Ngamer11
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Why? Some of his earlier victories came from simply talking to people, either to get them to stand down or to become a valued ally he can call upon at a later time.
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With This Ring (Young Justice SI) (Thread Fourteen)
- Thread starter Mr Zoat
- Start date
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- self insert young justice
KharnTheBrotrayer
Getting sticky.
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It's a comic book world.
Steelplaza
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Interesting that Lonnie chose not to wipe his own records. (At least I presume the SI would have noticed if he did.)
Mr Zoat
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Records? He's nine, and the ritual doesn't remove memories. What are they going to remove?
That's Hellblazer canon, by the way. John gets arrested, and people who remember his previous arrests and convictions can't find the paperwork to prove that they happened.
Silveraith
Argent Phantasm
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Wouldn't.
Mr Zoat
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Thank you, corrected.
He's not posting anything at the moment.
Starbate (part 14)
New
Mr Zoat
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16th January 2000
03:42 GMT
I sit on an asteroid which used to be part of Netu, looking down at the planet below me as the planetary defence system continues to deal with the rocks heading towards the planet.
It's not often that the idea of killing a goa'uld would make me feel like a heel.
I get on well enough with Bastet's Underlords because they think I'm one of them, and because I pay them proper deference while in their domains. And because I was weaker, and because Bastet likes me a lot. But that doesn't mean I'm blind to how they treated their subjects. Oh, the sort of brutal cruelty of Am-Heh was unusual, and there were plenty of human rulers who ruled as god-kings. That was pretty common in the earliest human farming civilisations on.. Earth.
And I now realise that they were probably either aping the goa'uld or were goa'uld themselves.
Huh.
So I can't take that too badly. That isn't a unique goa'uld thing but something plenty of humans did. And probably do in worlds the goa'uld have abandoned.
But unlike every human despot, every single goa'uld could do better. They all have knowledge of different social models. They all knew that Ra had humans in other positions than miner and farmer, and yet so very few of them… Make the effort.
I had to point out to Lord Mahes that he could ask Bastet to convert humans into Jaffa if they performed sufficiently well. He's not stupid, he just… Wrote humans off, and never revised his decision.
Bastet's… Different. She at least has a sizable artisan and political class, and has allowed a more advanced level of technology that most goa'uld would. She restricts it as a control mechanism rather than as a form of negligence, and the fact that she is willing to allow me to go further indicates a different mindset.
Or maybe our relationship has made me unduly understanding where she's concerned.
But the point is that the spontaneous celebrations are still going on. And as far as I can tell Apophis finds them amusing enough that he isn't cracking the whip and sending everyone back to work. These people are really happy that Sokar is gone. Even the Jaffa, and not just because the First Prime and other senior Jaffa died with their master and Apophis has had to promote a lot of them. Though I suspect that doesn't hurt.
If Bastet and I had a goa'uld child ready to go, this would be a perfect place to set them up.
What will happen if I do this? Ah, let's say… Publically?
Well, he'd get put in a sarcophagus. Or kept fresh until they could find or capture one. If that wasn't possible… The planet would probably carry on much as it did before, plus the amendments he made prior to his death. With no other goa'uld around it would be neutralised as an offensive body until… A Prim'ta reached maturity.
No. Maybe? Sokar was sent here a long time ago. He would have had millions of mature Prim'ta to deal with. If he allowed any of them to be implanted, he would have a plethora of Underlords. And I can't see a single one.
Not sure where he was getting new Prim'ta from. If he was still alive it would be worth doing a genetic comparison, but as things are now it's pretty redundant.
Ah…
Human worlds deprived of their goa'uld usually develop into autocratic monarchies, based on whatever structures were there before. Senior servants become near-divine regents. Or perhaps merchants make use of their advantageous informational and financial resources to secure their positions. In a situation like this the Jaffa would probably take control in their late gods' name, pending his 'return'. Except the First Prime has been in post for all of five minutes and doesn't have the loyalty of the other Jaffa. Not to the degree that they'd accept him as their interim ruler, at least.
So perhaps each industrial region would end up independent? No, no, that doesn't make sense either. They're military industrial plants. Without war preparations they don't serve any particular purpose. No one would pay-.
The goa'uld are at war. Of course people would pay. That could work. For export, not for other parts of a headless kingdom. We could buy them-. Delmak is almost entirely lacking in civilian amenities. We could ship them food and raw materials in exchange for ships and guns. Delmak's location isn't exactly a secret, though as far as I know most goa'uld don't know exactly what's happening here.
I'd still need a figurehead, and I don't know the locals well enough to pick one. And openly killing Apophis would cause chaos. And covertly killing him would make everyone wonder where he was.
Hm.
I… Could do it myself. They don't know him well, and I've got plenty of recordings of his voice and mannerisms. I could alter the shape of my face… No, I couldn't do everything I'd need to on Syrania and occupy Delmak as Apophis.
What else, then?
I could alter someone else's appearance, but I can't think of anyone would could take that role. Except for a Tok'Ra, maybe, but I wouldn't trust them to use safety scissors responsibly, much less a major industrial base.
I mean, it would work… Maybe if I knew them better.
I also don't have anyone I could leave as a regent. So that leaves…
I take Am-heh out of my ring, and then do the same with the Mammon clone corpse.
I could stick one of these two in his host, or assimilate Apophis and leave him in post with new instructions.
That would be a dick move to the host, and based on the S.G.C.'s recordings the host is somewhat compos mentis. Probably not in any condition to run a planet, but freeing him would be an improvement in his conditions. And he could work up to functioning on his own.
Apophis knows everything he needs to know. That's the deciding factor, really. I'm going to need-.
Apophis is… Retiring for the evening. Not to a sarcophagus, but to… Sokar's bed. The room looks like it's had some decorations violently removed and not yet replaced, which would make sense.
Sarcophagus. Apophis has almost certainly used one a great many times in his life. Which means that the brain lesions will be fairly pronounced. I could just fix them. Which… Would leave his host a slave, wouldn't make him willing to work with me or Bastet, would anger Bastet as I'd be going against her request… No, no point.
What does his room have in the way of defences?
Guards on the door, guards on the wall, and… Force field around the bed, but it's off by default. Apophis is armed, but he's put his host into sleep mode basically immediately.
Hm.
The streets of the palace area have cleaner sight-lines than Am-heh's keep, the patrols are better organised and the people are still partying, meaning that there are more people around to spot the untoward. And… This is my first ecumenopolis. There isn't anywhere I can dig a hole from without risking getting spotted.
I could take the risk-. But, no. They may not know Apophis well, but if something strange happens and his behaviour changes, that might give the game away. A better option…
The stargate. If I put together a trade caravan and dial Delmak… Probably best if I pretend to be a trader myself. If Bastet remembers Mammon then Apophis certainly would. Take examples of grains and produce, say that I'm there to see if they are interested in a trade agreement, and while I'm working the stand I can feel around with filaments. Or if they direct me to a hotel -if they even have those- then I'll have plenty of time to work on getting through to Apophis.
Sounds like a plan. But I'll need a day or two to put things together. And to explain to Bastet that I won't be 'killing' him so much as completely subverting him. Still, the plan doesn't have any obvious flaws. I doubt that much will happen in the next few days that could take Apophis away from his reorganisation of his latest possession.
18th January 2000
04:12 GMT
"Gone?" The Jaffa nods. "Gone… Where?"
03:42 GMT
I sit on an asteroid which used to be part of Netu, looking down at the planet below me as the planetary defence system continues to deal with the rocks heading towards the planet.
It's not often that the idea of killing a goa'uld would make me feel like a heel.
I get on well enough with Bastet's Underlords because they think I'm one of them, and because I pay them proper deference while in their domains. And because I was weaker, and because Bastet likes me a lot. But that doesn't mean I'm blind to how they treated their subjects. Oh, the sort of brutal cruelty of Am-Heh was unusual, and there were plenty of human rulers who ruled as god-kings. That was pretty common in the earliest human farming civilisations on.. Earth.
And I now realise that they were probably either aping the goa'uld or were goa'uld themselves.
Huh.
So I can't take that too badly. That isn't a unique goa'uld thing but something plenty of humans did. And probably do in worlds the goa'uld have abandoned.
But unlike every human despot, every single goa'uld could do better. They all have knowledge of different social models. They all knew that Ra had humans in other positions than miner and farmer, and yet so very few of them… Make the effort.
I had to point out to Lord Mahes that he could ask Bastet to convert humans into Jaffa if they performed sufficiently well. He's not stupid, he just… Wrote humans off, and never revised his decision.
Bastet's… Different. She at least has a sizable artisan and political class, and has allowed a more advanced level of technology that most goa'uld would. She restricts it as a control mechanism rather than as a form of negligence, and the fact that she is willing to allow me to go further indicates a different mindset.
Or maybe our relationship has made me unduly understanding where she's concerned.
But the point is that the spontaneous celebrations are still going on. And as far as I can tell Apophis finds them amusing enough that he isn't cracking the whip and sending everyone back to work. These people are really happy that Sokar is gone. Even the Jaffa, and not just because the First Prime and other senior Jaffa died with their master and Apophis has had to promote a lot of them. Though I suspect that doesn't hurt.
If Bastet and I had a goa'uld child ready to go, this would be a perfect place to set them up.
What will happen if I do this? Ah, let's say… Publically?
Well, he'd get put in a sarcophagus. Or kept fresh until they could find or capture one. If that wasn't possible… The planet would probably carry on much as it did before, plus the amendments he made prior to his death. With no other goa'uld around it would be neutralised as an offensive body until… A Prim'ta reached maturity.
No. Maybe? Sokar was sent here a long time ago. He would have had millions of mature Prim'ta to deal with. If he allowed any of them to be implanted, he would have a plethora of Underlords. And I can't see a single one.
Not sure where he was getting new Prim'ta from. If he was still alive it would be worth doing a genetic comparison, but as things are now it's pretty redundant.
Ah…
Human worlds deprived of their goa'uld usually develop into autocratic monarchies, based on whatever structures were there before. Senior servants become near-divine regents. Or perhaps merchants make use of their advantageous informational and financial resources to secure their positions. In a situation like this the Jaffa would probably take control in their late gods' name, pending his 'return'. Except the First Prime has been in post for all of five minutes and doesn't have the loyalty of the other Jaffa. Not to the degree that they'd accept him as their interim ruler, at least.
So perhaps each industrial region would end up independent? No, no, that doesn't make sense either. They're military industrial plants. Without war preparations they don't serve any particular purpose. No one would pay-.
The goa'uld are at war. Of course people would pay. That could work. For export, not for other parts of a headless kingdom. We could buy them-. Delmak is almost entirely lacking in civilian amenities. We could ship them food and raw materials in exchange for ships and guns. Delmak's location isn't exactly a secret, though as far as I know most goa'uld don't know exactly what's happening here.
I'd still need a figurehead, and I don't know the locals well enough to pick one. And openly killing Apophis would cause chaos. And covertly killing him would make everyone wonder where he was.
Hm.
I… Could do it myself. They don't know him well, and I've got plenty of recordings of his voice and mannerisms. I could alter the shape of my face… No, I couldn't do everything I'd need to on Syrania and occupy Delmak as Apophis.
What else, then?
I could alter someone else's appearance, but I can't think of anyone would could take that role. Except for a Tok'Ra, maybe, but I wouldn't trust them to use safety scissors responsibly, much less a major industrial base.
I mean, it would work… Maybe if I knew them better.
I also don't have anyone I could leave as a regent. So that leaves…
I take Am-heh out of my ring, and then do the same with the Mammon clone corpse.
I could stick one of these two in his host, or assimilate Apophis and leave him in post with new instructions.
That would be a dick move to the host, and based on the S.G.C.'s recordings the host is somewhat compos mentis. Probably not in any condition to run a planet, but freeing him would be an improvement in his conditions. And he could work up to functioning on his own.
Apophis knows everything he needs to know. That's the deciding factor, really. I'm going to need-.
Apophis is… Retiring for the evening. Not to a sarcophagus, but to… Sokar's bed. The room looks like it's had some decorations violently removed and not yet replaced, which would make sense.
Sarcophagus. Apophis has almost certainly used one a great many times in his life. Which means that the brain lesions will be fairly pronounced. I could just fix them. Which… Would leave his host a slave, wouldn't make him willing to work with me or Bastet, would anger Bastet as I'd be going against her request… No, no point.
What does his room have in the way of defences?
Guards on the door, guards on the wall, and… Force field around the bed, but it's off by default. Apophis is armed, but he's put his host into sleep mode basically immediately.
Hm.
The streets of the palace area have cleaner sight-lines than Am-heh's keep, the patrols are better organised and the people are still partying, meaning that there are more people around to spot the untoward. And… This is my first ecumenopolis. There isn't anywhere I can dig a hole from without risking getting spotted.
I could take the risk-. But, no. They may not know Apophis well, but if something strange happens and his behaviour changes, that might give the game away. A better option…
The stargate. If I put together a trade caravan and dial Delmak… Probably best if I pretend to be a trader myself. If Bastet remembers Mammon then Apophis certainly would. Take examples of grains and produce, say that I'm there to see if they are interested in a trade agreement, and while I'm working the stand I can feel around with filaments. Or if they direct me to a hotel -if they even have those- then I'll have plenty of time to work on getting through to Apophis.
Sounds like a plan. But I'll need a day or two to put things together. And to explain to Bastet that I won't be 'killing' him so much as completely subverting him. Still, the plan doesn't have any obvious flaws. I doubt that much will happen in the next few days that could take Apophis away from his reorganisation of his latest possession.
18th January 2000
04:12 GMT
"Gone?" The Jaffa nods. "Gone… Where?"
Last edited:
RichardWhereat
Aia airëa Fëanáro.
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Gone where the goblins go.
Darko
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Well we know that Set lived through several millenia on Earth.
It's possible that other Goa'uld did the same.
Well there was that one SGC guy that set himself up on that planet with extreme solar radiation.
I mean, human despots also have knowledge of different social models, so they could do better too.
Granted, in ancient times that may not have been the case.
The Goa'uld consider themselves to be the pinnacle if life, so of course those that aren't Goa'uld, or aren't intimately connected to Goa'uld like the Jaffa would be viewed as largely worthless.
It's possible that the main reason she's allowing advancement to happen is because Ra is dead and the other System Lords are at war, so no one can really stop her.
Oh, I'd love to see how that conversation would go.
Mammon: Here you go, my child. I'm giving you a hell world to rile over.
Child: ...thanks...just...thanks...
Assuming that Sokar wanted to have too many rivals.
Until they at least advance enough to become something else.
The structures that were there before were autocratic monarchies that had the Goa'uld at the top.
Assuming you find him a therapist.
Seeing as he was Ra's Underlord, Apophis would probably know Mammon better than anyone else.
Murphy strikes again.
Mr Zoat
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But Ra explicitly didn't, using them as soldiers in preference to Jaffa. Which means that it isn't 'all goa'uld', which makes it more disappointing when most goa'uld do it.
Delmak isn't really a hell world, and for a goa'uld it's actually a really good starting planet. Large population, biggest industrial base of any starting planet and a bigger fleet than most System Lords directly control.
Chojin Patriarch
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Which is surprising. The vast majority are unrepentant arseholes who deserves everything coming to them. And the rare few who aren't are usually worse. In fact, you can probably count the reasonable, good Goa'uld on one hand... With fingers left over.
...Might be a good reason for that, Mammon.
Why do I get the feeling the Bronze Age Collapse happened around the same time the Goa'uld were driven off?
Probably social inertia. 'This is the way it's always been done.' And so it was.
One that understands that having to do everything high-end themselves is a right pain, for instance.
Goes to show just how hates Sokar was, and how terrified they were of him...
Perhaps a polite conquest, a regency until they have a suitable manager to put in place?
And a somewhat reduced chance of them declaring war on Bastet, if you were recognised.
...Now that you mention it, that is an interesting detail. It's obvious he killed any potential rivals off, but no underlords at all? Man needed to learn to delegate.
So the planet might fragment into military dictatorships under senior jaffa. That would be right messy.
Though if they found out, they would quickly step in to capture such a valuable asset.
Quite the conundrum...
Oh, no. Mammon, don't let the intrusive stupidity take hold...
That's a fair description of the Tok'ra, though...
...Making your own regent? This is a bad idea. This is a Goa'uld-level idea.
Plus he'd likely retain chunks of Apophis' knowledge, allowing him to sell the illusion.
Well, he's either stupid or foolishly overconfident.
So, extract Apophis the symbiont, assimilate him and let the host have his say over whether he keeps doing the job?
So a quick transition, yoink and gone before they react...
One guess why the sightlines from the
But such a thing would be remembered. And you don't want any trails left, especially if this goes poorly.
Oh, mother-lover! And the wiki doesn't account for his whereabouts at this time, so...
Ah, the best laid plans... All that effort and he's not even there. On the upside, with no in-series records of his activities at this time beyond 'took Sokar's forces for his own', there's lots of things he could be doing. Good chance he's offworld making contact with his existing armies... After all, he's going to have to integrate them somehow...
Darko
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He did have that one guy that ran the moon prison.
It would still take tears if therapy for him to be functional.
Mammon may be better served either having an android built or something like that.
He's a Goa'uld.
Most of them are both.
Plus as far as he knows he's surrounded by loyal soldiers and had a powerful fleet.
I think the host may just request that his corpse is sent to Egypt so that he can get a proper burial
Chaoswind
Lord of nonsense
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Come on Paulmon that just means is easier to take the planet over, do a few orange god things tell them they are under new management now, take half their defense fleet back to Bastet territory to be crewed by her forces and then return them to the planet to act as a loyal defense force.
I wonder if the SGC was already attacked by the aliens with holographic disguises.
Neruz
HISSSSSS!
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While that would certainly be thematic, canonically the slave rebellion that led to the Stargate getting buried happened around 3000 BC, right at the very start of the Bronze Age, while the collapse happened around 1100 BC.
Indeed, the rebellion seems to have taken place a few centuries after bronze tools became a thing, which is probably a coincidence but may not be.
Sordid Snake
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But what about the first Brone Age collapse? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YQ7cMwKwCYA
(2200 BC. 800 years is fudge-able: "Goa'uld industrial process led to extra carbon 14, so carbon dating something from 3000 BC gives the result 2200 BC since there is too much c14 left in it to look 5000 years old". [It wouldn't really work since the C14 base rate can be calibrated by lake bottom sediment and tree rings that keeps a record of it year by year, so the "extra c14" for pre-3000 BC should be immediately noticable])
Vaermina
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Realistically I would say he detected you entering and leaving orbit so activated one of his contingency plans and is now ruling from random locations in his empire.
But it's probably more something to do with something SG1 did.
Anarkic (supplementary, Renegade option)
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Mr Zoat
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1st May 2013
15:23 GMT
"Look o-!"
Something on wheels shoots underneath me-
"Huh?"
-and careens towards-. Towards a construct crash mat that I interpose between in and the brick wall it was heading towards. I let the construct dissipate as the.. small pony picks… Herself up and rights her scooter. She looks around for a moment and the affects an 'I meant to do that' expression before turning back to me.
"Ah. Hey."
Small, orange, wings, purple mane and tail, no cutie mark. Scootaloo, and if she still doesn't have a cutie mark then it seems that the writers decided to keep torturing the three of them past the point where I arrived on Earth 16.
"Hello, little pony. Scootaloo, isn't it?"
"Ah… Yeah." She looks awkward about talking to me, but not scared-awkward. "Um. Can I..? Talk to you..?"
"You appear to be doing that now? Unless you mean privately, in which case… Maybe?"
Equestria doesn't have the sort of child safeguarding laws that advanced countries on Earth do. In theory, there's no problem with me boom tubing her somewhere, having a chat and then sending her back, as long as I do so in a timely manner. I look around, trying to assess how much privacy places in Ponyville are likely to provide.
'Not much' appears to be the answer. I wasn't wrong about Ponyville becoming a dormitory town, but it's not just that. The improvements to the train network have already resulted in a few companies constructing warehouses on the outskirts, and a few other higher order of service buildings are visible away from the town centre as well.
"I-." She fluffs her wings nervously as she approaches, gathering her- "Canyoufixmywings?" -courage.
"Ah…"
I frown, giving them a scan. Um. Okay, it looks like they're a little small, relative to her size, but I can't immediately see anything else wrong with them. And given that there's a pony with visibly stunted wings who can fly just fine I doubt that's the issue. Something about how the magic functions, perhaps? Shouldn't be anything that modern thaumaturgical science can't fix; before Sunset pulled it off fixing a broken horn was beyond Equestrian medicine.
"Possibly? If you can get me your medical records, I can have my specialists take a look and see what they think."
That doesn't appear to satisfy her. "Don't you have anything..? Faster?"
"Haste in medicine is a bad idea, at least when the patient isn't bleeding o-heavily in front of you. You heard about how we fixed Tempest Shadow's horn?"
She nods.
"That took us over a year of research into horn structures and magic flows before we attempted a repair job, and we found the remains of her broken part to help us. What exactly is wrong with your wings?"
"They just don't-" She flaps-. Buzzes her wings and jumps, lifting off the ground for a moment before falling back down. "-lift me."
"You appear to be flapping rather differently to most pegasus ponies I've observed. Could that-?"
"I've tried that. This is the only thing I can do to get off the ground at all."
"Ah. Alright. I'll get hold of Sunset, and she can take a look at you. I know that she's been interested in-."
"How about..?" She takes a deep breath and plants her hooves. "How about making me an alicorn? Rainbow Dash said that she was on a.. approved list, but she doesn't want it, so can I have her slot?"
"Huuuuh."
I mean, that… Would probably fix any issue. The vast majority of pegasus ponies in Equestria fly with no problem at all, so reconfiguring her magic based on the species-wide template would result in there being no issue at the end. Might be worth checking to see if her magic is just different rather than non-functional-.
"Can you stand on clouds?"
"Yeah?"
"Manipulate them?"
"A little?"
"Have you ever noticed yourself doing anything with your magic that other ponies can't do, for example, sensing air currents?"
"Ah… No? And what does that have to do with becoming an alicorn? You said anypony could do it."
"Sure… And… Celestia and Luna became alicorns before they got their cutie marks-."
She blinks. "They did?"
"Ah, yeah. Well into adolescence, actually. Got them when they took over control of the sky from the unicorns who managed it before them."
Her eyes widen. "Whow. So… Like… They didn't have them when they moved the sun and moon?"
"Yes, that's exactly it." I frown. "Well, not when they started. I didn't actually ask whether they got them after or during."
"How come!?"
"I'm.. probably not the best person to ask about that. But as I understand it, Cutie Marks aren't a reward you get for achieving a certain level of excellence. Rather, you get them when you recognise something you were always good at. You're fortunate, really: it doesn't work like that on Ap-."
"So they could always raise the sun? And-and the moon?"
"Yes?"
"But… They could only do that after they became alicorns."
"They could only do that on their own after they became alicorns. You know the Hearthwarming story: it used to be done by regular unicorns."
"So…" Her brow furrows. "What would have happened if they weren't alicorns? Would they have got some other Cutie Mark?"
"No, they'd probably have gotten involved in raising and lowering the sun with the unicorn team that would have done it if there weren't alicorns around to handle things. Being alicorns just made them much better at it due to the extra raw power. And probably having the magic of the other two tribes."
"So if I was an alicorn… I'd still get the same Cutie Mark, but I'd be better at whatever it was my Special Talent is?"
"Ah, basically."
"Neat!" She perks up. "I wanna be an alicorn! Ah, please!"
I mean… It's a straight upgrade. And Sunset has wanted more non-unicorn volunteers. Still, I'm a little reluctant to change the species of a pony this young, even if there's a medical reason for it. If her magic problem doesn't sort itself out as she reaches full physical maturity she could go through it then. But with an earth pony and a unicorn pony as her closest friends, the only reason why she couldn't try Twilight's method is the lack of a powerful source of raw magic, and…
I look at the Everfree Forest. And then at the Castle of Friendship, containing the magic table that can track anyone in the country.
If she really wants to change her species, wouldn't it be better for her to do it with the help of professionals, rather than mess about with it herself?
"Why don't we go and talk to your parents about it."
"Ah…" She looks reluctant. "That… Could be kind of a problem."
15:23 GMT
"Look o-!"
Something on wheels shoots underneath me-
"Huh?"
-and careens towards-. Towards a construct crash mat that I interpose between in and the brick wall it was heading towards. I let the construct dissipate as the.. small pony picks… Herself up and rights her scooter. She looks around for a moment and the affects an 'I meant to do that' expression before turning back to me.
"Ah. Hey."
Small, orange, wings, purple mane and tail, no cutie mark. Scootaloo, and if she still doesn't have a cutie mark then it seems that the writers decided to keep torturing the three of them past the point where I arrived on Earth 16.
"Hello, little pony. Scootaloo, isn't it?"
"Ah… Yeah." She looks awkward about talking to me, but not scared-awkward. "Um. Can I..? Talk to you..?"
"You appear to be doing that now? Unless you mean privately, in which case… Maybe?"
Equestria doesn't have the sort of child safeguarding laws that advanced countries on Earth do. In theory, there's no problem with me boom tubing her somewhere, having a chat and then sending her back, as long as I do so in a timely manner. I look around, trying to assess how much privacy places in Ponyville are likely to provide.
'Not much' appears to be the answer. I wasn't wrong about Ponyville becoming a dormitory town, but it's not just that. The improvements to the train network have already resulted in a few companies constructing warehouses on the outskirts, and a few other higher order of service buildings are visible away from the town centre as well.
"I-." She fluffs her wings nervously as she approaches, gathering her- "Canyoufixmywings?" -courage.
"Ah…"
I frown, giving them a scan. Um. Okay, it looks like they're a little small, relative to her size, but I can't immediately see anything else wrong with them. And given that there's a pony with visibly stunted wings who can fly just fine I doubt that's the issue. Something about how the magic functions, perhaps? Shouldn't be anything that modern thaumaturgical science can't fix; before Sunset pulled it off fixing a broken horn was beyond Equestrian medicine.
"Possibly? If you can get me your medical records, I can have my specialists take a look and see what they think."
That doesn't appear to satisfy her. "Don't you have anything..? Faster?"
"Haste in medicine is a bad idea, at least when the patient isn't bleeding o-heavily in front of you. You heard about how we fixed Tempest Shadow's horn?"
She nods.
"That took us over a year of research into horn structures and magic flows before we attempted a repair job, and we found the remains of her broken part to help us. What exactly is wrong with your wings?"
"They just don't-" She flaps-. Buzzes her wings and jumps, lifting off the ground for a moment before falling back down. "-lift me."
"You appear to be flapping rather differently to most pegasus ponies I've observed. Could that-?"
"I've tried that. This is the only thing I can do to get off the ground at all."
"Ah. Alright. I'll get hold of Sunset, and she can take a look at you. I know that she's been interested in-."
"How about..?" She takes a deep breath and plants her hooves. "How about making me an alicorn? Rainbow Dash said that she was on a.. approved list, but she doesn't want it, so can I have her slot?"
"Huuuuh."
I mean, that… Would probably fix any issue. The vast majority of pegasus ponies in Equestria fly with no problem at all, so reconfiguring her magic based on the species-wide template would result in there being no issue at the end. Might be worth checking to see if her magic is just different rather than non-functional-.
"Can you stand on clouds?"
"Yeah?"
"Manipulate them?"
"A little?"
"Have you ever noticed yourself doing anything with your magic that other ponies can't do, for example, sensing air currents?"
"Ah… No? And what does that have to do with becoming an alicorn? You said anypony could do it."
"Sure… And… Celestia and Luna became alicorns before they got their cutie marks-."
She blinks. "They did?"
"Ah, yeah. Well into adolescence, actually. Got them when they took over control of the sky from the unicorns who managed it before them."
Her eyes widen. "Whow. So… Like… They didn't have them when they moved the sun and moon?"
"Yes, that's exactly it." I frown. "Well, not when they started. I didn't actually ask whether they got them after or during."
"How come!?"
"I'm.. probably not the best person to ask about that. But as I understand it, Cutie Marks aren't a reward you get for achieving a certain level of excellence. Rather, you get them when you recognise something you were always good at. You're fortunate, really: it doesn't work like that on Ap-."
"So they could always raise the sun? And-and the moon?"
"Yes?"
"But… They could only do that after they became alicorns."
"They could only do that on their own after they became alicorns. You know the Hearthwarming story: it used to be done by regular unicorns."
"So…" Her brow furrows. "What would have happened if they weren't alicorns? Would they have got some other Cutie Mark?"
"No, they'd probably have gotten involved in raising and lowering the sun with the unicorn team that would have done it if there weren't alicorns around to handle things. Being alicorns just made them much better at it due to the extra raw power. And probably having the magic of the other two tribes."
"So if I was an alicorn… I'd still get the same Cutie Mark, but I'd be better at whatever it was my Special Talent is?"
"Ah, basically."
"Neat!" She perks up. "I wanna be an alicorn! Ah, please!"
I mean… It's a straight upgrade. And Sunset has wanted more non-unicorn volunteers. Still, I'm a little reluctant to change the species of a pony this young, even if there's a medical reason for it. If her magic problem doesn't sort itself out as she reaches full physical maturity she could go through it then. But with an earth pony and a unicorn pony as her closest friends, the only reason why she couldn't try Twilight's method is the lack of a powerful source of raw magic, and…
I look at the Everfree Forest. And then at the Castle of Friendship, containing the magic table that can track anyone in the country.
If she really wants to change her species, wouldn't it be better for her to do it with the help of professionals, rather than mess about with it herself?
"Why don't we go and talk to your parents about it."
"Ah…" She looks reluctant. "That… Could be kind of a problem."
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Darko
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Not sure they're stunted, so much that the rest of him is just huge.
Heck, maybe the muscles were acquired through steroids and wing shrinkage is a side-effect.
"doesn't want"
Mr Zoat
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Thank you, corrected.
Chojin Patriarch
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Something small, wheeled and fast in Ponyville? It can only be the lightning-quick Scootaloo. And taking her usual approach to moving about town. At least the Renegade has plenty of clearance below...
Like a cat falling off a bench.
On the other hand, if she doesn't, it's likely to be different just due to the Renegade's presence and interactions.
Surprisingly brave, given his ponified appearance is more 'Nightmare' than 'Heroic winged unicorn'.
Bit of a worry, but given the good nature of the vast majority of Equestrians, I guess untoward things are far less likely.
So the original town centre hasn't been phased out just yet by a mall or something, but it might get there before long.
Ah, the age old issue of young ladies. Or in this case, a Pegasi with a bit of an emotional issue.
I knew where that link pointed even without looking. So, Scootaloo is feeling a bit underpowered?
It's not like he's going to just wave his horn and go 'Bingity-wig, your wings are now big' or something.
I suspect that's where she got this idea from, safe bet.
So, more hummingbird-like flight than conventional. Though I doubt she has the stamina to maintain such a state.
Hmm... Definitely a deficiency somewhere. Given that even young foals have been seen flying...
There are so many moral issues wrong with that plan.
Setting aside the morality of basically putting a barely-pubescent child through a super-power empowering process...
Not a problem in the hoof-aspect of it, then.
A little worrying. Perhaps the cloud-shaping ability is related to the wing magic.
Naturally, she doesn't find being able to travel at positively unsafe speeds on her scooter abnormal...
I would assume Luna told him as much, and that he's not talking our of his rump.
If anything, doing so is what earned them, I expect.
Luna didn't feel like commenting, or he simply didn't think to ask.
Though most New Gods probably have a personal sigil, I doubt they have them etched into their skin anywhere. Unless they're really odd.
Well, once they had Alicornhood, anyway. I wonder if that was some parting gift from Discord, or from Harmony itself.
Whole teams of them, in fact. I suspect they were quite relieved when the Sisters stepped forwards.
Kinda makes me wonder what their pre-alicorn looks were like. Probably adorably cute, as with any young pony.
Ironically, before the whole 'Cutie Mark Crusader' cutie mark thing, she was hinted at having a talent for dancing... With a minor knack for mechanical stuff like scooter-riding.
And without Flurry Heart yet born to study, they have no idea what Alicornhood will do to a young mind.
And you know she'd obsess over it, probably getting into some dangerous quest to accomplish it. Just how the narrative nature of Equstria seems to run.
It's only said outright what her family situation is very late in the series. So this might surprise the Renegade...
Good thing she came to the Renegade rather than going off half-cocked on some hare-brained scheme based on overheard knowledge about how Twilight became an Alicorn. This way, she might actually realise what she wants isn't necessarily what she needs. And hopefully he's smart enough to realise those aren't the same thing, whatever the potential scientific benefit.
Mr Zoat
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No, I'm going with eventually-canon.
CTrees
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He finds Jade's discarded ring. Just, like, picks it up off the ground and starts using it. Kyle Rayner shows up to take it back like two issues later. Anarky also built his own boom tube generator, somehow.
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Steelplaza
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The level of plot armor and sword bullshit that Anarky can deploy... makes a lot of sense if he's the Joker's son!
Chaoswind
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Huh... I never made the connection that the black blur speedster the team encountered in Russia was Savitar and that the guy joined the Light. The question would be who was the silver blur helping Savitar? My initial answer would have been Godspeed, but he is supposedly faster than Barry and yet he was the one that got tagged by the power armor sergeant dude.
Mr Zoat
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Apprently, it's easy once you understand hyper-inflated gravitons. He had been doing mad science to his brain for a while prior to that.
He also notes that he wasn't very good with the ring he stole.
oct9010
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Excuse you, that's "Nightstallion".
Mr Zoat
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No, come on. If Celestia gets 'Daybreaker', you can make more effort than just switching the sex. This isn't Xanth.