//------------------------------// // Chapter 9: Technological Revelation // Story: The Bridge Between Worlds // by Artemis Orion //------------------------------// Technological Revelation Well, here I am... In another universe. A throbbing migraine. Body aching. The taste of apples in my mouth. Lying next to two pastel-coloured ponies. And my only way home is missing. What an adventure this is turning out to be... I just lay there and stared at the ceiling. Even there, there was a cupcake stuck upside on the ceiling. Gummy had decided that my forehead tasted better than Pinkie Pie's and suctioned his toothless mouth to it, and it wasn't helping my headache. I'm never drinking again. Although I had broken that vow for the umpteenth time. With Gummy latched to my cranium, I sat up. I felt weak, and very, very thirsty. I still had no recognition of what happened for the most of that night. I could only remember up to the first bottle. And then, nothing. It was Hangover all over again. Forget about that right now. Find the damn Pendant! Rather hard to carry out if you have nothing to go on... The pink Earth pony on my left began to come round. Pinkie Pie kicked out stretched all of her legs, letting out a tremendous yawn. She looked up groggily at the only Human she knew. "Good morning, Keith!" Her voice still sounded full of energy. How could she do this almost everyday?! But then the realization of what I saw hit me. My faced turned red, and it wasn't from alcohol. Why am I even sleeping here?! What have I done?! ...Did I even do anything? "Oh, Keith! Gummy likes you!"Pinkie Pie spoke cheerily. I pulled the glassy-eyed alligator off my head. "Look, Pinkie Pie, I wasn't myself for half of last night, and I'm sorry for what I did. I'm pretty sure The Animal Rights Group or whatever will agree with me..." "What are you talking about, Keithy?" I shuddered. Only my family called me that. How did she know this? "Well, if I did...you know..." I shrugged awkwardly, hoping that she'd get the gist of what I meant. She did. "Ooooooooooohh..." darker shades of pink appeared on her cheeks. Then she started rolling in bed with laughter. "Nothing happened, silly!" I could have felt the colour returning to my face. "Really? Oh thank god!" throwing my head back onto my pillow. "You just got sooooo tired last night, I decided to let you crash here for the night. It's not like you had a place to live right now anyway!" The cyan pegasus to my right rolled over in her sleep. "Dashie too, of course. She can't fly back to her house in her state." She giggled, propping herself on a foreleg facing me and Rainbow Dash. "Well at least that's half the weight off my mind." I heaved a sigh of relief. I felt the place on my chest where the Pendant should be. "You remember everything about last night right?" "Right! And you did some pretty funny things alright!" "Forget about it right now! Do you know where the Pendant is?" I looked around the loft. Anyone would have thought a tornado came into the apartment. "You don't have to be such a panicky-pants! It's right under your pillow!" "My...pillow?" I reached behind my head, under the pink, fluffy pillow. From underneath, I pulled out the gold, gem embroidered pendant. I swiftly put it over my head, back to its original place around my neck. I sighed again, feeling safe. "It's funny! Before you conked out, you put it there. You mumbled something about the Pendant Fairy, relative of the Tooth Fairy..." "Rise an' shine, ya'll!" Applejack hollered as she trotted up the stairs. She halted just as she reached the top, seeing the human in bed with two of her best friends. "Oh my...umm... I think Ah'll wait for ya'll downstairs...hehe..." She smiled sheepishly as she retreated, backwards, down to the bakery. "Oh, no..." I threw my hands onto my face, covering the blush. I had embarrassed myself in front of my favourite cartoon characters. What next? "Heehee, I'll tell you more later! I'm gonna go wash up! The party stuff is still downstairs, and we have to clean it up!" Pinkie Pie rose from the bed, never once losing her big smile. Just as she did, Rainbow Dash stirred. "*groan*... stop moving, I'm tryin' to sleep here..." I turned to the groggy Pegasus. Her rainbow mane was messed up. "'Morning Rainbow Dash." Her eyes shot open. The sound of my voice brought terror into her face. "OH MY CELESTIA! KEITH! WHY THE BUCK ARE YOU LYING NEXT TO ME?!" She reared up her front two hooves and shoved me to the other side of the bed, almost making me fall off. Pinkie Pie chimed in, stopping Rainbow Dash from further assaulting me. "Its alright, Dashie! Nothing happened!" "Really? Because I could've sworn that he wasn't here when I came here to sleep!" "He crashed later than you did, Dashie! Stop worrying, trust me!" She giggled as she bounced to the bathroom, leaving Me and Rainbow Dash alone. "Rainbow, I'm serious. I would never do such a thing even if I was drunk... I think..." "Ah, don't sweat it, Keithy!" She brought her front legs up, resting her head on them. "Why is everyone calling me that now!?" I retreated back to under the pink blanket. "Haha! Oh, It's probably because you told us to call you that last night!" "Only my family has ever called me that." "I think it's cute, 'Keithy'!" She held her stomach as she whinnied in the joy of teasing the human. "Well I think it's lame!" I spoke as loud as I could from beneath the covers. My voice sounded horrible. "Aw, don't feel too bad! You were pretty awesome during the party!" I popped my head from beneath the blanket, peering at the cyan pegasus. "Really?" "Yeah! I didn't know you could dance like that! I didn't know any human could, for that matter!" "Why? What'd I do?" "You hit the dance floor drunk, stupid! Can't you remember anything?" "I'm afraid not..." "Oh... well ya gotta teach me how to spin on my head like that!" "I did what now?!" "Spun on your head? Oh, and then you bent backwards, while still on your head! It was awesome! You called it the... the uh... the holla-something..." "The hollow back?" "Yeah! It was amazing!" A sharp pain made itself known in my lower back. I groaned again. "Well, I don't think I'm going to drink again anytime soon..." "You were worse than I was! At least I can remember! So now, your greatest humiliations will be known forever!" She rubbed her hooves together, mischieviously grinning. "Aw c'mon! It's bad enough some ponies here already don't like me!" "After last night, I wouldn't say that!" "I'm not sure whether I should be relieved or worried." I teased. With all the effort I could muster, I got up. My feet landed on something squishy and wet, but I didn't really care anymore. I stretched, ignoring the aching muscles. After popping all the joints I thought possible, I headed towards the bathroom. "Dude, you look wasted!" Rainbow Dash commented. "You don't look like Princess Celestia either, Dashie!" I searched for the time. The clock read nine in the morning. What time did the party end? "We'd better wash up. Pinkie says theres a lot of trash to clean up downstairs." "Y'know what, I think I'll just head home. See ya later!" And with that, Rainbow Dash took flight out the balcony. Leaving a faded rainbow behind her. I expected as much... I spotted my hoodie on the floor, and picked it up. Fortunately, it didn't get too dirty. I sniffed my shirt. I smelled. Not of sweat and dirt, but of sweets and sugar. Good thing too. I don't have anymore clothes! Pinkie Pie emerged from the bathroom. She still smelled of candy, so honestly there was no difference from partying. "Great, you're up! I'll meet you downstairs!" I grunted in response, still fully aware of the pain. Maybe a nice shower would get rid of the headache... ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I headed down the stairs, refreshed from the shower. My headache hadn't fully gone, but at least it had lessened. My body still ached though. I entered seeing Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Twilight Sparkle, and Rarity clearing the mess. And the mess was waayy worse than I thought! There were cookies on the turntable! The punch bowl was upside down on somepony's head! There were still some ponies sprawled on the dance floor. Some of them were just coming round. I thought I heard some other pony throwing up in the kitchen. "Morning, girls." I tried to sound as cheery as possible, but failed as I turned to cough. I really need a drink! "Well, howdy-do, Keithy boy." Everypony snickered. "Very funny, girls. This isn't the best time right now..." "Oh, you'll be fine!" Twilight magically floated garbage out the door. "Go grab a glass of water from the kitchen, your voice sounds like sandpaper!" I nodded, and trudged to the kitchen. I grabbed an empty glass of the counter, ignoring the magenta pony that I knew was Berry Punch. She was puking hard into the trash bin. I filled my glass and left as quickly as possible. I chugged the water down. It soothed the pain in my throat, and I could finally talk normally again. At that moment, Fluttershy flew in, followed by a rather reluctant Rainbow Dash. "Morning, girls!... And umm... Keith, sorry..." "Morning Fluttershy. I see Rainbow Dash is back?" "I was on my way here, when I saw her heading back to her place. She shouldn't be leaving the party like that..." "Aw, Fluttershy! The party is over!" The Rainbow-maned pegasus argued, "I don't need to be here anyway!" "Quite the contrary my dear!" Rarity shoved a garbage into Rainbow Dash's grasp. "You caused a lot of this mess and you're helping clean it up!" Rainbow carried on, muttering under her breath. "Wait... you ponies didn't crash here too did you?" "'course we didn't! We left after a while. It was gettin' kinda late, so we left you in the care of Pinkie Pie 'til we got back in the mornin'." Applejack then gestured to Rainbow Dash. "And Dash just crashes here after every party anyway!" "Haha. Okay, so let's just get this over with!" With the seven of us, the garbage got cleared pretty quickly. I remembered that I left my phone with Vinyl. Sure enough, it was still there, cradled in the DJ's arms as she slept. I slowly pried it from her hooves. I'm sure she won't miss it. They filled me in on the events of the previous night. To my relief, I didn't do anything too drastic. For all they told, I just partied really hard! "So Keith..." Applejack turned to face me, Rainbow Dash and Pinkie Pie. An evil smile spread across her face. I groaned, knowing what she was going to ask. "How come I found you in the same bed with Pinkie Pie and Rainbow Dash this morning?" "YOU WHAT?!" The other three ponies shrieked in unison, eyes wide and jaws dropped. "OH MY CELESTIA!" "This is so... unexpected..." "BUT...YOU JUST GOT HERE!" I covered my ears. Their level of volume wasn't helping migraine. Pinkie Pie was the first to speak. "Calm down, girls! Nothing Happened! Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye!" She performed the hoof gestures accordingly. Rainbow Dash shot an accusing glare at Applejack. She just stood and laughed. Soon, it all died down to a few giggles and snickers. "Okay, Pinkie Pie... we're taking your word on it." Twilight put a hoof over her mouth, stifling a laugh. "Look, could we please get this all cleared up? I got a bad headache, and your loudness isn't helping!" I was getting frustrated. As much as I hated to shout at these adorable creatures, I was still suffering from the hangover. "Calm down my dear, you'll feel better soon." Rarity patted me on the back. "Yup. Plus, I have to take Keith to the Library afterwards. We got a lot to learn from that Pendant." ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- I followed Twilight and Fluttershy through town back to the library. I received many pleasant greetings from the other ponies. I was glad that they accepted me into their community. I checked my phone for what still worked. Everything worked except for location services. Siri still worked, but I couldn't call or send texts. We had finished clearing the bakery, and shuffled off anypony that was still there. After that, Rainbow Dash decided to return home and nap. Applejack had to go back to take care of business on the farm. Rarity had a dress order to fill and we left Pinkie Pie to finish up at the bakery. So for now, it was only Twilight and Fluttershy that got to witness the first Harmony Control Session. Twilight magicked the door to her tree-home open. Fluttershy and I followed suit. "Spike! Clear the study area will you? Thanks!" Twilight hollered up the stairs. "Hey, I haven't met Spike yet, have I?" "Not yet! Let's see what his reaction will be!" Twilight grinned. The purple baby dragon hopped down the stairs. He seemed really small to me, about waist height. "Okay, Twilight! As soon as I-" The initial reaction was about to take place. "Twilight... w-why is there a human behind you?" He raised a shaky claw. "Aha! So you did read the book on Ancient Mythology!" "But thats what they are! A MYTH!" He argued, partly reasoning with himself. He was obviously scared. "But I'm not a myth." I spoke out, causing Spike to flinch. "IT TALKS!" "And why wouldn't I?" I walked up to the baby dragon. He didn't budge. I raised my hand out, gesturing him to shake it. "Don't be so scared, dude! My name's Keith! Nice to meet you." "N-Nice to meet you to. Sorry... I just never saw a Human before..." "And I've never seen a purple baby dragon before either, but I'm taking it well." We left for the table, leaving Spike in his daze. I removed the Pendant and placed it on the table. Fluttershy and Twilight just stared at it. They looked like they were staring at the greatest thing since the Elements of Harmony, which was probably true. "Well, as amazing as it is to see the Elements in another form, rather than just our necklaces and crowns, I don't know where to start." Twilight was concentrating, finding a solution. Fluttershy was less informed than Twilight. "What did Trotter tell you and Keith to do?" "Nothing much, Fluttershy. Just to learn as possible from the Medallion and report back to him whenever something happens." Twilight sagged her shoulders in defeat. "But it doesn't respond to our magic, so there's not much I can do..." Then I remembered. "Take this, only read it when you begin to use the Medallion!" The Scroll... I searched my pockets for the forgotten parchment. After fumbling for a moment, I placed the slightly crumpled scroll on the table. It surprised the two other ponies. "Trotter gave it to me just before we left. He said to read it to learn to use the Medallion. But I can't break that seal. Twilight?" "On it." Using her magic, she formed an intangible purple key. On its end was the Royal Embossment. She placed it onto the Symbol that kept the scroll in place. The seal immediately melted away, releasing the ribbon that held it. "Quick! Read it! Read it!" Twilight's nerd mode was activated. So I did, out loud. The message read: Keith, If you're reading this, you must be trying to use the Medallion. I understand it may be a bit difficult to learn on its own, So here I have written down everything I have researched in the short time it was in my possession. This parchment contains a bit of information about your Aura as well, so read this carefully. The Pendant contains the same power as the Elements of Harmony. However, they cannot be controlled in the same way. Only humans have that ability, due to their Aura. However, as I have observed, Aura is based heavily off human emotion and will power. But Aura alone cannot be expressed without an amplifier. That's where the Pendant comes in. But the properties of the pendant are still unknown as well. I assume that some form of catalyst is required What I'm saying is that it will take a great amount of concentration to control it. It may take a while, but it is all in the purpose of Magic! Study it well, Human. It could change both our worlds forever. Professor Trotter "Well, this gives us a place start." I retrieved the Pendant and placed it back around my neck. "Emotion...Willpower?" Twilight had the cogs turning in her head. "And what did he mean by...'Catalyst'?" "I'm not sure myself Fluttershy. But I'm just gonna try what I think should work." I moved to the center of the library and stood in a ready position. My two friends were unsure of what I was doing. "Let's do this." I closed my eyes, trying to clear my head. Clear you thoughts... Forget about your worries, forget about going home... ...Home... NO! Remain Peaceful... return home later... "Umm... are you alright, Keith?" The concern in Fluttershy's voice was heard, even without opening my eyes. For some reason, I felt light-head. "I'm fine, Fluttershy. Perfectly fine..." "Got anything yet?" "Not yet, Twilight. Be patient..." I sounded like a Jedi. Nothings happening yet... Maybe I'm doing something wrong? Maybe I need a catalyst... whatever it is... "Hey, man, try your phone..." What the hell? "Dude get your phone out." And who the hell are you?! "Oh, yeah didn't mention myself. I'm your Aura." Yeah, right... "How would you know dude? You've never spoken to me before!" Maybe it's the alcohol... maybe the effect is still there... "I'm not your conscience, dickhead! Now take out your phone!" I suddenly had the urge to take out my Iphone. I was in a relaxed state, breathing deeply. Almost in meditation. Eyes still closed, I pulled the phone from my jacket pocket. "Okay, good. Now touch the Pendant with it!" What? Why?! "Dude do you want me to speak more clearly?" Well I don't like the way you sound! "Just trust me alright? If I hurt you, it hurts me too!" Fine. I tapped the Pendant's Purple Gem in the center, with my Iphone. I received a jolt of a static shock. "OW!" I dropped my phone, and heard it clatter to the ground. "Keith, you okay?" Fluttershy trotted up to my side, the motherly instincts taking over. "I'm fine." Waving away the sharp pain in my hand. "What were you doing by the way? You were really concentrating." Twilight was levitating an empty parchment and quill, ready whenever to take down any notes. "I was... conversing with myself..." "...Come again...?" "I don't know, maybe it's the alcohol." "So your saying this experiment went a little bust?" "Yeah, I think it failed-" "But I think it was a success!!" The three of us panicked. There was someone else here. Someone with a slightly robotic voice. Twilight and Fluttershy looked about frantically, unsure of what had spoken. But it sounded familiar to me... "Down here everyone! Yes, the white rectangle on the ground! Hi!" All of our jaws hit the floor. My phone was talking without a prompt! "Shocked? Haha! I expected as much. Allow me to introduce myself! My name is Artemis Orion, and I'm Keith's Aura"! I had one last thought before I blacked out again. WTF?