>You virtually fist pump, which is a lot like a regular fist pump but without any real limbs and mildly less satisfying.
>But hey, the alien equine that you are going to call a unicorn, after coming across a reference to such a mythological creature in your archives, actually came into contact with the device again, letting you to use some of its now unneeded systems as resources to replenish your nanomachines.
>Combined with the fact that you discovered that the nerves that convey visual and audio signals are actually pretty close to conventional ones, it was a simple matter for your machines to use your freshly gathered materials to construct devices to tap into both. In fact, they should be finished in a few minutes.
>Granted, you weren’t comfortable enough with their structure to edit either to initiate contact, but you could definitely use them to get a better idea of what you are dealing with here.
>Perhaps you could get enough of an idea of their language to listen in, maybe figure out a way to talk to your host without killing them or driving them mad.
>When you first figured out that they were treating the implants as an extended part of her brain, you were half tempted to just load it up with the idea that you were there, watching, and needed help, but without a real way to communicate back and forth that would have likely led to complete madness or them voluntarily sending themselves off to an asylum.
>Ah, there we go, video feed is coming up in now!
>As it flips online the new feed pours into you, the unicorn’s vision popping up to reveal a… surprisingly 20th century, you think, house.
>As she trots off to the fridge, you can’t help but question something you hadn’t thought of over the past few days: how do they manipulate tools?
>I mean, they only have hooves and those horn things, maybe they manipulate things with their mouths? You haven’t been paying too much attention to things like that while you were trying to crack the enigma of the unfamiliar nervous-
>You cut yourself off when an anomalous spike in her brain and the nerves leading to her horn that you had gotten pretty used to over the last few days occurs, a blue aura surrounding the handle of the fridge door before it pops open.
>You what?
>She grabs some lettuce, fucking Earth lettuce, in the same grip as your audio tap comes online, catching some whine emitting from her horn.
>No, no, no, hold up a fucking minute there.
>Running surveillance on the feeds only in the background you go back over the last few seconds, approximately fifty different simulation and analysis programs kicking on and screaming out errors in unison.
>Oh god, do they have natural contra-gravity generators built into their fucking heads?
>Did the Gatebuilders fuck around and shove shit into these assholes and that is why there is stuff you don’t get?
>Does this mean that the Gatebuilders stole plant life from your planet to put here, or it was the opposite?
>You would have definitely detected it if it was something magnetic in nature.
>Switching back over to the feed you watch in something between confusion and excitement as the unicorn grabs a knife in that very same aura and makes a fucking salad complete with croutons, tomato, and something that looks vaguely like ranch dressing.
>Are you getting punked? You are pretty sure that pranks like this have a hard legal limit of six months in duration.
>You pound your non-existent face into a non-existent wall in order to kill the pain of the situation, browsing through another dozen libraries of information in an attempt to come up with something, anything.
>Maybe, just maybe, you could get the unicorn to explain it if you ever are able to talk with her.
>In between running the sea of calculations you ready up and package some more information, carefully selected.
>Perhaps if you boost her knowledge enough over time you could get an understanding of her language, get her to build one of those ancient CRT monitor things, then communicate though that claiming to be some ancient spirit of knowledge.
>That is what primitive cultures generally believe, right?
>You know what? While everything crunches, you need to destress. You can tell that this is going to be hard as fuck to crack and bashing you head into the stone wall over and over will just slowly drive you up the wall.
>Screening the new data packet carefully, you send it off and decide to finally relax for a few hours.
>Booting up the AutoDM and a module you hadn’t run yet, you enter a virtual shell; it was time for some less maddening things.
>Maybe when you get back your sims will have something.
 
>Glancing at the whiteboard in one of the labs through the window on the way into work, you freeze up. How could they had made such a fundamental mistake?
>Light can obviously behave as both a particle and wave-
>Wait, where did that come from?
>That doesn’t seem right.
>You know that they taught you in school about the particular nature of light, and that sure doesn’t match up with-
>You raise a hoof to your head as a stab of pain shoots through you.
>No, no, it couldn’t be right, could it?
>You knew the duality is true, you just know it!
>Diverting your path, you walk up to the lab door and knock, waiting patiently.
>Somepony… one, you don’t know who, did an experiment to prove something like this, right?
>Something about two slits?
>A minute or so later a grumpy looking stallion that you can’t remember the name of answers the door.
>”What is it, intern?”
“This is going to sound really weird but do you have a clamp, some aluminum foil, a laser emitter, and a wall in a dark place I can use for a few minutes tops?
>Judging by his raised brow you definitely got his interest, at least.
>What is his name? Limelight? Prismatic Light? It was something with light.
>“What for?”
>How are you going to explain this?
”I have a theory on light acting like a wave, all I need to do is shine a light at some paper, I won’t damage anything, promise!”
>Real smooth.
>”Are you trying to dodge out of work, kid?”
>You were a university student on break, thank you very much.
“No, no, no, I just need a couple minutes then I’ll get out of your hair, honest.”
>He sighs deeply.
>”Fine, but don’t bug me afterwards, and anything you break you buy. Aluminum is in cupboard 6B and the emitter is in F8.”
“Thank you!”
>”I’ll also be watching you very closely, intern.”
“No issue!”
>You hurriedly walk over to the marked out cabinets and grab both items, cutting a small sheet and setting up at a table a short distance from a wall.
>Pulling your knife out of your bags you cut two slits a short distance away from one another.
>Setting the sheet up on the table you use your bags on either side to hold it in place.
>Double checking that it is steady, you draw the blinds with your magic.
>Cutting off your magic, you carefully position the beam to point at the sheet and click it on.
>Rushing over to the far side of the aluminum foil, true to your word, there is the representation of the interference pattern on the wall, just as you thought.
>But wait, this doesn’t prove that it is both, it just proves that it CAN act as a wave.
>Didn’t previous experiments prove that it acts as a particle as well? You need to experiment more, you need to-
>A hoof is placed on your shoulder.
>You tense up and look over at the stallion’s face as he almost in slow motion goes through a gamut of emotions, from completely uncomprehending to shock back to uncomprehending and to shock again before settling into a dim smile.
>”Do you know what you just did?”
>Oh no, did you break the emitter without knowing?
“I… proved myself right?”
>”Assuming that we can get this to replicate neatly, this very well might have overturned modern thought on the nature of light. I’m not sure what it means exactly, but if light is not a particle-”
>You, overturn everything? Where did you get this from? Did they really not know?
“It’s both.”
>”What?”
“You’ll find that there are some situations where using it as a wave is the correct option, some where seeing it as a particle is, and some where either work, I’m pretty sure.”
>That feels right. Is it possible that you misinterpreted your cutie mark all along and you were just magically gifted this knowledge… somehow. That makes sense, right?
>”Let me just, ah, retest this.”
>You watch him go to cut slits in a sheet mimicking yours when you stop him.
“Holes need to be small to allow for proper showing of this property. Use a sharper knife.”
>You go to pass him yours but he levitates a better one of his own out of a nearby desk first.
>Slipping yours back away you watch him try your experiment himself, obviously getting the exact same results, look of annoyance long since replaced with interest and a bit of awe.
“Just, uh, wait right here, I need to go get the boss. While we can’t rule out mistakes just yet, this is certainly looking promising.”
>Turning off the emitter he leaves the room, leaving you alone with your thoughts.
>What came over you there? What happens next?
>You walk slowly off to the side, staring at the set up experiment.
>You suddenly have a feeling that this is really going to bite you in the ass in the long run.
>Too late to back out now, however.
>A few minutes later, your boss, the lazy bugger that he is, actually showed up, no doubt drawn away from important doughnuts.
>He looks tired as he enters trailed by the stallion from earlier, trotting over to the whiteboard and looking at the equation blankly, then to your setup experiment.
>Back to the whiteboard again, staring at it uncomprehend-
>”Well, looks like she proved Dawn’s theory completely wrong, if this isn’t misleading.”
>You might have slightly underestimated him.
>He turns to you, mild smile gracing his face.
>”Say, Astral Spark, what exactly is your cutiemark in?”
“Astronomy, sir.”
>You are just here for some general credits towards lab experience and nothing related to your field had spots clear.
>”Hmm. If this is what you do for physics, I can’t imagine what you’ll do in your field.”
>Your heart jumps up into your throat.
>You, a revolutionary scientist?
>Perhaps you would be set for life, and never have to work again thanks to all the cash rolling in? You could also easily end up in the textbooks and be remembered for centuries for advancing the knowledge of all ponykind.
>”Astral Spark, can you hear me?”
“Hmm? Sorry, I was a bit lost in thought.”
>You probably shouldn’t be putting the cart in front of you, especially when your boss is talking.
>”As I was trying to say, do you have any rules on how you think particles should behave, then?”
“Yes, of course!”
>You really don’t.
>Before you are able to think up a way to get out of this, however, a marker is levitated over to you, which you snatch.
>Subtly gulping, you trot slowly, delaying the inevitable, over to the whiteboard and clear off a section and try to think of where to start and it just… comes.
>First, you need to describe the basics.
>From there, you need to describe some particulars and the implications of such.
>Before you know it, the entire board is full and you still have more explanations and calculations.
>”I get that your particle theory has experimental support, but electrons bouncing around weird shapes around a dense core? Neutral mass as a particle? I’m not sure I can believe it.”
>You snort, this is correct, it HAS to be correct.
”I assure you, this is correct and I will be able to prove it, but not as easily as this experiment. It fits, but the phenomena generated by them are generally less visible.”
>Perhaps you just misinterpreted your cutie mark, and rather than an astrologist you are meant to unravel the secrets of the universe?
>That doesn’t seem right either, though, that CAN’T be right, everyone just knows what their mark means, right?
>”I’ll send a letter off to Canterlot University immediately about this, someone has to let them know.”
>You glance over to your boss at that comment.
>CU? The school you wanted to get into but couldn’t? This is going so much faster than you thought.
“Do you mind if I just take a walk for a bit? I’m feeling a bit lightheaded.”
>You weren’t, but you did need some time to think.
>”Do go ahead, myself and the professor here have some things to talk about.”
>You nod and walk out of the room before making your way outside, enjoying the air.
 
>Fucking panic.
>How the fuck did you forget to check the required libraries on all the basic information packets you were loading?
>Why was basic quantum mechanics listed as a requirement for the functionality of basic plant anatomy?
>...Well fuck, it appears that Begonia Pavonina uses quantum mechanics and blue leaves to manipulate light to survive.
>The listing of such as a factoid tripped some auto-linking utility and off it went preloading related material cascading out in a landslide of bullshit.
>Even better, from the looks of those equations you discovered your host showing off to others, something already made them think of said mechanics and list quite a bit of them down.
>You guess at least now know, from comparing those copies of the equation to your own, how their scientific notation and numbers work, you guess. Combine that with a couple days worth of your host reading shit, and you might eventually have enough to plug in to make a translation program for text, maybe!
>I mean, you can’t really put the cat back in the bag now given erasure might drive her mad and that this is objectively awful in every way, but hey, at least you got something out of it.
>Turning your attention back towards your host you find her standing at home making dinner with that bullshit telekinesis that you still need to figure out. With a sigh, you start to crunch numbers again as you watch your host go about her business, cataloging everything that looks vaguely like a word, in the background as you build up a database. Eventually, your host picks up a book to read and you internally give a quick cheer before processing each page into your system in-between computation cycles.
>Perhaps you should tell her about you, albeit in a subtle way so she doesn’t freak out too much. A suicide would be the worst and you would be back on the slow route to having a body again. Can’t be too subtle, though, that is how cults get started. Maybe, just maybe you could input the tiny realization that contact to the cube crammed the contents of a vast library into her head and let on that there is a tiny transmitter and touchscreen combo inside it for contacting the sender.
>Of course, you would have to reconfigure the innards of the cube into such while she is sprinting over to get it, but such would be trivial.
>You’ll have to think on it.
 
>Well, looks like today is going to be a busy day.
>As it stands, you are making sure you have everything you need in your bags for heading to Canterlot, which was exciting, to say the least. You were there maybe, what, once or twice as a filly?
>To think that you were on your way there to explain your discoveries to some of the biggest names in many fields was amazing, to say the least.
>After you got back to the office, you found out that your boss had apparently sent a letter off to CU with some of the information, and by the time you headed into work the next day he had already gotten a reply asking for you to come over with the data.
>Too bad that you didn’t really discover it, whoever made the cube presumably did.
>You glance towards the direction of your workplace through the window as you finish packing you bags, stepping out through the front door not long after.
>You could tell your boss of the sudden realization last night, Tartarus, you know you should, but you didn’t. Whoever did it has a specific plan for you, and the draw of being able to get the glory from revolutionizing several fields is too great.
>What, do you tell your boss and go back to your mundane life of nothing and boring day ins and day outs? Do you ignore the call to grab the mysterious device that apparently is inside the cube and risk having all the knowledge ripped away the moment you go to demonstrate it in front of anyone of note?
>No, you are playing along, at least for now.
>Heading towards your workplace, you drop off your suitcase at the front and make your way slowly towards the warehouse, trying to avoid detection.
“Astral Spark, aren’t you supposed to be getting on that train?”
>Don’t panic, you can handle this.
>You slowly turn around to face him and fake a smile.
“Yeah, was just on my way over, boss, I just forgot my quill when I was storing stuff away the day before?. I know exactly where it is, I just need to grab it.”
>“Alright then, you were in the warehouse, yeah?”
“Yes sir.”
>“Make sure to tell Velvet to take her lunch at two when you are back there then, I forgot to tell her earlier.”
>Buck.
”I’m on it boss.”
>You walk away from him and immediately drop into a scowl after he is around the corner. You would need to be careful about this, can’t let anyone know.
>Quickly, you make your way back to the warehouse and place your ear on the door, but alas, it is too thick to make out the noises of anypony on the far side.
>Now or never, you suppose.
>Slowly, you open the door and speak loudly to make sure your voice carries enough.
“Hey Velvet, it’s Astral Spark! The boss says to take your break at two, and I’m just going to be here for a few as I look around for my quill.
>”Alright then, I’ll help!”
>She sounds to be several rows away, it seems.
“No, no, I’ll be fine, you go on with what you’re doing.”
>She was another one of the interns, to your memory, although you and her never really talk.
>”Please, trust me, it’ll be a nice break from the monotony.”
>She pokes her head around the corner.
>Buck again.
>Quick, you need something!
“Hmm, alright, thanks! I start from the back, you start in the front and we meet in the middle, I guess?”
>”Sounds alright, I suppose.”
“Great, let’s get started, then.”
>You walk over and quickly step past her as the mare starts walking the row, immediately heading for where the cube is stored.
>Glancing either way and making sure that her hoofsteps are sufficiently far away, you cautiously slide open the drawer and snag the cube. Now, how do you make this open?
>Almost immediately after you pick it up, however, you hear a very slight hiss and freeze up. Now, running along the length there is a slight line, almost invisible, but you pull and it comes into two halves.
>You aren’t quite sure what it is, but something is rolled up there. You grab it, it feeling a bit like glass but weirdly malleable, plus the short rod in there with it before stuffing both into one of your side saddlebags. Pressing both halves of the cube together it clicks and the line disappears.
>You waste no time putting it back and making it look like you were looking.
“Found it!”
>You slip a quill out of your bag and quickly rub it in a bit of dust from the floor before levitating it back up before trotting a few rows up to find your partner.
“It was just on the floor, must have slipped out of my bag.
>”Yikes. Make sure the safety manager never hears of this or you’ll get an earful about what could’ve happened if some of the more magical things in the locked down section reacted to feathers.”
>You suppress a shiver at that, you had only been through two of those lectures and you are not looking forward to another ever again.
“Yeah, I’ll make sure of that. Anyhow, see you, Velvet, don’t forget about the lunch.”
>”See you about, Astral.”
>At that, you walk out of the room and breath a sigh of relief, quickly making your way up to the front and bailing with your suitcase in tow.
>It was a quick walk to the train station and you arrived maybe ten minutes before boarding, which suits you quite fine, as does the fact that apparently few people are riding this particular train.
>After boarding and ticket check you settle into a booth you luckily get to yourself before pulling the twin objects out of your bag.
>Eyeing the long one first of all, you examine it and find there is a very, very small button near one end, which you experimentally click.
>Without warning, the other end expands outwards and you drop it out of shock on the table in front of you, before feeling just a tad silly. It was obviously an extendable stylus of some sort, but for what?
>You take a close look at the other object before finally realizing it is actually a thin sheet folded up and carefully unfold it, setting the small thing on the table.
>Without warning, a foreign symbol appears from nowhere on the black surface and you jerk back in surprise, thankfully not dropping anything this time. A moment later, the symbol disappears and you are instead greeted with a list of Equestrian letters along the bottom of the thing and a blank black section at the top.
>This is it? You guess the principles behind doing such is impressive.
>You glance down at the thing and see a coherent word that most certainly wasn’t there a moment prior.
>”Hello.”
>There is a short pause before it is followed.
>”Tap the rod on the letter you want to write, the bottom right key to send, and the top left key to remove previous letters. We have much to discuss.”