Chapters
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Jackie’s world faded back in slowly, like someone turning up a dial. She queried her internal chronometer in a panic, and discovered to her horror that 21 hours had passed since she had last been conscious.She opened her eyes. Jackie was strapped down on a heavy metal workbench—the one from the barn, though they weren’t in the barn now. The ceiling above her was stone, and the steady glow of electricity illuminated the world around her.System diagnostic, she ordered.Diagnostic complete. Right arm,…-
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It would take Sunset’s organic guests a little more time to get coordinated than the near-instantaneous hookup she’d used to step into the realm. She moved immediately to the fastest-computation track, which her timer indicated gave her twenty-one subjective hours until her friends arrived.Twilight Sparkle appeared beside her in a flash of light, frowning slightly. “Something’s bothering you,” she said. “Did something go wrong with the ponies you were bringing?”“Not… exactly,” Sunset…
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“We repeat the Royal Decree—do not travel into or anywhere near Seaddle in the near future. The Western fleet is unable to protect civilian air travel into the cities anywhere near it. Any evacuating should attempt to secure transportation to the current refugee staging area, Ponyville. Please consult with your local constabulary if you require directions for evacuation.”Jackie sat towards the back of the Motherlode miners in the Mudcap Saloon, listening to the quiet barking from the radio. It had a…
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Sunset Shimmer wondered quietly to herself where all the ponies who weren’t on duty this shift had gone to leave their barracks so empty. Regardless of how the showpony had done it, the space was more than large enough for their small group—maybe a dozen ponies and a handful of humans.Sunset Shimmer ignored the refreshments but enjoyed making herself available for small talk with Trixie’s stagehands. They were an interesting group—a pair of young unicorn stallions she’d apparently picked up as…
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But Starlight didn’t come back—not for another few days, long enough that Sunset Shimmer started feeling like she might be going insane. If it hadn’t been for Twilight, she probably already would have. The not-pony was someone she could talk to, even during the most intense duty shifts. Eventually these humans are going to learn everything they want to know about pony culture, and they’re going to let me leave.So she thought, but so far that moment hadn’t come. There was always some new principle…
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“Uh…” Jackie wasn’t thinking about how it might look to True Silver if she happened to notice—really, she didn’t care anymore. She’s completely organic. She knows everything about how prosthetic bodies work, she built advanced technology, I haven’t seen any sign that she’s hiding a human. “That’s not possible,” she said, lamely. “You’re organic, I can see that. There’s not even an ident in your arm. You’re as natural as everyone else on this mountain.”“I… yes.”…
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The ponies of Motherlode seemed almost relieved as Jackie followed her new companion out of the square and down the single main road. “It would be easier to fly,” Frostline suggested, pointing down. “See that house with the weird roof and the tower next to it? That’s where we’re going.” She spread her wings, taking off easily, but Jackie reached after her. “Wait! I, uh… I’m really bad on my wings. The, uh… caves I grew up in were so small, I didn’t have enough room to fly, and I…
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Sunset Shimmer recognized the human waiting outside, as she knew she would. Bright yellow hair, sharp eyes. Well, as yellow as humans ever got. The Steel Tower had a similar range of colors as ponies did, but the living humans were much more subdued in their range. Rather like many of the animals Sunset had heard of, with only slight variation in individuals.She wore tight clothes, a clinging lower jumpsuit with a loose-fitting coat on that exposed just enough of her chest to obviously be intentional.…
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Sunset should’ve realized that the Builders didn’t eat—they had no need for food, so there was no reason to expect they would have breaks for that purpose. But Bradley was a knight, and that apparently meant a little leeway. Leeway to take an occasional sanity-break.“I don’t know why he felt so… creepy,” Sunset Shimmer said, watching the knight as his fingers strummed along the guitar. He had apparently been carrying it the whole time, collapsed and out of the way. He played along to a…
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Jackie didn’t have the time to visit the Ponyville market, unfortunately. As much as there was some part of her that wanted to vanish into the native civilization and never surface again, she knew that was impossible. Not only that, but Jackie hadn’t lasted as long as she had with poor survival instincts. She could feel the imminent conflict. Thanks to her past experience, she also knew that the best way to survive a war was to make herself someone her government couldn’t afford to lose. Doing some…
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