“Everypony, we have a guest,” Lauren Faust declared, walking into a large and luxuriously furnished room, immediately followed by Brightside. She made sure to close the door behind him.
The room sported two sofas, a flatscreen TV with some gaming console, tables with chairs, an expensive-looking rug, and ornamental ceiling lights. There were five pony mares of varying ages in the room. The ponies gasped and immediately started chattering once they spotted the newly arrived. “Look!” the only unicorn exclaimed. “A new pony!” one of the two pegasi added. “Yay!” a blue-coated earth pony contributed.
An emerald green earth pony walked towards Brightside and smiled. “Greetings. We haven’t seen any new faces for a while now. Welcome to our little sanctuary.”
“Sanctuary?” Brightside asked, wondering curiously.
“Rough world out there! Stay in here or you’re toast!” the other pegasus added.
Pointing at the green earth pony, Lauren explained, “Parsley Sage was the first of you to appear here, about seven years ago.” She proceeded to motion towards the other ponies in turn. “Then Nimblebrash appeared, followed by Direct Current, Gentian, and finally, about a year and a half ago, Cursory.”
“Hello,” Brightside said with a nod. “My name is Brightside. Pleased to make your acquaintances.”
Direct Current, the saffron-coated pegasus, approached Brightside and asked, “So, what was it for you? Murder? Or something else?”
“What?... What are you talking about?” Brightside looked at her, quizzical.
“Your accusation,” Cursory, the light grey unicorn, explained.
Direct Current added, “Mine was murder.”
Brightside was shocked, adding to his confusion. “You murdered someone?”
“No she didn’t, you dolt!” Nimblebrash, the brown pegasus, retorted. “We were all falsely accused!”
Gentian was the blue earth pony and presumably the youngest of the five. “Girls,” she conjectured, “looks like he doesn’t know.”
“Perhaps we should explain from the beginning,” Parsley Sage suggested calmly.
Brightside nodded. “I couldn’t agree more. How did you all get here?”
“Each of us was accused of some really bad crime,” Gentian explained. “Murder, foal abuse, that sort of thing.”
“But none of us actually did it!” Nimblebrash interjected.
“We’ve all been put on trial,” Direct Current added, “and we’ve all been acquitted.”
“But somepony wasn’t happy with that,” Cursory continued.
Direct Current completed the explanation. “They got a gang to kidnap us, and they were seriously planning to kill us. They thought they were executing justice where the court system failed. They thought we were guilty and we deserved to die for our ‘crimes’.”
“And yet, you’re all still alive,” Brightside remarked.
“The mare who cast the spell on each of us seemed to believe it would kill us,” Parsley Sage recounted, “but instead... well, it sent us here.”
Gentian looked in the direction of the only human in the room. “Lauren has been so generous as to let us stay in here so that the humans won’t find out about us.”
“They’re a barbaric bunch, those humans!” Nimblebrash interjected.
“Tell me about it,” Brightside agreed.
“Hey, cool it,” Lauren Faust said defensively. “They’re just not used to seeing colorful talking ponies.”
Brightside continued. “But to be fair, that gang you describe doesn’t sound any more civilized. Do you know who they are?”
Parsley Sage responded calmly. “All we know is that their leader’s name is Silver Slither.”
Brightside gasped. “Silver... Slither?!...”
“You sound like you’ve heard that name before,” Gentian inquired.
Brightside looked contemplative. “I have, as a matter of—”
He was cut short by a glow that emerged mid-air, and grew with rays of magic spreading throughout the room. Everyone stared at the ball of energy in stunned observation until it abruptly disappeared, making room for a certain green unicorn.
In bewilderment, Brightside realized who just managed to join them. “Bush Beat?!”
Bush Beat hesitantly scanned the room, noticing the other ponies, then gasped as his gaze fell upon the sole human.
“You two know each other?” Lauren asked in surprise.
But Brightside ignored her and addressed Bush Beat with a sarcastic smile instead. “Another teleportation spell gone awry, I suppose?”
Bush Beat, now looking apologetically back at Brightside, said, “Listen, Brightside, I’m... sorry.”
Brightside giggled and waved a hoof. “It’s all right.”
“You’re not angry after the things I said?” Bush Beat asked with wide eyes.
“You were under stress. That much I could tell.” He dropped the smile. “Though I am a bit irritated that you didn’t tell me about Silver Slither.”
“So you know, huh?” Bush Beat looked at the other ponies, then back at Brightside. “Can we... talk in private?”
Brightside narrowed his eyes slightly. “Frankly, you had the opportunity to talk to me in private when you were at my place, but you decided to tell me lies instead.”
Bush Beat hesitated, then retorted with a raised voice, “As if you didn’t! You told me there are no other ponies in this world!” He raised a hoof towards the other ponies in the room. “So who are they? Zebras?”
Brightside briefly closed his eyes to take a deep breath, then calmly responded. “I only just got here. I had no idea about any of them until just a few minutes ago.”
Bush Beat puffed, but then stopped as he scanned the looks on the other ponies’ faces and noticed Gentian was nodding. Nimblebrash was rolling her eyes.
“By the way,” Brightside said as his smile returned. He pointed a hoof at Bush Beat’s rear. “Nice cutie mark! Congratulations!”
“I... er...” Bush Beat’s eyes turned back to Brightside. “Thanks, I...” He needed a few seconds to clear his confusion. “I probably wouldn’t have gotten it without you. So thank you for that.”
Direct Current barged in abruptly. “Wait, you earned your cutie mark here in the human world?”
Bush Beat turned towards Direct Current, shaking his head. “Um... no... I was in Equestria at the time...”
Cursory gasped. “So you found a way back to Equestria from here?” All the ponies’ eyes opened wide, fixating themselves on Bush Beat.
Bush Beat pointed at Brightside. “Well, actually, I think it’s Brightside who did it.”
Brightside smiled and nodded. “With his help, yes.”
The mood filling the room changed within an instant. The former atmosphere of gloom was quickly washed away with excited chattering and cheerful celebration from the ponies.
“We’re going home!” Direct Current exclaimed.
“I can’t believe it!” Gentian laughed.
“Finally!” Nimblebrash commented.
“No!” Lauren exclaimed, loudly interrupting them. Everypony quieted down and looked at her. She paused before she continued. “You can’t go. I need you here.”
Nimblebrash reacted without hesitation. “Oh yeah? Well if there’s a way back home, I’m definitely going.”
Direct Current nodded and mumbled, “Yeah.”
“Easy there, Nimblebrash,” Gentian said, trotting past her and towards Lauren. “Lauren, please try to understand. It’s not that we're ungrateful. Celestia knows what would have happened to us in this world without you. I think I can speak for all of us if I say: we thank you for your long-lasting hospitality.”
The ponies nodded and voiced agreement.
Gentian continued, “But even so, you knew this day would come. We spent years of our lives in this one room. A comfortable room, certainly. But also one that has us confined.”
Lauren Faust turned to Cursory. “But you will stay... right, Cursory?”
Cursory gave Lauren Faust a sorry look and quietly shook her head.
Lauren Faust responded nervously, “But... what about Lyra? What will she think?”
“Lauren,” Direct Current stepped in, “I really don’t think Lyra would hold it against Cursory that she wants to return home.”
Lauren Faust frowned. “If you leave now, I will have to step down from the show after only one season.”
“Ahem,” Brightside interjected, “who is Lyra?”
Cursory kept her look at Lauren Faust for a moment longer before turning to face Brightside. “Her full name is Lyra Heartstrings. She’s a unicorn.”
Direct Current added, “Cursory tells her about the human world, and in return, she’s been keeping us up to date with news of Equestria.”
“Though mostly just Ponyville,” Nimblebrash complained, “she never gets out of that one-horse town!”
Gentian and Cursory gave Nimblebrash a reproachful look. “She did attend the Grand Galloping Gala in Canterlot a while ago,” Gentian commented. “And just last week she told me about the Equestria Games, and that was in the Crystal Empire,” Cursory asserted.
Brightside looked confused. “Wait, wait, wait,” he asked, “how do you talk to her if she’s in Equestria and you’re here?”
“How do I put this... hm...” Cursory pondered in thought for a moment. “We’re... in contact with each other. I discovered by chance a spell that I can use to send messages to her. And she sends some back to me.”
“That’s... impressive,” Brightside said with widened eyes, making Cursory smile and blush. “I presume you told her all about Silver Slither and her gang, then? Have they put her under arrest?”
“Actually,” Parsley Sage interjected, “we decided not to tell her about that.”
Brightside’s brow furrowed. “Why?”
Parsley Sage explained, “Well, Silver would most likely be convicted of murder, or at least attempted murder. That would likely get her banished to the sun or something, which would leave us stuck here forever. You see, nopony except Lyra knows we’re here... and she tells us that nopony believes her when she talks about the human world. So nopony was going to come looking for us.”
Direct Current continued, “So we decided to let Silver continue her game, hoping that one day she’ll send us a unicorn that can find a way back home for all of us.”
Bush Beat smiled and pointed at Brightside. “Well, you’ve got one now!”
Cursory mumbled to herself with eagerness in her voice. “I can’t wait to get back. I’m going to go to Ponyville and meet Lyra for real!”
Gentian turned to Lauren and looked at her with her head held down. “I guess this is goodbye. Lauren, you have been a wonderful friend. I will miss you.” The other ponies joined in, bade their farewells to their host and continued their excited chatter about their immediate plans for when they return to Equestria. Brightside and Bush Beat watched them in silence for several minutes.
As the talking gradually subsided and more and more hopeful eyes were turned towards Brightside, Direct Current spoke up for the group, euphoric. “We’re ready to go home.”
In a wooden voice, Brightside issued a caveat. “Just to be clear though, I can’t send you all in one go. I suggest that we try to send Nimblebrash and Gentian first.”
Direct Current raised an eyebrow. “Alright then. Why them in particular, though?”
Brightside responded, “They look like they are the two with the lowest mass.”
After the brief, awkward silence went right over his head, Brightside motioned a hoof to Nimblebrash and Gentian. “Please stand next to each other.” Gentian got up from lying on the sofa, then stood right next to Nimblebrash. Brightside then turned to Bush Beat. “Bush Beat? Go ahead.”
“Wait,” Bush Beat asked. “So what exactly do I need to do?”
Brightside explained, “You just need to focus some magic on them. You know, the same thing you did on yourself that time you tried to teleport out of my apartment?”
“Oh... that.” Bush Beat nodded, though hesitantly. “I’ll... give it a try...”
Direct Current started looking nervous and addressed Bush Beat. “I thought you said Brightside was going to do the spell.”
“I am,” Brightside responded. “But I can’t do it alone. I need extra magical energy from another unicorn before the transition will trigger.” After a pause, he added, “I guess that’s probably also why Silver Slither needs a gang to do her own thing.”
“Oh, just one last thing,” Bush Beat interjected, addressing the group. “When you were all sent here, and Silver Slither cast that spell on you, where was that? Were you inside a room with a wooden floor, concrete walls, no windows, and only one door?”
The five ponies all nodded.
“Me too,” Bush Beat replied. “And I reappeared there when Brightside first sent me back, so I’m guessing you will too. That room is some abandoned cellar in a town called Dodge Junction. When you get there, go to the saloon and find the barkeeper. Her name is Tendercare. She’s a good friend. Tell her that you know me and she will probably be able to help you out.”
“Aren’t you going to be there with us?” Gentian wondered.
“Probably not,” Bush Beat hypothesized. “This time around, I was sent here from my hotel room in Ponyville, so I’d guess that I’ll reappear there.” He scanned the group and waited to give everypony a chance to ask any last-minute questions. After nopony spoke, he nodded. “Right then, here we go.”
Bush Beat lit his horn and launched a magic ray at the pair of abutting ponies. An aura engulfed the two, fueled by the energetic glow from his horn. Then Brightside joined in and added a second ray, which caused the room to glow with a radiant brilliance. After a few seconds, the light dissolved, and the two ponies were gone.
“That was easier than I expected,” a smiling Brightside jubilantly cheered. “Well then, who’s next?”
Direct Current raised her hoof with enthusiasm. “Can I go?”
Parsley Sage looked at Cursory and paused, then suggested to Brightside, “Well, I’m alright with going last.”
Direct Current and Cursory walked into the same spot where the previous two ponies disappeared and stood next to each other. Once again, Bush Beat started the spell with a shining display of magic. Although Brightside took longer this time to complete the spell, a repeat of the feat later a flash of light was seen and then only three ponies were left in the room.
“Whew.” Brightside was starting to look exhausted.
“Are you okay?” Parsley Sage asked with concern in her voice.
“Yes... yes, I am.” Brightside was audibly short of breath. “It’s just... a bit taxing on my magic. I think I can still send you, Parsley Sage... then I’ll need some rest. Bush Beat, go right ahead.”
Bush Beat concentrated a final salvo of magic on the last earth pony. Brightside strained himself to do his part of this spell. Nevertheless, another burst of magic later, Parsley Sage too had vanished. As the aura dissipated, Brightside exhaled thickly. He collapsed onto his side, resting on the soft rug. For a short while, his heavy breathing was the only sound filling the room.
“I... I guess the two of you can stay the night here and then go home tomorrow,” a frowning Lauren Faust quietly offered.
Bush Beat didn’t hesitate to respond. “Thanks, that’s very generous of you.”
“I’d say so. Thanks, Lauren,” Brightside added, panting.
“Good night, you two.” Lauren Faust left the room and closed the door behind her.
Brightside, still lying on his side and panting, quietly thought out loud, “I’ve never done this much magic on a single day. Two teleports, one full-body transformation, and now all of this.”
“Brightside?” Bush Beat fell back onto his haunches. “There’s one thing I don’t understand.”
Brightside raised his head to look Bush Beat in the eye. “That is?”
“What did you mean when you said you ‘brought’ me here? I’m pretty sure it was Silver Slither who sent me into this world.”
Brightside thought momentarily. “Uh... oh, that. Well...” He took a deep breath, then explained with his head resting on the rug again. “Here’s the thing. For most of the time I spent here, I thought I was the only pony in this world... until I found out about that TV show. That’s when it became clear to me that there must be some others who told someone about Equestria.
“So I assumed somepony in Equestria was still continuing that magic research and accidentally sending ponies here the same way it happened to me. But I had no idea where in this big world they showed up. I did some research and I was able to put together a spell that would... ‘attract’ the transition spell, for lack of a better word, and I cast that spell on myself. That way, the next pony that was sent here, would appear somewhere nearby. Am I making sense?”
Bush Beat nodded with realization. “And that next pony was me.”
“Exactly. I’m sorry to have put you through this.”
“Don’t be!” Bush Beat shook his head. “Celestia knows where I would have ended up in this world if you hadn’t done that.”
After a pause, Brightside asked, “Why are you back?”
“Hm?” Bush Beat looked puzzled. “What do you think?”
Brightside started to sound slightly annoyed. “Come on, Bush, this is serious. We just sent these ponies back to Equestria while Silver Slither is still on the loose. I need to know why you ended up here a second time.”
“Wh...?” Bush Beat stammered, then raised his voice. “I came back for you, obviously!”
Brightside was taken aback. He propped himself up on his forelegs, looking confused. “For me? What do you mean by that?”
“Well for some reason your spell only sent me back, right?” Bush Beat reminded Brightside. “And you told me you couldn’t return to Equestria on your own. So I came back to help you so that we can find a way for both of us to return together. I came back to rescue you from this place!”
“What... but...” Brightside shook his head. “I never had any intention of returning to Equestria.”
Bush Beat was perplexed. His head tilted and his eyes blinking, he mumbled, “Come again?”
“I said, I have no inten—”
“I heard you,” Bush Beat interrupted, “but... how can you not want to return home?!”
“Home?” Brightside responded. “I am home.” He paused while he examined Bush Beat’s puzzled reaction. Then he continued, “My life is here now. I have a job and friends here.”
Bush Beat sat in bewildered silence for a while before he spoke again. Quietly, he stated, “You have a friend in me, too.”
“That’s... very kind of you,” Brightside replied.
“Do those friends of yours know who you really are?”
“No, but...” Brightside trailed off.
“How would they react if you told them?”
“I... don’t know,” Brightside confessed.
“You disguise yourself to look like them, but you know you’re not really one of them.”
“I know!” Brightside grew disgruntled. “I know that, okay? You’re not telling me anything I don’t already know. I’m okay with this. I’ve lived this life for over nine years and I’m happy here.”
Bush Beat smirked and gave Brightside an unconvinced look.
“What?” Brightside asked.
“Nine years in which you haven’t done any of that science research stuff. Your foalhood dream. Your destiny. You said it was what your cutie mark was telling you!”
“No,” Brightside raised a hoof, “I said it’s what my cutie mark seemed to be telling me. I was wrong then. I found a new destiny over here.”
“A new destiny?” Bush Beat tilted his head again. “And what would that be? What new destiny is so exhilarating that you never even told me about it?”
Brightside responded resolutely. “Computer programming.”
Bush Beat paused to think, then asked, “What’s that?”
Brightside continued in the same resolute voice. “And this is why I never mentioned it. Not because I don’t think of it as interesting, but because it wouldn’t mean anything to you. It’s a profession that I can’t pursue in Equestria, with no computers there.”
Bush Beat stammered briefly, but then spoke adamantly. “Look. I don’t know what that weird cutie mark of yours means. And I admit I haven’t known you for long. But I’ve seen you in your element. I saw the twinkle in your eyes when we did all that magic. You had a passion for it that... just blew me away. I’ve never seen anypony so dedicated to some craft. You were nowhere near as passionate about your day job. And you already earned your cutie mark back in Equestria, when you were doing magic.”
Brightside retorted, “Well if you must know, what this cutie mark represents is abstraction. My special talent is that I can perform logical abstractions in my mind. It’s an abstract talent, so it gets an abstract symbol for a cutie mark. But it’s a talent that is equally applicable to computer programming as it is to scientific research. I just... hadn’t done any magic at all for years, so doing it with you was just... a welcome, refreshing change!”
“Oh, no,” Bush Beat insisted, “you had the same zeal in your voice when you told me about your efforts back when you first got here. And judging from what I saw here today, I think you’re itching to do it again. I think your destiny is in magic.”
“How would you know that? Are you an expert at magic now?”
Bush Beat giggled. “Oh, I sure as hay am no expert, but Pioneer Rose is.”
Brightside’s eyes suddenly widened. “You spoke to Pioneer Rose?...” Edgily, he wondered, “How is she? Is she still at the university?”
“She is,” Bush Beat responded, still smiling. “And she’s more than eager to see you again.”
“What? But... I...” Brightside sighed and hung his head. “I don’t know...”
“They all thought you were dead, so they canceled the project. Now that they know you’re still alive, she said it might get a reboot. I told her all about your little feats of magic here. That you can teleport. Your body transformation spell. And that you can make your horn invisible. Heck, I already knew there was some powerful talent in you when I saw you do all that. Pioneer Rose almost fainted when she heard this. She said she knew you had potential, but this totally blew her mind. She definitely wants you back on her team.”
Brightside remained silent for a good while.
“I’ve got to tell her about that ‘attract’ spell of yours, too.”
“No need,” Brightside said flatly.
Bush Beat tilted his head. “But she loves hearing about your achiev—”
“No,” Brightside interrupted, “I mean... no need for you to tell her. I’ll tell her.”
Bush Beat became elated. “You’re coming along, then?”
“Under one condition,” Brightside asserted.
“Condition? What condition?”
“I want you to promise that you will help me return here if I decide I don’t want to stay in Equestria.” Brightside’s voice was serious.
Bush Beat froze in contemplation. Then he sighed and gave in. “Alright. I promise.”
“Pinkie Pie swear?” asked Brightside, his voice still fully serious.
Bush Beat briefly accessed his memory and then made the motions. “Cross my heart and hope to fly, stick a cupcake in my eye.”
Brightside smiled. “You remembered that well. Now, let’s get some sleep.” Brightside turned his head towards the light switch on the wall just next to the entrance and applied a touch of magic that turned the light off. Then he laid down on his side again, resting his head on the soft rug.
Bush Beat climbed onto the now-empty sofa and settled there to sleep.
“Bush Beat,” Brightside quietly stated, “you’ve changed.”