• Published 3rd Dec 2023
  • 1,453 Views, 502 Comments

Worlds Apart - Goldfur



The world of Equus and the nation of Equestria begin formal relations with the people of Earth.

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First Contact

Ken Hayashi stepped off the airplane from Melbourne into the blazing heat of Alice Springs. Although dressed to cope with the expected weather, the man did not waste time getting into the air-conditioned terminal. After passing out of the secure area, he made his way to the Hertz Car Rental desk to pick up the keys to the car he had booked. By the time that had been accomplished, baggage had started coming out at his carousel and it did not take long for him to retrieve his suitcase. A short walk back out into the heat found his car, and after putting his bag into the back seat, he got in, started the engine, and cranked up the AC.

With Google Maps showing the way, he drove out of the airport and quickly made it onto the A87 a.k.a. Stuart Highway headed north. The Todd River soon came into view on his right and both the road and the dry watercourse squeezed through The Gap, one of the few places traffic could pass the MacDonnell Ranges and into the city of Alice Springs. Maps had him turn right almost immediately to take him to the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel. It was not long before he was in his room, but he did not bother unpacking his suitcase yet.

Ken opened up his laptop case and pulled out a small box. Inside were two large blue gems made to look like costume jewelry but were much more. He took one gem to the full-length mirror and, despite the lack of any obvious glue, stuck it to the glass. He tapped a pattern on the gem, twisted it, and the whole mirror shimmered. Nodding in satisfaction, Ken stepped through the mirror without even making a ripple.

A kirin with a cream-colored coat, brown scales, and blue mane emerged from a mirror in a room filled with many others. Two alert Royal Guards – a unicorn mare and an earth pony stallion – watched Ken approach.

“Hi, Slingshot,” Ken said. “Could you pass on word to Prince Mark Wells that I’m here?”

The unicorn smiled and nodded. “Right away, sir.” Corporal Slingshot tapped a button on a device on the desk and spoke into it. “Mr. Healthy Forest has arrived at the portal room as expected. Please inform His Highness.”

Ken had to grin whenever he heard his Equestrian name. He had made the mistake of explaining the meaning of his Japanese name to some ponies who were having difficulty pronouncing it. Their quirk for needing descriptive nomenclature often tripped them up. However, they had latched onto the nickname like terriers. Fortunately, he didn’t mind it as it fitted him as comfortably as his kirin alter-form.

While Slingshot passed on the message, the other pony approached with a grin. “I heard you had to fly for hours to get to your destination before coming here. What does it feel like to travel further in seconds than however long in your aircraft?”

Ken shook his head with a lopsided smile. “It still boggles me every time I come over, Ground Quake.”

“Do you think you could persuade Prince Wells to let me go there and have a look around someday?”

“You could always apply for an Earth-side job at one of the Harmonic Composites branches. You’d get the opportunity to do a bit of tourist stuff.”

“I don’t suppose there are any openings at your place?”

Ken grimaced. “I’m afraid not. The Melbourne, Australia branch is fully staffed for now. However, that might change soon if our plans work out. I’ll mention it to Mark Wells later.”

“Thanks, buddy,” the earth pony said with a grin.

Ken liked Quake – the stallion was a very personable guy and one of the earliest friends he had made. Ken knew though that, despite his friendliness, when it came down to business, the Royal Guard was not to be trifled with. He had watched Quake train one day when the pony indulged Ken’s curiosity about his work. The man was left in no doubt about how appropriate the pony’s name was. They chatted for a short while before a green alicorn stallion and brown batpony mare with exceptionally large wings arrived.

“Hello, Ken. How was your trip?” the prince asked.

“Everything went as planned and the flight was smooth as silk. I hope you’re prepared for hot weather though. It’s really toasty today.”

Mark Wells grinned. “I have a bet with Penny here that I’ll be able to tolerate the heat better than her.”

The batpony smiled smugly. “I can here, and I can’t see why it would be any different over there.”

Ken was fairly sure that Penumbra had never endured an Outback heatwave as a human before. It would be interesting to find out who was right. As for him, he reckoned he would cope better than either. “Okay, if you’re ready, let’s get this show on the road.” He turned back to the mirror through which he had arrived and stepped into it once more.

Back in the Alice Springs hotel, Ken stood aside for the short dark-skinned man who followed him, fully dressed courtesy of enchanted clothing similar to that which Ken wore. Next, a woman of Amazonian proportions joined them, also appropriately dressed. Ken then deactivated the portal gem and the mirror became an ordinary looking-glass once more.

Mark looked around the room and then took in the view out the window of the sandy watercourse and the township beyond. “Nice. I might come here for a vacation someday when everything settles down.”

Ken nodded as he placed the gem back in the box and then stowed it. “I haven’t been here before, so I’m looking forward to having a bit of a walkabout before the big show starts tonight. I still find it amazing that you want to make official First Contact here in the middle of nowhere.”

Mark shrugged. “As I’ve said before, it’s well away from interfering superpowers, it’s in a politically stable nation, portals make distance meaningless for transport, and above all, it isn’t cliché! I’ve seen enough human movies to know that aliens pick Washington, New York, or Tokyo far too often.”

Ken chuckled in agreement. “Okay, let’s get going. Have you got everything you need?”

“Just let me grab a couple of things,” Mark said as he placed the small case he had been carrying on the bed.

A minute later, they headed out the door. When they reached Ken’s rental car, they piled in and he cranked up the air-conditioning to the maximum.

Mark said, “Just a reminder to take it easy. Penny and I don’t officially exist in this world, so drive defensively and don’t attract attention.”

“Got it,” Ken replied as he put their destination into Google Maps.

It was a fairly short drive to the Alice Springs Desert Park which, although interesting, was not their ultimate destination. The area east of it was undeveloped and only had a few rough paths passing through it. The three made their way over there, scouting for a suitable place. There were a few small hardy trees and lots of equally rugged bushes but still plenty of open ground. They selected a spot equidistant between two trees and close to one of the paths. The nearest houses were about five hundred meters away but would have a good view of the show later. They concealed two dimensional beacons to make doubly sure that they could find the place from Equus. Then they headed back to the park.

Ken noted with amusement that Penumbra was sweating up a storm. In her natural form, she had large wings to help her cool down, but as a human, she lacked that ability. Judging by Mark’s smug smile, he knew it too. Ken declined to mention it, however. He’d been on the end of the batpony’s snark before and knew not to stir the ant’s nest. Instead, he thought a break was in order.

“Anyone want some cool drinks and a bite to eat before we continue on?”

“Sounds like a good idea,” Mark responded. “Then we can play tourist for a short while before heading back.”

They refreshed themselves at the nearby Coolamon Café before heading off into the heat once more. The trio took the time to hit all the highlights of the area before going back to the hotel for dinner. There would not be anything more happening that day for a few reasons, some due to testing purposes but mainly because of time zones. Due to Alice Springs being on the other side of the planet from the Charlotte office of Harmonic Composites which was kept in synch with Canterlot, their daytime was night in Central Australia and Mark and Penumbra had essentially been up when they should have been in bed. They had taken a nap prior to coming over, but they needed a good full night’s sleep before the next stage of their plans.


The next evening saw Ken parked in his car near to the chosen site – far enough that his presence would not be suspicious but close enough to observe everything. At the appointed time, he got out his cell phone and dialed an international number. However, while that call went to an office in Charlotte, North Carolina, it was relayed through a communications portal to Canterlot, Equestria.

Prince Mark Wells tapped the speaker button on his phone with a hoof. “Hello, Ken. Are we good to go?”

Everything looks clear, Mark. You can start anytime.

“Great! Enjoy the show!” He looked around at those gathered for the event. His wife, Princess Trixie waited calmly. The consummate showmare regarded this as yet another performance, albeit one of huge importance to two worlds. As such, she had dressed for the occasion in her finest outfit including her most impressive crown. He himself had opted for a red vest with gold trim and royal crest sewn on it. Princess Twilight Sparkle might have been a bundle of nerves but for being focused on ensuring that the dedicated portal was working at peak performance and ready for action. Testing had successfully locked onto the beacons left in Alice Springs, and it was only a matter of powering up the link to open the portal to the other world. Mark’s primary bodyguard and herdmate Penumbra was coolly on the job, and his dragon daughter-in-law, Smolder, was standing by, ready to do her part. She was wearing a long blue gown of the type she favored for Court appearances. Her guard and husband, Gallus, a blue griffon, stood by her side in dress uniform. Prince Shining Armor was resplendent in his most formal uniform which lived up to his name. The players were in place, the infrastructure had been completed, and all the preparations that they could conceivably make had been done. It was time to formally let the inhabitants of Earth learn that they were not alone in the multiverse.

“Fire it up, Twi,” Mark instructed the purple alicorn mare.

Twilight nodded, pushed a button, and slid a lever. The portal on their side shimmered to show that it was active.

Mark put the phone back up to his ear. “How’s it looking over there, Ken?”

Wow! That’s quite a light show. Is it supposed to be that bright?

“Open-ended portals do let off a lot of energy, much of that as visible light. However, Twilight has tweaked this one to be extra luminous. The whole point of this exercise is to attract attention.”

I also hear a soft thrumming noise.

“Part of the same deal. That will be turned down when we’ve gathered the audience we require.” Mark looked over to Shining Armor. “Okay – you’re up.”

The unicorn nodded and then said to his sister. “Time to go stealth, Twilight.”

The alicorn cast a spell and Shining faded from sight. Only the clopping of horseshoes indicated him moving over to the portal and stepping through. Ironically, despite his outfit, he would not be seen for the moment. He had to establish a protective shield over the portal grounds on the Australian side, but he did not intend to make first contact, so he had to remain invisible until later.

You’ve already caught the attention of a few of the neighbors,” Ken reported. “I think they were barbecuing in the cooler night air.

“Good. The more that see the sideshow, the sooner that someone up the chain will become aware of us.”

After several more minutes, Ken reported that a couple of police cars had turned up. By then, a large number of people had made their way over to the site and had been stopped by Shining’s force field. After discovering the same, the cops chivvied the civilians away from it before trying to find a way around it.

Mark! A news van just drove up! That was a bit quicker than we thought.

“Excellent! Let’s hope our luck continues,” Mark replied. “They’ll probably have a reporter set up in front of the portal very quickly. Let us know when it looks like a good time to make our appearance.”

Will do. I’m walking up to join the spectators now. Several are on their phones too, so I won’t stand out.

The wait was beginning to get on Mark’s nerves. At last, he got the news he had been waiting for.

The reporter is doing a live broadcast now.

“Thanks, Ken. I’m going to hang up. You’ll see me in person in a moment.”

Break a leg!” came the reply before Mark shut off the phone and tucked it away in his dimensional pocket.

“Okay – we’re up!” Mark called out. He smiled at his wife. “Time to make your debut, love.”

She smiled back confidently as she made the final adjustments to her resplendent cape and crown. “Trixie is ready to wow a whole world, Dowser. It’s Showtime!”

The alicorn mare then turned to the portal and stepped through, closely followed by Mark and Smolder. Then the rest of the team joined them.


The crowd gasped as Trixie made her appearance, and an excited babble started up as Mark and Smolder emerged to take their places on her right and left. Their amazement grew as Gallus and Penumbra then joined their spouses, one step back and to the side. No one noticed that Shining Armor did not step through the portal but instead suddenly faded into view, concealed by the first five and the luminous gateway. He stepped to one side, scanning for any trouble as the brightness of the portal was turned down by Twilight as planned.

After a long pause to allow the witnesses a good look at them and the reporter to get into position so that the camera lights illuminated them better, Trixie spread her wings, eliciting a loud reaction. With attention fully focused on her, she began her spiel.

Greetings, people of this world! I am Princess Trixie Lulamoon and we bring you a message of peace and friendship from the world of Equus and the nation of Equestria!

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Author's Note:

The long-awaited open contact with Earth has begun smoothly, but will it stay that way?

Art by Nocti Draws.