Controlled Future

by TheAnimerican

Rating: everyone
Tags: Princess Celestia, Pony Joe, My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, Dark, Spike
Length: 1991

What if you had the power to know your future? Would you really want to know?

Twilight and Spike were in Canterlot on official business. While there, they of course had a list of family and friends they planned to visit; One of them being Donut Joe. While visiting their old friend, they noticed a machine that wasn't there before on one of the tables. Joe explained that it was one of those fortune-telling machines, but you can only ask "yes" or "no" questions. But of course, Twilight didn't believe such an item could exist and felt the need to prove it.

*****

This story was inspired by one of my favorite Twilight Zone episodes; "Nick of Time."

Published 2020-07-16 02:40:00 UTC
Last updated 2020-07-16 02:40:00 UTC

The Mystic Seer

The streets of Canterlot were always full of ponies, but it wasn't as lively as the streets of Manehattan. Which is why Twilight was always comfortable reading while walking. Her running into anypony was very rare. Especially when her number one assistant, Spike, was there to warn her if she was about to collide with anything.

"Hold it Twilight," Spike said as he raised his arm to stop his pony friend. As expected, Twilight was not paying attention, but she felt the forceful stop of a dragon's claw against her. She lowered the map she was reading to see she was at a crosswalk. Had Spike not been there, she might have been trampled on or caused a traffic jam.

"Thanks, Spike," said Twilight, "I am just making sure we are going the right way." Because Canterlot was constantly being maintained, it wasn't uncommon that the streets were blocked off here and there to repair cracked pavement or tear down older buildings to make new and sturdier structures. As the city was built on a mountainside, the princesses felt that maintaining a strong foundation was the city's top priority.

"Are we close? I am starving," said Spike as he rubbed his belly. "It has been a long time since we had a donut from Donut Joe. Actually, it has been a while since we last came to visit him."

"Yeah. You're right. After we visit him and finish our meeting with the princesses, maybe we will have enough time to meet everypony else; like Lemon Heart, Twinkle Shine, Minuette, and definitely Moon Dancer," Twilight said cheerfully. "Now, if we can just find that donut shop," Twilight said as she raised the map back to her muzzle. As if on cue, the officer directing the traffic signaled that it was okay for ponies to cross. Spike poked Twilight's side and proceeded to move with the crowd. "If I am reading it correctly, it should be just down the street to our left."

"Twilight, I have been meaning to ask, but why didn't we just fly there?" Spike asked with a raised eyebrow.

Twilight rolled her eyes as if Spike asked a dumb question, "Because we were riding on a train for hours. I could stretch my wings, but I also need to move my legs. It is nice to just walk around, see what's on the ground, and plus we get some exercise in. Consider those donuts as a reward."

"2 donuts?" the dragon asked.

Twilight sighed, "No Spike. We are going to be seeing the princesses soon and we will be dining with them. I am sure you will have plenty to eat."

"Oh come on. I'm a big dragon and 2 donuts wouldn't spoil my appetite," Spike pouted. Despite him reaching to that stage where he has grown wings, he always wondered if he would ever be free of Twilight's motherly care towards him.

"You grew wings, Spike. That doesn't mean you should grow extra layers of fat," Twilight joked. "Don't worry. We aren't much farther now. We should be there in a few..."

"More steps?" Spike finished.

"Huh?" Twilight stopped and looked up to her left. She then saw the donut shop itself, with its signature large donut on the top. "Oh. How did I miss that?" Ignoring her own question, Twilight placed the map back in her saddlebag and then proceeded to the shop.

***

As both Spike and Twilight entered the building, they were greeted by a bell chime and the master of donuts himself, "Well well well. Twilight Sparkle and... Is that Spike? You finally got your wings huh?" Donut Joe asked as he walked around the counter.

"Hey, Joe! I sure did!" Spiked said happily as he hovered off the ground. "Pretty cool huh?"

Donut Joe chuckled, "Definitely, but you could show me outside. No flying in here please."

Spike then realized he was disturbing the other guests. As he flapped his wings, it caused napkins and crumbs to fly off nearby tables. "Oops. Sorry," he apologized as he landed on the ground.

Twilight giggled, "We are here to meet the princesses. We arrived earlier than we expected and thought we should stop by for a snack."

"Well, of course!" Donut Joe said with glee, "Pick any you like free of charge."

"What? Oh no you don't have to do that," said Twilight.

"You're right. I don't have to, but I want to. How about it Spike? I still have that bag of gems specifically for you."

"Really!?" Spike's eyes twinkled as if they too were covered in gems.

"Of course buddy. Why don't you two take a seat while I go whip them up. It shouldn't take long," said Joe as he made his way behind the counter.

Twilight smiled, "Thanks, Joe. Just the usual for me." Joe nodded to confirm the order.

Twilight then observed her surroundings to find available seating. As her eyes wandered, there were actually quite a few tables available. However, there was one table in particular that caught her eyes. There was an empty table in the corner of the shop, with a very unusual object sitting on top. Out of curiosity, she began to walk toward the table and this caused Spike to follow. As she got closer, she was able to see that it was a napkin dispenser. However, it was not your normal box, as this one had some strange horned head on top. At first, Twilight thought it was the head of a minotaur, but the design made it seem like there was no fur. Plus, it had a wink expression that exposed its painted fangs and jewel eye.

Behind them, Donut Joe appeared with their two donuts and set it down on the table. "This where you two will be sitting?" he asked.

"I don't know," Twilight replied. "What is this thing?"

"A peddler came by and sold it to me. He called it the 'Mystic Seer.' It is one of those fortune-telling machines. For just one bit, you can ask it a 'yes' or 'no' question and receive your fortune. I thought it might be a fun little investment to have. It was kind of strange though that he only had one. I was hoping to set one up for every table. So I set the little guy here in the back corner table for larger parties."

"Oh, well then we don't want to take this table then," said Twilight.

"Nah, it's fine really," insisted Joe, "You can do a little test run for me. The business has been a little slow and nopony has tested it out yet."

"Oh, okay. Thanks, Joe," Twilight thanked as both she and Spike sat at the table to eat their donuts. Joe made his way back to clean the countertops.

Spike stared in awe at his beautiful gem donut. On the other end of the table, Twilight already started eating her regular chocolate sprinkled donut. As she ate, she could not help but keep her eyes on the mystic seer. It was just a napkin dispenser, but she felt that it possessed some type of presence. It wasn't unsettling, but it was very strange to her nonetheless.

"So what are you going to ask it?" Spike asked.

Twilight snapped back into reality, "Huh? Ask who what?"

"The mystic seer. You have been staring at it since we sat down so I figured you were thinking of what to ask it."

"Oh no. Spike, these are total scams. There is no way I am going to waste bits on this," said Twilight.

"I thought we were going to test this thing out for Joe," Spike said with a confused look.

"Oh Spike, I couldn't tell Joe that we wouldn't. He spent money on this thing and got scammed for it. You heard him. The peddler only had one and ponies like me don't fall for this. You spend a bit, ask a question, and the machine will answer either 'yes' or 'no.' That's obviously why the instruction clearly states to ask those kinds of questions," Twilight pointed out the instructions on the box.

"Well, I'm going to ask it something," Spike said as he searched his backpack.

"Fine. At least we did test it out for Joe. What are you going to ask it?"

"Isn't it obvious?" asked Spike, "Wait, that wasn't the question! Mystic seer, will Twilight ever stop treating me like a baby dragon?" Spike asked as he placed a bit into the slot and pulled down the lever located next to the instructions. After pulling the lever, a card popped out.

"If you keep falling for these cheap tricks I won't," said Twilight, "Well, what does it say? 'Yes' or 'no?'"

"Umm... Neither actually. It says, 'You already know the answer to that question.'" Both Spike and Twilight were slightly surprised at the answer.

"Well, I gotta hoof it to them. I thought these cards were going to be one-worded answers," said Twilight.

"Yeah. Also, the mystic seer was right. I did know my answer, but I wanted to see what it would say."

"Oh no, Spike. That was just a general answer to any question. If I asked it anything, that card would have fit regardless."

"I bet it won't fit my next question," Spike challenged as he took out another bit.

"You are going to spend all your bits at this rate," said a concerned Twilight.

"No, I won't. As you said, we are testing it out for Joe. Okay, mystic seer, are you nothing but a scam?" Like before, he deposited his bit and a card was dispensed after the pull of the lever. Spike took the card and read it silently. Twilight waited patiently for him to read it aloud, but it never came.

Being kept in suspense, Twilight asked sarcastically, "Well? What did 'The Almighty Seer' have to say?"

"It says, 'It depends on your point-of-view,'" Spike replied.

"Huh? No way. Let me see that." Without giving Spike a chance, Twilight took the card with her magic. She read the card word for word. Again, to Twilight, the answer seemed to be a general answer to "yes or no" questions, but she was slightly surprised at the answers themselves. "Hmm... At least the manufacturer put effort into this. However, this doesn't put that this thing actually works."

"Aww come on Twilight. How about you ask it something?" Spike suggested. "Here, I will even put a bit in for you."

"What? No no no, Spike. Don't spend any more of your bits, please. Just eat your donut so we can get going," Twilight pleaded.

"Why not? Just prove me wrong. Ask it anything?" Spike challenged.

"You really want me to ask it something, don't you?" asked a curious Twilight. "Why?"

"Come on Twilight. With everything you encountered, how can you have doubts about this? Pinkie's 'Pinkie Sense,' A.K. Yearling being Daring Do, and other stuff you came across. Just give it a try," Spike argued.

Twilight gave a sigh, "You really won't stop till I do huh? Fine. Ask it anything huh?" Twilight then levitated a bit out of her saddlebag and placed it into the machine. "Okay, how many bits do I have in my bag now?" Twilight asked.

"Wait, you can only ask-," Spike tried to correct Twilight, but was too late as she already pulled the lever to receive her ticket.

"I know Spike, but I just want to prove to you that-," Twilight's words faded as she read what was written on the card.

"'Yes or No' questions only, please."

Author's Note

I am going to be honest, I do feel a bit lazy for using a Twilight Zone episode to make this fic. I just thought it would be fun to stick Twilight in the Twilight Zone. :raritywink:

I hope you guys like this story so far. Thank you!