//------------------------------// // Dive in. // Story: Into Equestria (Legacy Edition) // by TheMajorTechie //------------------------------// "Twilight?" "Yes?" "What are your thoughts on taking on a student of your own?" Twilight Sparkle raised a brow, cocking her head at Lisa. Lisa gestured at the view of Equestria before her. "I mean, with Samantha and I being so busy these days, we hardly have time anymore to catch up on things! I've come a long way since we were one and the same, y'know?" "...Yeah, I suppose. Though, where would we even start? I've only been the new ruler of Equestria for so long, do you really think I can start taking students so soon?" Lisa shrugged. "Yeah, why wouldn't I? You've definitely grown quite a bit since the whole disconnection fiasco ended up splitting us apart, and with Celestia retired, I'd say that it'd be pretty neat to continue the tradition she started of taking on personal students." "You mean the tradition you made up for Celestia," Twilight snorted, faking a glare at her counterpart. Lisa chuckled. "What I'm saying is, Samantha and I have reopened the old classes we ourselves took. You know, the ones that kinda sorta maybe led to Equestria being created?" "Yeah, yeah," Twilight rolled her eyes, smiling. "Continue?" "As I was saying, we have classes of our own now. Quite a few of our students are getting pretty far into the program, too; If I remember correctly, we’ve got a few that are even studying the same curriculum Samantha and I did when we were their age! So, I was thinking, what if we offered some of our own students access to Equestria? We haven't opened up registrations in quite a while according to Professor Argall, so now would be a great time to introduce the next generation to VR! …Heck, who knows? Maybe one day one of 'em might even end up replacing both me and you! It's amazing how fast the younger kids pick up on things these days." "...Three." "Hm?" Lisa cocked her head. "Let's try things out first with only three of your students. I don't want to be overwhelmed, and I'd honestly prefer the same hands-off approach as Celestia when it comes to teaching." Lisa smiled, holding out a hand. "Deal." Elise Fairchild yawned, staring half-awake at the completed worksheet in front of her. "Ellie?" she heard her mom call from the hallway, "Ellie, I almost forgot to tell you something. You know those after-school classes you used to take with some of your friends over at the big tech building near your school?" "...Yeah?" "Did you get the email I forwarded to you about them opening registrations for their virtual reality networks to students?" The girl blinked, squinting at her computer screen. She heard her door open behind her. "You done with homework, honey?" She glanced up, watching her mom set a flyer on her desk. "I printed out the email as well just in case. You think you'd be interested in something like this? I know you look up to the young woman who runs those classes." Elise pulled the flyer closer, reading over it. The title alone certainly caught her attention, being front and center at the top of the page in bold. It seemed like the company that ran these simulations were looking to recruit new members to their team—and recruit them right out of the classroom, at that. Of course, it was only open to the top-performing students. “Are you interested?” The list of perks was also rather interesting—it was pretty well-paying for something that hired directly out of the classroom, and there was even a dedicated amount of leisure time set aside for spending time in the simulations. In fact, this wasn’t only an advertisement for the reopening of registrations, it was one for job openings! “Mom. Did you even read it over yourself before you sent it to me?” Her mom gave a half-nod, shrugging a little at the same time. “I skimmed over it, though I wanted you to take a look at it first.” “Th-this…” she stuttered, pulling the flyer closer, “They’re offering me a job.” “Really now.” Elise handed back the flyer. “Mom,” she continued, “They’re hiring new interns from the classes they held. They want people like me to come back in and work for them. Do… do you think I should try applying?” Her mom smiled, pushing her daughter’s hand away. “As long as you can manage the work, Ellie. If you think you can balance your homework with a job, then go right ahead.” She stood for a few more moments beside Elise, reading over the flyer herself before turning away. “I’ll be downstairs if you need anything. Take some time to decide whether or not you want to apply for the job.” Elise stood at the entrance of TechSIG headquarters, the flyer printout still in hand. For all intents and purposes, the name of the company seemed to stick out like a sore thumb to her. It sounded too… corporate for what they did. She stared upward at the glass-wrapped levels that towered above her. Now wasn’t the time to worry about little things like the name of a company. “Hello there!” The doors in front of her opened. Another girl around her age stepped out, waving. She was also holding a mug of some sort, but that was beside the point. “I’m Zoey Ascher, intern and front-desk girl,” she grinned, holding out her hand to Elise. “Are you here for the job application?” Elise tensed up, nodding as she clutched the flyer tighter. “Great!” Zoey cheered, grabbing Elise by the hand. “C’mon then, follow me. I think you might actually be the first person to come today, in fact. Though, that’s probably ‘cause it’s Saturday and all, but still!” What was she doing? Everything around her blurred into a rush of shapes and colors. She’d only had a passing interest in the things she learned last summer here, and here she was, applying for a job! Would this be the path she took in life? Was she really even ready yet for any of this? “Just wait here,” Zoey smiled, gesturing to a row of chairs lining the wall. She paused, staring into her mug. “Huh. Out of hot chocolate again. Anyway, either Lisa or Samantha are gonna interview you sometime soon. I gotta get back now to the front desk, so see ya!”