1: The Sparkle of Wisdom
"Let's see, turn the top right nob to see the list of versions of your world. Click the green button to select. The Pocket Dimension will have "His meeting place" as the default theme but the theme can be switched by the top left dial. The time limit is one hour, click the red button to exit the dimension early."
"Um Twilight, are you sure you want to do this?"
Spike gave Twilight a reluctant look of concern as the Alicorn was skimming through the pop-up manual.
"Yes Spike, I do. I feel the need for advice from somepony who truly knows me. Who better to know about me than myself?"
"I just feel it might be a trap."
"...You might have a point, Spike. I might prepare a spell for that eventuality."
"I think you're going to need more than that, Twilight. As your Royal Advisor, I'd advise that you do not go alone. I'm coming with you."
"A-are you sure? I mean, I am fine on my own and I..."
"Nope, you are not. What happens if you get stuck there with an unscrupulous version of yourself? Besides, after all that we've been through I want to be there to be sure it is safe; especially if you intend to go there again."
Twilight took a minute to gaze at the young dragon. He has certainly grown to be a mature Dragon. "Alright Spike. Let's do this together."
"Alright! So, where to first?"
"Let's go with," Twilight adjusted the dials showing a series of words on the digital screen til she stopped to the words World Equis 7. "Let's go with lucky number seven."
She pressed the green button and the two were enveloped by a blinding flash of light.
As the brightness dissipated, they took a clear view of their surrounding. Around them was a field of grass that stretches as far as the eyes could see with majestic mountains seen on the horizon. On the field stood a lone tree and next to it was a small river that flowed gently yet they could hear every droplet of water running through. The sky was clear blue and bright yet no sun hung above them.
The sight of this place was such a marvel that both their jaws dropped at just how perfect it all seemed. It was unlike anything they've seen in Equestria; it wasn't even comparable to the best artists' grand works. It was like a clear, vibrant dream.
"Spike, are you seeing this? This is amazing!" Twilight exclaimed.
"Yeah, it's beautiful. You can even feel a gentle breeze out here." Spike replied.
"I'll say, young ones. I could honestly just move and spend my retirement here."
"!"
The new voice came from behind the lone tree; it sounded old and raspy, but gentle with a sweet tune. The two approached the tree and noticed that it's leaves shined like emeralds as it sparkled with the rustling of the breeze. Sitting by its roots and leaning on its trunk was an old, purple Unicorn mare with a grayed out mane and a familiar star for her Cutie Mark. She was reading a small book as she adjusted her glasses to turn to the pair.
Twilight's eyes widened at the mare, "A-are you me?"
The old unicorn gave a knowing look, "That all depends on who you are now. Are you from the past, am I your future? We are never the same pony we once were as we move on. We probably are even less so, considering you are an Alicorn and I am but a simple Unicorn."
"But why are you a unicorn?" asked Spike, "And why are you so old?"
She smiled lovingly, "Well, I am glad to see you haven't changed, my number one assistant." She leaned over and stroked the spikes on his head, "I remembered you when you used to ride on my back. Now, I ride on his due to my poor back. Although, I never recalled you to have wings. Curious."
"So, you are a version of me when I never ascended. I guess this seal actually worked."
"So, you were the ones who summoned me. For a minute, I thought this was all a dream until I felt the soft grass and drank from the stream." The old mare eyed the river and the two took notice at just how clear the water was. "You can drink from it if you want. I guarantee you, it is actually refreshing."
"No thank you, I appreciate it though," Twilight declined with a sheepish smile before continuing, "Perhaps introductions are in order, I am Princess Twilight Sparkle; current ruler of Equestria."
Her counterpart raised an eyebrow, "I didn't think introductions were necessary considering who we are, but I suppose it is the prudent thing to do. Although, it is an interesting surprise to know that you took over Princess Celestia. I am Twilight Sparkle; also known as The Sparkle of Wisdom."
The old mare made a short bow, "So for what purpose does the Ruler of Equestria need from a simple, old unicorn version of herself?"
"I came seeking for advice."
"Oh? Was your Royal Advisor not enough for you?" She pointed at Spike.
"Woah, how did you know that?" Spike was clearly surprised considering he never introduced himself as Twilight's Royal Advisor.
"It says on your medallion. Clear as day."
Spike blushed, "Oh, right."
"No need to fret, young Spike," the old unicorn chuckled before she addresses Twilight, "As for you, I'm not quite sure I understand by seeking advice. You have your friends, don't you? You have the old Princesses, don't you? And you have your faithful companion here, don't you? What advice could you possibly ask from an old, unicorn version of yourself?"
"You know me more than anypony else. Don't get me wrong, I love the support and guidance my friends and family give to me, but I know I have limits, weaknesses, concerns that only we truly know about ourselves. I thought that perhaps another version of us might have experience to these doubts and might finally put me at ease."
Old Twilight wryly smiled as she shook her head, "Oh young one, there is no answer I could give you that will satisfy you, I'm afraid."
Twilight was about to protest but was interrupted by her counterpart as the old mare continued, "You are not the first version of ourselves to come and seek advice from me. And depending on my health tonight, you might not be the last. Many have sought my wisdom; Students, Princesses, Queens, Empresses, Kings, Princes, Alchemists, Wizards, Witches, War Lords and more. I'm not just referring to versions of ourselves. Many in my world sought my council, even Princess Celestia herself."
"If you're so wise, why are you still a unicorn?" Twilight asked.
"Because I rejected ascension. I knew what Starswirl's spell could do. I knew what the Princess planned for me. And we argued over it. While I can see it is a grand destiny to become a Princess, my thought at the time was that the cost was too much for me. I would give up my valued mortality, my dream to become the greatest wizard of all time. I realised too late that it would not only cost me my friendship with the Princess but it would strip me from the Element of Magic itself."
Twilight and Spike gasped at the implication as the old mare continued, "I lost my ability to use magic that day. The greatest foolish mistake I have ever made in my life. Strangely though, a small piece of the element still remained within me. That piece opened my eyes to the mistake I've done and has humbled my arrogant self to this day. It grew into something more as my friends consoled and comforted me at my lowest point and through our friendship it blossomed into a power that has granted me a new course in life. A spark of wisdom I called it. My mind was opened to the many possibilities in life that called for the knowledge of the thought.
"To nurture it however, I needed to sharpen my mind. Luckily, I was a natural "Egghead" as Rainbow would put it, and I devoured books on philosophy from Equestria and theology from Earth (thanks to Sunset Shimmer). It culminated into making me Equestria's paragon of Wisdom and creatures from across the world and more sought my council. It also resolved many of the problems and disasters across my world: I made Trixie into the greatest magic user of our time; I reformed Discord in a battle of wits and games; I mended the broken relationship between Tirek and his brother Scorpan; Stopped Starlight Glimmer from her sinister plot and made her my student; Changed Chrysallis and her changelings; Calmed the Storm King and disband his armies; Saved King Sombra's Soul from corruption; and so much more.
She paused for a moment to look at the admiration in Twilight and Spike's eyes hearing her accomplishments. She sighed as she continued, "However like always, most often words could never reach the hearts of the truly lost. A young filly by the name of Cozy Glow was the perfect example to this. My failure to save her still haunts me to this day. One whose mind is set in a narrow view of malice cannot easily be reached by wisdom. In most cases, it only fuels their conviction."
The old mare stood up and stared at Twilight with eyes that glared with conviction, "So tell me Princess, would you truly be satisfied with the advice I could bring to you? Are your thoughts open for my wisdom or have you already closed your mind to a wanted answer?"
The words of the old mare cut through Twilight like a knife. She looked at her with fear. Not the fear of cowardice but the fear of reverence. For as she stared into her eyes she felt as though her very soul was tested. Not since her foalhood had Twilight felt such vulnerability before another pony's presence of authority.
It then hit Twilight as she saw the old unicorn's conviction. She cleared her throat and said, "I came here seeking advice on how to be the best ruler I can be for Equestria. I thought that if I can be assured by a version of myself that I could finally be truly confident of my skills to lead. But now as I hear the wisdom and see the conviction within you, I understand now. I need not be affirmed by myself, because all that I will see is merely a reflection."
Twilight's counterpart gave an astonished look as it twists to a grin. A hissing noise came out of her as she began to cackle in laughter.
"Y-you might just have some wisdom within you after all," she continued to laugh as she wiped tears out of her eyes, "However, (Cackle) you are still just as naive and immature as I once was! You still overthink things when in true fashion, the simplest solutions are often the best solutions. (HAHAHA) Y-you could have just simply answered that you are prepared for whatever wisdom I provide and I would have given it to you. (Ho-HAHAHA)"
"Y-you mean, it wasn't a test?"
"Oh, I was testing you alright. (Sigh) I was wondering if you were worth my time. And wouldn't you know, you are more than worth it!"
The old unicorn wiped off the last of the tears from her eyes from her laughing and approached Twilight, putting a hoof on her shoulder, "Let me give you a quote I heard from Sunset Shimmer at her time on Earth; I am the wisest man alive, for I know one thing, and that is that I know nothing."
It took a while for Twilight and Spike to process the quote before they snorted, followed with a bellowing laughter as the old mare joins in the hysterics.
"S-s-so that's your secret then? (HAHAH) YOU KNOW NOTHING? (HAHAHA!)"
"Well, in all seriousness though, I had to make sure. The last version of ourselves who asked for my advice threatened to have my head on a platter if I refused to give her the answers she sought. I merely shrugged and asked her Would you like me to tell you what you need to hear or what you wanted to hear? Because what you want I'm afraid, is not what you need. After that, she just left without a word. So much for Empress of several worlds."
"Yikes," was all Spike could say to that.
Just then a beeping noise came from the seal as it flashes a text from the digital screen, 5 minutes left til the end of your session.
"Oh, I'm afraid that our time is up. Can we see you again?"
"Oh young one, for you, you are always welcome to see me. However, if you wish to meet others of ourselves, I can give you coordinates to two of them that you might be interested to see."
The old mare wrote something on her book and gave it to Twilight, "Also, you might be interested in reading this book. It's called the book of Proverbs from the Bible. Sunset gave it to me from her world's Applejack. She told me I might actually find it enlightening. Look for chapter 28 verse 6, "Better a poor man who lives with integrity than a rich man who distorts right and wrong."
"I will, thank you." Twilight gleefully smiled as she levitated the book with her horn and placed it in her saddlebag.
They embraced each other (Spike included) as everyone is enveloped in a bright flash of light.
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Excellent job on this chapter. Love the work that went into the dialogue and characterizations. Definitely loved how the older and wiser Twilight was able to give her main counterpart so much helpful advice (as well as that "testing trick" and the possible foreshadowing with the "Empress"). Also looking forward to seeing which two alternate Twilights are next.
Other possibilities for alternate Twilights:
A starship captain from a universe where magic and technology both developed at an equal rate.
One of her human counterparts who became Spider-Woman (i.e. somebody who has been through A LOT of REALLY bad spots, but learned to work through them with guts and ingenuity while still using her gifts to help others).
Anyway, certainly looking forward to more.
heres one of my favs so far twilight sparkle from star trek : phoenix and crossing the Trixie bridge is another if you like to do chapters based on both twilights
10964077
Can you give me the links? I'll try to check them out.
lmao it must sting when a version of yourself that isn't the princess of friendship knows more about friendship than you do.
11116820
........ I never considered that.
Not becoming a princess means losing the element of magic? That in and of itself seems just.... stupid. There's no way wanting to not rule equestria means rejecting friendship. Not a very strong start here.
11157626
I may not have been clear of what I implied, but in her world she was about to ascend when she realised what the spell does. Her confrontation with Celestia about said spell turned sour to a point where the Princess had no choice but to strip her of the Element of Magic.
I wanted to be vague about it to leave it to the imagination of how the confrontation went but your comment might have made me reconsider that.
the Bible, really? once again, I am convinced that wisdom sucks completely against the background of intelligence.
11157708
You can't really blame her for having second thoughts on immortality. Still is impressive how much she was able to accomplish without the Magic.
Where could I find the works that went into the collective that is the background for this version of Twilight?
Her title does NOT seem to be a link...
11806676
The Sparkle of Wisdom is an original idea as a homage to pre-princess Twilight Fics of her growing old as a unicorn. The one that inspired me the most was from a reading from Obabscribbler (that I could no longer find) where she wrote one last letter for Spike before she passed away.
11806706
Thank you for the information!