This story is a sequel to Cold

Time flows differently, in the multitude of plains that make up the universe. Seconds here can be hours there... and hours here can be decades over there. There is, however, one universal constant among all time and space: Time never stops. Perhaps I counted on time as my ally when I cast that spell and dove into the past... if only I'd know just how cruel and unwavering it can really be.

Thirty years, I've tried... in most other worlds, it's probably been hundreds, but I've managed to keep track. Thirty years of searching, trying and trying again, desperately doing everything in my power to bring you back... and all that I've learned is that unless I make this choice, it's simply not possible... I hope you'll forgive me. I know that'll be hard... but maybe given enough time, you'll understand... -Twilight Sparkle

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Being seniors at Canterlot High has some advantages. For the fall semester, Sunset Shimmer, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Applejack, Rainbow Dash, Rarity, and Twilight Sparkle won't actually be at CHS. Instead, the girls made it into a competitive foreign exchange program, which is sending them to Tokyo for the semester! Having taken Japanese as their foreign language credits, the girls joined the exchange program to open themselves up to a broader world.

Among the many experiences the exchange program exposed the girls to is the newest and hottest technology, the NerveGear, which brings virtual reality to a whole new level. Sword Art Online, also known as SAO, is the premier game soon to be released for the NerveGear. With their new friend, Ota Natsuki, they scored limited copies and get to be some of the 10,000 players to first experience Aincrad, but SAO is more than a game.

The girls are trapped, along with the other 10,000 players, by Akihiko Kayaba, the developer of the NerveGear and SAO. To get out, they must conquer Aincrad, floor by floor, until they beat the final boss in the Ruby Palace at it's summit. Then they all will be freed, however, if you die in the game, you die in real life.

The girls must band together with their new friend and face Aincrad, not just for themselves, but for all of the other players who can't take on such a challenge. After all they have been through, beating demons and sirens, a game should be easy, right?

EQG: Sword Art Online - Ruby Palace is not a sequel to EQG:SAO - Aincrad and, likewise, Ruby Palace is not a "rewrite". I chose to follow SOA Canon in Aincrad, placing the girls inside those events. Ruby Palace is a full crossover and Alt-U between EQG and SAO.

The Vignette Arcs are not required reading to follow the story, but they are recommended. The Pilot Episodes are the official start of the story.

Special Thanks to my editor, Void Runner and my beta reader, Cotton Sweet.
Artwork - Wing banners and page breaks are by Drytil.

Sword Art Online is created by Reki Kawahara.
My Little Pony is owned by Hasbro.

This story is a sequel to We don't go to Sub-Level Five

With the nightmares of the Silos behind them, Astral and Sassi begin to adapt to a world that lacks any understanding of the horrors now buried underneath glass and stone. The only creature in their life who can serve as a confidant is Arcane. However, the chaos-unicorn is busy learning to adapt to a world and society now alien to him. But they have each other, and their lives start to settle into a form of pleasant normality.

As life in Equestria and the Gryphon Empire continues on, Twilight and Tanzil are forced to confront troubles both within and outside their borders. Sometimes peace is but a thin, false veneer over chaos, and the two rulers quickly discover that their budding relationship may be the least of their troubles.

When a familiar horror emerges from the shadows, Astral, Sassi, and Arcane are forced to confront a terrorthat looms not only to engulf their new home, but all of Equestria and beyond. With their nightmares no longer confined to their minds, the three ponies desperately try to save who they can from the oncoming storm. When faced with some threats, all you can do is run and pray that it doesn't find you.

But for the two Thestrals, a unicorn, and their friends, they're sick of running. And they've got lots, and lots of ammunition.

Spoilers for We Don't Go to Sub-Level Five, Timeless, Sunspots, and Cure for a Toxin

A Notice of Hiatus

Jackson Brunner was walking home from work when he slipped and fell. He then awoke in a palace made of crystal that seemed to be long abandoned. Exploring these halls, Jack feels a strange sense of foreboding. Almost as if something horrible had happened here.

And that's not even the strangest thing about this situation.

No, things will only get stranger from here once the new owners of the palace show up.

Times this story has been featured:
August 16th - August 20th, 2023 (briefly got top spot on the 16th!)
Pretty much every time I upload a chapter lmao

What senses do you use? And how often do you use them? Which one do you think you use the most? The least? If you had to choose one to enhance? One to give up? Sometimes, you don't get the chance to choose.
Glassy eyes leave one crippled but, maybe there's hope in the form of telekinesis.

This story is simply about a blind filly's start in life. Though, she's not all that she seems...

Diamond Tiara was having a good morning. Then her mother dropped dead. Then things got weird.

A collaboration with SockPuppet. Inspiration in the author's note at the end.
Story notes

This story is a sequel to Looking Glass

Page is stuck. He never wanted to be a Prince. But he can't just... stop. Ponies are depending on him now and he's feeling the pressure.

Being a Prince isn't all that it's cracked up to be. It's all work and so much responsibility. Ponies plot against you constantly. Luckily, sometimes it's for your own good.

Other times... not.

Big thanks to Arratra for betaing this one.

This story is a sequel to What I Am

Much has changed since that fateful day when the remnants of the old Krin Empire attacked our two worlds.
They crashed so many ships onto Earth, destroyed our cities, killed millions, and collapsed several governments in an instant, all as a diversion from their true objective, which was the blatant mass abduction of the citizens of Equis. Lives lost, families broken, and cities burnt to the ground, all to fuel the Krin war machine and their mad quest for power and vengeance against the snakes that had wronged them.

However, that's not the end of the story, or our involvement in its unfolding. A darkness is growing in the depths of space, and even though the snakes have done their best to assure us that they will take care of it, there are so, so many on both of our planets that choose not to listen to them.

And how could I blame them? After all, every time I look in the mirror, I'm reminded of the horrors of the Krin Empire, and more importantly, the promise I made in that accursed tank that remains unfulfilled. They came for us, they struck first, and I'm not about to let that go unpunished.

Yeah, sure, it's hard for me to do it right now, since I'm just a diplomat to the people of Equis, and we don't exactly have a fleet outside of the few ships we commandeered from the krin, but trust me when I say that both of those are just temporary inconveniences.

After all, it's rather difficult to keep a monster like me behind a desk, especially not when there's a perfectly good war brewing throughout the galaxy, and that's not even counting the other humans and ponies that are all chomping at the bit, ready for some good, old-fashioned payback.

The only problem with that, though, is that, somehow, deep down, I feel like we've already lost. Call it a hunch, or a premonition, but something deep inside is telling me that we messed up when we let the general's ship get away. Maybe I'm just being paranoid, but somehow, I don't think so.

After all, I know better than anyone what the krin are capable of. We might be coming for them, but that doesn't mean the reverse isn't also true. They're coming for us, too.

The only question is: Who's going to be ready first?

Given that we've only just obtained (stolen) ships capable of spaceflight, I don't think it's going to be us...

This is the beginning of the next set of books in this series that I'm tentatively calling the Soul of the Milky Way.
The title up for change, as well as suggestion. Not only that, but the title of this story, as well as the set it belongs to is also up for change and suggestion, so feel free to leave them in the comments. If you're just starting with this one, please don't. I mean, you can if you want, but there's a lot here that you won't get if you haven't read the trilogy that predates this new set of books. They are, in order:

What I've Become
What I've Done
What I Am

They're quite good, if the feedback I've gotten is anything to go by, so if you haven't read these by now, please go and do that now. Don't worry, this story will still be here when you get back...

This story is a sequel to What I Am

With the invasion repelled, and both planets in the process of rebuilding, there has come a moment for our heroes to stop and take a breather, and reflect upon the events that have led them to this point, and to investigate the nearly forgotten fragments of the past. One such fragment holds secrets that are easily revealed, however, mysteries that have been hidden for centuries behind an ancient tongue, and are finally within the grasp of the Royal Sisters to uncover.

At the special request of the sisters, as well as the curiosity of their new human allies, the last record of the old pony that the sisters had once called teacher are finally translated, and his last words have finally been revealed for all to see.

Yet, their shared history is not a happy one, and even though his story ended on a fair note, a dark shadow loomed over his last remaining years. Starswirl saw many things that others could not, and though he did not live long enough to prevent the tragedies of the future, his warnings still echo from the dust.

These are his writings. The last testament of his life.

Exactly what it says on the tin, this is the account in the book that Celestia showed Alex in What I Am, and ties directly into that story. It is a bit of a spinoff, yes, but it will have importance to the story as a whole, and will be very short (only around 6-7 chapters at most), so it will not be that big of a detour.

Adam Inns has always been a simple man. For him, whiling his days away in a log cabin with a good book and a good view is a life well spent, no matter which planet he inhabits. But one day, after a misunderstanding with a Royal Guard gets Celestia involved, she decides to have a little fun at Adam's expense, and he suddenly finds himself as the proud owner and sovereign of a brand-new country, his to do with as he pleases.

However, the joke slowly finds a life of its own, as the poor and outcast find themselves on Inns' doorstep, with nowhere else to go and little reason to love Equestria. As the new state begins to grow into its own, Adam discovers that the calculus of rulership is not as forgiving as he once thought - and as the Equestrian system shudders under the weight of a thousand years of status quo coming to an abrupt end, his newfound convictions soon put him on a collision course with his friend, Celestia... a course neither may be willing to correct.

Can harmony and friendship really prevail against cold, hard realpolitik?