Fic Spotlight » Fic Spotlight #14 · 1:08am Jan 1st, 2015
Merry New Year's, folks! Some of you who live in weird non-American timezones may not appreciate the anticipation of a New Year that comes with living in the Present (as opposed to the Past or the Future), but that's okay, because we love you all the same. Pony stories for all! Whether you read them now or some nonspecific number of hours from now, remember that cartoon horses will always be adorable.
So, to celebrate the ringing-in of 2015, here's some story recommendations courtesy of The Royal Guard!
If you're interested in more regarding The Royal Guard and their recommendations, here're some links for you:
-The Royal Guard Group
-Submit Your Story!
-The Royal Guard's Reviewing Omnibus
-Join The Guard!
AND NOW, WITHOUT FURTHER ADO... STORIES!
This Week:
Action/Adventure
Order and Chaos, by psychicscubadiver
The Necromantic Adventures of Lyra Heartstrings, by SaintAbsol
Veni, Vidi, Verti, by thesecret1
Slice of Life
Another Day, by wYvern
Until Forever, by Pascoite
Mother of the Moon, by Lambent Dream
Comedy
Ragnarok, by Pascoite
ACTION/ADVENTURE
Night and day. Fire and ice. Creation and destruction. Everything has an opposite, and Chaos is no exception. Princess Celestia tells Twilight the true history of Discord's rise, the Alicorns' fall, and the creation of the Elements of Harmony.
She tells her student the story of Order and Chaos.
Will I like this? In addition to being one of the earlier and more well-known Discord origin stories, this is also one of the best. While some parts have been left behind by new canon, its core remains relevant, telling a touching (and occasionally hilarious) tale of family and sacrifice, and the portrayal of Discord is top-notch. —Prak
Necromancy gets a bad rep.
Oh, sure, some ponies like the whole cliche of the evil zombie master, pulling his puppet strings to make corpses dance and kill for their amusement. And yeah, you kinda do have to work with dead bodies a lot, and most ponies find that a bit creepy. Oh, and you learn a lot of spells to kill things and gain power from it.
But, come on, that doesn't mean all necromancers are bad... right?
Will I like this? So Lyra is a necromancer and Bonbon is a paladin. Yeah, wasn't expecting that. SaintAbsol takes an, honestly, completely absurd concept and turns it into something enjoyable. The characters are interesting, world building is solid, and the actions scenes are done well. But the question remains: are all necromancers bad? —NightWolf289
Crypsis is a changeling infiltrator on her first mission – to replace a pony in Ponyville. The hive is counting on her to finish the mission to the best of her abilities, but is she capable of it? And, more importantly, does she want to?
Will I like this? Do you think there isn't a changeling story left that can surprise you? Think again—or, if you prefer, don't. Feel free to go into Veni, Vidi, Verti thinking that you've seen it all before, because that'll just mean that the story throws you for a bigger loop. (Not to mention the good writing and tight characterization.) —R5h
SLICE OF LIFE
A life lived, and a lifetime worth of memories. But time drags on, and this place... I don't know. I don't know what I'm still doing here.
Will I like this? What is it they say—growing old is mandatory, but growing up isn't? Aphorisms aside, wYvern has written a quiet, compelling tale about one mare's refusal to go gentle, and I think you'll be glad you read it. —R5h
Ponies gravitate toward Twilight. Through charisma or just getting thrown together by circumstance, she's gained a lot of friends, but when has she ever simply walked up to a pony and said, "I'd like to be your friend"? Time for the Princess of Friendship to fix that.
Will I like this? While the story itself is wonderfully organic and owns every inch of its territory, something about it called to me more than that. It takes on an integral part of a pony’s—or a person’s—life: one’s calling in life and how to handle conflicts of it. I wish more stories explored what cutie marks really mean, and if you share that sentiment, you’ll enjoy Until Forever. —q97randomguy
Luna is a happy filly, and wants her sister to be happy too. She doesn't know why Celestia cries at night, so she's going to raise the sun and let her big sister sleep in.
Celestia watches her waiting to raise the sun from inside her chambers, torn between a love that she wants to acknowledge and the machinations of politics that have kept her from doing so.
What would a good sister do?
What would a good mother do?
Will I like this? Let's start by saying that I don't think I've ever seen this sort of story before, and move on to point out that it's adorable as all get out. Let us conclude by saying that if this piques your interest, you may want to give Mother of the Moon a few moments of your time. —R5h
COMEDY
As many such things do, it all started with Discord trying to help. And now Fluttershy can't escape the apocalyptic proclamations. Next time, she'll try the trick of wishing for no wishes.
Will I like this? Gummy, as a character who doesn't say or really do anything, is like a blank canvas when it comes to interpretations. You can really do anything you want, for the most part. I can say with no hesitiation that Pascoite made a Da Vinci out of this one. —BronyWriter
DARK
Trixie had made mistakes. Trixie had lied. Still, nopony had expected it to send Celestia into a rage. But nopony but Celestia understood the true importance to Equestria of trust.
Will I like this? At first, Trust seems to be about Celestia flying off the handle, but just a few words cast her actions in a new light. Read it again once you've finished, and you'll find a different story waiting for you. —Lab
"Dear Princess Celestia, what do you think it would be like to kill somepony...?"
Will I like this? Don't let the premise fool you; this story takes an incredibly difficult to execute concept and does it marvelously. The hook and pacing are fantastic, and the series of events unfold in a believable manner. While this story does contain some atypical writerly choices, they serve the piece well. —GaryOak
ROMANCE
Rainbow Dash knows one thing for sure, she is definitely not a barbarous, uncivilized dolt who doesn't know polite conversation from a hippopotamus's rear end. And also that she's definitely not the one who's wrong. Rarity is wrong. Rainbow Dash is absolutely, totally, a hundred percent sure of it.
But then why did Rainbow just buy a wagon load of apology bouquets?
Will I like this? This charming story uses a fun narrative style to turn a simple premise into something hilarious, heartwarming, and altogether memorable. Even if you're not a fan of romance, you should check this out just for the comedy. —Prak
Two stories I helped with in one go? Bonus!
Also, Ragnarok is one of my favourite Pascoite stories. Silliness incarnate.
I think this got me two more faves, thanks.
2691951
This has been true for a couple months now.
Get out of my read later list, Obselescence.
2692121
This isn't a group thread. It's a site post. These go out to every user on the site who hasn't disabled them in their feed options.
Surprised no one posted this yet:
i293.photobucket.com/albums/mm42/smartcoolchic01/MERRY_NEW_YEAR_2007.jpg
Maybe I read it wrong, but aren't I supposed to get a message if my story doesn't get featured in this?
2692803
The story you submitted hasn't yet been processed. It's currently working its way up the queue. We'll let you know when we've had a look at it.
2692827 Oh, ok. Thanks for clearing that up
Me gusta
Me Gusta Kapusta!
2695989
in my language: english / en mi idioma : Inglés ;
why'd you say, "i like cabbage"???
in language of original commentator: spanish / en el lenguaje de comentarista el original: español ;
¿por qué usted dice, " me gusta la col " ???
2757642 I said it because it rhymes so lovely and sounds so happyly.
Po hiszpańsku to brzmi szaleńczo.
2757762
srry 'bout that , i'm not mad i'm just confused
lo siento 'combate que , yo no estoy loco estoy confundido