This story is a prequel to Injuring Eternity.

Life is like a train ride, don't you think, dearest? The tracks have been set, destination picked and the ticket is well in hoof. What a shame that so many, myself included, are so focused on the destination that they fail to realize a universal truth.

Destinations will change, trains will be caught and missed, but there will always be somepony willing to journey with you—so long as you let them.

Thanks to the amazing lilfunkman for the gorgeous cover art.

Now with a russian translation!

The nation of Equestria has been exploring their little slice of the universe for some time now. From launching probes into deep space, to landing ponies on the moon. Sending things beyond the grasp of their planet has become almost routine. However, with every mission into space, there comes a time when the voyage must end. What happens when Equestria experiences the end of a voyage that they didn't begin?

Updated and Revised on October 5th, 2014

After decades of war, the Crystal Empire is finally on the verge of defeat.

On the eve before marching upon King Sombra’s last stronghold, a lone night ranger stumbles upon a strange unicorn, a mare who claims to be the cause of all their pain and suffering.

Isolated from her friends and taken prisoner in the middle of a war, Twilight must deal with the very real dangers of being percieved as an enemy as well as the nightmares of her arrival on 'Earth'. Can she overcome her own fears and the fears of her captors? Will the wayward unicorn's assistance be a boon or a curse to the 'humans?' Most importantly, will she ever find her way home?

"In short, it's a story of friendship and plasma rifles, with the emphasis on the friendship. The characters are well written, the XCOM setting is fleshed out very well, and the story is compelling. If you love XCOM, you'll love the story, but even if you've never heard of it, it's more than worth giving the first 3 chapters a read.

There's excellent action later on, but the real strength lies in the collision between the friendly and naive world of Twilight Sparkle and the desperate world of humans fighting a losing war for survival and willing to do anything to turn the tide."

--Arzoo

(XCOM/FiM crossover)
(Cover art commissioned by a friend and created by the magnificent FoxInShadow!)
(Original cover art by the amazing Carnelian can be viewed here!)
(Gore tag for blood and some violence)
(Many thanks to the studius OminousTen, Arzoo, xXFluttershyForeverXx and finally Setokaiva for giving my rambles a once-over)
(Now with it's own TV Tropes page! Get to tropin' folks!)

In the 31st Century, humankind has spread to thousands of planets in the Inner Sphere. Once united under the glorious banner of the Star League, the Successor States and their noble houses now fight bitter wars over the scraps of empire. When a JumpShip carrying a special task force from the Federated Suns suffers a catastrophic misjump, the occupants find themselves stranded above a strange, beautiful world at once alien and eerily familiar.

Meanwhile, in the peaceful realm of Equestria, Ponyville’s resident bookworm , Twilight Sparkle, has stumbled upon hints of a secret buried for centuries. A secret that may lay bare long-forgotten aspects of Pony history and culture.

Our story begins on the planet Valexa, where the beleaguered Militia has launched a last-ditch effort to call for help against overwhelming odds.

Written with those who are not familiar with the BattleTech/MechWarrior universe in mind.

The star system Omega Centauri was just another oddity on a map to scientists in the not too distant future. However when they found the star was orbiting an earth-sized, earth-like planet instead of a black hole as its motion had suggested, a mission was scrambled to investigate this most unusual of celestial behaviors.

Hamstrung by politics, and nearly crippled before it began, the 'Lone Ranger' mission was reduced to just one crew member and left to his own devices.

These are the logs of Arrow 18 and its lone commander. This information is classified TOP SECRET by the Global Space Agency.

Do NOT tell the princess.

Even though the original timeline was corrected, the alternate presents caused by Starlight's thirst for vengeance remain. In the last, Equestria has been reduced to a barren wasteland. Nothing lives among the dust and the dark, except one pony. Twilight Sparkle had failed, failed to defend her land, and in the end was forced to destroy it.

Now she wanders, having done so for the past several hundred years. The nothingness that she created refuses to move forward, held in place by powers far beyond her. All she can do now, is wait...for what could be eternity.

However, could an old enemy be just what she needs, even if neither of them really know why. This is, after all...a result of both their actions.

Dear Princess Celestia,

I'm sorry I haven't written in a while. Things seem to be falling through the cracks lately. Spike thinks I should go see the doctor, but...

When Fluttershy went to bed, she was a normal mare. When she woke up, she could see numbers floating over everypony's heads. They were timers, each one counting down to some unknown event. Most ponies had timers that wouldn't end for years, some for many decades. But everypony had different numbers.

So why does Rainbow Dash's timer end in three hours?

Editing provided by TheMaskedFerret and SolidFire.
Cover art by HopefulSparks!
Spanish translation by SPANIARD KIWI!

David Carrian can't help but be attached to his amazing, very expensive computer. As such, when a virus sneaks onto his system without his knowing, he puts all of his focus and knowledge into removing the threat that is screwing with his memory and CPU.

But he hears something coming from his headphones. A quiet, almost unnoticeable voice cries out from behind the computer screen. On one hand, knowing that the virus is playing such sickening sound effects drives him harder to fix the problem. On the other however, he stops to think after he finally makes out the words said to him...

This tale follows heavily on the Slice-of-Life and drama side of things, but sways towards adventure halfway through the story. As of Chapter 13 (treehouse.exe V1.31), we have not reached that point yet.

Episodes beyond season three episode two are ignored.

Click here to listen to a reading of the first chapter by Griffin Productions!