Shores: Homecoming (Closed)

[Northwest Slobovia]

Olympus

Gabriel started to mingle with His choir. "You all did very well. You've extended Our glory, and brought Us and Our Purpose renewed favor with gods and mortals alike. Thank you all, especially you, Facilitator."

Amanda felt that all eyes were upon her. She wasn't wrong: the saints in the first row, who'd been looking at the archangel as he started to walk among them, had turned to face her, offering praise. Amanda couldn't figure out what languages half of them were speaking, and she had no idea was species a few of them were. She did her best to thank them as she tried to make sense of the implications. Christianity spread to the stars? Judaism and Islam too? Timestreams where the Prick and his son brought their message to other worlds?

Facing Amanda as well, Jesus seemed to read her mind. "Both, Facilitator, as we find fertile soil in which to plant Our Message, that It may flourish.

"As to your next question, I am many in mortal realms, but one in divine realms, as are all of Us."

I had a next question? Amanda stared at Him for a second. I guess that would have been my next question. "Thank you, My Lor--".

"Just Jesus, please."

"Thank you, Jesus." Amanda glowed with the inner warmth of divine love, both personal and universal. "But why do You call me 'Facilitator'? What do I facilitate?"

"Our Purpose." Amanda's blank look returned, so Jesus went on. "You bring His Justice to your world. You know the hymn that starts 'The Lord moves in a Mysterious Way, His Wonders to perform'? You are one of those Mysterious Ways, and you perform His Wonders. Not everything We do is pillars of salt and swallowing armies in seas." His teasing was as a father to a young daughter, loving and encouraging her to realize what she needed to ask.

"So I'm a super, like Sandy?"

"As you know the term, you are a 'super'. You have a supernatural gift: Ours. But not like your husband's. We Know you two are fond of the Bard's writing: 'I can call spirits from the vasty deep.'"

Amanda recited Hotspur's answering line, "Why, so can I, or so can any man; But will they come, when you do call for them?"

Nodding, Jesus continued. "When Sandy calls certain 'spirits' in the right way, they do come, but only certain spirits, and only to the limits of his ability to call them. We answer your calls for Justice when it advances Our Purpose, and when we do, We answer your calls with Our Strength."

"I..." Amanda started, before looking thoughtful. Jesus let her struggle with the meaning of His words, so that she would grow into her role. "I'm... You... I'm not much of a lawyer? My so-called victories are Yours?" Her songbook slipped from her limp fingers.

"No," the archangel spoke this time. "We have given you Our Sword and Our Shield, but you have learned to wield them for Us."

Amanda realized Gabriel was holding a sword by its blade and a shield by its top edge – Where did those come from?? – and offering them to her. She reached out to take the sword's hilt and the shield's strap and found herself holding two thick documents, each many pages.

Brows knitted, Amanda skimmed the one in her right hand, her sword hand. "This is the brief that broke the Philly mob. This is my brief. And this..." She glanced at the title of the other: The City of Philadelphia v. Donald Outlaw. "...this guy was a shoplifter, but no murderer."

Amanda looked up at Gabriel and then Jesus. "I wrote these. Philly v. Outlaw was my first case as a public defender, an appeal. I busted my ass on it."

Jesus smiled broadly, a teacher proud that his student had learned the lesson. "Yes, you did. As Gabriel said, you make Our Gifts more than idle lumps. Use them well. Learn why We gave Them to you, and how you fit in among all who facilitate Our Purpose."

Amanda's attention was drawn by a flicker of motion in her upper vision, and she turned to look at the approaching black shape. Jesus followed her gaze, then turned back to her. "I Know you have many questions. You want to talk to Me on the hill in Galilee. You learned the language I spoke then. Ask Me then."

With rapid nodding, Amanda indicated agreement.

At the end of it all, [… Domenica] was at least left smiling, a great happiness settling in her heart as much as comfort came to rest in her bones and muscles, allowing her to gradually become still.

Jesus turned to Domenica next. "You have found Our Peace. Good. But I Know you have questions too, and you should have them answered too. Follow Our Facilitator to Galilee for answers."

Amanda listened to Jesus' advice to Domenica, then stooped to pick up her songbook and jam the briefs under its cover, making a messy stack of paper. She tracked Willow as he came in to land in front of her.

"I liked your solo," he said, smiling. "I know the magic was helping us all out, but you still did a really good job."

Amanda pulled the corners of her mouth up into a weak smile on her shell-shocked face. "Thanks, Willow." Her voice was no stronger than her smile, and her attention was more inward that outward.

He looked upward at the sky. "So, is Sandy gonna need help getting down, or...?"

"Sandy? He'll..." She glanced at the sky, made a half-hearted attempt to scan the patch where she'd last seen him, then gave up. "I don't know."

"Most High," Giovenith greeted Jesus, bowing her head low in respect as she approached.

Jesus waved away both the fancy title and the bow. "Just Jesus, Giovenith."

She smiled at her friends. "Well, that really was super special! I was worried for a little bit, but I guess there wasn't anything to worry about..."

Amanda gave her head a little shake. "No, there wasn't." She tried to paste on a smile again, but it was no stronger than last time.

"My name is Seryica. Those are my older brother and sister, Arith and Haletrynx... [...W]e're some of Gio's family. Is it true what they said miss, that you're married to the Olympian Pegasus? How did that work out?"

That brought a strong, even radiant smile to Amanda's face. "It's working out very well, thank you."

* * *

"Finally!" Sandy huffed, taking flight from the backstage area where the Olympians who'd finished their parts early had collected, including Nyx, Hekate, and Orion. Minos had led Hades away to comfort Him, arm around His shoulders, as He always did after Persephone's annual departure. Hypnos and Morpheus had hurried off to relieve Kottos. The others had done all they could for Sandy, Orion, and Nyx, but They'd finally given up and let them go for the moment.

Sandy's steep climb carried him to a high vantage point, from which he was able to make out all of the immortals in attendance. He started a glide towards the Equestrians, spotting Willow zipping off as he got closer.

Sandy landed a good distance in front of Luna, his reason for doing so obvious: he was still shrouded in part of Nyx's Presence. Light dimmed ten feet or more away from him, and Nyx's aura brushed up against the Princess'. Pegasus still bore faded stars on his white coat; they looked like warm-colored fairy lights. He bowed deeply, head almost reaching the ground, and his wings almost touching above his back, as he repeated the gesture Minos had drilled into him. Pegasus was the Olympians' mascot, and Sandy would have to act the part.

Sandy became human; the fairy-light stars remained on him, and he was still veiled in twilight. "Sorry about all this, Princess." He waved his arms around himself in helpless embarrassment. He looked haggard, well beyond merely weary.

Whatever the Olympians thought of how Sandy should interact with the Princesses, he thought it would be alright to be informal with Luna, given how Celestia and Cadance had treated him. "Do you mind if I..." He gestured towards the unicorn sorcerers; Luna waved a permissive hoof.

Sandy took a few steps towards them, but kept his distance. "It was good to meet you guys! Hopefully, I can return to Equestria soon. But I should go now." He glanced over his shoulder to where he could Tell the Cloerith had joined Jesus and Gabriel. He waved, said goodbye, and then returned to being the Olympians' mascot.

It took Sandy almost no time to cross to the other group; in Olympus, he could fly as fast as he wanted. He repeated his routine of landing a fair distance from the immortals and making the elaborate bow. Still, the dimness around him carved swathes through Jesus' and the Cloerith's auras. Sandy quickly backpedaled before regaining his normal form. "Sorry about that. It seems... that there's a first time for everything. And, uh, we'd never tried the performance with the seasonal constellations before. Disentangling Orion and I from Nyx is... difficult."

Amanda hadn't waited for Sandy to finish to start rushing towards him, but he took another couple of steps back and raised his hands in warning. "You won't like it. There's not much of Nyx around me, but it's unsettling as it is, and I have a little starlight to see by. All you'll be able to see are my stars."

Amanda sounded alarmed. "Are you stuck that way??"

"They think it will disappear once I leave Olympus. That should cut the connections."

"They?"

Sandy cast a worried glance in Jesus' direction before carefully answering, "The Olympians... the kthonic ones, and in particular Hekate."

If there was any reason for offense, Jesus ignored it, offering Sandy a warm smile and an open expression. "We have been at peace for over a thousand years in your world. It's all Forgiven now." But Gabriel stiffened until Jesus glanced at him.

Nervously, Amanda asked, "And if it doesn't?"

"Let's... talk about that later. I'm in pretty deep as it is with Them."

Amanda gave Sandy an uncertain nod. "Dear, these are Giovenith's family--"

"I can Tell. Uh, part of Nyx's aura, I think." He glanced at nothing. "Oh, there's the dinner bell." The other immortals could hear the call to the party as well. After a round of goodbyes and good wishes, Jesus, Gabriel, and the Cloerith headed off for their private celebrations.

Osiris passed by, with Sipair-Apepi following along, pulling Nick's floating platform. They left Nick sitting on the platform.

A moment passed. Just as it seemed time for somebody to say or do something, a teenager in a crimson hoodie wandered over – probably a boy – and pulled an earbud out of his ear. "Are you guys some of George's Friends?"

Amanda ran her eyes over the kid. "We are. Who are you?"

"Another Friend. I'm going to bring you back to Bermeja now. Anything you left behind in Equestria will be in your beach houses. George took care of it."

He pulled out his phone. "Lifeguard, we're ready."

Bermeja

And without so much as a cut to black, the group washed up on George's Beach, but the teen was nowhere in sight.

Sandy groaned and rolled over onto his back. He lifted his hands above his face to look at them: back to normal. He cast Adonis' Boon; he was going to need all the help he could get getting back home. He got to his feet, helped Amanda up, and started to trudge home. Amanda walked with him, a far-away look on her face.

[Giovenith]

Bermeja

Willow wiped his forehead and breathed a sigh of relief. "What a visit." He turned to Domenica. "You must be happy to be able to settle down too. Now we can be properly introduced."


Meanwhile, Sallow suddenly gave a loud, happy gasp as his expression turned upward suddenly. "The cool cats are home!" He darted like a bullet out of Brit's door.

Ms. Prism looked after him and slowly turned her expression to Brit. She lingered, once again taking on that knowing smile, before politely getting up and walking out after him.


"Well I'll tell you," said Willow. "I'm ready to not deal with any fucking adventures for a long while." He began to turn. "I'm going to go to our cabin, get an easel, and-"

Sallow slammed right into him, sending the two tumbling across the sand as a grey and black ball. They stopped rolling as Sallow pinned Willow down.

"You're hoooooooome!" the paper clone squealed in delight. "How was it? Huh, huh, huh?"

"Oh. Right." Willow narrowed his eyes in annoyance. "I forgot about you."

[Monfrox]

Brit sighed as she watched Sallow burst out the front door, still holding on just enough until she watched Ms. Prism follow suit. She took that smile as a sign to come out with her, but she had to get ready. She had only just unhooked her ALICE web belt and now some old friends were back. Old? Well...old to her. She hadn't seen them in so long and so much had happened. Brit stood up from the chair and shook off her web gear, letting it fall with a thud onto the ground. She dragged it along with her ALICE pack and chucked it into the bedroom next to her duffel bag. She left her helmet on the table and threw her M16 over her back. But she hadn't had what she really needed yet, and that couldn't go on any longer. She pulled out a bottle of rum, some cola, and lime juice, and poured it all into a glass of ice. She quickly downed the whole drink before fixing another one to enjoy while her head got that faint fuzzy and cloudy feeling.

It wasn't the healthiest coping mechanism, but Brit was far from an alcoholic. She preferred herself to be a social drinker who only stayed to one or two. She had shots on empty stomachs before, and those weren't fun. She hadn't had some time to herself in a while. Sharing foxholes with other guys out in the field just to stay warm during the chilly monsoon season, while also keeping her bayonet close by. She forgot the last time she smiled or had some real food. But, right now, there was reason to be happy. Even though it was a bit of a mess, Willow and Gio were at least back. She knew that she couldn't keep them in the dark about her being here forever, or at all with Sallow's big mouth. She left the radio on as she took another small sip of her Cuba Libre before placing it on the table next to her helmet and opening up the door. She saw her friend and the Belas, and the new girl that Sallow must've been talking about. She suddenly felt very out of place, but she put on a small, tired smile. Despite being through Hell, it was still good to see Willow again.

Brit didn't even know what to say, really. No idea on how to start the conversation. Who knows how long it'd been since he'd seen her? For her it was no doubt a longer time, but still. She walked down towards the beach as she came up on his side. Her one hand in her pocket, the other holding the sling of her rifle. "Hey." She said, not sure where else to take those words.

[Giovenith]

Bermeja

Sallow and Willow looked up and around at Brit. The paper clone kept his signature smile while his flesh and blood counterpart blinked in confusion, struggling to process what was in front of him.

"Brit?" he asked, pushing Sallow off of him and standing up. He squinted before standing tall and gesturing in disbelief. "Sweet Celestia, how did you get here? I haven't seen you since that snowy, military incident..."

Ms. Prism suddenly appeared next to Domenica, offering her hand.

[Monfrox]

Brit just smiled at Willow as he conveyed his shock to her. She sighed and ruffled his hair with her hand.

"You worry too much. I'm here, aren't I? That any way to greet an old friend?"

She wondered how much she could get away with telling him and the others. The mission to Slate, while far from complete, was also still way off in the future. Well, as long as Gio brought her back in a timely manner, this vacation could be care-free. She suddenly felt exhausted and fought back a yawn as she went down on a knee.

"Some things never change, do they?"

[Giovenith]

Hades

Giovenith felt an perhaps exaggerated amount of relief when the chime for dinner rang. She would have been much happier to depart with her friends back to the island, but Minos had already spent the whole day looking for any excuse to chastise her, she was sure that leaving too would be howled as disrespect of the highest order from him. He really did seem to have it out for her. Maybe he was just a sadist toward young people in general? If Giovenith were completely honest, she didn’t know where he got off treating her like the uppity brat when he was the literal king who oppressed people and murdered innocent children, but that obviously remained unsaid.

She shuffled off after her siblings, wiping at her eyes and not registering much, until Arith gently touched her arm, surprising her. Her older sister said nothing as they reached the spot reserved for their family in the celebration. There was a small table with chairs waiting, and Arith sat the two of them down at it before shifting the space around them to subtly blur out the sights and sounds around them, and to blur the senses of anyone who looked at them in order to give the two greater privacy.

Giovenith crossed her arms, frowned, and leaned back in her seat. She looked down to the side. “I know what you’re going to say, and I really don’t want to hear it.”

Arith unfolded her hands from in front of her and a set of cups appeared. “What am I going to say?”

“That it’s not good to be hung up on a boy,” Giovenith sniffed, stubbornly tightening her arms. “And it’s not good for any girl to be. I know that already, but it’s not the same thing.”

The ancient goddess said nothing, merely pouring a strong-smelling liquid from a suddenly appeared bottle into the cups.

“My friends are going to help me,” Giovenith added, as if this would throw some weight into her words. She tried to keep a determined expression, but truly, it was always difficult to remain balanced around her older sister. “We’ve done crazier things together and we can do this. Marcus loves me.”

“Giovenith, thousands of men are going to love you,” Arith said in a sterile monotone, looking down at the cup in her gloved hand as it filled. “They’ll lavish you and write you poems about all the virtues you inspire in them. But you’d sooner find an honorable thrift on Wall Street than you would a single one of them who will know the slightest what they’re talking about.”

Giovenith hadn’t expected this answer. She blinked in confusion and blushed somewhat at it, leaning backward, but tried to maintain her frown. “What are you talking about?”

The cup filled completely and Arith slid it over to her sister. She paused, perhaps considering her words, though with her unwavering intense gaze it was hard to tell. “First, please understand this: You are more than a concept. You exist to fulfill a purpose, yes, we all do. But this does not mean you do not have a worth beyond this purpose that is yours to decide. So what I am going to say has no reflection on who you really are — don’t get lost in that idea.” She began to pour her own cup. “But the fact is, most mortals you will come across are not going to ever understand that.”

“Mortal people aren’t stupid, Arith.”

“I never said they were,” she said, taking a sip of her drink. “It’s not a matter of intelligence, it’s a matter of lived experience. To them, you are a representation; of dreams, ideals, traditions, some good, some bad. When you speak and act, you carry a context and power with you that you can’t simply expect them to ignore, that is why you are expected to be on your best behavior on occasions like these.”

The godling grumbled a bit.

“And when it comes to that sort of thing,” continued Arith, setting her cup down on the table. “Personal nuances fade into irrelevance. That is the way it should be. People should not be expected to care about the everyday banalties of those with more power and privilege than them. But a side effect of that… is that people will often see the things they want to see in you. It’s easy to project your own dreams, desires, and issues onto a big symbol.”

“I get all of this already,” Giovenith said abruptly, swinging her head to the side in frustration. “You don’t think he did love me, just what he projected onto me? I don’t believe that, he wasn’t that kind of person. You would know that if you met him or saw what we went through together. We were best friends first.”

“I am sure that he was a good-hearted young man,” said the goddess. “And you are right that I do not know what you two went through together. I’m just saying that…” She paused. “... even if you want to believe in what you have right now, you should always be prepared to never put more stock in a person than they put into you.”

“He doesn’t-”

“Giovenith, if you can’t even engage with the hypothetical…”

This deflated the younger sister and she slumped in her chair. She looked down and tears began to pool in her eyes. “I have thought about that sometimes,” she sniffled, rubbing her face with her sleeve. “That maybe I’m just a phase. Like a crush on the popular girl or something, you know? Maybe he only thought he wanted me but then he grew up and found someone more genuine… maybe I really do believe in this more than he does.” She lifted her chin. “But I don’t know that for sure, not yet, Arith. And I have to be sure before I can move on. Will you help me with that, please?”

Arith stared.

“Please?”

A gloved hand reached across and settled gently atop the snowy-white fluff top. “Of course I will.”

Giovenith smiled gratefully through moist eyes up at her big sister. “Thank you.”

“You must become strong though. Strong without him.”

“I understand.”

“Drink.”

The two simultaneously downed their cups. Giovenith coughed wildly afterward, which was uncomfortable in itself but had the oddly pleasant effect of defusing the situation. The blur around them cleared and the table they’d been sitting at faded away.

“Come,” Arith urged, offering a hand. “Mother wanted you to speak to the Young Daughters of the Empire about Our Traditions.”

“Ooooo, I’ll teach them how to make friendship bracelets!” Giovenith clapped, eyes suddenly sparkling.

“Close enough.”


Later, Equestria

After the celebration, Princess Luna would graciously escort Starlight and Sunburst back to Princess Twilight’s castle where they would immediately begin discussing all they had seen and how to organize their notes in the most scholarly fashion. Unfortunately for them, they would soon hit a snag in that plan in the form of an azure unicorn decked in full magician regalia plopped in the library and scattering Cheezits everywhere.

“The Great and Powerful TRIXIE has been waiting all day for you two!” their unexpected guest declared, indulging in her habit of referring to herself in the third person. A telekinetic chunk of crunchy cheese snacks flew into her mouth. “Where have you been?”

“Oh, gosh, Trixie!” Starlight slapped her forehead. “I’m so sorry, I completely forgot that you were visiting!”

“A truly unforgivable transgression!” Crunch went a Cheezit. “But, Trixie is a miracle-worker, and so she forgives you.”

Sunburst smiled lightly as he swept up the Cheezit crumbs with his telekinesis and set their packs and notes onto the table. “We just got back from Tartarus. Or rather, a kingdom in Tartarus.”

Trixie’s eyes widened and then narrowed. She scoffed. “And you didn’t think to take me?”

Sunburst raised an eye. “Would you have wanted to go?”

“Not really, that sounds dangerous,” Trixie admitted, shrugging nonchalantly. “But you could have asked. Oh, by the way, somepony else was already at the door when I arrived...” She casually pointed to the seat next to her, which the two other unicorns had overlooked due to the fact that it was covered by a high stack of what seemed, at a glimpse, to be various fairy tales, New Age, and art books. The stack was pushed aside to reveal a smirking pink face.

“Hellooooo,” Toola Roola greeted. “So you’re the ones who know about hyoo-muns?”

“We’ve actually been getting along pretty great, believe it or not,” Trixie gabbed to Starlight, smirking herself as she reached for a bag of Twilight’s favorite brand of chips to open. “Want some?”

[Northwest Slobovia]

Homecoming, Conclusion
George's Beach, Bermeja

The Belas stopped and stared as a black blur raced by and tackled Willow. Sandy watched with tired eyes. "Sallow, I think," he muttered.

Amanda refocused: Naomi's paper Willow copy. Oh. "The paper people are here? Where're Ford and Molly?"

That furrowed Sandy's brow: he hadn't seen them either. But before he could get his weary mind to start to frame a reply, he got something new to think about. He took a couple of steps towards Brit and Willow. Since Amanda was holding his hand, she came along for the ride.

She, as usual, found her voice first. "Well, Brit Nicholson, as I live and breathe! How are you?"

"Yes, how are you? How long have you been here? Were you in other places after Galli? Are there any others? Other surv--" Sandy's words came out in one big rush.

"Oh, hush, dear." Amanda managed a small lift to one corner of her mouth as she turned back to Brit. "You'll have to excuse him. He hasn't been himself all day."

[Giovenith]

Bermeja

"Not in our community, apparently," Willow agreed, crossing his forelegs in front of him. He watched the Belas approach and nodded to their sentiment. "Literally not himself."

"That's alright, Sandy, I'm literally never myself, I'm him," said Sallow chipperly, turning a few loops in the air. He considered something for a moment before hovering down to scoop up a bit of sandy and gently rub it on the historian's arm. "Sandy Sandy!"

"Do you know where anyone else is, Brit?" Willow widened his eyes somewhat, realizing what this could mean. "Or is it just you?"

[Monfrox]

Brit blanked out for a bit a̸͎͖͛s̸̻̭̈̈́ ̶̛̮͆s̵͖̕h̶͚͎̚͠ë̸̟́ ̷̬̐f̵̲̀͜é̷͎l̵͇͋l̷̦̞͊̓ ̵̦̃͝b̸̡̖͝a̴̯̰̔ç̵̈́͝k̵͉̽ ...No sir, I'm the only one that made it out...yes sir, Sparrow Team was pulled back but we didn't make it to the LZ in time. Too many...

She visibly snapped out of it. Her eyes refocused and her head jerked back a bit. She sighed and rubbed her eyes. Refocus, girl. You're not in Khe Sanh anymore. She stood up and fought back a yawn.

"You got questions. I got questions. Let's head back to my hut. We'll have a powwow. And I can finally get this flak vest off."

Brit led the Belas and Willow back to her hut that she walked out of. Her radio was still playing. She shrugged her flak jacket off with a heavy thump and kicked it off to a wall. Her uniform had patches on the front above her breast pockets just like regulation. However, instead of a "US Army" or "US MARINE CORPS" tape, the tape above the left pocket read "GESELLSCHAFT". She took a small swig of her Cuba Libre before sitting back down at the table she had just had Sallow and Ms. Prism around.

"Alright, here's the deal. There's a lot I can't really tell you. Well, it's not that I can't, it's that I really shouldn't or else I create a bunch of loose ends." She looked at each of them dead in their eyes with a pause hanging in the air to let them know she was serious. "What I can tell you that you may be able to infer more information from, however, is that I didn't come here for...uh...quite a while. And I'm only here because a...friend of my....employer...who had given me access to more training opportunities, decided that I was in dire need of some R&R after having to step up for a lot of things so suddenly. My overseer, my commanding officer, my...whatever you want to call it, is a mutual friend of ours who likes to wear black to contrast her red hair, if that tells you anything." She sighed and took another drink as her M16 lay propped up against her chair. "I'm sorry if I'm being dodgy, but there's a lot I can't say to protect the mission and the outfit I'm with now. I can be honest about one thing, though. To my knowledge...I don't know if anyone else is still around. I was one of the last people in the Building before I was found by our mutual friend when she came back for a final check up and she had me go with her for a ride and a business proposition. I took her up on it and that was that. Out of the entire outfit that I was attached to, I was the only one besides her that was from the Building."

Brit let that sink in with a hard look on her face, taking another chance to nurse her drink.

"I assume the others were given a similar choice. Maybe they're back at the Building, though I doubt it since I didn't see anyone else there for...God, I can't remember how long it was...or they were sent on other assignments or probably sent back home where they first came from." She leaned forward and folded her arms on the table. "That's all I know for sure. What about you guys? And where's Gio? Is she here too?"

[Northwest Slobovia]

Homecoming, Conclusion
George's Beach, Bermeja

"That's alright, Sandy, I'm literally never myself, I'm him," said Sallow[.]

A grin brought momentary light to Sandy's face. "You're your own man... uh, stallion. Naomi made you that way. No need to think of yourself as a copy of Willow." She's simply not that skilled.

As Amanda walked with Sandy towards Brit's cottage, her phone pinged: it had found one of Bermeja's telecom nets. She pulled it out reflexively, stopping to stare at the date. "We've been gone for just a week, Sandy." She did a little mental arithmetic as Sandy led her along. "Pretty close to the amount of time we spent in Equestria. Do you think that's deliberate?"

Sandy gave her a half-lidded look, shaking his head: navigating between timestreams wasn't his forté "Ask. Celestia used to cross the Void routinely. She should know."

Amanda didn't press the point, but followed Brit into her beach house. She glanced around, found a coat rack, and hung up her shoulder rig and hip holster on it. Smiling, she said, "Good to be back to someplace like home."

Her uniform had [...] instead of a "US Army" or "US MARINE CORPS" tape, the tape above the left pocket read "GESELLSCHAFT".

As Amanda made her way to the table, she spotted the force name on Brit's green clothing. Her face fell, and she let the expression fade away to her usual blank professional mask. Them. Again.

She found Sandy already sprawled in one of the chairs. With the Boon, his posture looked surprisingly good, like he was an actor portraying an exhausted man, rather than being an exhausted man himself. She took a seat kitty-corner to him, opposite Brit, set her songbook stuffed with documents down on the table, and put her flower crown on top of it.

"Alright, here's the deal. There's a lot I can't really tell you. Well, it's not that I can't, it's that I really shouldn't or else I create a bunch of loose ends." [...] "What I can tell you [...] is a mutual friend of ours who likes to wear black to contrast her red hair, if that tells you anything." [...] "I'm sorry if I'm being dodgy, but there's a lot I can't say to protect the mission and the outfit I'm with now.["]

Amanda sighed: this was a disappointing start, leaping right into the military bullshit. "You said you had questions. Do you want direct answers to them? Then give us some direct answers.

"The three of us have had a long, stressful day. We'd like to know what happened to our friends. So, if Minerva Blackwater isn't with you, don't... Just don't. None of us need it." Looking down, she shook her head wearily.

"If she is, there's two choices: either it's safe to tell us, or it's not safe to tell us. If it's safe to tell us, just spit it out, no need for the hint, wink, and nudge routine. And it's not safe, don't say anything. 'I let them figure it out' doesn't do her any good if she's gotten her head blown off because of it.

Reaching over, Sandy took her hand. "Amanda... There's no need to--"

"There's a girl with boy problems, which has a direct connection to the subject."

Sandy hmmm'd deep in his throat: his rumbling indicated reluctant agreement. Time to intervene before this goes completely off the rails. After giving Amanda's hand a gentle squeeze, he turned to Brit. "I'm... not sure I understand these 'loose ends' you're referring to. What do you mean?

"...and uh, do you have some empty glasses-- empty drinking glasses? I could use something to drink, and... I think I can serve myself." At that end, his voice had more than a touch of humor to it, and a smile graced his face.

[Giovenith]

Bermeja

Sallow quirked his head to the side in a glassy-eyed, questioning manner that was difficult to read at Sandy's encouragement. Nonetheless, he maintained his sincerely cheerful smile. "Well, even if I was a copy, I'd think Willow is one cool pony to be a copy of! Not as cool as me, of course, but still pretty cool."

"Oh shove it," Willow answered, though good-naturedly, before following the others to Brit's new home. Ms. Prism quietly escorted Domenica back to her own hut for some much needed rest.

The two pegasus-ponies listened quietly to the exchange between Brit and the Belas, both mildly curious, but with (as usual) Willow looking more critical and Sallow looking more intrigued in a detached, amused way. As things started to get a bit heated, Willow cleared his throat.

"Geo-puzzle is at a party with her family," he answered. "Sorry, if you can't tell us much, we get it. It's just been a long week for us is all. It's just..." He paused, briefly gathering his thoughts. He shifted sadly. "... Giovenith hasn't been taking the fact that Marcus disappeared suddenly well, like at all. She's safe, we're all just a little sad and worried for her. I guess I just thought if you were here, maybe you would... have something to comfort her, is all."

[Monfrox]

Brit stared at Amanda, as if barely registering her presence as she talked. What she told to Willow seemed so ironically topical now. She remembered, vaguely, the spat she and Gio had way back. She mentally labeled the woman as "catty" and, as with back then, fully intended to keep her at arm's length for now, even if the sudden greeting had caught her a bit off guard. Well, Sandy was more understanding for his credit, and yes they all looked very weary and worn out, just as she did. But she was thankful for her friendship with Willow, and that he was also more forthcoming to her questions. She sighed, wondering if she was being a bit cryptic but then realized sh was trying to be as honest as possible. As Willow talked, Brit went back and used the last of the cola out of the bottle to fix another Cuba Libre before coming back. She set it down in front of Sandy as she reached for her own and took another drink before she took her seat again and nodded.

"I'm sorry, but I really am telling you all I know. I keep the Agency and the Building stuff separate. Loose lips sink ships, blah blah blah, Operational Security, yadda yadda. But, the walls have ears. I'm not shitting you, it's true. So I'm sorry if I can't give out identities of other people. However, the Captain is just...well, gone. I don't know where she went, and she just left the outfit high and dry. So, who do you think had to step up to take over in her absence as the only person with enough training and experience with any semblance of what the hell was going on with said Agency?" Brit paused, killed the rest of the drink, and then dropped the glass hard back onto the table. "Me. I don't know where she fucking went but suddenly I have to keep a bunch of people trained up so I can count on them not getting killed as I had to go out and start doing my own digging about what the fuck was going on and what we were supposed to help with."

Brit paused and leaned forward, "So yeah, Amanda, I get it. Stressful few days. Shit sucks. But as far as what happened to everyone else, I have no fucking idea. I hadn't seen anyone from the building for a long time so I have no idea what the fuck happened to them, even before I got picked up for the Agency. I went through the daily motions and sure, I looked around, but everyone was just gone. You really think that If I did know, I wouldn't tell you? Those were my friends, too. Some of which I've known longer than you have. You don't think I'd like to also find out what the hell happened to them? And you know just as well as I do how hard it is to get anything that isn't cryptic as fuck from Klaus or Minerva or the others we saw."

She sighed again and leaned back in her seat. "Sorry if I'm coming off a bit strongly, but I figured that I needed more combat training and experience if I was to truly lead that outfit. So I went through a lot of places and time periods with those Gates we had. Last place I visited was Lang Vei. Had to make my way to Khe Sanh on my own during Tet." She took out a small photo from her breast pocket and tossed it towards Amanda on the table. It was rough around the edges and a bit faded, but it was still very clear. There was a group of men, all wearing either olive drab jungle or tiger stripe fatigues, carrying all manner of weapons between the M16A1, XM177E1, the Stoner 63 LMG, a cut down RPD that no doubt had been captured, an M/45 SMG, and other weapons of the era. They had bandanas and berets and patrol caps on their heads and their gear looked modified in comparison to regular GI gear. In towards the middle, with a goofy smile on her camo-painted face, was Brit with an M16A1 that had its handguard wrapped in 100mph tape and two-magazines taped to each other jungle style. She was wearing the same olive drab uniform with the sleeves cut short to show off her camo-painted arms and a matching boonie hat. On the back of the photo was "ODA-101 "Sparrow Team", Lang Vei compound '67" with all the names from right to left. Some of them had crosses next to them, others had "MIA". Only three of them had nothing next to it.

"I got out with a bunch of Marines during the relief codenamed "Operation Pegasus". After that, I thought I could use a break. Now I'm here, somehow." She paused a little to collect her thoughts. "I'm sorry I don't have the right answers, but that's the truth. I really don't know what happened to everyone else, or the Captain. And I can't tell you what I'm doing with the Agency because it's on a "need to know" basis, but you really don't want to know anyway. It's just a bunch of bullshit like usual. You're not missing much, and neither am I. I'm not here to talk about any of that. I don't even want to think about it. I just want some time to relax for a bit."

[Northwest Slobovia]

Homecoming, Conclusion
Brit's Beach House, Bermeja

Brit stared at Amanda, as if barely registering her presence as she talked. [...] As Willow talked, Brit went back and used the last of the cola out of the bottle to fix another Cuba Libre before coming back. She set it down in front of Sandy as she reached for her own and took another drink before she took her seat again and nodded.

A hint of a grimace crossed Sandy's face as Brit brought him a rum and coke, but he was more interested in how much she was drinking. Amanda, contrariwise, gave Brit's back a dirty look as the little day-drinker walked away while Willow was talking to her, and then she momentarily rolled her eyes at the sight of the unasked-for drink. Rude to everyone today, I see.

"I'm sorry, but I really am telling you all I know. I keep the Agency and the Building stuff separate. Loose lips sink ships, blah blah blah, Operational Security, yadda yadda. […] However, the Captain is just...well, gone. I don't know where she went, and she just left the outfit high and dry.["]

"I'm not asking about the-- Wait! Stop, go back!" Great, she misunderstood both of us, and now she's off on a tear. Even better.

Brit paused and leaned forward, "So yeah, Amanda, I get it. Stressful few days. […] I figured that I needed more combat training and experience if I was to truly lead that outfit. So I went through a lot of places and time periods with those Gates we had. Last place I visited was Lang Vei. Had to make my way to Khe Sanh on my own during Tet." She took out a small photo from her breast pocket and tossed it towards Amanda on the table. [...]

"Tet? You went to Vietnam?" With that, Amanda took the photo and started to look at it, but quickly concluded it wasn't going to tell her much. She noticed Sandy's interest, and pointed to his drink. "Trade ya." Wordlessly, Sandy handed her the rum and coke, and took the photo with his other hand.

"I got out with a bunch of Marines during the relief codenamed "Operation Pegasus". After that, I thought I could use a break. Now I'm here, somehow."

Sandy examined the photo carefully, turning it over and matching names to people. The mention of his alter ego brought a grin to his face before he returned to his study, bringing the picture close to his eyes to get a better look at the details.

Amanda took a sip of the booze and was reminded of its harshness... but at least it was wet. "OK, let's go back to the beginning. Minerva just left you guys? She abandoned her post??" Her tone was incredulous: this was not the super-soldier she knew.

[Giovenith]

Willow understood nothing about Vietnam and almost nothing about Minerva Blackwater aside that she had been a leadership force in their old home. What he did understand was the thick tension in the room, and he wasn't eager to dissect that at all. His mouth strained into an awkward grimace and he glanced off to the side.

Sallow, as usual, was completely smiley and undisturbed.

"Sandy, did you meet my mom and dad at all?" he asked, beaming at the sorcerer. It wasn't clear if he was smart enough to avoid the main conversation entirely or just didn't care. Possibly a mixture of both. "What were they like?"

Willow made a considering look at Sallow but decided it would be too mean-spirited to point out that Sallow didn't have any parents. "We didn't hang out with them as a group much," he answered the question.

"Aww," Sallow looked disappointed but then brightened again. "Well, who did you meet then? I've never been to Equestria myself, I only have Willow's memories of it. I really want to hear all about it."

[Monfrox]

Brit was starting to feel agitated, but didn't let it see through her entirely neutral expression. She folded her hands together on the table.

"I. Don't. Know." She repeated, tired of having to do so already for the second time. "We all arrived at our designated safe house, and then that was the last I saw of her for a few days. I'm not sure what the fuck happened to her. Maybe she went off to do some scouting. Maybe she got into some trouble. I don't. Know. Amanda. Either way, before I could even begin to worry about going out and finding her, I had to take care of everyone else and make sure they knew how to defend themselves if something happened while I was gone, because the mission doesn't stop just because my CO disappeared into thin air."

[Northwest Slobovia]

Homecoming, Conclusion
Brit's Beach House, Bermeja

"Aww," Sallow looked disappointed but then brightened again. "Well, who did you meet then? I've never been to Equestria myself, I only have Willow's memories of it. I really want to hear all about it."

Sighing, Sandy slumped in his chair. "We were there for a week. We met a lot of people. Ask me tomorrow when I'll be less … wrung out.

A second passed. He straightened halfway. "Aaand I think the same goes for this conversation." He waved a hand generally in the direction of Brit's photo, Brit, and Amanda. "Let's try again after we've gotten some rest."

He retrieved his drink, swallowed a little, then pulled himself up from the table, drink still in hand. "Excuse me." He went to the sink, pivoting back to Brit. "Don't worry, I can make you ask much of this as you'd like."

Sandy ran the rum and coke down the drain, returned to the table, and cast an Arabic spell over the empty glass. It filled with golden-yellow liquid. Sandy drank about half of it before Amanda said, "Is that what I think it is?"

"Old family recipe." Sandy pushed the glass towards her.

Amanda eagerly took the glass – the most lively she'd looked so far – drank most of what was left, and leaned back, satisfied. To Willow, she added. "Four parts lemonade to one part rum. Sandy can make it without the rum, if you'd like."

At the same time, Sandy turned to Brit. "So... we just came from Olympus, the Olympians' home. We were part of a celebration, uh, one of their holidays, with... a lot of pantheons in attendance. Giovenith was invited to a, uh, affair-- party – maybe a dinner party, for the gods afterward, but we didn't rate.

"Before that, we got brief introduction to Hades, part of which is the Olympians' heaven. We got there from Tartaros, the Olympians' Hell. Actually..." he smiled, "Hell has gone condo. It's a huge... vast... high-rise, that all-- many of the pantheons share. We got in through the Equestrian entrance.

"Which is to say, this morning, we started out in Ponyville, Equestria, and have had a looong day containing a fair amount of un-- ummm, supernatural unpleasantness."

[Iridencia]

Bermeja

Sallow folded ears and frowned somewhat sadly at the lack of answers but otherwise played along. He got excited again at the appearance of drinks and nodded vehemently.

Willow smiled but cleared his throat awkwardly. "I uh, probably shouldn't go with rum. I get very drunk very fast, not sure I want to go through the rough journey of building up a greater tolerance. I do think we could all use something to help us relax though. Lemonade would be fine, thank you."

[Monfrox]

Bermeja
Brit leaned back in her chair, feeling like she just defused a bomb with a timer counting down past thirty seconds left. Her hand found the glass again as Sandy went up and ran his drink down the drain. The fact that he could make as much of it as she wanted didn't seem to bother much. She gave him a quizzical look, but couldn't be bothered to care enough to ask or say anything. Instead, she turned the radio off behind her and sighed.

"Nah, I'm good for now." She said, looking at her own glass. "Hell, huh? Wonder if...nah, nevermind..." She let Sandy finish, where the last bit struck a chord with her. "Supernatural..."

She looked at him with narrowed eyes for the briefest moment as she tried to think about what he meant, before her whole demeanor changed. Her facial expression went blank and her eyes almost glazed over. She was staring right past Sandy and Amanda.

Monday, July 7th, 1969
Near the border between South Vietnam and Laos

"Shiiiiit...what in the..."

"Stay down, squad lead! We got a convoy rolling up."

Brit sat up in the mud and had leaves sticking to her back. She had some fresh new bandages on under her uniform from shrapnel wounds she just incurred. She couldn't remember all of what happened, but she remembered seeing two CIA operators execute two wounded pilots at a chopper crash before she turned and wasted two of the three of them after her overwatch team dropped the first one. Now she saw that the helo wreck was burning and she didn't remember it being on fire before she walked up to there with the CAI guys who thought she was also one of them. It helped that she was the only one of the whole squad who was dressed in full tiger-stripe camo fatigues.

"Where's the...fuck! Where's everyone else?" Brit asked as she looked to the medic.

"We all went off the side of the road and into the jungle. Everyone else is over there." She pointed off across the way.

"And the convoy?"

"Passed by just now. Looks like some more CIA operatives."

"Alright, let's link up with the others. Everyone, rally up. We still have to get the fuck outta here."

Brit pushed with the rest of her team across the road when it was clear and located the rest of the squad. She had seven total with an M151A1 they stole that had an M2 on the back. The rest of the team was running a bit low on medical supplies but doing fine for ammunition. She was about to make an order when someone called in they had another vehicle. She watched as a GI got out to inspect the helicopter wreck in the middle of the road and ordered her squad to hold fire. She didn't know what was going on, but she heard stories from the rest of her squad when she showed up this morning at the FOB after some leave in Saigon. They were talking about being attacked by VC and then SOG and then...some other things she couldn't entertain as anything else but superstition. She knew how it got out on the line. But when she watched the GI looking over the the crash site's neck just suddenly burst without any prior warning or gun report, she had a sinking feeling that what the squad was raving about wasn't all superstition.

"Radioman, contact the CO. Tell him we're moving to the RP still. We're about half a klick out." Brit said, a bit shaky in her voice.

"Squad lead, I got something over here." One of the other squadmates reported.

"I don't care, we need to move."

There was the sound of gunfire as the truck drove off, and then an explosion.

"That truck just..."

"I don't care what's going on behind us, we gotta get to that rally point! Now move!"

The squad headed out and she took up a position towards the back with one of her good friends and their M60 gunner. She was carrying her wrapped up M16 that had a new scope and a brand new silencer on it and had already blew threw half her magazine. Then she heard it. Growls. Nothing like any animal she had ever heard before. Her blood curdled.

"Fuck, move move move!"

They were all around, but she couldn't see anything. Between running for the rally point and keeping an eye on her squad, she couldn't pin down where the sounds were coming from. But from what she could hear, there were more than just one, and they were all around them. Moving alongside, as if hunting them. Her M60 gunner had more than he could handle and whipped the LMG around. He shot off a couple bursts into the surrounding trees, to which she immediately ran back to him.

"No! Stop shooting, start moving! Go! GO!" She yelled, pushing him along. "JUST FUCKING GO! DON'T STOP!"

She was now behind everyone, last one in the team's formation. She heard the growls even closer now, which served to hasten her pace. She came around the corner of a thick patch of jungle and saw their Huey sitting in the middle of a village with the MUTT jeep parked. The gunner opened up with the M2 as she came running in, and a cocktail of emotions including relief and fear was spiked with anxiety and pain as she felt something slash her side. Her vision blurred but she kept going and waved her arm.

"GET IN! WE'RE GETTING OUT OF HERE!"

Brit's vision cleared as she found herself laying face down in the middle of the hold of the Huey as the jeep gunner hopped in and banged on the pilot's back seat. They skids lifted off and seconds later, they were in the sky and heading out. Brit sat on the edge of the floor out the right side, looking down at the river they just crawled through on their way out of the old FARP they found burnt and blasted. The revelation of their team being used for testing Project X was still clear in her mind as she leaned against the side of the helo. But it was over. It was all going to be over for now.

"Shit, we lost the engine!" The pilot exclaimed.

"What?"

Brit looked up in horror as she watched the rotors start to slow down, and then looked and saw the ground coming back up to meet her. The warning alarms were blaring in the cockpit, but there wasn't anything they could do but ride the helo in.

"What the hell hap-" Brit turned her head around as the rest of the team braced for the impact, and she saw some shadow take shape in front of her. Her eyes went wide, and before she could pull her gun around, she felt it reach for her. She reflexively pushed back, and fell out the side of the chopper.

Berjema, Brit's Hut
The sound of glass breaking shattered the silence in the room. Brit's whole body jolted as her mind was brought back to the present. Sweat dripped down her forehead as she blinked a few times, looking around to see herself in the hut. Sandy, Willow, Amanda, and Sallow were in front of her still. She looked and saw her drink glass broke, and her hand bled profusely from the glass shards that she had gripped so tightly that her knuckles went white. Slowly, she let the shards go onto the table and brought her hand to her, staring at it as the blood ran down her arm.

"Ow..." She said weakly, her voice shaken as her eyes became more wet. She took a deep breath in and stood up, her other hand gripping her wrist. She sucked in air through her teeth as the pain registered finally. "I think waiting until tomorrow...would be a good idea..." She went to the sink and started to wash off the blood from her hand and arm.

[Northwest Slobovia]

Homecoming, Conclusion
Cafeteria, George's Resort, Bermeja

Amanda looked up from picking at the remains of her roast chicken, and gestured at Sandy with her fork. "I had an interesting time with Jesus today."

Raising a finger to ask for a moment, Sandy finished off the last bite of his double cheeseburger, washed it down with lemonade, and leaned back, satisfied. "How so?"

"There's good news and bad news. Now I understand what you mean about gods and their – what did Minos call it? – Presences. There's this overwhelming feeling of love and acceptance around him. Yeah, He must roam Tartarus looking for people to Save. He could Save Hitler, Mao, and Stalin, if they'd only accept Him.

"And I get what the Greeks were getting at with the difference between agapē and eros. Jesus loves everybody, but when you Looked down at me while I was singing..." Amanda stroked Sandy's cheek. "I was home, and cozy, and loved. That was sweet, dear. Do that again."

Sandy pressed Amanda's hand against his cheek for a second before sagging at the reminder. "Let's not. Getting... uh, dissassembled by Nyx and, errrm, entangled with Her was not fun. But I think I've been drafted. Our performance – Orion's and mine – apparently went over well with, uh, the audience, so I think I'm going to be drafted into that every year. Nyx already had some ideas for more elaborate..." He waved a hand, trying to think of what to call it. "… with more of us who've ascended into the sky.

Amanda squeezed his hand. "Lovely. That's my bad news too: the Prick's drafted me." Sandy furrowed his brows as Amanda went on. "I thought Minos called me 'counsellor' because he knew I was a lawyer. Nope: my official title is Facilitator. I'm one of His Mysterious Ways." Sandy cocked his head, looking at her through narrowed eyes. "Yeah, I know: baptized as a kid, but nothing more. Stupid Prick."

Hand on chin, Sandy considered. "Mortals have free will. Or, we're supposed to..." He rubbed his lower lip with his index finger. "Did Jesus offer any expl--"

"He said to talk to Him on the hill in Galilee. He must mean..." But Sandy nodded vigorously: he got it. Then he shook his head. "That still shouldn't..." Explaining the will of the gods was a fool's errand.

[Monfrox]

The Cafeteria

Brit sat in silence, wearing a more casual set of clothes consisting of cargo shorts and a t-shirt, picking at her food in front of her as she listened to Sandy and Amanda talk amongst each other. She had since calmed down from her episode, but didn't know how to strike up talking to the group again. She felt spent, but that's why she was here. It should be smooth for her time here for the most part. She was looking forward to some rest, as well as not having to eat out of a can or a box. Still, she couldn't help but pick around her tray. Mac and cheese, breaded fish, and diced rosemary potatoes sat on it with a glass of cola on the table. She looked up as she heard the mentioning of drafting and such, thinking about her time with the Organization and elsewhere in time. One saying came to her mind. Something she always found herself repeating in private. I didn't ask to be squad leader. But that's how it goes. She looked at the new scars on her hand as she held the fork up and poked her fish. She was hungry, but something was bugging her about how things were when she showed up.

Brit looked off to the side to see Varona sitting next to her. Her characteristic mask was put away and her cloak's hood was pulled down off her ghostly white hair. She was also eating fish and potatoes but skipped the mac and cheese for some greens and soup. They picked her up on the way out of Brit's hut, just as she was about to do some recon around the wilderness. A meal was hard for her to turn down, as she hadn't eaten in at least a day. Her tall figure just about shadowed Brit, even though she was six feet tall herself. Varona was now standing at just over six foot four without her boots on. The two remembered each other vaguely, and the white-haired Lieutenant also regarded the Belas and Willow with the same vague familiarity.

Brit looked to the other side to see Willow, feeling that she should break her silence to keep him from really worrying about her too much. "So, how long have you guys been here?"

[Giovenith]

Cafeteria

Willow looked up from neatly arranging his utensils, napkins, and food at Brit addressing him. Giovenith, auspiciously, was not currently among them.

"Probably a few months now," he answered. "We just kind of appeared one day, but since we can theoretically go anywhere with the ocean, it's not like it was some horrifying discovery. I don't expect us to get any more of an explanation for it than we've ever gotten for anything else."

The artist looked back and forth between Brit and Varona, still uncertain of what to make of the latter. He wondered where Giovenith and Domenica were but decided not to make a fuss of it. He gently put his hooves together and seized a moment.

"Honestly, I feel like the best thing at this point is to move forward," he said. "But that could just be me. I've spent so much time trying to untangle the past, I'd like to focus on things that are new." He knew this was contrary to the sentiment of his own roommate, but that was an issue all unto itself. He smiled. "I've got a few things to look forward to. Trying to get my career back on track, going to therapy, helping out Ms. Gala at the museum..." Willow's eyes beamed particularly at that last part and he rubbed his hooves together. "... just getting back to being me, finally, not just some weird horse alien trapped in a monkey alien world."

"Did somepony say aliens?" As if on cue, Sallow flew in, his characteristic smile beaming at the group. "I do love aliens! But that's an adventure for another time. Gio told me to tell you that you're all invited!"

"Invited to what?" Willow asked, taking a bite out of his hay-burger (which was exactly what it sounded like — god it was good to have some real pony food.)

"To her finally getting her pocket dimension, silly!" Sallow teased, reaching down and booping his flesh self on the nose. "She's inviting all of her best friends, that means us! Her pretty sister might even be there, too."

[Northwest Slobovia]

Homecoming, Conclusion
Cafeteria, George's Resort, Bermeja

"I've got a few things to look forward to. Trying to get my career back on track, going to therapy, helping out Ms. Gala at the museum..." Willow's eyes beamed particularly at that last part and he rubbed his hooves together. "... just getting back to being me, finally, not just some weird horse alien trapped in a monkey alien world."

Struggling to make sense of that, Amanda looked down, then came to a decision, and turned to the pony artist. "Willow, if you want to go to Equestria that badly, why didn't you leave the ceremony with Starlight and Sunburst?"

"To [Giovenith] finally getting her pocket dimension, silly!" Sallow teased, reaching down and booping his flesh self on the nose. "She's inviting all of her best friends, that means us! Her pretty sister might even be there, too."

"Now?? Where?" It took Sandy a second or two to get the implications of the last thing Sallow said, then his shoulders sagged and he suddenly looked more worn down than he did before dinner. "Oh, nooo... no, not if her family is here. Please send Giovenith my regrets. I... just don't have it in me to be polite to the Cloerith again today. She... They Saw, They must know I'm-- Unless... They don't know it's only been an hour or so for us." He shook his head. "Just send her my regrets."

"No, Sandy?" Amanda's concerned expression betrayed more worry than her words. "I thought you supported her --"

"I do. But, uhhh... I'll take a look at it..." His hand traced out a vague circle. "Later."

Turning to Sallow, Amanda gave him a negative look. "I'm not sure how to act around her family either. Please send her my regrets as well." ...and I'm not sure I want to deal with another bunch gods right now either.

Sandy started to gesture with both hands, and he glanced at everybody to include them as he sought words. "There... There are rules the gods follow among themselves. We knew they, uh, had a court system of... some sort. It seems they have sophistica-- elaborate systems of politeness as well. As a representative of Olympus, I need to..." His head bobbed. "Respect them."

Then to Varona, gesturing as needed. "I'm Sandy Bela. I've seen you in the Building before, so... I guess you're used to this... stuff. This is my wife, Amanda, and this is Willow Streaks... and Brit Nichols.

"And that is Sallow, though I don't know his last name. Sallow, and all the other paper folks around, were made by Naomi, if-- in case that means anything to you."

[Giovenith]

Cafeteria

"Jeeze, no need to freak out guys, they're not even there," Sallow assured, sticking his tongue out and rolling his eyes in a casual way. "It's just Geo-puzzle. I'll let you know you can't come though." He began to turn but then doubled back. "And it's Sallow Slashes." He answered their question before flying off again.

Willow made a somewhat concerned look after Sallow, taking a bite out of his hayburger. He finished swallowing before answering Amanda.

"Oh, I couldn't leave you guys behind," he said. His ears were folded and he sported a smile that had an odd mixture of sadness and serenity. "Not after, everything. This world, humanity..." He gestured around him before pulling his foreleg back to himself. "... are a part of me now. I didn't choose that, but that's the way it is. I'm still part of Equestria too, that's why I have to put many things back together there... but that doesn't mean I don't have a place here anymore. It just means that now I have many goals, many areas of life to attend to, many places and people that make up my home." He looked down at his plate, rearranging things absent-mindedly while still smiling. "Maybe Equestria seems like it's got my focus right now because it's the part of me that's been neglected the most for a long time... I've only recently regained control over my life, and I have to work hard to repair the parts that were damaged. But it doesn't mean I'll neglect the other parts now." He politely took another bite of his food. "And we artists are very efficient multi-taskers."

Willow's ears perked at a distant sound and he turned to see Giovenith making her way toward the table, a large sketch pad in hand. She blinked somewhat owlishly at the group. Sallow was not with her.

"Hey Geo-puzzle," he greeted. "Sorry about not coming, it's just not a good time. We didn't offend your family at all, did we?"

"Oh they weren't waiting up," she said, waving a hand reassuringly. "We just might have had to run into them is all." She bit her lip and looked down at the pad in her hands, somewhat abashed and sad. "Sorry for getting overexcited... it must seem really stupid and selfish, it's just..."

"It's fine," Willow reassured, gently. He waved her over. "Why don't you come greet with us and we can see what you drew?"

The girl brightened and came to sit. Her grip tightened on the sketch pad and she pulled it close to her chest, smiling in that restrained, tentative way that one did when they were simultaneously excited to show something but also embarrassed by it. However, Giovenith waited her turn. She got a better look at the new people at the table and blinked in confusion.

"Brit?" she asked, shifting from eager to stunned and serious. "H-How did you get here?"

[Monfrox]

A few months. A few months since they last saw each other, perhaps? Then that meant... Brit bowed her head, deep in thought as she tried to do the math. Though she was told she'd been at the building for many years before the Agency picked her up, it always felt like she hadn't been there for more than a week or so. It was so odd. Sometimes it made her wish for some normalcy, but this was her life now.

Varona nodded as Sandy introduced the rest of the table, but the names had already stuck.

"Yes, I believe we've met sometime before. I remember something about a giant spider incident. Funny, for a moment I swore I had been back home when I saw that." She said in between bites.

Brit nodded, remembering the time she went toe-to-toe with that huge spider. And she also remembered fucking the plan up. Well, interpretations were always fickle. Her ears perked up when she heard a familiar voice, though. She looked up from her forkful of mac and cheese and saw Gio had joined the table. She heard the invitation, but was unsure if she would be able to be all there for it. Thus, she remained in noncommittal silence when Sallow spoke about heading to the new pocket dimension. Another time, yes. But now, here she was at the table, and expecting an answer from her.

"Uhh...well, it's a long story but...I needed a vacation from work. You'll understand." She said, putting the fork to her mouth. That was one mystery solved for now, though. Gio wasn't a goddess quite yet and that meant that she indeed had gone back in time. She wondered if she should break that news or not. Actually, better to not. She was playing a dangerous OPSEC game already with all of Amanda's questioning about where she had been. And in reality, Brit had already probably told her too much. She made a mental note to stonewall any further inquiries. After all, there was no telling who all could listen in.

[Northwest Slobovia]

Homecoming, Conclusion
Cafeteria, George's Resort, Bermeja

[Willow] took another bite of his food. "And we artists are very efficient multi-taskers."

Amanda's face lit up and filled with a pleased smile. "Well, in that case, the past does tell us about the future!" She started ticking things off on her fingers. "First, we need to plant the seedling from Everfree, and I know just where it needs to go. It probably won't last long unless we plant it.

Varona nodded as Sandy introduced the rest of the table, but the names had already stuck. "Yes, I believe we've met sometime before. I remember something about a giant spider incident."

"Spider?" Sandy looked up, puzzled. "I don't remember a giant spider. Nor do I remember your name. So, if you could be so kind as to tell me..."

Amanda and Willow's parallel conversation went on. "Second, you thought Sandy and I might send letters to our families, which led us to think we might as well just visit in person." The mention of Sandy's name caught his attention, and he started to listen to what Amanda was talking about. She continued: "And third, making an actual Holy Trinity, as I was just saying, Jesus wants me to hear the Sermon on the Mount. And Sandy and I--"

"The Sermon on the Mount," Sandy broke in, talking to Willow, "is a short speech where Jesus lays out proper conduct for, uhhh, the people who... mmm, eventually became his worshippers. In our time, almost two thousand years later, we don't know exactly what he said."

Chagrined, Amanda avoided eye contact with Willow for a second. "Sorry, I should have realized you didn't know any more about that than we did about the solstice vigil." She looked up. "But Jesus does want me to hear it directly from Him, and Sandy and I were thinking of doing that as part of a vacation in antiquity anyway, so Sandy can get holos of the Seven Wonders of the World. Ancient monuments, now ruins."

Sandy nodded. "Knowing what they looked like would be a boon to our culture, as would understanding how they were constructed." His eye defocused as he thought. "If it's just the three of us – if you were to come, Willow – we can go by air, so long as we land outside the cities. If there are more people... air is still the best route, but you'd need to--"

Amanda knew a cue when she heard one. "—get the skyboat flying again, which means a trip to another timestream's Francophone Mars. I guess that means Corellia first, to plant the sapling." The bright smile returned to her face, and she turned to Brit and Varona. "Have either of you heard of a place called Corellia?"

[Giovenith] brightened and came to sit. Her grip tightened on the sketch pad and she pulled it close to her chest, smiling in that restrained, tentative way that one did when they were simultaneously excited to show something but also embarrassed by it.

Sandy stretched upward in his seat, craning his head to try to get a look over the top of Giovenith's sketch pad. "Let's see what you've got." After a moment's reflection, he added, "Where is the entrance to the pocket dimension now? Here in Bermeja, or is it still in your heaven?"