This story is a sequel to Ghosts of Whitetail Wood
This story begins a few weeks before the events of Ghosts of Whitetail Wood and continues forward past the ending of that story. Celestia is confronted with the fact that her faithful student has managed to break the fundamental laws of the universe. If left uncorrected, there's a good chance that the universe itself may unravel. The obvious answer is to kill Twilight Sparkle and all of creation is conspiring to eliminate her as a threat. Celestia has other ideas.
Chapters (5)
Dark and Comedy... I look forward to seeing how you manage that xD
2656579 - I expect rather well... The other two of the series were rife with some subtle comedy, both dark and traditional. I expect this to be much the same, given the chapter and Celestia's rather awkward situation of dealing with a TwixLuna. Plus... Discord will be involved soon enough, and that always brings out the crazy.
2656579
Dark: Twilight breaking all of reality by continuing to exist
Funny: Everything else.
Did I fail?
2656887
Haven't read it yet :P So I don't know.
Brilliant as always. Loved it. Can't wait to see how this story develops
Celestia's reasoning seems flawed. I'd say Luna is every bit as bad of option to talk to as Cadence, I mean Luna is dating Twilight(and more!). Grogar may usually be an unhelpful jerk but he A.) The most likely to be able to hold a rational, unemotional discussion on the topic. B.) He owes Twilight a debt C.) He has at least a small interest in her being alive because he's supposed to be dead at this point, without Twilight in the picture who knows if the fates would decide he still needed to die to restore order.
2657245
I actually agree. Celestia is totally biased when it comes to her sister. Secondarily, she hadn't quite put together how tight Twi and Luna have gotten.
Side note, were Ponzi's missing words easy enough to fill in?
no romance? a shame.
Oh God, poor Celestia. She never realized Luna and her student were... involved.
2657326
This is going to be more of a Celestia story than a TwiLuna story. While we'll get to see the best and second-best pony dating, the real focus of the story is going to be Celestia's journey.
2657348
It's one thing to know that they're dating. Its another thing altogether to have their more intimate moments rubbed in your face.
I wonder if AJ and AB are going to have that talk that was promised in the last story and are we going to be treated and pass as flies on the wall.....
Hello again Biochi, glad to see another story up. I know on the last one I kinda left a somewhat... harsh constructive criticism on, but glad to see you moving forward, no matter how I came across then.
It is something different, changing the point of perspective for the focus of the story, that's one thing that I'll be looking forward to when I start reading. I'll most likely wait till there's more before I take a deeper look at what ya got.
Well, I'll be reading this in a few, again, good to see more from ya.
When I saw the title, I thought this would be a parody of Apotheosis :l
2657428
Not directly, but I am poking holes in the "Twilight ascends to godhood" tropes.
My face hurts a little bit now from smiling so much while reading this. Loved the comedy. Also liked that little part talking about Sombra and Erebus.
Looking forward to more.
You... Actually managed both Dark and Comedy xD
I'm interested in seeing what Celestia is going to do about the demand for Twilight's death.
So she will be speaking of it again?
Next, you left in some editors notes at the end it looks like. Might want to remove them asap, as they look quite tacky.
Finally, as to the story itself? If someone was meant to be dead, they would be dead. If they weren't meant to be dead, then they wouldn't be dead. Simple as that. In real life, if something happens that isn't possible by the current model, it doesn't mean that it shouldn't be possible; It means the model is wrong!
(Yes I know about genre conventions, but that would be the more hilarious way to end the story: "Your math is wrong you nitwits.")
2657553
Holy Crap! I didn't see those there. Ok, they're gone now and thanks a ton for letting me know about them.
Regarding death/destiny. Yeah, it is a pretty weird metaphysics from a modern perspective. Have you ever watched BronyCurious' "On Destiny" analysis?
Oh boy, I was looking forward to this. And you just made my day by delivering
I had a bit of trouble, but I got the gist of it.
For extra fun, ignore the implied German, and read all if Luna's receptionist's lines in the voice of Mickey from Snatch.
2657848
Honestly, that's kinda what I was going for. ("nicht" actually came from an English to indecipherable Scottish dictionary I found online.)
2657564
Haven't watched it, and in all honesty, the name makes me want to watch it less :V
However, as to FIM's whole time/destiny thing... Using events from the various episodes, I could argue that this picture shows another setting that shares similar mechanics:
fc03.deviantart.net/fs70/i/2013/099/b/e/trans_dimensional_travelers__bioshock_spoilers__by_mel_the_shadow_lover-d612cq1.jpg
Both settings have time travel. People from both series suffer adverse effects when reality is shifting around as their selves fight the changes. Both settings allow, with effort, changing destiny/fighting fate. Both have flying cloud cities :V
...And a Pinkie x Lutece-twins friendship would be the best thing ever.
2658048
I laughed way too hard at that picture. I think you broke my ribs.
I needed that. Thanks.
2657381
We get to see Fluttershy and Rarity dating? Awesome!
At the same time we get to see Celestia's dissent into total madness. That's.....not awesome at all. However, given the quality of all your work so far, I am very much intrigued to see. No doubt it will be superbly choreographed.
Sounds like Celestia is having a real case of the sads right at the end there
You would think that Celestia would be able to hypothesize a few rhymes for 'heather'. Although dealing with the world's only incompetent zebra poet probably threw her off.
2657381
I lol'ed so hard. So much for using Luna as a soundboard to bounce ideas other than killing her girlfriend to fix the universe.
Yay, welcome back Titanoverse.
But since this is like a mix of a sequel and a sidequel, I have some questions:
So this will follow Celestia until that part where she traps Luna, and go forward beyond Discord's release? That would really answer some questions about why she acted the way she did.
Will we ever see Luna trying some Dulse?
2660344
Thanks!
Yep and Yep
Perhaps.
You know, that bit at the end there had me laughing. Then I was sad again when I remembered it was too good to last.
Definitely looking forward to more!
well I'll be. Another story with my profile picture as its cover picture. Here's hoping this one's as good as the last.
2663779
Can't help if we both have good taste.
Did you draw it?
i love celestia's attitude!
okay, im beginning to understand celestia's desperation a bit.
celestia's conversation with what's-his-name (coffe machine guy) was priceless!
awwwwww
Sweet tap-dancing Celestia, that new cover image is hardcore.
Celestia and drink. For some strange reason, I'm quite intrigued with the idea of an alcoholic Celestia.
2657564
I've always had problems with the weaving, knitting, or braiding metaphors for fate/destiny/life. For example, cutting a thread creates two ends; the end of the thread already embedded in the web of fate, and the "loose" end. What becomes of the loose end, and where did it come from in the first place? Are there others who can act upon the web from the outside in a fashion similar to the Fates? Who holds the threads of the Fates themselves, and what happens if one of those is cut?
When Twilight resurrected herself, it sounds like she either "jumped the gap" to the loose end of her thread or repurposed a new one, or is now acting upon the web of fate from the outside like the Fates—either case being something the Fates never planned for. So here's the question; are alicorns a part of the web of fate, or outside of it? Gods, like Grogar and Erebus, seem to be a part of it—by the Fates' own admission—so where does that place the alicorns?
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Just as soon as Knight mentioned that the old one was his profile pic, the new one popped up on Derpibooru. Kismet I say.
2669821
Very good questions. In Greek myth the fates ruled over everyone, gods and man. As for themselves, I don't know if that's ever addressed but in related/derived mythos the role of Fate(s) is that of a passive, almost mechanical, character. As for the cut thread producing two: eh, inexact metaphor. What I'm having fun thinking about is Twilight's rogue element status of neither god nor mortal. Gods have one set of rules, mortals another, and she's constrained by neither right now. To re-purpose your verbiage, (spoiler text follows) she's actually in the gap right now and the whole ascension gambit is about getting her to the other side of the gap.
2670038
As a Bluth might say, "Well, that was a freebie."
media.tumblr.com/tumblr_mbvmbhHmXD1rscqtf.gif
Gota love the decision she's forced, kill her daughter, her love, or ... well something, or let the world die.
And... by killing said daughter/love/significant pony, she herself may never be able to continue, which might well let the world die as well.
Very interesting.
Ow. That must hurt. Celestia's dilemma is like the conflict of loyalties Discord gave Rainbow Dash, but a million times worse. This definitely shows the beginnings of Celestia's fall to madness in Ghosts.
Still waiting for the moment when it is revealed that Grogar knew about Twilight's lack of destiny and planned ahead for it.
She is technically a lich now, ain't she?
............That moment does exist, right?
Gar, we need a grogar emote.
My god, Celestia's sanity slippage. I had been wondering about what it was like when the last chapter of Ghost's, and I'll admit I've been knocked off my feet by how heart breaking and yet morbidly fascinating watching Celestia slowly go mad is. I'm looking forward to the next chapter.
2692368 - Not really a liche, I mean... she came back to life. Liches are undead still, even if of a higher order, sentient and magically powerful.
The problem here is... we know what happens up until Celestia stones Luna. At least from the Twilight/Luna perspective, thus most of the conflict is how do you say... an illusion. It's part of the problem with doing a time-offset perspective shift. All were really going to be left with is Celestia/Discord's part, and maybe a little bit of Grogar, and whatever other gods want to step up. I wonder if Cadence will be consulted?
I guess I am different from everyone else ...
I did not get the feeling of madness from Celestia at the end of Ghosts.
Just Desperation.
Now we know why Celestia was so worried about Twilight dying. She was not worried about some vague nebulous death in 50 or 100 years. Celestia was worried that the fates would kill her in the Here and Now.
Judging by Ghosts, Celestia never told Luna why she was so worried. I do not know if I can imagine what Luna would do if she Had been told what the Fates were trying to do to Twilight ... nothing good in any event ...
luna's path to becoming NMM and celestia's path to becoming solar flare(?) are strikingly similar if i remember correctly:
luna stopped eating a time before she became NMM as well
celestia took over for luna in the night-court for a time before she became NMM
great chapter! i have to say: this is probably the best writing i have seen from you so far, not in content mind you, you've always been good at that, rather i feel like this is the most technically good writing so far. looking forward to more!
2692837
Not different from everyone
2692568
I did worry about that a bit, at least for the first half of Apoptosis. However, I really feel that Celestia never really had a chance to tell her story in Ghosts (my fault, but...). I'm enjoying writing Celestia in these scenes. For me god-tier characters are only interesting if they have (at minimum) mortal-scale foibles. I'm imagining some of Cele's torment is something that most parents have to confront. Their little girl grows into a young woman who becomes distant, secretive, and sexually active. Handled poorly it can break a parent's heart. Things are even more muddled for Celestia since her relationship with Twilight isn't as straightforward as with a birth-parent.
Wonderful work as always. I love stories that get into Celestia's head and I think that you write her better than darn near anyone.
2670038
Aha! That explains the disconnect between Twilight and her spiritual appearance & shadow in "Ghosts" and the end of "Titanomachy", and why seemingly only those with second sight (gods, in the case of Celestia and Grogar, or a necromancer, à la Apple Bloom) have seen/noticed/perceived the difference. However, now I'm curious why there's been no mention as yet of Luna noticing this? As goddess of the night, Luna is fanonically associated with shadows as well, plus she's obviously been spending a great deal of time with Twilight since the end of "Titanomachy". Seems to me that Celestia would raise the question—delicately, obliquely—to her at some point.
Twilight did perform that Erebus-ectomy on Luna before she resurrected herself and healed Luna immediately afterward, however, so Luna being alive, free of Erebus, and out of Tartarus is actually the very first consequence of Twilight's current… condition, and probably what initially set off the Moirai's alarm bells. I'm guessing it's rendered her blind to the present state of Twilight's spiritual appearance and shadow?