ThatWhichIs

I'm not actually sure about the 'cracked minecraft' issue.

Hmm... I'm currently playing on another pony-themed minecraft server that a friend of mine is an admin on. I just have a few questions for this one.

Well, one question really.

Is creative mode on in normal world, or is it survival? I simply ask because I enjoy building super-projects (Currently working on a much smaller version of Canterlot and Canterlot Castle on the other server).

O Great and Powerful Time Wizard! How hast thou managed to master the eldrich flows of time itself?

... and can you teach me how, too?

In class? I haven't actually run into anything pony-related in a class yet, sadly. But then again, I'm also pretty oblivious.

However, on my college campus is a completely different thing. We had a guy with a can of Lyra-blue spray-paint do an outline of 'Sitting Lyra' on one of the archways, which was actually pretty cool. It was a pretty good one, too, for spray paint. Still don't know who it was.

My college is also undergoing a lot of renovation work around the busiest walkway, right next to the biggest series of lecture halls we have in one place on campus. To protect students from possible flying debris we have plywood set up, that's been painted white, and the students were allowed to put up anything they wanted (non-derogatory, of course) on it. Couple weeks in, ponies started appearing on it randomly. Mostly Pinkie Pie. Sadly, at the time I had no clue who she was, as I had only heard that there was such a show but had seen none of it.

And last, but actually greatest, in my opinion: The dorm I live in has a pretty active social group of true 'nerds'. We even have a very, very nice projector on a cart (we own it, the school has to ask us to borrow it, and has before) and a projector screen. We'll set it up in the lounge from time to time to watch mini-marathons of ponies, or various PMV's and the like. This generally goes over with everyone in the lounge.

I've yet to run into any real 'haters'. A guy I know seriously dislikes the show, but that's solely because when it first came out we had a few hard-core fans in the lounge who simply wouldn't shut up about it. No matter when you walked in, they were talking about ponies. Which, while I think is kinda cool now, I would definitely agree is going a bit overboard. 's what actually made me not watch the show for the entire first season, and half of the second.

Looking over at Verity, Shade noticed the smirk, eyes narrowing just slightly."I arrived earlier today," she replied. "Around... three? But I vill admit, I found meine self drawn to vandering die Stadt. It reminded me so much ov home." She looked at the buildings surrounding them, still large and with a definite industrial tone to them. "Bigger, though. Much bigger. Und so full ov life!"

Shade fell quiet for a few moments, the only sound their muffled footsteps in the snow. "Though those ponies vandering die streets at nacht... those I am not familiar vith."

Grey Shade thought the matter over for a few moments. The 'seedy bar' would probably be closer, but she had never been one much for bars, and she wasn't terribly cold yet. So she decided to try for the coffee shop. The only problem was she had no clue where this 'Veya District' was. "Coffee sounds gut," she replied, nodding her head for effect. "I haff not had any zince I boarded die airship. I vonder iff dey make it as strong as back in meine Stadt?"

She had to admit, it was still a bit unnerving talking to a zebra, if only because less than an hour ago she hadn't known that such beings existed. And that strange feeling was amplified by the fact that this Verity seemed to be able to see through her stealth magic. At least, more so than other ponies could. It was all new to her, but she found that it wasn't as terrifying as she had imagined it to be.

Diamond dogs? Grey Shade had heard of them, but never met one. However, dragons were far more interesting. She made a mental note to look into finding a dragon in the near future, before smiling and nodding. "Ooo... I knew I liked dis Stadt," she said, a bit of excitement in her voice. "Und as fer der griffons... ein few lived in der mountains by meine Stadt." She shrugged, looking around the quiet street.

"Vould du know of ein place dat might be open at dis hour?" she asked. "As much as I love die shnow, I am feeling ein bit cold."

"Either verks," Grey Shade responded, giving another small smile as her hoof was vigorously shaken. "Und... dis may sound rude... but... 'zebra'?" she asked, a questioning tone in her voice. It was clear she wasn't trying to mess with Verity... or she was very very good at hiding such things. "I do not believe I haff heard of ein 'zebra' before. Du... live here?" With a toss of her head she gestured at Stalliongard in general, currently serene under its blanket of fresh snow. A breeze blew snowflakes into her face, but all it did was serve to disorganize her mane a bit.

"Ve did not get many visitors in meine Stadt. De occasional griffon... but not much elze."

Gingerly accepting the offered hoof, Grey Shade gave Verity a small, but friendly, smile. "I know," she agreed, releasing the hoof-shake. "No von elze could do anything close to it in meine Stadt. Und ich bin..." She frowned at her accidental slip-up, and gave her head a small shake, as if to clear it. "I am Grey Shade. It ist ein pleasure to meet du." Grey Shade gave Verity a somewhat calculating look-over, the faint gleam of interest and something similar to respect in her eyes. "Und I must admit... I am surprised that du noticed meine spell. No von has before."

Lady History

A loud cry

wailing in the dawn,

small, tender hand reaching

pulls herself into the light,

Child kneeling on the rocky shore, the

twig in their hand

scrapes and drags

through wet sand, forming

pictures, symbols

They rise

and the world rises with them

giants of stone brick, shouldering aside

the raw sand and dirt

forming graceful larches

grand halls

sweeping colonnades

A great wind

howling like a thousand

caged demons

blasts those halls, those

pillars of enforced might

Sends them crashing down

Sends the girl running, mindless

into caves, to huddle

venturing outside only briefly,

only for the smallest amount

fearing retribution

from above

She carves

into those damp walls

carving mockeries

of the palace that once was

the palace from dreams, and memory

Digging deeper

always deeper

cavern floor stained red

by the sharp rocks

And deep within, enclosed

by long-dead stone,

the growing child rediscovers wonder

rediscovers faith

in the gleaming metal she finds

the black, bubbling liquid

covering herself, helps her

to ignore the pain from digging

as she slowly, meticulously

bends the metal to her will

Silence had descended upon the surface

rain drips into the roughly carved, red floor

from deep within comes a scratch

and another, and another

and the girl, now

a young woman, returns

metal clinging to her

sealing old wounds and causing new

as she hauls machine

after machine

out from the depths,

burning gaze fixed upon the sky

Upon the stars she claims as her own.

Grey Shade let out a startled yelp, jumping a few inches in the air as she pulled her magic in around her again. When her hooves hit the ground once more there was, again, an empty, pony-shaped space. It took a moment, but she managed to calm herself down from that fright, once more dropping her concealment spell. Turning to face whomever had spoken, she threw back her hood with a toss of her head. "Oh, hallo," she replied, a thick accent clearly indicating that she wasn't a local, or even from relatively close by. "Du startled me."

As she got a good look at the pony that had slipped behind her silently, her eyes widened and her head tilted to one side. This pony was the strangest pony she had ever seen, with her stripes of dark navy and tan. It was enough to give her pause for a moment, after which she blushed a bit. "Ah... danke schon," she finally managed to say after that awkward moment. "I must admit... I am not used to others zneaking up on me."

Another slightly awkward moment passed, Shade shifting her weight from hoof to hoof, carefully keeping her gaze from landing on the other... well, given that she didn't know of anything else she would have to call them a pony.

It was night in Stalliongrad, and clouds obscured the sky, a common sight in that cold city. Snowflakes drifted lazily through the air, twisting and spinning in beautiful spirals when caught by the gentle breeze, turning the streets of Stalliongrad into a crystalline world of black and white, pools of yellow light defying this natural order as they were cast from uncovered windows of the occasional store or local residence.

Grey Shade drifted down these mostly dark streets, a heavy cloak, white with mottled grey and black, wrapped around her body and the hood over her head. Having just arrived at Stalliongrad earlier that day via airship, she had found herself feeling surprisingly at-home in the icy city, so similar to her home. Much to her embarrassment, however, she had gotten distracted by that sense of familiarity, and had forgotten to find a place to stay for the night, leaving her to try and find an inn or some such as the sun went down. No matter how similar it felt to home, at night the place was a mystery to her, and she quickly found herself lost as she wandered the streets.

"Hey!" came a cry from a stallion a ways down the street, and Grey Shade reacted on instinct. One moment there was the fleeting impression of a cloaked pony stepping out of a pool of light, and the next there was... nothing. Simply a swirl of snowflakes, if perhaps a little bit darker than the surrounding area.

"What is it?" asked a second stallion, stepping around a corner to stand with the first.

"I thought I saw... nah, must've been nothing," replied the first, shaking his head. "I hate these night patrols."

"Maybe you saw a wendigo!" his companion replied, chuckling as he stomped his hooves. "And only a few more weeks before we're rotated back to day-shift..." Their voices trailed off as they rounded the corner and kept on going.

Letting out a breath she hadn't realized she was holding, Grey Shade dropped her spell, what little color there was returning to the world for her as she slowly faded back into view.

*Nods, stunned near-speechless by the amazingly thought-out ideas*

I... love them. I will get to work on the first one, about the personification of history, tomorrow.

So, I'll use this thread to post some of my older poems, as well as ones I write not specifically for the idea thread I also started. Questions and comments are welcome!

To start with, here's a personal favorite of mine:

A Rose By Any Other Name Would Still Taste Like Chicken

Oh sweet lady, my sweet

terrible muse. My sanity has claimed me

stolen from thy ever-shifting embrace, that

deliciously purple thing. Tasting

of wondrous love, smelling like pure

hatred, spiked with orange and green

Oh lady Madness, why hast thou deserted

your most studious pupil?

Thrown away like a badger

on the backs of mad giants (who’d chase after?) or

pink-yellow love in a frothing sea

For there is a method to mine

hidden pattern-spider designs in life-chaos

buried deep

Trying to shed them, slip free from curse called

sanity

Oh Madness, lady mine

You I will hold yet again!

~+~

(EDIT) So, apparently this thing doesn't like my various spaces... given that this one is as much visual as it is verbal, I will need to attach it or something...

An Argument With Myself

To the always watching, ever-busy

You’re always so violent

busy-body always poking his nose into other people’s business

so distrustful, hate-filled

SHUT THE HELL UP!

Who cut your fuse so short?

Seriously!

Your eyes always see

Take a damn chill-pill and learn

Things which were never there

when the hell to stay outta my business

and your mind is constantly jumping

your constant watching is making me want to

racing forwards to conclusions

blow up some pointless little third-world country

false and damning

and laugh as the land burns

I don’t try to upset you

You make me

Or constantly watch over you

want to trigger

my goal

Armageddon

isn’t to play Big Brother

early!

I only wish to protect you

So again, need I continue yelling

Help shield you from

Or has your mile-thick skull

reality

finally understood my damned message?

and all the atrocious things

I swear!

glaciers move faster than you think!

that live

Ye freakin’ gods, man!

and thrive

Any more of this

within this world

and I swear I’ll start World War Three…

~+~

Before There Was A Beginning

Before there was a beginning

in the infinite blackness

there was nothing and everything

at a single point

In the infinite blackness

there was a commotion

at a single point

with a light unseen

There was a commotion

of terrible power

with a light unseen

that launched time into motion

Of terrible power

incomprehensible by men

that launched time into motion

jump-started reality

Incomprehensible by men

the forge of Creation

jump-started reality

and then led to us

The forge of Creation

set probabilities spinning

and then led to us

from unknown math

Set probabilities spinning

energy racing

from unknown math

causing it all to wind down

Energy racing

all becomes equal

causing it all to wind down

everything resets

All becomes equal

before there was a beginning

everything resets

there was nothing and everything

~+~

Villainess Villanelle

Their midnight dress and billowing cloak

and those mad, flashing eyes

they’re so nineteen-sixties

As they pace the cat-walks

yelling at their minions, clad in

their midnight dress and billowing cloak

Down below those crazed minions crackle maniacally

as they prepare their evil draughts for the world

they’re so nineteen-sixties

The mastermind’s manifold plans unfold

like the steely petals of some diabolical flower, as they wear

their midnight dress and billowing cloak

With henchmen scrambling all around

as the overlord plots in their secret lair

they’re so nineteen-sixties

All of this because of some early slight

they chose to don

their midnight dress and billowing cloak.

They’re so nineteen-sixties…

~+~

Thought Fox Rising

Deep, eternal darkness, like

the pure dark of pre-Creation eternity

Infinite

but warm, embracing, like

At first, a pinprick,

a welling up of light, brilliant and

blazing.

It laughs,

defiance in the face of the dark

In the face of placidity

Growing in the distance

a form

Rising from nothing, from everything

shaping itself

giving birth to its own life

by force of will, by desire

The thought-fox rising,

yawning in new-minted awareness,

looks about itself

grinning at the darkness

Spotting an invisible rise

it pounces

bringing another light into

the infinite same-ness

Another rise.

Another light.

Illuminating vast traceries of

spider-silk strands

stretching out in all directions

weaving and twisting

spiraling

turning, lighting other points

in the distance, other nodes.

Fox, laughing

Jumping and spinning

Dancing on the synapses

on fleeting thoughts, pouncing

launching itself

towards hidden memories

teasing them to brilliance

A silvery, flashing shape

darting across

fading black potential changing

into bright, gleaming reality

Bringing awareness to

the now-stirring mind

A silver mist

receding before the thought-fox

~+~

The Myriad Forms of the Octopus

Among the teaming multitudes

that swarm along the ocean floor

sits the octopus, rock patient.

A sea of stillness

shattered

by an explosion of ink and flashing octopus.

My mind wanders in all directions

reaching out towards the eight compass points

like the questing arms

of the ever-curious octopus.

The octopus shifts and reforms itself

fading out of sight

and into my mind-scape.

An octopus and a fish

is satisfied.

Two octopi and a fish

get into a fight.

Barnacles encrust the rusting iron

of decrepit, sunken warships

terrified minnows

flash in the darkness

as the looming, tentacle shadow

that is octopus

rises.

Ink stains crystal waters.

Octopus must be fleeing.

A screwed jar containing

some succulent morsel

is expertly pried apart

by the self-aware limbs

of the octopus.

Why did the old people

revere the sharks and the whales?

among those fish and lesser mammals

the octopus is as a god.

As they descended into the

dark, watery depths

fear invaded their soggy minds

that every fish they saw was

an octopus.

Master of disguise

the silent stalker of prey

all who swim

pray to never not-see

the dreaded mimic octopus.

Its three hearts

beating out a trifecta tempo

the love-struck octopus

seeks its mate.

Blue rings flashing

the octopus

ensnares its foe

in an ever-tightening net

of crushing, venomous death.

~+~

The Batman - Another View

Do you need proof

of Man’s supreme skill at sin

of our ability to overcome

odds most foul

and in doing so, become the most foul?

Do you need proof

of our obsession with the physical

greed which knows no bounds

a burning, twisting desire

towards all that glitters?

Do you need proof

of how our pride will drown us

in arrogance and blinding greed

we will ignore the signs

and seal our own fate?

Here is your proof

it’s all around you

permeating the very fabric

of every-day life

in the way we act and live

Here is your proof

in our gilded and mangled

image of beauty

in the way we abuse ourselves

to become that “beauty”

To be honest, I would be far more interested in getting Grey Shade some Rp time, as she was my first OC. I shall message you with some more stuff on the subject!

Hmm... should have reserved the second post to put up the poems on... but that'll be this post! To answer your question, Ancre, I've been published in a few literary magazines... I can't remember which ones. It was very, very long ago. As in, back in high school. Memory, why must you suck so much? And as for my other poems... *Ponders* Sure, I'll post a few of them. Will probably make another thread for them, so things don't get confusing.

Poems will go below!

Hello there! You! Yes you, sitting at the computer! I've got a request for you!

I consider myself a poet (not an amazing one by any stretch, but I have been published a few times before), and yet I often find myself lacking in subject matter for my poems! So I'm asking you to help with that! Basically, I'm interested in all of the strange, crazy, and not-often-seen ideas for subjects of poems that you can come up with. I love writing poetry about strange things, such as the personification of madness, or computer code, or even universal constants (such as gravity).

However, I do request that any ideas submitted be inherently safe for all ages.

If I use an idea of yours, I'll be sure to let you know! And when I've finished a poem based off of one of these ideas (or at least gotten through several revisions of it) I'll post it here for you all to see!

I look forwards to seeing some off-the-wall ideas!

Much appreciated!

Note: The idea can (obviously) be about something pony related. I have yet to try my hand (or is it hoof?) at writing anything specifically about ponies, so it'd be an interesting challenge.

Hello everypony!

So, I have this incredibly annoying ability to find an interesting looking Rp... after it's gone for something like twenty or thirty posts. So I was wondering if anyone would be interested in starting a Rp with either of my two OC's?

First off, there's Grey Shade, a somewhat shy Unicorn well versed in the arts and magic of stealth and shadows. Born in a small village outside of Hoofenheim, she's used to the cold and the snow, finding Stalliongrad somewhat of a home-away-from-home. Eager to find her place in the world (what use is there for a pony good at sneaking around, she wonders?), she has left her home village to discover where she can fit in.

I also have Cinnamon Love, a poet and lover of literature. Born on the Gallopacos Islands, she was educated in Canterlot before returning to her home island and moving onto her own estate on the opposite side of the island from her family. Thanks to getting her poems published in literary journals across Equestria, and her family's pineapple farm, she's free to indulge in a few of her other passions, namely supporting the arts, traveling to other centers of literary excellence, and throwing the occasional (if a bit formal) party.

If anyone has any ideas, please share me! I'm dying for a good Rp over here!

Much appreciated!

Hmm... at the moment, there isn't. I shall fiddle with the pony creator for a bit, see if I can get something to work out. That will be a stand-in, however, until I manage to draw an acceptable sketch of her and figure out the arcane secrets of the scanner.

When I get either of them working I'll add them as attachments to the main post, so as not to clutter up this thing.

Roleplay Type: Equestria Main RP

Name: Radiant Chord

Sex: Female

Age: Mare

Species: Pegasus

Eye Color: Bronze with silver flecks

Coat Color: Bronze

Mane/Tail Color and Style: Her mane is rather long in the back, though she has short bangs that curl up slightly at the ends on either side of her eyes, parted down the middle. The rest of her mane is kept tightly braided when she puts on a classical performance, but completely loose the rest of the time. Her tail is a bit longer than the norm, and she doesn't allow it to be decorated for just about anything, which has the unfortunate side effect of making it look a bit 'wild' from time to time. Both are a shade of bronze a bit darker than her body, and streaked through with gold.

Physique: Taller than average for a Pegasus, her shoulders are slightly more developed than the norm, giving her a somewhat imposing look.

Cutie Mark: The black outline of a piano with a white segno imposed over it. (Picture of a segno here: http://upload.wikime...Music-segno.png )

Origin/Residence: Manehattan

Occupation: Musician, trained on the piano but versed in all key-board-based instruments.

Motivation: To get her name known all across Equestria, so that she can hold concerts all on her own, and generally uphold the family tradition.

Likes: Music (Classical, Techno, Modern, pretty much all kinds), being adored by fans, and thunderstorms

Dislikes: Silence, not being known by others, and rainstorms without thunder and lightning.

Character Summary:

Born into a family collectively known as "The Arts", it was destined that Radiant would become another famous, or at least good, artist. It didn't matter if it was in music or literature, painting or sculpting, or any other branch of Art. But as every pony in the family had found their special talent in one of the branches of Art, it was taken as a given that Radiant would follow in their hoofsteps.

Given her first name at birth due to the color of her coat and the way it seemed to shine, Radiant went through her early life with just the one name. Within her family that was the norm, every pony got their second name when they discovered their special talent and their cutie mark, so that it could match their skills. And given that the family employed personal tutors and rarely let their children off of the estate, this was never much of an issue. Sure, Radiant heard a tutor occasionally remark about how being given only one name at birth was a bit odd, but those tutors were soon found missing when Radiant would go to lessons, another pony having taken their place.

Her early years followed a very strictly managed schedule, her life consisting of lessons in painting, lessons in musical composition, lessons in just about everything that would help her discover her special talent, assuming it was related to the family tradition. All of this was mixed in with obligatory social showings, parties thrown for the sole purpose of introducing her and her siblings to Manehattan, and occasionally Canterlot, high society. It was at one such event, while she was still just a young filly, that Radiant discovered her her special talent. Having proven terrible with any instrument that didn't involve keys of some sort, her tutors thought it would be good to have her give a public performance, thinking that doing so would be just the push she needed to discover her cutie mark. Her parents had agreed.

Being led out to the small stage set up for the event, Radiant was visibly shaking, terrified of failing in front of the gathered ponies. The few first notes she played crashed horribly, making everypony wince from the sound. Looking out at the crowd, eyes wide with terror, she managed to catch sight of her older sister, who gave her an encouraging grin. Taking a few deep breaths to help steady herself, and failing miserably at doing so, Radiant tried again. And just like her last attempt, this one also began as a crash of conflicting chords. Screwing her eyes tightly shut, she pushed herself on, the sounds shifting and blending. From her first, terrible attempts arose a halting melody, as beautiful as it was haunting, almost seeming to echo the chaos that her first attempts had dissolved into. The song shifted and built, growing louder and deeper and more insistent, until suddenly, with one piercing note, it dropped back to the haunting melody it had started as. The melody began to trail off, and Radiant decided to end it as she had accidentally begun it, with a crash of bone-shaking sound, though this time it was as a carefully controlled imitation of chaos.

As the crowd of high class ponies had stared transfixed at her, they had watched her cutie mark fade into view. When the song ended there was a moment of pure silence, not even the sound of an in-drawn breath. And then suddenly the room broke out into a round of thunderous applause, the gathered ponies pounding their hooves into the ground in their approval. When the applause had died down, her parents stepped up onto the stage, granting her her second name of Chord.

After another day of celebration, in honor of Radiant Chord discovering her cutie mark, her life became, if anything, even more institutionalized. The lessons continued, now focused on the piano, and eventually spreading out to experiment with other key-boarded instruments. It wasn't until after she became a mare that Radiant was allowed off of the family estate for more than performances or high class balls.

Finding that there's more to life than just her music, and finally free to properly stretch her wings and see the world, Radiant Chord is eager to explore the newly revealed world of Equestria, much to the dismay of the care-takers she's been assigned by her parents.

Hmm, if you wouldn't mind a new OC for this band, I'd like to make one for the Keyboard/Synth position. I've had ideas for an entire family of artistic ponies for a while now, this would encourage me to actually start on that project.

Cinnamon Love had been trailing the walking art exhibit for a while now, parchment floating in front of her, quill scribbling furiously. It had taken but a moment to excuse herself from a conversation, and though they had seemed offended at first they had quickly apologized and found a new partner for art viewing. After all, they had been an editor, and everyone knew how flighty artists could be, poets more so than many. And so she had followed that amazing, living art exhibit, unknowing and uncaring if they were a part of the museum, or simply a very interestingly dressed patron.

As she trailed along behind the pony she failed to notice that they had been joined by another, a full ink pot gliding out of her small saddle bag so the quill could re-ink itself. Somehow, none of that ink managed to stain the sea-blue dress she wore wrapped around her neck and draped over her back, even though a few drops spilled on the floor. With one last flourish, Cinnamon looked up from her work, a triumphant smile on her face, only to realize some of the other ponies nearby were looking at her as if she were crazed. Finally seeing the red unicorn for the first time, she frowned and made a few notes on her parchment. Walking over to the two, her writing materials storing themselves in her bag, she gave each pony a brief nod.

"I hope you don't mind my interrupting," she began, a hint of Canterlot accent mixing with something more exotic in her voice. "But I saw your lovely dress and couldn't help but write something about it." Cinnamon turned a critical eye on the red unicorn, before offering her a friendly smile. "You two must be models from the Ponywalk, yes? I'm Cinnamon Love, and it is simply a pleasure to meet you."

I seem to be late to the party! Having only recently discovered this amazing idea, I still wish to join in in some way. However, I lack a fashion designer / model pony. What I do have, however, is a new character whom I think could jump in on the action.

I noticed that of all the events happening on the Gallopacos Islands, there did not seem to be a dinner / reception event for all of the wonderful models and fashion designers to meet and mingle with possible clientele and / or fans. What popped into my head was the idea that perhaps my Cinnamon Love could host just such an event at her beach-side residence?

Ka-derp. It seems the forums don't like the tab key, lol. Fixed!

As the large, blue Earth Pony started to walk away once more, Grey Shade let out a quiet sigh of relief, letting her spell-shroud relax a bit as she stepped away from the bush. She had stumbled upon Ponyville in the middle of their Winter Wrap-Up and had been overwhelmed by all of the activity and excitement, having to side-step falling piles of snow and jump out of the way of moving carts. The only ponies who had even noticed her had been too busy to do more than nod at her. In her near-panicked state she had reflexively called up her magic, doing her best to try and stay out of everypony's way. Now that the clean up was apparently over, she had stayed in the background, looking for somepony who she could approach. A few days back she had been hit by a late winter storm, and she wasn't really sure where she was any more.

Noticing the blue Earth Pony turn a corner, she hurried to catch up, stopping at the corner to try and peak around it. While she wanted to ask questions, she still was uncertain about being noticed...