XVI - Building Upwards
Rarity gasped. “You’re not seriously thinking of building that there are you?”
The worker dragon looked up from his job – placing magic markers so they could construct buildings in the crystal of the Bowl. They needed to build Harmony City faster, by magic or otherwise, for the Equi were finding it difficult to wait outside without a home. The Ark couldn’t hold them all…
“Are you going to move it!?” Rairty asked, shaking the dragon out of his thoughts.
“…Where?” He grunted.
“Over there! We can’t have the already narrow walkways getting even narrower! As it is the bigger dragons can’t even fit!”
The dragon blinked, annoyed. “If I put it back the final construction will interfere with the power lines, miss.”
Rarity twitched, trotting up to the large glowing mote that was the marker. With some effort she levitated it into the middle of the two proposed places. She took in a sharp breath. “How about that?”
The dragon narrowed his eyes. “But now it won’t be symmetrical…”
“Asymmetry is artistic!” Rarity blurted.
The dragon sighed. “Whatever.”
“Is it ready?” Rarity and the dragon jumped from the authoritative voice of Luna.
“Your majesty – of course! Ready as ever!” Rarity nervously smiled.
“Good.” She said, spreading her wings and focusing. Magic shot forth form the tip of her horn, surrounding a marker. The energy jumped from the primary marker to another marker, where its path split to touch multiple markers at once, eventually creating a lattice of all thirty markers. The beams of energy began to vibrate, sending bursts of energy out their sides, constructing walls seemingly out of nothing. Black bricks were laid, ornate windows were crafted, and the flat roof was smoothed to a sheen. In a manner of seconds, a roughly square building stood, its dark colors contrasting with the bright crystalline ground.
Luna gasped from the expenditure from energy – this was her seventeenth building today… She looked up at her handiwork – and frowned. “…Is it lopsided?”
Rarity groaned. “…Asymmetry is artistic?”
“I like it,” Luna said. “Gives it a lot more character than the others we’ve been raising…”
The three turned to look behind them. Aside from the ornate crystal towers that now surrounded the Ark’s wreckage, all the buildings were just different colored bricks stacked on top of each other. Sometimes there were patterns, but more often than not, it was just grid section after grid section, building stacked on top of building, slowly spreading out with only minor variations depending on whose magic constructed it. The ones that looked the best were often the ones that the earth ponies built from scratch… And those were very uncommon.
Rarity sighed. “How dreadfully predictable…”
“There will be renovations after it's complete,” Luna reminded her.
Rarity facehooved. “But renovations will take years! Until then we’re left with this dull mess.” She looked upwards. “Well, most of us.”
Luna followed Rarity’s gaze to the clouds being collected above them. A tremendous city was being formed, filled with graceful buildings, brilliant streets, and hundreds of flying Equi. The main difference between it and regular Cloudsdale is that it had two of the Ark’s salvaged engines strapped to it for maximum mobility. “New Cloudsdale is going to be the hub of weather control. It has to be better constructed for that purpose.”
“Doesn’t mean I can’t be jealous,” Rarity muttered.
Luna smirked. Then she spread her wings and took to the sky. She might as well check on them. Sure enough, as she got closer to the cloud city she saw a streak of rainbow flying left and right, shoving more and more clouds into the construction area.
Rainbow Dash noticed Luna shortly thereafter and flew right to her. “Hey Princess! How do you like our soon to be awesome cloud city?”
Luna smirked. “I have yet to see it in full, Rainbow Dash. Care to give me a tour?”
“Sure can!” Rainbow Dash zoomed to the center of New Cloudsdale in the blink of an eye. Luna rolled her eyes, teleporting to the speedy Pegasus. In the center of New Cloudsdale was a giant holographic globe, displaying an image of all Garilend’s weather systems. Colors and shapes that Luna barely understood were constantly swirling around the clouds – presumably with some meaning that was simply beyond her understanding.
Rainbow Dash frowned. “Got a hurricane brewing. We’d better be ready to operate by then. Don’t want more destruction… Spike!” She called. “Will we be hurricane-ready by then?”
The dragon looked up from the blueprints. “Uh… maybe? It’s hard to tell…”
“Well organize those papers faster, gari are counting on us!” Rainbow Dash ordered.
Luna smiled. It was great to see drive in her ponies in a time of struggle… It felt good to actually be doing things again.
~~~
“Fluttershy?”
“Yes Applejack?”
“Did you convince the ‘wombats’ to leave the field?”
Fluttershy smiled. “Oh yes! Found them a nice tree a ways away that was much better than that... hovel.”
Appleack grinned. “Thank ya! Every extra bit of land we can get means a lot!”
“How’s the growing going?”
“Already got some parsnips,” Applejack said. “Don’t taste all that great but it was the fastest growth Ah’ve seen yet! Planted some apples today too – though those won’t be ready for a few years no matter how much we urge them.”
“Wow, you really are putting all your effort into this aren’t you?”
“Yep, gotta feed everyone. I think in about ten years we’ll have solved the food problem.”
“Applejack!” Big Mac yelled from behind her.
“Um, yes?”
“Granny says Zap Apple Season happens here too. Don’t ask me how she knows, she just says it’s happening now.”
Applejack’s eyes widened. “Go get me one of those powerful unicorns and make a tree. We’re having zap apple jam this year!”
“Ooooh!” Fluttershy said. “Applebloom will love that!”
“Yah, she will,” Applejack agreed. “Wonder what she’s doing now…?”
~~~
“I get off that silly ship and what do I get? Plowing!” Applebloom wailed. “You two have it easy…”
The two voices speaking through her earphones giggled. “I guess we haven’t been asked to do much…” Sweetie Belle said.
Scootaloo chirped in. “We did help a changeling choose a cutie mark. That was fun.”
Applebloom groaned. “Ah wanted to do the crusadin’ with you…”
“Applejack said you could come back once you get a system going.” Sweetie Belle reminded her.
“So get ‘er done so you can see the new clubhouse!” Scootaloo pushed.
Applebloom cocked her head. “…Clubhouse?”
“Scootaloo that was a secret surprise!” Sweetie Belle chided.
Scootaloo chuckled. “Well, I uh… oops?”
“That’s it!” Applebloom yelled. “This farm is going to get completed as soon as possible! I will get back to you two faster than you can say ‘apple!’ We will crusade and this farm will be absolutely amazing!”
“Yeah!”
From atop a hill, Celestia watched the yellow filly work with new vigor.
Celestia smiled.
~~~
Pinkie Pie burst into the Lobby. “Woah!” She said, seeing Starlight and Orgis meditating. “That looks awesome!”
Neither responded to her presence. Neither seemed to know she was there. Pinkie frowned. “Really? Meditation can’t be that bad... Ignoring me is like not having breakfast!”
There was no response. Pinkie shrugged, sitting down at the table, opening her mouth to yammer on about balloons made of soybean oil.
Dear Harmony she’s staying. Starlight inwardly groaned, making no outside indication she was annoyed. Despite this, Pinkie knew.
“Ha! I knew it was impossible to ignore me!”
Starlight sighed and stopped the mediation. “Pinkie, Orgis and I are trying to reach into the essence of the Tree of Harmony. We’re seeing if it can touch Orgis’s mind.”
“Oh,” Pinkie said, looking closely at the pink gari. “…Okay!”
“And that makes sense to you. Not surprised, come to think of it.“ She turned to Orgis. “Wow, she still hasn’t broken concentration. This is impressive. She must really want to feel the Tree…”
“What did it feel like when you felt it for the first time?” A new voice asked – Cadence.
“Don’t you already kn- oh right…” Starlight looked sheepish. She turned to look at the Tree of Harmony and closed her eyes. “I first felt it when I tried to rewrite time… Undo the deaths; rewind that which could not be rewound… I was sucked into a world of death, a world of empty ponies… And then the Tree grabbed me, pulling me out of that place which should not have been. That feeling… was like staring into the sun. There was a searing pain that came over me, a wave of overwhelming raw emotion – a flood of magic that surprised even me. I thought I was going to die, like those I had tried to bring back. But then I felt the beauty, the glorious beauty. The power of the being that was with us through all time. It was… too much, and I returned in a crazed state… Unable to think… But I couldn’t let go of that feeling. I kept returning, again and again, and each time it became easier, more bearable. Now I can do it with ease…” She furrowed her brow. “It feels… anticipation right now. Good anticipation.”
Cadence blinked. “Wow,” was all she had to say.
Pinkie was munching some popcorn. “Amazing story! Now stay tuned for the sequel!”
It was at that moment Orgis was enveloped in a burst of blue magic, her body floating into the air. She let out a little yelp of pain, but kept her focus, holding her arms out. The blue magic shifted to pink, and her hands lit up with energy…
Then she was unceremoniously dropped to the floor with an “oof!”
Starlight’s jaw dropped. “Orgis! Are you okay?”
The gari stood up, slowly. She looked into the distance with a blank expression. She raised her left hand, and snapped her plastic-like fingers. A burst of neon pink energy shot forth from her fingers.
“Magic!?” Starlight gasped. “The… The Tree gave you…”
Orgis trembled. “I… I…” She reached to her headset, and turned it off for the first time since she arrived. She turned to Starlight. “I… have seen it.”
“And?” Starlight asked, putting her hoof on Orgis’s shoulder.
“…There is something I must do. Goodbye, for now.” She smiled. “These few weeks have been amazing.”
“…Orgis, where are you going?”
“Home,” was all she said, before walking out.
Starlight furrowed her brow. What? What? What was she doing?
“Secrets,” Pinkie said in answer to Starlight’s unspoken question. “She has secrets. Big secrets.”
Starlight frowned. Orgis would have no secrets with the Tree of Harmony… At least not anymore. It was impossible to keep things from it… Starlight connected with it once again.
The Tree was surprised, baffled, angry, relieved, happy, somber, and introspective all at the same time. It wouldn’t give her any indication why.
What was going on?
~~~
Sunset looked up from the tourist brochure. “Well, looks like the diner up ahead has good reviews. They specialize in different kinds of bacon.”
Discord let out a sharp chuckle. “Surely you’ll know how silly that’ll look! They already had a fit when you ate regular meat, now this?”
“I’ve been known as ‘baconhair’ the entire time I was in the human world. I’m used to it.”
“And there’s your problem! You let a bunch of dumb hairless apes give you a moniker.”
“They’re not dumb!” Sunset retorted.
“Two words. High. School.”
Sunset bit her lip. “…Yeeeeah.” They never did figure out why the portal to Earth had collapsed when the sun vanished… She often wondered if she had been on the wrong side at the wrong time.
The two dropped the topic and threw open the doors of the Boistorous Bacon. The patrons were all gari – save for one familiar Pegasus sitting alone in a booth, munching on a green piece of bacon and reading a gari newspaper. She wore a purple cloak, safari hat, and currently had a pair of spectacles on her face. Her wings were twitching in time to the music coming from the nearby jukebox – which was playing an Equi song, The Spectacle.
“Darin- er… A. K. Yearling?” Sunset asked.
Yearling looked up and smirked awkwardly. “Ah, Sunset, Discord. I’ve read a lot about you two lately. Front page on this newspaper, actually. What brings you here?”
“Seeing the sights, that sort of thing,” Sunset said.
“Alien conspiracy,” Discord added.
Yearling raised an eyebrow. “Oh?”
Sunset facehooved. “Discord that’s a secret!”
“Oh really? Since when?”
“Since we don’t want the entire gari population on our backs more than they already are!”
Yearling chuckled. “Get an alias. It works wonders. Plus, most of them don’t understand Equi anyway.” She smirked. “But since you’ve spilled the beans, you can’t not tell me.”
Sunset sighed. “There’s another Mite. We’re traveling around, scanning everything, to see if we can find evidence of the other one, or the one that escaped in the crash. To find any information.”
“Find anything?” She asked, waving for the waiter to get more bacon.
“Nope,” Sunset said, disappointment evident.
“Checked here yet?”
Sunset blinked. “You know what, I haven’t. I’ll do that now.” She lit her horn and scanned the town with her magic. She fell out of the booth upon doing so, startled by the results.
Yearling grinned. “Ooooof course. This is always how it works. The moment I’m dragged in something gets found. Where is it?”
“The jukebox… Telling it what to play…” Sunset said, a little dumbfounded.
Discord blinked. “It’s working on a jukebox and it’s playing ‘The Spectacle’ for us? Meh, it needs to get better taste.”
The waiter brought them bacon, and Sunset teleported the Mite off the Jukebox. Discord grew it until it was the size of an ant. It freaked out – not only was the scenery changing impossibly but he was back as well! And worst of all the music was gone!
“Hello again,” Discord said. “Miss me?”
“No,” The Mite responded, ears twitching involuntarily. Nothing about this scenario was possible.
Sunset blinked. “It really is a one word wonder. You weren’t kidding.”
Yearling smirked. “Classic golem speak. Here, Mite, do you understand me?”
“Yes.”
“Are you aware of a second Mite?”
“Yes.”
“Do you know where it is?”
“Crucible?”
Sunset frowned. “The capital of this country?”
“Yes…” The Mite droned, annoyed.
“Where in Crucible?” Yearling asked.
“Underground.”
Discord groaned. “See? He’s sooo helpful.”
“Affirmative.”
“And he fancies himself clever…”
“Perhaps.”
Yearling bit into her bacon and frowned. “Why is it there?”
“Key.”
“Another alien artifact, of course…” Yearling muttered. “How do you know the Key is there?”
“Hacking.”
“The gari know of it?”
“Some.”
Sunset blinked. “Wait… if some of the gari know something, shouldn’t they have reacted when we told them about you?”
“Yes.”
“See?” Discord said. “Alien conspiracy.”
“Definitely.”
Sunset frowned. “Something fishy is going on here… Mite, could you take us to the key?”
“Probably.”
“What do you want in return?” Yearling asked.
“…Life.”
“We aren’t going to kill you.”
“…Freedom?”
Sunset frowned. “Do you still plan on blowing us up?”
“No.”
“Then you already have your freedom.”
“…Music.”
Discord laughed. “You just want music? Well sure, Mite, you can have all the music you want forever if you do this! I’ll even write new stuff for you! I’ll find you stuff that doesn’t exist! I’ll let you experience music like never before!”
“Thanks.”
Sunset turned to the others. “Well… we have a guide, and a goal. I think we should tell Twilight what we’re doing and go investigate this conspiracy immediately.”
Yearling smiled. “I love how I’m just automatically part of the group.” She finished her bacon. “…You know, I never understood why most ponies hate meat…”
“It’s a bit of an acquired taste,” Sunset said.
“Eh.”
Discord grinned. “Hilarious. Eating meat. What hath science wrought?”
“Your face,” Yearling responded.
Discord blinked. “…You know that sounds childish but is actually pretty clever. Bravo. Have an air horn.”
Sunset sent off the message through her magic, ignoring the air horn that drove the restaurant crazy. After having some pictures taken with the restaurant owner (which was to be framed and subtitled with Baconhair’s Boustrous Bacon Bounty, proudly hung on the wall forevermore) they went outside.
Twilight was already standing in the doorway. “I’m ready to go. Where to?”
Sunset blinked. “I didn’t ask you to come-“
“I’m here anyway. I want to know what this all means.” She twitched. “I’m tired of unknowns and secrets. It’s time for answers!”
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So they have a key, leaving 3 options.
1.) The Gari have some kind of secret extrasolar space program, possible, but unlikely given how the secret society reacted to the Arc's ftl travel
2.) The key crashed on the planet and they found it, which is about as likely as...
3.) The Gari evolved on this planet after the key was placed/left here, which means the secret society is covering the fact that aliens either visited the planet before, or lived here before the Gari evolved
Twily is going to Twilight
Loved the alliteration
And cool, the Tree now knows. The plot thickens
Those secret order scientists are probably having fits now.
No I was wrong, now they are having fits!
If I could I'd give you another thumbs up for that line alone!
Oh dear the purple smart wants to know something.. the purple smart is relentless when she wants to learn something.
Curious question what happened to the portal? Did Equestria get cut off from the human world, or did it freeze too? or is the mirror on the ship? If it's on the ship did time pass at the same speed? Heck Sunset could check it out and discover like a week had passed for her human friends.
You can't handle the answers!
An air horn? I wanted a head that's always screaming!
8002840
If you'll read back through the comments, originally I had planned for the humans to be on the Ark with the Equi. They were removed since they didn't really add to the plot all that much, and there were some less-than-pleasant reactions to them.
Now I say Sunset was on Equis when the sun vanished - and that for some reason that sun was needed to keep the portal open. It closed then.
-GM, master of jacks.
8003380
Bill Cipher sends you his regards.
-GM, master of i.
8003488 I still think it would be funny if the portal came back to life and Sunny found out barely any time had passed at CHS. Deactivating portal does explain the "why was no one trying to go to the human world" question, though all of Equestrian trying to get in likely would have broken the universe due to imbalance.
This is awesome
8003489
You know, you could make the Garilend host star have a massive solar flare the would fry the planet, extra crispy.
Then have Tia detect it and with Lulu's help contain it. Thus having more physics breaking shenanigans.
8008493
Going to take a moment to remind everyone that the entire story is already written. I have the physical first draft on my desk in front of me. So while I am open to changes, major alterations are highly unlikely, seeing as how it's already written.
That being said, they probably could do that. They could do that if it were to happen.
-GM, master of worms.
8010923
Not everyone wants to live forever. Why else would it be such a major theme in so many stories that living forever isn't all it's cracked up to be? At the very least, those authors didn't want it - so there's some people on this earth who don't want to live forever. If you'll notice, I'm pointing out as a major theme of the first seven chapters that an infinite earthly life is not all it's cracked up to be either. While not necessarily bad, it opens a can of worms that should be considered.
Also I chose to ignore my personal headcanon that the Elements of Harmony are immortal, though I do believe that's the case in-show. As an author I can take creative liberties and experiment with what-ifs all I want. It's more interesting that way.
-GM, master of posted.
8010956
Care to explain what parts exactly were illogical so I can fix them?
-GM, master of fixes.
Ok, that's it. Mite is from now on my favourite character.
>> Fatail
Mite is a mite (or should I say a bit) more talkative than Bit from the 1982 Tron. I like it too.
Someone please tell me I'm not the only one who knows what Bit is.