Chapter 1
Gosling awoke to the sound of a page being turned. His eyes were almost crusted shut. There was a painful throbbing deep within his ears and the pressure inside of his head threatened to make his eyes pop out of his skull. His vision was blurry, but he could make out the vague outline of Celestia beside his bed. He guessed that she was reading.
“Whatcha reading?” he asked in a raspy voice that made Celestia look up from her book.
She did not reply, not right away. She filled up a small plastic cup with ice and water from a pitcher by the bed and then slipped a straw into it. She held it up to Gosling’s lips so that he might drink. As she assisted him by getting the end of the straw between his lips, she replied, “It is a book about animancy.”
After drinking about half of the water in the plastic cup, Gosling let the straw slip from between his lips. He let out a feeble cough, cleared his throat a few times, his ears twitching as he tried to get rid of the tickle in his throat, and he asked, “Is that animal magic?”
“No.”
As the word was spoken, he could see Celestia’s rose coloured eyes staring into his own. He saw compassion, kindness, there was so much emotion in those timeless, immortal eyes. He saw her lips move and her nostrils flared as she inhaled.
“Animancy… soul magic.”
Gosling shook his head. “I don’t understand. I’ve never heard the word before. Teach me. I am ever your student.” As he spoke, he saw Celestia’s smile widen and he knew that he had said the right thing. He had touched her.
“Little is known about animancy. I am one of the few capable of such magic.” Taking a deep breath, Celestia’s barrel expanded and her wings twitched against her ribs. “After Luna fell, I begin to study animancy… I studied souls. I had a theory that Luna’s soul had become corrupted, and that her physical body had changed to reflect the changes done deep within her being.”
Struggling to understand, Gosling maintained eye contact, but said nothing. Now did not feel like the time for questions or talking. Now was the time to listen and to learn. He waited for Celestia to continue.
“There were others, of course, such as Sombra. Those with the darkest souls became corrupt and oftentimes, though not always, their outer appearance changed to reflect their inner darkness. But this wasn’t always true. I spent a thousand years observing, studying, watching, and trying to understand.”
The cup was placed up near Gosling’s lips once again and he drank while Celestia spoke.
“I tried to understand the very nature of the soul… the best and the worst. I wandered the astral realms, trying to understand how astral projections formed. In the astral realms, I appear very much as I do in my physical body. But other creatures can look very different. Evil creatures take on a very twisted, distorted, and some might even say evil appearance. There are ugly creatures that are very beautiful in the astral realms. I tried to understand the hows and the whys.”
“I have a hard time believing that any version of you could ever be ugly,” Gosling said in a low, scratchy whisper as the straw remained tucked into the corner of his mouth. He saw Celestia’s cheeks take on a faint shade of pink, a rosy warm glow, as she blushed through her fine white pelt.
“I made a mirror that showed creatures for what they really are… as one might see them in the astral realms. A former student of mine looked into this mirror and saw herself as an alicorn… she failed to understand what the mirror was really showing her…” Celestia’s words trailed off and she looked sad. She turned away from Gosling and stared at the wall for a minute, and then, with a slow turn of her head, she returned her attention to him.
“After all of my studies, I learned that souls can be shaped… that unlimited potential can be unlocked… it can be tapped into and molded like clay.” Celestia’s smile vanished and she sat there, looking hesitant. “It is like cultivating plants to obtain better yields, or trimming the shrubberies until they become topiaries.”
“Is this how Twilight became an alicorn?” Gosling asked.
“Yes,” Celestia replied, looking surprised. “So quick to catch on… but the first was Cadance. I tapped into Cadance’s limitless potential. I reshaped her soul, gave it new purpose and form, and when I did, Cadance’s body changed to reflect what she was on the inside. She was not born an alicorn, but by removing everything that held back her full potential, her inner alicorn revealed itself.”
“Are we all alicorns inside?” Gosling watched as Celestia filled up the plastic cup once again with more ice and water.
“Some more than others.” Celestia held the cup up near Gosling’s muzzle and slipped the straw between his lips. “I learned so much from Cadance. It gave me new directions, it gave me ideas, it confirmed so many things that I held as theories or suspected. It was proof of what I was seeking.” As she spoke, Gosling sucked water through the straw, his cheeks bulging in and out as he sucked down the cold, refreshing liquid.
Drinking the water and this short conversation left Gosling feeling exhausted. His eyelids felt heavy and his whole body felt like lead. He yawned, making a low whining sound as he did so, and then smacked his lips as Celestia sat the half filled cup down on the bedside table.
“All ponies have potential,” Celestia said in a low whisper as she began to tuck Gosling’s blankets around him and tried to make him comfortable. She lifted his head for a moment and fluffed his pillow. “Some ponies have more potential than others. They rise above difficult circumstances and become extraordinary individuals. I hope this doesn’t sound sinister, but I even created an agency that would allow me to study those with extraordinary souls. Perhaps I will show you sometime. These are ponies that I know for certain will change the world, and some of them already have. Wonderful ponies who have marvellous stiff upper lips…” Her words trailed off and she smiled as Gosling yawned again.
“But those with the greatest potential, ponies like Cadance and Twilight, I have unlocked their potential just to see how far they might go. I have to be careful, Gosling. I cannot be reckless. I have to elevate those I know I can trust. I’d like to see everypony live up to their full potential…”
As Celestia paused, Gosling took the opportunity to say something. “A lot of them would squander their potential… plus, if we all became alicorns, it would take away our greatest strength as ponies.”
“And just what do you think that is, Gosling?” Celestia asked.
“Diversity,” Gosling said without hesitation in a soft voice. “I see it in the guard. We’re better for having all three tribes in the guard. I see it when I look at Seville and think about him as a reporter. He’s bound to have perspectives that are unique to him being an earth pony. He can’t use magic like unicorns and he can’t fly. He has a lot to offer by virtue of who he is and what tribe he comes from. Having wings or having magic might take away what makes him special, which is his unique perspective.”
Ears perking, Celestia’s eyes narrowed. After a moment of looking thoughtful, she nodded. “Well said, Gosling, and how very true. It certainly gives me a little something to think about. Some ponies will live up to their full potential by virtue of who and what they are.”
Unable to stop himself, Gosling yawned and then his eyelids fluttered as he struggled to keep them open. He was fighting a losing battle. He focused on the sound of Celestia’s breathing, the regular, steady sound of her inhaling and exhaling. It was soothing, but it also made his drowsiness worse. After another yawn, he slipped away into a comfortable slumber, going to where pain could not reach him.
Reaching out her wing, Celestia stroked Gosling’s cheek. “I wonder what sort of potential you have, my little pretty peacock pegasus… so many questions.” Her whispered words had no listeners and Celestia shook her head as she lifted up her book.
Holding up her book before her muzzle, Celestia returned to reading.
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I like it.
So many implication ty for releasing this.
It has potential
You going to drop a bomb in TPROTS aren't you.
One of the reasons I gave myself for cutting this was the Stiff Upper Lip Society reference. I don't know how many people have read Venenum Iocus... I mean, it helps when there is context. A lot of people have read this and are shocked to discover that it is part of a larger universe.
It was a tough choice. I wanted a story that could stand alone on its own merits, to some extent. Ugh, I keep second guessing myself.
7407150
The bombs are already away.
7407156 i have been wondering so much about that...
7407159 oh...... OH! Oh! I got it! I got it. I figured it out.
This sorta fits in with my headcanon when ti comes with Alicorns. An alicorn is in a sense 'born' one, but in the sense of the potential is there. They themselves mut unlock that form.
Celestia has the power to see these potentials, but it is via her seheer experience and age. The soul cannot be comprehend via intelligence, but via wisdom.
I've kinda linked the concepts of Animancy and Necromancy myself. Animancy is the magic of the soul, be it of the living or the dead, but Necromancy is the corrupted, abusive form of it.
Of course i ewasn't sure if i wanted to go with these subjects in a story. Been carving one out since i first discovered da ponies. But this...... i think its convinced me a bit here.
......hmmm. If i can offer up a thought. What if the powr of the Tree of Harmony was, in a sense, Animancy?
7407314
That was sort of the general idea of what I was going for in the Weed Verse.
Flamingo wanted to bear an element of harmony. She wanted to be the Element of Pinkness. More will be told about her story in time. In a sense, she got what she wanted. When she was cut down, and was on the verge of death, it was the tree that made her what she is now. She became something that reflected her potential.
At the risk of sounding insensitive, let me be blunt:
Your worries about cutting this is like worrying that your 10000-story building will be too tall by adding a guardrail that's 2 inches taller than standard.
Your works are massive, and so many hints and clues are dropped and left and right and in plain sight that YOU are the only one that can keep track of them all.
But that's just the limitation of the formatting here, what with the single-chapter posting you use.
Short version: keep it, or not; you're more than capable of making it work regardless.
7407314
Also, intelligence versus wisdom:
Intelligence is knowing that a tomato is a fruit.
Wisdom is knowing that you don't put it in a fruit salad.
7407332 also thinking on the fact that the elements of harmony rpresent friendship and harmony. basically multiple souls connecting to one another and obtaining theri truest potential.
one could say that magic that entails emotions has its roots in such power.
7407345 XD
Honestly I really enjoyed this. I would not have minded if I had to read another 1,000 words where this fits into place in TPRoS.
But I'm glad you desided to restore this. I enjoyed the Stiff upper lip society reference as well. Once I realized that all of these storie are in one established continuity I had to read them all! I'm glad that I did so.
-BFBL
7407345
And charisma is selling your tomato fruit salad as Salsa.
7407675
7407678
The six Stats in terms of Tomatoes and Eggplants:
Strength is the ability to crush ripe tomatoes and eggplants with you bare hands;
Dexterity is the ability to dodge a thrown tomato or eggplant;
Constitution is the ability to withstand eating a rotten tomato or eggplant;
Intelligence is the Ability to recognize that tomatoes and eggplants are fruit;
Wisdom is knowing not to make fruit salads from them;
Charisma is the ability to sell your 'zesty salsa' made of eggplant and tomato fruit salad.
7407687
The version I heard was similar:
"Intelligence is knowing that a tomato is a fruit. Wisdom is knowing that a tomato would not make a good smoothie."
"But isn't a tomato smoothie just ketchup?"
"GUYS I FOUND THE BARD!!!"
...y'know, Kudz, at first blush, I think it's good that you cut this.
It's good, and it's definitely great worldbuilding, but I don't know that it's relevant to the Swans story. At least, not at the moment--but I am admittedly rather behind. And I, for one, am fond of lean stories, with (at least most of) the fat trimmed off. Helps focus the story on what's important.
That said, it's good that you released it anyways. It's an interesting read, and helps to frame Celestia more as a clever manipulator (in the best possible way).
Keep it up!
Is this canon in the show or is this a much better excuse for Twilicorn?
7408617
Personally - as someone who is more a fan of worldbuilding than is perhaps entirely sane - I like this rather a lot. I actually like the intermeshing of the full Weedverse, and the oblique reference to the SULS is, well, oblique enough that one needn't have read Venenum Iocus. Or, if nothing else, while one might not exactly know what Celestia is referring to, it's not mentioned in such a way that one needs to, in order to understand the scene.
7408629 do you need some Cooked duck?
You know Gosling's "diversity," argument would hold more weight if alicorns weren't ageless. "Congratulations Seville the value of your Earth Pony insights mean you get to wither away with the sands of time while I watch." (The foreshadowing is pretty strong that Gosling is going to become an alicorn himself before this series is over)
It's a good thing RealityCheck doesn't post on Fimfiction anymore or his rant could go on for pages.
7408745
Perspectives.
Gosling speaks from a relatively inexperienced mortal viewpoint. He's young, still developing his world view, and goes with what has left the largest impression on him during his short life: the guard. He sees diversity as being an asset. Stating his opinion doesn't make him right or wrong; indeed, it is only an opinion, but he does have some valuable insight.
He is also quite stoned out of his gourd at the moment, doped up on opiates and painkillers.
Gosling has displayed some remarkable shortsightedness that nobody seems to have picked up on yet. At least, nobody has commented on it. He tends to see things as they are, rather than as they could be. This isn't a bad thing. He's observant. But he could do with a little educating and refinement.
It's funny... he has several flaws that people seem to have not noticed. I am not sure why this is and I can only venture some guesses.
7408783 The major problem is we LOVE that bastard. Is hard to see flaws in someone we love, at least when they are not that obvious.
We love Luna, but it´s easy to see her flaws...you know, the whole "conquer the world and make it drown in shadows" thing.
Hmn, very interesting. It does open up the possibilities quite a bit for Sunset, Shining, Blueblood, etc., any number of worthy possibilities. Maybe even Starlight, though that definitely brings up the "gotta be very, very careful" issue.
Also, silly Celestia, alicorn swans don't quack.
7408783 I'm aware. I saw the discussion on the Wardens and how people didn't get that their disconcerting moral greyness was part of the entire point.
I suspect that if becoming an Alicorn only granted eternal youth and access to the magics of the other two tribes Celestia would be happy to grant it to every pony in Equestria. It's the whole powerful enough to move the sun and moon on their own that's the sticking point preventing her from doing so.
7408783 immortality is in itself a curse, least if robbed of the mortal pserceptive. It creates sterility of the mind, body, and soul. The higher you look the less you end up actually seeing. You become blind of what is around you and their significance.
When a single pony accomplishes more things in a hundreds years of lfie than an immortal has in five millennia, who is truly less signfiicant?
Gosling is short sighted but he is not wrong. Harmony is not built upon all thigns being the same, but on difference, and overcoming them.
7408783 It is difficult to point out flaws when one also shares them. It's considered 'normal' in the eyes and therefore not considered a flaw.
7412736
Sorry I ruined your 69 votes D:
I like the reference to The Weed. I know it's the same universe but we just don't see the crossover often.
7413219 well, now its 96, which is almost as good.
i think this chapter lies out the Weedvers' overreaching plot of positive growth rather nicely and clearly
7408629 I should be an acorn, I live in an Oak tree...err tce!
At time you wrote this, including it probably seemed a mistake, but now in hindsight of current chapters I think it would give better background to the overall story now. Although it lays it on a bit thick that suggests what you intend for Gossy.
Hmmm....
I actually really love this chapter, it does a lot to enhance the Weed 'Verse as a whole. I am sad to see this wonderful chapter was cut from your story.
It was nice.
Well that was cute.
I wonder what sort of potential Gosling has and how it would change for him to be the first male Alicorn in recorded history?