This story is a sequel to Message in a Bottle

For numberless eons, Equus hosted primitive civilizations, ignorant of the proud achievements of their ancient race. In their simple lives, ponies and other creatures could grow without fear of alerting any of the terrible forces that grew in the galaxy beyond. All civilization had been extinguished by forces beyond comprehension. If they made too much noise, Equestria would be next.

Then came James Irwin, with the truth the Harmony superintelligence that maintained the vast Niven Ring had already known: the galaxy was safe again, and probably had been for many centuries.

Once the truth was revealed, Equestria again longed for the stars. Surely they could not be the only survivors of that galactic Red Tide that had swallowed all intelligent life. Their searching bore fruit: radio signals from a nearby system.

Felicity was the Alicorn chosen to captain that mission of discovery. She would bring the pony gift of friendship to a fellow survivor somewhere out there. That was the plan, anyway.

Unfortunately for Equestria, intelligence does not imply friendliness.

A tale of understanding and discovery set in the world of Message in a Bottle. Reading that story first is highly recommended.

This story was written as a Patreon commission for Lithl over the course of over two years now. It comes to fimfiction now that it is nearly finished.

Editing by Two Bit, cover by Zutcha.

Updates Weekly on Wednesdays.

Reformed changeling Thorax approaches Spike and Twilight with a royal dilemma: reforming Queen Chrysalis. Twilight thinks she knows just the mare for the job - and that mare has a peculiar solution.

Takes place between "The Times They Are a Changeling" and the end of Season 6.

Written for NaNoWriMo 2021

Story inspired by cover art used by jargon scott.

A thank you to bkc56 for proofreading after publishing.

Featured as of 01/04/22! Thank you all so much!

With the opening of the Equestrian embassy in Kansas City comes a new age of interspecies cooperation. Naturally, the first pony tourists want to explore the most exciting of all places in the US Midwest: Wamego Kansas on the Fourth of July

Editing assistance by Tek and Admiral Biscuit

Picture schleped together out of some public domain clip art and scribbles

Zenith would give anything to find her lost sister Nadir, who vanished in the depths of space long ago. And now, after decades of suspended animation, she has finally located Nadir on a strange planet haunted by alien ruins, far outside known space.

It's lonely out there, but Zenith has company – six personalities simulated by her ship's AI. And she'll need every ounce of help Twilight Sparkle, Rainbow Dash, and the others can offer, for Lapis is a more mysterious, and dangerous, planet than she could ever have imagined.

Updated every-other day until Jan. 6.

An entry for Bicyclette's Science Fiction Contest.

In her short time on the Wonderbolts roster, Rainbow Dash has become the star atraction of the locker room with her wild stories. It was amusing at first, but Spitfire's gotten sick of it. Clearly, the best way to stop these tall tales is to see just how mundane Dash's home life really is. Hearth's Warming will provide the perfect excuse.

And that's where the problem really started, Chief Rights...

Written for The Iguana Man for Jinglemas 2021. Miranda Rights borrowed with permission from Estee, who wants it on record that they had nothing to do with the title. Rated Teen for significant alcohol use.

Following the hive's metamorphosis, the desolate region once charted as 'the Badlands' on Equestrian maps has begun to flourish. Deserts now sprout with newfound life, and wastes of sun-baked rock crumble in the wake of sprouting vegetation.

But with all progress comes growing pains. Such a sudden abundance of life cannot flourish without water, and an awful lot of it, at that. For bug ponies with fragile gossamer wings, things couldn't be more inconvenient.

Caught in an acclimating climate, the changelings now face a series of torrential downpours that limit both their flight and activities. Luckily for them, their new leader is an expert at finding the coziest solution to every situation.

* Calor is (C) to me!
* Part of the Love Bug Continuity!
* Cover art by the multi-talented Racingwolf!
* A re-imagining of The Patter of Rain, which takes place between seasons six & seven.

This story is a sequel to Hinterlands

Two years ago, bounty hunter Bitterroot turned a lich and her necromancer apprentice over to the authorities. Now, that apprentice, Amanita, has been released on good behavior. She has no more interest in necromancy. In fact, she asked Bitterroot to turn her in all those moons ago and helped capture her master. With nowhere for Amanita to go, Bitterroot takes her in until she can get her hooves under herself.

But all isn’t well in Canterlot. A killer is stalking the streets, striking with impunity and leaving no trace. The Royal Guard is befuddled. Bitterroot’s investigations have yielded nothing. And night is turning into a time of dread. Something needs to be done. If only the dead could speak. If only there was a moral necromancer around.

Amanita doesn’t want to admit it, but the part of her past she hates the most might be the most useful part right now. Just because ponies are dying doesn’t mean they need to stay that way. What she buried needs to be dug up again.

Her demons are rearing their ugly heads. It’s time to face them.

Reading the preceding story will provide some context for this, but isn't required. Cover art is modified from this image. Other entries in this series:

• Hinterlands
• Urban Wilds
• Death Valley

The stars will soon be right, releasing an ancient horror from its cage.

Twilight has something to say about that.

Has a reading done by StraightToThePointStudio.

Beyond Equestria, the lands to the north are hostile and unforgiving. Ponies eke out a subsistence in uncontrollable weather, separated by mile after frigid mile of snow and mountains. A land where only the hardiest survive is no place for civilization.

Yet civilization encroaches from time to time. When a colossal bounty is placed on the head of a unicorn deep in the arts of necromancy, a motley crew of bounty hunters assembles and gives chase. It’s too good a chance to pass up. They’ll bring her to justice, no matter what stands in their way. Not her dark magic. Not the inhospitable environment.

And certainly not each other.

Other entries in this series:

• Hinterlands
• Urban Wilds
• Death Valley

Pipp flies away from home after an especially nasty fight with Zipp and her mom. Hitch is there to comfort her.