Alterations for Pony Boot Camp (XI)

It comes to little surprise that the final part of Skeleton Crew will take some time, and I honestly see January of next year as the soonest possible release date. One cannot rush art (so why rush rubbish then?). To fill the void, let’s do some more tinkering with PBC, as Alterations X was of course a chapter in disguise.

Alterations for Pony Boot Camp (X)

As announced in my comment to Part LX, Pony Boot Camp finds its current continuation not in a separate submission, but in an extension to said part, because I want this special chapter to fully reflect the occasion, and because hubris is a real thing (a word count of over 7,800 may illustrate this point). You can now find the new material added to the paragraphs posted so far, or – convenient for those who have already read the original post – further down.

The lavish festivities for the 10^th anniversary are hereby concluded. So, full steam ahead to Skeleton Crew, Chapter III!

Alterations for Midriél and Evandolas (I)

Greetings traveller,

Tired you look from wandering the digital wastelands of the internet. Rest and sit by the fire, and be welcomed to listen to wise and true words that illume the ancient tale of Midriél and Evandolas (including “what the fuck did I just read?” and “how can I delete my browser history?”).

~

Part I

Dark brethren to the sylvan race in eras of yore, they had taken to the night and to the blood, eventually seeking mastery over Death herself.

is commented as follows:

Just as with the ponygirl fetish, I found myself intrigued by the idea of exploring the vampire myth from different angles. In modern fantasy Dark Elves already have a number of vampiric characteristics attributed to them, such as inclinations towards cruelty and gloom (literally or metaphorically) – not to mention longevity. Therefore it was not so big a leap to merge both concepts and see what happens

Alterations for Pony Boot Camp (VIII)

Since I did a little retconning on PBC, we can have some more fun with Roman numerals (because I once adopted them for the chapters to match the Alterations posts’ method of counting and am now stuck with ’em)!

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Part XXX

Just for the records, I like castles and stuff. They’ve got something brooding, especially the razed ones. But I don’t wet myself over them like those “Lord of the Ice and Fire” fanboys do.

has a part added:

Just for the records, I like castles and stuff. They’ve got something brooding, especially the razed ones. But I don’t wet myself over them like those “Lord of the Ice and Fire” fanboys do. I know what I’m writing about; Sandrine’s and my next-door neighbours once had hunted us down with foam swords for intercepting their Chinese delivery. Turned out hardcore RPG nerds didn’t take well to having their level 15 Spring Rolls of Doom get nicked.

Alterations for Neon Virus (I)

SPOILERS AHEAD!

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Seems those wanna-be zombies are not the only problem in Neon Virus…

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Mikaere’s slug got him in the rib cage, flinging him through the room. What had once been a bloke dreaming of a better life as a hacker, a programmer, a pro-gamer, was battered into the dispenser and left wheezing on the ground before it.

is changed into:

Mikaere’s slug got him in the rib cage, knocking him off balance. What had once been a bloke dreaming of a better life as a hacker, a programmer, a pro-gamer, stumbled back into the dispenser and slumped wheezing onto the ground before it.

Alterations for Pony Boot Camp (VII)

Today I am very excited to bring you an Alterations special, dedicated to the fine craft of leather work!

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Part XLIV:

Kendrick, overseeing the tacking of all fillies, prevented Kandrin to enjoy herself even more by suggesting a trifle o’speed.

is changed into:

Kendrick, overseeing the tacking of all fillies in a combination of Stetson, double denim disaster and bolo tie, prevented Kandrin to enjoy herself even more by suggesting a trifle o’speed.

Rediscovering the bolo tie by chance, I knew it would be the perfect accessory for the lead handler to be worn on a special occasion. And choosing that fashion route, the Stetson hat is just a must-have.

Alterations for Æquinoctium (I)

It may come as a shock to even the keenest of readers, but Pony Boot Camp isn’t my only story full of bugs. So let us today expand the wonderful tradition of retroactive writing to Æquinoctium (although it’s mostly comments in this first instalment).

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Chapter One:

The greatest extent of Celtic mystery she’d encountered so far had been a shitfaced leprechaun barfing into her handbag at Saint Patrick’s Day.

is commented as followed:

This is hands down one of my favourite lines I’ve ever brought to digital paper. It might lack a bit of cross-cultural sensitivity, but the mental picture was just too vivid to pass up.

Alterations for Pony Boot Camp (VI)

The usual maintenance, you know the drill…

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Part XL:

Gathering quick momentum from the waist, I brought my horse shoe armoured forehoof around and delivered a beautifully executed sucker punch straight to her left tit.

is changed into:

Gathering quick momentum from my waspie’d waist, I brought my horse shoe armoured forehoof around and delivered a beautifully executed sucker punch straight to her left tit.

Alterations for Pony Boot Camp (IV)

Again it is time for our popular series “things Venom, that dork, has botched up because he hasn’t got the first idea of what he is scribbling down”.

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Part XXXVII:

I didn’t recognise the steep glade, but deduced that I was south-west of the camp, yet still east of the river.

is changed into:

I didn’t recognise the steep glen, but deduced that I was south-west of the camp, yet still east of the river.

I changed this quite shortly after uploading the chapter, so most of you have read the altered version. “Glade” had indeed been the word of choice originally, but “glen” created the better picture, so I decided to swap the terms. I simply forgot it till after the publishing, though.

Alterations for Pony Boot Camp (III)

Once again I felt the need for firing up my alteration machine. As always, the storyline itself is not affected.

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Part II:

I never had much sense for nature – I like boutiques, sushi bars and record stores.

is changed into:

I never had much sense for nature – I like boutiques, sushi bars and old-fashioned record shops.

All record shops I came across lately seemed to be a bit old-fashioned, maybe because of the revival (or persistence) of vinyl.