Chapter three: Answers... Sort of
The Administrator cleared her throat, a tiny noise of no importance that I wouldn't have noticed had it not been for the fact that my attention was focused on every. Single. Sound.
"So what about sector G?" asked Celestia after a couple of seconds of deafening silence. The Admin stood there, like a deer caught in the headlights, her blue eyes open wide. Her body was tense, as if she was waiting for something.
"Such things... Are better seen than heard," the Administrator said. "If you're done here, I can take you there...?"
What.
They were going to sector G? Actually taking a guest to sector G?! The only ponies I had ever seen in sector G were, well, nopony actually. I'd never seen anypony inside it, because I'd never seen inside it. Sector G was the most heavily protected and dangerous place I'd ever heard of. The only pony I'd ever seen go in or out of that place was the Administrator herself, and even then it was rare.
G was not protected by any conventional means I'd heard of. Guards can be tricked, keys can be stolen, computers can be hacked, magic can be dispelled. So instead they had settled on a deadly combination of all four.
There were guards on the outside of the sector, of course. Just the average two on either side of the door. They were four of the best, the smartest too, so it would be a very hard task to fight or trick them. I know I couldn't do it.
There was also the most ingenious key. Upon entry, a pony's DNA was scanned automatically. If the DNA consisted of more than 5% of that of an unauthorised ponies', they were either incinerated or just thrown out, depending on which story you believed.
The computor system, the one that scanned the DNA, was the most state-of-the-art, well-protected, and constantly monitored system that existed. Any disruption, any disturbance, no matter how slight, and it could send the entire place into lockdown in under a minute.
If all that wasn't enough, there was also a field of magic pulsing around the entire setup, protecting and enforcing it. Any attempt to dispell the magic resulted in - ah - explosive consequences, which also also sent everything into lockdown.
The security made it clear why I had never been inside, but there was more to it than that. My teacher, Auburn Blaze, had no problems with me annoying the staff and running around the rest of the facility, as long as I did no proper damage, but sector G was the one place she had expressly forbidden me from visiting. Sigh.
Life mission: Sometime before I inherit Sparkle Inc, break into sector G, find out what all the mystery is about, then get back out alive without leaving a single trace.
I was in for one hell of a ride.
But back to the present.
"I'd love to see it," said Celestia.
"Then please come this way," said the Admin, turning left at an intersection and leading the way down another dark, smooth corridor.
I followed, almost too excited to breathe. Somewhere along the way, the Administrator dismissed the rest of the group. They broke off and went back to their regular jobs. I was breathless with excitement - it looked like we really were headed to sector G.
I jittered as I went, the anticipation was killing me! I was nearly having a panic attack, for goodness sakes, I'd been trying to get into that place for a little over four years!
Finally, finally, we got there. The Admin said to Celestia: "I'll just add you to the DNA scanners. May I have one of your hairs, please?" Celestia pulled a single, long hair out of her royal mane and handed it to the Administrator.
"If you'd be so kind as to wait here?" the Admin asked, then went past the guards and entered the first set of doors. They closed behind her before the second opened. Auburn said there were twelve doors in total, one of which was painted bright pink. I didn't believe her. I bet there were only two.
After waiting for about sixteen seconds, Celestia started humming a tune, one I didn't recognise. I decided to pop out of the roof again. "What's that song?"
The Princess looked shocked at my sudden appearance, but she regained her composure and said "It's called Rain on the Water. Ever heard of it?"
I shook my head. "I didn't expect you to, it's a very old one," she said. "So what's in the sector?"
I looked at her, the surprise showing on my face. She saw it. "A Princess can indulge in some spoilers too, can't she?"
I grinned, pretending to know what I was talking about. "You'll have to wait and see. Just because you're important, doesn't mean you get everything ahead of time."
"Wise words," she replied.
I saw a crack as the doors to sector G parted, and I darted back into the roof, not wanting the Admin to know I was lurking. "All done," she said, "But we should probably wait a bit, just to make sure it processes properly." I frowned. The processing, from what I'd heard, was instant. This didn't make sense. But I watched as the two mares stood for about twenty seconds, until the Admin nodded.
"That should do it. If you'd care to step this way?" she said, motioning to the door.
I sucked in a breath of conditioned air, calculating how I could possibly get in. There couldn't possibly be enough space between the first door and the second for the two of them, maybe I could....?
They walked, at such a cool, casual pace towards the door I thought I was going to actually die waiting. There it was, the second, the instant before the doors would open. I was poised to leap at nothing in particular. The moment of my life, so close....
Then the fire alarm went off.
...
Fuck.