Excerpts from "The Maretian" (Friendship is Magic + The Martian crossover)
Faux Synder for Dragonfly
Dragonfly is a changeling with the old appearance (black, holes in legs) that was before the Season 6 finale where the changelings were reformed. Despite this, she is not evil. Queen Chrysalis decided she wanted to go to space, and they started doing anything they could to launch into space, like the video game Kerbal Space Program. The first story Kris Overstreet wrote in this universe was “Changeling Space Program”. “The Maretian” is its sequel. Eventually the CSP partnered with the Equestrian Space Agency (ESA), and that eventually led to Dragonfly and Cherry Berry (CSP) joining with Starlight and Spitfire (ESA) and Fireball on a mission together. An accident in space teleported them sideways in dimensions to Mark Watney’s universe. For a starting point on Dragonfly’s voice, consider Ocellus (pronounced “ah-SELL-us”, voiced by Devyn Dalton) from Season 8. Dragonfly is similar to, but still very different from, Ocellus. They have a similar cheerfulness, for example, but Dragonfly is not as shy as Ocellus.
Dragonfly is the mission engineer, computer officer, and backup pilot. Dragonfly learns how to speak English surprisingly quickly. Faster than Cherry and especially Spitfire, and about at the same speed as Starlight takes to learn English. She’s very intelligent. (They all speak Equestrian, Mark Watney speaks English.)
It helps if you also have read or watched The Martian (book or film), to know what this story is crossing over with.
[It is Dragonfly’s turn at the radio, giving an "interview" to the Hermes, which will relay it to Earth. The long transmission time from Mars means that a live interview can not happen, so NASA sends the astronauts on Mars questions ahead of time, and each day, they take a turn in the Amicitas using its traditional radio to broadcast audio to the Hermes, which then sends it to Earth.] [Dragonfly reads the questions provided to her, pauses to signal the end of the question, and then gives her answer.] What is your name? [pause] Dragonfly! [pause] What did you do on your ship? [pause] I was the ship's engineer. If anything broke besides the Sparkle Drive, it was my job to fix it. Also, I'm helping with the other crew members' English. [pause] How did you get into space flight? [pause] My queen said we were going to space, so I volunteered immediately! I'm the fastest bug-pony flier in the group! [the interview continues, but that's enough for this audition]
[during a game of Dungeons & Dragons at the Ares III Hab on Mars, in response to Starlight (the DM) protesting that the enemy in their game is "held in place by the Elements of Harmony!"] You mean the piles of dust we carry in our saddlebags? I don't think they're holding anything anymore.
[On Sol 450, Dragonfly has a dream she is talking with an unseen personification of the planet Mars, in darkness] At least I know what my mind's cooking up this time. You have got to be my cracked head's idea of Mars. Well, go away. We've stopped all your attacks already, and in a hundred days we'll be gone, off your stupid soil forever. So just shut up and go away, all right? I have enough voices in my head. No vacancy. [Mars: No. You will go. Others will come. There must be none. You must die. I will kill you.] [Dragonfly is now angry and shouting] Oh yeah? You've done a lousy job of it so far, pal! We survived your perchlorates, your decompression, your methane, your storms, your temperature extremes, everything you could throw at us! Your attacks are weak, you stupid planet!
It's good! Thanks!
Good job!