Chapter 23.
The busiest times aboard a ship is when getting underway, and when reaching a destination. Today is no different. There really isn’t a natural bay or docks for the Wave Slasher for Greenbeard to let us off at our destination, so the last hour or so has been setting not one, but two anchors for the ship in the shallower shoal waters away from the shore. Greenbeard seems to be quite experienced in securing the ship, she calls out orders to her crew, and they leap to obey her as Ghaliya joins Guerina, Dawn, and myself while Backburn is supervising the readying of the launch. The launch is a smaller boat, propelled by oars, that will ferry us to the shore. As the launch touches the water, a small set of stairs is lowered for us to get aboard. I opt to teleport to the launch and light my horn, bringing Dawn down. Ghaliya waits patiently for me to gently lift her from the deck of the Wave Slasher down to the launch as well. Two horses of the crew scramble down the stairs as Greenbeard teleports herself, landing next to me as Ghaliya’s hooves touch the wood. A few called commands and the blocks that connected the launch to the ship are disconnected and the horses work the oars. It’s only a few minutes before Greenbeard calls out a command, having the horses push the oars harder, speeding us up to push up onto the beach. I leap out lightly and help my compatriots off.
Greenbeard pulls a pack from the floor of the launch and fits the saddle bags over her back, magically tossing a second one towards Backburn as she lights her horn, pushing the launch back into the water. She stands there for a long moment, watching her crew take the launch back to the larger ship. She turns and looks at me. “Well, lead the way, big guy.”
I glance at Dawn and at Ghaliya. “Aren’t you going to…?”
“Stay with the ship? How boring do you think that would be. The crew knows what to do, keep busy and eat food. Without me or Backburn to hover over their withers, they’ll have some relaxation time. I’d rather have fun with you.”
I frown. “This isn’t a fun stroll, Captain. We have quite a few miles to cover.” I glance at Dawn, who has pulled out a book and is flipping through the pages. “We need to be careful. I don’t even know what we would encounter while travelling.”
“I wouldn’t worry,” Dawn says, “This area is pretty deserted, though magic would be helpful in searching.”
I move over, nuzzling the blue mare. “Don’t worry, I will keep watch.”
“We will keep watch.” Greenbeard says firmly. She turns and looks at me. “I may not be landbound, but I am a strong back, a magic user, and I am being paid to ensure you make it back to Saddle Arabia.” She stops, scuffing a hoof in the sand. “I would be remiss if I just dropped you off, then waited, hoping you would return.” She glances at Backburn. “If the two of us can ensure that your mission is successful, it’s time well spent. Besides, you are our paycheck, you die, we don't get paid, you don't come back we are stuck waiting for who knows how long."
"In other words you don't want us running off and skipping out on the tab." Guerina snarks.
"From the griffins beak." The kirin directs a withering look at Guerina, getting a clacking beak and a smug smile in return.
“You really don’t need to, Captain.” I gesture to the ship. “That is your domain.”
She nods. “And this is yours. I get that, I want to help, Ki. Please, don’t make me wait for you.”
Seeing anything other than the brash confidence I’m used to seeing from the Kirin has me pause. I look at Greenbeard, then over at Ghaliya. She nods very slightly, a soft smile on her face and I turn back to Greenbeard. “Fine. But you must follow my orders.”
She squares herself, puffing out her chest. “I vow to follow your orders as the Captain of this detail fully and completely.” She reaches over and whacks Backburn with a hoof.
He clears his throat and bows. “I, too, pledge to follow your orders, Prince Ki.”
I snort softly, looking at the two of them. “Fine.” I grumble before turning and lighting my horn. My saddle bags float onto my back and I march into the greenery.
***
Nine days of travel have been more pleasant than I thought it would be. That isn’t a high bar. Nine days of travel. Nine days cutting our way through jungle. Nine days of bugs, of streams and leaches, of rain and filtered sunlight. It has been nine days off that rocking ship, and having actual fun traveling. The jungle is a diverse biome with lush flora and fauna, the life is nearly overwhelming for me. I fight the urge to stop, to look at all the moving life that is moving through the landscape, making all sorts of sounds to delight my ears, even though my compatriots seem to be disturbed by all the sounds. Every night, Dawn pores over the books that she brought in her own saddlebag, ensuring we are continuing on the path that she had determined. Every night I set up wards on our camp, nothing too serious at Dawn’s direction. She mentioned that too much magic being used might attract animals that are sensitive to magic. So, instead of a full shield or wall, or something to keep anything out, it’s more of a warning ward. Made to alert the one holding the ward of anything getting through. I can hold it in my sleep, my horn just barely glowing as I slumber. Though Greenbeard didn’t know about that ward and had me teach it to her. My time on the water, learning her magic, is now being repaid, me teaching her what Dawn has taught me.
I snort as I’m awoken. Blinking, I look around. Something has triggered the ward, something bigger than an insect. My eyes dart around searching the darkness, my ears flicking as I listen, a frown coming to my face. Then with a slight change in the wind the smell hits me. The smell of death, of decay, rotting and putrid odors fills my nostrils causing me to choak lightly and cringe. I blink a few times at everyone sleeping in the tent, does nohorse else smell that. I snort softly as I get to my hooves. As I poke my head through the tent flaps, I snort again, for a moment I’m tempted to release my magic but something tickles the back of my mind. Something is wrong here.
Our fire has burned down to mere embers, not really producing any light, I float new fuel into the fire pit and add a bit of wind to get everything ignited and then I stop, the new light has spawned reflections around me, other sources growing in intensity. I blink as I peer around, small motes of light, hundreds of them. I find myself shivering in fear as they move slowly back and forth. Though oddly, they motes seem to be gathered in a circle around my ward. A quick glance at the fire shows it’s burning merrily away. Then I peer into the darkness around, in the trees around, those motes are in the trees too.
“Dawn, Ghaliya.” I’m able to croak.
No answer. Fear is fluttering in my stomach, this is not good. I draw more magic, we need more light. A globe of pure light slowly forms at the tip of my horn, and I lift it up towards the center of our camp. As more dots illuminate the area around me, I find myself stopping, looking around, my hackles raised in fear. My ears are flicking around to the various sounds and my tail clamps against my rear. This isn’t life. This isn’t the various creatures that make their home in this beautiful area. This is entropy, corruption, this is death.
“Dawn, Ghaliya.” I growl. “Guerina, Greenbeard, anyone…”
I finally hear something from the tent, I reach out a rear hoof and tap the tent a few times. A few moments later a feathered head pokes out. “What?”
I toss my head, indicating around the camp, “What’s going on.” Her eagle eyes widen as she emerges from the tent, the fur on her back instantly going up, “Umm, Ki.”
I snort and stomp a hoof. “The wards don’t physically prevent anything from coming in.”
“Then why aren’t they coming in?”
I shake my head. “I don’t know.”
Greenbeard steps out, yawning before freezing in place. “Ki, what’s…” She looks around. “They look like…”
“Monkeys.” Guerina supplies. Then she points. “And other creatures we’ve been seeing.”
“Yeah.”
She’s entirely accurate, though every single one of them stinks of decay, of death. Unlike the many varieties of monkeys we’ve seen over the last nine days, these are deformed, their flesh decayed and hanging from their bodies, in many places, the bones and sinew are visible. I want to vomit, given the smell and the look of these things. “I don’t think they are monkeys anymore.” I murmur. Glancing at Guerina. “Wake everyone else, get the camp packed up, quickly and quietly.”
Guerina nods and vanishes inside the tent.
Greenbeard’s horn lights. “They are magic, Ki. Can you feel the resonance there?”
I shake my head. “I’ve been too busy.”
The kirin tosses her head. “Your ward is keeping them away. They don’t know they can cross it.” She looks at me. “I think you should bolster the ward, time to make it a barrier.”
I nod and my horn surges. The invisible ward becomes visible as I pour energy into it, making it a shield. The reaction is different than I expected. Though to be honest, I don’t know what I expected. I somehow started a diseased simian riot. Hundreds of voices are raised in rage as they start throwing themselves at the shield.
“What’s going…oh my.” Dawn says as she steps out of the tent. She looks at me standing tall. “You okay, Ki?”
I nod slowly tilting my head to one side in confusion, “Thanks to you, this is easy.”
She nods as she pulls out a book and walks three leggedly to the boundary of the shield. The creatures are throwing themselves bodily at the shield, hissing, screaming in rage, and pounding with their forearms, but I barely feel the expenditure.
“At least your barrier keeps the smell out a bit,” She places the book on the ground as she inspects one of them that is crushed up against the shield by its compatriots. After a long moment, she turns to me. “I don’t have anything on it. I think they are dead,” She says looking at one then turning green as its eye dangles out, “Yep, there dead, animated by some corrupt magic.” She shivers for a moment and urps covering her mouth, “I don’t know what to do to stop them.”
Guerina walks up to the barrier looking at the creatures tilting her head side to side, her wings puffing out a bit.
I glance around, Greenbeard is frantically putting things away in Dawn’s special saddlebags. I walk over beside Dawn. “You say they aren’t alive?”
The griffin blinks then sticks her tongue out turning her head away, “Yeah yuck, they aren’t alive in the slightest.”
Dawn looks to the griffin with a mix of bemusement and confusion, “I thought you were an omnivore.”
“Eagle, not vulture, I don’t do the whole bloating rotten thing, I like my food fresh.” As she looks to Dawn, a monkey leaps at her with its bony fingers and claws spread, only to impact into the barrier, sliding down it lets out a deadly screech pounding at the barrier, jumping away a moment and grabbing her tail away from the barrier, Guerina blinks then turns lowering her head and digging her talons into the ground, with a flair of her wings she lets out a deafening griffin war shriek, causing the monkey’s ears to fall off before the creature falls backwards.
Dawn covers her mouth to hide any smirk and gives a firm nod.
I nod firmly. “Then it’s time to reacquaint them with what life is,” Once again, my horn surges and in a moment all the plant life begins growing and flourishing in the dim predawn light.
Ghaliya steps up next to me. “Ki, I know you have an affinity for plants, but I don’t think making the jungle grow will do much.”
I smile. “Wait for it.”
It happens slowly, but one of the creatures pounding its hands ineffectually against the shield stops, looking at its limb. The limb drops off, turning green as moss grows on it. The stump starts to grow more moss as the creature shrieks. Soon another of the creatures is howling as it folds slowly to the ground. More and more, the creatures react and start to fall apart, skin and flesh being consumed by the life. Spreading my wings, I lift my horn high as golden light radiates out in all directions, “Final Rest!” I call out then blink and start blushing, “I don’t believe I just did that.”
Dawn falls onto her side starting to laugh, “Oh, yeah, strike a pose and call out a named attack, hello, Star Swirl.”
Ghaliya blinks, “What, what is happening to them?”
Smiling innocently, I look at her, “There is life in death, decomposition is other life feeding on what remains after you die.” I look around as the world around us starts to grow quiet. “There is an old saying, From the Earth you come, and to the Earth, you return to.” I snort as I release the shield.
Dawn gasping a bit rolls onto her hooves and walks around, looking at the low mounds that used to be malevolent creatures. “You…did this…Ki?”
I nod. “They were already dead, just had to speed up the decay.”
She giggles. “Utterly brilliant!”
I’m favored with a nuzzle from Ghaliya. “Smart thinking, Ki.”
I look at Greenbeard as she gets the last few things into the saddle bags. She looks at me, smiling brightly. “Who figured out this spell? I’ve been meaning to ask.”
Dawn furrows her brow. “The holding in the saddlebags?”
Greenbeard nods energetically. “I can see so many applications for that, you fit everything for a very nice campsite in one side of these saddlebags, and the other side has so many useful things, yet they don’t weigh all that much.” She glances at me. “Did you make it, Ki?”
I shake my head. “No, Dawn says it’s a mid-level enchantment, any trained third year unicorn can cast it.”
Greenbeard closes the bag, looking at the clasps, then at Dawn’s cutie mark. “So, they are yours?” Getting a nod from Dawn, she smiles. “Well, they are incredibly useful.” Which gets a smile in response.
Greenbeard shrugs into her own bags after floating Dawn’s over to her. “So, Ki, you said last night we were getting close.” She gestures to the low mounds of the remains of the creatures. “Could they be some kind of guardian?”
I contemplate for a long moment. Then I shake my head. “Nothing that I’ve seen of alicorns would have any kind of dead, diseased guardians.” I shudder, remembering how wrong they felt.
Guernia is checking the pistol strapped within easy reach. “You know, their nature seemed a lot like those birds. I’m kinda surprised you didn’t just zap them good.”
That gets a chuckle from Dawn and Ghaliya as I shake my head. “No.” I feel a ripple of fear spread down my back. “Completely different here. They were monkeys and other small wildlife that had died, then were reanimated by some kind of magic.”
“That’s not possible, magic cannot bring back the dead.” Ghaliya says, stomping a hoof.
I shrug my wings. “They weren’t alive, actually. More like animated. There was magic making them move, something magical keeping them moving, add to that they seemed to be drawn to magic, I think, so it might have been that if there was no magic in the area, they would just crumble.” I look at Greenbeard. “We should be there soon, I called an early halt last night because I wanted us to go in wherever this is fresh.”
Greenbeard looks at Dawn. “Think they were some sort of guardians?” She says softly.
Dawn shrugs, “Or a byproduct of old magic… I guess in a way they were like Timberwolves. Non-living animated monsters.”
The next few hours pass fairly uneventfully and finally we are standing before a crevice in a rock face.
“Well, that’s certainly a cutie mark,” Guerina says softly before looking up at me. “The one you were expecting?”
I nod, my lit horn bringing out a couple of torches out of my saddlebags. A brief surge has the torches lit, and I pass them around. “Be careful using magic around here.” I look at Greenbeard, who passes her torch over to Backburn. I blink a few times. “I feel…” I take a step towards the crevice. Shaking my head, I take another step. “There’s something.” Another step produces a loud electrical crackling, and with a bang, I’m flying back. My wings take over and catch me, allowing me to slide to a stop on my hooves. I snort and prance a bit. “Ouch.” I reach up and comfort my horn. “That hurt.”
“Some kind of shield?” Dawn asks.
I shake my head. “I don’t know, I don’t think a shield.”
Guerina walks forward, and as she gets close, there’s another electrical sizzle and bang, I catch the griffon as she flies through the air, depositing her on the ground next to me. She taps the side of her head. “I felt that in my wings.” She growls.
I flex my own wings, most of the pain from that was centered on my horn, but yeah, my wings ache a bit, even though I haven’t been in the air at all in the last few days. I look down. “My horn and wings, your wings…” I look up, at Ghaliya. “It seems as though the magic can feel magic.”
Ghaliya smiles brightly. “Well, I’m just a simple horse. No magic about me.” She turns and walks resolutely towards the opening. My horn is lit, ready to catch her.
Dawn blinks a few times before reaching out a hoof. “No, Mistress!” She’s only able to get out before another bang, and now Ghaliya is flying through the air, only to be caught with my magic and deposited gently next to me.
She shakes her entire body. “Wow.” She murmurs softly. “That was pretty strong.”
Dawn looks at Ghaliya. “Even you, Mistress, have magic.” She glances up at her horn. “Looks like I’m the only one who can get through.”
“No.” I say, stomping my hoof.
She looks up at her horn. “This is no longer something useful.” She stops for a moment, breathing heavily. “But I can be useful.”
“You are useful, Dawn!” This comes from Ghaliya. “Without your reading of the book and deciphering the map and the runes inscribed on it, we would never have made it here.”
Dawn smiles. “Oh, anypony with the right education, especially yourself mistress, can read a map. Ki can’t because we haven’t taught him enough old ponish. Give him a few months of learning, and he’d be up to speed.” She stops, looking at the crevice. “But this, this is something only I can do.”
“But if you can get through, and we can’t. How would we get in to help you?” I say, my wings flaring out.
She tilts her head. “This has a logic to it, Ki. The Staff of Sacanas is to restore magic lost, right?”
I nod slowly.
“Okay, so those approaching with a need to get the staff would have to have lost their magic to approach.” She turns and faces the crevice. “I can do this.” She takes a step closer, then a second. She walks slowly towards where Guerina and I were zapped back. As she gets to the same spot, she stops for a moment and takes a deep breath. She looks back and smiles at me before she vanishes into the opening in the rock face.
I find myself pacing back and forth in front of the boundary. I know where we got zapped, I’m going to avoid that until things are changed. My tail is thrashing, and my ears flicking, everything about me is broadcasting the stress I’m feeling. Ghaliya steps up next to me. “Love, give her a few minutes.”
“Okay, Ki.” Her voice floats back. “You should be able to approach.”
I don’t need to be told twice. I take a step forward, then a second. I glance down, one more step forward is where I got zapped the first time. I take that step, my eyes closed tightly. Then another. Then I look back, nothing. I nod to myself and walk towards the entrance. As I get through the crevice, I find it’s far more open than it looked like from the outside. A fairly large somewhat of a foyer, well lit from sunlight filtering down from above and coming through the entrance. I look around and locate Dawn quickly and move over to her. She’s pushing on a lever, grunting a bit. She looks at me. “Some sort of standing magical flow, this lever disrupts it.”
I nod and light my horn, pushing the lever down further. With a click, it moves into place, getting a soft sigh from Dawn. I call out. “Okay, it should be safe now.”
It’s only a few moments before the rest come into the entry. As we are all ready, I turn to Dawn. “Lead the way.”
She nods and turns, holding a torch as she walks. I float mine next to me as we make our way deeper into the wall of this ravine. Natural light is but a memory quite quickly, so we slow our walking, winding our way through the rock. After quite a while walking, the path narrows before us. I put out a hoof, indicating everyone should stop as I walk ahead. Though the clatter of hoofbeats doesn’t stop, eliciting a sigh from me as I lean the way through the narrow opening and into darkness.
Judging by the echoes of sound around us, this room has to be massive. The light from our torches doesn’t even reach the ceiling. I growl softly and feel around with my magic. Furrowing my brow, I don’t think there’s anything that can be triggered by me doing magic. My horn brightens and another light spell forms, bringing up a bright white glow which banishes the dark as the bright globe rises to give us all plenty of light. I smile brightly as I look around. Nearly everyone has a smile at the new light, with the exception of Dawn.
She snorts. “Ki, that could be dangerous. We don’t know what’s around us, we could find ourselves in another situation like this morning.”
I smile, shaking my head. “I don’t think so, Dawn. This is another enclave of an alicorn. They don’t enslave magic, they celebrate it.”
She tilts her head. “I understand that, but this is a resting place of the staff, meant to help those who’ve lost theirs. There might be serious consequences for using magic here.” She sighs. “Well, what’s done is done.” She looks around. “Oh, my.”
I turn to follow her gaze, some sort of door is set into the wall, three symbols are inset into the rock face of the door. A square, a circle, and a triangle. I tilt my head as I contemplate the three. I reach out with my magic. Greenbeard shouts out. “Ki, don’t!”
It’s too late, as my magic touches the triangle, another electric zap and I’m flying across the room, the Kirin isn’t fast enough and I slam into the rock wall before collapsing to the ground. I slowly regain my hooves, shaking my head hard. “Whoa.”
Dawn sighs. “I told you.”
I give her a dirty look before turning and stopping, what I’m seeing slowly dawning on me. “Would ya look at that.”
Everyone turns and looks, on the smooth wall is more etching, though this is far more complex than the door. An inscription in old Ponish, and five very detailed pictures. The first is three unicorns bowing. The second is a single alicorn, wings spread regally, a halo around her head. The third is four earth ponies pulling an egg shaped boulder. The fourth is a single Pegasus sleeping on a cloud. And finally, the last is five sea ponies…I stop and take a few steps closer, sea ponies? I tilt my head and inspect what I see before me, yes, obviously some sort of hybrid between pony and sea life. They are all swimming around what looks like a clam.
“Okay, what does that mean?” I point at the inscription.
Dawn squints a bit, her mouth working as she reads. “Well, it’s definitely an old dialect of old Ponish, but it says, ‘There is only one truth.’”
“Only one truth?” I frown. “The heck does that mean.”
Guerina clicks her beak. “How should I know?”
All of us stop and look at her. She wilts a bit under our gaze but firms up quickly. “We all have our own language, based on our tribes, our species. Kirin have their own languages, so do ponies, and horses. Even griffs have our own dialects, Eponese is a common language, as once Ponish was. But we all have our own way. So, there’s one universal language, and it’s not the words that we speak, but the most fundamental way to convey information.”
I glance at Dawn, noting her jaw hanging, I resist the urge to close her mouth, before she does it herself and shaking her head. “You are right, of course, but how…?”
Guerina clacks her beak. “Well, duh, you aren’t the only one who likes to read.” She turns and looks at the drawings on the wall before turning back to the door. She points at one of the symbols. “I don’t think I should touch this, but that is your answer.”
Dawn looks at the drawing, then at the symbols. “I think you are right.” She steps forward and reaches out a hoof, touching the symbol. For a long moment, nothing happens, then the rock flows, grabbing onto the unicorn’s hoof, eliciting a shriek.
I rush forward. My horn lighting before a yelp from Dawn has me letting go of my magic. She looks at me. “I was surprised.” She huffs a few times as the wall is slowly pulling her in. “It doesn’t hurt, and there’s more here.” She looks back at me. “Trust me, Ki.” Her entire foreleg is engulfed, she turns and stretches her neck a bit, her muzzle disappears into the rock face. And only a few moments later, with a flick of her tail. She is fully in the wall. As the wall reforms with the three symbols, I reach out a hoof, ignoring the yelps from Greenbeard and Ghaliya. Though my hoof hits hard granite. I tap the same symbol again, nothing. Gritting my teeth, I hit it a bit harder, only to get absolutely no reaction.
“Ki.” Ghaliya says softly. “She must be the trailblazer in this adventure.”
“But.”
Guerina clicks her beak. “But nothing, Ki.” She growls. “This is a test for a pony that has lost their magic, one that has lost their way.” She reaches out a claw, touching the symbol. “I don’t doubt that the alicorns that devised this knew that those that have lost their magic must lead the way, but they also provided for those ponies to work to help their friends and compatriots to join them.” She sighs. “But they must blaze the trail, they must stick their beak into the hornets nest, and hope it doesn’t get bitten off.”
I glance at her, her face colors and she mutters. “Muzzle, beak, same thing.”
I shake my head as a loud click resounds through the room and the rock wall moves slightly, then slowly seams form as a large door slowly descends into the floor. Loud grinding assaults the ears, revealing Dawn standing there, her head tilted slightly with a big smile on her face. “Ta da!” She points at a lever behind her. “From what you’ve told me about the last places for alicorns, I would never have expected puzzles.” She smiles brightly. “But we can figure them out.”
“Together.” Ghaliya says softly.
Dawn nods. “Together.”
Greenbeard glances around. “I just hope that none of these puzzles would be lethal.”
Dawn fixes a stare at the kirin. “I don’t see that being the case. They want the staff to be found. But you must earn it. You must have need.” She reaches up and comforts her horn. “And we do have need.”
I smile. “So, you are starting to believe?”
She frowns. “Believe?”
I nod. “That this will help you? Give you your magic back?”
She blushes, looking everywhere but at me. “Let’s just say I’m cautiously optimistic. Given what I’ve found on the other side here.”
My brow furrows. “What?”
She turns, “Follow me.”
I look at the rest and start walking, following the blue unicorn. Only moments has us before another door, though this one is engraved with a massive star cutie mark, the same one that was outside this…temple. Dawn reaches up a hoof and the door slides smoothly to the side. I blink and sit down heavily. There is a pony standing on the other side of the door. A peach colored coat with a lavender mane and tail. Though that mane and tail has sparkling motes of energy flowing throughout. She smiles, but my heart nearly stops. She’s not there, not really. This is magic I see before me. Then she speaks.
“My, how you’ve grown, Tellus.”
Stats
Page generated in 0.029 seconds
Total duration
1,009 users online
1,869,236 hits today, 1,960,719 yesterday
FIMFiction
My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
Designed and coded by knighty & Xaquseg - © 2011-2024
Follow & Support Us
Support us
SubStar
Chat!
Discord
Follow us
Twitter
MLP: Friendship is Magic® - © 2024 Hasbro Inc.®
Fimfiction is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Hasbro Inc.®
Woohoo! new chapter!
i nearly forgot this story was a thing nice chapter and a nice end point of said chapter.
11039858
Ki getting to be somewhat of an action hero. some might not like ki because he's got that whole "batman" won't kill thing going... but when he puts his mind to it he can be dangerous.
It has been the hottest of minutes since the last chapter yet the info of the story has come back to me in chunks! At least I’m not lost and remember the important bits! Now I must await for the next chapter to see if Dawn gets her magic back, will Ki’s harem grow, will the good captain get paid?!
11040074
Hey, at least its the right CULTURE for harems.
Umm, that said, remember, Dawn wants to be his knight, not his mate LOL.
Man, been a long time since this one showed up on the Tracking List.
Gonna have to start it from scratch for a refresh. Oh no, whatever shall I do.
Meh, sleep is for the boring.
awesome chapter.
Hey, nice to see this story back! Awesome chapter : )
Its alive!
Great chapter. Binge read the series and it’s great with lovable characters. I just hope that, now that Ki is meeting a real life alicorn, he and Ghaliya stop with the whole Celestia is dangerous/evil argument. Considering that one of their most loyal friends actually met Celestia and vouched for her character, Ghaliya should stop believing ancient myths demonizing her and Ki should actually consider meeting her personally rather than follow Ghaliya’s narrative. I’m also curious as to whether Dawn’s magic will be fully restored or if she would have to learn an alternate way of casting magic in case the staff doesn’t work the way Ki intended. Overall, great chapter and I hope we see more of the story soon.
11042311
normally he does, but sometimes this gets messed up with cut and pastes. sometimes entire blocks of texts loose their paragraph splittings and he has to go back in and manually add line breaks for each line...
FIMFication has problems sometimes.
11041933
Well she did technically banish her sister. So you can see how some cultures might... take that as a power grab.
11043980
True, but I do wonder why she keeps sticking to her version of the events, which is based on information that happened a millennium ago, rather than trust the judgement of Dawn, who actually met Celestia and whose opinions she actually respects. Considering that Ghaliya was willing to push aside centuries of prejudice against alicorns when she first met Ki, her dislike for Celestia seems a bit stubborn to me,
11044053
Yeah, but remember, Dawns also kinda on the run from Celestia too... she fled the gifted unicorn school, didn't like, didn't want the pressure... and that kinda taints her view of Tia a little as well. She kinda sees it in a way, as foals being forced into a situation weather they are ready or willing or not.
Can’t wait for the next update!
This was great
I have a suggestion. static.wixstatic.com/media/4ab755_c53f19bbad82457380f45ba616250a3d~mv2.png/v1/fill/w_1130,h_585,al_c,q_90,usm_0.66_1.00_0.01/4ab755_c53f19bbad82457380f45ba616250a3d~mv2.webp
11062837
I think Ki's solution worked even better.
Ashes to ashes, dust to dust.
Ain't that the truth.