• Published 6th Apr 2019
  • 1,537 Views, 594 Comments

Distant Reflections - David Silver



Equestria and Everglow have brushed against one another through the course of their histories, each time fleeting, but memorable to those involved. Many many years later, the unaging Twilight captains a space vessel to explore the universe.

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84 - Resolutions

"That's freaky," noted Glitch with a smirk. She was there, with Harp. They had gotten new clothes that cut right down the middle. Her side was like a grunge punk, looking mildly distressed in specific ways despite being brand new.

Harp's side was cleanly pressed and brightly colored with the welcoming contours of a colt's suit. "So you're all the same?"

Lyra tapped at her chin softly. "Sorta but also not? We all are part of the main program." She wobbled her hooves wildly. "But inside there, we each have a head full of specific 'us'." She grabbed Carrot Top, who had been talking past, and pulled her in close. "Like this is Carrot Top. She isn't me."

"And you aren't me," noted Carrot Top, rolling her eyes. "But we do come from the same place."

"Cool," echoed both of the twins.

Error set a hoof on the back of the young ones that were his. "Don't go botherin' 'em."

Harp pointed between Lyra and Carrot Top. "They appear to enjoy this interaction. Am I wrong?"

Lyra mused a moment. "Mmm, yeah. Never had a fellow arty to chat with before."

Carrot Top sniffed at GlitchHarp softly, not that she had an actual nose or any sensory organs except what the computer she was inhabiting had, which was apparently enough. "You aren't just a program. Oh, by the way, I want to help with the plant raising." She twisted a hoof on herself. "Kinda my thing. You grow carrots? I can do other plants, but those are my favorite."

Elsewhere, Wandering Note was seated in front of three fillies. "The captains are going to be very concerned about this." Not that he looked terribly concerned. "So you are... Apple Bloom?"

"Sweetie Belle." Apple Bloom pointed along. "And Scootaloo."

Scootaloo leaned forward. "Twilight didn't normally ever run us. Not fair, if you ask me."

Wandering looked from one smiling young face to the next. "I think I can guess why that might have been."

"Why's that?" asked Apple Bloom, leaning forward. "We didn't do nothin' wrong."

Wandering wobbled a hoof. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but you are all people she knew from a specific moment in time, right?"

Sweetie Belle looked across the crowded room of holograms and physical crew members getting to know one another. "I do believe that's correct. One moment." Her eyes became a swirling mass of 1s and 0s a moment. "Yes, that is correct. I asked the central thread."

Wandering nodded, confidence growing. "Then the original yous are not only not little young ponies anymore, but about the opposite of that." He raised a cloven hoof. "Maybe... it was just painful for her, to think of that."

Apple Bloom thumped down a hoof. "Well that ain't hardly fair none. She went off on an adventure, and she didn't want us around? We're experienced adventurers!"

"Yeah!" burst Scootaloo in agreement. "All three of us know magic. We can help!"

Wandering inclined his head slowly. "You are... I mean no offense, I assure, but you are computer programs. Can a computer cast a spell?"

All three of them sat down to think about that, despite their memories of being spellcasters.


"Things are changing." The mineralite glared at them, with less anger, more frustration. "The council of the home world has changed. New rulers, new, well, rules." She shrugged at that. "And they aren't good ones."

Twilight inclined her head. "Are you being abused?"

"Ha," the mineralite laughed bitterly. "You have a bigger problem. They're preparing for the offensive, and anyone that looks weaker than them will be a target. Guess who one of our neighbors are?" She looked from one of them to the next. "The name's Amethyst, since we're being all buddies now."

Twilight brought her hooves together with a bright smile. Friendship problem, being resolved! "A pleasure to meet you, Amethyst. I'm Twilight Sparkle."

"Steel Prism."

"Fast Shadow."

"Under Score."

"Great great." Amethyst waved it off. "Back to the point. You're going to get run over. It'll go from nothing to everything overnight, and that'll be that."

Fast advanced half a step. "So... you are trying, if I understand, to 'warn' us?"

Amethyst threw up a hand. "Yes! Blast it all. If you lost a couple of ships in a haze of mineralite weapons, that'd get your attention. Maybe you'd actually fight, instead of just getting flattened." She slammed her fist against an open palm. "Get it now?"

Under smirked a bit. "Not sure I favor the idea of being sacrificed like that, even for the 'greater good'."

Steel stood up tall. "Regardless, we have a new mission, and it's not exploration, or rescue." He turned to the others. "What's the point of either of those things if all we know gets destroyed while we're doing it."

Fast flipped her ears back. "We'll send word back home?"

"Of course, that." Steel nodded lightly. "But we're also fighting. We are the champions of Everglow. Running away from this would be beneath us."

Amethyst suddenly burst into laughter. "Seriously?" She leveled a finger at Twilight. "Is she one too?"

Under inclined his head. "I am curious how you drew that question?"

"She looks funny." Twilight was an equestrian, not an Everglow pony. "And she has alien magic. My money's on she's an alien."

Twilight began to blush. "Our species are very similar. Calling me an alien is--"

"--right on the nose," laughed out Amethyst as her notion was proven correctly. "That explains why she's so weird. What about the rest of you." She was holding her energy weapon, no drawing, it simply was there, in her hands, ready. "How would you do in a scrap?"

Fast leveled the lance on her side towards Amethyst, the length cracking with ready energy. "While I do enjoy a good spar between allies, now seems hardly the fitting time."

"Electrolance, Mark... 3? Not bad." Amethyst nodded appreciatively. "Not great, but not bad."

Steel raised a hoof to tap at his badge. "I think we're done here. Everything stable there?"

"Negative, captain," came Wandering's voice. "But not in a bad way, I think?"

Fast blinked as she turned towards Steel. "You are going to explain that, yes?"

"Of course!" came Wandering's quick reply. "It would seem we've finally fallen victim to a viral attack, but as such things go, this one is... unconventional. The ship has a voice now, and a lot of holographic personalities."

"Who ya talkin' to?" came an unseen voice, perhaps next to Wandering. "Hi!" she eagerly greeted. "You're missing the party!"

Steel sank slowly to his haunches. "Party?" He shook his head, focusing on Amethyst. "We have a battle to prepare for. Are you with us?"

Amethyst perked at that. "Seriously? You ponies are absolutely crazy. Are you in the habit of inviting people who were trying to kill you not even minutes ago along to fight?"

Twilight sat up with a proud expression. "Friendship is the most powerful magic there is. You are a friend, even if... I don't agree with the method you were using. You don't want us to get hurt, as a people. Will you help us, directly?"

"Pass." She waved it off. "I've done my part. Gonna get off this ship, and out of here. If you're smart, you'll do the same." Amethyst stormed off without resistance.

Fast's eyes settled on a panel, approaching to press a button. "Hello?"

"Hello," came the voice of the ship's captain. "Calling with good news?"

Fast smiled, glad that worked as she had hoped. "The best sort. As soon as we're off the ship, you're free to resume your journey. Walk in the light."

"Walk in the light."


Star Dancer nodded at the teleporter pad full of the crew. "You didn't have to teleport here," she noted. "I wasn't even doing the teleporting." She was peering at Twilight. "You gonna share that spell?"

Twilight pricked at that. "I'd be delighted to share notes, but you're a technologically based spellcaster, are you not?"

Under waved a hoof quickly. "Not compatible. Trust me, I checked. Unless you want to relearn everything you know, give up the idea."

Star huffed loudly. "Not with that attitude, perhaps. Whatever, welcome back."

"Welcome to Ponyville." An older mare was seated next to Star like she belonged there. "I don't think we've met. I'm Mayor Mare."

Steel cocked a brow at the greetings. "I see... There's one of those 'holographic personalities' then."

Mayor Mare inclined her head. "That's not terribly polite. From one leader to another, I suggest not drawing attention to what you find unusual in who you are speaking to."

Fast hurried between them. "Sound advice, but we do have to have some amount of concern. You are running on our computer."

Under raised a hoof. "That did not have holographic ability here, or in most of the ship. That is concerning, to say the least."

Steel frowned. He hadn't even thought about that. "Who is responsible for this?"

"One moment." She reached up to adjust her glasses as they flashed with graphs and figures. "Ah, yes, I see. It would appear Pinkie Pie was working under the instruction of a 'friendly fox'? I haven't the foggiest idea what that means."

Star flopped forward with a wry smile. "The computer talks now, they tell you that?"

Fast accelerated for the door. "Well, I only know one fox, friendly or not. So let's start there. I don't know who--"

"--Pinkie Pie," blurted out Twilight, staggering. "She's..." She couldn't bring herself to say the rest. "How can she be involved?!"

A new, but familiar, voice came around the corner, "Things have changed." There was Spike, plodding towards Twilight. "Want a ride? This is big."

Twilight smirked faintly. "Are you offering yourself as a fainting couch?"

"Yes."

Twilight recoiled faintly, taken aback by the blunt admission. "I... see..." Despite that, she did climb up on Spike and leaned back against one of his spines. "Alright, ready."

"I'm not even ready, so I'm gonna doubt you are." Despite that, he got to advancing back into the hallway he came from. "Pinkie's here, the real Pinkie, the original. All of her. All Pinkie."

"Spike, you... You were there. You know... That can't be Pinkie," stuttered Twilight. "It's impossible."

"I tried to get details out of her, but Pinkie is Pinkie and that isn't always easy." He peered over his shoulder at Twilight. "But that is Pinkie. An old version of Pinkie. She doesn't know about ever hooking up with Cheese Sandwich."

"What?!" Twilight sat up sharply, almost throwing herself free of Spike. "They were thick as thieves! You couldn't pry them apart from each other. How... What makes you think this is actually Pinkie Pie?"

"It's easy to forget." From Spike's perspective, Twilight had forgotten quite a bit. "But Pinkie is very... Pinkie. She never stopped that."

"She... didn't," reluctantly agreed Twilight, worrying her hooves together. "Even if she is the real Pinkie Pie, Why is she here? She should be back in Equestria if anywhere!"

"I can take two directions." Spike pointed with his snout at two hallways. "I can take you to your room, or we can go to Pinkie and asked her."

Twilight hated, most of all, that she didn't immediately reply. Going to her room was tempting enough to delay her. "Let's see her," she decided with a soft sigh. "This isn't something I should run away from."

"You're really growing." Spike resumed his draconic trot with a little smile. "Welcome back, Twilight."

Twilight lifted an ear. "Welcome back? Oh, the trip was a complete success. And it was won with friendship." She clopped her hooves together, a smile as bright as her uncertainty had been. "I felt better than I had in... forever. I mean, sure, we also found out we're about to get into a whole lot of trouble, but I did it!"

"Uh..." Spike peeked over his shoulder. "Congratulations?" He didn't pry further, not then. Let Twilight savor her personal victory. "You're still a princess of friendship."

Author's Note:

The plot lines have crashed together. We're all together, on the ship, but trouble ahead!

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