open Casual stroll

Storm Shine · July 22, 2017

Storm perked up, "Ooo, lemme try too!" He put his nose to the ground and began sniffing around like a dog. "Hmmm..." After a few moments he stopped, looking up and pointing in a rigid pose, "Sugar that way!"

"Yay!" Pinkie began bouncing in the indicated direction excitedly.

Sekel · July 22, 2017

@Blitz Boom

DAWN

"Mhm, it's all really good. But, you take a lot of coffee. You sure you don't want to go into a coffee coma or something?" Dawn thought out loud. She took her coffee and downed the rest of it before gagging at the hotness. She panted to try and cool her mouth and waved her hoof in front of her mouth to fan it. "Bak! Gah! Blegh! HOT!" She kinda forgot to blow on the coffee before actually sculling it. That was a mistake worthy of the chilli goodness from the night before.

@Blitz Boom, @Widdershins

AURORA

"You just shouted," Aurora grinned with a laugh. She landed beside the cart and looked back at the dragon. "You know ... for a meanie bo beanie, you're actually pretty funny," she smiled and regarded the pony that spoke to her. Aurora tilted her head and whistled a bit in thought. "I am not here to gawk. I was actually flying overhead. I'm going around Equestria, trying to learn it's culture and whatnot. I'm on my way to Ponyville before I heard that dragon shout, and I don't believe he's your puppet."

Windchime · July 22, 2017

@Blitz Boom @Holiday Agnaktor

Striking Detail attentively listened to the dragon talk, jotting down key words as much as he could. He could, in a way, empathize with feeling estranged from the population: his horns made him stand out too, and a few rumors definitely spread around the workplace. He honestly was surprised he wasn't in an article yet.
He could completely understand how the populace felt about changelings, and that even more so, if they're undisguised. It would put the idea of changelings in the ponies' minds, and that they could change at any moment and be up to something. Until they prove themselves more trustworthy than they were in the past, over time, they could benefit a lot from that.

Volunteering changelings? That could definitely work. That would help turn the image of changelings at least somewhat closer to neutral. It obviously makes sense for those who are supposed to protect against changelings are more weary of them, as they have almost exclusively negative experiences with them, due to their profession.

Striking Detail appreciated the insider's view of the Royal Guard, and was honestly relieved that the actual guard probably knows of the changeling presence already. They were probably hunting them down as we spoke... He was glad he got an opportunity for interview, at least. Striking Detail finished his note-taking and took the pencil out of his muzzle.

"Oh, the hat? Long story, but I was wearing it when these horns sprouted out of my temples. It was not exactly a pleasant experience for me, and rather a rather terrible one for the hat, but I kept it anyway. The horns tore the two holes on the side right through, and the magic involved singed the hat. Getting the hat off of my horns without destroying it completely wore it out even more. I decided to just keep the hat in my pouch for good luck, rather than wearing it.

At one point, during a rather sketchy interview, I was robbed blind of the very belt I am wearing right now, which contains my journalist's supplies and bits wallet. It seems that the thieves in question roughhoused the hat some more, probably searching for more additional bits I might have hidden in there, destroying it even more than it already was. The Royal Guard helped me find my belt and wallet eventually, and all in all the experience ended up with a nice story for my papers."

Speaking of the papers, he should probably start heading to his office if he wants the interview done by today. This would make a nice addition to the changeling specia-

Striking Detail's pupils shrunk as realization struck. The entire special was written in a completely negative tone! This won't help those poor changelings at all, and they need all the good reputation they can get!

"Wait. I have to go. I have to stop the publication right now, else this won't end well! Benny, if you could follow me?" Striking Detail quickly said, and he already packed his now-filled notepad and pencil back in his pouch, and turned around. He bent his knees, took a deep breath, and quickly recited a well-practiced mantra as he galloped away:

"Excuse me pardon me moving out coming through having haste coffee's hot out the way don't make me use my horns just a second excuse me out the way pardon me ...", as Striking Detail dodges and weaves through the crowds towards his office, and hoped the dragon would be able to discern him with the very horns that made him stand out in the first place as he went.

FanOfManyShows · July 23, 2017

@Blitz Boom

Astral looked to the bookshelf. "I think my leg is fine for now, pretty sure he relocated it..." She lifted a hoof to a book on the shelf, one of the encyclopedias. "We have to get to Canterlot before he returns and finds us missing, we'd have to teleport. I do not really have the magic for that right now." The encyclopedia flew over to her hoof. "Since we need to recharge, Right now that could take a while and is not time we have." She opened the book. "But I do know we could harness magic from another world, but it only contains dark magic, so we'd have to tamper with that in order to escape." She looked up at Chow. "Do you think we should do it?"

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Nectar walked into the room, her horn glow vanishing. "They should be here soon, but you won't see them, instead there will be a sudden increase in guards, that's how you'll know they've arrived."

"Oh not at all Dew, she turned good, so she's more the nemesis of who we are fighting right now, I'd know since I'm married to her." He looked over to Golden. "Oddly enough, she wasn't all that bad considering she was the element of cruelty, but she was cruel in the way she fought." He looked down, sighing a little. "That's at least how she turned out, but before she met me she was definitely very, very cruel. Nearly killed me before my use of dark magic started to intrigue her."

Misty looked curiously at him. "Why was that?"

"I used it for good, but soon I likely will have to again, wears me out resisting the temptation to fall to dark magic, since using it has that burden." He poked at the ground, still nervous, becoming anxious, almost hoping Warlock struck so the amulet wouldn't be an issue for him. Iron Star looked to the amulet, narrowing his blind eyes. Somewhat wanting to steal it, and hide it again for his own sake. "Of course with the amulet, I couldn't use it anyways." He mumbled quietly.

In the meantime Iron Wing wasn't doing much, he looked around the room a little. "I haven't needed to give out many orders yet it seems." He looked to Screecher. "But it's stressful even without having to. this Warlock guy could strike at any moment."

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Warlock snickered a little, sensing Athriel's sense of weakness. He floated up, moving by Athriel, but as he moved near by her ear. "I'm holding back." He whispered. "For your sake." He passed ahead of her, smiling slyly, blasting ahead to the temple. Arriving at the doors, waiting for her. Once she arrived he placed a hoof on the door. "What might be behind these doors this time?" He said looking to Athriel, pushing the door open, entering inside, hoping for no traps inside.

Foxy Socks · July 23, 2017

@Blitz Boom

When Brittle slowly stepped out of the tent, Foxy smiled. She seemed to be in good condition, and Foxy noticed she tried to be a little brave and come out. Foxy did not waste such an opportunity, gently telling her, "Anomaly is a new friend I have. She is a lot like you guys, she has many forms. She may be a bit annoying and loud, but she wouldn't harm anypony." She knew Anomaly would scare her, as Brittle was still scared of Foxy.

Foxy smiled, also saying to Brittle, "I am glad you're feeling better. You look pretty." Foxy hoped complimenting her would help, though she knew it would take time.

~Phoenix~ · July 23, 2017

On 7/17/2017 at 3:24 PM, Blitz Boom said:

"Excellent. If I remember correctly, we should be able to find a stop close by, long as we take a shortcut through the forest. Watch out for Poison Joke please."

Smokey took the note from his face and crumbled it before tossing it on the ground. Seemed like just regular paper, so the forest should reclaim it within a few days. He didn't notice the one behind him though, so that one stayed put for the time being as he started to wander through the forest, off the path and keeping in one direction.

Was it the safest way? Heavens no, not at all, but it were the fastest by far, and whatever beasts the forest threw at them, he were sure that they could beat them, or at least make a heroic escape.

"If we keep up with this pace and the train shows up shortly, we should be able to hit a town within the hour. Though it won't be the closest. Dodge Junction is a little too backwater for my taste, and I tend to only return there when I'm visiting family. Better to add the fifteen minutes more to get to a town of some substance."

Phoenix eagerly followed behind Smokey as her stomach continued to give her reminders about how empty it was. of course, Phoenix really wasn't all that concerned with how safe any given path was. first off, she too was confident in her own abilities to ward off any predatory creatures should they be unfortunate enough to bother her, and Second, she cared more about getting food at the current moment. in fact, it inspired her answer; "i'm fine with whatever we come across first" she says in reply to his statement about better food just a bit farther off.

as they walked, Phoenix kept glancing at the crude note hanging off the back of Smokey's hat. she contemplated letting him know, or simply taking it off herself. but she had no real intention to follow what the note says.

as they continued walking, Phoenix made sure to look out for poison joke. her eyes scanned the edges of the pathway ahead, as well as occasionally glancing off to the sides just to make sure none was currently brushing her ankles.

Widdershins · July 24, 2017

@Dji & @Blitz Boom

With his moderately long neck extending from his curled-up form ontop the carriage, Kaltrop addresses Aurora Lights while pointing a scowling pout at Spicy Rolls.

"Of course I'm no dummy! If there's anyone wooden here, it's the stupid dummy pulling the cart! Hmph..."

Looking back to the griffon now with his usual ~~Resting Bi-~~ -expression of judging discontent, (Don' you START wit' me, Widdy! Eeh-heE!) Kaltrop comments on the newcomer.

"Not like ponies have much in the way of culture, either way, you're not going to find any of it in MY canyon. ...what even are you anyway? I thought turkeys couldn't fly."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

At Symbol: Blitz Boom again.

Honeycube, the Spirit of Confusion don' repeat his shtick! It gets predictable that way! Besides! Who mixes flavors for pancakes, amiright?

BUT ANYWAIS! Widdershins pauses for a moment to become somewhat more serious, but distinctly no wheres near what he was before. That was my point from before, Boopie. It's not so much evil, as what you do with it. So long as you can still curb yourself from hurting others.

Do trust me, I know demonry. The whole point of them is to be a pervading source of evil. A force to be overcome. After all, if you took out the immortality of an immortal force, you'd defeat the whole point of a demoness OC wouldn't yah?

I will grant you that of course. I don't know how it would work here in this continuity... world, dimension, wossnames. But a Daemon does not simply stop. You can't be only part demon just cause it looks cool.

Anyhoodles! Widdershins casually flips his fin tail over Vivid Loss's back. So we good here then? A smirk spreads across his long face. Or do you need to be comforted a bit more before you're done for the night?

**********************************************************************************************************************************

@Blitz Boom

After having been helped up by Happy and some sputtering as he swallows the wrapper to the muffin, Ambie gets situated well enough to continue.

"Well, funny you shou- *Hem* - should mention that. My parents actually are nobles. Granted, I guess I... I never really bothered to ask them how they met. They always seemed to be busy with their teaching jobs. Mother means well, she's just a mare of her own ambitions... I guess, were it not for how well she shouts down others I never would have gotten into the best school in Canterlot.

...

Say, how did you know about the woodpeckers? Applejack did want me to try & shoo the birds off of her trees once. Didn't know wildlife could be so rude just because I was poking them with sticks."

??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

Back to Beedy, Beedy, Beedy, Don' that beat all? ...no, that's much too long for a nickname. I don't have... the time for this? ...time?

Anomaly's sporadic attacks seem to randomly alternate, some of them being absorbed entirely through the wall as if a ray of light piercing water or coming through the roof of the room unimpeded & redirected. Yes, including those solar beams.

As Anomaly's metallic half-hoof touches the wall, it bends a bit like the stretched taut surface of a trampoline before once more solidifying back into a proper wall as if nothing had changed. Slowly, with her hoof in its middle, a long, narrow rectangle forms in the wall. Some odd distance off the floor, it appears to be much like a giant drawer of some sort. While it lacks a handle, if a way can be found to pry it open enough to open it, Anomaly could perhaps see what lies inside its glimmering depths.

Also, a hole opens up in the right corner from where Anomaly first entered, the portal that brought her there having now closed tight. From the small, bit-sized hole in the corner a bright green slime the consistency of pudding puddles out until it forms a large pile roughly the mass of a pony.

Just... you know, thought I'd toss another plaything at you, Anomaly. After all, you kind of are inside my head right now. Literally. ...Well, okay, Figuratively? Kind of hard to tell.

So... tired, must... I can't... Someone...please... help me, I can't

V.I.A.B. having missed the large creature passing through sees only Anomaly with her hoof pressed against the wall.

"I do hope your implicated reverence insinuates proper respect for the domicile of another. That being said, please do refrain from poking around too much in the area as this realm is... volatile to say the least. Whilst the being I begrudgingly allot allegiance to has since sworn off his much bigger projects, a few of his portals still remain scattered amongst his collections that subsist within these walls. If you find one, there's no telling where you may land."

Blitz Boom · July 24, 2017

@Trixie The Evil

"Good, straight to the point."

It had surprised Brute to see the mare just fly over to her instead of her having to go around and trying to lure her out, but it didn't make her think this mare was any less trouble. Quite frankly, seeing her up close now and having a better look at the wings, her clearly earth pony build - which made the magic part unnerving - and the over-all demeanor of having the most slapable face Brute had seen in months, just made her more convinced that this mare was going to be a problem. Question remained though, how much of one?

"I'll get straight to it then as well. You look like trouble, and I ain't keen on letting that sort go unchecked in town. So, tell me what you're doing here, and how an earth pony haves this sort of magic - unless you're just a filthy changeling - and we can get this sorted peacefully without me needing to drag you off to the guards."

If this one were a changeling, Brute had half the mind to just hand her to the guards anyway. She knew nothing of the new laws allowing them around Equestria under certain circumstances, so in her mind, a changeling were cause for calling in the guards so tey could haul the bug off to prison for interrogation.

(Feel free to toss her into a wall or something similar)

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@Moonlit @Seamore Sandwich

So a few minutes of walking through the palace had thus far not revealed any ghosts. That was good, though the occasional mouse skittering around had made Ziggy meep a little, and given Fah'lina a bit of lunch. Ziggy had been sure that the mimic only ate fish, so this was kind of a surprise to see, and something she'd have to sort out later, before she suddenly started to eat somepony's pet.

"Hey, here looks familiar. Isn't this somewhere near that tower we were in?"

Ziggy waved the torch carefully around to try and get a better view of things, and see if she weren't right in some way. It was a bit foggy still because of the whole *song episode* back in the day, but it looked pretty close to what she recalled at least. Perhaps Serenade would know better?

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@EQ_Theta

Mother followed the scene she were shown, and the story she were told, with fascination.

It wasn't unusual for her to know of the rise and fall of civilizations, as her children eventually tended to bring her scriptures from any new world they had gotten into, but there were a great difference between a musty tome or scripture, and this visual aid to really push through what had happened in the last moments of a seemingly impressive empire.

She wished that she had looked away near the end though, where the shockwave burst out and incapacitated everyone. It might be that she were familiar with death - an understatement, as she were a herald of it - but that did not mean she found any joy or pleasure in seeing excessive death, and though this had been nothing that killed their entire species, the force of that magic had given her a glimpse into how close it could have been, and that inevitably lead to darker thoughts about how this could have been the hotbed of countless souls, unable to find rest.

Still, even if it hadn't ended like that, as the scholars said, their society had crumbled then. Whatever came after that wasn't so much a civilization as a slow extinction event, at least to her ears.

Surprise replaced contemplation though, when the visual changed to show Discord. Not as she had seen him so long ago, or a little earlier today, but instead as a twisted mockery of himself, carved in stone. Or at least she thought it was carved, and the ponies standing around the statue were just gazing at the exhibit of an eccentric ruler, but then the scholars added that this were the real him. The being whose very essence were made of pure, unbridled chaos, trapped and helpless? How where this possible, when his power could have stopped any sort of attack? Had a high concentration of harmony been used? And more importantly, when were this?

"...I don't know what their path is now. They could stay in the village, and try to teach them of the outside and how there are wonders there that they should explore, rather than fear. Yet along the same lines, they might also wander away. Sen and Lin have suffered great losses in the town, and it may be too hard for them to be there anymore.

There are so many variations of what might happen, but it will likely boil down to the first step. To stay or to leave, and that is a decision only they can make, though I must admit that I would like for them to at least attempt to spend a little time in the village. Not just to teach the others, but to perhaps find that they still have a home there.

Much as I offer eveyrthing that I can to them, as I would any of my children, I know that this place will never be what can be called a home for them. A safe haven if something goes wrong, yes, but a home have things this cannot offer for them, or for any of my children that have gotten form. I encourage them to do what I believe Sen and Lin would chose to do on their own, which is make a home in their respective worlds, and live a life there. Here... It is a protective kindergarden more than anything, where I nurture and protect as long as I can, but it is not a place to settle down.

Ah, but to return to the matter at hand, I would not concern myself with the thought that Omen would leave the two of them behind. Even if they genuinely told her to leave, and never return, she wouldn't obey hat anymore. She have gotten too close to them, and she relies on them. In a sense, they are her new masters, picking up from where Discord left off in teaching her of life and inch her closer to getting one of her own, rather than remaining in a stagnant stage.

She will not think of them as masters, only friends and family, but the reliance I have seen shows me a certain degree of reliance that comes from the usual master and servant interaction, and with how devoted she have gotten to helping them lately... No, she won't leave them. Not entirely at least, and no being is going to be able to keep her away from them in the long run.

Now, I have a question of my own. What you showed me with Discord, when were that? I always thought him simply a selfless crook who left Omen behind to have fun somewhere else when he got bored of Equestria, but seeing that, I wonder if I was wrong? Were his several-millennia absence not of his own choosing, but rather a result of some other being overpowering him? And how were that even possible? With how much chaos he is able to command, I assume it is something harmonious, but to truly hit him, it would have to be a concentrated dosage, right?"

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@Shineling

"Yey, they got a scent. Let's go before they get a hold of all of them."

Anomaly snapper her tail, and stilts grew out of the ground and clamped to her legs. It would giove her some height advantage to keep a good look of the hunting field, really see who would get a sugar mole first of Blitz - followed sharply by her brother who had nicked the leash from her - and the happy couple that were Storm and Pinkie, and of course, check to see if any of them ran into any predators or traps of some kind.

She might have *forgotten* to mention a few creatures out here, like the pollen snake that's make them gas up like a balloon and start to rise into the sky unless they got teetered to something, and the squid-monkeys, which... Yeah, she still had no idea why she had even thought that was a good idea to begin with, but either way, hopefully those wouldn't be too much of a problem as the snakes tended to be pretty shy of talkers, and the squinkies (patent pending) were more or less just a shore problem.

As for the hunt itself, for now it would go without trouble, but neither would find a sugar mole just yet. However, Pinkie and Stormy would find a trail of tiny feet leading to a hole, where the steps would taste and smell like high quality sugar. They were getting on the track of things, though getting into the ground were likely not happening as the hole were only big enough for a uhm... Okay, a pony of Pinkie's size could get in there technically, but only if she left her legs with the others, and Anomaly knew not to consciously remove body parts after some... Teachable moments. Perhaps if they lured Blitz down there? She were the right size if it were, though they'd had to go get her first from the bush she were munching on right now a few meters away from them.

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@Dji

Pop giggled behind her hoof as she saw Dawn struggle with her coffee after getting a bit of a burn on it. It might not be the nicest thing to do, but it had simply looked too funny not to have at least a little laugh over.

"I have a pretty good grip on my coffee intake and what's the limit, but uhm... Are you okay Dawn? i could get you some ice for your muzzle if you need to be cooled down a little."

She got up from her seat and headed over to the fridge, where she had a few sundae's that she usually reserved for after dinner, but hey, if Dawn needed it now, then it was better used here, right? Besides, she hadn't gotten hers last night so it was likely better to be used early on or it'd get all soggy in the evening.

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@Dji @Widdershins

Spicy let out a hearty laughter at Kaltrops comment.

"Flying turkey. Oh man that's a good one.

This here's called a Griffon. Mix an eagle and a lion with the temper of a ferret and you pretty much got the package deal. Something you'd know already if you weren't such a dummy you big ol' bundle of sticks. Heh."

Since it seemed like the griffon weren't currently about to attack them, even if the bickering couple went at it pretty verbally right now, Spicy let them be for a bit and got herself back in the front of the wagon, where she'd start pulling it along again.

"I don't wanna break up your couple's therapy, but can you at least let your love/hate relationship out on the road? I have a client who gotta learn what happens when you don't pay up like he signed for. Spoiler alert: it might not get pretty."

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@Windchime @Holiday Agnaktor

"Yeah, I was wondering about the horns, but wasn't sure if that was a touchy subject.

Anyway, it's good to hear the other guards helped you out when you got mugged, and that you didn't get too beaten up from the sound of it. There ain't much violent crime in Equestria all in all, but muggins can get pretty messy."

Benny were about to say something about the hat when he took notice of a few ponies who looked at him with big eyes and... Were they drooling? One of them looked a bit like it anyway. Pretty weird, but eh, smile and wave Benny, just like they taught you in Canterlot.

So he smiled and gave a wave towards the ponies who suddenly seemed to want to get away fast again. Perhaps it had been embarrassing for the poor sods to be spotted like that, or perhaps they were going for that caramelized apple stand he could still smell? He certainly couldn't blame them for that, since that smelled absolutely delicious, but who knew? Could be a ton of things that made them run along, and speaking of running along, it were about time that he got following too, since the reporter had taken a run toward his office.

"Seems like it's time to get going. Have a nice day ma'am, and don't worry. I'm sure the changeling situation will be sorted, and hopefully without any violence as part of it."

With that and a small bow, Benny would turn away from the nervous mare and spread his wings, flying about a meter over the crowd and following the scent of Detail until he could spot the strange reporter with the curious horns.

...Whom he were starting to remember he had called ma'am... Dang it Benny, learn to be better at going between sir and ma'am when speaking with a group. Seriously, this wasn't even one of the feminine ones who were hard to differentiate between being a male or female in his eyes - not always easy with ponies - and he had messed it up.

*sigh* just another thing to get sorted eventually, but first they had to get to Detail's publicist. Hopefully he didn't mind the surprisingly nimble dragon following him in the air and slithering around occasionally to make sure he didn't hit anything or anypony. Being this close to the ground would mean he couldn't stop himself if he crashed into stuff, so he had to be careful.

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@Lloyd

"If we do it, there's a chance something goes wrong. If we don't there's a guarantee that everything will. I'll say take the chance, and we'll worry about any consequences this might have later on when we're safe."

it didn't sound good that they had to go through some pretty dark magic right now, and risk messing this whole thing up more, but they didn't have much of a choice, so Chow stood by them having to at least try.

Looking around, he found a pole of either sturdy wood or metal, and picked it up, before looking back at Astral with a forced grin.

"I'll try and keep them away if they get back, but I have to ask you something here Astral: If it stands between you taking me along at a risk of getting caught, or getting back to Canterlot on your own, you take off right away, you hear me? A lot more depend on you being free than me."

Athriel wouldn't kill him yet. She were stuck in her plan on what to do with him, and would likely keep Warlock from destroying him too much if it came to it, though he wasn't looking forward to what the two might do to him if it came to that. Though whatever it'd end up being, he wanted to make sure that Astral knew that worst case scenario, it was better to ditch him than her being put in chains again, because they needed her far more than they needed him, and she might actually be a help against them. whereas he had been more a liability than anything thus far.

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@Lloyd

"Just keep balanced so I don't have to come after you. Might be you're our allies now, and I'm sure that'll carry some weight in the aftermath, but dark magic is dark magic. I've seen it corrupt, and if it comes to that, I have no qualms about putting any of you in chains."

Dew tried to be neutral on most things. give the benefit of the doubt to most creatures, try not to judge beforehoof, all of that sort of things. That was why he were willing to look past how Iron's wife had been a bearer of disharmony and cruelty in particular, what sort he might do himself, as well as the matter that started all of this, which included how Misty and the missing Astral had magic, though they weren't unicorns.

Yet much as he'd keep an open mind, that door swung two ways. If he saw that the others started to fall to the temptation, that they intentionally caught innocent civilians in the crossfire, or anything along those lines, he'd step in and arrest them as much as he would do with Warlock if he could get his hooves on him. Hopefully it wouldn't come to that though.

"I thank you, your majesty. All the help we can get now seems sorely needed."

Whilst the ambassador gave his two cents to Nectar with a tired smile on his muzzle, Screecher looked back at Iron Wing, after giving the others another glance to make sure they were working on things.

"Normally the next in line isn't chosen when there's a conflict going, so there is time to properly get that into your bones. Under the same circumstances, I would not have been able to get much done either when I started out as a general. Honestly though, you have kept together relatively well considering how bad things are. Not panicking in a crisis is an important feature for a general."

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@Lloyd

His whispering words caused a pleasurable shiver to travel down her spine. Such power he flaunted, and yet he talked of holding back? And it wasn't just words either. She could almost taste a snippet of what hid under the surface when he had gotten close to her, and this tease of what were still to come pulled her in. Made her hunger to see more of what he were holding back, and what kind of endless destruction it could wreck.

A moment of almost fearful euphoria rolled through her before she widened her eyes and clutched her talon enough to make her bleed.

What was she doing? Those thoughts she had when this destructive animal of a stallion had gotten near her, the feelings... It was sickening! Grrr. accursed heart messing where it were not needed...

Sapphire had fallen prey to her heart over a pathetic excuse for a stallion, and though Warlock were far from pathetic - already now she could see him laughing over a burning town, rather than protecting it - she would not let herself be controlled by a useless organ only meant to pump blood through her being. She had not, and never would, love anypony. It was an unwanted weakness.

Shaking it off her for now and grumbling under her breath about *annoying organ* she took flight and rushed up to the temple door and looked into the building, which at this point were best described as dark. If they got some light in there, it could be upgraded to dim, or lit, but it'd still be a long staircase going downward, into currently perpetual darkness.

"Staircase going into the ground. What a scary deterrent."

The sarcasm flowed out through her beak, as she said her part about how disappointing this were.

"Hopefully there something worth our time down there. Let's go, and keep focus. I wouldn't be surprised if they added some loose steps or tripwire to get idiots. They were always so pathetically predictable."

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@Foxy Socks

Anomaly took a paw to her chest and buffed up her chest a little.

"Loud and annoying? Peh-rish the thought. I'm just a totally normal pony like all of you. Just listen to this: Apples good, neigh neigh. That's something all of my fellow ponies always says."

Whilst the ddraconequus were still not taking things seriously, Brittle sure were, as she looked at the creature with more fear in her eyes than before, thinking this was not only a draconequus, but a crazy one at that, and before she knew it she'd end up hurting her, and... And... No, no thinking about that. Passing out would be horrible right now. Even with Briar here, she wasn't safe being asleep around Anomaly.

Darting her eyes between Anomaly making her weird noises and Foxy, Brittle eventually managed to stammer something forth from behind Briar, who still looked like he were trying to process what were going on.

"T-Thank you I-I think...I u-uhm... L-Like your tail... Looks f-fluffy."

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

@~Phoenix~

Smokey let out a minor laugh as he heard her stomach growl on.

"Perhaps we should make a stop in Dodge Junction on the way and get something to take the worst then. Not much of a spread in that town, but I do remember one place with some nostalgia. Might be a good place."

Thinking on this and whatever or not that place were still open - it had been some time since he had been there last - they eventually made it out of the forest intact, and without running into dangerous wildlife, and would look over a place somewhat describable as a steppes or discount savannah. Either way, it were spread trees, lot's of grass, and not too far from them, the glimmer in the pair of train tracks going over the place.

"Excellent. We should be able to get to the *outpost* travelers and the semi-nomads in the area uses normally, where we can get on the train. Hopefully it will not show up too soon so we'd be forced to rush along."

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

@Widdershins

Vivid suddenly rises her head and looks at the draconequus as angrily as she can, whilst the air keeps flowing out of her metaphorical balloon, though he might not see that compared to the mess of blood and dirt marred her face from her tears before.

"You... No, nevermind. It's pointless to keep telling you. I know what I'm doing, and the rules that follows for every single demon I want to speak with - which for the record, aren't many - and if you want to think something else, then go ahead. Doesn't change the truth."

A shadowy hand of void energy popped up next to her and helped her clear the stuff from her face. She wasn't going to ask for help from this creature, that was for sure. Not after he continuously kept going on about how she were wrong, and how she had doomed Briar. Nothing could be further from the truth. Something which - unless he fell into a literal portal to hell - wouldn't ever matter to him. And even then it'd be more of a interesting point for the demons than anything.

"I suppose you're going to lecture me about the dead too now? Or do you at least have enough decency to not speak ill of the deceased? Because if you don't, I... Oh, of all the times..."

Vivid perked her ears and turned her face away from the Draconequus.

"What is it with this area and restless spirits?"

She mainly said it to herself as she walked out of the crater and started walking towards the right, away from the tents and towards Ponyville.

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

@Widdershins

"You're of a noble family?"

Happy looked sceptically at the pony, then wandered closer and waved a hoof around his muzzle.

"Are you sure about that? Because I can't seem to find the silver spoon you were born with in your muzzle."

Outside, he laughed at the admittedly bad joke, though inside he grimaced at this development. He thoroughly abhorred nobles. Partially because of jealousy, and partially because their snobbish attitudes towards the lower ranks of society made him want to toss a bottle of whiskey in their face whenever he saw one of them snort disgusted when he passed through one of their areas.

"Getting back on track, you might wanna know how they met sometimes. Could give you more clues, if like for example you dad seemed to come out of nowhere, and never really had a family to talk about or liking stories of his past life. Not all drones are too creative.

And how I knew about the woodpeckers? I didn't. You just seemed like the sort who'd actually get hunted by them for some reason."

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

@Widdershins

"Yeah of course, respect and all of that. Nooo problem there at all..."

You're not listening to him, are you?

Not really no. He's just talking and talking in this strange room with stuff to explore. Who haves the time?

It's genuine warnings since you're in some other beings head right now. Messing with too many things could be a catastrophe.

Uh-huh. Totally agree...

Ignoring the author as well as the V.I.A.B. more or less, Anomaly looks at the almost-open drawer and scratches at it with her hoof, wishing she could change form again, but knowing it wouldn't work, so she didn't even try. Her loss.

After a bit she figured that if some pressure had opened it a little, perhaps a lot would open it more, so she pulled her head back, and slammed into the surface headfirst, hoping to hit some sort of spring mechanism, but likely one of two things would instead happen.

1. She'd miss and hit a portal to another world, where her head would have popped through and letting her see potentially a brand new world unfold in front of her before she had to pull back in, were forced, or got taken by whatever were in there.

2. She would actually hit, but the surface being tough would make her dizzy, walk back disoriented, and fall into the blob she had yet to take notice of.

Either way, this was going to be a strange ride. Whatever Lady Fate (Widdershins' street name) end up deciding, it should be a good story, that was sure. Or something he'd have to hush because Anomaly didn't return from whatever were gonna happen.

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

@dragon4111

"I thank you for the flattering words, great dragon, but whatever beauty my kind possess, pales in comparison to the radiance of your majestic form. Never have I met a creature whose mere visage demanded respect and reverence more than you."

Lyriel bowed deeply before the charming dragon, whose form rose high above any of them, whilst the ponies around looked confused at the whole thing before hesitantly moving on.

They had seen a lot of things these last few days, but having a tree get to life, look like a human, and then have a flattering conversation with the huge dragon that showed up last night were somehow stranger than most other things.

Still, they were busy and wanted to get on with the building, so after starring for a time, moat would be on theie way. Barring the more curious ones that were.

"If I may be allowed to ask, what are a Courier Guild? Is that the name of your flock?"

Edited July 24, 2017 by Blitz Boom

Foxy Socks · July 25, 2017

@Blitz Boom

Foxy was shocked to hear Brittle say something. "Aw, thank you," Foxy simply said, not wanting to intimidate her. What could Brittle have gone through to make her so reclusive?

"Hehe, see? Like right now." Foxy was referring to Anomaly being "loud and annoying" right after she replied in defense. Foxy wondered if getting Anomaly familiar with her would help Brittle out. Right then Brittle seemed terrified of Anomaly. It seemed that they wouldn't like each other, but Foxy believed it would be beneficial.

Trotting toward Anomaly, Foxy whispered, "Brittle is very shy and sensitive. Right now she is terrified of you, so don't surprise her. I do think you could be friends however, but it may take time. She doesn't trust me yet either, only Briar."

EQ_Theta · July 25, 2017

@Blitz Boom

"From what we gathered from this specific event, it happened twice, the first approximately one thousand years ago. Discord's tyranny was at its height with all of Equestria plunged into chaos. In the first instance, two individuals named Celestia and Luna used the Elements of Harmony to seal the draconequus into the stone you saw and ending his reign. The second encounter happened only a few years ago. Once again, the magic of the Elements were wielded by six ponies who sealed Discord into stone when he brought back the chaos. These elements are inferred to have overpowered the Lord of Chaos but we do not detect this magic any longer, likely sealed away. The information we have on these items is scarce but you are correct in saying that a concentrated burst of harmonic magic; a large amount of it was needed to seal Discord."

It would seem the narration of the scholars was going to divert to another path. If any emotions could be attributed to them, it would be excitement. It's been a long time since they could simply do what they wanted in their limited state. Sharing information was just as satisfying as gathering it and they are beginning to see there is some sense of stability in it. Before they could continue, however, a gate opened nearby with two familiar faces walking through it. One of them had a satchel slung around his torso with a box sitting on his back.

"We're back! And we got you and Omen something nice!" Sen exclaimed as he walked in and greeted Mother

"Sen and I stopped by Ponyville to get some of these round things with frosting on them. They're, uh... doughnuts? I think that's what the owner said they were. Brother said he and Omen visited the confectionery there once and bought these pastries. The place was about to close down for the night but the owner gave us a baker's dozen of assorted flavors." Lin added with her vision still trained on Mother and the orb while holding one claw up to play with the little drake still clinging on to her.

Though their tone was jovial, the siblings' facial expressions suggest they is struggling with hiding difficult emotions, almost like they're forcing themselves to sound happy. Sen appears to be showing more difficulty compared to his sister with the former still reeling in from the encounter with the village. It hinted at a very bittersweet outcome of their return but still trying to move on however he can.

Edited July 25, 2017 by EQ_Theta

FanOfManyShows · July 25, 2017

@Blitz Boom

Astral closed her eyes, sighing heavily, she looked down, harnessing the energy was a ritual she hadn't done in months, with the book's instructions being mostly scorched near the end, she had to fill in the gaps. When she closed her eyes a little bit of fear striking her, imagining the destruction she could cause with unlimited power, the beauty of it... She let out a sigh, closing her eyes again, pitch blackness. Occasionally seeing visions, or just thoughts, about what destruction she could cause, and the idea, of breaking open death's door, or even forcibly bringing Sapphire, herself. That struck a cord of emotion, realizing with the right amount of magic, she could do it herself by taking the gem, and activating the horcrux. "The teleportation should be instantaneous." She said, black smoke starting to emanate from her. "Gathering the magic, would take more time, but that has been dealt with now." She looked around, seeing a fancy cloak in the corner, but scorched and burnt, one Warlock wore once, Astral levitating it over to herself, putting it around her body, tightening it around her neck, keeping her body hidden, looking somewhat like Sapphire did when she was evil. "So we can get going now that I've gathered it." She extended a sword, lifting it up, with strange blood magic like markings. She looked to him, lowering the sword. "You ready?"

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

Warlock felt, off, as he looked around, feeling uneasiness. He went blind for a moment, seeing Astral and Chow about to escape, but missing that Astral was turning evil. "No, no, no NO!" He growled loudly, tossing a sword into the ground and cracking the floor, with what seemed like molten rock in between the cracks, the element lashing out and forming larger cracks around him as well separating the floor a little, with lava in the cracks, his great anger on display, and a little of his power. "We don't have time! Astral and Chow are going to escape!" He growled, getting impatient now with the threat of not being able to get Sapphire on his side, as unlikely as that would be to begin with. Warlock rushed ahead down the stairs, creating a bright light to light the way, stopping a few steps down. "If you desire to Athriel, you could head back, prevent their escape." He looked up to her from below. "Or I could go back there, and make my threats clear and a reality." He lifted his sword up. "So do I go, or you?" He smirked a little, if Athriel did leave, she had a chance to show her own power, if Warlock went, he'd likely kill both of them, or remove some limbs.

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

"Ah well at least I can manage that so far, I've heard of situations similar to this which is why I can handle this, it's surprising Equestria has dealt with them at all, like Tirek, although the elements were helping each time, and now we are about to use fire to fight fire without them."

Nectar scoffed. "I don't think you two are prepared Iron Star, Misty, constantly talking about how to defeat him, or Athriel, it worries me since either they are that powerful that you have no idea, or that you just don't have any way to defeat them. We're just wasting time not planning how to set up the trap." She walked over to Dew, looking down at the amulet. "I think we should start considering how to set it up, even if he could hear there is one set for him, he'll still come for you anyways."

"Yeah but how do we draw him to us, he can't even use omnipotence to see stuff or hear stuff near this amulet" He said pointing to it. "He can see the amulet, and me from a distance, but if he knows what the amulet is...." His eyes opened up, with a stern look. "Or the crown that goes with it." He put his hooves together. "Poof, Equestria." He said while drawing the hooves apart. "More so if he finds out how to use it."

Nectar looked to Golden. "Did we ever consider that? The possibility, he can use it while wearing it? We will be putting it on him to imprison him., we should consider that."

Sekel · July 25, 2017

@Blitz Boom

DAWN

"Sum ike is nude," Dawn tried to sat throigh her obviously burnt tongue. She spat a bit and licked her mouth to try and get some saliva but it didn't seem to be working. "Ike. Ice. Ice god. Good. Ice good."

@Blitz Boom, @Widdershins

AURORA

"Turkey?" Aurora blinked in surprise before tilting her head as she followed along the ground. "I don't think I'm a turkey. Turkeys aren't half lion anyway last I checked," she said thoughtfully. It wasn't like she was trying to rile him up or anything. It wasn't their fault the dragon sent her off on a rant. "Then again, turkeys are meant to be flightless and I'm clearly able to fly. Turkeys have a bunch of feathers and a beak and those weird red pouch thingies hanging by their beaks. I don't have the red pouches," she shivered and then imitated a turkey call.

"Okay ... nope. Don't sound like one either," she shool her head and took a couple breaths before addressing Spicy Roll. "And the wooden cart puller is confused about couples, methinks. Yes, Miss Wood Spice is confused about couples because she isn't in one. I'm not in one either but hey, who am I to judge?"

Widdershins · July 26, 2017

Ack! No! Watch out, Anomaly! Step on too many nerve cells and you'll make my author forget math! Oh shaddup, you. Hey now, I ain' the one playin' fast n' loose with analogies beyond his own comprehension! Well... technically, you are since your are I and... On with the show! ...before we futz up the thread's continuity anymore than we already have!

I can't let them... already know?

@Blitz Boom

Anomaly's blow upon the wall causes her to stagger back a few steps as she reels and attempts to right herself. As she does so, several other things happen in quick succession. The back portion of a back hoof of hers steps a little bit into the growing, glowing green puddle that has spread a bit more since it first landed, part of it seems to climb a bit up her leg a tiny bit, but not yet to a noticeable degree. As of yet.

Noticing the goings-on from his corner, a slight sigh escapes V.I.A.B. "Do exercise caution where... Hum. Really must get to cleaning that up. A Job is never done, is It."

The trinket butler goes unnoticed for now, in lieu of the drawer from before now sliding open like one of those flimsy, push-open furniture drawers one tends to find in brand-name foreign furniture stores. It slides out so far in fact, that it bumps into Anomaly's front legs still thin & unstable from her self-duplication and causes her to plummet, face first and up to her waist into the drawer's glimmering depths...

*narrative deep breath* Well, gird yourself. You left the decision up to me, so I picked everything. Prepare for a whirlwind tour. ...this might go a bit fast...

_-_-_

Somewhere, half across Ponyville in the evening, two roommates and "best" friends are settling in for the night. A light seafoam green unicorn sits slouched back on the living room sofa, very animatedly going off on some tangent that very likely sounds like even she doesn't know where it began or will end. Her friend, a light-tan earth pony with a two-tone mane trots casually into the adjoining kitchen, her absence apparently not having been taken notice of by her friend.

"...and then! The humans get into their specially tailor-made suits built for their bipedal forms, because they're bipedal, you know, I brought that up before earlier...."

"Mmmhm."

The second mare in the kitchen starts grabbing a few things from the cupboard while barely needing to pay attention to what she's grabbing from years of practice of a very many things and tosses them in order into a martini shaker. As she shakes it all together, she quietly chuckles to herself.

"Heh... I swear... if she wasn't so darn cute..."

Pouring herself a drink and carrying it back to the living room where her friend is still waving her hooves around, fully engrossed in her own scenario, the earth pony mare sits down to sip her drink.

"... they get into these mechanical, wheeled boxes that take them to their jobs where they give each other titles like CEO or HR Rep, and they get into these Board Meetings to discuss the Company's future in upcoming Integral Merger Acquisitions..."

"Mmmhm."

She takes another slow sip of her martini while giving her friend an unnoticed, slight, sly smile. ...Suddenly, her eyes pop open and begins coughing a bit roughly.

"...then, in, only the fourth episode of that season, it turns out the "Reorganization" The Boss had talked about earlier was really a... 'Bon? ...You alright there?"

" F-fine... I'm... *hack, wheeze* ...just a..." Then, her already obscured words are choked out as her mouth seemingly unhinges as a small, metallic pony head slowly slides out with an expression just as surprised as the other face it's coming out of. With a few struggled motions, the mare manages to swallow the face back down to clear her throat and pat her chest dismissively.

"Y-you just..."

" *hem* Don't worry about it, Ly. I've had worse happen to me!"

"...Ponyville's weird... Think I'm ready to go lie down for the night..."

"Ooh! Good! I was wondering when we'd get to my favorite part!" "BOOONNY!"

The scene closes with the two friends chuckling outloud to themselves.

_-_-_

Away & up high in a stone walled study high ontop a gothic, towering castle, a human mage prematurely aged from stress, worry, and likely from dabbling in far too many types of magic than most would consider healthy sits leaning over his desk in concentration of his work and the silence of the castle.

A loud, boyish & prideful shout rings out through the hallways as the stomping of oversized greaves & boasting of a young boy bellows forth in a tone that clearly denotes that its origin couldn't care less about how poorly his current, borrowed armor fits him.

"FATHER! I hath slain the pretenders for your affections once more! Surely thou shalt now aspire to teach me in your ways to become the greatest in all of AZEROTH!"

Without even bothering to look up from his work at his son barging in through the door or even flinching or sighing, the wizard calmly speaks to his son.

"So which of your brothers did you kill this time, Sus'an?"

Shuffling his feet awkwardly now, having forgotten the consequences from the last several times he's tried this, the boy responds. "...Med'an...and it's The Black Knight now, Daddy..." "Hm. Moreos?"

"Yesss?" A gaunt, frankly sickly but still as spry as one could hope for from a man who's lived among maddening magic for a job of a butler steps out of the shadows of the room in a way that only the best butlers can somehow seem to manage.

"Fetch the usual reagents and fix the boy back up again, won't you? Usual punishment. I can't deal with this right now, have an inter-dimensional tear coming in on..."

Already the butler is ushering out the pouting knight-to-be to attend to his casual murder as his father stares at an indecipherable contraption set near the wall.

"...any minute now." A fizzing crackle happens as a small portal opens up on a corner of the Prophet's desk, Anomaly's head sliding out a ways as it pushes a few of his things off the desk. Casually & unsurprised the the bearded, brunette man turns to Anomaly.

"Ah. Greetings, Miss Anomaly. Living up to your name I see! Wish we could talk longer about your species, but we simply can't allow too much interference between non-compatible dimensions, you see? So, if you don't mind... I fear you must... go back in..." With pinkies out and pushing her head back into the portal with his fingertips like one would try to force a sheet of paper back into a copier, Anomaly disappears once more, the final words she hears as "...besides, you should have approximately another two scenarios to go through."

_-_-_

Anomaly's next quick stop, each one seeming to be only there for a few quick seconds, appears to be not much more than a massive underground cave with a semi-molten floor to it. What is far more alarming though, is the two beings conversing in the center of the room. A tall, thick-hided humanoid naga with a long fringe of scales on his shoulders appears to be addressing a towering being of fire at least the height of most buildings. Suddenly, a loud shout rattles the walls.

"WHAT?!!"

"You mean to tell ME that those game developers just HANDED over MY Midsummer's Event to AHUNE?!! That ice cube has nothing against the LORD OF FIRE!

"Yesss, Sssir... and it seems he's set up a Tavern Brawl ssspecifically designed around making tiny dummies of you for players to break."

"...that's kind of sad, honestly. Either way, put him on the Burn List with the Developers. Also, I'm going to need to kill you again for bringing me bad news."

"...Will do, Sssir. ...though he's already been on the Burn List for years now. And... if I may ssspeak out Sssir, I know you require a ssstresss releassse, but its quite hard to keep revival reagents down here in the Molten Core... it's easier sssince the adventurers ssstopped coming in this deep sssince the..."

The giant fire elemental suddenly lurches upright, having just become aware of Anomaly's head tucked away in a corner.

"Interloper! You've let the gnats in again, Executus! Die, Insect!"

With that, the Firelord hurls his giant molten hammer at Anomaly, her head bopping back into the portal as quick as anyone with self-preservational skills ought.

_-_-_

Anomaly's last stop seems pretty uneventful. As it appears to be not much more than a swirling vortex of very many lights. The more theory inclined would call it some sort of warp or wormhole. While pretty, not much seems to be here for Anomaly to see. Well, apart than the tall, blue box that seems to ricochet off the "walls" of the place not a minute after Anomaly had poked her head through the side of the tunnel.

Already too far away to tell much detail about the box, a second figure can be seen emerging from among the constantly flashing lights. What appears to be a fuzzy-headed worm snakes out of seemingly no where to wrap itself around the box for a moment. An electrical forcefield of some sort seems to emanate from the box, shocking the worm off of it.

Left behind, the worm appears to stare off after the box as it disappears down the tunnel. It calls out after it as it itself slowly drifts back into the walls of the tunnel, disappearing back into the interdimensional darkness.

Aww, C'mon! I need to hitch a ride outta here! Be a friend! Help a guy out! I need a change! Change! Got any chaaaange!!

_-_-_

Finally, Anomaly collapses back out of the drawer, her head having been portaled around to who-knows-where while her body was left behind. She know sits knocked onto her bum from having finally succeeded in pulling her head free. Aside from the green puddle in the corner from before now having been cleaned up by V.I.A.B, it doesn't seem as if much of any time has passed while her little tour has started. The contents of the drawer seem dulled now, it likely won't work the same way again.

###################################End of First Post########################################

@Blitz Boom (oh hey, worked that time!) and also @Dji

"Okay, fine... Maybe I've never seen a live turkey before either... Back a guy into a corner, why don't you!"

Blushing in frustration once more, Kaltrop turns his long, light tan-bronze neck back at Spicy Rolls.

"Humph, I don't know what kind of loose mare you are, but nobody is going to form any sort of healthy, lasting relationship the moment they meet somepony! Especially not dropping out of the air unannounced like that!" The dragon pointedly adds on, clearly unaware that that was exactly the way he just met the red mare.

"B-besides! The idea is absurd! Dragons are alpha predators! That would be like a chicken marrying a snake and having a kid of their own! Crazy! Both of you!"

Hanging his head in thought, the light, young drake looks down off the side of the cart.

"...more like Miss Wood Lice..."

Kaltrop's eyes widen suddenly for a moment as he watches the ground passing under him as something Spicy just said catches up to him finally.

"...W-wait! W-we're g-going into a town? We're moving? Why are we moving?!"

??????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????????

@Blitz Boom

Funny you should mention that! I've actually been in some form of Hell at least eight times so far! ...maybe six, hard to keep track sometimes! And I could go on about that too, if you want! There's an entire plane/dimension/world out there I've been on entirely themed around necromancy! Mind you, may not have been there all too long to know too much of- Oh! We're done here then? Alrighty then!

Cutting himself off as his long head and neck loop around to follow Vivid Loss's retreating form, his body then completes the loop to turn himself the opposite way around.

Well then! You have my card if you need me for anything, Gashorse!

With a final salute of grabbing his snout & tipping his head off his body like a hat, Widdershins disappears in a series of poofs from tail to body, to head to his tentacle holding his head until his long ,ears flop once as his head disappears

/////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////*\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\

At Symbol, Link, Blue Box, word indicating sudden action, then explosion sound.

With a wide-eyed and accepting look at Happy Hour, Ambie quizzically answers the other stallion's question.

"Well, no. Of course not. Mom usually kept the heirloom silverware locked up. Far as I could tell its only purpose was worrying about it getting stolen.

I guess... far as I know Grandfather doesn't really look on Dad all that well. He must have accepted him well enough to let him marry his daughter, but I guess that was all about the usual rule about not marrying down in social status.

But most ponies don't bother to question Dad. He usually gives ponies headaches the way he can loop a sentence around. We're lucky if he still remembers that he has a house to go back to & doesn't actually live in the school he teaches in. Or which bathroom to go into. Dad... really doesn't seem to be the one to keep any sort of secret all that well.

Guess it is odd that my Mother's Family makes such a big deal out of our lineage when Dad can barely even remember if he even has a birthday."

Holiday Agnaktor · July 26, 2017

@Blitz Boom @Windchime

Light Rain was relieved when the conversation steered away from her. She could finally calm down, but only a little bit. She was still very much in trouble, but at least she could collect her thoughts now, before the next 'assault' would happen.

So at this moment it was safe to assume that the dragon knew about her being a changeling. The reporter was probably also in on it, though she wasn't 100% sure of that one. The reporter would probably prove to be a fierce opponent in close combat, because of his horns, and the dragon would be even more scary, since he could probably out-run, out-fly, and out-fight her. Even if she managed to escape somehow, the dragon could probably just sniff her down. He had already proven that disguises don't mean anything to him.

The only thing that Rain wasn't sure of, was their intentions. Were they going to try to arrest her soon? Were they going to outright fight her? Something else? She didn't know. These people were masters at hiding their true intentions. The dragon even put up a love-barrier. Who does that?! Normally changelings just dig right through that stuff, but he knew that Light Rain wouldn't be able to do that. Somehow he knew.

Light Rain was torn from her thoughts when suddenly the reporter said something about "stop the publication right now, else this won't end well", and just ran off through the crowd. The dragon soon followed him, but only after leaving her with a veiled threat. "I'm sure the changeling situation will be sorted, and hopefully without any violence as part of it." he had basically told her, to sit still and not resist whatever was going to happen next.

Light Rain's brain raced at a million billion miles an hour. What did the dragon mean? What was coming? Then she saw it. The reporter ran off, saying something about stopping the publication. The publication would ruin her somehow, but how? Wait... They were going to reveal her true identity in the newspapers! She could not let that happen!

Her mouth agape in horror, she took flight, following the dragon as fast as she could, which wasn't very fast. She was never a fast flyer. Her specialties were in staying hidden in society for long amounts of time, not actually doing active combat. She had been one of the drones sent to Canterlot to infiltrate the place, and lay in wait until the main forces broke through the barrier. Not that she liked doing that, she didn't really have a choice in the matter.

Light Rain didn't know what she was going to do once she caught up with them, but she had to do something. She wasn't about to let her calm and peaceful life get ruined.

Windchime · July 26, 2017

@Blitz Boom @Holiday Agnaktor

Having cleared from the busiest streets by now, Striking Detail could stop his mantra, and he thought the situation through as he galloped.

The media holds much sway over public opinion. Simple articles can give ponies the opportunity to gain a whole new perspective to subjects they already knew about, and with this newly given information, their opinion could sway over from one direction to the other, and if the writer isn't careful, they could unintentionally help sway an opinion to something that could not entirely be described as 'wholesome'. Striking Detail often wondered about where his articles stood and if he wasn't unfair in what he wrote. But this time, he knew he made a mistake.

Striking Detail ran past a newspaper stand. Last week's Equestrian Enquirer pretty much stood in front of all the rest of the papers, proudly displaying one of the other writer's articles on the front page. He thought about how many ponies this changeling special would reach, and how citywide their reputation would be tarnished. Mistrust would be more prevalent, intentional or not and whether he wanted it or not, unless he could stop publication. Due to this thought, he decided to pick up the pace a bit more.

Striking Detail ran past a celebrity arguing with their boyfriend. He easily recognized her. She used to be a famous actress and her shows would often make Bridleway, until Striking Detail revealed a scandal with her and her producers, causing her to lose all credibility. While still considered a celebrity, her shows haven't made Bridleway since. Striking Detail never got over the feelings of remorse he felt like his colleagues said he would, over ruining a mare's life, just for a public outing. They told him to be proud for having informed the masses for what she did, but secretly, Striking Detail wanted her to play in Bridleway again, just one more time.

Striking Detail ran past an antique clock shop, and decided to not go into much more character development this time. He quickly skimmed all the clocks in the store window, excluded the clocks whose second hand did not move in the two seconds he had to look at them, and averaged out the rest, making it roughly 15:13. This week's second articles from every writer for the Equestrian Enquirer should be done by tomorrow, so he could still edit his own article before the deadline, maybe convince the others to edit their articles, and halt the printing of the first. While there would be enough time to interview and incorporate the dragon guard's story into his article, convincing and rewriting articles into a more positive tone takes considerately more time, and if he should want to succeed, he'd have to intervene now.

Striking Detail finally turned the familiar corner where the golden "E-E" logo proudly juts out from the buildings. Every time he turned that corner, he idly wondered how any rushing Pegasi haven't crashed into it yet. Maybe he should do a piece on that later. He leaned against the reporter's entrance door, recovering from his gallop, reaching for his Equestrian Enquirer reporter key-card and giving the dragon a chance to catch up. If he just could get there in time...

No. There's no time to wait. He waited until he could clearly see the Dragon closing in on him and made sure that the dragon also saw him, and kicked a nearby bucket between the door and the door-frame, which would immediately lock the entrance upon falling back closed. Going through the lobby would take too long. Besides, that entrance is on the other side of the building, and would have taken precious minutes. He made his way through the door, ensured it wouldn't lock, and took the stairs. For now, all that was in his mind is that he had to

"STOP THE PRESSES!"

The presses continued.

"...please?"

The presses hesitated.

"And what is the meaning of this, Striking Detail?" Avabella Printrose stopped him dead in his tracks. The executive editor valued the changeling special more than anypony in the building, and especially took offense to the interruption. If only a certain dragon finally caught up to him...

Blitz Boom · July 26, 2017

@Radience (Nice name change ^^)

"Great, another wanna-be noble with a bloated ego."

Brute grimaced over the things she heard from this mare. Nobles were an annoying enough bunch as it were, but the way she posed herself and talked down to others without actually looking to be of that high stand, made her out as one step worse. A pretender who overcompensated to make it seem like they were among the great, rich houses, but were just a little above the general population.

That she were talking about herself like Trixie were not exactly buying her points either. Brute had seen the magician come through town here several times since Las Pegasus tended to provide her with an audience, but she had never liked the ego that mare had, and she certainly didn't like it better when attached to a mare that were so high strung, that it even reflected in her name.

And that wasn't even covering the amulet, which Brute might not have any idea what actually were, but seemed to ooze with the same aura that the mare's wings had.

"So I'm guessing that your little trinket is what causes this? Yeah, combined with that evil grin you just flaunted, I definitely get the feeling the guards would be interested in having a chat with you.

So, we can do this two ways Richie. Either you follow along peacefully, and there's still a chance this will work out fine, or I'll take my chances and make you complacent enough to drag off to the guards so they can evaluate things themselves."

Perhaps this wasn't the most diplomatic way of handling things, but Brute wasn't a diplomat. She were of a simpler mind, and in that, leaving a mare like this to skulk around this part of town was not an option. That and Richie's personality just didn't make it possible to even pretend to like her.

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

@Foxy Socks

"...Fine, fine. You win."

Anomaly snapped her tail, and the mask on her face disappeared. At the same time, a uniform also appeared on Foxy with a rotating light in the hat, and a badge that said *Fun Police*. A minor thing, but this seemed to bring a brief, barely watchable smile to Brittle's muzzle, though also caused her to cling more to Briar than before. Too many weird things going on for her.

Whilst all of this went on, Agni had been out and pecking around, trying to find something to eat, and had managed to scrounge up a few worms to eat before returning to this strange party of Equines & Co. Originally she had wanted to go for the foal she had been curious about yesterday, but he seemed to be gone without a trace, so she took the next best choice and landed on the back of Foxy. The head would have been better, but the hat annoyed her.

"Quite the eventful start to the day, but perhaps we can make some ground rules before things gets out of hoof? I only have two which I would greatly appreciate if you could keep, which is to please keep some distance to Brittle for the time being, and if you be so kind, to keep fire away from me. I smell something slightly singed, and I would prefer to not add to that smell."

"You're making rules? Oh no! Officer, grab him."

Anomaly snorted out a little laugh as she poked fun at both Briar and Foxy at the same time.

"Joking aside for a tiny bit though, you should keep away from the bird. It's a rude phoenix that would likely scorch you for no reason. Though, now I'm curious. Why's the issue with fire specifically, and not just, you know, beating you or something else too?"

The comment made Brittle's head get lower to the ground, and her eyes pleading, as if she were preparing for Anomaly to go after her, which were a little absurd. Anomaly might be all sorts of crazy, but she didn't want to intentionally hurt somepony who didn't deserve it.

"Well, to simplify things, let it suffice to say that I'm more plant than pony, and fire makes for a larger problem because of that."

Anomaly widened her eyes.

"Wait wait wait, you're the Evergrown?"

"Ah, a being in the know it seems. Yes, I am an Evergrown, from the great jungles to the south."

The loud *Eeeee* sound of glee that came from anomaly, followed by an impromptu little dance, made it clear that she were happy about something regarding this, though what exactly were hard to say for Briar and Brittle at least. Was she a fan or something?

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

@EQ_Theta

Mother rose an eyebrow with some wonder at what she heard.

"The method seems intriguing, and something which I could see would incapacitate him for a long time. It seems I owe him an apology.

The timing confuses me though. Omen came back and told me that he had vanished three thousand years ago, and spend most of her time since then here, until I convinced her to go back and try to make a life for herself regardless of Discord. If he had come back a thousand years ago, getting her to go would not have taken that long. Are you sure that it weren't further back, or is there perhaps some of the story I am not aware of?"

She spoke her mind as the children entered the room, thinking it possible to let this go before they started to overlap. A success, though a narrow one, and with how Sen and Lin looked, she couldn't keep that in the forefront of her mind as much as what were troubling them.

"I thank you for the thought, but I am unable to eat food like regular mortal beings, in part by my lack of a stomach."

A design flaw in some being's eyes likely, but her kind usually didn't have a realistic reason to have a need for a lunch break. There were always beings dying over countless worlds and dimensions, and they needed to be working to keep the natural flow going. Made more sense for Mortimer then to not make them reliant on food, or give them the option to indulge themselves, and instead just gain some nourishment from their job. Residual life energy worked a great deal better, though not enough for their master to try that himself. He still preferred to indulge himself in tastes and meals for some strange reason they didn't fully understand.

"I think there is more pressing matters to attend to though, considering how distraught you both seem to be underneath the forced smiles. Please, tell me what is troubling you. Did it not go well in the village?"

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

@Lloyd

"Yes, let's go before one of them comes back."

Chow jumped back so he stood right up against Astral, but still with his back turned so he could look out for any attackers he might have to try and defend Astral from.

"Just... Hurry, so we can get you back okay? I bet Misty and your dad is getting really worried about you."

he had been about to say something about the cloak she had taken, and how she should leave that thing be, but now wasn't the time. He had to support - not attack - her as best as he could. Her dad could do that did necessary when they got back, though they'd have to hurry, as there wouldn't be more than a half minute or so until Warlock would be here likely.

If they got back to Canterlot, they'd end up just outside the palace, as the teleportation barrier were well up and running, but the guards wouldn't do much to keep them at bay. They weren't who they had been warned about, so if there was any sign of Warlock, they'd go for him first, and let the guards inside deal with these two if needed.

Warlock would not be able to get through the barrier with a teleport if he tried, but would have to drain it first or knock out some of the ponies keeping it stable to do so, which could give them the chance they needed to get to safety, if they were focused.

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

@Lloyd

"Bah, typical.

Alright, since I know more of the intricacies of whatever wards they have likely set in place here, it's best if I keep on going, and you'll go back to handle them. But for the love of everything, put down the damn sword! If you end up dismembering Astral, Sapphire will never become an asset. We need her daughter intact.

As for Chow... We need his fresh blood for the ritual, so just cauterize the wound if you do something and try not to kill him."

He would likely be gone right after she had said that or right before, which left her with having to examine the depths of this place.

Chanting a spell under her breath, she managed to summon a small orb of somewhat dim light to float in front of her. It wasn't much, but with this borrow body and how much of her magic had been swallow earlier by Warlock, it was t he best she could do right now. Hopefully the fragile thing wouldn't burst whilst she were down there, but one thing at a time. First off, she had to get to the bottom of the stairs, and keep her eyes peeled for wires or the like. She were not going to fall prey to a security measure that simple.

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

@Lloyd

"It is not outside of the realm of possibilities, but I have my doubts that he could use it. The two would likely catch the other in a vacuum, and as for the crown... Wherever it is, it have failed to show up from any kind of tracking magic. It's construction and security measures have always been a mystery to me, but I assume that whoever made them long ago, did not want for them to be tracked down and assembled that easily. Wherever the crown is, it should be safe, though if one is seen on Warlock, we need to be aware. Perhaps I shpuld send for a book that shows it to give you a visual actually, just in case."

A piece of paper were written, then he tried to teleport it but without luck.

"Good, the shield is up it seems. A moment please."

Golden wandered to the door to hand over the message to a guard that could bring it onward, whilst Dew took over the talking.

"We get some of the elements, then litter the room with a few others things that he would want. Namely iron Star himself, which seems to be one he'd want his hooves on.

Keeping the amulet closely by and ready, we will then attack him with as much physical power as we can, whilst wearing the best we have in magic-resistant armor, just in case the two draining forces doesn't completely nullify the other. Then when we get the chance, we will press the amulet as closely to him as possible, whilst putting as much magic dampening metal on him as possible. Not just the usual horn rings, I'm talking shackles and chains of the kind we barely ever use, and then we will see if they will be enough, or if the amulet is needed too. How we deal with him after that remains to be seen. I don't believe in executions, but something to keep him down permanently will have to happen.

As for his companion, it sounds like we can deal with her via the container provided, and she seems the weaker of the two, so distract her and attempt to overcome her, but we should keep a focus on Warlock.

Where this should all take place though, I can't say. I ave some options in mind, but I will need to think on this further."

"With the shield up, you could step a little away from Iron Star again, Morning Dew, if you'd so please. It will provide a haven from snatch and grabs, long as we feel out the magic and reacts if it seems to be disrupted."

Meanwhile, Benny looked in surprise as his message already seemed to get an answer, as an old parchment bound with thick string and smelling of swamp popped into existence a few minutes after he had send his away.

Unfolding it, he looked over what were written - didn't matter if he showed the others, as draconian were all his cousin and grandfather could write - before looking over at the generals with a nervous glance.

"I have some good news, and some bad ones. It seems like my grandpa isn't coming, but my cousin is willing to help us for a price. It doesn't specify what, but knowing them, it will likely not be in coin.

It says he actually expected us, and that he's less than an hour out. Somepony in a robe told him about this in advance, and tried to convince grandpa too, but that didn't work out. He finishes by saying the stranger might meet up with us too from the sound of it, but I don't think he even knows. His writing goes sort of hesitant when it comes to this.

So uhm, yeah... It sound like we'll get help, but with catches... Good enough?"

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

@Dji

Pop wasn't entirely certain what it was Dawn was saying at this point, but it did come through clear enough that she could really use the ice and that her muzzle might be a bit singed right now. Hopefully she wouldn't get blisters from that though. Painful and irritating when they popped up in there.

"Here you go, a good 'ol home made sundae ice cream. Don't go too fast on it or your brain will freeze over."

Hopefully Dawn wouldn't mind the taste of oranges in it. Pop just couldn't help it, they were so tasty! Well worth having a few trees off in her back yard, which hopefully Dawn would think so too when she had a taste of it, even though she knew most around here preferred apples. But hey, regardless, it'd help with the cooling down, so Dawn would likely grab the spoon and glass and have a good time with it.

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

@Dji @Widdershins

"Hey, I'm just saying that with how much you two bicker at eachother, you sound like an old married couple. The sort who looks at others like yours truly, and ency the more carefree life rather than being tied down with a being they have started to resent. Lesson to be learned here kids: The single life is one heck of a ride

Anyway, as I said before, I'm going to Ponyville. I run a specialized establishment that... Eh, who're you two going to tell anyway? I'm a loan shark. Lil' missy thought she could bail out on paying the part we agreed on back a few days ago and skipped town, so I'm chasing her down to shake the coins out of her.

Usually I'm willing to compromise and put a few percent extra on to allow them to skip a month if things have gone badly, but when the client tries to bail on me, the good will have run out, and it's time to collect one way or another. And she better hope I'm the one who gets to her before my guard. A far less charming situation it'll be then."

A cruel smile spread on Spicy's face as she went on, thankfully starting to get slightly downhill so the weighty dragon wouldn't be too much of a bother on her back for much longer.

"By the way, hothead? There is a mix between a chicken and a snake. It's called a Cockatrice, and if you see one, you should go an give it a hug. I'm sure the two of you would have a blast.

Now then, griffon lady, what're your name? You know ours, and it ain't nice to just leave us hanging."

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

@Widdershins

Oh shush, you're fine. And if you're not... Well, at least I'm gonna be okay. This is just part of me, so worst comes to worst, real me just eats the other half and everything's fine and dandy. Though I guess that means I won't remember what happened here... Oh phoey. Fine, I'll be *careful* and stuff. Now shh, my response to the weird adventure is coming up.

"That. Was. Awesome!!! Can we go to the place with the one with the big hammer again? I wanna repay him for hitting me in the face. Oh, oh, or the pony first actually, yes. I wanna tell her there is a human in town and see her freak out about it. And it wouldn't even be a lie! There is a human there, though he's also a changeling, which is kinda weird, but it still counts."

Anomaly was having an absolute blast, regardless of the fact that she overall looked a bit singed as she were a little slow on going back from the hammer when it was tossed towards her face, but it was fine. She were mainly metallic now, so her looking like she had stumbled into a campfire meant nothing.

The stain on her leg meant nothing to her, and though she had so many question about the places she had seen and what the words like Azeroth meant, she were far too hyper right now to care about asking that, and instead went towards the portal again, just to end up looking ten kinds of disappointing.

"Awh, it changed color. It won't work now, will it? Darn it! No more fun with weird fireman, or pony couple... Not even big wizard man? Pleeease, can I at least go see him? He sounded like he knew a lot of stuff and he smelled of fun magic. I wanna make his desk into a pumpkin or something."

She looked up at V.I.A.B. at the end, with big, puppy-dog eyes pleading to be told how to get back to the fun places. She had no idea how to play with portals between worlds herself, so this would be impossible for her to do on her own, and she were just starting to have fun.

She didn't mention the last one, with the glowing worm, because she wasn't sure what to think of that one. The place had looked pretty boring, so she'd want to get out of there as well, but the snake/worm thingie had seemed pretty annoying so... Confused on what to do there, though she'd likely not be allowed to take anything back with her anyway. Boring beings always ended up messing with her fun.

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

@Widdershins

Vivid looked at the spot where the draconequus had just been with narrowed, angry eyes.

"How I hate your kind, draconequus. You have so much power, and what do you do with it? You treat the world like it was your playground, so blind to what it does to those who lives in it, and the ripple effect it will have everywhere.

No, you have no moral high-ground over me, monster. Because in many ways, you are far worse already than I will ever be."

With that, she went away, towards the wailing of the lost dead she could hear in the distance. A being who actually needed her, and would welcome her releasing it from it's torment. A necessary thing that had to be done, yet likely another thing this creature from before would judge her on. Just like the other ponies had back when she were a regular mare.

She hated these judgemental types, and it just added to the pile of reasons why she hated draconequui. The list was not short there, but among the ones who kept growing were this hypocritical judgement, and the rising bitterness she had over how easily they had gotten such immense power, and the irresponsibility they showcased with it. Children the lot of them, yet not ones who ever got punished. Only the one who had died about ten years before she had gotten her first foal had felt any sort of consequence, and it seemed like their kind had happily forgotten about the responsibility they had to take back then in the meantime.

Bah, enough of this. She had more important matters to attend to. The forgotten needed to be sent to the blessed beyond, and it wasn't going to happen by itself.

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

@Widdershins

"Fun fact, some changelings can get strong in varying degrees of mind control if given enough time and the right genes. Nothing as strong as the monarchs, but a little distraction here, a push to forget or devalue import questions there... That should be possible enough to have done, and it just gives more credence to your dad being a changeling. Ponies doesn't have the link to mind and emotions needed for something like this. At least not any I have ever met or heard of before, but what do I know? The world is big and full of colorful folks."

He had to give credit where credit were due. Ambie's dad were good at distracting away from the big issues to have gotten as far as he had. What with a kid, a marriage, and wandering around like a dolt, you'd think he would have gotten caught somehow way sooner. Unless of course the dolt part was an act. It wouldn't surprise him if it were, as ponies had less mistrust of goofballs or airheads generally, but it wasn't easy to keep playing off if it were.

...Dang it, now he were getting invested in this as well. He were dying to get some answers, but Ambie seemed unable to answer any of them, which left... Yeah, perhaps this was worth pushing for.

"You know, perhaps you should get home, get a night's rest, and then take contact to your dad? You deserve some answers, or at least to be certain, and if he's a little stiff on giving them, I could help. I know the little signs here and there, even if I can't feel the emotions of changelings, so I could perhaps assist in revealing the truth. If that is that your dad is just a regular pony then hey, at least you'd be sure, right?"

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

@Holiday Agnaktor @Windchime

Whilst Detail seemed to recognize a pony here and there in the crowd, Benny had no idea who any of them were.

Even though he had lived in Equestria for around six years now, he were still not big on all of their cultural things like who were on Briddleway, popular landmarks, who were important and so forth. He were content with his work at the forge and then learn what he needed to if he were dragged along to something with Circle Pop, which were pretty rare. She enjoyed experiences, but theaters were not much of one in her mind, and it were reserved for days where she really had an urge to experience something, but the weather was too bad to have a trip like they usually did in those situations.

So he just followed closely to Detail, and would land about a second after the editor had addressed the reporter, at which point he'd fold in his wings and pop into the building.

His entrance seemed to cause a chunk of minor workers to halt their progress, even if they didn't see the Royal Guard marks on his armor from their distance or angles. Seemed like he had heard right when he had been told that Manehattan were a separated society. Dragons and ponies would interact, but it wasn't normal for them to mix everywhere.

That theory lasted for about as long as it took him to see a dragon a one of the presses, at which point he conceded that it might be because he were armored then. Might be a bit of an eye-sore or distraction.

"Hello there, sorry for interrupting ma'am, but your reporter seemed to think it was of importance that we made it here fast."

he would walk fully in and greet the clear boss of this room with a small salute.

"Name's Benny, of the Royal Guard of Equestria. Pleasure to meet you, though I can calm you ma'am, I'm not here because of any trouble currently. I were just told that you were doing a special about changelings and Mr. Detail figured it might be useful with some information from the recent diplomatic development between Equestria and the main hive of King Thorax, among other things. At least that's what I grasped before he ran off."

Benny coughed and looked as the ponies and dragon around started to get back to work, though keeping an eye on him for now. it'd likely change if the editor told them to focus, but one thing at a time, as he were basking in a moment of awkward silence. Or well, languishing in it really, but that were a minor detail that he didn't need to explain since it'd just make him appear as a nervous colt on his way to prom.

"Nice place you have here by the way. Looks very efficient."

dragon4111 · July 26, 2017

@Blitz Boom @WiiGuy2014

Ancalagon said "And yet you've kept your mind. That makes me very curious," Ancalagon raised a scaly eyebrow. "My courier guild is a nation without land but are more like family to me," he said gently he purred slightly at the thought. "But they are also my workers," he stated with a grin on his face slightly.

Foxy Socks · July 26, 2017

@Blitz Boom

"He is the Evergrown I told you about. I met him only yesterday afternoon, so I don't know him or Brittle that well." Foxy smiled, pleased that Agni chose to stay with her fpr the time being. She wondered if Brittle would be scared of her, so she made sure not to get too close.

"Anomaly, knows a lot about you guys. Actually, well, she should tell you." Foxy felt it would have been easier that way. Anomaly knee much more about them than Foxy did.

Sekel · July 26, 2017

@Blitz Boom

DAWN

Dawn buried her muzzle in the sundae and internally sighed in relief. She had a small bit of it but when she tasted the oranges, she raised her head with practically half the sundae stuck on her muzzle. "Oranges? An orange sundae? That's new," she told Pop, too shocked to even react properly at the bizarre taste of the dessert.

@Blitz Boom, @Widdershins

AURORA

"Ponyville? I was headed that way myself," Aurora squawked in surprise and ruffled her wings a bit. "Ooh! This is going to be so exciting!" She squealed and giggled only to stop when Spicy asked for her name. "My name's Aurora Lights. Noce to meet you both. Even if you're a murderous loan shark, whatever that is, and a meanie dragon who has no sense of direction. And mister meanie dragon? I would gladly show you a cockatrice if you're not going to behave."

EQ_Theta · July 27, 2017

@Blitz Boom

The smiles on Sen and Lin's faces slowly turned into frowns and while they were content with what had happened in the village, they there is much more to the story than they would like to let on. Yet, there was a part of them that kept tugging inside, always asking to reconsider. Part of them wants to say everything and lay themselves bare to someone they've come to fully trust and see as more than just another face. Sen stepped forward and spoke.

"Elder Ghilan and the council came to an agreement. The village will take its first steps to the outside and establish connections with other villages, then probably send envoys to the places an old friend visited. Lin and I made up with Xin, the same friend who betrayed us to Solasan and the same one who wants to make amends for what he's done. They plan to go to Ponyville first. It's just... we found something else."

Sen pulled out a tattered note with legible writing on it and what looked like tear stains. "It's the last thing mother and father left for us," Sen softly continued as he read the note.

Our time is running short. If you find your way back home, we ask that you forgive the village and promise us you'll never be afraid. You may be looking for someone to fill in the holes made by us being torn from each other's embrace. If you find them, take care of them and shower them with the same love we shared with you. There's a world out there we don't know about and while we can no longer see the wonders it holds for ourselves, you can. We know you both will see there is beauty and goodness out there, and we know you'll find your way when we not with you. Love, mom and dad.

As Sen read on, his voice began to waver and grow heavy, struggling to get words out as tears began to fall. The message spoke to him as if his parents were reading it. Lin took notice and while she felt the same pain her brother felt, she knew she had to help him carry on. She tugged on one side of the note and continued reading the last two sentences.

"Elder Ghilan said what we all did inspired him to build a brighter future for the village and he wants us to help him achieve that," Lin continued. "The villagers are welcoming us back but we're not sure. We're afraid this means you and Omen don't have a place in our lives anymore. We don't want to be separated; you've been with us through thick and thin and it isn't right that we leave you both behind. We couldn't imagine what our lives would've been like if it we hadn't met you."

"We do not have an answer to your inquiry but we can continue this discussion whenever you wish," the scholar's quietly whispered in Mother's ear but continued to channel chaotic magic into Omen.

Edited July 27, 2017 by EQ_Theta

Moonlit · July 27, 2017

@Blitz Boom @Seamore Sandwich "It...looks familiar, but then again The Castle of the Two Sisters does have 'old and abandoned' feel to it" She shrugs, "One wonders why the Princess' haven't fixed it up"

Blitz Boom · July 28, 2017

@Dji @Widdershins

Spicy laughed at the way she were being described by the griffon.

"Why would I murder anypony? Dead ponies can't pay back their debts, and I wouldn't have legal loopholes to hide behind if I was connected to bodies like that. I just make sure to... Encourage them to pay, that's all.

And a loan shark is simple business. I loan out an amount of bits to ponies that is desperate, and in return they will pay me back at a set day with about 10% interest. More than the banks yes, but loansharking is more of a *last solution* kind of deal anyway, and I'm fair compared to a good deal of my competitors. I even allow the payment to be over several installations without adding more fines."

Intimidation, threats, a solid beating now and again. Those sort of things she would go with, sure. Heck, she'd even use a good old fashioned kidnapping scheme if worst came to worst, but murder? Not in her business plans.

That wasn't to say she didn't have blood on her mind. A few... Problems had required her to hire some sub-contractors for the more grizzly things, but that were always personal or related to her underground dealings, not her loan business.

"Thanks for the street cred though Aurora, even if I ain't gonna emblaze it on my signs. *Poker Champion and Murderous Loan Shark* isn't the best title to have hanging around.

Now then, mind me asking why you're headed for Ponyville? Looking for some feathers to ruffle?"

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

@Dji

"Yeah I know, it's an unusual taste around these parts, but I just can't help it. They're so sweet and juicy compared to apples, and I find they fit better in things like ice cream or candy than them, which is better in baked goods like pie.

The Apple family actually had a bit of beef with me when I first came to town because of that, but I don't blame them. I were setting up a shop ans came packing with several orange trees. Looked like I were pressing in on their market rather than just have my own supply.

We got sorted pretty fast really, and the family and I get along well now, but it's fun to think back now and again."

Somewhere in the store, she had a picture of Applejack and Big Mac looking mighty flustered at the grand opening of her sweets store as a result of the rocky start. It was fun to pointing at them there once in a while when they came here, though it wasn't often. Pinkie tended to keep her friends well supplied with candy when it mattered, so she mostly dealt with her. Strange mare that one, to put it mildly.

"Anyway, are your muzzle feeling better Dawn?"

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

@Foxy Socks

"Ah, a being of many experiences it seems. How may you know of my kind, if I may ask?"

"How? Because I made you! Oh this is so awesome!"

Anomaly started to step in place whilst Briar gave her a slightly condescending look of amusement.

"While you do seem natural in origin, I can assure you that I was grown, not created by anypony. A clever attempt though."

"Nono silly, not you personally. Your race. Here, lemme prove it."

Anomaly rose a paw with the bottom up, then concentrated and snapped her tail, over and over again.

Every time she did, something stirred just above the palm of her paw, varying in color, energy patterns and shape, until about fifteen times in she stood there with a large seed, about the size of a pony's head.

Intricate patterns adorned the gold surface of it, and even from a distance, the raw magic pulsating just beneath the surface could be felt. Natural, chaotic, and busting with an energy that made Briar involuntarily take a step backwards.

He felt the familiar magic of the great trees. Not just from where he grew up, but every other one he had seen. Perversions of nature as some ponies had called them, after they had found the trunk of a dead one decades ago, but he couldn't see how true that were. Not until now, where he gazed upon the truest essence of them, and understood how they could think that.

"Phew, I forgot how hard it was to make these things. Layers and layers of chaos and natural magic done just right took me like what, 200 years to learn? Something like that at least. Might have been a little more or less.

Anyway, these things I can't do with just one snap. Have to be done right.

So, Mr. Evergrown, does it look familiar to you? I can plant it if you wanna see instead."

Briar took a step forward with wide eyes and desperation mixed with fear in his voice.

"No! For all that is good in this world, stop! I believe you! It baffles me to see this is our origins, but I know it to be true when faced with this seed. Please, I beg of you, get it away before you mutate everypony here."

Anomaly chuckled, then after a bit, ate the seed, making Briar look like he were gonna have a heart attack before she swallowed and everything were still okay. He were still pretty shaken though. Both from having just learned that his entire race's existence were made possible by a draconequus playing with magic, and because of how close they had been to disaster.

"Oh relax, I wasn't gonna plant it in here. Isn't safe here, and I promised Zhu I'd let him plant these things in populated areas when it were.

I mean really, it's a fun idea to think about how planting this would mutate every breathing thing within about a 100 miles to Evergrown, but that's the sort of thing a monster does. I know better. Sort of."

The way she giggled after that were nor comforting for anypony but herself. To Briar, it caused him reason to have great concern, inching ever closer to fear, and for Brittle to sit still, confused but getting increasingly anxious. One could only imagine what the spectacle would make Foxy think.

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

@dragon4111

"Their madness came with a cause. The water that had sprung us werr never meant to be consumed by us, and when they started, so did their downfall. It polluted their minds with madness and strengthened their bodies, and since the madness took time to settle fully, a lot were convinced that it was just making us better. How wrong they were...

They took us who refuses, and either forced us to take this, or... Cleansed us from the valley. I manages to hide from them, but I know the others were taken, and they're all the same now. Those that lives anyway. Just monsters, twisting the words of the earthen mother to violence..."

The more she spoke of them, the sadder Lyriel looked. It might be that they had done unspeakable things in their greed and madness, and that they were beyond any salvation she knew of, but it didn't mean she couldn't pity their fate, and cry for the family she had lost.

She tried to keep further tears at bay by looking towards the direction Ancalagon pointed, and forced a smile on her tearful face.

"Your guild sounds fascinating, noble one. A nations worth of workers, with you as their leader and patriarch... I had never thought of such a thing before, but it intrigues me. Perhaps I can learn more of them as they approach, though I hope they will not trample the forest to get here. It is a chaotic and resilient place, but fragile in certain areas, and I would not wish to fail this new home of mine by letting it get destroyed."

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

@Radience

"When I speak of the guard, I'd find it obvious that I meant their station in town."

Brute wasn't going to dignify Richie's little tease with an insult of her own. She had heard the *Big muscles, little brain* line for a long time now, and it'd have to be a bad day to truly grind her bones with a comment like that.

Might be that yeah, she wasn't the smartest unicorn in town, but she weren't stupid. She had passed school well, and knew the important things that she'd need in this world. She just hadn't wasted time with stuff she wasn't going to use when she had a career to train for.

"And regarding your scheme, I don't trust you want to earn things the honest way. But go ahead and prove me wrong. You'll need to put it to the mayor to get a business running in town, so how about we go to him then, and you can get things done legally? Come on, prove to me you're not here to just take without adhering to the law. I dare you."

Unfazed by her threats and insults, Brute then took a step forward towards Richie and looked her in the eye with a stern glare.

"Also, think carefully about who you threaten with destruction. I am not a whimpering little foal who will go down easily, and if you start a fight, I will end it."

Brute couldn't outright attack this mare, which were starting to irk her. Not because of any moral code, but because that was the law. For a civilian like her to have a go at another legitimately, there had to be an act of aggression first, and so far these were just empty threats. Not enough to give her reason to start swinging unfortunately.

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

@EQ_Theta

How she wished to just lay down and take them in her embrace as the note was read out. The words of hope that their parents had written when they had none themselves were driving her to tears, thinking about how painful it must be for them to read this aloud. To be faced with that loss up close and personally, whilst still seeing the frowns on their faces... How could she not wish to comfort them?

But they had more to say, so she stood silent, with pale tears slowly making their way down her face, and waited for them to finish what they had started. Something which seemed to take forever, though she did not complain. This was important, and not something she should cheapen by interrupting them.

As soon as they were done though, she leaned down and embraces the small creatures, as gently as ever.

"I'm so sorry Sen and Lin. I can't imagine how it must have been like for you to read this."

Truth be told, she might have some idea, but the pain of loss were generally individual, and whatever pain it brought, wasn't something anyone except the ones feeling it would be likely to truly understand. Besides, she were supposed to try and comfort them, not bring them lectures of quantified understanding. There was another time and place for that sort of thing.

She felt Sen's tears in her smooth fur, but it mattered little. Some of her own might be falling down and hitting the two as well, which would be the size of water balloons, yet that too was irrelevant. There was just them, and her attempt to soothe them. Why, she didn't even answer the scholars right now.

Meanwhile, something were happening to the side of them. A slow, but sure movement as Omen started to wriggle around a little, then slowly got to her hooves.

She were still well drained, and likely would do well in not overdoing the gates the next few days, bit she were moving a little again at least, so that was a relief.

She glanced at the ones in front of her, not knowing what had gone on as she had been focused on the feeling of the chaos infusion. She wanted to say something, but just as she were about to, she felt something in her body churn and rush to her head. A side effect of tha chaos had finally manifested itself, and soon she would -

*burp*

The taste of umbrellas crossed her mind as Omen let out a small burp, which were a little strange, but she had eaten weirder things than that.

Wobbling closer to the three, Omen crawled in under Mother's wing and starred towards Sen, Lin and Mother, not knowing what to think of the embrace.

"Everything okay?"

Mother let out a small laugh at her daughter's confused words, before slowly nodding.

"Yes, we're fine. Sen and Lin just told me something important, though not something you need to be worried about.

Worry... You know Omen and I both have that feeling about you two, my dear, sweet children, but you need not have it for us as much as you think. Even if you return to your home and live among your own kind, you could always come here and visit me. I am used to there sometimes going a long time between visitors for me. And Omen... Truthfully, do you think she would leave you?"

Omen tilted her head, even more confused now than before, whilst Mother felt a smile creep over her face.

"Why would I leave them? They're friends and siblings."

It should prove a point, even if Omen didn't know she were making it. No matter where Sen and Lin would go, she would follow them there and find a way to be in the area. If that mean living in a nearby river or something else weird, that was fine with her. She liked water, and a anything else could likely be tolerable too, up to and including being given a lash and wandered around with like a pet. And as for Mother... Well, as she had said, this was her realm, away from everything. If they wished to see her, they could easily just come back here and visit.

Who knew? With flexible things like this, perhaps the siblings would need to chose, but instead get most of what they wanted.

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

@Moonlit @Seamore Sandwich

"Yeah, I guess you're right, though I think i have an idea why they haven't fixed this place up. Bad memories.

I mean, this were the place were Princess Luna turned evil. It would weigh on her consciousness a lot, just like it would with Princess Celestia and her memories about sending her sister to the moon for a millennia. Can't blame them for not wanting to live here again.

Though... Could be cool as a museum. Perhaps you should put it past the princess when we meet her again actually. Might be something incredible that could come from that."

Having no idea where they were since Serenade couldn't tell either, Ziggy shrugged and wandered up a long staircase in front of her, thinking that it was worth taking the risk to have an adventure. They wouldn't have any of that if they just stayed in the lobby, then turned around to go home early after all, right?

Edited July 28, 2017 by Blitz Boom
Added colors.

FanOfManyShows · July 28, 2017

@Blitz Boom

With a huff, Warlock dropped the sword, walking past her. "Good luck on trying to stop me." he said with a grin. "I want to enact revenge on her no matter how I do it." he turned around. "And it seems, family, is one way of doing it." He said menacingly before teleporting away.

There was a whooshing sound as smoke spiraled around near by Chow and Astral, Astral gasping a little as her cloak started to fly about she turned around to Warlock. "Warlock!"

"You know what I said, did I not make my threats clear?" He grinned, leaning his body back, then leaping forward. Astral then quickly teleporting away to Canterlot with Chow while ending up leaving the cloak behind, Warlock tumbling on the floor sliding onto the cloak. He snickered as he stood up. "They have a trap set up in Canterlot, how foolish they think I would fall for it without seeing it." He stood there, keeping a close eye on them from where he was, waiting until he had a moment to strike. He formed a sword out of the air. "If they want a battle, they'll get one..."

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

Astral and Chow would arrive to the palace, Astral frantically looking around not for the palace but for Warlock. "Come on, I'd think he would've followed us...." She slowly yet very cautiously walked over to the palace, looking up to the throne room from below. "Well we can't waste much time waiting for him to come and follow us I suppose." She walked through the doors, checking behind herself to make sure Chow was following her, routinely doing this, worried Warlock could rush in and snatch him again.

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

Iron Star was able to sense a powerful source of magic outside the palace now that he was out of range, he stood up, walking to the window. "Something very, very powerful just arrived, But it doesn't seem like Warlock." His eyes narrowed,as the source neared, able to sense the pony with the power. "A little over board for a simple teleportation...." He said to himself quietly.

Misty looked out the window. "Oh Astral is here!" Misty yelled out in excitement, her face showing a little dread. "But Warlock might be following her then...."

"I'd suggest getting some guards to check on her to make sure Warlock didn't follow, but he'll come for her even if he didn't. The amulet should keep her safe as long as Warlock can't use it himself."

EQ_Theta · July 28, 2017

@Blitz Boom

Hearing Mother and Omen speak those words calmed them, stalled a few streams of tears, and jogged something in Lin's mind. Well, a few things but Lin and Sen tenderly embraced Mother before Lin quickly reached into Sen's satchel and pulled out some crafting tools. They were the kind that artisans have in workshops, mostly fashioned out of simple materials like stone, sticks, and strings. Lin also pulled out a complete necklace that looked like it could be worn around a larger neck and sported many more scales.

"Omen, do you remember the iridescent scale I gave you before I stepped into the wellspring's waters? I can finally fashion it into an ornament just like this one!" Lin raised the second, larger necklace before walking up to Mother and giving it to her with a big smile on her face. "This one is the first scale necklace I made. I didn't measure the amount of string needed so it ended looking really big and lousy on younger me. I thought maybe it'll look good on you. We didn't know about the lack of a stomach but Sen and I are so grateful that we thought we should give you something that says 'Thank you.' If not the donuts, then maybe this?"

Then there was the second part. Sen interjected though it was more of continuing where Lin left off while approaching Omen with the box of donuts he bought. "Our family home is being refurnished and we can make changes to it. If you like, Omen, we can make some room for you. You are family and we want you to feel welcomed. When you need a place to stay in the village, you will always have a roof over your head in our home."

There was one more thought that ran through Lin's mind, harkening back to the wellspring once more. She saw herself sharing a meal with Sen and Omen and that thought brought her comfort in her uncertain moment. At first, Mother was absent from her thoughts but now that they are all together, she could see that same image again with her in the picture. She didn't say anything about it but she took one donut and smiled, knowing that for all of the trouble they have gone through together, there was always something good to look forward to. Sen knew this as well and thought about staying a little longer to cherish this moment spent in each other's company.

Edited July 29, 2017 by EQ_Theta

Foxy Socks · July 29, 2017

@Blitz Boom

"Y-you mean you didn't just grow them from it, you mutated other ponies into Evergrown?" From what she said, it could have been true. Foxy was disgusted by such an idea, and hoped it weren't the case, because as chaotic Anomaly was, Foxy couldn't believe her to be a part of such.

Foxy noticed Briar seemed repulsed by it, even though it were the very thing that began his race. Foxy did remember what Briar told her earlier, about how he was an outcast treated horribly. Even so, she couldn't imagine the entire race to be so unscrupulous. Was Briar the only one that was "good?" Foxy did not ponder that thought too long, as she did not want to encourage bigoted thoughts toward them. There surely jad to be others. Perhaps only Briar's tribe treated them like that.

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