We came through the Void. And it wants us back. All will be destroyed."

Another bump. Shaking. Pain. Disorientation. "How long have I… I feel so… weak…'

She stood, a tiny white speck in the middle of an immense cavern. All was dark and creatures moved, creeped and slithered in the shadows. The walls of the cavern were carved into titanic crevices and stairs and columns, all surrounding a massive, circular stone with some sort of keyhole in the middle.

There were markings on the stone that she couldn't… quite… make… out...

Voices. Guttural, incomprehensible mishmash of syllables and consonants. Sounds of creatures alive around her. Suffering. A searing, forceful invasion. Sweetie tried to scream, but no sound came out.

The tone of the voices changed. A command of some sort was issued. She felt herself moving again.

Twilight Sparkle sat across from Sweetie Belle. "You're alone, away from magic, friendship and possibility of rescue."

"I know," Sweetie said, not looking up to meet the princess' eyes.

"Sweetie. You need to be strong. We miss you. We're looking."

She looked up, eyes wide. "You're not a dre—"

Light. Bright. Hurt her eyes, distracted her from the pain for just a second. The surface she was on tilted, and she started sliding down. She tried to reach out with her hooves to hold on to something, but she couldn't move her forelegs. She couldn't even feel them.

She gasped as she splashed into cold liquid. She kicked with her hind legs, trying to stay afloat, but there was no buoyancy and she had no force to do more than move them a little. She sank, crying out desperately. Or trying to-her body barely had the energy to twitch.

Liquid enveloped her completely. She tried to hold her breath. Think through her addled, confused state. Summon magic. Beg for help.

'Sis! Rarity!'

The liquid covered her. She felt herself sink further down, her left hind-hoof tapping gently on something solid. She couldn't hold her breath any longer, she had barely had time to get a full gulp of air.

'Not like this! Please, oh Celestia! Not like this… Rarity! Gallus! H-help me!' She couldn't hold it any longer. She opened her mouth, bubbles escaping her lungs before she took an involuntary, painful breath of liquid.

She felt her body convulse, her lungs fill up with it. It tasted like blood. It filled her. She was going to drown… she felt tears, even underwater and felt herself fade away from life.

A deep, echoing voice reached her through darkness and panic. Sweetie floated, her senses forgotten, her mind breaking… until it brushed briefly with the memory of this voice.

Kind, yet strong. Fearless, yet gentle. A memory of a mind, powerful, ancient and focused—a presence she had only known for very little time, yet had extended hope and friendship to her.

She grabbed onto this memory like a lifeline, drawing strength and kindness and courage and endurance and will and focus and hope.

Green gems, glowing with the might of his will behind them. She didn't know how, but Zeratul was saving her again… somehow.

She was floating in something warm.

Sweetie slowly opened her eyes to discover the world around her had an orange tint to it now. Her whole body ached, but it was dull, as if she had been doing too much exercise and her muscles were cramped.

It was then that she realized she had been tossed into a tank full of liquid. Eyes wide, she immediately held her breath, shaking and trying to bang against the glass surface of the tank she was in with her hooves… but they were gone.

Sweetie screamed, a gurgling sound that still carried the terrified feelings of helplessness and horror she felt,when she noticed she only had meaty stumps left where her legs used to be. The flesh itself was little more than an angry red, cauterized muscle.

Sweetie kept screaming hyperventilating as she shook her head in denial and tried to escape. Her hind hooves hit the glass, but did little than throw her painfully forward, to smack painfully with her head against the opposite glass.

She could see figures outside, bipedal and covered in protective lab gear. One of them moved close to her container and pressed something.

A new taste invaded her senses, and she felt herself calming down, her thoughts clearing. 'Some sort of sedative?' she thought. She realized now that she could still breathe and that despite the ache, she wasn't in real pain anymore.

She felt herself getting tired, so she looked around, trying to take in as much as she could now before she was once more unconscious. The room, as far as she could see, was huge, and had been separated into several levels by platforms which had elevators of some sort that moved creatures around.

There were thousands of other orange-liquid pods, all containing different creatures. Fighting the drowsiness that was slowly becoming overwhelming she turned around. To her left and right were creatures she had never seen before.

Insect-like, and yet not, they had carapaces and teeth and tentacles and fangs and claws and pincers and insectoid wings and bat-like wings as well. They were horrifying, nightmarish creatures… deadly and dangerous like nothing she had ever experienced. She had no doubt that any of them would make a feast out of a pony.

Turning around fully, her eyes widened and she stared up and up at the massive tank behind her, where another creature like the others floated, but it was gigantic. Gargantuan! Just one of its claws would trample a huge chunk of Ponyville. It was heavily damaged and barely held together by exposed muscle under damaged chitin.

The sight of the creature slowly opening a great, yellowish-green glowing eye that locked onto hers was the last thing she saw before sleep took her once more.

"Did you know my sister once fought a manticore in the Everfree Forest? And that Princess Twilight Sparkle levitated an Ursa Minor after putting it to sleep?"

"That's very impressive," Gallus replied, checking his claws. "So what to you intend to do about that thing?"

"What?" Sweetie asked, turning around to find a giant, yellow-green eye, staring at her.

When she woke up, she started breathing fast, disgusted by the feel of the liquid filling her lungs, but she slowly calmed down. For now, she was safe. Whatever that meant.

She didn't know how long she had been there, but she needed to figure out a way to escape. If she could make it home… Twilight could probably do something about her legs… but she needed help.

She bit her lip and closed her eyes, trying not to be distracted by the hungry looks from the other tubes, or the strange creatures that had captured her. She tried to find the trail of the crystal she had followed earlier… but it was gone. Still, she had to try. "Hello? I-is anypony out there? Can you hear me?"

A chittering echoed in the back of her mind as the telepathic signal echoed around the cavern and tried to expand. The creatures in the other tubes seemed sensitive to her magic, while the bipedal creatures did not. The silence continued and Sweetie felt despair rising. "Anypony?"

It was like calling out to an empty world.

She really had lost track of how long she'd been there, drifting in and out of sleep, occasionally using her magic to try to call for help. Without the link provided by Zeratul, she wasn't even sure she was projecting her thoughts at all—that had been a byproduct of his contacting her, somehow opening a part of her mind that she had had no idea was closed to experiences like that.

All she could do was try to recreate the feeling from before, but the only thing she could hear was that annoying chittering sound.

Her musings were interrupted by a new, whirring sound. She glanced up and noticed with alarm that part of the top of the container had opened up, and long mechanical arms with tubes and worse, syringes attached to them were lowering into the liquid of the container. Just as she was about to kick and use her telekinesis, she noticed the familiar, bitter flavor of the sedative kicking in.

Her strength left her just as the first syringe stabbed her mercilessly on the back, and two more were jammed into the stubs of what used to be her legs. The liquid took a new flavor as something else was mixed in, but she couldn't concentrate on that. She couldn't even pass out as the pain shot through her body, blinding her and burning through her veins.

Sweetie twitched, slowly awakening from a dreamless sleep.

Something felt… different.

Sweetie looked down, feeling legs she thought gone… and fought the urge to scream in horror again, as the things growing out of the stumps where her forelegs used to be twitched and moved almost of their own initiative.

They were thin, chitinous things, resembling the appendages of some of the creatures around her. They were too thin, too alien.

"Please!" she shouted, her magic sending out the strongest telepathic signal she could attempt with her limited knowledge. She didn't notice the slight, chittering background to her words as they emanated. "Please! Help me! I'm trapped! They're doing something to me!"

Sweetie sobbed, but nopony would answer. She was truly alone.

"You will never be alone."

Sweetie's head snapped up, eyes wide and looking around. Had she imagined that?

"I come, little zergling."

"Who are you?" Sweetie projected through the mental link, but there was no reply.

Chapter 005

2503, Koprulu Sector █

Sweetie woke up with a start.

"Food! They must feed us!"

"Foolish! We must consume!"

"Eat them! Eat the pain-bringers!"

"The hive must grow! We must feed the hive!

"Crush them!"

"Feed! Feed!"

Shortly after hearing that voice, so distant and yet so… close… in her mind, Sweetie had started to slowly understand that the monsters around her were capable of thought. Even if it seemed single-minded, an obsessive, almost religious belief in feeding and propagating.

Funnily enough, she had been the object of several feeding-frenzies in the minds of the zerg around her, able to hear them constantly hungering and promising to tear into her still-breathing, blood-gushing body and feed on her moist, warm innards.

Well, it hadn't been funny at first.

Then, she had shouted out from her telepathic link. "I'm not your food!" and immediately, that had stopped. They had simply somehow perceived her as one of their own, and the Big Guy behind her—who she had nicknamed "Big Bug", because he was as gentle with her as Big Mac was to others—seemed to be rather protective of her now.

'Not that they don't have a reason…' she thought morosely, looking down at her forelegs. What had started out as simple, thin, icky-looking… almost branch-like chitin appendages had now grown slowly, with much molting as well, into equine-like chitinous legs.

Worse, they were somewhat familiar-looking to her. Equine-like, yes. But… the chitin and the holes on them… it reminded her too much of Chrysalis, although the Queen's legs were well rounded, these… these had serrated spikes all around the holes.

She was now able to control them too, much like her normal legs prior. She could also sense other parts of herself changing, but she was unable to actually see them. Her magic was also getting stronger. With every painful injection, or cut, or infusion into whatever she was floating in… she felt herself getting stronger and angrier.

If she knew how, she was sure she was strong enough to teleport. If she knew how, she felt she was strong enough to rain magical mayhem outside. If she knew how. If only she knew how.

Helping Quantum with the portal was a far, far cry from pulling off that trick herself. Knowing the basic theory of teleportation was not the same as being able to do it. Having seen Starlight and Twilight shoot blasts was not the same as doing it herself.

'Should've learned how to fight. I'm a Crusader, dammit. We should know how to fight! Or cast shields! Or attack spells! If I ever get home… she trailed off, looking down at her legs with a sudden pang of doubt. 'When I get home, I will make sure we get trained or something.'

She felt a mental nudge and turned to face the gigantic Zerg behind her. She was smaller than its eye, but she didn't feel afraid now. Surprisingly the giant was the gentlest of the Zerg in containment, at least with her. The others were frenzied and angry, but this one had really developed some empathy for Sweetie.

"I'm okay, Big Bug… just sad."

The large eye blinked slowly, but she could feel it was less anxious than before.

How much time had passed since she arrived to the lab? She shook her head, warily watching through the liquid and the glass as the bipeds that captured her and were experimenting on her walked about doing things. Terrans. That's what Zeratul had called them.

There was a sense of something happening, however. And that was new. A sort of… anxiety from her fellow zer-prisoners. Their hunger was higher than usual, their aggressiveness was increasing, and worse, the Terrans were noticing.

If the voice had been real—and Sweetie had no reason to doubt it—then they could also sense whoever was coming. But they would alert the Terrans if this kept up. But how to stop them? She wasn't Fluttershy. It's not like she could tell them to be quiet, or put them to sleep…

Sweetie blinked.

"Hush now, quiet it now, it's time to lay your sleepy head," she sang in her mind, opening her mind to the others. "Hush now, quiet now, it's time to go to bed."

Did they even have beds? The song was coming out more melancholic than she intended, bringing memories of happier days with her friends and family. "Hush now, quiet now, close your sleepy eyes."

Slowly, the Zerg around her slowed their frantic movements, and the cries for murder, destruction, crushing, cannibalism and general feeding slowed down. First with those around her immediate prison, then slowly, as is her message was being transmitted beyond the ones around her, the whole cave grew silent.

The Terrans outside—both in lab coats and in armor—turned around in place, confusion evident in their movements. Some ran to their devices, others approached the tubes hesitantly. "Hush now, quiet now, my how time sure flies…"

Sweetie turned around looking at the Zerg as they placidly floated in their containers… all focusing on her.

'Oh ponyfeathers.'

There was a commotion outside of the tube, where she could barely hear loud noises and unknown words. The Terrans in lab coats were all gathering there and were looking at machines, occasionally pointing at Sweetie.

A machine whirred somewhere and soon she felt her tube shudder as it attached to the top. A grinding sound… she looked up to see a section of the top open. She could try and escape a—her thoughts fled when long, mechanical arms sunk into the tube, restraining her, and something else… Sweetie's eyes went wide. A drill! A small drill made its way down to her head.

It started whirring, creating a small current around her and Sweetie shook her head in horror.

"No! NO! Nononono!"

A pair of additional mechanical arms went in, just as the familiar taste of sedative went into the liquid. They restrained her head, but she was too terrified for the sedative to work so quickly this time.

She felt the drill touch her horn.

"No! PLEASE NO!"

The pain shot through her, like a whiplash of burning flames. "IT HURTS! MAKE IT STOP! I'LL NEVER SING AGAIN! JUST STOP! RARITY! HELP ME!"

She couldn't even curl up against the assault, held in place by the mechanical arms as she was. She struggled, and felt something tear from her back, she couldn't see them, but she could feel them. She struck at the drill and the thing was dragged away. She could see it spinning wildly as it fell down, striking the glass.

She glared at one of the arms, and used her new appendage to strike it, watching in satisfaction as the metallic contraption was sheared off, followed soon after by the other arms holding her.

All around the the other zerg had woken up from their short nap and now were violently striking their containers. The Terrans outside were frantically pointing and shouting, but no matter how much sedative, there was no change.

"Well done, my zergling," a familiar voice echoed in Sweetie's mind, stopping her from striking the tank herself. "Now… it's my turn."

'Her turn?' the statement made Sweetie shake her head and get a hold of her overflowing emotions. The pain was still there. Her horn felt like it was about to break off, but now that she had heard the voice again… there was something else… energy was slowly flowing into her, as if her body somehow was reacting to this presence…

The cavern shook, and the zerg around her roared in glee. Sweetie could feel her hearts pounding.

'Hearts?! Why do I have two!?' the thought was fleeting as her attention was driven to what was happening outside. There were flames and explosions, felt and seen through the liquid. She could sense her body reacting to the battle.

Around her, as if infused with new strength and power, Zerg smashed against their containers, heedless of the damage they were doing to themselves, but somehow, now that the owner of the voice was here, able to do so with enough force to crack and break through.

Behind her, Big Bug groaned and… stretched, or pushed, but whatever it did, the tube broke, massive pieces of glass, as thick as her own container smashed to the ground as a veritable tsunami of liquid splashed against her container and rolled over smaller zerg and terrans alike.

"Get out of there, little zergling."

She felt herself infused again with strength. But as angry as she was, the combat outside scared her. Fresh memories of Quantum being torn to pieces, blood splashing from Gallus' shoulder, her legs disappearing in a meaty, splash of blood… all those images blurred across her mind, alongside happier memories… her sister, the princesses, the other crusaders, Gallus' adorable way of being uncomfortable when flirted with, Silver Stream's over-the-top eagerness to please. Apple Bloom's encouragement when she ran out of steam during their adventures. Scootaloo's endless energy to please and more recently just downright impress Rainbow Dash…

"You are not one of them anymore, zergling," the voice interrupted her thoughts, "and what you do now will decide your fate. I will not suffer a cowardly zerg. I will not suffer a zerg that is not prepared to kill, destroy, eat… evolve. I will not break you out of the egg. You have to do it yourself. Or die here."

Sweetie opened her eyes. She didn't even realize until then she had closed them. Her hearts beat faster, her body was tense. Whoever it was, they were right. Was she just going to be another victim? Was all her bravado about learning to fight just wishful thinking?

Or was she going to take action? Outside of the glass the terrans that had caused her so much pain awaited. They had almost killed her. They had torn half her body away. They had cruelly transported her and… done things to her.

They had been about to drill her horn away.

With a growl and a scream, drowned by the liquid down to a muffled gurgle, she kicked with her hind legs and smashed onto the glass facing the terrans below. Her two new appendages, two scythe-like, serrated extensions of her will, slammed into and through the glass, not only cracking it on the point of impact, but penetrating through.

Despite how hard they were, she could still feel the changes around them, as she noticed the liquid starting to drip through. She slammed her holed, chitinous, forelegs against it, again and again, holding herself to the glass with her scythes, then alternating between one and the other, repeatedly striking and breaking through the tube until, with a mighty crack, the thing broke.

Chunks of glass flew out, along with the liquid and Sweetie herself. She landed on a heap, struggling to stand up, and cutting herself on the pieces around her. She saw some of the scientists. Three, terrified looking terrans, staring at her in horror and surprise.

Instincts took over, she dashed from where she had fallen, surprisingly fast, and slammed hooves first onto the chest of the middle scientist. Her two scythes, almost acting on their own, flew forward, slamming through the heads of the other two with no problem, the sound similar to when she had dropped a watermelon by accident.

The middle scientist was screaming something in a language she did not understand. It was shaking its head trying to push her off. "YOU DIDN'T STOP WHEN I WAS BEGGING!" she screeched through her telepathic link, slamming the thoughts and their intent into the terran's mind. "YOU DIDN'T STOP WHEN I WAS CRYING FOR MY SISTER! YOU DIDN'T STOP WHEN I HURT!" She snarled, and felt… something pushing out from behind her gums on bot sides of her mouth.

She saw them extend past her muzzle. Two pincers, pale white and chitinous. And of course. Serrated.

"I begged you!" she snarled as she dove on, tearing at the man's chest with her pincers, her scythes releasing the dead scientists to slam into this one's shoulders pegging him in place. "I begged you to stop! I had a family! I had friends!" she tore through bone, snapping it as if it were twigs, warm blood splattering about and tasting metallic in her tongue. "I was going to go back! I was going to hug my sister and tell her I was okay! Look what you did! Look what you turned me into! I can never go back!"

She felt her pincers grab something still moving weakly and with a shrill growl, she tore it out, holding the terran's heart in her pincers, just above her head.

She crushed it and crumpled on top of the body, shaking and fighting tears. "I can never go back."

Sweetie took a deep breath and stepped off the carcass, just noticing that all was silent around her. She looked up, now noticing all the Zerg… and there were a lot of them, more than she had originally sensed in the lab.

They were quiet, surrounding her on all available surfaces of the cavern. Witnessing as she had killed and carved and raved and cried.

"A zerg does not shy away from eating, or killing."

Sweetie turned around to face the owner of the voice. She looked… almost terran. Almost. She was tall, powerful… Sweetie knew that she should serve her, on some instinctual, visceral level. She knew this zerg… this Queen… was hers to follow.

Sweetie flattened her ears and lowered her head in deference. "I was just a pony before this. I had friends. And a family."

She felt razor-sharp claws gently stroke her mane. "You are zerg now. Or becoming zerg. I do not know yet what experiments these terrans were doing, but they are incomplete. And that is good, because I can give you something they would take away… purpose. Free will to follow me."

There was a pause.

"Will you follow me?"

Sweetie felt like there was a force holding her back. Like a rope around her heart. She saw Rarity and Twilight. Her mom. Her dad. The crusaders. She felt, for a fleeting second, Gallus' wing around her shoulders, like when he had comforted her not so long ago.

She looked down at her chitin legs; her scythes. A piece of glass nearby revealed that her two pincers made it look like she was grinning savagely. Her teeth were now fangs. Her mane… it was segmented, much like the Queen's.

That was not Sweetie Belle. Not the one they had known.

She extended her hoof to her Queen, who took it and helped her up. And in that movement, she could feel the rope of memories and emotions holding her back… snap.

Chapter 006

2503, Koprulu Sector █

After that first kill, Sweetie had joined the rest of the zerg eliminating the rest of the Terrans. Scientists and soldiers had fallen to her scythes with equal ease, surprising even her as she tore through metal like it was paper.

It was bittersweet.

On the one hoof, she felt she was getting her well deserved revenge, but with each death, each resolution to bite and feed, she felt like her old self was also torn. Instinctual reactions fought mercilessly inside of her as well.

The pony was repulsed, wanted to flee the carnage. The zerg was hungry and wanted more. By accepting Kerrigan, some of that fight had died within her, and she didn't hesitate in her attacks, even though her mind struggled to keep up with the almost mindless need to kill.

"Many fall to the infestation," she heard Kerrigan's voice in her mind say, "they abandon all pretense of true sapience, simply content in killing and feeding. No different than the most basic of zergs, unable to recognize former friends or family."

Sweetie didn't stop galloping as she twisted to the side, evading the shots from a pair of soldiers, she was on the wall, her hooves sinking into the wall as surely as if she had hooks on the base of her hooves. She never hesitated, stepping on the wall with as much confidence as if she were galloping on the floor, and launched herself like a crazy cat from there, tearing with her scythes.

"But sometimes, once every million zerg, an infestation gives breed to new… individuals. New minds to join the swarm. Not too long ago I would have destroyed such minds, and with the coming fate of the universe, I had little interest in shortening my time here. But should I perish I want the swarm to continue, and thus I changed my mind. And I want individuals. I want those who could hold a conversation. Plan. Think ahead. Have vision and hope."

The armor tore, exposing flesh underneath. Sweetie dove in, tearing at it with her pincers, which pushed bloody flesh into her mouth.

"Will you be one of them, I wonder? Or are you going to be just another mindless drone?"

Sweetie stopped. The voice was gone. The Queen was still here, she could feel it. She chittered, her pincers shaking slightly, her scythes twitching. The smell of blood, the sound of an exposed beating heart and the gurgling hiss of blood-filled lungs reached her ears and called her to feast just like the others.

But she stood still. Leaning slightly, then back, her whole body tense. A part of her distantly understood the words… the words… of the Queen. Sweetie blinked. Words. Not impulses. An invitation, not an order.

A chance to define who she was. Who she would be. Not just what.

Hadn't she wanted that back home?

Another slight shiver shook her body, her chittering dying as things slowly came into focus. Back home she had wanted to be part of something bigger. She wanted a purpose beyond just finding one for others. Back home.

With Rarity. With Gallus. With Apple Bloom and Scootaloo and the others. The home she could never return to.

She looked up from the body, her eyes searching the destroyed premises until they settled on Kerrigan, who turned around to regard her silently.

Slowly, Sweetie pushed herself away from the bodies, staggering as she tried to make sense of things. But she stubbornly put one hoof in front of the other as she headed over to the Queen of Blades.

The base had been completely overrun by Zerg by the time Sweetie had gathered her wits enough to do more than follow Kerrigan around as the incredibly powerful zerg investigated the site. Around them, occasional screams and groans echoed, usually accompanied or followed by the squelching sound of many mouths tearing into muscle and sinew.

"Do you understand anything that was being done here, zergling?" Kerrigan asked, glancing at what remained of a computer.

"My name is Sweetie Belle."

Kerrigan stopped, but didn't turn around. Despite not being able to see her face, Sweetie immediately regretted speaking up. On an instinctual level she knew she was in danger for that act of defiance from her Queen, but Rarity had said that on those occasions, with certain ponies, it was better to simply continue. "No. I'm not sure," she offered in a low, apologetic tone. "They were obviously experimenting on us, but the purpose?" she shook her head. "I don't know, my Queen."

Still unmoving, Kerrigan spoke. "How is it that you were captured? Perhaps we can get a clue out of that."

"We… arrived here by accident," Sweetie said. "There was another unicorn with me—"

"Unicorn?" the question was just slightly incredulous. Kerrigan turned to look at her. "Is that what you call yourselves?"

"Our specific kind yes, my species is simply referred to as ponies. The main types are unicorns, pegasi and earth ponies."

Her Queen nodded. "Interesting. The terran word for you matches your species. They were creatures of magic." She studied Sweetie intently. "Perhaps that is why you have such a powerful psych presence."

"We do call it magic where I'm from, my Queen, but I did not know how to reach out telepathically until I arrived here and I was taught by accident."

Kerrigan's lips twitched, but she turned away quickly. "You seem to have a gift for it, if that's the case. You will serve me well before the end."

"I will, my Queen," Sweetie replied obediently, wondering at her Queens melancholy.

"Very well, Sweetie... " Kerrigan said, almost uncomfortably, as if she had sensed Sweetie's unease. "Follow me."

The order was redundant, and they both knew it. But it seemed to Sweetie that Kerrigan was somewhat… happy to talk to her for some reason. They climbed and jumped and in Sweetie's case crawled their way up the crumbled metal shaft that remained of what had been the entrance to the lab.

There was a black, gooey substance slowly spreading from several organic-looking holes that had somehow been forced through the metallic walls of the base. The moment her hooves touched it, she felt invigorated and stronger. The wariness from her first kill and feeding faded completely, and soon she was walking behind her Queen with renewed confidence.

The metal slowly was enveloped completely, the closer the moved to the exit and Sweetie was fascinated with the sheer amount of life and energy that came with the swarm. Everything was a flurry of motion, and she could see Big Bug stomping off to join other zerg already.

Outside of the lab, for the first time in what could have been days, weeks or even months—she wasn't sure, time in there was a blur—she marveled at the efficiency and growth of the zerg swarm. They were unstoppable. She felt a thrill, and consternation.

She had been a pony just… hours ago. Her identity, her past, her future at the time, all hinged on her being a pony. Now, thinking of herself as a Zerg came naturally, there was no hesitation, and if she hadn't caught herself in the moment, she wouldn't have even questioned it.

"It is disorienting, at first, even after a full transformation, memories, feelings and… attachments remain," Kerrigan said quietly. "Even with the drive to expand, to fulfill the purpose of the swarm... " she shook her head.

Sweetie looked up in surprise at Kerrigan, who kept looking ahead as she walked… or was that a saunter?

"Do… all zerg feel like this?"

"No," Kerrigan replied as they passed a gaping maw in the ground from where a really tall, thin, segmented proboscis emerged high into the sky, ending with a sort of hollowed out, very sharp tip. The tentacle-like extension waved in the air slowly, threatening. "Not every zerg is the result of an infestation, like you or I. They have been created with explicit purpose. We deal with a different level of authority, duty and purpose."

Thousands of zergs moved in tight groups over whole areas and new mounds of flesh-like, spiked domes would shiver as they spread the black goo, only to die off as another emerged further away.

Above them, giant, tick like creatures that hovered over the swarm. Immediately she felt a connection from them, and she knew instinctively what the others were to do. That the manta-like creatures flying slowly above were Brood Lords, that the rolling, glowing ones were banelings. A wealth of information and purpose flooded through her, and she could only anticipate now what part of this bigger whole she was going to be.

"In a matter of days this entire world will belong to the swarm, and to the swarm alone," Kerrigan said as she and Sweetie entered the mouth of the biggest thing Sweetie had ever seen. And even though she was essentially being swallowed whole, the creature felt… welcoming.

They went further into it, Sweetie discovering that not only was it as big as a city, but also capable of functioning as one. There were tunnels made of pulsating, warm, humid flesh, feeling so comfortable to her, that she could have just cuddled up to the wall and slept.

There were halls, big, fleshy rooms, chitinous areas where other zerg nested. The creature was incredible. Mind-boggling, and even more impressive, it felt almost maternal to Sweetie. The place oozed empathy to her, it shimmered with the light of life and growth in ways she had never seen even in Sweet Apple Acres or any earth pony farm.

Fangs, claws, scythes, rows of serrated teeth, chitinous, barbed and spiked shells, glowing eyes… and an indescribable desire to live. To grow. To become more. Sweetie wanted this. She had wanted this since before she had known she did.

"The swarm embraces you, and you welcome it," Kerrigan said, glancing at the unicorn. "I can feel your devotion and loyalty already." She stopped turning to gently run a claw through Sweetie's purple and pink segmented hair, so much like her own tentacles. Sweetie leaned into the hand, and Kerrigan seemed almost… comforted for a second before she straightened up and continued.

She led Sweetie into the depths of the giant creature, which she identified as Leviathan, sensing the unicorn-turned-zerg's lingering question. Their journey finally ended in a cavernous, fleshy room within the leviathan, full of simmering pools of glowing ooze and unidentifiable liquids. It was humid, and very warm, as if Sweetie was in the middle of a rainforest.

"It's kind of beautiful," Sweetie said, the hum of a distant, massive heartbeat just seeming to accentuate the alien nature of this somewhat now-familiar-feeling place. A small smile played in Kerrigan's lips, her golden, glowing eyes flashing as she studied the area.

"Abathur," she half-called, half-stated.

Sweetie watched placidly as the goo-like lake's surface slurped to reveal a long, maggot-like creature with a bulgy, segmented back and head that contained several pulsating green sacs full of green liquid. It's face was much smaller, with four green, glowing eyes that looked at her hungrily as its long, vertical mouth opened and closed with squelching noises.

"My Queen, what do you bring to me?"

Sweetie would have normally felt disgusted by this creature, but for some reason, the sight of it didn't repulse her. It seemed… normal. The thought of ponies, however, made her feel uneasy. Was she supposed to consider them squishy? Because she remembered them squishy.

"This is my new pet. I want you to finish her transformation into the swarm."

Abathur's voice, despite being telepathic, was accompanied by wet sounds produced by his salivating maw as he spoke. "As you wish my, Queen."

"And Abathur?" Kerrigan asked, just as she turned away, "I want her personality and mental capacity intact."

If Abathur found the request odd, he didn't react. "It will be so, my queen."

The pair watched Kerrigan leave before Abathur loomed over Sweetie, extending his long thin arms to touch her mane and horn. "Interesting! I will make you better! I will infuse you with Zerg strains that will make you more powerful! Dangerous!"

"But you won't make me look much different, right?" Sweetie asked. "I really don't want to turn ugly… no offense."

Abathur paused, clearly perplexed. "There is only beauty in evolution!"

"Yes, but I really want to evolve as much as possible like a pony… the Queen was Terran before, right? She still looks a bit like that—"

"The Queen chose her own shape!" Abathur hissed. "And it is perfect! It can only be made more perfect if she lets me!"

'But wasn't the definition of perfect—' Sweetie shook her head. "Well, I want to choose my form too!"

"You, zerling, are not the Queen! You will take whatever form I want to shape you in, and like it! All that is required of me is that you—" Abathur's slurping voice wavered.

Sweetie had sat down, chitinous pony ears pressed back, shoulders, scythes and even her pincers drooping. She was looking at him with deep, soulful, shimmering, borderline-crying eyes, begging silently for his understanding.

He had never seen a zerg do this.

"W-what is this form of attack!?" Abathur demanded, voice wavering at the end when Sweetie cringed at his tone. "This attack is not going to—"

"Please?"

Abathur stood silent for a few moments, body trembling with an inner debate about how to respond to this unexpected, undoubtedly psychic, attack. He chittered nonsensically for a minute. "This attack of yours relies not only psychically on your powers, but it also depends on the physical appearance."

"Pleeease?"

If Zerg could groan, he would have the moment she twitched her ears. He didn't even have the words to describe the chemical reaction her appearance, demeanor and possibly powers invoked within him.

"Fine."

Sweetie smiled, and it was such a smile of pure bliss that Abathur could do nothing but turn around and motion with his claw at a nearby pod. "In there, zergling. I shall let you retain your… form. As long as it is a proper Zerg shape!"

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Sweetie chittered as she skipped to the pod, making Abathur twitch uncontrollably.

"You will stop the use of your attack right now!" he ordered.

"What attack?" Sweetie blinked innocently, tilting her head to the side.

"Arrgh!" With a swipe of his claw, an appendage emerged from the goop and carefully dragged Sweetie into the pod. She slowly fell asleep, barely visible through the opaque green substance inside.

Free of the sight of her, Abathur then proceeded to analyze her strain and to inject more of his own. He twirled his smaller claws, looking deep into what made this new zergling special, and his mind wondered at the Queens designs for her new servant.

The creature was supposed to keep her personality and ability to be independent, much like a Broodmother. As such, her armor would need to thicken, and her ability to care for the swarm and help it grow expanded.

In such a small frame.

Abathur gurgled excitedly. He loved challenges.

Chapter 007

2504, Koprulu Sector, Corsaire 2 █

"I'm telling you old Warfield is getting paranoid, Biggs," one marine said to his counterpart, as they walked the perimeter of their base and crested the small hill overlooking their base. The pair stopped for a moment to watch the SCVs mining away for resources, and the slow buildup of their bunkers. "He might be a legend, but the man's retired here to Corsair 2 for a reason."

"You might say that, but Warfield's been doing a really dangerous job for a long time," Biggs countered. "'sides, I heard that Raynor was spotted recently. Something's going on in Mar Sara, new's all over the place with reports."

"That sucks, I asked my girl back in Backwater if she'd be interested in formalizing things, you know, make a couple of little marine's of my own."

"Man, you barely even know her."

"I know but… it's not like I know many other girls that would date a military guy like me, you know? They usually aim for higher ranks. With my luck she'll hook up with one of Raynor's pirates."

"Heh, I wouldn't worry too much, Wedge, Raynor's raiders don't go near civilians during their raids, it's us marines you should be worried about."

"Yeah, well, the Emperor has made it very clear what type of man Raynor is, so I'm not going to make any bets on what he'll do or not. When I get back there, then I'll see for myself."

Biggs stopped, tapping his friend on the shoulder to stop as well. "I think I saw something next to the refinery."

The pair turned to look at the building, trying to discern what had caught his attention. After a moment, the other one simply shrugged. "I don't see anything."

"What do you think you saw, mister?"

Biggs turned around, looking at the barren area around them. "Uh, Wedge, did you just hear a little girl?"

"I did but—" Wedge stopped when he noticed the two sharp, blade-like tips protruding from the side of his rifle. He looked down at them stupidly before they were suddenly and violently wrenched to different sides, splitting his weapon into pieces.

Biggs stared in horror at the creature that shimmered into view. It was adorable, for all the chitin, fangs, spikes, insectile wings and blood. "Wh-a—"

The creature giggled, batting away the gun he had tried to bring up. He stared, terrified, as a swarm of zerg emerged from the caverns and from holes in the ground already within the factory.

"What the hell are you?!" the terran asked.

"I'm Sweetie Belle!" the creature said, circling around them. "Nice to meet you! And you're Biggs and Wedge? I was listening to your conversation, sorry, didn't mean to spy on you. Congratulations on getting married, by the way!"

"Uh…" Wedge blinked stupidly under his helmet. "Thanks?"

"You're welcome! I hope it works out, provided she manages to survive long enough to escape!"

"Yeah…" Wedge looked around for help. Biggs was clearly paralyzed with fear. No help from there. "So, uh, wh-what are you doing here?"

"Oh! We're taking over!" Sweetie said with a smile that included pearly white teeth and pearly white pincers, clicking excitedly. "You see, this world is now property of us zerg and well… unfortunately we don't like to share." She gave an apologetic shrug. "I have tried to convince the others to be a bit more harmonious and get along, but well, the Queen doesn't seem to like the idea as much as I do… not that I have fond memories of terrans… you guys experimented on me and tortured me for over a week, after all, but my sister always said to give others a second chance and I figured since I'm getting this world anyway, what harm could it do?"

Both terrans swallowed, painfully aware of the thousands of zerg simply ignoring them as they rushed and overwhelmed the post.

"Calling all units!" Warfield's voice came on the radio, "We've fortified ourselves in the factory in the southernmost section of town. We have civilian airships incoming to pick us up, but we must hold the line for another twenty minutes!"

Wedge looked at Biggs, who gave him a helpless shrug before both looked down at Sweetie.

"Aww, why not?" Sweetie said cheerfully, her wings rustling, just as one of the barracks collapsed, the flames incinerating everyone that hadn't made it out and all the marines were slaughtered by zerglings and ultralisks. "Come on, I'll walk you there."

"Uh… General, this is Marine 155234. 155235 and I are on our way."

"Hurry up soldier, and pick up reinforcements if possible. May the fates be with you."

The trio started walking down away from the base, and towards the town, surrounded at all times by zerglings and other zerg monstrosities. It took them some time, and Biggs and Wedge stayed on edge, expecting to be brutally killed by the zerg at all times, given the bodies and losses both sides should be suffering, but Sweetie Belle seemed to be in a good mood. It took them about ten minutes to reach the edge of the city itself at their leisure pace, and they passed what was left of a couple of buildings, collapsed on the side and bodies strewn about before Sweetie made any comments.

"This is my first time seeing a Terran town!" Sweetie said, drawing their attention away from the zerg violently ripping things apart. "It reminds me a lot of my own world…. well, the cities at least, the houses back home were a lot less symmetrical."

Biggs looked at Wedge, giving him a signal that meant: "Should we run?"

Wedge considered the hungry-looking zerg around them and shook his head. For whatever reason, this chatty little monster was keeping them alive, and he hoped to keep it that way for some time.

"...I mean, who builds a house exterior out of candy, right? But that's the Cakes for you, making a statement about their lives. We had a lot less bodies, of course," she added looking at the veritable pile of dead civilians, zerg and soldiers that littered the street.

Considering this was the most direct way to the factories, it made sense that Warfield would have organized a retreat down the main street, taking as many zergs down as they could.

"You uh… sound like you miss home."

"The swarm is home," Sweetie replied instantly and firmly without looking at them. It didn't take long for her scythes to lower a little. "But I miss a lot of things."

A scream of horror interrupted them. One of the houses had been torn by a large ultralisk, who had demolished one of the walls, exposing a pair of young girls, who were huddled away from it. Biggs and Wedge looked away as the creature's large scythes came down… then looked back when they heard the clash and frustrated roar.

In the few seconds between the scream and the attack, Sweetie had somehow placed herself between the ultralisk and the children, her own scythes holding back the bigger ones with no effort.

For a moment, they thought the ultralisk would attack again, but after locking eyes with Sweetie, it gave what they could only describe as an amused snort before slithering away to casually destroy another—thankfully empty—building.

The younger of the girls stared in horror at Sweetie, who turned to look at her and tilted her head. "Hello!"

The girl didn't dare move, speak, greet or even scream, instead staring in complete horror at the strange zerg, and didn't react until Biggs and Wedge arrived, careful not to step too close to any zerg around them.

"Hey, are you okay?" Wedge asked, aware of how stupid the question was. "I mean, are you hurt?"

"N-no…" the girl said, sniffling. "But my sister…"

"Move."

Sweetie stepped forth, pushing the girl gently away with the non-sharp side of her scythe, and looked at the injured girl on the floor. Biggs only had a second to pick up the little girl before she tried and attack Sweetie to defend her sister.

"This doesn't look good," Sweetie said, grimacing. "Although the damage seems to be from the building collapsing around you, rather than my zergs… so she's not poisoned at least." She glanced at them. "Biggs, you carry her sister, Wedge," she ordered as her jagged horn lit up with energy, "I hope that you're strong enough to carry this one all the way to the factory."

"I-" Wedge stared as the unconscious girl was levitated from the floor and floated over to him. Was this creature half-Protoss? "Uh, yes, it has servos inside, it can handle her weight, no problem." Fact was, he couldn't even feel the weight at all.

"Good, bring her along."

The group started walking away. By now, there was no combat in that area, just scurrying zerglings and the occasional collapsing building. Sweetie Belle went back to her usual excited look, but Wedge noticed she was not as chatty anymore.

General Warfield took shots from the upper floor of the factory at the mass of Zerg that kept approaching their slowly-retreating marines. There were so few of their boys left though, and he had a feeling that they were just getting herded for the butchery.

"Damn, I wish I had my armor on," he muttered. He narrowed his eyes as the mass of Zerg stopped advancing. "Stop firing! Save the ammo, retreat behind the walls and fortify them! We need to hold on until we get picked up!"

"Roger that, sir!"

He half expected the zerg to rush them when they retreated, but surprisingly, the zerg remained where they had been left behind.

This was a very odd behaviour and one that made him nervous, as there was only one zerg he knew about that would do this kind of thing, and if Kerrigan was here, then his suspicions about being herded were right on the mark… and they wouldn't last long. Not with these weapons, and certainly not in the defensive.

It was then he noticed something and used his rifle to focus on what should be impossible. "What the actual fu—" his musing were interrupted by the beeping of a communicator. He looked down and read the message.

They weren't coming.

"Dammit…"

"Sir?" a marine asked, voice cracking, "what do we do?"

Warfield was torn. The zerg had parted, opening a way for another of their kind, who was being followed by two marines holding two civilians. He had never seen that kind of Zerg before. Had it somehow controlled them?

Either way, he had to act.

"We stay put. Make sure you give them a fight if they start advancing again." He started walking towards the zerg.

"But sir, what about our rides out?"

Warfield gritted his teeth, not turning to face the multitude behind them. "We need to hold on until they come, son."

The walk to where the zerg were was little more than a block, but it felt like miles. Every instinct in his body was telling him to shoot, or run or take them with him. Once he was halfway there, the curious group started moving forward until he was separated from the monster and its hostages by little more than a few meters.

"Hello!" the little monstrosity said. Well, little in the sense that it was shorter than him, but it did get at least to his chest in height ignoring the horn. "I'm Sweetie Belle! Are you in General Warfield?"

He gritted his teeth again and glared at the marines, who shifted uncomfortably. There was no point in denying it, even if they at least showed some contriteness at revealing his identity to them.

"Oh, don't get angry at them," the Sweetie Belle creature said, drawing back his attention. The fact that she could talk to him, in what he recognized an echoing similarity to the way Protoss communicated, and the fact that she was clearly in command of the zerg here—from zergling to mutalisk—made her a very real monster. This was a Queen, of a kind he had never seen before. Just like Kerrigan.

"I overheard them," she continued, either not reading his mind like the Queen of Blades would or not caring. "So they didn't tell me anything I didn't know! So when I heard you call saying you were getting out of here, I thought I'd walk them over!"

Warfield looked from her to the terrified girl, to the unconscious one. "You know damn well we're not. Not with your mutalisks scaring them off!" His voice was harsh, but he didn't shout. He didn't want the people behind him to overhear him by accident, even as far as he was.

The creature blinked. "Oh?" her tentacle-like hair twitched, as if it had a mind of its own. Then she tapped a hoof to her chin. "I saw your ships, why don't you take those?"

Warfield almost laughed, then motioned at the veritable barrier of Zerg behind her.

She managed to look sheepish. "Oh."

A few hours later, the last of the civilian ships had left, and Sweetie stood atop one of the observations decks, watching the world that now belonged to the swarm.

"Sweetie Belle."

"My Queen," Sweetie said, knowing her voice would be heard. "I have successfully captured Corsair 2. The planet belongs to the swarm."

"I am pleased. But you let several thousand terrans escape unimpeded."

"Oh," Sweetie chuckled. "You heard."

"I did. Abathur informed me of this."

"That snitch!"

"Abathur serves me, just as you do. Things will end soon, Sweetie, why would you grant them this mercy?"

Sweetie took a deep breath, considering her reply. "Because it was the right thing to do."

"They would have eliminated you if they could."

"My Queen… they were leaving, they weren't fighting to stay, they were fighting to leave. Less of our swarm died this way—"

"And more of them lived! More for that monster, Mensk to send to attack us!"

"My Queen… they were broken… and there were civilians."

"I see I still have much to teach you. There are no such things as civilians in this war, Sweetie Belle. Do you understand?"

Sweetie cringed. "Yes, my Queen."

"Return to the Leviathan, I am almost done here in Mar Sara."

"Yes, my Queen."

Sweetie waited, but there was no further communication. One of her zerglings buzzed next to her, and she smiled, patting its head.

She had just conquered a world. And it was just the beginning.

Chapter 008

2504, Koprulu Sector, Hyperion █

The large screen in the engineering bay lit up and most of the mechanics and engineers stopped what they were doing to look at it.

The logo for UNN spiraled on it for a few seconds before it faded onto the news anchor's desk, showing a blonde man with a mustache in a red suit. He smiled a dazzling smile at the camera. Several images of blasts and blurry creatures filled the small screen behind him as he started speaking.

"Hello, I am your host, Donny Vermillion, with the latest news. Reports are still coming in from the various worlds on the edge of Dominion space. This new incursion by the Zerg seems to have caught many planets by surprise, and we are still waiting for additional information.

"Our very own Kate Lockwell is on site in one of the many evacuation ships that have arrived into the safe space within the Dominion. Kate? I image everyone is terrified of this new random attack, on top of Raynor's terrorist maneuvering?"

The screens behind him shifted to the picture of an attractive young woman with an intense look on her face, before the screen grew up to show her standing next to several civilians.

"Hello Donny, the people I have spoken to are understandably shaken by the appearance of the Zerg, the death of so many neighbors and families, and the loss of their homes. This Zerg invasion is as brutal as you can imagine, but not all seems hopeless. While most of the planets attacked this time incurred losses counting in the millions, we do have reports that in at least one world, a large group of civilians were apparently spared by the Zerg and allowed to leave."

In a small screen appearing to the top left, Vermillion's face scrunched in confusion. "Surely there is more to it."

"We do know that retired General Horace Warfield was on site, and he reported that one zerg—"

"And there you have it folks," Vermillion interrupted, the screen going back to him. "Dominion General Warfield saved the civilians of the planet he was in. Unfortunately, that did not prevent the zerg or Raynor from taking advantage of other, less lucky worlds. We will be back, with more news."

There was a lot of muttering from the people in the room, until the boss cranked up the volume from his speaker.

"Alright everyone," Rory Swann called out to the engineers, "we need to get this shit together! Just got word from Horner that we're on a pick up mission to Mar Sara! You know what that means!

"The boss is coming back!" one of the the engineers cheered, echoed by several others.

"That's right! We're getting the cowboy back! So let's get started on getting them upgrades ready. I'm bettin' Raynor's equipment hasn't seen a mechanic in four years!"

There was plenty of good-natured chuckles to that, and Swann's eyes scanned the room quickly, noticing their newest addition. "Hey kid, you've ever seen a Zerg Swarm before? Why don't you take a break and join Matt on the bridge? It's a sight."

"I don't know sir, you might need—"

"Bah, we can handle this. Go over. I'm sure Stockmann is already there and he'll need a bodyguard to stop him from breaking something important."

"Fine."

Swann snorted, looking back to the rest of his crew. "Kids these days."

2504, Koprulu Sector, Mar Sara █

Sweetie stood on one of the outcrops overlooking the well-defended base she was supposed to take over. Somewhere in there was a device her queen wanted, and it was Sweetie's job to get it.

Unfortunately, these terrans were much better prepared than the ones from before. Their base had a solid perimeter, enhanced by a precipice which created natural barrier, and they had built several bunkers right on their side of the bridges, cutting off most of her swarm's overwhelming power and creating choke points that would allow them a much stiffer resistance.

Sweetie made a mental note. She needed to get some more mutalisks in there, but her troops were being unusually slow getting to this side of the planet.

The terrans also had turrets, and way too many soldiers spread around for the initial groups of zerg she had come with to make a quick job of it. Izsha had said it was mostly a civilian planet with little to no Terran army presence... but these guys were tough! It was clear that whoever was in charge had been anticipating combat sometime soon. It was too early for the Dominion to have sent troops here, so it had to be a local warlord or something.

Sadly, this wasn't a battle she could win with just numbers, quite yet. She sent a host of zerglings to test the Western bridge, watching as they crossed and started attacking the bunker, but they were predictably decimated before much damage could be done to the terran structure, and it didn't take long for the terrans to send one of their construction vehicles to go and fix it.

Until more zerg were sent, she had to keep them occupied.

She tuned her senses, using her magic to try and hijack the radio signals, just like Kerrigan had shown her.

"...come on boys, let's help them out!"

She got a hint of a voice, and turned to look down at a group of terrans that ran out of their encampment, shooting her zergs on the way to rescue a smaller group that was just about to be overwhelmed.

A part of her was confused. But another understood all too well, and once the realization came to her, she grinned. "Oh, if this is how you want to play, Terran, then that's the game!" she said, giggling.

She let her mind into the zerg swarm, quickly sending more zergs and hydralisks to create distractions at the base. She moved quickly, skittering with all of her speed and assisted by bursts of energy and her wings to where she would be needed next.

James Raynor smirked as the newly added troops joined his forces. Only a few more minutes to go. Even if he wouldn't admit it to the others (especially not Tychus), he had missed the feel of his armor, the sound of servos and stumping whenever he ran, the additional strength, and yes, hunting down Zerg.

He let the new troops go ahead, following at a more sedate pace. The other bridge was under Tychus' supervision, and whatever his friend wanted to pretend to be, he was not the type of idiot that would let the zerg overrun him. He passed the bunker they had built close to the bridge itself, his smirk turning into a grimace when he noticed the acid and claw marks on the walls.

Still, his voice didn't falter as he added some energy to it, "Keep fixin' those bunkers, boys! Medics! Take a quick look at the gang I just brought home. Make sure they're ready for what's comin'. Got a feelin' that we don't have much time before our friends pay us another visit."

He tried to focus on the here and now, forcing his mind to analyze the setup he had to try and control the next wave of zerg, but his imagination wasn't going to let him go that easy, apparently. Even as he directed his troops, and ordered things built or reinforced, his thoughts kept spiraling away from his current situation and into the reasons behind the sudden attack.

'Why the zerg? Why now? Is Sarah behind this? And if so, again, why now?'

The sound of salvo made him grimace, just as a communication window opened in his visor, showing the disgustingly smug face of his good friend, Tychus. "Damn, Jimmy, these zerg friends of yours really don't like giving up."

"I told you Tychus, it ain't as easy as you thought it would be."

"Damn right."

"You need any help?" Raynor could hear the screams of dying zerg from the communicator.

"Nah." Tychus' voice was nonchalant. "I've got this. Them critters are tough, but I'm tougher."

"Make sure you don't let that tough head of yours get too inflated. If you need help, you ask, got it?"

"Aww Jimmy, I didn't know you cared."

"I don't, but we need the cash and, unfortunately, you're our contact. So, do us both a favor and stay in one piece, would you?" Raynor replied, unable to hide the mirth in his voice.

"Roger that, Jimmy."

Trusting his friend to hold his side of the base, Raynor turned his eyes to the Western Bridge, where another small swarm of zerg was now advancing.

There was something different.

The way these zerg were moving was not normal. They were staying just within range to draw attention, but they weren't swarming the bridge like before.

His eyes narrowed. "What the hell are you bugs planning now?"

It didn't take long for the turrets to kick in, drawing his attention, but just as he looked that way, the swarm next to the bridge attacked en masse, led by something he had never seen before. Almost horse-like, except for the wings and scythes, this new zerg moved incredibly fast and with a lot more agility than the zerglings.

It was past the barracks in seconds, its scythes literally bisecting a marine that tried shooting it instead of running or dodging. His troops didn't have time to follow the strange zerg, as the swarm was immediately on them, and they were occupied.

"Crap." Raynor started running towards the new zerg, which was heading towards the turrets. "We need reinforcements on the West Bridge! There's a new type of zerg with them!"

"Stay away from that!" he shouted, shooting at the agile zerg, trying to land a hit. And hit he did. Just as the creature reared back to strike at the turret, his gun blew one of its scythes off at the joint, making it scream in pain and turn to face him, a glare on its otherwise cute face.

"That hurt, you meanie!"

Raynor hesitated for a moment, and the next he was rolling out of the way, trying desperately to avoid the wild single-scythe stabs of the creature. "What the hell?!"

"Why don't you surrender?" the creature shouted. "You stupid terrans have to make everything so difficult, don't you?"

'It speaks!' he thought. "This is a bad sign. Who are you?" he asked, slowly getting up, weapon ready. His visor reported that troops were coming. "What do you want? Are you behind the zerg attacks?"

The creature snorted. "I'm Sweetie Belle, and I'm following the Queen's orders." She tilted her head. "You're the guy that went to rescue the other terrans."

"Jim Raynor." He narrowed his eyes. "So you said Kerrigan sent you?"

"You really can't win," Sweetie replied, "so why don't you just give up? I'll let you guys leave."

Jim snorted, carefully stepping aside, with the zerg imitating his moves in the opposite direction. "As if, Sweetie. We both know this can only end one way, and it's with one of us dead."

"It really doesn't have to," Sweetie said as the scythe that Raynor had blown off slowly regenerated right in front of his eyes. "Give me the alien device, and I promise you all can leave the planet."

Raynor's smile didn't fade under his helmet, but his eyes became colder. "If you want it, then it means it's definitely not something I want you to have."

"Oh, come on!" Sweetie whined.

"Sorry, darling, but you can't have it."

The Sweetie creature stopped, eyes wide. "My sister used to say that…" she whispered, before she shook her head. Then she jumped to the side, far and up, her legs slicing into the metal of the side of a building and holding it there and away from the smoking crater where she had been standing just seconds before.

"Well, well, Jimmy, still a hit with the ladies, eh?"

"Tychus," Raynor grunted with a nod. "Took you long enough."

"And I brought the cavalry."

"We're here, sir," Matt's voice came on the radio. "Prepare for evacuation."

The trio looked up as a huge ship came in, shooting at all the zerg in the ground. Not wasting a second, Raynor and Tychus shot at Sweetie, but she had raised a shield of some sort.

"Gah! Why can't we solve things peacefully!" she shouted, running and skittering and dodging bullets.

"Try not killing everyone on sight!"

"You shot first!"

"Why are we talking with a Zerg?!"

Sweetie's shield withstood several shots before it finally fizzled out and she landed in a ready position across from them. But it was too late, the terran constructs had begun flying away, taking with them the alien artifact.

"Oh, horseapples."

"Better luck next time, Sweetie." Raynor said, retreating to get into one of the dropships.

"Oh, you better believe it!" she shouted, not bothering to chase them.

She sighed. The Queen would not be happy.

Chapter 009

2504, Koprulu Sector, Hyperion █

The whole world came back in a sudden, jarring rush as the Hyperion jumped out of warp. The crew immediately started running diagnostics and checking in with other areas of the ship.

Raynor, however was already stalking to the holographic display in the room. "What the hell happened?" he asked, standing next to Matt. "We ain't seen the zerg in years. Why attack Mar Sara now?"

"It's not just Mar Sara," Matt said, pressing a couple of buttons. Several displays came up, showing planets being evacuated and entire cities burning. "You need to see this." They watched the several news in silence as the full devastation of the zerg attack slowly dawned on them. The loss of life was staggering.

"It is confirmed, the Queen of Blades is leading the attack..."

Raynor fell down on the chair, his hand rubbing his forehead. "So she was telling the truth."

"Who?" Matt asked, confused.

"Are you talking about that weird zerg we fought?" Tychus asked, shaking his head. "I'm telling you, Jimmy, nothing good comes from talking to things that can kill you."

Raynor rubbed his forehead, glancing at Matt. "A new Zerg of some sort. Strong as a Queen, faster than a zerling. Weird shape. Can talk and even use strategy. She said her name was Sweetie Belle, and also told me she served Kerrigan."

"Did you say Sweetie Belle?!" a young voice asked from somewhere in the shadows of the bridge.

"What the—" Tychus gasped, stepping back and bracing himself, unsure as to what to do.

"Matt?" Raynor asked warily, standing up himself and putting his hand on his gun. "What is this?"

Matt coughed into his hand. "Ah, yes. I wanted to introduce you earlier. Come over here Gallus."

The pair watched the griffon in overalls walk across the bridge up to them, his eyes set on Raynor.

"Jim, this is Gallus, he's a griffon that helped and was dropped off by Zeratul a couple of months ago. He's been learning the ropes from Swann down in engineering."

"Zeratul?" Raynor asked, eyes widening and a small smile playing on his lips at hearing the name of his old friend. "That damned Protoss. How—"

"I'll tell you all about it," Gallus interrupted, making Jim start. "I want to know more about what you just said." He leaned up, placing his claws on the table. "You met Sweetie Belle?"

Raynor blinked, and nodded. "Yeah… we should have a recording of it… somewhere."

"I think the cameras caught some of your fight when we did the flyover," Matt said, typing away at the console.

An overhead image of the area where Jim and Tychus were fighting the new zerg showed up, although very little could be seen in the way of details.

"That.. really doesn't look much like her, but the mane colors match from what I can tell…" Gallus whispered.

"Uh, listen kid," Raynor said carefully, "Do you know this Sweetie Belle zerg from somewhere?"

Gallus grimaced, which was—in all fairness—something that Raynor could not fully explain. He never thought beaks could bend that way.

"Yeah… she comes from the same world I do. We got stranded here and… she saved me and Zeratul. I saw her practically explode in blood before she lost control of her portal." His voice became softer. "I thought she was dead."

Raynor felt a pang. He placed a hand on the griffon's shoulder. "I understand kid. The same thing happened to Sarah… now she's a monster. You have to remember, the Sweetie Belle you knew, is not the one in there anymore.

"That zerg might sound like her, or even look a little bit like her… but it's not her."

Gallus' claws slid across the surface of the metal as he scrunched them up into fists. "I know her sister… she was my teacher at school. I know her best friends. I know her family."

Raynor and Tychus shared a look, while Matt shook his head.

"It's unusual for the zerg to do this… the last time it was Sarah. Does Sweetie have powers we haven't seen? Psionics?" he asked gently.

Gallus nodded. "She had her magic… that's what we called it. Zeratul said it was the same energy source, but unicorns like Sweetie can do a lot of things with it. I've seen counsellor Starlight materialize things out of thin air or transform things into different things. Like an apple into a sandwich."

Raynor felt the blood drain from his face. "Can… Sweetie do this?"

Gallus shook his head. "I don't know, I don't think so. She was still studying before we got here, but I'm sure there's plenty she knows how to do already… she just… didn't have a violent bone in her body. She probably hasn't thought of how to use her magic to kill."

Raynor grimaced. "I don't like relying on her being oblivious about it… but I guess there's nothing we can do for now… other than hope."

2504, Koprulu Sector, Leviathan █

The Leviathan felt as welcoming as always. It possessed a certain warmth that brushed the minds of all zerg and calmed them while they were inside, making them seem almost tame. It's power was uncanny, almost queen-like in its potency, and not for the first time did Sweetie wonder if it was in fact some sort of mutated Queen Zerg.

Stranger things had happened.

Sweetie hadn't had much of a challenge completely taking over Mar Sara after Raynor was gone. The rest of the terrans there simply weren't that ready—or able—to defend themselves. Vast quantities of them had actually just stood there and let the inevitable just happen. In retrospect, it kind of saddened her to have to take over like that, but the Queen's orders were absolute and zerg cared little for minute details like civilian vs armed opponent.

Her instincts though, were in conflict. On the one hoof, Terrans like Raynor and his crew were stronger types, certainly worthy zerg respect… the other, softer ones? Not so much. Yet, why did she feel so bad about it? None of the other zerg cared.

It was exactly like Kerrigan had told her: she was letting her old life interfere with what needed to be done. Her old life hadn't saved her from becoming an experiment, or a zerg. Or losing her forelegs, almost dying…

And yet.

Sweetie shook her head as she entered the Leviathan. It wasn't time to dwell on such details. She was a zerg now, not a pony. It didn't take long for Sweetie to be welcomed more directly, as a snake-like creature slithered its way out of one of the many fleshy cavities within Leviathan.

"Hello Izsha," Sweetie said politely, her scythes twitching slightly despite Leviathan's aura of calm. From the moment she had formally joined the swarm, the zerg assistant had treated her as some sort of curiosity worth of disdain more than acceptance, and certainly not worthy of the attention Kerrigan gave her, which was at odds with how… emotionally vacant she was around all other zerg.

Whatever happened to the Magic of Friendship?

"Queen Belle." Izha's voice making the title sound like she had intended to say: Queen's Pet. "The Queen of Blades and Abathur are waiting for you."

Sweetie grimaced, nodding slightly and setting off to where she knew Kerrigan would be waiting. She heard Izsha slither away and shivered as she tried to center herself and defuse the nervousness into Leviathan's calming aura.

She had done nothing wrong… other than lose a valuable Xel'Naga asset that her Queen really wanted. Like, really wanted. The planet was hers, but so again was failure. Sweetie braced herself and followed the path that would take her to Kerrigan, already dreading her future. If Abathur was there, that could only mean more mutations unless somehow Kerrigan decided that the loss was forgivable.

When she arrived to the center of the Leviathan, she bowed. "My Queen." Kerrigan exuded sex-appeal, even if Sweetie wasn't necessarily attracted to her, she could see the sensuality emanating from her; from how she moved, to her posture when relaxed. It wasn't coincidence either, or simply a state of mind (although she was clearly aware of her effect on others), no… it was by design. Kerrigan was designed not just to terrify her opponents but also to keep them engaged in different ways, always a distraction, and always deadly.

There was no way Abathur had managed that. Sweetie wondered for a minute who, or what, had created Kerrigan so thoroughly sexy.

"Sweetie," Kerrigan said, breaking the young zerg from her appreciation with a knowing smirk that faded soon after. "I had a mission for you… did you bring the Xel'Naga device, my child?"

Sweetie cringed. "I'm sorry, I did not." Behind Kerrigan, Abathur chittered, and Izsha looked down on Sweetie with almost a smug expression. Sweetie continued quickly, "I took Mar Sara quickly enough, but the Terrans were… different this time."

A brief moment of anger crossed Kerrigans face, replaced soon after by curiosity. "Different how?"

"They were organized in a different way: they knew how to fight zerg, we had lost a lot of zerglings by the time I arrived and studied their strategy. They took risks, going out with their leader to rescue other Terrans which they brought back to their base and fortified it while they waited for a ship to pick them up."

"Hm."

Seeing her chance to explain more, Sweetie took it. "When it was clear that the zerg sent before were trying the same strategy without it working, I targeted the leader myself, sending fliers to distract them, then splitting a large force of zerg to attack both points of entry at the same time… then I went in to hopefully get them to surrender the item or at least kill their leader."

"Unnecessary. Surrender irrelevant." Abathur was quick to say, disapproval evident in his voice. "Zerg destroy. Mutate."

"I know," Sweetie snapped, glaring at him and drawing a brief smile of amusement from Kerrigan. It faded just as quick, however. "But the device was what we wanted, and we didn't have enough time for all the reinforcements to arrive before their ship. Besides, if it wasn't for Raynor, I would have completely taken over the camp by myself!"

"Raynor?" Kerrigan asked, her voice sharp. "Jim was there?"

"Uh, yes…" Sweetie said softly, cowed by the deep emotions she could feel emanating from Kerrigan. "He was the one leading the Terrans to rescue others and defend the place. Him and some Terran named Tychus."

Kerrigan shook her head.

"She must be punished, my Queen," Izsha was quick to say. "Her orders were not for—"

"Silence," Kerrigan interrupted, narrowing her eyes as she glanced at Sweetie. "If Jim is part of all of this, then Matt, Swann and the rest are too. Most Queens don't plan ahead… and Sweetie lost to one of the greatest Terran heroes. It's no wonder, with her limited experience… but changing tactics…" She tilted her head, considering her newest queen underling. "How did he react?"

Sweetie shifted in place. "Um. He was surprised… he didn't expect my attack by how he reacted."

Kerrigan smirked. "Of course he didn't. When I'm not there, he expects zerg to act like mindless beasts. Your plan was simple and would have taken by surprise most other inexperienced Terran leaders. Jim is… a special case."

"So… what now?" Sweetie asked after a moment.

"Now the universe knows we're back," Kerrigan said, turning to face the thin membrane that separated space from them. "I will teach you tactics… you were lucky, but Jim is no fool. He will anticipate your return, and you cannot expect to win with such… childish approaches. Even if they are more tactically sound in your head than overwhelming strength."

Sweetie bowed. "Yes, my queen."

She felt Kerrigan's claw gently curl under her chin, making her look up into the smiling face of her queen. "I will make you into something the Terrans will fear forever."

Chapter 010

2504, Koprulu Sector, Hyperion Bar █

The Hyperion's bar was loud, grimy, and stank of old alcohol and cigarette smoke. Even though it had plenty of ventilation thanks to the large fans at the top of the room, it still held that sense of an old-time dive that the locals didn't so much as frequent as much as end up there out of habit more than need.

Looking around, it appeared that Matt had checked in on his old haunting grounds before heading over to the rescue, because Swann had somehow gotten a hold of his old jukebox and TVs and hung them all from the bar's roof with chains and cables. Jim Raynor didn't mind much—it gave the place some class, after all, and it desperately needed it.

Raynor gave Graven Hill a pat on the shoulder and stood up, stretching. Sure, getting those Devil Dogs Firebats was a bit expensive, but with more than one Zerg Queen capable of actually changing tactics, he needed as much ground-control as he could get, and few zerg could simply shrug off being bathed in fire.

Sweetie Belle might be able to withstand it, but inexperienced as she was, she'd most likely react as any former-mammal would and freak out, giving him the time to either put her out of her misery once and for all, or take out her other troops.

The thought of the new zerg made him shiver a little. Not because she was deadly, but because of how innocent she sounded and—admittedly—looked. It was a constant emotional and logical battle to fight a creature he instinctively wanted to hug, scythes and all.

And that brought his thoughts to the new creature aboard. Raynor glanced at the griffon sitting alone at one of the tables. Most of the Engineers seemed, if not comfortable, at least able to tolerate him, but the troops… well, they were wary of aliens for obvious reasons.

If he was honest with himself, Raynor would have shot first, asked questions later if he had encountered Gallus on his own, but with Matt's assurance that the griffon had behaved himself since arrival, tried to learn and help and also with the added backing of Zeratul, he had little reason to question the mythological creature's amiability, if not his intentions.

It would be a lie not to see himself in the young guy. Girlfriend lost to the zerg, only to have her return as a monster—away from anything resembling home, forced to learn and survive… at least Gallus hadn't done like himself and Tychus and turned to crime. Although who knew how things would be if Zeratul hadn't found him?

He made his way across the bar, nodding at faces he hadn't seen in a while until he reached Gallus' table. "Hey kid, you sure your can drink that stuff?"

Gallus snorted, saying something in some strange language before he caught himself, and cleared his throat. "Sweet Apple Acres' Cider is much stronger than this," he said in Terran, taking a swig with a grimace. "And tastes a lot better, too."

Raynor chuckled, taking a swig of his bottle. "That's why I prefer hard alcohol. Mind if I take a seat?" He gestured to the seat across from Gallus, raising an eyebrow. The griffon shrugged, motioning with his claw. It was in a way astounding, how similar Gallus' body language was to that of a human, sometimes. Maybe that was why he had transitioned smoothly into Swann's team. "I can imagine where your thoughts are, kid, better get a hold of them before you start thinking up crazy plans to save your girl."

Gallus ruffled his wings, shifting uncomfortably on his seat. "She's not my girl. I just… know her."

"Sure, but even if she isn't, don't make too many plans. Once the zerg have her… well, there ain't no coming back from that one. The Sweetie Belle you knew is not the one that's in there now, if you catch my drift."

Gallus sighed, glancing up from his mug to look at Raynor. "Experience, huh."

"Yeah," Raynor sighed as well, then leaned forward. "So, how did you all get here? How do you speak our language? What you said earlier, that wasn't Terran."

"Ah hell, don't remind me of that nightmare…" Gallus whimpered. "Zeratul used some sort of Protoss device to project Terran into my mind. I had a headache for days, and had to stay in the lab while Egon checked on me. Dude would not shut the hell up. By the time I was able to walk and talk, I spoke like Zeratul himself for some time, friend Raynor."

Jim chuckled. "You sound a lot less formal now."

Gallus shrugged, smiling slightly. "I was never one for formalities. My culture is historically irreverent, and Princess Twilight was never much for that either."

"Princess as in… royalty?"

"Yeah…" Gallus shook his head, glancing up at one of the screens in the bar. "Nothing like your Mensk guy. The Princesses are generally loved by all, even other races, and Twilight… well, she's really hard to dislike. Smart, slightly paranoid… but willing to give everyone a chance. She's the Princess of Friendship, you know?"

"I do now," Raynor said, trying to wrap his head around it. "So she's not a griffon? She's like Sweetie?"

"Different, but more like her… she's… uh…" Gallus said something unrecognizable. "I don't know how else to say it. She has a horn and wings."

"And that's not normal?" Raynor asked, frowning. "Sweetie had wings and a horn."

"Eeeh…" Gallus said. "There's only…" he paused to count silently on his claw. "Celestia, Luna, Cadance, Flurry and Twilight. I thought I heard Twilight swear that a friend of hers should've become a Princess by now if she ever decided to cross a... mirror?"

"That… makes no sense," Raynor said, "maybe it's some sort of translation mistake?"

"Could be." Gallus dismissed the thought with a wave of his claw. "The rest of the ponies either just have four hooves, four hooves and wings, or four hooves and a horn. Only princesses have all aspects."

"Huh."

"And to answer your other question… we're here by accident. One crazy unicorn attacked us during an experiment and messed up things… we arrived in a planet where some Terrans tried to kill us and Zeratul helped us escape… Quantum created a portal to take us to Zeratul's ship… he was teaching the basics to Sweetie but..."

"You were attacked," Raynor said.

"Yeah. Quantum was just… splattered, and I was injured, I almost lost a wing. Without him, the portal would have collapsed, but Sweetie... she held it until Zeratul and I crossed. Before she could make it… well, you know the rest."

"Dammit," Raynor swore under his breath. "It's always the good ones kid. Your friend did something very noble. You now that."

"Yeah," Gallu sighed. "I know. I wouldn't expect any less of her… or any of our friends." He groaned and held his head in his claws. "What the hell am I supposed to tell her family, Raynor? Nothing like this has happened in centuries. Even when the world was almost destroyed a couple of times, it was more of a ticking-bomb if we didn't stop it, you know? Nocreature was savagely killed!"

Raynor had to process that for a moment. "Just how many times was your world—" he stopped and shook his head. "Never mind that. Kid. It ain't going to be easy, but we'll make sure that you at least have the chance… and they deserve it, both her family and Sweetie herself deserve that they know her fate. Good or bad. It's not a duty anyone wants, much less facin' people you know, but as friends and comrades… we have to."

Gallus shook his head and chuckled. "At least you didn't dance around it."

"Don't have time for that, kid," Raynor said, shrugging. "Too many things happening at once to worry about avoidin' the inevitable." He glanced at Gallus' glass. "Ya done there, kid?"

"Yeah. Couldn't stomach another one."

Raynor chuckled. "Come on then, let's head over to the bridge and see if we've got ourselves somethin' new."

2504, Koprulu Sector, Hyperion Bridge █

"Sir," Matt greeted as soon as they stepped in, "We've picked up a distress call from the planet Agria. There's a colony there under attack by the zerg."

"Play the message, Matt."

The group listened in tense silence to the static-ridden message. Gallus could see the human woman was desperate.

"...the Dominion abandoned us… we're only a farming colony…"

"How could they do that?!" Gallus gasped, "Their own subjects… how is this Mensk still allowed to rule over the Terrans?"

"Not all Terrans," Raynor muttered.

"Sometimes, Gallus," Matt said, "small civilian settlements are the least concern to their leaders. They simply don't want to waste the resources or risk their soldiers to save people they can easily replace. It's one of the many reasons that we are at war with the Dominion."

"But they've been abandoned to the zerg!" Gallus hissed, "doesn't Mensk know what that means? Don't his generals have an idea of what will happen when they're attacked? They have no chance of surviving! They—"

"They're not lost yet, kid," Raynor spoke up, putting a hand on Gallus' shoulder to calm him down. "Matt, set us on our way…"

"Aye, aye, sir," Matt responded immediately, saluting as he turned to give orders.

Raynor turned to Gallus, kneeling down so he could stare at the griffon eye to eye. "Here's where you make a decision, kid. Me? I promised Kerrigan I'd be the one to bring her down. She and I…" He shook his head, biting the words. "We've got history."

"Yeah…" Gallus whispered.

Raynor cleared his throat. "Anyway, I can't say if it's the same for you, but now that you know Sweetie Belle's fate, what do you want to do?"

Gallus blinked. "Do? What do you mean? I'm working with Swann and trying to figure out—"

"I get that," Raynor interrupted, "But that was before, 'n this is now." He poked the young griffon on the chest. "You want to make sure there's no zerg walkin' 'round with her face? I'm not gonna lie to you, I ain't going to pull my punches just because she's adorable. The question you need to ask yourself is… Do I want to have this zerg destroy her memory? What would her folks and friends want?"

Gallus' eyes were wide. "Y-you want me to go there and kill zerg with you?

"You gotta learn how to take them down sometime, kid," Raynor answered. "Who knows what might happen in the future, but if you're here and part of the Hyperion's crew, you'll be exposed to zerg and worse."

"Sir, with all due respect…" Matt began to say, but trailed off when Raynor raised his hand to stop him.

"I ain't gonna tell you what to do, Gallus," Raynor said, locking eyes with the griffon. "I'm just giving you the chance to decide. But," he stood up and pointed at the planet in the holographic display, "If that kinda thing affects you as much as all of us here… you can also join me down there. If you don't want to let Sweetie do the kind of things Kerrigan is already having her do… you're gonna have to step up."

Gallus closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I don't know…"

Matt looked at Raynor. "Are you sure this is a good idea, sir?"

"Kid's got promise," Raynor answered with a shrug. "I'm not going to hold it against him if he decides to stay, but I know what I would do in his shoes. Paws."

"It'll be very dangerous for someone inexperienced a—"

"I'll do it," Gallus said and opened his eyes. "I'll learn how to… hunt zerg, and I'll avenge Sweetie."

Raynor grinned. "Now yer talkin', kid. Come on," he motioned with his hand. "Let's get Swann to suit you up."

Chapter 011: For a Cause

2504, Koprulu Sector, Engineering Bay █

Swann shook his head, typing on his computer and glancing at Gallus occasionally, then looking back at it. "So he got to ya, did he?"

Gallus looked down. "Yeah. I… just had no idea that Sweetie was ali—I mean… what had happened to her. I've been trying to write down what to tell everyone, you know? Her sister and friends and… well, I'm just… when I saw her… Raynor made sense."

Swann sighed, patting the griffon on the head. "He's good at that, lad. But if this don't work out for ya, you come back here, alright? Me and the boys already consider ya part of the team. If you want back, yer welcome back."

Gallus nodded, smile playing on his beak. "Thanks, Swann."

"Now, before we get all chummy and emotional, here's what I have in mind." He turned the screen towards Gallus, who blinked and turned his head to the side.

"What's that?"

"That m'boy is nothin' less than one of them original Reaper designs!" Swann said, grinning ear to ear. "Used to be that these babies were able to fly instead of boost, then they decomissioned them, and later on "upgraded" them… but! I'm adapting these to this design…"

Gallus' eyes went wide. "Wow."

"Right? You can fly already so you should have no problems, and the armor should be thick enough for you to not die immediately."

Gallus stared at Swann. "That's not very encouraging."

"I'm not tryin' to be, lad. It ain't no joke out there. You end up on the wrong side of a live zerg and… well. You end."

"Oh." Gallus looked up at him, eyes wide. It was bad enough knowing that he was inside a metal box, in the middle of an infinite vacuum that would kill him instantly if he didn't go out inside a smaller metal box, but now he got his own tight, even smaller metal box. Because "armor" wasn't that encasing.

"You can work with us, lad, no one will think any less of you."

It was that or death. "I can't stay, Swann…" Gallus shifted in place. "I've spent every night wondering what to tell Professor Rarity or anyone else, really, about Sweetie Belle. How do I tell them that I am alive and their sister, or friend isn't? How do I tell Twilight that Quantum was turned into minced pony?" He looked down, body shaking. "And now I don't know if she should have died. Now she's a monster. She kills and is part of a swarm that's bent on controlling everything. If she had died… I wouldn't feel better… but I wouldn't have to hunt her."

Swann sighed, shaking his head. "One day at a time lad. Here, let's think about your immediate survival first, before we go into "what if". This is going to be kind of important." He pointed at the design. "The jumpacks, now-a-days use simple twin turbines, which is a big difference with yours. The turbines work for them because their armor is so light! No ass-armor, the poor bastards."

"So you're saying I'll be shot in the butt," Gallus said, unimpressed. "Noted."

Swann tapped the screen, "Nah, you have a different setup. We can put a more reliable, modified Vulture hovering system for your smaller frame, even if we are adding quite a bit of size to you with medium armor, but, between that, and an old style jetpack and you'll still smaller than one of our marines in armor, and I'm sayin' that with wing armor that reacts to your movements with standard CMC-400 efficiency—"

Gallus gave him a look. "Do you know how many CMC-400 armor parts I've had to fix since I came here? Because I can tell you. Counting only those that stopped working outside of combat use—"

"You worry too much, lad." Swann interrupted. "If you're goin' out there, you have to be a little bit crazy." Swann tapped the side of his head with a finger. "Anyway, unless you want your pretty wings burnt into unrecognizable chunks of charcoal, you're wearing armor on them. It might take some getting used to, but that's certainly better than not having anything on them."

Swann then moved to the next screen. "You'll be armed with the usual P-45's, and I think you should be stable enough in flight to carry a few G-4 Cluster Bombs."

Gallus looked down at the weapons. Compared to what the average marine carried, they were tiny. "Any chance for something bigger?"

"Bigger ain't always better," Swann said, shrugging. "If we add more weight on you, we might as well strap you to an actual vulture and call it a day."

"Right."

Swann chuckled. "Alright lad, better go get ready as you can, once Matt hits the jump, you'll barely have time to suit up."

"Are you sure that'll be safe to wear?"

"It'll be safer than not wearing it."

And to that, Gallus had no response.

2504, Koprulu Sector, Leviathan █

The Leviathan stayed far from the mostly-consumed surface of Planet Agria, occasionally dropping more pods as needed. Within, two queens walked together, followed by an—unecessary—entourage of hydralisks.

"The planet Agria is mostly under our control by now," Kerrigan said, glancing at Sweetie as they made their way towards the pod that would launch her. "It is of little real direct value to us when it comes down to resources, but when you think about these things, you have to think of the multiple strategic benefits of changing tactics there."

The Queen watched her younger charge get into the pod. "There is nothing the Terrans can do now, but I know that if Jim is in the cluster, he will want to help." She held Sweetie with her eyes. "Your objective isn't to destroy Raynor, however. You are merely to defeat him."

"But, doesn't that mean killing him?" Sweetie asked.

"No. Raynor's time will come. But not today, and not by your scythe," Kerrigan said. "You will do far worse to him. You will make him lose. You will not allow the terrans to leave. I don't care about Raynor and his troops. But the Terrans from Agria will all die or be infested."

Sweetie hesitated. "Even the civil—"

"All of them." Kerrigan's voice was cold. "You may have free will to the extent I allow it, my pet. But you will always follow my commands."

Sweetie winced. "There are other ways to still win."

She felt Kerrigan's claws lifting her chin up. "In the end, Sweetie, we're doing them a favor. When I bring down Mensk… there will be no place for Terrans or Protoss."

"But how about friendship? What about kindness and laughter?" Sweetie asked, mouth pincers clicking nervously.

As the pod slowly closed with a squelching sound around her, Kerrigan shook her head. "Jim Raynor cannot be allowed to win. He cannot be allowed to take a single terran away from the planet before our final push."

The pod closed completely and was immediately expelled from the Leviathan, along with several more.

"My Queen," Izsha said, emerging from one of them many walls of the Leviathan. "why do you allow such insolence?"

"It's youth." Kerrigan said, turning to face her attendant. "Her hope…" she clenched and unclenched her claws. "It's different. She's zerg, through and through, and yet… she holds on to what I could only dream of as a child." She glanced at Izsha. "I gave her a Queen's DNA for a reason."

"She challenges your rule with questions!" Izsha hissed. "She will find a way to subvert your instructions! She always does!"

Kerrigan started marching away, her thoughts already on the next steps of her invasion. "Once Mensk is gone… my little pet queen will help me shape the future of the swarm, maybe in ways I had never considered." She glanced over her shoulder, sensing Sweetie moving farther and farther away. "And if I am not pleased…"

2504, Equestria, School of Friendship █

The School of Friendship's spare classroom was packed with journalists, all shuffling along to get to their seats. There was an air of tension in the air, the quiet anticipation building as the large group of ponies and other creatures filled the room to capacity. A hush ran through the crowd as Twilight Sparkle walked into the room and stepped behind the desk, turning to face them.

"Thank you all for coming here to this Press Conference," Twilight said, "I wish it were under better circumstances. Right now our research into what exactly happened with the spell and our friends is still ongoing, and I have recruited Starswirl the Bearded, the princesses and even other students among other experts far and wide to look into finding and bringing back all of them safe and sound." She took a deep breath. "Now, I know all of you have come with plenty of questions, so please, go ahead."

"It's been months, Princess, and we have heard nothing from anycreature on the whereabouts of Sweetie Belle, Gallus, and Professor Quantum," a reporter said, raising up when Twilight motioned at him with her hoof. "Can you tell us how this is affecting the School of Friendship?"

Twilight sighed. "We are all dealing with our friends' absence in our own ways. Although it is still to early to give up hope given Professor Quantum's very meticulous nature and his designs accounting for several types of mishaps, our school is offering counselling to all students that want it. These are very beloved members of our schools, and—

"Princess!" Another reporter stood up, "Despite the actions of this lone unicorn, members of other species have been debating the merits of having their children come to Equestria. Do you think keeping a school with international students is the responsible thing to do in this current political climate?

"The school of friendship encourages tolerance and understanding between everycreature of every place in the world." Twilight stated, eyebrow twitching. "It is a unique chance to allow their children to learn not only a challenging curriculum, but also the value of cooperation and respect. If we want to stop this growing threat of extremism and supremacist beliefs, it is our responsibility and honor as educators to teach our young, and the young of those who are open to tolerance and friendship, these valuable lessons."

"Shouldn't Equestrian schools teach only ponies?" Another pony asked, further behind the others.

Twilight's brow furrowed. "No. As I stated before, this are lessons that we all should learn. If the Unicorn's First movement ponies had learned these lessons in the first place, it would not be an issue now."

"So you're claiming this lone unicorn was not acting on his own?"

"Several witnesses reported he shouted: "Unicorn's First" as he threw himself with a bomb onto Professor Quantum's device," Twilight pointed out.

"So you're basing your opinion on the claims of ponies that were under a stressful situation?"

"I'm expressing a fact as confirmed by them and authorities," Twilight growled.

"What are your thoughts on the rising Supremacist movements across Equestria?" another pony asked.

"They stand against everything Equestria itself was built on," Twilight replied, focusing on the new pony. "Our nation was built on the belief that values such as Honesty, Kindness, Laughter, Loyalty and Generosity would guide us. These values have saved us time and again from enemies and those who would destroy us. Supremacist groups such as "Unicorns First" destroy that with the belief that any one species is superior to another."

With an unsatisfied grunt, the pony that had questioned the motives of the bomber stood up. "Isn't having a changeling so close to royalty such as yourself a clear and present danger to national security?"

Twilight gave him an annoyed look. "Of course not. They are our allies and under a completely new and friendly leadership."

"But they feed on love—"

"Fed, which should be a clear distinction."

"Fed," the pony conceded, "but it's something of a recent change, how sure are you that they will not revert."

"So far scientific tests done by myself and the other Princesses hasn't revealed any possible reason for that to happen?"

"Has the changeling Ocellus ever impersonated you?"

"Only with permission or to joke around," Twilight said, "and I don't see why we are taking this turn in conversation. The character of my students and of our allied leaders is not relevant to this issue at all. To bring you back into the real topic here, we are still looking for our missing friends, and it's due to the actions of creatures that join extremist groups like Unicorns First that we lost them."

The pony rolled his eyes. "Has the school investigated if the accident might have been Gallus's fault?"

"Enough!" Twilight snapped, eyes glowing with magic. "I've had enough of your obvious attempts to question the facts as they are presented. I've tolerated your attitude so far, but blaming Gallus for the acts of a member of a terrorist group goes beyond misunderstandings. This press conference is over."

"So you're saying that Unicorns First is a terrorist—?"

Ignoring the cries of the reporters, Twilight turned around and walked out of the room before she teleported into the middle of the badlands, where nocreature could hear her scream in frustration.

Chapter 012: Patrolling

2504, Koprulu Sector, Planet Agria █

The colony was a lot smaller than Gallus even imagined. He had read up on Agria while waiting for his armor to be done, and then later on as they finalized preparations. The planet itself had been pretty important to the Terrans for years, a botanical and wildlife paradise created out of a barren wasteland thanks to state-of-the-art terraforming practices, and careful government. It had been such a staple of Terran achievements in the galaxy, that it had merited heavy scientific investment and even a dedicated permanent detachment of the Dominion to protect it.

Clearly, benign science was the least of the concerns for this particular government, however, as the whole of the base had been evacuated as soon as the zerg started invading the system. From the local accounts, the Dominion's army had packed what they deemed essential—namely no Terran life other than their own—and flown out, taking most of the vehicles capable of interstellar travel with them.

Dr. Ariel Hanson, who smelled like she really liked Raynor, had then taken charge of the colony after her father had retired, and when she had found out about the Dominion's betrayal had done her best to organize an evacuation.

Unfortunately, it had been too little, too late.

The single star-port that they had left was not enough to do the job of evacuating everyone, and without the army to help, the colonists had all gathered together and swarmed into the colony just before the last ships left… and now they were at the mercy of the zerg unless Raynor managed to evacuate them all in an orderly fashion.

It was probably only a few thousand colonists that needed to be evacuated, which Matt had insisted was actually not that many, but Raynor didn't miss a beat before he was already setting up barracks and defensive structures while planning the logistics.

Gallus had never been one for the army. Griffonstone had little in the way of formal national defense other than a bunch of really angry griffons that would get together into what amounted to a mob and then storm the enemy, and what he had seen of the Royal Guard of Equestria had not left him feeling impressed. Especially considering that most of the actual combat against evil had been done by his teachers, and later on by himself and his friends, but he had to admit Raynor was sort the ideal commander that he'd expect to see in a fictional work.

The Terran simply got things done, and people followed him.

The thought of the armies (or lack thereof back in Equestria) brought with it feelings of nostalgia and fear. Were they alright? Had anycreature been hurt by that fanatic? What was Sweetie doing now? Were his teachers and friends looking for them? He growled, scaring a few of the locals as he shook himself to dismiss the thoughts.

Right now, he had a simple mission to accomplish, which was to patrol. He had wanted to take flight but Raynor had given his armor a worried glance, and then stated that even if the attempt didn't kill Gallus outright, it was better to not let possible enemies know of his flight capabilities yet. He wanted him on the ground until the actual evacuation started, then he would be up there, overseeing and informing as needed.

Which didn't make sense, because he had wings. One look. That's all they needed and they'd know he was supposed to fly. Just how dense could someone be?

"What kind of robot do you think that is?" a Terran asked, stopping to ogle Gallus.

"Some sort of modified Predator?" another muttered, leaning in to look through Gallus's visor. Trying to discern some sort of circuitry.

"Move along, citizen," Gallus said, making them scramble away screaming. He chuckled. It was true that the helmet and armor made him look like a robot out of Spike's comic books, but it was still hilarious to help them realize their error.

As he walked he still caught snippets of conversation that the local Terrans were comfortable saying around a "robot".

"...can't believe we were abandoned."

"...can we trust these pirates to save us? What if they sell us?!"

"...I heard Raynor was on the side of the zerg!"

The Terrans at the colony had reacted with mixed feelings to being saved by Raynor's crew. It was slightly unreal to see the lack of gratitude from some of the colonists. Their own protectors had abandoned them, and yet here were more than a few who were happy to complain about being saved by Raynor.

Still, it was not his job to worry about that. He glanced at the sky. Soon he would be up there… and it wouldn't be an easy job. Zerg pods would be crashing into their area, and there were of course flying units and zerg that could shoot him out of the sky.

"Hey kid," the voice almost made him jump, but he managed to not embarrass himself.

"I'm here, what's going on?"

Raynor's voice crackled a little, as the display with his face appeared in Gallus' vision. "Matt informed me that the zerg are beginning their invasion of this part of the planet. We're starting now. I want you to get up there and communicate with my troops. Any zerg you see, you tell them, got it?"

"Got it," he replied, trying not to sound too nervous. He hefted his weapon and took a deep breath to calm his nerves. It was time to go. He took off with a powerful beat of his wings. The systems activated immediately, and with the boost, he didn't feel the weight of his armor at all, and he let out a breath he didn't know he had been holding.

Sure the tests had worked out, but Swann had only had time for a few basic ones with the incomplete version before Gallus had to strip it off so that it could be finished. The fact that he was not on fire right now was a good sign as far as he was concerned.

"Doing a fly by," he reported, "Nothing so far, I can see the ground vehicle."

"Alright kid, follow along with it. I have a couple of bunkers already set up ahead, keep an eye out for them, the zerg will definitely attack those if they want to take over the colony."

"Right. I mean, yes sir!"

He could hear Raynor chuckling. "You'll do fine kid. Just aim steady and shot when ready, if you can't, just relay info and stay out of combat."

Gallus swerved out of the way, the only warning he had was a darkening of the air around him—like a cloud passing in front of the sun above. However, unlike the cloud, zerg pods were enveloped in flames, quite solid, and would kill him immediately, armor or not, if he got hit by one.

He watched the organic mass splatter into the ground below, covering the area in that strange, black miasma that the zerg spread all around the ground they took. With scary speed, zerglings emerged from the mess and started heading towards the barracks.

"Zerglings approaching from the west!" he called in, watching as the turret on top of the barracks swirled immediately towards them and started firing. He saw other pods and took not of their location. "Raynor, I saw two pods crash to the east and one north east. I'll head over to observe."

"Roger that kid, stay alert and fly back immediately if you're in danger, the zerg won't chase you too far."

Gallus didn't bother replying. Tilting his wings to catch the wind, he glided over the highway, above the huge transport full of civilians that was being escorted by Raynor's troops, and past the patch of land next to it. The planet itself reminded him of the outskirts of Ponyville. It was full of farms and fields where crops were growing. He tried to figure out why the zerg would attack this place. Did they also eat the same thing? What possible advantage could they get here, other than maybe destroying the scientific research?

"Zerglings are running through the fields to the east of the road, not that many, but might just be the start of the latest batch. I don't see any sign of the pods from earlier."

He watched with a grimace as the zerglings rushed out of the foliage towards the waiting marines and were torn to shreds. It brought back sudden images of Sweetie's legs being torn to shreds right in front of him, or Quantum becoming nothing more than chunks of bloody meat, becoming nothing more than stinky piles of flesh, vapor rising from their bunt remains into the cold air of Agria. He felt sick, and suddenly very aware that he could just as easily end up as minced turkey too if he wasn't careful.

"You alright, Gallus? Computer's showing your flight a little erratic."

"Y-yeah," Gallus said, fighting the sudden bile rising in his throat. "I just need to rest for a moment. The suit is throwing off my normal flight instincts. I see a rock formation over there I should be safe enough to perch on for a bit."

"Roger that kid, as soon as you rested, I want you back in the base. Your observations are pretty useful, but if more tweaks are needed in your suit, we'll have Swann look at it."

"R-right."

Gallus curved around the area and flapped his wings to drop his momentum, landing a bit more heavily than intended on the flat top of a large, plateau-like rock raising over the fields. All around him, he could see plants. In the distance, off to the east, northeast, he could see a few zerg pods had crashed and started spreading that goo of theirs, so he quickly reported it before taking off his helmet and taking a big gulp of air.

He made sure he was alone, turning off his microphone, before he started pacing. "What in Tartarus am I doing?" he muttered, "I'm less sturdy than any zerg! A stray bullet or a slashing claw will kill me!" Stopping again when he felt the urge to throw up, he took a moment to gather himself and breathe.

Griffons were a rowdy bunch, and Gallus knew the difference between being nervous, an adrenaline rush, or being downright terrified. He had been really nervous as they descended into the planet, cramped as he was with a bunch of bipeds into a small metal box. It had been close to triggering his claustrophobia, but the short duration of the trip had helped. He had felt tight and slightly claustrophobic in his armor—but he was able to fly and run and breathe… it was just getting used to being uncomfortable… but this… this feeling was different. It made him queasy.

It brought memories of bone and sinew and blood splattering, warm and coppery onto his face. It brought the mental image of Sweetie's face contorted in indescribable pain as she was horrendously ripped by bullets designed to bring down tanks. It brought back the guilt… that he had managed to cross. That he was safe. That his wing just hurt… that it wasn't him who had their legs turned to mince. That he wasn't staying behind. That he was glad it hadn't been him on the other side of the portal, being torn apart and watching others run.

Zeratul had said nothing, used as he was to sacrifices in battle, but Gallus wasn't a warrior. He was just a year away from graduation from the School of Friendship. Could Twilight's teachings even be relevant here, where everycreature was more likely to kill you than listen?

He shook his head, noticing the blinking red light from within his helmet. He frowned and picked it up, trying to figure out what was wrong.

That's when the pod crashed into the side of the rock formation, black miasma and fire exploding all around him. He barely had time to scream before the world collapsed around him. He tried to flap his wings, but the rocks around him batted them down hard. If his armor hadn't been so sturdy, he would have probably broken them.

He hit the ground hard, losing his breath from the impact and coughed in the dust. Groaning, he pushed himself up. He couldn't see his helmet. It was probably crushed under the rocks behind him. High above, he could see sunlight pushing through the collapsed rocks. He should still be able to climb up there and escape… the gap was narrow, but not too small for him, even with his armor. And if it was too small for the armor… well. They could always build him another.

A skittering sound behind him made him turn around quickly, eyes wide. From the shadows deeper in the cavern emerged several toothed, scythed creatures. He knew them well. Zerglings.

Slowly, as to not to provoke them, he raised his rifle. His claws worked within his armor to activate all of its combat protocols, and he was very thankful of the time he had spent working with Swann on the armors before.

He glanced up at the crevice. If they attacked, he'd have to retreat while shooting. He might be able to use the armor's boosters to reach it quickly and…

The zerg slowly retreated into the darkness.

It was quiet. Too quiet.

And then he heard her.

"Hi Gallus…" Her voice came from all around him, an unnatural, reverberating echo to it. From within the darkness, she slowly emerged, carapace shining in the light from the sun outside, her mane made of chitinous tentacles rather than hair, although somehow still retaining her original colors. Her horn was a little longer, jagged and splitting slightly at the tip. Vicious-looking scythes stood at attention, emerging from her back, and gossamer wings buzzed lightly. She was taller, as tall as he was in his armor, slimmer and decidedly more sure of herself.

"Sweetie Belle…"

Author's Notes:

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Chapter 013: Join Me

2504, Koprulu Sector, Planet Agria █

Sweetie Belle followed her zerg as they dug a tunnel under the surface of Agria. Right now her plan was proceeding as planned. Following the Queen's advice, she wasn't worried about the loss of zerg. That was simply not their role… to survive, that is.

She hadn't intended to reveal herself yet, but seeing Gallus on top of the rocky mountain he was standing on, like a knight in shining armor… too good to pass.

She had ordered her zerg to dig under him, to bring him down here to where they now both stood. He, the wary hero; she, the queenly zerg.

"Gallus," she whispered as she slowly paced around him. To think, back home, she had been initially intimidated by griffons. Their sharp beaks and claws, their confident, cocky demeanor, the rippling, tight muscles under their coat, their large, long wings. When she had seen Gabby for the first time, she was afraid she was going to be eaten, even if she had logically known that wasn't going to happen.

But now, Gallus seemed intimidated by her. It was just so funny! He followed her warily, a terran weapon held in his armored claw, but he wasn't firing. She slowly tightened her circle around him, until she was standing in front of him, looking at him eye to eye.

She smiled, a bit self-consciously. He had gorgeous eyes. It had always been one of her favorite things about him, ever since she had met him. Sure, his confidence was admirable, but those eyes expressed a lot more than contempt or defensiveness… they always had. And she had noticed his looks, just as surely as he had noticed hers as they had crossed paths more and more often in Twilight's School of Friendship.

The thought of home deviated her thoughts. He was here. He was alive!

Grinning at this, Sweetie lunged forward.

Gallus had always liked Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Apple Bloom. They were energetic, fun, adventurous and—Sweetie and Apple Bloom particularly—really pretty. Not that he would ever admit that to professor Applejack or professor Rarity. But regardless of what they were, they had never been seductresses, and Sweetie suddenly acting like this… was, well. Nerve-wracking. Especially in this situation. Anywhere else, he might have played along.

In a cavern, surrounded by deadly creatures that were for some reason just hovering outside his senses? Eenope. Nopenopenope.

So, he watched her warily, anticipating her attack. Raynor had warned him this wasn't her anymore. The creature in front of her might look and sound like Sweetie, but her sudden sensuality and aggressiveness, and well, the fact that she wasn't a pony anymore were stark reminders that she was not herself anymore.

So why was he having so much trouble pulling the trigger?

"Gallus," she whispered, laughing a little.

He swallowed and turned with her slowly until she stopped in front of him. Oddly enough, she wasn't monstrous as he had expected. She looked very similar to her old self, just… as if someone had mixed her up with Ocellus or something. Chitin and insectile features aside, this was definitely Sweetie Belle.

Suddenly her eyes went wide and she grinned showing off her brand new fangs and pincers and launched herself at him. Instinctively, Gallus took a desperate shot, knowing full well that her was dead, there was not way he would survive… the hug?

"You're alive! Oh my gosh, Gallus. I was so worried!"

"What?"

She held him close with almost crushing force. Despite his armor, he didn't think he would be able to struggle out of the surprise embrace, but she wasn't trying to kill him or bite him, she was laughing, just like she had on the train.

"S-Sweetie?" he stammered.

She sniffed, and leaned back, grinning. "Who else?!"

"But… you… zerg… what?"

"Oh." Sweetie blinked and stepped back. She glanced up at the tip of her blade and looked at Gallus quizzically.

"Sorry, I thought you were going to eat me," Gallus said, rubbing the back of his head.

"Eat you?" Sweetie asked, leaning slightly on him. "I knew terrans were dirty-minded, but I didn't know it was contagious."

"I-what?! You're the—you know what? Forget it." Gallus stepped back and glared at her. She was a conundrum right now. He knew Raynor hadn't been lying to him, so... why? "What the hell are you doing here, Sweetie?"

"Well, duh." Sweetie waved her hoof around. "I'm stopping the zerg from tearing you apart."

"You know what I mean.'

Sweetie sighed. "Yeah. I know what you mean."

"And?"

She shrugged apologetically. "Sorry. I need to defeat Raynor. Queen's orders."

"Those are civilians out there, Sweetie," Gallus hissed.

Sweetie looked away. "I know."

"They can't fight you."

"I know."

"You can let them—"

"No!" Sweetie interrupted, glaring at him with an intensity that almost made him step back. It was mostly his survival instinct that stopped him. He somehow knew he couldn't step back in front of the zerg. But why?

"It's because I'm talking to you as an equal," Sweetie said, as if reading his mind. "Gallus, just… come with me. Let me finish the mission and come with me. We can go back to the Que—"

"Are you crazy, Sweetie?" Gallus asked. "How can you allow this to happen? Forget that. You give up on the zerg and come with me. Let's go back home."

Sweetie sighed. "I'm sorry, Gallus. If I could, I'd let the people leave… I wish I could just convince everycreature to live in harmony… but right now… I have my orders."

The ground around them shook suddenly and Gallus looked around with worry. "What happened?!"

"I won." Sweetie stared him straight in the eye, but did not smile. One of her scythes gently picked up his helmet and gave it to him. Now that he was paying attention to it, he could hear the faint, desperate chatter. "I'm sorry Gallus, I wish there could have been another way."

"What did you do, Sweetie?" Gallus asked, his throat tight.

"I wish we were on the same side of things…" Sweetie said, stepping back. "But you have to go, if you want to go back to the Terrans."

"I—" despite the stupidity of the action itself, Gallus embraced Sweetie. "Come with me," he whispered into her ear as the zerg around him hissed and growled. "Please. Please come with me. You're still you. Somehow. You can't be—you can't be a monster."

"Gallus…" Sweetie said softly, embracing him against her. "I-you will not think the same once you're out there. Please remember that I'm still your friend. I'm sorry."

"But Sweet—" Gallus' shout was interrupted by two large pincers grasping him roughly (but not with deadly force) as a mutalisk flew up with him to the top of the mountain, and doing a back roll, threw him up in the air, where he had no option but to turn on his engines or splatter on the floor later.

"Sweetie!" he shouted , flying down close to the top of the hole, but deep under, all the zerg were gone. It was then that he looked around and gasped. The main road, where the vehicles had been going through, had collapsed completely, and swarms of zerglings were flooding into the giant ravine that had been created. In a daze, he put on his helmet and flew around.

"Gallus! Kid! Fly back to us, we need to get out of here!"

"Raynor," Gallus gasped, "what happened? I was trapped in the mountain…"

It took a moment for Raynor to reply. "Nydus worms. They collapsed the road when the transportation vehicles were on it, and then they did the same to the spaceport. They hid their attack while other worms acted normally."

Gallus could tell Raynor was barely keeping his emotions in check. He glanced down at the devastation. There were thousands of terran lives down there, being killed by zerg. By Sweetie. He closed his eyes for a second and then banked to the side, changing his direction back to camp, and evacuation.

"I'm sorry, Raynor," he said, Sweetie's exact words to him echoing in his head.

"It's not your fault, kid. The zerg are changing. And we need to do the same."

"Sweetie Belle."

"My Queen." Sweetie Belle stood on the jagged rocks that had once been one of the mountains that had protected the road from immediate swarming. Its side had collapsed underground along with the road and trees, leaving something that looked like a fang, curving slightly at the top towards the road, like the mauws that were about to close around the survivors. "Raynor has fled, I have succeeded."

"I know, my pet, well done. I see there are still terrans left alive."

"They're ours now. To be infested or killed."

"You do not sound happy, Sweetie. Shouldn't you relish your first victory against Raynor? The fact that you have fulfilled my demand?"

"I-I do," Sweetie said as she watched the people that had survived the fall being shepherded under her orders into a large group of thousands of individuals. All those lives. In her hooves. "But I don't—I still believe we could do better, my Queen."

Kerrigan was silent.

"I will follow your orders, my Queen, and I will follow them gladly," Sweetie continued, feeling that perhaps she was making a dent. Tiny as it was. "Can I… try to make them work for us?"

"What possible use could terrans have for us, Sweetie?" Kerrigan's voice was gentle. "The terrans will not bend to our will."

Sweetie closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She thought about everything she had learned from Twilight. Everything she had learned here. Equestria might not be perfect, but it had worked for multiple species to work together. And the binding glue was...

"We can show them that they can be part of us," Sweetie said. "We've got their lives in our claws. They have no escape. No means of survival but our generosity. If we're honest with them and give them the option to serve and help us, if we show some kindness… terrans are creative, they build amazing things. They can build them for us. Especially if we gain their loyalty."

"Abathur is reminding me that we don't need those structures or weapons. That their loyalty is irrelevant, and kindness for them is a weakness. I'm inclined to agree."

"No, we don't need the structures" Sweetie agreed. "He is right. But that's not all, and you know it. We need to change. This battle was won thinking outside the box. Right now, my Queen… there's not that many zerg that can do that."

When Kerrigan didn't reply, Sweetie looked down at the masses of people. She couldn't hear them, but they were looking for their loved ones, fearing for their lives. Those that fought back were killed immediately and messily. She knew she wasn't getting her point across, especially to Abathur who was… her eyes widened.

"My Queen, up until now, infestation has always a violent, immediate effect, and we usually just get mindless drones correct? But sufficiently long exposure will still infest individuals, right? What if… what if we could… experiment?"

Silence. Then, "Abathur is intrigued. And I share his curiosity. Go on."

Sweetie gulped, looking down at the people. "W-what if… we infest them slowly? What if they cooperate in becoming something new? What if… the results of that is an actual evolution?"

"Why are they herding us like this?" Ariel Hanson muttered, as she knelt next to an injured soldier. She had managed to stop the blood from flowing, but had to wonder what was even the point at this stage. They were all dead or infested.

Thousands of her people had looked to her for guidance, and she had failed them. Even Raynor hadn't been able to win this fight, was that just an indication that the zerg were going to win? Did it matter?

She looked down at the pin on her breast pocket. It was the coat of arms for her colony; the planet Agria and the caduceus behind it. It represented a world dedicated to science. Some of the universe's most brilliant Terran minds were here with their families. And the dominion had abandoned them. They were alone—truly alone—and at the mercy of the zerg.

And zerg were not known for being merciful.

A loud roar cut through the din of voices, immediately silencing the thousands of people there. She heard loud stomps, and the ground shook under them as—not one—three ultralisks approached the corralled people of planet Agria.

Above them several types of zerg flew and the people started panicking. The ultralisks roared again, but this time there was something different. A voice. Young. Almost childish in how cheerful it sounded. "Citizens of Agria, I will speak to whoever is your leader now."

Ariel swallowed, but then took a deep breath and started moving through the crowds of people. At first, they didn't budge, but as they slowly turned when they felt her push, and recognized her, they slowly started spreading to the sides, stone-faced and scared, providing a straight path that kept opening up towards the ultralisks.

She started walking, noticing others had emerged from the masses to join her. She recognized the security administrator for Hudderstown, and the mayor of Green Acres among them. They all gave each other wary looks as they made their way to the front, where the strangest zerg of all waited for them.

"My name is Sweetie Belle," the zerg introduced herself, "and I have an offer for you and your people."

The security administrator for Hudderstown spat on her. "We will never—"

He never finished his speech. With lightning-fast movements, the zerg's scythes dismembered him in a shower of blood. It was so fast he probably didn't even have time to register pain.

Ariel trembled. She felt a shiver, stuck right between her shoulder blades. But this was… "He didn't speak for all of us," she blurted out, earning a resigned look from the mayor of Green Acres, who nodded and stepped back with the others, allowing her to take the spotlight.

The Sweetie Belle zerg looked at her up and down, and smiled. "Great! Then let me explain what I have in mind."

Author's Notes:

So, this is outside of the regular publishing date, but I feel like I haven't been releasing enough chapters lately. I could even consider this last Thursday's chapter.