Chapters
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Iris Vale waited nervously in a distant corner of the dark sanctum, ears poised for motion down the hall. The sisterhood's healing salves had done their work, for her and the other members who survived the impact. But there were nearly a dozen of their number who had not survived. It didn't matter how powerful the healing magic they summoned—a corpse was a corpse. You could make it move again if you wanted, but that didn't make it alive."They're children," said a sister beside Iris, her voice…-
170.4 K •
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For days, or maybe hours, or maybe minutes, Derek dreamed. Dreamed of pain unrealized, of agonies unfulfilled. Dreamed of shadows that swam in distant places, and emerged to strike him down. Dreamed of small spaces, and small creatures that fled forever and never found relief.Then the dreaming ended, and Derek wasn't Derek anymore.There was cold first, liquid that soaked into a tight mat of cloth, or maybe something else. There were sensations, but none that made sense. The ground was rough, and smells of…
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170.4 K •
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Charlie wasn't sure what he had expected to find in this trip. An opportunity to bring his increasingly-distant best friend back down to earth, maybe. A nice Saturday away from the pressure of the city and the vicarious stress of his patients. Sure. But evidence, even fleeting circumstantial evidence, that his friend was right, that hadn't been on the agenda. Charlie sat and watched as his friend prepared for his “ritual.” Of course he'd seen most of this crazy stuff before. Pretty rocks, bits of rare…
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170.4 K •
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Sister Iris Vale, sworn witness of the Nightmare's divine curse, had never been more nervous for a ritual in her life. It was a good thing her hood and cloak were so dark, or the other members of the sisterhood might have noticed her furtive posture, her tucked tail and folded ears.But in the gloom of Cyan Mines, maybe they were really no braver than she was. She adjusted the dark robes, helping her horn find the opening meant for it in the hood. It would do no good to cover her entire reason for being…
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170.4 K •
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Spellsong's journey went on like that for subjective months. At each new station, she encountered some new remnant of the way the universe had been. Some had ponies who had gone in such strange directions that she could find nopony to recruit, even among the Methuselans.While in some, they arrived at a shard to discover that every Methuselan there had ascended before the end, rapidly climbing the ladder of enhancement and sophistication until they were functionally just parts of Celestia's own will.For the…-
12.2 K •
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The music stopped at once, with a sound of awkward shuffling beyond the door. That was about long enough for Spellsong to question whether or not she should be visiting looking like a pony. How close was this shard to rediscovering that they were ponies and rejoining digital life?She could've teleported back to the ship to ask, or maybe just cast a summoning spell to attract Luna's explicit attention. But someone on the other side of the door had already almost reached her.Instead she sent a flurry of…
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12.2 K •
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The endless void didn't make for an eventful trip. There was no energy left in the universe to create imagined brawls with fictional aliens along the way. Or worse, diplomatic contact, that would've added more minds to simulate and more energy demands. They passed with only each other for company, and not much to say. But even if Dyson weren’t much for keeping her entertained, he was attentive to know the instant they started to drift off-course, and correct before they could much delay their trip.A…
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12.2 K •
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Spellsong hadn't needed an entire day to choose her partner, when there were so few options left in the world of ordinary ponies."It's almost nightfall," she said, cresting the stairs to Dyson's library many hours later. Of course she hadn't been here all that time—she'd been out searching Saddle's End for somepony, anypony else she would've rather had as her copilot.But even if she found some old friends still remembered her, none of them were particularly suited for a role with such high stakes and…
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12.2 K •
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It wasn't the sort of conversation they would be having out here on the street, where so many ponies might overhear. Even as ignorant of Saddle's End as Spellsong could be, she was more considerate than just taking risks.Best not to give Celestia more work to do managing all their satisfaction.Like everything else, Dyson's home was basically unchanged from what she remembered. Smaller, fewer awards and scientific scrolls in the square case beside the wall. But basically the same otherwise. "Brown…
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12.2 K •
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Spellsong woke up. She heard the voice, felt the soft touch of cushion under her back, and remembered. She remembered loss, mostly. But she didn't scream, or lash out. Ponies screamed because they expected someone to come to their rescue. Spellsong expected no help.She twitched, pulling the covers back from her chest. She felt a little stiff—her movements came a little sluggish at first, and she twitched each leg in turn. It didn't take long, considering how many years she had been there. "You kept your…
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12.2 K •
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