open Casual stroll

[Zera Brightbolt]

7 hours ago, Blitz Boom said:

@Catpone Cerberus

"Let you out? Hah! Sure. Get off the door, Asildae."

The grin on her face didn't betray much more than amusement, as Glutton looked forward to actually letting this one out. Weren't any warning signs or guards, so clearly no one cared that much that she were locked up. Probably meant she wasn't a big threat. And if she were, well... Usually she veered off from eating higher sentience beings, but this one Did look nice and crunchy.

When Asildae moved away from the door, Glutton would slither a few steps closer, then open her maw to where her mouth were bigger than the cage, and then she'd crunch down on the door, getting some dirt with it, as the door bend, creaked and snapped, as Glutton spend but a few seconds to chew down. A long, serpentine tongue wrapping itself around a piece that seemed it might split out towards the queen, then several more identical tongues doing the same with more pieces.

It should be obvious that if she wanted to, Glutton could have chomped this down in less than a second. But she dragged it out, to show off that nothing in this world, were beyond her to eat. She were voracious appetite itself, in a broad, edible world. From the smallest, softest marshmallow, to the hardest diamond and beyond, all were but a feast for her to consume.

When she were done, she'd pull back, allowing the insect queen to get out of the cage. And when she were, Glutton would pick up said cage, shake it loose for anything in there, and then start taking large bites out of it, now eating it normally, as if it were but a large pork rind. Gave off about the same sort of crunch too, with marks in the metal, showing how effortlessly her teeth could go through.

"You're free, little queen.

I'm Glutton, the Spirit of Gourmandizing. Now what sorta thing does someone like you eat?"

She had a more mundane title back int he day, but she had heard the word gourmandizing, as an acronym to her sorta deal. Sounded a far bit better, so she'd taken that instead. Who were gonna stop her? The princesses? Over a name? Hah! They wouldn't risk losing the benefit she were providing to Equestria, for something so small. Sure she tested her limits now and again, cause it was fun, but this had been nothing. Just folks saying one thing, been corrected, then started to get with the program. Weren't like the time she'd gone around eating houses. Though in her defense, they'd just said they needed them torn down. On them to not specify the other half of the block wasn't supposed to go along with that. Looked scuffed, so seemed like a fair meal.

Bah, but ponies could be so stuffy at times. So she'd just mended it, and gone on with her day. After spitting that foal out. Heh, that were probably the thing that'd gotten her the most ire, even though the kid was perfectly fine. Needed a shower, and maybe some therapy, but she hadn't even eaten a hair on him, so much as there were some words, what'd it matter? She hadn't broken the rules technically, just as she hadn't now. Probably. They'd see if this one were entertaining, or an appetizer.

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@Catpone Cerberus

"Perhaps not, yet I ever endeavor to try."

Maybe she never would understand the kobold perspective properly. They had different upbringings, lives, expectations, education, and so forth. Societies somewhat near one another, yet still very far apart, in most ways. And yet, she thought it best to at least try, and see how much a different perspective could help her learn and understand. Be it science, elementals, or the culture of kobolds, she did not think it wise to be narrow-minded, as it stifled learning.

So if he had more to say of his life, or that of kobolds, she would listen, and adjust her perspective with any new information. Not now though. Their chat were over for now, and she needed to move to the door, and be ready to wander off too. Wouldn't be long before they reached their destination, and they had to get to work.

"Understood, sir. If we find something, you will see my signal clearly."

She were planning on simply handling this the easiest way, by releasing a plume of smoke for him to follow. Not fire though. It wouldn't help their work, if the forest was aflame, and it would put question marks to whatever or not she could actually control herself, from if not Vaz and Solar, then certainly the royal guard. And that beside, she didn't want to destroy nature. The animals needed their habitat, just as ponies needed their towns, or dragons their mountains. Roasting said homes, and likely also them, would be a cruel act, that she wouldn't partake in without clear and reasonable logic behind it.

It had seemed the best idea to simply split up, when first they arrived. But judging by Solar's words, perhaps it were wiser to simply stay together, as they did after all, not know what they might wander into, and the effects of it. Could well be that one approaching would get caught in some fashion, and at least were they two, one could then call for him to come and deal with it, as he were far more knowledgeable about this technology than they were.

So she would follow Vaz, as he headed towards the forest.

"We can hope that we find it with some degree of haste. Might I inquire, Mr. Vaz, if we are attacked by say, a large predator, are you a fighter in any capacity? I ask not because I request protection. Merely so I know that I will not accidentally hit you in the crossfire, if say you are one to jump into a melee."

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@Catpone Cerberus

"I hope you're right..."

She didn't say this as a threat. Her voice were notably concerned, as she worried for her friend now more than before. The pain Ruby must have felt in the moment... Were she even used to that? Could one even be, if this were truly as if a part of you were torn away? She hadn't a clue, but she knew where she had to be now, and it wasn't in here.

The meeting being over, she wouldn't hesitate to go outside, along with Charir, to look for Ruby.

Leviathan did ask, and could tell that Ruby wasn't as fine as she claimed. Or she just imagined that, but she didn't think about that right now, as in her mind, Ruby were in some kind of distress, and didn't want to show out here. Hopefully when they got in private, she would elaborate on how things were, but for the time being, she'd just respond with an *Okay*, and give Ruby a concerned look, before following Voltaick towards where their sleeping arrangements were. Hopefully it was an okay... Cave? She'd assume so, since y'know, they were dragons. It were a bit of a cliche, that their liked caves, but y'know, if the shoe fits.

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@Catpone Cerberus

"Woah. That's quite the way of life you kobolds have. And your uhm... I uh... Sorry, did you say Chega?"

While she would have said more of the little lesson in how the society of kobolds worked, a name had stuck out to her there. One that she reeeeally hoped wasn't just wishful thinking on her part, or a coincidence.

"She did. I saw her, and I got you an autograph."

Shell pranced where she stood with a big smile on her face, hearing that.

"That's so Awesome! Ooooh, I wish I could've seen her again. I love her music.

I never knew she were a kobold. I thought she were a small dragon. And you're friends with her? You're so lucky."

While she were having a fan-filly moment, Onache wandered out of her room, head held high, and looking as if she were perfectly fine, even though the kobolds would likely be able to tell, that she didn't move quite as fast as before, even if her movements were still fluid. Happy certainly knew too, but it were not his place to speak aloud of anything. He simply needed to be there for his queen, in whatever way she required it. If he had to lift her all the way back to the desert, then he would do that too, but he knew she'd heavily dislike that. It weren't the most dignified thing after all, and while she were not from a pride hive, it didn't take away that like with several other queens, she had some pride, that she'd like to keep, and she already thought the way she looked now were testing it, as she still weren't used to it.

Least her wandering in this colorful bug form, none would know it were her, as she looked nothing alike how she were, before she were changed. That shielded her to some extend.

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@EQ_Theta

"Whatever you will do, I trust that you will do what you believe is right, brother. I will not leave you."

Maybe she wouldn't be able to understand what he had done at first, but Sen had been with her for some time now, and she trusted him. Even if sometimes, he did go a bit far, like when he had threatened to throw his old friend off of a cliff. She had to intervene then, but she at least knew how he would look and act now, when he could not think rationally. He would seem very angry, at least expression-wise, and get loud. Maybe if he were like that, it would give her pause, if what he asked were something that might be bad, but otherwise, long as it would not go against Mother's edicts, she would listen, and obey. He did not need to explain it to her first.

"We will not disturb mother. She tells our masters how to form us, and then tells us to be good children, and for them to take good care of us, before she grow silent, so they can focus on us, instead of her. I have seen many other siblings be picked, before Mother made me go back to Equestria. Things rarely change, unless the new master does something wrong."

Sure Mother observed them, up until they left, but at a certain point, she had to let go, and allow the new master and sibling to be on their way, and begin their new lives. At times she had to add more, but there were no need with this. She had found him to be very amicable and respectful, and seeing how he even provided her child with magical clothes as she were given shape, and were already teaching her the basics of movement, she had little worry that this would be a good teacher and master for her.

As the others approached, he would direct one of his large eyes towards them, while the other remained on the sibling, who were getting the hang of how to move her tentacles to provide flight, though he were assisting her with three of his own, directing movements when she seemed to lose tract. As were seen with him, you did not need all tentacles to retain flight, but she were new, and as such would require it.

His head would vibrate slightly, and a weird, gurgling sound would be heard, before the sibling turned around. It left her on the ground, but it didn't seem to hinder her, as she rose a few tentacles to greet them, and then began speaking with Omen, in the Ki'Nathar's own tongue. The strange, whispering chorus going on for a few minutes, in which time Shrimp would notice Lin and Sen, and then rise up, giving a happy little chirp and a noodle dance, then ready himself. They should recognize this stance as the one he took before jumping towards them, and act accordingly, though they needn't be worried. The new octopus master would use the back of his tentacle to gently lift under Shrimp, and carry him the full way towards Sen, whom he assumed were the one this little one had gone for.

"Sister has a strange name. It sounds like Klughlurg. Her master says it it meant to be said under water."

Omen would nod, as the sibling would point towards Shrimp, and seemingly ask a question.

"She would like to touch him."

So she would, and while Shrimp would smell her tentacle, he seemed perfectly fine, as she smelled like Omen and Lin, so that meant she were friendly. At which point he'd rub towards the tentacle, while their new sister experienced the sensation of touch against his scales with great curiosity.

"She also says her master said hello, and that he is *insert noise akin to someone burping loudly in dish water*. I do not think he can understand what we are saying, but he seems to be nice, and he is already teaching her things. He reminds me of Scarcity."

Not physically in the slightest, but more with how quickly the lessons were beginning, to try and help the new sibling deal with things better. Discord had just picked her up and been on his way, and that wasn't the most unusual approach either, when it came to several other siblings.

As for this one... He were courteous, but as it wasn't like they could communicate properly, he'd accept that they would leave soon. Surely they too had things to do as well, in whatever odd world that someone like them came from.

Quadrupedal creatures with tails, and no gills. What a strange world.

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@EQ_Theta

"I figured golems couldn't feel, but it's good to be wrong sometimes, yeah?"

"Normally they cannot. Only those build by dedicated Stone Mason's can, and I have known only of very few like that, throughout the ages. Not all are willing to put in the fairh and effort that is apparently needed.

Whomever in your time made you these, were one with considerable skill."

Truth be told, Celestia didn't know the full details. She had some telling shcolars and her how to do this, but even trying herself, with her notably strong magic pool, it had always resulted in nothing more than standard golems. Even if they might seem somewhat lively, they were a far cry from what she had seen in the past, as well as now.

Her best guess, were that it had something to do with faith. Those who crafted the best she had seen or heard of, were seemingly always devoted to their beliefs, though it were still just an assumption, to which she had next to no definitive proof.

"Nono, it's okay. That's why we have the booths. Well, that and for crying, but y'know, multi-purpose."

She'd point towards the corner, where a door would lead to a small hall, that had three sectioned off rooms. They could be locked from the inside, and had a beanbag chair, and a box of tissue paper if needed, along with a trash can, of course. And over in left-most corner, would be about a dozen small, bulbous plants, that looked akin to a rat-catcher plant, just only big enough to only catch mice, with the lids opened, and stuck to the wall in a cluster.

These rooms were likely repurposed bathrooms, from whatever had been here before, but they fit better like this. Besides, they still had a bathroom. Just had to walk straight forward when opening into the hall, instead of turning right, to where the booths were.

"And don't you go worry about your reaction. It's pretty normal with nostalgia. It's something that hits everyone differently. Depends on their lives and such."

After he had left, she'd address his friends.

"That's emotion tea for you. It's full of nutrients and delicious emotions for us changelings, but for other creatures, it invokes emotions, be they good or bad.

Nostalgia is very popular with the elderly, that can sometimes have problem remembering the old days. Joy is the most popular in general, but we have some goth types here who wants melancholy or sorrow too, among other things.

Folks are pretty varied, but we serve what they want, no matter if they want a feeling of delight, or need a good cry.

But changelings have a bad name to a lot still, because of one of our previous queens. Attacked this town, and really did a number on our reputation, though places like this, and Queen Cheshire's theater, are starting to help.

Of course, having the princess here doesn't hurt either, and I greatly appreciate the gesture."

She'd nod towards the princess, with a big grin on her face. Seeing how the story were with changelings here in Canterlot  the princesses approval meant a lot. As did her being here physically, and partaking in things, which showed more non-changelings that there were nothing to worry about here.

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@Dah Onion Eater

"I know her not, nor if one like her is in this reality, yet it will be the closest to home that I can lead you."

Other dimensions were one thing, but other realities? That were beyond the power of most creatures, and for good reason, as breaking open the gate between multiple realities could potentially cause dire repercussions.

If one had torn a path open, or if realities had just flyed briefly, and this pony were unlucky, she could not tell, but she would help him get to something as close to his home as she were able, though he had to work to establish a new life for himself there.

After wandering a few minutes  Mother would wave a hand, and the section of the floor that he stood upon, were risen up to her shoulder height. Once it - and as such also him - were there, she'd touch the air with her left index claw, and a swirling portal would open up, and revealing a vision on the other side, which should be familiar to him. That of Ponyville, where many a pony were wandering, oblivious to the portal that had sudden swirled open in the park.

"My oldest daughter of this realm, often traverse here. It id a safe area for you ponies, as I understand it.

Remember though child, that while it looks like your home, it is not exactly as where you are from. You will need to make a new life, and new friends here.

I am sorry I cannot do better than this, but it is the closest you can find to where you are from.

Wander in peace, dear child. And may luck bless your path."

Once he'd chose to wander through, he'd find that it were as simple as just taking a few steps forth, and he'd be on his way. Into a pond, specifically. Mother had not seen that she had placed this portal roght at the edge of the pond in the park, so he'd get wet hooves, but that shouldn't be too bad. Water weresrill rather shallow here at the edge.

That said, somepony would pop their head up  out of the water as he stepped there, and looked at him.

Her odd wings laid flat on her back, and her eyes looked him over with great curiosity, before she went into a big grin, that showed off razor-sharp teeth, that well fitted the shark tail attached to her rump, where a regular equine tail nor.ally were.

"Hi! Is friend also too dry?"

Her tone were friendly, and she made no move to try and bite him. And if he looked around, he'd see that everypony else were jjst normal ponies, and a few others like griffons, or smaller dragons. So he hadn't been sent to a strange dimension where all ponies were fish. Probably.

And if he looked back, after having stepped through fully, he'd find the gate had closed, and there were now just a tree.

He jolted back, but answered her, "I am dry yes, and I don't want to get wet, I was sent here by someone," he sighed, whatever universe his roommate were in, she'd better be alright.