142- Fenrir
As I beheld the Nightmare-made-manifest, I realized that I had two options. In a split second, my mind raced between confronting the bastard for the monster he was, or acting like a changeling should.
I chose the second option. Taking a deep breath, I bowed low, my horn scraping against the metal floor of the memory.
“King Sombra,” I muttered reverently.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw him regard me with surprise and interest. Though my emotion sensing abilities were absent in these recordings, I had learned enough about body language in this new world to read his emotions.
I had perfected the act of the supplicant fool thanks to my time underneath Chrysalis, especially during the last few months in the hive. I had found those skills thoroughly tested when I had to suppress my constant urges to strangle her where she stood. It was trivial to apply those skills here and now. A brave fool such as a hero of a game or novel would grandstand and declare their intent to kill Sombra. A changeling would milk him for all the information they could, and preferably would set up a betrayal for later.
“You are no Umbrum,” his deep voice made my nonexistent hair on the back of my neck stand on edge. “Just another high-born vermin. Fit for nothing but feasting upon.” The purple flame on his horn grew in size, reflecting off the metal floor. “Do not fret, your death will be quick. Do you have any last words?”
‘Oh fuck! Think, quick! What can get me out of this?!’
“Lámhmarbh sent me to free you,” I said softly, recalling the Nightmare’s name with ease.
“Should that name be of consequence?”
I looked up, still bowed, “Yes, King Sombra. It is an Umbrum, I think… Regardless, I was sent to free you.”
“You think?” The king’s face curled into a snarl, “You would know the presence of an Umbrum when you met one, changeling. What is your name?”
“Prince Chrysalis,” I answered at once.
‘Under the bus you go, mother.’
“Prince Chrysalis,” the thing repeated, making me immediately glad I had supplied a fake name. “Strange thing, has your wretched kind warped yourselves to such unrecognizable lengths?”
“It was–”
“Silence,” King Sombra growled, cutting me off. “I have not decided your fate yet.”
“I can be of use,” I pleaded.
“Clearly this Lámhmarbh believes so, but I have yet to see that for myself. You are a changeling, not an Umbrum. What use could you possibly have?”
“If an Umbrum could have freed you, they would have done so already, King Sombra,” I said, rising slightly from my bow.
The Nightmare hissed quietly, casting his gaze around our bubble of existence.
“I need no whelp’s aid in sundering this prison. I have been whittling away at it for centuries…”
“Of course not, My King,” I said. “But I offer what aid I can give all the same. That might mean the difference between escaping now, and escaping a decade from now…”
I felt a cool touch slither around my right foreleg. Glancing at it, I saw a tendril of black oily smoke wrap itself slowly around my leg, its tapered point stopping at the jagged edge of my chitin. My old wound had its scar present, and the tendril had taken an interest.
‘Ooookay, starting to get very uncomfortable.’
“I do wonder,” King Sombra’s voice recaptured my attention, “why you are not Umbrum-touched. If you were indeed visited, you should have been ascended.”
My stomach churned at the mention of the a-word.
“The Umbrum needed me as a pure changeling, I believe. My King, no Umbrum can set hoof in Nisir. My duty to free you requires me to enter the city, does it not?”
King Sombra stepped forward and began slowly circling me. I stayed low, in my half-bent posture, and kept my eyes forward. I could see more tendrils whipping about slowly, and his billowing mane stretched behind him, as if he was submerged in water.
“Equus will die,” he declared. “All prey shall die. All life shall die. Only the Umbrum will survive this, safe in the Ether. You will die. Yet you are claiming to still be loyal to us. To me.”
‘Yes, that’s certainly a hole in my story…’
“I can already visit the Ether,” I chose to reveal. “If I am to not be…. Ascended… then I should be able to survive still. Right, My King?”
King Sombra paused, his purple-flame reflecting in his red and green eyes.
“Of course,” he smiled.
‘Definitely not, then.’
“Prince Chrysalis,” he cooed, “I had assumed that an Umbrum would be capable of the task, but either they are all too cowardly, or the task is beyond their capabilities. Either way, I find myself in need of new servants. You will shatter the remains of my prison. When I cull the weak from my ranks, there will be an opening for you. You will not have my blessing. You will not have my protection. If you are ripped apart by another Umbrum, then you would have expended your use to us already.”
“Strength invites challenge: I am not afraid of fighting for my spot in the Ether. But the Equestrians have grown strong in our absence, King Sombra. They outnumber changelings considerably, and I know of no Umbrum forces…” I trailed off.
“You know not what to look for, whelp. I will recall Gluttony and Greed, and their hosts. I will bring my host, and that alone is enough to slaughter the prey.” He chuckled, “It will be a perfect test for my newest general… But first, you must fulfill your duty. There is a place for you at the final banquet, all you have to do is destroy Emperor Megatypus’s parting gift.”
“Parting gift?” I repeated.
Sombra stomped angrily, “That damned gemstone! Shatter it, and scatter the pieces!”
I nodded quickly, “At once, My King! I know what you speak of!”
“The hour of our arrival nears,” King Sombra declared, staring at a space above me. “I will be freed from this cursed, frozen prison. Prince Chrysalis, do your duty.”
The bubble of existence was swept away, but King Sombra’s eyes remained.
Luna was holding me, shaking me awake.
“Phasma!”
I blinked rapidly, trying to get Sombra’s eyes out of my vision.
“I’m awake!” I gasped.
Luna stopped shaking me and pulled me into a tight hug. If it wasn’t for my thick chitin, I was sure she would have broken a bone.
“Thank Faust you’re okay!”
I returned the hug, “I… yeah. Wait, what? How did you know something went wrong?”
I recollected my wits and checked around us. Ponies and changelings alike were looking on with concern. Then, I saw the recording crystal. It was in nine pieces on the ground, shattered. The crystal was also tinted a deep green.
“Dark magic is impossible to mistake,” Luna explained. “The crystal… What happened?”
I patted Luna on the back to show that I was fine. Everyone was staring at me: Daring, Celestia, Shining…
“He was there. Epitaph. He was in that recording.”
Celestia frowned, “What are you saying? A recording of somepony wouldn’t–”
“No. He was there,” I growled. “I saw him, and he saw me. He spoke to me.”
Luna let go of me, but did not leave my side, instead choosing to make herself comfortable on the ground. I explained my meeting with King Sombra, and gave all the info I had gathered.
“Quick thinking,” Celestia muttered, looking distant.
I nodded, “We know he has an army, and possibly two more. Well, one more, I kinda took care of Gluttony and his infected changeling army. We know Panar’s Gift is indeed what keeps him sealed, and we know that he is slowly breaking free. Finally, we have a name. King Sombra and the Umbrum. A bit more nuanced than Epitaph and Nightmares, don't you think?”
Celestia’s emotions clouded further.
“You are clear of any lingering magic or any nasty surprises, as far as I can tell,” Luna said, finishing a scan of me.
“Sombra,” Celestia muttered. “I know the name.”
“You do?” Shining and I asked.
Celestia nodded, “Eons ago. He was a… strange stallion, hailing from the Crystal Empire. Sadly, the bridge between our worlds was interrupted before we could really know each other, but what time we had was… Sombra is a powerful unicorn, or so I thought. I don’t know how common of a name that is way up north, but fate has a cruel sense of irony…”
“Can you tell us anything useful about him?” Shining prodded.
Celestia scowled, “Only a suspicion that he had something to do with the Crystal Empire’s disappearance. Or at least, was present for it. Now that we know what he is, he has got to be responsible for the Empire’s absence. They must have fallen, and this Emperor Megatypus of Nisir sealed King Sombra– and with him, the Crystal Empire.”
Luna nodded, “The story fits. Your mysterious suitor is none other than the most dangerous being alive. One that the changelings had unleashed upon the world. Thank you all for that, by the way. Bringing Nightmares into existence is a most bothersome legacy.”
I scoffed, “It sounded like these ancient changelings were either cruel or weren’t too bright. King Sombra didn’t say why the changelings pulled him into the waking world, but I bet it had something to do with the fact that we were going extinct. Maybe they wanted to make him into a weapon, and he got loose.”
‘Our doom being created by our own hooves is quite ironic.’
“This knowledge will be put to use immediately,” Celestia declared. “We must keep vigilant for this missing force of his, as well as protect Panar’s Gift for as long as we can. But first, we need to take care of Queen Chrysalis.”
I nodded, “She’s keeping the vast majority of Equestria’s army tied up at the border. With them freed, we can train them in counter-Nightmare tactics and spells. Not to mention the fact that we will have one less border to secure.”
“The city is mostly secured now,” Shining announced. “I’ve received reports from my scouts that we are clear to investigate the final central area.”
“No activity from that Underhive gate?” I asked.
He shook his head, “All quiet.”
“We’ll need to find a way to make sure it's sealed. The last thing I want is another entrance to that place out in the open,” I said to myself.
“I’m not opening that can of worms,” Shining frowned. “If what you’ve said is true, the last thing we need is to go poking around where we don’t belong.”
“I’ll send some scouts and seal it myself, if I have to,” I said. “The changelings have the most experience with the Underhive; we know how to deal with its beasties.”
“We will be one step behind you. I assume you want to go explore the final district now?”
Daring Do cleared her throat, “You’ve helped quite a lot so far, King Phasma. I’ll use the extra time to re-catalogue this collection and organize it better, if you head off to that area.”
“Have you visited it?” I asked her.
“I’ve flown over it, but didn’t find any landmarks to visit, no. There were plenty of other locations and items to keep me busy.”
I stood up, “Then we have our next destination. Let’s wrap up this exploratory tour and properly secure Nisir.”
“The scouts shall advance first,” Luna said. “Though the scan brought up no results, I would be far more comfortable if you sat far behind the front line, Phasma.”
“Fine, but I still get first, second, and third pick of the loot. The Fifth Hive is in desperate need of anything that will help us in a fight.”
The Forge District, as the scouts called it, was an abandoned frozen ghost town.
It was a melding of a railyard and a forging area, with the tracks all leading to the broken Underhive gate. Many of the forges were outdoors; we passed by countless craft stations, anvils, and abandoned tool sets as we approached the largest building in the district. Statues of drones and royals alike loomed over empty broadways, railways, and catwalks. Whatever failure in the city’s casing had led to the snowfall and subsequent freeze had hit the Forging District especially hard.
Covered in snow and icicles, the district was thrust into a temperature it wasn’t designed for; gates, slews, troughs, and other specialized constructs for forging were completely blocked up, and in some cases, shattered from the ice’s expansion. Troughs and ducts meant for molten metal and slag were overflowing in solid ice and snowy ice slush.
I shook my head as I beheld a drone’s statue. With one raised hoof holding a hammer, the drone was posed to hit a gripped piece of metal on an anvil, but it was frozen, not just in its pose, but in a layer of blue ice, like it was flash-frozen.
“It’s going to take a lot of effort to get this place running again,” I mused.
“Were you hoping to just trot in and just restart the hearth?” Luna asked sarcastically. “If this city fell when the Crystal Empire fell, that would make it thousands of years old. The fact that it is in such a preserved condition, is nothing less than a miracle.”
The loud shriek of metal ripping put a pause in our conversation. The four drones who were tasked with prying off the shut door of the largest building in the district had finally made headway, and had ripped off a good portion of the ornate double doors that had impeded our way.
‘Such a shame, too. Those doors really do look good.’
They weren’t on the same scale of detail as the doors to Chrysalis’s throne room, but the scenes of changeling warriors and explorers of the Underhive were pretty enough to warrant several photos to be taken. I ordered as much as possible of the doors to be saved, but in the end, a decent portion was sheared off and ruined.
“Oh well,” I tutted.
The scouts advanced in on my command, through the doorway which was stylized as a pair of flying changelings holding torches. Following up the changelings, a team of ponies marched inwards, illuminating the interior as the changelings kept their mana saved for combat spells if needed.
The interior of the massive structure was a maze of massive halls, ruined rooms of unknown purposes, storage rooms, and what resembled train station platforms. The tracks were all empty, though. Every last one of them were completely bare, leaving Nisir’s transportation as a mystery. Many of us wanted to see just how advanced the trains were, especially since the rails went completely vertical at the Underhive gate’s edges, but it seems that they had all been sent into the Underhive, for whatever reason.
Most likely evacuation, as counter-intuitive as that sounded.
As the scout teams examined the contents of the storage rooms and explored the last sections of the main building, my attention was called to one particular set of storage rooms. Luna, Celestia, and Shining Armor followed in my wake upon hearing about the rooms’ contents.
“We’re still checking for other armories, but this seems to be the main one,” Froghopper announced as we entered.
The scouts had discovered a set of rooms that served as the city’s main armories. The castle had a few similar rooms, but they were mostly bare. During the city’s fall, they had most likely been emptied by the defenders in an attempt to fend off the Nightmares long enough for the changelings to escape.
I whistled, “This room holds enough presents to give the entire Fifth Hive one hell of a Hearth’s Warming celebration.”
Rows upon rows of armor sets lay across the room’s length. Adamantium swords, spears, shields, and other armaments complimented the green-metal armor sets. Only the weapons were pure adamantium, as the armor sets had either been layered over with other metals or were made with composites and alternative materials. Adamantium plates made up the center parts of each of the armor pieces, and blackish grey metal ringed them, forming the rest of the armor.
“There’s got to be hundreds of sets,” Shining gasped.
“Must’ve needed them for the Underhive expeditions,” I guessed.
I picked up a helmet off a nearby armor set to examine it. It looked like a very simplified version of my own.
“Given the material’s value,” Celestia began, “the wonders this room could mean for Equestria put its value beyond any known number. I know a dozen ponies that would be salivating at this discovery.”
“Damn shame we desperately need the armor,” I replied.
‘Not to mention the fact that I wouldn’t sell this much adamantium to Equestria. Not right away, at least. Wouldn’t want to give away our only supply of the precious metal.’
Celestia gave me a withering glare, “You intend to arm your changelings with all of this?”
I glared back, “Celestia, just an hour ago I talked to the most dangerous living being in existence, and he had promised that he would come with two unaccounted for armies. No, I want to melt this stuff down and turn it into fucking kitchen appliances. Of course I’m using the weapons and armor! This represents changelings’ best chance at ending the nightmare– pun intended– that has been plaguing our kind since the beginning of our history! If we created the Umbrum, then we have to be there when they are put down.
“Now, that being said, I intend on cannibalizing enough of these armor sets to give each of you a set of adamantium. You three plus Cadence will be the best frontline warriors, so it seems fit to give you the best stuff.”
“I’m not exactly in fighting condition,” Celestia pointed out, looking up at me.
I frowned at the shrunken alicorn, “I’m hoping you’ll be back to your old height and power by the time Sombra manages to finish filing away his prison bars.”
“Another issue,” Luna stated. “You’re staying at the rear lines.”
“.... No?”
She didn’t budge, “Yes. Though you have the equipment and sheer power to usually make up for it, the fact stands that you are relatively untrained. King Sombra managed to fell not one but two kingdoms, and he will have numbers to back up his blade. You and Celestia should stay close to the rear. I will direct the battle from the vanguard, alongside Captain Shining Armor. Should something go wrong, you two will act as the reaction. Cadence will…. Go wherever she needs to be. But before this battle even begins, you and Cadence will need to step up your combat training significantly.”
Suppressing a sigh, I placed the helmet back onto his rack.
“I suppose I shouldn’t argue with the subject matter expert on this.”
“I have been on more battle fields than I can count,” Luna agreed.
“We should also choose our battlefield,” Shining suggested. “If King Sombra is up in the Crystal Empire, then that means he’ll be coming from the North.”
“Nisir will be right on his warpath,” Celestia said. “Shimmervale would be the closest town to the Crystal Empire’s capital. This would endanger any colony you hope to maintain, Phasma.”
“Then Nisir will be the front line,” I declared. “We will recolonize it, and center our efforts to hold the line here. That would mean we would have to evacuate the colony, but in exchange we can build defenses up at the Empire’s border. That could mean cutting King Sombra off from his reinforcements, wherever they may be.”
“You would risk Nisir?” Luna asked, picking up a sword and swinging it slowly.
“If it meant killing the Umbrum, I would. We’ll hold off on… uh… laying eggs? We’ll just focus on restoring the important functions of the city and studying it. Several teams of ponies can work alongside changelings as we crack Nisir’s mysteries.”
“A cooperative effort,” Celestia smiled and nodded. “You can write or say anything you want, but efforts such as that will show ponies you truly intend to be a part of Equestria. You know what I mean,” she added, cutting off my complaint.
“My King!” A changeling drone saluted, catching all of our attention. “We found what appears to be a vault. We are unable to open it…”
I smiled, “Sounds like we found the good stuff. C’mon gals, let’s go check out what magical secrets Nisir has for us.”
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Another sealed evil in a can. Calling it now.
Also, Phasma throwing Chrysalis under the bus is HILARIOUS.
gotta keep throwing Chrysalis under the bus, i can only imagine her reaction when king phasma walks up to her little village with changelings armed to the teeth in adamantium
Ancient goodies or hellspawn armies, place your bets
the art looks like phas is trying to add another princess to his relationship. is good but thats the first thing that came to mind
Which chapter does the art go with?
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At this point in the story, another antagonist seems rather unlikely. We have two known threats in various stages of being locked up and potentially one unknown nightmare host roaming free. I'm calling ancient goodies.
Phasma - I saw Chrysalis vent!
Phasma voted
Sombra voted
Chrysalis - What?
Chrysalis was not the imposter.
I am wondering what Phasma Will be like with Luna when Pony kind Inevitably kills itself Like Humans are currently doing.
Damn, finaly! Update! Great way to start the new year off
media.discordapp.net/attachments/795057695904104458/928378686607089704/SPOILER_605s1n.png
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I think its the chapter where Luna Introduces Phasma to Cadance
Oh my God, he did it again.
Nice art! Great to see some more
Chrysalis get thrown under the bus, neat!
Clever King! That quite some information he mined from Sombra
Can't say I blame you.
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Indeed. I had quite the laughing fit
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I kinda hoped for singelshot rifles or even breach loaders, but melee weapons don't run out of Ammo
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Maybe once Shining Armor died of old age ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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Maybe Combat Golems? That would be awesome!
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Nice one!
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PRICELESS ♤
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Nice!
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He probably has bad breath as well...
"Altho, th'ombra is Thpanith for Th'ade, much ath Caden'tha is Italian for Cadenthe."
Leave the factoids to somepony without a lisp, would you, Twist?
"Thorry, thir"
--------------------------------------
To quote Silver Quill, (If I haven't used this reference before; If I have, tell me and it's as good as gone.)
Would you like to know more?
Fenrir, also called Fenrisúlfr, monstrous wolf of Norse mythology. He was the son of the demoniac god Loki and a giantess, Angerboda. Fearing Fenrir’s strength and knowing that only evil could be expected of him, the gods bound him with a magical chain made of the sound of a cat’s footsteps, the beard of a woman, the breath of fish, and other occult elements. When the chain was placed upon him, Fenrir bit off the hand of the god Tyr. He was gagged with a sword and was destined to lie bound to a rock until the Ragnarök (Doomsday), when he will break his bonds and fall upon the gods. According to one version of the myth, Fenrir will devour the sun, and in the Ragnarök he will fight against the chief god Odin and swallow him. Odin’s son Vidar will avenge his father, stabbing the wolf to the heart according to one account and tearing his jaws asunder according to another. Fenrir figures prominently in Norwegian and Icelandic poetry of the 10th and 11th centuries, and the poets speak apprehensively of the day when he will break loose.
Sombra is coming across as rather blah right now. The "My kind will consume you all" type villains are just boring to me. Maybe he'll show some more interesting traits in the future, but right now, I'd rather have seen Daybreaker, Nightmare Moon, or another nightmare with more personality than Sombra here.
I'm still shipping Nightmare Moon and Phasma, BTW. Luna can join in and they'll have a wonderful little herd started.
Not exactly a Hidden Forbidden Wasteland, but close enough.
Like if you got that reference.
I'm going to go out on a limb and say that going to the Underdark is a preferable idea to staying around...
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Sombra is a just a simple
manstallionEldritch abomination with simple needs.c.tenor.com/ydyTRCjvBDYAAAAM/everclear-santa-monica.gif
Phasma be like:
Celestia be like: thumbs.gfycat.com/PoliteGentleCanadagoose-max-1mb.gif
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(Minor nitpick, but there’s a difference between demonic and trickster deity, of which Loki is the latter.)
So happy to see this back again! I was missing it so much. And the art looks fantastic!
The thing I love most about that picture is that I can just about fool myself into thinking that Luna's grinning in it. There's Cadence being all angry and murder-y, Phas is being his normal, snarky self and there's Luna's just thinking to herself: "this is going splendidly".
That said, it's kinda funny to see the dynamic between Phasma and Sombra here, and how he seemed to gone back to acting in a similar manner as he did with Nightmare Moon.
Pardon me but, wasn't the sword Cadence was training with like a rapier sword?
I know I may just be misremembering, but its a pet'peev of mine with any drawn arms.
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the person who commed it or the artist prolly just forgot
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Yeah I'm with you there. Those villains need some sort of mystique, which they've had thus far, but the sombra reveal was like "ohhhh. okay. well lets see where this goes." And now he's just, not mysterious at all because it's sombra.
Also, I wonder what'll happen if sombra meets chrysalis and is like "uh I thought you were a dude. Congrats on your glow up?"
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Considering everything Chryssie has done for Phasma, he’s absolutely wrong in throwing her under the bus.
He should throw her under the train instead. Then there’s no chance of survival.
The King (of) Koolness Slider returns with the new year! Let’s see what new twists and turns he will take us for 2022!
it is time that Nisir is awakened, that in it's self would be a grate side story.
finding that much adamantium is a huge boon for everyone in this upcoming battle.
this is a amazing chapter and hints at so much more to come.
Ha that's the second time Phasma has thrown his mother under the bus!
Great chapter. I need more!
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Kefka Palazzo simply wants to destroy the world also, but he's fun to watch while doing it, even if your simultaneously horrified.
Good chapter, live the new art
I'm gonna make the guess that Sombra told Phasma to shatter the gem because he KNEW Phasma would do the opposite. The gem is the anchor for the Umbrum, and shattering it would remove their ability to enter this world.
That's my guess.
**Looking at the fan-art**
What is Cadense looking at? Doesn't she realize she is looking at an illusion? The real Phasma is behind her.
I'm betting on a hidden vault being full of information rather than any particular goodies. Maybe a spell cocked up by the Royals, or the origin of Ascension. Phasma clearly hasn't suffered enough.
Well his intentions are clear, but we'll not be surrendering our will so easily!
Wonder if there's a way to reinforce the cage, so to speak? Give a bit more time...
:)
Wait, which chapter is that fan art supposed to go with?
How has he not fallen over in that drawing?
Way to go, just spill secrets like that to some random changeling who claims to be sent from some guy you've never heard of
1. Class act on being cliche
Or
2. 100% of what phasma heard is fabricated
Edit: the art is quite pleasant
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The beginning of the conversation and where the sword is described as a sabre are located at the very end of Chapter 65, Janus, but the part where Phasma starts pleading his case is in Chapter 66, Far Side of the Horizon.
11109402
Thanks for clearing that up
11109397
uh oh uh oh UH OH UH OH UH OH
Phenomenal art piece
When Phas finally goes on the hunt for the Umbrum:
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That answers that question..
How did you get the quote shaped like that?
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[quote=Chapter 65, Janus]The pink alicorn was currently wielding a sabre in her magic, thrusting it towards a mannequin placed in front of a pillar that separated two vaulted windows at one side of the room. The mannequin on the receiving end of the brutal attack looked quite similar to…[/quote]See also https://www.fimfiction.net/bbcode
Nice
The 55 people who dislike the fic are blow hards.
Keep givin us more, we love it
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So both the shape of the sword AND the location of the mannequin are out of place, great, now I shall suffer even more.
I missed this. I NEEDED this. So glad to have a little Phas in my life again.