Kids. Kids. Who are you gonna believe, some old book, or your Uncle Bad Horse?

So, anyway. Like I was saying. Once upon a time...

(One of those damn kids had a wire on him, and put recordings on that tubey thing, one, two, three. And made a video. And wrote it all down, in Russian.)

Crime was easy before Princess Twilight and the First Five ushered in a golden age of Harmony. Back then, any idiot could plan a robbery, just like any rat could sneak through the cracks in wooden granary walls. But now that everything is cloudstone and clearsteel, with magical countermeasures over the few remaining holes, it takes a different breed of rat to survive.

"Slippery" Jimmy the Grey is one of the rare few ponies who can still slip through the cracks — even with the legendary Rainbow Corps on his tail. Now he's got a billion-bit heist planned in the gleaming skyscrapers of Cloudsdale. If only he hadn't made the mistake of stealing from a dragon …

Now with a reading by Illya Leonov and Scribbler!

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This is a crossover with Harry Harrison's Stainless Steel Rat novels, but it assumes no knowledge of the series.

Winner of February's Writeoff Association competition! * Featured by Equestria Daily! * Featured by Seattle's Angels!

REVIEWS: "Highly Recommended" by Titanium Dragon; "Recommended" by Present Perfect; rated "Why Haven't You Read This Yet?" by PaulAsaran

WORD OF MOUTH:
"The Iridescent Iron Rat was not only my favorite story from the most recent writeoff... it's my favorite story of anything I've read in months." —Sharp Spark

"What a ride it is. This story is made of awesome moments." —Casca, Seattle's Angels

"[A]stounding on so many levels. … If there’s one story from this round you have to pick, make it this one." —Corejo, Seattle's Angels

"Absolutely beautifully done. It fits the style and feel of the books to a perfect T." —Themaskedferret

“I’m not making you do anything, Flurry," Cozy murmured. “I’m giving you a choice. Me or your empire. And we both know what the right call is.”

Winner of FanOfMostEverything's "Imposing Sovereigns III" contest, using the prompt "Flurry Heart/Perseverance" (and technically "Cozy Glow/Determination" as well).

The Element of Magic, Octavia Melody, needs help to defeat a monster that threatens all of Equestria. When only one of her friends can be there, she turns outside to bring others to her aid.

Fate (and the guidance of the Princesses) brings her the assistance of virtuoso cellist Twilight Sparkle and her wubtastic marefriend, DJ Rar-👁-T.

Of course, Princess tasks are rarely without their own unspoken machinations...

An Alt-U of one of the most unlikely Elements with a dash of gratuitous RariTwi.

Brought to you by: Secrets: A Swapped Roles Contest. Where it won!

Also now with a three part Fic Case Study by Casketbase77.

Featured on Equestria Daily on 5/27/2024 as part of 12 of the Best Fanfics to Read for Vinyl and Octavia Day!

After Celestia's School For Gifted Unicorns runs out of repair money and none can be found in Equestria's budget, Luna invents a means to raise the funds. Now if she can just keep it from destroying the nation's economy...

(Part of the Triptych Continuum, which has its own TVTropes page and FIMFiction group. New members and trope edits welcome.)

Now with author Patreon and Ko-Fi pages.

Twilight and Rarity are best friends. They haven't shared phone numbers, they have never hung out together, and they have never seen each other's faces. They talk nearly every day.

You don't need to understand your magical power to make use of it.

This story is a sequel to Why Should I Dance

Not everyone has the steel in their spine to be the weapon of purpose that Sunset is. She knows what her surrogate mother needs from her, and what is asked of her, and all her life she has accepted that she would always be the sum of that purpose: the steel and strength of the Solar Princess.

Now, things have changed, and the weapon wants more than a sheathe. She wants more than to be swung in battle against those who would make brittle the rule of law and the power of the throne. Sunset knows how to swing both blade and magic, but swinging human is something completely different.

This chapter was commissioned by Scampy.

For the longest time, Twilight Sparkle had problems with dating. Although she was the Princess of Friendship, the stallions she had attempted to progress beyond friendship with always seemed to shy away, sometimes at a rapid gallop. Well, this time she has the problem solved. If she can't find a stallion who will be romantic with her, she is going to make a stallion who wants to be romantic with her.

What could possibly go wrong?

Editors: Tek, Starlight_Glimmer, Mitch H, FTL
Picture Credit MoonlightFan on Deviant Art (Little Tigress on FimFiction)
Now on Equestria Daily

The immortal Sonata Dusk once believed she would never run out of time. But a strange encounter on a quiet back road will show her how precious life's moments truly are.

For on this night, Sonata meets Death himself.

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An homage to Lordi's song-story "The Riff."
Thanks to Reia Hope for proofreading.
"The Ballad of Nasty Joe" is owned by the author, though he can't imagine why anyone would steal it.
Japanese Translation, by Haru.
Reviews:
Seattle's Angels
The Last Roundup
Titanium Dragon
PresentPerfect
The Royal Guard

It is the year 2038, and the Earth is slowly being consumed by a space-borne monstrosity dubbed the Black Tide, which is using nanotechnology to remake the planet into something hideously alien.

Erin Olsen works for Project Harmonics, humanity's last-ditch effort to find a new world before the Tide can wipe them out. But when that world is found, and it turns out to be occupied, Erin will need to find the courage to face the unknown in order to save the inhabitants of both worlds.

(Many thanks to Easteu for the fantastic cover image for this story!)

Now with its own TV Tropes page

There is now a follow-up to this story: Sunflower - Side Projects
Sequel: Project Sunflower: Harmony