Sister! He returns!

Thank the sun and stars. We had thought you lost to us, friend! Wait... oh my. The wound... it carried over?! I sense it upon you even now! Sister, how could this be?

The contamination of his link. It must be. We could not cleanse it, only isolate it. We no longer have full control of the connection.

It felt like the hardest thing he'd ever done to simply utter one word. “...wait.”

...he speaks! But how?!

He is melded to the link now, inseparable. This... this should be impossible, but... here we have it. Friend... what is your name?

“My name... is... Jacob.” Speaking was getting easier... slowly.

Jacob. A resourceful one you are, friend. There was a pause, and he felt a strange sensation flow through him. There. You are more attuned to our presences now; you should be able to speak without difficulty. My sister and I both know you have questions- as time and knowledge permit, we will answer them.

A thousand questions tumbled through his mind, all demanding to be asked, but one pushed its way to the forefront. “Was Story Seeker a real pony before I woke up in his body on that train?”

Yes. He would have closed his eyes and sighed if he'd had a body at the moment. To usurp him as we did was not a choice we made lightly, Jacob. But we had few alternatives, and none placed you in as advantageous a position.

“I suppose I'd hoped it was just... I don't know, a conjured body or something with a backstory.”

Would that we had the power to do such! There was an almost palpable wave of sadness and irritation. We would do so much more to assist you had we the ability, Jacob. We are nearly powerless here.

“I understand.” He did, honestly. They were doing all they could with the one-in-a-million chance his arrival had given them. “What happened with that wound? Why did it carry over to my real body?”

Your connection to Story Seeker was meant to be ephemeral. Temporary. Easily severed. We hedged our bet- were you unable to succeed with him, we could retrieve you, place you within the body of another pony, give you a second chance. But... then the link was compromised.

“Compromised... how?”

The wound you received... infested the link, through some manner neither of us can determine. Though both your body and that of Story Seeker will heal physically, some form of dark sorcery has tainted your connection- it is now inviolable, unseverable. What becomes of one of you will become of the other.

“So if I'd gotten scorched by that salamander last night, Story would be waking up with burn wounds?”

Indeed. ...wait. Salamander?

“And if Story dies... so do I?”

...that is the most likely scenario, yes.

“I was kind of operating under that assumption anyway, but I suppose it's good to have it confirmed.”

Indeed. Now... about that salamander....

“Long story.” He paused a moment- or an eternity; it was impossible to tell for sure here- to collect his thoughts. “As far as I can tell, this whole thing went down on the day of the Renewal, maybe during the ceremony itself. Is that what happened?”

It... may be.

“What do you mean, 'it may be'?”

Jacob, whatever happened to destroy us, did much more than simply that. It... erased us, somehow. My sister and I remember much of the time before the disaster, but of the days approaching it... all becomes more and more blurred. Of the very event itself we have only the vaguest recollections.

Indeed... Jacob, you may know more of what transpired than either of us, by now.

“Could that be because of what happened, or because I'm changing things? ...wait. I guess that doesn't really matter, does it.” Most of his questions simply fell away at the realization that the sisters simply couldn't remember enough about what happened to be of much help to him. “I... I slept for a bit while in Story's body, and I had... well, I'm not sure what it was. I'd thought it was a dream, but it was so detailed- I saw the moment of destruction just as it hit. Could it have been Story's last moments alive?”

It... it is possible. Things are in a state of flux now. Between our sending you to our past, your changing it, and whatever has taken effect upon you- there is no telling what may “leak” through the veil of time.

“I see.” One more moment's pause to think. “Okay, it's time to get down to business. When I was in Story's body, there were two accidents that seem to have a connection. The first was a young foal by the name of Dinky Hooves being lured away from her mother and under a scaffold, which almost collapsed on her in view of me. I barely got her out from beneath it in time. The scaffold checked out fine by the Royal Guard- except for one point that had been weakened, corroded away.”

I see. I am... disturbed that I do not remember this event; we would have commended you for the rescue. Continue, please.

“The second incident happened directly. A piece of marble fell off the facade of a hotel and would've gone right through my spine if a friend hadn't saved me- that's the wound I ended up with. The piece that hit me was partially coated with some kind of black substance that looked like it had eaten away the stone itself.”

And you believe these two incidents to be connected?

“I know it seems thin, but I have two connecting threads. One, the corrosion that affected only one minor area in each place, just enough to cause a hazard. Two, the fact that a Guard report showed strange symbols painted in some kind of unremovable substance in several areas- including those two.”

That is indeed suspicious. Sister? Thoughts?

A hunch, perhaps. I need more information... which our friend Jacob here seems eminently capable of gathering. The locations of all these areas, and the shapes of these symbols.

“The first I can give.” He recited the areas he'd read off of the graffiti report. “I can't guarantee that's all of them, but that's all there were on the report. As for what was painted, I don't have any idea yet.”

Those locations... hmm. There are too many possibilities. Please, Jacob, find out all you can about these symbols and who placed them. If they are connected, and you are in fact the target of somepony- or something- aware of your true nature, it would have to be a considerably powerful or knowledgeable mage behind these actions. Remember this, and exercise all due caution.

“You don't have to tell me once.” What else could he ask? He knew he was running short on time, somehow. “My phone and camera somehow recharged themselves while I was in Story's body. Do you know how that happened?”

We magically linked your devices to Story Seeker's body as a set of spell patterns. Your camera became a spell to capture images; we could not replicate the functions of your communication device, but perhaps you might discover a way to do so yourself. He hadn't even realized that might be possible. Due to the link you share with Story Seeker, your own body rejuvenates while it rests- it would seem the devices drew upon his magical energy in the same fashion.

“So that explains why I wasn't hungry when I woke up.” He could feel the strange pulling sensation that seemed to indicate when he was about to awaken, either in his body or Story's, and he was eager to get started on finding out more. But.... “I have one more question.”

Ask.

“Are you... are you the Princesses? Celestia and Luna?”

An overwhelming wave of emotions- sorrow, resignation, despair- washed over him. As he faded from this strange substanceless place, he could hear both of their “voices” respond quietly.

...we were.

(-)

knock knock knock

“...hang on, hang on, I'm coming.” It took him a few seconds to disentangle himself from the blanket and blink the sleepiness from his eyes. He didn't even think to try to make himself presentable before he stumbled over to the door and opened it, to find First Response on the other side; she opened her mouth as if to say something, then closed it, tilting her head to look at him more closely. “Not a morning pony, I take it?” she deadpanned.

“If the clock reads 'AM' then it's too early for me to be up.” He stepped back to allow her in. A quick glance at the mirror in the short hallway showed him to be a ridiculous sight- a bad case of bedmane, bleary eyes, and a rumpled undershirt. “Yeah, I'm a mess, I know,” he murmured.

“I'm not exactly ready for a session with Photo Finish when I roll out of bed either.” She snickered. “Sleep rough last night? I hope you weren't having more nightmares.”

“Mmmh, no, not that I can remember.” I did spend the night snooping around a Royal Guard stationhouse and running away from a giant fire-elemental reptile, but we'll save that conversation for the second date. “Just slept really hard, I suppose.”

“Ahh. Well, a good hot shower will probably get you running on all four hooves again. In the meantime, let's have a look at that wound.” She pulled her saddlepacks off, and retrieved quite a few medical-related items from them. “Off with the shirt, tough guy,” she said in a sing-song voice.

“And you didn't even buy me a drink first.” It was a bit more difficult to levitate his shirt off than it should have been, and he got his head caught in it for a moment before he could manage to pull free. Huh. No nudity shame. Getting comfortable being a pony, I guess.

“Okay, good. The bandages didn't shift while you slept.” She tugged a piece of the tape she'd used loose with a hoof, then grabbed it between her teeth. “Thi'f if gunnah fing ah widdle.”

“What-”

shrrrrrriiiip

“-gyaaah!” It was all he could do to muffle his yell with a hoof. “Son of a beesting, that hurts!” He'd almost used more objectionable language, but it really didn't seem right to do so here.

She spat out the tape. “Quit bellyaching. You're lucky I only had to use that much tape. A lesser-skilled paramedic would've needed three times as much.”

“Just... just tell me, did you leave ANY of my coat on me?”

“Four whole square inches! Flesh tone is in this year, didn't you know?” She chuckled. “Relax. You can't even see where the tape was. It's a good thing you've got a short coat- I didn't have to shave it for the tape.”

Cripes. Didn't even think of that. These ponies certainly don't have it easy with some things. “Yeah, good thing,” he agreed as she removed the bandaging. “So how's it look?”

“Well, you should probably use a better coat conditioner; you seem a little dry-”

“The wound, First.”

She snickered. “Killjoy. It's looking pretty good- better than I expected. You're a fast healer.”

“Well, I eat right and take my vitamins.” He chuckled. “Speaking of coat conditioner, I'm going to get that shower. Have you eaten yet?”

“Mmh, no, basically just came right over to check on you.” She seemed to think that over for a moment, then blushed slightly.

“Heh. Well, feel free to order a bite to eat from room service. My treat. Just get me some coffee and a little something to eat on the run.”

“That's sweet of you, Story.”

He looked over his shoulder to give her a smile. “Hey, least I could do for the checkup.”

The tape really hadn't made much of a mark on his coat, and as he stepped into the shower what few signs remained of it disappeared. The cut itself had faded, more just a pinkish line than the angry red one it had been when he'd last woken up, and he wondered how much of that was due to First's treatment and how much was because of this weird body-swapping he was doing; he hadn't thought to check the wound when he'd gone to bed in his own body. The hot water felt wonderful against the wound, stinging a little at first but then relaxing the skin. Still, he couldn't dawdle with company waiting on him, so he finished up the shower quickly, dried off and trotted back out into the hotel room, finding a tray with a mug of coffee and a danish waiting for him. “Don't tell Derpy or Amethyst that I didn't order any muffins or eclairs,” First chuckled, bringing a chocolate donut to her mouth as she sat on the bed.

“My lips are sealed, except when it comes time to put that danish in my mouth.” He came up to her, showing her his injured side. “Good enough to go without bandages, Doc?”

“Hmm... not quite yet. Though I'm less concerned about it opening than I am about clothing irritating it. Fortunately, that just requires a basic dressing and we won't need any tape.” He waited patiently as she placed a square of gauze with light adhesive against his side and then wrapped more gauze around his midsection to keep it secure. Once again, he found the wrappings to be secure without restricting his movement. “That's nice work,” he told her.

She actually smiled bashfully and looked down at the floor. “Thanks,” she murmured, paying close attention to her donut while he went for the dressers. As he looked through what he had to wear, he heard First shift on the bed. “Okay, seriously, is all your clothing sweater vests and dress shirts?” she asked.

“No! I'll have you know that I also own a cap.” He put on the hat he'd bought yesterday, and she laughed. “Oh, that makes it all so much better,” she giggled. “Come on, Mister Stuffy Academic, and get dressed. We're burning sunlight.”

“Right, right. Hm. Stuffy Academic... that has a nice ring to it. Maybe I could get my name legally changed.” She guffawed as he slipped into one of his shirts. “So, what do you think? Vest, sweater, or sweater vest?”

“Be bold, go with the argyle sweater vest. No, the other one.”

“You're just jealous because I can make argyle work.” He was having way too much fun bantering with First. Sorry to mock your fashion sense, Story, but she's right- this wardrobe of yours is just horrid. But it covers the bandage nicely, at least.... “All set. Let's finish this mini-breakfast and be on our way, shall we?”

It was a few minutes later that a moderately-less-hungry-and-sleepy Story trotted outside along with First. “So what's on our agenda?” he asked. “Going to pull the rest of our group together?”

“Not quite yet.” She stared down at her hooves for a moment. “I was kind of hoping we might... talk a bit, you know?”

“Well, talking is good.” He could tell she was nervous, so he gave her a comforting smile. “What about?”

“Well... you, honestly. I mean- don't take this the wrong way, Story, but you've definitely not turned out to be the kind of stallion I would've expected from looks alone.”

“Heh. Well.” Well, First, you see, the truth of it is I'm an alien whose spirit is tethered to this body by the remains of your Princesses decades after your entire species was wiped out. I'm walking Story Seeker around like a meat puppet with no idea if he even knows what's going on. Think she'd believe it? Hell, I still barely do. “Maybe this was a good time to rediscover myself.” He could practically hear the follow-up questions percolating in her head, so he moved to head them off. “But you know, I hardly know a thing about this one mare named First Response. I'm thinking this might be a good opportunity to fix that.”

“Oh, well, um....” She blushed again, and he had to admit- it was kind of cute when she did. “What's... what's to know, really? I just work at Neighbraska City Hospital, splitting time between the ER and emergency calls.”

“I understand being a paramedic's a pretty tough job.”

“It is, definitely. But there's something about being the one of the first to respond to an emergency, to treat somepony's injury or get them out of a dangerous situation. It's, like... a combination of an adrenaline rush and the feeling of helping somepony in need, you know? There's been times I wish I'd been born a pegasus just so I could get there all the faster- but sometimes the strength that comes with being an earth pony comes in handy.”

“I bet it does.” He gave her a wide smile. “I honestly respect the ones who go out and make a difference like you, First. I'm willing to bet you've made the lives of a lot of ponies better.”

She stopped short, staring at him in what seemed to be a mixture of disbelief and giddiness. “I... wow, Story,” she murmured. “That... I... I wasn't expecting that.”

He blinked in confusion. “You weren't?”

“Story, I don't mean anything against you when I say this, but... I've run into a lot of intellectual types over the years, and usually when they find out what I do, they turn their muzzles up at me. 'Oh, look, she couldn't qualify as a real doctor, so she does the easy stuff.'”

He walked up to her and put a hoof on her shoulder. “First Response, I'm going to tell you this straight out. That sort? They're not intellectuals- they're idiots who've read a lot of books without actually learning anything. They've got no clue how the world really works, and if things went pear-shaped in their general location their first reaction would probably be to run away, not rush in to help. You are infinitely better than them and I hope you don't ever take their insults to heart.” He paused for breath and noticed her shocked expression. “...uh, not to go off on a rant or anything,” he added, chuckling self-consciously and rubbing his neck.

“No, no, that's... that's the most wonderful thing I've ever had said to me. Thank you.” She put a foreleg around his neck in a gentle hug, and he returned it. “You've been a complete surprise to me ever since we met on the train, Story,” she told him. “I think you've given me a good lesson in not judging the book by the cover- or the stallion by the sweater vest.”

He smiled again. “Always a good thing to learn.”

(-)

“Well, folks, this here's m' family. Lemme introduce mah big brother, Big Macintosh, an' mah little sister Apple Bloom.” The bulky stallion gave a nod and a soft “howdy”, while the filly smiled warmly and said “how ya'll doin'?”; Applejack turned to her other side. “And these here are mah friends from Ponyville. Twilight Sparkle, Spike, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash.” Story couldn't help but be surprised at the fact that Twilight had what looked like a baby dragon on her back. Dragons too. This place is something else.

“And these are my friends.” Derpy motioned to her group with a hoof. “You guys probably already know Thunderlane from the weather crew, and that's his brother Rumble. This is my old friend First Response, her cousin Noteworthy, his fiancée Amethyst Star, and Story Seeker, somepony First picked up on a train.”

“Derpy!” First stuck her tongue out at Derpy's cheeky grin. “Story's in town to attend a symposium on history after the Renewal. We met on the train coming in yesterday.”

“Oh! You're attending the GEHS symposium too?” Twilight perked up. “What's your field of study?”

Fortunately by now he had Story's past memorized so completely it might as well have been his own. “Mid Second Era to modern,” he answered. “My focus is the everyday lives of ponies- homes, workplaces, wherever they went about their everyday routines, what they did, what they left behind when they moved on.”

“That's a very interesting focus!” Twilight seemed set to say more, but Dash swooped in front of her. “Whoa, academic mode detected,” the pegasus said. “Better nip that in the bud. We've got a lot to see and do today, and we can't spend all morning having you two eggheads going all lecture-y on us.”

“Trust me, Story here isn't your average academic.” First chuckled, nudging Story with her shoulder. “This guy yanked Dinky out from under a collapsing scaffold yesterday.”

“Oh hey, I heard about that!” Dash landed in front of Story. “That was you? Wow, I wouldn't have guessed. Sometimes you eggheads surprise me!”

“Now, Dash, eggh- I mean, academics are just as capable of physical feats as you are of enjoying a good book.” Rarity stepped up to him, eyeing his sweater vest with an expression that seemed equal parts distaste and pity. “Mr. Seeker, my good stallion, I mean no disrespect, but... who is responsible for your... errr, wardrobe?”

“A pony with less fashion sense than most rock formations. Maybe you've met him, his name is Story Seeker.” Story chuckled, and Rarity giggled behind a hoof. “Goodness!” she said. “At least you're honest with yourself. If you should find yourself in Ponyville in the future, do stop by my shop- the Carousel Boutique. I would be more than happy to fit you for a new outfit or two, 'on the house'.” She smiled. “To coin a pun, it would be a suitable reward for your bravery.”

He smiled. “That's very generous of you, Miss Rarity. Thanks. But honestly? I can think of somepony who deserves it more.” He pulled a surprised-looking First over with a foreleg. “Here, take a look at this,” he said, tugging up his shirt with his magic to show the bandage underneath. “That right there was caused by the falling piece of masonry that didn't go right through my spine because First here has the reflexes of a cat.”

The others made various sounds of shock and surprise; Fluttershy immediately rushed up to him to have a look at the bandage. “Oh my goodness,” she said, her voice barely audible above the others. “I hope it wasn't too serious an injury.”

“No, just a flesh wound, thankfully. First treated me on the spot. It's healing well.”

“Oh, I'm so glad to hear it.” The yellow pegasus turned towards First. “This dressing was applied perfectly, Miss Response. Are you a doctor?”

“Huh? Oh, no, just a paramedic, that's all.”

“Oh, Miss Response, there's no such thing as 'just' a paramedic! Ponies like you are so important when others are hurt or in trouble!”

The others voiced their agreement with her; Story grinned. “You see, that's what I told her,” he said to Fluttershy. “I'm not sure she listened though! Maybe you can get through to her.” He gave the paramedic a smile as she blushed brightly.

Applejack stepped forward. “Well, now that we got introductions outta the way, what say we get stuff started off? We gotta lot goin' on, gonna hafta keep our hooves movin' if we wanna catch even half of it.” She grinned. “Nothin' sayin' we can't chat along th' way, though!”

Their group had practically become a crowd in itself, flowing through the greater masses of ponies that milled about the streets. All of the pegasi had taken to the air to free up space on the ground; Dinky was perched on Pinkie's back, somehow unmoving as the hyperactive pink mare bounced along. As difficult as it was to keep track of the myriad conversations, Story found himself learning quite a bit about these Elements of Harmony and their exploits. Amazingly enough, the six mares had more or less saved the world no less than twice in the space of two or so years, first from a creature called Nightmare Moon- who he learned had been some sort of corrupted version of Luna whose attempt to enforce permanent night had led to that banishment- and then from a chaos avatar called Discord; then they'd fended off an invasion of their capital from shapeshifting emotion-eaters called changelings, and their leader Queen Chrysalis. And then they'd gone to the frozen ends of the world to rescue a place called the Crystal Empire from the immortal warlord who'd banished it from existence for more than a millennium.

The tales had all the makings of some ridiculous Disney movie or Saturday-morning cartoon... but knowing that these ponies had overcome real situations so overwhelming all on their own, at the very real risk of losing everything they knew, was breathtaking. God, he thought. Little candy-colored, sweet-as-sugar ponies in a picture-book world... full of monsters and mad gods and demons that could probably knock over Earth and all its military might like a corner convenience store. I don't know how these ponies do it.

So what the hell exactly brought them down? Was it something too powerful for even them to stop? Or did they never see it coming?

The group stopped short abruptly when a barely-grown stallion, wearing a camera rig around his neck, practically galloped up to them. “Oh, wow,” he gushed, practically hopping on his hooves. “I can't believe it! It's the Elements of Harmony! Right here in front of me!”

“The one and only!” Rainbow declared.

“I'm Snapshot; I run the Quickie-Print Photo Booth. I would love to get a picture of all of you and your friends together! I'll give all of you free prints if you let me get a photo.”

Everyone agreed, and they settled themselves into a group pose, with half of the non-pegasi laying down in front of the others while the winged ponies hovered just above, so that they could all fit into the photo without needing a wide-angle lens. Story was on the ground with First to his left and Pinkie to his right. “Hey, Story?” he heard First half-whisper to him while everyone got themselves in place.

He turned his head to look at her. “Hm?”

“I... really appreciate you telling the others about what I did. I mean, I'm not looking for attention, but... it felt nice, seeing that the first thing you did after they praised you was to do the same for me in return.”

“Heh. Well, you deserve it.” He smiled. “Though you seem to be promoting me as some sort of superhero.”

She blushed, looking away for a moment. “Sorry. It's just... I want to see you recognized for what you did. It was-”

“Here we go, everypony!” Story didn't even have time to react to Pinkie's words before her hoof pressed against the back of his head, pushing him forward- and he suddenly found his lips touching First's. His eyes and hers both widened in stunned realization just as there was a bright flash.

“Perfect!” Snapshot declared, tugging loose a pink numbered receipt from a small roll on a dispenser hanging from his side and giving it to Twilight. “Here you go. Just come to the booth- it's just past the memorabilia shop down on Mane Street, you can't miss it- at any time after 3PM. I'll have a free print ready for each of you!”

He cantered off with a hay-eating grin. The group resumed their trek through the streets, but now First was walking a little nearer to him than before; he gave her an apologetic look. “Uh... sorry about that,” he murmured.

She smiled for a moment before glancing away bashfully. “...you don't have to be,” she replied quietly.

He gazed at her for a moment, then down at his hooves. A cool breeze rustled its way down the road, ruffling his mane and shirt- but it didn't take away the warmth he still felt on his lips.