CHAPTER FOUR
Twilight's mind was racing. The small grey pony – Kin, if she remembered correctly – had told her that the four unusual ponies had traveled to Ponyville with a machine,. For one thing, there hadn't been a machine, at least not one Fluttershy had mentioned. Secondly, there were no machines that advanced in Equestria at all. With all the magic in the air, who needed that much technology?
Anyway, even without all that, that didn't explain the amazing explosion of magic that had occurred. No machine of any kind could replicate a magical aura that size? Twilight was stumped, and she knew it. But there would be time to unravel that mystery later; for now, she had to worry about other things.
The back door of the cottage swung open, and Applejack burst outside, her flanks heaving. "Ah ran all th' way here, Twi," she gasped. "Fluttershy said somethin' about weird ponies appearin' in her yard."
"Fluttershy didn't lie to you." Twilight pointed with her horn at the group of ponies that stood off in a corner, quietly talking amongst themselves. Well, not that quietly; occasionally, the small green unicorn – Laney – would raise her voice, and the other unicorn would have to shush her. "They were accompanied by a crazy burst of magic, but say they were teleported by a machine. Which they don't have. It seems a little suspicious, don't you think?"
Applejack wrinkled her nose. "Ah'll say. Fluttershy and Rarity should be here any minute."
"Thanks so much for coming, AJ," Twilight said, a strained smile crossing her muzzle. "They seem really confused, and I thought you would be able to help me out."
"Aw, shucks, Twi," Applejack said. "It ain't a problem." She adjusted her hat and crossed the yard, a determined look on her face.
Twilight dashed through Fluttershy's house, her notes flapping around behind her. She peered anxiously out the front door. If Fluttershy and Rarity were right behind Applejack, they should be here right about…
A cart filled to the brim with gems appeared over the crest of the hill. It was attached to Rarity, who was trotting along next to Fluttershy. Spike reclined atop the jewels, occasionally dropping a sapphire or a ruby down his throat. The butter-yellow Pegasus was talking animatedly and waving her hooves about, which was unusual for her. Twilight let out a breath she hadn't realized she'd been holding. It's time to get to the bottom of things.
The violet unicorn ran out to meet the two ponies as they came to a top outside of the cottage and Rarity unhitched herself from the wagon. "Thanks for coming, Rarity," she said gratefully. "We may have a crisis on our hooves."
She quickly explained about the odd ponies that called themselves Grojband, and the magic surge that had accompanied their arrival. Rarity's face twisted as she listened. "Yes, I do believe I felt a little twinge in my horn not too long ago…but then, I'm not the one with a talent for magic. Where are the poor dears? Are they all right?"
Twilight led them through the house and into the backyard, where Applejack was having a heated discussion with Laney and Corey. "Oh yeah? Well, if you're from another world, than Ah'm a timber wolf's best friend. Twilight!" the orange Earth pony huffed. "Tell these here folks about those magic laws you were studyin' last week!"
"Oh – you mean Star Swirl the Bearded's mirror laws?"
"Yep. Them thingies. Now!"
Twilight closed her eyes for a moment, visualizing the book that still sat atop her desk in the Golden Oaks Library. "The mirror laws explain why alternate worlds can't be visited or traveled to unless both parties know about them. Interdimensional travel is like teleportation, but bigger and more complex. It can't be successful unless the right amount of magic is tapped into on both sides, and since we don't know whether magic exists in other worlds, nopony can go to them. Or come here. Does that make sense?"
"No," Applejack snarled. "Because these ponies right here are tellin' me that they're from one of them alternate worlds."
Twilight opened her eyes, startled. "Are you serious?" she said, focusing on the new set of ponies. "Are you seriously trying to tell me that you're from…someplace else?"
The orange one who called himself Corey nodded. "And we aren't ponies there, either. We're human. They're…well, they're nothing like this nearly at all."
Twilight wanted to drop everything and start conducting scientific research to see if they were right, but she took a deep breath and let it out. Once upon a time, she'd have scoffed at the very idea of interdimensional travel, but not too long ago she'd had to learn the hard way that there were some mysteries she'd never figure out. And there would be time to ask more questions later. "That would prove some of the most ancient magic scrolls wrong…but it explains your odd names, and why you've never used magic before. Applejack, you should have come to me before you started yelling at them, though being cautious was a good idea."
Applejack snorted and sheepishly dug her hoof into the dirt. "Yeah, Ah know. But you know how Ah feel about lyin', Twi…and it sure as hay seemed like they were."
Rarity had been silent for some time, peering at the twin Earth pony brothers, who looked like they had been rolling around in the dirt. "Darlings!" she exclaimed. "Your coats look absolutely dreadful! You need a good bath right away."
"Rarity, they're still getting their bearings. Wait." Twilight took a step in Grojband's direction. She was starting to get used to the weird word. "In case you haven't noticed, these are Applejack and Rarity. Over there is Fluttershy –" she gestured at the pink-maned Pegasus, who was barely visible behind a bush – "and Spike." The dragon had followed the ponies inside, a stack of gems in his arms. His mouth had fallen open during the conversation (probably somewhere around the laws of magic being broken) and tiny shards of crystal were falling out of his mouth. Twilight slipped behind him and shut his mouth, giggling a little. "Sorry, he's a bit rude sometimes."
"It's no problem," Corey said, shifting his weight from his right side to his left. "Nice to meet you. I'm Corey and this is Laney, Kin, and Kon. Back home, we're known as Grojband."
Rarity tilted her head to one side. "Groj…what? What an interesting name." She batted her eyes and smiled. If Twilight didn't know better, she'd think somepony had a crush. Sizing Corey up, she realized that he was a rather good-looking stallion, if she ever had time for that sort of thing.
"What's th' matter, Rarity? Got somethin' in yer eye?" Applejack snickered.
The larger grey pony – Kon – laughed too. "You look kind of funny when you do that."
Rarity gave a little sniff. "I beg your pardon? I am merely trying to show interest in these newcomers, and that is that."
"Showing interest all right," Spike muttered darkly, his tail lashing. Twilight managed to wrap the little dragon in a bone-crunching hug as Rarity trotted off to see how Fluttershy was doing behind her bush.
The violet unicorn cleared her throat. "Um, why don't we take you all to town? We should show you around before it gets dark, and find a place for you to stay."
"I, for one, am very interested in taking a look around," Kin announced. "It just so happens that we may be stuck here until we can get our hands on that machine…which may not be here in the first place…and if it is, it may be damaged…um, let's just say that we're gonna hang around for a while."
Rarity poked her head out of the bushes. "Sounds good to me!"
Corey shrugged. "We're ponies now, guys. Let's take a break from freak-outs and scope out the scene!" He trotted forward eagerly. "Lead the way, Twi – it's okay if I call you Twi, right?"
"Of course, if it makes you feel at home." Twilight picked up her notes and quills and dumped them unceremoniously into her saddlebag. "Come on, girls! Come on, Spike. We have some new friends to introduce to Ponyville!"
The unicorn mare paced back and forth inside her small cave shelter. It had been almost half an hour since she had broken the magical bubble, and there was still no sign of anything unusual. She knew something big had happened, and that it could be bad, but honestly? Anything that would ruin Twilight Sparkle in some way sounded good to her.
The odd magical aura that had strengthened the mare earlier had made her magic stronger as well. When she had tried creating a spark to light a fire, it had erupted into a roaring column of flame and burned her eyebrows off before she had been able to suppress it. She felt rejuvenated, more important than she had ever felt before, and soon all of Equestria was going to know it. The mare had bigger plans now, plans involving more than just humiliating her worst enemy.
A crackling in the bushes nearby startled the unicorn, and she jumped back, her hind hoof grazing the embers of the fire. "Who goes there?" she rasped, voice rusty from weeks of disuse. "This unicorn has powerful magic, and she's not afraid to use it!"
"Like, that totally doesn't sound like a threat, but whatevs," came the reply. "I am totes stuck in this bush and Mina can't even help me!"
"I'm underneath you, Trina," a second voice croaked. "If I wasn't, I would for sure try to help you."
"No one cares about your dumb opinion, Mina!"
The mare stepped softly toward the bush, lifting a few leaves out of the way for a glimpse of the faces of the ponies trapped in the bush. A pink muzzle and a pair of magenta eyes glowered out at her. "Get me out of here!" the muzzle growled, twisting to pull the body attached to it free. The unicorn tugged, but the pony wouldn't budge, so she used her magic. In a twinkling, the bush disappeared, and a pair of mares lay panting on the ground, one on top of the other.
The one on top was the pink one. Her mane was streaked with purple, and tied into a tail at the back of her head; a horn poked out of the feathery bangs that framed her face. The other pony was an Earth pony, with an orange coat and teal mane. Her glasses were broken, and she spit leaves out of her mouth, shaking her head back and forth. "Um, thanks?"
The pink pony blinked, confused. "Um, hashtag: Whaaa? Who the heck are you? Where's my brother and his lame-o band? And where is Nick Mallory? He was just here…MINA! Details! NOW!"
"There's no need," the unicorn mare said, grinning evilly. So there were more? This pair of newcomers could be to her advantage. Any information about what had happened would be useful indeed.
The pony narrowed her eyes. "Oh yeah? And why should I believe you?"
The mare's grin grew even wider. "I am the Great and Powerful Trixie. And Trixie thinks you and she might have a common goal." She leaned in, reaching out a hoof to help the pink unicorn stand up. "Welcome to Equestria, otherworlder."
To steal Trina's word...whaaaa? I wonder if any of you saw that coming? Tell us in the reviews!
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