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My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic Fanfiction
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I swear I've seen half this chapter before... inb4 extreme conspiracy theories.
7824069 lol. You have, we just rewrote and extended it
i wonder who shot the doctor? Also i loved the end of this arc. I am guessing next is the final battle arc? As always thanks for the chapter!
7824741 Yeah, the re-edit didn't get mentioned in a blog post but there was one. Not much content was altered though.
7824770
Worth rereading, or just mark it as read and concentrate on getting caught up?
7824891 Far as I'm aware there's nothing in there that massively alters the story. It's worth reading for the improved flow and artistry, not for any massive change to the story :-) You can safely carry on.
7824891 The only change I found was that Trixie got a different cellmate.
(original it was Starlight Glimmer)
So nothing big.
The right choice. Plain and simple. Trust is an invaluable resource and based on another five letter word...TRUTH. As long as you can tell that, people will forgive. A lie is harder to make up for. An uncomfortable truth much less so. And it goes back to what I had said before...
If you start using the techniques your enemy uses, you've already lost the war. You have to be better than them. No matter how hard it is, no matter how difficult it is. Because doing the right thing is not supposed to be easy. Nothing in life that's worth DOING is easy.
7825013 You know, I agree with you entirely, though I think you'd be incredibly hard pressed to find a real war that followed those ethics
7825013
7825039
And adding to Jed's reply, this chapter opens on a discussion between the Doctor and our central protagonist on a regrettable, yet realistic course taken by the latter in the past (to be covered by the side-story The Light Despondent, if you're interested).
So, as Chrysalis said, they did alright... this time. Not only is there always a next time, there is usually a time before.
And Berry is still dead.
7825128
True. That doesn't change the past. But you can sleep better at night. And so will everyone else, knowing that despite how easy it would be to lie...you told a painful truth over a comfortable fib.
Honesty is, after all, a virtue for a reason.
Whooooo this was one hell of a chapter to read through, painful in some parts and awesome in others.
But it was a damn fine read! damn fine.
Good show
7825205
Trust me, my friend, while we're still in the Christmas season, I'll bring back to mind that Terry Pratchett wrote it best in Hogfather. We need to start out learning lots of little lies, to allow ourselves to sleep well at night, so we may believe in the big ones; "Justice. Mercy. Duty. That sort of thing."
Our protagonists took a great gamble in telling the truth here, and it might have been a good time to be honest with themselves because, yes, they were coming close to making the same mistakes as the Empire.
Yet I feel that, by this definition of virtuous honesty, Luna makes the best argument at the chapter's end. They've known, for a brief instant, what it's like to be the Empire, maybe even brushed against how the other Celestia first became a Tyrant. Hence why I wrote her as now wishing to save her counterpart sister if there's the slightest chance to do so.
7825232
Those words sound like they come from someone who doesn't believe in any kind of moral absolutes. I DO, to an extent. Cuz sometimes things are just that simple. Sometimes, black and white is how things are. If you only choose to see in shades of Grey, then it becomes hard to know what's right, and harder still to DO it.
"It's not easy facing up when your whole world is black".
Or as Superman would say...
"There is a right, and there is a wrong in the universe. And the distinction is not that hard to make."
7825339 I believe in moral relativism myself, in the sense that it's very easy for those of us who have never been in a situation to say the actions taken by men and women in those situations are wrong. The law, to a certain extent, is our barometer, but that changes. What was illegal once is not now. In situations of extreme stress, matters are worse. I may say, for example, that I revile the violence of Viktor Kraber in this universe... but as a father, I understand it very, very well.
As for the situation in this story... no one, ever, has ever fought in a war of human extinction. I am utterly convinced that the pressures and terrors that you would be under in that situation would be such that any action would seem morally justifiable if it resulted in victory. It is not a "morally good" way to think, in the sense of taking moral actions, but it is realistic, and I believed when I started this arc and believe now that a "realistic" take on this situation is infinitely preferable to a "morally good" one from the perspective of a storyteller.
To be clear: were I solely in charge of this story, were I solely responsible for its direction instead of being merely one part of the whole, I would have had Trixie Lulamoon's mind altered, and she would have killed herself in captivity due to the trauma of her implanted memories. That is, of course, had I not gone with the original plan, which would have seen a homeless blue pony refugee framed for the crimes of the Spy and murdered to keep her from talking. My desire to write the protagonists undertaking these actions stems from a desire to explore, to the fullest extent, the realities of an extinction conflict. In this instance, other ideas prevailed. Make of that what you will. I am glad, at least, that we were able to provide a resolution where the protagonists took the "good" option, if it is satisfying to the readers.
7825339
No, but a morally grey world is not the same as an all-black world. Seeing shades of grey as too "black" is symptomatic of black-and-white thought taken too far.
I guess Mycroft got his due. He might not have found himself with the Apex Crystal, but at least one of his objectives was cleared...
I've thought it before, I'll say it again: how is that guy another Doctor?
7825392
Perhaps. But they're not currently in a Morally Grey world...are they? ;)
When you live in a world where the forces of love and harmony are literal forces of power? I think you can call that fairly black and white. Not to mention Tirek is clearly all black. So why shouldn't the reverse apply?
7825419
Because there are always regular people, Average Joes, the Trixie Lulamoons and Berry Punches of the world, caught in the middle. No matter what great mystical forces may be at work in a 'verse, regular people are and will always be a mixture.
7825424
True. But that just makes it a mixed bag. Like an M&M's bag full of a mixture of white and black and grey M&M's. From afar it might look like all one big blob of grey, but on closer inspection, the diamonds shine though...along with the coal.
7825449 Except that this story isn't about the diamonds making decisions. It's about the grey M&Ms, fighting the coal.
7825449
You don't know how well that statement ties in with some ideas I might have for future Christmas-themed elements in the Spectrumverse. Nonetheless, the point stands, the world is built from more than only diamond and coal. And those tend to be harder to make out than we'd like.
7825417 "How"? He's just another Doctor. Actually more specifically, he's my fan-Doctor (my own personal indulgence as a storyteller).
7825458
I dunno if they're all grey M&M's...I can think of a few who are secretly diamonds deep down that shine very brightly when their backs are to the wall.
7825475
Such as whom? I won't say aye or nay to whomever you might cite, it just happens to be genuinely interesting to hear someone explain what they consider the most positive aspects of the characters written for here.
7825483
Well, for one, Lyra...though she's dead so she may not count. Another, the Princesses rather fit that bill as well. Much of any mistakes they've made can be easily chalked up to misjudgment of character or rashness. Ana has done very well so far.
And in this chapter, I think Marcus just stepped closer to being a diamond. I'm very much a believer in the idea of " all one needs to regain one's innocence is to retain ones goodness"...and Marcus took a large step down that road.
7825492
Let us hope, then, that Princess Luna's burst of compassion for the Tyrant, drawing on her own shameful past and the realisation of their complicity in what they nearly did to Trixie, will amount to something.
After all, unlike Luna as Nightmare Moon, it isn't even Celestia who's truly behind the Solar Tyrant.
7825502
Well, hope springs eternal.
7825467
Oh, I know. It's absolutely your prerogative and nobody else's how you write the Doctor - and of course, every Doctor is different. It simply feels a bit odd to have a Doctor so personally involved in the darker side of things, even if the rest of these universes are firmly ensconced in shadow.
7827084 I grew up with the 1990's BBC novels. Trust me: in those, the Doctor can be very involved in the darker side of things :-) I take those as my inspiration in many respects.
" “Doctor,” a voice said quietly from behind him, interrupting his train of thought.
He frowned. He knew that voice. He turned, an unreadable expression on his face as he confronted his visitor.
For a long while, they just stared at one another. No pretensions. No words. "
It's either River or it's the Master.
The best action that could have been taken. I just pray that catseye doesn't get wind of what is really going on with Trixie (or did she cause the whole blue spy debacle, that is really confusing to me) or they are in big trouble from a PR standpoint
7827652 i have no idea where it is anymore... i should of saved it somewhere
7827652
derpicdn.net/img/view/2013/4/19/302437__safe_solo_trixie_magic_fanfic+art_knife_alternate+universe_mask_spy_artist-colon-sakuyamon.png
Here you go. It's from Derpibooru. But the artist's link could be found here
http://sakuyamon.deviantart.com/art/Commission-redskin122004-353498240
I'm so glad that I added the "spy" tag there a long time ago. Made it easier to find it.
7829134 they did a good job. If i didnt know it was Trixie, i would of thought it was an OC.
7830028
Looks like she's really good at her job then.
7830441
She is more of a joke OC character than anything.
7828911 okay, if you find it or a link to it then please PM me it. thank you.
7848896 Red Bomber found it,man its been a long time since that comission.
7829134 thanks man you are awesome.
7851186
You're welcome.
7861919
img13.deviantart.net/1637/i/2015/185/8/1/moondancer_vector_by_wingedwolf94-d8zxx5x.png
Thank you for saying that. And it was only fitting that Rarity be the character whose mind it crossed.
P.S.
The creepy ghost girl is actually more in the vein of Arma from F.E.A.R.
7921616 it still standing.... with a ship in it.
Ahh, that was most satisfying. I still believe the people involved fielding this insane plan to begin with kind of contradicts the lessons of the previous chapters, but at least they stood fast to their beliefs and did not succumb to the slippery slope.
Will there be consequences of this road? Probably, but at least now they can hold their heads high rather than hang them down in shame. They had faith, and as the Stormcast are so fond of saying, "who will be victorious? Only the faithful."
I found a video of humans and ponies training and dancing together. What does this video remind you of?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qNqJEIlWNmk
There's something I can't wrap my head around about Chrysalis. She hates Celestia for having exiled the Changelings, I get that. It's justified. But why in the heck is she being such a scathingly petty bitch about it? Judging from her recent remarks and actions, she's probably going to betray the alliance to let ANOTHER Celestia (Tirek) who is arguably FAR WORSE than the prime version to screw them over big time. Let me guess, she wants to weaken both sides in order to take power for herself. If that is the case, then this is far beyond what I, or anyone else for that matter, can consider 'justified'. This is just selfishness at its purest and disgusting.
7983133
This fight isn't only between the Alliance of the Concordia Maxima and the Solar Empire. In the side-stories especially, the Human Liberation Front serves as a third faction which causes grief to heroes and villains alike. The interests of the Caballeron Gang caused a prolongation of the hostage crisis.
There's room yet on the board for more players to make their presence known.
7983133 ....
Hm....
I wonder why myself
7983133
7984730
What I can't wrap my head around is how Discord can get to mock people, snark at people, annoy people, spend half the story accidentally-on-purpose helping drive canon Celly nuts (before realising that he's accidentally-on-purpose driven her somewhat nuts), turn a dude to stone for no real reason (making himself a liar in the process), and generally be something of a sarcastic devotee, but he gets a free pass (even after basically committing a minor sexual assault on Chrysalis when he smacks her ass, which is at the very least a very demeaning and extremely immature thing to do, regardless of which particular individual he's doing it to), but when Chrysalis is sarcastic and mocking to her allies (which is really all she's being in this recent material), she's obviously playing some long game and is being selfish and petty. That's just me though.
7983265 My actual problem is that, in hindsight, it all just seems completely tactically idiotic on her part since the Tyrant could just as easily take advantage of the weakness to blow ALL of them away.