The Split Core

The Split Core

Written by ZekeOfTheFreaks

No matter how distant they may seem, no matter how long they have or have not known about each other, the bond between brothers is something special, something that cannot be broken. --Anonymous

It was a typical Saturday in the city of Las Pegasus. An earth pony, by the name of Source Code, was just about to head back to his desk and work on his computer, when he found a letter from an unknown sender lying next to his pen. Not expecting any letters from anypony soon, he assumed it was just a junk letter or something, but after looking at it, there was something about the writing on the front of the envelope that seemed vaguely familiar. After about 20 minutes of having the letter lay by his side while he was on his computer, Source Code could no longer resist the temptation. He had to at least know who the letter was from. He opened it up, pulled the message out, and read it out loud:

"Dear Source Code,

If you're reading this letter, then you must have recently reached the age of stallions. I'm proud that you have come this far in life. I know I never got to say goodbye to you face-to-face, but I've been watching you from the heavens since you were a little colt. But I digress, now that you're old enough to understand, I must tell you that I want you to go to Appleloosa. If I'm right, there's another stallion there that you don't remember meeting. I know because he's your brother. You can choose to take a trip to Appleloosa and meet him if you wish, but I cannot guarantee that you will know it's him right away. If you choose to stay in your current town, as I would guess you would, I'll understand. I know you'll make the right choice.

With love,

Your father"

Source Code had never met his biological father, since he passed away when he was merely a yearling, and his biological mother died giving birth to him. It was to Source Code's great fortune that he was given a second chance at life when a couple that was friends with his family adopted him, the same couple that he came to know as his parents in Las Pegasus. Anyway, something felt legitimate about this letter, and Source Code had always wanted a sibling, so he immediately grabbed his lucky vest and watch, and ran out of his house, headed to the train station.

Source Code made it to the station within ten minutes. He saw that nopony except for the ticket salespony was there. He went up to the ticket booth, and asked,

"Excuse me, sir, when will the next train to Appleloosa arrive?" The salespony happily replied,

"You're in luck. It should be arriving here in about 20 minutes, and there's one ticket left for the ride. I'm also feeling pretty generous today, so if you want the ticket, I'll only charge 20 bits for it."

"That's perfect, sir. I'll take it." Source Code was feeling quite fortunate. He thought he'd pay the usual 50 bit price, but this was just plain lucky. He handed over 20 bits, and received a ticket to Appleloosa. Just the next minute, a crowd of other ponies all came to the station, tickets either in their bags or being held by magic. As everypony waited for the train to arrive, Source Code lost himself in thought. He was pondering how he never expected to receive a letter from his father from beyond the grave, nor did he ever think that he'd actually have a brother to call his own. There was something about the timing of his letter that seemed almost too perfect to be mere coincidence. The train eventually arrived, and Source Code shook himself out of his trance. He boarded the train, and as it departed, he said to himself, "You know, I have a feeling things are going to change for me. Not sure how, but I have a feeling they will."