open Rediscovering Equestria (G5)

[Reality Check 645]

"I guess inventing gadgets is Maretime Bay's way of having something to defend themselves? If Bridlewood had signs outside to stave off other races then it make sense that the other races would have something too. Even if it's not practical in any way." Reality figured. As soon as the topic of the races separating came up, he also questioned why that is. "You know, that's a good question. Why did the three pony races separated? The fear of the other races has to come from somewhere and it's not like we just separated for no reason. Same goes for the crystals that restored magic."

He glanced towards the poster Plum pointed to, it wasn't hard to tell what it's about or what it's meant to convey. Reality scrunched his snout at the sight of the poster. "Yeah, whoever made these definitely took some liberties."

[Dusty Scrolls]

When Mango asked what their teachers said about the pegasi, Dusty answered with some embarrassment in his voice. "Well, they described you as brutal and uncivilized predators, who eat animals and occasionally young ponies, and even if they spare you, they will steal your sparkle. So I should be scared of you and all the other pegasi here, but somehow I'm not. I know it was all lies. And I don't really want to talk about this kind of things, it's all in the past, now we can start anew and be friendly to each other."

Others were talking about why the races got separated, and Dusty was really interested in that subject. "That's a big mystery that needs to be solved. Maybe we can figure it out together? I think we should study the historical records of all the three species, maybe they can shed some light on this conundrum." He said with some uncertainty, as he wasn't sure if his new friends enjoyed reading old books like he did. Perhaps they had different ideas how they should spend their time together.

[Mango Eve]

When Dusty mentions he was taught pegasi were predators Mango's orange features widen in shock. "I mean we pegasi can be pretty proud... but predators!"  Mango shakes her head in disbelief, orange/green mane swishing. Then again, the ponies in her flight camp had said similar things about the other pony breeds.

 

As the conversation turned to working out why ponies should have turned on each other, Mango cocks her head to one side - she had never really considered that question, but the peach unicorn had a point - there must be some reason why they had drifted apart, and it might be very important to find out what it was. When there is a gap in the conversation Mango opines, "Somepony should find out - as pa always said,"  she coughs importantly reciting the familiar mantra, "the pony who doesn't look to storms past will be the first one to be caught by the next one." 

"Where shall we start looking?" Mango suggests, ever eager to push onwards - always keen to follow a lead regardless of where it went. 

 

[Plum Blossom]

Plum Blossom gave Mango Eve an empathetic look. "Well it's a good thing you came here and set the record straight," Plum Blossom replied, "Hopefully, not that all the species are together again, they can all learn more about each other instead of spreading baseless rumors."

When the ponies started talking about figuring out why the pony species separated, Plum Blossom's ears perked up. "Hey, if anypony would know why the pony species separated, then Sunny would. She has this giant collection of books about Equestrian history in her... lighthouse..." Plum Blossom trailed off and her ears flopped down again. "Which got destroyed by Sprout." Suddenly, an idea flew into Plum Blossom's mind. "Hey maybe if we help Sunny repair her lighthouse, then she could help us find what we are looking for. I'm sure she wants to know why the species separated too!"

By then, Sunny was the only pony left. It seemed like the rest of the group had went off to do other things, so Sunny turned her attention to the rest of the group. She seemed amused by Plum Blossom's idea.

Edited January 7, 2022 by Ocean Wavedream

[Mango Eve]

Mango gives Princess Storm, Zipp, a shy wave as she departs.

At Plum's suggestion, Mango grins and flank bumps Plum - liking the idea, "I'm game! How about you guys?" she gestures to the colts.

 

[Reality Check 645]

Reality turns to Mango as she was in shock by Dusty's explanation of what unicorns were taught of pegasi. He knew Dusty wasn't wrong as that was what he remembered as well when he was in school, but he couldn't help but feel a little guilty about it. "Yeah, I know it's a bit... shocking to learn about what we're taught about, but we can change that; we can learn about each other." Reality said sympathetically.

As soon as Plum raised the idea of going to the lighthouse, Reality just nodded in response. "Sure, I wouldn't mind."

[Dusty Scrolls]

Dusty turned his attention to Sunny, and suddenly realized something. "Wait... she has wings... and a horn... I've read about it somewhere... Is she an alicorn? I thought they were only legends..." He said quietly to the rest of the group.

When Plum brought up the idea of rebuilding the lighthouse, Dusty reacted enthusiastically. Growing up in a forest with no access to the sea, he's never seen anything like a lighthouse, and he thought is was a pretty cool thing. "That's a great idea! I'm not much of a builder, but I'll do what I can. I suppose being able to move things with magic will be useful here. And if Sunny has any information for us, that would be great too!"

[Plum Blossom]

"Yes she's an alicorn," Plum Blossom answered Dusty without much thought. 

Plum Blossom noticed that Sunny was no longer talking with Hitch, instead, she was giving these new ponies in the group an amused look. Plum Blossom trotted up to her to convey the group's intent. "Hey Sunny, the group is interested in finding out why the pony species separated. We know that you have a lot of information about Equestrian history and we were wondering if you might know. Maybe you have some books on it? We could help you repair the lighthouse to help find information about it." Plum Blossom blurted out.

"Hmm, I can't remember why the pony species separated off of the top of my head. I think Argyle might had written something in his books. I appreciate your groups offer to help me fix my lighthouse. The sooner we fix it, the sooner we can find out if Argyle had any information in his books. I suppose we should start by heading over there and assessing the damage. However, I don't think we will be able to finish it by tonight though, so I might need a place to stay for the night," Sunny said, leading the way to her lighthouse.

Plum Blossom followed along, and waved at the rest of the group to follow.

[Mango Eve]

Mango's ears perked up at the alicorn comment, wondering about the unfamiliar word. For some reason she associated it with 'Princess' but she couldn't think why - to her, Princesses were fashionable Pegasi  

Mango prance-fluttered along, still trying out her new ability to fly. Along the way she would small talk with Sunny or anypony near her, "Such a shame about the light-house - I can only think if my parents' place was smashed up. I heard that it was smashed up by a giant metal monster made by a pony, which also almost stomped on the Princesses! What sort of pony would do a thing like that?" 

[Reality Check 645]

Reality looked towards Sunny and immediately noticed. Sunny had pegasus wings and a unicorn horn. He never knew anything about alicorns, only that he's heard of them before, so he didn't know how to react when seeing one for the first time.

As he was following along, he heard Mango's comment about the lighthouse being destroyed. Reality didn't answer, as he had no idea how to answer that.

[Dusty Scrolls]

Dusty followed along. The discussion went to the subject of what destroyed the lighthouse, which peaked his interest.

"Is that giant metal monster still around? It is dangerous?" He asked no one in particular.

[Plum Blossom]

Sunny answered both Mango's and Dusty's questions. "Well, the metal, uhh, thing, was made by Sprout at Canterlogic. It nearly trampled a lot of ponies, which is why Hitch is going to have a talk with him right now. You see, Sprout, like the other ponies in this town were constantly being told by Canterlogic about how scary the other species are, and how they are all evil and out to get us for some reason. With all this propaganda and fear mongering, somepony would probably decide that it was time to do something. From the benefit of hindsight, it seemed like Izzy was the last straw, and I feel like I shouldn't be surprised it was Sprout that snapped given his connections to Canterlogic," Sunny explained.

"Yeah Sprout was all like 'We have got to attack these other pony species because apparently we are supposed to scared of them for some reason. The other species are evil.' Like, why do the other species do these things? How do they benefit from attacking us? If that attack actually happened, than that would justify the other species being afraid of each other, so I'm glad that Sunny, Hitch, and the others were able to stop him in time," Plum said. After the attack, Plum would never see Sprout the same way again.

"Well, here we are," Sunny said as the group rounded the bend. "Sprout's contraption is down there on the beach," she said, pointing off of one of the cliffs nearby. Sunny's usually cheerful personality was replaced with intense sorrow as she looked over the remains of the lighthouse. She had managed to avoid thinking about the lighthouse when magic got restored and she was talking with her friends in the main plaza of Maretime Bay, but now that she was facing the remnants once again, her mood dampened.

At least for Plum Blossom, the scene was kind of eerie; She couldn't say for the others given that they didn't live here. What was once a shining beacon in the night had basically been reduced to nothing but broken concrete. There was something about the quietness of it all and the dust that could still be felt in the air that made the whole experience all the more off-putting. In addition, the magical burst of colored lights was now quickly fading from the night sky, making it harder to see things.

Sunny looked around the rubble, then perked up as she pulled something out. It appeared to be blueprints of the lighthouse, albeit very dusty ones. Sunny blew on it, clearing the dust, then lit up her horn, letting those around her see the plans. "I knew Argyle kept the blueprints for the lighthouse in there. Now, should we get started, or wait until morning?" Sunny asked the group.

[Dusty Scrolls]

Dusty felt relieved that the metal monster was just a wreck and it wouldn't hurt ponies anymore. The ruined lighthouse was a sad sight though.

He saw that Sunny had created magical light. He knew from books that unicorn magic could do it, but he didn't try it himself yet. He focused on making light with his horn, but being untrained in magic, he only managed to create a dim glow, far from enough to illuminate the ruins. "Oh well, it seems quite hard to do it effectively. We need a better better source of light to assess the damage, so if we don't have it, we will have to wait until tomorrow. It's good that we have the blueprints, they will help us figure out how much materials we need. And with the rebuilding itself, of course."

Edited January 23, 2022 by PawelS

[Reality Check 645]

Needless to say, the lighthouse was in a way worse condition than Reality thought. About half the lighthouse was crumbled and rubble was everywhere. Not to mention that the metal contraption that Sunny mentioned looks like it won't be seeing use anytime soon.

Reality then noticed Sunny and Dusty pull off an illumination spell and figure to try it himself. He lit up his horn and tried to make a light source. He was able to create a fairly bright light, bright enough that he could see his surrounding clearly. Though the light from his horn did flicker a few times, forcing him to put a bit of focus to make it glow steadily. "I think we should wait until tomorrow, I'm not sure if there's enough light for all of us to see during construction."

Edited January 24, 2022 by Reality Check

[Plum Blossom]

"Yeah it's so dark I can barley see a thing!" Plum Blossom complained. "Hey I know, we can all have a sleepover at my place! It would be the best slumber party ever! We could do all the fun slumber party things! Oh, and my parents won't mind in case you're wondering. Come on, it's this way," She exclaimed, her ears perking up at the idea of a slumber party. She gestured for the others to follow.

The Plum Family farm wasn't far away, and that was a good thing too, because if it was any longer, than Plum Blossom would have been stumbling in complete darkness. She led the other ponies up to her bedroom, which had a rustic farm feel to it. In addition, it was large enough for everyone to have a spot to sleep. 

"Are you all tired yet, or do you all feel like doing something before we go to sleep? If so, I have some questions I want to ask you all. What is it like being a unicorn? Do unicorns really live in trees? Do you eat pizza? If so, what toppings do you usually use? Also, you can't actually fry brains with magic, right? Please tell me my history teacher is wrong on that one," Plum Blossom rapidly fired off excitedly.

Sunny seemed to smirk at the fact that Plum Blossom was asking the exact same questions she did.

[Dusty Scrolls]

"Sleepover? Sounds fun, let's go!" Dusty said happily. Plum led the group to her bedroom, which felt like a nice and cozy place. Dusty wasn't very sleepy yet, so he was ready for some activities before going to bed.

Plum started to flood the two unicorns with questions, and Dusty tried to answer them. "Some of our houses, mine included, are made inside large trees indeed. I like pizza with mushrooms, we have some good ones in the forest. As for frying brains, I suppose the most powerful unicorns and alicorns of old times could do it... I mean, the sources don't mention frying brains specifically, but their magic was very strong... I haven't even tried to create a laser beam from my horn yet, and I'm not going to do it here, because I could break something."

"So, what about you, Plum? What are your favorite things to do?" Dusty asked curiously.

Edited January 31, 2022 by PawelS

[Reality Check 645]

"Eh, I guess it wouldn't hurt. Lead the way." Reality said as he followed along. They soon reached a farm that's less than a mile away, then arrived in Plum's bedroom. The inside had a comforting feeling, enough to give Reality a bit of inspiration on what he could draw next.

Reality wasn't tired yet, so he figured he'd stay up for a bit. That's when Plum began firing questions at both unicorns. "Yeah, some unicorns lived in trees, though I'm one of those ponies that don't live inside one. For pizza, I just eat mine with cheese, since I'm not really picky on the toppings. And for the brains part, I doubt I'm actually able to do that, let alone know how." Reality answered.

Wanting to draw for a bit, he took out his sketchbook and continued drawing a sketch (using his newfound magic) that he's been working on, while also perking an ear at the conversation.

Edited February 2, 2022 by Reality Check

[Plum Blossom]

"Oh wow, you actually live inside of a tree? What is it like? What is Bridlewood like in general? I haven't heard much about that place but I heard that it's really dark there. Is that true? Oh thank goodness unicorns can't actually fry brains. That would be pretty bad if a certain unicorn went mad in a quest for world domination," Plum Blossom laughed nervously.

"Let's see, my favorite activities are helping my older sister around the farm, and going on adventures with my two friends pretending that we are still searching for out cutie marks. My friends called the group the 'cutie mark crusaders' for some reason and the other day we dug up 50 holes on the beach. I don't know why we did that though. Something to do with pirate cutie marks or something like that. I also like drawing. Say, what are you drawing, Reality?" Plum Blossom asked, peering at Reality Check's sketchpad. She had so many questions to ask, and she didn't know where to begin, so she fired off the first ones that came into her mind, hopping from one subject to the next.

"And what about you, Dusty? What do you like doing?" she asked back.

Plum Blossom couldn't help but to marvel at Reality Check using his magic to draw. It reminded her that she should probably figure out what kind of magic earth ponies had. She would have to ask Sunny Starscout tomorrow, because it appeared that she had already gotten herself comfortable in a sleeping bag and had fallen asleep.

Edited February 1, 2022 by Ocean Wavedream

[Mango Eve]

Mango, who had tuned out a little, shared Sunny's sorrow at the destruction and was also a little sick with the latent fear from the signs of fighting strewn all around. She snuck a few glances at Sunny, wondering how she could have coped with it all.

At the lighthouse Mango was in a daze, ears low to her furry orange head, not at all like her normally buoyant self. In an impulse, rather than return with the others, she fell behind the party, making an excuse and telling them she'd catch up, trying not to draw their attention. As they trotted back, Mango instead galloped towards the darkening sea over the edge of the precipice next to the ruined lighthouse and flung herself into the sky.

After a short but satisfying flap to clear her head, skimming the waves as she used to skim rivers near home, Mango wheeled back towards Maretime bay, quickly picking out the multi-coloured hues of her recent companions heading into a farm building on the outskirts Maretime bay. She felt a little guilty for being so quiet and then disappearing like that, but she knew they'd understand.

She sped down, feathers and mane/tai fluttering, and then spread her multihued orange wings to break (Zipp style) before she alighted and trotted into the Plumb's room. Noticing them talking Mango raised a hoof to say 'hi' and listened to the conversation.

[Dusty Scrolls]

Dusty continued to answer Plum's questions. "It's nothing special, really. It's just like a normal house, but with the shape of a tree. Bridlewood is... well, it is pretty dark there, but there's also a lot of crystals, they give it kind of a mystical feeling."

When Plum asked him about himself, he hesitated a little. "Me? I'm often called a nerd, or a 'book horse'. My favorite thing to do is to go to the library and find some old books to read. I've read everything that was available to me in Bridlewood, but I think there are some things hidden from the common citizen, perhaps this will change now when all the races are friends again... I also like geography, I don't mean only studying maps, but also a more practical aspect of it. Sometimes I go outside with my friends to explore the wilderness."

"Now, I want to know more about you, Mango. What's it like to live in Zephyr Heights?"

[Reality Check 645]

Reality hears Plum Blossom taking interest in his drawing. He also noticed her looking in awe at him using his magic while sketching the moment he took his eyes off his sketchbook. "Well, it's not done yet, but I guess I could show you." Reality replied before showing it to the other ponies. The drawing consists of three pony fillies, one from each race. The unicorn and earth pony are running on a field of grass, while the pegasus flew in the air, all of which are happily racing with each other.

"I've been making this ever since Izzy showed me that message. 'You have friends in Maretime Bay, come visit us,' if I remember correctly. I admit, I was a bit skeptical at first, but it got me thinking, maybe the other ponies aren't as bad as I've heard. So... I made this, thinking maybe one day, we could be friends with one another." He said as he introduced his drawing.

Edited February 6, 2022 by Reality Check

[Plum Blossom]

"Oh Mango, there you are. I was just asking the unicorns some questions to get to know each other. Oh, and Sunny has fallen asleep already. Maybe we should prank her," Plum Blossom giggled, failing miserably at stifling it.

Plum Blossom turned to Dusty Scrolls. "Oh, what kind of mystical feeling? Is it like creepy, or what? Or is it more like, magical? So, you like reading books? I like reading books sometimes too. However, all the books in my house are all plum related for some reason. Weird. That's why I usually go to Sunny's place for books, or used too." Plum Blossom said, her mood dampening slightly over the fact that it was destroyed. She perked up again as she moved onto the next subject. "That's why we are going to fix it. Geography sounds interesting too. It feels like half the time my friends wonder what is out there during our cutie mark stuff,"

"Oh wow, that certainly is interesting," Plum Blossom said, examining Reality Check's drawing. "It certainly looks much better than the canterlogic junk by the theater. These ponies actually look like you, and you," she said gesturing to the other ponies in her room.

"Yeah what is Zephyr Heights like? I heard that it's built on top of a really tall mountain and you can't see it because it's blocked by clouds," Plum Blossom added onto Dusty Scrolls.

Edited February 14, 2022 by Ocean Wavedream

[Mango Eve]

Mango's ears are perked above her head, listening to the back and forth about the different breeds of pony. As she listens, she leans forward to gaze at Reality's sketchbook and is touched and impressed when she sees pegasi, earth pony and unicorn sitting flank to flank.

It takes Mango a little while to realise that the other ponies are addressing her... "Oh! What's it like to live in the eddy of the mountain?" she says, unthinkingly using her term for the mountain whose currents had dominated her life, from the time she was an itty little foal and was taught how to fly sideways out of the powerful currents flowing around her home. "Well. In Zephyr you give the wind respect. Never blow a raspberry in its face. No matter how mean it is." Mango says earnestly. "At the base of the mountain, Zephry's wind is all ill humour, but it's not only bad - it has also blown the most interesting ponies our way  not just pegasi either, my ma would tell me of unicorns and pegasi who would pass by our place! We acted kinda as wardens to the mountain until we had to stop." Mango babbles like the enthusiastic filly she is.

[Dusty Scrolls]

"That's a nice drawing, Reality. You have talent." Dusty commented, looking at fellow unicorn's sketchbook. "Was it hard to learn to draw with magic? I haven't tried that yet."

He turned to Plum to answer her question. "They do look magical. Now when I think of it, it could be part of the reason why most of us were so depressed. The crystals were reminding us of the magic we lost..."

Then he started to inquire Mango some more. "Yeah, I get it, it's a mountain and the wind blows all the time. But I'm more interested in the social life in Zephyr Heights. I heard it's a big city, and you have all that advanced technology and stuff..."

Edited February 13, 2022 by PawelS

[Reality Check 645]

Hearing everyone's comments, he felt a bit proud that they liked the drawing. "Thanks," Reality said to all of them. As soon as he heard Dusty's question, he thought on how he could answer before speaking. "Not... really? It was pretty easy for me, but I'm not sure if that applies to everyone. Though I gotta admit, using magic does make it easier to get the details."

Reality listened to Mango's words and could help but wonder about how her words, notably the part about blowing ponies their way. "'Interesting ponies'? You mean ponies outside of Zephyr Heights have stumbled by before?"