open The Town That Friendship Forgot

[Samurai Equine 45,915]

@Dynamo Pad, @ExplosionMare

"The afternoon? Uhh... I was actually thinking more like in the morning or any time before noon. But if you must come later, make it evening to late evening." Trilby clarifies what time they should come over before walking back into the crowd. "MERCH! Get your merch here! Action figures, clothes, mugs, all the best video game merch, right here!"

[Dynamo Pad 10,777]

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

Dynamo nodded as Pencil had brought up a good question. "I was curious about that too. I wasn't sure if we were to meet at your shop in the early morning, or a specific time. I'm good to show up at any time, but I guess it's better to ask. Better to be safe than sorry, in my opinion." He explained, before looking back to see the two griffons were ready to begin. "I'm ready to watch when you two are. I might not be able to watch all that often. Just to warn you as I'm still having to make sure if anyone needs help in the arcade." He says, before being given the time to meet at Trilby's home. "The morning works for me. I'm more of a morning pony, so it works out." He responded to Trilby, before said stallion had walked back into the crowd.

[ExplosionMare 18,007]

@Dynamo Pad @Toshigami Equine @C. Thunder Dash

“Okay, then I’ll come in the morning. I’ll just have to remember to set an alarm,” Pencil said with a hint of reluctance in her voice. She was by no means a morning pony but she would do her best to get up on time tomorrow. Actually, now that she thought about it, she didn’t know if she had an alarm. She might have to make one once she gets back to her room.

Pencil turned to Chelsea as she started up DDR and chose the “Love Shine” song. To Pencil, that sounded like a cheesy name to a song, but she wasn’t the one dancing to it. If the song turned out not to be as exciting, then at least Pencil had the pleasure of seeing Chelsea attempt to tackle expert mode. It would be really neat if Chelsea did well on this mode.

“Good luck on expert mode, Chelsea!” Pencil cheered, clapping supportively.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@ExplosionMare @Dynamo Pad

"Alright, but we got a surprise for y'all after this warm up song." Thundy said starting up the song. When the beat kicked in, Thundy bounced to the beat lightly, entraining himself to the beat. The arrows started. Thundy was on a perfect streak. Meanwhile Chelsea had hit a "Great" but had the same streak as Thundy. 

 

[Ragland Tiger 3,297]

On 11/28/2020 at 7:01 PM, Toshigami Equine said:

Tempest, after searching through the crowd, finally finds Bluebell. She hesitates at first, surprised to see her in such a sad state. But then she feels bad as well, and she gives Bluebell a hug. "You didn't abandon me. I pushed you out of the game because I wanted to save you from that world. I don't mind what happens to me, but I could never go back to Twilight if somepony got hurt because of me. I can't let that happen; not again..." After the hug, she makes Bluebell face her. "Besides, you still have so much of the town to tell me about. I want to bring back a full report to Twilight after all, remember?" Tempest says with a reassuring smile.

"Y-y-yes, I-I re-re-remember," Bluebell said, collecting herself.  "We'll con-con-continue tomorrow morning.  R-right now, I n-need to get to the-the inn and get some shut-" Bluebell suddenly noticed what had happened since she returned.  As when she was in the game, the cast that was on her foreleg was gone."-eye?"  She picked up her hoof and examined her leg carefully, moving it back and forth and side to side.  She put her hoof back on the floor and put her full weight on it.  Apparently, her foreleg was completely healed.  She looked back up at Tempest, astonished.  

Bluebell then looked over at the Two Castles game console, with it's colorful looks and glowing display.  Slowly and carefully, she approached the machine.  When she looked at the display, it was showing a big yellow smiley face.  "Um, um, th-th-th-thank you," she said tentatively. Then, the display showed these words:

Blubell turned to Tempest. "N-n-now I-I know I need a r-r-r-rest," she said, and turned to exit the arcade, and head for the inn.

 

[Samurai Equine 45,915]

@Ragland Tiger

Tempest wasn't sure what was going on with Bluebell and the VR machine. But she just smirks and shrugs it off. "Let's get you home, then. You've had a long day."

She guides Bluebell to the inn where she is staying. Once Tempest is positive that she is safe, she stays until she is certain that Bluebell is fully asleep. Once she is absolutely sure, Tempest quietly leaves the Inn, leaving a letter attached to Bluebell's door.

@Kronos the Revenant

Finally, Tempest wonders back to the arcade. She sees a very busy Trilby and Kronos. She approaches them both. "Well, look who I ran into... Two veterans of the Two Castles game. Mr. Handsome Cyborg and the idiot." Tempest says. Trilby hangs his head. "Do you really have to call me an idiot like that?" Tempest gives a light chuckle. "Oh relax your little hooves. I want to talk to you both while I still have some time. I have some questions about Friendshire." Tempest explains. "? Oh. The town? Wouldn't you rather talk to Dynamo or Pastel or Thundy about that? They could probably answer ALL your questions." Trilby says. "Nah. Hanging with main characters isn't my thing. Besides, I'd rather get the perspective of the two of you. I know you were a cleric in the game, but you seem more like the average Joe Stallion in real life, and you work beside one of the mayors. Same goes for you, Mr. Cyborg. You work for the other mayor, and I get the feeling I can get some simple facts from you. Nothing top secret, of course! Just some general information to help me understand this town more." Tempest explains.

Trilby thinks about it. With a huff, he gives Tempest a t-shirt, hat, and lanyard. "No charge. Just this once. We're fellow veterans of the game, right? Come on. Let's not talk where the entire crowd can hear us." Trilby says and leads the way.

[Dynamo Pad 10,777]

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

"I'll set my alarm too. Just in case we need to meet him at a specific time. Although, I seem to have an internal alarm clock in my mind as I seem to be cursed as a morning pony." He would say, before looking towards Pencil. "Maybe we can meet up at a specific location. If we don't meet up at a certain time, then we can go to the other's house and see if they are up." He noted, before Thundy and Chelsea began to play the game. "Good luck, you guys." He says, tapping his back hoof as the song began to play. Even if he wasn't playing, the song would send him into a sort of dancing mood/frenzy. 

[ExplosionMare 18,007]

@C. Thunder Dash

Pencil clapped as the griffons continued to dance passionately on the DDR machine. Both griffons were quite good at the game and they seemed to be having a lot of fun. Pencil had fun just watching them. Though she was not a huge fan of the song they chose, as expected, she was a huge fan of Chelsea and Thundy’s slick dance moves.

“That was great guys! Are you planning on doing another song?” she asked curiously.

@Dynamo Pad

She then turned to Dynamo who suggested going to each other’s houses to ensure that everyone was awake for the meeting tomorrow. She figured she would need a wake up call herself since her internal alarm was not very good. Plus, even with her real alarm, Pencil took forever just to get out of bed.

“That could be a possibility. I’m sure some pony will have to come and get me since I’m so slow in the mornings, hehe!” Pencil said.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare

Thundy almost got all perfects but hit 2 greats. Both grades were AAs. "Almost had the perfect full combo. At least we hit everything though." Thundy stated. "Alright, let's wrap it up with some Xepher...that game is catching up to me..." Thundy said. "Me too..." Chelsea said with a small yawn. "Dynamo...Pencil...you are really gonna be in for a treat." Thundy said. 

[Kronos the Revenant 1,971]

@Toshigami Equine

Kronos was a little befuddled as the broken-horned unicorn came up behind him and Trilby. When she mentioned “Mr. Handsome”, he at first assumed she meant Trilby, until Trilby responded to her calling him an idiot. To Kronos, this was a rather confusing scenario. You see, Kronos doesnt see himself as particularly attractive by any means and he’s actually rather socially inept and usually depends on his personalities to come up with solutions to his social awkwardness. 
 

Handsome? Me? Kronos asked himself. 
 

Maybe you should humor this fine mare, a voice suggested, She does find you handsome, after all. 
 

He turned towards Tempest and humored her request, “Well, unfortunately, my business with Mayor Black is strictly confidential. But, i may or may not have been responsible for a few...chaotic events as of recently, and said incidents may or may not have been sanctioned by certain someponies around these parts. But, hey, you didnt hear it from me, sweet cheeks.” He gave Tempest a wink followed by a low chuckle as he looked around for anything else to do besides helping out his friends. 

[Samurai Equine 45,915]

@Kronos the Revenant

Trilby makes sure all three of them are out of ear-shot of anyone else. "All right. You've got your 10 minutes of fame. What do you want to know?" Trilby asks. "Two easy questions. Why is this town not on any maps? And do I need to tell Twilight that this town needs to be rescued by the elements of harmony? After what I went through today, I almost think this town needs a champion of some kind..." Tempest lays out her two questions.

At first, Trilby hesitates to answer. "Uhh..." He looks at Kronos, then back at Tempest. "Well... I don't have ALL the answers. What I do know is this town use to be ruled by two mayors. It was suppose to be a thriving metropolis for friendship. However, that never happened. It got overshadowed by other, more popular places like Ponyville. Citizens began to lose hope, many of them began to leave town, and the mayors split ways on bad terms. They still watch over the city, but from hidden locations." Trilby scratches the back of his neck. "I'm not sure when the town was founded. But I guess when it didn't bring in the ponies and the tourists that the mayors thought it would, the world just kind of stopped caring about Friendshire, and I guess they stopped making maps of it." Trilby does his best to explain.

"Hmm... Now I'm curious too. Twilight couldn't find any current maps for this place. She managed to find one, but all the major roads and landmarks leading to Friendshire have changed over the years. I had to find it blindly. Nearly got lost along the way." Tempest explains, piecing together the info. "Wow... Been that long, huh? Well, I may not know the whole history of this town, but there are ponies and other creatures here piecing it all together. They are looking for clues to the past, doing activities that will bring the town together, and the mayors are taking notice too. I think they might be on to something. I know today was kind of crazy with the whole video game abduction, but it's usually not like that. So to answer your last question about sending in Princess Twilight and her friends... Ehh... I don't think it's necessary? What do you think?" Trilby asks Kronos.

[Kronos the Revenant 1,971]

@Toshigami Equine

”Well, from what I remember,” Kronos explained as Trilby and Tempest looked towards him, “I believe Samurai was supposed to be this town’s champion, however, over the past few days, ever since the aftermath of the kart race, Samurai has been all riled up and worried about some strange creature known as the Origami Shinobi. Something i remember that paper creature mention is something about a war with no survivors. I still kind of remember my rambling murmurs of the future incident and Samurai said he planned on taking care of it. I didnt want to assume the worst, however, it took quite the effort of just me and Samurai to take out one of them. Initially, i didnt plan on staying for long, but after seeing this town and its culture for what it is, I’ve grown quite attached to this place and im thinking of settling in here. Perhaps to continue my diplomatic mission for my kingdom, i could mould avatars to perform diplomatic missions from here while i remain a fellow guard of the town.”

[Samurai Equine 45,915]

@Kronos the Revenant

Whatever mood Tempest was in just jumped up to 11. Looking on in wide-eyed disbelief, it's safe to say she was not expecting to hear anything about ninjas or war. Trilby is also surprised, but he recovers fast enough to try and wrangle in the conversation. "Ehtehteht~! Hey now! That's right, I forgot all about Samurai Equine! Ha-ha! He's, uh... not here today. But he usually is! Samurai is the protector of this town, on loan from Japon. And he's like a crazy, SUPER powerful soldier guy! Got all kinds of crazy combat skills and magic. I'm not sure what this Origami Shinobi stuff is about, but if ANYpony can handle it, I just know Samurai Equine can. And even if he needs help, he's got others he can depend on. Like that Thundy guy or Kronostasis here. Hehehe. We're fine. Really! Pfft. Totally in control. No super natural dangers here. No need to bring in the troops or anything. Can I interest you in a hat? I think you might be able to command a nice beret or an officer's hat." Trilby does his best to do damage control.

Trilby narrows her eyes at them both, skeptical and contemplating. But then, she shrugs. "All right. If you say so. As long as the citizens are safe from harm, that's all that matters to me. I think I have enough material to give Twilight. Thank you, gentlecolts. You've been most helpful." Tempest bids them farewell for now.

[Dynamo Pad 10,777]

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

Once the song came to an end, Dynamo looked back to see the scores. Dynamo clapped as it was pretty impressive. "Not bad, you guys. That was pretty cool. Always love to hear a personal favorite song of mine on that game." He would say, turning to Pencil with a nod. "We'll figure it out when the time comes. Plus, I can relate. It's like I said that I feel cursed to be a morning pony. No matter how many times I try to go back to bed, I find myself having trouble. So, if I wake up super early, then I'm up. So, I know that feeling of feeling slow in the mornings." He chuckled in agreement. "Xepher?" He asks, looking back to the griffons and the game. "Is that another song, or a different game? I guess another song wouldn't be a bad thing. Just make sure everyone else gets a turn to play." He says, seeing a bunch of ponies and creatures beginning to line up.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@ExplosionMare @Dynamo Pad

"Although it's not in the red zone, Xepher is a true test of stamina and coordination on the hardest difficulty. It may be on the shorter side but the chart packs a major punch. We're gonna take it even higher." Thundy said as he armed the song. Thundy and Chelsea faced away from each other, back to back in a sort of standing meditative pose. They were gathering their energies. 

[Dynamo Pad 10,777]

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

"Is it bad that I have no idea on what you are talking about? I'm not sure if Xepher is a song or if you are talking about the red zone being a song. I guess the red zone is more of the difficulty songs that are later on in the list of dance tracks." Dynamo explained, before the griffons got back into their standing poses. With a shrug, he decided to simply wait and see what would happen next. "At any rate, good luck, you guys." He says, keeping an eye on the other gamer's to make sure no trouble was to be had.

[ExplosionMare 18,007]

@Dynamo Pad @C. Thunder Dash

Pencil looked at Dynamo upon hearing his confusion. She wasn’t too familiar with DDR, so most of what Chelsea and Thundy said went over her head. She chuckled quietly in embarrassment for being confused as well.

“Yeah, I’ll be honest, I didn’t catch all that either. Maybe it’ll make since once the dancing already starts,” she said.

She waited eagerly as the griffons charged up their energies in preparation for the dance. Her tail swished side to side slowly as a means to keep herself occupied until their dancing started. She stared at the DDR screen and was fascinated by all the bright colors that were used. Some of the colors popped while others managed to blend nicely with one another. Pencil was fascinated by how a bright color scheme like this could manage to be easy on the eyes.

She shook her head to get out of her color trance and made herself focus on Chelsea and Thundy. If she hadn’t stopped looking at the visuals on the board, she would have missed their dance moves. Now that she was refocused, she waited for what she hoped would be a really awesome DDR dancing duet.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@ExplosionMare @Dynamo Pad

"Okay, in DDR you have different colored zones. These zones categorize songs by difficulty. The red zone is where the hardest songs in the game are. To put it simply, on the hardest difficulty, Xepher, the song is as hard as a song in the red zone. Does that make any more sense? Anyway, let's get this going." Thundy asked as the song started. Thundy created a ball of energy and so did Chelsea. Thundy formed Roy's sword from Fire Emblem and Chelsea formed Marth's sword from same game. When the first arrows of the chart appeared, Chelsea and Thundy turned to face each other, getting in a sword fight as they hit every arrow that passed. At one point, Thundy pulled a 360 turn, stepping on the arrows, switching places with Chelsea, continuing the sword fight. At the end, Thundy and Chelsea held the freeze arrows, tossing their swords into the air and pulling the last fast section, then catching them and clashing them one final time facing Pencil and Dynamo with their swords in an X. "Haah! Still got it!" Thundy said happily as he and Chelsea  made belts with sheaths appear and put their swords away in their respective sheaths. The grades revealed AAAs for both Thundy and Chelsea. 

 

 

[Dynamo Pad 10,777]

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

"Glad I'm not the only one who's confused." He would say, looking over at Pencil. He was still looking forward to the DDR game, but he was hoping the griffons could provide an explanation. Upon seeing the song being chosen, as well as the explanation, Dynamo could only nod in agreement. Seeing the two griffons appear before one another made the unicorn feel confused. It only added onto the confusion that the two had summoned up swords with their energy. He was about to question the safety precaution, but stopped as the song began. He was both baffled and amazed at how the two fought, but kept up the dance. Looking over at the machine, he could see the notes appearing in rapid succession. As the final notes appeared, Dynamo gulped audibly as the two blades were tossed into the air. Thankfully, they were able to be caught, before they made a final clash. Dynamo breathed a sigh of relief, before giving a small applause.

"That was pretty cool, you guys. Now I see what you mean when you said how difficult the song is. The notes appear so quickly, that you have to be fast on your hooves, or talons." He says, before looking back towards Pencil. "You see the bars that are behind the two sets of dance pads?" He asks, pointing to the bars in question. "Usually, you can use the bars as a way to lean agains to rest from a dance workout. However, there's another use for it. If there's a fast song like that being played, then you can lean your back against said rester. That way, you have more control to move your hooves to the corresponding dance pad. I've seen some songs like that, but not many player's pick those songs. They either mess up in one form or another, or don't have the stamina to keep moving your hooves to keep pace with the notes." He explained, before giving the two griffons a deadpanned expression. "There's just one thing I want to say, if you don't mind. Next time, try not to use the swords. I get the whole performance was interesting and all, but try to give us a little warning. I just don't want a sword to be dropped or launched on accident to anyone in the arcade. We have a good amount of gamer's and onlookers. I just want to make sure that everyone is safe. If that makes sense, of course." 

[ExplosionMare 18,007]

@C. Thunder Dash @Dynamo Pad

Pencil stared wide-eyed at the theatrical dance display the griffons were performing. Not only did they manage to step in time with multiple arrows flying across the screen, they were able to juggle swords while they danced. It reminded her of a pony she heard of that could play DDR while juggling balls. She could barely keep up with Thundy and Chelsea as they continued to dance even faster and add even more flourish.

What stunned Pencil the most was when the griffons managed to switch places without missing a single arrow. This song in particular was very fast-paced and it was amazing to her how they were able to match its pace so perfectly. When the song had finished, Thundy and Chelsea ended by a daring sword toss in the air. Pencil inwardly gasped, worried one of the swords would hurt the griffons. Thankfully, they were able to catch them with no problems.

Pencil clapped enthusiastically when their performance was finished. She then trotted over to them to cheer them on.

“That was really cool, good job you guys! You’ll have to show us some DDR tricks some time,” she said encouragingly.

She then looked over to Dynamo who appeared to be very worried about the use of the swords. She sort of felt the same way about them since anything could have gone wrong if the griffons had dropped the swords or swung them with too much force. Nodding her head, she stated,

“I do agree with Dynamo about the swords, though. They were cool, but maybe next time at least use some plastic ones so nope you gets seriously harmed,”

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@ExplosionMare @Dynamo Pad

“We don’t really use the bars during gameplay, only to rest during stage breaks, and we always make sure to stay safe during extra stuff. Sorry we didn’t warn you about the swords. We just got swept in the hype for performing for you two.” Chelsea said as she and Thundy got off the DDR mats as the credits rolled and the “game over” text appeared. Chelsea let out a small yawn. “I’m probably gonna sleep like a fledgeling tonight...” Thundy remarked. 

[Samurai Equine 45,915]

@Kronos the Revenant

The day was setting However, as Tempest begins to leave town, she waves to Kronos on her way to the city limits. "Thank you again for all the help." She hopes Bluebell will understand the letter when she finds it. Putting on her hooded jacket, Tempest leaves Friendshire.

As she leaves, she can't help but feel a bit strange. After walking a good ways, she turns around. She knows Friendshire is out of sight by now, but something feels wrong. "Hmm... These don't even look like the same trees. Did I get lost on the way out? That can't be right... Well, I'm sure I'll get my barrings if I just keep going." and so she does.

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

DAY 7

@C. Thunder Dash, @Dynamo Pad, @Pastel Heart, @ExplosionMare, @GeneralDirection, @Kronos the Revenant, @Windy Breeze 🥧, @Ragland Tiger, @PawelS

As a new day breaks over Friendshire, there's just something lackadaisical in the air. As if nothing really matters. Everyone is going about their business. Many remember the gaming tournament yesterday; some with positive memories, others not so much. Either way, it won't go forgotten. Even as the pegasi of the town move the clouds for today's forecast of cold temperatures and cloudy skies, no one even seems to notice a young, mark-less colt entering the city.

Dynamo knows right away that this day isn't going to be anything major. When he checks the Laronde Box, it is very inactive today. It has a habit of doing this; an event one day, nothing the following day, and so on in this pattern. Not that he necessarily needs the box to show him a major activity, because he can still find plenty of things to do. So can Pastel, Thundy, and Chelsea if they want!

Bluebell will awaken to find a letter just outside her door from Tempest. In it, Tempest apologizes, because she couldn't stay longer. She promised Twilight that she'd only be around for one day; and after she assessed Friendshire's safety, she'd return as soon as possible. With her help and with everyone else's help, she had enough to make a proper report to Princess Twilight. Tempest also doesn't know when Twilight will be able to respond to Bluebell's letters, but Twilight trusts her. And if worse-comes-to-worst, Twilight can always send more of her friends to Friendshire. She ends the letter with a thank you and asks Bluebell to send everyone her best regards.

Some citizens have plans for their day, like Trilby and Shadow Trail. Others, not so much. But that just opens the door to whatever possibilities the day has to offer! Right now, Trilby is sprucing up his hat & clothing store, and he's making costumes of all things. "Hah! High-end costumes. I wonder why I didn't think of this before? There are ponies that LOVE cosplay! I can use all that surplus Japonies silk too and charge a premium price; call them costumes made out of high-quality material. I know I'm suppose to meet Shadow a little later, but what can I say? It's like that game has given me inspiration that I just CAN'T put down~!"

[Windy Breeze 15,175]

@PawelS

Shadow woke up with a yawn, stretching her forelegs to the air. She got up from her bed and went to the kitchen. She giggled at the sight of Tree Song, sleeping in her sleeping mat at the living room. She went to get her saddle bag and sneaked out of the apartment, oblivious she passed by Nopony as she went to go to the marketplace to buy some some mocha coffee.

@Toshigami Equine

Keen remained in her coma at the hospital.

...

And as for Sundae, she studied at the broken door of bedroom with a dull expression.

“Time to clean up the mess”

Edited December 8, 2020 by Windy Breeze

[Silly Druid 6,140]

@Windy Breeze

Tree Song wakes up after a good night's sleep. Despite being in the middle of solving a dangerous magical mystery, she slept well. Apparently nothing unusual happened during the night. Shadow has already left, so Tree decides to stay here and wait for her to came back to avoid leaving the apartment unattended.

Meanwhile, Nopony is already awake when Shadow passes by him. He recognizes her and thinks about following her for a moment, but decides to go to the apartment instead and talk to Tree. They both conclude that nothing anomalous happened last night, and there are no new traces of dark magic. They talk about things that are unimportant to this story, and wait for Shadow to come back.

[Kronos the Revenant 1,971]

Kronos wakes up the next day, this time outside of his armor, albeit temporarily, as he sat and meditated. His three remaining spirits manifested themselves, sitting along as if in counsel. 
 

It’s a new day, one voice said.

No incidents reported involving violent attacks as of yet.

That’s good news. 
 

Still, we must remain vigilant. 
 

Agreed. 
 

Kronos stood back up and got back into his Samurai mech suit. He cracked his neck side to side, and took a deep breath. 
 

“Another day. Let’s hope nothing too serious occurs.”