FimFiction Link - Short ID: 286496/the-wealth-of-the-world
Published: Sep '15
The Wealth of the World is a 7,8k word OC-centric story on how megalomaniacs ruin everyone's fun.
The story is a journal recollection of ponies who are not content with the reforms taking place in Equestria during the 19th century, so they leave on a journey to undiscovered lands, eventually settling on an island.
I don't know anything about US history, so I don't know if this is how the travels of the pilgrims fared, but this story does a good use of its Dark tag. Things start well, with everypony agreeing to leave behind certain things that connect them to Equestria. Money, they won't need that where they're going. Religious symbols, Celestia's in her Equestria. All is right with them. Weapons, no need for violence in the utopia they'll surely create.
There is some resistance when some of these changes are enacted, but they ultimately take place. However, there is a proposal for books to be banned, and this is what causes a heavier divide between the ponies. Eventually, the deranged leader leaves with a bunch of other ponies and make their own settlement on the other side of the island, and every now and then, a pony leave for the second camp.
As you can imagine, the second camp isn't doing all that well. Ponies are dying and those who aren't are starved and sick. Knowing that their numbers are dwindling, they decide to invade in the middle of the night to take over and burn the books.
The story then ends with the protagonist having escaped after his wife was burned alongside the books and leaving his journal as a warning to anyone who may come afterwards.
It was alright. I like the concept, and some parts were quite well executed. Being an entirely OC cast in an environment so detached from Equestria does hamper its general appeal, and once you hit the midway point, you can sorta see how the rest of story is going to play out. Hell, the opening paragraph confirms everyone is dead.
So, a foregone conclusion not made any better by its execution.
Eh. As much as I liked the idea, I wouldn't recommend this, unless someone was really aching for OC only stories, for some reason.