private Whisper: The City Of Darkness

[Once In A Blue Moon 895]

@@Ethan Sawyer,@@Orion Caelum,@@Unicorncob,@@ForthEorl.

 

 

"Sweet! Got any desserts too? Maybe some chocolate milk to go with it?"

 

 

I turn to see the spring rolls "You gonna eat those?"

 

 

With the grinding sound of stone against stone, the closest section of wall peeled open to reveal a street party in progress. Or, at least, what was supposed to be a street party. There were tables of food, and ponies eating from them, but as the group made its way down it was apparent that all was not well. A foal spat out a mouthful of sandwich, declaring it to be 'disgusting' and 'not proper party food', and immediately all of the sandwiches on the table vanished, irritating everypony that was trying to eat one. More disturbing was a pair of ponies watching their foals skip and play in the road, foals who promptly vanished whenever they looked away.

 

A little way down, another pair of unicorn foals charged past and accidentally knocked down an elderly pegasus who fell onto and broke one of his wings. He shouted after them and some small vicious, thought that came to the front of his mind tripped the leading foal which fell and broke its horn. It started wailing in pain.  

 

"Why'd you do that? You're horrible... why don't you die!" the other unicorn foal shouted back in fear and anger, but the old pegasus was dead before he heard it. All along the table, for all of the many kind thoughts and considerate wishes the ponies made, dark thoughts and impulsive anger sowed fear and mistrust. 

 

 

 

I ain't standing for that. I don't care if I have to carve my way through every bastard from here to Tartarus, I'm going in there. And when I find the bugger who did this, I'll introduce them to proper Equestrian etiquette for dealing with demons. A damn sword through their poxed face."

 

The very fabric of the city twisted again, and suddenly the street led straight through Canterlot to the gate to the upper city. Despite the distance, any pony that looked could see, quite clearly, the golden throne that had been set at the top of Royal Avenue with the resplendent white alicorn sitting on it.

 

Come, strike me down, A vicious smile spread across her face, save the day. Restore your city to how it 'should be'... free those monsters that call themselves ponies to activate their device, and kill every living thing in Canterlot. 

Edited July 19, 2016 by Once In A Blue Moon

[Unicorncob 5,687]

"That is one way to put it I guess." I say, glancing around at the surrounding area, seeing the mass of chaos. "This is beautiful" I mutter to myself.

 

I turn to see the spring rolls "You gonna eat those?"

 

Lavender grinned at Scarlett, and floated the platter of spring rolls to her. "Plenty for everypony!"

 

 

With the grinding sound of stone against stone, the closest section of wall peeled open to reveal a street party in progress. Or, at least, what was supposed to be a street party. There were tables of food, and ponies eating from them, but as the group made its way down it was apparent that all was not well. A foal spat out a mouthful of sandwich, declaring it to be 'disgusting' and 'not proper party food', and immediately all of the sandwiches on the table vanished, irritating everypony that was trying to eat one. More disturbing was a pair of ponies watching their foals skip and play in the road, foals who promptly vanished whenever they looked away.

 

A little way down, another pair of unicorn foals charged past and accidentally knocked down an elderly pegasus who fell onto and broke one of his wings. He shouted after them and some small vicious, thought that came to the front of his mind tripped the leading foal which fell and broke its horn. It started wailing in pain.  

 

"Why'd you do that? You're horrible... why don't you die!" the other unicorn foal shouted back in fear and anger, but the old pegasus was dead before he heard it. All along the table, for all of the many kind thoughts and considerate wishes the ponies dark thoughts and impulsive anger sowed fear and mistrust. 

 

She walked toward the party, absolutely ecstatic that it was happening. Parties were awesome!

 

She reached a hoof for a sandwich, then pouted as they just vanished from existence.

 

Though, what really bothered her were the foals and elderly pony badly injuring each other. A wing, then a horn were broken, the latter causing Lavender to squint as she almost felt the pain.

 

"I don't think I like this ride anymore..."

[Dust and Memories 557]

The fabric of the city twisted again, and suddenly the street led straight through Canterlot to the gate to the upper city. Despite the distance, any pony that looked could see, quite clearly, the golden throne that had been set at the top of Royal Avenue with the resplendent white alicorn sitting on it.

 

Come, strike me down, A vicious smile spread across her face, save the day. Restore your city to how it 'should be'... free those monsters that call themselves ponies to activate their device, and kill every living thing in Canterlot.

Wilhelm now stepped to the front of the group; his ears were forward, his wings were spread wide, and his teeth were faintly bared. However, when he began to speak, it was in a quiet tone that carried all the way up the Avenue, a skill trained by the battlefield and the lecture hall alike.

 

"Monsters that call themselves ponies? You're one to talk. Sitting there, on a stolen throne, a thrice-damned husk, an ideal of horror wearing the skin of a mare a thousand times more than you ever could be, you're one to speak about monsters!" He gestured with one hoof, pointing it like an arrow at the Celestia-dæmon.

 

"You wear her body like a cast-off overcoat; you are too small for it, as it was crafted for a Princess larger than you. You pretend to possess her qualities, but the skin hinders you, for I remember her! I knew her. And like an amateur actress, you flail and cry upon the world's stage, accomplishing nothing. You pretend at benevolence, at the bestowing of freedom, at love, qualities which none of your ilk can possibly possess."

 

Wilhelm paused. "The world tears at you; can you feel it? It rejects your essence. Equestria does not want you here. You were not born here, for the Pit was from whence you crawled. And to achieve acceptance, you must tear your way into the fabric of the world, embed yourself within its structure. You must take a body, lest this world tear you apart."

 

Then, his mouth curled in a derisive sneer. "What do you have to say for yourself, worm-witch? What do you have to say for yourself, mewling spawn of Tartarus? What do you have to say for yourself, you delusional, genocidal hypocrite?" In a single movement, Wilhelm's sword was braced against his hoof, its blade glittering in the light.

 

"For I name you horror of the Pit! I name you darkness, the opposite of light, friendship, and love, I name you that which all ponies revile! I name you murdering witch, I name you bloodied progeny of the screaming Unternacht of Parabola, I name you unworthy to wear that skin!" The sword came down, and stood, quivering -- embedded in what was once a solid cobblestone -- as Wilhelm's declaimed speech reached its crescendo.

 

"What do you say for yourself?!"

Edited July 19, 2016 by Orion Caelum

[Chaton 3,765]

Lavender grinned at Scarlett, and floated the platter of spring rolls to her. "Plenty for everypony!"

I took the platter and put it on the ground upon seeing what was happening. Peoples simple remarks were coming true.

 

She walked toward the party, absolutely ecstatic that it was happening. Parties were awesome!

 

She reached a hoof for a sandwich, then pouted as they just vanished from existence.

 

Though, what really bothered her were the foals and elderly pony badly injuring each other. A wing, then a horn were broken, the latter causing Lavender to squint as she almost felt the pain.

 

"I don't think I like this ride anymore..."

"I'm all for some chaos but this... We need to go."

 

I turn and say to the others "Don't think about anything, good or bad. The less events occur the easier this should be."

[nolongerabout 403]

Come, strike me down, A vicious smile spread across her face, save the day. Restore your city to how it 'should be'... free those monsters that call themselves ponies to activate their device, and kill every living thing in Canterlot.

Sharp looked down the road, at the creature that had usurped the throne. For once, his true enemy clearly shown. He shouted, an order to those who might still be listening. He held aloft the card that Twilight had given him, to reinforce his claim.

 

"Guards! I call you to your duty, more now than ever before! I hold the authority of our true leader, the last princess in all Equestria! Who are you to deny the summons? The enemy are past the gates, and you do nothing, no worse than that! You hide amongst the ruin of what is your home! I should put all you bastards on a bloody charge, for desertion! Rally to me, soldiers of Equestria, for there are enemies to be killed, and glory to be won! Form ranks, for surely you will not allow the great name of the Equestrian Guards to be left in the dirt, where you now reside?"

 

He dropped the card and drew his sword, the steel dull in the eternal twilight.

 

"Come on you buggers, stop your dreaming! Can't you see Equestria needs you?"

Edited July 19, 2016 by ForthEorl

[Once In A Blue Moon 895]

"I don't think I like this ride anymore..."

 

 

Lavender looked down, suddenly finding herself at the peak of a huge roller coaster. 

 

Then leave...

 

The cart she was in tipped sideways, and she felt herself falling fast towards the ground. As she tried to flap her wings, she realised that she was in her old, unchanged body. The ground rushed up to meet her... and she was standing exactly where she had been a moment ago, in the middle of the street party, although she was now facing back towards the city limits, and the freedom beyond.

 

 

"What do you say for yourself?!"

 

 

The Celestia alicorn-demon stood up, and with a single delicate step stood right next to Wilhelm. She made a sweeping gesture that encompassed most of Canterlot, but stopped when she noticed that the end of her foreleg was hanging limply, apparently completely boneless, like a foal wearing a coat with too long sleeves. She waved it around a bit, laughing as it wobbled about.

 

"Oh, I do love that image. Poor little Celestia. But, as you ask, on to talking about little old me," it gave Wilhelm a small smile, "Spawn of Tartarus, a bogey monster that crawled out of a some dark pit? Why yes, my little pony, that I am. But what are you? What are all of you?" Another sweeping gesture, "I have my little throne, I have my powers of chaos, but do I rule here?" her grin widened, "No, I don't. Nopony rules Canterlot now... or perhaps everypony does, depending on how you see it. All of this is my fault, in a way, and yet all I have truly done is made all you ponies free to do this to yourselves... so in another way, it isn't my fault at all. So whether I'm a genocidal hypocrite or not is really a matter of perspective, and the wonderful part is that I don't care!" she giggled, "​Mad, chaotic, anarchic! I am all of those things, but we knew that. The fun is watching you dear little ponies realise that you are exactly the same."

 

 

"Don't think about anything, good or bad. The less events occur the easier this should be."

 

 

"I suppose this is the point where I should try to offer you something; some bribe that will tempt you to join me," the alicorn-demon turned her attention on Scarlett, "But I seem to have already offered everypony anything they could wish for. Literally," her tone was unmistakably smug, and if her grin were any wider it would have split her face in two, "And why deny yourself when you could be overruled by the will of another at any moment? Life is short, and anything you want is now within reach. Did the poor and wretched have anything like this to hope for before now? They will thank me, even as they are crushed by the will of another, for giving them more than they have ever had before. Better a day as a lion than a thousand years a sheep, after all," suddenly she looked exactly like Celestia, a pure white alicorn smiling down on her errant student, "Accept my gift and be free, my dear."

 

 

"Come on you buggers, stop your dreaming! Can't you see Equestria needs you?"

 

 

For the first time, the alicorn-demon showed signs of irritation and discomfort. The guards tentatively formed up in front of Sharp, apart from one. A white unicorn stood out, defiant, the rank insignia on his uniform rising along with his metaphorical hackles. 

 

"And why do *you* get to order us about?" he challenged, "Why does anyone?" he threw down his spear, "I can't fight this - nopony can. Celestia is dead, the King is trapped in his castle, and you waltz in claiming to represent the errant princess Sparkle? No, I won't die for that - not for another futile claim, not for royalty and ..." he paused, deflating somewhat, "... and not for whatever you claim my duty is supposed to be now. I don't want to die for nothing."

 

The alicorn-demon smiled, and the remaining guards wavered.

Edited July 20, 2016 by Once In A Blue Moon

[Unicorncob 5,687]

Lavender looked down, suddenly finding herself at the peak of a huge roller coaster. 

 

Then leave...

 

The cart she was in tipped sideways, and she felt herself falling fast towards the ground. As she tried to flap her wings, she realised that she was in her old, unchanged body. The ground rushed up to meet her... and she was standing exactly where she had been a moment ago, in the middle of the street party, although she was now facing back towards the city limits, and the freedom beyond.

 

Lavender jolted and looked around the roller coaster cart, having no idea how she got up there.

 

"I don't think I left my drink alone at the baAAAAAAAHH!!" She screamed as the cart suddenly tilted her out. She tried desperately to flap her wings... only to find she had none. She was back to (relatively) normal!

 

Oh, bad time to be not-mutated.

 

Next thing she knew, she was facing the exit of the party, to freedom. Part of her wanted to run... but most of her wanted to stay and help the others, including her team.

 

"I knew that felt a little too real," she muttered up to Discord, then furrowed her brow, "but we can't just go and do nothing, can we? We gotta save those poor ponies from this bad trip!"

 

 

 

"But I seem to have already offered everypony anything they could wish for. Literally," 

 

Those words echoed around in her head, giving Discord a little company for a bit, until her ears pricked up. She had an idea. An idea that might be crazy for even her and Discord, but an idea nonetheless.

 

One sec, I'm onto something, she thought, towards the spirit of Chaos in her head. She then turned around to face the party.

 

"Wow, this is such a great party!" She practically yelled, in that bad acting voice a pony might use to trick another. "If only our great host-slash-hostess was here so I could tell them to their face!"

[Dust and Memories 557]

The Celestia alicorn-demon stood up, and with a single delicate step stood right next to Wilhelm. She made a sweeping gesture that encompassed most of Canterlot, but stopped when she noticed that the end of her foreleg was hanging limply, apparently completely boneless, like a foal wearing a coat with too long sleeves. She waved it around a bit, laughing as it wobbled about.

 

"Oh, I do love that image. Poor little Celestia. But, as you ask, on to talking about little old me," it gave Wilhelm a small smile, "Spawn of Tartarus, a bogey monster that crawled out of a some dark pit? Why yes, my little pony, that I am. But what are you? What are all of you?" Another sweeping gesture, "I have my little throne, I have my powers of chaos, but do I rule here?" her grin widened, "No, I don't. Nopony rules Canterlot now... or perhaps everypony does, depending on how you see it. All of this is my fault, in a way, and yet all I have truly done is made all you ponies free to do this to yourselves... so in another way, it isn't my fault at all. So whether I'm a genocidal hypocrite or not is really a matter of perspective, and the wonderful part is that I don't care!" she giggled, "​Mad, chaotic, anarchic! I am all of those things, but we knew that. The fun is watching you dear little ponies realise that you are exactly the same."

 

For the first time, the alicorn-demon showed signs of irritation and discomfort. The guards tentatively formed up in front of Sharp, apart from one. A white unicorn stood out, defiant, the rank insignia on his uniform rising along with his metaphorical hackles. 

 

"And why do *you* get to order us about?" he challenged, "Why does anyone?" he threw down his spear, "I can't fight this - nopony can. Celestia is dead, the King is trapped in his castle, and you waltz in claiming to represent the errant princess Sparkle? No, I won't die for that - not for another futile claim, not for royalty and ..." he paused, deflating somewhat, "... and not for whatever you claim my duty is supposed to be now. I don't want to die for nothing."

 

The alicorn-demon smiled, and the remaining guards wavered.

 

Wilhelm stared down the demon, his expression full of cool, repressed fury. "Ponies are nothing like you. You are what you are by your nature. You never have a choice about your morality; you were born to be evil. If one can even term your genesis as a 'birth.' You have no morality or conscience, do you?" Wilhelm waited for a split second, then continued. "I almost pity you. Almost. For all you talk about freedom and will, you never had a choice. You never even knew or will know that you can choose. But ponies?"

 

Here, he raised his voice and turned to the Guards. "Ponies have choices about what they can be! Ponies can decide whether they side with good or evil. Do none of you Guards remember what we were taught at school for literature, and again for discipline at the Academy? 'A coward dies a thousand times before his death, but the valiant taste of death but once?' Do you really want to go back to your homes, to a world where you might drop dead at any moment or lose all your worldly possessions at a single thought, and every waking second you have in your home, die another time? Be valiant! If we must die, we will die as Guards! We will die honorably, in the ideals of the ancient Pegasopolis hoplites of old!" 

 

"But we will not die," Wilhelm continued. "We have the power of the Element of Magic behind us. Of the Tarot. Of our own friendship -- the most powerful of all Equestrian magics. And all that waits for you -- if you cut and run now -- is a legacy of dishonor. You can stand with us now and reclaim the glory you have lost, or you could leave, and die every second of every day for the rest of your life. We are only ponies, like you! We have stood against these demons, and we have prevailed this far! Now, stand with us one last time!"

 

Wilhelm withdrew his sword from the cobblestone and raised it to the sky. "I am Sergeant-Major Wilhelm de Winter, second-in-command of the 135th Specialist Archers, son of Colonel Friedrich de Winter, former commander of the Canterlot West Gate Air Division, and a proud member of the Royal Guard!" He lowered the sabre, pointing it at each stallion in turn, and finally resting it directly at the chest of the dissenting Guard. Quietly, he finished: "Who are you?"

[Chaton 3,765]

"I suppose this is the point where I should try to offer you something; some bribe that will tempt you to join me," the alicorn-demon turned her attention on Scarlett, "But I seem to have already offered everypony anything they could wish for. Literally," her tone was unmistakably smug, and if her grin were any wider it would have split her face in two, "And why deny yourself when you could be overruled by the will of another at any moment? Life is short, and anything you want is now within reach. Did the poor and wretched have anything like this to hope for before now? They will thank me, even as they are crushed by the will of another, for giving them more than they have ever had before. Better a day as a lion than a thousand years a sheep, after all," suddenly she looked exactly like Celestia, a pure white alicorn smiling down on her errant student, "Accept my gift and be free, my dear."

 

"I do not want anything you can give me. There is no point in existing with an existence that require no work. No effort. If everyone had a life where they could get anything they wanted with a simple thought, that would not be living. Though I do have one question. Why does it not affect you?"

[nolongerabout 403]

@@Once In A Blue Moon,

 

 

 

"Who are you?"

 

Sharp nodded to Wilhelm, then walked slowly up to the outspoken guard. He glared at him, right into his eyes, and said nothing. He then marched down the line, coming to a stop halfway. He sighed.

 

"So, he's right on some parts. You could very well die here. But was the sergeant not also right, that you've died already? I've seen what these devils have done to Ponyville, and what they will soon do to Canterlot. Do not think yourselves safe, just because the enemy has already defeated you. This," he swept a forehoof across the cityscape, "Is not freedom. This is but freedom to be killed, slaughtered, pillaged, raped. You won't be able to wish away the army that approaches so easily. That will only be possible with steel, blood, and some good Equestrian spirit, unless we rally behind Princess Twilight, who can stop all this once and for all!"

 

He turned to face the soldiers, saw the fear in them.

 

"You're the finest infantry in all the world! The Equestrian Guard! Merely whisper our name to a griffon and the bugger'll piss himself in fear! You should give in to nopony, nopony! Especially not some trumped-up piece of gristle from the pits of Tartarus! Equestria has faced worse foes than these, far worse! This should be a afternoon walk in Canterlot bloody park compared to half the damn battles I've been in! Without you there will be no Equestria, no ponies left to fight for, for they'll all fall from your cowardice. We can win whatever we damn well want, because we are Equestrian, and it is our divine right to win our own battles. We are cut from a finer cloth than all others, but that means we have to work twice as hard for everything! We can't be given everything we want, it's an insult, it's beneath us, it makes a mockery of our kind! We deserve to be able to earn our rewards, from our merit! So stand here, my lads and lasses, and get ready to show that demonic bastard over there that you're a pony, you don't take insults, and return them with steel!"

 

He grinned to them, a smile of barbaric ferocity, one of a pony who knew he could never be beaten. He walked casually back to the guard who had been so against him before.

 

"I'll give you one chance, or I'll shoot you for deserting myself."

Edited July 21, 2016 by ForthEorl

[Once In A Blue Moon 895]

 

 

"Wow, this is such a great party!" She practically yelled, in that bad acting voice a pony might use to trick another. "If only our great host-slash-hostess was here so I could tell them to their face!"

 

The alicorn-demon stepped forwards and put a hoof around Lavender, steering her over to see another pony.

 

"You can thank this  good pegasus for, the moment he learnt that he could will whatever he wanted into being, deciding to host a street party..." they walked over to the pegasus wished dead by the foals, "Alas, it seems he is no longer with us. But I am sure that he would be appreciative of your thanks and happy to see what a wonderful time we are all having. He died doing what he loved... probably,"  the alicorn-demon looked around with a satisfied expression, darting sideways away from a small mountain of ice cream that a foal started skiing down and nodding approvingly.

 

 

 

"I do not want anything you can give me. There is no point in existing with an existence that require no work. No effort. If everyone had a life where they could get anything they wanted with a simple thought, that would not be living. Though I do have one question. Why does it not affect you?"

 

"I have spent untold years in Tartarus, and time that cannot even be measured before that when chaos encompassed all. Avoiding and protecting myself against the harmful wishes of others is second nature to me. And you misunderstand me - I am not giving you anything other than the choice. If you want to toil away on some futile endeavour then, by all means;" ​a coffin popped into existence next to the dead pegasus, along with a shovel, and a square of the cobbled road turned to dirt, "Get digging. Or don't; whatever you wish to do."

 

 

 

Ponies have choices about what they can be! Ponies can decide whether they side with good or evil.

 

 

This is but freedom to be killed, slaughtered, pillaged, raped.

 

Do you really want to go back to your homes, to a world where you might drop dead at any moment or lose all your worldly possessions at a single thought, and every waking second you have in your home, die another time? Be valiant! If we must die, we will die as Guards! We will die honorably, in the ideals of the ancient Pegasopolis hoplites of old!

 

 

You're the finest infantry in all the world! The Equestrian Guard! Merely whisper our name to a griffon and the bugger'll piss himself in fear! You should give in to nopony, nopony! Especially not some trumped-up piece of gristle from the pits of Tartarus! Equestria has faced worse foes than these, far worse!

 

 

But we will not die," Wilhelm continued. "We have the power of the Element of Magic behind us. Of the Tarot. Of our own friendship -- the most powerful of all Equestrian magics. And all that waits for you -- if you cut and run now -- is a legacy of dishonor. You can stand with us now and reclaim the glory you have lost, or you could leave, and die every second of every day for the rest of your life.

 

 

He lowered the sabre, pointing it at each stallion in turn, and finally resting it directly at the chest of the dissenting Guard. Quietly, he finished: "Who are you?"

 

"Constable Comet Charge, sir!" Comet sprang to attention, awed and intimidated by the commanding presence of the two ponies before him. He joined the other guards, and what had been little better than a disorganised armed band began to resemble a city guard unit again. Their immediate surroundings also looked more normal - more like the Canterlot of old, and not subtly but constantly shifting with the vagrancies of nearby ponies' wills.

[Unicorncob 5,687]

The alicorn-demon stepped forwards and put a hoof around Lavender, steering her over to see another pony.

 

"You can thank this  good pegasus for, the moment he learnt that he could will whatever he wanted into being, deciding to host a street party..." they walked over to the pegasus wished dead by the foals, "Alas, it seems he is no longer with us. But I am sure that he would be appreciative of your thanks and happy to see what a wonderful time we are all having. He died doing what he loved... probably,"  the alicorn-demon looked around with a satisfied expression, darting sideways away from a small mountain of ice cream that a foal started skiing down and nodding approvingly.

 

Lavender's eyes dilated and her ears drooped at the sight of the dead pegasus.

 

That did not go the way she expected.

 

Though, she felt a small tinge of power coming from somewhere, and she turned to see Wilhelm and Sharp. They must be fighting back the chaos somehow.

 

Yet, she didn't really feel different. Maybe it wasn't working on her?

 

"I suppose we better sit back for this one," she muttered to Discord, then took advantage of the alicorn demon's 'gift' and made a chocolate icecream sundae appear for herself, "hungry?"

[nolongerabout 403]

@@Once In A Blue Moon,

 

"Will you look after the rear for me? thank you." Sharp said to Wilhelm.

 

"Right then. Form two ranks! Two bleedin' ranks, that's it! Muskets, load!"

Sharp dragged a particularly dozy private into the line, trotted quickly to the front of the company.

 

"We're going to advance! Don't stop marching until you meet the door of the castle, and cut down anything that stands in your way! There'll no doubt be enemies sent to stop us, so just keep this in your mind- the bastards are a fair sight more afraid than us! Listen for orders when they come, but you can never go wrong if you go forward, always attack!"

 

He drew his sword, and lay it flat over his shoulder. All he needed now was a regimental band, or perhaps a piper like the highland regiments had instead. Music that could drive anypony over the edge of hell. Only the gods knew what they would face, but that would be half the fun in it.

 

"Company, advance!"

[Dust and Memories 557]

Wilhelm nodded. "Understood." His sword was removed from his hoof and placed back in its flank-sheath, to be replaced with Wilhelm's bow. Gathering his strength, he leaped up in the air, and his wings shot out to their full extent. Wilhelm glided over the assembled troops before switching to a hover around the rear of the formation.

 

Wilhelm picked up an arrow between his teeth and nocked it to the bowstring, but did not draw and fire. Not yet, anyway, though Wilhelm knew the time would soon come. The daemon was an unpredictable factor, and Wilhelm... did not like variables of that sort. But Wilhelm wasn't quite sure the assembled force could kill the daemon -- or rather, banish it to the Pit for the next few centuries while it recovered enough thauma to bring itself back into the world proper.

 

In any case, he kept a close eye on the husk, and the other eye roving across all routes for enemy snipers to set up or forces to arrive. Every so often, his bow would twitch slightly in a certain direction, and Wilhelm would watch for any unconscious movement on a watcher's part. Old habits die hard, Wilhelm thought. Especially when most of them were created to prevent you dying. 

[Once In A Blue Moon 895]

@@Ethan Sawyer, @@Unicorncob.

 

 

"I suppose we better sit back for this one," she muttered to Discord, then took advantage of the alicorn demon's 'gift' and made a chocolate icecream sundae appear for herself, "hungry?"

 

Her stomach rumbled, but as she raised the spoon to her mouth the alicorn-demon bellowed and stamped her foot in rage. The ground around her shattered like thin ice, and both Lavender and Scarlett plummeted downwards into a seemingly bottomless pit, along with a dozen other ponies.

 

 

 

"Company, advance!"

 

 

In any case, he kept a close eye on the husk, and the other eye roving across all routes for enemy snipers to set up or forces to arrive.

 

 

As the ground shattered in front of the alicorn-demon, a chasm opened up in front of the advancing ponies. The troop ground to a halt at the edge of the sheer, bottomless drop, their foe standing smugly on the far side.

 

"What's that maxim you military types are all taught?" It taunted, "Something about an obstacle not being an obstacle unless it's defended?" It sat back in a newly summoned throne, "Well, I'm not stopping you."

[Unicorncob 5,687]

Her stomach rumbled, but as she raised the spoon to her mouth the alicorn-demon bellowed and stamped her foot in rage. The ground around her shattered like thin ice, and both Lavender and Scarlett plummeted downwards into a seemingly bottomless pit, along with a dozen other ponies.

 

Lavender was just about to dig into the sundae, until she was halted by the alicorn-demon's sudden anger. Her eyes dilated and ears drooped as the ground gave way beneath her, and a dozen other ponies fell into what seemed like a bottomless chasm.

 

"Geez, if she wanted some, she just had to ask!" She yelped, looking around at the quickly dissipating light. She scrunched her eyes shut and tapped her temples as she tried to concentrate. "Okay, um... something with lights... something big and soft... something that flies... c'mon, Discord! Work with me, buddy!"

[Dust and Memories 557]

Wilhelm raised an eyebrow, still hovering where he was. Quickly, he looked to the side at the nearby houses, and an idea struck him. Wilhelm flew over to Sharp, and settled down beside him. Quietly, he whispered "We can bridge the gap with materials from the houses. We could use doors as the bridges proper, and columns and rafters as braces. Single file, one pony at a time. Pegasi first, to go across the chasm and hold the bridges down while the others cross. Half pegasi on that side, half on this side. Unicorns can build the bridges, and the earth ponies can gather the materials."

 

He backed off, then shot back into the air, mentally measuring the length of the chasm and comparing it to the materials in various different buildings within easy range of the company. It seemed like the bridges could be easily created, but the alicorn-daemon could -- and might -- simply remove the bridges or make the chasm wider. Somehow, they'd have to distract the daemon, or... hm.

[Chaton 3,765]

Her stomach rumbled, but as she raised the spoon to her mouth the alicorn-demon bellowed and stamped her foot in rage. The ground around her shattered like thin ice, and both Lavender and Scarlett plummeted downwards into a seemingly bottomless pit, along with a dozen other ponies.

 

A witty response already in mind, I attempt to speak before suddenly I'm falling. I eep slightly but that's the only response that escapes me as we fall.

 

Lavender was just about to dig into the sundae, until she was halted by the alicorn-demon's sudden anger. Her eyes dilated and ears drooped as the ground gave way beneath her, and a dozen other ponies fell into what seemed like a bottomless chasm.

 

"Geez, if she wanted some, she just had to ask!" She yelped, looking around at the quickly dissipating light. She scrunched her eyes shut and tapped her temples as she tried to concentrate. "Okay, um... something with lights... something big and soft... something that flies... c'mon, Discord! Work with me, buddy!"

 

I begin to notice that the pit seems bottomless. I begin running hundreds of possible escape plans and simulations in my head to no avail. It was then I realised that it *seemed* bottomless. I use a small amount of magic to nudge myself over to Lavendar, going along with the theatrics for now. I gently tap her on the shoulder "The pit. It isn't real."

[nolongerabout 403]

@@Once In A Blue Moon, @@Orion Caelum,

 

Sharp looked about at the immobile guards.

"Right then, let's bridge this gap! Pegasi, try and lift some of the roof beams from these houses! Unicorns, help lift them to the ground! Earth Ponies, tear off the doors, make a roadway out of them! Get to it!"

 

He stopped Constable Comet before the pony could move to help the others.

"Constable, get a few ponies with muskets together and keep that demon on the other side distracted. You most likely won't hit at this distance, but we've been lucky so far, eh?"

 

Without waiting for a reply, he galloped to the nearest group of earth ponies unhinging a door. He bashed at the hinges of the door with the hilt of his sword until they looked damaged, then braced himself to push.

 

"Ready lads? Heave!"

Edited July 27, 2016 by ForthEorl

[Once In A Blue Moon 895]

 

 

"Okay, um... something with lights... something big and soft... something that flies... c'mon, Discord! Work with me, buddy!"

 

A hoof pressed her mouth and nose shut, and with a puff Lavender's chaos wings and horns seemed to inflate from her, springing out of her back and head respectively. With a rapid flapping motion... nothing seemed to happen. She looked up at the grinning alicorn-demon.

 

"Clever girl..." Discord grumbled.

 

 

 

We can bridge the gap with materials from the houses.

 

 

Right then, let's bridge this gap! [...] Get to it!

 

 

The constables set about their task, any doubt they had once again buried beneath a mixture of discipline and determination. The chasm seemed to almost shrink away from them, as they assembled their improvised bridging gear...

 

 

 

"The pit. It isn't real."

 

[Unicorncob 5,687]

A hoof pressed her mouth and nose shut, and with a puff Lavender's chaos wings and horns seemed to inflate from her, springing out of her back and head respectively. With a rapid flapping motion... nothing seemed to happen. She looked up at the grinning alicorn-demon.

 

"Clever girl..." Discord grumbled.

 

"The pit. It isn't real."

 

No words could express the look on Lavender's face after the realisation.

 

The pit's not real. There is no pit! UUUUGH!

 

She groaned and tapped her hoof against her temple, mumbling to herself. "Stupid, stupid, stupid..."

 

Then she froze, eyes shooting wide open. Did the others know?

 

She shot down after the group and flailed her hooves, looking something like a crazed monster pony from a foal's doodling book.

"The pit's not real!" She yelped. "It's all in your mind! Break free! Cut loose!"

 

If she had Sunday shoes to kick off, she would be doing just that.

[nolongerabout 403]

@@Once In A Blue Moon,

 

Sharp watched as the street cobbles seemed to flood back into existence before his very eyes.

"Stop, and form up! Hold here!" He called, and galloped to the precipice. It isn't real, the thought came to him. He remembered an old saying. Only in the leap from the lion's mouth will a pony prove their worth.

 

"Aye, but this is one great bloody leap." He said to himself. A dozen doubts flickered through his mind, but he dismissed them. Couldn't afford such things at a time like this. He tensed his hind legs, then threw himself forwards into the great empty space, at the distant edge.

[Chaton 3,765]

No words could express the look on Lavender's face after the realisation.

 

The pit's not real. There is no pit! UUUUGH!

 

She groaned and tapped her hoof against her temple, mumbling to herself. "Stupid, stupid, stupid..."

 

Then she froze, eyes shooting wide open. Did the others know?

 

She shot down after the group and flailed her hooves, looking something like a crazed monster pony from a foal's doodling book.

"The pit's not real!" She yelped. "It's all in your mind! Break free! Cut loose!"

 

If she had Sunday shoes to kick off, she would be doing just that.

 

I watch Lavender valiantly try to save the other ponies, but I knew she was still partially believing it as she was in the exact same place as she was before she tried to move. I stand up, seemingly in the air, and attempt to pull her to her hooves. "Remember, like you just said, it's not real."

[Once In A Blue Moon 895]

@@Ethan Sawyer,@@Orion Caelum,@@Unicorncob,@@ForthEorl.

 

She shot down after the group and flailed her hooves, looking something like a crazed monster pony from a foal's doodling book. "The pit's not real!" She yelped. "It's all in your mind! Break free! Cut loose!"

I watch Lavender valiantly try to save the other ponies, but I knew she was still partially believing it as she was in the exact same place as she was before she tried to move. I stand up, seemingly in the air, and attempt to pull her to her hooves. "Remember, like you just said, it's not real."

 

The very act of pulling Lavender to her hooves solidified the ground around them, a small island of land floating in the middle of the chasm. The other falling ponies followed suit, although once a small area of solid ground had formed beneath them they still seemed nervous about stepping off it.

 

"Aye, but this is one great bloody leap." He said to himself. A dozen doubts flickered through his mind, but he dismissed them. Couldn't afford such things at a time like this. He tensed his hind legs, then threw himself forwards into the great empty space, at the distant edge.

 

The fissure seemed to dissolve into cobbled street around Sharp, and as the constables charged forwards after him it collapsed, leaving an entirely innocuous road in its place.

 

"Oh bravo, bravo," the alicorn-demon spat, anger flashing onto its face, "After thousands of years I finally have the opportunity to deal with that most unpleasant of creatures," it shot a vicious look at Lavender "Yes, I saw you in there. You never could keep your mouth shut ... anyway; revenge, foiled, meddling ponies... ah, yes, disastrous consequences. Ah-hem... Well, if you will insist on imprisoning yourselves in a hierarchy that cares for nothing more than sustaining itself, I shall leave you all to your fate. Your good friend the King seems to have decided to activate his little toy now, and without my efforts to hold him back that's exactly what his puppets are doing," It spread its wings, and launched itself towards the perimeter wall, "Maybe you can stop them, if you hurry..." 

 

The city shuddered, the fantastic and distorted creations of its inhabitents' minds shifting back into their natural form. Above the castle, the airships broke formation, moving as fast as possible away from the strange device that was rising out of the observatory roof.

Edited July 31, 2016 by Once In A Blue Moon

[Unicorncob 5,687]

I watch Lavender valiantly try to save the other ponies, but I knew she was still partially believing it as she was in the exact same place as she was before she tried to move. I stand up, seemingly in the air, and attempt to pull her to her hooves. "Remember, like you just said, it's not real."

 

The very act of pulling Lavender to her hooves solidified the ground around them, a small island of land floating in the middle of the chasm. The other falling ponies followed suit, although once a small area of solid ground had formed beneath them they still seemed nervous about stepping off it.

 

Lavender tapped her hoof on the little land she and Scarlett had landed on, and looked at the mare with pure confusion. "Um... yeah, that's what I said." She said, without an ounce of sarcasm. She really didn't get it... that was until she thought about it. "Oh, because I was-- oohhh, okay. Thanks!" She grinned.

 

 

it shot a vicious look at Lavender "Yes, I saw you in there. You never could keep your mouth shut ... 

 

Once again, she took a look over her shoulder before looking back at the demon, and pointed at herself while mouthing 'me?'.

 

 

Well, if you will insist on imprisoning yourselves in a hierarchy that cares for nothing more than sustaining itself, I shall leave you all to your fate. Your good friend the King seems to have decided to activate his little toy now, and without my efforts to hold him back that's exactly what his puppets are doing," It spread its wings, and launched itself towards the perimeter wall, "Maybe you can stop them, if you hurry..." 

 

The city shuddered, the fantastic and distorted creations of its inhabitents' minds shifting back into their natural form. Above the castle, the airships broke formation, moving as fast as possible away from the strange device that was rising out of the observatory roof.

 

She stumbled a bit as the very world around her shook, and she looked around as everything began to morph around. Airships began appearing around the castle.

 

"Uhhh... I get the feeling we're about to have a bad time..." she murmured.