[obstinateNarcoleptic opened memo “Inscriptions and in Spirographs”]
It was a record. I didn’t have the first clue what I was supposed to do with it. Play it, probably. Which would be a lot easier if I owned a record player.
I turned Twilight’s latest gift over in my hooves, checking one more time to see if there was writing anywhere on it. There wasn't. But in the center, on the part without grooves where the label usually goes, there was a symbol etched into the material. A circle, with a number of curved lines inside it. A spirograph, Twilight would later tell me it was called, although I didn't really care. On the reverse side, there was a different picture. It looked like a house, or what a six year old would imagine a house looked like, and only then if the house had been carved into eight pieces, plus a roof.
Why had Twilight sent me this? The last time we spoke, she was talking about saving the world, and now she wanted me to listen to some music? At least, I assumed there was music on it; the package hadn't come with any instructions. I breathed a sigh of relief as I realized that this package, strange as it was, meant Twilight was still alive.
I wanted to ask Twilight about this and make her explain herself, but precociousPerfectionist was still missing from my pestertome's list of users.
Still, I needed to talk to somepony about this. Somepony I could trust.
obstinateNarcoleptic (ON) began nickering oldYeller (OY):
ON: applejack
ON: ?
ON: come on...
OY: its okay Rainbow Dash
OY: im here
OY: now whats got your feathers all in a bunch?
ON: i just got a record from twilight
ON: one of those spinny things that music comes out of
ON: I dont get it
ON: like
ON: what the hay does she want me to do with this
ON: play it
ON: ?
ON: I dont even own a record player
OY: not to belittle your argument, Dash
OY: but isnt this a thing best settled tween the two of yall?
ON: did you get one though
ON: ?
ON: i guess is what im asking
ON: is this part of twilights save the world plan or did she just decide i should listen to beeethoofen
OY: i did not get anything from Twilight in the mail
OY: have you played it yet?
OY: truth be told id be kind of scared to
ON: whats the worst that can happen aj
ON: its a record
ON: it makes sound
ON: it won't kill you
OY: yes
OY: a normal record would behave exactly as you just said
OY: a normal book would not let you talk to other ponies
OY: and yet here we are
OY: if Twilight aint gonna send us a normal book why would she send us a normal record?
OY: maybe you could ask her?
ON: are you kidding
ON: ?
ON: twilight hasn't been on in ages
OY: hold on, RD
OY: let me get her
Why me? I felt like I no longer understood anything. What was so special, so unique about this record that Twilight had made one just for me? If I had a record player, I might have had some answers by now.
And apparently she was back on the scene and had neglected to inform me. I turned back to the list of other book users, confused. precociousPerfectionist was still missing, but for the first time, I saw another name.
nebularOedipus
The hay? Before I could question this further, the newcomer began writing to me.
nebularOedipus (NO) has joined the conversation.
NO: Hey guys.
NO: Sorry for he radio silence.
NO: I've been really busy.
ON: twi
ON: ?
NO: Yes, Rainbow Dash?
ON: twi your name changed
NO: Yes.
NO: Yes it did.
NO: I lost my Pestertome and had to obtain a replacement.
ON: okay fine
ON: took you long enough to get back to me twi
ON: a month
ON: really
NO: I'm sorry, Rainbow Dash.
NO: I really am.
NO: But like I said, I've been busy.
ON: busy with what exactly
NO: I've been figuring out how to transcribe spells onto physical media other than scrolls.
NO: I presume this is what you wish to talk to me about?
I didn't have words to respond to this. Applejack did.
OY: woah nelly
OY: you telling me that this here record is magic?
OY: that instead of playing music it casts a spell?
NO: Two spells, actually.
NO: One on each side.
ON: and what do these spells do
ON: ?
NO: I don't know.
Was it just me, or was Twilight being a bit crazier than usual? Hay, I enjoyed being reckless at times, but this plan was beginning to seem downright suicidal.
ON: really
ON: please tell me youre joking twi
ON: you sent sent me a magic item in the mail when you yourself dont know what it does
ON: what if it exploded
ON: what if it had exploded in the mail
ON: think about derpy
ON: theres a reason she doesnt handle fragile shipments
NO: Relax, Rainbow Dash. I'm fairly certain the record won't explode.
NO: Besides, the spells are dormant until you play the record. Just keeping it around is harmless.
OY: to reiterate, Twi, youre telling me that these records are gonna do something magical when we play them but you dont know what
NO: Correct.
OY: so youre giving them to RD
NO: Correct.
OY: presumably to play them
NO: Precisely.
OY: and this doesnt strike you as just the tiniest bit dangerous
NO: Of course, it could be dangerous.
NO: We're treading into unknown territory.
NO: But we're running out of time, and it's important that we figure out what the message is.
OY: running out of time?
ON: what message
NO: Equestria is under attack.
Finally, some action, I thought, and then I immediately felt guilty. Equestria being attacked was bad news, even if it was a break in the endless string of boring days and nights. Fortunately, our friends had a go-to strategy for getting rid of baddies.
ON: time to break out the elements
ON: ?
NO: Not quite. We can't take this fight to its source because I don't have the first clue where that source is.
NO: There isn't a commander or ruler to take down, because we aren't being attacked by a living thing.
NO: Equestria is being besieged by meteors.
NO: Meteors which are being teleported here from someplace else.
NO: I think any attacks or negotiations against inert chunks of space rock is an enormous waste of our time.
Never mind then. Banishing meteors to the moon did seem a bit silly.
ON: again
ON: what message
NO: The spells. We discovered them on one of the meteors.
NO: Or, more specifically, carved into the walls of a building deposited by one of the meteors.
NO: Whoever is responsible for this, these ruins were their opportunity to send us a message.
NO: This was the message that they chose. The only message they chose.
NO: Whatever those spells do, the ponies behind this deemed it important enough to pass along.
NO: And that's reason enough for me to want to know what they do.
NO: Because if anything is going to save Equestria, its in those spells.
NO: The problem is, though, I can't test them myself.
NO: From the experiments I've been able to perform, one of the spells is a beacon. It generates a signal that the other spell detects and attaches itself to.
NO: Beyond that, however, I don't have a clue. Both spells need to be cast together for there to be any effect, but if the sources are too close to each other, they interfere.
NO: I'd like to perform two experiments, so I can observe the effects of both spells firsthand.
NO: I won't make you do this, Rainbow Dash, if you don't want to.
ON: are you implying i might be too chicken to play a record
ON: im in
OY: you sure about this, sugarcube?
ON: hay yeah
ON: except i dont have a player
NO: You don't?
ON: why would i?
ON: you cant take them with you
ON: music is only something you can listen to when youre standing still
ON: rainbow dash does not stand still
OY: you can use mine, RD, if you like
ON: fine
ON: be right over
ON: dont have much else to do today
OY: see you then
oldYeller (OY) has left the conversation
NO: Thank you, Rainbow Dash, for agreeing to do this with me.
ON: hey
ON: you said this could save equestria
ON: and i would be majorly bummed if equestria was destroyed on my watch
ON: especially by meteors
ON: stupid things cant even fly
ON: just sort of fall
ON: like penguins thrown out of a hot air balloon
NO: …
NO: Okay...
NO: Well then, which side of the record do you plan on playing?
ON: i dont know
ON: the one with the weird circle pattern i guess
NO: The pattern is called a spirograph.
NO: That picture designates the “server” or beacon spell.
NO: I will connect to it. And then we will get to see what happens.
NO: Do you understand?
ON: loud and clear twi
ON: just one question though
ON: why me
ON: if you want to study magic wouldnt you be better off with rarity
NO: I chose you because I trust you, Rainbow Dash!
ON: aww
NO: And also because Pinkie Pie told me to.
ON: what
NO: I spoke to her the other day.
NO: I don't know how, but she knew what I was up to before I told her.
NO: She knew I had made the record.
NO: And she told me to give it to you. She said that was the only way to advance us toward our collective goal. I don't even know what she meant by that.
NO: But I think I've reached the point where I almost take her advice without questioning.
NO: Almost. I am still a scientist, after all.
NO: But she knows a lot of things that the rest of us don't have a the first clue about.
NO: Like the parasprites.
NO: And she has her own Pestertome. It isn't the one I gave her. I don't know where she found it.
ON: basically if its pinkie pie you dont know
NO: Essentially.
NO: Say. You're adopted, right?
ON: what does that have to do with anything
NO: Do you know if any of the others are, besides you and Fluttershy?
NO: I mean, Pinkie Pie doesn't look anything like the rest of her family.
NO: I have never seen Applejack's parents.
NO: And Rarity's parents just seem too young.
NO: Is it a possibility that we're all adopted?
ON: what brought this on
ON: wait
ON: are you saying that youre adopted too
NO: Yes. That is exactly what I'm insinuating.
NO: I don't want to say anything if I'm wrong.
NO: But I have a theory that these meteors aren't being sent through space.
NO: They are being sent through time.
NO: Some of them landed in the past. Containing the six of us.
NO: We may not be native to Equestria, Rainbow Dash.
NO: We might be about to fight our homeland.
NO: This may be a bit much to take.
NO: I'll let you go get the record player from Applejack now.
NO: Talk to you in a few?
ON: yeah
ON: ill go do that
obstinateNarcoleptic (ON) ceased nickering nebularOedipus (NO)
I let that stew for a moment. Did I arrive in Equestria by meteor? I wasn't going to rule it out as a possibility. I never knew who my parents were. The closest I had to a parental figure was Commander Hurricane, a pegasus who lived a thousand years ago. She had been my idol growing up, and a proud warrior. I had done everything I could that I thought might make her proud.
I put the book in my saddlebag and held the record in my teeth. Carrying something that thin and fragile in my mouth seemed like a bad idea, as a sudden shift in my flying could break it in half. But what else was I to do? It would be really nice, I remember thinking, if there were some way to store and carry items, regardless of size. Something magical.
Later, when I received such an item, I would quickly regret making that wish. As it would turn out, extradimesional storage was much more troublesome than I had expected.
However, I had yet to experience that nightmare. Instead I merely took off toward Sweet Apple Acres, being very careful not to break the record.
[obstinateNarcoleptic closed memo “Inscriptions and in Spirographs”]