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  1. - Top - End - #1351
    Colossus in the Playground
     
    Thanqol's Avatar

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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    Voices on a badly tuned radio. Echoes of souls long dead.

    "... a little get together in the west castle courtyard, want to come?"
    "... the fastest way to lose a friend ..."
    " Hellloooooo Chiiiildreeen!"
    " … templates were flawed, and lacked a certain … unity."


    They churn out there in the Maelstrom - too numerous and quick to catch more than a fleeting taste of their content.

    As you cast your mind out to the wilds. What rewards are you looking for?

    Is it Wisdom? Guidance? Some treasure of the past? Knowledge? All could be out here.

    What are you tuning your mind to as you filter out the dross? Or are you just receiving? Hoping to chance that what you need may find you?
    Well, if he's going to recreate a town of the Old World he needs a place to start. If Luminark is looking for anything it's that - a place where he can take his newly reconstituted... population and have them peacefully settle.

  2. - Top - End - #1352
    Ettin in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by Thanqol View Post
    Well, if he's going to recreate a town of the Old World he needs a place to start. If Luminark is looking for anything it's that - a place where he can take his newly reconstituted... population and have them peacefully settle.
    As you navigate the maelstrom, the voices continue - screams, yells and oaths as the echoes of two hundred years of ponies fighting ponies reverberate around your skull. They serve as a stark reminder of what the Wasteland offers your new settlement - intolerance, hatred, pettiness. The things that drive ponies to kill one another over scraps of food, or to bomb a tea party.

    But perhaps, a place for the settlement to begin is not in the material world.

    The roiling maelstrom parts into an oasis of blue and green. A town, peaceful and secluded sits amongst rolling hills and farmland. Thatched houses, one or two stories high, fan out along a meandering river with a large, domed, civic hall at their centre.

    Tell me, Luminark, would you recognise Ponyville if you saw it?

  3. - Top - End - #1353
    Firbolg in the Playground
     
    Balmas's Avatar

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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    "Good good." replies Halftooth, oblivious to this pony concept you call sarcasm. "Biter in charge of slaves. He can give you slaves. And Small Fido in charge of equipment. Tell him I say give you what medicine you need."

    With that info, what do you do?
    See Fido, first off. Not being on death's door would be a nice first stop.

    I saunter up to him, and announce, "Halftooth says to outfit me with what I need for a trip into Canterlot." Let him figure that one out, if he can.
    I run a Let's Play channel! Check it out!
    Currently, we're playing through New Vegas as Gabriel de la Cruz, merchant and mercenary extraordinaire!

  4. - Top - End - #1354
    Titan in the Playground
     
    TheAmishPirate's Avatar

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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    Based on your observations, the weakest point for the prison appears to be above. The guard pegasi on the towers being too focused on their terrestrial kin to keep more than a cursory watch on the skies. While they'd spot ponies flying in the clear easily, one of the towers is positioned where it can't be seen by its neighbours. You could possibly sneak up on that tower from above, take out the guards, and get inside before the alarm was raised.

    *ca-click*

    Or not. The sound of a gun clicking provides your other avenue inside as you turn to see two pegasi drawing on you. It seems that your stakeout position was not as stealthy as you may have thought.

    "No sudden movements." says one of the guards. "Would hate to have to kill any more of your dirtsuckers today."

    You can always fight them, at a disadvantage, or let them take you prisoner. You'd be inside as genuine "guests", only without any of your weapons and equipment.

    What do you do?
    The Scrapscallion put his hooves up, looking from guard to gun to guard to bunker to gun. "Wha...? How did you..."

    His gaze settled on the Pegasus. "Oh-ohhhhhh. Alright. Okay. I see how it is. 'C'mon guys! I know a secret way into the spooky Pegasus fortress! Follow me!'" His hooves provided the necessary artistic flourishes. "What a load of bull. Oh, oh yeah? You wanna look at me like that?" He shot a glare to the Pegasus, crossing his forelegs like a pouting foal. "Yeah, go ahead. Laugh. Laugh at the dirtsucker dumb enough to trust a Pegasus. I hope you choke on a feather. Or whatever it is you people eat."

    And then, with face turned away from the Enclave, he shot her a sly wink.

    [Rolling to Manipulate the leader of these two guards to lower your guard and enjoy the show. Rolling: 6 + 6 + 1 = 13]
    Last edited by TheAmishPirate; 2019-06-09 at 03:16 PM.
    I'm developing a game. Let's see what happens! Complex.

  5. - Top - End - #1355
    Colossus in the Playground
     
    Thanqol's Avatar

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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    As you navigate the maelstrom, the voices continue - screams, yells and oaths as the echoes of two hundred years of ponies fighting ponies reverberate around your skull. They serve as a stark reminder of what the Wasteland offers your new settlement - intolerance, hatred, pettiness. The things that drive ponies to kill one another over scraps of food, or to bomb a tea party.

    But perhaps, a place for the settlement to begin is not in the material world.

    The roiling maelstrom parts into an oasis of blue and green. A town, peaceful and secluded sits amongst rolling hills and farmland. Thatched houses, one or two stories high, fan out along a meandering river with a large, domed, civic hall at their centre.

    Tell me, Luminark, would you recognise Ponyville if you saw it?
    Of course he would! The home of the Ministry Mares? There were photographs in the authorized biographies, in tour posters, in strategic maps of Equestria's defenses - Luminark had pored over photographs of the clean and bright land before the War with more interest than he had over the tomes of magic that he'd never be able to cast. He'd even seen it in person from a distance during one of his field missions - though he'd tried to forget that part.

    He trotted there briskly, eyes bright, ears perked.

  6. - Top - End - #1356
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    Elanorin's Avatar

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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    The Archmage shook her head as if to clear it. Then fuzzed out of vision like static on a monitor.

    She reappeared instantly on the left side of the chamber, turning to you as you.

    "Its see. Been disturbance my, some has. And fear may dire if rectified."

    "You Luminark?"

    She shook her head as if to clear it. Then fuzzed out of vision like static on a monitor.

    She reappeared in front of you, horn glowing.

    "Apologies, faithful. Temporal is my with timestream. will synchronisation."

    With a final burst of light, the Archmage reappeared on the other side of the roiling ball of magic.

    "That's better." she says, after a moment. "What is the danger? Are you okay?"

    What do you do?
    Milliway felt a cold shiver course through her like a wave from the back of her neck to the tip of her tail. Magic was so dangerous. She could feel the taste of iron in her mouth and her instinct here was to just do whatever it took to just shut whatever insanely world-ending thing Moondancer had just been doing down, lock it up and blow up the key.

    Then again... maybe... maybe now was a time when they had to be... Dangerous.

    "Archmage…" Milliway began, and her voice was unsteady, "Moondancer," now that The Magic was put away Milliway dared step a little closer for her new BFF. "The bunker has fallen. There's been a coup," the word felt insuffiecient for describing what had just happened, "so many factions making big lethal grabs for power, all right outside the door in the presence of representatives and forces from countless Outside communities. And Luminark… Luminark… is... h-he..." the lump in her throat ached and threatened to choke her.

    "In the middle of it all, as it kicked off... The Administrator... was assassinated." That may not have been exactly how it went down, in truth it had looked more like his death was by his own hoof but Milliway was wholly unable to consider Luminark committing suicide from being cornered in a position which she had been heavily responsible for putting him in. So 'assassinated' was what her mind desperately reached for, as it cowered away from that other word, and the vat of guilt that it lugged behind it. It was close enough. There had been mutiny, bombs and threats with Really Cool Weapons.

    "I've initiated lockdown protocol and instructed House to rouse all resources to defend the Library. The battle was outside when I left, but it cannot be long before it spreads inside. Anything you can do to help strengthen our defences... with... your Magic," Milliway forced herself to add, "I believe now is the time. I'm..." and she looked down on her Friendship Brace and let out a little breath as she realised what she had to do.

    "I'm going to call for help."
    Last edited by Elanorin; 2019-06-10 at 03:54 AM.
    "For love is no part of the dreamworld. Love belongs to Desire, and Desire is always cruel."
    ~ Neil Gaiman

    "Just because I'm sorry doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it at the time."
    ~ Snow Patrol



  7. - Top - End - #1357
    Ettin in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by Balmas View Post
    See Fido, first off. Not being on death's door would be a nice first stop.

    I saunter up to him, and announce, "Halftooth says to outfit me with what I need for a trip into Canterlot." Let him figure that one out, if he can.
    Small Fido glares at you in distaste, before turning to his stores. He returns two minutes later with a laser pistol (2-harm near/far), some old, smelly, bandages and a hock of meat that (hopefully) came from something non-sentient.

    "Field kit." he replies, before dumping this at your hooves.

    What do you do?

    Quote Originally Posted by TheAmishPirate View Post
    The Scrapscallion put his hooves up, looking from guard to gun to guard to bunker to gun. "Wha...? How did you..."

    His gaze settled on the Pegasus. "Oh-ohhhhhh. Alright. Okay. I see how it is. 'C'mon guys! I know a secret way into the spooky Pegasus fortress! Follow me!'" His hooves provided the necessary artistic flourishes. "What a load of bull. Oh, oh yeah? You wanna look at me like that?" He shot a glare to the Pegasus, crossing his forelegs like a pouting foal. "Yeah, go ahead. Laugh. Laugh at the dirtsucker dumb enough to trust a Pegasus. I hope you choke on a feather. Or whatever it is you people eat."

    And then, with face turned away from the Enclave, he shot her a sly wink.

    [Rolling to Manipulate the leader of these two guards to lower your guard and enjoy the show. Rolling: 6 + 6 + 1 = 13]
    "Uh … yeah?" replies the first guard.

    "Um, is she one of ours? Are you one of ours?" says the second guard, who shares a confused look with his partner.

    "What's the passcode?"

    They're still focused on you, but your antics have them both off balance. You notice that their guns are now only sort-of-pointed in the direction of your Pegasus companion, rather than trained on her.

    She glances at you, subtly grasping one of her laspistols in a pinion.

    What do you do?

    Quote Originally Posted by Thanqol View Post
    Of course he would! The home of the Ministry Mares? There were photographs in the authorized biographies, in tour posters, in strategic maps of Equestria's defenses - Luminark had pored over photographs of the clean and bright land before the War with more interest than he had over the tomes of magic that he'd never be able to cast. He'd even seen it in person from a distance during one of his field missions - though he'd tried to forget that part.

    He trotted there briskly, eyes bright, ears perked.
    The town is … perfect.

    There's not any other way to describe it. Every speck of paint, every drop of dew on the grass, every shop sign and house window is exactly as it should be. Even with your knowledge of the place, you're unable to find any fault with its depiction.

    The place is also deserted. As you wonder the buildings, you get the sense that nopony has ever lived here. The houses are empty, the tables and cupboards bare. It's only when you near the leafy branches of the Golden Oaks library that you find your first signs that somepony has ever been here.

    Scrolls.

    Thousands of them.

    Stacked high, and bound with golden seals. Where there would have been books, the entire library has been filled scrolls, on shelves spiralling their way to the top of the tree's inside - dimensions that seem to stretch the bounds of what the tree trunk should have fit. Every one of them identical from the outside.

    What do you do?

  8. - Top - End - #1358
    Colossus in the Playground
     
    Thanqol's Avatar

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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    The town is … perfect.

    There's not any other way to describe it. Every speck of paint, every drop of dew on the grass, every shop sign and house window is exactly as it should be. Even with your knowledge of the place, you're unable to find any fault with its depiction.

    The place is also deserted. As you wonder the buildings, you get the sense that nopony has ever lived here. The houses are empty, the tables and cupboards bare. It's only when you near the leafy branches of the Golden Oaks library that you find your first signs that somepony has ever been here.

    Scrolls.

    Thousands of them.

    Stacked high, and bound with golden seals. Where there would have been books, the entire library has been filled scrolls, on shelves spiralling their way to the top of the tree's inside - dimensions that seem to stretch the bounds of what the tree trunk should have fit. Every one of them identical from the outside.

    What do you do?
    Luminark froze up as soon as he went inside. This was a Library. Libraries were dangerous. The fact that the contents seemed to be weird just made him all the more hesitant - one does not blunder around in a Library. One does not play games in a Library. One does not speak in a Library.

    So he firstly looked for a Librarian, and if he didn't find one, went behind the counter to go about organizing himself a Library Card before he even deigned to touch and look into one of the scrolls.

  9. - Top - End - #1359
    Ettin in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by Elanorin View Post
    Milliway felt a cold shiver course through her like a wave from the back of her neck to the tip of her tail. Magic was so dangerous. She could feel the taste of iron in her mouth and her instinct here was to just do whatever it took to just shut whatever insanely world-ending thing Moondancer had just been doing down, lock it up and blow up the key.

    Then again... maybe... maybe now was a time when they had to be... Dangerous.

    "Archmage…" Milliway began, and her voice was unsteady, "Moondancer," now that The Magic was put away Milliway dared step a little closer for her new BFF. "The bunker has fallen. There's been a coup," the word felt insuffiecient for describing what had just happened, "so many factions making big lethal grabs for power, all right outside the door in the presence of representatives and forces from countless Outside communities. And Luminark… Luminark… is... h-he..." the lump in her throat ached and threatened to choke her.

    "In the middle of it all, as it kicked off... The Administrator... was assassinated." That may not have been exactly how it went down, in truth it had looked more like his death was by his own hoof but Milliway was wholly unable to consider Luminark committing suicide from being cornered in a position which she had been heavily responsible for putting him in. So 'assassinated' was what her mind desperately reached for, as it cowered away from that other word, and the vat of guilt that it lugged behind it. It was close enough. There had been mutiny, bombs and threats with Really Cool Weapons.

    "I've initiated lockdown protocol and instructed House to rouse all resources to defend the Library. The battle was outside when I left, but it cannot be long before it spreads inside. Anything you can do to help strengthen our defences... with... your Magic," Milliway forced herself to add, "I believe now is the time. I'm..." and she looked down on her Friendship Brace and let out a little breath as she realised what she had to do.

    "I'm going to call for help."
    "Luminark … assassinated?" replies the Archmage, shocked. She mutters to herself shaking her head, before glancing up at the megaspell besides her.

    "Yes, call for help. And then return quickly. With Luminark gone, I need to talk to you about this."

    With that said, she turns her attention back to the writhing nexus.

    What do you do now?

    Quote Originally Posted by Thanqol View Post
    Luminark froze up as soon as he went inside. This was a Library. Libraries were dangerous. The fact that the contents seemed to be weird just made him all the more hesitant - one does not blunder around in a Library. One does not play games in a Library. One does not speak in a Library.

    So he firstly looked for a Librarian, and if he didn't find one, went behind the counter to go about organizing himself a Library Card before he even deigned to touch and look into one of the scrolls.
    While you find lodgings higher up in the tree house, there is no sign of any librarian in residence.

    The place feels eerie, like you're being watched. But nopony seems to have ever lived in this place.

    The front counter yields some writing material and paper, but it doesn't look like it ever had a formal library card system. Likely the town was small enough that you could chase up overdue books by name. Nevertheless, you are able to scrawl a library card for yourself.

    Once finished, what do you do?

  10. - Top - End - #1360
    Colossus in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    While you find lodgings higher up in the tree house, there is no sign of any librarian in residence.

    The place feels eerie, like you're being watched. But nopony seems to have ever lived in this place.

    The front counter yields some writing material and paper, but it doesn't look like it ever had a formal library card system. Likely the town was small enough that you could chase up overdue books by name. Nevertheless, you are able to scrawl a library card for yourself.

    Once finished, what do you do?
    the same thing we do every night, pinkie.

    We read all of the scrolls.

    (Luminark will do other things before reading all of the scrolls, he's actually mostly just looking to get a sense of where he stands with this Library/if it's going to start psychically whispering commands into his brain/if he will be consumed by the dark secrets within/ensuring all the books are properly chained to walls/other usual Library-related hazards)

  11. - Top - End - #1361
    Ogre in the Playground
     
    Elanorin's Avatar

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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    "Luminark … assassinated?" replies the Archmage, shocked. She mutters to herself shaking her head, before glancing up at the megaspell besides her.

    "Yes, call for help. And then return quickly. With Luminark gone, I need to talk to you about this."

    With that said, she turns her attention back to the writhing nexus.

    What do you do now?
    If there is anything Milliway is readily willing to trust about a pony as magical as Moondancer it's that she is wholly committed to protecting the Library. She seemed convinced of the seriousness of the situation so whatever she was about to do, and it was most likely going to involve bone-chilling magic on a scale that Milliway had not even heard of before, it would be in the defensive interest of the Library, and therefore... good?

    It had to be... right?

    Milliway nodded and left quickly. Her mind was spinning, trying desperately to push images of Luminark's gory end out of her thoughts. She needed help. They needed help. This whole damn place would fall victim to its own insane brilliance if somepony didn't stop them before it was too late.

    In all her years... she had only ever known one who had managed to keep any semblance of order here, even if it was terrifying and warped.

    The Administrator.

    No. Not Luminark. The Administrator. Starlight Glimmer.

    She had no idea where she was now, what Luminark had done with her, or sent her, or even if she'd still be even there. She had no way of getting hold of her. But... she just might be able to reach somepony who could. Somepony who could head fearlessly in to the wastelands on the hunt for even the rarest most obscure trinket and return triumphant (and with an engine chock full of dust). She couldn't help but remember how his mane had smelled when-

    She stopped by her room and rummaged around a bit before leaving and heading to the section of the library where she had neatly categorised and filed all Technology. This place was the crown jewel in the entire Library, it had the grandest of bookcases, the neatest of handwritten labels and everything was spotless.

    She missed her workshop, for the first time in... she couldn't even remember.

    She grabbed a fizzwidget from a shelf, absentmindedly as she remembered her old chaos that she used to work in. This place wasn't her. It never had been. No matter how she had tried to re-shape it in her image of the Ideal. No... her place was in an out-of-the-way nook, stacked to the rafters with spare parts, rows and rows of cupboards filled with tools and enough wiring hanging free to look like curtains. This wasn't her domain.

    She paused as she grabbed a thingamabob from another shelf. No. This was Luminark's domain.

    A single tear slipped out the corner of her remaining organic eye and tricked down her cheek, spilling on to her old mask that she pulled from yet another shelf.

    Yes, she knew what she had to do.

    More importantly, however, Milliway was starting to see what she had done.

    She sat down on the floor, it didn't matter where, it's not like any of it was Home. She began by taking her old mask apart, connecting the old HUD to her mechanical eye and pulling up the old House interface. Then she began, opening up the other items. Screws falling to the floor, making little gentle tinks. Stripping wires. Hotwiring. Rerouting. Uploading. It was almost hypnotic. This was nothing she had ever done before, trying to reach an entity on the outside, and wirelessly, but working with her hooves, the touch of metal, the smell of electricity, it made her cutiemark shine.

    There were countless little tasks that House could have helped her with here, and she missed his presence when she worked, but she didn't want to distract him from defending the Library. Or maybe she just didn't want him to see... the conversation she was about to have.

    She thought about Scraps beloved vehicle, the number of times she had serviced it, fixed it, upgraded it. She could smell the Outside dust even just thinking about it. She knew those wires, the systems, the radio frequency... she knew it like her own pocket. Scraps loved that old hunk of metal, he'd never leave it behind. Where it was, he was. And even if he wasn't in it... surely he wouldn't be far away.

    With a click, and a twist, her weird creation began to hum and brand new colours spread across her display. A signal was sounding in her ears as it silently vibrated out through the air, out of the Library, out of the bunker and in to the world beyond, searching for that exact and familiar frequency which she knew. Which she trusted.

    Come on Scraps.

    Come on.


    "Be there."

    [Spending my 1 Augury: 5+4+3=12 Reaching through the maelstrom to somepony connected to it. It is stable and contained. It reaches broadly throughout the world's psychic maelstrom.]
    Last edited by Elanorin; 2019-06-12 at 08:53 AM.
    "For love is no part of the dreamworld. Love belongs to Desire, and Desire is always cruel."
    ~ Neil Gaiman

    "Just because I'm sorry doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it at the time."
    ~ Snow Patrol



  12. - Top - End - #1362
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    "Uh … yeah?" replies the first guard.

    "Um, is she one of ours? Are you one of ours?" says the second guard, who shares a confused look with his partner.

    "What's the passcode?"

    They're still focused on you, but your antics have them both off balance. You notice that their guns are now only sort-of-pointed in the direction of your Pegasus companion, rather than trained on her.

    She glances at you, subtly grasping one of her laspistols in a pinion.

    What do you do?
    A dip of the head, a hoof to the lips.

    Gotta play this quiet.

    A subtle nod towards the fortress ahead.

    Don't want anybody else coming to investigate.

    A slight blep of the tongue, eyes rolling back.

    Knockouts preferred.

    "'Hurrr durr, lookit me, I'm the big, strong pegasus, too good to fraternize with the dumb dirt ponies.' Well I never liked you anyway, so there!" As he looked away from her with a mighty, disdainful sniff, he used the momentum to spin himself around, whipping his tail towards the guard. Only, instead of an unpleasant slap, the shocky stick he now held in his tail delivered an unpleasant zap!

    [Now that they are distracted, I would like to Sucker Someone. Namely, one of the guards. Is there a chance Scraps could miss?]
    I'm developing a game. Let's see what happens! Complex.

  13. - Top - End - #1363
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by Thanqol View Post
    the same thing we do every night, pinkie.

    We read all of the scrolls.

    (Luminark will do other things before reading all of the scrolls, he's actually mostly just looking to get a sense of where he stands with this Library/if it's going to start psychically whispering commands into his brain/if he will be consumed by the dark secrets within/ensuring all the books are properly chained to walls/other usual Library-related hazards)
    The place does not react as you draw the first scroll into your magic. Unfurling it reveals a message written in an elegant cursive script:

    Spoiler: Scroll #1
    Show
    "My Faithful Stu Dearest Twilight Sparkle

    It's taken some time for me to put these words to paper. But I have to accept that there is little else I can do now but think, remember and regret.

    We both know that, despite what some may believe, souls do exist. I can only hope that, should the worst have happened, yours may somehow find your way to this place. If you ever do and you find this scroll. I wanted to say, I'm sorry.

    For everything.

    Yours truly
    Celestia"


    Picking up the next scroll, you see the same script. And a similar message.

    The same with the next. And the next. And the next.

    In every scroll you've read, the same two words repeat.

    "I'm sorry."

    "I'm sorry."

    "I'm sorry."




    What do you do?

    Quote Originally Posted by Elanorin View Post
    With a click, and a twist, her weird creation began to hum and brand new colours spread across her display. A signal was sounding in her ears as it silently vibrated out through the air, out of the Library, out of the bunker and in to the world beyond, searching for that exact and familiar frequency which she knew. Which she trusted.

    Come on Scraps.

    Come on.


    "Be there."

    [Spending my 1 Augury: 5+4+3=12 Reaching through the maelstrom to somepony connected to it. It is stable and contained. It reaches broadly throughout the world's psychic maelstrom.]
    Your message reaches out, arcing through the waves.

    Scraps - are you in a position to hear it now? Or is it going to get a busy signal until after the mission?

    Alternatively, Milliway, is this message only going to appear on the Peregrine, or is there a chance that by "reaching broadly through the psychic maelstrom" it might be picked up by say, the radio of an unconscious guardpony that Scrapscallion has just picked up?


    Quote Originally Posted by TheAmishPirate View Post
    A dip of the head, a hoof to the lips.

    Gotta play this quiet.

    A subtle nod towards the fortress ahead.

    Don't want anybody else coming to investigate.

    A slight blep of the tongue, eyes rolling back.

    Knockouts preferred.

    "'Hurrr durr, lookit me, I'm the big, strong pegasus, too good to fraternize with the dumb dirt ponies.' Well I never liked you anyway, so there!" As he looked away from her with a mighty, disdainful sniff, he used the momentum to spin himself around, whipping his tail towards the guard. Only, instead of an unpleasant slap, the shocky stick he now held in his tail delivered an unpleasant zap!

    [Now that they are distracted, I would like to Sucker Someone. Namely, one of the guards. Is there a chance Scraps could miss?]
    Not a chance.

    Your shock stick takes the guard in the neck, zapping him and sending him to the ground just as your Pegasus companion barrels into the second from a standing start.

    A quick struggle, and a prod from the shock stick, and two guards are out cold. The Pegasus starts searching their saddlebags and is quickly rewarded with a data-slate containing the day's passcode: "Overcast" as well as a pair of radios.

    Some rope, and a quick change of uniform, and your companion is ready to act the part of jailor. That said, with two uniforms, and something to hide your lack of wings, you could also attempt to pass as a guard yourself.

    What do you do?

  14. - Top - End - #1364
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    The place does not react as you draw the first scroll into your magic. Unfurling it reveals a message written in an elegant cursive script:

    Spoiler: Scroll #1
    Show
    "My Faithful Stu Dearest Twilight Sparkle

    It's taken some time for me to put these words to paper. But I have to accept that there is little else I can do now but think, remember and regret.

    We both know that, despite what some may believe, souls do exist. I can only hope that, should the worst have happened, yours may somehow find your way to this place. If you ever do and you find this scroll. I wanted to say, I'm sorry.

    For everything.

    Yours truly
    Celestia"


    Picking up the next scroll, you see the same script. And a similar message.

    The same with the next. And the next. And the next.

    In every scroll you've read, the same two words repeat.

    "I'm sorry."

    "I'm sorry."

    "I'm sorry."
    Luminark sat down and thought about this.

    The concept... wasn't alien. Constructing an artificial spiritual realm was, aha, a known science. Had Princess Celestia tried to do the same thing as Queen Chrysalis? A backup spiritual storage space in the event the worst happened? Then the metaphysical questions got weirder. Did it exist in the same wavelength as the Changeling Hivemind or in a different dimension? Was he only seeing this place now because he'd emptied his own 'hive' out, letting this snap in to fill that void?

    That was... a lot of theoreticals. Questions to be figured out in the great unknown Later.

    More immediately this was a place created directly by Princess Celestia.

    Luminark's life had a new and unbreakable Purpose now that he knew that. Princess Celestia... a thousand years! She'd reigned for almost as long as recorded history! All the problems of the world had only begun when she'd abdicated the throne to those blundering incompetents who ran the Ministries. The world he'd dreamed of - this world, was her dream first! And if the sheer number of scrolls here suggested anything it was that she was still out there somewhere... still sending messages.

    He would find her. By Celestia's Bea - er, by gum, he would find Princess Celestia and put her back on the throne and put the world back to the way it should be. And if she was too far gone to do that then he'd absorb whatever remained of her, take her identity, and do the damn work himself. He already had the shape - now he just needed the power and the wisdom.

    It was a goal that made him see the point of all of this again, the point of striving again. He had no idea how to start doing it. That was okay. First he'd focus on getting everypony settled in town and then he'd start researching. He left the library and started to oversee the incoming herds.

  15. - Top - End - #1365
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    Small Fido glares at you in distaste, before turning to his stores. He returns two minutes later with a laser pistol (2-harm near/far), some old, smelly, bandages and a hock of meat that (hopefully) came from something non-sentient.

    "Field kit." he replies, before dumping this at your hooves.

    What do you do?
    Starlight chuckles good naturedly, and rips him off his feet in my magic.

    Dogs! Friggin' useless! It just goes to show that you can't rely on anybody you haven't raised from birth. And, while it might be possible to raise a new generation of fanatically loyal dogs, given their high rate of maturation, that'd still leave her stuck in this craphole for far too long.

    She hold the flailing hellhound in the air, far from anything he could conceivably push off of, gain leverage from, or kill. Let him flail a bit, just to establish that no, he can't do anything to get out of this bubble. "Dear, dear bino." Let the sugar flow in her voice, enough sweetness to ruin any cup of coffee.. "Dear Bino, you of all dogs know that this isn't acceptable." She seizes his head, and forces him to stare at the meager pile of offerings. "A laser pistol with no ammo, let alone spare energy cells. A bandage that hasn't seen boiling water in the past century--how am I supposed to use that on a liquid body like mine? The meat is, admittedly, fairly appetizing, well done. But I'm heading into Can-Ter-Lot. You know? Mountain? Big city? Ball of pink nuclear death dripping off every side?"

    Now her voice is hard as steel, and lightning crackles around the edges of her horn. "Now, in a second, I'm going to put you down. And you're going to go back in there and fetch me the best you have--the biggest gun, a bucket of gems to fuel it, experimental drugs, stimpaks, the works. And if I'm satisfied, I might not leave a Bino-shaped char-shadow on the wall after you're done."

    [Go Aggro: 9.]
    I run a Let's Play channel! Check it out!
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  16. - Top - End - #1366
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    Not a chance.

    Your shock stick takes the guard in the neck, zapping him and sending him to the ground just as your Pegasus companion barrels into the second from a standing start.

    A quick struggle, and a prod from the shock stick, and two guards are out cold. The Pegasus starts searching their saddlebags and is quickly rewarded with a data-slate containing the day's passcode: "Overcast" as well as a pair of radios.

    Some rope, and a quick change of uniform, and your companion is ready to act the part of jailor. That said, with two uniforms, and something to hide your lack of wings, you could also attempt to pass as a guard yourself.

    What do you do?
    "...and it's as easy as that." Scraps quips, offering a hoof for the Pegasus to bump.

    As tempting as it is to go for the double-guard trick, nopony ever expects trouble from a seemingly defeated, unarmed prisoner. With one of them playing the guard, and the other the prisoner, they get a lot more flexibility in their approach. But more importantly, how's he going to show off his rockin' action bod - in its natural environ, no less - with all that clanky armor covering it up? It just doesn't make sense.

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    Your message reaches out, arcing through the waves.

    Scraps - are you in a position to hear it now? Or is it going to get a busy signal until after the mission?
    What, you think they're gonna carry the prisoners home? Egh, no. That sounds a lot like work. Dumb work. For dumb ponies.

    Nah, the Rangers brought some transports and parked them a few hills over all sneaky-like. And, well, if they were going to be driving big, shiny rigs in front of Ms. Smokin' Hot over here, the Scrapscallion couldn't just ride shotgun, now could he? The Peregrin's parked over with the rest of them.

    Which should mean that an intrepid signal could hop on over to the radio lying right beside him reaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaal easy-like.
    I'm developing a game. Let's see what happens! Complex.

  17. - Top - End - #1367
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post

    Your message reaches out, arcing through the waves.

    Alternatively, Milliway, is this message only going to appear on the Peregrine, or is there a chance that by "reaching broadly through the psychic maelstrom" it might be picked up by say, the radio of an unconscious guardpony that Scrapscallion has just picked up?
    Definitely able to relay through to a local radio. Especially if the Peregrine is nearby. Milliway has no idea where in the Wastes Scraps has taken off to, she is intentionally reaching as wide as possible.

    Quote Originally Posted by TheAmishPirate View Post
    What, you think they're gonna carry the prisoners home? Egh, no. That sounds a lot like work. Dumb work. For dumb ponies.

    Nah, the Rangers brought some transports and parked them a few hills over all sneaky-like. And, well, if they were going to be driving big, shiny rigs in front of Ms. Smokin' Hot over here, the Scrapscallion couldn't just ride shotgun, now could he? The Peregrin's parked over with the rest of them.

    Which should mean that an intrepid signal could hop on over to the radio lying right beside him reaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaal easy-like.
    Then behold the Milliway Magic causing the radio right by your hoof to crackle to life, seemingly all on its own.

    "Scraps..."

    Kzzzzft

    "Are you there?"

    Kzzzzzffftzzz

    Milliway could feel the connection. Every instinct in her body told her she had somehow, somehow, managed to find him. She wasn't even herself sure just how she'd managed to rig this up. Something was glowing in the middle of one of the pieces of tech she had stripped apart and now that she looked more closely it looked suspiciously liked a magically charged crystal and she had to fight the reflex to smash it and throw it all away. But this was their last shot.

    "S-Scrapscallion?" her voice was starting to shake a little as it fully sank in just how much they depended on her getting through.

    What if it wasn't him? What if he was dead? What if he was still mad?

    What if... he said no? Walked away and left them here to die...
    Last edited by Elanorin; 2019-06-18 at 04:21 AM.
    "For love is no part of the dreamworld. Love belongs to Desire, and Desire is always cruel."
    ~ Neil Gaiman

    "Just because I'm sorry doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it at the time."
    ~ Snow Patrol



  18. - Top - End - #1368
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by Elanorin View Post
    Then behold the Milliway Magic causing the radio right by your hoof to crackle to life, seemingly all on its own.

    "Scraps..."

    Kzzzzft

    "Are you there?"

    Kzzzzzffftzzz

    Milliway could feel the connection. Every instinct in her body told her she had somehow, somehow, managed to find him. She wasn't even herself sure just how she'd managed to rig this up. Something was glowing in the middle of one of the pieces of tech she had stripped apart and now that she looked more closely it looked suspiciously liked a magically charged crystal and she had to fight the reflex to smash it and throw it all away. But this was their last shot.

    "S-Scrapscallion?" her voice was starting to shake a little as it fully sank in just how much they depended on her getting through.

    What if it wasn't him? What if he was dead? What if he was still mad?

    What if... he said no? Walked away and left them here to die...
    The Scrapscallion eyed the radio curiously. Now, who in the base could’ve known he was out here? (He didn’t bother wondering how they knew his name. I mean, c’mon. Everybody knows The Scrapscallion. Everybody knows everybody knows.) Well, that was enough suspense; he scooped up the radio and kshhk-kshhk’d it on. “Yyyyyyyello, you’ve got the Scrapscallion, who’s my lucky caller #4?”

    …heh. Y’know, it’s funny. What with the crappy speakers and all, that almost sounded like Milliway talking through the radio. This one, single radio, sitting next to him. And not the other, identical radio over there. The one that’s probably tuned to the same frequency and everything.

    That’s, uh, a real laugh, right there.
    I'm developing a game. Let's see what happens! Complex.

  19. - Top - End - #1369
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by Thanqol View Post
    Luminark sat down and thought about this.

    The concept... wasn't alien. Constructing an artificial spiritual realm was, aha, a known science. Had Princess Celestia tried to do the same thing as Queen Chrysalis? A backup spiritual storage space in the event the worst happened? Then the metaphysical questions got weirder. Did it exist in the same wavelength as the Changeling Hivemind or in a different dimension? Was he only seeing this place now because he'd emptied his own 'hive' out, letting this snap in to fill that void?

    That was... a lot of theoreticals. Questions to be figured out in the great unknown Later.

    More immediately this was a place created directly by Princess Celestia.

    Luminark's life had a new and unbreakable Purpose now that he knew that. Princess Celestia... a thousand years! She'd reigned for almost as long as recorded history! All the problems of the world had only begun when she'd abdicated the throne to those blundering incompetents who ran the Ministries. The world he'd dreamed of - this world, was her dream first! And if the sheer number of scrolls here suggested anything it was that she was still out there somewhere... still sending messages.

    He would find her. By Celestia's Bea - er, by gum, he would find Princess Celestia and put her back on the throne and put the world back to the way it should be. And if she was too far gone to do that then he'd absorb whatever remained of her, take her identity, and do the damn work himself. He already had the shape - now he just needed the power and the wisdom.

    It was a goal that made him see the point of all of this again, the point of striving again. He had no idea how to start doing it. That was okay. First he'd focus on getting everypony settled in town and then he'd start researching. He left the library and started to oversee the incoming herds.
    Your village starts to approach, dozens of ponies in all the pastel colours of the rainbow and then some.

    They take up their stations at their respective domiciles and shops and … stand there, milling about. Their scripts are pretty basic so far - you observe two ponies, within the space of a minute, compliment each other's manes three times before commenting on the weather.

    Two others seem to be unenthusiastically haggling over an illusionary fruit.

    The bodies are here, but the spirits are not.

    Did you want to open your brain and delve the maelstrom again?

    Or is that good enough for now, in which case, what do you do next?

    Quote Originally Posted by Balmas View Post
    Starlight chuckles good naturedly, and rips him off his feet in my magic.

    Dogs! Friggin' useless! It just goes to show that you can't rely on anybody you haven't raised from birth. And, while it might be possible to raise a new generation of fanatically loyal dogs, given their high rate of maturation, that'd still leave her stuck in this craphole for far too long.

    She hold the flailing hellhound in the air, far from anything he could conceivably push off of, gain leverage from, or kill. Let him flail a bit, just to establish that no, he can't do anything to get out of this bubble. "Dear, dear bino." Let the sugar flow in her voice, enough sweetness to ruin any cup of coffee.. "Dear Bino, you of all dogs know that this isn't acceptable." She seizes his head, and forces him to stare at the meager pile of offerings. "A laser pistol with no ammo, let alone spare energy cells. A bandage that hasn't seen boiling water in the past century--how am I supposed to use that on a liquid body like mine? The meat is, admittedly, fairly appetizing, well done. But I'm heading into Can-Ter-Lot. You know? Mountain? Big city? Ball of pink nuclear death dripping off every side?"

    Now her voice is hard as steel, and lightning crackles around the edges of her horn. "Now, in a second, I'm going to put you down. And you're going to go back in there and fetch me the best you have--the biggest gun, a bucket of gems to fuel it, experimental drugs, stimpaks, the works. And if I'm satisfied, I might not leave a Bino-shaped char-shadow on the wall after you're done."

    [Go Aggro: 9.]
    Fido drops to the ground, before growling and scuttling off to the supplies again. What he returns with this time is definitely much better in terms of fare - a good condition laser rifle (3 harm - near, far), ammo and enough stimpacks to get you back to full health.

    "No drugs but." he says, as he drops the equipment at your hooves. "We don't keep them."

    What do you do now? Off to get some slaves?

  20. - Top - End - #1370
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by TheAmishPirate View Post
    The Scrapscallion eyed the radio curiously. Now, who in the base could’ve known he was out here? (He didn’t bother wondering how they knew his name. I mean, c’mon. Everybody knows The Scrapscallion. Everybody knows everybody knows.) Well, that was enough suspense; he scooped up the radio and kshhk-kshhk’d it on. “Yyyyyyyello, you’ve got the Scrapscallion, who’s my lucky caller #4?”

    …heh. Y’know, it’s funny. What with the crappy speakers and all, that almost sounded like Milliway talking through the radio. This one, single radio, sitting next to him. And not the other, identical radio over there. The one that’s probably tuned to the same frequency and everything.

    That’s, uh, a real laugh, right there.
    It's him.

    It's really him.


    Milliway was visibly shaking now and she couldn't quite understand why, she wasn't feeling particularly cold.

    "S-scrapscallion."

    What do I say?

    "It's Mil- It's Milliway."

    What if he's forgotten me?

    "From the... from the bunker."

    Has he met somepony else?

    Where do I even start?


    "We, uh... it's..."

    Does he ever think of me?

    Does he resent me?


    "There's... there's been a coup."

    That kiss.

    "I... I think... civil war is breaking out."

    I have no right to ask anything of you.

    "We need Starlight Glimmer. Before it's all over... all this-" her voice broke as the image of Luminark's death flashed unbidden in her mind once more.

    She drew deep loud breaths to push back the ache in her organic eye.

    I'm so sorry.

    Will you ever believe me?

    "Can you find her?"
    "For love is no part of the dreamworld. Love belongs to Desire, and Desire is always cruel."
    ~ Neil Gaiman

    "Just because I'm sorry doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it at the time."
    ~ Snow Patrol



  21. - Top - End - #1371
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by Elanorin View Post
    It's him.

    It's really him.


    Milliway was visibly shaking now and she couldn't quite understand why, she wasn't feeling particularly cold.

    "S-scrapscallion."

    What do I say?

    "It's Mil- It's Milliway."

    What if he's forgotten me?

    "From the... from the bunker."

    Has he met somepony else?

    Where do I even start?


    "We, uh... it's..."

    Does he ever think of me?

    Does he resent me?


    "There's... there's been a coup."

    That kiss.

    "I... I think... civil war is breaking out."

    I have no right to ask anything of you.

    "We need Starlight Glimmer. Before it's all over... all this-" her voice broke as the image of Luminark's death flashed unbidden in her mind once more.

    She drew deep loud breaths to push back the ache in her organic eye.

    I'm so sorry.

    Will you ever believe me?

    "Can you find her?"
    The Scrapscallion sat down. Hard. The other ponies, the mission, the sun on his pale coat, all of it melted away.

    How in the hay?!

    “...oh. Oh. Hey, there. Milliway.”

    This is impossible.

    Not for her.

    “That’s…yeah, that’s.”

    I’m not ready

    This wasn’t how it was supposed to go

    “Not a, good thing. Yeah.”

    She sounds so scared

    Is she hurt? Is she safe?

    “So. You need…the Princess.”

    Not me.

    Again.

    “She’s, um.”

    She couldn’t even look at me

    He bit back a shuddering breath.

    ...I can’t stop.

    “Just. Hold on. Stay there.”

    Don’t leave.

    Don’t die.

    One more chance, please.

    Please.

    There was a space of silence on the radio as he reached out. <Hey. You get all that, Princess?> A deep current of emotion ran beneath the thought. Loneliness. Aching. Longing.

    Hurt.
    I'm developing a game. Let's see what happens! Complex.

  22. - Top - End - #1372
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    Your village starts to approach, dozens of ponies in all the pastel colours of the rainbow and then some.

    They take up their stations at their respective domiciles and shops and … stand there, milling about. Their scripts are pretty basic so far - you observe two ponies, within the space of a minute, compliment each other's manes three times before commenting on the weather.

    Two others seem to be unenthusiastically haggling over an illusionary fruit.

    The bodies are here, but the spirits are not.

    Did you want to open your brain and delve the maelstrom again?

    Or is that good enough for now, in which case, what do you do next?
    The psychic maelstrom seemed to be the solution to all of Luminark's problems right now. He'd never delved into the spirit world this deeply before but now that he had started he didn't want to stop. This was it - this was his opportunity to bring everything pure and true about the old world back, without any of the corruption or mistakes. He'd build harmony by himself if he had to, raise Equestria from dust!

    [Open your brain: 12. I've got it advanced]

  23. - Top - End - #1373
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by TheAmishPirate View Post
    “...oh. Oh. Hey, there. Milliway.”

    “That’s…yeah, that’s.”

    “Not a, good thing. Yeah.”

    “So. You need…the Princess.”

    “She’s, um.”

    “Just. Hold on. Stay there.”
    When he stopped talking a silence that was too heavy to bear grew much too quickly.

    He didn't sound happy.

    "Okay..."

    He sounded distracted.

    "It's not as if I can go anywhere..." she went on, without even knowing if he was still listening or if he'd put the proverbial phone down on the dashboard of the Peregrine and wandered off.

    "Pretty much barricaded in here..."



    "Just me... and... The Archmage."

    He didn't want to be Administrator.

    It was me... I made him do it.


    "Had to save the library."

    He would have wanted that.

    She closed her eyes hard and another tear spilled from her eye.

    He loved the Library.

    "The whole summit... blown to pieces. So many ponies..." Milliway let another tear fall. "I don't know what to do." Milliway confessed, staring at her old mask in her hooves where she sat, slumped on the floor. It was beginning to feel hot. The strain that the signal was putting on its circuits was more than it could handle. It would blow soon, and she wouldn't be able to fix it. She really wouldn't be able to hind behind it anymore after this.

    "There's so many of them. Armed. And so angry," she said, more to herself than anything.

    "The Princess is our only chance to save this place, and she could be anywhere in the whole world. I don't even know if she's still alive. It's an impossible task... a shot in the dark... I know that... but..."

    ...if anypony can find her... it's you.
    Last edited by Elanorin; 2019-06-20 at 10:19 AM.
    "For love is no part of the dreamworld. Love belongs to Desire, and Desire is always cruel."
    ~ Neil Gaiman

    "Just because I'm sorry doesn't mean I didn't enjoy it at the time."
    ~ Snow Patrol



  24. - Top - End - #1374
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    Fido drops to the ground, before growling and scuttling off to the supplies again. What he returns with this time is definitely much better in terms of fare - a good condition laser rifle (3 harm - near, far), ammo and enough stimpacks to get you back to full health.

    "No drugs but." he says, as he drops the equipment at your hooves. "We don't keep them."

    What do you do now? Off to get some slaves?
    She smiles kindly to her new friend, Bino. "Thank you kindly, good sir. I'll make sure to bring back anything interesting I find on my-"

    Quote Originally Posted by TheAmishPirate View Post
    There was a space of silence on the radio as he reached out. <Hey. You get all that, Princess?> A deep current of emotion ran beneath the thought. Loneliness. Aching. Longing.

    Hurt.
    Her magic evaporates, and it's only quick reflexes that keep it from cracking against the floor.

    Her children are in danger.

    She gulps and gasps, takes a deep breath. "--Expedition," she croaks. And then she's dashing running expediting her exit into the world, injecting stimpaks as she goes.

    <Talk to me. Tell me everything.>
    I run a Let's Play channel! Check it out!
    Currently, we're playing through New Vegas as Gabriel de la Cruz, merchant and mercenary extraordinaire!

  25. - Top - End - #1375
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by Thanqol View Post
    The psychic maelstrom seemed to be the solution to all of Luminark's problems right now. He'd never delved into the spirit world this deeply before but now that he had started he didn't want to stop. This was it - this was his opportunity to bring everything pure and true about the old world back, without any of the corruption or mistakes. He'd build harmony by himself if he had to, raise Equestria from dust!

    [Open your brain: 12. I've got it advanced]
    The Malestrom parts before your delving - you burrow further and faster than you ever have before. No more ghosts, no more echoes, no more static on the broken radio. You leave behind this facsimile of Ponyville, and all fades to darkness.

    And then bright white light.

    There's resistance, a barrier that souls like yours are not meant to pass. It will cost you something to break through, or perhaps unleash something. Who knows? You're treading new paths here and the consequences are completely impossible to predict in detail. All you know is that there will be some significant impact if you breach this seal.

    The question is, do you commit, or do you back off?

    What do you do?

  26. - Top - End - #1376
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    The Malestrom parts before your delving - you burrow further and faster than you ever have before. No more ghosts, no more echoes, no more static on the broken radio. You leave behind this facsimile of Ponyville, and all fades to darkness.

    And then bright white light.

    There's resistance, a barrier that souls like yours are not meant to pass. It will cost you something to break through, or perhaps unleash something. Who knows? You're treading new paths here and the consequences are completely impossible to predict in detail. All you know is that there will be some significant impact if you breach this seal.

    The question is, do you commit, or do you back off?

    What do you do?
    Wisdom is a tricky thing.

    The Ministry of Arcane Science brought Luminark up with the implicit belief that hubris was a coward's word. The frontiers of science were made to be explored! The world was made to be unravelled! Saturate in knowledge and achieve things, and in time you, too, might become an archmage.

    Luminark had started to reject that attitude. It was that line of dangerous thinking that had destroyed the world! But while he was determined to do better, be better, he hadn't finished the process of growing. When he broke the barrier it was not because he thought that barriers were meant to be broken; it's that he could not think of a way to fix the world without breaking barriers. He believed in Harmony, but as something to find and not something to be.

    He commits. Let's save the world.

  27. - Top - End - #1377
    Ettin in the Playground
     
    BlasTech's Avatar

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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by Thanqol View Post
    Wisdom is a tricky thing.

    The Ministry of Arcane Science brought Luminark up with the implicit belief that hubris was a coward's word. The frontiers of science were made to be explored! The world was made to be unravelled! Saturate in knowledge and achieve things, and in time you, too, might become an archmage.

    Luminark had started to reject that attitude. It was that line of dangerous thinking that had destroyed the world! But while he was determined to do better, be better, he hadn't finished the process of growing. When he broke the barrier it was not because he thought that barriers were meant to be broken; it's that he could not think of a way to fix the world without breaking barriers. He believed in Harmony, but as something to find and not something to be.

    He commits. Let's save the world.
    Bright white light.

    It shines in your face, a blinding radiance so strong you have to shield yourself with a foreleg. A silhouette moves in the light, you can make out a horn and a head, but not too much else. It shifts and you get the impression it's turning to look at you. There's a sharp intake of breath, before a mare's voice speaks.

    "Who are you?"

    What do you do?

  28. - Top - End - #1378
    Titan in the Playground
     
    TheAmishPirate's Avatar

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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by Balmas View Post
    <Talk to me. Tell me everything.>
    A direction. A way forward. The Scrapscallion latched onto it. <Okay. Alright. So. Uh, Milliway just called out of the blue and >

    Quote Originally Posted by Elanorin View Post
    "Okay..."

    "It's not as if I can go anywhere..."

    "Pretty much barricaded in here..."
    <She's safe>

    <She doesn't sound dying>

    <Something happened at the>

    Quote Originally Posted by Elanorin View Post
    "Just me... and... The Archmage."

    "Had to save the library."
    <Why isn't she in her lab?>

    <Bunker, some sorta big revolt>

    <Where's Narky?>

    Quote Originally Posted by Elanorin View Post
    "The whole summit... blown to pieces. So many ponies..." Milliway let another tear fall. "I don't know what to do."
    The Scrapscallion nearly dropped the radio.

    <....>

    <Oh no this is bad.>

    Quote Originally Posted by Elanorin View Post
    "There's so many of them. Armed. And so angry,"
    <she's going to die>

    <something about a summit>

    <angry mobs>

    <she's alone>

    <she needs you>

    Quote Originally Posted by Elanorin View Post
    "The Princess is our only chance to save this place, and she could be anywhere in the whole world. I don't even know if she's still alive. It's an impossible task... a shot in the dark... I know that... but..."
    <she doesn't want me>

    A direction. A way forward.

    The Scrapscallion latched onto it.

    <Okay! Alright! Hold on! I got this! One sec!>

    He jammed the button on the walkie talkie. "Okay, so, I have the Princess on the, uhhhhhhhhh, other line. Tell her the whole story and I'll...relay it."
    I'm developing a game. Let's see what happens! Complex.

  29. - Top - End - #1379
    Colossus in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by BlasTech View Post
    Bright white light.

    It shines in your face, a blinding radiance so strong you have to shield yourself with a foreleg. A silhouette moves in the light, you can make out a horn and a head, but not too much else. It shifts and you get the impression it's turning to look at you. There's a sharp intake of breath, before a mare's voice speaks.

    "Who are you?"

    What do you do?
    Luminark snapped to attention and executed his most formal bow, practiced against a mirror based on diagrams in ancient books detailing the various types of courtly bow.

    He had no idea where to go with this next.

    "Forgive me, your highness," he said. "I am just an unworthy pony. I am trying to bring some sort of harmony to a mad world but I don't know how."

  30. - Top - End - #1380
    Ettin in the Playground
     
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    Default Re: Cloudbreak IC: Glimpse of the sky

    Quote Originally Posted by Thanqol View Post
    Luminark snapped to attention and executed his most formal bow, practiced against a mirror based on diagrams in ancient books detailing the various types of courtly bow.

    He had no idea where to go with this next.

    "Forgive me, your highness," he said. "I am just an unworthy pony. I am trying to bring some sort of harmony to a mad world but I don't know how."
    The figure chuckles lightly.

    "Well, at least you're honest ... and such manners."

    As she talks, your eyes adjust, the brightness fading and replaced with the interior of a quaint house. It's not Celestia to whom you speak, but an alabaster-coloured unicorn with a flowing purple mane, sitting at a small table by a window.

    "Do be a dear and join me for some tea?" says Rarity, leaning forward and pouring out a second cup next to her own.

    "Lets talk, and see if there's anything I can do to help."

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