Through the Looking Glass
...Arriving
"I wish to have no Connection with any Ship that does not Sail fast, for I intend to go in harm's way."
-CAPT John Paul Jones
I felt myself falling. Floating, almost, but definitely moving in a downward direction. All I could see was this soft, golden light, and then... She appeared above me. I could feel Her gaze upon me, Her amethyst eyes brimming with compassion. I might've cried, then. She smiled gently, and I could feel Her warmth surround me, Her wings spread wide to shield me, from what I do not know. I could see a shift in the light, a gradual darkening that somehow managed to strike terror into my heart. She began to fade from view, but as the last of the light went out, I felt Her aetheric mane brush against me. “Shhh,” She whispered. “You'll be alright.”
And then, I knew no more.
Twilight frowned in confusion, as she stared at the mirror before her. It was the same one she'd been through all too recently – the same one that linked her world with the mysterious 'human' world where she'd found the counterparts of all of her friends. Since the alignment had been broken, the mirror had returned to its unresponsive state, looking to all the world like just another piece of glassware.
But the newly-crowned Princess knew better. Furthermore, she had the inquisitive mind of a scientist, and so with Princess Celestia's and Princess Cadance's permission, she'd resolved to study it.
Spike coughed. “Uhh, Twilight? Equestria to Twilight?”
She blushed. “Sorry, Spike, I was just thinking for a moment.” A notepad and quill levitated themselves out of her saddlebag and into Spike's claws. “There are so many unanswered questions about this mirror – I hardly know where to begin.”
He shrugged. “Well, what do we know about it?”
Twilight sighed, rubbing the bridge of her nose. “That's just it, Spike – we barely know anything about it. According to Cadance, it's always just sort of been there. No one knows how it works, or when it was made, or even how it found its way to the Crystal Palace. Nothing. The only thing we do know is that somehow it connects to another reality – but how? Why?” She thought for a moment more. “Well, nowhere to start but the beginning. Checklist?”
“Check.”
“Mirror?”
“Check.”
“Thaumeter?”
Spike held up a small glass tube. “Check.”
Twilight rolled her eyes. “Spike, that's a thermometer.”
He flushed red, and held up a small, round device resembling a compass. “Ehehe, check.”
“Thermometer?”
“Check.”
“Thaumic Function Generator?”
“Check.”
“Alright, then. Step one – measure ambient thaumic energy...”
Spike popped his knuckles, and started writing.
Celestia let out a small yawn, as the last of the sun's fiery rays slipped below the horizon. The moon peeked out slowly, as if it were playing hide-and seek, as the stars began to appear. She smiled softly, watching her sister go to work. From her perch on the Solar Tower, she could see the smaller blue alicorn hovering above her own tower, eyes ablaze with the power of Night. It is so good to have her back again. I owe my most faithful student a debt far greater than she realizes. Almost as if her younger sister could hear her thoughts, Luna turned towards Celestia, smiling as the glow in her eyes faded, leaving them their normal cerulean. With a graceful swoop of her wings, the Lunar Princess alighted next to her sister, sharing an affectionate nuzzle. “You can rest, sister. I have the night well in hand.”
Celestia smiled. “Care to join me for dinner – or breakfast, I suppose?”
Luna nodded. Their nightly meal had become a ritual for the two sisters, a way to connect with each other despite the relatively small overlap of their sleep schedules. As they ambled slowly towards their dining room, the blue mare mused on how so much had changed since her return. For the most part she'd acclimated to the new age, and even managed to make a few friends – thanks mostly to her sister's favored student. “Tell me, dear sister, how is thy protegé? I do believe I haven't heard from her since the incident with the mirror...”
Celestia nodded. “She's doing well, and as a matter of fact – she's taken on a new subject to study. It's interesting you should mention the mirror.”
The darker mare chuckled ruefully. “Always the scientist. Mark my words, dear sister – within a century or two, there'll be no mysteries left to solve!”
The two sisters shared a laugh at that. There were still moments of awkwardness between them, at times, but they were happening more and more infrequently as Luna adjusted to Equestria's new age, and Equestria adjusted to the return of its other diarch. The mention of Celestia's 'most faithful student' was also a topic that was never unwelcome, as the lavender mare was quite dear to both of them.
“So, pray tell – what precisely does thy student hope to learn from this new study?” As they reached the dining room, each sat in her appointed place, servants scurrying here and there to prepare a meal. The room was rather small, compared to many other such rooms in the palace, but it suited the two sisters just fine – no need for a mile-long table, when only two were dining.
“You know – I'm not entirely sure, to be honest. That mirror is old, older even than we, and we don't know terribly much about it. More than anything, I believe it's the concept of traveling to another reality that intrigues her. She wants to figure out how it works.”
Luna smiled, as she took a sip of her orange juice – a personal favorite. “I must admit, I'm rather curious myself. 'Tis a pity that no one has been able to, as you say, 'figure it out', until now. Many have tried, to be sure. Then again, it would not be the first time young Twilight has done something entirely new.”
Celestia smiled softly, not bothering to hide her pride in her student. “She is something, isn't she? Given enough time, she may surpass us both.”
Twilight frowned, as she reviewed her measurements from the initial tests. “Huh. So far as I can tell, it's just an ordinary mirror. I mean, I know it's not, but magically... It's like there's nothing here. For such a large power discharge, even after a few weeks, there should be some magical residue, or something... But for all the world, it's like there's no artifact at all in here.” She shook her head. “Time for phase two, then. Got the function generator ready?”
Spike nodded. “Yup. One point twenty-one gigathaums, right?”
“Right. Probes connected?”
The young dragon checked the clips latched onto opposite edges of the mirror. “Check.”
“Power on?”
“Check.”
“Power setting?”
“One point twenty-one gigathaums, check.”
“Waveform?”
“Square, at two-thousand hertz. Check.”
Twilight nodded. The power input might've been considered a bit excessive, but she'd felt more than that when she'd crossed over. It shouldn't damage anything, but just in case... “Protective equipment?”
Spike pulled out what looked like a rubber sleeve, and slipped it over her horn. It wouldn't interfere with her magic, much, but it would prevent feedback from damaging her horn.
“Alright, then. Experiment one – The injection of a signal. Hypothesis: The injection of a signal of sufficient magnitude will cause the mirror to react, possibly even creating a bridge similar to the one observed during the 'human world' incident.” She turned to Spike. “Is everything ready?”
He nodded. “All set.”
“Alright then. Begin signal injection in 3... 2... 1.”
At first, nothing happened – the mirror remained inert, the only indication that something was happening a few sparks from the alligator clips. Gradually, it began to glow, the surface of the mirror shimmering with an eerie golden light. Twilight frowned. Wasn't it silver, before...? Before she could react, the light increased to a blinding intensity, and her world was awash in light.
My consciousness returned to me in bits and pieces, filtering slowly into my awareness until I was fully awake.
I hadn't realized I was asleep.
I could feel myself starting to accelerate, though I couldn't for the life of me tell how, or why. The light was almost gone now, as was any trace of Her. I could feel an empty void inside me, clawing at my... Heart? Yes, that was my heart. I'd forgotten I had one – it's funny, the kind of things you can forget. Something tells me I shouldn't have forgotten that.
I frown. What else have I forgotten? This seems like a very important question, though not as important as -
Oh, dear. I am falling, aren't I? What happens when I reach the bottom of... Wherever this is? Something tells me I don't want to know. I've been falling for a very long time, I think, though it's almost impossible to tell how long in the midst of all this emptiness.
I wish I could see Her again. It's been a while since I've seen another living thing. I think.
I'm not very sure about much, it seems.
Almost as if the thought had summoned Her, I can feel her presence again. I can't see her – I can't see anything, for that matter – but I can feel Her. Suddenly, I realize that I'm not falling – I'm being pulled. The pull starts to intensify, and I can start to see again, a little. More golden light, and in the middle of it all, the... Sun? No, not the sun. It looks like one, though. A shining oval of light – and it's pulling me in. The light gets brighter and brighter, until it almost hurts to look at, then it does hurt to look at... And then I find myself flying face-first into a wall. My last thought, as I fade into unconsciousness...
At least She is here.
Twilight blinked.
Then she rubbed her eyes, and blinked again.
“...What? Just, what?”
Suddenly, inexplicably, there was a human on the floor, slumped against the wall. He appeared to be bleeding. “Well, ponyfeathers.”