"The Lunar Hunt is a force that burns bright in this land of twilight," Merula declared. Rainbow Dash, Ariel, and Kepler listened as the arachnid speaker continued: "We suspect it is the final flame of the Bloodwings, their last whole-hearted attempt to exercise a strong campaign against their foes. At the rate at which they are advancing upon their enemies and expending their resources, they will either triumph in seizing the final two Shards of Endrax and the Harmonic Prize beyond... or they shall burn out from their aggressive ambition. Whatever the case may be, due to the actions of Lexxic, it is likely that one faction will finally be victorious in the Trinary War within the span of a single lifetime. The balance is being tipped, and once one army falls then one of the other two shall surely come out on top. The righteous punctuality of your arrival cannot be overstated, Austraeoh. Not even in song."
Rainbow Dash took a long, long breath. With contemplative eyes, she gazed across the spires of the city.
Ariel gazed at her with a worrisome expression.
"Ahem..." It was Kepler who first summoned the strength to speak. "These Bloodwings—these sarrosian exiles underr Lexxic's charrge..." His spectacled eyes narrowed. "Arre they hostile to any and all sapient crreaturres who crross theirr paths?"
"They are unfathomably xenophobic," Merula explained, voice vibrating through the silk construct. "Their mercilessness is their primary tool. Cruelty is the edge of their sword."
"And they arre all unified as one?" Kepler tilted his head aside. "All Bloodwings underr one bannerr? One trribe?"
Ariel looked over. "Keps, what are you getting at?"
"Nah. Shhhhh..." Rainbow nodded. "Let him ask that."
"There are no splinter groups among the Third Penumbral Invaders," Merula answered. "They all answer to the same functioning body whom the equines have followed since first arriving upon this plane: the matriarchs who wield authority and cultural prestige. Those who fight to the death for their cause are exalted by the lore-keepers and priestesses."
"And... if any Bloodwing tries to hop out of line?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Or attempts to leave the society that they've got holed up in that big friggin' tree of theirs?"
"Then Lexxic exercises the same mercilessness with them as he would any other enemy to the Lunar cause. As a result, the Bloodwings have remained unbreakable solidarity for the past generation."
"Soooooo..." Ariel took a breath. "...in other words, Lexxic keeps all of them marching to the same bloody tune."
"Ach. It is as I thought." Kepler looked aside at Rainbow Dash. "This means that if we arre to deal with the Bloodwings, then we will have to deal with them as a whole." He shook his head. "Therre will be no heterrogenous contrradictorry factions to appease."
"Wait, what do you mean?" Ariel squinted. "'If we are to deal with the Bloodwings'?"
"... ... ..." Kepler's eyes wandered.
Rainbow Dash also was silent.
"All we're ever gonna do is butt heads with these losers!" Ariel's voice cracked. "Hasn't Merula made it obvious?! They're a bunch of hardcore murdering bucktards! You can't reason with that!"
Rainbow Dash looked at Merula. "It's gotta be asked..." Her brow furrowed. "Have any of the factions of the Trinary War ever tried talking things out? Like... ever?!?"
Ariel's eyes continued bouncing between Kepler and Rainbow. "I mean... we c-can't reason with these freaks! Let's not even pretend!"
Kepler gently shushed her.
In the meantime, Merula responded to Rainbow Dash: "There is no lyrical record in the Ever Poet's Song of the Bloodwings attempting to pursue negotiations with any faction. They deal only in death and subjugation. They torture, mutilate and consume—nothing else."
"But the Dihmers..." Rainbow cocked her head to the side. "...you said they've spared them?"
"For what purpose, we cannot say. However, this is no actual contract. The Dihmers are wise in that they do not venture close to the breeding grounds of the Bloodwings, nor do they tread hoof on the lands of the Lunar Hunt. Their survival continues to be an unfathomable miracle, even as the shadow of Lexxic stretches over their habitats."
"So they just... don't ruffle the sarosians' feathers, huh?" Rainbow asked. Upon hearing Kepler clear his throat, she blurted: "Er... leathers."
"The Dihmers have long learned not to bother any warring faction. This appears to have reduced their threat to zero in the eyes of the Bloodwings. Of the three armies, it's Tchern's hive that preys upon the Dihmers the most, almost threatening to make the non-aligned equines extinct. However—in dealing trade and commerce with the imps of Petra over the past few centuries—Dihmers have managed to find a way to survive the consumption of the Flux." Merula's abdomen shook. "As a whole, the Keepers are even less likely to negotiate than the Bloodwings. Their restraint is merely a measure of their skill in patience and reconaissance, whereas Lexxic and his militant companions make it a habit to kill all that they see or hear."
"Dihmers excluded."
"Indeed."
"And... what about the Night Shard?" Rainbow Dash asked. "Would you say that... th-they can be reasoned with?"
"You are restating your inquiry concerning their receptiveness to negotiations?"
"Right..."
Merula shook the strings: "Curiously enough, the Ruby Chorus have expressed a keen interest in talking with any and all opposing factions."
Rainbow's ears perked. "They have?"
"But their melody is a False Song, and an abomination to the spiritual balance of this Plane."
Rainbow then sighed. "I take it Abaddon tried negotiating with them ages ago... and it totally bombed."
"The Song has no record of the All Poet possessing or utilizing explosive ordinance immediately after the Breaking of the Circles."
"No, I meant—"
Kepler spoke up: "What was the Lyrrical Queen's rrelationship with the Night Sharrd, ages ago, beforre the Penumbrral Invasions?"
Merula answered swiftly: "The Ruby Chorus recognized our song and saw it as an aberration. They thought even less of the Spring Children. Since those dismal days of darkness, the Night Shard have only measured sapience among their foes. And while the Winter Children of Abaddon are mostly handicapped in ascertaining the logic of thinking vertebrates, we suspect that the Ruby Chorus think very little of Abaddon's nestlings."
"Well, that's just sucky," Rainbow Dash muttered.
"It would seem as though their attempts to bridge communication with both the Bloodwings and the Metamorphic Queens have only been a show of facetiousness, meant to flaunt power and intimidate their foes. Their sincerity is just as questionable as their motive, and both virtues are subject to the whim of the beleaguered minds that struggle to control their armadas."
"Well... that's one heck of a picture you've painted, Merula," Rainbow Dash said.
Ariel commented, counting off her wingfeathers. "So we have one Faction that'll wanna kill us on sight. Another Faction that'll wanna deceive us on sight. And then a third Faction that'll wanna troll us on sight!"
"Ach..." Kepler nodded. "That leaves us with just the imps of Petrra and the Dihmerrs."
"Neither of whom sound willing to lift a hoof... or h-hand to do anything to change the Trinary War." Rainbow Dash took a deep breath. "And I doubt either of them are even remotely strong enough to make a difference." She looked forlornly at the two Heraldites. "These three armies outlived Endrax's brood... and now—just as I've arrived here—they're pumping things to the max."
"Yeah." Ariel gulped. "With Lexxic, the Flux, and... and..." Her fuzzy nose scrunched. "... ... ...whatever the heck the Night Shard do."
"Neverrtheless..." Kepler stroked his chin in thought. "It would prrobably be forrtuitous to brridge communication with the Dihmerrs."
"What?" Ariel blanched at him. "What the heck for?!"
The wyvern shrugged. "Of all the Factions we've learrned about, they do appearr to be the least thrreatening."
"But what would they even do for us?" Ariel wheezed. "The only reason they're not all extinct is because Lexxic's decided to spare them on this side of the Plane." She raised an eyebrow. "You think his soldiers will be just as merciful once we start poking around the grounds of the Lunar Hunt?"
"If we arre to acquirre the Sharrds..." Kepler gestured. "...we will have to apprroach the Bloodwings one way orr anotherr."
"How?! We'll be dead before we're even within a shriek's distance! Have you listened to a word Merula's told us?! These sarosians sound like Xarchellus' midnighters with their wings on fire! And the only reason Enix and the rest of her nightblood buddies didn't totally axe us..." Ariel turned to look at Rainbow Dash. "...is that Princess Luna's royal voice intervened."
Rainbow looked back. She took a deep breath and faced Merula. "This goblin city... Petra... just how far away is it?"
"No small distance by the Song," Merula replied. "Even more daunting for mortals."
"But the Dihmers..." Rainbow blinked. "You say that they do trade and commerce with the imps?"
"That is affirmative."
"So..." Rainbow Dash paced forward, eyes narrowing. "...how do they manage this across such a great distance?"
It took me a little more than a year, but I’ve finally caught up! I know there’re a lot of these comments, but this one’s a little different — I edited and made physical prints of all 8 complete books. I made a forum post that goes into a lot more depth and has a lot more pictures here, if you’re interested.
i.imgur.com/2TfUD0g.jpg
Daily Reminder that Lexxic is also the name of a fellow Jurist commentor, though AWOL.
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Welcome aboard! Pack the armor, we're going in!
That chapter title....
....yeah....
Also:
Pft!
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Okay, THAT is Awesome.
Chapter itself, sounds pretty grim, but I doubt that these factions are as internally unified as they appear on the surface. Scratch that, we KNOW that they are not as unified as they appear, in just the first chapter one of the night shard had to lie to a subordinate in order to obtain information. I bet that the Blood wings and Flux have similar problems. But first...
The logistics of crossing hundreds of thousands of miles needs to be addressed, or these postulates will all be academic. Hope a Noble Jury equivalent is stashed away somewhere, because I doubt the hover plank is going to cut it, even if it still works.
Dash is asking the right questions. It's actually kind of freaky to see her thinking things through for a change. Maybe she ought to get high on spider venom more often?
Not super surprising to hear the sarosians aren't exactly tolerant of splinter factions. However that isn't to say a splinter faction doesn't actually exist, only that if one does exist its managed to keep itself very well hidden. If Lexxic actually has made more extreme changes to their normal methods over just part of his own lifetime it'd be surprising if there weren't detractors, or those that don't like the path he's taking the sarosians in. And after he's publicly tortured and eviscerated the more vocal opposition then its logical to think that other, smarter bat pones have kept things on the down low and formed an underground resistance that isn't flaunting it's existence.
Or maybe I'm just being optimistic, but I am hoping the sarosians have more to them than the spiders presently know.
Seraphimus x Logan Ship Confirmation Chapter Counter: 5
In the fourth book of East horse, including gave to me for warring sites, three great days, two companions, and A rainbow that’s flying east.
Speech to text got that almost perfectly, but here’s the correct version:
In the Fourth Book of East Horse, Imploding gave to me
Four warring sides,
Three great days,
Two Companions,
And a Rainbow that’s flying East.
As to how they do it? They use a Postal Service manned by telekinetic squirrels and red-eyed elk.
We’re gearing up for the next leg of the journey here, and all I can think about is how the Herald is going to deal with any of the three factions.
Throughout the last eight books, we’ve seen the ability of reason and diplomacy to effect change dwindle. That came to a head at the end of Ynanhluutr, when Rainbow completely abandoned her attempt to sway the Luminards for the (arguably) greater good in exchange for violence. And maybe she’s learned from that, and will never go down that road again, but Celestia’s warning that the Dark Side tribes would have to be handled with force over reason is seeming increasingly relevant. Add that to Rainbow’s arc of embracing chaos through her apparent liaison Discord, and the fact that Ofolrodi is going to edge against a mature rating, and I think we’re going to see a lot of bloodshed in the near future. It’ll be a wild ride.
If Dhimer to Petra is uncrossably long through multiple contested territory, but trade still occurs, either somones found Gates, or use of a Machine World subsurface maintenance supply transit tunnel?
Or something else?
wonder if the Bloodwings Great Tree, is a Laputa, Sentinal Tree? Even a Baobab?
They have learned a bit more about each faction and it looks like they have a plan to hopefully get some allies or at least supplies. As grim as this looks over all this is a bit of a bright spot even if not everyone thinks so.
If the shards of Endrax are empowering the factions, then as soon as the Herald gets ahold of one that faction is all but doomed. Consequently, the others will likely get proportionally stronger and more focused, so it seems like the quest to gather the shards will continually become more of a challenge. Doubly so since any group which loses a shard may pour all of their resources into getting it back.
Dash is oddly calm
Ariel is freaking the fk out
Kepler is doing Kepler things
and Merula is as literal as always.
If I didn't know any better, I'd say Merula is trying to make jokes.
-Through the path long forgotten, into the darkness long begotten. Ofolrodi.
Now all we need is to get one of those hover cars working. After a couple centuries, you'd think the imps or dihmers would've figured it out.
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h-h-how is that even possible? The size of those books th-th-the immensity of such an undertaking! You sir deserve EVERY like this fandom has to offer!
At this point, what they need is a SPACESHIP!
Now it is time to start theorizing (I suspect our writer IC is using the comment section for inspiration).
Today's theory:
Rainbow gets captured by Tchern and has her mind manipulated in a freaky simulation full of changeling doppelgangers. Rainbow escapes the simulation but has some/most/all of her friends replaced by changelings. The Bloodwings then intercept her false party and kill her "fake" friends (which would totally make Rainbow freak out). Then Rainbow goes on a revenge quest against Tchern (who has her friends hostage).
Rainbow goes full chaos mode on Tchern's hive and wrecks the place while the Bloodwings attack. They get the shard from Tchern but are intercepted by the Night Shard. Rainbow gets mind probed/interrogated after being captured by the Night Shard. Rainbow begins to understand their plight and sympathize with them when Tchern reveals herself among their midst and trashes the place while grabbing two of the shards (Night Shard took one in their ambush on the Bloodwings).
The Bloodwings along with the Herald (who that whole time were convincing Lexxic to help Rainbow escape) attack and everything turns into chaos as a three way battle is waged. Rainbow escapes with the help of Night Shard members who decide to join her side. Lexxic notices Tchern make off with both shards and begins a ruthless crusade following her hasty retreat.
The Herald, Rainbow, and their newfound Nightshard and Bloodwing friends pursue Lexxic's force and discover that Tchern is very good at leaving nasty traps behind for Lexxic's force. Of course Lexxic brings the third shard with him (why would he trust anyone else to keep it safe?). Rainbow and her group then use their knowledge of the *mysterious means of trade hinted at in this chapter* to set up an ambush for Tchern. They end up taking Tchern hostage and Lexxic goes to confront them.
Lexxic turns full bad guy, takes all the shards, and begins to make his way to the Harmonic Prism while nearly killing Rainbow and her friends in the process (heroic sacrifice anyone?). Rainbow then recuperates and begrudgingly accepts Tchern's offer to help them reach the Harmonic Prism before it is too late.
For some reason Tchern doesn't backstab them and Rainbow enters the big pyramid while all three factions go back to absolutely destroying one another (this time Tchern and the Night Shard team up against Lexxic (idek how)). Rainbow then deals with the biggest migraine the world has ever known (from trying to survive alicorn mind land ofc).
"That's easy - they just take the train. Midnight Express, runs all the way across the dark side and right past the Armory.
... This is probably one of those things we should have mentioned earlier."
Ooo this is going to be a difficult mission even by East Horse standards.
I’ve been reading Merula’s name incorrectly this entire time.
Boy won't this be interestin
This kind of foreshadowing, I’ve seen it before. This is gonna be a huge challenge.
I get the feeling that the sentinel of the dark side will be occupied by those of relatively harmonious intent compared to the rest of the plane, seemingly the inverse of the lights side.
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Lexx is actually still active on the Discord channel.
The shortest way is a straight (technically curved) line, so we might see the Machine Layer again soon. And I wouldn't be surprised if the city had an underground railway system for quick travels.
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those books are amazing i want a set.
also It would be pretty cool if the Noble Jury did make a reappearance. There are plenty of events that say its a possibility. Floydian ran off with his GF to supposedly build a new airship (im guessing) and The great Divide is no longer a thing. Plus, y'know that whole still being alive thing they got going for them.
I'm sure there are plenty more details to either support or dismiss the idea but i cant think of any at the moment.
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Woah! Those are really nice! Now if only I had the money for my own copy...
Sounds like we might be heading out soon, possibly to the Dhimers or to Petra, but the challenge of retrieving the shards still remains. Possibly some new allies, but I'm not sure how they would help.
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I intend to re-read the entire saga at some point. Having read it thus far since the beginning, piece by piece throughout the past six years, most of the books before Utaan are a bit foggy to me.
I think I'll make it a very special re-read with this.
A salvaged Sarosian airship maybe?
Or even better, they got one of the old Precursor vehicles to work. A city this big probably had a transport hub or spaceport.
I'm thinking tunnels.
I'm sure they'll find at least one pony or imp who's willing to help them on their crazy quest. Probably one that has a death wish, but still.
Something they might have taken from this is that they could easily cross a considerable portion of the way unmolested if they simply pose as Dihmers.
Did Rainbow really come up with that question, or did Twilight and we're just listening to RD?
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It's Twitch Plays Rainbow Dash. (https://www.fimfiction.net/story/254555/30/ynanhluutr/on-an-island-in-the-sun#comment/8169620)
(But in this case, I think we're seeing Rainbow's POV so the ghost five would be visible.)
Hmm, the machine world makes the most sense.
Mayhaps the imps of Petra are the same as the goblins from surface?
Really, that's a long shot just to get Roarke back
They make the journey.... across the famed Fury Road.
Maybe we'll see Boris again.
There's a war afoot, and the herald are just what's needed to shift the balance. We could definitely use Roarke though.
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We could always use Roarke
What would they gain? Their goals are all mutually exclusive with no room for compromise. What are they gonna do, share the Prism?
It sounds like the Night Shard could be the most reasonable. But they’re ponies, I think, so it makes sense.
I think I need to reread the first couple chapters to learn more about Lexxic.
I’m assuming the Night Shard is the faction that Alamais and Archeantus are aligned to.
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I guess so. And probably the only one wich is not totally united in their thoughts.
Cool, racists! :D
....gotta catch'em all?
Time for some new wheels!