1777 replies and 51 files omitted.
>>176416"I did, Mama," she says with a frown.
"I saw it, Papa. While we were outside there was a very strange sound we couldn't get away from. At the clearing it was the loudest, and over a crest I looked and saw a Stallos. It was huge and dark, Papa, but it didn't see me." The filly is shivering and fidgeting nervously, but she puts on a brave face.
"I hid our tracks like you showed me, Papa. There's no way it could have followed. But it's still so close to here…." >>176421"Awwww. Well, I want to promise you this, you will never have to worry about factory work as long as you're living with me!" She smiles at the deer, before continuing on. "So what did you do for money after leaving the factory?"
>>176411>She seems to have genuinely no interestI will make up a reason to be interested.
Posey is a blackweave warmagus who specializes in arcane securities, and she's trying to raise funds for her army. She'd be willing to do any sort of mercenary/adventure work if the job payed well.
More importantly, Posey is a Sorceress who has finally been freed of the oppressive confines of Magehold, and she's just itching to find living targets to practice her spells on and expand her powers; in fact, she's desperate to, because exceeding her master's powers (lvl ~6-8) is the only way she can end her apprenticeship and be free of their bindings. So she'd gladly do any sort of mercenary work if the job entailed fighting things.
Also, Posey is bloodthirsty. She wants to fight.
>You can make a new characterI'll consider it, but I already came this far with Posey.
>That's actually kind of relevant to the next big questOh, that's good then.
For the record, Posey's forged passport is one from Farbrook. If ponies ask where she is from, she says she is from Farbrook.
Farbrook has a culture similar to Equestria, so she blends in well. It's also constantly threatened by the Dread League, which is a convenient excuse for knowing many facts about the Dread League should anyone ever grow suspicious.
>>176412Oh yeah, I passed by Amber's hometown.
>>176419It looks like the fruit is not what I believed it to be. False alarm.
>>176411>I'm not sure what it's going to take to get her onto the next quest...Is there any way Posey could hear about the mercenary job? Is there an [adventures wanted] bulletin anywhere? I'd it advertised in any newspaper tabloids that a shady necromancer might read, or put on posters in a dark alleyway?
I have been waiting to meet the party for more than a year. I don't care if the way to get there is shoehorned.
>>176422Silver feels something like an electric tingle from his throat and mouth.
Pear comes closer to the fruit, extending her muzzle and sniffing it.
"That can't be a normal fruit...:"
>>176423Father extends a hoof, and ruffles little Amber's mane, letting her golden mane fall and cover over her eyes.
"You did well, but I don't think that was a Stallos. That was most likely a moose. Perhaps it had rolled in ash or mud somewhere in the blast, making it look dark. But you did good to run away from it. Moose can be very scary."
>>176424Neela smiles widely, wags her little tuft of a tail, and jumps up on her forelegs. Then she stops, narrowing her eyes and turning her head away
"Waaait... What's the catch? Do you want me to steal for you? Distract ponies while I steal from them? I mean, I could do that but uh... oh, what did I do for money? Uh, various things. Little jobs."
>>176425>>176426To join, Posey has to do one very simple, but very counter-intuitive thing. Go down to Customs one morning, and ask to join in for mercenary work.
>>176427"No catch! Well, I guess being a friend is a catch. Can you call it a catch? I mean, you're doing pretty well on that already. But anyways, besides that there's no catch, I just like having a friend."
>>176427>counter-intuitive >Go down to Customs one morning, and ask to join in for mercenary workWell, Posey had plans to infiltrate and investigate customs herself, since they had killed off several of her potential allies, and knowing what they do could lead her to other Necromancers, even if only to raid their lairs.
She's also trying to buy some property in the city, and fact of the matter is that Posey doesn't really have very many skills outside of killing (idk how much the university jobs actually pay, but I assume it's just proportional to Posey's profession or craft check), so work is work.
So yeah, Posey could do that.
>one morningPosey prefers to do so in the evening if it's during business hours.
>>176404The
Loney Dove, a smaller ocean liner of the Whinny Line, is very possibly the first passenger ship from Nova Griffonia to arrive in Baltimare since the ocean lanes opened up a week or so ago. Bound from Weter, it arrives at 3 PM.
>>176427Hmmm...good tingle or bad tingle? Either way, Silver pauses, looking confused. He mumbles out a "Hold on".
>>176431A wiry griffon walks onto the deck of the
Lonely Dove. He is wearing a very fine tan suit with a matching wide-brimmed hat, over a silk shirt and bowtie. He carries two heavy-looking leather-bound suitcases and descends down the gangway to the dock toward the customs area.
>>176430Mother:
"Oh, that's a place of terrible magic. Spirits came in where the other world converged with ours."
Father shakes his head
"It's called the blast because that's near where a meteor exploded in the air. Near enough to knock the trees down, anyways. That's what the Inspector said."
Mother shakes
her head"Happened over near Metsän Vaeltaja's cabin. Over the Pohjoinen Noaidi. That's a big rock in the ground under the trees which has old runes in it that the spirits often use as a gateway between our world and theirs. If you ask me, I think too many of them came in at once. Or left at once. Or something came in that shouldn't have. That's what caused the blast. I don't know what you saw, but you best be careful out there. It may not have been anything living..."
Father: "Don't tell her such stories. It was a rock from outer space. It exploded in the air because the heat and the friction of the air was too much. The stallion from the Central Council told us so. And what they say is law."
>>176433"This way please" A grey stallion directs him to a line into a building
"Welcome to Baltimare"
>>176432It tends towards good. It feels oddly rejuvenating. Silver feels a little more energetic.
>>176435"Mmmmmm!"
Silver's eyes light up in response. If Pear is sure she doesn't want any, Silver swallows his bite and munches on the rest of fruit.
>>176436Pear moves over and licks the fruit. But Silver can certainly eat more. Be advised, it's a large fruit.
>>176434"Who are the Central Council?" she asks her father. She also turns to her mother.
"Where is the rock with the runes? And why would a Stallos be near there?" >>176411>>176425makes new character anywayLater that morning, at the die-ner
A cloaked, shadowy figure enters the diner. It moves furtively and silently, although perhaps not so gracefully as Posey does, seemingly trying to draw little attention to itself. It takes a seat at one of the chairs and gestures for service, a thin black bandage-wrapped hoof waving out from beneath its black cloak.
>>176437munchSilver takes another bite of the fruit, but it's gonna be gone soon if Pear doesn't ask for any. He
definitely has to remember to look for more of these in the market.
>>176435"Thank you. Nice weather for this time of year, isn't it?" the griffon remarks as he gets in line.
>>176439Uh
>>176438"The new government over in Everfrost. They have say over our village. It's up north. And there are no Stallos."
Mother: "There are Stallos, but they wouldn't go near a Noaidi. It's too sacred of a place. Unless that Noaidi has been destroyed...
>>176429>EveningNo. It is peculiar to the morning hours.
>>176441It's cloudy. Which is kind of like Weter at this time, actually. It's warmer here though.
>>176440Pearf does take a slice of the fruit, maybe taking a knife to do so.
"Woah" Her eyes go wide. Silver himself is surely feeling an ecstatic effect.
>>176442"Why do they say we can't wear our colored coats? And I want to see the Noaidi." Amber sits up and looks consumed with curiosity.
>>176442>t is peculiar to the morning hoursOkay, she goes one morning, after long night of writing a boring dissertation on undead combat that painfully only reveals as many weaknesses as her masters permit her to share with the public.
"Buck this. I didn't come all the way to equestria just to do paperwork..!"
And so she finds her way to customs in pursuit of a job where she can make use of her powers.
>UhThe breakfast goer gestures for service, evidently hungry.
>>176442It beats the snow and cold, at least. The griffon casually observes the crowd around him.
>>176442"Mmhmm!" Silver swallows his second bite. "It's good, right? We've got to find more of these." It's definitely an ecstatic feeling, to say the least. He feels tingly all over, like he's been charged up with static. He swears he can feel his fur almost stand on end from it.
munch >>176443Father: "It's an old traditional practice that is not in keeping with the modern world. They wish to bring us into the modern era, and they say factory made clothing is the most obvious way to do so. And that Noaidi is probably destroyed, though I can't say."
He extends a hoof and pets Amber
>>176445The crowd that comes out of the ship is disproportionately pony. Actually, it's majority pony. Must be ponies who went north and got trapped, or who fled Equestria for Nova Griffonia just to find they'd rather go home. Or maybe they are Nova Griffonians who figured that land is no place for a pony... Well, it's hardly a place for a griffin, either.
The creatures are divided into lines, and the Mysterious Ranger will have to go into the "Alien" line
>>176446Silver has a nice euphoric feeling, Pear gets another small slice, but clearly, the majority is going to Silver. His fur is literally standing on end
>>176444Sure. A waitress walks over.
"What would you like?" She asks
>>176428She lowers her ears, then back up
"Did you have many friends in... wherever it was you were from?" She asks
>>176447>"What would you like?" She asksA raspy it effeminate voice replies, she speaks in a hushed tone, as if worried of drawing attention to her transaction, her head still hidden beneath her hood.
"F-fourty pancakes." she says
>>176449"Fruity pancakes? Sure, we have that. Anything to drink?"
>>176450"No..." The cloaked figure shimmies beneath it's cloak and places a solid gold doubloon on the table, seemingly a foreign coin but worth the same in gold nonetheless
"Fourty pancakes." she repeats, more clearly this time
"And a pitcher of apple juice."
>>176447Silver offers Pear one more slice before he finishes it off with a final
munch. He feels absolutely amazing! He might end up swearing off of all other types of fruit after this, if he can find some more. If only he had this when he was eating his waffles earlier, he can't even imagine how good it would have been. He smiles at Pear.
"I can see why Curwhinny had notes about this, I would want to eat these every day if I could! We need to find more of these after we finish looking for that sarcophagus."
>>176448"Dhamaji?" Kira blushes, looks away, and messes with the end of her tail. "Not...not many?"
>>176442>>176446This is basically the eating of the Forbidden Fruit except Silver is tempting a mare.
>>176447pony is pet"But our clothes aren't hurting anypony. I like wearing them. Can't we be 'modern' and have our colorful coats, too?" >>176447This ends up working toward the griffon's benefit, as this line is much shorter. Whether the staff for this section are as hospitable remains to be seen.
>>176452"Eh heh..." Pear smiles with a little blush. "I think that may have been the only one."
>>176451"Oh, uh... I don't think we have that many. But I'll get as many as I can." She walks away
>>176453"You were a loner, weren't you? And none of the other lamias were as" She waves a hoof "Soft, as you. Were they?"
>>176455>Forbidden fruitoh my...
He scritches her head as well
"You can wear it inside. But you can't wear it out where the inspector can see you. They don't like any signs of luxury or tradition, or differentiation."
>>176456It's kind of slow though. Eventually, he comes up to a cream colored stallion in green.
"Good afternoon. What is your
Name
Nationality
Purpose here
Occupation
Length of stay
And Race
>>176457Kira first shyly nods, then slowly transitions to shaking her head at the second question.
"Yes. And not...not quite. I mean, they're not mean or anything, they would get along great with deer like you or with ponies and such, but I'm, uh...I'm definitely soft. It's why my mom wanted me here, and not fighting back at home."
>>176457>I don't think we have that manyThe cloaked figure fishes more gold doubloons out from beneath it's cloak
"Anything- no, everything you have is fine..."
There's a shudder to her voice, almost desperate sounding
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=HrIeP798hiQ >>176457"You called them 'Lumia' earlier, so I assumed they have to exist somewhere. It must have come from tree like other fruit do, it is why all of these notes are here."
Hmm...this gets Silver to thinking if the floor plans and shipping manifest
are actually related to this tasty fruit.
>>176458Slowly,
"So you were sent here because your mother thought you wouldn't survive in a warzone? While most of them stayed."
>>176459"Right..." The mare rushes off
She comes back with a dozen or so pancakes, oats, oatmeal, grits, hay, oranges, and a few other items.
>>176460"I said it looks like a Lumia... Lumia don't keep for centuries. They don't... feel like that. That's not a Lumia. That's a magic fruit. I've never seen anything like that before. I don't know what it is... what it was... I think you just ate the only one..."
>>176461Silver frowns. "Surely not. It did not even have seeds to plant. Now, granted it
is odd that it lasted this long, and there is probably something magic about it, but there must be source. Fruit does not just spontaneously come into existence, especially when he has notes about trying to grow whatever tree this came from."
>>176461"Well, that's part of the reason, but...yes. I really was tasked with trying to get aid from Equestria, I know mom didn't lie. But I also know it's true that I wouldn't survive in a war."
>>176462"They want what is best for us. They want to turn us into a modern country. That is why. They want to make sure we are in compliance with the law."
>>176463Pear looks at the notes
"So many crossed out lines... So many failed attempts... These are notes of what
doesn't work."
She looks at the manifest
"Left Baltimare Harbor New Year's day 770... that's just a few days before he was killed... Curwhinny was dead before this ship got to it's destination."
She looks at the floor plan
"I don't know what this is. I think it's a church, but... I don't recognize it."
>>176464"Uh huh." She tilts her head "Do you
really think the others would get along with the ponies? Are you sure they aren't just a little less cute, a little more hot headed, maybe even just a little hungrier than you?"
>>176465"No, it's nothing like that, it's just...they don't really have the same hang-ups I do about eating sometimes, or at least most of them don't, and I'm probably just, you know, exceptionally soft. They really would get along with the ponies, I know that's the case."
>>176465Silver slowly puts two and two together, seeing the puzzle pieces match together in his mind.
"...Pear? Do you think all of this came from Abyssinia? This book paper, this fruit, that floor plan...all of it? And if there are more of these fruits, growing on actual trees, they would be there?"
>>176457The griffon nods his head and puts down his suitcases.
"Afternoon. Name is Garv Cavaliere, from Nova Griffonia, griffon, length of stay indeterminate, and as for the rest…" he pulls out a card holder from an inside suit pocket, picks out a card, and slides it across to the stallion.
GUN FOR HIRE ♜
GARV CAVALIERE WETER >>176465"If our coats are holding us back, then why do you let us wear them indoors? That means you don't actually believe the Central Council," Amber points out. She turns to her mother.
"Aren't I right? We're not being 'compliant,' just in secret." >>176466"Right..." She turns around, and walks closer towards Kira.
"I'm betting they aren't so soft and cuddly as you say they are. Or maybe even as you think they are. The Ponies certainly aren't as soft and friendly as they tell everything they are. I
know that. I don't think you are as soft as you think you are... weak, yes. But not as non-threatening."
>>176467"I don't... maybe? I suppose that would make sense." She says
>>176468The stallion smiles, and looks back up to him
"Are you here to volunteer with the Military? Or perhaps one of the companies?"
>>176469He frowns
"Hush, Kultanien."
Her mother does not actually answer
"Kultanien, want to come with me to the village shop? We are low on salt."
>>176470Silver shakes his head clear. "I am sorry if I seem focused on this, but...I can smell adventure coming from this, and it smells like citrus. And, remember when you asked where I would take you on our next escapade?" He smiles at the mare. "I would like you to come with me, when it is time."
>>176470She cheers up and hops off the bed.
"Sure!" She pauses.
"Wait, do you think she'll be okay? The mare, I mean. I don't know why she was on the tundra or where she was going." >>176470Kira scrunches, though the scrunch feels entirely non-threatening.
"But this is different. They're my people, I know them. They just need a chance."