Twilight sat alone in her room in the royal castle. The grand room was hers for use whenever she visited Canterlot; for personal or professional reasons. She was most definitely here on business. In the middle of her studies of magic and science she realized she may have come across something truly amazing. However, she could not claim anything of the sort without some kind of proof. Her reason for being there was simple enough; to get a few books related to her research with which to determine the credibility of what might be the next big discovery in magic. She had already found what texts she needed but before she could even leave the castle her curiosity got the better of her. She had quickly ran to her room and cracked the books open scanning their pages for any speck of knowledge that may help her. The single night she had planned on staying soon turned into two weeks as she turned page after page searched from something between the lines. Multiple tests had been devised and in turn used, each with varying results. The answer that had eluded her for what seemed like years, even though it had only been several days, was finally within grasp.
She turned from the book that she had been engulfed in, wrote a few things down on a piece of parchment and then turned to a mirror on the wall. She stared at it for quite a while wondering what mysteries may lie on the other side. She was scared of what might come. Truthfully, she had almost no idea what would happen and when it did happen if it would be a good or bad thing. She thought long and hard about it and in her young age came to a conclusion much quicker than she should have. It was decided; she would do it. She stared at her reflection in the mirror and concentrated channeling the natural magic that flowed through her. Focusing it on her horn she formed the spell she needed to use and magic engulfed the mirror. As it finished she stared into the glass waiting. A few seconds later the mirror began to shimmer. A figure appeared in the glass, at first distorted and foggy the image soon cleared and Twilight gasped in disbelief. It had worked and she had no idea what she had done. Standing in the mirror seemed to be the strangest creature she had ever seen. It was tall; much taller than any pony. The first thing that stood out was its limbs. She assumed it had four but she didn’t know for sure because she couldn’t see its legs. Only the upper half of the creature was revealed and that’s the strange part; it wasn’t using it front two legs. She came to the conclusion that it must be standing only on its hind legs. She had seen ponies do it before but only when supported by something and when it needed to be done to play an instrument or something of that sort. The things mane, or what she thought to be the mane, was tied up with multiple strings and woven into an intricate pattern that seemed to go on forever and ended in a ball of hair. A white paste covered its face along with markings. Its face was a piece of artwork in itself. Twilight stepped closed to the mirror to get a better look. She was intrigued by what she saw but as she got closer the being turned and looked straight at her. Well, she thought it looked at her. She wasn’t inclined to find out if it had seen her or not and quickly ended the spell. Sighing with relief she backed against the wall and slid to the floor letting her thoughts run wild. She almost couldn’t process what had just happened. Her brain was running at full speed and it burned as if someone was holding a candle under it. She quickly pushed everything out of her head; she didn’t have time for any of it she had to tell Celestia.
The young lavender pony quickly gathered the most important document of her study to prove what she had discovered. She bolted out of her room, forgetting to close the door and ran down the hallway passing various ponies along the way. The documents floated behind her surrounded by her magic. Twilight made her way to the princess’s chambers and forgetting her manners, burst into the room. She paused to catch her breath before speaking.
“P-princess!”
But she had spoken too quickly. Before she could continue speaking she once again ran out of breath and stopped for a moment breathing heavily. I need to exercise more.
“What’s wrong Twilight?” The princess spoke with genuine concern for her student. If whatever had bothered Twilight had made her forget her manners it must be of the utmost importance.
Twilight’s breathing steadied and she could speak once again. She looked up at the princess and levitated her papers over to her.
“I’ve been doing some research and…well, I don’t think you’d believe me if I told you. Now that I think about it the very thought sounds insane.” Twilight looked away in embarrassment even if she knew what she had to say was completely true.
“Twilight you know I trust you completely.” The princess smiled and that made Twilight feel much better. Her smiles were beautiful. “Now what is this you’ve brought me,” the princess asked curiously as she magically picked up one of the parchments and unrolled it beginning to read it. Twilight didn’t say anything as she read; she knew she would piece it together. When she first finished the document the princess didn’t quite understand it. She scanned it over once more and then it finally pieced together in her mind. She looked up at twilight in amazement.
“Twilight…If what you’ve written down here is true than…is that even possible?”
Twilight nodded quickly in affirmation. She knew the discovery was amazing and it might be quite hard to believe. She trotted over to the princess with the rest of her scrolls and books and opened them all up pointing to excerpts and paragraphs in each explaining the principle of it all and the reason it was all possible.
“You see, we’re only one part of this large area of existence. We can’t sense the others normally but with magic it’s
possible and they do exist. Earlier I cast a spell and used a mirror to see if I could prove that they existed. When I did I saw a strange creature in the mirror. I know it was at least partially intelligent because it seemed to be speaking…and it seemed to know I was looking at it. I don’t know if it actually did or not because I ended the spell right as it seemed like it saw me. Princess, this may have something to do with all the strange things happening in Equestria lately.”
Celestia’s head was full of ideas. All of this was so sudden and she couldn’t piece it together just yet no matter how many years of wisdom she had attained. If the changing of the land was caused by these other worlds and the beings in them, then can they even be trusted. What would become of her kingdom if she were to let these other worldly beings contact with Equestria. Her main concern was in the safety of the people of course. She had no idea if these things were hostile or friendly. Another thing plagued her mind. Twilight said the creature had turned and looked at her through the mirror. If that’s true could it see her and more importantly if it could see her could it gain access via the mirror? She could see that her student was anxious for an answer as she had been rubbing her hoof against the floor ever since she asked it. The princess soon formulated a response but before she could address the question a loud crack echoed through her chamber. Behind Twilight a large whirlwind of rose petals formed and spun around in a thick cone. Twilight spun around on the spot but as quickly as the petals had appeared they disappeared. In their spot, however, stood a tall skinny creature that stood on its hind legs alone; if Celestia hadn’t been bombarded with strange facts already today that might have surprised her beyond belief. As it were she was only taken aback slightly. The creature was strange looking indeed with hair tied up with string and a paste she could not identify covering its face in strange patterns. It was the creature Twilight spoke of before. The creature stepped forward and spoke in a deep voice.
“I’m sorry for intruding in your bed chambers but I needed to speak to you, Celestia.”
Celestia then realized that the “it” was a “he.” How foolish of her to not have noticed before. She was so new to the fact that other beings existed that she hadn’t even give consideration to gender. She also had completely missed the fact that the creature had addressed her by name.
“How do you know my name?” Celestia had lost all formality in her voice. All of this was so overwhelming that she had completely forgotten social formalities.
“We’ve known of you for a while now,” the creature said. “We are not allowed to contact you however until certain requirements have been met.”
Celestia was stunned; she had no idea what to think of that statement. Were these creatures truly to blame for all the problems that are now part of her land?
“What requirements,” she demanded.
“The requirements set forth by The Order of Universal Magi. You see we’ve known about you and your kingdom for a long time. As your student has explained there are other places that exist. To explain it bluntly, we all reside in the multiverse. And there are multiple “planes” that exist in that multiverse. Yours is but one but there are many others. The Order is not allowed to contact anybody on a plane until that plane has reached a certain level of magical or technological ability. When Twilight used her mirror to view me that level had been obtained, by her. And thus, here I am.”
“What now then; Did you come from your ‘plane’ just to share formalities over dinner? And why do I get the feeling that all the new creatures and magic that afflicts my land have something to do with your ‘order’,” Celestia responded as calmly as she could.
“No, but you are right. The Order is related to your lands problems. However, we are not the cause. Quite the opposite. You see when a plane is formed The Order makes it their duty to assure that the plane can exist peacefully in its beginning days and can proceed unhindered by whatever creatures and things that lurk in the corners. But as the planes knowledge grows the Order must release control over that plane and slowly let it take control of itself. Once that plane has enough knowledge to understand that they are not the only plane then all control is released allowing all the danger that had once been held back to roam unchecked. Thus the plane must fend for itself. But with that new responsibility also comes new privileges. When that knowledge is obtained the plane is allowed in The Order and can have a say in all multiversal affairs. That is why I am here princess, to help you adjust and make sure that you complete all the prerequisites for joining The Order.” The creature smiles softly. “That’s all; you have my word.”
Celestia and Twilight turn to each other in disbelief. Before either of them can say a thing the creature extends its arm and a large shimmering circle appeared before them.
“I welcome you both and Equestria itself to The Order of the Universal Magi.”
//Sorry about the fact that pretty much nothing is happening so far. No matter how much I try to get to the //really juicy parts I always seem to get caught up world building and character creation/introduction. If you //have any comments or suggestions feel free to leave a comment, message me, email me or add me on skype.
Twilight and Celestia had already stepped through the portal. They stood in a long dim hallway with marble pillars that lined the walls and the room continued as far as one could see. The floor was covered in tiles made of an unknown material with swirling patterns on them that seemed to change as you looked at them.
“I forgot to tell you my name. I am Ara, the Arch Mage of the Order,” the newly designated Ara said. “This is the Continuum. This is where all Order affairs are held and most interplanar dealings handled. If you’ll follow me I’ll show you your rooms. They are yours to use whenever you are here.”
Ara seemed friendly enough and yet Twilight still felt uneasy. As he led them down the hall, she tried to see as much of him as she could. Strangely, on his hooves, he had multiple smaller limbs extending off of them (four on each, to be exact). She wondered if he had the same thing on his back hooves. Slowly, she glanced up and down the rest of his body while trying to not draw attention to her obvious examining. Another thing she noticed was how his mouth and nose were disconnected. His mouth seemed to have no relation to his nose at all, and on top of that, his nose was abnormally small. Yet, his eyes were abnormally large. Specifically, his pupils-- they took up at least half of his eyes. The white paste that covered his face contradicted his pitch-black eyes in a way that scared and intrigued her at the same time. Her mind had strayed; more to the point, did Ara mean them any harm? He obviously possessed magical ability and was powerful indeed. If he wanted to harm them, couldn’t he have done it by now? Although, he could wish to use Celestia as a puppet to gain control over Equestria but if that was true couldn’t he just take it by force? Her thoughts were interrupted suddenly.
“We’re here,” said Ara. “These two rooms are yours and can be used anytime you wish. You’ll find that the ability to navigate the halls comes natural to all who stand in them. This is a property of the Continuum. Maps are not needed. Also any amenities that may be required can be obtained magically.”
The two ponies stepped into the first room and were bombarded by a scent of freshly picked flowers. The room was decorated lavishly with what seemed to be finely crafted furniture. A large canopy bed sat against the back wall covered in sheets that looked so comfortable Twilight had the urge to just jump in and go to sleep right then. A desk was also provided, assumingly for paperwork and other such tasks. In the far left corner was a doorway set into the wall. Steam poured out of the doorway and it obviously led to some sort of bath house. To the corner opposite of the steamy doorway was a polished wooden table complete with chairs and covered in the finest Equestrian foods.
Twilight was speechless. It was painfully obvious that this room was hers as every aspect of it was perfectly suited to her tastes. The smells, the foods, the design, all of it fit together perfectly.
“B-but how could you possibly know all of this about me,” she stammered.
“It is not me but the Continuum. Each room changes itself to fit the needs and tastes of the person staying in it. Each one is perfectly fitted for the user down to the last detail.”
Twilight stepped into the room and let herself be taken in by the scent that floated through the room. It was amazing; not too strong yet not too weak and her favorite flower at that.
“I don’t mean to interrupt but there are things I need to explain to you both,” Ara interrupted before Twilight could get too caught up in the room. Celestia turned to him inquisitively.
“Do go on. I would like a full explanation,” she stated.
Ara cleared his throat.
“Firstly, Celestia, you need to pick a representative of Equestria. This person will do just as the title suggests; represent Equestria. But he or she will only do so when you cannot be in the continuum for whatever reason. We understand that plane affairs sometimes come before the Order.”
A list of potential ponies ran through her mind but she quickly pushed them aside. She had questions that demanded answering and this could wait.
“Yes, but what about the creatures and such that now roam my land. Will anything be done about them?” she asked.
“No, as I said before we cannot do anything. Your plane has obtained the required level of knowledge to be completely free of Order control and now you must deal with such problems for yourself. However, if anything became too out of hand remember that you can always come to the Order and we will try our best to help you.”
“So you’re just going to let these things roam free in my land. I understand they were there to begin with but you shouldn’t have just dumped all of this on us at once.”
“I feel as though you are ready. You’ve handled it up to now haven’t you? It won’t grow any worst unless you let it. And if you feel our procedures aren’t living up what you think they should then by all means you have the right to attempt to change the process from the inside.”
Celestia frowned. She was not completely pleased with that response but it would have to do for now.
“All right then. Continue,” she said.
“Thank you. Now as I was saying earlier a representative must be picked. You may only pick one and choose wisely because once one is in place it’s extremely hard to get it changed.”
“Are there any personality traits that I should look for?”
“Powerful, intelligent, open minded. Remember this person will be representing your land in the Continuum so make sure they’re someone you would trust with your kingdom and the lives of everybody in it.”
Ara extended his arm out and a book appeared floating above his hand. He then set the book down on the desk.
“This is for you. As you may have already noticed the people that come with the other planes may not look exactly like you. This book will help you with their anatomy, customs and mannerisms so that you are not caught off guard when meeting someone of a different species. I believe that this is all. Since you are now part of the Order you can use teleportation just as you would on Equestria. You can use it to get to and from the hall and from this hall you can get to other planes if you so desired. You need to know where the planes are or have some way of getting to them without using teleportation. Now if you’ll excuse me I have matters I must attend to. You are welcome to come and go as you please but remember I need to be informed of your representative as soon as possible.”
Ara turned without giving a chance for response and quickly walked out of the room his strange dress flowing behind him.
Twilight sat in one of the chairs that accompanied the table and let out a long breath she felt as if she had been holding for an hour now.
“This is the weirdest thing that has ever happened to me…,” she sighed. For some strange reason Celestia found
Twilight's reaction slightly amusing and a grin broke out on her face. At the sight of her princess smiling Twilight soon began to smile and giggle. “This must not be a bad thing if we can laugh about it, princess.”
Celestia shook her head still smiling and let out a sigh also.
“I’m not sure if this is a good thing or a bad thing Twilight, but either way it’s happening so we might as well make it a good thing. Ara didn’t make it seem like we had much of a choice in the matter.”
“Maybe we don’t. Maybe this is just how the universe is supposed to work. We’re part of something much bigger now.”
Twilight got up from her seat and made her way to the book that sat at her desk. She had actually been itching to read it ever since Ara had given it to them. She sat down at the wooden workspace and opened the book with magic. Twilight didn’t plan to start reading the book right there in front of the princess; she just wanted to take a peek and see what was in it. As she skimmed the pages she saw various diagrams and texts describing the parts that make up multitudes of species, what those parts are used for and any customs of said species.
“Celestia it says here in this book that some species actually have limbs growing off their hooves. I saw Ara had some of those. Apparently they’re called fingers and when the hooves have fingers they’re called hands not hooves,” Twilight said intrigued by the things detailed in this tome.
Celestia seemed interested and appalled at the same time.
“That seems like it would be so…strange to have such things. I couldn’t imagine having ‘fingers’.”
“It says that species that have fingers are able to finely manipulate objects using them. That seems like it would be useful for someone without magic.”
“Could you imagine seeing earth ponies walking around on their hind legs and growing crops and running businesses using fingers? What a strange sight that would be.”
Twilight giggled at the prospect. It would be strange to see indeed but more funny than anything else.
“Princess, now that we know other planes and species exist what’s going to happen back home. Do you think anything will change? Are we going to tell people about this?”
“Truthfully Twilight, I have no idea. I hope nothing more will change and I don’t know if it’s such a good idea to tell the public of these things. Although, I think we may have to. It’s not right to keep these things secret from them and I fear someone else may discover the things you have another day in the future.”
Twilight smiled; she was glad that she and the princess had common thoughts.
“I agree with you completely Princess.”
Suddenly the door opened behind the princess and in stepped a creature covered in dark armor. It didn’t wear a helm and its face looked similar to Ara’s but this one’s eyes were completely shut. A thin lair of ice and frost covered its armor as if it had just crawled out of a snow storm.
“Hello, I heard that there were new people in the Continuum and I decided to come meet them. I am in the right place aren’t I?” the creature explained.
Celestia faced the new being and examined him before speaking.
“Yes, we’re new here. And who are you?”
“Ah, I forget myself. Forgive me, my name is Iougha. I can certainly tell you are new here; I’ve never heard your voice before.”
Celestia suddenly realized why he couldn’t tell they were new when he walked in. The man was blind. How could she have missed something so simple? This place was messing with her mind; she couldn’t think straight.
“I…see,” she said pausing in her confused state.
“I know that tone. You don’t have to worry; yes I am almost completely blind. All of the males on my plane are mostly blind when they are born. The females however retain their sight. For this reason the females are the crafters and workers in our society. But, the males are not without use. We train in the use of various weapons and ways to navigate around our disability.”
“So the women are the workers and the men are the warriors?” Celestia asked.
“Indeed, also, in our government each governor is a partnership. One male and one female, It’s always this way. It combats the Male's disability and also helps keep unity.”
Celestia was strangely pleased with that idea.
“That’s amazing. Very smart.”
Iougha gave a light smile and bowed.
“Thank you. Your words mean much to my people and I.”
Twilight was captivated; the thought of other worlds was amazing to her and she couldn’t contain her questions.
“Iougha, what’s your world like?” she asked. Iougha didn’t answer right away and seemed a little uneasy at the question. Celestia coughed and lowered her voice slightly as she addressed twilight.
“Twilight, did you forget? He’s blind. He doesn’t know what his world looks like.”
Twilight had completely forgotten that fact and was quite embarrassed now that she thought about it. How stupid of her to ask a question like that. She felt horrible for raising such a question to Iougha.
“I’m sorry Iougha. I didn’t mean to offend you.”
“It’s quite alright; you didn’t offend me. But it’s as she said, I have no idea what it looks like. I can only see the vaguest of shapes and it strains me to see even that,” He said with a smile.
“That must be horrible. I couldn’t imagine not being able to see Equestria.”
Iougha let out a sigh. “Yes, sometimes it does bother me but there’s nothing I can do. That’s just how my land works and even though sometimes I wish I could see, I wouldn’t have it any other way.”
Thankfully Iougha didn’t seem too upset talking about his blindness. Happy that she hadn’t ruined their reputation in the Continuum already Twilight raised another question.
“What about your armor? It’s covered in frost. Did you just come from somewhere cold?”
“No, my armor is always covered in it. My plane is extremely cold all the time. Lots of snow; we didn’t even have a word for warm until we joined the Order. My armor is made out of a special material native to my plane. It’s mostly like normal iron except that it holds cold. Many people from the Order have tried to heat samples of the material but to no avail. That’s why it’s always covered in frost.”
“Amazing,” Twilight mumbled. “When you return to your plane would you mind getting me just a tiny bit of it?”
Iougha laughed. “I actually need to return their now but how about this. Let’s make a trade. Someday you shall come to my plane and tell me what my land looks like and in return I’ll give you some of it.”
The idea of being able to visit another plane gave Twilight goose bumps of excitement. A wise grin covered her face. “Deal. Goodbye Iougha. Hope to see you soon.”
Iougha bowed in respect. “And you Twilight. Good bye.”
And with that the warrior of frost exited her room and was on his way.
