One Bolt, A World Displaced

by Boltsinger


Getting His Bearings

“Her HUSBAND?!” the girls repeated, nearly falling from their seats. Boltsinger looked down at his lunch, his cheeks a bright red.

“Princess Twilight got married?” the pink one stressed. She grabbed Sunset’s vest, shaking her emphatically. “Why didn’t you tell us Princess Twilight got married?!”

Sunset pushed her friend off, rubbing her temples. “Because, Pinkie, I knew you all would react like that. Besides, I told you about him already. I just… hadn’t told you that part.”

“Wait, you mean that guy she met that had the powerful voice ‘n the lightnin’ that sent him off to every place that might need ‘im?” the blonde one, who Boltsinger could only guess was Applejack, guessed.

“Certainly sounds like me.” Boltsinger confirmed, picking up a piece of lettuce.

The purple-haired girl, unmistakably Rarity, stepped forward and put her hands on either side of his face, leaning over him and giving his looks a thorough examination. “Well, you’re certainly not who I would have expected her to fall for, let alone marry.”

Boltsinger removed the hands from his cheeks, backing up a bit. “Yeah, nop--body ever really expects me. Although, coming from you, that sounds weird.”

“How so?” she retorted, crossing her arms.

“‘Cause it was the Rarity back home who egged me on the most to make a move on her.” he explained. He picked up his lettuce again, taking a bite and quickly consuming it. “Talking about her looks, saying that I must, must, MUST, and then going to so much trouble to try and work a confession out of me. She was adamant that romance happen.”

Rarity’s eyes widened for a moment, then she returned to her usual relaxed state. “Oh, yes, well that does sound like something I’d do, doesn’t it?”

“OH! OH! What did I do? What did I do?!” Pinkie inquired, waving her hand. “I bet it was something super fun and memorable, huh?”

Boltsinger took a deep breath, making the excitable girl’s eyes light up with anticipation. “Parties.”

Pinkie jumped from her spot, pumping her fist and knee as she danced in place. “YES! I knew it! Any Pinkie is a party Pinkie no matter how you part the Pie!”

As the girls laughed at their friend’s antics, Sunset leaned over to Boltsinger. “Are you sure you should be telling them about their counterparts in Equestria?”

He waved a dismissive hand. “Eh. They asked. And it’s nice to have at least something feel like home…” He lifted his pendant, looking into it at the small sparks of electricity with a sigh.

As they got up from lunch, Boltsinger felt a tap on his shoulder, drawing his attention behind him. Standing there was the girl whose features reminded him most of home, her hand raised gingerly with her other arm wrapped around a book. “Excuse me… Can I, maybe, talk to you?”

Boltsinger recoiled slightly. “Um… Twilight… yeah… What do you need?”

She shook her head, putting her hand up between them. “Not here… Can we talk… privately? After school?”

“Yeah, sure. Wherever is fine with me.” he stated, looking back and pointing to Fluttershy with his thumb. “So, um… I’m gonna head out… Gotta stay with Fluttershy for now. See you later?”

“Yeah! Definitely.” she affirmed, twinkling her fingers as he walked off. “See you soon.”


At long last, the final bell rang, and Boltsinger found himself in the plaza at the front of the building again. He walked towards the statue base, which still gave off an electrical discharge from his arrival, and extended a hand towards it. As he came close to the surface, he felt another tap on his shoulder. “GAH!” He shouted, jumping from the shock. He spun around, finding Twilight, reeling back. “Oh! T-Twilight! Hey!” He stepped back, moving to the side of the statue. “Sorry about that… Just got a little spooked, is all.”

“Oh. It’s okay.” She adjusted her glasses, investigating the surface he had reached for. She had come to know that a portal existed there, but she hadn’t examined it since her first time at the school. “I have to say, this is a phenomenon I’ve never seen before.” She looked over at him, straightening herself again. “Is it a result of your arrival?”

Boltsinger observed the electricity, trying to make sense of it. “I… think so. I’m not as well-versed in magic as Twi-- the other Twilight, but I think… it’s keeping me here, like how my lightning usually works when I’m sent somewhere.”

Her eyes lit up with curiosity as she closed the distance between them. “Oh? So you’re familiar with its properties? How does it typically behave under normal circumstances? What do you mean when you say you’re ‘sent somewhere’?” Her questions continued for a solid minute, inquiring about every little detail. He put his hands on her shoulders, guiding her to a spot where they could sit down, and began the long and involved explanation of how his lightning came to him, how it normaly behaves, and the various nuances he had learned over the past few years.

“And now, when there’s someone that I know has a consistent need for me, like the Twilight I know, or Nova, I can… kinda trigger the lightning to activate whenever I want, just as long as I’m going to them.” he finished. “It makes getting home really easy.”

“I see…” she responded, furiously writing in her notebook. She brought her pencil to her lip, directing her eyes back to him. “So… Who’s Nova?”

Boltsinger was beginning to think that this Twilight was exceptionally good at saying painful things. He winced, doing his best to hide the fact, then looked over at the school building. “He’s… well… I’ll tell you some other time. Anyway, you said you wanted to talk to me about something?”

Twilight put her notepad away, standing up. “Oh, that’s not important right now. I’ll see you tomorrow, right?”

Boltsinger shakily worked his way to his feet. “Considering I don’t know anywhere else to go in this place, yeah. Probably gonna stick around here.” He waved her off, turning back to the main building. “Won’t be the first time I’ve slept in a library…”

He began walking, looking at the myriad students making their exit. Many of them looked familiar, so much so that he felt he could guess their names at a glance. Bulk Biceps stood out like a sore hoof, along with Trixie, the CMC’s, and Big Mac. It felt like he was still back home, like nothing had really changed. Save for one difference. One small presence that had come to mean everything. He stopped, looking up at the grey clouds above him. As he inhaled, another student came up next to him. “You really miss him, don’t you?”

Boltsinger looked out of the corner of his eye, spotting Sunset Shimmer looking up next to him. “What do you mean?”

“That little colt in your memories.” she clarified. “I can see the memories of anybody I touch. It’s… kind of my ‘special talent’.”

His head and shoulders slumped, directing his gaze to the strange-looking feet at the ends of his legs. “Eeyup…”

“I talked to Princess Twilight since lunch, you know. She was really worried about you.” she informed him, putting a hand on his shoulder. “I told her you’re fine, and she says that the baby is okay. He’s a little fussy, but he’s okay.”

“That’s… that’s wonderful.” he affirmed, wiping his eyes with his sleeve. “Now I just need to figure out how to get home… Anything you need help with that needs… Well, I guess I can’t do sound amplification without my wings, but… I guess some of my other skills might be needed, otherwise I wouldn’t even be in this world.”

“There’s been some magic moving around the city. I’m not sure exactly what’s going on, but there’s been a pulse that I can see all the way from my place.” she explained. “If you saw me writing to Princess Twilight about it, then that might be what called you here. You wanna help me look into it?”

He nodded, finally looking at her properly. “Eeyup.” He took a calming breath, continuing his trek towards the school.

Sunset grabbed the hood of his jacket, yanking him back a little. “Where are you going?”

Boltsinger looked curiously back at her, pointing at the school. “I was gonna find the library. I don’t exactly have a place to stay, and books are surprisingly comfy.”

Sunset shook her head with a smile. “You really are part of her family, aren’t you?” She gestured behind her, starting a walk away from the school. “Come on, you can stay at my place while you’re here.”

A sense of surprise seemed to encapsule the blue-haired boy. “You sure? I mean, would your family really be--”

She smirked, waving him along. “It’s fine. I don’t have any family here. They’re all back in Equestria.”

Boltsinger tilted his head, cautiously following her. “Well, that explains a lot.” He picked up his pace, coming to a casual stride beside her. “You do realize that you owe me a story, right?”

Sunset chuckled, fixing her eyes on her destination. “All right, I guess I can give you that much.”


“So you and Starlight have a lot in common, huh?” Boltsinger wondered, taking in the sights of the city around him.

“Yeah, I was pretty evil back then.” Sunset confirmed, scratching her cheek. “But I’ve got forgiving friends. Your wife included.”

“So… where do you think this magic is coming from, anyway?” he queried, noticing some fancy outfits in a window display. “I learned a lot about magic from my friends back home, but I’m not quite sure it works the same way in this place.”

“Honestly, I’m not sure where it’s coming from or what it’s doing.” she said, looking in the direction of the pulse. “But magic in this world has a history of doing… bad things… when people start messing with it. Something about transforming into monsters.”

“Okay… So, definitely make sure no one’s been messing with it. Got it.” He looked around some more, spotting a sweet shop that seemed to be run by a couple more familiar faces. “Are those… the Cakes?”

Sunset stopped and followed his gaze, spying the owners in the window. “Oh, yeah. They’ve got some of the best food in Canterlot.” She looked at him through the corner of her eye. He was hungrily licking his lips, his feet just barely beginning to scoot forward. “You wanna see for yourself? My treat.”

A starving smile appeared on his face as he looked at her, his feet already moving in the shop’s direction. “Well, if you insist… I really hope it’s as good as Sugar Cube Corner!” He broke into a run the moment the opportunity arose, eagerly standing beside the door in a matter of seconds.

Sunset rolled her eyes as she made her way to the door. She sat him down at her favorite table of the shop, placing their order and sitting across from him. She reached into her backpack, retrieving a pencil and a sketchbook with an intrigued grin. She placed the book on the table, opening it to a blank page, and began drawing. Boltsinger looked around the establishment, hoping that what he got was going to be as good as the items he saw looked, and then noticed something… odd… hanging in a corner of the room. A device with a picture on it that seemed to be… moving. It reminded him of various spells he had seen Twilight, Starlight, and various other magically talented ponies use, but there wasn’t an aura around it, nor did he believe that magic had anything to do with it.

“Hey, Sunset…” he started, putting his hand on her free arm and pointing to the box. “What is that thing?”

She looked at the device. “That’s a TV. It basically takes a recording someone has made and broadcasts it everywhere.” She returned to her work, intensifying her focus. “I’ve got one at home if you want to learn more about it. We can watch a movie or something.”

“Sounds good…” he replied. “Hey, what are you drawing, anyway?”

“You.”

“Me?”

“Yup. You.”

“Why?”

“Curiosity.”

“Curiosity?”

“Yeah. I want to see if I saw you accurately in your memories.”

“How’d it come out?”

She held up the sketchbook, showing him an unfinished image of what he could almost guarantee was himself as he saw whenever he looked in a mirror. “What do you think?”

“I think Ink would be jealous of what you can do.” he told her, examining as closely as was comfortable. “If this is just a doodle from memory, I’d love to see what you can do when you really try!”

She smiled, stowing the sketchbook away. “Well, thanks. But it’s far from done. Who’s Ink, anyway?”

“Oh, she’s a friend.” he answered. He went into the story of his first friendship mission, helping a mare named Ink Rider and her little brother as their order came. Afterwards, they continued their walk, swapping stories of good memories as they went. Boltsinger was surprised to learn of the Flash Sentry that existed in this world, finally understanding the initial attraction she had with the Flash he knew. While he learned more of the world he was now a guest in, he was able to give Sunset a better idea of what life in Equestria was like in her absence. She had been back a number of times, but never really long enough to see just what was going on in the world. She found herself especially intrigued by the being that Boltsinger called ‘Discord’, hoping she might meet him someday.

By the time they entered Sunset’s loft, they were laughing at the latest story told from the girl’s perspective. The sky outside had turned dark, and a yellow light was pulsing in the distance. Sunset guided him to the window, pointing at the light. “That’s the thing I’ve been seeing. I know it’s Equestrian magic, but I’m not sure just who it is or what they’re up to! What do you make of it?”

Boltsinger looked out at the light, seeing a slight rhythm to it, but unable to make out much else. “Not quite sure. I’m up for investigating tomorrow if you want.”

“Okay.” she responded, moving away from the window and over to her dresser. “Make yourself at home. I’m gonna… well… you know.”

Boltsinger looked around the abode, curious about some of the things he saw. “Oh, yeah… I’ll… take a look around.” He made for the couch, inspecting a bar-like device that had a number of buttons sticking out. He picked it up, pressing the red button as a light flashed on from across the room.

“--ere in Canterlot City with a high of sixty-six degrees and a low of fifty-one.” the TV on the other side of the room blared. Boltsinger yelped, scooting back on the couch. He fumbled with the device in his hands, accidentally tossing it up and making a desperate grab for it, only for it to land on the floor below. He let out a few panicked breaths, curling into a ball and wallowing in his unfamiliarity as Sunset ran over.

“Are you alright?!” she asked, kneeling down next to him. “You look like you just saw a ghost!”

“Wasn’t… expecting… that…” he admitted, pointing at the screen.

She let out a sigh of relief, bringing herself onto the couch. “Oh, that’s all it was… I told you I had a TV at home.”

“I remember, but… who is that?!” he wondered, directing her attention to the lady on the screen. Her skin was the same shade of orange as Boltsinger’s, with a bobbed dirt brown hairstyle and a hair clip of a blowing gust on her right side. She wore a bright blue suit with a darker orange shirt underneath, and was standing in front of what looked like a map with all sorts of patterns and symbols on it. “She looks… familiar.”

Sunset got a look at the screen, a smile crossing her lips. “Oh, that’s the weather person, Gusty Gale! She’s the best meteorologist in Canterlot.”

Boltsinger slowly turned his head to look at her, utterly dumbfounded. “Did you say Gusty Gale?”

Sunset cocked an eyebrow, looking back. “...Yeah. Why?”

“Because… well… my mother’s name was Gusty Gale…” he stated. “And… well… Back home, she’s not quite so… alive.”