open The Town That Friendship Forgot

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@ExplosionMare @Dynamo Pad

Thundy and Chelsea listened as Dynamo explained the whole journal concept. "It may be that I'm so used to the tech back where I'm from...that I don't really write stuff down anymore..." Thundy stated as he gathered some electricity and made his iPhone 11 appear. "Instead, I use this device here to text and call." Thundy stated. Chelsea made hers appear as well. "And yes, I have one too." Chelsea stated. 

 

[Pencil Pouch]

@Dynamo Pad @C. Thunder Dash

“So the spell you’re thinking of is like how ponies print books?” Pencil asked, hoping she was comprehending all of the information. “That makes sense, sort of. That’s where I derived my duplication spell from. Instead of transferring information, though, I only need the components of the journal, so that’s what I end up copying. Instead of taking old pages and reprinting them, I just make the journals as if they were brand new,”

When she was finished, she turned to Chelsea and Thundy who made little rectangular devices appear in their talons. When they tapped on them, they lit up with their very own screens. They made Pencil think of tiny arcade machines. Curiously, she asked,

“Can you play games on those, too? They look like small arcade machines to me, just without the buttons,”

[Chelsea]

@ExplosionMare @Dynamo Pad

Chelsea walked over to Pencil Pound and sat next to her. She unlocked her iPhone. The background was of her swimming underwater surrounded by a group of otters. She then pulled up a game called "Candy Crush Saga". "This is one of my favorite games. What you do is match 3 or more of the same candy and complete the objective of the level." Chelsea stated. She started up the current level she was on, level 1035, a hard level, which the objective was to clear all the jelly on the field. Chelsea began by matching a set of 3 red candies that cleared some jelly. "See?" Chelsea asked. 

[Pencil Pouch]

@C. Thunder Dash @Dynamo Pad

Pencil let out a soft “ooh” as Chelsea booted up a game called “Candy Crush Saga”. She demonstrated how to play by swiping her talon across the screen to match three red candies. She glanced at the top of the screen and saw that the level she was on was “1,035”. If this was Pencil’s game, she would’ve stopped long before this. However, the game didn’t seem too complicated from what she could tell. Fascinated by the small, joystick-less game, she asked,

“Can I try? If I mess up your progress too much I’ll stop playing,”

[Chelsea]

@ExplosionMare

"Sure, I'll give you some pointers. Firstly, do you see those bouncing candies?" Chelsea asked. Four green candies were bouncing. It was the game's suggestion mechanic. If Pencil matched those four candies, she would make a striped candy. 

[Pencil Pouch]

@C. Thunder Dash

“Yeah, I see them,” she said, attempting to move them around with her hoof.

She struggled for a while due to how big her hoof was compared to the machine. It was hard to touch anything without activating another screen. She was worried she would somehow break the phone, but after a few more tries, she managed to match the green candies, if barely.

“You’ll have to teach me how to manipulate this thing better with hooves,” Pencil chuckled.

[Chelsea]

@ExplosionMare

"Maybe try using the edge of your hoof..." Chelsea stated as she watched the matched green candies become a striped candy. She then noticed a potential match that could line 5 purple candies in a row. "Ooh! You definately wanna match those five. You'll make something special if you do." Chelsea stated. 

[Samurai Equine 45,978]

@Dynamo Pad, @ExplosionMare, @C. Thunder Dash

"Oh, sorry, I guess I should have explained more clearly. "Life is Beautiful" is a song from the show Kamen Rider Ex-Aid, if I'm correct. I guess I assumed you'd be familiar. But even on its own, the song is very beautiful and heartfelt." Samurai explains to Dynamo.

However, Dynamo's explanation of the spell confuses him. Samurai tilts his head. "Gomen, Dynamo. I'm afraid I don't get it. Are you saying that someone writes in the journal, tears out the page, and that page reappears in an identical journal? Does the author not get to keep a copy of that page? Is it limited to one identical journal, or is the spell shared among multiple journals? Sounds like one journal eventually becomes extra full while the other ends up empty."

Samurai thinks a moment. "Oh! Does everyone want to have another sleepover? I know I'm currently redecorating, but I'm sure I can move in some beds if everyone wants. If not, I understand."

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@Samurai Equine @Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare

"Hmmm, not a bad idea Samurai. We could settle in for the night." Thundy stated. "Yea, our place is a little further away from there..." Chelsea said. "Well, we could just teleport there if we wanted to..." Thundy replied. "Yea we could...but I prefer to sleep at Samurai's place tonight..." Chelsea said with a little yawn.

[Pencil Pouch]

@C. Thunder Dash @Dynamo Pad @Samurai Equine

Pencil took Chelsea’s advice and used the edge of her hoof instead of the entire thing. The method proved effective as she was able to successfully match up five purple candies. She did a little clap out of excitement. Maybe she wouldn’t drag Chelsea’s progress down too much after all.

She took a moment to look up at Samurai as he mentioned another sleepover. She certainly liked the idea of having meals at his place, for sure. She also figured she would enjoy the company.

“I’m in for a sleepover, Samurai!” she spoke. “I gotta go get my art supplies, of course, but that shouldn’t take too long,”

[Dynamo Pad 10,781]

@Samurai Equine @ExplosionMare @C. Thunder Dash

"I can understand that." Dynamo responded, while listening to Thundy's explanation. "Maybe it's because Equestria isn't as advanced, or something along those lines. From what you've mentioned, it seems like Equestria and Earth have similar things. However, there are a few differences that makes Earth seem advanced. True, there are some arcade machines and the game console Sam gave me, but I think there's more to it than just that." He says, watching as both Thundy and Chelsea had summoned another device. "What kind of device is that? I might also keep the pager, but I'll probably stick to the journal." He would say, looking towards Pencil as he nodded. "I think so. I remember the one who showed me had explained it as I met them at a convention. There wasn't really any kind of book to replicate." He explained, looking in awe as he heard Pencil's explanation. "That sounds pretty cool and interesting too. I didn't know there was a spell that could make a book become a new clean slate from a duplicate." His eyebrows raised slightly as he heard the mention of arcade machines. "Wait a minute. These devices are like mini arcade machines? How is that possible?" He asks, watching as Chelsea had pulled up a game from the device.

"Is it okay if I can watch? The thought of a game being on this device like a mini arcade machine has gained my curiosity." He says, hoping he wasn't intruding. He stayed back a bit, but watched as it showed that Chelsea was on level 1035. "Oh, wow. I didn't know there could be levels that could go that high. Is there a limit on how far this game can go?" He asks, whistling in amazement at the game being played. As he watched Chelsea teach Pencil how to play, Dynamo's attention was drawn to Samurai, who had answered the blue unicorn's previous question. "Oh! So, the song was something from the Kamen Rider series? I actually didn't know that. To be honest, I haven't really watched any of the series. I've heard of it, yes. However, I haven't actually seen them. Granted, I've seen the belt props on display at conventions, but still." He says, giving the asian pony an apologetic look. Hearing Samurai's question caused Dynamo to nod. "It's okay and you don't have to apologize, Sam. It was confusing to me the first time I heard about the explanation. To answer your question, I'd have to say no on the first part. Nobody has to write in the journal to do the spell. What they did was take the original journal, copied all of the pages in said journal, before recreating  the covers to look brand new. So long as they memorize everything in the journal, they were able to replicate each page into the new copies. So, nothing was torn out of the old journal, per se. More like, they were able to recreate the old journal by making extra copies in a way. So, the original stays in tact, while the copies are made to look brand new with everything the original had in it. They told me they had learned the spell years ago when wanting to make copies of a certain manifesto." He explained, hoping that the explanation could be helpful.

At the mention of a sleepover at Samurai's house, Dynamo smiled softly with a nod. "I wouldn't mind having a sleepover. After everything we went through, I think having a sleepover sounds perfect. It's a little walk to get back to my place, but it's getting a little late. Plus, I think a sleepover is a nice way to help welcome back Samurai to Friendshire."

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@ExplosionMare @Dynamo Pad

"You actually nailed it on the head Dynamo. You see, Earth's technology is advancing every day. That kart that we were driving in yesterday was actually powered by what is known as an internal combustion engine. This type of engine is powered by two main substances: oil and gasoline. Oil is what keeps the engine's parts lubricated. Gasoline is what gives the engine that spark." Thundy explained. 

"As far as Thundy told me, there are currently over 5000 levels in candy crush. The last time he looked it up, the highest level thus far was level 8990. No new levels have been added since. This level that Pencil and I are working on is one that I already cleared. I'm currently on level 1278. Thundy's not too far ahead of me." Chelsea said. 

[Silly Druid 6,147]

@Samurai Equine @ExplosionMare @Ragland Tiger @Dynamo Pad @C. Thunder Dash @GeneralDirection

Nopony listens to the discussion about the communication methods. "While the pagers seem to be the more effective solution, we can also use the journals in case we need to send a text or drawing. Also, since the pagers are electronic devices, do we need something to power them? Like batteries or something like that."

He also describes the location of the hotel to Dynamo, who wants to know where it is.

 

Hearing the words of encouragement from Pencil, Tree Song prepares to sing.

"This one is from a video game. I think you will like it."

The way she sings is very unusual, she seems to be completely lost in it, like a trance. This is the method she normally uses to communicate with plants, but this time it's purely for entertainment purposes. With her beautiful voice, she sings this song, of course without the instrumental parts:

 

When Samurai suggests a sleepover, Tree Song agrees enthusiastically, while Nopony says he prefers to go back to the inn, and have some peaceful time to rethink all that happened today.

Edited March 18, 2021 by PawelS

[Dynamo Pad 10,781]

@Ragland Tiger @PawelS @ExplosionMare @Samurai Equine @C. Thunder Dash

Dynamo nodded as it appeared his guess was correct. "I guess Equestria is slower in terms of the technological advancements from where you're from, Thundy. Although, I guess maybe that's a good thing? I'm not entirely sure as video games were fairly recent. However, it seems that more and more games are coming out over time. So, I guess it's all a work in progress." He explained, a look of confusion upon his expression as he heard Thundy's explanation. He remembered the vehicle they had driven the day prior, but he didn't really understand vehicles and other things all that much. He chalked it up as something from the games, as well as the similarity between go karts. "Over 5,000 levels in one game?" His jaw dropped at the number, before shaking his head. "I guess that's the kind of game where you won't get bored anytime soon. That, or you can't hit the top level and then stop altogether. Gives that incentive to keep playing, as well as a challenge factor." He wondered if other games could have those kinds of features, but he decided to look into it another time. "Level 1278 doesn't sound like a bad place to be at. It does show the dedication and time being put into a game. Especially if it's a game that's either addicting or fun to play."

The gaming unicorn listened to Nopony's discussion of the pagers, while looking at the one he had along with the journal. He had to admit that the pager would be effective to keep in contact with everyone. To Dynamo, it seemed that he already had a way to keep in contact with Bluebell due to the pendants that they wore. He still didn't know how that was possible, but he understood that he couldn't have all of the answers. He felt that he would understand in due time. He gave his thanks to Nopony on the location of the hotel. Glad to know where to find the others next time something ever happened, while also being able to find Bluebell for their potential date. That was if she was still interested after the events of today had squashed said plans. He'd still have to talk to the bespectacled mare, but he stopped as he heard Tree Song had begun to sing. As she sung, Dynamo thought that Tree had a nice singing voice. He also felt that the song she had sung had felt familiar, but he wasn't sure as this was the first time he had heard of it. He tried to think of the name of the game as it was mentioned before of the song being from the game. He still drew up a blank as no game had come to mind. He gave an applause as the song was good, nonetheless. "That was a pretty cool song, Tree Song. What game was that from? If you don't mind me asking, that is. It just sounded familiar, in a way, but it was the first time I had heard of it."

Edited March 18, 2021 by Dynamo Pad

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare @Samurai Equine @PawelS

"I should really take a day to take each and everyone of you to Earth. Who knows, we may need to spend two days on Earth with the stuff I wanna show you." Thundy stated. "Thundy only showed me pictures of earth. It looks really awesome. One thing I'd wanna do is go swimming in the oceans." Chelsea stated. 

Thundy and Chelsea listened to Tree Song. They applauded softly. "Well sung Tree." Chelsea said with a smile. 

[Pencil Pouch]

@C. Thunder Dash @Samurai Equine @PawelS @Dynamo Pad

Pencil was glad that the journals were still going to get a bit of use out of them. She hoped that didn’t upset Thundy since his pagers were indeed very neat. She felt like she had turned all of this into some sort of attention competition. She mentally grimaced at herself for that.

She listened as Dynamo further explained the spell he had heard about. Pencil’s eyes grew wide with shock when he mentioned that the duplication process required full memorization of the original text. Pencil was sure she couldn’t even memorize one full page in a book if she had to. She was confused as to why somepony would need to do that, so she put an argumentative hoof in the air. She put it back down upon hearing the word ‘manifesto’.

Ah, that makes much more sense she thought. As a pony from Sire’s Hollow, she easily figured out what Dynamo was referring to.

She turned her attention towards Tree Song who began to sing. Her voice was something Pencil had never heard of before. It was, oh, how should she describe it...melodical. That probably wasn’t a real word, but it was all Pencil could come up with. She stood and listened as Tree’s voice carried through the air and gently graced the ears of each listener.

[Samurai Equine 45,978]

Samurai listens to Dynamo re-explain the spell. "Oh, now I see! It's more like a sophisticated book cloning spell."

Samurai wasn't expecting Tree Song to sing something so elegant. When it was over, Samurai applauds for her. "Well done, Tree-chan! I didn't understand the words, but I think I understood the overall message."

Soon, a kuroko approaches and whispers to Samurai. He nods and smiles at the group. "Well everyone, it seems our beds and bedrooms are all ready. I think it's time we help ourselves to some sleep. We'll need it for whatever happens tomorrow." Samurai says, getting up first to lead the way.

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

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

DAY 9

As per usual, Samurai wakes up earlier than most ponies, around dawn to be exact.
He takes a moment to brush his teeth, clean his face, and make his mane just right. Being polite, he does his best to sneak out without waking anyone up or being noticed. "Sorry everyone, I'll be back soon, hopefully in time for breakfast." Samurai thinks to himself.

He leaves his house, admiring how much has changed. For the most part, his house is about 98% the way he left it.
The same can be said for the town itself. It is mostly rebuilt in record time, with only some minimal damage left over, most likely to be taken care of today.
Still, as Samurai walks the street something is on his mind. "All right... Let's see. Firsts thing's first, I need to see if I can find Nightmare Moon before Nopony or Tree Song. I don't want to cause a commotion or anything. If she runs off, then it's all over. I just want to ask her some questions, so I hope she'll stick around.... If I can find her." Samurai thinks to himself. "According to Nopony, she was disguised as Sundae. I know where the real Sundae lives, so I probably shouldn't go there. She might even be disguised as a completely different pony... Still, if I can just ask her some questions, maybe I can clear some things up."

Samurai begins to visit different neighborhoods on a hunch. He does his best to look around without being noticed. He's actually doing something most samurai don't do; spy around. He's even doing his best not to peep on any pony's privacy. But when you're chasing a target that can disguise herself, it's just about all you can do. "Nightmare Moon~? Nightmare Moon~?" Samurai would sometimes whisper as he goes through different neighborhoods. Is this even going to work? It feels like trying to find a needle in a haystack...

Edited March 19, 2021 by Samurai Equine

[Windy Breeze 15,175]

@Samurai Equine

Samurai would be lucky when he went to a neighborhood, a stallion with light blue coat with a midnight blue mane tail paused by, starting at him with curiosity. If this wasn't enough, he is carrying Shadow's saddlebag. Curious as to why some of her enemies calling out to her like some naive foal, he decided to approach him with caution.

“Who are you looking for?” he asked calmly

[Samurai Equine 45,978]

@Windy Breeze

Samurai stops when a stallion approaches him. There is something familiar about this stallion. Samurai can't place his hoof on it. If he was sharper, he'd realize whose saddlebag that is.
However, the the thing that strikes him as odd is the fact that this stallion is awake at this hour. Alone. Not hanging around a business team or anything.

Samurai stands upright, crossing his arms. "I suppose you wouldn't believe me if I told you I was looking for the spirit of Nightmare Moon, would you? I heard she is here, in this town, and I have questions for her. The fact that I came alone with no weapons should be enough to prove I don't intend to do anything funny." Samurai leans his back against a fence post. "I completely left my friends without telling them where I was going. Didn't even bother with my usual morning training routine."

[Windy Breeze 15,175]

@Samurai Equine

The stallion gave Samurai a look of mock amazement “Nightmare Moon?” who leaned closer, batting his eyes and smirking, “So you are interested in her. You have come to the right place"

Before Samurai could promise the odd pitch of the stallion's voice, the stallion planted his lips to his cheek. Without any warning, flowing azure mane covered his right eye.

“Now no need to be jumpy, Mighty Guardian of Richville. This is only just a prize for an act of kindness you did yesterday. Besides, I am not a part of your enemy's invasion” she backed away, giving him a playful wink, “Now. Why does this local hero wished to see Starry Night Terror?”

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare @PawelS @Samurai Equine 

Thundy had woken up along with a very sluggish Chelsea. He was looking forward to working on the major project: a car garage/mechanic shop. Thundy started to build the foundation, using his electric abilities. Chelsea used her water abilities to make the walls. Once the outside was done, Thundy worked on the inside. He added service bays and regular garage areas. Thundy then decided to do something special. He built a news van for Elusive facts and her crew. It was a really cool design with the logo "FNN" or Friendshire News Network. Thundy rolled the van out of the service bay and parked it outside the shop/garage. 

 

[Samurai Equine 45,978]

@Windy Breeze

Telling the poor pony to not be jumpy was... easier said than done. He practically anime gasps at the surprise cheek kiss! He even has to turn away to let a burning blush subside. He even has to cover his face. If only the Starry Night Terror knew about the Japonies rules of etiquette when it comes to kissing... Or maybe she does know, and did it anyways?

Shaking off the sudden surprise, Samurai faces Nightmare Moon. "Oh, umm... Yes! Thank you for not running away. Actually, what I want to say is related to that." Samurai kicks his hoof against the ground, playing with a random pebble. "I feel like we got off on the wrong hoof last time we met. Based on the stories I was told, I thought you were just a villainous threat and tried to defeat you. It's something I'm use to doing. I didn't even try to get to know you first, and that's my fault. For that, I'm deeply sorry." Samurai bows apologetically. "But that brings me to my first question... What brings you to Friendshire?"

Samurai looks up at Nightmare Moon, wanting to know the answer. "I was gone for a few days, and I was convinced that I had exorcised you last we met. As you can tell, I'm not very good at detecting malice magic. In all that time, you could have tried to take over the town. Even during the war, you could have used that confusion to rise up and take power, but you didn't. So what is your true goal?"

@C. Thunder Dash

It would take about an hour of waiting for Thundy and Chelsea, but eventually, Elusive Facts starts to make the rounds with her camera crew. "So, I'm thinking first we'll do some pieces on the reconstruction effort, maybe interview one of the heroes that protected Friendshire, maybe do a piece about the various hospitals..." But as Elusive talks, one of her camera crew ponies speaks up. "Hmm? You saw our companies logo? Where? Show me." And so, they begin walking towards the pop-up auto garage that Thundy and Chelsea made.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@Samurai Equine

As Thundy was doing the final wipedown on Elusive's brand new news van, he saw Elusive and her crew coming down the road. "Oh snap! Here they come!" Thundy said. Chelsea made sure that the place was absolutely clean and smelled fresh. Thundy held the keys to Elusive's new news van in his left talon. 

[Dynamo Pad 10,781]

@Ragland Tiger @ExplosionMare @Samurai Equine @GeneralDirection @PawelS @C. Thunder Dash

"A trip to earth does sound interesting. If it's similar to Equestria, then it would be a good place to explore. I hope there are conventions and other things that are available." Dynamo responds, looking over to Chelsea with a nod. "Based on the mention of pictures, I'm guessing that you've never been to earth either, Chelsea? Swimming in the oceans does sound like a lot of fun. I love swimming, so that sounds like something to accomplish upon reaching Earth." He looked over to Samurai, who had talked to a kuroko that had soon appeared. Smiling at the mention of the bedrooms were ready, Dynamo nodded as he followed the asian pony. He knew there would be time to talk to Bluebell about their date.

-The Next Day-

As a new day had just begun, Dynamo had slowly opened his eyes to the bright sunlight. He yawned as it was still early in the morning, but not too early to still feel tired. As he slowly sat up, Dynamo gout out of bed as he made his way towards the window. Opening up the window, Dynamo took a deep breath as he allowed fresh air to enter his lungs. Sighing softly, the blue unicorn was thankful that today felt peaceful, in a way. It was much better than the sense of dread he was feeling from the day prior. He turned in wonder if anyone else was up, before looking at the door across from him. He had remembered asking Bluebell if they wanted to be roommates, while Samurai had a few rooms with a door separating certain rooms. Making his way over, he opened the door softly, so as to not wake Bluebell up. As he entered, he could see that she was still fas asleep. He had to admit that the bespectacled mare looked cute. He had even noticed that she didn't have her glasses on. Granted, it might have been uncomfortable to sleep with glasses on, but it was the first time he had ever seen her without glasses. Slowly making his way toward her bed, Dynamo leaned down as he nuzzled the blue mare softly. "Bluebell? It's time to wake up." He softly whispered, while hoping that he heard him in hopes of waking up.

[Windy Breeze 15,175]

@Samurai Equine

Nightmare Moon chuckled at Samurai's reaction to her kiss, finding it very amusing and delightful, she smiled. However, upon hearing his apology, his so-called lack of knowledge of her, and his question made her frown.

“...I don't know” this was not something you would expect from an entity created by jealousy of a young alicorn sister who was once banished to the moon, “We just stumbled upon your quaint town as our originnnal destination is the corrupt settlement of Marenor where my follower is tasked to both tackle a huge crisis” she did not tell him she was also trying to convince the entire town to follow her and turn against the rulers of Equestria.

2 hours ago, Samurai Equine said:

Samurai looks up at Nightmare Moon, wanting to know the answer. "I was gone for a few days, and I was convinced that I had exorcised you last we met. As you can tell, I'm not very good at detecting malice magic. In all that time, you could have tried to take over the town. Even during the war, you could have used that confusion to rise up and take power, but you didn't. So what is your true goal?"

She furrowed her brow “Using another battle unrelated to my goals is a cowardly act. I will never do such thing, especially if it endangers my follower and so many innocent lives!” she decided to give him personal space, moving just only four meters away from his muzzle. She gave him a bewildered look when he gave him another question, “Really? Isn't it obvious I'm bringing eternal night?"

Something about this Nightmare Moon seemed different. She acted a lot less evil and more like someone you would just come across.