"Have the body burned at once," the Princess instructed a Royal Guard unicorn. The bag was taken from the throne room to the incinerator. "So much for that little matter." Turning to me, she asked, "So where did Nightmare come from?"
"Your guess is as good as mine, Princess, though she said something about not knowing how she got to my home world. Truthfully, I would have to say that this particular transformation which has happened to me puzzles me deeply."
"Actually, Michael, I had a hoof in it. I continue to be amazed by your resourcefulness, intelligence, and courage. I hope you're pleased with your new body," she said, still smiling.
"It's quite a bit more than I was hoping for, Princess," I said. "How is everypony else doing?"
"Well, you are welcome to visit them if you wish," she said. "You know where they stay. Why not make use of your time to greet them?"
"Princess, I am afraid they might mistake me for you, as my coat nearly matches yours, and the few differences are that I have this little crown on my head, and a slightly different cutie mark, and my mane and tail are monochrome pale blue instead of your polychromatic ones."
"If they do, all you need to do is correct them, Michael. By the way, do you have a name picked out for your new body?"
"I haven't chosen one yet, and was thinking that Solaris might be a good one, but I think that name's already been taken. For now, the name Michael will suffice until I come up with something original. I don't intend to remain an Alicorn for very long as I don't really like this new form very much. It's a bit too much responsibility for me to have this much power."
"I hate to disappoint you, Michael, but there are certain responsibilities I have entrusted you with. When you visited me, I saw within you a great deal of potential -- it would appear my estimate of your abilities was correct. Feel free to visit whomever you wish, but make sure you let them know you're not me."
"I thank you for your confidence in me, Princess." I said and saluted her again. She chuckled at this as I teleported to Ponyville.
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My first stop was almost instinctive -- Twilight Sparkle. I felt compelled to see her again and trotted slowly to her front door, knocking perhaps a bit harder than I should have. Spike answered the door.
"Princess! What brings you here?" he said with great shock and surprise.
"I am not Celestia, my name is Michael, and I am here to meet Twilight Sparkle," I said. I regretted not having met him a week ago when I was in Twilight's body, but I wasn't sure of how he might react.
"Twilight told me about a male human named Michael," he said, "but he was in Twilight's body. You claim to be the same Michael?" he asked, eyeing me suspiciously. Twilight heard my name mentioned, and came running to the front door.
"Michael, is that you?" she asked, perhaps hoping to see her double again. When she saw me, she stopped immediately, mouth agape, eyes wide. "Princess! I didn't know you were coming!"
I chuckled a little at that. "No, Twilight, I am not your Princess. I transformed into an Alicorn that looks much like her. Take a look at my cutie mark and check out the crown I wear."
"Oooh, looks like you got a promotion!" she said, beaming. "How did THAT happen?"
"I ran into the Queen of the Changelings and Nightmare Moon," I said, almost nonchalantly.
She gasped, amazed that I had even survived.
"I killed the Queen whilst in my human form," I said. Her jaw dropped. "In front of my youngest step-daughter and her children," I added.
"How did they react to that?" she asked, still stunned by my feat, and the fact that I was so calm in my explanation.
"I think I may have given them PTSD, I'm afraid," I said. "They were shocked, scared, stunned..."
"Michael, how did you manage to kill the Queen in your human form?" she asked, after the initial shock wore off. I think she was a little too stunned by that.
"She had impersonated the Princess, and was laying in my bed, trying to seduce me. I saw her true form in a mirror, and went through my house trying to locate my step-daughter and her children. They had been sealed in slimy cocoons in the laundry room, so I freed them. The Queen blocked the doorway out, and I grabbed her horn and crown, pulling them off her head. I then grabbed her green shell, ripping it off her back, taking the wings along with it. Then I poured bleach into the exposed innards, causing her to die rather painfully. I still can hear that awful shriek she gave, and I'm sure it will haunt the dreams of my step-daughter and her kids."
"What? She impersonated the Princess?" she asked, showing even more shock.
"Yes."
"Wait -- you said Nightmare Moon, too?" with even more incredulity in her voice.
"Yes. After I had bagged up the Queen's body and put it in the trunk of my car, Nightmare Moon showed up. I put the horn and crown on my head, and a transformation took place that surprised me. I had a chance to use a voice trick on her, but that didn't faze her. So I lowered her moon, and raised the sun, putting it back in it's proper place," I said, in a matter-of-fact manner, until I saw her jaw drop again. I smiled, chuckling softly. "Upon seeing this display of raw power, she got scared and left from in front of my house."
"Michael, I don't believe that! You ... can ... raise ... the sun .. in .. your ... world?" she asked, trying to find other words to say.
"It proved to be remarkably easy to me, as though I had been doing it for many centuries," I said. "The power level I have is ludicrous in this form. This is a great responsibility, one I do not welcome, but am willing to accept."
"Michael, if I become an alicorn, do you suppose I might have such heavy burdens placed on me?" she asked, a little hesitantly.
"Well, Twilight, I believe you are fully capable of handling such responsibilities. I am sure the Princess herself recognizes this quality in you and in due time you will mature enough to be able to deal with those responsibilities as easily as the Princess does. Keep in mind that this means you will have less free time to devote to your hobbies, and probably less time for your friends, but I am sure you will be able to perform admirably. You have a great deal of potential, I can tell you from experience. I was you just a week ago and recognized your sheer talent. You have my thanks once again," I said, smiling warmly at her again.
"When did you become so much like her?" she asked, still astonished. Spike had gone into the kitchen to fix a meal for the two of them, and popped back to ask me if I wanted anything to eat. I told him I would appreciate a nibble, as I was not very hungry, but would graciously accept an offer of food. He disappeared again, back into the kitchen.
"The Princess said she had a hoof in my transformation," I said. "So maybe I took on a little bit of her mannerisms as well. There are many similarities, and again, I am doing my best to live up to my goal as an alicorn to act as responsibly as I can. You have my word that I will be on my best behavior."
"Please come in, there's so much more I want to talk to you about!" she said, beaming.
"I thank you for your hospitality, Twilight." I had to duck under the door-frame as I was now about two feet taller than her. I carefully folded my wings in to fit through the doorway. She commented on my pastel blue mane and tail, which billowed in the solar wind. I thanked her for her compliments.
"The others aren't going to believe THIS is YOU!" she said, grinning. I took a seat on a chair, looking at the bookshelves, with the placement of books seemingly haphazard.
"You know, I used to work in a library about twenty years ago," I said, watching as she telekinetically moved books back onto the shelves. When she heard this, all the books fell to the floor, and she ran over to me, a look of great admiration, surprise, and happiness on her face.
'Really? You're not lying are you? Which library? How many books do they have there? Can you take me there? Can I borrow some of them? Why did you stop working there?" the questions were a barrage again.
"I used to work for the University of Illinois' Main Library, the largest public access library in the country, boasting of more than 13 million volumes. Access to the main stacks is limited to students, staff, and faculty members. I left because I got a job that paid more money, and for that, I apologize."
"THIRTEEN MILLION BOOKS!!" she cried out in happiness.
I chuckled softly at her reaction. "Most of those are periodicals, and many of those books are in a remote storage facility."
"I thought books were for reading?" she asked.
"The University has many collections, some books are extremely rare and valuable. They have had problems with materials being stolen by unscrupulous people who wanted to make money by selling books they stole from the library."
She gasped in horror. "How could somepony do something so terrible?" she asked.
"Sometimes, people are willing to do anything to make a few dollars, even if it means stealing," I said, registering my disappointment on my face. "It is a shame and a disgrace that people would be willing to show such a level of disrespect for an institution of higher learning as to steal materials from it."
"Dinner is served," Spike said proudly. Twilight motioned for me to follow her. There were only two chairs at the table, so I telekinetically moved a chair from the front room to the table where Twilight and Spike were eating. They fixed a plate for me, and I ate, trying to be as graceful as I could.
"Has your wife seen the new you?" Twilight asked.
"No, I drove her to her friend's house earlier today," I said. "I doubt she would believe what I look like, and until her youngest daughter and grand-kids recover from the shock of what happened earlier, I seriously doubt she'd believe what transpired, either. And with Nightmare Moon still at large in my home world, I am going to have to address THAT matter as well."
"Well, maybe you could get us together to use the Elements of Harmony on her in your world?" Twilight asked.
"Hah hah hah hah hah! Such a wonderful idea! I will have to let Princess Celestia know about your idea!" I exclaimed, still laughing heartily at the suggestion. So much brilliance, I thought.