Anon Quest: 3.1 Redacted Hero of the Sky

Mission #3.1 Redacted Hero of the Sky

>Friday game night, but not at the library this time.
>You and the others find yourselves in the home of Rainbow Dash, magically maintained on her cloud far into the sky. You always do love how exhilarating it is, to see the world below, fade into insignificance as you surpass the clouds in the balloon Twilight rents from Cherry.
>Red Anon’s never as enthusiastic though. He always spends the balloon rides dead in the center, refusing to look towards the ground out of a fear of falling to his death. You practically had to drag him out just to get on the cloud this evening.
>He’s such a little kid.
>On with the actual night.
>You guys gorge on soda pop, sandwiches, chips and homemade salsa, frustratingly play Monopoly as Twilight takes up street after street, watch Applejack fail at Operation (you should probably keep that one at the game shop, the non-unicorns have a horrible disadvantage), and, since it’s a group favorite, do a few rounds of Twister.
>Pinkie must’ve been raised as a contortionist or something, because she’s amazing at Twister. Out of the five rounds had, she had won three with Twilight Rarity winning one, and you winning one as well. If it weren’t for the fact that she has that poufy tail to stick in your face though, you’re sure you would’ve won twice.
>As always, the day is good fun for the whole not-family, but it’s getting late, already approaching 8:00, so that means one thing. You grab the living room table, and gather everyone together for the only game you’ve made a consistent thing, Heroes Tale.
Okay gang, pick your classes and items, we’re going to the desert this time.
>Rarity gives an unhappy moan.
>“That sounds unpleasant, and warm.”
Thank Pinkie, she gave me the idea last week.
>Rarity looks to Pinkie and she gives a confused shrug.
>Red Anon intervenes and asks, “Bro, are you sure the desert is a good idea? Those kind of quest can take forever and a day, and I doubt they’d have the patients or experience to-”
Oh, I’m sorry. Are /you/ the DM?
>“Well, uh…no but-”
Wrong! Twilight, spin the table.
>Her magic soon envelopes the table in a purple aura, and it rotates until the map, cards, and stat sheet/book, are on his side.
Congratulations Red Anon, you’re the new DM.
>“Wait, what?”
>You announce to the others,
Looks like we’re going to be partners today.
>They give a halfhearted “Yay” at the statement.
>You don’t think it ever crossed their minds that I could be anything but the antagonist.
>This is going to be a hoot.
Feel free to start your exposition while we’re getting set up bro. Oh, and pick something interesting.
>“Okay. He—hear I go.”

>The weather is lovely today. There’s an obscuringly high amount of clouds, fair temperature, and the sky’s been pretty clear of threats for the past few hours. It’s the kind of weather perfect for air riding.
>Across the morning skies, you see a large figure traveling through the air at a cruise like speed.
>It is a small house sized boat, golden brown with pink frames, and round, blue tinted windows across its sides. There is a massive set of golden propellers at the top of its mast and a second set functioning as rudders. There are noticeably massive scratches, and obvious patches of reapplied wood, but it is in good condition, no less. This vessel is known as the Airship of Dreams, Skysplitter; traveling source of one of the many heroes of Equestria, Blue Anon, noble assassin of the sky.
>He is an expert archer, rough of the Discordian Militia, clad in chainmail covered in a blue robe with silver gauntlets, and is captain of the Blue Heart Crew who are currently accompanying him.
>Anon is seen standing by the end of the Fore Deck, viewing the horizon in anticipation of his newest quest.
>Apparently, a massive squad of sky pirates from the Lunar Kingdom had invaded Cloudsdale a few days ago. It’s only a matter of hours now, before Anon and his party arrive to try and intervene.
>With him are his loyal companions; Fluttershy, the team Practionioner, in her signature white dress and brown vest, Rainbow Dash, the green robe and coat wearing hunter, Applejack the silver armored Guardian, Rarity the Summoner, wearing her seductive black dress, gray corset, and fancy feathered gray hat set, Twilight, the burgundy robed Corruptionist, and Pinkie Pie, the ship’s trusty Engineer, wearing a blue dress with a taupe vest, yellow goggles, and taupe top hat.
>These are some good looking adventurers.
>As Anon continues to look across the horizon, he hears the sound of hoof steps approaching from behind him.
>His head turns, and his eyes set themselves onto his corruptionist Twilight.
Why, hello there Twilight. You best have good news to deliver.
>“Anon we have…wait…you’re not Anon!”
>She gets into a defensive crouch as her horn begins to glow.
What? That’s just ridiculous. You’ve been a member of this team for how many years, and you don’t even recognize your good friend Blue Anon?
>Her eyes quickly adjust upon the statement.
>“Oh. Sorry, it’s just…don’t you usually wear red?”
I’ve never worn red.
>There’s an uncomfortable silence.
>“O-kay then. Uh, so…Anon, I just wanted you to know that Dash’s spotted a merchant ship half a kilometer east.”
Thank you, but we already have plenty of goods right now.
>Anon’s eyes soon spot something off in the horizon.
“Great,” he says sarcastically, “looks like we have a flock of sky-rats at the horizon.”
>“Oh no, those things are so annoying.”
>Aeri plaga, nicknamed ‘Sky-Rats’ for their long tails, short limbs, and tendency to flock, are some of the most common monsters that can be found in the Equestrian sky. They can often be seen eating birds alive in mid-air, and coming to the land in large groups to eat corpses that are found on the ground.
>There are twelve in total.
Go get the others. We’ve got business.
>You’re actually really looking forward to this one.
>This new Quest is going to take place completely in the Guardians of Sky lore of Hero’s Tale. Despite you’re completely reasonable fear of the air, you always loved this version, because you think that the airships in the card’s artwork were really nifty looking. The only thing cooler than the ship itself though, are the shoes of Hermes that the characters get.
>Twilight gallops into the interior of the ship to alert everypony in their cabins, as Anon slowly walks towards the fencing of the ship
May our blessed teacher Hermes grant us his strength, so that we may vanquish the world of its darkness, and bring light to the wonderful name of Equestria.
>He steps over the fence, and continues up its mass until his feet are left at its heels.
In your name, master of the generation of air, I put my faith into your hooves!
>Anon leans forward, and falls from the edge of the ship.
>As he free falls, a set of glowing orbs of light form around the ankles of his boots, until in a matter of seconds, they grow and form into a set of wings that fade to white and feathers.
>Anon’s ark takes a sharp turn upward, and with his magical boots giving his entire body support, he begins gliding through the air, until reaching a cloud for cover.
>He quickly pulls the bow from around him, pulls out an arrow, and draws it as far back as he can.
This is gonna be a blast.
>He rolls an 84.
>Anon releases the arrow, and it flies forward, in a streak of what almost appears to be lightning, piercing clean through one of the rat’s skulls at the very front.
>Confused and scared, the rats begin to fly erratically, unsure of what’s going to happen. A pair however, do spot Anon, and begin flying in his direction.
>They don’t make it far though, before Dash flies in like a rocket, knocking one of the two through the air for a one way trip with the earth below, and sending the other off course by the force of wind she produced.
Bout time you showed up.
>“Yeah, you’re welcome,” says Dash with a smirk.
>She immediately uppercuts the other before it can recover.
>A couple more enemies come in the direction of Anon and Dash, while the remaining seven continue towards the ship. They’re confronted however, as Twilight, Applejack, and the reluctant Rarity, gallop through the air towards them, each using a set of horseshoes similar to Anon’s boots.
>Twilight’s horn begins to glow it’s familiar purple aura, before releasing a powerful blast at one of the seven enemies flying towards them. It misses however, and the creature targeted glides like a bullet towards her, before driving its sharp little teeth into Twilight’s neck.
>She gives a loud “eep” from the sharp, but not even close to lethal bite. She may want to apply some anti-biotics later though; the bite of an aeri plaga can kill in a matter of weeks if left untreated.
>The other six quickly reach them, with one immediately taking a bite at Applejacks nose, and the other one charging for her torso, only to realize she’s protected by her armor causing it to fail.
>That +15 defense is going to be a pain to get around.
>Desperately shaking her head while pulling the sky rat with her front hooves to free her nose, Applejack says in an almost nasally tone, “You nasty little varmints, get yer teeth out of me.”
>She eventually shakes it free, before knocking the life out of it with her hoof. The second sky-rat however, flies a few feet away, to encircle her with the safety of distance as its motivation to continue.
>The next two prepare to attack Twilight, but before they dive in, one is suddenly hit with a series of rounds fired from a gun. These aren’t bullets however, they’re best compared to those bang snaps that pop when thrown at the ground (or being pelted with them by your older sibling on a holiday).
>Following the shot, you see approaching from the ship, Pinkie the engineer, flying in on a small, yellow, multi-propellered, petal operated contraption, light, and simplistic in form, yet complex in structure.
>You’d think something as fragile looking as her flying machine would need more, but judging on the two silver barrels mounted on the sides of her blue and white striped saddle-turret, protection probably isn’t an issue for her.
>“Don’t worry girls! Iii’m coming,” she says enthusiastically as she petals her little hooves away.
>As Pinkie flies in for the others, Anon is attacked by the pair that did not try to go after the others. With a very good role, the eighth rat bites his bicep, with its teeth going deep into his cloth and stabbing at his flesh. The ninth then scratches up his face before Anon manages to throw it off. He then pulls out his side dagger, and tries to stab the seventh, but he had his turn already, so he can’t cause any additional damage. Same goes for Dash, who tries to help, but just can’t seem to land a flying cross on either of them.
>Going back to the others, you focus your attention to Rarity, who’s got two rats ready to take a bite out of her soft and vulnerable rear. Not wanting any part in this however, her horn begins to glow a light blue, and she readies herself to produce a twin summoning.
>“I do not have time to deal with these disgusting creatures,” she says to herself, “I have ladies to do this f-”
Hold it!
>What?
>Anon breaks the immersion of his struggle, everything has become frozen in place.
Rarity, I know you’re going to want to try and summon your Topaz Twins, but that’s stupid. These enemies are bottom of the barrel trash, and will be defeated before the second phase even ends. You’re summon would then be pointless, because there’d probably be at least one other party member that could’ve taken the place of your minions attack before our win, thus saving you mana.
>“…Okaaay?” says Rarity
>Darn it Blue.
>Pinkie adds to the confusion announcing, “Don’t worry, Mr. DM. We can still make this work.”
>Dash tells her, “I STILL don’t know what a DM is!”
>For crying out loud!

>You rewind the scene.
>Going back to the others, you focus your attention to Rarity, who’s got two rats ready to take a bite out of her soft and vulnerable rear. Despite her sub-par defense, she goes at it, whipping rat number 10 across the face, causing it to give a ghastly shriek as it falls, flapping erratically before landing in a cloud below. The second rat gives her a fierce scratch across the right cheek, barely damaging her, but blemishing her features.
>“WHY YOU!”
>She tries to whip it, but turn laws leave nothing but the bitter pain of not being able to harm it.
>As she feels a single drop of blood come out of her wound, she yells to the ship, where Fluttershy waits in defense.
>“Attack this thing for me!” she demands.
>Fluttershy sighs, before practically teleporting into the battle field, and knocking the poor thing unconscious with a hoof to the back of the neck.
>She stuns it, but it’s not a kill.
>With half of your party either fainted in a cloud, or falling to their deaths unconscious, the second phase begins.
>The fourth sky-rat pestering Anon and Dash manages to finally clamp its teeth deep into the back of the base of Dash’s neck; a very special spot that’s not physically possible for her to touch.
>“Ah. Ah! AH! GET OFF OF ME,” She says as its teeth grind into her flesh.
>She begins to flip, shake, and swerve wildly in the air trying to force it off of her, but it’s just not working.
Dash, you need to stop moving!
>She doesn’t stop; it only gets worse as she further exhausts herself trying to shake it off.
>Anon sighs in disappointment, and says to himself.
Darn it Dash. You’re making this harder than it needs to be
>He pulls an arrow from his quill, and pulls it back on his bow. (Blue Anon begins shaking the dice in his palms, wanting a really good role against mine.)
Steeeadyyy.
>(I role a 63, but Aeri Plaga are capped at 30 defense, so it sticks with that. A minimum attack of 50 is needed to kill one.)
>He closes one eye, focusing on the entire area as Dash flies frantically through it.
Steeeeeeadyyy. (He blows the dice, and begins a “shaking the can of soda motion” with his right hand.)
>She changes direction, flying into the right side of his view, and immediately, he releases the arrow. It flies through the air at a starling speed, before hitting clean through the skull of the creature, taking a good few of Dash’s hairs with it. (He rolled a 51.)
>The stinging sensation of the bite is now replaced by the sting of the air onto her open wound. It’s better than the teeth though.
>She slowly comes down to a halt, and begins to take her breath with the occasional, “Tssssss ooohs” coming into the mix.
>She then looks to Anon and tells him, “Thanks for that.”
Don’t mention it.
>Back to the others.
>Now able to attack, Rarity gives the 11th sky-rat a fierce strike across the side with her whip; completely shattering it’s left wing and causing it to enter a freefall.
>As it falls through the sky, Rarity stares at it from above, with a look of pure hatred, but as it leaves sight, her expression slowly breaks down into a look of sadness.
>Tears begin to roll down her cheeks, and she breaks into a fit of overly dramatic sobbing.
>“That thing ruined my cheek!” she screams through her cries, “Now my face will be ruined. Nopony wants a mare with a scar!”
>The crying only gets louder.
>Fluttershy comes to her comfort, putting a hoof around her neck, and tells her, “It’s okay Rarity, I’ll heal you up the best that I can when this is over, and with a proper amount of treatment, you’ll look good as new in a couple of days.”
“No healing,” yells Anon from the background.
>Rarity looks to Fluttershy, with a puppy dog expression, before asking her, “Are you sure I’ll still look pretty?”
>“Are you kidding,” Fluttershy jokingly says with a smile, “Even now, you still look /beautiful/.”
>“Aww.”
>Rarity gives Fluttershy a great big hug, feeling much better. It’s a really nice moment, that’s quickly ruined by Twilight who missed her shot again, and is getting clawed and bitten at by two of the remaining four creatures.
>“Girls, that was sweet and all, but I kind of need some help here.”
>Fluttershy blushes, and comes to her aid.
>“Sorry Twilight.”
>She flies into one, grabbing it midflight with her hooves, and begins to suffocate it’s little neck.
>It struggles to break free, as she tells it, “Shh, no tears little fella, only sleep.”
>It eventually slips out of consciousness, and she places it onto a cloud.
>Dash bolts in taking care of the second one messing with Twilight, and spikes it as if it were a volley ball, down through the sky.
>“How do ya like that?!” she announces with a cocky grin.
>Well, looks like you’re down to your last two.
>Applejack’s high defense makes a successful attack seem unlikely, so you send the final two both after Pinkie.
>Her turret however, shoots one clean out of the sky, and before the second can even make it, Applejack runs in, and bucks it into orbit with her two front hooves.
>“Not today partner,” she says confidently.
>With the last enemy dispatched, Blue Anon’s party successfully completes their first battle for today’s quest.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CUOyRbCj5mY
Good job everyone, let’s get back to the ship.
>The party gallop, fly, and petal themselves back, and immediately, everyone heads to Fluttershy’s quarters, so she can apply some antibiotics to their skin.
>Dash might need some bandages for her neck though.
>As they walk into the cabin hall, Spike hurries in from the opposite end to congratulate them.
>“That was awesome, guys. Great job as always.”
>Twilight asks, “Spike, aren’t you supposed to be steering the ship?”
>“Fffh, yeah right,” he says with a wave of the claw, “Like, I’m going to miss all the action. Besides, we’re flying in the middle of an empty ocean of sky, it’s not like there’s anything to worry about.”
>Anon gives him a curious expression, almost as if he expects that to foreshadow something, like an immediate crash, or a future ambush because Spike wasn’t paying attention, but you wouldn’t do that; you’re not a jerk like your big brother…it would be pretty funny though.
Just make sure to keep an eye out, okay.
>“No problem,” says Spike with a salute.

>Pinkie interrupts the game and asks you, “Excuse me, Red Anon?”
Yeah.
>“You mind if we stop for a minute so I can use the little filly’s room?”
Oh, okay then. Please don’t take long.