open The Town That Friendship Forgot

[Windy Breeze 15,189]

@Dynamo Pad

Shadow snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Dynamo, talking to her “Oh, I'm alright” she smiled.

@Samurai Equine

She gasped in awe at such beautiful sight of skyscrapers high enough to almost reach the sky and the NPCs strolling around the fictional city, everything seemed too...real to say it's fictional.

“Wow...I couldn't imagine how videogames can create fictional worlds that can be explored in...reality” she said in awe “even the so-called NPC's look like real, so real...”

[CameoShadowness 251]

14 hours ago, C. Thunder Dash said:

@Pastel Heart @Dynamo Pad @GeneralDirection @ExplosionMare @CameoShadowness @Samurai Equine @Windy Breeze 🥧

"Alright everyone, let's move. Let's see if we could pick up some items along the way. If there are monsters that we have to fight, let's defeat them. Whatever loot that is left over, take it. This way, we could use it at shops so we could upgrade our abilities and perhaps make it so we get better dice rolls." Thundy said taking the lead. 

Chelsea was right next to Thundy. 

@Pastel Heart @Dynamo Pad @GeneralDirection @ExplosionMare @Samurai Equine @Windy Breeze 🥧 @C. Thunder Dash

Beryl stopped and turned around. "E-excse me." Her voice was trembling for a hot moment. "Do I sound any different to any of you?" She was highly worried that they wouldn't even reconise her. She barely reconizes herself! 

As she spoke some skeleton rats walked close to her, it was unknown if they they were gonna attack or not.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Samurai Equine @CameoShadowness @Dynamo Pad @Pastel Heart @GeneralDirection

””Alright Trilby, guide us to the first level.” Thundy said noticing some skeleton rats close to Beryl. “Uhm...Beryl, you may wanna watch out, not sure if those skeleton rats are gonna attack...” He said. 
 

Chelsea simply waited for Trilby to take the lead. 

[ExplosionMare 18,062]

@CameoShadowness

Pencil’s breath hitched as she saw what looked to be skeleton-rats not far from where she had traveled. She pointed her paintbrush at them, hoping to scare them off. Much to Pencil’s surprise, the rats didn’t even acknowledge her. She stood puzzled for a moment, titling her head slightly. It wasn’t until she saw that their heads were turned the other way that she realized why they hadn’t seen her weapon.

They could be attacking somepony else! Pencil thought in quiet fear.

Treading carefully, Pencil trotted up to the rats to investigate what it was they were huddled around. As she stepped closer, she could make out a pair of wings. The wings began to move and what looked to be a mane was visible. To Pencil, whatever the skeleton rats were cornering appeared to be a bug. Pencil began to walk away, thinking it was just their food source. She stopped mid-pace as the big began to speak.

“H-h-hello? Do, uh, you need any help?” Pencil managed to ask.

Shakily, she summoned a large beetle, just in case the rats wanted to fight. Its large green shell glistened in the sunlight, blinding Pencil for a moment. It had rather sharp spikes around its legs and very large but beady eyes. It sure looked intimidating, but only a role of the dice could determine if it was as strong as it was scary.

Pencil grabbed the dice floating near the beetle and gave them a good shake. They clattered against the ground and displayed a seven. Like the deer she created earlier, its stats weren’t bad, but they weren’t the strongest. Perhaps medium strength was more fitting for this beetle, anyways, seeing as the threat at hoof wasn’t too large.

The beetle was eager to fight, but Pencil stuck her paintbrush out in front of it to keep it at bay. Pencil wasn’t going to let it attack if these rats proved to be innocent.

@C. Thunder Dash

Pencil could heat Thundy calling from a distance. He was already planning how to form everyone’s groups. Pencil was anxious to get over there and join him, but she was currently tied up. Pencil didn’t think Thundy could hear her from where she was standing, but regardless, she shouted,

“I’ll be right over to team up! I gotta take care of something first!”

Edited September 2, 2020 by ExplosionMare
Fixed to make the breezie a pegasus

[Samurai Equine 51,442]

@C. Thunder Dash, @Pastel Heart, @GeneralDirection, @ExplosionMare, @Windy Breeze 🥧, @Dynamo Pad

It isn't long before they all reach the city together.

Shadow Trail made mention about how real the NPC's walking around the city looked. Well, there is a reason for that. If anyone were to look closely, they'd notice... These NPC's? They're actually the citizens of Friendshire. Not the ones that moved in like Dynamo, Shadow, Trilby, and so on. No, these are the citizens that have always lived in Friendshire! And they don't seem to be putting too much thought into where they are going or why.

However, Dynamo Pad also begins to notice something strange happening with his magic. Once in the city, it's almost like he can feel something strange... Parts of this video game are whispering to him. Almost like they want him to know the secrets of this game. Could it really be as simple as focusing his magic on it?

Speaking of focusing, Trilby uses his new video game powers to do just that. He puts a hoof to his forehead. "Everyone, follow me, please. I'm getting a divination." With Thundy and Dynamo's permission, he leads the way. He goes past various shops and other random places in the city. Then he comes to a stop. He points at an alley. "That direction is where Level 1 is located." Then he points towards a busy highway. "Somewhere in that direction are a few Side Quest areas." Trilby looks at Thundy, Chelsea, and Dynamo. "If we are going to separate, we should only divide into two groups. Any more then that would be spreading ourselves too thin... Oh wow! I am getting into character! This game really affects your personality!" Trilby notices. But he's delaying things, so he clears his throat and continues. "Anyways, groups of two. We should consider balance; things like defense, offense, and so on. I'm a Cleric, and like Dynamo pointed out, that means I have some healing powers. My attacks aren't very strong, and my defense is a little better but not much. Looks like Thundy, Silver, Pencil, and Shadow Trail seem to be our biggest powerhouses in terms of offense. Maybe we should share character stats?"

Edited September 1, 2020 by Samurai Equine

[Dynamo Pad 11,311]

21 hours ago, Windy Breeze 🥧 said:

@Dynamo Pad

Shadow snapped out of her thoughts when she heard Dynamo, talking to her “Oh, I'm alright” she smiled.

@Samurai Equine

She gasped in awe at such beautiful sight of skyscrapers high enough to almost reach the sky and the NPCs strolling around the fictional city, everything seemed too...real to say it's fictional.

“Wow...I couldn't imagine how videogames can create fictional worlds that can be explored in...reality” she said in awe “even the so-called NPC's look like real, so real...”

18 hours ago, C. Thunder Dash said:

@Samurai Equine @CameoShadowness @Dynamo Pad @Pastel Heart @GeneralDirection

””Alright Trilby, guide us to the first level.” Thundy said noticing some skeleton rats close to Beryl. “Uhm...Beryl, you may wanna watch out, not sure if those skeleton rats are gonna attack...” He said. 
 

Chelsea simply waited for Trilby to take the lead. 

 

Dynamo tilted his head slightly, before giving Shadow a nod. "Okay, but still. If there's anything you want to talk about, then don't be afraid to let me know." He would say, offering her a kind smile. Upon entering the city, the gaming unicorn could only nod in agreement. He made sure to keep up with the group, while Trilby continued to guide them to the first level. "You can say that again. I've played my fair share of games, but this takes things to a whole new level. I mean, there are some games that have towns and NPC's to interact with, but not like this." He would say, looking all around him, while taking in the sights of the city and NPC's. 

3 hours ago, Samurai Equine said:

@C. Thunder Dash, @Pastel Heart, @GeneralDirection, @ExplosionMare, @Windy Breeze 🥧, @Dynamo Pad

It isn't long before they all reach the city together.

Shadow Trail made mention about how real the NPC's walking around the city looked. Well, there is a reason for that. If anyone were to look closely, they'd notice... These NPC's? They're actually the citizens of Friendshire. Not the ones that moved in like Dynamo, Shadow, Trilby, and so on. No, these are the citizens that have always lived in Friendshire! And they don't seem to be putting too much thought into where they are going or why.

However, Dynamo Pad also begins to notice something strange happening with his magic. Once in the city, it's almost like he can feel something strange... Parts of this video game are whispering to him. Almost like they want him to know the secrets of this game. Could it really be as simple as focusing his magic on it?

Speaking of focusing, Trilby uses his new video game powers to do just that. He puts a hoof to his forehead. "Everyone, follow me, please. I'm getting a divination." With Thundy and Dynamo's permission, he leads the way. He goes past various shops and other random places in the city. Then he comes to a stop. He points at an alley. "That direction is where Level 1 is located." Then he points towards a busy highway. "Somewhere in that direction are a few Side Quest areas." Trilby looks at Thundy, Chelsea, and Dynamo. "If we are going to separate, we should only divide into two groups. Any more then that would be spreading ourselves too thin... Oh wow! I am getting into character! This game really affects your personality!" Trilby notices. But he's delaying things, so he clears his throat and continues. "Anyways, groups of two. We should consider balance; things like defense, offense, and so on. I'm a Cleric, and like Dynamo pointed out, that means I have some healing powers. My attacks aren't very strong, and my defense is a little better but not much. Looks like Thundy, Silver, Pencil, and Shadow Trail seem to be our biggest powerhouses in terms of offense. Maybe we should share character stats?"

Taking a closer look at the NPC's, Dynamo had felt something was off. These NPC's had seemed familiar, but he couldn't put his hoof on it. He gasped as he soon began to recall some of their faces. "Wait a minute. N-No, it couldn't be..." It was as if his breath had left him suddenly as he looked from face to face of each NPC. "T-These all look like some of the ponies in Friendshire." While he had moved to Friendshire recently, he had met some of the townsfolk who had lived in Friendshire for years. How did they get into the game and why were they NPC's? Something didn't add up, but that was the least of his worries. His horn began to glow with his magic aura as something was happening to his magic. He quickly turned his head behind him, before looking in different directions. Almost as if he was being watched by someone in the shadows. "H-Hey, you guys? Did you happen to hear that?"

Turning his attention back to Trilby, Dynamo nodded as he followed the Cleric, who had mentioned that he had a divination. Looking at the alleyway, Dynamo was surprised to hear that was where level 1 was located. "I wouldn't expect to see a level being located past an alleyway, but I guess some levels are in the places you wouldn't expect them to be." He responded, before looking at the busy highway, while nodding about the side quests. "I think that's a good idea. It's better to have strength in numbers, instead of having to divide our strengths and resources." At the mention of teams and character stats, Dynamo nodded, before gaining a look of confusion upon his face. "I'm all for that, but how do we check character stats? I mean, I have a class I've never heard of before. So, I'm not sure if I'm more offense or defense in terms of battling."

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Dynamo Pad @Samurai Equine @ExplosionMare

Thundy's ears twitched lightly. "Nope...I don't...it could be voices in your head, but I have a small feeling they could be from the game..." Thundy sort of hinted, knowing Dynamo was quite the gamer. He summoned two infantry units and they walked beside the group. 

Chelsea summoned two water guards as well. "Just in case...gotta be fully protected right?" Chelsea asked. 

[Astral Vision 286]

@Dynamo Pad

Astral stepped back in shock as he shared Dynamo's vision, it seemed all of the citizens of Friendshire had been pulled into the world of this game, just how much more trouble was waiting for them? The blue unicorn took a deep breath and calmed himself, seeing as how the citizens were not brought to harm, not yet anyway. After clearing himself, Astral turned to the Justice King, and began to clue him in to the group's discovery.

@Samurai Equine

"Sir, I'm afraid to say that we are not the only ones trapped. It would seem that all of Friendshire has been trapped in this digital realm, meaning they too will only escape through victory or defeat. Let us hope they will be kept safe by our comrades... By the way, Mr. White, since we may be waiting here for quite some time, might I ask you something personal? Your relation to Mayor Black, how was it during your youth? I imagine that the two of you were quite close during foalhood?"

[Windy Breeze 15,189]

@Samurai Equine @Dynamo Pad

Shadow gave Dynamo a skeptic look before looking back at one of the NPCs. She haven't met most of locals of the town and she just socialize with a family whom she forgot their names. She began to think about Sundae, one of the few locals she interact with.

@C. Thunder Dash

When she saw Chelsea's water guard, she slowly approach them “This is wonderful, I wonder if you could touch them” she said.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Windy Breeze 🥧

"They're made of water so your hoof would pretty much go through them. They'll know they're being touched..." Chelsea said as the water guards continued to walk beside Chelsea, keeping a sharp eye out for any enemies. 

[Samurai Equine 51,442]

@Astral Vision

At the castle,
The king, Mayor White, has a talk with Astral. "All the NPC's are citizens of the town? Well, if that's the case, then that explains the feeling I had earlier. This game must be completed. If the champions loose their lives, they can go home easily. But if this game is left incomplete, then the citizens won't be able to go home at all." White observes.

Then he hears Astral talking about the other mayor. "Ah, Black... Well of course we were close. You could say, we were inseparable. In fact... Hmm, how can I put this? It's rather complicated since I don't even know the full details. Roughly translated in the only way most would understand, he is like my brother, because we share the same blood. He is most definitely my kin. And what a childhood we had..." The king looks up as he gets nostalgic. "I can remember so many things we did in our glory days..."

@C. Thunder Dash, @GeneralDirection, @ExplosionMare, @Windy Breeze 🥧, @Dynamo Pad

Back in the city,
Trilby tries to help as best he can.

"Didn't the game give you a description about your character? The rest seems to just be instinct as far as I can tell." Trilby says to Dynamo. "Wait a second... What did you say you were again? Force Gambler? And Pastel's a... Rouge? Rogue? Seems like the two of you are wild cards. You know, characters with abilities that give somewhat unpredictable results. All this talk about game stuff is making me want to play Zelda again..." Trilby looks at Chelsea. "And you must be a Water Mage, right? That probably means you have some healing powers, because Water is the oldest remedy in history. All right... Let's review. We've got 2 healers, 2 wild cards, and 4 power house characters. That means if we are going to divide into two groups, it should be in groups of 4. And since I came this far..." Trilby gulps. "I volunteer to be part of the battle group that handles main levels. There might be bosses, but that's fine. So who should be next?"

(I'm going to let you all decide who is on which team. I would suggest at least putting Dynamo and Thundy in the battle team, and Chelsea in the side quest team. But feel free to disagree and go in another direction. Everybody gets an equal say in this.  )

@Kronos the Revenant

Meanwhile,
By now Kronos has had enough time to reach the city hub world. He can begin spying on the heroic characters. He can choose to stay hidden or to make himself known. Either way, no one can fight outside of actual Levels and Side Quests. Hub worlds are peaceful locations only. Or, he can investigate something else if he wants.

Edited September 2, 2020 by Samurai Equine

[Dynamo Pad 11,311]

20 hours ago, C. Thunder Dash said:

@Dynamo Pad @Samurai Equine @ExplosionMare

Thundy's ears twitched lightly. "Nope...I don't...it could be voices in your head, but I have a small feeling they could be from the game..." Thundy sort of hinted, knowing Dynamo was quite the gamer. He summoned two infantry units and they walked beside the group. 

Chelsea summoned two water guards as well. "Just in case...gotta be fully protected right?" Chelsea asked. 

10 hours ago, Windy Breeze 🥧 said:

@Samurai Equine @Dynamo Pad

Shadow gave Dynamo a skeptic look before looking back at one of the NPCs. She haven't met most of locals of the town and she just socialize with a family whom she forgot their names. She began to think about Sundae, one of the few locals she interact with.

 

Dynamo blinked as he heard Thundy’s response, before giving a deadpanned expression. “Oh, come on. I’m not crazy or have voices in my head. If anything, then I’d hope the only voice in my head would be my conscience. Still, I heard voices, but I don’t know where they were coming from. This just doesn’t make sense.” He says, starting to feel worried about why this was happening. It didn’t help that it was probably only happening to him, as well.

4 hours ago, Samurai Equine said:

Back in the city,
Trilby tries to help as best he can.

"Didn't the game give you a description about your character? The rest seems to just be instinct as far as I can tell." Trilby says to Dynamo. "Wait a second... What did you say you were again? Force Gambler? And Pastel's a... Rouge? Rogue? Seems like the two of you are wild cards. You know, characters with abilities that give somewhat unpredictable results. All this talk about game stuff is making me want to play Zelda again..." Trilby looks at Chelsea. "And you must be a Water Mage, right? That probably means you have some healing powers, because Water is the oldest remedy in history. All right... Let's review. We've got 2 healers, 2 wild cards, and 4 power house characters. That means if we are going to divide into two groups, it should be in groups of 4. And since I came this far..." Trilby gulps. "I volunteer to be part of the battle group that handles main levels. There might be bosses, but that's fine. So who should be next?"

Turning towards the front, Dynamo looks to Trilby as he nodded at the cleric’s question. “I think so. I believe there was a sort of description of the class after choosing it. For my class, I have multiple elemental powers, but it’s a random chance of success. I would need a dice roll to see how effective the abilities are.” He responded, recalling the description of what his class was capable of. “Have you heard of this class before? It sounds like you know based on calling my class a wild card.” He says, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.

His jaw dropped slightly as Trilby had mentioned Zelda. “I didn’t know you had played Zelda. I might be able to add that to the arcade when we get out of here.” He says, nodding as he knew there was a change of subject to plan. “If we are to separate into two groups of four, then maybe we can at least have one healer in each party. I don’t know much about this world, but I will say this. If you need my help, then I’m all for working together on the battle team. It would give us a chance to scout our bosses and how to defeat them if possible.”

[Astral Vision 286]

9 hours ago, Samurai Equine said:

@Astral Vision

At the castle,
The king, Mayor White, has a talk with Astral. "All the NPC's are citizens of the town? Well, if that's the case, then that explains the feeling I had earlier. This game must be completed. If the champions loose their lives, they can go home easily. But if this game is left incomplete, then the citizens won't be able to go home at all." White observes.

Then he hears Astral talking about the other mayor. "Ah, Black... Well of course we were close. You could say, we were inseparable. In fact... Hmm, how can I put this? It's rather complicated since I don't even know the full details. Roughly translated in the only way most would understand, he is like my brother, because we share the same blood. He is most definitely my kin. And what a childhood we had..." The king looks up as he gets nostalgic. "I can remember so many things we did in our glory days..."

@C. Thunder Dash, @GeneralDirection, @ExplosionMare, @Windy Breeze 🥧, @Dynamo Pad

Back in the city,
Trilby tries to help as best he can.

"Didn't the game give you a description about your character? The rest seems to just be instinct as far as I can tell." Trilby says to Dynamo. "Wait a second... What did you say you were again? Force Gambler? And Pastel's a... Rouge? Rogue? Seems like the two of you are wild cards. You know, characters with abilities that give somewhat unpredictable results. All this talk about game stuff is making me want to play Zelda again..." Trilby looks at Chelsea. "And you must be a Water Mage, right? That probably means you have some healing powers, because Water is the oldest remedy in history. All right... Let's review. We've got 2 healers, 2 wild cards, and 4 power house characters. That means if we are going to divide into two groups, it should be in groups of 4. And since I came this far..." Trilby gulps. "I volunteer to be part of the battle group that handles main levels. There might be bosses, but that's fine. So who should be next?"

(I'm going to let you all decide who is on which team. I would suggest at least putting Dynamo and Thundy in the battle team, and Chelsea in the side quest team. But feel free to disagree and go in another direction. Everybody gets an equal say in this.  )

@Kronos the Revenant

Meanwhile,
By now Kronos has had enough time to reach the city hub world. He can begin spying on the heroic characters. He can choose to stay hidden or to make himself known. Either way, no one can fight outside of actual Levels and Side Quests. Hub worlds are peaceful locations only. Or, he can investigate something else if he wants.

@Samurai Equine

"So, are you brothers or cousins? I suppose it makes no difference, but it's still surprising to hear you used to be close. My king, would you care to share some of the adventures you had together with Black in your youth? I don't mind listening, of course, I can only guess it is quite the story to tell."

Astral waited eagerly to see if White would continue to share his past. If he did, then Astral's quest to learn the reasoning of the town's divide would grow closer to completion.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Samurai Equine @Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare

"Which means that there should be one healer per group." Chelsea said. "This totally reminds me of something from Fire Emblem or one of those other war games." Thundy stated. 

Thundy then turned to Dynamo. "You do have to think that what if the game is creating the voices inside your head. It's kinda making me think about something that deals with the entirity of Friendshire...but for now...I really do think that since you're a gamer, the game may be calling you to do something...and I have a feeling that when the special moment comes, you'll unleash a power you've never even knew you had..." Thundy said looking at Dynamo. 

[GeneralDirection 1,050]

@Dynamo Pad @Samurai Equine

Silver idly plays around with a bone in his armour as Trilby explains his idea for the team breakdowns and waits until he finishes before speaking.

“So, two teams, four ponies each. One group mains, other does sides. Sounds simple enough. One healer per side, and it sounds like Trilby volunteers to be in the main group. Dynamo offers to be on the main team as well? Alright, I can go to the side quest team to try and balance things out, unless anypony else would prefer to be there instead?” He offered.

[CameoShadowness 251]

On 8/31/2020 at 7:32 PM, ExplosionMare said:

@CameoShadowness

Pencil’s breath hitched as she saw what looked to be skeleton-rats not far from where she had traveled. She pointed her paintbrush at them, hoping to scare them off. Much to Pencil’s surprise, the rats didn’t even acknowledge her. She stood puzzled for a moment, titling her head slightly. It wasn’t until she saw that their heads were turned the other way that she realized why they hadn’t seen her weapon.

They could be attacking somepony else! Pencil thought in quiet fear.

Treading carefully, Pencil trotted up to the rats to investigate what it was they were huddled around. As she stepped closer, she could make out a pair of wings. The wings began to move and what looked to be a mane was visible. To Pencil, whatever the skeleton rats were cornering appeared to be a bug. Pencil began to walk away, thinking it was just their food source. She stopped mid-pace as the big began to speak.

“H-h-hello? Do, uh, you need any help?” Pencil managed to ask.

Shakily, she summoned a large beetle, just in case the rats wanted to fight. Its large green shell glistened in the sunlight, blinding Pencil for a moment. It had rather sharp spikes around its legs and very large but beady eyes. It sure looked intimidating, but only a role of the dice could determine if it was as strong as it was scary.

Pencil grabbed the dice floating near the beetle and gave them a good shake. They clattered against the ground and displayed a seven. Like the deer she created earlier, its stats weren’t bad, but they weren’t the strongest. Perhaps medium strength was more fitting for this beetle, anyways, seeing as the threat at hoof wasn’t too large.

The beetle was eager to fight, but Pencil stuck her paintbrush out in front of it to keep it at bay. Pencil wasn’t going to let it attack if these rats proved to be innocent.

Beryl turns around shocked and her wings pop up. She turns around and looks at the mare. "Hello?" She was obviously confused. The rats begin getting very rowdy and they seemed ready to actually fight this time around and one even snipped at her. She took out a bone shard and pointed it. Her few bottles can be heard rattling a bit. "Shoot! Get away rats!" She looks at the mare. "maybe a little."

[ExplosionMare 18,062]

@CameoShadowness

Pencil breathed in and out sharply, calming herself down before she instructed her beetle. The beetle stood at command, hovering in the air by Pencil’s side. Pencil looked at it, removed her paintbrush from its chest, then pointed firmly towards the swarm of skeleton rats. The beetle nodded at her command and darted towards the enemies.

The beetle dove bravely into the swarm, batting them away with its pointed legs. Quite a few of the rats were knocked down, but not severely injured. Pencil noted that it was probably for the best since there was no need to kill them so long as the pegasus could escape safely.

The rats squealed and screeched at the beetle in protest, but their cries were unheard as they were thrown across the ground like footballs. Many rats that were knocked down failed to get up; either their bodies were weak or their minds were. A few of the more resilient ones, however, surrounded the beetle and began gnawing at its ankles.

The beetle fearfully flung the rats around as they clung to him like flies on a hot summer day. It did its best and was able to knock a few rats off but was heavily distracted by the others that remained, teeth heavily clamped on its scaly skin.

It seemed there wasn’t much hope left for the beetle. Without strong enough defenses, it was going to remain helpless against the biting rats. Pencil took pity on it, not wanting to see the poor thing torn to pieces. She took the end of her paintbrush and jabbed at the ends of the beetles legs to kick the last of the rats off. The motion sent Pencil flying backwards towards the area the pegasus was near. The beetle was free of the rats, but it was low on health. Defeatedly, it flew off into the horizon with a disappointed gaze pointed towards the sky.

Pencil, after seeing the beetle depart, picked herself up and brushed off her fur. She couldn’t feel any pain, but that didn’t mean a bit of her own health didn’t deplete. Pencil shook that worrying though away for the time being and focused on what was ahead of her. The rats began to notice her as well and were making their way towards her.

Acting quickly, Pencil tapped the pegasus and whispered,

“Hey, we better get outta here! Can you fly us out? I-if not, I guess we can just run or something,”

Pencil could only hope that the pegasus would respond soon. Meanwhile, she thought of the others that she was supposed to join earlier. She hoped she could find them in a decent matter of time. If they were only exploring, surely they couldn’t be far. She would find them once her and the pegasus found a safe place.

[Samurai Equine 51,442]

@Astral Vision

At the castle,
The mayor wonders if he said something wrong. "Brothers. Yes, brothers is the most accurate term to use. Nothing else works." He makes himself a bit more comfortable. "Take heed, grand wizard! For on this day-- Er, ahem, I mean, I'd be glad to share with you, Astral. At least I can since the game has granted me new health! Back in our foal hood, every day was a wild one. Black was always the idea guy, coming up with great ways to have fun. We once made racing karts out of boxes and other cheap materials. We also once made instruments from sewing strings and sticks, and pretended to be in a band. Hoho, such good times! Even if we did get in trouble and make our parents mad from time to time." White begins to reminisce.

"But there were times where we didn't always see eye-to-eye either. In fact, I remember this one time... Oh, you might laugh, but my mother gave me lunch money for 3 weeks worth. And instead of spending a SINGLE penny on myself, I gave it all away to lesser privileged ponies so they could have lunch too. I went hungry most of the time because of it, and Black hated me for giving away money that was rightfully meant only for me, but he still made sure I ate. I even did that a few times when I was a young first-time mayor; I'd give away my own lunches to anyone who needed it. Black told me not to because this job is to stressful to skip meals, but I was happy providing and giving to others. ... Oh, that reminds me of this time I failed to get a marefriend. I was smitten with this beautiful mare you see, but I decided not to pursue anything because I felt like she had plenty of options outside of me, and I'd rather let her be happy finding her own special somepony. Black told me that she probably would have dated me if I had just gone for it, but I'd rather pursue other ponies' happiness than my own. Black was always the more bold and often more selfish type, but I never thought those would be warning flags leading to our separation..."

@C. Thunder Dash, @GeneralDirection, @ExplosionMare, @Windy Breeze 🥧, @Dynamo Pad, @Pastel Heart

Back in the city,
Trilby answers all of Dynamo's questions first. "Seriously, I don't know how I know this! It's like the game is just giving me these extra sensory knowledge. It's all instinct. I say it, and it just feels factual." Trilby says with a genuinely surprised shrug. Then he hears Dynamo say something about getting Zelda for the arcade. "...Can you get Majora's Mask or Ocarina of Time? I really liked those." Trilby tells him, putting a hoof over the side of his mouth so no one else hears.

Trilby looks at Thundy as he explains things. "Dynamo has video game powers? ... That might be useful!" Trilby observes, wide-eyed.

"Okay, so let's see if I've got this straight. Dynamo, Thundy, and I are part of the battle team so far, and Chelsea and Silver are the side quest team. Shadow, Pencil, which team do you want to be in? If Dynamo is in the battle team, then I guess Pastel should be in the side quest team, unless she wants to stay by Dynamo's side." Trilby says.

Edited September 3, 2020 by Samurai Equine

[Windy Breeze 15,189]

@Samurai Equine

Choosing what team she should go with is very difficult for Shadow. She wasn't good when it comes to fighting, but if she joined the side quest team she'll be separated from Trilby. She didn't want to be useful so she made a good decision.

“I'll go with the side quest team” she didn't think of her decision much further but at least she'll be spared from more serious confrontations.

[ExplosionMare 18,062]

@Samurai Equine

Pencil looked up to the grey pegasus, who she believed to be Trilby, as he asked which team she would like to participate in. Eagerly, she responded,

“Honestly, I’m fine with either or. Though, if my powers don’t get as strong as I’d like soon, then I might just go with the side quest team,” 

Edited September 3, 2020 by ExplosionMare
I just realized my whole side quest didn’t make any sense, so I edited it out at least in this post

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

@Samurai Equine

"So then who'd be the healer for our battle team?" Thundy asked knowing that Chelsea also had some combative abilities of her own. 

"I wouldn't mind either team...though I do wanna be by Thundy's side..." Chelsea stated. 

[Dynamo Pad 11,311]

On 9/2/2020 at 11:51 AM, C. Thunder Dash said:

@Samurai Equine @Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare

"Which means that there should be one healer per group." Chelsea said. "This totally reminds me of something from Fire Emblem or one of those other war games." Thundy stated. 

Thundy then turned to Dynamo. "You do have to think that what if the game is creating the voices inside your head. It's kinda making me think about something that deals with the entirity of Friendshire...but for now...I really do think that since you're a gamer, the game may be calling you to do something...and I have a feeling that when the special moment comes, you'll unleash a power you've never even knew you had..." Thundy said looking at Dynamo. 

"Those games sound familiar, but I don't recall ever playing that game series you had mentioned before." Dynamo responded as the mention of a game was brought up. He blinked as Thundy turned to him, before taking what he said to heart. "If all of us and Friendshire got trapped in here, then it looks like the fate of everything is on my shoulders." He sighed, his shoulders falling slightly as if there was a lot of pressure placed upon him. "If it is, then why me? Maybe it was because I touched the VR helmet, or maybe it's like you mentioned of me being a gamer. Whatever it is, then I hope you're right about that." He would say, nodding as Silver volunteered to try and be in the side quest group.

11 hours ago, Samurai Equine said:

 

Back in the city,
Trilby answers all of Dynamo's questions first. "Seriously, I don't know how I know this! It's like the game is just giving me these extra sensory knowledge. It's all instinct. I say it, and it just feels factual." Trilby says with a genuinely surprised shrug. Then he hears Dynamo say something about getting Zelda for the arcade. "...Can you get Majora's Mask or Ocarina of Time? I really liked those." Trilby tells him, putting a hoof over the side of his mouth so no one else hears.

Trilby looks at Thundy as he explains things. "Dynamo has video game powers? ... That might be useful!" Trilby observes, wide-eyed.

"Okay, so let's see if I've got this straight. Dynamo, Thundy, and I are part of the battle team so far, and Chelsea and Silver are the side quest team. Shadow, Pencil, which team do you want to be in? If Dynamo is in the battle team, then I guess Pastel should be in the side quest team, unless she wants to stay by Dynamo's side." Trilby says.

@Pastel Heart @ExplosionMare @GeneralDirection @Samurai Equine @Windy Breeze 🥧 @Samurai Equine 

Dynamo raised an eyebrow as Trilby responded about having all of this knowledge. "I guess it's based on the class you were given, or was given on accident. I guess based on the class, then it's skills and other available abilities are given to the user. So, you'll be given lots of healing spells and buffs, while gaining knowledge of the surrounding towns." He wondered, not truly knowing the answer. "I sure can, but I'll have to look and see if those games are available for the arcade. Personally, I'm more of a Twilight Princess and Wind Waker kind of pony. Although, I do like Ocarina of Time, myself." He whispered back as it seemed that the discussion was private.

He shook his head slightly at the mention of video game powers. "Oh, no. I coined the term of my spells to be video game magic. It's mostly elemental magic, but I'm still unsure of what elements I'm capable of using. I'm still trying to figure it all out, but I hope to figure it out eventually." As the group began to discuss the concept of who would go on which team, Dynamo looked over to Pastel. "It's all up to her on which team she wants to go on. I know she would probably want to go with me, but I think it might be a good idea. She's a rogue, so she'll have the powers of invisibility, right? If so, then she can help sneak around and gather some intel for reconnaissance. Gives us a plan of attack to take on certain bosses and such." 

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,824]

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

"Pastel Heart would be excellent for both groups. Heck, if she's a rogue like Dynamo said, she could gather valuable intel. Once we get further in the game and the side quests are mostly done, Pastel would work wonders with boss fights and harder levels, gah, like the Spy from Team Fortress 2. But maybe Pastel and Dynamo could be together after all...." Thundy stated. 

"I am a water mage after all, so maybe...just maybe I could go invisible too..." Chelsea stated looking at the group

[Pastel Heart 6,466]

@Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare @Samurai Equine @Windy Breeze 🥧 @C. Thunder Dash @GeneralDirection

Just like that, Pastel shifted over to Dynamo's side, quick as a cat.

"I go where this one goes! This casino goer needs to see what real loot looks like! Of course, if the back party is underponied I could always be there too. Though, side quests are never as interesting as the gold at the end~"

Edited September 3, 2020 by Pastel Heart

[Dynamo Pad 11,311]

Just now, Pastel Heart said:

@Dynamo Pad @ExplosionMare @Samurai Equine @Windy Breeze 🥧 @C. Thunder Dash

Just like that, Pastel shifted over to Dynamo's side, quick as a cat.

"I go where this one goes! This casino goer needs to see what real loot looks like! Of course, if the back party is underponied I could always be there too. Though, side quests are never as interesting as the gold at the end~"

@Pastel Heart

In a blink of an eye, Dynamo looked down to notice that Pastel now at his side. "I guess that answers my question." He chuckled, before nodding slightly in confusion. "Do I really look like a casino goer? I guess it's because of the suit, hat and monocle." He pondered out loud, while looking up and down at his appearance. "Side quests aren't too bad, but it depends on the quest. Usually it's good to finish a quest for currency and/or rare items. However, it's always good to fight bosses and/or go on the adventure. So, it's mostly one's own personal preference." He would say, happy to know that Pastel would be possibly going with him.