Advancedverse: Points of Divergence Before The Point of Divergence · 2:13pm Nov 23rd, 2016
Some quick notes on two things that are different in the Advancedverse, AU-wise, even before an alien fell out of the sky:
1. Since I'm effectively replacing Earth with Equus in this AU, for one reason, and since it saves time and confusion to not have more than one species of hominin running around, the Advancedverse does not contain Star Swirl's universe-crossing mirror. It contains an awful lot of Star Swirl's mirrors, just not that one.
1a. As the first consequence of the above, when Sunset Shimmer fled after her falling out with Princess Celestia, it wasn't through said mirror. As for where it was to... well, that would be telling.
1b. As another consequence of the above, Star Swirl presumably stashed the Sirens somewhere else more local to Equestria. (Which, I suppose, has the advantage that I get Sirens to play with if I want 'em.)
2. Time travel in the Advancedverse works the way it does in its Eldraeverse half, because that's the one with a consistent theory of time travel; namely, a block universe, in which causality is preserved via consistency protection even if sometimes the order of cause and effect is reversed (i.e., you can't change the past because you already changed the past), predestination paradoxes are permitted, and grandfather paradoxes are not.
This has no implications for It's About Time, which is entirely compatible with the block universe theory, being one big predestination paradox. However, it does imply that The Cutie Re-Mark can't happen in this AU, because that does involve altering the timeline. When continuity catches up, Starlight Glimmer will have to find herself a different revenge plot, 'cause Star Swirl's spell cannae change the laws of metaphysics!
(A Doylist reason for making this particular choice is that the Eldraeverse - and more specifically, the Empire's anti-existential-threat agency - already has a canonical response to finding out that what they think they know about temporal mechanics is wrong and that it is possible to change the past: it's called CASE SCISSOR REVISION, and involves exploding with extreme prejudice everything in the vicinity of anything that might possibly know anything about how it can be done to make sure that the secret remains unknown, on the reasonable grounds that changing the past is effectively omnicide of everyone in the downstream light-cone of the change point.
The consequences of such a thing would not, I deem, make good fiction.)
That makes a lot of sense, of course.
I am intensely curious, however, just what Starlight Glimmer's revenge plot might consist of, however! (I'm willing to bet she doesn't find a way offworld and QWOP on over to the nearest Equality Concord outpost: that would be too easy.)
Omnicide? But what about the omnigenesis performed simultaneously? :)
Perhaps CASE SCISSOR REVISION is what happened in the timeline visited at the end of The Cutie Re-Mark where Equestria was a dead wasteland. Good thing that timeline got undone. :)
Personally, I prefer the multiple-timeline model to explain what happened in The Cutie Re-Mark. It allows for those "change the past" shenanigans without worrying about the Grandfather paradox. In my headcanon the time travel spell that Twilight used in It's About Time was a version that had "safeties" included to ensure that the time traveler never wound up stuck in an alternate timeline - they were only able to follow their own personal historical timeline, preventing them from getting lost down a branch. The version Starlight came up with took the safeties off.
Actually, CASE SCISSOR REVISION is kind of pointless, because once someone develops the theory (which requires actually testing said theory) it's already too late.
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Well, if they jump straight to practical implementation, yes.
If they start with the theory or a small-scale test, though, and you're really, really lucky, just maybe you can clean up the mess before you're perpetually starring in Time War 2: Temporal Boogaloo.
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I figure it's kind of like performing murder and conception at the same time (only rather less messy, difficult, and acrobatic).
(And if it ever comes up in court, I hope they don't have that precedent to cite.
)
4316415 You just know the first test will be sending a pen back in time, and it will fall on and kill a butterfly, and suddenly everyone's dinosaurs.
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I.e. exactly like every use of the Star Trek transporter? :) Because it does destroy and recreate matter, otherwise it couldn’t result in copies…