Being a pony from a human world is hard. Being a Queen's officer is harder.

No need to be familiar with the crossover source material ahead of time.

Thanks to Sledge115 and Raleigh for pre-reads, and various Discord denizens for idea bouncing.

Sequel: Fusion.

It's a theoretically simple setup: five ponies on a train, deciding that playing a popular board game about the restructuring of a barren planet so that it can comfortably sustain life for the ponies of Equestria. They all compliment each other when it comes to forming the perfect group for a board game: Rainbow Dash brings her undeniable charisma to the table, Starlight Glimmer brings her brains, Rarity brings her panache, Applejack brings her delightfully sardonic wit, and Fluttershy's also just kind of there, I guess.

Theoretically, it shouldn't be a bad way to spend a couple of hours.

Theoretically.

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My entry into no writing competition whatsoever. The idea of deliberately sending yourself up to be graded like a bad entry on the fanfic equivalent of Hell's Kitchen doesn't really do anything for me, thank you very much.

Story is a work in progress. Expect to see new chapters Mon-Fri between 2:00 PM-5:00 PM CST, and that's a schedule I'm really going to try to keep to for a change of pace.

All my thanks to Flashgen for his help.

Elements of cover art are by Isaac Fryxelius, and will be taken down upon request.

This story is a sequel to Entrenchment

An Age of Iron story.

At last, Ferrous Dominus is (mostly) secure.
Centaur III has been (largely) pacified.
The enemies of Chaos and Equestria have finally been crushed (probably).

But victory is merely a prelude to the next war. The Imperium of Man and the pitiful, far-flung holdings of the alien await the Iron Warriors and their new allies, ripe for conquest and plunder. With a new home world and a new ally under their thumb, the 38th Company at last turns its attention on a galaxy ablaze with constant war, seeking new victims to fill the bellies of their ships. The gentle but resourceful equines of Equestria travel with them, taking to the field not out of malice or avarice but gratitude in at last fulfilling their grave debt to the Legion.

But in the depths of the void, far beyond the fleet, beyond the veil of the Materium itself, Chaos is not idle. Plots advance, blood spills, and ancient evils seethe.

The light will be extinguished.

(Dark humor warning; grimdark themes)
(Cover art, and pretty much the rest of the art too, by EZTP)

The star system Omega Centauri was just another oddity on a map to scientists in the not too distant future. However when they found the star was orbiting an earth-sized, earth-like planet instead of a black hole as its motion had suggested, a mission was scrambled to investigate this most unusual of celestial behaviors.

Hamstrung by politics, and nearly crippled before it began, the 'Lone Ranger' mission was reduced to just one crew member and left to his own devices.

These are the logs of Arrow 18 and its lone commander. This information is classified TOP SECRET by the Global Space Agency.

Do NOT tell the princess.

During an attack on Ponyville in the middle of the Summer Sun Festival, Princess Twilight Sparkle evacuates the town by teleporting the entire population to safety in Manehattan. It turns out that her idea of safety needs some work. As well as her aim. And spelling.

Meanwhile, on a hot summer day outside of Manhattan, Kansas, Jonagold Bruener had a fairly successful life with few complications. Until while out mowing hay, he had a very strange visitor fall from the sky. And then another. And another. And another....

Editors: Tek, TheMaskedFerret, Peter, BluePaladin42, Edward Becerra

Picture credit: Manhattan Water Tower

This story is a sequel to Triptych

There are those who say that a mark is a portion of the soul made visible to the world. That the mark is destiny, and so cannot be denied. Equestria has existed under the influence of marks for all of its recorded history, allowing the ever-changing tide of icons to guide the way.

But it could also be said that every system contains the seed of its own destruction.

There is one who believes destiny is nothing more than a trap. And there is nothing she will not do to make the world free.

(Part of the Triptych Continuum, which has its own TVTropes page and FIMFiction group. New members and trope edits welcome.)

Now with author Patreon and Ko-Fi pages.

This story is a direct sequel to Triptych. Do not read it unless you've finished the original.

Five hundred years after the Discord's first defeat, a lone unicorn scientist makes an interesting discovery. Across Canterlot, over the last few centuries, accident rates have increased in the area around the Royal Palace. His work is ridiculed by his peers, but comes to the attention of the Princesses, who know exactly what is happening: Discord is waking up. With Luna and Celestia, he concocts a plan to stop the Lord of Chaos forever.

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Cover art butchered from UnderwoodART's render of the stained glass in S02E01.
This story is based on S1/S2 (Discord was never released and reformed) and sits within my Soot-Covered World canon, but is stand-alone. No knowledge of the other books is required.

All thanks to ascendant, NoeCarrier, turol, KMCA, Caliaponia and billymorph for their prereading and editing over the life of this story.

In a sunburned Equestria, Rarity leads the pleasant life of a clothier in the tiny town of Spurhoof. She’s got a successful business, a capable assistant, and the respect of the place she’s called home for six years. Maybe she never achieved her foalhood dreams of fabulosity, but at least she’s comfortable. What more can a mare ask for?

Then a band of outlaws decide to pay Spurhoof a visit, and their leader’s eye has settled upon Rarity. Soon she’ll have to fight not only for her life, but maybe her very soul. Will her diamond turn dull under the hot Equestrian sun, or will adversity make her shine all the brighter?

Print copies now available for purchase on Lulu!.

Now featured on Equestria Daily.

Inspired by Fallout: Equestria and the song Bulletproof Heart by My Chemical Romance.

Other stories inspired by music:
Escape
Ordinary World
Bed of Roses
Drops of Jupiter
How to Save a Life
Forgive Me, Friend
Time for Tea

A big thanks to my brainstorming fellow and ever-awesome friend SorenPixels, who has helped me ponder the plans for this story since its inception.

Additional kudos to Danger Beans and Cerulean Voice for their help with the first few chapters.

Big thanks to the fantastic author Viking ZX for taking time out of his busy schedule to be my Alpha pre-reader.

Last but certainly not least, my gratitude to my gang of Beta pre-readers: Babroniedad, Lord-Commander, Merc the Jerk, Snowybee, Soge, and Wanderer D!

I was not prepared for the absolutely stunning world building or the incredibly well done characters. [...] This is a work of absolute art. — Equstarte Marine Sebaste

Reading and re-reading (and re-reading) this story was an amazing experience. It will always be one of my favorites! — Wanderer D

I dare say this is a masterpiece of the fandom. — FanOfMostEverything

It's a gorgeous, vivid-drawn setting you've crafted for this, and it hits its gritty Western beats and epic scope with aplomb. Rarity's character journey in this is a stellar one, and her gradual sink into (and recovery at the brink of) [...] darkness was wonderfully and believably told. — Carabas

Cover art commissioned from the fantastic bakki, with title work generously donated by Novel-Idea.

This story is a sequel to Triptych

For Applejack, the Bearers' most recent adventure had consequences. She was the first in her family to break the Secret. She volunteered to become Twilight's teacher for earth pony magic. And with the chains of tradition still falling away, she did something else. She asked Snowflake to go out with her. To see if they were compatible. If it was possible for love to appear. Whether they could take the first steps together on a new road.

But Apples go out with earth ponies. The line marries pure.

And it won't be long before the rest of the family starts to find out...

(Part of the Triptych Continuum, which has its own TVTropes page and FIMFiction group. New members and trope edits welcome.)

Now with author Patreon and Ko-Fi pages.

Cover art by Harwick. Please contact him for commission rates.

This story is a sequel to Entrenchment

Boarding actions are often frantic, desperate assaults. Men are launched directly into the greatest bastions of the enemy while guns that can level city blocks roar around them. Boarding soldiers are swarmed in minutes by all manner of defenses and opponents, trying to wreak what havoc they can within a vessel's belly before they're overwhelmed and extinguished. Incoming fire from their own ships continue to pound away at their target the entire time. Depressurization, incineration, and rad-flensing are all common ends to the life of the boarding trooper, and as often as not their death comes as a result of their own sabotage.

Pity these courageous souls who take their weapons to the hearts of giants.

(Dark humor warning; grimdark themes)
(Cover art by EZTP)
(Featured on 8/4/2019!)