Thread 70: Stories 61-73

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Out-of-Time-Order
~~~

They had traveled for miles, when their wings tired, they walked, when their legs faltered, they flew again. Never stopping, never resting. To yield to their bodies would be tantamount to yielding to the enemies that gathered at their rulers' gates.

They traveled in a group of three, at the ready to deal with any who would mistake them for an easy target for banditry, or worse, conspire to see the Queen and Prince cut off from the Kingsmoot, and thus lower the Royal Family's already diminished position.

"A Kingsmoot," The youngest, a white and sandy brown feathered flier named Percival, said aloud for what seemed like the latest in an innumerable amount of utterances, "I'd never even knew such a thing existed."

"That's our bloody laws for ya, lad," The gryphon that flew abreast with him, a seasoned man-at-arms -his body weathered enough to prove it- called Merle, called back, "Hidden under about fifty layers of tradition, there's always somethin' ripe to rut ya up the arse."

"Are we at least nearing Canterlot? The sooner we tell the Queen of this, the sooner we'll be back in Gryphos-"

"The sooner you'll be getting run through by some jumped up Blackfeather soldier's pike," Merle spat down towards the ground far below, "Hope it hits one of those technicolor pillocks..."

"You aren't answering me, you old windbag," Percival shouted in return, "How much long-"

"Soon," The voice that cut through the air came from the gryphon that flew in front of them, the majority of his body covered in gleaming plate that neither of his companions could understand how he was able to fly in.

"Sir Aerus," Percival spoke up, "How long has it been since one of these Kingsmoots have occurred?"

"Centuries," Aerus spoke, his voice almost crystal clear despite his face hidden behind the armored helm shaped into the countenance of an Osprey, "The Kingsmoot is an ancient tradition, one that saw the rise of the first High King when our mighty nation was formed."

"And....has it happened a lot?" Percival ventured.

"Thrice, once as I said before, once in the face of the Mongrel Horde, and now," Aerus banked slightly, a course correction that his two followers duplicated, "The first saw the rise of the Af Gryphonian dynasty, the second succeeded only in handing the reins of leadership from one member of the dynasty to another, and now this...I know not what will happen. I know only it is our duty to serve the royal family, even as camps of pretenders gather into alliances that march upon our proud castle."

"Pikers..." Merle muttered.

"And what if King Idris refuses what the lords decide?" Percival asked, a cold dread beginning to grip him.

"War," Merle said simply, "Even I know that."

"A war we cannot win," Aerus noted, "To go against the entirety of the realm's lords, when this test of leadership was organized by a member of Aerie's seers?"

"It'd be treason and sacrilege all wrapped up in a nice bundle," Merle muttered, "And any house that stood with ours would be burned to the ground and the earth they sat upon salted. In other words, lad, the Royals either prove they're worthy, or we all take it up the arse."

"Y-you can't be serious, with all that's happened under Idris' rule, how are they supposed to convince the other houses?" Percival blanched noticeably, taking on the look of a fledgling that just found out he was flightless.

"That is not yet our concern," Sir Aerus said simply as he rolled to the side of a cloud bank, "Our concern..."

Percival and Merle rolled with him...and looked down upon Canterlot, almost shining in the midday sun.

"Is bringing the Queen and Prince Siegfried home," Sir Aerus angled down and began the approach, "Come."

Nodding in agreement, the two gryphons followed after.

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>Chrysalis
"SA"
~~~~

*Rustle rustle... rustle rustle...*

>...Shiny?

"Mmmhmm."

>Has... has someone else been rustling my papers?

"Hm? Oh, yeah, Celestia came in here and-"

>HOW COULD YOU!?

"..."

>I THOUGHT WHAT WE HAD WAS SPECIALLLLLLLLLL!

*CRASH!*

"........"

>HAH! Just fuckin' with you. What was Celestia on about?

"...You just blew a hole in my wall."

>I'm dedicated to my craft.

"..."

>...Sorry?

"..."

>...I'm not sorry.

"I know..."

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>Twilight
"Celestia"
~~

>Hey, Celestia? I have a question.

"Please be a Shiny question, please be a Shiny question, please be a Shiny question-"

>A what?

"A Shiny question. Shiny only wants to question stuff that he can help me make better, as opposed to an 'everyone else' quesiton, which is there to bring me pain."

>Oh, uh... just wanted to know if you've seen Sunset.

"Nope."

>Okay.

"...'

>...

"...I do not know how to file that one."

>Take your time.

"..."

>...

"...Huh."

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>77
"88"
'???'
~~~

>Uh, sister? I don't think you should-

"THIS IS DELICIOUS!"

>I get that, really I do, but it's not really-

"THIS IS THE BEST THING EVER!"

>I'm sure that's a kind thing to say, but you shouldn't-

"ALL OF THIS! I WANT ALL OF THIS! MORE OF THIS IN MEEEE!"

>...

"..."

>...

"...So, who is this pony I'm sapping anyway?

>That would be prince Shining Armor.

"He important?"

>Allow me to clarify, the prince of the Crystal Empire.

"...That's the place we're at, right?"

>That it is.

"...You taste like chocolate and happy."

'So I've been told.'

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OMAKE TIME!
>Idris
"Gwen"
~~~

>Great. Just great. You see this shit? This shit is why I was a gag character before. I don't want to deal with this shit.

"Nobody wants to deal with this shit."

>Ugh... fucking hell.

"...At least we're getting screentime-"

>Shut up.

SMACK!

>OW!

"Tell me to shut up again, I dare you."

>...

"..."

>...Shu

~~~~

>REGRETS!

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Ncomake
>Sunset
"Variolus"
~~~

>..So, your thing, what was your thing?

"Come again?"

>Your superpower, what was it?

"Oh, you know, poison fangs."

>As in, your fangs were poisonous?"

"As in I coated them in poison."

>....Wouldn't you-

"Yes."

>...

"You know why my name said "Worst Queen" up there? That is a reason, that is one of the reasons."

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OMAKKKEEE!
>Prostimare
"Chitty"
~~~

>I feel pretty, oh so pretty! I feel pretty and witty and BRRIIIIGHT! And I pity, any girl who isn't me-

"FOR THE LOVE OF ALL THAT IS HOLY, SHUT THE FUCK UPPPPP!"

>NEVER! I FEEL PRETTY, AND I'M GONNA SING ABOUT IT!

"...I regret my life choices..."

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OMAKE!
>Jetset
"???"
~~~

>...

"..."

>...

"..."

>...

"..."

>...There is something... off about you.

"Uh... don't know what you mean, my good boy! I am but a humble patron, sitting upon this park bench, enjoying my newspaper."

>...

"..."

>...That coat is rather big.

"It is chilly."

>...

"..."

>...Ah hah! I have cracked the code!

"ACK!"

>You, sir! You have yesterdays paper, here is the current one.

"Oh... thanks?"

>Of course.

*TELEPORT!*

"..................Huh. So, as it turns out, trenchcoat, fedora and newspaper means nobody can tell who you are... my species have wasted much of their life."

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Non-Canon
>Pinkie
"Applebloom"
~~~~
>Welcome to Not Late Night /pa/ with your host Pinkie Pie! It's during this time that content does matter and threads get wrapped up! Now for our main guest...APPLEBLOOM!!!

"Great to-"

>Let's get to the point. Are you ready?

"...ready 'fer what?"

>Answer the question Applebloom! Are you ready or not?!

"Um...no?

>Good choice. I knew you weren't ready to cheat.
AB wakes up.

"...a pop quiz?!"

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Omake!
>SA
"Celestia"
~~~~~

>...Still feeling bad?

"Mmmhmmm. What tipped it off?"

>You're hugging my head to your chest again.

"You feel nice when you hum."

>How about that.

"..."

>...

"...I wish we could bang."

>Seems like that would solve a lot of the stress issues, I grant you.

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NCOMAKE
>Arana
"AJ"
~~~~~~

>Oh hey! They remembered me!

"Yeeep."

>...And I am yet again just a plot device to facilitate interactions between two characters who do not normally interact. Did you notice that? I'm mostly just here to solve a story problem.

"Ah' noticed."

>Well, I mean, I guess me calling Chitania made sense in character, was established I knew how to do that thanks to my mom, and wasn't an asspull way to get her clear across the continent, but still. I feel like I'm just here so we don't have to asspull.

"Better than the alternative, Ah' guess, which would'a been me suddenly bein' able ta' call someone halfway cross the country, and callin' Chitania specifically."

>Still, I'm pretty much just 'got a story problem? SOLVED!' Aren't I?

"Could be worse."

>How?

"Real quick, iffin' Ah' say "Sufferin' or an action scene', who comes ta' mind?"

>...Early thread Spike?

"After that."

>...Ohhhhhh... oh yeah, guess so. Auntie Chitty's got it rough.

"Ya' know they wanna make 13 her kid?"

>That changeling who's totally obsessed with Chrysalis?

"Yep."

>OH WOW!

"Yeeeep."

>...I mean, WOW.

"Uh huh."

>...I guess it's not so bad, at least being me isn't suffering.

"That it ain't."

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OMAKE!
>Zephyrious
"Hilda"
~~~~

"So, brother, looks like you're not seeing any side effects from the-"

>CUMQUAT!

"...I beg your-"

>JERRY GIGGLES!

"...Oh dear."

>WHY CAN'T I SMELL MY NOSE!?

"Annnd, I have apparently doomed our kingdom... I'm wondering if fourth times the charm, and father needs to get up on that."

>...Sister, I was joking. Did you really just imply our father needed to impregnate our mother? Ew.. Ewwww...

"Why is that ew? That's how we were born."

>...Ewwwwww...

"That's how any of your children will be born."

>.....HRKKK!

"NOT WITH MOTHER THAT'S NOT WHAT I MEANT OH DEAR HAWK STOP VOMITING!"

>HHHRRRKKKKKKKKK

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Non-Canon Pinkie Preview
>Pinkie
~~~~
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=M6CR3Faf-DU
>We're back in Canterlot now, and it was surprisingly tidy! There's going to be a kingsmoot In the Gryphon Kingdom. Also Sunset and Variolus work out a deal!
>Maud gets hungry. A creepy cult in a remote town stopped paying taxes. Actarius realizes he can graze on grass. Chitania gets swarmed by her movie fans. Rarity accidentally invents flying carpets and the Fire Nation attacks! Find out what happens next time in thread 71: Do Golems Dream of Sheep?...and of course MLF Fanservice!

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