Time is Magic

Well… this sucks. I wonder what Cadence will have to say about this. I mean, we finally made it to the Castle of Friendship in Ponyville. Two alicorns are waiting for me. Twilight and Cadence are waving, signaling for Luna, Fluttershy, and I to land.

“Well, congrats on the coronation, Sir Clockwork Prince. I was told by my sister in law you are in the dating game now, and national security is on the line?”

“Yeah, pretty much. If you are the love pony, I trust you with this!” I am being quite candid with her.

“Well, Twilight wrote a profile on you in quite a short time. Typical of her...” She pulls out a pair of reading glasses and the papers Twilight wrote about me.

“Let’s see, born a human in the Earth/03 continuity, diagnosed with “Autism Spectrum Disorder” at the age of two. Found by Luna/03 in 2020… ten millennia in frozen time… prodigal student of Torah and Law… I know just the mare for you!”

I am at the edge of my hooves.

“Ready? I think she’ll be PERFECT for you!”

As I’ll ever be.

“Headmare Starlight Glimmer! She does time travel, too, AND she’s single.”

Huh, this is a bit out of left field. I did a thing for her with the magic man for her School of Friendship, but time travel?

“Magic Man… does your meta power allow this?”

Giggles, then guffaws, then LOL’s rang out annoyingly in my head. And then… Fluttershy began to laugh, as did my mother, and then even Cadence and Twilight started to laugh!

***

“75% there, ma… I miss you so much… I just need to find my younger self and deal with him.”

Today also happens to be a bad day for the Clockwork King. It was on this day in 2077 CE that his wife Starlight Glimmer betrayed him for the Legion of Doom, almost killing his mother in the process…

Flashback
Horrible news had just reached the Clockwork Prince. The love of his life, his wife Starlight Glimmer, just went to the Statue of the Legion of Doom and used the Elements to unfreeze them!

“You idiot! Why did you unfreeze them?!” J-corn says, furious with his wife. He knew she was a villain before, but why would she revert back? J-corn did TBT (temporal behavioral therapy) with her for forty years! Why betray her stallion now?

“Why do you think I unfroze them, honey? You failed ten years after the decree, to the day, just like the “Magic Man” said you would. You stupidly held to Twilight’s decrees and thought you could rewrite time to make everypony love each other. You can’t! Might as well end everything in the process and start over.”

“I can help you. Just join us.” Starlight said with a smirk as Cozy Glow, now fully ascended to an alicorn state, begins razing everything in Equestria to the ground.

“CEASE THIS FIGHTING AT ONCE, COZY GLOW!” J-corn’s mother says, activating her full powers trying to hold the rogue pony back. Upon her son’s emergency flare, she was brought out of retirement to help him in his time of need.

“You are a fool. I killed your sister before coming here, and you are going to be the next easy step!” Cozy says, waiting for Tirek to give the orders.

“Wait… You killed Sunbutt?” J-corn says in shock. As much as he always hated Celestia, this variant was benevolent and showed him nothing but kindness.

“Of course I killed Celestia. She is the biggest threat to chaos! I snuffed Twilight and Cadence, too. It was too easy now that the “Mane 6” all died of old age. No Friendship equals no magic. I ended her without a trace! Now, your mother is next!”

“Starlight… I love you. Please snap out of it! I need my mare back!”

Lord Tirek looks at J-corn with disgust as he beckons Cozy Glow to his side, ready to give orders.

“Come, Cozy Glow, dispose of this poor moon pony and consume her magic!”

The Jewnicorn was at the brink. His mother was using as much magic as she could, his Earth family died 10 years prior in an accident, and the two people he loved the most were fighting against each other.

“F*ck you, magic man! I have to do something!” He says, unleashing more power than ever before in his life. His once beautiful blue mane becomes cosmic black with rage, and his horn begins glowing red.

“זאוואדו! עצור את הזמן! !!" (Time! grind to a halt!). Everything and everypony freezes in place. His mother was inches away from certain doom.

“עברה שנייה אחת”. (one second has passed)

J-corn does everything he can to try and fix this, but Cozy’s magic is too strong and begins to break the time freeze, moving closer and closer towards Princess Luna.

“חלפו שתי שניות” (Two seconds have passed)

Starlight starts to move around a bit in frozen time, since she was always somewhat immune to J-corn’s magic.

“I really do care about you, Clocky (her pet name for him) but you were too stupid to see that we need to bring a new age! That stupid magic man messing with your beautiful mind. I should have stayed with Starswirl…”

Hearing a voice inside her head, she quickly figures out that this must be the magic man her husband spoke about.

(עברו שלוש שניות) (three seconds have passed)

Tirek gives the order, and Cozy Glow and Starlight are inches away from ending Princess Luna.

“I’m begging you, Starlight. You can end this now. Don’t hurt my mom. She loves you.”

J-corn is on the verge of tears. He has to draw more power, more than he has ever drawn before.
With tears in her eyes, Starlight sends a magical blast towards her husband launching him across Canterlot. Battered and broken, The Clockwork Prince teleports back to where his wife, Cozy Glow, and mother were, running out of ethical options.

“You… I love you Starlight… Now… I have to stop you, and I don’t care how I do it!”

Remembering something vague from his time on Earth about an attack rush from a shounen anime, he does everything he can to try and save his mother.

“You… you killed Twilight. You killed Celestia… you are NOT going to kill MY MOM!”

"בזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוז WRYYYY!!!!
"בזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוזבזבוז!

“USELESS!”

And with a final time-powered punch, it was too late. The attack obliterated Luna to smithereens before J-corn could do anything, while J-corn’s “7-page בזבוז” managed to neutralize his former wife and the Legion of Doom in one fell swoop.

“J… J-corn… your mother is gone… I really did love her, but Eq… Equestria needs a new age… by killing me and… my friends, you… you destroyed everything. Have… have fun ruling the ashes of Twilight’s kingdom.”

Those were the last words of Starlight Glimmer as she passed on, while her now widowered husband bawling his eyes out at the death of both his wife and mother.

As time begins to flow once again, J-corn sees that the thing in front of him that used to be his mother has enough organic matter left to potentially regenerate. It’s not resurrection if the pony is still somewhat alive…

“I...I could bring mom back? Maybe?” he thinks to himself, seeing that maybe her body can be reanimated.

“Starlight… I loved you, you are dead to me now both in form and memory. Mom, I will do anything to bring you back, whatever it takes!” He says, putting a time vacuum around the remains of Luna.

“What was that movie on Earth, where the purple guy killed somepony to get something? “A soul for a soul”? It could work… I need to do the math when I get home.”

Hearing his human name used shook the alicorn to his core, but he didn’t know how the Magic Man knew it. He was determined to save his mother, whatever it takes!

Between 2077 and 2250 CE, the now renamed Clockwork King did everything he could to bring his mother back to him, no matter what the cost. What was the cost? 100 million creatures’ lives, and more were still needed to fully reanimate her. He only went after creatures with the most amount of magic, and only those who adhered to Friendship. He wanted to end Friendship, and completely blot it from the Equestrian record. Even if it got rid of almost all magic. As long as he could hug his mother one more time...

He justified his actions by saying that since ponies and other creatures were not humans, their lives had less value, and it was like killing an animal. They didn’t have a “soul”. Now, Clockwork knew this to not be true, but he couldn’t deal with the reality. He should have known better, knowing his people’s history!

In the present day of 2250 CE, J-corn thinks about this moment long and hard, and is at ease seeing the Hourglass three quarters of it’s way to bringing his mother back.

“Magic Man… you know what day it is today… you know I have to keep doing this. I wanted Friendship, just like everypony else, but all it did was hurt me. Maybe Starlight was right...”

Clockwork was livid. He knew that the Magic Man was right, but he didn’t want to concede this.

“Shut up… just shut up! She was pregnant with my first child when she betrayed me! All those years of believing stallion alicorns were sterile. SHE was the one who insisted we try again. She… she made me kill my own child! I tried to save the fetus, but I… I couldn’t… my sweet baby filly, taken from me because her mother had to betray me!”

“So what was it? Tirek visions? Schizophrenia? Her manic depression? For two hundred years I have been looking at the past trying to figure it out!”

“Well… it’s too late now. I can’t revive the dead, and I killed so many creatures. Starlight is gone for good, but Mom isn’t! I am too far into this! If I end Operation Hourglass, mom will DIE. The souls are keeping her alive! What should I do?”

“I… I can’t… she is my reason to live! My Earth family is dead, and I have nopony else! My secretary is nice to me, but she’s married and has a son! I NEED her! I want to stop… but I can’t. I can’t undo everything I already did. I’m no better than Daybreaker!!!”

He begins sobbing uncontrollably. He’s just like the mare he smote 200 years ago in the first timeline he was in. He already lost a Luna, he can’t, and he won’t lose another one.

<... I have an idea...>

“Should I just go back to Earth and live as a human under a new identity? Leave Equestria behind and start over?”

For a time guardian, Clockwork felt like a dolt! Why did it take him 200 years to get to this seemingly obvious conclusion! It would solve everything! Not to mention that The Clockwork King always liked the Magic Man’s fondness for Earth pop culture. It made him feel like a regular kid again.

“I am too far down this rabbit hole. Find my younger self and rewrite time from there… he could fix Friendship, marry Starlight, and help with her mental illness. Save mom, too! I have to continue my part here, and if you are successful, I will be erased and the better, more humane- , no, ponane, Clockwork Prince will take my place. At least he will be able to hug his daughter...”

As he kept reflecting on his life choices over the past few hundred years, his earth pony secretary Phyllis Cloverleaf barges into Clockwork’s private chambers, with a look of existential dread on her face. This promptly interrupted Clockworks’ tete-a-tete with the “magic man”. He rewound time by thirty seconds so Phyllis wouldn’t see him as a broken mess, and he put on his “statespony” face the second time she entered.

“Phyllis, honey. What did I tell you about coming in without knocking?” he says with a grin. He always liked his ponies’ enthusiasm for their work.

“Sire… the pony you neutralized last night, Argyle Starshine… he had one of the artifacts that Twilight gave you centuries ago!”

Phyllis knew Argyle quite well, since Sprout and Sunny used to play together all the time, and she was a firsthoof witness to his heretical teachings about Friendship.

Knowing that Phyllis is an honest pony, hearing this made the Clockwork King’s eyes dilate to full attention.

“I presume he must have stolen it from the Time Academy when he was a colt… I should have had more security on those things. Damn crystals are enchanted and I can’t time travel my way out of this!” He complains. If anything can undo his centuries of division, it would be the reunification of the three crystals his former friend gave him. His propaganda arm says that they are his “timepieces” which help him monitor spacetime, but in reality it was the source of all Equestrian Magic based on Friendship!

“You are smart, Phyllis. Pray tell what would happen if somepony found all three of those crystals and put them together?” J-corn asks his secretary rhetorically.

“Well, Friendship would return, and with Friendship comes cooperation, which then leads to everypony working together to hurt each other! We don’t want that, now do we?”

Clapping his hooves in approval, the Clockwork King smiles at his secretary’s erudition.

“That’s right. The pony tribes must stay separated for each of their own sakes! That’s why only the smartest among you are hired to work for me. The nuance of temporal security is too complex for most. It’s not pony racism, its about protection! By the way, I would love to meet your colt Sprout one day. From what you’ve told me, he'll make a good governor of your district when he grows up! You know I still have a bunch of old puzzles from the Imperial Era. Maybe he can try one for fun? If he gets it right, I can give him a cool artifact from the past!”

“He would love to, sire. Now, can I go back to Maretime Bay? I am a mom too! I finished all your paperwork for today sire.”

“You are dismissed. Feel free to take a snack! You won’t be charged!” He says with a smirk, as the doors of his chambers magically open and Phyllis leaves.

“I wonder if my former student has a point about his daughter. I still won’t put a hoof on her, but I have to check the timelines again!” And with that, the Clockwork King’s mane begins glowing teal, and his eyes whitening as he checks all of spacetime for possible futures.

When it finally hits him, his magic stops flowing and he falls to the floor in shock.

“This Sunny… Even though there is a 1 in 14,000,605 chance of her winning, there is something about her that terrifies me to my core. Damn promises! Magic Man! What sayeth thee about this Sunny Starscout?” Ever since his mother was put in limbo, the Clockwork King has reverted to using the Royal Canterlot Dialect under extreme pressure. It helps to calm his nerves.

The Clockwork King flies to the Hourglass where his mother’s body is being regenerated. Putting his hooves on the glass, he begins to sob uncontrollably. “Mom… I don’t know what to do! I have so much blood on my hooves, but I am trying to bring you back! I can’t kill a foal! I’ve never killed a foal! I am so close to bringing you back!”

The Clockwork King flies back to his quarters and sobs his eyes out, horrified at how much blood he has shed, but he still needs to try and bring Luna back to him.

“Only… 25 million more… souls. I can do this. Just go for the Changelings. They have magic, but no hearts.”

<... I'll be here… You'll see the light… You have to…>

He can keep lying to himself, but eventually, his grief and guilt will catch up with him. Maybe Sunny will be the pony to help him? In the end, it didn’t matter, because if the Magic Man succeeded, he’d be erased. Along with all the bad things he’s done over 200 years or so.