DisQord

by Midnight Sprint

Part 2: InQuiries

“Twilight Sparkle?” The Captain of the Enterprise reiterated, eyes still wide. The young pony nodded her head happily, always excited to meet new faces from strange places. “That’s right. Where exactly is this ‘star ship’ of yours? Where are you from?” She asked, curious about the man’s appearance, background, and obviously his presence in Ponyville. “Me?” Picard answered, still adapting to this strange community of equine inhabitants. He had seen many strange life forms in his day, but such a colorful and expressive civilization of horse beings was certainly something unique. “I regret that I don’t actually know. I was with my crew,” He began, correcting himself for the sake of the pony being unfamiliar with the human creature. “My people. We were traveling through deep space on a mission of exploration, when someone… or rather, some THING took me from my ship and brought me here.”

“Strange.” Twilight said ponderously. Suddenly, a bolt of excitement shot through her eyes, and her entire face lit up. “Wait. You said, through space? You can travel through space!?” The Captain was a little taken aback, but not entirely surprised. It was obvious that the technological advancement of this place was as unique as the ponies that lived there. Picard replied briefly, “That’s correct. Unfortunately, the being that brought me here is as utterly chaotic as he is powerful. I have no means to tell where I am in relation to my ship.”

Twilight looked around the street, noticing that the crowd had remained drastically thinned, albeit still present. The other ponies had kept a distance from Twilight and the Captain, but it was obvious that a sense of curiosity kept more than a few looking as they passed. “I think I know someone you should talk to.” She stated confidently. “She’s the leader of our empire. Princess Celestia. She’ll know what to do about your situation, I’m sure!”

Captain Picard smiled with appreciation, and looked around. “Well, Twilight Sparkle. Seeing as I know nothing of your land, after you.” Twilight led Picard through the town, and ultimately onto a train, leading to Canterlot. She explained that the trip would take some time, and that he should take a seat and relax in the meantime. While it was true, this experience seemed like a terrible hallucinogenic experience, even for one of Q’s strange adventures, at least the civilization was friendly enough.

“So, you travel through the stars? What’s it like up there? I can only see through my telescope in my home. I’m aware of different galaxies, constellations, and nebulae, such as the Horsehead Nebula.” Picard laughed briefly, finding irony in the fact that the Horsehead was the first name she brought to his attention. Still, it was worth noting that the name was parallel to a nebula of the same name in the Federation, and human space from which he hailed. “You know of the Horsehead Nebula?” He asked the young pony.

“Indeed I do.” She replied pleasantly, clearly intrigued by his presence, and history. Picard answered a little relieved. “Well, if it’s the same nebula, then that means I have a little bit of an idea where this world of yours is in relation to my ship.”

“Ms. Sparkle? Is it?” The Captain inquired politely. Twilight looked over from the window and answered happily. “You may call me Twilight, Captain.” Picard smiled to himself. “Well then, Twilight. This… Princess of yours. You believe she will know how to help me find my people? Your technology here is very familiar to me and my own kind, but I can see that there are other things operating here.”

“That’s right, Captain.” Twilight answered honestly. “Celestia is experienced and wise, but she’s a very kind soul. She’ll know how to help you. Or at least get you started on the right path.” Twilight was lying down on one of the seats, obviously designed for the pony race, while Picard was sitting with his legs stretched over the edge. Making the most of seat designed for a being whose physical structure was so radically different forced the Captain to find new ways to recline.

“Captain, speaking of your people.” Twilight began to ask, “How is it that you came to be here without a means to get back?” Picard shook his head and shrugged. “I would tell you that you wouldn’t believe me, but I somehow doubt that very much.” The young unicorn just tilted her head inquisitively. Picard sighed and continued. “Very well. During our travels, we encountered a creature… a being. This… being, who calls himself Q, comes from a place outside of our perception of reality. They call it the Q Continuum. Anyway, this Q abused his natural powers to alter reality, and play games at our expense. His twisted sense of humor was based on little more than chaos and discord, turning myself, my crew, even civilizations at times into little more than pawns in a sick game. Oh, he’s probably watching us right now.”

Twilight’s eye twitched a little bit upon hearing the word ‘discord’, in association with the background explanation of this Q person’s knack for wreaking havoc and nonsensical discourse. “Discord… you say?” She inquired nervously. Picard nodded, acknowledging the nature of Q, unaware that the young pony had suspicions of her own in the back of her mind. “Twilight. Is there a problem?” The Captain asked, confused by the strange reaction to their conversation.

“No!” Twilight reacted involuntarily, as she sometimes had a nervous habit of doing. “It’s nothing. Princess Celestia will know how to approach this problem of yours, and I’m certain that we’ll be able to figure out any blocks we might come across. I am her personal pupil, you know.” She added with a light, yet noticeable air of pride in Celestia’s choice. “Well then,” Picard replied. “I’m glad I seem to have run into the right… um, unicorn!”

The train rumbled a little as the tracks curved around the final stretch leading to the gates of Canterlot. “We’re almost here, Captain. Just follow me, and I’ll take you to the Princess as soon as possible.” Picard nodded while standing, and peering out a window towards the grand castle, and the elegant castle town that surrounded it. This was clearly a high society dwelling, and the masonry showed that the ponies living within were of high learning, high skill, and likely more knowledge than he would have expected from such a civilization. He had to admit, as utterly cartoonish and strange as this place appeared to the average mind, it was without doubt a marvelous and beautiful environment.

Author's Note:

I started this fanfiction a while back, and importantly before "Keep Calm and Flutter On" was ever announced. This fanfiction is set before the events of Keep Calm and Flutter On.

Comments

[Evil-Lovieness]

Yeah I can the word "discord" never meaning the same thing again to Twilight... I know for a fact that I can never look at it the same way.

[Thunderlane]

1940736
Especially now after seeing
fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2011/255/e/e/discord_and_picard_by_willdrawforfood1-d49ok1k.png
This, which only fits the story all to well.