open Casual stroll

[Blitz Boom 4,608]

@Catpone Cerberus

Magma would take another gulp of her coffee, before she responded, having started enjoying the cup in full, just as Solar were looking over the paperwork she had prepared.

It were good to hear that he considered everything to look up to order, and had signed it without issue. She had no doubt that everything were in fact, in order, but confirmation from another were still nice and validating. It took a good deal of work, to get these things sorted well, and she took pride in her work. Something that had been denied her for month on end by now, yet as she finally had employment, she could once again feel a sense of pride and accomplishment, in seeing the fruits of her labor.

"I find that I do not need to rest as often as I used to anymore, but I appreciate that you ask, sir. For now, in lieu of a break, might I instead ask if I can finish this first?"

She would raise the coffee, and take another sip. Were she allowed to, she would drink it over the next 5-10 minutes (depending on the size) and ready the letter between gulps. Which really just meant to close it, as she already wrote the details on the front and back as needed. She just had to get it to a post office, or directly delivered to the guards then, and things would get in motion. Depending on how busy they were, she should be getting a response back within the next 1-4 days.

There were of course also the option that they would call upon her, rather than send files over, and she could then purview things under more secure circumstances, but she were mostly counting on that too. It would reduce the time it would take for her to get a response, and could well mean that she spotted some that the guards didn't consider, or had wanted to keep on the down low, for one reason or another. Though they'd see. Might be she'd get several boxes of paperwork instead.

Once she were done, or they'd simply begin to walk off, with him informing her that she could drink whilst they walked, she would say something, before his tour would get them too far.

"As we were tangibly in on it before, I don't expect to have to be here all the time, but I couldn't have left before. My desk and everything preliminary in nature being in an unfinished state, I would have spent all my time thinking on how I would do things anyway. I found it best to have this done, and my head cleared. Wouldn't be much of a rest otherwise.

But please, do lead the way. I'm curious about the rest of the layout."

She would make sure to put her security card on first though. She assumed there'd be some scanners they had to use, to get past certain checkpoints, as she were used to in Center Zero. She supposed she'd see soon, but so far, it seemed like a good place to work, and she were only marginally concerned that what she hadn't seen, would change that.

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@Catpone Cerberus

On 2024-10-14 at 11:47 AM, Catpone Cerberus said:

Charir too had his eyes on Leviathan, though his admiration was visible  and pure, to him it was very impressive how Leviathan moved in the water, and he didn't even try to hide it. When Leviathan came out of the water fully, Charir slammed his tail on the ground as a form of applause, his expression being the mane show of the intended message. It was however cut short as the crab, which he was still holding in his claws, manged to close its claw on Charir's snout; It didn't hurt, as Charir's scales were too hard for a mere crab to get through, but it bemused him for a moment before he finally just ate the crab. 

Leviathan would take a bow, big grin on her face, as she saw that at least one were openly pleased with her showing off. The one she had expected to as well. Sure it'd be nice if Ruby clapped, but it'd take more than this. Maybe if she had pulled an actual sea monster in, but she hadn't seen anything. Things seemed rather standard around here. Might be the water were the only safe zone in sight, huh? Hard for her to say, but it'd explain why the water wasn't filled with large predators, hunting for smaller predators. She had assumed the ecosystem there would reflect the landmass they were near, but seemingly not.

Might be a good thing. One place of semi-respite before going into the danger zone. Someplace with proper food no less. Well, to her anyway. Charir seemed to enjoy it well enough too, with him munching on a crab that had gotten stuck to his face. Good to see that someone else enjoyed the crunch.

On 2024-10-14 at 11:47 AM, Catpone Cerberus said:

"No need for more, thank you." Ruby stated, she didn't need a full meal, and besides, she wasn't sure if she could even eat enough for that, because again, she didn't really like seafood. Ruby didn't turn away from Leviathan right away, though if she paid attention, Leviathan could possibly notice that Ruby wasn't really looking at her in the way she generally did when talking to someone, but rather looking at her as a whole, as if she was looking at something she liked, in a good way, not the food way. If she didn't notice it, or noticed but didn't say anything, Ruby would catch herself from doing it, and would turn towards the meal that was brought to her, though the way she moved her glance was bit more quick than usual. 

She would ultimately decide to pick  the following: couple of bass, couple of eels, and the shark; she'd see later if she wanted more. 

Charir meanwhile would go around the shallow water catching crabs, they weren't any more tasty than any other marine life for him, but he really liked the crunch. 

She'd grin, seeing what it were that Ruby had picked. Especially the last one, were something that she had hoped the larger dragoness would pick, as she had talked about how good shark could taste. Granted, she'd personally use some spices, herbs, and grill them, but maybe another time, she could present them with a proper roast of the sea. That had to impress them at least a bit, or their tastebuds were just dead, heh.

Charir seemed to like his seafood too, and were hunting crabs around. She'd gotten a few of those up too, of a nice size, so she'd let out a whistle to try and get his attention, and held a crab with a hole straight through the head up. She figured it'd perhaps interest him, and she'd toss it towards him, if he seemed to be interested. If not, she'd put it down again, and pick a bass, then breathe fire on it to quick roast it. It were a good deal better that way in her mind, when she chomped into it.

"Personally I find properly cooking it makes shark better, but I'll keep that thought for another time, then sort a proper filleted, spiced and roasted seafood menu. I know you like stuff raw, but trust me, if that doesn't make you like fish, then ain't nothing will.

Sides, been a while since I had the chance to cook for creatures that weren't diamond dogs. It'll be a hoot."

She'd grin and chomp down on her own food, but Ruby and/or Charir might well be able to tell that she were trying to cover over how she were getting a tinge of nervousness in, now that she couldn't distract herself by hunting for fish and stuff. Being this close to a place she heard so much about, would get to her nerves, and at least for now, she thought that she were hiding it fairly okay. Probably weren't gonna last though, even if they couldn't tell. Not when they finally crossed over there properly.

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@Catpone Cerberus

"Lemme guess, her drone told you off, yeah? He's been overly suspicious of the doctors too at times, if he hasn't seem them before. I went in to check her charts, first time after he came rushing in, and I swear he looked at me for a second, like he were gonna flay me. Very overprotective that one.

Still, it's good she have somepony there. He haven't left her side since he got there, and something tells me he hasn't slept either. Apparently drones are a lot closer to their queens than figured, from how it went with Chrysalis."

Truth be told, she had a sneaking suspicion that it were more than that. Like, here were a changeling queen, and she had one drone show up. One who refused to leave her alone, and sat at her side, keeping a close eye on her, and everypony who got near her. Probably paranoid that one, but he had let one thing slip, beyond just his name, and that this were his queen. He'd been half-mumbling it as she got into the room the second time.

He didn't want her to wake up alone.

Could be the protective thing again, but... Heh, maybe she were just being a romantic honestly. Still, it seemed a nice thought, and regardless, it were good that she wouldn't wake up eventually, with nopony else than some hospital staff to talk to.

While Trox went off to get the weapons though, she did a quick think on who the guard they were talking about were. They had a few pass through, but realistically, there were only one she assumed they were talking about.

"Say, that guard you're talking about, it's Stargazer, yes? He's the only bat pony guard we've had in Ponyville since... Ever, really. And our only local guard. I know where he lives, if it's because you'd rather just deal with him directly? This time of day, he's either at his office, or on the way to pick up his daughter from school."

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@EQ_Theta

On 2024-10-14 at 4:07 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“Elder Ghilan’s position is… unique. Normally, one village’s elders are left to run their villages without the involvement of other elders. Here, it’s a different case where what happened in a village is concerning enough that other elders have to learn about it. It seems your arrival and the whole mess with the former elder Solasan was big enough to get their attention.”

“I guess leaving things where they were after Solasan’s gone wasn’t enough. I just wanted to be done with that.”

“Maybe, but the other elders will not see it that way. If I were to guess, they would be pointing their claws at all of you and Ghilan. They do not know the details, and they will assume you had something to do with his disappearance. Now Omen, from what I remember, Solasan was about as average as you can get with an elder. He did not do much to stick out until what happened to your mother and father. Even then, the village hunters followed him, some even liked him. Guess he was just good at hiding his true nature until then.”

“He made sure we were well-trained and the routes going through the forest were secured. Even encouraged the hunters to develop new techniques that could make us more effective trackers and fighters. But Xin told us he also threatened him, which was possibly true for those who didn’t listen to him.”

“If you are certain, then that might help your case. But only bring it up when the topic comes up. Better to be safe than sorry.”

"I did not have anything to do with Salosan going away. Mother sent him to the bad place, that she says is very dangerous. She does not like it, when her children are being threatened."

Mother were their everything, and her children meant all to her in turn. Salosan threatening them, incurred her wrath. And when you could open gates to countless worlds, you had several options to punish those who ended on her bad side. Not that she would normally go this far, but Salosan had openly hurt them too, with Lin and Sen especially affected. So she had done the worst possible thing she could do to him in return.

Yet she hadn't been told that she should not talk about it, and so she would. Though they might want to tell her to not use her sisters name. The elders feeling like something were scraping on their minds, poking at their brain, would likely not give a good impression of Omen. They already had to get used to how she spoke, so they might want to thread carefully. Yet Omen didn't think much of it, and probably wouldn't at all, unless it were brought up by one of the others.

"Do they know what he did? Or did no one tell them yet? Is that one of the reasons we are going there?"

If they blamed Sen, Lin, and Omen, then it might mean that they did not know what had happened. Omen didn't know that much either, having only second hoof knowledge, but Sen and Lin should be able to tell what had happened, yes? The two had been in the situation, and maybe that were what the elders wanted to know from them? Or did someone else tell them a story, that wasn't true, and they were blamed because of that? Then they should just tell the truth, and this should be done. Seemed simple enough, yes?

Yet as with most situations, Omen would guess that it would not turn out to be simple, in the long run. It rarely seemed to be, these last few weeks.

On 2024-10-14 at 4:07 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“Well… there is something like what you described. It is hearsay but there is a thick patch of trees in the forest that has grown going west. Most travelers go through it instead of around it, but there have been stories of delays lasting for at least two days. The lost travers arrived tired but fine, though they recall feeling like the forest is ‘shifting’ or the trees are ‘watching them.’ Creepy but no one is certain of the truth behind them. Most just accept that they got turned around before finding their way.”

“And no one’s decided to investigate?”

“No, or at least no one is taking this seriously. If the longma just waved it off like it was nothing, then I do not think it is anyone’s business to find enemies in places where there are none. Look, I know we were debating earlier but this might be important to you; sorry that we have to cut that short. We might end up arguing in circles if we kept at it for longer. I just hope that what we did helped you prepare. I take it this means you will try looking for these Evergrown?”

"If you can show me where, then yes. But Rosa was the one who told us about them, and he said that you need another Evergrown to look for their town. When you sleep, I can go and ask him to find the one he said he knew, and then take them there? Or is it still bad to take others here, if I do not tell anyone that I take them here?

I do not think I could find them alone, but maybe I could try. I will let you decide."

She were unlikely to find something, unless one of the Evergrown got curious, and wandered out to meet her. Which they might very well. The ones in this area, only knew the Longma. Ponies were an unseen group, for all but the founders of the local village. For saplings, and generations after, they wouldn't have seen, but only heard of creatures like that. And Omen did stand out in the forest, with her odd coloration.

On 2024-10-14 at 4:07 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“It is a stark contrast between invoking the divine and directly harnessing natural elements. We have heard about pegasi walking on clouds, and it is not so farfetched to believe they can do more with the weather. If magic exists, then we have to at least believe a lot of things can be possible.”

"Magic have revolutionized many things, that is for certain. But technology and good old fashioned science have brought us far too. The best there is, have learned to combine these things.. Hence things such as the weather machine, which combines magic and technology to seamlessly tame the once harsh weather of Equestria.

Can't say I know the details though. Trade secret and all that. Hmm, and I am more the sort who looks to the past. Machinery is not a forte of mine, to understand. Not these new fangled ones, that much is sure."

The weather machine were one thing, but the various things running on solar energy, the newer machines they had sorted in the scrap yard, etc. It were not that he didn't understand what others told him that they did. Rather, he couldn't fathom how such a thing were put together in the slightest, and when some things were then tried to be told him in details... He prided himself a taught stallion, but most of the thing he were told were simply beyond his understanding.

But that were fine. He were specialized in the past, whilst others would be handling those kinds of things. Those who made such things, would probably not grasp his work fully either. Possibly because they'd nod off due to boredom.

On 2024-10-14 at 4:07 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“Place it on the ground, and we will examine it in safety. At the very least, having a protective barrier will prevent further harm to lives and property. Magus? I will need your assistance.”

The two golems stood across each other, the necklace in between them. Magus didn’t need to be reminded of what to do, only that this procedure needed his magical abilities. He sat up, raised both front legs, and began making circular gestures with his hooves. Then, holding his catalyst, he began creating a large sigil mid-air, manifesting as a golden, six-pronged, circular sigil. He’d then direct the sigil to the ground, surrounding the necklace and creating the magical barrier as described earlier by Vates. It didn’t take long for the magic to hold, and soon they’d be ready for a battery of tests.

“As sudden and unprofessional as this may be, there is a clear and present danger, so it must be addressed. Before we continue, can you tell us more about that incident with the visitor? Your recounting made it seem like the object was behaving rather beast-like.”

They'd place it as requested, before Rusty would give a response to the question.

"I can't really say much more. I were not present when it happened."

"I were. I can tell you what I saw.

It basically began to fly around erratically. Seemed to focus on just a few guests, then the surroundings, before it swerved into a wall. It went right after the visitor after that.

After we managed to pull it off him, it flapped over to a perch and started just looking at us, before it twitched and began flying off again, eventually returning to the chain.

There is a detail that might matter? When it first woke up, its eyes were deep purple, but every once in a while, the left started to switch over to green."

"Are you sure of that?"

"Positive. I were chasing that thing for the better part of an hour, along with the others. I saw this several times. Though if it is anything that is relevant, I can't say. Curator Blotch were adamant that it is probably some defective unit from some older time, and that's why it acted so erratically. For all I know, it was made to eat ponies, and are just slowly adjusting to itself again. Wouldn't be the first thing made for that sole purpose that I know of."

 

[EQ_Theta 455]

@Blitz Boom

On 2024-10-17 at 9:29 AM, Blitz Boom said:

"I did not have anything to do with Salosan going away. Mother sent him to the bad place, that she says is very dangerous. She does not like it, when her children are being threatened."

Mother were their everything, and her children meant all to her in turn. Salosan threatening them, incurred her wrath. And when you could open gates to countless worlds, you had several options to punish those who ended on her bad side. Not that she would normally go this far, but Salosan had openly hurt them too, with Lin and Sen especially affected. So she had done the worst possible thing she could do to him in return.

Yet she hadn't been told that she should not talk about it, and so she would. Though they might want to tell her to not use her sisters name. The elders feeling like something were scraping on their minds, poking at their brain, would likely not give a good impression of Omen. They already had to get used to how she spoke, so they might want to thread carefully. Yet Omen didn't think much of it, and probably wouldn't at all, unless it were brought up by one of the others.

"Do they know what he did? Or did no one tell them yet? Is that one of the reasons we are going there?"

“Try telling that to the elders and see if they listen. They do not know your Mother, and they did not see what happened. As far as they are concerned, you fought back, and Solasan is not around now; Ghilan is in his spot as elder. That is as good enough as removing the former elder from his post and enough for the other elders to summon Ghilan for questioning.”

“Omen is right about asking if the other elders knew what Solasan did. They should know that the real one was long gone and a fake was running the village.”

“And how will you prove that? Will you go around looking for a long-decayed elder and dig up what is left of him for proof?”

“Xin’s family was threatened by Solasan, and he’s coming with us. His word will carry weight with the elders.”

“You better have more than just his word. Unless you know of other folks in this village who were threatened or saw what happened, one longma’s word might not be enough.” 

Zo’s words were true in a sense that more evidence was required. Sadly, there might not be enough time to go around interviewing the villagers for more solid proof of Solasan’s treachery. Tangible proof is in short supply, but there might still be something to work with. If one were to recall the golem scholars, their disembodied voices were stored in an orb that served as a repository, and that orb was, at one point, in Solasan’s possession. There might still be something in that orb, a recorded memory or some voices. Irrefutable proof that couldn’t just be fabricated, and fortunately, they’ll only need to borrow the orb for a while.

It was that or bring Legion back from the realm Mother sent him to for punishment. For that, they’ll need to get him to admit the truth, but Sen and Lin weren’t going to stake the burden of proof on someone so remorseless. Lin thought about her options, then turned to Sen and Omen with a confident smile. 

“We know someone we can turn to for our proof.”

On 2024-10-17 at 9:29 AM, Blitz Boom said:

"If you can show me where, then yes. But Rosa was the one who told us about them, and he said that you need another Evergrown to look for their town. When you sleep, I can go and ask him to find the one he said he knew, and then take them there? Or is it still bad to take others here, if I do not tell anyone that I take them here?

I do not think I could find them alone, but maybe I could try. I will let you decide."

“Honestly, do not let me stop you from trying to look, however way you will go about it. Just so we are clear, path going west of the village is where the travelers were coming from, and if I can guess where you are going soon, that is where you will pass as well.”

“You know where we are going?”

“My guess is Shii Cao’yuan. That is where the important gatherings happen so that place makes sense to me. You might not have enough time to investigate unless you get lucky and run into one of those Evergrown. If you do happen to see or meet one, let me know, all right? That is surely going to make you the most interesting someone in this village, Omen.”

It may not be wise to bank on luck to find the Evergrown; there may not even be Evergrown in the forest. However, there may be just enough evidence to not rule out their presence. If the Evergrown are there, it might get the longma to rethink their whole isolationist stance when a group of intelligent creatures is just nearby.

On 2024-10-17 at 9:29 AM, Blitz Boom said:

"Magic have revolutionized many things, that is for certain. But technology and good old fashioned science have brought us far too. The best there is, have learned to combine these things.. Hence things such as the weather machine, which combines magic and technology to seamlessly tame the once harsh weather of Equestria.

Can't say I know the details though. Trade secret and all that. Hmm, and I am more the sort who looks to the past. Machinery is not a forte of mine, to understand. Not these new fangled ones, that much is sure."

“That is true. And I know for sure my fellows are going to have to see these weather machines one day.”

“Controlling the weather… I never thought I’d see the day something like that becomes reality. Nature’s fury, now leashed. It must be nice to not worry about severe storms. Or am I mistaken and those are still naturally occurring?”

Scriniarii interjected, the thought crossing his mind. If the weather was now under control, then has that eliminated naturally occurring storms? Or is there a certain point where the pegasi allow the weather to simply be, no control required? Even then, one must wonder if the pegasi allow powerful storms to exist and if so, their reasoning behind it. It might not be a pretty answer.

On 2024-10-17 at 9:29 AM, Blitz Boom said:

"I were. I can tell you what I saw.

It basically began to fly around erratically. Seemed to focus on just a few guests, then the surroundings, before it swerved into a wall. It went right after the visitor after that.

After we managed to pull it off him, it flapped over to a perch and started just looking at us, before it twitched and began flying off again, eventually returning to the chain.

There is a detail that might matter? When it first woke up, its eyes were deep purple, but every once in a while, the left started to switch over to green."

"Are you sure of that?"

"Positive. I were chasing that thing for the better part of an hour, along with the others. I saw this several times. Though if it is anything that is relevant, I can't say. Curator Blotch were adamant that it is probably some defective unit from some older time, and that's why it acted so erratically. For all I know, it was made to eat ponies, and are just slowly adjusting to itself again. Wouldn't be the first thing made for that sole purpose that I know of."

“The way you described its behavior, I am inclined to believe what we have here is not a curse. What if we are looking at this the wrong way and coming to the conclusion that it is cursed? Perhaps it could be a ravenous mimic masquerading as a necklace.” 

“Erratic flight, attacking visitors…. Perhaps its creators intended it to be such. Still, maybe there is something we can do to make sure we know what we are dealing with. We will test by aggravating this necklace first by using little bolts of magic.” 

Vates didn’t want to start things off too quickly, not when they could misdiagnose the problem. With the necklace now surrounded by a protection barrier, they could start by establishing what it was they were dealing with. Magus conjured a small bolt of energy and fired it right at the necklace to see how it would react. Rusty and Mystril won’t have to worry about damage though. The bolt of energy would not leave a mark, sort of like how rubber flicked against a wall; it will bounce off, leaving the object no worse for wear. If the necklace came to life again, then they could better study it up close and in safety.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,580]

@Blitz Boom
Solar simply nodded in approval, as he too had a coffee to drink, and besides, he wouldn't have offered her to keep the break now, if he was planning to deny it. While they had their 'break' Solar interacted with the machine next to his desk, connecting himself to it and printing out some papers, which he then put on his own desk for now; if Magma looked at them, something which Solar didn't try to stop in any way, she'd find them to be lists of sorts, but lot of the words used in them would be such that she wouldn't know what they meant, as they were words for technology, systems and so on that didn't exist in this world. 

 As they were done, Solar would lead Magma out of the room as he responded, grabbing a box with ready paperwork labelled 'Archive' "I'm flexible on your presence as long as work is done, with exception being times when I may specifically request you to be here for reason or another, the only set time I ask is in the morning, so that you can process anything that may have made its way to the mail box." "At the same time, if there's ever times when there's simply nothing to do, I do not expect you to stay in just for sake of staying." 

"We'll start with what will become a very familiar place for you, the archive." He lead her through the hallways to a door that looked like every other door, with a small sign above the mail slot labeled 'archive' "If you have only few things with you, they can be dropped into the mail slot, which will only open if you have your card with you, though just having it present is enough." "However, in cases like this, where we have lot of material at once ,it is preferable to drop it off to the staff." He opened the door "The door, like the mail slot, needs the card to be with you to open, but it is 24/7." "The night staff do tend to be bit more uptight, so I prefer waiting until the morning." 

He would then lead her in to what was very unassuming room, with a counter going wall from wall with two service points, one for giving things into the archive, and one for taking things out. Solar would then introduce Magma to the staff member, who wrote something down, and he would then explain the simple process step by step to Magma. In short, as they had several different things at once, they had to fill a paper where they summarized what they dropped off, not in detail, but by category, and sign it. 

After this was done and it was time to move on, now with an empty box, Solar would ask if Magma had questions or comments before they continued on. 

-------------------------

Charir's attention was turned to Leviathan when she whistled, not because he necessarily understood that was her goal, but because any unexpected sound like that got his attention, as anything unusual could be either dangerous or just interesting. In his usual manner, he tilted his head as Leviathan presented the crabs, and if this was enough of a show of interest, he'd take the ones Leviathan tossed to him, as food was food, and while hunt was part of the fun usually, crabs weren't exactly the most thrilling of prey, so he didn't loose much with the ones that were already dead. He did observe the way that Leviathan had killed them though, as the hole through the head was a peculiar way to do it, to him at least; But when he thought about it, there wasn't any obvious neck to break or throat to rip out for these creatures, so it made sense to him, even if he didn't bother killing them himself.

"I personally just don't get the point of spice." Ruby stated as she cut a piece out of the shark, the smaller creatures she could shallow whole or crush in her mouth, but the bones of the shark were bit too big for pleasant meal "Why ruin perfectly good meat with plants." not that fish was good meat in her opinion, it was so salty yet also bland, and also just generally had less meat in her eyes; though at least they didn't have fur. 

Charir didn't notice Leviathan's nervousness, usually he probably would have, but he too was busy trying to distract himself from where they were, as he felt dread trying to climb up his spine. He acknowledged that he had Ruby to protect him now, and he did trust that she would do that, but it didn't change the fact that the homelands to him were a source of suffering and nothing else; his experience being so fresh that his physical wounds had barely finished healing since he left.  

"I suggest trying to rest after you're done eating, it won't be a long travel anymore, but we can't properly rest until we either make it through the barrier, or in the worst case, make it back here." "It is also good to let the food go down a bit, as I have a feeling you may find it hard to keep it in otherwise." it was a very matter-of-fact statement, and was true; While some details may have been slightly exaggerated by Ruby, the sight of death was not, the homelands were full of signs of the lives lost, and there was no route they could take to avoid it; And since they would take the route going through the territories of the younger dragons, naturally their age group would be common in those remains. "If there's anything you want to ask, or otherwise talk about, now would be the time." 

Meanwhile Charir, who at this point had had a good amount for crabs to eat, laid down nearby, looking towards the sea as he did, he was exhausted, so it wasn't hard for him to rest, and after a while, fall asleep. 

-------------------------------------

"Actually we have never met the drone." Sheska mentioned "We were simply told that he was there, and that he's very protective." "We would actually be fine just talking with him too, we'd just like to make sure Onache hears what we believe she should know." "She can always track us down if she wants further interaction with us." They didn't know much about changelings, so they didn't have much to comment on the relationship of Onache and the drone; Based on the closest thing they could think of, insects, and on what Onache had told, and shown to them, it could just been undying loyalty, or family type of deal, or romance, they didn't know, and frankly, it wasn't any of their business to speculate. 

"Yes, him exactly." Sheska stated "We don't have any problems with him specifically, but the problem is mainly the 'either' part." "We were given more weapons than we could realistically wield, and we rather not carry them around town from place to place where he may or may not be." "Especially since as the only local guard, you never know when he needs to be somewhere else." Trox would join the answer when he came back down "We mainly want to get rid of these so that guards don't come asking for them later, so a place where we know for sure there's a guard, like the hospital, is a good place for that." "We know that walking into the hospital with a pile of weapons will probably get us some weird looks and few questions, but, we no doubt are already the topic of several whispers around town." 

 

 

 

[Blitz Boom 4,608]

 

@EQ_Theta

On 2024-10-20 at 4:03 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“Try telling that to the elders and see if they listen. They do not know your Mother, and they did not see what happened. As far as they are concerned, you fought back, and Solasan is not around now; Ghilan is in his spot as elder. That is as good enough as removing the former elder from his post and enough for the other elders to summon Ghilan for questioning.”

“Omen is right about asking if the other elders knew what Solasan did. They should know that the real one was long gone and a fake was running the village.”

“And how will you prove that? Will you go around looking for a long-decayed elder and dig up what is left of him for proof?”

“Xin’s family was threatened by Solasan, and he’s coming with us. His word will carry weight with the elders.”

“You better have more than just his word. Unless you know of other folks in this village who were threatened or saw what happened, one longma’s word might not be enough.” 

"I only know what I have been told, and what I saw when Mother send him away. I do not think that is useful."

In some ways, it could even be detrimental. The villagers seemingly knew enough to think she were okay to be there, but she didn't have any idea, beyond just what she had been told. She believed it, since it were Sen and Lin who told her, but if the elders asked her if she could personally vouch that these things had happened, she would have to say no. The memories of the event were simply not there, and she could not say with certainty that she hadn't just been told a story.

Yet she were to be honest. She had a few things she were not meant to talk about, but beyond that, there were little reason for her to not simply be honest, as she always were. Lest they did something that made her not want to answer them, that would be the approach, and things such as this could be an issue, as she were not a usable eye witness. Not that they'd believe her in the first place likely, as she were an outsider, and they likely didn't enjoy even having to acknowledge her existence, in their home.

It were not going to get easier, if the Evergrown were introduced into things too, but there weren't a guarantee that there were even anyone here. Yet if there were, who knew how they'd act, by being told about this presence in what they once thought was only their home.

On 2024-10-20 at 4:03 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“Honestly, do not let me stop you from trying to look, however way you will go about it. Just so we are clear, path going west of the village is where the travelers were coming from, and if I can guess where you are going soon, that is where you will pass as well.”

“You know where we are going?”

“My guess is Shii Cao’yuan. That is where the important gatherings happen so that place makes sense to me. You might not have enough time to investigate unless you get lucky and run into one of those Evergrown. If you do happen to see or meet one, let me know, all right? That is surely going to make you the most interesting someone in this village, Omen.”

"The others will need to sleep eventually, yes? I do not, so I just wait for them to sleep, and go.

If you want me to tell you right away, I will need your scent, so I can open a gate. Can I sniff you?"

She had been told to ask for permission, and for the most part had done so. That had so far not included their grandfather, but that could change now, if he allowed it. It would allow her to know where he were at all times though, if she focused, but that also meant she could open a direct gate. If not, she'd just go to the nearest place she knew around it, and then walk over there to tell him. Which considering it was night, might cause a combined issue of her being out and around after curfew, and him sleeping.

"I can also just tell Lin, and she will decide what we do? She does not sleep either anymore, so she will be awake."

She might be meditating, or reading a good book though. Omen couldn't tell, but if not, she could go there and talk to her, with anything she found. Might be it wouldn't be important though. Could be that it were a clue, to potential visitors to the forest.

On 2024-10-20 at 4:03 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“That is true. And I know for sure my fellows are going to have to see these weather machines one day.”

“Controlling the weather… I never thought I’d see the day something like that becomes reality. Nature’s fury, now leashed. It must be nice to not worry about severe storms. Or am I mistaken and those are still naturally occurring?”

Scriniarii interjected, the thought crossing his mind. If the weather was now under control, then has that eliminated naturally occurring storms? Or is there a certain point where the pegasi allow the weather to simply be, no control required? Even then, one must wonder if the pegasi allow powerful storms to exist and if so, their reasoning behind it. It might not be a pretty answer.

"It is more correct to say that they keep the weather in line, for the most part. Rain, snow, hail- Even when it isn't wanted, we still get that, as it isn't considered bad, and barring special cases, natural weather, that's no reason to get involved with. Hurricanes and such they do their outmost to stop though, and there is certainly nowhere near as many as there once were. Were a time when Equestria couldn't go for too long without some intense weather, and back then, all one could do were to try and huddle up in your shelters, and ride it out, then rebuild after.

The weather machine helpeda great deal with lessening the frequency, but every once again, we do still get catastrophic weather. A rarity thankfully, with the last I know of, being a hurricane three years ago, that hit the western part of Equestria. The pegasi and unicorns from both the weather service and the Coastal Guard worked together to lessen the severity, but there were still quite a few villages that got hit at the time. Not as bad as the earthquake six years ago, or the tidal wave three years prior to that though.

Hm, yes. I think it is not so much that nature is a dog that Equestria have leashed, but more of a feral beast, that pulls on the chain around its neck."

Things were better than they were, a few centuries ago, that much were certain, but they were still not free from bad weather at times. Though he couldn't give specifics on how it worked. Trade secrets and all that, though they could perhaps one day get a tour of the area that had the more general public knowledge, and some of their old tech on display. It fascinated certain tourists, and it didn't give things away, so they had made a little tour of it, to get a slice of that tourists money for themselves too. Which were fair enough. They were funded by the government, but some spending cash for unofficial things didn't hurt.

On 2024-10-20 at 4:03 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“The way you described its behavior, I am inclined to believe what we have here is not a curse. What if we are looking at this the wrong way and coming to the conclusion that it is cursed? Perhaps it could be a ravenous mimic masquerading as a necklace.” 

“Erratic flight, attacking visitors…. Perhaps its creators intended it to be such. Still, maybe there is something we can do to make sure we know what we are dealing with. We will test by aggravating this necklace first by using little bolts of magic.” 

Vates didn’t want to start things off too quickly, not when they could misdiagnose the problem. With the necklace now surrounded by a protection barrier, they could start by establishing what it was they were dealing with. Magus conjured a small bolt of energy and fired it right at the necklace to see how it would react. Rusty and Mystril won’t have to worry about damage though. The bolt of energy would not leave a mark, sort of like how rubber flicked against a wall; it will bounce off, leaving the object no worse for wear. If the necklace came to life again, then they could better study it up close and in safety.

"A mimic? Oh my, I haven't seen one of those before, far as I am aware at least."

"They're very varied, so I dunno... Could be? We might have a different problem if that is, since we don't know what kind."

"You've... Seen several?"

"Through my uncle. He fought a few. Saved another. They're not all just ravenous beasts you know. Some of them can be relatively benign."

She hadn't thought this to be one, as it wasn't your standard version, but the thought had barely settled in her mind, before they began to poke it, and she saw a reaction: It twitched.

Were it just the stone body that seemed to move, then that would have been that, but no, she saw it shift around, as if the stone form wasn't completely settled for a moment, before it opened its eyes up. One flickered green briefly, before it went red, and it looked up towards the gathered beings, unaware of who had just poked at it, but all the same, would open its mouth and screech at them. The mouth opening further than it should have been possible, just as when it had tried to eat the guest's leg. Yet it's movements were slow, and the screech weak, and it would try to take flight and throw itself at Mystril, though the barrier kept it well in check, and it fell back, flapping down to the ground.

Rusty flinched, as he saw this, though Mystril would instead look at the seemingly confused creature with pity.

"Poor thing must be starving. No wonder it went after the guest. I'll go get something for it to eat."

"It just tried to attack you."

"Yes, and poorly at that, whilst sticking to this form. It's either a young one, or it's very famished. Either way, I wasn't raised to be cruel. I'm gonna get something. Please just keep it there, and try not to hurt it."

She'd wander off, whilst Rusty let out a sigh.

"Sometimes I don't know what to think of her.

What do you think? It sounds as if you have some expertise with mimics. They're not venomous... Right?"

Whilst they talked, it would wander around it's *enclosure* and try to crawl through the barrier at various points, turning around and trying elsewhere every time that it failed. It even tried biting the barrier, or claw it with its feet, but likely to no avail. This was quite the surprise find, but it seemed if not harmless, than at least too weak to be a current issue.

==============================================================

 

@Catpone Cerberus

On 2024-10-21 at 12:51 PM, Catpone Cerberus said:

As they were done, Solar would lead Magma out of the room as he responded, grabbing a box with ready paperwork labelled 'Archive' "I'm flexible on your presence as long as work is done, with exception being times when I may specifically request you to be here for reason or another, the only set time I ask is in the morning, so that you can process anything that may have made its way to the mail box." "At the same time, if there's ever times when there's simply nothing to do, I do not expect you to stay in just for sake of staying." 

"We'll start with what will become a very familiar place for you, the archive." He lead her through the hallways to a door that looked like every other door, with a small sign above the mail slot labeled 'archive' "If you have only few things with you, they can be dropped into the mail slot, which will only open if you have your card with you, though just having it present is enough." "However, in cases like this, where we have lot of material at once ,it is preferable to drop it off to the staff." He opened the door "The door, like the mail slot, needs the card to be with you to open, but it is 24/7." "The night staff do tend to be bit more uptight, so I prefer waiting until the morning."

"If I manage to eventually develop a social life, so that I can't be ready at all hours of the day, I'm sure to let you know, sir."

Her voice were a little dry in its delivery, as she said this. Truth be told, she'd like to have other things in her life than work, but at this point in her life, that mostly just boiled down to her studying herself, and finding out what she could of elementals via it. As well as figuring out her limits, her triggers, and practicing meditation. A little foolish for her taste historically, she found that it served a purpose well, to help her sharpen her mind, and be more calm and relaxed. Made her feel a little foolish for how judgmental she had been.

"In all seriousness, I do not currently have other things to do, except studying myself to learn more of my current status, and make sure that I am not deteriorating. Which so far, there haven't been any sign of, I might add.

My main point being that as it stands, I have little else to really do than work, so do not be surprised if you see me more than you might expect, for at least the first stretch of time. Worry not, I shall keep myself occupied. I will soon have potential candidate files to look over, as an example."

She'd follow as he showed her the archive, which true enough, she expected would be one of her more frequently visited places here. The system made good sense too. Why waste their time, lest she had enough material with her, that it did not fit the convenient mail slot? It were more efficient, and would likely be the norm, after this initial bundle of files had been handled.

On 2024-10-21 at 12:51 PM, Catpone Cerberus said:

He would then lead her in to what was very unassuming room, with a counter going wall from wall with two service points, one for giving things into the archive, and one for taking things out. Solar would then introduce Magma to the staff member, who wrote something down, and he would then explain the simple process step by step to Magma. In short, as they had several different things at once, they had to fill a paper where they summarized what they dropped off, not in detail, but by category, and sign it. 

After this was done and it was time to move on, now with an empty box, Solar would ask if Magma had questions or comments before they continued on. 

Magma would nod her head, and greet the staff member briefly, before listening to the instructions. Did not currently seem the sort who'd be up for a chat at random. Work ethics most likely, which she could respect.

"Currently I do not have questions. The system is well explained, and functional, so there's not anything to question or point hooves at. I'm ready to proceed."

She'd nod towards the staff member, before being ready to gone on her way. Now quite a bit lighter, with all the paperwork now handled. It honestly felt rather good, to have things done, approved, and filed right. It gave a good deal of system and normalcy back to her life. She'd cry with joy, but she didn't want to melt anything in here. It would not put her and the staff on good terms, and considering they had to handle the paperwork she had finished, it were likely best if she were, if not on friendly terms, then at the very least on neutral hoofing.

On 2024-10-21 at 12:51 PM, Catpone Cerberus said:

"I personally just don't get the point of spice." Ruby stated as she cut a piece out of the shark, the smaller creatures she could shallow whole or crush in her mouth, but the bones of the shark were bit too big for pleasant meal "Why ruin perfectly good meat with plants." not that fish was good meat in her opinion, it was so salty yet also bland, and also just generally had less meat in her eyes; though at least they didn't have fur.

"To add flavor, of course. SOme food is positively bland, unless you cook it right. Shark meat for instance. It's good, but not with a lot of taste to it. Now add some spice so it gives a good burn on the way down, with some nice aftertaste? Now we're talking. Besides, spice doesn't just mean plants. You can mix several kinds of meat, and infuse some wine, or boil it in pig's fat, among other things.

Trust me, I can sort out some shark another time, mix it up good, and add some taste to counter the bitterness it sometimes have, and you'll make you change your mind. Or you'll ridicule me. Either way, I'm gonna make it, and see what you two think of it. Maybe some surf and turf is the right thing actually... I'll think it over."

Been a while since she had something that was boiled in hog fat actually. The fat itself she weren't too interested in, but it worked to add a nice flavor, and the meat was excellent.

Darn it, now she wanted proper, roasted hog. That had to go on the backburner, until they came back. A nice little break from fish, which she did like, but variety were good. It made dinner less tedious, and you lost out on so many nice flavors, by keeping a closed mind. Sometimes that attitude worked better than others, but at least then she learned there were some tastes she just couldn't stand.

On 2024-10-21 at 12:51 PM, Catpone Cerberus said:

"I suggest trying to rest after you're done eating, it won't be a long travel anymore, but we can't properly rest until we either make it through the barrier, or in the worst case, make it back here." "It is also good to let the food go down a bit, as I have a feeling you may find it hard to keep it in otherwise." it was a very matter-of-fact statement, and was true; While some details may have been slightly exaggerated by Ruby, the sight of death was not, the homelands were full of signs of the lives lost, and there was no route they could take to avoid it; And since they would take the route going through the territories of the younger dragons, naturally their age group would be common in those remains. "If there's anything you want to ask, or otherwise talk about, now would be the time." 

Meanwhile Charir, who at this point had had a good amount for crabs to eat, laid down nearby, looking towards the sea as he did, he was exhausted, so it wasn't hard for him to rest, and after a while, fall asleep. 

"I... Sorta been wondering... *sigh*"

She'd lower the bit of fish she still had left, and shook her head. Questions starting and failing to come out of her mouth, as she ran into several times where she realized that she really didn't want to know the answer.

"Honestly? I think it's best that I don't ask more about that place. The more I hear, the worse it gets, and I'm already fighting nerves here, y'know? Or well, maybe you don't, but this place man. It gives me the heebie-jeebies just looking at it, knowing what I've been told so far."

She'd look over to see Charir lay down for a rest, and chuckled ever so slightly, a bit of joy staying with her, as she saw the *little* guy all tucked out from dinner.

"But I'll keep it together, or at least try my darndest. Charir needs us to look tough for this, so he feels safer, yeah? Can't imagine what being back here is making him feel...

Actually, that's one thing I could ask. How're you handling this? I can't tell from your expression, but there outa be something that goes through your head, going back here. You worried there's gonna be an unwelcome family reunion, for instance?"

That would probably be one of the worst encounters they could have. It would do a number on Charir's mind, just seeing her in the first place, and she doubted thar Ruby would keep her cool fully, being face to face with her. She weren't either. She had some choice words, that were likely best delivered via lightning bolt, lest she would get a claw through the face as a response.

...Actually, considering Charir's ability, she might have some resistance to electricity too. She'd be better off with ice, or blinding her, and getting out of there. Monster that she sounded like, Leviathan really didn't want to get into a life or death battle with her friends mom. Not just because she didn't want to kill another dragon, but also because it would be really awkward.

===========================================================

 

@Catpone Cerberus

"Oh, there's talks alright, but they're mostly positive. Can't please everypony, even though you helped us against an attack, I suppose. But you'll be given overall leeway, unless you start to stab somepony. Still, good to have me along, since they know I'm working at the hospital. It'll be reassuring for some.

Well, best we gather everything up that we need to go with then. No time like right now, yeah?"

She kinda got their point, in that they didn't want to risk chasing after Stargazer, trying to find exactly where he were. It could get annoying, and would perhaps draws eyes in the long run. Mattered little she supposed. The hospital were a good spot for him and the other guards to come pick up stuff too if it were. They'd just receive it, then send him a message, as well as to the school, where two other guards worked as instructors for some classes for the time being.

When they were ready, she'd go with them to the hospital, where they could deliver the weapons without any issues.

If they went then to see Onache, they'd hear a low voice, slithering out from under the door. A male voice, speaking likely at normal volume in there.

"-ill be okay. I'm here... I'll always be here..."

The voice were soothing in nature, and if they opened the door... Well, they'd certainly see something. Onache laying in bed, on her stomach head down a donut pillow, with a bucket underneath, in case more would leave her being. She didn't seem awake, but she wasn't so much the primary thing to witness in here. That would be the other one. Her drone, who were a reformed changeling, like she were.

Unlike her however, he stood taller, on two legs, wearing tattered pants. Despite the long tail, mane-like hair growing at his chest and back area, antenna and weird colors, he had the base form of a human. Changed definitely, with hands ending in pointy fingers, wings and so forth, but by the looks of things, at least somewhat human. Yet when he saw them, the light green changeling eyes falling on them, he got engulfed in blueish-green flames, and where he had sat a human of sorts before, now stood a pony.

He'd glare at them briefly, before seeing the nurse, though she too would catch some stink eye.

"You didn't see that."

"Dude! What the hay was that?"

Neon was surprised to say the least. Positively shocked in fact, but not afraid. He could taste it in the air. She seemed just genuinely surprised. It were... Not ideal, but it wasn't as if he could erase her memories. Nor that of the kobolds she were wandering around with. Though these were certainly different, from those that he'd seen before.

"The shadow of a weakling.

You two. Are you the ones who brought my queen here?"

He'd look towards the kobolds. He were told of them, when he asked in to what had happened to Onache, and he'd assume these two were the ones, but he did not want to embarrass himself, by thanking the wrong ones.

[Catpone Cerberus 23,580]

@Blitz Boom
Solar would proceed, their next stop being a sort of a combination of a mail room and and an office; Solar would explain that it was where everything relating to employment was dealt with, and also where any material heading outside the headquarters, or coming from outside in, would go through. He again would wait for any potential question before proceeding. 

They would then go see the locations of the offices for the other guard branches and potential other individuals Magma would most likely need to interact with; though Solar would explain that for those Magma's clearance wasn't high enough to just walk on in, so if for reason or another leaving the documents in the mail slot wasn't an option, she'd need to knock and wait for someone, most likely the secretary, to let her in.  

If there was no questions, he'd then show Magma things like the fire exits, what to do and where to go in case of an attack, and other practical things like that, ending the showcase with the break rooms, there being one for Civilian staff and the military staff each, Magma being the former. He would then start heading back toward their office. 

----------

While Ruby decided to not comment on it further, it wasn't hard to tell Ruby wasn't particularly convinced by Leviathan's response, though then again, she always looked unimpressed, so who knew what she actually thought about it. Though she did agree that shark was quite tasteless, but one factor to it was that non-homeland meat in general tented to be weaker in taste for her, mainly because homelands meat was so bitter in taste, it wasn't better by any means, as Ruby preferred the metallic taste of blood over bitterness of any kind, but 100 years of that does dull one's sense of taste a bit. 

 

For Leviathan's question, Ruby swallowed some food before turning her head towards the mainland "I acknowledge the risk that is our mother. If she is still alive, and learns that we have returned, she no doubt wishes to finish what she started." her tone was colder than usual "I also have no illusions of my own abilities, she will kill me if I try to fight her." "But I am not worried, because as much as her size is a threat, it is also a weakness, she is slower, and the mountains provide plenty of spaces too small for her." it probably wasn't a surprise that Ruby defaulted to the physical threat posed rather than the mental side of things. 

"For this return in general, my feelings are different than I expected." She then admitted in thoughtful manner, looking back towards Leviathan "I feel...conflicted." "The Homelands are the place of my greatest memories, and my worst nightmares. It is where I rose to the top, where I dominated, yet it is also the site of my greatest failure, a constant reminder of how far I've fallen." as she said the last part, Ruby pulled her front leg into a fist, sinking her claws into the sand, before looking towards the sky "But in the end, even with how much I despise it, it is the only place where I have ever felt like home." 

--------

The kobolds would in fact ask for Onache, and would proceed to the room, though, not being total savages, they would knock before opening the door, so that they wouldn't spook whoever was in there, or Onache, since they couldn't be sure if she was awake or not.

If regardless of knocking, they ended up seeing the drone's...particular appearance, they didn't comment on it, because not only were they not familiar with humans in any way; though they knew plenty of other bipedal creatures; they also weren't that familiar with changelings still, so if it weren't for the reactions of Neon and the Drone himself, they would have assumed it was perfectly normal for changelings. It would have also been rude to comment on it, as the creature clearly didn't want to talk about it; but they made a mental note about it, as they were curious, especially after his response to Neon. 

 

"Two of them yes, our friend and her partner also helped." Sheska responded, to which Trox continued "And you are the lone drone Onache mentioned?" it was pretty obvious, but Trox hoped that it worked as a way to communicate that Onache had trusted them enough to mention him, specifically that he was the only drone. Their general demeanor was friendly and respectful, as was fit for the situation, they were used to this type of thing after all, being a healer and her brother, they both knew how to behave. "It's nice to finally meet you, be it in such regrettable circumstances." Sheska glanced at Onache in sympathetic manner, they may have not been 'friends' yet, but she still didn't like seeing her in such a state, not to mention that she partially blamed herself for it; not only should she have been able to stop it from happening, but the only reason it happened was because Onache had traveled with them in the first place. 

 

[EQ_Theta 455]

@Blitz Boom

On 2024-10-24 at 4:45 AM, Blitz Boom said:

"I only know what I have been told, and what I saw when Mother send him away. I do not think that is useful."

In some ways, it could even be detrimental. The villagers seemingly knew enough to think she were okay to be there, but she didn't have any idea, beyond just what she had been told. She believed it, since it were Sen and Lin who told her, but if the elders asked her if she could personally vouch that these things had happened, she would have to say no. The memories of the event were simply not there, and she could not say with certainty that she hadn't just been told a story.

“I only advise caution. The same goes for you too, Sen and Lin. Speak out of turn, say too much, and you may bring unwanted attention and questioning to yourselves. If what you will speak about does more harm for your case, it will be better to say nothing.”

“And if we are put on the spot? What if the elders ask us things that will put us in a bad light and demand answers?”

“Then it will be better to leave it to Elder Ghilan. He sounds like the type to know a thing or two about navigating the other elders. Turn to him for guidance, even if he looks inexperienced. You are all gathered together, and it will serve you all well to work together.”

Zo wouldn’t admit it, but he was lacking in knowledge about this matter. No one but the elders attended their gatherings, and what goes on beyond their closed walls is only for them. However, some platitudes, however empty they may be, could still prove true for the siblings and Omen. He had an inkling that the other elders would not be convinced by the word of an outsider. Yet, the word of an elder may still carry some more weight, maybe just enough to shift things toward a favorable result. 

That and honesty can go far in this situation. Establishing one’s self as trustworthy where there is no reason to find trust is just as much of a play as being logically convincing. There are some options now on the table, but a wrong word can just as easily take those options away.

On 2024-10-24 at 4:45 AM, Blitz Boom said:

"The others will need to sleep eventually, yes? I do not, so I just wait for them to sleep, and go.

If you want me to tell you right away, I will need your scent, so I can open a gate. Can I sniff you?"

She had been told to ask for permission, and for the most part had done so. That had so far not included their grandfather, but that could change now, if he allowed it. It would allow her to know where he were at all times though, if she focused, but that also meant she could open a direct gate. If not, she'd just go to the nearest place she knew around it, and then walk over there to tell him. Which considering it was night, might cause a combined issue of her being out and around after curfew, and him sleeping.

"I can also just tell Lin, and she will decide what we do? She does not sleep either anymore, so she will be awake."

The elderly longma took a step back from hearing Omen’s request. Sniffing him and getting his scent? An odd thing to say, but it sounded harmless. He then looked to Sen and Lin, who gave him a reassuring nod that it was safe.

“I suppose there is no harm in getting my scent. And, you know, there is no need to rush in telling me if you found something. If anything should be a priority, the one you need to tell is Ghilan, just not around the time when everyone should be sleeping. No one wants to be disturbed from their rest; even if you don’t need it, others do.”

“He’s right. We may not need sleep, but it’s rude to wake someone up if there is no good reason to do so. If it can wait until morning, it’s better to wait until then. And there is always the option to just talk about it among ourselves and figure out the best way to proceed.”

“Just one thing, Omen. I am getting on in age, and I do not want to get scared to an early grave. Please take it easy and try not to come around so suddenly, all right?”

Grandfather Zo chuckled at the thought of getting too scared, though he did mean it. Even if Omen did come around with sudden news, perhaps doing so without suddenly opening a gate near him. The risks to health were present, and while he possibly still had some years left in him, he wasn’t in a rush to check out of life so soon. That is especially so if there are Evegrown in the forest. It will be quite the revelation to learn they weren’t alone despite their isolationism.

On 2024-10-24 at 4:45 AM, Blitz Boom said:

The weather machine helpeda great deal with lessening the frequency, but every once again, we do still get catastrophic weather. A rarity thankfully, with the last I know of, being a hurricane three years ago, that hit the western part of Equestria. The pegasi and unicorns from both the weather service and the Coastal Guard worked together to lessen the severity, but there were still quite a few villages that got hit at the time. Not as bad as the earthquake six years ago, or the tidal wave three years prior to that though.

Hm, yes. I think it is not so much that nature is a dog that Equestria have leashed, but more of a feral beast, that pulls on the chain around its neck."

“That must be a nice feeling, not having to worry about the weather. Storms would ravage coastal settlements, leaving many places flooded and lives upended. It would take months to reestablish a sense of order and normalcy only for it to start once more when the next disaster comes.”

“A vicious cycle… Some would find a sense of resiliency in it, but I do not believe that should be something to be proud of. Back then, many would find themselves in the temple to ask for a blessing from Aquans to be spared from the devastation. Whether their prayers were heard....”

Vates didn’t continue further, mostly to spare some of the grisly details from her experiences in the temple. However, her dejected look betrayed her silence and attempts to hide information. Some did try to dull the storm’s devastation through prayer. Sometimes, the storms weakened and things didn’t turn out too bad. Other times, it felt like Aquans didn’t listen, and for some, that led to their faith being shaken. By then, there is only so much the diviners can do to offer comfort before their words would ring as hollow as their prayers.

On 2024-10-24 at 4:45 AM, Blitz Boom said:

"Poor thing must be starving. No wonder it went after the guest. I'll go get something for it to eat."

"It just tried to attack you."

"Yes, and poorly at that, whilst sticking to this form. It's either a young one, or it's very famished. Either way, I wasn't raised to be cruel. I'm gonna get something. Please just keep it there, and try not to hurt it."

She'd wander off, whilst Rusty let out a sigh.

"Sometimes I don't know what to think of her.

What do you think? It sounds as if you have some expertise with mimics. They're not venomous... Right?"

“A mimic… dangerous when loose but this one invites pity? This is unexpected indeed.”

“I didn’t think it would be a mimic; I just gave an educated guess, but this one turned out to be right.”

The golems approached the barrier to examine the creature further. Though the others looked on and attempted to form possible reasons or hypotheses for its creation, one has to wonder if this was an artificial construct or if there are naturally occurring instances of this creature. If it was the former, who created it, and for what purpose? For the moment, Magus only looked on, holding the protective barrier up. There wouldn’t be any tests on this creature for the moment, but he considered resuming them when Mystril returns. 

As for Vates, she stepped away, staying closer to Rusty for now to talk things over with him. The surprise that she was right was still setting in. These were rare creatures, and from what little is known to the golems, it may not even be enough information. Still, it was worth sharing some known details to narrow down what kind of mimic they had. Mystril already said as much.

“It is difficult to say with this one. Hyracotherians’ experiences with mimics mostly originate from larger ones disguising themselves as chests or large trunks. Those have large, razor-sharp teeth, and they hide their limbs well. When they stand, they tower over anyone who encounters them, and they possess unnatural strength and speed despite their lanky legs. They aren’t venomous, or at least that is true for the kind of mimic that I described. This one doesn’t seem to have the identifying traits of the mimics familiar to the Hyracotherians. Mystril may be more knowledgeable about mimics than us, I’m afraid, but she is empathetic towards this one. Let’s see what we can learn; maybe there won’t be a reason to fear the mimic in our midst.”

[Blitz Boom 4,608]

@EQ_Theta

On 2024-10-26 at 3:59 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“I only advise caution. The same goes for you too, Sen and Lin. Speak out of turn, say too much, and you may bring unwanted attention and questioning to yourselves. If what you will speak about does more harm for your case, it will be better to say nothing.”

“And if we are put on the spot? What if the elders ask us things that will put us in a bad light and demand answers?”

“Then it will be better to leave it to Elder Ghilan. He sounds like the type to know a thing or two about navigating the other elders. Turn to him for guidance, even if he looks inexperienced. You are all gathered together, and it will serve you all well to work together.”

"I do not know what would be bad with the elders, except what Rosa told me: Do not speak my masters name, and do not open gates, unless I am asked to. It sounds like I should not say what Mother did to Salosan too, unless I am told to by Sen, Lin, or Ghilan?"

She'd tilt her head, whilst her unblinking gaze remained on the elderly longma.

It were goin to be a problem, if they had to deal with subtlety, as Omen did not grasp that. If she were asked questions, she would answer them, unless she did not want to answer the one in question, or she had been told by those she believed in, to not speak of it. Having to guess on what were good, what were bad- Beyond a few easily notable one, like Discord's name, and now perhaps what happened to Salosan, it were not easy for her to know what were best kept to herself, and what were meant to be said. And it would look weird if she looked at Ghilan every time, before she answered a question.

They might want to go over typical questions they would probably get, before it came to the meeting itself, so that she would have some context for what she were supposed to do with things. Or they might think it best that she were as honest as she were, as at least on some level, honesty was important, and the elders would likely not find her more tolerable, if they suspected her of lying to them.

On 2024-10-26 at 3:59 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“I suppose there is no harm in getting my scent. And, you know, there is no need to rush in telling me if you found something. If anything should be a priority, the one you need to tell is Ghilan, just not around the time when everyone should be sleeping. No one wants to be disturbed from their rest; even if you don’t need it, others do.”

“He’s right. We may not need sleep, but it’s rude to wake someone up if there is no good reason to do so. If it can wait until morning, it’s better to wait until then. And there is always the option to just talk about it among ourselves and figure out the best way to proceed.”

“Just one thing, Omen. I am getting on in age, and I do not want to get scared to an early grave. Please take it easy and try not to come around so suddenly, all right?”

Omen would not answer at first, but just stretch her head forward, getting within a hoof's width of Zo, and then sniffing the air a few times. Completely, utterly harmless, and about as tame of an experience as one could hope for Fairly unimpressive looking in fact, though the following words, as she pulled her head back, and looked him in the eyes, might be somewhat ominous to him.

"I have your scent. Long as you are alive, I can always find you.

And I will try to open a gate somewhere near, but not right at you, if I have to find you."

It might end up with her going into a closet, or up on the roof. Potentially sticking her head out of a bucket, and having to try again, but she'd figure it out. Though she did look around now, for surfaces that would be good to keep in mind, if she had to for instance stand just outside, or just past the door. Just outside the door would probably be the best one, yes? She could knock on the door, in case he were in there, and if he did not move at all, she'd know that he were probably sleeping. She could wait in that case.

"I can try and see if I can be behind doors, and knock? That would be less scary? I do not understand what it is like, being scared. I think those who jump when I show up sometimes, are perhaps scared? Or is that surprised?"

It were a bit odd to ask perhaps, but Omen did not want to be a trouble for Zo, so she'd try to ask how she could work with him the best here. Sen and Lin wouldn't like it if she sent him to a grave, so it were important, since they were family, and those who went to a grave, very rarely came back from it. She knew, she had stared at several for years on end, with nothing happening the vast majority of times. Though she did help one out that had been accidentally buried alive once, and seen a few zombies. Those were strange times.

On 2024-10-26 at 3:59 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“That must be a nice feeling, not having to worry about the weather. Storms would ravage coastal settlements, leaving many places flooded and lives upended. It would take months to reestablish a sense of order and normalcy only for it to start once more when the next disaster comes.”

“A vicious cycle… Some would find a sense of resiliency in it, but I do not believe that should be something to be proud of. Back then, many would find themselves in the temple to ask for a blessing from Aquans to be spared from the devastation. Whether their prayers were heard....”

"It sounds as if you've lived through several episodes of extreme weather? You have my condolences. I've seen just a fragment of how bad things could be, and that were after it were dampened. Were it not for historical documents that showed what things were like before, I could scarcely imagine what it might be. And even then, reading and seeing carvings, surely cant compare with having to actually be there. The fear, the loss... I couldn't imagine how bad it must have been for those of your kin, that did not have their prayers answered."

To rely on a fickle embodiment like Aquans to be spared from horrendous weather, sounded rather horrendous. Another example of why the weather machine were so important, as here in Equestria, they did not even have higher beings like that to pray to for salvation. The princesses were the closest thing, but beyond them, Equestria had never been host to gods. Not in any found record at the least.

The reliability of the machine saved them from a lot of things, but to some extend, Rusty did get the impression that many simply took it for granted, and didn't think of what life might be without it. What he heard now, were speaks of some who did know, because they had been through it, and knew how bad it could be, and what little you could do beyond praying, if nature's wrath came roaring towards you.

On 2024-10-26 at 3:59 PM, EQ_Theta said:

“It is difficult to say with this one. Hyracotherians’ experiences with mimics mostly originate from larger ones disguising themselves as chests or large trunks. Those have large, razor-sharp teeth, and they hide their limbs well. When they stand, they tower over anyone who encounters them, and they possess unnatural strength and speed despite their lanky legs. They aren’t venomous, or at least that is true for the kind of mimic that I described. This one doesn’t seem to have the identifying traits of the mimics familiar to the Hyracotherians. Mystril may be more knowledgeable about mimics than us, I’m afraid, but she is empathetic towards this one. Let’s see what we can learn; maybe there won’t be a reason to fear the mimic in our midst.”

"I know very little of them myself, I must admit. Only realy the stories of those that you know too, that hides like chests, or trunks, to lure in careless adventurers to snack on. Never heard of them outside of the chests though. It sounds... Disturbing.

This isn't like those, and if you aren't sure either, we may have to rely on her expertise. Though how she have experience with those things, I haven't a clue. Perhaps this uncle of hers, were a monster wrangler or adventurer of some kind? Perhaps it's prudent to ask at this point."

He'd look at the small mimic, that had at this point seemingly stopped trying to escape, and were pretending to be a small statue again. Likely it were waiting for the shield to drop, so it had a chance to try and escape, and it were good at pretending. If they hadn't seen differently, who would have expected it to move around like it did? Though it did raise the question on if it had replaced what were originally there, or added itself to the box things, and gotten shipped along accidentally.

It wouldn't be long before Mystril returned, carrying a sandwich in her beak. A sizable one, that seemed to contain some lettuce, mayo, a whole fish, and were wrapped in whole-wheat bread. Typical griffon lunch.

"I'm back. Is it still here?"

As it were, she'd take her sandwich, break off half, and with a swift strike, slice one half to smaller pieces, and move towards the barrier.

"Lower it a little please? I just need a second."

If they did, the mimic would start to stir, the moment it noticed a hole, but as the sandwich pieces would be stopped down, it would halt, then rise up, and go around to the various pieces, licking a few, before beginning to munch down. Starting with the smallest pieces of fish it could get to, but taking anything it could get hold of, long as the pieces weren't too big. It would try and use its teeth to tear those to smaller bits.

"Not completely carnivorous, that's good. Seems to know how to hide and hunt alone, but isn't used to our climate... I'd venture this is a variation of a Zhil'bahrgul. Or Pest Mimic, in layman terms."

"Pest?! Oh dear, we'll need to contact the hospital right away, and-"

He were getting slightly panicked, thinking of what it meant. A creature that could spread diseases, were what came to mind, as he knew several languages, and went to the worst, possible conclusion, before Mystril interrupted him.

"Pest as in rodents and such. Their primary food is rats, caterpillars, that sort of thing. They also need some plant matter, which is what the lettuce is for. I wanted to make sure if this was a fully carnivorous ones, because those tend to be the trouble makers.

My uncle began reading up on the various kinds, after the first he ran into. Taught me a few things on what to look out for, just in case. And if I'm right on what kind this is, they're pretty harmless to creatures our size, but they usually live in very different areas, and often with more humid climates. No wonder it wobbled around all disoriented, when it came here. It were probably hatched close to where the other things that were found, and were packaged up accidentally when it slept. The trip must have tired it out, when it woke up and spend energy trying to escape. And when it did wake up, it were famished, confused and surrounded by nothing it's ever known before. Poor thing."

"Need I remind you that it tried to eat somepony?"

"And you never stuffed random things into your mouth, when you were a foal, professor?"

"Wait, you say this is a child?"

"I don't know how much bigger they get, but baby mimics after hatching, seem to follow the same basic pattern, which is to uhm... Eat their weaker siblings. They're laid in big clusters so some of them get the chance to scurry along and live, or one just naturally ends up at the top of the food pile, and thus are the strongest. Of the ones who take off, wild beasts tends to eat a fair few, before they get a chance to establish themselves. Those who live, tend to find somewhere nearby, and that's when they stand out. Some goes into chests, or other objects. Some like this, pick a form that they're inspired from by something in the area, and take that over. It probably saw a similar statue and picked that. Pest versions are more active hunters, from what my uncle told me, so they don't hide in chests a lot."

"So it doesn't eat ponies or the like, and keep rodents down. So it is a beneficial one?"

"Sure, long as they're small. But when it gets bigger... Well, even if it doesn't eat us, pets, sheep and such are fair game, so it's a balancing act. Though if it's kept fed and trained well, I don't think it'd be that big of an issue. I need to brush up on the tome he read about these in, so I'd know more. Right now though at least, it'd not dangerous. Just confused, scared, and hungry. Can't blame the poor thing really."

It were still eating, but seemed to have calmed down, and weren't moving around frantically anymore, looking for an exit. It were just eating what had been served.

Mystril would look towards the golems after looking on a few more seconds, wanting to ask them a question.

"It sounds like you dealt with mimics before. The classic ones everyone knows the stories about, yes? Nasty business sometimes. Especially if it keeps the eggs inside its maw. They can look just like coins, I've been told.

If those are the only sort you know, you're probably thinking that... Well, please don't try and kill this one. I'll take responsibility, if anything happens."

==========================================================================

 

@Catpone Cerberus

She'd bite note int he various places, but not comment much, until they got to where he talked about the fire escape. At which point she did make a minor joke about it being good to know which way others were gonna run away from her.

She did follow it up by explaining that in case of a fire, she'd try and go in and absorb it. It were best to still call firefighters, but she'd try and help, and were getting better at something that were normally very easy for elementals. As she were still *in training* as it were though, she still made mistakes, and as such she couldn't guarantee success currently. Though in ideal circumstances, she could fight fire with fire. At least to a certain extend.

As they ended in the cafeteria she'd look at the sections, then wonder to herself what might be served here, but didn't press it currently. It wasn't too important, as she didn't have allergies or the like anymore, so new things were simply new things to experience. Barring too strong stimulants, that were.

"Thank you for the tour, sir. It's been enlightening, and welcoming, to know my workplace and coworkers more extensively.

I mean not to intrude on your personal space, but might I ask, do you live nearby? I don't need an address, just wondering if a case of emergency arises and you are not here, how long would it roughly take before you'd be here? Just to give me some idea if it is best to wait, or try to handle things personally instead. Say if this place were suddenly attacked, as an example."

=============================================================================================

 

@Catpone Cerberus

"Pretty reasonable look on it. Good or bad, you still grew up here. Much as I personally think this place sucks, I can't fault you for still getting the feeling of home from the place you've lived for most of your life.

All about perspective. You'd probably think my home sucked too, what with all the diamond dogs and howling. But it's where I hatched, and made good memories. Some bad ones too, but I make no illusions about it being comparable to what your lows were like."

Leviathan would wander over, and lean her head on Ruby's leg. To think that her mother were even larger, did make her worried about meeting the dragoness even more though. She might have magic, but being the size of a toothpick were not a comforting thought. Comfort were the point of her leaning like this though. Ruby were her close friend, and she wanted the dragoness to know that she were there for her, and wished her the best. She considered that the absolute bare minimum one should expect, when you were getting close like they were.

Something that she understood were probably not easy for Ruby. She came from a place were it seemed best to be an individual, and not someone that went and relied on others, or even made friends. So them getting chummy, and Charir being with them too, were probably at least on some level, odd and hard to adapt to, for Ruby. Wasn't for Leviathan though. This place they were going though, and what it entailed? That were tough. That was the thing that were going to test her substantially.

"I hope that someday, you'll find a nicer place to think of as home. You deserve a good life, away from others who might potentially kill you, if you're not smarter or stronger than them.

Hopefully your magical neighbors are nicer sorts. *yawn* I guess we'll see soon enough though."

She'd raise her hand, and conjure a few clouds, that would take shape to look like the three of them, wandering towards another cloud, that separated into a half dozen other dragons. Then she made them all smile and do a crude dance, while a smile crept up on her face. It wasn't gonna be a long show, but it felt nice to do in her mind. At the very least it were amusing her, and bringing her spirits up a little.

"It's probably not gonna end up that simple, heh. Wish it did though.

By the way, I appreciate you being honest with me, about how it's like being back here. It's heartwarming that you trust me enough to talk about these sorta things. So full disclosure, I'm well worried how this will go, and if I see your mom, I'll probably let out a very high pitched, undignified sound, in pure fear. My want to be rude to her, for how she treated you both, is drowned out by my immense want to not end up as a toothpick."

She'd be happy talking some more, but if Ruby wanted them to get some energy before they went, she'd take a nap in a moment. For now she were enjoying sharing some thoughts, and leaning against Ruby's big, muscly leg. Or arm, depending on how she were currently positioned.

==============================================================================

 

@Catpone Cerberus

"Yes, I'm the only one who stuck with her in the long term, after Chrysalis took her hive.

My name's Happy Hour, and I'm genuinely, truly thankful for what you, and your friends have done for her."

He'd give a deep bow before both of them, starting with Sheska, before doing the same towards Trox.

"I were told by the ones in town, that you walked around with her some time before she were attacked too? That's good. I've worried how she'd do, when she had to make friendly relations, instead of how she usually does things. But it seems like she made a good first impression, on some genuinely good kobolds. It's a great relief, even if seeing her like this is harrowing to me."

"So.... About what were going on before."

Happy gave a glare to the nurse, and opened his mouth to say something, then seemingly just lost the want to be confrontational about this. Wasn't like she were forgetting what she saw anyway.

"Fine. Yes, I was human. I fell through a tear or something, and ended up near her hive. And yes, she had me converted into a changeling. No it wasn't pleasant, and yes, I am completely, fully loyal to her. Even when the others weren't. A bit of torture doesn't change how much I l- Care for her, and the gift she's given me."

"I heard about converting. That doesn't sound like a gift."

"Magic is. Never had any of that before. I just had my vineyard, in a polluted, magicless world. This is better.

Look, I don't grasp the basics of how I got here, so don't ask, okay? It's some multidimensional stuff. You probably don't believe there is other dimensions anyway, or even what they are. Just... Think many other worlds, in weird layers, and I stumbled into a hole that led between them."

How could they believe it? It was a stupid idea too, right? Someone living in an entirely different world, that you couldn't see or interact with, as it was on the other side of some invisible barrier between here and there. You'd have to know what those were like to know about the layers, and then a lot of belief in someone somehow getting through said layers, and not leave a gaping hole between worlds. It were a pretty weird tale to try and swallow, but he'd swear that it was the truth. He had plenty of memories from his time back in the human world, and then some very vivid ones of what Onache had done to him, after he were found.

He weren't lying, but why bother trying to explain it? No one was gonna believe that mad tale anyway.