//------------------------------// // Correspondance // Story: Shadowed Past, Twilit Future // by Tatsurou //------------------------------// 8. Correspondance It had been a couple of months since Twilight's first attempt to communicate with her friends from a distance. While the method was sound - she was able to make contact - she wasn't able to cope with the flood of thought and sensation she received when her mind made contact with the others through their hearts. As such, she hadn't tried again. However, she still wanted to make contact, and - as Shadow could only send a letter through Chaos Control if he knew exactly where to send it - so today she would make another attempt. After studying with Celestia and Luna regarding the nature of alicorn magic, she'd learned quite a few things. First off, alicorns weren't inherently more powerful than unicorns. In point of fact, when Celestia had commented on Twilight's raw magical potential at her enterance exam all those years ago, it was because - in pure raw magic - she was stronger than the princess. However, an alicorn was a blend of Earth Pony, Pegasus, and Unicorn, which tied them to Earth, Sky, and Magic directly, allowing them to work their spells on the very fabric of the world, weaving them into the natural magical fields. This meant an alicorn spell could operate much more directly than a unicorn spell, and used less magic to achieve the same effect. Another thing was that an Alicorn's magic was tied into her talent much mroe strongly than an ordinary unicorns. Celestia's talent was raising the sun. This meant that she was at her strongest when the sun was brightest. It also meant that she could draw power from the sun itself to strengthen her magic at need, although this caused her to take on the sun's fiery nature, as flames would actually spread from her body while she did so. She could also place herself within the sun to reenergize if she used up too much magic. Luna's power drew from the moon in much the same way, being at her strongest when the moon is high. In point of fact, the reason Celestia had sealed Nightmare Moon in the Moon was to anchor one of her own spells to it, allowing her to tap Luna's power to raise the moon during her thousand year imprisonment. Then there was Cadence. She was, potentialy, the strongest alicorn, since her talent was love. She could actually draw power from the bonds of love ponies shared with one another. However, she was reluctant to do this if she could help it, as doing so weakened those bonds in the long run, taking the magic out of them. This was why she often used her magic to strengthen the love between ponies whose relationships had begun to fray, as often it was because she had been forced to draw from their bond in an emergency. She could, however, draw power directly from the crystal heart - now that it had been recovered - without such side effects. Twilight's own alicorn nature had been harder to isolate, but with help from Celestia, Luna, and Shadow, she had finally cracked the secret. For some reason, her magic was strongest in times of twilight, such as those times between sunset and moon rise, or moon set and sunrise. This had caused a few knowing remarks and chuckles with her mentor. However, she had discovered something else even more interesting; at a time that wasn't in twilight, she could boost her power by standing in shadows or refracted light. Also, given that her special talent was magic, she could also draw power from the very magical fabric of the world...although she had been cautioned against this as - like Cadence and love - this might cause long term weakness. However, she was strongest in areas of high magic concentration. Also, since Friendship IS Magic, she could also borrow magical power from those with whom she shared a very strong bond, such as Celestia, Luna, and Shadow. They had actually practiced that a few times, and Luna had commented that Twilight was able to do with permission and a thought what most mages needed a complex ritual to accomplish. Given all of this, Twilight had decided to try to make contact with her friends again, only this time in a place and at a time where her magic was at its strongest, as was her link to her friends. This was why, just as the moon was beginning to set, she entered the hall of the Royal Vault, where the Elements were kept. She noticed that new stained glass windows had been added, six of them. At first, Twilight couldn't tell why, but when she saw the first one, she couldn't help but chuckle. It was an image of herself and Shadow, he as a unicorn and she as an alicorn, standing facing each other, horn to horn. The other five were similarly decorated, showing each of Twilight's friends with someone they shared a close bond with, although not all of them made ready sense to her at the moment. She found herself standing before the window that displayed Rarity, tilting her head up to look into the eyes of a purple and green dragon, who stood next to her and had bent his head upside down on his neck to gaze upward into her eyes despite being taller than her. Twilight couldn't help but giggle. "Spike would totally do that," she said as she settled down, gazing at the window, seeking Rarity in her heart. ------------- At first, all Twilight was able to sense was a gentle rocking motion, a deep quiet, and a general sense of contentment. She let out an inward sigh of relief. At least they weren't going at it again. She didn't really want to accidentally eavesdrop on another of THOSE sessions. "Rarity?" she called out, finding it simpler to speak as though she were talking aloud, even if she wasn't. There was a strange echo to Rarity's response to Twilight's call. "Spikey-wikey, Twilight's at the door. Be a dear and open it." Twilight didn't hear anything else, so she called again. "Rarity, I'm not at the door. I'm speaking from your heart." Again, the response echoed. "Oh, did a shrinking spell go awry?" Twilight realized that Rarity was half asleep, and the echo was because she was speaking aloud. "Rarity, I'm not inside your body. I'm in Canterlot." "Z-wah...?" "Rarity, I'm speaking to you with magic, a sort of emotional telepathy." "Oh, that makes sense." The echo was gone now that Rarity wasn't speaking aloud, although she still sounded half asleep. "Twilight, why'd you contact me so early?" "Sorry, Rarity," Twilight apologized. "Last time I tried to contact you like this, I was...overwhelmed by sensory input. I've...got things set up so I can boost my magic just now. Figured that would make the contact go smoother." Twilight told herself virtuously that this wasn't a lie. She...didn't really want to explain her being an alicorn when Rarity was half asleep, that was all. "Oh, I see." Twilight could feel Rarity's smile. "Well, it's good to hear from you, darling. Spike will be overjoyed, for certain. How are things with you, anyway?" "Well, I miss all of you, that's for certain. Any chance you'll be back in Ponyville soon?" Twilight decided she would wait to tell her friends about being an alicorn until she could tell them all in person, simultaneously. That was the right way to go about it, after all. "Oh, uh...that might be a problem," Rarity responded. Twilight felt a brief sea breeze through their conection. "Rarity, are you on a boat?" "Umm...yes?" "Why are you on a boat?" "It...wasn't intentional." Twilight felt her eyes flatten. "Explain." Rarity was obviously embarrassed. "Well, we were in the port city of New Mareans, walking along the docks, and...well..." "You and Spike decided you needed somewhere quiet and private to get frisky?" "Now, i wouldn't put it like that, dear-" "I would. That's when I tried to contact you last." Twilight could feel her embarrasment rise. "There are things I didn't need to know about my little brother, thank you very much." "Oh my." Rarity was also embarrassed. "I...see what you mean about being...overwhelmed. I admit, I didn't have much room for thought in my head when he-" "AHEM." "Oh, right." Rarity cleared her metaphorical throat. "Anyway, come morning, we discovered that our choice of...resting place was in the cargo being loaded onto a...ship, that won't be returning to Equestria for quite some time, I'm afraid." "Oh dear." Twilight thought for a time. "Will you to be alright?" "I'll be just fine, darling. I'm more worried about Spikey-wikey. The poor dear. With his new bulk, he gets sea sick, and he hasn't grown any wings, so no help there at all." "Well, I'm sure you'll take care of each other. I'll try to keep in touch." "Oh but darling, we've only talked about ME! I want to hear about you." "Well...you remember Shadow?" "The black and red hedgehog? Friend of Sonic's?" "Yeah, well, he came to Equestria and is a unicorn now..." "Did he ask you out?" Twilight blinked. "Where did you get that idea?" "Oh please, Twilight, I saw the way he looked at you while we were in Mobius, and the way dear Spikey-wikey got so territorial. So, are you two dating or what?" Twilight could feel herself blushing. "Well, we are together-" She winced as Rarity sqealed in happiness. "-and have been since Hearts and Hooves Day. Although...I admit we may have moved a bit...fast." Rarity gasped. "Oh, darling! Did you...give yourself to him?" Twilight was blushing very bright, and wishing she could nod in thought form. "Yeah." "Oh my goodness! TELL! ME! EVERYTHING! All the juicy little details! Was he gentle? Rough? Fierce? Animal? Tell me he was WILD!" Twilight laughed. "Well, I could show you," she teased. "After all, I did see a bit of you and Spike..." "Not neccessarry," Rarity replied quickly. "Words will suffice." She was obviously blushing. "Well..." Twilight couldn't help but feel mischevious. "There's a reason they call him the Ultimate Lifeform...and that's all I'm gonna say." "Oh, you're making me so curious!" Rarity paused. "But I'll get more details later. The strain of mantaining this spell is surely getting to you, and you should rest. Besides, you'll probably be trying this same spell to contact everyone else, too, right?" In truth, mantaining the spell was almost no effort, but the thought of talking to everyone else was an excellent bait. "Thanks for understanding, Rarity. I'll call you soon." "Call?" "It's a term from Mobius, since this is kind of like using a telephone." "Ah. Well, yes then, call me." -------------- Twilight stood up in her own body again, smiling happily. It had been good to talk to Rarity, so she decided she would take her advice and contact everyone else as well. Walking down the hall, as she gazed at the sun - which showed it was the second hour of daylight - she reached the next picture. This one portrayed Fluttershy, smiling beatifically down at her, with the one she knew as Dr. Eggman standing behind her, one hand on Fluttershy's shoulder. Setting herself down, she opened her heart to the gentle mare who was a pillar of her life. ------------- "No, I know what they are saying, but when the charter was drafted, I made it clear: equality to everyone, and kindness to animals. I don't care if it's a part of their culture, it sickens me to see the poor dear treated like that by the matadore." Fluttershy's voice echoed. She was obviously speaking aloud. "...this is your final decision, Your Holiness?" This was someone adressing her, calling her...Your Holiness? "It was my final decision when the World Charter was drafted." World Charter? "Now, leave us. We desire time alone with our thoughts." "Yes, Your Majesty!" This was several voices said in unison, and there was the sound of armored feet against tiled ground. When silence fell, Twilight spoke up, as it were. "Your Holiness?" she asked incredulously. "I know, I know," Fluttershy responded aloud. "I don't know which is worse, Twilight, that or Your Majesty- Twilight? Are you there?" "Just think silently, Fluttershy. I'm not there in body, just in your mind and heart." She felt Fluttershy sigh, and her thought responded. "It is really you, right Twilight? I'm not just hearing voices because the strain of holding the reigns of power is starting to make me crack?" "It's really me, Fluttershy. You're not crazy. That's Pinkie Pie's job." Fluttershy groaned. "Don't remind me. With the experiments she and Tails have been getting up to, I begin to think she's somehow related to Discord. ...don't tell ehr I thought that, please. I love her dearly, and would never-" "She'd probably take that as a compliment, you realise. And you're not the only one who thinks that." As Fluttershy settled down, she continued. "So...your majesty?" "Oh, that. Well, you see...remember how my letter said I could help fix the things that were wrong in Mobius?" "Yeah?" "Well...I kinda did that by becoming the supreme political and spiritual figure of the world...accidentally." Twilight blinked. "You're the Celestia of Mobius?" "Something like that? I don't know how it happened, Twilight! One day I'm just stopping by to visit Ivo, and pause to lecture a few bullies. Three months later, I rule the entire planet!" "Well, I'm not worried, Fluttershy. If there's anyone I'd trust with caring for the physcial and emotional well being of an entire planet, it would certainly be you, Fluttershy." FLuttershy was both pleased and embarrassed by the praise. "I think it's more your talent, Twilight." "Well, I have been helping Celestia and Luna in Canterlot." "Oh, how wonderful! Are you and Shadow a couple yet? I know he went to Equestria and planned to stop at Canterlot-" "How- never mind. Rarity predicted it too, so why should I be surprised you know? And yes, we are together." "Oh, how wonderful!" "Speaking of couples," Twilight replied innocently, "how's Ivo? Has he been a good boy?" "EEP!" ----------------- Twilight snapped back to herself. She blinked a few times. Then she smiled. "Ruler of an entire planet...and she still faints from embarrasment. Only Fluttershy." As she stood up, she chuckled. "I somehow find that reassuring." She saw it was now midday. The way the light shown in through the stained glass windows directed her to the next one, which showed...five Pinkie Pies bouncing aroudn a very confused looking two tailed fox. Twilight chuckled and winced as she sat down before it. "I hope this will be easier than last time, she mumbled as she sought her laughing friend. -------------- As she reached out, she felt the chaos of Pinkie's thoughts...go silent. Then she ehard Pinkie's voice. "Chimicherrychanga. Chimicherrychanga. Chimicherrychanga. Chimicherrychanga. Chimicherrychanga. Chimicherrychanga. Chimicherrychanga. Chimicherrychanga. Chimicherry-" "Pinkie?" Twilight asked, confused. "There you are Twilight!" Pinkie said happily, and Twilight could feel her bouncing. "Ring ring ring ring ring! It's Magi-phone! Ring ring ring ring ring! It's Magi-phone!" She stopped bouncing. "I'm glad you could call again. Sorry we couldn't talk last time, but you pulled away so fast." "Yeah." Twilight paused. "You knew I'd called?" "Yep! Figured my thoughts were a bit too chaotic and left you kinda frazzled when you called last time, so when I felt you approach again, I cleared my thoughts and focused on a mantra. THought it would make it easier for you to make contact! Did it work? Huh? Huh? Huh?" Twilight laughed. "Pinkie, you really amaze me sometimes." "Only sometimes? What about the rest of the time?" Twilight grinned. "That's when you leave me speechless or make me laugh...or make me want to hug you." "That's GREAT!" Pinkie was bouncing again. Then she stopped. Her voice echoed. "Just a minute, fuzzybutt! I'm on the magi-phone, talkin to Twilight!" The echo ended. "Sorry about the echo, Twilight. Just talking to Tails." "...Fuzzybutt?" "Well, he calls me Bubblegum! Isn't it sweet how we have nicknames for each other already? When he finally matures and gets the guts to ask me out, we're gonna make the BEST couple! Course, not as good as the couple you and Shadow make." "Wah- How did you know Shadow and I are a couple?" "Puh-leez! The world bridge becomes unstable due to a massive surge of magic and chaos in Equestria, on Hearts and Hooves Day. You think I don't know it was you two havin your first time? Must have been one for the record books, right? But SOOO romantic?" Twilight was blushing to the roots of her tail. "P-pinkie!" "It's alright, Twilight. You don't have to say anymore...as long as you tell me you used some form of protection!" "I did. I had a charm-" "Ah ah ah! That's all I need to know. Whoops, gotta run! Looks like Tails was calling me because the modifications we made to the reactor are making it go critical! Talk to ya laterz!" ---------------- Twilight sat back in her own body, dreadfully embarrassed. "We shut down the world bridge?" she asked, shocked. "I hope we didn't inconvenience anyone too much." Getting up, she walked towards the fourth window. As it was the second hour before sunset, she found herself before a window that portrayed Applejack...but who was the purple and white wolf like Mobian at her side? "Given what the other windows show," Twilight said to herself, "it's probably her boyfriend." She used the Mobian term, as it felt more accurate. Closing her eyes, she opened herself to her old friend. --------------- Twilight felt Applejack's relaxation and contentment. Deciding this was better then what she'd picked up last time, Twilight made her thoughts audible. "Applejack?" There was a long pause. "Now let's see here...that voice didn't come in mah ears, but I still heard it. Either I'm going crazy, or you're using magic. Since Pinkie Pie ain't here, I reckon it's the latter." Twilight giggled. "Yep. Magic." "Well that's nice. But if ya knew this spell, what took ya so long to come callin?" Twilight shrugged. "Mastering it." "Makes sense. Don't wanna accidentally mess something up or hear something you don't wanna." "Yeah...Anyway, how have you been, Applejack?" "Mighty fine, thank ya kindly. Though i'm kinda stranded here in Mobius till they fix the world bridge." Twilight winced. "Applejack, I'm sorry!" "What in tarnation are you sorry for, Twi? It's not like you broke the world bridge." Twilight whimpered. "Not intentionally..." "...boy howdy. How'd ya do it, Twi?" A cold, refreshing sensation passed through the link. Unfortunately, it wasn't until after she next spoke that she realized Applejack was taking a drink. "I slept with Shadow." There was a long time of silence and the sensation of spasmed coughs. "Twi, don't spring stuff like that on me when ah'm drinkin. It's a waste o good juice." "Sorry." Applejack got a hold of herself. "Well, it's good to hear that you two are a couple. Knew it would happen sooner or later." She paused. "You...are a couple, ain'tcha?" "APPLEJACK!" "Just checkin, sugarcube. Just checkin." Twilight managed to get a hold of her embarrasment. "So, are you alright there in Mobius?" "I'm alright. It wasn't too much inconvenience. Ah'm sure they'll have the bridge fixed in two shakes of a cat's whiskers. In the meantime, since the lease on mah shop ran out, Fang's been puttin me up till it's fixed." "Fang?" "A nice feller I met here. Retired mercenary/assassin. Full name o' Fang the Sniper." "Is he part wolf?" "Wolf/weasel hybrid. ...how'd you know?" Twilight blushed. "This isn't the first time I've tried to contact you with this spell. Last time, you were...busy. I smelled wolf musk." "Busy? Whaddaya mean...oh." Applejack was obviously blushing. "So, it was three days back?" "No, it was-" "Last week?" "No-" "The week before?" "...two months ago." "...oh. The first time." Twilight blinked. "So...are you two a couple?" "Sure seems that way. We're both kinda laid back, so we don't do too much fancy schmancy stuff." "Well, I'm glad you two are happy. I'll try to talk to you soon." "Be glad to hear from ya." There was a pause, and a subtle change in Applejack's thoughts. "I'm gonna ahve to let you go, sugarcube. Gonna...get busy." ------------- Twilight smiled to herself. "Well, good to hear Applejack's happy." She looked up at the window. "So that's Fang, huh? Hope she told him she's in heat." Twilight had recognized the change in Applejack's thoughts. Then she paused. "Hope she knows she's in heat. It only comes twice a year in Equestria, but it's a monthly thing for Mobians." She shook herself off. "Applejack's a smart Earth Pony. I'm sure she knows what's going on, and is using protection...or not, as she chooses." Standing up, she walked to the last window as the last rays of the setting sun dissappeared behind the hilltops. This window showed Sonic and Rainbow Dash, hand in hand, trailing the light of the Rainboom as they shot into the sky, surrounded by an aurora borealis. Focusing her magic, Twilight reached as far as she could, trying to make contact with her brash friend. ------------ Just as she reached the outermost edges of her magic, she felt Rainbow latch onto her. "Twilight?" "Rainbow! It's so good to hear from you!" If she could, she would have hugged her. "You're so far away! Where are you?" "Certainly not a hole in the ground!" she said jokingly. "At least, that's what the natives claim about this hidden forest zone. Sorry I haven't written or anything, but it's kinda hard to get anything out of this world, and we've been kinda busy." "What do you mean? Tell me!" Rainbow took a deep breath. "Well, as I understand it, this world is surrounded by a unusually wide dimensional rift called the void. Apparently, the king is stuck inside it or something. Anyway, the local villain has pretty much taken over the world, and the last crew of resistance is starting to falter, since their main hero got captured and turned into a mindless killing machine. Anyway, Sonic and I are gonna try and help set this world to rights. In return, the local Princess has agreed to help us try and get home once she's reclaimed her throne. ...she's kinda in a bad way, since the hero who got mechanized was her boyfriend." "Oh no. That's awful." Twilight sent what energy she could through to try and give Rainbow comfort. "Will you two be okay?" "You kidding? This adventure's gonna be AWESOME! Besides, the adrenaline rush of smashing a whole bunch of robots gets Sonic really...excited." Twilight laughed. "So, you and Sonic are...?" "Nah, we just make out. I'm pretty firm on that. Protection's kinda hard to come by here, and I don't want to have my foals out of wedlock, ya know? Just wouldn't seem right." Twilight chuckled. "Well, that's certainly your decision." "So, anypony special in your life, Twilight?" Rainbow's question was somewhat suggestive. Twilight sighed. "Did EVERYPONY see me and Shadow as a couple before we did?" "Shadow?" Rainbow asked shocked. "No way!" "Rainbow?" "I owe Sonic 50 bits!" Twilight sighed. "Sonic saw it coming and you didn't?" "Nah. We both saw it coming. I just bet it would take a full blown intervention from all of us to get you two together." Twilight laughed. "Nah, just living under the same roof for six months." Rainbow laughed. "So I take it-" There was a howling roar as Twilight lost contact with Rainbow Dash and her mind breifly slipped into the void. --------------- Twilight shuddered as she pulled back into herself. "That was...unpleasant." Turning, she went to find Shadow, to tell him of her success in contacting her friends. Meanwhile, Celestia finished reading a response to a recent letter. "Dearest Celestia, It's so good to hear from you. Shining Armor and I are doing well in the Crystal Kingdom, thank you for asking. It's good to hear that things are going well there as well. It is wonderful to hear that Twilight Sparkle has found her special somepony! I am overjoyed for her, and wish that I could be there with you all. Shining does as well, so he can give his required 'Hurt my little sister and die' speech. He's been practicing it in front of a mirror to make sure it will be just the right amount of intimidating to make this 'Shadow' behave himself without scaring him off. *giggle* We are both so sorry to hear that Twilight is going through a difficult time right now and can't travel at the moment. We would both of course rush to her side immediately, but...I'm afraid I can't travel just now either. I have wonderful news. I'm foaling! Isn't it wonderful? Shining has been over Luna's moon about it, he's so proud. It's a pity there's been such a hard time getting mail through, or he'd have written Twilight already, as would I. Perhaps telling Twilight of this might help her through this difficult time? I'm afraid the foal isn't due until the end of the year, and given the distance and climates involved, the doctor's recommend he - or she - shouldn't make the journey until he - or she - is at least five for safety and health, and neither of us would dream of travelling that far without our first foal. Write me soon, please. Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, Cadence." Celestia stared at the letter for a time. While it was wonderful news, and would probably have cleansed nearly any other emotional problem of Twilight's, sending her running all the way to the Crystal Kingdom to see her incipient niece or nephew... After Twilight had tried to cut off her wings, Celestia had written to Cadence, hoping Twilight's old foalsitter could help her through the last emotional hurdles of immortality, and her brother's presence might sooth her...although she had been vague regarding the nature of Twilight's need, as she didn't want Shining Armor to start spreading the word in the Crystal Kingdom before talking to Twilight in person. Now, Celestia raised her quill to write the most difficult letter she would ever write. "My Dearest Cadence, The instructions I am about to give you will not make sense, but for teh sake of Twilight's physical and emotional well being, I must ask you to trust me in this. Do not, under any circumstances, inform Twilight of your forthcoming child until you are able to tell her face to face. If she finds out before you can speak in person, I fear her inflicting on herself an irrevocable emotional wound, and though I fear the pain she will go through, I could not bear her to lose what she might unthinkingly give up. Please do not ask me to go into any further details in a letter. As per Twilight's request, I have not disclosed the nature of her current issue to anypony, in person or otherwise. For her sake, I must ask you to trust me. Your dear friend, Princess Celestia Indara Solaris Celestia." With the letter finished, she sent it, wrapped in scarlet ribbon so Cadence would know how serious she was. With that finished, she placed her face in her wings and wept for the burden of ruling. The burden of knowing true magic. The burden of the alicorn. The geis of having to use others...even those you loved above all else.