Tag Archives: dark

Wellspring’s “Arthurian—The Black King”

18 Friday Mar 2016

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You always go back to the classics — and with today’s story, you can return to a pony take on one of the great classics of English literature.

arthurianArthurian—The Black King
[Dark] [Romance] [Tragedy] • 30,305 words

“Those of us who have a general overview and knowledge of King Sombra regard him to be a despotic autocrat, a power-hungry potentate and a vicious oppressor. And, even if this condemnation is justified, we may perhaps not have the right reason for this attribution. This is due to the fact that before King Sombra turned to the tyrant we all know him to be, he was the greatest knight of the Crystal Empire.”

—Sir Sombra de Onyx, Foreword to the Third Edition

FROM THE CURATORS: “This is a very ambitious piece,” Present Perfect said — as its roots show.  “The author lists Le Morte D’Arthur and Ivanhoe as the primary inspirations,” Chris said, “and Wellspring does a commendable job capturing both the literary style and the feeling of history-by-way-of-myth which permeates Le Morte D’Arthur.  A capital-r Romance in the truest sense, this is a story about character archetypes presented in a tell-heavy style.”  It is also, in Horizon’s words, “metal as heck.  From Sombra’s world-serpent origin to the way the sphinx is killed, this continuously finds new ways to crank up the level of epic.”

And while The Black King can be an easy story to bounce off of — “I can appreciate what the author’s doing here, but I can’t read it,” AugieDog said — it richly rewards readers willing to engage with it.  “The style is obtuse, and all the grammatical errors don’t help the story at all,” Soge said, “but this story sold me on its metafiction aspects levels so hard that by the end I went from ‘Wellspring needs a editor’ to ‘Boy, Equestrian grammar sure has changed’. The afterwords are tone perfect, the historical and plot inaccuracies feel legitimate, and the footnotes complement the text beautifully.”  Present Perfect had similar praise for those margin elements: “There’s so much unexpected humor with the historical inaccuracies in the footnotes. And there’s historical poems in them! They do quite a lot more work than one expects footnotes to. … I’ve also never praised an afterword before, which should say enough by itself.”

What locked in The Black King’s feature, though, was that its unusual style was wrapped around solid storytelling.  “Sombra’s backstory is really powerful,” Present Perfect said, while Soge praised its worldbuilding more broadly: “The story carries some fascinating ideas about Sombra, the Crystal Kingdom, and historical Equestria as a whole. I love how Sombra’s tragic flaws are mostly positive attributes, which makes the inevitable conclusion all the stronger.”  It all added up to a package worth the time spent in adjusting to its presentation.  “The more I think about it, the more impressive I find this story to be,” Chris said. “The Black King captured my imagination in a way few fanfics do, and I feel like that’s the definition of something worth spotlighting.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Wellspring discusses showy footnotes, writing archetypically, and the evil of Cervantes.
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Wisdom Thumbs’ “The Weak”

05 Friday Feb 2016

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Today’s story is a strong addition to our collection of tales about Equestria’s distant past.

the-weakThe Weak
[Dark] [Tragedy] • 7,723 words

They say minotaurs live by the scars they bear. Bismuth’s hide is a map of the world: his life was the blade, and the blade was his life, carried unto a hundred red fields, down a thousand roads, singing among elk, deer, and dragons. He stood at ramparts long since fallen, and was counted a hero in lands forgotten, when ponies had only begun to dream.

Maybe it’s all true, but now he only rocks in his chair, stirring at embers, while his deeds turn to rust in the shadows. What kind of scars call that living? And if you ask him, would he tell you?

FROM THE CURATORS: Connoisseurs of classic ponyfic will find a little extra bonus in today’s feature, as Chris pointed out when he introduced this story to us. “This borrows its setting from Jetfire’s It’s A Dangerous Business, Going Out Your Door stories,” he said.  “But I believe The Weak stands on its own.  All of the things it borrows are gleaned easily enough from this story itself.”  And the rest of us quickly discovered that it was richly rewarding even without the context of its source.  “Having forgotten pretty much all of Dangerous Business in the four or five years since I read it, I didn’t have any trouble with the set-up,” AugieDog said.  “The writing is top-notch, and the revelation at the end of who Bismuth is telling this story to was just the perfect cap.”  Present Perfect agreed: “Unfamiliar with those stories as I am, this comes off as just another excellent piece of world-building. The fantastic writing, the solid character voice, tell a story of the horrors of war with all the fantasy a Tolkien or Tolkien-after reader could ask for.”

It wasn’t only the power of that prose which brought to mind another blast from the past.  “I’d compare this story to our previous feature The War and What Came After,” Chris said, “in that it doesn’t seem like a particularly ‘pony’ story until the end — at which point it ties itself back to its Equestrian setting in a way that not only justifies its being written as an MLP fanfic, but also perfectly encapsulates the tone of the world it’s set in.”  Other curators also singled out for praise the way in which The Weak connected its original writing and the show we love.  “I’m impressed at how ponies pervade this story while barely appearing in it. It’s very Outside Insight that way,” Present Perfect said.

But no matter how many fond memories of other stories this invoked, there was never any question that The Weak earned its own place in our hearts.  “I’m most impressed with the writing,” Present Perfect said.  “It’s hard not to adore a line like ‘I tried to feel dry’.”  Chris agreed: “Once the narrator stops addressing his audience and starts telling his story, the word choice and ability to paint striking visuals are consistently engrossing.  All in all, this was a gorgeously written story which has a lot to offer to a reader.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Wisdom Thumbs discusses unwilling farming, animated salves, and lawn-based characterization.

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Charcoal Quill’s “Old Pony Tales for Hearth and Home”

11 Friday Dec 2015

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Let today’s story transport you into the realm of fable to spin an origin for one of the show’s most enduring villains.

old-pony-talesOld Pony Tales for Hearth and Home
[Dark] [Adventure] • 3,054 words

The back of this slim volume reads as follows:

On winter’s nights, when cold winds blow outside and ponies everywhere huddle around the fireplace, friends and family often pass the time by telling stories to one another. Many of these fanciful tales have been told and re-told for generations, and the most enduring ones have become immortalized in folklore as pony tales.

My brother and I have travelled the land, gathering many of these stories, and now present this collection for your entertainment. We hope you find them as interesting as we did.

~Scarlet Quill, of the Quill Siblings

Most of the pages are blank, but as you watch, neatly-penned words begin to fill the first few pages all on their own. Already, one story has completed itself. It appears to tell the tale of the First Changeling…

FROM THE CURATORS: While the presentation here is a bit unusual — “the summary makes it clear that this was intended to be a collection of tales rather than just one,” JohnPerry noted — the fable it presents is a complete standalone story that’s as solid as any we’ve spotlighted.  “I quite enjoyed this,” JohnPerry said, echoing our consensus, while AugieDog added “I really wish the author had done more of these — maybe our feature will inspire them?”

The big thing prompting that praise was the author’s grasp of the chosen form.  “Charcoal Quill shows a strong handle on not only the common elements of a folktale, but also on what purpose those elements serve, and why they’ve become common elements,” Chris said.  “Add to that a perfectly Equestrian concept, and you end up with something that feels like a genuine bit of pony lore.”  Present Perfect agreed: “It’s a good in-universe sort of tale, and while you can see where it’s going if you know what it’s about, all the elements work.”  AugieDog, for his part, praised those elements: “I love the little details — reminding her each time that she has to remove her gifts so Chaos won’t see them — and the message that, even with the best of intentions, it only takes one step over the line to doom a person completely is very true to the genre.”

The story is chock full of those lovable little details, but there was one on which every curator commented.  “Reading the dragon’s section was the moment I decided that this was going to be an RCL rec,” Chris said.  JohnPerry was also impressed — “it simultaneously fits within the context of the story while parodying it somewhat” — and Horizon agreed: “It’s one of the welcome moments of levity in a story that effectively goes to some dark places.  Any story that can both subvert its own storytelling and play that storytelling straight to powerful effect gets a thumbs up from me.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Charcoal Quill discusses generous dragons, griffon godmothers, and flail-wielding pony names.
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ponichaeism’s “The Mare In The High Castle”

20 Friday Mar 2015

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Broadcasting on all frequencies, today’s story comes to you from an Equestria that’s turned dark in more ways than one.

mare-in-high-castleThe Mare In The High Castle
[Alternate Universe] [Dark] [Drama] [Mystery] [Sci-Fi] [Thriller] • 161,695 words

“Hello, hello, hello, this is Thorny Bends coming at you live on Radio Free Canterlot, and from where I’m sitting, folks, the Land of the Eternal Moon is looking lovely. Well, except for that nasty smog cloud rolling toward us from the coast, but hey, that’s the price of progress. Still, if you’re heading outside you might want to think about an Easy Breezy-brand respirator, guaranteed to make the air taste like new. Buy yours from all major retailers today!

“As I’m sure you all know, it’s been almost a thousand years since the founding of our great civilization. And as the big day approaches, I sure hope the High Castle set their clocks right. I’d hate to find out it was really last Thursday. Ha! But seriously, folks. I’ve been doing a fair bit of thinking about our fair Canterlot, and I’ve realized it isn’t just somewhere we all live. It’s what we build together into something greater as we all reach for the moon. A symbol for a way of life and a state of mind. So, in honor of the thousand years, I’m taking an eye in the sky peek into the lives of the ponies on the streets, and a few in the penthouses too. I don’t often do real news on this show, but these are some genuine equine interest stories, folks. In their own small, unique way, these ponies are as vital to the city as the princess of the night herself. So settle down, get comfortable, and don’t touch that dial.

“You won’t want to miss this, I guarantee.”

FROM THE CURATORS: This story’s path to its feature started with a suggestion on our recommendation thread, and despite its 160,000-word length, it caught our attention right away with its vivid portrayal of an eternal-night Equestria.  “This story is far from being merely a pony re-write of Philip K. Dick’s The Man in the High Castle,” JohnPerry said.  “The level of thought that went into developing this nightmarish — yet eerily familiar — alternate world and its cruel philosophies is astounding, and it manages to combine an epic scope with surprisingly intimate portrayals of its characters.”  Chris agreed: “This is a wonderful use of the AU tag. It takes a single conceit — that something went differently a thousand years ago — and projects how that one change would reverberate to the present, butterfly-in-China-style.”

We all agreed that the characterization which followed from that shift was exemplary, and Horizon cited one of High Castle’s central examples. “Twilight Sparkle spends the vast majority of the story as a reprehensible alcoholic racist haunted by nightmares,” he said, “and yet the entire setting and theme of the story are crafted so as to make it clear that she is that way because their world is fundamentally broken, and the Twilight we see is just a reflection of that.”  JohnPerry agreed, adding, “it’s incredible how ponichaeism managed to make the characters recognizable in spite of all the horrors of the world they are subjected to.”

The story doesn’t flinch from presenting those horrors as necessary to explore the dark corners of its premise, which earned high praise from Chris. “Can we take a moment to talk about Granny Smith?” he said.  “Because she’s where the author most impressed me on the pacing front. … She’s slotted in right where she needs to be to have maximum impact with minimum premise-questioning by the readers, and (up until the end) that’s how I felt about most of the big revelations.”

But The Mare In The High Castle isn’t just a parade of bleakness.  “It has a lot to say about the earth counterparts of the things it ponifies, but it has a lot to say about the ponies at the same time, and this is fundamentally and unquestionably MLP at heart,” Horizon said.  “For instance, this is the finest Flash Sentry story this fandom will ever produce.  He’s just as broken as the rest of this world, but he owns it, and he stands up and shows us that there can be beauty regardless.  I want to feature it for that alone.”

Read on for our author interview, in which ponichaeism discusses Gnostic sects, uncarved blocks, and the curious collision of Jeff “The Dude” Lebowski and Philip K. Dick.
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Aquaman’s “I Am Demon”

06 Friday Mar 2015

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I am a unique look at a historical hero and an alien intelligence.  I am a contest winner.  I am today’s featured story.

i-am-demonI Am Demon
[Dark] [Adventure] • 15,842 words

I am Cold, swirling snow that turns ponies against each other, searing ice that freezes them solid. I am Survivor, the one the Friendfyre spell didn’t catch, an exception that proves an impossible rule. I am Fear, Frustration, Anger, Hatred, every emotion my Creator has ever felt. I am her Future. I am her Past.

I am Demon, and Clover the Clever is my Master.

FROM THE CURATORS: Aquaman’s ponyfic credentials are impeccable — every time we turn around, he’s placing highly in yet another competition — but even so, I Am Demon stood out, both to Equestria Daily’s contest judges and to ourselves. “It just did what it set out to do so powerfully,” Horizon said. “Round about chapter 3, it sank in its narrative teeth and did not let go … and its worldbuilding makes it feel like a definitive windigo story.”  JohnPerry “really loved I Am Demon for its unique perspective,” and Present Perfect concurred: “The best part of this is the alien perspective, seeing Demon define words, slowly figuring out the world around him … it’s altogether a really excellent story.”

The first thing you’ll notice about the story is its use of colored text (read more about that in today’s interview), and we agreed on its effectiveness.  “The color gimmick really adds to the story,” JohnPerry said. “I don’t tend to think of writing as a visual medium, but this story makes me question that assumption.” And while I Am Demon isn’t unique in that presentation, that didn’t detract from our assessment. “[The Pony Fiction Vault-featured] “White Box” did it first,” Horizon said, “but this is the story that made it work, using the gimmick in a way that both fit intuitively within MLP canon and dug deeply into the emotional resonances of the other characters’ tales.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Aquaman discusses chlorine sweat, unwritten sequels, and why not to ask for advice.
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Chuckfinley’s “A Persimmon Spring”

07 Saturday Feb 2015

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“The enemy of my enemy is my friend,” the ancient proverb says.  In today’s story, that relationship goes a little deeper.

persimmon-springA Persimmon Spring
[Sad] [Dark] [Alternate Universe] • 2,935 words

I, Queen Chrysalis of the Changelings, was a paragon of my kind. I was the greatest military ruler my people have ever known. I was mere months from conquering the most prosperous nation in the world.

Then a strange dragon rose from the stone, and everything changed.

I do not think of conquest any more. Now, I think of persimmons.

FROM THE CURATORS: Exemplary Alternate Universe stories require walking a fine line — balancing events that contradict the show with the familiar characters and themes that readers love about it — and A Persimmon Spring rises to meet that challenge.  “It’s a great idea — a memoir, with elements of romance, about a very nuanced and powerful Chrysalis dealing with Discord’s reappearance in the midst of her attempted takeover of Canterlot,” Present Perfect explained.  Horizon marveled at its thematic balancing act: “It feels very much like a pony story despite the essential grimness of the setting.”

We unanimously agreed on the story’s emotional power.  “I love how the author uses the ‘little’ things, like Hythacine and the titular persimmon,” Chris said.  JohnPerry opined that “[the Chrysalis/Shining relationship] is one of those all-too-rare instances of romance written with a distinctly mature tone,” and Bradel agreed: “I’m in love with the way Chuckfinley threads the Chrysalis/Cadance juxtaposition throughout.”  Present Perfect’s admiration was more wide-ranging: “I loved the narrative voice. It’s a good example of world-building with limited resources.”

The construction of the alternate-universe elements provoked some curator dissent, but Horizon’s position was typical of our majority. “The AU didn’t bother me at all,” he said, “but I’m coming from a sci-fi background, where you learn to go in willing to spot the story its core premise and then see what cool things it does with it.  This easily passes the cool threshold.”  Even those who disagreed never had any doubt about the quality of the writing. “The presentation of the AU leaves one feeling like there’s a lot being left out,” JohnPerry said, “but judging it strictly on its own, this fic is brilliant.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Chuckfinley discusses Bruce Campbell’s names, George Orwell’s porn advice, and Genghis Khan’s life lessons.
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FanOfMostEverything’s “Mandatory Fun”

05 Friday Dec 2014

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Today’s story might polka hole in your conception of party ponies.

mandatory-funMandatory Fun
[Dark] [Random] • 2,650 words

The Alicorn Amulet twists its wearer into madness and megalomania. Nopony can wear it without repercussions, both for themselves and others. Nopony is safe. Nopony is exempt.

Still, nopony expected him.

FROM THE CURATORS: One of the best things about fanfiction is that it allows in-depth exploration of ideas or characters that Friendship is Magic only lightly touches — and one of the things we most love about our work is unearthing stories which do so in clever, original ways.  “How is it that this fandom has been given Weird Al Yankovic as a character to work with, and yet this is the first time I’ve read something that makes good use of this golden opportunity?” JohnPerry said.

This tale of Cheese Sandwich’s reign of hilarity terror … hilerror? terrarity? … “is played very straight,” Horizon said, “but it’s narrated by Cheese himself (with all the narrative whimsy that implies), and sweet stars above, the juxtaposition works, like salted caramel ice cream.”  Other curators agreed — “I don’t see the Dark and Random tags together nearly often enough, and I see a story that fits both even less often, but damn does it work here,” JohnPerry said — and found this exemplary in the uniqueness of its reading experience.  “The writing is solid, and I’m coming out of it with a feeling of mixed amusement and terror that I think is perfectly appropriate for what this story said on the box,” Bradel said.  “My brain’s all fuzzy now, but in a very positive way.”

Ultimately, what sells this bizarre collision of ideas is the strong writing underneath.  “The wordplay is deep, rich, and unapologetic,” Horizon noted, and even pun-hating Present Perfect begrudgingly agreed: “This is the first story I have ever praised for its use of puns.”  Chris appreciated “the reveal at the end, which managed not to render irrelevant everything which had gone before while still playing with expectations — a shockingly rare combination for this kind of story.”  And JohnPerry pointed out another rare feat: “Major props have to go to the author for managing to weave in so many pop-culture and meta jokes without taking away from the tone or ever losing sight of the story,” he said. “That alone is a huge accomplishment.”

Read on for our author interview, in which FanOfMostEverything discusses Lord High Executioners, unponies, partillery, and the metasignificance of Cheese Sandwich’s Cutie Mark.
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JawJoe’s “Queen of Queens”

31 Friday Oct 2014

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Today’s story doesn’t have long to make its point, but wow, what an impact it’ll leave.

queen-of-queensQueen Of Queens
[Dark] [Drama] • 15,000 words

Our kind has it that the life of a queen is the happiest, for they are blessed with the shortest time in this world. A mighty queen will be remembered for eternity, forever residing in the hearts of her people. The greatest tragedy a queen can suffer is to be forgotten — to be stricken from history.

I refuse to bend before oblivion.

FROM THE CURATORS: Given the number of authors that entered Equestria Daily’s recent Outside Insight contest (and the quality of their prose), it’s no surprise that it’s been a rich source of RCL features — but what did surprise us was the breadth of the entries’ quality.  Our last two features spotlighted the humorous end of the entries, but Queen of Queens is pure drama, with a tale of struggle and redemption.  We unanimously agreed: what a drama it is.

“Now here’s an author who knows what they’re doing. The story of Chrysalis, from birth to death, is an unparalleled feat of worldbuilding,” Present Perfect said, and the first words out of JohnPerry were similar: “Absolutely exquisite worldbuilding.”  Chris dug further in: “This is how you do worldbuilding.  You make a couple of original assumptions that can still fit within the canon lore, and then you examine them to their fullest conclusions.  [Queen of Queens’ changelings] are an amazing example of race-building in fiction — alien, yet recognizable enough to inspire empathy.”

The core concept — that, in contrast to mortal ponykind with its immortal alicorns, the changelings are an immortal race with short-lived leaders — was “an amazing idea, with sterling execution,” as Horizon put it; but this story went well beyond that.  “It’s not often I get to see a sympathetic portrayal of Chrysalis that doesn’t make me roll my eyes,” JohnPerry said, but as Chris said, “she’s a compelling, interesting character despite the reserved narrative style. … Her fatal flaw is well-established without being sledgehammer-y, and that makes the ending (which, in lesser hands, would have felt like a copout) seem sincere.”

All of this, plus the engaging prose, added up to a gripping and unique fanfiction experience.  “I drank this down in one sitting and never once felt my mind wander,” Chris said. “The entire story feels wonderfully, vibrantly alive.”

Read on for our author interview, in which JawJoe discusses holiday episodes, games of make-believe, and self-imposed existential nightmares.

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Bad_Seed_72’s “Anxiety”

12 Friday Sep 2014

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Today’s story takes us on a journey beyond Sombra’s door to remind us that the scariest villains are often the ones inside our heads.

anxietyAnxiety
[Sad] [Dark] [Slice of Life] • 10,788 words

What Spike saw in the doorway of King Sombra’s crystal palace hasn’t left his mind. The fear of Twilight abandoning him haunts him through recurrent nightmares. Anxiety taunts him when he’s at his most vulnerable, reminding him of all his failures, all his inadequacies, all his wounds.

One night, this fear and anxiety manifests itself in a full-blown nightmare, dragging Spike face-to-face with his greatest fear: What if Twilight never needed Spike in the first place?

FROM THE CURATORS: One of the core strengths of Friendship Is Magic is its unapologetic sincerity — taking a premise designed to pitch moral lessons (and sell toys) to young girls, and imbuing it with a depth and richness that holds adults’ attention too, without ever forgetting its roots.  The notion that friendship literally is magic, and that it holds a power relevant to our own lives, is fundamental both to the show and the fandom surrounding it.

Anxiety examines that core premise through the lens of its adult audience — Spike is suffering from problems that will be all too familiar to some of us.  “It’s a great look at anxiety attacks, low self-esteem, and the mental blocks that can come with those to keep sufferers from seeking help,” Present Perfect said, and Bradel agreed: “This tallies really well with my experience of depression.”  The beauty of the story is that it still holds true to FiM’s core message in a relevant and honest way: Spike is in over his head, as it can often seem to those who live with mental illness, and it’s togetherness and understanding that will save both him and us.

What impressed us was not only the authenticity of the topics and emotions, but also of Anxiety’s characterization.  Chris found Spike well-done: “Too many authors turn Spike into a grown up. … Spike’s reactions feel real precisely because he acts like a frightened kid.”  Bradel agreed, also pointing out that “Spike characterization is always hard, since he resides in this weird, nebulous middle ground between child and adult.”

Finally, the strength of Anxiety’s closing message was singled out for praise. “The talk by Twilight at the end of the piece just knocks it out of the park for me,” Bradel said.  “It really sticks the landing.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Bad_Seed_72 discusses forgetting, Best Pony surprises, not being alone, and forgetting.
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Obselescence’s “More Than You Know”

18 Friday Jul 2014

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You’ll learn something important from today’s featured story … something that you won’t want to forget.

more-than-youMore Than You Know
[Dark] • 8,869 words

Princess Celestia has been keeping a dark secret from her subjects for a very long time.

It’s not an easy truth to tell, but if anyone can accept her after learning it, it will surely be her most faithful student.

FROM THE CURATORS: Our memories of this fic, despite the horror of its core premise, are unanimously pleasant. “This is the sort of fic that gives the Dark tag a good name,” Horizon said. Present Perfect concurred: “It never turns to gore or jump scares or even a visage of evil to send shivers up the spine.  It’s about trust and authority and power, and the best part is —”

(Wait, where was I?  Was someone speaking?  Oh, right —)

“— it makes perfect (if twisted) sense within the context of Equestria,” Chris said.

And that faithful reflection of the canon world and cast was part of what made it such exemplary My Little Pony fanfiction.  “It’s a thought-provoking and terrifying horror story that still somehow feels true to the spirit of the show,” JohnPerry said.  Horizon added: “It plays beautifully off of young Twilight’s eager naïveté.  Her character voice really reinforces the sense of wrongness.”

That wrongness was controversial — “I feel like Celestia does have a point,” Bradel said, and he would have preferred to see more discussion of the morality behind the story’s premise — but even so, he found the story exemplary for its effectiveness.  “Obselescence picks his pieces very effectively to make the story more horrifying,” Bradel said.  “The sheer weight of menace in the ending is absolutely amazing.”

Read on for our author interview, in which Obselescence discusses sticky misspellings, overstated victories, and how to give writers better advice.
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