Shifting the papers around, I finished the report from the train station before flicking one ear. The supervisor there, Rapid Whistle had a good point.
The defenses there were primarily aimed towards smaller hostile enemies because if something like a Rexosaurus showed up, the outer perimeter of scouts would have warned them well in time and they had gotten time to get into the shelters or evacuate.
But what if one managed to somehow sneak past and get close? Or if they really could fly with those wings of theirs.
Nopony had ever observed one flying, but they did have wings.
Maybe installing some additional ballista and assigning some more guards wasn’t a bad idea to be honest.
Still, this report should have gone to Silver Gleam, not me.
Oh well, only a week since we changed the system, there is bound to be glitches of what end up where. I scribbled a note to redirect to Silver Gleam, attached it to the request and then put it in my out tray before looking up as the door opened and Sparks trotted inside, a couple of scrolls sticking out of her bag.
She stopped by the couch and stole a kiss from Sunset where she was reading a book by the light of her horn before she crossed over to me, “Hey.”
“Hey,” I said and smiled, smooching, “You’re back early.”
“Just excited!” Sparks exclaimed and poked at me until I scooted to the side and then jumped onto the chair next to me, floating a couple of scrolls from her bag before dropping it onto the floor and unrolling the scrolls on the desk.
They were stock full with lines, calculations and diagrams.
I blinked at them and then turned to look at her, “What’s this?”
Sparks grinned and lit her horn, a glowing spot appearing on the leftmost scroll, “If you look here, the metamagical constant of…”
I slowly nodded, slipping my wing across her back as I listened.
Sparks pointed out things and conclusions, shifting a bit to lean against me as she did before she smiled at me, “So, what do you think?”
“Looks awesome to me.”
“Twi, he has no idea what you have been saying,” Sunset said amusedly from her spot on the couch, looking up from her book with an amused grin, “I could barely follow you enough to tell what the subject was, I think you lost Page immediately in the first sentence.”
Sparks blinked at her and then looked at me, “But you were nodding!”
I nodded, “I have no idea what you were saying. My magical theory education is limited to spell casting diagrams. Explain it like I’m five?”
Sparks stared at me, mouth a bit open in surprise, “But you were nodding!”
“You were so excited I didn’t want to interrupt you.”
Sparks groaned and sighed, “Okay, well, the entire idea is…”
“Actually,” I interrupted and nosed at her ear, “Can you explain it like I’m three? Five might be a bit optimistic.”
Sparks giggled and flicked her ear, “Fine, I think it may be poss-”
“And if you assume I’m kinda slow too, that would be nice.”
Twilight giggled and poked me with her hoof, “Will you stop it, I’m trying to explain something to you!”
I nodded and smiled, “I’ll be good.”
Sparks stuck her tongue out at me before she nodded and put her hoof on the desk, “I think it’s possible to make permanent portals.”
I looked at her in surprise, “Really?”
She nodded, “The calculations checked out,” she confirmed, “I got thinking when you said you wished there were some and it seems to be possible. Nothing in magic or math seems to be preventing it. Actually doing it though…”
“Hard?”
Sparks nodded and sighed, “As in, if we’re lucky and have an actual research team with a large budget we may be able to pull it off in as little as twenty years.”
“Ah. That kind of hard.”
“Yeah,” Sparks said softly before she smiled, “But possible!”
Sunset closed her book, stretching onto her side, “Twenty years isn’t too bad, I mean, you two are immortal.”
“With a well funded research team,” Sparks pointed out, “I don’t think that will happen anytime soon, but I’ll send my findings over to Canterlot and we’ll see what they can do on their side. Maybe we’ll get lucky and somepony get a bright idea.”
I flicked one ear, “Even without aging, twenty years is still a good chunk of change,” I admitted, “At least for us. For Sunshine or Luna it may pass quickly, but we’re your age.”
“Actually…” Sunset said and grinned, “I think I’m the oldest pony in the room. I’m thirty two, Twi’s twenty three and you’re…”
“Actually, we never did figure out how not sure how it translates,” I admitted, “But doctors estimate my age to be somewhere between twenty five and thirtyish, so yeah, you’re likely the oldest by a couple of years at least,” I said and flicked my ear in thought before I eyed Sparks, “Wait, you two got together… what, four years ago? Sunny, did you shack up with a teenager?”
“I know, right?” Sunset asked with a teasing grin as she eyed Twilight.
Sparks blushed brightly.
Why do I get the feeling you're going to pull a Time Travel to the Past arc with Blank Page? Portals have never ended well; just ask Midnight.
Can relate to sunset being the oldest, every job I've been to they act like I'm the youngest guy there even when there's actual teenagers
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Possibly for a future book? Page gets sent to the past, accidentally gets worshipped as the bat pony king, gets a temple and an ominous statue made of him without his consent before Sparks saves him...
Wait, that whole temple thing sounds familiar.
10926128
You're picking up what I'm putting down.
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You should know that I of all creatures can think of the levels of shenanigains required to pull that off.
Although tbh I don't think I'd want the story to go in that direction. I can see it going that way, but I'd rather see Page heading back to Canterlot and having to deal with a certain ray of sunshine vying for his attention.
Well there is that mirror portal that leads to another world, could possibly use that to get a headstart
*KNOCK KNOCK KNOCK*
FBI OPEN UP!
Fuck. Im at work.
Nice
Ah there's our potential long range option... For a potentially long time from now.
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Agreed. Studying that and getting ideas and info from the spells on it would be a big boost.
Priceless humor. Great topics to get over
Sunset be like: Train them young so they are earlyer experienced for more fun
10926123
Maybe not now but since we just skipped 2 years... Perhaps next sequel or the one after that?
10926128
Daring Do story incoming? Anyway...
What did they do to the statue i wonder...
10926142
Co-op comment section writing... Im getting CMC vibes
10926145
Meh... Give it a centurie at least. He has all the time and Luna dont get enough Page time as it is...
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Yes, but no. Unless... Perhaps, than again...
10926213
To late for that. *FBI get a head pat*
10926216
The chapter sure are short enough to read auto read them twice while eating
10926265
I still read it. Just not in that full dive kind of reading I like to do
. Celestia and Luna pull themselves to their hooves. Battered but defiant at the coming enemy.
They clasp their weapons in their magic, ready for the next charge despite wanting to collapse.
“….Luna….” Comes a voice on the wind. It’s faint but it’s there. “…Sunshine…on your left.”
It’s faint at first but it grows, a light sparking from nothing, expanding into a large round doorway. Three figures step through.
Soon many similar doorways open revealing ponies from all over, allies and heroes, ponies and bronies.
From the rising clamor of voices comes one of the Prince.
“HOLD FAST!”
*Discord and Cadance side eying the wormholes they create daily for "observation and research" missions*
Discord: ...should we tell them?
Cadance: Hmm no. Let's wait a decade. Twilight is having too much fun with the math. It is rude to spoil an immortal's fun so quickly.
Discord: Agreed! It is not just Twilight's fun but ours as well! Page and his herd won't let us stalk him if they knew!
Cadance: EXACTLY~!
10926311
I wonder where Twilight would banish them to, should she ever find out about this.
As has been mentioned, portals don't have a good track record in the Pageverse. I'd not be surprised if the powers of the Immaterium lobbed you up and down the timeline like a ping pong ball...
Jackboot time!
Should be ballistae, since it's plural. Still better than 'ballistas' though.
10926123
Either Midnight.
...Wait a minute. The one in the fic was yanked from the Season 5 finale, which Friendship Games happened concurrently with to explain her absence. How did she come up with the name, again?
10926128
Ugh, the more I think on this, the less I want it to happen. Page as a bad guy, even doing it to save the thestrals and preserve the timeline, just leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
10926336
Maybe it's singular? Like, AN additional ballista for airborn targets only?
10926444
Pretty firm agreement on my part, there.
*Twilight Gibbs slaps both Sunset and Page for the age comment*
10926336
Ballisti
10926469
Nah, given the 'some' it's absolutely plural.
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You have no idea how many times I mentioned that possibility in prequel stories comments XD
It started when Page discovered that statue of thestral alicorn.
Especially now after I learned some stuff about other version of time and time travel from Loki XD
10926929
That way lies madness
And cupcakes!
No! Bad Pinkie! *swings stick but misses*
Pinkie YES!
10926766
Ah, my mistake, it is plural.
10926929
If anyone cared, they could go back to that story and count.
twenty years that is just the tick of a clock for a immortal.
10926123
I suspect that Twilight hasn't mentioned it to midnight yet, or maybe she's basic a perma portal off their other spellwork and using the logic of "it's not inter dimensional so no space tentacles"
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If they're really, really, REALLY lucky--they'll get their own personal doorway to Callahan's Cross-time Saloon.
If not, they'll liably go to someplace -- considerably -- less pleasant... like Doctor Who, Star Trek, Lost In Space, Babylon 5, Primeval, Darkover, Pern (although that one's not too bad, but there is still thread, so....), and/or the worst: MLP....
10930620
Sorry, but she's working from faulty logic -- time travel ALWAYS involves inter-dimensional vectors ... therefore, Babylon 5's "Third Space" is ALWAYS an option.
19 is only very technically a teenager
11174327
Technically enough for porn sites tho'. ;]
In my stories the shortest lifespan in 120-125, adulthood at 30 Unless you are are Unicorn with 20...
10926213
F-un B-eyond I-magination?