Writer's block is a bitch. That is all I'll say.

Luna stood at her window, looking out at the island from whence she and her sister had come many years ago. The once quiet home that had once housed the split colony of humans led by her and her sister was now erupting with activity. She could see the many different races of Gaia all swarming around the Swamp Beast, making moves to subjugate it, but with how large it had grown since she had last seen it, Luna could tell that the group of dragons, changelings and griffons were not organized. They were overlapping and their formations were incompatible. The changelings had order, but the dragons had raw power. Half of the island would likely be up in flames by the time they were done. And as for the griffons? Well, they had no sense of order in their ranks.

The changelings who had come to surround the ship with a bright green shield were seemingly more ordered and led by a human, of all things. Luna knew this because he had seen him walking on the deck with a changeling queen by his side giving orders to the other changelings and urging everyone to get inside.

From behind her, the door to her room slowly opened. She turned and saw Discord standing there, a grave expression on his face. She nodded at him. “Kane Fox,” she said, using his real name for the first time in over a thousand years.

“Selene Star,” he replied with a nod, closing the door behind him as he walked up to join her in watching the battle unfold before them, hands behind his back. The two didn’t say a word as they watched the battle unfold. After a while, Discord, now Kane, looked down at the crystal sphere. The cracks had spread now. He looked back up at Luna, or Selene. “How much longer?”

“Days, maybe hours,” Selene said morosely without looking away from the battle. “Celestia-nay, Celeste, is in her room. She refuses to see us.”

“You’re slipping into ye olden Shakespearian,” Kane admonished her, “and using the royal We.”

Selene’s cheeks flushed. “Apologies,” she said, “it would seem our connection to our counterpart is stronger than we-I…realized.” She looked away and at Kane. “We three knew this day would come, Kane. My sister most of all. Star Swirl did say that the magic wouldn’t hold forever.”

Kane nodded. “Yes, I know. This is perhaps the worst possible time to have it happen, though.” He looked at her with concern. “How are you holding up? Having all of those various lifetimes shoved back into you couldn’t have been easy.”

“I had some help, I believe,” Selene said. “My pony counterpart has a mind for these things, and even though she doesn’t know it, her calming presence helped me ease those memories back into place. We are uncertain about our sister, however.”

“You’re the lucky one,” Kane said. “I had no help. There was no counterpart mind for me to grasp. All I saw was darkness. Oblivion. I don’t know what that means. I do remember everything my counterpart did before he was turned into stone, so perhaps he is still a statue.”

Selene frowned. “That is troubling. I’m sorry you had to suffer so.” She put a reassuring hand on his back.

Kane waved a hand dismissively and gave her one of his disarming smiles. “It wasn’t as bad as it could have been,” he said.

Selene could tell this was a lie. She had over a thousand years of experience within her now, so she could spot a lie. Still, she was warmed by his attempt to not worry her so for the moment she let the matter rest. There were more pressing matters at hoof-at foot, she had to correct herself. She turned back to the window. “Glad to hear it.”

There was silence for a time. Finally, Kane spoke again. “Is that…a human riding a drake?”

Selene looked in the direction he was pointing. At first, she saw nothing, or rather she saw too much to be able to discern anything specifically. She wondered offhandedly if her pony counterpart had better eyesight, but her thoughts were cut short when she saw it. A massive winged reptile that looked like a dragon, but larger. Sitting on its back was a diminutive human figure. Her eyes widened. “That is a drake,” she said in awe, “and that is one of our saddles!”

“So he came from Gaia…” Kane said, “but what in God’s name is he doing here?”

“I don’t know,” Selene said, “but I suspect…we will find out sooner or later.” She turned to Kane. “But enough of this standing around. Right now, you and I are staff at Canterlot High. We should be helping our students.”

Kane nodded. “Yes, you’re right. Let’s get moving. Should we try and get Celeste to try and help?”

Selene shook her head. “Leave her be for now. She’s safe for the moment.” She held up a hand and showed that it was glowing a dark blue. “I do not know how,” she said, “but I have gained some of my counterpart’s magic. I have placed a protective barrier around her cabin that will help to protect her.”

Kane looked at her in stunned silence. He slowly looked down at his own hand, then seemed to concentrate on it. Nothing happened. He sighed. “I didn’t think it’d be that easy,” he admitted as he looked back up at Selene. “Later, though. What should we be doing?”

“For one, let’s find Sunset and her friends,” Luna said. “She is the magical expert and an expert on all things Equestria. I may have my counterpart’s memories, but not the firsthand experience.”

Kane nodded. “Yes, you’re right. Let’s go.” With that, the two opened the door and rushed out.

“The last of the lifeboats are ready, Sunset,” Rainbow said as she rejoined Sunset in the ship’s dining area, the agreed upon meeting place after things were taken care of. “Just in case things go wrong and that monster hits the ship.”

Sunset nodded. It hadn’t taken long to convince everyone on deck to head indoors away from the danger. The changelings had been busy casting some kind of massive shield spell around the ship. The changeling queen had transformed into a large strange flying creature that Sunset didn’t recognize and was flying around with Jason on her back. The human was barking orders to the changelings who obeyed without hesitation. The sickly green shield around the ship grew brighter as more magic was cast on it.

“What about the passengers?” Sunset asked.

“They’re all wearing life jackets just in case,” Fluttershy said as she came up behind Rainbow. “So are all the animals.”

Out of the corner of her eye out of a window she saw several changeling drones transforming into large sharks before diving into the water. She forced that out of her mind as she looked at the approaching Rarity. No, the Raritys. Both human and pony variants had gone together to create spare boats just in case. The human Rarity approached, breathless. “We…hah…made twenty…hah…extra lifeboats…” She took a few moments to compose herself, running her hand through her hair. “Ah…all this sweat is ruining my makeup…”

“You look fine, darling,” the pony Rarity replied, looking up at her human counterpart.

The human Twilight reappeared as well, along with Pinkie and Applejack. Sunset first turned to the farmgirl. “You checked to make sure the engines are all ready in case we need to make a run for it?”

“All primed and ready,” she said before she looked up at the shield. “Ah don’t know ‘bout that shield, though.”

“It is a changeling shield, so it should move with us,” a familiar voice said from behind the girls. Everyone turned to see Vice Principal Luna along with Discord.

Sunset looked curiously at the vice principal. “How do you know that?” she asked.

Luna raised her hand and tapped her forehead. It was then that Sunset noticed that Luna’s hair seemed to be slightly moving as if a breeze was blowing through it. This wouldn’t have been unusual except for the fact that they were inside. There was also the fact that she saw slight glistening lights like stars in Luna’s dark blue hair. “Trust us,” she said, “we are remembering things not our own.”

“You sound like Princess Luna,” the pony Rarity said.

“Her hair certainly looks like Princess Luna’s,” the dragon Spike added.

“That is a story for another time, young dragon,” Luna said to Spike before she turned to Sunset. “Discord and I have come to offer our assistance.”

“Where’s Principal Celestia?” Twilight asked worriedly.

“Fret not, young Twilight,” Luna said reassuringly. “She is safe but indisposed at the moment. How can the two of us help?”

“Well, we’ve been preparing just in case we need to abandon ship,” Sunset said. “Everything seems to be ready for that eventuality.”

“I see. Everything then depends on the creatures defending the ship,” Luna said. She held up her hand, and everyone saw it was glowing a deep resonating blue. “We are unsure if our new magic can help, but we will attempt to ensure the safety of everyone on this ship.” Luna turned to Sunset. “Sunset Shimmer, I may have the memories of my counterpart, but not the experience in magic. I can perform some magic, but the other spells I am seeing from my counterpart are beyond my reach to understand. Will you be willing to help me?”

Sunset rushed forward. “I will,” she promised.

Luna nodded gratefully, then turned to the others. “Also, before we go, I should mention that our names are not Luna and Discord.” She pointed to Discord. “His real name is Kane Fox. My name is Selene Star.”

“Real names?” Rainbow asked.

“Tis a long tale, young Rainbow,” Luna said, “and once this crisis is over, we shall explain. However, what can we do to help?”

Celestia lay in bed, panting heavily as she curled up underneath the comforter and held her head. Outside of her comfortable fortress of thick warm blankets, her entire room, which had once been pristine and orderly like her life, was now in shambles. The evergreen couch cushions had been thrown around the room and torn up, leaving the stuffing laying everywhere like a layer of snow, the mirror above the desk had been shattered, the cabinet drawers had been thrown around, and the TV was lying on the floor, completely wrecked.

Celestia curled up tighter, trying to will herself to forget everything that was coming back to her after one thousand years. A thousand years of having her old body restored to that of an infant and having her memory erased after ‘death’ over and over again. Her and her sister. She didn’t want to remember the dozens of lives she’d lived. Her head felt like it was splitting open.

Not only that, but there were other memories. Memories not her own. She was seeing bits and pieces of a strange palace, but not only that, she was seeing herself not as a human, but as a white horse with wings and a horn. She was also sensing something changing inside her. Something both alien and strangely familiar. One word came to her mind when she allowed herself to think about it: Magic.

She was developing magic.

She grabbed her pillow and screamed into it angrily. As if in response, the ship around her rocked, but she wasn’t paying any attention. She didn’t want to remember everything again. She raised her fist and struck the headboard of her bed over and over again, hoping that the pain would help her forget.

Pain…helping her forget…

She came up out of the blanket and looked up at the wall, a sudden idea forming in her head. Slowly, she uncurled herself, getting onto her knees and placing both hands on the wall, looking at it. She knew that getting his in the head was a good way to develop amnesia. She felt a smile forming on her lips, one that turned into almost demented laughter. That laughter became a harsh screech as she moved her head back. With a jerk, she moved forward without any hesitation.

“Sister! NO!”

Celestia felt her head slow down. Her forehead touched the wall, but it wasn’t enough to hurt. She felt a pair of strong arms being wrapped around her and she turned to find herself staring into the eyes of Discord. Kane Fox. One of her oldest friends and in some lives a lover. His eyes were full of worry, all directed at her. He swallowed a bit and gave her a lopsided grin. “You gave us a bit of a scare, Cellie,” he said, sounding relieved.

She looked at him, and felt herself go weak. She leaned into his chest and burst into tears. She clung to him like a scared little girl seeking comfort from a parent. Kane’s arms wrapped around her and held her close. Another presence made itself known as another pair of arms wrapped around Celestia.

No, not Celestia anymore.

Her name, her real original name. Celeste Star.

With her sister and one of her closest friends with her, she was starting to accept things as they were. She wasn’t just Celestia or Celeste, she had been more. With her acceptance, she felt her headache going away as a simultaneous sense of peace washed over her. A peace that seemed to come from her pony counterpart in Equestria. She still wept, but the crying started feeling therapeutic. Finally, she sat up, wiped her eyes and nose with a handkerchief Kane handed to her. “I…I’m sorry,” she said to Kane, pointing at his now stained shirt.

Kane waved his hand dismissively. “It’s just a shirt, Cellie,” he said, “I can get another one.”

Selene was immediately at Celeste’s side, holding her older sister with a worried expression on her face. “We are sorry you had to endure such sorrow,” she said. “We had hoped you would be able to enjoy this vacation to the fullest.”

Celeste stood back up, smiled, grabbed a tissue and blew her nose before wiping her eyes with another. “I’ll have time to mourn things later,” she said, standing tall. She snorted, almost in a horselike way, and she felt the surge of what she knew now to be magic coursing through her. “What’s the situation?”

As Selene filled her in, Celeste listened carefully, nodding in understanding. She had not only regained her memories from her many past lives, but she’d gained the memories of another. An alicorn, she now knew. Just like the cartoon My Lovely Pegasus her niece Cadance had enjoyed as a kid. Once Selene was finished, Celeste drew on the knowledge of her alicorn counterpart. And saw the memories of recent months pass through her head. A human, tormented by ponies in the other world, his ultimate revenge, the ultimate cause being the chaos lord Discord. Discord’s…

Her eyes shot open and she looked over at Kane, eyes wide in fear. She ran over and grabbed Kane’s shoulders, looking over her oldest friend with worry. Kane, a bit confused, looked at Celeste. “Celeste? What’s wrong?”

Suddenly, Selene was by his side as well, also looking him over, a look of worry that matched her sisters plastered on her face as well. “Kane, I believe I know now why you only have certain knowledge of your counterpart,” she said, her voice trembling.

Kane looked at Selene, his confusion turning to worry. “Do I want to know?” he asked.

Selene was the one who clung to him tightly. Celeste watched this with a sad smile. It would seem that Selene’s old feelings for Kane had come rushing back. Even if Celeste and Kane had once dated, Selene too had once felt strongly about him. She couldn’t imagine what it must have been like to know that in another world, a different version of the man she once loved had been killed. Celeste put a hand on Kane’s shoulder. “Maybe later,” she said, her voice trembling a bit before she straightened and narrowed her eyes. She felt her hair beginning to move as if in the breeze, but she ignored it since it felt strangely familiar. “Right now, we need to try and help our students and keep this ship from sinking.”

“Sister, we felt the magic of the Gjallarhorn nearby,” Selene said after she released Kane and wiped her own tears.

Celeste frowned. “How’d it get here? Last my counterpart knew, it was on Gaia.”

“We’re unsure,” Selene said, “but the power is here. And we believe it comes from the direction of the human who is riding that drake.”

The fight wasn’t going very well. Gregory could see that. He realized belatedly that they’d failed to take into account the different strategies of each race when it came to how they fought or strategized. Changelings had order in their ranks, but they weren’t exactly strong on their own and they relied too heavily on their shapeshifting abilities. Their magic was strong, but it seemed more built for defense and not offense. With their love supply low, they were weak.

The dragons were more of a brawler type race and relied heavily on their fire and strength. Still, the fire didn’t seem to do as much good as they expected especially since the monster they were fighting was surrounded by water which it could use to douse itself.

The griffons? They were weaker and had absolutely no sense of order. They fought valiantly, sure, but there was less order among them than among the dragons and changelings. They used their claws to slice off the vines and peck at them with their beaks, but for every vine they severed, two more took its place.

His group of close friends were flying around close to him. He was trying to go for the head. He reasoned that if it was taken out, the rest would follow. Simple. However, they were only a handful of creatures and the monster was being very protective of the large mass which was presumably its head or brain. Daenerys’ fire was hot, but it wasn’t doing much here to help just like the dragon’s own fire.

Zecora was being carried by Gallus and was throwing small spherical objects down at the larger concentrations of the monster. When they hit something, there was a hissing sound and the spheres broke, letting loose some kind of acidic substance onto the plant. It was a revolting smell, but it did the trick.

Starlight, being the powerful magic user that she was, had surrounded herself with a magical orb which she used to fly. She fired dangerous blasts of magic at the vines, destroying them and slicing them off easily, but just like with other vines, two more would take the place of the ones destroyed.

Gabby and Gilda were amazing. He didn’t know why, but those two seemed to be perfectly in sync with each other, Gabby seemed to have taken the leadership role among them and was fighting with a ferocity he’d never seen from her. Her eyes blazed as she slashed at the creature’s vines with her claws. Gilda was just as fierce. They slashed and dove through the thick moving vines, trying hard to get to the center to end the creature’s life, but nothing seemed to be working. The creature was too powerful.

Gregory had even fired off a few shots with his pistol before realizing that in comparison to the monster, he might as well have been firing peashooters at the thing. He put his pistol away and instead drew his new Atlantean sword. It blazed in the light of the sun as he made sure that the helmet on his head was fastened straight. A part of him knew that the rest of him was thoroughly exposed to attack, especially to the tips of the vines which seemed to be sharp as a blade, but he knew he had to protect his head at all costs.

At that thought, the sword in his hand flashed with a bright blue light. His ears suddenly felt like they were being stretched, and after looking down, he saw that something else had appeared on his body. Or rather, to cover his body. He now wore a suit of gleaming fresh looking armor that protected him everywhere. He didn’t have the time to think about it as he spotted movement out of the corner of his eye. He spun around and slashed at the motion with his sword, only to feel his heart stop when he saw that he’d nearly clipped Gilda. “Gilda!?”

She spun away from him, a look of wide eyed fear passing over her face. “Hey! Careful with that thing, dweeb!” she shouted.

“Sorry!” he shouted back, turning back to the monster before them.

“You look sexy in that!” Gabby’s voice said from my left.

Gregory turned, lifted the visor, and gave her a wink before lowering the visor again and looking back down at the monster. Gallus and Zecora joined them soon after, with Starlight coming moments later. Starlight was panting heavily and Gregory could tell she had expended a lot of magic. She landed on Daenerys’ back and clung to Gregory’s back to catch her breath. “That thing’s…indestructible…” she said.

“Nothing’s indestructible,” Gregory replied, pointing his sword down at the center of the mass of vines. It looked like some sort of eldritch horror, writhing vines like nasty tentacles. “See that mass of vines?”

“Seriously gross,” Gilda said with a scowl.

“There’s got to be something those vines are protecting,” Gregory continued, ignoring Gilda’s words. “Cut off the head and the rest will follow. It’s protecting its vulnerable spot.”

Nearby, he saw Chrysalis firing a deadly blast of magic at a large branch of vines, slicing clean through them. However, as the vines fell, more took their place. He looked at his friends. “Follow me,” he said as he turned Daenerys towards Chrysalis. When they were within earshot, he shouted, “Chrysalis!”

She gave him a quick glance before looking back at the monster. “I’m a bit busy here,” she shouted as she fired another blast of magic at another bit of vines.

“This is getting us nowhere!” Gregory shouted back. “We need to have a better plan than just attack it and whittle away at it!”

“Got any ideas then, dragonrider?!” Ember’s voice called from above. She flew down beside the group, breathing fire at the incoming vines every so often.

Gregory’s mind went into overdrive. He knew some changelings were here helping, as were the dragons and griffons. He looked around, looking for ideas and running through the strengths of each race there. Dragonfyre, he’d learned, could definitely be used to burn a path through the vines if concentrated. Changeling magic could aid in that, pushing vines away and keeping shields up. Griffons had ferocity and unpredictability, plus their claws were sharp.

Then, he noticed something. He had been hearing the screeching sounds coming from the griffons all through the fight, some sort of battle cry. He paid more attention to it, then to the creature’s reaction to it. To his surprise, he saw that anytime a griffon shrieked, the nearest vines would retreat.

He turned to Gabby. “I have a plan, but it’s going to involve the help of every race here.” He turned back to Chrysalis, then Ember. “Are you both okay with this?”

Ember scowled over at Chrysalis, baring her teeth at the former queen. Chrysalis’ eyes flashed with a similar rage, but that was all. Gregory watched, likening what he was seeing to two predators sizing each other up before a fight. However, it was Chrysalis who spoke first. “As long as the flying reptile keeps her claws to herself, we’ll be fine.”

“Don’t insult me, bug!” Ember snapped back.

“ENOUGH!” Gregory bellowed, glaring at both leaders. “You can fight each other later!” He pointed to Ember. “Dragon Lord, we need the dragons all in one place so they can use their dragonfyre on the beast all at once.” Next, he pointed to Chrysalis. “Duchess, what changelings that are helping in the fight will need to use their magic to hold back as much of the vines as possible when we press the attack.” He looked to Gabby. “Gabby, what’s that screech I keep hearing you and the other griffons using?”

“It’s a battle cry,” she replied. “Why?”

He didn’t respond directly. Instead, he gestured to Gilda and Gallus as well as Gabby. “You three tell the griffons that they are to wait for my signal, and when I give it, they are to use their battle screech as loud as they can at the exact same time.”

“What about me and Zecora?” Starlight asked.

Gregory turned back to her, then looked at the expectant zebra, the latter of whom still held some orbs full of whatever acidic liquid she had been using. He pointed at Starlight. “You help the changelings hold back the vines. Zecora, is there anything you have with you that’s explosive?”

“A brew I have that ignites, ‘tis true, but what use can it be for you?” she asked.

“Just before the dragons breathe their fire, I want you to drop as much of the stuff as you can,” Gregory replied. “The more fire we have, the more likely we’ll be in hitting the center.”

She nodded, and simply said, “Understood.”

I turned back to Daenerys. “Dany, we’ll be breathing fire with the dragons too. Think you can handle that?”

She looked back at me and gave me a smirk. “I may be young, but I am strong,” she said in a proud tone. “My fire is hot and burns brightly.”

“That’s what I like to hear,” Gregory smirked, patting her scales before he turned back to everyone. “Tell your soldiers to pull back for the moment!” he commanded. “We need an opening, and we need to lull this creature into a false sense of security!”

Gabby raised her head and opened her beak. However, instead of a battle screech, he heard a bellowing roar, like that of a lion. As one, the griffons turned from their attack, eyes locked onto her. In a voice that probably would have rivaled the Royal Canterlot Voice, she bellowed, “Fall back! The Chancellor commands it!” There was a tone of command in her voice that passed through everyone there, not just the griffons. However, all griffons did as ordered and retreated back to where they were.

When the changelings and dragons retreated out of the reach of the tentacles, Gregory led them to fly between the monster and the cruise ship. It was at that moment that something new occurred. From below, he saw two brightly glowing forms approaching them, followed by seven more. When they reached him, Gregory gaped. Flying beside him on either side were two human women. One had pale pinkish skin, a multicolored rainbow head of hair which flowed in the breeze, and a pair of wings behind her. On the other side of him flew a dark blue skinned woman with blue hair and a pair of wings. “Celestia? Luna?” he gasped.

“Nay, my good sir,” Luna said. “Our name is Selene Star. This woman is our elder sister, Celeste Star.”

The seven other forms joined as well. He knew who they were without needing to say. Sunset came flying up to him, her glowing phoenix wings behind her spread wide. “How can we help?” was all she could say.

Gregory looked at the others. Seeing the Mane Six in pony form was one thing, but seeing humans, real flesh and blood humans, with varying skin, hair, and eye colors than the norm, was unusual, and it was a relief. He’d only seen Jason since coming here, and now that he knew there were other humans, he somehow felt less alone. He returned his gaze to Sunset. “Sunset, you and the other Elements of Harmony keep everyone on board the Luxe Deluxe safe and protected,” he said. “Also, tell the captain to move the ship further away from the island. There’s gonna be a huge explosion.”

She looked surprised that he knew her name, but he was relieved to see that she knew her priorities when she nodded sharply. She turned back to the others. “Come on, girls! Let’s keep protecting the ship!”

Rainbow Dash, the human one, looked a bit suspiciously at Gregory. “But how’d he know your name-?”

“Later!” Sunset interrupted, grabbing the wings of the prismatic human and dragging her down.

“Ow ow! Not so hard!” Rainbow said in pain as everyone else followed suit.

Celestia, or Celeste, flew up closer to Gregory. “Atlantean armor,” she said in awe before she stopped and became serious. “I don’t know who you are, sir, but my sister and I can be of help.” She turned and pointed to the writhing mass of tentacles that formed a ball around something. “That is a Swamp Beast, a monster created in ancient times by Grogar. Star Swirl and the Pillars of Equestria attempted to destroy it, but it didn’t work, so instead they had to banish it.”

“That seems to be a theme with that old fucker,” Gregory said, “but how do you know-?”

“I’ll explain later,” Celeste said. “They told Princess Celestia that it only had one weakness, and that was the head.”

Gregory nodded, refocusing on the task at hand. “We’re going to attempt to destroy it,” he said.

“Hast thou a plan?” Selene asked.

“The beginnings of one,” Gregory said before he quickly recounted his idea.

Both listened intently, before Celeste nodded and smiled. “A good plan. However, you’re missing one vital thing.”

“And what’s that?” Gregory asked.

She pointed to the writhing mass of vines. “The Swamp Beast’s vines will grow more and more with fresh water contact. There are many plants on this island, and the beast can drain them of their water to strengthen itself. Once it senses it’s in real danger, it’ll do that and grow more. Any fire you use will be useless if the head isn’t exposed completely.”

“That is where the two of us come in,” Selene said, seeming to understand where Celeste was going. “We have the knowledge of our Equestrian counterparts, and it would seem we have the command of their magic, at least an echo of it.”

“I know Celestia and Luna would have the strength to pull the head out from behind those vines,” Celeste added, “but I don’t know if we do. We just got this magic.”

“But we are willing to try,” Selene finished, holding up her hands which began to glow a deep blue.

Gregory felt his confidence rise. He drew the sword he had sheathed before and held it aloft. “Listen to me, everyone!” he shouted so as to be heard. He couldn’t believe he was about to give a rallying speech, but he couldn’t think of anything else to do to give them confidence. “We all want to go home, believe me I know! But before we can do that, this monster must be defeated! There are representatives of many races of Gaia here today! Griffons, dragons, changelings, ponies, zebras, and even humanity! Apart, we are as different as night and day, but if we use our strengths, we can take the day! Who’s ready to kick some disgusting plant ass!?”

The griffons cheered loudly, the dragons roared, the changelings looked a bit confused, but eventually they joined in. Celeste and Selene smiled at him as the latter said, “Thy foul language aside, we are prepared to defeat this nasty creation of Grogar’s.”

“Then let’s do it.”

Hunger. The beast hungered. It lusted for the tender flesh of creatures. It craved the delicious flesh of creatures. It loved to hear their squeals or shrieks of terror, as it made the meal all the sweeter.

And currently, it was looking at a mighty feast, the likes of which it hadn’t seen in ages. Not since those strange creatures encased in metal came from the mountain. Now, however, despite its eyes covered, it could see a number of unusual creatures, including some shaped similarly to the ones it had tortured and devoured ages ago.

The meat creatures were trying to hurt it, which made it angry. It did the hurting! It was the one who took pleasure in the hurting, not these pathetic creatures whose sole purpose was to feed its magnificence.

Suddenly, the creatures retreated, and his almighty Touch could no longer feel them. Could no longer sense their warm, delicious bodies. It felt confusion, feeling around and trying to find its food. It was starving, and the food in its home was not enough to sate its almighty Hunger. How dare they? How dare these insignificant mites challenge and mock it!? It was lord of all! It was the bringer of life and death! Mostly death.

It used the roots to begin soaking up the life of its fellow plants. Plants placed there by providence for his own sustenance. It felt the life drain from his home. It didn’t care. They would return and feed it again. It felt the screams of pain of the animals in its grasp as it crushed them. Other animals fled, but it didn’t care. It was focused on a much bigger prize.

It grew. And grew. Soon, all of the soil on its home island was covered by its countenance. Its divine form. Soon, it would sense everything. It would become stronger thanks to the nutrition it had gained by the unwilling but noble sacrifice of its subjects on his island.

It withdrew into itself, ready for the inevitable. It would shoot out its web of vines in every direction possible. It knew victory was inevitable, and then came the feast. The feast where it could use its eyes to see the terror and screams of its meals before devouring them.

However, mere moments before it could release its might, it felt something restraining against its vines. Annoyed, it pushed against the restraints, but it couldn’t move. It pushed against the restraints once more, its annoyance turning to righteous fury! How dare it be restrained!?

Then it felt the hot sting against its holy orb of vines! It screeched in rage as it tried to pull away, but something stopped it once more. The audacity! The sheer audacity of these pathetic worms! They would pay dearly for their transgressions!

Suddenly, it saw light. Its eyes had been covered for ages upon ages, but it knew light. It was red and it burned. It burned through his protection, and for the first time in many lifetimes of lesser forms of life, saw the life forms for what they were.

The bright light in the sky shone down brightly, temporarily blinding it as it tried to reform its chrysalis of vines around itself. The food creatures were hidden behind the light, but soon it could see them. Varying creatures, some it had not seen in many lifetimes. When its home had been a vast jungle. Others it didn’t recognize, but the power it felt from them was intoxicating. For it didn’t just feed off of flesh and bone, but on magic. And it hadn’t felt the deliciousness of having its magical stomach full for ages upon ages.

And there was a veritable feast waiting. If only it could get to them.

It roared in frustration as it flung itself against the barrier once more. A barrier made of magic, it realized instantly. Suddenly, its frustration turned to glee. It fed off of magic, after all. It just needed to get to the nearest part of the magic and suck on it!

Instinctively, it searched out for the nearest source of magic and discovered that it was behind its head, still covered by the vines that protected part of his head. It felt a sense of satisfaction as it turned its head and dove into the vines, searching for the source of magic. However, when its head came out and jaw opened, it was met with a wall of flame. The magic vanished and it felt the burning sting of the fire.

Angrily, it shot its mouth out, trying to snap at the source of the fire, but another bright flash illuminated its eyes and causing it to go temporarily blind. Its head thrashed about, its rage increasing. It blinked its eyes rapidly, regaining its sight. More creatures flew there, and one among them stood out. A large flying reptile with some small creature on its back hovered close. The beast recognized the shining metal the smaller creature wore, and its anger blazed. The same metal had been worn by the pale skinned creatures that had come from the mountain and by the similarly shaped red skinned flying creatures after them.

The same creatures who it hated the most out of every other creature it had consumed.

The need for revenge welled up inside its being and it howled, but just as it was about to attack, a piercing shriek came from all directions. It retreated, the harsh sound stunning it. A pair of bolts of lightning came down, striking it and stunning it briefly. Another blast of fire shot towards it, along with a small brown bead that exploded the moment the fire touched it.

It flailed about, angrier than it had ever been before. The pain shot through its massive form, but fortunately for it, the head was still secure. It opened its eyes and glared over towards the creatures in the air. Its eyes locked onto the creature encased in metal and it hissed. With a rage unparalleled, it opened its mouth wide and its tongue snapped out towards the creature, wrapping around the distasteful metal and snapping him off of the back of the larger flying creature.

Finally! There would be a delicious meal coming its way, and it would start with the metal creature.

It heard the screams of its victim and felt the rush of enjoyment at the screams. It would make the meal all the sweeter. It heard cries of fear and worry coming from above, and it gave an open mouthed grin. Clearly, this creature had someone to care for it. No matter, that made the meal even better!

It retracted its tongue slowly, pulling it back and wrapping the meal more and more in its tongue. It felt the creature squirming in its grasp and relished in it as it pulled its first bite towards the maw.

It was about to close its jaws around the creature, only to stop when a sharp noise cracked through the air. There was a sharp pain on the roof of its mouth and it hesitated, stunned. Nothing had ever touched the inside of its mouth before to cause pain. Nothing!

There was a second noise, then a third, then a fourth. To its shock, one of its eyes stopped working as pain shot through it as well. It felt liquid pour from the eye. Blood! No food made it bleed its own blood!

With a roar of indignation, it pulled its food closer sharply, intent on swallowing it whole and enjoying the squirming sensation as the food was slowly dissolved. It didn’t expect more pain, but that was what it got as a sharp pain went through its tongue, slashing it apart with intense ferocity.

It lost the grip on its food, only for it to land square into its mouth. Just then, the magic around its many vines holding it back were lifted and it could move. It tried to move them into a protective stance around its head, only to hear a shattering sound all around it. The pain was intense and unlike anything it had felt before, save for the pain that had followed the noises before. It clenched its mouth shut, the first morsel of food still inside.

Trying to get one victory out of the many failures, it tried to use what was left of its tongue to push the food back to its throat. However, the creature inside fought back and it felt the stabbing of more pain than it had ever felt before. Its anger burned hot and it shook its head, trying to knock the food out, but all that did was bring more pain.

Until the food slipped.

With complete satisfaction and a victory cry, the beast felt its food slide down its throat. It wasn’t the best way, but it was still satisfying nonetheless. Unfortunately, the magic holding back the majority of its vines was back in place. Then there were more sharp noises. It felt the pain around its exposed vines near its head. The fire struck at the same time with a ferocity unmatched from the time before.

Then, pain came from its stomach.

It howled and its mouth opened in a roar of immense pain. Its head shot out, looking down with its one good eye at its stomach. A piece of metal stuck out of its exposed main body. It howled louder and reached down, trying to claw at the piece of metal with its teeth. However, another blast of fire from above struck its head. With a final indignant roar, it looked to see another similarly shaped creature sitting on the back of a winged black quadruped. It had a large piece of metal held up. The beast saw the creature’s face. One eye was white and the other full of rage. A noise came from its mouth, and as the piece of metal exploded with light, it also felt a stabbing pain in its chest.

It faded into oblivion…

Jason had arrived just in time to see his fellow human be swallowed by the monster. He’d heard the screams of terror from the Gabby griffon. He’d taken command instantly, bringing out his rifle and commanding his changelings to reload just in case. He’d aimed his gun directly at the monster’s head, when he saw something from below. A small glint of metal sticking out of the beast’s large belly. He smirked. His fellow human wasn’t out of the woods yet, but he had fight in him.

Turning to Gregory’s drake, he shouted, “Daenerys! Use as much fire as you can on its head!”

The drake nodded and did so, releasing a large burst of fire. The creature’s head reared back, and at the same time Jason saw the sword pull back into the wound. The creature looked up directly at Jason, its one good eye locked onto him with a look of pure hatred in its eye. Jason glared back down with his own good eye, then shouldered his rifle. “Not today, you bastard!” With that cry, he pulled the trigger.

He watched in satisfaction as he creature’s head exploded in a mist of blood and brains. At the same time, he saw Gregory’s sword sticking out of the chest of the creature, although higher than before. It slid down, creating an opening through which the human could escape. And he had to do so quickly, since the creature’s new headless neck was thrashing about, as was the rest of its body.

He watched as Gregory slid down the dying Swamp Beast’s belly towards the ground, landing, or rather crashing, onto the ground. The armor that had encased him vanished in a flash of what had to be magic just as the helmet came off, tumbling away. Gregory’s sword fell out of his hand as he lay sprawling on the ground, his body covered in blood and guts.

Looking down to the changeling who he was riding, he ordered, “Bring me down there, quickly!”

“At once, my Emperor!” the changeling shouted, diving as quickly as he could towards the ground.

It seemed, however, that he wasn’t the only one to have that idea. He saw a dark gray shape divebomb the ground, landing first beside the downed human. Daenerys was next, gently lifting her rider in her claws. Gregory’s other friends were instantly there a few seconds later, Zecora by his side and motioning everyone to stand back.

When Jason landed, he got off of the changeling and rushed over as fast as he could. He stopped beside the unicorn pony. “How is he?” he asked Zecora as she was applying some sort of salve to him.

“His skin is full of burns and hurts,” she explained, “Now quiet, and allow me to be his nurse.” There was a tone of command in her voice.

The changeling beside him looked indignant, but before he could say anything Jason put a hand in front of his face, looking down and shaking his head. From behind him, he heard someone else land. A familiar voice said, “Our sister and I know several healing spells that might be of aid.” He turned and saw the human versions of Luna and Celestia approaching.

“Your aid, while kindly extended, may result in his life being prematurely ended,” Zecora replied. “If any healing magic on him is used, the poisons to him will be permanently fused.”

Principal Celestia put a hand on Luna’s shoulder. “She’s right. I just remembered that these creature’s stomachs are filled with poison that dissolves their prey.”

Luna was about to say something when she stiffened, cocking her head. She nodded and stood straighter. Slowly, her eyes settled on Jason. She approached him, looking at him wide eyed. A sense of recognition formed on her face as she said, “Thou art Jason Wright…”

Jason raised an eyebrow. “I am…how do you know my name?” he asked.

“We know it from the memories of our royal counterpart,” she said.

“It’s a long story,” the human Celestia said as she joined her sister, “and hopefully we’ll have time to tell it.” She extended her hand towards him. “Name’s Celeste Star. My real name, that is.”

Jason frowned in confusion, but took the offered hand and shook it. “Nice to meet you, Miss Star.”

“This is my sister Selene Star,” Celeste said, gesturing to the other human. Jason nodded politely to Selene, who smiled and bowed a bit back at him. “We know who you are, but is that man over there really Gregory Graystone?”

A bit unnerved by their knowledge of him and his fellow human, he nodded. “Seems he underwent some minor cosmetic changes somehow,” he said.

“Well, I suspect we’ll get some answers later,” Celeste said, turning back to where Zecora was treating Gregory hastily but thoroughly.

Everyone waited worriedly as Zecora did her magic. Finally, she stepped back and wiped her brow with her hoof. “He is out of danger, that much is addressed. For now what he needs is some food and some rest.”

“Hopefully they have some extra beds on the cruise,” Celeste said, turning to see the retreating vessel. “Is he safe to be moved?”

“I’ll make sure nothing happens to him,” the large drake said, slowly reaching down and lifting the human with her claws. “Lead me where to go.”

Jason looked back at the changeling he’d ridden on before, who nodded and lowered himself so that his emperor could sit on his back. He turned back to Daenerys. “We’ll lead you back.”

As the group flew or were flown towards the still retreating ship, one thought passed through Jason’s mind. When had Gregory gotten pointed ears?