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My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
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I believe Hasbro could have made Sombra an amazing villain, if they hadn't kept him as a shadow with eyes and teeth. If they allowed their villains to mature and grow as the CMC have, for instance, the show would go from good to amazing.
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Alas, they squander such potential.
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media.npr.org/assets/img/2013/12/10/istock-18586699-monkey-computer_brick-16e5064d3378a14e0e4c2da08857efe03c04695e-s900-c85.jpg
Peanuts?
The happiness that I feel when you release a new chapter will always make my day memorable
Honestly, I loved how Sombra chose Fluttershy simply because she was beautiful...
...I have no objections to that
Starlight...come on, I mean....come on
Keep up the good work my good man
Just in case anyones interested I just got sone with a story called The Hearth's Warming Surprise I'd appreciate you guys taking a look. Thank you
And this is why, no matter how evil the bandits he's fighting are, no matter how badly said bandits need to be wiped out, and now matter how much of a raging hypocrite Starlight is and how indefensible her position is, I'll still never side with Sombra either. Because he still claims the right to decide the fate of those under him. How long is it until Sombra decides that all crimes, no matter how petty, are deserving of death? What happens when he decides to rescind his offer to let those dissatisfied with is rule to leave? What happens when he decides any criticism of him or his rule is treason, assuming he hasn't done so already? The only thing separating his subjects from the hell that those he ruled over during his first reign is the fact that Sombra currently doesn't want to return to that. What happens when that changes? And don't try to say he'd never do that. If he truly wanted his subjects to be free, they wouldn't be subjects. The law would be the highest authority in the land, not him. He wouldn't style himself as the source of justice or liberty or any of that - for anything the government has the power to give, it has the power to take away on a whim - but merely accept a place as their defender. And most importantly, he'd give the commoners a way to dispose of him should they as a whole ever reject him.
To be honest, the only reason I started reading this story was because I'm a fan of A Job With Benefits and was morbidly curious as to how the author of that intended to ship Fluttershy with Sombra of all ponies. A few chapters in, I continued reading because part of me hoped that maybe, just maybe, Sombra's remorse over his past would eventually lead him to turn his kingdom into a free nation, and eventually lead it to becoming greater than the false paradise ruled by the friendly, smiling tyrants in Canterlot. But now that there's been a six month time skip and Sombra's still a hypocrite with a god complex, it's clear now that that's not going to happen. So this is where I depart.
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Well that's saddening. I wouldn't COMPLETELY judge a story that isn't even COMPLETE yet.
well he's wittling away at her defences. Lets see if a day in court can finally change her mind.
Awesome update!
Curious how this will continue. His fledgling nation is still teetering on the edge of a knife.
He is a bloody tyrant, justified or not, and history tells us few of them come out unscathed.
The real test will be when bandits surrender, will they be executed for being what they are or will they be offered a chance at redemption?
This choice I feel will decide the fate of New Haven.
Sunset. You are not forgotten.
She didn't get him at the end. She was saying that just because he has power, it doesn't give him the right to kill. He was saying that since he has the power to stop evil, that any evil he does not stop is his fault. Thus, he must act.
i mean sombra has a point but starlight isnt one to juge with her past
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I know it's a kids show, but that doesn't stop them from developing characters on parts of the good/evil spectrum
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Which is why Sombra told her she was attacking a straw pony. She was attacking Sombra for a point he didn't even make. Context is a hell of a drug.
Unph. Story is too good... always leaves me wanting more.
You got burned Starlight. Checkmate!
I still side with starlight. To me, Sombra is still the tyrant he is, even if he denies it himself. The question I got to ask is, what happens when he has total control over the peninsula? Will he then look at his smaller neighbors with the thought of conquest? Or will become paranoid about enemies and assassins at every corner, purging what he considered criminals?
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Except his point is ENTIRELY spot on. As the King it IS his place to dictate what the law is. It IS his place to decide what punishments are handed out for breaking said laws. And your statement about letting the people decide their own laws/government doesn't hold up. Partially because you are, wrongly, trying to apply a moral/governmental framework from our world upon theirs. It doesn't work. However mostly it's because THEY ALREADY DID. Everyone in New Haven CHOOSES to accept Sombra's rule. One of his first acts was to go "If you don't want to be here/follow my orders, you don't have to. I will personally see you get transport to Celestia/Luna or Cadence's rule. You are NOT slaves. You are free to leave whenever you want." The people have spoken. By living in New Haven they are CHOOSING Sombra as their King.
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Except to be a tyrant he'd have to be forcing his rule upon the majority for the benefit of just himself/the minority. As keeps getting shown, the people in New Haven WANT him in charge. He's forging his kingdom in blood to be sure, but I'm more than willing to bet Fluttershy would DEMAND that those who surrender be given fair justice rather than summary execution. Starlight might wrongly believe that Fluttershy doesn't hold true to Kindness, but the lesson of the mongoose still stands. Sometimes Kindness IS death.
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Can't be a tyrant when you're people are WILLINGLY following you. And again, I don't fear for what happens when the bandits/warlords are all gone. Why? Fluttershy. He's ALREADY changed, and still changing, thanks to her influence. His first act of rescuing slaves was ENTIRELY caused by her influence. He flat out admits he was just going to leave them there after he's killed all the bandits in the keep, only to stop and ask himself, "What would Fluttershy think/do?" and thus brought them back to his manor. She is one of the biggest reason New Haven even exists right now.
Sir knight, His Majesty, Arthur of the Britons, wishes for you to join his court at Camelot.
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Here's to you, for actually catching that. 🍺
Starlight may be hypocritical, but her hypocrisy doesn't exactly invalidate her stance against killing. Either she was wrong in joining her friends in attacking him, or she needs to revise her stance a little. When Starlight attacked him, she didn't know that he was providing safety, food, and shelter to the innocent victims of the area. For all she knew, he was a tyrant who enslaved a population for many years (which, unless I've forgotten something, did happen in this story's past), then kidnapped her friend. If she had succeeded in killing him, his subjects would lose their safety and security.
As someone who's against the death penalty, it's frustrating to be kind-of represented by a character like Starlight. In some respects, I agree with her. However, some of the things she says makes her unlikable, and it feels like she's just using her stance against killing to demonize Sombra. And the fact that she's willing to give the bandits a chance but not willing to give Sombra a chance makes her more of a hypocrite than her attempt to kill him. Killing armed bandits to save slaves is similar to killing Sombra to save Fluttershy. Yes, killing is involved, but, in both situations, lives would be saved directly (to the best of their knowledge). It's unfortunate, but neither situation is similar to slaughtering disarmed bandits who lost, who could have been imprisoned, which is like enacting the death penalty en masse without trial... far worse than the death penalty. Like our initial knowledge of Sombra, all we know about the bandits is that they do evil, but we don't know the backstory of every individual bandit.
But, of course, we're talking about a place where the resources are scarce, so maybe he feels that he cannot afford to keep prisoners? But if resources are scarce, why not get aid from Equestria? Or give the prisoners work? There are solutions that don't involve slaughtering them en masse.
But don't get me wrong, I'm enjoying this story. Keep it up.
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Glad you're enjoying it. I liked reading your comment. Just one thing though.
They do, in fact. New Haven and Equestria have established trade routes for food. Fluttershy actually mentions in a previous chapter how an embargo would starve their nation. So Sombra is actually quite dependent on Equestria at this point.
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Thanks, and whoops! Forget details after a while lol
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What do you PERSONALLY know of war? Of monsters who look at others as nothing but toys to be used and discarded? I find that often those that are against the death penalty do not know these things first hand. And honestly that is A GOOD THING. It would be THE BEST thing if EVERYONE was like that. Sadly that isn't the world we live in, and it's not the world those in this story live in either.
Even in the 'enlightened and moral' world we live in the type of monsters described in this chapter would get AT LEAST a life sentence without the possibility of parole. And there are many that might claim such thing is 'more just' or 'more humane' than an execution. And in my opinion those people are fucking idiots. This is still a death sentence. You're just dragging it out. Even IF, and that's a huge if, they were rehabilitated, they wouldn't be released. And that's assuming they survive being in prison, which even the best are dangerous for BOTH inmates and guards. They're MORE likely to get killed if they do reform, because the other monsters will hate them for 'going soft'. Even if they beat the odds, they're still condemned to rot in a cage for the rest of their life. There have been plenty of studies that have proven that extended institutionalization is BAD for one's mental health. In short, Life Without Parole is STILL a death sentence. You're just condemning them to die slowly in a proverbial hell rather than making it quick to potentially send them to a more literal one. Now I'm "Not Nice" so if the point IS to make them suffer then I absolutely approve. Because for a child rapist a bullet to the skull and a shallow grave is WWWAAAYYY too merciful IMO. But I do wish people would stop trying to claim it was 'more humane' to lock them in a cage for the rest of their lives.
Now is every raider a complete monster? Probably not. And if some were to surrender BEFORE the battle, I'd be one of the first to say "Just killing them is wrong". But so far the only 'surrender' we've seen is the minotaur who tried to beg for mercy. Keep in mind this was AFTER he tried killing Sombra, AFTER he blew a hole in a wall without any regard for whom might have been injured and AFTER going on about the raping and slaving he was going to do. In war once the bullets start flying the only mercy is a quick death. And this most certainly is a war.
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There's a word for people whose lives are subject entirely to the whims of another. That word is "slave". By saying it's Sombra's place to decide the laws and punishments, you're saying that everyone in New Haven is Sombra's slave. Thank you for proving my point.
I ask again: what happens when Sombra decides this is no longer the case? Regardless of whatever pretty speeches Sombra gives, when your "freedom" is entirely dependent on someone else deciding you're free, you are not free.
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We haven’t heard of a jail just yet though.
I enjoyed this chapter. Personally I agree with Sombra's reasons.
Haven't read the chapter yet, but while I'm opposed to the death penalty, the penninsula has not yet reached a level of civilization where I could apply my morality to it. Order must be established first before civilization can flourish. Sombra is a bit like those kings in a nation's history that everyone shudders about later, but actually helped a civilization to thrive. The mongoose that kills the snake in other words. Rome, for example, was a brutal dictatorship, but they brought peace and put an end to the tribal warfare that was preventing Europe from reaching it's full potential. Life is ugly, brutal and complicated.
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No, that's not slavery. That's called a monarchy. It's EXACTLY how Celestia rules. Only difference is she shares that power and authority with Luna. When push comes to shove there isn't anyone who can go "No, you can't do that" to the Sisters. They ARE the supreme authority in Equestria. And that's not just legally. There's LITERALLY nobody powerful enough to stop them, outside of Discord. Are you going to say that Twilight & Co are Sunbutt's slaves? You CAN NOT hold their world to the standards of our world. Even if you wanted to, the argument still doesn't hold. One of the most famous absolute monarchies in the world is VATICAN CITY. Pope Francis does NOT answer to any human authority. His word is law both within the Roman Catholic Church itself AND within Vatican City proper. He can have people officially removed from not just the city, but the church itself. While to my knowledge the man has not done so, he DOES have the authority to. By Catholic Doctrine and Vatican City law, the Pope answers to GOD, and nobody else.
Edit: While she may not work on the show anymore Lauren has made it clear that Celestia IS the highest authority. As far as I know, the show itself has never contradicted this. The only reason her title is "Princess" rather than "Queen" is Executive Meddling.
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Actually Sombra DOES reference a dungeon, when he points out that Starlight belongs there, which is effectively the same. Is it possible they have prisoners? Yes. Depends on if any of the raiders ever actually surrender/who tries breaking what law in New Haven. I look forward to seeing "The King's Justice" in the next chapter.
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Yeah, but a dungeon simply held lawbreakers and malcontents till execution or trial.
It’s not a true work detail or rehab center
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And skulltulas... Don't forget the skulltulas... and wallmasters, too. Those douche bags
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I agree with you about life sentence without parole. Ones that believe, that this is more merciful than swift death, don't know or don't think of horror of life without hope. Fates worse than death are thing.
But as Roman Catholic I will make little correction. Pope can establish new dogmas ONLY when speaking ex cathedra. It's very strictly established and very rarely used. In other situations Pope speak as Bishop of Rome. His speaked opinions are sugestions for all Catholics. Strong suggestions, but you can don't agree with them without losing status of Catholic.
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Eh, I'd rather deal with them than a darknut.
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I'm not 100% sure so I'll defer on whether or not he can establish domgas. I DO however know that he is the legal sovereign of Vatican City. The various bodies that provide executive, judicial and legislative power in Vatican City do so at the Pope's will. He personally appoints most of the highest offices and has carte blanche authority. In Vatican City the law, and the punishment for breaking is, is what the Pope says it is. As far as I know, he's the last absolute monarch left in Europe.
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Last absolute theocratic ruler in Europe of most militarised country on whole world (10% of Vatican population are Swiss Guards, even Jonh Paul II made joke about this once). That's combobreaker.
Only higher power is will of Councils, which are rare and called by Pope request. And touch only theological matters.
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I'm old enough to remember seeing that on TV... Just as "What the actual fuck?" now as it was then.
Hey, hey Starlight I’m curious. How dose that crow taste? Oh dang talk about a preventable kick to the gut. The pesitasle of her morale high ground just shattered. Oof!!!! Hahaha I love it.
Sombra's voice dripped with sarcasm as he said, "And I'm sure she would have gone with you just as willingly as she did with me, if you had only asked her nicely."
"You. Kidnapped. Her. There was nothing'willing'about it. I Don't know if you've realized this, but kidnapping a young mare, It's kind of a dick thing to do!"
"You were trying to do exactly what you're accusing me of, the only difference being that you were going to commit an act of murder in the process."
"Oh, sowe'rethe bad guys? What about you, Mister Death-and-Destruction? You destroyed half of the Chrystal Empire when you went on that rampage of yours."
Hi, Pot. This is kettle. You're black.
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What you just said and yes, life IS ugly, brutal and complicated. It's called "natural selection" and it weeds out the weaklings and cowards. Deal with it, people.
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I like you.
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DAMN RIGHT!
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I like you too
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And I have to agree with Sharon, too, even though it's not so much at odds with the others I side with as it is SIDEWAYS (which is why I agree with ADJUSTING her viewpoint, not doing a 180). Starlight seems so damn determined to HATE on Sombra without giving him a chance it's sickening. She was willing to commit MURDER - go against her principals of rehabilitating ANYPONY just to throw in with Twilight. That's very weak-minded, or at least getting swept up with the mob mentality and she doesn't strike me as that kind of pony in the show itself. This must have been an interesting part to write, Mick.
Intriguing debate. Also, I'm sure Fluttershy is glad Celestia didn't kill him.
Okay, this chapter was full of cringe. I mean, it was already pretty awful when you had a bunch of ponies fly off the handle and decide to go homicidal, but then using that to refute the position that they should have been taking all along if they were in character is kind of a... self-own on the author's part?
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Except they did NOT fly off the handle. Knowing ONLY what Twilight & Co know about the situation, I'm sure the only reason MORE ponies didn't join up with Twilight's attempted assassination is because she didn't tell anyone else. Consider that, from their point of view, based entirely on the little knowledge they have about the situation, Sombra is a heartless monster who's kidnapped one of their best friends, to be his 'bride' no less. From their point of view the nicest person they've ever know has been dragged off by the devil himself who may or may not be raping her nightly. Recall that Sombra is a relic of a MUCH darker age and his reputation IS the kind that would imply he'd have no issue forcing his 'wife' to perform 'her duty'. Actually he DOES do that, in part because Fluttereshy is so terrified of him she doesn't tell him no. All in all cold blooded, and quick, murder is TAME compared to what a LOT of ponies might want to do to Sombra. Also recall that ponies DID think Sombra was dead when the Crystal Heart blew him apart, AND NOBODY WAS BOTHERED BY THAT. It's rather telling that he's the only villain to ever get killed and nobody even seems to care.
This of course leads to Sombra's point. There ARE evil's so great that killing them is the proper solution. There are lines that, when crossed, indicate that the person doing so simply needs to be put down for the benefit of society as a whole. Lines Sombra himself ADMITS he's already crossed before. His point to Starlight, who can only see him as a demon trying to conquer new lands, is that what he's trying to do is free his home (IMO this peninsula is far more of a home to him than the Crystal Empire ever was) from EXACTLY the kind of evil they want to kill him for. Sombra never denies being a monster deserving of death. His exact words were 'these hooves were made for killing', because he IS a killer, a rather gifted one a that. His point is that the raiders are just as deserving of death. The crown upon his head was never the real goal. It is simply part of the tools he wanted for the actual goal. Removing the plague upon his home, a plague nearly identical to the one he brought upon the Crystal Empire. While he's probably never going to admit it, the implication is pretty clear that Sombra is, in his own way, trying to atone for his own crimes by preventing others from suffering at the hooves/hands/claws of those still committing them.
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What I love about this story is all the misunderstandings that lead to tragedy.
Love this latest chapter!
I agree with Sombra. what he's doing is actually very justifiable given what he's saw going on while in his astral form.
Also I can't wait to meet the little Prince or Princess currently taking residence inside Fluttershy. I do find myself hoping it's a boy.
Wait...Sombra has a thing for blue eyes?
You cheeky little bugger, you.
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I'ma need my fix of another chapter asap
Ever since I started reading your story, I found myself wondering why I love your interpretation of Sombra so much. And just now, with this chapter, it finally clicked.
Sombra is a true example of a Lunar Guard.
Let me explain. When I was a child, I dreamt of mighty warriors clad in armor as black as night. They moved in the shadows, and fought for those who could not protect themselves. I knew them as the Lunar Guard, recruited from those who had seen the deepest pits of despair and persevered. They lived by 7 tenets, of which I live by even today:
1) In Suffering there is Strength. With Strength, one can ease the Suffering.
2) In Death, there is no Glory. In Life, there is only Duty.
3) In Fear, there is Weakness. Know no Fear, and Know no Weakness.
4) In Death there is Peace. Know not of Peace.
5) In Victory, there is Redemption. In Failure, there is Damnation.
6) In Planning there is Safety. In Action, there is Success.
7) In Life, there is Love. In Love, there is Loss. In Loss, there is purpose.
I never understood why such figures have been burned into my mind since such youth. My mother believes they are memories of some past life. I do not know for sure myself. Even though I do not know whether or not they were real, I know in my heart that the Lunar Guard are true symbols of heroism and sacrifice. They do what they do because they must, and because they are the only ones who can. Their battlecry is one that I shall never forget:
"Our will is unbending! Our fury; unrelenting! Our repentance; unending! You cannot break what has already broken!"
To me, your Sombra is the perfect example of a Lunar Knight. He learned from his suffering and learned to inflict what he bore, making it his own power. He does not fight for pride or greed, but instead out of obligation to the weak. He crushed his own fears and steeled his will to become an unflinching protector of the downtrodden. He chooses to live a hard life to ensure that the lives of those around him are easier. He celebrates each step forward, but never forgets his failures or regrets. He leads his people from the frontline, heading each battle and bearing the brunt of his own sinful work. Most importantly of all, he has internalized and learned from the pains and traumas he has suffered. He has learned from his past mistakes and has grown over time into the ruler he is now. He sees his own failures as opportunities to grow and learn, and although he is stubborn, he is humble enough to accept the critique of others.
I see your Sombra as a true hero, and I thank you for writing him as such.
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Sounds like a good premise for a novel.
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Thank you kindly. I intend on writing a book eventually. I hope my Lunar Knights will be as noble as beautifully complex as your Sombra is.