Grand Line Adventures IC

Lyntermas wrote:Torque glanced over at Shinestone, who seemed a little uneasy. A sudden thought occurred to him. "Shinestone...you might not want to see this. I think...we might have found your body." Torque started to reach for the handle, stopped, reached into his satchel, pulled out a handkerchief (for cleaning grease stains), then used it to grab the handle of the dumpster as he opened it.

Inside the dumpster there is the body of an Earth Pony who looks exactly like Shinestone except for five large puncture wounds in the chest.

Zarhon wrote:(OOC: Isn't it Starshine? Are we mixing up the ghost's name? Also, the ghost is male, correct?)

"Well, I say let Starshine 'imself decide on dat'. He be a pirate, so mite' not be da' first time he seen a dead pony, but yah' own body mite' be someting' hard ta' come ta' terms wit', if it be in dere'. And he mite' need ta' do it anyway, if he wants ta' help wit' revealin' da' truth of wat' truly happened ta' him. Yah' choice, bruddah."

Perception:

"I think I'll leave this place... it's kinda creepy."

While you can not get a sent off of Shinestone's ghost you can tell that the second scent went through the alleyway before colliding with the scent you are tracking.

OOC I have always used Shinestone and yes he is male.

tygerburningbright wrote: Inside the dumpster there is the body of an Earth Pony who looks exactly like Shinestone except for five large puncture wounds in the chest.

Torque backed away from the dumpster. Granted, it wasn't the first dead body he had seen, and he had somewhat predicted it, but still, the sight of murder wasn't exactly pleasant. He then took a deep breath, took off his glasses and started cleaning them while he composed himself. The process of grieving was more Shallow's department, he had to try to learn what he could.

"Looks like this body's been trashed," he said, putting his glasses back on. "...Sorry, that was in poor taste. Anyway, let's see if I can figure out more about that minotaur's MO. It might be important in case we run into him. Shinestone, I understand this may be unpleasant to think about, but can you remember WHY you entered this alley?" He walked back up to the dumpster and started examining the body. His father had taught him what to look for during an autopsy (although he was a bit fuzzy on the finer details). He focused on the puncture wounds and tried to see what he could deduce from them.

Perception:

Lyntermas wrote:
Torque backed away from the dumpster. Granted, it wasn't the first dead body he had seen, and he had somewhat predicted it, but still, the sight of murder wasn't exactly pleasant. He then took a deep breath, took off his glasses and started cleaning them while he composed himself. The process of grieving was more Shallow's department, he had to try to learn what he could.

"Looks like this body's been trashed," he said, putting his glasses back on. "...Sorry, that was in poor taste. Anyway, let's see if I can figure out more about that minotaur's MO. It might be important in case we run into him. Shinestone, I understand this may be unpleasant to think about, but can you remember WHY you entered this alley?" He walked back up to the dumpster and started examining the body. His father had taught him what to look for during an autopsy (although he was a bit fuzzy on the finer details). He focused on the puncture wounds and tried to see what he could deduce from them.

Perception:

"I-I think I was trying to take a shortcut..." Shinestone calls out from the end of the alley.

The wounds definitely hit the lungs, the heart, and the two main veins and arteries but the placement is rather orderly each puncture almost evenly spaced. You can not tell the exact depth of the punctures except that they were deep enough to kill with out going all the way. The type of cut confuses you appearing to be point blank gunshot wounds but without any residue.

OOC: Got a theory. Tyger, let me know if I need to change the text.

---

"How strange," Torque muttered as he examined the wounds. "The wounds would seem to indicate bullets, but there is no residue. And what is with this spacing, I don't.." Torque's eyes widened as a surprising thought came to him. He carefully placed his hoof on the corpse's chest, near the punctures. Sure enough, the spacing, though not forming a complete circle, seemed to radiate from a common point, almost like...

"Fingers. Minotaurs have fingers, don't they?" Torque muttered. He then spoke louder so that the others could hear him. "This is just a theory, but the evidence leads me to believe that the minotaur literally jammed his fingers into Shinestone's chest. It pierced his lungs, and his primary veins and arteries, killing him quickly and silently. The minotaur dumped the body in here, then cleaned off the handle, since the hand he used to open it still had Shinestone's blood on it and would have left a stain otherwise."

"We have determined the means, but not the motive. Perhaps Shinestone had something the minotaur wanted, perhaps the minotaur had a grudge against his crew or pirates in general, or maybe he just REALLY didn't like getting bumped into. Shallow, I understand if you wish to prepare funerary practices for the body, but right now Shinestone's spirit won't be at peace until he can reunite with his crew. And given what this minotaur can do, there is a chance that they are in very real danger, and should be warned. Again, not to sound callous, but I think we should hurry to the culinary school and leave the body for now. I don't think it's going anywhere."

Nearby, a strangled sound broke forth from Sixty-Two's throat.

"This...this is..." he gasped. "On...my island...not here...never..."

Shallow was aghast at the description of how the pony was killed.

"Dat's a grisly end indeed. Poor soul! I can't imagine wat' kind a' monstah' would stoop as low.", he lied.

"Killin' in broad daylite', over a honest mistake... Worse den' a Morganeer."

Whoever this minotaur is, he ain't getting away unpunished, or hurting anypony else, if Shallow can help it.

He turned to Shinestone:
"Shinestone, I know it be hard on yah', but we still need yah' ta' help and come wit' us, ta' give our words merit ta' yah' crew. We'll track down yah' assassin, reunite yah' wit yah' crew, and give yah' remains da' dignity dey deserve."

"Pack up, everypon. We got us a monstah' ta' catch."

Shallow went off to follow the rest of the scent trail.

AProcrastinatingWriter wrote:Nearby, a strangled sound broke forth from Sixty-Two's throat.

"This...this is..." he gasped. "On...my island...not here...never..."

Shallow stopped for a moment as he saw the trembling pony. Poor sixty-two. Isolated by his fear, he considered the island a safe haven. Now, that illusion was broken like glass, and Whisper gets to have a meal off of it.
"Dat's da' grisly truth for yah', pon. Da' world ain't peachy, and anyting' can happen. Da' good and da' bad be mixed togetah', a soup of both sweet and bittah' flavah's. Wat' matters is dat' da bad tastes don't overpowah' da good ones, and dat's were all of us come in. We all give ah' own spices ta' da' soup, even yah'. So come. We got some extra spices ta' add, and yah' help be appreciated. After all, da' strongest spices often be da' ones yah' add the least."

AProcrastinatingWriter wrote:Nearby, a strangled sound broke forth from Sixty-Two's throat.

"This...this is..." he gasped. "On...my island...not here...never..."

Torque tried to rest a comforting hoof on 62's back. "I'm sorry you had to see that. Murder is never a pleasant business, and death is a stranger to no land. But we have to focus on the present. The Reflector Pirates may be this murderer's next target. If we can get to them quickly, we might be able to warn them, or possibly catch that minotaur and make sure he is punished for his crimes." He walked down to the end of the alley, looking ahead at Shallow. "How does he know where...oh, probably that nose of his has got the scent." He turned back to 62. "This might be dangerous. You don't have to follow us if you don't want to, but...given what this minotaur can do, we'd appreciate all the help we can get."

"No...no," Sixty-Two was actually chuckling now. "You don't understand...I knew all that already." He swallowed. It was a heavy sound. "What I'm saying is..." Sixty-two looked up, still trembling.

A look of uncharacteristic anger had spread across his face.

"There is no way in Tartarus that this could ever happen on my island! Not while I'm around! NEVER WHILE I'M AROUND!"

With that and a scream of rage, Sixty-Two made a sweeping gesture, a book suddenly appearing from (seemingly) nowhere and in the palm of his hoof as he did. He looked down at it as it opened, pages flipping as his eyes moved back and forth rapidly. Then the pages stopped, and Sixty-Two broke into...some kind of speech?

"O font of everflowing knowledge
At the center of our universe
Lead us to the one that I will name
In Gravitas' name I command you!"

He turned and pointed at Shinestone's body.

"Find for us the one who murdered this colt!"

Spoiler:

After a couple seconds, Sixty-Two's body twitched in a way that wasn't his own before his hoof swept around, circular and angled, and came to rest pointing straight at, presumably, the murderer's location.

"...Well, we're all just full of surprises today, aren't we?" Torque said. "Very well, between you and Shallow, we're bound to find that minotaur. Let's get moving."

Shallow chucked at the drastic improvement of mood and competence of the hydrophobic pony.

"Hahah! Seems da' youth ain't going ta' spoils after all! Can't go wrong wit' an all-natural compass!

"O font of everflowing knowledge
At the center of our universe
Lead us to the one that I will name
In Gravitas' name I command you!"

Mid travel, Shallow spoke to 62:
"Dat' was an impressive recital, pon. Dem' universities be pretty bold, ta' have expanded da' curriculum ta' such Devilishly practical uses! Speakin' of which, I don't believe yah' told me, before we was interrupted, wat' be da' branches of knowledge da' universities on dis' island be sharin', exactly?"

Perception:

Between 62 and Shallow the group manages to quickly reach the particular university that the minotaur had decided to head to. It is clearly evident that it is in a state of chaos concentrated in two different wings of the building.

On the way, Sixty-Two, looking slightly out of breath, looks over to Shallow to respond "Oh, there are a wide variety of universities here," the gray pony smiled, a bit of bark to his voice. "They cover basically everything...but the university we're headed to? It covers more practical problems." He looked back ahead at the upcoming building.

tygerburningbright wrote:Between 62 and Shallow the group manages to quickly reach the particular university that the minotaur had decided to head to. It is clearly evident that it is in a state of chaos concentrated in two different wings of the building.

"...like open warfare, apparently," Sixty-Two skidded to a stop.

In Torque's opinion, today was shaping up to be a long day. Granted, each of the parts might have settled into some degree of normalcy for different ponies, but between Shallow meeting a ghost, Boomer summoning a sorrow-eating kitten, a bartender drinking himself to unconsciousness with one drink, a minotaur who stabs people with his own fingers, and their new hydrophobic friend turning out to be an Earth pony with a magic tome, Torque's "weirdness threshold" had been officially reached. And now there was apparently havoc going on at the university.

Never a dull day in piracy, apparently.

"Boomer, you might be able to blow something up today after all," Torque said. "But not before we figure out the situation. Shallow, 62, can you figure out which wing the minotaur is in?"

Torque tried to survey the situation. Was the chaos in the wings part of an overall conflict, or was it two different messes going on at the same time?

Perception:

"On it!" Sixty-Two nodded, not taking even a moment to stop and realize he was taking orders from a pirate. Ponies were in danger; he could deal with questions of morality later. He pulled his magic tome out of nowhere again, taking in a slow breath as he raised his right hoof.

Spoiler:

"Just make sure you tell me HOW big a boom you'd want... Cause if you don't the whole Island might end up being blown up... Or on fire..." Boomer notes with a shutter.

"Right on, pon!", Shallow yelled, as he took note of his surroundings: If there's a battle going on, he's going to make sure to pick his fights where they are needed: Notably, helping out innocents who might be caught in a struggle they have no business being in, or dealing with any "unsavory" types. The whole situation put a burning question in his mind, however. "Who on earth would pick a fite' at a place a' learnin', of all places, an' why?", he thought.

He turned to the ghostly pirate.
"Shinestone, if yah' see or recognize any of yah' ship-mates, make sure ta' say so rite' away! We can't afford confusion now!"

"Boomer, you might be able to blow something up today after all"

"Just make sure you tell me HOW big a boom you'd want... Cause if you don't the whole Island might end up being blown up... Or on fire..." Boomer notes with a shutter.

"Are yah' two insane?! Dere mite' be youths out dere', an' innocent scholars! Yah'd be endangerin' dem, not ta mention, also be sendin' a place a' learnin', along wit' watevah' knowledge it mite' have stored, up in smoke!"

Perception:

AProcrastinatingWriter wrote:"On it!" Sixty-Two nodded, not taking even a moment to stop and realize he was taking orders from a pirate. Ponies were in danger; he could deal with questions of morality later. He pulled his magic tome out of nowhere again, taking in a slow breath as he raised his right hoof.

Spoiler:

Your hoof is now pointing to the western wing and up a few floors.

Zarhon wrote:"Right on, pon!", Shallow yelled, as he took note of his surroundings: If there's a battle going on, he's going to make sure to pick his fights where they are needed: Notably, helping out innocents who might be caught in a struggle they have no business being in, or dealing with any "unsavory" types. The whole situation put a burning question in his mind, however. "Who on earth would pick a fite' at a place a' learnin', of all places, an' why?", he thought.

He turned to the ghostly pirate.
"Shinestone, if yah' see or recognize any of yah' ship-mates, make sure ta' say so rite' away! We can't afford confusion now!"

Perception:

The scent trail leads to the large entrence in the center of the building but the scent is also coming through an open window on the thrid floor of the west wing. You can see that there is not much actual fighting but rather there is a massive amount of students fleeing in panic from the east wing all of them avoiding using one of the fancier entrences . In the west wing however you can tell ponies are actively being killed by what you know is the minotaur. The outer ground are all dirt and grass but you can tell the building has a stone foundation.

"Da' west wing! Hurry, lives be at stake!"

Shallow rushes to the west wing to intercept the minotaur, using the open window as an entrance.

Zarhon wrote:"Are yah' two insane?! Dere mite' be youths out dere', an' innocent scholars! Yah'd be endangerin' dem, not ta mention, also be sendin' a place a' learnin', along wit' watevah' knowledge it mite' have stored, up in smoke!"

"What? N-no, I meant the minotaur, using them on the minotaur! Goodness gracious, I don't want innocents harmed, and I wouldn't blow up a university for 10 million beli!" Torque glanced back at the university, then at Boomer. "...Although the books and infrastructure might be quite flammable, arent' they? We might want to see if we can get that minotaur outside first before we start making violence, explosive or otherwise."

Zarhon wrote:"Da' west wing! Hurry, lives be at stake!"

Shallow rushes to the west wing to intercept the minotaur, using the open window as an entrance.

Torque watched as Shallow headed toward the west wing, apparently looking directly at a window on the third floor. "Um, Shallow, unless you're planning on tossing us up there, I don't think..." Torque then looked down at his feet. The outside was all dirt and grass. "Oh, you're going to make a staircase or something, right? That's clever!"

"Mmm... I think I've rabid built stairs before once..." Boomer mused at this.

"Oh, you're going to make a staircase or something, right? That's clever!"

"Well, I was gonna gonna leap up dere' and bring yah' along, but I guess dat' can work as well! Should let da' youths have an' escape ta' use as well!"
Shallows sinks into the earth and starts piling up the soil, building a ramp that he and the others could use.

Athletics:

Shallow starts piling up dirt for the ramp. It goes along well for a bit, but then the dirt starts seeping to the side and losing on the required height and stability.
"Blast it! Yad' think pilin' up dirt' would be simple. Wat am I doin' wrong? Gimme a hoof, bruddahs!"

Zarhon wrote:
Shallow starts piling up dirt for the ramp. It goes along well for a bit, but then the dirt starts seeping to the side and losing on the required height and stability.
"Blast it! Yad' think pilin' up dirt' would be simple. Wat am I doin' wrong? Gimme a hoof, bruddahs!"

"I got it! Shallow, the current slope of the pile exceeds the soil's angle of repose! The pile will continue to experience shear failure unless sufficient lateral reinforcement is supplied!"

Torque ran to the sides of the pile and marked some lines in the ground. "Shallow, you have to start piling dirt here, here, and....here! Otherwise the stairs will just keep collapsing under their own weight! Think of it like an anthill: The wider the base, the higher it goes!"

Mechanics:

OOC: I actually have a BS in Civil Engineering, so the terms are being used correctly.

Along with Torque's technical assistance Shallow manages to create a ramp up to the open third story window. As Shallow finishes Shinestone floats up to him.

“I-I can't thank you enough for the help you've given me... you lead me right to where my crew is but I need to speak to everypony by myself so this is where we have to part ways.”

On the other side of the window there is a lecture hall deserted except for the bodies of the few dead ponies there.

OOC shallow now gets his +3

“I-I can't thank you enough for the help you've given me... you lead me right to where my crew is but I need to speak to everypony by myself so this is where we have to part ways.”

"So long, bruddah! May yah' find peace in yah' afterlife!"
Shallow goes through the window and ushers his companions in.

"Wat a massacre. Why would anypon do such senseless atrocities? Gotta stop dat' minotaur, and fast."
He checks the scent again, as well as quickly inspects the room.

Perception:

Zarhon wrote:

"Wat a massacre. Why would anypon do such senseless atrocities? Gotta stop dat' minotaur, and fast."
He checks the scent again, as well as quickly inspects the room.

Perception:

The scent trail leads out of room branching into two directions presumably the directions the minotaur came from and left in. All of the bodies appear to have died in the same manner as Shinestone but something feels off about them you can't just put your hoof on what. You briefly hear a scream come from the left hoof corridor.