A pair of cold metallic elevator doors opened, and Bellesmith was frowning. Escorted by two guards in gray uniforms, she marched down the long concrete corridors of the facility. Streaming manalight pulsated overhead as she was led directly to the door of Professor Garnet's office. A quartet of guards waited there, standing at attention, far more than normal. Belle paid them no mine, and right as the door was opened for her, she marched furiously inside.
"Ah, there she is," Garnet remarked, placing down a glass tablet and standing up from behind his desk. "Doctor Bellesmith, things have become rather complicated overnight—"
"And you believe that is supposed to pacify me?" she remarked, nearly growling.
"Doctor..." Garnet was shifting nervously for some reason. His nerves were on edge. "It may be prudent for you to calm yourself..."
"Don't tell me what is or isn't prudent!" she exclaimed, her brow furrowed. "I was promised an entire week with my beloved! It was my first time away from the facility in ten days! How can a sequencer perform her tasks for the Council of Ledo if there's no legitimate promise of restitution?!"
"My my..." uttered a cold voice from behind Belle. "She's a great deal more temperamental than you had described, Professor."
Belle froze in place, biting her lip. Her angry eyes went soft.
Professor Garnet nervously met her expression and glanced beyond her shoulder. "Do forgive the Doctor's anger. She's been laboring under extenuating circumstances.
"Good Professor, we are at war with Xona. Everypony is functioning under extenuating circumstances."
Finally, Belle turned around. She watched as a dark blue hoof pushed the door to the chamber open. The first thing she saw was a massive scar. The stallion's one remaining good eye stared at her with a cold gray stare. His uniform had more medals than she had ever seen in all her professional career. He didn't wear a beret like so many of his subordinates, not as if there was any hope of him sporting one; his horn was twice as prominent than most unicorn's, and it was chipped and scarred in many places from a life of unending conflict.
"Certainly you haven't forgotten your supreme duty to the Ledomaritan Confederacy," the stallion said, his one eye flaring slightly while his tone remained icy. "Spark knows I haven't."
Bellesmith felt like collapsing for some reason.
Garnet's voice was oddly warm in comparison to this officer. "Doctor Bellesmith, I do not believe you have met Prime Enforcer Shell of the—"
"Introductions are time-consuming," Shell interrupted as he shuffled into the center of the room on muscular limbs. "The only necessarily formal thing is the task at hoof." He cleared his voice and spoke aside to Garnet while staring at Belle. "Would you excuse us, please, Professor?"
Garnet's mouth opened, but no sound came out. He gulped, squirming awkwardly where he stood. Eventually, with a defeated slump, he surrendered the interior of his own office to the two, marching out like a chided foal and closing the door behind him.
The air grew even more chilly as Belle stood in place, allowing Shell to pace stonily around her.
"I was sent here two months ago because recent discoveries at the Blue Shelf facility were showing a great deal of promise. I did what I was told out of duty, as much as I hated being pulled away from the Eastern Front. It didn't help that I found nothing of interest among these subterranean experiments." He shuffled to a stop behind Garnet's desk, his eye tilting up. "And then I saw you sequencing with the subject."
Belle's face hung. She said nothing.
His good eye squinted. "You don't fully grasp the gravity of the item you are merging with, do you?"
She took a deep breath and finally spoke, "Sir, I know that the subject is unlike any species the Council of Ledo has discovered, sir."
"A winged pony," he said cooly, leaning over Garnet's desk. "Carrying an item of great mana conductivity. When word spread to the central authority that the western town of Aridstone had been visited by a dragon, a gigantic behemoth of a drake that dove down only to deposit the subject's limp body upon the edge of their farmland, the Council was understandably dubious. However, one of my former comrades in arms took a zeppelin out there himself to retrieve the subject. He was amazed at what he saw. The pony was inert, and yet her body possessed far more energy than himself or any of his fellow soldiers. Not even teleporters or firestarters have mana levels that can match what was deposited in Aridstone. To think that we might have been capable of sequencing with the creature seemed too good to be true. I held my reservations in hopes of having my relocation to Blue Shelf legitimized. And then you came along."
"I've only been doing as I have been told," Bellesmith muttered.
"Indeed." He raised one of Garnet's glass tablets in glowing telekinesis. "But then what does that make you? Just part of the dutiful crowd of peons who brings glory to Ledo through constant diligence and labor? No, you're much more than that, and that's why you're down here—just like why I'm down here. We both have something immeasurably epic to accomplish, for there is more to the subject than meets the eye."
"Permission to speak freely?"
"Hmmph... What are you, a soldier now?" His lips formed something resembling a smile. It made the scar covering half his face wider. "Speak your peace, Doctor."
"Is there a hurry for me to make further discoveries with the subject's sequencing?" She looked up at him with a pair of brave eyes. "Is the Council running out of time?"
"The Council answers to me from now on," Shell said coldly. "And it is not time that we are running out of."
"Then what?"
"Talent," he said, then flung the glass tablet directly at her.
"Gaah!" she ducked, flinching. The tablet glided bare inches over her head and shattered against the wall behind her. She huddled close to the floor, trembling fearfully.
Shell leaned over the table, glaring down at her. "Hmmm... So it's as I thought. Any normal unicorn would have caught that in a stream of magic, something you're incapable of. How pitiful..." He marched over towards her on heavy haunches. "And yet, how admirable, for where your horn fails you, it wins you talents in the task you have to perform here."
She stood up, fighting back a frown as she brushed her mane back with a hoof. "If you read over m-my files, sir, you would know all about my disability..."
"Anypony can fake things," he said bluntly. "No matter how loyal they may pretend to be to Her Majesty Ledo."
Her brow furrowed. "My beloved and I have given everything for the Council and—"
"You and I both know how it works, Doctor," he said, standing above her. "You were brought here from your outstanding position at the Mountainfall University to do menial lab work in a bunker built far below the surface of an abandoned mountain. As a scientist, you should know that the universe functions through circumstance. The 'Spark' is a word, for what motivates each and every one of us to work hard is the same thing that makes the common animal shriek for every last inch of life. We are all in this to survive, through ponies like you if need be. You think the war with Xona will win itself without innovations? There is more at hoof here than a few mental escapades through the fractured mind of an anomalous equine."
She looked up at him and gulped. "Do you mean to say that the subject is a weapon?"
"The subject is dangerous and powerful, and understanding what's inside of it will grant us power the likes of which the Confederacy has always needed." His nostrils flared as he said, "What I mean to say, doctor, is that this experiment of yours is no longer a concern of the Council. It is an Enforcer matter now, and that takes precedent over you, your beloved, and even myself. You're down here because what you see as a disability may actually be Ledomare's single hope for uncovering what lies beneath the obscure layers of the gift bequeathed us by a dragon on the western front."
"Sir, I—"
"Do I make myself clear?"
Her lips quivered. Nevertheless, she hung her head and nodded. "Perfectly, sir."
"Good." He tilted his head up and fired a pulse of light at the door, swinging it wide open. Immediately, a pair of guards marched in and stood at attention. "Escort the doctor to the experimentation chamber," Shell said in a dull tone. "Sequencing begins immediately."
They nodded and ushered Belle towards the hallway outside. She had to take extra steps to trot over the broken shards of the glass tablet littering the floor.
"Oh, and Doctor..."
The guards paused, forcing Belle to glance back over her shoulder.
Shell's good eye narrowed. "Aridstone: the town where the subject was deposited?"
She blinked at him. "Wh-what about it?"
Shell said, "Everypony was found dead when the Enforcer zeppelin arrived." His voice took on a hissing tone, "Slaughtered, massacred, and rendered to ash around the body of the subject, which was the only thing that remained untouched."
Belle simply looked at him, shivering.
"Remember that when you take the magical plunge," he said. "Sequence with the subject. Learn about the subject. Find us the secrets of the subject, but do not get too close with its lingering consciousness, or else what consumed the ponies of Aridstone could threaten to rip apart Ledomare's one living key to power." He waved a hoof.
And Belle was forced into a numb march.
Well, that explains how Dash got to Blue Shelf, and her state of quantum life.
Well then, that explains quite a few things, but I'll wait for Pilote to elaborate on that, I enjoy watching smart people talk.
-Minty
Edit: Oh, didn't see you there Pilote, could you possibly break this chapter down for us?
This makes me rage so hard. Using RD as a weapon? I kinda knew it before this, but having it said out loud just makes me a bit angry at Shell and sad for Bellesmith. The information about how RD ended up in Shell's hooves beings a nice bit of additional connection to the two stories. It also puts everything in better perspective in regards to elapsed time.
Now I wonder if RD is actually dead now though. Something dead couldn't continue to contain that much energy constantly.
New Theory: RD is somehow hooked up to the other end of the sequencer, but she is in a severe coma or something. I really really hope RD can still come back as herself and not through Bellesmith.
SHE LIVES
Did... Did Dash do that? Does that mean that when the Mane 6 were turned to ash... it was Dash's fault?
Oh, there's something big coming up soon. I can feel it. Very powerful forces are jockeying for Rainbow's memories (no pun intended). Worse, they've recovered the Element of Loyalty and are trying to weaponize it. There are many ways that could end, and not a single one of them is good for those making the attempt.
The pieces are falling into place. Only a matter of time now.
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I'm at work so I didn't want to go too crazy.
We last left Rainbow after Axan had set her down, I had thought, in her lair. It seems that perhaps Axan decided to come back and take Dash to a more hospitable location, particularly a farmland at the edge of the foreshadowed eastern civilization. From there, based on fact that Aridstone was laid to waste, we can assume Dash's inner chaos was let loose. That ability, combined with the immense magical power inside of Dash, something that was noted previously as well, makes her of great interest to the Enforcers both to be utilized and protected from.
Quite literally, the mana-obsessed Enforcers are after pure power.
The Enforcers, and Ledo, seek control, understanding. The meta-metaphor for us peons also digging in obscure layers should not go unnoticed, either.
Quantum Dash's state can not be known until it is observed. Inert body but still capable of expelling power? Yeah, Dash isn't dead, not in the traditional sense, anyway.
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Dash's fault via the Chaos she harbors. Careful with "The Element of Loyalty," too. It's not the Element they want, it's the power that it's granted Dash. The pony was inert, the body contained massive amounts of energy. No mentions of a pendant.
Well, now we know where they got Dash.
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That's the only mention, but I can't think of what else she would be carrying that fits that description.
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Right, but they seem much more interested in the body and the consciousness than they do the pendant, that's more what I meant. If the pendant were the macguffin then instead of all the descriptions of Dash's quantum state, we'd have poetry to describe the immense power of the pendant. In a way, the pendant is more like a unicorn horn for Dash, it's the outlet, the conduit.
Welp, this answered alot of questions, and for once those answers don't lead to too many new questions.
Now to see how Belle approches bonding with Dash. On one hand, we have good ol' Pilate telling Belle to get as close to Dash as possible until they are indistinguishable. He wants belle to treat Dash like a living breathing pony and get to know her.
On the other hand, we see here that the BA military dude want belle to be cautious, keep her distance, and treat Dash like a dangerous experiment.
Belle is going to have to choose, maybe not consciously, which of these polar options is best to take.
BTW, dash is gonna have a bad time when she wakes up and finds out she murdered an entire village.
On another side note, I have a good feeling that the mad hunt for power that this totalitarian government is going to go badly for them. Its like the nazis in Raiders of the Lost Ark, delving into matters that are far to grave and critical for them to comprehend let alone trifle with. And also like Raiders of the Lost Ark, it will probably end with them getting their faces melted off.
She lives!
I doubt that weaponizing Dash is going to work out well for Ledomare. I bet by the end of this Dash is going to have played a part in toppling their government
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The chapter has been broken down and explained, I thank you for that.
-Minty
(I feel something big happening next chapter so thats where the next title will hopefully be, look out for it.)
Hmm possibly some hibernation type state caused by releasing the energies with the pendant? It's gonna be a rude awakening if Dash DOES wake up.
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Anytime! I wish I had more analysis, but we've been subjected to an abnormally high amount of exposition and Belle has been pretty much straightforward in her motives and actions. There are, however, quite a few nuggets of symbolism and meta humor to be had in the previous few chapters, some allusions to commentary and so on. For certain, we know there is something rotten in the state of Ledomare.
So this is not only a civilization unused to pegasi, but they've never even heard of them before? Something's fishy about how there are no pegasi in the east.
Also:
*piece
Ah, Pilate,I love reading your breakdowns of this story.
And I agree with Minty, it looks like the next chapter or two are going to be where things seriously go down.
Also, interesting characterisation of Shell. He's clearly not particularly nice, but he certainly doesn't come across as outright evil...yet. More just ruthlessly pragmatic and maybe a little cold.
As more information is revealed I have only one thing to say:
I totally called it!
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Perhaps even... fiercely loyal?
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I think the evidence we've seen for sequencing are all of past events, Belle is looking at Dash's memories. Keep the lexicon in your mind, though: sequence, synchronizing, merging spheres and so on. Eventually I foresee Dash and Belle sharing the same consciousness. Belle is sequencing Dash's memories, literally putting them in order, and will eventually synchronize, be "like one," with Dash.
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My head just asploded.
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So the question is, then:
Will their synchronization lead to them being "on the same page", perhaps with some mind-bending issues trying to determine which memories are Bellesmith's, and which are RD's, and which one was what one and what one was who?
Or, will it lead to them being, as above, "on the same page", with some kind of lingering connection, in addition to, or instead of the 'whose memories are these, and who am I' issues?
Or, will their synchronization lead to them being one mind with two bodies? (as you seem to think? I'm not 100%...)
Or even two minds with one body?
Personally, I'm thinking option 2, "instead of" variant, with the end result that the two help each other bust outta that joint.
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Two bodies, and we know Ledo has Dash's body, means the coming onslaught of questionable identity can have a successful resolution. Ideally Belle is the "spark" that wakes RD from her coma/inert state. Belle will activate those parts of Dash where her emotions are strongest, her friends and her beloved Applejack. However, I would not put it past this story to have that mean Belle can't survive the process.
I hope to see a breakout with Dash getting indignant about Belle knowing her on a very personal level while they flee manaturrets (then escape into an airship piloted by a blind but magical zebra, I kid, I kid, that runs the risk of being terribly contrived if done too quickly). Then again, it's been getting darker as we go on, I fully expect a tragedy.
On another note, the theme of loyalty resurfaces in Shell in stark contrast to the loyalties of Belle. The former is loyal to the institution, the latter to ponies. That parallels very nicely the breakdown Dash and Sam had in Silvadel. Pilate the Zebra, meanwhile, remains loyal to one.
This makes it sound a lot like Rainbow is dead. Uh oh.
But hang on, in the last chapter I was saying the Ledomartian council must know something. But now it seems like they don't know something. It seems that the only reason they care is because RD is a winged pony (Pegasus) which they haven't seen before. And the mana which resides in her pendant.
And apparently she can be used as a weapon? I don't think the mean RD. I think rathertheu are referring to her pendant. If it apparently contains a high amount of magical energy, why wouldn't it be able to be used as a weapon? It seems almost hypocritical that an element of harmony can be used as a weapon, but it also seems like there's a lot of evidence saying it could be.
I'm also fairly sure that the only reason that the Element of Loyalty hasn't yet been utilised as a weapon is because Dash is required to access the magic inside of it. That would make sense, considering she is the bodily representation of that element.
Or, maybe the element of loyalty can't be used as a weapon. But maybe Austraeoh can.
(Just throwing out theories for Austraeoh, there are just so many things to wonder about. )
...
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See? Told ya. Totalitarians are dicks.
...They removed the Element of Loyalty, didn't they?
Poor fools.
Yay! Lingering consciousness is good enough for me. And it seems like she's still got a body, so a total comeback isn't so unbelievable, right?
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I really hope she didn't inadvertently kill off the other mane 5 - that'd be tragic beyond belief. But damn, she took out a whole village? Its not like its her fault - she was knocked out, so Discord must've taken control somehow, and it was the dragon lady that brought her there in the first place. Still though, maybe they should leave telling her that part out when she revives and has to kick the evil empire's butt. Things are definitely amping up now, can't wait for the next chapter
Now what I'm wondering is where they are in relation to Silvadel.
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Five bucks says the dragon stole it, and unleashed the inner chaos. They do have a thing for shiny stuff.
Ear To The Wall - Black Sabbath
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Eeyup
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East.
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I'm with That_One_Guy, some fool probably took off the pendant while they were all gathered around inspecting the alien winged body.
Finally! ANSWERS!
1530854 Well said! My bet's she's on the other side. I think Axan flew her over.
things are getting pretty interesting... o.0
So dash is alive, probably on life support and hooked up to the sequencing machine.
I now suspect that somepony is going to save dash, and have her continue her journey rather than being used as a wepon!
These are my thoughts so far...
^^^My Face When reading pretty much all of this chapter.^^^
So, if Axan brought Dash all the way Ledomare, then that makes my crazy hypothesis of Dash being revived, magically healed, and leading a revolution to bring freedom to the downtrodden of Ledomare all the more plausible!
Still never gonna happen. So we know the only reason Axan didn't kill Dash (or did she?) like she has every other pony, is because she has her Austreao element. And the Enforcers now want that power for their own, and clearly they don't care one bit about either their subject or the poor pony who has to sequence with her.
Shell has been given his Kick the Dog moment, what with him throwing that tablet at Belle. He is firmly in Jerkass, if not even Dragon (the TvTropes variety Dragon) territory, although he did get the excuse of using it to test Belle's disability as a softener, so I suppose he could still be pulled back into Anti-hero territory at some point if he had to, though I don't see this happenning. SS&E has already got a story chalk-full of Anti-heros: Dash, Celestia, the mechanical badass from back in the other Unicorn nation, Sam Rose even to an extent.
Wow, well I can't wait to see who else makes appearances from chapters back. We've already got Dash, of course, and now Axan. Will Luna and Celestia come into play? Whats gonna happen to poor Pilate? Will RainbowThis finally get a character named after them? I can't wait to find out
The problem with coming to this late is that everyone has already analysed the hell out of it, and there is barely anything that hasn't already been said . Oh well, at least this chapter helped to partially confirm my hypothesis on Dash's physical state: rather than being in a coma, as we know it, she seems to be in some kind of limbo state between being alive and dead. Her mind is fractured (hence the damaged memories and the need for sequencing of them) and her body is probably being sustained by the energies she possesses.
Over the next few chapters, as more and more of Dash's memories are
unlockedrepairedresequenced, we should see her "lingering conscious" grow in strength and make more of an active appearance.Also, in regards to the chaos energy within her, I'm curious about whether it is how I've previously thought (Discord is inside of her) or if it is as Dash refers to herself as being "one part chaos, [one part harmony]". Afterall, she would likely know best about what's inside of her, right? Perhaps instead, the chaos energy within her simply acts as a medium for Discord to stretch his influence by, which would explain the various appearances he's made, I.e. Dash talking to Discord when after being saved in the sandstorm, Discords laughter as Dash flies the bomb into Axan's cave, Discords riddle in the early chapters of Eljunbyro. . .
Answers? Yes, please!
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Your pain, I feel it.
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Discord in Dash is presenting its self much like Dash in Belle, like a flare up. I like where you're headed with that idea, though, definitely worth keeping an eye out for.
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I'm addicted, so I try and read all the comments
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And I don't blame you for it, I do too. I'll keep my ADD trained on my RSS feed and maybe I'll make it here in time once in a while.
That said this chapter was seriously great. In particular I found Shell's fascination with the energies present in RD herself to be interesting--her pendant was hardly given a passing mention. I love your comparison of the Element as a conduit, like a horn. I would agree, that does seem to be the implication ("...of great mana conductivity"). I almost think that the mention of the pendant only in passing might serve to understate it now in order to create a bigger reveal later.
My thoughts drift to Axan: what of her? Having rendered Dash injured and teetering upon the precipice of death (seemingly), she suddenly has a change of heart, transports her to "the western town of Aridstone," and leaves her there, unconscious or possibly in an induced coma. Obviously Austraeoh has some part to play, but who is to guess what, or why someone as ancient as Axan would recognize its importance. Just as striking, maybe, is the decision to carry Dash further east.
Additionally, if Axan chose to leave Dash specifically to be found by Ledomare's Council, could it have been for Dash's benefit? Maybe she knew of the technology practiced by the ponies here? If Axan's sudden benevolence is to be believed, I do think she may have acted in Dash's best interest, assuming that she was unable to help the mare herself.
Ugh, so much to consider.
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A couple of things to break down:
Agreed, the chapter wasn't half-bad! Shell's obsession with the potential in the pony over the artifact is telling not only of his, and perhaps Ledo's, intentions but of where the true power lies. That is to say, Dash is everything, the pendant is just the avatar.
Western in relation to Blue Shelf, Aridstone is east of Silvadel.
It's either a really big momentum shift in character or a plot hole. Axan set Dash down in the cave and then went to move away. Axan must have come back for Dash after she fell into her "inert state," or "and then there was nothing" state. Otherwise Aridstone exists in close proximity to Silvadel. I doubt that very much, we can more or less assume that Axan flew Dash away from everything and closer to the Midnight Armory. Austraeoh, whatever it is, must be pretty dam powerful.
Again, it's either a plot hole or a monumental shift. Axan's first real good look at Dash changed the dragon's entire outlook on the world. Whatever Axan saw or realized it caused her to abandon generation's of hatred and re-adopt some of the more benign motivations held by gods.
I think they were just the closest, it would be a pretty wild stretch for Axan to know that much and gamble on literal random chance. She was underground for decades, centuries even, and the Enforcers were so compelled by the sight of a dragon, even a large one like Axan, that a high ranking officer went to investigate personally.
If I've been rambling or am otherwise incoherent in grammar and spelling or thought, blame the hour of the morning.
Something's not going to end well for at least somepony. I can feel it in my mathematical brain.
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Well, there goes all the sybolism... And here I thought I was spotting something!
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Did either of you consider that Axan was just seriously pissed from having her hoard disintegrated? I would have thought that turning ponies to ash matched Axan rather than pinning it on the chaos in Dash which we know less about.
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Your comments here actually bring up something I'd been wondering about with regards to Axan and the ponies or Aridstone. From the earlier comments, it seems like everyone is assuming that all the dead and burned ponies in Aridstone were somehow the result of the Chaos in Rainbow Dash; that maybe someone removed her collar or something and unleashed the chaos it was holding back.
I from the beginning always assumed that those dead ponies where simply killed by Axan when she returned Dash. The only reason she didn't kill Dash was because of the pendant, which none of the Aridstone ponies has. And as we are all very aware, Axan NOT wanting to cruelly massacre defenseless ponies is slightly OOC and would present something of a plot hole. Wouldn't it make more sense that when she came to deposit Dashie outside of her domain, she felt no reason to spare whatever pathetic pony lives she encountered? Lets face it, she's been killing ponies for a VERY long time, and old habits die hard. Simply restraining herself from destroying Dash was already a chore for her, so those normal ponies she encountered in Aridstone got to feel her wrath.
The way I see it, every character does something weird sometimes. For Axan, restraining her own desire to destroy Dash, and then carrying her to another pony civilization was slightly weird. But even when a character does something weird, they still remain true to their inner nature. It would be much less weird that Axan would momentarily hold off on Dash because of extenuating circumstances (the Austreao pendant) and still massacre some innocent ponies along the way than it would be for her to have a complete Heel Face Turn after thousands of years of murdering ponies.
Of course, all of that is still just conjecture. Maybe Austreao meant more to Axan than we realize (and we really don't know WHAT it means to her yet) and maybe there is something that we don't know that may have occurred between Axan's realization that Dash was carrying the pendant and her bringing her to Aridstone. Maybe there is something incredbly destructive going on with Dash and her barely-contained Chaos. Whatever the answer, hopefully it will be explained at some point!
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lol, beat me to it. What you said!
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That was my point, yeah. Axan chose to fly Dash further east.
But at the same time, she burned Aridstone and every one of its inhabitants to ash. We have to take Shell's word that this is true, but still, I wouldn't say completely benign (though I see what you meant).
In any case I feel like I should probably catch up on the three chapters I'm behind before posting anything more...
SHES ALIVE!!!!
Well that may have been the cause of so much of rainbows guilt
When she became touched by the chaos, she may have inadvertantly killed all of her friends.
Day 4: She lives! Rejoice!
IIIIIt's Dashie's evaluation time!
So I think that I've figured out what happened between the end of Austraeoh and the beginning of Eljunbyro.
Dash fell unconscience.
Axan flew her east into this village of Aridstone.
Discord made sone sort of move for power, and almost succeeded, causing the death of an entire village while fighting with Dash over control of her body.
Ledo's armies find Dash and detect the power the Element of Loyalty necklace contains.
They bring her into the sequencing lab and get their best sequencer to work in the new subject.
Namely Belle.
So t least we've got what happened during the intermission. These are my thoughts so far.
-MASH
And when the others are fard she'll be STILL ALIVE
Glad we finally know where the country is. And of course, it's even more eastward from where we last saw Dash. I wonder of that means the border to the dark side of the world is near.