//------------------------------//
// 58 - Bonds 
// Story: Gladiator 
// by Not_A_Hat 
//------------------------------//

"Or, maybe Glisten sent Rover to toy with us."
 
We were inspecting the trophy for the upcoming game. My gem was there; I could see it.
 
That was all I could do.
 
We were standing in the hallway of Canterlot High. It was school hours, and the halls were quiet. On the wall was a plaque inscribed 'Everfree Northwest Regional Champions!' and inset with a sparkling, vaguely heart-shaped, gem. A space for names stretched below.
 
"You're sure we can't snatch it?"
 
"Positive." Sunset nodded firmly. "We absolutely can't destabilize this. Artifacts aren’t intelligent, but they follow strange and specific rules. When Glisten seized it, your ownership became tenuous. In order to safely transfer ownership, a ceremony is needed. It may have already begun. If we grab it carelessly, we risk interrupting that. It could create a vortex here." She stopped and I shuddered, imagining the havok a searing firestorm would cause in a packed school.
 
"So, winning the tournament would be better?"
 
"Maybe." Sunset frowned. "Honestly, I'm not sure yet. This needs more thought. But whatever goes down, if it happens at least semi-officially, it will be controlled." She tapped the glass case enclosing the plaque. "I hope we control it, whatever that takes. As long as we don’t turn the gems rules against us. Glisten has the upper hand; she knows enough about Sombra’s magic to set this game up as a ceremony. She’s got a plan to win. We can’t let that happen. I have no idea what she plans with the power, but there’s no way it’s good. The energy would be more than enough to send us home, if we can only harness it. I wish I knew more. We need to do some experimenting."
 
"Huh? How so? On what?"
 
"You." Sunset poked my chest with one sharp finger, narrowly avoiding my wound. "You are still a mystery, wrapped in an enigma, surrounded by annoying."
 
"Annoying, huh?" I smirked. "Well, there's a chance we can do something about the other two. Ok, let's have a try. Meet you back at Pinkie's?"
 
"Where are you going?" She crossed her arms and gave me a suspicious glare.
 
"I need to pick up some supplies." I shrugged. "I didn't have a chance earlier."
 
"Hmmph." Sunset frowned, but nodded. She'd dragged me clothes shopping with her in the morning. I'd tried to give her half our money and skip out, but she'd insisted. I'd had no chance to refresh my kit, or buy high-tech stuff to experiment with. "Fine. I'll be at Pinkie's."
 



 
"Greetings."
 
"Hey, Bit." I waved to my assistant. It was wearing slim jeans and a light t-shirt. It had pupils now, and although its skin was still jet, it no longer had the sheen of chitin. Its ears were rounded, and its white hair was shoulder-length. It still seemed mostly genderless, although it emanated a slight aura of cuteness, sitting cross-legged on the floor nibbling a donut. "How's stuff?"
 
"Well."
 
"Good." I set my shopping bags down. Pinkie's small suite was packed with four people, but she wouldn't hear of us leaving. She’d just hugged her pillow, muttered 'party', and giggled when I'd mentioned it.
 
"What did you get?" Sunset leaned over.
 
"First aid supplies." I dumped out tape, gauze, antiseptic, styptics, painkillers, thread, bandages, and wraps. It was overkill, but I'd rather cut for weight than fall short.
 
"Snacks." I dumped out the next bag. Candy, chips, and soda tumbled out. Bit's eyes gleamed ever so slightly. I grinned.
 
"And finally, something to experiment with." The third bag was the least impressive, visually. A handful of cardboard boxes, filled with tiny metal and plastic components, tumbled out.
 
"More electronics?" Sunset wrinkled her nose.
 
"Consider this." I crossed my arms, confidently.  "Do you know what microchips are printed on?"
 
"No." She shook her head, slowly.
 
"Crystal. The most pure, perfect crystals ever made, designed to store information on a nearly incomprehensible level." I tipped one of the Atmega chips I'd bought onto my palm. Her eyes widened slightly. "These combine centuries of human research and development. Consider if, back in Manehatten, someone had shown you a system that approached the same problems as magic from a different angle. A system just as sophisticated and mature, but using completely different principles and properties. A system to 'fill in' the gaps, as it were, something both undetectable and indecipherable by magic. But also compatible, so a skilled worker could mesh the two. What could you have accomplished?"
 
Sunset sat for a second, her face going pale and her breathing accelerating.
 
"I'd have conquered Gryphonia. Single-handed." Her voice was soft. "Seriously? How has Twilight not revolutionized magic, yet?"
 
"Oh, she has." I grinned. "At least once. Human technology has one huge advantage and disadvantage; it works outside the caster's magical abilities. This chip cost five bits. That'd be forty Equus bits. They can only sell them for that because they make hundreds of thousands, maybe millions. The investment, just for tools, is enormous. With research and development on top…" I shrugged. "Equus won't be doing that soon. But the principles are applicable." I handed her the chip. "I based my sound-cannon on that, magic artifacts which use stored power. Magic modeled as a 'programming language for reality', with the incompatibilities between schools carefully considered. I was curious to experiment with information-focused crystals. You're welcome to a few."
 
"I've never done much artifice." She frowned at the tiny chip, holding it up for a closer look. "Can information be stored on these without magic?"
 
"Actually, yes." I tapped the Arduino I'd bought. "We can hook it up to Pinkie's computer."
 
"Fascinating." For a second, her gaze went hard, calculating, and I shivered. Sometimes, I was very glad Sunset was on my side. "But, my experiments' first."
 
"As you say." I shrugged. "What's on the agenda?"
 
"First, your mind-link with Twilight."
 
"Um." I paused, as Bit's aura suddenly took on a sharply curious feel. I could almost hear its ears go 'Shwing!' as they pricked.
 
"Oh, come on." Sunset looked at us, and facepalmed. "Please. In the future, please construct a chart, showing who knows what secrets of yours. This is getting ridiculous!"
 
"I, um." I glanced at Bit, and sighed. "Yeah, I know."
 
"Mindlink?" My aide's voice was soft.
 
"Yeah." I shrugged. "I… I'm not sure how to explain it. It had to do with my gem, and - "
 
"Maybe not."
 
"Huh?" I turned back to Sunset. "What?"
 
"That is exactly what we're researching." She gave me a sharp glance and held out her hand. "Wand, please." I pulled it out, but hesitated.
 
"Actually… can I have a few more explanations?"
 
"Fine." She sighed. "Here's what I know. You are weird."
 
"Heh."
 
"I mean, magically! Your magic was not tied to your crystal." I nodded slowly; that was obvious, now. "Humans shouldn't have magic. It's a product of the mind." She tapped her temple. "I've been scanning people here any time I get the chance. None of them have even the tiny capacity for magic you do. Though I haven't managed to get a decent read on Pinkie."
 
"But are these humans like me? They look different."
 
"Mostly skin color," Bit interjected calmly. "You are close enough." I raised an eyebrow at that, but considered its transformation. If Bit had compared our DNA…
 
"Huh." I crossed my arms. "I told Twilight something was up."
 
"So, here's my conjecture," Sunset continued. "What about the link? What if it's - "
 
"Not from the gem, either." I finished slowly. "That… would make things easier."
 
"How so?"
 
"I always wondered how the link could be so… so benign." I paused. "I mean, if it was from the numancy spell Twilight saved me with, or from the changelings, I'd have expected it to at least hurt. As it was…" I shrugged. "No noticeable side effects. It didn't even affect our synchronization after building Arglefraster."
 
"Hmm." She cocked an eyebrow. "Explain that."
 
"Um?"
 
"What you did for Arglefraster." She nodded to the microchips. "I saw that gun, and I still don't quite believe you and Twilight made it. I thought it was one of Celestia's black-projects."
 
"Celestia has black projects?"
 
"Are you serious?" Sunset gave me a hard glare. "You know six of them! The Elements are one of the most potent weapons in existence!"
 
"Huh." I stopped, reflecting on the secrecy surrounding the Elements. At times, it seemed almost magical. Lyra and Bon-Bon hadn't even believed me when I said Twilight was a bearer. "Okay. Huh. But no. We made Arglefraster for crowd-suppression when we were besieged in the Crystal Empire. We used six vortex crystals, and it took several hours."
 
"What did you do?"
 
"We used the mindlink." I shrugged. "it's hard to explain. We, uh… merged? Our minds?" I paused, trying to define the gestalt I had experienced. "Or, wills? We still had separate thoughts, but…" I scrunched up my face. "I'm not sure how to explain."
 
"Aaaaa…" Bit had gone wide-eyed. "That sounds wonderful."
 
"Um." I stopped short, remembering what Onyx said about the hivemind. "Nope, not happening." I shook my head firmly.
 
"But…" Bit paused, groping for words. "It could be helpful!"
 
"No, no. Mindlinks are bad for small bugs!" I gave Bit a serious look, and it subsided. "Anyways." I turned back to Sunset. "Even after that, our synchro seemed unaffected."
 
"Ah. Wand." I offered it but she grasped my wrist, flattening my hand to examine the green stain on my palm. "Now, this. It's crystallized magic, I think, under your skin."
 
"Yeah." I frowned. "That happened… twice before."
 
"Oh? Tell."
 
"When we first captured by Sombra, I absorbed some sort of… crystallized emotional magic." I frowned, my better understanding triggering alarms. "After that, I nearly broke my own gem, and Twilight's magic was really low, there were these purple flames…" I stopped, as full realization dawned. "I got bits of her soul-energy embedded in my skin?"
 
"Aaaaah." Sunset gave a sigh of comprehension. "Now we're getting somewhere."
 
"Really?"
 
"Yes." She shrugged. "Once again, numancy."
 
"Oh." I frowned. "So that means…?"
 
"It's painting a picture of your innate magic."
 
"Innate?"
 
"Right. Your innate magic doesn't depend on the gem. It's a type of numancy, and has physical effects." She ran a finger over my palm. "If we can understand it, we can use it."
 
"Right." I frowned. "That… might be helpful." I stopped. Bit was staring intensely. I'd have facepalmed, but Sunset was scanning my hand.
 
"This crystallized magic. Can you feel it?"
 
"Hmm." I touched the wand, harmonizing my power. Sunset gasped, and dropped it. "Um… sorry?"
 
"That… felt strange." She gave the wand cautious glance, and picked it up again. "Very, very strange." I grimaced.
 
"Probably breaking more rules. Anyways, let's see." I moved my power to my palm, focusing on the stain under my skin. "Hmm."
 
"Yes?"
 
"I can feel them. Slightly." It was like echonarchy, but extremely high-frequency.
 
"Push them out of your skin." I frowned, but complied. There was a flash of green flame dancing above my palm for a second, and the stain faded. "Good." She gave me a long look. "You do have magic conduits. And they're abnormal."
 
"Again." I frowned. "is this about what Lyra said? About crippling myself if I pulled in magic?"
 
"Yup. Magic is of the mind." She held up the wand. "But also needs the body. If you started like the people here, you didn't have magic conduits initially. Now you do. Because they've been… developed, somehow, they're narrow and simple. You shouldn't be as worried about scrambling them as Lyra suggests; if you limit yourself to echonarchy, it shouldn't hurt."
 
"Developed. So, although it's not from the stone, my magic is not natural." I looked at my palm. The stain was gone. I'd suspected that, ever since Lyra demonstrated it, but this was strong evidence.
 
"No…" Sunset shook her head. "No, I suppose it's not."
 
"Well, we're making progress." I shrugged.
 
"Slowly." Sunset crossed her legs, folded the wand between her palms, and drew in a deep breath.
 
"What are you doing?" I asked, growing curious after a few moments.
 
"Meditating."
 
"Why? Surely you're past that."
 
"You're never past discipline, Wes." She cracked an eye, and gave me an icy glare. "Even Celestia meditates."
 
"Oh." I popped open a can of Pringles, and offered them to Bit. It took a small stack, slim fingers hesitant.
 
After a few minutes of crunching, Sunset slowly opened her eyes. She held the wand out to me. I reached for it, but paused as an icy flicker licked the length.
 
"Hurry!"
 
I touched it.
 
Snap!
 
"OW!" The wand clattered to the floor. Both of us clutched our heads. Bit glanced back and forth, worried.
 
"What was that?"
 
"Attempt one." Sunset moved to pick up the wand, but stopped. "And enough for today."
 
"What did you do?"
 
"I induced soul-burn. Just a little."
 
"Oh." I stopped. "Oh. You thought maybe we could start the link, like that?"
 
"It was worth a try." She shrugged. I picked up the wand.
 
"Let me."
 
"Careful."
 
"Like you were."
 
I hesitantly reached down through my mind, smoothly passing the magic I normally used, going a little deeper. I winced as I tore free a pinch of the intrinsic power it sprang from. Soul-burn still hurt. I carefully pushed it into the wand, and held it out. A web of orange energy crackled.
 
It took a few minutes to meditate and prepare. Sunset had lost concentration, and started on the Pringles.  She looked up, and stretched out a hand.
 
Bit beat her.
 
"OW!" I nearly dropped the wand as my headache redoubled. For a second, a sensation like trailing spiderweb brushed my mind. I instinctively grasped it.
 
There was a second of confusion. I saw Bit's mind, neatly ordered, a small, fierce affection burning brightly. Bit saw my mind, all confusion and loose ends, slowly churning. Bit dived as deep into the link as it could. For a second, I was two places, staring at myself. Then I snapped the link, hard. Bit shuddered and blinked, grinning broadly.
 
"Ow." I repeated. "Bit, please. I meant what I said! Mind-links are bad for small bugs!" Its smile faded. Bit looked genuinely bothered by my disapproval, but there might have been a bit of stubbornness on its face. I wasn't quite sure what to do. On the one hand, Bit hardly ever defied me. I'd never punished it more than a hard look, and usually tried to soften even that. On the other hand, this was something that could be genuinely dangerous for its developing mind. I sighed, dropping it for now, and twisted open a bottle of painkillers, popping the top on a soda.
 
"Did it work?" Sunset gave me a questioning stare, as she accepted two ibuprofen. I considered whether Bit could use them or not, but offered them anyways. They probably couldn't hurt it; Bit's biosystems were much more advanced.
 
"Sorta." I shrugged. "One thing about the link… I've never been able to start it, only to 'accept' it. Twilight and I did some pretty rigorous studies of this. If she used magic, the link would extend. After that, I needed to seize it. That's likely why you got nothing . I nearly missed it with Bit, but there was enough there for me to grab on reflex." I glanced at my aide, who was contritely watching the floor. "I don't know if it was innate power or what. Anyways, I agree. That's enough for today." I shrugged. "Besides, isn't it about time for - "
 
"I'm hooooome!" Pinkie's voice came up the stairwell, followed by a giggle.
 
" - school to finish?" I ended, lamely.
 



 
I lay on the floor, under a blanket, and stared at the dark ceiling. Pinkie was snoring quietly on the couch; Bit and Sunset were snuggled on the bed.
 
Pinkie had brought her friends, and we'd spent much of the evening chatting, laughing, and hanging out. We'd discussed Glisten, and Rainbow had waxed lyrical on the importance of winning. Rarity had examined my boots, fascinated by her double's work. Sunset had blushed until I took off my socks. Pinkie had convinced Bit and Fluttershy to play Candy-land. Bit had confusedly pointed out the game's static nature, but complied anyways.
 
It had been fun.
 
I sighed, trying to keep from worrying over Glisten and Sombra. So far, we'd learned a lot. The revelations about my gem and my own capabilities were a lot to process. I felt like we were about to reach a whole new level of understanding, and I wasn't sure how I felt about that. It was good; but we were cut off, unable to help. If we defeated Glisten, whatever that meant, we might be a step closer to returning. If we could control the gem she'd seized…
 
I breathed deeply, trying to clear my mind. As I concentrated, I carefully folded my worries and cares, smoothing out the tension and stress. I tucked them into the back of my mind, spreading out comforting thoughts and feelings to refresh myself for tomorrow. Finally calmer, I closed my eyes and slipped into a dream.
 



 
I found a nightmare.
 
The fire burned.
 
I screamed.
 
The moai laughed.
 
The dream shattered, reformed.
 
I lay curled on the warm sand of the arena, before realizing what had happened. I swallowed a few times, trying to clear my head. Dreams were always confusing. At least this time, thanks to Pinkie's teaching, I'd managed to break free of the nightmare.
 
Bit was curled beside me, once again pony-shaped, shaking.
 
"Oh." I sat up, slowly, and examined my aide. Its eyes had gone flat, turned inwards.
 
"Oh." I ran a hand gently over its carapace. It shivered. Twilight had shown up in my dreams, after escaping Sombra’s prison; I’d completely forgotten this aspect of the link. Luna had suppressed it quickly and completely.
 
"Oh. Oh no." I tried to remember how long Bit had been here. Long enough. "Oh, Bit. I'm sorry." I carefully gathered it into my lap. This was all in my mind, but that almost made it worse. This dreamscape didn't show what happened, but how I felt. About my past. About changelings. "Oh, Luna, no!" I bent my head over Bit, remorse, regret, and tears welling up. It had seen how I felt.
 
We weren't ready for this.
 
"Wes…"
 
"Shhhh." I sniffled, but didn't let Bit speak until it stopped shivering. Then, very carefully, I changed the scene.
 
I drew in a deep breath, concentrated on where I wanted to be, and exhaled in a steady stream. Some place Bit would know. Some place to comfort it. The sand whipped around us, the bleachers blew away, the sun flit from the sky, and we sat on the floor of Lyra's studio. Somewhere to comfort me, too. The golden silence enveloped us, ever-present sunbeams dappling the warm hardwood.
 
"Alright." I centered my emotions as best I could, and summoned a cushion to set Bit on. "Now you can talk. If you want."
 
"Those were changelings!" Bit climbed back into my lap, and curled up again.
 
"Yes." I swallowed, trying to remove the lump from my throat.
 
"They were hurting you!" Bit's voice quavered.
 
"Yes." I rubbed my eyes.
 
"But… but!"
 
"It's okay."
 
"It's not okay!" Bit uncurled enough to look up. "They were hurting you!" I almost laughed, touched by its sincere confusion.
 
"It was just a dream."
 
"It…" Bit paused, looking around. Its ears twitched as it realized the scenery had changed. "It… wasn't real?"
 
"None of this is real. We're in a dream, Bit." I drew a shaky breath. "Because of the mindlink. Luna had this locked down. I guess we unlocked it."
 
"But… " Bit gave me an adorably stern look, refusing to be sidetracked. "But it did happen."
 
I paused. I could lie. If I assured Bit this was all a dream, it might not even remember what happened. I mulled the thought for a moment.
 
"It did!" Bit nudged my chin. "If you take that long to think, it was real."
 
I nodded slowly. We'd talked about deception; Bit took to the principles fast. Maybe it had instincts for misdirection and acting. Honesty was my policy, but actually tricking Bit wasn't easy.
 
"Yes."
 
"Whyyyy?" Bit wailed, quietly. I looked down. Confusion, hurt, frustration, distress; every line of its small body cried in pain. It didn't understand. It couldn't understand. It started shivering again, mumbling to itself.
 
For a while, I just hugged it. Could I explain this? Would explaining even help?
 
Watching changelings torture me had deeply affected it. I'd never explained my background. Having it revealed like this… I had no idea how to respond. I really didn't understand how Bit saw me. A protector, teacher, and maybe somewhat a parent, but what all that meant… I'd come to understand its strength of loyalty when it faced down Phoresy, but I still didn't really understand. I might never. We were separated by a gulf of perception. Until I saw the world through its eyes…
 
I paused.
 
Actually, I could do that.
 
I shoved the thought away. The mindlink had gotten us into this mess. It wouldn't make things better. I didn't think it was good to expose Bit. Even Onyx had been slightly obsessive about the Hivemind, and he'd been cleanly separated for years.
 
"They…" I stopped, giving Bit a minute to quiet. "They decided they had the right to take my freedom." I shrugged. "And I wasn't strong enough to stop them." I gave a small smile. "If someone tries again, I'm slightly better prepared."
 
"But… but I'm a changeling!" Its voice was shaky. "And… and you love me! Why? Howwww?" It gave another sob, and curled up again. I hugged it a little tighter, my feelings churning slowly.
 
Bit had seen itself in my dream. It had seen my feelings in my dream. No wonder it was confused.
 
"Because I won't be ruled by my past." I gave it a hesitant pat. "I won't let them make me be like them. I'm stronger than that. Strength is to defend the weak. The great shelter the small. I've grown. I won't let them change how I feel about you, Bit. You're right. I do love you." I'd realized it waiting in front of the stove. I'd acted on it rushing to the rescue. I still wasn't sure what I felt about Bit, but at the very least it was a precious friend and student. "I'll protect you, and do my best to make you a changeling who can…" I trailed off, the impact of my words hitting me.
 
"Heh." I laughed once, dryly.
 
"Heh heh." I laughed twice, wryly.
 
"Heh heh heh. Hah hah. Hahahaha!" I laughed, slowly building to a deep belly-laugh that had me rolling on the floor. Bit fell out of my lap, and gave me a faintly concerned stare as I convulsed, giggling.
 
"Oh, Bitterbloom." I sat back up slowly, wiping a tear from my eye and looking around carefully. "Oh, dear."
 
"Who can?"
 
"Who can live in harmony with others." I shrugged, letting the phrase finish itself with a sigh. "Oh, my. I've been played like a piano, huh?"
 
Bit cocked its head slightly, curious.
 
"Your Queen," I explained, "was given a nearly impossible task. Celestia decided, in order to save her hive, Tezeca needed to convince me that changelings could live in harmony with ponies." I summoned a recliner, and sprawled into it, picking up Bit and placing it on my lap. It was large, but not uncomfortable. "You just saw what sort of feelings I need to work through. She understood some of that. So, she did something very, very clever. She got me to convince myself."
 
"Hmm?"
 
"I guess I should go tell her." I gave Bit a small smile. "If we make it back. It worked. First, she disarmed me. You were helpless. Of course I couldn't hurt you. Second, she ensured you would learn from me. I have no idea what she did, to make you look up to me so, but it worked."
 
"I like helping."
 
"I know, Bit. I know."
 
"And then?"
 
"That's all it took." I summoned a plate of sweets, and offered my aide one. "That's all it took. How could I condemn you, when you're pretty much trying to be me? I'm not confused enough to hate that. If I won't condemn you, how can I condemn her future? She's not dead; she can still learn. It's possible. Changelings can live in harmony." I gave Bit a pat. "You can live in harmony. I've been teaching you how, since we met. It would be ridiculous to say otherwise. Without even realizing it, I’ve been doing my best to make Tezeca’s dream a reality." I stretched, and leaned back.
 
"They were hurting you." Bit gave me another serious look, unwilling to simply abandon the dream. I nodded. I couldn't explain. Bit wasn't really ready for that. But I could reassure. It would have to be enough.
 
"Yes." I frowned. "They were. I can't say I'm over it. I can't say I'm comfortable with even Onyx or Tezeca." I paused. No, those feelings weren't done yet. "Bit, don't ever think you're like them." I leaned down, to give it one last hug. "You're my aide, my student, and a precious friend. I could never feel that way about you."
 
"Good." Bit gave one last sniffle, and curled up. "Now what?"
 
"Now we dream of watching ourselves sleep." I grinned. "It's pretty relaxing. Luna taught me how to do it."
 
After a while, there was nothing but snores.