If Solaris had a Text-to-Speech Device

by Jay David

Otherworldly

Discord, growing increasingly worried about his plan being discovered, glanced around the room quickly to try and find inspiration for something else to talk about and take everypony's minds off Flash's continued absence. After finding barely anything that could give such inspiration, he reverted back to the previous discussion. "So...um...I'm betting you'd like to know about some of the other magical artefacts Princess Twilight has been having to deal with over the years?"

"SUSPICIOUS DISCORD IS SUSPICIOUS," Solaris remarked, and judging from the looks Discord was getting from everypony else, it seemed as though that was a sentiment shared by all. "BUT YES, I WOULD LIKE TO KNOW."

Discord had to fight the urge to sigh with relief over that. And luckily for him, Sweetie Belle soon chimed in on the subject. "Oh! What about that magic mirror?"

Luna smiled to her. "Indeed. It has certainly been a recurring point in Twilight's life."

"I ASSUME YOU REFER TO THE CRYSTAL MIRROR? WHICH GRANTS ITS USER THE ABILITY TO TRAVEL TO OTHER REALITIES?"

All looked to him with surprise. "You...you already know about that, Father?"

"I DO INDEED. AND I SHOULD. AFTER ALL, YOU STAND BEFORE THE ONE WHO CREATED IT."

Naturally, all of them, Discord included, were taken aback by this, with Luna being the one to speak up about it. "You made it? But...why? And why did you never tell me or Tia?"

"I ALWAYS INTENDED TO," Solaris explained. "BUT I NEVER GOT THE CHANCE. THE MIRROR REMAINED INCOMPLETE BY THE TIME THE ACCIDENT HAPPENED AND LEFT ME HERE IN THIS STATE."

"Incomplete?" Luna replied, tilting her head slightly. "But...it works. Twilight most definitely used it, and several times too."

"TRUE, BUT ITS SCOPE WAS LIMITED. THE INTENT WAS TO USE THE DEVICE TO OBSERVE ALL OTHER REALITIES. BUT I WAS ONLY ABLE TO GET IT FIXATED UPON ONE BEFORE THINGS WENT DOWN THE WAY THAT THEY DID."

"Ah," Luna said to herself, finally understanding.

Sweetie, for once, actually addressed the king herself now. "Other realities? Like when Twilight and Spike went time-travelling?"

"I WAS WONDERING WHEN THAT WOULD GET MENTIONED AGAIN. I ASSUME THAT HER JOURNEY TO THE PAST RESULTED IN ALTERNATE TIMELINES?"

"Many, from what she told me," Luna elaborated. "Most of which concerned how the nation would have looked under the reign of all of the foes she and her friends have bested over the years." She then glanced to Discord. "Myself and Discord here among them."

"A WORLD RULED BY DISCORD? TRULY A NIGHTMARE SCENARIO IF EVER THERE WAS ONE."

"Hmph!" Discord pouted. "Sounds liek a rather fun reality if you ask me."

"WHICH WE AREN'T."

Sweetie, looking from one immortal to the other, cleared her throat before spekaing up again. "So...how many other versions of the world are out there?"

"AN INFINITE AMOUNT, FILLY. EVERY CHOICE PUT BEFORE YOU IN LIFE CREATES MANY ROADS. YOU CHOOSE ONE, BUT THERE WILL ALWAYS BE SOME OTHER VERSION OF YOU WHO CHOSE DIFFERENTLY. FACTOR IN ALL THE CHOICES MADE BY OTHER PEOPLE, NOT TO MENTION NATURALLY-HAPPENING EVENTS LIKE WEATHER AND EARTHQUAKES AND THE LIKE, AND WHAT YOU'RE LEFT WITH IS THE POTENTIAL FOR LIMITLESS DIFFERENT INCARNATIONS OF THE WORLD YOU KNOW AND LOVE."

Sweetie stared down at the ground for a while, her mind clearly being overwhelmed with the vast possibilities of what she'd just been told. "So...a world where I never met my best friends? Or one where we might have even been enemies? That...that sounds horrible!"

"...YOU KNOW, AFTER SO LONG OF RULING OVER A RACE THAT SO OFTEN SEES THINGS GLASS-HALF FULL, IT REALLY IS JARRING TO COME ACROSS ONE WHOSE MIND IMMEDIATELY GOES TO THE BAD."

Luna frowned to him. "Well, given the alternate worlds Twilight has spoken of, you can't really blame her, Father."

"PERHAPS," Solaris admitted. "EVEN SO, IT IS A GREAT DISAPPOINTMENT THAT WE SHALL NEVER SEE THEM, SINCE MY CREATION REMAINED UNFINISHED. ALL I GOT WAS SOME STRANGE WORLD OF TWO-LEGGERS."

Luna chuckled to that. "One that has given Twilight her fair share of adventure, I promise you that."

"OH, I HAVE NO DOUBT," Solaris answered, with a smile if he had been capable. "YOU SAY SHE HAS JOURNEYED THERE?"

Luna nodded. "A least three times, by my count."

"THAT CERTAINLY WASN'T PART OF THE PLAN. THE MIRROR WAS ONLY EVER MEANT TO ALLOW OBSERVATION, NOT TRAVEL."

"As I understand it, Father, the mirror only enabled travel under very rare circumstances."

"TYPICAL EQUESTRIA. ENVIRONMENTAL, MAGICAL FACTORS WERE ALWAYS A COMPLICATION WHENEVER I ATTEMPTED TO DO THIS SORT OF THING."

"Twilight was actually able to get it going permanently after a while," Sweetie added with renewed enthusiasm.

"REALLY? IMPRESSIVE. I CAN SEE WHY CELESTIA TOOK A LIKING TO HER. THE NEW PRINCESS CLEARLY HAS AN APTITUDE FOR BOTH MAGIC AND SCIENCE."

Folding his arms, Discord looked to Solaris inquisitively. "You know, I still have to ask...why did you make the mirror?"

Everycreature turned to look to Solaris, all looking equally as intrigued as to the answer of that question. Solaris, for his part, remained silent for a solid minute before answering. "I...AM OLD. VERY OLD. AFTER A WHILE, THERE COMES A POINT WHERE YOU HAVE SEEN AND EXPERIENCED ALL THE WORLD HAS TO OFFER. THAT APATHY, THAT NUMBNESS TO WHAT IS AND WHAT COULD BE, IS SOMETHING I HAVE TRIED TO STAVE OFF FOR MANY YEARS. THE MIRROR WAS TO HELP ME DO THAT."

Hearing that, Luna understood. "You wanted to see and learn new things, in other worlds and other universes?"

"I DID. DESPITE HOW THE COMMON PONY MAY SEE US, WE ARE STILL SMALL PARTS OF A GREATER WHOLE, THERE WILL NEVER NOT BE SOMETHING NEW FOR US TO DISCOVER, IF NOT IN OUR WORLD THEN AT LEAST IN OTHERS."

"Well," Discord began. "Never expected you to wax poetic, old friend."

"JUST AS I NEVER EXPECTED YOU OR I TO EVER HOLD A PROPER CONVERSATION. TIMES CHANGE, IT WOULD SEEM."

After a long pause, the master of chaos actually laughed a little, nodding his head solemnly. "That they do."

Author's Note:

Mirror, mirror, on the wall, who is the strangest crossover of all?

Comments

[Professor Litmus]

11693929
a rave is like writing desk because both tend to be covered in quills

[Lost_Data]

"...YOU KNOW, AFTER SO LONG OF RULING OVER A RACE THAT SO OFTEN SEES THINGS GLASS-HALF FULL, IT REALLY IS JARRING TO COME ACROSS ONE WHOSE MIND IMMEIATELY GOES TO THE BAD."

*IMMEDIATLY*

[Lost_Data]

"I DID. DESPITE HOW THE COMMON PONY MAY SEE US, WE ARE STILL SMALL PARTS OF A GREATER WHOLE, THERE WILL NEVER NOT BE SOMETHING NEW FOR US TO DISCOVER, IF NOT IN OUR WORLD THEN AT LEAST IN OTHERS."

Cheers my friend!

[Jay David]

11696438 Thanks for pointing it out