open Two Hearts, One Fate (SOL)

[ReverieRiver 525]

((OOC thread here))

 

Galatea regretted it only for an instant.
 
For a fraction of a second, she regretted leaping through the portal of her own creation, the portal that breached centuries. That brief moment, when she was thrown from the rift that had opened in the skies over Ponyville, when she first felt gravity yanking her down towards the hard earth below, she regretted what she had done.
 
But then the engineer remembered why she did it. Nano, the robot pony, her greatest creation... her son. She searched for him nonstop for an entire year, and finally she was on her way to where he was. The regret was gone, but not the fear. With the long fall before her, she knew that she probably would not survive. For the first time in her life, Galatea cursed her existence as an Earth pony. What she wouldn't give for wings right now! Even a horn, a unicorn's magic, might have been able to save her. But as an Earth Pony, all she had was relatively above-average strength; and what good was that to her now?
 
She couldn't die, not yet! She had worked so hard for this! She wanted to see Nano, at least one last time. That was what she had come all the way here, through hundreds of years, for. But all she could do was stare up above her, her eyes listlessly gazing upon the closing rift as it became farther and farther away.
 
I'm sorry, Nano... I've failed you again...
 
-------------
 
Ariel hadn't known what she was throwing herself into. She had blindly followed Galatea through the portal, and she was startled at first when suddenly there was no floor beneath her hooves. But after a moment or two, she adjusted to the sensation of falling; in fact, she liked it. To the unicorn, it felt more like she was flying. It was like she had sprouted wings, like she had become a glorious alicorn!
 
She saw the rift above her winking out of existence before she looked down. She saw a strange mass of green below, and it took a few seconds for her to recognize that these were trees, many trees grouped together. She had never seen such a sight; in the industrialized future she grew up in, trees were something of a rarity, let alone forests.
 
Only then, as she saw the ground drawing closer, did it click in her mind that she was falling. She gasped as she looked around frantically with her mismatched eyes, futilely hoping that there was perhaps something she could grab onto. Of course, there was nothing but the clouds she was falling through. She attempted a teleportation spell, only for her to produce just a few sparks from her horn. Naturally, such spells required concentration, and it was somewhat difficult to maintain focus when one was falling to their doom.
 
Was this truly the end? It couldn't be! It was too soon for her to lose the game of life! She wouldn't allow Death to claim her soul, not now. She would fight the collector of souls himself if she had to! She started channeling magic into her horn once more, a steady magenta aura surrounding it.
 
Come at me, Death! I'll fight until the end!

 

((Brief OOC note: Galatea and Ariel have been thrown in separate directions. Galatea is headed to land somewhere on the outskirts of Ponyville, while Ariel is over the Everfree Forest.))

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@@Miss Reaper,

 

Thunder Dash was flying high into the air out on his daily patrol. He then noticed a figure falling from somewhere. "Well, looks like duty calls!" He said to himself as he sped up. He then made it out as a pony as he sped closer. He then gathered electricty for a boost and shot off quickly. He then caught the figure in his arms. "Gotcha!" He said. "You okay? Where are you from? What happened?" He asked. 

Edited October 14, 2013 by Thunder-Dash

[ReverieRiver 525]

@,

 

Galatea was stunned, almost startled when she was caught, her fall abruptly halted. She turned her honey-colored gaze up, looking at the pegasus. She likely felt light in his arms; her body was considerably thin from emaciation. Not frighteningly so, but enough to be noticeable if one were to look closely at her. She was speechless for several moments, trying to gather her thoughts. "I-I'm fine," she stuttered slightly. She hesitated at the pegasus's other inquiries, though. How was she to say that she was from the future? Would he believe her? Probably not. But she could at least say some of the truth, she figured.

 

"I'm not... from here. I came here looking for someone..."

 

If she were a more emotional mare, tears would have formed in her eyes at the thought of Nano. But she had long since learned to guard her emotions, so her eyes stayed dry. But her expression still betrayed her longing and her sorrow.

 

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

 

Ariel crashed through the tree branches, flailing as she tried to grab onto one. Thankfully, however, the branches, though they scratched and prodded her, broke her fall. She landed hard on the ground; the wind was knocked out of her, but she was alive. After a few moments to recover from the shock, the unicorn slowly got back onto her hooves. She was covered in cuts, sratches, and bruises, and her long, lovely mane was now terribly tangled and messy, but she was unscathed otherwise.

 

Unscathed, but lost. She had no idea where she was, and no way to find her bearings with the trees surrounding her; the trees, the trees! They all looked the same! It was infuriating to Ariel. She muttered an old spell before her horn lit up with magic. Within moments, there was a hole blasted in one of the trees. Ariel took a few moments to catch her breath, her horn emanating smoke from the residual power of the spell, before she walked off. All she could do was wander, around and around, hoping she could find a way out of this place.

Edited October 14, 2013 by Miss Reaper

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@@Miss Reaper,

 

"Who?" Thunder Dash asked as he slowly descended to the ground. He wondered how a pony could just randomly fall from the sky from the blue. This wasn't just any ordinary. "Maybe..." Thunder Dash thought to himself as he continued to slowly descend to the ground.  

[ReverieRiver 525]

@,

 

"My... My son." Galatea nearly choked on the words; thinking it was one thing, but saying it aloud made everything more... real. Nano was her son. And she hadn't seen him in a year; it felt so much longer than that to her. It made her realize just how much she missed him. It reminded her exactly why she was willing to go through Tartarus and back for him. Her ears drooped down and she started to tremble just slightly in the pegasus's arms, though she was still trying her best to keep her emotions in check.

 

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

 

Ariel kept wandering around the forest, around and around in circles. She was getting nowhere, and it frustrated her to no end. There were several more trees with holes through their trunks by the time she tired of the endless wandering and decided to rest. She lied down beneath a tree with a sigh, glaring at the trees that all looked the same to her.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

"It's okay. I gotcha." Thunder Dash said as they neared the ground. 

 

Thunder Dash then gently landed on the ground somewhere close to Ponyville, on the east outskirts that led in to the Everfree Forest. "What about your son?" Thunder Dash asked curiously. @@Miss Reaper, 

Edited October 14, 2013 by Thunder-Dash

[ReverieRiver 525]

@,

"He and I were... separated some time ago. I've been looking for him ever since, and I've tracked him to this place," Galatea explained. Memories flickered in her mind, but she quickly dismissed them. This wasn't the time to dwell on the past. She looked around, taking in her surroundings; it all seemed so foreign to her. "Where are we, anyway? I've never seen a place like this before." Perhaps the statement sounded a little off, but then again, she did say that she wasn't from around here... wherever "here" was.

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

Ariel soon tired of resting. She never was one to stay still for long, anyway. She stood and muttered another spell, the same tracking spell that she had used to find Galatea the last time. She was delightfully surprised to find that Galatea was indeed here, and not too far away. Oh, and Galatea was with somepony else? Making friends already, huh? Typical, she thought with a sneer as she began to head in Galatea's direction.

Edited October 15, 2013 by Miss Reaper

[00Pony 286]

@@Miss Reaper,

 

(sorry for the wait!)

 

Saronyx blinked a couple times, coming out of the trance-like state he'd sat in for the past hour and shaking his head, shivering slightly. The blinking and head shaking was a normal occurrence for the Crystal stallion while gazing through a dimensional rift. There plenty of things to see through these, ranging from universes where the Draconequus still ruled, all the way to universes where every stallion Saronyx knew - including himself - was a mare, and vice versa.

 

The shivering, however, was not. That, and pain, was only something he received when trying to perceive the future of his own universe. The only thing that really remained much of a mystery to him, anymore, "But the question is, why did that happen exactly? I didn't even think about looking into our future." He said aloud, mainly to himself, though he had directed the words to the bird sitting on a branch not far off.

 

The Everfree Forest was typically a place many ponies tried to avoid, claiming it unnatural. It was, to an extent. Clouds and weather controlled themselves, with no aid from Pegasi, and magical plantlife grew in abundance. Not to mention the highly unfriendly creatures that tended to wander these woods. But Saronyx found the woods relaxing, and even calming. It was easier to look through a rift in this type of environment. But then, perhaps this place really was stranger than it seemed, considering.

 

Saron stood, stretching his legs as he did. One downside of rift watching, was staying still for extended periods of time. Limbs tended to fall asleep. The Visionary looked up, out of some inexplicable urge, and what he saw both amazed, and startled him. There was a rift! A rift, in the sky, that he did not open himself! Was that what caused the disruption? Most likely, "But that would mean it's... from the future? No, that can't be right! But all the same..." 

Something caught his silvery hazel eye. It looked like something - or rather, somepony - was plummeting towards the forest below. Had they fallen through the rift? It couldn't be a Pegasus, for it would just spread its wings and fly. From this distance, Saronyx was unable to make out any really giveaway features of the individual's race. That did not stop him, however, from doing the math. Going by their height, and the perceived distance, they would be falling somewhere near the outskirt of the forest. Assuming they survived.

 

Saronyx set off at a brisk trot through the undergrowth. There was a path through the Everfree, but Saronyx hardly bothered to use it. Crystal Ponies have a natural aversion to magical effects not their own. The plants such as Poison Joke held nothing more than a faint effect that lasted but a few seconds before wearing off.

 

It was about only half a second before the stallion heard the sound of magical distortion, and a tree cracking. Assuming that came from the pony who fell from the sky, they were most likely Unicorn. And incredibly lucky, to have survived that fall. Though they seemed rather upset, unless they encountered a manticore or had a fear of abnormally sized insects. That did help give Saronyx an idea of where they were though, so he altered his course slightly so he was heading straight for the disturbance, and continued on.

 

Over the course of the next minute or so, several more disruptions and the cracking of damaged trees rang out. Somebody was having a tantrum that much was certain. They were moving as well, in a sort of circle fashion, Saronyx reason, by the sound of their frequent outbursts. Before long, he entered into the clearing where they had been emanating from. Sure enough, there had been somepony here, wrecking the trees. Oh, look, hoofprints - splendid. Saronyx began to follow them, keeping up the same pace that he had the entire trek there.

 

He stopped moving upon catching sight of the culprit. It was a Unicorn mare. She was just lying there beneath a tree. Her coat was a green hue - sort of like a mint green - and her lengthy mane and tail were a vivid red. She seemed to have been through a rather tough time, judging by the twigs in her mangled hair, and the bruises and various lacerations adorning her frame.

 

Saronyx slowed from his trot down to a walk, and approached carefully, as he was behind the mare, and he knew all to well how many ponies reacted to being snuck up on. Before he could reach her, however, the mare stood, muttering something as her aura manifested around her horn with a magenta light. She began moving off, towards the town of Ponyville.

 

Well, no better time to get her attention now. Better than to follow silently and give the impression of stalking. Saronyx cleared his throat, and in an audible, steady baritone called out, "Excuse me, miss? Sorry to bother you, but would you kindly explain to me, just how you got here, and what happened to you?" There were probably better ways to say 'hello', but Saron, despite being a writer, wasn't really one to form eloquent words for mere conversation.

[ReverieRiver 525]

@@00Pony,

 

Ariel froze mid-step, her left front hoof raised. Her opposite hind leg had also been raised, but was instinctively lowered for the sake of keeping her balance. She turned her head to look at the pony that had spoken. Her mismatched eyes were, for a moment, wild, almost as if she would attack the stallion for no reason other than catching her slightly off guard. However, the irrational notion passed, though she still eyed the pony warily. To be safe, she backed away a few steps, until she felt her tail brush against the splintered trunk of one of the trees she had mutilated.

 

She wouldn't make eye contact with the stallion. Subconsciously, her odd eye was still a source of shame for her; it was her curse, and she used to hide it behind her long mane. She told herself that she should be proud of it after she lost her sanity, that her so-called curse helped her "see" things as they truly were. But always, she avoided eye contact whenever possible. Her gaze wandered in the direction she had sensed Galatea and the other pony, before she returned to looking in the direction of the stallion before her.

 

His questions brought about confusion, then defensiveness. She tensed up, her eyes turning colder. "I don't even know where 'here' is..." she said. Her voice was naturally soft, but somehow it still held a hard edge as she spoke. She paused, contemplating her next words. "I fell from the sky. That's what happened. I was following my... friend, and then I was falling."

 

She was trying to piece things together herself whilst trying to explain. Perhaps that was why she was bothering to try and explain at all; if she could organize her thoughts enough to speak them aloud, she could maybe make sense of it herself. All she really knew, though, was that she had been following Galatea, and had blindly followed her through the portal. She had yet to realize that she'd crossed hundreds of years into what she would consider the past. It was confusing and disorienting, especially to her. It was almost sickening, how she knew next to nothing. It reminded her of her more vulnerable days, which she would rather not think about.

Edited October 15, 2013 by Miss Reaper

[00Pony 286]

@@Miss Reaper,

 

Saron tensed slightly. He knew that look she had in her eye. He'd experienced it plenty of times before. Hostility. Whatever it was, however, passed soon after it arrived, and the mare backed up until she made contact with a tree.

 

Saronyx stayed where he was, knowing tht advancing might bring about an unwanted occurrence. For a few seconds, she refused to look at him. Why, Saronyx wasn't entirely sure, but eventually she looked in direction - still avoiding eye contact however.

 

She responded to his questions, stating she didn't know where he was referring to with 'here', and explaining she had fallen from the sky, flowing a friend. Saron held back a dry chuckle, and instead nodded, "Yes, I saw you falling from the sky. You came through a rift.. Not a common occurrence."

 

The Crystal stallion briefly allowed himself to note the stark contrast between his clear baritone, and this mare's nice, soft voice. Though he could tell beneath that, she was prepared to fight should things go south. Saronyx could respect that, coming from a life of slavery. He continued in his speech, "As for where 'here' is... You are in the Everfree Forest, Southeast of the town of Ponyville," he furrowed his brow for a second before speaking again, "Where exactly are you from, miss? If you don't mind my asking."

[Frosty V 309]

Frost sat in his room, headphones on blasting his electronic music. He was relatively bored that day having nothing to do. Tavi was out at orchestra practice and Vinyl had gone off with some friends to a music festival for a few days. He would have gone as well, but Vinyl needed some time with her friends and he wasn't going to intrud. He decided he would go for a walk around , hopefully finding something to do. As he exited rehouse he looked up into the sky and saw what looked like some sort of.....rip, as if the sky were a piece of paper. "At least somepony is having fun somewhere." he muttered sarcastically under his breath as he began to walk down the road.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@@Miss Reaper,

 

"We are in the outskirts of what is called Ponyville. It's a nice town and it's one of the best spots to hangout in Equestria. But it wasn't always like this. You see, an evil foe used to rule this place. He was known as Discord, King Of Chaos. It wasn't until Princess Celestia and Princess Luna defeated him with perhaps the most powerful magic of all: The Elements of Harmony. It's a really long story." Thunder Dash explained.  

[ReverieRiver 525]

@,

 

Galatea furrowed her brow in thought for a few moments. The names, the tale, it sounded so familiar to her somehow. Then she remembered that the portal she opened, the rift created, could have taken her anywhere in any time. It was history that she was hearing; the kind learned about in classrooms, of events that had taken place hundreds of years ago. It wasn't hard for Galatea to figure out that she had been taken to the past, from the future to present-day. Disorienting, to say the least, but she had been prepared for this kind of thing to happen.

 

After briefly sorting out her thoughts, she looked at Thunder Dash and smiled. "I see," she said. She paused again, her thoughts wandering back to Nano. Her smile turned a little sheepish. "This question may sound a little odd, but by any chance, might you have seen a... robot pony around here?" Asking it out loud made her realize just how odd it did sound. But if there was any chance that she could be reunited with Nano sooner, she had to know. And besides, Nano had apparently been here for a year. Surely Ponyville's residents had grown accustomed to his presence, even if he did seem so out of place. Maybe some even knew him.

 

@@00Pony,

 

The moment that rifts were mentioned, Ariel turned pensive. One of her front hooves started scraping restlessly at the ground as she muttered to herself, "Rift, rift..." The word meant something, she knew. She had heard Galatea mention it once. "Rift... He was sent through one..." She was barely audible, but it was clear that she was thinking aloud.

 

Her folded ears perked at the word "Ponyville." That also sounded familiar, but that particular thought or memory was more difficult for her to grasp. She knew she heard it somewhere before, but where? "Ponyville" wasn't the name of any town she knew of. And she certainly didn't know of any forests; those were highly uncommon where she came from.

 

The question of where she actually did come from caused her to hesitate. "I was in the lab... Yes, the lab." She tilted her head slightly as another thought occurred to her. She may not have known where Ponyville was, but perhaps it was close by to the city in which she normally resided, or perhaps this stallion knew how she could get back. "Diadem City... That's where I live. Do you know where it is?" The more she thought on it, the more she thought how starkly different this place was from the industrialized city she was familiar with. Just how far away from home was she?

[00Pony 286]

@@Miss Reaper,

 

 Saronyx's ears twitched, and swiveled forward as the mare before him began to paw the ground with one hoof. She was muttering something beneath her breath, and it took him a second to catch the word 'rift' being said. Before he could ask what was the matter, she said something about 'he was sent through one'. That caused Saronyx to pause. She was thinking aloud. Most ponies may find that odd, but that was a common thing for Saronyx to do. Spending time alone with one's self tended to make one do that.

 

The mare did have some sort of prominent reaction to the name of Ponyville. Her ears, which had been plastered against her skull, were now perked straight upward. Furthermore, his question about her home caused her to begin speaking to herself once again - something about a lab. Saronyx figured she was just getting her thoughts straight. The unicorn mare inclined her head slightly, before stating she came from a place known as 'Diadem City'. 

 

Saronyx furrowed his brow, and searched through his mental records for any hint of the name, 'Diadem City'. It had never existed in the past of this universe... And as he began to sift through his memories of other universes, he was unable to find much hint of its existence. That left three possibilities... Either this mare came from an alternate reality he'd never explored - which was very likely, given the sheer number of them. Or she was plain crazy. But there was still another possibility he couldn't count out. Was this mare... Was she from the future?

Well, there was really only one way to find out! Saronyx took a couple slow steps toward the mare, and held out a hoof to her. He smiled lightly, trying to show he wasn't hostile towards her, "My name is Saronyx. Do you mind if I inquire as to your name, miss?"

 

In his head, Saronyx vowed that the first chance he got, he'd delve into the multiverse and search for any hint of Diadem City, should this method prove either of his points.

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@@Miss Reaper,

 

"Alright. I shall take you to Ponyville. And by the way. I forgot to introduce myself. The name's Thunder Dash, but ponies around here mostly call me Thunder. I live up in that city of clouds way up there." Thunder Dash said pointing to the city in the clouds. "That city is known as Cloudsdale." He explained.  

[Frosty V 309]

@Miss Reaper

 

Frost turned the street corner and ran into something that felt like metal. He hit the friend and looked up. He saw a pony that appeared to be in a robot costume with a red bandana. Frost shook his head to get his bearing before standing up, it looked like the pony hadn't even flinched from the hit. "Hey, sweet costume dude....really realistic. What's your name?" he asked, extending his hoof for a shake.

[ReverieRiver 525]

@@00Pony,

 

Ariel stopped pawing the ground in the middle of the motion, her hoof just inches from the ground. She wasn't used to a display of anything other than hatred or disdain towards her. The last time she had been shown any sort of kindness was when she was a filly, under Galatea's care. But she had found herself alone again after some time. She had felt herself growing more distant from the mare she once considered as a second mother. The madness, her curse, had isolated her.

 

Her hoof trembled slightly. She didn't want those memories - not now, not ever! And she wasn't sure how to react to this stallion. For the longest time, all she ever received from other ponies were scornful looks or scowls, or complete ignorance, acting like she wasn't there; because of what she was, because of things that were out of her control, they held her in contempt. Some even despised her before she ever looked their way. The last time she saw a smile from a pony was from Galatea. And the fact that this stallion, Saronyx, smiled at her... It was somehow disarming, comforting.

 

She felt vulnerable in a way as she found herself smiling in return. It was the first time she'd smiled a sincere smile in a long while, rather than the sadistic grin that sometimes crept its way onto her features. "M-My name is Ariel," she said, surprising herself with the stutter that had slipped into her voice. It sounded more like the mare that she used to be, before the insanity took over. She was torn between being happy about this, and hating herself for it.

 

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

 

@,

 

"My name is Galatea. It's a pleasure to meet you, Thunder," Galatea politely responded. Now they would be heading to Ponyville... She was quite curious to see the town, not to mention that she would be more likely to find Nano there.

 

Her ears twitched slightly as she turned her gaze up towards the mentioned pegasus city. She found the concept interesting, if not a little odd; nearly everpony in Diadem City lived in buildings constructed on the ground. It was usually safer that way, and the structures were sturdier, especially as stronger metal alloys became more popular as building material. And it typically wasn't safe for pegasi to lounge around on clouds, what with the civil war. There were some unicorns that loved to attack using the element of surprise to their advantage. A well-aimed spell would easily take down a pegasus in that position. Either way, it was obvious to Galatea that everything was more peaceful here. It was a nice change, that much was certain.

 

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

 

@@Frosty V,

 

Nano was going about his usual business in Ponyville. Today, he was doing a little shopping for one of his friends, Fluttershy.

 

He felt the impact against his metal chassis when the other pony collided with him, but it did little else. He was a sturdy robot, not easily thrown off-balance. After a moment, he looked at the pony that had run into him. There wasn't even the chance to ask if he was alright before he got back onto his hooves.

 

Upon mention of a costume, Nano blinked once, immediately confused. Costume? Was it Nightmare Night again already? Then he realized that the pony was talking about his appearance. It didn't come across as much of a surprise; the robot was used to ponies reacting to his mechanical nature, namely when there were visitors from other towns. He decided that he would not protest the notion for right now. Sometimes, it was better to let them think something else before revealing the truth.

 

"My name is Nano," he said, politely shaking Frost's hoof.

"And may I ask your name, sir?" Rarity was the one that had taught him the nuances of polite conversation. He remembered, she would scold him if he said even one word wrong. The memory would have made him smile, if he'd had a mouth to smile with.

Edited October 17, 2013 by Miss Reaper

[Frosty V 309]

Frost shook the Nano's hoof smiling. -wow this guys voice acting is great as well.....he also must not be from around here.- he thought, wondering how Nano had not heard of his music. "My names Frost, it's good to meet you Nano." he replied looking the pony over again. "So how long have you been in ponyville?" he asked beckoning Nano to walk beside him. Frost was taking a liking to this pony. -he seems rather nice, didn't even get angered when I ran in to him.- he thought

[00Pony 286]

@@Miss Reaper,

(it is entirely normal for me to want to hug Ariel after reading that, right?)

 

Saronyx was unable to stop his smile from growing as the mare gave him her name, and herself, smiled, "Ariel.." The Visionary said, nodding slightly, "You have a lovely name." And he meant it.

 

It wasn't usually something that Saronyx paid much attention to, focusing more on his stories and ability, but by his standards, this mare was actually rather cute. At least, she had a nice smile, and the stutter in her speech was rather amusing, in a positive way. Ariel hadn't seemed keen on physical contact though, as she ignored his proffered hoof, and Saron slowly, subtly, lowered his it back to the ground. Clearing his throat, he tilted his head towards her, indicating her small wounds, concern creeping into the edges of his baritone voice, "Are you hurt in any, serious way, Ariel?"

 

There were still a decent few mysteries surrounding Ariel. Where she came from, her skittish nature - though that could be written off as her having fallen from a rift, into apparently unknown territory - and how she even now, avoided eye contact. Saronyx was able to see that at least one of her eyes was a purple color. The other was still obscured by her mane. He decided not to ask about it, reasoning that it was just how she wanted to style her hair. If she stuck around, though, Saron was confident he'd learn the answers, in time.

[ReverieRiver 525]

@@Frosty V,

 

"It has been approximately a year," Nano replied as he started to walk alongside Frost. "I rather like it. It is quite peaceful here." While the robot had no direct experience with the civil war that was tearing apart the future in which he once lived, Galatea had told him enough to gather a sense of the grim picture. He could tell, the atmosphere here in Ponyville was very calm and relaxed, while there was always unease whenever he stepped outside in Diadem City - not that he dared to go outside very often then. He had once preferred the sanctity of the lab; it was like his home. But not now. Fluttershy's cottage was his home, and here he was surrounded by friends.

 

As far as he knew, nothing had changed. It was a normal day, aside from encountering somepony new. And yet, he'd felt a strange sensation, something within his processor that was telling him that something had changed, or would change his own life somehow. He knew not that his creator, his mother, had come through hundreds of years for him... but he felt it; he just didn't know what to make of this feeling.

 

@@00Pony,

 

(Oh yes, perfectly normal. ^-^)

 

Ariel couldn't keep a faint flush of color from rising in her cheeks; she wasn't used to being smiled at, let alone complimented, even if it was just her name that he was complimenting. She didn't know why she was like this now; less like a pony and more like a timid kitten. A far cry from when she had tried to disassemble Nano (which would, in effect, have been considered murdering as far as robots are concerned) with a maniacal grin on her face. She had to stop and wonder for a moment, was this the nature of her curse? Even she had no idea how unpredictable she could potentially be, if in a moment's notice she could flip from almost sane to psychopathic.

 

Thankfully, she was distracted from that train of thought when he asked if she had any serious injuries. She looked down at herself, and slowly stretched each of her legs one at a time, as if checking to make sure. A few of the scrapes and cuts on her smarted a little, and many places were sore from bruises, but there were otherwise no signs of serious injuries. Besides, if she had sustained any bad injuries, she figured that she would have known right away. "I'm fine," she said softly, looking up towards Saronyx once more. Her one visible eye met his gaze for all of one second before she broke the brief eye contact. Uncertainty, fear, confusion all mingled within her gaze. She was in a strange new place, and even the ponies seemed to act differently - or perhaps this stallion was an odd one, she wasn't sure; and she was uncertain what to think of it or how to react to it all, especially when her thoughts were so fragmented at times.

Edited October 19, 2013 by Miss Reaper

[Courageous Thunder Dash 7,809]

@@Miss Reaper,

 

"I could take you to Cloudsdale if you want. It's actaully a beautiful city. It's even the place where the weather factory is located." Thunder Dash explained as he slowly lifted into the air at a slow speed. His eyes were set on Cloudsdale, however, the pony he was with needed to get somewhere.  

[00Pony 286]

@@Miss Reaper,

 

Saronyx gave an approving nod when Ariel softly stated she was fine, "Glad to hear it." He said, again finding amusement in the contrast of their vocal pitch.

 

It was down thing of an instinctual question for him to have asked. She seemed to be doing alright, aside from being scraped and bruised. But no broken bones, no major bleeding, unless there had been internal hemorrhaging. So far though, Ariel seemed to be doing alright. For a brief second, the unicorn mare's lavender gaze and locked with the silvery hue of Saron's, but she quickly broke it.

 

That second was enough for the astute stallion to get a brief glimpse of her emotion. All of them were understandable, given the circumstance of her being here, whatever had caused it. He had seen that same look before, back in the Empire. It was a few years before the end of The Oppression, Saronyx had assisted a struggling mare with her load. She had sought him out that night to thank him, and she'd had the exact same look in her eye. Uncertainty about even speaking to him, confusion about why he'd helped at all, and the same fear that was in the eyes of every Crystal Pony during those dark times: why has this happened, and what will become of us? It was all Saronyx could do to keep himself from hugging Ariel right there, to comfort her the same as he had done so long ago for the slave.

 

The Visionary cleared his throat slightly to break himself from the brief second revery and train of thought, before gesturing towards the town, "Anyway... What do you say we get out of this forest? Lovely as it is, it can be a rather nasty place."

[Frosty V 309]

Frost smiled and looked over at Nano, "Yeah it is very peaceful here, I like to take walks like this all the time, it clears my head, gives me some time to just relax you know?" he said thinking of what he could ask the pony. "So..uh..Nano? Where yah from? Saddle Arabia, Manehattan, the Future." he said trying to make a joke of what he thought was a costume. "What about family? Mom? Dad maybe? Any siblings?" Frost started to overflow with questions, but managed to stop himself.

[ReverieRiver 525]

@,

 

"Thank you for the offer, Thunder, but I'll have to decline," Galatea said gently. "I'd rather go and see Ponyville at the moment." And I don't know how I would be able to walk on those clouds anyway, she noted to herself, briefly glancing at her wing-less back. She knew that Nano was somewhere in Ponyville, and of course she desired more than anything to be reunited with him. Nothing else truly mattered, even though she was thankful that this pegasus had saved her life. Now she could carry on, driven forward by the one thing that had kept her motivated this long: her son. But she had to be in the right place in order for her to realize the dream that carried her through that exhausting year of non-stop work, and right now that place was Ponyville.

 

@@00Pony,

 

Ariel felt an overwhelming sense of self-consciousness after their eyes met, no matter how briefly. She even started trying to pull a few twigs out of her mane, tugging them with her magic as if that would help her tangled mane look any better. But why did she care? What did it matter how she looked right now? She hadn't cared before. Perhaps because it was because that their gazes had indeed met; Saronyx had gotten a glimpse into the windows to her soul. Her soul was like a forsaken thing, plagued by a curse and doomed to suffer, even as she tried to hide her suffering. Sometimes her pain was concealed well behind a manic look in her eyes and a wild grin on her face. But there were also moments like this, where she felt like she could almost be sane. Like she could almost be... normal, where she had been different since the moment she was born.

 

Her own train of thought was derailed when he spoke, and that was perhaps for the better. Her mind wandered into some dark places at times; it was somewhat of a relief have herself pulled away from her thoughts before she actually found herself in those places. "Yes, that sounds good. I don't really like this place anyway..." Her ears flicked downwards for a few moments as she again found herself thinking of how maddening the trees were, with their confounding sameness. She knew it would be best to leave, as soon as possible, before she ended up blasting even more trees - or perhaps even Saronyx, if she were to have a strong enough outburst. She found that she really didn't want that happening, though she couldn't help but wonder why.

 

He reminded her of Galatea, with his kindness towards her regardless of what she was. Of course, she had no idea that all ponies in this era were so kind and tolerant. But the fact that he was the first one that had spoken to her after her arrival, wanting to help her... it was almost like a newly hatched duckling imprinting on the first creature it sees. Again, she felt torn between two opposites. She wanted to embrace it, accept the fact that Saronyx wanted to help her; yet at the same time, she wanted to hate both herself and him, herself for being so vulnerable as to need help, and him for wanting to. It made her want to cry; it made her want to scream in rage. Such was the nature of her troubled, damaged mind. All she could do was try her best to continue onward in what was hopefully the right direction.

 

@@Frosty V,

 

Nano nodded his head in agreement with Frost's first statement. Again, if he could, he would have been smiling. However, that feeling of happiness abruptly disappeared when the future was mentioned. The robot paused for just a moment; his ears twitched slightly, the motion causing the metallic pony ears to make a barely audible clicking noise. But then he reminded himself that Frost thought his appearance was simply a costume, and did his best to laugh it off.

 

Then Frost asked about Nano's family. Nano's stride faltered once more, and his ears now folded down. "I... had a mother." Even though his voice was mechanical, the notes of sorrow could still clearly be heard; plus, the past tense immediately betrayed that something sad had indeed happened. "We were separated, just before I arrived in Ponyville..." He recalled the events which lead to his separation from Galatea. He would never forget the sound of her voice as she cried out to him, telling him to run, nor would he forget the sight of the tears glistening on her face as she pushed him into the teleporter when he refused to leave without her. The last thing he had seen was a flash of white light as the teleporter performed its one-time-only task.

Edited October 20, 2013 by Miss Reaper

[supersonicfan91 55]

Lighting arrived at Ponyville because he was transferred to be the new weather manger of Cloudsdale.  He was transferred here because the had enough managers in Trottingham.  As he entered he saw an red earth pony with a mostly yellow pegasus.  He thought he might as well get to know the locals so he went over to tell them hi and introduce himself to the ponies in town.