Epilogue: Postmortem
Three days later.
After two days of examinations run by the three Princesses, it was decided that the statue was not to stay at Canterlot, in the empty space left by Discord’s, as originally intended. They wouldn’t allow it. Her friends wouldn’t allow it.
Trixie’s friends.
They all agreed to take Trixie to Ponyville. It wasn’t where she was born, nor where she lived most of her life. But it was there where they met and it was there where they became friends. There wasn’t a service this time. First, because it would have make things harder to everypony, but mostly because no one wanted to think this was definitive. She had come back twice before after all, and this wasn’t death. Not really. Princess Celestia understood that position, remembering all too well a similar instance. It wasn’t unheard of that the Element’s judgement wasn’t definitive, as it happened with Nightmare Moon. Also, as Fluttershy recently proved, there were other ways.
So, the petrified figures of Trixie and Discord became part of Ponyville’s landscape. They were placed right where her first show took place, so Trixie could be remembered as a performer first. She would have liked that.
“Trixie will like that.” Twilight thought to herself as the princesses placed the figures on their pedestal. “One day we will talk about this with her.”
The Regal Sisters left the ponies to be by themselves after that.
For some reason, the Elements didn’t seal Trixie in marble like they did Discord, but in obsidian. Pinkie Pie remembered how Twilight cracked her skull for an entire night, coming up with multiple hypothesis on the matter. But none of them would free Trixie from the imprisonment, or from the Alicorn Amulet. Pinkie found her, crying over a pile of books and unfinished investigative reports, on the morning of the second day. Only after they took the matter to the others did Twilight let the investigation go… for the moment. Pinkie lowered her gaze to put a hoof around Fluttershy’s shoulders.
While the other mares were comforting each other, Rarity looked up at the statue’s face. Always the artist, she couldn’t help but marvel at its design. Trixie’s pose had her rearing back on her hind legs, forepaws outstretched before her. Discord still rode the saddle on her back, the bridle he had conjured still visible on her head as he held the reins and appeared to be yelling in excitement. Only seven ponies in the entire town knew that Trixie was struggling to get free and keep on attacking, while Discord fought to keep her at bay. To the rest of Ponyville, it looked looked like a pair of performers posing dramatically to entertain their audience.
“Always the illusionist.” Rarity tried to conceal a smile. She would make sure to talk about it with Trixie when she was free. “You’re going to love this when you wake up.”
Twilight's tears hit the ground as she got closer to the statue. She touched the smooth obsidian with a hoof. Twilight felt something in her shoulder. Rarity was next to her, holding herself together better — she was smiling at her — but still showing the traces of tears on her face. Next to them, Pinkie Pie, Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy were looking at the statue too.
Behind them all was Spike standing next to Lightning Dust. It took some convincing for the hospital to let her out, even for this short trip. Her wounds were severe and she couldn’t even walk without a wheelchair cart for her forelegs. However, Lightning wasn’t a pony who took ‘no’ for an answer, even more so in a situation like this. Even if it amounted to nothing, she felt she owed the world to Trixie, and being present at that moment was the absolute least Lightning could do.
The friends looked at each other as the tears stopped. They smiled and nodded, making a silent agreement. Slowly they turned away to go on with their lives, but also keep a promise they all made without needing to say it.
Twilight and Spike went to the library, with Rarity alongside to make sure Twilight wouldn’t overtax herself. Fluttershy accompanied Lightning to the hospital, while Rainbow flew to her home to pick some books for Lightning during her stay. She knew how boring it could be to be cooped up like that. Applejack stayed until Big Macintosh came for her. There was work to do and she was needed at the farm. In the end, Pinkie was left alone with the statue, still locking eyes with Trixie’s.
“You will be free, Trixie,” she pledged softly. She didn’t look away as she made the signs with her hoof. “Pinkie promise.”
Originally designed by opium addicted unicornian occultists with their last breath and meant to be a fortress of power. Built by their surviving zebra servants with the sweat if their brows and the strength of their backs to make a home for their families. Expanded through the ages by passing travelers to finally create a place for all the tired, the strange, and the lonely. A place of community, openly offered to all and everyone. That was Neigh Orleans. Too aware to belong to nature’s reign, too free to be civilized. As weird as it could get in Equestria.
It was a warm evening. The last rays of sun graced the simple, yet colorful streets of the city by the bayou, as the lamplights took their place to keep the light on. Music could be heard at every corner, and even if not always the same song, it was always the same rhythm. Through singing, bass and cords, the heartbeat of the city never stopped.
There was a small tavern down by the water’s edge, right after the town ended but before nature could reign uninterrupted. The ‘Tabaco y Chanel’ was as old as Neigh Orleans itself, although rumor said it was in fact older. One local legend said it was enchanted by Starswirl the Bearded during one of his long trips. No power, magical or mundane, could be lifted while on the tavern’s ground. As long as anyone could recall, the Tabaco y Chanel has been the neutral place for heroes and villains of every age.
Right before the last ray of sun could depart and let the night take over, a disheveled figure pushed open the main door and entered. If there was a universal ideal for the weary traveler, it would be the brown stallion walking inside the tavern. The colors of his reddish brown coat and yellow mane were severely muted by a fine layer of dust and ashes. Same with the old trench coat he was wearing, which covered most of his body and the entirety of his cutie mark. The only signs of life coming from the stranger were his piercing blue eyes. But even those were cold as ice, and looked old, so very old. Almost as if the stranger has seen so much in his life that his gaze couldn’t change from boredom anymore.
The disheveled stallion sat down at the bar, where a gray mare with yellow eyes and an orange mane, wearing a maid uniform, put a newspaper and a cup of tea before him. He barely looked up to acknowledge the mare and nodded in gratitude. She returned the gesture and went back to attend the other patrons at the tavern. The not-so-stranger took the newspaper and tea to a table in a corner, near the end of the bar and almost invisible from the entrance. There, he let himself fall into the chair.
The stranger lit a cigarette and took a long sip of tea before straightening the newspaper and starting to read it. For the major part of the first hour, he only found the usual crap. Some cult starting an ‘equal community’ up north and a new re-collapse of the griffon economy. A bunch of wankers doing wanker’s things in the stallion’s opinion. He was about to close the paper and call it a night when he reached the article about the incidents in Ponyville.
The old and cynical heart of the stallion was suddenly beating like a living one again. His eyes ran down the entire article with voracity, looking again for that one detail that forced him to feel again.
… to prevent more damage being done, the showpony known as Trixie Silverlight Lulamoon had to be sealed in stone by the Elements of Harmony…
The stallion gulped down the emotions threatening to burst out from his chest. He took one final drag of his cigarette and tossed it away. His cold eyes got glazed, but he didn’t allow them to do more than that. The stranger snapped the newspaper closed in anger, the cigarette smoke hissing between his teeth, and finally looked up.
“Bollocks,” muttered Hell’s Blazer in anger and sadness.
Wave Blaster: Well, this is my first in a lot of things. My first long runner that actually became a long runner. My first successful fic that got into the featured box (yay). My first fic on TV Tropes (fvckity fvck yeah!).
But most importantly, while not being the first good fic I pulled off, it is by a long shot the biggest one in scale. And to think it all started on a very simple idea, meant to be a one-shot (a miniseries at its best), it’s just… astonishing.
And very humbling. It wasn’t easy in any way and the fact that it took us three whole months to craft this ending is a testimony to the hard work behind the story and the dedication we had with it. I deeply apologize for the long wait, which is mostly on me due to my career getting more serious and demanding this year. I must extend my thanks to our readers, without whom this story could not have been nearly as successful as it has been!
I’m really proud of this and I don’t mind on stopping here. I always wanted to write THAT Trixie Story. Give her an unique backstory and a personality that, besides not denying canon, has a recognizable outline among other fanfics. So, here it is.
However
You guys know me and my “nothing ever ends” creed for storytelling. I’ll let Nightwalker break it to you. ‘Walker
: Wait, what did you do? What did you do?! Tell Trixie what the meaning of all this is!
Nightwalker: Now I know what you’re all going to say, and I ask that you please put down the torches and pitchforks! We have one word for you:
Sequel!
“Actually, I’m Dead” was never originally going to be just a single story. Once we realized it was going to turn into something much more epic than just a simple one-shot, we worked several nights planning on where it would go. The second arc of Trixie’s journey will be called “I, Monster” and will have the first chapter going up sometime soon, which will answer a lot of those dangling plot threads left from this story.
Wave: As I’ve mentioned before, there’s a sketchbook Nightwalker and I assembled before even starting with the chapter following the original one-shot. Truth is that, when building the full story we wanted to tell, we found that there was going to be distinct arcs to the narrative.
The first arc of the story, of which you just read the ending, was about Trixie’s development as a character. From her backstory, to building relationships with others, to building a life of her own. That’s why I always say that “Actually, I’m Dead” is a story about life and living, therefore the Amulet being an antagonist through representing the concept of mortality.
So, when Trixie is a character with a personality and past known to the reader, has an established world around her, and the Alicorn Amulet delivered as the undeniable ending that every life has to confront, then the story accomplished its task
That’s why the next arc will be a separate story. It will have a more ‘adventure’ feel, the tone will shift radically, there will be a distinct departure from the show’s original narrative, and, overall, it will have a whole other purpose, different from the current one.
So, it goes like this: If you think this is a proper ending to “Actually, I’m Dead”, here we are. Thanks the world for reading and commenting. But, if you want to know what happen next, well, we’ll see you in “I, Monster”.
: Are we getting different writers for the next part? No? Writers freakin’ damn it.
In that case you two better make Trixie a Princess for having to put up with all of this!
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Sequel, yesss!
OH HELLS YES.
That was one hay of a ride. I'll be ready for the next one. Keep trotting.
Trixie and Discord. what a wakening this will be.
Well that this is going to be sequel is really a twist I didn't see coming. Well played sir.
Ah, well, looks like Trixie' show must go on for at least a bit longer.
She is in for a surprise. "Huh, I though I was finally actually dead, but it look like I am actually still "alive"... Bollocks"
7701606 Discord's reluctance to kill makes sense given his fundamental nature -- death isn't chaos, death is stagnation. If anything, death is more Harmony's thing; the stillness of death is the most ordered state there is, and death is part of the natural harmony of things. Trixie, in her current existence, is inherently anti-harmony (in the sense of natural order) because she should be dead and is not, even though she as a sentient consciousness has embraced harmony (in the form of friendship). A fascinating duality.
Discord being reformed makes him nicer and more empathetic to the limitations of mortal ponies, but he's still the fundamental avatar of chaos and in the end, he would argue that the routine, plodding everyday sameness of Celestia's overly-harmonious regime is its own death.
Well, it'll be cool to see the alternate timeline with Discord and Trixie sealed. They played a mayor role, expecially in Starlight's story arc to save Equesrria, so I think I smell changelings running rampart over a desent chunk of Equestria once Trix gets out in a few years. Tirek however will be quickly dispatched...
On the other hoof, Lighting's tragic status:
i.ytimg.com/vi/MRaWLOlPVh8/hqdefault.jpg
I am reminded of "The Darkness" from the franchise of the same name. Just without the shoulder snake things.
Hell's Blazer, Hell's Blazer. Was he one of Trixie's six or seven teachers?
SEQUEL! YES!
Phew, you made me worried with that ending till i saw the notes.
I cant wait to see what happens to Trixie next, just please dont put her through too much shit, dying a few times seems enough.
7892327 precisely the one who teached Trixie basic of dark magic
Great job on bringing this part of the tale to a conclusion, this has been on on my favorite Trixie fics. You did a very good job of keeping Trixie's personalty from the show, while also building your own world and making it your own. Which is exactly what you want to see in a fan fiction. I will be eagerly awaiting the sequel.
So after sleeping on it, I really dislike the ending.
First off, Discord. I couldn't really make heads or tails out of his compass or cards. he seemed to be implying that Celestia knew more than she was telling, or that Trixie knew subconsciously, or something.
Second, JUST WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?!?! The amulet was spouting off shit like Harmony and Chaos and Light and Darkness, so one gets the impression that it is a primordial God or Spirit or something especially if it can overpower Discord. But no, that's just Trixie's inner evil? That can somehow resurrect her more than one?
Third, kinda expected that whole Trixie's mom is a reaper to get resolved.
Finally, made me realize just how shitty ponies and their much vaunted Harmony is. The Element of Harmony don't seem to deal with anything, ever, outside of purifying Luna, which didn't happen in this case?!
Nightmare Moon, banished for a thousand years.
Stone Discord, again and again and again even though he can escape eventually.
Banish Tirek to Tarterus. Golly gee willickers, not like anything could go wrong with sending him to a Hell he's already escaped once.
The first 2 events have some irony if you squint enough, but Trixie? This is just more 'Not gonna deal with it, kick the can down the road' bullshit. Wait, this is WORSE. Discord complains that while stone he couldn't move, but could still hear. Could still think.
And the Elements just encased Trixie in stone. An Immortal, struggling with her demons, without her limiters to help her. Oh, and Twilight decides it's best for the Trixie statue to stay in Ponyville, thus cementing her title as Smartest Dumbass in the cast.
Nice Job Breaking It, Elements of Harmony.
Well that was amazing. Dark, without being horrifying. Thrilling without being over the top. Steeped in rich culture and mystery, and with everyone so wonderfully in character. Interesting how it was never clear whether Discord was full of hot air and it was Trixie's inner dark side deluded into thinking it's the physical embodiment of negativity by her massive ego, or if Trixie was full of hot air and she only thought it was her inner dark side to take the blame, when it really was the physical embodiment of negativity.
Surprised the pale mare didn't make more of an appearance at the end, but I guess it sort of had gone a bit beyond her league at that point.
Forewarning, it’s been a long, long, long, long, long time since I had the time and opportunity to discuss anything about my own works. Therefore, while some replies will be too simplistic, others will be too complex, both due to the lack of practice. Still, as always, I enjoy the discussion, so feel free to follow up the commentary with a reply if you want to.
Also, hope to see you all in “I, Monster”.
7891684
7891688
7891870
Trust me; I'm as excited as you are, guys, if not more.
So, working on it.
7891895
I don't know why, and I swear this is not how it will happen, but I keep picturing Trixie immediately jumping at Discord in a big ball of violence until either Twilight or Celestia points her out that Discord is not to blame this time.
7891921
Good to see we weren't too obvious about it. Glad you liked it.
7891984
Okay, all the kudos for quoting Queen, especially since I always associate Trixie with that particular song.
Now it's up to debate how will she take all of this. Remember that, when considering things and talking to Lightning dust, she was as scared of death as she wanted it all to finish. To be honest, Trixie has developed so much in the fic over the time that most of the time I have to deduce what she will think and do, and then debate it over with Nightwalker.
Damn, I can't believe we have come this long with the fic. It still feels like it was last night when I said, "Let’s do Ugly Americans… with Trixie! As Spawn!"
7892215
I prefer to see ‘harmony’ opposing ‘chaos’ more in the sense of ‘balance vs unbalance’ rather than ‘order versus anarchy’. Under those terms, in the ‘death vs life’ dichotomy, ‘chaos’ would be more akin to one ruling over the other while ‘harmony’ would be under both existing in balance. I based that on non-parallel axes.
Still, Discord siding with ‘life’ makes sense on the grounds his version of disarray only works if there are ponies around to mess with. It’s pretty much the reason the Joker doesn’t kill Batman. There’s no setup for the punchline without a straight (Bat)man/ponies.
Same with Trixie as a trotting paradox. As Celestia put it, just by being on the living realm way past her proper time, Trixie is pretty much disrupting everything around her on a multiversal scale. That’s Discord alley in many ways. In addition, the Alicorn Amulet being able to bring ponies back from the dead could mean eternal straight ponies to annoy.
I do agree that, from Discord’s POV, the idea of perfect balance would be pointless. There’s a reason for life to be full of chance and anarchy. I think evolution theory is a good way to show the place of Chaos (genetic variability) and Death (natural selection) in function with Harmony (formation of ecosystems) and Life (origins of species).
Finally, there are Light and Darkness. For me, they represent energy opposite to entropy.
7892246
That would be a thing. Again, following Celestia’s theories, Trixie’s existence means that all the timelines that come after Magic Duel are now in a state of uncertainty. That includes canon.
I can see the Everfree forest attack being more devastating, as in canon Discord was kinda sorta holding it while the girls returned the Elements of Harmony to the Tree of Harmony in order to keep Harmony among the Harmonious… Okay, I’ll stop there.
Tirek’s canon attack is now heavily threatened. Without Discord, Celestia’s initial approach cannot happen. Neither can Twilight’s key exist in the same way, so the effects can be overly devastating. Hell, without Discord backstabbing the *yay* out of Equestria, the attack has the same chances of being toned down to oblivion.
Same with Chrysalis’ plot in Season 6. The key events in those episodes depend of Trixie and Discord being in the picture as they canon selves. If they aren’t, then Chrysalis has her probabilities of victory multiplied, while at the same time there’s the possibility that something else, like Starlight’s friends in Our Town, can oppose her.
Moreover, that’s without stock piling the three points of inflection with how the events have affected the Mane Six and their mechanics. This is pretty much like flipping a coin with multiple sides on a space without a defined up and down senses.
Now, on Lightning, yes, she's pretty much FiM's Barbara Gordon now. Also, this was somewhat foreshadowed in the bar no-fight. Lightning knew that going against something like Monster!Trixie would be no different from being mauled by a bear. It also makes her decision of going headfirst against Monstrixie all the more heroic.
7892312
Hmm, interesting. With my focus on Swamp Thing and Spawn (and now I, Vampire), I never really considered The Darkness. Admittedly, my knowledge of the comic is marginal, as it’s still in my ‘to read’ list and not really high.
For what I understand, the Darkness is an eldritch abomination that manifests itself in the material plane through possessing a human a la Venom (or like the Force on crack, as the comic itself puts it). If that’s correct, then the… thing possessing Trixie (if it’s really a separate entity) is operating pretty close to it. Now we play the waiting game to see what kind of hell is the endgame and if it’s already in motion or not.
Coincidentally, I found this: derpicdn.net/img/2012/11/26/163959/large.png
7892327 7892951
Yes, the one that taught Trixie some basis of occultism. Based on Vertigo Comics' John Constantine, protagonist of the comic Hellblazer (subtle, ain't it?).
7892850
Again, it's continuous narrative with an inflection point in tone and pacing.
Nevertheless, yes, it's exciting!
7892919
Yeah, that's a reason for the next phase to be a story of its own instead of part of the current one. I think we overdid the trauma conga line for Trixie here, while the idea of Death as unavoidable was delivered with the downer ending. Pressing it further would turn the fic into a grimderp.
7893438
Wow. You know, it’s honoring and humbling at the same time to have one’s work being called a favorite. Especially when it comes to a sub-genre I’ve following my entire time on the site (Trixie fics).
As you put it, giving Trixie a fitting but unique personality was the reason of this fic. I can’t thank Nightwalker enough for all the help he gave me and pretty much being responsible of the characterizations working together.
I’m eager to make the continuation too. The base of Actually, I’m Dead was to write around themes and ideas that I wasn’t familiar with (slice of life, horror, tragedy, character centric). Therefore, making this an inflection point and changing gears for the continuation is a logical escalation.
See you there.
7893636
Okay, first, thanks for sharing your thoughts on this. Out of three new dislikes, you’re the first one to be honest with his motives, which I really appreciate.
Second, regardless of agreeing with some points you may make, this is still my story, so it’s only natural that I’ll try to defend it. So, let’s here goes nothing.
Discord was meant to be as impossible to read as possible. While his pre-redemption personality is quite clear in having only two objectives in life (be free, mess with ponies), the post-redemption shift made him more complex, specially in his relationship with Fluttershy and how much of it was out of convenience, how much possessiveness and where does actual caring begins.
The compass began as an easter egg and nod to Gravity Falls. The changed characters, seen from the right angle, spell “what”. It’s function is to be an invitation from Discord as the Trickster to Trixie as the hero to follow through his realm, which is the hallucination. Not so different from when Alice has to drink the bottle to pass through the opening doors of Wonderland or the kids being showered with pixie dust to fly to Neverland.
The cards are a tarot reading and are, by nature, ambiguous already. That’s turned up to eleven with Discord being the reader. The reading is explained in history in this chapter and both, its true meaning and its veracity, are left to Trixie (and the reader) to decide.
Now, the dark thing inside the Amulet. Well, that’s complicated. I don’t want to outright confirm or negate anything. This fic's base is ambiguity, evoking the fear to the unknown. Also, with the Amulet symbolizing the concept of mortality, it's only logical that it has to be as far from certainty as possible. Death is not only the end of things, but overall it's also the ultimate mystery.
Finally, on the Elements of Harmony’s m.o., that’s more of a debate over the show’s ideology, so I’ll limit myself to a personal opinion on the matter.
I think the show and, by extension, the Elements, work on the premise that there is no absolute evil and therefore, everyone can be redeemed. Under that logic, then only containing villains instead of eliminating them from the equation leaves open the possibility of changing the villains and making them allies. Absolute solutions against villains and threats would be counterproductive for that idea. Here’s a quote from SCP Foundation that follows that same principle:
Canon cases like Nightmare Moon/Princess Luna, Discord, Starlight Glimmer, Gilda, Trixie, King Sombra in the comics, among others, show that the franchise as a whole head towards that direction and message.
Personally, I think that the base of any fanfiction should be around keeping the same message and making the same points the canon is making, unless the story’s intention is to subvert or deconstruct them. That’s how I wrote “Actually, I’m Dead” and that’s how I plan to write “I, Monster”.
In the same vein, the plot points that weren’t solved here (like Hope Lulamoon or the true nature of the Alicorn Amulet) are going to be followed and explored in “I, Monster”. Now, this is not a sequel hook or just an excuse to keep the story going over. This was the plan since almost the beginning.
7896939
I'm really glad you liked this one. I have nothing but thanks for keeping up with the story until the bitter end and always giving that enjoyable feedback.
As said above, ambiguity as the source of horror was a key point in the story. Granted, the earlier chapters, up to maybe a half of it relied also in body horror. But that is very limited and only has a values when it comes as a shock. If overused, body horror becomes just part of the setting and loses its impact, like in Saw. However, the unknown as source of fear has the oposite effect.
The more you're faced with the fact that you don't know what's lying in the shadows, the possibilities are endless and terrifying if combined with just enough information to state that there's something in there, it is hostile and it can be very dangerous. So, you face something you know will be bad, but can't really know how bad. The first paragraph of the story is dedicated to how uncanny can be to face uncertainty, and that theme stays until the end.
Now, on the Bone Mare, I think that more than outclassed, the problem here is that it's beyond her reach. She stated she doesn't have mayor influence on the mortal plane beyond guiding the souls transitioning from there. That's why she seeks the aid of Luna and why the Princess is more present from that point and on. Again, this will be further explored in "I, Monster", so I repeat my invitation to read it once it's published.
Don't worry, I'll post in the blog when that happens.
7897022 You like Queen?
7897022 Sorry for the misconception. I still liked the fic and didn't take it back, it was the ending I had issues with.
Granted, my list could have been less spitball and more most vexing to least. Or Vice Versa.
1 and 3 weren't so much grating issues so much as 'meh, wish that made sense or was resolved'.
The Amulet and it's ability to resurrect Trixie, not once, but twice, especially since she was somewhat willing to pass on the second time around, is just weird. Though sufficiently powerful mages being able to Auto-Life makes a modicum of sense, if you subscribe to Unicorn Twilight having DIED to make way for Alicorn Twilight. Still only explains the first. Still doesn't explain the second rez.
The Amulets claims of being an Old One...hard to say how much was true and how much was the mad ravings of an egotistical maniac.
Discord getting stoned as well was a touch surprising.
As for the Elements..I won't even try to explain why Celestia banished Nightmare Moon, yet the Mane 6 cleansed Luna of her. Too many varying interpretations, and I've come to the conclusion that philosophy is just not my forte. What I WILL say is that NMM and Trixie's situation were very similar. To just contain Trixie...awake, aware, unmoving, already struggling to contain her demons...
Maybe the proximity of Discord muddled with the EoH. Maybe Twilight was refusing to kill her friend, against Trixie's wishes.
Maybe Trixie and Death are too intimate to get divorced.
And I went too far with the Twilight being biggest Retard in the cast, obviously that award goes to Starlight, but still. Demon Cat Plaza Ornament, who was threatening to kill the girls?
7897022
That is a very fitting picture for Trixie.
Also, I found this video from the Darkness 2 game, explaining it quite accurately. I think you'll notice the similarities in backstories quickly.
7897020 In one debunked theory it might have applied to Luna.
http://ytcropper.com/cropped/y3588960424e52c
7897022 It's also because Joker persistently sees Batman as his best friend. I was very, very amused that the Lego Batman movie explicitly lampshades this.
7897367
Nice. This was always my favorite interpretation of that theory.
[Comment edited because it's been a while since I read it and had remembered the main twist backwards.]
7897022
Oh that's such bull.
Discord is OBVIOUSLY responsible. 
7897022 Yeah, it keeps the things shaken up. But I think the alternate timeline will go simlarly but the last segment of the Castle getting unlocked will eather go "on hold" or find an alternate way to do it. One could argue that when Tirek swept the map clean off magic, he would neutralize other vilians who would try to take over otherwize.
I think the takedown of Chrysalis requires only Thorax, Starlight and ANY team. The adventure might be postponed by a day or two for Starlight to find allies from the Mane6 book of memories. You could put somepony in Dis and Trix spot and the story would progress mostly the same if they have enought distraction or sacrifice value. Hell, even work off the same mechanics as Discord and Trixie;
-Sunburst could leave the Empire with Thorax and knowing what awaits in the emipre, he could stock on blinding bombs and outmanovering the 'lings due to his apparent intelect, easily fitting into Trixie's illusionist scenes. Or just get a Pinkie clone, they're propably hiding all around the place...
-For Discord who only made a show in the Hive we could get The Flim Flam brothers who joined the party - let's say they gone to see Princess Twilight to financialize some invention, but were stopped by Starlight in time. As far we know they could do so in cannon and they got captured/request-denied by Changelings while evrypony was off in the Changeling Kingdom.
The problematic part is to get a traveling mean scince Discord cannot teleport them there. I'd say the brothers could arrive there by a balloon or some sort of invented vechicle, Sunburst could re-program the inter-dimensional mirror to teleport or ...didn't Twilight actually had a balloon? We didn't see it destroyed by Tirek - somepony might have borrowed it then - and if in this timeline the library still stands, the balloon would be around too. Only get it out of the basement and heat the air.
Also: Without Discord in play, Rarity and Applejack would be ill one time less, Twi and Cady would have a convencionally good day together and Celestia would loose a few pounds by personally hunting villians instead of sending Discord after them and stuffing herself cake.
7897020 Oh, youlike TF2 too? Didn't see it coming honestly.
7899493 And I can
at it.
I'm not an avid fan of Linkin Park, but I do like them more than most heavy metal or rap. I thought it was hilarious how "Faint" is basically that assignment your boring English teacher gives you to try and teach you to do poetry. And everyone turns in work like "I am a Sophomore at Podunk High. I am a pizza lover. I am good at sports. I am special because I like cats. I am sad because I want it to be the weekend. etc..." Then Linkin Park go and turn it up to eleven.
7897026
Dan dan dan dara da da *beat*
Dan dan dan dara da da *pia-no*
Dan dan dan dara da da. Dan dan dan dan dara da da.
PRESSURE!
Pushing down on me.
Pressing down on you, no man ask for
7897103
Oh, neat! Well, then it looks that I pulled a Scott Snyder here. Big story, convoluted ending. Hmm, maybe we could assemble a 'How it should have ended' blog some day, when I have the time.
Well, as I said, the Amulet has more weight as a symbol at this point. Since it represents an unavoidable fact (mortality) it's as powerful as it needs to fulfill that purpose. Sure, there is a non-meta-textual explanation on how it was able to pull its tricks, but this is not the time of that. Like with a cosmic horror story, the explanations aren't needed as the point of it all is that the damn thing is beyond comprehension. And, in a setting where death itself can be worked with (like Twilight's in your example), then something beyond comprehension has to be able to jump the rope with the natural limits and order.
On the true nature of the Amulet, I think I already stated how much I'm wiling to say, so moving on.
We don't know if the Elements affected Trixie in the same way they did with Discord. For all we know, even how they affected Discord this time is up to debate, due to his change of heart. I remember a headcanon (the Pony POV Series, if I remember well) stating that the petrification, while keeping the 'target' aware of they surroundings, it also induces a nirvana-like state. For a being like Discord, the state of perfect harmony with the universe is pretty much the textbook definition of hell, so that's why he sees it as a punishment.
Not saying that this is the same case, but with how little we really know about the Elements' mechanics, they could pretty be a lotus-eater machine and Discord, being Discord, is able to see through it. Since we're talking about Discord, he got stoned by proxy, like when your friend is smoking weed too close to you and you start feeling your head lighter. Yes, I love the double meaning of 'stoned'. 'Walker and I have shared some good laughs during the sketching by saying "when Trixie gets stoned" and "stoned in group".
And yes, Trixie is part of Ponyville's decorations.
7897153
The price goes straight to the "You can't stop the night" line.
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7897400
So, wait. Luna is Chrysalsis in disguise or vice-versa?
Oh, well. Someone call the Pyro to spycheck the f*ck out of this.
7897377
Well, that one too. And now that Discord is friends with the Mane cast (mostly Fluttershy), it gives more parallels.
7897498
Or is he?
Dun dun duuuuuuun!
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It all depends on which hypertime theory are we working here. If time's flexible enough to allow some discrepancies, like in Back to the Future, or with convergence points acting like constants, like in Doctor Who, then yes, the events of the following seasons should go on with the minors changes of replacing Trixie and Discord. However, is we're working with a simultaneous time scenario, a la Watchmen (specially Before Watchmen: Doctor Manhattan), or under the butterfly effect , like in A Sound of Thunder, then someone better put safety belts on the Mane Six, as they're about to get the trip of their lives.
This has already been discussed in-universe, with Celestia explaining to Luna that Trixie, by cheating death, now exists outside what ponies call fate. By how Celestia described it, Trixie could as well be a divergence point not only between alternate timelines, but between different hypertimes. Or, since all of this is theoretical, she's just a minor disruptive variable, limited and still subjected to the convergence points.
(As Warren Ellis said, I love the way science SOUNDS. I love the ideas for their art. There’s a crazy beauty about a theory of dimensional structure that assembles itself into a snowflake, or the idea that reality is a two-dimensional plane of information and the 3-D universe is a hologrammatic side-effect. And that’s how I write science fiction. I use the sound of the ideas and then make it all up.)
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Oh, yes, all the way since December 21st, 2013. At least once a week I open Steam, pick my class, saddle up and kick some ass. My multiplayer dreams come true, when I play Team Fortress Two.
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That's what really makes me like Linkin Park. I can't name more than five songs out of the top of my head and I have no idea what they're up to today, but I enjoy what I know about them.
Bleed I Out stands out because I can relate to the idea of writing something over and over to get it right.
7899814
I've seen both theories. The one I linked to was that it's NMM pretending to be Luna so that she can lay low and used the disguise of Chrysalis and the changelings to try and seize power during the wedding. The changelings no longer exist, it was something she conjured from her memories of the past. I've also seen the opposite, where there is no Luna, or Chrysalis replaces her, and fakes being Luna to feed off Celestia's love for her sister while attempting to fully seize power. Both theories are effectively shot down by the finale of S6.
7899814
Luna was the disguise. Chrysalis (supposedly) was the cover. So now Nightmare Moon knows how to deal with everything and didn't have to reveal herself at all. Of course, this was debunked by Do Princesses Dream of Magic Sheep, but it was interesting to think about.
That ending was, um. Something. The whole... Darkness bit was... it just... it was a thing.
You introduced an entirely new major plot point, in a way that raises more questions than it answers, right at the climax. And this creature, instead of actually behaving like some kind of primordial spirit or eldritch abomination, acts like a corny, two-bit villain? All we need is the classic "No, this cannot be! I am invincible!" I can kinda see, if I turn my head and squint, the atmosphere you were trying to invoke, but I keep getting distracted by the Giant Space Flea from Nowhere.
Or maybe that was a giant red herring (again, right at the climax), and Trixie was right about it being her "dark side" after all, only instead of acting anything like Trixie or trying to get the kinds of things that you would expect Trixie to want, it's an omnicidal raving lunatic.
It was so baffling that I had a hard time paying any attention to any of the dramatic moments. Lightning Dust traumatized, Trixie pleads with Twilight, yadda, yadda, where's the bit that actually makes some sense of this?
7899814
Aye. Darkness II is a fun game, incidentally. It's how I'm familiar with the franchise. Unless it's an archetype I'm unfamiliar with, the "Darkness before creation", despising said creation, etc. All those similarities and between whatever the Alicorn Amulet is and the Darkness franchise struck me. Made me wonder if you'd been familiar with it. Apparently not though... at least, not beforehand.
7899814 Wait, the Amulet represents mortality? But it brought Trixie back from the dead! Twice! It made her immortal! They had to turn her into obsidian just to get her to stop being too animated!
7899814 So evrything suggests a divergence theory then. The one remaining question is when are they gonna wake up? I'd suggest a far future, 20 years or after Moosebutt took the throne.
Sadly, I don't have the leisure of time to regularily play TF2.
7897153 OP IMBA OMG ETC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I LIKE IT A LOT
7899814
The concept of darkness as you showed us is entertaining to say at least.
I don't know how you two are actually considering dark magic and necromancy and daemons and the rest.... If I could use some of my OC here (Oh Loki I have to very much of them) precisely 'Hex Aurora' and 'Hex Spell 3rd' I would instead of trying to take away the Amulet from Trixie's chest, went for taking away Her Soul from Her Body, then place her in some flesh golem.
Basically my thought on necromancy are, its almost shouldn't be dark magic. Necromancy is actually about controlling live energy itself rather that making zombies. Its kinda how you think about human(pony) body, is it sacred as the temple of live, or it's only shell for the soul?
I my head necromancy is just combination of precise levitation, blood magic, flesh golemancy and a bit of soulscribing (but only a little of the last). I think I have somewhere my definition of Dark Arts. Can't find it now. Point of view depends on point of sitting. There is no white and black in the world, there are only shades of gray. The show is not that deep into morality to makes problems out of it.
Again I don't know yours points of view so I'm not sure how much of use a SoulScriber would be here. Want to talk to much. Too many thoughts too little words.
P.M. if you are up to some entertaining discussion.
7899880 7899900
There’s this other fic where Trixie and Chrysalis are magical constructs of Luna to test the Elements and strength the bonds between each other.
You know, I enjoy a lot the stories that treat Luna and Nightmare Moon as the same, making the power boost the only difference between one and another. There’s this one that even goes one step further and doesn’t even turn Nightmare Moon into Luna. It gives more weight to the guilt and atoning elements in her character.
I was half-expecting the Tantabus to turn into Nightmare Moon at the end of its episode, making it all an aesop about the difference between atonement and denial, while also talking about the importance of forgiveness from others.
7900005
Okay, just to clarify something, whatever happened here happened before in the first interlude. The entity possessing Trixie was already stated to be able to overpower someone in Celestia’s league and hammy as a pork sandwich while doing so. Even the ambiguity over if it was really a separate entity or an extension of Trixie’s own psyche was already there and discussed in the earlier chapters, to points where Trixie herself is convinced she's at guilt of it all after the disastrous encounter with Applejack.
It then made another appearance in chapters 11 to 13. We even get a glimpse of it overpowering Discord in 19.
Now, I think I' mostly at fault here for the less 'orthodox' moves when it comes to representing ancient evils that may or may not be either Cthulhu or Mister Hyde. the thing is that my background in the matter is mostly comic books. Here, the 'godfather' figures I took as inspiration were Darkseid, the New God of evil, and Doctor Doom, evil genius and megalomaniac. The thing is that I tried to evoke the idea of something that, regardless of accuracy, thinks of herself as the ultimate evil to ever be. Dark!Trixie, at least, thinks she's this supreme and almighty being that heralds an age of darkness over existence.
Is she right? Does she really know? What is she? None of the answers were the point because Dark!Trixie's nature isn't the center of the story. She's the antagonistic force, the wall at the end of the road. More than a character, she's an obstacle, a symbol of everything bad that the protagonists were either trying to defeat of prevent.
P.S.: I'll just leave this here; the lines “No, this cannot be! I am invincible!” where going to be said at one point in the pre-editions.
7900187
I don't know if it's an archetype either, but it seems common enough in comics. I took the idea from two oposites. The first one is the Great Evil Beast from Swamp Thing and the other one is Nekron, from Blackest Night. There's something especially menacing coming from a threat that was around before creating was even a thing.
7900406
Okay, I meant that in a metatextual way. Let me explain; I usually say the story is about life since, until now, it was always about going on, even at the face of tragedy. That's the point of Trixie here, as the pony who, despite the constant downs in her life, she keeps on marching down the orad. That's also why her main conflict in-story is coping with an horrible fact while trying to keep on going. That's why the Alicorn Amulet represents the constant thread of mortality. It's right there, it can't be ignored or taken off and you know it's going to turn for the worse sooner or later.
In-universe it's a walking, moving "oh crap" moment which true nature is a mystery.
Broken into a jigsaw puzzle.
Wrapped in a conundrum.
Hidden in a Chinese box.
A riddle.
7900485
Well, as Cell said, multiverse theory is a b--
7900492
Well, nice to know someone got entertained out of this. It makes it all worth it.
Although the idea of separating Trixie's consciousness/soul from the Alicorn Amulet seems to be the best course of action at this point, there's that time when she die,d her soul was literally one step away from crossing to the other side, and the Amulet still somehow reached out and brought her back.
I think bio-magic is an interesting branch. Instead of just changing elements, like more 'rudimentary' forms, it has to work along other processes in order to be effective. The Amulet seems to have some powers around it through the use of necroplasm.
I'll keep the offer in mind.
7907389
kinda like...?
derpicdn.net/img/2013/1/15/213109/full.jpg
s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/originals/24/4b/5d/244b5dd5d6ee698cc0ac59c683add0d1.png
Agreed. All of those are very good morals, important lessons for anyone. My favourite take on THAT?
Also, i feel that the Tantibus might well have done so if it reached reality. But this would be more like the SA-X from Metroid Fusion. It might look like Nightmare Moon, it might sound like her or have her powers, but it would be merciless and single-minded. It might very well have created that last timeline from Season 6's ending. Maybe that's what happened in that timeline? They failed to stop the Tantibus in time?
Holy hollyhocks! The implications!
But we can't have THAT on a TV-Y program, can we?
So you asked for it, and I shall deliver.
What I enjoyed about this was the building backstory to one of the many dangerous pieces of jewelry to exist. Not your average, fall to despair, with miracle method ex machina to save the day, but a delightful twist that thrusts Trixie into the role of cursed middle mare so to speak.
After the incident at the wonderbolts academy i think i finally punched her ticket into the same light that the elements share. Trixie a heroine? Why yes, she made a positive legacy while under the harshest of curses, and saved more than a few strangers -later becoming her friends- from making mistakes that she made, and defended said friends from the hostile opinions of others. You don't have to save a country to be a hero, all you need is one person to believe you are in their book.
The ending made me think of the scene at the end of Wrath of Khan and because of Discord. Major Kong. I went and watched a clip of both on youtube
7913160
And I think that is part of what makes those kinds of chapters for me. I love the world building, seeing how a author takes ideas from things they have read/heard/seen and adapting them to fit their purposes.
I think both ideas meshed well together, might even use something similar for my own story (or well already had a somewhat similar idea before I read this that is) only mine is less specific, where just each type has their own death (one for the changelings, one for the earth ponies, etc). So I LOVE seeing others ideas on this as well.
Also, almost done with the story now wooo! Think I have five or six chapters left and this all has certainly given me some interesting ideas about the Alicorn Amulet. (Since it plays a big part in my own story, if not held by Trixie still a big part.) Can't wait to find out how it ends!
7907500
Here: http://www.fimfiction.net/story/84302/the-tool
I like to think that the Desert Timeline was a combination of all the bad things from the previous bad endings piling up. With all of that going on at once, some implying the destruction of society while others the consumption of the environment. All in all, the end of it all, and the Triumph of Death.
P.S.: How would have looked a bad future with Alicorn amulet!Trixie?
7910302
Thank you very much for answering.
Well, I do have some kind of rule of always writing a happy (or at least reasonably bearable) ending. Part of this story's charm was to get out of all the boxes I could find myself into and do something different. Therefore, with Nightwalker's invaluable help, instead of an adventure headed to a goal, we build a maze. It 's twisted and dark, with something inside that darkness, waiting for the reader to step into the light. And at the center of that maze, the devil in the details, laughing.
The funeral was one of those details. The idea was to present Trixie as the oposite one would expect. She's this castaway loner who has a lot of socializing problems, so no one would see it coming that her funeral would be crowded. But instead, under that loner, there's a heart of gold, like a diamond waiting inside a coal mine, so while she didn't felt like making friends, she did touch many lives. That play of perception vs rality is another key element of the fic, and again, another deviation from the straightforward storytelling.
If I Die - Drums and Tuba
This song seems to fit very nicely the theme of this story - creepy, dirge-y, and all about death and how it's dealt with. I think I glitched when I posted my previous comment... Anyway, I really enjoyed reading this, to the point of neglecting my math homework. I look forward to any continuations.
I really liked the story, though i took a break from it after tornado chapter. Once i got back to it though, I remembered why I liked it. There are a LOT of Trixie redemption stories, but this one captivated me with the unique premise of the Alicorn Amulet killing/not killing her. And that's not counting all the different aspects i read once i came back to the story, like Trixie's second revival, her new body, Lightning Dustand her redemption, Discord. You took all these concepts and worked them in to the story in a way that didn't seem contrvied or forced, to me any way. Though Discord's 180 during the end wasn't what I was expecting though i think I'm more on board with it after some thought.
As for the writing itself, you and whomever edited the story did great. I can't remember any big errors in grammar or spelling. There was a bit of the "lavender unicorn syndrome" as some people call it, where instead of saying a character's name or using a pronoun you'd describe them. I remember you calling Trixie a " demon pony" post tornado a lot. I don't have a problem with it but I've seen comments on other stories where people take issue with it for one reason or another. Just letting you know.
Other then that, great job and I eagerly await the sequel.
Hopefully the GREAT AND POWERFUL (and currently statuesque) TRIXIE will return soon!
7915008
Really sorry, but not available on my country, so I'll take your word from it.
However, yeah, the story is about life as much as it is about death. The dichotomy between one and another is what really put the conflict together. I'm really glad you liked it (although a little bit guilty you neglected your homework for it) and I really hope you, and the rest of the readers, enjoy what's coming next.
7915390
Really good to hear that, about this story being different from the other "Trixie comes back" ones. You see, a lot of these elements have been around since I entered the site, like Trixie being torn between existentialism and self-destructiveness, or the idea of playing up the slight Romani theme she has. But with masterpieces like "Mysterious Miss L." and the immortal "Trixie Getting Back on Her Hooves" around, I always pulled it further until I really got something unique as a whole.
Now, here we are.
With that same feel in mind, and thanks to Nightwalker trademark characterizations, we managed to work other elements into the story as well. Lightning Dust was one good case, as her involvement started as just a quick bit and then put inside a bus. Then, I realized how similar she was to Trixie and we got to the conclusion it would be a great moment to show ho much Trixie's character grew up by turning her around in the situation and have her be the one offering a forgiving hoof.
All the edition credits go to Nightwalker. He's a master of the English language and the reason this fic is a) readable and b) managed to get pass the initials four chapters. I consciously try to avoid the description as a replacement to a character's name, but it depends on how lost am I in the writing, forgetting the more technical aspects, and making Nightwalker's job all the more impressive. With that said, the 'demon pony' bit was kinda intentional. We wanted to state she's a half-demon, but couldn't really find a scene that would do so without throwing Trixie into depression, again, so we just throw it in the narrative.
Just like James Bond, Trixie will return.
Wooo finished, and wow was it an AWESOME story! Gave some very interesting ideas for the amulet and its powers, and since we know so little about it canonically, I love seeing what others think about it. (Especially since it plays a role in my own story, so nice to see how others spin their ideas and what might be similar to my own, or vastly different, either way.
) 
But yes, totally an awesome and worthwhile read.
7923314
I think that sketching the Amulet's powers was a tricky part during the sketchbook. We wanted it to be menacing and unstoppable, without stepping into villain sue territory. Something that would make it look more like a force rather than a character, like Doomsday in Superman.
Very glad to be helpful for your own story. Helping others with their own projects, even marginally, is one of my main goals as a writer.
See you in I... Monster!
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Indeed, think I am kind of on the verge of that territory (villain sue) for my own, really need to figure out the bugs for it more... but yeah thinking up the powers of a powerful magical artifact can be tricky. *nods* That makes sense, as well, it's not like Sombra is embedded in it or anything right? :P (Even if many stories on it, mine included, make him be the maker or at least where it came from?)
Indeed, probably the most help I have gotten from a story about the amulet. (Haven't seen a ton of them sadly.) Same for me, I like helping people, especially since so many are able to help me. After all, what better way to show appriciation to others than by helping someone else with problems you used to have?
I look forward to it! Can hardly wait to see what happens next in I... Monster!
Perfect, the ending is fine but the sequel is a great idea. I suppose I could try my own idea that I've been thinking on...
Good luck on your sequel.
7938553
Thank you very much for reading.
Ah cool, a sequel. Well, given the ending it kind of screams for a sequel.
Given Trixie got turned into stone alone with Discord, I'm reminded of the very, very old early Season 2 fic Trixcord, where Trixie and Discord end up turned to stone together at the end. Not entirely certain if you knew about that story and wanted to make it a homage, but there it is.
Now let's see the ripple effects this has on basically everything else in the quasi-canon storyline of the show.