The Ending... Is... Beautiful

21,498 words. Welcome to my read later list for a little bit.

Image: http://i1250.photobucket.com/albums/hh533/Hobo_mcpancake/HNNNNNNG.jpg

21k...oh boy....

Reading Later. Follow up to the BIG? Or only in spirit?

Read a few paragraphs in, saw my name

went : FFFFFFFPPHHHHHWIOJgriogreojhketjltjej

i think my brain just went into shutdown the second i say the word-count. fuck man it's late. i can't read this NOW!!

why you do this to me

As with the BIG this was amazingly well written and very funny....It's an interesting, dare I say, unique concept that is really well explored...which is why I kinda feel bad when I say that the concept kinda bothers me.

I'm a huge Brony and I would LOVE to see Equestria...but to have 25 fans follow around and do whatever a pony wants--it would kinda ruin what they have. These ponies are (largely) self-reliant, capable, intelligent...to suddenly have two dozen servants for each pony would really take away from the charm and likeability of Equestria and its denizens. Even leading aside the economic aspects (AJ can now exploit 25 fans to work Sweetie Apple Acres for free! Who need paid employees?) it would suck all the adventure out of things to have the BIG do it instead of the ponies themselves. I'm probably over-thinking this, but it is what comes to mind. I was actually glad when Twilight rejected her BIG contingent in the first story (cruel as it sounds), at first anyway. Again, this is a great fic and deserves to be on EQD but some of the ramifications really rub me the wrong way.

Definitely going to read this, probably not all in one sitting though.

On a further note, why would it by "ponicide" and not something like "equicide"?  Just something I've noticed in a few fics, and this just happened to be the one I ask about it.  Good so far though!

Well... At first I was thinking 'oh wow! I'll be one of the first to read the BIG sequel!'

...

And then I saw the word count.

*Reads*

That's a good story. I enjoyed the overall story-line and the humor.

>>878443878443

I told you I'd put you in it.

Though, I think it was several months ago I last mentioned it..

>>878665878665 Aye you did and I remembered, one thing being told and another finally seeing it happened. Made me grin like a madman for half an hour you did. Still reading but so far a pretty nice sequel, sir.

Dude... That was awesome!

And of course Phoe is the Lyra Division leader. Why didn't I think of that?!

I don't know how you did it, but this was even better than the first one. Hoping to see even more, maybe a little sooner this time?

I... I just cant...

This was amazing!

you should release the handbook as a story

>>878479878479

I actually completely agree with you. If this happened in the actual show it would ruin it, no question.

I, on the other hoof, am just monkeying about with the idea of bronies finding a way into their favorite show. If you take any of it seriously none of it really makes sense. That is why I aim to never be taken seriously.

Whoa. I never expected a sequel.

Never mind to reading it later, it was too tempting to stop, great story, absolutely fantastic!  And that ending was perfect.

Phil shrugged. “I’ve managed not to tell anyone that my older brother wet his bed until he was thirteen for more than a decade.”

Up until now. Good job Phil!

Jason the human ... clever.

Are we going to be able to see more of these BIG adventures, so to speak, from the perspective of other ponies in the future? I enjoyed this and the original and would love to see you find some way to put in more.

Very well done. Some grammar errors, but very minor.

De Nada - Who are you and how do you know my language. Still it was a great story and I loved the "Rulebook" inbetween parts of the fic. That last rule expecialy, when I red it I imediatly though of "The Unpekable Truth". Nifty title XD

GOOOD JOB

Very commendable psychicscubadiver. I actually hope you make a sequel this this and make it continious. I LOVE IT!

Am I the only guy who wants to see the whole manual?

Aaannd... Done. I'm on an iPod right now, so I can't give an in depth comment at the moment, but I will say that the 'silver axes' line had me laughing. Seriously.

nice. can't wait to see more set in this 'universe'

also, could I be in the Luna division? or the Twi division? (I only ask because I would teach them how to play chess, play chess with them (yeah, I like chess), and do basically anything they ask (I do mean ANYTHING))

Well mate your sequel was bloody brilliant, loved every word of it. The ending with the first page of the manual is especially giving me an existential crisis that I'm loving too.

Also makes me wonder what's planned for the future. The last BIG story got a huge following and this one I bet is going to get just as many, probably more. Wonder how long it takes until someone wants to make a spin-off to the world you've made.

Finally... Thank you for making me a mailman, Derpy Division for the win.

Oh god this is good. Full of ridiculously silly but brilliant humor. I can't stop giggling dammit.

Love this and it's predecessor.

wow

Awesome! One of the best HiE stories gets a sequel.

It looks like the BIG actually does have a military division.

So will we ever see a story that showcases the military side of the BIG?

So worth the trip going here

ALL OF MY YES

...Anyway, great fic.

Moar?

"Hush Steve, you're ruining the moment." Brilliant.

Loved it loved it loved it.

Best Lyra story ever...well tied with Anthology. The Princesses snippets were silly and the details of the real world in comparison to Equestria was well done. Twilight would flip her horn if she was in that world.

You could probably do short stories for each division if you wanted.

read and i just have to say

AWESOME

this turned out really good and now i have to shut my computer down so goodnight everyone!

Wow.  That was certainly amazing.

I wonder though, do the Princesses know about the status of their universe?  And could we really say that Equestria was fictional and dictated by a few humans if we could, in fact, travel to it?

Whelp, now to just wait for a third one that's 44k words.

Jason the Human! I see what you did there!!!!

"Tree sap.

Tree sap everywhere."

Thanks for the tree sap reference regarding the CMC.  I have always felt that line (admittedly just a one off) deserved more mention in the fanfics that I read.

Another wonderful installment in the BIG storyline.  Reading your stories brought me into this fandom (and boy was it an odd segue from Dresden Files to Friendship is Magic) and I haven't been disappointed by your writing yet.  Keep up the good work!~

>>880612880612

Indeed! That seems like an interesting question to explore. I like to go by the explanation that books (or fiction) are literally portals to other worlds or universes.

>>881186881186 But then you have to ask, did the author of said book or fiction create the universe that it's a portal to?  Or was it always there and the author was somehow made aware of it?  And more importantly, are we someone else's fiction?  ... Did the ponies actually create us?!

I think I gave myself a headache.

Wow ... that was just epic! Thank you for bringing this masterpiece that has gone above and beyond all I had hoped for in the B.I.G. sequel.

I only saw 3 missing words for errors out of this entire thing and will just have to reread to find out where they are.

I really want to see this continue but there in lies the problem. With you being only one author and having brought together my two most favorite series in the Dresden Fillies I'm not sure what I want to see more. - A third installment of the Dresden Fillies or a continuation of this hilarity. Maybe I can be greedy about it.

Do you ever plan on trying to get this story on Equestria Daily?

this story is lacking in Feature box

and in the minds of the watching humans, several fanfics were born that day.

Oh... Oh my!

Man, that was beautiful... especially Jason's speech at the end.  Thank you for writing such an entertaining and generally awesome story!

Now it is 6am and I need some sleep...

100+ likes and 0 dislikes

Yep. I jinxed it.

Also dat last paragraph

It is 4am here... Why am I reading this now? I should be asleep! Damn you for writing such good stories!

Well... Time to do some fuckin' furious reading...

EDIT: So basically we entered a world we created on our own, and that this "world" is running off of - what I like to call - the Coal Buck Theory?

“Okay, I think I’ve got it. Can I try?” He extended his hand, a hopeful expression on his face.

Though, one of the shooters almost ruined the surprise when he barked, ‘no-scope!’.

That's how I got double bathroom duty...

MORE! IT WAS EPIC!

“Hush, Steve, you’re ruining the moment.”

This is a Sexy fic. Good job. I had a feel at the end.

"Jason the human"

What you did there.

I see it.

This story is just, beautiful, epic, awesome, words aren't enough to describe this story its THAT good.

So have a Dashie instead.

Welcome welcome welcome!

Tooo myyyy reeeeaaad laaaaaater liiiiiiiiiiiiiist!!

Edit: I fell of my chair at IM SEXXXY AND I KNOW IT!

this is just so good and you made it like I was really there

This was freakin great, loved it all the way through, Andy should get to go out more not his faults hes a the human big mac.

I was supposed to work on my next story today. Then this got posted, and I read the whole damn thing in one sitting.

Well, I've been looking forward to a sequel since the original went up, and it was worth the wait.

She held her breath, uncertain what the silvery substance of the portal might to her if she breathed it in.

Missing "do" (do to her).

From a technologically standpoint this place was nothing short of amazing, and Lyra knew Twilight would have given one of hooves to examine it all.

Missing "her" (her hooves). Also "technologically" should probably be either "technological" or "technology".

Now that that's out of the way, damn did I enjoy this story. Conspiracy theorist Lyra is best Lyra. Chameleonarch Time Turner is best Time Turner. Chloroform Andy is best human. No question.

Except maybe for that middle one, but shhh, I'm still working on that story.

At the rate it was moving, it would take all day to reach the western horizon

And, the existence of the show doesn't necessarily mean Equestria has to be fictional. I go with the theory that ideas can somehow 'leak' between universes, and Lauren Faust and the scriptwriters are attuned to these leaks, and that's where they get their inspiration from.

>>880844880844 I liked this one better:

The sight chilled her blood and clutched her heart in a vice-like grip. She wasn’t the only one either. All around the marketplace ponies were staring in various levels of shock and horror. Then the end of the world spoke in the shrill voices of three small fillies.

“CUTIE MARK CRUSADERS HUMAN LEADERS, YAY!”

Oh yes, it was good. Very, very good.

The ending reminds me so much of CHIM.

Drill Sergeant (SSG) Jacob Hughes, United States Army, hereby volunteering for the Shinning Armor Division. I have been trained in many forms of non-lethal combat, including stun guns, OC spray(pepper spray), and CS gas(tear gas). I am also certified Level Four in the Modern Army Combatives Program, which mixes skills from Brazilian Jujitsu, Muay Thai, Judo, and Russian Sambo, techniques which I think could be adapted for ponies. As a Drill Sergeant, I am highly qualified to help train new recruits into the BIG, and also believe I could bring much to the Royal Guard Corps. As a Non-Commissioned Officer, I know how to make things work, accomplishing any mission to standard, no matter how poorly equipped  I've been in the Army for almost ten years, and as such I am well disciplined, highly motivated, physically and mentally fit. But above it all, I have a deep respect for Equestria and it's inhabitants. Even though I've only seen a little of him, Shining Armor strikes me as everything I could want in a Commanding Officer. He is fiercely loyal to his country and his friends, very competent, and kind of heart. It would be an honor to serve as an NCO under him. I don't know if the Equestrian military even HAS an NCO Corps. We are the "Backbone of the Army" and we could be for Equestria, as well. Captain Armor, sir, the Creed of the Non-Commissioned Officer states, "No one is more professional than I." I only wish to prove this to you.

If I may first state this.

I made an account simply to post on this. Not planning on ever writing any fanfiction, and may only use this account to keep track of all the fanfics I've read.

That said, let me just say this. The ending to this....I was almost in tears due to the raw emotion. I haven't cried in years, but this.... this is the closest I've come to crying in a long time. Granted, I've yet to read My Little Dashie, though I've read something extremely similar, Christmas-y themed, and with Pinkie instead of Dashie.

But enough rambling. In the course of one day, I have read both the original BIG, and this. Time well spent, in my eyes.

Just.... all the feels, man. All the feels.

Thank you. Thank you for all you've done with this. You have summed up in a matter of 4 lines what I've been trying to sum up in my mind for months now. "Why are we so attached to this show, this fandom? What is it about a child's cartoon about colorful miniature horses that makes us so happy and upbeat?" The answer is simply "Because of the utopia they live in." Just... thank you.

see, now i have this incredibly strong urge to see a discord legion. if this were real i'd be the one to bloody well lead it. that would make a great story in itself, atleast in this simple readers opinion. great story. i hope there's a threequel

Not that it's saying much, but this is by far the best HiE fic in the fandom.

.... Yes. All of it. All of my fucking yes.

Listen, your penchant for incredible detail and lovable characters is LEGENDARY.

MOAR. MOAR MOAR MOAR!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not sure I agree with rule Number One.

And by what I mean by that is I don't think that the ponies in this story are just "fictional characters" ...after all... just because we imagined it doesn't mean that it's not real. I guess it depends on how we, humans, got to Equestria. However, because it's a portal I'm not sure I agree with the idea that they're "just the figment of someone’s imagination." But that's just me. ^.^

But I REALLY enjoyed the story! xD

I really like how the ending was nice for everyone. No angst, no blood, no suffering. Opposing forces remained polite to one another and when caught in the act, everyone remained cordial.

As for rule #1, somewhat predictable, but I'm not really convinced it's justified. Ask yourselves, if some new creature showed up and told you that <i>you</i> were a fictional character in their world...would that really change anything for you?

The moment you can step through the mirror and freely interact with your creation, the concept of "fiction" ceases to have very much meaning. Maybe we have stories about ponies and maybe ponies write stories about us. I feel no less real thinking that Lyra might write stories about humans. I wouldn't expect them to feel less real for us writing stories about them.

Thumbs up for the story.

Wow... just wow

Lyra hummed a small tune to herself, unaware of the irony, as she got out of bed.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrK0rZj6pes this is so awesome

Lyra comes to earth: for further information, please see Plato's "Allegory of the Cave".  

She can never really go back now that seen a world more 'real' than her own.  the shadows on the wall would just be bland and fulfilling.  Yes she is deeply in love with one of those shadows, Bon Bon.  But she would still be a shadow.  I'm all for the magic of friendship and love, but I just don't see that cave person content with getting chained back underground.  

Did anyone else read the title and think about Justice League Unlimited?

welp here comes my application to the BIG auxiliaries. Don't suppose once The Doctor is up to full doctorness he'd be willing to give me a lift to about 200 years in the future and into a parallel reality? I figure if any pony has truly earned a little help it would be "Security" aka Blackjack from Fallout Equestria :Project Horizons. It just wouldn't feel right for me to be cavorting around Ponyville picking apples and helping twilight sort books if I could have a chance to prevent at least a few more tragedies.

Trilogy please

Sincerely the Doctor

How could anyone dislike this? like srsly? how?

Holy Crap, was this amazing. I cried at the Friendship is Magic part (I do that a lot in this fandom). I really hope you follow up on the Chameleon Arch Doctor Whooves plot. Or maybe one of his group finding the Tardis.

That was great, although it leaves me wondering if you have any plans for another installment.  It seems like there are a lot of threads here you could extend like what happens to Lyra after this (her reaction to human history for example), anything with the Doctor, and Trixie's return in addition to exploring the reactions of some of the other characters in more depth.  The one I am especially wondering about is if there are any Bronies with a military background working for the princesses or Shining Armor (assuming he has or gets a division) because the response of trained soldiers to an attack could trigger some interesting repercussions, especially if firearms are involved.

Wait, I never made that 'in depth comment' that I talked about. Whoops, because I know that everyone was dying to know what my incredibly important opinion is.

Well, here goes:

For a story of such length, this has an amazingly low number of typos. Right now I can't remember any specific ones - which I know is not helpful. Sorry about that. Anyway: The plot seems interesting, although the ending itself lacks luster, if I may say, "Hey, that's fine. You only almost every rule. That's cool." but aside from that, the entire thing is very interesting. I always enjoy an Anthropology reference in a story - I like it even more when the story is actually derived from it. Good ol' Lyra, always trying to catch them hoo-mans.

I will restate that the part in the armory where Lyra examines the three cabinet signs made me laugh, (Silver axes. *chuckle*) and that I loved the way you described the visual differences between Equestria and Earth. I've always wondered what the best way to describe that would be, and merely gloss over it in my stories.

I can definitely see this evolving into a grand-scale story that shows what happens from multiple POV's, and possibly blossoming in a way similar to Fallout: Equestria. (I mean, seriously, it has its own wiki - with more pages than the actual MLP Wiki)

And finally: Wow this is a big comment. Maybe that means someone will notice it.

Wow. Just fuckin' wow. Incredibly well written, some very nice background information on the BIG and the organization of it.

I loved Lyra's thought processes. Very well thought out, and pretty damn deep. Loved the ending, very cute. Had me almost shed a manly tear, goosebumps were had.

Thumbs up to you. Fav'ed.

Been waiting for this sice I finished the first one. The sequel did not disappoint, it was fantastic.

Archer Collins of the Luna division, reporting in to say this is beautiful and so are you. Thank ye.

maybe equestria is a imagination figment or another dimension of it's own, like this one theory I like is that imagination, is inter-dimensional, like if humans watch my little pony cause someone dream it up does that mean that ponies watch my little human cause some stallion or mare dreamed it up.

>>882971882971 Coal Buck theory? Please elaborate a little, I didn't get to read much of his story.

>>889927889927 Basically it's if you imagine a character in your mind, and give it thought, time and affection, somewhere out there in the distant omniverse, it will come to life.

>>889941889941 That is frightening, awesome, and shall be the source of many nightmares to come. Thank-you!

>>889986889986 Aw, hey no problem. Always here to help~!

21,501 words?!!?!??!?!!

Mother of Luna, that's a LOOOOOOOONG one-shot! Are you sure that you could not have broken it up into parts?!

Not everybody has an hour to sit and read something!

...I usually do, but not always.

Start Time: 5:22

End Time: 6:13

This story is awesome :D

My body wasn't ready. Several scenes gave me goosebumps.

I tip my hat to you, good sir.

Story read now. Greatly hoping that this is not the end. *Pants like happy dog*

Makes perfect sense to keep that a secret form them. And i know you must get a dozen or more requests from other peeps, but can I haz cameo? My fav ponies are, in this order: Twilgiht, Luna, Ditsy/Derpy and The Doc, Lyra, and Daring Do.

*Puppy eyes*

another part!?!?!?!?!

THE EPICNESS HAS BEEN DOUBLED!

So many references, so much awesome, I...I can't think of anything else to say...too much amazingness, and I loved it...well I guess I did have something else.

>>882971882971

Essentially, yes. I've seen some comments suggesting that this Equestria isn't actually a fictional world, but I intended it to be. That's why the 'real' world felt so strange to Lyra. Of course, the concentrated belief has given the ponies their own intrinsic 'reality' which was what allowed the bronies to enter it in the first place. However, their reality is somewhat more mutable than ours, and tends to obey the beliefs that created it. That's why so many things in Equestria match the fanon expectations: Lyra and Bon-Bon being a couple, Time Turner being the Doctor, Celestia being a benevolent prankster etc.

However all of the above is very difficult to explain in the fic, especially since it's intended to be a light-hearted comedy.

Apple Bloom's name is two words, not "Applebloom" http://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/Apple_Bloom

And you misspelled Sweetie Belle's name

http://mlp.wikia.com/wiki/Sweetie_Belle

"her thoughts focused only on her pleasant drowsiness, but all that come to an end..." It should be "came to an end".

Oh, what a funny reference to the author, Jason the Human, who wrote Anthropology

And in conclusion, if this were adapted to TV, the humans and ponies in Equestria would be cartoons, and in the real world, they would be live-action with Lyra being CGI.

>>891525891525

As interesting of a thought as that is, there's a big problem: the BIG creating a portal into Equestria, and using it, represents something outside of the control of Hasbro, Studio B, and everyone else involved in FiM's creation and production. If they go out to make a new episode, BIG isn't going to be in it; so what happens then?

If you somehow resolve the above issue while still maintaining that Equestria is rigidly controlled by FiM's production, Lyra being able to come through the portal creates one doozy of a situation: It means that whoever directs FiM has the ability to influence the real world by tweaking the fictional one... insert an evil master plan involving that ability, and you've got yourself the foundation for a bitchin sequel.

Joshua Chase Shepherd, geek in all fields of scientific enquiry, applying to be a researcher (lab rat) in the Twilight Sparkle division. I have no self-preservation instincts, curiousity enough to slay a legion of feline foes, and am willing to sacrifice honor, dignity, and limbs to heed the rallying cry!

"For SCIENCE!"