Esquestria: The House of the Sun - A pony cultist experience

[Shaper47]

Well they'll still have Glory to be drawn towards, unless you think the Wolves can strike down even that.

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The Mansus has ways of hiding Glory's Light. Even if we did get rid of the Woods and replace it with a guard wolf.

Though it is kinda what the Wolf-Divided is aiming for. Velvet could but probably won't do it.

 

[Talon Tiger Dino]

The Mansus has ways of hiding Glory's Light. Even if we did get rid of the Woods and replace it with a guard wolf.

Though it is kinda what the Wolf-Divided is aiming for. Velvet could but probably won't do it.

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And if that Mansus could hide its light perfectly, then there wouldn't be a Worm Museum. But there is, so its methods are clearly imperfect. God I wish Mansus creatures were more open to cooperation, you could finally scrub the museum clean instead of piling ever-more worm bodies in it. The smell must be atrocious.

 

[Pittauro]

There is active war in our modern day.

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far more than one, really.

I didn't even consider that Starswirl could have been an adept, or the other stuff you mentioned. Despite all that though, I still doubt that the Royal Library has anything that could be Level 7, primarily because my understanding of a Level 7 book is that it's something that Calyptra would have Opinions™ on, or at the very least something that adepts who reach the tricuspid would go "wait a second, that's new" to. All of which is to say, it probably wouldn't be that easy.

Honestly, we'd probably find only L4 and L5 books considering how the Watchman's Glass seems to be, functionally, the highest rank artifact Celestia has access to. From the vibes, at least. I'd put my money on a L7 book being in the final Canterlot Caverns expedition though. Just a hunch.

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remember the diary we found in canterlot part 2 expedition? Our current theory is that it's Starswhirl's diary, and he was basically saying how he didn't plan to teach the lores to the princesses, letting that knowledge die with him.

Also some of his feats, which include time-travel-magic is just beyond what any other wizard (except twilight and starlight) EVER achieve in canon, and I think it's been stated he's unsurpassed even a 1000 years after he disappeared.

Add to that that he was a wizard from BEFORE the princesses, and so likely used the OLD methods to move the sun... which was shown to be a ritual to appease and distract the Sun-in-Rags from his mourning over the death of the Sun-in-Splendour, by sacrificing a Winter cultist in the process...

well, EVERYTHING points to Starwhirl being an advanced cultist of the ancient times.

Lvl 7 books in the library are unlikely though. I could see plenty of lvl 5s, maybe even a lvl 6 or two. but lvl 7? Nah.

 

[Flaregamer82253]

If I'm to chime in my own two cents on this discussion, then I would have to say that its hard to ascribe to Harmony much agency or even activity in this story given what we currently know. And that's really the core of the problem here. We don't know much about Harmony whatsoever. Has it been an active or passive participant throughout the story? Does it have any plans? What are its limitations? What motivates it? What made Harmony either come into existence or take interest in the current world? We have no answers. We are unlikely to get answers to this before the quest ends. So on that ends, lets speculate on the VERY little that we do know about what Harmony can do, is willing to do, and how it has acted specifically in the time frame since the Quest has begun.

You feel that you are going deeper now, and the image of a long and dark corridor stretches before you. Doors, locked by heavy chains, flanking you as you advance.

They are each an individual memory, you know, and they are each shut tightly behind multi-colored padlocks of many curious designs. One seems to be made of ruby, shaped like an apple, another has the complexion of a diamond about it. But why are there so many of them? Why are so many of your memories, hundreds, perhaps thousands, locked away?

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The doors that flank your path, much like the shadows, grow larger and heavier, tightly shut with more chains and with more of the locks now. Some are even sealed with two or three of them, where before there would only ever be one, and you see the patterns growing more clear. The apple-lock next to the lightning-lock, the diamond-lock giving of itself to strengthen the butterfly-lock and the balloon-lock. The five crystal symbols repeating themselves in their lock-shapes, keeping the chains tight. Warding against those terrible and foreboding doors.

You think you hear noises coming from behind them.

You think the noises might be screams.

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But this final lock is unique, and you know that to be a sign of great importance. It is shaped like a six-pointed sparkle, surrounded by five smaller images of itself. It is shaped like magic, and like the grand project that Harmony has for the whole world. It is shaped like the future, delicate and precious, yet full of potential.

And you know that forcing that lock open will be a great transgression.

But you must know. You simply must.

You force your magic deeper into the lock, forcing its delicate mechanism from the inside out, demanding it to yield under your pressure.

And you hear a click.

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Now there are a bunch of ways to interpret this, but lets settle on some facts first. First, Celestia uses the Elements of Harmony 1000 years ago on Nightmare Moon and this lead to her being sealed away on the moon. We could speculate on this one for eternity, but this one isn't as important. Second, Twilight and her friends use the Elements of Harmony on Nightmare Moon, both banishing/destroying the worm inside of Luna as well as placing seals on her memories of this time.

Here is something about this whole matter that really gets me wondering: is Harmony actually aware of Worms or not? One of its primary agents, Luna, was taken over by a worm, and using a major tool of Harmony (the elements), her memories were sealed. Did Harmony not know understand how this happened? We don't know. However, I am reasonably confident in one thing about this whole situation. That being "Harmony was never planning* to address Luna's sealed memories."

*(At least in the short term)

My evidence for this, oddly enough, comes from a Was Not. It was one of the earliest choices in the quest, but we had the choice of the cult's original target, and thus the beginning of the quest's timeline. We chose Luna (season 1), but we could have chosen Twilight (season 4) or Flurry Heart (season 6). I consider it a reasonable enough assumption that the show's canon would be more or less unchanged until the beginning of the quest, so I find it unlikely that Luna's memories would have ever been dealt with before at least season 6.

So what theories can we take from this going forward? I can think of three major categories

1. Harmony doesn't know about the threat of worms.
2. Harmony knows about the threat and is confident in its forces.
3. Harmony knows about the threat and specifically doesn't want the threat the be known to its forces.

...1 and 2 are self explanatory, but 3 requires some explanation.

Understand that we really don't know anything about Harmony or its motivations. Kindness, laughter, honesty, generosity, loyalty, and magic are all good things; we refer to it as the kinder of two worlds for a reason. But do we have evidence that it's for a good reason.

You are much greater. You are a creature of order, your flesh born into this world by choice, obeying its laws of entrance by birth, and of departure by death. Your soul smells of the outside, of the void between the lights, of the very thing it eternally aches to consume with never-ending thirst. It drinks deep from your mind's memories, then your body's sensations, then the very cornerstone of your soul. It sees the purpose for which you entered the world, and the light that invited you inside, and the mission that you accepted, and the covenant that you have made with it. It licks greedily the marrow of your very being as it sees in there the echo of that thing, that music that grows with every light-born thought of mortals, that nascent beacon in the never-ending darkness.

It sees the light of Harmony, the shining core of this world, reflected in your essence, it sees the marks of the pact you made with it.

And oh, how it causes the creature to want.

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We know that Celestia and Luna, as a single entity, made a covenant with Harmony and took a mission to brighten the lights. Why does Harmony care to brighten the lights? We don't know, but there is a worst-case scenario...

You realize without knowing how, you understand it in an instant. Every dream, every song, every thought of love and hope, it is all reflected here in the dream realms. Every colt and filly borne into a loving house, every new cutie-marked door that appears and starts emitting its own light, every new corridor and avenue and courtyard in the dream realms.

Everything makes the light stronger. Every single effort from you and your sister just serves to makes Equestria more visible.

As if you are raising a lamb just for it to be slaughtered.

As if you are planting a tree, just for it to be consumed by worms.

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Now I'm not definitively saying that Harmony is essentially pulling a world-wide false flag operation by using "kinder world" values to make neon lights screaming "HERE WE ARE" to get all of existence consumed by Worms. I WILL say that there's no reason that this can't be a legitimate possibility. It sounds ludicrous, I know, I mean its MLP, but I think that it can fit the VERY FEW puzzle pieces we have, and to deny the possibility entirely would be undue faith that stands unearned.


So that all said, what do we know about Harmony as it has taken action throughout the quest? Well we really don't know what's going on there. We know that Celestia is going bonkers, Luna is somehow in the best condition, Twilight is dead inside and almost certainly won't be an Alicorn, the elements won't work without Twilight, and Cadence is trying to hold things together and is having a nervous breakdown every two months. We also are rather certain that Flurry Heart is a Harmony guarantee at this point. We haven't seen much activity from Harmony on these ends. Is it limited? Is it deliberately doing nothing? Are we just not seeing what Harmony is doing? We don't know. I will say that we have no evidence currently that Harmony is "adaptable" to its plans going awry.

Notice how I said Flurry is a Harmony guarantee though? Well that's important, because it means at least 1 thing to me. Harmony has SOME design and is sticking to it even if it's a three-legged horse. There's no reason to believe Harmony isn't some kind of control freak after all...

"Velvet, I know I can't prove this to you, or to anypony, so please just take my word for it," she says. "But this… this was my cutie mark, before I became a Princess."

She says that as she finishes drawing a crude image on the air.

However, the implication of what she just told you hit you like a rushing train.

You open your mouth to say something, anything, as you realize what she is showing you. But you force your mouth shut just as quickly.

Because sure enough, the first thing you wanted to say was that yes, you would believe her regardless of what she said. And then the second thing you wanted to say was that you definitely did not believe her.

And finally, you shut your mouth just as a very loud "what?!" was about to escape your lips.

Still, you can't help but feel shocked. You don't think anypony who studied a little bit wouldn't be shocked.

After all, cutie marks are poorly understood by ponykind. But one of the few things you know is that they only appear on ponies, and that they do not change. Sure, there are spells and illusions that clever unicorns can cast here and there. But at the end of the day, a pony's cutie mark stays the same. Unphased by age, or life circumstances, or even death. To the point that everypony understands, deep down, that your cutie mark is a part of you.

No two cutie marks are ever the same, and it is the symbol that comes to define you even if you never learn how to write and read. It is the mark that appears on your flank when you are young, that guides you towards your joys in life, and that is engraved on your tombstone when you die.

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Still, even then, she doesn't look sad.

She doesn't look sad… and to be honest, that worries you. More than just a little bit.

Because maybe, and just maybe, Cadance is that much of an optimist. You have no idea of how her upbringing was truly like, but maybe she is indeed the kind of pony who can only focus on the good things. Who remembers and cherishes her father, rather than feel betrayed by him. A pony who can find the shining gems of happiness even inside a cave that is almost completely overtaken by darkness.

But… but what if she is not? What if that isn't the case? What if she is just dulled, numb to what is truly going on inside her head?

Or even worse… what if she is incapable of feeling certain things? After all, her own cutie mark was already changed by something beyond your comprehension. Who can tell if she didn't have more things taken away from her?

But you don't voice any of those thoughts. You can't. Not now, and definitely not as she is about to open her mouth to say something more.

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On Cadence's side of things, we don't really understand what Harmony did to her. All we know is that Harmony wants Cadence for the purpose of fanning the flames and brightening the lights. Flurry Heart is planned. Flurry Heart is destiny. Does it care about it's agents at all as long as these purposes are fulfilled? We don't know.

And really, those are the magic words here where the conversation begins and ends. We don't know. And we're probably never gonna know until we do this:

You are standing on a balcony over the garden of a large estate, with several acres of farmlands stretching farther towards the distance. Green hills can be seen even further away, as well as a gentle river weaving a path between them until it makes its way out of your sight.
HALF A DOOR. HALF A PATH. HALF A BRIDGE.
The sky is perfectly blue and devoid of any clouds, and the sun is shining upon all of Equestria. It is, to the very definition of the word, a perfect day.
HALF A FATE. HALF AN OATH. HALF A SOUL.
But you could not care less about any of that.
HALF A DREAM. HALF A WILL. HALF A GOD.
Because your eyes are focused on one thing, and one thing alone.
IT IS SHAPED LIKE A FILLY, BUT IT IS NOT.
And that one thing is-
IT IS SHAPED LIKE A GODDESS, BUT IT IS NOT.
That one thing is-
A HALF-REMEMBERED KISS TO THE FOREHEAD. A HALF-FORGOTTEN SCREAM OF PAIN.
That thing is-
THE CERTAINTY THAT ONE BECAME TWO.
That thing-
A REPETITION OF THAT MOST ABOMINABLE OF FATES.
That-
IT CAME FROM THE OUTSIDE. PERFECT. COMPLETE. ALONE.
IT WAS ALLOWED ENTRANCE, SHELTER FROM THE DARKNESS. ON ONE CONDITION.
HALF A DOOR CANNOT BE OPENED. HALF A PATH CANNOT BE TREAD. HALF A BRIDGE LEADS NOWHERE.
BUT THE DOOR, AND THE PATH, AND THE BRIDGE, IF MADE WHOLE ONCE AGAIN, MAY STILL LEAD BACK TO THE THING THAT DIVIDED IT.
And that one thing is the filly that Velvet Covers said is Selene.

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This is where answers start, not end. And frankly? I don't see us really getting to that start before the end of the quest...

 

[Limabot]

Well, we did finally vote for Jade to get into the Memory of Light, so maybe that could provide some explanation as to what Harmony is and how the Alicorns work.

 

[Solace2117]

Obviously all we can go on is speculation from the few scraps we've gotten since we never really explored Harmony. We know Harmony came after the Forge of Days shattered the Mirror Door and sealed Glory. The Forge of Days killed the Sun in Splender which created the Solar Hours and the Wolf Divided. It's very likely she also created Harmony and the parts flaregamer quoted about Selene and the division of the outsider into two Alicorns seems to resemble the division of the Sun in Splender.

It's also interesting how in many ways the Elements of Harmony are direct opposites of the Wolf Divided. We've tended to speak of Harmony as fully conscious of its actions. We've seen how the Wolf is in many ways more of a force of hate and agony, it thinks, but I don't know it's on the same level as say a regular Hour or Name. If anything the Sons show more independent thought and action.
It makes me think that Harmony is more like the Wolf with a focused thought and the Alicorns are like the Sons spreading its influence.

 

[Flaregamer82253]

Obviously all we can go on is speculation from the few scraps we've gotten since we never really explored Harmony. We know Harmony came after the Forge of Days shattered the Mirror Door and sealed Glory. The Forge of Days killed the Sun in Splender which created the Solar Hours and the Wolf Divided. It's very likely she also created Harmony and the parts flaregamer quoted about Selene and the division of the outsider into two Alicorns seems to resemble the division of the Sun in Splender.

It's also interesting how in many ways the Elements of Harmony are direct opposites of the Wolf Divided. We've tended to speak of Harmony as fully conscious of its actions. We've seen how the Wolf is in many ways more of a force of hate and agony, it thinks, but I don't know it's on the same level as say a regular Hour or Name. If anything the Sons show more independent thought and action.
It makes me think that Harmony is more like the Wolf with a focused thought and the Alicorns are like the Sons spreading its influence.

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The Wolf Divided absolutely thinks on the same level as other Hours, but it's a very monofocused kind of thinking. It takes a lot of brainpower to hate this hard, after all. It needs TWO brains

Still, it's most important to remember that the Sons aren't really "alive" or "thinking" in any sort of traditional sense.

"You weren't 'followed back', Velvet, and you know that. That wolf wasn't any more a wolf than it was a cold chill at night, or the malice that creeps into the heart of ponies whenever they plan evil things. The thing you are missing, or refusing to see, is that nothing followed you back to the Wake because the Mansus and the Wake are not separate things. They are different things, but they are not each 'here' and 'there' any more than your own shadow is 'there' whenever your body is 'here'. Certain actions carry weight, Velvet. And just like you learned to touch a door and open it, you also did something in the Mansus that marked you, and coming back to the Wake carrying that mark... coming back to the Wake and letting the world see your mark... you did nothing but remind the world, Velvet, about certain things it used to do, long ago."

"So you… you are saying that… that whatever that thing is… whatever it does next… that I caused it?"

Baldomare looked at you, seeing the horror in your face as you asked that question. And when you looked back at her, you swear that you almost saw an old Lantern-adage running through her mind as she pondered how to answer her, one that spoke about mercy and shadows.

But still, that was an old saying. And the conflict you saw in her eyes made you think that, perhaps, it might not be a saying that is as strong as it once was.

"No, Velvet, you can't say that you caused it, or that you are going to cause whatever it does next. Not exactly. But still, you had an audience with an Hour, Velvet, and it is impossible to leave such an experience unmarked. And the Wake, innocent and untouched as it is nowadays, saw that mark when you woke, and remembered things that would be better forgotten. If you insist on calling it a wolf, Velvet, then you are that wolf's mother, and the world will remember that it exists as long as you keep reminding the world of what you saw."

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A Son is in all actuality just a distinct statement from the World saying "I recognize what you've done." They may "communicate" and even "individualize," but they're all just reflections of Velvet herself from those pivotal moments.

 

[Solace2117]

A Son is in all actuality just a distinct statement from the World saying "I recognize what you've done." They may "communicate" and even "individualize," but they're all just reflections of Velvet herself from those pivotal moments.

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That's fair, though I believe that was about the first "son". This may be less true as more stains are gained. Soft Sweeps is very real and if we reach the max stains, she becomes the final wolf child. We've also seen the Wolves become more sentient, especially Ash who was born from the ruins of the Woods and it's will. While they may still just be reflections of Velvet's impact, there are signs that the more stains she has the more real they become.

 

[Shaper47]

The way I see it the lack of possibility to summon the Wolf-Divided into the Wake is a big giveaway to what's going on with the Stains.

 

[Maer]

I understand summoning Names, but the Wolf is an entire Hour. What do you mean by summoning the Wolf?

Besides that, wasn't the Wolf imprisoned by other Hours? If an Hour can't escape those bonds, how in Equestria is a mere Adept- No matter HOW proficient- meant to summon it, much less free it? Does the Wolf Divided have a Name in this quest? If so, even a Wolf Name was unable to free it after all this time.

No matter how you slice things… How did summoning the Wolf ever even enter into the equation?

To me it just made obvious sense- Name summoning only calls a fraction of the Name- with the rare exception of Our Lady- and are incredibly expensive. To summon an Hour? I'm not sure that's even possible. Is it?

Is there anything giving any indication that summoning an Hour was ever possible? What would that even require… How much power and expense and… would Names getting involved even be enough? Shaper, you are ambitious in ways I didn't even realize was possible…

A summoning forges a link and a leash. Would the hours even permit themselves to be leashed as a simple summon to slowly Adept, no matter HOW small the fraction of them being leashed was?

Could an Adept even survive being forced to try and hold that leash…?

 

[Shaper47]

I understand summoning Names, but the Wolf is an entire Hour. What do you mean by summoning the Wolf?

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Basically the same way Names are summoned. It's only a fraction of the Name and it's only a fraction on an Hour.

Though summoning a complete Name isn't actually that hard for us as shown by our Lady of Wires.

Is there anything giving any indication that summoning an Hour was ever possible?

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By the words of the QM if we meet a being in the Mansus their summonable.

Unless of course they refuse to be summoned like the Master or the Wolf-Divided. But that's not their natural state.

A summoning forges a link and a leash. Would the hours even permit themselves to be leashed as a simple summon to slowly Adept, no matter HOW small the fraction of them being leashed was?

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That's a Pride trait which most of our Names have and they're fine with being leashed.

Could an Adept even survive being forced to try and hold that leash…?

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It's only a fraction of an Hour and Velvet is no ordinary Adept

 

[Flaregamer82253]

Besides that, wasn't the Wolf imprisoned by other Hours? If an Hour can't escape those bonds, how in Equestria is a mere Adept- No matter HOW proficient- meant to summon it, much less free it? Does the Wolf Divided have a Name in this quest? If so, even a Wolf Name was unable to free it after all this time.

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Not imprisoned, just thrown out of the Corrivality WWE Ring for a moment. As it turns out though, it was okay with this!

(Invisitext)

Well, you can feel them piercing through your body.



The Wolf-Divided was cast down, thrown into this place on the closing of a titanic conflict between three eternal foes. Thrown into a sea of knives so that he might be skewered alive and taken out of a larger equation, even if only for a moment. But for the God-creature, such a fate made no difference. After all, it had sought out said fight precisely so it could try to end itself.

So, when it saw that it was being cast down to the river of knives, it gleefully faced downwards and fell onto it mouth-first.

It did not work, of course.

But to this day, the Wolf-Divided is still trying. It is still falling, impaling itself deeper and deeper onto the knives that go on down forever. It is still ramming itself towards them with the full force of its fall, cutting deeper and deeper into its scarred flesh, bleeding more and more of its charred blood down to the places below it. Its endlessly large body hoping to find death through impalement on endlessly tall stakes.

And perhaps, that is the only respite you will ever have.

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A summoning forges a link and a leash.

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I have high doubts about the Wolf Divided being summoned in the wake (but Shaper has me considering the idea of the Stains as a "ritual" deeper now), but it should be noted that, if only with the Master, the summoning didn't forge a link or leash to a summoner.

 

[Solace2117]

I mean as with anything, we can't really know, unless we explore more, and most of us have no intention or interest in doing so unless absolutely necessary. On the other hand it does make a little sense, though not summoning in the same way Velvet does Names. Right now it seems like the Hours have no real influence on the World at large that we know of.
We can assume the Forge of Days is looked behind the final gate though we don't know the full scope of her actions. I would guess in some way influencing Harmony.
We've seen traces of the Colonel, but little actually influence. I would guess the Stains are merely allowing the influence of the Wolf to seep into the world, not a true summoning as with Names. It's very possible that the only reason the regrettable actions are as powerful as they are is because no other Hour is left to counterbalance them.
It's possible that Harmony acts as a counter force to the Wolf, but since Velvet hasn't done anything with it, the more stains she has the greater the balance tips. It's probably also why Harmony has such a great influence. Before there were multiple Hours influencing the Wake, now there are potentially just 2 forces of that stature that are active.

 

[Shaper47]

Basically here's my guess for the Stains and Wolf-Divided.

The Stains are basically Velvet, well part of Velvet, it's complicated and the specifics don't really matter so let's just generalize them as Velvet.

A principle, a lore, is defined by whoever is there and thus in charge. Like how the Church was defined by Lady Mareinette.

So the darkness in the Wake, the principle of Agony is thus defined by Velvet though her Stains.

Because the Wolf-Divided isn't in the Wake, he doesn't touch the Wake, only Velvet does.

But if the Wolf-Divided did enter the Wake though for example a summoning. He would challenge Velvet's rule of the principle of Agony.

Which he doesn't want.

Because if Velvet becomes the new Agony, then she might be able to forfill the prophecy.

 

[Cochimetl]

Though summoning a complete Name isn't actually that hard for us as shown by our Lady of Wires.

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I don't think the Ligeans are Names. Not in the normal sense.

 

[Pororurin]

I don't think the Ligeans are Names. Not in the normal sense.

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Of course not, they're all Alukites, and Enigma/CultSim imply that once an Immortal becomes one they lose whatever status they held previously in exchange for a power boost. Hokobald is the best example of this, the guy became an Alukite willingly to get a bit more power.

Ligeans, they get the power boost, as well as a little something extra from holding the keys. I'm more than willing to bet the ease of the summoning was in no small part due to The Fair Lady "helping out" a little with her key, along with the weird position that Alukites hold in the Manus, not being held by it's laws and all that.

Edit: thanks for the reminder, my mind borked and completely forgot about the Twins thing. Didn't realise Lagiah was a Ligea thing tho, which makes me feel silly

 

[Greymere]

Of course not, they're all Alukites, and Enigma/CultSim imply that once an Immortal becomes one they lose whatever status they held previously in exchange for a power boost. Hokobald is the best example of this, the guy became an Alukite willingly to get a bit more power.

Ligeans, they get the power boost, as well as a little something extra from holding the keys. I'm more than willing to bet the ease of the summoning was in no small part due to The Fair Lady "helping out" a little with her key, along with the weird position that Alukites hold in the Manus, not being held by it's laws and all that.

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Liegians (and specifically Liegians, not all alukites) are considered Names of the Twins, or at least are granted the same privileges. BoH also has the implication that their ability to hold the Keys is because of a deal that Lagiah made with the Red Grail which promised "freedom" for her daughters in exchange for becoming a Name of the Grail, which places the Liegians outside the laws of the Mansus as the adopted daughters of Laiagh.

Important thing to note though, all this Liegian lore stuff came from BoH, and thus is unlikely to be canon here.

 

[Talon Tiger Dino]

The way I see it the lack of possibility to summon the Wolf-Divided into the Wake is a big giveaway to what's going on with the Stains.

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I don't think any of the Hours are ever directly summonable in Cultist Simulator. Best one can do are Names.

 

[Greymere]

I don't think any of the Hours are ever directly summonable in Cultist Simulator. Best one can do are Names.

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It really wouldn't make sense for Hours to be summonable imo. If they want to be in the Wake, they'll show up in the Wake. If they don't, they don't. And the Wolf currently seems very engaged in trying to kill itself on the Ascent of Knives. Iirc he didn't even really take conscious notice of Velvet when we visited.

 

[OurLadyOfWires]

Spoiler: Winning Plan

[X] Plan Prudent KISSing
-[X] (AotL) Lantern
-[X] (Forge) Forge 3 reagent
-[X] (Knock) Explore the Summit
-[X] (Winter) Invoke a Risen
-[X] (Social) Teach Selene
-[X] Fleeting Opportunity: Family
-[X] Fleeting Opportunity: Friends
-[X] Perform the Forge's Redemption
--[X] Sacrifice Forge 3 reagent
--[X] At Jade's old house
-[X] Sacrament: Through the Foggy Mirror (4x)

[X] Plan Spreading Ourselves Thin Always Gets Us Punished
-[X] Do not leash anypony.
-[X][DETECTIVES] Follow Up: Changelings
-[X][CONSTABLES] (FOLLOW UP) Your detectives have given you a very long list, of ponies and places involved in the attempt against your life. Round them up and put them all in jail, before this trail goes cold.
-[X][COMMISSIONER] The Lunar Bureau is not the only recently-minted institution in Equestria. Try to contact the others.
--[X] Eclipse(?), and Midday Dew.
-[X][JADE] Research "A Memory of Light" (Current progress 0/100, uses Learning and LANTERN)
-[X] (Baldomare-Gift) Edge 6 book
-[X][BALDOMARE] Channel an Influence. (Secret Histories)
-[X][AXE] Ask for a Knock lesson.
-[X][MAREINETTE] Channel an Influence. (Grail)
-[X][SELENE] Soothe the night. (Her Winter realization. Unknown effects, if any.)
-[X][RARITY] Take a Commission.
-[X] Needs must. Ask somepony to procure you a dead body from the local cemetery.
-[X] Three extra Velvet actions! (Costs 9 follower actions)
-[X] Something Else (lend Heartifact to Comet)

You are Velvet Covers.

And you are, first and foremost, a mare of priorities.

"You two can go ahead without me. I should be back home in maybe half an hour," you say to the two mares. Moving a hoof in a calm and casual wave as you dismiss the two mares who, in truth, are your bodyguards.

The reason you are dismissing them is obvious. After all, you have just landed in Ponyville, and you are about to go somewhere you clearly don't want them to follow you. However, true to their trade and their cutie marks, you can see how several different thoughts are running through their eyes as you say that.



"Excuse me, Commissioner, but that's not how this is supposed t-"

"Absolutely, Commissioner! You won't see a hind or tail from us this afternoon!"



But thankfully, at least one of your bodyguards seems to have a good head on her shoulders. And for all that Drummer Clap started saying something sensible, but stupid, Battering Ram almost immediately jumped on her friend and covered her mouth with a hoof. Giving you the answer that you were expecting, and that she will have to teach the rest of your bodyguards if they want to continue taking care of you.

"Thank you, Ram. I will see you two later," you say, turning your back to the two mares and walking away.

You can vaguely hear them whispering to each other, as Drummer asks her something and Ram hurriedly answers under her breath. And after making a show of going away and towards your estate, you eventually feel that the two mares are still tailing you, albeit with a reasonable degree of subtlety.

Good, good. You think you will be able to live with this, as long as they learn what boundaries they are not supposed to cross.

Regardless, you have more important things to do. Because again, you are first and foremost a mare of priorities.

Which means there is a reason, a very obvious reason, to why you are here. Today might be the last day of the week, but there is a reason why you came back to Ponyville early in the morning, rather than late at night like you usually would.

Granted, being your own boss and making your own schedule means you don't really have to explain yourself to anypony. But your secretaries have already learned that even you won't break your own routine without a good reason.

And the reason why you left the Lunar Bureau so early, and why you cleared an entire day's worth of work so you could come back to Ponyville is…



… because today you are picking up your daughters from school!



"Heavens, it feels like I haven't been here in a while," you say to yourself, as you approach the not-so-familiar sight of Ponyville's schoolhouse.

You say it is not familiar because, although not unrecognizable, you can see that the building itself has been somewhat enlarged. It still looks like the schoolhouse you saw the last time you were here, but you can see that an entire classroom-sized section has been added to it.

Which only makes sense, you suppose, given how Cheerilee told you that the number of pupils in her school has more than doubled since the beginning of the year. And given how cramped the school feels, even from this distance, you assume they will need to expand this place again very soon.

You wonder if they will just demolish the school and rebuild it from the ground up, maybe during the vacation period. You wonder how well the Ponyville students are getting along with the newcomers. You wonder…

By the stars, you have been really out of the loop when it comes to this aspect of your daughters' life. You really should catch up to speed with this.

Still, there is nothing you can do about that right now. Instead, you just make your way to the small crowd of parents who are waiting by the school's entrance. Classes are about to be done for the day, and the bell should ring any minute now, so you just blend in with the several ponies who are here to pick up their foals.

Although, to your surprise, you very quickly recognize a face you were not expecting to see here.

"Uncle Steppes?" you say out loud, as surprised as you are delighted, as you make your way towards a particular circle of parents.

"Ah, Covers! How great it is to see you here," he says, waving for you to join him and the several other ponies he is speaking to. "Although by Celestia, I could have gone without you calling me uncle. I almost had everypony here believing me when I said I was one of the fillies' parents!"

He says that with an easy smile on his face, and you can hear a few ponies around him chuckling at his words. And all of them, you can tell, have the at-ease expression of ponies who are already accustomed to your uncle's pleasantness.

Because how could they not? After all, you are well aware that your uncle is a nice pony to be around, to begin with, and that he has a way with words. Plus, given how your uncle is… well, without his suit, or any of his more expensive apparels, he is blending in with his surroundings almost perfectly.

He looks, without a doubt, like a visiting grandparent who is picking up a grandchild from school. And the small crowd of parents around him all seem to be perfectly content with his company.

"Now, everypony, I know you all heard little Silky call me uncle, but I'm afraid the true honor of being my niece falls to this delightful pony," he says, putting a foreleg around you as he introduces you to the surrounding parents. That is, until he gives you a dubious look, as he looks at you up and down. "Although… young filly, shouldn't you be in school with your classmates? What are you doing out here before the bell rings?"

You can't help but laugh a little bit as you shake your head. But with that, your uncle begins introducing you to the other parents in earnest. Which suits you just fine, given how most of them seem to be the parents of the newcomer foals, and you did not know most of them. And just a few minutes later, you are all idly chatting as you wait for the minutes to pass.

"It really is great to see you here. But I was expecting to find Soft Sweeps here. Did you happen to come with her, or…?" you eventually ask as you chat with your uncle.

"Oh, no. She's back at the estate. I spoke to your maid earlier this week, and I've been the one bring the fillies to school and picking them up. Which, I must admit, has been doing me a lot of good."

You give him a slow, thoughtful nod. Because despite your uncle's usual demeanor, you can tell that he looks… rather tired. In a way that is entirely unrelated to how late he went to sleep, or how early he woke up.

However, and unfortunately, this would be the kind of thing you would need more time to investigate. The kind of thing you can't investigate without time, alcohol, and maybe some luck.

And as the bell finally rings, and the last reminders of a teacher about homework are drowned out by the cheering of foals, you come to terms with the fact that you have none of those resources at your disposal right now.

Plus, you came here today for an entirely different reason.

"Well then," you say to Steppes, "shall we head back home? Or have you been taking the girls on a little detour this last week?"

"I will never admit to you that I now know everything about Sugarcube Corner," he answers with a joking smile.

Moments later the two of you, and the surrounding parents, can only dig in with your legs and brace yourselves, as the wave of rushing foals finally crashes against you all.



- - -



"Moooom, you shouldn't be doing this," Selene tries to complain, her voice an embarrassed whisper. "You are still… I mean, you just can't…!"

But alas, your magic already has her in your grip. And moments later, you finish settling her on your back as you continue to walk through Ponyville.

"You are telling me that I shouldn't be carrying my own daughter? Absurd!" you say, as dramatically as possible. And you are sure that, to Selene's ears, your voice is being a lot louder than it really is. "One day you will be as tall as I am, and how in heaven am I supposed to carry you then? No no no, I will make sure to enjoy this while it lasts!"

You can feel her body heating up as, for some reason, she feels embarrassed by what is happening. And you think you can hear her muttering some kind of nonsense under her breath. Something about her already being taller than you, or that you should still be resting at home rather than being here.

Pff, silly Princess. Hasn't she figured out she will always be a filly in your eyes? And why is she so flustered? She also looks like a filly to everypony around you, so it's not like you are parading an alicorn on your back as you walk down the street.

Your uncle is a few paces in front of you, with Silky Stream quite literally flying circles around him as she tells him about her day. And even though you aren't really going towards your home, you can tell that this is a route they are all used to by now. So, you just go with the flow and follow after your uncle as he takes your daughters… somewhere.

Still, for all that a part of your mind is listening to Silky's voice, you are mostly focused on the filly you are carrying on your back.

After all, for all that she is tamely holding on to your neck, you can still tell that she is acting like she is stepping on a porcelain plate. In fact, you even think that, if she could, she would be flapping her wings to make herself a little lighter.

Which is the kind of concern that a filly her age definitely shouldn't have in her mind.

"So, how was your day Selene?" you ask.

And you can almost hear the gears spinning in her head as she thinks about that question. Usually, Silky Stream would have already jumped in to answer that by now. But alas, her usual helper is currently busy with your uncle, right in front of you.

"It was… fine? We didn't have any history or geography today, but grammar is also useful and…" she starts to answer, but eventually trails off with an awkward tone. But you don't really push that issue.

You have already seen Selene act in a dead-serious and mature way, and you have already seen her give in to Silky's youth and enjoy playing around like a filly. All of that after she woke up. So, you can only imagine how school must be like for her.

Still, she is the one who decided to do this, so you will keep supporting her.

"I see, I see. And how have you been?" you ask.

And this time, she doesn't even try to hide the frown on her face.

"Well, Silky has been… better, I think. Or at least she has been sleeping better, and she's finally acting normal around our friends again. But I'm still worried about dad. He hasn't been having any nightmares, but I don't like checking his dreams?" she says with a conflicted tone. "It feels like I'm snooping around where I shouldn't, so I avoid doing that. But the problem is that… well, he refuses to tell me what he's thinking! So what else am I supposed to do?"

You give her a slow nod as she speaks, to show that you understand. And you also make a point of idly checking your surroundings, to make sure nopony is listening in on this conversation. Granted, you don't think anypony would think too much about the make-believe ramblings of a filly, but it pays to be careful.

And when Selene finally finishes ranting about how worried she is about her family, making sure to once again insist that you should still be recovering, you give her another patient nod as she settles down on your back.

"That was quite amazing, Selene," you say, feeling her tilt her head in confusion against your mane. "You said all that, but you completely avoided the question that I asked. So, again, how have you been sweetheart?"

You can't really look at her face as you walk, given how she is on your back. But you can quite clearly visualize how she is slowly narrowing her eyes as she reassesses her situation.

And you try not to laugh as she lets out a small, almost betrayed gasp, when she finally understands what is happening.

Yes, dear daughter, this has been an ambush all along. We are here today to talk about you, not everypony you are trying to take care of.

"I am… fine," she says, although you can almost feel the cautiousness in her voice.

But oh, the poor filly. Doesn't she know that even that hesitation is already a treasure trove of information?

She knows that, of course she does. She is a smart filly. Which means she also realizes how out of her depth she is.

So, whatever it is that she is hiding (and you both know she is hiding something) is now at risk of being exposed.

You can feel her tiny heartbeat quickening against your back, as all those thoughts come crashing into her mind. And you think she is looking around as she fruitlessly tries to think about how to escape this situation

Still, you only let out a low and satisfied hum as you nod your head, simply encouraging her to continue.

"I'm fine, mom. Everything is fine," she tries once again.

And you just… wait.

You just wait, as you carry her on your back. Calmly enjoying the scenery as you follow after Steppes and Silky. Watching your pegasus daughter zip up and down as she tells your uncle about this and that, as the streets of Ponyville stroll by you.

You just wait, and you let the silence stretch itself, because… well, you don't really have to do anything, do you?

Or rather, there is nothing to be done about this, is there?

After all, you are carrying your daughter on your back, and she just told you that she is alright. She is alright, so all is right in the world.

She couldn't possibly be lying to you, could she? Of course not. Why would Selene lie?

She is not lying. That is the only possibility that exists. And if she is saying that she is fine, then she is fine.

After all, you are sure Selene wouldn't try to hide something from you, even if it was eating her from the inside. You are sure Selene wouldn't try to put up a strong front, as she faces some unseen and secret problem that, deep down, she knows she could use some help with.

You are sure that she isn't the kind of pony who tries to do everything on her own.

And most importantly, you are absolutely sure that something like this hasn't already happened before, maybe… one thousand years ago, give or take? Yes, nothing like this ever happened before in Selene's life, and you are sure that she carries no regrets about refusing her loved ones' help whatsoever.

Oh no, your Selene is a big, strong Princess, and she can carry the weight of the entire world on her b-!

"I'm actually really, really stressed about all this," she says, almost sagging on your back. Her tone low, but urgent, as if those words had almost pushed each other on the way out of her mouth.

If your mental counting is correct, then she caved in… less than three minutes. And over that entire time, you could feel her tensing on your back as if she was a spring that was going taut. But thankfully, she finally gave up on holding in whatever she has inside her chest.

And all you had to do was wait.

"Would you like to talk about it," you ask, with a calm and entirely judgment-free tone. In fact, you even make a point of not looking back towards her. You don't want her to clamp up whatever expression she has on her face right now.

"No… not really? I mean… I don't know. I don't know what to say about this. I don't know what to do," she says, and you can feel her moving her legs on your sides, almost as if standing still was somehow painful.

You give her another slow, understanding nod. But this time, you don't leave any room for silence to grow.

Because yes, you could already tell that she was stressed. And more importantly, she has finally admitted it to you, and to herself.

So now, you need to help her work her way out of it.

"Well, I don't know what to say about this either, but I have been thinking about it quite a bit," you say, and you can feel her leaning her head towards you and against your neck. At least for now, you think you have her full attention. "And you see, we might now know what to do… but it's important to keep in mind what we shouldn't do."

She lets out a low, inquisitive hum. And you can practically see the question mark floating above her head.

"You see, there's this saying about apples and trees that comes to my mind, every now and then. So, I have been trying to think about what I would have done, if I were in your situation," you say, and you think you can feel her forelegs clutching your neck a bit more tightly, as she gets closer to you so she can hear you better.

Which makes sense, you suppose. You two haven't exactly been whispering to each other, but this isn't something to talk about in a street like this.

"But here's the thing, Selene. I can't really read your mind," you lie, "but ever idea I had, about what I would do in your horseshoes, was either silly, reckless, or downright stupid."

And the filly almost immediately opens her mouth in protest. Because what do you mean by that?!

She isn't reckless or silly, and her ideas are not stupid! She is a Princess, for Moon's sake. She is a Princess, and every plan or idea that crossed her head was meant to protect her family!

Even if those plans were… well…

Even if that one night she thought about how she should… uh…

Well, she already killed one pony, that cursed Copper mare, so would it really be that bad if she considered…?

"Yes, exactly," you say, as you read your daughter's thoughts like an open book. You also gently close her mouth, that is still hanging open and waiting for a protest that will never come.

Still, even though it takes her several seconds to process it, the fact remains that you are right. You know it, and now (hopefully) she knows it as well.

Because yes, Selene is an alicorn. She is the Princess of the Moon, and there is almost nothing that she can't do. So, you have no doubt that she has been entertaining several flights of fancy of what she could do, to keep her family safe. Especially given what just happened to you.

However, just because she can do something, it doesn't mean she should.

She could reveal herself to the Lunar Bureau, and either take your job or fire you, to decrease your workload.

She could start moonlighting as a detective, or maybe as a hero from one of those books, to keep Ponyville and beyond safe.

She could take another page from that very grizzly book (although you dearly wish she won't) and just kill whoever she thinks is a threat.

She could do all of that, any many things besides.

But that's the thing. She shouldn't do any of that. She doesn't need to carry all of this weight on her back, but she shouldn't try to fix everything on her own either.

That's what you are here for. To remind her that, despite what just happened, you are still in this together.

"We are still on the same team, Selene. And I know… trust me, I know how nerve-wracking it is, to think that you aren't making any progress. But we can't let that nervousness turn into recklessness."

You say that, and you try not to think too hard about the heavy sigh your foal daughter just let out.

"Now, I'm not going to follow you around, Selene. I'm not really going to stop you, if you really want to try doing something without telling me. I trust you. But I want you to know that you can trust me as well, and that you don't need to go out on your own," you say.

Because yes, you know you just got hurt. You know that… you nearly died.

You know that you nearly died, and that Selene hated that. And the stab of powerlessness she felt these last several weeks have not hurt you nearly as much as it hurt her.

But still, that doesn't mean you should all start making plans of your own. That doesn't mean you should all tell yourselves that I know better and work behind each other's back.

That would just be the recipe for another new disaster.

"So… I know you are here for me, Selene. I know that, and I'm thankful for that. But I want you to know that I am also here for you," you say, moving your head to the side and rubbing your cheek against hers. "We don't need to act like we are alone," you finish.

And then, once again, you wait.

But this time, there are no second intentions behind your patience. You aren't waiting for a filly to awkwardly pull her hoof out of a cookie jar, after being caught. You aren't waiting for Selene's own nervousness to grow so much that she can't take it anymore. In fact, you honestly hope that your words didn't make her nervous at all to begin with.

You are just… waiting. Waiting for her answer. If she even wants to give you an answer at all.

Because ultimately, you aren't going to force her to do anything. You can't force her to trust you. Although you dearly wish that she does.

Eventually, and finally, she lets out a low grumble. But that is all the answer you need.

"Fiiine… fine. I promise I won't do anything silly," she says to you, or perhaps to herself. But still, she almost hugs your neck as she brings her mouth towards your ear to whisper something. "As long as you promise not to get hurt again," she finishes. Her words slightly admonishing, but more worried than anything else.

And you don't even try to hide the relief that you have as she tells you that.

"That's a promise," you say.

And a few moments later, you finally arrive at your destination. The local candy shop that, to Silky's delight, has been receiving a lot of patronage from your uncle.

"Sugarcube Corner! YAY!" Silky says -yells, really- as the four of you make your way inside.

The filly practically zips to the end of the small line in front of the counter, and you let Selene down from your back as she makes her way to join her sister. Idly listening to the shop owner as she tries to take the several orders from her customers.

"Just on the day we are understaffed. Where's Pinkie when you need her?" she says towards the back, and you think you hear a stallion's voice answering her. "Well, it is what it is. Come on in everypony! And what will you be having today?"

And the rest of your early afternoon is entirely peaceful.



- - -



You are, again, a mare of priorities.

That doesn't mean you love anypony in your family more or less than the others. Quite on the contrary. You have four legs, and you would happily chop off one of them for each of them.

However, you also understand that different ponies have… different needs.

Selene is a Princess, even if at times she also acts as a filly. So, you know you can have certain conversations with her that you wouldn't be able to have with most ponies.

Stormchaser is your very best friend, and you realize that he knows you better than you know yourself. So, with him, there is nothing you can do but be honest. And thankfully, despite your honesty, he decided to go with your plan.

As long as you are fine, he said. Although you understand that his definition of fine follows his own criteria.

Silky Stream is… a filly. And in truth no filly should have to go through what she went through. No foal should grow up as an orphan, and no foal should live through the fear they might lose a parent the next day. But still, thanks to everypony around her, and a conversation you had very recently, you can see that her smile is finally back on her face.

I still need you to take care of me, she said. And those words cut… a lot deeper than you expected.

And then, there is your last daughter.

The one that you… haven't seen in a while, now that you think about it.

The one whose parents you helped kill, even if you only had the most indirect of involvements in that chain of events.

The one who, deep down, you can't help but think that you have stolen away. From her family, and then from her old life and then from death itself.

The one that…

"… Softy? Are you in there?" you ask, as you gently knock a hoof against her door.

Her door, you can tell, is locked. And the young mare herself, you can feel, is currently inside her room.

Alone.

All by herself.

It is night. You arrived yesterday, early in the morning, and you went straight to your daughters' school. And after that, throughout yesterday and today, you spent your entire time with your family. With Stormchaser, and then Silky, and then the two of them together with Selene.

And this entire time, you have not yet seen Soft Sweeps. This entire time, as far as you know, she has not left her room.

Are you worried about her? Of course you are. You are worried, but for some reason you are not afraid.

You don't want Soft Sweeps to suffer. You love her, and the mere thought of her being in any kind of pain goes against everything you stand for. So, you are worried for her right now.

But again, you are not afraid.

Because you know you will help her.

You know you are here for her.

And you know you will save her no matter what.

You have already done it before.

"Softy dear, it's me," you say towards the door. "I'm coming in."

You tap a hoof against her door, and then you make your way in.

And the first thing you notice is how dark it is.

This is the head maid's room, the room Ponpon gave to your daughter after she refused to move to the second floor. So, it is larger and more comfortable than the servant's quarters. However, it is still relatively small, and the only window of the room is currently closed shut.

Still, you don't even bother lighting up your horn. You just close your eyes, and the door behind you, and then you make your way towards Soft herself.

The young mare, your daughter, is… on her bed. She is on her bed, curled up and hugging herself, and she…

"Softy, dear… what's the matter?" you ask, gently laying a hoof on her body.

Your hoof brushes against her clothes, the maid dress that you know she wears whenever she feels nervous. Like a talisman, or a personal superstition, that she keeps hanging on to. But still, you will not deny your daughter something that makes her feel better.

You lay your hoof against her maid dress, and you can't help but feel how damp it is.

Her maid uniform is damp because of the tears. Of course those are tears.

Why would that be blood?

"It's alright dear, I'm here now…" you say, slowly climbing up to her bed and bringing her head towards your chest. "I'm back home… everything is fine… so what's wrong? Why haven't you come out of your room?"

You affectionately stroke her mane as you say that. And slowly, very slowly, the young mare begins to move again.

She lurches sobs against your chest, and she spasms shakes ever so slightly.

But still, eventually, she brings her forelegs around you as well. And soon enough, your poor Softy is crying against the fur of your chest.

The stench is unbearable. But more than that, it is as disgusting as it is familiar.

The two of you stay like that for a while, in the darkness of her room, as the young mare tries to process her emotions.

Clinging on to you like a puppet, the smell of the thing inside of her escaping through the cracks of her broken body.

Until finally, her broken sobs croak a few words out of her chest.

"I… d-don't wanna… go through t-that… again…" she half-cries into you.

The volume of her words is weak, but the grip of her forelegs only grows stronger as she says that.

And you understand what she is saying. Of course you do.

Because Soft Sweeps already lost… everything, once. She already lost her family, and her siblings, and… well, and other things besides.

She might not remember it. She might not think about it. She might even not understand it. But the fear she felt these last few weeks, as she saw you on the edge of life and death, was a familiar fear. Even she couldn't name it. And for all that she tried to fight it, by focusing on her work, and staying with her sisters, and wearing her maid uniform every moment of her waking day, she still couldn't push those fears away.

And once you went away for work, earlier this week, she must have lost what little strength she had to hide those emotions. Which is why she has been… here.

Like this.

You think the last pony she ever spoke to was probably your uncle, as she arranged for him to take care of her sisters in her stead.

A part of you feels slightly proud, that she tried her best to arrange something for them before locking herself up here. But that isn't exactly at the forefront of your mind right now.

Instead, you focus on what really matters.

You help her restart calm her breathing down.

And then you wipe the wet tears off her face.

And then you encourage her to talk. Just talk. Until she lets out all her fears and her pains and the agony that has been keeping her company this last week.

…

And just like that, your daughter is fine! She apologizes for causing you problems. You tell her, with a kiss on her forehead, that she is never a problem. And then the two of you go to the kitchen for an early morning snack.

Although you weren't able to leave without making her a promise, just a small promise, for her to hang on to.





What did you promise Soft Sweeps?





[] You promised her that you will be safe.
-The best way to calm her down is to prove that this will not happen again. Through words, and then through actions.
-You will promise not to reach one health point for the next six turns. (Although you will not be mechanically prohibited from taking risky or life-threatening actions.)
-Successfully keeping your promise will placate Soft Sweeps.
-Failing to keep your promise will have dire consequences.


[] You promised to spend more time with her.
-The best way to calm her down is to be around her more often.
-Over the next three turns, you will have to take the action "Hang out with Soft Sweeps" a total of two times. (Although you will not be mechanically forced to do so.)
-Successfully keeping your promise will placate Soft Sweeps.
-Failing to keep your promise will have dire consequences.


[] You promise to let her help you.
-The best way to calm her down is to help her develop.
-You will promise to do… something for her. On turn 22 you will have the Fleeting Opportunity of "Soft Sweeps' Request". You cannot predict what she will ask of you, but if you perform that action you will accept whatever request she has. (Although you will not be mechanically forced to take this action.)
-Successfully keeping your promise will placate Soft Sweeps.
-Failing to keep your promise will have dire consequences.


[] You did not make any promises.
-The best way to calm her down is to let her be. You have faith in her, that she is stronger than this, and she already got a lot better with words alone.
-You cannot predict how this will affect Soft Sweeps. But you have already mostly calmed her down, so she will not do anything regretful.

Spoiler: Roll and breakpoints

[That which is most precious, breakpoints 60/80/120/150]

[Roll: 56 55 + 13 (Diplomacy) + 20 (Grail level 4) + 40 (An Incarnadescence) = 129]

[Velvet Covers has invoked a re-roll]

[Third breakpoint reached]



That which is most precious, breakpoints:



60: Selene is many things. She is loyal, she is smart, but she can also be hardheaded and reckless. But she trusts you, and the two of you remain in lockstep. (Selene will not start acting behind your back.)

80: Stormchaser is, without a doubt, the pony who most deeply loves you, and he is the pony who has done so for the longest. It would have been easy for that love to turn into concern. But for now, at least, you have convinced him that you are fine. (You will not have to make a great compromise to placate your family.)

120: Silky Stream may be a bright and observant filly, but she is still just a filly. However, you were able to help her navigate this storm she has just lived through. (You will not have to give reassurances to placate your younger daughters.)

150: How do you convince a young mare, who already lost everything, that it won't happen again? Especially after what just happened? It should not be possible. And yet, here you are… (You will not have to make a promise to placate Soft Sweeps.) [BREAKPOINT NOT REACHED]

Approval voting. Vote for as many options as you want, and the single most voted option will win.

You have successfully addressed your family's concerns, and the fears they felt following the attempt against your life. And apart from the specific vote for Soft Sweeps, no other consequences will arise from that occurrence.

Regarding Soft Sweeps herself, your daughter is almost entirely fine. But a small promise is still needed to put one last nail on this coffin. However, as stated, you don't think she will do anything stupid even if you decide to leave it at that, and not promise her anything at all.

Unreliable narrator? What's that?

Twelve hours moratorium.

 

[spiderhellian]

Unexpected update!

Okay, I am now more grateful we took that Grail influence!

"I will never admit to you that I now know everything about Sugarcube Corner," he answers with a joking smile.

Click to shrink...

AaaaaAAAAAaaa surely that place doesn't exist in this history!

Yes, dear daughter, this has been an ambush all along. We are here today to talk about you, not everypony you are trying to take care of.

Click to shrink...

Selene has no edge realization saving her from ambushes, smh, get some lores in those hooves!

"Just on the day we are understaffed. Where's Pinkie when you need her?" she says towards the back, and you think you hear a stallion's voice answering her. "Well, it is what it is. Come on in everypony! And what will you be having today?"

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Hahahahahahaha of course. Of course!

…At least we know the place exists.

Soft Sweeps' Request

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Leaning towards this… @OurLadyOfWires would this be something we can do with our free social action, or is that an unknown? What about the Spend time with Silky action?

 

[Pittauro]

oh, an update! FINALLY!

but first, just one comment

However, I am reasonably confident in one thing about this whole situation. That being "Harmony was never planning* to address Luna's sealed memories."

*(At least in the short term)

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but first, about this, I just want to offer my opinion, which has mostly remained the same.

My theory is that the memories were locked away for Luna's mental wellbeing, AND that they were meant to SLOWLY be unlocked as she regained power and strength enough to withstand them.

Remember how there were multiple "doors" in that PtN dream, each with different symbols from the Elements?

I think they were meant to slowly come unlocked, until the very last one, the one marked by the symbol of magic (and maybe all other symbols as well? I dont' remember) came unlocked too.

Or, admittedly, maybe they'd all slowly be unlocked EXCEPT for that.


I personally also believe that Harmony is not fully aware of the Worms. It's possible it's not aware of WHAT happened to Luna, just that something happened. The fact it sealed those memories does not necessarily mean that it KNOWS what memories it sealed, or the nature of the parasite it purged.


With that said though, the truth is simply that we don't know, and won't know until we somehow make contact with Harmony or its avatar.

This is where answers start, not end. And frankly? I don't see us really getting to that start before the end of the quest...

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also something something "I'm not 100% convinced that reaching Glory = Quest End". I'm always reminded of how in CS there's a second run necessary to reach the MAJOR victory...

 

[spiderhellian]

I'm not 100% convinced that reaching Glory = Quest End

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I respect the hopium here

A sincere question — is there any data point that would convince you otherwise?

You should only attempt this expedition when you are ready to reach one of the Quest's possible Endings.

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This feels pretty concrete to me!

 

[Sintonir]

[] You promised her that you will be safe.
Ok, this... I don't think is a good idea. There are 2 ways of being wounded on this turn alone. We can try to play it safe for the next six, but I sincerely doubt we'll be able to avoid every danger.
But, of course, this doesn't mean we need to avoid all danger, especially if Forge Redemption works. We just need to be very mindful of what we do.
[] You promised to spend more time with her.
Losing 2 actions over the next 3 turns? Well, it is not good, but not that bad IMO.
[] You promise to let her help you.
A single action to have a Wolf-aligned pony help us? Seems completely safe, right? right?
[] You did not make any promises.
NOPE NOPE NOPE.

 

[LieutenantSpirit]

@OurLadyOfWires If we promise to spend more time with Soft Sweeps, can we spend time with her twice in one turn, or is the action limited to one turn at a time?

 

[Limabot]

Well, Soft Sweeps is still more Pony than Wolf right now, so I suspect whatever her request is wouldn't be too beyond the pale for us. In fact, I think we may even be able to dampen down her Wolfy-ness a bit if we're lucky.

 

[spiderhellian]

[] You promise to let her help you.

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Even without thinking about mechanical pieces, I think I like this option the most. It seems to mirror what Velvet said to Selene above — Velvet isn't alone either. And I would like to see Softy continue to grow, in ways that don't come about because of our regrets.

But will need to think through what next turn entails

 

[OurLadyOfWires]

Leaning towards this… @OurLadyOfWires would this be something we can do with our free social action, or is that an unknown? What about the Spend time with Silky action?

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Assume you cannot use your free social action to do it, and that her request can take more time than just an afternoon and a chat.

In fact, assume her request can involve expenditure of bits, or risking other assets (social or otherwise) that you have.

She won't ask you to go on an expedition with your or anything. But you mean it when you say you will accept whatever she wants to do.

@OurLadyOfWires If we promise to spend more time with Soft Sweeps, can we spend time with her twice in one turn, or is the action limited to one turn at a time?

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Assume you can only do it once per turn. There is a very small chance that narrative explanations align to allow it twice in a single turn, but this promise really is meant as a "dedicate to keep her company over a long period of time", which means it needs to be done over several turns.

 

[spiderhellian]

So, next turn.

If DoA is around, we want BtRC (3) + Study (2) which makes 5 actions. So we'd need a 6th, ie two cover your bases, which is… all our mortal followers + the Risen. Wait, we won't have a Jade action, so that's Biedde again. Doable, but tough — we're spending comet/rarity/Biedde actions on this fleeting, basically.

If DoA isn't around, we want… Study (2) and looking for ritual sites and who knows what. Then it's probably something we can fit in. Though I hope this isn't the world we wind up in, it is very plausible…

 

[Flaregamer82253]

In order:

1. Trying to stay above 1 HP for SIX turns is completely unrealistic. We have Biedde's Sacrament to worry about too, on top of the already unknown DoA Sacrament and the fact that the Summit of the Mansus may be dangerous. Not worth considering.
2. We are going back into AP hell next turn as it is. 3 turns to complete 2 actions seems like a lot, but our own AP is P R E C I O U S right now as that's when we want to be tentatively ready for All In. We can't waste a Mareinette action on this either. Not worth considering.
3. I like this. 1 action (albeit with unknown other costs) sounds the most cost-effective right now. Furthermore, there is predicate that being more useful is what Soft wants. This may also have other benefits. I won't hold my hopes up for Soft Sweeps AP, but if there's a new way she can help us then I say let her.
4. This is my second choice. Mostly because I doubt Soft would make any problems on her own. However, it may leave an unlit bomb that can alight later at the next dire event.

Something something, Family is a Malus. Anyways, thank you @Talon Tiger Dino for suggesting that Grail influence from Marinette. It was sorely needed.