open Cultures Unite (1x1 with GeneralDirection)

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

"It's not allowed if you want to win." Samurai explains.

"Without further ado... In this coner, Ryugane!" Denki says, and Ryugane steps up onto the arena on one side. "And in the opposite corner, Silver Slate!" Denki says. "That's you're cue, my friend. Remember what I taught you. Turn his strengths into a weakness!" Samurai gives him one last pep talk.

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Toshigami Equine

“I see.” Silver replies as Ryugane is introduced. His opponent steps into the ring, and shortly after, Silver is introduced next. “Thanks, Samurai.” He says to his friend before stepping into the ring and standing in his corner, waiting for Denki to start the fight.

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

Ryugane is not wearing his armor for this. The fight is as level as they can make it.

"Fighters ready, and... Begin!" Denki raises his hoof and lowers it before exiting the arena. Ryugane stands upright and takes a fighting stance similar to that of a boxer. With caution, he inches forward. "The first move is yours, Silver. Try not to hold back. I can take a hit."

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Toshigami Equine

Silver felt himself die a little on the inside once the match began. Even worse, Ryugane awaited his move first. Silver never went first. He waited to see how his opponent would act first, and that’s exactly what was being done to him right now. He also stands upright, attempting to resolve some of the height discrepancy that existed between them. He knew that he would have to try and do something; there was no way they were attracting any origami shinobi with a standoff. After a moment of hesitation, Silver makes his first move and delivers a standard left punch followed a right. Not too weak, but not so strong that he’d thrown himself off balance. He had to be careful here as this type of fighting was completely new to him, and using his magic was not an option.

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

Ryugane blocks the first punch with his forearm. It was like trying to punch a wall. As for the second one, Ryugane grabs his punch and holds it still. "No! You can't win through random punches like this. Start by using your opponents momentum against them. Grab the punch they throw by the wrist, side step behind them..." Ryugane slides around until he is standing behind Silver, pulling Silver's arm behind his own back. "...And then use their confusion and discomfort to trip them." Ryugane sweeps Silver's leg to trip him, but Silver doesn't fall far. Ryugane never let go of Silver's arm. Before he can hit the arena floor, Ryugane pulls him back up into a comfortable standing position. From there, Ryugane dusts Silver off and gives him a second to recollect himself.

"Understand? Now I want you to try and do the same to me, and try to do it all in one quick motion." Ryugane explains. Could it be? That demonstration earlier happened at fairly slow speed. Is Ryugane actually teaching Silver how to fight? Ryugane throws a punch, but he's holding back a little bit, making sure not to throw a punch that is TOO fast. He is giving him just enough of a window to exercise the lesson.

Edited December 22, 2022 by Toshigami Equine

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Toshigami Equine

Unsurprisingly, Silver’s punches have very little effect on Ryugane, if at all. In fact, the samurai actually grabs his hoof, steps behind him, and uses the distraction to trip him. But, Ryugane helps Silver back up, and gives him a moment to consider all that just happened. He also didn’t expect to be given fighting lessons, yet here he was. He nodded his head briefly in reply and tried his best to repeat what he had been told. He attempts to perform the same move, grabbing Ryugane’s hoof and using the momentum to step behind him and perform the sweep. Silver also doesn’t let go, not that he felt Ryugane would need any help, but he wished to extend the same courtesy that had been offered to him.

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

Unfortunately, Ryugane might not look it, but he is heavier than Silver. He slips out of Silver's grip, but it's okay. Ryugane tucks into a roll as he falls, and uses the momentum to stand back up again. "GOOD! Just like that!" Ryugane says as he gets back into a fighting position. "Now here are some simple rules I learned from boxing. When your opponent is throwing punches, hold up your forearms in front of your face. Use the back of your arms like a shield. When opponent gets tired, or when there is an opening, that's when you throw your own punch." Ryugane shows Silver how to make said shield before throwing some jabs at Silver. He really is teaching him! This isn't a fight. It's a veteran fighter passing down lessons to a student! Maybe he might get something useful out of this.

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Toshigami Equine

While it’s completely unexpected, it seems that Ryugane is trying to teach Silver how to fight. He tries to mimic his movements and puts his front legs up like a shield as he’s instructed, enabling him to block the punches that Ryugane throws his way. Once he stops, Silver attempts to throw some punches back in retaliation.

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

Ryugane smirks. He might take a few punches like a champ, but he is proud that Silver is learning something.

Eventually, time passes. No shinobis appear, even when Ryugane starts getting a little more serious about fighting back. Eventually, Denki steps back into the arena. "Ryugane-san, Silver-san, I think we can stop the fight now. If Snow Leopard or his entourage were here, they would have showed themselves by now."

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Toshigami Equine

Silver breaks his attention from the fight and turns to Denki. “Oh.” He remarks as he looks around. “Well, fair enough, then. It’s… really unfortunate this didn’t work out. But either way, I appreciate you taking the time to teach me some things about fighting, Ryugane.” He looks back to his opponent with a smile.

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

There is an obvious air of disappointment, but the rest of the samurai warriors take to the arena. "I agree. I was more than willing to teach Silver some things myself, but you've all ready taught him a lot." Samurai says. Ryugane smirks, but it feels more like a smile than a smirk. "Any creature that is willing to get in the ring to spar with me earns my deepest respect. But there is one thing I never figured out..." Ryugane looks around. "I fight for all this, Silver. My region of Japone is messed up, but it's not beyond hope. I fight so that one day, this part of Japone will be better, so that no little foal will have to get into street fights to live. What about you? If you were faced against an unreasonable evil or overwhelming odds, what would you fight for? What would turn a vagabond into a fighter? Family, love, justice?"

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Samurai Equine

“Well, kirin aren’t much for fighting. We lead mostly quite lives in relative isolation and any creatures local to the area know to stay away from us. But for me, if I need to fight, then I’ll fight for my family. My special somepony, my parents, my sister, and my friends who add meaning and value to my life. Because without them, I’d be a much worse version of myself and would have nothing to live for. That is what ignites that spark inside of me.” He explains.

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

Ryugane nods and then extends his hoof to Silver. "Those who stand for nothing, fall for nothing; and I don't respect those who value nothing. As long as you have something worth defending, I'll always have respect for you. Silver-san." Ryugane says. And as Samurai Equine explained, the samurai warriors don't use honorifics unless they respect and properly acknowledge you.

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Samurai Equine

Silver extends his hoof to meet Ryugane’s and smiles. “I really appreciate that, Ryugane. You all have my respect and my friendship, but I think you all knew that already.” He says while looking around. “So… I guess that does it for the fight. Anypony else got any ideas what we could do, or must we resort to scouting out the land ourselves?”

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

Ryugane shakes his hoof. "Samurai sure knows how to pick his friends." Ryugane comments. Samurai joins them. "Thanks! And you showed some real restraint, Ryugane. You could have done this on one of your televised fighting matches in front of a crowd." Samurai says. "I could have... But the crowd would have wanted a fight to the finish, and I wasn't sure Silver-san was ready for that kind of performance." Ryugane explains.

This part of Japone sure is gloomy. Still dark clouds that can make you swear it's night time, when it's really not. An industrial look and smell in most directions. You'd almost swear that this might be a good place for a video game boss or something. "...I've got nothing. I'm just here for the ride. Though I feel like we should move on." Denki says. "Hmm... I suppose we could do more sight seeing. Catch a show. Help out at one of the metal factories... I think the Firefly Festival is later tonight, if you are willing to stick around 'til nightfall."

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Samurai Equine

“Silver wasn’t really ready for… any sort of performance, honestly.” He replies with a bit of a nervous laugh. “But yes, let’s move on from here. I have no plans, so unless Samurai has somewhere to be, I have no problem with staying for this festival.”

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

Samurai smiles. "It's fine with me. I may teleport out sometime to check on my region, but I'll be back before you know it." Samurai explains. "And I cleared my schedule to be here, so I have time to spare." Denki says. "Then let's get going." Ryugane says and starts to lead the way. "Oh, could we do karaoke again? It's been a while since we performed Dancing Samurai together. Last time, it was just--", "No." Ryugane shoots down Samurai's request.

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Samurai Equine

“Ok, sounds good, my friend.” He smiled and nodded towards Samurai. “This will be a good hangout for us all, then.” Silver can’t help but chuckle a bit at Ryugane’s unwillingness to do karaoke. He didn’t strike him as the type of pony who would be interested in that sort of thing. He also wondered what Vesperr and Charlotte would’ve thought of this if they had been there. More than likely, Vesperr wouldn’t have let Ryugane or anypony else near him. It had been a while since he had seen them, and he definitely missed them both.

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

Samurai is a little saddened that he won't get to do his favorite song with his fellow samurai again.

Later, as they travel through a more populated part of the region together, the difference is quite clear. Other samurai might be warm and welcoming, but Ryugane clearly commands respect. Without even saying anything, many get out of his way or bow in his presence. Only trouble causers would dare do otherwise. Not that Ryugane is saying anything mean or doing anything wrong, he just has a naturally cold presence.

Still, there are some sights to see. A lake with a metal tori gate. A mine turned into a tourist attraction. A robot restaurant? There are some great places to go to kill some time! Any of these stand out to Silver?

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Samurai Equine

The four friends head out from the arena, passing many interesting sights as they walked along. As they travelled through a city, Silver couldn’t help but notice the way ponies reacted in Ryugane’s presence. It was very different from the effects the rest of the samurai had, with Ryugane, he definitely commanded a lot more respect. Out of all the sights they see, the one that sticks out the most to Silver is the mine turned into a tourist attraction. “What’s that mine about over there?” He asks nopony in particular, allowing any one of his friends to chime in. “Is that something worth checking out?”

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

Ryugane slows to a stop and he points it out. "That mine over there? That's the Iwami Mine. When this region of Japone was settled, this was the first discovery made. It was a mine that contains silver and the largest deposits of metal ore in the Japone. Many say that mine is the reason why so many ponies started living in Iwami in the first place. Would you like to take the tour? Nopony uses the mine anymore. Now it's open just for fun; almost like a history museum of sorts." Ryugane says.

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Samurai Equine

“Sure, a tour sounds like a good idea.” Silver responds with a nod. “This looks exactly like the sort of place I’d explore on my own during my adventuring across Equestria. The main difference here, is I doubt there will be any undiscovered treasure hidden amongst a maze of tunnels, protected by dangerous traps.” He said with a laugh. “But that’s fine, learning about history is just as fun to me.”

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

"I think I'll slip out here. I should be back when the tour is finished. See you all later. Excuse me." Samurai politely says and bows before teleporting away.
Ryugane pays for admission for the tour. Inside, the mine has been made safe for tourists. The floor is concrete. There is safety rails. The walls are smoothed over with mental frame supports. And while the walls are mostly rock, you can occasionally see sparkles shining off the walls, each sparkle a different color. "Do you like it? They say you can still see traces of metal ore on these old mine walls. This mine is where they not only found precious metals, but it's also where Japone's first source of commerce was found. Silver mostly. Some gold, some gems, and other things like that. More importantly, with all the metal deposits, the early settlers were able to build homes and many other things." Ryugane explains.

Occasionally, you can see plaques behind the rails, no doubt giving history lessons. But they are written in Japonies, so Silver will have to rely on his new friends to be translators.

[GeneralDirection 1,003]

@Samurai Equine

“Oh, ok. See you later then, Samurai. Stay safe!” He waves goodbye to his friend before he teleports away and leaves him to explore the mine with the others. Inside, the mine is definitely more museum than the purpose it formerly served. No chance of injury or finding undiscovered riches in here. Silver listens to Ryugane as he tells him about the history of this place. “Yes, I do like it.” He replies. “I think it’s cool to see this sort of thing being preserved so that others can learn about it in the future and what sort of significance it had to the early settlers.”

As they moved through the tour, Silver would occasionally see signs put up that no doubt explained more about this mine’s history. However, since they were printed in Japonies, the kirin would look to his samurai friends to translate. “Is it known how long ago these settlers first arrived?” He asked.

[Samurai Equine 49,841]

@GeneralDirection

Denki reads some of the plaques. "Hard to tell, but scientists and historians believe it was 800 PEE, according to your western calendar." (PEE = Pre-Equestrian Era, the show's version of BC or BCE). There are other civilian ponies taking the tour, of course. Some have bought audio cassettes to listen to on their headphones. They soon reach the first core of the mine. This rounded off room is much larger than the series of corridors. At the center is a statue of some random ponies dressed in rather ancient garb made mostly from leaves, sticks, and other things found in nature. "These are the founders that first settled in this region. They were planning to leave, if they believed this region wasn't suitable for living in. Finding this mine turned all that around." Ryugane explains.