Book Two: Epilogue
Myths and Birthrights
By Tundara
Book Two: Duty and Dreams
Epilogue
“...And that was how my mamas and papa met. Thank you.”
Standing at the front of class a diminutive filly lowered the sheets and sheets of papers she’d been reading from for quite some time. Peering over their edge she saw several deadpan stares, a few ponies asleep at their desks, and Mrs. Honeysuckle attempting to rub away her exasperation.
“Miss Morta Sparkle,” Mrs. Honeysuckle began, her voice snapping like a ruler on a desk. A unicorn of advancing years, the teacher held her greying blue and pink mane in a harsh bun. On her nose were perched a pair of large, round glasses through which her golden eyes, often narrowed in exasperation, peered.
“Your father did not curse an entire city, raise an army of the undead, and then almost destroy the disc in an apocalyptic battle with your mother, whom, in turn, had turned into Nightmare Moon.”
“But, it’s twoo!” cried Morta, waving her tiny hooves in exasperation. “Mama put a powerful charm over the city to make ponies forget about it, and tasked Vega with keeping watch, so mortals wouldn’t go there and get hurt. It is now a cursed, dark place with no sunshine, love, or any goodness of any sort whatsoever! Tell her, cousin Arengea! Tell her it is twoo!”
At her desk, Arengea gave her head a rapid shake, and held out her hooves as if to ward off her cousin. “Leave me out of this, Morta. Everypony else told you to use the simplified, ‘they met when my father came looking for Athena,’ story.”
Looking for some support, Morta turned to her other cousins, the Muses spread out amongst the classroom. They all pointedly looked away. Polyhymnia whistling a tune, Calliope pretending to focus on her notes, Arche silently mouthing math equations with a glazed look to her eye, Thalia whispering something to her neighbour that drew a snigger, and Clio doodling on her desktop. The Terrors of Canterlot were no help.
As usual.
“Wait, are you saying that Morta is actually telling the truth?” exclaimed a nearby light blue coated colt appropriately named Blue.
“What I want to know is if Algol was ever caught and punished,” spoke up a ceruse filly from a prominent family. “Seems a bit unsatisfying with her getting away like that. Especially since she instigated everything.”
“I thought it was that empress lady who was the bad pony,” added another filly. “Having it switch like that was a little weird. Better to have just one baddie for the heroes to beat.”
“Yeah! And Twilight would never, ever, eeeeeever be as mean as Morta made her out to be!”
“I’m more upset that Lord Hades didn’t get his come-uppance! I mean, he was the cause of the curse and then he beat up Twilight in the first fight, but they hardly fight at all when she is a titan? Lame!”
A usually soft-spoke filly near the back of the room jumped up. “That’s because Hades was smart enough to know better than to fight a titan alone. He did what he could and avoided a direct confrontation. Unlike the supposed Goddess of Wisdom, who just got her flank kicked.”
“Oh, please, we all know that your family is a bunch of death worshippers, Catacomb! Of course you would take Hades’ side.”
“Naturally,” shot back the ashen grey filly, flipping her black mane over her shoulder, “Which other alicorn would a mortuary worship than the God of the Dead? Hades is obviously the best alicorn, as he tends to the souls of everypony when they die.”
“Nuh-uh! It’s Zeus! The King of the Alicorns is clearly the best.”
“Queen Celestia! She is the only one who Zeus listens to.”
“What about Princess Fluttershy? She is so pretty and mysterious…”
“Queen Luna is best alicorn; fight me!”
Every student began shouting the names of their preferred alicorn, creating a riotous din. All the while Morta shrank a little lower at her spot in the front of the class. Even Mrs. Honeysuckle’s usual calls for order went unheeded as the argument grew.
“Come on, girls, we’re getting off-topic! What is important is that Morta totally lied in her report!” The ring-leader jumped up from her desk and took a spot before her classmates, only returning to her seat with a prim smile once everypony else had quieted down. As she sat back down, she added, “The start of the Age of Alicorns was totally different in the history books.”
This drew a few nods and murmured affirmatives.
“Morta is almost as bad as Calliope for making up tall-tales. No way half of what she said ever happened,” the ashen filly said in her carrying whisper.
“Come on, that’s stretching things. Calliope is the biggest fibber in the school, and has been since my mom was a student here.” Blue stuck out his tongue at Calliope.
At the desk next to the colt, Calliope snapped her pencil, shoved back her stool, flipped her cobalt blue and black streaked mane over her shoulder, and towered over the colt. Sadistic fire crackled in her sapphire eyes. Smoke curled from her mane as it danced like a basket of vipers. Her entire body glowed with rising tides of aether that sparked along the fluted ridges of her horn. Calliope was quickly caught on either side by two of her sisters, Polyhymnia and Arche soothing her, while Arengea sniggered.
Sensing his very mortal peril, the colt shrank down until he was almost under his desk.
“You are so dead, Blue,” teased Arengea. “Rolled a natural one there.”
“Poets will sing of your demise through the rest of this age,” Thalia added from across the classroom. “Blue, Blue, he had no clue. Oh, what was the idiot to do? Run, run, fleet as a fox. Nope, too late, he was blown out of his sox!”
The class burst into a chorus of laughter, some repeating the rhymes, others pounding a hoof to their desk.
“Girls! Girls! Calliope, Arengea, Thalia! Celestia help me; don’t make me send you to the principal! Again!”
In perfect harmony the Muses zipped back to their desks and intoned in sickly sweet voices, “We’re sorry, Mrs. Honeysuckle,” with all-too innocent smiles.
Under her breath, Calliope grumbled, “But he started it.”
“If we can get back to the matter at hoof,” Mrs. Honeysuckle said, raising her voice so everypony knew to drop the subject. “While it was certainly an, uh, entertaining story, Miss Sparkle, I’m afraid you’re only going to get partial marks. This wasn’t a creative writing assignment, after-all.”
Ears wilting, Morta shrank underneath the looks of her classmates and teacher. Only her cousins showed any sympathy, but they would not risk incurring another in a long list of trips to the principal's office. Bereft of allies, and with everypony suspicious because she claimed to have friends who were dead—Sombra was nowhere near as bad as the history books made out!—and spend her weekends in the Underworld—which was why she couldn’t have friends over to visit—if anypony had wanted to visit her, that is—Morta gave a quiet apology, and slunk back to her desk.
The rest of class was spent shooting furtive glances at the clock above the door, willing it to spin faster so she could go home and crawl into bed and hide from the cruel disc. Slowly the hours ticked. Far too slowly. Mind numbingly slowly. As if the clock was aware of her embarrassment and wanted to drag it out for all the disc to enjoy.
Tick-tick-tock.
In the background, Mrs. Honeysuckle’s voice warbled with some basic math lessons.
Tock-tock-tick…
Blue pantomimed being a ghost. A favourite of the mortals when they teased her.
Tick-tock-tick…
Stupid clock.
Morta bet it was in cahoots with the dark kings of Hell, placed here just to drag out her torment.
Did it just count backwards?! No… She was imagining it.
She jittered a leg under her desk. She could feel glares on the back of her head.
Why did Mrs. Honeysuckle always make her sit at the front of the class?! Right where everypony could stare at her. Judge her.
And why wouldn’t that stupid, lazy clo—A sharp clanging filled the classroom as the clock struck three, and class was ajourned.
Mrs. Honeysuckle had long since given up even attempting to control her class when it was time to leave. An uproarious cacophony filled the classroom as the Muses hurled books into their bags, eager to get home. Calliope and Aoide shouted across the room plans to meet up with their best friends from class 1-B. Arengea and Thalia discussed ideas for a new game. Polyhymnia broke out into a solo song. Arche shouted questions about homework, but was drowned out by her sisters. Clio was the only one who was quiet and reserved, daintily sorting out her school supplies while her sisters carried on making noise. At the same instant the doors were flung open by their father.
“Come on, girls!” Zeus called in his usual, booming voice, laughter just barely contained beneath the surface as he entered the classroom.
“Daddy!” the Muses shouted out, jumping around and onto Zeus. Arengea and Calliope hung from his wings, while Arche bit his tail, growling like a dog.
“Oh-ha-ha! Look at you girls go! Filled with spit and thunder today! You were good for your teacher, hmm? Didn’t cause Mrs. Honeysuckle too many problems?”
“Of course, daddy!” the Muses intoned in unison sing-song tones, all smiles and innocence.
From behind her desk, Mrs. Honeysuckle gave her head an exasperated shake. “Mr. Thunderer,” she said, pushing up her large glasses as she glared at the God of Storms, “How many times must you be told that parents are to wait outside school grounds?”
“At least once more!” Zeus chuckled, gathered up his daughters, and set off down the hallways. Slowly, the riotous cacophony of the family faded, and then was gone.
Behind the Muses, the rest of the class departed in far more normal levels of energy and noise.
Despite her very fervent desire to leave, Morta was the last one out of the classroom. She didn’t want to bump into any of her classmates, and decided to give them ample time to disperse and find better things to do than tease her. Peeking around corners to make sure the coast was clear, Morta snuck out one of the side doors, dashed across the playground, and into the family carriage situated on the street.
Waiting at the door, prim and proper as always, was her hoofmaid and nanny; Miss Marmalade Apple. A plain brown mare in her early twenties, she was a distant cousin of some-sort, though Morta had never bothered to figure out the logistics.
Bowing her head a little as she pulled the carriage door open, Marmalade asked, “How did your presentation go, your Highness?”
“Don’t want to talk about it,” Morta mumbled into her legs. “Ewerypony thought I was making up thtories again.”
Climbing into the carriage and sitting across from her mistress, Marmalade put on a warm smile.
“Well, that is their problem, your Highness. You know you told the truth. It is up to them to decide whether to believe you or not. Besides, you have a big evening ahead to worry about. So, let’s look forward to that instead.”
“We do?” Morta looked up, trying to remember what Marmalade was talking about.
“The gala, your Highness, tonight is the gala commemorating the thirtieth anniversary of the Ascension of the Stars! Thirty years since your mother took her rightful place among the other alicorns. Honestly, it doesn’t surprise me you forgot, what with how intent you’ve been working on your report. This is the first time the entire pantheon will have gathered since you were born, making it a truly special occasion. The Queen and First Princess of the Taiga are already in town, and the King of Tartarus will arrive tonight. Then there are the Princess and Prince of the Crystal City, along with the Duke and Duchess of Yoke. Plus…”
Morta rolled her eyes and let out a huff as Miss Marmalade continued to list the various guests, all of whom were relatives in some fashion or other. “I see Gwanny Iwidia and Aunt Soir all the time. And what is so special about papa being here? To thay nothing of Cadence and uncle Shiny. They live half the year in Canterlot!”
Marmalade was not put out, and just smiled and reached over to pat Morta’s hoof.
“Yes, but the God of the Dead is very rarely seen on the disc. It is a special night, even if it seems ordinary to you, your Highness.”
Frowning, Morta didn’t see what was so special about her father visiting Ioka. And he always made time for her in Tartarus. The line of souls to be judged could stretch to the furthest gates of the city, and he’d abandon his throne to spend time with his family. If anything, he made maybe a little too much time.
To say he was doting was an understatement.
Dolls filled her rooms in Tartarus, Canterlot, and Reinalla to the ceiling. She had entire chambers dedicated to her dresses. Boxes upon boxes of hats and ribbons. And the treats. So many sweets she was a little sick of them. Cupcakes, muffins, cakes, and maranges to fill a hundred bakeries.
Morta felt a little quessy just thinking about sugary confections. Maybe that had been his plan all along. Make her sick of treats so she wouldn’t want them anymore and would eat her peas and carrots with a smile. If it had been, then it had worked.
The carriage rolled through a side gate to the Solarium Palace, formerly known as Canterlot Castle. A new wing had been added to the castle in the past few decades. A soaring front with Gaean columns before twelve tall winds filled with stained glass images of the primary alicorns of Ioka.
Down the right side were the six of the Day; Celestia, regal and crowned by Sol; Zeus, hurling his thunderbolt; Iridia, clutching a budding flower in a rolling field; Faust, working at a loom; Tyr, with her scales above her head, and sword lain across her lap; and lastly Fleur, holding a scroll in one hoof, and Aegis strapped to the other.
To the left ranged the six of the Night; Luna, beautiful and serene beneath Selene; Twilight, swimming through a midnight sea of star; Soir, laughing as she was surrounded by a murmur of small birds; Hades, cold and judgemental on his hallowed throne with supplicants bowing; and Cadence, playing looking on at a pair of lovers beneath a starry sky. The final window was empty. Left blank. The final member of the six remained undetermined.
It was a topic of discussion and conjecture, even after several years. Some ponies favoured the Muses as a group, others thought that the position belonged to Demeter, Fluttershy, or even Poseidon. His group of adherents was perhaps the smallest, owing to the slight fact that he visited even less often than Hades, and unlike Zeus, who’d decided to abandon Gaea in favour of Ioka for the time being, remained firmly entrenched in the affairs of that other world, acting as its new King of the Gods with his brother’s absence.
Morta knew who belonged on that last window. It was her aunt Rarity, returned from Tartarus after many trials and adventures. She was mother to a third of the Muses, wife to Celestia and Zeus, and the Goddess of Beauty.
To say Rarity was the only real choice was an understatement.
Still, Rarity mostly stayed away from the public eye, rarely seen even decades after her return.
Behind the windows was a new throne room, one with thrones for each of the alicorns depicted on the windows. The alicorns took turns presiding over the expanded court. Some of the thrones were rarely occupied, Hades in particular only joining when he was needed, while a few were always in attendance, like Celestia and Fleur.
It wasn’t Equestria they ruled either, governance for the nation having been passed to a democratic council headed by the Prime Minister. Rather, they listened to the needs of petitioners seeking guidance, blessings, or just wanting to see the gods that tended to so many aspects of the world.
This day, the line of petitioners was especially long, snaking out of the palace grounds and around the block.
In a few hours, a long stream of carriages for the rich, famous, or important would begin arriving. Diplomats, business ponies, and artists pouring into the massive hall for a night of schmoozing.
And she would have to be there the entire time.
Morta groaned at the prospect.
“Come now, at least you will have company,” Marmalade pointed out. “All the other young princesses are in Canterlot for the gala as well.”
Morta grunted a noncommittal noise, and sank lower in her seat as the carriage came to a stop. She slank to the doors, and moped in the corridors, and mumbled into the modest room next to her parents. She could hear them chatting as they got ready for the evenings’ festivities, but was unable to make out the words. Her father’s brassy tones mingled with a smooth silken hum punctuated by sharper avian chirping.
Morta was quickly dressed with Marmalade’s expert assistance. She really didn’t want to go to the party, and made this known continually.
“Can’t I just thtay here in my wooms? Nopony will even notice I’m missing!” Morta whined as Marmalade fitted a jeweled necklace about her throat.
“I will,” came her mother’s voice from the doorway.
Twilight wore the finest dress of rich navy blue and gold trim, with a flowing elegant train just a little reminiscent of a bridal gown. Perched above her horn was a bone crown of carved ponies in an angelic choir, signalling her as a Queen of the Underworld. Her twinkling mane was made into an elaborate braid held together with gold chains and diamonds. The only simple jewelery was the necklace given to her by Iridia so many years before. She smiled, a brilliant flash of white that sparkled with her eyes.
“How did the history report go?” Twilight asked with keen interest as she replaced Marmalade, taking up combs, ribbons, and powders to help her daughter prepare for the gala.
“Don’t wanna talk about it,” Morta muttered, dropping her gaze to the floor. “Ewrypony thought I was lying, and the Muses wouldn’t speak up and just made it worse.”
Clicking her tongue, Twilight pinched Morta’s cheek. “You wanted to tell the truth, and you did. Nopony can control what other ponies believe.”
“I don’t wanna go to school no more. Why can’t I be homeschooled? Or get a tutor, or thomething!”
“School is important to learn how to socialise and interact with other ponies, not just learning math and history,” Twilight patiently said as she worked on braiding Morta’s chalk white mane.
“But—!”
“Listen to your mother,” Hades’ rumbled as he strode into the room, Luna at his side, one of his wings draped protectively over her withers.
“Indeed,” Luna added her weight to the conversation with a sharp nod. “All little fillies and colts must go to school. I wish I had when I was your age.”
Luna’s dress matched Twilights, just with dark, velvety lavender in place of the blue so they looked like complimentary reflections. The only major difference was Tamashi, the sword in a ceremonial scabbard along Luna’s left side, and shrunken in size through some arcane method known only to Luna.
Detaching herself from Hades, Luna joined Twilight, taking up a long silver chain to bind Morta’s mane.
Whining pointless, Morta settled for silently moping as her mothers set about finishing the task of getting her ready.
Eyes sparkling with delight as he surveyed his wives working, Hades conjured a cigar—a favourite vice ever since he’d been introduced to them a few years prior by Big Macintosh. He’d gotten so far as clipping the end and summoning a floating flame when Twilight cleared her throat.
“Not in Morta’s bedroom, dear.”
“Ah, right, a thousand apologies, my loves,” Hades banished cigar and flame, and took Twilight’s wing with his own. “Have I said how ravishing you both are this evening? Your beauty stunned me of my senses, otherwise I would never have been so foolish.”
He followed up with a series of kisses that flowed along Twilight’s wing, up the curve of her neck, to her lips, and down the other side, before carrying on to Luna. Twilight rolled her eyes with a giggle and ever-so-slight shake of the head. Luna reciprocated the kiss once is reached her lips, wrapping a leg around Hades’ neck.
“Ew! Not in my room!” Morta stuck out her tongue, and her parents disengaged with deep blushes.
She knew they’d be back to kissing the moment she turned her back. Her parents could hardly keep their hooves off each other. Especially when her mothers were all dressed up. It was like catnip to Hades.
Deciding to take advantage of the momentary embarrassment that flashed across her parent’s faces, Morta quickly said, “Please, let me take home thcooling. I don’t wanna go to school anymore.” Morta added in a sniffle, for extra emphasis. “The Muses don’t play with me. All the other foals think I’m weird. And Mrs. Honeysuckle is so mean.”
“Well, your father and I can have a talk with your teacher.”
“Mo~om, that will just make things worthe!”
“Well, how about this?” Twilight spread a wing over Morta’s brow, and when she retracted it, a star was tucked behind Morta’s ear. “You can have Vega, this way you’ll have somepony to talk to when you need a friendly ear. A friend, just for you and you alone. How does that sound?”
Hoof shaking, Morta reached up and touched the star. Vega gave a pleased chirp, laughed, and burrowed into Morta’s mane like she was making a nest.
“But, mom, thtars sleep during the day,” Morta said in a hushed tone, but she smiled wide. “And wont ponies think I’m even weirder? And, doesn’t she need to watch over you-know-where so the undeadies don’t escape?”
Laughing, Twilight ruffled her daughter’s mane, then groaned as she had to set about fixing it back up.
“Well, ponies thought I was weird when I was your age. Ponies think a lot of silly things, especially about those who are a little different. You just have to learn how to let it go. Once they see it doesn’t bother you, they will leave you alone if they are bullies, and think you are ‘cool’ or ‘hip’ if they are the popularity seeking types. I have it on very good authority!” Twilight nodded, and her smile was etched with certainty.
Morta was far less certain than her mother, but she appreciated the effort.
Chuckling, Hades stepped around so that he was in front of his daughter. He picked her up and set her on his back as the family started towards the ballroom.
“As for Southstone Spires,” he said, “that is for me and your mothers to worry about.” He then leaned in for a conspiratorial whisper. “And between us, pumpkin, I’ve placed a few agents in the area to keep ponies away. Nothing like a few rumours of vampires to keep all but the most determined at bay, eh?”
Morta nodded, pleased with the explanation.
Nearing the gala, Morta could hear it was already in full swing. She was put down, dress straightened, and then they were introduced by the crier. She tried her best to appear dignified, but felt so small next to her beautiful mothers and stoic father. Stiffly she marched into the ballroom as her name was called with her relatively meagre list of titles. After the long list given for her father and mothers, it was rather short, and she winced at ‘Princess of Tartarus’.
It turned out she needn't worry, the Muses already the center of attention so that few ponies were paying attention to anything else. Celestia, Zeus, and Rarity had their own sizable gatherings, with a few dancers already on the floor. A little to one side a small cluster of zebras in their colourful clothes began to make their way towards the family.
“Empress Hattmettren,” Twilight greeted the zebrican princess as she approached, and the politicking for the night began, “How is your mother?”
“Still a little stiff whenever your name is brought up,” answered the middle-aged princess. “May I introduce you to my daughter, the crown-princess of Zebrica?”
The gentle music the band played suddenly shifted to a soothing melody that conjured images of lovers bathed in Selene’s graceful light as Hades and Luna reached the dance floor’s edge.
“A tango, dear? So soon?” Luna’s eyes danced as she was swept up by Hades, leaving Twilight to meet with the ponies heading in their direction.
The music swelled, the violin giving a mournful cry answered by the piona, and the bassy humm of the cello. Their hooves skipped to the beat, a space quickly made for the pair as they spun, dipped, and swept across the dancefloor in passion and beauty in equal measure. No dancers were as famed as Luna and Hades, their tangos legendary throughout the disc for their sensual artistry. All eyes were on the duo, and the Muses began to add their own, special magic to the music in the form of a melodic chorus.
Twilight stamped her hooves to the beat, and whistled as Hades dipped Luna, kissed her on her fiery lips, and then tossed her overhead. She landed, caught his wing, and then spun him in turn. The music reached a crescendo, and Hades and Luna embraced again. Twilight laughed, clapping at the antics of her husband and wife.
As the dance ended, the Muses took center stage, their powerful voices reaching from the ballroom over the gardens, and out to the city beyond in gospel notes.
“Regale me, O’ Muses,” the crowd intoned together, demanding one of the many tales of Rarity and Trixie Lulamoon, and their adventures escaping the Underworld, their time on distant Gaea, and their return home.
It was a night to remember. Everything in the disc was right and at peace, if only for a brief time.
In the north, over the rim of the disc, hovered a giant, red sun around which a bale of world-turtles swam.
Ioka tossed back her continent sized head as she gave a mighty cry to her kin that echoed across the empty expanse of space between worlds.
If you've enjoyed my writing, please consider donating. You can buy me a Ko-Fi <Link>, or just directly donate with Paypal to alaster31@hotmail.com. I could really use any support and help to keep writing. Thank you!
A little epilogue to lighten the mood and further add to the aftermath. This has been written for, oh gosh, 3 years now? Something like that. Besides a little touching up here and there, this has been done for quite some time now. It is set long after the side stories in the Anthology, obviously, as Morta isn't even mentioned there.
There were a few aspects that I've changed in the last couple weeks since the previous chapter was posted. Namely, the Twi-Hades-Luna dynamic was greatly expanded upon. For some reason I picture them as being a lot like the Addams Family. Can't quite figure out why... =^.^=b The gala was also added, and what had been a conversation in the carriage between Morta and Twilight was totally rekajiggered into two conversations. One between Morta and Marmalade, who is Applejack and Soarin's youngest daughter, and then the conversation as Morta is getting dressed for the gala.
If you're confused why Morta is in a class with the younger muses, and why they are all in a class together, it is all the Muses faults. They keep getting themselves held back on purpose, and poor Mrs. Honeysuckle is the only teacher willing to take the Terrors of Canterlot on as students. 
For the full, real last Author's Notes, see those for the previous chapter.
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so hades and twilight... became a thing. i don't know what to think about that
but I would love to see how that happened...
that was a good story and its nice to see Iridia put the alicorn souls she found to good use
10188066
I think it better to leave it up to reader's imaginations the romantic story between Twi, Hades, and Luna. I doubt I'd be able to do it credit.
Hmmm...
A red sun...
Circled by world-turtles...
Oh dear, that might cause no small number of problems. I dearly hope Faust sees it coming, because I believe I've read this Diskworld novel before.
10188125
Innocent whistling...
I was wondering during the last battle who thought of Twilight as a titan to be beautiful, but at least we know now from who that thought came from.
You could say he was starstrucked
Also, it is always a good idea to get inspiration for romance from best couple. Nobody beats the Addams couple
Great ending!
So this is the final book focusing a lot on Twilight? unless I misunderstood something.
10191887
Yes, that is correct.
I... was not expecting Twilight, Hades & Luna. But it is thematically fitting in a way? Twilight is the daughter of Iridia, who's similar in many ways to Demeter; Goddess of Fertility and all that. But Iridia also embodies the spring, which is Persephone's sphere, but he can't really have her... So he goes for the daughter of DemePersephone
I was very, very confused in the beginning of the epilogue. For a short while I feared you went "And it was all a
dreamstory written by a foal!", but was happy to see that was not the case.Also very happy to hear that Rarity did make it back to Ioka. Hopefully with Trixie, and both of them recovered from their ordeals.
10188106
Argh, you cheater. Now I can only imagine it. Still, a nice wind down. Love the ending, the call to the muses, the hook to the sequel, and ending with the world turtle.
10191488 10191503
Sorry, deleted my original replies. Going to try again to answer your questions.
1: On Soir: Soir is Namyra reformed. She had her memories locked away in the Fostering used on her when she was reborn following the final piece of her essence being returned when NMM was defeated by Twilight and Luna saved. This was in Book 2's Prologue chapter. Lacking her proper name, Jardin named her Soir, but there is no difference between Soir and Namyra, especially after her memories returned.
2: On Twi killing Astaroth: The Demon's true body remained trapped beneath Tartarus. Twi could destroy Astaroth's vessel and send the demon back to her true body. To truly kill Astaroth would take destroying her true body as well as her essence. Even this wouldn't be permanent, as a new Queen of Wrath would emerge, just as alicorns will re-emerge. Twilight herself is the third incarnation of the Goddess of the Stars, the very first and true creator of the stars having been destroyed before Ioka or the other worlds were born. But, that is deep-dive backstory lore.
3: Power Level Gaps: The gaps in power level potential are not that great. Alicorns typically hold themselves back to some degree or another. Titans are controlled by their Domain and just unleash all their power in every action they take. Hmm, if you ever watched the old Justice League cartoon, there was a fight between Superman and Darkseid where Supes said something to the effect of, 'I feel like I live in a world of cardboard, where one wrong move will destroy everything.' The more powerful alicorns are like Superman in that regard where they unconsciously withhold using the full extent of their power. Titans have none of those restrictions and just go all-out all the time, as well as seeing a 'power-boost' as they become conduits for their Domains. But, it isn't like their power is doubled, or anything so extreme. It is enough that the gods work together to take down titans, however. This is the quick and dirty explanation.
4: Wait, I've been misspelling it this whole time?
10193914
Thanks! I wanted the "Proper" or full ending to have a nice promise of more stories, as well as being a place where it can end if I never continue. I liked the mental imagry of Ioka swimming among a bale of world-turtles.
10193124
Ugh, yeah, the spheres of influence between the real Greek gods/myths and what I have in MnBs is a real disaster of a mess. All over the place. Something I intend to fix in the De-Ponyfied version I still plan to write. It has just been... I don't know if anyone would care to read it without the My Little Pony connections. Big ol' pile of self-doubt I should have gotten over a long time ago.
I've had Rarity show up in one or two of the Muses side-stories over in the Anthology.
This just makes it super-official canon, as there has always been the fuzziness of how canon the stuff that happens in the anthologies are that take place after the events of Myths.
10192254
Alright, thanks for the years of high-quality writing!
10195111
You are very welcome!
10194900
If you do get around to making a de-ponified version of this story, you very much should fix the Spheres and such. Or rather, you should make certain that you don't start to just re-write greek mythology.
I am not going to start telling you how to do things, but I would very much suggest keeping the whole "Different Worlds" thing going on, because then you can have the whole Greek Gods-like thing going on, but introduce new names, new characters, etc. and not just overwrite the actual mythology (said "Real" mythology would exist in Gaea, and Ioka would have a few unique gods, and such). That way you can have Zeus and Hades appear as the actual Zeus and Hades, alongside Deities of your own creation, like Iridia and Faust.
Actually, if you just keep the whole "Different Discs/Worlds" thing, it shouldn't be that difficult to keep track of and "fix". I only pointed out the whole TwilightxHadesxLuna ship thing, because I found it amusing
I hope you know I reread this whole epic to get ready for the finale, and am currently making my way through rereading Velvet Sparkle, A Dream of Envy and Pride, and finally going to reread the Rariad to get to the current new chapters in it! I was very excited to reread it because I quite love this series. It truly feels like an epic and I am quite glad to have read it.
I also love the finale quite a lot. The climax was great and I loved it, and it felt really good to read. I love the ties to everything else, and I really can say that I enjoy this series.
I think the only thing that off-sets me is the epilogue I guess. Not that it is particularly bad but... it definitely doesn't really click with me I guess in a satisfying way. I wasn't really a fan of CelestiaxRarityxZeus from the beginning when Zeus tried to persue her, and I can't say I am a bigger fan of Twilight and Luna x Hades. I can't get behind either ship with what we've been given, and to me, I feel cautious of both. It feels less natural and more forced in if anything. It's a 'look the gods got married to the only male gods and had god children that they raise amongst other gods.' The fact that Zeus is an arse, Hades is a dickwad and more are probably factors, and that we never got to see any of them grow: having this thrown after the climax feels like a huge chunk was missing - the part where we get to actually like such romances.
It feels... off somewhat to me. I don't know why.
I also understand in a way about why fostering is gone, but it also makes it much more likely, especially in the little that I have seen of the epilogue, that the younger foal gods will not see other foals as their equals. Maybe not now, but later on. While fostering has their own set of complications (Tyr being fostered was a mistake for many reasons: but not because fostering itself is a mistake.)
One last fact: the fact that this epilogue only focuses on the pantheon. Sure, other characters were not quite as important but... I would like to see what happened to the Cutie Mark Crusaders. To the rest of the Mane Six that didn't become gods. (Despite Applejack and Rainbow Dash not being as worked in as they could be, I still liked their characters in this story, especially the formers.) To Gilda with her race dying out (Poor Gilda).
Despite my (admittedly pretty harsh but I wanted to somehow express my surprising discomfort with this epilogue that I can't really explain that well my apologies D:) criticism, I definitely can't wait to read more of the Rariad and the maybe original version of Myths in the works!
This was a nice epilogue. I expect that the Rariad will explain why Rarity cooses not to show herself very often.
10199587
I left out the CMC as I have some side-story projects that I keep toying with and never completing that involve their escapades in the years following Myths. These, naturally, involve Applejack and Rainbow Dash to some extent. One, in particular, I'd love to find the inspiration to finish has Sweetie Belle coming to terms with herself. It was too much to stick in the epilogue, and as I don't know how those stories would play out due to my 'seat of the pants' writing method for the side stories, I felt it better to not have Sweetie, in particular, mentioned in the epilogue.
I decided to put-off showing an older Main 6 until Rarity and the others reunion. Having Applejack's youngest daughter I felt was a suitable enough nod, showing that AJ and Soarin's family continued to grow after the events of the story. I wish I'd done more with them, and Rainbow. Pinkie is, funnily enough, the member of the main cast that I don't feel wasted. Her and Fluttershy. It's the second half of book two where the Main 6 fall to the way-side. Not something I am particularly pleased with, but I was a fool and introduced too many threads with them only being bit-players to most. Juggling everything became extremely difficult, and sadly most of the mane 6 fell to the wayside.
As for the ships, I had big, bold notes telling me to avoid shipping, especially Twilight/Luna-Hades. I believe the exact wording was, 'Don't do it, you idiot. There is no way you can pull it off satisfyingly.' Or something to that effect. The only one I really allowed myself to indulge in was Tia-Zeus, but even that we're skipping a lot of her thawing to his advances, their courtship, and family life with the Muses and such.
For a long time Honey Mead and I debated over who should be the father of the Muses. I was very undecided, and he leaned heavily on the 'Anyone but Zeus' side of the coin. There were even suggestions that Tia and Rarity were the 'fathers' of each other's foals, as possibilities, and for a very brief time Fancy Pants was considered as a possibility. In the end, I settled on Zeus for a number of reasons, but the largest factor was that he is the Muses father in the real mythology of ancient Greece. For a long time I've been trying to 'fix' all the many, many errors and incongruities between real myths and Myths and Birthrights. Where possible, I default to the real myths now.
Anyways, enough of my ramblings.
Thank you for taking the time to make such a detailed response!
10228780
Esponya is one of the puns I am most proud-shamed about.
Your comments today have really put a smile on my face. Thank you for all of them.
10230366
It's been a long time since that was written, and I can't remember why that conversation was skipped or removed. It could have been something I back-filled. IE, relised it was something that I needed earlier and decided to include it. Or, some edit somewhere caused it to be lost.
10230515
Ah! That would be it! Velvet Sparkle and the Queen in Stone is the most likely culprit.
10230628
Yeah, that's what I figured. Editing is like that. That missing snippet of Faust's revelations to Rainbow Dash is very much needed here, so I'm glad I could spot that for you.
Hmmm.
ZOMG SPOILERS!
edit: Also, wouldn't that last bit put her on the Day side of things, with how the rest shook out?
Hades... and Twilight? O__o There is no emoji on FimFiction shocked enough to do that justice.
You poor thing.
Clearly a most evil work of truly dark deity proportions, that. 
Alright. So. Good story. Certainly entertaining! A few holes and continuity glitches here and there, but that happens with write-rewrite-edit-cut-rewrite-uncut-recut cycles.
I'll definitely be reading the rest in the near future... once I catch up on a few dozen things that updated while this had my attention.
10232816
Thank you. The series could certainly use a well done editing pass from front to back to iron out the continuity issues. It certainly has given me an even deeper respect for author's with long-running novel series. Keeping everything straight is an organisational nightmare of multiple files and just constant thinking the story over. I certainly haven't helped myself with the number of side-stories I tended to get sucked into while working on the main story.
And thank you for taking the time to comment on each chapter. I love seeing how people react as each chapter hits.
10232791
Interesting, since they/it are more Lovecraftian and less Q Continuum in nature. There is a reason I kept Discord stuck in stone and didn't do much beyond a few mentions here and there of the Quus.
10232651
Man, Algol and releasing Pride... That is one of them continuity breaks that was caused by having only a 'general plan' rather than a firmly set goal for the finale. Her role ended up shifting a lot as a result. Like her relationship with Soir/Namyra and what it truly entailed. Initially, Soir was meant to be the one grounding and good thing about Algol. The only pony/being that Algol cared for other than herself as she'd been the Dreamstar before being the Demonstar. It is one of the bigger aspects I'd fix with a third draft.
I'm late I'm late I'm late for a very important epilogue!
So I wasn't just indulging my overly active imagination when I thought I saw Gomez Hades.
10236588
Nope! The Hades Family are very much like the Addams.
I've been following this story since around the beginning of the original script. I still remember when Twilicorn was announced! All I can say is, wow. This story is amazing. Up there with "The Sweetie Chronicles", "The Slave King", "Harmony Theory", and many more Epics. This has been one hell of a ride and I'm glad to see it through. This was one of the first stories I started reading on this site and now it will be one of the last. What a way to end an era. Myths inspired me to start my own world (along with other amazing stories on here). It's crazy that it's been 8 years now. It feels like just yesterday I was coming home from school to find that this had updated and getting so excited! With all that said, I do find Hades roll in the epilogue to be weird. I'm not sure why, but I just found it wrong that Twilight got with him. But if that's the only gripe that I have with this 8 year long story, then job well done! I cannot overstate how good this story is and it changed fanfiction on here. After this and some of WandererD's stories people realized you could write pony fanfiction and have it be not just good, but amazing!
So, to finish up, thank you for the amazing story and world you transported us all to. I will never forget Ioka and all the ponies, zebras, and griffons on it.
10258465
Hilariously I made boo-boo while updating and tweaking the epilogue. The original version had Morta being Luna's daughter, not Twilight's. When I did the second round of writing on it, fleshing it out, a year or so ago, I erroneously wrote a bit with Twilight meeting Morta in the carriage. This was carried over as I further expanded and fleshed out the epilogue in the few weeks before it was posted. It wasn't until a few weeks after it was posted while I was going through my notes for the gods that I noticed I had Morta's parents down as Luna-Hades.
A funny tid-bit on why it is so important to check and recheck notes while working on chapters.
I'm very happy that you've loved the story for so long. It is almost surreal to hear about people looking forward to chapters.
Thank you for sticking with the story.
10267744
Not much different from how I'd expect it to go. And no need for an apology, you at least answered my question, which is more than I had expected.
I'm just happy to know Oropolla doesn't keep hating Twilight, and there's chance for reconciliation. Same with Sirius, hopefully. She seemed quite upset with her as well, when Twilight tried and failed to put her back in the sky.
10276740
It's alright to criticize, especially in these chapters. The characters are meant to be grey in nature and have their flaws showcased a bit more prominently.
This was the first story I ever read on this site. I saw a drawing of this on deviantart and decided to follow the link, which led me here. I was hook on after a few chapters, it’s just that good! This fanfic was also how I start watching the show. I didn’t know most of the characters or the show so I wanted to know more about it. ( I started reading in 2018). Anyways the last chapter was a little weird but I can get why and still enjoy it all the same!
10279841
It is very different from the rest of the story. There is a time jump of decades, character relationships have changed, and it is just slice-of-life after High Fantasy. That would be my guess.
Wow! I can't believe I got someone to watch the show and get involved in the fandom through commissioned art and my story. That is amazing! Thank you for sticking with the story through all this time.
10292560
I am a pale shadow of Tolkien when it comes to world building. I never made my own languages, afterall.
10304921
It is NOT a thing. Doesn't exist. Myths was started long before the Tree was introduced in the show, and had diverged and become its own entity.
10311267
Painfully, painfully aware. Oh, how I'd complain about writers who'd take real world mythology and distort it, and I have become worse than I once complained about. 2004 Tundy is very disappointed in me...
10315619
The war was caused by many things. It could have been Hera spurring on Ares and others to attack Mount Alicornus in retaliation for being spurned by Hemera, Athena, and the others when they split from Olympus, after she'd tricked Zeus into leaving Gaea to visit with the Norse alicorns for a time. Or, was it when Athena killed Hecate after breaking into Tartarus to rescue Nyx from Hades, rousing the ire of the other alicorns? Perhaps its roots are further back still, when Hera was informed by the Fates that should she be ruled by her envy, Zeus would fall in love with the Sun and abandon her. But, ah, they failed to mention which sun, and Hera wrongly believed it to be Hemera of which the Fates spoke.
As for Zeus and Hades, no, they left long after the fillies were sent towards Ioka. The chapter with Zeus entering Tartarus and getting Hades to come with him is set hundreds of years before Twilight was even born. In many regards it should be a prologue.
10338614
Thank you for all your comments. I'm reading them all and smiling wide.
10338284
Algol was very tricky to write. She's a bit inconsistent in actions and goals at times, and is exceedingly complex, while that complexity isn't ever fully voiced to the readers. I could, and have, spent hours talking about her to people.
Just to kind of cap off my feelings on the fic: True to it's name it was largely about family and growing into your place in the world. In execution this brought the fic away from "Friendship is Magic" and more towards the amazing lore and characters you've written into the setting. You also used people not making friends and otherwise being jerks really well to flesh out the setting and make things foreign and interesting.
In my heart of hearts my favorite fics manage to mix the themes of FiM and the Elements along with whatever the author wants to say, and I think the best example of that is probably Fallout: Equestria.
That said, I really love what you've presented here. The lack of the Elements-as-mechanic doesn't take away from the fic at all and I can't imagine shoehorning them in further than what we've gotten. The Elements being Faust's tools and the way the final conflict scaled up reminded me a lot of "The Immortal Game" by AestheticB, which was a pretty famous fic way back in 2012. Twilight's fall and change into who she becomes is quick. Well set up and executed for the time the final transformations are given.
Loved the songs, they were well-adapted, helped set the mood and always helped flesh out the relevant characters and make them more interesting. It takes a lot of care and consideration to achieve that so congrats and thank you, it was an absolute pleasure to read.
10341203
Algol knows a lot. She's literally older than Time, and unlike her sisters, remembers the First Realm and when they were all created. If it was just a matter of getting off the disc, Algol could have done that eons ago. It was more about spite than anything else. She despises Twilight, and was going out of her way to twist, manipulate, and bring Twilight as much suffering as she could engineer. Some events were happy happenstance, others she actively engineered.
Like I said before, Algol is very complicated and tricky. I felt her slipping through my fingers on more than one occasion, and I'll admit, I was writing her a bit by the seat of my pants. What I thought were her goals seemed to frustratingly fluctuate, mostly as she had more than one. The main one that stuck was a generic 'Hurt Twilight' motif, but I'm not happy with other aspects. Her interactions with her sisters at the start of Book 2 are incongruous with how she is later. Right near the end I thought she was going to attempt to use the portal to summon Pride, Mephisto, to Ioka, tying into the whole Dream of Pride and Envy story. This very, veeeeeery nearly made it in. I had descriptions, conversations, and a whole bunch of stuff with him and the portal that got cut and jettisoned, leaving me in a very precarious position with Algol and her goals. In the end, I went with what I hoped was the one that made the most sense.
Since I can't see myself continuing Myths beyond the Rariad, as I would like to write a third draft that is wholly my own creation with no ties to My Little Pony, I don't mind saying that Algol would have factored into a potential sequel as the driving force for awakening Yarmalyth, The Screaming Sultan, from its slumber and bringing about the end of the current cycle of creation. This would have destroyed not just Ioka, but all the realms, from Tartarus, 'Totally Not Hell', Gaea, the Endless Library, and every other realm mortal and godly in nature. But, Myths was suffering from a lot of frayed story lines and plot hooks. Better to let the story end rather than have it further degrade.
I'm pleased, generally, with how it turned out. But I could have done so much better with regards to Algol.
10341232
Thank you very much. Those are some august and well loved titles you compare me to. I'm very glad that you enjoyed the story, even though it was rough in places. 8 years is a long time and I've changed as a person and my skill as a writer evolved over that time. I had a TON of help as well, especially in the earlier years. The past couple, when the updates slowed to a trickle, were far more on my own shoulders, and the final several chapters were entirely my own. I honestly know that this was a cause of many issues that encroached into the conclusion of the story. I may be a good writer, but I'm not a great one, and I need that help an editor brings to stay focused and to get problems ironed out.
Glad to finally finish off this story, but sad to see it go. A ride from start to finish, even if there were a number of parts that felt a bit confusing, and there was more than one "Oh, come on!" whenever you managed to leave me on a cliffhanger even so long after the chapters were published. The events happening at different times within the same chapter took a little getting used to, but I think it worked in the story's favour rather than against it in the end.
I still have a bunch of questions that I'd like answered, but I imagine those curiosities will be satisifed when I eventually get around to reading the side-stories. Like Zubu & Gilda's journey, the Quus, where exactly Algol went, the Old God that Gilda met in the humans' jungle, and a few other things.
Thanks for writing!
10357509
Sorry about the cliffhangers. I use them perhaps a tad too much.
I don't mind answering a few of your questions right here.
Where Algol went isn't stated and wont really be explained. I'm not even sure /where/ she went, only what her general goals and plans would be in the future. I left that open for myself.
The 'Old God' is one of the Seraphs of Elysium, Abaddon, of the Choir of Power, whom is the personification of Death and Endings. She is a bit of a hold-over from when I thought I was going to delve more into Elysium, the Archons, as well as the Quus and some other stuff. Sadly, she'd rather superfluous and more a bit of setting fluff than having any real role or importance in the story.
10358193
Hey, no worries! They might've been frustrating, but they did well to keep me reading through the subplots in pursuit of the main, and lent said subplots a little extra prominence. Made them feel more like they were all leading up to the final conclusion from the reader's pov, rather than just being extra side-stories within the fic.
Another thing I've been thinking about since finishing the story was how subtle the re-acceptance of Pallas and Aegis as Fleur's arms was; not really remarked upon by any of the characters, and there was no moment of "oh i can do specifically this again" from Fleur barring how her instincts as an alicorn of battle flourished during her duel with Algol. Was this intended, or something that kinda slipped by between rewrites of certain chapters?
Thanks for your reply. I'm looking forward to reading the extended universe stories sooner rather than later; I actually found it through Velvet Sparkle and the Queen in Stone, and then shelved both with a resolve to read them in 'order' with Myths and Birthrights first.
10359296
Thanks. I tend to worry a bit about things with my anxiety.
Fleur and her use of Aegis and Pallas slipped through the cracks. Which kind of seems appropriate given all that happened at that time. The city coming under attack, Twilight rushing off, Luna and Fluttershy focusing on keeping the thanes at bay. It would and should have been something brought up by Rainbow or Applejack with Fleur during the chase towards Southstone Spires. I'm rather displeased looking back on it how the ending turned out in regards to Algol. I really feel like that is so close to being a total bungled disaster. Sweetie turned out much better than I thought, though. But Algol's goals and everything are a real weak-point and something that I'd want to 'fix' with another draft.
Thinking on it more, what I perhaps should have done was better set up that she was trying to bring one of the rulers of Hell, and had her even more involved in maintaining Astaroth's connection to the disc by using a ritual to hold open a rip in reality, and then escaping through it when it becomes apparent that she'd lost. A missed possibility. Though, how to factor Soir into that equation, unless her nature as the alicorn of dreams is what Algol is using in the ritual... But that in turn.... hmmm... No, that would cause problems with Soir and Hades' interactions.
Sorry, stream of thought writing today.
Anyways, thanks for sticking through with the story.
10364811
Honestly, I don't bother with making these sorts of corrections anymore. The chapters will stand as they are, warts and all, a testament to my failures.
Edit: Thank you for taking the time to make the corrections. I'm just at a place right now where I'm looking more forward than back. Especially at something written several years ago. When I start to work on these again it will be as part of a massive 3rd draft re-write covering all of Myths and Birthrights with its various off-shoots to remove all copyrighted material I don't own.
10365687
She's very... she has a different perspective, that is certain.
10365018
Ah, I see. No use doing proofreading passes when there's a structural edit in the works. If you'd ever like a quality proofreader and copy editor for the future, I might be able to help out there.
PM if interested.
TC