"I am telling you, my frriends, I am so incrredibly vexxed."
Logan stifled the umpteenth groan of the day. It was his turn to steer the wagon down the canyon, and he did so with lethargic fetlocks. "We heard you the first time, Keps."
"But have you everr thought about it?" The wyvern in question looked up from his journal and adjusted his spectacles. "Like... trruly thought about it?"
"Believe me." Ariel muttered from where she flew slowly above the craft. "I try not to."
"But it begs an explanation!" Kepler insisted, his scorpion tail coiling and uncoiling in pensive motions. "Afterr all, enough time has trraverrsed! I of all souls should know. And yet... upon everry minute I spend ponderring the subject matterr... I end up horrribly, inexcusably vexxed!"
"You're obsessed, Kepler," Flynn yawned. He lay on his back in the middle of the wagon, resting lazily while polishing a plate of Emeralidnian armor in his hooves. "Just let it go."
"How can I?!" Kepler moaned. "Barrd was ourr good dearr frriend! Some semblance of logic must be attrributed to his otherrwise trragic demise!"
"What logic are we missing, exactly?" Flynn shrugged, his mechanical eye rotating in and out on his job. "That trotting jerkoff of a self-righteous creep—Brye Chandler—was catching up with us. He ran into Bard and Bard ended him. Sure, he sacrificed his life in the process and that sucks—but Bard made damned sure that the soldiers of Rohbredden no longer had anyone to force them into a suicide run at the world's edge. Otherwise we'd be contending with more than just the Murder Chicken at the gondola." He smirked sideways off the wagon. "No offense."
Seraphimus said nothing. She marched alongside the hovercraft, keeping her charcoal eyes glued to the twists and turns of the ravine ahead.
"But therre's no guarrantee that things would have become that dirre," Kepler remarked. "Chandlerr's soldierrs werre fanatical—yes—but thanks to the herroics of Enix and the otherr nightbloods of Bleak's Plummet, they werre being savagely beaten! I serriously doubt that even Chandlerr would have been able to urrge them into a final suicidal attack upon the Gondola when Rrainbow and the rrest of us disembarrked!"
"Pfffft... with how heart-broken they were over the wendigoes and Verlaxion's 'death?!'" Ariel spat. "You've gotten too used to featureless stone and mindless trolls, Keps. Once upon a time we fought assholes who believed in shit."
"I think we're all forgetting the real big factor here," Logan said, veering the wagon slowly around a chunk of rock sticking out of the dried-up riverbed. "If Chandler had lived, then he'd be back in Frostknife as we speak... ruling the poor wendigo-hump'd survivors of Rohbredden with an iron hoof. Remember, that bastard was the one who insisted on rooting up wyverns and throwing them into jail—the ones he didn't friggin' murder, that is. Who knows what other nasty things that asshole could have passed into law. You ask me—Bard did us a favor, and if he didn't do what he did then I woulda at the first opportunity. Swear on my balls." His nostrils flared. "But it's all good now. Frostknife's got the likes of Keris and Theanim Mane looking over it now. As shitty as things were when Rainbow took the blame for Verlaxion, it could only have been a lot worse if Chandler remained alive."
"Well put, frriend," Kepler said with a nod. "And I most cerrtainly will not arrgue the forrtuitous naturre of Chandlerr's violent passing..." The wyvern sighed. "But how could any of this have occurrred to poorr Barrd's beleaguerred mind when he confrronted Chandlerr and his forrces in that most drramatic battle?!"
"Aaaaaaaaaaaaand..." Flynn breathed through a bittersweet smirk. "...we're riiiiiight back where we began! All aboard Kepler's Angsty-Go-Round!" He polished armor vigorously. "First foal to pluck a ring from the ceramic bull's nose wins a prize!"
"Ach! It is not angst, dearrest Flynn! Merrely the deepest of vexation! Did it everr occurrr to Barrd in those heated moments that he could have sparred Chandlerr's life, saved himself, and still have accomplished the same means?!"
"Spared Chandler's life?!?" Flynn guffawed. "Holy bucking shit, Keps! Have you been smoking those spider beets instead of eating them?"
"Ease off, Flynn," Ariel insisted. "Kepler's not made of straw."
"Pffft. You got a better way to deal with this furry clown, then?"
"As a matter of fact, I do." Nose upturned, Ariel flew closer to the wagon—and Kepler. "Keps..." She smiled politely. "...I know you mean no disrespect to Bard and what he gave up so that we could continue helping Rainbow Dash with her journey. But take a moment to consider..." Her ears folded in mid-flight. "...he wasn't doing too hot by the time Chandler caught up with him."
"Quite so, Arriel. I am acutely awarre—"
"Are you?" Ariel's gray brow furrowed. "He had nearly been eviscerated by Chandler's minions by the time Wildcard found him. In fact, the only reason Bard wasn't taken off the Stardust was because he needed to be patched up before being moved—or else he would have bled to death on the spot. Maybe worse."
"Also Chandler was coming in for a landing and there was no friggin' time for—" Flynn interjected.
"Shhhhh!" Ariel frowned at him, then turned towards Kepler once again. "Long story short... Bard's number had already been rung up. He knew it. Bard was no chump; he had been doing the bounty hunter schtick for longer than I've been alive. If he had the ability to live through what happened to him, I'm pretty sure he'd still be with us now. But that's just not the case. He only had the strength and fortitude to do one final act of justice. And—like it or not—Chandler's toxicity just could not be tolerated." She slowly shook her head. "Somehow saving that bastard at the last second is a completely crazy idea."
"Ach..." Kepler pointed at a pale feathery figure. "...once upon a time, somepony would have said the same thing about ourr brrooding ally herre. And yet, herre we are!"
Ariel bit her lip.
"Hrmmmm..." Logan smirked slightly, eyes on the path ahead. "He's got a point there."
Seraphimus said nothing.
"What about it, Commander?" Flynn sat up just enough to look at her. "If somepony like you could come around, how about a chump like Chandler—?"
Ariel swatted him hard. Whap!
"Ow!" The balding pony pouted.
"Knock it off..."
"Are we gonna bury this damned hatchet once and for all or aren't we?" Flynn frowned. "I'm not the one who brought it up!" He pointed at Keps. "Our beloved mutant mountain squirrel just won't let it go—!"
"Baldy..." Logan sighed.
Suddenly, Seraphimus spoke with icy grace: "I had pledged my heart and soul to Verlaxion, but that was always a lie." She glared ahead in mid-step. "My heart always belonged to my family—alive or dead. It was Verlaxion who seized my heart and used it to manipulate me." A sharp breath. "Chandler? I was a hair's breadth away from imprisoning that stallion for the conspiracy he was performing under the Council's noses. Then Verlaxion... the draconian manipulator stepped in and bewitched him. But—unlike me—Chandler never had a heart to begin with. His entire being was dedicated towards powermongering and corruption." For once, her charcoal eyes darted towards the wagon. "Just because a filthy tool is turned towards another task doesn't clean the filth off. That stallion had no chance for salvation and I shall not weep for him."
The Herald contemplated that in silence.
"Your friend... this 'Bard.'" Seraphimus breathed. "... ... ...I am sorry to say that I did not know the stallion, thus I cannot speak for him."
Logan looked over his shoulder. "Well? How about that, Keps?"
Kepler sighed... shaking his head. "I am just... horrribly... irrrecoverrably vexed..."
Flynn rolled his eyes and returned to his polishing task with a huff.
Ariel flew a little higher and Rainbow...
Rainbow listened. Silent and mellow. At the end of the conversation, her eyes wandered past Seraphimus.
There—in the distance—Wildcard glided quietly above the ground. The universe reflected off his goggles, each star twinkling duller and duller. His headcrest was drooped the whole time.
Rainbow felt a lump form in her throat. Lowering her gaze, she continued trotting limply along, keeping a safe distance between herself and the chaotic shimmer of the hovercraft.
Silence.
Flynn was right at the end. The discussion of Chandler's actions and Sera's actions needed to be discussed someday, they needed to chack that off the list.
I'm glad they finally did it, and I'm happy to see that Sera doesn't hold any hate for somepony else other than Verlax.
Bard did nothing wrong. Chandler needed to be blown sky high, or Rohbredden would never recover from Verlax's manipulation.
Yeah, I don't think Chandler could be redeemed. There wasn't even enough time to redeem him with the Gondola and a murderous Seraphimus on their way.
Bard did what he had to do.
Well, that was an interesting conversation that I didn't expect to see, but it did need to happen eventually. Bard did the right thing, It was the only thing he could have done in that situation.
See you, horse cowboy.
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Yeah. This chapter kinda felt like it came out of nowhere, just rehashing stuff from a whole book ago. But it made a lot more sense at the end — it was set up to get Seraphimus to talk and think more about her time in Rohbredden, to come closer to closure.
RIP, Bard. Wish you could have seen Nicole again on the light side. (Anyone think we’ll see Bard’s soul in a Night Shard construction?)
Man, is this popular?.... I'm serious, this keeps popping up on my feed list, is it really that good? I'm tempted to read this.
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Well.. we're 9 books into a 12 book series. So Skirts has to be doing something right.
As it stands, the best thing you can do is read the first book, Austraeoh, all the way through, if you're hooked, keep going, if not, the end of Austraeoh is a good jumping off point.
Wildcard is still depressed about Bard's sacrifice.
Kepler is a scientist and a scholar above all else, mental exercise is important, and sometimes a healthy debate is a good thing, but for real, maybe pick a subject that's not as sore. Take into account present company and decide whether or not it's an appropriate subject,
-Through the path long forgotten, into the darkness long begotten. Ofolrodi.
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Totally! But this is the ninth book. If you really want to read this, start from Austraeoh. Just remember this: more than a series, this is a journey, a VERY LONG ONE. But it’s totally worth it.
I really want to see Wildcard and Seraphimus rekindle their relationship.
I see what you did there. This was a vary hot topic at the time. It's good to see all the players expressing their points of view on the matter. I wonder if "That guy" will get triggered?
This Chapter Is Dedicated To "ThatGuyVex", The Resident Debate Club Leader Of The Noble Jury And Company.
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Nah, I'll stick to project horizons.
Kepler seems to be forgetting that they actually had time to turn Seraphimus around. With Chandler, the only options really were to leave him alive or kill him. There was no time for a plan c.
8790465
Never!
Well, they got that off their fluffy chests for now...
Theres always at least one exception, which is what allows everything to exist.
To be perfect is to cease to be.
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Prob a good idea, as Project Horizons and the Austreaoh saga are thematic opposites in every regard. If you enjoy Horizons, you mind find the optimistic nature of Austreaoh series a turnoff.
Even with company, a dead landscape is no better than a desert devoid of life.
Ponies will go insane.
What was going through Bard's head was that he would finally be able to see Amber and Melody once again. No need to over-complicate things, Chandler was likely barely thought of when Bard ended his life.
Yay, more talking! But while the topics while they were waiting in Spider-City were along the lines of "what now?", the topics during the long walk are more about reconsidering previous situations. Somepony should ask Dash if enforcer Shell's toxicity could be tolerated a bit more; if it wasn't that crazy to spare him during their final fight, saving that bastard at the last second.
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Your loss. Just remember, the Noble Jury always has room for one more Pilgrim whenever you change your mind. Peace out.
This chapter: when comment debates bleed into the story.
Something, something, entered the danger zone.
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I also think it must be a pretty short distance, considering they've been traveling on foot for most of it. (There was a "barely one third" mentioned a few chapters back, but that's ridiculously far.)
I mean, I'm still suspecting that either A) they manage to find some way of returning straight home from the Armory or B) they have an uneventful airship trip back from the Western edge. Otherwise those last three books are going to be pretty massive.
Heehee! She called him a 'filthy tool'.
I miss Jumpin' Ray Bard.
When he killed Brie Chandler, I suspected his time might well nigh be at hoof... For when one abandons their own values, they have crossed inevitably onto a path of self-destruction. Bard tread that path and died a hero, but once he set hoof upon it, he inevitably sealed that destiny for himself.
Every one of us must gaze into the bowl after casting the runes of fate to see what we have wrought for ourselves. Bard probably knew his fate the moment he snatched that rifle. As a Desperado, he knew better than most that a pony reaps what he sows.
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When she gets to Ward, west of Equestria, she'll get to meet Sturke, the last of the Divines. Perhaps she'll tell her of her sister Axan's sacrifice.
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This is better than Horizons.
I say this as a huge Fallout and Fallout: Equestria fan. Seriously, I own two printed copies of it.
Read Austraeoh. As others have said, if you like it, keep going. If not, you'll have spent the time to read one book.
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Also probably to address the big debate way back then over how justified Bard was in going full murder mode on the guards.
8791066
I disagree. They are different, but not opposites, necessarily, though I don't care to list the comparisons.
Fallout: Equestria is a story about hope, and how it is always there, no matter how dark it is.
Project Horizons is a story about perseverance and determination to beat the odds, no matter how crazy they are.
Austraeoh is a saga. An epic. A legacy. A journey like no other, and, dare I say it, Skirts's magnum opus. It's so grand in scope that I can't describe it easily or succinctly.
I merely can say, all ahead full and don't look back.
*cracks knuckles*
Once more into the breach, for this time, and as many times as it takes... and sorry Keps, I feel like you're being used to channel my own vexation. Now, to put on my own broken record...
I will restate my own belief that Bard made multiple mistakes, and that I question whether these mistakes were even in character for him, but we'll get to that.
First off, trying to defend the Stardust rather than abandon it. Even with a wing injury it would have made more sense to dive and make a swim for it than try to fight on the ship. Its armament of moonstones would have been useless to Chandler and he likely would have wasted time trying to figure out how to use it, giving Dash and the Herald even more time to escape. Bard would have known Wildcard or any of the other fliers could have picked him up from the sea, just as long as he could tread water and make for the Gondla. Especially given he knew Dash's ghost gals could sense him, with Fluttershy's empathy. On top of that there is no way Chandler could have reached the Gondola in time to do anything. Seraphimus barely got there in time, and she's nearly as fast a flier as Dash is, and the group headed into the Gondola literally seconds after Bard exploded the Stardust. Timeline wise, there's no way Chandler would've been able to do anything. As for the other matter...
Staying to kill Chandler and murder the soldiers with him was uneccessary, because all of Chandler's power was rooted in his quest to "avenge" Verlaxion by killing Dash. Failing that quest, combined with his poor performance that no soldier there could have denied, would have broken what little power base he might have had upon returning to Frost Knife. With Kerris and Theanim there they could have kept him from doing any further damage. More to the point, Bard made entirely too many asssumptions about needing to kill Chandler when he knew precisely that Dash didn't want any more deaths.
This is part of why I find it out of character Bard did what he did. He respected Dash entirely too much to go against her ideals like that. Furthermoore, reading Utaan, you never see any hard edge to Bard. Wildcard yes, but Bard fought every battle except that last one without taking a single life, and there's little to no hint he ever fights differently than that. Its only forced on him by the story at the last minute. When one considers how hard he came down on Dash about the Quade, whereas Wildcard was more understanding about what Dash did, its obvious Bard's moral compass pointed far more towards preserving the lives of others rather than doing the "hard thing" for a supposed greater good.
It doesn't pan out that Bard would have done what he did, save for when one thinks of it in the light of plot demands. It was the big final climax, and supposedly the villain has to die at the climax. Bard got saddled with the job, even if it didn't make complete sense for his character.
Chandler himself is a whole other bag of issues. Seraphimus' words here show little more than her personal bias, given all she ever did in regards to interacting with Chandler was pursue him for his crimes. She didn't actually know him on any personal level, nor what his motivations were in trying to gain control of Rohbreadden. Indeed almost everything Chandler said in the earlier chapters indicates a twisted but still three dimensional motivation of wanting to save the country from Verlaxion's religous influence. Its only after Verlax appears to him that his character starts to get regulated to a more one dimensional state, which didn't do the overall story any favors from my perspective. We didn't need another flat villain for the heroes to defeat and kill, but that's neither here nor there. Seraphimus' insistence that Chandler is beyond redemption is just... flat out wrong, in my view. She claims he had no heart? Where was her heart as she murdered those she'd already defeated, criminals or no? The bottom line is if she was worth mercy, then so was Chandler. You don't get to have it both ways, claiming one person who walked a dark path deserves the chance to become a better person and recitfy their mistakes while saying another was beyond being given the chance. That way lies the road of protagonist centered morality, and I'd like to see the story not walk that road. Seraphimus, you're wrong here, plain and simple.
Want in story proof of this?
Axan.
Seriously think about this. Axan is responsible for more deaths than Seraphimus, Chandler, Shell, and possibly even Chrysalis combined.
I want you to picture this. Seriously picture this. Silvadel in its hayday. A huge pristine country filled with ponies living their peaceful, normal, day to day lives like you or me. Foals playing in the streets, mares saying hello to their neighbors, folks opening their stores or catching a morning stroll. Thousands upon thousands of innocent lives.
Then it all goes up in flames. A red shadow descends and foals burn, dying in screaming agony. Flesh melts away from charred bones and an entire nation of tends of thousands if not hundreds of thousands of innocent lives are ended in horrific fire. And the one responsible for all of these murders? The one who commited this unbelievable atrocity?
The person we're supposed to see as redeemable. The character we're supposed to root for and cry over when she sacrifices herself to save Dash and the Herald to reach the Dark Side.
And not once did Axan ever express any remorse over the destruction of Silvadel. To her it was just a thing she did to make room for her own brood. That's it. All of those murders and it was only because Silvadel was in the way. And she never says she's sorry for it, never says she regretted it.
Now my point here is that if we're going to believe what the story's narrative wants to drive home, that Axan, despite her actions, was able to become a respected part of Dash's group and even be seen in a sisterly light by Dash at the end, that she died a noble death that redeemed her...
How can we buy the notion that Chandler was a heartless, irredeemable monster? His actions killed far fewer, and it could be argued that Axan's motivations were even more callous than his. So how is it that Axan can be seen as a character worthy of redemption, of second chances, and who had a heart, while we're supposed to buy Seraphimus' line about Chandler being without a heart and beyond being worthy of such a chance?
Either the story is being dishonest and hypocritical, or the characters are wrong. Hopefully somebody out there is starting to understand my issue here.
I honestly just feel like the later half of Utaan fell prey to this assumed need for a standard villain to be "death worthy" by the end of it, and Chandler got saddled with going from a fully realized, three dimensional character, into being a one-note bad guy to get exploded so the audience can cheer while wiping tears from their eyes from the "noble sacrifice" of the dying hero. But the problem is that the sacrifice wasn't needed, the hero had to suddenly go from someone who gone out of his way to kill no one the whole story and got pissed off when Dash's actions lead to deaths to someone who'd commit murder with his dying action, and the whole ending of Utaan was weaker in my eyes for it.
I know my opinion is not one anyone agrees with, but I can't shy away from defending it either, especially if we're going to get scenes like this where the story wants to bring it up. I don't hate Bard. But I hate what he did, and that it was written the way it was. There were better ways to do it, in my opinion. And I will continue to hold to this unless someone can offer a compelling counter argument.
In the meantime I'll get back to channeling my own vexation in as creative and positive a manner as I can. I'm sure Skirts is getting as tired to listening to me complain about this as I am making the same arguments repeatedly, but hey man, you're the one who keeps bringing this topic up. How about we get a new villain for me to complain about? I'm sure I can find stuff to nitpick about Lexxic once he gets on screen.
Oh, and...
Seraphimus x Logan Ship Confirmation Chapter Counter: 15
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yt3.ggpht.com/a-/AJLlDp3mBypvJZkEnzTSJZ6CVkim7YlLlarLWtelLQ=s900-mo-c-c0xffffffff-rj-k-no
Reenacting the great thatguyvex debate, I see.
Yup Bard died. Sucks. Get over it.
This vexes me. I'm terribly vexed.
Strictly speaking, the question isn't whether saving someone is possible, but whether it's worth it.
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It is worth reading, from the beginning, but only if you enjoy your stories at a slow burn... we are 3.5 million words in now, and we still don't have the end in sight just yet.
How dare you make me expect a fun, light-hearted chapter
…but go off, I guess
What is he so confused about? They knew Bard was gutted and dying, so he killed Chandler when he could, what’s so confusing?
9094695
Ditto. For the brainiac of the crew (besides Flyyn), he sure is letting his heart speak in place of his brain. And a very stupid heart at that.
Bleeding rpofusely.
I would be disappointed if at least one of Bard's friends did not think 'maybe I could have saved him'. Ultimately the choice to die with dignity was his own, and at least they respect that.
11/18/2019
02:57 UTC
Someone’s been on the chan
Sera slamming down the truth hammer.
Poor Wildcard... he's so heartbroken over Bard...