15. The Magic of Science
Two days went by, and the only knock at the Lulamoon door came from a package delivery. Discussions about the Gala still circulated the news, but they were no longer the top story.
Regardless, Sunset expected to find a sword hanging over her head whenever she looked up. She wanted to believe that the danger had passed. Instead, with each passing day, the knot in her stomach got a little tighter. Her glances to the calendar didn’t help either. August was days away now, meaning she had a month before Twilight and most of her friends took off for college.
It had been a year. It had been less than a year. Yet the night she had crawled out of that crater and began her road to redemption felt like a decade ago. She and her friends had been through so much together. And in a few short weeks, life would scatter them to the winds. What would she do without her friends? What would she do without Twilight?
Unfortunately, she was beginning to discover that answer already. Twilight spent half her day at that damned laboratory working on who-knew-what. Combined with her continued sword practice with Selena, Sunset got maybe an hour or two with Twilight before she had to go home. Sunset tried to be grateful; she put on a smile and a good attitude when she was with Twilight. She didn’t want to waste what little time she had arguing, but it was hard to not nurture the seed of resentment.
“Check. Checkmate in three,” Twilight said as she moved her knight.
Sunset lifted her eyes from the chessboard to Twilight’s self-assured smile. It was even harder when Sunset was about to lose for the nineteenth (yes, she had been keeping count) time in a row.
“Do you concede?” Twilight asked.
“You know the answer to that question.” Sunset put a hand on one of her pawns, tapped it, and then drew her hand back.
“You know, in official chess tournaments, refusing to concede is really frowned upon.”
“It’s a good thing this isn’t an official tournament then.” Sunset picked up her remaining bishop and scooted him forward three spaces.
Twilight gave a longstanding sigh but moved her rook. “I would think you had enough of a noble spirit to follow the rules regardless.”
“First rule of Sunset Shimmer: never give up.” Sunset moved her knight and captured Twilight’s rook.
Twilight responded in turn by using her remaining rook to capture Sunset’s bishop. “Check.”
Sunset scrunched her nose as she studied the board for any way out. “So, anything to tell me about your lab escapades?” she asked, stalling for time.
“Sorry, Sunnykins, but you know I can’t.” Twilight at least had the decency to look guilty.
“How would they even know if you told me? It’s not like I’m going to blab to anyone.”
Twilight shook her head. “I signed a contract. I’m not going to break an NDA this early in my scientific career.”
Sunset huffed as she moved her king up one square. “You’re too much of a good girl sometimes.”
“I’ll be honest, most of the things they’re doing aren’t that interesting. They’re fun and exciting! But not quite revolutionary enough to warrant an NDA.”
“Then tell me what you’re doing.”
“No.” Twilight moved her knight down and over. “Checkmate.”
Sunset didn’t bother looking. She threw herself back in her chair and slumped. “How do you lose nineteen games in a row?”
Twilight twirled a finger around one of her tresses and smiled. Being the graceful winner she was, she took the pieces and board and put them away. She returned to her seat on the couch opposite of Sunset. The Lulamoon house was quiet today; Trixie had gone out with her friends, Artemis was in his study, and Selena had gone to take a nap after Twilight’s training session.
The two girls made eye contact, but Sunset didn’t know what to say. They couldn’t talk about Twilight’s internship. Sunset didn’t want to talk about the future. And most of the events surrounding them in the present stressed her out. She tapped her foot against the carpet. Maybe they could binge something on television.
“Do you think the world learning about magic would really be a bad thing?” Twilight asked.
Sunset jerked up. “What?”
Twilight shifted her shoulders and lowered her gaze. “I don’t know. I was just thinking aloud. I don’t want anything bad to happen to you girls. But… what if the world learned magic existed? What if we could get back the magic Merlin locked away?”
Sunset relaxed a little. “I really don’t know. The whole world would be turned on its head, that’s for sure.”
“But… wouldn’t it make things better?”
“How so?” Sunset asked, tilting her head forward.
Twilight lifted her head. “Imagine if EMTs had Fluttershy’s powers. Or if construction workers could just levitate things. You’ve described your world so many times, where ponies can use spells and potions and charms to do almost anything they need without effort. It sounds like a utopia.”
Sunset raised a calming hand. “I wouldn’t go that far. Yeah, magic is pretty great, and in hindsight, Equestria has Earth beat in a lot of ways. But we have problems too. We’ve had a very precarious peace with the dragons for the last five hundred years. Monsters love to show up at the worst possible time. And just because we have magic doesn’t mean everyone uses it altruistically.” Sunset pointed to herself.
“That’s fair,” Twilight said, deflating a little. She perked up again. “But, if magic here works like how Moondancer and Selena said, that you have to train your soul to be in touch with it and use it, wouldn’t that weed out most people who would use it for evil?”
“I don’t know,” Sunset said with a dry chuckle. “I still have very little idea how magic in this world works. In Equestria, we had tamed it for the most part. We could break it down into different schools and write theorems on how we ended up with the spells we cast today.”
She lifted her hands over her shoulders. “Thanks to me and the princess, we introduced our magic to this world’s magic and created some weird hybrid that only just makes more sense than the Earth’s natural magic. Artemis barely understands why and how things happen.”
Sunset crossed her arms and hunched forward. “Seriously, it’s like this entire planet is the Everfree Forest back home.”
Gears turned in her head. Her spine slowly straightened out as they spun faster.
“Celestia’s secret cake,” she whispered.
“What?” Twilight asked, leaning forward.
Sunset stood up. “I just figured out why your world’s magic is so weird.”
“Yes?” Twilight pressed, balling her fists in excitement.
“Okay, remember when I told you about the Everfree Forest?”
Twilight nodded. “You said it was a highly concentrated area of pure magic.”
Sunset made a so-so motion with her hand. “Less ‘pure’ more like, unfiltered or unrestrained. It doesn’t obey the laws that we created. It’s… it’s wild.”
She made a sweeping gesture to the rest of the living room. “That’s this entire world! It’s running off wild magic! Or at least, whatever little magic that’s left can’t be defined into any category! It’s just the residue of magic in its unaltered state which can be molded into anything!”
Twilight bobbed her fists up and down. “So when it mingles with magic from your world…”
“At first, there was more Equestrian magic than Earth magic, which is why we got our pony features. But then, we kept generating and attracting natural magic, so it blended further—”
“And gave you girls superpowers—”
“Because it’s wild magic! It’s playing by its own rules!”
“So the reason magic is so hard to understand is because it keeps making things up as it goes!” Twilight leaned back into the couch, her excited smile melting. “That’s both fascinating and incredibly frustrating.”
Sunset took a seat as well. “Tell me about it. But, at least we figured out the ‘why’ of it all. That’s been kicking around in the back of my head for a while.” She blinked. “Sorry, what was the original question?”
“Oh… um…” Twilight tapped her fingers together. “Just, if the rest of the world had access to magic, would that be a bad thing?”
Sunset pressed her tongue against the inside of her cheek. “I don’t know. Given that we just learned this world’s magic does whatever it wants more or less, it’s really hard to say. It would really depend on who has access to it.”
Twilight’s frowned deepened. “Which is why Merlin thought it was a good idea to seal it away. He saw too many people abusing it.”
Sunset crossed her arms. “I still think that was an extreme reaction. Yes, Equestria, and my world at large, has had a number of villains and monsters use magic to usurp a throne or enslave a race. But every time, someone stood up and fought back and fixed it. Evil will always find a way to wreak havoc with the tools around it. All Merlin did was change the toolkit. Now, instead of magic, this world has nuclear bombs, which is arguably ten times worse.”
“Yeah, I can’t disagree there,” Twilight said with a bitter note. “I know Tempest is abusing magic to make all these monsters and revive Tirek, but I think that if used properly, magic could really make things better.”
“Well, I don’t think it could make things worse. Again, it depends on who gets it and what they do with it.” Sunset watched Twilight carefully. She didn’t look out of sorts or frustrated. Just thoughtful. Her curiosity of magic had only grown over time, and Sunset knew Twilight’s lack of ability was a sore spot. But this line of questioning felt different somehow. Sunset didn’t think Twilight was plotting anything, but something was turning in her head.
Whatever it was, it was gone in a blink as Twilight stood up and stretched. “I should probably head home. I have to be at the lab by ten.”
“Right, sure,” Sunset said, trying to keep a tight lid on her displeasure. She took a controlled breath while Twilight slipped on her shoes. “Hey, did you want to go see the Midsummer Revival with the girls?”
“Of course! My family used to go every year, but we missed the last few. It’ll be fun to see it again.”
“Cool. Date night then.” Honestly, Sunset had little interest in the revival, but she’d take any opportunity to spend time with her friends and especially Twilight. It wasn’t much, but it was something to look forward to.
*******
“No, no, Coco! I said jam red; this is sangria!” Rarity tossed the roll of fabric back at Coco, who fumbled it in the air before clutching it to her chest.
“S-sorry, Miss Rarity!” Taking a closer look, Coco could indeed see that she had grabbed the wrong shade. However, if Rarity hadn’t been demanding orders all day, and if the colors were properly labeled, Coco might have grabbed the right one.
With a tired sigh bordering on a huff, Coco jogged back to the fabric closet and selected the right roll. “Here you are.”
Rarity looked at it over her red spectacles. “Much better.” She snatched the fabric and began to cut into it with her scissors.
“Rarity, Rarity, Rarity, you really need to work on your time-management skills,” she mumbled to herself. Coco had to agree. While they had overcome the surprise challenge of designing a dress for Coloratura, it had offset their already precarious timetable. Now, Rarity had less than a week to submit her designs for her school competition.
Meanwhile, Coco had four days until the Midsummer Revival. And all she had to show for it were sketches that Rarity had barely glanced at. Thanks to all the coffee she had drank, Coco could blame her jittery nerves on the caffeine, and not because she was slowly sinking into a sea of anxiety.
But it was fine! Coco was sure that if they worked hard, they could balance their time and get both done. She just needed to find an opening and gently remind Rarity about the deadline.
“Coco, I need sequins,” Rarity ordered, holding a hand out.
Coco withheld another sigh/huff and did as she was asked. At least this time, Rarity didn’t snatch it away. She did, however, rush by Coco to the sewing machine, stepping on Coco’s toes in her haste.
Coco grimaced but said nothing. She followed behind Rarity and watched her sew the sequins into the hem of her new dress.
“Miss Rarity,” Coco said in between the puttering of the machine.
“Mmm,” was the only response she got.
“When we’re finished with that one, um, do you think we could take a short break and work on one of my designs? For the Revival? It’s, umm, coming up really soon.”
“Ah, yes of course!” Rarity exclaimed.
Coco clasped her hands together. “Really? Thank—”
“There’s a spool of silver thread in the top drawer of my desk. Be a dear and fetch that for me, please. I can’t believe I almost forgot it.”
Coco dropped her hands and shoulders. “Oh… yes, of course.” She trudged over to Rarity’s cluttered desk and pulled the top drawer open. She found plenty of empty spools and discarded buttons, but there was no silver in sight.
“Miss Rarity, the thread isn’t here.”
“It isn’t?” Rarity looked away from her sewing.
She heard me that time.
Rarity rapidly tapped her lip with her thumb. “Where, where, where… I know it’s around somewhere; I just used it.”
Coco closed the drawer with a little more forcefulness than she intended. She searched the entirety of Rarity’s desk, the surrounding cabinet, and between the huddle of mannequins off to the side. She finally found it under a pile of scrap cloth near the stage.
“Ah, I knew it was somewhere. My thanks,” Rarity said when Coco handed it over.
Coco gave a tiny nod. It would have been easier to find if Rarity helped keep the back room organized. Every time Coco got it clean, Rarity swept away her hard work with one of her projects.
Rarity did some quick needlework then ran her dress back to its respective mannequin, yawning as she went. “It’s getting rather late, isn’t it? Why don’t you go fetch us some more coffee, Coco? We need to keep going for at least a few more hours.”
Coco rooted herself to the carpet. She wouldn’t fetch anything until she got confirmation that the next dress they worked on would be one of hers.
“Miss Rarity, I—”
“Oh dear, I’m spacy tonight. Coco, could you bring me my measuring tape before you head out?”
Frown deepening, Coco grabbed the bundle of yellow tape and carried it over. Before handing it off, she said, “Miss Rarity, I would really appreciate it if we could work on one of my dresses after we finish this one.”
Rarity finally looked up at her, eyebrows raised in confusion. “What dresses?”
“My dresses for the Midsummer Revival,” Coco said, tightening her grip on the tape.
“Oh, yes, of course!” Rarity said with a laugh, shifting her eyes away from Coco. “I didn’t forget that. Umm, well, I need to finish these dresses for my school. But, as soon as we’re done, we’ll work on yours! I only have a few days left before submissions close.”
“And the revival is in four days! Which means it’s only three days until rehearsal!” Coco hadn’t meant to raise her voice, but hearing Rarity’s nonchalant tone drove her anxiety up.
“Don’t fret, dear,” Rarity said. It was meant to sound placating, but to Coco, it was just condescending. “If we work hard, I’m sure we can get both things done on time. Hmmm, but I do have a virtual apartment tour tomorrow. Oh, that’ll be a great time for you to get started on your designs! You can take a quick break from working on mine!”
If the measuring tape had been made of anything more solid, Coco would have snapped it in half. Rarity must have noticed Coco’s mounting frustration because she gave the girl a regretful pout. “I’m sorry, Coco, but these things happen. It can be hard to keep up with the demand sometimes, so you might have to make a few sacrifices. Now, I promise you, we’ll work on your designs as soon as we can. But I hired you to help me with my dream of becoming Prim Hemline’s intern.”
“And you promised to help me with my dream of saving the revival!” Coco shouted. “You already promised you would help me! And sacrifices? I haven’t seen you sacrifice anything! I haven’t had a day to myself in a month because you keep running out and leaving me to handle the store on my own! And we’re both in this mess because you just had to take a commission from Coloratura!”
Rarity’s cheeks flushed an angry red. “Now hold on just a minute! Don’t pretend you wouldn’t have done the same thing if you were in my position! That was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to really put my name out there!”
“Maybe I would have! But only after I finished the promise I had already made!” Coco rubbed off the tears falling down her cheeks. “I really thought I was going to learn something—improve as a designer. But so far, I feel like a glorified secretary. I have a dream too, Rarity! And if you’re not going to help me… then I quit!”
Coco threw the tape onto the floor and turned on her heel. She didn’t wait for any response from Rarity as she stormed out the shop and into the warm night. She wiped her tears again and suppressed a sob.
How dare Rarity speak of making sacrifices when it was only her projects and desires they had worked on in their spare time. Yes, Coco knew she was the boss, but Rarity had promised. And Coco would not invalidate herself just to lift up someone else.
She squared her shoulders. It was a long shot, but with the money she had made, she could maybe afford enough materials to put the revival costumes together herself. They wouldn’t be show-stopping like she hoped, but at this point, she would just be happy to have anything at all for the performers.
I suppose I should stop and get some coffee. She had a few sleepless nights ahead of her.
*******
Twilight’s fingers danced over the mechanical keyboard in a fluid flurry. She pressed her tongue between her lips, both in concentration and as an outlet for her nervousness.
She paused and double-checked her work, making sure every bracket of code had been properly closed. Finding no errors, she spun her chair around and looked at Starlight standing over her.
Starlight leaned in to check Twilight’s computer. She reached for the mouse and scrolled up and down a few times. “Hmm. You know, in hindsight, it looks really simple. Great job, Twilight.”
Twilight blushed. “Thank you. It’s not that different from the code I used on my selfie-drone.”
Today, Twilight had been asked to help out with a prototype for a mobile security camera. The goal for it was to be autonomous, respond to changes in lighting, and give a constant feed of what it saw. When Twilight had looked at it, it did none of those things. Now, she had at least gotten the feed recording to work.
“All the same, it’s very impressive for a girl your age.” Starlight straightened up and walked over to the table where the camera drone sat. She switched the recorder on. “How does it look?”
Twilight switched monitors. Starlight waved in front of the camera, and Twilight saw it on screen three seconds later. “There’s a small delay, but the feed is being broadcast and saved!”
“Progress!” Starlight cheered. She flipped the camera off and walked back around to Twilight. “We can work out the delay a little later. I think now’s a good time to take a break.”
Twilight saved her work and exited the program. She didn’t feel like taking a break; they’d only been working for an hour or so, and Twilight’s brain was buzzing with eagerness. That she had solved coding problems that had troubled Starlight and her scientists only enthused her more.
“Actually, Miss Starlight, if it’s alright, I’d like to try working on the drone’s flight capabilities. I had an idea on how to improve its stability when hovering.”
Starlight beamed at her. “I love that go-getter attitude of yours. Well, who am I to turn down a hard worker?” She looked over at the drone and sighed. “Wouldn’t it be so much easier if we could just make it levitate?”
Twilight let out a stuttered laugh. “Yeah, that would be…” Her eyes drifted to the floor. She thought of her and Sunset’s conversation last night, and talking with Starlight prior to that.
Magic. Science. Was one better than the other? How far could society go if anyone could access magic?
“Yoohoo. Twilight. Is something wrong?”
Twilight jumped in her seat. “Sorry! I spaced out a little I guess.”
“So I see.” Starlight peered down at her with motherly concern. “Is something the matter?”
“No… Well, nothing specific. I just…” Twilight wrung her hands. “I was just thinking… do you… really think magic exists?”
Starlight smiled. “I do. I can be a lady of science and still believe in the supernatural.”
Twilight nodded slowly. She was treading dangerous ground, and she knew it. She couldn’t tell Starlight what she knew, but she could pick her brain about hypotheticals. Couldn’t she?
“Do you believe in magic, Twilight? You seemed a little hesitant the last time you answered.”
“I… I do. I think there are things that science can’t explain.” Twilight took a deep breath. She didn’t know why, but her heart was beating faster than normal. “You said that if magic existed, it would benefit society. I believe so too.”
Twilight gave a strong shake of her head and forced a laugh. “I don’t know why I’m bringing this up! It’s all purely hypothetical! I’m sorry—I should get back to work!”
Starlight made a small ‘tut’ sound, still smiling. “No need to apologize, Twilight.” She leaned closer and spoke in a hushed tone. “It might be less hypothetical than you think.”
Twilight looked at her. “What do you mean?”
Starlight turned to the door, gesturing with a finger for Twilight to follow. With a tremble in her stomach, Twilight obeyed, following her out into the corridors and toward the elevator.
“Remember when I told you there was a part of the lab that was for our more secret projects?”
Twilight nodded numbly.
“Well, I think you’ve earned the right to see them now.” Starlight hit the down arrow. “You see, Equilibrium Labs works on a variety of projects. The ones up here are more… mainstream. Things people will understand and companies will buy. The rest…”
With a soft chime, the elevator arrived and the doors opened. Starlight ushered Twilight in, sweeping behind her and pressing the only button on the panel.
“It's hard to find open minds sometimes in a rigid field of logic,” Starlight said as the elevator proceeded downward. “Which is why I’m always so delighted to find those who are willing to entertain the more fantastical ideas! Even then, this isn’t normally something I would show an intern. But I believe you’re special, Twilight.”
Twilight’s heartbeat doubled. She was about to see something amazing, or something very, very dangerous.
The elevator came to a gentle stop and opened up to reveal a short corridor. Starlight stepped out and gestured with a finger. “This way.”
Twilight’s legs carried her forward, enthralled with the need to see this mystery through.
Starlight paused at a sliding steel door. “Now, I must remind you of your NDA contract. Everything down here is a secret of the highest caliber. Understand?”
A dumb nod was all Twilight could muster.
“Good girl,” Starlight said with a smile. She pulled a key card from her pocket and swiped it through a card reader on the side of the door. With a soft buzz, the door slid open, and Twilight had to squint her eyes from the flood of fluorescent lights.
When the room came into focus, Twilight’s jaw dropped. The large, square room was a hectic mess of desks, workstations, and whirring machines Twilight had never seen before. Every machine, however, had a long tube or thick cables extending from their tops and stretching up and across the ceiling to a central cylindrical device that hung from the roof.
But it wasn’t the strange machines flickering with bright lights that had made Twilight’s jaw drop. Nor had it been the sight of Double Diamond and Night Glider along with a dozen other scientists Twilight had never seen pouring over notes or tinkering with wires. No, it had been the feeling that had washed over her when the door had opened. It was a feeling she had been exposed to all year.
“Magic,” she said in a hushed whisper. She turned her head to Starlight, eyes wide. “What is this?”
Starlight, hands in her coat pockets, strolled forward. “This is the true purpose of my lab. The study, refinement, and practical application of the phenomena we call ‘magic.’”
Twilight scrambled after her. “B-but how! Magic can’t be—” Despite her brain short-circuiting from the flood of questions overwhelming her, she cut her sentence short. Starlight was studying magic, but she didn’t know Twilight was too, and right now, she needed it to stay that way.
“Can’t be real?” Starlight finished for Twilight. “I assure you, it is. Known to very few, and inaccessible to everyone else. But it is real.”
Twilight spun around, taking everything in as she approached the center of the lab. At one station, a scientist held a beaker of purple liquid over a peach. He slowly poured a drop onto the fruit and watched as it doubled in size. Across from him, Double Diamond held up what looked like a snowboard with an extra metal sheet attached to the bottom. Another scientist hit it with a laser, and the metal began to glow a soft blue. Diamond tossed the snowboard down and grinned as it hovered just off the floor.
“How?” Twilight asked again, whipping her head back toward Starlight.
“Well that’s what we’re trying to figure out,” Starlight said with a cheeky smile. When she saw Twilight’s unamused glower, she just smiled wider. “Oh, you meant how we got this far.”
Starlight cleared her throat. “I’ve known from an early age that magic existed, and have spent most of my life trying to figure out how and why. My previous experiences with it gave me a foundation on which to build hypotheses and the means to test them. You see, magic is fundamentally just another type of energy and emits radiation, like electromagnetism. With the right equipment, it can be tracked and measured. It can even be attracted and contained if you know how.”
She pointed to the cylinder above them. “Our satellite outside? It’s actually a magnet, or rather, harvester for magical radiation. Magic is pulled in and stored up there, then we channel it through wires and tubes, like an electric current that acts as a power source for our experiments.”
Starlight lowered her arm and frowned in contemplation. “Now, we can’t harness magic ourselves like wizards or something, and a lot of our equipment is based on educated guesswork. So, it can be volatile to say the least. It’s an untested form of energy after all. But it has limitless potential!” She looked at Twilight, eyes shining. “You see it, don’t you? What humanity could accomplish if it had magic? Moreover, imagine the heights we could scale if we combined magic with science! No door would be closed to us! The leaps and bounds we could take! The miracles we could perform!”
She lifted her hands and spread them toward the cylinder of magic. “That is our grand aspiration: to unlock the secrets of magic, reveal its true potential, then apply it to what we already have! Cars fueled by magic, diseases cured with panacea, criminals stopped with divination! A new golden age ushered in!”
Starlight threw her arms out and lifted her head. “Science powered by magic! The new great equalizer!”
No one else in the lab paid Starlight’s performance any mind. Machines whirred and pencils scribbled. Twilight was the only one pulled into Starlight’s universe.
This was it. It was no longer idle curiosity. There would be no more amateur study sessions or experiments in a garage. Here, right before her was proof. Magic could be contained. It could be studied. It could be used by non-magical people. Starlight had a goal. The betterment of humanity. And science and magic working together? Twilight had never even considered such an idea!
Starlight lowered her arms and cleared her throat. “Sorry, I got a little carried away there. But, you understand, don’t you Twilight? What we’re doing, and why I had to keep it a secret.”
Twilight thought about their lunchtime conversation a few days ago. That had been a test. Starlight needed to see how open-minded Twilight was. Anyone who didn’t believe, or rather, couldn’t believe would see this and dismiss it as crackpot.
She gave a firm nod. “I do. I’m just… amazed at everything you’ve done so far.”
Starlight gave a bashful flip of her hand. “Oh, it’s nothing special. Not yet. Like I said, magic can be volatile. It can be hard to get it to do what we want, and even harder to produce the same results twice.”
As if on cue, Double Diamond’s hovering snowboard shot out of his hands and flew toward the wall, hitting it with a loud clang and sticking in place.
Wild magic, Twilight thought. But she couldn’t tell that to Starlight. There was actually a lot she couldn’t tell Starlight. As far as she knew, Twilight was just a bright, curious young mind. She couldn’t know that Twilight had done her own experiments, or about her magic-empowered friends. Although, judging by Starlight’s progress, she probably knew more than Twilight did.
But, Twilight knew she had to measure herself. They weren’t men in black, but these were some of the people Sunset feared. Starlight had said she would test humanely, but she would still test. Twilight wouldn’t let that happen to Sunset, no matter what the end result would be.
“I’m sure you have a few dozen questions,” Starlight said, watching two of her employees try to pry the snowboard off the wall.
“I do. I’m just taking everything in.”
“It is a lot. You’re doing quite well so far. A lot of people faint or ask if this is a dream by this point. Or they call me crazy and back away slowly.” She added a small chuckle at the last part.
Twilight nodded. “It does feel like a dream come true. How many others know?”
“Most of the lab personnel know. There might be a handful of outliers left. I don’t let people down here until they’ve proven their merit as scientists.” Starlight tilted her head down and smiled at Twilight. “And I see a great scientist in you.”
Heat rose to Twilight’s cheeks. “Th-thank you. So, um, what can I do to help?”
Starlight’s smile widened. “I just love that go-getter attitude! Well, let’s take you around and show you what we’ve learned so far. A second orientation. Then, there’s a specific task I would like your help on.”
“What’s that?”
Starlight lifted a hand and placed it on Twilight’s shoulder. “I call it the Arcane Access Project.”
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Twelve minutes. Haven't been this early to a new chapter drop before! Happy that you're on the up Albi :D
Now LET'S GET INTO THIS YEEEAAAHHHHHH
Not being very good at this?
I mean, it would be cool, but, in the kindest way possible, there's people who freak out at the slightest hint of someone deviating from "the norm". X-Men is all about how poorly the world handles people who can do More.
I, would not go so far. It's great, but, there's no way to guarantee that everyone will use magic altruistically.
You'd be surprised.
Pardon?
A whole world of wild magic. Interesting.
Oho yeah.
Also a VERY valid point.
Labelling is important.
RIP.
Yeah, this, was a long time coming.
Hm, my Sginificance Sense is tingling. Could just be paranoia.
You are doing this on purpose.
Ominous!
There's overlap.
Oh I bet.
You are doing this on purpose. You are deliberate playing on our knowledge of her from the show and our possible Dramatic Irony. And I applaud you for it.
Could. The key word is "could". You COULD do this. There's also a very real chance things could go very, VERY wrong.
Eh, that sounds a bit too "punishment before the crime" for me.
Equalizer. Hm. I bet you're cackling behind your screen.
Ohoho, I BET.
Good.
That's either a compliment, manipulation or both.
Ominous!
Cute.
Ah, I see what you did there...
I would posit that magic wouldn't necessarily make life better, just change the baseline. With every improvement comes a cost. With every cure comes a new disease.
I feel for Coco. Unfortunately, Rare was being very selfish.
Idk if I already said this, but it would certainly cause new and exciting problems.
I think that's something only you can figure out Sunset.
Not to mention a lot to take in!!
Knowing Rarity and her work, that'll be hard to do.
Way to go Rarity.
Interesting.
Oh boy!
I see the midnight sparkle set up. She's gonna be unleashed and wanna probably tear Adagio limb from limb and blast tempest into oblivion.
I wonder if starlight will officially join the good guys cause it doesn't seem like she has ill intent for the use of magic. If anything her work with Tempest seems involuntary and I get the feeling she's working secretly with Moondancer.
Just spectacular, utterly spectacular. I could feel the tension all through, for a variety of reasons. Sunset wants to feel happy for all Sci-Twi is doing, but losing out on time with someone you love, especially when that time is about to become even less, is hard to deal with. Sunset is trying to just keep a strong face and not cause any problems, but these are some issues that need to be talked about before it just blows up into something worse.
And we certainly saw that with Coco and Rarity. We know Rarity is a good person and has a very good reason for running off, but her selfishness has allowed Coco to suffer as she keeps doing so much to help Rarity and not getting enough in turn. Coco did bring up several good points, such as Rarity's disorganization. She may know where everything is most of the time, but most people won't, and that kills any precious time they have left to get things done. It was good for Coco to let her hurt and wants be known, as sometimes you have to raise your voice a little to get through. Hopefully Rarity will start to realize that soon and pull something out to help.
And now Starlight. I can't help but feel the subtle tension in what Starlight knows. I doubt she just happened to get Sci-Twi by accident. And even if she did find an intern with an open mind, would she really bring one in so fast to the secrets of magic? Plus, she continues to praise Sci-Twi repeatedly, making her give more trust and admiration to Starlight. I can't help but wonder on the camera Sci-Twi helped them with. Sure, she is intelligent and likely could fix it, but what if it wasn't no one else could fix it, but they made it seem like that to pull Sci-Twi in further? Again, we know Sci-Twi is smart enough to do it, but if they made it seem like she could offer up things no one else could, that'll make her more likely to open up in time about what she knows, however subtly.
And it seems Starlight's dreams of making everyone equal goes in the opposite direction this time. Pony Starlight wanted to take everyone's special talents away. This Starlight is wanting to give everyone the chance to be special, to have a power of their own. Maybe she does have good intentions, but like Sunset pondered, who knows what problems may arise from this. Every discovery is a double-edged sword, and I'm certain the other edge will make the first cut in time.
It is fascinating to see Sunset and Sci-Twi figure out the "why" of magic. Maybe in time they'll be able to make use of that knowledge to help bolster their efforts, to shape the magic better through their own. It'll also be interesting to see what becomes of the chess matches. Sci-Twi may keep winning, but she is falling into checkmate with everything Starlight is doing, and while Sunset may keep losing, it may be because her mind is subtly on other things, preventing her from seeing the whole board clearly to win.
Another wonderful chapter and I hope things are going better for you.
Only Wild Magic left?
Oh dear.
Its Too Many Pinkies all over again.
CRIMSON FLAG! CRIMSON FLAG!
...and there it is. Starlight is studying and processing magic, and Twilight needs to tread a very thin line here. She can't tell Starlight about her friends because it'd endanger them, and the reverse is true because of the NDA she signed. I don't see this ending well.
Not surprised Coco quit; Rarity treated her like trash and didn't even realize it. Good set up for the Generosity key, though. If Rarity owns her to her mistakes and shoves her own projects to the side to fulfill her promise to Coco.
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"Hey how can we make nuclear bombs worse? Just add magic!"
Twilight, you clever girl. Technically not breaking your NDA.
Big OOF as I recently had to delay a Rarity cosplay I was planning on revealing at Ciderfest this year but procrastinated too much.
Oh, that surely won't be used to get a better look at the masked vigilantes, nosiree.
"The road to Hell is paved with good intentions. "
Things that Twi needs to keep in mind is that any discovery can be used for good or ill. It all depends on who gets their hands on it. And she needs to keep her excitement in check less she let slip she is dating a unicorn. After all, the inventor of the machine gun was a doctor who wanted to put less lives at risk.
Poor Coco. I would have walked too.
Do you watch Arcane?
Just curious
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Would you believe me if I said I didn't notice until the editing phase?
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Haven't seen it yet. On the list.
I'm thinking Coco will be the next person "influenced" by wild magic
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Let me know who your favorite character is when you get around to seeing it
Gotta say, I'm both thrilled and sad that I've reached this point. Love the story, sorry that I missed the quiet moments where you had to step back briefly, and sadder still that I've gotten to the last update. Well worth the binging. Love how you've figured out/decided 'Human' world magic works, that's usually the hardest part of world building with magic. But it works really well! have a good holiday season and can't wait for the next chapter!
Trust me, she knows.
ANYWAY, I'M SO EXCITED ABOUT THE NEW CHAPTER
Way to go Rarity.
As for Twi. Please don't get carried away.
Little surprised Twilight's not the least bit suspicious. She knows Tempest is gathering magic and has access to vast resources. Starlight just said that she's gathering magic and where would she get the funding for such a project? What are the odds of a third party with those resources being in the same city as Tempest and the Spectacular Seven?
After a failed suicide attempt and a month of imprisonment in a psychiatric hospital, I come back here again to enjoy a new chapter.
Many thanks to Albikorn for his wonderful fan fiction
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Hope you're doing OK. (HUG)
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Everything is slowly getting better, thank you!!
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Life is hard. I know from both first and second-hand accounts how hard it can be sometimes. But I’m also glad you’re still here and I hope my silly story will keep bringing you some enjoyment.
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This story is not stupid at all, but my favorite
New chapter. LET'S FUCKING GOOOO!
In all seriousness, another great chapter. Keep it up and i promise not to kill god.... for the most part. I'm sorry but some crimes can't be forgiven, and creating the British is unforgivable.
The alternate chapter title is too good. Starlight definitely knows who Twilight is, and is luring her in. The quality mix of Twilight's dangerous faux-SOL bits, Sunset's chipping worries, and Coco boiling over at least create a brimstone atmosphere ready to ignite. Everything it ready to ignite.
I also LOVE this throwaway gag. Genius writing as always!
Oh my god shits about to get real!!!!! I am so excited for the possibility that might we get to see Midnight Sparkle in this universe, if she shows up she's going to be a force to be reckoned with.
Tensions are rising!
I’m conflicted.
I don’t know what direction I want Twilight’s character to go in.
On the one hand, giving Twilight magical powers would be great. She would no longer be the black sheep of her friend group. Her insecurities would disappear and she would be on the same level as her magical friends and girlfriend.
On the other hand, this would undermine the entire point of Twilight’s character, which is to show that she is on the same level as her friends. That she doesn’t need magic in order to compete with it. Giving her powers would be throwing away her entire growth. Making Twilight the Badass Normal of the group is a bold move, but ultimately, it’s the right move.
In the end, it only matters what you decide. But know that if you decide to leave Twilight magic-less at the end of the book, I, for one, am totally okay with that.
I haven't started this yet, but I just reread the first one and decided it was time. Was really trying to hold out until it had that complete tag on it but I'm being impatient.
I'm going to have to ask formally that you don't suddenly abandon the story because I've been hurt before.
I just want to highlight how on-point your Starlight Glimmer is. The voice sheʼs using, the tone sheʼs using, the message sheʼs spreading, the way sheʼs leading. Itʼs eerily and uncomfortably similar to unicorn Starlight in Friendship is Magicʼs S5E1 and S5E2.
This is Starlight Glimmer at the peak of her villainy - the well-intentioned extremist who truly and genuinely believes that the morally questionable things sheʼs doing are for the benefit of society. I could practically hear Kelly Sheridanʼs voice in those chapters.
Stellar work, Albi.
I do get the feeling Twilight is going to be pressured to unleash and/or free the magic before we're through.
Finally caught up with this story, now I have to wait.
This is amazing so far though, can't wait to see what happens next.
plot twist the pocket dimension merlin sealed the earth's magic away is actually equestria
Yeah, that's. . . going to explode. Probably take a good portion of the city with it if it explodes in the wrong way.
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In a way that does make sense. You could argue that Equestria IS a pocket dimension. After all, no sun can orbit a planet. And the Sisters move celestials body like the sun, moon, stars. And if you need Alicorns to do the job, how the hell did this planet even survived in the first place in it' state of infancy. Better yet, how did ot get out of it? The answer is "impossible" In the first place, if you think about it, Equestria does seem a little bit ... fake, so to say. Luna for example can move the moon and the stars. But those stars, seem like little balls of light in the sky, not hot giant stars in the vast space. It's like the hole "universe" that is Equestria, is a little further then the moon and sun. Hmmm, you do make a good point mate, you might be onto something here.
I'm sorry to be that guy, but, when is the next chapter?
Come on! Why is it marked incomplete? Would there be a next chapter? Or perhaps a sequel? Would love it
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Don't worry, there will be a next chapter. When tho? I couldn't tell you. I wish to know that myself. The reason is probably real life complications.
You cheeky son of a gun, I see you.