open Casual stroll

[Blitz Boom 4,626]

@,

 

"Now now, there are no reason to sell yourself short mister Storm. You are helpful, energetic and kind, just to mention a few of the qualities I have bit notice in. Surely, with enough perseverance, the mare will see that you are a prize worthy of her."

 

His own experience with romance were... Well, non-existent really. The closest he had gotten were a deep admiration for a mare he had met not too long ago, and he hardly believed that qualified.

 

Nevertheless, he had met plenty of other couples on his travels, and from the sound of it, most wanted somepony kind that could make them smile and be there for them. From an objective point of view, Storm Shine would be a prized candidate for most mares because he fitted well into many of the general points of need he heard were looked for.

 

Then again... Matters of the heart was a fickle thing, and while he could say what statistically he thought would be correct, the mare might have looks for something else entirely. Or it could be that Storm were shy and clumsy around her. Or that she might have an eye for another, but that was certainly an option he did Not hope were included.

 

"Regarding my travels... I know a fair bit, yes. Yet it is by far not enough. I still hunger for more experiences. More lands to traverse."

 

He felt Brittle step a little closer to him, making him smile a little wider.

 

"For now though, I have settled in the area as well, giving the dear Zecora's words a chance to become reality. Amongst other things."

 

he couldn't just leave no under any circumstance. Now that Brittle had shown, he was not eager to just leave her behind. One day, he would travel again, but before that he would have to get things settled here and then see what would happen.

Edited October 24, 2014 by Blitz Boom

[Storm Shine 1,196]

@@Blitz Boom, 

 

Storm smiled wryly. "One can always hope, I suppose. I do hope to catch her eye one day..."

 

"Heh, Explorer's longing. Happens often when someone travels seeking many answers." He said with a grin. "I had that until I got my cutie mark, after that I visited home before looking for someplace to settle. But it's nice to hear that you plan to stay in Ponyville awhile. Always nice to see new ponies around here, I'd offer you shelter... But I live in the clouds so it probably wouldn't work well for you.." Storm told him. "Heh, talk about an airhead... I'm someone who lives with their heads in the clouds... Hehheh." He chuckled.

[Hurricane 159]

After flying for a while with Ziggy following her, Midnight spotted the edge of the everfree where it meets the outskirts of Ponyville. She dove down into the trees and landed. It was dark in the Everfree even though it was the middle of the day. The tree tops covered most of the sunlight. After walking a little more, Midnight spotted her tree. It was on the very edge of the Everfree and had a view of Ponyville. It was thick with dark leaves and had a hole in the trunk high off the ground. There was also a large branch she could perch herself on and look out at the small town while being concealed by leaves. "Home sweet home." She said to Ziggy with a smile. He happily flew the top branch. "Ok, ok, I'm coming." Midnight said as she flew up to the tree. She curled up in her hole in the tree and settled down. "Maybe we can get a few more hours of sleep before moon rise." She said as she closed her eyes, Ziggy hung upside down on the large branch and closed his eyes as well.

 

((How much longer until nighttime anyway?))

[Blitz Boom 4,626]

@,

 

"It's quite all right. I prefer to have the ground under my hooves as it is. Besides, I already found a suitable cave to occupy. It's dry, quiet and quite close to the lake, so dinner is well taken care of, just in case."

 

He raised brushed a back hoof against the quiet Brittle while giving her a friendly smile.

 

"It is also quite spacious, all things considered, and I don't use much of it. There is plenty of room in case you still need a roof over your head Brittle."

 

Brittle looked him over, getting a very faint blush going over her cheeks, but nodded, then realised he couldn't see it and slightly brushed her hoof against his leg instead, hoping he got the message. She hadn't found any place to settle down yet, having barely got here, and hadn't had the nerve to ask him. She was thankful that he offered though. She didn't like looking all over forests for caves that there weren't anything in, and because of the howls she had heard earlier, she would be too afraid to go a place in the open.

 

"With that settled then..."

 

He turned his head once more towards Storm Shine, keeping the pace they were going at.

 

"Would it be a bother to ask what your cutie mark is? I find it interesting to hear all the different patterns ponies acquire through this mysterious process."

 

 

____________________________________________________________

 

 

 

@,

 

((I have no idea. So far, we've just rolled with things. Give it a real day's worth of posting more for night and I'll say go for it. SHould give the rescue team some time to work.))

[Storm Shine 1,196]

@@Blitz Boom,

 

"Well my Cutie Mark is a Golden Stopwatch with a pair of Golden Wings. I think that it symbolizes either 1. How time flies when you are having fun! or 2. How I love to fly fast. I like to think of it as both." Storm happily explained to Briar. "I can fly pretty fast, I almost literally worked my wings off to get to this point though.... I'm fast enough to make a sonic boom, though that's nothing compared to the Sonic Rainboom...." He told them.

[Blitz Boom 4,626]

@,

 

"Quite a fitting Cutie Mark from the sound of it. However I must ask... What is a Sonic Rainboom?"

 

Briar knew enough to guess that a sonic boom was something that occurred when somepony were fast enough to break through the sound barrier, but... Rainboom? He had never heard of a wall you could break through that made it rain before.

[Storm Shine 1,196]

@@Blitz Boom,

 

"Well as far as I know a sonic boom is caused by breaking the sound barrier. A Sonic Rainboom is much the same, except it causes a rainbow explosion of colors. So as far as I can tell it breaks through the sound barrier and some kind of barrier involving the visible light spectrum. Seems near impossible if you think of it that way, but I've seen it myself." Storm explained the phenomenon as best as he could to his new friend.

[Harmony Cube 80]

@@DexterousWings, @@Blitz Boom

Book shrugged. "He needed a part, he needed a bomb for it.." He said simply. Book faced Chipper. "I met him walking here and that was it." Book explained, a hoof on his chin to think about it. He nodded in conformation. "Yeah. I met him walking here with a weird orb thing." He said.

[Blitz Boom 4,626]

@,

 

"Fascinating. To achieve such degree of speed... Why, I would have never thought it possible."

 

Yet another thing in rapid succession around here that sounded ludicrous, but from the tone also held the notion of being the truth. This place was either a centre for many oddities and knowledge of very peculiar things, or a town full of the most convincing liers he had yet to meet, working in tandem to mess with tourists.

 

The second one sounded odd, but he had met worse on his travels. Unfortunately.

Edited October 24, 2014 by Blitz Boom

[Storm Shine 1,196]

@@Blitz Boom,

 

"Yeah,  I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it myself. I think Rainbow Dash has done about 3... Once as a filly apparently, once at the Young fliers competition, and the one I saw at Princess Cadance's wedding.." Storm said thoughtfully. "Heh, I'm not likely to ever get to that level of speed. But I still stay in pretty good shape, if I do say so myself..." He chuckled.

[Blitz Boom 4,626]

"Rainbow Dash you say? A name to keep in mind for certain."

 

Rainbow Dash was one of several he had to bite notice in here. The mentioned Twilight from earlier were another, somepony that seemed to have a grand library from what he could gather. Both were some he would have to meet at some point since he were staying in the area anyway, and something told him it would be worth the visit.

 

"I hope this is not too brash, but... You mention this pony that have broken through this barrier, as a filly even, then there was Twilight from before which sounded like she had quite the big collection of books... Are the local history filled with oddities like this?"

 

Briar sunk his head after letting out the words, getting an apologetic look over his face.

 

"My apologies, that may have sounded wrong. What I meant is just... Are there other ponies or happenings in this areas and it's history that stands out?"

 

Storm Shine would likely be able to catch the ounce of hope that briefly got over his voice, but it mattered little to him. It was not as if it was something that could be used against him... Well, Hopefully not were perhaps the better way of putting it.

[DormantAccount 308]

@Harmony Cube

 

"What way did he come from? Maybe if we follow the way back there might be a small chance we find his place. I can fly up above and follow you from the air so that I can give us a bit better margin for error."

 

Dexterous twitched his wings and unfurled them up and away so as not to strike anyone.

Edited October 24, 2014 by DexterousWings

[Blitz Boom 4,626]

@@DexterousWings,

@@Harmony Cube,

 

Chipper and Blitz both looked towards Book as Dexxy took to the skies.

 

"Well lad, lead the way 'n we'll see how this goes, eh?"

 

It might have been a short encounter for Book Quill, but he had met Disruptis first. Where that had been were the best they had to work with currently.

[Storm Shine 1,196]

@@Blitz Boom, 

 

"Yeah, this little town has had some seriously odd events happen, and there are a few ponies here who definitely stand out!" Storm said happily. "The towns been attacked several times, an Ursa Minor, Discord, The Everfree forest itself has even attacked Ponyville." He exclaimed.

 

"Then there are some seriously awesome ponies that live here, like Twilight Sparkle the personal student of Celestia, Applejack an honest member of the local branch of the Apple family, Fluttershy a really kind soft-spoken mare who loves animals, Rainbow Dash the most competitive and loyal pegasus I've met to date, Rarity a generous fashionista that could easily be mistaken for a high class noble, and Pinkie Pie... The most hyperactive, most amazing mare, who always tries to make everypony happy.. Bouncing around with her curly pink mane and planning parties... She bakes some absolutely delicious treats..." Storm said, trailing off at the end.

 

Noticing the derailing he had done, he coughed slightly. "Yes, er, anyways yeah this town has had some pretty amazing stuff happen for being a supposedly small quiet town...." Storm chuckled.

[Harmony Cube 80]

@@DexterousWings, @@Blitz Boom

Book flew up a bit to show him the direction him and Disruptis came from. "Over there-ish." He said. Book grounded himself and looked at Chipper and Blitz. He started leading them in the direction he came from earlier, a bit sore still and tired from when he flew.

[DormantAccount 308]

@Harmony Cube @Blitz Boom

 

In the distance, he could see a few small cottages. There was no telling which one he might be in if he was in one at all, but it was the best lead they had. Night was coming on, so it would be hard to continue a search for much longer.

 

"There are some cottages up ahead." He called down.

[Blitz Boom 4,626]

@,

 

"I meet Applejack earlier. Somepony made her apples fall of her cart and I gave her a helping hoof. Delightful personality from what I could tell."

 

Considering that she had been faced with a sharp-toothed *pony* with a glowing flower instead of a horn, levitating her apples, she really had acted quite well. Just shown him where to put the apples, then made sure they didn't fall over the edge and then thanked him. He had thought it odd at the time that she had taken it so well, but with what Storm had just told about the town being under attack before... It made a great deal more sense when you thought of it as *have seen worse*.

 

"I can't say that I have met the others, but I will have to look into that one of these days. Especially Twilight Sparkle. A student of Celestia herself would be quite the honour to meet."

 

He dutifully ignored the way Storm acted when he began to speak of Pinkie Pie. He might have some suspicions as to Why he spoke of her like that, but it was not his place to pry into that, especially if he was correct. Besides, there was another thing he also bit notice in that were more interesting to him, and this one would likely not result in an embarrassing conversation.

 

"I wonder about what an Ursa Minor is, but... Discord? I have heard that word spoken very rarely since I stepped hoof into Equestria, but I can't say I figured it was a creature. Not the way the word were normally spoken. Could you perhaps tell me a bit more about that one?"

 

Brittle hadn't said anything, but at the mention that the forest had attacked she had shifted sides so that Briar were between her and the forest instead of the river. At least the water didn't attack... Right?

 

 

________________________________________________

 

 

 

@@DexterousWings,

@@Harmony Cube,

 

"It'll be interesting t' see if we can find the fellah before it gets dark. I ain't thinking that we'll have much luck once the sun's out."

 

"Hehe, I'm sure we'll find something."

 

She didn't specify if that was Disruptis, so really, there was a good chance that they would indeed find something.

 

Blitz stopped briefly to look at a purple flower they passed, turning around it to see from a few angles before shaking her head and joining the others again.

 

"Meh, wrong flower."

 

She had been hoping it was one of those she had found once before that gave a really nice shade in the fireworks, but this hadn't been it. It was too pale beneath the petals.

[Storm Shine 1,196]

@@Blitz Boom, 

 

Storm felt happy. Not just his usual excited, bounce around kind of happy, but more of a content kind of happy. Not many ponies knew, but Storm was a huge fan of knowledge. Whether it's books, facts, figures, history, or otherwise. His personal favorite subject was Science, both theoretical and practical. One thing he loved more than having this knowledge though, was having the ability to help others with it.

"Well, from what I've gathered.. Discord is known as a Draconequus, a species somewhat similar to a chimera in the aspect of having the appearance of multiple body parts from multiple species. I have no knowledge as to whether he is unique as a species or not, but his powers certainly seem to be." Storm informed his leafy companion, switching into a sort of lecture mode. "Discord has been around for more than a thousand years, he is even older than the Princesses. He wields the magic of Chaos and once spread his namesake throughout the land of Equestria, acting as it's sole ruler." He said, easily recalling what he knew.

 

"He was turned into a statue by the Princesses with the help of the elements of harmony about a thousand years ago. A while back though, Discord managed to escape his stony imprisonment only to be stopped a second time by the mares I just told you about. Using the elements of harmony they trapped him once again." Storm told Briar. "Recently however, he was released and through the efforts of Fluttershy, Discord was actually reformed. He now helps around Equestria, though many ponies hold distrust for him and are skeptical as to how long that will last." He decided to finish his small history lecture with one last thing, his own opinion. "I personally don't see if everypony can expect him to stay though.. How can Discord trust us not to act irrationally and refrain from a preemptive attack, if we cannot even attempt to trust him with a bit of freedom? I think some ponies should learn to try to let bygones be bygones and attempt to form their own opinions based on the current actions of an individual..."

[Blitz Boom 4,626]

@,

 

"I can believe some degree of distrust is warranted to begin with, but if he is really reformed, acknowledged by one of those who formerly turned him into stone no less, then I agree that it would be time to let the past be and see forward."

 

The notion of being trapped in stone made him uncomfortable. He had been a prisoner for a long time himself, but he could at least move there. A thousand years, unmoving in stone though? That seemed like a disturbingly cruel punishment, even if Discord had been bad ruler once.

 

The Elements of Harmony was another thing he had never heard of, but if they had been used twice, with a thousand years in between to chain in Chaos... They must be some disturbingly powerful relics.

 

Speaking of power though...

 

"You say that he haves the power of Chaos, but what does that entail? Chaos is a wide term after all, with just the general idea being destruction and the opposing of order. However, if you claim that he now helps, which I don't disbelieve of course, I have to ask... What does it cover? What can he do? Or rather..."

 

He felt his heart pound a little harder. It was silly, surely, but he had to ask, if only to get the feeling of hope crackling under him over with. It was always harder when he had time to build up hope for his fools errand finally being at end, so it would be better to simply get this done, take the blow, then move on.

 

"What can he create?"

Edited October 25, 2014 by Blitz Boom

[Storm Shine 1,196]

@@Blitz Boom, 

 

"Well that's a bit tricky.." Storm mused aloud. "When I say the power of Chaos, I don't mean destruction in the common sense, no, no... His magic allows him to bend and possibly break many of the laws of reality. He could become a moving picture, and then his eye's appear somewhere else, rolling into a hole of some sort, which then morphs into him. He once, quite literally, turned Ponyville upside-down..." He explained

 

"He made the ground a plaid pink, and drank the glass from a milk of glass, snapped his fingers and made a cute squirrel into some sort of muscle-bound cave-squirrel... and that's only some of what he can do. He's taken Rainbow's wings and Twilight's horn away from them, and gave them back... This was all before he was reformed... It really is a powerful ability with a broad range of uses." Storm said thoughtfully

[Blitz Boom 4,626]

@,

 

Briar stopped dead in his track, giving Brittle a small shock that made her change, resulting in her tail being transformed into a short, yellow, feathery tail.

 

On the other hoof, Briar just sank his head, then slowly rose it up, chuckling silently to himself, but raising somewhat in voice as his head eventually got all the way and his face turned to the sky with a laughter.

 

After a few seconds of this, the wind went out of his sails and he rose a hoof to his head, pulling the few stands of his mane back to the rest with a big grin plastered over his face.

 

"B-Briar... Why... Laughing?"

 

"Hehe, oh dear, it really did get a little out of hoof there, didn't it? I'm truly sorry, it's just... It have been a long time since I have been able to feel such relief. Why, not since my exile have I felt such a weight lifting from my shoulders."

 

He turned his head towards Storm, raiding a hoof to his chest and giving a very formal bow towards him.

 

"If I did not hear truth in your voice I would scarcely believe this, but... I will trust, and be thankful."

 

((I like to be vaguely cryptic, sorry. ))

[Storm Shine 1,196]

@@Blitz Boom,

 

"Alright.." Storm said, tilting his head. He had noticed the oddly... pleading?... tone during Briar's question about the Chaos magic and decided to follow a feeling. "If you wanna meet him, I could ask Fluttershy about setting up a meeting between you two... Do you want me to?" Storm asked Briar.

[Blitz Boom 4,626]

@,

 

"There are not enough words to describe how much I wish to meet him, but... And I can't believe I'm saying this..."

 

Briar figuratively bit his lip (as actually biting it would make it bleed), but still looked to be in a rather happy mood.

 

"Not yet.

 

As much as I long for his help I am still simply a newcomer, and I have no right to pester one of his friends when I have hardly set root. I will prefer to give it a little time, see if I can't get to know everypony around here a little better, perhaps even help around if possible.

 

Besides, it's hard to run away from the fact that I am a predator, and if Fluttershy is that affectionate to animals, I will need time to prove that I am not out to hurt them or anything else that I don't have to. I would not want her to feel distress over a meeting, or over me for that matter."

 

He let out a small sigh, though kept the smile on his face. His manners and logic patterns were sometimes really biting him in the flank, such as they were now. However, he still believed this to be the right way to do things. There would be a time for asking Fluttershy - if Discord did not simply arrive on his own and had a little time to spare that was - but he would rather it be done in a calm environment with no bad air hanging around them.

 

"Besides, I waited 9 years to find somepony like him, I'm sure a few more months will not hurt. Especially not if I get a few more friends in the process."

 

It would also give him time to meet with Zecora a few more times, amongst other things to thank her for guiding him here. He kept that part to himself though, at least for now.

Edited October 25, 2014 by Blitz Boom

[Storm Shine 1,196]

@@Blitz Boom, 

 

"Well, Fluttershy would probably be more than happy to help you out... But regardless, it is your decision to make as to when you wish to meet Discord.." Storm said understandingly. "So if you end up changing your mind... Just let me know... you might not want to go to Fluttershy directly just yet though... She's timid enough around new ponies with somepony she trusts there... Who knows how she might react to a new pony.. and no offence, but those teeth of your may intimidate her a bit..." he mused.

 

"Than again, maybe not seeing as she cares for bears and snakes, and has even faced down a Manticore to help it with a thorn... Heck, according to the Cutie Mark Crusaders, she out-stared a cockatrice and scared it enough with just that look to make it reverse what it had done to Twilight and her chicken..." Storm chuckled. "I wasn't there for that one, so I can't confirm it, but Twilight and those three fillies assure me that it's the truth."

Edited October 25, 2014 by Storm Shine

[Blitz Boom 4,626]

@,

 

"As I said, it's hard to run away from me being a predator. Sharp teeth usually is a dead give-away."

 

It was the same in his old tribe and most other places he saw. Sharp teeth usually meant you ate meat, as there were hardly a reason to have that when you lived on vegetables, and considering his other oddities he had been in situations far too often where other thought he might eat ponies, and then things began to go down hill.

 

It was not surprising really. His kind were hardly seen outside the tribes as it were, and those were the herbivores. As far as he knew, there had not been a Snaproot loose before, and considering the scarcity of just the harmless ones of his race it began to breed a lot of unknown ground. They couldn't know for sure what he ate, and then paranoia sometimes filled in the blanks for them.

 

"In any case, i appreciate the offer, and might one day take you up on it, but I already owe you much for finally giving me a target for my quest after all these years, so I hardly find it fair to ask you for more before I had a chance to repay you.

 

Regarding Fluttershy... As you said, she might feel intimidated, which is a situation I will rather avoid, so I will keep some distance to her for now and perhaps start by getting to know Applejack a little more. The Apple family I have not met in a while, but I have run into members of theirs a few times before and know about their farms. Usually they don't mind an extra hoof to help around now and again."

 

The Apple's farms were also a great way to get a sizeable meal, as they tended to sometimes have bug infestations and he ate bugs. The help to clear those out were often welcome.