Paraspritenfänger von Ponyville
Daybreak hadn't even come, but Pinkie Pie was already gearing up for battle.
"Thanks, Lyra."
The mint green mare looked at Pinkie, with a Tin Whistle on hoof. "May the stars be with you, Dame Pinkie!"
The pink mare looked quite grim as she accepted the thing. "Can't help it. I have a date with destiny. Oh! Always wanted to say that at least once..."
The pink Earth Pony gestured a check mark into the air. "Check."
Lyra looked at Pinkie's adornment. She was fully laden with instruments, and there was no space left to pack any additional provision on her. Seeing her off was a bit odd, but the Lyrist felt that she should at least do that much for the mare.
"Do you not want my company?"
The pink Earth Pony placed a hoof on the Unicorn's shoulder. "Warn the others. Save what cupcakes and candies that you can find. I'll have to buy some expensive time... "
The bard's heart was swelling with emotions. Who knew that the baker would be the thin pink line against the fury of the adorable swarm? Nopony had any clue of what was to come (not even her.) The pink one was the wiser among the fools...
Lyra swallowed hard. She too, had a mission.
The first task that I must do is to secure the carrots and what other crop I can find. My objective: to seal off the food supply as to prevent anypony or any bug direct access. The great hunger is already here, so such radical measures are called for.
The secondary objective was the Sweet Apple Acres, where I must salvage what apple I can from the trees. The crop that were stored in the silos should be safe, but there was little hope for what remains out on the fields.
More importantly however, Bonnie's bon bons must survive this swarm. If I cannot save all of Ponyville, I should at least save my love. I will pilfer the Sugarcube Corner if it came down to it.
Pinkie Pie stared beyond the horizon, as the one-pony band braced itself for the coming onslaught.
A bit of a light touch was needed. "Nice internal monologue, Lyra! Sounds like serious business!"
Pinkie however had to turn back to the task on hoof. "It's time to kick flanks and chew bubble gum... and I'm all out of bubble gum..."
Lyra, having already made peace with her own stomach, rode out with Pinkie Pie into the sunlight wordlessly. Her lips curled a little while heading out of the house.
A loud, consistent buzzing sound had dragged Octavia from her sleep to the land of the living.
"What was that infernal buzzing..." The mare spoke to herself.
The Cellist suddenly jotted herself to attention, as her mind sprang into action. She quickly went for the crate, and only to find that the glass jar has been packed to the brim with Parasprites. Given that there were ample space within the container during last night, the only possible explanation was that the Parasprites were growing in alarming number.
Octavia was breaking out in cold sweat. A deep sense of fear and dread took hold.
What is this thing? Why are they dividing so quickly? This isn't right.
The Element of Honesty was very scared. These furry bugs would not stop multiplying, and it looked as if they were hungry. Octavia did not know if they were carnivorous, herbivorous or omnivorous... frankly, any one of the three could spell disaster.
After an eternity, the gray mare sealed the crate with a roll of tape that she had on hoof, and she quickly had the thing placed on a wheelbarrow. This cargo must leave her home.
Octavia moved as fast as she could muster, while towing the wheelbarrow. She had to visit Zecora, and dump this crate into the depths of the Everfree.
Octavia caught sight of Lyra, who was towing a wagon at the crack of dawn. It was a most peculiar of sight, but Octavia had no time to make inquiry or to stop for idle chitchats. Both Elements hurried off and went their separate ways, without acknowledging one another.
The gray mare was praying to what powers that be to make certain that the glass container and the crate would somehow hold out.
The jar should be the most difficult to penetrate. Should the inner containment layer fail, the shrapnel may wound the Parasprites while the hay bedding would hopefully absorb the kinetic energy of the explosion.
It's not a pleasant thing to think of, but Octavia wasn't one to be blindly optimistic about anything in life.
Octavia went past the Sweet Apple Acres, and caught sight of Applejack and Big Macintosh working the fields. She did not pause to greet the two, and the farmers were baffled by the mare's action. Not many ponies would haul cargo into the Everfree at the crack of dawn, especially not noble musicians such as Octavia.
The entrance of the Everfree was every bit as foreboding as it were when Octavia had tread into the woods that last time. She found it almost ironic that the Everfree was the to-go place in contingencies, when it itself was daunting and outright dangerous. This unworldly place made Octavia forget about the Parasprites, if only momentarily.
Octavia was thinking back to WAB 107, Symphony No.7 in E major, third movement (in fast tempo). This was the Scherzo that the Griffon Redlich be put as “music of a nostalgia for the lost golden age.”
In retrospect, the Reign of the Alicorn Sisters was a golden age of sorts, and an age of heroics at that. Lyra did say that they triumphed over Tirak and Grogar, and they did establish the first capital of Equestria. Come to think of it, if it weren't for their fall to evil, Princess Cadance would have never been. That's a selfish thing for me to say, isn't it? I can never say that to The Princess...
The stars must have burned as the pony sisters tore apart the lands and everything in it... two titans that wanted to shape destiny with their hooves.
To think that the Elements of Harmony would be in this of all places... it marked the end of the Alicorn Sisters' era, and the end of this thousand-year long exile to the Sun and the Moon. But is it right to consider Princess Cadance's reign as an interregnum? I can't agree with it, but that's something a pony or two will mention of...
What does the end of this thousand-year lull mean? Did that history end, and the legend began anew?
The lush and overarching nature of the piece did the larger-than-life Everfree justice. The Earth Pony really felt that the magic of this place “gazes longingly beyond the confines of this pastoral world” as it were. Octavia did not really pay heed to the vegetation, as her thoughts were of that fateful day a scent few months ago.
The Earth Pony's own analysis came to a standstill when she reached the signpost that Zecora had painstakingly erected. Zebra's cottage would be near.
"Time to get rid of you bunch."
The Earth Pony pushed the crate out of the wheelbarrow, and she found the Zebra by her side all of a sudden.
"Miss Octavia, what a pleasure, although this here is no leisure."
The Earth Pony quickly greeted the Zebra. "Zecora! Thank the stars. Do you know anything about these Parasprites? They've been endlessly dividing in Ponyville for the last day, and they continue to do so."
The Cellist did not open the crate, but there was little need to do so.
"So you've known of Parasprites, rivals of locusts. Their smiles leave only doom and gloom. They continue to consume; a contagion that plagues a region."
The Cellist narrowed her eyes upon the crate. "They went from one single Parasprite to... so you're saying that they are smiling, fluffy locusts?"
The Zebra gave a very heavy nod. "Precisely, and adversely so."
Octavia placed her left hoof against her face.
"Why this... augh..."
The crate and its contents were forgotten by the despondent Earth Pony.
"Zecora... what should I do...?"
The Zebra looked with heavy remorse.
"Their blight spell disaster. One must rid of the monster."
"But how?"
"I do not know. I wish I do."
Octavia stared at the abandoned crate for a brief second. What to do about a swarm of locusts?
The Cellist then turned around to the direction of Ponyville. Her heart was not on the concert anymore.
Octavia saw Pinkie Pie in rehearsal. Why did she practice when she had no part on the stage was beyond her, but the Cellist had no time to bother the baker about it. She forgot about Medley's plight even, as the spectre of the Parasprites loom over the sky above Ponyville.
The pink mare was left alone in peace while the Cellist went on in full gallop.
Oh yes! The Canterlot Symphony Orchestra! They're arriving!
The mare winced at the thought. She had to get to the amphitheatre posthaste.
Her trek was hectic. After putting her wheelbarrow down at her house, she sprinted towards the amphitheatre, where Vinyl Scratch was surveying the bleachers.
A light yellow Pegasus with Orchard mane came to Vinyl's side to report on the weather. Parasol guaranteed to Vinyl that there would be no rainfall on Ponyville, which gave the Deejay much relief.
"Vinyl! Thank goodness that the Canterlot Symphony Orchestra haven't arrived. I have a very dire news to tell you about."
Vinyl Scratch's cerise eyes were reddened from exhaustion. She clearly had not gone to sleep.
"Sup ' Tavi! Whacha mean dire?"
The gray mare's eyes, also reddened from her stress, gleamed with heavy anxiety.
"You have to listen to me. Those Parasprites are..."
"What are you doing, Lyra!?" A piercing shout had interrupted Octavia.
Vinyl could not pay Octavia any heed as she witnessed Lyra towing a whole wagon full of carrots, cabbage and other goods, while ponies and Parasprites chase after the bard in a rowdy ruckus. The whole pursuit was quite farcical, with Lyra tripping every now and then while she toppled a barrel or a crate to keep the vendors off of her tail.
The mint green unicorn cried forth. "I am here to save you all from this plague! There is nothing to fear but fear itself!"
It was then that Octavia had realized what Lyra was doing; saving what provision that can be spared was one of the most sensible decisions that could be taken in this doomsday waiting to happen.
"She's with me! I'll pay for the entire lot! Vinyl, please tell the Concertmaster that the treble would have a bit of a gain, and please handle the rest. I'll take care of Lyra."
The cobolt blue and cyan toned mane of the Unicorn fluttered about. "Sounds good, Tavi."
Octavia dashed at Lyra, as the mint green Unicorn deposited the goods over Bon Bon's house. Octavia had bits at the ready to pay off the expense, although the process was chaotic at best.
"Please, I want you to lock your food away. Seal off the larders, put what you can to storage. You have to trust me."
The Earth Pony repeated the refrain to each and every vendor, leaving them all very perplexed by the sudden request. One colt tried to come up with a rational explanation while the Parasprites were making quick work of the cabbages, daffodils and the odd carrots on the ground.
"Something to do with Princess Cadance and the Canterlot band, Miss Octavia? They need more food for a longer stay or somethin'?"
Octavia had decided that she would not argue about this for the time being. "We may need the additional provision." That was enough to appease the vendors.
The bard shot Octavia a look of appreciation, as she climbed to Bon Bon's kitchen. With how the vendor ponies have acted, it was not ideal to go to the Apples... saving Bonnie's bon bons should take priority.
The Canterlot Symphony Orchestra came to the quaint little Ponyville central station by quarter to ten, earlier than HRH Princess Cadance. They took up the entire train, being a hundred strong in number just by themselves.
Pageturner was checking with the details of the item manifest. She hadn't been back to Ponyville following the events of the Vernal Equinox Festival. This concert was actually a way to redress the disruptions on that historic day, and showing that life was back to normal in Equestria.
Six new heroes were forged that day, while the whole of Equestria was left with the realities of having its past reeling its head in the form of two ancient Alicorn princesses next to the enlightened monarch of the realm.
Pageturner did not look forward to this trip. She tried to come up with excuses so as to avoid having to deal with the unpleasantries of greeting the Elements of Harmony (especially not Octavia.) It was impossible to not be bombarded about them, and Pageturner was tired of having been pried under the microscope by members of the court on the Elements (Octavia,) no matter where she turned to.
Pageturner was somewhat bitter about the gray mare. Several years of trying to make her into a friend had yielded nothing but frustration, and now she was suddenly seen as the closest pony to the elusive Cellist-heroine of Equestria (after having left the mare to her fate.) This world was quite cruel indeed!
Ponyville. Well here I am. Do your worst!
The one-time assistant to Octavia declared mentally.
Tönen Bewegt, the Unicorn Clarinetist that hailed from Griffonia (unusual at that,) had taken stock of how that the pony wasn't quite herself.
"Ahh, Fräulein Pageturner, you don't look as if you much cared to be here, ja?"
"Oh! Mr. Bewegt, sorry about that." The assistant had to adjust her mood on the fly. "It's just some slight personal issues. Nothing really important."
The Clarinetist craned his neck around the pony. "I would be most worried if a player in my section was brooding over something. This is the moment of the performance. There is no room to have doubts, you see."
The young pony nodded hesitantly at the dignified. accomplished Griffon before her. The enigmatic expression was a bit frustration for Pageturner to behold.
"Give the girl a break, would ya?"
The Bassoonist, named Andante Cordiale, poked at her fellow Unicorn in jest.
The first Clarinetist grumbled a little. "I mean the Fräulein no trouble, Frau Andante."
The Bassoonist was rather amused. "My my, flattery again? That does go places with me, but let the little miss handle her own affairs!"
The Principal Clarinetist relented, as he bowed to Pageturner.
"Well them Fräulein, I bid you well. May your troubles find some resolution, ja?"
The Bassoonist shook her head with a curt smile on her face, as she waved at the sight of Pageturner.
The Concertmaster was at the amphitheatre. Dolce Tempo was looking at the open-air venue before the rest of the orchestra would come in. They had to tune up before the performance, and it fell upon the Concertmaster to greet the public (and the Elements of Harmony, being the guests of honor) while directing the entire string section. The string is the mainstay of any Symphony Orchestra, so the technical overnight of the section cannot be understated in its importance.
"Hi there! Name's Vinyl Scratch! I am in charge of setting up the sound n' stuff over this stage.
The mare with a turquoise coat spoke. "Miss Vinyl! You're the Element of Magic, and a Deejay by trade if I am not mistaken..."
The Deejay looked a little surprised. "Guess news travel fast. Hope that I get more gigs with my name getting thrown around."
The Violinist looked at the stage, and Vinyl had decided to speak up and start with the explanation.
"Going straight to the chase, I won't be using filters here, but I will be putting up a +1.4dB gain on everything 440Hz and up. I'll be thinking in musical Octaves here. A3 is where I start though, going from 200Hz-2KHz. I won't be cutting off anything, there's minimal EQ, so what you see is what you get. I will go for a smooth transition here. My spells can pull this off. Let me know what you want to do about the C7 and above..."
The mare was pleasantly surprised.
"We are doing what we can to muffle the sounds from the bleacher. Ponyville folks are not urbanites, so you're gonna have to live with a more jittery crowd. Princess Cadance will be sitting in a box made of cloud. She'll be the closest to you all."
"My my. My impression of you is quite different of what is expected of typical disc jockeys."
The soft spoken Concertmaster did not give the Element of Magic any room to raise a question. "You are a virtual unknown in the orchestral circles. Just your presentation here is worth instigating, but your actual status... Miss Vinyl, there will be many eyes upon you, today and in the foreseeable future, if I may be so frank."
The creamy white mare was equally surprised by the Concertmaster. She didn't expect to encounter such a direct individual that would speak without reservation.
"Heh. If that's it takes to get my name around... thanks, I guess."
The slightly enigmatic Concertmaster looked about. "I am a bit surprised that Miss Octavia Philharmonica is not here with you! Is she..."
Vinyl looked on at the town before her. "Tavi' had some urgent work to do with Lyra. About provisions and such."
The Amethyst eyes of the Principal Violinist had an air of revelation on her face. "Miss Octavia clearly has more duties than what the ponies in Canterlot would assume! Did she work closely with you on the staging and so forth?"
Vinyl Scratch had a smirk. "She worried too much. Tavi' was absolutely anal about the concert pitch, roll-offs and almost anything that might come between you and this show. She really has a thing for this orchestra. Guess it's kind of a given..."
The veteran musician returned with a slight smile. "Miss Octavia does not lack in mechanics and music theory, but that's a discussion for another day. I think I can begin the sectional right away, if you wouldn't mind getting to work right away, Miss Vinyl."
The Unicorn couldn't agree more. "Then let's get to it! Tavi' will come back once she settles Lyra's problem, whatever it is. I don't think she'd want to miss the chance to see you work up close."
Octavia had burned through two-hundred bits for all the provisions that the vendors were selling. All of them were taken into Bon Bon's house and stored over the larder.
The last of the Parasprites were banished from Bon Bon's house, and the two Element Bearers were adamant about not allowing even a single bug into the house. One would assume that Bon Bon was getting her dwelling fumigated from the appearance of the quarantine area alone.
Bon Bon's house was under barricade, and her entire stock of candies had been bought out before she even had a chance to sell them. This made the confectioner feel terribly frustrated, but neither Octavia or Lyra had the time to hear of her grievances.
"Fair Octavia, I must now seek out Miss Fluttershy, lest she be overcome by the swarm..."
Octavia was impatient. "Let's go!" There was little time to waste. The two galloped to Fluttershy's cottage from the now inaccessible house at full speed.
They can see ponies of all walks of life going about with their daily works against this familiar backdrop, but the sensation that both mare had were miles away from the tranquil mental scenery a day ago. Octavia and Lyra were both ensnared by the thought of dread, and neither of them had the heart to partake in the festivities that were all around them.
The sound of birds and the buzzing noise of Parasprites became ever so clearer as the two mares closed in on the Pegasus's cottage by the edge of the Everfree Forest.
The droning noise of the Parasprites were matched with the vocals of Fluttershy's avian choir. Both Lyra and Octavia were at a loss as to why Fluttershy was rehearsing with her section in the midst of the Parasprite swarm.
Fluttershy was near the brink of exhaustion, while a bird from her choir was engaged in a solo performance of the Turkish March. In front of her was the densely populated cloud of pastel-colored Parasprites, that seemed to vibrate with the bird's beats.
"Fluttershy!"
The swarm was unleashed the moment that Octavia broke the buttermilk Pegasus's concentration. The poor Pegasus was trembling from her station, while she crouched down on all fours.
Fluttershy shouted to Lyra with all of her limited might. "Oh no..." Her eyes gazed skyward.
The skies were blacked out by the blanket of Parasprites.
"Fluttershy! Were you fighting these pests all by yourself?"
Lyra knelt down to the damsel in distress.
"I..." Fluttershy had managed to recovered sufficiently to talk to her comrades. "I found out something..."
The two mares listened attentively to the words of the pink-mane Pegasus.
"The Parasprites... they... 'move' with music, I think... just a bit... "
The Pegasus was struggling to keep her focus.
"They... stop... when the birds sing..."
Octavia was getting desperate. "Fluttershy, what do they stop doing!? Dividing, rampaging, eating..."
Fluttershy was barely able to get her words out. "They... stop dividing... start to... stay..."
The exhaustion had finally overtaken the Pegasus. Fluttershy was asleep in Lyra's embrace.
The Cellist was stunned in utter disbelief. "That is absurd!"
Lyra softly stroke the Pegasus's mane as she lifted Fluttershy onto her back. "Fluttershy must have been battling these Parasprites with the birds throughout the night." The Unicorn had a bit of a sniffle at the thought of the gentle Pegasus having to fight this swarm without anypony by her side.
"Music... music... MUSIC!"
It dawned upon Octavia that the concert at Ponyville may be the one thing that might buy the town some time. If Fluttershy's birds were able to keep the Parasprite's sate quenched for a time, then perhaps the Canterlot Symphony Orchestra can do the same.
"Lyra, I must return to the amphitheatre. That show must go on."
The Unicorn nodded solemnly over Fluttershy's ransacked cottage, as she saw Octavia off.
Rarity was screaming bloody murder in her store.
The endlessly dividing Parasprites had consumed every scrap of food that Rarity had, and they kept pestering her as they cuddled the fashionista against her will.
"Save me! Save from these terrible blight! Somepony save me!"
The alabaster Unicorn had a poker in her telekinetic grip, but it did nothing for her. She was completely surrounded by the insect, with no way of dislodging her store of the pests.
"Rarity! Look! I am flying!" Sweetie Belle (really a flying swarm of Parasprites) called out to her older sister.
"You let go of my little Sweetie right now! Such abominations!"
"This is so much fun! Weeee!" The ball of Parasprites did not share the same feeling that the alabaster Unicorn had.
"Oh, won't somepony please save us!"
It was then that a pink mare had broke through one of the windowpanes to reach Rarity.
"Property damage! This is Pinkie Pie, Equestrian. Time to fight our way out of Parasprite hell, with my bare hooves!" The pink mare declared, to the confusion of Rarity.
"Pinkie Pie..." It was then that the pink mare broke into an impromptu Polka, as the mare promptly made her way out the front door of the boutique, while leading the Parasprites out of the besieged establishment.
Rarity watched in awe as the ball of Parasprites (Sweetie Belle) traveled with the passages of the polka, with these Parasprites being synchronized to the beat of the polka. This Paraspritenfänger von Ponyville (Pied Piper of Ponyville ) had worked her magic, as the Parasprites were of her solitary command.
Rarity followed Pinkie Pie as she broke into houses in order to lure the Parasprites into the open. The dressmaker felt that she had to help Pinkie by asking the townsfolk to open their doors and let Pinkie work her magic, but this was to little avail as the pink pony continued her trail of broken glass across town.
The biomass that was following Pinkie Pie had blotted out the sun. Numerous ponies had to halt their daily activities as they watched the spectacle, while being greeted with insect stragglers that had fall out of the formation.
Princess Cadance had arrived in her own chariot from Canterlot.
Celestia and Luna were asked if they would like to visit, but the two of them felt that it was too early for them to make an appearance. They were keen to apologize to the citizens of Ponyville, but they felt that a few more months were needed.
Cadance was aware of Pageturner's animosity towards Octavia, and she would rather see the two reconcile. Octavia did need a confidant, and to have Pageturner being stuck in Canterlot was not particularly good for either one of them; gossips were too frequent, and too counterproductive for the longtime assistant of Octavia.
These matters had evaporated from Cadance's mind however, when a little bug found its way to Cadance's side.
"Hello, little ball of fluff! How are you?" She was met by a brown Parasprite in mid-air.
*Bwee.* The Parasprite chirped to the sovereign of the land.
"You're adorable! Won't you accompany me for today's event?"
The Parasprite had rested itself over the mane of the Alicorn, as it nuzzled Cadance warmly.
"I see that the town is in full vigor. That's quite the relief."
The chariot was allowing the Princess a bird's eye view of Ponyville. The pastel colored mass that was close to the town center felt as if it were a great crowd of ponies.
"I had no idea that this event would be so well attended! That should give the orchestra some added pressure! They should have expected that the ponies love them to this extent in the first place!"
The chipper Princess continued to make observations as the chariot made its descent.
"I can hear music already! Looks like the residents weren't about to let the orchestra have all the fun to themselves!"
"Take us down to the amphitheatre. I wish to be there before the concert begins."
The guards nodded in silence, as they turned the chariot around toward the open-air venue. The velvet seating were quite evident from the vantage point of the chariot, and the stage was already occupied with the musicians.
The Canterlot Symphony Orchestra was sitting in full, with all the members present and accounted for.
The Princess was prepared to greet the Conductor and the Principal Violinist. The Elements were scheduled to be present by the end of the concert, so there was no rush to have them all there. Cadance had no doubt however, that Octavia would have been in attendance well in advance of the start of the concert.
Just as Cadance thought of Octavia, the Cellist and the Deejay came into view. It was then that Cadance took flight on her own, in order to greet her student personally.
Octavia had made it to the amphitheatre, which was already starting to fill with ponies. The Cellist can already see the Conductor taking his position while the whole of the Symphony Orchestra had completed their tuning rounds.
She needed to talk to Vinyl, and fast.
Finding the creamy white mare with her signature shades was not too difficult. Octavia was able to spot the Deejay by the side of the pit in about a minute of time.
The mare practically jumped into the pit as she called out to her fellow Element bearer. "Vinyl! You have to listen to me! This..."
"Whoa, Tavi'! No need to jump me like that!" The Deejay braced herself as the pony missile in gray made landfall over where the Deejay stood.
It was then that the gray mare's face had faulted. She noticed that there were Parasprites that had been kept in cages in the confines of the bleachers for some inexplicable reason.
"What... is this..." The gray mare was frozen in sheer terror.
"Oh Tavi! I forgot to tell you that the Concertmaster lady wanted to congratulate you on telling me about how her band tunes itself. And I see that you've noticed of our little trump card here..."
Vinyl Scratch had a toothy grin, as she had helped the gray up to stand. The mare was frozen solid however.
Things had worsen for the Cellist as The Princess had arrived. "Octavia, Vinyl Scratch! How are you two doing?" The greeting of Cadance came from two stories above the two mares.
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This was hilarious! I was laughing from "Dame Pinkie" onwards, pretty much. Lyra and Pinkie make a great team, don't they?
Minor Crit: There were a couple of points where words needed to be plural when they were single; I'm on my phone so I can't quote any at the moment. Also maybe it's just my phone, but it seemed like characters' thoughts weren't italicized or otherwise differentiated from the other narration, which was kind of confusing.
But other than that little stuff, this chapter made me super-excited to see how this whole situation plays out. :)
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Correcting formatting error right now. Been trying some new things, such as using *.png for the line break and such. Thanks for the heads-up!
Enjoyed the Lyra and Pinkie scene. They bounce off each other in a delightfully fun way, and Lyra's internal monologue is neat.
I like Tavi's scene, although I didn't think SAA was near the Everfree -- as I recall, it's on the other side of town from Flutter's, which is in fact bordering the 'Free.
Tavi never went to Zecora's cottage yet, so I suppose there will be another story between Music of Ponyville and this one detailing that adventure. Maybe she goes with Lyra to pick up the reward Zecora promised her. :-)
I like how Tavi took charge to help save the town's food source.
I'm... not opposed to Pageturner showing up, and I think you got her personality correctly, but I'm a little leery if this fic does reconcile them, mostly because I think it'd be best if her somewhat acrimonious relationship with Octavia continued for a while. I think there could be some good plots down the road dealing with that. (Then again, maybe she's just here to watch the musical Elements save the day again and have to deal with Tavi once again being praised. :-) ).
The interaction between Vinyl and the orchestra is really nice. I love scenes with professionals discussing their craft. :-) Also enjoyed Fluttershy and her one-mare battle against the parasprites all night. Staying up all night to save the town is a very Flutter-y thing to do.
Cadance seems a little... I don't know. Out of it? I'd think she'd be more familiar with parasprites; but she seems really clueless and naive here. Her rationale for including Pageturner doesn't make much sense either; Pageturner worked with Octavia not because Tavi really needed an assistant (indeed, she mostly ended up ignoring Pageturner) but because Tavi needed friends. Tavi does have friends now, so Pageturner could presumably go work for a pony whom she doesn't dislike.
Overall, really liked this chapter!
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It's too early for reconciliation to happen. I just have in mind that Cadance's quite perceptive and she would've been keen to set things up to make relationship better when possible... I will make a bit correction about Pageturner.
I didn't think that Cadance would've known of the parasprites if main!Celestia didn't, even with more than 1000 years of being in charge. She really was written to be so clueless about the whole thing that it's almost unbelievable. I think I will have to do a bit of retouching over this.
Yep, Pinkie and Lyra an Epic team made in heaven.
Did the little note sections separating the scene's actually mean anything or were they just to look good?
With the Fluttershy scheme I did wonder if their might have been another way they could be used to stop the Parasprite, as an entomologist by training I though there was going to be some biological control going on there with the birds eating the sprite's given their reproductive rate they must be highly r selected so something probably eats them in huge numbers.
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Well, dumping it to the ecosystem of the Everfree? Birds can't handle a locust swarm while in the midst of it... I suppose. Pesticide spell isn't exactly what Flutters could pull off...
2843823
True, although they might handle a small out break out under Fluttershy's control,
"Fly my pretties! Eat them all! Feed them to your chicks so they grow up big and strong!"
(Cue mad cackle from the Grand Galloping Gala)
Although eating all the antagonists wouldn't be a very mlp way of dealing with the problem.
People keep writing stories about me wtf
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Cause there's multiple instances of you, Parasprite.
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THERE IS ONLY ONE
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The king is dead;
long live the king.
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Ah, darn my backlog of fics to get through! *Shakes fist at heavens. Heavens smirks down* Anyway, awesome. It's like a runaway train here.
And like GrassandClouds said, it's cool to see Pageturner... but yeah. Reconciliation is way too early for them. So, cool on that for you.
next chapter ?
A parasprite in Cadence's mane? oh dear...
Famous last words?
I think Friendship is Witchcraft did it better.
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In all fairness, Celestia seemed ignorant of the existence of parasprites as well.
Will there be a continuation, or is this fic dead?