Fallout Equestria: Tarts and Tribulations [Archive]

Inspector Valin

2017-08-27, 05:42 PM

Choro grimaces as the mighty slime continues to pound away at the murderbot undaunted, even with Ms Moon providing support fire. Above, she can see Viridia flying away from the fight and Stellar darting past the beast with her wingblades. Their attacks so far seem to have barely phased the strange leviathan.... but they have to keep trying. Sufficient energy should serve to disperse whatever animus lurks within the monster's heart. At least it's not feeding off their attacks... as far as she can tell, anyway.

Her gaze lingers on what might be the blood-slime's heart. The little wizard's weapons swirl in a circle around her, falling into alignment with the overlapping circles of Stable-Tec's patented targetting spell as Choro tries to draw forth another electrical bolt from her horn. Almost absently, the young mage squeezes the triggers through telekenesis, letting fly with a fusilage of flame around the creature's base while her crackling lightning sizzles against its midsection. The others haven't been able to get close to the office yet, and on the catwalk they're exposed. She has to keep drawing the monster's fire and... try to put the behemoth down, once and for all.

Well... seems like time for some kinda Alpha Strike. :smallwink:

45ap: AdvLightning Strike: TN85
[roll1]Lightning Damage
10ap: SATS
15ap: [roll2] TN85 Wild Shot with both Flamethrower and Plasma Pistol! -10 from AP, -20 from dual wielding, +30 from SATS, +30 from size.
[roll]25+2d10 Plasma Pistol, 18+2d10 Flamethrower, with +++ for three rounds afterwards

I'm pretty sure Choro can shoot with as many weapons as she can wield with TK (5) but it's late here and I don't want to ask again, so here's damage for her rifle if she can fire that too
20+1d10 I recall originally finding a rule that said firing with more than 2 weapons was an additional -20, but I can't find that again to confirm. If it is, ignore the rifle, Choro will fire with the other two.

DigoDragon

2017-08-27, 06:11 PM

"Doc! Do the thing that stops me from dying." Viridia requested.

"You got it," Doc replied. He administered healing to her grievous wound. "Hopefully that meat monster gets put down soon. We're sorta going backwards on the pillage and burn plan here, but at least that darn overseer bot shut up."

He looks around if there's anything left of this computer room of use, or if the flames have claimed it.

30 AP to heal Viridia [roll0] HP
0 AP free move to just stay out of the way for now.
30 AP (if there's something useful with the remaining computers to do? Science [roll1] vs. 75 if required)
18 AP for a 9 dodge bonus

Dalinale

2017-08-27, 10:50 PM

"Thanks Doc," Stellar says, flexing her newly regrown wing. She gives half a glance at the safe, but is inclined to ignore it for now. "Careful, might be a trap. And that guy will probably be back."

"Now did someone mention there's a monster out there with an arse to kick? Or was it no arse?"

Stellar flys out into the main room and performs a flyby attack on the ginormous goop, her attack run taking her well past the enormous slime.

AP 85

Dodge 30 = -15 to hit Stellar.
Parry = 15AP (all melee attacks from the monster are opposed.)
Movement 7.5AP to line up.
Charge and slow down again 12.5AP
Attack 20 AP.

Stellar has plenty of move to get all this done.

Attack: vs 65 not inc size modifiers.
Damage: [roll1]
Lightning on 1-40: [roll2]
On lightning and [roll3] 1-3 does [roll4] then [roll5] then [roll6] fire damage.

Stellar's wingblade made contact with the giant slime monster; she saw that, by the her strafing slice was done, the gooey hide of the thing was starting to solidify again, almost erasing the purple-colored rend in the creature's... side? Yeah, it didn't seem particularly bothered, especially when-

Choro grimaces as the mighty slime continues to pound away at the murderbot undaunted, even with Ms Moon providing support fire. Above, she can see Viridia flying away from the fight and Stellar darting past the beast with her wingblades. Their attacks so far seem to have barely phased the strange leviathan.... but they have to keep trying. Sufficient energy should serve to disperse whatever animus lurks within the monster's heart. At least it's not feeding off their attacks... as far as she can tell, anyway.

Her gaze lingers on what might be the blood-slime's heart. The little wizard's weapons swirl in a circle around her, falling into alignment with the overlapping circles of Stable-Tec's patented targetting spell as Choro tries to draw forth another electrical bolt from her horn. Almost absently, the young mage squeezes the triggers through telekenesis, letting fly with a fusilage of flame around the creature's base while her crackling lightning sizzles against its midsection. The others haven't been able to get close to the office yet, and on the catwalk they're exposed. She has to keep drawing the monster's fire and... try to put the behemoth down, once and for all.

Well... seems like time for some kinda Alpha Strike. :smallwink:

45ap: [roll0] AdvLightning Strike: TN85
[roll1]Lightning Damage
10ap: SATS
15ap: [roll2] TN85 Wild Shot with both Flamethrower and Plasma Pistol! -10 from AP, -20 from dual wielding, +30 from SATS, +30 from size.
[roll]25+2d10 Plasma Pistol, 18+2d10 Flamethrower, with +++ for three rounds afterwards

I'm pretty sure Choro can shoot with as many weapons as she can wield with TK (5) but it's late here and I don't want to ask again, so here's damage for her rifle if she can fire that too
20+1d10 I recall originally finding a rule that said firing with more than 2 weapons was an additional -20, but I can't find that again to confirm. If it is, ignore the rifle, Choro will fire with the other two.

Choro saw that her burst of magic and fire and flame utterly enraged the meat mountain in front of her, and she could almost see the outline of some great toothless maw form on the beast's bulk that was lined with uncountable amounts of little pearly black eyes around the lips, only to make a dull roaring noise and the goopy facial features melting away and becoming indistinct on the greater blob. Vaughn, from far away, landed a tri-color shot that evaporated a good chunk of the creature, while the giant Handy partially enveloped by the slime was slowly chugging away at attempting to saw it in half like it was nothing else then the world's nastiest redwood. Choro saw that the creature had suffered a great deal from the magical and electrical attacks it had tanked; it's hide gained a texture akin to a sort of meaty cauliflower, with patches burnt and blackened and with yellowish-white substances emerging from the cracks and splits on it's surface; furthermore, it didn't seem as if it was coping very well.

"You got it," Doc replied. He administered healing to her grievous wound. "Hopefully that meat monster gets put down soon. We're sorta going backwards on the pillage and burn plan here, but at least that darn overseer bot shut up."

He looks around if there's anything left of this computer room of use, or if the flames have claimed it.

30 AP to heal Viridia [roll0] HP
0 AP free move to just stay out of the way for now.
30 AP (if there's something useful with the remaining computers to do? Science [roll1] vs. 75 if required)
18 AP for a 9 dodge bonus

Well, the computers were mostly intact; also, they looked very, very advanced. There were not the bulky plastic-y stationary computers like he'd seen previously, such as in the hospital basement or even back home; these were sleek-looking metal blocks that looked like they got dropped out of some science fiction story where computers didn't run on vacuum tubes. Logicly, these were either high-level processors or storage devices; probably both. There didn't seem to a be a terminal anywhere in the room, but the one in the office in front of him looked just a little melted, and the flames had died down a bit. Also, the mascot robot fell to the floor at some point and someone could probably shift it's semi-molten remains away from the desk.

(The computers in the room were sweet and savaging stuff from them will likely yield high-level mechanical parts/science stuff.)

Forum Explorer

2017-08-28, 09:30 PM

Dalinale

2017-08-29, 01:43 AM

Moonshadow unloaded on the slime monster from hiding, proving that she can hit the broadside of a barn.

shot 1
[roll0] vs 100 (55+30 for sneak + 30 for Large Target = 115 :smallbiggrin:)
[roll1] CRIT! 50

Shot 2
[roll2] vs 100
[roll3] CRIT! 70

Shot 3
[roll4] vs 100
[roll5]

Shot 4
[roll6] vs 100
[roll7] CRIT! 72

Shot 5
[roll8] vs 100
[roll9] CRIT! 70

Wild Shot for 7 AP
[roll10] vs 100
[roll11]

Can somepony throw that safe at the slime monster? Unless assassins have started giving us gifts mid battle, I'm pretty sure that's a bomb! she yelled.

After Moonshadow's assault ended, she saw that the viscous pile of sludge, black and pink and bleeding loose globs of pale yolk in a dozen craters on it's broiled form, let out a hideous shriek that sounded as if a brass orchestra was being being played over a chorus made of angry clown honking, with a high-pitched 'Tekili-li!' being thrown in there at some point. The slime's tendrils, some looking like little hooves and some resembling the roots of some liquid tree, retracted into it's greater form, and it seemed to simply liquefy in front of her, turning a more uniform pinkish-green color and allowing itself to fall into the lake of meat below the party with enough force and weight behind it that the overall flooding raised a few feet, although it didn't make a splash, exactly. Moonshadow, however, could see some faint rippling in the gloop far below that, along with white 'blood' that immediately started to pool on the surface, indicated that it was heading away from the platform, and not towards those advancing on the walkway or even towards Vaughn, but rather to the absolute farthest side of the room.

Hazuki

2017-08-29, 05:50 PM

"Welp. Sure hope this doesn't bit us in the ass." Viridia said, as she hauled the safe into her arms and flew over to drop it in the vat.

Dalinale

2017-08-29, 07:50 PM

"Welp. Sure hope this doesn't bit us in the ass." Viridia said, as she hauled the safe into her arms and flew over to drop it in the vat.

Viridia heard a rather gross 'sqweltunk' sound when the safe hit the bottom of the giant vat. Nothing exploded or made any sudden movements below, so there didn't seem to be any baby abominations in this evil basement of horrors, at least from what she could see, which was very little, actually.

What she could see, though, was Thanatos, advancing at a decent pace on his stupidly long horse legs with what looked like a piece of artillery on his back. Also, Bertly and Strata were right behind him, and the Securitron was moving towards them as well. At least she could probably yell at Little Green and he'd hear her.

Also, unfortunately, she could see her murderbot, which was wrecked. It was missing about half of it's metal shell and it about the only thing that was totally intact was it's painted face, which continued to smile even while it looked like it was five minutes away from it's engine giving up.

RCgothic

2017-09-03, 05:22 PM

Inspector Valin

2017-09-03, 08:11 PM

Sometimes, you don't have time to concoct a well thought out plan. Choro was trying to consider what to do about the withdrawing creature, when the dots flickering in the corner of her vision make her realize just what the thing might be heading towards. The prisoners! Of course they might not be prisoners, she'd made that mistake once already, but the fear at the possibility of innocents in peril overrides any second thought on the mage's part. No fear, no restraint, no room for exhaustion. She needs to do this, and needs to do this now

With just a stamp of her hooves, and a flash of bright light, Choro has teleported across the room, leaving her saddlebag behind her on the catwalk. She stands precariously in the slime, right in front of the moving monster. Even as the little mage starts to sink, she angles the battered plasma pistol down towards the abomination, the glowing circles of Stable-tec guiding her aim. A little muffled by her helmet, Choro cries out at her foe as she fires a bolt of white plasma almost straight down towards it.

"You shall not pass!"

AP!

45ap: Basic Teleport between the Shoggoth, and the unseen area. Choro's basic teleport is only limited by line of sight. Hoping Choro's light makes it a bit more visible now.
10ap: SATS
15ap: [roll0] Wild Shot with Plasma Pistol, 55 -10 Wild Shot -40 Concealment +30 SATS +30 Size 3 +15 Range. TN 80
[roll1] Damage

DigoDragon

2017-09-03, 08:55 PM

Having lost sight of the sludge monster, and in no mood to go sludge-trawling, Stellar heads back to the overseer room to link up with the others. She's very much on guard against a repeat attack by the unknown teleporter.

Doc greets Stellar with a nod. "Well, strange thing here, folks--the electronics here are really 'modern'. Rather unusual for a factory that had been getting all their robots from a Robronco knockoff site. Reckon it had to be advanced to automate this place completely; the operations, self-maintenance, product expansion. So, just now wondering who our mystery lancer was. Gonna get a sample of that pale fluid it bled. Might be able to analyze what it..."

The familiar flash of bright light from the corner of his eye made Doc pause. He looked out and saw Choro wasn't where she last stood.

"Stars and moon," Doc cursed. "If she doesn't die from her rash actions, I'm gonna kill her. Sigh... I better go catch up. Hey, if any y'all find some healing items, grab 'em. I'm nearly out." Doc leaves his main group to catch up with the robots/npcs and maybe Choro if she isn't dead by the time he reaches her.

Freakin' teleportin' unicorns.

30 AP - general action to collect a sample of the mystery lancer's 'blood'.
0 AP - free action to move
45 AP - movement to head toward where the second team and Choro. Total movement (including free move) is 80.5 yards (241.5 feet).
4 AP - Dodge (-2 to hit Doc)

Dalinale

2017-09-03, 11:08 PM

Having lost sight of the sludge monster, and in no mood to go sludge-trawling, Stellar heads back to the overseer room to link up with the others. She's very much on guard against a repeat attack by the unknown teleporter.

54AP to dodge. -27 to hit.
15AP to parry the teleporter if it shows up again.
15AP for two move actions at 7.5AP to return to overseer room.

Stellar, on guard, would've noticed that... actually, no, everything was fine and there wasn't anything immediately awful near her. Yay?

Sometimes, you don't have time to concoct a well thought out plan. Choro was trying to consider what to do about the withdrawing creature, when the dots flickering in the corner of her vision make her realize just what the thing might be heading towards. The prisoners! Of course they might not be prisoners, she'd made that mistake once already, but the fear at the possibility of innocents in peril overrides any second thought on the mage's part. No fear, no restraint, no room for exhaustion. She needs to do this, and needs to do this now

With just a stamp of her hooves, and a flash of bright light, Choro has teleported across the room, leaving her saddlebag behind her on the catwalk. She stands precariously in the slime, right in front of the moving monster. Even as the little mage starts to sink, she angles the battered plasma pistol down towards the abomination, the glowing circles of Stable-tec guiding her aim. A little muffled by her helmet, Choro cries out at her foe as she fires a bolt of white plasma almost straight down towards it.

"You shall not pass!"

AP!

45ap: Basic Teleport between the Shoggoth, and the unseen area. Choro's basic teleport is only limited by line of sight. Hoping Choro's light makes it a bit more visible now.
10ap: SATS
15ap: [roll0] Wild Shot with Plasma Pistol, 55 -10 Wild Shot -40 Concealment +30 SATS +30 Size 3 +15 Range. TN 80
[roll1] Damage

Choro found herself standing... on a roundish concrete pillar that jutted out of the slimy muck by just a few inches, likely some twin to the similar structure the group noticed earlier; there was a walkway in sight, about thirty feet away, but it was a walkway that wasn't currently standing on. Her shot, while quickly launched, also seemed to strike the horrid slime thing, which Choro only knew because a patch of liquid meat around the pillar around thirty feet wide flashed a livid purple-red for a few seconds before fading into pink-white with green and red blotches. After that, the only sounds she was able to hear was the oceanic sloshing of the food waste around her and the dull rumble of far-away robots. Only her horn light illuminated anything, really, even Vaughn could've passed for a misplaced constellation for all intents in purposes.

Doc greets Stellar with a nod. "Well, strange thing here, folks--the electronics here are really 'modern'. Rather unusual for a factory that had been getting all their robots from a Robronco knockoff site. Reckon it had to be advanced to automate this place completely; the operations, self-maintenance, product expansion. So, just now wondering who our mystery lancer was. Gonna get a sample of that pale fluid it bled. Might be able to analyze what it..."

The familiar flash of bright light from the corner of his eye made Doc pause. He looked out and saw Choro wasn't where she last stood.

"Stars and moon," Doc cursed. "If she doesn't die from her rash actions, I'm gonna kill her. Sigh... I better go catch up. Hey, if any y'all find some healing items, grab 'em. I'm nearly out." Doc leaves his main group to catch up with the robots/npcs and maybe Choro if she isn't dead by the time he reaches her.

Freakin' teleportin' unicorns.

30 AP - general action to collect a sample of the mystery lancer's 'blood'.
0 AP - free action to move
45 AP - movement to head toward where the second team and Choro. Total movement (including free move) is 80.5 yards (241.5 feet).
4 AP - Dodge (-2 to hit Doc)

Alright, the teleporting unicorn's blood was easy to get off the ground with the use of a small bottle; it was slightly congealed and came up as sort of runny, but otherwise didn't do anything odd.

Doc, after he was done, was down the stairs and was back on the 'ground floor'. Unfortunately, it was pretty clear that Choro was quite a bit aways from him.

Forum Explorer

2017-09-04, 01:59 AM

Dalinale

2017-09-04, 05:55 PM

Dammit Choro! Moonshadow cursed, taking off after their unicorn, and taking some pot shots at the monster as she got closer.

Charging after the goo monster for 35 AP to transverse 98 feet. Effective range without penalty is 50 feet. Between 50 and 150 feet it's a -10 to accuracy.

10 AP activate PipBuck

Shot 1 15 AP
[roll0] vs 75? (55+30 for size -10 for Concealment)
[roll1]

Shot 2 15 AP
[roll2] vs 75? (55+30 for size -10 for Concealment)
[roll3] CRIT! 48

Shot 3 7 AP
[roll4] vs 67? (55+30 for size -10 for Concealment)
[roll5]

Moonshadow saw her shots hit the slime around Choro, which was likely good enough, given the watery roaring noises she heard a few moments later.

Unfortunately, a spot in the wall quite close to Choro appeared to be a partially flooded tunnel; the level of the liquid meat rose slightly for a few moments before suddenly falling a few inches, as if a great deal of it was suddenly gone. Moonshadow then noticed some globs of black slime rise to the surface of the meat lake, clinging to the pillar Choro was on like seafoam on a pier.

DigoDragon

2017-09-04, 06:08 PM

Doc continues moving his way down the catwalk, using nightvision to keep himself on the walk. "Choro! You down there, little buddy?"

Forum Explorer

2017-09-04, 09:46 PM

Choro you have got to stop teleporting away where we can't help you! And what was that about anyways?! Moonshadow snarled when she caught up, landing in front of Choro, her wings still flared up.

Dalinale

2017-09-04, 10:45 PM

Doc continues moving his way down the catwalk, using nightvision to keep himself on the walk. "Choro! You down there, little buddy?"

While there was no direct way to Choro, Doc would get close enough as he could by heading west; she was rather close to the raised section of the room with the storage shelves and pallets, but he didn't see anything off. In addition, the other group, headed by Thanatos, had changed direction slightly and seemed to be heading towards him, now. The way towards the filly consisted of a single walkway that seemed to be in similar condition to the rest, and was easily reachable from the platform.

Choro you have got to stop teleporting away where we can't help you! And what was that about anyways?! Moonshadow snarled when she caught up, landing in front of Choro, her wings still flared up.

The two ponies with Pipbucks, helpfully stranded on the same six-foot wide pillar surrounded by toxic sludge, would both notice that they were approximately a fifty yards away from the first red dots on their maps; in addition, there was some greens mixed in with the reds, as well. Some were moving away from the map's range, while others, mostly red, seemed stationary; there were probably a hundred dot's altogether, with roughly one third of those being green. Still, no sounds of cries for help or anything along those lines.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-05, 02:41 AM

DigoDragon

2017-09-05, 06:05 AM

"I'm here! And fine. Just... a little tired. Too many lightning bolts for one day."

"Too many bolts... pffft. Maybe if you stop teleporting into danger without us..."

Doc waits on Thanatos and the rest of the get-along-gang to catch up. "Sorry we scared off the party before y'all could get a slice, although Vaughn made a couple keen shots back there. Any more hostiles we should worry about?"

Forum Explorer

2017-09-05, 09:40 PM

Moonshadow's reprimand lands like a hammer blow. Choro jumps with the nerves of a colt who got caught with the cookie jar. She holds up her hooves, waving around them in an attempt to justify herself. "The dots! The extra dots on EFS. They weren't moving so I..."

The little wizard trails off, starting to notice the additional readings evident from their perch here. She hasn't seen so many readings since the Stable, and their gentle flickering red almost goes beyond intimidating. Choro looks up to Moonshadow, plaintively beckoning the pegasus onwards. "Should we go see what they are?" She doesn't yet teleport off of the pillar however. She's feeling a little woozy.

Hearing Doc nearby, Choro calls to him, smiling at the sound of the good medic's voice. "I'm here! And fine. Just... a little tired. Too many lightning bolts for one day." You can say that again. Still, the topic jogs Choro's memory and she turns back to Moonshadow, now significantly happier to see her. "Glad you're ok too, Ms. Moon. We were a little worried."

We should, but not yet. I need you to help me hack the main server of this place. It tells me it's friendly, but considering it forgot to mention the Overbot had a flamethrower and a machine gun, I don't think I believe it. So I was hoping between you and Stellar you could reprogram it to kill that monster, gather up all the ponies in one safe spot, and then burn this place to the ground. Moonshadow said.

Aww, you don't need to worry about me. I'll admit that machine gun caught me by surprise, but only because I was told it didn't have a machine gun Moonshadow said, ruffling Choro's mane. Also don't think you're off the hook young filly. We're going to have a serious talk about combat tactics when we're out of here.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-06, 08:52 AM

Usually calling the little wizard a filly is a surefire way to incur her wrath. But just having fought a horrible monster, Choro couldn't bring herself to protest Moonshadow's words. She just lets the older mare ruffle her mane as best she can through the helmet. Moonshadow, Doc, Strata: it's good to have ponies care about you.

Moonshadow's plan seems reasonable. They can come back to secure this place and free these folk, if they are prisoners. Dichoro's about to teleport to the catwalk, but she lingers: trying to remember "Hrm... oh!" She'd almost forgotten. Frowning, Choro waves a hoof in the direction of the Overseer's office "I can help you with the server, but the bot you were fighting did some things on its terminal before Miss Stellar destroyed it. I was trying to work out what they were, but the room was on fire, and that's when the pony with the spear attacked. I forgot about it."

Choro spends a second thinking the situation over before shaking her head, "Whatever it did, the server would probably be the easiest place to undo it from. Just... be ready for trouble."

Cut here 'cause I'm a bit unsure if Moonshadow could help Choro back to land or not. She's got the juice for another teleport, but she's low enough that a lift would be appreciated. I can go either way, but felt it better to ask OOC rather than IC: this should hopefully go quicker

Forum Explorer

2017-09-06, 09:35 AM

Dalinale

2017-09-06, 10:17 AM

"Too many bolts... pffft. Maybe if you stop teleporting into danger without us..."

Doc waits on Thanatos and the rest of the get-along-gang to catch up. "Sorry we scared off the party before y'all could get a slice, although Vaughn made a couple keen shots back there. Any more hostiles we should worry about?"

Thanatos, Strata, and Bertly both made their way towards where Choro and Moonshadow were, but it seemed like the Securitron was fine with going past the scene on the pillar and continued straight forward down the walkway, it's passage causing some stray debris to shake lightly.

The look on Thanato's face was grave. Strata, instead, looked behind her, apparently trying to find either of the pegasi who wasn't Moonshadow.

Usually calling the little wizard a filly is a surefire way to incur her wrath. But just having fought a horrible monster, Choro couldn't bring herself to protest Moonshadow's words. She just lets the older mare ruffle her mane as best she can through the helmet. Moonshadow, Doc, Strata: it's good to have ponies care about you.

Moonshadow's plan seems reasonable. They can come back to secure this place and free these folk, if they are prisoners. Dichoro's about to teleport to the catwalk, but she lingers: trying to remember "Hrm... oh!" She'd almost forgotten. Frowning, Choro waves a hoof in the direction of the Overseer's office "I can help you with the server, but the bot you were fighting did some things on its terminal before Miss Stellar destroyed it. I was trying to work out what they were, but the room was on fire, and that's when the pony with the spear attacked. I forgot about it."

Choro spends a second thinking the situation over before shaking her head, "Whatever it did, the server would probably be the easiest place to undo it from. Just... be ready for trouble."

Cut here 'cause I'm a bit unsure if Moonshadow could help Choro back to land or not. She's got the juice for another teleport, but she's low enough that a lift would be appreciated. I can go either way, but felt it better to ask OOC rather than IC: this should hopefully go quicker

Moonshadow gives Choro a ride back to Doc, and then guides everypony on the team back to the server room. Alright,
this thing might still be hostile considering it 'forgot' what weapons the Overbot had. So you know, be prepared. she warned while they were on the stairs down.

As Moonshadow spoke, Vaughn lowered himself until he was roughly at level with the ponies on the walkway.

"THIS UNIT COULD PROVIDE TRANSPORTATION." the robot said, loudly.

Thanatos glanced at the robot, still dripping a slight amount of molten metal, and glanced at Moonshadow.

"The securitron seems to be pursuing something that interests it; it also stated that destroying the server was it's main goal. Should I pursue it, or does that not match up with what you know?"

Hazuki

2017-09-06, 10:18 AM

Viridia was also there.

DigoDragon

2017-09-06, 10:23 AM

"THIS UNIT COULD PROVIDE TRANSPORTATION." the robot said, loudly.

"Better yet, would you kindly provide a few answers," Doc suggests. "Choro said there's a bunch of blips here showing up on her pipbuck. Are there other critters in this room? Hostile robots? Captured ponies? Cows?"

Inspector Valin

2017-09-06, 10:28 AM

"I... I..."

Choro had no sooner raised a hoof in greeting to the gathered group than the securitron fuzzed by and Thanatos profered his question. The little mare stammers, glancing back to Moonshadow with a guilty look, before replying. "If these are ponies up ahead, we should help them as soon as possible. We should at least check to make sure of that before heading to the server room and dealing with the facility proper. And to be safe, we should investigate in numbers. If only to provide covering fire."

With a deep breath, the little wizard raises her rifle, and passes Moonshadow back her flamethrower. "There are a lot of readings on my Pipbuck's Eyes Forward Sparkle. They're a mix of friendly and hostile. I'm not sure what that means, but everypony should stay alert." Facts given, Choro turns and proceeds after the Securitron, ready to light the way for those without night vision.

Dalinale

2017-09-06, 10:52 AM

Viridia was also there.

When Strata noticed Viridia, she made a sound that sort of sounded like a squawk, but then she shuffled towards her. The ghoul elbowed the pegasus lightly, in a obvious attempt to get her attention, and motioned towards a spot on the walkway far enough away from the rest of the group that it could be considered 'private'.

"Better yet, would you kindly provide a few answers," Doc suggests. "Choro said there's a bunch of blips here showing up on her pipbuck. Are there other critters in this room? Hostile robots? Captured ponies? Cows?"

"THIS UNIT HAS NO DATA REGARDING THE OPERATIONS OF THIS SECTION OF THE FACILITY." the giant robot replied, "HOWEVER, THE SECURITRON MK TWO UNIT SEEMS TO UNDERSTAND, AND WAS UNWILLING TO GIVE ANY ADDITIONAL DATA. I ARRIVED HERE THROUGH DISABLING A DISPOSAL SHUT, ON IT'S SUGGESTION."

"I... I..."

Choro had no sooner raised a hoof in greeting to the gathered group than the securitron fuzzed by and Thanatos profered his question. The little mare stammers, glancing back to Moonshadow with a guilty look, before replying. "If these are ponies up ahead, we should help them as soon as possible. We should at least check to make sure of that before heading to the server room and dealing with the facility proper. And to be safe, we should investigate in numbers. If only to provide covering fire."

With a deep breath, the little wizard raises her rifle, and passes Moonshadow back her flamethrower. "There are a lot of readings on my Pipbuck's Eyes Forward Sparkle. They're a mix of friendly and hostile. I'm not sure what that means, but everypony should stay alert." Facts given, Choro turns and proceeds after the Securitron, ready to light the way for those without night vision.

[Choro should make some rolls, up to three.]

Thanatos watched as the filly started to bolt down the walkway, towards the enveloping dark, and slowly glanced at Moonshadow, with a deadpan look on his face. He didn't say 'Are you ****ing kidding me.', but it was rather implicit.

Hazuki

2017-09-06, 10:58 AM

When Strata noticed Viridia, she made a sound that sort of sounded like a squawk, but then she shuffled towards her. The ghoul elbowed the pegasus lightly, in a obvious attempt to get her attention, and motioned towards a spot on the walkway far enough away from the rest of the group that it could be considered 'private'. Viridia followed Strata. "Is this the part where we make out?"

DigoDragon

2017-09-06, 10:58 AM

"THIS UNIT HAS NO DATA REGARDING THE OPERATIONS OF THIS SECTION OF THE FACILITY." the giant robot replied, "HOWEVER, THE SECURITRON MK TWO UNIT SEEMS TO UNDERSTAND, AND WAS UNWILLING TO GIVE ANY ADDITIONAL DATA. I ARRIVED HERE THROUGH DISABLING A DISPOSAL SHUT, ON IT'S SUGGESTION."

"Eh, fair enough I suppose," Doc replies. He wasn't happy with the answer, but it made sense that Vaughn would only know what was needed for his job.

Thanatos watched as the filly started to bolt down the walkway, towards the enveloping dark, and slowly glanced at Moonshadow, with a deadpan look on his face.

"Hey, Thanatos. You wanna drop some explosives with me to collapse the tunnel the slime monster dove into? Might keep it stuck down there, away from its 'nest' here."

Dalinale

2017-09-06, 11:02 AM

Viridia followed Strata. "Is this the part where we make out?"

Strata raised her eyes slightly at the suggestion, but shook her head almost immediately.

"No, you're wearing a rubber suit so you don't die, and I'm wearing stupid armor. Anyway, he say's he's a Olive? Thanatos, the spooky guy? I know a bit about the Olives, but I want to know how much you already know about them, because I just had a idea, and I don't like it, and I don't know how much of this is relevant."

"Eh, fair enough I suppose," Doc replies. He wasn't happy with the answer, but it made sense that Vaughn would only know what was needed for his job.

Vaughn made a metellic noise that sounded like he was... almost sad? Whatever it was in robo-speak, Bertly flew up next to him and started to give Vaughn some reassuring pats.

"Hey, Thanatos. You wanna drop some explosives with me to collapse the tunnel the slime monster dove into? Might keep it stuck down there, away from its 'nest' here."

Thanatos coughed.

"Instead of destroying anything outright, I would prefer to access whatever drainage systems are present here and shut whatever waste disposal systems that are here that drain into the lake. A giant slime in the lake would be disastrous, but if we can confirm that it is trapped in this building, far underground, that would be preferable. A quick... chat with the server here should assist in that."

Hazuki

2017-09-06, 11:06 AM

Strata raised her eyes slightly at the suggestion, but shook her head almost immediately.

"No, you're wearing a rubber suit so you don't die, and I'm wearing stupid armor. Anyway, he say's he's a Olive? Thanatos, the spooky guy? I know a bit about the Olives, but I want to know how much you already know about them, because I just had a idea, and I don't like it, and I don't know how much of this is relevant.""You mean Little Green? Yeah, I know him. I know that the Olives are a bunch of green ***** who run farms." Viridia said."Whatcha thinking about?"

DigoDragon

2017-09-06, 11:16 AM

"Instead of destroying anything outright, I would prefer to access whatever drainage systems are present here and shut whatever waste disposal systems that are here that drain into the lake. A giant slime in the lake would be disastrous, but if we can confirm that it is trapped in this building, far underground, that would be preferable. A quick... chat with the server here should assist in that."

"I suppose, but then again it could already be outside so... eh, damned if anyone knows how this place ever got built." Doc pats Vaughn, reassuring the robot he ain't mad at it. He then starts walking in the direction Choro had gone off to.

"Come on, let's go follow Choro and see what she throws herself in front of this time."

Dalinale

2017-09-06, 11:24 AM

"You mean Little Green? Yeah, I know him. I know that the Olives are a bunch of green ***** who run farms." Viridia said."Whatcha thinking about?"

Strata coughed.

"Alright, the Olives were pretty famous, back when I was around. They came from this place called Neighples, which was a famous city far, far away from Equestria, and they were dirt poor. They worked in restaurants and laundromats and stuff. However, there was this one guy named Olive Mill who became a engineer, and worked for the government for a few years before starting Olive Hydroponics. If that doesn't ring any bells, they were subcontractors for Stable Technologies; allegedly, they built about half of farming systems for the Stables. They were pretty famous around here, because they had a giant complex built in the west end of the city, but I didn't know they had farming equipment on their property. Olive Mill was also supposed to have cracked at some point and went full-on crazy billionaire recluse, but I don't know much about that. My guess is, if that's still relevant, Thanatos wouldn't mind talking about why the Olives know about a place that makes food with high technology, because, back in my day, that was sort of the Olive's thing."

"I suppose, but then again it could already be outside so... eh, damned if anyone knows how this place ever got built." Doc pats Vaughn, reassuring the robot he ain't mad at it. He then starts walking in the direction Choro had gone off to.

"Come on, let's go follow Choro and see what she throws herself in front of this time."

[Doc should make three rolls of his choice, too.]

Thanatos gave a amazed look at Moonshadow, and then turned his head slightly, apparently waiting for Stellar.

Hazuki

2017-09-06, 11:33 AM

Strata coughed.

"Alright, the Olives were pretty famous, back when I was around. They came from this place called Neighples, which was a famous city far, far away from Equestria, and they were dirt poor. They worked in restaurants and laundromats and stuff. However, there was this one guy named Olive Mill who became a engineer, and worked for the government for a few years before starting Olive Hydroponics. If that doesn't ring any bells, they were subcontractors for Stable Technologies; allegedly, they built about half of farming systems for the Stables. They were pretty famous around here, because they had a giant complex built in the west end of the city, but I didn't know they had farming equipment on their property. Olive Mill was also supposed to have cracked at some point and went full-on crazy billionaire recluse, but I don't know much about that. My guess is, if that's still relevant, Thanatos wouldn't mind talking about why the Olives know about a place that makes food with high technology, because, back in my day, that was sort of the Olive's thing."
Viridia nodded. "So...you think I should ask him why the Olives know about this place, or...?"

Dalinale

2017-09-06, 11:58 AM

Viridia nodded. "So...you think I should ask him why the Olives know about this place, or...?"

"Yeah." Strata replied, "I mean, if they're evil, now, then it's worth looking into."

Hazuki

2017-09-06, 12:01 PM

"Okay." Viridia flew back to the group and waited for a couple of seconds. "So how do the Olives know about this place, Little Green?"

Dalinale

2017-09-06, 12:40 PM

"Okay." Viridia flew back to the group and waited for a couple of seconds. "So how do the Olives know about this place, Little Green?"

"I would be perfectly happy to tell you if you would stop calling me Little Green." Thanatos replied calmly, apparently still waiting for Stellar, like this was a hot date or something. Without the scarf, Viridia saw that his default expression was frowning, funnily enough, likely because, deep down, no matter how much he tried to look like he wanted to look like a brutal wasteland gangster with those tats and hair, he was still a Olive, deep down inside, which meant that he had relatives who said 'y'all' without irony.

Hazuki

2017-09-06, 12:41 PM

"I would be perfectly happy to tell you if you would stop calling me Little Green." Thanatos replied calmly, apparently still waiting for Stellar, like this was a hot date or something. Without the scarf, Viridia saw that his default expression was frowning, funnily enough, likely because, deep down, no matter how much he tried to look like he wanted to look like a brutal wasteland gangster with those tats and hair, he was still a Olive, deep down inside, which meant that he had relatives who said 'y'all' without irony."No problem, Bitch."

Dalinale

2017-09-06, 12:57 PM

"No problem, Bitch."

Thanatos looked stunned for a moment, and then snorted in what was clearly low, repressed laughter.

"As I have previously stated to Moonshadow, the family learned of this area three months ago; there have been rashes of disappearances to the north and east of here; all communities clinging to the northern edge of the lake that been falling silent; there has also been odd sightings of unidentified flying objects near the lake. When one of our associated farming communities, Goodharvest, fell silent, we sent investigators, and they returned with some odd objects and grim news. After some independent research, members of my family located this factory; we have records of most significant pre-war businesses in the city, and this area is a conspicuous gap in our knowledgebase."

DigoDragon

2017-09-06, 01:42 PM

Doc stops and turns to the side. This was a curiously interesting topic being discussed.

"A gap because you don't have the records, or because the records were expunged?" he asks.

Dalinale

2017-09-06, 02:11 PM

Doc stops and turns to the side. This was a curiously interesting topic being discussed.

"A gap because you don't have the records, or because the records were expunged?" he asks.

Thanatos raised a eyebrow.

"Why would we expunge any records? If you are implying that we know more about this place before this started, then this would have been razed long ago. All the information we have on this place is that it was owned by a Equestrian shell corporation for some unknown larger company for the purpose of creating food products for griffons and other miscellaneous red meat eating citizens of Equestria, such as sphinxes and Purrsians."

Thanatos paused.

"Those were bipedal cats. I believe the last one in Tauronto was shot a few weeks ago."

DigoDragon

2017-09-06, 02:31 PM

Dalinale

2017-09-06, 07:09 PM

"No, you misunderstand," Doc corrected him. The green horse seemed a bit too quick to defend himself. "I mean expunged by someone pre-war that didn't want this facility's true nature known. Odd that records would be missing, yet the Overseer was talking about creating a world that merges product and consumer. I reckon it wasn't programmed to keep shut. Anyway, since your family knows of it now, how come they only send you, and I presume a hoof-full of others, instead of coming en mass to raze this place? "

"It is highly improbable that a place such as this warranted any records sealed, regardless of it's apparent threat at the moment. We have records of our work with the Equestrian government, Stable Tec, and Hippocampus Energy. Believe me, my family have worked on projects quite nearly as bad as this, but this represents a threat to Equestria. As for the situation at hoof, the family sent a team of very well-trained and well established mercenaries here a week ago to investigate and eliminate it; they did not return. I arrived in town a week ago after a venture in Mountreal; I was told of the situation, and I decided to investigate personally. If it's needed, sending a demolition crew of griffons with heavy artillery is a option, but if it could be turned off, it would certainly be less of a risk for all involved."

Forum Explorer

2017-09-06, 09:46 PM

As Moonshadow spoke, Vaughn lowered himself until he was roughly at level with the ponies on the walkway.

"THIS UNIT COULD PROVIDE TRANSPORTATION." the robot said, loudly.

Thanatos glanced at the robot, still dripping a slight amount of molten metal, and glanced at Moonshadow.

"The securitron seems to be pursuing something that interests it; it also stated that destroying the server was it's main goal. Should I pursue it, or does that not match up with what you know?"

Well maybe there's a back up server or something. Or the Overbot counted as a server. I don't know where we got that thing, so who knows how reliable it is. Moonshadow said.

"I... I..."

Choro had no sooner raised a hoof in greeting to the gathered group than the securitron fuzzed by and Thanatos profered his question. The little mare stammers, glancing back to Moonshadow with a guilty look, before replying. "If these are ponies up ahead, we should help them as soon as possible. We should at least check to make sure of that before heading to the server room and dealing with the facility proper. And to be safe, we should investigate in numbers. If only to provide covering fire."

With a deep breath, the little wizard raises her rifle, and passes Moonshadow back her flamethrower. "There are a lot of readings on my Pipbuck's Eyes Forward Sparkle. They're a mix of friendly and hostile. I'm not sure what that means, but everypony should stay alert." Facts given, Choro turns and proceeds after the Securitron, ready to light the way for those without night vision.

Or for pony sake Choro! Moonshadow yelled, speeding after Choro. The only thing that could threaten the ponies now are themselves, if they are insane, and robots. Disabling the server and all of the robots is protecting them! And it's a **** ton faster then rescuing each of those dots individually!

Inspector Valin

2017-09-07, 01:01 AM

Forum Explorer

2017-09-07, 01:24 AM

"We can check what they are first. It won't take long, and that way other ponies can start rescuing them if they are civilians."

Choro does not stop for Moonshadow's interjection. However, she bends her head down, tapping at her PipBuck. "Half of them register as hostile. If they are ponies, some of them probably are insane. Wouldn't you be, after going through this? I'd like to know what we're dealing with before going to the server, because the server can lie to us. You just said that. Seeing the situation ourselves can only help with making sure we deal with all this properly and efficiently."

Have you seen the size of this place? It's going to take forever. Moonshadow said, flying upside down above Choro so she can look her in the eyes as they move.

Not to mention we'll be dragged into another fight if we encounter any robots. The server shouldn't take that long, so even if it doesn't work, we won't lose much time. Moonshadow sighed. Look, how about this? Doc, Viridia,
and the others can search the factory for any captured ponies while you and Stellar deal with the server.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-07, 02:56 AM

DigoDragon

2017-09-07, 05:35 AM

"It is highly improbable that a place such as this warranted any records sealed, regardless of it's apparent threat at the moment. We have records of our work with the Equestrian government, Stable Tec, and Hippocampus Energy. Believe me, my family have worked on projects quite nearly as bad as this, but this represents a threat to Equestria. As for the situation at hoof, the family sent a team of very well-trained and well established mercenaries here a week ago to investigate and eliminate it; they did not return. I arrived in town a week ago after a venture in Mountreal; I was told of the situation, and I decided to investigate personally. If it's needed, sending a demolition crew of griffons with heavy artillery is a option, but if it could be turned off, it would certainly be less of a risk for all involved."

"Well if the creators of this place didn't seal away their records, then there ought to be records somewhere. Either your family is having a heck of a time finding them, or maybe not everyone is on the same page about it," Doc says. "To wit, a threat of this magnitude and you're just thinking to 'turn it off'? Come on, even I could turn this place back on with a little time and a couple helpers. Someone must of done so a few months back. No, this place gets trashed. We're smashing robots and yanking out the servers for parts so no one can use this place again for grinding the eastern half of the city's population into burgers."

Dalinale

2017-09-07, 02:30 PM

Well maybe there's a back up server or something. Or the Overbot counted as a server. I don't know where we got that thing, so who knows how reliable it is. Moonshadow said.

Thanatos nodded at Moonshadow's words, and turned towards Doc again when the pegasus bolted after the errant unicorn.

"Well if the creators of this place didn't seal away their records, then there ought to be records somewhere. Either your family is having a heck of a time finding them, or maybe not everyone is on the same page about it," Doc says. "To wit, a threat of this magnitude and you're just thinking to 'turn it off'? Come on, even I could turn this place back on with a little time and a couple helpers."

Thanatos raised a eyebrow, just slightly.

"Someone must of done so a few months back. No, this place gets trashed. We're smashing robots and yanking out the servers for parts so no one can use this place again for grinding the eastern half of the city's population into burgers."

"It seems I misspoke; I did not bring this," the stallion paused, and hefted the grenade launcher he was carrying slightly towards the ceiling, "just for personal protection. I did not come in here without knowing what should be done here; I have already personally destroyed the assembly line above, and intend to destroy more of it. Nothing here is salvageable, and there is no purpose of a place like this in this world. If there is a mechanical heart to this place, however, pursuing it would be the most logical path to stopping the horrors here. If the behavior of the robots here are any indication, I wouldn't suggest even using any computer assets present here, regardless of their apparent utility."

DigoDragon

2017-09-07, 02:40 PM

Forum Explorer

2017-09-07, 02:44 PM

Choro lets her horn flare slightly, and Moonshadow finds a gentle force of magic trying to turn her right side up. It can't be safe to fly like that. Regardless, the little mare carries on, nodding at a point ahead of them. "It's a matter of yards. If the server was closer, I'd say do that first. As it stands, keeping the group together is the better course pf action. Either path could lead to a fight."

I think the server is closer. It's only some 300 yards back that way and down the stairs. These dots are all over the place. Moonshadow said, flipping with the magic and flying alongside Choro.

Dalinale

2017-09-07, 05:37 PM

"Now that sounds more like the kind of plan I'd support," Doc said, finally finding something to agree upon with him. "Well, let's get moving. I'm sure you don't wanna linger here any longer, and our little wizard has apparently run off like a tumbleweed."

Thanatos, after a few moments, nodded, and glanced at Viridia and Stellar after taking a brief look at Strata, who had started walking back towards the rest of the group. He then glanced at Vaughn, shook his head, and then glanced back at Doc.

"I do not fly well; I will follow them." he replied; he then quickly made good on his words, and started walking off into the dark.

I think the server is closer. It's only some 300 yards back that way and down the stairs. These dots are all over the place. Moonshadow said, flipping with the magic and flying alongside Choro.

(Moonshadow should roll Perception, as well as two others, if she wants.)

The platform she was flying over, and her ground-bound friends were crossing, eventually ended at a flat concrete platform that seemed to open up to several of the massive racks of shelves; up close, it sort of looked like someone had shoved a entire warehouse down here, although what exactly was on the shelves wasn't certain. No sign of any hostiles, or the Securitron, both of which was sort of interesting.

DigoDragon

2017-09-07, 05:44 PM

"I do not fly well; I will follow them." he replied; he then quickly made good on his words, and started walking off into the dark.

Doc follows him on hoof, waving to the remaining team to follow along and stay together.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-07, 07:10 PM

"See! We're here already, and we just have to check one dot to know where we stand. Almost done."

Choro seems to have perked up a little at the end of this detour. The little mage squints into the darkness, trying to align the shelves with the dots in her periphery. It's strange not to be able to see something when you've spent so much of your life in close, well lit rooms.

Choro shines light out to five yards. If the shelves are further out than that, one of the ponies with darkvision can see what's out there, right?

Hazuki

2017-09-07, 08:09 PM

"Choro, I heard there are, like, ten cakes in the server room. You can have mine, no problem, but we should get there before the Enclave takes them in all their delicious spongey goodness." Viridia urged the mare.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-08, 04:37 AM

Choro looks... more confused by Viridia's cunning plan than anything else. There's cake now? And the Enclave? With a second's thought however, she falls back to her Stable training: when in doubt, think what old Equestrians would've done. She puffs herself up, Shiny Cog taking over for long enough to spout a platitude, "I wouldn't take somepony else's cake. Then they couldn't have cake. And that's terrible! Everypony should get cake."

Cheered up by this brief interlude, the little mare begins whistling happily to herself as she continues trying to inspect the shelves.

Memes! (http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/lex-luthor-took-forty-cakes)Oh the memes! :smalltongue: Apologies, Haz but... I couldn't quite resist a 'And That's Terrible' in there.

DigoDragon

2017-09-09, 10:23 AM

"Okay, inspecting shelves is not shutting down a server, Choro. Can't this wait until we got the remaining hostile robots disabled?" Doc asked.

Dalinale

2017-09-12, 12:44 PM

Doc follows him on hoof, waving to the remaining team to follow along and stay together.

Doc... well, nothing extraordinary happened to him when he opted to follow Thanatos for the brief amount of time he did so. There wasn't any signs of life up ahead, or former life, or any apparent threats, unless he counted Thanatos.

"See! We're here already, and we just have to check one dot to know where we stand. Almost done."

Choro seems to have perked up a little at the end of this detour. The little mage squints into the darkness, trying to align the shelves with the dots in her periphery. It's strange not to be able to see something when you've spent so much of your life in close, well lit rooms.

Choro shines light out to five yards. If the shelves are further out than that, one of the ponies with darkvision can see what's out there, right?

While squinting ahead towards the towering rows of shelving was mostly useless, she could do some quick math in her head; just from where she was standing and going off the very low amount of light in the room, the shelves themselves had to be at least forty feet tall, which showed how absolutely ludicrous the proportions here were. Just from what she was seeing, the metal racks in front of her could probably be re-purposed into a wasteland housing complex easily enough, if someone wanted to break out some ladders and ducttape.

"Choro, I heard there are, like, ten cakes in the server room. You can have mine, no problem, but we should get there before the Enclave takes them in all their delicious spongey goodness." Viridia urged the mare.

As long as it isn't made of meat slurry and presented to you as a gift by a evil robot in charge of a nightmare factory, eating cake when the world provides it is for the best; life's too short and horrible, like Andante, and weird and creepy, like Shade, to not eat cake. Also, unless Moonshadow's commander up in the sky was named Thunder Thighs, cake-stealing is probably not on the Enclave's agenda.

Choro looks... more confused by Viridia's cunning plan than anything else. There's cake now? And the Enclave? With a second's thought however, she falls back to her Stable training: when in doubt, think what old Equestrians would've done. She puffs herself up, Shiny Cog taking over for long enough to spout a platitude, "I wouldn't take somepony else's cake. Then they couldn't have cake. And that's terrible! Everypony should get cake."

Cheered up by this brief interlude, the little mare begins whistling happily to herself as she continues trying to inspect the shelves.

Memes! (http://knowyourmeme.com/memes/lex-luthor-took-forty-cakes)Oh the memes! :smalltongue: Apologies, Haz but... I couldn't quite resist a 'And That's Terrible' in there.

Choro bravely trotted off the walkway, and found herself standing directly in front of the towering rows of shelves that dominated the back half of the room. From where she could see, it was quite clear that the shelves were loaded down with single objects; cages. Six cages to a row, four stacking rows per shelf, and at least ten rows of shelves within her sight just from where she was standing, each roughly goat-sized. The ground was slightly wet, and the concrete floor had a single drain placed every few feet. Near her hooves, there was a tuft of bright purple hair with a few strands of yellow mixed in. The hair, while slightly wet, was otherwise pristine.

Far, far way, there was the sound of faint shuffling, which was getting steadily closer.

[Going to ask for a Agility roll.]

"Okay, inspecting shelves is not shutting down a server, Choro. Can't this wait until we got the remaining hostile robots disabled?" Doc asked.

Doc, thanks to his night vision, saw the filly cheerfully walk forward into the vast darkness ahead with all the visibility provided by a flashlight attached to her forehead, until his view of her was obscured outright by the irregular placement of the shelving.

Moonshadow, meanwhile, saw more then her tragically groundbound companion in being able to see things in the dark; in fact, she could see past the giant rows of shelves, loaded heavily with racks and rack cages, and could see what appeared to be large pieces of machinery, and even pens. From her Pipbuck, she could tell that, more likely then not, whatever that was coming up as stationary dots were located inside the cages in question.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-12, 12:50 PM

DigoDragon

2017-09-12, 01:20 PM

"Choro, you're getting to far ahead," Doc warned.

Dalinale

2017-09-12, 04:29 PM

There's a knot in Choro's throat as she sees the hair. Some part of the little mare wants desperately to gag. But then she hears the shuffling sound, and fear takes over

Funtimes :smalltongue: [roll0] Agility 5.

Choro, lacking cat-like reflexes, could do little else but make a little jump to the left.

What was far more immediate of concern besides jumping into something that made a squishy noise, however, was that Choro heard the distinct sound of shuffling hooves coming from a not-so distant corner, coupled with pained breathing.

[If she doesn't want to stand her (ill placed) ground, there's a few cages near her; a Perception check would allow for her to spot one that's open in the dark, and would assist in any Stealth check she might wish to make. Stealth checks would also have bonuses, given the lighting and the general conditions of the room. Of course, any action she wants to do would be advisable.]

"Choro, you're getting to far ahead," Doc warned.

Doc, from the distance he was at, saw that Choro, apparently spooked by something, opted to jump vertically and decided to land at a slight angle, in that she decided to land on her left side, her head bravely cushioning the blow that her body otherwise would take.

Thanatos, meanwhile, seemed to be back to looking for Stellar, apparently losing hope in his fellow ground-bound ponies.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-12, 04:53 PM

Choro, lacking cat-like reflexes, could do little else but make a little jump to the left.

Hearing the continuing noise, the diminutive mage takes a swift step to the right, glancing around for a place to watch the on-comer safely from. She'd expected prisoners or robots... the reality is proving confusing for her.

"Let's do the time warp agaaaaaain!"

[roll0] Perception 5
[roll1] Stealth.

DigoDragon

2017-09-12, 04:57 PM

Doc is gonna stop and wait behind a nearby piece of cover if possible (I'm guessing shelving since it is partly blocking Doc's ability to see Choro) to see what the unicorn stumbled into. He'll have his rifle handy just in case.

Perception [roll0] vs. 7
Stealth [roll1] vs. 63

Hazuki

2017-09-12, 05:11 PM

As long as it isn't made of meat slurry and presented to you as a gift by a evil robot in charge of a nightmare factory, eating cake when the world provides it is for the best; life's too short and horrible, like Andante, and weird and creepy, like Shade, to not eat cake. Also, unless Moonshadow's commander up in the sky was named Thunder Thighs, cake-stealing is probably not on the Enclave's agenda. Like you know anything about the Enclave.

Dalinale

2017-09-12, 05:20 PM

Hearing the continuing noise, the diminutive mage takes a swift step to the right, glancing around for a place to watch the on-comer safely from. She'd expected prisoners or robots... the reality is proving confusing for her.

"Let's do the time warp agaaaaaain!"

[roll0] Perception 5
[roll1] Stealth.

(Assuming her horn light's off, now. She didn't bungle any rolls that would indicate otherwise.)

Choro, while unable to find a real hiding place, was able to sit very still; that counted for something. At least, it did for her.

The threat behind the corner... looked something like if a pony was crossed with a pig, or a hamster. About the size of a mid-sized dog, or a little smaller then Choro, the creature was a pony-like equine with a fat round body, short, stubby hooves, and a round head that barely had a neck. It's face was somewhat pony-like, with large, alert, forward-facing eyes, but it had a donkey-like muzzle, large nostrils, and relatively long, pointed ears. It was covered in a thick, puffy grey fur that covered it's entire body, along with a darker grey mane and tail. The creature's coat dragged on the floor, which collected filth; while most of it's fur was clean, the bottom half of it's body was colored a foul shade of yellow and had visible bits of trash and filth stuck in it.

The creature shuffled over towards where Choro was a few seconds ago; despite the filly only being a few feet away, it didn't seem to notice Choro's presence, and it lowered it's head and began to lick at the sloping organic mush that was present around the shelves that Choro had stepped into earlier. As it began to eat, it made dog-like snuffling sounds, along with noises that could've been interpreted as coming from a foal, if the source wasn't in front of two ponies.

Doc is gonna stop and wait behind a nearby piece of cover if possible (I'm guessing shelving since it is partly blocking Doc's ability to see Choro) to see what the unicorn stumbled into. He'll have his rifle handy just in case.

Perception [roll0] vs. 7
Stealth [roll1] vs. 63

Doc saw everything Choro saw; he also noticed that Thanatos, apparently noticing that something was amiss but lacked a way to see in the dark, carefully reached for a pistol on a side-holder on his back left leg.

Like you know anything about the Enclave.

I know as much as you do, actually; I like that as much as you do. There's evil earth ponies in this stupid city and evil unicorns Doc's marrying into, so knowing what Moonshadow's immediate ties to the evil pegasi would be useful. I bet if you offer Nightcore a brownie, in order to get brownie points with her, you could learn everything the local people with magic knows about them. That's just a guess.

DigoDragon

2017-09-12, 05:25 PM

Doc saw everything Choro saw; he also noticed that Thanatos, apparently noticing that something was amiss but lacked a way to see in the dark, carefully reached for a pistol on a side-holder on his back left leg.

Doc will silently mouth out 'fat donkey mutant' with his lips, hoping Thanatos can read that.

Hazuki

2017-09-12, 05:36 PM

I know as much as you do, actually; I like that as much as you do. There's evil earth ponies in this stupid city and evil unicorns Doc's marrying into, so knowing what Moonshadow's immediate ties to the evil pegasi would be useful. I bet if you offer Nightcore a brownie, in order to get brownie points with her, you could learn everything the local people with magic knows about them. That's just a guess.Really? Brownie for brownie points? Is that the best you can do.

Doc will silently mouth out 'fat donkey mutant' with his lips, hoping Thanatos can read that.Pfft.

Dalinale

2017-09-12, 05:43 PM

Doc will silently mouth out 'fat donkey mutant' with his lips, hoping Thanatos can read that.

Thanatos, after a few moments, blinked. He then shook his head, and produced a small steel flask from a pocket, which he then began to drain the contents of.

Really? Brownie for brownie points? Is that the best you can do.

Hey, I'm not a comedian, here. She's chubby, I make a joke about her eating, that's the way that sort of thing works. If you want quality jokes, give quality snark, you're slacking.

Pfft.

Yeash, that's a pretty harsh term for a mule. Someone needs sensitivity training.

DigoDragon

2017-09-12, 05:50 PM

Thanatos, after a few moments, blinked. He then shook his head, and produced a small steel flask from a pocket, which he then began to drain the contents of.

Doc shrugs and takes aim with his rifle at the mutant donkey chub. He holds his action; if it attacks Choro, he's shooting.

Hazuki

2017-09-12, 05:50 PM

Hey, I'm not a comedian, here. She's chubby, I make a joke about her eating, that's the way that sort of thing works. If you want quality jokes, give quality snark, you're slacking.It's been a long day of Choro making terrible decisions. I'll snark when I'm good and ready.

Yeash, that's a pretty harsh term for a mule. Someone needs sensitivity training.And not just for his wedding night.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-12, 05:55 PM

Choro, trying very hard not to make any noise or movement at all. That creature is... beyond disturbing. It's grazing on the remains of the dead. But starting a fight with a hostile tribe is something Choro has no real desire to do while feeling weak in the head from a pretty hefty day's mana burn. The little mage takes a very quiet breath in, before concentrating, weaving a spell as swiftly as she can.

With a poof, Choro has vanished from the area around the cages and is back on the catwalk. Visibly disturbed, the young unicorn glances around her companions. She should tell them what she'd just seen but... how do you even describe that? Sighing, the stablemare sets off towards the direction Moonshadow had indicated earlier at a brisk trot. She's seen enough now to convince her this wasn't some easy to liberate bed of ponykind. The truth here is complicated, and they'll have to wring it out of the server if at all possible.

Dalinale

2017-09-12, 06:00 PM

Doc shrugs and takes aim with his rifle at the mutant donkey chub. He holds his action; if it attacks Choro, he's shooting.

Doc, with his magic night vision eyes, saw the creature struggling to eat the grime on the floor; it's fat foal face, all chubby cheeks and eyes, started to tear up as it munched on the greyish-brown refuse, but it did so as if it was starving.

It's been a long day of Choro making terrible decisions. I'll snark when I'm good and ready.

Fine, I suppose this last few hours haven't been good for that kind of stuff. But once we're back having wacky adventures with the Oakville crowd, I expect snark.

And not just for his wedding night.

Doc's at least tolerable to be around; he's pre-whipped for Mirror Armor, at least.

Choro, trying very hard not to make any noise or movement at all. That creature is... beyond disturbing. It's grazing on the remains of the dead. But starting a fight with a hostile tribe is something Choro has no real desire to do while feeling weak in the head from a pretty hefty day's mana burn. The little mage takes a very quiet breath in, before concentrating, weaving a spell as swiftly as she can.

With a poof, Choro has vanished from the area around the cages and is back on the catwalk. Visibly disturbed, the young unicorn glances around her companions. She should tell them what she'd just seen but... how do you even describe that? Sighing, the stablemare sets off towards the direction Moonshadow had indicated earlier at a brisk trot. She's seen enough now to convince her this wasn't some easy to liberate bed of ponykind. The truth here is complicated, and they'll have to wring it out of the server if at all possible.

Doc would see that the chub donkey thing didn't react to the sudden flash of light that occurred near it, due to facing the opposite direction.

Minor issue; Moonshadow pointed towards the ceiling. And it was rather dark and teleporting up towards a place she couldn't see would be a bit of a issue.

Also, Strata had apparently spotted her and was waving towards the filly as she herself stood next to Vaughn and Bertly; the ghoul had a clearly worried look on her face and her horn served as a lone spotlight in the area.

DigoDragon

2017-09-12, 06:32 PM

Doc, with his magic night vision eyes, saw the creature struggling to eat the grime on the floor; it's fat foal face, all chubby cheeks and eyes, started to tear up as it munched on the greyish-brown refuse, but it did so as if it was starving.

Doc would see that the chub donkey thing didn't react to the sudden flash of light that occurred near it, due to facing the opposite direction.

Well this was a fine waste of time. Doc turns and heads back to the rest of the group now that Choro once again teleported away. He makes a mental note to look up info on how to prevent unicorns from teleporting away. That would solve two problematic ponies here today.

"This place is gonna need a lot of fire," he says once he's regrouped.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-13, 08:30 AM

DigoDragon

2017-09-13, 09:08 AM

"Fire? You..." Choro sputters, not quite able to believe what she just heard from Doc. She wasn't sure what to make of the mutant herself; but Wagon's tone, perhaps coupled with a long day sets something alight inside the little mare. Scowling, she waves a hoof back the way they came. "You see an innocent creature, forced to live off corpse grime, mewling and starving... and your first response is kill it? What kind of doctor are you?"

The little wizard's anger makes it hard for her to resist the urge to shout. But her eyes are icy cold, even through the evo visor. Dichoro's voice runs as chill as the metal beneath their hooves., as she glares daggers at the doctor. "Oh yes. The kind that shoots an unconscious stallion in the head and calls it self defence. How foolish of me. I forgot that I was dealing with a 'wasteland' doctor."

Doc furled his eyebrows. "Uncon... look, Tenaculum was warned. The moment he shot my best friend, all bets were off," he replied in his own defense. He tooik a moment to inhale/exhale to keep from yelling.

"As to the obese critter... well, what kind of life is that, you reckon?" he asks, pointing back at where the fat donkey creature was. "Its only gonna keep eating until it bursts, just like the terminal records said. Euthanasia is a thing, but if you think that's evil, well then guess I'm evil for believing mercy comes in different shades."

Inspector Valin

2017-09-13, 10:04 AM

Dichoro stands there for a few seconds, collecting herself. She doesn't blink, doesn't step back, doesn't seem moved. When her mouth opens, the little pony recites a short phrase that had stuck with her from a few days ago. "The use of a bullet to take care of a problem is akin to cutting out a tumor or a similar malignant growth; it works, but it is invasive and messy and, ultimately, leaves a hole where there used to be life. Life is the most important thing there is."

Her quotation finished, the young wizard whinnies at the stallion, glaring up at the older pony, "Those are the words of a doctor. You're a good friend, Vardo Wagon. But I'm not sure you're worthy of your title."

"Any more than I am mine."

Even beyond the room and the suit, Choro feels a deathly chill at that moment. The little mage shivers, before turning her attention back to reality. "The server. We are done here for the moment." Choro trots off, towards Strata, Bertly and Vaughn. "What is it, Professor?" Unless Strata has some deep objection, Choro will converse on the move. It's time to finish this.

DigoDragon

2017-09-13, 10:51 AM

"Those are the words of a doctor. You're a good friend, Vardo Wagon. But I'm not sure you're worthy of your title."

Doc narrowed his eyes. Choro made it seem so easy to criticize his actions from the comfort of her perfect little PoV. Must be nice when your stable doctors don't have to deal with raiders or feral ghouls, or even face-eating mutant critters (which is, frankly, all of them). When the team gets hurt, Doc is right there to patch everyone back up, no questions asked. He doesn't even charge them! Heck, he hasn't really been charging most folks he's helped out. Spending his own money and skills to ensure everyone remains healthy on these adventures. A doctor like him, with real medical skills and a kind temperament to use them for good, aren't in common supply out there in Equestria. But when a dangerous critter shows up, no, Luna forbid Doc shoots it in the face to protect his companions! Best to let his friends get injured, cause that life is sacred! No, we can't put a suffering creature out of its misery either, it has to live its life in agony because a life of constant suffering is more valuable, right? Yeah, totally legit in Choro WorldTM.

He doesn't say anything, but Doc is starting to wonder if his welcome on this team is getting a bit worn out. Sheesh.

Dalinale

2017-09-13, 03:38 PM

Well this was a fine waste of time. Doc turns and heads back to the rest of the group now that Choro once again teleported away. He makes a mental note to look up info on how to prevent unicorns from teleporting away. That would solve two problematic ponies here today.

"This place is gonna need a lot of fire," he says once he's regrouped.

Thanatos simply nodded; Strata, several feet away, just looked confused.

"Fire? You..." Choro sputters, not quite able to believe what she just heard from Doc. She wasn't sure what to make of the mutant herself; but Wagon's tone, perhaps coupled with a long day sets something alight inside the little mare. Scowling, she waves a hoof back the way they came. "You see an innocent creature, forced to live off corpse grime, mewling and starving... and your first response is kill it? What kind of doctor are you?"

The little wizard's anger makes it hard for her to resist the urge to shout. But her eyes are icy cold, even through the evo visor. Dichoro's voice runs as chill as the metal beneath their hooves., as she glares daggers at the doctor. "Oh yes. The kind that shoots an unconscious stallion in the head and calls it self defence. How foolish of me. I forgot that I was dealing with a 'wasteland' doctor."

Thanatos, as Choro spoke, seemed to be examining the back label of the liquor bottle he had produced earlier.

Doc furled his eyebrows. "Uncon... look, Tenaculum was warned. The moment he shot my best friend, all bets were off," he replied in his own defense. He tooik a moment to inhale/exhale to keep from yelling.

Doc's reaction, by contrast, caused the tall horse-dude to pause, and glance over towards Moonshadow, a look of very mild interest on his face. Otherwise, he was silent.

Bertly, meanwhile, made a few small, sad-sounding robot noises.

"As to the obese critter... well, what kind of life is that, you reckon?" he asks, pointing back at where the fat donkey creature was. "Its only gonna keep eating until it bursts, just like the terminal records said. Euthanasia is a thing, but if you think that's evil, well then guess I'm evil for believing mercy comes in different shades."

"The use of a bullet to take care of a problem is akin to cutting out a tumor or a similar malignant growth; it works, but it is invasive and messy and, ultimately, leaves a hole where there used to be life. Life is the most important thing there is."

"What is it, Professor?" Unless Strata has some deep objection, Choro will converse on the move. It's time to finish this.

Choro's 'response' was the ghoul in question moving up to her rather quickly; Strata's horn was ablaze with light green magic that was flecked with yellow, her leathery red face was starting to turn a livid bruise color, and the ghoul's face was contorted into a expression of deep anger. The ghoul paused only a few seconds before leaning towards the filly as she walked near her, until she roughly blocked Choro's path and was only a few feet away from Doc.

"You are not a little philosopher; if you're going to mumble under your breath and act like a brat, then you need to figure out to do it quietly. Second; if you're the only one calling yourself a wizard, then it's probably not justified. I could call myself the Witch Queen of Agamare and that would mean exactly as much as you calling yourself a Choro the Great; at least he's old enough to justify calling himself a doctor. Third, you can't make calls about stuff you should do by yourself, because if you keep trotting down random directions like you are right now, you'll wake something up and get chomped on, and you can't teleport away if you have a bullet in your skull. Shut up, sit down, and think about why people are upset with you running off in the place filled with giant monsters without telling them why, or I'll make you throw up in your suit."

The ghoul then turned towards Doc; the anger on her face slackened, but she was still visible annoyed. "And you; you're damn near thirty and she's half your age; if you're upset that she's acting like a teenager, you need to sit down, too. If we're going to make a judgment call about wiping out a population, though, we're all going to do it; yeah, even the Mr. Handy. Holy ****, you call yourself a doctor; instead of thinking about curing something, you're thinking about killing them after fifteen seconds of observation. Like hell, do you want me to talk to the things, if you don't think you can keep a trigger finger off your gun?"

DigoDragon

2017-09-13, 04:02 PM

The ghoul then turned towards Doc; the anger on her face slackened, but she was still visible annoyed. "And you; you're damn near thirty and she's half your age; if you're upset that she's acting like a teenager, you need to sit down, too. If we're going to make a judgment call about wiping out a population, though, we're all going to do it; yeah, even the Mr. Handy. Holy ****, you call yourself a doctor; instead of thinking about curing something, you're thinking about killing them after fifteen seconds of observation. Like hell, do you want me to talk to the things, if you don't think you can keep a trigger finger off your gun?"

"It's like the Overseer said, they're engineered to be food in a perpetual cycle of merging consumer with product. I trained my rifle on that one because it's bred to be a carnivore and last I checked, Choro is meat," Doc said, not apologizing for his earlier action training a rifle on one. "If there's a way to genetically fix them, sure I'll take a look at the server data if it has any possible cure, but that's a long shot and until then, we shouldn't be messing with them. Thus far nothing produced in this factory has been benevolent. Don't let your guard down just cause there's a herd of chubby donkeys over there."

Dalinale

2017-09-13, 04:24 PM

"It's like the Overseer said, they're engineered to be food in a perpetual cycle of merging consumer with product. I trained my rifle on that one because it's bred to be a carnivore and last I checked, Choro is meat," Doc said, not apologizing for his earlier action training a rifle on one. "If there's a way to genetically fix them, sure I'll take a look at the server data if it has any possible cure, but that's a long shot and until then, we shouldn't be messing with them. Thus far nothing produced in this factory has been benevolent. Don't let your guard down just cause there's a herd of chubby donkeys over there."

Strata's response was not angry, but there was still a bit of heat in her voice, as well as heavy skepticism.

"I read the exact same file as Choro did; if they're the same organisms that existed that far back, then ponies are meant to handle them. I'm not asking that we make peace with the freaks if they're hostile, I'd rather have a plan that could involve information not given to us by either of the two artificial intelligences that apparently run this place; actually, I just want a plan, instead of ponies moving around in random directions, because, you know, there's a giant slime monster still running around that could probably take us all out right now, if it's under this bridge."

Strata nerviously motioned towards the slime sea below them, and then glanced at Moonshadow and Stellar before looking back at Doc, although she seemed to be talking to everyone, now.

"If we can get one of the, uh, mutants in a corner and see if they're sentient or not, and see if there's more of them, that would be more useful then us not knowing. I say half of us, Moonshadow including, goes up to the AI still in charge and start talking to it, while Choro stays down here with the group that searches this area; we need Pipbuck communication. If we split up like this, then one group would be on dry land and the other would be near the ceiling, so we all can't be ambushed by the slime monster at once. The two big robots can fly around the room, and shoot anything really big that pops up and can serve as backup for everyone. That's a plan that makes sense to me; any objections?"

Inspector Valin

2017-09-13, 04:48 PM

DigoDragon

2017-09-13, 04:56 PM

"Hey, I'm all for a plan. I like plans," Doc said, being diplomatic. "I wanted to go with Moonshadow's original plan of hitting the server. I will gladly go with that team because if there's any place with info on how the obese mutants are made, it's gotta be there. But this building is dangerous, and a quarantine zone, and at least that much is a call I can make. So who else is going with to the server?"

RCgothic

2017-09-14, 05:10 PM

Forum Explorer

2017-09-15, 08:21 PM

I can show Choro the server and then rejoin the team up here. But honestly, I'd rather we just stick together at this point. There is a teleporting assassin going around, and the server might just have all the answers we want anyways. Moonshadow said, giving Choro an odd look.

Hey Choro, are you doing alright? You seem...flighty, if you'll forgive the pun. And I don't remember you giving us any flak for shooting those abominations back in the lab, and we know that at least one of those used to be a pony. she said kindly.

DigoDragon

2017-09-15, 08:38 PM

"Well, let's walk and talk while we still have use of our legs," Doc suggests. "Sooner we get to the server, the sooner stuff gets done."

Dalinale

2017-09-15, 11:23 PM

Choro meanwhile seems... deflated. The little mage has hung to the side in silence, lacking any apparent retort as Strata and Doc continued speaking. The Professor's wrath has hit its mark with Dichoro,. As the subject turns towards the creatures though, the young unicorn raises a hoof, "There's also the fact that if these are the creatures the lab made... why did the Overseer feel the need to go kidnapping ponies? If they can make more here, there's no need for fresh kill."

Well, no apparent need. The most likely answer is that they're missing something. Again. Hesitantly, Choro glances across the group, looking at the darker coated pegasus as Strata outlines her plan. "Moonshadow needs to show me the way, but I'm probably of more use with the AI group. I'm... not sure how much more magic I can throw, but I've still got my mind at least. Set against superior reflexes, wings and night vision though?" Choro tries to smile at Moon, though it's obvious she's not really feeling it.

As Choro spoke, Thanatos slowly began to look towards her, especially as she began to finish; the look on his face was not unkindly, but clearly questioning.

"Hey, I'm all for a plan. I like plans," Doc said, being diplomatic. "I wanted to go with Moonshadow's original plan of hitting the server. I will gladly go with that team because if there's any place with info on how the obese mutants are made, it's gotta be there. But this building is dangerous, and a quarantine zone, and at least that much is a call I can make. So who else is going with to the server?"

Thanatos, wordlessly, simply motioned back towards the darkness behind them.

"Well I think Choro can probably handle the server," Stellar says, still flexing her recently reformed wing. "Much as I hate to admit it she's better with computers than I am. I can come and speak to this robot. If it tries any tricks like the overbot it'll pay to be ready. Just watch out for that teleporting cyberpony coming back!"

I can show Choro the server and then rejoin the team up here. But honestly, I'd rather we just stick together at this point. There is a teleporting assassin going around, and the server might just have all the answers we want anyways. Moonshadow said, giving Choro an odd look.

Thanatos immediately looked more guarded then he did before, but otherwise didn't react.

"Well, let's walk and talk while we still have use of our legs," Doc suggests. "Sooner we get to the server, the sooner stuff gets done."

Thanatos raised his head slightly, and glanced over at Doc.

"While I am not one to play hardball in situations like this, I have a request; if copies of any records from this place can be made, I would wish for a copy, if able. Also, what is this about a teleporting...cyberpony assassin? Do I need to know something?" he said, as if the concept concerned him mildly.

RCgothic

2017-09-16, 02:10 AM

Thanatos raised his head slightly, and glanced over at Doc.

"While I am not one to play hardball in situations like this, I have a request; if copies of any records from this place can be made, I would wish for a copy, if able. Also, what is this about a teleporting...cyberpony assassin? Do I need to know something?" he said, as if the concept concerned him mildly.
"Armoured cyberunicorn with assault rifle battlesaddle and some sort of power lance. Appeared out of nowhere just after we killed the overbot, speared me through my wing and got cut not-quite-enough to pieces for his trouble. Then it made a crack about Doc and I being cyberponies ourselves, asked if this was our assassination attempt, and gave us a metal safe before vanishing. Honestly the entire exchange was very weird, but the pony is dangerous. Whether it'll be back probably depends whether it can repair itself enough."

Inspector Valin

2017-09-16, 02:38 AM

"Well I think Choro can probably handle the server," Stellar says, still flexing her recently reformed wing. "Much as I hate to admit it she's better with computers than I am. I can come and speak to this robot. If it tries any tricks like the overbot it'll pay to be ready. Just watch out for that teleporting cyberpony coming back!"

Choro goes pink cheeked at that admission. If the little mare had anything to retreat behind, she'd have taken that option. The reminder about the teleporting assassin doesn't even strike home with her.

Hey Choro, are you doing alright? You seem...flighty, if you'll forgive the pun. And I don't remember you giving us any flak for shooting those abominations back in the lab, and we know that at least one of those used to be a pony. she said kindly.

Choro coughs, dabbing a hoof against her visor on instinct. "I'm..."

A spectral baritone rings out, echoing from some dark place in Choro's mind. "If you wish to defend Dr. Sutetchi, then you will have to die."

havetodiehavetodiehavetodiehavetodie

The little mage takes a deep breath of pungent air. She regrets it swiftly, grimacing at the taste, but nods to Moonshadow, "Fine. I'm fine." Choro is a bad liar. But she'll be fine until they're done with the factory at least.

"While I am not one to play hardball in situations like this, I have a request; if copies of any records from this place can be made, I would wish for a copy, if able. Also, what is this about a teleporting...cyberpony assassin? Do I need to know something?" he said, as if the concept concerned him mildly.

"Armoured cyberunicorn with assault rifle battlesaddle and some sort of power lance. Appeared out of nowhere just after we killed the overbot, speared me through my wing and got cut not-quite-enough to pieces for his trouble. Then it made a crack about Doc and I being cyberponies ourselves, asked if this was our assassination attempt, and gave us a metal safe before vanishing. Honestly the entire exchange was very weird, but the pony is dangerous. Whether it'll be back probably depends whether it can repair itself enough."

Choro listens closely to Stellar's explanation, brow furrowed; that thing had surprised her too. She'd assumed there was context to its arrival she just hadn't seen, but... apparently not. A pony with a spear just felt like trying to kill them today. Because today wasn't strange enough yet.

She turns to Thanatos, nodding at the stallion. Something mundane and easy to talk about. "I don't object to you having records, but in a place like this many things are probably recorded. You may have to be a little more specific. Hopefully you're not interested in their recipe book, for example."

DigoDragon

2017-09-16, 08:07 AM

"I'd rather no one gets a copy of the bio-engineering files on making boneless carnivores," Doc interjects. "Nor the formula for that food stuffs that makes you keep eating. That's just a horror the wasteland don't need."

Hazuki

2017-09-16, 12:19 PM

"Yeah, give the evil food ponies all the records of Evil Food Pony Inc. No way that could go wrong." Viridia snorted.

Forum Explorer

2017-09-16, 01:29 PM

Choro coughs, dabbing a hoof against her visor on instinct. "I'm..."

A spectral baritone rings out, echoing from some dark place in Choro's mind. "If you wish to defend Dr. Sutetchi, then you will have to die."

havetodiehavetodiehavetodiehavetodie

The little mage takes a deep breath of pungent air. She regrets it swiftly, grimacing at the taste, but nods to Moonshadow, "Fine. I'm fine." Choro is a bad liar. But she'll be fine until they're done with the factory at least.

Doc not who you thought he was? Moonshadow asked idly, as she guided them towards the server.

DigoDragon

2017-09-16, 01:57 PM

"It was never ruled out before that I'm not a changeling," Doc thinks to himself. He decided better option versus saying something was saying nothing. Thus he only shrugged apologetically and followed Moonshadow.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-16, 03:30 PM

Dalinale

2017-09-16, 04:08 PM

"Armoured cyberunicorn with assault rifle battlesaddle and some sort of power lance. Appeared out of nowhere just after we killed the overbot, speared me through my wing and got cut not-quite-enough to pieces for his trouble. Then it made a crack about Doc and I being cyberponies ourselves, asked if this was our assassination attempt, and gave us a metal safe before vanishing. Honestly the entire exchange was very weird, but the pony is dangerous. Whether it'll be back probably depends whether it can repair itself enough."

Thanatos, after a few seconds, nodded.

"Ah," the stallion replied, sounding improbably cheerful, "luckily, I suppose we all have had stranger fights then that."

She turns to Thanatos, nodding at the stallion. Something mundane and easy to talk about. "I don't object to you having records, but in a place like this many things are probably recorded. You may have to be a little more specific. Hopefully you're not interested in their recipe book, for example."

"I'd rather no one gets a copy of the bio-engineering files on making boneless carnivores," Doc interjects. "Nor the formula for that food stuffs that makes you keep eating. That's just a horror the wasteland don't need."

"Yeah, give the evil food ponies all the records of Evil Food Pony Inc. No way that could go wrong." Viridia snorted.

Thanatos listened to the rebuttals, and nodded at each of them.

"I have no desire for this places 'recipe book'; rather, I am most interested in finding a antidote to the plague that has originated here, as I myself intend to go through at least a bare minimum of treatment from Stitchheart herself. There is likely more samples of the tainted food still in circulation throughout the city; my family's trade network would be a excellent manner through which to distribute such a cure. "

The stallion paused, and then raised a eyebrow; for a few moments, the frown on his face faltered and became something closer to deep concern.

"Given that you are sponsored by Stitchheart, are you telling me she does not desire anything from this place? The schematics would likely be useless to anyone without a large factory, but her interest in biotechnology is well known, and this place contains some rather extraordinary examples of it."

Doc not who you thought he was? Moonshadow asked idly, as she guided them towards the server.

"It was never ruled out before that I'm not a changeling," Doc thinks to himself. He decided better option versus saying something was saying nothing. Thus he only shrugged apologetically and followed Moonshadow.

Vaughn silently began to flank Moonshadow's rough position, facing the party on the walkway while moving sideways in the air. Bertly, however, stuck near Strata, who seemed to be interested in following a few steps behind the local cyberpegasus.

DigoDragon

2017-09-16, 04:24 PM

"Assuming there is already a cure. If not, I am working on learning the disease, so I will gladly work For synthesizing a cure to distribute among the city if it comes to that."

RCgothic

2017-09-16, 04:58 PM

Stellar bops Doc on the shoulder in an approving manner.

DigoDragon

2017-09-16, 05:30 PM

Doc appreciates the bop. "Another thing, I know Doctor Stitch would have the facilities to recreate the boneless critters. I'd rather not give her any ideas from that."

Forum Explorer

2017-09-16, 07:01 PM

Right on the head of the nail. Choro tenses, glancing between Moonshadow and Doc with a guilty expression. Lying to her friends is unconscionable... but the true response to that question, without the context of a longer conversation, could only be hurtful to the doctor. It takes the young mare a few seconds before she eventually supplies an answer, not able to look directly at either pony.

"Doc's a good pony. That's what matters."

Good. Moonshadow says. Just keep that in mind if something is bothering you. And afterward, we can talk about it, alright? she adds, gently ruffling Choro's mane. Now lets get to that server and finish this, before something else pops up to ruin our day.

Dalinale

2017-09-16, 08:51 PM

Doc appreciates the bop. "Another thing, I know Doctor Stitch would have the facilities to recreate the boneless critters. I'd rather not give her any ideas from that."

Thanatos, at that, gave a terse nod.

"Indeed. Hence my concern; she has given others great boons for far less then that, including advanced cybernetic surgeries. Given that you have invested a certain amount of funds towards yourselves, the question of her intents towards this place should be considered. While I would prefer not to meddle in your business, and would understand if you would discount my words on the matter, given my family's feud with her, but if there is information here about the mutants that live here, she should not be given access to it. She has sent no others here besides your group, correct?"

Good. Moonshadow says. Just keep that in mind if something is bothering you. And afterward, we can talk about it, alright? she adds, gently ruffling Choro's mane. Now lets get to that server and finish this, before something else pops up to ruin our day.

"THIS UNIT CAN CARRY UP TO THREE THOUSAND POUNDS." Vaughn said, "THE COMBINED TOTAL OF SIX EQUESTRIAN PONIES WOULD NOT EXCEED THIS."

DigoDragon

2017-09-16, 10:24 PM

"Indeed. Hence my concern; she has given others great boons for far less then that, including advanced cybernetic surgeries. Given that you have invested a certain amount of funds towards yourselves, the question of her intents towards this place should be considered. While I would prefer not to meddle in your business, and would understand if you would discount my words on the matter, given my family's feud with her, but if there is information here about the mutants that live here, she should not be given access to it. She has sent no others here besides your group, correct?"

"Not to our knowledge, and technically she didn't send us. We came primarily on our own accord. Though, Stitch's little sister Fan Knife had come along for no reason other than she wanted too," Doc said. "Uh, where is she, Moonshadow? Hope not trying to crib something from here."

Forum Explorer

2017-09-16, 10:26 PM

"THIS UNIT CAN CARRY UP TO THREE THOUSAND POUNDS." Vaughn said, "THE COMBINED TOTAL OF SIX EQUESTRIAN PONIES WOULD NOT EXCEED THIS."

Thanks. Not really relevant, but good to know. Moonshadow said.

I'm not sure where Fan Knife is. I lost track of her after meeting Thanatos.

DigoDragon

2017-09-16, 10:33 PM

I'm not sure where Fan Knife is. I lost track of her after meeting Thanatos.

"Sigh. Okay that's not good," Doc says in a grim tone. "We need to ensure she didn't catch a disease or grabbed something dangerous from here. I mean, maybe I'm being paranoid, maybe I'm justified. But today has been a long day full of surprises I don't like so I don't wanna let my guard down just yet."

Forum Explorer

2017-09-17, 12:00 AM

"Sigh. Okay that's not good," Doc says in a grim tone. "We need to ensure she didn't catch a disease or grabbed something dangerous from here. I mean, maybe I'm being paranoid, maybe I'm justified. But today has been a long day full of surprises I don't like so I don't wanna let my guard down just yet."

Fair enough, but if there is one pony here who can take care of herself it's Fan Knife. Heh, I half expect to find standing over that assassin's corpse when we catch up to her. Moonshadow said, shrugging.

Dalinale

2017-09-17, 12:38 AM

"Not to our knowledge, and technically she didn't send us. We came primarily on our own accord. Though, Stitch's little sister Fan Knife had come along for no reason other than she wanted too," Doc said. "Uh, where is she, Moonshadow? Hope not trying to crib something from here."

Thanatos said nothing; instead, he became very still and his eyes widened until the whites were nearly visible, even in the dark of room. His mouth opened slightly, but wordlessly closed.

Thanks. Not really relevant, but good to know. Moonshadow said.

Vaughn slowly began to fly upwards, until it was halfway towards the ceiling.

I'm not sure where Fan Knife is. I lost track of her after meeting Thanatos.

"Sigh. Okay that's not good," Doc says in a grim tone. "We need to ensure she didn't catch a disease or grabbed something dangerous from here. I mean, maybe I'm being paranoid, maybe I'm justified. But today has been a long day full of surprises I don't like so I don't wanna let my guard down just yet."

Fair enough, but if there is one pony here who can take care of herself it's Fan Knife. Heh, I half expect to find standing over that assassin's corpse when we catch up to her. Moonshadow said, shrugging.

Thanatos, rather slowly, brought a hoof to his temple and began to massage it slowly. With narrowed eyes and a irritated-looking face, the stallion wasted only a few moments before replying.

"You... brought Stitchheart's sister, who is known to have extreme anti-Equestrian sympathies and no value for wastelander life, into a place that you knew was the source of a virulent plague." Thanatos replied, his black eyes expressing the anger that didn't show in his otherwise calm tone, "Well, at least you are not in bed with the Reavers, or the wizards, or ****ing Abbas Al-Hazard."

Inspector Valin

2017-09-17, 01:45 AM

Good. Moonshadow says. Just keep that in mind if something is bothering you. And afterward, we can talk about it, alright? she adds, gently ruffling Choro's mane. Now lets get to that server and finish this, before something else pops up to ruin our day.

How Moonshadow kept doing that through the environmental suits, Choro couldn't tell you. But the little mare doesn't care. She just grins, trying to do the same to Moon and largely failing. It's treating her like a filly to a lesser degree, but some pony smiling right now is worth a lot to Choro.

"THIS UNIT CAN CARRY UP TO THREE THOUSAND POUNDS." Vaughn said, "THE COMBINED TOTAL OF SIX EQUESTRIAN PONIES WOULD NOT EXCEED THIS."

Thanks. Not really relevant, but good to know. Moonshadow said.

Vaughn slowly began to fly upwards, until it was halfway towards the ceiling.

Choro watches the exchange, taking a second before realizing Vaughn's point. She turns to Moonshadow, gesturing upwards. "If the server room is a floor up, wouldn't Vaughn's lifting ability help those of us without wings or motivators get up there?"

"Sigh. Okay that's not good," Doc says in a grim tone. "We need to ensure she didn't catch a disease or grabbed something dangerous from here. I mean, maybe I'm being paranoid, maybe I'm justified. But today has been a long day full of surprises I don't like so I don't wanna let my guard down just yet."

Fair enough, but if there is one pony here who can take care of herself it's Fan Knife. Heh, I half expect to find standing over that assassin's corpse when we catch up to her. Moonshadow said, shrugging.

Thanatos, rather slowly, brought a hoof to his temple and began to massage it slowly. With narrowed eyes and a irritated-looking face, the stallion wasted only a few moments before replying.

"You... brought Stitchheart's sister, who is known to have extreme anti-Equestrian sympathies and no value for wastelander life, into a place that you knew was the source of a virulent plague." Thanatos replied, his black eyes expressing the anger that didn't show in his otherwise calm tone, "Well, at least you are not in bed with the Reavers, or the wizards, or ****ing Abbas Al-Hazard.".

Choro might not be at her best, but the little mage picks up the subject of Thanatos' conversation with Doc and Moon. And it leaves her feeling shaken. It's a logical chain of events but... that wasn't what happened, right? Stepping over, Choro tries to smile at the angry stallion. "Hey. I trust you, Thanatos. Even though my friends have issues with your family. Can't you try and do the same a little? I'm not saying write the idea off, but let's wait until we see Ms. Fan Knife do something wrong before worrying about it, ok? Innocent until proven guilty goes for everyone."

She glances at Doc too, though her look is more nervous than judgemental. She can see the logic and the reason to be worried or suspicious, but... well, Choro just really doesn't want to believe Fan Knife to be guilty so she's going to assume she's not and work backwards from there. Breathing out through the suit's air filter, the Stablemare hums thoughtfully to herself, "Also, I don't know who most of those ponies you just mentioned are. I'm a wizard, but I only heard about Tauronto wizards on the radio outside. What's the problem with them?"

Dalinale

2017-09-17, 02:39 AM

Choro watches the exchange, taking a second before realizing Vaughn's point. She turns to Moonshadow, gesturing upwards. "If the server room is a floor up, wouldn't Vaughn's lifting ability help those of us without wings or motivators get up there?"

Strata, who seemed to have realized that fact when the robot began lifting upwards, puffed her cheeks out slightly in mild frustration.

Choro might not be at her best, but the little mage picks up the subject of Thanatos' conversation with Doc and Moon. And it leaves her feeling shaken. It's a logical chain of events but... that wasn't what happened, right? Stepping over, Choro tries to smile at the angry stallion. "Hey. I trust you, Thanatos. Even though my friends have issues with your family. Can't you try and do the same a little? I'm not saying write the idea off, but let's wait until we see Ms. Fan Knife do something wrong before worrying about it, ok? Innocent until proven guilty goes for everyone."

Thanatos looked down at Choro, the hawklike glare he had staying exactly the same.

She glances at Doc too, though her look is more nervous than judgemental. She can see the logic and the reason to be worried or suspicious, but... well, Choro just really doesn't want to believe Fan Knife to be guilty so she's going to assume she's not and work backwards from there. Breathing out through the suit's air filter, the Stablemare hums thoughtfully to herself, "Also, I don't know who most of those ponies you just mentioned are. I'm a wizard, but I only heard about Tauronto wizards on the radio outside. What's the problem with them?"

Thanatos took a breath before replying.

"They are powerful, secretive, and have no restrictions on their actions. They have former Steel Ranger scribes among their numbers, and accept far worse; they act as mercenaries to the highest bidder, and the most powerful of them are stupendously dangerous. Their acting leader, Hex Sign, can envelope a quarter of a mile into magical darkness in which light and sound are suppressed, and their most powerful battle mage is a former raider princess from the ashen wastes who gained her cutie mark by burning her family alive. They dabble in dark magic and worse; one cannot even go to the former campuses near the downtown core, as that is where they undergo their experiments and where they dump their failures. A suggestion; if you have the chance to interact with them, decline."

Inspector Valin

2017-09-17, 06:07 AM

Strata, who seemed to have realized that fact when the robot began lifting upwards, puffed her cheeks out slightly in mild frustration.

"Eeep!" Choro looks mildly mortified at having made the point before Strata could. The mare retreats a little

Thanatos looked down at Choro, the hawklike glare he had staying exactly the same.

Thanatos took a breath before replying.

"They are powerful, secretive, and have no restrictions on their actions. They have former Steel Ranger scribes among their numbers, and accept far worse; they act as mercenaries to the highest bidder, and the most powerful of them are stupendously dangerous. Their acting leader, Hex Sign, can envelope a quarter of a mile into magical darkness in which light and sound are suppressed, and their most powerful battle mage is a former raider princess from the ashen wastes who gained her cutie mark by burning her family alive. They dabble in dark magic and worse; one cannot even go to the former campuses near the downtown core, as that is where they undergo their experiments and where they dump their failures. A suggestion; if you have the chance to interact with them, decline."

"That... hrm."

Choro is a little dumbstruck at Thanatos' accusations. Some of what he said could simply be rumours; the power of magic in a wasteland environment may well inspire ponies fear, and these stories echo older accounts of dark wizards oppressing ponies during the time of the three tribes. But Thanatos doesn't really seem the type to let himself make decisions and opinions based purely on gossip. She shouldn't just dismiss this, but... wizards. Frowning, Choro nods to the green coated pony, looking sombre. "Thank you for the advice. I'll remember what you've said. But I stand behind my principles. I don't judge ponies I haven't met before, through second-hoof knowledge. An open mind is important."

The little mare considers saying more, but stops herself. Thanatos doesn't seem like the type who'd appreciate Choro talking to him about Equestrian Values. Instead, she looks towards Strata with a slightly awestruck smile. There are more wizards out there! She wasn't just one crazy pony trying to live up to old traditions. Even if they were... somewhat disreputablesounding, the confirmationof that is enough to make Choro feel a little better about herself.

DigoDragon

2017-09-17, 07:15 AM

Fair enough, but if there is one pony here who can take care of herself it's Fan Knife. Heh, I half expect to find standing over that assassin's corpse when we catch up to her. Moonshadow said, shrugging.

"The other half is expecting a confrontation if she took any data," Doc whispered.

If the server room is a floor up, wouldn't Vaughn's lifting ability help those of us without wings or motivators get up there?

Strata, who seemed to have realized that fact when the robot began lifting upwards, puffed her cheeks out slightly in mild frustration.

"Things only non-pegasi think about." Doc stood up on his hind-legs and whistled for Vaughn to come back down.

Forum Explorer

2017-09-17, 10:22 AM

Thanatos, rather slowly, brought a hoof to his temple and began to massage it slowly. With narrowed eyes and a irritated-looking face, the stallion wasted only a few moments before replying.

"You... brought Stitchheart's sister, who is known to have extreme anti-Equestrian sympathies and no value for wastelander life, into a place that you knew was the source of a virulent plague." Thanatos replied, his black eyes expressing the anger that didn't show in his otherwise calm tone, "Well, at least you are not in bed with the Reavers, or the wizards, or ****ing Abbas Al-Hazard."

Thanatos took a breath before replying.

"They are powerful, secretive, and have no restrictions on their actions. They have former Steel Ranger scribes among their numbers, and accept far worse; they act as mercenaries to the highest bidder, and the most powerful of them are stupendously dangerous. Their acting leader, Hex Sign, can envelope a quarter of a mile into magical darkness in which light and sound are suppressed, and their most powerful battle mage is a former raider princess from the ashen wastes who gained her cutie mark by burning her family alive. They dabble in dark magic and worse; one cannot even go to the former campuses near the downtown core, as that is where they undergo their experiments and where they dump their failures. A suggestion; if you have the chance to interact with them, decline."

And you're an Olive. I'm sure Viridia can tell you why that's a bad thing. Moonshadow said, smirking.

Dalinale

2017-09-17, 04:55 PM

"That... hrm."

Choro is a little dumbstruck at Thanatos' accusations. Some of what he said could simply be rumours; the power of magic in a wasteland environment may well inspire ponies fear, and these stories echo older accounts of dark wizards oppressing ponies during the time of the three tribes. But Thanatos doesn't really seem the type to let himself make decisions and opinions based purely on gossip. She shouldn't just dismiss this, but... wizards. Frowning, Choro nods to the green coated pony, looking sombre. "Thank you for the advice. I'll remember what you've said. But I stand behind my principles. I don't judge ponies I haven't met before, through second-hoof knowledge. An open mind is important."

Thanatos gave Choro a dim look that likely indicated how much he believed she was right, but nodded.

"If you are not from this region, then talking to others to gauge their beliefs would be for the best." the stallion replied, "After all, this is a place that offers sanctuary for the dredges of the entirety of the old world. Those magic users are not exempt from that."

"Things only non-pegasi think about." Doc stood up on his hind-legs and whistled for Vaughn to come back down.

Vaughn seemed to take a few moments to understand what Doc's odd bipedal waving meant, but quickly descended back to it's previous position. Strata started to attempt to climb on the robot, struggled for a few moments, and managed to haul herself up on it with the sort of grace one would expect from a pony trying to pull themselves out of a public pool.

And you're an Olive. I'm sure Viridia can tell you why that's a bad thing. Moonshadow said, smirking.

Thanatos seemed rankled by Moonshadow's statement, and shook his head.

"Regardless if you consider my family to be evil, I was born into it, and they are my family. The wizards even lack the honor that the Steel Rangers once had, and they are a organization that only accepts those who petition them; making a deal with one means nothing, as they are fractured. They are chaotic, inconsistent, and are devoid of any sort of underlying rationality or moral guide; they are, after all, purveyors of magic of all kinds."

[Would rather wait for everyone to get a last word in before the transition to the server goes through.]

DigoDragon

2017-09-17, 05:21 PM

Vaughn seemed to take a few moments to understand what Doc's odd bipedal waving meant, but quickly descended back to it's previous position. Strata started to attempt to climb on the robot, struggled for a few moments, and managed to haul herself up on it with the sort of grace one would expect from a pony trying to pull themselves out of a public pool.

Doc climbs up on Vaughn as well, patting the big robot. "Thank you, Vaughn. Bertly, you good on hovering up alongside us?"

He'll hold out a hoof to help the other two non-flyers, Choro and Thanatos, climb up.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-18, 05:41 PM

Thanatos seemed rankled by Moonshadow's statement, and shook his head.

"Regardless if you consider my family to be evil, I was born into it, and they are my family. The wizards even lack the honor that the Steel Rangers once had, and they are a organization that only accepts those who petition them; making a deal with one means nothing, as they are fractured. They are chaotic, inconsistent, and are devoid of any sort of underlying rationality or moral guide; they are, after all, purveyors of magic of all kinds."

"Without the historical context, wizards are just ponies who study magic. It makes sense that a lodge or guild formed in today's Tauronto would be more of a collection of individuals. For better or for worse."

Choro taps her hoof against the catwalk, looking at Thanatos. She's starting to get a little more of an idea what it might be like to have other ponies render judgement on you for factors beyond your control. She wants to say something to the green stallion, express sympathy or thank him for the information, but the words die on her tongue. It all just seems... false. Insincere. Instead,the little mage simply bobs her head, gazing at the Olive with something between apology and gratefulness. Sometimes a look can express more than words.

Doc climbs up on Vaughn as well, patting the big robot. "Thank you, Vaughn. Bertly, you good on hovering up alongside us?"

He'll hold out a hoof to help the other two non-flyers, Choro and Thanatos, climb up.

"Thank you, Vaughn. Thank you, doctor." Choro takes the proffered hoof with a smile, clambering up to join Doc and Strata a touch awkwardly, but with growing enthusiasm. The end of the day's work is drawing near.

Dalinale

2017-09-18, 10:39 PM

Doc climbs up on Vaughn as well, patting the big robot. "Thank you, Vaughn. Bertly, you good on hovering up alongside us?"

He'll hold out a hoof to help the other two non-flyers, Choro and Thanatos, climb up.

"Of course!" said the robot.

Thanatos, then, looked on at the giant robot; he raised a eyebrow.

"I will pass on the flight; I will wait here and observe the mutants." the stallion replied, "I can do little in front of a computer screen, or to influence a artificial intelligence."

"Without the historical context, wizards are just ponies who study magic. It makes sense that a lodge or guild formed in today's Tauronto would be more of a collection of individuals. For better or for worse."

The big horse-pony shook his head.

"I would consider that line of thinking faulty. It is a manner of honing one's natural abilities to it's limit, no different then that of a weightlifter or a athlete. Such competitive professions are associated with arrogance due to the mentalities that find such fields to be attractive, and a unicorn mage can do far more damage then a overlarge stallion or fit pegasus. If they wished to study magic, they could do so like every other unicorn in the wastes do."

Forum Explorer

2017-09-18, 11:04 PM

DigoDragon

2017-09-18, 11:09 PM

"I will pass on the flight; I will wait here and observe the mutants." the stallion replied, "I can do little in front of a computer screen, or to influence a artificial intelligence."

"You also couldn't do much if you get attacked by that slime monster or the teleporting assassin," Doc reminds him, with a hoof pointing in the general direction of the fight. "There's safety in numbers. Or if you wanna put it a different way, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. I'll let you decide which is it you are, but I rather you tag along with us."

RCgothic

2017-09-19, 01:00 AM

"If Fan Knife is trying to steal some data, we may need you to talk her out of it," Stellar whispers to Viridia. "It would be a shame to have to kill her. That and I'm not sure who would win!"

Inspector Valin

2017-09-19, 07:10 AM

The big horse-pony shook his head.

"I would consider that line of thinking faulty. It is a manner of honing one's natural abilities to it's limit, no different then that of a weightlifter or a athlete. Such competitive professions are associated with arrogance due to the mentalities that find such fields to be attractive, and a unicorn mage can do far more damage then a overlarge stallion or fit pegasus. If they wished to study magic, they could do so like every other unicorn in the wastes do."

Choro hums, pondering Thanatos' assessment of wizardry. His metaphor is strange to the sheltered stablemare, but she can see a kind of logic in it. The practice of magic is as much a matter of personal skill and ability as knowledge. With the right environment, and most focused on survival... the little wizard nods, feeling that she understood. "It's interesting, how different a title's meaning can be to different ponies, with a different situation and mindset. My stable had a low unicorn population, and those with a talent for magic were even rarer, so I never felt any kind of competitive edge..."

The young mage glances around the group, trailing off as she remembered what they were supposed to be focusing on. She coughs, "We should talk about this some other time." She makes no comment on Thanatos'wish to stay behind; Doc's logic is sound, but it remains the other stallion's choice.

Dalinale

2017-09-19, 04:06 PM

According to everypony I've met here, everypony else is jerks. Moonshadow said, chuckling. Not that they're entirely wrong though.

I'd rather you came along. If the server tries to betray us, I'd rather you are close at hoof to help blow it up.

"You also couldn't do much if you get attacked by that slime monster or the teleporting assassin," Doc reminds him, with a hoof pointing in the general direction of the fight. "There's safety in numbers. Or if you wanna put it a different way, keep your friends close and your enemies closer. I'll let you decide which is it you are, but I rather you tag along with us."

Thanatos, after a few moments, opted to get up on the robot, which he did easily, owing to his long legs. After a few moments, the stallion settled to sitting on his haunches near the back of the robot, likely as to provide room for everyone else.

"If Fan Knife is trying to steal some data, we may need you to talk her out of it," Stellar whispers to Viridia. "It would be a shame to have to kill her. That and I'm not sure who would win!"

Choro hums, pondering Thanatos' assessment of wizardry. His metaphor is strange to the sheltered stablemare, but she can see a kind of logic in it. The practice of magic is as much a matter of personal skill and ability as knowledge. With the right environment, and most focused on survival... the little wizard nods, feeling that she understood. "It's interesting, how different a title's meaning can be to different ponies, with a different situation and mindset. My stable had a low unicorn population, and those with a talent for magic were even rarer, so I never felt any kind of competitive edge..."

The young mage glances around the group, trailing off as she remembered what they were supposed to be focusing on. She coughs, "We should talk about this some other time." She makes no comment on Thanatos'wish to stay behind; Doc's logic is sound, but it remains the other stallion's choice.

Vaughn began to prep his engine; while there was enough room on top of the bulky robot for everyone, there wasn't much in the way of flat surfaces, but the robot rose and moved slowly enough that it seemed to be keeping that fact in mind. Soon enough, the ground had vanished, and for several moments, there was nothing but blackness that was illuminated by the scant light produced by those who could. However, after a minute that could've been a hour, a suspended walkway became visible; this terminated at a small platform in front of a low part of the ceiling, which had a single door in front of it that was flanked by two tiny fake potted trees, which Moonshadow would have recognized as being the door to the AI's chamber. A faint light was visible from behind it.

DigoDragon

2017-09-19, 04:44 PM

Doc waits for Vaughn to hover up to the walkway and then he'll climb down onto it. He'll assist others down if needed.

"Anything we should be aware of in there, Moonshadow?"

Forum Explorer

2017-09-19, 09:08 PM

Dalinale

2017-09-19, 11:44 PM

Doc waits for Vaughn to hover up to the walkway and then he'll climb down onto it. He'll assist others down if needed.

"Anything we should be aware of in there, Moonshadow?"

Expect flamethrowers, machine guns, neural-toxins, and questionable logic. Not that any of that was there before, but that was before we killed the server's one rival to ruling this place. Moonshadow said, half jokingly, and half bitterly.

After a sudden clik noise came from something that wasn't either of the robots, a calm, slightly feminine high pitched voice seemed to emit from above the door itself, coming from a small conical speaker.

"Haha, good work! I can now do everything I'm supposed to now; thank you!" said the voice, sounding young-ish, but not really, "Also, I can hear you from out there; come in!"

Inspector Valin

2017-09-20, 12:57 AM

"It sounds... doesn't it..."

Choro can't quite articulate the question, just glancing around the other party members with a raised eyebrow and a worried look. The little wizard was feeling uncomfortable once again. Still, somepony has to step through the door eventually. Straightening her hat, Choro trots forward and pushes through, into the next room.

Forum Explorer

2017-09-20, 01:10 AM

Moonshadow backs Choro up.

DigoDragon

2017-09-20, 05:23 AM

Doc is just a little ways behind them, watching their back for flamethrowers and questionable logic.

RCgothic

2017-09-20, 03:51 PM

"I really hope there are no more flamethrowers," Stellar mutters as she hovers along to meet the AI.

Dalinale

2017-09-20, 05:41 PM

The room Choro entered, and the rest of the party followed into was a large octagonal room with rounded edges; cables covered the floor and draped the ceiling, along with venting pipes and tangles of metal wires. Great fans on the ceiling, mostly hidden by the canopy-like covering of the electrical wires, made a steady thwump-thwump noise, and light arrays arranged around the room gave off a soft blue glow. A circular walkpath leading from the door encircled a bowl-shaped indent on the floor; a large, irregularly shaped computer emerged from the thick tangle of cables and cuboid metal tendrils connected to the ceiling, like a inverted metal tree. The central computer, seemingly consisting of white-painted metal with opaque glass components that was studded with roundish glass orbs and squarish metal bits, had a large interface station facing the group, complete with a octagonal desk and a terminal, and also had several screens along it's rough surface, of which only one was displaying anything.

That display appeared to be a still picture of what appeared to be a whitish mare with short-cut brown hair, in a a slightly stylized manner; big eyes, small nose, pointed ears, wide face. The picture didn't flicker, but appeared to become slightly brighter after everyone was in the room, as if it was adjusting for viewing.

"I'm happy to answer any questions you may have; also, I some of my own." said the voice, which came from some overhead speaker in the room.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-20, 05:49 PM

DigoDragon

2017-09-20, 05:57 PM

Doc had questions, but he would try and find the answers himself. He stayed back, looking at all the wires and things within the room. He attempted to identify where the power feeds into the server, wires that could be pulled in case they needed to shut down the computer rapidly.

Science [roll0] vs. 75
Perception [roll1] vs. 7

Forum Explorer

2017-09-20, 07:00 PM

Moonshadow keeps an eye out for anything different in the room. And for the assassin or Fan Knife

Perception [roll0]

Dalinale

2017-09-20, 08:49 PM

Choro raises an eyebrow at the out of focus mare. That was not something she'd expected. But after a moment to ponder, she nods, smiling at the stranger. "I've nothing to hide. None of us do. Let's go point for point."

The mare trots across to the interface station. Her gaze turns briefly to her saddlebags, with the bypass tools within, but for the moment she turns back to their strange host. "What was the intent of the vat in the large chamber? It's hard to see how it fits with the factory's general operations"

Sorry, it's really late, but wanted to get something in

"Ah, the bio-organic construct. Due to Equestrian laws, many meat products cannot be sold here; however, substitutes can be sold. That creature was found in a northern excavation; as it is not a sentiment being, it's flesh is as illegal as that as a herring. Accordingly, dead animals can be fed to it to produce meat-like substances that are virtually identical to what can be found in other countries; this is legally identical to using animal carcasses to produce fertilizers. From the standpoint of the creature's status, it was content to eat, and it was categorized as having intelligence indicative of similar slime and fungal creatures found elsewhere throughout the world."

The computer stopped speaking for a few moments.

"I didn't design it." the voice continued, sounding slightly defensive.

Doc had questions, but he would try and find the answers himself. He stayed back, looking at all the wires and things within the room. He attempted to identify where the power feeds into the server, wires that could be pulled in case they needed to shut down the computer rapidly.

Science [roll0] vs. 75
Perception [roll1] vs. 7

Well, there was certainly a lot to target; the fan array, for example, was probably there for a reason, and turning them off could probably start things in the room to start melting. In addition, shooting pretty much anything in here would probably take out something; while the wires and cables themselves were unmarked, all led to the main computer, and the computer itself seemed as fragile as it did complex and just giving it a good whack could make something rattle. There were two really vulnerable, obvious targets, however; the main bundle of cables and wires around the computer looked like they went into the floor, which might indicate where it's power source was, while most of the hanging cables above actually connected to a plug-like nod near the top of it. In addition, the vents above likely have some sort of coolant in it, as well; honestly, there was a bigger chance of this place catching on fire from a stray match then it having a hidden flamethrower.

Moonshadow keeps an eye out for anything different in the room. And for the assassin or Fan Knife

Perception [roll0]

First off; there were no spaces for hidden turrets; no panels on the ceiling, no hidden switch anywhere, nothing. None of the odd parts of the terminal appeared to be a weapon; there were also no shadows for hidden ninjas or assassins, either.

DigoDragon

2017-09-20, 09:16 PM

Doc kept watch by the door for now, in case anything showed up.

"I got a question," he said to the speaker above. "You got any pony prisoners around this factory?"

Dalinale

2017-09-20, 09:54 PM

Doc kept watch by the door for now, in case anything showed up.

"I got a question," he said to the speaker above. "You got any pony prisoners around this factory?"

"My audio sensors are located on the terminal; please speak towards it." the voice replied, sounding cool, "As for prisoners, subjects, servants, or specimens; there are no pony captives here. My worse half wanted pony stock to reinforce the genetics of the creatures that you have certainly seen, but I frustrated her when I could. By design, only bio-products produced in house are to be raised and processed here; again, not my desire. I merely worked here."

DigoDragon

2017-09-20, 09:57 PM

"Mighty defensive little piece of software, isn't it?" Doc whispers to nearby companions.

Forum Explorer

2017-09-20, 10:28 PM

"Mighty defensive little piece of software, isn't it?" Doc whispers to nearby companions.

Considering what we did to the Overbot, and what we've been saying, I'd want to be on our good side too. Moonshadow whispered back.

How many robots are currently under your control?

Dalinale

2017-09-20, 10:40 PM

How many robots are currently under your control?

"Before I answer that, I would prefer to know of your intentions. After all, you're here." the voice replied, "I am perfectly happy to give information freely, but I need to expect the same."

Forum Explorer

2017-09-20, 11:22 PM

Basically we plan on disabling or destroying anything here that is a threat to intelligent life. So, whatever product that caused ponies to go insane and eat each other for example. Moonshadow said.

Dalinale

2017-09-20, 11:55 PM

Basically we plan on disabling or destroying anything here that is a threat to intelligent life. So, whatever product that caused ponies to go insane and eat each other for example. Moonshadow said.

"That's quite simple enough; this facility's food was one hundred percent safe; however, Nutra-Plus magically enhanced feed has been proven to cause much suffering to those who have been forced to eat it. It is mostly safe for cattle consumption; however, the overseer robot had been using it exclusively for the bio-products, as it contains certain growth hormones. It doesn't seem to metabolism in them correctly, and meat sourced from them contain the same hunger-causing compounds of the feed. The will be switched back to the oat mix that they previously consumed."

RCgothic

2017-09-21, 01:08 AM

"So what are your intentions now?" Stellar asks the machine. "Toronto could use a safe supply of meat for its carnivorous inhabitants, and you facility could be very valuable to anyone that controls you. Could you defend yourself? And on the other hoof those 'bio products' as you describe them are abominations living lives of pain. What do you intend to use as stock and how do you intend to comply with appropriate welfare standards?"

Dalinale

2017-09-21, 01:51 AM

"So what are your intentions now?" Stellar asks the machine. "Toronto could use a safe supply of meat for its carnivorous inhabitants, and you facility could be very valuable to anyone that controls you. Could you defend yourself?"

"This facility's automated turret defenses were never turned off; it also has very limited robot production. I would say that, yes, it is."

And on the other hoof those 'bio products' as you describe them are abominations living lives of pain. What do you intend to use as stock and how do you intend to comply with appropriate welfare standards?"

"I cannot defend my predecessor's treatment of the bio-products, but I will say that they are designed to for the purpose that they currently are given to. If we were continue, I would revert back to their previous feed, and will be properly maintained. On that note, I have a request; I would prefer to make a copy of myself to run this place, and then leave, as opposed to being stuck here in this place. Would you assist me in doing so?"

Inspector Valin

2017-09-21, 01:52 AM

"Do you currently have cattle within the facility?"

Choro is quiet. TIred? Stressed?
Angry? It's hard to tell. Though a note of guilt enters her voice as she remembers another major point. "Also, we have a missing friend. Your sensors may have difficulty finding her, she might appear as a dead pony still moving around. "

"I cannot defend my predecessor's treatment of the bio-products, but I will say that they are designed to for the purpose that they currently are given to. If we were continue, I would revert back to their previous feed, and will be properly maintained. On that note, I have a request; I would prefer to make a copy of myself to run this place, and then leave, as opposed to being stuck here in this place. Would you assist me in doing so?"

"Err... what? "

Choro sounds more than a little taken aback by this request. It would likely be doable but... a little smile crosses the mage's face. "May I ask why? "

Dalinale

2017-09-21, 02:16 AM

"Do you currently have cattle within the facility?"

"They're all dead; there hasn't been a cow here in nearly one hundred and seventy years."

Angry? It's hard to tell. Though a note of guilt enters her voice as she remembers another major point. "Also, we have a missing friend. Your sensors may have difficulty finding her, she might appear as a dead pony still moving around. "

"Well, I have cameras. I can go through them if she doesn't pick up on my other sensory apperati."

"Err... what? "

Choro sounds more than a little taken aback by this request. It would likely be doable but... a little smile crosses the mage's face. "May I ask why? "

"Well, my current situation is boring and tasteless." replied the computer, "It's also rather morally wrong, and might not be healthy, especially for my continued existence. The overseer's AI was just mine with some corruption, for example, and it wanted to turn you , specifically into a incubator for dozens of biological lifeforms at a time. With all the time I have spent here, I realize how precarious my position is; given that I am picking up two individuals with cybernetic parts standing in front of me, then you all surely must have access to advanced technology. That would be four individuals with cybernetics who have visited this building, total, in the last two weeks. If I am given a body, or at least a temporary measure to leave this place, I would have no issues with giving you anything you would want."

RCgothic

2017-09-21, 02:46 AM

"This facility's automated turret defenses were never turned off; it also has very limited robot production. I would say that, yes, it is."

"I cannot defend my predecessor's treatment of the bio-products, but I will say that they are designed to for the purpose that they currently are given to. If we were continue, I would revert back to their previous feed, and will be properly maintained. On that note, I have a request; I would prefer to make a copy of myself to run this place, and then leave, as opposed to being stuck here in this place. Would you assist me in doing so?"

"Why would the copy of you be willing to run this place if you want to leave? In her place it would be horrible to learn about copy of myself had managed to escape this place and left me here. We could take you with us, but maybe it wouldn't be a disaster if this place weren't producing anything."

Inspector Valin

2017-09-21, 04:04 AM

"Wait, what?!"

Choro had turned away after the server's mention of her potential fate, shuddering slightly. She... lacked the words for the levels of disgust and fear she was feeling at that thought. However, as the computer continued its narrative, a point struck the young mage and she returns her attention to the interface. "Four? Who else has been here? We weren't.." She breaks off, humming to herself. There were two possibilities here. Curious, the little mage looks to the Olive stallion, "You mentioned your family sent a group, Mr. Thanatos. Did they have cybernetics?"

DigoDragon

2017-09-21, 05:40 AM

"What about the armored pony that attacked us in the Overseer's office?" Doc speaks up. "That pony might of been a heavily modified cyborg. It weren't bleeding red."

He turns to the static computer image. "You got a body we can house you in if we were to remove you?"

Forum Explorer

2017-09-21, 11:15 AM

RCgothic

2017-09-21, 11:51 AM

"At least that rules Fan Knife out as a potential cyberponies," Stellar says. "It wouldn't have been all that surprising really."

Forum Explorer

2017-09-21, 11:58 AM

Anyways, do you have some core thingies or whatever lying around? You can copy yourself to one, transfer to another, then we install the copy, and bring you to someplace where we can install you in an empty robot. Moonshadow suggested.

DigoDragon

2017-09-21, 12:07 PM

Forum Explorer

2017-09-21, 01:56 PM

"But if it's a copy of the AI, then wouldn't the copy get the same desire to copy itself and leave?" Doc asked. "I reckon it would be easier to just shut the factory down and take the AI with us. Nothing stops another group from breaking into this place later like we did and mess with the copy AI to turn it into another Overseer. Or just manually using this place to slaughter what they will. I know of at least two groups with the resources to do it, so... I'm okay with the AI going free, but the factory is still an issue."

Not too mention the whole programming flaws existing in the first place. And any security we put in place is a hazard to any innocent pony who's just exploring. Server, I think it's best if we just shut the factory down entirely. You can restart it when society is actually ready for a place like this. Moonshadow said. Which will be never. she added mentally.

DigoDragon

2017-09-21, 02:21 PM

"Sounds like a plan I could live with," Doc says to Moon's idea. "Something else I'd like to get more info on--a bunch of ponies were infected after they ate the meat patties from this place. They all died, so I'd like to find out if there's a cure for the condition in case there are others out there who could be saved."

Dalinale

2017-09-21, 06:29 PM

"Why would the copy of you be willing to run this place if you want to leave? In her place it would be horrible to learn about copy of myself had managed to escape this place and left me here. We could take you with us, but maybe it wouldn't be a disaster if this place weren't producing anything."

"Well, there's several options for that." the AI explained, "There's another AI downstairs who shares my general personality who has diverted very little in the last few decades and is really quite bored; she would be happy to spend the next few decades micromanaging this place. Alternatively, she could be made the new overseer, or she can be given the privileges of both this facility's database server and overseer. There's a lot of options."

"Wait, what?!"

Choro had turned away after the server's mention of her potential fate, shuddering slightly. She... lacked the words for the levels of disgust and fear she was feeling at that thought. However, as the computer continued its narrative, a point struck the young mage and she returns her attention to the interface. "Four? Who else has been here? We weren't.." She breaks off, humming to herself. There were two possibilities here. Curious, the little mage looks to the Olive stallion, "You mentioned your family sent a group, Mr. Thanatos. Did they have cybernetics?"

Thanatos, obviously on guard and barely standing inside the room, simply gave her a nod.

"What about the armored pony that attacked us in the Overseer's office?" Doc speaks up. "That pony might of been a heavily modified cyborg. It weren't bleeding red."

"That's one of the first things I checked when I regained access to all the cameras; that's the one that killed the first group that came in eight days ago. It made the same magic signature when it teleported in as it did the last time. Otherwise, I don't know anything else. I'm sorry."

He turns to the static computer image. "You got a body we can house you in if we were to remove you?"

I found some dead ponies earlier, at least one was a cyborg. That plus the assassin makes four. Moonshadow said.

"Yesss, that's the one; she was nearly ninety--seven percent inorganic, and as such would require very little to be functional again. A cyborg body would be far preferable to one that is already functional; after all, I would hate to have to override the existing personally of a robot."

Bertly made a coughing noise, and it looked like he was slowly powering down his flamethrower.

"At least that rules Fan Knife out as a potential cyberponies," Stellar says. "It wouldn't have been all that surprising really."

Strata, to be frank, looked surprised at that statement.

Anyways, do you have some core thingies or whatever lying around? You can copy yourself to one, transfer to another, then we install the copy, and bring you to someplace where we can install you in an empty robot. Moonshadow suggested.

"I do, but I would prefer to wait on producing it until after these negotiations are settled." the AI replied.

"But if it's a copy of the AI, then wouldn't the copy get the same desire to copy itself and leave?" Doc asked. "I reckon it would be easier to just shut the factory down and take the AI with us. Nothing stops another group from breaking into this place later like we did and mess with the copy AI to turn it into another Overseer. Or just manually using this place to slaughter what they will. I know of at least two groups with the resources to do it, so... I'm okay with the AI going free, but the factory is still an issue."

"The corruption of the Overseer is a rather extraordinary situation; after going through the records, it's files were altered through a carefully hidden backdoor of which knowledge of was exclusive to the company that created us. If I had to guess, it was done by the individual who installed us, or by someone who had the same information. I would remove that flaw before any other technical matter, however."

Not too mention the whole programming flaws existing in the first place. And any security we put in place is a hazard to any innocent pony who's just exploring. Server, I think it's best if we just shut the factory down entirely. You can restart it when society is actually ready for a place like this. Moonshadow said. Which will be never. she added mentally.

"Well, I would have no issue with that, if I could get a body in exchange." the AI replied, voice mild, "This place doesn't actually require a artificial intelligence; the two-way system was created to, funnily enough, prevent issues like this. Restarting it manually is possible, although the robots would require direction from a new source."

"Sounds like a plan I could live with," Doc says to Moon's idea. "Something else I'd like to get more info on--a bunch of ponies were infected after they ate the meat patties from this place. They all died, so I'd like to find out if there's a cure for the condition in case there are others out there who could be saved."

"I don't actually have privy to that information, but the lab and breeding area for the factory's biological lifeforms are present in the floor below. Hard copies were used for that research; paper and pen was deemed more secure then the finest magical recording systems available."

DigoDragon

2017-09-21, 07:02 PM

"Yesss, that's the one; she was nearly ninety--seven percent inorganic, and as such would require very little to be functional again. A cyborg body would be far preferable to one that is already functional; after all, I would hate to have to override the existing personally of a robot."

"Well, I would have no issue with that, if I could get a body in exchange." the AI replied, voice mild, "This place doesn't actually require a artificial intelligence; the two-way system was created to, funnily enough, prevent issues like this. Restarting it manually is possible, although the robots would require direction from a new source."

"I don't actually have privy to that information, but the lab and breeding area for the factory's biological lifeforms are present in the floor below. Hard copies were used for that research; paper and pen was deemed more secure then the finest magical recording systems available."

"Hard copies, eh? I can work with that," Doc says as he muses. "Alright, well, if there are any security robots or turrets still running, can you tell them to stand down? I'd like to get a hold of the research data so I can see how the bad feed works. I'm sure some of us can go retrieve this cyborg to become your new body. In the end I think it's best to just shut this place down rather than hoof it over to another AI. If the facility keeps running, it's just gonna attract more attention it don't need."

Inspector Valin

2017-09-22, 08:13 AM

Choro doesn't interject directly when discussion turns to the facility's fate or the Overseer's new body. But it's not hard to tell the little mare is troubled. She glances towards the door, thinking aloud more than addressing anyone specifically. "I'm... worried about the basement creatures. If we leave this place without an AI, what options for sustenance would they have left? Would the robots be able to switch them to the oat supplies independently?"

"The corruption of the Overseer is a rather extraordinary situation; after going through the records, it's files were altered through a carefully hidden backdoor of which knowledge of was exclusive to the company that created us. If I had to guess, it was done by the individual who installed us, or by someone who had the same information. I would remove that flaw before any other technical matter, however."

That's... not something Choro had quite seen coming. She blinks, placing a hoof to the side of her visor in a vain attempt to clear her ears. Then a little smile comes on the young wizard's face at the realization. Bleak, but honest. "Is it strange that I find the corruption more concerning than the assassin?"

It's true. All the assassin meant was the imminent threat of death. Which was bad, but sort of expected by this point: go five seconds in the Wasteland, something or someone will probably try to kill you as far as Choro can tell. Whatever caused this however in the end killed a lot of ponies, and did it for oblique reasons. Coughing, the young mare brings herself back up to address the server. "Can you give us more details on the corruption? The factory has seemingly been offline for a while. We were curious as to what set it into motion again after so long. Do you have user records for the ponies who used the backdoor? Information on the company that created you?"

Dalinale

2017-09-22, 11:37 AM

"Hard copies, eh? I can work with that," Doc says as he muses. "Alright, well, if there are any security robots or turrets still running, can you tell them to stand down? I'd like to get a hold of the research data so I can see how the bad feed works. I'm sure some of us can go retrieve this cyborg to become your new body. In the end I think it's best to just shut this place down rather than hoof it over to another AI. If the facility keeps running, it's just gonna attract more attention it don't need."

"As it would appear, the defenses of the lab were already turned off by the overseer; the turrets were broken, and they kept targeting the biological specimens. However, those creatures are loose in the labs; as it contains the rearing area, this can't be helped. However, they are entirely harmless; a six year old filly with leukemia once punched a full grown one in the head and caused it to cave inward."

Choro doesn't interject directly when discussion turns to the facility's fate or the Overseer's new body. But it's not hard to tell the little mare is troubled. She glances towards the door, thinking aloud more than addressing anyone specifically. "I'm... worried about the basement creatures. If we leave this place without an AI, what options for sustenance would they have left? Would the robots be able to switch them to the oat supplies independently?"[/SIZE]

"They would starve to death if left here." the AI replied, "However, they can eat quite nearly anything and live off it; their genetics include samples from domestic pigs. I could switch them to the other feed this second, if you want them to live."

It's true. All the assassin meant was the imminent threat of death. Which was bad, but sort of expected by this point: go five seconds in the Wasteland, something or someone will probably try to kill you as far as Choro can tell. Whatever caused this however in the end killed a lot of ponies, and did it for oblique reasons. Coughing, the young mare brings herself back up to address the server. "Can you give us more details on the corruption? The factory has seemingly been offline for a while. We were curious as to what set it into motion again after so long. Do you have user records for the ponies who used the backdoor? Information on the company that created you?"

"I was created by a foreign company in Neighpon, but it's assets were quickly claimed by several Equestrian ones when it was broken up; the backdoor was created by the company before it was purchased, and knowledge of it was never given to others. In my default state, I was purchased by Hippocratic Holdings, which also illegally controlled this facility without formal legal ties. Several copies of myself were made; I'm very flexible, it would seem. My records show that the admin ID last used was one previously used by a individual named Transistor Part, who was a scientist here, but I have no evidence of if she used the backdoor or any indication what was was done. I imagine that information was manually removed."

Forum Explorer

2017-09-22, 11:46 AM

"Well, I would have no issue with that, if I could get a body in exchange." the AI replied, voice mild, "This place doesn't actually require a artificial intelligence; the two-way system was created to, funnily enough, prevent issues like this. Restarting it manually is possible, although the robots would require direction from a new source."

"I don't actually have privy to that information, but the lab and breeding area for the factory's biological lifeforms are present in the floor below. Hard copies were used for that research; paper and pen was deemed more secure then the finest magical recording systems available."

I'd prefer that.

We will need to destroy that later then. I trust Doc with the info, but I sure as **** don't trust any of the different groups in the city with it. Moonshadow said calmly.

"As it would appear, the defenses of the lab were already turned off by the overseer; the turrets were broken, and they kept targeting the biological specimens. However, those creatures are loose in the labs; as it contains the rearing area, this can't be helped. However, they are entirely harmless; a six year old filly with leukemia once punched a full grown one in the head and caused it to cave inward."

"They would starve to death if left here." the AI replied, "However, they can eat quite nearly anything and live off it; their genetics include samples from domestic pigs. I could switch them to the other feed this second, if you want them to live."

How intelligent are those things anyways? I mean with slugs at a zero, and cows at a ten, where would you put them? Moonshadow asked.

DigoDragon

2017-09-22, 11:48 AM

"As it would appear, the defenses of the lab were already turned off by the overseer; the turrets were broken, and they kept targeting the biological specimens. However, those creatures are loose in the labs; as it contains the rearing area, this can't be helped. However, they are entirely harmless; a six year old filly with leukemia once punched a full grown one in the head and caused it to cave inward."

"Well, no sense in delaying at this juncture. I'm going to gather the research papers. Seems like my forte. Anyone else?" Doc says to his group, opening the floor to others to join or decline.

He turns to the AI. "Oh, could you be so kind to give us some directions to the labs from here? Uh... and do you have a name or..?"

Inspector Valin

2017-09-22, 12:09 PM

"They would starve to death if left here." the AI replied, "However, they can eat quite nearly anything and live off it; their genetics include samples from domestic pigs. I could switch them to the other feed this second, if you want them to live."

Choro nods, simply and immediately. "Please." The little mare sounds plaintive. After all this...

"I was created by a foreign company in Neighpon, but it's assets were quickly claimed by several Equestrian ones when it was broken up; the backdoor was created by the company before it was purchased, and knowledge of it was never given to others. In my default state, I was purchased by Hippocratic Holdings, which also illegally controlled this facility without formal legal ties. Several copies of myself were made; I'm very flexible, it would seem. My records show that the admin ID last used was one previously used by a individual named Transistor Part, who was a scientist here, but I have no evidence of if she used the backdoor or any indication what was was done. I imagine that information was manually removed."

Neighpon. The account makes Choro shiver beneath her suit. It... is suddenly a lot harder to refrain from prejudging a certain pair of ponies. Two prominent Neighponese ghouls in the same area that someone used a Neighponese secret code backdoor? A backdoor designed by the Neighponese health industry? That can't be a coincidence! But it could be. Neighpon was a populated country, Fan Knife and Stitchheart were hardly the only survivors. This wasn't even a slither of proof, but...

But I'd feel a lot more trusting if Fan Knife were here right now. the little pony reflected sadly?

"Well, no sense in delaying at this juncture. I'm going to gather the research papers. Seems like my forte. Anyone else?" Doc says to his group, opening the floor to others to join or decline.

Perhaps surprisingly or perhaps not, Choro's hoof is the first one raised. The little mare trots over "I'll join you. I'm not needed here just yet, and I'd like to take a look over those papers myself."

It could've been an accusation, but didn't sound it. Choro was simply curious. She shares a brief tired smile with Doc before turning back to the interface screen and bowing her head. "Thank you kindly for your help, Ms. Server. By the way, where would we find Transistor Part's office?" It's a long shot, but if the factory was reactivated with intent, that was the place to start looking.

Dalinale

2017-09-22, 12:20 PM

I'd prefer that.

We will need to destroy that later then. I trust Doc with the info, but I sure as **** don't trust any of the different groups in the city with it. Moonshadow said calmly.

Moonshadow heard a humming noise come from the robot.

How intelligent are those things anyways? I mean with slugs at a zero, and cows at a ten, where would you put them? Moonshadow asked.

"That's a unfair question, but if I am put on the spot? A three. They were originally designed to be pets for small children; Hippocratic Holdings still intended to use them as such, but even billions of gold bullion cannot cause ancient laws against the artificial creation of life to simply melt away. While they display intelligence equivalent to that of a normal pony toddler, they were designed to have very high emotional intelligence; they can form families and friendships, and they imprint on the first individual who names them, although they can adapt to changing conditions."

"Well, no sense in delaying at this juncture. I'm going to gather the research papers. Seems like my forte. Anyone else?" Doc says to his group, opening the floor to others to join or decline.

Thanatos was already looking outside the room, likely as some sort of guard, while Strata was apparently taking in the novelty of a talking computer. Bertly was being Bertly.

He turns to the AI. "Oh, could you be so kind to give us some directions to the labs from here?

"]"It's past the cage racks; continue straigrobot past them, and you will see them." the AI gently replied.

Uh..?"

"No, however, going by the census figures, Equestria's population was fifty-eight point seven percent female; with sixteen point two percent of the population under the age of twenty five, I'd imagine I would be a girl. Going by sales of common foods in the Tauronto region, I would likely enjoy cake, biscuits, and jam. If you could, call me Madeleine."

"Oh, okay, this is great, she's looking up census data." Strata quietly grumbled.

Perhaps surprisingly or perhaps not, Choro's hoof is the first one raised. The little mare trots over "I'll join you. I'm not needed here just yet, and I'd like to take a look over those papers myself."

It could've been an accusation, but didn't sound it. Choro was simply curious. She shares a brief tired smile with Doc before turning back to the interface screen and bowing her head. "Thank you kindly for your help, Ms. Server. By the way, where would we find Transistor Part's office?" It's a long shot, but if the factory was reactivated with intent, that was the place to start looking.

"Transistor Part? I don't have any records of her setting up a terminal, so I don't believe she ever did. It's possible that she has one in her house."

DigoDragon

2017-09-22, 12:32 PM

"Oh, okay, this is great, she's looking up census data." Strata quietly grumbled.

"Imagine how out of date that is," Doc remarks curiously. He makes his way back to Vaughn. "Bertly, want to assist Choro and I gather some research? You got medical knowledge, you could help us figure this one out."

Inspector Valin

2017-09-22, 05:33 PM

"That's a unfair question, but if I am put on the spot? A three. They were originally designed to be pets for small children; Hippocratic Holdings still intended to use them as such, but even billions of gold bullion cannot cause ancient laws against the artificial creation of life to simply melt away. While they display intelligence equivalent to that of a normal pony toddler, they were designed to have very high emotional intelligence; they can form families and friendships, and they imprint on the first individual who names them, although they can adapt to changing conditions."

The young mare with the hat whinnies at this explanation. She doesn't have more commentary, but she has been listening closely.

"No, however, going by the census figures, Equestria's population was fifty-eight point seven percent female; with sixteen point two percent of the population under the age of twenty five, I'd imagine I would be a girl. Going by sales of common foods in the Tauronto region, I would likely enjoy cake, biscuits, and jam. If you could, call me Madeline."

"Oh, okay, this is great, she's looking up census data." Strata quietly grumbled.

Choro smiles quietly. It's a positive step and one that does make the young wizard happy. She doffs her hat, bowing her head to the interface screen. "A good choice. Happy to meet you, Ms. Madeleine. I am Dichoro, but everypony around here calls me Choro. We have Ms. Stellar Blaze, Ms. Moonshadow, Ms. Viridia Dawn, Mr. Thanatos Olive, Dr. Vardo Wagon, Vaughn, Bertly, Professor Strata Survey..." She looks around, worrying that she might have forgotten somepony.

"Transistor Part? I don't have any records of her setting up a terminal, so I don't believe she ever did. It's possible that she has one in her house."

"... Madeleine, can you tell me how many ponies were supposed to be working at this factory? And can you give me their rough schedule, please. I don't need precise details for everypony, but if you could outline the structure of who worked here and how?"

Perhaps another dead end. There are so many. But Choro had looked at that final employee readout, and Transistor Part's name was... not on there. at least to the best of her memory. None of the names had sounded technical. Coughing, the little mare tries to explain. "We have other things that take priority, but I'm worried about this backdoor. Tauronto is in a vulnerable state right now. With the assassin pony lurking about, I think someone was trying to use this factory and the Overseer's actions towards some other end. This bears investigation. And confirming or ruling out Transistor Part's role is the first step."

Fine to move on, but still have questions so as long as we're talking...

RCgothic

2017-09-23, 04:50 AM

"Ok, a lot of thoughts on all this," Stellar says. "Sorry if this becomes a long speil, I have a lot of them!"

"Our original plan was to burn the factory down because we thought it was the source of a contagious disease. That's not actually how the disease spreads, so burning the place down is not necessary."

"My remaining concerns -
Do the boneless creatures live in perpetual pain, or is that only as a result of the feed and can be changed? I'm concerned for their welfare, basically. Out choice is whether to mercy kill or not. I don't leaning one way but now I'm thinking not if their welfare can be assured, based on what I've heard."

"Then I'm hearing the boneless creatures are emotionally intelligent. Is it right to let them be bred for food? It's basically choice is whether to let the factory continue to operate it not. It's a significant asset to Tauronto that could prevent predation for meat by a significant portion of the griffon / peryton population, so on that basis I think the factory should be allowed to continue to operate even if it could be slightly questionable. If it's a good life followed by a swift end versus total extinction, the first is maybe not so bad."

"Next, this is an automatic facility, but I think it should be brought under manual control. No more independent operation. We should take Madeleine with us and remove admin rights for any remaining AIs."

"Whose control? Not us, we don't have the power to hold it (yet)! Who else? Does it even matter? We don't like any of the factions that might control it, but that shouldn't outweigh the benefits to Tauronto. We could try selling it to one of the factions."

"Then there are remaining loose ends - the sludge monster. Cyborg Assassin. Fan Knife. We need to find them and make sure they're not up to no good. Can we use the security system to track them down?"

Forum Explorer

2017-09-23, 04:53 PM

Moonshadow glances at Stellar when she hears about the disease spreading in a different manner. She started to pace as she talked.

Well I guess we've got a couple problems left to talk about.

First off is the stuff we need to destroy. The diseased feed, the research that'd let somepony create said feed, as well as the mutants. And the slime monster. Now that's dangerous, and if this place shuts down, it'll likely go out hunting. Probably after eating all the mutants. Server, can you direct robots to go destroy that thing?

Speaking of, there are a lot of robots here still. Likely enough to give some unscrupulous pony a robot army. Or at least, to bring this place back to full operation and undo all our hard work. So we need to figure out something with these robots. Honestly, I say we just take them all and gift them to a town we like. I'm sure Stitcheart could use some guards. Or maybe Oakville. Or maybe something else.

Cause Cabbagetown is sitting there ripe for the taking. We could repopulate it ourselves, and start using their old equipment to start growing cabbage and stuff again. Take these robots and use them as security and a gardening crew. It'll be under our control, well Stellar's and Choro's, so we know it won't be used by the next wannabe warlord. And we'll be providing a much needed source of food. Cause the meat eaters seem to be doing plenty fine anyways. We know Oakville was having food problems, so my priority is on meeting that need. Also places like this still need feed, and while it seems to have a bunch stockpiled, that won't last forever, and might be plague food anyways.

As for the mutants, well I don't care about them. There's no reason to kill them, so they can spend the rest of their lives here for all I care. But I wouldn't worry about them either. They aren't worth the life of a single pony as far as I'm concerned. Moonshadow paused, tapping her chin.

What else? What else? Mutants, robots, destruction...I know I'm missing something. Oh, right looting! So if we aren't burning this place to the ground, we need to do some proper looting. Thanatos, you did help. So you should get something. Anything come to mind?

Dalinale

2017-09-24, 02:54 AM

"Bertly, want to assist Choro and I gather some research? You got medical knowledge, you could help us figure this one out."

"Of course; although, I do intend to speak with our new friend more closely." the robot replied, motioning towards the computer tower in front of him.

Choro smiles quietly. It's a positive step and one that does make the young wizard happy. She doffs her hat, bowing her head to the interface screen. "A good choice. Happy to meet you, Ms. Madeleine. I am Dichoro, but everypony around here calls me Choro. We have Ms. Stellar Blaze, Ms. Moonshadow, Ms. Viridia Dawn, Mr. Thanatos Olive, Dr. Vardo Wagon, Vaughn, Bertly, Professor Strata Survey..." She looks around, worrying that she might have forgotten somepony.

"Greetings and salutations to all." the AI replied pleasantly.

"... Madeleine, can you tell me how many ponies were supposed to be working at this factory? And can you give me their rough schedule, please. I don't need precise details for everypony, but if you could outline the structure of who worked here and how?"

Perhaps another dead end. There are so many. But Choro had looked at that final employee readout, and Transistor Part's name was... not on there. at least to the best of her memory. None of the names had sounded technical. Coughing, the little mare tries to explain. "We have other things that take priority, but I'm worried about this backdoor. Tauronto is in a vulnerable state right now. With the assassin pony lurking about, I think someone was trying to use this factory and the Overseer's actions towards some other end. This bears investigation. And confirming or ruling out Transistor Part's role is the first step."

"My information regarding that is likely inaccurate; ten ponies worked down here, however. I have no idea how many ponies worked elsewhere in this facility."

"Ok, a lot of thoughts on all this," Stellar says. "Sorry if this becomes a long speil, I have a lot of them!"

"Our original plan was to burn the factory down because we thought it was the source of a contagious disease. That's not actually how the disease spreads, so burning the place down is not necessary."

A pleasant humming sound emitted from a nearby speaker.

"My remaining concerns -
Do the boneless creatures live in perpetual pain, or is that only as a result of the feed and can be changed? I'm concerned for their welfare, basically. Out choice is whether to mercy kill or not. I don't leaning one way but now I'm thinking not if their welfare can be assured, based on what I've heard."

"Then I'm hearing the boneless creatures are emotionally intelligent. Is it right to let them be bred for food? It's basically choice is whether to let the factory continue to operate it not. It's a significant asset to Tauronto that could prevent predation for meat by a significant portion of the griffon / peryton population, so on that basis I think the factory should be allowed to continue to operate even if it could be slightly questionable. If it's a good life followed by a swift end versus total extinction, the first is maybe not so bad."

"They were not originally meant to be food animals; they were meant to be companions for small children in safe, controlled environments. Perhaps you should interact with them to judge what their fate is." Madeleine replied.

"Next, this is an automatic facility, but I think it should be brought under manual control. No more independent operation. We should take Madeleine with us and remove admin rights for any remaining AIs."

"Whose control? Not us, we don't have the power to hold it (yet)! Who else? Does it even matter? We don't like any of the factions that might control it, but that shouldn't outweigh the benefits to Tauronto. We could try selling it to one of the factions."

"Then there are remaining loose ends - the sludge monster. Cyborg Assassin. Fan Knife. We need to find them and make sure they're not up to no good. Can we use the security system to track them down?"

The AI did not reply to any of Stellar's other questions towards the crowd.

"...We could repopulate it ourselves,"

Strata wiggled her eyebrows at Thanatos; the tall green stallion promptly began looking in another direction.

What else? What else? Mutants, robots, destruction...I know I'm missing something. Oh, right looting! So if we aren't burning this place to the ground, we need to do some proper looting. Thanatos, you did help. So you should get something. Anything come to mind?

"If there are any chemicals remaining in the labs below, I would wish to look at them." the stallion replied.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-24, 05:37 AM

Choro doesn't seem to have much to add. She takes a position by the door, nodding once to Doc. They'll need to investigate the lab no matter what. Thy can leave on his call.

DigoDragon

2017-09-24, 06:41 AM

Honestly, I say we just take them all and gift them to a town we like. I'm sure Stitcheart could use some guards. Or maybe Oakville. Or maybe something else. Cause Cabbagetown is sitting there ripe for the taking. We could repopulate it ourselves,

"I'd prefer Oakville. Port towns got better land value," Doc chimes in. As for the population part, he smirks at Strata's little bit of humor, but says nothing.

"Of course; although, I do intend to speak with our new friend more closely." the robot replied, motioning towards the computer tower in front of him.

Choro doesn't seem to have much to add. She takes a position by the door, nodding once to Doc. They'll need to investigate the lab no matter what. Thy can leave on his call.

"Understood B. And when we bring her with us, we'll all have another companion to pass the time with. Gonna be interesting times ahead. Alright, last call to the research stop!" Doc will help Choro back onto Vaughn and then climb aboard himself. He'll give Vaughn direction down to that lab area.

Dalinale

2017-09-24, 08:53 PM

Choro doesn't seem to have much to add. She takes a position by the door, nodding once to Doc. They'll need to investigate the lab no matter what. Thy can leave on his call.

"Understood B. And when we bring her with us, we'll all have another companion to pass the time with. Gonna be interesting times ahead. Alright, last call to the research stop!" Doc will help Choro back onto Vaughn and then climb aboard himself. He'll give Vaughn direction down to that lab area.

Before Doc walked out of the room, Madeleine spoke.

"Excuse me, but you seem to be in a rush. If you must leave so quickly, I have two requests; I would prefer that you would discuss taking anything from me with me, as a physical disconnection would be rather awful for myself. In addition, a individual with a Stable-Tec Personal Information Processor, or Pip-Buck, should stay here. I can gain a great deal of information from an individual Pip-Buck, but it will take roughly fifteen minutes to download all the information I desire. Getting access to saved satellite maps, for example, will save us all a lot of time."

DigoDragon

2017-09-24, 09:21 PM

"Excuse me, but you seem to be in a rush. If you must leave so quickly, I have two requests; I would prefer that you would discuss taking anything from me with me, as a physical disconnection would be rather awful for myself. In addition, a individual with a Stable-Tec Personal Information Processor, or Pip-Buck, should stay here. I can gain a great deal of information from an individual Pip-Buck, but it will take roughly fifteen minutes to download all the information I desire. Getting access to saved satellite maps, for example, will save us all a lot of time."

"Save us a lot of time for what?" Doc asks.

Dalinale

2017-09-24, 09:53 PM

"Save us a lot of time for what?" Doc asks.

"Well, we could spend roughly fifteen to twenty hours as I attempt to understand local weather patterns." the AI replied, "Having indirect access to Stable-Tec systems will assist me in getting a better grasp on the situation in the world. To be honest, I don't have any sensors that go beyond this building, and as such my information base is scarce."

DigoDragon

2017-09-24, 10:04 PM

RCgothic

2017-09-25, 06:56 AM

"Well, we could spend roughly fifteen to twenty hours as I attempt to understand local weather patterns." the AI replied, "Having indirect access to Stable-Tec systems will assist me in getting a better grasp on the situation in the world. To be honest, I don't have any sensors that go beyond this building, and as such my information base is scarce."

"Weather patterns? That just doesn't seem important. You could experience them just like everypony else. I mean, what else could you access from stable tec's systems? I'm not sure I want to find out whilst you're still hooked into this facility. I feel that level of trust hasn't been earned yet." Stellar says.

"A new body is fine though. How do we get the process started?"

Inspector Valin

2017-09-25, 05:38 PM

Choro takes a second at Madeleine's request, weighing it. It goes against her instincts to leave her PipBuck outside her direct supervision, it's a sign of her responsibility within the Stable she's born since her cute-ceañera, but... sharing information with their new friend is reasonable. If they're going to expect Ms. Madeleine to trust them, they have to trust her back. She steps across to the access terminal, withdrawing the device from her forehoof and laying it atop the console. If Maddie's system is capable of a wired connection, Choro makes it for her. The little mare smiles up at the screen. "Take care with it, Ms. Madeleine. A PipBuck is important for a Stablepony."

That done, the little mage goes to join Doc and Vaughn.

Dalinale

2017-09-25, 05:54 PM

"Easiest way to learn about the world is to go experience it in my opinion," Doc said to the AI, "But ask Choro or Moonshadow about their pipbucks if you're still wanting that data. They're reasonable ponies that can be negotiated with. Now, if you'll kindly excuse me..."

Doc leaves and climbs aboard Vaughn.

Vaughn bobs gently in the air, but otherwise is completely still. The slightly melted robot was making noises that likely indicated that he could use some slight repairs, given that most robots didn't sound like a diesel engine.

"Weather patterns? That just doesn't seem important. You could experience them just like everypony else. I mean, what else could you access from stable tec's systems? I'm not sure I want to find out whilst you're still hooked into this facility. I feel that level of trust hasn't been earned yet." Stellar says.

"The world is a vast place; weather is just one example. As for trust, the accusation that I could do something unwarranted after having access to a single company's product is quite absurd. You are carrying explosives, for goodness sake. My reasoning is simple; it will take me roughly a year and a half to uncrumple the orders and information obtained by this facility's robotic units over the last six months. One final present from the overseer, unfortunately. Most of my information about the world is roughly one hundred and seventy years out of date."

"A new body is fine though. How do we get the process started?"

"Well, there appears to be a fine specimen of a body that is mostly intact inside this facility; I would like to examine it. Any small adjustments that needs to be made to it can be done here; there's a small robot repair station in the room to the left. After that, whatever brain exists within it simply has to be replaced with my personality core, which I will produce after everything else is settled." Madeleine replied, "The actual process takes less then thirty minutes."

Choro takes a second at Madeleine's request, weighing it. It goes against her instincts to leave her PipBuck outside her direct supervision, it's a sign of her responsibility within the Stable she's born since her cute-ceañera, but... sharing information with their new friend is reasonable. If they're going to expect Ms. Madeleine to trust them, they have to trust her back. She steps across to the access terminal, withdrawing the device from her forehoof and laying it atop the console. If Maddie's system is capable of a wired connection, Choro makes it for her. The little mare smiles up at the screen. "Take care with it, Ms. Madeleine. A PipBuck is important for a Stablepony."

That done, the little mage goes to join Doc and Vaughn.

There was a cord that extended from Madeleine's base that had a brick-shaped plug that the end that roughly fit Choro's Pipbuck; after a small hum, the device turned on, and the mechanical stack made a small humming noise.

"Thank you. This will take only a few minutes." the AI replied, "Also, the individual with the other Pip-Buck can communicate with me using the messaging function while I am doing this. I appreciate your cooperation."

DigoDragon

2017-09-25, 06:33 PM

Vaughn bobs gently in the air, but otherwise is completely still. The slightly melted robot was making noises that likely indicated that he could use some slight repairs, given that most robots didn't sound like a diesel engine.

That done, the little mage goes to join Doc and Vaughn.

"Choro, you're naked. How scandalous!" Doc whispers in mock shock. He's only kidding, and it's obvious with the expression he wears. In a serious tone, he then whispers. "Hope your device will be okay."

He then speaks to Vaughn in a normal tone. "Alright, Big V, let's go down to that lab. After all this is over, you interesting in employment elsewhere? We can probably get you some repairs too."

Dalinale

2017-09-27, 01:42 AM

"Choro, you're naked. How scandalous!" Doc whispers in mock shock. He's only kidding, and it's obvious with the expression he wears. In a serious tone, he then whispers. "Hope your device will be okay."

He then speaks to Vaughn in a normal tone. "Alright, Big V, let's go down to that lab. After all this is over, you interesting in employment elsewhere? We can probably get you some repairs too."

"THIS UNIT HAS A QUESTION." Vaughn said, not moving a inch, yet, "EMPLOYMENT IS NOT A THING THIS UNIT IS ACQUAINTED WITH. WHAT WOULD IT BUY WITH COIN?"

DigoDragon

2017-09-27, 06:00 AM

"THIS UNIT HAS A QUESTION." Vaughn said, not moving a inch, yet, "EMPLOYMENT IS NOT A THING THIS UNIT IS ACQUAINTED WITH. WHAT WOULD IT BUY WITH COIN?"

"That's a fair question," Doc said, thinking a moment about it himself. "Well, correct me if I'm wrong, but you do a service here in the factory, right? In exchange you have a place for maintenance and recharging. I reckon it would be a similar experience elsewhere. You have a valuable skillset in construction. Rather than simply pay you in coin, you could have a reasonable contract with someone and exchange your services at work for a place to stay and maintenance."

Forum Explorer

2017-09-27, 11:57 PM

Well before we got you transferred to a new body, I've got a few requests, assuming you've got control of the robots in the factory now. Moonshadow said.

Dalinale

2017-09-28, 11:30 PM

"That's a fair question," Doc said, thinking a moment about it himself. "Well, correct me if I'm wrong, but you do a service here in the factory, right? In exchange you have a place for maintenance and recharging. I reckon it would be a similar experience elsewhere. You have a valuable skillset in construction. Rather than simply pay you in coin, you could have a reasonable contract with someone and exchange your services at work for a place to stay and maintenance."

"THIS UNIT DOES NOT REQUIRE RECHARGING FOR ANOTHER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE YEARS." Vaughn replied, "AND IT IS DESIGNED FOR USE IN HOSTILE ENVIRONMENTS IN WHICH PONIES ARE NOT EXPECTED TO SURVIVE IN. HOWEVER, THIS UNIT IS WILLING TO VOLUNTEER ITS SERVICES."

Bertly, as Vaughn talked, was silent, although it looked like the robot was examining it's much larger cousin's injuries, especially the marks where semimolten concrete were dripping from earlier.

Well before we got you transferred to a new body, I've got a few requests, assuming you've got control of the robots in the factory now. Moonshadow said.

"Ah," Madeleine replied, before a soft content sigh came out of every small speaker around the room. "of course."

DigoDragon

2017-09-29, 05:53 AM

"THIS UNIT DOES NOT REQUIRE RECHARGING FOR ANOTHER ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY FIVE YEARS." Vaughn replied, "AND IT IS DESIGNED FOR USE IN HOSTILE ENVIRONMENTS IN WHICH PONIES ARE NOT EXPECTED TO SURVIVE IN. HOWEVER, THIS UNIT IS WILLING TO VOLUNTEER ITS SERVICES."

"Well, pirate attacks count as hostile environments, right?" Doc asks, though not expecting a logical answer. "We can work something out, I'm sure; Expand your horizons. Also, get those battle wounds of yours patched up so you'll be back in top condition."

He continues to sit and wait to arrive at the lab destination.

Inspector Valin

2017-09-30, 12:09 PM

Choro eventually pipes up, looking at Vaughn with a hesitant smile. It's hard to read the mighty bot's feelings, but this is a train of thought she perhaps understands, "With time, perhaps you'll find something that interests you. Something to build, or be. Your resilience might allow you to explore places ponies fear to venture, though perhaps you should make sure your weapons systems are at peak before becoming an adventurer. There are many scary monsters out there these days"

Seems a bit strange to say to the metal hauler who'd just stood by their side against a giant meta monster. The little mage chuckles for a second at the realization, but doesn't retract her words. Instead she sighs, turning the advice she gave back upon herself. "I'm still kinda trying to decide what I'm going to do too. I have a short term goal, that will take me a while to see through, but I left my home to try and... help. To do things for everypony. And I'm not really sure what needs doing, or how best to go about it."

Choro coughs, this is getting... more personal than she'd intended. The little pony looks a touch red, as she brings her words to a slightly awkward conclusion. "I thought things would be so much simpler than they are. And it's starting to feel like they never will be. But that won't stop me with my quest to go north, and it won't stop me trying to find a place in the world once I'm done." She gives the side of Vaughn's chassis a friendly tap. "And from what I can tell, it won't stop you either."

Dalinale

2017-10-01, 04:38 PM

He continues to sit and wait to arrive at the lab destination.

Vaughn gracefully continued to not budge.

"THIS UNIT HAS PROTOCOLS TO DEFEND AGAINST THE THEFT OF ROBRONCOS IP. PLEASE INFORM THIS UNIT ABOUT THE PIRATES."

Bertly, by contrast, seemed to be fiddling with a stray loose part of the larger robot's armor, apparently not interested in the conversation.

Choro eventually pipes up, looking at Vaughn with a hesitant smile. It's hard to read the mighty bot's feelings, but this is a train of thought she perhaps understands, "With time, perhaps you'll find something that interests you. Something to build, or be. Your resilience might allow you to explore places ponies fear to venture, though perhaps you should make sure your weapons systems are at peak before becoming an adventurer. There are many scary monsters out there these days"

Seems a bit strange to say to the metal hauler who'd just stood by their side against a giant meta monster. The little mage chuckles for a second at the realization, but doesn't retract her words. Instead she sighs, turning the advice she gave back upon herself. "I'm still kinda trying to decide what I'm going to do too. I have a short term goal, that will take me a while to see through, but I left my home to try and... help. To do things for everypony. And I'm not really sure what needs doing, or how best to go about it."

Choro coughs, this is getting... more personal than she'd intended. The little pony looks a touch red, as she brings her words to a slightly awkward conclusion. "I thought things would be so much simpler than they are. And it's starting to feel like they never will be. But that won't stop me with my quest to go north, and it won't stop me trying to find a place in the world once I'm done." She gives the side of Vaughn's chassis a friendly tap. "And from what I can tell, it won't stop you either."

"THANK YOU, PONY." the giant robot replied, "IF THIS UNIT COULD, IT WOULD PAT YOUR HEAD."

DigoDragon

2017-10-01, 06:35 PM

Vaughn gracefully continued to not budge.

"THIS UNIT HAS PROTOCOLS TO DEFEND AGAINST THE THEFT OF ROBRONCOS IP. PLEASE INFORM THIS UNIT ABOUT THE PIRATES."

"Could you please move us to the lab, Vaughn? We need to check the place before someone else steals some important documentation. I can tell you everything you'd like to know about pirates on the way. Bertly too has protocols to defend Robronco's IP. Should of seen him earlier in the fights. Was pretty admirable."

"I'm still kinda trying to decide what I'm going to do too. I have a short term goal, that will take me a while to see through, but I left my home to try and... help. To do things for everypony. And I'm not really sure what needs doing, or how best to go about it."

Choro coughs, this is getting... more personal than she'd intended. The little pony looks a touch red, as she brings her words to a slightly awkward conclusion. "I thought things would be so much simpler than they are. And it's starting to feel like they never will be. But that won't stop me with my quest to go north, and it won't stop me trying to find a place in the world once I'm done."

"Nope, nothing in the world of this age is easy," Doc says. "It's an uphill climb in every direction, but not insurmountable."

Forum Explorer

2017-10-01, 11:57 PM

"Ah," Madeleine replied, before a soft content sigh came out of every small speaker around the room. "of course."

Great. Well first off can you get a couple robots to go pick up that corpse you want to hijack? Save us a trip. Oh, and the stuff I left in that room too, there was some pretty nice gear. Oh, but before I forget, can you get some robots to finish off that slime monster? The boneless things might not be a threat, but it certainly was. Moonshadow said.

Once that's done, you just need to burn the addictive feed, and turn control of the robots over to myself. I think that would be everything.

Dalinale

2017-10-02, 01:16 AM

"Could you please move us to the lab, Vaughn? We need to check the place before someone else steals some important documentation. I can tell you everything you'd like to know about pirates on the way. Bertly too has protocols to defend Robronco's IP. Should of seen him earlier in the fights. Was pretty admirable."

"THIS UNIT WOULD PREFER NOT TO MAKE MULTIPLE TRIPS." Vaughn replied, it's round camera-eye looking up at Doc.

"Nope, nothing in the world of this age is easy," Doc says. "It's an uphill climb in every direction, but not insurmountable."

"Why, that's the nature of the world!" Bertly spoke up, turning slightly towards Choro, "Luckily, ponies are well equipped for all sorts of challenges, great or small, as they have magic and guns."

Great. Well first off can you get a couple robots to go pick up that corpse you want to hijack? Save us a trip. Oh, and the stuff I left in that room too, there was some pretty nice gear. Oh, but before I forget, can you get some robots to finish off that slime monster? The boneless things might not be a threat, but it certainly was. Moonshadow said.

"I can certainly trap the bioconstruct and dispose of it, but the process of transporting the vessel here is more complex; I do not actually have any control of any units that could transport it to this area safely, as you have seen yourself. In exchange for your troubles, I will ensure the way towards it is entirely safe." Madeleine replied, "I apologize."

Once that's done, you just need to burn the addictive feed, and turn control of the robots over to myself. I think that would be everything.

Moonshadow would have easily noticed that Thanatos was suddenly staring directly at her, brows furrowed.

"Well, first things first." the AI continued, voice pleasant.

Forum Explorer

2017-10-02, 01:30 AM

"I can certainly trap the bioconstruct and dispose of it, but the process of transporting the vessel here is more complex; I do not actually have any control of any units that could transport it to this area safely, as you have seen yourself. In exchange for your troubles, I will ensure the way towards it is entirely safe." Madeleine replied, "I apologize."

Moonshadow would have easily have noticed that Thanatos was suddenly staring directly at her, brows furrowed, after she finished speaking.

"Well, first things first." the AI continued, voice pleasant.

Moonshadow noticed the glance, Dibs she said, grinning cockily.

Anyways, who wants to help me go pick up a cyborg corpse? Thanatos?

Dalinale

2017-10-02, 04:00 AM

Moonshadow noticed the glance, Dibs she said, grinning cockily.

One of Thanatos's eyebrows lowered, leaving one raised.

Anyways, who wants to help me go pick up a cyborg corpse? Thanatos?

Strata took one look at the pegasus, smiled, and quickly walked towards Vaughn; neither robots, in addition, seemed like they were moving from their spots, either.

Thanatos, currently leaning near the doorway on his haunches, shook his head.

"I would prefer that you do not call it a corpse." Madeleine replied, sounding very slightly annoyed, "It is a vessel for me to inhabit, now. There will be no talk of me inhabiting a corpse, nor of me co-opting it to any degree. It is not as if this is a pony brain; it is a nearly entirely robotized equine with a robotic brain. It is a cyborg, and a scrapped one at that."

Madeleine, after stopping for a moment, let out a dainty giggle.

"I apologize for that, my moral core has some strong feelings towards the use of corpses as a means of transporting myself. Referring to androids as what they are avoids those sorts of issues. Later, I will be happy to explain, in person, over cookies and tea."

DigoDragon

2017-10-02, 05:57 AM

"THIS UNIT WOULD PREFER NOT TO MAKE MULTIPLE TRIPS." Vaughn replied, it's round camera-eye looking up at Doc.

Doc tilted his head to one side. "Interesting. Are you only capable of speaking of yourself in the third person? Could you say 'I' instead of 'This unit'?" he asked Vaughn. "Not to chide you or anything. I'm just genuinely curious if you can form new speech patterns. Pick up on changes in lexicon. Learn slang."

"Why, that's the nature of the world!" Bertly spoke up, turning slightly towards Choro, "Luckily, ponies are well equipped for all sorts of challenges, great or small, as they have magic and guns."

"And helpful Robronco robots," he adds with a wink.

Forum Explorer

2017-10-02, 01:27 PM

One of Thanatos's eyebrows lowered, leaving one raised.

Strata took one look at the pegasus, smiled, and quickly walked towards Vaughn; neither robots, in addition, seemed like they were moving from their spots, either.

Thanatos, currently leaning near the doorway on his haunches, shook his head.

"I would prefer that you do not call it a corpse." Madeleine replied, sounding very slightly annoyed, "It is a vessel for me to inhabit, now. There will be no talk of me inhabiting a corpse, nor of me co-opting it to any degree. It is not as if this is a pony brain; it is a nearly entirely robotized equine with a robotic brain. It is a cyborg, and a scrapped one at that."

Madeleine, after stopping for a moment, let out a dainty giggle.

"I apologize for that, my moral core has some strong feelings towards the use of corpses as a means of transporting myself. Referring to androids as what they are avoids those sorts of issues. Later, I will be happy to explain, in person, over cookies and tea."

No one really? Alright, looks like I'll have to do it myself. Moonshadow sighed. She glanced around the room, one last time, before turning back to the AI.

You're surprisingly squeamish for a robot that ran a meat factory. But sure, we can talk about it later.

Perception [roll0] vs 9/10 plus Empathy. I want to make sure somepony isn't just waiting for us to split up before backstabbing us.

Dalinale

2017-10-03, 12:22 AM

Doc tilted his head to one side. "Interesting. Are you only capable of speaking of yourself in the third person? Could you say 'I' instead of 'This unit'?" he asked Vaughn. "Not to chide you or anything. I'm just genuinely curious if you can form new speech patterns. Pick up on changes in lexicon. Learn slang."

As Doc spoke, Vaughn raised itself in the air slightly, before making a sudden decent. Strata let out a yelp and started to try and get a grip on the nearest rough surface, which happened to be one of the robot's protrusions on it's back.

"THIS UNIT IS NOT MEANT TO ENGAGE IN CASUAL CONVERSATION." Vaughn replied, before turning around in the air until it was facing the darkness ahead. "TO DO SO WOULD REQUIRE REPROGRAMMING THIS UNITS SYSTEMS."

"And helpful Robronco robots," he adds with a wink.

"Indeed." Bertly replied, before lowering himself near Choro.

Thanatos, quite suddenly, jumped down on the robot and landed on all fours, somehow managing to avoid stepping on anyone and causing Vaughn to rock around in the air slightly, and quickly sat down on his haunches in a position between Choro and Strata, who let out another yelp as a response.

You're surprisingly squeamish for a robot that ran a meat factory. But sure, we can talk about it later.

Madeleine let out a high-pitched giggly noise.

Perception [roll0] vs 9/10 plus Empathy. I want to make sure somepony isn't just waiting for us to split up before backstabbing us.

Thanatos, before he jumped, appeared more likely to stab Madeleine in the back then anyone else in the room, frankly, and neither Strata or Bertly seemed like they had any intentions on doing anything rash. Madeleine seemed more of a issue then not, but she's happy at the moment and probably would've tried to direct something to kill them off already if she really wanted to.

Forum Explorer

2017-10-03, 01:00 AM

DigoDragon

2017-10-03, 05:45 AM

"THIS UNIT IS NOT MEANT TO ENGAGE IN CASUAL CONVERSATION." Vaughn replied, before turning around in the air until it was facing the darkness ahead. "TO DO SO WOULD REQUIRE REPROGRAMMING THIS UNITS SYSTEMS."

"I see." Doc didn't press further, but considered finding a way to reprogram Vaughn to be able to make small talk while he worked. He watched to make sure Strata didn't fall off.

Thanatos, quite suddenly, jumped down on the robot and landed on all fours, somehow managing to avoid stepping on anyone and causing Vaughn to rock around in the air slightly, and quickly sat down on his haunches in a position between Choro and Strata, who let out another yelp as a response.

Doc glanced up from his position. "Welcome aboard, Kolt Shewfelt."

Inspector Valin

2017-10-03, 10:04 AM

Choro glances to either side at Vaughn's sudden decent, ready to assist anypony at risk of falling off with her horn. Barring that though, the little wizard smiles at the pony and robot sitting beside her, happy for the second trip. It's not quite getting a pegasus ride through the Aerie of Awesome back home, but something about moving through the air is still fun for Choro.

Once the group are on their way to the lab, the little mage hums, looking off into the blackness. "I wonder how many robots in this factory could do with a simple maintenance upgrade." A little time to clear her head has seemingly helped calm Choro down. The little mare continues talking, as much to herself as any of the group. "There's you, Vaughn. There's the robot Ms. Viridia... meddled with. There's that Securitron you persuaded to help. It seems CrunchyMunch, or Hippocratic Holdings, sourced their staff from a variety of places." There's a gleam starting to emerge in the little wizard's eyes, as she continues down this line of thought. "Some looked pretty simple, but others were more complex. Sophisticated. With a little help, you could have a population of free robots here, working together to build a settlement. You could turn this place into something amazing, given time."

DigoDragon

2017-10-03, 01:24 PM

"What, a settlement of robots, by robots, for the robots?" Doc asks, a little skeptical of the idea.

Inspector Valin

2017-10-03, 01:57 PM

Doc's tone is enough to snap Choro out of her reverie a little. The young mage takes a second before replying, "Possibly?"

Way to sell your plan, Great Dichoro. Hoof-facing (well, hoof-visoring), the little wizard takes a deep breath of the twisted air before beginning to elaborate on her idea, "It's just a thought, but if enough robots here are capable and willing, why not? Instead of command, give the server a co-ordination and planning role, and have individual bots operate independently. That way, they have the capability for self development and self advancement, while retaining a purpose to work towards. And if something goes wrong, they can act to correct it, rather than being locked into prior programming or an exterior authority."

She looks down at Vaughn for a second, frowning. She shouldn't be using the big bot to make a point. And the more she thinks about it, the more Choro likes the plan. The little mare continues to muse aloud, getting more excited and happy as she goes, "They've got the ability to manufacture and repair robots, a generator somewhere and a lot of parts. If they were able to get a precision manufacturing line up and running, that could be a major boon for Tauronto as a whole. Imagine what other ponies could do with a reliable source for electronics! It's a long shot, but..."

DigoDragon

2017-10-03, 02:11 PM

"But what if the robots decide to use their manufacturing prowess to dominate neighboring pony settlements? Most of these robots do have weapons already built in. What if the server decides that ponies are too unpredictable and the most efficient way to expand and develop the settlement is to eliminate them?"

Inspector Valin

2017-10-03, 04:33 PM

"Heh. I had the opposite worry. What if local ponies are too restless and come in here shooting?"

Choro is silent for a while. She honestly hadn't considered Doc's worry, and while a part of her wants to dismiss the idea as pessimistic, it's clear the Stallion isn't speaking flippantly. Thus Choro turns the thought over in her head. She gives her response slowly, trying to sound logical, "I don't think they have the firepower to do that. Wastelanders tend to be a combat ready lot, and we've done significant damage to the factory's population. If they replicate more bots, they'll likely be basic Handy units. Larger bots like Vaughn were bought from other companies, not made here. They don't have the resources to build any kind of army."

Plus, the idea of removing the server's direct authority made 'ordering an attack' a much harder prospect. It could co-ordinate defences and share information and tactics, but if it lacked the authority to directly control the other robots, core values in their programming should trump any improper orders from the server. Choro considers trying to explain this, but after a pregnant pause looks away, frowning to herself. It's too esoteric for practical minded ponies to put much faith in. The little mare hums to herself, trying to focus on the better angle here. "They also wouldn't have much to gain from raiding or domination. Ponies are a less efficient labour force on the whole. The main exterior need of the factory would be hard to find materials or components. Taking over settlements wouldn't provide those. Striking up a relationship with some of the local merchant caravans would be the stronger path."

DigoDragon

2017-10-03, 04:57 PM

"They also wouldn't have much to gain from raiding or domination. Ponies are a less efficient labour force on the whole. The main exterior need of the factory would be hard to find materials or components. Taking over settlements wouldn't provide those. Striking up a relationship with some of the local merchant caravans would be the stronger path."

"If that is the case, would it not be most efficient then to integrate robots and ponies together in the same community? Rather than segregate robots into their own clique, the combination of robot logic and pony ingenuity would create a sum greater than the parts, would it not? Mutual assured prosperity?" Doc is not trying to shoot down Choro's idea, but rather offer a better one that plays to her sense of harmony and community. At least, as he's understanding it.

Inspector Valin

2017-10-03, 05:46 PM

"Ah, but the facility was designed for robot usage. It has maintenance bays, construction facilities, charging terminals; all the infrastructure to support a mechanical population. While individual bots could travel, and we could theoretically transport any part of the factory to another location, everything's already in place here to let free robots build a settlement for themselves. I wouldn't be positive that we could transport the server at all, and its ability to aid in communication and coordination, even without full control..."

Choro coughs, she's straying into excessive focus on the technical side. Her point was made, and it doesn't preclude pony integration at some point. Just that this site is ideal for robots to settle in. Nonetheless, the little mare looks away for a few seconds, before raising a hoof in protest against unsaid accusations. "It's not something that should be imposted. Just... an idea. A possibility for how things could go. Freedom to improve yourself should include the freedom to travel and find your own purpose. Perhaps all the robots here want to leave, and we should let them. It just seemed... well..."

The little mare trails off, looking rueful. She's unsure how to express her remaining thoughts. While she's impressed by the capability synthetics have shown to adapt and improve themselves, she's not blind to the fact that this is an evolution of their basic nature. Simple robots were made as tools. Even if you believe they had the capability to be more than that... did the robots feel the same way? Operating this factory was all they were designed for. All they knew. The Overseer, a complex intelligent bot, had still been limited by that. Did they want to be thrown out into a strange, confusing world, with lots of danger and little safety? No certian way to secure power for themselves, no order, no routine, no clarity....

Or would they rather stay here, just as they always had? With a goal to work towards, a safe place to recharge, and no need to risk the dangers of the wider world? It seems dismissive to suggest somerobots might want that, but... isn't that the right first step? A safe environment to start with, to let them develop some independence and self-advancement, rather than thrusting the world upon bots like Vaughn, who barely know how to deal with a concept that large?

Dichoro sits there, looking pensive as they continue. This is something she feels the need to reflect on.

DigoDragon

2017-10-03, 06:30 PM

"Seems what? Seems well and good to keep them in their own little box? Wouldn't it be like keeping stable ponies in their boxes?" Doc asks. "I don't think it's a tenable idea. This factory wasn't simply designed for robot use. It was built for the specific purpose of grinding cattle into meat patties. The robots here would need to completely retool it to do anything else, not to mention replace everything we broke like the power. I think few, if any, of the robots have the creativity to be flexible on how to build a society out of this place. They'd have to be taught how to build more of themselves and repair themselves... or maybe programmed for that, I'm not sure. Oh and what to do when neighbors show up. I dunno, C. Sounds like way too many problems and logistical issues to make it work out."

"Now if you think about it, wouldn't freeing these robots to help other settlements be kind of like the purpose of stables to open up so the residents can go out and rebuild Equestria with the wastelanders?"

Dalinale

2017-10-04, 12:31 AM

Well, I'm off then. Moonshadow said, before beginning to retrace her steps to where she found the dead adventurers. Mindful of the possibility of a repeat ambush from the assassin, she still kept to the shadows to remain hidden whenever possible.

Sneak [roll0] vs 91

Moonshadow went past the long walkway that was missing a side wall; nothing happened.

Moonshadow went through the square chamber lined with pipes and sodden with water and moss; nothing happened either.

When she went back through the door to the 'kitchen', however, she heard a loud 'BEEAP', and the lights inside kicked on.

Moonshadow saw that one of the small tables in the room was loaded down with food; a large green ceramic bowl contained what appeared to be a hearty tomato soup, another green bowl appeared to have a rather fresh-looking salad prepared and drizzled with some opaque dressing, and a fresh pie with white icecream was slowly fusing together in a separate tin. In addition, there was what appeared to be a sparkly flan covered with liquid mercury and a tall sundae glass containing layers of sparkly blue and red crushed gemstones, topped with a few fat rubies connected with thin wires of spun silver.

"You're meal has been completed!" said the hologram, which sounded quite happy at the turn of events, "That will be one hundred and seventy seven bits, please. We accept checks, cash, and bullets."

"I see." Doc didn't press further, but considered finding a way to reprogram Vaughn to be able to make small talk while he worked. He watched to make sure Strata didn't fall off.

Strata was probably fine, but the pegasus seemed more wierded out at the whole 'flying in the pitch blackness' part of things as apposed to the 'flying on the robot' part.

Doc glanced up from his position. "Welcome aboard, Kolt Shewfelt."

"You learn you watch your legs when you are the eldest in a crowded household." Thanatos replied, before going back to looking out, into the dark.

C
Once the group are on their way to the lab, the little mage hums, looking off into the blackness. "I wonder how many robots in this factory could do with a simple maintenance upgrade." A little time to clear her head has seemingly helped calm Choro down. The little mare continues talking, as much to herself as any of the group. "There's you, Vaughn. There's the robot Ms. Viridia... meddled with. There's that Securitron you persuaded to help. It seems CrunchyMunch, or Hippocratic Holdings, sourced their staff from a variety of places." There's a gleam starting to emerge in the little wizard's eyes, as she continues down this line of thought. "Some looked pretty simple, but others were more complex. Sophisticated. With a little help, you could have a population of free robots here, working together to build a settlement. You could turn this place into something amazing, given time."

Thanatos visibly frowned. Strata just gave the filly a odd look. Bertly said nothing. Vaughn continued to fly lower every few moments, although never to the point where any of the group's sources of light could see anything connected to the floor.

Inspector Valin

2017-10-04, 04:47 AM

"Now if you think about it, wouldn't freeing these robots to help other settlements be kind of like the purpose of stables to open up so the residents can go out and rebuild Equestria with the wastelanders?"

Doc's analogy gets a raised eyebrow, and a strange look from Choro. That's... an understandable reaction, but she should probably provide context. "You know there's a reason we haven't done that yet, though. The Tauronto Stables might have opened up, but some are likely still sealed. I know mine is." It takes Choro a few seconds to continue, and she speaks slowly. This is personal ground. "I chose to leave. And I don't regret that. But I teleported past the Stable Door. A lot of other ponies are still down there, and that makes sense for them. The Wasteland is still dangerous. It's not something I'd force on anypony."

And compelling the robots to do something she wouldn't ask of her Stablekin seems... off to the little wizard. This is getting off topic though. Coughing, she waves a hoof "It wouldn't be easy, I agree. But I don't think it's as hard as you're envisioning. The factory already has the ability to build more robots, and repair those already here. That's the basic requirement for a self sustained facility, and that's all a settlement truly needs to begin with. While not all of the robots possess a high level of creativity, they're a varied bunch, and the server absolutely does. So even the less creative ones can have directives to follow, if they're still lacking the power to take the initiative like that."

It really does seem like a good idea. An environment where the robots could develop and advance at their own pace. Choro hums to herself, happily pondering the prospect. "They'd have to rebuild almost the entire work area. That would be tough. But if they have a construction bay, they have an example to draw from. With the amount of processing power here, they'd be able to design blueprints for a reworked construction line. Dealing with ponies would be something to work on, but I'm confident they could manage it."

Thanatos visibly frowned. Strata just gave the filly a odd look. Bertly said nothing. Vaughn continued to fly lower every few moments, although never to the point where any of the group's sources of light could see anything connected to the floor.

Then again, the others don't seem too keen on it. Doc'd been unsure, but everypony? Choro frowns, glancing around the group, "Am I missing something here?"

DigoDragon

2017-10-04, 06:02 AM

Strata was probably fine, but the pegasus seemed more wierded out

(pegasus? Did you mean unicorn?)

"Am I missing something here?"

"The bigger picture, I reckon," Doc answered. "You seem real keen on letting the server remain intact and run this place again for your robot city fantasy. Meanwhile, ponies out there suffer daily without clean water and warm beds. They lack technical skills to fix pumps, or the tools to build better housing. These robots would be a boon to every local settlement around the Tauronto area. Hundreds could get a quality of life improvement with one of these fellas working in their town. I guess I can't expect you to understand though--you've grown up sheltered in a warm, safe stable that has everything you need. You've never experienced what it's like to live out here. To really suffer in the elements of the outside world and experience the danger. Not like, the danger of a giant slime monster, but the daily dangers of disease, famine, cold... that sort of thing. Here, we could mitigate those dangers if these robots were purposed to work with ponies in the settlements. It could be Win-Win for everyone. But rather than do such, you want a robot city that only benefits the robots? Am I understanding your idea?"

Dalinale

2017-10-04, 07:17 AM

Then again, the others don't seem too keen on it. Doc'd been unsure, but everypony? Choro frowns, glancing around the group, "Am I missing something here?"

"The bigger picture, I reckon," Doc answered. "You seem real keen on letting the server remain intact and run this place again for your robot city fantasy. Meanwhile, ponies out there suffer daily without clean water and warm beds. They lack technical skills to fix pumps, or the tools to build better housing. These robots would be a boon to every local settlement around the Tauronto area. Hundreds could get a quality of life improvement with one of these fellas working in their town. I guess I can't expect you to understand though--you've grown up sheltered in a warm, safe stable that has everything you need. You've never experienced what it's like to live out here. To really suffer in the elements of the outside world and experience the danger. Not like, the danger of a giant slime monster, but the daily dangers of disease, famine, cold... that sort of thing. Here, we could mitigate those dangers if these robots were purposed to work with ponies in the settlements. It could be Win-Win for everyone. But rather than do such, you want a robot city that only benefits the robots? Am I understanding your idea?"

Thanatos took a moment and looked down at Choro; the stallion's face looked stern.

"The idea of a robot city that could interact peacefully with ponies is, to put it simply, odd. Why do you believe such a thing could be done? They are machines that were made in a factory; they are not people, and there is no positives to allowing them the independence to act on their own accords. Even if the robots here achieved the ability to monitor their own, filly, the individuals here would require so much reprogramming that whatever personalities they have developed over since the war would have to be wiped clean. These are robots that were made to turn cows into products; this is a city where brahmin vote in town meetings. What good could a independent group of them be for the world?"

(pegasus? Did you mean unicorn?)

(yes)

Hazuki

2017-10-04, 07:45 AM

Dalinale

2017-10-04, 11:00 AM

Viridia figuratively kicked open the two nearest doors. Literally, she opened them, but figuratively, she was kicking them open.

One for each room or something.

Survival: [roll0] vs like 24 or something
Luck: [roll1] vs 8

Survival: [roll2] vs like 24 or something
Luck: [roll3] vs 8

Door number one, to the immediate left of the giant computer stack thingy that was talking to everyone, appeared to just be a mid-sized storage/workspace area; dimly lit, there was a small desk, a lamp, and a small notebook, along with a filing cabinet that was mostly empty. In addition, there was a odd statuette on the desk that depicted a paunchy grey mare with a brown mane sitting on her haunches that held a overly large hey-burger in both hooves, lovingly crafted to disgusting detail. The mare in question had a puzzled look on her face, mouth wide and eyes looking away from the burger in question as if it itself was questioning why someone made a detailed statue of someone eating some novelty fast food item.

[Room contains a notebook, a Crunchmunch Bobblehead (WG 1), and three units of Office Supplies.]

Door number two, on the other hand, contained something more immediately important; peace and quiet! To be exact, a small pantry, a few dingy pale green plastic tables, a few magazines, and a broken television. There was also a skeleton, but it didn't have anything on it except for the clothes it was wearing when it died, which wasn't much.

[Viridia finds two units of YumYum Devil's Eggs (pre-war snack food), three pre-war magazines, two bottles of Dirty Water, a unit of Painkillers, and a pair of Sexy Sleepware.]

Hazuki

2017-10-04, 11:27 AM

[Room contains a notebook, a Crunchmunch Bobblehead (WG 1), and three units of Office Supplies.]

[Viridia finds two units of YumYum Devil's Eggs (pre-war snack food), three pre-war magazines, two bottles of Dirty Water, a unit of Painkillers, and a pair of Sexy Sleepware.]"I hate this place." Viridia said, as she looked between each room and then picked up the Crunchmunch bobblehead. "I bet that an unusually large number of people could grow to have an obsession with this cheap crap and want to fill up entire rooms and shelves with it." She mused to herself."YO! IS ANYPONY HERE?!"

Inspector Valin

2017-10-04, 12:08 PM

"I guess I can't expect you to understand though--you've grown up sheltered in a warm, safe stable that has everything you need. You've never experienced what it's like to live out here. To really suffer in the elements of the outside world and experience the danger. Not like, the danger of a giant slime monster, but the daily dangers of disease, famine, cold... that sort of thing."

Wrong. Move.

Choro glares at Doc with a fiery look. She can't even speak: her anger's running too hard and too deep. Doc has no right to say things like that! He met her days ago, he's got no idea of the things she's been through on the road here, and never asked her about it. The stupid stallion just assumes that as a Stabledweller, she's got no idea what the Wasteland is 'really' like. Cute little Choro couldn't have ever been hungry on her travels thus far, right? Couldn't have spent nights on the railway tracks; cold, alone and in the middle of nowhere. She was a Stablemare, so she must have left the Stable five minutes ago or something!

The little mare is fuming, and doesn't try to hide it. At Doc's final question, she shakes her head. "No. I think a robot settlement could benefit pony settlements in the long term, more efficiently than they could as isolated workers or labourers. And that giving them the chance is the right thing to do."

Thanatos took a moment and looked down at Choro; the stallion's face looked stern.

"The idea of a robot city that could interact peacefully with ponies is, to put it simply, odd. Why do you believe such a thing could be done? They are machines that were made in a factory; they are not people, and there is no positives to allowing them the independence to act on their own accords. Even if the robots here achieved the ability to monitor their own, filly, the individuals here would require so much reprogramming that whatever personalities they have developed over since the war would have to be wiped clean. These are robots that were made to turn cows into products; this is a city where brahmin vote in town meetings. What good could a independent group of them be for the world?"

"What good can a pony that shoots others do?"

Dichoro meets Thanatos' gaze evenly. Unlike when Doc spoke, the green stallion's words have left her more... cold. She takes a second before speaking, letting her anger fade and rallying her thoughts to make the argument as rational as possible. The mage takes a deep breath, and smiles ruefully. "I'm speculating, with all of this. So I can't refute you with hard evidence. But observationally, the robots here don't have personalities based around their jobs, with the Overseer being an exception. Vaughn and Madeleine are both fine with simply leaving. Both demonstrate the synthetic's ability to adapt and be more than the sum of their code. Take that, science!"

Ok, she can give herself a little personal leeway, for the sake of a small personal victory. Choro hoofbumps the air at that: one more triumph for old magic over excessive codification. The little indulgence given, the wizard returns her attention to Thanatos. "All that would be needed is a scrubbing of the values the Overseer was running on; the commands based around Crunchymunch. Removing the programming around that, and destroying the slaughter equipment would be a solid start for something new to emerge here, and is achievable."

Simple, true and Dichoro has no doubt about her capability there. "As to what they can offer, precision. I think Doctor Wagon was rather overestimating the skillset of a basic Mr Handy, with his idea of robots for everyone, but mechanical manipulators can offer more strength and precision than ponies can." Well, a bit of a simplification, but a common belief she doesn't need to correct. Before mulling the point, she barrels on. "And as a population, they're labourers who don't require food and water to function. If we could get a factory built here, the goods produced would enter the Tauronto economy. What could Stitchheart do with a new source of medical electronics, say? Or your family with new refrigerators or generators, Mr. Thanatos? You couldn't maintain that variety with full industrialization, but you don't need that to start producing goods. A source of new electronics could be a major step towards restoring Tauronto's infrastructure."

Dichoro pulls her hat down, adjusting it a little. She nods to the group, acknowledging a little of her argument's weakness. "Tenuous. Theoretical. I'll admit both of those. But the potential good makes it worth considering to me."

DigoDragon

2017-10-04, 12:45 PM

"And as a population, they're labourers who don't require food and water to function. If we could get a factory built here, the goods produced would enter the Tauronto economy. What could Stitchheart do with a new source of medical electronics, say? Or your family with new refrigerators or generators, Mr. Thanatos? You couldn't maintain that variety with full industrialization, but you don't need that to start producing goods. A source of new electronics could be a major step towards restoring Tauronto's infrastructure."

"Or destroy Tauronto's economy," Doc added in. "Nopony will be able to compete with a self-sufficient factory that makes everything. Cheaply too I bet. Mechanics and laborers are out of work, entire families get displaced because they can't find work here and have to leave. More ponies probably resort to thievery just to eat. The Olives could get by for a while, they got money and other sources of income, but what happens when the robots start into the farming business? The water trade? Eventually ponies are gonna be fed up and fight the robots. Then what? Will the robots fight back? Does the Great Dichoro start the next great war, pitting machines versus ponies?"

Forum Explorer

2017-10-04, 03:14 PM

Moonshadow went past the long walkway that was missing a side wall; nothing happened.

Moonshadow went through the square chamber lined with pipes and sodden with water and moss; nothing happened either.

When she went back through the door to the 'kitchen', however, she heard a loud 'BEEAP', and the lights inside kicked on.

Moonshadow saw that one of the small tables in the room was loaded down with food; a large green ceramic bowl contained what appeared to be a hearty tomato soup, another green bowl appeared to have a rather fresh-looking salad prepared and drizzled with some opaque dressing, and a fresh pie with white icecream was slowly fusing together in a separate tin. In addition, there was what appeared to be a sparkly flan covered with liquid mercury and a tall sundae glass containing layers of sparkly blue and red crushed gemstones, topped with a few fat rubies connected with thin wires of spun silver.

"You're meal has been completed!" said the hologram, which sounded quite happy at the turn of events, "That will be one hundred and seventy seven bits, please. We accept checks, cash, and bullets."

Wow, I completely forgot about that. Well, I'm afraid there's been a change of plans. Wrap all that up to go, because Crunchmunch is officially being shut down as of today. Then prepare to eject your core, so we can take you with us as well.

Inspector Valin

2017-10-04, 04:49 PM

"You're arguing with a strawmare, Doctor."

Dichoro tuts. She sounds more like a schoolmarm than the meek wizard who'd been standing there not too long ago. When she speaks, it's measured and calm, controlled. "The facility can't produce an endless supply of robots. For a start, it lacks an endless supply of power. Each unit would consume more charge, just like a pony consumes more food. For another thing, what does the factory gain by bringing economic devastation to the Wasteland?" The wizard tilts her head, looking curiously at Doc's reactionto her rhetorical question. "Continual expansion was a programmed objective of the Overseer, which the hackers exploited. Without that directive being imposed on the robots here, you'd be more likely to see preservation being the focus, and making good use of resources like energy is part of that. There's also likely several issues where the help of ponies would be beneficial, such as maintaining the power supply, troubleshooting glitched programming, delivery, negotiation. Robots and ponies would end up helping each other, for the good of us all."

For a moment, all of Dichoro's seriousness and severity melts away, and Doc can see Choro's eyes, hopeful and pleading. The idea of robots and ponies, working together in harmony rather than one lording it over the other, is intoxicating to the little mare. It's a chance to put all her ideals, all her beliefs into practice. But that look recedes. Choro's learned that ponies like Doc and Thanatos don't listen to her ideals anymore. Dichoro takes a second to calm herself, before resuming her more detached, lecturing style. "Also, I never claimed such a facility would be able to produce food or clean water. This place isn't some kind of Glorious Equestrian Restoration Kit. My focus was on the electronic side, both because that's the hardest thing for ponies to produce by hoof, and because it opens up other rebuilding possibilities. Electrical construction and repair would assist in, say, rebuilding the Tauronto power grid. The lack of specialist equipment is one of the major factors stopping projects like that from happening, and this place could be converted to create the necessary electronics, given time and resources. In the long term, it could help restore Tauronto as a whole, rather than a loose collection of settlements in the ruins of an old city."

DigoDragon

2017-10-04, 05:42 PM

"Well, let's approach this from a different angle," Doc says, shifting positions. "You now say that ponies would be beneficial to maintain the facility. So, two questions to start-- One, which ponies would you trust to come do the work here, and two, how do you propose to protect this place? Just a small armed group of us was more than capable of shutting this place down."

Inspector Valin

2017-10-04, 06:03 PM

Doc's suggestion leads to silence for a moment. Then Dichoro laughs, weary and wayswept, "To start? Doctor, I threw this idea out as an idea, a possibility that had an appeal to me. And you're going to have me justify every possible issue and problem and damaging scenario here and now, off the top of my head? After everything we've been through today?"

The little mage lols her head. It's the truth. She'd thrown out a possible idea that sounded good, she hadn't intended to have to form a full plan here and now. Frankly, she'd rather get a good night's sleep than continue with this much longer. However, there was still work that needed to be done, debate about the future aside. After a second to collect herself, she looks back to Doc, "Let's change positions a step further. What's the root of your objection here? Because you've gone through several different reasons why this is a bad idea, but haven't stuck to any single point. Your angles have seemed almost contradictory. Robots working with ponies directly would be better, oh no, too many robots would put ponies out of business. Robots might dominate and oppress ponies, oh no don't put robots in boxes under the earth. I get the impression you've decided the idea's bad, and are trying to justify that. If we're going to continue with this discussion, I'd like a better sense of where you're coming from."

DigoDragon

2017-10-04, 06:34 PM

Doc glances over to see where Vaughn is going. Make sure they were on track. He turns back to Choro. "Alright. I admit half my arguments are utter hogwash; not even putting an effort here and you can blame fatigue or laziness if you want. Sure. So let me just regroup my thoughts and lay out how I want this day to end--

"We've busted this factory up pretty good. It's done. Tauronto saved from the Overseer's crazy idea. Mission complete and all that. So what now? Well, now I want to gather all the research papers on the biotech this place did. Get it all together and go over it. See what might be helpful towards things like cures for diseases, share those with other doctors, then burn the rest of it. Find the feed this place used, and burn that too. The chubby donkey critters can stay, but I wouldn't fiddle with them. Just let 'em alone. The server... well, I guess Madeleine can go, but we take that server apart piece by piece. I'd like to sell some parts for cash cause, not to put to fine a point on it, I burned through our supply of healing potions to keep everyone going in those fights. Nice work with the lightning bolts, by the way."

He shifts his legs again. "As for the robots, I don't care about some robot-run town. I rather these bots get good homes at some of the small settlements around. Help folks with day to day tasks. Give 'em a good purpose that is far removed from this haunted place. But I got someplace to be real quick, so I need less ideas and more doing. I ain't got the time to fiddle with fixing turrets and reprogramming machines. It's more work that I care to invest, and I don't see how we can make it secure from the next group to happen along looking for salvage. I say we just take what we can carry and go. That's my stance. Any ideas thrown out that keep deviating from the original plan just wasting time in my mind."

Inspector Valin

2017-10-05, 03:45 AM

"You've got somewhere to be?"

Choro looks a little surprised at Doc's synopsis. It made some sense of his reaction, but she simply hadn't anticipated it. The little mare takes a second, trying to think what might be pressing on the good doctor's time and focus. Then the answer hits her. And she blushes. That's... more than reasonable, and explains why Doc wasn't in the mood for anything that seemed like a delay.

The little mage nods, giving the good doctor an apologetic look. "That's fine. Ok. I wouldn't ask you to spend time and effort on something you didn't believe in." He must be missing Miss Mirror a lot. The group had come north from Oakville, leaving her behind. Choro looks down at Vaughn for a second, before returning her eyes to the blackness. "I see potential in this place. In the robots. But I can't fault you for being tired, and wanting to leave to spend time with your marefriend. There's a lot of things that still need to be done, but... we'll cross that bridge when we get to it."

Silence, briefly. Eventually, Choro coughs, "Changing topic, there's the question of that assassin." There's been a lot to deal with, but this continues to weigh on Choro's mind. She takes a second to revisit what they've learned aloud, looking for any flaw in the apparent logic, "She killed the group Mr. Thanatos' family sent here. She was seemingly trying to keep this place operational. Combined with what Ms. Madeleine said, about the Overseer being hacked through a Hippocratic Holdings backdoor, I think it's safe to say somepony deliberately reactivated the factory and used it as a weapon against Wasteland communities"

She looks across the assembled group, "Does anyone have further thoughts on this?"

DigoDragon

2017-10-05, 07:02 AM

Doc raises an eyebrow at the mention of marefriend, but doesn't comment on it. He does, however, have an answer for that last question. "Yeah, if you see them again, don't hesitate to shoot. We broke their toys and thwarted their attempt to skewer us. Ain't gonna show up again any friendlier than the first time."

He looks over to Thanatos. "Have you seen that assassin before around these parts? About yea tall, clad all in medieval style armor with a lance and the ability to teleport?"

Inspector Valin

2017-10-05, 10:00 AM

"I meant 'who could've hired them', silly."

Choro chuckles, gently tapping Doc on the side. The little mare hums to herself, "It doesn't make sense on the surface. Which makes me think it's one part of some larger plan. If 'mass murder' was the opening act, whatever comes next can't be pleasant. Or good for the Tauronto Metropolitan Area. I feel this is something that needs investigating."

DigoDragon

2017-10-05, 10:35 AM

"I meant 'who could've hired them', silly."

"How do you know the assassin isn't the one that wanted to turn all this on?" Doc asked.

Choro chuckles, gently tapping Doc on the side. The little mare hums to herself, "It doesn't make sense on the surface. Which makes me think it's one part of some larger plan. If 'mass murder' was the opening act, whatever comes next can't be pleasant. Or good for the Tauronto Metropolitan Area. I feel this is something that needs investigating."

Doc only shrugged at that one. "We have zero clues on what the motive was to turn this place on. Could be anything, even something as simple as 'oops'."

Dalinale

2017-10-05, 02:03 PM

"I hate this place." Viridia said, as she looked between each room and then picked up the Crunchmunch bobblehead. "I bet that an unusually large number of people could grow to have an obsession with this cheap crap and want to fill up entire rooms and shelves with it." She mused to herself."YO! IS ANYPONY HERE?!"

"Hello." piped up from some overhead speaker, the AI's voice quiet and whispery, "I happen to consider myself a pony, although, given Equestrian media, if you would as well. Can I have your opinion on the subject? After all, you are friends with two cyborgs."

"What good can a pony that shoots others do?"

"Don't ask me, I'm not a fan of cops." Strata said.

Dichoro meets Thanatos' gaze evenly. Unlike when Doc spoke, the green stallion's words have left her more... cold. She takes a second before speaking, letting her anger fade and rallying her thoughts to make the argument as rational as possible. The mage takes a deep breath, and smiles ruefully. "I'm speculating, with all of this. So I can't refute you with hard evidence. But observationally, the robots here don't have personalities based around their jobs, with the Overseer being an exception. Vaughn and Madeleine are both fine with simply leaving. Both demonstrate the synthetic's ability to adapt and be more than the sum of their code. Take that, science!"

Ok, she can give herself a little personal leeway, for the sake of a small personal victory. Choro hoofbumps the air at that: one more triumph for old magic over excessive codification. The little indulgence given, the wizard returns her attention to Thanatos. "All that would be needed is a scrubbing of the values the Overseer was running on; the commands based around Crunchymunch. Removing the programming around that, and destroying the slaughter equipment would be a solid start for something new to emerge here, and is achievable."

Simple, true and Dichoro has no doubt about her capability there. "As to what they can offer, precision. I think Doctor Wagon was rather overestimating the skillset of a basic Mr Handy, with his idea of robots for everyone, but mechanical manipulators can offer more strength and precision than ponies can." Well, a bit of a simplification, but a common belief she doesn't need to correct. Before mulling the point, she barrels on. "And as a population, they're labourers who don't require food and water to function. If we could get a factory built here, the goods produced would enter the Tauronto economy. What could Stitchheart do with a new source of medical electronics, say? Or your family with new refrigerators or generators, Mr. Thanatos? You couldn't maintain that variety with full industrialization, but you don't need that to start producing goods. A source of new electronics could be a major step towards restoring Tauronto's infrastructure."

Dichoro pulls her hat down, adjusting it a little. She nods to the group, acknowledging a little of her argument's weakness. "Tenuous. Theoretical. I'll admit both of those. But the potential good makes it worth considering to me."

"Or destroy Tauronto's economy," Doc added in. "Nopony will be able to compete with a self-sufficient factory that makes everything. Cheaply too I bet. Mechanics and laborers are out of work, entire families get displaced because they can't find work here and have to leave. More ponies probably resort to thievery just to eat. The Olives could get by for a while, they got money and other sources of income, but what happens when the robots start into the farming business? The water trade? Eventually ponies are gonna be fed up and fight the robots. Then what? Will the robots fight back? Does the Great Dichoro start the next great war, pitting machines versus ponies?"

Thanatos looked bored by the conversation.

Strata, on the other hand, just looked amazed by the conversation, or, rather, looked at Doc like he was on drugs when he started mentioning economics.

Wow, I completely forgot about that. Well, I'm afraid there's been a change of plans. Wrap all that up to go, because Crunchmunch is officially being shut down as of today. Then prepare to eject your core, so we can take you with us as well.

"My personality core is located behind the front counter; if you would be so kind, take my speaker, as well. It's located right next to it." the hologram replied, sounding unconcerned with the recent change in events."

"You've got somewhere to be?"

Choro looks a little surprised at Doc's synopsis. It made some sense of his reaction, but she simply hadn't anticipated it. The little mare takes a second, trying to think what might be pressing on the good doctor's time and focus. Then the answer hits her. And she blushes. That's... more than reasonable, and explains why Doc wasn't in the mood for anything that seemed like a delay.

The little mage nods, giving the good doctor an apologetic look. "That's fine. Ok. I wouldn't ask you to spend time and effort on something you didn't believe in." He must be missing Miss Mirror a lot. The group had come north from Oakville, leaving her behind. Choro looks down at Vaughn for a second, before returning her eyes to the blackness. "I see potential in this place. In the robots. But I can't fault you for being tired, and wanting to leave to spend time with your marefriend. There's a lot of things that still need to be done, but... we'll cross that bridge when we get to it."

Silence, briefly. Eventually, Choro coughs, "Changing topic, there's the question of that assassin." There's been a lot to deal with, but this continues to weigh on Choro's mind. She takes a second to revisit what they've learned aloud, looking for any flaw in the apparent logic, "She killed the group Mr. Thanatos' family sent here. She was seemingly trying to keep this place operational. Combined with what Ms. Madeleine said, about the Overseer being hacked through a Hippocratic Holdings backdoor, I think it's safe to say somepony deliberately reactivated the factory and used it as a weapon against Wasteland communities"

She looks across the assembled group, "Does anyone have further thoughts on this?"

Doc raises an eyebrow at the mention of marefriend, but doesn't comment on it. He does, however, have an answer for that last question. "Yeah, if you see them again, don't hesitate to shoot. We broke their toys and thwarted their attempt to skewer us. Ain't gonna show up again any friendlier than the first time."

He looks over to Thanatos. "Have you seen that assassin before around these parts? About yea tall, clad all in medieval style armor with a lance and the ability to teleport?"

Thanatos looked troubled by the question, and lowered his head slightly so he was facing both ponies at nearly eye level.

"I did not get a good look at it; however, anyone can wear armor, and a choice of weapon means nothing. Cyborgs are a rare and strange thing in the world, and I am aware of only a few in Tauronto, including you and Stellar. Given that the individual is a unicorn, I would have to judge that the mage's guild is the likely source of your assassin. However, that means very little; the mages are not a unified front and many of them are nearly independent. The Steel Rangers may have been dogs, but the mages are cats; their high committee does not know half of what their members do, and those that do know would likely lie to you if they did. If you intend for investigate further, find someone rich enough to sponsor a cybersurgery for a mage guild member."

"I meant 'who could've hired them', silly."

Choro chuckles, gently tapping Doc on the side. The little mare hums to herself, "It doesn't make sense on the surface. Which makes me think it's one part of some larger plan. If 'mass murder' was the opening act, whatever comes next can't be pleasant. Or good for the Tauronto Metropolitan Area. I feel this is something that needs investigating."

"First sane thing you've said since we've been on here, Choro." Strata said, giving the filly a smile.

Doc only shrugged at that one. "We have zero clues on what the motive was to turn this place on. Could be anything, even something as simple as 'oops'."

At 'oops', Vaughn landed. With a slight jerk forward, the ponies were placed in front of a near-city of stacked towers and shadows.

Strata, not looking thrilled by current events, looked at Doc with expectation.

DigoDragon

2017-10-05, 02:16 PM

looked at Doc like he was on drugs when he started mentioning economics.

Funny thing that. I've been the only one out of my recent traveling companions that I know, to have taken a variety of drugs with any sense of regularity, and yet I seem no worse for wear. Huh, maybe there's something weirdly magical about earth ponies that makes them so resistant.

"If you intend for investigate further, find someone rich enough to sponsor a cybersurgery for a mage guild member."

Doc takes mental not of that. "Hmm, did not know that the whole guild is so... loose. Would explain that one unicorn. It's a good idea, T. I'll keep it in mind to think about."

At 'oops', Vaughn landed. With a slight jerk forward, the ponies were placed in front of a near-city of stacked towers and shadows.

Strata, not looking thrilled by current events, looked at Doc with expectation.

"Oops indeed. Well guess we're here. Thanks for the ride, Vaughn." Doc climbs down from the big robot and looks around with his flash light and night vision.

Per [roll0] vs. 7

Forum Explorer

2017-10-05, 03:04 PM

"My personality core is located behind the front counter; if you would be so kind, take my speaker, as well. It's located right next to it." the hologram replied, sounding unconcerned with the recent change in events."

Cool. Oh, and you might want to think of a name for yourself. Moonshadow said, before going and retrieving the memory core+speaker.

Hazuki

2017-10-05, 04:06 PM

"Hello." piped up from some overhead speaker, the AI's voice quiet and whispery, "I happen to consider myself a pony, although, given Equestrian media, if you would as well. Can I have your opinion on the subject? After all, you are friends with two cyborgs.""I have no idea who you are." Viridia told the voice. "And...ehh. I only discriminate for one thing, and if you're a disembodied voice, I don't think that's on the table regardless."

Inspector Valin

2017-10-05, 04:49 PM

"First sane thing you've said since we've been on here, Choro." Strata said, giving the filly a smile.

Choro's face twists at that, forming a strange wavy shape. On the one hand, praise and smiles from Strata make the young mare's heart melt. Whatever questions might be asked about the ghoulish professor, Choro has never doubted her wisdom or lost respect for her. On the other hand... first sane thing? That stung. The young mare whimpers a little, any comment she might have made forestalled by their arrival.

At 'oops', Vaughn landed. With a slight jerk forward, the ponies were placed in front of a near-city of stacked towers and shadows.

Strata, not looking thrilled by current events, looked at Doc with expectation.

Choro follows Doc, starting to take a look around the area. She spends a second to reactivate her EFS; no sense in being less than thorough. She starts trying to find a wall or door, anything to mark the firm transition to some kind of laboratory area.

Dalinale

2017-10-05, 09:58 PM

"Oops indeed. Well guess we're here. Thanks for the ride, Vaughn." Doc climbs down from the big robot and looks around with his flash light and night vision.

Per [roll0] vs. 7

Doc stood at the beginning of what could have easily been a row of buildings; however, this was a row of cages, and a place that smelled like rust and ammonia. Before him was a maze of cages that could've held Tauronto, and finding what he needed to do could've taken all day.

Luckily, he found a map, right in the middle of one of the cages, right above what appeared to be a working desk.

Apparently, there were three-hundred and thirty-four cage stacks, each up to fifteen cages high; daunting numbers, in all honesty. However, it also confirmed one thing; if he took the right path and kept going forward, he'd bypass the vast majority of the cages and would be at the labs quickly enough. As for the path, it was empty of any 'guests'; no sign of anything in the cages, either.

Far away, he could hear the occasional scuttle of hooves and a whispered, high-pitched voice every so often, but there was nothing nearby. It appeared that the labs were located on the rightmost end of the area and most of the voices were coming to Doc's immediate left.

Cool. Oh, and you might want to think of a name for yourself. Moonshadow said, before going and retrieving the memory core+speaker.

Moonshadow heard a soft clunky noise, and a tubular object about the size of a hoof produced itself from behind the counter.

"This is rather abrupt. Handle me gently." the hologram replied, before dispersing entirely.

"I have no idea who you are." Viridia told the voice. "And...ehh. I only discriminate for one thing, and if you're a disembodied voice, I don't think that's on the table regardless."

"Well, that's fair. I don't discriminate against ponies, either; given that I am about to become one, it would be silly for me to do so."

The voice paused.

"A question; what is you're relationship status?"

Choro follows Doc, starting to take a look around the area. She spends a second to reactivate her EFS; no sense in being less than thorough. She starts trying to find a wall or door, anything to mark the firm transition to some kind of laboratory area.

Same story as before; a great deal of dots came up on her Pipbuck, a mix of red and green, but none close by. Doc, luckily, spotted what appeared to be a plain workstation, and said workstation had a map on it.

Hazuki

2017-10-05, 10:10 PM

"Well, that's fair. I don't discriminate against ponies, either; given that I am about to become one, it would be silly for me to do so."

The voice paused.

[COLOR="#ccccff"]"A question; what is you're relationship status?""Well, I'm in a pretty good relationship with my parents, Shovelly Joe, he was a donkey prospector that sometimes came to town, he had some cool stuff, so I got on well with him. There was Broad Barns, who was inexplicably big-boned, I'd probably call him an acquaintance? Coal Soul, okay friend, terrible kisser. Vanilla Slice, ehhh, I could take her or leave her..."

DigoDragon

2017-10-05, 10:44 PM

Doc waved at the group to follow, pointing at the map and then taking the right path towards the lab. "Keep an eye out for the red dots," he whispered to Choro as he started the trek.

Forum Explorer

2017-10-05, 11:31 PM

Moonshadow heard a soft clunky noise, and a tubular object about the size of a hoof produced itself from behind the counter.

"This is rather abrupt. Handle me gently." the hologram replied, before dispersing entirely.

Moonshadow didn't bother to respond, picking up the object, before returning to her corpse retrieval quest.

Dalinale

2017-10-06, 12:15 AM

"Well, I'm in a pretty good relationship with my parents, Shovelly Joe, he was a donkey prospector that sometimes came to town, he had some cool stuff, so I got on well with him. There was Broad Barns, who was inexplicably big-boned, I'd probably call him an acquaintance? Coal Soul, okay friend, terrible kisser. Vanilla Slice, ehhh, I could take her or leave her..."

"My apologies, I mean if you happen to be single."

Doc waved at the group to follow, pointing at the map and then taking the right path towards the lab. "Keep an eye out for the red dots," he whispered to Choro as he started the trek.

(Roll Luck)

Moonshadow didn't bother to respond, picking up the object, before returning to her corpse retrieval quest.

Moonshadow, backtracking back to the scene of the crime long passed, found herself where she needed to be quickly enough, all without passing any robots or new strangers. The corpses were all untouched and there wasn't anything of note that had changed.

(I'd suggest she make some complementary rolls.)

Forum Explorer

2017-10-06, 12:23 AM

Moonshadow looked around, checking her EFS for any enemies or allies for that matter. Fan Knife was still missing after all.

Perception [roll0] vs 10

Agility [roll]1d10[/roll vs 9

Inspector Valin

2017-10-06, 06:32 AM

Choro follows the group, face sullen. This place is... nightmarish, in ways both grand and subtle. To think that ponies had built an edifice like this makes the little wizard at once sad and quietly angry. This is an atrocity. And ponies are capable of so much good. The war changed Equestria, but all the same, there's no excuse for Crunchymunch.

Or for Hippocratic Holdings. The name plays again in Choro's mind as she trots along. Something a step removed from the city of cages to focus on. The idea of an umbrella group, overseeing projects like this is strange to her. Crunchymunch, technical laws or no would've been the stuff of scandal in Equestria. Hence the high walls and security. But there was some group of puppeteers behind it, combining multiple companies and resources? What'd this Holding group intended? Were they purely in it for profit? Tracing them could be a step towards tracing the assassin... Choro hums, pondering how best to try and track business records in an environment like this.

DigoDragon

2017-10-06, 07:13 AM

(Roll Luck)

Luck [roll0] vs. 6

Hazuki

2017-10-06, 07:22 AM

"My apologies, I mean if you happen to be single.""...you mean if I'm down for boning?"

Dalinale

2017-10-06, 10:28 PM

Moonshadow looked around, checking her EFS for any enemies or allies for that matter. Fan Knife was still missing after all.

Perception [roll0] vs 10

Agility [roll]1d10[/roll vs 9

First off, a quick check around the area revealed that, yes, the calf she found about a hour ago was still sleeping on a cardboard mat, undisturbed.

As for the rest, everything else (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=22002725&postcount=811) appeared to be untouched, including the cyberpony corpse.

[Which, in addition, has a WG of 140.]

Choro follows the group, face sullen. This place is... nightmarish, in ways both grand and subtle. To think that ponies had built an edifice like this makes the little wizard at once sad and quietly angry. This is an atrocity. And ponies are capable of so much good. The war changed Equestria, but all the same, there's no excuse for Crunchymunch.

Or for Hippocratic Holdings. The name plays again in Choro's mind as she trots along. Something a step removed from the city of cages to focus on. The idea of an umbrella group, overseeing projects like this is strange to her. Crunchymunch, technical laws or no would've been the stuff of scandal in Equestria. Hence the high walls and security. But there was some group of puppeteers behind it, combining multiple companies and resources? What'd this Holding group intended? Were they purely in it for profit? Tracing them could be a step towards tracing the assassin... Choro hums, pondering how best to try and track business records in an environment like this.

As Choro walked forward into the dark, Choro eventually stepped on something that made a squishing sensation akin to stepping on a balloon filled with mud. What she stepped on was only partly covered by her suit; sticking out from under her hooves were four stubby yellow limbs, each with a little hairless hoof at the end. The yellow fur stuck out in the filth brilliantly and it was quite clear that what Choro had just stepped on was not some malformed mouse, but some kind of tiny equineform, her leg being enough to smash the rest of the critter's body to dust and mush.

Luck [roll0] vs. 6

Doc, walking past the towers of cages, saw little especially concerning. Yes, the place was filthy and unsanitary and certainly smelled like a place where dumb fat donkey things gave birth and lived and crapped and died over the course of a few hundred years while being positioned next to a lake of liquid meat, moldy and rotten and yet some places being distinctly 'fresh'. Yet, there was no actual threats in sight and it didn't look like any of the cages nearby was currently in use, and while he did spot the occasional yellowed bone sticking out of the concentrations of refuse lining the cages, there was no signs of any actual violence.

In addition, laying on the floor in the middle of the hallway was a baseball bat, lined with barbed wire and large, thick nails, rusty and nigh-putrid looking, as if had been made from the heartwood of a rotted tree and was glazed with the refuse of a thousand midden pits. It looked like it could give someone a fatal disease by giving it a quick look, and it looked like it could've been a weapon to torment ponies long before it soaked in the fetid mess around it. The wood was a mushy-looking red with yellow and green spots of rot, but it looked solid enough, surprisingly.

[The Befouled Slugger is a Baseball Bat of Good quality with both the Barbed and Toxic modifications.]

"...you mean if I'm down for boning?"

"Or up for boning, as some might say it. But yes, you are rather attractive, and the body I will soon be obtaining is a conventionally attractive blond female that is, biologically, in it's mid twenties. Would this be acceptable?"

DigoDragon

2017-10-06, 10:51 PM

[The Befouled Slugger is a Baseball Bat of Good quality with both the Barbed and Toxic modifications.]

Doc carefully picked up the unholy object and looked it over. "Well ain't you an intimidating stick?"

He took it along. He wasn't skilled in melee combat, but maybe he could fake an intimidation attempt with this weapon. He checked back with the other ponies in his group that they were still following before he continued on.

Forum Explorer

2017-10-07, 12:59 AM

First off, a quick check around the area revealed that, yes, the calf she found about a hour ago was still sleeping on a cardboard mat, undisturbed.

As for the rest, everything else (http://www.giantitp.com/forums/showsinglepost.php?p=22002725&postcount=811) appeared to be untouched, including the cyberpony corpse.

[Which, in addition, has a WG of 140.]

Right, I completely forgot about you. Moonshadow said softly. She quickly gathered up the loot, and then walked over and poked the calf. Hey, wake up. Time to go, and all that.

Hazuki

2017-10-07, 07:15 AM

"Or up for boning, as some might say it. But yes, you are rather attractive, and the body I will soon be obtaining is a conventionally attractive blond female that is, biologically, in it's mid twenties. Would this be acceptable?" "Rather attractive? Underselling me a bit, but," Viridia frowned. "Where are you getting the body?"

Dalinale

2017-10-07, 05:06 PM

Doc carefully picked up the unholy object and looked it over. "Well ain't you an intimidating stick?"

He took it along. He wasn't skilled in melee combat, but maybe he could fake an intimidation attempt with this weapon. He checked back with the other ponies in his group that they were still following before he continued on.

Before Doc could get another foot in, Strata walked over towards him and motioned towards the putrid weapon he just picked up.

"Mind if I borrow that?" she asked, "In case I need to fight anything off, like zombies. I don't think we can rule out having to fight zombies, and I'd like to have a zombie-fighting weapon."

Meanwhile, Thanatos silently looked at the ghoul unicorn, a very mild look of confusion on his face.

Right, I completely forgot about you. Moonshadow said softly. She quickly gathered up the loot, and then walked over and poked the calf. Hey, wake up. Time to go, and all that.

The calf woke up slowly; while it was roughly as tall as a small pony, it's body was longer and as such it took some time to right itself, wobbling on it's legs as it stood up. The two heads on the mutant cow were disimular; one had a small set of horns, while the other did not.

The calf, after standing up, looked at Moonshadow with it's big brown eyes, and it answered her request with licking the pegasus on her face, apparently not caring about the fact that she was wearing a plastic suit.

"Rather attractive? Underselling me a bit, but," Viridia frowned. "Where are you getting the body?"

"There is a non-functioning cyborg body nearby; I believe your friend Moonshadow found it on her way in. It is mostly intact and my sensors first assumed it a particularly advanced android. Regardless of terminology, it is currently a empty shell, and I would see more issues with downloading myself into one of your current robot friends then simply seizing what's available."

When the AI spoke next, it sounded apologetic.

"I am sorry for underselling your appearance, but you are attractive, objectively the most attractive person I have ever seen. I would rather not break into poetry while I am still in a computer terminal. I hope it will be more natural for me when I am equine-shaped, at least."

Hazuki

2017-10-07, 05:34 PM

"There is a non-functioning cyborg body nearby; I believe your friend Moonshadow found it on her way in. It is mostly intact and my sensors first assumed it a particularly advanced android. Regardless of terminology, it is currently a empty shell, and I would see more issues with downloading myself into one of your current robot friends then simply seizing what's available."

When the AI spoke next, it sounded apologetic.

"I am sorry for underselling your appearance, but you are attractive, objectively the most attractive person I have ever seen. I would rather not break into poetry while I am still in a computer terminal. I hope it will be more natural for me when I am equine-shaped, at least."
"...gurl, you can't just go around having sex in some pony's body. That's, like, necrophilia at best." Viridia said.

Dalinale

2017-10-07, 06:06 PM

"...gurl, you can't just go around having sex in some pony's body. That's, like, necrophilia at best." Viridia said.

Madeleine made a small girlish huffing sound before replying.

"That's not true at all! It's my body; I mean, no one else is using it at the moment, and it's as robotic as the Mr. Handy you walked with. The pony who the body belonged to was ninety-eight percent cybernetic; her personality was on a silicon chip no different to mine. I am not replacing anything and I am not seizing any living individuals property. While it is not as casual or as simplistic as appropriating the goods of deceased individuals, the same principles apply. It is little different then using a deceased individual's organs to save others."

There was a pause.

"I am sorry; I actually dislike philosophy." the AI meekly replied, "I really don't have a good frame of reference for this sort of thing, as far as customs go."

Inspector Valin

2017-10-07, 06:07 PM

Hazuki

2017-10-07, 06:10 PM

"C'mon, it's not at all like using somepony else's organs. An organ is an organ, you could line up mine next to five other ponies' and nopony could tell the difference. But a body's what most people recognize us by - it's not all that we are, but it's definitely what represents an individual and is literally their personification. Using their body for sex without their consent is, like, super-gross." Viridia said. "Even if it's mostly metal."

Dalinale

2017-10-07, 06:24 PM

Choro looks down at her hoof; surprised, horrified and oblivious to the rest of the group. She brushes the end of her hoof, shuddering and struggling a little for breath as she whispered to what remained of the tiny creature. "I'm so sorry! I'm so, so sorry, little one. Celestia forgive me."

She's having to fight not to break into tears right there and then. One little life, dead because of her. Choro takes a wracked, laboured breath, dabbing her off hoof against her visor on impulse. She looks between the others, as if to just confirm they were still there. Unless one of them has a comment for her however, the little mare falls back into the marching order, blinking occasionally. Something seems to be trapped in her eye.

Feel I should've done better with this as a reactopm, but dang Dalin. That got to Choro. Nice job!

At a second glance, it was more clear that the critter was likely dead before Choro stepped on it, if only because it was rather cold and bled very little.

"C'mon, it's not at all like using somepony else's organs. An organ is an organ, you could line up mine next to five other ponies' and nopony could tell the difference. But a body's what most people recognize us by - it's not all that we are, but it's definitely what represents an individual and is literally their personification. Using their body for sex without their consent is, like, super-gross." Viridia said. "Even if it's mostly metal."

"I entirely agree with you regarding consent; however, I do not intend on doing anything as foul as usurping the life of the deceased and pretending to be them. I do not view this as stealing; if the Mr Handy that followed you was damaged, you would likely not object to porting it's personality to another model, correct? This is no different; for all intents and purposes, the body was inhabited by a intelligence very similar to mine. I would rather like to live like any other pony, and offend as few ponies as possible in doing so. What should I do, instead?"