open Far From Home (RP)

[captainborgue 343]

"I can see that. Forested areas probably provide more obstacles to self powered flight than anything else. Curious then that your species has wings if you live in arboreal environments. Maybe you migrated there from somewhere else?" Val said, watching him curiously. She didn't know a whole lot about flying- the limits of her own experience had been on airships or using a cloudwalking spell to explore Cloudsdale a few years ago. The little she did know, however, was that pony wings were magical [and structural- it was the magic that kept a pegasus aloft, while the structure and musculature of the wings provided the thrust. Perhaps with Longma it worked differently- from what he was saying, it sounded as though his wings had to provide lift as well as thrust. It was interesting, learning things she did not previously know. Val jotted everything down in her little notebook (always in a coat or saddlebag pocket, just in case it was needed) as she observed. "Are wings a gender dimorphic trait in your species? Like, do females have the same wing span and flight capability as males?"

[EQ_Theta 459]

@@captainborgue

 

"I guess if you put it that way, the longma of my clan are all able to fly but wingspan is roughly smaller for females but not too much." 

As for the origin of the wings, it may be tied to the history of his kind. There are stories, varied tales of where they came from and what they were like. It was unfortunate, however, that the stories of a certain topic aren't the same. 

"The old tales mention of our own kind coming to what is now my forest home. It was meant to be sanctuary for those that came before, my precursors. They say they were much larger, winged creatures who fled with many others to search for a new home after their old one was... I don't know... The stories aren't the same depending on who you ask. Some say it was destroyed, others say the precursors were exiled. The only thing common about them was they found the forest and made a home out of it. In time, they didn't need their massive size and they began bearing smaller offspring until you have those that look like me."

[captainborgue 343]

"Sounds like classic evolutionary biology. Fascinating! And all this time, your people have avoided contact with other species? If that's the case, then the sight of any one of you would be very memorable. Or the scent of your kind would be very rare. Maybe a scent tracker, like a Diamond Dog, would be able to help?" Val said, trying to think of ways to be helpful. She didn't want to tell him about how she had used Diamond Dogs to try and find Noir after his disappearance, or how she had adopted a Diamond Dog puppy just before Nova was born. she often wondered how little Onyx was doing these days- he'd left home a couple years ago to find his place in the world. The letters he sent came every two or three months, but Val couldn't help but wonder.

[EQ_Theta 459]

@@captainborgue

 

"Biology? What is that?" 

A perplexing thought indeed. Senlin knew he was very much out of touch with modern Equestria and his curiosity only grew with more questions. But things wouldn't be going as they had a few moments ago. A deep blue pegasus bumped into Senlin and Valence, and all of his things dropped to the ground.

"Ow! Sweet Celestia I must stop bumping into everything! Sorry about the mess, you two. Anyone hurt?"

[captainborgue 343]

Val giggled. "Biology is the formal study of living organisms. I'm not a biologist, but part of being a chemist is knowing how materials interact with life forms, so even though it's not my specialty I still know quite a bit about it. Now if you wanted to know about chemistry, I could talk for hours," Val said, chuckling, just before being bowled over.

 

"Ow," Valence groaned, getting to her hooves. "Just a bump, nothing serious," Valence said, using her magic to help scoop up some of the stuff the pegasus had dropped. "Are you ok? You must have been in a hurry."

[EQ_Theta 459]

@@captainborgue

 

Senlin was helped back onto his feet but he took the brunt of the impact. He moved off to the side of the street to check on his injuries. Meanwhile, the blue pegasus collected his things off the ground, scampering to the small container holding a fish he bought earlier that day. 

"I'm fine. Lots of things to look out for and not enough eyes on my head. Your dragon-like friend over here might not be as fortunate as you, though." He looked towards the longma to see him sitting on the ground on his hind legs his forelimbs in a perpendicular position, wings now covering most of himself with his head only visible beneath his green webbing. 

"Does he normally do that? Kinda odd to see someone doing that just after an accident."

[captainborgue 343]

Val was a little puzzled at the question. She hardly knew Senlin, there was no way she could possibly know if it was normal or not. she didn't even know much about anything physiologically similar, like dragons or even bats. "That's a good question, I have no idea. I just met him. By any chance, have you seen anything like him?" Valence asked, while she made her way to Senlin's side. "Hey. You ok? I'm not a very good doctor, but I could whip up a painkiller easily enough. Though I'm not sure if your biology is similar enough to pony biology to make it have the same effect at any rate... but Ethylene gas is fairly harmless. Might make you sleepy, but it would certainly take the edge off."

[EQ_Theta 459]

@@captainborgue

"Might have. I think I saw you two wandering around the fair earlier. Might have spotted another one of his kind a few days back if my memory serves me right. I'll drop off these things and find some medicine. I think a vendor might have some around here. I'll catch you two in a bit; won't be long with some medicines and information." 

The blue pegasus left in a hurry, knowing he had no time to lose. Senlin on the other hand woke from his meditative state to the sound of Valence talking to someone he didn't recognize, though the image in his mind was blurry. 

"I'm not sure. I haven't tried anything outside of homemade elixirs for illnesses so there is a chance pony medicines might not work. It's mostly a few scrapes and bruises so I could use some bandages. The rest of that was just me handling the pain through meditation. It does wonders, clears your mind and helps with focus."

[captainborgue 343]

"I've never really used meditation before. But then, I don't often get hurt much, so I can just sort of tough it out, or maybe use some ethylene or ether if it's really bad. Ethylene is easiest, I can make that with just some water and the air around me. Hard to control where it goes though, since it's an invisible and odorless gas, so I try not to use it in the open. I don't want everypony around me to get a case of the sleepies," Valence said, giggling. "Though it comes in handy when Nova doesn't want to go to bed. Bandages are a little trickier... blood stoppers are easy, like chitosan or titanium dioxide, but bandages are super complex since they are mostly made of linen or synthetic fabrics, so the molecular structure is super long and then the strands themselves are interwoven, so it's like an order of magnitude more complicated, and I'm not making even the tiniest bit of sense am I?" Val said, realizing how she must sound to somepony who didn't know about atomic structures only after she had finished her whole spiel.

 

"Er. So, the blue guy said he maybe saw another longma, and he was coming back with some bandages I think. That's a good sign, right?"

[EQ_Theta 459]

@@captainborgue

 

"It's good to know that you have that knowledge and are so keen in sharing it. You do have a point about using a substance that could dissipate in a large area that may do more harm than good. That said, I often use meditation to keep the feeling of pain at bay when I don't have immediate access to medicines and bandages. The last of which is in my satchel but I figured I'd save it for when I really need it. In this case, I'll weather the pain... and because that pegasus went to get some bandages. As for meditation though, it has its usefulness. I sometimes do it alone in the forest when I choose so over sleep. Sometimes helps when out searching in the woods since it trains one to keep their senses sharp."

Senlin examined the bruise on his foreleg, checking up on anything else that may be broken. So far, there hasn't been too much damage. A few scrapes and bruises elsewhere and the signs of healing where his claw fractured several months earlier. He was more relieved by seeing that one unscathed. He stood up and checked on his valuables, grabbing the bits that fell out of his satchel and putting them in a secure pocket. 

 

"As for him... I may have overheard him being from the local observatory. Shouldn't be far away from here and if he does have information on Lin, I suppose we could wait a little bit. Would you like to try meditation?"
 

[captainborgue 343]

"Well, if you insist. But for the records, I totally could make a painkiller if you wanted. It's no trouble at all. Well, it kind of is, since I'd have to make it a solid or liquid which takes a bit more work. But that's not really any trouble. Or I could make a cold compress," Val said, pondering how to go about making a cold pack out of what was available and without the use of a vacuum chamber.

 

Valence got a good look at Senlin's bruise, which had shown much faster than pony bruises. Maybe it was part of his physiology, though Val was curious as to the processes that would drive such things. Meditation was something she had never really tried before- in her experience, it was very difficult to remain focused on something for very long, unless she was either immersed in her research or in some project or another. It had never really occurred to her to try that same level of focus in any other aspect of her life. "You know, I've never really tried meditation. How does it work?"

[EQ_Theta 459]

@@captainborgue

 

Something tugged at Senlin's mind, wondering how to go about teaching what he knew so well. The one thing that he would have difficulty with is how he could convince someone so well-versed in the sciences to try a method that cannot present itself as a feasible method for healing. He wouldn't know until he tried.

"Think of it like this: you place yourself in a comfortable position, focus on your breathing, and empty your mind of distractions. You then begin to make yourself aware of something specific. For example, pain. You think about how your body would flush out whatever pain it feels and focus. A technique I use is similar to placing a salve on the affected area and letting it do its work but there is no salve, only what I feel is a salve. It's your mind doing wonders for your body. It's difficult to say if this could be backed up by observable evidence. The most others would say is this is like a, uh.... a 'placebo,' I think? But it is a method passed down from generations in my clan with a range of uses from healing light injuries to focus training. I'm not sure how your experience might turn out but try with an open mind."

@@Samurai Equine

 

Night Eyes had returned to the nearby observatory and dropped off his things and his new pet koi at his study. He placed the fish in the sunken portion of the room and filled it with water and some food to sate its hunger while he was away. Without any medicines, he grabbed his saddle bag and rushed back out to the fair to locate the salespony he met earlier. Good thing he was high above the ground when he rushed out. He scoped the grounds and found the red pony from Japon and made his way to him.  

"Sweet Celestia I found you! Do you happen to have anything that can treat bruises and scars? Someone got into an accident and he needs help! I'll pay!"

[captainborgue 343]

What an interesting concept. Val had heard of meditation as a means of relaxing, but it had never occurred to her that it could be used as a way on intentionally causing a placebo effect. "Huh. I've never heard of anypony intentionally using a placebo effect before, usually it only works if the pony using it doesn't actually know that's what is happening. Interesting! How does it work? Oh, wait, it's probably not something quantifiable, sorry," Val said, sheepishly.

 

"I'm not opposed to trying new things, but is now really a good time? We maybe had a lead from that blue guy. I'm sure he will be back soon."

[EQ_Theta 459]

@@captainborgue

"I suppose, but I've been called out on using something so 'primitive' that the word placebo has been thrown my way too often. I still believe it works so I guess it isn't really a placebo to me... Does that sound right?" 

Senlin returned to sitting on the ground, thinking about where the possible lead might take him. But while the blue pegasus was away, there was some time to wait.

"In any case, there is time to try while we wait. We could be doing that pegasus a favor by not straying from here. Might make finding us easier for him." 

Edited February 19, 2016 by EQ_Theta

[captainborgue 343]

"Ugh, that's horrible. Just because we don't understand something doesn't make it wrong or primitive. Whoever told you that was a jerk," Val said, scoffing. "One of the first things I had to learn when I was seriously pursuing my studies, was that science requires an open mind. Nothing is ever absolutely certain, not ever, and even the things we hold to be most true and sacred can be disproven tomorrow, and we must accept it," Val said, sitting down across from Senlin.

 

"I'm sorry someponies were unkind to you. We're not all like that. I mean, a lot are, but not everypony. Or, at least, not me. I think. I try not to be, anyway."

[EQ_Theta 459]

@@captainborgue

 

"It's been such a long time that the cuts made by sharp tongues have left scars that heal faster every time I'm wounded with words. No need to worry about it." Senlin smiled and scooted to the side.

 

"To be honest, this is one of the reasons why I prefer meditation to calm myself when anything doesn't go as planned or if everything around me is too much to bear. When I focus on these things, I also think about how I handle them, and then it simply becomes part of how I do things. When I'm tempted to claw someone's face off because of an insult, I have to steady my own conscience. I wouldn't want to show the world that longma are rabid and quick-tempered, especially since I'm the only one who dared to venture into places like these. I guess it leaves the opposite impression that longma are doormats but I haven't heard those remarks at all."

 

Just as Senlin was about to meditate once more, the blue pegasus arrived with his satchels filled to the brim with gauze, bandages, and ointments; some of it looked like it was about to spill out and all over the street.

 

"Sorry! I am terribly sorry this had to happen! Anypony need basic first aid?" The pegasus frantically looked around, at the crowds staring at him, and then at Valence and Senlin. Anypony would've figured he be the random actor who entertained the crowds but he sank down to street level and pulled out the medical supplies and quietly asked, "Are you two alright?"

Edited February 26, 2016 by EQ_Theta

[captainborgue 343]

Valence shook her head and pointed a hoof at Senlin. "I'm fine, really. Not a scratch on me," Val said. She looked at Senlin with concern, he hadn't seemed all that injured. Maybe the pegasus was over reacting? It seemed more likely than Senlin being grievously injured.

 

Still, it was kind of him to be so concerned. For a moment, Val almost wanted to be hurt, just a tiny bit, so the dashing and handsome pegasus would look her over.

 

It was a very brief moment, though. Valence had been working with a therapist for a couple years to help her move past her loss and try seeing other ponies again. Not that anything came of it, her tendency to ramble and having a foal made dating difficult.

 

"I'm sorry, how rude of me. I'm Valence, and my friend here is Senlin. What your name?"

[EQ_Theta 459]

@@captainborgue

The pegasus lowered himself further, grabbed some of the things he dropped before turning to converse. 

"I... I'm Night Eyes. I'm from the observatory. A student but I mostly do take stock of the facility's inventory or run errands. Do you need some bandages? You both look like you need some. "

He grabbed some disinfectants and cotton balls, preparing to clean the gashes and scrapes on both Valence and Senlin. He isn't too adept at this kind of thing since barely any accident of this type happens in the observatory. It was still fortunate he took some first aid lessons while he had the time to do so, though now it is more regretful that he didn't come better prepared.

 

"I guess this might've been delayed less if I had a portable first aid kit, huh? Serious infection is the last thing that needs to happen." 
 

[Samurai Equine 51,461]

@@Samurai Equine

 

Night Eyes had returned to the nearby observatory and dropped off his things and his new pet koi at his study. He placed the fish in the sunken portion of the room and filled it with water and some food to sate its hunger while he was away. Without any medicines, he grabbed his saddle bag and rushed back out to the fair to locate the salespony he met earlier. Good thing he was high above the ground when he rushed out. He scoped the grounds and found the red pony from Japon and made his way to him.  

 

"Sweet Celestia I found you! Do you happen to have anything that can treat bruises and scars? Someone got into an accident and he needs help! I'll pay!"

 

The tri-colored pony seemed a little confused. "Scars? Bruises? Umm..." Ever since Samurai came here, he has been feeling less and less prepared. He was ready to share information on why Japon is great and why more ponies should visit. And yet, customers have been requesting strange things like tree sap. And now Night Eyes is asking for medical help? Nothing about his booth remotely looks like a medical tent! Still, Samurai is not one to turn away from a customer. And he looks among his stuff to see if he can help.

 

"Here you go. Free of charge." Samurai gives Night Eyes a general first aid kit that just about anyone can get. Samurai was keeping it around for himself, but if Night Eyes needs it, he is welcome to it. It has things like bandages, salve, a paper mask to cover one's mouth and nose, some pain relievers in pill form, etc. Nothing special and not a lot to choose from since it is a travel-sized kit.

 

About that time, Samurai's amount of customers has dropped pretty low. He puts a sign on his booth that says "BACK IN 10 MINUTES" and leaves. "My mission here is to both educate others about Japon, and learn about the rest of Equestria. If the other cultures won't come to me, then I owe it to myself to visit the other vendors here. I probably won't have time for all of them, but if I can learn while I'm here, Celestia will be proud." Samurai thinks to himself.

 

@@captainborgue

 

After buying and trading some cultural things from other vendors, as well as picking up some food from around Equestria, Samurai accidentally bumps into Valence. "Ah! Forgive me. Sumimasen." Samurai says, bowing apologetically. He can see that she is busy talking to others. He is more than happy to leave or wait his turn, whatever she prefers.

Edited March 2, 2016 by Samurai Equine

[EQ_Theta 459]

@@Samurai Equine, @@captainborgue

 

"I insist that your troubles are settled if I may have caused any inconvenience so I should be paying you for this. Really, I apologize if this took up your precious time. Come with me."

 

Night Eyes ran around to where the dragon-pony hybrid was with his companion and arrived, panting. He got himself lost after running straight into a crowd and a small parade that blocked him off on the ground and up in the sky, having resorted to moving up to a nearby building and regaining his bearings again. 

 

(this is basically what happened to Night Eyes before he went back to Senlin and Valence. I'll continue from where these characters where left off)

 

[captainborgue 343]

"Oh no, don't worry about me, I can handle a couple scrapes just fine," Valence said, as her horn began to glow pink. The color intensified, as swirls of pink magic seemed to draw something in, before a hovering blob of that same pink aura wrapped itself around her scrape for a moment before dissipating, with a strong smell of rubbing alcohol lingering after it. "There, see? No need to waste supplies on me, I can simply pull carbon dioxide and hydrogen out of the air, then split the carbon dioxide into carbon and oxygen and recombine them into C₃H₈O, or isopropyl- I mean, rubbing alcohol. It's a bit more potent than the stuff at the store though, that's why it smells so strong. But I didn't feel like trying to dilute it, it takes a LOT of effort to pull water out of the inherent humidity in the air to the point where I have enough to dilute it," Val said, happily chattering away. No sooner had she finished than she felt something bump into her again- though not nearly as hard as Night Eyes had.

 

"Ah! Forgive me. Sumimasen." a voice said, as Valence turned around to find one of the vendors. Val recognized him as having a booth nearby from an exotic region, but couldn't remember any details.

 

"Oh, I beg your pardon, I didn't mean to get in the way. I was just doing a bit of magic, that's all," Val said, cheerfully. "Um, what does sumimasen mean? Is that your name? If it is, then it's a pleasure to meet you and my name is Valence," she added with a smile. "You have a booth here at the fair, right? I bet you've seen all kinds of amazing things on your travels, then." Val added, hoping to segue into asking about Senlin.

[Samurai Equine 51,461]

"Oh, I beg your pardon, I didn't mean to get in the way. I was just doing a bit of magic, that's all," Val said, cheerfully. "Um, what does sumimasen mean? Is that your name? If it is, then it's a pleasure to meet you and my name is Valence," she added with a smile. "You have a booth here at the fair, right? I bet you've seen all kinds of amazing things on your travels, then." Val added, hoping to segue into asking about Senlin.

 

"Oh, no! It's not my name. Sumimasen means both 'Excuse me' and 'Forgive me'. My name is Samurai Equine. I'm from Japon and my blood type is O+. Pleasure to meet you. Are you from around here?" Samurai explains. He's been doing a lot of this with each new pony or attendee that he meets. "I forget to speak the native language sometimes. I am doing my best to be bilingual." Samurai also has a translation guide book with him just in case.

Edited March 3, 2016 by Samurai Equine

[EQ_Theta 459]

@@captainborgue, @@Samurai Equine

 

"It's good to know you're alright. I'll patch up your friend here." Night Eyes proceeded to inspect Senlin's wounds though he hesitated for a moment thinking that the strange creature would be interrupted from his... sleep? The pegasus wasn't sure what to think of it, possbily some kind of mental strengthening exercise he saw in a park once. "Those scrapes don't look too good; gonna have to clean the dirt off on those before I place some iodine and bandages on 'em." 

 

But he barely begun when he heard a familiar voice not too far away. He turned around after some cleaning and found Samurai, the same owner of the stall he just got his kit from, among other products. 

"Hey, it's you again! Look, thank you for your help and for the fish, but I really insist on paying you for all of your troubles." 

[captainborgue 343]

"Oh, no! It's not my name. Sumimasen means both 'Excuse me' and 'Forgive me'. My name is Samurai Equine. I'm from Japon and my blood type is O+. Pleasure to meet you. Are you from around here?" Samurai explains. He's been doing a lot of this with each new pony or attendee that he meets. "I forget to speak the native language sometimes. I am doing my best to be bilingual." Samurai also has a translation guide book with him just in case.

 

Val wasn't quite sure how to reply. Did ponies normally give out their blood types as a means of introduction where he was from? What that something she should reciprocate? "Um, well, not from around here, specifically, but I am from Equestria, so there's that," she said, smiling awkwardly.

 

She hadn't thought that Senlin's injuries were all that big a deal, but seeing Night eyes' reaction actually made her worry. Maybe he had gotten seriously hurt, even though she herself had barely a scratch. Perhaps he had attempted to shield her or something? That would explain the discrepancies in their injuries- and also made Val feel awful that her new friend may have gotten himself hurt trying to keep her from getting hurt.

 

"Are you all right, Senlin?" she asked, peeking around Night eyes' shoulder as the pegasus was wrapping a bandage.

[Samurai Equine 51,461]

 

Val wasn't quite sure how to reply. Did ponies normally give out their blood types as a means of introduction where he was from? What that something she should reciprocate? "Um, well, not from around here, specifically, but I am from Equestria, so there's that," she said, smiling awkwardly.

 

Samurai rubs the back of his head. "Well, Japon is also part of Equestria, just far away with our own culture and language. I could teach you some Japonies, if you like." Samurai offers.

 

But he barely begun when he heard a familiar voice not too far away. He turned around after some cleaning and found Samurai, the same owner of the stall he just got his kit from, among other products. 

"Hey, it's you again! Look, thank you for your help and for the fish, but I really insist on paying you for all of your troubles." 

 

However, he also looks back at Night Eyes who has been helping a friend. "Really, it's no trouble at all. But if you want to pay me, you can help me better understand western pony culture. Or your own, if that helps." Samurai then turns to Senlin. "I would especially love to learn more about you, if I may. You look like a dragon. Where I come from, I've made friends with a few amazing creatures that many would consider legendary. I've also made enemies with others, but that's beside the point."