Three ponies are about to land on the moon in search of hope and salvation.
Reading by StraightToThePointStudio
Reading by VisualPony
Reading by Rainbow Infinity Readings
Entry into Bicyclette's Thousand Words Contest
Thanks to The Sleepless Beholder for editing.
How did Nightmare cultists build an entire spaceship?
Somewhere in the Everfree Forest but the takeoff would have been noticeable ...
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It's the magical kingdom of Equestria. Who says they rose on pillars of flame and fire?
That's more the tyrant's scene, anyways. The quiet ones fly on wings of shadow and silence.
In defiance of the arrogant sun - the harsher your light, the deeper the shadows we will cast.
Defiance. A good name.
Call me paranoid but i think they are retrieving Luna to help fight Daybreaker.
I do like how people are so quick to assume that the name "tyrant" naturally refers to the sun.
It could, of course, but the burning light is far from the sole oppressive force in the universe.
Sounds like a forlorn hope
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That's one interpretation, but think a more likely guess is that Celestia is actually a tyrant in this story and that Luna is a good pony about to be rescued.
Interesting start.
Dude, this is awesome. I’d love to see a sequel of Nightmare Moon’s reaction!
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They point out that their target wears no armor (unlike the tyrant). Nightmare Moon is usually depicted wearing armor (as is Daybreaker) while Celestia and Luna only wear their ornamental gear.
So it is rather likely that this is a universe where Daybreaker defeated Luna and banished her to the moon.
Sequel?
Well heck, now I want more. Great story!
Hm.
Love the story! Seriously! Have my upvote and Favorite ;)
Greetings. Your reading has been completed and can be found below. I hope you enjoy.
Lovely work. Using one side of a conversation to conserve word count was ingenious, to say nothing of the story itself. The best part may be the ambiguity. It certainly seems like a Daybreaker scenario here, but I can't be completely sure. And anything could happen in both contacting Luna and making their way back, to say nothing of what they may be planning after reentry. Great stuff. I'd love to see a sequel should inspiration strike. Thank you for it, and best of luck in the judging.
an ominous twist on Pale Blue Dot, i like it!
aww, heartbreaking to imagine that this is how Luna filled up those lonely centuries, recreating the home that she lost in this desolate place
ah, an echo of the reveal at the end of the pilot right after Luna was rediscovered
i love this! that contrast with Celestia must be all the more refreshing to these ponies who consider her a tyrant, and augh, i can just imagine their joy at sighting their true Princess and savior that they've been waiting all their lives for
aww, very fitting for this voyage to be For All Ponykind, and based out of Ponyville as well
and oof! sparing detail helps both with the word count and lets the reader imagine whatever they wish here
augh, i love it! this is a story that feels like the start of a very exciting one, but also does not feel any less complete for it, which is a tough balance to strike. the trickling-out of the actual nature of the mission and how this world differs from canon Equestria was perfectly executed, and i loved all the little things that let this story pack a lot more story into its thousand words than otherwise: only showing the lunar side of the conversation, no details on just why Celestia is a horrific tyrant. just the perfect balance of letting the reader fill in the blanks. great stuff!
Howdy, hi~!
This was brilliant. Love the one-sidedness of the story. It was a really interesting concept played out in 1000 words. I like that it leaves things ambiguous on whose perspective this is, whether getting Luna is a good thing or a bad thing. Also, some interesting stars assisting in her escape. Really fun read, thanks~!
Hello! Have a review. This fic had to battle against two things that don't always appeal to me: sci-fi and the whole Tyrant Celestia implications, as I generally find that tiresome. Your fic rose above that, though, and I adored the one-sided presentation. A hard trick to pull off, but it worked so well here -- and what an ending. My favourite of the honourable mentions (and well done on that!) so have a like and a favourite.
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Thank you!
You can has review!
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The ponies flying to the moon to retrieve Luna would call Celestia "tyrant", regardless of whether she was Daybreaker, or our beloved canon Celestia.
For all the hype this got, I admit I only got to this now more than two years after the fact, which is a shame. Still, it's great to see a hope for liberation condensed like this (well, I want to view it that way... there is the other option of Celestia simply being the good gal and the ponies here being unreliable).
Either way, thanks for this, Shrink!