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    When everything seems dark, don't be.

    Chapters

    • Chapter 3 Cover
      by Starscribe “O-oh.” Jacob started walking in the direction she had indicated, towards the administration building. He walked slowly, careful not to make any sudden movements. There was no missing the handgun holstered on this woman’s waist. “Sure. About what?”She didn’t rush him, but she did follow very closely, close enough that she could’ve grabbed him if he tried to run. “About your involvement with a club here on campus.” She opened the portfolio again, this time holding it out so he could get a…
    • Chapter 4 Cover
      by Starscribe “Yeah?” She glared at him. “I’d like to see you do better with five hundred cash and two hours’ notice!” She parked abruptly, then gestured at the circle of chairs. “You wait here, it’s safe. I have to go out and rescue more of you clueless ponies.”He didn’t open the door, instead glaring up at her. “I think I’m owed a little more than that. After… possibly looking like an accomplice to… whatever you’re doing.” It wasn’t that he believed anything Agent Avery had said, not…
    • Chapter 1: Zero Hour Cover
      by Starscribe Lauren had seen many strange things in the school’s offices before; if anything the peculiar was what kept her days interesting. Membership in the Associated Student Body had many perks, but one she treasured above all others was being able to spend a period of every day as a “student assistant” in the office. If there was going to be any juicy gossip from second period, Lauren would be the one to get it.When she saw a policeman standing outside the assistant principal's office, she couldn’t help…
    • Chapter 2: Survivors Cover
      by Starscribe Lauren pushed the door open with no little effort. The tiny stallion might’ve been able to buck clean through a door, but for her the already-heavy door swung only with great effort. She braced her shoulder against it and shoved, inching forward. Eventually it swung out far enough for her to make her cautious way back into the office hallway.She didn’t know how long had passed, but the sun was far brighter through the window, meaning it was probably sometime in the afternoon. The light from the windows…
    • Chapter 3: Shared Suffering Cover
      by Starscribe Lauren wasn’t stopped and asked to explain herself by any of the supervising “ponies”. After seeing what had happened to her brother, she tried to see if her condition had been common. Though she couldn’t tell for sure at a glance as easily with these new bodies, it didn’t smell like there were very many stallions in the room. That was the word for a male horse, wasn’t it? The trend continued as she crossed the hall into the classroom where many of the office staff were congregating. The space…
    • Chapter 4: Common Cause Cover
      by Starscribe The next morning passed in a rush. The ponies in school seemed to wake at different times. Lauren and Preston woke among the earliest, along with many of the others with wings. Despite waking just before dawn, Lauren didn’t feel tired. Preston didn’t seem to either.Fortunately for them, there were enough other winged ponies that someone had been called to organize breakfast. For everything else that had changed since yesterday, cereal with milk still tasted as bland as ever. There was at least one good…
    • Epilogue: Recovery Cover
      by Starscribe Several months later…Preston whined as Lauren lifted her head, holding another broken feather in her mouth. She spat it to one side, then shoved the filly deeper down into the plush of the mattress. “Quit struggling! It’s harder if you don’t hold still!”Ponies were flexible, younger ones even more so. Preston turned to glare over her shoulder without difficulty. “You said you’d be gentler this time! I don’t think that last one was ready to come out yet!”Lauren glanced down, and saw there…
    • Chapter 18: A Day for Justice (292 AE) Cover
      by Starscribe There was no more drama for a few hours as Radio Springs mobilized. Alex learned then that the pegasi flying from Motherlode had been sent to tell the city about the attack and the armored pony that had killed three of their guards and been heading for the settlement. Thank God she had noticed them, or else she might’ve walked right into the city and been arrested.White did not correct the misinformation, not yet. If the pegasi heard that some other story was being passed around, they might be able to…
    • Chapter 19: The Day After (292 AE) Cover
      by Starscribe The disused mine up on the back hill proved to have been barricaded to prevent further escapes. An hour or so and a crowbar later, and they could use the lift to start bringing trapped miners back up. Just in time too: the rain had flooded the mine, and the water level had continued to rise. The storm seemed to have lost interest in the complex once the battle was complete, but even so most of the Refugees emerged wet as well as hungry.Alex made sure she was out of sight as this happened, hoping the miners…
    • Epilogue 1: Day of Peace (293 AE) Cover
      by Starscribe Bingham Canyon proved not to be the paradise of technology and progress Alex had promised: mostly it was temporary buildings and lots of metal supports sunk into concrete near the bottom of a gigantic open-pit mine. Yet even the temporary structures on the rim had electricity and running water. As Jackie went into surgery, Alex learned that she herself was being brought on as an advisory engineer on the construction of “Paradise Crater.”Not because there weren’t any humans or ponies of the HPI to do…
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