The Dimensions of Polyn

by Fogeldash

Rating: teen
Tags: Dark, Alternate Universe, Sad, Romance, Tragedy, Adventure
Length: 24818

What must you do to live in a world without corruption? One unicorn is about to find out.

In an alternate dimension, a magical war has brought about a planets destruction. In the empty wasteland, the last city stands. Corruption runs rampant as the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. One unicorn is forced into a life that has been chosen for her since birth.
As her parents and everyone she knows turns on her, she will discover something from the war torn past that will lead her on a personal journey through different worlds to Equestria and beyond, even to the end of all things.

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2015-06-23 22:48:40 UTC

Polyn's Modern Life

Chapter 2: Polyn's Modern Life

Polyn walks through the city on her way to the magic academy. The sky-way carts fly overhead between the massive buildings that make up Equestria City's prominent landscape. The small square-shaped aerodynamic carts enable the commoner workers to get to their pre-ordained jobs at the various high rises. The sky-ways were originally built to ship materials between the large buildings that house the reactors. They are now used for both shipments and travel throughout the city and have been extended from their original lengths.

Her father would be at the station all day helping the masses with their travel needs. People came and went trying to make the best of their situation. They were trapped in a daily grind, with no real purpose except to earn a living, although after the amount of taxes the government took out, there wasn't much left, and they had to live with that.

From birth, your fate was sealed. If you were born a commoner, you went to school and work exactly where the city government wanted you to go. If you were a Pegasus, you would work on building construction, sky-way maintenance, window washing and a variety of other jobs. Unicorns like Polyn would end up working in a lab or a purification reactor building.

Because of their innate magical abilities, unicorns were suited for magi-technology. Earth ponies were the office clerks, security guards, merchants, driving the economy of the city. You could petition for a different job but only in special cases and only with additional rules and restrictions. The application and approval process was just an illusion of choice. Only if the Government had some kind of alternate plan for you that suited their needs would your application be approved. They were the final word.

Looking past her small house she could see The Border; A white, gently pulsating wall of magic that kept the magical poison out and the citizens in. It shined dimly, and was like a dome, a literal entrapment. Beyond that was endless wasteland. The green trees and grassy valleys had been long been gone even before Polyn had been born.

All the trees and flowers, in the city were artificial. Any real trees were contaminated by a perpetual magical poison since long ago. Polyn wipes her eyes, turns around and notices a large tree standing in the center of the street that led to the bazaar. It was the Aphos tree. It was the first artificial tree that would bear fruit. She and her family were named after it. Two guards carefully stand by the trunk, cracking jokes at passers by.

“Hey, there's another one for the mare-i-go round,” they would shout along with other quips. The power to control had gone to their heads. They were supposed to be there to keep the peace and protect the merchants, not gawk at them. A young silver haired earth pony hid her face from them as she passed.

There were many silver armored guards like them, most with small bladed weapons or long blunt metallic poles. They were the main force of control in the city, a city that had been pretty much militarized from the beginning.

The guards were made up of soldiers from a personal army gathered over time by the Breadwinner lineage, who ran the city with an Iron hoof. Only the upper class called elites benefited from this. Guards were known to steal from low end commoner business, adding taxes and driving many to poverty. The current city leader, Julius Breadwinner was hated among all the commoners because of his tendency to raise taxes and secretly enforce corrupted practices.

Walking across a bridge, Polyn can smell the stench and feel the dry dust rising from the city's lower levels. Part of the street angled downwards till it was twisted up and corroded. It was inviting her to an early death.

She'd heard the rumors of foals dying from hidden dangers in the dust clouds or colts being attacked or murdered by thieves. If she had any ideas of running away she was going to end up underground in the dust bowl. The purification system didn't work very well down there so the rumors seemed justified, despite probably being over exaggerated by the guards who had to stand by the entrance to the desolate underbelly of the city.

The ragged poverty stricken ponies living down in the dumps were referred to as Unmentionables. Rejecting your appointed place in the city, meant living in the dumps. Some rebelled despite knowing the consequences because they would rather live in horrible living conditions than serve a corrupt city.

Life in the city was simple: Go to school, come of age, work and finally retire in a small run-down neighborhood with barely enough bits to pay for your lost sanity.

Wiping her eyes with her slightly oversized hoof, she focuses on one of the large central factory buildings. Each of the four factories has a purifying reactor at their core. You can't tell what is inside from the shiny exterior of the skyscrapers but they are the tallest standing buildings and are interconnected with the central building that is even taller. These machines are about a square mile in diameter and keep the city in working order; keeping The Border running and all other creeping toxins out. The artificial plants funneled the magical energies out to the rivers and kept the air clean.

It had been this way since the ancient war that forever altered the stability of the planet. Without the machines, the city would be uninhabitable and the magical poison that flowed out from the core of the planet would engulf everything.

The young mare arrives at the magic academy building just as the morning class bell begins to ring. The flat square shaped building is dwarfed by the towering industrial and office buildings looming behind it, a constant reminder of what life has in store after graduation in only a few days.

The buildings design is a mix of medieval castle and modern day high school complete with rectangle shaped classrooms, small sliding windows, and a flag pole outside the entryway. The school itself is a mix of old and new styles: Large streaming banners advertising events, next to a digital bulletin board run by an artificial intelligence program that would beep softly before broadcasting the day's events. The stone walls and older-looking columns on the outside, hide a modern building with magical core labs and climate controlled classrooms on the inside. Polyn felt more at home here, than in her own house, especially in the multi-story library in the building behind it.

As she enters the central hall, her friend Lyra waits for her with a smile. She has a bright green coat and a mane of cyan. There is a white stripe running through her mane and tail. She is a unicorn and comes from a wealthy and privileged family. Even though she would be eventually given a cushy job in the government sector, she was given the choice to further her skills in the local academy. Given her elevated status, she had no grudge with commoners and saw them just the same as herself. It was a rare viewpoint among the elites of the city. Polyn actually admired this about her long time friend.

“I’ve been waiting forever for you, the bus break down again?”

“I wish, then I’d have an excuse.” She tries to smile but can only muster a pursing of the lips.

All of the students are rushing to their classes behind them and soon the guards will patrol the area to keep any students from getting out. They stood next to the flag pole; two static figures in the midst of the surrounding chaos. Polyn takes a deep breath while noticing her surroundings and looks back toward her friend noticing the large amount of books she struggles to hold. She opens her eyes wider and smirks.

“Don’t you have somewhere to be?”

“Of course,” the cute green unicorn says with a smile. “With you.”

As they talk about their weekend, they walk through the empty corridor. It is devoid of students except for one frantic yellow haired mare that speeds past them, bouncing off the walls as she crams herself into the remedial classroom at the end of the hall, dropping a small muffin in front of her then accidentally stepping on it. Quickly she picks up the dirty pastry and eats it. Crumbs fly out as the door slams shut.

The chaos doesn't faze Polyn as she begins to feel immediately better being in the company of a friend like Lyra, a pony who could ignore her occasional lack of tact, and do it with a smile.

Polyn remembers her school Schedule for the day: History of Equestria with Cheerilee, Magical Potions and Mysteries with Zecora, and a special presentation of current government job openings in the industrial sector. Her favorite class was listed last: The power of elemental magic with The Great and Powerful Trixie.

Lyra waves a hoof as she takes a nearby staircase up to the Elite classroom floor. Polyn watches as her friend leaves then hears a throat clearing noise. She turns to notice the class staring at her with scowls on their faces. Cheerilee with her pink mane brushed to the side, stands there smiling. The class was already seated and the lesson had begun.

The teacher began with some tragic history about the war. There was chapter in the book called “Starswirl the Bearded and other technological pioneers.” Despite its tragic subject matter, Cheerillee taught it with a positive inflection and a smile. Behind her bright white teeth was an uneasiness.

Standing by the door is a guard in a silver and blue armored harness that was typical of mid ranking government guards. The teachers had to be careful what they conveyed, and how it was perceived. If  she wouldn't be a teacher much longer.

During the war, Starswirl, an old bearded mare with a cape and pointed hat that depicted a starry night, was one of the first ponies to push for mechanical devices powered by magic. The world saw this as unnatural and he was largely attacked by the magic-using world who believed technology would eventually destroy us.

The ignorance back then was astounding to the young Polyn who had read several books on the subject during her after school hours. Magic and technology needed to work together. Technology by itself was nothing more than useless spare parts.

As the lesson outlined. Starswirl continued to work on new advances in artificial intelligence and machines. No one knows what happened to him but death was almost certain, even though they never found a body.

As ponies began to side with either magic or technology, things got really bad. Eventually both sides tried to prove their dominance by waging war on the other. This had a drastic effect on the volatile magical core of the planet which reacted to it by releasing a magical poison that blanketed everything and resulted in the deaths of billions, even those who didn't take a side.

The last of ponykind began using magic and technology together to create the first purifying machines with magical energy cores. They were able to purify the poison within a limited area. As the city grew so did the size of the machines. The city was built around them and they were necessary to the survival of all.

“Even today, we are thankful for the amazing technology that keeps us alive today,” Cheerillee finishes.

One student in the back raises a hoof.

“But didn't Starswirl's “abominations” become necessary for survival, we owe him our lives.”

The guard glances over with a straight face. Cheerillee nervously addresses the whole class.

“uhh, does anypony know what Starswirl's technological group was called?”

A straight haired pony answers.

“The...Technoponies, he says.”

“That's right and what happened to them?”

Polyn knew that her teacher was trying to make the Technoponies look bad to save her hyde, still she answered.

“During the final battle they were cornered inside a mountain and blew themselves up...They wanted to keep their secrets.”

Realizing that everything is fine, the guard goes back to staring at the wall.

“That's right Polyn, They decided they would rather destroy themselves then give up their foolish goals.” She goes behind her desk, her smile returning. “We are better when we work together for the common good of the city rather than being selfish.” She nervously nods to reassure herself.

At the end of class Polyn gets to the door only to be called on by the teacher.

“Thank you Polyn, you certainly know your stuff.”

The young mare sighs, gathering up a little frustration in her breath.

“I said it to save your job...maybe I shouldn't have.” She walks out in silence.

The next class started as students tried making potions with a set of specific ingredients. Many wondered why potions were even a thing anymore. Very few ponies really got jobs in potion making. Who knew what they were putting in potions these days.

“Carefully choose your ingredients well, and your potion will end up quite swell,” Zecora rhymed to her own amusement.

She was a zebra, one of the few remaining in the world and quite knowledgeable about mystical Potion making. Polyn had messed up on hers and created a small odorous poison instead. She really wanted to throw it at the guard.

After her first two classes had concluded, all of the students were required to gather in the multipurpose room. A government official stood in full uniform wearing a city emblem emblazoned with a tree. Again the Aphos tree was being silently celebrated. He walked with authority but when he spoke his voice was softer and nonthreatening.

“Welcome to this very special Job presentation everypony,” he said elegantly. In the next few days you will have a chance to tour the central processor building and be placed for amazing job opportunities.”

He continued talking about the government job system and how great it is to work for the city and benefit the greater good. The words made the small disgruntled mare twitch a little.

“Being such special unicorns such as yourselves, there are certain jobs that are only available for the magically gifted.”

After a few minutes of mundane job descriptions he finally got to the most despised and controversial, Sentinels.

“Every now and then, a select few are given the most important job in all of Equestria City, the job of Sentinels. This is a prestigious position that comes with the best perks in the city,” he spouted. “After your work is finished you will be given riches beyond your wildest dreams to live out the best years of your life.” He became overconfident in his final statement. Was it because he really was excited about it, or just because how he lived out the best years of his life depended on making it sound that way.

Polyn knew what a sentinel was already from her extended study sessions in the library. She would rather suffer a short suffocating death outside the city than work as a Sentinel.

Sentinel unicorns, placed inside energy tubes, had their magical energy extracted over the course of their working lives In order to power the large purifying machines which needed magical energy 24/7. The city had grown so large that more Sentinels were required each year.

The selection process appeared random, but the higher-ups knew what they were doing. If you slacked off during your school years, or made trouble, you would end up with a tube of your own.

Depending on how you looked at It, It was ether a life sentence or the easy way out. After being stuck in a tube for years, separated from everyone you once knew, when you were old and dried up, you would finally get to retire. The president of Equestria would honor you for your faithful service and you would be pampered the rest of your life, granted the title of Elite and given the most luxurious living space, where you could spend your last days in a lonely solitude to mourn what you had left behind. It was not a future for anyone.

Every now and the an unmentionable would sneak out of the lower levels and leave some graffiti behind, or a drunken elite would spill some secrets after a nightmare night party. The government would try to cover for their negligence by making an example of then, but the truth came out in small doses to those who were paying attention. The truth was there wasn't a future for sentinels. They got the same sub-standard Gov't housing as the commoners, and some were cast down with the unmentionables.

Polyn made it her job to notice. Her father was stuck in unappreciated servitude and her mother was neglected. There was a huge contradiction between the government musings of the greater good and the treatment of their citizens. Ether other ponies didn't notice, or they believed the lies out of fear.

The city was one big trap but it was the little things like friends and books that made life better. In a sentinel chamber she wouldn't even have those.

The presentation lasted only a few more minutes. The multipurpose room became a zoo as ponies began to check out the various kiosks spread around the area. They lined up in droves trying to impress the government officials with their resumes, wholeheartedly believing the lie that they had a choice.

She went to the the library to grab a book titled: “The Magic of the ancient world.” The study of magic was very important for Polyn. Learning as much as she could about magic was the only thing the kept her hopeful.

She longed to live in a world without corruption. The pale-gray mare often thought about leaving. Was there somepony who got out of the city? Was there another group of survivors from the war who flourished and built their own place to live? Maybe someone invented a flying machine to get above it all. There had to be a place she could go, or if she had to, a way to fight back.

Lyra smiles as she sits down next to her. She has a book in her possession.

“I got this book at one of the kiosks, it's supposed to have a lot of cool info about machines and magic generator cores.”  Her horn glows while she giggles a bit. “It's been a while since you tinkered with a machine huh?”

Polyn looks up from her book briefly and nods. Her friend opens the book and points to a page.

“This chapter is on the generator drive core. Apparently it uses magic to...

Polyn interrupts her.

“Why do you go on like this? She rants, “there has got to be more than just working for the next forty years on machines and then going home to your crappy government issued pig trough.” We are at the mercy of corrupt elites and politicians, we have no future!”

The small green and silver pony, not offended by her tone or demeanor, softly leans in and speaks.

“I thought it would be cool to make a drive core someday, or a least work on one. Do you remember when you and me made that mechanical music box as fillies? That was fun right?” Lyra's soft voice had soothed the pale mare's anger but only a little. Polyn takes a deep breath.

“Sorry,” she admits.

“This crazy, busy world gets to everypony,” she says with a smile. “Don't worry, when I work as an official, I'll make it my duty to stop the bad people and get things back on track.” She starts to read from one of the chapters.

Polyn and Lyra had been friends since they were in magic kindergarten as young fillies. Lyra liked Polyn's assertiveness and no-nonsense attitude and Polyn felt that she had a positive close friend that could make her feel good about any situation and comfort her when troubled. She respected her even though she was an elite.

Lyra thought differently than most. Commoners and elites were equal in her eyes, but she was naïve to think that she could solve centuries of problems with kindness. Despite this, Polyn felt that she had a rare friend that she would protect from all the corruption in the world.

The red and brown curly haired mare, looking past the issues at hand, decides to give her friend some attention. She leans over and joins her in reading the book. It outlines several ways of modifying machines to get more out of them. Taking a cue from her mom, Polyn often tinkered with various household devices when she was younger.

She owned a core charging knife and enjoyed using it to modify the magical properties of cores. It was a small double edged knife about three inches long that could absorb and retain the properties of whatever magic was applied to it. Since magical cores were dangerous to touch by hand the knife was used instead. The young mare had sharpened the usually dull blade. She didn't know if she liked it or just wanted to keep it handy in case of a situation with her parents or the guards.

Lyra loved the idea of being an engineer, she had even studied many books about it. It didn't matter though because she was an Elite and was going to be a government official. Taking the career that was forced upon her in stride, she decided; much due to the pale mare's frustration, to use her future position to change things for the better. With Julius in power and an army of scheming guards, nosy elites and corrupt politicians, there was no way that her friends' future position would enable her to do anything about it.

There was a tension between them. Most of their fights would end up the same way with an understanding friend and an apology, but eventually someone was going to be right and the other was going to be left in the desert.

It was time for the last class of the day, Elemental Magic. Polyn was placed in this class because of her aptitude for conjuring up elemental spells even at a young age. Her mother was gifted in this area as well.

The most prominent element user was The Great and Powerful Trixie who had become famous for her spell creations and was the current reining champion of the annual Equestrian magic battle competition, because if the elites needed to be entertained, why not use the already exploited commoners.

Polyn had no problem the first half of class. Summoning fire spouts and lightning pulses. This was very easy for her. Trixie was impressed, occasionally giving a word of encouragement as the young elemental master did her exercises. She didn't cut her any slack though.

She went on to the first topic, brushing her hoof across a glowing plexiglass board and moving toward the center of the class. She waved her appendage into the air materializing a lightning orb that begins to throb with fire internally.

“Summoning fire and lightning can be difficult,” Trixie began, “but what's more difficult is using both at once.” Her eyes scan the class, “by combining two different elements together, you will be able to make a more powerful and original spell creation. Now get practicing!”

Polyn summons a small flaming tornado that spurts out quickly. Trixie leans in and whispers in Polyns ear. “You are going to need to work harder if you want to stay my best student.” She mused, pointing to a young mare holding a large frozen tornado in her hoof.

Using any kind of destructive elemental magic in the city outside of a classroom or officially recognized work session was forbidden by law. The local city guards had a zero tolerance policy for anyone who tried to burn, shock, flood, whisk away or shake up anypony or anything. The class had a device that could start up at anytime if too much magic power was used. Any magic used in excess could be absorbed by small safety devices on the ceiling. Magic absorption was originally used in the war to keep magic at bay while allowing the machines to attack without obstacle. A powerful weapon for debilitation had been reduced to a simple safety measure.

After school, Lyra decided to walk her friend home. They talked about their day and about their teachers. Polyn wished she had gotten a little more recognition from Trixie. By never receiving any kind of consideration from her parents, it was important to feel like she mattered, at least a little.

Without Lyra, She may have done something drastic by now. Disagreements aside, she felt accepted in the company of her only friend. No matter what, she wanted to protect her and keep the friendship alive. It was something she always did.

The walk home didn't take long and Polyn had to go home to the house she hated. It wasn't big enough for a family of three. It was run down, dirty and because of her mother's neglect, practically a landfill. Upon her entry, the house is the same as she left it, and her mom is sitting in the same place she had been in the morning.

“I'm home,” Polyn announces to the silence. Her mom is siting in the kitchen and surprisingly responds after making a soft humming sound.

“How was your day?” her mother asks. She doesn't look up. The curly haired mare stands in front of her mother avoiding the clutter of old newspapers.

“I made a fire tornado,” Polyn mentions with some enthusiasm. Her mother looks up with a goofy look on her face.

“Oh, uh...” She shuffles in her chair, “How's Lyra?”

She wouldn't admit it but it was a little shocking that her mother had an interest in her life, at all.

“She's fine mom.”

“She's going to be somebody, that Lyra.”

Irritated that her mother had more interest in her elite friend than her own daughter, She quickly changes the subject.

“Did dad get home yet?”

“No dear, your father is at the government office filling out a job application.” Polyn was suddenly alerted.

“Does he want a new job, she asks?”

Her mother was quick to respond for once,

“No, he wants to help you get a better job then what you're currently qualified for. He's going to plead your case.” Knowing her father this couldn't be good. He never really cared enough to do anything for her. This would need to be investigated later but there was no hurry. A lowly unicorn like her wouldn't be much more than a speck on the Governments lists. They probably wouldn't even bother to look at the application? There was no way her father would be able to change anything.

“I'm going up to my room, she says.” On her way to the back of the house, she hears her mom in the distance.

“umm...uh...I knew that I should have gotten more fruit today, she exclaims, “Now what am I going to fix for dinner?”

Before her mom could blame her for taking the last of the fruit that morning, Polyn goes upstairs to her room. She cleans up a little and finds an old music player machine from a few years ago. She starts to tinker with the machine; Lyra's book had sparked her interest.

The curious techie takes apart the alloy mesh core housing and begins to infuse some magical force into the core using the double edged core knife. Once the core is spinning she connects some small wires and uses a small spark with her horn to bind the wires together and link them to the housing. After the core is placed back in the machine, she presses the switch on the side. The music begins to play out of the speakers.

Polyn was good at basic magic core machine repair, most of which she had learned from Lyra. She wished her dad could see her talent for magic. He never took any time to do so. He was always too busy with work, or going out after work for a drink.  There was something strange about his attempt to file an application. Was he trying to make amends for something? It was too late to earn her respect back. She scowls at the thought.

How could she possibly live in a world without corruption. Could her friend really make a difference? She shakes her head. “You can't fight corruption with kindness, Lyra.” She states this out loud to reassure herself.

The music stops as the core is removed from the housing once again. “But you can fight it with a strong magic.” As she dozes off, her mother can be heard pacing around the kitchen, slamming shelves in disgust.

Future Prospects?

Chapter 3: Future Prospects?

Graduation from the academy was two days away and everypony was anxious to find out what their future jobs would be. The final exam schedule was posted on the glowing bulletin board. There was both tension and excitement in the air. The two studious unicorns started meeting after school for study sessions. Polyn wasn't doing it to study, she knew the material already, only spending time with her good friend mattered.

She came home late. Thankfully her father wouldn't get home until even later. It was good that she didn't have to put up with his problems. Spending so much time together with Lyra at the school almost made the situation with her father disappear.

Finals were an absolute breeze. She passed every class with high marks except potion making.

“Sorry about your grade, it was an issue with the quality of the potions you had made.” Zecora rhymed her response as usual.

There was going to be a party tonight and she had been invited by Lyra officially. She would be welcomed as one of the elites for the evening. This was one of the perks of having a generous friend born into privilege.

There was an uneasiness about the party. Would she be able to fit in with the elites? What if she ran into Julius, would she be able to hold in her anger, or would she attack him. Knowing this was a bad idea, she was going to leave the core knife at home.

Finals didn't take the whole day so she was able to get home early. Her mom was already asleep in her chair. In her mom's room there were several old dresses that hadn't been warn in years. Fashion was the least of her worries but if she was going to blend in with the elites, she would have to look like one. There was dust on most the old dresses, but they were pretty nice. Apparently her mother used to be quite something. These weren't dresses most commoners could afford by the looks of them. She grabbed a blue and white dress, wrinkles and all and headed to her room to try it on for the party. It was a little long on her, but it would have to do.

It was the evening of the last day of school. Tomorrow, the students would be touring the central government building, undergoing an orientation with interviews, and finally finding out what job they would have.

The streets were completely devoid of anyone except several guards who stood watching closed shops and dusty warehouses. Several of them whistled her way as she passed them. The guards were too drunk to notice that she had walked from a commoner district. The charade seemed to be working. She didn't appreciate the comments and attention especially from bored, drunken guards. She wished she had kept the core knife just in case a guard overstepped his bounds.

Lyra had agreed to meet her at the biggest fashion club in the city called the “Art of the Dress.” It was packed with Government members and the wealthy elite. There was an open bar and several food stations at the entrance. A podium had been set up with searchlights. Hanging, multicolored lights flowed overhead and loud music wafting out from the club inside, filled the space. Expensive banners similar to the glowing boards at the school, advertised products and services. It certainly was a different world from the lonely city around it. Tonight there was going to be several special guests including the president himself, Julius Breadwinner who was scheduled to speak.

The Breadwinner lineage had been governing Equestria city since the end of the great war when the city was established. Julius' great grandfather was the inventor of the Sentinel Program. For centuries, It had been a family affair of corruption and a lust for power.

To some, being a Sentinel was a dream job. 40 years in a magical energy tube felt like only an 8 hour sleep to a Sentinel. Going to sleep and waking up with everything you've always wanted, was worth the cost of your time for some. If you were going to work for a lifetime anyway why not get the work over with and get to the good part, Living. Being away from your friends and family for 40 years was a small price to pay for helping the “Greater Good.” The cliched phrase was put in magazines and advertised everywhere, to death.

If the secret messages from the unmentionables and their short wave broadcasts were to be believed, there wasn't going to be any reward or elite status for becoming a Sentinel. It would be all for nothing. Her father believed the lie of a better life, just like the rest of the city who had believed the lies and had given up, putting their hope in those who only wanted to use them for selfish goals.

Someone as important as Julius wouldn't be caught dead in front of anyone but the elites. They worshipped him. Enabling the rich was what he did best. The Elites got richer though the work of the commoners who were paid next to nothing and were provided almost no amenities. They cut as many corners as possible in order to store up as much money as they could. With the government regulations and the constant military presence of guards in the city, no one had the power to do anything about it. Oppressed citizens surviving beneath the empowered Weality; this party tonight was a celebration of excess, a shining example of the benefits of corruption.

Polyn didn't want to think about tomorrows induction, Julius' lies or her own struggle, she wanted to enjoy the party the best she could. Was she letting her convictions slip a little tonight, yes, but she wanted to spend a fun night with her friend, the only elite who had any respect or kindness left. She didn't know when she would get a chance like this again.

Lyra is wearing a very fashionable, red and white dress, she looks as decorated as any of the elite. She bows her head with a straight face, then covers her mouth and laughs gently.

“Nice Dress,” she comments.

“I would say the same to you.”

“Thanks, Its a present from my parents a Photo Finish limited edition.” she makes a satisfied grin as she glows among the flashing lights around her. Polyn herself was never very fashionable or even remotely functional in her choice of clothing. She wished her parents had the money to afford such extravagance. Maybe if things had been different.

Lyra didn't treat Polyn like a commoner at all. She would always be the best friend she could be. Most wealthy young mares were disrespectful but Lyra would put her only friend first in most situations. She was polite, inviting, and most of all humble, even while having every right not to be.

Everypony gathers outside the club as Julius makes his appearance between the large skylights. He is older and very regal. He has a short and perfectly straight black mane with a hint of gray. He is wearing a custom designer suit and approaches the stage with two young attractive mares on both sides. a voice amplification box rises and he begins to speak. Immediately, Polyn felt a shiver go down her spine.

“Fellow Citizens, Mares, and Gentle Colts.” The audience stomps their hooves in excitement. “Tomorrow we will usher in a brand new era for Equestria city.” His amplified voice powers over the crowd. “Students from all academies all over this great city will gather to assemble the greatest workforce that we have ever seen.”

He takes a dramatic pause while he moves down to the level of the audience. One of the young mares follows him with the amplification box. He steps toward the audience for dramatic effect. “We should not even exist. The great war that destroyed our world and the atrocities of our forefathers were sure to be the end of us.” His eyes peer over the attentive audience. “But we banded together. We defied our fate and proved we were not going to go quietly.”

Polyn looks over at Lyra, she is mesmerized by his powerful and eloquent speech. Being groomed to be a high ranking official; it appeared like she already was developing a passion for it. Her Elite friend had always been too trusting and Naive. Hopefully she would be able to make the right decisions once in office. Her political future was one of the few things other than magic that kept Polyn looking toward hers.

“It was our citizens that built the humble beginnings that would later become this great city and it was our citizens who made technology and magic the tool for our future.” He extends his hoof up and points it behind him at the large building that looms over the club. “These great magic reactors that originally saved us from annihilation, have continued to keep our city running for many lifetimes. We have given ourselves and our children a future. We have ensured the survival of our great Equestria.”

There is a silence from the adoring crowd as he walks back up to the podium. “Tomorrow we will begin our hard work in order to benefit the greater good of our people and our city, but it will not be without sacrifice.” He pauses and his serious demeanor turns into a prideful smile. “The work will always be there, but let it be in the back of your minds, for tonight...we celebrate our victorious history. It's party time!” He holds out his front hooves wide as the audience erupts in celebration. Julius stands statuesque on stage.

The doors to the club open. The music starts and a line begins to form outside. Lyra overlaps her hoof with Polyn and makes for the front. The bouncer looks at her and opens a side gate.

“Welcome miss Lyra, he greets. Polyn chuckles a little.

“Important aren’t we,” she muses.

“You know,” comments her green friend, “There may be more situations in the future where I can escort you like this, I hope you can get used to the pampering.”

“You know they are never going to let someone like you hang out with a commoner like me.”

“I can always sneak out and see you, I learned from the best anyway,” she says smiling. “You'll get some awesome job as an techie somewhere that I'll naturally have clearance to, It'll be like old times.”

Lyra leads and the two run down the access-way to the club. The hall is decorated with pictures of famous elites. None of them Polyn recognizes. The music becomes louder as they work their way closer to the club center.

“Look my parents are over there, Let me talk to them real quick. You have a seat at the bar and order some food, I'll meet up with you shortly.” She was really in her element.

At the front of the club are the DJ booth and the VIP area. Polyn heads over and grabs some kind of tasty glowing hey from the bar while Lyra visits her parents at the VIP booth. As she sits down, she scans her eyes around the club. Laser lights whizz behind her and the loud music challenges her ear drums.

The promoters spared no expense. The food was better than anything she'd had on the streets or at home. The featured artist tonight was the great DJ Pon-3, also known as Vinyl Scratch by her fans. She has a flashy white and blue mane creased in the middle by a large pair of headphones. The famous DJ had apparently been born a commoner, but after her talent became noticed during a school dance, she was given a job at a local club, gaining in popularity and eventually being included as part of the elites who promoted her to their high status. This almost never happened and certainly wouldn't happen to Polyn. still the story made her hope a little.

Lyra continues talking and smiling with her parents over at the booth, rubbing snouts with the wealthy and successful. The lonely bar fly was unable to be a part of the VIP's. A voice interrupts her thoughts from the end of the bar.

“Dahling, could you grab me some of dat punch? Be a dear would you.”

Polyn pushed some punch to the end of the table. A sharply dressed older mare with silver hair and large purple sunglasses, wearing a designer, black and white dress, grabbed the drink with a quick jerk and chugged quickly.

“Tank you Dahling,” she exclaimed. It took a minute for Polyn to realize that she had just met the likes of the great fashion mogul and photographer Photo Finish but wasn't really impressed.

Just as the drink in front of her reaches the bottom, Lyra shows up and orders a drink herself.

“Oh my gosh, this party is amazing.” She is ecstatic. “You just gave photo finish a drink, how awesome are you?” Polyn shrugs in response.

“I'm not all that impressed.” She always was glad that she could tell her friend any of her thoughts and get an honest, heartfelt response. She decided that it was time to do just that.

The two friends make their way to the door leading to an outside patio. So many people were busy with the party that they had left the outside untouched. Polyn sits under one of the patio trees, Lyra follows. The young elite looks toward her with interest as the two sit in silence for minute or two. It's a calm quiet night, the loud sounds of the club slowly fading away as they become deep In thought. They sit together looking out over a large river with the ominous buildings keeping their distance for now. Soon Polyn gathers up her courage and focuses on her friend. She is able to expose a closed mouth smile.

“You know, we have quite the past you and me.” Lyra shuffles in her seat. “The school bullies during our transfer to the magic academy...” Polyn nods her head and replies.

“I got to protect you from that dragon we summoned during magic training class three years ago, that was a real low point in my life. I should have listened to what Trixie said about biting off more than you can chew when it comes to summoning.” Her friend laughs.

“You know that dragon sure did.” The two share a laugh together but Polyn's smile fades and she becomes very serious. A thick silence follows.

“After tomorrow, I wont be able to protect you anymore.” She struggles to get the words out. “You're going to have to fight off any future monsters by yourself and that may include Julius.” Lyra reaches out her hoof to Polyn and places it next to her neck.

“I get to protect you now and this city.” All the sounds of the club have faded and the two are in a little world all their own. “I'm going to become a brilliant official and make life better for everyone,” Lyra says.

“The government is a much tougher opponent than a dragon” Polyn replies.

Lyra leaves to get some more food at the bar so the two can continue their talk outside. Polyn admires the wide waterfront that spreads out before her. The tall city buildings and industrial smoke from the factories, provide a hazy view of the moon. Suddenly a shadow is cast over her sending a invisible pain through her body. She looks up to see Julius Breadwinner himself standing over her. A guard approaches her as well. He speaks to the large colt.

“Kallan.”

“Yes, sir.”

“Make sure no one comes through the outside door, I would like to have a little chat with my unicorn friend here.”

Kallan nods his head slowly and proceeds to stand in front of the doorway. Polyn gets a good look at the tall guard colt. He looks emotionless and tired.

“Nice view isn't it,” Julius says. He begins to rant as he looks out at the waterfront. “Look at all that we have achieved in such a short time. My ancestors left written logs during the war that describe the dread and worry they felt; the pressure that was mounting to build a city that would be a salvation for ponykind.” He looks into Polyn's eyes. “You know far too well about pressure. You live it everyday. Your father... whew, is he a piece of work.”

She stares at the strange smirk he has on his face. He continues, standing over her his black mane crisp and motionless in the wind.

“I overheard you and I admire those who display that protective instinct.” He leans in. “I know that Lyra is the thread holding your world together and I'll admit she has the gift of kindness, unlike your parents.” He is incredibly smug as he begins to pace around the tree they are under, brushing one of his front hooves against the leaves. “I know you are not happy with your mundane student life, family life and limited future prospects, so I am here to offer you an opportunity...” He speaks in a softer voice no less penetrating than his former tone. “Since you're here with me, commoner.”

Polyn knew at that moment that this was all planned. He allowed her to be let into the party, allowed her to go out late at night past the commoner curfew. Julius knew her every move. All this just to make her an offer? His voice penetrates her thoughts.

“What if you could go anywhere you wanted, see anything you wanted, and get away from your troubles?” he asks.

Of course she wanted a way out, to live apart from the city's corruption but why did it have to come from the source of it.

“My lab has unearthed a prototype that will usher in a new utopia or should I say infinite utopias. I'm sure you have read Starswirl's papers on multiple dimensions?”

There is no response from Polyn. She looks back to see Lyra talking with the guard, drinks in hoof. “

We should probably pull it from the library, we don't want anypony getting ideas.” He throws his hooves up. “It is no longer speculation, it's real and this device will make it possible. His excitement grows. “Ha! Soon I will be able to travel anywhere I want and have everything I desire.” He sighs.

“Of course in order to accomplish this feat I need some assistance.”

Julius was so excited that he started sharing things he shouldn't, of course his position and all that power had made him careless; all that and a few drinks.

“I have seen your prowess at elemental magic, even magical core fusion. You have a gift and I am in need of some magical muscle for my upcoming endeavor. I already have a trained military force but I need, oh let's say...enforcers who can wield magic to deal with any 'problems' that I might encounter when exploring the outer reaches.”

She doesn't make eye contact with him but she had heard every word. Working for Julius might have it's privileges but there was always a catch. Remembering that most of what the Government says about opportunities is a lie, could she even trust him?

“Your father came to my building yesterday.” Polyn's eyes widen. “He has already decided your future job for you, Just like his father did...and you know how that turned out. I've seen the application and you won't like the results.” She hides her surprise with a scowl.

Julius stops pacing. “You can be at the mercy of your father and succumb to the fate he has for you or you can join me.” Polyn looks back at him and makes eye contact. “Work for me and I will make you an elite. I can allow you to see Lyra anytime you like. You will have money, riches and a future. Not to mention a place of your own, maybe another dimension all to yourself.” He leans in and whispers in her ear.

“You will no longer be at the mercy of your degenerate, drunken father and your useless mother.”

“How dare you?” Her anger has welled up to the surface. “You don't really know me or my father. You are a liar and a fool who lets ponies die because they wont obey your selfish rules.” She stands to meet him but only goes up to his neck, still she glares at him.

“It's because of you that my father and mother have become like this.” She is fuming. “You bribe me, and you expect me to join you and become part of this fallen, evil corrupted city,” She stomps her hoof. “I will not share in your conquest; in this dimension or any other.” Julius keeps a straight face through her shouting fit.

“If that is how you feel then I will leave you to your fate, it's a shame really. I will give you some time to think about it, unfortunately this party is over. Kallan, get this ungrateful foal out of my sight.”

The guard comes and escorts her out. She shocks him with a blast of lightning. Lyra drops both drinks. Her friend motions to her and runs back into the party. As she dashes through the door, a large guard slams her to the ground. The music is so loud that no one hears the commotion.

Polyn is thrown out into the street. She is forbidden to come back into the club. Her friend tries to meet her but Kallan shakes his head. The even larger guard that knocked her out is standing behind him with a large blunt weapon. Slowly standing up, the injured mare looks back at her friend.

From behind the guard Lyra shouts.

“I'll try to meet you tomorrow at the orientation.”

The disheveled unicorn takes one look back as she walks toward the empty dark city leaving the club and her friend behind.

There are almost no lights on in the buildings as she walks home. Thoughts begin to wonder around in her head. She needs to do something. Maybe tomorrow at the school job orientation, she can talk some sense into Lyra. They could run away or anything, anything to leave this place behind. She didn't care about the greater good, Julius' dimensional conquests or her parents; just her friend and a way out for both of them.

A stench wafts out with the smoke from below. it ascends up and dissipates among the looming buildings. In front of her a single street lamp sputters on and glows a dark red. She stops until the smell from below makes her cough, then she proceeds forward into the darkness.

Trapped

Chapter 4: Trapped

              The walk home is painful. Polyn's hoofs hurt, her back hurts and any joy left over from her time at the party is gone. She sees her home in the distance, the lights are still on.

Polyn's father and mother are waiting in the kitchen. Her mom is out of her chair for once, her red hair messier than normal. Her dad approaches her immediately.

“Where have you been?” He spouts. He appears sober for once. His daughter doesn't answer, she ignores him and walks to her room. Her dad follows her up the stairs. “You will tell me or I will have the guards come right now.” She continues to ignore him and shuts her room door, locking it behind her. As she moves toward her bed, her father's voice can be heard from behind the door.

“Open this door right now, I've had enough of your disobedience.” There is a small pause, he takes a deep breath and gives himself some room between him and the door allowing him to calm down. “It doesn't matter anymore what you did or what you think of me. I just want to talk to you.” There is a silence, followed by sounds of banging in the room trying to shut him out.

“The application was approved, you are to begin work tomorrow as a sentinel.”

The commotion in the room stops and the silence returns. Inside the room Polyn sits on the floor with her head against the bed, she bangs it once against the cold hard wood, and then looks around unable to see anything but a dark haze. Polyn stands but slams back onto the floor.

The words were like poison. A sentinel? Her own father had allowed her to spend 40 years in a small glass tube. A deep sorrow began to overcome her. This was proof that her parents were uncaring; that they thought of her as worthless.

As the grief becomes unbearable, the dark haze clears out as her anger surfaces again. She opens her door and glares at her father, ready to shout at him but to her surprise, he looks sad. The father that was always so quick to get angry was very somber, almost as if he was going to miss her.

“How could you,” she yells with a tone of desperation, “Because of you my life is gone. She shouts so everyone can hear.

“You were dead to me long ago, but now you have killed me!”

Polyn's father stands there absorbing the weight of his daughters words.

“Say something!” She yells at the top of her voice. Her father gets closer, embracing her with his mighty front legs.

“This was the only way I would know you were safe, he whispers.” He lowers his head and breaks eye contact. “I've had to spend my entire life working where I hate, not even making enough to support my family. I was unable to take the shame of your mother's accident and it was my own fault that I became lost; drunk all the time just to hide my pain.”

He looks back up at his daughter. “Tomorrow, you will go to sleep and when you wake you will be an elite along with all the privileges that come with it. Despite my failures, I have a chance to make this right.”

For the first time, Polyn got to see a side of her father she never knew existed. He was on the verge of tears but held them back as he continued.

“I have been a horrible father and have done my share of bad things. I have neglected you and...” He gets a good look at his daughter. She has relaxed her face and is hanging on his every word.

He couldn't say it. Was there actually love under all the hostility? Even if there was, he couldn't say it out loud. Her rejection of his proclamation would be too much for either of them to bare.

“40 years will seem like only a few hours,” he continues, “You will have everything you have ever dreamed. You can see your friend Lyra and live out your remaining years in peace together. It is my gift to you, the only one I can afford. Even though I may not see you again, I will know that your future is secure.”

Polyn didn't know what was more painful; the fact that her father believed the lie that she would actually be given a pampered life after her service was concluded, or that her fate was now in the hooves of Julius and at the mercy of the corrupt system she hated. There was no way he would understand and she couldn't break his heart by telling him the truth.

She matches her father's softness. “I don't care about riches, or even security. I want to live in a world without pain, corruption, and lies.” She begins to walk past him, makes it to the foot of the stairs and turns around. Her face tightens up as her rage returns. “I never want to see you again!”

Polyn knew her father had tried, but this last ditch effort to make amends was not enough. She couldn't forgive him. Maybe with time she could make sense of all this, but time was in short supply.

With no other choice left. Bolting down the stairs, Polyn makes a break for the door. It opens suddenly and she is knocked back by the force. As she shakes it off and tries to put one hoof in front of the other, two large guards from the reactor factories stand in front of her. The larger one pins her to the floor. A deep voice booms overhead.

“Miss Polyn, you have two choices tonight; you can come with us and be placed in the chamber as a sentinel right now or we can allow you to attend the last day of school for the orientation and you will have a chance to say goodbye to your classmates, make your choice.”

The next morning came too fast. She had made the choice to attend the last day of school. The guards had never been so lenient. Perhaps her friendship to Lyra had more weight than she thought, or maybe Julius thought she might change her mind about being his enforcer. Ether way she was fortunate for now.

She began to pack her things, cramming some machine tools in her small saddlebag. The magic core knife might be a good method of defense and she could always throw some small energy cores at some of the guards to disable them. Either way, if push came to shove, she would not go quietly.

What about the prototype Julius had mentioned? If a device existed that could take her to another dimension. That could be her answer. A project that important would have to be kept in the central lab, that's where everything came from. It would be just a matter of finding a way in. Obviously security would be tight, but she was already going to be in the building for the orientation. A plan began to spin in her head.

“I hope mom has some apples left. She whispers.”

The house was strangely quiet. Her mother and father had left early. Polyn goes into the kitchen and levitates some really bad smelling apples off the counter. She certainly wasn't going to eat them. There is a knock at the door.

The two central tower guards from the night before stand outside. They tower over Polyn and look very menacing. This was obviously a way to encourage her to not cause any trouble.

“Aren’t you guys a little too small for tower guards?” Polyn snickers. She would sometimes resort to insults and sarcasm when under stress to lighten the mood. If she was going to have to spend many years trapped in a tube, this might be a good chance to let out some steam. “Maybe your armor would be better suited to provide shelter for a family of unmentionables.”

She certainly wasn't pulling any punches but the guards weren't amused. This wasn't the first time they had put up with rebellious youth.

“Polyn Aphos, come with us.” The guard demands.

After a short ride in a small, levitating, magic powered buggy known as the guard mobile, they all arrive at the central building. It is massive. Polyn had to arch her neck to see the upper floors. Julius had his office at the top of the 200th floor and that wasn't even the top. Reactor control was up there, or at least it was according to diagrams in the library. Several skyway tracks circled around the top of the building.

Inside were the Sentinels, all the labs, classrooms, government offices and one of the main reactors. Somewhere in there was the prototype as well. The building was impressive but the amount of bits and pony power used to build it was from the backs of commoners. She had to make sure that the grandeur didn't distract her from the reality of the situation.

Polyn and the guards make their way to the central lobby. The entire place was run by a state of the art magic fusion system that no doubt was made possible by the continuous absorption of magic from the thousands of sentinels. An older colt at the front, directed them to one side of the lobby where lines of senior students from the various schools had gathered for orientation.

Walking through a large security door, a guard looks over the saddle bag. A female guard this time. She gets it half way open until the stench of the rotten apples shoots out into her nostrils.

“Your lunch has gone bad, you'd best throw it away in one of the trash receptacles in the main lobby.” She says through a grimace.

The plan had worked, the apple core had hidden the magical one. Lyra was not with her commoner class. Trixie and Zecora stood by the far wall.

“I thought we were going in with the elite class?” Polyn asks. Trixie contorts her face, she must smell the apples.

“The elites are already being interviewed, most of them are getting assigned to positions already...You're a commoner, you should know that.”

A trash can is nearby. Polyn walks over to throw away the stinky apples. She takes moment to reflect on lyra as the red apples sink into the white paper filling the can. While rejoining the group, a unicorn approaches and stands in front of the line.

“Greetings and welcome to orientation.” He was young for a government host. He introduced himself as Shining Armor.

“Welcome to orientation, job seekers,” he began. There are many exiting jobs available in the magi-tech sector. Today we are going to tour this amazing facility and show you the different jobs that are accessible to commoner unicorn graduates such as yourselves.”

The host wore an outfit with a logo of a magic core and waves of light coming out. It was the emblem of the reactor ponies. He was very regal and didn't seem the kind to be working in a lab.

“I know some of you are just here to see the main fusion reactor, but believe it or not I have other things that I am just as excited to show you.” With that he led the group into one of the central elevators. Next stop the office floor.

The offices were as you would expect an office to be. Cubicles, paper and copy machines and large processing computers. There were very few actual ponies working. The artificial intelligence took care of most of the basic jobs. Anypony on duty was there to interface with the computers and process any paperwork. Not even Shining Armor was able to make this job sound exiting.

Some of the students comment on the chewed up pens in the trash can. Magic was forbidden in the offices so even with all this technology, some ponies still had to write with a pen in their mouths. Polyn asked something about the lower floors. Trixie said that it would be pointless and even more stinky to visit purification processing on the bottom floor.

“That's a land ponies Job,” She said.

The reactor floor is next. It is a large factory floor that could house a small skyscraper inside it. The reactor fills all of the space. Around the monstrous machine are small rooms and scaffolding like an unfinished building. Several layers of metallic catwalks are everywhere. There are many workers with white coats.

Inside the machine near the core were the sentinels. You couldn't see them from the outside but they were there. Thousands of them, stored in several floors of tubes. Shining Armor went on about how awesome it was to come to work everyday and see the reactor. It was a reminder to him that he was being kept alive because of these amazing giant machines and those who dedicated their lives to saving “The greater good.” The words were like poison to Polyn every time she heard them. He talked about his job as a floor manager and what it meant to serve all of ponykind. The sad part, Polyn realized was that he wholeheartedly believed the lie or at least had to lie to keep his job.

Polyn decided that enough was enough. She told Zecora that she needed to use the little fillies' room.

“Wow! You have to go now?” Was her response. There was a bathroom on the lab floor. Polyn agreed to wait until the orientation reached the next floor. The elevator had a window where you could see the reactor as the elevator climbed.

“Why aren't we going to the sentinel floor of the reactor?,” Polyn asked Shining Armor.

“We aren't allowed in that area, it's umm... He stutters. “To preserve the privacy of the sentinels.” She didn't buy it for a second.

The lab floor was very white, and very dead. Not many were around. A few sparse ponies wearing lab coats; the sound of their hooves on the marble floor were the only thing making noise. Shining Armor started by introducing the different lab machines. The students stared at the large machines in the large central lab room through heavy glass windows as he explained.

They made potions in one section like “Healing spell in a bottle.” There was a clean room for core chip processing and a dirty room for cleaning of the processor parts for the purifiers. The bathroom was near a door marked “Experimental testing facility, employees with ID only.”

Polyn was assigned a guard to watch over her as she did her pony business and to lead her back to the rest of the tour afterwords. The guard was tall and slender wearing lighter armor than the guards at the front gate.

In one of the stalls, Polyn quickly pulls out the knife fusing some of her own lightning magic into it and creating a lightning core. She yells out to the guard,

“I think there is a problem” The guard carefully peers into the bathroom then slowly walks in.

“What's the problem?”

"I...have a question.”

“What is it?” The guard asks.

“As a guard working in the reactor, why do they use commoners as sentinels?”

He is about to answer as she begins a cynical rant.

“I mean, the stingy Government doesn't really intend to spend money to make them elites in forty years and you have a horde of guards, so why not force the unmentionable unicorns into the tubes; then you can use the commoners...” She chuckles a little in a low pitch, it is exciting to let her feelings all out in the open. Living around corruption for so long, it wasn't to crazy to think that some of it had rubbed off.  She pulls out the core, and threatens him.

“I'm surprised that your sick, twisted master Julius hasn't thought of that one yet.”

“You're not going anywhere, if you think...”

She interrupts him. “The lab key, please, now.

Polyn quickly throws the newly enhanced volatile core at the Guard. He convulses on the ground and falls unconscious. It fizzles on the ground.

“So many great uses for magic cores,” she says triumphantly to herself.

No one is around. The door to the lab is sealed. Fortunately the door has a card key scanner attached. The key the guard was holding fits as she slides it into the scanner. As Polyn fiddles with the key she fails to notice that there is movement in the lab. A middle aged colt begins to move towards the door.

“Don't move,” he shouts.

Polyn lunges through the open door at the the lab tech who falls back from the shock. She pins him down as she threatens him with the electrified knife.

“How did you get in here?” He hastily questions.

“I want to know what this prototype is? What does it have to do with Julius? The lab tech is in a panic.

“There are some bits in a bag on the counter, take them and...” Polyn interrupts, “Oh be quiet, I don't want your stupid bits. I had a visit from Julius who said he had some big new contraption he was working on. Show me and I won't hurt you.” She moves the knife and herself away as the tech gets up.

“You didn't have to resort to such violence, I would have told you about it if you asked nicely.” He brushes himself off as he gets up and introduces himself as Dr. Hooves.

“Did you really knock out the guard?”

“I want to see the prototype.”

“If that's all you want, I'll take you there. I've always wanted an outsider to see it. It's just that awesome.” His excitement takes her by surprise. He motions to a room further inside.

“If this is a trap...”

“No, no trap, of course not, I am a scientist not a deceiver; heck I'm a commoner like you, I just have a much cooler job,” he says proudly.

The two make their way past dim energy cores, metal parts and beakers sitting on shiny white counter tops. It is obvious that there aren't many lab workers today. Dr Hooves walks quickly in his excitement. He forgets to notice a large table in his way and smacks right into it. The jaded unicorn just stares at him unamused.

“So sorry,” he utters, grunting as he gets up again.

“Why do you work in the tech sector, you're not a unicorn?”

“I'm a mechanic by trade, I used to work in a local machine part store until the Government found out that I was illegally making unsanctioned machines...uh, of course, they hired me after they saw the quality of my wares. If you have something that can be useful to them, they might just give you the right deal.” He leans his head back a little, in a prideful display.

“Can you make machines without magic.”

“Yes, of course, they're not just very good. It's all pulleys and gears.”

They finally make their way to a large steel door. The Dr. turns to Polyn. “What you are about to see has only been seen by a few very important ponies.” Polyn stomps her hoof impatiently. The Dr. decides to not make her wait any longer.

The huge metal door opens revealing a circular room with tables on all sides, a large cylinder in the middle, a shiny mirror looking device in the corner, and a computer system that filled a whole side of the room. Often reserved for only the most elite scientists, computers like this one were equipped with a very advanced artificial intelligence. Most AI's were destroyed during the war. If machines were considered an abomination, then thinking machines definitely were.

Dr. Hooves walks to it and turns it on.

“Good Morning, Dr.” The construct has a robotic voice, nothing like a real pony.

“Good morning Cyndi,” he replies. “Please open the 'Staff' chamber.” With almost no delay the large cylinder in the middle opens revealing two objects. The Dr. approaches them immediately.

The “Staff” was a foot long metallic tube. It was black with green and brown with asymmetrical designs covering the outside and a shaped pattern of two black metallic squares on each end. On top there was a silver glass indentation which looked like it could light up any moment. Lying next to the staff was an adjustable brown harness with silver streaks and some green interwoven into the fibers. It had a strapping belt in the center. On the side and top of the harness there was a silver C-Shaped holder obviously made to hold the staff in place.

“Back in the war this prototype magic staff was an idea by the great Starswirl the Bearded. He was the original founder of the Techno-ponies. They were the pro technology side of the war. He began work on it but never finished. The goal was to create a tool that would allow them to explore other worlds that existed alongside our own.”

“I know the story,” Polyn replies dryly.

He tilted his head up and thought for a moment then moved closer to his impatient intruder, seemingly more exited. “We had it in a storage chamber with other artifacts and didn't find it until recently...but I'm so glad we did. It is a marvel of magi-tech and AI so far ahead of it's time we can't even duplicate the hardware not to mention the software program that Starswirl invented. We can only tinker with what's already there.” He takes a look at the mirror against the wall.

“Imagine a world that is different to our own with all the same ponies living in it. A similar, parallel dimension if you will. Because of different living conditions, upbringing and other stimulus, you and the ponies you know might act different even though they are the same pony. The world and others have an effect on them."

"Just imagine that you are an evil person in one world and a peacekeeping pony in another world.” Polyn nods. The Dr. turns away from her and faces the staff. “This staff would allow us to visit these other worlds. Ours has become so bad that this is a great find. Based on Starswirl's findings described in his journal there are hundreds of thousands, if not infinite numbers of worlds to explore.” He grins. “I just hope there is a world out there that hasn't been devestated.”

“Wouldn't it be weird if you saw yourself?” Polyn asks.

“Yes, but I'm sure it would be fascinating.”

“Why are you telling me all this?”

“I may have just met you, but I see you as the kind of pony who refuses to settle for a normal life; you are resourceful, knowledgeable and you broke in here seeking something outside your mundane life. You are just the kind of pony that would be perfect for inter-dimensional exploration.” He paces around the room.

“I often have to work alone, all the other techs are stuck working on the other floors and with the reactor. There is just no time for R&D and Julius demands that things work properly. It has taken us far too long to figure this whole thing out. We do not fully understand everything yet but we will as we continue to test.” Polyn is interested but is all business.

“When will the staff be finished?”

“It's already prepped, I'm just waiting on Julius for the first test.”

In a dark room, a guard tech sleeps surrounded by monitors. One of them flashes rapidly. Soon a loud ringing awakens him. He suddenly slams his hoof on a button to stop the sound. Operating a console he rewinds the video recording. From an overhead view he sees Polyn leave from the school group and go into the bathroom. His expression changes to panic as he sees the guard get knocked out. Immediately he alerts the other guards through an intercom. Julius gets the message from Kallan who barges into the room unannounced.

“Someone just, umm... assaulted a guard in the women's restroom on the lab floor uh sir...”

Julius watches the image on his monitor.

“I knew I should have put that insubordinate mare out of her misery.” He whispers  to himself.

“This is why we have rules and guards and urgh!” He says pounding his hoof on the table. He motions to the guard. “Kallan, grab one of your fellow guards and meet me in the lab.

Julius turns to Lyra, who stands in the corner. “Maybe you can talk some sense into her. You can't be an official if you can't get people to do what you want.”

“How do you have the journal of Starswirl?” Polyn asks more interested than before.

“We found it with the staff, even now it is kept under close watch. I have to fill out a form just to access the chamber to read what's left of it.”

“What's left?”

“It is only one-hundred pages, some of the pages are torn out and there is room in the binding for much more. Your guess is as good as mine, where the rest is.”

“I am sorry to let you know that anything about Starswirl in the library is only a paraphrase of the original journal content.”

Polyn is angry that she has been reading a doctored version, but not surprised. Dr. Hooves takes a look at the large wall computer he calls “Cyndi.”

“The staff is assembled but not really complete.” The Doctor struggles to explain. “The AI is synchronized, but not able to function in it's proper capacity.” He puts his hoof to his face thinking of a way to explain. “The staff was originally built to connect to its user and learn from that pony's experiences. It's a learning computer."

Polyn just stares at him. He smiles a little then continues.

“Starswirl's journal says that the staff was designed for all kinds of physical and magical abilities. There may be some robotic external functions as well, but that will have to be seen.” He stutters a bit. “Of course only by testing it with a user will it activate. Julius is coming down later to see it tonight and give it a long awaited first test. He has demanded the first one of course.”

Polyn knew that giving a power hungry colt like Julius the ability to go into other worlds would be a bad idea.

“What abilities does it have?”

“Well based on Starswirl's writings, he wanted it to be able to absorb magical energy or extend somepony's magical abilities. It could be used to usher in new paradigms of magic and make the techno-ponies unstoppable.”

Polyn responds “So they would win the war.” The Doctor nods his head,

“Yes indeed, unfortunately you know what happened to the techno-ponies from your studies.”

“They all died from the war, and the core shift,” Polyn answers like reading a text book, “The core shift is the reason everything stopped. One half believed that technology had become an abomination. They thought that the machines would disturb the balance of magic in the world. However it was all of the magical energy released from the war that began to effect the planet itself. Since all magic energy originates from the planets core.”

She pulls out her small energy core as an example. “The core shifted out of position and made everything unstable. It released too much magical energy in the form of a magical poison that decimated the planet in only a few years. Our ancestors found discarded tech in the rubble of Starswirl's mountain lab and used his notes to build the first reactors. Everyone but the techno ponies was convinced that machines were wrong. It turned out that misuse of magic was the catalyst that almost brought the about total destruction of everything.” Polyn shuffles her hooves, “Sorry I read a lot.”

Dr. Hooves was amazed.

“Everyone thinks that the techno-ponies died in that last stand in the mountain lab, but I have always wondered why such a advanced group would basically destroy themselves by blowing up a mountain around them.”

“I wonder why they didn't use the staff in the first place to help them win.”

“I have wondered that too, I guess we won't ever know the bearded one's true purposes. What you don't know is that there seem to be some black boxes in the staff's code. This is probably a database for secrets. Who knows what Starswirl put in there. I hope that as the staff and it's user synchronize and get further acquainted that this data will be revealed.”

He walks closer to the staff. “I'm a little nervous about Julius handling the staff without any real testing beforehand. I don't want to get on his bad side. I would really like to know that the staff works before I show it. Most of my lab assistants are giving instruction to new students so I would like to try a small test of the staff with you as the first test subject. I assure you it will be quick and I will be here to troubleshoot if something goes wrong.” He looks into her staring eyes, “How bout it?”

Polyn sits there with a look of astonishment.

“I guess so, but why wouldn't you have tested this earlier with a lab tech?” The Doctor has a satisfied smile on his face. He leans in with a more sinister look which is very unbecoming of the easy going Dr.

“They're scared of it, scared of change. They're used to a normal life that is predictable. You have an interest in the past, which means you have an interest in your future.” He walks closer to the computer screen. It beeps. “Well, it looks like the 'staff' is operational.”

Polyn walks over to the center of the room. The Doctor Helps her get into the harness which he has to adjust a lot due to her small stature. It is surprisingly comfortable. The doctor slowly puts the staff into her hooves. Immediately it turns on and starts making small beeping sounds. The silver panel lights up as a screen and the words “boot sequence initiated” can be seen. After some more assorted computer sounds, a female voice can be heard talking. It speaks fluidly like a real person with a slightly artificial sound to it.

“Analyzing subject...mare, commoner class...Polyn Aphos, initializing.” The computer already knew who she was. Apparently the staff had been synchronized with the central computer database information at some point. It was an obvious attempt to keep tabs on the user.

The doctor goes to the mirror and presses a button on the side. It begins to glow and resonates with the staff. The two pulsate in unison.

“The gate only opens with the staff,” the doctor explains. “That is a one way mirror, specifically designed by Starswirl himself. The glass was broken and had to be replaced but It works. We want to invent a two way dimensional gate, but it will be a while before we have the ability. There is a possibility that the staff can resonate with certain kind of magical anomalies or excess amounts of power that might allow it to access other worlds without the mirror, but that is yet to be proven.”

Looking at the mirror intently, the young unicorn stares into what could be freedom. She can't let Julius have this device. She tightens her grip on it. The doctor makes some calculations on the computer then approaches the center of the room.

“Go ahead if you would and press the small button on the side of the staff. It will shut down and run diagnostics through the computer here.” He glances in her direction. “So, cool test right?”

“I'm not going to shut it down.”

“What?”

Suddenly two guards, Lyra and Julius barge into the room.

“What is going on here doctor!” Julius is irritated. Dr. Hooves tries to explain his situation, he is nervous and suddenly sweating.

“My assistant and I were...” Julius cuts him off.

“Polyn, give me the prototype now!” He is pointing his hoof at her and yelling.

She realizes that she has left her pack in the other room but has the core knife at her side.

“Doctor, take the staff from Polyn, that's an order!”

“I'm sorry about this doctor.” Deciding not to use the core knife against the doctor, she fires a small fire bolt at him, he staggers back and falls into a table again. Lyra runs in and checks if he is alright. She looks at her friend, horrified.

“What are you doing Polyn?”

“Lets go Lyra,” She says softly. “With this staff we can finally leave. No longer will we have to be trapped in this prison.” She extends her hoof, Lyra shakes her head to her long time friend's surprise.

“I'm not going with you, Polyn, I want to help you. I know you're not too keen on Julius and working for the government but I can get you a good job, and we can work together.” My job gives me an opportunity to be of help to this city and it's citizens. I want the chance to change things for the better.” Polyn's anger intensifies towards Julius.

“As long as he is running things, nothing will ever change.”

“Julius has a plan to shift the planet's core back, he will use the staff to change our fate.” Lyra is speaking louder than she has ever spoken. Polyn looks at her friend, she seems so different right now.

“And you believe his lies?”

“Polyn,” Julius speaks in a softer tone. “If you give me the staff I will make sure you don't work as a sentinel.” I will give you whatever you desire. All you have to do is join your friend, we will make a new world together.” Polyn ignores him and keeps her attention on Lyra.

“On the night of the party when you left, this liar told me of his plan to invade other dimensions with his army and offered me a position as an enforcer. He only wants to start another war, only this time somewhere else. He is never satisfied with his power, he only wants more. Come with me to a world without his corruption.

The staff screen shows the words,

“Portal detected, Initiate dimensional jump?”

“This is foolhardy”, Julius persuades. “Stop this foolishness and begin your new life, It doesn't have to be like this.”

“We've been friends for so long why do you want to run away?” Lyra is on the verge of tears.

“Come with me, Lyra or I cannot protect you. Don't throw away our friendship for him.” Her voice is softer now.

“I have to do what I believe is right, I have to believe that I can make a difference, Please!”

Julius raises his voice. “Enough of this, Guards, take it from her.”

The guards begin to move in. The space around her is becoming small. The staff is still displaying the message, She takes a quick glance at it then looks at her long time friend.

“Sorry Lyra, If that is your choice, then so be it.” Polyn talks directly at the staff in her front hoof. “Initiate.” The once calm mirror begins to whirl like a tornado inside.

“Grab her now,” Julius shouts.

Jumping into the whirling mirror. She is gone. One of the guards stumbles and falls down. Kallan jumps in after her. As soon as he disappears into the mirror, the whirling stops.

As the mirror slowly returns to a calmness, Julius breaks. He kicks the nearby guard who is trying to get up in his clunky armor. and approaches the still injured doctor.

“How could you be so stupid, trusting that mare with our secrets? Your eagerness will soon be the death of me. You're going to open the portal or you will be thrown in with the unmentionables!” Dr. Hooves is able to stand with Lyra's assistance.

“I can't sir, the mirror only resonates with the staff.”

“Then you're going to build me a new staff”, Julius exclaims.

“The staff is a prototype made hundreds of years ago, It would take me a long time to even attempt to build another one.”

Julius yells at him for a while and Lyra contemplates what her friend had said. Julius realizes that chasing Polyn is a foolish endeavor, but he is going to accomplish his goal one way or another.

“Dr... You and your lab techs are going to find a way to get me to another dimension. I'm not going to spend the rest of my life in this city. We are going to expand, no matter the cost.” He turns toward Lyra, “I am sorry, she would have been quite an asset. She questions him as Politely at possible.

“Sir, what should I do?”

“You are going to assist the doctor and make sure he does his job.” Lyra nods. Julius leaves the room, Leaving the young mare and the doctor alone.

Lyra struggles to get her thoughts together. She looks at the silver mirror which has lost some of it's luster. The green unicorn feels very conflicted. She thinks of her friend who has run away. She was avoiding her responsibilities by leaving through the portal, but on the other hand she was glad Polyn would have a chance at a free and open life. Julius had lied to her too, she feels it in her stomach.

“I can't stand that foul aristocrat. He is greedy, selfish, power hungry, and a liar,” Dr. Hooves says, “For too long I have put up with it. I am now committed to sabotaging that lying aristocrat. Let's do it for Polyn.”

“I'm with you,” Lyra says softly. “We need to stop the lies.”

The two sit in the damaged lab discussing their plan of sabotage. It seems a little bit of Polyn has rubbed off on them.

Another me

Chapter 6: Another Me.

Everyone gathers in the main living room. The small pink and red couches clash with the hey bales that are shedding random hay everywhere. Sitting on one of the bales, Applejack starts by addressing the group as pinkie flops around on a cushion that has fallen to the floor.

“Okay, so I just saw a bunch of Displacers get thrown into some kind of fiery twister that destroyed part of my barn and scared my cows to death. Then the same twister was sucked up like a vacuum by your fancy cylinder. What just happened?”

Sitting on an older couch, across from them, the two dimensional travelers are consistently distracted by the pink pony that refuses to sit still. Pinkie stands up all of a sudden and chimes in, talking very fast.

“How do you know that armored guy? How do you make a tornado? Come to think of it how are you Polyn but not really Polyn?” Pinkie doesn't allow any time to answer her questions and takes a big tired breath after her ranting. Winona starts barking again. Even though exhausted, the pale gray unicorn looks over at her guard companion, shrugs and decides that she needs to spill the beans.

She tells her story. Often Pinkie talks out of turn and asks a strange question. At one point the impatient Polyn breaks and shouts at her.

“Do you want to hear this story or not!”

She also had to explain things in a way that Applejack would understand. A simple, hard working farm pony like her had difficulty understanding complicated technology, which she often referred to as a boondoggle.

They all eventually realized that Polyn was telling the truth, and with the guard from her world reaffirming her facts, no one could have made that kind of crazy story up, it was just hard to believe. After more questions from Pinkie, the guard felt like asking some questions of them.

“How long have you been working at this farm?” Kallan asks.

“As long as I can remember.” Applejacks voice is muffled by the apple she is munching on.

“Why would you build a barn next to a haunted forest?”

“The forest is a great source of fruits, wood, and seeds...and it wasn't haunted when we first got here. We just decided that the forest was worth it.”

When the barn needed supplies like, extra hay, kitchen utensils, or tranquilizers for Pinkie, they relied on a shipping company out of the neighboring towns and occasionally the larger cities. The owner of that company was also Polyn. They had a good business relationship with her company, earning more than enough bits to keep the farm running.

Surprisingly, Pinkie was great at negotiating business deals. Her many associates always left with a smile, no matter if the deal was fair or not.

Kallan isn't done with his questions.

“What do you mean, It Wasn't haunted before?” he asks. motioning a hoof toward the couch.

“Several years ago, the ponies settling in the forest, suddenly left. I guess they had gotten fed up.”

Polyn talks in the gap, unexpectedly.

“Why did they get 'fed up?'”

“They found some old ruins, or temple. I don't know much about it, the settlers pretty much kept to themselves.

The wind begins to blow through the open windows. Apple jack gets up and closes them.

After tying up some loose ends and making every one feel a little bit more comfortable. They all decided to go to bed, It had been a long night.

Polyn is given a place to sleep in the upstairs attic. It is useless, she can't sleep. Her mind was filled of thoughts of where she might go next, what she would do if she ran into her other self, the Displacers, the staff's abilities and of course, Lyra.

Her friend had made her choice but still, there was a hole in Polyn's heart that she once filled. She was still angry at her for choosing to stay behind and she knew that Lyra would be trapped in the neglect of that tyrant Julius, who would use her kindness and generosity for his own selfish ambitions. Even now he was probably trying to find another way to invade worlds with his resources and his army. She was free from a life of physical entrapment, but still trapped in her own thoughts and worries.

The sun shines through the window. Pinkie Pie jumps on the bed.

“Come on, get up. There is so much fun work to do. We can move some of the cows to the pen, and then we can squish some berries to make juice, and then...”

Polyn gets out of bed immediately trying her best to ignore Pinkie. She goes down the stairs and into the bathroom. Her mane is a mess. Luckily there are plenty of grooming tools in a small chest on the floor. Wiping the crust from her eyes, she levitates the scissors to cut her mane a little but she stops before doing so. It was always kept short around her eyes to be out the way.

With her past left behind, there was no reason to do things the same way and she was free of having her life chosen for her. Maybe this time she would let it grow out a little. She also had to splash some water on her face, and clean and adjust the harness which was the only extra clothing she had, plus it had storage pockets and holders for the staff.

Exiting the bathroom, Pinkie surprises her with a balloon.

“You seem a little down. As I always say, there's always room for a balloon.” She stands up proudly, “That's an official Pink-ism.” Kallan walks by them during their awkward moment.

“How come I didn't get a balloon?”

“Because you didn't ask me, silly!”

Pinkie pulls a balloon out of nowhere. Polyn tries not to outwardly display her irritation.

“Where's Applejack,” she asks, finally giving in and taking the balloon.

Applejack is in the field preparing the soil for seed planting. The three exit the house and Pinkie bounces ahead of them toward the fields.

Polyn turns to the guard.

“Thanks for your help last night...What should I call you?”

“I'm Corporal Kallan Thunderhoof of the twenty-third brigade, Equestria city.”

“Are you going to go somewhere? I don't think I get us back to the city, nor would I want to go back.”

“It's no problem, It get's pretty boring guarding things all the time.” He smiles, “I have had to guard your friend Lyra and other government families almost everyday back home. She certainly did talk about you a lot. Believe me, I've heard of Protector Polyn. You should have been trained as a guard special forces. You are pretty capable, based on what I saw at the lab plus last night. I heard you have saved your friend from all kinds of things, including a dragon and some unmentionable thugs.

“They weren't thugs, Polyn says, “they were Elites who thought It would be fun to take some commoners prisoner. I didn't see any guards helping us then.” She pops her balloon.

Kallan clenches his teeth in embarrassment.

He Takes his balloon, and goes over by the barn to keep Pinkie busy while Polyn chats with Applejack about the situation. They sit on the hey bales in front of the grazing cows. Not very fond of small talk Polyn gets right to it, asking about the source of the Displacers.

“Most of the settlers who lived in the forest ended up burying their dead in the underground place there. They must have been living there for a while if they had generations of families. They never really came this far out, but I've heard stories of an evil zombie pony who lives in the ruins but those are just rumors. I would guess the displacers would be due to the dead ponies in the tomb coming to life.”

Applejack gets up and continues with seed planting, putting them in her mouth and then sprinkling them into small holes in the field.

“Do you think that something in the tomb might be causing the Displacers to uh... leave their bodies or, something like that?” Polyn is visibly uncertain. Applejack spits the last seeds out in a chunk.

“You know about as much as I do about it,” Applejack replies. I was thinking about checking it out now that the displacers are attacking the barn, but thanks to you they are gone now.”

Polyn nods at Applejack. The blond pony goes to the cows and inspects them. The confused unicorn moves over to the barn, takes out the staff and tries to speak to it.

“Do you have any info uhh...” The screen lights up. “My identification number is 2-8rui4924.”

“Can I call you Rui,” Polyn asks.

“Indeed, an abbreviated name would suit me better.”

“So Rui, do you know anything about the Displacers?”

“According to my scans, the ruins, several miles away are letting off a large amount of magical energy. I can't be sure, but with that amount of power something in the area could be capable of creating a manifestation of the deceased. In addition, the way that they travel in groups and their motivations may suggest an intelligence or a design of some sort. They were attacking the barn directly, when they hadn't before.”

“Will they come back?”

“I'm sure that whatever created them can simply Displace another set of creatures.”

“So they're ghosts?”

“Yes and no, they are a recreation of the dead with magic, not a re-animated dead or undead. As long as the bodies lie in the tombs, there will be more.”

“Then our next goal will be to go to the tomb and see what is causing all this.”

“That sounds appropriate. If the magical force from the tomb is strong enough, I may be able to open up a gateway to another plane, based on the signature I got from the earlier encounter with the Displacers and based on our current synchronization level, the success rate of transfer is 75 percent.”

The encounter last night was beneficial for both Polyn and the newly named Rui AI. Already she could see the power of It. By continuing the journey across worlds, both of them could learn about each other and gain more power and abilities. A desire for power started to brew inside her. Her quest to find her freedom, to make a world without corruption had begun, but what would she use this newfound power for...

After a short day of camaraderie, Polyn was anxious to check out the forest tomb. It was about mid afternoon when the other Polyn would be making her delivery. Having two of herself in the same place would be a little strange and might really confuse things. She decides not to stick around.

Kallan wanted to join her, even though he was having far too much fun joking with Pinkie and helping around the farm. He is a natural worker with a sense of adventure and enjoys working a job with motion and life instead of having to deal with nosy elites or standing around guarding things.

He takes off his helmet revealing a long flowing blue and blond mane. He also removes his bracers and leggings. He keeps the breastplate but takes off some extra sections so it fits better. He has very large hooves, much larger than the average colt.

“That is so much lighter, ready for adventure...am I right?”

“Let's go before it gets too dark.” the obviously determined mare starts walking.

“She is way to serious.” He thinks to himself.

They had only gone a little ways into the forest when Polyn suddenly stops and sits down behind a large tree root. Kallan is baffled.

“What are you doing?”

“I want to see myself.”

“Are you serious, you wanted to get going?”

There is no more word from her. With a sigh, Kallan collapses next to her lying on his back with his hooves in the air. “I could be exploring an awesome tomb right now.” He says to himself.

Random wildlife scurries around. The wind blows gently with sudden gusts that strike without warning. One of them knocks Kallan onto his side. The trees above are thick and don't allow much light to come in. The occasional light ray is a warm welcome.

Things are pretty uneventful for a while. The two sit in silence simply waiting. Kallan twirls his hooves around and takes a short nap, getting up occasionally to watch a deer or a squirrel having only seen them in old books. Unlike a book, Polyn is hard to read. Saying one thing and then changing her mind and doing something else. At least when she finally decided, she was dedicated.

The two finally notice Applejack moving around the side of the barn near the cows. A wooden cart pulled by a large red colt comes out from the distance. It has several bales of hay, two cows, wood and some extra tools. Kallan sits up.

“Hey, do you know who that is?” He leaves no time for an answer. “That's Big Macintosh, Applejack’s brother. Pinkie told me how large he was.” From their hiding place, they are able to hear the conversation from a distance.

“Did you remember to bring all of the supplies for the repair big brother?”

“E'Yup!”

“Good to hear it. Polyn's sleeping again isn't she?”

“E'Yup!”

“All right, wake up Polyn this ain’t no time for sleeping.”

It was hard to make out the figure in the back of the cart. There was some commotion in the back but eventually her doppelganger made her way to the front. The resemblance was perfect. Here she was the same pony, Another Polyn.

Thoughts began to flow around. How many worlds were there? Was there an Applejack or Pinkie Pie in her world? Could one world effect the other? The world obviously was different with a different Polyn, in attitude and everything. What if there was a world where an evil version of herself existed? She becomes dizzy and stops her thought process.

“It's really you, that's insane! Do you think there's another me also?” Kallan is thinking out loud. Polyn stands up swiftly and starts walking immediately in the other direction.

“So you've seen what you want to see? Don't you want to know if she has a weird voice or a bunyon on her toe you don't have? What if she is really an alien or something.”

Polyn ignores him, having already seen what she wanted; to confirm the existence of another and nothing more. Kallan rolls his eyes.

“I hope she's not always like this.”

He follows her further into the forest.

Call Me Queen

Chapter 7: Call Me Queen

The Sun begins to set and the forest is shrouded in darkness except for the random moonlight that randomly invades through the canopy. Rui glows and Polyn leads the way. They have been walking for a few hours already. Kallan was tired of the silent treatment. The crunch of hooves clomping on the forest floor was getting tiresome.

“We've been in this place for a while now and I don't even miss my shabby government pigsty apartment,” he shouts with joy to the silence around him. The tired colt starts to ramble. The determined unicorn continues her march forward with no response.

“My parents died when I was young and other than those I guarded, I never really had any real friends. Come to think of it...”

He reflects on the old city, the lonely guard tower where he worked near the Government offices, and how he felt about leaving everything behind. He thought of Polyn and her confidence in the face of entrapment or certain death. His thoughts soon drifted to ponies he knew and to Lyra. He stops moving. Polyn walks forward but notices something is off. She turns back.

“Whats the problem?”

Kallan is staring down at the leaves on the ground. It takes him a minute but he starts walking again and catches up.

“What was that all about? It's getting dark soon, we need to go.”

“I was just thinking. You must miss Lyra.” Kallan approaches her and makes direct eye contact. “You know if you ever want to talk about it, It might be good for both of us to keep our world in perspective, you know.”

Polyn seems to have grown more irritated by him.

“I don't need to talk about it. It's in the past.” She looks forward into the endless forest. “Lyra made her Choice,” she says starting the walk forward again.

It annoyed Kallan a little that she wouldn't talk about her troubles, but he eventually got over it and moved on. As they walk further, the forest becomes more decayed and corroded. The animals are nowhere to be seen and the trees begin to twist. The wind is gone too and the darkness has taken away all light but Rui's glow. The ground is no longer filled with grass and lush leaves. Their hooves hit patches of dirt and dust with a soft thud as they walk. After a while the landscape becomes barren almost like a desert. All of trees are dead or dying.

A stone building becomes visible in the distance. The walls have cracks in them and have faded. There is a small rock that has been rolled in front of a large hole in the side. It takes both of them to move the rock aside. As they enter, she hands him the Core Knife for his protection and possibly hers. She didn't think of him as much of a warrior, despite his large size or even though he had proven himself in the battle with the Displacers.

The building is very old. As they enter past the stone opening, there is a small courtyard with three large statues. They have been warn down over a long time. Only the central one is recognizable. A large pony stands, a pegasus, but also with a unicorn horn.

“Alicorn,” Polyn whispers.

“What.”

“It's what you get when you cross a unicorn with a pegasus. Of course, they are made up fantasy beings in our world; little children's stories, usually.”

Around the area there are bags containing various household pots and pans and old dusty wooden tables that have chunks taken out of them. Huge clumps of old dust cover everything. The previous inhabitants have been gone for a long time.

“So, this proves they exist?”

“Or maybe the settlers, just worshipped a statue based on something made up.”

The large colt notices a description on the statue. It is warn but he can make out two words.

“Watcher...Queen.” He turns to his traveling companion. “What could that mean?”

“You sound like Zecora, she jokes, “let's go, maybe we'll find out inside.”

Kallan stares at the statue for a little longer as the wind begins to blow the dust around him surrounding with gray specks.

They reach a long staircase leading downward with unlit candles, each one with it's own small alcove along the wall. Polyn Levitates Rui in the air and small fire bursts come out relighting the candles as the party makes their way down the staircase. Only two sets of hooves and the small crackling of the flames can be heard.

The staircase levels out and the once crackly, dry floor is slightly moist. There are some small side passages that lead to an old table in an alcove. They also pass what may have been a kitchen with some more dusty bags on the shelves as well as an old parchment that was unreadable. Kallan coughs from the dust, it echos as the main path begins to become wider eventually opening into a large chamber. Small vines and moss gather on the walls. Water drips from the precarious rocks around them. Kallan whispers,

“This is a tomb right? With the big stone and everything...umm, it's not much of a tomb when there aren't any bodies.”

“There might be some in those bags.” Polyn says annoyed.

“I don't see how we are going to find a magical energy source here.”

A sound lingers in to Polyn's ears.

“Wait, I hear flowing water.”

They began to quicken their pace. The sound of the water gets louder. The focused unicorn keens her ears on the source of the sound, moving ever closer and not looking anywhere but straight ahead. Her traveling companion looks around making sure nothing is going to jump out at them, however the darkness around them makes that difficult. The path narrows. They reach a stream that has carved out a path in the rock. A faint light seems to be emanating from further down the small river.

“You have good instincts,” Kallan compliments.

Two sets of hooves began to slosh through the water as things get brighter around them. There is a dead end ahead with the evening moonlight coming through a small crack in the ceiling. They stop and stare at the wall. Polyn looks up.

“A Light at the end of the tunnel, funny,” her dry wit is not very amusing even to herself.

“I am sensing a magical energy of great power nearby,” Rui beeps.

There is something weird with the cave wall. Something may have shifted or blurred a little. She puts her hoof on the wall and it sinks into it. The wall is a magical illusion. Without hesitation she pushes through and disappears. Her companion yells for her but there is no response. After a deep breath he runs through the wall suddenly tripping on a small tombstone.

“Ouch, so that's where they hid the tombstones.” He slowly stands, his head throbbing.

This new room looks the same as the previous room, however it is dry as a bone. Whatever this wall, it was made by powerful forces to keep something in. Polyn goes over to the wall where they came through and it is solid as a rock.

“We're not going back,” she says glancing back at Kallan. He is looking at the words written on many of the tombstones around him.

“These must be where the settlers are buried.” He starts to read off one of the stones. “Our beloved Derpy, choked on a muffin...may she rest in peace.”

One tombstone is larger than the others. It reads, “Twilight Sparkle, who now sleeps beyond the dimensions.”

A creeping darkness grabs Kallan while he is distracted by the words. He struggles to get free of it's grasp. He yells as Polyn throws a blast of fire at it only to have it miss completely. She can make out the large morphing shape frantically moving away from her. The screaming colt is pulled into an illusion wall by the shrouded assailant.

Polyn runs over to where the wall was and runs through it only to appear in another cave room. This one has vines and small flowers and bushes everywhere, a large tree with apples on it, and an opening in the corner. Allowing light in.

The sun is shinning brightly through the cave, starting from the skylight opening and creating shadows on the far side of the room but providing enough light to feel like the forest outside.

“Did I travel through time?”

“No," Rui beeps, "there is powerful magic here.”

Kallan has the core knife out and is struggling with a large mare or at least she thinks it's a mare. The creature screams in pain as he stabs it with the knife. Polyn uses fire again and it hits the creature square on the head. Writhing in pain it musters to kick her companion backwards. A large orange bush breaks his fall. The knife is still stuck inside the creature's flesh but there is no blood. The strange dark mare starts to get up but it's wounds are too painful for the time being and she remains in a seated position. Polyn stands nearby, glaring at it, while trying to make out it's appearance.

“Don't try to hurt my friend, if you do, my next attack wont be so forgiving.” Polyn shouts. “That knife is pulsating with fire, don't try to move, unless you like pain.

To Polyn's surprise It grunts as it struggles to stand. It is dark green, part mare and part mantis or insect like animal. It has circular shaped holes in both its hooves and wings like chunks have been taken out. It has a long crooked horn and looks like a unicorn but only barely. It's wings are like that of a fly or bug. The creature is as dark and corroded as the cave around it.

“Ha ha, you have no way out now.” It glares back. “I am the only one who can open the barriers. You will be here as long as I desire.”

Polyn gets closer to her.

“Then we may have to make things more difficult, Who are you?”

“I am Chrysalis. You can call me Queen.”

“Full of yourself are we...you're the one who summoned the Displacers,” Kallan says.

“And you're the one who destroyed them. She points her hoof at Polyn. “Do you know how long it took to conjure them?”

“Why are you terrorizing the farm?” Kallan asks.

“Those foolish mares, they take from my forest, bring in their foreign animals, and refuse to leave me alone, just like those magical settlers. I've had enough of ponies taking from me.”

“They only take what they need.” Kallan begins to defend Applejack. They have a barn too, they rarely step foot in your forest.”

Chrysalis grunts at him. “You two aren't from this world, are you? Tell me your story and I'll tell you mine. After an awkward silence, Polyn begins her story again, leaving out some important details that she doesn't wish to share.

Chrysalis explains that she has been living in the forest so long that she has forgotten what her original purpose was for being there. When the settlers came, she didn't mind them living there as long as they didn't bother her.

However, the settlers were powerful magicians who practiced a dark magic. This was appealing to the Queen, who began to share magical secrets with them.

When the dark magics turned the forest desolate, Chrysalis tried to force them out, to avoid any further degradation of the forest but they refused to leave, using their magic against her, trapping her behind the illusion walls. So much time went by that they buried their dead in the cave next to where she was trapped. They mocked her, calling her Chrysalis, queen of the dead.

As time passed, she was able to break the barrier spell on the walls. When she was once again able to see the forest surface, the settlers had moved on. They had taken all of the resources in the area, leaving miles of dead forest and the graves of their dead families behind.

“You see why I wanted them out? They stole from the forest and from me, leaving nothing but desolation in their wake, those putrid leeches. Your friends living in the barn do the same, they take and never give back.  After a moment of silence, Polyn takes the core knife out of the queen. She gasps.

“Well, I'm sure you don't want this back.” Polyn says with a hint of sarcasm. “Also what makes this forest yours?”

“Long ago I was tasked to watch over it, It's my forest and my responsibility.”

Polyn tries to comprehend what she means.

“What of the statues outside?”

“I am not sure, perhaps they are of me or someone I associated with in a different time.” She clears her throat. “Usually statues are built to honor somepony. There must have been a time when I was worthy of such honor.”

“What is the light behind you?” Kallan asks.

Chrysalis is able to walk forward and stretch a bit. She towers over them.

“It is a magical illusion that act's like a sun, allowing the plants to grow. The settlers originally created it. They wanted me to suffer for an eternity. Starvation would have been too easy. Of course, I forgot to tell them that I don't eat.”

The young unicorn feels very impatient.

“We want you to leave Applejack alone.”

Rui mentions something softly to Polyn as she floats by.

“The illusion is powerful enough for me to generate a dimensional jump, I will only need a small amount of the energy, and It won't damage the illusion.” Polyn looks back at the queen.

“We also need to take some power from the magical illusion. I only need a little bit of the magical waves it possesses.”

“One question, unicorn. If you are from an alternate word and just passing through, why does it matter what happens to Applejack?”

“What do you mean, Kallan asks.”

“I hardly believe you and your unicorn friend are that selfless, to want to help others. No one is, at least not anymore.” Chrysalis narrows her gaze, everyone has a selfish agenda of their own.

“Where I come from, there is corruption and evil deeds. I want to live in a world without corruption, and I will do whatever it takes to stop it.”

Kallan secretly is impressed but a little annoyed that she didn't share her newfound crusade with him earlier.

“Then why run away from it, why not use your magical prowess to fight back against those who have wronged you.”

Polyn contemplates the question, tilting her head slightly upward then back at the so-called Queen.

“Its personal. I don't belong there, I'm not going back.” She sighs and glances at Kallan. “What is in the past must remain there. Just like you, the place I came from shall remain forgotten.”

“Then I will leave the farm alone provided that you listen to a story.” The comment took the two travelers aback. Just a story. It seemed too easy. The queen could be hiding something.

“Fine, then.” Polyn' agrees.

“I saw you looking over at a grave stone earlier, concerning one...Twilight Sparkle.” She stares into the dark shadow of the room. “A time not too long ago, a settler couple made a journey down into the cave. I watched from the darkness as they set up a gravestone and put some flowers on top of it. They etched a message into the stone and then cried for a while. They were so pathetic...but even from behind the wall, what they said in their mourning haunted me. I knew that this situation was different from just a simple ponies death.”

Her wings sputter outward as she stretches her legs.

“Who now sleeps beyond the dimensions.” Polyn recites.

The queen grins.

“This Twilight apparently vanished out of thin air with no warning. No one could conjure her back and no reveal spell could return her. I think that it would be-hoof you to investigate this, since you are going to use my illusion to wonder into new worlds.”

“You want us to find out what happened to Twilight Sparkle?”

“Why would she just vanish beyond the magical grasp of even the settlers?” The queen asks her question rhetorically.

The story may have seemed trivial at first but it stuck in Polyn's mind. Did this Twilight Sparkle find a way to challenge the universe itself or was somepony the cause of her disappearance. Were there other Twilights in other worlds that had also disappeared? It hurt her brain to think about it. If she wanted a world without corruption where she could belong, this would help her to find it.

“Promise me that you will find the answer to this question.” The queen demands. “And I will let you go.”

Kallan steps forward.

"You're hiding something.” He accuses. The queen frowns.

“My dear colt, this is bigger than you or me. If a pony has disappeared from the dimensional flow, then this harkens back to the beginning of all things. There may be something sinister at work here. There could be something ancient, powerful and very corrupt causing these disappearances.”

“You are an Alicorn, aren't you?” Polyn asks.

The queen moves over as Rui floats over to analyze the illusion.

"Perhaps I might have been, I don't really remember, I do know that I came here tasked with watching over something and that I am not from this world originally either. “I have visions that may suggest my origin and possibly the existence of other Alicorns.

Rui beeps and speaks,

"It takes an immense power to create an illusion of this magnitude, there is even heat and the ability to photosynthesize. If you are ready I will begin the teleportation sequence.” Polyn agrees and motions for Kallan to join her, which he does reluctantly.

A great light whirls around them. Followed by waves of magical energy. Soon there is a column of light emanating from next to where the illusion is.

“When you are ready step into the light,” Rui says.

Polyn has one last word for the queen.

“I hope you can keep your end of the bargain.”

“It's fine, I try to kidnap you, you attack me, then we talk it out and come to an agreement. You're much more agreeable than the settlers.”

Light begins to surround Polyn.

“How do I get back?”

“I trust you'll find a way.”

The three disappear into the light. It blinds Chrysalis for a second. Soon the light column disappears.

“Be careful Polyn,” The Queen says to herself. “Little do you know what awaits you. There are powers in the universe far greater and more corrupt than you can possibly imagine.” She picks up an apple that immediately turns to rot in her dark hoof. “Curse you Aurora!” Chrysalis says shaking the rot away.

She takes a few steps away from the bush and looks up at the light as if talking to it. “She has Starswirl's staff, sooner or later, she is going to come for you, I hope you are ready, Celestia.

Pink Acres

Chapter 5: Pink Acres

The ride through the portal is rough. Polyn is flung onto the ground which is muddy and soft. She struggles to get up as the guard flies into a tree. As he recovers, she shocks him with a small lightning blast. He is on his back and can't move. He tries to make eye contact with her.

“Don't even think about moving,” she commands. The staff's voice speaks from it's side compartment on the harness.

“Dimensional jump complete...searching for axis...not found...Locating Coordinates based off Central Equestria Axis. Location DX42675 added to database.”

“If you agree not to try anything, I will let you up now.” The guard nods. Slowly Polyn helps the guard to his feet.

“Look, I was only following orders. I don't have any quarrel with you. He looks around. “Strange place, do you know where we are?”

The guard looks at his surroundings. The sunlight is shinning through the trees.

“Can that staff get me home?”

“I really don't know and if I did, why would I want to go back?” The mud is starting to dry on her face. “I still haven't figured it out yet.” There is still a little hostility in her voice. The guard sighs.

“I'm not going to try anything,” he says trying to keep the peace, “I don't really want any more trouble or pain.” He notices a small squirrel that is eating out of it's hands. “This place seems nice. I might as well explore.” He takes a few steps and then turns back. “I heard what Julius said in there. The squirrel turns its head and flees into a small hollow beneath a tree. “This is definitely better than working as a sentinel, government benefits aren't what they used to be. Good luck Polyn...please don't shock me again as I leave.”

He raises his hoof to her, turns and walks into the forest. She watches him until he disappears. The world that he represents is leaving with him. The staff speaks again,

“I suggest we find shelter, it will be dark soon.”

Taking the advice of a machine she just met, Polyn treks through the forested area of this new world for a while. The air is clean and small animals are roaming around. The sun is beginning to set.

After a tiresome walk, tripping on giant roots, and fending off large bugs, The muddy, tired traveler can see the edge of the forest in the distance. As she reaches the forest boundary, there is a small wooden building in the distance. She approaches the brown and red building, it is very quaint.

There is a big red barn with a high ceiling connected to a smaller living area with long windows. On the other side of the barn are some pens with cows in them. Polyn has never seen cows before; only reading about them in history books. In this world they are alive and well. After a few minutes checking out her surroundings there is nothing and nopony around.

She spends a minute looking at the forest opening. These were real trees. They were not artificial and they had real smells. It would take some getting used to.

The big red door to the barn is unlocked. Inside there are more small pens, one with clucking chickens. As the walked around their necks rocked back and forth, it was amusing for a while, and make her chuckle.

Bales of hay are everywhere. It is getting dark and what's left of the sunlight peers through cracks in the barn wall. A small pen sits in the corner with a half opened door revealing some of it to the fading light. Without any thought to her surroundings, she plumps onto a hay stack.

A few hours pass. Polyn wakes up suddenly to the sound of the staff's beeping noise. A low wind gust accompanies it along with some footsteps outside the barn.

“I am detecting two moving objects outside the barn. Their movements are erratic.” The sun has set and a full moon can be seen through the cracks in the barn. The shuffling sounds get louder. After a few minutes the hoofsteps are right outside. Two voices can be heard outside faintly. They grow in haste and hysteria.

“Oh gosh we forgot to put the cows in the barn.”

“You know how much the Displacers like cows.”

“Come on now, git”

There is a rumbling and it's not thunder. There is some shouting as the rumbling gets closer to the barn. The staff speaks again.

“It appears the cows are being moved. You may want to hide to avoid suspicion.” Polyn closes the stall and crams herself into a small space between to two hay bales. She watches from a crack in the wooden door.

A fair haired pony enters with a blond mane tied at the end, wearing a cowboy hat. The cows are following behind her in a large clump. A small dog can be seen standing on top of the horde as it moves quickly from cow to cow. As the cows begin to fill almost every space of the barn another pony can be seen closing and locking the doors to the barn. She has a really curly mane that is fluffy like cotton candy or balloons and is entirely pink all over.

“Pinky, lock that thing good, we can't afford to lose any cows this time.”

“Are we going to hide in the attic again?”

“What about the back room?”

The hiding unicorn becomes alarmed. The two ponies and the dog begin to walk through the cows toward the pen she is hiding in. The dog begins to bark; she is able to smell Polyn's sent.

“Winona, quiet!” The blond haired pony begins to yell. “We know you are in there. Come out, now!”

Slowly the door to the room begins to open. The disheveled unicorn emerges from the door. Both ponies breathe a sigh of relief. The dog seems happy to see her too.

“Oh hi Polyn, I'm glad it's only you.”

“You nearly gave us a heart attack, we thought you were a Displacer.”

Polyn glances at the dog who is beginning to sniff her carefully.

“You're not usually here overnight,” says the blond one. “You don't bring supplies until tomorrow.” The pink one follows up by asking three questions in rapid succession.

“Is this an early delivery?”

“Are you tired? ”

“Do you want a cupcake? I have some in my secret barn door.”

They must have mistaken her for someone else. How would they know her name? She decides to just to go along with it for now.

“It's a...surprise. I had some time off so I wanted to come and visit.” She shuffles her hoofs out of nervousness. “Surprise!” The blond one seems to be a little suspicious but the pink one bursts into a frenzy.

“This is great! We can have a Polyn surprising us with a surprise...surprise party!” She is bouncing up and down, her hair getting fluffier as she goes. The other one tries to calm her down.

“Pinkie Pie, I think you should keep the bouncing under wraps, we don't want to alert the Displacers.”

“What are the Displacers,” asks Polyn. The dog jumps onto the hay behind her.

“You should tell her, Applejack,” says Pinkie Pie. “You're better at explaining things without being silly.”

Applejack went on to explain that the forest has been haunted for years. At night, during a full moon, the spirits of the dead walk from the forest across the open fields and vanish when the sun comes back up again. Many ponies are buried in a mass tomb deep in the forest. They are the graves of forest settlers who lived there for a time before they pretty much disappeared.

They were given the name Displacers by two travelers who journeyed a little too far into the forest one night. The ghost-like creatures walk from the site of their own graves and become displaced in the vast open plain.

“The cows will be attacked by the Displacers if they are not taken to a safe place,” says Applejack. “Just because they are spirits doesn't mean they can't eat the cows or even you.

“Well it's not really eating,” Pinkie Pie says. “They dematerialize you or some other funny, big word like that.” Applejack notices that it is getting close to midnight. She recommends that they head inside the house to the usual attic hiding spot.

The sky is dark with the moon shining brightly and a few assorted clouds scattered around. The three ponies and Winona head into the living room of the house from an already open side door. Applejack tells Pinkie to lock the doors and windows. She does so quickly even though she is bouncing around.

Winona leads the way up to the attic. Polyn follows her up the stairs. Halfway up Winona turns around and has a very strange look on her face.  Applejack makes her way behind the pair and notices Winona checking out their guest, suspiciously. She quickly ushers them both into the attic, Pinkie joining them soon after. The door is locked and bolted.

The attic is very spacious with a variety of farm tools and more hay. There is some house cleaner and several bags of oats along with a box that says, “Secret Recipe Cow Feed.” There are two very small windows with wooden blinds that open just enough to see out.

“From here we can get a good look at the Displacers. You might want to watch the forest boundary,” Applejack says. “Pinkie get the lights.” Polyn glances back to notice Winona still staring at her. Her look has intensified.

Outside the window the forest is swaying gently with the wind. The tops of the trees go on for what seems like forever. The thunder gently roars as the rain begins sprinkling down. At first there is nothing, but soon a shuffling sound can be heard. One pony hoof is visible followed by many. The Displacers have white glowing eyes and move very slowly. Their bodies are like a cloudy beaker in a science lab, semi transparent with a blue hue that pulsates around them. For a pack of ghostly cow eaters, they are quite beautiful.

From the small windows in the attic they quietly watch the mass of Displacers move out of the forest and into the plain. They are getting closer to the barn. Applejack knows that they usually ignore the barn. Some scary thoughts pass through her mind as a cow moo is heard from the inside of the barn.

One of the Displacers hears the cow and begins to move faster toward it.

“Oh no! Stupid cow!” Pinkie Whispers.

“We need to do something, If one cow is discovered they all will be.”

“We can't let the cows get eaten.”

“What are we going to do?”

Polyn begins to breathe faster. She doesn't want to get involved and she may risk them finding out who she really is. But she's not about to let some innocent cows get eaten, especially the first real cows she has ever seen.

“You can tell can't you?” She says to the dog. "I guess it's too late now." She whispers to herself. "I'm going down there." Polyn announces. "I can get them away from the barn. Open the door for me.” Her earlier uncertainty has faded. Applejack feels a confidence in her different from the mare she knows.

“I don't know who you are but you're not going down there.”

“This isn't a discussion.”

With her protective instincts, Polyn bursts out of the downstairs door. She runs out and gets in front of the barn just in front of a Displacer, who shuffles quickly toward her with it's shiny eyes.

“Don't even think about it!” She shouts. Now all of the Displacers have heard her and are clumping together and moving in her direction.

“I knew you were crazy but I had no idea!” The guard has returned and is running fast. He runs quickly evading the grasp of many of the creatures. He meets up with her in front of the barn.

“Can you fight, we are going to have to go on the offensive,” Polyn says looking over the approaching horde. “I'm going to create a fire tornado,”

“A fire what?”

“The wind from the tornado will suck them in and then the fire will burn them.”

“What do you need me to do?”

“Fend off as many as you can. Give me about a minute, and I'll try to take some out or at least scare them away.”

“You got it.”

She hands the guard her core knife that is in a pocket on her harness. She lights it with fire using her horn. The blade begins to glow red.

“It now has a fire attribute,” she instructs.

“I know! I'm from your world remember.” He says excited.

The very focused colt is attempting to fend them off. The staff speaks. “Due to this very volatile condition, I have instigated level 2 access and will enable magic amplification.”

“That sounds good,” Polyn answers. The staff begins to glow. Meanwhile, one of them touches the guard, burning his front leg with a blue flame. He cuts it down and brushes it off. “Polyn you'd better hurry this one up!” He glances at the black mark on his leg.

“Get Down!” she shouts.

A small gust of wind shoots out of her horn and grows. A vortex forms as the gust moves into the center of the horde sucking them in toward it. Firing a flame shot into it, It bursts into flame and grows brighter. One Displacer gets sucked in and vaporized followed by another. Polyn can hardly believe how big the tornado is.

“I think I may have overdone it!”

“We gotta go!” The guard says staggering toward her. The two head for the house struggling against the pull of the vortex. They get into the house safely but the tornado is showing no sign of stopping.

The staff activates.

“One of my other abilities is absorption. Throw me into the vortex, I will absorb the magical elemental force.”

The staff has been correct so far. Polyn has the guard hang on to her left leg so she wont get sucked in. She balances the staff on one hoof and the pull of the vortex pulls the staff toward it. The staff begins to glow with a white light as it flies onto the ground and lands below the whirling vortex. Like a funnel, the tornado gets sucked into the staff and eventually disappears. After a while the white light fades. She inspects it and finds nothing wrong. It makes a small beeping sound.

“It appears that our synchronization rate is increasing quickly, thanks to these stressful situations. It is beneficial to us, but I don't believe it is good for your mental state.”

The guard gives Polyn back the core knife.

“Thanks for letting me borrow this.” He says with a smile.

Rude Awakening

The Dimensions of Polyn

A Work of Fan Fiction

Based on My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Created by Hasbro.

Written By

Fogeldash

In Memory of Ed Portmann

(1943-2013)

Authors Note: This story is meant to take place between seasons 3 and 4 of MLP: FIM

Chapter 1: Rude Awakening

A deep authoritative voice is heard.

“Wake up now, you’re going to be late!”

A shadow extends across the dimly lit room.

“How dare you stay out past curfew!”

Polyn stirs in bed trying to ignore the shouting.

“I know you can hear me. Get up now!”

She pulls the covers over her head. The window is forced open, filling the room with morning light. The strong, oversized hoof of her father kicks her out of bed and onto the floor. The bedsheets spiral around her like a tornado as she crashes. Polyn's eyes are forced open by the shock as she struggles to adjust to the flood of morning light. The floor is cold and it's texture rough. There is a sharp pain in her back and legs. She tries to get up but is forced back down again by her father who is already right in her face. There is still alcohol on his breath from the night before. It could have been consumed earlier this morning.

“How dare you come in late last night!” His shouting echos in the teenage mare's ear to almost inaudible levels. His voice softens as he leans in further. “You may not respect your future,” He grits his teeth, “but you will respect me and my rules.”

Polyn, who is finally awake enough to mount an offensive, glares at her father.

“As if you were worthy of respect,” she says in a raspy voice.

Her father's face tightens up and he stomps his hoof right next to her head. She cowers but only barely because of the shock. She knows that her father is a creature of little self-control. This combined with drunkenness could lead to disaster. Fighting her internal desire to rebel she decides not to anger him further. She looks away from him and Slowly he backs off, his threat well received.

“Get ready for school,” he spouts.

“Respect my future, yeah right,” Polyn mutters to herself.

She unwraps her legs which are tangled in the mess of bed sheets and stumbles once as she slowly gets up.

“What Future?”

In a small adjacent room, there is a mirror in the corner and a small sink with brushes, some other cleaning devices and a towel draped over the faucet. She has quite the case of bed mane this morning. She takes a good look at herself in the mirror. Her mane is a little longer than she would like; brown and curly with a stripe of red that goes through the various strands. She brushes it to both sides of her head and around the backside of her horn except for small strands that go around her neck. Taking some shears, she evenly clips the hair above her eyes, making sure they don't get in her eyes. Her coat is a pale gray color and unfortunately there is no mark on her flank.

Very few ponies ever get their cutie marks in this place. It was the mark of a purpose fulfilled in a world where purpose was given to you. In this city, the government decided your fate. From birth you knew what you were going to do your entire life. Unless your purpose and the city's imposed fate were the same, you were just a blank slate for them to write on. For those few who had them, they were just a pretty decoration.

She goes over to her closet where her school supplies are. As a unicorn Polyn had been chosen to work in the magi-tech sector near one of the city reactors or in a lab. After her last year of school was finished she would be put to work. Like other technical and magically gifted unicorns, she was going to study at the local academy, as required. The fusion of magic and technology was something she excelled at and also enjoyed. It took her mind off the troubles of corruption and family drama that surrounded her.

The clock hovering over the bed ticks too loudly to be ignored. Time is running short and she needs to be on time or there would be city guards on her case. They always had a way of knowing where she was at all times. She quickly finds her small beige saddle bag lying on the floor that had fallen off due to the confrontation earlier and looks inside. There are some small ingredients for potion class, several pieces of paper and her class books inside.

“This should be enough,” She mumbles.

Shuffling down the old, wooden creaky stairs that connect to the kitchen, the young mare moves quickly around a small wooden table and stands in front of old metal sink and some cabinets. Only half of the cabinets still have doors on them.

Her parents’ house is small but larger than most of the residential homes provided by the city government for commoners, the working class. The downstairs is dark except for the sunlight cracking through the blinds. Even the majesty of the sun is barely able to penetrate the darkness of the house. Her father has already left for his job at the sky-way, making even the disheveled, darkened house feel all the more comforting with his absence. Quickly trying to assemble a reasonable lunch, she looks at all of the open cabinets.

Her mother is sitting in the adjacent living room staring at a crossword puzzle. The area around her is covered with dirty dinner plates, pieces of old clothes, and crumpled sections of newspaper. She hangs her rear hoof off the chair in a caste and constantly bumps it against the remnants of several empty bottles of beer that lay around the wood floor and stink up the place.

Polyn's dad got drunk often. The bottles were a constant reminder. 20 years of the same non fulfilling job everyday would make anyone want to escape. There was no escaping that job, since his father was the inventor of the sky-way. He had been groomed from birth to take over the family business. He had no choice, nowhere to go and a recognizable legacy to keep him perpetually trapped. It was his role, his fate. It haunted him. He covered up his frustration with drinks, making him more bitter and angry as the years went on.

Lifeless is the best way to describe her mother. Her face is pale and she looks barely alive. She is so distant and unresponsive it is like she is dead already. She wasn't always like this. She had a bright future ahead of her until her accident. Polyn got her talents for magic from her mother. When she was a filly she would watch her mother work on magical energy cores and all kinds of technological wonders in this very same house. She had a knack for magical cores and was always hired to work on reactor projects. She went down into the factory one day and selflessly volunteered to go fix a malfunctioning reactor component for a new employee. She was injured by an energy surge that everyone blamed her for. In the end, she lost her job and any future she could have had along with it. Was her act of kindness even worth it? Polyn tries to get her attention.

“Are you taking me to school, or do I have to hoof it.” Despite her clever pun, her mom struggles to respond.

“I’m really...busy today,” her mom says without even looking up. Her voice has almost no expression. “Just take the bus...there’s a pass on the table.”

The young unicorn rolls her eyes and searches though the clutter finding an expired bus pass. I guess she would have to walk. Magically levitating some fruit sitting in a basket inside the top shelf, she transfers it into a paper bag.

“See you later mom, don’t work too hard,” Polyn says sarcastically. There is no response.

It was hard living with a distant mother and a drunken, angry father but Polyn did it every day. She was happy to be going to school. Studying magic and spending some time in the library afterwords would be the only escape from this situation. Her father didn't know this but she had come home late because of a study session. He was so oblivious and trapped in his anger that he hadn't even noticed. There had to be a future for her away from the corruption of the city. Magic, technology, and books were the only escape she had, they might reveal a way out.

Outside, two guards greet her. They watch her as she leaves, and she knows that they watched her father do the same.

“Get a move on, Polyn Aphos, you don't want to get another citation.” The guards chuckle as she walks past them into the vast city.