Arrival

[letsplayamod]

The moment is a bit different for everyone. Perhaps you were just minding your own business somewhere, others may have been in more... dire circumstances. Regardless, you were approached by a figure you can't quite picture, and they offered you an accord; in exchange for aiding them in the healing of a world lost to chaos, you would be granted something almost unheard of. Godhood.

And each of you said yes, more or less.

A blurry hand, shifting and rippling, reaches out to you. You feel a glow of warmth, unlike anything you've known before. As soon as you think you can describe it, you wake up.

The room you're in is plainly furnished, but it's about the size of a small flat. Plenty of room to stretch your legs. Don't get too comfortable, however. On the bedside table each room has is a letter; handwritten, it's wrapped around a bronze key. The lettering could only be described as the platonic ideal of 'neat and precise'.

If you are reading this, than our deal has been made. You've awoken in a place that will surely feel strange, so I want you to take some time to acclimate. Meet with the others. Breathe. I shall be along shortly.

-A

Whatever that means becomes more apparent as you step out of your housing and behold the world around you. The building you were in, and every piece of architecture you happen across, is blatantly pre-modern. Yet, something about it is otherworldly. Stone and iron and glass as far as the eye can see.

But above you was where the real questions were. It wouldn't be right to say the sun was shining on you now, nor would it be right to say it's the dead of night. Instead, the sky is a hazy mixture of both, wrapped in suffocating storm clouds that are threatening rain. Everywhere you look, into the horizon, it's the same.

Welcome home. Take your time and explore. Nobody ever said godhood was easy.

Comments

[literarybehemoth]

Ah, of course. Horses do not have wings outside of myth where I am from, so it is not something I had considered...

[hmmm.]

Mirrors would likely be helpful, yes, given that you are not constrained by where your limbs can go. It may be a bit disorienting, though? Magic does not quite work like that where I am from, so I would not know.

[raisethemoon]

It would be...workable, if not especially pleasant.

[ Preening usually is rather nice, but doing it to oneself with a complex series of mirrors sounds less so. Luna sighs. ]

Well, I am certain that I shall manage.

[literarybehemoth]

There is always a way of making things work out, I suppose.

...

It is also, regrettably, worth considering making friends.

[IT'S HARD. HE UNDERSTANDS...]

[raisethemoon]

.....that is not a particular talent of mine.

[literarybehemoth]

Ah, I understand. They are, admittedly, unpredictable and will probably happen somehow unless you hermit yourself away. I feel like I ended up with some despite my best efforts...

[raisethemoon]

I....suppose I might be able to say that I have one or two...? Even if my sister does not count.

[ Is having a sister the same as a friend? Luna has never really thought so - or, at least, it cannot make up for a lack of them. ]

I see little of most ponies, my duties being nocturnal as they are. But Twilight Sparkle was kind, when last I saw her. My sister's student.

[literarybehemoth]

Well, a friendly relationship with a sibling is better than a bad one, I am sure. But... yes, I can imagine how that would be difficult if you do not have any nocturnal creatures you could speak with.

[raisethemoon]

I do have a pet possum! But they are not speaking creatures, in my world. Well - obviously, I suppose.

[ She wouldn't be keeping it as a pet otherwise! Having a pet, though, is not really the same thing. ]

[literarybehemoth]

Ah, I see. We have actually had possums as international students here and there, so that would be a difference between our homelands, then. Is it just equines that are capable of reason where you are from, then?

[raisethemoon]

Not at all! There are dragons and Diamond Dogs, and a number of bovine species in addition to other equines! Though...well, there are canines and felines who are reasoning beings, and then some others who are not.

[literarybehemoth]

I see. Is it dependent on species, then, or do you have to walk up to one and ask them how they're doing to know which is which?

[raisethemoon]

No, it is quite obvious! The sapient ones are largely bipedal, in fact!

[ Which is actually fairly unusual for her world! ]

[literarybehemoth]

Ah, I see! Many creatures of reason can switch freely between being bipedal and quadrupedal movement, so I find that interesting. It seems a bit limiting to me, but given that it works for birds it must work fine for them.

[raisethemoon]

Oh! We are usually one or the other! They will go on all fours if they are moving quickly, I believe, but certainly ponies cannot walk on two legs.

[ Rearing is one thing, but she could probably only take a few awkward steps on her hind legs. ]

[literarybehemoth]

It certainly looks as though horses shouldn't be able to stand on two legs, but they can. For whatever reason. Anatomists are generally baffled by the whole thing.

[raisethemoon]

That is terribly strange...

[ She tries to picture it, but it's entirely too strange. What is even the point unless you have hands, or wings like a bird? ]

[literarybehemoth]

Also things simply... stick to their hooves so they can hold them. It is probably just ambient magic.

[raisethemoon]

Oh! Yes, I know what you mean there!

[ That sure happens with her sort of pony, too! ]

[literarybehemoth]

Oh, so that happens for you, as well? The bipedal mode is more convenient for carrying things, I suppose, but we also tend to use clothes with pockets and satchels and the like for that as well. It is nice to have options.

[raisethemoon]

Yes, ponies will usually carry a satchel or saddlebags! Some of us do wear clothes as well, but that is usually just for fashion.

[literarybehemoth]

Ah, it is similar for us... unless you have creatures adapted for warm weather visiting cold climates. Then they absolutely need clothes so they do not freeze to death, but I would imagine that is self-evident.