//------------------------------// // How's The Weather? // Story: Worlds Apart // by Goldfur //------------------------------// The time for the first official visit to Equestria by humans finally came. Prince Mark wanted to ensure that relations were firmly established with Earth before they opened up Equus to visitors. He instructed Smolder to use the excuse of a quarantine period to ensure that no virulent disease or deadly contamination might be brought back to their world. When asked about the reverse situation, Smolder explained that their interdimensional exploration protocols prevented that from happening. In reality, it was a two-way street, but they did not mention that fact. Now though, the Australian Prime Minister; his Ministers for Foreign Affairs, Ms. Wright; and Trade & Tourism, Mr. Carter; their assistants; and a small cadre of select journalists were about to embark on their history-making visit. They gathered at the Canberra embassy and a pair of green-jacketed ponies escorted them deeper into the building. Every delegate had to pass through an extra layer of security before arriving in the portal room. Once inside, they saw one wall covered in metal polished to nearly a mirror surface. On all sides, the metal was framed by an impressive array of cables, blinking lights, and mysterious boxes encasing unknown devices emblazoned with model numbers and strange names such as “Trans-Linear Stabilizer, Type 2” and “Hyper-Void Inverter”. However, it was all for show. The Equestrians had no intention of letting anyone from Earth know that setting up a major interdimensional portal was as simple as enchanting a mirrored surface. This portal was designed for multiple destinations, so it did have a few extras added to it, not to mention another layer of security. At a nod from Smolder, a unicorn behind a transparent barrier activated the gateway. Lights flashed and the surface of the metal shimmered, then the dragoness addressed the group. “To pass into Equestria, simply step through it as if the wall isn’t there. You will feel something strange as you pass through the interstice between dimensions, but I assure you that it is harmless. Lieutenant Gallus will now demonstrate how easy this is.” The griffon took his cue and walked into the wall without hesitation. There were murmurs of amazement from the watchers before Smolder spoke up again. “You may pass through when ready. You do not need to go one at a time. I only ask that you move away from the portal as soon as you pass through to allow others to follow.” The Prime Minister nodded in understanding and he and his ministers had the honor of being the first humans to travel to another world… as far as they knew. Despite a little uneasiness about bashing his face into a wall, Anthony Gillard met no resistance and stepped into a brightly lit and airy structure. He was not sure what to expect, but an opulent garden was not it. He had the presence of mind to step away from the portal before pausing to take in his surroundings. He realized he had emerged inside a pergola where a gateway had been set up with unobstructed views of trees, shrubs, and tens of thousands of flowers. Most breathtaking of all was the magnificent castle in the background. He was so bedazzled by the striking colors and heady perfume that he almost missed the three alicorns who were waiting to greet him as well as the honor guard assembled behind them. Princess Trixie refrained from smirking at the gawking visitors as the rest of the group emerged. When they were all present, she spoke up. “On behalf of my fellow Triarchs, Trixie welcomes you to Canterlot, capital of Equestria. We hope that you enjoy your visit to our fair city. We have much to show you of our beautiful world.” Anthony Gillard stepped forward, gave the Triarchs a short bow, and shook Trixie’s hoof before replying. “My colleagues and I are honored to be here. I can safely say that Equestria has already exceeded my expectations. I look forward to seeing more.” The two ministers also approached and exchanged bows and hoofshakes. Princess Twilight Sparkle spoke up. “We have arranged a short tour before luncheon. We will be happy to answer any questions about anything you see along the way.” Prince Mark Wells added, “Please leave business until after we dine at the castle. Right now, you are friends paying us a visit, and we can’t wait to have you start enjoying your stay. Please follow me.” The alicorns refrained from chatting to allow their guests to take in the sights. However, they readily responded to questions. “Do these gardens belong to the castle?” Gillard asked. “Yes, they do,” Twilight replied. “However, 90% of them are open to the public most days. They’re only closed or restricted access for special events. Because we did not want you to be mobbed by curious ponies, we’ve closed the gates until lunchtime today. Otherwise, the citizens are free to enjoy them as much as we do.” Ms. Wright said, “We seem to be right up against a mountain on the left, but I see no sign of anything beyond the gardens on the right.” Mark responded, “Have you seen any photographs of Canterlot? The city is located on the side of the mountain. Most other structures are lower than the castle. You’ll see for yourself when we reach the garden wall.” It took several more minutes of unhurried strolling to reach that wall. The humans let out gasps of amazement, looking beyond the city’s rooftops and outer wall to a huge valley bounded by distant mountain ranges. The alicorns let them take as much time as they wanted, pointing out several landmarks to the curious. Mr. Carter looked up and an eyebrow lifted. “Those clouds are behaving rather strangely. Are there odd wind currents in this location?” Twilight shook her head. “That’s just the Canterlot weather team moving rainclouds into position for tonight’s scheduled showers.” That drew incredulous stares from all the visitors. “Scheduled showers?” “Weather team?” “Moving clouds?” “Oh, yes. We have a fine team of pegasi here in Canterlot. They made sure that your visit today would be pleasantly warm and sunny.” “Are you seriously saying that they control the weather?” Gillard asked. “Well, not just them, but yes. There are teams throughout Equestria that are coordinated by the Cloudsdale Weather Factory. Farmers get well-timed rain and sun, outdoor event organizers get guaranteed good weather, and citizens plan around inclement conditions.” “Do you have any idea how invaluable that would be to our country, let alone the rest of the world? Australia is constantly wracked by drought, cyclones, fires, and floods. They cause untold damage and misery. If we could control the weather—” “I’m going to stop you right there,” Prince Mark interjected, holding up a hoof. “I fully understand your problems, but you do not comprehend the magnitude of what you would inevitably ask of us. As Princess Twilight mentioned, there are weather teams located throughout Equestria. It’s only by working in coordination that they can so precisely control the local conditions. A single team in just one location would be hard-pressed to disperse storm clouds or provide reliable rainfall. As your meteorologists can tell you, weather is extremely difficult to predict because of the sheer number of variables. The teams located on the border of our sphere of influence have a harder time controlling the local climate because they are affected by the untamed weather outside of Equestria’s area of effect. There are literally tens of thousands of pegasi working in weather teams and, since the growth of the empire, there has been a constant need to recruit more.” Mark sighed. “I’m sorry, Mr. Gillard, but at best, we could only possibly supply an emergency response team to mitigate a disaster. We simply do not have the resources to give you control over your weather.” The Prime Minister shook his head. “No, I understand. It was wishful thinking on my part. However, the possibility of an emergency team bears following up.” “Of course, but that can be discussed with other business after the luncheon,” Mark replied. “And Trixie is dying to show off our magnificent city,” the blue alicorn said to get the visit back on track. “We have carriages waiting to take you on a tour of Canterlot.” The humans did not expect to see ponies hitched up to the carriages that normally conveyed other ponies around, but the lack of any obvious automation presumably necessitated it. As the delegation was taken through the streets, waving to the excited ponies, changelings, griffons, and other citizens, Gillard could not help but wonder what they did for small talk when the day’s weather was off the table. # # # # # # # # #