/vx/ - Videogames and Paranormal

>>136560
Amber smiles. "Sure! What did you have in mind.
You can see we have lots of different things...."

>>136578
"Uh..." She looks around at various items, especially woven sweaters that are a bit less formal, as well as practical jackets, some of which seem to be nylon and water-resistant.
"Uh... maybe this one?"
She picks out a white woolen coat that has an air of formality to it, but is thick and plain with a black band around the center.

>>136580
She pets the coat
“It does look nice... but not as nice as the dress... it definitely looks ‘warm’...”
She pulls her lips back

>>136581
"What are you looking for? A warm coat to look nice and attract attention? A dress to get gussied up for a party?
Maybe something smaller like a shawl?" Amber tries to gauge what's going through the mare's head.

>>136375
"Well..." She looks away from SIlver's eyes, up and towards the left.

"It was kind of cold that morning... which is very unusual for that time of year. It must have been the breeze, so I got on the ground between the crowds of ponies where it was warmer. I rather small then, and I was young to get my cutie mark. My mother was very much a proud follower of Celestia, she was very proud to be there. She told me her father took her when she was a filly, and she still has fond memories. Really I think she wanted something to brag about to the other mares at church. My father was proud to be there but for... very different reasons. You see, he was a member of the civil service for the treasury. So when his superior extended him an invitation to go to the Summer Sun Celebration he considered it quite an honor... and something of a career move. That isn't where my mind was. I didn't want to be up so early, and I didn't like the way the dew made my fur wet. I liked that we were in Canterlot - we spent most of the previous day taking the train from Dappleshore to Fillydelphia, and from there to Canterlot - and I wanted to walk down the boulverard in midtown and go to a candy shop...."

She pauses, and her eyes move from to her upper left at what seems to be a water stain in the ceiling of the motel room, to up and directly in front of her; above Silver. Though, throughout the conversation, she has regularly kept eye contact with Silver, no more than 6 feet in front of her face, her eyes tend to wonder during her long tangents. Every time before, however, it has been to the right, or slightly down.

"You know, I didn't actually have a direct view of her when it started. Someone next to me told the ponies around him 'shut up, it's starting,' and just like that the entire field went quiet into the most perfect silence. Not even a chirped. I moved back in the crowd of ponies, so I could have a better look... there were other foals there who stood on the shoulders of their parents, but that option must have escaped the thought of my parents... The light came upon us slowly, and from where I was I noticed it first on the ponies around me. It illuminated their stilled faces, transfixed on what lay before them, even as I remained in the shadow. I think that it what made the experience for me; seeing how it affected the others first. When I did see the light, it came down on me from above, over the top of the ponies in front of me. Kind of like how light comes over a mountain, or a line of trees in the morning, but... not the same. The light was, different somehow. When you feel it in most mornings its easy to feel a sort of mundanity to it, a feeling that it just happens every day. But when I saw it, I felt it. I felt its warmth upon me. And I do mean that in the sense that for the first time that day, it felt like a summer morning... but it was more than that. Like a warm that removed fear and loneliness."
She begins to smile, and her eyes widen as she stares above

"I felt enveloped by the light. Like I had been lifted out of the group of ponies, like I was going to merge with them. Merge with the source of the life giving essence. I felt like I was raised above the wet grass, above the group of ponies, and into the air."
Then she winces, and now finally turns her eyes to SIlver

"When the sun was raised higher, I had to pull away. Of course you don't look directly into the sun. I was blinded for a number of seconds. It felt like a minute, but it was probably about four seconds, where there was the image of a bright light imprinted on the center of my vision, and darkness off to either side, pierced by the rays emanating from the central light I could see it even when I closed my eyes, and it only slowly faded away and was replaced by the view of the ponies around me. The crowd cheered, and I cheered too. I could feel my self as a part of it, a cheering mass below the ever-rising sun. I felt the rush of euphoria as I tried again to look at the sun, only to pull away when it was too much for my eyes. I think it was only after this point that I saw Celestia herself at all. I don't remember seeing her at any point during or before the raising. Somehow... she looked almost mundane compared to the light, though Light Bringer she was. It took about fifteen minutes... well, maybe a minute and a half, but it took some time for my mother to look back at me. I still remember seeing her just glance down, pull her eyes back, and then turn back to me, and say 'Pear! You got your cutie mark!" and she turned to me and I turned to my flank and I saw it. My father turned down, smiled and said 'alright!' though I swear that for a moment he looked disappointed..."

She smiles widely at Silver
"They took me to the candy store later that day."

>>136582
"Uh... yes! I mean... I don't have a party or anything in mind but I... well, I would like to look nice when I am doing things like buying groceries, or am on my way home from work.. you know?"

>>136583
Silver's eyes sparkle and smiles back widely, clearly in awe of her cutie mark story.

"Are you certain you are not Celestial chosen?"

>>136596
*and he smiles back

>>136596
"Heh"
She smiles at Silver in a kind of embarrassed and awkward way. And yet, she isn't bashful like with the compliments on her translation abilities. She does not lower her ears, nor turn her head away. Rather, she stays where she is, eyes, ears and head facing forward, on Silver.

>>136599
"Heheh..."

Silver in turn smiles as warmly as always at her. His body language suggests he's relaxed and comfortable around such good company. His attention is focused on her, but being unable to think of much else to talk about at the moment, he just sits there quietly enjoying the calm moment.

>>136607
She smiles, and slightly lowers the posture of her head
"Uh..."
She looks off to the side

>>136608
Silver rubs the back of his neck, thinking of things to talk about.

"So...anything else you would like to say about yourself? Favorite foods, friends you have...any lovers?"

>>136609
This causes her to back up a little, and to essentially sit upright. She smiles awkwardly and grabs the end of her wrapped tail, as if to play with it.

"Not... really. I've been mostly alone since I started my professorship. There's been a precocious student or two that has been good to talk to... I've thought of socializing at the church, but the academics don't have the best of reputations..."

>>136610
Silver's eyebrows raise in surprise at her statement.

"Truly? I honestly do not know why. You are smart, interesting, great to talk to...and if I may, your appearence absolutely does not hurt you."

>>136611
She smiles awkwardly, and drops her tail, sitting up in place towards Silver
"I.... I had an somepony, sort of... kind of, when I was in graduate school. But we sort of drifted apart and I think he joined the Navy. I... sometimes get advances by professors at the University, but... they don't really share my values."

>>136612
"Huh...is there anypony at university that shares your values?"

>>136613
She exhales, and seems to ease, looking down then back up
"In the students, sometimes. Or in some of the workers, like janitors and cafeteria staff. There are a couple professors, mostly older..."

>>136614
Silver scratches his chin in thought.

"Why is that?"

>>136615
"It's... it's a very different world in the Universities. Very different. The students and the workers... a few of the professors, come from among the locals of Stable Side. Many of them come from farming families, or craftspony families. Something a bit... closer to the standard practices of ponies, if I may call it that. Closer to old wisdom. But many of the professors, and some of the students, they come from the Petty Bourgeoise, or their parents were academics. They look to knew knowledge, new discoveries. Many who don't have that as their background, adopt it."

>>136616
Silver leans forward in his seat.

"You sound like you have had experience with both. I take it you align more with lower classes than upper?"

>>136617
She blinks
"It depends. Not in Baltimare, that is for sure. The upper classes are, I think, more likely to be... 'refined.' They are more likely to appreciate art, or enjoy moderation, or to build for the future... but they are also more likely to pursue profit at the expense of all else, or adopt the belief in no values at all in pursuit of naked power. The lower classes can range from families working hard and faithful, to hooligans, alcoholics, and Anarchists."

>>136618
>>136617
"The lower classes in Stableside tend to be the third or fourth generation of descendants of settlers after the railways came in, working on farms. Those, I have few problems with. Miners... not so much."

>>136618
>>136620
"Are miners in Stableside really so bad?"

>>136621
She shakes her head
"I just mean they are more prone to certain ideologies. I think that is true everywhere."

>>136622
Silver slowly nods, understanding what she means.

"Before Stallionists, St. Petershoof was city of many different ponies holding many different professions. Dock workers, merchants, craftsponies, farmers, fisherponies, clergy, clerks, and aristocrats. There was little issue between them before Caramel Marks and Steel Stallion came."

>>136623
Her eyes go wider
"Are you from Severyana?"

>>136624
He smiles and nods.

"You could not tell from my accent? Yes, I was born in Severyana before revolution."

>>136625
"Heh, I meant that you came from the secessionist districts as a part of the emigration. Can you... tell me more about that?"

>>136626
"I was not there when Steel Stallion declared his revolution, but I learned much of it from other Severyanans after, fleeing fighting. They were not only group involved in civil war. There were others, united under one united White Movement. Farmers, aristocrats, merchants, members of clergy, clerks, and many from older generations of my people. They both opposed Steel Stallion and his radical Reds, and desired their independance from Equestria, which they felt had abandoned them. Some wanted to form their own republic, built by Severyanans to serve Severyanans, others wanted to restore old Severyanan Empire from before we were integrated into Equestria with descendent of Tsar Peter on its throne, and others were simply joined because they recognized threat communism posed to us. They were centered in St. Petershoof, heart of our people, and fought valiantly to oppose Reds and preserve our honor...but they were too divided, and their leaders could not agree on plan of action. As Steel Stallion pushed ever closer to city, they were betrayed by dock workers loyal to Red cause, and Reds were able to join up with them to push Whites all way back to Peter and Pony Fortress, first building to have ever been built in city, where they had their last stand, holding out until Reds had broken through fortress walls themselves and had captured White leadership."

>>136627
She nods, listening in on the story
"I've head portions of the story... Not necessarily from the same perspective."

>>136628
"There was great cathedral in Severyana before our civil war. Temple of Light. You might have heard of it. It was made of purist white stone and adorned with gold, and it stretched taller than every other building in city. My father told me when he took me to it that all Severyanans should get to experience it once in their life. Being inside that cathedral was like being in presence of Celestia herself, even with he being so far away from cold Severyana. It was designed to let sunlight come through its domed roof, and when it did, light would reflect off of walls and throughout entire cathedral. And when it reached midday, during Summer Sun Celebration...it felt just as you had experienced, when your own mother had taken you to see Celestia raising sun..."

>>136629
She nods, rather solemnly
"I would like to have seen it."

>>136630
Silver joins her in her solemn nod.

"I did not take my own foals to see it, and that I do regret. It is travesty what Reds did to it, when they burnt it down, shattered its walls, stole its gold...all but erased it from world entirely..."

He sighs.

>>136631
She bows her head curtly in a single nod.
"I've heard the same out of Aquelia" she adds. "And even a few stories from here in Baltimare, during the revolts."

>>136632
"It is unfortunate, terrible, that they believe religion to be such a threat to their 'ideology'. That they feel they have to destroy such beauty..."

>>136633
"It only follows from their premises. They believe that only the realm we see and feel is real and has any relevance. Anything spiritual is a superstition at best, and more likely a charlatanism perpetrated by established interests. Aquellia had it the worst because of the power the church there had, how the church was seen as beholden to foreigners and the privileges the clergy had under the Discret Dynasty. Severyana had similar pressures, but I think the masses of the ponies remained believers, and so the violence was more tempered. That didn't save the Temple of the Light though... They built their 'Palace of the Soviets' overtop of it." She sticks her tongue out in disgust.

>>136634
He looks to be a mixture of angry and sick for a couple seconds.

"And they say they hate religion...when they are building what is cathedral to communism over top of what was greatest Celestialist cathedral in all of Equus."

>>136635
For a moment, she seems to form a smile
"I don't know about the greatest"
Then she drops the smile, evidently realizing it was a poor time for a joke. She shakes her head.
"Well, to them it follows. It sort of is a Cathedral... to them. You see, in the oldest traditions, there are spirits in the world, and then ponies can achieve a connection, even a unity with this spiritual realm by achieving noble deeds. Then in the Celestialist Traditions, Spirit is abstracted above but Celestia and other Alicorns are the most perfect incarnation of the spirit in ponykind, and they can inculcate the Spirit, which is now synonymous with Harmony, into the ponies. Then Spirit is abstracted even further in the Reformed traditions, pervading almost everything and definitely synonymous with Harmony and serving to develop ponykind and other creatures. Then in certain philosophies like that of Erebus Haygle, Spirit, Harmony, and ponykind are all merged into the same, with Harmony and Spirit having no existence at all outside of creaturehood... and then finally we have these Materialist Magicalist traditions, where spirit disappears completely. There is only creaturehood and Harmony, and a world haunted by nothing, but waiting to be conquered. Well, I say 'finally.' Perhaps I shouldn't. In some of the even more modern philosophies, the world is haunted again, but by ideologies and beliefs rather than spirit, and any notion of Harmony disappears. There is only struggle over power and interests."
She sighs
"So when they build there Palace of the Soviets, they really do think they are building a Cathedral. They are building a Cathedral to celebrate what they think is the workers taking control over the economy."
She looks down and shakes her head
"What a pathetic god to worship. Some fur coats, maybe? A few shipyards? Some furniture factories? That is their god now. Work. Stripped of any notion of virtue in conducting it, like diligence or work effort. Somehow I doubt they will find even that very meager god."

>>136636
"Somehow, I think those in Supreme Soviet do not even go that far, and believe that it will be cathedral to them, and their 'achievements'."

>>136637
"Humph. Well... I don't know how degenerated the command up there is, but I know what I hear from the ponies in my own fellow departments... from the professors I will be spending my sabatiical with. They believe that all of history is classes and tribes dominating over each other, and every aspect of culture and every institution is simply a tool to power, and nothing more. To believe that, I think, does something to you. It makes you think that money, status, and power are the only good things to be pursued, and that any means is valid to pursue them. Caramel Marks... well, he wasn't so degraded as that, and there was more of the older ways in him. But still, it is an ideology that sees money and power as the only good things, and sees them as worth killing for, while it sees creatures as created by their farms, factories and shops rather than the other way around. And it sees them as having even less ultimate dignity or value than these things. Maybe they really do see themselves as lliberating the ponies from centuries of oppression by entrenched nobles..."

She shakes her head

"I really don't think they will find it. In my experience, in my studies... in my heart. I believe that those who pursue only wealth, power, or status may find it. But they never keep it"
She shakes her head
"Never."

>>136638
Silver nods with conviction.

"All of these things are temporary. Friends and family, however, will last lifetime."

>>136639
She nods
"Mhmmm. Maybe even beyond, as so many traditions believe."

She pauses for a moment

"I think I see what Firebirch, and what Twilight were trying to do. Firebirch - you've never heard of him and that's okay, but Caramel Marks read him intently - Firebirch wanted to take Friendship and Fraternity, and expand it into a Brotherhood of Ponykind. A kind of unconditional love for those we never met. But the thing is, actual friendship, actual brotherhood, is very intimate. You have to actually know them, understand them. Be in sympathy with their interests and form a portion of your world around them, and likewise them to you. A brotherhood of ponykind is... it's impersonal. How could it possibly be otherwise? It turns 'brotherhood' into charity. Friendship into the act of tossing a coin to a beggar. It debases the concept... it doesn't expand it. Much the same with Twilight and her expanded notion of Harmony. I can see what she was trying to do. What she wanted to do. She wanted to expand harmony to all of the nations, a brotherhood of all creaturedom. I suppose she figured if it could happen with the three races of ponies, it could happen with the non-equine races. But even that"
She turns off to the right, and holds her hoof up as she narrows her eyes
"It's so much more complex than that. So all this expanded harmony really does is to replace friendship and building a community with a philosophy of pacifism and... race relations. Both of these philosophies replace personal morality with government policies... but enough of that. It's something of a tangent."

>>136640
He shakes his head at her.

"No no, it is perfectly alright. I find all of this interesting, especially coming from you."

>>136642
She smiles, a little bit embarrassed, and again sitting upright

"You know, we were talking earlier about The War, and why it went so much more poorly than it should have. I think it is because of some of these ideas, these insidious new ideas. They don't really separate the hero from the villain on any kind of abstract level. There isn't really any difference in intent really. It used to be that the hero is the one who had courage, and who sacrificed themselves to save those they loved. But now... Now the hero is one who sacrifices themselves on behalf of the Nation, or of the Class, so that the Class or Nation can take land belonging to someone else. Of course the individual 'pony' doesn't exist under this only the class or the nation or the race, so if the class or nation or race sacrifices the pony for its own sake, its all the same to them... all it is is about taking power or wealth belonging to someone else, and taking it for your own and calling it 'liberation' or 'freedom.' That is heroism today, what was yesterday recognized as villainy. Not everyone believes it. Most ponies even don't believe it. But enough of them did that... it's like steel. If you heat up steel, carbon steel, to a very high temperature, you can beat it with a hammer or even rapidly cool it in water, and it will only get stronger. So it is in the past... and I pray again, in the future, that removing the comforts of life shows how little the comforts matter, and forces harmony and heroism. But if you add an impurity to the iron, like silica... when you hit it with a hammer, it shatters. Our defeat was something like that."

>>136643
Silver nods, remembering their conversation from earlier.

"What do you think that impurity was?"

>>136644
She pauses, and seems as if she is about to say something, but closes her mouth. She's still sitting upright, and she's been occasionally using her forelegs in gestures as she speaks, but she sways in place in her unstable position. She looks from side to side.

"When I entered University in Fillydelphia, in my physics class - it must have been only my third class in University, my second day there - a professor said that Celestia did not raise the Sun, that the celestial bodies were free floating entities alicorns could scarcely touch. I couldn't believe I was hearing that. I sat brewing in my seat until the end of class. I was so offended... I can't say after everything that I'm not impressed by some of their arguments, but still..." She looks down, bites her lip, and then looks back up to Silver

"The audacity to claim that... Do you want to know what I think is the impurity in modern Equestrian Society? In Severyana and New Mareland and Aquileia? It's Progress itself. Ponies no longer have to fear famine unless it's caused by a war or government mismanagement. They can live long. See far away stars. They don't have to worry about at least most diseases, and see fewer and fewer of their foals die. They see planes travel through the sky, and the clouds themselves made by factories. The problem with all of this isn't merely that it breeds complacency. Complacency can be overcome. The problem is that Ponies themselves come to see themselves as gods, or to see ponykind - or creaturekind - as a collective god. There is no enemy they cannot conquer, or has not already been conquered. Therefore, they see themselves as the highest thing in the universe; that they have already achieved the grandest stage of development. There is no humility. They see no need for virtue, for persistence, courage, wisdom, temperance, 'friendship' in any real sense. Never needing to mature, they instead go to their basest instincts, and elevate those to the status of a religion.

They need to be humbled. To see what a god really is. Only when their power amounts to nothing and their wealth is burned away will they appreciate the value of friends. Courage, kindness, generosity, loyalty... That's how it worked when the Windigos froze the lands, that is how it worked when the younger alicorn sister blocked out the sun, and that is how it must work in the future."

>>136646
Silver seems to be held up on the first part of her statement, and looks at her with a mix of shock and disgust.

"We see her raise and lower it, same as Luna! How can anypony deny what is right in front of them?"

>>136646
While I like what this horse is saying but she speaks too long, imo. One post, were your character explains their persective or two, okay. But several is annoying. But as long as your players are fine with it I guess its okay.

Don't do this >>136583 with Fantasy though. I'll probably won't read it anyway and Fantasy will roll a bite roll and bite the pony speaking. ;P

>>136575
Ooh-hoo-hoo.

>>136674
In this particular situation, I do like what she says a lot. But again this is not the first time I have reacted to how one-sided these conversations are.

>>136674
>>136675
I think Silver is trying to sleep with her, so it only makes sense that he sits and pretends to be interested as he listens to her ramble.

>>136676
Sure, I don't know the context so in this situation it might make sense. And again, I kinda of do like your characters opinions and often what they are talking about.

I just think that you have done this a lot before. Just try to avoid doing these one-sided conversations with my character and there is no problems.

>>136676
I think you are very competent, just giving my opinion and prefrences. :)

>>136584
Amber smiles. "Alright, let's see what we have here." She looks for something relatively inexpensive.

>>136684
"Uh..." She has a rather awkward smile
"Yes..."

Inexpensive ware, among other things, leads Amber back to the sweaters, although the one semi-formal heavy dress remains an option.

>>136680
I was a philosophy major in college, so you'll see things like these posts.

But now I know what you prefer so, I will avoid those with Fantasy Play.

>>136685
D'aww, thanks

>>136686
Amber prods a sweater with a hoof. "These are popular from what I'm told. Probably more practical to wear everyday than a whole dress, but I leave it up to you."

>>136688
"Uh, how much for the dresses...?" She has a wide toothy smile

>>136689
Amber tallies up the price and tells the mare.

>>136690
About 100 bits for the formal dress, 38 for the semi formal, and 12 for a sweater.

Imagine a timelapse of a flower wilting condensed to two and a half seconds, and you have an understanding of how the mare's lips slowly came down as the price was related to her.

>>136692
Amber smiles awkwardly. "Prices here are among the best in town…at least, I think they are."

>>136693
"Uh... hehe, do you have store credit?"

High Sewn is already shaking her head from behind the counter, watching with neutral expression

>>136694
"Er, no…but maybe we could hold a piece of stock until you've saved enough for it." She looks hopefully at High Sewn to see her response to this. "Living in a brick house in town isn't cheap, but I think a nice sweater will suit you fine."

>>136695
"In... layaway?"

High Sewn nods

"I guess... Hopefully there will be enough after the next pay check..."

>>136696
Amber pats the mare's withers in consolation. "What is it you want, exactly? It'll be here next time you stop by."

>>136697
"Uh"
She pulls up her lips again, and this time, in a manner like a wince.

"I think... this one"
She points at the relatively formal heavy dress

"But I really like this one"
She points to the more formal dress.

"But I'll take this one"
Pointing again at the formal dress
"When I... have enough money"

>>136699
She smiles in a friendly manner. "Take your time.
Hope to see you soon and best of luck!"

>>136700
She returns to the awkward smile
"Uh, okay... Thank you for the help!"
She slowly turns around, and slowly walks out, tail down

>>136701
Amber waits patiently for the next customer to show up.

>>136702
After an indeterminate passage of time, a mare walks in through the front door. She does not look around nor modify her pace as she walks from the door and towards the back. She wears a white an black faux fur jacket. Her mane and tail are curly, and partly in a bind, but partly just messy, and they move up and down as she moves forward. Her left lower eyelid is partly raised up.

>>136705
Amber cheerily approaches the mare from the side and walks beside her. "Hello, ma'am, how can I help you today?"

>>136706
"Hmmm?"
She turns her purple eyes, though not her head, to Amber. Her faux fur coat extends down her forelegs as well. She makes a big smile, and she seems to be around High Sewn's age

"Well yes, I'm expecting my fiance to return today, or any day now."
She speaks with a thick accent of the Hayseed Swamp region

"And I just need to look my best"
She pulls up a part of her hair on the left as if to make the point.

>>136707
"Oh, that's wonderful…um, of course!" Amber thinks to herself for a moment before continuing her reply, "You already look wonderful, what more do you need?" Evidentially this is not a rhetorical question as Amber scans the shelves around the store.

>>136708
"Oh have to be up with the times. Must look the best for when Sterling Starlight comes home."
She moves her head closer, and bats her eyes with a smile

"So a fine dress, if you have any."

>>136710
"Certainly! Right this way." She leads the customer to the area with the dresses.

>>136711
She looks around
"Not a bad selection"
She inspects a yellowish looking dress
""But... you're young. What do the stallions like the most, these days?"

>>136712
"Oh, erm...I just arrived in Baltimare yesterday. I can't say I'm an expert, but…" Amber tries to remember what dresses mares her age were wearing in the better parts of town.
[1d20 = 1]

>>136713
Ooh, fun!

>>136714
>>136713
It was kind of weird. They'd damn near put bunches of bananas or pineapples on their heads to make themselves look like cornucopias, or something.

>>136717
She raises an eyebrow
"Come again? The fillies wear... fruit?"

>>136719
She looks into Amber's eyes in serious contemplation, and waits a moment, before nodding
"So, do you... what do you have in the way of turbans or hats?"

>>136720
Amber shows what's in stock.

>>136721
"Uh... Maybe.... This dress kind of looks like a banana..."

>>136723
She blinks
"'Fine' will not do." She tilts her head and closes her eyes as she says "Only exquisite."

>>136724
Amber nods uncertainly, "If you say so…"

Who will be here this weekend?

>>136738
I am!

>>136649
She shakes her head
"The more fanciful ones say that the sun and moon just rise naturally independent of pony input, and the princesses merely mime moving them. If there is any appearance of movement separate from its standard pattern, it's just illusion magic. Another subset say that the Princesses can and sometimes do move the celestial bodies themselves, but these things don't need them, and can move on their own. Still another group - actually this is an older idea - says that the sun and moon can move on their own, but they need alicorns or unicorns to adjust their movement and keep it from crashing down. But in all of these explanations, telekenesis magic isn't any more special or spiritual than magnetism, for example."

She smiles and snickers
"Not that any of the professors can explain how they work."

>>136725
There's a bright yellow... if you add the green top to this orange one, it kind of looks like a pineapple. Or maybe a lime green dress.

>>136741
Amber nods and gets the green top, assuming of course that such articles are interchangeable.

>>136742
It takes a little bit of creativity in mixing and matching various layers of clothing, and a little bit of imagination as well. She’ll probably need to go by a hat store and a grocer, but she’s well on her way to the highest levels of fashion.

>>136743
Amber smiles at the results of her amateurish attempt to dress the mare. "You look…how did you put it again…exquisite!"

I'm ready to play if you are.

>>136794
Hello

>>136744
A nice green cravat, a scarf on top of that that is also green, a brown and orange dress... there, she looks like a pineapple. Dude will marry her for sure.

>>136795
"I think you're ready.…" Amber tries to gauge the response of the mare.

>>136796
She looks into the mirror near the changing room, studying her appearance carefully. Then she nods

"This will do."

>>136797
Amber has second thoughts about this but doesn't air them as she leads the oddly-dressed mare to the counter. "Right this way, miss."

>>136798
She closes her eyes and smiles, adjusting the layers of clothing over herself,

"Quite a hot dress for a summer's day, but it'll be worth it for when my stallion steps out of that carriage."

It adds up to 135 bits

>>136800
She ties her mane into a bun, and pulls out of her bag a few coins, evidently golden but not really appearing to be bits, and placing them on the counter.

>>136801
Amber inspects the coins and their odd pattern.

>>136802
She's given about six of large, yellow coins. On one side of the coin is an image of a griffin wearing a crown and the words "Duex Florin," and on the other side is some... thing - what looks like a torch with a spear on top, and then something like a wing spiraling around it. The coins are a little off in their construction. None are perfectly circular, and some are notibly oblong. The stamping is often off center, and none of the rims are pristine in their dimensions. The coins are all high relief. Some are a little worn, but most are not. The final coin is about half the size of the other six, and has the same symbol on the reverse, but has a... female? griffin on the obverse, and the words "Un Florin." All of the coins are a heavy yellow metal, ever so slightly faded, and are larger than any bits Amber has ever seen.

Amber stares at the unfamiliar coinage and calls out, "Miss Sewn, I have a question about these coins."
She raises her head and smiles apologetically at the oddly-dressed mare, "I'm sorry for the inconvenience."

>>136804
She walks over, moving her hair back with magic. She looks at the strange coins:
"In Tartarus are these things?" She moves one close to her eye to inspect it
"Well, this looks to be actual gold, so it has that going for it over the paper money."

>>136740
"That is...crazy talk! Of course they raise and lower sun and moon. They have for well over thousand years!"

He shakes his head in disappointment, and returns to her point.

"What threat exists that could unite ponykind? Dread League suddenly coming out of hiding and invading all of world?"

>>136807
"Dread League?" Her left ear flops down then back up.

"I am not sure. The Changelings may have done it, and may still... but maybe they are too mundane, too ordinary. Too much like just another competing set of Warlords. At least I hope ponies don't see them that way. But it's, well, the surprises that strike fear into ponies. The Windigo Crisis, the return of Nightmare Moon... those sorts of things."

>>136808
"Like Nightmare Moon? I hope whatever world-ending threat comes for us does not take another thousand years."

>>136805
"Do we accept it, ma'am?" Her ears flop down. "I don't know how much it is in bits…"

>>136809
She smiles widely as she nods for an extended period of time
"Like Nightmare Moon"

>>136810
"I don't know either. A couple years ago we'd just reject this, but with rationing and now paper money receiving gold is kind of a blessing"
She looks up from the coins and towards Amber
"Should probably make a surcharge though, because we'd have to sell this."

>>136811
Amber only nods, evidentially still confused. She looks back to the customer.

>>136812
[1d20+4 = 19]
High Strewn speaks to the mare

"We're sorry, there's a surcharge on the... 'foreign exchange,' we need ten additional bits, or its equivalence."

>>136811
He smiles back, though not nearly as widely.

"Let us hope that, whatever it is, it does not end up actually ending world. You mentioned windigoes. That might actually end us, with as much discord and strife there is in world."

>>136813
>>136812
She twists her lips
"I forget sometimes just how inconvenient the city can be."
She pushes over another "Un Florin" coin.

High Sewn
"Best of luck."

The mare takes the dress, the cravat, the scarf, and the stockings, and fluffs up the bun on her mane.

"Oh he will just faint when he sees my outfit when I have it complete"

>>136814
She answers to him
"There has always been strife and discord... what I am afraid of is a world without anything noble."

>>136816
"I'm sure he will!" Amber says as she waves goodbye. When the mare is gone she looks down at the "florins" and remarks, "You reckon they're any count?"

>>136817
She picks a couple coins up and drops them on top of the other. They give a sharp, high pitched ring, that ends quickly.
"Well, that's gold alright."

>>136816
Silver slowly nods after a couple seconds.

"I can agree with that. I think it is part of reason so many looked up to Celestia, Luna, even Elements of Harmony. I think we never fully gave up herd mindset after we as species had awoken. We looked up to somepony to lead us and show us how to be noble and true, and now that they are gone...who is it ponykind will look to now?"

>>136823
She inspects them
"They look to be Griffin" Her face eases up, before again becoming confused and uncertain
"But they look like they are old. I'm not sure how old... But it is gold."

>>136822
She shakes her head
"I don't know. Without Celestia as the mother of ponykind, I wonder. But I am more concerned as to what we will look to. And I hope it is something better than money or land, or some flowery term like 'liberty' or 'reunification' that really is just the same thing."

>>136825
Amber grins. "We sure get all sorts of folks passing through these doors." She ponders something to herself. "It's odd, though, that one pony really wants one dress and can't buy it, but another spends just as much on a medley of clothes at a whim…"

>>136825
Silver tilts his head.

"Is that even possible for us to do? After so long of having our Alicorn Goddesses, going to look to some ideal for our values?"

He scracthes his fluffy chin in thought.

"I hope it is something worthy of Them."

>>136828
Is this spoken dialogue to High Strewn?

>>136829
"I assure you, it's already happening."

>>136830
The unicorn stallion tilts his head at her.

"It is? What is value we are looking to?"

>>136828
She shrugs
"That's the way this industry is, really. We're not selling bread, something everyone needs and most can afford. We're selling most dresses, a luxury you only really buy when you have money to spare or a once in a lifetime occassion. Not everypony can afford them, and some can afford more than others."

>>136832
"Well, I don't have the greatest faith in Anarchism, Equestrian Socialism, Republican Fascism, or the Liberals... but I've spoken quite a bit already."

>>136833
He continues his smile.

"Are you sure? Unless you are getting tired, I have no problem with talking. This has been most interesting conversation I have had in forever."

>>136835
She gives a half smile
"I'm sure you'll want to wear the white lace come the day of your wedding too." She looks up, then to the side, then:
"I need a smoke break."

>>136836
She smiles
"There are a couple students who can be so curious. Not many though. Not many at all. There's not much concern for intellectual nuance these days. Or probably in most days, really."

>>136837
Amber giggles in response. "I don't even know any colts yet!" However her expression becomes confused when High Sewn suddenly cuts out of the conversation.

>>136838
She looks down as she pulls out a cigarette and a match. She does not make eye contact as she says:
"Probably for the better. Stay self-sufficient, you'll do well."

>>136837
"It helps that you are so interesting. I have not met anypony quite like you before."

>>136840
She gives a kind of embarrassed smile
"D'aww"

>>136839
"Um, o-okay.…" However, the sudden reversal spurs her curiosity such that she follows with, "What do you mean?"

>>136842
She is walking towards the door now
"Having somepony to help you, to support you, that's great and all. But make sure you can stand on your own four feet if you have to."

>>136841
He leans in slightly towards her.

"Are you sure there is nopony with your views who has taken interest in you?"

>>136844
She leans a little back, and her eyes move away
"I don't... I don't really talk to that many ponies..."

>>136846
"Keep it up. Only then, look for a stallion."
Then she looks back to Amber
"Then again, there may not be too many of those in your generation. May have to snag one when you can. Anyways, I'm going for a smoke."

>>136848
He smiles wider just slightly at her reaction.

"You talked to me."

>>136849
"Heh. Well you came here to me, to my motel room. Kind of like a student in office hours."

>>136850
Without eye contact:
"Oh I need it... We had some wierdos this morning..."

>>136851
"Does this make me your pupil, now?"

>>136851
Amber frowns slightly but says nothing. Weirdos?
But they all seemed nice…

>>136852
Her ears go down, again with an embarrassed smile

"Well I didn't... I wouldn't say that... Although I guess if you want to be."

>>136853
She opens the door, and goes outside, smoking her cigarette.

As Amber waits she hums a little tune to herself, but she can remember only one part and the rest seems lost to memory.
https://youtu.be/M8YM58PH66g

>>136855
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RxlZgToMDjk

She is outside for several minutes, leaving Amber to herself. But she returns soon enough.

"Afternoon shift is coming soon" she says

>>136856
Blinking, Amber sputters, "You mean it's lunchtime already?"

>>136857
"No, but be ready when it comes."

>>136854
"I would not mind studying under you..."

He lowers his eyelids slight, puts on a mischevous smile, and speaks the next word in a low, heavy voice.

"...professor."

>>136858
"No problem!" she answers cheerfully. She continues to wait patiently.

>>136859
She gives a half smile, and generally seems to sit there (still upright), as if not sure what will come next

>>136861
He holds the look for a couple seconds before it's replaced by one of confusion, then one of general acceptance.

"Not interested, I suppose?"

>>136862
She blinks

"What?"

>>136863
"Well..."

He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly.

"...you have been really nice and interesting pony to talk to, and you said nopony who could share your values had any interest in you, so...I was testing waters bit, seeing if you had any interest in...that."

I have to sleep now

>>136864
She blinks a couple more times
"What do you mean?"

>>136865
"Well...you know..."

He smiles sheepishly at her, and finishes his thought in a small voice.

"...mating?"

Alrighty. Goodnight!

>>136866
Her eyes become very wide, and all of a sudden, she pulls back her lips in an embarrased smile, starts to blush, and waves her forelegs in front of her. This knocks her off balance from her upright position, falling a little to the left, and then throwing herself to the right so she does not fall off the bed. She falls down onto her side, her forelegs and muzzle partly hanging off the edge, her right hindleg still folded underneath her, but her left hindleg stretched out and almost reaching Silver. Her tail, which was curled up to her left before, gets caught on the pillows and headboard behind her, and thus does not cover her hindquarters. Although she falls onto her side, she quickly moves her forelegs under her, so she moves her head upright and back towards Silver. She is definitely blushing.

"Do you - Do you - Do you mean 'dating'?"

*Continues to patiently wait*

>>136887
What's her appearance again?

>>136887
He chuckles at the frankly adorable display.

"I am not sure our respective situations would allow for dating each other, unfortunately. But no, I meant 'mating', as in, uh..."

He puts on a more sensual voice.

"...'fucking', to use primal term."

>>136889
At this point, Pear gives up trying to right herself, and falls over onto her right side, her face expressionless and somewhat facing Silver. She blinks twice, and has no words to say.

>>136891
Silver's expression slowly falls, as he tilts his head at her display.

"...Pear?"

>>136892
"Yyyy-yes?"
Still lying on her side, she uses a hoof to pull her mane back behind her

>>136893
"Are you alright? Did I take it too far?"

>>136894
"Sort of... that was... very forward."

>>136895
He rubs the back of his neck and offers an awkward chuckle.

"Heheh...I apologize. Subtlety has never been my strong suit."

He looks down at his large size and hefty build. Even under his fluffy coat it's clear he has a sizable amount of muscle mass.

>>136896
Silver's mass finds no parallel in Pear, who, despite being of the Earth Pony race, lacks that race's typical virtues. She looks rather slim, small, and weak. Now, she places her forelegs underneath her again, and forces herself upright. She also pulls her hindquarters inwards, so that now she is sitting upright again, but leaning against the headboard in the center of the bed. She uses her hooves to remove the bands from her mane, and then her tail, showing both to be rather long and thick, covering her head in red hair. She places all four legs in front of her as she leans back against the wall, and looks over at Silver.

"I didn't... realize you were here for that..."

>>136898
"Not originally, no. I came here because I thought it would be interesting to get to know you better, but I will admit that you have piqued my interest. If you do not wish to do, well, that...please, just say so, and we will forget I ever brought it up."

>>136899
"You...." She looks down, "What did you say your profession was again? Aside from arguing with High Chair over who gets an antique sword?"

>>136900
"I suppose best word for it would be mercenary, as dirty as it may sound. I like to think myself as kind of adventurer, though."

>>136901
"What makes an 'adventurer' to you?"

She's not making complete eye contact, and is now trying to organize her mane, brushing it as best she can with her hooves, since she has let her mane down. Before, it was tied up in a way that would keep it out of her face easily.

>>136902
"Number of things, I suppose. I travel from place to place, taking jobs from ponies that vary from delivering letters to stopping ne'er-do-wells. When I do not have job, I sometimes wander and explore. I used to be retired from that life before War came and I went to help Equestria."

>>136903
"Does it give you greater freedom? Maybe 'freedom' isn't quite what I mean. Power?"

She is still playing with her mane and looking down and to the right.

>>136904
"Power, no. Freedom is bit closer, but it is not quite what it gives me. It is more being able to see new places, experience new things, and talk to new ponies. I feel as though I have grown to understand much more about this small slice of world than if I had stayed in one place for my entire life. It is also good feeling to help others in their time of need, using what few skills come naturally to me."

>>136905
> It is also good feeling to help others in their time of need, using what few skills come naturally to me.
Ohh La la Someone is gonan get laid in collage
>>136889
What is this fatal? ;P

>>136905
"I don't mean that, I mean... You strong-armed High Chair and Grant into giving you a very valuable ancient sword that they claimed as theirs. Then you see a mare you want to... you don't use any kind of euphemisms or bother with dating, you just ask 'do you want to mate' with a mare that I don't think you think is 'easy.' Well, I hope not, but I mean - I mean you seem to expect to get what you want without having to deal with formalities or any kind of politesse or social ritual. Like there is little separating your will from from what you want. Like a gangster. I don't mean to compare you to a criminal, but I don't know who else live like there are no laws to restrain them, except criminals and despots...."

>>136907
Silver slowly nods, realizing the pretty ridiculous position he's put himself in.

"Ah. When you put it like that, I can see how bad that is. I did not mean any offense, Pear. Forget I ever asked."

>>136908
"I don't mean it's bad, I mean - people sympathize with gangsters in films. You know? That kind of 'I can do what I want' attitude has an appeal, I just mean..." Now, she looks at Silver with an awkward expression
"Uh, nevermind. I... don't mean that."

>>136909
The now thoroughly confused unicorn tilts his head just a little more than he did earlier.

"Then...what do you mean? What do you think of what I told High Chair at quarry?"

>>136910
"Well, uh... You strong-armed the sword out of High Chair's possession like a gangster, I'm not sure how else to put it. Not that I thought High Chair was noble or sincere in his intentions, but..."

She does not complete her sentence

>>136911
Silver nods.

"That, I do not regret. I had given him and Grant large collection of letters I had gathered while I cleared quarry and catacombs of undead, letters that explained what had transpired there in detail. I had spilled much of my own blood and sweat to acquire them, and merely asked for payment for my work. I was dismissed. Then when I found sword, I made second request. I was dismissed again. After that...well, you saw. I am curious, however, what you thought of it, whether you thought I was in wrong or not."

>>136912
Pear has not kicked Silver out of her motel room, and still talks to him, but her new position slightly further away, backed up against the wall and using it as a prop while her legs face forward, whereas before she sad upright in a posture few ponies would ever take.

"Whether it's you, the professor who ranks above me in the university or the expedition, the 'working class,' or 'the pony race,' when 'moral right' is the same thing as self interest, I don't consider it to be about moral right. Tearing each other apart for a little money..."

>>136913
Silver nods, and stands up from his seat.

"Very well. I can not reasonably argue against that point, and I can see when I have overstayed my welcome. It was pleasure talking with you Pear. I wish you best of luck with your expedition, and hope to see you again in future."

>>136914
She is completely silent after this point, instead waiting for Silver to move to leave. But when Silver is on the cusp of actually leaving the room:

"Wait! The Maarite assembly you say you found here in Baltimare. Can you tell me more?"

>>136915
Silver turns to her and, after a second of silence, nods. He stays near the exit, however, and doesn't sit down.

"Okay. They had turned old Celestialist shrine on top floor of aslyum, or something of that sort, into their sacrificial chamber. Most of pews had been shoved aside to make room for their congregation and their sacrifices. Most were local or foreign griffons wearing dark hooded robes and wielding wicked sacrificial daggers. Their high priest was pony named Sweet Boek, who is apparently popular landlord in this area, and he had around him inner circle of devotees he trusted. There was Kafkar gnoll, voodoo-shaman zebra, griffon knight clad entirely in armor, and newly recruited diamond dog they were going to initiate into cult that night. Boek himself could call upon Maar to bestow powers to be used in battle. He had magic shield around him, he cast many explosive fireballs at us and captives we had rescued, he controlled his followers' minds and forced them to throw themselves on our weapons, and had even reanimated corpses of those we had killed to continue fighting us."

>>136916
After she asks her question, she starts to move her body forward, until she is up on four legs on the bed, looking in the direction of Silver. One hoof at a time, she steps down from the bed onto the floor, eyes locked on Silver as best she can, and with no sound at all as her hoof touches the carpet floor. She slowly walks towards Silver, looking up at him with intense interest. Whatever she was trying to do with her mane earlier, it did not work, as her long red mane falls down and covers her left eye. But when she stops, standing right in front of Silver, she moves her mane back, and looks to Silver with a rather serious expression as she asks,

"What happened to the cultists? And to this 'inner circle'?"

Amber is still patiently waiting in the shop.

>>136932
>>136930
High Sewn returns quickly. There are another 40 minutes until lunch, and those 40 minutes pass fairly quickly, and mostly uneventfully, with the most notable event being a customer whom High Sewn helped, where Amber was required to learn how to read the tags that distinguish specific items from one another, and what the prices are at sale versus nominal price.

Lunch time comes

>>136934
Amber's stomach grumbles as her light breakfast is quickly forgotten. She asks, "Um…Miss Sewn, where can I get some food?"

>>136935
"All of the halfway decent shops are a little further west. But if you just want anything for lunch hour, there's something in every direction, if only you walk far enough"

>>136936
The younger mare bashfully looks off to the side. "I don't have a bit to my name right now…"

>>136937
"Well, food costs money, obviously. There's cheap food around, oh, five blocks due east and one block down in some place the ethnics love. Of course you can always just not eat over lunch break. Heh, that's what I do often enough."