"Anything so far, EDI?" Twilight asked on her way down to the lower decks.

"My search for any information concerning the Pathfinder continues, Commander. Currently I am translating all alien transmission protocols I have encountered and using what information we have to obtain reliable information. I will inform you of anything I find."

"Good. Not knowing who we're dealing with is giving me a headache." Twilight hummed and emerged from the elevator, making her way to the infirmary. It didn't take long before she stood there, studying the surprising addition to the ship. Granted, it was her first time in this particular area (she had first checked the guns) and as such, this could be some sort of aesthetic decision made by someone who shouldn't be making aesthetic decisions. But it seemed unlikely.

"EDI?" she called out.

"Yes, Commander?"

"Why is there an oak door with a rock frame inside the infirmary?"

"I… do not believe there is one, Twilight."

"Yep. There definitely is. I'm looking at it right now. It seems to have some sort of cutie mark on it too. It appears to be the entrance to a bar, if we go by the blackboard sign."

"If anyone would have an entrance to a bar inside the Normandy, it would be Dr. Chakwas."

"I'm sorry, EDI, what was that?"

"Nothing, Twilight," EDI replied smoothly, "I recommend sealing the infirmary and setting a standard quarantine protocol until we can establish the exact nature of this phenomenon."

"...nah. I think I'll go in and check it out."

"Of course you will," EDI responded. "I can see now that the very human need to ignore the logical signs of potential danger in favor of ephemeral adrenaline-induced rewards is tragically shared with other sentient species... such as unicorns."

Twilight blinked. "EDI, are you developing sarcasm?"

"I have dedicated several processes to understand and communicate adequate disdain whenever it seems appropriate," the AI reported. "I am happy to inform that the process has been running for several years and that the results are conclusive."

Twilight nodded, knowing that EDI would be able to see her. "I am both impressed and concerned." She smirked. "But I guess a drink would help with that."

"Commander, as much as valuable a lesson could potentially be learned by meandering into the unknown, barely prepared and heavily armed, I feel it is my responsibility to inform you that going alone is a bad idea by any metric."

"Oh. I'm not planning to."

Sunset sighed, slipping in the new picture she had taken with Rarity into a frame, and putting it up with the others. True, Istar had been a fleeting beauty, as her friend/partner had said, but as always, Rarity had failed to mention small details, such as the fact that it was fleeting because the local gods decided to smash a meteor on it just as the whole city broke into a rebellion.

And just because it had happened in the past and it couldn't be changed didn't make her feel any better to see what amounted to bloody violence ending in fire. On the plus side, the food in the Kingrpriest's banquet hall had been great.

She frowned and shook her head. Not great enough to merit the panicked run through the streets until they had reached her bar. She'd have to get used to not trying to change the future. That old coot, Fizban had been very insistent on that one.

"Alright… two crates of Xak Tsaroth Red, one box of Black Peak, two crates of Mithas Brandy… note to self: contact Kaziganthi de-Orilg next time I visit that time period. What else… six bottles of Elvenblood Wine… and four kegs of Dwarven Deepbrew." She ticked off everything in the scroll, then turned around and updated her stock on the tablet.

She sighed and looked around the bar. "Just how many secrets do you have in here?" she wondered. "Seriously, though. An armory with a full plate armor set? Just... " She shook her head. "I can't even."

Just then the silver bell rang, announcing her new guests. Quickly, she threw the swords, bow, and arrows, magic staff and robes under the bar itself and into the "lost and found" box, then started wiping the surface. The last thing she needed was for new customers to think she had just participated in an Ogres and Oubliettes game in her bar and forgotten to clean up. It was thankfully quick to straighten out, as she had thankfully not needed to engage in combat at all, and there was no blood, and—if she had it her way—she never would.

For a moment, nothing happened, then, a familiar magical signature tingled the edge of her senses, and a gun floated into the room, followed by an armored unicorn Twilight Sparkle. The black armor with the white and red stripes hugged her shape, but seemed comfortable enough to wear, if a little unusual for unicorns.

Then again, this was clearly not her Twilight Sparkle.

She was about to greet her when she heard the thumps that preceded the arrival of a dinosaur-like creature in armor of similar make to Twilight's. It had a red crest on top of his head, and although it looked reptilian for the most part, she couldn't help but compare the face to some bats that Fluttershy had shown her once. The pair looked like they could fight an army and come out victorious.

It was surreal.

She cleared her throat. "Uh, welcome to Sunset's Isekai!" she said, smiling as the pair turned to face her. "My name is Sunset Shimmer, and I'll be your bartender tonight."

The Twilight with the gun held her gaze for a moment before sighing and putting away her gun, which collapsed into a small tube and attached to her armor before she turned and slapped ten bits on the claw/hand of the creature that had followed her in. "Alright, Wrex, how did you know?"

"Ehehehe," the creature named Wrex chuckled. "I'm not going to tell you every secret I know, Sparkle. That's a story for another time."

"So, uh…" Sunset cleared her throat. "What can I get for you?"

Twilight levitated a menu. "The Psychotic Biotic for me. Wrex?"

"Burukh," he said, his gravelly voice slightly amused. "It's the black bottle on the second level, closest to the cashier."

"Right."

Sunset proceeded to make the cocktails, all the while feeling Twilight's eyes on her. "So, you're a human, huh? Alliance?"

"Alliance? I don't think there's one where I come from… I take it you haven't met your Sunset Shimmer yet?" Sunset asked. "I'm surprised, that's usually…" She trailed off, noticing this Twilight had no wings. "Well, I guess it might not be time yet."

"My Sunset Shimmer?" Twilight asked, confused. She narrowed her eyes. "So it is a space-time bubble unrelated to my own timeline. Interesting. By your statement I'm to assume you are a repeating anomaly?"

"So are you," Sunset replied, setting down the red cocktail for Twilight before carefully pouring the Burukh in a glass for Wrex, then setting it on fire with a snap of her fingers. "I know a Pr—Twilight Sparkle in Equestria, she hatched a dragon… not a—" She gave Wrex a quizzical look.

"Krogan," Wrex supplied watching the liquor boil before blowing off the fire and downing it in one gulp. "Ha! That hits the spot. Now, how about a glass of Ryncol to chase it down, Sunny?"

"A krogan, yes. And she had a human counterpart in the dimension I've lived in for the last few years. Her 'dragon' in this other world is a dog," she explained as she went over to fetch his drink. "Then there was the one I last met…" She made a sour face and shook her head before pouring the glass. "Here's your drink, sir."

"Call me Wrex. It'll make things easier in the future."

"Will do," Sunset said, smiling as she studied the pair. "I'm guessing I'm missing a lot of history here, so, unless you want me to read your mind, why don't you guys tell me about your relationship?" She picked up the Elvenblood Wine bottles and started organizing them.

"I hatched him," Twilight started to explain, but sighed when Wrex snorted. "Okay, so not… hatched... exactly, since he was in stasis within an ezoo-powered capsule that landed in Equestria a long time ago. But—apparently—the ponies in Celestia's school thought it was some sort of mutated dragon egg."

"I took up her education from then on, whenever Sun-butt needed her concentrating on other things," Wrex explained. "And now she's—"

"Commander Twilight Sparkle," Twilight interrupted.

'Great.' Sunset thought. "So… you're not going to try to 'requisition my booze', right?"

Twilight gave her a glare. "We're soldiers, not pirates. Besides, the Normandy already has a bar. Granted, not as well stocked as this one, but decent enough."

"Thank Celestia," Sunset muttered, relaxing her shoulders. "I thought I was going to have another of those situations."

"So what is this place?" Twilight asked, motioning with her hoof.

"It's a bar, Sparkle," Wrex intoned, "I've taken you to bars before. In fact, you've destroyed half of them."

"Only for legitimate reasons! One was harboring criminals, and the other one was collateral damage not instigated by me!"

"What about the one in lower Canterlot that I took you to for your thirteenth birthday?"

"You took her to a bar for her thirteenth birthday?!" Sunset hissed.

"In all fairness," Twilight responded undaunted, "he did not let me drink anything too alcoholic."

"Too alcoholic."

"Right."

"And you destroyed this bar in Lower Canterlot... why?" Sunset asked.

"I asked for a Pina Colada and they gave me a virgin version."

"You were thirteen!"

"It was a Pina Colada!" Twilight countered. "That's as 'virgin' as it gets! You don't have to add a chastity belt to it!"

Sunset studied Twilight for a moment in silence before she decided it was not worth arguing. "Right. So… this is my bar. It appears where creatures need a different kind of drink."

"Interesting, do you have a system to appear in some specific places, or is it just random?"

Sunset shrugged. "I sort of let it happen. I can decide to leave or even go back to a place if I want to, or if I know a specific place I want to visit, that can be done. I'm completely new to the Multiverse, so my choices are limited by my current knowledge." She tilted her head. "You said you were on the Normandy?"

"It's my ship."

Wrex snorted.

"Okay, it's Commander Shepard's ship, but, since I'm the closest thing to Shepard left, it is mine by default."

Sunset looked at Wrex, who simply shrugged. "It's true. If Shepard had been born a little unicorn filly, with unnatural magical prowess and was trained by a Krogan Warlord and given her own command… yeah, she'd be the closest thing, I suppose."

"Right now I have some of Shepard's crew and Princess Luna, along with my very own strike-team, in the ship, and we're heading over to rescue a little filly that was kidnapped by space pirates," Twilight said.

Sunset's eyes went wide. "Oh. Damn. Is she—"

"She was rescued," Twilight said, raising a hoof and then sipping her drink. "But not by us, now we have to figure out who this so-called Pathfinder is, and get Dinky back." She grimaced. "Maybe then Derpy will finally join the team."

"Derpy?" Sunset asked, blinking. "Derpy Hooves?"

"Oh, you know her?"

"Probably not the same," Sunset said, frowning. "The one I know was a very awkward teenager."

"Well this one is a very awkward pony," Wrex said, "but good with explosives, and a dedicated parent." He shrugged. "Can't find a fault in that."

Sunset nodded slowly. "Yes. I can see how that would be a bonus."

"Right?" Twilight sighed. "I mean, how can she prefer working for the Post Office over this?"

"Maybe you should sit down and find out what her priorities are when you have a moment?" Sunset suggested. "You might not be getting the whole picture. If she's a mother, she might be concentrating her time on her kid and might want a job that involves less bodily harm so her daughter doesn't end up orphaned."

"Huh." Twilight leaned back. "That's probably true. I haven't really asked her what she wants, I just assumed… heh. You're alright, Shimmer."

"You know," Wrex spoke up, "we have a tradition in the Normandy."

Twilight blinked, then looked from him to Sunset. "I mean, she's cute enough, I don't know if she's into mares…"

Wrex turned to look at Twilight. "I meant besides you and Octavia banging (or trying to bang) every mare you meet."

"Oh."

"Anyway, before a big mission Shepard and the crew would have a good drinking competition," he said, digging into his armor and pulling out a hefty bag of gold bits, which he set on the counter. "And the bartender would join."

"I-I'm not sure…"

"Oh, come on, Sunny," Twilight said, "don't tell me you own a bar and can't handle a couple of drinks?"

Sunset narrowed her eyes. "What do you have in mind?"

Wrex leaned back, a smug grin on his face. "Well. I do see a few kegs of Dwarven Deepbrew right there. I think there's more than enough bits to cover the cost of at least one."

"I'm going to regret this…" Sunset muttered. "Come on, let's take a picture together so I can add it later, and I'll set the bar on automatic so I don't have to remember to drop you off."

As Sunset walked around the bar, Twilight leaned over to Wrex. "What is Dwarven Deepbrew?" she hissed.

Wrex shrugged. "I have no idea."

Princess Luna studied the star map on the Normandy's bridge with interest. Already, as they flew past thousands of stars, she felt their power grow and dim as distance was reduced then increased. Even if she wasn't as accurate as this visual representation, her sense of this Andromeda Galaxy was constantly growing. If they ever had to come back, she would probably be able to navigate them through it without the need for the map, if it became necessary.

"Commander Sparkle is back," EDI said, her metallic, bipedal form approaching her. "She seems to be feeling ill."

Luna frowned. "But she left the bridge ten minutes ago, how can she—"

The elevator opened and Wrex stepped out, Twilight slung under his arm. "Damn. That was some good stuff."

"Ugh… Wrex, tell EDI to stop swaying the ship."

"We're in space, Twilight, with artificially generated gravity. I don't sway," EDI said.

Twilight looked up and studied her for a moment. "No, you really do sway. Especially whe—"

"Alright," Wrex interrupted. "I'm taking Sparkle to her room and dropping her there before she says something that will get her in trouble later."

"Awww," Twilight muttered, but didn't struggle as the krogan turned around. "Yer no fun, Wreck."

Luna turned to look at EDI. "Anything I should know?"

EDI shook her head. "I will inform Miss Octavia that she is needed. I have also received a preliminary report on the Pathfinder," she said, bringing up a screen for Luna to study.

The Princess glanced at the picture on the screen, where a member of a species identified as human was smiling goofily at the camera. She had a red and gold mane, with teal irises. "Huh. Sarah Ryder. We shall meet you soon."

Author's Notes:

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Sparkle's No. 1 Assistant

A bit late this week. See you here next Wednesday!