"MY QUEEN!" Shouted Pharynx, staring at the unmoving body of Chrysalis.
He brought his attention to the huge mass of tentacles above and sneered.
"Changelings, prepare to attack," He ordered, "We shall avenge our Queen."
Nothing happened, Pharynx stood before the monstrosity alone. Looking over his shoulder, he saw something he never thought possible. The few changelings that had survived that massive storm were all huddled together, looking up at the primordial terror before them, shaking with fear. He had never seen his changeling soldiers express fear before.
Then they all let out a scream and galloped off in the opposite direction, making for the road that led out of Canterlot, too scared to even take flight.
"WHERE ARE YOU GOING? " Screamed Pharynx, the veins on his neck bulging with frustration. "I'll have you all banished for this!"
"Hhhrrrrrr,” Pharynx looked up as the noise pierced the air, the gigantic eye amongst the tendrils watching the changelings flee. "Do you think you can escape from me?"
A big splash of black liquid erupted in the path of the changelings, halting them in their retreat. Then giant muscular creatures emerged from the deluge, bipeds with aquatic features. The small army of Lurkers looked right into the changelings eyes.
Then they all let a ferocious roar skyward and attacked.
The changelings were bored down upon in an instant, either being seized in massive arms or bound head to hoof in black rope like tendrils that protruded from the Lurkers mouths. In less than a second the whole swarm was restrained, trembling under the monstrosities that held them prisoner.
Pharynx let out an enraged hiss and made to lunge at the huge terrors, but another Lurker emerged from the group in front of him and ensnared him in its tendrils.
---
The group of ponies and one dragon watched the whole thing happen under the protection of Shining Armour's shield, their eyes wide in terror, except for Twilight, who felt nothing but shame at what her friends were being exposed to. Chrysalis still lay before them, unmoving and lifeless as a rock. But all anyone had attention for was the huge tendrils that waved and wiggled above the city.
"What...what is that thing?" Asked Fluttershy, surprising everypony, and snapping them out of their unresponsive state.
"I don't know," admitted Celestia, her focus solely on the great vortex above. "I have never seen anything like it."
"But we won't let whatever it intends to do happen," said Luna, glaring. "We will fight it off."
"That will not be necessary," said Twilight, gaining everypony's attention "He won't harm us… not if we don't get in his way."
"Twilight? " said Cadance, holding her closer protectively. "You are acting as if you know this thing."
"I do," said Twilight, her friends all gasping in surprise.
Before anything else could be said a shout came from above.
"PRINCESS!"
They all looked up towards the dark red sky, seeking out the voice. A pegasus pony grew closer, flying in at a hot steep angle. She was obviously flying too fast to have a safe landing, but was making no move to slow her decent in any shape or form, obviously determined to get to Canterlot as quickly as possible.
So Princess Celestia did it for her.
Using her experience and precision, the sun princess caught the pegasus mare in her magic, freezing her in place. She wore the trademark blue jumpsuit of a Wonderbolt, though it was hard to make out in the crimson light washing over everything. But Rainbow recognized her immediately.
"SPITFIRE?" She shouted, looking at that flame style haircut only one pony was known for. "What is she doing here?"
"Captain," inquired Celestia, looking to Shining Armour.
"On it, your majesty," replied the head of defense, shifting his force field to form a hole big enough for Celestia to pull the panting pegasus through, which he closed as soon as she joined them.
"Princess Celestia," said Spitfire when she caught her breath, kneeling before the matriarch.
"What is it, Lady Spitfire?" Asked Celestia, noting the lead pegasus’ panicky look.
"We have a situation in Cloudsdale," answered the Wonderbolt captain, throwing a look to the tentacled eye that watched them from above. "A portal like this one has appeared over the city, as well as multiple smaller ones."
"What?" Gasped Rainbow.
"And that is not all," continued Spitfire, returning her attention to Celestia. "We have had pegasus couriers coming in from all over Equestria, from Vanhoover to Baltimore. They all report the same thing, massive tendrils wiggling out of huge black vortexes. And they also say panic is spreading rapidly."
"These things are appearing all over Equestria?" Squeaked Fluttershy, still held up by Rainbow Dash. "How is that possible?"
"Nopony knows," explained Spitfire, "But the bedlam is only going to get worse if we don't put a lid on this situation soon."
Princess Celestia and Princess Luna exchanged looks before bringing their attention to the massive eye hovering above their city. They were different in many regards but had the same mind set involving some things. They would both like nothing more then to fly up and strike at this thing with everything they had.
They were not oblivious to what had transpired just moments ago.
Chrysalis had struck at this thing with all she had, but her attack just passed through it without doing anything. And as a result, she was now a lifeless husk lying before them, her minions held in the grasp of those huge terrors that had appeared out of nowhere, obviously in league with whatever this thing was. It also did not escape their notice that this thing had not struck out at them since it appeared.
Those things, so far, only held the changelings captive, they had done nothing more. Them, or this monstrosity above could have done immense damage without effort, but had not. That told the Princesses something.
"Spitfire," said Luna, approaching the lead Wonderbolt with authority. " Have any of the courier ponies reported any hostile behavior from these tentacled vortexes."
"Negative, your majesty, " said Spitfire. "So far, only reports of sightings, no casualties or destruction."
"That's a relief, " sighed Pinkie Pie, drawing all their attention. "I was hoping old Hermmy wouldn't be a meanie mac-mean pants, then I would not be able to welcome him to Equestria with a big party."
"Hermmy?" Asked Applejack and Rainbow Dash together.
"Its rude not to pay attention when somepony introduces themselves, girls," said Pinkie Pie, giving them a consenting frown. "He said his name was Hermaeus Mora, right before he gave that mean Queen that bizarre kiss. So I'm going to call him Hermmy, for short."
"I think we were a little distracted, Pinkie," said Fluttershy, looking up and trembling as she saw the single eye, feeling as if it was looking right at her.
"Yes, most distracted," added Rarity. "Upon seeing that monster suck somepony’s brain out."
"I agree," said Rainbow, looking up with a glare. "Besides, that thing is a monster, why should we care what its name is?
Shining Armour and Cadance still felt they knew the name Hermaeus Mora from somewhere, but still couldn't place it.
Princess Celestia had been coming up with a strategy ever since hearing that these things had not lashed out aggressively towards her kingdom. She did not know what they were, but if they weren't threatening anything or anyone, then she had to address the more important matter. According to Spitfire, all of Equestria was in a state of panic.
"We must round up our guard, sister," said Celestia sternly, Luna walking up next to her. "We must find a way to calm the masses before somepony is hurt."
"Allow me, princesses."
They all looked up, this being the first time this thing had addressed someone, other than Chrysalis.
Twilight braces herself, wondering what the Daedric Prince's intention was.
She did not have to wait, or worry.
'KAAN DREM OV'
The words echoed throughout the whole kingdom, fear, panic and disorder melting away as a blue flash settled over all in Equestria. Twilight and company felt all their terror leave them in a swift blink, even Fluttershy was calmed, lifting out of Rainbows supporting hooves, while she herself felt her fighting spirit calm. The Princesses somehow knew there was nothing to fear.
"Greetings, denizens of this land," said Hermaeus Mora, his voice echoing throughout all of Equestria's cities and towns, whose inhabitants had ceased all panicked behavior and looked up to the portals in the sky, each one now sporting the same bulbous eye in their center. "I… am Hermaeus Mora… knower of the unknown… master of destiny… prince of knowledge.”
There was a small pause.
"Or... in the words of a certain rainbow-maned pegasus, an egghead."
Rainbow Dash gave a slight confused look, she would never have believed this was the kind of being that would have anything to do with knowledge. This thing was hideous, deadly, and obviously ruthless. Yet it had pretty much called itself an egghead, something Rainbow always considered should be mild mannered, and harmless.
"The reason none of you recognize me… is because I hail from a different world. "
Applejack stood out in front of her friends, her stubborn family ties still making her want to defend her friends if things got worse. She was calm, but not enough to drop her guard.
The Princesses all watched it before them, it had been a long time since they had felt so at peace they were almost unsure of what they were feeling.
Twilight looked up at Hermaeus Mora, knowing he was probably talking to all of Equestria, not just them.
"I understand… that my… appearance can be… intimidating, but you need not fear. Malice… destruction… death… these things are of no value to me. "
All across Equestria, ponies could not help but believe the voice, the sound passing through them like a sweet song. The way it sounded led them to believe it was being truthful. A kind of intelligence existed, and everypony could feel it, feel this thing’s desire for knowledge above all else.
"And if those of this world cooperate, I shall share my knowledge with you as well, in exchange for contribution of this worlds knowledge. If you have a thirst for knowledge, you may seek me out, and whet your appetite in the endless stacks of my library."
All across Equestria, scholars, researchers, geologists, scientists, educators...all types of ponies felt something stir inside them. There were those who studied their pursuits for specific reasons, and this thing was claiming to have complete stores of knowledge. Knowledge that would be accessible, if they made contributions to this thing.
Now that did awaken some excitement.
"How to step into my sacred halls will be revealed in time, for soon I shall devise a path," said Hermaeus Mora, "Those of intellectual fortitude should seek me...out...for all who seek knowledge are my servants...even if you all...have been...unaware till now. "
Twilight's group watched as the tendriled vortex that had held Chrysalis move closer to the glowing orb that surrounded them, another eye emerging from within. As it drew closer, the ponies plus one dragon could only watch. They should be fearful of what was happening, but whatever had calmed them allowed them to think clearly, even in the worst of times, like now.
They all watched as it came up to them, its tendrils waving lazily around as it stared.
Even this was not enough to scare them anymore, they all just waited to see what was going to happen next. The whirlpool passed through Shining Armour's shield like it was not there, slowly approaching. It stopped only a few feet from where they all stood by Twilight protectively.
Over half? Like 90% of my tracking is incomplete and has been for years
Thanks for the chapter.
“the you all”
Something about that bit feels grammatically off but I cant tell how.
Nice use of Kyne’s peace btw!
For second I thought he was going to break character and go all Godzilla on Equestria last chapter, nice to see him make clear his intentions.
I did enjoy the show as much as I could, a bit bummed it's going but considering the decisions that have been made in recent years it's necessary.
well, nine seasons of more than 20 episodes are quite a lot of job... not even half of the cartoon shows get that much job done
Somehow I think that the stories can survive without new seasons of the show, especially considering how many of the stories (even new ones) branch off from show canon waaay back in the early seasons. (And to be fair, it seems like the older seasons are frequently considered better than the newer ones anyways.)
On a side note, I'm still amused by the thought I had of someone going through all the post-technicolor-abominations episodes and editing them all just slightly to revert their color schemes, even if they keep the new shapes. (Sparkly wings? Sure, why not. New shape? Not my favorite, but still close enough I guess. The new color scheme, because anything colored dark neutral colors is "evil" or at best "bad" and anything brightly colored is "good"? That's a terrible lesson there. And the old color scheme looked way better anyways.)
9475041
For sure, FiM Fics will last much after the show is finally over. After all there's a boatload of characters, interesting tidbits, etc etc.... plenty of stuff to work on
Is it wrong I think that Hermy would most likely be impressed by the depth of detail Pinkie has in her knowledge of the preferences of Ponyville's citizens? Given that she has incredibly accurate and detailed files of them in her party cave?
Also, I sincerely do not get/understand why people keep acting like the site will up and shut down once Season 9 ends? They pretty much already confirmed a Gen 5! I'm more than certain that the fandom will need a place for fanfics concerning it, and what better place than a site already dedicated to MLP fanfiction?
Yeah it sad the shows ending but we can still have five to tel and hopefully more to come.
Also shoot mora talking with mortals that never ends well. Ow boy this is going to be interesting cause we kno here are plenty of ponys in mlp who would take him up on his offer for their own reasons.
9475085
Apocrypha will get crowded with pastel colored ponies...
So since Hermaeus can change his from will he take on an pony/Alicorn appearance or just stay as a tentacle eyeball monster thing?
Seriously what the hell is he?
We are all sad that Hasbro decide to cut the ponies but it began to decrease in quality many seasons ago
9475096
That’s kinda what am worried about. Caugh star lightcaugh sorry something in my throat but yeah, it’s like mixing two different flavors do crazy together to make something new and even crazier.
9475199
Dude, there's going to be a Gen 5. Hasbro just thinks they've gotten all the cash out of Gen 4 as they can.
No destruction? Two chapters ago you said that Hermaeus Mora sheared the top off a mountain.
9475240
I think she ment no destruction to populated areas.
9475240
I do not think Spitfre care much about a mountain.
See, called it. What point is there in killing those that you wish to seek knowledge from? you can't gain anything from the dead after all.
Besides I doubt he want's another Miraak and I honestly think he truly LIKES Twilight.
Perhaps Mora learned a great deal from Twilight during their time together, or maybe since it’s the only Daedric Prince here it doesn’t need to concern itself with more violent means of establishing itself.
HURRAYY!! :D
9475204
Not sure I will get into Gen5, the reason I love MLP so much is because I love the characters. Without Twilight and her friends, I don't think it will work for me.
9475240
No destruction in populated areas.
9475199
The only reason it's "declining" (at least in comparison to earlier seasons) is that the Mane 6 have what's called a positive character arc - something good because it means that the status quo is able to change, but bad because it means that the character arc has a time limit.
Once their characters were fully developed, there wasn't anything left to learn, and being shoehorned in to episodes (for marketing, probably) drags the overall quality down.
Several times I had been expecting the new secondary characters that had gotten spotlights to actually take over the show and be a second "Mane 6" to develop and have adventures with.
But that was not the case, and while I still enjoy the show, it has suffered for it. The Mane 6 have suffered for it too, as their character development often regresses for the plot to make sense.
9475360
Actually, the Mane 6 will still be the, well, Mane 6. The Equestria Daily page on it would explain better. https://www.equestriadaily.com/2018/03/my-little-pony-generation-5-what-we.html?m=1
9475365
That could make more sense that what they did in the last season, give more screentime to second characters, give them more building and story... Instead they put new characters.
Even so, for me, MLP died when I watched Discord desperate to make others laugh at orange jokes like a simple clown.
soldiers [unless they are used to join metal things together...]
borne [ https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/bear-down-on-sb-sth ]
lunge
stir
9475442
Bored could work too. To 'bore' is to 'break', or dig, break through. 'Bored through' would imply that the action has past over already.
9475480
Did you even try to check the link I put there?
It explicitly says that bear down is irregular and has borne as the past participle...
bored is the past participle of bore and it either means making a hole in something or to cause to feel weariness and restlessness through lack of interest...
Neither of which is used in the form bore down.
And bore is quite specific in the meaning of making a CIRCULAR hole, not the generic dig, break and break through.
9475500
I said 'could' didn't I? Yes 'bore' means 'to make a circular hole'. It removes an obstacle, in the case of a gun, it creates a path for a bullet. For subways, it creates a path for track to be laid.
It would change the feeling of the text a bit. "Borne" would mean a burden, or something like that for the changelings. "Bored" would mean removing an obstruction, something the Prince does.
"The changelings were borne down upon in an instant"
"The Prince bored through the changelings in an instant"
The only thing that I am fearing about right now is that new generation most likely will be made in CGI...
If we still have the Homestuck fandom skittering around after all these years, I think we'll be just fine.
9475615
Depends on how well and how much practice they have at it. Look at Genlock and Rwby, The Dragon Prince. and it’s clear you can have good CGI. Will it be as crazy as it was before, maybe not, or if it is it will probably look different.
9475518
Nope again bear down is an IDIOMATIC expression than means pursue aggressively or using the definition from the link I've used above "to move in a threatening way towards someone or something".
You see that you AGAIN changed "down" with "through"? simply that means that BORED won't work.
9475615
I hope not, one thing i liked most was actually the drawing style
9476216
Are you really that dense? I'm saying it COULD work. I'm not saying that it works grammatically with how the author wrote the sentence. Hence why I changed it. You're getting angry over LITERALLY nothing. All I said was "Hey, bored could work as well".
To be fair, I'm not sure why I decided it was worth mentioning. I am slightly regretting saying this to you now because of how stubborn you are about this. To state again. Bored COULD work in the CONTEXT of the story. It would need a SLIGHT rewording but would hold a SLIGHTLY different CONNOTATION. being from the PRINCE'S or PONIES' point of view instead of the CHANGELINGS'. Borne is connotative of a burden. "I bear the burden" "I bore the burden" "I had borne the burden". In the context of borne, the prince is a weight. In the context of bored, he is a force. In one he is something to be carried, the other he is a thing that destroys.
I said it could work. Not that it was a better fit. Don't get me wrong, 'borne' is probably what the author wanted, considering the sentence structure. I'm just saying. JUST SAYING.
Get this bit->JUST SAYING.<-Get this bit
Bored could. COULD
Get this bit too. ->COULD<-Get this bit too.
Work as well. I hope I've made my point.
9475277
well, account that we don't know how many time has spent Twilight in Apocrypha, it may have been perfectly centuries for Twilight in constant study in what takes a blink of an eye in equestria, i agree that thu'um ain't the most fitting for Twilight, but certainly given the situation the most handy (or hoofy?), and is quite stated that she had learned alot of stuff about Tamriel too, and learning new things also lead to see things in a different light than before and then probably a change in ways. Twilight has been using also magic from Restoration (healing the real Cadence) or Destruction and Conjuration (lightning and conjuring blade for example). And who knows what more se has learnt
More please
9480830
Will do
Again, we have a case of hail, not hale
In this case, the proper term is whet, not wet
9521690
In twilight's case wet is probably apt.