Whiteness. Thoughts of The Matrix entered into my mind, white enveloping all I could see around me. The vague form of walls slowly came into being, closing in around me. Focused in the center of my vision, two hazy shapes emerged. The first stood tall and proud, standing on two feet, dressed in a rather casual combination of jeans and a t-shirt. A large smile graced his face, auburn hair framing hazel eyes. The latter was a much smaller figure, standing on four hooves. A horn adorned his head, and the overly large aquamarine eyes reflected a depth of inner peace.
The human and pony both sat down, facing each other and locking their gazes. A smirk formed on each face, as if one knew something that the other didn't. I watched them both closely, unsure as to what it meant. My focus rapidly shifted between them, awaiting the next move.
The white shifted to grey, darkening to black soon after, leaving just the pony in a circular spotlight. I watched as a scene unfolded before me, showing what could be. He strode through a faceless mass of ponies down a street somewhere, confidence exuding off his figure. An object fell from a roof somewhere, threatening another pony. Before anypony else could act, his horn was ablaze with a navy blue glow, the object hovering in the air mid descent. The ponies around him thanked him, lauding him as a hero.
The picture paused, holding the moment captive as the pony was posing to those thanking him. Everything became fuzzy, floating away in wisps. As particles floating away, new ones came in to replace them. He stood on a cliffside this time, clouds butting up against it forming an illusion of a sea of clouds. He stretched his wings wide, the wind rustling each individual feather as he closed his eyes. The sanctity of the moment went undisturbed for minutes, until at last, he snapped his eyes wide open and ran off the cliff.
His wings splayed wide, he caught the thermals rising off the clouds and soared without care. With no chains to tie him down to the earth, he was free, unburdened without a care in the world. No thoughts of responsibility, concerns, or worries. It was all in the here and now of the moment. Once more, the scene before me froze, an expression of unadulterated joy showing through the smile plastered on his face.
The scene faded this time, only to be replaced by another. He stood within a room, bustling with activity. Ponies in medical scrubs rushed here and there, urgency in their steps. The focus of their attention was a mare laying in an ornate bed, her belly swollen and breaths labored. He walked up to her and held a hoof, comforting her in this wonderful moment. Pain etched her face as a soundless scream escaped her throat, only to be overridden by the wailing only a newborn could manage.
The doctors quickly cleaned the babe and checked its vitals, then bundled it up. Handing it to the parents, they embraced each other in a hug, large smiles of warmth gracing their faces. He looked so happy, finally a family to call his own.
Family...
The moment shattered into a million pieces, falling like shards of glass. The pony was not spared this time. The human popped into focus, sitting in the living room of a very familiar house. I watched my human self slowly get up off the couch, heading for the stairs in the back of the room. Once upstairs, he made for the second door on the left, hand outreaching to grasp the doorknob.
A sudden twist and push revealed the contents of the room. The walls were painted a bright blue on one side, black on the other. Day and night, reflected on the walls; sun, moon, and stars all included. A small bed sat against the wall, a coloring book and crayons laying on it. Picking up a crayon, a little girl no older than six or seven looked up and smiled, her two missing front teeth making the sight that much more adorable.
"Angela..." I watched as he rushed over to her, picking her up by the arms and gently twirling her in the air, giggles escaping all the while. He brought her close into his chest, a bear hug uniting the two as one for a brief moment.
Wetness rolled down my cheek, this scene reminding me of what was truly important to my heart. Everything shifted back to the initial image of both the human and pony staring down each other. The pony flinched and looked away, the human jumping up and fistpumping in victory. I knew that no matter what, I had to return home, no matter what I had to do, or how long it would take.
A fanfare began playing as everything began distorting around me. "My, my, my... now isn't this a most... interesting development that we have here. A stray, and very far from home. Oh no, whatever can be done!" A voice floated from nowhere, yet it seemed to come from everywhere at the same time.
"Who's there! Show yourself!" I shouted, hoping to find the voice's source. The distortion continued, radiating from a central point in front of me. A vertical slit appeared in front of me, disrupting the very fabric of the environment. It lengthened, becoming the height of a door, then with a popping noise, it expanded horizontally, leaving a rectangular void.
A bicycle bell sounded out, shortly followed by an actual bicycle! The... individual peddling it was something else entirely. Although bipedal, his exact species was unknown to me, although he had various body parts of others that I recognized. A deer antler, a goat's horn, and an eagle's claw? Were just some of the many features on his body. A true chimera, riding a bicycle, wearing a clown suit. My jaw dropped as one of his hands moved to ring the bell once more.
He hopped off the bicycle and snapped his fingers, causing it to simply vanish. The doorway he had created snapped shut, the distortion rushing back in and disappearing. "Hey there, human! Glad to finally see another one of you folks, your world is so much fun to look at, ya know?" He walked up to me, a smirking grin present on his face as he reached behind his back. "You might want this back though, just talking isn't any fun at all!" He pulled out my lower jaw from behind him and smacked it into my chin.
My hands shot to my mouth, but nothing seemed to be out of place. Opening and closing my mouth several times proved this to be true, and a booming laugh began to echo from this creature in front of me. "Who are you?" I asked incredulously.
"I," the creature began, a snap changing his attire, now that of a pink pimp suit, complete with a jeweled cane, "am Discord, the God of Chaos! I must say, I am most pleased to meet you human, you all truly are such fun!" He stretched out a hand in greeting,
"Umm, it's a... pleasure to meet you?" I wasn't quite sure what else to say, I think it was the pimp suit that threw me for the spin more than anything else.
Discord walked around me, and I felt his gaze on me, sizing me up. "Yup, you'll do just fine I think. Such potential, such chaos! I truly do look forward to see what you bring about in your wake, I dare say!" A snap of a finger, and five flying placards appeared mid air, all displaying nines. "I've always looked up to humans, you all are a fun lot. I might not be able to breach the barrier myself, but I can always meddle a bit every so often. Why, I remember when I messed with those poor people who were interpreting that old Mayan Calendar. I had them convinced that because the Mayans ran out of space on their silly rock, your world was going to end! Such delectable, tasty, sweet chaos!" He paused, pulling his hand from behind his back. "Cotton candy?" Discord held in his grasp a fair style cone of cotton candy.
I tentatively reached for it, holding it in my hand. "Thanks... Anyone ever tell you that you come off as crazy?" I went to take a bite of the candy in my grasp, the heavy taste of... snozberries? Reaching my taste buds. It also began fizzing and popping, just like Pop Rocks.
Discord cracked up laughing again, only serving to solidify my opinion that he belonged locked up in a padded room somewhere. "Why, thank you! Chaos is always rather crazy, it's what makes it so unpredictable!" He came up to me and wrapped an arm around my shoulder, the claws of the talon thumping against my shoulder. "You know, I really would love to stick around longer, but it's time for me to make like a banana and split! We should do this again sometime!"
Discord walked over to a random section of my dreamscape and simply walked through it, disappearing from sight. I was left holding the cotton candy as I simply started at the spot he had occupied just moments before, rather confused. Unsure of what action to take, I simply took another bite of candy.
The rest of my dreams were rather peaceful, the grip of sleep keeping me in its grasp. I had this lovely dream of flying through the air, something that I dreamed of on numerous occasions even before coming to this magical land. Eventually, my dreams made their way back to my daughter Angela, everything turning dreary and dark around me. I could see her in front of me, yet every time I reached out for her, I grasped at empty air.
She still stood there, looking at me with pleading, sad teary eyes, as if begging for me to hold her. No matter how many times I tried, however, I just couldn't reach her, even as the shadows began to close in around us. They eventually began licking at her feet as I was forced to simply stand there and watch, having resigned myself to the fact that no matter what I tried, it didn't work.
I immediately awoke, lunging up into a sitting position, a hoof rising to my chest as I caught a glimpse of a dark blue wave of, something, in the corner of my eye. Wait a second... I slowly lifted my hoof, no, my hand, into the center of my vision.
"Yes!" I hollered aloud, jumping the rest of the way from the bed to stand on the floor just as the door to my room was flung wide open with a pink aura, quickly followed by a familiar looking purple alicorn, panic evident on her face. Oh shit.
A pulse of foreign magic made itself known across Equestria, triggering an ancient ward long since forgotten underneath a long ago abandoned castle. Deep in the confines of the catacombs, a series of self contained spells activated, calling back an entity long since thought gone. Conscious thoughts began forming as it slowly pieced itself together.
Sounds...
Thoughts...
Self...
Identity!
A purpose.
The barrier was breached.
My purpose will be fulfilled.
I must go to them.
A misty shadow rose from the center of a magical circle, violently swirling about. It writhed and squirmed, contained by the magic, as the soul slowly began piecing itself together. As it calmed, a vague shape began to form, standing on two legs, proud and tall. The last of the mist settled down, leaving a transparent older man in its wake. He heard the call, and it was now time to answer it. Another had finally found their way here, and it was time to act.
It's only a matter of time, now. I must stabilize, first. The spirit sat down in the center of the circle and crossed his legs, then slowly closed his eyes, turning his thoughts inwards. The silence of the catacombs returned once more.
Calling it now, Merlin had a fail safe in the event of his untimely demise.
2319853 i'm calling it Mordred
2319418
Indeed.
I can't wait to see the next chapter!!! :D
Three things:
One: Merlin has returned! *fist pumps*
Two: You are going to give our Arthur, not the king, A Holy Hand Grenade, and that can be the only thing to get rid of discord. Otherwise...
I WILL BEAT YOU WITH MY CROWBAR! Or, well, just laugh quietly at the joke that never was.
Third: MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR MOAR
Wow, another great chapter. To be honest I really didn't see any problems with it, this was beautifully written, keep up the good work.
2319853>>2319893
A coin has two sides, although there is always a third option... It lands ON its side. Who will it be? Time shall tell!
2319908
Indeed, no ETA for Ch 4, but the outline is in my head for it. : )
2319951
AND THOU SHALL COUNT TO THREE! Lol. There will be more, just... when it is done.
2319963
Thanks much!
2320028
Chapter four?
*Looks at chapter list*
Holy crap! An update that I didn't notice till now!!!
WIN!
2320028
I have a hunch that its either Arthur, Mordred, or Merlin. There isn't really anyone else of importance to emerge from that. Also the way you say the coin has an edge, which it can land on - might mean your hinting that the least probably entity would emerge. My main guess is King Arthur. At first glance he appears the least likely to enter the story - therefore his connection with the side of the coin you hinted at. Second he is the most likely to be set up inside the circle - everyone knew he was about to die, and had time to prepare something before he did. Merlin and Mordred seem unlikely because they had no concerns about death at the current time, and would not prepare for something like this. Merlin is my next best guess, because he is the magic user but I don't see any way for Mordred to return unless some other entity is pulling the strings. After killing Arthur, or severely wounding him, in his mind he would seem neigh invincible and would have no thoughts that he might die. All in all I say that, in the order of most likely to least, it would be Arthur, Merlin, Mordred, or some other OC the author has created, But only time will tell who emerged.
the babe and checked its vitals
Baby*. Excellent chapter as always. But damn you pump out chapters like a BOSS!
2320028
Lol it is gonna be someone completely irrelevant.
2320028
Alright.
One... Two... FIVE!
(If you did do that do defeat discord, Discord would probably be too busy laughing at the chaotic counting to notice the small ball of holy death sailing towards him.
Going to assume that the new dude is the bastard son who is a bad guy.
Also, I notice that you mention that the pony in the dream had wings at some point but he was a Unicorn.
Did he use magic to get them?
Or is it just because?
Was he still a unicorn?
So many questions...
Furthermore, I thought our main protagonist lived on his own.
How does he instantly have a daughter?
Does she live with his parents?
Is that why?
Again, more questions...
Cool story but this story has just gotten about 20% more confusing.
And lastly, the dark magic probably was Arthur (Reaction because of his daughter) but I am more inclined to think that it's Luna's magic (Coloring and all.)
Or, it could have nothing to do with either and is ancient magic placed by the nightmare (Who is the bastard son.).
Either way though, keep going!
This is gonna be good.
Merlin. He had a greater connection to Equestia.
Well, It may not be Merlin, but rather remnants of Mordred. I feel it was written similar to a villain reveal, but Mordred was sorta destroyed, so now it's a toss up.
Man I'm really loving this story, and gratz on the feature. Keep it up.
2320240
While 'babe' is not widely used normally in everyday speech, it's still correct in its definition of 'baby' and 'infant'. It's not just slang for an attractive woman, y'know.
You know you bungled your timeline right?
Arthur has been dead for 1,110 years.
1730-1110=620
Next slew of replies before I hit the sack.
2320226
Mission Accomplished.
Seriously though, you'll all find out sometime soon. Probably three-ish chapters away from having them 'enter the fray,' so to speak.
2320240
Babe is still an appropriate usage, although it has mostly fallen to the wayside for referencing a young / newborn child, and yielded to the slang usage of a 'hot/attractive woman.' Glad you enjoyed it!
2320344
Lol! As tempting as that might be, now, I try to avoid putting in things that don't serve a purpose beyond misdirecting the readers. If I'm going to misdirect my readers, I like to keep the misdirects coming from plot essential events, and making them think P is going down, while N lurks in the shadows, ready to attack when the time is right.
2320363
2320364
You. So many questions. Rather good ones, too. I'll be explaining the first dreams next chapter, it was kind of a last minute whim of sorts, making them actually have a rather deep meaning. You might like it too. the rest....
i.imgur.com/yJ3y3.png
2320389
Time will tell all.
2321137
Indeed, it is the most common slang for that wonderful pairing. Should provide some nice plot points, as one wants to murder Arthur, the other to study. Slight conflict there. xD
2321778
Then I wrote it right, if you're uncertain! We'll see, A few replies up (this post), I'm guestimating 3ish chapters till we see. Might be more though. And thanks, was fun having a chance in that box.
2321827
You, sir, are awesome. E-cookie for you.
2321864
Welp, this is the part where I can go one of two ways... Either I go 'oops, and fuck.', or I go with my concept that I've come to enjoy a bit more often. As a basis, yes I've scrambled the time differential between Equestria and Earth prior, in my very first attempt in this fandom with my other HiE. Luna, in only half her time on the moon, was witness to the Dark Ages to the time of the Atomic Bomb. Definitely more than 500 years there. I like to think of time across dimensions as that of a fluid; constantly moving, almost never at rest. In different areas, it moves at different speeds. So, while I have that time gap back on Earth, in Equestria it very well has only been ~1100 years and a few more. So, in short, time is a variable and not a constant. Plus, it'll keep some avenues open that I might want to explore later on. : ) I'll make sure to explicitly cover this area, however, in a future chapter.
VERY good eye for detail though, you're the first person to have pointed those details out. *grumbles as a friend pointed to me that I'm bad with timelines anyways*
2322768
But... the time gap I pointed out wasn't on Earth.... Everything I pointed out was Celestia talking about things from Equestria's perspective.... and you had Arthur say that, from Earth's perspective, King Arthur was quote:
2322768 I have been known to make surprisingly good inquiries.
hmm, dream of having a child from a mare, then dream of a human daughter? took daughter to human earth?
since it was just stated mare could be anyone but what sounds most likly to me would be either celestia, luna, or twilight.
wings could be a spell or he became an alicorn.
walking threw a town... could be any town but most likely ponyville or canterlot.
as for the blue wave... well considering it was dark blue and both he and luna have dark blue auras to their magic...
2323213
Been thinking on this, and I've probably just not conveyed it properly. I did want to have a time differential between the two planes of existence, so that I could do some future shenanigans. I'll try to better clarify this in the next chapter, as it'll involve Twilight some. So, technical stuff is gonna come up.
2324081
Welp, keep them up, I suppose! Got the next chapter formed in my head, just gotta write it after I attempt to finish the next BOWTN chapter tomorrow.
2326810
Too formal? I'll go and take another look and try to keep that in mind for the future. Thanks for the feedback!
2337995
You shall see next chapter as to what those string of dreams mean. : ) As for the magic, well... Time will tell.
2341792
Gotta have a little bit of chaos in your life, am I right? xD
2341956
Welp, can't wait!!! :D
When will the next update be? I cannot wait any longer.
2372583
Sometime soon-ish. Got caught up in reading a long series, it's been about ten years or so since I read it so I've been at it mostly non stop. I do have the details of the chapter down, just need to write it. Still only sitting at ~600 words for the chapter though, and something like 2500 words for my other story. Just a matter of sitting down and writing it.
2374030
Link?
2554955
Link to what?
And as far as this story updating, had some major issues that needed addressing, so it stopped progress here. Slowly writing still, just nowhere near as much as before.
2554986
You said you were catching up on a long series. If it was a fanfiction I was wondering what the link was.
2555005
Ah, novel series, Wheel of Time.