1 - Important Words
An image hovered in the void. Words appeared around it.
What should I do with this one?
Ah, yes. This one is afraid of horses. Perfect. They will face their fears, or perhaps die in the wilderness. Either way should prove worth watching.
Afraid of horses? Are you serious? You're going to go there, right out of the gate?
As the words appeared, some of the lettering shuffled around, correcting typos in the second text's structure quite without its permission.
Meta? Really? Is this about the green pony?
Don't you have your own story to write? I didn't plan to involve Lyra in this one. It would be far more amusing to have him run screaming from the flower ponies. A dual passing out would be ideal, though I doubt I would be so lucky.
Huh, the flower ponies, huh? Fight or flight? What makes you think “flight”? Give him the right set of tools… that could go in totally different directions.
One of them could turn around and buck him straight over. That would be some greeting to Equestria, wouldn't it? I don't want him to hurt them. What have they done to deserve it?
Nothing yet. They can respond in so many different ways though. This poor schmuck could save equestria… or break it. I don’t know, and neither do you.
If I already knew, it wouldn't be worth writing. The best stories are those that write themselves. I set the pieces, lay the board, and the game moves itself. You wouldn't understand.
Because I don’t cheat on the side of rainbows? Don’t pretend that you don’t cheat. You go out of your way to make them happy. And I think you know it.
Challenges should have a reward. The greater the challenge, the greater the reward. It's not always at once. Sometimes they must face many challenges, one after the next with no reward in sight, only pain. Only struggle. They grow. They earn their reward.
Are you saying that mine don’t?
And you don't deliver. You give them a tattered cloth, faded in the sun. It barely takes the form of a rainbow and barely gives the hint of one. A hollow reward despite the harsh trials you lay before them.
There is a strength there. They never stop. They will never stop. They have moved past any need for reward.
It's a dull and drab story that paints a harsh and unrewarding universe. There is strength there, but it is a strength that must exist to survive such a world. I prefer a friendlier one. As harsh as it ever is, there can be a victory won.
Victory is a question of scale. The man who holds back the nightmare one more night for his child is -- Sometimes victory, is “Yay food”.
The words collided in a horrible mess, leaving sentence fragments in the wake of it.
We're getting off-topic. What does this have to do with him?
Horses. He’s specifically scared of horses. And somehow you think if you dangle a big enough prize, you're less cruel than me. That offends me. Seriously.
You're still off-topic. What do you suggest, or do you have your own tale to weave?
Let’s ask him. Hello, we’re going to send you to a land of magical talking horses no matter what you say, so where do you want to go?
And also, I’m the friendly one. He was gonna surprise you with “magical horses”.
The universe became a stream of soothing colors.
"W-what?" asked the poor human that had been enjoying a servicable if unremarkable meal, only to find himself suddenly thrust into a void between two different colored words that drifted in his field of view.
Nothing for it. You've been selected to take a trip, to add meaning to your life. That is what you want, is it not?
"Magic horses?"
Yes, there will be magic horses. But if you make it through, I promise you WILL end up exactly where you asked to go. You will be stronger than you were, if you can make it. My clients have broken worlds. Well, one of them anyway. Happiness is not guaranteed in any pre-mortem state mind you.
Sigh. This is lacking in romance and mystery. What's the sport when they know too much going in?
"Excuse me?"
We're speaking right now. Hold on a moment.
The mystery is how will he cope! As for romance… You weren’t gonna bring Lyra in? That one mare who’s uniquely qualified to understand his Xenophobia. I mean, look at the poor sap, he doesn’t even know who we’re talking about here. He has no spoilers.
Xenophobia, Xenophilia, just two sides of the same coin. He has psychology issues, he needs psychology horse. Sorry dude, I know this is terrifying, but adult table things.
"Can I go home?"
No. Now look, this can still be salvaged, if you would kindly get out of the way and let me take it from here. He has the choice to make, and I want to hear what his answer is.
"Choice?" The man shook his head violently. "Look, stop talking like I'm not even here, fuck!"
If it makes you feel better you are really there. Had a guy who actually wasn’t recently. Nothing but problems. Don’t worry though, I promise you and your problems are real.
He's just trying to confuse you, ignore him. Look, here's the question. You can take one thing with you. Any one thing. You have to own the thing. The more dangerous or culturally significant the item, the harsher your starting point will be, like a handicap. Choose wisely.
"What is this, a game?"
He’s just gaming your response, the trick is in where you ask to go. Any place, any situation. What you bring is just the ante. Where do you want to go? If you’re willing to pay the price you can get there. If you don’t care what the price is, you can go anywhere.
There’s really only two questions. “Where do you want to be?” and “What are you willing to pay?”
Those are not the questions, at least one of them. We've already established where you're going, as this other has blown for us. For sake of argument, you want to go where your life can be worth something, right? Where you're not just another faceless, nameless cog in a machine.
"About that, neither of you know my name."
You'd be surprised. Please answer.
Or choose not to decide. “I don’t know” and “I don’t care” are also choices. I have fun with those. And remember, despite what my associate may tell you, there IS a cost and choosing not to pay it will have it’s own consequences.
He doesn't get to pick that, not right now. Stop muddling this. Pick what you're taking and let's be on with this. You, go away and bother your own story!
"Can I choose to go home?"
Certainly, go right back home and enjoy your pathetic life. You'll never get another chance to live your dreams. Is that what you really want?
Of course! I promise at the end of the day, the path I open will lead back to your warm bed and everything you love. Of course the path DOES lead through hell, and it MIGHT take a monster to walk it, but your life and your family are waiting on the other side.
You'd be well-advised to ignore that one. He's only offering a way back, and it's not even a good way. I point forward, to progress, in yourself and the world. Leave that all behind for better.
"So… about those horses. You know I--"
Get over it. A small price. Now what are you bringing with you?
Then you don’t care where the path leads?
Not so long as he makes his decision. Look, this is going nowhere very quickly. Do you have a choice?
"So what answer lets me get away from the both of you?"
There isn’t. You have to choose. Isn’t that nice? You get choices.
Look, I'll make it simple. Why don't you take that nice little tablet with you, the one you always claimed you'd draw on but never got around to. Where you're going, you'll have plenty to draw. Take that and I'll even go light on the penalty.
"Penalty? It's your idea."
Where do you want to be? Are you willing to pay for it?
You will get what you asked for. Results may vary. Side effects are scary, true. But I will promise to put you exactly where you want to be.
"I want to be sitting at my table, finishing off my TV Dinner. No wild adventures, no missing parts. No magic horses. How's that?"
Ugh. You take him. You've ruined the whole thing. I hope you're happy.
You silly bug. I only promised you a choice in half of that. You get to choose the destination. I’m sorry.
Also LikedSimilarAuthor
- No one is home · 79k words · 18 8 · 832 views
- David Silver · 7.6k words · 34 5 · 1.3k views
- Dimensional Librarian · 11k words · 346 views
- No one is home · 11k words · 614 views
- David Silver · 18k words · 56 6 · 1.2k views
- David Silver · 1.4k words · 49 4 · 1k views
- David Silver · 5.5k words · 70 2 · 1.2k views
Stats
Page generated in 0.133 seconds
Total duration
1,040 users online
1,786,737 hits today, 2,571,732 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
The horror!
you're.
Another!
He will.
The death of the author and so on
So which one is a devil and which one is a demon? They both are dicks for forcing this on our poor soul he said no to adventure and they still threw him into one. Not cool any way I look at it.
That poor sop.
7756642 Authors are jerks. It's our job. Stories would be boring if we weren't.
This is Bob. He won the lottery and was happy forever! The end.
7756655
Not all author are jerks. Just the ones who put through their protagonist through the ringer for basically nothing. I want that happy ending.
I'm still waiting for The Text to drop a pony in this world. And now there's two Texts? Both sending boring hominids to pony land?
7757046 There are more than two, if you understand what the Text is.
7757167 umm? what?
I haven't read any of the silver-verse stories but this is pretty good.
I think you broke my mind.
But maybes that's what I get for trying to understand this. 
It's... like he's talking to the universe itself. The one choice you can't make is for things to not happen to you.
No, no it's not. I have some experience with this. It's only true for some people, not everyone.
Yeah, like the ones in
tales from the cryptrobot chicken.At least give him the compulsion to call himself Pegasus.
7757683 This guy gets it.
7759361 Fix'd
At first we were like, "wait, is he talking with Damaged?" then I was like, "no way!"
Well, the tag definitely fits the story though what happens to the obviously confused human is left to be seen though his choice is the safer bet though I doubt the Text(s) would allow him to do just that.
Also, is the Lyra mentioned here the same one from 'It's Okay to be a Pony'?
7790870 Nope, these are Texts from the Silver Verse.
*holds a crystal orb in his paw* I'm surprised the Texts haven't made one of there victims brain damage before they set foot in the new lands poor bastard.
7757167 Think bill cypher orders a pizza.
Is it a coicidence one of the texts have a point of vue similar to what you said on 40k in your comment last time?
8856181
I'm not sure I grasp?
8856196
Nothing i just wanted to see if a discussion (well discussion...more like just an answer to a question i made) we had in the comments of one of your stories inspired/influenced the way you made one of the text in the stories.
To be honest i doubted it but you never know.
8856299
This was a collab. I was one text, and another writer was another.
The Text argues with someone, or argues with itself? Either way, very meta. Though in the end, I would say despite coming out ahead in the argument Blue ultimately sabotaged itself and ceded to Red by abandoning the moral high ground its victory gave it. What follows is likely the human's table and home being sent to equestria. The choice is a trick, to turn his words against him. But he outright says he refuses to submit to it, so Blue punishes him for not doing as desired, giving him a penalty instead of a boon. The end will likely be him not going back to his old life, but just returning to his "home" transplanted to equestria, or by redifining what his home means to fit The Text's script.
Insightful and frustrating, in how it seems to show how The Text's interference overshadows events, making them more about what they want rather than presenting an actual story. Though with something meta like this it brings up a question; is that an intentional thing done as part of the universe's plot, or a perceived side effect of a malicious interloper?
9772619
The Text is the author's urge to create stories, warring ever with the desires of the characters in the story, the desire to be read and enjoyed, and the desire to tell the tale they wanted to tell.
You can has review!