Fallout: Beyond Equestria 122: The Last Free Town (Part 2)

[2015-02-11 13:06:16] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Previously...
[2015-02-11 13:06:25] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Having found the Amulet of Atonement and the Griffin's Goblet, the ponies and griffin of the Crimson Caravan reactivated the Radiant Shield of Rasdon, banishing the Quetzalcóatl Empress back to Tartarus.
[2015-02-11 13:06:34] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The Griffin's Goblet was bartered to the pirate zebras of the "salvage ship" /Cutlass/, and the Amulet of Atonement was given over to the powerful Spirit of Whispers known as the Faceless.  In return, the Faceless revealed that the missing Element of Laughter was being held under guard in the catacombs beneath Roam.
[2015-02-11 13:09:03] <Mare-Do-Well> 3On the trip to The Silos, the /Cutlass/ encountered an Imperial scout airship and gave chase.  Noble_Heart divested the ship of its crew and the Crimson's Caravans group swiftly seized control of the airship.
[2015-02-11 13:09:35] <Mare-Do-Well> 3...
[2015-02-11 13:09:49] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Goldy does her sweep of the below decks. Things... Looked clear. Following that, she headed back up. "Folks, y' might wanna pop back n' tell our buddies not t' shell this here aircraft."
[2015-02-11 13:09:58] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Bookwright leans against the deck railing and waves cheerfully at the pirate ship.
[2015-02-11 13:10:04] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Bookwright cranes his head over his shoulder and calls to Shatara, "Bring the thing to a halt, would you? I'd rather the pirates not shoot us down!"
[2015-02-11 13:10:09] <Mare-Do-Well> 3CopyCat smiles at her friends. "Oh, I'll nip back to the Cutlass to give them the good news. I'll be back in a jiffy!" She spreads her wings and is off!
[2015-02-11 13:10:15] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Shatara attempts some attempt at wingwaggling as he steadies the airship.
[2015-02-11 13:10:20] <Mare-Do-Well> 3CopyCat lands back on the Cutlass and tells Mwana (and any zebra who would listen) that the imperial scoutship was crewless and had been claimed by mighty Captain Noble_ Heart!
[2015-02-11 13:10:29] <Mare-Do-Well> 3...
[2015-02-11 13:10:45] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Fallout: Beyond Equestria, Session One Hundred and Twenty-Two: The Last Free Town (Part Two) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BigolJfoANw
[2015-02-11 13:10:51] <Mare-Do-Well> 3--- Session Begins ---
[2015-02-11 13:13:38] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Mwana relays the information to the Captain.  The Captain barks out orders.  In seconds, the zebra pirates are unloading the cannon and storing the guns, the shields are being pulled down.  The /Cutlass/ begins to veer closer to the scout ship, it's shadow falling over the smaller ship as the pirates prep grappling lines.
[2015-02-11 13:13:53] * Golden_Dream started running inventory on what was actually on the scout ship. What would they name it? What colors should they raise? And more importantly, does this thing have a distillery already in it so she can take her miniature version off her back already?
[2015-02-11 13:18:54] * Puppy frowns "i still think that balloons are unpractical...."
[2015-02-11 13:19:32] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The lower decks are comprised of a small hold, the sleeping room, and a multifunctional room with a small cooking counter at the far end.  Good storage netted only about two days worth of meals for the group.  The ship is definitely not a long range exploration vessel.
[2015-02-11 13:19:52] * CopyCat leans over the /Cutlass/'s railing and waves down at her friends on the scout ship. "Cooooey!"
[2015-02-11 13:23:22] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The upper decks include the combined control and engine room, as well as a navigator's station, complete with a map of the continent.  A small back room served as the ship commander's private quarters.   Contents of small bins on the fore and aft decks make it clear that several members of the crew smoked... something... for recreation.
[2015-02-11 13:23:22] * Golden_Dream sighs, then calls back to Get, "Yeah, well you can change it when we get th' stuff and th' time to! It'll have t' do fer' now. Now fer fuck's sake, take down th' flag on th' mast. We ain't gonna march into th' Silos with a legion ship unless somewhere along th' lines, we decided we really liked gettin' shelled."
[2015-02-11 13:24:23] <Mare-Do-Well> 3A few pouches of said herbal/alchemical mix are found in the general sleeping quarters.
[2015-02-11 13:26:06] * Puppy turns her visor light to blue from pink
[2015-02-11 13:26:16] * Get_Lost "muuuuch better"
[2015-02-11 13:26:29] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Several pirates aboard the /Cutlass/ fire grappling cables the moment the ships are close enough.  Soon, the Imperial scout ship looks like it is being towed by the pirate vessel.  Several zebras deftly begin to cross the cables.
[2015-02-11 13:27:50] * Get_Lost ndnods to the others, but has already something else in mind. trots in the cabin, grabs some paper and other writing stuff and starts scribblin
[2015-02-11 13:29:38] * Golden_Dream keeps at the looting, and then picks up one of the small bins. It smelled funny, so she opened one of them up and looked some of the herbs over.
[2015-02-11 13:31:12] * Bookwright greets the zebras as the clamber on board. "Welcome to our ship! Would you like some tea?"
[2015-02-11 13:35:18] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The pirates begin taking positions securing the ship.  Jugeote is amongst them, and she quickly explains to Shatara, "Your salvage, fair-is-fair.  But you don't want to head into the Silos like she is unless it looks like we've captured her and are dragging her in."
[2015-02-11 13:35:38] * CopyCat hovers just above the zebras who were crossing with ropes. She watches their deft upside-down hoof-work curiously (and very closely). The zebras involved probably gave the flying horse some looks that said ...'Really?'
[2015-02-11 13:36:16] * Shatara nods to the zebra in understanding.
[2015-02-11 13:37:21] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Jugeote comments, "I hope you ponies have goods to trade when we get there."
[2015-02-11 13:39:27] * Get_Lost is working in the captain's room, doesn't even raie the head to listen to the pirates. looks pretty focused
[2015-02-11 13:42:56] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Jugeote then starts giving Shatara navigating pointers to guide the ship towards The Silos.
[2015-02-11 13:46:39] * Bookwright excitedly explores the ship
[2015-02-11 13:50:02] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Golden_Dream recognizes most of the herbs in the smoking cocktail, but they have been treated with something -- chemical or alchemical -- that she doesn't recognize.  Still, what she does know of these, they make for quite the high.
[2015-02-11 13:55:00] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Bookwright finds exploring the ship a rather swift exercise, save for climbing the ladders up to the top of the balloon.  There are four gunner's bubbles on the ship, two atop the balloon and two beneath, accessible through the hold.  They are fairly cramped, but have enough space for a few personal possessions (including, in one, a bottle of rum).
[2015-02-11 13:55:45] <Bookwright> /me pokes Golden_Dream. "Hey. I found out where the rum went. Want some?"
[2015-02-11 13:56:11] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Each is armed with twin, linked zebra rifles.  There are over three hundred rounds of ammo between them.
[2015-02-11 14:05:21] * Golden_Dream starts gathering all the herbs into one place and, now that they actually had a place to settle down and put things where they should be, she started hefting out the heavier stuff that she's been carrying. The CRUX in particular was starting to weigh her down.
[2015-02-11 14:10:47] * Bookwright gets Shatara's attention. "This ship has a bunch of defensive turrets on it. Cramped, but accessible. Not a lot of ammo on board for them though. Eight zebra rifles won't last long with thirty-seven rounds apiece."
[2015-02-11 14:11:15] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The forest becomes more patchwork, and the shoreline slowly encroaches from the port side.
[2015-02-11 14:11:17] <Mare-Do-Well> 3There are a few more hours of flight before Jugeote announces to Shatara, "We're almost there."
[2015-02-11 14:11:32] * Bookwright "I'm not sure we have enough bodies to use them all anyways. But the rifles themselves might be salvageable."
[2015-02-11 14:12:04] * Shatara blinks a little. "Rifles? That's it? No wonder they tried to run..."
[2015-02-11 14:12:09] * CopyCat blinks, getting an idea. "Oh! Could I have a defensive turret?"
[2015-02-11 14:13:03] * Bookwright prevaricates. "Well, they're /zebra rifles,/ so they can probably set things on fire. But yeah. Just four sets of twin-linked zebra rifles and very little ammo to go round."
[2015-02-11 14:13:21] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Off to port, the remains of a seaside village are visible, badly deteriorated and looking abandoned.    Also, not exactly on course.
[2015-02-11 14:15:15] <Mare-Do-Well> 3There is a fizzing whoosh and a flash of red as someone aboard the /Cutlass/ fires off a rocket -- not a missile, but an old-fashioned fireworks rocket -- into the air in front of the two ships.
[2015-02-11 14:16:35] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The forest canopy dead ahead begins to shift and change.
[2015-02-11 14:18:50] * Bookwright is startled by the hollow pock of the firework. He leans over the railing to try and spot the person (zebra?) who let it off.
[2015-02-11 14:19:47] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Massive camouflaged cranes swing about, moving flapping triangles of multispectra camouflage nets, each over a hundred and fifty feet to an edge.
[2015-02-11 14:21:53] * Golden_Dream jumps to the sound of the firework. She scrambles back up to the deck and pulls out her binoculars. She, not for the first time today, thanked the horrible helltube for giving her another eye to depth percieve with.
[2015-02-11 14:22:05] * Get_Lost looks outside the window and smiles "oh, good: we're being towed in..."
[2015-02-11 14:23:07] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The swinging nets rotate to reveal a wartime military base dominated by three massive, circular doors set into the ground.  As the ships approach, the doors (themselves yards thick) split and swing upwards.
[2015-02-11 14:23:24] * Golden_Dream called out for someone with wings. "Hey, one of you wingy ponies! Haul th' firewagon on! I'll start puttin' th' stuff in it in th' hold!"
[2015-02-11 14:24:32] * CopyCat nods and hops back over to the Cutlass. She straps herself into the firewagon and then brings it alongside the scoutship.
[2015-02-11 14:24:48] <Mare-Do-Well> 3A small airship, brightly painted in yellow and green stripes, rises from out of one of the huge holes opening in the ground.
[2015-02-11 14:25:09] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Jugeote smiles to Shatara.  "Welcome to The Silos."
[2015-02-11 14:27:48] * Shatara feels a shiver run through his spine at the confirmation that The Silos were *that* kind of silo.
[2015-02-11 14:29:08] * Bookwright "Wow. So this is one of the places that bombed Equestria, huh? Gives me an odd feeling in my gut to look at this place."
[2015-02-11 14:29:32] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The interiors of the holes are lit up with internal lamps and beams of sunlight bounced in through an intricate array of mirrors.  The ancient missile silos are now host to what appears to be a colorful and complex vertical shantytown.
[2015-02-11 14:31:37] <Mare-Do-Well> 3A few airships are moored within the upper reaches of each silo.  The depths they can descend are limited by the bridges of rope and wood and sheet metal that criss-cross the gap like the last strands of a spider's web.
[2015-02-11 14:32:41] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Some zebra aboard the yellow and green airship begins barking orders through a loudspeaker, and the airships in dock arrange themselves to make way for two more.
[2015-02-11 14:34:30] * Mare-Do-Well 3floats next to Bookwright.  "Tell me about it."  She adds, "I've been here before.  I saw those launch."
[2015-02-11 14:36:36] * Golden_Dream takes a hit of the rum in the bottle to analyze the taste. Not enough to constitute a shot or anything, just enough to actually taste if the drink tasted any sort of decent. There could be a market here for high-grade alcohol.
[2015-02-11 14:40:58] * Bookwright shivers involuntarily. "I'm not sure if I hope those silos are empty or I hope they're full. Either option is disturbing."
[2015-02-11 14:42:11] * Golden_Dream shouts out. "Shatara, get yer feathery flank over here!"
[2015-02-11 14:42:49] <Mare-Do-Well> 3There is an odd finish to the rum.  Not unpleasant, but definitely an acquired taste.
[2015-02-11 14:45:51] * Get_Lost looks outside again "looks like we found our megaspell..."
[2015-02-11 14:46:46] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Golden_Dream determines the drink is not a true rum but a bumbo using a grenadine made from an unfamiliar fruit.
[2015-02-11 14:47:00] * Shatara seeks out Golden_Dream.
[2015-02-11 14:47:06] * CopyCat brings the Firewagon into the Silos beside the airships and looks for a place to land it.
[2015-02-11 14:47:36] * Mare-Do-Well 3comments to Get_Lost, "If these silos still have any missiles."
[2015-02-11 14:48:44] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The yellow-and-green airship relays orders that Jugeote translates, helping Shatara dock successfully.  The captured Imperial scout ship is already drawing a fair bit of attention.
[2015-02-11 14:48:59] * Golden_Dream swishes it around some before putting it down. Tasted exotic, but then again, only to her. She began to wonder if the Zebras had ever heard of fruits from back home, cherries, strawberries, apples.
[2015-02-11 14:50:44] * Get_Lost shrugs "if they don't, we will look somewhere" said that, keeps drawing and making maths on the paper
[2015-02-11 14:52:23] * Golden_Dream opens the hatch to the firewagon, digs around for the damaged Tuxedo, then shoves it in his chest. "A promise is a promise. You fix that suit fixed, I'll get shoppin' t' make you a romantic dinner fer' yer' date. Thinkin' of cookin' up some local fish and seeing how I can fancy it up from there." She kept hauling stuff to the general storage. She seemed a little happier for not having a few bomb's weight on her shoulders.
[2015-02-11 14:57:43] * Shatara eeps and nods, blushing.
[2015-02-11 15:00:22] * Get_Lost starts tapping her head, while her visor turns purple. even parlay starts acting a little weird, drawing small circles around the ship and beeping like a tilted flipper
[2015-02-11 15:04:02] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Get_Lost wisely checks for any sort of tracking signal coming from the scout ship and, in moments, has located and disarmed it.
[2015-02-11 15:04:31] * CopyCat unstraps herself from the wagon after parking it and starts to take a look around.
[2015-02-11 15:05:43] * Get_Lost trots outside the room "ah, please inform the captain that this ship was being tracked. i just disabled the device, but it could be late."
[2015-02-11 15:06:57] * Golden_Dream struggles to take off her rabbithide armor with some metal bits added on, but eventually manages to extricate herself from it after she remembers to take off the pith helm. She then piles on the surplus mesh cloak, and the Quetzlcoatl cloak. "And while you're at it, you get creative on gettin' me armored up with these and what you can scrounge around here."
[2015-02-11 15:12:20] <Mare-Do-Well> 3There are zebras all about on the walkways and bridges.  Many on the first levels stop to see the new arrivals, and rumors about the Imperial ship start spreading immediately.
[2015-02-11 15:12:21] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Bookwright's couatl slithers up onto his head and looks around.  So much food!
[2015-02-11 15:13:36] * Bookwright recasts the telepathy spell. <Zebras aren't food. Not right now, anyways. Maybe later.>
[2015-02-11 15:14:27] * Get_Lost pokepokes some apparently important zebra and tries again to relay the information about the transmitter
[2015-02-11 15:24:30] <Mare-Do-Well> 3<You are no fun.  I'm hungry>
[2015-02-11 15:25:32] * CopyCat watches the zebra go about their work. The crossing between ramps and walkways, the unloading of cargo and goods, the almost constant battle of jostling airships as they each tried to get into the most desireable spots. What seemed like chaos at first glance was actually a highly complex dance where the whole settlement were dancers.
[2015-02-11 15:26:06] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The zebra looks at Get_Lost without comprehension. But Parlay serves to translate.  The zebra's eyes widen, and she rushes off to find the Captain.
[2015-02-11 15:26:51] * Get_Lost "yay, message delivered. back to work"
[2015-02-11 15:27:17] * Bookwright taps Shatara on the shoulder. "Hey. Um. I don't know anything about hunting, and Scales here is getting hungry. We didn't manage to bag an ahool earlier, so... Um. Can you help me out?"
[2015-02-11 15:29:40] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Shortly thereafter, the Captain comes aboard, followed by Mwana, who translates for her.  "The Captain want's your friend Get_Lost to bring the disabled tracker to Kifaa.  Hopefully, it was short range, something to help them find the ship if it went down."
[2015-02-11 15:29:55] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Mwana says, "But the Captain doesn't think so.  This ship was short range, so there has to be a bigger Imperial ship just over the horizon."
[2015-02-11 15:31:04] * Get_Lost sighs and gets up again from the table, gives the transmitter to the captain and adds "here you go. good work"
[2015-02-11 15:32:40] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The Captain smiles as she takes the transmitter.  She hoofs it over to another zebra, telling him (according to Parlay) to take it to Kifaa at once.
[2015-02-11 15:33:23] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Between Parlay and Mwana, the Captain informs the ponies, "Either way, a member of the Council will be arriving shortly to meet with you."
[2015-02-11 15:37:27] * CopyCat joins Get_Lost. "Ohh, a Council zebra? Sounds fancy!"
[2015-02-11 15:38:59] * Get_Lost nodnods and goes back to work
[2015-02-11 15:47:20] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Mwana gives the Captian a pleading look, and she nods.  Parlay translates, "Go find your friend."  Mwana quickly scampers off to find Golden_Dream.
[2015-02-11 15:49:27] * CopyCat giggles as Mwana leaves. She stage-whispers to Get_Lost. "I think Mwana and Goldie are really hitting it off."
[2015-02-11 15:51:00] * Golden_Dream finishes moving stuff to the hold, then rubs her forehead. Alright, now to take the stuff in the partitioned section of the hold that she was going to sell stuff in, start being really angry and- oh hey there's Mwana. "Um, Hi, Mwana." She suddenly became oddly conscious that she was naked.
[2015-02-11 15:54:31] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Mwana waves a hoof and makes himself not stare or anything.
[2015-02-11 15:55:09] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Mwana asks, "Mind if I come in?"
[2015-02-11 15:56:29] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Meanwhile, the Captain says, "The member of the Council will want to speak with the Captain of the ship.  That would be Noble_Heart, correct?  Or has that changed?"
[2015-02-11 15:57:14] * Golden_Dream coughs into her hoof to give her a moment to overcome her awkwardness. A classic. "Erm, yeah, of course. Y'all can always come around whenever y' want to." She started being a little more meek of tone. "Just, um. Jus' say y' want to."
[2015-02-11 16:02:12] * Get_Lost points a hoof at one of th alicorns "boss there..." goes back to math
[2015-02-11 16:04:29] * CopyCat nodnods at the captain. "I can pretend to be the captain if you like. I can pretend to make all sorts of decisions."
[2015-02-11 16:07:18] <Mare-Do-Well> 3The Captain smirks at that.  "Noble_Heart..."  Parlay fails to translate part of what she says, but it ends with "...thank you for the offer."
[2015-02-11 16:08:24] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Mwana descends into the hold.  Whistles a little.  "You look really nice out of all your armor."
[2015-02-11 16:12:27] * Golden_Dream blushes heavily. "Erm. Thank you. I ain't never heard that one before." This was a lie, she was around 13 when she heard it for the first time, but that guy was old and ugly and her dad told her to get the shotgun when she said it, something he didn't actually need to say since she already had it in her grip.
[2015-02-11 16:13:49] * Bookwright is busy ogling the deep, vertical slums of The Silos.
[2015-02-11 16:20:51] * Bookwright leans too far, and has to scramble not to fall over the railing.
[2015-02-11 16:20:51] * Get_Lost yawns and keeps writing, it's already the third pencil she tosses away
[2015-02-11 16:22:00] * Mare-Do-Well 3hovers next to Bookwright.  "Wow.  That's a lot of empty without the megaspell missiles."  She watches a balloon carry zebras from one level to another.  "Still, that's a lot of houses... and a lot of zebras."
[2015-02-11 16:22:35] * Mare-Do-Well 3sees Bookwright scramble.  "Whoa!  Hey there.  I can't catch you if you fall, you know."
[2015-02-11 16:22:44] * Golden_Dream sighs, while looking at a big pile of ghost pirate gold, booze, and pipeweed. "... You know, I gotta ask what they use fer' money around here."
[2015-02-11 16:22:45] * CopyCat attempts to put on a no-nonsense face, looking stern yet pretty. She could so diplomat this stuff.
[2015-02-11 16:22:57] * Bookwright "I know, I know. Just... It's really vertiginous looking down in there."
[2015-02-11 16:26:09] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Mwana cocks his head.  The initial urge to be a smart ass gave way quickly to a realization that there really isn't any reason a pony would know... and that he had no idea what ponies used for currency either.  "Well, depends where you are.  But aureus and denarius are accepted pretty much everywhere."
[2015-02-11 16:27:58] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Mwana adds, "I hear in Roam a there are places that only take Imperial Script."
[2015-02-11 16:28:16] <Mare-Do-Well> 3--- End of Session ---
[2015-02-11 16:33:15] * Golden_Dream stares him dead in the eyes. She's been waiting for this moment for a long, long time. "Here, catch." She said, tossing a bottlecap to Mwana.
[2015-02-11 16:34:31] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Mwana catches the bottlecap and stares down at it.  "huh?"
[2015-02-11 16:37:36] * Golden_Dream watches his expression. "You know what that is?"
[2015-02-11 16:48:25] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Mwana looks at Golden_Dream oddly.  "Yeah.  It's the top from one of your bottles of pansy non-alcoholic sugar-water."  He pauses, "Right?"
[2015-02-11 16:49:24] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Which may be a little rich considering Golden_Dream knows the Captain doesn't let him drink alcohol.
[2015-02-11 16:51:00] * Golden_Dream tries not to flinch. Tries really hard to stay deadpan. "Yup, yer' right." Pause for effect. "It's also what most ponies use as money."
[2015-02-11 16:59:42] <Mare-Do-Well> 3Mwana stares in disbelief.  Then finally says, "Ponies are weird.  You know that, right?"
[2015-02-11 17:02:43] * Golden_Dream counters with, "Says th' pirate Zebra what speaks perfect Equestrian."
[2015-02-11 17:03:24] * Golden_Dream adds, "And what sees ghosts."