Idris

Pony boots and nephews and storm troopers at MCM Birmingham 2017 They are hinged and sprung-return with normal shoes inside. The metal is 2mm aluminium and the sole is normal rubber sheet glued on. The fur is velcro on. I am thinking about changing to Shining Armour with whit furry trousers? That’s a big project for me though.

Next on the list was the shield for Battle Pony in Worbla and foam with a serious pony centre piece! I was amazed i could draw a pony http://s146.photobucket.com/user/teamidris/media/IMG_1534_zpsnjxko44w.jpg.html][/ http://s146.photobucket.com/user/teamidris/media/IMG_1590_zpspwe4isii.jpg.html][/URL]

Stoke-con-Trent 2016; http://s146.photobucket.com/user/teamidris/media/IMG_0985_zpsw1lwhaz3.jpg.html][/ the new stick with dragons; http://s146.photobucket.com/user/teamidris/media/IMG_1289_zps3o9gsjkb.jpg.html][/ http://s146.photobucket.com/user/teamidris/media/IMG_1290_zpslmu2efud.jpg.html][/ I hope those work. It was having link problems . .

I've been so taaardy this back end. I just lost the ideas part of my brain since the summer started and it really took some getting started. For this story I went back to the notes book and scribbled in concepts and text haphazard. Finally this month I wrote it up. (I did build a mini-rat-bike and go to UKPonycon though, so not a total loss) The idea with "Twilights Ghost" was a spin off from another story I did that looked at being able to pass through solid objects. In "Soft Flooring" it was a trap for a thief, but this time I wanted Twilight to try it to set her on adventure. She's a great vehicle for some magic-gone-wrong, especially after her time travel 'incident' in canon. Hopefully I am back in the swing of things and more ideas will pop into my head soon I guess the story here is; stick with it, writers blocks may be long, but they don't last forever http://www.fimfiction.net/story/359179/twilights-ghost

"There have been a lot of fan fics and speculation on Nightmare Moon being sent to the moon as a punishemnet by Celestia, using the Elements Of Harmony. But what if that isn't what happened?" I fancied a cannon story and to achieve it I watched the first two episodes several times. It has turned out more like an "Events from Celestias perspective" with a twist. Celestia and Twilight sat on ornately embroidered silk cushions in the Princess's private rooms. They were discussing an upcoming Royal event due in the next few days. Twilight looked at her mentor and then placed her tea cup back down carefully on the crystal glass tray. "Are you alright?" asked the young purple mare. "I'm fine," replied the white Alicorn with a smile. In reality the pain was growing inside her by the hour as the thousandth summer sun celebration approached. "The preparations can be tiring for an old pony, even though I should be used to them after all this time." Twilight didn't look convinced. It had been many years since the young filly had hatched a dragon's egg and aged it near instantly. Magical talent like that didn't always come with intelligence, but this time it had returned with a vengeance. Celestia doubted that her student had bought into the throw away statement and as the event approached it would become even harder to hide her secret. Somehow she needed to get Twilight out of harms way. "I promise I'm fine and you have a party to get to. Go and have some fun with ponies your own age." As her protege skipped out of the ornately carved doors Celestia sat back and winced. It wasn't like this day was a surprise, in fact, it was the most certain prophecy ever. Twilight headed back to her lodgings happily enough, but then began to think about the obvious discomfort of her teacher. She knew her to be very old, but as far as she had read, Alicorns didn't physically age beyond adult hood. She decided to take a history book on the summer sun celebration to read under a shady tree in the Royal gardens. It was there that she started to realise that all wasn't well. Celestia was already wondering how to divert Twilight just as a parchment arrived. Opening it she sighed as she realised hiding anything from her especially diligent student was near impossible. Maybe if she could keep her close by, she might be able to protect her and put Nightmare Moon somewhere secure for another thousand years! At least if the purple unicorn went on ahead there would be more time to prepare. Quickly she began to assemble a reply; "Dear Twilight, Travel to Ponyville immediately to make sure everything is ready. This is a particularly important event being the 1000th. My little ponies will likely overdo things until it resembles a farce! If things go wrong I need you to be prepared" She decided to simplify it somewhat, deny everything and include a proviso for her to make some new friends. Twilight was spending more and more time engrossed in dusty old books and it was becoming unhealthy. Also, the researcher would soon have a working knowledge of this ancient magic, so it made sense that she start her off with the vital pieces. The elements of harmony had always been handled by a team. Celestia sat back and pondered on how all the unfortunate events had unraveled so long ago. It had been a thousand years since that horrific day. Her sweet baby sister had been so easily changed into a heartless monster. The little ball of dark fluff that had bounced around the palace had later shredded the landscape. Twisted by a desire to destroy, she had eventually tried to make every day a time of darkness. Initially Celestia had tried to avoid a fight, but with starvation imminent among the populace she had finally turned on her own family. As if that wasn't bad enough the Princess of the Sun had also been horrified at her own actions. All too easily she had slipped into the form of Alicorn warrior. She knew from the ancient books that having a horn and wings could so easily turn a pony mad with power, eventually leading to the Alicorns' near extinction. As she had caressed the elements of harmony she had wondered if she was next. Unfortunately Luna's thoughts lived inside Nightmare Moon and she was very nearly one step ahead in claiming the elemental stones for herself. Circling the Goddess of the Sun she had glared at the enchanted gems. "And what manner of plan have you for those?" She snarled. "They are so pretty," replied Celestia. "I thought they might honour me with the very brightest of roses in the palace garden this summer." Luna scoffed. "If thou hast nothing important to do with them, then I am sure I can put them to better use!" She lunged at them with ears back and fangs showing, her wings cutting the air to thrust her forward. It was too late for Nightmare Moon to change her mind as she caught the hard glint of the sun in Celestia's eye. It was too late to take anything back, too late to retreat, and far too late to forgive. The Sun Princess rose with a firm "NO!". The elements spat light and spark as they twisted and spun through the air. This wasn't a controlled use of their powers as in previous engagements, but instead a magical attack of hate and anger. Through the explosion of light Nightmare Moon could be seen to scream in agony, and yet, no sound could be heard. In a split second she was gone and the brightly coloured stones floated to the floor like autumn leaves. Celestia sank to the floor in tears as she heard her sisters voice. "Sister, where am I?" the small voice questioned. "What has happened to me?" Rolling onto her side she looked across the stone floor at the method of destruction. How could she have been so stupid. There was only one rule to go with the elements of harmony. They needed no complex scripture or teaching. If activated they did exactly what you wished and if all you wished for was for something not to happen then magic would fill in the gaps. It was a day or maybe two before ponies had dared to enter the inner castle chambers to search for answers. At first they thought Nightmare Moon had killed their Princess as she lay there catatonic. They made to move her body and were startled to hear her draw breath. "I must raise the sun," she announced in booming voice. "Nightmare Moon is no more!" Staggering to the nearest balcony accompanied by pleas to rest she looked upon the moon. It was then that the idea came to hide the terrible event that had taken place there. Before lowering the moon she carved an image of her once loved sister on its surface. And then, as she had so often done, she raised the sun. The white alicorn had continued on alone for a thousand years like that, ever mindful of this coming day. In that time all she really learned was that using the elements on your own was very risky. Typically they were handled by five ponies, where the magical skill of each individual dictated their power. If she could get Twilight to help with some of them, maybe they had a chance while Nightmare Moon was still weak from release. Celestia knew her student would be studying hard on their use, so she decided to do the same and refresh her memory in the Royal library. Unfortunately Nightmare moon was studying her every move in readiness for release. As the Sun Princess settled down amongst the ancient scrolls the silence was periodically broken by confused pleas from her sister. Despite her best overnight efforts Celestia had failed to come up with a new exit plan. She had no choice but to travel to Ponyville and do her best when the moment arrived. Luna was now much more vocal as her essence writhed expectantly for escape from within her. The summer sun celebration was upon them and any second now they would be separated. With all of Ponyville assembled Mayor Mare began the official welcome. Celestia winced as she felt Nightmare moon stir inside her. There was a distinct mental after taste from the thoughts of the Princes of Darkness. "And now, it is my great honour to introduce to you the ruler of our land, the very pony who gives the sun and the moon each and every day, the good, the wise, the bringer of harmony to all of Equestria... Princess Celestia!" Celestia cringed at the thought of being described as good and wise. She had made a terrible mistake in letting Luna become Nightmare Moon and then compounded it by failing to deal with her effectively. Now she felt like Celestia the incompetent. She gave one last gasp in readiness to lower the moon and raise the sun, but instead only felt blackness as she fell to the floor. The transfigured form of Luna now stood over the sun princess, an evil grin worn across her face. "How unfortunate we cannot spend anymore time together," she spat. Then, turning to look at the moon, she recanted the spell that had placed her image on it's surface. "That's better, one so hates to see the things one loves defaced. Now it is time to make the dramatic entrance you had so carefully planned for yourself." Nightmare Moon left the preparations room and made for the stairs to the balcony. With a purple glow of her horn she pushed her sister into a corner and covered her in an invisibility spell. Now that she was freed from her sisters body, it was not really needed. The shock of absorbing Nightmare Moon had set Celestia back quite a bit. The shock of her release was way more painful. She tried to get up and make chase, but was now totally incapacitated. In the main hall she could hear the commotion and knew that Twilight was there. It had all gone horribly wrong and her student would likely be a target for the evil Princesses amusement. She had hoped that being trapped within her would have made her sister more compassionate, but by the sound of it she was now worse than ever. All too soon the sounds outside faded and she was left with her thoughts in the dim lamp light. It was merely a pin prick of light compared to the sun she was now powerless to access. All she could do was re-run the images of the last few seconds, the last few hours and that initial failure so very long ago. Maybe Twilight could pull off some sort of miracle. The purple ball of energy was highly accomplished and capable, but Nightmare Moon had already beaten the entire Empire. Even if Twilight could get to the elements, it was unlikely she could use them without help. Five highly trained ponies in tune with each other could only achieve so much and none had ever come close to bringing down an Alicorn. Celestia could only hope that her student had made friends and that they were good ones. Luckily for everypony Twilight had made up lost ground quickly. Those ponies who had been no more than strangers a short time ago had formed a strong bond of trust against adversity. Nightmare Moons game of despair and deception had actually strengthened their resolve to complete their quest! As Twilight stood before the Dark Princess resplendent in her battle armour she realised that six was the magic number after all. She could now see that harmony wasn't just a name for something nice, but was in fact the result of good magic and of good friendship. Half by accident she had raised the sixth element and unleashed the full power of the other five. A magic so strong was released that it knocked them all to the ground and their foe unconscious. With Nightmare Moon gone Celestia felt the dark spells fade from her form. Blinking with surprise and jumping to her feet she sped out of the room and out onto the balcony. Maybe everything was fine, but there was no time to waste in fear of finding her sister only stunned, but still quite dangerous. It was imperative she intervene quickly while she had a narrow window of opportunity. Shaking off a sizeable headache and spreading her wings she made for the old castle as fast as she could. She knew the layout well and entered the room that held the elements of harmony to find it empty. Her horn glowing with white fire ready for battle she teleported through the window of the throne room. Eyes ablaze with the full energy of the sun she was shocked to find a scene of quiet reflection. "Princess Celestia," gleamed the little purple pony unicorn. "Twilight Sparkle, my faithful student, I knew you could do it," she lied with a huge smile. Keeping an empire going was half planning and half luck and her teaching had clearly paid off today. Looking to her left she could see her sister still unconscious on the floor, but visually unharmed from the reversal spell. "But you told me it was all an old pony tale?" asked a confused looking Twilight. "I told you to make some friends and nothing more." It had been a viable slight of hand with the truth. Telling everypony how her flesh and blood had annihilated Equestria wouldn't have helped anything. The fact that Nightmare Moon was trapped inside her would have doubled the panic. The initial failure with the elements of harmony had undoubtedly been reversed by the six ponies ranged before her. She continued; "I saw the signs of Nightmare Moons return and I knew it was you who had the magic inside to defeat her. But you could not unleash it until you let true friendship into your heart." It seemed so obvious to her now. Of course harmony was the essence of friendship. In all the years of the elements use the ponies assigned to them had been chosen by the court. Her ancestors had never given anypony a proper chance to wield them as the universe had intended. Turning to her side she couldn't be happier that the new elemental bearers had brought back her sweet little sister to her. "Now if only another one will as well?" She said quietly walking toward Princess Luna. "It has been a thousand years since I have seen you like this. It's time to put our differences behind us. We were meant to rule together little sister. Will you accept my friendship?" The End

Obabscribbler narrates soft flooring https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ms3E48eINdI

Fia94 from Deviantart hooked us up with some mint title art.

This is the sixth outing for my OC family and the third of the longer ones (first three are poem-stories). A young grey filly and her seapony friend are on a quest to get a good grade in a school project. They could roll a marble down a plank, but that's just not how they think. To find out how their minds work, please read on A Boat Tailed Waggon (by TeamIdris)(title art by Fia94) Lilypad and Fish sat behind their desks watching the clock creep slowly around to lunch time. It was a very nice day outside and certainly far to pleasant to be inside a class room. Fish wanted to run around in the sunshine and Lilypad wanted to be back in her water barrel for a bit. Despite being midsummer 'Miss' was explaining rain. As Lilypad was currently magically transformed into her unicorn state, the topic was nearly too much to bare. "How does heavy water go up and why does it come back down?" A pony had asked an hour ago. The description of the water cycle was something the class covered every year. Although rain was important, it wasn't any more exciting than; dried out water went up, got cold and fell back as rain. "How fast can raindrops fall?" Fish groaned under her breath and Lilypad quietly giggled at her friends response. "It falls faster and faster until the air pushes back on it and the speed levels out. Rain drops only fall so fast and no more," said Miss. Eventually the clock reached twelve and the whole class made ready to break for the door. "Your assignment for the next two weeks is to demonstrate gravity. Class dismissed." Once outside Fish jumped into the barrel with Lilypad. "Room for another one!" She shouted. Lilypad laughed as large amount of water sloshed over the side. Fish put her head under the water and resurfaced with a bedraggled smirk. "Gravity." Lilypad pondered the word for a moment. Her underwater world was mostly without gravity. She hadn't really considered it until the first time she tried the land spell. Then turning her tail into legs had shown how much heavier she was as a fish out of water. Before that she had floated up and down as she pleased. "We could throw something off a cliff or roll a big stone down a hill maybe?" Fish's eyes lit up at this last suggestion. "We could roll a cart wheel down the hill, or the whole cart and then could ride in the cart." That evening after school the Little grey filly decided to make a start on their new gravity cart. She knew many different pieces would be needed, but she figured if she made a start the list would be shorter. It might only be half a list or even less! Sam stepped out into the yard to see what was happening. Waving a hoof in the general direction of Fish's work area she asked; "Are you building a wagon or a boat?" "Both!" Beamed Fish, "if it doesn't work as a waggon it might work as a boat." Sam turned her head on one side to see if it helped her imagine all the pieces assembled. It didn't, so she went back to her work and hoped Fish didn't hit herself with the hammer. She added; "Oh, why?" "It's fur a hool roject," came the muffled small voice now holding a hammer in her mouth. "Wur esting ravity." Fish had come on a long way since the failed submarine construction days. She could now nail on planks close together and knew how to plain the edges with some help. Glyn was very impressed and said so to Sam. "I thought she would be a diver, and she knows her way around water like few others, but I'm beginning to wonder if we have bred a ship wright?" That evening Sam and Glyn decided to probe further into this new 'school assignment'. Fish sometimes went off on a tangent and they wanted to be sure of the facts. A cart seemed an unlikely way to demonstrated gravity in a way that any school board would consider 'proper'. "Lilypad and I will ride in the cart down a sloping road. We'll count to three and throw a marker over the side. If we go faster and faster the markers will be further apart. Afterwards we can step them out and see what gravity did to us." Even though the information had clearly come from a book it still impressed Sam. She suspected the cart part was her daughters idea and the technical bit was most likely Lilypads. She would have known about ships using a rope with regularly tied knots as speed/distance markers. Glyn considered the experiment for a moment, before adding; "We had a school trip to the canyon and we did a field experiment. There was a road at the top. Sticking out half way down was a big metal hoop which had paper across it. They dropped a stone off the top and counted until 'whack', the paper split and we started counting again. The rock did the last half a lot quicker. There might have been math?" That weekend Lilypad came to the farm to do some home work. Fish had managed to find some decent planks by doing some chores at the next farm and Lilypad had acquired some wheels. Apparently some brand new hand carts had fallen off the crane and there were now more wheels than carts. White Cap her mum had managed to get five so that they had one spare. A passing pony had dropped them off. "Brilliant that your mum got us great wheels," said Fish, poking a bolt through one and idly kicking a likely axel. "She said they were ours on the condition we fitted a brake. I guess that's a good idea?" Fish thought about it for a moment. "I suppose we should have one, but we won't be going very fast." The two set to work finishing the shallow box that Fish had started earlier for a cart body. It didn't look very science like, so they decided to stream line it a bit. They hunted around for something inspirational and found a half collapsed barrel. Fish gave it a buck to loosen the staves and Lilypad used her magic to stack them. "You're getting really good at that," beamed Fish. Then they nailed the staves to the front of the box to give it a really good boat like feel. The gaps meant it wouldn't hold water, but it was at least looking fast! "You've nailed the axel on the wrong end," Laughed Lilypad. "I thought you said the steering axel went at the pointy end." Fish tried to look through her legs at the upturned cart-boat so it was the right way up. She wasn't sure how the mishap had happened, but it now had a lot of nails holding it together. Certainly far too many to pull back out easily. "It's new for this season.... I present the Boat Tailed Waggon!" she grinned. Next on the list was the steering. Fish opted for a T handle sticking through the carts floor. Standing in the cart she had the option of teeth or hooves to turn the front axel. They also tied some rope to it so that they could pull the cart to the test site. For practice they pushed each other around the yard for a bit and shoved it off a few small banks around the farm. It didn't fall apart so they lashed on a length of wood for a brake and set off for their maiden voyage. Half an hour later they were at the top of a hill with a large pond at the bottom. The words were now firmly embedded in their minds. "Gravity pulls on things and makes them fall faster and faster." Fish braced her hooves into the front corners of the body and grabbed the tiller in her mouth. Lilypad pushed off stoutly and jumped in. Initially things went very slowly. They counted to three and Lilypad threw a white stone over the side, then another three seconds and repeat. Fish was quite disappointed at the lack of speed for a few seconds until they achieved an acceptable velocity. Then they reached a less acceptable velocity that needed to be reduced and very shortly after that she began to regret not fitting a really good brake. "It's come off," shouted Lilypad, "the brake lever broke!" Ten seconds in and the regret was replaced by a sudden rush of adrenaline as they really started to gain speed. They left the ground completely at several points as they launched over ruts. Fish hung on for dear life, using all her strength to keep off of the fences either side. The noise was also starting to build as flying stones spat from the wheels and hit the wooden body. Time changed up a gear as the two began to hope the inevitable crash went well. "The Pond, aim for the pond," Lilypad shouted over the road noise. Fish couldn't reply that the pond was already her ideal 'soft landing' because of a mouth full of tiller. In a flash of spinning wheels and hope the two fillies ran out of luck and road. Although traveling at a good running speed for a fully grown stallion, their velocity was not enough to jump the drainage ditch edging the T junction at the end of the bottom of the hill. The front axel dug in before gouging out the earth ahead of it, causing the back end to make an attempt at overtaking the front. Lilypad was immediately launched from the back of the waggon and had enough sense to transform back into a sea pony mid air. She landed with a well practiced splash and used the speed to make a fast turn out of harms way. Fish on the other hoof pretty much stuck with the wagon until the end. Just before impact she released the tiller and kicked out her hooves to make for open air. The wagon went down as much as she went up and threw her into a spin. Looking down she saw the wooden body grab the water before she went in rump first with a huge splash. Lilypad surfaced as the wave came past, her eyes huge as she looked for her friend. The wagon began to list over and then sink as Fish spluttered to the surface."YES!" She shouted before making for the nearest grass. Lilypad laughed and dived in to get the cart which was now wheels up and bobbing on the surface. Pushing it toward Fish she rammed it into the mud and leaned her hooves on it. "This is the wrong side. The roads over there," Lilypad said, waving an ear in the general direction. "Wow!" exclaimed Fish with a dazed expression. "How far did we fly?" Fish regained her composure and righted the wagon so that it floated wheels down. She hopped in while Lilypad dragged it to the other side. "It's a Fish-Boat now," she giggled. Fish then dragged the waggon from the pond while Lilypad sat proudly inside with her fish tail lolling over the side. The stout earth pony had it fully out of the water before she realised that the extra weight was a half load of water and a grinning sea pony. It was clearly time to put the discovery learning aside, return to the farm and make repairs and upgrades. The wagon wasn't seriously damaged, but it was in need of a fresh hammering. Climbing back up the hill they collected the white stones that weren't at the bottom of the muddy pond. Many were together near the bottom, indicating where they had gained air over ruts, but the first four were very well spaced. Lilypad had stuck with the plan despite the loss of the brake and they now had what they needed. Carefully pacing out the distance they scratched the results on the side of the wagon. Lilypad eyed the numbers. "No doubt about it, this will get us an A grade for sure. Every stone is further away from the last one. We definitely accelerated, just like the graph showed in that book." "Nice one," grinned Fish. "Let's go re-seal it and crash it into the river." The End

Any story has to read well. Especially for dyslexic folk like myself. Half the words can be missing, but if it flows I'm in Dislikes are worthless. Mostly it means somepony was looking for a particular genre, but found something that wasn't it and hit the dislike button. Proof; get Lost Narrator or the like to voice a story and watch the ratio change instantly, because then folk are finding the story who were looking for it, or you. Likes are worth a bit more. Likes are good folk don't 'like' stuff they don't like. Doesn't mean they love it though. Comments; If you are bad at writing they can help, if you are good they can cheer you up, if you are middle ground they can be fun. Because if it's a good piece there will be audience questions. (Expect more if it's an audio book) Favorites or read list; The only ones I really rate to be honest. That's your reader-base of fans. That's like subs on YouTube. The folk who come back to see what your next work reads like and read/listen to the same story more than once. What works on fimfiction? I joke a gryphon with a gloop gun trying to seduce/kill princess twilight will always go down well, but it's not far off the mark. Essentially though, it could be grimdark, horror, cute, romance, trollfic or slice of life and it will work if it brings something new to a well established fandom. You paint a picture with words and ideally nopony has seen that design before

Yes, that would be fine. I'm not worried about doubling-up and it will take me a while to build it into an audio book for mine. I have the main narration and then I need Luna and Celestia. That could easily take three months! Please go have fun with it

Thank you She's a sweetie to write for I'm not saying best princes, but certainly the most feeble to write about. I have the audio book main narration now as well. I need a couple of other VA's so I'll go pester MagpiePony for a Celestia.

The main narration is in. It shouldn't take me too long to fill in the rest. It sounds even grimmer being read out by a proper grimdark VA

I finally got the audio book finished for this one https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=l-H_VfpNvKA It has Obabscribbler, TheLostNarrator, Goombasa, Ilya Leonov, Neightrator Pony, Thonquill, Wuten & QuillnLead. Which makes it by the craziest, hardest project I've ever done ! The story is the prequel to "Tigger's Tank". I wanted to know where Tigger's cursed and virtually indestructible tank came from, so I sat down and figured it out. I would add that both stories were written for YouTube as audio books, so it runs a bit quick in text form below. I also tried something new for the begining to get the charectors filled out and rolling. The Crews Bio; Donald's Hope (Unicorn Stallion Mechanic) (Voiced By Wuten) 1. To own a nice set of ratchet spanners. 2. To be home for winter. 3. Hoping warm socks will arrive soon. 4. And a warm hat! Margo's Law (Unicorn Mare Gunner) (Voiced by *******) 1. One eye on the target is better than none. 2. If it's too rough to drink, it might be gun cleaning fluid. 3. Never leave Teddy in the tank alone. 4. If at first you don't succeed, re-load. Teddy's Bucket List (Unicorn Young Stallion Radio op) (Thornquill Audio ) 1. Own the full set of playing-cards; "cards against equestrian". 2. See Mount Rushmare. 3. To become such a great pony that being left in the tank alone isn't an issue anymore! Tigger's Wish List (Earth Pony Celestial-Engineers) (Voiced by Losty) 1. Rise through the ranks to become a gunner. 2. To eat five hay burgers in a row! 3. To work in a tank park that isn't a sea of thick mud. Ginger's Goals (Unicorn Stallion Tank Captain) (Voiced by ******) 1. Don't let my friends down. 2. Don't disgrace my family. 3. Keep my crew alive. 4. Live long enough to claim a war pension. 5. Avoid drinking anything distilled by Margo. A Horn Handled Gun (prequel to Tigger Tank) Celestia studied the map in front of her with furrowed brow. There had been many enemies of Equestria over the hundreds of years of her rule. Foes included everything from magical beasts to simple land disputes, but they had always managed to squeak through somehow. Looking back she couldn't help feel pride at what her ponies had achieved. Now it seemed like a new age was upon her and the map showed they were losing. The enemy making headway into her territory was completely different to those of the past. This time it was a methodical mechanised army that appeared to be in no hurry. If it had any doubt in its ability it wasn't showing it in the devastation it created. What she needed now was a wonder weapon that would push them back across her border without turning half of Equestria to dust. Pulling another group of heroes out of the hat was going to be harder than ever! Far away on the edge of her territory ponies were waking up in a war zone. Tents replaced houses while broken stumps replaced trees. Green meadow lay ripped up by the wheels of war and the sword was now replaced by a huge gun on four tracks. This was the tool of choice against the mechanised horses of the opposing force and an ambitious stallion had just received his new heavy weight war machine.... Ginger entered the command centre to receive his new orders, taking extra care to keep out of everyponies way. As his eyes grew accustomed to the dark he noticed a shape slumped on the floor, backlit by the flickering info panels. "Who's that?" he whispered to a pony tech nearby. "Nopony knows, he is everywhere that there is a war and apparently it has always has been that way. It sounded like a fairy tail until I saw him. Then you feel that pressure in your head and you know it's for real." A startled expression fell onto Gingers face, "What the hell, that's actually death sat there?" The tech pony grinned back, "No, not death. It sits there and warns us to stop, but it never does any good. Not even Celestia can stop this hate. I swear that until everyone is sick of it or the die-hards are dead the battle will simply roll on. A sharp intake of breath could be heard around him as the ancient pony slowly turned around. It studied him carefully before looking him directly in the eye and adding, "Everything dies, but not like this." Ginger stepped back, horn glowing in anticipation for a fight. Flicking its ragged cape to either side the creature of dust and matted hair stood up. "Your destiny can be yours!" it challenged. "Take what rightfully belongs to you by magic and change a bleak future into a prosperous one for all. Do it for yourself and do it for your friends." Just as suddenly it flopped back onto the floor and resumed its stare at the many panels. Ginger backed up further with a desperate need to escape. leaping into the light through the open door he took a huge gulp of air and resisted the desire to throw up. He stood in the sunshine panting. His commanding officer followed him out. "They say it was present at every war that there ever was. Celestia knows how it became immortal and wound up here. You can ask it about the first battles ever fought and it will happily tell you. But it only ever speaks in the language of that time period and nopony speaks in the tongue of the early tribes. It won't teach anyone, so all that knowledge is trapped in its mind. It's messed up!" "As nopony at official level will admit it exists it goes anywhere it pleases simply because it can. I'm not intending upsetting it and everypony here is told to ignore it, which is a good idea. I don't think it would ever harm, but I'm certain it can. One thing is for sure. You're in a hell of a lot of trouble if it shows an interest in you. Good luck to you, because now you're clearly in need of it!" In a daze Ginger staggered back into the tank park, gaining a suspicious look from his engineer Donald. This old war pony had seen a fair bit of army life from his tool box. Recently he had seen plough shares turned to swords and the rise of these machines. What they achieved astounded the dark grey stallion, but there was still plenty or room for the old fashioned horror. He popped the wrench back in the tool box with a flick of magic and called to Margo. "Hey Margo, we've got a problem out here." Turquoise ears appeared through the top hatch followed by a look of concern. "What have you done to him now?" Donald scowled back. "It weren't me, he arrived like that. I think his cider count is below par." Close behind Ginger came a galloping Teddy. The short brown pony had more fur than was reasonable and he was ill equipped for speed. Panting hard he relayed, "He's the chosen one, death spoke to him!" Margo huffed at the report. "Ridiculous! Utter horse tale, he eats, he poops, he talks. Thats no more death than I am. It might be one seriously cursed pony young Teddy, but this isn't a daft fairy tail. Go inside and fiddle with your knobs." Teddy slunk into the rear hatch with ears down and tail dragging. Most of the time his enthusiasm got the better of him and he yearned for the respect of the older unicorns. The fact that he had 'aced' the communications course hadn't made up for saying the wrong thing at the precisely the wrong time nearly every the time. Sitting down at his radio station he leant his hooves on the little note desk and flicked the dials this way and that with the tip of a horn. As his bright green eyes scanned the info panel he knew as well as anypony that being a team would keep them alive. If only there was a way to keep them safe from the mayhem that chattered through the air waves and into his head phones. Donald and Margo sat Ginger down and fetched him a brew with sugar and something extra. Ginger drank it down, but continued to stare into the distance. Now he had a bigger destiny than just getting his new tank and new crew to the front. Donald was first to speak, drawing himself up to full height with some discomfort. "Come on lad captain, what did he say to you?" "That we're in a hell of a fix," Ginger replied, looking Donald directly in the eye. "That we can get through this if we make it our own fight, but I have no idea how we do that? I mean, you've seen them, they don't miss often and what they hit usually goes down." Margo Scoffed, "If the rumours are true I would suggest our future is very much dependant on the gunner on the other side of the field. But unless you know some brilliant way to make a quad-track tank indestructible I don't see what monumental difference we'll make?" Tigger appeared at that moment pulling the heavy pressure washer cart through the mud. It was her task to keep the hardware side of their tank going while they were at the base. She was dark brown and barely taller than Teddy. What set her apart was the hint of stripe in her coat from some long forgotten zebra ancestor. It distorted her cutie mark to the point it was nearly illegible. This was of no concern to Tigger, who was the 'can do' earth pony who could get out of any scrape. She had sneaked onboard for a few missions to the front. "He doesn't look so good," said Tigger eyeing up Ginger. "What did the archive pony say to him?" Ginger seemed to snap out of his shocked state. "We need to do something special or we're screwed, I think?" That evening the five ponies sat around a table full of empty glasses. Their sad eyes looked at the dregs of a somber evening. Teddy twitched as though some crazy idea was about to spring forth. Margo decided to get in first. "So we have to win the war?" she asked half joking. "We've been around a bit. Or at least, me and Donald have. We go somewhere, we shoot at stuff and we come back for more. There isn't a spell that makes that a safe proposition. That's why boxes of supplies come in and boxes of ponies go out." Donald glared at her, "Nice!" "We need to magic the hull," blurted out Teddy as Tigger made to ram a hoof in his mouth before he could say more. "Dude, messing with a tank like that will get you on a charge. Saying that out loud will get you a bad reputation. These rules aren't made up for fun. You don't want to be the one associated with sabotage even if you think you're helping. I'm going before somepony hears you!" She stood up and weaved her way through the crowd to the exit. Now that it was a party of four Donald chimed in with a thoughtful expression on his muzzle, "How? But first, lets continue this debate down at the park in the quiet." Once sat in the Quad-track they laid down a muffling spell and looked from one another to see who would start. "I have the most to lose," said Ginger. "You can't be a tank captain and claim all matter of fact that you didn't know how it just happened to disintegrate on your watch. Also, what can we add to it that hasn't already been done by the best in Equestria?" The self propelled rail gun they sat in was a sizeable machine. Aside from the battery packs at the rear it was really just a large diameter tube around a big magnetic rail gun. Some fairly impressive and secret magic had been applied to it already by the factory unicorns, who were ponies who knew what they were doing. Even with enchantments it couldn't survive a well placed artillery shell. Margo was first to go. "We can't exactly fit it with a re-set button now can we?" All eyes fell upon her in the gloom. "Okay, I guess we can then?" She asked. "Well," added Donald, "We could time-lock it in an 'as-new' condition. Every time it got a hit it would automatically return to how it is now." Ginger rubbed a hoof on his chin. "As sure as Luna watches our dreams I don't think we'll get away with that. And it can't be a long term solution? Surely at some point it's going to receive so much damage that time itself will get annoyed and gobble it up. That's one hell of a paradox to maintain. I mean, great for keeping your silverware bright and shiny, but a whole tank?" Teddy looked a bit startled at the last statement. "When mums best chalice collapsed we all thought it was pretty funny. But I wasn't inside the chalice when it went off! There was red wine everywhere." He looked down at his hooves with drooped ears. Margo put a hoof on his shoulder and smiled gently, "We have a chance this way. That's not some bunch of ponies or griffins out there. That's a mech army and they don't seem to miss very often. My friend just came back from the front and her stories scared the hay out of me. It's time for us to fight sideways." The next day they continued to prep their PT4 Quad-track tank ready for combat. Part of the set up included some night trials and target practice. It was the ideal time to sneak off to a remote location and do some extra magical homework. After a few hours work Ginger left to collect the direct order to test with live fire. He set off deep in thought. At headquarters he was greeted by his commanding officer. The mare was tall and definitely commanding, but also fair. She eyed him suspiciously before passing over a sealed envelope. Then she pointed a hoof at the info screen that showed the current front line. "Things are bad," she said looking him in the eye. "If we don't get a break soon we'll be looking at using the bad stuff. We need to win and save our land, as opposed to; win and have no where to live. Just one piece of luck to throw them off would do. Just an act to hold them back. I hear a rumour chattering about the unit and it frightens me. Whatever you're planning, try to keep Teddy out of it. He's young and maybe he's that one pony out of all of us with a long life ahead of him?" Ginger nodded and returned to the tank park. He had been foolish to think keeping secrets would work around here and now he was between a rock and hard place. Ten minutes ago his only goal was to make a large mechanical machine bomb proof. It might work and it might not have. Now he carried the weight of everyponies' hope on his back. Now it really had to work and be a game changer! The mood in the crew was still subdued on his return. There really wasn't much to be said anyway. Everypony took their position and called out their status. Hooves started bringing the many systems to life as various guns and missile lights glimmered in the dim light of the interior. Ginger checked around them before sounding the siren and moving the machine toward the firing range. The tracks and gears whined in the background as they arrived at firing point one. Ginger checked the info panel to verify the rail gun was ready and that the main battery was full. Taking a sight he dialled in the target and sent it to Margo. She in turn touched a few buttons to start dumping energy into the rail guns capacitors. "Practice shell, fire on 75% charge," she called out. Ginger replied, "Fire on 75%, I have the trigger on auto, gun shows green, target is clear." The new tank was state of the art and was soon up to the required charge. The main battery unhooked itself with a re-assuring clunk just before the rail gun capacitors dumped their charge into the coils. A noise like a huge elastic band snapping sucked all the air out of the tank for a split second while throwing it backwards a pace or two. "Wow, " said Donald. "This thing likes to live on the edge. If you want to try 100% I'll be outside hiding behind a tree." Margo turned to look at him with a huge grin. They navigated successfully through the rest of the targets with ease. The tank worked great and everypony agreed that it was a shame to start tinkering with it. But practice targets didn't shoot back and now it was time to either improve it or be arrested. Half an hour later they were all stood around the PT4 sizing up the enormity of the task. "Shame Tigger isn't with us to see this," said Teddy, lighting his horn and feeling the structure. "Just the hull and nothing else?" There had been no hope of leaving him behind when it was his idea. "Yes Teddy," replied Donald. "If we time lock the batteries they won't work and if we lock the tracks they won't turn. Just the shell of the hull and don't forget to breath." The spell was hard enough to afflict on small objects and this object was house sized. They positioned themselves at each corner so that the track sets might offer some protection if it blew up. Teddy swallowed hard. "I've only read about this, I've never done it," he said cautiously. "That's why I'm giving you an order to do it," said Ginger. "I'm it's captain and I'll say you all did it unwillingly. They won't believe those two, but you have a clean sheet." Horns glowed as they felt the extremity of the hull down to its rivets. The metal felt cold with a slight twitch from its factory spells. After five minutes or so it began to hum steadily as they sought out every edge and corner. Once they had a grip on it all they began to reach further and began to sense it age ever so slightly. Margo was first to speak. "Right then, this is what we need to do. Reach into it and feel how it moves and grows imperceptibly older with every heart beat. We need to force it back on itself. It must be in a loop so that it feels to have aged a bit, but then becomes young again." Before they could finish She felt their magic weaken and a new force push into her mind. She startled and stepped back to stare at the others in the darkness. Ginger was was just visible standing next to an ominous black shape. She wondered if they had been busted and strained her ears to the whispers. "It'll take five of us at least," said Ginger. "The archive pony will help us perform the spell. We are to do as we just did, but give it everything we have." They let their minds creep back into the structure and again felt its limits. This time they felt much stronger and the hull responded quickly with a soft purple glow. Now they could feel each others magic and sense the natural pulse of the tank as it became a mere blink older before snapping back to a set point. Once it harmonised into a never ending loop they pulled back. Donald broke the silence. "We'll give it half an hour. If it doesn't disintegrate by then I say we drive it back and get some sleep." He looked around to thank the ancient pony, but it had already left. A few days later nopony was any the wiser. A new tank was supposed to be clean, so the fact that dirt couldn't physically stick to theirs interested no one. Ginger now felt optimistic about the modification as they buzzed along at speed. The new tank drove well and responded quickly to his hoof inputs. It would have been a nice day out if their orders weren't front line fire support. At least it wasn't a full on battle charge. Arriving last they found some suitable flat ground and waited as Margo dialled in the compensations for wind and gravity. Motors whined as the suspension lifted the front of the tank up on its tracks. The machine rode on four sets of tracks, held on by spindly looking arms that made it appear more like an insect than an armoured cart. The arrangement of struts and swivels let the tank tracks move independently to climb over rough ground and to steer. It looked delicate to say the least. Teddy received the order to fire over the radio and relayed it to Ginger. He relayed it to Margo who began charging the gun capacitors, just as they had in practice. This time she loaded a gemstone projectile and eyed a far off distant target. Ginger confirmed the distance. "Thirty thousand steps, 50 steps compensation. The target is a command tank approaching on our flank." Margo came up to the command station and put the periscope cross hairs on the target. The opposing armour was moving slowly so she added in a tiny bit of delay. Eying the charge indicator she set for 90% and waited. "Here we go," she said quietly. "Firing in three, two, one, brace!" Their lives moved back a few feet as the projectile was spat like lightening across the battle field. Off in the far distance the opposing forces heavy tracked vehicle stopped abruptly and began to smoke. "Yes!" Shouted Ginger and Margo in Unison. Donald added, "Chalk one up to the Unicorn horn handled gun!" Margo turned to him with a scowl, "We are not writing that down the side of our war chariot." As soon as they had fired their main gun the enemy took a greater interest in them. Realising that Gingers crew was a pretty good shot induced them to hand out some special treatment. Most incoming fire was now theirs and in short order it found them. Their PT4 lit up like a star as the large shell detonated on the hull. Inside everything seemed to warp and twist before springing back into shape. Ginger decided it was too hot for comfort and raced backward until they were out of reach of the opposing guns. "We should be dead," shouted Margo. Ginger responded, "After what we did we still might be? There's a price to pay for magic like this, just look at the archive pony. Who knows how he got like that but I bet it started with a bad idea over a round of cider. Load her back up!" Taking another sighting they threw another shell across the battle field. A shower of sparks suggested they had hit a power cell. The unicorn tank was now the only thing of interest on the battle field and every shot required a re-position to avoid a rain of death. They continued to fire until empty as more targets burnt with a trail of thick black smoke. A retreat could be seen underway off in the distance. "It's time to go," called out Ginger as he watched the mayhem. "Save some rockets for the trip home just in case." Spinning the command station rearward he kicked the drive stirrups to 'rapid travel'. There was no point loitering with low power and no main gun ammunition. They were soon speeding past reinforcements heading the other way to finish the job off. Soon they were back at the tank park thinking about re-loading when Tigger bought them an envelope with new orders. "Hand delivery only," she shrugged as ginger opened the distinctly 'official' looking document with some caution. "We've new orders to go to Canterlot," he mused rubbing his chin with a hoof. We're either hero's or in a hell of a lot of trouble. Maybe even both? Either way up we leave now, no debate." They barely had their belongings together as a royal crested transport arrived. They threw their kit bags aboard and launched Teddy in through the open door before leaving in a flurry of hooves all waving goodbye. The whoops and waves from other crews suggested they were the heroes of the tank park if nothing else. Everypony was somewhat surprised at their departure, but nothing took it worse than Gingers Tank. Tigger swept the interior clean ready for another crew, but was quickly ordered out as it was becoming really unstable. The static charge it now gave off left no chance of anyone driving it anywhere. For everyponies' safety another tank managed to push it into a small hanger on the edge of the park. Tigger watched sadly as the doors were shut behind it before dragging her water cart to clean some more heavies. A week later there were plenty of rumours flying around about the fate of Gingers unicorn crew. Fighting had slowed up and that meant time to stand around and idly guess their new posting. The most plausible answer was that they were stationed at the secret tank factory. As the sun shone down it wasn't long before maintenance compressors were inflating hoofballs for something to do. Ponies from all over the base were claiming all sorts of objects were goal posts. One ball was given such a good buck-kick it landed on top of the small hanger. Several large stallions promptly grabbed a protesting Tigger and threw her onto the roof of a side building so she could retrieve it. She was soon on top and raised a leg to 'hoof' it off when there was a bit of a creek. The noise was followed by a "flump" as Tigger disappeared from view. Shaking off the dust she found herself on top of Gingers tank which had calmed down a bit. She wondered if it would run? There was now some serious concern outside. Nopony thought that the drop would cause the young mare any permanent issues, but it's contents might? Ears back and nostrils flaring they made careful steps towards the building. They were starting to get really brave and were pretty close as a whirring noise came from inside. Making a run for it with flailing tails the noise was followed by an almighty crash as the tank exited through the end wall. Bricks and planks showered across the ground before the machine came to an abrupt halt in front of them. A head appeared through the hatch with a big smile. "Who wants a ride in Tigger's Tank?" All she needed now was a hat and a crew! The End Team Idris

I had a lot of fun at Buck2016 and so did a lot of other ponies Here is the Cosplay vid, which has a nice bit of me in it with all my flashing lights! https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=9O2DTkOunwo

Narrated on my channel by Obabscribbler https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ms3E48eINdI The clip-o-hoof range of cooking utensils really made any ponies life easier, but Jenny still managed to drop the knife. It now stood a third embedded in the delicate kitchen floor. "Pony Nuts" she said under her breath as made to retrieve it. "Shall I get that for you?" asked the handsome sales pony standing by the door. "It's fine," she said, easily removing the serrated blade from the cork like surface. "I love this floor, it's warm and soft under hoof, but so resilient. It always comes up clean no matter what I spill on it". This wasn't going to be an easy sell at all. There were all sorts of enchanted floors in Equestria, but he hadn't felt one like this before. He pawed it slightly for a better idea of how it felt. "Have you been living here long miss?" Jenny smiled and stopped cutting up bread for the garden birds. "Only a few months and I'm absolutely loving having my own place. It's a brand new build and I can still smell fresh paint in the cupboards. The little bungalow was the very essence of modern living with a shallow pitched roof and big windows for maximum natural light. The outside was a delicate pink and the front garden still had the odd pile of rubble, giving it a 'nearly there' ambiance. It really was the perfect place to escape from the parental home. It's location on the south side of town was ideal with a railway station near by and only a short canter to the really good shops. It suited her ecological ideals as well, being built on the remains of the old research labs. The 'Equestrian Research Institute Laboratories' had been known as Eril locally and had been a common land mark for many a year. Recently odd things had happened there, with frequent sirens and mass evacuations. The town council had demanded explanations! But instead of getting answers a small army of large unicorn stallions arrived one day and simply levelled the place. A row of neat reasonably priced housing now stood in its place. Jenny finished cutting up her bread and slid it off the cutting board into a small basket. "Back in a minute," she said before picking up the basket in her teeth and opening the back door with a hoof. He could see her through the window with her back turned toward him. He didn't consider himself a thief by any measure, but her purse was bound to have a few bits in it. At the rate he was going the mop sales weren't going to cover lunch and breakfast had been nothing more than a hope. At least with magic he could be subtle about the deed. He kept an eye thought the window and felt for loose change as his horn glowed softly. Carefully he levitated the contents from the bright blue purse and looked to see if there were any 20 bit pieces. As he checked the embossed figures of Celestia and 'Star Swirl The Bearded' stamped into their surface he felt the strangest sensation in his hooves. Dropping the cash he looked down to puzzle at his now longer fetlocks, which now touched the floor. All too soon he realised it wasn't his hair that had grown longer, but his hooves that had grown considerably shorter. They were also stuck! He tried to free one and then the other. Leaning and weaving they stayed rooted to the spot. Not even an attempt at bucking did any good. "A Little help here please," he called out. "I seem to be in a spot of bother". Making up some story about why he had angered a floor that was also a security system was going to be tough. But if he could play it straight he ought to be fine. This kind of fast thinking was a normal day in the life of this unicorn. It did seem odd that a sweet little mare needed a burglar proof floor? "I'll be there in a minute," called Jenny, oblivious to her kitchens antics. "I'll just grab these berries before the birds do. Have you time to stay for Lunch?" He was now fairly sure the ground was going to give way under him until he disappeared. It was now up to his knees and the kitchen cupboards looked ever imposing around him. A cold seeping sensation was now creeping into his legs as a strange sort of cramp set in. This was truly ridiculous situation and surely the spell was only there to trap somepony until the police arrived? It was all happening way to fast. He struggled violently as electric shocks started to penetrate his skin. He tried to tense his body muscles to keep his belly out of harms way but it wasn't doing any good. Taking a deep breath he made a last ditch attempt at freedom by using his head to push down. He regretted his last move as soon as it failed to achieve anything. With his muzzle firmly locked to the surface he tried to shout out. But you can't shout for help if your mouth is half morphed into a solid surface. His eyes darted left to right as his brain screamed for assistance and for air. The cold was now entering into his body as gravity relentlessly pulled his hooves down and down into the solid earth. It had only been a couple of minutes since he first realised he was stuck, yet his eyes now looked out horizontally across the cursed floor. The smart white cupboards now looked like tower blocks looking over a city street. The look of horror they displayed was in complete contrast to the gentle shafts of sunlight dancing on particles of dust as they floated lazily past his ears. His lungs were now screaming for nourishment. His back twitched as his body made its last efforts to hang onto the living world before it blinked from existence. The last of his mane and tail were now being sucked in as Jenny returned with the basket full of ripe berries. "Are you still here?" she asked, placing the basket on the table. She was sure she had seen a few strands of black tail hair on the floor when she came in, but both her visiter and the hair now seemed to have vanished. "That really is a swizz," she announced with frustrated tone and a sigh. "I guess it's lunch on my own again." Team Idris

Luna sat on her throne looking extra bored, her electronic game controller dangling from one hoof. Celestia studied the grumpy looking alicorn carefully before asking; "Holiday?" "A what?" stammered Luna. "What manner of thing is a 'holy day'?" Celestia chuckled. "A vacation of course. A chance to go out and do what you want to do for a whole day." Luna blew a raspberry. "Okay, I'm in." Standing up she made a royal decree; "All my staff are dismissed for the day, go have fun. Your princess is making for the seaside with all haste." With a leap from the seat of power the dark blue mare bounded out through the jewel encrusted doors and into the courtyard. Celestia's surprised expression was left far behind as Luna made for the carriage house. Looking at her chariot she soon realised her first impromptu decree of the day had left her without Royal transport. Now she could see why the clatter of her own hooves had been accompanied by so many others. Everypony in her service had clearly made for the exits before the order could be reversed. Luna sat back on her haunches with a dejected expression. Idly rolling the chariot about with her magic it began to remind her of a toy she liked as a filly. Her train of thought was broken as a cough came from behind her. "Would her highness like a picnic basket?" asked a pale blue mare. "I put many of your favourite things in it." Luna smiled, rolled the chariot over toward them and levitated the basket inside. "Thank you, that is very thoughtful of you. It's contents will be greatly appreciated today". At that moment Luna knew exactly what she wanted to do next. Everypony knew a vacation was about having fun and trying new things, right? Leaping into the chariot with a flick of her wings she detached the yolks and balanced it on its two wheels. With a determined stance and a soft purple glow of her horn she pushed it forward and out onto the palace drive. She soon had the measure of the beast and decided to wind it up to flight velocity. Speeding through the streets while honking like a goose and shouting "Make way for the princess!" Luna shot toward the main road. The gravel parts of the street were especially fun with the large golden wheels throwing up long rooster tails at every sharp turn. Once out onto the wide Inter-Equestria highway she really let the magic take them forward. Wind tugged at her mane as she sped past other road users. There had never been a need for a speed limit in a land limited by a ponies natural gait. It was a lucky detail, because Luna was now traveling well above any speed that could legitimately be called 'socially acceptable'. Fields and forests sped by as the smell of fresh air and salt began to filter through her nostrils. It was nice to travel at ground level and experience the scenery up close. She had traveled along all these roads a thousand times, but always at cloud level. This was definitely new and exciting! No sooner than Luna had brought the chariot to a halt upon the beach she began to attract the attention of sea gulls. These feathery beasts knew all about pony newcomers and how they would be offloading picnics! This was an ideal time to pounce! Although they were quite large and feathery they were no match for the princess of the night, so she simply ignored them. Digging around in the large whicker hamper she found some apple sauce sandwiches that were to her immediate liking. Unfortunately her new entourage were becoming even more persistent with every flap. Releasing a deep sigh she opened up one of the breaded delights and licked off the delightful apple contents. With a bright glow of her horn she enchanted the bready remains to act as royal guard. The slices of bread immediately took to the sky to chase off the feathery snack thieves. Luna happily rummaged around to see what else she could enjoy as squawks of protest rang out from above. The cooks produce was clearly winning and leading the battle out toward the cliffs. Luna congratulated herself on an excellent piece of magic. She was sure that Celestia would have simply fried them or teleported the beasts inside out. Her solution was way more subtle. At the bottom of the basket was a stone jug of cider (by the sniff of it). It had made a lucky escape indeed given the amount of 'air' she had got on the last hump back bridge. Pulling the cork she took her fill in very princess unlike manner and wondered what was next? After staring at the waves for a bit she remembered her prison survival kit which; was mentioned earlier in another story written by an entirely different author. Reaching into her mane she removed a brightly coloured beach ball with a giggle before inflating it with a single goddess like breath. Then she kicked it high into the air and watched it bounce on the sand further down the beach. Luna immediately galloped after the spinning yellow and red inflatable as the breeze made off with it. "Oh no you don't!" She laughed, teleporting every other stride to gain ground on the errant globe. With one last flash she was in front and gave it a mighty kick to send it back towards the chariot. She played this game for a bit, with the ball landing occasionally in the sea. Jumping from one wave crest to another as though she was light as a feather Luna felt several pairs of eyes gazing upon her? Turning she saw that a few young ponies had gathered on the sand to stand open mouthed at her gravity defying game. "What manner of foe are you?" She winked, walking toward them with the ball in magical tow. "You're a princess," said a small colt open mouthed. "No she's not!" said a filly. "Princesses have guards and mares in waiting. They don't play on beaches by themselves?" Luna laughed and floated over some cherry-cakewells from the basket before passing them around. "How good are those?" she asked with a smile. The foals smiled between mouthfuls. The small filly was first to comment. "She must be a real princess, these are amazing!" "Excellent," said Luna. "Let's play hoof ball." Pointing her horn at the beach ball she reduced it to a suitable size for little ponies. She magically dug out two goal pits and marked the outside of their field with a swishy tinkly noise. With shouts of glee the small ponies proceeded to chase the ball up and down the beach with Luna cheating periodically to kick the ball into each goal alternately to even the score. It was very difficult to tell who was on who's team, but this mattered not one bit! Soon it was time for little foals to go home, but not before they had insisted on seeing their princess raise the moon. They oohed and ahhed as the bright disc climbed lazily into the sky. Once they had trotted off Luna returned the beach to its former flatness with only a ripple or two in the sand. Happily she climbed back into the chariot. She would soon be missed at Night court and so decided to speed things up a little. With her horn glowing a beautiful purple the chariot took off slowly into the air. The princess pointed it towards the palace and jabbed the magical accelerator hard. Lurching forwards it was soon speeding along at just above tree top level with Luna wearing a huge grin on her face. "I wonder just how long I have to wait before I can legitimately call another holiday?" She pondered. The End Title Art by Fia94.deviantart.com TeamIdris

We see drones bombing places now and by 2035 we'll see the first ground-mechs in largish numbers on battle fronts. They will be crude and semi-autonomous, but they'll be effective. It was been on my mind since 2000 that tech was catching up with sci-fy. And now that we see robodog wandering about they may actually turn out to be legged, which I didn't expect? The advantage won't be loss of life, but patience. With operator shift changes they can wait for months for a target. Consider the technology a self-propelled land mine with a gun.

I'm still happily going to work in my 1991 Ford Transit which is a 3.5 ton box-van with a dragon painted on the side. Inside its a sort of home made camper van / support truck. And I'm still beating the life out of the remains of a 1972 Range Rover that we call the beast https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=X013aqnzOjw Trailer-queens are great fun

700 to 1500 dollars would be about right. You can cut back costs if your OC wears a jacket. Then the fur sews to the inside of the arm holes. Fur will be 50 dollars a yard up. There is a lot of foam sub structure needed and like any foundation it needs to be right to stay in place while you jump about 40 hours work doesn't go far on a cosplay. A day is nothing to the construction time. So 100 dollars a day is a good price. The response for 150 dollars as a start point would unfortunately cause a poor response. You weren't to know, don't sweat it

I was very impressed with it and so were other Bronies, who took many photos of me It was good enough to win a medal in the cosplay competition at Buck2016 (UK Manchester)