A Different Maestro Spectrum

by The REAL Mister Pkmn

Chapter The Twenty-Second: The Choice

For what seemed like forever, Maestro found himself sinking through the raw mana around him. Much to his surprise, he could breathe in this environment. He wondered about this for a moment, but he soon felt something stir within him as he fell. A distant memory started to dust off in his mind, one he had recalled pieces of before. He could feel his memories reigniting…

Maestro looked around at the scene he was recalling. It seemed to be some kind of secret high-end facility in an undisclosed location. The floor was made of polished linoleum, and the walls were a sterile white. In a closed off chamber, there was a young human boy in a capsule. Maestro recognized the young boy with chestnut brown hair as his former body. He stared for a moment, coming to grips with what he was seeing. The boy in front of him was who he was before coming to Equestria. An innocent child, not knowing the dark intentions of his father. He recalled only wishing for one thing- to make his father proud of him. That was why he had been so eager to sign up for the “Observer” position, not knowing the true extent of what that entailed, or any of the implications.

He turned his attention to those watching in the room outside. This room had concrete floors and tall blue walls. Four figures stood in the room, and he knew them well. The portly figure in a bronze colored pinstripe suit was a balding man known as Supervisor Bronze. Maestro found it sad that Bronze had conjured hair for his pony avatar to compensate. The next in line was a lanky fellow with spiky gray hair in a silver colored dress suit. This was the one known as Supervisor Silver. Maestro recalled how often he used to annoy him, and it still drew a small smile to his face.

The one after him was a perfect image of a snobbish rich man, dressed in a full gold colored suit. He even had golden blonde hair. This was the most serious of the three, Supervisor Gold. He was the only one that Maestro had never crossed, aside from his father. Speaking of, Head Supervisor Platinum stood ad the head of the group, his imposing figure more intimidating than the others. His scarlet hair contrasted harshly with his black suit. He looked as if he could easily bench press a bull. He spoke into a microphone on the desk in front of him, so Maestro’s past self could hear him.. “Observer Spectrum. Are you certain that you want to take on this job? This could be quite a dangerous mission. You can back out, and we will not think less of you. You can always wait until you’re older, son.”

Maestro watched on helplessly as his past self shook his head with determination. “With all due respect, father, I’ve made my choice! I’m not reneging on this.” The boy took a deep breath to steady himself before he called back through the microphone again. “Alright, I’m ready to do this! Send me over, Head Supervisor Platinum!”

Platinum sighed with resignation, shaking his head. The other three men went to their stations, and waited for the procedure to begin. They produced keys matching their color coding from their pockets, and waited for further instructions. Platinum then called out to them one by one. “Supervisor Bronze! Turn your key!” On que, Bronze inserted the key into the console on his desk, and gave it a quarter turn to the right. The capsule’s thrusters started to hum with life. “Supervisor Silver! Turn your key!” Silver turned his key a half turn to the right, and the gate behind the capsule started charging energy. “Supervisor Gold! Turn your key!” Gold turned his key a whole turn to the right, and the capsule locked, the life support jumping online. A glass lid slid back from covering a key card slot on Platinum’s desk. Then, Platinum took out a card key from his suit pocket, and inserted it into the open slot on his desk. He then followed the prompt for voice recognition, and spoke the password. “Platinum Purity.” A green checkmark was holographically projected mid-air, and the gate behind the capsule opened wide, displaying a view of Mytharia. A quiet forest that knew not the touch of man, and the first entry point for Maestro’s past self. The thrusters of the mini-rocket were ready at last. Before sending his son off, Platinum spoke with him one last time. “Observer Spectrum. I wish you the best of luck on your mission. We’ll be in touch once you’ve set up base on Planet Omega. And remember…” Platinum paused for a moment, then let himself smile. “I love you, son.”

The capsule shot off just after Maestro’s past self replied to his father, tears in his eyes. “I love you too, dad.” Then the capsule was out of sight.

Maestro pulled himself out of the flashback and wondered. He’d had snippets in his dreams before. But now, he had recalled the correct order of things. He was a bit surprised it had taken so long to recall the exact details, but that was something he could worry about later. He was knocked out of his reverie as he felt his hooves touch the ground. He looked around and saw a massive temple in the distance. Pillars of marble and obsidian towered high in a checkerboard pattern. The roof was much like something he had seen before, but not from Equestria. It was a wide, triangular roof made with marble and obsidian mixed together. Etched into the face of the roof was a depiction of Aetheria herself in the center, and all sorts of races from around Mytharia surrounding her as her arms outstretched. Amethyst beams emanated from her, and bathed the crowd around her. Clearly, it was depicting Aetheria giving magic to the races of Mytharia.

Maestro hadn’t realized that he had drawn closer to the temple, but he soon stood at the entrance. Upon entering in he was met with Aetheria herself, and she turned and smiled at him. “So you’ve finally come. We finally get to meet in person. You’ve opened enough of the Mana Pools for the rest around our world to open as a ‘domino effect’, if you will.” She waved her right hand, and a show of other locations outside of Equestria lighting up with beams of pure mana shooting into the sky was before his eyes. The beams though, were not of light, but liquid mana. They crashed down, and washed over the face of Mytharia. However, nobody was harmed.

After seeing this, Maestro looked at Aetheria with curiosity in his eyes. “So what happens now? Will you let me go? All the globe should realize that you’re awake, right? So is my role in this over?”

A look of sad sympathy fell upon Aetheria’s face. “I’m sorry, but it’s not over quite yet.” She turned away, and walked over to an alter. Maestro followed her, uncertain what was about to happen. “Our world still needs your help, Maestro. During your journey down here, several things have changed. Twilight’s ascension has happened already, even though it was supposed to happen later. Time is running out. The Planet itself feels the looming danger, and has acted by accelerating a few developments. But there is something I should tell you.” She looked back to Maestro, a serious look on her face. "I am bound by an ancient Magic Promise to not interfere in warfare. So, it falls to you. Maestro, you have a choice to make. I will not pressure you to answer now, but time is ticking. You have helped me greatly, but the time table has moved up. You don't have long until your father declares war. Think carefully on what you do from here."

Maestro had an itching feeling deep in his gut. He saw the waves of mana abate and soak into the land through the vision Aetheria had shown him. He had suspicions about what he was being offered, but he wasn’t sure that it was necessary. He still had a small hope that his father could be reasoned with, but that was a hope that was likely in vain. He remembered much of his life before Equestria now, and he now recognized the red flags. His father always had ambition, ever since he could remember. Sure, his planet was suffering, but that was merely a cover. The issue was easily solvable with things his homeworld already had, but he only saw that now. His father had fooled many of his subordinates, save for the big three. Maestro had a feeling that those three were in on the scam. It made Maestro sick to his stomach to think about anyone doing such a thing. He had a feeling that if there was any good in his father, it might just have died out years ago. With a deep sigh of reluctance, Maestro nodded his head. “I don’t like it, but I might not really have a choice if I want to defeat my father. Just… Let me see Trixie after this okay? She’s probably worried sick.”

With a nod, Aetheria lifted Maestro into the air with her magic. “Very well, Maestro. Just know that there is no going back. Once we do this, you’re locked in. Do you think that you can handle it? The responsibility has crushed many in the past, and I wish that there were another way. But this is a risk that needs to be taken. Are you ready?”

For a split second, hesitation came upon Maestro’s features. He still had a few misgivings about it, but what other way was there? If he didn’t do this, Equestria would surely fall, and the other nations would only end up holding out for a few months at best. Maestro steadied himself with a deep breath. He could do this. He was the one that broke the chains on the mana pools, and he was in the unique position of knowing the full extent of what was coming. His hesitation had abated, and he gave a nod. “I’m ready. I have to do this, for the security of Mytharia’s future. Go ahead.”

After Maestro finished speaking, Aetheria channeled her magic throughout her body. She glowed like a newborn star, and she cast a chant as Maestro was still in her telekinetic grip. “I call upon the ambient mana, to give this worthy one a new form. Strength, Power, and Flight. Sturdiness, Capacity, and Speed. Give this worthy soul a form to challenge the Planet’s Crisis! By the authority vested in me, I command you! Ascend Maestro Spectrum to a higher state!”

After the chant ended, Maestro could feel his body burning. Mana flooded into him and seeped into every pore. His eyes widened as he hissed through his clenched teeth. He felt his body grow taller, his bones lengthening to fill the gaps. He could feel his build grow bulkier, but not overly so. He could feel the wings sprout from his back, but these were different. He felt the leathery film fill in, and almost smiled. Wings like his adopted mother’s… He supposed that was better than the alternative. He felt more powerful than ever before, but he had to be careful with that power. He didn’t want to accidentally hurt anyone, after all.

The process ended as abruptly as it started, and Maestro was set down. He spread his new wings. Much to his surprise, he was given an innate knowledge on how to use them. He flapped them a few times before lifting off the ground. He bowed his head slightly and thanked Aetheria. He turned around in the air and flew off. He thought about whether he’d made the right choice. He shook off his doubts and sped away to the surface.

To Be Continued…

Author's Note:

Here it is, at last! Yes, I know. He's ascended now, and some of you might have some guff with that. Well, I don't care. Maestro's reasoning boils down to this: Better to have the power and not need it, than to need the power and not have it. The story still has some chapters left before The Clash Of Father & Son (name may be subject to change), so hang tight.