Chapter III
Chapter III
Celestia rubbed her temples with her hooves, trying to relieve the headache that had built there. There was so much to do, and so little time to do it. Tomorrow she had to meet with the griffon ambassador, explain to the press why a spacecraft pulverized a residential area of Canterlot, and meet with the aliens that had caused the disaster in the first place.
Today was no less busy. On top of everything else she had done today, she still had a mountain of paperwork to fill out, a couple of nobles to meet with, and to top it all off, she still had to write letters to the families of the victims from the crashed ship. As much as she felt for them, and as much as she pained over the senseless loss of life, it was still something that she was extraordinarily reluctant to do.
It wouldn’t have been the first time she had drafted such a letter, and it wouldn’t be the last; but even after a thousand plus years of practice, it was still a task that she felt completely inadequate at.
She was just glad that Luna was back to lighten the load.
With a sigh, she levitated her quill in front of her and put it back to the paper. Before she had finished the first word, though, there was a sharp rap on her office door. “Come in,” Celestia said, grateful for the momentary diversion.
The door creaked open a little to allow the sergeant at her door to peek in. “Your Highness, Miss Sparkle and our new ‘friend’ are here to see you.”
With a start, Celestia glanced up at her clock. She had completely forgotten that she had set up a meeting with the lost ~human~ today. “Send them in,” she said as she cast the Translation Spell on herself.
The sergeant nodded as he opened the door wider to allow entrance. Without any fanfare, ~Alex~ walked in, the shoes that Rarity made for him clicking softly against the marble floor. “Hello, Sun. You wanted see?”
“Hello, ~Alex~, Twilight. How was the first language lesson?” Celestia asked curiously.
“I actually want to talk to you about that later, Your Highness,” Twilight piped up before ~Alex~ could answer. “We should really deal with the matter at hoof first, though.”
Twilight looked a little worried about something, but Celestia let it slide for now. “You are quite right, my faithful student,” she said as she stood up from her desk. “We have a demonstration for our friend, and only a half-hour before we can show it. If time has taught me anything, it is that Luna is already there waiting for us, wondering why we are so late.”
~Alex~ looked incredibly confused at this little speech, but did not say anything about it as he fell in line behind the Solar Princess. “How do you think he will react?” Twilight asked as she kept pace with her teacher.
“I imagine a similar reaction that the first Diamond Dog ambassador had when he saw this for the first time,” Celestia said, her grin becoming more impish. “If memory serves, he didn’t actually believe me, and instead thought that my charge was some kind of glorious god, and I was taking credit for his work.” Celestia then leaned in, and dropped her voice to a whisper. “I only hope that ~Alex~ doesn’t fall to his knees and start worshiping me like Boss Lucky did.”
Twilight let out a small giggle. “He didn’t really do that, did he?”
Celestia’s smile grew even more impish. “The Diamond Dogs are a superstitious lot, and were even more so several centuries ago. Yes, he really did do that. It took me forever to get him to stop groveling.”
~Alex~ looked more and more confused with every passing moment, but he didn’t comment on it. Celestia was sure that he was filing away everything that was said, until such a time that he could properly ask about what they were talking about. She was even more sure that the number of questions he was going to have was about to triple.
The rest of the journey went by in relative silence, which, to be honest, was somewhat nice. Before her sister’s return, before the rediscovery of the Elements, Celestia had found herself growing increasingly bored. The endless line of nobles and dignitaries who would all lie through their teeth to curry favor, the dull parties where petty people would flaunt their wealth, the aching loneliness that could only be felt in an unfeeling crowd, it all weighed on her far more than she would let show.
It was ironic, then, that now that her wish had been granted, that she desperately wished for those days back.
The odd procession stopped at a rather small, unassuming door, which Celestia opened without ceremony. Beyond it was a large balcony, over which could be seen the city of Canterlot, the neighboring countryside, and beyond. True to Celestia's previous prediction, her sister had beaten them here. “I was starting to think I would have to send a search party.” Luna teased.
“Oh, hush,” Celestia said as she joined her sister at the balcony. She then turned towards the wayward alien and straightened her posture significantly. “Now, ~Alex~, what we’re about to show you will fly in the face of most of what you believe to be true. Know that what you bear witness changes nothing about me and my sister. We are mortal, flesh and blood like you. We are not gods.”
This seemed to confuse the ~human~ further. “Not think gods. Even if name translate Moon Goddess Sun Goddess, not think gods. Why say?”
This caused Celestia to almost burst out laughing. “I’m sorry, I did not know that our titles translated that way to you,” she said as she brought herself under control. “I truly have no idea why the spell does some of the things it does, but our titles do not mean 'Goddesses.’ Rather, they mean 'Daughters of Power.’”
The ~human’s~ incredibly expressive face scrunched up at this. “Daughter of High Being… “ He muttered to himself. Before either princess could correct him, however, he suddenly looked up at them, understanding written on his face. “Princess?”
“Correct, though I am sure your word for it is less accurate than ours,” Luna said with a smile.
~Alex~ gave the two alicorns a rueful smile. “No matter. Now know important thing. Know won't think you gods. Not that superstitious.”
The two sisters glanced at each other, then back at ~Alex~. “Then stay, and witness as we lay to rest the day, and bring forth the night.” Celestia said, almost as if part of a chant.
The ~human~ looked at her oddly, but stayed quiet, apparently waiting for the demonstration that had been so overly hyped, yet never completely explained.
Luna looked at her sister, a question in her eye. “Do you really think a simple setting will be enough?”
Celestia sighed a little, then shook her head. “I do not. If he has not noticed it yet, then it is probable that our sunset looks identical to the ones he has seen on his home planet. I believe we must do 'the dance’ in order to get him to understand.”
The ~human~ put his hand under his chin, clearly trying to work out what the two were talking about. The purple pony next to him, though, looked like she was about to explode with excitement. “The Solar Requiem? I've only read about this! I’ve never thought I would actually get to see it!”
The two sisters did not pay either of them any attention, though. They were too busy concentrating on maintaining harmony with each other.
“I fear I may be a little rusty, dear sister,” Luna confided in Celestia.
“Do not worry, Lulu. I haven't done this since you left, either,” Celestia whispered back as the two began to glow. “Hopefully, we’ll catch each other when we fall.”
Luna smiled gratefully, then closed her eyes as the energies of the moon flowed into her. It felt… odd, to do this again after so long, but at the same time, it felt so right.
It almost felt like coming home.
* * *
“...His race does bow to others, just not all of his race. Based on this fact, the value he places on his own freedom, and the samples of his language that you collected, I would hazard a guess that he comes from this nation here,” Kivalt said, highlighting the area in question on the hologram.
“That... is an incredibly broken up country. Why hasn’t this nation here,” Akitesh said, pointing out the area north of the mainland. “Annexed this portion here?” she asked, pointing towards the huge area to the west.
“There are several reasons; the two countries in question are allies for start, and are actually quite friendly with each other. On top of that, while this is still firmly a type four civilization, they already have a few pieces of tech that belong to a type five people: They’ve already split the atom.”
Akitesh gave a low whistle. “They’re nuclear capable already? I would think they would be wary of a power that can rot life away.”
Kivalt winced a little. “They… are, just not to the level that we would be.”
Before Akitesh could ask her to elaborate, Lokar replaced the view of the planet with a model of a human with a press of a button. “Their bodies, and genetic structure, are incredibly resilient. For all carbon-based lifeforms, ionizing radiation breaks down the genetic code, causing mutations and eventual death. They are no exception to this rule, but they are able to take a ridiculous amount before suffering any side effects, and even then, it isn’t always immediate.”
Akitesh gave the xenobiologist a skeptical look. “That seems a little far fetched for a people without a spiritual field on their planet.”
“Off the top of your head, do you know how many rads an unshielded Quzin can take before death?” Lokar asked, his tone similar to that of a serpent setting someone else up for something.
“Easy, two hundred rads, though it can be more if treatment is quick.”
“They have had people who have taken double that, and have shown little or no symptoms for several days. They still show all the classic symptoms, but at a much slower rate. Not only that, but their mortality rate for radiation is much lower than ours, at about thirty-five percent without treatment for that level of exposure, rather than our comparatively pitiful one hundred percent.”
“...And you’re sure that this planet doesn't have a spiritual field?” Akitesh asked, her tone clearly impressed.
“We are certain, My Priestess,” Kivalt said, changing the display back to the planet. “However, as interesting as that is, it is a little off topic. The point is, is that they are wary of the effects of ionizing radiation, but not at the same level as most other races. According to their records, the mage who pioneered much of what they know about radiation and radioactive material used to carry radium on her body at all times. She still died from radiation poisoning, but it was a long time before she noticed any ill effects.”
Akitesh closed her eyes, a pained expression on her face, then opened them again. “Okay, fine. Let's get back to trying not to bite our own tails. What can you tell me about his culture? What does he consider ‘polite’?” she asked, her eyebrows furrowed in concentration.
“According to our studies, none of our customary motions, greetings, or anything of the sort would be considered impolite,” Kivalt continued. “They have taboos about wandering around naked; they consider certain words impolite in general conversation, though most ignore this taboo; and they seem to have a fondness for projectile weaponry,” Kivalt sighed, then rubbed her forehead as she tried to think of something else important to add. “To be honest, the country is kind of like a crucible. So many people have immigrated, or are still immigrating from all over the planet to live there, that trying to describe them is like trying to describe an entire ocean’s worth of fish: A task that would take longer than we have time for.”
Rather than put the priestess on edge, though, this seemed to relieve some of her stress. “That is good. If he is used to strange and fantastic cultures, then it should be easier to avoid offending-” she started to say, but stopped when her communicator buzzed to life.
“Priestess! You’re required on the bridge!” She heard Jedon’s panicked voice over the device.
“Stay here, we’ll finish this when I get back,” Akitesh said as she closed her eyes. She then drew upon the artificial spiritual field of the ship, located her command chair, and willed herself there.
She took a second to reorient reself, then snapped her eyes to the view screen in front of her. “What is… Jedon, what in the name of the Divines is that?!”
* * *
“Uh… captain?” Lieutenant Talian asked with terror in her voice.
“Don't touch a thing, don’t move a muscle,” Captain Hazalk said, his eyes wide and his antenna standing upright. “I don’t know what the Priestess is doing, but she wouldn’t throw it at us. She'd be killing her own people, and the people of the planet.”
“Sir, the moon is moving erratically as well. I don’t know what is going on, but it almost looks like a… dance, of sorts.”
Hazalk squinted at the monitor, and noticed that while the two heavenly bodies were moving far faster than they should, it was still in a predictable pattern. Up here, down there, a figure eight there. To the Krin ship, and how close they were to the action, it didn’t really look like much, just a sun and a moon doing circles and figure eights against the backdrop of eternity.
But he was certain that, down on the planet, what was happening in the sky was the show of a lifetime.
* * *
He was right.
All across the land of Equestria and beyond, people of all shapes and sizes were staring up at the sky in wonder. Some were taking pictures, some rushed into their homes or places of business to tell those inside of the beauty that graced the skies above, while a select few started running around, screaming about how it was the end of the world, and how they should all head for the bunkers that no one had.
To the northeast, on a tiny island nation, the people of Minos looked up into the sky in fright, while far south, the Queen of the Changelings only felt envy at the immense power on display.
Even further south than that, on the Zebrican Mount of Eyes, the Seer of Time gazed up at the dance, her sightless eyes seeing far more than any of her attendants. “Get me a scribe. We need to send word to the Sun and Moon immediately,” she said, her voice distant.
Far to the east, further than even the isle of Minos, the Griffon Emperor sat on his balcony, gently swirling a glass of Chardonnay in his claw as he stared up at the spectacle in delight. Behind him, he could hear the worried murmurings of his council, but he paid them no mind.
Even as they theorized and argued over what it could possibly mean, and whether or not Discord was behind this, all the King of the Skies did was slowly bring his drink to his beak, and sip with an almost indecent casualness.
“Your Eminence, what do we do?” one of his councilors asked him directly, bringing his attention to the worried councilor. “If this is the work of Discord, we need to prepare for when that demon comes to our lands.”
The Emperor turned his gaze back to the skies above, looked down at his glass, then gave a contented sigh.
“We do nothing,” he said, then downed the rest of his drink in one gulp.
“But sir! If-”
“It isn’t Discord,” the Emperor said, a note of finality in his voice.
“Then… what does it mean?” The councilor asked, his voice calming slightly, but his confusion only growing.
“Only good things,” the Emperor said cryptically. “And all I have to say, is, that it’s about time those two did something fun together.”
This only raised his council’s confusion, but he didn't care. They would learn of this dance’s meaning soon enough.
* * *
I stared at the sight before me, unable to move, unable to think. The sun was moving so fast that it left glowing streaks on my retina, while the moon was right beside it, its glow bright enough to be seen even in mid-day, following its partner’s demented dance across the sky. They would loop around each other, often crossing paths to create a brief eclipse, only for the light to return seconds later.
Slowly, my eyes panned downward until they centered on the two sisters on the raised dais. Sun was glowing a bright gold, her eyes a brilliant white as her mane rippled with power untold. Her sister, Moon, had a deep blue glow, while her eyes and mane seemed to look like nothing more than holes in the fabric of reality, through which I could see an eternity of stars and galaxies swirling in a never-ending void.
Quickly, my eyes shot back up into the sky above, then back to the two princesses, then back again. Slowly, as the sun returned to its original position and sank below the horizon, one fact bubbled to the top of my incapacitated brain.
They can control the freaking sun and moon.
I stood there, just staring at the sky long after the night had come. Voices tried to get my attention, but I couldn't understand them. I felt a hoof gently touch my shoulder, but still I did not move. Something waved in front of my face, but I couldn’t comprehend its meaning.
Finally, with a strangled squeal, I slowly tilted sideways and collapsed.
“Well, he took better than expected, thing being considering…” I heard someone say nearby as I tried to make sense of the world around me. I was failing, but if I could talk, I would have to agree with whomever said that. All things considered, flipping my lid would have been a completely appropriate response...
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So, humans are the cockroaches of the galaxy?
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That's not necessarily a bad thing.
7283485 It actually is a great thing, considering we are still sapient even as metaphorical cockroaches.
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Just look on HFY on reddit or this tumblr post, Link. It's pretty cool.
7283503 Yay, I'm a cockroach!
7283522 Or just google The Jenkinsverse.
Ah. Humanity Fuck Yeah. Never will you be so proud to be called non-sapient.
Well, I suppose the sun of Equestria must be very unlike the sun of Earth, since you've decided to set Equestria in the same universe as our own. The reason being that if Equestria's sun was a normal yellow dwarf star, then it gives off normal light, which takes over 8 minutes to reach the planet. During the demo, there would have been around an 8 minute time lag of the dance, but since it all happened in real time... ...I guess that was a scientific oopsie-daisy?
I suppose Alex has got a lot of questions now, one of them being the most important of all regarding the planet's celestial bodies. I won't say what it is in this comment, because I want to see if the author knows to have Alex ask that question in the next chapter or two.
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I get the feeling that the author came across this once or twice and incorporated it into this story. Compared to other animals around our size, we are very difficult to kill and our endurance is unmatched. The only things that can challenge us (as in humans that aren't sloths) in land distance are Horses and Wolves, and that's only when it isn't hot out.
Off the top of my head, I'd say that the albatross is the only creature that I know for sure can beat us, and they cheat.
Gotta love the Jenkinsverse. So many good moments with a lot of the authors, there.
I liked how you showed all the other reactions to this even the ones on the planet since it most likely has been over 1000 years since the last time it ever happened. Although now I'm really curious as to how the fallout of this little stunt will go with the two alien factions watching. Part of me is hoping that the next time they meet and bring that up both sisters have a 'oops' moment as they realize that they forgot they were up there when they were doing it lol. I doubt it but it is funny to me. You know it's not just moving them that is impressive but moving them without causing mass destruction to the planet as well from doing it given all the gravity they would be messing with.
Sure Celestia can move the sun but that seems to be all she can do.
Also The Jenkinverse is awesome.
7283567 horses don't stand a chance check ultramarathon and compare it to a distance a horse can go without rest.
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I love that thing.
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According to what I´ve read, the human body isn´t build for power but for efficiency.
Me thinks a certain snake lady it shedding her skin right about now
7283755 I never said we were powerful or especially strong, nor did anything in the link I provided. Humans being the galactic supersoldier is a Jenkinsverse thing. Our endurance is a 'symptom' of our efficient body design.
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The Jenkinverse? Can that safely be assumed to be another story(ies) of the authors?
7283839 The Jenkinsverse
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Yay! Thank you, this looks like just the right type of pick-me-up after watching 'Humans Need Not Apply'. Seriously, that is some depressing and sobering stuff. /shudder
derpicdn.net/media/W1siZiIsIjIwMTMvMDMvMTcvMTJfMTNfMDdfNjVfMjcyODgxX19VTk9QVF9fc2FmZS5naWYiXV0/272881__safe_animated_bipedal_roseluck_daisy_lily_running_artist-colon-jdan-dash-s_flower%2Btrio_panic.gif
7283888 My favorites are The Jenkinsverse & The Xiu Chang Saga (the latter has been absorbed into the former), Salvage, Guttersnipe, Jacob the Monster, MIA, and Carrying the Torch. (I don't care for Humans Don't Make Good Pets.)
7283936 Panic Sisters lol
I love how the Griffon Emperor was casually staring up at the sky while most of the people around the world are surprised or shocked at the sight of what they are seeing.
I am really looking forward to the reactions from our orbiting alien friends. They seem a tad bit surprised.
Why did I suddenly have the mental image of a krin in roman armor standing frozen in front of a giant squirrel?
Dude, this was a great chapter! really great! i couldn't find a single error.
loving the reactions of all the different nations. the reaction of the zebra's has me the most interested though. i know everyone was enjoying the griffon emperor's reaction, but i wanna see what the zebra wanted to tell the princesses.
have a stache
this chapter made me shed a tear
...
darnit knight breeze, stop doing that!
Ah the fainting human. Was just waiting for that one
mommy says that you should look directly into the sun or you will be blind for it.
Lol, Alex's reaction was priceless. And the Qzin's already bad day just got even worse.
7283551 It is. The Equestrian star is a lot smaller, for one. Two, it is a lot closer. Three, the high magical fields that their planet, sun, and moon all have an influence on how a lot of things work in local space-time.
Don't worry, though. As soon as Alex regains motor functions, it'll be pretty hard to get him to stop asking questions.
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More or less:
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Ah, but will Alex ask the one key question regarding the entire system? To my knowledge, it has only ever been asked in one story on this entire site, and I have reason to suspect it was only included in the story because I left a comment detailing it in the chapter right before the one where it was asked.
But I suppose I can't ask if you know what I'm talking about without giving it away. I guess I'll just have to wait and see just how wide Alex's perspective is on the matter.
7283654 Well, some of Aiktesh's people were mentioned in earlier chapters of having powers much like that: Void or Warp Warriors--I think they were called.
For them, it would be like: "Oh shit! THEY can do that, TOO! Seriously good thing we didn't piss them off!
"
Interesting times, for sure!
Keep going! ;)
7283785 Imagine her reaction to Discord.
Always good to see the ‘living up to the hype’ scene done well.
A lot of authors and critics point to the Princesses mediocre showings as proof they aren’t actually very powerful. Thing is… even if they are doing it by some cheat or workaround the fact remains that they can swing celestial objects about the planet’s orbit like yoyos.
Being a one trick pony is not a problem when your one trick is ‘throw a star at them’.
Very good, very good. Now, I have a question… What exactly can psychic powers do? Like, I get how there's basic telekinetics. And if MLP is anything to go off of, there's definitely dream walking, and a lot of other stuff. But what else can psychic species do? Specifically, our species. What can we hope to achieve? If our brains are basically Quzin brains in human bodies, then we obviously share powers with them, is that not right? Well, what throws me off is how Alex has used abilities that, apparently, no Quzin has seen before. His technomancy is unheard of by the other races. Wh that's important is because, frankly, if the Quzin could manipulate technology, then everyone would already know of this, and have defenses against psychic attacks. Instead, Alex managed to infiltrate what I assume to be a high-class military vessel's database at record speed with no speed bumps, and was more or less handed all he needed on a silver platter.
Does this mean that humans have our own unique set of psychic powers? Or does every psychic have their own set of powers? Oh, someone just explain already!
7284514 Don't worry, it will be explained! One thing, though. The powers that the human has shown the Quzin he has, they've seen that before.
What surprised Akitesh wasn't how he had done it, rather it was the speed at which he worked.
I can't WAIT until the snakes and bugs figure out that it was Celestia and Luna doing all that.
7284534 Oh. So, I do have to ask… Hypothetically, have there been humans in the past that awakened their powers? Like, in this fic's universe? Say, someone who was born at just the right moment where spirit energy just… coalesced at the proper time? A random event, if you will.
And another question… What do each of the alien races look like again? I keep imagining the Quzin as lamias from Monster Musume, and the other species (forgot their name) as Hydralisks from StarCraft.
Not that that's a bad thing, mind you. But I would like to be accurate.
7284586 I actually posted a picture of the Krin before. It's not very good (just a doodle I did a while back), but here it is:
lh5.googleusercontent.com/-m4M4F313TW0/VLIjUCczy4I/AAAAAAAAACw/YgOp6KL05JA/w225-h353-no/Krin.png
As for the Quzin, yeah, the lamia are probably a good stand in, though they are a lot more reptilian, and have no mammary glands.
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PM me the question.
7284601 Thanks. And, seriously… Did a few humans awaken their powers in the past? One or two, at least?
7284609 I ain't telling! That'd be spoilers!
Well there's so many different ways you can use the magic excuse to explain the how of controlling the Sun and Moon that it's hard to guess which route you'll take.
You've already crossed off them rotating a tidally locked planet though.
7284619 Fair enough.
Oh! I just remembered another question. How many other species exist out in this world? How many are psychic like the Quzin? Are there stronger?
7284619 Certainly any such humans in the past would be the basis for many of our myths. The only question would be which ones? Zeus & the Greek pantheon--if they were really "human"-humans, maybe?
Or perhaps the humanoid aliens that Apollo was a member of from the Original Star Trek episode??
Brains work via electricity, to dumb it down, yes? There is magic that can control electricity, yes? Is there then a massive spell that cancels the electric impulses of a large group? This could lead to instant paralysis or brain death. Your thoughts?
The impish chuckling is real.
That was just... fun to read. Very good sir.