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    When everything seems dark, don't be.

    Chapters

    • Chapter 16: System Cover
      by Starscribe Dakota blinked, and nearly fell over on her shaky legs. She’d seen plenty of drones in her time, plenty of robots. Even her early memories included delivery drones, and little flying things that people would use to record their vacations and sporting events. But this… it was hard to compare this to a little flying box that dropped off a pizza. Something that could stand and walk on two legs, without the awkwardness of the old Boston Dynamics creations.“That screen head thing is… incredibly…
    • Chapter 3: Hollow Heart Cover
      by Starscribe Gale was worn, bloody, nearly broken. The monastery stone was soaked with blood, dribbling down from the carnage above. His own foreleg was heavily bandaged, and the ledgers of grain and vegetables were splashed with bandit blood.There were three of them dead on the floor near the stairs, laying right where they fell. Gale had only taken the time to remove the daggers from them, spreading them casually around the room where he could reach them. Behind him was the final, greatest target of the nameless…
    • Chapter 22: Transition Function Cover
      by Starscribe As it turned out, Sir Bradley had prepared more than food down here. Without anything better to do, they took the time to open all the crates, revealing bedrolls, tents, basic cookware—an entire camp’s worth of supplies.Of course Sunset and any other Builders there wouldn’t have needed it, but that didn’t mean she couldn’t help. They set up everything, arranging the sleeping bags before making a cooking circle with chunks of crystal and the crates themselves as fuel. While Trixie cooked a batch…
    • Chapter 38: Camelopardalis Cover
      by Starscribe Star Orchid was in heaven. At least her body was physically located in the place she’d heard her whole life was the divine resting-place of all who followed Harmony’s laws. With every passing second, she found herself more convinced there was at least some truth to those stories.The air all around them was fresh and alive with the pollen of new plants, without the sterility of Concord or the oppressive humidity of the jungles around Hollow Shades. The little dirt road led them swiftly to a red…
    • Chapter 16: And They Got Lost Cover
      by Starscribe Theo woke the next morning—whatever her ambitions to keep searching through the night, she’d apparently been far too exhausted to keep working. She yawned and stretched, emerging from the tent a second time. As before, she had no idea how she’d gotten inside, no memory of climbing in the night before. Sharp Edge didn’t leave me out in the open after I fell asleep. She would’ve loved to thank him for his help, except of course that he wouldn’t understand her if she did.She rose slowly, wiping…
    • Chapter 43: Indus Cover
      by Starscribe They did not walk back to the castle, as Star had feared. They were so far away, and the chances of arriving in time seemed so slim. The Alldeath was not limited to such methods of travel, however.Somehow, impossibly, it had an airship of its own. All they had to do was jog for a short distance out to the surface again, where it was already waiting for them. “Why so many soldiers?” Windbrisk asked, as they squeezed into the tiny front of the airship, where the pilot would’ve usually been. There were…
    • G4.05: Meaningful Contact Cover
      by Starscribe The next alien to open the door came in the evening. James recognized her for a nurse from the cart she was pushing.“I need to talk to someone in charge. And I need my things back. Can you return them to me?”The alien looked up from her cart, which James could now see had a metal tray of food resting on the top. "Mi bedaŭras, ĉevalidino, sed mi ne komprenas vin. Ĉu vi ne ŝatus iun manĝaĵon? Kreskantaj knabinoj kiel vi bezonas manĝaĵon."The nurse lifted the lid off her tray, showing it to…
    • Chapter 9: Sculptor Cover
      by Starscribe Jamie slowed as they finally reached the city, trying to process something that resembled nowhere she’d ever imagined. Hollow Shades was built into a narrow mountain valley, a vast circular city divided into thirds around a central market. It looked as though space had started running out for new homes a few centuries back, and so the ponies had started stacking things onto one another, leading to narrow streets that were just barely large enough for two people, weaving between shops and gardens and…
    • Chapter 20: So We Changed Our Plans Cover
      by Starscribe By the time their train arrived in Ponyville, full dark had settled over the town like a heavy blanket. This was no Crystal Empire or Canterlot, with bustling activity even late into the night. As Theo emerged from the train, she could see only a few flickering gas lamps, leading into town towards a round, municipal-looking building.The rest of the town could’ve come out of any number of semi ancient villages in her home country, though it had been quite some time since she’d seen a thatch roof on…
    • Chapter 9: Agate Cover
      by Starscribe Twilight hated to admit when Trixie was right, but there was no getting around the good sense of having a base of operations. By letting Twilight and her friends stay close, Trixie was taking on much of the risk herself, since she was likely to be implicated if any of them were seen breaking the rules. It’s okay, we won’t be. And even if we are, we’ll reverse all of this. It won’t matter.She still felt guilty taking advantage of Trixie’s kindness, as well as feeling a little skepticism bubbling…
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