//------------------------------// // The Cube // Story: In a Far Away Land // by TheReaderAndWriter //------------------------------// An orange and yellow earth-pony was doing her usual chores on a lovely farm. It was a hot and sunny day as she was busy struggling with her tools in the bright sun. She was sweating and was quite thirsty. For what felt like the hundredth time that day alone, she dug a hole in the ground. Her apple orchard, as it were, was bound to have a fantastic harvest that season and she needed to work to make sure an even greater year followed. The last sapling next to her looked so young and healthy. It was her calling in life to help it grow big and strong, just like all the others. This hole would be the last one of the day. Then after finishing her chores she could spend the afternoon relaxing in the shade. With great force she struck the earth for what she hoped would be the last time. A shock went up her body as she hit something solid. Applejack couldn't help but to feel strange. She was sure whatever she struck should have given off a clang but she could only hear complete silence. "What in tarnation?" asked Applejack. She dug at the ground with her hooves. The moment she uncovered the object, her eyes widened. "Sweet Celestia, what the...?" *** The little purple pony Alicorn put down a heavy book upon the table. Twilight Sparkle leaned back to bask in the sunlight. After hours of enjoying the lovely literature she finally managed to sneak in a bit of relaxation. It was a wonderful day just like any other. There wasn't a single cloud in the bright blue sky. The sun was at its peak. When she had walked out the door that morning, Twilight had expected scorching hot air on such a day, but the pleasant wind managed to cool her just right. Despite not being too fond of the feeling of flight, Twilight couldn't deny that she felt just a little bit of longing. She wanted to feel the wind under her wings. Without even realizing it her wings had spread out wide in an unintentional urge to fly. When she noticed it she rolled her eyes. "Again?" Folding in her wings she looked around the area in embarrassment. The tables around the restaurant were oddly bustling that day. Sighing in complete relief she closed her eyes. Nopony of the dozens of ponies had seen her do it. They were simply too busy enjoying the day. Earth-ponies, pegasi and unicorns were all gathered. Eating, chatting, laughing. "What a wonderful day," Twilight said, smiling. When she opened her eyes she noticed something; a familiar face was walking towards her in the crowd. "Hey, Twilight!" said Spike. The little green and purple dragon was holding a sweet drink, cooling off in the hot sun. "What's up?" "My wings," Twilight said with slight embarrassment. She didn't speak of it to a lot of ponies, barely even her friends, but she could always talk to Spike. Her life had gone through plenty of changes lately, so it was great to have someone who was always willing to listen. He was more than a friend, more than an assistant, he was like her personal diary. He held all of her feelings and he was always there for her, something she needed these days more than anything. "Again?" "Yeah. Couldn't help it. And my leg is tired, I've waved back to so many ponies today it's insane. The mayor, Rose, Derpy Hooves, everpony you can imagine." "That sucks." "Spike!" "What?" "Language!" Immediately covering his mouth with his claw, he avoided her stern eyes. "Sorry, slip of the tongue." "Don't let it happen again... again," said Twilight. They were all growing up, weren't they? She becoming a princess and being introduced to the possibility of so much responsibility, little Spike not being able to help one too many slip-ups. Things were ever-changing just like it was supposed to... for better or for worse. "Good day, Princess," said a brown stallion walking past the table. "Hello, Time Turner," said Twilight. Spike waved. After the pony had passed, the princess turned to the dragon. "I'll never get used to titles. Ever." "Don't be ridiculous, Twilight. Of course you will. I got used to being called Spike the Incredible," said Spike. "What?" "Oh, little inside joke. I figured since you're Princess Twilight, I'm Spike the Incredible," said Spike. Twilight chuckled. "Spike, you've got to earn titles." Spike glared at her with a skeptical look. Twilight couldn't help but to wonder. "What's wrong?" "Twilight, you magically became an Alicorn and a Princess while still being barely an adult. Sure, you're good at magic, and I'm happy for you, but I'm not sure you're the best one to tell me about earning stuff," said Spike. He took a sip of his drink. "Well, um, I-" "Don't worry about it. And you're right. Believe me, one day I will earn a title," said Spike with a determined glint in his eyes. "Hey there, Princess Twilight," said a tall yellow stallion. "Hello, Twilight, Your Highness," said his wife, the blue mare at his side. She couldn't help but to giggle. "Look, little Carrot Cake, Pound Cake, that's your Princess Twilight," she said to their two little foals. "Hello, Mr. and Mrs. Cake." said Twilight. "Oh, Princess, we met Applejack just a few minutes ago. She said she was looking for you. Have you seen her?" asked Mr. Cake. Twilight shook her head. "Can't say that I have." "Well, it sounded a bit urgent," said Mr. Cake. "Speaking of which. Sweetie, we need to get back to Sugarcube Corner with the ingredients. Pinkie Pie's going to run out any minute now," said Mrs. Cake. Before anyone could do anything else a voice could be heard in the crowd. "Twilight! Twi'! yelled out a familiar voice. "Twi', you've got to see this here!" yelled Applejack. Twilight turned her head towards the yelling. Picking out Applejack in the crowd was easy; her hat easily stuck out. The orange and yellow pony was running while holding something in her mouth, or was she? It was strange. Twilight had to look, and then look again, and again and again. Whatever was in Applejack's mouth was without a doubt something otherworldly and it was very strange to watch. As though Twilight's brain was struggling to comprehend it. All she knew was that it was an object. It was fuzzy, difficult to even mentally grasp, like a fog, a static, a mistake. It moved independently of Applejack's movement, yet Twilight's brain was telling her that the object was still in Applejack's grasp. "What is that thing?" asked Twilight. "I don't know, it looks pretty cool though," said Spike. "I think we better just leave, Dear," said Mrs. Cake to her husband. He quickly nodded and they moved, as did many other ponies around them. They knew better than to stay with Twilight Sparkle when the crazy stuff started to happen. And it always did. "What's wrong, Applejack?" asked Twilight as the mare stopped in front of her. "I found this under Sweet Apple Acres. I don't know what it is, but, I think you should take a look at it," said Applejack. "What is it?" "I don't know! It was just lying there in the ground. Do you know what it is?" asked Applejack. When Applejack put it down on the table in front of her, Twilight started to look at it closely. She could get fascinated by even mundane things if she just thought about them hard enough. Something as strange as this was quite easy to get curious about. Twilight gently poked at the object, she could only feel an extremely smooth flat texture. It was neither warm nor cold. "Do you have anything to tell me? Where did you find it?" "Just in a hole I dug up." "And was there anything around it?" "Nothing. Oh, and I haven't dug there since last spring," said Applejack. Twilight glared at the little object. From what she could see, the object was roughly the size of an apple, despite constantly seemingly shifting. Twilight looked away from the object, just looking at it gave her a headache. "Yeah, that happened to me too. Don't worry, it'll pass," said Applejack. "It sort of becomes clearer after a while." "And what does it look like?" asked Spike, starting to poke the phenomenon. "Like a cube, but different," said Applejack. "Fascinating," said Twilight. "Also, stop poking it, Spike." "Ooh! What's that thing?" asked a cheerful voice. Twilight turned around to see Pinkie Pie looking over her head. The purple pony's eyes were larger than normal. "Looks freaky-deaky." "Yes, I'm struggling to even comprehend it. Imagine the possibilities, the discoveries this could lead to," said Twilight. "I doubt this will lead to anything," said Spike. "You never know, Spike. Twilight, be extra careful. I know you like doing experiments and stuff, but this could be pretty dangerous stuff as far as we know," said Applejack. "I assure you, I will follow the strictest scientific protoco- Spike, stop touching it!" said Twilight, pulling away the curious little dragon from the object with a magical pull. A purple aura enveloped him and quickly faded. "I'll just take this back to the library, maybe I can find something in the books about it," said Twilight, focusing her thoughts and energy on the object. The moment the aura appeared around the object, Twilight felt a huge pull in her gut. Energy was flowing into her horn and beyond at an astounding rate. Within seconds, before her friends could even try to help, Twilight felt faint. All the power in the world couldn't have stopped the theft of her magical energy. She tried to get away, she tried to stop, but nothing could help her. The object was starting to solidify. Suddenly Twilight was able to see a square form inside the haze, growing and growing. Depth could be seen within the shape as it grew. Several pillars made from Twilight's energy shot out all around them. An aura forming the shape of a cube passed them all, the translucent walls moving uninterrupted through them. In the blink of an eye, the cage expanded far out into the distance. Finally, it let Twilight go. She fell to the ground where she struggled to stand up. Everything was spinning, but the cube especially. It was turning around, and the rotation sped up constantly. Within a few seconds it was spinning so quickly Twilight couldn't even see the corners. "What the hay is going o-" Then everything went dark. Silence fell.