Esquestria: The House of the Sun - A pony cultist experience

Voted best in category in the Users' Choice awards.
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Dear reader! Whether you are new here, archive-reading and whatnot, or you are already someone who has been with us for quite a while, I would like to say a few words that I believe are best kept close to mind.

-This is an MLP quest. And more importantly, none of us are gratuitously cruel. So good things will happen on this quest, and I hope that enough good things have already happened to prove that.
-This is also a horror quest, so bad things will happen. Bad things might happen to good characters if you are not able to protect them, and you most certainly will not be able to intervene if you lack the tools to do so.
-And finally, this is a quest in which you jostle with powers greater than yourself, with all that it entails.

Please, do keep those things in mind as you go forward. But ultimately, this is also a quest in which it is hoped we all have fun! So if any of the above points is not exactly your cup of tea, or somehow make the experience as a whole "not worth it", then this quest might not be for you. Which is fine! Individual tastes are a thing, so don't think any more about it if you don't want to read anymore. And regardless, I hope you have a lovely day!

Kaelor said:
PSA for whoever needs to hear it:

Readers should take their own mental health into consideration when voting and not subject themselves to triggering narrative elements like rape or constant mental torture of a friend just for the Greatest Good of a world that doesn't exist.

If those are fine for you or Regrettable is even more triggering, then GREAT! More power to you. But you aren't a bad or selfish person for picking the option that keeps the characters you've emotionally connected with safe. [REDACTED for spoiler warning]

This is a high intensity quest that doesn't hold back when it comes to horror and negative consequences. Take care of yourself.
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(Quote slightly edited to avoid spoilers)
 
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Our enemies are getting stronger, and Biedde is only available to help us Guard for so long before the cooldown starts?

And so if we don't hurry up there wil come a time when we have no power to protect our family anyway?
 
Gurrent said:
Killing the master will stop him from "motivating" us again via him starting an occult war which would keep our family safer
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Well, the occult war is already started, it can't get any more started than that?

And I'm pretty sure the Master will know that if anything happens to Velvet's family Velvet will mentally check out, being far less useful that way?
(Or Mother of Wolves, and then go and throw down with the Master for the rest of the Era)
 
Thinking short-term and concretely about what the Master could do with his influence.

1) She doesn't like Baldomare. He timed his plot for her absence. And it makes sense, Lantern subverts Moth. Can he make us take a peek at any book we acquire? Not enough to truly read it, but enough it won't count for a gift? Doesn't seem particularly strenuous.

2) He knows Mareinette is quite strong. Will be leave us the option of refusing her? (Sure, Accept wouldn't either, to some extent)

3) We're planning, IMMINENTLY, to take a dangerous action exploring memories of other histories. How will his presence impact that?

4) He can't interfere in the Rite of the Mother and Father. Nothing is stopping him from interfering immediately afterwards. In that first conversation with Luna.

Light Seeker said:
Okay, that's just dirty.
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Not trying to play dirty. Legitimately trying to think through what giving the Master Veto power entails. Would she think she's doing us a service, really, keeping us from irrelevant Wake distractions when the Glory is right there?
 
spiderhellian said:
Would she think she's doing us a service, really, keeping us from irrelevant Wake distractions when the Glory is right there?
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Makes sense.
However, if we assume that the Master doesn't want to prod our Lose Conditions without good reason, we can fairly reasonably say that our family interactions is to teach them Lore and make them safer from the occult war you started for no reason (so she remains in good mental condition for Glory seeking)?
 
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The Master: Families are a distraction, we should focus on eldritch occult pow -
Velvet: My daughter has more Moth than the average member of your old cult. Shut up and learn how teaching properly works, you socially maladjusted shrub.
The Master: Mere foals can comprehend the Lores? Velvet, we must begin foalnapping operations immediately, I desire a child army. You are friends with the local schoolteacher, this should be easy. Don't tell Axe though, she's protective of the little ones and might try to cut me out of you by force, which would be messy for everyone. And definitely don't tell Mareinette, she'll eat my child army. Let us go!
 
spiderhellian said:
Thinking short-term and concretely about what the Master could do with his influence.

1) She doesn't like Baldomare. He timed his plot for her absence. And it makes sense, Lantern subverts Moth. Can he make us take a peek at any book we acquire? Not enough to truly read it, but enough it won't count for a gift? Doesn't seem particularly strenuous.

2) He knows Mareinette is quite strong. Will be leave us the option of refusing her? (Sure, Accept wouldn't either, to some extent)

3) We're planning, IMMINENTLY, to take a dangerous action exploring memories of other histories. How will his presence impact that?

4) He can't interfere in the Rite of the Mother and Father. Nothing is stopping him from interfering immediately afterwards. In that first conversation with Luna.


Not trying to play dirty. Legitimately trying to think through what giving the Master Veto power entails. Would she think she's doing us a service, really, keeping us from irrelevant Wake distractions when the Glory is right there?
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...alright. Let's see.

1. That's a possibility. I won't discard it completely. However, I assume that either there are much more specific details to an entire process of overriding/affecting our actions, or that Master would, despite everything, allow us to interact with Baldomare.
I'm mostly working OOC here, but if I was in Bird's place, I would have to make a coherent set of ways that Master can affect us in, and their limitations, because otherwise Quest WILL die if this option chosen. I doubt Bird wants that, and I doubt Bird wants our factual agency gone alongside with ability to resist the situation OR factual characterization we love in Velvet. So my bet is that most of Master's interventions would be directed against being found first, to direct machinations of other members of Cult second, and pushing us into Glory seeking third as the matter of priorities.

Master MIGHT attempt some level of sabotage of our relationships with other Names, but it's Names, they're in much better position to be aware of each other's BS. Baldomare has some advantage too. So if Master tries to sabotage it... well, it might be bad but not overwhelmingly so.

2. Probably leave us alone in that regard. As long as we reach for Glory, in any way, Master is unlikely to intervene.

3. Unknown. Not her area of expertise either. Might not want to risk it, but also might try something if opportunity to do it safely for our body and mind arrives. Contesting rolls are possible.

4. Fits under Family Clause, I think. Depends on what kind of relationships Luna will have with us. Celene is off limits, but does Luna count? I would like to think so after our recent actions, but, well. We don't know. Risk is moderate. However, VELVET's perspective is important here, and I think from her perspective at least in that transitive period Celene/Luna is safe. After that Master will have hard time getting her.

We don't know particular rules on which Possession is most likely operates, but we can derive basic patterns and principles that Master is more likely to follow. Glory almost always takes precedence, except if Worms are involved - or maybe not even then, due to MOTH; Master will try to conceal her presence and actions; Master is mostly an opportunist and works on Old Logic; and Master is more likely to operate on yearnings, urges and impulses than hard logic or long term plans. Everything else is... questionable.

EDIT: Actually, put "questionable" as everything Master says and does. Secrets are THE basics of Moth - everything that happens in every damn chapter we will need to analyze, now, and probably keep notes on. Otherwise we will have This Shitfest again. ...probably wise to do so with previous chapters too, just in case.

EDIT2; we need to consider a possibility that our "possible" drawbacks of Master knowning contents of our memory only possible because possession will trigger contesting rolls against Master getting into our mind. If this is a contest or multiple... there are possibilities.
 
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No matter how the votes goes, the moments where the Master is fluttering over will likely be the second longest moments of Velvet's life, that's for sure.

Maybe we will get an Omake about the RA by Bird if it doesn't win?
 
[X] Kill the Master [THIS IS A REGRETTABLE ACTION]

As the strongest Cultist, Velvet Covers, fought the fraud, the Name of the Moth, she began to open her MAW. Master shrunk back in fear, then Velvet Covers said, "Stand proud Master, you are strong."
 
[X] Kill the Master [THIS IS A REGRETTABLE ACTION]
[X] Offer yourself instead.
[X] Accept her offer.
[X] Show her your true colors.
[X] Refuse her "offer".

perfect.
 
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Switching to only Offer, since from the vote count it's a three-way between that, Accept, and the Wolf.

If we need a consensus somewhere to avoid the Regrettable Action, I'd very much prefer we not reach consensus on making the world worse in a different way, so Accept is off the table.

[X] Offer yourself instead.
 
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