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Location Zero – The Scientist’s planet
There exist countless realities and infinite universes, each with their own rules and logic's. Magic rules in some, and science in others. In some, the two meshes, and in others something else can rule. One thing that is universal is that these realities do not mix. Travel between realities is so rare that the most beings everywhere doubt any reality but their own. Many of the greatest minds simply believe other realities possible. But few are those who have traveled between these realities.
In one, there exists a highly evolved race that began as insects. Hive minded, but intelligent and diverse in its own way. They are a fascinating species from a reality that blends magic and science. At this stage in their existence, these people exist in long running clone families. They reproduce asexually and imprint their personality onto their offspring who still manage to grow into individuals.
To go into detail of this race, and explain every aspect of their cultures and biology would take many great volumes of textbook and only scratch the surface. It is enough to say that they are neither uniformly good nor evil. In their own way, they are simply an inhuman people for better and worse.
One of these people may be one of the greatest minds currently existing. Its name (like the name of its species) simply does not translate into anything a human can understand. For ease of understanding, we shall call it The Scientist. It rules its own world and has control of five of its surviving clones. The Scientist is wanted by its own people for heinous and horrific crimes. It is completely insane, and is prone to erratic, bizarre and pointless actions. The five clones of the Scientist are totally slaved to it and lack any sense of self, serving merely as an extension of their parent.
On The Scientist’s world, it has a vast base the size of a small continent. The base serves as a lab, workshop, living quarters, warehouse, testing facility and prison. The Scientist has been working in a frenzy trying to prepare everything for it calls, the Great Endeavor. Although the clones had finally finished building everything to Scientists insane and ever-changing plans, The Scientist had to double check, then triple check, and then order massive changes, then triple check again, make more changes, before deciding the first arrangement was the best and changing around again.
Now the time has finally come to begin the Great Endeavor. The Scientist is ready to activate and use its greatest invention. Its name would very roughly translate as the Far-Away-Catcher-Hunter (The FACH). The FACH was metallic sphere the same size as a soccer ball and is a technological masterpiece of science and magic. The Scientist has created the greatest device of its and countless other worlds, and was about to squander it in the worst way possible. The Scientist had no idea how insane and sadistic its plan was as it saw everything it did as part of a great design that would prove its genius.
With everything ready, the Scientist and its clones scuttled away from the FACH and activated it using a separate control console. On activation a build up of electric and magical energy started to form around the FACH which then soundlessly disappeared, leaving only the scent of ozone.
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Location One –Equestria
It was wet and windy day in Ponyville. Most of the other Ponies stayed indoors. Applejack was playing card games with her family, Twilight was reading up on the theory of musical bliss, Pinkie Pie was teaching Rainbow Dash how to do some easy baking, Rarity was giving her little sister some beauty tips and Fluttershy was getting wetter by the second. The gale had come very suddenly and because of its strength was a danger to her chickens. She had to round them all up and lock them in their coop for their own safety. That done, she was about to dash for her home when she noticed strange lightning from the corner of her eye. She turned to face this sudden but gentle light, and saw a bizarre metal ball floating towards her, coming from the direction of the Everfree forest.
“Umm . . . hello,” Fluttershy said timidly as she walked towards the strange creature. It showed no sign of noticing her at first. Fluttershy watched it floated past, until it stopped and turned to face her with a jewel like yellow eye. Fluttershy was baffled by this weird thing and studied it carefully with her eyes narrowing in concentration. Multicoloured light suddenly shone from eye. Fluttershy yelped and stumbled back in surprise. The ball circled her with its weird light scanning her completely. “Umm . . . excuse me,” Fluttershy said confused, “but what are you. . . MEEEEP!” She was cut off as the multicoloured light changed into a bright green light which covered her utterly.
Before she could say anything else, Fluttershy was frozen like a statue and slowly faded from view. The rain falling on the FACH started to hiss off it, and then the FACH was surrounded by an invisible force field that repelled the rain. A moment later, it disappeared completely, leaving no evidence of it’s being there but for one hidden grey and cross eyed witness who had covered her mouth in utter shock, before she spun round and flew off to tell some other pony what had just happened.
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Location Three – Sol 3 (Earth)
It was a perfect day to die, sighed Iain as he made his way through the park. It was one of those dark days that leached colour and meaning from the world. Heavy cloud and the threat of rain joined with an icy wind and a mist of dark despair. He was a big lad, around 6ft 5, fit through most of his younger days but now running to fat. It was the day after his 22nd birthday and he was on a walk to think about how he should end his pointless life. He lost everything after his flat had been robbed, and it was coming home to that empty hovel that he realized he never had anything of worth. His friends had left town one by one and never returned his calls. His family had cast him out for the most petty of reasons. His job was low paid and demoralizing. He was still a virgin.
Iain had no hope for his future and his present was joyless.
Iain had a thick mop of light brown hair, and was wearing a grey trench coat over his faded t-shirt and torn jeans. His trainers where dirty and ripped in places.
He had hoped that the walk would clear his mind. He had spent his birthday sobbing naked on his bedroom floor, silently screaming for someone, anyone, to phone him or visit. He even tried to phone his parents, although that had left him even more depressed.
Remembering the previous day filled him feel deep shame. Iain kept his head low and forced himself to keep marching forward. He was shaken from bell jar thoughts by a flash of light just to his left. Spinning around in shock, Iain first impression was that a bolt of lightning had just missed him. When he saw the strange metal globe floating not three foot away, his despondent mood changed to one of confusion. He peered at it trying to see where the wires where.
It was then that its yellow eye focused on him. Before Iain could react, it shone with the multicoloured light and began to circle him. Iain immediately panicked, and bolted away from it. The FACH focused on him again, and red light shot from it like a laser, hitting Iain straight in the back. Iain froze as he ran, and fell face forward like a tipped statue. The FACH caught up to him and spread its green light over his prone form. After Iain had faded, the FACH shunted itself to the next reality.
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Location Four – Perdition
The FACH materialized in a baron wasteland of black rocks. Perdition was a seeming bleak world where nothing grew, but sustained a healthy Eco-system of purely carnivorous fauna.
The FACH explored this land for around fifteen minutes before detecting movement. As it made its way to the life form, it passed over a still puddle of green jelly. Reacting to the shadow passing over it, a tendril of the jelly shot out and stuck to the FACH. Rather than pull the FACH on to it, the jelly launched itself at the FACH instead and engulfed it completely. Despite being a creature of metal and plastic, the FACH was dissolved in moments by the powerful acids of the jelly.
Stronger from its meal, the green jelly creature oozed away in search of more prey.
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Location Zero – The Scientist’s Operations Centre
The last signal from the FACH reported sudden and severe damage before ending abruptly. The Scientist stared at the report for exactly thirty eight minutes before it shrieked in rage and began to trash the Operations Centre. It gave no real thought about the two specimens in the vast labyrinth like prison it had intended for thousands of life forms and wouldn’t until after it had finished its tantrum, enjoyed a meal of one of its own undeveloped offspring and finished repairing the Operations Centre with its clones.
It would be sometime before any attention was given to the two captive souls.
