Equus-4. Local name "Equestria". Inhabitants: Sentient animals. No technological advancements. The perfect place to lay low.
Nighttime. Most ponies spend their time sleeping. Some find it the best time to travel. An Earth Pony was wandering down a long road, trying his best to find a place to rest. This particular stallion was on an errand, when he saw a shooting star. "Ahh, I wish there was a place to rest...." He muttered, before continuing down the path.
Looking up at the starry sky, he noticed the shooting star growing closer, as if it were heading towards him. "What in the name of Celestia?!" The stallion yelled, before running down the path. The shooting star roared behind him, and crashed down, sending a shockwave that forced the young stallion into the air.
With a hard landing, the stallion hit the ground with a crash. Slowly standing, he rubbed his muzzle with a hoof, and turned towards the crater behind him. The shooting star was still smoking, and the stallion walked up to the edge, before the ground shook and he lost his footing. Tumbling down the slope, the stallion rolled right up to the space rock. The rock split, and something orange emerged. The screams faded into the wind.
Starring The Saviour, Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, And Applejack. Guest starting Princess Luna And Princess Celestia.
Parasite of the Mind
Written by Tobias Fletcher, Twisted Studios Inc. employee.
The TARDIS door opened, and the Saviour walked out, with Rainbow Dash following behind. The rest of the Mane Six were busy, so Rainbow Dash decided to go alone with the Time Lord. "Alright, message said that something happened here." The Saviour said, before noticing the royal guards. "Ah." Was all he said, before several spears were pointed in his face.
"Halt, guards! The Saviour and his companion is with me." A voiced called out, and the guards lowered their spears and bowed. The Time Lord and the Pegasus looked up at Princess Celestia. "Thank you for coming, although I must wonder: where is Twilight and the others?" Celestia asked, and the Saviour shrugged. "They said they were busy, all except Dashie here." He said, playfully pointing to Rainbow. "Don't call me Dashie, Saviour." Rainbow replied, her voice low.
Rolling his eyes, the Saviour looked at the crater. "So is this why you called? Some meteorite landing?" He asked, pulling out his Sonic Screwdriver. Celestia shook her head. "No. Look at it, there's a glow from the inside." She said, pointing towards a crack in the surface. Rainbow Dash stared at it, when she noticed movement from the corner of her eye. Turning towards the tree line, Rainbow saw a shadowy figure. An earth pony, perhaps.
"I'm getting unusual readings. Almost like it was built." The Saviour announced, drawing Rainbow's attention again. He had finished scanning it, and had pulled a hammer and a chisel from his pockets. "How did you-" Rainbow began, only to be cut off by Celestia. "His pockets are bigger on the inside. I should know, I have much experience with the Saviour." She said, before looking at the Time Lord, eyes glassy.
"Sounds like you were once very fond of him. Were you close with him?" Rainbow asked, and Celestia took a deep breath. "I was. A very long time ago, an alien came from the sky. A weird, snake-like creature. It was about to kill me, when She showed up. Falling from the clouds like a Guardian Angel, the Saviour stopped the beast, and we grew close together."
(Flashback)
The Monument of Triumph emerged, slowly fading into existence. I watched the Saviour walk up to it. "Come to daddy. I mean- come to mommy. I-oh please. I really need you right now! It's me!" A thump went off, and the Monument didn't vanish away. "My precious Monument. My TARDIS...."
That day, the Saviour whisked me away, and we saw many things. But it came to an end, when the Saviour left, and never returned. I thought she had died.... But when Twilight mentioned the Saviour, I thought she had returned. A bit late, but returned non the less.
(End flashback)
"Wow, sounds ama- hold on. Did you say 'She'?" Rainbow questioned, and Celestia giggled. "What's so funny? This is a scientific marvel!" The Saviour said, making both mares look at him. "With your permission Celestia, I would like to take this to a secure facility to study it." The Saviour asked, and Celestia nodded. "Any resource you need, just ask."
Meanwhile, a stallion stumbled through Canterlot. He walked through the main streets drawing attention to himself. "Excuse me sir, but are you alright?" A royal guard asked, and the stallion turned to face him. "....hunger...." Was all the stallion muttered. The guard looked confused, ant the stallion opened his mouth. Rays of orange light grabbed the guard, and he struggled to get away.
(Time Skip)
The Saviour was in a small room full of science equipment. Cautiously wearing a hazmat suit he had pulled from the TARDIS, the Saviour worked away at the Meteorite. "So, Saviour. What is that space rock?" Rainbow asked, holding up a small radio. "It appears to be some sort of... escape pod, perhaps. It once housed something, but I can't seem to locate any remains." The Saviour replied, checking a scanner again.
"Bring the body in here." Said a royal guard, as a bunch of them walked into the room. They were carrying a bag, and set it down on a bench. "What's this? More scrap?" The Saviour asked, removing the Hazmat helmet. The guards shook their heads. "Worse. He was once of ours." Immediately knowing what had happened, the Saviour opened the bag, to reveal a body of a royal guard.
"How long has he been like this?" The Saviour asked, and the obvious leader of the group shrugged. "Dunno. We found him like this, lying down in the ground. No pulse." He said, bowing down and leaving. The others followed their commander out, and the Saviour started to scan the body. "That's weird."
"What's weird, Saviour?" Rainbow asked, as the Saviour started to mess with the Meteorite. "No health conditions, no pulse, no injuries. Its like his body just... gave up." He replied, and the Meteorite lit up. "Aha! It's a pod! I think it's a prisoner transport pod." The Saviour exclaimed, and started to scan the interior design. Rainbow looked into the Meteorite: it had a glass chamber inside, cracked from the impact perhaps.
"Maybe something got out?" Rainbow asked, and the Saviour froze. "If that's the case..." he began, and walked over towards the exit, removing his hazmat suit. "Then it means something very dangerous is running loose."
"Need more.... Must feed." The stallion said, making his way towards the castle. He could sense it: Birth, Death, Love, Loss, Anger, Sorrow. Large quantities of it. The stallion was suddenly stopped by a few spears. "Sorry, nopony is permitted to enter the castle at this hour." Said a royal guard. The stallion cocked his head, and started to run. "After him!"
Suddenly, the stallion stopped, and grabbed his chest. The guards ceased moving, and watched as the stallion breathed an orange fog into the air, before collapsing. Treading carefully, the guards advanced and saw the stallion wasn't breathing. Above them, the fog chuckled deeply, and dispersed into the surrounding area.
"Move! Let me see!" The Saviour said, as he made his way to the crowding guards. He saw the stallion lying down, dead, and grabbed his Sonic Screwdriver. "Saviour! What are thou doing?" Came a commanding voice. Looking up, the Saviour noticed Princess Luna walking up to the scene. "Sorry, dead stallion. Chased into the castle, if these guards are correct." He replied, and Luna gasped.
"This cannot be: thou know that nopony enters the castle, especially this late!" Luna informed the Time Lord, shock and anger mixing in her voice. The Saviour raised his head, and cocked his eyebrow. "Really? I haven't noticed that in 114 years." He replied sarcastically, before resuming his work. Rolling her eyes, Luna wandered off back down the hallway. "You are aware you were just rude to a Princess, right?" Rainbow asked, and the Saviour nodded.
"Now, this is strange." The Saviour stated, and pulled his scanner from his pocket. "Same thing here: Heart just stopped. Again, it's as if he gave up on living." The Saviour said, squinting into the small screen. "Huh... that's... odd."
A scream rang out in the castle. Shooting up, the Saviour started running towards the source, with Rainbow following behind. The Saviour's eyes went wide. A large cloud of orange fog was circling the two Alicorn princesses. "Saviour! What is this thing?!" Celestia shouted, as she and Luna were slowly running out of space to back into. The Saviour pulled out his Sonic Screwdriver, and the entity stopped.
"Well, that usually never works." The Saviour muttered, scanning the fog. "Oh. Ooohhhhh." Celestia, Luna and Rainbow watched as the Saviour looked towards his scientific instrument. "I know you. You called yourself a God the last time we met, didn't you?" He said, and the orange fog shifted, forming a humanoid body. Two large, glowing eyes opened, and a mouth appeared. "You like to think you're a god. But your not a god: You're just a parasite!" The Saviour called.
"So. The one they call 'Save-Your'. We meet at last." The Parasite spoke. The two started to walk around the room, and the Saviour motioned for the three mares to back away. "Look at you. Hungry, angry. Longing for the lives and memories of others. You had me confused at first, but I pulled through." The Saviour said, and the Parasite snarled. "I'll take the lives of those 'Princesses' and use them to make myself more stronger. And nobody is going to stop me!" It yelled, and the Saviour stopped, and stood towards the Parasite.
"You feed on them, on the memory of love and loss and birth and death and joy and sorrow! You feed on those who have had a full life." The Saviour said, taking off his coat. The Parasite raised one of its eyes to mimic an eyebrow raise. "So... So... Come on, then. Take mine. Take my memories." The Saviour finished, making every pony in the room gasp. The Parasite smiled, and advanced towards the Time Lord, who had walked backwards to a balcony.
"But be warned: I've lived a long life and I've seen a few things." The Saviour said, and gasped as orange rays of light attached to his hands and chest. "I walked away from the Last Great Time War. I used the Moment. I pushed the button, and I destroyed Gallifrey, killing them all. I saw the birth of this universe, and I watched as time ran out, moment by moment, until nothing remained. No time. No space. Just me!" The Saviour yelled, his eyes tearing up and his voice breaking.
Rainbow, Celestia and Luna listened to the Saviour. He had never opened up much, but the façade had slipped: revealing a broken, grieving man. Rainbow felt tears swell up in her eyes, and kept listening to the Saviour talk about his long life.
"I walked on worlds where everything was devised by the mind of a madman. I've watched universes freeze and creations burn. I have seen things you wouldn't believe. I have lost things you will never understand." The Saviour continued, and the Parasite arched its eye socket again, growing curious as it kept slowly eating away at the Time Lord.
"And I know things, secrets that must never be told and knowledge that must never be spoken." The Parasite's emotion changed, from victorious to confusion, then becoming worry. The Saviour adjusted his shirt collar, and grinned. "Knowledge that will make parasite gods blaze. So come on then! Take it! Take it all, baby! Have it! YOU HAVE IT ALL!" He announced, raising his arms. The Parasite screeched, before it started folding in on itself.
The Saviour watched, and hung his head down, slumping over. The Princesses and Rainbow approached, watching the Saviour attempting to fix his broken façade. "Saviour, are thou alright?" Luna asked, and the Saviour sniffled, putting on his coat. "What? Oh, uh, yeah. I'm fine." He stuttered, and began to walk out.
(Time Skip)
The Saviour was sat on the TARDIS roof, the cyan lightbulb illuminating the area. "Saviour. You're not fine, are you?" Rainbow asked, hovering near the Time Lord. The Saviour teared up, and his voice cracked. "You're right. I wanted that to happen: I wanted those painful memories to be taken from me." He said, tears running down his cheeks. "You mentioned you destroyed your world. You said your friend did it. Is it true?" Rainbow questioned, and the Saviour nodded.
"It took me 117 years to remember, but I was the one who did it. The pain and grief was too much for me to handle, so I locked away my own memories. I created a false reality within my mind that the Doctor was the one to do it." The Saviour said, lowering his head into his hands. Then he did something that surprised Rainbow Dash: the Saviour sobbed.
"Saviour. We're still your friends. You did what you had to do." Rainbow told the broken man, landing next to him. The Saviour rose his head up, his eyes red. He didn't speak, nor did he make any eccentric movements. The Saviour nodded, and closed his eyes. Perhaps it was time to start healing after all...
Perhaps one day he could go back and save Gallifrey with the Doctor...
FORESHADOWING FOR DEEP INTO THE FUTURE!
Yeah, if it wasn't obvious, the Saviour was the one to destroy Gallifrey in this timeline, not the War Doctor. In case you didn't realise as well, there was a time skip of a few days between chapters, meaning Third's Hour is nearly over. The shortest of them all.
I'll be back after a while. Seeing as this took a while to do, and I'm busy with stuff around my school and home, but I'll keep writing. Thanks to my dear readers, the ones who enjoy my stories, and take the time to read these stories. One amazing year has gone by, and let's hope you all find the these new stories better then before!
Sir Twisted, signing off.