Till Sleep Claimed Him
My eyes drifted.
How many years had it been? I can’t recall. It had been long enough to have this society develop in this land of ponies. Which was long enough for them to give me this bed to lie in, and this ceiling to look at.
I scanned the ceiling once more. This was one of the newer bunkhouses, designed by the son of one of the earth ponies… Orange was a good father; he’d groomed his son into becoming a pillar of the community. The constant influx of revolutionary inventions in the orchards and in Tall Tale’s architecture was evidence of that. Each beam stretched out below the thatched-roof above was immaculately carved, and when I squinted, small carvings of ponies and aspects of their lives could be seen, all just as carefully made. It was far better than anything I could have done myself, had I been the one to teach it to them.
But just like everything else, they had learned to operate without me. They still called me their Keeper, but they treated me like Andrew.
Andrew, the old man.
I unclenched my fists. “I swore,” I whispered.
Two weeks have passed now, and days since the herbal grasses and medicines have been able to quell the pain. Bedridden, though, a far more eternal pain leeched; I was ensnared in the worst trap of all: my thoughts.
“I’m being left behind.”
I was a farce. They hadn’t really needed me. They still would have reached this point without me. When I was young, sure, I would’ve never said that, but the truth stands bare to me now, decades down the line. Once, we had been an aspiring settlement. Now? A small kingdom, and me—the Keeper of the kingdom—little more than a figurehead. Tall Tale and the surrounding villages grew rapidly without me, and technology I had never thought to conceptualize was being disseminated faster than I could be introduced to it all.
The conflicts, the rise to ‘power.’ I’d been there. Led the charge. But I had not been the way forward, I was just that, an instigator. An accelerant to the embers of fate.
“I’m sick of this sickness,” I said to one of the ponies as they applied the last herbal remedies for the day. “When do I get out of here?”
The pony smiled kindly. They were genuine, but they had no words to offer me beside "Goodnight."
I closed my eyes. I opened them. I squeezed them shut.
This is no sickness. The pain is completely within. There is no cure.
A hum. It came from the doorway, and filtered across the room. It was pure, magical, and eased the pain. I opened my eyes once more, and began to sit up.
“Bushkeeper.”
A shudder passed through me. That voice.
I weakly slung myself onto my feet as the pain resurfaced. I grabbed at the carved staff by the head of my bed, and pulled it into both hands. I turned, and crept towards the doorway with the staff pointed outwards.
“You can’t be here!” I gasped.
She spoke with the same voice, but her body was not the same; for the first time since we’d met, Harmony stood without a puppet. The god had taken the form of an impossible tribe of pony: a tall winged-unicorn. One thing stood vividly different, however: where once she had been surrounded by an ethereal blue miasma, Harmony stood now in vibrant hues: a red mane and tail, and a pristine alabaster coat. The mist was gone, though she still appeared ghostly transparent.
“You… you haven’t shown yourself in years! You should be gone!”
She didn’t move.
My grip tightened. I looked at the ponies’ beds to my right, and placed myself between them and her. “You won’t hurt them! Not anymore!”
Harmony’s visage softened; her visage creased outward, and a slight frown was set in place. She stepped forward.
“No…” I said. I shook as she stepped closer. “Stay back!”
She stopped halfway, and there she stood still, her face still locked into that look.
“I have come with a promise.”
“What?”
“Time is meaningless to ‘us’. But we have spent a significant amount of time looking for a way to be rid of you, Keeper. To reclaim our power that you have awoken in your diaspora.”
My face visibly hardened, but Harmony continued gently. “But a far greater power has already laid claim to you.”
“What do you—?”
“Tonight, you will draw your last breath.”
Silence reigned. I stood frozen as her face contorted further.
I lowered my arms. “Why should I believe you? You brought ruin to the Greenland, sought to destroy what we built, and continued to do so for years after!” As I finished, I realized my lungs were heaving. A cough erupted from me before I could hold it back, and I released my grip on my staff to hold my chest.
“You have no reason to trust me,” Harmony admitted. “Just as ‘we’ had no reason to trust mortal creatures with power. But ‘I’ have changed. Because of you.”
I let my eyes soften, but reaffirmed my stance. “You’re not possessing my ponies anymore,” I bit.
I watched Harmony search my face. She spoke quietly as her eyes landed on mine: “Mint’s legacy will not be forgotten. I promise you that.”
My breath hitched as I recoiled. “Don’t you dare say her name!” I snapped. Reflexively, I turned around and looked to where the ponies were sleeping. My eyes widened, and I walked over to them. I crouched over the blue-green unicorn closest to my side of the room; she had stopped breathing. I checked her pulse, and waited.
Nothing.
And then something.
I turned back to Harmony and stayed where I was. “What did you do to Minty?” I hissed. My eyes strayed as I searched the rest of the room; all the other ponies’ barrels weren’t moving. “To… to all of them?” I muttered aghast.
“We are in my time,” she answered as she crossed the room. As I stood again, she stopped. “Your ponies are not hurt, and will not be; the only one affected by this passing is you. This grants us… more time.”
Her face was still lit by that frown when I returned my focus to her. I scanned her with my eyes, and she let me do so without rebuttal.
“You want to talk.”
“Yes. I wish to speak with Andrew.”
I shuddered as my name passed her lips. “He’s listening.”
She sat down on her haunches—and more out of reflex from years of lowering myself to speak with my ponies—I lowered myself to the floor and sat, too. From where she sat, she loomed over me, but there was no fiery anger in her eyes, and her tone remained easing and gentle.
“I do not associate with the Sky Gods any longer.”
I was immediately at attention. “Why?”
She sighed. “Their anger... is unquenchable. They incessantly disparage your name and your intentions. They have sought to understand what you meant when you once addressed us directly. 'We' have sought to understand what you meant by your parting words.” A laugh bubbled out of her, surprisingly natural. “I was envious of you, an affliction I never could have seen affecting one such as I. We had tried desperately to understand you, and many have gone mad. But I know now what you meant.” She paused. “You were able to unite your own kind, when we could not.”
"...Are the other gods gone, then?"
Harmony shook her head. "No. The gods, separate as they may be, will no doubt come together when your herd are at their weakest. I am sure of this. You have done much to prepare for this event, but the work is never over."
“...Harmony,” I began. Harmony's ears bristled. “If I can really trust your word, what am I supposed to do? You're practically telling me that the Sky Gods are prepared to gloat over my... my passing.” I sagged. “And if you're right, then there's nothing I can do.”
“You are not hopeless, Andrew. You are hope itself. A god of your own, as you once said. The power your herd draws from.” She stood and walked to where I sat. “Ultimately, you have completed your vision, and the Sky Gods have achieved nothing. They are in ruin without me, but they will only be held back by this power vested in your... ponies. I will stand vanguard over your work for as long as your herd wields my power.” Harmony reached a hoof out, and placed it on my shoulder. It was warm to the touch. “This is my promise, and one I intend to keep.”
I grabbed her hoof firmly. She was real flesh. “Please, don’t be lying to me.”
“You have done great things, Andrew. You are no pinnacle of perfection, but it is from you that I have learned that even gods cannot be perfect. You have done the best with the power at your disposal, and made them available to the ones in your keeping. You have sown the seeds to a greater design, one in need of endless time and care. You have created a greater paradise than the one we had envisioned. I seek to make amends with you, Keeper. Your herd will not be forgotten, nor be treated wayward by the world. Your actions will withstand your time.”
My eyes watered. I breathed, and collapsed into her. Harmony embraced me.
“Thank you,” I murmured.
“Speak,” she responded. “Speak your heart to me.”
“I can’t help them.”
“You have. You set them on this path.”
“But they’ve been doing all this on their own.”
“And they would have never seen the chance without your guidance.”
“And yet you say that they won’t be safe.”
“My boons saw fit to seek you, and now I will place my boons with them. You worked with what you were given, and you have done more in a task that I had once deemed impossible.”
Harmony slid away from me, but I continued on. “I tried so hard. I did all I could to raise them. But I feel I haven’t done enough. And I never will be enough! I could have done so much more, but I’ve been held back by… by… myself. I got old so quickly, outdated and useless. They stayed young, aspiring and alive. They create such wonderful things, Harmony. You know. You’ve seen what they’re doing. What they’re capable of! I wasn’t able to help them anymore, and now I’m too old to do anything more for them, too old to even stand beside them, too old to stay any longer. Why was I destined to come here if it all had to end in this… this pain?”
“You have struggled for them, Andrew.”
“I have, but—”
“And you have succeeded. As insignificant as your words and actions may seem on the surface of the world, this land is marked by the steps of your kind. Your journey was not the first to draw power from the Sky Gods, but it was the first in this world to truly succeed. You have come here and accomplished what many mortals have failed to achieve. You have ventured into this veritable land, fought the ancient powers of the gods that have destroyed other mortals for less, and overcome to create a new breed of mortal. Ask yourself, where does this pain truly stem from? Your disdain for your actions, or from your fear of a world where you cannot be present?”
I said nothing. I already knew my answer.
“You must struggle before you find peace. You have found your peace, and have lived in it. But your words and final days have told me the whole, and unaltered truth. You wish for time. Time to watch the new world you’ve shaped. To watch it grow, prosper. To see the consequences of your words, your teachings, your ponies. Where they will go, how they will grow, and what they will remember of your name. But now at your time’s end, you feel you have accomplished none of these things, and will never know of these consequences. You have used your life to craft a prophecy, and you wish to follow your tenets to their end. But you cannot.” Harmony extended a hoof. “Perhaps you have suffered enough.”
I took it.
She led me through the room back towards my bed. I sat down, and she stood beside me, levitating my staff away from me to lean it gently against the bed's headrest. “I don’t want to go.”
“I understand. I did not want to let my power be freed, either.”
I let out a mellow laugh. “It was… addicting. To be part of it all. To watch it grow. To be the one growing it while they followed. And then they stopped following, and they went on with their new lives without me.”
“Mortals change, Andrew. You—and now I—know this.”
“Yes,” I said, looking out across the bunkhouse where my ponies slept. “And I guess… I guess I am happy with how it all turned out.” I smiled.
From the corner of my eye, Harmony smiled, too. “I am... happy, to hear that.”
I sat there, watching over my ponies. Harmony waited quietly.
“Well, what now?“ I asked.
“Now, I have one last gift for you, Andrew. You might find it as wonderful as the gift of leading your herd into prosperity.”
I looked at her.
“I have been watching you since your first ripples in the state of this world, absorbing your thoughts and studying them. And I have made a collection of it. A collection that allows me to offer you this gift.”
“I offer you a dream. A dream of this life. A chance to relive your time with your ponies once more. To watch them grow, to watch them prosper, to be there with them to the end, once more.”
“Tonight, you will sleep. I will watch over you. You will dream of your lifetime. Of your prophecy. Of your ponies. Of this world and the time between.”
“And you will pass. Your ponies will continue without you, but you will always be a part of their mortal heritage. You will see to the past, and I will see to the future. This is my promise to you, as the eternal keeper of your ponies. You will sleep, and you will live this long dream.”
“Do you wish to dream this dream, Andrew?”
“Yes,” I whispered, barely comprehensible.
But she heard; Harmony lit her horn in a swirl of magic, and I laid down.
The carvings of the ponies above me smiled down, and the carving of me among them waved, too.
Harmony’s light bounced off the cloudiness in my eyes, and I leaned my head back further.
I shut my eyes. Through my eyelids, the light grew. Intenser, closer, and closer.
I thought. Of my life before and after. Of both worlds. Of my ponies.
Soon, all that I sensed was nothing. Nothing, save for a hum.
And I thought no more.
A hum. Impossibly incandescent, the hum filled the air, and so too did the scent of deodorant, fresh linen, and the dense aura of sugary drinks. All of this wafted in from the back of the minivan, just as the passing woodland welcomed the visitors to its sanctuary; the forest lush with green and brown, earthy and natural. The unnatural dirt road beneath the metal carapace lashed out at the battered car’s wheels, but the occupants responded with mirth and rancorous laughter, and the car with its lingering, ever-building hum.
Andrew woke.
“Looks like shotgun’s finally awake!”
Andrew turned. His friend’s face focused after a moment.
“You good, man?”
Andrew’s eyes drifted out the front window of the van. The trees shimmered in the early morning sunlight, and he reached a hand out over the dashboard, slowly turning it over in the warmth. He yawned, but the sound was buried underneath the cacophony in the back-seats. “Yeah... yeah, I’m good.”
“Ha, well you still sleep like a brick.” The corner of Andrew’s mouth ticked up at that. “Hey, do me a favor and check the GPS for me. Road's been full of potholes, and I don't want to walk the rest of the way.” As if to emphasize his point, his hands rolled as he maneuvered the van around one of the gouges in the earth.
Andrew peered over his friend’s arms and squinted at the device. The green-and-blue map on the display was featureless, save for one yellow road winding through the unmarked forest. His heart thumped in his chest, but he thought nothing of it; the end of the road was ahead, and their hike through the hinterland was about to begin.
Grinning, Andrew turned to the rest of his friends.
Click here for Post-Epilogue Content
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wait so is he stuck in a time loop?
Very nice, glad to see this epilogue! Great work with it my friend.
Now I just want to see him reappear in the pony lands sometime in their future...
Well this is unexpected! Thank you for this one last chapter!
I was not expecting that. huh. welp that just makes it so much better and a little creepy at the same time. thank you for that little surprise at the end there.
hmmm i wounder what twilight would say if she met him.
Will this get a sequel of some type?
10345279
No, more of a jump to the left [to pony land] and then a step to the right [returning to the instant he left]. But it's the pelvic thrust that'll drive you insane.
Another analogy? Ok. How about Narnia and that tricky wardrobe? You step through to another land, live there till you're old and grey. But upon stepping back through you are returned home, unaged, a single moment after you left.
The best part is you have no proof of what transpired.
10345288
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10345321
You are all very welcome, and thank you for reading!
10345291
I'm sure he would be very proud of what his little friends have accomplished, and eternally grateful that Harmony kept her promise.
10345323
Twilight would be ripping him a new one for inadvertently causing ponies to travel all around Equestria moving invasive species (like poison joke) back and forth. If only he had followed the modern standards for agriculture and cultivation...
10345356
No sequels! I think Andrew's rightfully earned his rest, and even then, there isn't much to tell save for the story of ponies; I think the show has already laid claim to that tale and done it justice.
10345279
Andrew is dreaming of his time in Equestria. One last dream before forever.
10345411
I'd say that not having proof would be the worst part, but that might be me.
This was a nice ending, but it keeps our hero from finding out what happens next!
10345411
Neither.
He is simply reliving what happened in the dream. then he will pass on.
To be honest, I'm semi-mixed when it copes to the trope of the ending directly linking back to the start (ie like Mortal Engines or Artemis Fowl)
10345482
Eternally so, like a cancelled series that ends on 'next time'!
10345485
I honestly drew my inspiration for the final sequence from Futurama's themes, and to an extent, its ending.
I didn't want to send Andrew into the future, so I ended it here with that concept of 'being sent back', because this chapter is my send-off to the world of Bushkeeper, and the main theme I wanted to stress with this chapter was that this is all just someone's story, and in this medium, one you can reread without consequence. But Andrew's struggles were still real. The response of people wanting to "see what happens next" and being kind of disappointed with what was given bummed me out during the original ending; it bothered me enough to write this.
Since you grasped the concept easily enough, I'd be interested to hear if you thought this wrapped things up a lot better than the original ending. If you don't really remember the previous ending or the story in general, that's fine. Thanks for reading, and for commenting!
Thanks for rounding the story out, it always bothers me to read a story that just peters out.
10345721
Hey, I'm glad it worked for you!
Honestly....wouldn't mind an epilogue or something. Don't get me wrong, I love how this story ends, but....a part of me wants to know something. Will they still remember him? Sure, it's been so long since the start of their civilization, but I'd be happy with maybe some old songs or maybe a cave painting that some archeolepones find or something. I know this story is finished, and not much else can probably improve upon this tale you've woven through thick, thin, and thyme, but....one can hope. And I suppose that's all one can do now. Anyways, I'm happy to see this send off, even if it made me cry a bit.
Thank you for completing the story
Heartbreaking and heart-fixing at the same time, i like it, though I do want an epilogue
10346524
Thank you all for reading and commenting, really.
10346520
I know how you feel. And I don't want to go breaking hearts, but I really just can't do that proper justice. This story's been my own foal, and as the bad parent seeking redemption, I've done my best to close this ending while leaving it as open as possible to interpretation. But I will do this...
This next part goes for you, 10346556, and everyone else who wants to know what happens next, and how Andrew is remembered. I'll tell you what I like to think happens, but I think the real magic for this ending is thinking about just how Andrew's legacy is carried on for yourself.
My personal take on how Andrew is remembered, and a short timeline, is as follows:
Andrew dreams. And when he passes that night, Harmony keeps her promise.
For hundreds of years, she keeps quite close to the ponies, helping them in times of minor crises (i.e, a harsh winter here, a bad bout of sickness there). Eventually, though, the ponies grow to the point that community in the larger villages isn't enough to keep their society together, and for the first time since Andrew's keeping, begin to develop systems to facilitate leadership: government.
Harmony, noting this is of Andrew's work, chooses not to interfere. A firm believer of fate, she chooses not to intervene even when the ponies begin to live under leaders of their same tribe. The division of the ponies unknowingly leaves behind artifacts from Andrew's time, and the ones who adopt these are earth ponies who continue to live in Tall Tale even when the unicorns and pegasi are gone.
During the events of Hearth's Warming, Tall Tale would've been where most of the food for the pegasi and unicorns was grown. Following the events of Hearth's Warming, more earth ponies would move to the newly founded Equestria. With the purpose of Tall Tale's exportation defunct, and content to continue following the isolated agrarian lifestyle promoted by Andrew, the earth ponies don't expand east towards Equestria, but rather move west. Harmony watches over all ponies, but she watches over these earth ponies far more closely. It is a silent, yet eternal watch.
In the modern day show-period, Tall Tale has been absorbed into Equestria's borders. But out in the Undiscovered West, small villages of earth ponies remember Andrew through carvings and murals etched in the mud and stone of their dens. Much of his life is passed down through oral tradition, but due to the harsh nature of living in the west, his story appears to be much more fierce and of brave fighting. In a sense, they are correct, but the gap between their current understanding of his story and the understanding of the true story is ambiguous enough that many earth ponies believe Andrew was real, but many ponies outside of the western villages liken him to that of a fictional hero.
To go into further depth, Andrew is presented in two forms: as a strong earth pony who led them, or as the biped he was, typically as a minotaur with horns to show the strength they say he possessed. While Andrew did get ponies to pass ideas down to one another, he did not share much about his own self with them; humanity is a foreign, and forgotten concept. What is clear to anyone looking into the other recorded histories of these earth ponies is that 'The Bushkeeper', as he is referred to in their traditions, is a tale that predates the events of Hearth's Warming, and if any curious ponies listened to the traditions long enough and followed them far enough, they might find themselves standing on an old section of Tall Tale's ancient orchard, where an unmarked cemetery for earth ponies, pegasi, unicorns, and for Andrew himself, lays at rest.
To many ponies, they feel that they were the first civilization to develop and advance because they were lucky. The princesses and Discord recognize there is more to this; while Harmony does not speak to them, they recognize that a minute, ancient tendril of magic tethers the god to a point unfathomably far into the past, centered in the cradle of pony civilization, Tall Tale. It is the longest kept spell in Equestria, and it is shown only to those who purposefully seek it out: it is a promise. Despite this, they never learn the full truth; it is too far in the past to feasibly travel. But they recognize that despite her aeons-long silence, Harmony is connected--somehow by word--to someone from a time at the cusp of pony civilization.
To the western earth ponies, Andrew is remembered as the first tribe leader, and the inner strength of pure will. To the Equestrians, Andrew is remembered as the very lessons of friendship and harmony, and their constant drive to innovate. To the immortals, Andrew is remembered as a promise, unbroken, and unerring.
10346766
I didn't expect anything to come from me stating my hopes, but I can say this without a doubt. That right there, that was nice. It was enough, and for that, I can't thank you enough.
It’s always nice to see a story finish, thank you for giving your time to complete it. It was a nice read even though I dislike how he went I can understand why it ultimately had to happen.
10347563
In any case, thank you for being here to see the end!
This was godly. I loved it. I cannot begin to explain how incredible this story was.
Mmm. Almost 3 years, OS. Finally finished. It feels so good, doesn't it? Finally wrapping up a long started story? Wonderful job with this. While it's not the sort of ending I'm sure many would want, I feel it's still appropriate for what this story was. Bravo.
10345514
From what i recall, the OG ending you did was a bit lackluster.
And I feel this is a better choice.
10346766
HELL....YES... Awesome end to it all, fixes up all the loose ends i remember, all in all: a great epilogue. Loved the story, keep writing well
10346766
Damn, the ending was already fantastic, and here you deliver even more! Much like how Andrew lamented not being around long enough, I too lamented not seeing the future outcome of his journey post-parting.
Thanks for everything, this was a fantastic end to a fantastic labor, both your actual effort and Andrews own fictional effort.
This was a fantastic (tired of that word yet?) read. Thanks again
Sorry for the late replies! I've been busy as of late.
10347985
I'm really glad to hear these words, thank you so much, and you're very welcome!
10349204
I thought long and hard about just what kind of ending I could go for that would satisfy me while not leaving readers behind, and I'm happy that you caught that. Thanks for sticking around, Rob!
10349587
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10350074
It's great to know that this chapter delivered properly! Thank you for the positive responses, and again, thank you all for reading.
10346766
Great ending. I even like what you wrote here. It would have made a nice epilogue, maybe told from the perspective of a pony archaeologist.
Brilliant story. Brilliant ending. I will say no more.
That was a strange bittersweet ending. I don't really know what to say about this story, mind you, it was a good story. Kind of scary though, thinking for the ending, living your life over and over again, ignorant of the fact that beyond the first occurrence of that life, the repeated experiences within this dream state don't exactly have any meaningful purpose to them in reality. My thoughts are weird.
10371356
Aye, sorry to hear it! This story is pretty rough, and I do agree that I did drive it a bit droll, but I hope you at least came away with some fun!
Question: did the sky gods manifest themselves as the wendigos on hearths warming eve as a last attempt to keep the pony tribes separate? A threat long forgotten from ages past, surfacing one last time? Also, would celestia and luna know of the Keeper, perhaps from a distant legend, or myth? Or would ponykind not remember him in any way at all?
10604756
Yes. This was addressed in the chapter "Through Their Individuality." The following is written near the end:
I'll refer you to this comment I made previously, as it might shine some light on how I envisioned him being remembered: 10346766
Thank you for reading and asking questions! I hope you enjoyed this little story.
10604906
Thank you, I did enjoy reading, it was fantastic! Also, I hate to pester, and I apologize if this was answered in a previous comment, but I must ask one last question: is the spirit in the tree of harmony that was manifested and spoke to the young six also the god harmony? I feel like I might be a fool for asking, as the answer seems like it might be obvious, but not quite to me. Again, apologies if such a thing has been asked and answered.
10604926
The Harmony in this story was written prior to Season 8 and Season 9's portrayals of the tree, so the given "character" of the show's tree isn't quite the same as my 'sky god' Harmony. Beyond those canon-not-canon semantics—and to properly answer your question—Harmony does take the form of a tree at points in the story; it was my intent that the tree be an extension of her, though not quite exactly her.
This was the perfect way to end the story and I am definitely saving it.
However, I would love to see two epilogue stories: 1 of the ponies' reaction to their Keepers passing and 2 how the Bushkeeper's legend affects the show era (i would love to know how alicorns fit within this story's universe.)
10721812
Thank you for reading, and I'm glad you enjoyed it! I think for now, though, Andrew is going to get his rest; I just can't bring myself to continue this world's story in particular. However, if you haven't seen my big comment attached to this chapter, please, check it out! I do outline some of my thoughts on how things would end up.
Here's the comment: 10346766
10724389
Thank you for this and it puts my mind at ease. I kind of wish that I could purchase the story as it is truly worth any money and there is enough difference in the story from the source material that I don't think you would have to worry about copyright, don't quote me on that though. I have one final question: what became of the Keratin carvings? I would love to read more of your content but I cannot find anything of this scope.
10724472
Wow, mighty high bar for you to set! I'm glad you enjoyed the story so thoroughly.
You got it!
Story production wise:
I wrote the carvings as a way of providing the ponies (or rather, Greeny) with a means to record their story during the events Bushkeeper. Unfortunately—and this is moving on to your next point a tad—I didn't really capitalize on them all too much, even at the end of the story here; they are woefully underdeveloped across the board. The way I'd hoped to portray them—as stories of Andrew and the herds—comes off as more of an after-thought, which I blame entirely upon my lack of foresight during world-building.
Lore wise:
As I attempted to show in this epilogue (albeit briefly), the carvings were meant to become a kind of traditional, priceless storytelling. As ponies settled, they moved from carving on objects to carving on their living spaces. Like a precursor to proper scripture, it would be a form of storytelling the earth ponies would use all around them thanks to its unique aspect: carving is a relatively simple art that can produce complex imagery.
I'm humbled by your profound affection, but also greatly surprised. My failing here was keeping a story with the scope of "pre-civilized Equestria" to such a confining word count. Though I'm glad you loved the idea as much as I loved writing it, I fear that it'll be quite some time before I'm ready to once again tackle world-building of this nature.
Still, I'm very happy to hear that Bushkeeper satisfied you in quite some capacity. I wish you the best with finding fics out there that can scratch that itch! There are still plenty of hidden gems out there.
Thank you once again for reading, and asking questions!
Nicely done, really enjoyed this one.
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I'm glad you did! Thanks for reading!
This story was a very fun read. I had a little trouble understanding things early on, but as the story progressed I understood more about the language barrier they had. The story also felt like it got very serious in the last couple chapter but in a good way. It created a very emotional end for the story that didn't seem to be there throughout the rest. Still loved the story and hope you write more.
ps: The loop at the end was kinda funny.
Third time reading this, still love it.
Thank you for giving it life.
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And I’m glad you enjoy it so much. Thank you for the kind words.
Thank you for a wonderful story! A story that can bring both tears, fear, and great joy. You did it all! Have fun!
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Thanks very much for reading!