Fic Spotlight » SA: Round 167 · 11:16pm Feb 22nd, 2020
Seattle's Angels is a group that promotes good stories with low views. You can find us here.
In a facility as large and as continuously expanding as the Seattle’s Angels compound was, finding someone wasn’t as hard as it would at first seem. All you needed was a little patience and the right tools. Tools such as the universal locator that Cynewulf had built into her shades. One blink was all it took to bring up the HUD, while a second blink activated the locator.
The display gave off a ping, quickly finding her intended target.
One transporter pod jump later and she stood in front of the door for the Holodeck Ultra 2000 (HUT). As she expected, it was in use as indicated by the occupied sign hanging off the handle. Shaking her head, Cynewulf turned the door handle and pushed, entering the HUT. Her HUD pinged again, prompting her to look upwards.
Hanging between a simulated set of palm trees was a brown hammock. Cynewulf mentally thought of a pair of rocket boots and the HUT responded. Blasting her way upwards, she quickly reached the hammock and her ultimate target. “Hey, reviews are due soon.”
Intern, lounging in the hammock, raised a finger to lift up his own set of shades. “Seriously?”
“Yeah. How long have you been here, anyway?”
“Uh, how long ago was my last post?”
Cynewulf shrugged. “Dunno, but we’re up.”
“Crud. Even with all the new guys that were hired…”
“Hey, you had a few months off. But now it’s time to get back to work.”
Intern groaned, willing the palm trees to shrink and bring him back down to floor level. “Fine, but this seat is taken.”
ROUND 167
Diamond Tiara is excited to have a starring role in Autumn Blaze's new opera. She knows the Opera House isn't haunted, but if it were, she'd be ready to give any Opera Spirit a stern talking-to.
It’s always fun to find something that almost feels like it could be an episode, and this is one of those times. Much of this plot feels like with some tweaking it could be an episode of the show! But it also goes a bit beyond that, stretching out what could have been a shorter tale into an ongoing mystery.
If you’ve ever been involved with theatre, you know that the intensity of performance can bring out a bit of people’s latent superstitious feelings. Ghosts, hauntings, curses, it's all a part of the culture of backstage, even now. Even those who scoff at curses feel a bit hesitant at the prospect of loudly talking about the Scottish Play on stage.
This story plays around with these feelings, capturing how mysterious and magical theatre can be--or at least, it did for me. Definitely recommended.
Hey, you know who got reformed but never got to show off the new her? That’s right, Silver Sp—I mean Diamond Tiara! Left out of the later seasons after learning how to tell her mother off, Diamond Tiara was blank canvas for any writers to build upon once the CMC got their marks. And it’s too bad we didn’t get a follow-up episode because AlexTFish shows how it can be done.
Having secured a leading role in Autumn Blaze’s debut Ponyville play, Diamond quickly shows how to put her talents to good use. It’s kinda amazing how a talent in getting others to get what you want can be used for the greater good. It’s almost like a weak version of the Jedi mind trick.
But Diamond’s not the only standout star. Autumn is her delightfully quirky self throughout. It’s great fun having her bounce around with the characters. Her brief scene with her nirik side was a hoot.
So if you care anything about reformed Diamond and fun Autumn, you gotta check this out.
STORY 2
Fiendish Proposal, by Fylifa
Being brought back from death by his supporters and overthrowing Cadance has given Sombra a valuable hoofhold in Equestria. However to stand against his enemies he might have to offer the unthinkable to a questionable ally.
Can a diabolic king survive a devilish queen?
Equestria at War has a way of grasping ahold of the imagination. A mod for the hit Paradox game Hearts of Iron, it has a vision of Equestria that marries the aesthetics of the mid 20th century to an Equestrian frame, one not that far removed from (in a way) from the show. It’s hard to describe at length.
But you don’t need to have played through the Great War or helped the (good) GLA beat the (terrible) Brodfield royalists to understand this story. Know that the world is darker, the stakes sometimes higher, the world a bit wider.
This story is dark but not oppressively so by any means. The darkness of the setting takes a back seat to the personal drama of a political marriage, and frankly to the occasionally hilarious antics of the would-be married. If you like this, I recommend the other stories in the contest this was a part of! (And I wrote for Yakyakistan and the Equestrian Liberation Front so if you like it, I’d love to hear.)
Well, this was something different!
I’m not familiar with the universe setting this is taking place in, but all you really need to know going in is that changelings have tanks and Sombra has taken over the Crystal Empire. This Sombra is based on the FIENDship is Magic comic series, which immediately gains my attention. This explains the presence of Radiant Hope as well.
So, with that little primer out of the way, HOO BOY was this fun to read! Chrysalis is the highlight here: grandstanding, mocking, scheming, cooing (you read that right), and all around having a grand ol’ time of things. Fylifa is having all the fun writing her and her changeling grunts worming their way into position to take control of the Crystal Empire. However, Sombra ain’t no slouch either. The test of wills these two rulers put each other through is marvelous.
Chrysalis fans will have a blast and FIENDship readers will find plenty to like with Sombra. It’s hella good fun.
STORY 3
Lost Letters, by RarityEQM
Diamond Dancer, ten-year-old filly, Royal Night's Errant, holder of the world's highest-flying record, and Star Seeker extraordinaire, writes a letter to her mother. Which would be much easier if she knew where she was.
I’ve been following Rarity EQM a very long time, and I’m a fan. They’ve put much of themselves in their writing, from stories to blogs which twist and turn and sometimes just sort of whisper on the wind. This doesn’t disappoint.
EQM is best when they focus in on emotionality, really lingering in what the world evokes in them or in others, and that’s the focus here. I’m sometimes skeptical of letters as a format, but when they work, they work. Like RoMs’ story, this is one for wallowing in a singular note of pure feeling, even if its a very different kind of wallowing and a very different feeling, because sometimes you want to just read something that fits your rainy day.
This is a short and bittersweet story written in letter format that may leave you a little misty. I’m sure I’ve seen the subject matter covered somewhere else, either in a TV show or kid’s book, but not quite like this. Something familiar but unique.
I hesitate to call this a tear jerker, because Diamond Dancer is doing pretty darn well for herself. It’s just that she’s missing that single piece of recognition from a parent that’s been long gone from her life. The length’s she’s gone to find her mother are both admirable and a little sad. It’s like winning the gold medal all your life but you’d settle for a bronze if it meant getting to see that one special person nod in approval.
Take a look and see if what I’m rambling about strikes your fancy. It certainly left me with something to think over once I finished.
STORY 4
A Maw of Cogs, by RoMS
No life, wind, or light. A total lack of sense of time. When a pony wakes up in the metal belly of a spaceship, only the sound of cogs, wheels, and pumps accompany him. Lost in this sarcophagus of steel, all he wishes for are the reasons for his punishment.
You don’t have to have read/watched Blame! To understand this story, but you should read it. Now. Go read it.
RoMs really captures the bleak isolated feeling of wandering impossibly large spaces and impossibly complex structures. The endless cold shell of human artifice left abandoned by its creator’s hands and hearts. Loneliness and how it seduces even as it repulses.
There’s not a lot of plot here. This is all about feeling, aesthetic, taking an atmosphere and jamming it directly into your brain at 100 miles per hour. And while complex plots are lovely… sometimes you just want to experience something. For those times, this story is absolutely a treat to scratch the brooding itch.
If you love imagery, if you love isolation, and you love all-encompassing atmosphere, you’re going to love this. There isn’t much in the way of answers, but the arduous journey we take with the main character is really all we need.
But really, Cynewulf said everything I’m feeling with this story way better than I could. If you’re in a moody mood, this will give you the fix you’re looking for.
Intern let out a content sigh and fell back onto his simulated hammock.
“You got it so rough,” Cynewulf drawled. She stepped away to leave when she stopped and tapped her chin. “Although…”
Moments later, Cynewulf was laying stomach down on a bench with a white towel wrapped around her waist while two tall, muscular men massaged her back and legs. “Ah…” she sighed in contentment.
“Careful, or you might be late for your next set of reviews,” Intern said with a smirk.
In a dreamy voice, Cynewulf replied, “They’ll find me when I’m needed.” She snapped her fingers and the pleasant sound of string instruments filled the HUT.
Feel free to visit our group for more information and events, and to offer some recommendations for future rounds. See you all next time!
Daring Do: The Opera was a runner-up in a contest where I was a judge. Can confirm, it's a good story.
Dang, I didn't expect this. Thank y'all so much for taking the time to read and review my short story!
I WONDER WHERE THAT FISH COULD BE...
5208479
"Fishy, fishy, fishy, oh!"
"And it went wherever I...did go!"