Chapter 16. Love is a Higher Law.
A deathly silence permeated the council's meeting room on the beginning of the second week of Lord Skeletor’s reign over the Crystal Empire. The days after the Crystal Fair had allowed the Empire to make great strides in their attempts to repair the damages caused by Sombra.
Buildings were being rebuilt, victims of mental or physical trauma were being treated in the medical wing of the Crystal Castle, and the Alchemist Guild had made excellent progress in their attempts to use cotton to make paper; though Lord Skeletor appeared somewhat uneasy about the alchemist’s decision to use their own bedding and blankets to get the cotton needed.
While the buildings could be fixed with a few weeks of hard work, and the physical scars left on some ponies would naturally heal with time, the mental lashings Sombra inflicted on them would take years to repair. When Lord Skeletor heard of the issues in the medical wing involving the ponies who were placed on suicide watch, he hesitantly suggested giving them a magical medicine of his own design. Cannon Fodder didn’t initially believe that the “placebos” Lord Skeletor created would do anything other than hurt the patients, but to his surprise, some of the patients were calming down slightly. His elixir was a secret concoction that had the potential to help those who have a strong sense of belief in their hearts, at least that's what the demon claimed.
Still being wary of the demon, Cannon Fodder snatched up a jar of the “placebos” and, with the surprising help of Crumb Catcher, tasked one of the alchemists with finding out what was in it. While Cannon Fodder was still extremely uneasy about Crumb Catcher, he was relieved to know that his fellow council member shared his skepticism for Lord Skeletor’s remedy. If it turned out that his magical drink was actually a poison or complex concoction that could turn ponies into mindless zombies, then he and Crumb Catcher would be able to use his own creation against him.
As Cannon Fodder and Crumb Catcher waited for the alchemist to deduce what Lord Skeletor’s placebos were made of, they continued to play the part of loyal council members for the days following the Crystal Fair. Unfortunately, playing the part of loyal lap dog appeared to be harder then either of them could have imagined.
One sentence was all it took for the conversation to completely die, much to the confusion and worry of Cannon Fodder.
Lord Skeletor looked towards the general of his Empire in a mixture of horror and disbelief, as if he had told the demon the most blasphemous thing to ever leave a pony’s throat. The silence in the room dragged on for an uncomfortably long time, causing time to feel as if it was struggling to crawl forward in the room. Seconds sluggishly moved by as Lord Skeletor looked into Cannon Fodder's eyes with complete shock.
“What… What are they in the dungeon for?” Lord Skeletor eventually asked the General of the Royal Guard in a stupefied tone.
Cannon Fodder briefly glanced at Crumb Catcher to see if he knew anything about Lord Skeletor’s sudden shift in mood. Crumb Catcher made no attempt to relay any silent messages to his ally, choosing instead to stare at Lord Skeletor with an equal amount of confusion to the rest of the council members.
“Illegal relations. They were caught in the caverns below the Empire and were detained,” the general easily replied.
“Illegal? Why the hell is being gay suddenly illegal!?” Lord Skeletor questioned loudly, causing his council members to instinctively flinch back at his outburst. The council members threw confused looks to each other at their master’s inquiry, silently asking if anypnony else knew what their lord was talking about.
“Um, I don’t believe being happy is illegal, my lord,” Copper Plate replied hesitantly.
“What? No, I mean gay, like homosexual, the thing those two mares are: Gay! When a mare really likes a mare or when a stallion really likes another stallion. For Christ's sake, do I need to draw a picture?” Lord Skeletor exclaimed as he attempted to explain his foreign terminology to his council.
“Well, in that case, being ‘gay’ as you call it is illegal,” Crumb Catcher explained. “It was Princess Amore who had told us that having feelings towards a member of the same gender is a sickness of the mind that could spread to other ponies who are near them. If two ponies of the same gender were together, then that would pollute the love that powers the barrier over the Empire, and thus leave us vulnerable to the elements outside. Some citizens, like the ones in the dungeon, decided to ignore the divine word of Princess Amore, and conduct their debauchery in secrecy. The two mares who were captured were too lax, and were easily apprehended, all that remains is your decision for their punishment, sire.”
As his explanation dragged on, their lord violently seethed in anger, an unbridled rage threatening to spill out of him after hearing Crumb’s explanation.
“Well then, I officially abolish that law,” Lord Skeletor announced firmly.
Many of the lord’s private council were taken aback by the sudden tone in his voice, a commanding anger that hadn’t been heard by anypony who served the new lord. Before any of his council members could object or question his sudden decree, he stood up from his chair and banged his scepter against the ground. His seat scraped against the floor as it flew back several feet, allowing Lord Skeletor to stand to his full height and completely tower over the seated ponies. Any thoughts of questioning his decision died instantly as their instincts took hold, telling them to run away from the predator that had suddenly turned aggressive.
“I wish to know every law, and I will announce whether or not I believe they should be enforced. If any of you disagree, then please present your reason as to why and I will take that into consideration. However, I will remain firm on this point; if two ponies of the same gender love each other and are of consenting age, then they should be allowed to be together. And if I hear anything about it being a mental issue then I will be making serious changes to whom I allow on my council. Is that clear?” Lord Skeletor rhetorically asked his council.
Everypony in the room knew that their lord’s order was not up for debate, at least not while he was so agitated after hearing about it. With a great haste, all of his council members nodded their heads in agreement to their lord’s order.
“Good then. Cannon Fodder!” Lord Skeletor called out, causing the guard to reflexively salute his lord.
“Go down to the dungeons and bring those two mares to my throne room. Copper, I want to officially abolish that law by tonight if I can, bring any legal documents needed to do so. And Crumb…” Lord Skeletor seethed, causing the head of staff to swallow a nervous lump in his throat.
“Go to the kitchen and ask the staff to prepare two extra servings for tonight. Emerald, prepare a statement for the citizens in regards to my order. I want to know every counter argument the citizens could use, I don’t want to be blindsided by a fact or ‘fact’ from some arrogant douchebag,” he demanded. “Also, look into the claim about it being, ‘tainted’ love and see what jackass pulled that out of their hat. I want to know how qualified they were to make that claim and hear their argument. Are there any questions?” He asked the rest of his council.
“Um... Is there anything you need me to do, your highness?” Avid Value worryingly asked.
“… Not for this. I don’t see how this issue could impact our financial progress, and I wanted to visit the alchemists to see progress on producing paper first hand. Once this meeting is dismissed, I'll need someone to guide me to the Alchemy Tower, so you can help in that regard. Emerald, delay court until tomorrow and make sure the two mares are comfortable when they arrive to the throne room. The rest of you have already been given your duties, so unless there is anything else I should know about, then I want my orders to be carried out swiftly,” Lord Skeletor finished.
Cannon Fodder decided that it would be best to bring up his desires to retrain the guard at a later date for another meeting since he had accidentally earned the scorn of the demon he called his lord.
After Emerald Secret had brought up the possible need for stronger placebos for some patients, Lord Skeletor stated that he would attempt to help them later on and dismissed his council. Each of the council members hastily trotted out of the meeting room to complete their tasks, with the exception of Avid Value. The youngest council member waited patiently for his lord to speak, and was rewarded with an order to wait outside the council room for Lord Skeletor to collect himself.
Cannon Fodder felt a tinge of fear for Avid Value being forced to be near the demon when he was in a volatile state. If Avid Value said one wrong word, it could have been the end for him.
Skeletor sat alone in his chair in the council’s meeting room. As he breathed through the nasal cavity of his skull, he buried his face into his hands and let out an exhausted groan. His high of anger faded away, leaving him with a sobering sense of dread as he was left alone with his own thoughts.
“Fuck me… I just made an enemy of the church, didn’t I? Ooooh that’s not good…” Skeletor said to himself as he leaned against his chair.
“Wait to go, dumbass, you probably pissed off the pony pope,” he berated himself. “That’s definitely going to bite you in the ass. If there’s a religious organization that heavily agreed with that law, then you’re screwed. Fuck, not to mention Princess Amore was seen as a damn goddess… fuuuuuuuuck,” he groaned as tapped his fingers on the table.
“Fuck me, I reeeeally hope they aren’t like some of the countries on my planet. I can see it now, revolutions led by religious groups that now have a physical monster to vilify and use as the devil,” Skeletor stated as he wondered what had compelled him to speak out against his council.
Equality for them didn’t help him with his plans of getting home, if anything, it hindered him since he would now need to worry about religious organizations in the Empire gunning for him. A leader may have power, but a church held a great influence that could persuade armies to rise and topple empires. He could vividly imagine the outcry from the Empire. Burning effigies of himself would be paraded through the Empire along with hundreds of pitchforks and torches that would move in rhythm to the chanting of, “Kill the King.”
History would possibly smile upon his decision to legalize it, stating that he was ahead of his time. But who cared what history would say about him when his skull was in a basket and his body was on the other side of a guillotine?
It wouldn’t matter to him because he would be put on a spike and skewered, or maybe even tortured by the ponies for legalizing something that went against their religion. While he knew enough spells to protect himself, such as a portal spell that could give him some distance between himself and an angry mob, he was only one man against thousands of ponies. They had numbers, knowledge of the Empire’s layout, and the ability to kill without hesitation.
He didn’t think he could kill any of them like he had Sombra, even if he could use magic to make the act of killing them easier. The mental toll and strength needed to actively kill something without relying on instinct was too much for him. Even if he took down a few of them, hundreds upon thousands of ponies would be there to take their place. No matter what, if he were to upset the crystal ponies enough, he would die by their hooves.
After taking a deep breath and berating himself internally for another minute, he rose from his seat and walked over to the doors of the council room. Outside of the room, Avid Value was sitting patiently with his ears facing Skeletor and his head pointed away slightly. Skeletor desperately hoped that the Alchemists could deliver on their promise to make paper. If they were successful, then Skeletor could use it to gain public favor, though he highly doubted that it would give him any more sway than any of the religions in the Empire.
Without any prompting, Avid led Skeletor down the hallway towards the staircase to go to the Alchemist’s tower which was about ten minutes away from the council room on foot. For ponies, walking there was exceptionally quicker because of their four legs, so Avid trotted at a slower and more relaxed pace to allow Skeletor to follow him without practically speed walking down the halls. After nearly a full minute of silence between them, Skeletor decided to get a pony’s perspective on his abrupt decision to legalize gay marriage.
If Skeletor knew which religious leaders to butter up to and who to be on guard for, he would be able to avoid being dragged through the streets by an angry mob of religious ponies. And if it turned out that the pony pope was someone Skeletor wouldn’t be able to convince or bribe, then he’d have a head start on running out of the Empire. The Thestral and Ruva Kingdoms were still abandoned and left unexplored by the freed crystal ponies. If worst came to worst, he could run to the Ruva Kingdom and rummage through any of the books left there to find a way to send him home using less taxing methods.
“Avid, I have a few things that I need to ask you.”
“Of course, your highness, what do you want to know?”
“I want to know how my decision will impact the Empire. How will the religions react, how will the citizens react, and so on and so forth? Start with religions, how will they react to my decree?”
“There isn’t really anypony in a high enough position of power to question it. Sombra banned all religions worshiping Faust during his reign, burning every Church of Faust in the Thestral, Ruva, and Crystal Pony Kingdom in the Crystal Empire. I believe he had the priests of the churches burn them down themselves before he forced them to… desecrate any of her religious texts,” Avid informed him.
“Jesus Christ, just when I think that I couldn’t hate that asshole any more than I already did… So, to clarify, there is no religious authority to oppose me in my decision?”
“None, your highness.”
“I see…” Skeletor simply stated as he wondered how happy that should have made him. On one hand, the possibility of him being put on a spike and flailed drastically decreased, but only because of the atrocities Sombra committed. Being thankful for one less threat almost felt like he was being thankful to the tyrant that had ruined the lives of thousands.
“Did anything in those religious texts talk about being gay, or call it blasphemous?” Skeletor asked.
“Not that I know of for a fact, your highness. I wasn’t literate like the priests were, and by the time I had managed to teach myself, I felt no need to read the book since the priest would read all the passages to us. The memories are a little hazy, but I don’t believe any of the texts of Faust directly stated that there was anything sinful about being… Gay, as you called it. I know that it was heavily frowned upon by each of the pony races, but I’m not sure when it was officially abolished... My lord, if I may ask, why did you change the law?” Avid Value asked.
“‘Why?’ Because it was stupid, that’s why,” Skeletor responded harshly.
“Oh… Uh, would you mind me asking why it’s stupid?”
“Because it is! People-er-ponies deserve to be allowed to be with the one they love. There’s nothing harmful about gay marriage, and gay ponies aren’t so different from you or anyone else in my council. It’s aggravating to think that laws like these existed in the Empire, and in a moment of clouded judgment, I made a decision without taking any time to consider it.
“Morally, I feel justified in my decision, but intellectually I’m at a cross roads. I begrudgingly admit that I’m not too familiar with your magic so they may have a point. And, on another note, I regret exploding at the council the way I did. Your culture and mine varies in ways I can’t even imagine, forcing you to change your culture in a day because it doesn’t align with mine feels… Morally grey, I suppose. It almost feels like I'm bullying the Empire into embracing my opinions,” Skeletor explained before he let his shoulders slump. “You’re a pony, Avid, do you know anything about magic powered by the love of the citizens?”
“Only that it powers the barrier above the Empire.”
“… Is there any validity to the claim that love shared between the same gender can affect the barrier negatively? Like, was there a point in history where it fell because of same sex love?”
“None that I know of… But…”
“But?”
“I…” Avid paused as he mauled over his words inside his head. “There was a reason why the Crystal Heart was hidden. When Sombra first came to power, he attempted to make his slaves… He tried to power the heart by having ponies… have sex with eachother,” Avid quietly told him, forcing the words to leave his body. “That was the only time the barrier fell. I don’t think that the love of… Gay ponies will make it fall but… Lord Skeletor, why are you so passionate about this? Are you… You know,” Avid asked as he danced around calling Skeletor gay.
“No, I… I had a friend, back where I’m from, who, to put it lightly, wasn’t accepted for his preferences. Trevor uh, ’swung for the other team’ so to speak, and his mom didn’t like that,” Skeletor began to explain as he remembered one of his close friends back on Earth.
“He was raised to be a strict Christian and his mother saw it as a ‘terrible sin’ to like another man, because some book that was rewritten a dozen times claimed it was. It hit him pretty hard when his mother called him… Well, I’m not going to repeat it, but just know it hurt him a lot. And it hurt me too.
“Trevor was like a brother to me, sometimes he was more of a brother than my actual damn brother. And to hear about his mom shouting at him like that just… It just pissed me off! He was a good kid, got great grades in school, never did drugs or anything like that, was part of the swim team, he even took dance lessons since he was eight for Christ’s sake! But apparently, none of that mattered because he liked guys!” Lord Skeletor exclaimed angrily.
“It wasn’t fair to him… Trevor was… Well, he was a better man than me. Heh, I actually felt a little jealous of him sometimes. But no matter how I felt, he was there for me when I needed a shoulder to cry on, or a friend to lean on. And when he needed a shoulder to cry on, I was there for him. Trevor wasn't a sinful monsters or anything like that, he was a good man and an amazing friend, and all he wanted to do was love Bedar. So, Avid, that’s why I legalized it. Because at the end of the day, people and ponies should be free to love who they want.”
“So… So then, you believe that there’s really nothing wrong with it, sire?”
“Of course not. Why? Do you have an issue with my orders?” Skeletor asked in an aggressive tone, as if begging Avid to insult his friend so he could have a reason to attack him. A protective fury burned inside of Skeletor as he looked at the smaller pony, waiting for the moment to let that fire explode from him.
“It’s not that, your highness! It’s just… Nopony was ever as vocal as you were. I just… I just wanted to believe what you said was true,” Avid quietly admitted as they passed by a pair of guards standing at a door.
Neither of the guards appeared to hear Avid’s quiet admission, leaving Skeletor alone with the little grain of knowledge that Avid had given him. Avid's words hung in the air as he led Skeletor down the hall, the quiet echo of his voice filled the silence inside Skeletor’s mind as he processed what his council member told him.
Taking a chance to confirm his suspicions, Skeletor approached the subject delicately to see if he had misinterpreted Avid’s words. “Avid… It’s not my place to pry, but… Is there anything you want to share with me?”
“Not necessarily, your highness. Anything we discuss should be for the benefit and growth of the Empire. The happiness and stability of the citizens comes before anything else. E-except your happiness, your highness,” he quickly tacked on.
“Alright… So, how will my decision involving the legalization of gay marriage, and by extension practices of gay relationships, affect the citizens?”
“I’m afraid that I’m the wrong pony to ask that question, your highness. I deal more heavily in the finances of the Empire, if you want a firm grasp on the public’s opinion, then I’d recommend speaking with Crumb Catcher. Though, if I had to make a guess, I’d say that there will be a few very happy ponies. I don’t believe that public relationships between the same gender will start appearing left and right, but I do think that some ponies will sleep better knowing that they won’t be punished for their choice in partner,” Avid stated with a small smile that was quickly hidden by a look of pure profesionalism.
“Speaking of punishment, what would have happened to those two mares in the dungeon if I hadn’t intervened?” Skeletor asked. Since burning and desecrating books of any kind was apparently an automatic death sentence in the Crystal Empire, Skeletor wondered if the punishment for being gay was of a greater or lesser value.
“… Before the rise of Sombra, gay ponies who were caught were, ‘cleansed’ by ruvas using mind magic,” Avid quietly admitted, causing Skeletor to stop dead in his tracks. “I believe Sombra was able to modify the spell used for the ‘cleansing sessions’ and used it to take over the Empire.”
“They… They would have been brainwashed?” Skeletor fearfully asked as thoughts of his friend being tormented flooded his mind for a brief moment.
“I’ve never heard that term be used, but it’s a fitting title for it,” Avid replied, completely unaware of the effect his words had on Skeletor.
Skeletor’s blood boiled as he imagined the torture those captured ponies must have gone through and the experiments they were forced to go through to be ‘healed’. The thought that a spell like that was regularly used by its government caused Skeletor to look at the previous beloved princess in a new light. He had been told stories about her love for her ponies, how she promoted love for all in her Empire when she ruled.
Now, to find out that a supposed Princess of Love would commit such atrocities, he felt nothing but disgust for the previous princess. Skeletor briefly entertained the idea of stopping the artisans from recreating artwork of Princess Amore, but quickly banished that thought as soon as it arrived. Even in death, the princess held sway over her kingdom from beyond the grave. If Skeletor were to call off the restoration of her paintings a few days after commemorating a holiday to her, then he would only be seen as another Sombra, another tyrant to be dethroned.
With no way to vent his frustration towards the dead princess, Skeletor decided to turn his fury towards the spells that she used to brainwash her subjects.
“After we meet with the alchemists, I'm going to go to the court room, speak with the mares, and then find Copper so that I can see those spell books,” Skeletor told Avid with a deep anger resonating in is voice.
“W-why?” Avid fearfully asked as he tried to control his voice. Skeletor admonished himself for a brief moment for accidentally startling Avid with his tone and decided to speak with a gentler voice that held no vitriol, but still commanded respect.
“Tell me, Avid, burning and desecrating books is a death sentence, correct?”
“Yes.”
“Well, first I’ll abolish that law, and then I’ll ‘accidentally’ cast a fire spell on the pages containing that brain washing spell,” he promised as he quickened his pace towards the Alchemist’s tower.
Stats
Page generated in 0.025 seconds
Total duration
868 users online
434,371 hits today, 2,724,632 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.®
Great chapter!!!!!
Don't worry my good man, accidents happen all the time when no one's around to be a witness.
it be interesting to see how equestria will react to this, im sure Candace will approve of it
10227944
It is a successful stealth mission if no one is left to report you, or even see you
10227985
Not sure if you or anyone else caught on, but the shift to italics was supposed to be representative of the kind of things you see in cartoons where someone's saying something that seems like any old statement, but then partway through what they're saying they lean in, their voice becomes low and/or gravelly, and sometimes as an artistic choice the top of their face down past their eyes is veiled in darkness, and suddenly it's like 'oh god it's a threat'.
Love this story
I would have been impressed if 'Skeletor' had had more Christian leanings and recognized that everyone is endowed with free will, and, while concerned for the spirit of homosexuals, has a hard time seeing Galileo sharing bunk space with Hitler, rather than using the rather trite Carrie-Christian-Fundamentalist trope.
Still, with that said, it's interesting that he can remember the name of one of his friends. Perhaps he's slowly gaining some of his memories back, and was too angry at the time to notice?
What's more, it will be interesting (hopefully) to see how homosexual love actually effects the safety dome. My prediction would be that homosexual love powers the dome less than what heterosexual love does, and might do so on the basis of how heterosexual love has the potential to create life, where as with homosexuals new life just isn't possible. The implications on how important maintaining the dome in a frozen wasteland in the very beginnings of the Empire when numbers were fewer thus bringing about such a law before there was a sizable enough population to freely power it.
Ah yes, accidental fires are much more believable, when one can pull them out of their magical backside.
A really good chapter and it’s nice to show a side of the main character we don’t see often so far.
10227944
"Yes officer, that home invader had a heart attack in my house. No officer, I don't know how he got three dozen footprints on his head."
While the personal anecdote was certainly heartfelt, I wonder if Skeletor would be better served by explaining his reasoning to the Empire at large as a matter of policy.
If we recognize that the purpose of a government is to serve and protect the society it oversees, then it should be self-evident that illegalizing homosexuality runs directly counter to those goals. Even leaving aside the compelling argument that the government has no credible basis for interfering in consensual intimate relationships between mentally-competent adults, the act of outlawing something requires that a credible justification be made for how society is served by doing so. This necessitates, among other things, demonstrating how removing the illegalized element from society accomplishes more good than harm (though that alone is not necessarily enough to reach the "credible justification" threshold).
In this case, however, outlawing same-sex relationships fails that test prima facie. Institutionalizing discrimination and persecution of part of the population purely because they fall in love with other members of their own sex in no way promotes the general welfare. Once religious dogmatism, spurious claims of moral decay, and simple homophobia are dispensed with, it's easy to see that this "crime" has no victims and causes no damage to any aspect of a society, and prosecuting it serves only to create a new criminal class for no legitimate reason. Thusly lacking a legitimate basis, any such laws should be therefore repealed with all due haste.
10228005
it improve the dome just more love allowed to flow so it be stronger the only reason it failed under sombra was he was literally causing mass scale of rape, and rape doesn't generate love only fear hate and disgust and horror
will be hilarious if Cadence outright vocalized she agreed with abolishing that prejudice law.
Skeletor should start to destroy religion or change it so it wouldn't be dangerous to him.
Like showing evidence of miracles being just luck
Using logic,etc
If he has to, he can reforge old religion to a new one which would be more general as a whole, not so fanatic and more realistic in approach.
Like there would be part about the creator of the planet which:
- wouldn't mean that creator is a god
-you don't have to be a god to create
-miracles , blessings are just luck
-Faust , alicorns aren't gods and immortals
-If there is a true god, he/she wouldn't bleed because if something bleeds it can be killed
-Beings controlling the sun and moon aren't gods but tyrants who took control of something that was working on itself so they could control others
Generally, introduce ponies to a concept that their creator could be just advanced race or powerful being but not god
Actually for that Sombra got himself one +
10228101
And instantly lost a hundred with the whole rape thing to power the Heart.
10228108
True but at least he has done something useful for Skeletor
10228101
Oh he could, but you need balls to even attempt that.
Thus far I'm sure they're both shriveled from a thorough lack of use.
10228005
That spoiler explanation would explain why such a law was necessary.
Whoa there Skeletor, just because Amore felt that way doesn't mean she was a terrible person. That was simply the attitude of the time and was considered normal. Why would they question what was at the time, a simple truth? We may see older practices and beliefs as barbaric now, but to the people of the time it was just a part of life. Amore could have banned homosexuals because she genuinely believe it tainted the love of the Crystal Empire. That doesn't mean she genuinely hated homosexuals, simply that she was ignorant.
Personally, if I was Skeletor I look closely at the old religion. Learn about it, gather all of the priests, and have them examine the teachings for anything relating to homosexuality. If the religion has good core beliefs and doesn't condemn homosexuality, then a reformation and revival of the Church might be a good thing.
I don't know how much that religion differs from Christianity, but if the ponies in their written book or whatever else had a "fall from grace" moment like the Garden of Eden for Christianity, that could be useful to explain why some older beliefs were "wrong" and not something Faust would want. I know in Catholicism we have "original sin" caused by disobeying God and eating from the tree. We are in a fallen state, plagued by sin. We need God to purify us. Baptism washes away original sin, confession (Catholic sacrament, gives one a state of grace free of sin) washes away sins we commit during our daily lives, and following the Church and the word of God keeps us on the right path.
With Catholicism we had Vatican II which basically examined the Church at the time, the principles and practices, and tried to... trim the fat, as it were? Church teaching never changes, but Vatican II attempted to clarify things. So if something was changed, it wasn't that it was "wrong" - for the word of God is never wrong - but as humans who live in a naturally fallen state, we simply misunderstood what God was trying to tell us in the teachings.
Perhaps Skeletor could try and pull a "Vatican II" as it were? Gather all of the priests and hold a conference? Reforge the old religion and spin any changes as simply "clarifying" what Faust taught? That she never wanted homosexuality banned and that it was a misunderstanding of her word.
Although, it's still debated whether or not Vatican II was a good thing and if it accomplished it's goal. Some such as I still practice the Latin rite and pre-Vatican II ways of doing things. Vatican II changed a lot about the Church, even common blessings, how people receive communion, the altar itself, and much more. Interesting stuff.
10228005
No . Please do not . Dont make homosexuality something crazy insanely diffrent . Just make it normal. How it supposed to be viewed
.. Just normal love, nothing crazy snowflaky or evil just: "Normal".
Becouse i allready shudder of the extreme spectrum of politics that can be injected here.
10228101
I dont believe Skeletor here in this fic would ever do that. There is no reason at all.It really dosent seems like there are any priests or religious organizations left in the Empire. Just faithfull inviduals. It would be questionable moraly aswell to reform what is an essentially an Alien religion. As a King i could see him oppose religion if there would be extreme harmful elements in any of them.Like sacreficing foals,oppresing a race or invidualls,justifying dishing out own justice like burning someone on the stake for their own beliefs.
Also i think Skeletor would heavily oppose any religion forming around him. He is a normal guy afterall. Not somekind of megalomeniac.
Loving This Story.
10228101
It actually might be impossible to destroy religion. Sure, you can have a highly secular society but even in those societies religion has never disappeared it simply diminished. Take New Zealand for example - during 2011 a massive earthquake happened, and as a result of the tragedy and hardship the amount of religious people spiked. People often use religion as a way to cope with the harsh reality of our world. For instance... when someone dies, is it easier to believe that there is an afterlife or that we cease to exist upon death? That our fate is unknown? Or when something bad happens, would it not be more comforting to believe that your God is watching over you? That he has a plan, and although such tragedies hurt, that things will be alright in the end?
It's even believed that religion could possibly be a part of being human. Even in ancient times, religion of some sort existed. Even cavemen had rituals to bury their dead and had some sort of belief on what would happen upon death. Religion is "natural" in the sense it seems to form on it's own over time. It's easy for us to use religion to answer questions about the world and help one cope with reality. The ancients did it all the time. But science? That's harder. Science may provide explanations and knowledge about the world, but when presented with hardship one will often take the path of least resistance, religion.
Religion and if it can truly die is a topic scholars debate to this day.
i.chzbgr.com/full/6650541824/h0899010E/burn-all-the-books
Oh boy it's book burning time!
Well, thouch subjects are touchy but homossexualism is a illness by definition, mental or otherwise.
Before anyone come flaming me for it know that I don't care if someone is homossexual or not, I am just stating a fact.
Now humans and ponies are close but still different species. Ponies have the magical component and "love" is not just attraction in Equestria, it is a tangible energy that can be used for sustainance and magic. If Amore, an Alicorn that especialized in using that power source said it would corrupt "pure love energy" I am inclined to believe her untill some point it can be disproven, since it is a matter that could put at risk the lifes of everypony in the Empire.
Another thing is that the Empire is a thousand years behind in societal development, that includes science, and that means that population growth os paramont to maintain the society, especially one situated in such harsh enviorement, as such homossexuality being frowned upon is more of a necessity than a choice and not having that notion would be more detrimental to the Empire than the ridiculous notion of "equality" is to today's society, even without the magical energy part.
10228188
Except it is not "normal".
By definition "normal" if that which is the same for the majority, as such homossexual "love" will never be "normal".
10228281
cdn.pixilart.com/photos/large/42802569bfd7585.jpg
10228101
You showed a profund lack of understanding about what "religion" is.
There is no need for the Deity to be a God/Godess, takr Budism for example. Heck there is not even a need for a God for a religion to exist.
Now good luck disproving miracles in a world where magic actually exists. Miracles are just high powered magic after all.
Don't forget Discord, God of Chaos, is a real being that has ruled the world for a time, so good luck disproving "Gods" too.
This story is incredible and I can’t believe I’ve only just found it.
As a bisexual it’s nice to see same sex relationships shown as neither a mortal sin or the one true form of love. That’s one thing I’ve noticed about some pro-lgbt stories is they swing way too far in the other direction. Thank you
10228277
To reinforce your point is that in the lore behind Amore it says:
I would assume over time she would become more knowledgeable on how the crystal heart works considering she is the one who raised the shield in the first place. So there might actually be some actual reasoning why it was outlawed besides survival purposes which by itself was good point.
10227946
I'm not. Candance can see "love energy" and if Amore, that could do the same, said it wad "tainted" I see no evidence to support Candance reacting any different.
Off course it all depends on the author and I have found that fanfic authors rarely maintain any level of realism in their stories choosing instead to have the character act in ways to fit their believes instead of how the story characterization says the character should act.
10228284
Again what I said is just a fact and your unwillingness to understand how our reality work is not really a problem for me.
10228300
i was more referring to a apparent demon running a 1000 years behind the times nation, and being pro same sex relationship, then if Candace can see love energy, is that a canon ability Candace is meant to have?
10228188
One option that I generally meant for him was to change some of their religion to something with a wider view and not some fanatic religion with alicorns who generally have a planet hostage
10228208
Ponies are in medieval times, of course, they will see a religion that way
But Skeletor can explain some "miracles" and "blessings" when they are obvious to him and us , when it's obvious magic isn't involved and it's just luck or that's how the world works when magic isn't involved
Think about stage magic tricks , we know it's not real magic,we have seen tutorials , how-to videos,some are advanced and use science, etc but ponies wouldn't know
10228288
-they religion is about fucking Faust and alicorns, they have deities
I generally meant for Skeletor to change that ,like introducing a religion that doesn't need deites ,so there wouldn't be fanatics of alicorns
-Discord is female in this world
-Not all "miracles" have to be magic , they can be just luck
They still can lie and cheat,use tricks to get what they want with religion , name things to be holy relics,etc
There are still natural phenomenons that don't need magic to happen, but maybe only luck, that they can just name miracles caused by their religion and "power"
10228067 10228188
If you would be so kind as to fully read my previous comment, you'd note that I do have homosexual relations under the consideration of not only being love but a love that can also generate power for the Empire's shield. What's more, I literally made no statement in regards to my own feelings on the subject of homosexual love versus heterosexual love in any way. I only ever suggested a hypothesis for why such a law would have been placed upon the books in the world of this particular story. And I only ever made this speculation because, up until now, this story has been written intelligently enough to warrant such a speculation rather than automatically assuming the author was resorting to the rather stale trope of 'durrr, the straights sher hate dem gays, durrr', especially when taken into consideration with the line,
which I have quoted directly from the story.
Now certainly, I am not above having an idea (my own or otherwise) brought under scrutiny, but please do try to refrain from putting words in my mouth that I have not said nor expressed.
10228321
Again I don't see anything to support Candance being in favor of same sex relationships but it doesn't rule out what you expect because IDK how the author will take it.
The "see love energy" is a canon power of Candace, though I don't remember when she used it and I think it came from some comentary she made in a episode.
10228122
Indeed it would, and I have it covered up precisely because the author currently has written his story in such a way that would suggest he is both intelligent and aware enough to pull something of this magnitude off rather than resorting to some stale trope of 'boy, *spits out tobacco* thuh straights sure do hate dem gays, huh?'.
Though, as I said before, I am slightly worried by the use of the, quite frankly, trite Carrie-Christian-Fundamentalist trope (which is to say not a real Christian but rather someone who is twisting the words that are found in The Bible and using them to be hateful, and, consequentially, thinking that hating the right thing makes them a good and/or better person).
10228325
...
Yes, having deities is a major part of a religion. My point, which you missed, is that it doesn't have to be a "God", it doesn't even need to be a person or object.
I don't see how Discord being Eris in the cannon for this story change anything for what I said when using Discord as an example.
"Luck" does not disprove a miracle, it reinforces it. Something higly unlike happened when it needed to happen is a miracle. Showing that some "miracle" is just using something that is a rule of the world does not mke it less of a miracle if it was done when not knowing about it, think of it as the placebo, as long as one belives in it yhen it has a change of working .
10228434
Thanks for the image of Celestia, Luna, and Cadance fighting over a golden apple while a highly amused Discord looks on.
I look GREATLY forward to seeing him BURN thos books.
Fuck prejudice.
Ya know, that was a topic I honestly didn't see coming, but perhaps should have.
If the comments before mine are any indication, you smacked the wasp hive with a stick. I say wasp hive instead of beehive because at least there's still something sweet in a beehive. Wasps just want to kill you.
I approve of Skeletor's actions. I'm glad for him being very decisive and definitive on this issue. That's refreshing. The Empire needs to get up to speed. And considering in canon we have Scootaloo's lesbian aunt, Lyra marrying BonBon (and potentially Rainbow with Applejack after the final episode timeskip), I don't think modern Equestria has a problem with it either. Just imagine that, Skeletor is making good reforms before the Equestrians ever reach the Empire.
Honestly, the Equestrians are going to be so damn confused when they finally do reach the Empire. Seeing mental health services (primitive though they may be), happy, smiling crystal ponies, reconstruction, reforms in laws for the betterment of equality, and developments in steel and paper. Dis gunna be gooood.
So thank you very much for the chapter! Looking forward to the next!
At the end here I am going to humbly request that I be left out of being dragged into any of the "debate" ongoing in the comments currently. If you disagree with me, fine, but please don't reply to drag me into this nonsense.
10228213
I'm pretty sure Twilight would kill Skeletor if that were the case.
Another amazing chapter, as usual.:D
Well..... that took a turn.
You know, I am surprised the Crystal Heart didn't straight up kill or banish Skeletor for being undead. A liche is said to not be able to feel romantic emotion or sexual attraction, nor can they impregnate others.
I am worried about how Luna will react to Skeletor. The Crystal Ponies showed instant fear and caution towards Skeletor because his appearance of being an Undead, looking like a Demon.
Based on the some internal monologing and thoughts from the ponies and on how the Princess of Love was treated in the Crystal Kingdom, Alicorns are most likely seen as the "Divine" protectors of the Ponies and front line fighters when it comes to Demons. Celestia might not attack instantly because she has probably been somewhat pacified over the past 1000 years, but Luna still has the archaic culture of ancient Ponies in her morality and beliefs.
I love the little clip-bits of Skeletor fixing and modernizing the Crystal Empire.
10228802
Best as can be told thus far, Skeletor is NOT a lich/liche. There is a scene where he's poking at the invisible flesh on his head, he still needs to eat, and still has to use the restroom. So sadly very much not undead. Even if he were, there's nothing saying the Crystal Heart and Elements of Harmony cannot read the, well, heart of those they target. The Tree of Harmony itself definitely possessed some kind of intelligence, given the avatar it presented to the Young Six. If either did not detect any maliciousness within Skeletor (beyond a hatred for Sombra), would it harm him?
Been awhile since I’ve logged onto this site, let alone followed a new story on a profile. It’s been so long in fact that I forgot my login information on my old profile. So I made a new one solely to follow this story. I also just wanted to comment and let people know if their going to bring their own political opinions into things do it in the forums. It’s alright to have your opinions whatever they may be but, we can’t have fights in the comments about it. The story’s going to be dealing with things like gays and probably some other controversial material but, that’s not a bad thing. Stuff like that causes tension and therefore more issues for Skeletor to deal with as a leader. This story isn’t going down the route of a PSA commercial, there’s really no reason to complain about Skeletor dealing with the issue or whatever future issues he faces, he said his reasons why he felt the way he felt and acted according to those feelings. For now the issue is solved until Cadence returns, I’m sure we’ll get some dialogue from the prisoners and how they were treated and the morality of that but, that comes with skeletor’s position of power. Story’s going great and I look forward to more, I hope everyone has a great day.
Loving the story and I like the twist with gay love opinion from the princess of love. More and more things for skeletor to deal with and I can't wait to see it all go down. Keep up the great work!
As for the debates going on in the comments, I must thank you all for being so relatively civil and not frothing lunatics. One of the better talks on this subjec I've seen on the internet. Interesting take, many of you have.
10228434
(Taken from wikipedia)
"Deity" is literally just another word for "god". So they're either required, or they aren't. You can't have it both ways.
10228091
10227946
did cadence ever show an acceptance of gay love? seems like she would side with her great grandmother, she is also all for using brainwashing, the very spell she uses on a whim
10228101
he has no idea about this magical world and knows nothing about any of the dangers, as far as he knows there could be a legit god that might smite him if he abolished religion and he has every reason to fear such a thing, don't forget you are a reader with outside knowledge.
also, this is not earth and possibly not even our reality, we have no reason to believe the sun and moon did one day work on their own, for all we know it may have been made by some magical creation long ago, for example before celly and luna were even a thing the sun and moon were controlled by the unicorns, and possibly before that another ancient civilization. celly and luna are not tyrants for controlling something that has been controlled for thousands of years, also I think we have seen evidence that without their control it just sits in place and doesn't move, but that might be my faulty memory at play
10228153
personally I am not religious, but I do agree with you that skeleton should take a look at this world more and do research before declaring hard truths, and yes more was likely a victim of her time and the mindset of that time, the same as the ponies are right now. although even if gay love does weaken the shield, I would still consider it amoral to persecute ponies for a thing they have no control over, in trying times it is needed yes (assuming gay love does weaken the shield) but in a time of safety it should be avoided at all costs
10228208
btw cavemen had spiritualism, not a religion, they are not mutually the same thing, a religion requires spiritualism, but spiritualism does not require religion
10228277
I wouldn't call it an illness, it's more like mixed wiring of the brain, it is a physical thing that happens upon birth, it's why you can't fix it. not without some high tech futuristic brain surgery, people tried shock therapy and all kinds of thing and this achieved a fear reaction to any gay impulses but they still got these impulses, they just feared acting on them instinctually by that point
10228288
'spirit of chaos' he was never called the god of chaos in cannon
10228570
I don't so much care about the prejudice as I care about the brainwashing, any mind raping in a story is evil in my opinion, you are killing someone's personality and making anew person on the spot to fill the husk of the person you just killed, even if it's a small tweak like 'like girls, not guys' it is still a death of a person
10228571
ah you did give examples of gay relationships that cadence doesn't frown upon, that makes my previous comment moot on that subject, also not dragging you in, sorry if it seems like that
10228689
twilight is also pro brainwashing when it came to discord so I'd say she would be against burning this particular book, which I hold against twilight as a character, brainwashing is never the answer even if it involves the least violence (potentially)
damn, this was a long chain to respond to but alas I arrive! hurray! also another great chapter, good to see a time-skip. not sure I could last another 30 chapters to reach the end of the first week XD