private A Cultural Exchange 1x1 with Randimaxis

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

Chuck grinned.  "Eh, we're all kinda odd around heah - no harm, no foul."

 

Chuck expertly finished off his straw dogs, then took his tray to a bin nearby, where he simply dropped it in and left it.  He made his way back over to Illiad, a thoughtful look on his muzzle.

 

"Far's I knowuv, I can't t'ink of ANYpony who's shown much innerest in Silvah - 'cept Slappah, an' doze two're like bruddah an' sistah.  Maybe you gots yerself a chance dere, Romeo."  Chuck gave the unicorn a playful nudge, chuckling slightly.  "Why don't we head ovah tada gates?  Dere's a bee-you-tee-full viewa Canterlot from-"

 

"Well now, Chuck... made a new friend, have we?"

 

Behind them both was Redd; he wore a big smile on his face and a look of solid curiosity in his eyes.  Emotionally, it felt as if he were mentally prodding at this situation to try to find an excuse to get them into trouble.

 

"And how do YOU do, Mr. Easle?  There's certainly some talk getting around about you, you know..."

 

Chuck rolled his eyes; Illiad didn't need to feel the disgust coming from the forepony to know he wasn't fooled by Redd's kind demeanor.

 

"Whadda YOU want?"

 

"I simply wanted to take the opportunity to remind you that this IS a business, Chuck - it wouldn't do to just take leisure time whenever you want, now would it?"

 

Chuck gave Redd a square look.  "Ah, blowwit outcher feedbag, Redd - dis's my break time, an' I'm takin' a break.  B'sides, I could take a whole day of doin' nuttin', an' I'd STILL have ta put in extra non-work ta catch upta YOUSE, ya twinkie."

 

The comment seemed to cause Redd's grin to grow... but OOH the hatred that bubbled up inside!

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

Illiad knew it wasn't his place to keep the two of them in line, so he wasn't going to try anything in regards to balancing their emotions. He liked Chuck more anyways and given the time Chuck had been here he no doubt had seniority in the situation.

 

Illiad was curious however to what might have been said about him. He feigned interest "Oh? And what might that talk about me be pray-tell? Would it happen to involve Knee Slapper?"

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

Redd lifted an eyebrow at the Trojan.  "Oh, I'm CERTAIN there's been some talk about the two of you, yes... and about whatever happened the other day.  I'm GOING to find out, Mr. Easle - and should it be untoward behavior, I shall-"

 

"Redd... c'mere a mo'."

 

The red unicorn gave the gray earth pony a highly skeptical look, then gingerly leaned in close to listen to Chuck.  The forepony looked around in a conspiratorial manner - which was when his emotions instantly reacted and started cycling up with... humor?  Whatever his reasons, his face showed NONE of it.

 

"Ya know what da real thing is about Illiad ovah heah?"  Chuck's eyes got a mystified look in them.  "Y'see - he's got dat psychic touch, ya know?  He knows what'cher thinkin', an' if he don't like it, he can make parts of yer brain just disappear!"

 

A sly wink from Chuck; a skeptical pout from Redd... and a bit of movement from behind Redd.  It took Illiad a moment, but when he finally saw Knee Slapper creeping up behind Redd, the intent became clear.

 

"You're full of manure, Chuck!  There's no such thing as a psychic pony - you're pulling my leg."

 

Chuck took on a mockingly sincere look.  "Oh, now would I do a t'ing like dat, ol' buddy ol' pal?"  Slapper was almost directly behind Redd now, and he raised his hooves over his head.

 

"B'sides... you ain't never SEEN a psychic pony, right?  Ain't no tellin' if Illiad here's gonna getcher goat or what... 'cause if ya make 'im reeeeeeal mad... he might... just... make... you..."

 

"EXPLODE!!!"  Slapper yelled out as he smacked Redd on both sides of his flank at once.  The peal of horror that came out of the rude unicorn's mouth sounded more like a mare's squeal than a stallion's yell.  Red came off the ground by about six inches, and his legs flailed wildly for the brief moment he was airborne.  Once landing, his wide round eyes slowly re-focused, and turned a hateful, spiteful glare on the two foreponies, who were currently laughing almost hard enough to make their cutie marks fall off.

 

"YOU TWO WILL RUE THE DAY YOU DID THIS!"  Redd yelled at them, his emotions a ball of anger and shame.  He turned to Illiad.  "AND YOU!  I'll be WATCHING you!  Best stay clear of these two troublemakers, or they'll-"

 

"Heeeeeey, it's all in harmless fun, Reddy!"

 

"DO.  NOT.  CALL.  ME.  THAT!"

 

"Awwww... shucks, Redd - c'mon... you know you'd have laughed if you would have seen it done to somepony else, right?"

 

Illiad felt a tweak of energy from Slapper; the forepony was using his own abilities to calm Redd down - and it was working.  Mostly.  His anger down to a dull roar, he shot an evil glance at the three of them, them walked off in a huff.

 

Chuck and Slapper resumed laughing as soon as Redd was out of sight.

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

As humorous as Illiad knew the situation was meant to be, it was far too close to the real stigma surrounding Empathics for him to get any real enjoyment out of it. He gave a slightly nervous smile, but did not laugh. It would be clear to Knee that he was quite uncomfortable.

 

Hoping to move on however, Illiad turned his attention towards Knee, "Glad to see you're doing well." 

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

Slapper wound his laughter down, and the grin on his muzzle was infectious.

 

"Yeah, good to see you're A-OK, too.  Dealing with a rockslide like that one... what a doozy, eh?" 

 

Chuck finally wound down as well, then gave a sigh.

 

"Arrite, ya mooks - I gotta get back in dere; no tellin' what doze idjits have knocked ovah since I been on break.  You can escort dis guy around fer a bit, 'cuz you two apparently got some hist'ry tageddah... at any rate, it was pretty okay chattin' witcha dere, Illiad; yer arrite."

 

Chuck gave the unicorns a nod and a grin, then set his 'work face' on and made his way back towards the mines.  Slapper watched him go, then spoke softly to Illiad in the other tone of voice he'd used earlier; Illiad might have gotten the impression that this voice sounded more natural to the purple unicorn.

 

"There goes a stallion who is worth his weight in emeralds... but don't let him know I said such; his ego is far more delicate than you'd expect; he doesn't need it inflated.  I am genuinely glad that you're okay - I was a bit worried, but Ziggy told me you seemed fine."

 

He glanced around a bit, then motioned to the Trojan to follow him as he started walking aimlessly.

 

"I expect that, if we want to talk, now would be the time.  Shall we?  I'd be more than happy to discuss what happened yesterday... if you're up for it?"

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

Illiad moved to follow Knee, a slightly serious expression on his face. "As much as I want to put the indecent out of my mind I won't feel entirely safe until I know it won't happen again. It could have caused quite a bit of harm had we not stopped it when we did and I don't want it to happen again." Illiad sighed as his expression softened a bit. "I'm feeling much better now, but I'd hate to think what would have happened had she not arrived to assist us."

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

"Yes... of all the ponies, Princess Luna, herself!  I imagine you must have quite a bit of pull to garner the attention of the Night Princess like that.  A good thing, too... you're quite right that we would have been mere casualties instead of victors."

 

Knee waved to a few other workers in passing, then continued to speak when they were out of earshot.

 

"As long as the barricades stay undisturbed, it should seal that thing inside it.  Of course, it'd be safer still to just blast the caves around it and seal it off for good; at least I'D feel safer, anyway.  Maybe that's what I'll have to tell Luther - it's time to just seal it off for good.  We didn't consider it at the time because of structural issues... but that was long before we got the supports like we have now.  Those tunnels could be sealed shut, and with the barricades doing their job, it'll put the final kibosh on this whole thing... once and for all."

 

He sighed at this, yet there was still a small look of doubt haunting his eyes.

 

"I don't know for sure... but I feel as though there was something... I was missing in all that.  The spirit-presence you unleashed spoke to the thing; they sounded almost like it was a conversation, did it not?  What were they talking about, I wonder?  Do you know?"

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

Illiad would have preferred a more definite solution, but agreed that blasting the caves would be the safest that could be managed at the moment. "Selena hasn't told me what was said in her discussion, nor am I inclined to ask. Given the judgement she passed down I would assume it was a typical condemnation speech with it either pleading or justifying its actions." Illiad thought of what else he could say but couldn't seem to come up with the words for it. "Given that it wasn't destroyed I would believe she found some reasonable justification for its actions. But if the cave is being demolished we may never know, nor may it really matter." Illiad looked a bit down. "It's a shame you'll lose so much cloud diamond in the process, it's not the purest but there is still a substantial quantity, it's likely attracted all the diamond in the mountain."

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

Knee shook his head emphatically.

 

"No way, Illiad - there's no amount of diamond - Cloud or otherwise - that would ever justify trying to keep those tunnels open for even another week.  Besides, I'm fairly certain Luther still has some of the original chunk stashed away somewhere, so it's not as big a loss as one would think.  But yes, having the tunnels sealed will be the end of it, I'm sure."

 

Knee was quiet for a moment, then spoke up again once they were clear of any possible eavesdroppers.

 

"Selena, you say?  So that's the name of the entity you conjured up.  Would it be too much for me to ask how THAT came to be?  How you met her, I suppose?"

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

Illiad did not look to sure and still felt a bit of dis-ease at the danger it posed.

"I hope you're right about that."

 

His disposition did improve at the question of Selena.

"The story of Selena is a complicated one, it is why I know Princess Luna so well. She has asked that I not go into detail as to her origins at the moment, it suffices me to say that Selena is as much Princess Luna as she is me. She is the current embodiment of Karma, and she and I share a link."

He looked over at Knee with a slightly sheepish grin.

"I know that that is not very informative, I met Selena the night after I, 'liberated', the cloud diamond she resides in from where Celestia put it after she took it from Princess Luna. Selena has the same dreamwalking ability that Luna has so we talked in a dream and I've kept her around ever since. Usually she will act through me to balance karma in others, but there was a good quantity of diamond available and Luna's help so I thought I'd try a full form."

 

Illiad looked back over at Knee.

"I hope at least some of that made sense to you, if not I could answer some questions about it."

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

Knee gave a mock-hurt look on his face.

 

"Oh, how you wound me - after all we've been through together?"  Slapper gave a hearty chuckle, "Trust me, I understand about having a little privacy with matters... remember, I've been keeping a low profile myself here for quite some NEVER had a chance!  We flattened that wall in no time flat... and HEY, look who it is!"

 

Knee Slapper, apparently having seen him coming, turned Illiad around to face towards the quarry - where Dax was making his way towards them both.   Knee tipped the Trojan a wink as the young stallion approached, and touseled Dax's mane when he got close.

 

"You been keeping outta trouble, young fella?"

 

Dax gave Knee a sidelong glance, but he was grinning all the same.  "Yeah, yeah... hiya, Illiad!  I had to go with Mother; did one of the Ons tell you?  I hope you weren't too bored around here, were you?"

 

Slapper grinned.  "Naaaaah, he's been keeping himself entertained."

 

"Oh, good - I was afraid you'd get bored here by yourself.  Thanks for keeping him company, Knee."

 

"Eh, you know me - hard for me to keep my big mouth from flappin', y'know." Knee started walking off. "So, I guess we'll yammer at each other later, Mr. Easel; you have yourself a good day!"

 

As he walked away, Dax turned back to face Illiad.  "I hope Slapper didn't bore you too much with his stale jokes and juvenile pranks.  He didn't pull one on you, did he?"

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

Illiad smiled at Dax's arrival.

"I actually had a rather pleasant day, no doubt though it would have been better had you been present. Knee got Redd pretty good, he probably would have gotten me at some point had you not arrived." Illiad moved a bit closer to Dax. "So how was Canterlot? If you don't mind me asking of course." 

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

Dax rolled his eyes melodramatically, but Illiad felt nothing but good spirits coming from the young stallion as he draped a hoof across his forehead.

 

"OH!  It was... SO... BOOOOOOOOOOORIIIIIIIIIIIIIIING!"

 

He put a hoof on either side of his face, scrunching it up comically as he cast his voice at a higher register.

 

"OH, but MISS-us BLACK-wah-tah, we sway-ah we have the FIIIIIIINE-est mah-tee-ree-oolz in AWL of Equ-ES-tria!"

 

He then took his hooves down and placed them on his flanks, standing prissily on two hooves.  His voice was still high, but this voice had a LOT less snark in it.

 

"Now of COURSE it is, honeybee - I wouldn't shop here if it wasn't so, my little chipmunk!"

 

He scrunched his face again.  "Oh, why THAY-UNK YOH!"

 

Hooves on hips; "But of COURSE, my darling pumpernickel!"

 

Then he made a sound like a cross between a mare's giggle and a sharp whinny; when it was done, he took an exaggeratedly large breath, looked Illiad directly in the eye, and then... he exhaled very softly in a single puff of a sigh.

 

"All... morning... long."

 

The grin he put on next was more like what he was feeling.  "Besides that, though... I don't know if it was all that different than the last time I was there... but I did remember you saying that you grew up there, but you had to leave... so, because I thought you might miss it - and I'm not all that good at describing things - I brought you stuff that might do a better job of it; here!"

 

Dax reached back into his saddlebag and brought out three things in succession: A small sack, a small box, and a book.

 

Dax gave Illiad the book first.  "It's a picture book of Modern Canterlot - just printed earlier this year, according to the bookstore mare; she said it was the one with the most scenic and detailed pictures yet!"  The book was almost cover-to-cover photographs of Canterlot in all it's glory; scenic views, wide-angle lenses... even arial shots!  It was well-crafted, and full of all sorts of information as well; this wasn't a tourist's book - it was meant for true fans of the city.

 

Next, he gave him the box.  Inside was what appeared to be a folded cloth at first, but what Illiad discovered to be a very well-made cloak.  "The lady at The Boutique Fantastique assured me that this would keep the heat off, but would breathe like a cloud; the design is one-of-a-kind!"  On the seams, there was a very distinctly Canterlot-inspired pattern, and the material felt smooth, but not quite silky.

 

The aroma coming from the sack was sweet and enticing.  "And I don't know if he was around back when you were living there, but... I got you some doughnuts from Pony Joe's."

 

Dax smiled.  "I know it's not like going to Canterlot itself, but... maybe this is a good try, at least?"  He gave the unicorn another Dax-Patented sheepish grin.

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

Illiad was genuinely touched by the gesture. So much so that he had no words to describe it. Setting the objects carefully aside he drew Dax into a surprise hug. He made sure to release him before it became awkward, looking over the items again with the largest smile he had had since arriving on the quarry. Illiad had always loved the city and its architecture, it was a shame that a few bad experiences spoiled his life. He recognized some of the buildings from his father's designs.

Illiad turned back towards Dax and considered hugging him again, there may even have been a masculine tear on his smiling face. "I... wow. You really are a wonderful and caring colt, looking out for your friends." He sighed as he looked back towards the items. "I had always loved living in Canterlot, I loved the architecture and the scenery. It was the ponies that caused my departure, there were good ones to be sure, like Dewey the archives curator and Pony Joe, though he was a bit younger when I last saw him oh, I suppose it has been three years now. He did always have good doughnuts at his shop and he was a sympathetic ear to my troubles." Illiad sighed again, wondering how he could ever repay such kindness, an idea came to him. "Do you like music Dax? A Capella singing more specifically?"

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

Dax's face was full of surprise as Illiad embraced him, but his heart nearly exploded with joy.  He returned the hug in kind, and even gave a slight happy chuckle at seeing how much it meant to his Trojan friend.

 

"Well, aside from some of the staff here at the quarry... you're my only friend, Illiad; of course I was thinking of you!" 

 

The stallion was grinning ear to ear; the emotion coming out of him put the grin to shame.  He grew a curious look as Illiad spoke of music.

 

"Well, sure I do - instruments or not, singing can be beautiful... don't you think so?"

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

Illiad was both happy to be considereed a friend, and sad that he was the only one. He knew it wasn't likely to have been by choice, but rather a product of his parents isolating him. "It certainly can, have you heard of HexComb? (A ponified Pentatonix) The A Capella group that donates most of their concert funds to charity? I heard that they are headlining a concert in Troy next week, I may be able to get us in if you're interested."

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

Dax got a bit wide-eyed at the prospect of a concert.

 

"Really?  I mean, WOW, but... are you sure it's okay?  Oh, that would be awesome!  But, you know, I don't wanna cause you any trouble!  I mean, YEAH I wanna go!  I've never been to a concert before, though I've heard they're pretty neat..."  He let out a laugh.  "I... I don't know what to say!  I mean, you don't HAVE to go to all that trouble, but... oh, WOW..."

 

It was kind of adorable, how Dax was both extremely elated at the prospect of attending a concert, and at the same time worried about being too much of a burden; the strange mix of emotions was rather comical.  He started walking back and forth, talking himself into a tizzy.

 

"Oh, that'll be SO COOL!  Plus, since it's for charity, maybe I could bring some bits to donate?  Do you think they'll like that?  OH, I just can hardly wai-"

 

Lost in his own world of excitement, Dax didn't notice the group of miners until he backed into them.  There was a rough bump, and Dax wobbled a bit as he almost literally bounced off the dirt-covered stallion in front.  Dax's eyes flew wide, and he turned to apologize.

 

"OH!  Oh, I'm so sorr-"

 

"WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING, PINK-SLIP!"

 

With that single sentence, Illiad felt Dax's entire emotional state, excitement and all, fall straight through the floor and crash-land in Depressionville.

 

The miners glared at the young Blackwater as they walked past; Dax didn't even look up at them - he just stood there, staring at the ground.  His emotions were painful and sharp... and black as night.  The sudden switch was like a magic trick, except there was no 'alakazam'; just Dax, fighting tears.

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

Illiad was often told he looked quite scary when mad. It wasn't the sort of fiery vengeance that one would expect, full of fire and fury, but a cool burning, a cold hatred that made you know you would regret ever crossing him. In a way Illiad was glad that this had happened, terror goes stale fairly quickly when stored.

 

And he had quite the store of it from the day before.

 

Dax's sorrow hurt him physically to feel, Illiad had not seriously considered equicide before, and he didn't now but the thought crossed his mind. Eyes narrowed and horn slightly more aglow he laced his words with the terror to ensure that those workers would feel the full effect of his cool rage as he spoke. 

 

"Unless you'd like to receive one, I'd suggest you leave before Mr. Blackwater gets the idea that some of his workers should be watched a bit more closely. After all, anyone who thinks they can afford to disrespect their employer's family, can afford to have their employment suddenly terminated. No one hurts my friends."

 

Illiad thought his statement was powerful enough, Selena had assisted in planning it after all. /he did hope that no further ill would come of it, perhaps the workers would be too scared to torment Dax further.

Edited February 10, 2016 by Illiad Easle

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

The worker started to say something else, yet when Illiad loosened the terror on them, they all paled and backed up rapidly from the two ponies.  Of the four, one took off immediately, two slunk backwards until they were around the corner, and the one that had spoken the painful words to Dax turned and began to trot off... but he tossed one more jibe over his flank at them.

 

"Way to go, Pink-Slip - looks like you found another creep to hang out with!"

 

The pony picked up the pace, and was gone in a flash... but the damage had already been done.

 

There was a thick wave of misery that rolled from the young stallion as he stood there, and this wave was surrounded on all sides by shame, embarrassment and even some self-loathing.  Dax simply stood there, head hung low.  He didn't look up when he spoke next.

 

"... I don't wanna be here right now... we can go to my tent..."

 

Without waiting for an answer, Dax began forlornly heading towards the large front gates.  Whatever it was about the nickname 'Pink-Slip', Dax seemed to be a miserable sot for having heard it. 

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

Illiad's cool rage was undeterred by the worker's parting shot, he committed the worker's description to memory as he would have to be dealt with later. (Illiad would recognize the worker if he encountered him again, and would likely be able to provide a good description of him if need be.) There was no use dwelling on it further as no action could be taken at this time. He did not offer a parting shot of his own as he knew he stood higher, Dax was his priority now. He shunted his rage to the gem to be dealt with later, karma was good at holding grudges and forgiveness would not come easily to that worker now.

 

Illiad quickly moved to catch up to Dax, walking beside him at an equal pace. He decided he would not bring up the issue at the moment, perhaps at a time when he was far removed from the situation and the temper was not running so high. Illiad did what he could to lighten Dax's mood, but he could already tell it would not be too effective. He was happy to help in whatever way he could, he was already planning an anonymous letter with the worker's description as to how they verbally harassed his son, no doubt swift action would come of it.

Edited February 11, 2016 by Illiad Easle

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

The gates opened for ANY Blackwater; Dax was no exception.  

 

The walk down the southern path was actually rather nice, if a tad windy.  There were a few patches of flowery plants here and there as they reached the bottom - it was close to an hour's travelling in all... and not one word from Dax.  He didn't stop Illiad from trying to lift his spirits - in fact, Illiad could feel the gratitude waaaaaaay beneath the sadness - but he truly just didn't seem to react much.

 

Obviously, his mind was elsewhere... but he wasn't taking it out on his friend.

 

When Dax suddenly stopped walking, there was no way to tell if he was going to burst out in tears or not... instead, without looking up, he simply said, "We're here."

 

It was quiet.  Not unnaturally so; more like soothingly quiet.  There were tall trees all around, towering above and putting a beautiful green canopy over the entire area, far above their heads - but in the center, there was a huge gap between the trees that gave not only light, but a beautiful view of the sky.  Illiad could almost bet the night view was breathtaking.

 

There was a river-... well, more like a creek that wound it's way through the mountains above, runoff for the water coming down from above.  It came around the foothills and wound lazily through the forest here, coming to a short bend ending at a small patch of dirt, rocks and sand.  You could hear the flow and trickle of the water, adding to the calm stillness of the place.

 

This was where Dax's campsite was.

 

The tent was big, but not gaudy; it looked to be straight canvas, with a layer of blankets inside, from the look of it.  It was big enough for four adult stallions to sleep in, but there was just Dax.  It was well secured to deep-driven stakes, and expertly knotted.  There was a small board of wood sticking up out of the sand next to the tent flap, and there was a target painted on it; below, a hoof-made sign proclaimed: [Please knock before entering!].  Tied to the bottom of it was a rope that extended into the creek itself, with no indication as to why.  There was also a well-kept and maintained fire pit, a pockmarked wooden bench, a large log with the top half whittled down for use as a seat, and a large, half-rotten looking wooden chest poking out of the ground near the rocks.  

 

The whole place was quite serene; Dax finally looked up, glanced around the site and took a deep breath.  The exhale was a whoosh of air... and, from the state of his emotions, Dax's way of getting on with being himself again.  The cleansing breath done, he turned back to look at Illiad and gave a small, yet sweet grin.

 

"Thanks for putting up with me; I'm sorry about being a sourpuss all the way here."  He motioned around a bit, his mood lifting little by little.  "Well, my home is your home, Illiad... what do you think?" 

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

Illiad found the place to be quite serene, it was completely unlike any place he had ever been to have so much life around him, other than the Shimmerwood and Everfree forests of course, but the former had been at a distance and the latter was not an enjoyable experience in the slightest.

 

"It's a very nice place you have here, very calm and secluded. Don't worry about the trip here, I do enjoy quiet walks when I can get them, though here is much different than striding across the cool dunes at night back in Troy. It's a new experience having so much life around me, neither Deltrot nor Canterlot have this much plant or animal life."

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

Dax's grin grew at Illiad's comments.  "Here, take the bench; I usually sit on the log, anyway."  As if to prove his point, he did exactly that.  He sat back, looking actually comfortable and not over-exited for once.  Some of the ache was still present, but it was fading like soap bubbles in a tubful of old bath water.

 

He sighed softly, then stood up again and went to the trunk, opening it and poking his head inside.  As he looked, a fog of mist began to pour over the sides of the chest, spilling onto the ground before disappearing completely.  After a moment, he returned with a bottle in his mouth.  He g-e-n-t-l-y tipped it onto the fire pit, and WHOOF!, a soft blue fire began to burn from the slight splash Dax had poured into it.  Returning the bottle to the chest, he closed it and came back over to sit by the strange, yet warm blue fire.

 

"The flame potion was something my Father brought back when he went abroad when I was a colt.  He'd gone to negotiate deals; he prefers to look a customer in the eye when he makes a deal with them.  One of those customers was an exotic wares dealer - this old griffon - who gave Father the bottle, among other things.  I took it, as nopony ever claimed or used it.  A few drops will keep this fire going all night... as long as we feed the fire occasionally."

 

The crackling of the flames sounded... crisper... somehow, but other than that and the color, it functioned as a normal flame.

 

"I picked this place the first time I ran away from home... it was perfect.  I spent those three nights right here, just myself, my tent and my telescope.  Ohhhhh... I can hardly wait for you to see the stars tonight; this section of the sky lights up beautifully this time of season.  That's why I mad a little bit more of a permanent place out here; it's away from anypony and anything that could ever bother me... and I can be free here."

 

Those words brought a flash of the earlier sadness back, but it drifted away once more as he kept himself in the moment.

[Illiad Easle 3,135]

@@Randimaxis,

 

Illiad took a seat on the bench as indicated, intrigued by the natural magic of the fire. It wasn't uncommon for such nature magics to be sold around Troy, mostly from the Zebra caravans with their connection to nature magics, the griffon must have been a trader, potions are always popular among those with weaker magical ties.

 

"I've always liked the stars, but as more of a casual interest rather than a hobby or study. Still, it will be interesting to see how the stars are different here than they are in Troy or up on Canterlot Mountain." 

[Randimaxis 8,652]

@@Illiad Easle

 

"It's even better here; none of the lights from anyplace reach this far, so we have a completely unobstructed view from here.  My telescope can- OH!"

 

Dax suddenly got up and, after unzipping the flap, disappeared into the tent.  When he returned, he was carefully managing a long wooden case, made of sturdy oak.  He set it down carefully, then opened the latches... but he looked back at Illiad before he did anything else.

 

"Here - my pride and joy!"

 

He opened the case and presented it to Illiad; inside was what appeared to be a very deftly-crafted telescope.  The craftsmanship was quite good, and it looked as though it was built by a personal craftsman instead of some factory-pressed model.  It was well cared for, and though it had seen much, MUCH use, Illiad could almost be certain that it was perfectly aligned, too.

 

"Whaddya think?  Do you like it?  You can pick it up, if you want to..."