Fallout: Beyond Equestria, 60: The Top of the World (Part 2)

[2013-11-06 13:55:17] <Little_Gloom> 3The Crimson's Caravans group of adventurers sets off.  Within minutes, they are swooping across the line where the Crystal Empire ends and into the savage snowstorm that awaits them on the other side.  The wind has teeth, the cold is a vicious shock to those not protected by Equestria's Love, even with their barding.
[2013-11-06 13:55:28] <Little_Gloom> 3Swiftly, the ruins of the Crystal Empire Train Station whisk by underneath.  Fighting the wind, the group turn towards the north once again...
[2013-11-06 13:59:06] <Little_Gloom> 3The mountains quickly rise up on each side of them, cliffs plummeting downward into darkness.  The firewagon is a blessing, as the only walkable path becomes a narrow, winding ledge.  Treacherous winds buffet the wagon, passangers and pilots; navigating is slow and the flight is strenuous for both Noble_Heart and CopyCat.
[2013-11-06 14:02:37] <Little_Gloom> 3Fortunately, the snow has thinned.  Visibility is not a hazard, but the strong winds transform each snowflake into an icy needle.
[2013-11-06 14:03:23] <Little_Gloom> 3Fallout: Beyond Equestria, Session Sixty: The Top of the World (Part Two) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LETrhOP90p4
[2013-11-06 14:03:29] <Little_Gloom> 3--- Session Begins ---
[2013-11-06 14:05:08] * Get_Lost quickly puts on her winter outfit and puts the jumpsuit away
[2013-11-06 14:06:19] * Bookwright is wearing winterized armor, but it saves not his head. There is a tiny snotcicle hanging off the end of his snout. He calls out to the fliers from his exposed perch at the pintle mount: "How's the flying out there? You two okay for another hour? These maps I got are pretty outdated, but I think I can find a safe spot out of the wind for a while if you need it!""
[2013-11-06 14:07:32] * Golden_Dream is bundled up in her winter gear, still a rather filly-like affair much to her chagrin, and still feels the storm through her coat. She'd never seen this much snow before, the worst it got in Froggy Bottom Bog was the occasional layer of sleet. But fuck if she didn't want to keep it that way now. "Mmph Mmph Mmphl?" She tried to ask, but realizing her coat wasn't going to let her have it....
[2013-11-06 14:07:33] * Golden_Dream ...Stupid cold. Why'd it have to be cold?
[2013-11-06 14:07:58] * Shatara splits his time scouting ahead of the carriage a bit and resting on it, trying to ballance keeping moving and staying out of the wind.
[2013-11-06 14:09:11] * Get_Lost since there's notung better to do, the mare starts tinkering with the robot parts she had, putting them tigether with calm and singing a happy tune
[2013-11-06 14:10:10] * CopyCat battles through the wind with Noble_Heart at her side. She certainly wasn't a strong pony, and was having some difficulty with the weather. If Equestria's Love weren't protecting her from the cold she'd probably just drop from the sky.
[2013-11-06 14:11:49] * Get_Lost also, it doesn't last that much since the mare soon finds herself lacking in terms of pieces
[2013-11-06 14:19:23] * Shatara returns from a brief flight, shivering despite some crude attempts to winterize his armor.
[2013-11-06 14:21:17] * Bookwright finishes putting away the map and resumes scanning for potential threats. Or anything, really. It's pretty darn boring out here in near-whiteout conditions.
[2013-11-06 14:25:12] * Get_Lost "hey bookie, look here.... i found some spell matrixes i can build into a robot once i find the parts to make it move.... do you know what these spells are better to use?" shows to the unicorn 5 labeled chips: Clean, Pain Relief, Anesthetic, Sound Slumber and Rad-Guard "i have space for just 3 of them... what do you think we could use?"
[2013-11-06 14:26:45] * Bookwright ponders. "Um... Definitely Rad-Guard. I know the Pain Relief spell myself, so I think we can skip that. I would suggest 'Clean' and 'Anesthetic' as the other two."
[2013-11-06 14:28:54] * Noble_Heart beat her wings as best she could in the cold and wind. She wasn't that strong, but endurant she could do. "We can pull as long as We must! But when the sun begins to set We recommend seeking shelter. If it is cold like this now, it will be far beyond without Celestia's warmth!"
[2013-11-06 14:29:33] * Bookwright nods. "Right. I'll keep an eye out for shelter."
[2013-11-06 14:30:04] * Shatara glances betweens his companions, and starts preparing himself to look for a good LZ.
[2013-11-06 14:30:10] * Get_Lost nodnods "sounds fair... we could get some sort of nurse-bot here... if we could find a decent body it could even work.... i'm already missing pink-e and sweet-e..."
[2013-11-06 14:37:14] * Golden_Dream just shivers to herself. She wasn't all that over what went down at the Crystal Kingdom, and even if she was, she couldn't possibly speak past the layers of clothing. So, she just kept to herself and tried to find someplace where they could land that's a decent shelter. And that wouldn't teleport them into a nightmare city again.
[2013-11-06 14:41:29] <Little_Gloom> 3The group fly for hours.  In Equestria, the sun is reaching it's highest point in the sky.  But with the thick, shrouded clouds and the deep, shadowed canyons, it seems more like late evening.
[2013-11-06 14:43:19] * Get_Lost notices kid being a bit lonely and goes next to her, resting her had over the neck of the filly, like often mares do wth foals "it's pretty cold, mh?"
[2013-11-06 14:43:22] <Little_Gloom> 3Ahead, in a stretch of shallower valley, Bookwright spots what looks to be a pony-made structure -- a broken cylindrical form, huge enough to not be buried by snow.
[2013-11-06 14:43:31] * Shatara sighs a little, taking off once again.
[2013-11-06 14:44:47] * Bookwright shouts, "Ho! There's a big wrecked building out there y'all! Anypony wanna stop for lunch?"
[2013-11-06 14:45:01] <Little_Gloom> 3It reminds him of a collapsed factory smokestack he had once seen, fallen and broken into several pieces
[2013-11-06 14:47:44] * Bookwright "It's a... a thing! I thing I don't know what it is, but flying in this weather can't be easy. I think we should call a halt!"
[2013-11-06 14:52:22] * CopyCat sends out a mental message, since it would be hard to be heard over the wind. {Bookwrite has spotted a structure below. Do you think we should stop, Noble_Heart? I admit that I could do with a rest.}
[2013-11-06 14:53:48] * Get_Lost not getting a reply from kid, the mare simply decides to rest next to her to warm each other
[2013-11-06 14:54:23] * Noble_Heart looks towards CopyCat and nods, beginning to angle downwards towards the wreckage. "We agree! A break, and some warmth, would do Us all good!"
[2013-11-06 14:54:56] * Golden_Dream would totally talk to Get_Lost. But she can't, well. Speak. She appreciates the company, though, and leans in a little. "Mmph."
[2013-11-06 14:57:46] <Little_Gloom> 3Flying ahead, Shatara is the first to get a good look.  And likening it to a collapsed smokestack is very appropriate... except in scale.  Cylindrical segments, most with lengths spanning of hundreds of feet, lie in a broken line along the valley and up the cliffs to each side.  It's large and long enough that Shatara cannot see the far end through the snow.
[2013-11-06 15:00:38] <Little_Gloom> 3The cylinders grow slowly smaller in radius, the first segments large enough to swallow a Manehattan city block if stood upright.  They are hollow, forming a long line of pony-crafted, perfectly circular caves.
[2013-11-06 15:02:31] * Bookwright scans the surroundings for movement. If there are threats down there, the time to shoot at them is now.
[2013-11-06 15:02:55] * Shatara circles around, investigating the structures, seeing if any might make a good shelter.
[2013-11-06 15:03:30] <Little_Gloom> 3The snow here is clearly extremely deep, the exterior of the cylindrical structures nearly a third buried, and have crowns of snow many ponies high.  For the firewagon to land anywhere but the sheltered inside where the snow drifts are more shallow would be... unwise.
[2013-11-06 15:06:37] * Golden_Dream just wants to be in there... Whatever it may be. [Hey, Copycat. What do you think this is?]
[2013-11-06 15:06:42] * Noble_Heart angles downwards towards the cracked entryway. "We shall need to put down within! It is unlikely We will find anywhere safer during Our journye this day!"
[2013-11-06 15:06:46] * CopyCat copies Noble's movement and heads downward. {Shatara, everypony, we are going to set down. Please keep a lookout for a suitable spot.}
[2013-11-06 15:07:38] * Get_Lost "also, if we don't find a way to start a fire we could have problems with camping...."
[2013-11-06 15:08:30] * Golden_Dream just kind of smirks at that, not that Get_Lost can see it. Technical magical whosiwhattery was out of her reach. Starting fires was much, much more her speed.
[2013-11-06 15:11:24] * CopyCat thinks back at Kid. {To me it looks a bit like the remains of a gigantic metal snake buried in the snow... But that's probably just my imagination.}
[2013-11-06 15:15:20] * Golden_Dream frowns. [Uh. Thinkin' it's either somethin' meant t' really really long, or somethin' that was built really, really tall."
[2013-11-06 15:18:52] * Get_Lost "whatever it is, it looks majestic even when it is completly ruined"
[2013-11-06 15:19:58] * Noble_Heart glances back towards the others, frowning as she continues to pull the wagon within. "We are not certain how it got here. But that is less important than its utility as a safe place, for now. We can search for clues once within."
[2013-11-06 15:21:05] * Bookwright "I think... I think that's a busted SPP tower. It couldn't be anything else."
[2013-11-06 15:22:05] <Little_Gloom> 3As the group swoop towards the dark circular maw of the first cylindar, Get_Lost spots the ghostly form of Mare-Do-Well "landing" on the snowy crown above, watching.
[2013-11-06 15:22:10] * Bookwright "If that's what it is... there might be a basement or something that we could take shelter in. You can't build a giant tower like that without rooting it deep into the ground."
[2013-11-06 15:22:41] * Get_Lost waves a hoof at the ghost and points it at kid, cheering "hey, look who's there!"
[2013-11-06 15:23:07] * Get_Lost then whispers to the filly "come again, why is she following us?"
[2013-11-06 15:25:36] * Golden_Dream 's eyebrows raise. Huh. That's actually pretty cool. "Mmphrlmmfle." She huffed. [Oh, fuck trying to say anything. Copycat, get us into the underground segment. It'll be warmer the further we get down.]
[2013-11-06 15:42:26] * Bookwright shivers. This place feels like death visited it...
[2013-11-06 15:46:33] * Shatara circles around the wagon as it decends, keeping an eye out for anything out of place or particularly warm-looking spots.
[2013-11-06 15:48:03] * Golden_Dream smiles, then takes the coat off of her head, then puts her proper hat on top. "She's prolly following us 'cause we're the only folk she's met that can talk to her. If you couldn't talk to folks for a good long time, you'd be itching for conversation, too." She looks at the ghost, then tips her hat. "Hey, Mare-Do-Well. Come down here, ah missed y'!"
[2013-11-06 15:50:09] * Get_Lost waves a hoof to the ghost too, but lets the kid make the talk
[2013-11-06 15:54:20] <Little_Gloom> 3Try as they might, however, none of them spot the base of the tower.  Flying closer, Shatara notices the curving cut along the bottom of the first segment.  While the far end, and the ends of each other segment, are cracked and shattered, this end doesn't look like it broke off so much as like it was cut by the colossal blade.
[2013-11-06 15:56:46] <Little_Gloom> 3The ghostly figure leaps down and starts flying next to the wagon.  "It's... weird... seeing it like this," she finally says in a voice only Golden_Dream can hear.
[2013-11-06 15:58:36] * Golden_Dream nods. "She's sayin' that it's weird seein' it like this." She relayed. She figured, hey. She proved to be real back in the Crystal Kingdom. Least she could do is relay her messages. "Were you around when it was bein' built?" She asked.
[2013-11-06 16:00:30] <Little_Gloom> 3Shatara spots a brief flicker of light somewhere ahead.  It looked like a fire, but it is at the edge of visibility with this snow.  It would have come from one of the other segments, he thinks.
[2013-11-06 16:00:50] * Bookwright "Who? Your ghosty friend? I gotta admit, it gives me the willies too."
[2013-11-06 16:00:58] <Little_Gloom> 3The ghost nods.
[2013-11-06 16:02:40] * Golden_Dream nods at Bookwright. "Yeah. She says that she's been around when it was built. Ain't that cool?"
[2013-11-06 16:03:26] * Bookwright "You kiddin' me? Er, actually, don't answer that. Of course it's cool! Too bad I can't interview her..."
[2013-11-06 16:04:25] * Golden_Dream is not amused by his use of terminology. "Why not? She's right here."
[2013-11-06 16:06:23] * Bookwright "Because you're the only one who can talk to her. I can't be sure you're not just putting me on, and nopony would believe me even if I didn't think you were making it all up. A point I'm still divided on, mind you."
[2013-11-06 16:09:41] * Noble_Heart peers into the darkness, swooping down lower. "We suggest landing in one of the pieces! We can mount explorations from there!"
[2013-11-06 16:09:49] * Golden_Dream half-lids her eyes. Really? Now he's putting me on? "Okay, dipshit. Explain t' me how I knew folks were comin' back at th' Crystal Kingdom when shit was goin' down and the heartless were chargin' in if she didn't tell me so."
[2013-11-06 16:10:53] * CopyCat butts in, forgetting this might be a private conversation. {She isn't making things up, Bookie. I would know. And besides, Get Lost can see the ghost too.}
[2013-11-06 16:19:21] * CopyCat adds, after remembering. {Also there was that time she visited my head. That's how we found she really liked a pony called Rainbow Dash.}
[2013-11-06 16:20:30] * Bookwright shrugs. "I'm just playing devil's advocate here. Intangible witnesses are like aluminum hearth's warming eve trees."
[2013-11-06 16:21:31] * Golden_Dream nods. [Yeah, I think she's Rainbow Dash's marefriend or somethin'.] She looks at Mare-Do-Well. "So, ya'll know Rainbow Dash real well, right? What was she like?"
[2013-11-06 16:21:32] * Shatara adds to the mind-conversation. [Uuh, there's some light up further ahead...should we investigate or just put down...?]
[2013-11-06 16:24:15] * Golden_Dream is startled by Shatara's entrance into the conversation. Also, by what he said. [We, uh. Don't wanna approach it head-on. Best be ready t' ambush whatever it is in case they ain't friendly. Put it down here an' then we'll creep up on it on hoof.]
[2013-11-06 16:25:03] <Little_Gloom> 3The ghost's costumed eyes widen.  "uh.... why do you ask?"
[2013-11-06 16:25:29] * Bookwright somehow manages to grunt mentally. [Well, I'm no good at sneakin'. Somepony else will have to do that."
[2013-11-06 16:26:24] * Shatara mind-replies acknowlegement and waggles his wings, guiding the princesses in. Brain-talk is wierd.
[2013-11-06 16:27:57] * Golden_Dream shrugs. "Bookie here's a real historical buff. Ya'll seem t' know all th' ol' ministry mares, and y' seem t' be real close to Rainbow Dash. We jus' thought ya'll were... Uh. Close." Okay, so it was only her that thought that.
[2013-11-06 16:29:12] * Golden_Dream chuckles a little bit. [You serious? In this weather, I can't tell your head from your flank. Sneakin' 'll be easy.]
[2013-11-06 16:39:47] <Little_Gloom> 3Noble_Heart and CopyCat fly into the darkness of the first segment, pulling the firewagon behind them.  The wind cuts out abruptly, the flight becoming immediately smooth and steady as the alicorns expertly compensate.  They swoop down over the drifts of snow, watching for when the snow height is less than their knees before putting down...
[2013-11-06 16:42:44] <Little_Gloom> 3...and /ICE/!  The alicorn's hooves touch down on a near frictionless surface beneath the snow, the weight and momentum of the firewagon turning their gentle landing into a sliding scramble...
[2013-11-06 16:44:22] <Little_Gloom> 3...furiously, the alicorns beat their wings backwards, fighting the slide, and bringing the firewagon to a safe stop.
[2013-11-06 16:47:07] * Bookwright gets down gingerly, muttering. "Well, that was almost interesting. Shatara, you wanna check out the glow?"
[2013-11-06 16:47:57] * CopyCat looks over to Noble_Heart. "Phew, that was quite a surprise!"
[2013-11-06 16:48:43] * Noble_Heart scrambles to keep upright a few moments, more than a touch shocked as she slides to a stop. "We were not expecting such slippery landing. But it is fortunate that We have Our sister to help Us."
[2013-11-06 16:50:21] * Golden_Dream gets down. Ice. Huh. She tried to walk forward into the building if possible, and didn't really manage much distance. But she was sliding. Hmm...
[2013-11-06 16:50:36] * Shatara nods a bit, glad he landed under his own power. "We probably should...who knows what's out there..."
[2013-11-06 16:50:39] * CopyCat smiles. "I feel fortunate, too." She cranes her neck to check the wagon behind her. "Is everyone okay in there?"
[2013-11-06 16:51:27] <Little_Gloom> 3The interior is without light, save that from the way they entered.  The cylindar is only mostly hollow.  A metal spiral staircase, twisted and bent beyond repair, snakes through the cylinder, frozen to the floor.  At intervals, strips of cable run up the interior; snapped cables dangle from above. Something blocks light from being seen through the far end.
[2013-11-06 16:52:48] * Bookwright decides to risk it and lights his horn, unholstering Pew Pew at the same time.
[2013-11-06 16:57:07] * Noble_Heart looked upwards as her horn lit up, carefully unstrapping herself to take a look around. "We do not think We will find much better of a place than this, sadly."
[2013-11-06 16:58:28] * Shatara takes a moment to admire the internals of the broken tower.
[2013-11-06 16:59:14] * Golden_Dream seems to be sliding on top of the ice quite gracefully. She even leaps up and does a little spin in the air! This was fun!
[2013-11-06 17:01:09] * CopyCat unbuckles herself from the wagon and claps her hooves together as she watches Golden_Dream. "Wow, you're a natural!" But with two hooves off the ground, CC starts to slide away. "Eeep!"
[2013-11-06 17:03:18] * Golden_Dream skids to a stop and gives a cocky smile. "Hey, Mare-Do-Well! I wanna make a bet with you! I bet you that I can beat you in a race around this here ice ring." She slides on over to CopyCat and helps her along. "It never used t' snow back home, but it did get cold. And cold turns th' ice around everywhere solid." She whispered to Copycat. "C'mon. Y'jus' gotta get yourself kinda slide. Use yer...
[2013-11-06 17:03:20] * Golden_Dream ...wings t' turn, if y' gotta."
[2013-11-06 17:03:40] <Little_Gloom> 3Bookwright looks about as his horn illuminates part of the structure around where he is standing.  The glow reflects off of ice and bits of metal, casting fragments of light farther down.  Turning, he spots a pony-sized number eight stencil-painted onto the stone in cyan and purple.
[2013-11-06 17:07:07] <Little_Gloom> 3Many of the cables and pipes that run the length of the structure are unfathomable, but Shatara can identify those belonging to basic utilities, an elevator, a dumbwaiter and even pnumatic tubes.
[2013-11-06 17:07:18] * Bookwright cocks his head. "Eight? Number eight? Maybe the eighth tower... I wonder why blue and purple though? That's an odd color choice."
[2013-11-06 17:10:22] * CopyCat gains some semblance of control thanks to Golden_Dream's assistance. "Oh, thank you. Wings, yes that's a good idea." She extends her wings and uses them to help her balance.
[2013-11-06 17:10:31] * Bookwright walks carefully up the interior of the tube, casting a critical eye over all.
[2013-11-06 17:10:41] <Little_Gloom> 3"Eight floor," Mare-Do-Well states to Golden_Dream as she glides gracefully past her.  "You flew past seven, six and five getting in.  And about half of four."
[2013-11-06 17:13:38] <Little_Gloom> 3Furthermore, Shatara is spying the strut and support work along the walls for building floors.  If each of those floors were built, based on what he had seen scouting, this tower would have had hundreds of stories.  Enough to house a city.  But clearly most of the interior floors had never been built.
[2013-11-06 17:13:39] * Golden_Dream nods in appreciation to Mare-Do-Well. "Eighth floor, Bookie! Mare-Do-Well says we'll find that we flew past seven, six, five, an' half'a four gettin' in." She goes in a little circle around Mare-Do-Well. "So, how 'bout it? Ah win, ya'll gotta do Bookie's interview. And if you win..." She egged her on a little bit.
[2013-11-06 17:15:13] <Little_Gloom> 3Mare-Do-Well waves a ghostly hoof at the floor, demonstrating her inability to skate.
[2013-11-06 17:15:42] * Golden_Dream shrugs. "Aw, you can fly just fine." She sticks her tongue out.
[2013-11-06 17:16:44] <Little_Gloom> 3Mare-Do-Well cocks her head.  "Yeah, but that wouldn't be fair."  She smirks.  "You'd lose."
[2013-11-06 17:17:42] * Golden_Dream grins. "Not as long as you keep yerself from cheatin' and cuttin' over the middle I won't. Now, c'mon. What happens if I lose?"
[2013-11-06 17:19:32] <Little_Gloom> 3Mare-Do-Well frowns.  "I don't cheat."
[2013-11-06 17:20:11] <Little_Gloom> 3She adds, "Flying is just... faster than skating.  I can't skate.  And you can't fly.  There's no contest."
[2013-11-06 17:21:28] * Bookwright can hear Golden_Dream's half of the conversation echoing up the wreckage. His imagination runs wild.
[2013-11-06 17:21:29] * CopyCat propels herself across the frosted floor with her wings. "Weeee!"
[2013-11-06 17:22:38] * Golden_Dream giggles. "Yeah? That's what my brother used 't say, and then I beat 'em. Tried t' cut over this bramble that he thought ah can't jump over in th' middle of this pond back home. Then I did and let him know that jus' 'cause he has wings don't make him th' fastest thing on four hooves."
[2013-11-06 17:27:47] <Little_Gloom> 3Mare-Do-Well gives Golden_Dream a confused, appraising look.  Then sighs.  "Sure.  Fine."  Then smirks.  "Haven't gotten to race in forever.  Too bad this will be so quick."
[2013-11-06 17:28:23] * Noble_Heart tilts her head to one side, then looks up the tower. "We have never seen one of these towers so much as scratched. What force could have toppled that which endured harm even the Goddess could not survive?"
[2013-11-06 17:29:12] * Golden_Dream smirks. "Well, fine then." She proceeds to skate in small circular patterns to get momentum going. "CopyCat! Me' n Mare-Do-Well're gonna race. Count us down!"
[2013-11-06 17:29:27] * Shatara watches CopyCat gleefuly wing-skate around with a chuckle.
[2013-11-06 17:29:37] * Bookwright "Homage blew it up with something. I really don't know what. Whatever it was, it carved the tower nice and clean."
[2013-11-06 17:32:06] * CopyCat flaps herself to a stop. "O-kay! Mare-Do-Well, Golden_Dream, on your marks! Get set... Go!"
[2013-11-06 17:33:17] * Golden_Dream bolts with all the speed she had stored in her while doing those small circles. She went down low and fast, smiling hard as she went around the iced over area.
[2013-11-06 17:33:47] * Golden_Dream ... And then proceeds to faceplant.
[2013-11-06 17:41:00] <Little_Gloom> 3Mare-Do-Well shoots off like a blur-colored-blur... then abruptly stops, turning to face Golden_Dream.  "You okay?"
[2013-11-06 17:42:05] * Noble_Heart winces slightly as Golden Dream falls over. She moves carefully, flying more than walking, despite aching wings. "Are you alright?"
[2013-11-06 17:43:06] * Golden_Dream tried very hard to clamber up to her hooves, but in her haste, it wasn't going very well. Defeated, she just kind of flumped onto the ice. "Next time we race, it's gonna be somewhere I can actually get a hoofhold."
[2013-11-06 17:45:49] <Little_Gloom> 3Mare-Do-Well does a loop then lands.  "And I'll 'run'.  It will be much more fair."
[2013-11-06 17:48:14] * Golden_Dream eventually does get up, and then tries to take off once more. She is a tad wobbly, though.
[2013-11-06 17:50:29] * Bookwright is highly amused by Golden_Dream's fall, but has decided that saying anything out loud would be jerklike.
[2013-11-06 17:51:14] * CopyCat slides over to Golden_Dream, helping the young mare like she was helped just a few minutes ago. "Don't worry Golden, it was just a slip. You'll be flying across that ice again in no time."
[2013-11-06 17:53:26] <Little_Gloom> 3The ghost offers a conciliatory, "Tell the egghead he wants floor twenty."  She adds, "After two, that will be the first completed one."
[2013-11-06 17:53:33] * Golden_Dream tries to smile, but she's a little heartbroken about her clumsy start. If Mare-Do-Well was taking this at all all seriously, she would've won already. She would've said something, but she clocked her chin pretty hard against the ice.
[2013-11-06 17:54:37] * Noble_Heart frowns slightly, tilting her head to one side. "We will assume that that's a 'yes'."
[2013-11-06 17:55:03] * Golden_Dream just frowns. [Tell Bookie he wants floor twenty.] She somehow managed to think as if she was brought low. "... Alwoight, whatt'da want?"
[2013-11-06 17:55:55] <Little_Gloom> 3Mare-Do-Well pauses.  Then, "Nothing.  Neither of us finished the race, so we tied for last."
[2013-11-06 17:56:34] * Bookwright "...Floor twenty? Wow, that's gonna be a bit of a hike. Okay then. I'm ready when y'all are."
[2013-11-06 17:57:28] * Golden_Dream churns that around in her head a little. She decided that she didn't like that as an answer. "I... No, ya'll won that fair and square. Ya'll gotta come up with somethin'." She perks up a little. "'Sides, it'll make beatin' you one day that much sweeter."
[2013-11-06 17:58:21] * CopyCat nods, then calls out to Bookwright. "Our spectral friend says you want floor 20. We should probably stick together. At the very least we can hug to keep warm."
[2013-11-06 17:58:51] <Little_Gloom> 3Mare-Do-Well shrugs.  "Okay.  I... I'll think of something."
[2013-11-06 17:58:53] * Noble_Heart looks down the passage and frowns. "This building is shattered in multiple places. We fear that the walk may be very dangerous."
[2013-11-06 18:01:10] <Little_Gloom> 3The ghost then adds, "First two.  Twenty, two hundred, four hundred, five hundred and five-ninety-nine."
[2013-11-06 18:02:31] <Little_Gloom> 3"...Six hundred is the weather-control satellite.  Those are the completed floors before that."
[2013-11-06 18:04:10] * Golden_Dream sniffs, then looks up at Mare-Do-Well with a competitive fire in her eyes. "Now, c'mon. Let's get back on t' somethin' serious." She proceeded to fetch her gun from the wagon, and seemed to recover quick from the blow. It was just a clock on the chin, she's been through worse. "Uh. First two, two hunnerd, four hunnerd, and five niney-nine. Six hunnerd is th' weather controller thingy. Thems...
[2013-11-06 18:04:12] * Golden_Dream ...be th' completed floors." To what that meant, she had no idea. "Let's go check out that light first. If there's folks, we gotta see if we can barter us some caps an' food from 'em."
[2013-11-06 18:04:49] * Shatara nods. "The light is probably on the way anyways...
[2013-11-06 18:07:06] * Golden_Dream winces, then rolls her chin a little. Okay, so it was still a little sore. "Hey, Mare-Do-Well." She paused, sounding like she was about to go off on a story. "Ya'll got any nicknames? Mare-Do-Well don't exactly slide off th' tongue."
[2013-11-06 18:10:42] * Golden_Dream looks at Bookwright. "And I promised myself I'd talk to you a little since ya'll backed off when me 'n Noble had a talk. So, well. What d'ya wanna know?"
[2013-11-06 18:11:56] * Bookwright flushes. "Uh. I was actually wanting to speak with Noble Heart. Sorry..."
[2013-11-06 18:12:10] * Noble_Heart looks to Bookwright curiously. "With Us? About what?"
[2013-11-06 18:13:25] * Bookwright "Well... uh. Your past. Your memories. Of, uh, before. Your name, and all that. History."
[2013-11-06 18:15:45] * Golden_Dream just kind of backs off, then. "Hey, Shatara. We haven't talked much. Where're you from?"
[2013-11-06 18:22:09] * Noble_Heart scowls a bit. "Our history is... Complicated." She shakes her head. "We do not like to speak of it."
[2013-11-06 18:22:21] * Shatara blinks a bit, settling to his haunches. He immediately regrets this decision, standing up and putting his pack under himself before trying again. "Err...a stable a bit south of Neighagara Falls..."
[2013-11-06 18:23:04] * Golden_Dream smiles faintly. "What's it like in a Stable??"
[2013-11-06 18:24:43] <Little_Gloom> 3The cyan & purple stenciled numbers climb higher as the group walks, chatting with each other.
[2013-11-06 18:25:45] <Little_Gloom> 3Mare-Do-Well is silent, seeming to have become solumnly contemplative at the query of a nickname.
[2013-11-06 18:27:20] <Little_Gloom> 3The friends' voices echo in the artificial cavern.
[2013-11-06 18:29:49] * Golden_Dream prods Shatara a little. "C'mon. Y'have t' have somethin' t' say."
[2013-11-06 18:30:53] * Bookwright grimaces. "Noble Heart, my history is /gone./ Erased. The purpose of the Followers is to guide the inhabitants of the new, post-war Equestria with the knowledge of pre-war Equestria. To reduce pain and hardship, to provide medicine and care, to teach... All of these things require remembering our history. Grim as it is, horrible as it might be."
[2013-11-06 18:31:01] * Shatara scratches his head a bit. "Well, uh..." He glances around the tunnel. "Kinda like this, Lots of steel and concrete everywhere. Only more confined. And better lit. And warmer."
[2013-11-06 18:32:32] * Golden_Dream pauses for a moment, contemplating this. "Why'd you leave?"
[2013-11-06 18:35:45] * Noble_Heart eartwitches slightly at Bookwright's words. "You would not understand. We doubt any would." She seems to think that settles it for the moment, though given the way she ruffles her wings a bit, it's clearly gnawing on her.
[2013-11-06 18:36:40] * Shatara frowns and walks silent for a moment. "I...didn't really have much choice in the matter..."
[2013-11-06 18:37:04] * Golden_Dream crooks an eyebrow. "Why not?"
[2013-11-06 18:37:35] * Bookwright "I would not understand? I wouldn't understand /what?/ You won't tell me! Or anypony! Do you know why I was in that valley? I was trying to preserve the history of the local tribes before it was washed away by the advancing tide of the NCR! I haven't got mom, or a dad, or any family, or any tribe, or any history left anymore!"
[2013-11-06 18:38:05] * Bookwright chokes up. "I wouldn't /understand!?/"
[2013-11-06 18:38:23] * Bookwright looks away from Noble_Heart, tears riming his eyes.
[2013-11-06 18:38:41] <Little_Gloom> 3An icy wind blows through the tunnel.
[2013-11-06 18:40:02] * Golden_Dream frowned sharply. Something Bookie said seemed to strike her bitterly. "... Bookie, pull yerself together. There ain't nothin' worth losin' yer shit about here."
[2013-11-06 18:41:29] * Golden_Dream looks back at Shatara, trying to keep her distance from Bookie. "Well?"
[2013-11-06 18:42:03] <Little_Gloom> 3The numbers climb.  13...  14...
[2013-11-06 18:43:03] * Golden_Dream frowns. Wait. Shit! They missed the light thing! "Uh. Hey, ya'll. I think we missed th' light thing.
[2013-11-06 18:43:34] * Noble_Heart looks towards Bookwright and frowns. "We are sorry. We did not mean to insult you." She looks down. "We have done things We regret doing. But We also do not doubt they were the right thing to do when We did them. It is not worth dwelling on that, the maybe-was or could-have-been. We are where We are. Better to focus on the now and the will-be than the has-been." She twitches
[2013-11-06 18:43:34] * Noble_Heart slightly. "Lest you remember things which are better left burried."
[2013-11-06 18:43:37] <Bookwright>  /me whirls on Golden_Dream. "Nothing, huh? You call this collapsed tower 'nothing'? Not even a balefire bomb could scratch one of these things, but Homage somehow managed to knock this one down using some kind of bomb beyond our ken! We don't even know how our predecessors built these things, how they made them so tough, and Homage knocked one down!"
[2013-11-06 18:46:27] * Golden_Dream does not seem amused by Bookie's outburst. "Cool it, Bookie. Yer' gettin' upset over somethin' ya'll can't control, over somethin' we can't know right now, or because of somethin' Noble's uncomfortable talkin' about. Learn from my mistake and let her tell you at her own fuckin' speed instead of alienating her like a tool." She sniped back.
[2013-11-06 18:47:42] <Little_Gloom> 3The cold wind gusts, cutting through cold-weather gear and winterized barding.
[2013-11-06 18:47:55] <Little_Gloom> 3The numbers climb.   15...
[2013-11-06 18:48:31] * Bookwright "You're right I can't control it. But I was just giving an example of what's happening to the artifacts of before the war. We've lost so much, so many lives. It's a crime to stand by and let any more crumble if there's something we can do to preserve it, or knowledge of it, in any way."
[2013-11-06 18:50:15] <Little_Gloom> 3"How'd she blow it up?" Mare-Do-Well asks, looking away, not seeming to really address anyone.  The ghost shivvers.
[2013-11-06 18:50:56] * Golden_Dream shivers. The bitter cold hurt her, but it was just something she had to get used to. "Then just try t' not be an impatient ass about it." Wait. What? The ghost was getting shivers now? "... Mare-Do-Well, are ya'll gettin' cold?"
[2013-11-06 18:52:15] * Noble_Heart winces slightly, one eye twitching just a little. "Would you remember how to build the bombs that burned the world? How to scour flesh from bone and carve names into the hard rocks of Equestria such that they would be visible from the clouds for a thousand, thousand years?" She turns to face Bookwright. "To let a secret which might see the world reduced to ash and dust even
[2013-11-06 18:52:15] * Noble_Heart more thoroughly than it is now resurface? Or perhaps worse." She seemed to be getting more upset the more she talked, fidgeting in an agitated way. Like even being on that subject was painful, or at least the thought of what it might lead to was disturbing.
[2013-11-06 18:53:29] <Little_Gloom> 3In the distance, maybe another two "floors" ahead, a feeble orange light glows.  The glow rises, then ebbs and is gone.
[2013-11-06 18:54:41] * Golden_Dream raises her hoof. "Noble, calm down, yer' gettin' all twitchy again like yer' gon' freak out. Now shut yer' face hole." She looked forward into the distance, at the warm orange light. "We ain't alone."
[2013-11-06 18:54:51] * Bookwright is hard eyed. "I would remember every detail of every pony that ever lived, every crime ever committed, every horror ever inflicted, if it meant I could use that knowledge to turn others away from paths of destruction, hatred, grief, anger, bitterness, loss... To help everyone continue their lives and not make the mistakes that our ancestors made. Yes. I would remember."
[2013-11-06 18:55:09] * CopyCat holds out a wing, signalling a stop. "Wait, we saw something ahead."
[2013-11-06 18:55:14] * Shatara silently readies his rifle, pushing the painful memories aside.
[2013-11-06 18:55:50] <Little_Gloom> 3The wind gusts again, creating a howling sound as it blows down the dark cavern.
[2013-11-06 18:58:00] * Golden_Dream gets down. "I got a /real/ bad feeling here." She moves up cautiously, but quickly, shotgun out and ready to fire. She was going to catch that light.
[2013-11-06 18:59:13] <Little_Gloom> 3The orange light glows again, feebly this time.  It hasn't moved.  It's on the floor just ahead.  Kid moves forwards towards it.  Slowly.  Cautiously.  The numbers climb...
[2013-11-06 18:59:17] <Little_Gloom> 3 16... 17...
[2013-11-06 19:00:40] * CopyCat walks beside Noble_Heart. She doesn't say anything, but hopes that her presence was reassuring.
[2013-11-06 19:02:07] * Bookwright fumes silently.
[2013-11-06 19:02:28] * Shatara moves with Golden_Dream towards the light.
[2013-11-06 19:04:37] <Little_Gloom> 3Golden_Dream reaches the light, reaches the body.  A pegasus filly, no older than she is.  Wearing a light, winterized armor -- an Enclave design.  Her corpse is frozen to the ground, a layer of ice climbing over it like snowdrifts.  The ebbing light comes from her PipBuck, the screen and buttons a customized orange rather than the patriotic green.
[2013-11-06 19:04:49] <Little_Gloom> 3The PipBuck seems to be dying.
[2013-11-06 19:07:12] * Golden_Dream frowns. She feels kind of sad looking at this poor corpse. She got a sense that in a different world, this could've been her. She sat down, and... Just looked over her. Same sort of cold weather gear. Same sort of build. She leaned over to see what the pipbuck said. "... Shatara, can ya'll get this on yer pipbuck? Can y' fix this?"
[2013-11-06 19:07:24] * Noble_Heart fidgets more at Bookwright's insistence, her irritation flaring. "You cannot understand what that past holds. What SHE did to Us. She turned a dream into a nightmare without end. We... I... I am no fool, no failure. No idiot to be tossed aside and told that others know what is best!" She snarled at Bookwright. "No backwater yokel to be ignored by those who believe themselves
[2013-11-06 19:07:25] * Noble_Heart to know more of the world, to know more of what is 'right' and 'just'!" It was fairly clear that whomever she was ranting at wasn't just Bookwright. "I will not-" She cuts off as she catches sight of filly. "... no... Nonono. No! Not too late. It can't be too late! It was never supposed to happen like that..." She backs away quickly, whatever anger she had quickly draining to
[2013-11-06 19:07:25] * Noble_Heart terror, and sorrow. "I... I... I didn't... I couldn't... I should have been there. It's not right! She did this, not me! Took a dream and made it a thousand times worse! A boon into a curse! I couldn't stop her! But... But We are still strong!" She shuddered in her legs, collapsing towards the floor. "... We were made to be strong... To be the best..." She muttered quietly, trying
[2013-11-06 19:07:25] * Noble_Heart to reassure herself.
[2013-11-06 19:09:24] <Little_Gloom> 3The PipBuck is frozen to the cold stone.  The buttons likewise are rigid from ice.  But the screen can be read.  And there is a message:
[2013-11-06 19:09:38] * Shatara puts up his rifle, investigating the dying pipbuck and fiddling with his own. These things could talk to each other, couldn't they?
[2013-11-06 19:10:10] <Little_Gloom> 3> I'm sorry.  Gentle Breeze was my best friend once.  And I killed him.  I'm so sorry.
[2013-11-06 19:10:24] <Little_Gloom> 3> I had to.  It was him or it would be both of us.
[2013-11-06 19:10:33] <Little_Gloom> 3> They can't get you if you're alone.
[2013-11-06 19:10:46] <Little_Gloom> 3--- End of Session ---
[2013-11-06 19:12:30] * Bookwright looks down on Noble_Heart dispassionately. He can't hate her. She's too disjointed for hate. So he must hug. Carefully. "Noble Heart? You're right I can't understand what the past holds for you. I'm sorry for pushing you like this, I just... I'm driven like that, sometimes. I think that whenever we get back to civilization, we need to get you to a therapist. We have time, I think."
[2013-11-06 19:17:08] * CopyCat flattens her ears at Noble's outburst and bites her lip. She struggles to think of something to to say, Noble's mind in too much turmoil for her to listen in on. She joins Bookwright in hugging the other alicorn. "Noble... some time could you tell me what we were supposed to be? I'd like to know one day."
[2013-11-06 19:18:40] * Noble_heart had broken down into tears, leaning into the hugs more than a little. She seemed mostly distant. "We were strong... I was weak, We were strong. I was slow, We were eternal. I was a failure, We succeeded..." She muttered quietly, drowning in her sorrow, for a time.
[2013-11-06 19:21:52] * CopyCat nuzzles her neck. "I'm here because of you. Thank you."