1460 replies and 4 files omitted.
>>139000Silver looks expectantly at the Lieutenant.
>>138881 →Amber takes herself and her meal to a seat across from Mustard Trim, seeing that he's alone at the moment.
"Hello, I won't interrupt you if I eat here, will I?" >>139007Mustard Trim pulls his head up from off the table and looks towards Amber. He stops crouching over, and places his hooves on the table.
“Sure.” He answers plainly. The earth pony’s mane is a darker brown, and his coat is the color his name implies. He is young, older than the cook, but probably younger than even Amber. He’s fairly large in size.
>>139008If Amber is very hungry she's good at not showing it as she's not eating too hurriedly, though she does eye the soup quite often. She ventures to speak on occasion.
"You're the newest waiter here?" >>139011“Yes” he says, kind of sharply. “Just hired on”
>>139013“Heh” he smiles widely and pulls his head back a little as his ears pull down slightly. “Thank you.”
>>139014"I don't really know the ponies here, but they seem nice, if a bit odd…" She slurps down some soup.
"What're your impressions?" >>139015“It’s a big of a mixed group” he answers. “I think most of them are nice. But they are often concerned with their own thing. It’s not like the small town, where everypony knows each other, or at least knows they may see each other again.”
>>139017“That’s... well, that’s about how it goes. At least... yeah, it’s not been that much different for me. You have to learn whole new grocery stores and laundromats, and you have to make a whole new set of friends.”
>>139019He smiles at Amber
“It’s a place you take clothing to to have cleaned. I guess you just got into the city?”
>>139022Cue a scrunchy expression.
"The way you were talking, you must have come from out of town too." >>139023When his face comes back to meet Amber’s, his laughing stops abruptly, and his smile is swept away.
“It’s just nice to not be the newest anymore. I am from Donmouth. It’s not that far from here, but twenty miles makes a world of difference. I moved here with my mother.”
>>139025“Is it a hamlet? How big are we talking about?”
>>139028“Heh, yeah. That’s a hamlet. Donmouth had a church and a railway station. And a paper mill my dad and brother used to work at.” He pauses for a moment. “Uh... so what brings you here?”
>>139030“I can understand that”. He looks up to Amber. His eyes look as if they are two different shades of purple. Then he looks down. Then back up to Amber.
>>139031His coloration is so similar to mine, it's uncanny, she wonders to herself. Realizing that she was staring she goes back to eating her food.
>>139032Amber is allowed to get back to her food. Mustard Trim doesn’t start talking to her, at least yet. Over on the far side, de sew finds a lamp.
>>139033She looks at the other employees and patrons and wonders what aspirations they have, and what events must have coincided to bring them into the same room like this.
>>139034De Sew picks up the lamp and carries it around to the other side of the room. The zebra colt has disappeared from line of sight, presumably back into the kitchen. Melon Mangrove wipes a table while chatting (without eye contact) to the hat-wearing stallion, who sits a table with one of the giggling mares hanging on him. The other stallion sits across from him, and he nuzzled the second giggling mare. Salt Mixer leans over on conversation with the lone stallion remaining at the bar. It’s clearly around closing time.
>>139035One thing certainly is very surprising for Amber.
"Wow. They became good friends really fast." >>139036The Princesses may be gone, but friendship retains its magic
“Floozies and occupation soldiers” Mustard Trim remarks
>>139040Mustard Trim puts his head down
“Maybe. Who do you want to meet?”
>>139042“Like... a school? Or a bowling group? A political organization? Or are you looking for ‘fun’?”
"Well, I'd like to have some fun but maybe that's what bowling is for, I've never tried it but it sounds popular. If I had any 'castles in the air,' though, it would be to go to music school. I don't think that'll happen so it's best to be content."
>>139044He twists his lips a little, as if unsure what to think of her response.
“That’s the difference between the small town and the city, really. In the small town, and on the farm, what you have to do in life is more or less set for you. Everything you need to do, you are told to do, and you are told how to do. In the city, it’s not like that at all. There are so many opportunities, and so many things you can become. But it’s not set for you. You have to find it yourself. You have to be the one to make it happen because it will not come to you. That’s what I think, anyways.”
>>139045Amber frowns a bit, her ears drooping. She finished her meal while Mustard was talking and now pushes the bowl away from her, resting her cheek on a hoof.
"I don't think I can do that…. I rented the first apartment I could afford and took practically the first two jobs I could find. There's no way to know if I made the right choices or neglected to find something a lot better. It's another odd thing about the city, but…having so many possible choices makes me feel less in control than if I had just a few. Do you ever feel this way?" >>139046He is silent for a moment, and lowers his head slightly
“Yes...”
>>139001I was thinking Brisbuck had left the table by this point, but sure, we’ll go with this“Uh, sure. I can handle it.”
>>139050He lifts his head and smiles back.
“You think so?”
>>139051"Well, you let me talk about my problems and I feel a bit better now, so, um…thank you." As she says this her cheeks redden slightly.
>>139052“Heh, well... any time you want to talk, you can talk to me.” He answers, also seeming to redden.
>>139055“Both of them are a bit older and seem to do this as an... uh... well, you know, as an actual job. De Sew is a mother. She’s fairly professional. Melon Mangrove has been here for a while but she’s in some kind of schooling. Both of them are nice, but De Sew is a little more reserved. There are also two other waiters who do this part time, but they are not here today.”
>>139057“I mean, it’s like full time. I’m in school. I do this to help support myself and my mother.”
>>139058She leans forward curiously.
"You're in school? What's that like?" >>139059“Well... it can be... kind of boring, actually. There’s papers and math and writing exercises. And then you have to take work home to do.”
>>139061This gets laughter from him
“Something like that, yeah. Though I’ve never been a secretary... Are you not in school?” He asks
>>139062The auburn-haired mare shakes her head.
"No, everything I know came from my parents and the books they collected. As for here in the city, during the day I work at a clothing store." >>139063“Huh...” he looks at Amber with a blank expression.
“That’s a bit different. Must not have been a school house out where you’re from.”
>>139064"Not really, no." She shifts around uncomfortably.
>>139067“Bet you didn’t know restaurants like this were necessary. Or clothing stores... or any of the other stuff you find in the city.”
>>139069“You’re not a fan of Jambalry’s cooking?” He asks, feigning skepticism. More seriously, he asks:
“You don’t have any utensils?!”
>>139070"I don't have anything except for some clothes and my mandolin. I'm already a hundred and fifty bits in debt–" she makes a disgusted expression
"–but my landlord told me there's no place cheaper and that I really didn't want to sleep outside for some reason." >>139071“Oh... well that’s unfortunate.”
>>139072She smiles optimistically though tiredly.
"It shouldn't be like this for too long, though. With two jobs I should be getting better off quickly." >>139073“Hopefully...” he answers, kind of unsure.
“So uh... what’s the clothing business like?”
>>139075“That sounds about right for this city.” He answers
“Think you’ll have fun doing it?”
>>139076Amber yawns, her eyelids drooping.
"I don't know. Maybe?" >>139077“Getting pretty tired there?” He asks
>>139078Nodding, she answers,
"Normally I don't stay up this late." She shifts with a sudden panic.
"I–," another yawn,
"I need to be getting back. I have work tomorrow." >>139079“Do you...” his ears go down, he looks away, then looks back to Amber. “Do you want me to walk to you back?”
>>139081“I stay with my mother further south, in a row house by the river.”
"That is a lot further away! Are you sure you don't want me to walk you home?"
>>139083“Heh”
But he doesn’t actually have a response to this one.
>>139085“Uh, sure” he says, awkwardly smiling. “You’re
sure you are comfortable walking back alone?” He adds
>>139086She looks puzzled by his insistence.
"I live a ways east of here. There's nothing I should worry about, is there?" >>139087“Well, I just... I guess if you feel safe... but if you don’t...”
>>139089“Thank you...” he says, falling back in his seat
>>139090"You're welcome. Anyway, goodnight and take care on your trot home." She gets up, pushes her chair back into place and starts to turn to the exit.
>>139091Mustard Trim makes no reply nor movement, and Amber walks unmolested to the front door.
>>139092Thankfully Mustard has no interest in molesting her at the time, so Amber leaves the restaurant and returns to her apartment.
>>139093[1d20 = 6]It’s much colder now, especially with a wind from the north blowing in, unimpeded on the north-south street
>>139094Amber shivers and pulls her cloak
I believe she brought it with her more tightly around herself.
>>139095She makes her way eastward. It’s done number of streets. There are ponies on the sidewalks, and non-pony creatures both hippoform and not, walking in groups, in pairs, alone, or even stumbling about aimlessly on street corners. The buildings become shorter, and the streets, dirtier the further east she moves. Most areas are lit by street lamp, some are not. On one corner, illuminated almost by floodlights, two pegasi in green uniforms stand carrying what look like carbine rifles.
[1d20 = 4] >>139097Most of the streets don’t have any particular problem with smell or garbage, but there are one or two brief segments where a pungent smell comes through. In some areas, restaurants and bars are open and still have life in them. In others, closed, unlit stores create a wall of darkness on the sides of streets. A similar pattern repeats when Amber enters the residential areas.
>>139098Amber wonders why there would be any eateries or other establishments open at this hour, and how unpleasant it must be for the staff if it's already so late for her.
>>139099All the same, Amber eventually arrives back at the tenement block containing her apartment
>>139100See, it was nothing. Mustard was just being a worrywort, she thinks to herself. She goes upstairs to her apartment.
>>139101Amber makes it back to her apartment at probably around 10:30 PM. She’s spent 10 or so hours working at minimum wage to serve ponies who are far higher class than her, only finally eating leftovers late at night, while being indirectly victimized by political terrorism, dealing with competing agency jurisdictions. and pushing away two colts. Unfortunately, she was unsuccessful in her primary goal of not owing money to the mafia. Could be worse though. Could be a lot worse.
>>139102The broader context of her situation is lost on her, as she expected the first few days of city life to be somewhat rough. Being far too tired to closely think about her day, she's glad to be one day closer toward not owing any debt, having a warm meal in her belly and meeting some more-or-less friendly faces. She brushes her teeth and says her prayers before heading to sleep, though this time she foregoes thorough grooming and musical practice.
>>139103Also Amber was unable to use her instrument today. You’ll get ‘em next time, little filly
>>139104Should we go onto the next day?
>>139105Depends on the intent for the next day. What do?
>>139106If it's a weekday Amber would like to go to work.
>>139107Hmmm... what other ambitions does Amber have for the next day?
>>139108A chance to play the mandolin and/or better knowing her coworkers.
>>139109Hmmm...
Regardless, Amber wakes up in her bed, finding herself not stabbed, abducted, nor replaced by a Changeling.
>>139110Hoping that she didn't wake up too late–lacking a clock makes determining that difficult–she says her morning prayers, takes a quick shower (the cold water unpleasantly waking her up fully), and brushes her hair before she gets dressed and heads out.
>>139112Amber heads onward to work, hopeful that there won't be any more mean anarchists this time.
>>139048Silver nods, and gets up to find the black-coated light machinegunner who pulled the cart to recruit him into his telegraph repair squad.
>>139114This pony is perhaps the strongest in the platoon, and if he isn’t, he’s not far off. He seems fairly plain in expression, and asks,
“Do I need my gun?”
>>139113No anarchists.
Yet. It’s colder today than yesterday, with occasional wind. Looks like there may be rain. High Sewn stands immediately outside the door of her shop, smoking a cigarette. The window of the display case is new and clean, but many items are missing from the display.
>>139116Shivering, Amber is eager to get inside the shop. She doesn't know why High Sewn would be standing in place like that, whether to smoke a cigarette or not.
"Hello Miss Sewn! It's a nippy day today, isn't it?" >>139117“For you I suppose it is”
She blows out smoke
Amber makes it inside the store easily enough
>>139118Just like yesterday, Amber looks at the shelves and replaces whatever's scarce with supplies from the back.
>>139119As per usual, there’s a set of socks and coats that are missing, but also a number of items from the higher priced racks. High Sewn walks in with that half-annoyed expression on her face, holding a coffee cup and a newspaper. She sits down at her desk, opens a notebook and the receipt drawer, and starts taking notes.
“Remember to take note of inventory” she says to Amber without looking away from her note book
>>139120"Of course, ma'am!" Amber sets to it, dutifully writing down numbers for each type of merchandise, while making a mental note of any differences.
>>139121Merchandise is slowly being used up, that’s for sure. Soon enough, the store is ready to be opened for the morning.
>>139122After that necessary work is done, Amber opens shop and stands near the door.
>>139123It isn’t too long before customers come by. The first mare in says she’s just looking, and walks past Amber. She tries to look at clothing, but ultimately leaves without buying anything. The sand is true of the second mare. The third one comes in, tries on a sweater and buys it, leaving quickly.
>>139125It’s fairly low cost purchases at the moment, but there are some sales. The highlight of the morning is High Sewn making Amber stand perfectly straight and still (and taking off her other clothing) while she uses her to fit and work on an ordered dress.
>>139126This is quite unexpected for Amber, who never worked as a model before. She does the best she can despite the awkwardness of standing still while a stranger performs measurements. One question raised, however, is the suitability of herself for fitting as she is shorter than most other mares.
>>139127High Sewn rebuffs these concerns
“She’s just as short and round as you, don’t worry.”
>>139115"Depends on how long you are willing to carry it around. I do not expect we will find enemies, but we should expect unexpected."
>>139129“Do you need me to cart something else around?” He asks
>>139131“Oh, don’t be too offended by it. Those drugged up trigs they expect you to pay extra for for fitting don’t have body shapes found in nature. At least not on mammals anyways.”
>>139132"Huh? Who are you talking about?" Amber looks more confused than ever.
>>139130"Maybe. We are going to investigate telegraph outage, and if it turns out to be fallen pole, we may need your help fixing it."
>>139133Damn it. Should have said “twigs” instead of “trigs”“Oh, never mind that. How hold still and suck in. I need to mark a spot on this fabric.”
>>139134He nods
“Very well”
If instructed by silver, he retrieves his gun from the cart. If not, he simply follows the other ponies.
>>139135"Ok." She sucks in her belly, her cheeks puffing out.
>>139135Silver directs him to take the gun, just in case. With that, the squad moves to the telegraph office, to first see if the pony inside has any information for them.
>>139136"There you go. Good girl. Now stand still." She takes a number of measurements, and especially tries to cut parts of fabric next to her. "Keep standing still" she says. It takes a few minutes, but she gets what she needs, and releases Amber.
>>139137The jet black earth pony pulls the massive gun out, and carries it in a sling over his back, along with several magazines It's a gun almost built for Earth ponies, and it shows off his strength well. Still, he'll probably need to set it aside if heavy lifting is necessary.
The Lunar Telephone and Telegraph Company is located in a small pale brick building along Main Street, south of Old Mecc Trail Road. The flat, black colored roof hangs over the side of the building some ways. Inside, beyond a wooden floor and behind a hardwood desk, a pegasus mare with a long, yellow braided mane, a reddish brown sweater, and bright, green eyes watches the ponies as they enter.
>>139150Silver bows his head to her.
"Excuse me, I heard there was problem with telegraph lines."
>>139151"The line is down." She answers plainly. "The line to Wald at least."
>>139152"Can you offer any additional information? We are going to see if we can repair it."
>>139150"Mmmm" Amber mutters uncomfortably, particularly as she hears the snipping of scissors next to her. After it's over she dons her dress again and takes her place near the door, glad to be over that inconvenience.
>>139153"Well... It worked yesterday. Now it doesn't, as of the first of this morning. It's not receiving any signal, and we don't know if anything that is sent makes it through. I think our equipment here is working. It's probably the line."
>>139154Amber finds herself in a position of authority to modify the heating arrangement for the store. The light from outside is dimmed by clouds, and again most ponies entering want the lower cost items.
>>139155It doesn't seem to be too cold, at least for Amber, and she doesn't want to meddle with the heating or do anything that may irk High Sewn.
>>139157The inside of the store drifts colder, but High Sewn doesn't say anything.
>>139159The remainder of the morning section is fairly uneventful. There are some customers, but they don't need more help than "where are your x?" some of which Amber can answer, and some of which High Sewn intervenes to answer
>>139160Amber nonetheless keeps an eye out for any potentially malicious loiterers.
>>139161No political extremists who did not possess the intent to buy clothing could be found outside or around the store. There was a young mare with disheveled mane and a grey sweater who stands in place and sways a little that High Sewn watched after she came into the store. Evidently she didn't take anything, as High Sewn stopped watching after she left.
>>139162Amber wonders why that mare looked a little off-kilter and hadn't bothered to brush her mane, but doesn't say anything.
>>139155"Do you think it could have been cut by Changeling saboteurs?"
>>139163And so, Amber makes it through (part) of her shift. Lunchbreak time.
>>139164"It's....
possible, if they made it this far. could be a sudden gust of wind breaking a pole, or a bolt of lightening. Could be a rat chewed through it, or some other wildlife. It could even be a pony rebel, or a deserter."
>>139165Unfortunately lunch takes money, a.k.a. cash, and that is the one thing Amber doesn't have at the moment. Another day will pass without lunch.
It'll get better when I'm paid… she thinks.
>>139165"Alright. One last thing: are there any tools we should have to fix wire with?"
>>139167“Oh... I don’t know tools very well..” the mare answers.
Amber Grain volunteers the following
“Well, it’s the same as testing any other wire that sends an electric current. You get a electric tester like a multimeter, try to put a current through the wire, and see if there is a current through each section to isolate the section with the problem.”
>>139166That’s a pretty good attitude to have. Food is only for winners
>>139168Unfortunately it's hard to maintain a positive attitude with an empty belly as the hours wear on.
>>139169Guy arrives at perhaps 12:50, wearing his fancy vest. He starts moving items to the display case, with some consultation with High Sewn on what items belong there
>>139170Amber tries to help him in any capacity, from carrying the items themselves to preventing any dragging on the floors.
>>139168Silver smiles, and looks at the mare.
"Do you have a multimeter we can borrow, then?"
>>139172"Uh...."
>>139171He looks back at her at some point with annoyance or even disdain, but mostly leaves her alone. Amber is able to help with an overly long dress than otherwise risked dragging, although he is able to carry an entire mannequin by himself.
>>139173Griffons are stronger than I thought… she thinks, though she is taken aback by his aloofness.
>>139174He seems aware of Amber's presence, just non-interactive.
Afternoon shift is soon to begin
>>139175With not much else to do she starts that.
>>139173He looks to Amber Grain.
"Do you think you could help her, maybe describe what device looks like?"
>>139180The mare:
"Uh...."
Amber Grain:
"Do you think this filly has ever worked on a tractor before? C'mon Platoon Sargent. Let's see if the 332nd or some farm around here has one."
>>139181"I have never worked on telegraphs or tractors, so...let us go see if 332nd has one."
>>139182Silver, Amber Grain, Saltlick and the Machine Gunner leave the Lunar Telephone and Telegraph Building, and start walking their way to Old Meccs Trail Road and the town hall. The 332nd is of course spread over a larger area, so they see a green stallion with a big, steel helmet covering much of his head sitting in front of what seems to be a grocer not far from the town hall. There is a group of stallions there, including a beige one, and a blue one with whom the green stallion converses.
>>139183Silver approaches the group.
"Excuse me sirs, you would not happen to know if your Platoon has multimeter among its supplies?"
>>139184Silver must have surprised the group by his approach, judging by their expressions. The blue stallion - looks to be an earth pony, but with the way his uniform is positioned it's hard to tell if he's simply covering up wings - raises a hoof up in the air as if to signal silence, and then turns his head to Silver
"A multimeter?"
He pauses for a moment, but just as Amber Grain is about to but in, the blue stallion says:
"Yes... We are certain to have one somewhere in our stacks of material. I am unsure how long it would take to find it. You can look through the materials at the rodeo park, or search a garage in this area. They are sure to have the same."
>>139185He nods.
"Thank you. Sorry to interrupt, we will be on our way."
Silver leads his posse to the rodeo park.
>>139186Silver goes back a street, past the jail and the sheriff's office, past the Hotel, onto another street, and past a few more small houses with greenish brown wood and covered porches. There is a small open green area that must be a park but Silver can tell was probably common pasture area less than a century ago, and next to it is a set of stables, a ticket stand, fences, and raised seating area that is unmistakable as an arena with a fenced in, oval shaped dirt center. And yet only so much dirt is visible, as in the center are so many wooden crates, a few green tents, and several barrels.
>>139187Silver groans at the sight of all the crates, tents, and barrels.
"I did not think it would be this much hassle when I asked you all to join me."
>>139188"I never expected anything less from a war. We're just over the one year mark." Amber Grain replies
Walking through the Entry, Silver sees another pair of flags - the blue flag of the two sisters, and the green, white, and blue flag. Silver walks past a black and white photograph of a large cow and a pegasus standing next to it, and of a stallion, wings partly spread and holding a rope in his mouth.
Inside the arena, Silver can see a gate that is closed at the moment, but has larges tracks of dragged crates and other items, and hoof prints abound. Amber Grain walks in, carefully looking around, the machine gunner stands back, but Saltlick flies around, looking at stacks of crates. Silver can see that most contain food in MREs or cans, but some contain medical supplies, ammunition, binoculars, and various other items. Saltlick is the first to see it. "Over here. Electronic repair equipment." Saltlick tries to pull it out of the set of crates, but the machine gunner has to come over, place his gun and bandolier off to the side, and pull out the crate himself. When he does so, a pair of crates fall down several feet. Still, it's a simple enough matter to open the crate, at least for Amber Grain.
"Got it" Amber says.
[Read more] >>139189"Great! Eh...let us hope there is nothing fragile in those crates..."
>>139190From further back in the arena, on the opposite side of the fence and in front of the opposing set of sands, a pair of ponies watch as a third moves closer. The one moving has a visible carbine on his back, a standing stallion lacks a helmet, and all three wear brown uniforms that identify them as support personnel. They weren't there when Silver's team entered. Now they look at the ponies.
Amber Grain is not bothered by this, retrieving not only a multimeter, but clamps, a medium sized spool of wire (and telephone wire at that), clamps, a car battery, wire cutters, and a few other items. The black stallion could surely carry all of this himself but for the gun, so parts of the set are distributed among Silver's team.
>>139199Silver takes his fair share of the equipment. He waves and calls out to the support ponies.
"We apologize for mess! We just need to borrow some equipment!"
>>139201They don't respond by voice or gesture. They seem close enough to have heard Silver, but then again a new wind enters, blowing easterly through the valley and creating noise through the flapping of tent roofs.
>>139202Silver cups his forehooves around his mouth and shouts to them.
"YOU HEAR ME?"
>>139203No response from the supply group. At least one looks at him
>>139204"O...kay."
Officially weirded out, he leads the squad out of the area and towards the direction of the telegraph outage. Once out of town, he turns to his compatriots and speaks in a low voice.
"Have any of you three noticed anything...odd, about 332nd?"
>>139205When the ponies pull out, the three supply personnel enter the arena through a gate on the opposite side. All three go to the location of the tipped over crates, with the one with the carbine watching over Silver and his team as they leave (he never brandishes the carbine; it remains on his back), while the two unarmed ponies proceed to right and pick up the fallen crates.
Amber grain replies:
"They don't seem to like us here"
Saltlick
"I haven't interacted with them here at all."
The black colt remains silent
[Read more] >>139205Being aware of an outage is quite a different thing from locating the precise source of the outage.
[1d4 = 2] >>139206"I do not know, but something about this seems bad. My gut is telling me that longer we stay in Vale, more danger we are in. For instance, mare at telegraph office said that this telegraph line was working yesterday, so unless High Command decided to spring news of our arrival to Vale on 332nd last minute, they should have known we would be here. But nothing was prepared for us, and their Captain spoke and acted like he had no idea we be here and told us to be on our way to Front. And on their Captain, while none of you met him or his entourage, it was just like with those support ponies: just silently watching us, blankly, only addressing us when absolutely necessary, and way he spoke was like in those stories about souless metal automaton ponies. No normal pony, not even Captain, speaks like that."
>>139208"I see" Amber Grain responds. "Well, in fairness, their communication has been out a while now. Before we headed out for Vale from Virtue, it seems. So I really can believe that they never got the message we'd be here, and I wouldn't be surprised either if Command never sent out a message at all. They may be skeptical of a fully armed, large military unit arriving in without notice, especially if they think their communication lines have been cut. Having someone ransack their stacks of supplies may not help."
>>139209Silver offers a thoughtful grunt.
"Perhaps. But with rumors of upcoming Changeling assault, and how important Vale is to our Frontline forces, I would not like to take chance. I would ask that you all travel as group for as long as you can and not let each other get out of sight. Even if one of you need to defecate or urinate and you need to stand right there and watch them, it is good idea to maintain VC."
>>139210Amber::
"What about the remainder of the platoon? Thirty-eight ponies and also the machinegun section. They are also in town."
>>139211"Once we have repaired telegraph line, I will share my suspicions with Lieutenant, then we will gather platoon together and check each soldier to make sure they have not been replaced. We will make it out to be routine inspection. Another thing, do not breathe single word of this to others in platoon."
>>139212Amber Grain is distinctly worried, as are the other two ponies.
"Very well..."
>>139213Silver breathes a sigh, though not necessarily one of relief.
"Thank you. But, first things first: let us repair telegraph line."
>>139214"Very well. We need to test parts of the line determine where the breakage is."
>>139215"Then let us test right here. We may have already passed it."
>>139216"Alright"
The ponies go over to the edge of town, past the last building, and on the line by Old Mecc's trail, just before the road goes into a fallow field by the riverside.
Saltlick makes good use of his wings, and flies up the side of the pole towards the top, where he introduces the multimeter, and uses the clamps.
"Okay... signal will come from Wald to here, or at least it seems to. I can't really confirm that. But there's a dead line from the Vale line. The problem is further into town."
>>139217"Then let us head further in, now that we have starting place."
>>139218They nod. Silver and company proceed further into town, and test the line in front of the general store.
"Huh... There's a signal coming from Vale, but none from Wald. We are just passed the source of the outage."
Saltlick jumps down from the pole, and then flies over to the top of the feed store, inspecting the connector where the telephone, telegraph, and electric lines connect with the top of the feed store.
"Uh, Platoon Sargent, I think it..."
>>139219"What is it, Saltlick? What is wrong?"
>>139220"Uh, you want me to describe it, or do you want to come up here and see?"
>>139221Silver looks concerned at his other two compatriots.
"I would rather see it, if there was way for me to get onto roof."
>>139222Looking around on the other side of the feed store, there is a ladder allowing access to the roof. Going up there, there is a flat roof evidently made of wood. Silver sees that there is a cross beam with insulators on the top of the pole, presumably carrying electricity. It's the insulated cables that run below the eletric lines that Salt Lick points to as a point of concern. There are two cables, each connected to the pole at two points. And both are severed in that inch between each connection. It's a fairly clean cut, which appears to be possible only by instrument, and it's in the one location such a cut could occur without the line falling down to the ground for lack of support.
>>139223"Saboteur..."
Silver pales slightly at the sight of the cut wires. He looks to Saltlick and speaks with a sense of urgency.
"Fixing telegraph can wait. We need to alert Lieutenant Brisbuck and our platoon. Now."
>>139224"For what it's worth..." Saltlick adds
"This is one of the only places you can access the line without having to climb a 17 foot pole, or fly."
But Saltlick is as disturbed as Silver, with a blank expression in his eyes. Amber Grain pulls his submachine gun from on his back, to hold in front of himself.
>>139225Silver looks to the soldier under his command.
"Come, we move as unit. Do
not lose sight of each other as we go get Lieutenant."
He leads his group further in town to find other members of his platoon, and ask them where Lieutenant Brisbuck went. He tries to maintain a calm expression on his face in the meantime.
>>139226The feed store, like the hotel and town hall, are located on Old Mecc's Trail Road, making it a straight shot for Silver and company to the location of most of the platoon, who are hanging around the hotel. The ponies with Silver are decidedly worried, with Amber Grain and now even Saltlick carrying their guns out in front of themselves, and the black colt seriously contemplating doing the same.
A white earth pony sitting down in front of the hotel says,
"He's inside the town hall there."
>>139227Silver nods, and heads to the town hall with his ponies. He looks hurriedly for the Liuetenant.
>>139228Silver enters inside the town hall to find an entrance way with a reception area off to one side, and a brief hallway that goes forward with branching hallway holding offices to one end, and a large meeting hall on another end, that holds a raised platform with a podium, a number of chairs, a wooden seal with "Vale, State of Casadia, Born and Raised on the Mecc's Trail" on it, and the image of a river, forest and mountains Silver has seen on the flag, along with the Equestrian and green white and blue flags behind the podium and to the side of the seal. On the tan painted walls are a few pictures of Stallions and what seems to be a mare with shortcut mane and earrings. On the far wall is a painting of what seems to be a river with jumping fish, perhaps a salmon run.
Standing between the seats and the raised section is Brisbuck, as well as a few ponies from the platoon; the corporal who suggested the sleeping arrangement earlier, and a private.
>>139229Hello
>>139175The afternoon shift starts, with Guy and presumably Amber assuming their positions
[Read more] >>139230Silver steps up to the Lieutenant, maintaining a calm expression, but speaking with words laced with urgency.
"Lieutenant Brisbuck, Sir? I need word with you, if you please. Preferrably in private."
>>139231Not long after the opening, the first customer comes in, an older mare who seems to be looking for waterproof or resistant items. She doesn't immediately ask for any assistance from Amber or Guy.
>>139232He turns away from the corporal.
"Uh, sure, sargent."
>>139233Amber will stand near the "Outdoors" section and smile at the older mare.