Chapters
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Rover stared down at the ruts his cart had carved in the dirt. The awful pony’s magic had done the work of months in a single day. The Alpha would have been greatly pleased with such a find.“I can’t believe you let them go,” Spot squeaked, his voice boiling with anger. Some of that was probably with the vanishing ponies and their stolen gemstones, though some of it was at him. “We wouldn’t have had to dig for weeks!”Rover could smell the aggression in his tiny rival, and his whole body tensed…-
9.0 K •
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Dr. Dawn Hardy, Hegemon of the human race, sat in her underwear atop the edge of an artificial waterfall overlooking Recreation Area Seven. One arm rested on bare knees covered in freckles, letting the holofield projector set into the bracelet fill the area in front of her with readouts. Half a dozen little windows floated in the air, alternating between camera footage, maintenance information, historical logs, and a few active terminals.“Midir Outlook Relay transfer returns complete,” said Core, its…
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9.0 K •
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Every one of Flynn’s worst fears was confirmed. It wasn’t just that things at the hospice changed—things at the hospice were always changing. It was, rather, that everything changed. His friends still visited him, helped push his wheelchair around the grounds on days he could leave his bed. They still played the same handful of board games together every night.Still the arrival of Ponypads had brought change, and even with his hatred of Equestria and those who lived there, Flynn couldn’t ignore it.…-
24.5 K •
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And thus, it was for time Flynn barely counted. But then, that was nothing new for anyone in St. Justin’s. Nobody counted days, since for almost all of them those days were numbered. Flynn went on many adventures, each of them more real than anything he’d played in video games before. This time, he didn’t feel like he was wasting his time. Rather, he was doing something important.He rose through the ranks of the Broken Chain, until he was respected enough not to need an escort everywhere he went.…
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24.5 K •
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“I don’t like it,” Gina said, for the tenth time now. She whispered quietly enough that she would not be easily overheard, yet still it seemed like dozens of eyes looked their way whenever she spoke. Either that, or it was the sight of something so strange as a griffon with such a troubled past in a part of the world where there was only sunshine and rainbows.“I don’t either,” Flynn said, and found he barely had to mouth the words for his character to speak them, just as quietly. The Ponypad…
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24.5 K •
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The next thing Flynn knew, it was dark outside, and they were alone. The nurses hadn’t come for them—though they would if they waited much longer. His limbs were already going stiff from the chill. He looked up, clearing his throat loudly. “I, uh… think we should get inside,” he said, not into the Ponypad.For once, even Caroline didn’t look annoyed with him. She nodded, glancing down at the screen. “We should get going,” her pony said. “Thanks for taking the time to talk to us.”It…
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24.5 K •
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The next day began exactly as so many others before it. Flynn ate his breakfast, spent over an hour hauling himself into the sitting tub for an awkward, uncoordinated shower, and refused to let the nurses help as he dressed himself. He gave no outward sign at all that today was not going to be like other days.He knew he would not be seeing this bedroom again—though what they’d do with him if he decided not to emigrate at the end of today’s adventure, he didn’t know. Still, there wasn’t anything…
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24.5 K •
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Flynn could hear many sirens in the distance. They were coming frequently now. He could hear at least one helicopter, as well as the distant sound of people moving through the trees. A search party had finally been mobilized.“Transfer complete,” Agent announced, indicating Caroline. Flynn was now sitting in a car with a pair of corpses. That’s probably the wrong word if emigration really works. Shells. They’re shells. His friends weren’t dead, they were somewhere else. Somewhere away from all…
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24.5 K •
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Flynn woke up.Immediately he was assaulted with strange details—his image of the world, which had served him through his short years, was now presenting him with error. Nothing felt right, and for a long time it was all he could do to lay there twitching, as he tried to wrap his head around what had happened to him. I’m having another fit, he thought. The nurses must’ve messed up my medication again. I just have to wait until it wears off.Though he could perceive very little except for something soft…
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24.5 K •
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Some time passed. There were reunions, and adventures, and many other things besides. Some questions went unanswered—Flynn could never know, after all, if he were indeed the genuine article of himself, or some imitation spawned at the moment of his creation. He knew only that he felt like he was the original, and that was enough.Some time passed, and he was aware only dimly of affairs outside his world. There were many other worlds within Celestia’s domain, and only one that was not. In time, remaining…
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24.5 K •
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