Affairs of Darkness

Chris looks over at Scarlet, "Oh Scarlet, I'm sure you haven't met Countess Rarity before. Though I am glad we had the chance, she was quite generous after all. Seriously though, we should be focused on the task at hand, and not on some odd deja vu situation with meeting new people. If you want to talk about it later, though, I always have an ear."

Chris finished the statement with a slightly withering look, and really hoped Scarlet understood the point it was trying to get across.

Thorn gives his new companions a questioning look. "There's something strange going on. You seem to have seen the Countess before, but she didn't recognize you. There's a bit more to these missing ponies that what you're letting on, isn't there."

Shock at seeing this comment smiles as they travel. "You are a smart pony... I like that. Maybe you did see something... And maybe you are better off not knowing. Unless you truly wish to get roped into this. The less you know... The less danger you are in."

Paper Reign shakes its head and looks up to the sky.

"mmm.... Can't say for sure... But maybe..." Shock admits with a shrug. "All I'm sure about is that regardless... I shouldn't talk about it until we're someplace private... And we've got more imporant matters at hoof. This Mare we're going to see is involved in this..."

Paper Reign stops and stares at Shock.

Scarlet faceclawed, growling. "Seriously? I'm better at keeping things secret from that. To answer your question, though, Thorn: You already know about the biggest threat, I can't think of any others at the moment. Sorry." It was a bit more than she figured they needed to say, but hopefully it would put Thorn at ease. For now, anyhow.

Before long you find yourself back in the square in the early afternoon sun. The activity in the square has barely changed in the hours that have passed. The sounds of sawing and bartering are momentarily drowned out by a loud low rumbling.

A few ponies passing nearby turn to look at you for a few moments as your stomachs make their intentions clear before continuing on their way, chuckling quietly to themselves. Focused by your hunger, you’re keenly aware of the scents from different food stands and restaurants in the air becoming sharper and making your mouths water in anticipation.

Spoiler:

Scarlet sniffed at the air for a moment, smiling. All their worries aside, she did need to eat...And things did smell good. "So...Yeah. Who else thinks that maybe we should get something to eat before we head forward? I figure our stomachs rumbling leaves kind of a bad impression, heh...Ah, anypony got a preference? Personally, I'm fine with whatever, but I don't figure we all eat the same things." The dragonnel smirked a bit before looking at the nearby resturants, thinking for a moment.

Paper Reign turned its head to look at the others, indicating it was deferring the decision.

Shock, shrugs.... He was used to working on little food in his belly. But his too was starting to make the noises of hunger.

It was early for Thorn, he'd just had breakfast a couple of hours ago, but you probably couldn't go wrong with an early lunch. "Okay, I could go for some lunch."

Chris, noticing that it was hungry, looks at the rest of the group, "Who wants sandwiches?" It then pulls out a large pile of food and proceeds to begin eating.

Spoiler:

Paper Reign takes two sandwiches in its hooves, opens the mouth of its mask to reveal an inky blackness that looks almost like a bottomless pit, and stuffs the sandwiches in whole before closing its mouth again.

---

8

Thorn takes a couple of sandwiches and eats them.  "Anything to drink?"


OOC:Instant Party Roll:
Roll(1d20)+0:
14,+0
Total:14
Nope!

Shock smiles and happily eats the offered sandwiches.

party roll:

"And where were you keeping those? No matter, food's food. Thank you." Scarlet took a sandwich, eating happily as she nods. Still, it made things easier for them. And if Chris had food on that easy of access, that would be convenient in the future.

______________________________________________________

Party roll: 10. Nope.

Chris looks at Scarlet, "Do not ask questions to which you are not prepared for an answer."

You feel as if you’re being watched as you eat your sandwiches in the middle of the square, however none of the ponies who walk past you seem to be paying you any more mind than trying not to walk into you. The feeling quickly passes however, as soon as you finish the sandwiches.

Finding the way to the tower is simple enough as the structure in question is impossible to miss. Heading towards it you pass through another archway and like before the scenery around you changes. Unlike with the walk to Rarity’s manor however the change is instant. The scent of food grows more distant as the buildings around you change from homes or shops to banks and offices. The ponies walking past are fewer here, but more varied in class. All of them bear a professional air to them, be they wearing hard hats or suits. You get the distinct feeling no one actually lives in this part of the city. Security here is much higher as well, nearly every individual building has at least one guard standing in front of or near it.

Before long you’re standing in front of one final archway, completely in the shadow of the massive tower just a few dozen feet away. The arch before you is larger than the others and connected to thick stone walls that circle the base of the structure.  A massive pair of wrought iron gates sit barely ajar in the archway as ponies, mostly guards, occasionally exit the Tower proper. Everything is silent save for the occasional clipping of hooves on pavement. There's no vegetation, decorative or otherwise near the tower itself and no critters to match. Just silence and the smell of stone and iron on the wind.

Before the gate itself twelve guards, pegasus, unicorns,  and earth ponies all represented among them. They all bear the same colors as the other guards you’ve seen today but their armor is different, more ornate and covering more of their bodies. They notice you instantly but don’t seem to react at all besides to watch you as you approach.

“May we help you, citizens?” One of the earth ponies asks calmly in a clear deep tone once you’ve gotten close enough.

Paper Reign looks to Thorn.

Thorn fishes into his saddlebags for the scrolls and offers them to the guards.

Paper Reign snatches the thicker scroll with its awesome telekinetic might and lightly bops Thorn over the head with it.

"Right, right.  I was getting to that.  The first scroll, this thicker one, is for the Grand Duchess eye's only and is a matter of top importance."  he taps the thick scroll with his hoof.  "Top importance."

"Secondly, this scroll is for you.  It has instructions to escort us to a grey pegasus mare that currently imprisoned here and that we are given access to speak to her."

OOC:Sorry guys, the last day or has been crazy, and I completely forgot that there were instructions that went along with the scrolls.

((Posted for Dr. Blight at his request, net issues.))

The guard steps closer, taking the scrolls and inspecting them for a moment, taking particular notice of the seal. "One moment." He says in the same calm tone before walking back to the rest of the guards and handing the scrolls over to an older-looking pegasus among them and saying something out of ear shot.

You see the older pegasus open up the smaller scroll and read it quietly for a few moments before he turns to a pair of guards, the same earth pony as before and a unicorn, and barks out some orders.  The two turn on their hooves and march over to you. “Right this way please.” the earth pony says in a business-like tone before leading you through the gate. As you pass through the gate you see the older pegasus guard pass the other scroll to another pegasus among their ranks, who immediately opens his wings and takes off towards the distant tower heights.

The guards escorting you lead you through the massive stone double doors into the tower itself. Inside the tower itself you’re surprised to find the inside is startlingly barren, a cavernously empty chamber of polished black stone with small glimmering white specks that remind you of the stars in the night sky. The only decoration is a dark carpet leading from the door to a raised dais in the center of the room surrounded by six pillars of the same black glimmering stone. Magical flames drift freely through the air above you, bathing everything in a soft blue hue. Sounds seem to disappear into the dark stones, leaving the room silent as a grave. Atop the dais stands a lone pony, a unicorn mare with an off-white coat and pale green mane, wearing a maid’s uniform. She looks up towards you as you enter with a tranquil smile but seems surprised when she notices the guards and steps off the dais as you make your way towards it. Her hoofsteps sound out sharply as she steps onto the polished stone but don’t echo back.

When your group reaches the dais you immediately notice that it is made of a different kind of stone and has an intricate magic circle carved into it. The unicorn guard moves to the center of the circle and his horn flares up with power, the circle lighting up in kind. When the magic in the circle seems to reach its peak you feel a sudden sense of weightless, as if you’ve been thrown into the air, while the scenery around you quickly flashes by. The dark stone chamber turns to a library, a kitchen, a ball room, a garden, and finally stops at a grey stone hallway all in the course of a single instant.

The air feels much thinner here than before and it takes you a few moments to catch your breath and adjust. A barred window to the left lets in natural sunlight as opposed to the bluish glow of the magic lights. Looking out you can see clouds drifting by lazily, and the horizon far in the distance. The hallway leads to a desk where more guards sit before promptly turning right towards a door.. More guards sit at the desk or at a large table behind it playing cards. The guards at the desk look up as you appear and alert the ones behind. The earth pony escorting you relays the instructions that you’re here to see the grey pegasus mare. Two of the guards at the table give slightly annoyed sighs, but stand up from their game with resigned looks on their faces.

The four guards escort you through the hallway to the right which ends at a pair of doors side by side. The guards who escorted you in lead you through the door on the left while the ones who got up from the table unlock the door on the right and head on inside alone. You hear the door locking again behind them as they do.

This new room is fairly small and divided in half by a large wall of bars. Strange runes seemed to be carved up and down the bars, and if you focus you can make out a faint blue “screen” between them. On your side of the room there is a counter top and rather plain-looking chairs. On the other side there is simply a door on the right wall and a single chair. The two guards who escorted you in remain standing by the door. “They’ll bring her out in a moment.”

After waiting for a few minutes the door on the other side of the room opens and the two guards who went through the other door enter, escorting a very nervous looking grey pegasus mare with a series of bubbles for a cutie mark. Her blond mane seems slightly messy compared to the picture you saw and she’s wearing a black and white striped shirt with a number printed on it in bold letters, her wings bound down by a belt. She takes a few hesitant steps into the room before noticing you on the other side of the bars. She regards you all with a confused expression on her face.  After a moment she walks over to the chair on her side and sits down. She blinks a few times and seems to concentrate, and after a little effort manages to get both her eyes to line up as she sits quietly. “umm... ...hi...”