The Nature of Ponies
Upheaval: Reckoning
Chapter 19: The Nature of Ponies
Aboard the Night Skimmer, the cool night breeze blew Rarity's mane about a little too strongly for her taste. She would have preferred to go to Canterlot on a luxury yacht, rather than a quick transport vessel, but time was of the essence here. They had emerged from Everfree late in the evening with the coffin and the tome in tow. Special Operations' new airship was just a short walk outside Ponyville. By the time they took to the air, it was almost midnight.
Standing on the deck of an airship brought back memories of Canterlot. It also helped that the Night Skimmer was donated by none other than Fleur de Lis, the widow of Fancy Pants. Rarity's mood darkened at the thought of Fancy Pants. Captain Nightcanter had earlier mentioned his death while explaining how Special Operations acquired the airship. It just wasn't right that the end of a good pony would be delivered so offhandedly by that mare.
Before that, Rarity had been thinking about how Fancy Pants would react to the Legion, and how his influence among the nobility would carry through. She even thought that he would probably be among the first of the nobles to step up, and take arms. Now, she would never know. That such a good pony with so much potential would be struck down somewhere, and be just an item in a Legion report left her aimlessly angry. It wasn't Nightcanter's fault. It wasn't even the fault of that legionnaire that pulled the firing lever. All Rarity had was the distant, unreachable figure of Black Rose to point at. For this reason, she chose to remain above deck while the others rested inside. No need to expose them to a bad mood.
Despite that incident, Fleur de Lis had donated the Night Skimmer as a gesture of goodwill when it became known that Legion was looking to modify a few airships. “It would have been what he wanted,” she had apparently said. Rarity agreed with that reason although she thought that it was doubly generous considering what had happened.
The Night Skimmer was already modified to suit the Legion’s needs: lightly armored, and outfitted with Barrier Lands metal working. One of the crew members had been talking about that combination earlier. Heartland engine design surpassed the war balloons used in the Western and Southern Legions, which allowed for bigger and faster vessels, but its overall metal working quality was inferior to that of the Barrier Lands. Legion engineers were horrified to find out that the chosen routinely replaced their metal parts after only a short time due to wear and tear. They were happy to work with chosen engineers in combining technology.
The silhouettes of Canterlot's towers drew ever closer. This wasn't how Rarity imagined her next trip to Canterlot would be. They were supposed to be still on a break, but they felt like they should be with the things they discovered when the royalty got involved. All Rarity could do was bid her family a hasty farewell, and promise them that she would return as quickly as possible before boarding.
“Hey there."
It was easy to recognize that voice coming from behind her. “Good evening, Captain Nightcanter,” Rarity replied. She kept her tone polite, even though she didn't relish having to deal with the mare at the moment. To her mild annoyance, Nightcanter stood next to her.
"So...Rarity was it?" Nightcanter said.
"Yes."
"Are you also throwing yourself tail-first at Vanguard?"
"What?" Rarity gasped. "Goodness, no! Captain Clash is a good stallion, but he's far too rough and grim for me."
"Oh...and here I was thinking that all six of you were in on the action," Nightcanter said. She looked up at the night sky, quietly speculating.
Rarity stared hard at Nightcanter. "Please stop thinking about what I think you're thinking," she said. "I'm starting to feel dirty."
Nightcanter chuckled. "Alright, I'll save it for later," she said. "How about we talk about you?"
"I'm just a simple dressmaker from a small town, Captain Nightcanter, nothing you should concern yourself about."
"No, you're Legionnaire Rarity of Logistics's Armory Division: apprentice to Master Smith Hammer Chain, Bearer of the Element of Generosity, and currently the only pony able to properly wield mage blades in centuries." Nightcanter smiled, and leaned on the railing. "Did I get all that right?" she asked.
Rarity raised an eyebrow. "Wasn't it just hours ago when you were calling me 'white unicorn'?"
"Oh, that's just me having a little fun." Nightcanter eyed Rarity just a little too shrewdly. "You stabbed Foxfire before she could get a spell out, withdrew your blade, then wiped it clean without missing a beat. I liked what I saw. You know, with Fourth Squad gone, we've got a lot of openings in Special Operations. I could put in a good word for you."
Rarity studied Nightcanter carefully. This was beyond liking a good tease. Offering a position within the Legion was hardly a joking matter. "I appreciate the offer," she said. "However, I'm not planning on making a career of this." She looked to one of her saddlebags, and lifted her mage blades, letting them hover just in front of her. "One day, I shall lock these up in a display case, and return to making dresses." She paused. "And maybe some weapons and armor on the side. Moving up the ranks, especially with a group that delves into secrets like Special Operations, would only make walking away more difficult."
Nightcanter's smile widened a bit more. "Not a lifer, hm? I'll just have to respect that."
Rarity was quiet for a while. 'Carousel Boutique and Smithy,' she thought. 'Fabulous outfits for balls and battles alike. How much it would cost to outfit a forge next to the boutique...' She set that aside for later. "Would you mind if I asked you something personal, Captain Nightcanter?"
Nightcanter was still all smiles. "Sure,"
Rarity's lips pressed into a grim line. "Four of your comrades just died, yet here you are smiling, and looking for their replacements. Doesn't it bother you?"
Nightcanter shrugged. "About as much as it bothered you when you stabbed Foxfire."
"That was different," Rarity retorted. "I was defending Pinkie!"
"Nuance as much as you like," Nightcanter said. "It's not 'killer instinct' if that's what's bothering you. More like a really good sense of coping. You should be glad to have it."
"This isn't about me," Rarity replied.
Nightcanter sidled a little closer, much to Rarity's discomfort. "Oh, but it is, isn't it?" she said. "You're not interested in me. You want to know why your first kill doesn't bother you."
"What?" Rarity moved away, and glared.
Nightcanter snorted, then shifted her gaze to the night sky. "I've got an analogy for that sort of thing. Want to hear it?"
"I will anyway, won't I?"
"Some ponies are like rag bags, everything inside them is all jumbled up, and connected. You throw something like a severed head in there, the blood will seep into the whole bag. By the time you open it, everything smells like severed head. When ponies like that kill, they have to let it affect everything. They wax philosophical about how the world works, and what they truly are as a pony. Ponies like you, me, and maybe Rainbow Dash, we're more like compartmentalized boxes. You put a severed head in there, and it gets its own little space. The blood doesn't seep anywhere, and the stink doesn't spread. No deep and dark realizations, no life-changing revelations. Just one more thing we have to do."
Rarity's frown deepened. She refused to look at Nightcanter, knowing she'd find nothing but an annoying, smug smile. Instead, she focused on the passing scenery. "I am nothing like that," she said.
"Sure you are," Nightcanter said. "Ponies like us, we're just particularly neat about this whole killing and dying business, and I think you're neatest out of your friends." She started to walk away. "I'm going to get myself a little snack before we dock. Want to come along?"
"I think I'll stay a while longer," Rarity replied. "I like the view."
Nightcanter chuckled. "So do I."
"Captain Nightcanter!" Rarity called out. She caught Nightcanter just as the door to the inner cabins had opened. "I've learned a thing or two in my lifetime as well. You may have a point, but nopony is as neat as your box analogy. No matter how much they wish for it."
Nightcanter waved a hoof, then walked off. "If you say so, Rarity."
Rarity tucked away a bit of mane that got in her face as the night breeze continued to blow.
Despite his earlier ordeal, Vanguard was up with the dawn. He walked through one hallway of the Royal Palace swiftly, having just heard that Sixth Squad had arrived. To his dismay, he had also heard that Twilight and her friends had come along. "Two weeks to be with your friends and family, and you barely use up half," Vanguard muttered. "What are you doing, Twilight?"
Farther down the hallway, Shining Armor stood straight on all four of his legs. Princess Luna herself had come over to see to Shining Armor, after they were relieved in the Crystal Grave. "Clash!" he called out.
"Armor," Vanguard said. They headed for the Chamber of Elements. "Good to see you up and about. Have you seen your sister yet?"
"No," Shining Armor replied. "I'm probably about to if this Starswirl the Bearded thing is real."
They entered the chamber, which now housed a coffin, and a tome. Guards and legionnaires were posted by the door as well as several points along the halls they had walked past. Inside, they found Twilight by herself.
"Twiley!" Shining Armor exclaimed. He trotted forward, to give his sister a hug. Twilight brightened, and met her brother halfway. A few seconds later, Shining Armor suddenly looked as if there was something wrong. His "sister", with her nose still pressed against his chest, took a long, not too sisterly inhale hammered the point in. Frowning, he pushed her back and held her at leg's length.
Vanguard took a few sniffs of the air. "That's enough foaling around, Captain Nightcanter," he said. "Let's go back to acting like professionals."
The image of Twilight shimmered, then dissolved from her head to her legs, revealing a dark blue coat, and a mane of purple ringlets. "I wasn't foaling around," Nightcanter said with a mock pout. "He said that he was more vigilant against impostors, and I wanted to test him myself."
"I'm sure," Vanguard said. The doors opened again. This time, the real Twilight, along with her friends, entered.
"Shining Armor!" Twilight said. Her smile quickly faded when she saw Nightcanter's proximity to her brother. In a heartbeat, she was standing between them, and glaring at Nightcanter, who backed off with a sheepish smile.
"It's great to see you alright, Twiley." Shining Armor said.
They hugged, and some cheer returned to Twilight. "How's mom and dad?" she asked.
Shining Armor's smile lessened briefly. "You should go see them, they'll feel a lot better once you do."
Twilight noted her brother's indirect answer. Perhaps, she should have gone straight to Canterlot after all. She looked towards Vanguard.
"So what happened down there?" Vanguard asked Applejack. He frowned at Nightcanter briefly while Applejack recounted the incident in Clover the Clever's last refuge.
The conversations stopped when all three of Equestria's royalty entered the chamber. Everyony knelt, and averted their gazes as the three took a look at the coffin.
"Starswirl the Bearded," Terrato said. "I never thought he'd be involved in this." He gestured offhandedly for everypony to rise before flipping through the pages of the tome. "Old Kingdom script. Just our luck."
"He should be given a proper burial," Celestia said, "not put on display like this."
"I'll build him a tomb myself after we find out what Clover the Clever was up to with his body," Terrato replied.
Luna's horn glowed as she inspected the coffin. "Big brother, there's more to this than just being a container. I think...I think there are still traces of him still clinging to it!"
"What?" Twilight gasped. She walked over to the coffin. "How's that possible?"
Luna concentrated. "Not him entirely," she replied. "His soul is gone. What we have are strong feelings, and memories bound strongly to the earth." She looked over to Terrato. "You're the necromancer, big brother, can you reveal what these traces are?"
Terrato cast some spells of his own, his normally gray magic tinged with wisps of black. "Lingering memories and a strong desire," he said. "I can project them if you want." When both of his sisters nodded, he cast another spell. The coffin glowed with grayish light before projecting a large image on the floor.
Twilight winced as she looked on. She wanted to see this. It was a memory from Starswirl the Bearded himself. Yet, the thought of finding out that he was as awful as Clover the Clever was horrifying.
The image showed a small wooden table up close. From the way the perspective shifted about, the image must be coming from the eyes of somepony, likely Starswirl the Bearded himself. The image shifted to the right, showing a light purple mare wearing a hooded burlap cloak. A clay mug floated in front of her, which she placed on the table. She opened her mouth to say something, but Twilight couldn't understand a word that came out.
"Luna," Terrato said. "Think you can apply a translation spell on the projection?"
Luna didn't reply, but her horn glowed brightly and swirls of her magic surrounded the coffin.
"-tea, Clover, but why did you bring me all the way out here?"
Twilight shuddered upon hearing the deep, aging voice that must surely belong to Starswirl.
"I wanted to talk to you without all the others around, master," Clover said.
"Then speak, pupil of mine."
"I want you to reconsider your stance towards our use of the Deep Father's power."
"No. I've already developed a spell to cut off his influence, and I'm closing in on the source. It was an evil thing you and your companions did by calling upon the Deep Father, Clover, I only agreed to it because it was the lesser evil compared to the Windigos utterly destroying us. Now, it must be cut away before it infects us all."
"It was the Deep Father's power that destroyed the Windigos!" Clover said. She gestured to the landscape behind her. A great plain of green grass stretched out to the horizon. A wide river of crystal clear water snaked its way across the plain and towards some distant mountains. "Thanks to him, we have been granted this land to settle!"
"His power destroyed the Windigos with ease because they too were spawned of it. Do you still not understand, Clover? You and your companions toy with the same force that would have annihilated all of ponykind."
"Ponykind itself spawned from the Deep Father's power," Clover said. "It is in our nature to attune to it. Our ancestors turned their backs to it, and fled so the Windigos eventually came to punish us. But, if we embrace that power..."
"...we will be destroyed. Why can't you understand this, Clover? Are you not called 'the Clever' for a reason?"
Clover the Clever didn't respond right away. Her expression darkened as she stared at Starswirl. Twilight's heart raced. Something was wrong with this scene. As if to confirm her suspicions, the image suddenly shook slightly, and blurred.
"What...what have you done, Clover?"
"Isn't it a strange sight?" Clover said, a smile slowly forming across her lips. "The unicorn who developed both the poison detection spell, and the detoxification spell is now dying of poisoning."
The image shook violently, and sparks of magical energy appeared around the edges.
It's too late to cast anything now, Clover said with a hint of glee. "The first thing that poison attacks is your magic. After that, it's a very, very slow death. Am I clever enough for you, master?"
"Heh..."
The glee disappeared from both Clover's face, and tone. "What's so funny, old pony? Are you having another one of your fits of whimsy? Are you going to make another silly spell, or add more bells to your outfit before you die?"
"How long have you been working on this poison, Clover?" The labored breathing in Starswirl's voice made Twilight's chest ache. She ground her teeth, and cursed silently at Clover the Clever.
"Years!" Clover spat. "I made the first test when I realized that you were only going to hold me back! You, and your pointless outfits, and your bowl-shaping spells! I knew I had to put you down at some point! The greatest spell caster of his age reduced to a doddering clown. It makes me sick to this day!" She smiled a little as she went on. "You should have guarded yourself better. It's only a matter of time before the student overcomes the master. It's the nature of all things."
"So Clover the Bashful finally speaks her mind."
"You don't seem to be getting what's going on, old pony. You're going to die, and I will continue to use the Deep Father's gifts."
"I'm an old stallion at the end of his rope to begin with. How much did your poison take away from me? A year? A few months? Tomorrow? You're the one with a lifetime to deal with the consequences of today. As for the Deep Father's 'gifts'..." Starswirl stopped to breathe heavily. "The Deep Father cares nothing for us. We are as mosquitoes to him, trying to nourish ourselves with his blood only to find it full of poison. He does not 'gift' pests."
Clover sneered. "You would know, wouldn't you?"
"Yes, I would. Turn away from this path, my not-so-faithful student, not even my death will make it too late."
Clover walked forward and her angry, hateful face filled the image. Twilight could see every line on Clover's face, and it made her nauseous. "You're suffering a lingering death and you're still lecturing me! You're still holding me back!" She knocked the table over, spilling the drink on the ground. "This is the end of that, Starswirl the Bearded, Starswirl of the Bells, Starswirl, Father of a Thousand Useless Spells!" She smiled fiercely as she went on. "My spells have already found one of the Deep Father's prime servants. Platinum is already working on digging him out!"
"Foal!" Starswirl gasped. "That is Regia Carnifex, bearer of the Foul Weapon itself! Tap into his power, and everything will be destroyed!"
"How do you know that?" Clover asked. Her smile faded as she shook Starswirl. "How do you know that name, old pony? What else have you been hiding from me?"
Starswirl didn't respond, and the image blurred to make everything unrecognizable. Twilight couldn't bear to watch even if the event had happened long ago.
"No! You don't get to just rest, Starswirl!" Clover snarled. Something flashed, and the image itself became tinged with light purple. "You may die, but your spirit will remain in that corpse." Her voice strained from the constant posturing. "It doesn't matter how you know this servant. We will free him, and use him. I will be raised to great power, and be known for building an everlasting kingdom worthy of the Deep Father's blessings, while your legend fades to nothing!"
"Foal to the end," Starswirl whispered. Terrato's spell ended a few seconds later. Silence filled the chamber. Everypony inside felt that the death of Starswirl, even if it had happened a long time ago, deserved a few moments of respectful quiet.
It was Terrato who eventually broke that silence. "Regia Carnifex. I don't recognize the name. What about you, Celestia?"
Celestia shook her head. "He must be one of those who were cast out with Oceanus," she replied. "Starswirl called him 'bearer of the Foul Weapon'. He must mean the one sealed within the Blasphemous Rift. He may have enough affinity with the weapon to blast the seals from the inside." Celestia paused. "How did he know so much?"
"I'll find out," Terrato said. "Leave that to me."
"But the Six Companions failed to release Regia Carnifex," Luna said. "The Old Kingdom was destroyed, right?"
Terrato shifted his attention towards the tome. "And that's where this tome, and the Crystal Grave comes in. Clover continued to work on freeing him even after Lexarius destroyed the Old Kingdom. This tome likely contains the methods how."
"I will work on reading the tome," Luna said. "I still remember my studies on the Old Kingdom's language."
Terrato frowned at the suggestion. "There's really no need to," he said. "We just need to keep it from Black Rose. Besides, there's a lot of power invested in it."
"There may be some information we can use," Luna said. "I'll be careful, big brother."
"Fine," Terrato replied. "In the meantime, I have to secure that Crystal Grave. If Black Rose succeeds in taking Regia Carnifex's power, she'll have an easy way to get past the Blasphemous Rift's seal."
"Wait," Twilight said. The others looked to her in surprise. "Clover the Clever said that she trapped Starswirl in his own body! Is he still trapped in there?"
"No," Terrato said. "Whatever spell she used to hold him faded when she died, or maybe Lexarius released him before sealing the refuge, but his soul is gone. Only these lingering memories remain."
"You alright, Twiley?" Shining Armor asked.
Twilight wiped a tear away, and nodded. "I'll be fine," she said. "I'm just glad that one of my heroes was actually heroic." She suddenly noticed Princess Luna looking at her.
"Just one, huh?" Luna said. Before Twilight could react, Terrato's voice drew all their attention.
"Everypony stay sharp," Terrato told them. "We still have a lot more to do."
Twilight nodded with the rest of the ponies in the room. She stared at the floor as if the image of Clover the Clever was still there. 'You're wrong about how things are with teachers and students, Clover,' she thought. 'Your 'everlasting kingdom' was destroyed. You were just a bad student, that's all.'
With that, she joined the others in leaving. There was a lot she wanted to do now that she was in Canterlot.
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Star Swirl the Bearded, badass to the end.
Throwing yourself tail first, hah!
Give em hell till your dying breath.
Good to see Starswirl didn't just let his not-so-faithful student just off him with no words of warning or lectures
*Gasp!*
Nightcanter's a changeling!
A bit short but I can't really complain. Great chapter, and I am now secretly hoping Rarity and Nightcanter hook up...
Rarity is awesome, we need more Rarity. I demand more Rarity.
but
Since a standard special operations squad is 4 ponies and usually only one unicorn among them, Rarity will most likely get herself to another squad, if she will join Special operations at all... and she might one she learns that Twilight and AJ are joining (and Rainbow probably as well once she learns about it).
so there might be two squads with the Elements of Harmony. hmm...we also have Shining armor who is already a captain and has a pretty unique talent. Maybe he'll get his own squad?
ok, with that out of the way, lets look at what we learned again.
Starswirl was killed by Clover the Clever (somehow I'm not surprised) and his soul was imprisoned in his body. what happened to Clover the Clever, we don't know. Who is the alicorn in the crystal grave, we don't know either. maybe he's that Regia Carnifex pony? Awesome name btw
Terrato's domain include Necromancy... interesting.
Now I'm seriously starting to wonder is Clover the Clever isn't somehow Twilight's ancestor. Yes, mostly because of the color scheme and it happened few millennia ago but it could explain why Twilight's family has so strong magic talent.
also, can you imagine what would happen if Twilight got to the hall of the elements few minutes earlier to see her fake self grouping Shining Armor?
Predictions/wishes for the next chapter: Pinkie explores her powers some more, Twilight visits her parents, we finally learn who Cadence is... or we jump somewhere else, like Spike.
Really love where you are going with his story. The first book didn't have as much direction as this one, and what you have created is pretty damn cool. I have nothing but praise for the world you created.
)
I do want to see what Spike is up to. I'm really really interested, what with the whole Kirin training him thing. More Rarity is always good too. (2nd favorite pony
Again, I love your story, I love your pretty constant update times, and I love your writing.
As always - your work is incredible.
I did notice that whenever Vanguard thinks of the mane 6 it's "Twilight and her friends" Makes me think that if anyone hooks up with him it's going to be Twilight.
Also can't wait to hear about Spike again, but I imagine that's a few chapters off...
Anyway - I can't wait for more!
More Spike would be nice but good to see Star Swirled being a BAMFS till the end
659022
I thought Clash and Twilight would hook up at first too, but then the whole dance with AJ happened. I'm pretty sure he's leaning more towards her now.
Of course, both roads lead to shitstorm before either one gets him.
658550
Star Swirl the Badass
261570
Are these stories crossovers, kind of like Fo:E?
658772 yeah, Breaking Point in my mind is just a prologue to the rest of the series, introducing the Barrier Lands, the Legion, Terrato, and Black Rose, and the Mane6's reaction to those things, all I can say is longest prologue ever
659022 well, to be fair when you think of the Mane6, it's probably Twilight and friends too, right? (I know this applies to me)
659106 well, from what we've seen so far Vanguard's Oblivious to Love given that he had to be told (by his mom no less) that he liked Twilight back in chapter 34 of BP, what we need is a conversation chapter with a view of his thoughts
For some reason I'm starting to get annoyed with this story. I feel that this story is more about the OCs than it is about the Mane 6 now. Its probably because I'm getting annoyed with the Alicorns in general.
How did I not notice this was on fimfiction? Been following it on fanfiction.net, but this is so much more comfortable. Yay!
/favorited!
Damn. This keeps getting better and better.
I'd say my only complaint is that the Heartland doesn't seem to get much credit, the 6 founders of Equestria turned out to be Villains and the royal guards where easily outclassed by mind controlled legionnaires. The Barrier Lands ponies seem to scoff at the idea of harmony and friendship. I would suggest that both sides of the story of Apple Slice could be true, being a outcast from his family could have driven him to be a hero in the legion. I also think it might be good if the Mane 6 where able to somehow redeem the 6 Companions whom they seem to be reincarnations of. Anyhow I do hope the Chosen get to show the Legion and the Barrier Land ponies that they aren't as "soft" as it seems.
658638 N0Pe.Av1
658772
Let's not forget the upcoming Rainbow Dash/Scarlet Rabbit race. I'm kinda itching too see who wins. I know premature but my bet is on Dashie.
662204 the race, for me is completely up in the air, every result would influence the story in such a different way, if RD won Scarlet's Ophidite conditioning would most likely be broken, and when the Ophitites capture Scarlet and RD (that's one plot point I can see coming a mile away) their reaction to him lossing his conditioning would be interesting, while if he beats her, and is stopped while beating her by Vanguard (or AJ), and flees, I could see Black Rose taking advantage of that, by having him working for her, maybe he's not even aware of it (he is possibly the fastest Pegasus in the Barrier Lands, which would be a great asset for her), or he could stop himself from beating her up because of feelings for her (we know that Rainbow has feelings for him from chapter 3, but do those feelings go both ways?)...or he could be killed for beating her up, it would be a loss of a totally awesome character, but it would be interesting to see how Rainbow would deal with it, especially because she accepted his challenge, knowing full well what might happen
Rarity studied Nightcanter carefully, trying to ascertain if the mare was teasing again. “I appreciate the offer," she said. "However, I'm not planning on making a career of this." She looked to one of her saddlebags and lifted her mage blades with telekinesis so that they hovered just in front of her. "One day, I shall lock these up in a display case and then return to making dresses." She paused briefly, envisioning that time. "And maybe some weapons on armor on the side. Moving up the ranks, especially with a group that delves into secrets like Special Operations, will only make walking away more difficult."
Nightcanter's smile widened a bit more. "Not a lifer, hm? I'll just have to respect that."
Okay, now I'm one of the ones who are confused for a change. Hasn't the permanent, lifelong duration of enlistment/conscription into the legion been a major point over the last half-dozen chapters? Rarity seems to think she'll eventually be granted leave, and Nightcanter's response not only confirms it, but also seems to imply that it's not uncommon.
Given the "conscription of the heartland ponies" subplot that's been going on, this exchange creates some sizable problems. There wasn't much of a reason for the bulk of the drama if it's possible to retire from legion service.
659306 I do think of them as Twilight and friends, but that's because in the show (and my head) Twilight is the leader. However in this story Clash put AJ in charge of their group when the situation called for one of them to be in charge. So from a rank orientated standpoint, it would be Applejack and group.
So the question is does Twilight simply stand out more in his thoughts, does her name come up first because he meet her first, or did the author's thoughts come out instead of Clash's?
(So I over think these things a little...
)
663468
It's already been mentioned in the story that Terrato has agreed to allow the chosen to retire after 4 years of service.See Chapter 16. News traveled quickly, I have to admit. So both Rarity and Nightcanter would know about the possibility for the chosen to retire.
However, neither Rarity nor Nightcanter know that Terrato is still deliberating as to whether he should apply the same towards the Elements of Harmony, who were not drafted but volunteered. See Chapter 13. So Rarity can think about walking away although she doesn't know that her plans might hit a snag.
662522
I hear and understand what your saying. I suspect for Dashie there's more to this race than what she's letting on. I can't my finger on it, but i think when Applejack was almost killed it shook Dashie to the core and now she's using this race as a way redeem herself in her own eyes, but however if she loses she might never recover from it.
663488 I'm not sure if it's been brought up recently, but you can retire from active duty, during (what I assume to be) times of peace, this was brought up in chapter 19 of Breaking Point when the Mane6 were signing up to join the Legion, so there is that
663669 well, Rainbow feels that she needs to do something heroic to redeem herself, even only if in her own eyes, though I'm not sure if the race would count, from what she was thinking it, it seemed she wanted to accomplish something great during a battle, while the race with Scarlet is just her proving that she's faster/better then he is.
663681 personally, I wouldn't really consider Pyre to be a villain per-say, more of an anti-hero
Black Rose on the other hand, is awesome, too bad she hasn't gotten a chapter or even a scene in this story yet
663809
Its my belief that this race has with Scarlet is a possible extention of that "need to do something heroic" that pushing her towards that. That's my guess, anyway.
662204
Sadly, I think Rabbit will win. I don't know, I would love to say that Dash flattens him, but I just don't see that happening. You have to remember that Rabbit was bred to race. It is what he does. I don't care how much natural talent you got, but if someone is bred to do something they excel, period. I think of it this way. In the games of pokemon, you can breed pokemon. There are two hidden values in the game, called EV's and IV's by fans. These two values determine how high your stats will be at level 100 (how strong your pokemon will be). EV's are effort values, and you can get a high score of these by simply defeating the correct pokemon to gain a certain EV. IV's, however, are completely different. A high IV score can only be achieved by a process of lots of breeding (or getting really really damn lucky)
Basically, Scarlett has it in his genes, Rainbow does too, but I just can't see her being on the same level of Scarlett. Thinking more on this though, I can see them having about the same level of natural talent. Rainbow just needs to work her ass off to get her "EV" score higher, if you will. Uhh damn, that turned out to be quite the explanation.
Whatever, I hope that makes even a bit of sense.
666457
Its possible that Scarlet might win but let's not forget Dashie is member of Dreadwing, Tailwind's outfit. From what we've read on her group in series, Tailwind makes a member better than when they first come in. So i think this........"On the job training"(For lack of a better term) will make Dashie a better flyer and let's not forget she also as her Sonic Rainboom skill, that's something that Rabbit doesn't have. So i'm not counting Dashie out just yet.
Alright, first things first. The first four paragraphs or so were wonderful. I really do appreciat you remembering his death for so long, and taking a moment to remember what a good guy he was. All he did was for the good of others, and he treated everyone with love, tolerance, and the respect they deserved.
Also, Starswirl the Bearded was perfect. He reminded me of Gandalf, but more awesome. All this chapter needed was Sweetie Belle, and then all of the best background ponies would be involved!
For Rarity, I have a beautiful price of writing I read when I feel down.
Sometimes I feel alone. Some days are long and hard. But when I look out into the world, I am struck by the impossible beauty of it all. Those billions of magnificent accidents that led us to where we are today, that led us to paper planes and nautilus shells and the tiny, crooked smiles of children. When I think about all the small perfections of the world, I have faith that my time will come. I have faith that some day, a warm light will flood over me and I will find peace.
666543 one problem with your reasoning, Scarlet's former flight Dreadwing as well, before he moved onto Special Operations, and he was part of the flight for much longer then Dash so far, so he has that advantage
666543
I have to agree with stringtheory, Scarlett just has a lot more experience. I really do want to see Rainbow win though. I just don't think it will actually happen.
I hope we find out soon!
Oh, i'm not rejecting Scarlett's experience. Not at all. Dashie has raw talent. Lots of it. Its quite possible they could end up in a draw but unfortunately Raw talents don't win races, thats only in books and movies. That's why i'm hoping Visiden will introduce some sort of trainer for Dashie. Tailwing herself, perhaps?
673086 the thing with Dash getting a trainer, would be that anyone who could teach her would also stop her from racing Scarlet, because they know what Scarlet's capable of
plus Tailwind's more focused on getting her to be better in fighting, Dash doesn't need experience with going faster, she's already fast enough, what she needs is more experience with fighting
674932
That's true. I'm just hoping it'll be Dashie, i got a soft spot for her. In the end as the author, it'll be Visiden who decides on who wins and loses.
Also, Dashie is extremely stubborn. Once she decides on something, its very difficult to turn her from that course of action she's taking. Like this race for example, if she decides she'll beat Scarlet, She'll do everything in her power to see that happens. Its that sort of drive that made her the best flyer in all of Ponyville, if not the Heartland. And lets not forget, she's always practicing her skills. Scarlet? He just hits local Bar. Then again he can do this without getting drunk because (and i'm guessing here) of his high metabolism and Dashie can't.
But if Scarlet does win? Dashie isn't going to be lying down, She'll be Practicing even more and she feels she's ready, she'll challenge him to rematch. That's assuming1) Vanguard or Tailwind does give them orders to stop it. 2) Scarlett accepts her challenge. ( Again assuming he doesn't kill her first)
675322 if Scarlet wins, Rainbow will get beaten up, probably almost killed, unless something happens, Scarlet will then become a criminal, and would be hanged if they catch him, so he'll flee if he has any smarts, so there's only one shot for Rainbow to win this
plus this comment made by ILSS a while back is very relevant: link
or there's the third result: They get captured by the Ophitides (remember them?), it makes sense, no-one else would be around, and by the time the others do figure out what happened they'd be long gone
Ahh, the Ophitides. I completely forgot about them.
what is the blasphemous rift? what creature or entity exists in their that could challenge the "king"? is oceanus really Cthulhu? who is this Regia Carnifex? why is he in a ball of crystal? what is his/her affiliation with what ever exists in the rift?! what is black rose planning!!?? what is pinkies power? AND WHEN WILL FLUTTERSHY BECOME BADASS LIKE EVERY ONE ELSE?
so many unanswered questions and im loving it. looking forward to seeing moar MOARE GOD PLS MOAR
Missing a space.
You will forever onwards read anything said by Starswirl in Gandalf's voice.
Being who I am, I pulled out my Latin dictionary and looked up "Regia Carnifex." That name bodes very, very badly.
I agree with Twilight about Star Swirl. With as many horrible revelations of history that you keep writing about, it is nice to have one pony with a more accurate history.
4896627 yeah nothing says bad news like a name that translates to royal executioner