Into the Dashieverse

Later that afternoon, Rainbow Dash was going around Sweet Apple Acres, flying up and picking apples from apple trees, placing them down in the baskets below. She wasn't paying attention to what she was doing, and she did her best to keep her mind busy and not think about being stuck in a different dimension. Zap Apple slowly trotted over, pulling a wagon with barrels filled with apples. The stallion looked up and said, "Wow, you got nearly all the apples here."

Rainbow looked around, rubbed the back of her mane, and apologized, "Yeah, sorry, I help my friend Applejack now and again."

Zap laughed, "No, need to be sorry, you've been doing quite alot of work."

They then poured the apples into a barrel, and Candy Apple flew over, Rainbow Dash peering up as she said, "So you're Rainbow Dash, huh?"

"Yeah, what about it!?"

"Well, seeing another pony from another dimension is super cool!? What is it like? Do you have flying carriages!? Do you have princes instead of princesses!? Are there towers made of cheese!"

"What, no!? My dimension is almost exactly like yours except… well…" She looked at Candy Apple for abit longer, her red coat, blonde mane, and bright green eyes. "Um, you look very familiar to my friend's brother?"

Candy's eyes went wide, and she started to get giddy with excitement. She squealed, "Wait, hold on in your universe. Applejack has a brother!"

"Yeah."

Rainbow winced as she turned towards her, feeling abit embarrassed as she continued her train of thought, "And that means….well, you know…"

“What should I know!? Tell me! The suspense is killing me!”

Zap came over, ruffled her mane, and added, "That means in Rainbow's universe, you're a dude." He then threw his mane back and, with a cheeky smile, added, "And you look a lot like me."

Candy playfully pushed back. "Oh, buck off! Like we need two of you!"

Rainbow Dash was starting to trot away, but the red-coated pegasus flew over and asked, "So, is anything else interesting? I mean, what is this other me like?"

"Oh well, he's a big earth pony, definitely less talkative…sorry, that's all I got. I don't talk to him all that much."

"Oh, come on! You gotta give me more than that!"

Rainbow Dash started getting irritated, but Zap trotted over and nipped his friend. "Candy, stop asking our guest so many questions."

"Fine," The pegasus blew on her mane and followed with a moody look on her face. After putting the barrels of apples into a barn, they returned inside, where Granny Smith had some apple pie with cider. Rainbow Dash loved this stuff, but it still didn't ease her feeling homesick for being with her friends. Zap Apple sat back and asked, "So, are you feeling better?"

Rainbow Dash swished the liquid in her mug, taking a swig, then said, "A little; the cider helps."

"That's good to hear."

"Yeah, thanks for everything, letting me stay here, the food, the company…it means a lot."

"It's the least I can do for saving my life."

"Alright, you gotta cut that out! I told you you don't owe me for that!"

"What, it's true?"

"Well, it just means I still owe you, even if I knocked out half the harvest all by myself."

Zap Apple gave a hearty laugh, and then they heard.

"Get a room already!"

"Granny!" Zap shouted in response.

Then they heard a knock on the door, and then the two got up and went to see who it was upon opening the front door. Rainbow Dash stepped back, looking distraught, seeing a copy of herself, a rainbow-colored mane, light blue coat color, and magenta-colored eyes; the only difference was that this copy had her mane covering the left side of her face. She looked rather cheerful as she waved a hoof. "Hey, you're just the ponies I came to see!"

The other Rainbow Dash stared at the other with her mouth agape. She rubbed her eyes and asked, "Is this real?"

The other version of herself chuckled and then said, "First time seeing another version of yourself, huh?"

She turned to the big blue stallion and said, "Guess the second…or third considering the Day Breaker soldier…"

Rainbow Dash pointed at herself and then added. "But they well…are stallions and different you…you look almost exactly like me."

"Yeah, uh, if you haven't figured it out, there's a lot like me, or us, to be exact."

She then sniffed the air, "is that cider!?"

The mare flew in, took a glass, and chugged it down. "Oh, you have no idea how good it is to find a universe with good old Sweet Apple Acres cider!"

Granny Smith then trotted downstairs and asked, "So you travel to other universes!?"

"Yeah, you wouldn't believe the other Sweet Apple Acres variants are out there, ones that grow pears, peaches, watermelons, you name it. They all have their signature drinks: sweet teas and lemonades, sodas." She then took another draught, "but nothing hits it like Sweet Apple Acres cider.

Granny perked up in pride. "Well, thank you! I didn't know my cider was so popular! You could help me with marketing!"

"Trust me, no one beats old-fashioned cider, Granny Smith."

She gave her a hoof bump and asked, "Mam, would it be okay if I talked to my variants in private? It's not that I don't trust you; this information is top secret, ya know?"

"Of course, "she said, placing another jug down. You all just drink as much cider as you want; we had a lot left over."

She then left, and the three sat down together. They all started drinking. The suave Rainbow Dash asked, "So we're all variants of the same pony, so ask any question you want?"

The other Rainbow Dash then asked, "So, um? What's going on here?"

"Sorry, I should've explained," she then took out a piece of bread and some zap apple jam and poked it with various blobs of peanut butter as she continued to explain, "so I don't confuse the heck out of you. First of all, there is a multiverse represented by the peanut butter."

She then took out a jar of Zap Apple Jam and connected the blobs of peanut butter with lines of the rainbow-colored jam, "and then across these various dimensions, Variants of the Element of Loyalty or those connected to it and a lot of them seem to have a knack of accidentally causing rifts, mostly through using a Rainboom as most of are pegasi, but there are other instances as well with some using science or magic."

Rainbow blinked, looking abit overwhelmed as she replied, "So what you're saying is, I broke my dimension with a rainboom?"

"Kind of, yeah."

"So…am I in trouble?"

The other Rainbow Dash gave a sigh and then said, "Sadly, you broke Dimension code number six thousand thirty-two and will be placed in Dimension Jail for the next ten thousand years."

Rainbow's mouth dropped as there was a moment of silence, then the mare burst out laughing, "Oh my Faust, you should see your face!"

Zap Apple snickered as he nudged his friend, "You believed her!?"

She chuckled nervously, seeing she was being pranked, and asked, "Okay, ha ha, but seriously, did I do something wrong?"

"What no!? Most pegasi variants accidentally break the dimensional barrier all the time! We simply come by, figure out which dimension you belong to, and send you back, easy peasy."

Rainbow Dash excitedly exclaimed, "So you can get me home!?"

"Yup,"

The pegasus flew up, feeling a rush as she realized she was going back to her own dimension. She shouted, "That's Awesome!"

Zap Apple then held up a hoof, "that explains her, but what about that crazy knight version of us? What was that all about?"

"Oh, him? My partner is taking care of that; I promise he'll be sent to his own dimension soon."

The stallion continued to eye her suspiciously, then asked, "There's something else? Why are you holding stuff back."

She looked at the stallion, getting rather serious as she said, "Listen, you two seem like good, honest ponies; you don't want to get mixed up in this…"

"If it affects my world, I do want to be mixed up in this as you said."

Rainbow sat down and said, "Yeah, please tell us why he came here."

"Alright, well, there's a group of Variants unlike us trying to create an interdimensional empire using evil versions of us as weapons. This problem is massive, and we're doing our best to control the situation."

Zap Apple scoffed as he snapped, "It doesn't seem you have."

The suave Rainbow Dash took offense to Zap's comment and then snapped, "Well, nothing's perfect, but we have kept these idiots from literally tearing the fabric of reality apart. So how about you learn to keep that big mouth shut!"

Rainbow's eyes lit up as she started to get excited, "We? So you have a society of Rainbow Dashes flying around, saving the multiverse! That's so awesome!"

Her copy then shrugged, "Yeah, that's close enough."

She then took the zap apple sandwich, ate it in a few bites, and then chugged down the rest of her cider, "but that's my problem, how about we get you home." She then took a device other forehoof and set it then a beam hit the air creating a swirling colored hole. "Just walk through that, and you'll be back in your Sweet Apple Acres…if that's what it's called in your dimension."

Rainbow Dash peered inside and slowly trotted towards it, then turned to see Zap Apple looking at her, shaking his head. "No," she paused, peering into the void. Then she thought about what this other person had said and considered the consequences if she had just left all of this. She shook her head, stepped back, and said, "No."

"Huh, what do you mean no?"

"No, I'm not going. If there are evil versions of me out there threatening the multiverse, I have to stop them."

The other Rainbow Dash eyed her as that calm demeanor was gone, "listen, you have no idea what you're asking for."

Zap Apple got up and titled his hat, "I agree with my friend here. If our worlds are being threatened, we gotta stop them, so stop stalling and show us where to sign up."

"You two aren't ready," the suave version replied as she pulled back her mane, which made Zap Apple and herself step back. There, on the left side of her face was covered in an inky black smoke pouring out from what was lef ot it, with his left eye now a dark green color with magical essence oozing off of it. "There are universes where things don't work out, somewhere we don't make it, others…" she peered downwards and whispered, "Where were the only ones left."

She pushed her mane back down her face and added, "You two seem like good versions of me. You have friends and family who care about you, right? So don't make this decision lightly."

Zap Apple paused as Rainbow Dash's heart pounded in her chest, seeing how this version of her seemed like two opposites: this happy, cheerful pony and this broken pony with some horrible past, losing all her friends. Then she raised her head and said, "I don't know what you've been through, and I get what you're saying, but if we don't do something and our worlds are in danger, and we end up losing our friends and family it would be worse as we had the chance to stop it and did nothing."

Zap got up and tilted his hat. "My friend here is right. We understand the risks and we are willing to do whatever it takes."

Her copy eyed them, then shrugged as she relented, "Alright, don't say I didn't warn you."

She then pushed a few buttons on her device, and the swirling colorful hole shifted as she threw a hoof. "Come on."

Rainbow Dash looked forward into the magical, colorful swirls, knowing she was risking her life but knowing deep down she had to help. The mare gulped and followed after the other versions of her into the portal as it closed behind her.

The two blinked, and now they were suddenly in a massive lobby made out of some rainbow-like essence. As she trotted along, it felt like walking on glass, and there was a loud clopsound as she and the others. Rainbow then started looking around her, seeing the area was filled with tons of versions of her pegasi flying about, earth ponies, and unicorns floating cider drinks and talking. There was a massive court where ponies tossed a ball across and threw it into hoops. There was a massive library field with Daring Do books and versions of her cosplaying as the famous adventurer. Rainbow then looked around as a massive roller coaster lopped around the building, with cars filled with screaming ponies. The blue-colored pegasus eyes were wide as she looked around, unable to focus on just one thing as their escort held up a hoof, "Welcome to the Society of Loyalty. It makes it easy to see that not everyone is named Rainbow Dash."

"Finally, somepony gets it," Zap chuckled as they continued, and another portal opened. An alicorn version of herself walked through with her mane long and flowing around her, not unlike how Princess Celestia had hers, with the knight they fought earlier, knocked out and floating abover her aura.

She then came over and kissed their escort on the lips, and they just embraced each other for a moment. Then the alicorn looked over at the other two and asked, "Who are they?"

"Just some greenhorns wanting to try out to be agents."

She looked them over, then scoffed, "They won't make it past tryouts." She threw her wings, which were quite large and way more majestic looking than hers, giving them a few flaps as she flew off, leaving a trail of rainbow dust behind.

Rainbow looked up at the majestic alicorn fly off as she whispered to herself. "Who is she?"

Their escort looked up at her longingly as she said, "She's my partner."

Zap chuckled, then asked, "In what way?"

The pegasus flashed him a smug grin and teased back, "In the ways that matter, big guy."

She then pushed them to an office where she saw an Earth Pony version of herself. She looked similar with the same blue-colored coat, but her rainbow-colored mane was tied up in a ponytail, and she wore a lab coat and thick glasses. The mare was typing away at various screens, which appeared around her in the air, filled with rows and rows of formulas and weird symbols scrolling around her like an endless rain of data. This made Rainbow's eyes gloss over how complicated it all looked. Then a brown-coated stallion wearing a green tie ran over and shouted, "Honey, just got word the Day Breaker's Capitan Nimbus has been captured!"

"Good, move to make plans for Shadowbolt to start interrogating him. We need to know when Hurricane and Tempest's next moves are."

"Considering his psych profile, it'll be difficult to get anything from him?"

"Yes, but we have ways around that? Shadowbolt will get him to talk."

She then turned to see the others and laughed, "Speak of the devil." She hopped down and held out a hoof, "What's up, Shadowbolt?"

"Prism," the Rainbow Dash that the two have been following bumped hooves with Prism. Rainbow Dash was abit astounded by the fact the version of her that they've met was named "Shadowbolt". As Rainbow Dash was reeling from this revelation the egghead version of her then looked over at them and asked, "Huh, you brought some friends, I see?"

"We got two variants who are up for tryouts."

She pushed her glasses and eyed them," these two?"

"Yeah, they want to be agents."

She scanned them with the device on her hoof, then nodded as two data-filled screens popped up. The mare looked them over for a few hours, “they both have potential. What do you think, honey?"

The brown-coated stallion looked them over and gave a few nods of approval, "Very promising candidates; you know how to pick them, Shadowbolt."

"Thanks, it's a talent."

Rainbow eyed her as Zap scoffed, "Seriously? We practically had to pull our teeth to get you to let us come here?"

"Hey, what can I say? I had to see if you two were serious."

Prism then cleared her throat loudly as they all turned to her; she adjusted her glasses and said, "If you two are done, Tryouts begin tomorrow at seven AM sharp. If you want to become agents of the Elements of Loyalty, I suggest being here on time, as both of your dimensions are synchronized with ours. You can stay here for the night if you want to avoid being late."

Rainbow Dash blinked, then exclaimed, "Um, wait!? Shouldn't I tell my friends where I am?"

She sighed, took out a hoof device for each, and said, "This will get you back here; just push the red button at six AM."

Rainbow groaned, "Six, seriously!?"

Prism got into her face and snapped, "Yeah, you wana to be early for warmups; you want this, right?"

Rainbow slowly nodded and grumbled under her breath. Then Shadowbolt came over and said, "There it is. Miss it, well, I'll come back for those bracelets, and you can forget about helping us, is that deal a deal?"

The two both saluted and exclaimed, "Yes, mam!"

Prism then returned to her desk, started plugging away at the various screens floating around her, and said, "Okay, now that we've got that over with Shadowbolt, we need to talk to you," she then looked over and nudged her muzzle towards the other two and added, "alone."

The pegasus nodded as she escorted the other two out of Prism's office. Then, she closed the doors behind her and said, "Now, you're free to stay if you like, but I'll leave that up to you. There's a lot to explore here." She then gave a sharp salute before heading back into Prism's office.

As the two sat there, she left, and Zap turned to Rainbow and, with a blush, replied, "So, uh… I guess you get to go home now."

Rainbow shrugged and said, "Yeah, I uh gotta try to explain what's going on to my friends at least, I guess…and um…guess you gotta talk to your family?"

"Yeah, they uh probably wana know where I am too? The Apples also think we just vanished into thin air."

Rainbow let out a burst of laughter and then said, "Applejack will go nuts, and Celestia knows how Candy Apple will react. But um…Thanks for helping me; I hope to see you tomorrow at tryouts?"

Zap started to look abit down as he whispered, "Yeah, me too…though...did you see how Shadowbolt looked? I mean…what if she's right? What if we're not ready for this?"

Rainbow thought about it, wondering what happened to Shadowbolt and what she might've lost, "As I said, this is scary, but if we don't do something to help, I feel like we'll regret it, ya know? we gotta try."

"Yeah, guess you're right."

They then both clicked the buttons on their bracelets, opening separate portals. They then both smiled at each other before going through them back to their own dimensions.