“Inconceivable!”

Tigerbright and Violet could clearly hear Luna’s response through Twilight’s comm which she had put on speaker. The two looked at each other and chuckled. This was the third time the Night Alicorn had said the word.

Twilight winced and held her comm a bit further from her ears. Belatedly, she pressed the volume down button a few times. “I assure you that my tracing spell was accurate.”

“I know my moon intimately! Art thou trying to tell me that it hath secrets that I have not gleaned in over a millennium?”

“ ‘Art thou’?” the chakat questioned hir mate.

“Auntie Luna falls back to archaic speech when she gets upset.”

The comm crackled. “Pshaw! I insist with great fortitude my lack of vexation!”

Twilight tried again, “Please, Luna, you have to bear in mind that the array may have been deliberately concealed to avoid interfe—”

“Nay! 'Tis inconceivable that such doth escape my notice!”

Tigerbright laughed and said, “That word – I don’t think it means what you think it means.”

“Who speaketh? What art thou talking about?”

Twilight glared at the chakat before responding, “That was Shir Tigerbright. Look, Luna, I’ve narrowed the location down to a small area, and we—”

“Let this Tigerbright speak! What doth shi find so amusing?”

“My apologies, Your Highness,” the chakat spoke up. “Your use of the word ‘inconceivable’ was a running gag in a classic Twentieth Century movie.”

“Ah, you speak of the Terran entertainments! I am familiar with your all-time classic named Black Beauty. And what is this movie which you found so amusing?”

“It’s called The Princess Bride.”

“And you find royalty amusing?”

“The movie was, not the royalty. I recommend that you watch it for yourself. The fact that it is still popular centuries later speaks for its quality and entertainment value.”

“I shall, and if I do not agree with your assessment, we shall have words. Princess Twilight, make arrangements for a family movie night. Right or wrong, thou art bringing the popcorn!”

Twilight sighed. “Okay, Luna. Now can we discuss what I discovered?”

The sound of the Alicorn of the Moon taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly came through the speaker. “I suppose you must check this lead out before you are satisfied,” the Moon Princess grumbled. “However, I will not concede the wager until you show me the evidence.”

The purple alicorn grinned confidently. “We’ll find it as soon as we get back from Chakona.”

“It was my impression that you intended to return immediately after your experiment?”

“Change of plans. I’ve requested that we stay aboard the Star Phoenix while they travel to Chakona so that I can have a conversation with a Rakshan deity.”

There was a pause on the other end of the call. “A what?!”

“Tell you later. Love you! Bye!” Twilight turned off the comm and grinned at her companions. “Let my herdmate wonder about that for a while.”

“Looks like I’m going to have to get my hands on a copy of The Princess Bride,” Tigerbright said.

Madeline Cottonfield had been listening with interest to the conversation. “I’ve checked our video library and we have a copy that we can supply you.”

Violet said, “Thanks. How much will it cost?”

Madeline chuckled. “Talk to M’Rarrtikar about that. She’ll give you a good deal if you buy several.”

“Of course. Always on the lookout for ways to make money,” Violet replied with a smile.

Tigerbright said, “I’ll take you up on that. There are a few that I’m sure that Violet will enjoy when we get the chance.”

“Excellent!” Twilight said. “Now, I wonder how to contact Sojourner? Is he here at the moment, Tigerbright?”

The chakat looked over to the corner of the room where shi could see the felinoid lounging on a chair that was a bit small for his frame. Sojourner smiled and nodded. “Yes, he’s right there.” Shi indicated with a wave of hir hand.

The alicorn’s horn lit up and soon the deity was visible and audible to everyone.

“Please be seated, Princess Sparkle. Thou have many questions and but a few hours to sate thy curiosity.”

Madeline said, “While they are talking, would either of you be interested in a tour of the ship? The Captain has permitted me to show you around.”

Violet bit her lip, torn between two desires. Then she nodded. “Okay. Auntie Twilight will write this interview up and I’ll read about it later. Let’s go, Tiger.”

“Have fun, you two!” Twilight said before immediately turning her full attention on Sojourner. “So let’s start at the beginning. I’d love to hear about your parents.” The deity’s eyebrows rose and Tigerbright felt his surprise. Apparently, he did not expect the Princess of Friendship to begin with a personal question.

“Follow me, guys,” the rabbit morph said. “I want you to meet some of my family while we’re walking around.”

“You managed to have children in your condition?” Tigerbright asked as they exited the cabin.

“The whole crew is my family,” Madeline replied with a laugh. “But my girlfriend and I have something more personal in mind for the near future.”

“Ooh! Tell us more!” Violet gushed.

“I’ll let Penny tell you,” the rabbit said, gesturing toward a full-figured mouse morph who was approaching down the corridor.

“Hi!” Penny greeted them. “Maddy says she’s taking you on a tour, so I’m here to be your cheerful tour guide.”

Judging by her face and twinkling eyes, Tigerbright and Violet reckoned that the mouse never stopped smiling.

“I thought that was Madeline’s job?” Violet asked.

“We’re a team on some things. Besides, if my attention is needed elsewhere, I won’t have to leave you stranded,” Madeline explained.

Neither of the visitors missed the look that passed between the two. They were intimately familiar with that feeling.

“Let’s start with the holosuite,” Penny suggested. “The children are having a volleyball competition with their parents at the moment.”

“Sounds great,” Tigerbright replied.

Violet and Tigerbright had managed to meet everyone on the starship by the time they went into orbit around Chakona. Twilight had been reluctant to finish her conversation with Sojourner but the deity said farewell and terminated the spell that enabled her to perceive him. The conversation had drawn the interest of several of the off-duty crew who were fascinated by their hitherto unseen passenger. Therefore, there were more than a few disappointed sighs when their guest departed.

Twilight thanked Captain Yote for his and the crew’s hospitality and then teleported Tigerbright, Violet, and herself down to the colony. It was well into the evening by then, so the chakat invited the alicorn to stay at hir and Violet’s home overnight. They made sure to give her the guest room furthest from their own though.

The next day, the three visited Governor Slate’s office to report on the status of the investigation. There, they also requested a shuttle take them out to the array site because Tigerbright’s was still there awaiting hir and Violet’s return. Due to the rugged nature of the area, the pilot of the shuttle had to hover the craft nearby to drop them off before heading back to town. The mates walked straight into the campsite but Twilight paused with a frown. She lifted a hoof and tapped the invisible wall in front of her.

Violet said, “I’ve got a shield in place to protect our stuff. It’s tuned to only let Tiger and myself inside. Give me a moment to shut it off.”

“Don’t bother,” Twilight responded, lighting up her horn. A moment later, she stepped past the shield’s boundary. She saw Violet’s expression and said, “Don’t you think I’d know my brother’s handiwork inside and out?”

The unicorn had to concede that the Alicorn of Magic certainly wasn’t going to be stopped by such a simple construct. The shield was designed to keep out animals, not mages.

The explorers set about replenishing their saddlebag supplies.

“How do you want to go about this, Twilight? Scenic route or cheat a bit?” Violet asked.

The alicorn replied, “As much as I would enjoy the scenery, I would rather spend as much time at the array as feasible. The problem is that with all the overlapping leylines overlaying the difficult terrain, it’s difficult to find an unseen focus point in these conditions to target a teleportation spell to get us closer.”

“Maybe I can help,” Violet said. “I’ve been wanting to try this since we ended up on Equus.” Her horn lit up and she disappeared in a flash.

Moments later, she reappeared. “Yes!” She pumped her hoof. “My teleportation ability has improved exponentially. I can teleport us to the mouth of the cave. I don’t think it’s wise to go directly to the array.”

“That’s a sensible precaution,” Twilight agreed. “However, why didn’t you try teleporting here from town?”

Violet opened her mouth to reply, paused, and then she grinned wryly. “I didn’t think of it. I’m not used to having that kind of range.”

Twilight chuckled. “Quite understandable. I still remember what it was like when I ascended to an alicorn. The power gain took a lot of getting used to, not to mention the wings.” She fluttered said appendages.

“Okay. If you’re ready, let’s go.” Twilight and Tigerbright pressed up against her sides. At the nods of her companions, Violet teleported them away.

After checking for any new inhabitants, the party entered the cave. The alicorn was impressed with their thoroughness in marking the way but wished she had more time to explore the side tunnels. Tigerbright did not find it surprising that geology and spelunking were passions of the inquisitive purple mare. Having done the route before, Violet and Tigerbright set a faster pace than their initial exploration. There was still plenty of time to converse along the way and the subject of the Rakshan deity came around.

Violet asked Twilight, “Did you happen to ask Sojourner why he was equinoid rather than a felinoid while you were conversing with him? You’d think a precursor race would have more in common with their descendants.”

Twilight began, “No, he—”

“Wait! What?” Tigerbright interrupted. “What are talking about, Vi? He resembled a mixture of a lynx and a snow leopard with wings. Nothing like an equine at all.”

Violet stared at hir. “Tiger, he looked like a biped horse morph with a light blue coat that softly glowed and he had a golden mane and tail that shimmered. Aside from his wings, he was very much an equine being. He could easily be the god of the pegasi.”

That stunned the chakat. “I know what I saw, hon. In fact, I could see him before Twilight’s spell showed him to you, remember?”

The alicorn spoke up. “You’re both equally right and wrong. Sojourner is an ascended being, at least a couple of levels higher than an alicorn. Rakshan deities have transcended the need for a physical body. How anyone perceives him or any of his kind depends on species and cultural expectations. Tigerbright saw him as a felinoid while we saw him as an equinoid. If we were to ask the crew of the Star Phoenix what he looked like, I would wager that we would get different answers yet again.”

The chakat nodded thoughtfully. “That makes sense, I suppose. Makes me curious what his species really was before they ascended.”

“There were some subjects that Sojourner did not choose to answer, so we may never know.”

As it was obvious that line of conversation was a dead end, the subject was dropped.

Tigerbright said, “So, Twilight, did you arrange that movie night with Princess Luna now that we have a copy of The Princess Bride?”

“I did that last night before I went to bed. I knew that my herdmate would be up then. We have a Casual Friday coming up and we’ll play the movie after dinner.”

The chakat raised an eyebrow and cocked hir head. “What’s a Casual Friday?”

Violet answered. “That’s a House Path tradition. Each Friday, everyone is invited to dinner at all House Path branches. The catch is that there’s absolutely no rank or privilege at them. It’s a purely social affair where a foal can chat with a king as equals. No business is allowed to be discussed. However, every week includes several forms of entertainment. We’ve had pony singers, zebra acrobats, griffon dancers, illusionists, and sometimes movie nights. Auntie Twilight has taken me to many of these events.”

“I see,” Tigerbright said. “Not only fun but also an excellent way to improve social relations with other countries and species.”

“Exactly,” Twilight replied. “The founder of the House and my herdmate, Long Path, instituted the practice very early, and it has been a mainstay of the House ever since.”

“I’m looking forward to experiencing it, if I’m allowed,” the chakat said.

“I meant it when I said everyone is invited,” Twilight pointed out. “As long as you can leave your prejudices at the door, no one is turned away.”

“Awesome! I wonder who else I’ll get to meet there.”

The conversation continued, only interrupted when Twilight stopped occasionally to examine some features of the cave along the way. If not for those pauses, they would have gotten to the array at least half an hour sooner. Nevertheless, they still had several hours to spare when they finally reached their destination. Everything looked the same to Violet as it had when she and her mate had first come there. However, Tigerbright frowned in concern.

“Vi, do those runes look like they are glowing to you?”

The unicorn shook her head. “Nope. More of that magic sight of yours?”

“I suppose so,” the chakat conceded. “I certainly didn’t perceive anything like this the last time I was here. Glad it’s just me and that thing apparently isn’t about to do something unexpected.”

Twilight had made a beeline for the mystic artifact, but she noticed their exchange. “Tigerbright, you can help me. Tell me which of the runes are active and which are passive at the moment.”

“Sure thing, Twilight.”

The chakat pointed out which of the markings were glowing, and let the alicorn know if any turned on or off while Twilight examined them, making notes on her datapad. Then she set aside her instruments and started constructing a spell.

“Is that wise?” Violet asked.

“While nothing is completely without risk, this spell is designed to take an impression of the magic matrix within the pyramid,” Twilight explained. “It’s not supposed to do anything to it, just map it. I need it to correlate the rune statements with the current activity. I would have liked to cast it when the array activates, but you’ve seen for yourself what it does to active magic in its presence.”

Tigerbright looked puzzled. “Statements? I thought they were spells?”

“One moment…” Twilight replied distractedly. “There. That should do it.” A sparkling web of magic formed at the tip of her horn and then drifted down to where the purple mare’s datapad lay. It sank into the device and it beeped happily. “That was a holographic reproduction of the mana matrix. I’ll be spending days analyzing it. I haven’t had a challenge like this in a century!” she exclaimed while prancing on her tippyhooves. She then noticed Tigerbright’s expression. “Oh. Right. What was that question again?”

“Why do you call the rune spells ‘statements’?”

“I’m glad you asked. That’s because that is how runes work. They are the precursor to articulated spells. You see, each rune makes a basic statement of truth about reality. Are you familiar with Neighponese writing? Each pictogram is a word and, when combined with other pictograms, can create other words. Runes are similar except that each encompasses a sentence, but combining the runes can change the meaning of the sentences. The positioning of the runes also affects their interpretation. With the correct runic symbols in the optimum order, literally anything can be achieved because they are statements of how something should be. For example, theoretically, I could write a series of runes which, when activated, would change your stripes to spots. And the interesting bit is that you would be on record as always having had spots.”

Tigerbright gulped. “That sounds faintly terrifying and seems like extremely dangerous magic.”

“Oh, it is! I have had some wonderful discussions with Discord and my son, Destined, about metaphysics and the nature of reality, all spurred by my studies into runes.” Twilight enthused. “It’s also ridiculously difficult. That’s why it’s going to take me so long to analyze these. And frankly, if my initial assessment is correct, this isn’t a particularly complex spell matrix. Its purpose appears to be gathering mana and sending it to the portal, although I sense that there’s some secondary function in there too. Anyway, it probably took Merlin, Faust, and Morgan a long time to devise these. Although, what it’s doing here on Chakona instead of Earth, I have no idea.”

Violet said, “I read all the reports from the Cosmic Lotus and Techbird voraciously and one thing stood out – Merlin and Morgan were intense rivals and it was a miracle that they cooperated long enough to achieve their goals, despite the dire necessity. However, Merlin said Morgan had cast the portal adrift. What if she had fooled him and instead of just sending it away, she deliberately anchored it here for whatever reason? That’s a large part of why I wanted to come to Chakona. I want to figure out this mystery.”

The alicorn nodded thoughtfully. “That sounds plausible, although we may never know Morgan’s true motives.”

“How about focusing on creating a whole world of beings capable of wielding magic in one form or another who could master this particular branch of arcane science to advance her goals while foiling the efforts of Merlin and Faust?” Tigerbright suggested.

Twilight gave hir a funny look. “Well, if she did, it sure backfired on her. We know far less about this obsolete form of mage-craft than back then.”

“And yet, someone whom I’m told is the greatest mage in Equestrian history, the Alicorn of Magic, is now figuring out how it works with the benefit of modern computing devices to assist her.”

Twilight’s eyes widened and her mouth opened in a silent ‘Oh’. Violet looked a little shocked too. The alicorn and the unicorn looked at each other in dawning comprehension.

“We’re going to have to keep this research under wraps,” Tigerbright’s mate told hir. “While we will still announce the results of our investigation, we’ll omit some details from the report. We don’t want anyone getting any dangerous ideas, even if with the best of intentions.”

“But think of what we would lose if we don’t master this science!” Twilight protested. “The Gateway has maintained a stable wormhole between here and Equus for centuries. As just one example of rune-craft’s benefits, we could build more portals to other worlds while ours becomes a hub of commerce and culture.”

“There’s the ‘best intentions’ part,” Tigerbright pointed out. “Nevertheless, you’re right. You’d be giving up an enormous benefit for fear of a remote possibility. The fact is that knowledge always gets out somehow. The most that you can do is guard it to the utmost of your ability.”

Twilight nodded. “I think I’m done here. Let’s pack up and go.”

Tigerbright looked at Violet and sensed that they were thinking the same thing. The alicorn would normally spend hours poring over what she had learned but, right now, she was a little spooked.

“I’ll make us dinner when we get back to our shuttle,” Tigerbright volunteered. “You can enjoy some genuine camp cooking.”

“I’ll make the damper,” Violet added.

Twilight perked up. “That sounds lovely. I look forward to discovering what this ‘damper’ might be. I accept your invitation.”

While the trio did have that rustic meal and relaxed by the fire while enjoying some stargazing, they nevertheless teleported back to town to sleep. The lack of a tent for Twilight and privacy for the lovers necessitated it. They returned in the morning to retrieve the shuttle and then the alicorn teleported them all back to Equus.

Twilight immediately set about making arrangements for her companions to explore the lunar site that the alicorn had identified. However, the Casual Friday arrived before those were finalized.

Tigerbright was no newcomer to large formal affairs, but this even larger informal one nearly overwhelmed hir empathic senses. Shi briefly wondered how hir mate was able to cope, before realizing that she had grown up experiencing Casual Fridays on a regular basis and was well-practiced in dealing with it. Still, once shi managed to tamp down the emotional tsunami to a bearable level, shi began to enjoy the experience. Chakats were still relatively rare on this world, so Tigerbright quickly found hirself the center of attention from many different beings, but children especially. It made hir realize a little of what shi was in for when hir and Violet’s child was born. Shi could hardly wait!

The impromptu entertainment was a marvel. Anyone who wanted to do so could take a turn on the stage to entertain the crowd. While some were amateurish, they were nevertheless enthusiastic and granted due applause. The act that stunned the chakat the most though was the bawdy duet sung by the crownless Princesses Celestia and Luna which brought the house down. Shi tried and failed to imagine the heads of the Federation Council doing the same. This world was crazy but in the best kind of way.

A movie night was announced for those who would like to stay and enjoy it. Billed as a new import of an old classic from Earth, it drew the interest of a fair crowd. Tigerbright somehow found hirself acting as a backrest for Luna. It didn’t bother the chakat but it greatly amused hir mate. A playful glare from the blue alicorn promised retribution if the entertainment did not meet her standards. “If I am sorely disappointed, I don’t want to have to search every hiding spot to find Violet’s mate!” Copious amounts of popcorn were distributed to everyone before the movie started, not to mention plenty of everybody’s favorite drinks.

It didn’t take long for the laughter to get started despite every character being a human. Some things transcended species. Luna was startled when Vizzini first declared, “Inconceivable!” but was chortling by the fourth time. At one point, she started howling with laughter and her “Princess-Size” bucket of popcorn went flying. Violet snatched it in midair and saved all but a few kernels while Tigerbright grinned at the alicorn’s reaction.

When the movie was over, Luna faced Tigerbright with a smile, merriment still sparkling in her eyes.

“I have never been so amusingly reminded that nopony can always be right and, as such, the fact that you have traced the mana beam to my moon is not so inconceivable after all. Nevertheless, I may yet utilize the quote upon suitable occasion. Anyway, I shall provide you with whatever resources are within my power to procure in order to expedite your exploration. In return, I ask that you provide me with a full report on what you may find before you release said information to the public. After all, one must preserve one’s image as the all-knowing Alicorn of the Moon.”

The chakat grinned. “Of course, and thank you for your help, Princess.”

“Nay, ‘tis still Casual Friday, friend Tigerbright. You may call me Luna and it has been a pleasure meeting you.” She got up onto her hooves. “Sadly, I have to attend to the needs of our subjects and I must depart. We shall meet again soon, no doubt. Farewell.” Then the alicorn was gone in a flash of teleportation.

“Well, although no business is supposed to be done on Casual Fridays, this has been a productive evening,” Tigerbright said to Violet.

“Never underestimate the power of friendship, right, Auntie Twilight?”

“That and a good movie,” replied the Princess of Friendship with a wink.

# # # # # # #

Author's Note

It is inconceivable that anyone has not seen The Princess Bride!

Art by Foxenawolf.