Stories of someone coming back from the dead are a staple in every culture. For most, they are little more than fairy tales and rumours, passed down over generations. Any truth to them lost to the ages.
For Rainbow Dash, they're her only lead. Her only chance to see her friend again. They lead her to a strange mare who knows things she shouldn't, setting Rainbow Dash on a journey through a world no living pony was ever meant to see. She will stop at nothing to bring Twilight Sparkle home.
Editing generously provided by: Corax Morn and 112mag211
Chapters (14)
I'm not one for Twidash, but this has potential. You have yourself a follow.
Hopefully this ends a bit better than Orpheus’ attempt!
This better have a happy ending
How fitting. It's only the third story you publish after coming back from the dead, and it's about coming back from the dead.
Also, this is a weird thing to point out in a fic that's mostly Rainbow-centric (at least so far), but I really love the way Spike is written. In retrospect, it should've been obvious that no story which involves Twilight passing away would be complete without showing his side of the situation, but I somehow didn't expect him to play such a large role in the early chapters.
Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to go compare the Twidash flashback in this chapter with the version you teased in that old blog post to see if you changed anything.
Oooooooh yes.
We totally need another good plot driven TwiDash. It's been ages.
Well, I'm definitely intrigued. I've always found Greek mythology to be fascinating. I can't wait to read more.
It felt like the last year or so on this site was dominated by slice-of-life and/or comedy stories, so it's nice to see a good ol' fashioned adventure tale making the rounds. Here's hoping Rainbow finds what (and who) she's looking for.
See you again next week!
The river has to be the Lethe, with the forgetfulness and all that. As for the title, if it’s not the song, the only thing that I can think of that might be relevant is the Road to Nowhere in Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
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One outta two's not bad. Indeed, the Lethe, literally "oblivion", washes away one's mortal memories of life on earth. As for the title reference, it's actually to one of my favourite levels in one of my favourite games, but I'll leave out specifics if anyone else has a guess.
9501692
I haven't read a proper adventure fic in... gosh.. ages? Mostly because I don't really have the time any more, and partly because I basically only read Twidash unless something really catches my attention. Indeed, it seems Twidash adventure fics have been sparse as of late. I'm glad to be able to bring something fresh to the table.
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Greek mythology has been one of my greatest loves ever since I read the Percy Jackson series as a young teenager, and I sincerely hope to be able to do some of the concepts justice, while still adding my own spin on things.
9496234
An age of drought washed away by the sweet waters of Twidashy Goodness, indeed. I hope to meet your expectations.
9491806
My return from the dead may have been the reason this fic was written to begin with. Spike remains my favourite side character to write. I see a lot of myself in him, and he's fantastic to use both as a straight man in comedy and a more grounded voice in serious works. But that shouldn't diminish his ability to be an emotional heavy weight when it comes to Twilight. Or any of his friends. We'll be seeing him again in this story.
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I'm a sucker for happy endings, don't you worry.
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Here's hoping I live up to those expectations. It's always a compliment when the writing/plot is good enough to allow for enjoyment of a premise/ship one usually doesn't enjoy.
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With that hint I got it immediately. The Crash level, has the bridge and everything. I really should have got that considering I played the hell out of those games as a kid.
Really great job. I'm waiting for another chapters :)
The River is clearly the Lethe
The title? I honestly don't know...
Shut up and take my bits already!!!
Amazing story
This is a great story. I'm a little confused about why pony heaven would have a library that's dangerous to the souls that live there, though.
Considering that Rainbow's the Element Of Loyalty, I have faith she'll trust Twilight if she's faced with a similar challenge to Orpheus's.
At least, I hope so.
We'll find out soon enough, I suppose. See you again in two weeks!
Great work! Haven't had a good "epic adventure for the sake of love" story in a bit. I featured this on episode 255 of my podcast, Pony 411.
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Glad you're enjoying it! I'll actually be touching on that next chapter a bit, as well as some other things I've been setting up about the Library.
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Thanks! I can't help but admit I got the goofiest grin on my face hearing you talk about enjoying my fic. Always such a great thing to hear. (Also it's pronounced the same way as kodiak. I was bad at spelling when I was young). I'll do my utmost to make sure this fic makes it to the finish line in a timely fashion. I'd have listened to the rest of your podcast but I haven't seen the new season yet. Spoilers and such.
(P.S. I'm a sucker for happy endings.)
Awesome story so far!
Oh, Gale. That's not a curse. That's how all libraries work.
There are about 10 ways I can see this playing out from here, and only 2 or 3 of them are "happy".
I hope I'm wrong, but I'd live if I wasn't.
...Twilight, on the other hoof, wouldn't.
*ba-dum tsssk*
See you again in two weeks!
If you're filthy shipping trash then I'm the trash can!
DIE CLIFFHANGERS
Go Dashie!! You’ve got this!!
That escape from the Keepers was a fantastic action sequence, and it felt exhilarating to see Twilight and Rainbow working together so seamlessly after more than a year spent apart. With these two reunited, the Halls suddenly seem a little less frightening.
And so, our intrepid heroes escape the halls of the library, and move on to the next stage of their quest.
Will they find the ingredients they need?
What other dangers will they encounter in this hostile paradise?
Will Rainbow tell Twilight her true feelings?
And, most importantly, will Rainbow bring Twilight home?
All these questions—and more—will be answered in the time to come. Tune in two weeks from now to find out what happens next!
Same Bat-Time, same Bat-Channel!
...
...
...Wait a second.
That sleep spell was great thinking on Twilight's part.
I was almost certain Clover would end up staying behind, with the curse causing her to actively put up a fight against Rainbow's attempts to bring her out. I should've known better - Twilight won't have any of that on her watch!
The Dorky Duo is lucky to have Gale as their faithful escort. They still have two more errands to run in the Land of the Dead, and now that Twilight is right there, the Lover's Guide is probably as good as useless in Rainbow's hooves. (It can definitely come in handy if the two ever get separated, though.)
Also, I can definitely see why Rainbow didn't find it in herself to confess her feelings when she was still coming to terms with being forgiven. Still, I hope she realizes that between her sleep-talking, her newfound habit of thinking out loud, and Gale trying to play matchmaker, Twilight is bound to find out eventually.
9630529
This chapter went through multiple versions in my head before I decided on having Twilight put Clover to sleep. Well, to be brutally honest this entire arc went through multiple versions during my planning (Clover was originally supposed to be Starswirl, but that was scrapped pretty early when I decided to have the Hurricane/Clover thing). Anyway, point being I had considered having Clover fight tooth and nail to stay, among other options that would have had this chapter end very differently, but in the end I think the version I went with lends itself best to the upcoming arc. I don't mind sharing that one of those plans was for Rainbow to be wrestling Clover out of the library and have Twilight finally succumb to the curse and start to wander back inside, forcing Rainbow to reveal certain... feelings that would snap her out of it. I hovered on that option for a while before deciding to draw that part of the story out a bit more.
And yes, the Dragon King's Compass will most certainly be returning. Although, perhaps not in the way many expect.
Indeed, it seems as though Rainbow's secret may not stay a secret for long. We'll have to wait and see, though.
(Did I mention I love teasing things? Because I love teasing things.)
It's kinda depressing seeing just how embittered Spike has become. Almost every word he said in this chapter felt like it was dripping with either irritation or flat-out anger. He yelled at Celestia, for Celestia's sake!
What makes it even more stunning to me is that whenever my brain tries to envision the events of the story, it automatically ages Spike up to somewhere around Smolder's age and height. But nope! This is the small, pre-Molt baby dragon saying all of that.
And the one time he wasn't acting like he hated the world and everycreature in it?
When he was talking about the memorial for Twilight.
Meanwhile, our afterlife adventurers have a destination in mind. Climbing a mountain "sounds easy enough", huh, Twilight? We'll get to test that theory soon...
If someone in a fictional work says this, the exact opposite will likely prove to be true.
Anyway, that's all I have right now. See you again in two weeks!
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'Tis always a joy to see your comments. I'm glad I was able to convey Spike's feelings appropriately. He's honestly such a fun character to write, and he's an excellent vessel to explore the effects losing Twilight would have on not just him but the girls and Ponyville as a whole. We shall be seeing more of him, me thinks.
Ah, if it were easy it wouldn't be a very good story, now would it?
Best story 11/10
...Jeez, Twilight, you almost gave me a heart attack there!
Yeah, don't really have anything too insightful or witty to say. This was just a fun little interlude, like you said it was. Though I will say it was cool seeing that Gale can do the Rainboom.
I'll see you again in two weeks once things start ramping up again... *gulps nervously*
The journey begins...this is so cool. I feel like the hero rarely succeeds in these type of stories. I hope I'm wrong.
Amazing fight. I wonder how the trial would go down for an earth pony or a pegasus. Then again, it'd probably be different for each individual., I'm guessing.
I like Cronus.
I think "not condemning an innocent to Tartarus" is as good a reason for throwing the fight as "all for love," but both are good reasons.
Dude, this is so interesting with this interpretation of gaia just sort of being an all knowing lady in a cottage is really cool, can't wait to see where this goes
I love this story so far. It's really great and you did wonderfully not letting Twilight's death weigh too heavily on the reader. That could have killed the mood of the story. I did notice one issue though. Hurricane said she had no idea Rainbow could do a rainboom but earlier said she watched Rainbow's rounds in the arena. Incuding the golem fight. Dash used a rainboom to defeat the golem.
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'Tis what happens when I add details after the fact. Plot Holes get opened. I'll fix that, thanks.
Otherwise, glad you're enjoying.
Oh wow I haven't been this invested in an ongoing story in a long time. Great chapter, and I'll be keeping a sharp lookout on my tracking page for the next few weeks!
WHY!? WHY CAN'T I SEE RAINBOW SAYING IT TONIGHT?! GIMMW MORE!!!!!
very good by the way, can't wait for next chaper
I NEED MOAR!!!
this is REALLY amazing!
Please update this fic!! It's amazing!
NOOOOOOOOO JUST WHEN I BINGE A FIC THAT GOT ME INVESTED ;-;
and kodeake last posted 2013 i think
seriously though i cant get enough of these stories, ive read other authors on similarly dark fics but nobody writes em the same.