Twilight Daylight: Psera, The Legend of Legends

by thedarktome

Chapter 40 - Mecrah Portal OUT

Dawn's hooves were anxiously going through anything she could get. Twilight's lab was a literal gold mine. The Mecrah Portal OUT Port was directly in front of her. In front of her friends. They stumbled upon it on accident. Deep underground in the second biggest space they had seen. The huge golden slab of metal was hidden underneath the castle that her mother was trapped in. It was shiny, covered in symbols and circuitry of Arcadia's own design and reflecting light onto the ponies below it.

The first thing Dawn grabbed was a single violet binder sitting on top of this large black board covered in switches, buttons and knobs. She flipped it open with her friends over her shoulder and read it aloud. "It's in Old Pseratopian, I can read this. 'Mecrah Portal Out. Project Five nine one three eight,' this is it guys!! We just found my mom's hidden project!!" She and her friends celebrated by slapping each other on the back, hugging and cheering.

But Kia grabbed Fresh Dawn once it was all over and swiveled her around to face her worried expression. "Now what?! I'm all for getting your mommy back, twinkles. But what now?"

Dawn held the binder up to Kia with a smile and said, "Now we take this to dad. He'll know what to do. Come on!!" Then took off into the air before they could even comprehend what she just said.

---

Madun's patience was waning. This stallion at the hooves of his throne had been going on about how the new CPS downtown was making his business look "shotty" for maybe five minutes now. The limit was two, yet he would not stop. Wearing a suit and tie like his ice cream shop was based in Rayray. What did "shotty" even mean anyway? Ugh, if this guy doesn't shut up soon—

"DADDY!!!" Madun jumped at the loud yelling of his name and looked around. Like usual, Fresh Dawn slid in and rammed into Gardeen's table. Then ran up to him and started blubbering away. Tiredly, she yelled, "Mom's office, hidden bookcase, elevator, golden hallway, spellbooks, Mecrahhhhh!!!!"

Madun just blinked at her with his hair blown back. Thanks to her high pitched voice, everything was sort of... Loud. Once his mane was fixed, he sighed and said, "Dawn? Slow. Make sense."

Dawn slapped the binder on his lap titled "Project #59138" and said, "We found it!! We found everything!! We found all of mom's spell books and the actual Mecrah Portal, dad!!"

Gardeen stood from her chair and repeated, "The Mecrah Portal? As in the—"

"The one mom fell into? Yeah, it's underground!! Under the castle! We found it!!"

Madun shot up so fast, Dawn zipped into the air in surprise. He shooed the pony complaining in the room away with a hoof and told Dawn, "This better not be a joke."

"It's not, sir." Kia trotted out from behind the throne and fell on her face next to the steps with the others behind her. She took a moment to find her heart and catch her breath. Then bowed to Madun and said, "We went into the Queen's office and started searching books. Dawn touched one of them that we all touched before and it opened like a door, sir. There was an elevator inside that we took down and saw everything. The Mecrah Portal's underneath the castle, sir. The thing is huge."

Madun wasted no more time, he jumped off the throne and ordered, "Get me a full team of Elite from The Hive to meet me at Arcadia's Office! Standby for contact with Serl! Once again Dawn, this better not be a joke."

Dawn grabbed her father's hoof and dragged him along while his orders were carried out by Gardeen running behind them. All while trying to figure what all this meant. What finding the Mecrah Portal OUT meant. Would Mom be able to come back home? Or was it too late?

Before Dawn knew it, she dragged her father into Arcadia's office with her friends and Gardeen. Everything in here was back to normal. But it always is if you want to hide something.

Madun looked around the room and sighed in nostalgia while Dawn did whatever she was doing. It was always hard for him to see this place bare. Twilight-less. In the past when he stepped inside, Twilight would be sitting right there in that chair holding Dawn in her lap. Then she'd glance up and smile with a pen in her mouth.

That image seemed to fade away from sight now. Madun shook those thoughts to the side when the Elite Guard ran in looking around. Lieutenant Dark Silver saluted and asked, "You queried, sir?"

Madun simply pointed to Dawn and called, "Where is it, Dawn?"

The Sanctuary. She smiled right at the spine of the book. "Right here," she answered. Then slapped her hoof against it like a button. The silence was deafening while the tension grew. Then it happened. The bookcase flashed blue for half a second. Then slowly pushed open out towards them.

Madun gasped and slowly walked around with the others whispering so he could peek inside. It was nothing but a steel box. Nothing else in it. "What is this?" He asked.

Dawn grabbed him and two of the Guards. Then eagerly pushed them all inside. "It's an elevator," she quickly answered. "It goes down really really fast."

Lieutenant Dark Silver and Gardeen hopped in with them right before the bookcase shut them inside. Once it was fully closed, the familiar funny symbols glowed and the elevator dropped. Fast. Madun had to grip the steel harder while it appeared Dawn had it on her second try. She looked over her shoulder to them and said, "I think this big box just... Like, falls to the ground. Then at a certain level it slows."

The familiar gold of the underground level of Psera slipped into view while the elevator did just like Dawn said. Then the familiar hall of Gold arrived into view. Madun hopped out before it landed and ran across it with his Guards towards the two golden doors at the end. Fresh Dawn was going to enjoy this. They grabbed the handles and pulled. But it didn't open. They tried again even harder but still nothing.

Fresh Dawn decided to enjoy this by standing in the back and silently laughing. After a few seconds of this, her father turned to her and asked, "How do you open it?"

"I think it only opens when I touch it." She walked past under them and grabbed the handle. Then pulled one door open, revealing everything. It was all warmed up now. The walls of gold, the books, the lab, the infinite tunnel beyond that changed into a blue mist behind the portal itself, all of it was out there.

Madun slowly walked inside and eyed the massive slab of technology Twilight called Mecrah. And all of the spell books lining the walls. There were so many it was as if the walls of gold and stone were painted over. Going further than the eye could see. The steel walkways covering the laboratory below overlapped each other like a maze. Lights attached to them highlighted everything and brightened their paths.

But Madun's eyes were trained on the huge round slab directly in his sights. The giant golden one taking up everything with strange writing all over it. As well as the lines grooved in all over the front. He stepped towards the edge and muttered, "The Mecrah Portal."

Fresh Dawn placed her hooves on the railing and whispered, "How did she make that?"

Madun and Gardeen flanked both of her sides but didn't answer. This was magic business. This was Equestria business. Madun got his thoughts back on track and ordered, "Lieutenant?" Lieutenant Silver saluted, but kept his eyes on the portal. "I want the Press Room ready, I want The Congress summoned, and I want you to grab Odega and my family."

Dawn was swept up from behind into a sudden hug Gardeen initiated. Pulling Fresh Dawn into her chest so tight she was sure she was going to pass out in a few seconds. "Thank you, Dawn," Gardeen whispered. "Thank you."

All Dawn could do was pat her hoof. Then yank herself free so she could get some air that didn't come from Gardeen's coat. It was a disaster of too much perfume! Then she was swept into a hug from behind by her father. "Who's my Sugar Plum?" He asked.

Oh no, here we go. Dawn rolled her eyes and grumbled to Gardeen across, "Dad, I'm fifteen."

"Oh c'mon, say it. Just this once."

Dawn rolled her eyes and muttered, "I'm your Sugar Plum."

"That's right. I couldn't be any prouder than I am right now sweetheart. We found the OUT-Portal. Now?" He let Dawn go and looked down to the laboratory. "We need the key. Did you find anything else?"

Dawn hoofed him the binder and stated, "I guess this is the instruction manual or something. It has a lot of information in it."

He took it out of her hooves and started flipping through it. There were diagrams and other materials inside too. But the most noticeable was the full blown map that folded out of the binder in an entire rolling fold. The length hit the floor and gathered the three's attention.

The map was all written in Old Pseratopian, their native language. Blueprints of the Mecrah Portal and all of its parts. The magic that runs through it, and the spells used. As well as the Keys, plural. Gardeen jabbed her hoof to it and yelled, "There! A note of the keys!"

The keys were pearls or something that were supposed to be placed on the round holes near the edge of the portal. Dawn looked up and tried to find the points, but... The portal was just so big and way too complex. It was giving her a headache.

Madun hoofed the binder to Gardeen and ordered, "Get a good understanding of this as much as you can while I make preparations for Equestria."

But Dawn grabbed his right rear hoof with her hooves before he could trot away. "Wait, wait, daddy! I want to go to Equestria!"

Madun looked down at his daughter gripping his hoof to try and stop him. "Dawn," he groaned. His heart was already beating faster than ever before, he didn't want it going any faster.

She let him go and straightened up so she could walk around with a face of unmoving steel. She stomped her hoof and said, "I'm ready to take on my first Royal Duty as Princess of Psera!" Dawn continued on before he could stop her. "Didn't you start ruling Psera at fifteen?"

"I started my training at fifteen."

"See? So why can't I? You know I can do it! All I'll be doing is telling them we found something about mom, right? And that we need their help? It's not like I'm signing bills."

Madun sighed and looked back from her to the large Mecrah Portal. Then to Gardeen for her input. She was a pretty wise pony and knew when to say yes or no. Gardeen nodded a yes. She was ready.

Madun sighed and looked down to Fresh Dawn to give her a stern answer. "I promise to bring it up. I too believe you are ready and able to protect yourself. But it is still up to Congress to approve of international contact. So come on."

Dawn turned around and made her way to the elevator with the others on her tail. The Guards, Gardeen and her father. They just found her mother's portal entry. And she may in fact be going to Equestria to deliver a message.

She's never been to Equestria before. Or if she has, she doesn't remember it. That was all her mind could think about. Going to Equestria, leaving Psera. During the journey back up in the elevator, during the questioning from the mass of ponies that had gathered outside of Queen Arcadia's door that Madun had to order to stay away from that entire hallway while authorized personnel did their thing. Then during the entire wait inside the garden that Madun has kept alive for years.

She couldn't stop pacing. The Guards assigned to this region for years were mentally comparing her to her mother. Whenever she was stressed, she'd come out here and do the same thing. Pace with the world on her shoulders.

Dawn groaned loudly and dropped her whole body down into a bed of daisies next to the roses. Her own favorite flower. Everything was happening so quickly. Was this normal? Was this what her mother had to deal with? What her father has to deal with?! The nagging anxiety of a future that may never be? Stuck in a limbo of constantly shifting realities?!

A burst of flames and Odega was sitting next to her. Still Sun-White with a mane made of flowing fire flickering towards the cloudy blue skies. Eyes glowing with a small lick in the both of them smiling down to Dawn with sympathy. "Too fast, huh?"

How was it that she managed to know exactly what she was thinking? All the time? Except back there when she needed them? Dawn sighed but nodded towards the stream reflecting her face below. She reached up and fixed her tiara from its lopsided position. Why hadn't anyone told her it looked bad? "Is it always like this?"

"Always?" Odega repeated. She laughed and shook her head. "No. But you must be prepared for when it does. Your father wasn't as good with it as your mother. Between you and me, your mother made much smarter choices than your father. That's why many ponies looked to her for guidance."

Dawn smiled slightly, but that didn't stop the impending worry. What if she did mess up on this mission? What if she failed somehow? What if—

"You're not going to fail, kid." Dawn looked back to Odega rising to her hooves to stretch. Her burning wings flared out and snapped at the air. "The worse that would happen is if you trip on your own wings. Other than that, prepare for a lot of hugging. If daddy lets you go."

Dawn stood up too and faced Odega entirely with a slightly worried expression. "Is Equestria n-nice?" She stammered.

"Nice? Pffffttt, so nice it's contagious and annoying. Everyone's always smiling there, the grass is always green, and each morning there's going to be that one pony yelling, 'Good day, good morning, how are you?'"

"Is it true the sun is raised by a pony? And the moon too?"

"Tell you what..." She placed a hoof on Dawn's side and slowly pushed her small form to the door with a yelp. "Let's go find out for ourselves. Come on." She used her head to scoop Fresh Dawn up and slide her onto her back. She wasn't foal size anymore, but she also wasn't high school size either. Odega quickly trotted towards the door and walked back into the Castle halls.

"Wait, wait, where are we going?"

"To see your father, duh." They disappeared in a burst of flames then reappeared directly in front of Madun. In front of the Congressional Hall in between his table and the Judge panel.

Dawn covered her face in sheer embarrassment and silently cursed. "Here we are, Princess Butt! Up you go!" Odega jumped and deposited Fresh Dawn into a chair next to her embarrassed father. "Have fun now!" Then she was gone once again.

King Madun merely sighed with his face in his hooves like his daughter beside him. "May Narmeelah help that pony of flames," he muttered.

The judges weren't so easily deterred from their talks. Amongst all of this sudden great news there was still a small issue. Judges Berry, Light, Mahtoo and Sunlight all looked amongst each other from in front of the pedestal where the King stood. Looming down upon him and the Princess.

Berry directed his navy blue eyes to her specifically and said, "You have made great progress, Princess Fresh Dawn. Were it not for you and your friends, that portal would still be lost. As well as all of these spell books. We'll be reviewing those in the near future.

"But right now, your father is saying the only way to understand most of this material is by communicating with Equestria once more. We agree, although we're not entirely convinced it should be represented by you as ambassador."

Dawn gasped and raised a hoof. "Ummm... With all due respect, I've been studying how to handle international affairs ever since I started Middle School. I've been studying for three years, but I'll never learn to my full capacity unless I'm in the field."

Madun came to her support and placed a wing on her back. "My daughter is more than capable of handling these types of affairs. Her vocabulary exceeds beyond expectations along with problem solving, and her leadership skills are top notch."

"Mmmm, you have taught her well," Sunlight commented. Dawn had to bite back a joke and wipe that smile off her face when they all locked back on her. "If we allow you access outside of Psera to approach Equestria, will you swear to listen to your auxiliary, and answer to all check-ins when prompted?"

Dawn's eager nod answered their question. "I will."

"Will you listen to your Guard who will assure you safe passage with their lives?"

She didn't like that "lives" bit but she answered, "I will."

"That's all we need. We'll allow you to get a taste of Diplomacy under the assistance of your auxiliary Gardeen Daisy. Your goal? To have the ponies of Equestria help figure out what exactly the keys are. They have more magical skill than we do here. Take pictures with you and anything else you believe may prove useful as proof. Debrief them, and... Bring them back."

Dawn was over the moon. She was going to Equestria. She was actually going!! Stay pro, Dawn, she mentally chided. Now was not the time for celebratory balloons and confetti. "Thank you, Judges," she cooly replied. "When do I depart?"

Berry looked to Madun and answered, "Early tomorrow morning. Pack up, you're going on a trip."

---

After the meeting with "The Four Wise Judges," Dawn went back to mom's now roped-off office to retrieve and give Gardeen everything to hold for her. The binder, pictures already taken, a small report, everything her father told her she needed. Unfortunately, she was the only pony who had access to the Queen's underground laboratory. Which meant all the action would have to wait until she returns.

But someone didn't want her to go. The second Dawn walked out of Gardeen's office, Kia was in her face with wide scared eyes.

"You're going to Equestria?!" She yelled.

Dawn jumped back and took slow breaths to calm her beating heart. Just her paranoid frenemy. She sighed and opened her eyes to look up to Kia.

"Yeah, I'm doing my training," she calmly answered.

"So soon? ...oh..." Out of all their years being frenemies, Dawn never actually understood Kia. One second, she didn't care, the next she was all over her back and scaring off the really mean ponies. It made no sense to her. It was... Strange.

Dawn walked around her and explained, "Yeah, I'm leaving out early tomorrow morning. I'm just grabbing everything I need right now until it's time for me to go."

Kia shyly rubbed her forehoof against the other and glanced to the side. "Ah, okay. Cool, cool."

"Is everything okay, Kia? You're... Acting weird." The second she didn't tease her about not bringing a therapeutic doll she knew something was up. She always teased her about Sky Blue.

Kia shook her head and quickly answered, "Nothing, nothing, just... Wanted to wish you luck on your trip." Kia tried to back it up with a small grin. But whatever was bugging her was evident since she didn't even know Dawn was going anywhere until just now when she told her.

So Dawn decided to let it go for now, but definitely bring it back up later when they were alone. With a nod, she pulled Kia into a hug around the neck. Then let her go and walked past her down the hall as fast as her small stature could carry her.

And Kia could only watch her leave. Once she was out of sight and out of earshot, she stomped her forehooves into the floor. "Buck," she silently cursed. Then walked the same way she did, albeit with more of a temper than curiosity. She was right there, so close.

Author's Note:

Wow, I bet you guys weren't expecting any of that, huh? We're going to switch to Equestria next week, then it's back to Fresh Dawn's world after that.

Comments

[Midnight95673]

YESSSS love it

[XzareAce]

that's the necklaces!!!!!!! they are the KEYs!

[Silentwoodfire]

And now we get to see how Equestria has fared since they were booted

[White_Rose]

So Dawn decided to let it go for now, but definitely bring it back up later when they were alone. With a nod, she pulled Kia into a hug around the neck. Then let her go and walked past her down the hall as fast as her small stature could carry her. And Kia could only watch her leave. Once she was out of sight and out of earshot, she stomped her forehooves into the floor. "Buck," she silently cursed. Then walked the same way she did, albeit with more of a temper than curiosity. She was right there, so close.

Probably reading into this too much (and probably also completely wrong) but I think Kia might have a crush on Dawn. And I’m trying not to let my thoughts get away from me too much cuz I’m not a hundred percent certain on what my thoughts on this are just yet