Chapters
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Whenever Alex was stressed, she went to her garden.She hadn't had a talent for it before the Event. She had killed everything she touched back then; in the days when she had fingers and toes on the end of her limbs instead of hooves.Magic had changed that, much as it had changed everything. Alex's little home was located in downtown Alexandria, and was one of the few homes with enough of the expensive real estate to have a garden out back. Oliver had done most of the planting, though he rarely had the time…-
153.4 K •
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Alex was more than a little relieved when she saw flashing lights in the distance. She leaned forward towards the exit, and was the first to hop down onto the grass when they finally stopped. She received several salutes as she passed the barricade, and was only dimly conscious of the others following her. She slowed enough for Joseph to catch up with them, and didn't meet his eyes even as he pointedly glared in her direction."I'm still not sure why you felt it necessary to bring me. It seems like you have…
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153.4 K •
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Archive never dreamed ordinary dreams. There had been a time long ago when the pony princesses of Equestria sent messages to Earth in their dreams, but that time was long gone. The unconscious world had no rulers now, and no guiding intelligences. By no means was she the only one to experience strange dreams; yet few ponies dwelled in them so consistently.Into the void of Archive's sleeping thoughts formed a great library, with shelves that curved in ways the three spatial dimensions could not explain and…
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153.4 K •
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The only regular train to Alexandria arrived by night. As was true during most of these trips, Lonely Day was aboard. For company she had only Huan, her loyal (if aging) companion. The massive dog rested at her hooves, ever vigilant.Of course, they were nearly done with the twelve-hour ride, the second Lonely Day had taken in as many days. A pair of dark metal shackles sat beside her on the seat, artifacts of another world. Thank God she only had to wear them while she was inside Raven City.Her train…
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153.4 K •
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Alex returned to work a few weeks after that, though she ended up carrying Cody around with her much of the time. With a population as small as Alexandria’s, there wasn’t too much pressure from the other ponies, so long as she got the job done. And Alex could do that. She might not be an expert in any relevant subject, or even an experienced administrator, but the longer she worked the more she read, and anything she read stayed with her forever.Keeping Cody with her was nothing like it might be if…-
107.0 K •
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Alex blinked, opening her eyes in the gloom of her hospital room. There was no pain, only a strange stiffness in her limbs, particularly on her belly. All around her, the room was in shambles. Her own green fur was all over the floor, though none appeared to be missing from her body. There were bloodstains on the edges of the room, splashed near the door or soaked into the mattress. She'd woken quickly enough that they hadn't even cleaned up after her.Her heart started beating, and the monitor beside her…
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107.0 K •
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Alex made her way to the door with halting hoofsteps. Less than twenty feet, but a monumental distance in her current state. If I burn my cookies because of this...Alex had never imagined she would ever have to know the difficulty and physical strain of pregnancy. She knew it now, had known it for almost eleven months. Never again, Oliver. You're lucky I don't stab you right in the— She opened the door with her mouth, swinging it outward.Three ponies waited outside—one who should've known better than…
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107.0 K •
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Several months later…Lonely Day extended a hoof, and Dr. Clark leaned down to shake it. The shackles made it difficult to lift the hoof to any meaningful angle, but she did her best. Human fingers felt warm and strange, like little squishy spiders. They had no analogue in her life anymore, even if she had possessed some of her own over a year ago. Before everything had fallen apart, and the dream of human society ended. He towered over her, a sturdy man with slowly graying hair. He wore a uniform, like…
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107.0 K •
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Lonely Day did not wake again for some time. Though she had not seen it in any form more concrete than a few plates breaking, she had suffered badly during her time being mentally invaded.When next she woke, she was no longer in the basement of the library. Alex couldn’t feel her clothes anymore, or her saddlebags. Instead, she felt a flimsy hospital blanket, and a similarly flimsy pillow behind her. The bed seemed massive to her little equine form. The light coming in from the window was bright orange,…
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Oliver had never invested more of himself in a patient than he did in little Alex. In school, he’d been taught over and over about the necessity of detachment. Any personal investment in a patient would destroy his impartiality and create a conflict of interest. Fundamentally, he was to be a scientific technician, compassionate only to the degree it was required for his bedside manner.That detachment had not survived the end of the world. His friends were so rare now; too precious to let death claim.…
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107.0 K •
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