6257734 I know right, that scene was interesting to see come out. Watching Wise create such a scene is always a fun experience. I keep telling the poor dear to embrace his dark side, he never listens. But, that's why I exist, to push him to his limits. However, Now I am curious how you would RPG-ize the others. What fun.
Great chapter as usual, I like how you manage to make a HIE story without you characters getting stuck in the usual mold of that type of story, and make the context of the story so they can never get can be allowed to be comfortable in there situation and make there desire to go home more tangible.
I find it curious that being treated like glass preses Pierre and Edward have not yet been relocated to a reserve for bicornes sens it would be more cost effective to insert the into an existing community rather than to reassign three guards just keep an eye the unruly duo. Is it because Twilight wants to study them or something like that?
I am surprise that nether Pierre or Edward have tried developing there precognitive skill as it could serve them if they wish to evade attention. the beast way that I could think of would be to practice by using game deices and try to guess the results before reviling the results. And as they progress I could imagine that they would add more and more random number generators to the mix to fine tuning it over time. plus it would be a great way to start creping the guard out.
I am also, surprise that they have not tried to break or saw off there horns before there first evasion to past more easily as Earth Ponies. I know that there is no certain way to them know if there is some thing critical in there, but I would thing that the two of them would be stupid enough to risk it.
6257671 Now, now, one thing at a time. Today their captors, tomorrow, the world!
6257682 Might take some time. My partner and I have been having trouble synching our schedules to write this.
6257721 Always happy to write when people like it.
6257734 Pierre's biggest advantage is that he is generally nice. When he stops, it's usually a pretty big blow to whoever he's talking. Not to mention, I really like that rpg comparison, it made my day. Oh, and if you were to try, what classes would be the others in this, in your opinion? I'm really curious.
6257866 HiE is a rich field of unexplored writing in my opinion. There's always more to be done with it, especially when one enters the realm of alternate universes. Them not being allowed to be comfortable stems in great part to their prior knowledge of mlp. It's so different that they are getting blindsided. Granted, they've started seeing exactly how far and how bad this goes, so they're getting more and more prepared.
Them not being relocated? Well, without spoiling anything, I do want to mention that there is a matter of pride involved. Twilight has expressed an interest and wants to show that she can indeed assume the responsabilities of taking care of them. That's a part of the answer, the rest... you'll see later. The reserves are going to be shown at some point.
Now, that thing about trying to developp precognition? That's a bit of a tall order for them. It's not as if they have any idea how it really works, and it's a more instinctive form of magic to begin with. They could certainly try, but being able to see the future is like that one in a thousand bicorns. Only the exceptional powerful have the potential to do it.
And... sawing off their horns...?
...Err... do they really strike you as that stupid? I mean, disregarding their lack of knowledge on their own anatomy, their clumsiness and lack of time alone to even try... do you really believe they would want to cripple themselves to get away from them? Letting ponies dictate that their horns suffice to make their lives for them? To be honest, I believe Edward would be disgusted and consider that giving the win to Equestria. Pierre probably wouldn't have the guts to do it. And there is the general matter of them being blank flanks on top of this. There aren't that many, if any, adult ponies without cutie marks outside of bicorns...
6257934 Thanks, but that's going to take a bit of time.
6257866 The protagonists have not been moved bc Twilight deemed them unfit for transport. From Twilight's perspective, ponies are commonly capable of going mad when experiencing stressful situations, and equally capable of going back to normal when experiencing peaceful situations. Twilight's friendship lessons shape her decisions as The Princess Of Friendship, leading her to reapply old lessons of "helping friends through stressful times" onto these new bicorns by giving them all the time or comforts they might need to eventually feel subconsciously comfortable enough to face reality.
God, I love seeing bitter guilt just starting to rot away at a pony's conscience. Don't know if it makes me a bad guy or not, but there's just something so fulfilling about seeing a characters world-view so utterly shattered, with all the blame put on themselves.
It's not as if they have any idea how it really works, and it's a more instinctive form of magic to begin with.
If there is one thing that I have learn from marshal-arts is that with a lot of mental discipline and a LOT of practice you can condition you're mind and body to react a certain ways, from knowing you opponent next moves by reading his body posture, to sleep on the drop of a hat, to devouring your mind in the middle combat you can do a lot actually. Once they know the right neurons to fire they can expand on that. Beside in reality, for humans, most of instincts are actually conditioned behaviors that from birth we are encourage to developed by the people that surround use, like waking, reading facial features, rationality thinking and such.
They could certainly try, but being able to see the future is like that one in a thousand bicorns
I don't think they need to learn absolute divination powers, but just enough to be aware of what is lurking on the other corner would be a big help for them to avoid unwanted attention, or when to doge a bullets. Beside it would probable take years of dedicated practice to archive that level of skill.
I also wander if bicorns can influence probability, like in Marvel's Scarlet Witch, daughter of Magnito how can make a machine to break down at a bad moment or to make a rusty fruit knife to rickashay five time in a room.
6258274 That's an excellent rationalization of Twilight's behavior right there. I'm certain she is using it on herself.
6258359 You, evil? Please! I wrote the thing, did you think that was not satisfying for me? Just getting the chance to write it was like therapy for weeks of unrelated frustrations. But yes, Rarity just had a lot of her world flipped upside-down.
6258795 They are sharpened every day for the sole purpose of slashing metaphorical throats!
6260199 It's not a bad point you make, going about the value of practice and training to master this power. However, it's a time consuming process, which they don't particularly want to consider. They don't want to stay any longer than necessary, even if that's a bit irrational. You mentioned that for humans, instincts is more like trained behavior, which is not false. However, for equines, instincts could be as simple as being able to walk within minutes of their birth. And neither Edward or Pierre were born with these bodies, they don't really know what they are, how they are and those things an actual pony would. For them to find a way to actively use seer-like powers, they would need to put aside most of their other activities on hold. Without an actual guarantee of success. Think of it as... I dunno, Sweetie Belle getting to Twilight's level in terms of raw power and spellcasting. Seeing the future is the pinnacle of bicorns abilities, it's extremely rare. Most bicorns get a watered down version of Pinkie Sense. They feel certain events as they happen around them.
As far as them developing the ability to sense and know when to dodge bullets, well... you may not have noticed, but Pierre does sometimes get "gut feelings" about taking certain courses of actions. It hasn't helped that much though.
And no, they do not influence probability, other than by sensing when a bad one might occur. At most, it's something like, they influence the chance of a flower pot falling on their head, merely because they sense when to dodge it. They're not reality warpers.
Always a happy surprise to see a new chapter. The new guards are very interesting. A good mix of comic, and serious. Feeling really sorry for Attention Span. Chum meet piranhas, piranhas, chum, y'all play nice. Pierre may actually have better luck with Tempered Steel, than Rarity, if he plays the long game. Steel strikes me as a 'professional' soldier. Keeps his muzzle shut but his ears open. He may not like the truth, but that doesn't mean he'll tune it out. Belfry? Oh, she's just a treat. Ed's lungs will get all kinds of exercise now. The situation with the guards and the house arrest has me hearing echos of 'The Great Escape', and to a lesser degree 'Hogan's Hero's' in my head for some reason. I wonder if Ed or Pierre are thinking along those lines as well.
In response to putting them on the reserves. Good god, that would potentially give them fuel for easy civil disobedience. If they could break the bicorns out of any indoctrination about their situation they might have, they could easily start staging protests that could risk the population but also show what's going on for the truth. I personally thought that Edward was potentially going to start working on writing a manifesto to release to the bicorns and the public to make them realize what is actually going on.
6258070 And we do highly enjoy it ^_^, thank you and your friends for writing this for us despite any time between chapters. I always look at the bright side of things as it could always be like some stories that go incomplete and have the latest chapters date back 3+ years......
6261412 Attention Span is the lamb we will sacrifice on the altar of the two-horned ones. Belfry will watch, laugh and tease one of said horned-ones. Tempered Steel's just going to facehoof and call for backup.
Now, seriously, can they convince a guard, who is probably a lot more endoctrinated than a random citizen in a bicorn-less town? It's a good question. They might try it.
As for what they think of their situations, they're not quite thinking along those lines. Well, maybe Edward a bit, but not really. Pierre probably looks at it more like an olden time thing. He's more into history than cinematography.
6262262 Well, I'm not going to spoil Edward's plan for you. He's got one, that's for sure.
And the reserve, goodness, your comment made me chuckle. Can you imagine Twilight leaving them there, and coming back a few days later to the REVOLUTION?!
6263039 *has a story that's been incomplete for three years in another fandom* Hmmmmmm... ... *They must never know!* Do you, by any chance, watch me?
6264258 He sort of planned it. It was a good idea, but not a complete plan. Remember that he didn't know what to say to her when she arrived. He just wanted to get her in the place so they could talk. So, yeah, he wanted to speak to her, in part because he had met her before, because of her influence and because he could hardly think of somepony else he had an excuse to summon to his place in the middle of the day. So, it's a little assassin-like.
6264344 Revolution? That makes the assumption they succeeded. More like a rebellion that will need to be taken care of. Unless they are able to change the opinions of the general populace, they're as good as dead due to simple numbers and powers. They have no comparable magic to unicorns and they don't have the scouting capability of pegasi. Unless they gain full foresight and potentially farsight, they will be disadvantaged to a large degree without help from the other pony types on their side.
6264460 You my dear friend are assuming they would be in this battle alone. Who is to say there are not others who feel oppressed and restrained, And I'm not talking other Bicorns.
6264524 True but I was just pointing out their strategical stance based solely on possession of bicorns only. Most likely they'll have allies along the lines of Rarity and probably the other bearers once they get through the thick skulls of doctrine. Twilight might be the only one to fully oppose it because Celestia can do no wrong.
6264565 Well, you missed my point. I was referring to other groups, not specific ponies. You might not be sure what I mean, but that's half the fun. I'm being vague, so one's imagination can run away with them. Plus, the Bicorns have one thing that gives the a distinct advantage...
6264678 I think the real question we should ask ourselves though is what legends or myths did the first bicorn oracle put in place for the coming of our two bumbling heroes to make their changes easier to happen and the best future for the bicorn race exist?
Whether or not this is how it was set up, Piere did a good job starting off the revolution.
The notable thing about indoctrination is that you can't just talk people out of it. You have to first deconstruct their beliefs, which is diffuclt, because you have to first get them to be willing to accept something that violates them. If they don't they tend to disregard whatever might contradict their beliefs. Sometimes, logical inconstancy work, but that is rare.
He started with Rarity. She is a bit easier to convince, due to her being a romanticist. He lead the conversation into her understanding of romance, and more or less casually dropped how bicorns don't fit into that world-view. Then, he brings up Sombra as being basically the same as the bicorn's setup. He says it as though it is accepted, as though Rarity already knows and agrees with it, and that he has pretty much accepted it as how things are. That makes it even more an accusation against Rarity than it would be to simply state such.
Also, Rarity is almost politically invulnerable. As a bearer of an Element, she cannot be safely assasinated. Even if memory modification is feasible. The elements might break that next time they are used.
Unless Rarity is also convinced to believe against them, then many actions that can be taken against them would cause her to become more against the Bicorn setup.
Damn. I think Pierre's comment shook Rarity's profound idealistic view of a happy love life. Also, I think that they have implanted the idea that bicorns don't really need to breed with other bicorns. Unless Celestia tries to stop the voices screaming revolution, I think that her supply of fortune tellers are going to go to extinction levels with inbreeding between the normal populace.
“We only want to protect you,” came the rehearsed line.
"You only want to protect bicorns. You don't give a shit about us."
Hello ponies we're not really bicorns though you may not believe us. We come from a very different people, whose best and brightest minds have recently spent the last few centuries mercilessly deconstructing the notion of institutionalized slavery. And, well, you seem not to have done that ...yet. Sleep well, little ponies.
Hmm, I'm just waiting for Ed or Pierre to come to the conclusion that Unlucky Horn is the result of inbreeding. Considering everything that's been said, the ponies have just started on the field of genetics, but only know that Bicorn plus Bicorn equals Bicorn.
Great story so far, I look forward to future updates.
6439565 Dude. Everyone in Equestrian society is already inbreeding except the bicorns. And besides.....bicorns were once regular ponies, so there shouldn't be any problem with the inbreeding except maybe when it comes to creating a new brief set of pony species since I doubt any bicorn would not influent the genome sparring in child birthing situations.
But the Bicorns have constantly been only bred with Bicorns due to the special traits appearing to be a recessive gene and Celestia wants to keep her EWS. This has reduced the genetic pool for the Bicorns and will increase the prevailence of both physical malformations and heredatory diseases. It's fine for the other three tribe's as they haven't been breeding exclusively with eachother for thousands of years. That and Discord created the Bicorns, so there's a whole new can of worms i'm rather reluctant to touch.
I'm sorry I am down voting, but I just can't bring myself to be interested in this story. The only reason I'm downvoting is so that in the future if I stumble across this story again, I will know I gave it a chance and did not enjoy it.
6411404 It just occurred to me that if a big factor to the mysterious erosion of the amorous bicorn tribe is inbreeding, it might not be such a good idea for our protagonists to convince ponies that they weren't born as bicorns. Because if not, that means they aren't related to any other bicorns, and that means it's even more important to breed them as much as possible...
I mean, bicorns weren't originally bicorns. So it is possible to transform a unicorn into one, albeit via titanic amounts of carelessly applied magic. But if ponies become convinced that this somehow happened, I'm afraid freedom will become an even more fleeting prospect.
That one guard is too damn cheerful. They must break him.
Nice chapter, can't wait for the next one.
It updated!
Thanks for another great chapter.
Like, Damn Pierre.
If this was a RPG, Pierre's class would be the Assassin. He's completely unassuming one moment and the next he's hitting you with a fatal blow.
Like. Damn.
6257734 I know right, that scene was interesting to see come out. Watching Wise create such a scene is always a fun experience. I keep telling the poor dear to embrace his dark side, he never listens. But, that's why I exist, to push him to his limits. However, Now I am curious how you would RPG-ize the others. What fun.
Great chapter as usual, I like how you manage to make a HIE story without you characters getting stuck in the usual mold of that type of story, and make the context of the story so they can never get can be allowed to be comfortable in there situation and make there desire to go home more tangible.
I find it curious that being treated like glass preses Pierre and Edward have not yet been relocated to a reserve for bicornes sens it would be more cost effective to insert the into an existing community rather than to reassign three guards just keep an eye the unruly duo. Is it because Twilight wants to study them or something like that?
I am surprise that nether Pierre or Edward have tried developing there precognitive skill as it could serve them if they wish to evade attention. the beast way that I could think of would be to practice by using game deices and try to guess the results before reviling the results. And as they progress I could imagine that they would add more and more random number generators to the mix to fine tuning it over time. plus it would be a great way to start creping the guard out.
I am also, surprise that they have not tried to break or saw off there horns before there first evasion to past more easily as Earth Ponies. I know that there is no certain way to them know if there is some thing critical in there, but I would thing that the two of them would be stupid enough to risk it.
Great chapter, but I need more.
~Crystalline Electrostatic~
22:49_7/28/2015
6257671 Now, now, one thing at a time. Today their captors, tomorrow, the world!
6257682 Might take some time. My partner and I have been having trouble synching our schedules to write this.
6257721 Always happy to write when people like it.
6257734 Pierre's biggest advantage is that he is generally nice. When he stops, it's usually a pretty big blow to whoever he's talking. Not to mention, I really like that rpg comparison, it made my day. Oh, and if you were to try, what classes would be the others in this, in your opinion? I'm really curious.
6257866 HiE is a rich field of unexplored writing in my opinion. There's always more to be done with it, especially when one enters the realm of alternate universes. Them not being allowed to be comfortable stems in great part to their prior knowledge of mlp. It's so different that they are getting blindsided. Granted, they've started seeing exactly how far and how bad this goes, so they're getting more and more prepared.
Them not being relocated? Well, without spoiling anything, I do want to mention that there is a matter of pride involved. Twilight has expressed an interest and wants to show that she can indeed assume the responsabilities of taking care of them. That's a part of the answer, the rest... you'll see later. The reserves are going to be shown at some point.
Now, that thing about trying to developp precognition? That's a bit of a tall order for them. It's not as if they have any idea how it really works, and it's a more instinctive form of magic to begin with. They could certainly try, but being able to see the future is like that one in a thousand bicorns. Only the exceptional powerful have the potential to do it.
And... sawing off their horns...?
...Err... do they really strike you as that stupid? I mean, disregarding their lack of knowledge on their own anatomy, their clumsiness and lack of time alone to even try... do you really believe they would want to cripple themselves to get away from them? Letting ponies dictate that their horns suffice to make their lives for them? To be honest, I believe Edward would be disgusted and consider that giving the win to Equestria. Pierre probably wouldn't have the guts to do it. And there is the general matter of them being blank flanks on top of this. There aren't that many, if any, adult ponies without cutie marks outside of bicorns...
6257934 Thanks, but that's going to take a bit of time.
6257866
The protagonists have not been moved bc Twilight deemed them unfit for transport.
From Twilight's perspective, ponies are commonly capable of going mad when experiencing stressful situations, and equally capable of going back to normal when experiencing peaceful situations. Twilight's friendship lessons shape her decisions as The Princess Of Friendship, leading her to reapply old lessons of "helping friends through stressful times" onto these new bicorns by giving them all the time or comforts they might need to eventually feel subconsciously comfortable enough to face reality.
God, I love seeing bitter guilt just starting to rot away at a pony's conscience. Don't know if it makes me a bad guy or not, but there's just something so fulfilling about seeing a characters world-view so utterly shattered, with all the blame put on themselves.
6258070 Well hurry up then dammit!
~Crystalline Electrostatic~
1:54_7/29/2015
Man, a lot of cutting going on here, those daggers hurt!
Keep going! ;)
6258070
If there is one thing that I have learn from marshal-arts is that with a lot of mental discipline and a LOT of practice you can condition you're mind and body to react a certain ways, from knowing you opponent next moves by reading his body posture, to sleep on the drop of a hat, to devouring your mind in the middle combat you can do a lot actually. Once they know the right neurons to fire they can expand on that. Beside in reality, for humans, most of instincts are actually conditioned behaviors that from birth we are encourage to developed by the people that surround use, like waking, reading facial features, rationality thinking and such.
I don't think they need to learn absolute divination powers, but just enough to be aware of what is lurking on the other corner would be a big help for them to avoid unwanted attention, or when to doge a bullets. Beside it would probable take years of dedicated practice to archive that level of skill.
I also wander if bicorns can influence probability, like in Marvel's Scarlet Witch, daughter of Magnito how can make a machine to break down at a bad moment or to make a rusty fruit knife to rickashay five time in a room.
6258274 That's an excellent rationalization of Twilight's behavior right there. I'm certain she is using it on herself.
6258359 You, evil? Please! I wrote the thing, did you think that was not satisfying for me? Just getting the chance to write it was like therapy for weeks of unrelated frustrations. But yes, Rarity just had a lot of her world flipped upside-down.
6258795 They are sharpened every day for the sole purpose of slashing metaphorical throats!
6260199 It's not a bad point you make, going about the value of practice and training to master this power. However, it's a time consuming process, which they don't particularly want to consider. They don't want to stay any longer than necessary, even if that's a bit irrational. You mentioned that for humans, instincts is more like trained behavior, which is not false. However, for equines, instincts could be as simple as being able to walk within minutes of their birth. And neither Edward or Pierre were born with these bodies, they don't really know what they are, how they are and those things an actual pony would. For them to find a way to actively use seer-like powers, they would need to put aside most of their other activities on hold. Without an actual guarantee of success. Think of it as... I dunno, Sweetie Belle getting to Twilight's level in terms of raw power and spellcasting. Seeing the future is the pinnacle of bicorns abilities, it's extremely rare. Most bicorns get a watered down version of Pinkie Sense. They feel certain events as they happen around them.
As far as them developing the ability to sense and know when to dodge bullets, well... you may not have noticed, but Pierre does sometimes get "gut feelings" about taking certain courses of actions. It hasn't helped that much though.
And no, they do not influence probability, other than by sensing when a bad one might occur. At most, it's something like, they influence the chance of a flower pot falling on their head, merely because they sense when to dodge it. They're not reality warpers.
Always a happy surprise to see a new chapter.
The new guards are very interesting. A good mix of comic, and serious.
Feeling really sorry for Attention Span. Chum meet piranhas, piranhas, chum, y'all play nice. Pierre may actually have better luck with Tempered Steel, than Rarity, if he plays the long game. Steel strikes me as a 'professional' soldier. Keeps his muzzle shut but his ears open. He may not like the truth, but that doesn't mean he'll tune it out. Belfry? Oh, she's just a treat. Ed's lungs will get all kinds of exercise now.
The situation with the guards and the house arrest has me hearing echos of 'The Great Escape', and to a lesser degree 'Hogan's Hero's' in my head for some reason. I wonder if Ed or Pierre are thinking along those lines as well.
Looking forward to the next chapter.
In response to putting them on the reserves. Good god, that would potentially give them fuel for easy civil disobedience. If they could break the bicorns out of any indoctrination about their situation they might have, they could easily start staging protests that could risk the population but also show what's going on for the truth. I personally thought that Edward was potentially going to start working on writing a manifesto to release to the bicorns and the public to make them realize what is actually going on.
6258070 And we do highly enjoy it ^_^, thank you and your friends for writing this for us despite any time between chapters. I always look at the bright side of things as it could always be like some stories that go incomplete and have the latest chapters date back 3+ years......
It didn't really sink in until I realized that Pierre didn't just do this to anyone.
He did it to Rarity.
An Element of Harmony.
One of Twilight's Closest Friends.
Someone who can get influence and connections with high up people.
Did Pierre really plan that far ahead? Terrifying.
6261412 Attention Span is the lamb we will sacrifice on the altar of the two-horned ones. Belfry will watch, laugh and tease one of said horned-ones. Tempered Steel's just going to facehoof and call for backup.
Now, seriously, can they convince a guard, who is probably a lot more endoctrinated than a random citizen in a bicorn-less town? It's a good question. They might try it.
As for what they think of their situations, they're not quite thinking along those lines. Well, maybe Edward a bit, but not really. Pierre probably looks at it more like an olden time thing. He's more into history than cinematography.
6262262 Well, I'm not going to spoil Edward's plan for you. He's got one, that's for sure.
And the reserve, goodness, your comment made me chuckle. Can you imagine Twilight leaving them there, and coming back a few days later to the REVOLUTION?!
6263039 *has a story that's been incomplete for three years in another fandom* Hmmmmmm... ... *They must never know!* Do you, by any chance, watch me?
6264258 He sort of planned it. It was a good idea, but not a complete plan. Remember that he didn't know what to say to her when she arrived. He just wanted to get her in the place so they could talk. So, yeah, he wanted to speak to her, in part because he had met her before, because of her influence and because he could hardly think of somepony else he had an excuse to summon to his place in the middle of the day. So, it's a little assassin-like.
6264344
Revolution? That makes the assumption they succeeded. More like a rebellion that will need to be taken care of. Unless they are able to change the opinions of the general populace, they're as good as dead due to simple numbers and powers. They have no comparable magic to unicorns and they don't have the scouting capability of pegasi. Unless they gain full foresight and potentially farsight, they will be disadvantaged to a large degree without help from the other pony types on their side.
6264460 You my dear friend are assuming they would be in this battle alone. Who is to say there are not others who feel oppressed and restrained, And I'm not talking other Bicorns.
6264524
True but I was just pointing out their strategical stance based solely on possession of bicorns only. Most likely they'll have allies along the lines of Rarity and probably the other bearers once they get through the thick skulls of doctrine. Twilight might be the only one to fully oppose it because Celestia can do no wrong.
6264565 Well, you missed my point. I was referring to other groups, not specific ponies. You might not be sure what I mean, but that's half the fun. I'm being vague, so one's imagination can run away with them. Plus, the Bicorns have one thing that gives the a distinct advantage...
6264612
True but no one ever cares about the donkeys and griffons and goats and cows. And dragons are just scary :P
6264661 hahahaaha, silly, let the games begin....
6264678
I think the real question we should ask ourselves though is what legends or myths did the first bicorn oracle put in place for the coming of our two bumbling heroes to make their changes easier to happen and the best future for the bicorn race exist?
6264733 I guess only Wise and I would know that...pffft, or not, we'll see.
6264830
Only see? What, no audiobook in the works? :P Just messing with you. God, it's got to suck to look at all these comments later on ;)
Whether or not this is how it was set up, Piere did a good job starting off the revolution.
The notable thing about indoctrination is that you can't just talk people out of it. You have to first deconstruct their beliefs, which is diffuclt, because you have to first get them to be willing to accept something that violates them. If they don't they tend to disregard whatever might contradict their beliefs. Sometimes, logical inconstancy work, but that is rare.
He started with Rarity. She is a bit easier to convince, due to her being a romanticist.
He lead the conversation into her understanding of romance, and more or less casually dropped how bicorns don't fit into that world-view.
Then, he brings up Sombra as being basically the same as the bicorn's setup.
He says it as though it is accepted, as though Rarity already knows and agrees with it, and that he has pretty much accepted it as how things are. That makes it even more an accusation against Rarity than it would be to simply state such.
Also, Rarity is almost politically invulnerable. As a bearer of an Element, she cannot be safely assasinated. Even if memory modification is feasible. The elements might break that next time they are used.
Unless Rarity is also convinced to believe against them, then many actions that can be taken against them would cause her to become more against the Bicorn setup.
Damn. I think Pierre's comment shook Rarity's profound idealistic view of a happy love life. Also, I think that they have implanted the idea that bicorns don't really need to breed with other bicorns. Unless Celestia tries to stop the voices screaming revolution, I think that her supply of fortune tellers are going to go to extinction levels with inbreeding between the normal populace.
Hello ponies we're not really bicorns though you may not believe us. We come from a very different people, whose best and brightest minds have recently spent the last few centuries mercilessly deconstructing the notion of institutionalized slavery. And, well, you seem not to have done that ...yet. Sleep well, little ponies.
This story is fucking disturbing... I like it.
Hmm, I'm just waiting for Ed or Pierre to come to the conclusion that Unlucky Horn is the result of inbreeding. Considering everything that's been said, the ponies have just started on the field of genetics, but only know that Bicorn plus Bicorn equals Bicorn.
Great story so far, I look forward to future updates.
6277419
Are you forgetting the diseases likely caused by inbreeding?
They're going extinct anyway, just in a longer more painful manner.
6439565 Dude. Everyone in Equestrian society is already inbreeding except the bicorns. And besides.....bicorns were once regular ponies, so there shouldn't be any problem with the inbreeding except maybe when it comes to creating a new brief set of pony species since I doubt any bicorn would not influent the genome sparring in child birthing situations.
6441822
But the Bicorns have constantly been only bred with Bicorns due to the special traits appearing to be a recessive gene and Celestia wants to keep her EWS. This has reduced the genetic pool for the Bicorns and will increase the prevailence of both physical malformations and heredatory diseases. It's fine for the other three tribe's as they haven't been breeding exclusively with eachother for thousands of years. That and Discord created the Bicorns, so there's a whole new can of worms i'm rather reluctant to touch.
This fic has been reviewed by the Pleasant Commentator + Review group!
You can see the review here.
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I'm sorry I am down voting, but I just can't bring myself to be interested in this story. The only reason I'm downvoting is so that in the future if I stumble across this story again, I will know I gave it a chance and did not enjoy it.
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It just occurred to me that if a big factor to the mysterious erosion of the amorous bicorn tribe is inbreeding, it might not be such a good idea for our protagonists to convince ponies that they weren't born as bicorns. Because if not, that means they aren't related to any other bicorns, and that means it's even more important to breed them as much as possible...
I mean, bicorns weren't originally bicorns. So it is possible to transform a unicorn into one, albeit via titanic amounts of carelessly applied magic. But if ponies become convinced that this somehow happened, I'm afraid freedom will become an even more fleeting prospect.
Shattering world views, it's not pleasant but sometimes it needs to happen