Randimaxis

Friends... Dax had to hold back his sheer joy at the idea that, through his meeting with the changelings, he would now have MANY more friends; when he first signed up for the Cultural Exchange program, he'd just wanted a friend - now, it seemed as though he would have far more than he ever imagined. Heck, he'd even have friends he wouldn't know until they chose to reveal themselves! It was like putting a bit in a gumball machine, and getting a possibly infinite supply of gumballs in return! "I hope I can be a friend to them too, Your Majesty," he said, doing his best to hold back his tears of happiness. The fascination he felt was matched only by the personal excitement he felt at the thought that he was learning more about changelings than most ponies ever knew before; it was thrilling to be present for the creation process - something else that told Dax he was well-trusted here - and to be able to witness such a thing was almost more than he could bear. He watched attentively, never once did his thoughts or eyes wander as he watched the miracle of changeling life, right in front of him. "Thank you for sharing this with me, Your Majesty - this is a moment I swear I'll never forget, and I'm honoured you'd trust me so much." Dax's mood shifted from fascinated... to curious, and perhaps a bit worried. "A-actually, if I may... I do have a question that you might be able to answer for me... i-if you wish to, of course." He tilted his head a bit. "If Troy is so very accepting of other races... why do the changelings still have to hide among them? Shouldn't they be accepted among the other citizens for who they are?"

Your style reminds me of a cross between FLCL & Samaural Jack - very nice!

I do indeed love your style of artwork; keep it up!

Chuck List had never really been one to engage in flights of fancy; he'd been a poor sot growing up, and he'd been at the bottom of the proverbial barrel when he'd been found by Luther Blackwater in Manehattan. Because of this, he tended to have a very down-to-earth attitude about things. Even so, the sight of the clouds gathering was a point of worry; he remembered well what happened the last time the clouds had brought the rain - years ago - and it wasn't pretty. The mines were built for efficiency... but against the rain, they were practically defenseless. It might cost the Blackwaters millions of bits to clear the mines of water - not to mention the lives that could be lost in the process. But that paled in comparison to his memories of the last rainstorm that had happened here: FIRE OPALS didn't mix well with water, and the steam produced caused enough pressure to build up to where portions of the mountain itself had exploded outward, causing quite a lot of damage and a panic to boot. There'd been something else as well... but with his memory locked onto the possible trouble ahead, he barely had time for thought. Now, however, his logical mind wasn't quite sure what it was that he saw; was it some kind of bird? A magic bird? It didn't look like a phoenix, but it most certainly WAS NOT a robin. His curiosity piqued, Chuck gave the creature a wary eye as he came closer to try to get a better look at it.

It spooked him a bit, but he kept walking. Far be it for me to even consider what might be going on there... best to just keep moving. "Thank you kindly," he said, though he felt anything BUT welcome in this place; with the reputation the Silverhoofs had, he almost expected to never be able to leave. Thankfully, they seemed to require him for their plans, so he didn't feel like his life was in danger just yet - though, when they'd achieved what they were trying to achieve, he'd have to find a way to get out of town FAST, he was fairly certain. He gave a polite bow to Filigree, and to the others as well. Never hurts to be polite when you don't know if your life is in danger, he thought. Redd jumped at the flash of fire... but strangely, upon seeing an actual changeling in the... uh, carapace... he smiply shrugged, then bowed again. Frankly, he didn't seem to have much fear of the creature's race - his concern was more for how far this 'acting coach' would push him. A changeling in the employ of the Silverhoof family? Oh, now I may have seen too much; this can't end well for me. But, professional he was, and professional he gave as he nodded. "Yes, let's get right to business, sir; I may have a bit of talent, but I am aware that I can always seek improvement... and from one such as yourself? I assume it will be quite a feat to even consider matching your ability - but I can try, correct?" He followed to the stage, where he stopped long enough to close his eyes and take a deep breath. Ah, the stage - he always loved it, even in his worst funk, and he was looking forward to his training, as it would give him ample time to enjoy being in the role. "Very well... how shall we begin, sir?"

THIS is the canon prequel to The Blackwater Quarry: https://www.fimfiction.net/story/325624/a-cultural-exchange Give it a look; I thought it was quite good! OH! And if you like it, make sure to thank @Illiad Easle for putting it in story-form!

"Oh! No no no no... it's just... different," he assured her, "a-and I just wasn't prepared to see something like this - of course, that's been almost this entire trip!" He placed a hoof on her shoulder. "Don't be upset, please; I just wasn't expecting something like this, is all. I'm not adverse to it, I promise... I just need time to soak it all in." You know, Dax... there's miles of caverns at the quarry... He shook the thought out of his head for now; there would be little chance that his Father would allow such a thing, and even if he did, it would certainly have to be a secret... which might end up backfiring against the quarry itself. The place was so full of folks, there'd be little chance of hiding any secrets there. Dax jumped a bit as he heard the Queen's voice. He quickly moved to where he could see her - and more importantly, where he didn't have his back to her; not out of fear, but more out of not wanting to be rude to royalty. Dax gave one of his sheepish grins again. "Well, er... I just wanted to be certain that I didn't cause any problems, Your Majesty - that, and I'd love to be invited back sometime." IF I was ever allowed to, he ruminated. "It's just all so much wonder and mystery to take in... but Oracle's been explaining a lot about it, and it helps keep my curiosity sated! She knows quite a lot about the hive, naturally, and she really seems to enjoy sharing about it!" He then blushed. "Kinda like how I talk about my family history, when I'm back home; we're a lot alike, in that way!" He sent a kind smile to Oracle after his words, letting her know how much he appreciated her detailing of the goings-on within the hive.... aaaaaand because he also found it cute that she was as excited as she was about it. Of course, he also just found her CUTE, but that was beside the point. His muzzle caught a BIG blush, and his embarrassment was difficult to hide; when she said 'reproduction', his mind went directly to how ponies reproduce... but it only took a moment for him to realize that it was probably quite different than he'd learned about pony biology, and his blush went from shocked to just plain embarrassed. "Uhm, heh... sorry; when you said reproduce, I thought... er, never mind. Y-yes, though - I am quite curious to see what you mean, Your Majesty."

Well, my thought would be that maybe he takes his time on the trip back to actually think... since it's a slow process for him, he'd have plenty of time to consider all he's seen so far. Might make for an interesting recap. Plus, there's always the idea that, once he gets to the quarry, he might overhear what's going on with Silver. Or possibly, he may actually deliver the crate directly TO the Blackwater Manor; no telling who might answer the door. And it's okay, Widdy-Shinny, if you're not sure of what to do. Hey, folks - do YOU have any ideas for him?

Swearing is like seasoning your food; too little, and it may be bland... but too much, and it's just ruined.

And done; again, my sincerest apologies.

@Flow, oh my gosh, I am so sorry - I'm pretty sick at the moment, and I forgot to put your reply! Allow me to fix that, right now.

I suppose it's that time again, eh? There. Much better.

Silver gratefully accepted the hug, and sobbed a bit on Ziggy's shoulder. "I just d-don't understand who would DO such a thing! This has NEVER happened before!" "Ziggy's right," Dax said as he put a hoof on her shoulder, "someone has to have some idea of what's going on here... Chuck should be told about this... and Father, too." Dax nodded, and sat down next to Silver. "Thanks, Ziggy - I'll stick around a moment, sure." He took over the comforting hug as the doctor flew to the gates. The two earth ponies looked over at her, and both seemed to calm down a good bit for her efforts, Dax merely upset and Silver sniffling and wiping her eyes. "Silver's been robbed - that was the shriek we heard earlier, when she discovered it. They took her blueprints, as well as Blitz's mechanical wings; whoever it was had better be long gone, or when Father finds them, they'll wish they were." He looked to Mystic apologetically as he continued to comfort Sliver. "I'm so angry and embarrassed that this happened - I hope this doesn't reflect badly on the quarry for you; I promise, this doesn't happen normally!" "Oh, Ziggy... how can everything be okay? My plans... ALL my plans... gone, just... j-just GONE!" Dax looked at her with a sympathetic grin... then looked at Mystic with a more determined muzzle. "Mystic, are you okay to stay here with them while I tell Father... or would you rather come with me? Either way, he has to know." @Flow "So that must be Princess Celestia correct? Well, here I go again with the vines. This isn't my kind of thing in my line of work, but to see such spectacle is a wondrous experience." Sure enough, beneath the vines on this statue was an equally impressive rendition of Celestia; the two statues looked almost alive, and they were amazing in their likeness. Whomever had done this was quite the sculptor... Which raised the question of WHY these magnificent works of art were simply lying here, unseen and unappreciated for what had to be a century if it was a day. Surely, if these had been in, say, the Canterlot Gardens, they would be quite the talk of the entire town. Yet here they were, simply perched on their pedestals, with nobody around to see them. Had it been the ghost, during her living years, who had crafted these wonders? Maybe checking the name on the tomb that statue stood on would reveal something? Looking upon the visages of the royal pair, they almost seemed as if they would bow and thank her at any moment... yet, unlike the statue in Blackwater Ridge, they simply stayed put, like good statues should. However, it felt almost as if the smile Celestia wore and the kind gaze of Luna were a little brighter for her efforts. Vylia simply gave a lofty grin, and took another sip of her tea. "Oh, but you already have - the very minute you walked onto the quarry grounds, I knew you would be meeting with me, so I've already arranged everything accordingly. You see..." She gave him a direct look with a smirk. "Nothing goes on here that I don't know about, Golddust. Nothing." "Have you not been shown to your quarters yet? I would assume that was the reason you were escorted in to begin with, yes? As it seems you have no baggage with you, I would believe that whatever room they've placed you in would be where you are expected to stay - and don't try to tell me you haven't been shown to a suite; my servants have already claimed to have seen you in the manor proper... oh!" She now leaned forward with a softer smile in place. "Have you met my little Oglevy yet? I'm certain he's bound to take a fancy towards you - he's quite the little genius, you know?" Pansy grinned genuinely. "I won't, Mister Hopper - thank you for your help, and I do hope we meet again." As he left the grounds, there were a number of ponies around who took note of Clod's departure... and all of them seemed to be watching him intently. The trek back to the Blackwater Quarry would take a bit... but the crate on his back was strange, to say the least; every now and again, it felt like something inside was shifting a bit. Hopefully, it wouldn't be damaged in the travel process; whatever was inside should be delivered in the best condition, of course.

Weird?

The people on these forums are the best part. The things we talk about, the connections we make, the stories we tell... all of those things are REAL, and we cherish every moment of it, don't we folks? It's the stuff that sticks with us from this wonderful little corner of the internet, the magic that we find in the friendships we make here that make it such an incredible thing that we've come this far... and we plan to keep going, of course. For this third installment, we would love for you to share those moments with us; the specific points where the folks here made that spark of a connection with you. No long lists of names, now - we have other threads for that *chuckle*; I mean key moments where someone (or some ones) shared some of that magic with you personally. Be it a roleplay moment that was epic, or a conversation that became a dear part of your memories, or possibly even a meetup where you got to see them in person - tell us of the moments when the adage ''friendship is magic'' REALLY happened to you. And now, your final gift... and of course, who else to present it but our beloved draconequus expert: Thank each and every one of you for lighting up our lives, our hearts, and our cutie marks. Excelsior!