Broadcasters

by HoneyQuill

Fluttershy

Canterlot is amazing. Spiral towers, marble peaks and ornate stairways seem to decorate everything. I find myself on my hind legs, gaping at the beauty of the place.

“You are kidding me!” I cry.
“Impressive, huh?” says Twilight, “I grew up here, you know.”
“You're kidding me,” I repeat, “I knew you were special, Twilight Sparkle, but not to such an extent.”
“It's not that big of a deal,” mutters Rainbow. She tuns away, but I still spot the sly grin on her face as she bounces very slightly in anticipation. She's as excited as me, and I can sense the electricity in the air. It's an atmosphere unlike anything I've felt before; this is the home of Princess Celestia, and her magic seems to tingle through the air. Perhaps it's because of my own, lesser magic, but I can sense her everywhere. No wonder it's mostly unicorns here – how anypony could resist this wonderful feeling is beyond me!

“Watch out, girls.”
I turn to see who spoke but am met by a pink, glimmering wall. It passes through me, a barrier of complete magic, and I shudder under its sensory gaze. The feeling is odd, like the magic – and its caster – is seeing right through me. Behind me, the Elements all have similar reactions, although they don't seem so confused.
“Shoot,” says Applejack, “Twilight, your brother's protection spell again?”

“Don't worry,” she replies, “there's no risk of any changeling attacks now. They're relatively weak when faced with wild creatures, so they're probably in hiding.”

“Remind me, what's a changeling?” I ask. I feel I should know – something happened recently, but the memories just don't come to mind. The unicorn opens her mouth to reply, but in that moment the train slows, and I find myself following everypony else out onto the platform.

I'm not by nature a shy or bashful filly, but instinctively I shrink back and hide behind the others. They stride out, confidently laughing and pointing out the changes since their last visit. My ears fall flat against my head and I find myself walking low to the ground; a small-town pony like me isn't cut out for a place like this. Perhaps Celestia's magic affects the unicorns here, too, because I can sense how much weaker I am than they. Of course, my magic is honed and pointed as opposed to being generic, but that doesn't make it any better.

“Oh goodness,” smiles Rarity, “This place becomes even more beautiful each time I visit. I wonder if I should go and visit Fancy Pants, while we're here.”
“We're here on royal business, Rarity.”
“All the more reason to let the Canterlot Elite know, right?”

Everypony rolls their eyes as the seemingly inside joke washes right over my head. I had imagined Rarity to be... fancier, but if she has contacts within the Canterlot Elite then perhaps this is one pony I shouldn't cross.
Everypony else seems intrigued with the streets. Pinkie Pie resumes her cheerful bounce, making it difficult to keep up with my tiny legs. Only Fluttershy remains by my side, and I can tell with a glance that she's not all that comfortable, either.

“Are you okay, Fluttershy?” I ask.
“Oh. Um, yes. Canterlot is just very... big.”
“I know the feeling. Trottingham is a world away from here.”
She shudders and I know that she's recalling the golem and the destruction it wreaked. It wasn't really something that anypony would enjoy watching, but the violence seems to have affected her somewhat.

“Well, at least now that we're here, we can fix whatever it is that's causing all these attacks, right?”
I try my hardest to make my voice sound reassuring, but the effort is wasted as her pupils shrink, her mind obviously filled with ideas of what horrors we could face along the way.
“Oh, don't worry Fluttershy, things will be just fine.”
“Yep! There's nothing to be scared of!” cries Pinkie Pie from several hundred feet away – does she have sonic hearing or something?

“Th-there's plenty to be scared of, Pinkie...”
“No, Fluttershy. Pinkie's right. You six hold the Elements of Harmony, don't you? You're the same legendary ponies who vanquished Nightmare Moon and defeated Discord! Whatever it is that's causing all this, it'll be foal's play for you to defeat them!”
With that, Twilight turns to face me.

“Not alone. Without the Broadcasters, we don't stand a chance of defeating this... whatever it is.”
“But Twi,” says Applejack, “you haven't even told the Princess what you're thinking. What if she says no?”
“She won't. The Princess has absolute faith in me, so there's no way that she'll shoot down my one and only idea to save all of Equestria. The only snag is convincing her of the Broadcaster's skill.”

“I wouldn't worry about that,” I say, “Broadcasters are hoof-picked by the Princess herself. She knows more about us than we even know ourselves. That's why my cutie mark is the waves – because magnifying magic may be a special talent, but what I'm destined to do is broadcast Celestia.”

I finish up and blush with the realisation that I just sounded incredibly snobby.
“I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean it!”
“Don't worry about it, Sugarcube.”
“We're here.”

With a further shudder and a familiar chill down my spine, I turn and follow the Elements of Harmony through the gates of Canterlot Castle.
“Indigo?” calls Twilight.
“Yes?”

“We're going to need your help to convince her of our plan. Be prepared to show the Princess exactly what you can do.”
I stop still in my tracks.

“Excuse me?”
“I know she trusts you, but it's important to show her your skills if she needs them.”
“Y-you want me to... in front of the Princess?”
“Please. You've been in her mind before, right? Surely coming face to face isn't a problem.”

I try to cry out, to correct her, to beg with them to give me a chance to run, but the guards' horns are lit, the vast doors are open, and there I stand, legs shaking as I meet the eyes of the Sun Goddess herself.