Pandemic: Aftermath

by ASGeek2012


Chapter 23 - Bold Moves

Twilight paused to ensure she remained calm before responding to Luna's proposal. That they had to have two clandestine meetings like this in so many days was already bad enough. The privacy spell she had cast had been enhanced to shield Luna's magical aura from the senses of the crystal ponies on the MIDROC security team.

"Thank you for being open and aboveboard about this," said Twilight in an even voice. "I appreciate that our discussion yesterday about keeping me in the loop had some effect."

"I will be honest in that I had hoped to combine this with a plea from your human cohorts," Luna explained. "But that is not forthcoming as of yet."

"And I'll be honest with you," said Twilight in a more terse voice. "I'm not sure it would have helped. I don't like the idea of subjecting Jenny to even more interference in her life. She's been through enough."

"But she may hold the key for binding Ryan to the dream realm once more."

"Which is something I'm not exactly on board with."

"May I ask why?"

"As much as I have come to accept the Dreamwarden program, I'm still not happy with it," said Twilight. "I still think their justice can be too cruel."

"I've explained this before," said Luna. "It is a temporary measure. Future generations of night ponies will not require such an unyielding and harsh guiding hoof."

"Nevertheless, it's what's in place now. When I said humans need to be the ones driving this, I meant it. They need to ensure that Ryan sees justice, not us, and not the Dreamwardens."

Luna let out a slow breath and said with forced patience, "If they even can. How are they expected to incarcerate him if he can use his powers to escape?"

"There has to be some way to accomplish it! I refuse to believe there's no solution outside of your proposal."

"I know what you are concerned about," Luna said "The ultimate punishment of the Dreamwardens."

"How would it look if an Equestrian authority took it upon themselves to mind-wipe someone for an offense that was not tried in a human court of law?" Twilight asked.

"But that is not the case! It would be dispensed by the Dreamwardens, who are not ... ah ..."

"Who no one knows about and, according to you, can't know about for some time."

"I see," Luna said in a low voice.

"I hope you do," said Twilight. "Because we can't reveal the existence of the Dreamwardens, it will instead look like Equestria did something. Specifically, you."

"What would you have us do? We are caught in a bind here, Twilight. We need to have some way of pacifying Ryan's powers so humans can have a chance of apprehending him. Only magic can accomplish that, but only if we know exactly what magic and how to apply it."

Twilight sighed. "And you're convinced that Jenny is the only way you can accomplish this?"

"You have stated yourself that both she and Ryan represent a new form of magic. Regarding Jenny, we know of no other rehumanized person who both exhibits this magic and is linked to the dream realm. We have no other options."

"And just what is it you want to do to her?"

"I have crafted a spell," said Luna. "One I wish to cast upon her that will tell me more about her link to the dream realm."

Twilight considered. "Explain this spell to me, please. I need to know the specific runes."

"It is a bit complicated."

"Just show me."

Luna nodded. "Very well."

Her horn glowed, and strings of light emerged from it. They writhed into the middle of the room, where they shaped themselves into the arcane symbols that represented runes of Equestrian pony magic. Rather than forming up like lines of text, they gathered in intricate patterns meant to show their relationships with one another.

Twilight hopped out of her chair and stepped into it, letting the runes surround her so she could see the spell structure from within. "Are you sure this is correct?"

"Positive," said Luna. "It is based on an older spell I have known since--"

"I don't mean that." Twilight extended her wings and flew towards the ceiling. She pointed a fore-hoof at the top-most rune. "Is this one drawn correctly?"

"It is."

"I don't recognize it."

Luna smiled. "I am not surprised. It is closely associated with dream magic. I would not expect you to know it. Even my own sister would not be familiar with it."

As much as Twilight liked to learn new things, she could not help but feel a little irked that there was something so basic as a rune that she did not know. Moreover, it resisted her attempts to understand it, as if it were somehow incompatible with her own nature.

She lowered herself, turning her head to take in all the intricate connections which branched from the unfamiliar rune. She pointed to a group of runes close to one another. "You've tied that rune directly to a mind gestalt cluster."

"Yes," said Luna.

"This is very invasive magic!"

"She would be fully informed of what the spell can do. I would reassure her that I will not seek to retain what I might see in her thoughts."

"That's not what I mean. I don't know how this will react with her own magic. I've already established that we're dealing with two magic systems which may be incompatible."

"Nevertheless, her link to the dream realm is something familiar," said Luna. "While Psychic Calm did have some initial trouble finding her, once he did, he stated that the dream component of the magic felt the same. It is likely the common factor across both types of magic."

Twilight frowned. "You're assuming that will be enough for your spell to work the way you intend it. I'm not so sure."

The glow of Luna's horn subsided, the runes fading away. "I feel it's worth the risk."

Twilight landed and folded her wings. "We're talking about a fifteen year old girl here, Luna. Even by Equestrian standards, she would not be considered an adult mare."

"You have told me she is desperate to understand her magic."

"No, she's desperate to get rid of it. I'm still working on getting her to accept it. The bottom line is, she's under a lot of stress right now, and I don't want to heap more on her. I'd much rather this wait until we get the matter of her status with the FBI cleared up."

"I'm not sure we can wait that long," said Luna. "We have no idea what Fuller has in mind if he is continuing to use Ryan as his tool."

"That may be coming to end as soon as today," said Twilight. "Agent Heller contacted me before our meeting. He's obtaining a warrant for Ryan's arrest on identity theft."

"Then time is even more of the essence! We don't know how long human authorities will be able to hold him."

"Luna, please, be reasonable!"

"May I at least be allowed to meet with Ryan when he is brought in?" Luna said in an exasperated voice. "If I can at least identify him, and his connection to the dream realm is simply attenuated, the Dreamwardens may be able to see him."

"And what did I just say earlier about wanting human authorities to deal with him?" Twilight said.

"I can request that the Dreamwardens merely pacify him."

"A request? Not a command?"

"As I have stated before, I do not command them," said Luna. "It would need to be a request."

Twilight sighed. "Which leaves them free to deny it."

"Yes," said Luna in a lower voice. "But what choice do we have?"

Twilight ground her teeth before yelling, "I'm getting tired of making decisions because I have no viable alternative!" She took a deep breath before adding in a calmer voice, "My apologies."

"I sympathize, as I share a similar frustration." Luna considered. "I will hold my idea concerning Jenny in abeyance for now, but I urge that you leave yourself open to the possibility."

"We'll see," said Twilight. "In the meantime--"

Before she could finish her thought, a knock came at the door. "Princess Twilight?" came the voice of one of her secret service agents.

"Luna, you need to leave!" Twilight said.

Luna nodded. "I will contact you again tomorrow." Her horn flared, and she vanished in a burst of teleportation magic.

Twilight immediately dispelled the privacy shield and called out. "Yes?"

The agent opened the door. "Your presence, as well as that of the Pony Council delegation, is urgently requested in conference room B."

"Why?"

"We just heard that the federal government wants a formal meeting with the delegation and is preparing a teleconference right now."

Twilight trotted over to him. "It's about time. When is this going to start?"

"The President will be on the line in five minutes."

Twilight's mouth dropped open. "The President of the United States?!"

"Yes, ma'am."

"Great Celestia, I need to fetch the delegation at once!"


Sunny stretched her wings and flexed them as much as she dared as she trotted down the hallway back to her room. Even with as much as she was restraining herself, she felt lighter on her hooves; just a tiny bit more effort, and she would be airborne. Already her security contingent was giving her wary looks.

She couldn't help it. This had been the longest she had ever been grounded, and it was starting to get to her. Equestrian physicians had told her once that it was better for an adult pegasus' health to get in at least two or three hours of flight time every day. She had so far gone three days without.

Sunny headed into the room, closing the door on her security detail with a quick buck of a rear hoof. She hopped into the chair before her laptop and put on her headset just as the door opened once more behind her.

"There you are," Goldy said as she rushed inside. "I thought you would be in the conference room by now."

"I'll be there in a few minutes," Sunny said without turning to face her cohort.

As she directed the pony wand at the screen, Goldy stepped up to her. "May I ask what you're doing?"

"I want to try to contact my sister one more time."

"As much as I know you're concerned for her, I must insist we head to the conference room."

Sunny brought up the phone app. "It's not supposed to start for another five minutes."

"Nevertheless, this is the first time we'll be speaking with somepony of importance from the federal government," said Goldy. "It's best we be prompt."

Sunny was not nearly as hyped about this teleconference as Goldy. She doubted they were going to get more than some minor functionary. At best, they might get a member of the House or Senate, but she considered that a stretch. "This is important to me, please. I'm still worried about her, and if there's any chance I can get through to her and ease my mind, it will make the conference go better."

Goldy sighed but nodded. "I suppose I see your point. Do you need me to leave?"

"No, I don't expect this to take long," said Sunny as she flicked her hoof. She heard the ringing start over the headset. "I honestly don't expect to get any more luck than I've--"

The ringing stopped. "Hello?"

Sunny gasped. "Jenny?? Is that you?!"

"Oh, um, yeah, hi, sis," Jenny said in a distracted voice.

"Oh my God, Jenny, I've been so worried about you!" Sunny cried. "Why didn't you answer my calls?"

"I've been kinda busy, and, well, you call from so many numbers that I never know whether it's spam or not."

"I'm just glad to hear from you again. Are you okay?"

Goldy smiled. "I'm happy your sister is safe," she whispered.

Sunny gave her a faint smile.

"Uh, well, depends on what you mean by okay," Jenny replied cautiously.

Sunny's smile faded. "Is something wrong?"

"Again, depends on what you mean by that."

"Jenny, why are you acting so mysterious? What's going on?"

Jenny sighed. "Do you have a few hours?"

"Okay, now you have me a little freaked out," Sunny said.

"Join the club. You wouldn't believe half of it if I told you."

"If you told me? I think you need to start talking right now, young lady."

"Stop with the big bossy sister act," Jenny snapped. "It doesn't work so well when I'm almost three times your height. Besides, I'm still with Aunt Eileen, and she's taking care of me just fine."

"Then why didn't she answer my voice mails either?" Sunny demanded. "I don't like it when you don't tell me what's going on."

"I'm not sure I should, not over the phone."

"Why the hell not?"

"I don't know who might be listening."

Sunny blinked. "Jenny, you're not making any sense. I--"

Before she could finish her thought, the door glowed with magic and burst open. "What are you two still doing here?!" cried a harried Twilight. "We need you in the conference room!"

"Hold on a second," Sunny said into the headset before turning around. "Twilight, I finally got through to Jenny, and something's going on with her that she's not telling me about!"

"Wait, you have Twilight there?" Jenny said. "Ask her what's going on, she already knows."

"I -- what?!" Sunny frowned at Twilight. "Jenny just said you already know!"

Twilight's ears lowered. "Um, well, uh, I kind of do, yes."

"Well, you're going to tell me right now!"

"There's no time!" Twilight cried. "We have to get to the conference. I'll tell you everything that's going on after that, I promise!"

"Why is this damn conference so important? It's just some political flunky that--"

"That's what I came to tell you. They just told us it will be the President of the United States on the line!"

Sunny's mouth dropped open, and her pupils shrank to pinpricks.

Goldy gasped. "Good heavens, yes, Sunny, we have to make haste. We can't keep him waiting."

Sunny's heart sank. The last thing she had wanted was to go straight to the top on their first meeting.

"Uh, sis?" Jenny said in a tentative voice. "Sounds like you have your hands ... um, hooves full. We'll talk later. Bye."

"Jenny, wait!" Sunny cried. "Hello?!" She knocked the headset off her head. "Dammit!"

"We need to go now," Twilight said. "I'm really sorry, but I promise we'll talk later about all this. You do have a right to know."

Sunny hopped out of her chair. "Just tell me this: is she safe?"

"Yes, for the moment."

"For the moment?"

"It's a long story. Please, Sunny, let's go."

Sunny remembered how in their last correspondence, Jenny had complained about having renewed feelings that her life was still not completely under her control. Sunny felt a little of that herself as well. Ever since she had set hoof in MIDROC, she felt like she was reacting instead of acting. She had told herself that was largely due to her worry over Jenny, and finding out she was all right would alleviate that burden. Instead, she had only vague promises that her sister was safe and had to face an even larger challenge that she had never expected.

"All right, fine, let's go," said Sunny in a resigned voice.

Twilight managed a small smile and took the lead. Sunny hurried to keep up, but Goldy thrust a foreleg across Sunny's chest.

Twilight glanced behind her. "Are you coming?" she asked in a voice tinged with desperation.

"We are, Princess," said Goldy as she started forward, beckoning Sunny to come alongside her. "I simply wish to confer with my colleague along the way."

Sunny managed to refrain from saying "now what" but her voice likely betrayed the intent as she asked, "What is it?"

"I want to emphasize how important this meeting will be," Goldy said in a hushed voice.

"You don't need to remind me and make me more nervous than I already am."

"This is going to be the first time you will make your voice heard to those who matter among the humans."

"I'm going to?" Sunny said. "What about we're going to?"

"It's what I've said before and continue to emphasize," said Goldy. "That it is your words which resonate best."

"But--!"

"Also, the main topic of discussion will likely be your idea of humans visiting the pony lands. You are thus best suited to speak about it."

Sunny almost wished she hadn't come up with the idea, but she knew she had little choice. "I'll do the best I can," she said in a slightly quavering voice.

Goldy smiled. "That's what you've been doing up until this point, and it has served you well. I firmly believe it will continue to serve you."

That makes one of us, Sunny thought.


Matthew folded his hands in his lap as he watched the large monitor on the wall of his office, which displayed the final preparations for the conference between the President and the Pony Council delegation. He had been invited to attend as an observer, thus he had opted to do so remotely. Also on remote was Wendy Rock in Washington, with whom he shared a private conference on his computer.

Matthew turned towards his computer monitor and webcam. "Exactly who knows this conference is taking place?"

"With luck, just his cabinet and some members of Congress," Wendy said, her face dour. "But that won't last long. If anything comes out of this, the President will want to make a full statement to the press."

Matthew nodded and steepled his fingers.

"I have no idea how you can be so calm," said Wendy. "This could have a major impact on public opinion."

Matthew lowered his hands. "Which is of little concern to me at the moment."

"You better have your little operation in the bag very soon. I've already started to hear rumors in Washington about some other human with strong magical powers."

"I have my best people on it," said Matthew. "We could have this wrapped up as early as this afternoon."

"I hope so," said Wendy. "It's going to get harder to maintain any sort of cover."

"Let's move on to more relevant matters. Assuming the President goes along with the expected proposal of a tour of the Homestead lands, do you have any insight as to whom the President might delegate that task?"

"A few. Why?"

"I will want to debrief them. I also want to include some of my agents in his or her security contingent."

Wendy tilted her head. "Why?"

"Recent intelligence I received has pinpointed a source of illicit magic distribution," Matthew explained. "I want agents who can quietly approach and apprehend this pony without interference from the pony population."

Wendy frowned. "You didn't tell me you were planning something like this. All you mentioned was that you had some leads into illegal magic use. Shouldn't this be a separate effort?"

Matthew leaned forward and folded his hands. "Perhaps from this point forward, the less I tell you about my plans, the better."

"And just how am I supposed to leverage your plans in the future?" Wendy said in a slightly bitter voice. "Or have you forgotten your promise of helping me find a new role come December?"

Matthew wondered if that was the main source of Wendy's irritation of late. She had always been someone easily upset, but it had become worse in the last month. Wendy was operating on borrowed time; in a few months, her department would be moot as the window for rehumanization passed.

"I still plan to use what will be my considerable influence in Washington to see you are kept on board," said Matthew. "I value your skill set and would hate to see it go to waste."

Not to mention she would still retain nominal control of the PREQUES database and related resources. Matthew needed someone he could trust who could maintain a lock on that data. He would continue to have use of suppressing information about Ryan, and eventually Jennifer Tanner and Beverly Kelton.

"In the meantime, though, you're making it harder to maintain cover," Wendy said.

"With luck, the continued deception will not need to last much longer," said Matthew. "I daresay that by this time next year, you'll be head of a newly minted Department of Human Magic."

"And you?"

Matthew leaned back in his seat and smiled. "Once I expose how both major political parties have dragged their feet and let this problem fester, the time would be ripe for a strong independent candidate in the 2024 presidential election."

Wendy stared. "You never told me you had presidential ambitions."

Matthew spread his arms. "How else can I wield the sort of power I need to ensure that human concerns remain at the forefront? That you'll be able to wield the power you need?"

"Still, I think you're placing a lot of faith in--"

Matthew's intercom chimed. "One moment, Wendy. Kelsey knows not to disturb me unless it's very important." He muted the call and answered the intercom. "Yes?"

"Sorry to interrupt you, sir," said Kelsey, "But I have some critical information for you."

Matthew glanced at the larger monitor. The Pony Council delegation was in the conference room, and the President had just joined remotely. "Go ahead, and make it quick."

"I've just heard from Agent Danton in the Denver operation. He said Ms. Jarris is requesting a delay."

Matthew frowned. "Tonya is requesting the delay?"

"Yes, and they're unsure of what to do. You had told them to respect her opinions and experience, but they're not sure she has this sort of authorization."

Normally Matthew trusted Tonya implicitly, especially given how adamant the former cop was herself about wanting these two in custody. "Did she state why she wanted the delay?"

"She expressed concern over the logistical challenges of the current plan," said Kelsey.

"A plan she herself came up with and I had approved," Matthew said in irritation. "Did she give any more detail than that?"

"No, sir."

Matthew still wanted to know how the hell his quarry had managed to stay one step ahead of him at every turn. During their original escape from the town where Beverly had been holed up, they had eluded capture with almost surgical precision. Even what Jenny had done when she used her power had the hint of planning to it despite it being -- supposedly -- from a magic surge.

Did she possess some additional ability that allowed her to know ahead of time what was going to happen? Equestria had explained that seeing the future was an extraordinarily rare talent even among their own kind and usually required a lot of work to pull off. Then again, the magic he knew Jenny had done was beyond the ability of most Equestrian mages. If she did harbor an additional talent for seeing the future, she was even more valuable to him than ever.

"Negative on that delay," Matthew said. "I want this done now, or I want a detailed report on why she cannot that cites something less vague than 'logistical challenges.'"

"Yes, sir," said Kelsey.

"Is there anything else?"

"We just got word from Heller's office. A warrant is being issued for Ryan Halter's arrest on the charges of identity theft with intent to defraud."

"Kill it," said Matthew. "I need him available to me."

"It may be too late," said Kelsey. "Heller was careful what court he picked and who he alerted as to the pending warrant. He's already got them making calls to the Boulder PD and Colorado State Patrol."

Matthew frowned. "How the hell did he manage that? He should have no more resources than what's needed for antiterrorism."

"He did the anti-pony crime beat for long enough that he has a lot of connections, and they're the ones helping him. My contacts tell me that Ryan is already on his way out of Boulder. Either he got wind that the heat is on him, or he decided to bug out just to be safe."

"Blast him, I told him to stay put," Matthew muttered. "See if we can pull in some agents from Denver to intercept him before the police or Heller's agent friends do."

"Yes, sir."

"Anything else?"

"Not from me," said Kelsey. "Comms say they recorded a phone call made by Sunrise Storm that you might find interesting."

"I don't have time to go down to the comm center to listen to it," said Matthew. "Have him send it to me as an audio attachment in email."

"At once."

Matthew turned to his computer and unmuted the call. "Apologies, Wendy, but I think we should turn our attention to the conference."

"Agreed," said Wendy. "Keep this open, I'll want to discuss it with you later."

Matthew sighed and muted the call again as he turned towards the larger monitor. He picked up the remote to turn up the sound. He had not missed much. The President was still giving his opening comments, full of the usual pro-pony drivel that he claimed was a balanced approach to human-pony relations.

In Matthew's mind, the only way anything would be balanced was when humans were on an even footing with ponies. That wouldn't happen until he had managed to harness human magic. He knew from a scientific perspective that Equestria would likely understand it first, but so long as the likes of Twilight Sparkle was at the forefront, it would be mired in theory and academia. Matthew had little interest in how it worked, but how it could be applied. Just like how electricity had been widely used before it was completely understood, so, too, would human magic.

His email alert chimed with a message from the communications center. The message said simply, "You need to hear this, Matt."

Matthew glanced at the large monitor. The conference was about to start in earnest. He grabbed the headset from his desk and put it on before clicking on the attachment.

It was a conversation between Sunrise Storm and her sister. That was no surprise, as they had already recorded multiple attempts by Sunny to contact Jenny. Then the conversation was interrupted by Twilight, who could be heard in the background, the comms techs having amplified and cleaned up the sound.

"Hold on a second," said Sunny on the recording. "Twilight, I finally got through to Jenny, and something's going on with her that she's not telling me about!"

"Wait, you have Twilight there?" came Jenny's reply. "Ask her what's going on, she already knows."

Matthew's eyebrows rose.

"I -- what?! Jenny just said you already know!"

Then Twilight's voice. "Um, well, uh, I kind of do, yes."

"Well, you're going to tell me right now!"

"There's no time! We have to get to the conference. I'll tell you everything that's going on after that, I promise!"

Matthew hit pause. He took off his headset and threw it to the desk. Twilight already knew about Jenny's abilities. How the hell did she know? Every single damn communication in and out of MIDROC was monitored. There was zero evidence any Equestrian came near the pony sector. As far as anyone knew, Jenny herself didn't know the scope of her ability until their run in with the FBI.

That left only one way.

"That goddamn dream realm," Matthew muttered.

He leaned back in his seat and steepled his fingers. From what Ryan had told him of the Dreamwardens, they generally did not like facilitating such direct interference by Equestria. If only there was a way to furnish proof of this collusion! It would be a huge boost to his platform.

Unfortunately, he had bigger and more immediate problems.

He waited until the conference was over, though he was not paying complete attention to it. His mind was churning with the ramifications of this new insight. As the President signed off, he turned to his PC and unmuted his conversation with Wendy. "I need to talk to you at once. There's been a problematic development."

"You mean besides this conference?" Wendy said sourly. "The President has completely turned his back on the will of Congress. He can't possibly think he can deliver on--"

"I'm not talking about the blasted conference!" Matthew exclaimed.

Wendy's eyes widened. "What happened now?"

"I don't have time to go into details right now. What I want to know from you is: how the hell can we get Princess Twilight as far from MIDROC as possible?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"I just discovered that her presence here may jeopardize some of my plans," said Matthew. "I need her preoccupied elsewhere."

Wendy frowned. "I don't control her schedule, Matt."

"Yes, but you could potentially come up with a reason for her to want to go to Washington. Or to New York. I just want her away from here."

"She may leave on her own now that she got what she wanted," Wendy said.

"I've been around her long enough to know that she won't be satisfied until the President delivers on his promise of a representative," said Matthew.

"Realize what you're asking me to do on top of dealing with the political fallout from this conference!"

"I understand, but this is critical to both our plans."

Wendy sighed. "I'll see what I can do. Perhaps I can use the Village Center incident as an excuse to bring her in for consultation on future rehumanizations. Or get the Senate to request testimony from her."

"Whatever you do, do it fast," said Matthew.

"I'll need at least a day."

"Very well. Keep me posted." Matthew terminated the call and turned to his intercom.

"Yes, sir?" said Kelsey.

"Please inform the operation in Denver that I have reconsidered," said Matthew. "They can have their delay. They have until noon tomorrow to execute on the operation."

Kelsey paused. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. Better they do this right the first time."

"Agreed, sir."


Sunny struggled to keep her wings folded to her sides and not flex them or let them twitch like they often did when she was nervous. She tried taking a few deep breaths as she stared at the monitor, which continued to show an empty chair, some secret service personnel standing in the background. She flinched when she felt a hoof on her shoulder.

Twilight smiled softly and said, "It's going to be all right. I've spoken with the President many times, and he's easy to get along with."

"It's not really that," said Sunny. "I'm just afraid of saying the wrong thing. I don't even know what the proper protocol is."

"All you need to know is to address him as 'Mr. President' if you want to use his title." Twilight looked over to Goldy. "And I would assume Goldy would be doing much of the talking."

"As much as I am able," said Goldy with a smile. "But I will need to defer to Sunny when we broach her proposal."

"That's mainly what I'm afraid of," said Sunny. "That he'll find it ridiculous."

"He's a man open to new ideas," Twilight explained. "It's mainly Congress that's blocking a lot of what he wants to do. He's a lot more sympathetic towards ponies that many perceive the American government to be."

"I suspect his unexpected participation in this conference is a way to overcome that resistance," said Goldy. "It will take much of the government by surprise."

Sunny nodded quickly, but this only further mounted the pressure on her. She was now the key to the President gaining any traction for his platform. It reminded her of how she had fretted about reaching voting age, as she had rarely investigated anything remotely political, and now she was going to be expected to do it every year.

Sound rose from the monitor, and the agents in the background started to vacate the area. Sunny's heart skipped a beat as a graying man stepped into view and sat down. "Thank you all, for agreeing to meet with me on such short notice," said the President.

"The pleasure is all ours," said Goldy with a smile.

Twilight also smiled and said, "It's very good to see you again, Mr. President."

The man returned the smile warmly. "Always a delight to see you as well, Princess. I am sorry it cannot be in person this time."

Sunny just smiled nervously, unsure if she was supposed to say anything. The decision was made for her when the President turned his eyes towards her and said, "And I have the distinct pleasure of finally meeting Sunrise Storm."

Sunny blinked. "What? Er, I mean ... th-thank you, Mr. President. I'm not sure how you heard about me, but ... um ... thank you."

Sunny hoped that did not sound as lame to the man as it had to her own ears. Goldy was beaming at her, as if she had just made a brilliant speech.

"Princess Twilight has spoken of you in the past," the President explained. "She holds you in high regard."

Sunny glanced at Twilight and smiled at her.

"If you'll indulge me, I would like to make a few opening comments," said the President. "I realize that events of late have tested the resolve of both humans and ponies. I regret any hardship that has befallen either species for any decisions made by this government. We're seeking to do what some call the impossible: to adapt a nation to accommodate a completely new order. I know very well there are many, both in and out of government, who seek to cling to the old ways as if that will somehow return the world to the way it was."

Sunny was trying to pay close attention to the President's words. Someone had once told her that the mark of a good politician was the ability to make a speech that all sides could find something in it that resonated with them. She would have no idea how to do something like that.

"Miss Sunshine put it best," the President continued. "When she said that we have to start making progress. I am meeting with you now in hopes of breaking a deadlock that has plagued us in recent weeks. We have to stop talking at each other and start talking with each other." He smiled. "Thank you for allowing me those few moments."

"Very well put, Mr. President." said Goldy. "We indeed come bringing the idea that there needs to be a fundamental shift in thinking for us to move forward."

"I don't want to be the one to push this meeting in any particular direction," said the President. "Apart from my opening words, I want to do less talking and more listening. I'm sure some ponies feel that there has been too many trying to push them in a direction they may not want to go."

"It's not so much being pushed towards something we don't want as being pushed away from something we do."

The President nodded. "You wish the same right to self-determination that other cultures in this nation enjoy."

"Precisely."

"You need to be aware of the added complication: you are the only culture who can wield magic, some recent rehumanizations notwithstanding."

"This is understood," said Goldy. "And upon further reflection since we arrived at MIDROC, I have come to realize why humans may be wary of us beyond just what we can do."

The President folded his hands before him and looked on with interest. "Oh?"

"I have been recently educated on how better integrated ponies of the south are within human communities."

The President nodded. "Yes, that is indeed true. I won't paint as rosy a picture about it as Congress often does, but there is truth to that statement."

Sunny had to admit this was going better than expected. She really did get the sense that the President was open to listening to them, and she was grateful Goldy had acknowledged everything Sunny had brought to her attention.

"The situation in the west is admittedly different," said Goldy. "But as my colleague here has informed me, it doesn't have to be."

Sunny stiffened slightly, and her muscles ached when she fought against them to keep her wings at her sides.

"The fact that the ponies of the west live apart has been an ongoing concern of mine," the President said. "Yet I understand that the solution is not to impose human will upon them. We created the Homestead act for a reason, but it's truly only a stopgap."

"To be blunt, Mr. President, too many times stopgaps become a permanent solution that no one likes but everypony ... excuse me, everyone is reluctant to change," Goldy said. "I want to prevent that from happening here."

"Agreed. Do you have a proposal?"

"My colleague Sunrise Storm does."

Sunny's heart raced. She glanced at Twilight, who gave her an encouraging look.

Sunny cleared her throat and took a deep breath before speaking. "Um, well, I had the idea that, uh, perhaps humans don't feel welcome in pony lands."

She had paused only to gather her thoughts, but the President took the moment to respond, "Humans respecting the boundaries of pony communities was paramount in helping ease tensions in the immediate wake of ETS."

"But it can't keep going on forever," Sunny blurted. "Um ..."

"Agreed," said the President much to her surprise. "It pleases me to know that the Pony Council does not seek to break away from the nation."

"Of course not. I mean, yes, there are some that want to, but not most of us. Most of us just want to live our lives in peace." Sunny realized she would stray off the topic if she continued along those lines. "What I mean is, I thought maybe it was time for humans to come into pony communities. Peacefully, of course."

The President smiled. "I wouldn't have it any other way. Despite your different appearance and abilities, you're still an American to me, and thus deserving of all rights and protections."

"It's more than that, though," said Sunny, the words coming to her more easily. "Humans need to know that they don't have to fear ponies. While respecting our boundaries as you put it is appreciated, it's just making ponies seem all the more strange."

The President laced his fingers together. "What are you proposing to rectify this, Miss Storm?"

"We have to open our communities to humans. We have to let them come in and see how we live. We thought we'd start by having someone from the government take a tour of our lands."

The President considered. "A sort of goodwill tour, you mean?"

"Something like that, yes," said Sunny. "They'd get to see how we live and, well, how we use magic. Maybe then magic will start to seem as ordinary as technology does to most humans. Then maybe we'd be allowed more freedom to use magic as we wish."

The President looked thoughtful for a few moments before he responded, "Magic use and regulation is the most contentious issue among humans right now, and I can imagine it's the same among ponies."

"This is not just to get us more magic, Mr. President," Goldy said. "I want to make that clear. While it is indeed one of our key grievances, Miss Storm has made me realize we cannot simply make the demand and expect it to be fulfilled."

"There's more to it," Sunny said when it looked like the President was about to respond. She panicked briefly that she had done something wrong, but the man simply nodded for her to continue. "It's not just seeing how we live. When I found out about how ponies of the south were living and working with humans, I thought maybe we should do the same. So visiting our communities is just the start."

"What would be the next step, Miss Storm?" the President asked, his voice betraying genuine interest.

"Humans could start trading with us," said Sunny. "I saw that there are actually products being made for ponies by humans. A lot of them looked really useful. That would also let ponies do good things for humans in return. Maybe we don't build gadgets like humans do, but we can do a lot with even just the magic we already have that humans would find useful."

The President steepled his fingers. "What about the question of the resources of the lands ponies currently occupy?"

"If humans are working with ponies or even living among them by then, it will be less of a problem," Sunny said. "It's hard for me to describe what I'm thinking on this subject. It's more like it just won't be an issue after a while."

"If I may," said Goldy. "Right now, I'm sure it seems to many humans that the ponies are denying access to the resources under pony lands. The actual situation is that ponies fear being displaced. Many of us don't have a direct need for those resources. But if humans are more closely integrated with ponies, the matter can be discussed without the need for one side to impose their will on the other."

"I would like to add something, Mr. President," said Twilight. "While Equestria does not have very much need for resources such as petroleum or natural gas, there are some natural resources we do use, and we always negotiate in good faith for access to the lands containing those resources. It would be the same here."

"But we need time," said Goldy. "We cannot expect this to happen overnight. It will take time to build trust."

"Mr. President, I understand that all those lands are really already owned by someone who has rights to those resources," said Sunny. "I know legally there's nothing we can do to stop them. To them, we're being unreasonable."

"I don't believe you are, Miss Storm," the President declared.

Sunny blinked. "You don't?"

"Not at all. What you have just proposed, frankly, is brilliant."

Sunny's eyes widened. Goldy beamed at her again.

"It goes along with what I said in my opening comments," the President continued. "We have to accept that this is a new world, and it has new rules. Yes, under the old rules, you would be seen as unreasonable. And if we insist on pressing on with those old rules, we risk angering and alienating a quarter of the population of this country. In my opinion, that is utter nonsense."

"Mr. President," said Twilight in a hopeful voice. "Does this mean you accept Miss Storm's proposal?"

"I am heavily inclined to accept, Princess."

Sunny was simply too shocked to speak. She had never anticipated that her proposal would go anywhere. She had assumed it would be submitted to some government functionary and then lost in the bureaucracy. Never had she expected to either talk to the President directly or actually convince him of the merit of the idea, an idea that even she still had some doubts about.

The President gave them a wry smile. "Unfortunately, I am not like your Princess Celestia who can make a decree and expect it to be followed. I will have to convince Congress that this is a good idea. However, the initial goodwill tour from a representative here won't need congressional approval. That I can set in motion at once."

"Mr. President, this is indeed a good day," said Goldy. "For both ponies and humans. I am truly hoping in the future, someone will look back on today and see it as the day that a turning point was reached, that true Harmony has blossomed on this world."

"Very well put, Miss Sunshine," said the President.

Sunny wondered if the President knew that Goldy was not using the textbook definition of the word.

"If I may ask, Mr. President," said Twilight. "How soon do you think a representative can be sent?"

"I am hoping within no more than a few days. I want to get right on this. I realize I'll be criticized for not waiting until the election cycle is done, but, again, old rules!"

Sunny smiled. She wished she had known the President was going to be this agreeable and personable. Her earlier nervousness seemed silly now. She could even ignore the fact that she still had a daunting task on her hooves of convincing other ponies of the merits of this idea.

The President smiled at Twilight. "And I knew you were going to ask that, Princess. I want to thank you for how incredibly patient you've been over the last six months. The more I learn about Equestria, the more I realize that problems tend not to take so long to resolve over there."

Twilight smiled and chuckled. "The joke I used to tell other ponies in Equestria is that no friendship problem should take more than twenty-two minutes to resolve."

The President laughed, and Sunny managed to chuckle as well.

"This has been very productive, Mr. President," said Goldy. "Thank you for taking the time to speak with us."

"It was my pleasure, Miss Sunshine," said the President. "And thank you, Miss Storm, for your wonderful insights, and you, Princess Twilight, for continuing to support diplomatic efforts between my country and yours."

"And thank you for being willing to listen, Mr. President," said Twilight.

The monitor went on standby as the conference call ended. Sunny let out a huge sigh of relief.

Twilight draped a wing around her. "You handled yourself well, Sunny. I'm proud of you."

"As am I," said Goldy. "You were magnificent."

Sunny slowly smiled. Maybe she was a little too uncertain about herself and her abilities. Maybe she was too worried about doing the right thing at all times. Perhaps Goldy had been right all along, and she just needed to keep acting and speaking as her heart told her. It certainly was easier than trying to be something she wasn't.

"And now for that conversation I promised you," said Twilight in a soft voice.

"Huh? Oh, about my--"

"Best not say it out loud," Goldy advised.

"Let's head back to my office," said Twilight. "We can have some privacy there."


Tonya frowned at the FBI agents gathered in the briefing room. "Let me get this straight. First Fuller denies the request for a delay, then not twenty minutes later, he grants it?"

"Yes, ma'am, that's about what happened," said Danton.

"Did he say why he changed his mind?"

"No, just that he trusts you to make the right call."

Tonya glanced down at the tactical maps of the pony sector. She had been just about to text Jason that it was now or never concerning whether Jenny and Bev would turn themselves over peacefully to Heller. Now she could give them the time they wanted.

Tonya glanced at Danton and Handel. "Do either of you think this is rather unusual?"

"I've never known Mr. Fuller to change his mind this quickly, but I doubt he would do so without good reason," said Handel.

"Or there could have been a communications failure," said Danton. "He granted the delay initially but someone relayed the wrong order."

"His office is not usually one for that sort of sloppiness," said Tonya, though she refrained from commenting about the initial botched operation, as these two had likely been assigned to it. She looked at the other gathered agents and raised an eyebrow. "We're missing two people."

"Mr. Fuller pulled two agents from this operation," said Danton.

Tonya stared. "He did what now?"

"He stated that an emergency had come up, and he needed them reassigned at once."

"Did he say what the nature of this emergency was?" Tonya asked, trying not to let her frustration creep into her voice.

"No, ma'am," said Danton. "All I know is that they were to head up to Boulder at once."

Tonya's eyebrows rose. All her cop instincts were telling her that something fishy was going on. Why the hell pull agents from a vital operation like this when he could have had his pick of agents from out of the Boulder office itself?

Tonya looked from Danton to Handel. "And neither of you think this series of orders is at all unusual?"

"Mr. Fuller never does something without a good reason," said Danton.

Tonya considered. "I was told I would have some authority in this operation. Is that still true?"

"As far as I know, ma'am, yes."

"And what if I decided I would prefer to press forward with this operation today?" Tonya had no intention of doing so, but she wanted to gauge their reaction.

"That would be ill-advised," said Danton. "I would have to clear that with Mr. Fuller, since it would be clearly against his wishes."

"No, the delay was my wish. He only had to approve it. If I do have that sort of broad authority, I could change my mind just as much as he can change his. Are you saying you'd still want to clear that with him?"

"Yes. We want to be absolutely sure we know what Mr. Fuller's intentions are."

"They're aligned with mine," Tonya declared.

"I understand, but it was emphasized that this is a very critical operation. We can't afford to second guess the regional director."

Tonya sensed a distinct change in the mood. Until now, they were willing to accept Tonya's word as that of Fuller; now they wanted to double-check everything with him. Her thoughts returned to the conversation with Jason, and his claim the Fuller wanted as few witnesses as possible.

"Very well, we'll delay the operation," said Tonya.

Danton turned to the others. "We'll reconvene at seven AM tomorrow morning."

Tonya trotted out of the room ahead of the others and returned to her office. She looked thoughtful for a moment, then headed to her desk and hopped into the chair. She opened her laptop and strapped a pony wand to her fore-hoof.

She called up the details of the mission and navigated to the roster which listed the names of all the agents assigned to this operation. She dumped the names to a file, transmitted it to her cell phone, and attached it to a text message to Jason: Look up these names for me. Anything unusual about them?

Tonya busied herself with electronic paperwork for the next half hour as she awaited a response. Her cell phone finally chimed, and she frowned as she read the response: All old cronies of his, every last one. Some were under investigation for misconduct. Handel was the worst: disregard for public safety and excessive use of force. All of it was dropped when Fuller took over MIDROC. What a coincidence, huh?

"I don't believe in coincidences," Tonya muttered.

Tonya hated the position she was in. Jenny, Bev, and her friends had broken the law, period. She had a duty to see that they were called to answer for that, and to shield the public from potentially dangerous magic, at least until someone could get a handle on what their powers were and what kind of control they had over it.

Yet now she had to face the possibility that Fuller was not interested in the law, but some mysterious agenda only he knew about. That had not been what Tonya had signed on for. Yet what was her alternative? Quit? That might set Fuller back some, but not stop him.

Or she could throw her lot in with Jason and see if they could figure something out.

She sent Jason another text: We need to meet again, and soon.


Ryan kept his head low as he drove sedately in the right lane of eastbound US-36, keeping his speed scrupulously right at or slightly below the speed limit despite his need for haste. Some would have thought him mad for driving towards Denver when a warrant was likely about to be issued for his arrest, but heading towards the mountains would be the feds' first guess as to where he was going.

He glanced up at the sign indicating the exit for McCaslin Boulevard was a mile ahead. He would get off there and head north, then take some back roads into the mountains that skirted the edge of the pony Homestead communities. Eventually, he would abandon the car and slip into the pony lands, using his ability to keep their denizens from getting too close. He loathed the idea of surrounding himself with the very creatures he despised, but his survival was paramount in his mind.

He spotted movement in his rear view mirror. A state patrol car had changed into his lane. Ryan gripped the wheel a little tighter but kept cruising along. So long as he did nothing to attract the attention of the officer, he would be good.

Yet seconds later, the patrol car flipped on its flashing lights, and the officer tweaked the siren.

"Shit," Ryan muttered as he signaled and pulled onto the shoulder.

As he stopped the car, he considered his options. This could be a routine stop. Perhaps one of his brake lights was out, and the officer was in a pissy mood. Ryan could take advantage of that, if for no other reason than to make the cop give him a ticket and send him along his way as quickly as possible.

Ryan glanced in his side view mirror. The state patrol officer left his vehicle and started towards his. He narrowed his eyes as he focused, using both observation of the man's body language and his own magical senses to assess the man's mental state.

Ryan closed his eyes and filtered out his own emotions. The officer felt cool and collected, though slightly wary. Normally that would be something Ryan could work with, as amplifying existing emotions was easier than instilling new ones. In the case of law enforcement, however, making him more wary was the last thing Ryan wanted, at least at the moment.

He opened his eyes and rolled down his window as the officer reached him and said, "License and registration."

"Of course, officer," Ryan replied in a cordial voice. He moved carefully, making sure his hands were in sight at all times as he reached for first the glove compartment, then his wallet. As he handed over the requested documents, he asked, "May I ask the nature of this stop?"

"You may," said the officer crisply as he took the documents. "Wait here."

That reaction told Ryan everything he needed to know. This was anything but a routine a stop. Likely the warrant had been issued already.

Fear would likely not work here, if the officer had any decent training. Eventually it would be effective, as with enough concentration, he could overcome almost any non-magical defense. Yet the span of time required would be far more than he had.

Paranoia, perhaps? Wariness could be pushed into that emotion quite easily under the right circumstances. Make the officer believe that a greater threat than Ryan existed in the immediate area, and it might delay his arrest long enough for him to incapacitate the officer.

He glanced at his side view mirror as he watched the officer leaning against the side of his car, the radio mike in his hand. Ryan gave the man a mental push. The officer suddenly turned his head towards the dead grasses along the side of the highway as if he had heard or seen something. Ryan smiled. Yes, this would work.

The officer started back towards Ryan's car. Ryan gave him another little nudge. The officer stopped and glanced towards the grasses again before continuing on. Each foray into the man's head gave Ryan more insight into the officer's psyche; he now knew that the officer had some sort of bad experience in the past.

The officer reached Ryan's car. "I need you to step out of the vehicle."

"Is there a problem, officer?" Ryan asked and gave him another push.

"Step out ... of the vehicle right now," said the officer, only his brief pause and tensing muscles evidence of Ryan's mental tampering.

Ryan took his time. The officer had been rattled, and it could work to his detriment if he made any sudden moves. He stepped out of the car and closed the door behind him. "What is this all about, officer?"

"There's an outstanding warrant for your arrest," said the officer.

"Indeed?" Ryan said in a calm but surprised tone as his magic became more firmly entwined with the officer's thoughts. "On what charge?"

"Identity theft and intent to defraud."

Ryan gave the man's thoughts a twist.

"Turn around, hands on--" The officer abruptly cut himself off, his hand landing on his holster, but none of his increasing paranoia was directed at Ryan. His head jerked as he looked past the car for the phantoms Ryan had placed in his head. "What the hell?"

Now Ryan sensed it more clearly. The officer had a past incident with being ambushed during a routine stop. Perfect.

"Are you feeling it, too, officer?" Ryan asked in a sufficiently convincing fearful voice.

The officer frowned and removed his hand from his gun. "Turn around, hands on the hood of your car!"

Ryan risked a delay. "I'm not sure I want to turn my back on anyone right now. Don't you feel the same?"

The officer tensed, and Ryan sensed him trying to fight off the feelings Ryan's magic had found in the officer's own head and brought to the surface. "What I feel doesn't matter."

"Oh, but I think--"

"Now turn the hell around and put your damn hands on the car!"

Ryan wanted to smile but didn't dare. The officer had lost all of the cool and collected nature he had just minutes ago. As soon as Ryan placed his hands on the car, he heard a clink of metal as the handcuffs were drawn out. Yet the feel of cold steel as the cuff was snapped around one of his wrists never happened, as Ryan twisted the man's thoughts one more time.

The officer leapt back. "All right, whoever the hell you are, show yourself!" he yelled as he came around the front of the car, his gun drawn, glaring toward the grasses. "I've had enough of this hide and seek! You're not going to waylay me again, you son of a bitch!"

Ryan now allowed himself a smile. All he had to do was one last push, and he would have the officer racing back to his car to call for backup to deal with the phantoms from his past. Ryan would then just get in his car and pull away before--

He jerked his head around as he heard the sudden squeal of tires against asphalt. A dark-colored car with a single flashing red light had pulled up and disgorged two people who were racing towards Ryan, drawing their guns.

Ryan ground his teeth and frowned.

"FREEZE!" shouted the FBI agent in the lead as he leveled his gun at Ryan.

The officer approached, some of his paranoia having eased as Ryan was forced to back off from his mind. "What's the deal here?"

The other agent flashed a badge at him. "FBI. We'll take it from here, officer. Thank you for being alert and realizing this was the man we wanted."

The officer glanced nervously towards the grasses. "Just doing my job. Um, maybe you can help me with my own problem. There's someone skulking about that--"

"No, there isn't," said the agent before he grabbed Ryan by the arm. "You only think there is because of this asshole." He started dragging Ryan towards the car. Ryan was quite confused at this break with protocol until the man whispered when they were out of earshot of the cop, "Fuller sent us."

"About damn time," Ryan muttered, though he was only partially relieved. While he was grateful for the protection, it meant he was going to be under Fuller's thumb for the foreseeable future.

"And don't even think of using your magic on us," the agent growled. "We see any evidence you're pulling that shit, and we'll knock you out cold. Understand?"

"Understood," Ryan said dryly. "Where are you taking me?"

"Right now, to a safe house in the human sector of Denver. Fuller eventually wants you at MIDROC."

Ryan's eyebrows rose.

"He has plans for you to help him with his upcoming acquisitions."

The term "acquisitions" was Fuller-speak for persons of magical interest he wanted working for him, like Ryan had been after he had rehumanized and it had became clear what that procedure had granted him in terms of magical ability.

"I suppose I don't have much choice in the matter," said Ryan as he was pushed into the back seat of the car.

"No, you don't," the agent said before slamming the door shut.