That's a pleasant arrival sight. Does it count as horrifying to see Rye getting sick over there?
Probably.
Enough for her to wrinkle her nose at least.
Which is most of what she's doing, while she comports herself to get out of the way.
It wouldn't do to still be sitting around when Swiss and Vinyl reach the end of the slide. Pretty clever to leave pillows...
The pegasus pauses, halfway to getting off the cushions, staring down at where her hoof sits over a little design.
There's a sort of half-throttled squawk from her, vaguely similar to the one that Swiss drew out upon touching her.
Only instead of jumping up into the air, she just freezes.
Staring.
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...Oh. Oops. Best not to emphasize uncomfortable topics like that.
"Sorry, Gleamy. That can't be a nice way to live."
Xithr sighs.
"I'm old, Gleam. Really, really old. Old enough to have memories of life was like before the war. I've lived in this wasteland since the bombs dropped, and I've learned a lot in that time. If you want to know something, all you have to do is ask and I'll answer truthfully."
Violetta didn't completely understand. "Why do I need a fake past? I'm not an outcast or something, am I? I'm just... I don't even know, but I'm sure I'm not problematic. Oh well, I could probably claim to be a sorceress who was supposed to oversee things. It's actually pretty likely.
"So, for factions, you've basically got evil types, evil types, more evil types, and straight-out mercenaries. I suppose it's a bit early to found our own little group, though, so we'll just have to wait until we can find someone decent."
She paused to take a drink. "Thanks. Anyway, are there any cities you know how to get to from here? It's not really worth trekking across half the world just to get lost."
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[GirderShed - Unimaginably Sad He Didn't Think of the Pun]
Fleetwing scratched his chin, opting to take those remarks in order: "It ain't because you're an outcast, it's to keep ponies from takin' advantage of you. If a pony found out you didn't have a memory, odds are, he'd try to use that against you somehow." He blinked, realizing what he just said. "Uh, not to say that I've been doing that, just...I guess you got lucky this time. *ahem* Anyway, if folks just think you're a Stable filly, that tells them you can handle yourself."
"If there are any decent ones, we didn't hear about them back home. Only flank-...er, jerks and such came by our place." For some reason, cussing around her seemed wrong. Like he was taking even more of her innocence and dashing it away.
"I'm not bad at navigating, so if I can get just a general idea of where we are, I can get us to one of the closer cities." He pulled out his little notebook and flipped to the first set of pages, where a crude map was drawn. Emphasis on "crude". More helpful were the pages of notes that followed; landmarks, directions, and other such helpful navigation tips. "Let's see...for Northern cities, we got Fillydelphia and Manehatten to the East, Tall Tale and Vanhoover to the West. Provided we aren't smack in the middle of nowhere, we ought to be able to narrow it down based on which ones are closer. Anything about those cities ring a bell?"
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We're like the weeping angels from Doctor Who, except with cuddling and friendship instead of horrible death. Don't look away.
Scratch seems to have neatly avoided running into Down and goes about the actions previously mentioned oblivious to the discomfort her choice in decoration in having on her visitors.
And speaking of being touched by Swiss...
"Look out!"
The changeling will be crashing headlong into Down unless she heeds the warning and gets out of the way in a hurry.
Rye seems... shaky... But she's done vomiting for now. She's seen some nasty stuff in her days. Mostly relating to Raiders. But this... the casual indifference of it combined with the innocence, feigned or not, makes for a positively disturbing contrast.
Corn seems to be taking it all the best.
"Well we're mighty thankyful fer lettin' us use yer hideout, Scratch."
The sudden change in posture suggest the foalbot would probably be smiling if she still had a mouth. "Hey! Wanna hear some of my music?"
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Meanwhile, Scoops is tucked away hopefully out of sensor range ready to spring. Having a password that actually worked would be too convenient. Have to be ready to slice some robo-sprites.
Speaking of which, she hasn't seen any living tainted ones. One must wonder if they're extinct... well hopefully, since the mutated flies didn't turn out so well.
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Probably extinct. The sorts of food they favored are kind of... gone. For the most part. Not much left for them to feed on. Just watch out for those carnivorous sprites... those things are nasty.
Anywho!
The spritebot swarm just hangs in the air for a few moments. Probably processing that information. And it isn't too long before they decide on an answer.
"Your password is out of date! Surrender and be vaporized Zebra scum!"
Welp.
Fighting time.
The spritebots open fire with a flurry of tiny bolts of magical energy! The weapons aren't very powerful on their own. But given the number of sprites they'll add up in a hurry.
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"AH AIN'T A DAMNED ZEBRA!!" Sergeant Sprinkles roars indignantly, leveling his flamer-arm with the swarm and bathing a good few of them in a ~fwoosh~ of burning petroleum.
He begins to quickly backpedal, hovering in reverse towards cover while pouring fire on the little robot bastards. "Ow ow ow ow ow," Sprinkles grunts in an annoyed deadpan as their small magical beams plink and zing off his armored chassis, scoring the paint and creating cascades of sparks and sparkles.
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Quote:
Originally Posted by SilverClawShift
Wizard: Ug. God. Allright. What do you want us to do?
Me: Burn for me.
Wizard: ...what?
Me: I activate the fire ability. "BURN FOR ME!!!!!!"
...Oh. Oops. Best not to emphasize uncomfortable topics like that.
"Sorry, Gleamy. That can't be a nice way to live."
Xithr sighs.
"I'm old, Gleam. Really, really old. Old enough to have memories of life was like before the war. I've lived in this wasteland since the bombs dropped, and I've learned a lot in that time. If you want to know something, all you have to do is ask and I'll answer truthfully."
Gleamy perks up
"...You do?
....I don't know what exactly to ask...Earliest clear memory I have is the bright flash, I think; but I do think I remember some bit of things, I think from before, I only remember things about.... Friendship and that... Mostly ideals, but I think they're all I have to strive for right now... At least from before that flash"
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"Go loud!" Whadda shouts as Sprinkles decides he can't burn them all in one go. She takes a couple of hit-and-run dives at the swarm slicing robots in half before retreating to relative safety.
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Pew pew pew go the spritebots! Flame throwers and bullets don't make them very happy. The sword is... well... seems like a really low tech weapon of choice for a Steel Ranger. But what are you gunna do? The weapon manages to wing one of the bots and dumps it on the ground.
Blackbeak opens fire into the swarm of bots with her mini gun whilst Sven (we shall name him Sven!) lobs a blob of plasma into the swarm. The ionized, electrically charged gas proves to disagree with the tiny robots something fierce and sends a fair number dropping tot he ground twitching.
Good job everypony! It looks like you're wi-
Oh. Wait. More bots are still pouring out of the holes in the ceiling. And they're moving to flank our heroes. Wuh oh!
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Hey, energized combat blades that ARE high-tech are rare and would be paladin-level stuff anyway. For now she's got a sword... it happens to be relatively fancy but whatever.
Scoops takes a couple of glances from para-bots to the armor, not hurting much at all. She takes another dive past the swarm, cutting at it on the way to the griffons for cover.
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Xithr's in a section of the pool where she can comfortably stand with her head above the water, which is probably a good thing. A tear drops from one of her eyes, though only one tear duct seems to actually be functional.
"...That's something precious, Gleam. No matter the path you trot in the future, keep the elements of harmony fresh in your mind, and you will be spared the worst of what our world has to offer.
The greatest evil of the Wasteland isn't the radiation. It isn't the taint, the raiders, the slavers, the Unity, the Hellhounds, the Enclave, Red Eye, the miscellaneous monsters, or even the Stars. The worst thing in the wasteland is that the day-to-day struggle, the challenges that exist even to survive, wear down upon the virtues of everypony.
I remember a time, before the war even began, that ponies and zebras alike lived in harmony with one another, and the elements could be found everywhere you looked. In the wasteland, you would be fortunate to encounter a living thing that hasn't forsaken its virtues. Of all the things I've encountered in my long life, none pain me quite so much as the sight of so many who have simply given up."
The Ghoul shakes her head to clear it a moment, and takes on a much cheerier tone as she quickly changes the subject.
"Still, if you think of anything you'd like to ask, my offer remains open!"
Violetta concentrated her mind, but couldn't come up with anything special about the cities. "I've got nothing. We'll just have to head for the closest one.
"I suppose there are unscrupulous types who might try to give me a fake past to suit their needs. I'll just have to rely on records to piece together who I really am. In the meantime, I'll need to figure out a good title for myself that suits my powers."
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[GirderShed - I suppose you're a real pundit then?]
Fleetwing gave the filly an odd look. "Uh...title? What're you talking about?" He was starting to wonder just what her definition of "complete memory loss" was. If he got conked on the head, would he start trying to become a duke or some such? "I actually meant to ask you about that; you got any memory of what magic you can use? I got a gun," he patted his Peashooter fondly, "but it's not like I can go and use it if I ain't got a hammer. Not quite as handy as spells."
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Eakin
We're like the weeping angels from Doctor Who, except with cuddling and friendship instead of horrible death. Don't look away.
"Of course! An individual of importance needs a proper title to convey that, and I most likely am of importance." Violetta gestured to her outfit. "Ordinary ponies don't wear this kind of thing, do they?"
She considered for a bit. "I'm not quite sure what my powers are, but maybe I can get them to come back to me. I still have my mark, so I should still have some spells, at least... Do you have any ideas for testing this?"
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Fleetwing gave her outfit another look; to tell the truth, it didn't look like something an ordinary pony would wear. More like a performer, or a lunatic. Maybe both. But the faux nobility would certainly explain her uppity-ness...
"I ain't no magic expert," he flared his wings for emphasis, "but maybe we should wait to experiment until we're not near anything we don't mind damaging. This ain't exactly our shed to beat up." He poked his head out the shed door, noting the light level. If they were going to go for that truck today, they'd have to leave soon. Violetta had at least a basic understanding of the state of the Wasteland, and he could always answer more questions later. "Hmm. We could go out a ways from town, start heading towards that Sparkle Cola truck, and then try casting spells at things once we're clear. What do you think? Have any more questions, or do you feel ready enough to head out?"
__________________
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eakin
We're like the weeping angels from Doctor Who, except with cuddling and friendship instead of horrible death. Don't look away.
Manehatten Ruins-Horseshoe Tower-Ministry of Morale-32th Floor- 10:55 am
Fox Trot
And up went my shield! I activated my shield via the cufflink with my teeth as a shimmering small dome surrounded me. Nothing could get through, but, on the downside nothing could go through, so I couldn't shoot at nothing. I did take the time to start reloading my gun with the regular bullets, better than nothing.
Sergeant Sprinkles breaks cover. "Best defense is a good offense!" he snarls, charging the newly arriving robo-sprites. He unleashes another gout of flame on them, and snaps off a magical energy blast. He shrugs off a few of the energy beams being hurled his direction, and begins to raise and flail some of his manipulator limbs to block and absorb the worst hits. He hurls himself within melee range, and while he continues to bathe and blast the robots with his ranged weapons, he fires up his sawblade and begins to slash and whir it into the hovering foes.
__________________
Quote:
Originally Posted by SilverClawShift
Wizard: Ug. God. Allright. What do you want us to do?
Me: Burn for me.
Wizard: ...what?
Me: I activate the fire ability. "BURN FOR ME!!!!!!"
"As you wish. I feel like I need to do something. Just sitting here isn't getting us quite as far as actually going out and seeing things will." Violetta smiled. "Lead the way."
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Fleetwing gave his wings and legs one last, gooooooooooood stretch on the mattress, before picking himself up and straightening his holster. "Aye, you got that right. Gabbin' ain't much a replacement for actually going and seeing."
And with that, he led the unicorn out from Girdershade, heading in the direction of the Sparkle Cola truck. If they found a nice clearing for magic practice, they'd stop there first.
[Tag: Lycan]
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Eakin
We're like the weeping angels from Doctor Who, except with cuddling and friendship instead of horrible death. Don't look away.
They're in the middle of the Equestrian Wasteland. The landscape around them is mostly dry dirt and coarse prairie grass, with the occasional rock, piece of scrap metal, craggy hillside, or fire-blasted tree. The whole world around them is basically one giant clearing.
Finding a place to practice magic will be... easy.
__________________
Quote:
Originally Posted by SilverClawShift
Wizard: Ug. God. Allright. What do you want us to do?
Me: Burn for me.
Wizard: ...what?
Me: I activate the fire ability. "BURN FOR ME!!!!!!"
The spritebots keep coming! It seems for every one of the nasty little machines that get shot down four more drop out of the holes in the ceiling. Standing and fighting isn't working! There's got to be something else they can do!
Pew pew pew go the energy beams!
The tiny bolts of magic really aren't that powerful on their own. But the damage from them can add up. And as horrifyingly enough-
"GAH!" Blackbeak cries out as her body glows neon pink before crumbling into a heap of smouldering pastel ash.
-they still have a small chance of dusting the target.
"BLACKBEAK!" Sven roars, rage consuming his features as he cranks up the power on his plasma cannon. "YOU SONS OF A MULE KILLED BLACKBEAK!"
And with that he launches a full-powered plasma burst at the cieling. The projectile detonates with a sound like thunder, hurling many of the bots to the ground and frying electronics.
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(^Yeesh. And this is why I need to have pony on standby to cheer myself up after bits like that. )
Clearing near Girdershade
After trotting a good distance from town, Fleetwing picked a nice spot for Violetta. It had both rocks and grass for testing spells on living and non-living things, it was far enough away that they likely wouldn't harm the little settlement, low enough that they wouldn't attract unwanted attention, and perhaps most importantly, it had a big rock for him to hide behind.
It was from behind said rock he motioned for Violetta (whom he placed a good distance away) to go ahead. "Alright! Now just...do magicky things and see what happens. I'll be supervisin' from over here," he shouted over.
__________________
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eakin
We're like the weeping angels from Doctor Who, except with cuddling and friendship instead of horrible death. Don't look away.
Violetta looked around. "All right, this looks like a good enough place. Now, where to start? Let's see..."
The first thing she did was concentrate on the essence within her, trying to channel it. This might not have been the best way to go about it, because she started to feel nauseous. Very, very nauseous. Followed by a strange burning sensation.
She dropped to her knees, gasping. The power was still stirring inside her, struggling to be released, and now she had to figure out what to do with it while fighting this fiery pain...
Fiery? That's... that's it!
With a cry, she shot a small bolt of flame from her horn that streaked past Fleetwing's hiding place. Then, gradually, she returned to normal. The pain and dizziness faded a bit. Only the power remained.
After a moment of hesitation, she turned to Fleetwing and smiled. "Well, I've figured out one of my capabilities, at least."
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"Need an explosive!" Whadda explains coming up with a plan. Simply put, she describes it to the rest of the group. "Blow up the vents."
Unfortunately the Talon seems to have been ashed and therefore his gear went with him. Her comrade is going revenge-berserk too. Hopefully Fox or Sprinkles has something to boom. Meanwhile, Scoops takes another swipe at the bots before taking partial cover behind the bubble shield.
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Xithr's in a section of the pool where she can comfortably stand with her head above the water, which is probably a good thing. A tear drops from one of her eyes, though only one tear duct seems to actually be functional.
"...That's something precious, Gleam. No matter the path you trot in the future, keep the elements of harmony fresh in your mind, and you will be spared the worst of what our world has to offer.
The greatest evil of the Wasteland isn't the radiation. It isn't the taint, the raiders, the slavers, the Unity, the Hellhounds, the Enclave, Red Eye, the miscellaneous monsters, or even the Stars. The worst thing in the wasteland is that the day-to-day struggle, the challenges that exist even to survive, wear down upon the virtues of everypony.
I remember a time, before the war even began, that ponies and zebras alike lived in harmony with one another, and the elements could be found everywhere you looked. In the wasteland, you would be fortunate to encounter a living thing that hasn't forsaken its virtues. Of all the things I've encountered in my long life, none pain me quite so much as the sight of so many who have simply given up."
The Ghoul shakes her head to clear it a moment, and takes on a much cheerier tone as she quickly changes the subject.
"Still, if you think of anything you'd like to ask, my offer remains open!"
[Spring near nowhere]
The alicorn just goes to a deeper spot, accidentally slipping once and dipping her head in, then just coming out, still catloafing but with her head poking out, a bit confused
"I....Don't know what else to ask....I got many questions ye I don't know to ask for them....But it seems at least that what I remember is worth striving for then.... I just need to... I don't know" She seemed pretty lost now
[Tag: BladeofObliviom]
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Fleetwing's trembling form sloooowly emerged from behind the rock. It was hard to tell if he was nodding, or simply scared out of his wits. "Y-y-y-y-yeah, th-that's a g-g-good 'un. Maybe try...not aimin' at me n-n-next time?" He grinned nervously and ducked back behind cover. "Th-that ring a-any more b-bells? Maybe you c-could try s-s-somethin' simple and less likely to set me on fire? Maybe levitate a rock?"
(Semi-waiting to see if Night Jewel will respond to Sandy's perceived loss of sanity in Soft's Bar.)
__________________
Quote:
Originally Posted by Eakin
We're like the weeping angels from Doctor Who, except with cuddling and friendship instead of horrible death. Don't look away.
The spritebots keep coming! It seems for every one of the nasty little machines that get shot down four more drop out of the holes in the ceiling. Standing and fighting isn't working! There's got to be something else they can do! Pew pew pew go the energy beams! The tiny bolts of magic really aren't that powerful on their own. But the damage from them can add up. And as horrifyingly enough-
"GAH!" Blackbeak cries out as her body glows neon pink before crumbling into a heap of smouldering pastel ash.
-they still have a small chance of dusting the target.
"BLACKBEAK!" Sven roars, rage consuming his features as he cranks up the power on his plasma cannon. "YOU SONS OF A MULE KILLED BLACKBEAK!"
And with that he launches a full-powered plasma burst at the cieling. The projectile detonates with a sound like thunder, hurling many of the bots to the ground and frying electronics.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MCerberus
Manehatten - Don't feed the para-bots
"Need an explosive!" Whadda explains coming up with a plan. Simply put, she describes it to the rest of the group. "Blow up the vents."
Unfortunately the Talon seems to have been ashed and therefore his gear went with him. Her comrade is going revenge-berserk too. Hopefully Fox or Sprinkles has something to boom. Meanwhile, Scoops takes another swipe at the bots before taking partial cover behind the bubble shield.
Manehatten Ruins-Horseshoe Tower-Ministry of Morale-32th Floor- 10:56 am
Fox Trot
Crud. What a horrible way to go. I found myself frozen having had seen it happen before my eyes. The first time, the scene was too busy for me to have noticed it until the end. This was horrifying. I glanced at the little bots through my shimmering protective dome. Damnit...I was no good at damn robots! I didn't have weaponry for it and you can't really go hoof to hoof to strike special 'pressure points', they're robots damnit.
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