Author's Notes:

Honestly this was written in two days while I'm home sick. I was driving home when the song In the Year 2525 came on the radio, and I started making jokes about 2001: A Space Odyssey. Then it sort of clicked by the time I realized I was home.

Two days now I've been eating chicken noodle soup and grilled cheese, and drinking water, Pepto, and beer. I'm pretty sure this is the product of a fever dream.

2525: A Space Oddity
By ROBCakeran53

Chapter 1: Something in the Night Sky

The night, and all cast down upon her moon’s light, were the domain of (former) Princess Luna.

Nopony would argue this fact, and even if they wanted to, they’d lose the verbal battle. In olden times, a pony could even challenge a Royal in a duel to the death for the rightful rule over day or night, but never a pony would work up the courage.

This greatly displeased Luna for many years up to her banishment.

And now that she was returned, the once wild and still being tamed lands of Equestria were that of, mostly, peace and prosperity. Only those nations outside her borders were in a minor turmoil, and yet through the powers that had banished her, a new era of peace for every creature on their world was being observed.

While this was all a good thing, it had led to an event that she’d never dared dream of, one that left both her and her sister at odds with each other. A battle of wits, where only one of them could truly win, the other destined for failure.

“B Seven. B, as in bland, and seven as in… uh… before eight, and after six.”

Luna sighed as she looked down at her mostly bare bingo board. Celestia’s, meanwhile, was nearly full, her win would be either I twenty two or O sixty five.

“We cannot understand why thou drag us to these miserable nights of Bingo. We never win.”

Celestia tittered. “Now now, Lulu, we’re retired! It’s time to take some us time. Relax, how I figure it, in a hundred years or so, we’ll be back to helping Twilight with her rule and out there, doing stuff.”

“Stuff?” Luna asked.

“B eleven. B as in Bonzo, and eleven which is two one’s.”

Luna scowled at her board, while Celestia placed a mark upon hers. Now she had three possible wins.

“You know, fighting off monsters, helping citizens of Equestria with their troubles. That sort of thing.”

“I still fail to see what kind of stuff two ex-rulers could be out there doing at a time of such peace in the world.”

“I twenty-one. I as in Indigo, and twenty-one as in seven times three.”

“Bingo!” shouted a mare from across the hall.

“Drats!” both alicorns spat, pushing their boards away.

“Was that Ginger Ale again?” asked Luna.

“It would appear so, yes.”

“We should do something about her.”

Celestia rolled her eyes. “She’s ninety seven. We’re going to mathematically outlast her by… a lot.”

“We still say she is cheating.”

Chuckling, Celestia began cleaning up her area as other ponies began to file out of the bingo hall.

“It’s just… as much as We wish to rest now, We cannot help this nagging feeling of something coming.”

Celestia quirked a brow. “Something coming? From where?”

Luna pointed a hoof upward.

“The dance studio upstairs?”

The darker alicorn face hoofed. “Nay, sister, but from Our stars.”

“I know you’re still hanging onto their control, but really now, what makes you think something’s coming from up there?”

Standing, Luna grabbed her coffee thermos and began walking away, Celestia close behind.

“We cannot say for sure. We have been looking up to them the last several nights, and a lone star has been growing brighter, yet We cannot touch it. It is there, just out of Our reach.”

Celestia tapped her chin. “Could I help?”

“Possible. Art thou free after sundown?”

“Depends on which Bonzo movie they’re showing tonight.”

“We believe it is Bonzo Runs for Princess.”

“Bah, I hate that one. So unrealistic. He doesn’t even become an alicorn.”

“Sister! Mine eyes have yet to perceive that motion picture!”

“Oh, sorry.”

Sighing, Luna leaned forward to nuzzle her sister. “So will you then? Join Us, that is?”

“Of course, Lulu. Maybe with both of us, we can poke it and see what comes out.”

“Tia, you sound as though this were a nest of twitter mites. Nothing lives up there but mine stars. Surely, it is nothing to worry about but a simple curiosity.”

Celestia looked up at the clear blue sky. “I sure hope so.”

----------

The day’s events came and went, and before too long nightfall had come to Shady Acres Retirement Village. Luna was seated upon her small porch of her small home, waiting for her sister while looking up at the sky.

“Is it still there?” came a voice.

“Aye. Brighter yet, since previous nights. My stomach twists, mayhaps I’m a fool to not worry? Maybe… this is a dangerous nest, and best not be provoked?”

Celestia landed beside her sister, wrapping the smaller alicorn up in a wing.

“Well, if it continues to draw closer, eventually we’re going to be forced to see what it is. We might as well try to probe what it is, while it’s farther out.”

Luna nodded, and the two stood on the balcony, Celestia’s wing still over her sister’s back. Luna’s horn, and then Celestia’s, began to glow, and their magic collided just over their heads, and shot straight out into the night sky.

Several minutes ticked by before they both recoiled from shock.

“It… is solid! Something drifts in the depths of space!” Luna said, immediately turning tail and entering her suite.

Celestia continued to stare blankly up at the night sky, eyes wide, while her sister began to gather writing supplies.

While collecting, Luna talked out loud. “Do they know Equestrian? If we write them a letter, will they understand it? Oh! We should also write Mi Amore and… no, Sparkle should be left out until we know more. She has plenty of burdens upon her withers.”

Returning to her still stunned sister, Luna began writing a letter in multiple languages that she knew, all saying a single line.

Greetings, space travelers.

Luna strove for simplicity when it came down to the important details. Celestia was still frozen, her wing outstretched as if Luna hadn’t moved. The ex-lunar princess returned to standing beside her sister, finding her wing still comfortable, and relit her horn, sending the letter careening into space.

“Hopefully they can understand one of those languages, or figure it out. How exciting this is!”

Celestia’s eyes moved, watching the letter rocket up into the night sky, which was what finally broke her out of her transe.

“What? Luna, what did…”

“We have flung a missive into the dark depths of space with as much reckless abandon as the Ponyville Mailmare. With any luck, it shall find its mark. Now, shall we write to Mi Amore?”

----------

The next day, Princess Cadence was standing on her figurative aunt’s porch upon their latest living quarters, the Shady Acres Retirement Village, struggling to understand what they were talking about.

“A message… from space?” she asked again.

Luna nodded with glee. Celestia nodded with less glee.

“Something,” Luna started, “wanders Our night sky, so We have sent them a missive in the hopes of future communication.”

“How? I mean, if they can even understand our written language, who’s to say they can send a letter back?”

At this, Luna’s grin grew larger, while Celestia simply sighed.

“Because… it’s moving faster now,” Celestia grumbled.

“Oh most joyous of events!” Luna proclaimed, raising a hoof into the air.

Cadence blinked. “Okay, so… they got the letter. We’ve no idea if that is a good or bad thing.”

“Why would it be bad?” Luna asked.

“What if they’re hostile?” Cadence asked.

“We obliterate them, naturally,” Luna countered.

“Fair point. And if they’re refugees? Looking for aid?”

“We help them,” Celestia added this time.

“That simple?”

“Of course.”

“Verily.”

Cadence sighed. “Alright, then in that case… why did you ask me to come, instead of Twilight?”

“With her new duties, We assumed she’d be too busy to come visit a couple of old nags.”

Celestia smacked her sister upside the head with a wing.

“Fine, one old nag, and one perfectly petite ex-princess pony.”

Celestia nodded.

Cadence rolled her eyes. “Alright, so… there’s not much I can really do about this. You’d still be better off getting Twilight…"

Luna grinned, sensing the reputation in the love alicorn tone.

"However…?" Luna asked.

Sighing, Cadence closed her eyes and nodded her head.

"Yes, I'm up for helping. What do you plan?"

Luna clipped her hooves in delight, while Celestia stood and made her way inside.

"We've modified a long wave radio to transmit a message, however sending out a message has garnered nothing."

"Do they hear it?" Cadence asked, following her older aunt.

"We don't know."

Cadence stopped in the doorway, forcing Luna to push her way between the pink pony and the door frame.

"So, we have no clue if they're friendly or not. They're now rushing towards us. You've sent one letter in every Equestrian language known, both past and present. Now… you're pushing your luck for audio confirmation?"

Both regal retired alicorn’s nodded.

"Sure, why not?" Cadence shrugged.

Using her wings, Luna carefully picked up the modified radio cabinet and moved it outside to the porch. She set it down in the small patio table, Celestia and Cadence joining her.

"Now," Luna began with an air of confidence, "We shall begin the spell. Sister, once I give the signal, apply your magic to boost it. Niece, you will follow once she gives you her own signal. Understood?"

Both ponies nodded.

"Excellent, let us begin!"

----------

Princess Twilight Sparkle arrived in time to watch the fireponies putting out the last of the blaze. Thankfully, only two apartments were destroyed, six others damaged, and no fatalities directly related to the flames.

Apparently fire alarms around those with weak hearts wasn't always the right move.

"Technically, she was only dead for about 2 minutes. Then We revived her," said Luna, her coat covered in soot, start mane and tail singed only slightly.

Twilight Sparkle's frown did not shift.

"Honestly, I didn't expect such a reaction so sudden," Celestia added, her nearly white coat now dark gray.

The last of the three, Cadence, had her forehooves covering her face as she could only groan in distress. Of the three, her mane and tail took the brunt of the damage.

"So… let me see if I understand you three right,"Twilight began, then started pacing around them.

"You discovered something moving in space. Discovered it was coming here, sent a letter which promoted it to move faster. Then, once realizing this, sent for Cadence, and had her help boost a radio transmission to send a verbal message. Am I on track so far?"

The three other alicorn’s nodded.

"So sending the message went okay, but suddenly, you got a response, which overloaded your communicator, causing a power surge, that ignited a fire, and nearly burned down an entire complex. Still on track?"

Again, all three alicorn’s nodded, although ears downcast, save for Luna.

"And for not one minute, you thought to invite me, who regularly creates test equipment enough to know where to install safeguards so these sorts of accidents could not happen?"

"We were going to invite you, dear Twilight, but-"

Twilight cut Celestia off with a raised hoof. Then she sighed.

"At least… tell me you did hear something."

Luna, the only pony not appearing phased by anything that had transpired, grinned like a maniac and levitated a reel of film.

"Better, we recorded it."

The youngest alicorn's gleeful squee caused the fireponies to respond to what they thought was another fire alarm going off.

----------

They decided to move the testing to Twilights former castle in Ponyville. Starlight Glimmer was overly joyed at having the company.

"This is bad," Starlight groaned, "one alicorn is enough. Two are trouble. But four? Doing experiments?"

"We are standing before you, doth you not see?" Luna asked.

"Yes, which is why I'm voicing it."

“Relax Starlight, now that I’m monitoring and helping them, there should be no problems whatsoever.”

Spike the dragon chose that moment to walk by, carrying in the spare reel to reel player, and let out a guffaw that rocked the castle walls.

“Spiiiike!” Twilight pouted.

“Sorry! That was just honestly funny,” the adolescent drake said, setting the machine down onto the magic table.

“Alright, just…” Starlight rolled a forehoof, “... don’t burn the place down. Again.”

With those final words, Headmare Starlight walked out with a flick of her tail, Spike following closely behind.

It was quiet around the four alicorns as Luna opened her personal pocket dimension for storage, retrieved the reel of audio film. Carefully, she placed it onto the machine, looping the end into the empty tray, and set the machine to the correct speed.

“Seven and a half inch speed?” Twilight questioned.

“Aye, t’was the best We could get our hooves upon. We would have preferred fifteen, alas there were no commercial facilities close by.”

Nodding, Twilight plugged the machine in. “Probably for the best, my machine with fifteen or thirty inch settings was donated to the school for the performing arts classes.”

Then the four stood around the player, quietly. All four sets of eyes bounced around each other, giving pensive looks.

“So… are we going to… play it?” Cadence asked.

“Aye,” Luna said.

“When?” Celestia said, fighting back a smirk.

“Sparkle, art thou ready for thy notes?”

With her magic, Twilight brought up a quill and parchment, giving a single nod.

“Very well, let it begin,” Luna used her hoof, first switching the power on, then once the internal humming could be heard, she pressed play.

As was to be expected, nothing but a very faint crackles and pops of empty silence came from the speaker.

“Hello, this is a test.” Luna’s voice came through.

“Good, it recorded our end too,” Luna nodded with a smile.

“We shall now send forward the missive. Sister, when you are ready.”

There was a faint sound of magic sparking to life.

“Alright,” Celestia’s voice sounded. “Now, help boost it Cadence, if you would please.”

There was no audio confirmation, but more magic could be heard tinkling about.

Then there was simply more silence.

“I’m not sure if-” Cadence’s voice began, then was abruptly cut off by a series of beeping.

There was the sound of some movement, but the random beeping continued, until a loud humming began.

“Luna, I think-” Celestia began.

Suddenly, music began. First a guitar, then a bit of a brass instrument, possibly a trumpet? Then, vocals, although they were unrecognizable. The music went for about fifteen seconds, and then there was a strange sound.

“Luna! Look-”

Celesita’s voice was silenced by loud static and distorted sounds.

“That’s it,” Twilight said, stopping the machine.

“I thought I recalled music,” Cadence said, tapping her chin.

“But what was it? What did it mean? Or the beeping, reminded me of Dah-Dit.” Twilight tapped her forehead in thought.

“Possible. Can you try to decipher it?” Celestia asked.

“Yes, I’ll need to find my book on it. I don’t remember all of the letters, but there’s no telling if it even equates to anything we’d understand.

“Still, I’ll try.” Twilight’s horn flared, and not a moment later Spike came striding back into the room.

“Yes, Twilight?”

“Spike, I need Communications and the Art of Conversing, third edition, since it still retains some of the older codes.”

Giving a mock salute, Spike walked off to the library.

----------

The next several hours were filled with one count of intense studying, and three counts of intense boredom. Luna had played the tape a few more times, allowing Twilight to record everything she needed, then a few more times just because it was intriguing. However, after about fifteen minutes of listening to a thirty second clip, it was enough to force Celestia to unplug the machine and insist the three other alicorns find something else to do.

Twilight, for her part, remained glued to her book and parchment, writing down several notes as she tried to figure out how the message broke up to form letters.

Finally, at the chime of the fourth hour, it was Cadence, setting down her romance novel, who broke the silence.

“What if it’s not a message at all? Just… background that leads to the music?”

Twilight shook her head. “No, there’s something here. I know it. I just have to keep at it.”

“Alright, if you say so,” Cadence said, looking to her two aunts as they’d also set down their own books.

Luna was reading something on music, trying to see if there’s some meaning to the instruments heard. Celestia, not as invested, was reading Daring Do.

As dusk began to approach, the four alicorns decided they needed a breath of fresh air. Taking a break, they went out to one of the many balconies on the side of the castle, and with amusement the three watched Twilight bring about the night.

“Excellent work, young Sparkle,” Luna clopped her hooves.

“Yes, dear, that was much smoother than the last time we helped you,” Celestia nodded.

Twilight blushed. “Thank you. It’s been getting easier, but it will probably be some time before I’m as smooth as you two.”

“Fret not, we will continue to oversee the weekends, giving your magic a break.”

Twilight nuzzled up to her former mentor. “Thank you, both of you.”

Celestia returned the nuzzle, then the four looked up to the sky.

“Where do you suppose it is now?” Twilight asked.

“Hrm. Our guess would be…” Luna’s horn came to life, and then suddenly the mare gasped, dropping her magic. “Impossible!”

“What!? What is it?” Twilight rushed to the darker alicorn’s side.

“It… is above us!”

Everypony looked up, around the top of the castle. Luna shook her head, stomping a hoof. “Nay! It is above Our Earth. Sitting still, waiting. I shall send another missive post haste, mayhaps they think to expect an invitation.”

Luna began writing something out, right as Spike returned with a platter, four tea cups, and a kettle.

“Figured you girls might want something to drink,” he said, placing it onto a small table.

“Thanks, Spike,” Twilight said, pouring tea into the four glasses.

“No problem. I picked up most of your trash in the map room, but thanks for using a Come to Life spell on that vacuum. It was doing pretty good, but I didn’t know the castle needed a new one,” Spike said with a shrug then marched out.

“Mmm, yeah, that’s-” Twilight froze.

Luna, slowly, stopped writing.

Celesita’s teacup hesitated below her muzzle.

And lastly, Cadence, finishing her cup, let out a sigh. “Huh, I don’t remember you doing that, Twilight.”

“Because she didn’t,” Celestia spoke up.

A brief bout of silence, then all four alicorn mares shot to their hooves, running back inside and towards the map room. It was quick, and they hesitated at the open door’s edge. First, Twilight leaned her head in, looking around the frame. Cadence’s head sat above hers. Then Luna’s, and lastly, Celestia’s.

Honestly, they had no words for what they were seeing.

Much taller than a typical Equestrian vacuum cleaner, the long stem stood easily just shy of Twilight’s current height. It was a dull green, with gray accents. Furthermore, it was just moving all about on it’s lonesome. The power cord was safely wrapped up on two hooks along the handle.

It was also eerily quiet. No electric motor sucking in dirt or debris. It just moved about the room, seeming to almost study the objects.

Suddenly, it turned towards them, and all four mares pulled their heads back and away from the doorway, huddling in a circle.

“Okay, so… that looked like a vacuum to the rest of you, correct?” Twilight asked.

The three others nodded.

“It also appeared to be studying the room, not cleaning,” Celestia noted.

The other three nodded.

“It was not plugged in, suggesting a portable power source?” Luna added.

Nodding, the three others did.

“It looked quite sleek and modern, but it’s hoof handle seemed too tall for an average pony,” Cadence inserted.

Three of the others nodded.

“Is there a reason we’re whispering?”

The new voice was strange, having almost a tinny sound like it was speaking through a tin can. It sounded male in origin, and as the four ponies looked between Twilight and Celestia, the vacuum stood there in their small huddle.

“Oh, hello!” it seemed to speak, the headlamp glowing with each syllable.