open The Town That Friendship Forgot

[GeneralDirection 1,050]

@C. Thunder Dash @ExplosionMare @Pastel Heart

Silver looked thoughtful for second before replying.

“Hmm…can’t say I really have any plans. At some point I’ll need to get myself situated here, find a place to live, and figure out just exactly what it is that I’m going to do here. I have no idea who to ask about any of that stuff, so I’ll just have to figure it out as I go along, I suppose.”

Silver turns to Pastel for a moment.

“Hey, Pastel! You- what?” He looked up at the others before looking back to Pastel. “Not sure I follow, but…ok, I guess. Anyway, I was just gonna say I like your new outfit. Didn’t get a chance to say much to anypony last night. It, um, suits you.” He said with a small smile.  

Just then, somepony he hadn’t met yet joined them downstairs. He remembered seeing her briefly from yesterday, but there has been so much doing on that he’d forgotten to get her name. “Oh, hey there.” He said with a smile. “I think I saw you last night but didn’t get to meet you. I’m Silver Slate.” He paused for a moment. “Wait, did you say markers? Oh, so you're the one that does art. I do lots of drawing myself. I believe Pastel and I picked out those markers for you, so sure, I’d like to come see them! I thought they looked pretty cool.”

[Windy Breeze 15,189]

Shadow was the first one to wake up, Keen wasn't right unlike the previous night, she was just hugging her softly. Shadow carefully untangle herself from the sleep hug and got up of her bed. She opened one of the windows and looked at the forever beautiful sky. She let out a sigh and said “What another day” she decided to get her camera to take a photo of the scenery.

(Flash!)

A photo frame slowly slips out of the camera. She quickly grabs it using her wing and looked at the picture. She let out a small smile of satisfaction before putting the photo frame inside her saddlebag, she put it on her midsection before walking to the front door.

“...Where are you going?” she looked behind her to see Keen, now awake sitting on the bed with a tiresome expression, having just woke up from her sleep, her eyes half-lidded.

“I'm going to a restaurant and take out some food to eat for breakfast” Shadow replied, “Take care of my apartment while I'm gone okay?”

“Yeah, sure”

Edited August 18, 2020 by Windy Breeze 🥧

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Pastel Heart @ExplosionMare @GeneralDirection @Dynamo Pad

Thundy winced when he felt Pastel hit him. “Ow...Pastel I’m not a demon...” He said looking at Pastel. 
 

He then turned to Silver. “Perhaps we can hang out some today depending on what’s going on...” Thundy said to the Kirin. 
 

Suddenly, a sound of flowing water filled the room. A puddle of water flowed into the room, and slowly began to form into a very tired and groaning Chelsea who was right next to Thundy. She let out a big yawn, her pony ears down. “Well look who decided to wake up.” Thundy said stroking Chelsea lovingly. Chelsea purred and leaned into the stroking. 

Edited August 18, 2020 by C. Thunder Dash

[ExplosionMare 18,062]

@GeneralDirection @Pastel Heart

Pencil waved to the Kirin who she also didn’t know the name of. She thought she had seen him at least once, but she couldn’t really remember. Regardless, Pencil trotted down the rest of the stairs and let out her right hoof. Promptly, she began to introduce herself.

“Hi Silver, I’m Pencil Pouch. Nice to meet you,” she said politely.

Pastel was in the same room, so Pencil gave a thoughtful wave to her as well. She was donning her new outfit that she received the other day. Pencil had to admit it looked very nice on her.

“I like your outfit, Pastel. It looks really nice,” she complimented.

She turned back to Silver Slate who had taken an interest in the markers. Turns out he’s an artist, too. How cool that is to have two artists in town! Pencil also thought it was interesting that he had picked out the markers. Pencil appreciated the gift even more knowing it was from somebody she barely knew. Trotting back up the stairs, Pencil urged Silver to follow behind her.

“All my stuff’s upstairs, so we’ll just go there. You really have to see what these markers do, it’s really cool! If you want you can make some requests, too. It’s gonna be really fun!” Pencil spoke excitedly.

 

[Dynamo Pad 11,311]

11 hours ago, C. Thunder Dash said:

@Dynamo Pad

"I mean, we could look after it together...besides, we all are settled here for the time being so...I feel there's nothing wrong with a little TLC." Thundy said. "Anyway, I was gonna cook something for breakfast if no one else was going to. Chelsea's sleeping in as always." Thundy added. 

@Pastel Heart @ExplosionMare @GeneralDirection @C. Thunder Dash

"I do appreciate the offer, but I think I should be okay. I mean, I do have Pastel-chan here to help me out, as well. Plus, I think it would be easier if we just ask the others. Considering we all probably live right around Samurai's house." Dynamo responded, his stomach growling at the mention of breakfast. "Breakfast does sound good right about now. I was thinking of going out to get something. I wasn't sure if the utensils, dishes and food had disappeared along with Samurai's furniture."

11 hours ago, GeneralDirection said:

@C. Thunder Dash @Dynamo Pad @Pastel Heart

After Samurai made his exit, everypony slowly made their way back to their homes. Silver, having just arrived and not having one, elected to sleep under the stars as he usually did, back at the field he had visited with Samurai and Pastel earlier.  The adventurous kirin was used to living this way after the distances he’d covered, only on occasion was he offered a bed someplace. Once Silver awoke, he rolled up his sleeping bag, and trotted back into town with his cart.

 

Not really knowing where anypony else lived, he made his way to Samurai’s place, where he figured Dynamo, Pastel, and perhaps a few others decided to spend the night. He left his cart somewhere out of the way and went up to the front door, knocking a few times before opening it and heading inside. He walked in to find Dynamo, Pastel, and Thundy standing around, possibly discussing plans for the day.

 

“Hey, everypony! Did you all manage to sleep well last night?” He asked. “Anypony have plans for today?” 

 

Dynamo's ears perked as he heard the front door to Samurai's house being opened. Taking a few steps towards the living room, Dynamo smiled as he saw Silver had made his entrance. "Good morning, Silver. How are you and how did you sleep? I just woke up, so I'm not too sure on the plans for today. How about you?"

11 hours ago, Pastel Heart said:

@Dynamo Pad

"I slept super! Best I have in, uhh... Last time I slept? Nyaha~"

Pastel smiled happily. She was extra giddy and blushy after getting the compliment she was fishing for, ans giggles as she put her hooves on her cheeks and swayed.

"Hehehehe, just wondering! I just wanted Dyny to admire me in my new outfit~ I wanna be extra extra moe and rack up all the points!"

Pastel made a mischievous, catlike smile as she stared up at him adorably. What's gotten into her? She was having fun, for sure.

@C. Thunder Dash

When Thundy suddenly appeared between them uninvited, her eyes widened in shock and a squeak, and she reacted with her first instinct... Violence.

"GEH! THIRD WHEEL! DEMON!"

And she hit him with her hoof, as hard as she could, before she could realize that this was, in fact, not quite a demon. It was like stepping on a toe at most if she didn't miss.

"...Oh. Not a demon, definitely a third wheel though! What the hay are you doing!? You're like, not even a unicorn. Nani kore? Maybe you're a demon after all!"

Seems Samurai was a good bad influence on her.

Dynamo chuckled slightly, before smiling at Pastel. He vaguely remembered the young mare had stayed beside him with two sleeping bags. After Samurai made his departure, he felt that Pastel didn't want to feel alone after a friend had taken their leave. He took note of the blush upon her face, but he wasn't entirely sure why. He did, however, remembered what Iron had mentioned before. So, he knew that if Pencil and Astral were awake, then he'd have to talk to them at some point. He would have asked Samurai too, but he knew discussing that would have taken time from Samurai, who had to make his way back to Japon.

"Oh, I see. Well, then I hope I was able to help in giving my opinion on your fuku outfit. I still believe that your outfit looks great on you, Pastel-chan. It seems you've gained a lot of moe points." He would say, returning the smile as she stared up at him adorably. His ears soon fell, while his face scrunched up in a wince from Pastel's shout. Hearing the smack of her hoof towards Thundy, Dynamo couldn't help in flinch. "Oh, that had to hurt." He commented in a soft mutter. He didn't know if the hit was justifiable or not, but he did believe that teleporting at random could have given that sort of result. 

10 hours ago, ExplosionMare said:

“Yawn, morning everypony,” Pencil greeted sleepily.

The quick burst of energy Pencil got from drawing earlier quickly faded, much to her disappointment. She slowly hobbled down the stairs, careful not to trip over her tail. Her stomach began to growl, thankfully not loud enough for anyone to hear. The morning hit Pencil hard now that she was away from her own personal art world. Speaking of which, Pencil wanted to show everyone the effects of her markers.

“Hey, uh, Samurai gave me some cool markers the other day if any-anyone wants to see them. They make drawings look really realistic, like, they give them realistic textures and sounds and—well, it would be better to show you than to try to explain it m-myself,” Pencil announced. She was barely able to hold her sentences together do to how groggy she was, but at least she got the message across.

Hearing the sound of hoof steps descending the steps, Dynamo looked and smiled to see Pencil, who had also joined in staying at Samurai's house. "Good morning, Pencil. How did you sleep and how are you doing?" He asks, chuckling slightly as he heard a yawn from the unicorn. He couldn't blame her as he wasn't much of a morning pony either. Hearing the mention of Samurai leaving her markers caused Dynamo to smile with wonder. "He did? I remember hearing him mention the gifts that everyone had received. I'd like to see those drawings. If you don't mind, that is. It does sound pretty neat that the idea that your drawing takes on that sort of realistic effect." He responded with a grin.

8 hours ago, C. Thunder Dash said:

@Pastel Heart @ExplosionMare @GeneralDirection @Dynamo Pad

Thundy winced when he felt Pastel hit him. “Ow...Pastel I’m not a demon...” He said looking at Pastel. 
 

He then turned to Silver. “Perhaps we can hang out some today depending on what’s going on...” Thundy said to the Kirin. 
 

Suddenly, a sound of flowing water filled the room. A puddle of water flowed into the room, and slowly began to form into a very tired and groaning Chelsea who was right next to Thundy. She let out a big yawn, her pony ears down. “Well look who decided to wake up.” Thundy said stroking Chelsea lovingly. Chelsea purred and leaned into the stroking. 

Dynamo turned back towards the group with a nod. "I'm down for hanging out today. I think we all need something to do as a group with everything that had happened before. Has anyone heard anything from the news this morning? I don't believe I had the chance to get the morning paper." He would say, before an idea came to mind on what they could all do. "If you all want, then maybe we can try to hang out at the arcade. If not, then I know we can possibly try out the new mini game console that Samurai gave me. It's got hundreds of games on it, so maybe we can all have a game that we can play together." 

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Dynamo Pad

"Sounds good Dynamo. I could even transfer over my Playstation 4 from my other world and we could possibly have loads of fun...if you know what I mean..." Thundy said winking at Dynamo, planning to bring Need For Speed Heat over so they could hop into the world of Palm City to help Ana and company retake the streets from the cops who want to end street racing and lock up every racer behind bars. 

[Pastel Heart 6,466]

@GeneralDirection

"You heard me! Demon busting! And thanks a bunch! I'm gonna totally charm everypony now~ gimme your hearts!"

She jumped up and posed in the cheesiest way mortally possible. 

@C. Thunder Dash

Pastel had calmed down now, but still looked at him suspiciously. It wasn't easy to tell whether she was playing or stuck in another chuuni delusion.

"Hmmm... I got my eye on you!"

@ExplosionMare

"Hihi Pencil! Much obliged! Now I'm gonna be a true heroine of justice and stuff! Feel free to admire me, nyahaha~"

She winked at Pencil with a certain swagger in her expression. If she had anymore hot air in her she'd pop.

@Dynamo Pad

"Hehe yay~! I'm totally Dynys waifu now! I'm unstoppable!"

She hugged his leg, practically attaching herself to it. She seems really happy, moreso than she's been since coming here. Dynamos affection, her outfit and the new cutie mark was the perfect storm for an awakened Pastel.

Her ears perked up at the mention of breakfast and looked up.

"Ooohh, breakfast? I can cook! I can do bacon and omelettes! And bacon omelettes! And for Dyny I can put a little love into it--my extra special super tacular Pastel Surprise!"

Pastel cooking? And what was a "Pastel Surprise?" Despite Pastels cheerfulness and eagerness, this would leave an ominous feeling in the air for the culinarily savvy...

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Pastel Heart @Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare @Windy Breeze 🥧

"Whatever...I'm not a demon Pastel and Dynamo knows it, right Dynamo? Anyway, who's up for some pancakes and hashbrowns?" Thundy asked clapping his talons together. Meanwhile Chelsea was sort of dowsing off again. 

[Dynamo Pad 11,311]

26 minutes ago, C. Thunder Dash said:

@Dynamo Pad

"Sounds good Dynamo. I could even transfer over my Playstation 4 from my other world and we could possibly have loads of fun...if you know what I mean..." Thundy said winking at Dynamo, planning to bring Need For Speed Heat over so they could hop into the world of Palm City to help Ana and company retake the streets from the cops who want to end street racing and lock up every racer behind bars. 

Dynamo nodded, before blinking at the name of the console that Thundy had mentioned. "P-Playstation 4? I think I've heard of that, but in Equestria, it's called a Neighstation 4. Also, what did you mean by loads of fun?" He tilted is head as he wasn't sure what Thundy had meant. At the same time, he was a bit worried at the implication to the griffon's words.

5 minutes ago, Pastel Heart said:

"Hehe yay~! I'm totally Dynys waifu now! I'm unstoppable!"

She hugged his leg, practically attaching herself to it. She seems really happy, moreso than she's been since coming here. Dynamos affection, her outfit and the new cutie mark was the perfect storm for an awakened Pastel.

Her ears perked up at the mention of breakfast and looked up.

"Ooohh, breakfast? I can cook! I can do bacon and omelettes! And bacon omelettes! And for Dyny I can put a little love into it--my extra special super tacular Pastel Surprise!"

Pastel cooking? And what was a "Pastel Surprise?" Despite Pastels cheerfulness and eagerness, this would leave an ominous feeling in the air for the culinarily savvy...

"My w-waifu?" Dynamo asks in shock as he didn't expect Pastel to say that out of the blue. He felt himself losing his balance as Pastel tackled him into hugging his leg. He looked down, before extending his leg out and shook said leg that Pastel was attached to. Sure enough, it looked as if Pastel was stuck to him like glue. He couldn't help in chuckling at how adorable was being. He smiled as he playfully ruffled her mane, before hearing something along the lines of a 'Pastel Surprise.' "I can make bacon too, but that's about it. I'm not much of a breakfast kind of pony, but I know it's the most important meal of the day. So, trying to get back into breakfast. That's also very sweet of you, Pastel-chan, but what is a Pastel Surprise, anyway?" He asks with a raised eyebrow.

4 minutes ago, C. Thunder Dash said:

@Pastel Heart @Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare @Windy Breeze 🥧

"Whatever...I'm not a demon Pastel and Dynamo knows it, right Dynamo? Anyway, who's up for some pancakes and hashbrowns?" Thundy asked clapping his talons together. Meanwhile Chelsea was sort of dowsing off again. 

Hearing Thundy's remark had caused the gaming unicorn to chuckle. "I can vouch for Thundy in that he's not a demon, but I don't blame Pastel-chan for assuming such things. Considering the fact that you just appeared out of nowhere. That, and I guess Pastel-chan was trying to protect me and the others in her own unique way." He shook his head with a smile as he ruffled Pastel's mane once more. He did raise his hoof at the mention of pancakes and hash browns. "I do, but I'm honestly up to try anything, to be honest."

[Pastel Heart 6,466]

@Dynamo Pad

Pastel swished her tail around, she was practically melting as her mane was ruffled, face resting in a catlike smile. Beast successfully pacified.

Upon being asked about her surprise, though, she was not to be swayed so easily.

"Nya ha ha~ it's a secret, otherwise it wouldn't be a surprise! Don't worry, I'll steal not only your heart, but your stomach too! Metaphorically speaking of course. You need that, I think."

[Dynamo Pad 11,311]

1 minute ago, Pastel Heart said:

@Dynamo Pad

Pastel swished her tail around, she was practically melting as her mane was ruffled, face resting in a catlike smile. Beast successfully pacified.

Upon being asked about her surprise, though, she was not to be swayed so easily.

"Nya ha ha~ it's a secret, otherwise it wouldn't be a surprise! Don't worry, I'll steal not only your heart, but your stomach too! Metaphorically speaking of course. You need that, I think."

Dynamo could feel a chuckles in his throat as Pastel's swishing tail was tickling his leg. He pouted slightly at the mention of not knowing the surprise. He did, however, notice the face melting/catlike smile upon Pastel's face. "Oh? Is that so? Well then, would you be able to tell me the surprise if I did this?" He would asks, before he placed his two front hooves upon her head. He then placed his hooves near her ears and began scratching her behind her ears like a cat. "Also, you're not wrong in that regard. We need our heart and stomach to survive and all." He responded with another fit of chuckles.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Dynamo Pad

"You'll find out Dynamo. Anyway, how about we head to the kitchen for some breakfast." Thundy said nudging Chelsea to wake her up. "Hey, wake up, it's a new day. Why are you so tired?" Thundy asked. "Mmmhh..." Chelsea simply moaned. 

[Pastel Heart 6,466]

@Dynamo Pad

"Hey hey that's cheating! You can't-- mmnnyaaa~"

And just like that, she melted again. She was practically drooling at this point. One has to wonder if one of her birth parents were a cat.

"Bacon... Cheese... Soy flavored... tobasco sauce on top..."

And like Dynamo's attention brainwashed her, she started naming off the ingredients...

...Wait, what was that last part?

[Dynamo Pad 11,311]

1 minute ago, Pastel Heart said:

@Dynamo Pad

"Hey hey that's cheating! You can't-- mmnnyaaa~"

And just like that, she melted again. She was practically drooling at this point. One has to wonder if one of her birth parents were a cat.

"Bacon... Cheese... Soy flavored... tobasco sauce on top..."

And like Dynamo's attention brainwashed her, she started naming off the ingredients...

...Wait, what was that last part?

Dynamo rolled his eyes playfully with a smirk as Pastel called out his cheating. He didn't really see it that way, but he wondered if Pastel would have some sort of reaction. He didn't expect Pastel to melt like that. Not only that, it felt like she was pushing her head into his hooves, while he continued to scratch her ears like a cat. He wondered if one of her parents was part cat or not. He did, however, learned of what the 'Pastel Surprise' was all about. As she listed off the ingredients, Dynamo nodded as everything seemed to be pretty standard. His eyes widened slightly at the mention of Tabasco sauce being added into the mix. "Oh, wow. Tabasco sauce, huh? Hmm...well, that is one way to make a spicy kind of breakfast." He responded with a chuckle.

10 minutes ago, C. Thunder Dash said:

@Dynamo Pad

"You'll find out Dynamo. Anyway, how about we head to the kitchen for some breakfast." Thundy said nudging Chelsea to wake her up. "Hey, wake up, it's a new day. Why are you so tired?" Thundy asked. "Mmmhh..." Chelsea simply moaned. 

Dynamo had a skeptic expression upon his face, before shrugging his shoulders and nodding his head at Thundy's reply. "Okay, then. If you say so, then I'll take your word for it." He would say, taking notice of the male griffon trying to nudge Chelsea in order for her to wake up. "Is Chelsea okay? I hope there's nothing wrong. My only guess would be waking up throughout the night or something along those lines." He knew he ran into similar problems like that, but it was mostly due to him being a morning pony. So, he was tired throughout certain parts of the day as he was up early for no reason whatsoever. It was a habit he wished to break, but it seemed like a curse of being a morning pony.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Dynamo Pad

"I think the fact she exhausted a lot of magic yesterday is making her really tired, even though she slept through the night..." Thundy said as he gently picked up Chelsea and cradled her in his arms. He was still in his bipedal form. Chelsea was heavier since she had extra weight. Chelsea curled up in Thundy's arms purring, dowsing off again. Thundy gently booped Chelsea on her beak to wake her up. She let out a soft squeak, flinching lightly. 

Thundy arrived at the kitchen and put Chelsea down. He then made the ingredients for the pancakes appear plus the hashbrowns. He quickly put the ingredients together and mixed them. Next, he got out a large cooking sheet and poured a number of pancakes for everyone. "The food should take about 10 minutes." Thundy stated.  

[GeneralDirection 1,050]

@Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare @Pastel Heart

“Good morning, Dynamo!” He replied. “I slept fine thanks, another beautiful night under the stars. I was just telling Thundy the only things I need to get done at some point today are related to getting myself situated here. Finding a home, job, stuff like that. But there’s no rush, if you had something fun planned, we could certainly do that first. I haven’t heard any news myself.”

Silver couldn’t help but chuckle at Pastel’s antics. Obviously getting her cutie mark had set off something inside of her, either that or she’d recently consumed a lot of sugar. Could be either, really.

Silver returned the hoofshake as Pencil introduced herself.

“Nice to meet you too, Pencil. Sure, lead the way!” He said as he followed her upstairs. “I’m interested to see what these markers can do. The art supply store we went to had so much cool stuff there I’m definitely gonna have to head back and pick up some things for myself. I don’t know how much you know about Kirin, but the village where most of us live is really out in the middle of nowhere, so good art supplies are hard to come by. So, having all this great stuff so close by is amazing to me, really.”

[Astral Vision 286]

On 8/17/2020 at 5:17 PM, Samurai Equine said:

@Dynamo Pad, @Pastel Heart, @Astral Vision, @ExplosionMare, @Kronos the Revenant, & @GeneralDirection

How humbled Samurai was to be departing this way. With an untold happiness, he gladly hugs his friends back as tight as he can, shedding a stray tear of happiness in kind. He also receives gifts he was not expecting! Well made artwork, an elemental orb, and a high-tech show that could easily rival a 21 canon salute. Just like the things he gave away, he will cherish all of this.

Eventually, the hug ends. Samurai takes up his cart and walks away. As he does, he waves goodbye to his friends. "Farewell, my friends! I'll never forget you!! Ganbarimas. HONTOU NI ARIGATO!!!" Samurai calls out. As he faces forward, his kurokos come out of the shadows and follow behind him in march. And soon, all his friends see is Samurai leaving the front gate, walking past the Welcome sign at the front of the town, and then fading away into the horizon darkened by the night.

SAMURAI EQUINE
WILL RETURN IN 3 DAYS

Seems that's it. Nothing left to do now, but to go home and maybe plan for whatever tomorrow has in store.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

DAY 6

@Astral Vision, @Buck Testa, @C. Thunder Dash, @CameoShadowness, @Dynamo Pad, @Pastel Heart, @Emerald Heart, @ExplosionMare, @GeneralDirection, @Kronos the Revenant, @Windy Breeze 🥧, @C. Thunder Dash, @Ragland Tiger

Yet another new day dawns over the town of Friendshire. Slowly but surly, everyone is waking up to face the town's activities. Citizens are going to their regular jobs. Some aren't even aware that a major citizen and guardian left last night.

...Well, others are aware, but more on that later...

On the radio and other news broadcasts, a report goes out throughout Friendshire. "And here, in an unmarked cave 27 miles North by North West outside of the city limits, Friendshire's mining team has stumbled upon a large deposit of magical quartz! These gems, rumored to have been buried somewhere outside of the town, was regarded as no more than myth or fiction when all previous excavation attempts came up negative. Now, today, these enchanted gem stones have been unearthed and are ready to be examined by our town's best magic and scientific heads. However, Friendshire is deeply under staffed on experts in this field, so there will be a an open-invite to anyone qualified and willing to help out." The report goes on and on about the paticulars.

Meanwhile, at Astral Vision's residence, the Lardone Box is going crazy just as he is waking up to greet the day! It is moving all by itself. Gears are winding, panels are opening up, and it's about to give a magical projection any second!

Furthermore, there seems to be a cloaked traveler somewhere deep in the wild. Whoever it is has hooves, so it's not a leopard or anything. But if this stranger keeps going down this path, it'll eventually lead them to Friendshire.

@Dynamo Pad@Pastel Heart@ExplosionMare@C. Thunder Dash@GeneralDirection@Kronos the Revenant

Astral slept soundly in his travel cart, though he had been awake rather late into the night, fiddling with the Laronde box; he was honoured that Samurai trusted him the powerful artifact, and he was desperate to know all of its secrets. Soon, the blue unicorn darted awake as a bright glow filled his tiny cart room, and as his eyes drifted lazily to the cause of it all, they quickly widened once he realized it was the Laronde Box!

"GREAT FATHER OF LUNA, its actually working! Alright then little magic cube, what is the next big event the town needs?"

While it was doubtful that the cube had any form of a conscious, it seemed to respond to the question by temporarily opening itself, and it soon began to display a magical hologram projection. The projection seemed to display both good and bad intentions; two ponies were locked in combat with one another, neither seeming to back down until the victor was declared, but their movements seemed too fluid, almost like fantasy combat? Once the hologram ended, the Laronde Box returned to its dormant state and fell gently into Astral's hooves.

"Not a bad hologram spell little one, I'm impressed. But still, the next needed event seems to be.. a fighting tournament? How could this possibly help the town in any way? While it is true that physical action can attract great numbers, the whole reason the town is divided is because of the two mayors, so won't this only compliment the problem rather than help solve it? Wait a second, no, maybe it isn't a fighting tournament? The movements of those ponies were somewhat similar to 'Walkway Combat', so it could be a gaming tournamnet; that's much safer! Well, if Samurai's helped the town by following this magic cube's instructions thus far, then I suppose there is no harm in organizing this one too; let the games begin!"

Astral grabbed a quick breakfast, adorned his jacket, and packed his satchel bag with spell books; as he closed the door of his parked travel cart behind him, he began to walk toward the town hall. While he didn't see Samurai talk to the town committee himself, he knew that their assistance was vital in seeing the gaming tournament made.

Astral walked to the front desk of the somewhat empty town hall, which was understandable considering the mayors' feud. Luckily, there was a clerk pony sitting at the front desk. While it took what seemed like hours for Astral to prove himself as Samurai's stand-in, he was eventually able to meet with the town committee and make preparations for the tournament.

"There's no better entertainment than gaming tournaments; they have just as much virtual action, yet none of the collateral damage!"

And just like that, the event was set. Construction ponies were sent to the town arcade to build stands, banners, and the arcade was soon transformed into a luxurious gaming convention. Pretty soon, Astral was out the front entrance of town hall, and making his way through the streets.

@Samurai Equine

"Well, there is still some time before the game tournament starts, maybe someone would like a morning visit? Maybe I could go see Trilby, so long as if his store is open."

Astral figured that while there was risk with the curse, a business pony such as Trilby might appreciate an early event update. Besides, the unicorn knew that with his magic and purification amulet, no one would get hurt.. Hopefully. Once he arrived at the front of Trilby's store, he was unsure if the establishment was actually open. Astral gingerly knocked on the front door, careful not to break the glass (if any).

"Hello, Trilby? It's me Astral, are you there?"

Edited August 19, 2020 by Astral Vision
Tournament Change-up

[ExplosionMare 18,062]

@Pastel Heart

Before Pencil made it all the way upstairs, she greeted Pastel as the filly heroically announced herself. Pastel, from what Pencil could gather, was still very excited about the mission she was on. She would have to ask about it later.

“Hey, Pastel? Hmm, heroine of justice, eh? I appreciate a good heroine, and I’m sure you’ve been a great one! You’ll have to tell me about the adventure you went on later,” she said with a wink as she finally trotted all the way upstairs.

@GeneralDirection

“Okay, I’ll show you what I made first, then I’ll draw some other random thing and show you that,” Pencil told Silver. She magically grasped all the markers and flipped to a blank page near the end of her notebook. She bookmarked the empty page with one of the markers then flipped back to the drawing she had previously worked on. The multicolored swirls still crackled and sparkled with energy. If somepony listened long enough, they could even here the wheeoosh sound fireworks make when they’re quickly shot up into the air.

“I wasn’t really drawing fireworks, but I thought the swirls looked like them, so these markers basically projected my thoughts onto the page. Isn’t that cool! Now I’m gonna draw some grass and see what that does,” Pencil beamed as she excitedly flipped to the bookmarked sheet.

Taking the majority of her green colored markers and a couple of blue, brown, and grey ones, Pencil swiftly ticked sharp blades of grass across the page. She reached for one of her fine-tipped materials to gauge if the grass blades were as sharp as she liked. She knew that wasn’t necessary for a sketch, but she did know that the more realistic this grass appeared, the stronger the magic would be. She then took the darker green markers and gave them bulky outlines on their sides, occasionally stroking a few outlines with brown to give the grass variety. Finally, she drew long ovals underneath the blades with blue and grey to give the patch of grass a small shadow.

As Pencil waited for the drawing to dry, she could hear a soft breeze coming from the page. She could faintly see the grass swaying as well, but she couldn’t tell if that was real or a trick of her eyes. Once Pencil had given the page a chance to dry off, she gently touched it, and felt the soft, moist textures of the grass. She let the textile sensations stick to her hoof a while before she gently picked it back up. She sniffed at it a bit, and could pick up a faint, grassy smell among other scents on her hoof.

“Touch it, it feels like real grass!” Pencil instructed. She pointed towards the page eagerly.

“I can draw basically whatever you want next if you’d like. I’m in a sketching mood anyways, so this helps. And don’t worry about my markers running dry, I can always get more at the store, heh,” Pencil suggested, chuckling at her last comment.

 

[Pastel Heart 6,466]

@Dynamo Pad

Pastel snapped back to reality and looked up with a hop, her previous energy returned. 

"Yes! And I've been saving it just for this occasion! It'd knock your socks off if you wore them! It's as intense as my love~!"

She was putting over this spicy omelette with talent, atleast. As Thundy messed about in the kitchen, she quickly rushed in and began making a mess behind him. She gathered the ingredients and prepared while the pancakes were prepared beside them.

She briefly returns, covered in grease, sauce and other things, watching as Pencil and Silver make their way upstairs, and she passes Dynamo a look.

"Huh, I think I ship it! What about you?"

[GeneralDirection 1,050]

@ExplosionMare

The two ponies made their way upstairs and Silver stood on Pencil’s right as she grabbed her markers. She flipped open her book to a drawing of fireworks she had made. As she explained what had happened, Silver was surprised by what he both saw and heard. Yes, it would seem these markers appealed to both sight and hearing. Not only did her drawing look amazing, it sounded amazing, too.

Silver watched intently as she flipped to a blank page and started to draw something else. She sketched a simple grass field, and as they waited for it to dry, Silver started noticing the scene coming to life. You could hear and see the grass as it started stirring in the breeze, and not only that, but you could smell and touch it, too? Silver had to try this for himself. The Kirin slowly dragged his hoof along the page and found that, much to his astonishment, it felt like grass. He could also faintly pick up various smells coming from the drawing.

“Where have these markers been all my life?” He wondered aloud. “That’s amazing, Pencil! I had no idea these markers were that cool, to be honest. Your drawings look great, too!”

Pencil then asked if there was anything he’d like her to draw. Silver went silent for a few moments, trying to think of an idea.

“How about a lush mountain stream? Maybe with a deer nearby drinking from the stream? I bet that’d look cool.” He suggested.

[Samurai Equine 51,442]

@Dynamo Pad

What Dynamo doesn't know is that currently, a new delivery is being transported to the arcade. Since Dynamo isn't there, the ponies there go ahead and install the new game machine. It's similar to a game cabinet, but instead of the usual controls, it has VR headsets. And the label on the machine reads simply reads "Two Castles". What could that mean? He and his friends won't know until they get there and check it out.

@Astral Vision, @CameoShadowness, @Windy Breeze 🥧

When Astral gets there, he is surprised that the store is swamped, and Trilby is having a hard time trying to keep the customers at bay.

... Oh, did I say customers? I meant angry mob!

Trilby is panicking because all the ponies there are angry and raising cane. Their voices are all getting blending together into one angry noise, but you can hear comments like "WE WANT SAMURAI BACK!", & "IF THERE'S NO MILITARY LEADER, THEN YOU SHOULD DO IT!", & "IF YOU DON'T FIX THIS RIGHT NOW, I'LL RETURN THE CLOTHES I BOUGHT AND ASK FOR A REFUND!"

Naturally, this is turning Trilby into quite the nervous mess as he does his best to hold off the crowd. His hat is half way off, hair matted, sweating, eyes wide, and he's waving his hooves frantically to try and calm them all down. If Beryl, Shadow, or Keen were to come here right now, it'd be quite the sight to behold! "I keep telling you, I CAN'T bring him back! I didn't even know he was leaving, let alone know where he is now!!" Trilby answers one angry complaint. "What do you MEAN me?! I'm not a soldier! I'm just a humble haberdasher!" Trilby answers another complaint. "NO!! Please, I'm begging you, don't do that! If you'd all be nice, I could maybe make you an offer. Maybe one free hat with every purchase?" Trilby tries to make a peace offering. Still, the crowd is getting more agitated, and they starting to close in. "HEY! Get back, I say! I swear, if any of you cause any collateral damage to my store~!" Trilby grabs a broom stick to defend himself, using it to brush ponies away from the front desk.

Basically, Trilby needs help. Immediately.

@Kronos the Revenant

At the south end of town, the robed and hooded stranger has walked up to Kaiser, and tilts their head. "Uhh... What are you suppose to be?" The stranger asks. Well, it's a mare at least, based on the voice.

[Windy Breeze 15,189]

@Samurai Equine

Shadow went out of the restaurant where she bought food for breakfast, as she was humming, she suddenly stopped “Mm... I wonder what Trilby is up to today?” she spread her wings, and flew to Trilby's shop, which was just justt of the town hall.

She landed just a few buildings from the harderdasher's tailor and was aurprised to see a crowd gathering. She couldn't make out what they are yelling since there aree so many of them talking in unison, she decided to investigate.

She approached the crowd from behind, seeing them dangerously close to Trilby's shop, she decided to ask one of the members of the mob “Um, excuse me, can you tell me what's going on here and why is everypony gathered outside this shop?”

Edited August 19, 2020 by Windy Breeze 🥧

[Dynamo Pad 11,311]

18 hours ago, C. Thunder Dash said:

@Dynamo Pad

"I think the fact she exhausted a lot of magic yesterday is making her really tired, even though she slept through the night..." Thundy said as he gently picked up Chelsea and cradled her in his arms. He was still in his bipedal form. Chelsea was heavier since she had extra weight. Chelsea curled up in Thundy's arms purring, dowsing off again. Thundy gently booped Chelsea on her beak to wake her up. She let out a soft squeak, flinching lightly. 

Thundy arrived at the kitchen and put Chelsea down. He then made the ingredients for the pancakes appear plus the hashbrowns. He quickly put the ingredients together and mixed them. Next, he got out a large cooking sheet and poured a number of pancakes for everyone. "The food should take about 10 minutes." Thundy stated.  

17 hours ago, GeneralDirection said:

@Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare @Pastel Heart

“Good morning, Dynamo!” He replied. “I slept fine thanks, another beautiful night under the stars. I was just telling Thundy the only things I need to get done at some point today are related to getting myself situated here. Finding a home, job, stuff like that. But there’s no rush, if you had something fun planned, we could certainly do that first. I haven’t heard any news myself.”

Silver couldn’t help but chuckle at Pastel’s antics. Obviously getting her cutie mark had set off something inside of her, either that or she’d recently consumed a lot of sugar. Could be either, really.

Silver returned the hoofshake as Pencil introduced herself.

“Nice to meet you too, Pencil. Sure, lead the way!” He said as he followed her upstairs. “I’m interested to see what these markers can do. The art supply store we went to had so much cool stuff there I’m definitely gonna have to head back and pick up some things for myself. I don’t know how much you know about Kirin, but the village where most of us live is really out in the middle of nowhere, so good art supplies are hard to come by. So, having all this great stuff so close by is amazing to me, really.”

 

Dynamo nodded as he listened to Thundy's explanation. "I can imagine that being the case. I remember hearing about Pencil and Chelsea were going on an exploration. I didn't know where exactly, but I guess it took up a lot of magic, or something like that. Hopefully, she'll be okay." He would say, as he watched the male griffon lift Chelsea into his arms. Dynamo turned to Silver with a grin and nod. "You're welcome and that's good to hear. Maybe we can all help in looking up a house for you. If you need a job, then that offer at the arcade is still available. I know we can have a group discussion and figure out what we all want to do. I'm all for having a no rush, but we can see if everyone is free of any plans." 

10 hours ago, Pastel Heart said:

@Dynamo Pad

Pastel snapped back to reality and looked up with a hop, her previous energy returned. 

"Yes! And I've been saving it just for this occasion! It'd knock your socks off if you wore them! It's as intense as my love~!"

She was putting over this spicy omelette with talent, atleast. As Thundy messed about in the kitchen, she quickly rushed in and began making a mess behind him. She gathered the ingredients and prepared while the pancakes were prepared beside them.

She briefly returns, covered in grease, sauce and other things, watching as Pencil and Silver make their way upstairs, and she passes Dynamo a look.

"Huh, I think I ship it! What about you?"

Dynamo blinked suddenly as he felt Pastel's sudden hop, while she was still attached to his back leg. She seemed back to normal, but still had the same energy as before. "Oh? I suppose this 'Pastel Surprise' is only done on special occasions, or for a big moment. I don't know if ponies wear socks, but I'll take your word for it." With the mention of Tabasco sauce earlier, he had not doubt that it was as intense as her mentioned love. Upon having his back leg being let go, Dynamo tried to locate Pastel, who had quickly rushed into the kitchen to cook with Thundy. His ears suddenly fell as he heard a bit of crash noises going on behind him. It seemed that both participants were making a mess as they prepared breakfast. "Oh, well. I guess cleaning up the kitchen will be a number one priority, before heading off towards the arcade." He sighed with a chuckle. He soon smiled as he was glad that it was never a dull moment, while being in Friendshire. 

Dynamo’s ears perked as he heard Pastel’s question. He looked to the young mare to see her covered entirely in grease. “Are you okay, Pastel-chan? Did you happen to make a mess while making breakfast?” He asks, before looking back towards the stairs that Pencil and Silver headed towards. “Pencil and Silver, huh? I mean, I met Silver recently and I’ve known Pencil the same amount of time as you. So, I’m not sure if I’d ship it. Why do you ask?”

Edited August 19, 2020 by Dynamo Pad

[Kronos the Revenant 1,971]

@Samurai Equine

Kaiser sees the cloaked figure approaching him. He takes out his giant mace and slams it into the ground and aggressively asks “HALT!!! State your business here!!”

This triggered an auditory response from Krux, who made a mad dash towards Kaiser.

”WHO DARES TRESPASS!?” Krux asked through snarling gnashed teeth. 

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Dynamo Pad @Pastel Heart

Meanwhile, all that could be heard from Thundy was the hissing and bubbling of the friers as he cooked the pancakes. He then made his iPhone appear and turned on some music. It could be heard from the kitchen, and so could Thundy's singing, which was perfectly on key.