The Rites Encyclopediaby CvBronyChaptersAscension: SummitsAscension: Horn and BodyAscension: Ethereal ManesPony Genetics: Stock and Draft PoniesPony Genetics: Tribe HybridsHigher Power: Pony SpiritualityHigher Power: Alicorn Worship Part 1Higher Power: Alicorn Worship Part 2Factions: Part 1Ascension: WingsAscension: SummitsTwilight Sparkle stood up as the lights turned on, pushing up against the floor and smiling in front of the camera. In front of her was a large blackboard, and she had chalk and a pointer on hoof. More important, however, were her eyes. Her shimmering, eager, and supremely excited eyes. Oh yes. Tonight, she was going to lecture. “Hello, everypony! Or should I say, ‘everybody?’ My name is Twilight Sparkle, and I’m here to help expand and explain the world that is Rites of Ascension!” A piece of chalk floated into the air, ready to write. “Today, we’re going to be talking about the transition from unicorn to alicorn.” The chalk drew two vertical lines on the board, creating three different spaces. Over the one on the left, she wrote the word “Unicorn.” “First, though, we should cover basic terminology. As we all know, I am,” she paused, swallowing, “becoming an alicorn, though it’s still hard to believe at this point. However, calling myself an ‘alicorn’ right now isn’t entirely accurate. I do have some pegasus and earth pony magic, true, but it’s not as precise as the actual term since I don’t have wings or an ethereal mane. I’m actually very far away from being a true alicorn. So, we have a different phrase to describe what I am: ‘Alicorn Ascendant.’ This applies to anypony that has begun the transition to alicornhood, but has not yet become a full alicorn.” The chalk wrote the term above the second space as she talked. “Unicorns slowly transition to their prime age and immediately lose their child bearing or siring abilities when they become alicorn ascendants. Since I was still in my prime anyway, I skipped the first part of that.” Lastly, the chalk spelled out “Alicorn” over the third space. “Alicorn ascendants don’t become true, full alicorns until we do what Celestia calls ‘dominating our summits.’ Each ‘summit’ is a physical aspect of alicornhood: etheral mane, wings, height, and horn length. We don’t become ‘true’ alicorns until we have dominated all four, and there’s no way to know what order they’ll happen in until they come. There’s not even a way to know how fast it’ll happen! “I haven’t dominated any summits yet, so visually I look like any other short, bookish unicorn. Well, with a royal torc anyway. And because of that, I thought it would be nice to get pictures as I ascend so I can look back and see the transition over time. But to really do that, I need a reference to compare against! Fortunately, I have a volunteer just for that! Shining! You can come in now!” Shining Armor strode in wearing his Royal Guard armor and carrying a studio camera on a tripod in his magic. “Heya Twily. Did you just want the camera over there?” “Yes, right in front of us.” Shining set up the camera, took a place next to his sister, and put his foreleg around her in a little hug. “Hehe,” Twilight giggled a bit. “Come on, BBBFF. I know you’re excited that I’m back in Canterlot for a while, but I need us both to sit up straight for this, okay?” “Alright, alright, I get it,” he said with a smile, backing off and lifting his head as far as he could. The two looked fairly different for being from the same family. Shining was quite a tall stallion with a large frame that was perfect for carrying his heavy armor. His long muzzle was a prototypical example of what the nobility considered something from proper breeding, despite not being in the nobility by birth. Twilight, however, was markedly shorter, even when sitting up straight for the picture. She was the shortest of her tight group of friends, about the same height as Rainbow Dash. Her frame was the opposite of Shining’s. While his was large and strong, almost like an earth pony, hers was petite and compact. One might even say it was delicate looking. A pony that clearly spent her time indoors, and in this case buried in studies and scrolls. The trigger for the camera was pressed down by Shining’s magic, sealing the moment of time in a picture. One more was taken with them standing, and the contrast was much the same, if not even more stark. “Thanks for the help, Shiny.” She gave him a little hug back. “Anytime, Twily. Happy to help. Though, what exactly are you doing here?” Twilight tilted her head. “Didn’t you read the story description?” Shining blinked. “Story description?” “You know, the thing that describes what we’re doing here? Helping explain the world of Rites of Ascension?” “... Rites of Ascension?” “The story that we’re in!?” He blinked again. “Are you feeling alright, Twilight?” She stomped her hoof. “Feeling alright!? Yes! I’m just angry that you didn’t read the story description! I have a lot of people to educate out there!” “Peo... ple?” Twilight reached up, grabbed his head, and turned it towards the fourth wall. “What?” he squeaked. “All those people, humans, reading about our adventures. They’re our audience. We’re the characters.” His left eye, and only his left eye, started to drift up and to the right. Twilight facehooved. “Crap. He hasn’t done this since we were foals. Sorry everybody, we have to cut this short. Next time, we’ll talk more about the summits.” Author's Note First things first. The summit order you see in the picture may or may not be the order Twi will experience. Come on guys, we wouldn’t spoil it that easily. ;) As stated in the chapter, the summit order is different for each pony that undergoes it, and this "Twilight" has no idea what the future holds for her. Secondly, this is going to be updated rather sporadically as I find time to work on it. The good news is that since these are meant to be short (less than 1k words per chapter), they don’t take long to make once the muse does strike me. Also, since this is non-canon and fourth-wall-breaking to an extreme, my editing standards aren’t as high for this story. I don’t need to be all “OH MY GOD EVERYTHING MUST BE PERFECT” like I am with the canon stories. Thus, once I start, the turnaround time on them should be rather fast. As stated in the description, I reserve the right to nullify anything here, as it is non-canon. But, if I do, I’ll point it out. The canon stories are what truly set what is and what isn’t true in Rites. Also, characters’ knowledge of the universe may be a bit loose here. Generally I try to peg their knowledge as based on a certain part of the story. But, again, it may be a bit fluid. ;) This is the place for non-canon silliness, after all! Thanks go out to Xaq for his help and advice in the approval process! Plus, all my awesome pre-readers! (Pre-reader credits can be found in the author's notes of the Rites main story.) Ascension: Horn and Body“Hello, everybody!” Twilight twirled a telescoping pointer rod in her magic, ready to lecture. “Today, we’re going to be talking about some of the summits!” A chalkboard rolls into view, and on it are four drawings. “There are four summits. Horn growth, body growth, wings, and mane.” The pointer stops at each as she talks. The first is of two horns, one small and one long. The second is of two pony bodies, one small and one alicorn-sized in proportion. The third is of an appearing set of wings, while the fourth is of Celestia’s ethereal mane. “Horn and body growth happen slowly over time, growing like any body part would while going to adulthood. The summit for these are ‘dominated’ when an alicorn ascendant finishes growing in these aspects.” Twilight looked down at her body. “Speaking as the shortest of the Elements of Harmony, I think I have a rather long way to go on the body growth one. Or maybe I’ll just be short forever. But is ‘short’ for an alicorn all that different from baseline normal?” Celestia stepped into the room. “I can help with that one.” The wall behind her, including the chalkboard, faded to black, then quickly changed to show a blue sky with clouds. Embedded in the image were the silhouettes of twelve other alicorns, though few details could be gleaned other than the fact that they were alicorns. Twilight held her head with her hooves. “Ack! How-- I was using a chalkboard! How did you--!?” “Special, ancient alicorn secret.” Celestia winked. “Anyhoof, you can see that there is a bit of a size variance between the alicorns of the past. Some, like Lord Glacien, were quite large. Even larger than I. Others weren’t near as big. However, it is important to note that every one of them was still larger than what one would see in a regular pony. Perhaps some extreme examples of single-tribe draft ponies do exist that are near our size, such as General Stone, but these are extremely rare.” Twilight coughed and straightened her mane. “Yes. Right, well. There is one other thing. The horses in Saddle Arabia are unique and are all quite tall, but like zebras, they are a separate subspecies from we ponies. Despite our similarities, we cannot breed with them, so our heights never equalized.” “My little Twilight, thinking about breeding?” Celestia smirked. Twilight squeaked and blushed bright red. The Princess leaned down to her ear. “Did that ambassador leave such an impression on you, my student? I could arrange for another visit, if you like.” Had she already been taller, Twilight could’ve passed for Big Macintosh given how red her whole body was. “Ack! No! Bad! Bad thoughts!” Her hooves went up to cover her ears. “Lalalalalalalalalalala….!” Celestia smiles at the camera. “We’ll be back later to explain the others, everybody.” Ascension: Ethereal Manes“Okay, last summit, finally.” Twilight’s eye twitched. “Luna, would you come in here?” The alicorn flew in on a gentle breeze, landing next to the ascendant. “Hello, everybody. How are you, Twilight?” “Stressed, but, let’s not get into that. If you could turn so they can see your mane and tail?” Luna turned to the side to show as much of her ethereal features blowing in an unseen wind as possible. “Like this?” “Yes, just like that. Now, from what I’ve been told, the ethereal mane is the most variable of the summits. It can come in slow or all at once, but has a tendency to show at least a few hints before it comes in for good.” Luna nodded. “Correct. I’m told Stellar Horizon’s appeared fully formed not long after he began his ascendency. Glacien, meanwhile, told me that his took centuries to reach its final state.” “On top of that, I’m also told that the way they look and behave can be quite different from alicorn to alicorn. There’s no way to guess what it will be like until the summit is dominated. Didn’t you say that one of the old alicorns had a mane of pure fire?” Luna nodded again. “Indeed I did. It was most impressive, I think. It was--” “Ah!” Twilight held up her hooves. “Not yet! That hasn’t been revealed in the story!” “Oh! Right! I apologize. Please, continue.” “Right.” Twilight cleared her throat. “Lately I’ve just been letting my mane kinda grow normally. I just haven’t had time to trim it, though I really should get at least the bangs cut. I doubt that having it overgrown will make the summit come any faster.” Luna grinned, a twinkle in her eye. “Likely not. I suppose I should give you some time to get a manecut at some point.” Twilight glared at her. “What?” Luna raised a hoof to her chest, feining innocence. “I know that look, Luna. If I go get my mane cut now, it’ll wind up dyed, or shaved off or something. Nope. Not happening.” Luna ran her hoof through her mane. “Oh, Twilight. You should really know better by now. I don’t need such an obvious setup to prank you.” Twilight’s ears pointed straight up at the sky, twitching. “Out! Out out out out out!” “Hehe. Oh my. Nervous are we?” Twilight started to push her out the door. “Not taking the chance. Out!” “Fine, I’ll go.” Luna jumped ahead of Twilight, taking back to the air and letting her fall over. “But remember, I live in the castle too.” With a great flap of her wings, she flew right out the door. Twilight sat up, leaned her head on a forehoof, and sighed. “Next time, we talk about cored weapons. Or maybe wing type. Possibly. I dunno. Depends on whether or not I can find guests who won’t try to embarrass the hell out of me.” Author's Note Next time: Honestly, no idea, that's why I left wiggle room. Depends on what strikes my muse when. :) Pony Genetics: Stock and Draft PoniesTwilight Sparkle stood in a dusty orchard of trees, equipped with her pointing stick and a chalkboard on wheels. Mesas were visible in the hot noonday sun. Her smile had faded a bit, but this was still going to be a lecture. She wasn't about to let the first few entries get her down. “Hello, everybody! We’re here today at the Appleoosa ranch and orchard to help explain the difference between stock ponies and draft ponies. This time, I have two helpers! To my right here is Applejack’s cousin Braeburn!” The farm pony trotted into view, waving a hoof. “Howdy y’all! Welcome to Aaaaaaaaaapleoosa!” Twilight rubbed her ear. “Right. Thank you, Braeburn, for letting us do this here.” He blushed a bit. “Aw, shucks miss. ‘Taint nothing. A friend of Applejack’s is a friend of mine!” Twilight gave him a polite nod and signaled off to her left. “And over here is my brother, Shining Armor. Come on out, Shining. I can assure you, it’s painless.” Shining’s head tilted into view, looking around thoroughly before stepping next to his sister. “I don’t get it. How come I can see them now but not other times? And how come I don’t remember these afterwards?” Twilight grinned. “Much like Pinkie Pie, it’s best not to try to explain it. So, everyone, here we can see an example of a stock pony, Braeburn.” “Howdy again!” He waved. She pointed over to her brother. “And a draft pony, Shining Armor.” “Um, hi.” He waved too, although far less enthusiastically. Twilight continued, “Now, we all know that there are, principally, three tribes of ponies: earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns. However, each individual pony is also either a stock pony or a draft pony. These last two types are not tribes, however, and have absolutely no bearing on the type or intensity of magic they possess. There are, however, obviously some differences. Braeburn, if you would?” “Happy ta oblige!” He reared up on his hind legs, whinnying, then took off around the orchard. His legs pounded on the ground, pushing him faster and faster as he weaved through the trees without even slowing down. Shining chuckled. “Yeah, no way I could do that.” “As we can see,” Twilight pointed with her stick, “Braeburn, a stock pony, possesses considerable agility and acceleration. As an earth pony, he can also use his magic to become quite fast on the ground. Not as fast as a pegasus in the air, of course, but still.” “Yeeeeee-hah!” Braeburn turned around and ran back towards the other two, but angled for a nearby tree. Just before running straight into it, he stopped, spun around, and slamed both of his rear hooves into the tree, knocking down most of the apples into some surrounding baskets. Twilight poked her brother in the side with the stick. “Shining, meanwhile, is a draft pony, which is easily the more rare of the two types. They comprise less than five percent of the population, and most of them, by far, are male. There are, of course, female draft ponies, but they aren’t nearly as common. Now then, Shining?” “Are you sure about this, Twilight?” he asked, rubbing his head. “I’m not an earth pony.” She nodded. “Yes. Apple bucking itself doesn’t really use any earth pony magic beyond normal strength enhancement. You’ll be fine.” He sighed. “Alright, here goes nothing.” Shining lifted his hind legs up into the air, and slammed them into the tree. Several of the apples from above fell down into the baskets. While not as many fell as Braeburn’s, there were still a good number of them. “See, brother?” Shining lifted up a basket and looked into it. “Huh. Well. Guess it worked.” Twilight cleared her throat. “What Shining lacks in earth pony magic and practice apple bucking, he makes up for with his draft pony physiology and strength training from the military. Draft ponies are larger, sturdier, and have both greater strength and stamina than stock ponies. Obviously there are outliers for everything and this is just a general trend, but it often holds true. While draft ponies aren’t as nimble or fast, they hit like nothing else and are almost impossible to knock over via physical impact without completely lifting them off their hooves. “As I said earlier, any tribe and gender can be either type of pony. Other examples of draft stallions are Fancy Pants, Big Macintosh, and both Grand General Blueblood and Prince Blueblood. Examples of stock ponies include all of the Elements of Harmony, Soarin of the Wonderbolts, Caramel, Thunderlane, and my parents. Shiny gets the draft pony gene from our grandfather.” Shining cut in. “A lot of draft ponies find their way into the military. Our size and strength means the training is easier for us. Not to say stock ponies can’t be great soldiers. Basic training just usually winds up being a bit easier is all. Finding horseshoes that fit, though…” Twilight chuckled a little. “You and those ultra-wide hooves. Anyway, that’s all for the topic at hoof. Thanks, you two!” “Anytime, ya’ll!” Braeburn yelled, tossing his hat into the air and taking off into a gallop, the stetson somehow floating back down in his direction so he could catch it again. “Anything you need, Twily.” Shining gave his sister a quick hug, then walked off camera. Twilight picked up a piece of chalk. “Okay, normally, this would be where we part ways for the next episode. But, I’ve decided to liven things up a bit! Starting next episode, you readers are going to have something of a say in what topics we cover! We aren’t opening all the topics, as there are still plenty of things in the story left to spoil. Instead, we’re going to be supplying a list of possible topics and letting everyone vote for them in the comments! “The first thing you’ll all notice is that these are arranged in groups. Within each group, the uppermost topic has to be discussed before we can discuss anything below it. In other words, with a group like this…” The chalk lifted into the air and started writing on the board. ==Magic Items== Enchanted Objects Cored Artifacts ????? ????? ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] “… Well, if this topic, ‘Magic Items’, is chosen, we’ll do ‘Enchanted Objects’ first. Then, we’ll hold another vote. If this group of topics is chosen again, we’ll do ‘Cored Artifacts.’ Once that’s done, the third topic will be revealed. Now, you’ll note that topics five and six in this group are ‘locked until: unknown.’ This means that we can’t reveal or talk about this until sometime in the future, when certain things are revealed in the main story. Or just until the author is confident enough in the answer. “Some others will say ‘Locked Until: Block X’. What this means is that there is something in that block that has to be posted in the main story before we can talk about it. To help prevent spoilers, only the relevant block of chapters is listed, not the specific chapter. It could, potentially, unlock at any point in the block. You won’t know in advance until a chapter posts and, suddenly, there’s a new unlocked topic. Naturally, locked topics cannot be voted for, as this story would never go anywhere if that happened. And, as the story progresses, new topic groups will be added. It should go without saying that things are subject to change at any time, but I’m mentioning it now anyway. “Oh! And, you can find out what block a given chapter is in using CvBrony’s user page. There’s a thing under the bio box where you can see the word counts, and he updates them whenever there’s new writing. All the recent and upcoming chapters are listed there. “So, without further ado, here’s the current list!” ==Pony Genetics== Stock Ponies and Draft Ponies [POSTED] Tribe Hybrids ????? ????? ????? ==Magic Items== Enchanted Objects Cored Artifacts ????? ????? ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Royal Guard Overview== Senechals [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] Royal Guard [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ==Equestrian Politics== The Inner Council [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] Celestia and the Inner Council [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ==Wings== Wing types overview Flight characteristics ????? ==Culture== Languages Technology Level ???? ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Higher Power== Pony spirituality ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] Twilight smiled. “We’re looking forward to your votes and comments everyone!” Author's Note So, yeah, that's a thing here now. You guys can steer the direction of this one a little bit! I can’t just open it up to everything, because there’s sooooooo much I can’t talk about yet, as you can see by how many are locked. There’s even more topics I can’t even put up here yet! Here’s how it works. You guys vote for one of the topics by commenting in the… well, comments. The things in “==X==“ are what you’re choosing. Those are the topics. One will win, and eventually I’ll write for that one. The thing I’ll cover is the top-most item in the list that hasn’t been covered yet. Some items will need several chapters to fully cover. After it’s covered, we hold another vote. The “?????” will be cleared and the item revealed when the item above it has been fully covered. Some of them that are locked might remain censored until they’re unlocked, though. Just to prevent spoilers. ;) I can’t wait to see how you guys vote! :) Little voice in the back of my head: You are sooooo going to regret posting this... X) Pony Genetics: Tribe Hybrids“Okay, time for Tribe Hybrids!” Twilight said, tapping her pointing stick on a board behind her. On it were six circles arranged equidistant from each other, with one more in the center. Together, they showed the possible tribe combinations (or lack thereof). “First and foremost, there are three pony tribes. Earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns. Most ponies are just one of these. However, occasionally, a hybrid of two tribes will be born, and yes, a pony’s tribe or tribes is always determined in the womb. Unless they ascend to alicornhood.” The chalk floated up and drew lines connecting “earth pony” and “pegasus” to a circle in between them. “First off, we have the heavy pegasi, or earth pony and pegasus hybrids. These ponies are typically a bit slower and clumsier in the air than their pegasi counterparts, but between their magics they’re absurdly durable. A good example of a heavy pegasus is…” A blond-maned, gray-coated pegasus flew into the scene and landed, her wall-eyes looking gleefully at the audience. “Hello everypony!” “Hi Ditzy Doo!” Twilight smiled. “Still on the mail route?” “Yup! Good thing I got the job when I did, too. They’re cutting the pensions of the newer guys…” Twilight cringed. I wonder if I can do anything about something like that. “Ouch. Well, there’s that. How’s Dinky?” “She’s doing good! She’s got a scholarship to Manehatten University! Good thing, too. I kinda doubt I’d be able to afford it otherwise. Still, I knew she’d be okay. She’s a smart filly.” “That she is!” Twilight turned back to the camera. “Anyway, Ditzy Doo here, aka Derpy, is a ‘heavy pegasus,’ and they’re called that no matter what their real weight is, although they do tend to have more mass than ‘normal’ pegasi. Also, out of all pegasi, about one in twenty are this type. This ratio has gone up a bit in the last few hundred years but has since leveled out. They have all the plant growing abilities of earth ponies, and can fly like pegasi, although they aren’t considered the best flyers out there. Still, that’s a trend, not a rule. Practice can overcome a lot. Thanks for coming, Ditzy!” The heavy pegasus saluted. “Yes ma’am! And thank you for the muffins!” She then leapt into the air and flew out the door, narrowly avoiding crashing into the door along the way. Twilight smiled. “She’s gotten better! Okay, next up, we have the earth unicorns. And I’m proud to say that we have a second newly-featured character for Rites to demonstrate them! Everyone, please welcome the singing sensation Crystal Belle!” An adult, white unicorn mare with a long, curly, purple and pink mane stepped into view. Inside her meticulously styled mane was a bevy of blue crystals chiming amongst each other, turning her very movements into song. “Thank you for inviting me, Twilight,” she said with a bow and a smile. “I was worried I’d never get to be on anything in Rites. Although, you can call me Sweetie Belle. My friends from Ponyville are much too important to use that stage name.” Her new voice was as smooth as polished ice, and much lower and operatic than the one she had as a little filly. “Alright, fair enough. And thank you for coming!” Twilight turned back to her audience. “Okay everypony, Sweetie Belle here is an earth unicorn, a hybrid of earth pony and unicorn.” The chalk floated up and drew two more lines. Twilight continued, “They tend to be stronger and sturdier than regular unicorns, and like their earth pony cousins, are capable of using their magic to help plants grow! Hence, they can make excellent farmers, having both unicorn and earth only magic. In addition, earth unicorn doctors are also widely sought after! Their healing magic is beyond compare. Naturally, though, this doesn’t mean they have to go into those fields,” she winked at her guest. “I’m glad I didn’t! It took me long enough to find my cutie mark!” She looked over at her flank, where a blue, crystal bell with a pink ribbon and a music note was emblazoned. “Getting one in biology? Not exactly my strong suit. I’d’ve been miserable!” Twilight couldn’t help but grow a smile. “Didn’t I tell you it would come in time? Anyway, once again, thank you for appearing!” “It’s my pleasure, Twilight! Come see one of my shows sometime! A Grand Mage should rate some VIP tickets, I think!” She winked and started walking off stage. “I’ll take you up on that offer!” Twilight drew two more lines on the board, this time connecting “unicorn” and “pegasus” to a circle labeled “winged unicorn.” “Okay, last up, we have the winged unicorns, second only to alicorns in how rare they are.” Twilight looked up at the ceiling. “Cadence, you can come down now!” A pink winged unicorn circled in the air, eventually coming to a light landing on one hoof. “Hello, Twilight! As the others did, I must thank you for inviting me! Not that there are many other winged unicorns…” “This is true.” Twilight cleared her throat. “In fact, in all of Equestria, there are only a few dozen in existence. The reason why, we’ll get to in a moment. For now, winged unicorn basics.” Cadence sat down and opened her wings. “Although we have both pegasus and unicorn magic, our wellspring sizes vary at about the same spread as that of a normal unicorn. I’m well above average, obviously, but this is not the case for all of us. We do, however, possess the capability to use much more magic at once than most unicorns, but this comes with a risk. If we overextend our wellsprings by pulling magic from them too quickly when they’re empty, we suffer something called ‘horn blow out.’ It’s the same as taking a large magical blast to the tip of our horn, and is a serious medical emergency. Though death from it is rare, it can lead to crippling complications if not treated.” Twilight picked up the thread. “As for pegasus magic, they’re more or less normal pegasi. However, with that out of the way, we now have to talk about the why of tribe hybrids. Specifically, why some are hybrids, but most aren’t. Although heavy pegasi and earth unicorns aren’t anywhere remotely as rare as winged unicorns, they still don’t make up as much of the population that simple genetics would suggest.” Cadence smiled. “You always did like lecturing, Twily. How’s it feel to be a professor of sorts?” Twilight ducked down and blushed. “... Cadence, come on. Not you too!” “Hehe. Sorry, Twilight. I couldn’t resist! Please, continue.” “Right, well…” She took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Okay, the reason is, actually, just like alicorn gains attributes of the other races during ascension, so too does the magic from a hybrid’s wellspring matter. In fact, there are many ponies out there with the genetic markers for being a hybrid, yet they aren’t. The answer lies in something called ‘wellspring geometry.’ “A pony’s wellspring doesn’t begin to form until a couple months into gestation in its mother’s womb. The process for it to form fully takes a bit more time, and during that, the leylines in its body begin to connect to the wellspring. Only specific configurations will work for hybrids. If the geometry of the wellspring doesn’t form in just the right way, the leylines won’t connect, and that part of the wellspring will grow dark, and the other’s leylines will fade. They’ll only receive the magic and physical traits of the connections that do form. There are relatively few valid geometry configurations for hybrids. In fact, for winged unicorns, there are only three, compared to dozens for other hybrids and hundreds for non-hybrids of all types. This is why they are so rare.” Cadence flapped her wings a little. “‘Tis a shame. I would have liked to have grown up with somepony else like myself, but I do admit to enjoying being somewhat special.” “That’s not what makes you special, Cadence.” The two turned their heads to the side, finding Shining striding into the room. “Your kindness, love, and work for your ponies as Princess of the Lost is what makes you special. Others would adore you just the same even without the wings, or the horn.” “Awww!” Cadence began to tear up, and gave him a giant hug. “That’s so sweet! Thank you, Shining!” He smirked. “That, and you have an amazingly hot pair of flanks. I mean, wow.” “And don’t you forget it, mister!” she laughed into his ear. Twilight rolled her eyes. “Okay, that’s enough for this entry, we’re already over our time limit. Thanks everyone for reading, and don’t forget to comment and vote!” Nothing new unlocked this time. ==Pony Genetics== ~~Stock Ponies and Draft Ponies~~ ~~Tribe Hybrids~~ ????? ????? ????? ==Magic Items== Enchanted Objects Cored Artifacts ????? ????? ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Royal Guard Overview== Senechals [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] Royal Guard [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ==Equestrian Politics== The Inner Council ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ==Wings== Wing types overview Flight characteristics ????? ==Culture== Languages Technology Level ???? ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Higher Power== ~~Pony spirituality~~ Alicorn worship ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] Author's Note I'm not entirely happy with the phrase "earth unicorn" to be honest. Feel free to suggest something better. I'm very picky, so there's no guarantee I'll use what you suggest, but I'm definitely open to ideas. (I'm trying to avoid "heavy unicorn.") Remember, you're voting for the thing in "==". :) Higher Power: Pony Spirituality“Yeeg,” Twilight said, tapping her pointing stick on her hoof. “I was honestly hoping this topic would lose, but, well, here we are, I guess. The problem is that, well, um, this topic is rather…” “Complicated,” Applejack interjected. “There’s no way ya can say ‘ponies think this way’ or ‘ponies think that way’ when it comes ta bein’ spiritual. It’d be like sayin’ ‘ponies are orange.’” Twilight rubbed her head. “Yeah, that about covers it. There is no one church or school of thought when it comes to ponies and religion. Our spiritual beliefs, especially the details, tend to be highly, highly local. There are, however, a few things I can say. One is that we do not have a set, single god like the gryphons or even a universal pantheon like the Zebra or Minotaurs. Another is that an awful lot of ponies have their beliefs tied to the seasons in some way, especially earth ponies.” Applejack tilted her hat a bit. “Eeyup. Seasons are a big thing for ponies. Especially earth pony farmers. Each season feels different, and we can sense it in our hearts. Can move a pony ta tears if’n they think about it deep enough.” “Right. I’ve attended some of the general celebrations they have in Ponyville with them, like Winter Wrap Up. The government-sponsored ones have to remain neutral with regards to the spiritual aspects, but local governments and Duchies are generally allowed to create holidays around more non-religious themes, like Hearts and Hooves Day. I’ve also read that many earth pony towns, especially small ones, will also have beliefs tied to local legends and spirits in particular. I found it all fascinating, as unicorns, especially those in large cities, tend to have a rather different view on things.” Applejack chuckled a bit. “Kind of a fancy way of saying you’ve got your noses pointing in the air all the time.” Twilight lifted a hoof up to her chest. “Applejack, I’m surprised at you! We aren’t all like that, and just because we regard the heavens as… Wait, you were making a joke on… Ah.” The two ponies stared at each other for a while, with the farmer grinning like a cat and the mage looking like she’d just tossed an extremely itchy sweater in a corner and decided it was worthy of a glare. “Took ya long enough ta get—OW!” A small crack went through the air from the pointing stick hitting an earth pony skull. Neither were damaged, though one was at least a little embarrassed. “No making awful jokes in my educational segments, Applejack. That’s my job.” She cleared her throat. “Ahem. Anyway, what my assistant was so poorly alluding to is that what unicorns that do have a spiritual side tend to look up at the sky for their inspiration. We see the cosmos itself as our ‘ultimate reality.’ Everything that is and is not, the sum total of the mysteries of our magical universe. And if you put two unicorns in a room and have them talk about it, you’re basically guaranteed to find some kind of disagreement or conflict within two minutes, even in a best-case scenario.” Applejack rubbed her head where the stick had struck it. “Ow. Ow ow ow. Yer gettin’ strong with that, Twi. And I honestly can’t get how ya’ll can get that much meanin’ out of astrology. I mean, it’s pretty and all, but…” “Astronomy, Applejack,” Twilight corrected her. “I study astronomy. That’s the study of the universe, not trying to divine meaning from the positioning of constellations. Although I will say you do bring up a good point, which is that unicorns are a bit more likely to believe in astrology and fate than other tribes. Exceptions, of course, abound, and many earth ponies and pegasi have their own superstitions. On top of that, there is a fairly large subset of unicorns in Shanghay, Marelaysia, and Neighpon that not only go for such things but include an even stronger focus on spirits than many earth ponies do. They’re also a bit more organized than many other ‘religions’ we ponies have. “That said, I do not believe in such superstitions unless they’re attached to Pinkie Pie. Now, as for pegasi…” “Speaking of pegasi," Applejack said. “Where’s Rainbow? Wasn’t she supposed to be here fer this?” Twilight shook her head. “I asked her, but she turned it down pretty adamantly. I’m not really sure why, and she didn’t want to get into it, so I decided against pushing harder. Anyway, pegasi have a tendency to find even more meaning from their ancestry than unicorn nobles do, and unlike the other tribes, don’t tie much of their faith to seasons. Prayers are often said to dead forebearers, asking for guidance from an older generation rather than a specific deity or non-pony spirit, and will sometimes keep small mementos from them as a sort of good luck charm. “One theory is that since pegasi live somewhat aggressively, and since their lifespans aren’t as long, the idea that those who have passed can protect the living is particularly appealing. Something to help keep calm in the face of greater dangers. I don’t know how much I buy into that, but I don’t have hard evidence to refute it either.” Applejack shuddered a bit. “Let me guess. Since ya just talked about the ponies passing away, next up is the afterlife.” Twilight nodded. “Yes. If you were coming from a perspective devoid of magic, one might think we’d have some kind of answer of what happens to our being after we die. But, the truth is, we just don’t truly know. Some have beliefs, but that doesn’t mean we have anything approaching hard evidence. Unlike the rest of our spiritual beliefs, though, this one has a common thread across tribal barriers, and Princess Celestia says the legend is even older than she is.” Applejack swallowed. “The Summerlands. Endless grasses and water. No pain, no suffering. Never gettin’ frail or fallin’ ill. Room to run forever as part of the Eternal Herd. Peace everlastin’.” Twilight took a deep, sharp breath, and slowly exhaled before continuing. “Right. It’s sometimes also called ‘The Eternal Meadow.’ I remember that when I first started studying under the Princess, I asked about it. She told me that nopony, not even she, ultimately knew if there was life after death. It’s still a mystery and one that we may never solve.” “Well, I for one hope it’s true.” Applejack took off her hat and held it to her chest. “I have to. And it seems to me that if we’re all thinking the same thing, we might be onto something.” “I hope so too, AJ. Well everybody, that about covers it for this installment. I’ll put up the voting board again and—” “Wait a minute, there, sugarcube. Aren’t you going to talk about alicorns and—” “No!” Twilight dropped her pointing stick, fumbling with it in her hooves a little. “I mean, not yet. That would come later and in a separate topic, thank Celest… Argh!” Applejack smirked. “Heh.” NEW TOPIC IN HIGHER POWER REVEALED! NEW THREAD UNLOCKED! (Equestrian Politics) ==Pony Genetics== ~~Stock Ponies and Draft Ponies~~ Tribe Hybrids ????? ????? ????? ==Magic Items== Enchanted Objects Cored Artifacts ????? ????? ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Royal Guard Overview== Senechals [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] Royal Guard [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ==Equestrian Politics== ***** The Inner Council NOW UNLOCKED ***** ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ==Wings== Wing types overview Flight characteristics ????? ==Culture== Languages Technology Level ???? ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Higher Power== ~~Pony spirituality~~ ***** Alicorn worship [NOW REVEALED AND UNLOCKED!] ***** ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] Author's Note Remember folks, this is technically non-canon so I can develop things further and change stuff if need be before it makes an appearance in the story. ;) (In other words, I'm one indecisive pone.) Although it really shouldn't change drastically unless something REALLY unexpected happens. Voting for the next topic will now begin! Allez cuisine!!! Violet: "That's what they say on 'Iron Chef,' honey." Me: "I know what I said!" Higher Power: Alicorn Worship Part 1“Fillies and Gentlecolts, have you come to hear the Word of Twilight Sparkle, Alicorn Supreme!?” “Spiiiike…” Twilight groaned, facehooving. “Amen!” Rainbow shouted, throwing her forehooves in the air. Spike continued, thumbing on a book. “Fall on your haunches and behold her glory! She, who fearlessly went into battle and vanquished the evil of Nightmare Moon!” “Preach it!” Applejack bowed to the ground at Twilight. “Spike, please don’t…” Twilight still hadn’t lifted her head up. “If she had only vanquished the evil of Nightmare Moon and not redeemed the Princess Luna, it would have been enough!” Twilight groaned. “Amen, brother!” Rainbow started bowing too. “If she had only redeemed the Princess Luna and not discovered the Elements of Harmony, it would have been enough!” “Oh, it was a mir-a-cle!” Applejack yelled out. “If she had only discovered the Elements of Harmony, and not rescued the Princess Celestia from the sun, it would have been enough!” “Praise! The Princess is back!” Rainbow leaped into the air, seemingly revering the sky. “If she had only rescued the Princess Celestia from the sun and not led the Elements to the mountain to evict the dragon, it would have been enough!” “Spike, stop it!” Twilight stomped a hoof. “If she had only led the Elements to the mountain to evict the dragon, and not pacified the Ursa Minor to defeat the heretic Trixie, it would have been enough!” “Trixie’s not even a heretic!” Twilight shouted, then cringed when she realized the implication. “Wait, I mean, this isn’t a religion!” “Down with the heretic! Down! Praise Twilight!” Applejack hollered, tossing her hat on the ground. “If she had only pacified the Ursa Minor to defeat the heretic Trixie, and not sealed the demon Discord back in his stony prison, it would have been enough!” “Sing it! Sing it out loud! Wooo!” Rainbow laughed. “Guys, please! This is going far enough!” Twilight yanked the book out of Spike’s hands. “Celestia said we shouldn’t be worshipped!” “If she had only sealed the demon Discord back in his stony prison, and not exposed the changeling Chrysalis, it would have been enough!” “Expose that changeling! Expose! Expose!” Applejack chanted. “Expose! Expose!” Rainbow joined in. “Guys!” Twilight screamed at the top of her lungs. “Sto—!” “Stop it right now!” Thunder and lightning cracked through the room, knocking Rainbow to the floor and Spike on his rear. Princess Luna stepped up to the group, tears already streaming down her face. “You dare! You all dare! What is the matter with all of you!?” Spike stood back up, holding his arms up in surrender. “Hey! It was just a joke! We were doing this segment and—” “Just a joke!? Just. A. Joke!? It is not a joke!” More lightning cracked, sending Spike back down. “It is never a joke! You weren’t there! You cannot possibly understand!” Rainbow swallowed. “Understand what?” Luna stomped up to her and flared out her wings. “The consequences! The adoration of your ponies, looking up at you like you’re the parent of every one! The crushed looks on their faces when they see you fail in battle! The helpless cries when they can’t do anything for themselves because they are used to you fulfilling their needs! Their shuns when you turn out to be anything less than perfect!” Luna cringed, eyes squeezing out ever more tears. “And you all think this is funny!? Out! Get out! All of you! Get out of my home!” The three huddled together, eyes wide and legs shaking. “I said out!” Luna lunged at them, and they took off running out of the room, the Princess in hot pursuit. “Out! Ouuuut!” Twilight coughed lightly, scratching her head with a hoof. “We… we need a moment, everybody.” ... To Be Continued in Part 2 Author's Note BANG! Drama. Yup, I can do that in this one if I want. ;) Also, yup, this chapter is basically just a huuuuuge Bioshock Infinite reference. Normally I wouldn't do something so direct, but since this is about worshipping those who are not gods, AND since it's non-canon silliness, I went ahead and did it. For those who don't know what I'm talking about, see this video. Higher Power: Alicorn Worship Part 2“I must apologize for my sister’s outburst,” Celestia said, taking a sip of her tea. “She means well, ultimately, but this topic includes exceptionally painful memories of the Lunar Rebellions. She does not wish you to go down that path as well, Twilight. I was not joking when I said we must not be worshipped. That leads only to madness.” Twilight nodded, drinking from her own teacup. “I understand. I was just… rather surprised at how intense Luna was about it, is all.” “Luna is nothing if not intense. Her passion at its peak is truly something to behold. In any event, why don’t we continue the entry with me while my sister calms herself. Shall we?” Twilight nodded, lifting up her pointing stick while the background changed to a picture of a pony watching a sunset. “Generally speaking, Equestria has, in it’s highest laws, enshrined complete freedom of religion. The government cannot recognize nor endorse any one religion. This, however, comes with an important exception.” Celestia continued, “Worship of alicorns is strictly forbidden. All public displays of such worship are banned, including gathering for such purposes and even proselytizing. Commercial production of imagery meant to promote worship of alicorns is also banned. It is possible to be sent to jail for these infractions, and it has happened, although it is rare to spend long periods incarcerated for it.” The image changed to a jail cell containing an idol similar to the Princess’s cutie mark. Twilight lay down on the ground, crossing her forelegs. “To be honest, I’ve only met maybe three ponies that ever ‘openly’ worshipped Celestia, and most of the time they’re fairly quiet about it. They didn’t deny it, but they didn’t yell it from the rooftops either. Generally speaking, although alicorn worship exists, I’d say it’s rather rare. Probably because of these laws. Even the Nightmare Moon Cult is said to only have a few thousand members, although I’d imagine it’s rather hard to get an accurate estimation on that.” Celestia started to pour more hot water in her teacup. “Technically, private worship of us is also banned, but, that’s much, much more difficult to enforce. If a pony prays to us in their bedroom, how are we to know? Even if we did, acting on it would be seen as overly invasive and tyrannical. That’s something we can ill afford right now. The good news is that if a pony is only doing it in the privacy of their own home and not proselytizing it to others, the potential for damage is very minimal.” Twilight swallowed. “I remember when I first started studying under you, you caught me praying to you in my room. I’m glad you didn’t toss me in jai—” “Are you honestly suggesting I’d toss a filly in jail for looking up to me a little too much?” Celestia asked with a raised eyebrow and a smile. “Ah, right…” Twilight fidgeted with her mane. “When you put it that way, it does sound kind of… well…” “The word you are looking for is ‘ludicrous,’ Twilight. Even assuming I did enforce that law myself, foals do not suffer the same punishments as adults in the legal system for a reason. On top of that, even for adults the penalties are generally very mild and judges often use fines instead. Real hard time is reserved for those rare, repeat, and large-scale offenders. Often times, if a pony gets that ‘bad,’ I will have personal chats with them to clear their misconceptions, and that usually works. As it did with you.” Twilight sighed. “And yet, I kept saying things like ‘thank Celestia’ even though I knew better. Everypony else does, too. And even since you talked to me about worshipping you there was always this little feeling in the back of my mind that I shouldn’t do that, but I did anyway.” Celestia chuckled, dipping a new teabag in her hot water. “Oh, I wouldn’t worry too much about that. Luna and I have tried countless times to get our ponies to stop saying such things, but ultimately it’s ended in spectacular failure each time. Fortunately that particular habit of our ponies doesn’t seem to be harmful in the same way open worship is. At the very least, we haven’t noticed it in the last nine thousand years we’ve been full alicorns.” “Then how come when I was a filly you spent that one day stealthily following around your old senechal Time Minder, popping around a corner and saying ‘you’re welcome’ whenever he said it?” Twilight smirked. Celestia smiled. “Oh, come now, Twilight. Even I have to have a little fun sometimes. Besides, he stopped saying it after that, didn’t he?” Twilight’s head jerked up in realized. “Okay, now I can’t tell if you were just playing a joke on him or if that was the planned outcome.” “Ah, but who says it couldn’t be both?” Celestia winked. “Riiiiight. Well, in any event, that concludes this entry, everyone. The voting board is back up.” Nothing new unlocked this time. ==Pony Genetics== ~~Stock Ponies and Draft Ponies~~ Tribe Hybrids ????? ????? ????? ==Magic Items== Enchanted Objects Cored Artifacts ????? ????? ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Royal Guard Overview== Senechals [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] Royal Guard [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ==Equestrian Politics== The Inner Council ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ==Wings== Wing types overview Flight characteristics ????? ==Culture== Languages Technology Level ???? ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Higher Power== ~~Pony spirituality~~ ~~Alicorn worship~~ ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] Author's Note By the way, when you're voting, please let me know what you think of the chapters themselves, too! :) Factions: Part 1Twilight sucked in a breath, then blew off the dust on her chalkboard. Coughing and heaving in the inevitable cloud of dust, she blasted the cloud away with a burst of pegasus magic. “Ugh. Should have seen that coming. I'm out of practice here.” She grabbed the chalk in her magic and cleared her throat. “Sorry about this, everyone. The author can only wrote so much with his hands before being in pain, so side projects like this are on the backburner most of the time. “But there's been repeated requests for a faction and organization breakdown, and it's high time one was provided. So, here we are. Rites of Ascension factions 101.” Twilight put a circle of chalk on the ground, then waved to the door. Trixie poked her head in. “Wow. That's freaky. And they're here all the time, but we just don't see them?” “Try to put it out of your mind, or you'll suffer an existential crisis like you wouldn't believe. Are you otherwise ready?” “Hmmm? Oh, yes.” Trixie lit her horn, and the image of a stallion in sunglasses appeared in the circle on the floor. It was the spitting image of the one she fought in Gryphonhelm. Twilight gave the image a poke. “Good job, Trixie! Everypony, this is a visual representation of a member of what we at first called ‘The Illusionists.’ Their organization was later revealed to have given themselves the name ‘Knights Templar.’ Their motives are unknown, but they appear to have been influencing politics all over the world for centuries, and they’ve been after Trixie for years.” “I still have chills looking at this bastard.” Trixie turned her face away from it, and hid her head with her hat. “I know. I appreciate your help here. You can shift the image now.” “Thank you,” Trixie whispered. The image changed into a chained, bound Duke Esteem next to Duchess Artfeather. Twilight cleared her throat. “These are a pair of the few ponies we know for certain had connections to the organization that calls itself ‘The Majestics.’ General Towers was also involved, and was murdered by the same group. “We initially called them the ‘Robber Barons,’ but now that we have the name they call themselves, we use the name Majestics. Their true aims aren't entirely clear, but their actions reveal that they are definitely trying to undermine the Crown. “The size of the organization is not known. Those who are in it are known to be under some form of geas. It's speculated that those few at the top have control over it, and those under can't leak anything because the geas has sufficient control over their minds. “We have more information on their finances. It's known they've been able to amass billions of bits in combined cash and material, through both financial shenanigans and deals with underground organizations such as the pirate Farrier.” Trixie tilted her hat and struck a pose. “We're going to kick his ass soon, right?” Twilight lit her horn, and the ground trembled in resonance. “You bet your flank.” Author's Note I hope to make more of these in the future, though individually they'll be very small like this to reserve hand integrity for other writing endeavors. This hasn't been checked by editors, so typos will be inevitable. Part of the point on these, when I have the inspiration to do them, is a fast turnaround. -Cv Patreon – Help support the author! | Discord Chat Channel – Come join us! |Tropes Page – Show it some love! Ascension: Wings“Argh. Now that we have that out of the way…” Twilight slapped the pointer against the back wall, changing the image to what was on the chalkboard before. “We can discuss the remaining two summits: wings and the ethereal mane. Rainbow?” “Right here, Twilight!” Rainbow walked into the room, sitting down near Twilight and spreading her wings. “Now then. As you can see, Rainbow here is a pegasus, and her wings are the defining characteristic of pegasi. As alicorns embody all three tribes, ascendants eventually do get wings. I’m told that unlike the other summits, the wings form all at once. There’s no slow growth to go through.” Rainbow smirked. “Heh. You’re lucky. Pegasi don’t generally get wings large enough to fly until around the time they get their cutie mark.” “Except when they are very small foals,” Twilight pointed out. “Speaking of, I’m told most alicorns gain wings relatively large to their body size in comparison to pegasi.” She turned back to the ‘audience.’ “At some point, we’ll be going through wing types. Rainbow here has one of the more common types of pegasi wings, and her wings are around the average size for her body.” Rainbow shrugged. “That’s alright with me. Some of the more rare types are, like, too slim or fat and are good for one or two things at best. Most Wonderbolts have one of the more common types. Means we can do most anything we need to fairly well right off the bat.” Twilight nodded. “This is true, although Celestia has one of the rare types that’s supposed to excel in all areas.” Rainbow smirked. “Twi, if you get that wing type, you’re going to have every pegasus stallion from here to Gryphonia falling head over fetlocks for you.” Twilight’s face blushed beet red once again. “Damnit, can’t I finish one of these without ponies remarking on my sexuality!?” Rainbow’s wings folded back against her sides. “Hey I didn’t mean--” “Out! Out out out out!” Twilight planted both forehooves on her, pushing her across the floor and out the door. “Hey! Wait! Okay, I’m going, I’m going!” “Argh!” Twilight stomped back into the center of the room. “Next time, ethereal manes.” Author's Note Hehehe. Yup, I'm going to be messing with Twilight (and other ponies) all through the story. :D
Ascension: SummitsTwilight Sparkle stood up as the lights turned on, pushing up against the floor and smiling in front of the camera. In front of her was a large blackboard, and she had chalk and a pointer on hoof. More important, however, were her eyes. Her shimmering, eager, and supremely excited eyes. Oh yes. Tonight, she was going to lecture. “Hello, everypony! Or should I say, ‘everybody?’ My name is Twilight Sparkle, and I’m here to help expand and explain the world that is Rites of Ascension!” A piece of chalk floated into the air, ready to write. “Today, we’re going to be talking about the transition from unicorn to alicorn.” The chalk drew two vertical lines on the board, creating three different spaces. Over the one on the left, she wrote the word “Unicorn.” “First, though, we should cover basic terminology. As we all know, I am,” she paused, swallowing, “becoming an alicorn, though it’s still hard to believe at this point. However, calling myself an ‘alicorn’ right now isn’t entirely accurate. I do have some pegasus and earth pony magic, true, but it’s not as precise as the actual term since I don’t have wings or an ethereal mane. I’m actually very far away from being a true alicorn. So, we have a different phrase to describe what I am: ‘Alicorn Ascendant.’ This applies to anypony that has begun the transition to alicornhood, but has not yet become a full alicorn.” The chalk wrote the term above the second space as she talked. “Unicorns slowly transition to their prime age and immediately lose their child bearing or siring abilities when they become alicorn ascendants. Since I was still in my prime anyway, I skipped the first part of that.” Lastly, the chalk spelled out “Alicorn” over the third space. “Alicorn ascendants don’t become true, full alicorns until we do what Celestia calls ‘dominating our summits.’ Each ‘summit’ is a physical aspect of alicornhood: etheral mane, wings, height, and horn length. We don’t become ‘true’ alicorns until we have dominated all four, and there’s no way to know what order they’ll happen in until they come. There’s not even a way to know how fast it’ll happen! “I haven’t dominated any summits yet, so visually I look like any other short, bookish unicorn. Well, with a royal torc anyway. And because of that, I thought it would be nice to get pictures as I ascend so I can look back and see the transition over time. But to really do that, I need a reference to compare against! Fortunately, I have a volunteer just for that! Shining! You can come in now!” Shining Armor strode in wearing his Royal Guard armor and carrying a studio camera on a tripod in his magic. “Heya Twily. Did you just want the camera over there?” “Yes, right in front of us.” Shining set up the camera, took a place next to his sister, and put his foreleg around her in a little hug. “Hehe,” Twilight giggled a bit. “Come on, BBBFF. I know you’re excited that I’m back in Canterlot for a while, but I need us both to sit up straight for this, okay?” “Alright, alright, I get it,” he said with a smile, backing off and lifting his head as far as he could. The two looked fairly different for being from the same family. Shining was quite a tall stallion with a large frame that was perfect for carrying his heavy armor. His long muzzle was a prototypical example of what the nobility considered something from proper breeding, despite not being in the nobility by birth. Twilight, however, was markedly shorter, even when sitting up straight for the picture. She was the shortest of her tight group of friends, about the same height as Rainbow Dash. Her frame was the opposite of Shining’s. While his was large and strong, almost like an earth pony, hers was petite and compact. One might even say it was delicate looking. A pony that clearly spent her time indoors, and in this case buried in studies and scrolls. The trigger for the camera was pressed down by Shining’s magic, sealing the moment of time in a picture. One more was taken with them standing, and the contrast was much the same, if not even more stark. “Thanks for the help, Shiny.” She gave him a little hug back. “Anytime, Twily. Happy to help. Though, what exactly are you doing here?” Twilight tilted her head. “Didn’t you read the story description?” Shining blinked. “Story description?” “You know, the thing that describes what we’re doing here? Helping explain the world of Rites of Ascension?” “... Rites of Ascension?” “The story that we’re in!?” He blinked again. “Are you feeling alright, Twilight?” She stomped her hoof. “Feeling alright!? Yes! I’m just angry that you didn’t read the story description! I have a lot of people to educate out there!” “Peo... ple?” Twilight reached up, grabbed his head, and turned it towards the fourth wall. “What?” he squeaked. “All those people, humans, reading about our adventures. They’re our audience. We’re the characters.” His left eye, and only his left eye, started to drift up and to the right. Twilight facehooved. “Crap. He hasn’t done this since we were foals. Sorry everybody, we have to cut this short. Next time, we’ll talk more about the summits.” Author's Note First things first. The summit order you see in the picture may or may not be the order Twi will experience. Come on guys, we wouldn’t spoil it that easily. ;) As stated in the chapter, the summit order is different for each pony that undergoes it, and this "Twilight" has no idea what the future holds for her. Secondly, this is going to be updated rather sporadically as I find time to work on it. The good news is that since these are meant to be short (less than 1k words per chapter), they don’t take long to make once the muse does strike me. Also, since this is non-canon and fourth-wall-breaking to an extreme, my editing standards aren’t as high for this story. I don’t need to be all “OH MY GOD EVERYTHING MUST BE PERFECT” like I am with the canon stories. Thus, once I start, the turnaround time on them should be rather fast. As stated in the description, I reserve the right to nullify anything here, as it is non-canon. But, if I do, I’ll point it out. The canon stories are what truly set what is and what isn’t true in Rites. Also, characters’ knowledge of the universe may be a bit loose here. Generally I try to peg their knowledge as based on a certain part of the story. But, again, it may be a bit fluid. ;) This is the place for non-canon silliness, after all! Thanks go out to Xaq for his help and advice in the approval process! Plus, all my awesome pre-readers! (Pre-reader credits can be found in the author's notes of the Rites main story.)
Ascension: Horn and Body“Hello, everybody!” Twilight twirled a telescoping pointer rod in her magic, ready to lecture. “Today, we’re going to be talking about some of the summits!” A chalkboard rolls into view, and on it are four drawings. “There are four summits. Horn growth, body growth, wings, and mane.” The pointer stops at each as she talks. The first is of two horns, one small and one long. The second is of two pony bodies, one small and one alicorn-sized in proportion. The third is of an appearing set of wings, while the fourth is of Celestia’s ethereal mane. “Horn and body growth happen slowly over time, growing like any body part would while going to adulthood. The summit for these are ‘dominated’ when an alicorn ascendant finishes growing in these aspects.” Twilight looked down at her body. “Speaking as the shortest of the Elements of Harmony, I think I have a rather long way to go on the body growth one. Or maybe I’ll just be short forever. But is ‘short’ for an alicorn all that different from baseline normal?” Celestia stepped into the room. “I can help with that one.” The wall behind her, including the chalkboard, faded to black, then quickly changed to show a blue sky with clouds. Embedded in the image were the silhouettes of twelve other alicorns, though few details could be gleaned other than the fact that they were alicorns. Twilight held her head with her hooves. “Ack! How-- I was using a chalkboard! How did you--!?” “Special, ancient alicorn secret.” Celestia winked. “Anyhoof, you can see that there is a bit of a size variance between the alicorns of the past. Some, like Lord Glacien, were quite large. Even larger than I. Others weren’t near as big. However, it is important to note that every one of them was still larger than what one would see in a regular pony. Perhaps some extreme examples of single-tribe draft ponies do exist that are near our size, such as General Stone, but these are extremely rare.” Twilight coughed and straightened her mane. “Yes. Right, well. There is one other thing. The horses in Saddle Arabia are unique and are all quite tall, but like zebras, they are a separate subspecies from we ponies. Despite our similarities, we cannot breed with them, so our heights never equalized.” “My little Twilight, thinking about breeding?” Celestia smirked. Twilight squeaked and blushed bright red. The Princess leaned down to her ear. “Did that ambassador leave such an impression on you, my student? I could arrange for another visit, if you like.” Had she already been taller, Twilight could’ve passed for Big Macintosh given how red her whole body was. “Ack! No! Bad! Bad thoughts!” Her hooves went up to cover her ears. “Lalalalalalalalalalala….!” Celestia smiles at the camera. “We’ll be back later to explain the others, everybody.”
Ascension: Ethereal Manes“Okay, last summit, finally.” Twilight’s eye twitched. “Luna, would you come in here?” The alicorn flew in on a gentle breeze, landing next to the ascendant. “Hello, everybody. How are you, Twilight?” “Stressed, but, let’s not get into that. If you could turn so they can see your mane and tail?” Luna turned to the side to show as much of her ethereal features blowing in an unseen wind as possible. “Like this?” “Yes, just like that. Now, from what I’ve been told, the ethereal mane is the most variable of the summits. It can come in slow or all at once, but has a tendency to show at least a few hints before it comes in for good.” Luna nodded. “Correct. I’m told Stellar Horizon’s appeared fully formed not long after he began his ascendency. Glacien, meanwhile, told me that his took centuries to reach its final state.” “On top of that, I’m also told that the way they look and behave can be quite different from alicorn to alicorn. There’s no way to guess what it will be like until the summit is dominated. Didn’t you say that one of the old alicorns had a mane of pure fire?” Luna nodded again. “Indeed I did. It was most impressive, I think. It was--” “Ah!” Twilight held up her hooves. “Not yet! That hasn’t been revealed in the story!” “Oh! Right! I apologize. Please, continue.” “Right.” Twilight cleared her throat. “Lately I’ve just been letting my mane kinda grow normally. I just haven’t had time to trim it, though I really should get at least the bangs cut. I doubt that having it overgrown will make the summit come any faster.” Luna grinned, a twinkle in her eye. “Likely not. I suppose I should give you some time to get a manecut at some point.” Twilight glared at her. “What?” Luna raised a hoof to her chest, feining innocence. “I know that look, Luna. If I go get my mane cut now, it’ll wind up dyed, or shaved off or something. Nope. Not happening.” Luna ran her hoof through her mane. “Oh, Twilight. You should really know better by now. I don’t need such an obvious setup to prank you.” Twilight’s ears pointed straight up at the sky, twitching. “Out! Out out out out out!” “Hehe. Oh my. Nervous are we?” Twilight started to push her out the door. “Not taking the chance. Out!” “Fine, I’ll go.” Luna jumped ahead of Twilight, taking back to the air and letting her fall over. “But remember, I live in the castle too.” With a great flap of her wings, she flew right out the door. Twilight sat up, leaned her head on a forehoof, and sighed. “Next time, we talk about cored weapons. Or maybe wing type. Possibly. I dunno. Depends on whether or not I can find guests who won’t try to embarrass the hell out of me.” Author's Note Next time: Honestly, no idea, that's why I left wiggle room. Depends on what strikes my muse when. :)
Pony Genetics: Stock and Draft PoniesTwilight Sparkle stood in a dusty orchard of trees, equipped with her pointing stick and a chalkboard on wheels. Mesas were visible in the hot noonday sun. Her smile had faded a bit, but this was still going to be a lecture. She wasn't about to let the first few entries get her down. “Hello, everybody! We’re here today at the Appleoosa ranch and orchard to help explain the difference between stock ponies and draft ponies. This time, I have two helpers! To my right here is Applejack’s cousin Braeburn!” The farm pony trotted into view, waving a hoof. “Howdy y’all! Welcome to Aaaaaaaaaapleoosa!” Twilight rubbed her ear. “Right. Thank you, Braeburn, for letting us do this here.” He blushed a bit. “Aw, shucks miss. ‘Taint nothing. A friend of Applejack’s is a friend of mine!” Twilight gave him a polite nod and signaled off to her left. “And over here is my brother, Shining Armor. Come on out, Shining. I can assure you, it’s painless.” Shining’s head tilted into view, looking around thoroughly before stepping next to his sister. “I don’t get it. How come I can see them now but not other times? And how come I don’t remember these afterwards?” Twilight grinned. “Much like Pinkie Pie, it’s best not to try to explain it. So, everyone, here we can see an example of a stock pony, Braeburn.” “Howdy again!” He waved. She pointed over to her brother. “And a draft pony, Shining Armor.” “Um, hi.” He waved too, although far less enthusiastically. Twilight continued, “Now, we all know that there are, principally, three tribes of ponies: earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns. However, each individual pony is also either a stock pony or a draft pony. These last two types are not tribes, however, and have absolutely no bearing on the type or intensity of magic they possess. There are, however, obviously some differences. Braeburn, if you would?” “Happy ta oblige!” He reared up on his hind legs, whinnying, then took off around the orchard. His legs pounded on the ground, pushing him faster and faster as he weaved through the trees without even slowing down. Shining chuckled. “Yeah, no way I could do that.” “As we can see,” Twilight pointed with her stick, “Braeburn, a stock pony, possesses considerable agility and acceleration. As an earth pony, he can also use his magic to become quite fast on the ground. Not as fast as a pegasus in the air, of course, but still.” “Yeeeeee-hah!” Braeburn turned around and ran back towards the other two, but angled for a nearby tree. Just before running straight into it, he stopped, spun around, and slamed both of his rear hooves into the tree, knocking down most of the apples into some surrounding baskets. Twilight poked her brother in the side with the stick. “Shining, meanwhile, is a draft pony, which is easily the more rare of the two types. They comprise less than five percent of the population, and most of them, by far, are male. There are, of course, female draft ponies, but they aren’t nearly as common. Now then, Shining?” “Are you sure about this, Twilight?” he asked, rubbing his head. “I’m not an earth pony.” She nodded. “Yes. Apple bucking itself doesn’t really use any earth pony magic beyond normal strength enhancement. You’ll be fine.” He sighed. “Alright, here goes nothing.” Shining lifted his hind legs up into the air, and slammed them into the tree. Several of the apples from above fell down into the baskets. While not as many fell as Braeburn’s, there were still a good number of them. “See, brother?” Shining lifted up a basket and looked into it. “Huh. Well. Guess it worked.” Twilight cleared her throat. “What Shining lacks in earth pony magic and practice apple bucking, he makes up for with his draft pony physiology and strength training from the military. Draft ponies are larger, sturdier, and have both greater strength and stamina than stock ponies. Obviously there are outliers for everything and this is just a general trend, but it often holds true. While draft ponies aren’t as nimble or fast, they hit like nothing else and are almost impossible to knock over via physical impact without completely lifting them off their hooves. “As I said earlier, any tribe and gender can be either type of pony. Other examples of draft stallions are Fancy Pants, Big Macintosh, and both Grand General Blueblood and Prince Blueblood. Examples of stock ponies include all of the Elements of Harmony, Soarin of the Wonderbolts, Caramel, Thunderlane, and my parents. Shiny gets the draft pony gene from our grandfather.” Shining cut in. “A lot of draft ponies find their way into the military. Our size and strength means the training is easier for us. Not to say stock ponies can’t be great soldiers. Basic training just usually winds up being a bit easier is all. Finding horseshoes that fit, though…” Twilight chuckled a little. “You and those ultra-wide hooves. Anyway, that’s all for the topic at hoof. Thanks, you two!” “Anytime, ya’ll!” Braeburn yelled, tossing his hat into the air and taking off into a gallop, the stetson somehow floating back down in his direction so he could catch it again. “Anything you need, Twily.” Shining gave his sister a quick hug, then walked off camera. Twilight picked up a piece of chalk. “Okay, normally, this would be where we part ways for the next episode. But, I’ve decided to liven things up a bit! Starting next episode, you readers are going to have something of a say in what topics we cover! We aren’t opening all the topics, as there are still plenty of things in the story left to spoil. Instead, we’re going to be supplying a list of possible topics and letting everyone vote for them in the comments! “The first thing you’ll all notice is that these are arranged in groups. Within each group, the uppermost topic has to be discussed before we can discuss anything below it. In other words, with a group like this…” The chalk lifted into the air and started writing on the board. ==Magic Items== Enchanted Objects Cored Artifacts ????? ????? ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] “… Well, if this topic, ‘Magic Items’, is chosen, we’ll do ‘Enchanted Objects’ first. Then, we’ll hold another vote. If this group of topics is chosen again, we’ll do ‘Cored Artifacts.’ Once that’s done, the third topic will be revealed. Now, you’ll note that topics five and six in this group are ‘locked until: unknown.’ This means that we can’t reveal or talk about this until sometime in the future, when certain things are revealed in the main story. Or just until the author is confident enough in the answer. “Some others will say ‘Locked Until: Block X’. What this means is that there is something in that block that has to be posted in the main story before we can talk about it. To help prevent spoilers, only the relevant block of chapters is listed, not the specific chapter. It could, potentially, unlock at any point in the block. You won’t know in advance until a chapter posts and, suddenly, there’s a new unlocked topic. Naturally, locked topics cannot be voted for, as this story would never go anywhere if that happened. And, as the story progresses, new topic groups will be added. It should go without saying that things are subject to change at any time, but I’m mentioning it now anyway. “Oh! And, you can find out what block a given chapter is in using CvBrony’s user page. There’s a thing under the bio box where you can see the word counts, and he updates them whenever there’s new writing. All the recent and upcoming chapters are listed there. “So, without further ado, here’s the current list!” ==Pony Genetics== Stock Ponies and Draft Ponies [POSTED] Tribe Hybrids ????? ????? ????? ==Magic Items== Enchanted Objects Cored Artifacts ????? ????? ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Royal Guard Overview== Senechals [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] Royal Guard [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ==Equestrian Politics== The Inner Council [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] Celestia and the Inner Council [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ==Wings== Wing types overview Flight characteristics ????? ==Culture== Languages Technology Level ???? ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Higher Power== Pony spirituality ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] Twilight smiled. “We’re looking forward to your votes and comments everyone!” Author's Note So, yeah, that's a thing here now. You guys can steer the direction of this one a little bit! I can’t just open it up to everything, because there’s sooooooo much I can’t talk about yet, as you can see by how many are locked. There’s even more topics I can’t even put up here yet! Here’s how it works. You guys vote for one of the topics by commenting in the… well, comments. The things in “==X==“ are what you’re choosing. Those are the topics. One will win, and eventually I’ll write for that one. The thing I’ll cover is the top-most item in the list that hasn’t been covered yet. Some items will need several chapters to fully cover. After it’s covered, we hold another vote. The “?????” will be cleared and the item revealed when the item above it has been fully covered. Some of them that are locked might remain censored until they’re unlocked, though. Just to prevent spoilers. ;) I can’t wait to see how you guys vote! :) Little voice in the back of my head: You are sooooo going to regret posting this... X)
Pony Genetics: Tribe Hybrids“Okay, time for Tribe Hybrids!” Twilight said, tapping her pointing stick on a board behind her. On it were six circles arranged equidistant from each other, with one more in the center. Together, they showed the possible tribe combinations (or lack thereof). “First and foremost, there are three pony tribes. Earth ponies, pegasi, and unicorns. Most ponies are just one of these. However, occasionally, a hybrid of two tribes will be born, and yes, a pony’s tribe or tribes is always determined in the womb. Unless they ascend to alicornhood.” The chalk floated up and drew lines connecting “earth pony” and “pegasus” to a circle in between them. “First off, we have the heavy pegasi, or earth pony and pegasus hybrids. These ponies are typically a bit slower and clumsier in the air than their pegasi counterparts, but between their magics they’re absurdly durable. A good example of a heavy pegasus is…” A blond-maned, gray-coated pegasus flew into the scene and landed, her wall-eyes looking gleefully at the audience. “Hello everypony!” “Hi Ditzy Doo!” Twilight smiled. “Still on the mail route?” “Yup! Good thing I got the job when I did, too. They’re cutting the pensions of the newer guys…” Twilight cringed. I wonder if I can do anything about something like that. “Ouch. Well, there’s that. How’s Dinky?” “She’s doing good! She’s got a scholarship to Manehatten University! Good thing, too. I kinda doubt I’d be able to afford it otherwise. Still, I knew she’d be okay. She’s a smart filly.” “That she is!” Twilight turned back to the camera. “Anyway, Ditzy Doo here, aka Derpy, is a ‘heavy pegasus,’ and they’re called that no matter what their real weight is, although they do tend to have more mass than ‘normal’ pegasi. Also, out of all pegasi, about one in twenty are this type. This ratio has gone up a bit in the last few hundred years but has since leveled out. They have all the plant growing abilities of earth ponies, and can fly like pegasi, although they aren’t considered the best flyers out there. Still, that’s a trend, not a rule. Practice can overcome a lot. Thanks for coming, Ditzy!” The heavy pegasus saluted. “Yes ma’am! And thank you for the muffins!” She then leapt into the air and flew out the door, narrowly avoiding crashing into the door along the way. Twilight smiled. “She’s gotten better! Okay, next up, we have the earth unicorns. And I’m proud to say that we have a second newly-featured character for Rites to demonstrate them! Everyone, please welcome the singing sensation Crystal Belle!” An adult, white unicorn mare with a long, curly, purple and pink mane stepped into view. Inside her meticulously styled mane was a bevy of blue crystals chiming amongst each other, turning her very movements into song. “Thank you for inviting me, Twilight,” she said with a bow and a smile. “I was worried I’d never get to be on anything in Rites. Although, you can call me Sweetie Belle. My friends from Ponyville are much too important to use that stage name.” Her new voice was as smooth as polished ice, and much lower and operatic than the one she had as a little filly. “Alright, fair enough. And thank you for coming!” Twilight turned back to her audience. “Okay everypony, Sweetie Belle here is an earth unicorn, a hybrid of earth pony and unicorn.” The chalk floated up and drew two more lines. Twilight continued, “They tend to be stronger and sturdier than regular unicorns, and like their earth pony cousins, are capable of using their magic to help plants grow! Hence, they can make excellent farmers, having both unicorn and earth only magic. In addition, earth unicorn doctors are also widely sought after! Their healing magic is beyond compare. Naturally, though, this doesn’t mean they have to go into those fields,” she winked at her guest. “I’m glad I didn’t! It took me long enough to find my cutie mark!” She looked over at her flank, where a blue, crystal bell with a pink ribbon and a music note was emblazoned. “Getting one in biology? Not exactly my strong suit. I’d’ve been miserable!” Twilight couldn’t help but grow a smile. “Didn’t I tell you it would come in time? Anyway, once again, thank you for appearing!” “It’s my pleasure, Twilight! Come see one of my shows sometime! A Grand Mage should rate some VIP tickets, I think!” She winked and started walking off stage. “I’ll take you up on that offer!” Twilight drew two more lines on the board, this time connecting “unicorn” and “pegasus” to a circle labeled “winged unicorn.” “Okay, last up, we have the winged unicorns, second only to alicorns in how rare they are.” Twilight looked up at the ceiling. “Cadence, you can come down now!” A pink winged unicorn circled in the air, eventually coming to a light landing on one hoof. “Hello, Twilight! As the others did, I must thank you for inviting me! Not that there are many other winged unicorns…” “This is true.” Twilight cleared her throat. “In fact, in all of Equestria, there are only a few dozen in existence. The reason why, we’ll get to in a moment. For now, winged unicorn basics.” Cadence sat down and opened her wings. “Although we have both pegasus and unicorn magic, our wellspring sizes vary at about the same spread as that of a normal unicorn. I’m well above average, obviously, but this is not the case for all of us. We do, however, possess the capability to use much more magic at once than most unicorns, but this comes with a risk. If we overextend our wellsprings by pulling magic from them too quickly when they’re empty, we suffer something called ‘horn blow out.’ It’s the same as taking a large magical blast to the tip of our horn, and is a serious medical emergency. Though death from it is rare, it can lead to crippling complications if not treated.” Twilight picked up the thread. “As for pegasus magic, they’re more or less normal pegasi. However, with that out of the way, we now have to talk about the why of tribe hybrids. Specifically, why some are hybrids, but most aren’t. Although heavy pegasi and earth unicorns aren’t anywhere remotely as rare as winged unicorns, they still don’t make up as much of the population that simple genetics would suggest.” Cadence smiled. “You always did like lecturing, Twily. How’s it feel to be a professor of sorts?” Twilight ducked down and blushed. “... Cadence, come on. Not you too!” “Hehe. Sorry, Twilight. I couldn’t resist! Please, continue.” “Right, well…” She took in a deep breath and slowly let it out. “Okay, the reason is, actually, just like alicorn gains attributes of the other races during ascension, so too does the magic from a hybrid’s wellspring matter. In fact, there are many ponies out there with the genetic markers for being a hybrid, yet they aren’t. The answer lies in something called ‘wellspring geometry.’ “A pony’s wellspring doesn’t begin to form until a couple months into gestation in its mother’s womb. The process for it to form fully takes a bit more time, and during that, the leylines in its body begin to connect to the wellspring. Only specific configurations will work for hybrids. If the geometry of the wellspring doesn’t form in just the right way, the leylines won’t connect, and that part of the wellspring will grow dark, and the other’s leylines will fade. They’ll only receive the magic and physical traits of the connections that do form. There are relatively few valid geometry configurations for hybrids. In fact, for winged unicorns, there are only three, compared to dozens for other hybrids and hundreds for non-hybrids of all types. This is why they are so rare.” Cadence flapped her wings a little. “‘Tis a shame. I would have liked to have grown up with somepony else like myself, but I do admit to enjoying being somewhat special.” “That’s not what makes you special, Cadence.” The two turned their heads to the side, finding Shining striding into the room. “Your kindness, love, and work for your ponies as Princess of the Lost is what makes you special. Others would adore you just the same even without the wings, or the horn.” “Awww!” Cadence began to tear up, and gave him a giant hug. “That’s so sweet! Thank you, Shining!” He smirked. “That, and you have an amazingly hot pair of flanks. I mean, wow.” “And don’t you forget it, mister!” she laughed into his ear. Twilight rolled her eyes. “Okay, that’s enough for this entry, we’re already over our time limit. Thanks everyone for reading, and don’t forget to comment and vote!” Nothing new unlocked this time. ==Pony Genetics== ~~Stock Ponies and Draft Ponies~~ ~~Tribe Hybrids~~ ????? ????? ????? ==Magic Items== Enchanted Objects Cored Artifacts ????? ????? ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Royal Guard Overview== Senechals [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] Royal Guard [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ==Equestrian Politics== The Inner Council ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ==Wings== Wing types overview Flight characteristics ????? ==Culture== Languages Technology Level ???? ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Higher Power== ~~Pony spirituality~~ Alicorn worship ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] Author's Note I'm not entirely happy with the phrase "earth unicorn" to be honest. Feel free to suggest something better. I'm very picky, so there's no guarantee I'll use what you suggest, but I'm definitely open to ideas. (I'm trying to avoid "heavy unicorn.") Remember, you're voting for the thing in "==". :)
Higher Power: Pony Spirituality“Yeeg,” Twilight said, tapping her pointing stick on her hoof. “I was honestly hoping this topic would lose, but, well, here we are, I guess. The problem is that, well, um, this topic is rather…” “Complicated,” Applejack interjected. “There’s no way ya can say ‘ponies think this way’ or ‘ponies think that way’ when it comes ta bein’ spiritual. It’d be like sayin’ ‘ponies are orange.’” Twilight rubbed her head. “Yeah, that about covers it. There is no one church or school of thought when it comes to ponies and religion. Our spiritual beliefs, especially the details, tend to be highly, highly local. There are, however, a few things I can say. One is that we do not have a set, single god like the gryphons or even a universal pantheon like the Zebra or Minotaurs. Another is that an awful lot of ponies have their beliefs tied to the seasons in some way, especially earth ponies.” Applejack tilted her hat a bit. “Eeyup. Seasons are a big thing for ponies. Especially earth pony farmers. Each season feels different, and we can sense it in our hearts. Can move a pony ta tears if’n they think about it deep enough.” “Right. I’ve attended some of the general celebrations they have in Ponyville with them, like Winter Wrap Up. The government-sponsored ones have to remain neutral with regards to the spiritual aspects, but local governments and Duchies are generally allowed to create holidays around more non-religious themes, like Hearts and Hooves Day. I’ve also read that many earth pony towns, especially small ones, will also have beliefs tied to local legends and spirits in particular. I found it all fascinating, as unicorns, especially those in large cities, tend to have a rather different view on things.” Applejack chuckled a bit. “Kind of a fancy way of saying you’ve got your noses pointing in the air all the time.” Twilight lifted a hoof up to her chest. “Applejack, I’m surprised at you! We aren’t all like that, and just because we regard the heavens as… Wait, you were making a joke on… Ah.” The two ponies stared at each other for a while, with the farmer grinning like a cat and the mage looking like she’d just tossed an extremely itchy sweater in a corner and decided it was worthy of a glare. “Took ya long enough ta get—OW!” A small crack went through the air from the pointing stick hitting an earth pony skull. Neither were damaged, though one was at least a little embarrassed. “No making awful jokes in my educational segments, Applejack. That’s my job.” She cleared her throat. “Ahem. Anyway, what my assistant was so poorly alluding to is that what unicorns that do have a spiritual side tend to look up at the sky for their inspiration. We see the cosmos itself as our ‘ultimate reality.’ Everything that is and is not, the sum total of the mysteries of our magical universe. And if you put two unicorns in a room and have them talk about it, you’re basically guaranteed to find some kind of disagreement or conflict within two minutes, even in a best-case scenario.” Applejack rubbed her head where the stick had struck it. “Ow. Ow ow ow. Yer gettin’ strong with that, Twi. And I honestly can’t get how ya’ll can get that much meanin’ out of astrology. I mean, it’s pretty and all, but…” “Astronomy, Applejack,” Twilight corrected her. “I study astronomy. That’s the study of the universe, not trying to divine meaning from the positioning of constellations. Although I will say you do bring up a good point, which is that unicorns are a bit more likely to believe in astrology and fate than other tribes. Exceptions, of course, abound, and many earth ponies and pegasi have their own superstitions. On top of that, there is a fairly large subset of unicorns in Shanghay, Marelaysia, and Neighpon that not only go for such things but include an even stronger focus on spirits than many earth ponies do. They’re also a bit more organized than many other ‘religions’ we ponies have. “That said, I do not believe in such superstitions unless they’re attached to Pinkie Pie. Now, as for pegasi…” “Speaking of pegasi," Applejack said. “Where’s Rainbow? Wasn’t she supposed to be here fer this?” Twilight shook her head. “I asked her, but she turned it down pretty adamantly. I’m not really sure why, and she didn’t want to get into it, so I decided against pushing harder. Anyway, pegasi have a tendency to find even more meaning from their ancestry than unicorn nobles do, and unlike the other tribes, don’t tie much of their faith to seasons. Prayers are often said to dead forebearers, asking for guidance from an older generation rather than a specific deity or non-pony spirit, and will sometimes keep small mementos from them as a sort of good luck charm. “One theory is that since pegasi live somewhat aggressively, and since their lifespans aren’t as long, the idea that those who have passed can protect the living is particularly appealing. Something to help keep calm in the face of greater dangers. I don’t know how much I buy into that, but I don’t have hard evidence to refute it either.” Applejack shuddered a bit. “Let me guess. Since ya just talked about the ponies passing away, next up is the afterlife.” Twilight nodded. “Yes. If you were coming from a perspective devoid of magic, one might think we’d have some kind of answer of what happens to our being after we die. But, the truth is, we just don’t truly know. Some have beliefs, but that doesn’t mean we have anything approaching hard evidence. Unlike the rest of our spiritual beliefs, though, this one has a common thread across tribal barriers, and Princess Celestia says the legend is even older than she is.” Applejack swallowed. “The Summerlands. Endless grasses and water. No pain, no suffering. Never gettin’ frail or fallin’ ill. Room to run forever as part of the Eternal Herd. Peace everlastin’.” Twilight took a deep, sharp breath, and slowly exhaled before continuing. “Right. It’s sometimes also called ‘The Eternal Meadow.’ I remember that when I first started studying under the Princess, I asked about it. She told me that nopony, not even she, ultimately knew if there was life after death. It’s still a mystery and one that we may never solve.” “Well, I for one hope it’s true.” Applejack took off her hat and held it to her chest. “I have to. And it seems to me that if we’re all thinking the same thing, we might be onto something.” “I hope so too, AJ. Well everybody, that about covers it for this installment. I’ll put up the voting board again and—” “Wait a minute, there, sugarcube. Aren’t you going to talk about alicorns and—” “No!” Twilight dropped her pointing stick, fumbling with it in her hooves a little. “I mean, not yet. That would come later and in a separate topic, thank Celest… Argh!” Applejack smirked. “Heh.” NEW TOPIC IN HIGHER POWER REVEALED! NEW THREAD UNLOCKED! (Equestrian Politics) ==Pony Genetics== ~~Stock Ponies and Draft Ponies~~ Tribe Hybrids ????? ????? ????? ==Magic Items== Enchanted Objects Cored Artifacts ????? ????? ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Royal Guard Overview== Senechals [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] Royal Guard [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ==Equestrian Politics== ***** The Inner Council NOW UNLOCKED ***** ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ==Wings== Wing types overview Flight characteristics ????? ==Culture== Languages Technology Level ???? ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Higher Power== ~~Pony spirituality~~ ***** Alicorn worship [NOW REVEALED AND UNLOCKED!] ***** ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] Author's Note Remember folks, this is technically non-canon so I can develop things further and change stuff if need be before it makes an appearance in the story. ;) (In other words, I'm one indecisive pone.) Although it really shouldn't change drastically unless something REALLY unexpected happens. Voting for the next topic will now begin! Allez cuisine!!! Violet: "That's what they say on 'Iron Chef,' honey." Me: "I know what I said!"
Higher Power: Alicorn Worship Part 1“Fillies and Gentlecolts, have you come to hear the Word of Twilight Sparkle, Alicorn Supreme!?” “Spiiiike…” Twilight groaned, facehooving. “Amen!” Rainbow shouted, throwing her forehooves in the air. Spike continued, thumbing on a book. “Fall on your haunches and behold her glory! She, who fearlessly went into battle and vanquished the evil of Nightmare Moon!” “Preach it!” Applejack bowed to the ground at Twilight. “Spike, please don’t…” Twilight still hadn’t lifted her head up. “If she had only vanquished the evil of Nightmare Moon and not redeemed the Princess Luna, it would have been enough!” Twilight groaned. “Amen, brother!” Rainbow started bowing too. “If she had only redeemed the Princess Luna and not discovered the Elements of Harmony, it would have been enough!” “Oh, it was a mir-a-cle!” Applejack yelled out. “If she had only discovered the Elements of Harmony, and not rescued the Princess Celestia from the sun, it would have been enough!” “Praise! The Princess is back!” Rainbow leaped into the air, seemingly revering the sky. “If she had only rescued the Princess Celestia from the sun and not led the Elements to the mountain to evict the dragon, it would have been enough!” “Spike, stop it!” Twilight stomped a hoof. “If she had only led the Elements to the mountain to evict the dragon, and not pacified the Ursa Minor to defeat the heretic Trixie, it would have been enough!” “Trixie’s not even a heretic!” Twilight shouted, then cringed when she realized the implication. “Wait, I mean, this isn’t a religion!” “Down with the heretic! Down! Praise Twilight!” Applejack hollered, tossing her hat on the ground. “If she had only pacified the Ursa Minor to defeat the heretic Trixie, and not sealed the demon Discord back in his stony prison, it would have been enough!” “Sing it! Sing it out loud! Wooo!” Rainbow laughed. “Guys, please! This is going far enough!” Twilight yanked the book out of Spike’s hands. “Celestia said we shouldn’t be worshipped!” “If she had only sealed the demon Discord back in his stony prison, and not exposed the changeling Chrysalis, it would have been enough!” “Expose that changeling! Expose! Expose!” Applejack chanted. “Expose! Expose!” Rainbow joined in. “Guys!” Twilight screamed at the top of her lungs. “Sto—!” “Stop it right now!” Thunder and lightning cracked through the room, knocking Rainbow to the floor and Spike on his rear. Princess Luna stepped up to the group, tears already streaming down her face. “You dare! You all dare! What is the matter with all of you!?” Spike stood back up, holding his arms up in surrender. “Hey! It was just a joke! We were doing this segment and—” “Just a joke!? Just. A. Joke!? It is not a joke!” More lightning cracked, sending Spike back down. “It is never a joke! You weren’t there! You cannot possibly understand!” Rainbow swallowed. “Understand what?” Luna stomped up to her and flared out her wings. “The consequences! The adoration of your ponies, looking up at you like you’re the parent of every one! The crushed looks on their faces when they see you fail in battle! The helpless cries when they can’t do anything for themselves because they are used to you fulfilling their needs! Their shuns when you turn out to be anything less than perfect!” Luna cringed, eyes squeezing out ever more tears. “And you all think this is funny!? Out! Get out! All of you! Get out of my home!” The three huddled together, eyes wide and legs shaking. “I said out!” Luna lunged at them, and they took off running out of the room, the Princess in hot pursuit. “Out! Ouuuut!” Twilight coughed lightly, scratching her head with a hoof. “We… we need a moment, everybody.” ... To Be Continued in Part 2 Author's Note BANG! Drama. Yup, I can do that in this one if I want. ;) Also, yup, this chapter is basically just a huuuuuge Bioshock Infinite reference. Normally I wouldn't do something so direct, but since this is about worshipping those who are not gods, AND since it's non-canon silliness, I went ahead and did it. For those who don't know what I'm talking about, see this video.
Higher Power: Alicorn Worship Part 2“I must apologize for my sister’s outburst,” Celestia said, taking a sip of her tea. “She means well, ultimately, but this topic includes exceptionally painful memories of the Lunar Rebellions. She does not wish you to go down that path as well, Twilight. I was not joking when I said we must not be worshipped. That leads only to madness.” Twilight nodded, drinking from her own teacup. “I understand. I was just… rather surprised at how intense Luna was about it, is all.” “Luna is nothing if not intense. Her passion at its peak is truly something to behold. In any event, why don’t we continue the entry with me while my sister calms herself. Shall we?” Twilight nodded, lifting up her pointing stick while the background changed to a picture of a pony watching a sunset. “Generally speaking, Equestria has, in it’s highest laws, enshrined complete freedom of religion. The government cannot recognize nor endorse any one religion. This, however, comes with an important exception.” Celestia continued, “Worship of alicorns is strictly forbidden. All public displays of such worship are banned, including gathering for such purposes and even proselytizing. Commercial production of imagery meant to promote worship of alicorns is also banned. It is possible to be sent to jail for these infractions, and it has happened, although it is rare to spend long periods incarcerated for it.” The image changed to a jail cell containing an idol similar to the Princess’s cutie mark. Twilight lay down on the ground, crossing her forelegs. “To be honest, I’ve only met maybe three ponies that ever ‘openly’ worshipped Celestia, and most of the time they’re fairly quiet about it. They didn’t deny it, but they didn’t yell it from the rooftops either. Generally speaking, although alicorn worship exists, I’d say it’s rather rare. Probably because of these laws. Even the Nightmare Moon Cult is said to only have a few thousand members, although I’d imagine it’s rather hard to get an accurate estimation on that.” Celestia started to pour more hot water in her teacup. “Technically, private worship of us is also banned, but, that’s much, much more difficult to enforce. If a pony prays to us in their bedroom, how are we to know? Even if we did, acting on it would be seen as overly invasive and tyrannical. That’s something we can ill afford right now. The good news is that if a pony is only doing it in the privacy of their own home and not proselytizing it to others, the potential for damage is very minimal.” Twilight swallowed. “I remember when I first started studying under you, you caught me praying to you in my room. I’m glad you didn’t toss me in jai—” “Are you honestly suggesting I’d toss a filly in jail for looking up to me a little too much?” Celestia asked with a raised eyebrow and a smile. “Ah, right…” Twilight fidgeted with her mane. “When you put it that way, it does sound kind of… well…” “The word you are looking for is ‘ludicrous,’ Twilight. Even assuming I did enforce that law myself, foals do not suffer the same punishments as adults in the legal system for a reason. On top of that, even for adults the penalties are generally very mild and judges often use fines instead. Real hard time is reserved for those rare, repeat, and large-scale offenders. Often times, if a pony gets that ‘bad,’ I will have personal chats with them to clear their misconceptions, and that usually works. As it did with you.” Twilight sighed. “And yet, I kept saying things like ‘thank Celestia’ even though I knew better. Everypony else does, too. And even since you talked to me about worshipping you there was always this little feeling in the back of my mind that I shouldn’t do that, but I did anyway.” Celestia chuckled, dipping a new teabag in her hot water. “Oh, I wouldn’t worry too much about that. Luna and I have tried countless times to get our ponies to stop saying such things, but ultimately it’s ended in spectacular failure each time. Fortunately that particular habit of our ponies doesn’t seem to be harmful in the same way open worship is. At the very least, we haven’t noticed it in the last nine thousand years we’ve been full alicorns.” “Then how come when I was a filly you spent that one day stealthily following around your old senechal Time Minder, popping around a corner and saying ‘you’re welcome’ whenever he said it?” Twilight smirked. Celestia smiled. “Oh, come now, Twilight. Even I have to have a little fun sometimes. Besides, he stopped saying it after that, didn’t he?” Twilight’s head jerked up in realized. “Okay, now I can’t tell if you were just playing a joke on him or if that was the planned outcome.” “Ah, but who says it couldn’t be both?” Celestia winked. “Riiiiight. Well, in any event, that concludes this entry, everyone. The voting board is back up.” Nothing new unlocked this time. ==Pony Genetics== ~~Stock Ponies and Draft Ponies~~ Tribe Hybrids ????? ????? ????? ==Magic Items== Enchanted Objects Cored Artifacts ????? ????? ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Royal Guard Overview== Senechals [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] Royal Guard [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 4] ==Equestrian Politics== The Inner Council ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: SOMETIME IN BLOCK 3] ==Wings== Wing types overview Flight characteristics ????? ==Culture== Languages Technology Level ???? ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ???? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] ==Higher Power== ~~Pony spirituality~~ ~~Alicorn worship~~ ????? [LOCKED UNTIL: UNKNOWN] Author's Note By the way, when you're voting, please let me know what you think of the chapters themselves, too! :)
Factions: Part 1Twilight sucked in a breath, then blew off the dust on her chalkboard. Coughing and heaving in the inevitable cloud of dust, she blasted the cloud away with a burst of pegasus magic. “Ugh. Should have seen that coming. I'm out of practice here.” She grabbed the chalk in her magic and cleared her throat. “Sorry about this, everyone. The author can only wrote so much with his hands before being in pain, so side projects like this are on the backburner most of the time. “But there's been repeated requests for a faction and organization breakdown, and it's high time one was provided. So, here we are. Rites of Ascension factions 101.” Twilight put a circle of chalk on the ground, then waved to the door. Trixie poked her head in. “Wow. That's freaky. And they're here all the time, but we just don't see them?” “Try to put it out of your mind, or you'll suffer an existential crisis like you wouldn't believe. Are you otherwise ready?” “Hmmm? Oh, yes.” Trixie lit her horn, and the image of a stallion in sunglasses appeared in the circle on the floor. It was the spitting image of the one she fought in Gryphonhelm. Twilight gave the image a poke. “Good job, Trixie! Everypony, this is a visual representation of a member of what we at first called ‘The Illusionists.’ Their organization was later revealed to have given themselves the name ‘Knights Templar.’ Their motives are unknown, but they appear to have been influencing politics all over the world for centuries, and they’ve been after Trixie for years.” “I still have chills looking at this bastard.” Trixie turned her face away from it, and hid her head with her hat. “I know. I appreciate your help here. You can shift the image now.” “Thank you,” Trixie whispered. The image changed into a chained, bound Duke Esteem next to Duchess Artfeather. Twilight cleared her throat. “These are a pair of the few ponies we know for certain had connections to the organization that calls itself ‘The Majestics.’ General Towers was also involved, and was murdered by the same group. “We initially called them the ‘Robber Barons,’ but now that we have the name they call themselves, we use the name Majestics. Their true aims aren't entirely clear, but their actions reveal that they are definitely trying to undermine the Crown. “The size of the organization is not known. Those who are in it are known to be under some form of geas. It's speculated that those few at the top have control over it, and those under can't leak anything because the geas has sufficient control over their minds. “We have more information on their finances. It's known they've been able to amass billions of bits in combined cash and material, through both financial shenanigans and deals with underground organizations such as the pirate Farrier.” Trixie tilted her hat and struck a pose. “We're going to kick his ass soon, right?” Twilight lit her horn, and the ground trembled in resonance. “You bet your flank.” Author's Note I hope to make more of these in the future, though individually they'll be very small like this to reserve hand integrity for other writing endeavors. This hasn't been checked by editors, so typos will be inevitable. Part of the point on these, when I have the inspiration to do them, is a fast turnaround. -Cv Patreon – Help support the author! | Discord Chat Channel – Come join us! |Tropes Page – Show it some love!
Ascension: Wings“Argh. Now that we have that out of the way…” Twilight slapped the pointer against the back wall, changing the image to what was on the chalkboard before. “We can discuss the remaining two summits: wings and the ethereal mane. Rainbow?” “Right here, Twilight!” Rainbow walked into the room, sitting down near Twilight and spreading her wings. “Now then. As you can see, Rainbow here is a pegasus, and her wings are the defining characteristic of pegasi. As alicorns embody all three tribes, ascendants eventually do get wings. I’m told that unlike the other summits, the wings form all at once. There’s no slow growth to go through.” Rainbow smirked. “Heh. You’re lucky. Pegasi don’t generally get wings large enough to fly until around the time they get their cutie mark.” “Except when they are very small foals,” Twilight pointed out. “Speaking of, I’m told most alicorns gain wings relatively large to their body size in comparison to pegasi.” She turned back to the ‘audience.’ “At some point, we’ll be going through wing types. Rainbow here has one of the more common types of pegasi wings, and her wings are around the average size for her body.” Rainbow shrugged. “That’s alright with me. Some of the more rare types are, like, too slim or fat and are good for one or two things at best. Most Wonderbolts have one of the more common types. Means we can do most anything we need to fairly well right off the bat.” Twilight nodded. “This is true, although Celestia has one of the rare types that’s supposed to excel in all areas.” Rainbow smirked. “Twi, if you get that wing type, you’re going to have every pegasus stallion from here to Gryphonia falling head over fetlocks for you.” Twilight’s face blushed beet red once again. “Damnit, can’t I finish one of these without ponies remarking on my sexuality!?” Rainbow’s wings folded back against her sides. “Hey I didn’t mean--” “Out! Out out out out!” Twilight planted both forehooves on her, pushing her across the floor and out the door. “Hey! Wait! Okay, I’m going, I’m going!” “Argh!” Twilight stomped back into the center of the room. “Next time, ethereal manes.” Author's Note Hehehe. Yup, I'm going to be messing with Twilight (and other ponies) all through the story. :D
