Loose Ends

"The Princess will see you now."

I've always been a light sleeper, so the second the guard speaks I start awake, blinking to get my bearings. As strange and unpredictable as the day's been, this whole napping-on-my-feet thing has come as a pleasant surprise amidst all the chaos. I could really get used to it.

Which is good, because I may have to. But I'm not going to think about that right now.

What I do think about is where I am, and it only takes a second to recognize the place: the antechamber to the throneroom in the capital city of Canterlot. I've been stuck here for hours -- I haven't figured out where my CSAR watch, my Ray-Bans or any of my other equipment went yet, so I can't be sure, but three hours is probably a good estimate.

I grunt and shake myself to get the blood flowing. My legs are stiff, I'm hungry, I'm tired and I'm anxious as hell, but this is what I've been waiting all day for, so as the pair of guards push the massive doors open, I move quickly past, hooves echoing on the stone floor, and I flash them a nod of respect as I go. Call it professional courtesy: I've been in their shoes before. Though, then, it was the leather-soled variety, not --

No, I'm not going to think about that, either.

I pass the doors and take a quick look around as I head for the far end, where there's a small gathering surrounding the throne. I'd been in a throneroom or two in my time overseas, but this one really stands out from the rest. Mammoth, intricate stained glass murals at every arch, flowing waterfalls, sumptuous tapestries, rich velvets -- it's like some incredibly beautiful, idealized medieval fantasy court come to life.

Which, given what else I've learned about the country called Equestria over the last few hours, doesn't actually come as much of a surprise.

Waking up in a hospital as a brown-haired pony - wait, sorry: "earth" pony - was merely the insane beginning to what's probably been the longest, weirdest and most confusing day of my life. I've had the same training any other special agent gets on diplomacy: cultural diversity, common social deviances, alternate forms of governance and all kinds of analyses on ethical relativity and religious belief, but nothing in my repertoire had prepared me for this place.

When I'd told Nurse Redheart I needed to talk to someone in charge, she'd showed surprising tenacity in breaking through the bureaucracy to get me an audience. I could see she wasn't the kind of person... pony... who took 'no' for an answer, and though I was glad she wasn't aiming her laser-like focus at me, it was good to have her as an ally. While we were waiting for my ride to the palace -- my chariot, actually -- she'd given me a crash course on her home. My head was still reeling, but I'd managed to put together a few facts.

For instance: Equestria has no humans, anywhere, at all. Instead, it's populated by the kinds of sentient beings that would make C. S. Lewis feel right at home. Talking ponies, pegasi, unicorns, griffons, minotaur - open up any book of fables and pick a weird creature, and chances are you can find a living one somewhere nearby. Equines are clearly the majority here, but there are plenty of others represented. While I was still waiting inside the hospital room, this had all seemed a bit... fanciful? But all it had taken was a look outside the window to dispel those doubts.

What's more, magic... well, it just works here. It doesn't seem like a very professional evaluation, or even an appropriate word to use, but I may as well call it that -- the locals do, and I can't think of a better way to put it. Unicorns, common enough here, actually levitate and manipulate objects with some kind energy surrounding their horns. Apparently, extremely talented ones can do a lot more than that. And no, it's not hearsay, I've seen them do it for even mundane, simple tasks. It's not special, it's just run of the mill reality here.

Truth is I'd say it all sounded like horseshit, pardon the pun, but if you'd told me yesterday I'd be a pony today I'd have called that horseshit too.

Roll with the punches, right? Right.

And now, as I near the throne itself, I'm about to deal with the craziest part of all of this. This Princess I'm meeting, Celestia, isn't just a Princess in the classical, monarchic sense. As far as the locals are concerned, she's some kind of living goddess who's apparently responsible for little things like making the sun rise every day. If this were anywhere else I'd smell a scam with an abusive despot and a nation full of patsies, but with everything else I've seen today, with all the other hard-and-fast rules of reality breaking around me like bones in a vice, who am I to say otherwise? At the very least, I'm not counting the possibility out. Not entirely.

Anyway, it really doesn't matter, because the fact is she rules Equestria, and she's the ultimate authority here. I have to make her understand how big this problem is, how dangerous the Doctor is, how deadly the weapon he's stolen is. I'm going to need reinforcements, quickly, before the Doctor has a chance to rebuild that weapon here. Bottom line, I'm going to need her help.

I take a deep breath. None of this is in the frigging service manual. Doesn't matter. Here goes nothing.

I smile as I approach the dais and attempt a respectful bow. It doesn't go too great -- I haven't exactly had much practice with four feet -- but I manage not to tip over, so I suppose that's something.

"Rise, Walker," she says, a hint of laughter in her voice. My pulse speeds up just a hair: if she's not a goddess, she sure as hell has the voice of one. Clumsily, I get back to my feet and get a quick look at the group.

A pair of guards, heavily armored grey unicorns, stand at attention at either side of the throne, watching me closely. They're quick, they're observant and they're obviously well-trained. Knowing what I know now about unicorns, I don't think I'd even stand a chance against those two if I were driving a tank. I'm impressed, and that isn't easy.

Halfway up the dais, there's another pair: they're not perfectly matched, like the guards, but they seem to mirror each other unconsciously -- siblings, maybe? One unicorn, strong and confident, white with a blue mane, red uniform, polished partial breastplate. One alicorn, purple, shifting uncomfortably and refusing to meet my gaze --

I frown. That's a very familiar purple. Where did I see that color last?

I shake my head, forcing myself to focus.

Finally, there's Celestia herself, standing at the top of the dais, before the throne. And she's --

Magnificent. There's just no other word. A flowing, prismatic mane, a pristine, perfectly white coat, deep, knowing violet eyes and the hint of a secret smile under her regal demeanor all add up to the kind of beauty that you only read about in storybooks. Sure, sometimes you might be lucky enough to see a picture -- like the aurora set afire at the poles of the earth, or the lost splendor of an ancient civilization from half a world away -- but it's always second-hand, always someone else's story, and you sure as hell never get to see it for yourself.

Suddenly, I'm willing to accept that this creature might just be a goddess after all.

"Majesty," I murmur, looking away, surprised I can even remember the word.

She chuckles, the sound nearly musical. "There's no need to stand on ceremony, Walker. Twilight tells me you've had a trying day."

I shake myself again, trying to collect my thoughts. "I'm -- yeah, you could say that," I say, taking another long breath as I force myself to meet her gaze. "I'm sorry, Highness. This is a lot to take in at once. I wish I could spend some time and take it all in, but --"

"Of course," she says, nodding. "Introductions are in order, and then we should hear your story. To my right," she says, gesturing to the powerful white unicorn, "is my guard captain, Shining Armor."

I bow to him with sincere respect. You don't mess with the guy running the local muscle, especially when he looks as tough as he does smart.

"To my left is Twilight Sparkle," Celestia continues, gesturing to the uncomfortable purple alicorn. "She is Equestria's newest princess, and my closest counsel. You should know that Twilight is the one responsible for --"

"Let's... just hear his story first," the purple alicorn says, shifting her feet uncomfortably. I cock my head sideways at her, frowning and a bit curious, but she still refuses to meet my gaze.

Celestia shrugs. "Very well. Walker, you have our ears."

#

I go through the story, basically start to finish, skipping the less important parts to stress the vital ones. They take it all in without pause and wait for me to finish before they start asking questions.

"The other two agents were already dead," I say, getting to the end of the tale. "I don't know if the Doc did it, but he was missing, they were dead and the plans were gone, so my responsibility was clear: I went through the portal in pursuit. Unfortunately, he took me by surprise, neutralized me and got away. From what I saw before I lost consciousness, he's got the blueprints to the tunneling device."

Celestia nods, her expression thoughtful. "Are those blueprints detailed enough for him to recreate this device?"

"He developed them himself, so if anyone can, he can. In my... uh, world, I'd feel confident he couldn't fabricate the parts outside of a lab, but with magic so freely available -- I'd prepare for the worst."

"At least he's easy to spot," Shining Armor said thoughtfully. "All we have to do is put out the word: nopony will be able to miss someone like that. We'll have him in custody before he can get very far."

"With all due respect, he was resourceful enough to kill two highly trained special agents," I say, trying hard not to sound like I was questioning Shining Armor's judgment. "That may not mean much to you, but they were equipped to deal with people like him. He's bound to know you'll be looking for him. He planned this all extremely well."

"I just don't understand why this device of yours is so dangerous," Twilight says, briefly meeting my gaze before averting her eyes again. "It just seems like a convenient way to travel from one place to another, that's all."

"Twilight, whoever owns this device would be unstoppable," I say, briefly catching her gaze. "They could tunnel through steel walls to raid a sealed treasury... they could eliminate key supports from infrastructure and topple entire cities... they could even bore a hole through reality big enough to lead an entire army directly into a fortress like this one. The military possibilities are endless."

Twilight and Shining Armor trade a worried look. "Lead an army into a fortress?" the white unicorn says, his voice suddenly sounding a bit stressed. "This device... can it get through magic?"

I blink. I'm not a scientist or a magician, but I understand the basics of the project -- all of us had been given the briefing before assuming our duties at the lab. "I can't be sure about magic, but the way the quantum tunnel's created, when it comes across a barrier, the waveform generator -- the tunnel -- alters frequencies until it finds one the barrier can't interfere with. Once it finds that frequency, it simply moves through the barrier as though it's not even there. If the, uh, the magic has some kind of physical manifestation, I don't think it'd be any more effective against the tunnel than any other kind of wall."

Shining Armor curls his lips into a scowl. "And when was the last time we were worried about an army getting through our defenses?"

"You don't think... Queen Chrysalis?" Twilight replies, her eyes widening.

"Wait a minute," I interrupt, frowning. "Queen? Doctor Wechsler said something about a queen when he left me in the dirt," I say, wincing at the memory. "Something about his queen appreciating my sacrifice. Does that mean anything to you?"

All three of them stop and stare at me, and I figure that's a yes. Even Celestia looks a bit concerned.

"Can you describe this Doctor?" she asks.

"Does it matter?" I ask. "He's human, like m-- like a human. Two legs, two arms, walks upright, hair on top of his head. He's going to stand out."

"Humor us, Walker."

I shrug. "Sure. Average height, oily black hair, beady green eyes. Shifty. Hums to himself a lot."

"Oh, this is not good," Twilight says. "This is not good at all."