Shores: Homecoming (Closed)

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 7th, later
Cadance's Plot Coupon Emporium and Crystal Spa
Crystal Empire, Equestria

"You wanted to see me." [Brit] said, failing to hide a minuscule amount of accusation in her tone like she didn't believe the note was genuine.

Amanda looked up from what she was watching in a small holoprojector; she smiled warmly at Brit, touched a button on the projector, and the solid image froze, Aurebesh lettering left hanging in mid-air above a man speaking, stuck mid-word.

Amanda rose from her chair. "Glad to see you're feeling better! Cadance really does good work with Her miracles, doesn't She?" She gestured to another chair, then back to the table with the holoprojector. "Have a seat. There's a lot to look at."

[Monfrox]

"Glad to see you're feeling better! Cadance really does good work with Her miracles, doesn't She?"

Brit looked at Amanda for a bit. The way she reacted was almost completely opposite of what she expected. She figured Amanda would be gruff, or at least distant. Hell, expecting her to be sympathetic was almost far-fetched to her. It was like she was seeing Amanda put on a Stepford smile. She actually would've preferred Amanda treat her like shit at this point. Something about this just seemed so insincere to her. From pointing a gun at her to talking like long-lost friends was definitely mood whiplash.

"Ah. Yeah." Brit said, offering a neutral response.

"Have a seat. There's a lot to look at."

Oh good, finally, what she came for. Work. She walked in and took a seat.

"Let's start with the easy stuff: Show me the vehicles you guys found."

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 7th, later
Cadance's Plot Coupon Emporium and Crystal Spa
Crystal Empire, Equestria

"Ah. Yeah." Brit said, offering a neutral response.

For a moment, a sour expression crossed Amanda's face, but it vanished in a new thought: Active gods at home? Was the encounter with Hastur just a bad day in the 'hood? She hasn't said, but we don't talk about electric lights and flush toilets either.

"Let's start with the easy stuff: Show me the vehicles you guys found."

Amanda nodded once, crisply. "OK, details first." She pulled out the data card that was in the holoprojector, and replaced it with one of the memory crystals the holocam used; that fit into a dongle mounted on the projector's front.

Holos flickered in the projector's display volume as Amanda fast-forwarded through them. "Sandy set this up like a lecture: overview first, and details organized by topic. Most of the vehicles are in the South Hangar, so give me a second to find them."

As she continued to search through the images, Amanda asked, "Are you from a timestream were miracles are common, and the gods are active?" She didn't look up; it was an off-hand question, like 'Does it rain a lot where you're from?'.

Long seconds ticked past. Amanda eventually found what she wanted, and she pointed to the new holo. "This. Sandy thinks it's a flying ambulance." The holo showed something like a snowspeeder, but the laser cannon, rear gunner seat, and tow cable had been replaced with a wider, longer compartment. A stretcher lined each side, with a narrow space between them. The craft rested on the ground, landing skids apparently up, surrounded by piles of litter. "Sandy found something in the junk around it he thinks was a bag of blood plasma. Somebody must have ransacked the ambulance, since some of the other stuff seems to be meds."

She looked up at Brit. "We plugged it into one of the walking batteries later, but it didn't even show anything on the pilot's displays. This one..." She touched a key and the holo was replaced by one of a regular snowspeeder, with all the access panels on the engines opened up. "...was downstairs in one of the repair shops. We plugged it in, and..." She let the holo play; it shifted to a pilot's-eye view. The cockpit displays came on. They looked like a Christmas tree: words in red, green, yellow, and white. Amanda paused the holo. "We think it's Aurebesh acronyms and abbreviations, probably diagnostics. Does it make any sense to you? Are these things airplanes or spaceships? If they're like the ones in the movie, they're like airplanes, but this Echo Base isn't the one the movie's about. Sandy thinks it's 'based on a true story'."

[Monfrox]

"OK, details first."

What? No. Brit said easy stuff first! For a moment, she felt a lament at the difference, but it passed as quick as it came. She stifled as heavy sigh. Keep it professional. She approached and took a seat, stuffing her hands into her SOG jacket pockets and leaning back in the chair.

"Sandy set this up like a lecture: overview first, and details organized by topic. Most of the vehicles are in the South Hangar, so give me a second to find them."

"He just couldn't give a simple after-action report, could he? Well, I don't call him Professor for nothing, I suppose." She said as she watched Amanda work the holoprojector.

"Are you from a timestream were miracles are common, and the gods are active?"

That threw her. She looked over at Amanda and noticed that she offered the question incredibly casually. She felt her guard had slipped and it was suddenly up in force again. Was this more of what she got when she first arrived? She couldn't help but feel like Amanda was trying to pump her for information, so she offered an answer that she already knew mostly.

"Let's just say that hopping around different eras saw me getting wrapped up in some nasty business I wasn't prepared for with a history book. Other than that...don't go digging where there's already holes."

It was, in all manner, a touchy subject. War was one thing, even combat itself, but fighting against inhuman and unnatural threats was an entirely different ballgame, and Brit had paid the price in men trying to learn the rules through trial and error. She focused on the hologram in front of her and something piqued her interest.

"This. Sandy thinks it's a flying ambulance."

"I've seen this before. In Vietnam, they modified Hueys for MEDEVACs like this. They replaced the seats with stretchers for wounded. But why a Snowspeeder?" She thought about it for a moment. "Though in all reality, the Alliance probably didn't have access to anything else so...that would be the quickest way to MEDEVAC someone out on a patrol. Would be better to modify them instead of the T-65s."

As Amanda went on, Brit nodded at the cockpit displays.

"I was never in a cockpit. Though..." She sighed. "Roja would've known more than I. Closest I got was simulators on the Thunderstrike for the T-65Bs. Flyboys were very protective of their starfighters, as you could guess. No way they'd let some Corporal into the cockpit for a test flight. Still, I didn't learn too much Aurebesh to be fluent in it, but I can read it and I know a fair share of words. As far as the speeders go, no, they aren't rated for space travel. They were barely rated for the ground attack role they were pressed into, but that's what you get with some of these second-string jobs. Gotta make due where you can."

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 7th, later
Cadance's Plot Coupon Emporium and Crystal Spa
Crystal Empire, Equestria

"He just couldn't give a simple after-action report, could he? Well, I don't call him Professor for nothing, I suppose." [Brit] said as she watched Amanda work the holoprojector.

Amanda laughed lightly. "This is his idea of an after-action report! It's for other academics. He thinks he can publish this, since we found-- I'll get to that later; you wanted to start with the vehicles."

"Let's just say that hopping around different eras saw me getting wrapped up in some nasty business I wasn't prepared for with a history book. Other than that...don't go digging where there's already holes."

That brought a grin to Amanda's face, and she playfully gestured at Brit with a lacquered nail. "No, that's my day job. I'm on vacation now.

"I was surprised that your reaction to Cadance's exorcism was... It's like my reaction to Sandy conjuring my morning coffee out of thin air. Once, it was amazing. Now, it's just breakfast. That made me wonder if you're used to miracles and active gods. That's all."

"This. Sandy thinks it's a flying ambulance."

"I've seen this before. In Vietnam, they modified Hueys for MEDEVACs like this. [...] "[S]o...that would be the quickest way to MEDEVAC someone out on a patrol. Would be better to modify them instead of the T-65s. […] They were barely rated for the ground attack role they were pressed into, but that's what you get with some of these second-string jobs. Gotta make due where you can."

Amanda listened to Brit's explanation with interest, never taking her eyes off her face. "Sandy will be happy to know we were right on that one.

"What's a T-65?"

[Monfrox]

"Academic types are always the same, but that's fine." Brit said with a light sigh.

"I was surprised that your reaction to Cadance's exorcism was... It's like my reaction to Sandy conjuring my morning coffee out of thin air. Once, it was amazing. Now, it's just breakfast. That made me wonder if you're used to miracles and active gods. That's all."

"It's not like that. I trust Willow, and by proxy I trusted Her. But..." Brit looked down, remembering that night in Cambodia in 1970, when she was first administered the MKReaper serum by the MAJESTIC agent. She looked at her hand, remembering how corrupted it looked with the veins running red and varicose under her skin with the barbed wire, rusted and wrapped around her. "It's...I can't talk about it. Let's leave it."

"Sandy will be happy to know we were right on that one. What's a T-65?"

"Oh right, you guys aren't...right. The T-65B was the Alliance's main starfighter. You know them as the "X-wing" fighter. Unlike the T-47s, the T-65Bs are capable of both space and atmospheric flight, but it wouldn't make sense to have a MEDEVAC version of them. Modifying existing T-47s would be better in the long run and cheaper too since they're only atmospheric."

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 7th, later
Cadance's Plot Coupon Emporium and Crystal Spa
Crystal Empire, Equestria

"It's...I can't talk about it. Let's leave it."

"Too close?" Amanda nodded with understanding. "That's why Cadance's people are here for us to talk to." She cast a wistful glance at the suite's door, just visible through the Belas' room door. "I need to talk to one of them too." There was a drawn out pause before Amanda returned to the holoprojector.

["]The T-65B was the Alliance's main starfighter. You know them as the "X-wing" fighter.["]

"Oh! Amanda straightened suddenly, like she was spring-loaded. "You mean..." She fast-forwarded through the holos, eventually stopping on a holo of an x-wing that had seen much better days. "...one of these!"

By adjusting the projector's controls, Amanda showed Brit the ship from several angles, finally leaving her with a view from a bit starboard of aft, and a ltitle above. Both of the fighter's starboard engines were missing, including the skin panels on both nacelles. The upper starboard s-foil was melted through to almost half its width, just outboard of where the engine should be. The skin panels over most of the aft section were gone, exposing the ship's frame, and from all the empty space, open tubes, and dangling cables, it was clear a lot of components were missing in back as well.

"It was in a repair area under the North Hangar. We found the hull panels stacked against a wall. Sandy used the holodeck to fit them into place." She touched a button, and now the holo-x-wing had fuselage skin. There were a pair of big melted holes in the right center of the stern panel, and a long melted and scorched gouge on the port side, all neatly in a row at the same height as the engines.

After letting Brit look at the holo for a little while, Amanda added, "We think the pilot got jumped. The hits make a neat line if the engines are touching. So the wings were together. The displays make no more sense than the ambulance's, but there's a lot more green on them. Maybe this ship could fly again."

[Monfrox]

Brit let Amanda end the personal side of the conversation as she went back to the holoprojector.

"Oh! You mean...one of these!"

Brit sat up off the table and leaned forward to actively study the holoproector now as the T-65B came onto it. She looked over the damage as well as the systems. The obvious laser strike on the S-foil was a dead giveaway on what happened. Scars told stories; you just had to listen.

"I remember seeing X-wings in Echo Base that were being repaired. Guess the Empire didn't seem to worried about getting them."

She looked at the cockpit systems and nodded. Green was good for the most part.

"Most everything could be either in working order or could be repaired, but...it'd have to be on the down-low. Backdoor deal. New Republic would certainly love to have another X-wing back. It's been a while since I ran a simulation...but yeah, it could work again. You guys thinking of taking it back to Corellia?"

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 7th, later
Cadance's Plot Coupon Emporium and Crystal Spa
Crystal Empire, Equestria

"I remember seeing X-wings in Echo Base that were being repaired. Guess the Empire didn't seem to worried about getting them. [...] Most everything could be either in working order or could be repaired, but...it'd have to be on the down-low. Backdoor deal. [...] You guys thinking of taking it back to Corellia?"

With a wry frown, Amanda dropped her gaze to the holo. "We're not sure what we're going to do with it, or anything we found."

She looked back up at Brit. "There's two ways to get it flying again: we fix it where it is, or we move it to somewhere where it can be fixed. Moving it means putting it in a big freighter and taking it... at least as far as Bespin. Someplace closer to civilization would be better, though. That's no problem if it's our freighter, but what's a freighter that big cost? Maghrl had a ship that would do, but he'd been in business for years. So, it's probably not something we could buy now. Which means we hire somebody with a big enough ship.

"So, we have to bring somebody to Echo Base to ship it. Or we bring somebody there to repair it. And one look at it is going to tell them that we found it there. They're going to smell money, and we already found enough valuable things to make the base worth looting."

She shook her head. "Sandy wants to understand the battlefield – he thinks it goes over the horizon in a couple of directions – and I think there's enough salvageable weapons there to fight a small war. Either way, we want to hold on to that stuff. Which means, for the moment, we don't have a good idea what to do with the X... T-65.

She flashed a grin. "So, the other two ships under the North Hangar and then back to the walking tanks in the South Hangar, or the big picture and the real gold?"

[Monfrox]

"Either way, we want to hold on to that stuff. Which means, for the moment, we don't have a good idea what to do with the X... T-65."

Brit shook her head and said, "Again, if we take it to the New Republic to get it worked on by a professional technician, it's as good as gone." She leaned back in thought for a while. "Do whatever you want with it, I guess. Like I said, I kinda know how to fly 'em but I've been outta practice for a good while."

She had no real ideas on who to talk to for this. Well, she had heard that the 61st had brushed shoulders with Alphabet Squadron, but that was still a New Republic official squadron, and they would love to known not only why the X-Wing wasn't staying, but also where Tanicass Vosk had been all these years.

"So, the other two ships under the North Hangar and then back to the walking tanks in the South Hangar, or the big picture and the real gold?

"Let's get the ships and tanks out of the way. I'm pretty confident with my PID skills so we can knock this out quick." Brit replied.

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 7th, later
Cadance's Plot Coupon Emporium and Crystal Spa
Crystal Empire, Equestria

Brit shook her head and said, "Again, if we take it to the New Republic to get it worked on by a professional technician, it's as good as gone. [...] Like I said, I kinda know how to fly 'em but I've been outta practice for a good while."

"Yes, I heard you the first time." Amanda playfully poked a finger in Brit's direction as a wicked grin spread across her face. "But I'm sure we can find professionals to work on any of the weapons out here. The war's been over for ten years or so; there are doubtless ex-Alliance mechanics who'll work for money.

"As to who should own the it, well, I'm sure the Republic would claim it. The US would. But the Alliance abandoned it here, and this planet is well outside their borders. The practical question is, 'Is it legal for individuals to own warships in the New Republic.' Sandy's going to head back to Corellia, and he'll try to get an answer there.

"He's also going to look into flight schools there. You may not be able to relearn how to fly a T-65, but you can refresh the basics."

"Let's get the ships and tanks out of the way. I'm pretty confident with my PID skills so we can knock this out quick." Brit replied.

With a nod, Amanda touched a key on the projector. The holo jumped to a new image: a pair of Y-wings, parked side by side.

The right one was partially disassembled, with most of the fuselage panels gone, and many empty spaces gaped within where components large and small had been removed. Not only was it missing its port engine, the entire port pylon was gone, down to the heavy mounting bolts which once attached it to the fuselage. The pilot seat, ion guns, and one of the forward lasers were gone as well.

The one on the left was largely intact, other than a hollow just ahead of the cockpit; for about a half-meter ahead of the canopy, there was just empty framework, side to side, top to bottom. The instrument panel was missing most of its displays as well. The forward lasers and torpedo tubes rested on a cart behind the ship, and metal plates were stacked with them; almost certainly the armored panels that covered the hole.

"Y-wings, right? This one's being stripped for parts, right?" Amanda stuck a finger into the holo, pretending to touch the one on the right. "Sandy's thrilled to know that: no history book says that they were short on supplies to keep fighters in the air.

"The other one... If we knew what went in the big hole, it looks like it would fly again. There's some parts that go there on the junked one, but not many." She touched the key again; the holos merged into a single image, then zoomed into to show the hollow. A few ghostly outlines hung in the space: some grey metal boxes bearing alphanumeric codes, and a softball-sized blue sphere marked 'NAV 3'. A couple of heavy electrical cables crossed the space as well. With the images overlaid, it was easy to see that the lasers and torpedo tubes would have crossed the bottom of the hollow as well, the lasers just sticking into the space, the torpedo tubes extending both ahead and behind of it.

[Monfrox]

Brit maintained her poker face as Amanda spoke about the unscrupulous methods she could use to get the X-Wing fixed. The way she talked about it didn't sit right with her, but she didn't make any mention of it. It was a bit worrying how excited she was to bend the rules, and for a brief second she flashed back to the moment she was staring down her blaster in Echo Base. She suppressed a shiver down her spine.

"Do what you want with it. I'm in no hurry for my own starfighter."

As Amanda put the Holoproecter back over to a new image, Brit nodded.

"Yeah. BTL-A4 Y-wings. One on the right is probably a Hangar Queen. You see these kinds of aircraft everywhere. Comes from the factory fucked up or something about it just makes it never work right. They keep it in the hangar to use for spare parts to fix the less temperamental ships."

[Giovenith]

Willow had recently returned to the suite from a treatment and had been inspecting himself closely in an elaborately carved full-body mirror. The time spent in the Empire absorbing its magic closely had begun to cause some of the Crystal pony shimmer to show up on him, as was common for anyone who stayed in the Empire long enough. It would go away once they left, and it seemed that he was due for that when Sandy arrived.

He resisted the urge to sigh and nodded, nipping up his saddlebag.

“Let’s go,” he agreed.

After a short perusal of the schedules, Sandy found a through train that would take them all the way to Canterlot. While he’d rather have flown, it seemed awkward to meet somebody to give them an invitation, and then leave them to make their own way by themselves. The short flight from the Canterlot train station to the School for Gifted Unicorns took mere minutes.

September 9

Upon arrival, a young campus tour guide soon met up with them flanked by two armored guards. Willow smiled awkwardly at the severe soldiers but followed along politely as they were lead through the elaborate Canterlot grounds.

I still really don’t even know what to say, he thought to himself on the way. I know she wouldn’t do anything to make me feel bad, but still… Willow had seen Celestia in person, but never too up close and he had certainly never spoken to her.

They soon arrived at the same office that Sandy had been to before, allowed to enter only after a soft, “Come in!” from inside prompted it. Somewhat paralyzed, Willow had to be lightly shoved into the room where the god-queen of his species stood, whereupon he quickly got down on the floor as was required of him.

Princess Celestia finished writing something with the soft golden glow of her telekinesis before greeting the two with a smile. “Welcome back Sandy, it’s good to see you again. Willow Streaks, you can get up, it’s alright.”

The pegasus pony rose slowly, silently.

Sandy gave Willow a curious look: Asian-style prostration before a ruler was alien to him. “Princess,” he began with a deep nod of his head, “It’s a pleasure to be welcomed back.”

“I trust you’ve learned a lot on your journeys since the last time we met,” said the Princess, as she approached the two. “And now you want to talk to me about another quest that you wish to embark on, yes?”

Sandy took a deep breath. “Seek Your advice on.

"There is another-- One of our friends is from another timestream. It's... huge. Thousands of worlds, maybe trillions of inhabitants. More kinds of people than I've seen here; probably hundreds of intelligent species.

"Some of the people are machines. They're made in factories, but they think and feel. They're slaves everywhere there.

"Living beings are enslaved in many places as well. Within a large polity called the New Galactic Republic, slavery is outlawed, but people fall into debt and are sold into bondage. Legally, they have rights, and can pay their way out of bondage, but in practice... many barriers are placed to stop them.

"We – Amanda and I would like to-- If possible, we'd like to end slavery there. That's probably beyond us, but we'd like to reduce its horrors, and eventually sow the seeds for its abolition. I would prefer to-- I'd rather we try a political approach, even though that may take centuries to succeed. So long as we enter and leave that timestream with care, that might work, even though we'd have to take on a succession of identities to hide our dimension-hopping.

"But even a political approach risks violence, and starting with violence risks warfare." Sandy took another deep breath and paused; he was stepping onto thin ice. "The people there have terrible weapons. They are capable of destroying worlds with them. They've used them at least once, possibly more. Their power appears to rival-- I don't mean to blaspheme, but I'm not sure how else to describe it – their power appears to rival Your Own, possibly exceed it. But they lack Your wisdom in using it. If warfare breaks out, and a faction feels desperate enough, or morally justified enough, to build such weapons..." Sandy trailed off, shaking his head.

"It's a dangerous game we seek to start. But the alternative is to leave billions or trillions in slavery. I'm of the opinion that's worse.

"I'm a historian by training. On my Earth, attempts to end slavery have often gone badly. My in nation, war broke out, and even with the, um, much less potent weapons we had, we killed or wounded one in thirty people, and left a third of the country in ruins. Over a century and a half later, people from that region still harbor resentment and bitterness about the war, and the end of slavery.

"I do know what's worked: we have some wisdom, some great arguments and oratory. I hope to use that to our advantage. But all of written human history is shorter than Your reign, and there is much we don't know. Any advice You can give would be priceless."

Princess Celestia waited patiently for Sandy to finish, never interrupting and her expression neutral. Willow’s eyes flicked between the floor to her face, wondering whether it was appropriate to try to read her expression, or what he could possibly add to this with his presence. It didn’t seem graceful to chime in, “And I’ll paint about it!” in the middle of such a grim topic.

Once the human historian was finished, the Princess gave a solemn single nod.

“You are choosing to go down a long and dangerous route, Sandy,” she said. “I have seen slavery in my time, and the bonds are deeper than even the most learned of us would initially assume. It is the purest manifestation of the greed that lies at the bottom of many creatures’ hearts, and yet it often comes packaged in knots that are not so easily cut.”

A slight bang against the nearby window spooked the group and temporarily broke the tension of the moment. Nearby, a small frisbee had landed at the Princess’s hooves, the source of the bang, which she picked up and inspected with her telekinesis. Her gaze shifted out the window at the group of stunned, guilty-looking younger students who had been playing on the sunny green property outside.

Smiling, she casually tossed the frisbee back out to the children, who melted in relief and continued to play. She closed up the window behind it.

“When I chose to live among my people to guide them directly,” Celestia continued, surprising Willow somewhat with her use of the word ‘people.’ “That came with certain limitations, Sandy. I am not only a goddess, but a sovereign, and as such I must consider the political implications of my actions. A sovereign must take care when she steps outside her realm, because it is not her world… and so too must a common man consider.”

Outside, the children continued to play, complicating the simple frisbee game by attempting to practice teleportation to catch their own throws before a friend could do so.

“It is very likely that you are not the first people to take action against this injustice,” she continued. “If it is as you say, and to the scope that you claim, then it is almost certain there are already groups working toward the aims you have not even started yet. This place is their world. And if you are going to try to change their world, you must start by finding them and humbling yourself to them. They know more about what challenges you will face in this place than I could offer, and you must take care not to accidentally undo the work that they have already done in your eagerness to go in and do it for them. It will also be crucial because you are outsiders—the enemies you will face will use this fact against you, they will accuse you of not understanding their culture and circumstances, and that you are nothing more than outside invaders attempting to subjugate. Many will believe them, even if you are in the right.”

Sandy listened intently. For a few seconds, his brow furrowed at the mention of 'the purest expression of greed': whether that was true brought up the larger issue of how such a question could be answered, even among members of a single society, much less comparisons of, say, Terran vs. Corellian greed. But She doubtless intended the comment for rhetorical effect, though there may be an opportunity on Corellia implied by the statement.

He listened to the rest impassively. Her advice was less than he expected of a goddess older than written human history. By the end, he was crestfallen, and made no attempt to hide it.

Two implications of what she said leapt to mind. Neither was good: Celestia's rule was far less sophisticated than he imagined, which seemed unlikely; or She judged him in need of such rudimentary advice, which was certainly possible, but would imply he'd badly misread Her previous interview. More likely, She simply had a low opinion of humans. I may be the smartest, tamest monkey in the jungle, but I'm still just a monkey in the jungle.

Letting his gaze fall, Sandy shook his head sadly. "I'm truly sorry that Your previous encounters with humanity went so poorly that the lesson seemed necessary.

"We will take care. We have no choice: if we are revealed as outsiders, we will not only fail, we will face torture and death. Access to other universes is unknown there, and our nature, if revealed, will raise dangerous questions. Our first step, even before attempting to contact other abolitionist groups – we know they're there; we have the name of one – is therefore to establish our identities as natives. We have a plan for that, though it would take a while to describe."

After a moment, a thought struck him, and he turned to the pegasi artist. “You’ll be safe, Willow. We’ll tell people most of the truth: you’re from a far away place called Equestria, you’re an artist, and human contact with your world is rare. Nobody will think twice about it. Non-human societies are common in Maghrl’s timestream.

“It’s only us, Brit, Amanda, and me, that definitely need to fit in, as we’ve… assumed identities there that people could verify. Giovenith will need an identity as well, but we can tailor it to fit her. We’ll have a bit more flexibility with her, I, uh… believe.”

Willow looked upward at the two towering people beside him, his gaze flicking back and forth between their talk. He was silent and reserved for the most part until he settled on Sandy, watching the human magician’s expression fall into melancholic disappointment. Willow’s own expression slowly screwed up into critical confusion, raising an eye while frowning. He allowed himself a long, collecting blink to politely avoid noticeably rolling his eyes.

“Oh, jeeze louise, Sandy,” the smaller pegasus huffed, unexpectedly defusing the heavy, formal mood. His tone was far from the reverent passivity he’d arrived with, shifting as he was to kindly but firmly trying to ruffle some sense into a friend. He casually patted Sandy’s leg with one wing. “Come on now, we all know that you’re a smart guy. And I’ve known a lot of smart guys in my time…” He raised a hoof in soliloquy. “… and I get that if there’s one thing that always gets you smart guys down, it’s being told something you already know. But let me tell you, as someone who’s known a lot of smart guys…”

He shifted the hoof to point up at Sandy and looked at him intensely.

“… it’s necessary. The thing about being smart, is that you guys are always thinking a million miles a minute, you’ll be thirty steps ahead of the home base and still running. It’s creativity that’s snapped its leash and run amok — and I may not be a smart guy, but I definitely know something about that.” Willow gestured back to himself. “And sometimes, no matter how boring it is, you need to slow down and reacquaint yourself with the basics. I throw buckets at wall canvases for a living… but even I gotta occasionally sit down and practice my shading techniques by sketching the tree branches outside."

He crossed his legs in front of him and nodded up at the magician.

“You gotta know the rules to break them the right way, and sometimes you have to go over the rules again to remember what they even are so that you can keep breaking them in the future.”

The Princess blinked in slight surprise at the declaration from the artist, but then gently smiled and nodded before turning to Sandy. “You’ve chosen a good friend to take with you. I don’t mean to imply that you don’t already understand these things, Sandy, and I apologize if I did so. But Willow is correct. No matter how well versed we are in these matters theoretically, once you’re actually in the middle of an intense struggle such as this, it can be very easy to lose track of yourself and your principles while trying to keep track of the many moving parts. Some of your enemies may purposely confuse you to provoke this. That’s not a matter of intelligence, character, or learning — it’s an unavoidable obstacle in the pursuit of any deeply complex goal. It may seem sillily obvious now, but in order for it to remain obvious, you must get into the habit of repeating it to yourself. Lest we begin to believe much sillier things in the sea of chaos.”

There was a sudden shudder that went through the room, causing the floorboards to groan and several loose sheets of paper to flutter nervously. It was as if a powerful breeze had hit the building, and yet, there had been no wind to be felt. Just below the summer ambience of the birds chirping, children playing outside, and the occasional bustle of students and faculty in the outside hall, there was a brief and very soft laughter.

Celestia stood quietly, her expression suddenly harder for a moment, before she closed her eyes and breathed deeply, as if determined to ignore an unwelcome presence. The moment had passed without further incident, and so she continued.

“Besides — that was not the end of my advice.” The Princess continued. “The next thing you will have to remember is the economics. You can convince many people that slavery is morally wrong, but as long as many things that people use and need remain dependent on it, there will always be motivation to overlook those moral failings from the average citizen.” FIXME may need transition

Sandy raised a finger to object, but decided against it. Instead, a corner of his mouth turned up: whether or not Celestia had decided to pursue more serious discussion, this vein was more fruitful.

FIXME needs new transition “I understand that you will be bringing new skills and goods to this new world, including Willow Streaks’ talents, and you may have an advantage there in creating new ways to provide these services that make slave service obsolete. That will have more of an effect than anything else.

“But the most important thing of all to making sure this works long term is creating a place for former slaves to go once they are freed. This has been a common failing of abolitionists in many worlds. A former slave is set upon a world she no longer has a proper place in, often among peoples who do not respect her, with no real skills to distinguish or protect herself. It creates new problems to replace slavery, or can even incentivize a quiet return of the practice if former slaves feel desperate enough to offer their services for less than they are worth. If you cannot ensure a proper future for those you free, you will just be sentencing them to new bondages, and making onlookers wonder what was the point of freeing them at all.”

Stiffening, Sandy gave Willow a series of sidelong glances. Yes, that would fit: the three tribes caught and enslaved one another, just as humans did once. While he had trouble imagining how the pegasoi could have enslaved the others in their aerial city, they may have thought of something. Even a smaller, less developed weather factory could have easily produced enough lightning to keep slaves on the ground in line. Zeus would have been envious.

The pegasoi... with the right mind magic, slavery was no harder here than at home. Sandy shivered; he’d seen what that could do. If the unicorns had spells like that, Celestia might have to work hard to keep them in line.

The earth ponies? That was a stumper, but they simply could have been victims of the other two. “Yesss, slavery of different races was a problem for us too.” He caught himself a moment too late: was slavery another part of their deliberately forgotten history? Was the mention as anathema as the names of their cities? “I, uh, mean yes, it’s– It is indeed a problem on many worlds, and it is specifically where… Where we hope to make our stand.”

The Princess gently shook her head. “Slavery has fortunately never existed among the ponies, even before my sister and I came to them. Only Sombra ever tried—and we took care of that.”

Willow puckered his lips somewhat and widened his eyes, gaze downward. He had heard of what happened to the Crystal Empire, obviously, and even though he intellectually knew that Princess Celestia was ancient, it was still a bit stirring to be reminded of old, major events in person.

Rubbing the back of his head, Sandy paused to collect his thoughts. “Refuges will be a necessity in Maghrl’s timestream, uhhh, at least in the short run. But coincidentally, I have some ideas about that.

“We’ve been investigating a ruined– a set of abandoned fortifications there, on a world called Hoth. It’s bitterly cold there; so cold, it makes the tundra around the Crystal Empire seem as temperate as Equestria. As a result, most of the fortifications are underground, either in whole or in part. One is… extensive.”

Sandy extended an arm conversationally, palm up, elbow bent, and began gesturing. “Apparently, it was meant to accommodate, um, thousands of troops, along with a large hospital, maintenance facilities for– there’s no word for them here. We call them ‘starships’, vessels meant to move between worlds, some very large… and other kinds of things: other vehicles, weapons, even entertainment.

“It seems large enough to house thousands, possibly tens of thousands of droids, as the mechanical people are known. It’s just a stopgap, but it is a necessary one, though the explanation for why is, uh, upsetting.

“But the mention of economics…” Sandy shook his head. “At home, it was a canard, a distraction, a lie. The end of slavery in our country didn’t bring the end of the industries that supposedly depended on it. Nor did– Some centuries ago, the worshippers of one of our gods decided it was wrong to enslave their coreligionists. Although this greatly reduced the number of slaves available to them, their businesses remained unchanged. The end of slavery simply changed who toiled and earned bread, and who ate it, to quote one of our famous abolititionist leaders.

“Maghrl’s timestream… The droids may change the rules in some cases, but I have my doubts. The two we’ve freed so far did jobs humans do at home for pay. There seem to be other droids that do likewise. So it’s just the same as home: who works and who benefits.” Sandy shrugged apologetically. “If I don’t overstep my bounds, Princess.” He hoped that was enough to satisfy Celestia; back home, contradicting the Olympians was an excellent route to an early grave.

“Don’t worry about it, Sandy,” Celestia reassured. “We don’t hurt people when they upset us here, you’re safe no matter what you have to say.”

“Your Majesty,” Willow ventured, his more reserved tone returning. “Now I don’t mean to overstep, but… how do we deal with all of that technology? If what Sandy is saying is true, it could get really ugly really fast.”

Celestia nodded. “I know. That’s partially why I’m reminding you of all this… when you’re going up against a level of force like that, pushing the wrong pieces at the wrong time can be catastrophic. So before anything else, you must be careful to avoid giving anyone a reason to use such a power in the first place, if doing so is possible within your goals.”

“And if we can’t?”

The Princess gave a long, uncomfortable pause as she stared directly, unblinking, at her two visitors. It began to make Willow slightly uncomfortable. Giovenith had a tendency to stare sometimes like that too… occasionally, he genuinely wondered if it was just emotional intensity, or if perhaps the divine didn’t need to blink as often as mortals.

Finally, she sighed. “Sandy, Willow, I need you to understand something very carefully…” She spoke in a low, gentle, but slow tone, beckoning them closer. “I agree with your goals. Fully. And if I were able to help you directly, I would do so. But at the end of the day, I am not fully my own. I am the sovereign of a foreign land, and I don’t have the privilege of enabling you merely as myself, my words and actions will be taken as the will of Equestria as a whole.

“If I directly collaborated with you, and instructed you on what specific tactics to employ and what to target, then that would inevitably be interpreted as an act of politics by the forces of that world and would be responded to as such. And that is not an engagement that the people of Equestria have consented to.”

Willow blinked, not fully comprehending. “So, you can’t actually help us at all?”

“I cannot act as if I am giving you permission or instructing you to do anything. I can only share with you possible tools for your personal goals, and not stop you from doing what you will with them.”

“So what tools can we use?”

The Princess looked upward slightly, considering. She closed her eyes. “I think that might be a better question for my sister.”

Willow took on a somewhat nervous expression. “Couldn’t you-“

“It’s been a long time since I was involved in the game of force. She, on the other hand… has had less time to adapt to our new world.”

With one hand, Sandy rubbed his jawline, with the other, he traced a circle, searching for a word. He gave up the search, letting his hand fall, but continued to think. “We have to use supernatural force with care. Magic is unknown there, and feeble in any event. No other pantheons are known active, so, in some sense, nobody would notice the hand of Equestria. So to speak.

“But avoiding warfare is, I agree, to our advantage. Or if force is to be used, it must… We mustn’t be suspected of using it.” Sandy managed a weak smile: “I asked for advice, and I have received it. I can’t complain.

“I’ll ask further for advice, and some assistance, on Helikon. That’s more appropriate for me, though I worry about what Melpomene will ask in return.

“But perhaps Luna could help me with something. Umm…” He returned to the circling motion for a few seconds. “Though not directly related to slavery, Her help might save me several years of study.”


Princess Celestia nodded and gestured toward the door. “The guards can lead you to my sister’s rooms. She usually rests during the daytime, but she’ll probably make an exception for you. Good luck, the two of you. I wish you well, and I wish I could be of more help.”

“Thank you, your Majesty. We’ll do our best,” said Willow.

The guards lead the two back into the halls and down an unusually long path. Although the palace was always luxurious by its nature, they eventually found themselves in hallways that were comparatively spare compared to the rest, and much more silent compared to the rest. They seemed rarely used. Willow looked around, curious.

“Are we… going the right way?” he asked, though he felt silly for doing so. Why wouldn’t the royal guard of all ponies know the way?

“Princess Luna’s work is less public facing than her sister’s,” explained one of the guards. “So she has less use for public décor.”

“Where does she stay?”

There was a slight rumble through the air of the hall, and the light, even the sunlight, seemed to dim somewhat. The guards stepped backward. There was a gentle rush of air, and Sandy and Willow suddenly found the world around them being swallowed away, replaced by a new setting entirely: It seemed to be an infinite, dark expanse, not unlike the kind that Gio occasionally pulled them into, only this one was alit by an ever-presenting light blue mist dotted with hanging and scattered orbs of light everywhere.

“Welcome, Willow Streaks, Sanford Bela,” said a low voice, as the smaller indigo alicorn suddenly faded into existence some ways off. Though she seemed far and unapproachable, almost hidden in the darkness at the edge of the mystic lights, her voice somehow carried to them. As usual, she spoke with an unusual cadence, clipping, and occasional pronunciation that suggested she was not entirely used to speaking the language she was. “I apologize for bringing you so forwardly to Our domain. It is easier than coming to you in person, at the moment.”

“Your… Oooh!” Sandy stood awkwardly for a few seconds as he slowly realized where he was. “I– I’m honored, Princess!” His tone was awed; other than his part in the celebration for Persephone, he’d never even been in Olympus.


“It is of no concern,” said Luna, as she slowly walked along the edge of the blue mists, staying half tucked in the darkness. “I have many places to be at once, so this is the most convenient way to converse. What has my sister sent you for?”

Sandy blinked once at the unexpected tone. Right: She’s in charge and we don’t matter except that we’re the next thing on Her agenda. “She–” Sandy paused for a moment to get his thoughts in order. “I suggested to Her that You might be able to help me with my magical studies.

“I’m learning a spell from my world, a very old one. It conjures animals. Large animals… ‘elephants’, if the name holds any meaning. It’s… likely eight to ten thousand years old, possibly as old as thirty thousand, and its –” He stopped: Luna might not know the word ‘engine’. “Its… core relies on two equally old magical traditions almost unknown where and when I’m from.”

“One is ‘shamanism’, concerned with spirits of the natural world. The other is now called ‘akasha’, concerned with magic that draws its power from the stars. These traditions are not only unknown to me, but also to the unicorns. I think learning them well enough to learn the spell would take years.”

Sandy paused to a take a breath, and the plunge. “I was hoping… that since the stars seem to be part of Your domain, that You might be able help me understand how that works.” He quickly added, “Or that I might be allowed to study the stars here and draw my own conclusions from them. It might save me a great deal of time.”


Willow silently turned his head, taking in as much of the holy environment as possible. The dimension itself wasn't particularly shocking, as he had been allowed into Gio's family's heaven many times, often displaying similar scenes. It did, however, disquiet him somewhat that he had never heard of this place in regards to the alicorns. He supposed its existence did make sense, to a degree... from the things he heard from Gio and Sandy, it seemed like gods just had "heavens" by default, like how bees had hives or vampires had coffins or old people had Denny's or something. Willow more wondered why nopony else had apparently been told about it, why it was not part of the Equestrian zeitgeist... though he also supposed that it didn't matter much, Equestria was more than enough of a paradise, and the Princesses were entitled to their sacred secrets.

He was not entirely comfortable being there, regardless. It was alright, he guessed, as the Princess had taken them there, but it still felt wrong. He briefly considered asking Luna to send him back, but as she was the most intimidating of the Princesses, he thought better. He looked between Sandy and the Princess.

Luna for her part stared at Sandy with an ambiguous but calm expression. She was stonier than her older sister, though over the years, had learned to reign in some of her more intimidating mannerisms.

"The fire of Equestria's sky is very powerful, Sanford," she said. "Before my sister and I arrived, it would take several unicorns at once to make the day-night shift, and individuals who did it too often were subject to losing their magic permanently. Once we had arrived, that Great Dying from before had plummeted their numbers to such extent that the race almost lost magic entirely due to repeat shifts. You would have to be very careful in your experiments." She shifted her head to the side and gave him a somewhat critical look. "I ask, though, to explain to me in your own words: What do you wish to harness the night for?"

“I….” Sandy puzzled over Luna’s wording: hadn’t he just explained that? Did she mean ‘Why do you want that spell?’? Not having any better guess, nor wanting to leave Luna in silence, he decided to try that. “Elephants are among the most useful of our domestic animals, if one can provide enough food to meet their vast appetites. Not only are they immensely strong, they are unique among my world’s animals in having– They have a prehensile nose, called a ‘trunk’. It’s… it would be easier if I showed you.”

He made the first few gestures of Apollonius’ Sixth Metamorphosis then paused to see if She objected to his spellcasting. Not getting an objection, he finished the spell, moving his hands as if to knead his face.

When he finished, he had a trunk about a foot long, which he waved at Willow, and then wrapped around a finger to show its dexterity. Sandy swept a hand in front of his face and dismissed the spell.

“Elephants are capable of lifting hundreds of pounds with their trunks. But–”

“I know what an elephant is, Sanford.” Luna said, plainly.

Willow looked between the two.

Surprise lit Sandy’s eyes, but all he said was, “Yes, Princess.” He paused to consider his wording. “My immediate desire for them is… Recently, a fight broke out between two armed people, both wielding deadly weapons. I was too far away to intervene physically, and I don’t yet know any spells that could have stopped the fight. As it was, I had to ask for Giovenith’s help in resolving the, uh, problem.

“But a pair of elephants could have wrapped each one of them with their trunks, and held them still, allowing us to disarm them and settle the matter without risk of violence.”

The Princess’s expression scrunched from one of stoicism to one of slight confusion and curiosity. She exchanged a look with Willow, who quickly averted his eyes.

“I suppose I could easily help you with that,” she said, lightly. Her horn alighted, performing some sort of magic while she remained standing and speaking. “If that is what you wish. Though, if you mean to disarm ponies in matters of defense, would it not be more efficient to merely practice your telekinesis? Or, do human magicians not possess this ability?"

“Few do.” Sandy started and then stopped, thinking about how to describe the situation. “There are many magical specialties where I’m from, and a somewhat larger set of super– a larger set of other supernatural abilities. Some people have TK– are born with telekinesis, or at least the ability to use it. Some use magic; others use, uh, other methods.

“I could learn a telekinesis spell, if I had access to a text. Writing a TK spell would take months to years, depending on its potency and capabilities.” His forehead crinkled. “With a little study… and access to the right ingredients, I might be able to make a, um, hand cream that would grant me a telekinetic hand.

“Other spellcasters… Artificers could make devices to grant them telekinesis. A wand, perhaps. And if they had access to the paws or talons of a magical beast, perhaps they could enchant them with powerful telekinetic abilities, possibly move many tons with them.”

“Somebody with fine control over air might shape a wind to move things. Perhaps not ‘true’ telekinesis, but the effect would be the same. And so on.”

Princess Luna squinted her eyes in apparent critical thought, making Willow somewhat anxious. Had they displeased her in some way?

“I can give you a small essence of the night from here,” she finally said, her magic forming a small but growing orb of blackness next to her. “To study if that is what you wish. Though if you wish for my recommendation, I would simply take some basic lessons from my sister’s academy. Advanced telekinesis is basic to the properly educated Equestrian unicorn, I doubt that it would be difficult to pass such lessons onto you, though I do not know how such an ability would manifest from you.”

Sandy rubbed his chin, thinking. “I’m not sure I can cast telekinesis as they do, but I will inquire. Still, I would prefer to learn this spell, not only for the utility of the elephants, but also to understand the magical tradition that makes the spell function.”

The Princess nodded solemnly. A clear jar with a silvery lid popped into existence in front of Sandy, filled with a swirling dark mist inside. Notably, it contained no sparkles like might be expected.

Carefully, Sandy took the jar. Luna wasn’t kidding about the potency of Her night; even with his dulled Hearing, he could easily Hear Her theme coming from the bottled darkness. It was a variation on Her Sister’s theme, but more majestic, regal even. Celestia reigned; if needed, Luna ruled. “Thank you, Princess.”

“And as for you, Willow Streaks,” said Luna, turning to her surprised subject. “Why have you come to me?”

“I’m supporting my friend, your Majesty.”

“And you will continue to join these humans in their endeavors?”

He blinked. “Um, yes. I don’t see why not.”

“Then you must take care to do your nation honor,” said the Princess. “Mayhaps you speak with Princess Twilight and her friends? They are veteran champions of Equestria, as you know.”

“Well I wouldn’t call myself a ‘champion,’ or anything-”

“Willow Streaks,” Luna interrupted, instantly silencing him. “You must be aware of who you are now. The Cloerith godling has attached herself to you, and I see the blessing of a terrible War God upon you as well — how, I shall not inquire. Allying yourself with Sanford will doubtless bring other connections as well. You are not a passing mortal anymore. I say this not to flatter you; you may be expected to answer for it should you choose to continue higher endeavors. When that happens, you must speak and act wisely.”

Willow put a hoof to his chin, somewhat worried. That was something he hadn’t really considered. He thought of Gio, Rache, and Sandy as just his friends… but he supposed there wasn’t really such a thing as being ‘just friends’ with divine beings for too long, at least not to outsiders. “I’ll… do my best, your Majesty.”

Sandy stiffened and came to attention as Luna addressed Her worshiper. She was more like what he expected of the gods: She had no problem directly reminding Willow of his duties to Her and Celestia. Still, there was no reason to let Willow feel alone in that. “...and we’ll do our best to help you, Willow.” He smiled at the artist before turning to his goddess with suitable solemnity. “Amanda and I will do our part to maintain, uh, as harmonious relations as we can between Equestria and Sinai and Olympus.” He inclined his head in the best he could do for a bow.

After waiting a few seconds for Her reply, he added. “A question, if I may.” He raised the jar a tiny bit. “Is this sacred? Should I treat it with reverence? Is it something I can allow Your Sister’s students to study?”

"It is a sample of my power," answered Luna. "It is small enough to not be of much wider consequence, though it will do enough for your purposes. I woud rather you keep it to yourself, however. My sisters' students have their own purposes to focus on."

"Thank you again, Princess," said Willow.

The world around them seemed to slowly fade for a moment before, in a sudden flash of white light, they found themselves standing in a sunny green yard on the property. The singing of birds and laughter of children soon hit their senses, and they saw a class of foal unicorns running about, playing with frisbees with their telekinesis. Princess Celestia was standing nearby, gently smiling and talking to some of the children. She caught sight of the two and gestured them over.

"Welcome back," she greeted. "I hope my sister wasn't too harsh on you?"

"Just intense as usual," Willow answered with a bit of a sigh.

A foal walked up to Sandy with a frisbee in his mouth, tilting his head curiously at the giant monkey.

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 9
Magic School,
Canterlot, Equestria

"Welcome back," [Celestia] greeted. "I hope my sister wasn't too harsh on you?"

"Just intense as usual," Willow answered with a bit of a sigh.

Shaking his head, Sandy began, "She is more like human rulers..." He paused to consider. "But still kinder and more respectful of mortals than most of our gods. And more willing to help than..."

A foal walked up to Sandy with a frisbee in his mouth, tilting his head curiously at the giant monkey.

Sandy saw motion in his peripheral vision, and turned to look at the approaching pony-child. Unselfconsciously, he beamed at the tiny unicorn. "If you will excuse me, Princess..." Sandy knelt down to be closer to the foal's height, shifting the jar into the crook of his left elbow as he did so. "Hello, there! My name's Sandy. What's yours?"

[Giovenith]

The little foal backed up quickly as Sandy knelt down, startled somewhat. He tilted his head again before holding up the frisbee with his telekinesis, spinning it in place as he did.

"I'm the monster under your bed!" he answered with a grin. "I'm big and I go roooooar!"

"Introduce yourself properly, little one," the Princess gently chastised.

The foal frowned somewhat. "Sorry, Princess. My name is Little Dipper. What are you doing here at the magic school? Are you the monkey magician some ponies were talking about? I thought you'd have a monkey horn."

Willow stepped away slightly, a bit put off by the presence of the young children. Like most childless young adults, there was no real good way to interact with them for him. Somewhat fatigued from their visit and still reeling a bit from Princess Luna's words, Willow made the bold move of approaching Celestia.

"Princess," he greeted with a low nod in place of a bow, feeling it was more appropriate for the more casual situation. "I don't mean to be disrespectful, but we do have a few more questions that we need answered."

"In a rush, Willow?"

"Well, no, but..." He trailed off.

Celestia smiled. "You've been awfully quiet this visit. Is there anything you'd like to ask or share?"

He was silent for a moment before folding his ears. "Honestly, this whole... adventuring thing, I guess, is a bit beyond me at the moment. Princess Luna said that I would have to be prepared for others to hold me to account for the gods I've met... but I thought that when I got home, I would be allowed to just, take it easy for a bit."

"And is that what you want?"

"I, want to do my best to help my friends and serve the country."

"But is that what you want, Willow?"

He didn't quite have an answer for that.

"That's alright," the Princess reassured. "You don't have to know right now."

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 9
Magic School,
Canterlot, Equestria

The little foal backed up quickly as [...] before holding up the frisbee with his telekinesis, spinning it in place as he did.

"I'm the monster under your bed!" he answered with a grin. "I'm big and I go roooooar!"

Charmed, Sandy smiled broadly at the tiny unicorn. "Playful and crea--"

"Introduce yourself properly, little one," the Princess gently chastised.

"Sorry, Princess. My name is Little Dipper. What are you doing here at the magic school? Are you the monkey magician some ponies were talking about? I thought you'd have a monkey horn."

Sandy's smile never left his face as he spoke. He switched to a slower, clearer speaking cadence; much of his explanation would be new to the foal. "I'm a human, not a monkey. Monkeys are smaller and less interesting than humans: they don't talk, and they don't work magic.

"Humans don't need horns any more than pegasoi do. We work magic in many different ways, depending on our Gifts. I work magic with my hands and my voice, like this." He made sure Luna's present was tightly tucked into his bent elbow, and started conjuring miniature fireworks, taking advantage of Equestria's ambient magic to produce more intense colors than his Earth's magic could produce: deep crimson, brilliant emerald, sunshine gold, sparkling sapphire.

As Sandy explained and demonstrated, he caught snippets of Willow's conversation with his goddess: "adventuring thing, I guess, is a bit beyond me" … "what you want, Willow?" … "don't have to know right now." While he kept his attention on Little Dipper, Sandy wondered about Willow, and whether he felt pressed into helping Amanda and him. I'll have to remember to mention that he's not obliged to help us if he just wants to relax.

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 7th, later
Cadance's Plot Coupon Emporium and Crystal Spa
Crystal Empire, Equestria

[Brit said,] "Do what you want with it. I'm in no hurry for my own starfighter."

Amanda shrugged. "For the moment, we're doing nothing with it. We can't fly it, it doesn't fly anyway, we have no money for parts, and--" She gave Brit a long look. "Do you think the Republic has a claim on that ship? It's been sixteen years since the battle and about ten since the end of the war. If they wanted it, why didn't they come get it, along with the... maybe millions of dollars of other equipment they left behind?"

“Probably one of those “out of sight, out of mind” things. They probably forgot about it in the big retreat, and had to come up with replacements quickly from whatever they could find.” Brit shrugged. “You’d be surprised at how much equipment gets left lying around when armies leave bases. Especially in a hurry.”

Amanda typed some notes on her phone. “Sandy’s has some ideas about the things left behind. Do you think the Alliance might have meant to return to the base at some point?”

“If they did, they would’ve done so already.”

Amanda stared at Brit for a second or two, wearing a wry expression, before finally saying, “Alright, I’ll let Sandy know.” She overlooked Brit’s implicit concession of the argument about the fighters: if they didn’t mean to return, everything in the base was abanonded.

"Yeah. BTL-A4 Y-wings. One on the right is probably a Hangar Queen. You see these kinds of aircraft everywhere. Comes from the factory fucked up or something about it just makes it never work right. They keep it in the hangar to use for spare parts to fix the less temperamental ships."

"OK..." Amanda looked around, and after a moment of searching, realized she didn't have anything to write with. She slid her phone out of a pocket and thumb-typed on it. "B-T-L... A-4. May be damaged goods. I'll let Sandy know. Thanks.

"We found a few numbers on the pair of them. If any are serial numbers, Sandy can run it down with the company that made it."

“Can’t remember off the top of my head, but it’s different from the T-65B, which was made by Incom. I know that much. I’d make sure to find matching serial numbers. Like firearms: the serial number is stamped or printed on multiple parts of the gun. You ever get into collecting, know that matching serial number guns are more expensive.”

Nodding, Amanda typed something else into her phone, then turned back to the holoprojector. "Oh! This isn't a vehicle, but it'll help get us there." Amanda switched to another holo, this one showing a small room or large walk-in closet with heavy metal shelving on all four sides. The shelves on the left and right sides were bare. To the left of the door, a chest-high shelf held two gas tanks, about the size and shape of Earth’s propane tanks. Both were marked to indicate that they held tibanna, and gave a long model number for the type of tank they were. One grey plastic box rested on the lowest shelf in the back. The box extended almost from one side to the other, since it was over two meters long. White stenciled letters on the top and side read, 'MISSILE, CONCUSSION, TYPE 4'.

"There were a bunch of closets like this one down a long hall, a floor below the main floor, under the North Hangar. The hall ends about 20 meters outside the hangar doors."

She looked up at Brit. "That says 'ammo dump' to us. The historian wanted to open the box to take a look at the missile–" Amanda rolled her eyes at the memory. "—but I thought we should find out more about it first. But he had a good question about it: is this ammunition for a spaceship or a ground weapon, or both?"

Brit shook her head. Curiosity killed the cat, as they always said.

“Starfighter. You see these used as anti-starfighter missiles mainly but could also be used against ship systems if you knew where to hit them. Or so I was told by the stick jockeys.”

“Anti-ship missile”, Amanda muttered along with her thumb-typing. After a few seconds of that, she went back to fast-forwarding through the holos.
"This is almost back to the South Hangar. This is the battle Sandy wants to ask you about." The holo Amanda flicked to was busy, with lots of bodies and metal debris scattered about a large area lit by only the Belas' Coleman lantern; some of the bodies were in Alliance winter whites, others were in distinctive white armor.

But before Brit could get a good look at the battlefield, Amanda zoomed the holo in to just a pair of Alliance soldiers, a man and a woman, face down, the woman atop the man's lower back and legs. Brit didn't need her medic training to recognize that they'd been killed by blaster fire. The man clutched a proton grenade in his right hand; the woman was armed with a blaster. Both of them wore insignia that identified them as part of an combat engineer battalion based on Hoth. Both of them seemed to have a lot of stuff tucked into their combat webbing systems; oddly, both were wearing packs as well.

"This thing the guy is carrying..." Amanda stuck a finger into the holo to tap the proton grenade. "Is this something like a 'limpet mine'? Sandy wondered about the flat side and checked the Second World War books he has to find that term. The woman has more of them in her pack."

Amanda pressed a key, and the holo cut to a holomovie. The images showed Sandy extending his stick to its full thirty foot length and using that to lift the flap of the woman's pack. As the holo showed Amanda raise the electrobinoculars to her eyes, the resolution of the holo for the woman dramatically improved. The Belas must have combined the binocs' output with the holo. In high resolution, it was clear that there were at least a couple more proton grenades in the woman's pack, and probably more.

Holo-Sandy tried to use the stick to lift her to check the man's pack, but didn't have the leverage. He did raise her body enough for Brit to catch a glimpse of her rank buttons: she was a second lieutenant. Amanda stopped the holo as holo-Sandy gave up trying to get into the guy's pack. "We've got some guesses about these guys, but you were there in a different timestream, so maybe you can tell us. Other than the big 27s on their shoulder patches, we have no idea who they were."

“They don’t look like mines. More like charges of some kind. Maybe something a bit different than C4 but probably an equivalent. I don’t know. I was only ever issued low-yield thermal detonators. Not familiar with any of the 27th Company. I generally kept to myself in Echo unless it was to eat at the mess or go out on patrol.”

“OK, we’ll mark those two down as unknown. But what’s a thermal detonator?”

“It’s an explosive device. Basically a grenade. At least, that’s the kind we used. Standard thermal dets are more powerful and more dangerous.”
Amanda typed another note, “Check… for… grenades.” She started to reach for the holoprojector’s controls, changed her mind, and looked at Brit. “No use trying to find something that small on that big a battlefield with this projector. You might see something with the holodeck, despite the poor light. But it would really be better to go back with Sandy.”

Brit said nothing, but her expression noticeably soured as an indicator of how enticing of a proposition that was. Seeing her expression, Amanda said, “Maybe Sandy can come up with something to make it worth the trip.”

Switching to another holo, Amanda explained what Brit was seeing as she panned the image around. "This huge cave is the South Hangar. That's where the walking tanks are. There's three of the elephant ones. This one near the hangar doors has a broken neck. Maybe they were using it with another one to lift the cargo boxes we saw into place, and this one broke.

"This one discovered the aircraft elevator that goes to the speeder repair shops the hard way. We were able to get a look in here, just above where the head got mashed into its chest. It's full of bodies in white armor.

"This last one is just standing here in the corner. We couldn't figure out how to get in. The panel on the bottom is closed tight and none of the buttons next to it do anything."

Amanda swept the holo through a wall of cargo boxes on one side of the South Hangar to reveal another large room, smaller than the hangar but still quite large. Brit was familiar with a similar area: it was a cargo depot for arriving and departing transports, with a set of overhead cranes for moving cargo.

Within the depot were seven AT-STs, five in a V facing towards the cargo-box wall and South hangar, and two more some distance away at an angle to them. They were all squatting on their mechanical haunches. "We're probably stating the obvious here, but these five are probably one troop, and the other two are part of another one. The base must have had power long enough for these guys to stack all these boxes to keep the worst of the cold out of this side room.

Amanda tapped one of the two walkers. "This one still works. We got in through the top hatch, figured out how to plug in the walking battery, and jump-started it. We couldn't miss the big green start button. Worked like a charm." With a key-press, Amanda switched to a holo-view of the AT-ST's cockpit; the holo-Belas were strapped into the seats and discussing what to do, as the walker's powerplant whined in the background. "'Auto-stand' sounds good." said holo-Sandy.

Holo-Amanda nodded, and pressed a clearly-marked button; the view through the cockpit window rose as the scout walker stretched its legs. Holo-Sandy studied the control panel. "Let's see... stabilizers to... full?"

"Yeah."

Holo-Sandy turned a knob a couple of clicks. "Oh, I see now! These are the manual controls for each leg. So, umm, walk mode to manual."

"Careful!"

Other than a woman's voice reciting, "Caution, auto-walk disabled", nothing happened when holo-Sandy threw a switch. He got a playful look on his face. "You put your left leg in..." He grabbed a lever and moved it; the walker shifted its balance as the leg rose high enough that the toes were visible through the window. A new, deep-pitched hum joined the whine.

"Sandy! Maybe you shouldn't investigate quite so enthusiastically."

He gave her an annoyed look. "This machine was built to be driven by enlisted men, not, uh, Einstein. It doesn't need an advanced degree to operate, just a little training. It appears that 'full stabilizers' gives it a ballerina's poise. I'm not going to take it mountain climbing, but it seems able to do calisthenics just fine. It probably needs a little stretching out." He flashed his wife an amused smile while he lowered the leg. The hum faded out as it came down.

"Before you do it, what do you want to do next?"

"How about baby's first step in sixteen years?"

"Fine. One step."

"Deal."

With that, holo-Sandy reset auto-walk, and nudged one of the controls forward. As the right leg came up, it made a tooth-shaking screech; holo-Sandy clenched his teeth and holo-Amanda grimaced. The sound became a grinding as the leg went down, but the left leg moved quietly.
"It needs a little oil, dear."

Amanda stopped the holo. "So, the movie got these things right. The little ones are simple enough to drive... on flat ground, when nobody's shooting back. What can you tell us about them?"

“Big bastards. You never realize how big tanks and planes are until you get up close to them. They’re fairly easy if you can get at the joints but…” Brit trailed off as she remembered watching that Rebel trooper hanging from the AT-ST during the battle, her arm caught in the leg and a thermal detonator in her other, and when it went off it disabled the vehicle and took her with it. “They’re nasty in the hands of trained professionals. Much as I admire Sandy’s ‘gung-ho’ attitude, I don’t think he’s qualified to operate one of those.”

Brit’s comment about Sandy’s attitude brought a smile to Amanda’s face. ‘Gung-ho’ was the last expression she’d use to describe insatiable curiosity.

Brit leaned back in the chair again. “They’re a mainstay for the Imperial frontline. Not like the other tanks. These things go just about anywhere and everywhere. Well…almost anywhere. On Coyerti, Namir took me and his squad and we ran an AT-ST on a wild goose chase until it got sunk into a swamp. The movies don’t do justice to how much those things can affect the battle. It’s very much like having a tank backing up infantry against another lone infantry platoon. Sure it’s only one, but that one is a force multiplier and can wreck your shit if you’re not careful.”

She let that hang in the air for a bit before looking over at Amanda. “Is that all?”

“About the vehicles, yes. You’ll probably have to repeat that description for Sandy, though. He’ll want to know, and he’ll doubtless spend a while looking up that battle.”

Amanda tried a long shot. “Do you know anything about the ion cannon?”

“Not much. It’s big and was meant to defend against Star Destroyers, but generally ion weapons disable instead of destroy. It’s like hitting a vehicle and instead of blowing it up, you give it an electro-magnetic pulse.”

Amanda nodded and leaned back in her chair. “So you don’t know anything we didn’t.” She pointed at Brit momentarily. “Here’s something new: they left it running when they left. They turned it down to its keep-warm setting, and even left some droids behind to keep its power plant going. “It seems to work. Sandy armed it–” Amanda shook her head at the idea, “-- but it didn’t have enough ammo to fire. 74 tons of gas in the tank, and it’s out of ammo! How much does it need to fire a shot??

“Regardless, we’re going to move into the quarters below what we think is what the movie called ‘ion control’. That little fortress is in much better shape than the main base, and the living rooms have windows. Sandy wants to explore more of the battlefield, and somebody has to keep an eye on him while he does.

“Oh, and that’s why the… ‘AT-ST’ is of such interest. He’s either going to need something to get around in, or get much warmer horse clothes, and ideally ones he can get into and out of by himself. Maybe somebody around here can help him with that, but otherwise, he’s going to want a new ride, and the bird-leg tank may be it.”

“He has less qualifications to run one of those than a walking carpet. Even I don’t know how to operate them. I’m a grunt, Mandy. I shoot my blaster at the plastic boys and I make sure they don’t get a shot on me. They’re not gonna tell me how the ion cannon works or how to operate an AT-ST. Hell, the only reason I got familiar with the T-65Bs was I was bored and they let me in the simulator. I’m sure if he could stomach it, the Imperial Academy would teach him. But that begets its own problems. Either way, it’s not going to be easy to get training.”

Amanda shrugged. “It’s the same story as trying to get the fighters fixed: there are plenty of veterans from the war, and money talks. Sandy’s not afraid of talking to guys who are basically ex-Nazis. He’s talked to one of the real ones back home.

“But that’s if he goes that route. Maybe the pony-people can fix him up with some warm horse clothing. Maybe they know better keep-warm spells than the one Sandy knows. He’ll see.

“And it’s Amanda, please, Brit.”

Brit let a low, rough chuckle come up from in her throat. A smile cracked across her face and she looked over to Amanda. “Sandy…and Mandy. Or Mandy and Sandy. I don’t know why I didn’t think about it until now.”

She stood up out of the chair and stretched her arms. “Either way, if that’s everything, then we’re done here.”

Amanda glared at Brit, tone icy. "Yes, we are done here." She paused for emphasis.

"Your sense of humor has reached seven years old. But you don't grasp polite requests to stop. So your mental age isn't even that high.
"Sandy and I work with adults, not kids. If you want to work with us, grow up. If you don't know how, schedule another appointment with Cadance's people.

"Get out."

Brit turned and walked back to her room, still chucking to herself. Amanda shook her head, muttering. “He’s going to be so disappointed.” She then looked over her notes, filled in some details, and added some new comments. She skimmed all the notes again. Deciding that that was going to have to be enough for her husband, she repocketed her phone, got up, and went to make an appointment with the pony shrink she thought would be the best for her.

[Giovenith]

"Huh!" Little Dipper made a scrunchy smile and raised an eye. Impressed, but clearly not gob-smackingly WOW'ed like other children might have been. "You're pretty good, I'll give you that. If you wanna, I can probably tutor you some time." The magic student lifted his little chin in pride and levitated his frisbee.

As if someone sensed the foal's silliness, a second frisbee soon came flying in and knocked Little Dipper in the head. Being made of foam it didn't hurt him, but it snapped him away from his attention on Sandy and he ran off to rejoin/confront his nearby giggling friends. Soon after, Sandy was called back over by the Princess.

"I can tell that you're good with children," she remarked, smiling gently. "I find that they have just as much to teach as we do them." Her smile lowered somewhat, though didn't entirely disappear. She paused for a moment. "Sandy, I dwelt a bit more on your questions and needs while you were speaking with my sister. While it remains true that I cannot help you directly, as the head of this school, I may nonetheless be able to provide you with resources from our libraries and records that may aid you in your troubles. Some are available to my average students, some are not." Her smile dropped. "But there is something I would need from you in return..."

Willow flicked his ears, curious.

"... firstly, you would need to seek assent from your own pantheon." The slight stoniness in Celestia's expression betrayed that she knew how this might be troublesome. "They may or may not find you asking for my assistance agreeable, so it would probably be wise to assure this before anything else."

Willow narrowed his eyes critically before looking up at Sandy. "Didn't... didn't they like, start a war over an apple or something...?" he whispered, cringing with harsh confusion.

"If you do gain their consent," Celestia continued, ignoring Willow's comment. "Then I would have to request a small quest from you first, in order to confirm that this is a responsibility you are prepared to take on." She lifted a hoof slightly. "This is not because I do not trust you, mind you. I am sure you have already endured a lot to get to this point. But we are always learning and preparing, and all the ponies who champion me today have also gone through plenty of tests to do so... it would only be fair."

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 9
Magic School,
Canterlot, Equestria

"I may nonetheless be able to provide you with resources from our libraries and records that may aid you in your troubles. Some are available to my average students, some are not."

Intrigued, Sandy cocked his head and muttered, "Private libraries?"

"... firstly, you would need to seek assent from your own pantheon."

Sandy's eyebrows shot up, hovered for a moment, and then fell like a rock, replaced by a furrowed brow. He rubbed his jawline: getting permission? From whom?

"Didn't... didn't they like, start a war over an apple or something...?" [Willow] whispered, cringing with harsh confusion.

"If you do gain their consent, [...t]hen I would have to request a small quest from you first, in order to confirm that this is a responsibility you are prepared to take on. [...W]e are always learning and preparing, and all the ponies who champion me today have also gone through plenty of tests to do so... it would only be fair."

For a few seconds, Sandy's expression remained unchanged and he continued to rub his jaw in silence. "If that is the price of admission, I will gladly pay." He smiled broadly, but his smile slowly melted away as he resumed thinking. "But as to the Olympians... I'm not sure-- There are a number of questions raised by the issue of, um, 'permission'.

"I'm not sure who to ask, or who could assent, for the entire pantheon. My guess would be Themis, but one does not approach a Foresighted titan lightly. I expect She could bind the Olympians to an agreement, but I don't know if a mortal, even a favored one, could ask Her.

"And... there is the question of 'when'. I'd originally planned to visit the Mousai in my timestream's past, a few years after I visited the Mouseion complex. They would remember me then, and all I would have to do is return to my Earth and travel to Mount Helikon, where their main shrines were.

"But I... imagine your relationship with Olympus has changed over the past two millennia or so, and now I am formally Their servant, as opposed to one of the – apparently many – mortals who have borrowed Pegasus.. or whatever that meant. But with none of the Olympians' shrines even intact in my era, much less currently used, I expect I will have to find a way to reach Olympus. Pegasus should be able to cross the Void himself, but I don't know how.

"I will have to think about this." His furrowed brow returned, but much more wrinkled, and he let his gaze drift. Eventually, his eyes came to rest on Willow, and his previous smile slowly crept back, soon joined by merry sparkles in his eyes. "But should I stick with my first plan, you could come with me, and ask Kleio, the muse of history, about the apple and the war. I'm sure She'd be happy to answer. And one Look at you, and She'd know Whose library I was seeking access to."

[Giovenith]

Crystal Spa

Giovenith just missed Brit heading out the door, stepping aside with a sad, awkward frown, before making her way into the suite. Instantly, she could feel the tension in the room, and briefly considered turning back around... her and Amanda hadn't always had the best encounters in moments of tension. But after considering a moment, she thought better and carefully approached.

"I uh, take it that you and Brit still aren't getting along?" she asked the lawyer quietly, perching herself on a nearby cushioned stool. "I heard a little bit from the hall."

Canterlot

Intrigued, Sandy cocked his head and muttered, "Private libraries?"

"The kind I keep for my more advanced and trusted students."

For a few seconds, Sandy's expression remained unchanged and he continued to rub his jaw in silence. "If that is the price of admission, I will gladly pay." He smiled broadly, but his smile slowly melted away as he resumed thinking. "But as to the Olympians... I'm not sure-- There are a number of questions raised by the issue of, um, 'permission'.

"I'm not sure who to ask, or who could assent, for the entire pantheon. My guess would be Themis, but one does not approach a Foresighted titan lightly. I expect She could bind the Olympians to an agreement, but I don't know if a mortal, even a favored one, could ask Her.

"And... there is the question of 'when'. I'd originally planned to visit the Mousai in my timestream's past, a few years after I visited the Mouseion complex. They would remember me then, and all I would have to do is return to my Earth and travel to Mount Helikon, where their main shrines were.

"But I... imagine your relationship with Olympus has changed over the past two millennia or so, and now I am formally Their servant, as opposed to one of the – apparently many – mortals who have borrowed Pegasus.. or whatever that meant. But with none of the Olympians' shrines even intact in my era, much less currently used, I expect I will have to find a way to reach Olympus. Pegasus should be able to cross the Void himself, but I don't know how.

"I will have to think about this." His furrowed brow returned, but much more wrinkled, and he let his gaze drift. Eventually, his eyes came to rest on Willow, and his previous smile slowly crept back, soon joined by merry sparkles in his eyes. "But should I stick with my first plan, you could come with me, and ask Kleio, the muse of history, about the apple and the war. I'm sure She'd be happy to answer. And one Look at you, and She'd know Whose library I was seeking access to."

"I understand," Princess Celestia nodded. "Whatever you think is the best you're able to do will work for me. You might ask your little friend Giovenith for help as well, she may have better networks to the gods of humanity here in the modern era. As for the task..."

She paused, considering, and the smiled.

"... I think a quick trip to the Library of Friendship will point you in the right direction for that."

"I kind of already know the basics of the thing already," Willow narrowed his eyes and side-eyed. "Gio told me when I first came to Earth when tried to explain to me how they knew what pegasi were. Heh, pretty ironic now that I think about it..." He gestured to Sandy with an awkward smile. "... but if you want me to vouch for you, I can." He looked up at the Princess. "What's at the library?"

"Its main feature is that it comes with an enchanted map of Equestria," Celestia explained. "Occasionally, it will call upon a pony, or another creature, to aid in a problem that is happening somewhere in the nation or nearby world. If you go to it with the intent to help, it may send the two of you to the spot where your respective talents are most needed. And any problem solved that helps the creatures of my kingdom, no matter how small, is a request worthy of reward from me."

"I've heard a bit about Twilight Sparkle and her friends' friendship problem-solving quests," Willow smiled at Sandy. "They're certainly adventures in their own right, but it might be a nicer change of pace compared to what we're used to."

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 7th
Cadance's Plot Coupon Emporium and Crystal Spa
Crystal Empire, Equestria

"I uh, take it that you and Brit still aren't getting along?" she asked the lawyer quietly, perching herself on a nearby cushioned stool. "I heard a little bit from the hall."

Amanda stopped and eyed Giovenith warily. "You have good ears. What did you hear?"


September 9
Magic School
Canterlot, Equestria

"I understand," Princess Celestia nodded. "Whatever you think is the best you're able to do will work for me. [...] As for the task... […] If you go to it with the intent to help, it may send the two of you to the spot where your respective talents are most needed. And any problem solved that helps the creatures of my kingdom, [...] is a request worthy of reward from me."

With a wry frown, Sandy considered this. "What you ask is more than reasonable, but should the Olympians forbid me to study in Your libraries, we will need to come up with another reward."

"I kind of already know the basics of the thing already," Willow narrowed his eyes and side-eyed. "Gio told me when I first came to Earth when tried to explain to me how they knew what pegasi were. [...] but if you want me to vouch for you, I can."

Sandy shook his head, wearing an amused smile. "No need to vouch for me. They will See, Champion of Equestria and its Princesses." His smile widened: Willow seemed to be quickly growing into the Champion shoes; looking upon an adventure as a nice change of pace wasn't last year's Willow Streaks.

"And as to the basics of the thing, 'the thing' is doubtless the Iliad, a poem composed centuries after the fact, or facts: likely several events mashed together by authors who thought they were one consistent story. What actually happened is something of a mystery. I would be thrilled to know; even knowing what things are definitively false would help our understanding immensely."

"But be that as it may..." Sandy turned from Willow to Celestia, raising his head to match the change in heights. "It seems time for us to add a few verses of heroic poetry of our own, may future ponies remember us in song and story." He chuckled at his own joke.

[Giovenith]

Crystal Spa

“I heard enough. It sounds like you threw her out,” said Giovenith, visibly concerned. She adjusted herself to a more comfortable crouching position. “You can tell me about it if you want, but you don’t have to.”

It had been a while since Giovenith had talked someone through something, what with so many of her old friends gone, Willow being so independent, and the Belas not really being the type of adults to ask a much younger person for life advice (that should have been the norm, but often wasn’t in Giovenith’s life). It had actually been rather refreshing not to for a while, to keep her energy on herself, but she felt like she had plenty to share now.

“It was a pretty scary moment, back on that ice world.”

Canterlot

Willow gave a single, good-natured laugh. "You can be pretty theatrical sometimes, you know that?" he asked with a smile and lidded eyes.

Ponyville

A short flight to Ponyville later, the two pegasi found themselves back at the Library of Friendship, standing with Starlight Glimmer in what appeared to be a very dramatic setting of several giant crystal chairs surrounding a large, rounded crystal table. Upon the table was a scale-size hologram map of Equestria and a few lands beyond made of bright glowing lights. Willow blinked in marvel at it and carefully tried to touch it, his hoof passing right through. Still, it didn't seem to be much beyond what they saw.

Willow frowned. "Soooo..." He looked to Starlight. "... what do we do?"

"I... really don't know," the purple unicorn admitted, tapping her lip and folding her ears. "We usually don't really do anything with it. The map kinda has a mind of its own, it just sends ponies where ever it thinks they're needed."

Willow poked his nose closer to the image, trying to pick out all the little details of the various towns and villages across the kingdom. He swiped his hoof through them a few more times, detecting a slight buzzing sound from the hologram as it did. He narrowed his eyes. He stepped back and cleared his throat.

"Ohhhhh, great... map! I guess," he tried, awkwardly, lifting a hoof. "I, know you're probably busy and all... existing. But if you could come up with something for me and my friend to do today, that would be... really great!"

The map remained as it was.

Willow's expression grew irritated, pulling his foreleg down and stretching it in beckon toward the map. "Oh come on, this country is huge! You're really telling me there's no drama or life lesson or some other bullshit going around for us to get involved in? Like I don't like social stuff like that, but..."

"You keep using those really weird wor-" Starlight began, looking at him with mild confusion, when she suddenly gasped with a smile while looking downward.

Willow followed her gaze to his flank, where his cutie mark had began to give off a pulsating glow. It freaked him out for a second before he realized this must have been the response of the map. He looked up at Sandy, who in absence of a cutie mark, had received a light pulsating halo the color of his Equestrian magic. On the map, two symbols appeared: One a miniature version of Willow's cutie mark, the other a miniature print of the Pegasus constellation, representing Sandy. They flew across the map from the tiny version of Ponyville all the way over to the tiny version of...

"Looks like the map wants you to take care of a problem over in Manehattan," Starlight said with a smile.

"Manehattan?" Willow asked, with some anxiety. "But that's a huge city! How will we even find where it wants us to go?"

Starlight gave a shrug. "It's... kind of like destiny, I guess. You just show up, and the problem will just kinda... hit you in the face! One way or another."

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 7th, later
Cadance's Plot Coupon Emporium and Crystal Spa
Crystal Empire, Equestria

“It was a pretty scary moment, back on that ice world.”

Amanda chuckled. "Which one? The pirates or Brit?"

"Let's walk and talk." Amanda started down the hall; Giovenith kept pace beside her. "Brit took only five years to rediscover a nickname that most people figured out quickly when Sandy and I started dating. It when from cute to irritating to old fifteen years ago. Occasionally, people stumble across it since, but all of them stop when asked to.

"Brit didn't. She laughed my polite request off and kept going. I don't need it, Giovenith." Stopping to turn towards the godling, Amanda gestured for emphasis. "I don't need rude people in my life." After a moment's pause, she resumed her quick-step down the hall.

"If Brit brought something unique to the table, I might do something different. But let's check her balance sheet. Credit: she's an elite soldier, familiar with a number of timestreams. That's a big credit, but debit: she's seen too much fighting. She went bye-bye a couple of times, and I don't want to find out the hard way that she goes bye-bye bad enough to stop telling friend from foe.

"Assuming that hasn't happened already. I'm reserving judgement on that. Unless she gets Cadance's people to help her with that, that's a hard no, thank you." Amanda stopped and turned towards Giovenith again. "Push becoming shove was bad enough, what if she opens up with a rifle?" She let the question hang for a second before returning to walking.

"Debit: Sandy thinks she's a fool. She passes judgement on things she doesn't know about and doesn't understand. Do you remember when we were thinking about what to do about the pirates, and Brit told him we lacked the firepower to attack them? She did it again later, but Sandy won't tell me the details. Sandy's willing to suffer fools gladly up to a point – he has to, he's a prof – but he has little use for students who won't learn and can't understand that they need to.

"Debit: she acts like a sullen teen when she doesn't get her way. You already tore her a new asshole for that, so enough said."

"Sandy's going to be disappointed when I tell him Brit's attitude hasn't improved. He was optimistic that—" Amanda stopped talking as she saw a pony approaching, heading in the opposite direction; she waved as she recognized Pinova, and muttered a quiet hello as she passed.

After walking for a few more seconds, she picked up where she left off: "That Cadance's exorcism would cure a lot of things he thought were odd or off about Brit. No such luck.

"So, adding everything up, I'm not really seeing this working out. If we need highly-skilled muscle with knowledge of the area, we can hire that. It'll be expensive, but Sandy has ways of raising cash. Since he's heading to Corellia anyway, I asked him to pick up information on law schools there. The New Republic is pretty spread out, so they might have the same deal that Bielefeld did: law school credit by examination. In which case, money isn't much of an object at all."

Rounding a corner, the appointments desk came into view. Amanda nodded at it. "That's my stop. Brit's not the only one who's seen too much fighting."

Amanda's tone softened. "We had some ideas how we can work with Brit, but that's only if we can work with her. We're not going to invest the time in a relationship that's going nowhere."


September 9th
Map Room, Library of Friendship
Ponyville, Equestria

a very dramatic setting of several giant crystal chairs surrounding a large, rounded crystal table. Upon the table was a scale-size hologram map of Equestria and a few lands beyond made of bright glowing lights.

Sandy whistled appreciatively at the map: back home that would be decade or more of work for an enchanter or artificer, and was completely beyond his ability to make. "You guys do good work... no, incredible work!"

"Ohhhhh, great... map! I guess," he tried, awkwardly, lifting a hoof. "I, know you're probably busy and all... existing. But if you could come up with something for me and my friend to do today, that would be... really great!" The map remained as it was.

Sandy raised his eyes from the map to Willow: the poor guy couldn't See the perfectly obvious big green go button on it. He started to think about how to phrase that without embarrassing either of the Equestrians, but--

[Willow] looked up at Sandy, who in absence of a cutie mark, had received a light pulsating halo the color of his Equestrian magic. On the map, two symbols appeared: One a miniature version of Willow's cutie mark, the other a miniature print of the Pegasus constellation, representing Sandy. They flew across the map from the tiny version of Ponyville all the way over to the tiny version of [Manehattan.].

Delighted, Sandy grinned like a kid as he watched the map work. But his expression slowly became puzzled and then clouded, and his brow wrinkled like a relief map of the Rockies. "This isn't your magic. Nor is it Celestia's..." Sandy frowned at the map for a moment. "If you'll pardon me..."

He took a few seconds to transform into Pegasus, and lowered an ear to the tabletop. Then, apparently unsatified by what he Heard, lowered his ear into the illusory map of Equestria. He stood there unmoving for what seemed like a long time, then, with a flick of a wingtip, dismissed his metamorphosis and became human again. "Who made this? Where did it come from? Is it divine-- is this made by another country's Prince or Princess?"

[Giovenith]

Ponyville

"Well... technically, nopony made it. It's part of the castle," Starlight answered, rubbing her head thoughtfully with a hoof. She then gestured around her. "This castle wasn't created by ponies. It was magically summoned from a miracle after Princess Twilight and her friends defeated Lord Tirek... the guy we met in Tartarus. It sprung from a box from the Tree of Harmony."

"What's the Tree of Harmony?" Willow asked, flicking his ears.

"That's a waaaay longer story," Starlight sighed, waving a hoof. "Long story short, we don't really know much about that either. Super powerful magic crystal tree in the Everfree forest, went on a quest to save it, it gave Twilight the box, they earned these magic keys to open it... I don't really know myself, I wasn't there. I wasn't here yet." She gave a standoffish shrug and crossed her forelegs in front of her, flattening her ears and looking off somewhat sadly.

[Northwest Slobovia]

September 9th
Map Room, Library of Friendship
Ponyville, Equestria

["]It's part of the castle," Starlight answered[...] "This castle wasn't created by ponies. It was magically summoned from a miracle after Princess Twilight and her friends defeated Lord Tirek... [...]It sprung from a box from the Tree of Harmony. [...] Super powerful magic crystal tree in the Everfree forest, went on a quest to save it, it gave Twilight the box, they earned these magic keys to open it...

"Everfree??" Sandy looked more confused, and he lowered his gaze to the map, rubbing the back of his head as he thought. He muttered to himself, "A god? A forest spirit? The last remnant of an older pantheon?" He looked up suddenly at Willow. "I hope we didn't do something terrible by destroying the forest." He fell silent again.

At length, he added, "And I wonder what its last seedling will grow into." A brief pause, then: "Maybe I should plant it somewhere with more ambient ousia. Hmmm..."