Text Adventure Chapter 64 Log

>You turn back to Twilight as theories begin to pop in your head, knowing if anyone in Equestria could answer your questions, it would be her.
“Wait, what did you mean but unless we have something, for the magic draining thing?”
>”Huh?”
“You just said nevermind in the middle of it.”
>”It’s a small thought I had, but it wouldn’t have worked anyways, don’t worry about it.”
>You decide to let it drop as you have other hypotheses begin to bud.
“This curse was supposed to have been eradicated, right? The number of ponies who even know about it seems rather limited. Given that this seems to be a rather unique case, the curse can't have spread far... the pony in the hospital might even have been directly curse... If curses take a portion of the caster's life force like you said... would it be possible to analyze the patient's magic and trace it back to whoever cursed him?”
>Twilight stops for a second, thinking intently on your query.
>”Hmm… To be honest, I’m not sure. We’ve been able to track who’s casted a spell from their magical signature. Considering the circumstances around Steel I would have to say we can’t. It’s been too long since the curse was cast, and the pony responsible is probably long gone by now, making any matching magical signature, well, unmatchable.”
>So it’s a possibility, but it can’t happen here.
“So, what if we found the caster anyways? Could we match whatever part of himself he left with the curse to him?”
>”If you found him, yes, but there’s no telling who could’ve possibly done it since we can’t track the signal, so even if you found him there’d be no proof that he casted the spell unless we somehow got him right to Steel. If he casted the curse in the first place, that isn’t a very good idea either.”
>Okay, that’s busted too.
“So, the Jovius Curse dies when a user's magic is completely cut off, is the gist of it?”
>”When it’s completely removed from their body and life-force, yes.”
“What if we were to restrict him from accessing his own mana, sort of form a 'reservoir' so that the curse dies off and then we can flood his body with mana again?”
>Twilight sets her papers down and stares at you.
>”What are you getting at?...”
“I found a spell at Fortuna Potions called the Aphitis Cuffs. It can indefinitely manaseal someone without hurting them, until a special word is spoken. Have they tried that yet?”
>”I actually know the aphitis spell, Anon. If you put that on Steel Magnolias and allowed him to use his magic again, the curse’s strength would grow exponentially side by side with their magic. As soon as someone said that word, he’d die instantly. Although, I guess if it was to save his life, we could do that. We’d just have to make sure that word will never be accidentally said near him…”
“Really?”
>”Yes… But it’s far too risky. I wouldn’t want to let his life be decided on whether somepony or not says a word. You see, the more complicated or less-used the unseal word of the Aphitis Cuffs is, the more power you have to put into it to work.”
“Oh.”
>Damnit.
“How about a teleportation or portal spell? Could we possibly separate him from the curse, or even his magic that way?”
>”Anon, teleportation transports the physical body and everything that goes with it, so no you can’t split it. And portals don’t even work that way.”
>Twilight keeps looking through her documents, and you realize you’re completely out of ideas.
>You look around and spot the book on dark magic that you left on the table.
>Grabbing it with levitation, you slowly float it over to Twilight’s table, and her eyes stick on it the instant she sees them.
>”Ooh, Thank you, Anon! This’ll definitely help… I just hope I can find something in it…”
“No problem. I’m not using it anymore anyways.”
>She opens it up and sets it alongside her other documents, quill scribbling furiously again.
>Suddenly, you get one more idea.
>This one you should probably keep to yourself, but what if it was right?”
“I have one more thing. The Changeling might know a few more things about draining magic, considering they feed off of love. It might know where to start?”
>”It won’t help you. And even if it would, it doesn’t know anything about draining magic other than love, so don’t bother.”
“Right… So, since the hive plan's a bust... what should we do about the Changeling? You obviously know more about them than I do. I wouldn't feel right suddenly turning around and treating it like a prisoner... I suppose that's just a bit of outsider sentiment... but I've already stepped on enough toes trying to stick my neck out for it, so I'll trust your judgment on this one.”
>Twilight sets everything down, and actually walks up to you to give you her full attention.
>”Anon… We won’t be treating it like a prisoner. Since Celestia banned you from going to the hive, Shining’s already taken the liberty... of…”
“Wait… what?”
>She nods slowly.
>”It’s for the best, Anon. It may be something with life, but it has no mind of its own and will not hesitate to turn on us. We all came to a consensus on it, and it’s already passed. Don’t worry about it anymore, okay?... I know how you feel, but if you still feel bad about it, then you can take it up with him.”
“...”
>So, that’s it. The changeling is gone, according to Twilight.
>She returns to her work, and you take a quick glance at the clock.
>10:55 A.M.
>What would you like to do?



“Where is he?”
>”He’s in the top floor, probably cleaning up. A-anon!”
>You leave without another word to her, and you take off out of the library running.
>You go as fast as you can, going back to the stairs of the hallway and going up, hoping you can make it in time.
>There’s no way you’re about to let this happen.
>You know Twilight was telling you it was already gone so you wouldn’t go after him.
>You at least want to check, if anything else.
>Not very sure why, but you need to know.
>You go past the second floor, the third, fourth and so on.
>It takes nearly five minutes to reach the top, and you notice that the hallways are much shorter here, the Palace narrowing near the apex of its design.
>There’s only a few doors, but you know which one he’s in.
>Among the normal crystal doors on the sides, the one at the very end has metal reinforcements, a skybox, and two guards watching over it, in full armor unlike the other half-armored guards.
>You have a feeling they’re not about to let you through, as they’re already staring with daring temptation.
>You compose yourself and catch your breath, thinking.
>What would you like to do?



>At this point, you’re calm and rational.
>Going in there, whether through combat or protest or sneaking in, won’t do any good.
>They’ve made their decision, and you’re not in a place to go against it right now.
>You turn away and slowly go back down the stairs, knowing you couldn’t hold it against just him.
>He probably was ordered by Celestia to do that, even.
>You never did get the full details on what Twilight meant about a consensus.
>It bogs you down that they didn’t include you, but then again, you’re an alien yourself, and while you’ve helped them a lot, it’s thinking highly of yourself they’d let you listen in on a royal meeting about the life of something else.
>As much as you disagree with what’s happening, it probably was, and is, for the best.
>You make your way down back to the bedrooms, and when you reach the hallway you see a pink party pony looking around, sticking her head in the different bedrooms.
>”Nonny’s not here either… I wonder where he went…?”
>Once you get close enough, Pinkie’s ear twitches and she looks at you, her face brightening instantly.
>”NONNY!”
“Hey, Pinkie.”
>She immediately bounds up to you and starts pushing you downstairs.
>”You’ve been gone a long time, mister! We thought we were gonna have to go without you, and I said I’d never leave a friend behind no matter what forever and ever and…”
>Pinkie continues this tirade as she leads you back down to the Main Hall, and out of the Palace.
>The brisk air meets your face, and you’re greeted by your party and Wheaties, all getting a bit impatient.
>“I FOUND HIM!”
>They all greet you curtly and bundle their coats up a bit tighter.
>Except Berry who just takes another swig of the warming spirits.
>Redheart comes up and starts to brush your robe off where Pinkie was pushing you as Applejack speaks.
>”Where did ya go, Anon? Ah went up to the library to see if you were meditatin’ like ya said, but Twilight said you ran off somewhere up top so we thought we’d just wait here. What were ya doin’?”
>Iron steps in, getting a little chilly himself.
>”Does it matter where he’s been? Iron Will hasn’t seen the guy in days, and it’s about time we had some quality, kickass lunch!”
>Applejack and the rest still seem to want to know.
>What do you say?



“It’s nothing important. I had a bit of chronic hero syndrome but I decided against it. Will’s right anyways, friends are more important. So, let’s see if Gyro wants to come and get something to eat, huh?”
>A unanimous round of agreement escapes your party, and they set off before you even get a chance to blink.
>They didn’t even ask about what happened.
>They’re just glad you’re here.
>Whether you made the right decision or not with the Changeling, you’re glad you’re here right now.
>You quickly catch up and see that Wheaties has really taken to the other mares, laughing and joking with them.
>You’re downwind of Iron and Berry, however, and the smell is starting to give you a mixture of disgust and arousal.
>It’s like they tried to shower it off, but they’ve been in that room so long the smell of mating isn’t going to go away for a long, long time.
>You suppose it’s a… form of training.
>Is there anything you’d like to do on the way to Gyro’s shop?



>As you walk with the group, you decide a little more training is in order, at least with your levitation.
>You slowly raise your free hand and the gun strapped across your body floats up, being the heaviest thing you’ve lifted so far with it.
>After a little bit of walking, there’s a lull in conversation, and your name is called.
>”Anon, what are you doing? I thought you gave up trying to be stupid, and now you’re waving around the boomstick with your unstable magic.”
>Gable has a point.
“I figured I might try and levitate something to train it up a bit. my skills in that department are weaker than a filly unicorn’s, still.”
>”Then pick up Wheats, she’s the skinniest one here.”
>Wheaties looks at Gable, then back at her body.
>”I’m not that skinny…!”
>Huh.
>Applejack and Redheart having been wearing armor this whole time, and they’re noticeably larger than Wheaties now.
>Berry has a beer gut or sorts, and Pinkie’s sweets make her the ultimate jiggler.
>Wheaties doesn’t have armor or any oddities…
>You raise both hands and she instantly feels what you’re trying to do.
>”Anon, do you listen to everything your friends say?! I don’t wanna flyy! … Oh.. did you change your mind?”
>No you did not fucking change your mind, you just can’t lift her at all.
>Looks like you need stronger levitation before you can lift up a pony, much less a gun.
>You keep it afloat, but with the barrel in the air just in case.
>With attention diverted to you, Berry takes this time to keep it there.
>”So, what’s with the robes? I thought you had armor to you know, protect you?”
“I’ve become a bit more magic-oriented, and the armor wasn’t going to help me with that.”
>”What kinda magic did you learn? You uuh, you’ve sure been spendin’ a lot of time with Twilight, that I hear.”
>Berry’s waving her eyebrows at you.
>..Oh, Oh!
“Y-you too.”
>Berry, Pinkie and AJ start laughing quite loudly while Redheart turns three shades more red.
>”Nah, but really, what did you learn?”
“Well, I can use healing magic and create portals.”
>Everyone shut up instantly, besides the questioner, Berry.
>”W-what?”
“I can’t use them yet because I don’t have the mana, but I know them.”
>You then feel a powerful slap on your back, and a gray arm shoves you into a one-sided hug.
>”Our little boy’s growin’ up! If you ever need help with that magic thing, I bet it’s all just a simple issue that a little assertiveness won’t fix! Though, you gotta take my classes.”
“You mean, pay you?”
>”Well, yes.”
“As we’re going to the place where I get my royalties?”
>Iron clears his throat.
>”It sounds like you’re accusing me of trying to squeeze the gold out of ya!”
>You simply give him an incredulous stare.
>”Er… Well you’re still paying for lunch, right?”
>The entire group starts roaring in laughter, and you all get along happily as you round the corner to Gyro’s.
>...
>”Whoa, what’s happened here?”
>”I don’t know… I’ve never seen renovation like this before.”
>The rest of the party is speechless besides Berry and Redheart as the Great Scientific Wonder comes into view.
>What is left of the shop remains at the forefront, still with the trademark crystal cog on the top.
>However, the rest of the back has been demolished…
>...And there’s an entire crew of construction ponies laying a foundation for a building nearly ten times its size.
>With the back being taken down, you can see all the inventions and trinkets Gyro’s made over the years on full display, with some new hires working as security.
>They have firearms smaller than your shotgun, with a single barrel and a revolving chamber.
>It looks like the schematics worked out.
>You and your group approach the store, walking inside by going around the back.
>Amongst the chaos of nearly a hundred ponies browsing the wares of many new shelves, you see Gyro welding something with a torchlight near the front.
>You get close to the counter, and he suddenly looks up, removing his mask to reveal one of the happiest expressions you’ve ever seen on him, even if it was smudged with dirt and grease.
>He waves another stallion over to take his spot with the mask and torch.
>”Hey, Anon! L-look around at this, man, it’s a-amazing, I-I-I just can’t… I can’t believe what’s going on, and you won’t either when I tell you!”
“Oh really? What’s going on, man?”
>He approaches you, and you decide to give him a little something you’ve learned.
>You bend down a bit to hug him, and he meets your embrace just as fully as you, probably expecting it.
>Used Blessing of Harmony on Gyro Gear
[-8 MP]
>The white glow that’s familiar with your entourage now cascades around you and Gyro, and the feeling catches him off guard.
>When the glow subsides, you let go and see that he was almost dizzy from it.
>”Wow, I-I guess I must’ve, uhm, missed you a bit…”
“I might’ve done something there. But I want to ask you, what is all this?”
>Gyro suddenly holds up a hoof.
>He’s changed a little bit, being a bit more outgoing, forward.
>He still stutters, but it seems to be a speech impediment anyways.
>”C’mon, l-let me take you back to my office, uhm, so we can chat there, o-okay? You all c-can come too, and uh hi… Redheart…”
>He shies a bit when he says her name, but she waves with a smile anyways.
>”Good to see you, Mr. Gear.”
>You and your group follow Gyro through the chaos until you reach a door you’ve never seen before, and he opens it, ushering the eight of you inside.
>The feeling is grand.
>There’s a makeshift air conditioner that’s cooling the entire room, and there’s hundreds of little gadgets and parts slung along the walls and shelves.
>”I-It was finished yesterday… Whatever you did t-to make the guards come and get that invention, it worked a-and just… take a look at the sales pitch… here…”
>Before you can say anything, he opens a drawer and gives you a sheet of paper with numbers and graphs on it, and points to where you should look.
>The amount he’s grossing, you mistook for a phone number.
>No wonder he’s doing renovations.
>With the amount of shipping he has to do, he’s going to need his own warehouse to keep up.
“Wow.”
>”Y-yeah. Now that you’re here, I’ll, uhm, I’ll get that royalty thing ready for you okay? So, uh what’s been up w-with you?”
>What would you like to say?