Ch 1: The Map of When
Twas and an average day for the light purple colored unicorn by the name of Alina Starfire; her day had been spent at the Canterlot library reading up on numerous conjurations. An announcement called her attention in the library.
“All participants in Twilight Sparkle’s seminar please go to room 125 E.” The intercoms say. Alina closes her books, taking out her student badge and proceeded to the large room where others like her had gathered to hear from the princess herself.
Taking a seat, her size in comparison to the average pony was a few inches smaller. The mare next to her, a larger light-pink unicorn turns to her with a smile, “I’m so excited for this! I had to miss my job today at the station for it” She says to Alina.
“It’ll be surely worth it, Twilight’s the wisest unicorn here besides the other Princesses.” Alina smiles back, settling her bag next to her flank in which the items rested beside her cutie mark: a double lighted flame the outer blue, the inner a low red.
After a few minutes pass by the Princess, lead in by guards, takes her place by a pulpit. The others in the room, made up of scholars and students, were up on college-like seats pointed towards the center at the speaker. As the audience goes silent, Twilight takes a few deep breaths looking at her crowd, and shifting her notecards. Her lecture began shortly after; Alina took notes as Twilight spoke.
Throughout her speech she tripped up a few times, but to Alina, it was fun to see such a powerful being be nervous in her talk.
“Obviously, the long term effects of...” Twilight says, someone in the crowd makes a little noise.
“Shhhhh” Someone says back, Twilight continues,
“...the simultaneous acquisition of cutie marks has yet to be determined, but...” She sips water, “Ahem. Next slide, please.”
She was saying to Spike who had been napping and snoring but quickly reacts, “Huh? Huh!” He changes it.
“I can speak from my own experience that the power of Cutie Mark Magic is very real, and in the instance of my friends and I, it can be traced to a single event! Without Rainbow Dash's race to defend Fluttershy's honor, this rainboom wouldn't have happened. Fluttershy might never have discovered her love of animals. Applejack might never have realized that she belonged on her farm. And Pinkie Pie might never have decided to leave hers. It must be hard to imagine Rarity without her sense of fabulousness. But it's even harder to fathom what my life would be like. Without this rainboom, I might not have gotten into magic school. Celestia wouldn't have taken me on as her pupil or sent me to Ponyville to meet my friends. And the most powerful thing about Cutie Mark Magic that I found is the connection I share with them.” She strongly continues looking over the crowd but then her focus goes as she peer over to who she thinks is…Starlight Glimmer? “But, um...” She shuffles her cards.
Alina whispers to the mare by her, “Cherry did you notice that, she was on roll then she stuttered” Cherry nods as Twilight resumes.
“The real question about... Cutie Mark Magic is... who it seems to affect.” Twilight says, she regains her topic, shortly after wrapping up the lecture.
Cherry was half-asleep herself once it ended, Alina had to nudge her, “Hey Cherry it’s over heh, they’re having a little dining place open for the participants.”
“Food…? Sweet!” Cherry becomes fully aware, teleporting Alina and herself out the door. The spot they are teleported to just so happened to be right in the path Twilight and Spike were just about to step in. Startled, Spike hugs onto Twilight’s leg.
“O-oh my bad m-my um friend teleported us here by accident” Alina says in embarrassment, but Cherry was more focused on the food, “Cherry!”
“Wha…? Oh my apologies hehe” Cherry turns to Twilight and Spike; her structure was right to size of Twilight’s.
Twilight giggles, “No worries girls, were you two in the audience just now?”
“Yes, and it was well done” Alina compliments, inside she was freaking out, talking to a divine-like pony, the most important in their time.
“Why thank you, though I think it could have gone smoother in some places” Twilight says.
“Yeah, I’ll say, we practiced it so many times” Spike jokes, Twilight playfully kicks at him.
Alina and Cherry chuckle, “It was okay, I took many notes” Alina says, showing her, Twilight levitates the note book over to herself, happily looking through it.
“Nice! Heh, here you can have these if you’d like” Twilight gives Alina her notecards. Alina’s heart races, the Princess had gifted her the notes!
“Goodness Twilight! Are you sure I can have these??” Alina was extremely enthusiastic. Twilight nods with a smile.
“Thank you thank you!” Alina hops around happily, Cherry burst out in laughter. Twilight giggles, giving her notebook back.
“Glad it could make you happy” Twilight says, looking over to Spike who was heading over to the snack bar, “Can I ask you gals something?”
“Ask away” Cherry says, grabbing onto Alina with her magic, and turning her back to face Twilight.
“During my speech, did any of you see a mare come in? She kind of looks like her color” Twilight points to Alina, “But her tail is a little swirled, her coat is more pinkish; Her mane is purple and teal. The cutie mark is of a purple and white star with two blue glimmering streams.”
“I think I may have, I dunno” Cherry inputs, “I do know some pony came in and left quickly though”
Twilight sighs a bit but smiles, “Thank you, I’ll be off now. You two take care”
“It was a pleasure ma’am” Alina grins, after she goes, Alina hugs Cherry. “Wow! She spoke to us and asked us for help!”
Cherry hugs her back, “Definitely, but I’m hungry let’s go eat!” She pulls Alina along with herself using her magic. Alina giggles as they take a place in the short line, acquiring pastries and punch. They then take a seat by a large glistening window.
“I think it was that mare Twilight mentioned, she had this strange grin on her face, I think she teleported out. Was really stealthy about it too” Cherry says.
“You sure? You seemed a bit sleepy to me” Alina snickers, eating part of a donut.
“A little bit, hehe.” Cherry leans back in the cushioned chair.
Alina stands up, “I’ll be back, I want to go back in that room and take in that scene” Cherry mumbles: okay, with her mouth chewing a bagel. Alina goes on her way into the lecture room, she stands at the spot Twilight had been on and breaths out lightly.
“Wow…she was right here saying that all…” She walks around a bit and sees the slideshow machine. Going to it, she finds that all the pictures were still there. “She might want these back, good thing she’s still here.” She takes them, going quickly back out to the dining area but doesn’t spot the Princess and her companion.
“Looking for someone?” Cherry asks as Alina approaches her.
“Mhm, did you see where Twilight went off to?”
“She left with Spike not too long ago, why wanted to tell her more booky stuffs?”
“I’d love to do that, but she forgot the pictures from the slide show, I don’t know if I should have taken them”
“I’m sure she’ll understand, come let’s go to her castle” Cherry smiles.
“Us? Go there??”
“Yeah duu, come on”
“B-but it’s in Ponyville” Alina says.
Cherry lifts her up with her magic, “So? It’s a Saturday plus I already skipped work like I said, so we have time” Alina squirms in her magic field and nods, trying to get out of the magic. Cherry giggles, setting her down.
Boarding the train, the mares make their way to Ponyville, home to Princess of Friendship. “It has been a long time since I came here” Cherry comments.
“Me too, it’s much smaller then Canterlot for sure though that big castle in middle really stands out” Alina says. The train comes to a stop; it’s passengers board off.
“Last time I was here was with my father when I was younger, hehe he had a crush on the Princess before she became a princess.”
“He did? Wow haha…” They keep following several roads, having just the castle as their guide.
“Yep, he was a silly stallion, worked here most his life” Cherry sighs and smiles. “I’m hungry, hope they have servants at the castle that can serve us food”
“We just ate girl” Alina giggles, but soon is in awe as they stand before the castle’s doors. “I think maybe we should leave them on the door steps hehe…”
Cherry knocks on the door, “Nah she’ll be glad to have them, don’t be shy” They wait a while.
“See? They’re not here, let’s go” Alina starts to leave but Cherry opens the door, slipping in. “Cherry no! The guards will get you!”
“There’s no one here, no guards, no servants” Cherry says, Alina pulls on Cherry’s tail.
“We should go then; we’ll get in trouble!”
“Shh... I hear voices” The two walk up to a double-doored room, slightly opening the door and see Twilight and Spike talking to a mare, the mare that Twilight had described earlier.
“What are you doing, Starlight?” Twilight half-shouts.
With a laugh, Starlight replies, a giant globe-like object hovers above her. “I'd tell you, but I don't want to ruin the surprise! Won't be needing that anymore.” She vanishes with a flash of light into the object above her, leaving a scroll behind.
“Where'd she go?” Spike looks up.
“I don't know, Spike, but I think we better find out!”
“I guess we could start with this.” He reaches for a scroll on the ground.
“Spike, no! Don't touch that!” Twilight yells but is too late as they are sucked away into the object as well.
Pinkie Pie enters the room, “Hu?” She shrugs eating a cake, soon after leaving.
“W-what…just happened??” Cherry says to Alina who was speechless, “They got zapped into that thingy and they’re gone!”
“W-we need to go save them!” Alina barges into the room, looking how to activate the globe thing that had taken the ponies away, the table shocks her and grabs hold of her, “Ahhh! It’s got me!” Cherry grabs her from behind.
“I got you Alina!” She tugs, but is soon wrapped in this magic field as well. The globe re-appears, sucking them into it. “Alllllinnnnaaaaa!” Cherry holds on as they are whirled around and are spat out back on the table but without the castle around them.
Alina stands up, looking around, “W-where are we…”
“Ponyville, but… things are off” Cherry, shakes some rubble off of herself.
“Did we destroy the castle??” She sees that only the table remained.
“Gee…I hope not” Cherry starts to walk around; Alina looks to the floor.
“Hey its part of that scroll thingy Spike grabbed”
“Best keep it so if we find Twilight, we can give it to her.” Cherry says, Alina follows her.
“The sky is…different. Strange there are no ponies around, only a few”
“Some event must be happening, a villain attack…Oh I hope things are okay” Cherry says worriedly.
“We should go back to Canterlot, I have the pictures in my pack, we’ll give it to her if we find her”
Cherry nods, “Yeah, I don’t want to get attacked by a villain, let’s go home!” They run in full gallop to the train station, which is over crowded with ponies, ponies in uniforms.
“Wha… Excuse me sir, were is this train going?” Alina asks one of the stallions in uniform.
“Crystal Empire. Sombra’s troops are advancing” He answers.
“S-Sombra’s back??” Alina’s voice shakes.
“Well yeah, been that way for years now, but I believe we’re getting a strong hold, driving him back.” He boards the train.
Cherry and Alina look at each other, “Something’s definitely not right here…”
End of Chapter 1.