Upcoming Story with Preview! · 5:14pm Aug 27th, 2019

Hello fellow FimFic users. I've been busy planning my next work now that The Worst of All Possible Worlds has finished, and though I've just started the groundwork, I'd like to detail some information about it. I gained quite a few followers over TWoAPW's development, some of you more interested in my overall work rather than just the single story. I'd say this post is more for them, or anyone just passing through my blogs at a later point in time.

The story, which will remain nameless for now, revolves around only a few characters. I'm aiming to make it a shortish story, as one of the biggest feedback I received for TWoAPW is that it was LONG, which I am inclined to agree with since TWoAPW ended up over 400k words. I learned many things writing TWoAPW. Don't take forever to publish, don't write too much nonsense, watch the apostrophes, yadda yadda.

If you loved TWoAPW, I would say this story and series will be very much in the way Arcs 2, 3, and a little bit of 6 were. Arc 3 especially.

I've been looking over FimFic for a while now, and I've wanted to create a series involving a single continuous universe for over a year. I've marveled over Chengar Qordath's Freeport Venture series, though I've never read any of them. The idea of stemming life over several fics, to which readers can hop off the figurative train whenever they so desire, is something I've craved.

I'd like to think each part of the series would be no larger than 30k or 40k, and NOTHING higher than 100k! I want my writing to have more impact, rather than filler. Show don't tell. All that jazz.

I've even started following my own mantra: "I will never have peace of mind. Accept it and move on. Just write."

But enough about me. Here's the opening scene and first half of Chapter 1.

Words are, by definition, meant to convey meaning. A series of letters, sentences, and paragraphs using syllables, punctuation, and ideas to bring forth images in one’s mind. Life is four simple letters used to convey an individual’s existence, while death brings the opposite picture into frame. Words share this duality. They can be given life through meaning and then be tossed aside for a shorter version. Or they can be taken and given new purpose, revitalizing their use, much like a snake eating its own tail to survive. They unite as one to create the balanced, harmonic goal of understanding meaning.
Princess Celestia had no thoughts on words or snakes or the renewal process this night. Her mind focused on the blue mare outside the common room. This was her ritual every night, prior to her worldly duty. Celestia's majestic mane of cerulean, pink, and turquoise reflected heavily in the glass shielding her from the dark outside world. Her eyes traced the fellow alicorn who stood on the balcony, the blue face shadowed as the moon lowered beyond the horizon. A menacing sight for anypony else, but not Celestia.
This was common for the two as Celestia parted the entrance for her younger sister, Princess Luna. The blue alicorn strode through the open door, nodding her exhausted eyes as greeting to her elder before continuing off for her day of rest.
While the moon had the night, the sun would partake in gracing the land and turn the world to day. Princess Celestia’s duty, as designated by the sun cutie mark on her white flank, was to raise the celestial ball of gas on Equestria. Her sister was the opposite, holding sway over the moon. When one lowered, the other rose. A simple balance, never a chore, and supposedly endless. Day and night would exist in harmony, no matter the cost, for so long as Celestia could bear.
But though she commanded the sun, Celestia enjoyed the night too. With her tall frame standing against the balcony railing, Celestia could stare out at the beauty. The city of Canterlot before her, the gold and purple roofs reflecting the stars of the sky like a still lake. It brought peace. Serenity. Day time would break such calm by fetching the noisy hustle and bustle from living, working ponies.
Only few received such a view, and Celestia appreciated it more than most would, regardless of the thousands of years she’d been performing her celestial duty.
But night wasn’t forever. The long, slender white horn protruding from her forehead lit with golden glow as she felt the sun beyond the veil of night. Lifting the ball of gas and heat into the sky, dawn broke with a cast of orange hues sailing over green forests. It struck the purple and gold roofs, and the stars leapt from the sky disappearing all at once.
Raising it slowly, Celestia savored the moment like the first bite of a honey apple. The breathtaking rays dripped down her chin as the chill of morning dew settled on her wings and across her back. Another wonderful day was upon them, bringing a smile to her face. Yet it fell. Not just her smile, but the sun from the horizon! She blinked, not understanding. But upon reopening her eyes within that split second, she found the sun in the correct placement. Was it a mirage? A mishap?
Yes, a trick of the eyes, she assumed, shrugging it off. The sun was where it needed to be, there was no need to concern herself more than that, and so she tossed the incident into the far recesses of her mind, gone and forgotten. There were other chores for a princess to attend to, and her mind would not sit idly by while nostalgia and awe had its way with her eyes.
When night came round again, Celestia was the first to step onto the balcony. Princess Luna came second, the nodding of her head this time was the only thing keeping her awake. Her groggy eyes pierced through Celestia as she waited for her elder sister to lower the bright ball beyond the horizon.
Celestia snickered internally at the disheveled sight of her sister. She’s forgotten her crown again. Poor thing, she thought, hiding her grin behind her hoof. Though raising the sun remained a stunning feat after all this time, it was also repetitive. Even absentmindedly, Celestia could lower the sun as her mind muddled itself in her sister’s form. To which it did, leaving the sky dark. The moment passed.
Entrusting the younger to her task, Celestia headed back inside to the common room. Yet upon halfway, hearing the mutter of concern from the younger alicorn ceased her steps. “Luna?” Celestia questioned, casting a look over her shoulder. The moon sat on the horizon, sending rays of light against Luna’s dark blue mane. Nothing about the pale sphere stood out of the ordinary.
“It’s nothing,” Luna mumbled a response, just before a yawn overtook her words. “Sleep well, sister.”
The earlier occurrence with her sun remained lost in the back of Celestia’s mind, and so she did as Luna suggested. She went to bed. Her mind laid within a wondrous slumber, gracing her with deep sleep, and even brought her to an awakened state earlier than normal. Most would relish in the additional hours of sleep, but not Celestia. The thought of being up prematurely excited her, it brought renewed meaning to her day. And it even allowed for some morning tea, accompanied by a soft baked sugar cookie, long and rectangular, meant for dipping.
The twinkling against gold and purple, the glorious hues of white and blue mixing together against the marble of the roads. Celestia breathed, and the city shifted against the steam of her tea, or so it looked. A shudder of cold trembled down her spine, or perhaps it was awe.
“You’re up early.”
The voice didn’t spook Celestia, but she did throw an instinctive glance to the common room. “Sometimes getting up early to see your beautiful night is worth the sacrifice of a few less hours of sleep,” Celestia answered. She took a quick sip of tea, her horn levitating the cup to her lips to hide the coy smile beneath.
The younger alicorn shifted in the door way, a brow rising above her knowing grin. “Is that why you’re up early? Planning out your compliments again?” Luna balked, a small giggle breaking the exhaustion wrinkling her face. “I would say I’d stay awake and hark a sonnet of flattery just to outdo you, but-” Her horn lit in blue glow and her moon lowered beyond the curvature of the world “-I think I’ll just steal those hours of sleep from you instead.”
“Very well, dear sister,” Celestia replied, “Sleep well.”
Alone with the stars, Celestia's eyes skittered across the reflective roofs. Levitating the teacup for another quick sip, she began raising the sun at the same time. Her magical prowess was legendary, and levitating two objects at once was nothing but child's play. Coming above the horizon, the orange hue stole the stars. Even the ones within her teacup were quickly whisked away.
In a sudden jerk of power, however, Celestia lost the grasp on her cup. The sun shot double the height she intended and then lowered itself back to where it needed to be, yet she hadn’t been the cause. Celestia blinked, shook her head, and took a step back. Warm tea wrapped itself around the golden shoe of her white hoof, and then flooded the empty space after its removal. She stared down at the broken ceramic, the shattered bits of cookie, and the warm brown puddle, trying her best to deduce what just happened.
The morning rolled into motion after Celestia cleaned the shards and mess. Her thoughts were on the incident all throughout the day. She had no explanation. The only thing she understood was that her sun spasmed upward, then back downward, and she had reflexively dropped her tea. All of which were steady in her magical grasp, or so she thought, reliving the moment within her mind.
Celestia had certainly never been troubled by the idea of waning magic, which compelled her to return to the balcony early that night, nor did she believe she'd reached her magical limit. The place of the fallen teacup brought no comfort, the stain since washed away by castle staff. Though the thought had been tossed aside, Celestia now remembered the previous morning. The sudden blink of the sun. Connecting the two brought even more worries, some of which were evident on her face. A haggard look for the tallest and oldest alicorn in existence.
“You’re here early again, sister. Another compliment, I assume? I’ve been working on a few myself, but none are ready,” Luna said as she sidled next to Celestia, appearing almost as a ghost. When she saw her sister’s expression, all jovialness evaporated.
“No, nothing like that,” Celestia answered. For a moment, she debated telling Luna of the strange occurrence., but when she went to lower the sun, she felt no surge or snap. Nothing stopped Celestia or intruded on the lowering process. An uneventful process, much like every night prior. “Sleep well, Luna.” With the strangeness of the morning seemingly gone, she turned to the doors and trotted across the balcony without another word.
“Is this a joke?” Luna asked, hostility in the words.
“What?” Celestia held the door open, glancing back. Her brows pulled tight at the sight of the angered expression on Luna's face.
Luna grunted with a harshness in her tone, coming close to Celestia. “A bit rude of a prank, dear sister. No need to be in such a tizzy due to a lack of praise.” She then passed by the elder, her nose haughtily in the air. Even when Celestia beckoned, Luna refused an answer, leaving the words like smoke, slowly wafting and dissipating.
When Celestia retired to her chamber, her comforter to her chin, she felt no need to sleep. Her mind trembled at the provocation. It added to the strange bout of sun and tea earlier in the day, creating a wave of anxiety at the mystery. Not a wink brushed her eyes or eased her worry, and when it was time to wake, she found no reason to smile.
Celestia dragged herself to the balcony once again, drudging every step as though she carried dumbbells on her wings. Her tired eyes fell on the moonlit city. Not even the beauty of the stars reflecting off the gold and purple roofs could lighten her mood.
Luna arrived shortly after, a snippiness to her attitude retained from the previous encounter. “Have you more flattery, or will we trade insults today, dear sister?” When the younger looked up to meet the downtrodden eyes of the elder, she gasped. “Have you been awake all night, sister?” Luna’s voice trembled at the question. “I did not mean such a harness in my tone, I simply meant to scold. The moon is mine to possess, you know I am defensive!”
But Celestia shook her head, however. When she went to speak, her eyes landed on the darkness of Luna’s face, and she suddenly fell silent. The dark blue grew brighter, an orange hue striking Luna’s muzzle and revealing the beautiful eyes. Celestia's head twisted in an instant, her mouth fallen to the sight. “The sun?” she whispered to herself. Absentmindedly, so focused on Luna, Celestia would've raised the sun without focus as she'd done so previous. But not today. Not when the moon still sat within the sky.
“Celestia. I understand you might have been hurt, but there’s no need to lower the moon yourself,” chided Luna, her snippiness returning.
But the older alicorn ignored Luna. Celestia's eyes ran the sky in a panic, switching the cardinal direction and reaching the spot where the moon had been. Glancing twice, then thrice, passing over the city of Canterlot, they eventually landed on Luna’s confused, yet offended face. “I did not lower your moon,” she told Luna, her teeth clenching hard.
“Really?” Luna’s inflection dripped with satire. “Next you’re going to tell me you didn’t raise the sun.” But when she saw Celestia’s terrible expression, the fear within her sister’s eyes, Luna understood Celestia's words. Someone else moved the sun and moon.

Do let me know what you think, if you're so inclined. There will probably be many changes before the final product comes about, but for now this is what I've got. (Also, if you're interested in being an editor or proofreader for this story, I'd be grateful!)

This story idea actually comes from a user here on FimFic through a forum post I made a while back. Shout out to PatchworkPoltergeist who may never know he inspired me to write this story!

Thanks to everyone who has supported me over these years. It's odd to think I'll have been on this site for four years in October, and it all started out writing a terrible horror fic. Now look at me. Writing non-horror, yet still terrible fics.