I can't help it. Somehow I'm drawn to it. Knowing there's a church out there dedicated to worshiping me is just something that I cannot get out of my head. I spent the whole week thinking about it, barely focusing on my day court unless it was something important. My guards did notice that something was off, but to their credit they didn't ask. I think that Captain Blaze knew what was bugging me anyway. I'm kind of transparent like that. I haven't quite gotten a hang of the stoicism and the poker faces that the other two alpha alicorns have.
So there I was, the next Sunday drawn back to my church like a moth to the flame. I was disguised as the pegasus mare Star Shine once more, and actually wearing the cutie mark necklace. I don't know why, really, I guess I would just feel out of place if I wasn't wearing it, but at the same time it would tell Snap Feather that I'm an Antarian, when in reality... heh, I'm the pony they're all worshiping.
So I left Captain Blaze in charge of my court once more, though I was thinking of implementing a rule where I don't have day court on Sundays period, save for major emergencies, and flew down to the church. As before, the churchgoers were filing into the church, while Snap Feather was standing in the doorway, greeting them all with a smile and a hoofshake, and maybe a pat on the head for the foals. I landed near the doors and began filing in with the rest of them.
When I reached the doors, Snap Feather naturally noticed me, and he fixed me with a beaming smile. "Star Shine, you're here!"
I sheepishly smiled and flattened my ears. "Yeah, well, I guess I'm drawn to this place somehow. I wanna keep investigating, you know?"
"Well I think that's wonderful," Snap Feather said as he shook my hoof. "And I notice that you're even wearing the necklace I gave you."
I shrugged. "Yeah, well, I didn't want to seem out of place by not having one. Everypony else has one."
Snap Feather's smile faded and he raised an eyebrow at me. "Indeed?" I nodded and he gave a quiet sigh. "Star Shine, that's not the point of the necklaces. They aren't so that you can fit in; you wear them because they mean something to you personally. I mean I'm glad that you've come back to see more of what we do here, but I don't want you to wear that because you feel you have to otherwise we'll secretly judge you. Wear it because Princess Antares means something to you personally." Snap Feather's fatherly smile returns and he puts a hoof on my shoulder. "We don't judge here. We don't require that you 'fit in,' whatever that means. We're here to be a community in worshiping our glorious Princess Antares. We don't pressure ponies here."
A small smile crossed my face and my ears perked back up. "Well, I appreciate that."
"Think nothing of it," Snap Feather said with a wave of his hoof. "It's your right as a pony to believe what you want. You don't even have to go in if you don't want to."
I shrugged again. "Well, I do want to. Like I said: I want to get a better idea of what this is all about."
"Well then you are welcome here." Snap Feather bowed and pointed inside with a hoof. "Service will begin soon. I hope you enjoy it."
I thanked him and went inside, moving towards the pew that I had occupied the last time in the very back corner of the church. Given that I'm sure Snap Feather wanted everypony to feel involved, even the most obscure of pews was still pretty open. As a matter of fact, I found a family of five already there. I sat down at the very end close to the aisle. The father turned to me when I sat down, a wide smile on his face, and extended a hoof.
"Hello, there. I haven't met you before." I reached out and shook his hoof. "My name is Building Code. I make sure everything is up to snuff around Baltimare architecturally speaking. You are?"
"I'm Star Shine. I'm a scorpionologist."
Building Code raised an eyebrow and tilted his head. "You study scorpions?" He gave an amused scoff. "Well then you are truly blessed to have the mark of our glorious Princess Antares! You study the creature of the Scorpion Princess."
I gave a nervous chuckle and weakly shrugged. "Yeah, I guess I do."
The organ music, which I realized was an organ version of The Number of the Beast, something that I found more than a little weird, stops, and Snap Feather takes his place at the pulpit. "Good morning."
"Good morning," the crowd responded.
"It pleases me to see so many of you here. I see many old faces, and one or two new ones, and to all of you I say welcome. Now let us pray." Snap Feather opened up the book that he brought up to the pulpit with him and bowed his head. "Our heavenly Princess Antares. We thank you for this glorious day and the protection that you give us. We ask that you bless this service and our weeks going forward. We pray for your reign forever, and that you help us follow in your ways. Amen."
"Amen," the ponies chorused.
"Right." Snap Feather turned his head down to the book and flipped a few more pages. "Now, if you could all grab your Liber Sanctus, I want to read a passage from The Book of The Element of Kindness." He cleared his throat. "Chapter four verse three."
I looked around and noticed that most of the ponies were pulling out a blue book of medium thickness with onionskin pages. I heard Building Code clear his throat, and saw that he was holding a Liber Sanctus of his own. He pointed to the back of the pew in front of me and I saw a few spare books on the back. I picked one up and glanced over at Building Code's book to see the page number of The Book of the Element of Kindness. I opened it up and flipped to the correct page, already feeling a little sick to my stomach.
"Now then," Snap Feather began, "is everypony there? Good." He cleared his throat and looked down at the book. "Chapter four verse three. Of all of the relationships that a pony is blessed to have in his or her life, sibling, marriage, parent-to-foal, or friendship, friendship is the greatest of these, as it provides the basis for the rest. We must strive to live by the tenets of friendship if we are to truly blossom and grow. These are kindness, generosity, honesty, laughter, loyalty, and magic. Even ponies who do not possess a horn are bound to the magic of the world, and the magic of friendship flows through us all."
Snap Feather closed the book and looked out into the crowd. "These words give us a wonderful direction for our lives. The Prophets of Princess Antares, the Elements of Harmony, who joined together in friendship to bring our wonderful Princess Antares to us, live by these tenets and are stronger for it. Their friendships are the most powerful in the world. It is those Elements that chose our beloved princess to ascend. The Elements do not choose lightly, and their wielders are surely her prophets."
Heh, yeah, well, I think they'd all have something to say about that.
A prophet in your religion? I guess that's worth some study. Maybe I can come to one of your services to see what that's all about.
A prophet? Me? Nah, Ah'm just a farmer, thank y'all very much.
Aw yeah! That's so cool!
A... what? Oh my... uh... *squeak*
Awesome! We can have prophet parties now!
Indeed? Well, no pressure on me, then! How is a prophet in your religion supposed to behave? Are there ceremonial robes of some sort that I have to wear? Though now that I think on it, it may be a nice increase in business.
Or something like that.
The thought crossed my mind to just... leave. I mean, Snap Feather wouldn't mind, I'm sure, and this was getting uncomfortable for me. Still, I knew it would be rude to just up and go in the middle of the sermon. Besides, if I wanted to know what was being taught about me then I would have to stay for one. Maybe I'd also keep a copy of my holy book to read, just to really get an idea of what this was all about.
Gaaaaahhh, I have a holy book devoted to me. This may sound completely crazy but bubguhfugfbfubu!!
But I digress. Snap Feather is still talking, so I have to pay attention to him.
"Now, there are difficulties in maintaining friendships, but our prophets have dealt with that too, as detailed by Prophet Twilight Sparkle's friendship writings shown in The Book of the Element of Magic." Snap Feather closed the Liber Sanctus and stared out into the crowd, some of whom I noticed were taking notes. "Now, if Princess Antares were here now, what would she say?"
She wouldn't say anything. She'd run around like a chicken with her head cut off and her mind blown, screaming about the pressure you're putting on her. But go ahead, I'd love to hear your perspective on what I'd do.
"Firstly, she might give some sarcastic quip about the nature of strains in friendship. She might then warn us of the dangers of letting strains fester until they shatter that most holy of bonds between ponies." Snap Feather walked out from behind the pulpit and stood in front of it. "But most of all, I think she'd ask us to help those less fortunate than ourselves, which we do in such ways as taking a tithe to donate to both the upkeep of our church and to the causes that our glorious princess champions. We also do so by donating more than just our bits, but our time. Volunteer at the local orphanages, get immersed in Operation: Hearth's Warming Foal when it comes around every year. Be a good pony by helping others. Be kind to the less fortunate, be generous with your time, be honest about your intentions, share the laughter in your hearts, and show loyalty to Princess Antares by living by her words and the words of her prophets. Do all of this, and the innate magic that flows through all ponies will unite us, and we will be the ponies that Princess Antares needs us to be."
Well, I guess I couldn't argue with any of that. Maybe? I guess? I hadn't really thought about how my actions could be turned into theology, but I did have to consider tightening up how I acted around ponies. If my actions were to be taken as sacred and perfect, I could get something across that I didn't really care to, and that would cause all sorts of problems.
Having said all of that, though, I didn't really know what they were teaching in the first place beyond the basic.
"Now, enough for the introductory sermon. It's time for the snack break, after which we will sing praise songs and tell of how Princess Antares has influenced our lives." Snap Feather motioned over to a table laden with food, and I'd bet my cutie mark that most of the food bore said image.
Man, I tried to make it farther than that, but after seeing my holy book I decided that I had enough for the day. I stood up with the rest of my followers but went towards the doors while they lined up for food. Just like last time, Snap Feather noticed me and began walking towards me, that paternal smile still on his face. I stopped just after reaching the doors and turned around just as Snap Feather walked towards them.
"Just wanted to get your perspective, that's all," he said as he reached me. "You went a little longer this time." He motioned with his head towards my right wing. "I see the Liber Sanctus interested you."
I looked down and flattened my ears when I noticed that I did indeed still have the book. I must have absentmindedly tucked it under my wing when I got up to leave.
"Er... sorry. I didn't mean to steal."
Snap Feather scoffed and waved his hoof at me. "No, no, think nothing of it, my dear. As a matter of fact, I was going to offer to let you keep it. I assure you we have plenty."
"Right." I took the book out from under my wing and stared down at it. "So... who wrote this thing? I noticed that The Book of the Element of Magic is made up mostly of Twilight's friendship letters which makes sense, I suppose, but what about the rest of them? The other Elements don't have that kind of thing, do they?"
Snap Feather shook his head. "No, but that's not to say that more than a few of them haven't spoken or acted publicly. What we know about them makes up six of the books of the Liber Sanctus, while Princess Antares' speeches and public deeds make up the seventh and final book."
"Okay, but who collected everything? Who decided what made it into the book?"
"The church elders mostly. There are about half a dozen ponies higher up in the church than I am, and they gathered everything and wrote out the rest."
"Okay." I took a deep breath and nodded. "Okay. Yeah, I think that I will keep this book. I want to see what this is saying about everything."
"Like I said, you're more than welcome to do that." Snap Feather put a hoof on my shoulder, his smile comforting. "I merely want you to understand what this is all about, and from what I know of you, you do as well, and I think that is wonderful. The best way to do that is to come to services and read from the Liber Sanctus. If you have any questions please feel free to come to me and I'll be happy to answer everything."
"Well, I don't have a ton of time to come here, so is it possible you could come meet me?"
Snap Feather nodded. "Most certainly. Just say when and where."
"Two o' clock next Friday. The royal palace."
"The palace?" Snap Feather raised an eyebrow and tilted his head. "You work at the palace for Princess Antares?!"
A hint of a smile played at my lips and I shook my head. "Not work for."
"Oh, you just live there?"
I tilt my head in a single nod. "Yep. I've lived there ever since my coronation."
"Your coro..." Snap Feathers eyes widened and he let out a loud gasp. He dropped flat on his face and began raising his forelegs in a bowing motion.
I sighed and rubbed one of my temples. "You don't need to do that, Snap Feather. This conversation is just between us, and I'd like it to stay that way."
Snap Feather sprang up to his hooves, his head still bowed. "Yes, Princess Antares! I... I... uh..."
"Relax, you're not in trouble or anything. This is mainly to make sure that the doctrine you're teaching to these ponies is one that I agree with, and so far it's good." I gave Snap Feather my own comforting smile and put a hoof on his shoulder. "You didn't do anything wrong. In fact, if you've been as good to your congregation as you have been to me, then I'm sure this church is a wonderful place. I just need to check on everything, that's all."
"O-of course, Princess Antares." Snap Feather looked up at me, his eyes wide. "I will not be a minute late!"
I inclined my head in a bow. "I appreciate it. I look forward to meeting you." I extended my hoof and he took it, but instead of shaking it like I intended he kissed it. Well, whatever. Close enough, I suppose. "Goodbye. I will see you on Friday."
With that, I took wing, the Liber Sanctus in my mouth just as the box had been the week before. I was definitely going to give this a very thorough look through when I got back to my palace. This took my worship to a whole new level. Heck, I wasn't sure how I was going to break it to the Elements that they were revered as prophets in my religion. I had my guesses, obviously, but I could never tell with them.
I reached my palace and turned back into my normal form just as I flew through my window. I deposited the Liber Sanctus onto my bedside table, where I was sure to take a good look through it when I retired for the evening. With that finished, I walked out of my room where, Captain Blaze was waiting for me. He must have seen me flying through the window. He inclined his head in a bow.
"Princess Antares, the Element of Loyalty is here to see you."
I raise my eyebrow and tilt my head. "Rainbow Dash? What does she want?"
Blaze shrugged. "Dunno. She said something about a wedding and something freaky."
I pursed my lips and nodded. "Okay. Is she in my throne room?" Captain Blaze nodded. "Alright I'll go talk to her."
I went to my throne room and opened the doors where, sure enough, Rainbow Dash was pacing back and forth, her wings slightly extended and one ear twitching. She looked up when she saw me coming through the doors and gave me a half smile. I returned it with a full one of my own. "Good afternoon, Rainbow Dash. You need something?"
"Heh, sorta..." Rainbow Dash's wings fluttered a bit. "The weirdest thing happened to me and I was kinda wondering if you knew what it was all about. Uh, a couple of ponies came to me yesterday and asked if I could officiate their wedding. Said they were Antarians, or something like that. I thought that that was pretty close to your name, so I came here to see if you knew anything about it."
I nodded and gave Rainbow Dash a reassuring pat on the back. "Yeah, I do. It's nothing that you have to worry about, per se, but you might want to talk to the other Elements about this. It's just that, some ponies here in Baltimare founded a religion worshiping me and they're calling themselves Antarians."
Rainbow Dash nodded and folded her wings. "Okay. I guess that makes sense. I know Princess Celestia and Princess Luna have ponies who worship them too." The corners of Rainbow Dash's mouth curved down slightly. "So what does that have to do with me?"
"Well..." I gently cleared my throat and scratched the back of my neck. "Since it was the Elements who caused me to ascend, the Antarians... er... think of you and your friends as prophets in my religion. You personally have a whole section of my holy book devoted to you and the Element of Loyalty."
Rainbow Dash's eyes widened and her wings flared out to their full span. "WHAT?!"
Her reaction. Was perfect.
Great chapter. Looking forward to more from you.
Lolololololololololololololololz
Right before that "I" should there not be a quotation?
Also, enjoying this so very much, and don't know why, really.
I think you mean lives. Unless you're talking about the group as one.
my
Missing quotations
as
Oh I hope we get to see the others reactions to this.
4102968 Fixed. Danke.
I don't normally do this but you mentioned it first . I'm one of the admins of ponyfortress2.com, a mlp themed tf2 set of servers. I would recommend you try out our heroes mod, each team gets a pony hero that's not only stronger then a normal class but each has their own abilities to change the flow of the game. From rainbow dashes speed Buffs to Vinyl's dub step bleed effect. Quite a few to chose from and more are added or tweaked as we go to try to balance it out.
As for the chapter itself I can't wait to see what the other elements really think of this.
Oh, boy. This one is gonna be good.
Dashie takes unexpected and/or unpleasant news *so* well.
I shouldn't cackle so at the ending there, I shouldn't. But spot on, and the manor is a blast, especially with all the quick fixes. Though the jaw dropping was a nice touch, very simple, and low key, and fitting.
The reactions of the Mane Six () are going to be hilarious!!
bet they freak out at first and let the fame get to them in big ways.... but might not end to bad old friendship lessons should of taught them a little bit of how to handle this..
>bubguhfugfbfubu
that is the most accurate description of anything ever
Holy Wingboner.
Excellence is what I have come to expect from you. This derives from your habit of generating content that has a highly satisfying level of quality. You have satisfied this expectation of mine once more. You spoil us without turning us into critical, whiny brats. I wish to thank you for it. I hope you can accept my gratitude. Please continue this trend of excellence I have grown so fond of. I can only hope that the muses are generous when they next dole out your share of inspiration.
That was epic. Not just Rainbows reaction, but the thoughts that must have been going through that preacher's mind... I wonder if he's ever going to wash the hoof that he patted her on the shoulder with?
Half of this chapter is just last chapter.
Blech.
4102968 He motioned with his head towards me right wing.
The speaker was Scottish.
There is no error.
Hehe this will be interesting....
4103061 is my guess. Watch us both be wrong when Bronywriter writes and publishes the next chapter.
4103341 Yeah but I should have used the correct emotiponycons.
4103171
I just hope the guy, er pony, doesn't get caught in a religious power struggle when the high-ups hear about it. I mean, it'd be a little like God coming over to chat with a town preacher and the Pope/Cardinals back in Venice get all up in arms about it which causes all sorts of ripples down the line.
Still, this is a new religion so I have no idea how big Antarism really is. And didn't the girls also cure Luna of Nightmare Moon earlier? Wouldn't they kinda be prophets for saving, or at least helping turning Luna from a much darker side already?
Heh, can't wait for the meeting at the castle. That will be all sorts of awkward.
I wonder if Jesus had as much trouble with trying to explain he's just simple folk trying to make the world a nicer place after one or two miracles?
And soon our protagonist realizes all necessity of this madness. TD has to be glad that around him the religious congregation which preaches healthy morals was created. I don't think that Celestia or Luna cant brag about similiar.
No-no-no. TD, you called for wrong preacher.
Any church it is first of all business corporation. The church of Antares is still very young and only began the formation. Leaders of church didn't get stronger yet on the places, and the corporation is insufficiently strong economically and socially. For TD it is remarkable opportunity to take process in hand. Otherwise the church will expand and will get stronger, and leaders become so economically and are socially strong that Antares couldn't influence their decisions and church as a whole. Its 2-way situation: or this church belong to Antares, or Antares will belong to this church.
What happened?!
Cute name (and idea for an art). I will find you there.
While this is hilarious, I'm still rather puzzled as to why TD is just kinda going along with the flow here. (S)he is, if anything, not overreacting nearly enough to this development.
I just love that ending...
And what it will mean for the next chapter! Bwahahaha!
I was rather disappointed when TD didn't do this.
4103382 I look forward to the art, but there is a time in the story where he says it too.
As for why FimFiction went down for me, check Knighty's latest blog post. I got 502s for roughly an hour, I think.
1. Hallowed is Princess Antares, and hallowed are we;
2. Yea, hallowed are the Ponies of Princess Antares through Her.
3. The power and greatness of Princess Antares cannot be denied
4. And is great knowledge, power, and understanding not enough cause to revere Princess Antares?
5. Those who seek the path of enlightenment must not be led astray;
6. But make yourselves one with the path, and the journey shall lead you to eternity.
7. Fear not Princess Antares, but fear the darkness that would conceal the knowledge of Her;
8. Believe in the truth of all things, and you shall find the path to enlightenment.
9. Blessed are those who walk in unison with their Princess;
10. For ours is not to question, but to rejoice in Her service, for She is perfection.
11. Those who follow the path of righteousness shall be raised up high;
12. Yea, those who reach enlightenment shall rejoice with Princess Antares forever.
13. O blessed Princess Antares, guide us on the path, that we may triumph over the enemy of our salvation and be with you in end of ends on the planes of enlightenment.
4103466
When?
4103495 A later chapter. Anywhere between two and five chapters from now.
4103484
AAAAGHMEN!
P.S. Alexia`s congregation is better.
Rainbow Dash the Prophet. Ego boost +1!
thats it im calling its all a evil cult who steals colts and offers them up to there god!
" Stop groveling, I hate it when people grovel. Just like those Psalms always so depressing." - God
4103096
You forgot to say Batman.
()
I added you on steam. now i just need to install my TF2.
I onther news. Dash's reaction went a whole lot different in my head.
Dash's reaction wasn't entirely unexpected. I mean, how often is it you find out that you're a prophet and have an entire chapter of a holy book dedicated to you? I wouldn't be surprised if Antarians started making a trip to Ponyville as some sort of Hajj.
Dude your on!
4103748
Its nice to meet a fellow draconequus
AntarestheWrathoftheStars?
Just let me add you, and then we could have a jolly good time!
But then again, I'm not sure I'll do good at sniper.
Maybe I could try sniping you with a Scorch Shot?
Dem prophets dough
trying to search your steam name but I can't find you
XD THE LOL'S TO THE MAX. But this shows that TD has defiantly matured.
'Kay. I added you on Steam. I'm known as The Demopan. Trader,
and master of all things hat.Nah, I trade every now and then. I do have the trading prices for some hats memorized though...
Watch yourself, I play a mean sticky/rocket jumper.
Add the Book of Armaments and then we'll have the best religion ev-*BLAM* HERESY!!!
4104001 Draconequus?
I'm the keeper of Time!
4102990
Fimfiction went down? I didn't notice, as I was reading a story with really large chapters, and just happened to load the last chapter before the downtime. How about that?
And, of course, once I finished that final chapter, I also went to do some TF2. I've sent you a friend request now, so look for the God of Derp.
I'm
the pony they're all worshiping.
Her name(Antares) would fit better in that last part.
'drawn back to my church like a moth to the flame.'
like a moth who will eventually get zapped by an anti-bug lamp.
4104520
Same thing but different
If you want to get bakestaybed ill add you
4104750 Mmmmmm bakestaybing... Question: would you be opposed to grilling your stayb every now and then instead of baking it? I find it really brings out the flavor when done right.