David - 20th of Megan '15 EoH - Late Morning
Ah, that special mid-forehead throbbing brought on by the lack of coffee. There was coffee in this world, I know, I had some once. This morning, was a coffee morning.
Waking up to discover that Jade had apparently unwittingly carried a legendary Diabolus ex Machina since day one of escaping her hive’s destruction was an eye opener, but no substitute for coffee. I just knew that damn book was going to bring hell down on our heads. The enemy had definitely made a thorough search of the old hive by now, and if that had been something they knew was there, they would assume Jade must have it.
Perhaps it’s a bit silly of me to think in literary tropes about life, but they had a weird knack of working one in five times in this world. For instance, the time I walked into an inn and every hushed western movie style until I sat down, then erupted into a low buzzing set of conversations. That creeped me the hell out, and I’d been noticing those odd little moments ever since.
This had the hallmarks of one of those things. But… Azur was correct. You can’t simply dispose of a historical relic. Especially not one with mythical powers. The book belonged in a museum.
Also working my way through plausible events relating to the enemy and the book was helping me keep my mind from focusing on Azur. The snow white unicorn had gotten rather bored, and decided that this little road trip needed music. I had hoped this mean some kind of radio spell. It did not.
Azur had started simply trotting along side me and singing what sounded like a bit from a musical. It wasn’t bad. But he was on his fifteenth song now, and he had gotten more and more exuberant as time had passed.
Azur moonwalked backwards, a few meters ahead of me, spinning a full circle with an expertly done twirl, while singing in a way too professional voice. “♪♫ Du kannst tanzen, du kannst swingen, du hast die Zeit deines Lebens; // Schau dieses Stute an, schau dir den Schauplatz an, graben dir die Tanzprinzessin! ♫♪”
In the name of all that his holy, why and how did Dancing Queen get here? Whatever was responsible had a shell from Boomstick with it’s name on it!
In a move that I would have believed impossible for a quadruped, he dropped to his knees, slid forward and sprang up to offer a hoof for a waltz, only to spin away and drop to all fours while moving on with the next verse.
“♪♫ Du bist eine Verlockung, du machst sie an, // Lässt sie brennend zurück und dann bist du weg, // Schaust dich um nach jemanden anderen, jeder würde es tun. ♫♪” Azur sang, prompting Jade to start humming along to the tune.
It was no use. Focusing on the possible psychosis of seeing tropes in real life was no match for the worst song ever written! Why did I learn German? Why?!
“C-can we take a break please?” I begged, my voice sounding funny due to my ears being pressed flat to my skull.
“Nein!” Azur sang, not even missing a single note as he added, “Either you sing or I do!”
“You’re joking?” I said, horror stamped on my face.
“♪♫ Du bist in der Stimmung für einen Tanz, // und wenn du die Chance bekommst... ♫♪” Azur continued, going for another little spin and somehow not tripping on an exposed root.
I took a few milliseconds to weigh my options.
“If I sing something, you’ll stop?” I asked hopefully, just to be sure.
“Ja!” Azur sang, right between notes.
That androgynous song-troll must have taken theater in mage school or something… I sighed, there was no escaping it, today was the day dignity died.
“Fine. Just give me a minute to think of a song I’ve heard over here.” I groaned in defeat, thinking of any songs I could recall from taverns.
“Oh no you don’t!” Jade scolded playfully from atop the wagon. “You’re gonna do something from your homeland.”
“Ooo! Do it! I’ve never heard a diamond dog song before!” Azur exclaimed excitedly.
“Oh, hell no!” I shot back. “Using songs from here is bad enough… I’m not disrespecting songs I like by making my voice sing them!”
“Oh you can't be that bad!” Jade scoffed with a giggle and knowing grin.
“Ninety year old man warbles. Yeah, just how Ozzy wanted his tunes sung.” I shot back.
Azur gave me a deeply confused stare, “Was? You’re ninety? There’s no way! Und that’s not even middle aged for a dog!”
It wasn't? I blinked, then facepalmed hard enough to hear the slap echo. “Right… that excuse doesn't work anymore…”
Crap. That had been a great excuse!
“Well,” Azur said with a sly grin, “If you don't sing, I guess I’ll have to.”
He opened his mouth to resume the most annoying song ever written. In a blind panic my brain started belting out the first song it could recall. “It's astounding… Time is fleeting, madness takes its toll. But listen closely, not for very much longer. I've got to keep control...”
Fuck! Why that one brain? I couldn’t not do it now! It was a rule. I let go of the cart, and readied my dance moves for the first time in… a large time unit.
Fast and loud voice time! “I remember doing the Time Warp! Drinking, those moments when,
the blackness would hit me, and the void would be calling…”
Engage singing! Disengage dignity... “♪♫ Let's do the Time Warp again! ♫♪”
In the next five minutes I was delighted to learn that the absurdly good joy of the Rocky Horror Picture Show transcends dimensions. I was also confused to learn that ponies can stand upright for short periods, and replicate the old jump to the left. I could spend hours working out the way their bodies could move like that.
I had worked out hooves. This was easily just as intriguing. I filed it away in my ‘to do’ mental pile as I picked myself off the ground from the Warp’s final flop.
“Right.” I announced. “That’s that.”
Azur got up, ears drooping. “Awww, that’s it?”
“That’s it.” I confirmed stepping back over and picking up the cart’s rails.
“Sadness…” Jade whined softly from the spot she’d flopped onto. “That was fun. You gotta do another one!”
“No.” I grunted. “Now, back on the cart. We need to get out of griffon patrol range.”
Everyone climbed aboard. Or rather, Jade climbed aboard. Azur sort of flopped onto the back of the handles, laying against the front of the wagon and somehow suspended by the handles. Not really sure if you can call that ‘aboard’.
Thankfully we traveled in silence for a while. I don’t know why I didn’t think to say ‘griffons about’ earlier. I guess I just didn’t want to be a killjoy. It’s rare for me to be around non-mopey old farts.
Or at least, it was. It was normal for me to be alone now. I sort of missed talking to myself as I traveled, I made a good conversation partner if I did say so myself. I mean it was nice to have some real company, but it would also be nice if that company would remember we were traveling in ‘don't get stabbed’ mode.
Over the course of an hour the forest started to thin out, shortly opening enough to review a huge marshland in front of us. I’d traveled Stalliongrad’s marshes before, they were generally safe if a bit soggy and heaven for all manner of insects. It might slow us down a bit to find a path but we shouldn’t run into any mires or other major hazards.
These places had a ton of critters in them too, just like the marsh’s back home. With luck I could catch something for dinner, my jerky stocks were high, but you can only eat dried meat for so long before getting a bit… deprived. I perked my ears forwards as we walked, trying to listen for any birds I knew by their call. I remembered these places being full of ducks.
I kept my ears pointed forwards for some time. All I could make out was the creak of the cart, Jade turning the pages of a book, and Azur’s wistful sighs. There should be birdsong, and insect buzzing. Mires are not quiet. Not unless something dangerous is about.
Fuck.
I stopped the cart. “Everyone, it’s too quiet.” I announced in a calm and quiet manner.
“Ja, that’s why I was sing-” Azur paused mid sentence, his ears swiveling, then falling flat “Oh… Ja, das ist beängstigend ruhig… Vater fand mein Kleid ruhig.”
Deciding to ignore Azur’s comment about his father for now, I turned around and held out my hand to Jade. “Pass me the binoculars, behind you, to the right, leather bag.”
Jade nodded, set down her book and turned, rummaging for a few moments with her magic before holding up the crappy binoculars I’d arrived here with. “Uh, are these them?” she asked.
I nodded and took them. After a short pause, I sighed and walked around the back of the cart. I had a bad feeling about this.
“I could have gotten more things for you.” Jade informed politely as I slipped my other cloak out from a box.
“I know. But I’m getting a few things. This is faster.” I said, quickly switching my green wool cloak for my carefully painted black, brown, and green splotch camouflage one.
“Ugh… No offense but that’s hideous.” Azur said in what I assumed was an attempt to critique fashion. “You look much better in the green one.”
“Perhaps,” I muttered, digging out the crossbow I had looted yesterday and slinging it over my back. “But the point here is to not be seen.”
A few more moments of digging and I pulled my helmet out of the cart. It wasn’t a replica, or one I gotten here. Whatever I had been doing the night I came here, I’d had my old helmet on for it. I’d been grateful for that more than a few times, as the arrow scratches in her olive drab paint proved.
I took a second to admire the old girl. I may hate my past, but I loved this old hunk of steel. She’s saved my life four times, all thanks to the red cross painted on the front. Say what you will about the Nazis, their average soldier didn’t shoot at medics. Not till we were pushing them into Berlin at least.
I buckled on my helmet, pulled up my cloak’s hood and ordered, “Wait here. I’m going to check this out.”
“May I accompany you?” Azur asked.
“Tempting… You might have a useful spell, but, no offense, you’re bright white.” I said starting to walk towards the treeline.
“Und?” he asked.
“I’m trying to remain unseen. Hence, the camouflage.” I sighed. “Don’t you guys have camouflage?”
“That’s supposed to be camouflage?” Azur asked in surprise. “Your other cloak is more leaf colored, how’s this one even work! It looks like a painting my mom would blow a half million on!”
“The earth tones and blotches break up your outline, making you look like the background from a distance. As opposed to a solid color which is only useful in some circumstances as it won't break up your apparent shape. Or if it’s white, never useful for staying hidden ever.” I pointed out making my way towards a large bush on the edge of the treeline which looked to be a good vantage point.
Azur giggled, straight up giggled. “I’m in front of you.” He said, clearly from in front of me, where I couldn’t see a damn thing.
I groaned aloud, “... So, you can make things invisible, but-”
“Nein, not invisible. I just changed my fur, mane, and eye colors. Now, I match the treebark.” Azur informed.
I squinted hard. I took me a full five seconds, but I managed to see his outline. “Damn. Any chance I could learn that?”
“Eh… Probably not. I mean, non-natural mages can learn some simple things…” Azur said apologetically before, I think, shaking his head, “It’s not important. Let’s find what’s keeping thing quiet, Ja? Hopefully just a cragodile.”
“You mean a crocodile?” I asked.
Azur giggled, “Oh please, I’m not that lucky.”
I shook my head and moved forward to the bush, kneeling down behind it and taking out my binoculars to start looking across the area.
“I’m surprised you have binoculars. I didn’t think you could get those in Stalliongrad.” Azur said conversationally.
“You can’t, I got them back home… If you want to ;ll pass them to you in a minute.” I grunted. I would really rather do this myself… Scouting wasn’t something to do lightheartedly.
“It’s okay, I don’t need them. Er, do you have a strip of cloth? I need to cover my right eye.” Azur asked.
I stopped looking over the grassy marsh and turned in the direction of his voice. “Did you hurt yourself?”
“Nein, my left eye is pegasus. If I cover my right eye, the left stops matching the depth of field, und I can do the pegasi thing. Raptor vision.” He answered.
“Hold up, your left eye is a pegasus’s? Where did you get a transplant done? That’s beyond impressive!” I exclaimed in honest surprise.
“Nein, nein, it’s my own eye.” He said in a clarifying manner, which clarified little.
“Ah, so you magicked it into another subspecies?” I asked curiously. I’d always been interested in transgenic research, maybe with magic such things were common here.
“Ah… not so much. I could have though. All Germanes are pure pony, a perfect blend of the three tribes… in patches. While I am a unicorn on the outside, inside a third of me is unicorn, a third is pegasus, and a third is earth pony.” He summarized.
“Ah, so, eugenics leads to nationwide chimerism, eh? Sounds about right. it’s not like a full understanding of genetics was available when that was tried back home.” I said with a sigh. “If you have any medical needs, I am a doctor and surgeon.”
“Actualy ja! I fixed my own problems over the years, und now I’m working to make myself better. Later, could you help me see if I relocated and multiplied some sensory nerves correctly?” Azu asked hopefully.
“Sure,” I agreed, starting to look through the binoculars again, “I take it you don't know medicine… You probably shouldn’t experiment on yourself. I can see editing your own biology going very bad.”
“I was working from a medical text when I did it. I’m not a dummkopf.” Azur muttered. “Ah… Do you see the willow tree by the big rocks? I think something moved there.”
I nodded and moved my binoculars back to look at that spot. “I’m looking now…”
The rock pile was rather odd, but definitely old as t had moss covering it. The tree was fairly old too, with ivy running up the trunk. The whole spot sat on a rather large dry patch of the mire too. Large enough to set up a pretty large camp on if you-
Hold on a minute.
I squinted harder through my binoculars. “Azur, just to the left and above the rocks… Can you see a boxy shape in the background?”
Azur shifted position, the rustling leaves seemed unnaturally loud. “Ja… Und I… Ah, there, focused on… Those are tents, covered in grass and things.”
“Wait, tents?” I asked.
“Ja, um… vier… sechs… nein, sieben. Er, there are seven. I think they are military tents, very square, und the good camouflaging.” Azur reported.
Triple fuck! Unless…
“You were a guard, does Applewood have any patrols out this far? Or does the-”
That’s when a chainmail armored griffon slowly moved from behind the rocks on what was a clear patrol rout.
“Ah crapbaskets…” I muttered.
“Scheißekugeln.” Azur added.
We kept watching for another thirty minutes. By that time it was very clear that we were looking at a large camp of Griffons who were the same ones that were trying to kills us, judging by their heraldry. The camp also just so happened to be a full platoon’s setup.
There were at least two score griffons, mostly chainmail clad crossbow and spearmen, but also a scattering of the full plate armor types, and two individuals with gold torcs who Azure assured me were mages. This full force was clearly camped out in the marsh, and had set up a few hidden positions for their archers, and a full trench, which must have been hell given the terrain. They were ready to make sure absolutely nothing passed this point.
“So… It’s a fair bet that this is meant to stop us.” I said after Azur and I had finished cataloging everything we could.
“Ja. South is the only way we can go, und their scouts could easily have given them our path.” Azur said bitterly.
“Well, at least they think we can trounce their scouts without problem. That means we have to worry about them thinking about us like a military unit.” I said with a chuckle.
“Why is that funny?” Azur asked bitterly. “They have an army! We can’t fight that.”
“Right.” I said with a smile. “But they are treating us like an army. See if we were a military force, that would stop us no problem. We likely couldn’t change course, and we would need to engage the enemy to prevent a counter attack from our flank.
“But we are not a military, we are not here to fight the enemy, or take a position. We are trying to escape with our lives. The fact they are treating us like a military, means we have an edge. They are not thinking of what we will do, because we don’t need to fight them.”
“Was bist du… I mean, what are you talking about?” Azur asked.
“You don’t need to use Equish, I speak German you know.” I said rolling my eyes.
“Ja I do! It’s… It’s a neurocy. I need to speak to someone in their own language. It’s rude to assume everyone knows mine.” Azur said in an embarrassed tone.
“Ah. Well, in that case… That camp is built to make a military force pause and need to attack it. We are not a military force, we are three guys who just don’t want to die.” I explained. “So since you have that super-camo going, I’ll pass you my knife, and you go cut as much of that mire grass, reeds, and other plants as you can and bring it up to the cart. We camouflage it to look like a giant piece of foliage, and we go the hell around those assholes once the sun goes down a bit.”
Azur was dead quiet for a full minute.
“Why didn’t I think of that?” He asked curiously.
“Because you’re a city guard, not a soldier who's sick of fighting.” I said drawing my Bowie and passing it to him. “Don’t cut yourself.”
Jade - 20th of Megan '15 EoH - Twilight
“There is no way in Tartarus this is going to work!” I hissed quietly from atop the cart an inside a fake bush.
“Shhh!” David and Azur hissed back over the faint creak of the cart.
“This looks so fake! It’s taller than the rest of the grasses!” I angry-whispered. “Why can’t we just go like, a half day east then head south?”
“Because… I...huh…” David said scratching his chin. “That would be way better than this plan, wouldn’t it?”
“Why didn’t you say that when we were camouflaging the cart?” Azur asked, “It’s too late to do that now, we don't want them to find our camp for the evening…”
“I said it like a hundred times!” I snapped, barely managing to keep my voice low. “You two were just so eager to be all sneaky you didn’t even bother to ask your sneaking expert!”
“Says the bug-girl who forgot to change her hooves!” David hissed defensively.
I gave him a good long, back-of-the-head glare.
“... Okay, sorry… Look, we sort of have to go through with this now. Do you have any advice?” David asked.
“Yes! Don’t cross the marsh just five hundred meters from their camp!” I said quickly.
“Only safe path we could find besides the one they were camped on.” Azur pointed out.
I groaned and held my head with my hooves. This was a terrible idea! “I don't want to be shot again!”
“We’re a quarter of the way across the mire, there’s more forest just a kilometer ahead. We can make that by midnight, and there is no way they will look for us behind them so soon.” David said.
Suddenly a low droning buzz began to fill the air.
“Huh… Guess the bugs feels safe enough to come out now.” Azur commented.
“Sounds more like a B-52 Squadron…” David muttered suspiciously. “There aren't those arm sized mosquitoes around here, are there?”
“Nein!” Azur objected, “I wouldn’t move within a week’s walk of those-”
“That sounds like a group of changelings.” I commented, taking another second to listen, “Yeah! Hear that little humming whine? Changelings.”
“Uh… So, Jade,” David asked in an urgent tone, “Are there any other hives around here besides your own?”
“No. Why do y- Oh!” I squeaked, eyes widening to what felt like dinner plates.
“Was do you me- Oh!” Azur whimpered.
A high pitched shrieking white split the air. David sprinted forwards and dove behind a boulder with a scream of “Cover!”
A split second later a flash of bright green light lit the mire up like the sun. A loud boom followed the flash, and I could see dirt fly up into the air over near the griffon’s camp.
Another flash and boom, this time I caught the streak of green from the sky as one of the Swarm launched themselves like a living catapult into the camp.
“They’re attacking the griffons!” I exclaimed, yelping as a blue nimbus of magic yanked me off the cart.
“Nein! They are indiscriminately purging life! Hide!” Azur shouted before bolting under the cart.
I quickly scurried under the cart too.
The attack seemed to go on forever. The droning of changeling wings became a full roar as what must have been a million circled the entire marsh. The dull explosions of bombarding changelings was inter cut with the scintillating shrieks of spellbolts, and the death screams of forty souls.
It’s hard to remember much other than the droning buzzing, dull explosions, and the screams. My mind simply doesn't want to go back to those moments. All I can remember is the terror, and squirming free of Azur’s terrified nearly chitin-crushing hug thirty minutes after the silence came back.
I don’t know what possessed me, but I crawled towards the camp in the dead silent air. It took a long time, I moved on my belly, centimeter by centimeter through the freshly blasted loose earth. But I made it.
The camp was dirt, ash, and dead bodies. The big pile of rocks was gone, just cooling shards of molten rock. The willow tree ablaze. The bodies killed, and left to rot, not drained like I had been told the Swarm usually did. The entire place had been literally flattened.
I made my way back on my hooves. I had to move quickly, my hearts screamed at me to get the buck out of there. The Swarm hadn’t been hunting, they had wanted those griffons deader than physically possible.
I saw David slowly getting up as I came running back, Azur was sitting next to him, spooked enough to look even more white.
“We need to go!” I yelped.
“Yep.” David agreed, voice grim, but shaken.
“No, like, they leveled that camp! Literally leveled!” I informed in a panicked squeak.
“Ah… Right, all aboard the nope train.” David sighed. “... We’re getting out of here before they come back.”
“W-was makes you think they will come back?” Azur asked as he climbed up into the cart.
“I saw them chase about fifteen Griffons into the forest we came from. I’m pretty sure they will want to loot and make sure everyone here is dead, since apparently that’s what they were after. I’m not fighting about three hundred fucking Blackhawks with fucking phaser arrays.” David grunted.
David grabbed the cart’s handles, I flew up to my favorite box atop it, the sound of my own flight making everyone wince. Including me.
We crossed the mire as quickly and quietly as possible. No one said a word. David kept moving in one strait line, putting as much distance between us and the killing field as possible. He moved like a machine, not even slowing down as the moon reached it’s zenith, and my eyes drooped shut.
Unfortunately for whats-his-beak, looks like he and his griffons have outlived their usefulness....
In other news, the guards of Applewood are bleeding idiots....Azur's spellcraft is incredible!
All the song possibilites and you never thought of the Rickroll?
You say that too.
6546742 Hey, it's not forbidden by the Evil Overlord List, in fact it's encouraged.
As for Azur, he was complaining that the townsfolk were braindead hicks rooted in tradition past the point of sanity...
6546749 I went over a list of 400 songs, and decided that something ironically appropriate would do best.
ALso yes, i say that too >>
6546767 Oh, I know it's encouraged by the Evil Overlord List...although managing to engender real loyalty would be harder I imagine it would be more effective. Not that Chrysalis gives a damn about loyalty. Mind-controlled and dead are the only ways she likes people other than herself.
Oh my god Meep, stop making me like Azur so much. Imma ponynap him right out of your story at this rate.
Are 'heartsongs' (or whatever one's name for them is) a thing in this AU? Where someone breaks out into heartfelt song and everyone around them just automatically knows the words and joins in?
Things must be crappy if one of your characters says "Fuck shit balls."
Enthusiasticly musical Azur is definitely best pony. That entire scene was just glorious.
Neat.
Hmm. I'm wondering if the trick that Death is pulling is to somehow encourage such an overresponse that it's provided Jade and Co. this opportunity to slip through on account of not actually being an army.
Oh, wait, never mind. This must have been the plan. No more griffons means one less army immediately in the area and looking for our party.
6546970
I can't he has to be adorbs for story reasons.
Yes they are, and David has absolutely no idea that in this new body he's an amazingly good singer Also Heartsongs can do some powerful things if you sing them for emotional reasons in times of need. They are old and powerful magic which runs off of emotions.
Small fact, David can play the guitar. Imagine what might happen if he gets one and decides to play say, this, in a town squair.
6547709
I'm glad you like the little guy :) If you dont speak german, you should run his German lines through Google translate some time ( though you may need to think about the wording sometimes >>) Each of his german line is ether a joke, or character development. I'm also going to explain his frequent use of german next chapter.
That detective, is the right question. And the Swarm is not the answer.
The more time goes on the more I like Azur. The guy's a very fun and likable character, at least so long as you aren't the one having to deal with his antics. Hmm, I wonder how he would get along with Pinkie? I have a feeling they would hit it right off, much to the chagrin of everyone around them
That camouflage spell is very useful as well, I guess that comes with his area of expertise being biomancy. The city guard were truly blockheaded nincompoops if they couldn't find use for someone with his abilities, or simply wouldn't use them because of traditions. Clearly the only reason no one has taken them over by now is because no one actually wants the place
It was a bit perplexing to see Chrysalis attacking the gryphons as it seems kinda pointless and doesn't accomplish anything of value, especially as the gryphon general was perfectly willing to work for her, but then I remembered that this is Chrysalis. Clearly all that power she has managed to accumulate is going to her head and she is simply throwing her way around because it rustles her jollies. I guess she didn't learn from the last time when hubris was the reason for her downfall, but that's kinda to be expected from her personality type.
Though if her minions are roaming this openly it's going to make life harder for the trio. They should probably double time it to the port and jump a ship before changelings turn up to raze the port town to the ground. And hope they don't follow over the sea. Hm, that prospect seems pretty bleak actually. They better hope they can manage to board a ship without major notice.
That's a funny way to say "Twilight's secret vault of secrets located behind a secret door in her secret mad scientist basement"
6548183
Good! :)
I can answer that, but a friend of mine has an even better answer for the Why they underutiliz mages. (The Jewish symbolism is compleatly unrelated to the answer, FYI) https://youtu.be/kDtabTufxao?t=51s
People forget that she's presented as a brilliant taticishion, but also as an Axe-Crazy Omnicidal Maniac. At least she isn't Card Carrying Evil...
Can, do, and are. The Swarm can split itself into groups of 300 and spread out over several thousand kilometers without loosing hivemind effectiveness, and they do it for many different reasons. Fortunately Chrissie hasn't learned how to make that range global...
Which probably doubles as her love nest, in a way somehow far more creepy then finding a fungon in someone's home >>
Screw it! Done. This timeline's Twilight is single...
I almost heard the collective groan of the readers out there.
6548352 You could just get an autotranslation plugin for your browser :P
6548366 i2.kym-cdn.com/photos/images/facebook/000/284/709/7ae.png
6548405 Y... you didn't know those were a thing, did you?
Also, you can just run his speech through Google Translate. My Germanis rust, but not like, useless.
i.imgur.com/RZHeCFx.png?1
See?
6548318
It is! On that note, it was also fun watching Dave boggle about the flexibility of ponies. Which is true, because on Earth no quadrupedal animal can match their displayed range of motion. Which makes sense really, because despite the name they don't actually have anything in common with our local creatures. They are alien quadruped mammals after all, with all that entails, not actual horses.
Is it actually within her power to do that? Because if yes, hot damn that's scary, a global army led by a hive-mind with all the coordination that entails 0_o
Yay !
6548413 I knew of google translate, but the plugins I've never thought of for some reason
6548438
Right. Even if they WERE descended from modern day equines, they are so far different as to be their own branch of taxonomy. I mean hell, they are MAMMALS with polymorphisum! Mammals, with biologically distinct castes! That's... not even remotely Terran.
No, not yet. She can only do 3000 km radius around herself right now. That's one thing she wants Clover's book for. To go from a minor nusance, to: https://clyp.it/ozz1otj4
Only... not creepily adorable, just terrifying (Too lazy to record and mix a new, hostile version of that. My god dose that trick take FOREVER to do...)
... Yeah, considering what the Swarm appears to be, I agree with the Lt's assessment of the proper, tactical response to this situation.
popcrush.com/files/2015/09/NopeNopeNope.gif
ALL ABOARD THE NOPE TRAIN!
orig11.deviantart.net/9c03/f/2014/089/9/4/1901429_773857135958688_498030558_n_by_ladyofthegeneral-d7c9l6j.jpg
6553093 Just be glad Chrysalis wasn't there and directing that assault. The Nope Train is insufficient, you need at minimum, this https://youtu.be/mk7VWcuVOf0?t=50s
She's upped her game since being disgraced at Canterlot. Upped it from "Field Martial Rommel" to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyenRCJ_4Ww
Yes I am aware that this makes Chrysalis this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4n25pdHlIjI
That's the point.
6553165
Yeah, except her Swarm is the Borg with Zerg Rush as their only setting. That's f*cking scary.
6553258 No shit! Never set the Borg to angry. Angry Borc cold probable take out the Impirium of Man. Fucking STAR WARS's entire Galaxy couldn't take on the Impirium...
6548318
For now...
6556478 Naturally just for now you sillybilly. All objects in this fictional section of flat-spacetime must be made to have their world lines parallel to at least one other object. It's a law. Of Spacetime. And shipping.
Cadence always approves of shipping. That must make it right if an allicorn princess supports it, no?
6556594 Eh, subjective morality is subjective :P
Well if you're a pegasus sitting in a cloud...
Okay, there is something that has been bothering me. If David is 90 and a wwII vet why is everything he's been referencing been things that came out the late 60's onwards? I mean last chapter he quoted army of darkness and I'm pretty sure that came out almost fifty years since wwll. Not that their is anything wrong with it, but I just find it a little strange that he's doesn't seem to show much interest from media from his younger days, especially all the pulpy science fiction stuff that came out around that time.
great story so far btw!
Merciful Emperor, that was brutal!
6864205 hmmmm maybe we can send the impirile guard at it ?
6864205 and necessary, remember what Chrysalis said to the griffons last chapter, they didn't got the spellbook so yeah
Read up to this point now. Rational characters, plot that makes sense, Germane of just enough quality that does not break my immersion. Thank you for writing this.
9671012 Vielen Dank! Ich bin froh, dass ich in einer Sprache, die ich seit 20 Jahren nicht mehr gesprochen habe, etwas verständlich bin.
You are old man! Sing old man songs!