>The light of Celestia's sun wakes you, right on your face. Whoever thought of moving your bed right in front of the window should get a cold shower. Oh, wait, that was you.
"Fuaaa..." You get up and stretch lazily, treading the dangerous territory outside your bed with care. Winter approaches, and with every day, your body feels more lethargic. "Hm?" However, not everything is lost. From downstairs, a smell oh so good arises, spelling a morning of baked treats for you.
>"Good morning, Grape Vine!" A cheery voice calls for you, once you finally appear on the kitchen. It's none other than your best friend and business partner, Sweet Seed, excellent farmer and also well aware of your weaknesses. On the table, a plate full of hot steaming chocolate waffles, a bunch of grapes and grape juice greets you.
"Oh Sweet... hnng" you make use of your full language capabilities, and as a good pony, snort and whinny your way up to the table. While Sweet is used to waking up early, as to tend to your modest vineyard, you're more of a late action mare. Your passion is in making the wines, the juices and every other grape related products, the best of Trottingham. The only provider in Trottingham.
>It's been a week since the fateful Nightmare Night where you and a bunch of your fellow citizens stopped the menace of that crazy unicorn and her monster made out of sweets. Granted, that other crazy unicorn who lives by the forest said she would be back, but so far the town has been peacefully recovering from the lack of sugar, as the towering pile of waffles, bricks glued together by hot chocolate, demonstrates.

(1/2)

>>25366741
>"If it's okay with you, I'd like to ask you to make a few deliveries" Sweet Seed talks while you attack your breakfast. "There's a couple of places to bring some grapes. Oh, and that unicorn, Lorie, came by earlier! Well, I say earlier, but..." the brown colt whistles. "It was practically dawn, and she looked like she didn't have any sleep on her."
>Your head methodically rises to hear what Sweet Seed has to say. Lorie, of all things, all the way in the northern half of town? You haven't seen the mare since the Nightmare Night incident, so you assumed she wouldn't ask for your help again. Well, guess you'll have to choose what to do...

>>25366729
How I didn't see last thread? Fuck me, now I have to read everything without taking part of it. Fuck my luck.

>>25366831
Take your time and enjoy, it's a short thread so chances are you won't miss much. And thanks for giving it a chance!

As an aside, character drawings now go in the doc at the OP, but if you guys want, I'll post the big ass image like I did last thread.

>>25366763
Might be good to check on Lorie. She's not the kind to come by for no reason.

>>25366852
Im so fucking pissed right now, I lurk every day at least once. How can I miss MVT? =most valuable thread

>>25366960
>You wouldn't usually refuse your business partner when he talks to you about, well, business. But why Lorie would come all the way to your house, first having to find where it is, just to find you...
"Sweet" you talk in between mouthfuls of grape. "Did she tell you what she wanted?"
>"She asked for you, and well, I told her it would be a while until you woke up" the pony replies. "So she asked me to tell you she was here and said that she was going back home. Pretty weird, if you ask me."
>It might be weird for him, but it doesn't surprise you all that much, considering all the things she must be wanting to talk about.
"I... I'm sorry Sweet, I think I need to go talk with her. Is it okay if I postpone the deliveries?"
>"Oh..." the colt looks a bit sad, then cheers back up once he sees your expression. "Ah, don't worry, I have time now, I'll make them myself!"
"You're a sweetheart. I'll see you later!" You thank him, gulping down the last of your breakfast, then dart towards the door and exit into the cold streets of Trottingham. Not many ponies are in sight, although you know they would be easily found near town hall, where the markets are.
>Your swift flight takes you at low altitude across the ancient cobbled streets, remainders of the coexistence of many races of ponies and griffons throughout history. Oddly enough, you barely meet anypony on your way, but that might be because you cut across residential districts, while everyone else should be working, at school or shopping.

(1/2)

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>>25367212
>Finally, you arrive at the edge of the forest, just in view of the south line of town, and knock on the door of the cabin where the mathematician lives. Suddenly, the door opens, and a mysterious force holds you by the scruff of your neck and pulls you in.
>"You!" You hear a voice as you slam into the wall, well, more like gently tap the wall. Lorie the unicorn is right in front of you, holding you with her magic and looking very pissed. "Where were you!? I was at your home, like, a year ago! Don't you tell me you forgot about me! No, that can't be it, statistically speaking, the chances of that happening... mm... tell me, what happened!?" She leans in on you and almost breathes on your muzzle. "Did you get attacked, is that what it is?"

>>25367179
Thanks anon, there will be a set schedule from now on, so you'll know when you'll be able to play or miss it.

>>25367225
What are you on about Lorie?? I woke up, ate breakfast, and flew straight here! Is something wrong?

>>25367225
A year? Is a mathematician supposed to exaggerate numbers like that?

>>25367478
>>25367533
"What... are... you... talking...?" You struggle to get the words out, but in a matter of seconds, the magic lifts off and you fall on your flank, while Lorie's legs decide to stop supporting her and she falls flat as well, panting. Oh yeah, her magic isn't very strong.
>"Y-You..." she keeps talking from the floor, now making a very sad face. "I went to your home. It took me ages, in the darkness, and when I got there, you were asleep..."
"Uh... yeah? Lorie, you came by at dawn" you reply. "And what kind of talk is that for a mathematician? A year? Don't joke with me!"
>"S-Shut up, I slipped a comma!" The science pony immediately gets back up, cheeks flustered, as if nothing had happened. Now that you have a better look at her, she does look famished, and lacking sleep.
"Well... so I'm here. Did you want to see me, or...?"
>"Yes! Yes I did, come on!" She suddenly starts pulling you, pricking you with her horn, directing you to a set of descending stairs. You walk on your own and let the unicorn guide you into her basement, a very deep one, judging by the amount of time you spend going down. At the end, the unicorn flicks a switch, and light runs along the large room.

(1/2)

>>25367745
"Whoa..." you stand agape at the large area covered under the humble cottage. It almost looks like the lair of a supervillain from the Power Ponies comic. A very lazy supervillain, there are papers scattered everywhere, half torn posters and towers of newspapers and books. And in the center of it... "W-What is that?"
>"This is my baby" Lorie replies with a motherly voice. The machine in question is a huge contraption, at least the size of a two store building, which spells wonders about the size of the basement, and full of dials, lightbulbs, counters and other mechanical gizmos. Lorie walks up to it and rests on its side. "Do you like it? Not a bad piece of work for just a week..."
"It's... great, I guess. What does it do?" You ask, preventively not taking a single step forward.
>"It measures the recollection of energy in the area, specifically tuned in to detect constructs" the unicorn walks up to you. "I remember telling you that I know Tess will strike back, and this machine will hopefully tell us when a new... creation, is being made."
"Oh, fantastic! How does it work?"
>"At the moment it's very simple, I made it by shoving a few other machines I had into it" Lorie scratches her head and pushes her glasses up with a hoof. "It covers the entire area of the Griffish Isles, and that lightbulb on top will light up whenever there's enough energy somewhere to be considered a construct in progress" she points at a huge bulb on top, already light up in red. "Oh..."

>>25367778
Does the machine give a direction?

Was that supposed to be a prompt?

>>25368054
"Uuuh..." You stare at the red light. "Does the machine give any other indication? A direction, perhaps?"
>"I'm afraid it's not that refined" Lorie replies, frowning very narrowly at the machine. "But there's no doubt, a construct is being made somewhere in this island."
"Oh joy..."
>"Time to investigate" the unicorn puts her hooves in your shoulders. "From now on, be very aware of any odd things happening. There's only a limited time before the construct appears, so whatever you find, things disappearing or not working correctly, report back to me and tentatively destroy."
"Alright, I... wait, destroy?"
>"You heard me! If I can get my hooves on a construct core, I'll be able to improve the machine!" The unicorn starts shoving you up the stairs, with her usual grace, and in less than a minute you're out of the cabin. "Seeya!" She gives you a genuine smile before closing the door with a lot of extra strength. Just what is the deal with her?
>This time, you make the walk back with your hooves and not with your wings, oddly attentive of your surroundings and wondering about what's going to happen this time. Last week, you barely managed to stop a behemoth made of candy and hard caramel, and now you don't even know what's going missing? Preposterous.
>Going back home, you pass near the spa, a lovely white building of more modern aesthetic, balconies furnished with lush plants and glass ceilings everywhere. And near the door, you see a yellow mare pacing back and forth. Getting close without being seen allows you to confirm who it is: Sunny Care, one of your more recent friends. The mare walks near the door without entering, looking at the floor and rather distressed. By all friendship standards, you should help her... but if you go back home, you might still have time to help Sweet Seed with the deliveries.

>>25368054
Whenever I stop posting it's a prompt. Sorry about that, I was used to it and forgot to explicitly say it at the beginning.

>>25368170
Check on her.

>>25368261
>No. The rules are clear: you see a friend in distress, you go and help. Or at least, you ask what's wrong.
"Hey, Sunny Care!" You walk out in the open and greet your friend with open wings. The earth mare turns around and her frown turns into a smile.
>"Grape! Nice to see... you..." however, as she greets you back, her eyes roll to the other side, in the direction of the spa.
"Anything wrong? You don't seem to be entering, or coming out."
>"I... well, you see..."
"Mhmm?"
>"Oh Grape, it's horrible!" Sunny suddenly throws herself in your front legs. Here we go. "I-I got up late because my alarm clock wasn't working, and I ran all the way here, but now I don't know if I should check in or just go back and pretend I'm sick...!"
"Really? Is that all?"
>"Oh, but you don't understand, don't you?" Sunny looks into your eyes from her comfortable position in your chest. Her massive fluff tickles you in all the inadequate ways. "If I'm late, the boss, she... oh, she'll do terrible things to me!"
"Wait, what?" You let go of Sunny and step back. "That can't be right. Are you being hurt in there?"
>"No no! She would never hurt me, or fire me, but..." Sunny's eyes drift off, down into the ground. "The punishment I might receive..." the mare shudders and looks back into your eyes, tearing up. "What should I do, Grape?"

>>25368635
If she's really that scared then she should pretend to be sick and she can spend the time getting a new alarm clock so the same thing doesn't happen tomorrow.

>>25368635
She could blame us with causing her to be late, but the longer she waits the later she'll be.

>>25368715
>>25368723
"Geez..." you shake your head a bit, letting a morning snort out. "You know, you're already wasting time, even talking to me."
>"Aaaah, that's right!" Sunny Care looks terrified.
"I mean, you could blame me on it if you wanted to... If your boss really is a meanie."
>Sunny smiles at first, but then it fades and she frowns.
>"No, I couldn't do that, Grape. This is spa business strictly."
"Then just pretend you're sick, if you're so afraid" you smile cheekily.
>"Y-You think so!?" Sunny suddenly jumps, as if all she needed was someone to validate her.
"Yeah, but better get a new clock before you do anything else" you pat her fluffy chest. "You know, best prevent this from happening."
>"Y-You're right!" Sunny puffs with pride, somehow. "Alright, thanks Grape, I owe you one! Do you need help with anything? 'Cause I got all day..." she wiggles her eyebrows at you. Girl, what an easy to push pony.
"Heh, I don't know about that..." you think about Sweet Seed, the deliveries, and the constructs. You might have your hooves full with that, but letting it out again, even if Sunny was there during that Nightmare Night adventure? It might get risky for all ponies involved.
>"Oh, come on, I promise I'll repay you!" Sunny replies, her eyes big and sparkly, as if you had saved her life or something. "Oh, I know! If you don't have anything to do, why not come with me to the clock shop? I'll get right on that new clock!"

>>25369077
Is it on the way to sweet seed? I would like to help him and she could help us with that too. Extra pair of hooves is good right?

>>25369141
>Thinking of maximizing your effectiveness, you think of the route to the clock shop and to your house from the spa. They don't mix at all, sadly.
"I'm sorry, Sunny" you start telling the earth mare, "I need to go help Sweet Seed with some deliveries."
>"Oh! Can I help with that?" She replies, looking pretty excited about the prospect of some mundane delivery.
"I-I guess? If you're up to pulling the cart with me..."
>"Yay!" Sunny jumps on you again, and without questioning her further, you both go back to your home, coincidentally meeting Sweet Seed at the front, loading what seems to be the last cart with crates of grapes and grape based products.
>"Oh? Welcome back!" He greets you. "You're... Grape's friend, from Nightmare Night, aren't you?"
>"Hi, I'm Sunny Care, nice to meet you!" The two ponies, being inherently nice and friendly, greet each other with huggles and immediately spark friendship. "Grape suggested I could help with your deliveries!"
"I didn't exactly suggest anything..."
>"That so?" Sweet looks at you. "If you take this cart downtown, I can make the single delivery to Scarlet Glaze on the south district. We'll save loads of time!"
"Yeah, we'll do that" you reply, smiling and putting on the yoke. "Sunny, there's an extra pull on the back of the cart. Sweet, please help her hitch it in."

(1/2)

>>25369585
>In a few minutes, both you and Sunny start trotting away from the north east district, heading to different shops and delivering the goods. As you thought, everything is more lively in the center and west parts of town. Sunny doesn't talk a lot, but enjoys pulling the cart and going all around Trottingham like a school filly. Silly Sunny.
>Once you're done, you return the cart home and turn south, to where the clock store is. Sunny doesn't seem tired at all, being an earth pony, while you have a bit of stress from pulling the cart, but nothing a soft glide around can't heal. Your friend watches you stretch your wings and fly at low altitude, greeting some of the weather crew pegasi crossing paths with you.
>"You know, sometimes I wonder what I'd be doing if I was born a pegasus..." Sunny speaks idly. "Because I couldn't fly, I spent a lot of time learning how to do things with my hooves, so I ended up becoming a body care pony. But I bet that if I had wings, I'd be flying every single day!"
>With these amusing talks, you both arrive at the clock store, homely and framed in wood. The owner, a grey pegasus with a dapper jacket and glasses named Gearwork, welcomes you.
>"So you need an alarm clock? Suit yourself, dear" he points at one of the walls, lined with small clocks, big clocks, electronic and classic, all sorts of them. "If you need something, I'll be moving this here clock towards the back room" he says, moving to where a massive hunk of a grandfather's clock is and pushing it. Sunny starts checking the clocks while you observe Gearwork barely doing any progress at all. Should you help, or is asking for help considered rude in the life of a gentlecolt?

>>25369605
Ask how heavy it is and then offer some help. You've got a strong earth pony with you. Maybe we can even get a discount on what we buy for helping.

>>25369651
>Regardless of what he may think, you'd still like to help.
"Hey, Gearwork" you tap the stallion's back. "Do you need any assistance? How heavy is that thing?"
>"Oh, dear" the adult pony turns around, already sweating. "This particular piece is rather hefty, I dare say. I couldn't possibly ask anything of you..."
"Nonsense. Hey, Sunny!" You call for your friend. "Tell you this mate, if we can make it easier for you, you'll get my friend a little discount? Hmm?" You accentuate your words with a careful tickle of your wings across his neck. The stallion's face quickly goes red.
>"Oh, yes, pleeeease..." Sunny catches your drift immediately and nuzzles against Gearwork with no decency whatsoever. "I'm in quite a bad finantial situation..." she rubs her bountiful chest tuft against his suit, causing the fever on the poor pegasus to go up without limits.
>"A-A-Alright! I suppose it would be a f-fair..." Gearwork finally caves in, disgusted but also probably delighted. You both nod secretly to each other, smiling like the cheeky ponies you've proven to be, then help the show owner move the massive clock to the next room. It does weigh a lot, but Sunny puts good strength in, and it doesn't take nearly as long as it would have with Gearwork alone.

(1/2)

>>25369981
>"Phew! What's in this clock? It weighs like a ton of bricks!" Sunny sits on the floor, slightly spent.
>"I do apologize, it's a rather old piece" the pegasus replies, bringing forth a cloth and cleaning its side. "I'm sad to let it go, but it broke days ago and I can't find the why or how..."
"Huh. Another broken clock" you mutter, as Gearwork gets out of the room. "Guess it's the season, or something..." you can't help but thinking something is clicking in your head. Clocks broken, clocks broken...
>"Uh... Grape?" Sunny suddenly huddles next to you.
"Yes? Do you have to be so close?" You reply, your brows rising as if trying to escape from the grossly perfumed chest.
>"I think I saw the clock move..."
>You deadpan over to her, then back to the clock. In that exact moment, with a certain grinding noise, the clock advances the equivalent of a step up. You both immediately retreat one step, and just then, the sides of the clock split, and from the insides burst a series of limbs, made of wooden and metal bars, as if they were bones, then massive amounts of gears covering them, forming arms and claws. Two legs sprout as well as two arms, and then the front door of the clock starts opening and closing, as if it wanted to get a bite of your flank, slowly advancing towards you and Sunny.

[PAUSE]

Alright, that's all for the night, thank you for playing, reading, lurking or any other sort of participation! I hope you had fun.
The schedule for this CYOA will be based on daily updates. During the week they'll be bite size, of a couple hours length as I can't stay up too late. Friday and Saturday would be the main features, with longer sessions like today's. That's all, I'll be back tomorrow!

>>25370010
Scream it terror and try to find something to hit it with while you run away.

Sorry I could be here to play Fins. Life, yaknow?

>>25370010
I just caught up, though it sadly seems I'm rather late to the party. I eagerly await the next session!
>>25371337
We should probably also get to the other room and warn Gearwork to stay away from his other clocks. They could turn bitey any minute!

>>25370010
I think we should split up and run in opposite directions around it and then met back up and run.

>>25370818

Good morning anons, I'll help bump the thread until I'm available tonight. Don't worry if you missed a session, we'll run short bits daily so you can miss one or two. As long as there's interest, the story will keep going.

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Updated the character sheet. We'll start in about four hours.

>>25376838
Well, fuck. I wont be able to take part in this because work and stuff eurofag.
Maybe next time.

>>25376050

>>25376838
Is that a... crosshair in his butt?
Are you making Sunny something like Mimi, childish and stuff?

>>25378321
It's a vague drawing of the clock markers for 12, 3, 6, 9 and the arms.
Sunny is her own character, you can get to know her through the quest. I guess she's kinda childish, but that's because she's good hearted and lives the life she wants.

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>>25371337
>>25372495
>>25373323
>Your brain starts working under stress, trying to find something to defend yourself and Sunny with. However, the only thing in the room are the clocks, as far as the eye can see.
"Okay..." you breathe deep as the clock monster takes another step forward. "Sunny, we're going to distract him. When I say 'go', you..."
>"GRAPE HELP I'M SCARED!" Immediately, the full fluff of your partner hits you in the face as Sunny jumps all over you, hugging you and forcing you to keep up with her weight. She might not look like it, but she weighs a ton. Don't let her hear that, though.
"Sunny! What the...!" You start panicking, unable to see clearly. "Neigh!" Finally, you manage to push her off and do what you should have done from the beginning: run.
>"Hmm?" Gearwork looks curious as you both run out of the back room. "You ladies alright?"
"Gearwork, I think you should get out of the shop. Things might get... bitey."
>"I beg your pardon?" The owner inquires, but his response comes faster than you can say: smashing through the door, the clock monster makes way towards where you are. "Bloody Tartarus!"
>"Run, sir, run!" Sunny yells, still trying to cling to you, as the monster starts picking up speed and trashes around with its clockwork arms. Gearwork snorts and breaks on a flight along with you, the monster still destroying the precious clocks inside. "Oh my..."
>"My clocks! That... beast!" Gearwork curses outside the shop, while a small crowd begins to gather around. "I guess somepony should, er... call for the guard, perhaps?"

Welcome back! Votes are open, we'll go for a couple of hours.

>>25379388
If somebody is going to get the guards make sure they get Mercury and that the tell him it's related to the candy monster.

>>25379388
So clocks? Is that what Tess is focusing on? After we see to it that the clockmonster is dead we will go to Lorie.

>>25379388
>>25379519
This is really weird. That construct just formed out of the blue right in the middle of town. Things are definitely different from the Candy golem, we need Lorie's help to figure this out!

>>25379609
It formed from a clock in the middle of a clock shop. Considering the first it doesn't really sound random.

>>25379644
I meant the fact that a golem fully formed on its own without warning. Tess wasn't there to be fueling the process.

>>25379689
Who says she has to be right next to it? For all we know she can control them from the other side of town.

>>25379717
Fair enough, still maybe she visited the clock shop or was nearby recently?

>>25379519
>>25379601
>>25379609
"Go ahead, Gearwork, call the guards! Oh!" You turn around before the stallion definitely sprints without being a sir and protecting the ladies around him. "Make sure you call for Mercury Helm, the rookie! Tell him this is related to Nightmare Night, he'll understand!"
>"I... got it!" The pegasus unfolds his wings and takes off, while inside the clock shop, the monster runs amok, destroying the clocks around it. What a waste of clocks, really.
>"W-What now, Grape? That thing is..." Sunny trots up to you.
"You go find Lorie. She warned me this would happen."
>"Oh? Oh! Okay!" The mare runs in the opposite direction, towards the south end of town. Meanwhile, you try to keep the crowd away from the show, and make sure the clock monster doesn't move from its place. It seems like it's trashing every single clock. The moment you peek in the shop, deadly pieces of metal and wood fly for your sweet cheeks.
>"Grape!" Finally, you hear the voice of your savior, the actual one. Mercury Helm comes, accompanied by his superior, corporal Rainbow Way. "We heard there's trouble, what is it?"
>You only have to point inside the shop for the guardsponies to understand.

(1/2)

>>25379788
>"T-That's..." Rainbow steps backward. "Okay, Mercury, we'll establish a perimeter a-and wait for reinforcements!"
>"Sir, I believe the quickest course of action would be disabling the monster" Mercury replies, not taking any from his superior. "Trust me, sir, me and Grape have dealt with this before."
>"H-Have you?"
>"Yes, on Nightmare Night."
>"On Night... oooh, I see" the pegasus appears a bit more brave.
>"Whatever it is you do, please, for the love of the princesses, save my sho-o-op!" Gearwork butts in, crying. In that moment, the crystal windows of the shop explode, causing the ponies looking to run around in terror, and the clock monster bursts through the entrance, completely smashing it to pieces. His arms and legs are three times the size they were. "The cur! He's strapped my clocks bare!" Gearwork yells from a safe distance on the other side of the street. It seems like you, Mercury and Rainbow are alone against the monster, who's ready to charge.

>>25379799
Looks like this construct is made of clockwork, anybody got a monkey wrench?

>>25379799
Is there any sort of power core exposed or somewhere that looks like a weakpoint? If so have Mercury aim for it.

>>25379840
Remember that Lorie wanted an intact core.

>>25379898
Maybe we should warn Mercury about that then?

>>25379835
>>25379840
>>25379898
>>25380028
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0Gv-iESVThU
"Alright... Mercury, do you see a power core anywhere?" You say, trying to look into the clock's gaping mechanical mouth.
>"I think... yes! It's deep inside, and much smaller than the other one!" The unicorn says. The monster doesn't wait any longer and charges, this time much faster than before. "Look out!"
>Rainbow Way and you fly away, but Mercury stays and creates a magic barrier around him, stopping the monster. Sparks and metallic gears dance in the air as the clock tries to penetrate the spell, finally jumping backwards in a very, very cool way. It almost makes you seem like you're the bad ones, for crying out loud!
>"Any ideas?" The corporal asks you while in the air. You frown at him. "W-What!? I'm not used to fighting unknown entities! The manual of the royal guard states that..."
"Yes, yes, avoid any compliance with established duty, I'm sure of it" you moan, then go down to where Mercury is. "Hey Merc, how is it hanging lad?"
>"That clock has a lot of vitality" the colt replies, a bead of sweat coating his brow. The enemy seems to be taking a timeout as well, to examine your abilities.
"Well, I just remembered, Lorie asked me to get her a live core."
>"What? How am I supposed to do that?"
"We. We are going to do that. Just try to burst the cover of that thing open" you say, flapping your wings against the ground and inhaling deeply.

(1/2)

>>25380170
>The clock attacks again, and to your surprise, a very confused, very scared Rainbow Way clashes against him, screaming in terror and flailing. That gives Mercury just the time he needs to shoot a magic blast, dead center. The wooden cover of the clock explodes, revealing something bright inside.
"Got it!" You fly at top speed, gliding extremely close to the ground, and collide with the clock, reaching for the core with your hooves. Maybe you should have questioned Lorie about the implications of holding such an unstable thing, but nevermind. The clock starts trashing around and trying to pry you with its enormous arms, which, ironically, are a disadvantage at such close range. "Easy lad, easy..."
>Your hooves eventually find their way into something round, smooth and slightly warm. It also tickles. You grab it and start flapping away, until eventually, everything explodes into a cloud of everything, or at least that's what you see as you're thrown away in the middle of thousands and thousands of little spinning gears, scattering in all directions across Trottingham.
>You fall, hit the ground and slide for a good while, until you land on somebody's legs. Looking down, you can see the sparking blue core, the size of a play ball, and looking up, a very confused Lorie looking right at you.
>"Uh... did I miss something?"

>>25380179
Just on time!
Heh, time. Clocks.
Here, we brought you a gift.

>>25380179
Ha, badass! Vine just ripped its beating heart out.

>>25380232
>>25380238
"Oh, just in time! Heh, time..." you snort and chuckle at your own pun. "You missed me being a badass. Here, this for you."
>"Huh?" Lorie picks up the core, and little by little, as Sunny helps you on your hooves, she starts grinning like a maniac. "This. Is. AWESOME. Hyaaaah!" Next you know, the unicorn is furiously nuzzling you. "I cannot believe you actually went and picked up one of these for meee!"
"Heh, yeah... for you... not that the town was in danger or anything" you contemplate while Mercury approaches. Seems like Rainbow Way has fainted in the street, too tired to continue, and Gearwork is crying over his now to be repaired and restocked store.
>You share the entire tale of this epic fight against the construct with Lorie, who asks about all the details she can think off.
>"Huh... ingenious" she says, kicking some of the random gears thrown all around town. "Using the metallic gears as material, with the clock frames as cover."
>"I didn't know constructs could be of such a small size" Mercury says, looking at the electric ball now atop Lorie's back.

(1/2)

>>25380591
>"Huh? Oh, yes, this is about the minimum required for it to not explode. Not everything has to be, you know..." she extends her legs, as if trying to remind you of the colossal size of the candy monster you fought during Nightmare Night. "Anyway, I need to get to work on this! With this core to analyze, I can improve the machine to work better!"
>"Machine?" Sunny asks.
"I'll explain it to you later. So, what can you do with it?"
>"Weeell" Lorie rolls her eyes, clearly delighted just thinking of all the hard, sweaty science she's about to do in her fun fun basement. "I can make it so that it tracks more than one construct, if the need arises. These things take time to create, and I doubt Tess will simply make them one by one. She must be preparing quite a few already."
"That's great news" you frown hard.
>"I can also make it so it can locate the constructs more accurately, or from an even earlier stage! Oh, I might be able to make the machine smaller, to the point of making it portable!" The unicorn jumps in excitement. "So, so, what do you think I should do with it first?" She looks at you with bright eyes. It's the first time you see her like this, honestly.

>>25380613
Portable sounds good. The tracker won't do us much good if we have to run back to Lorie"s basement every time we need an update.

>>25380698
"What? You can make it portable?" Your wings almost sprout out of your sides when you hear it.
>"Yes, now that I have a core to analyze, I can" Lorie smiles smugly. "The current iteration of the machine has a lot of workarounds I can take when I take a good look at this cutie."
>Mercury and Sunny stand by your side, paying attention to the conversation politely without really knowing what it's about.
"Well that would be the most useful thing, wouldn't it?" You sass Lorie. "Do you need anything else to work with?"
>"Nope! I'm set. Uh..." she takes a look around her. "I don't think this is the only construct loose in town. You should try to ask around, see if anypony has seen Tess, etcetera. She needs to at least get close once to the place where she wants the core to grow."
"Alright, alright, just get to work" you shush Lorie, who shrugs, turns around and leaves, happily bouncing the electric core on her back. "Alright, you two, good work!" Next, you address Mercury and Sunny. "Once again we have saved the town of Trottingham. Gosh, at this rate, they'll make us princesses in no time."
>"I wouldn't object to being a princess..." Sunny says with a sultry voice, puffing her mane.
>"Always glad to do my duty" Mercury salutes and strikes a pose. "But... what were you and miss Lorie talking about, exactly?"
"Oh, I'll fill you in about that in a second. Just..." you look past your friends, into the street, where the townsponies are gathered around the fainted stallions, Rainbow Way and Gearwork, who simply lay in the middle of the road, waiting for the darkness to settle in their souls.
>"Oh, yeah..." Sunny agrees. "Should we do anything about those two? As long as it doesn't involve picking up every single of these gears..." she shudders, kicking a few of the metallic cogs around.

>>25380956
Us and Sunny should try to help those 2 while Mercury starts asking around to see if he can fine Tess.

>>25380956
>>25381003
While we're with Gearwork we should ask if he met anypony that resembled Tess.

>>25381003
>>25381069
"Why don't we help them back on their hooves?" You ask Sunny, then address Mercury. "Merc, can you ask the ponies in this area if they've seen Tess recently? You remember what she looks like, right?"
>"How could I forget..." the unicorn grimaces. He departs immediately, asking the crowd to disperse and methodically starting to question some ponies, while you and Sunny help the stallions back up.
>"Hu, ha... is it over?" Rainbow Way wakes up, as if from a daze. "I had this terrible nightmare..."
"Snap out of it!" You wake him up hard. "Mercury is there, he'll tell you what to do."
>The soldier leaves in a hurry, and you're stuck with Gearwork, who still mourns the damages his store received.
>"Oh dear... so many clocks ruined. I still have some in storage, but rebuilding this stock will be..." he shakes in place.
>"There, there, it's alright..." Sunny pats his shoulder. "This is an emergency, you could probably ask town hall for compensation."
"Oh yeah, the Princess Celestia Fund for Equestria wide threats, or something like that" you reminisce. You haven't had to make use of that in this town in, like, forever. "Anyway, I'd like to ask you some questions, if you don't mind. I know it's hard, but we're going to catch the culprit."
>"Y-You are?" The stallion sniffs. "What can I possibly do for you?"

(1/2)

>>25381338
"Do you remember a green unicorn mare, very sick looking, ever coming into your store in recent time?"
>"A green unicorn...? That's not easy to forget, now is it?" Gearwork smiles faintly. "Yes, such a lady was in my store a few days ago. Mind you, however, she did look very healthy. And pretty."
"Huh?"
>"Unicorns" suddenly, Sunny spurts out words with a devilish voice. "Unnatural aspect magics. Disgusting... tampering with nature... grumble mumble..."
"Oh, that makes sense" you nod. "Still, what did she ask for?" You continue interrogating Gearwork.
>"Well, she wanted a normal clock, so I showed her around. Now that I think about it, she showed interest in the one I was repairing... it did break down a day or two after she visited."
>Well, if that doesn't spell it to you, nothing else could. Mercury comes back and tells you that a couple of neighbours have indeed seen a green unicorn mare around recently.
"So she's been snooping around, huh..."
>"The clocks were probably her objective. There aren't any other shops around here" Mercury states. "Perhaps we should close down the shop and examine all the clocks inside."
>That's an option, however you can also wait for Lorie to finish working on her gadget and ask her, or continue asking ponies in this area, try to cover more ground. Perhaps Gearwork could use a few days of rest while you investigate this...

Pausing here for the night. Thank you for playing, another few updates tomorrow at about the same hour!

>>25381352
See you tomorrow then!

>>25381352
Why, Sunny, do I perhaps detect a hint of... jealousy?

bump from 10

>>25381352
Wait a second... Sunny, do you think that your clock not working might have something to do with this? What if your clock turns into a monster?

Bamp.

>>25381352
There any other clock shops in town?

>>25385656

boop

>>25381352
Lorie should do her job in peace, Gearwork lost his shop and is not so helpful so we should go ask around.

>>25389574
Bumping, keep the dream alive!

>>25390147
Sorry anon, I was about to update.

>>25382106
>>25383641
>>25386235
>>25389574
"Sunny..." You suddenly have a thought.
>"Yes?"
"Are you perhaps... jealous of unicorns?"
>"W-Whaa!?" The pony suddenly jumps backward, covering her body with her flowing tail. "N-Nothing like that! But you know, I'm a proud beautician, and I work hard with ponies, to make them feel good with themselves! And then this... this...!"
"So you're only partially jealous of unicorns."
>"I'm not jealous, I'm angry! Angry about unicorns! Gosh darnit, y'all ain't listenin'!" She suddenly stops and covers her muzzle with her hooves, looking extremely distressed.
"...Was that...?"
>"Nothing! It was nothing!!" Sunny suddenly grabs you by the scruff of her neck, her voice back to normal.
"O-Okay..." you swallow, your friend quickly letting go of you and turning around.
>Thinking about it, this is the only clock shop in town, so if any more clocks are going on a rampage, they could be controlled easily... wait a minute.
"Sunny!" You turn sharply towards your friend. "Your clock is broken too! Is it a mechanical one?"
>"Y-Yeah..." she replies with a bit of fear in her voice. "With a little kekoo and..." suddenly, she gasps. "No way! My clock!" Without saying anything else, the mare turns around and starts galloping away.
"W-Wait!" You're left in the dust. "Mercury! Tend to Gearwork's shop, please!" You call for the unicorn, trying to follow on Sunny's quickly disappearing silhouette.
>"Easy for you to say...!" You hear him reply, and can't help but smirk to yourself.

(1/2)

>>25390174
>Sunny takes you all across the streets of town, until you catch up with her right in front of her home, a lovely two story house with many flowers in the balconies and a small fountain by the main entrance.
"Is this your home? Nicely done!" You compliment your friend, who's frantically trying to open the door.
>"T-Thanks! Here!" Sunny rushes inside without meeting your gaze, and you follow her upstairs, into her bedroom, furnished with plush pillows all around, in pastel tones of yellow and pink. It makes you feel very comfortable, until... "Kyaaah! The clock! The clock is gone!"
>Indeed, there's the clear silhouette of something like a clock that should be on the wall, but now it's gone. Sunny starts to look everywhere frantically, while you exit her home, thinking of what could have happened. There's only one clock store in all of Trottingham... but every home should have at least a couple of them. It can't be...!
"Dammit! We've been played!" You curse under your breath, and immediately start asking Suny's neighbors, door to door. As you thought, a couple other families have lost a clock or two in this section of western Trottingham.
>Back inside Sunny's home, you both recall the facts. Some, but not many, of the clocks in this part of town are gone, and it must have happened while the big clock became active.
>"Then it was a distraction... but why are were so little clocks stolen? And where could they be now?" Sunny drinks some water while questioning out loud. "What do we do now, Grape?"

>>25390184
Gathering a lot of material all at once is more noticeable, so maybe she's trying to do it a little bit at the time in hopes of not being detected. We could try following the path of the disappearances.

>>25390184
We could try looking for any commonalities in the homes the clocks went missing from. Were any of them broken into or left unattended recently?

Other than that we could check on Lorie and see if her tracker's upgrade is finished. We'll definitely need it with so many constructs running around at once.

>>25390174
>she hides her accent

Cute. As. Fuck. Wonder is she's kin to Apple clan.

>>25390248
>>25390281
>You calmly place your glass of water down after finishing it.
"Right now, all we can do is try to follow the path of the disappearances. Let's go ask some more."
>Getting up and getting serious, you and Sunny do a more thorough sweep of the neighborhood, asking the affected families about their clocks. As expected, they all broke this morning, and those few with fancy clocks, such as those powered by magic, were not affected. No unusual incidents, such as suffering a break in, were reported anywhere.
"She's definitely been doing this for a while. That Tess..." you sit on a bench in a nearby park, on the western edge of Trottingham, overlooking the coast and mainland Equestria.
>"It looks like only this side of town was affected, so..." Sunny tries to formulate a conclusion. "Maybe she's doing it slowly? Instead of all in one day."
"She must have put a lot of thought into this. Shoot! What if she's planning on making an army of clocks?" You suddenly come to the grim realization. "This is bad. We should go back to Lorie and ask her to make her machine identify more than one construct."
>After another hurried run, you reach the edge of town by the west side. Lorie's cabin is slightly towards the west coast as well, so it's relatively close to the district where the clocks disappeared. However, when you're getting close, the door of the lonely house shoots open.
>"Hiiih! Heeelp! Tess, I'm gonna kill you!" Lorie comes out, frantically running blind as something is latched onto her face. Upon closer inspection, as close as the panicking unicorn will let you, it's a small wooden clock, tiny arms and legs made of cogs grabbing her ears and muzzle, and making very rude gestures, equivalent to pelvic thrusts.

>>25390463
Get the clock off of her. Maybe she's focusing on smaller constructs this time.

>>25390463
That's got to be simultaneously the most disturbing and most adorable magical abomination I've seen all week.

>>25390463
Smack it off, maybe using our wing.

>>25390492
>>25390514
>>25390549
>"It's so adoorable!" Sunny screams in delight, quickly adopting a calm pose. "And extremely rude."
>"W-Who's there!? Help!" Lorie keeps screaming at random.
"Yeah, yeah, I go..." you sigh and walk towards the unicorn, who's resorting to kicking the air. Using your wings, you try to dust the construct off. "There there, get out of her face."
>"T-That's no qualitative methodology to deal with situations like this...!"
>In that moment, the clock turns slightly around, eyeing you. You're not sure how it exactly sees things, but he's definitely checking you out. Before you can dodge it, the construct jumps from Lorie's muzzle and sticks to your own face.
"MMMPH...!!"
>"Hahahahah! Wow, Grape, that's even funnier!" You hear Sunny laugh on the floor while the clock starts dry humping your muzzle.
>"Oh. Oh yeah, it is funny!"
"Just help me already!" You manage to separate your mouth just long enough to ask for reinforcements. Lorie and Sunny work together and finally pry the little bugger off your face. "Finally, that bastard!"
>"Hmm...?" Lorie opens the clock and finds a tiny blue ball, a very small power core. "Absolutely astonishing! My notes didn't even consider nodes this small! The burndown of energy compensation should be all...!"
"Aha..." you reply, nursing your sore muzzle. "Have you worked on your machine, by the way?"
>"Yes I did, thank you very much for asking" Lorie stands more properly, bringing forth a small object from inside her shirt. "I present to you, the Construct Tracker! Patent pending."

(1/3)

File: trot16.png (38 KB, 400x400) Image search: [Google]

38 KB, 400x400

>>25390843
"I'm not gonna steal your stupid gizmo!" You blow air through your muzzle, grabbing the small object, which looks like a hoof watch. It has a strap to fit in yours, and a screen which simply displays a red bar and a number.
>"At the time, it's very simple, it just displays the average energy concentration of the largest construct around" Lorie explains. "There's enough space to make quite a few modifications, and I think I'll start with this bad boy" she finishes, eyeing the small core.
>"If you do that, can you please make it so it can track more than one construct? This is the second one today, and we fear there will be more" Sunny says.
>"I see you arrived at the same conclusion as me. Yes, there must be many constructs being worked on in this island, and worst of all" Lorie shakes the ball in your faces. "Somehow, Tess managed to put this one in my house! It must have been days ago! There's less than a thirteen percent chance of that!"
"Yes, but now the clocks in the western side of town are missing" you tell the unicorn the information you've gathered. "I think all these small constructs might be a distraction, and there's a bigger one in the works..."
>"In that case, I'll get to work immediately" Lorie asserts, saving the power core inside her shirt and turning around. "O-Oh, I didn't ask if you wanted a coffee or anything..."

(2/3)

>>25390854
"Nevermind that, just get working" you beg her, and then go back to town with your new gadget. It takes a while to get used to, but it should be an indicator of how fast the next construct is forming. It's at near 70% now.
>"What do you think we should do next?" Sunny asks, also eyeing the machine. "I was thinking of going back with the guards and- oof!"
>Suddenly, both of you hit something large but fluffy, and fall on your butts. Raising your heads, you see a large tuft of grey plumage directly in front of you.
>"Greetings! Oh, sorry about that" the owner, a large, blueish griffon, helps you both on your hooves again. You notice he's got a camera hanging around your neck. "Excuse me for being so forward, but are you two Grape Vine and Sunny Care?"
"Who wants to know?" You ask, looking at the camera with distrust.
>"My name's Garrett, Garrett Silverwing. Reporter, photographer, here, have a card" the griffon pulls a couple of little cards from inside his chest fluff and gives you each one. "I've been spending some time in this town, and I got some interesting tales about what happened during Nightmare Night. I think it would be a waste not to make a story about this, so I'd like to buy you ladies a drink and ask you a few questions. Sound good?" He asks, smiling and looking rather expectant.

>>25390864
A reporter huh? Sure we'll do an interview, for the right price. Do you have any interesting information or gossip you've heard? Maybe about clocks?

>>25390864
Time is of the essence but I'm not sure what else we can do other than warn Helm. Let's agree but no interview until we inform Mercury.

>>25390969
This

>>25390899
>>25390969
>>25391101
"A reporter, huh?" You stroke your chin with your soft hoofsie. "Well, we might be willing to give you a good scoop... for the right price, fufufufu."
>"I got you covered" Garrett doesn't think twice before pulling a check from his chest and a pen. He shows you the check afterwards. Wow, that's... that's a big number. You and Sweet Seed could live without worries for a while. However...
"I'm not sure if I can trust a random check..."
>"Sugar, I work for the Crystal Empire Magazine, we're crown funded" Garrett raises an eyebrow and comes extremely close to your face with a broken expression. "Do you not trust Princess Cadence and Prince Shining Armor, hmm?"
"Eh, there are a lot of princesses to choose from..."
>"Grape, that's heresy! I'll do it for free" Sunny raises a hoof, then points at him, "but only if you show me how to do that with your fluff" she's completely mesmerized by the natural pocket in the griffon's feathers.
>"That can be arranged! So, should I get you ladies a coffee?" The griffon points out.
"You two go ahead. Keep that check warm, sweet beak, I'll be there right after I finish something" you tell both the griffon and the mare, and they accept your conditions. You don't see any malice in the guy, Sunny will probably be fine. Meanwhile, you need to alert the guard.
>"So that's how it is..." Mercury says, after listening to your retelling of the facts and theories you've discovered. "I'll try to talk with the corporal to increase vigil in the zones around the affected neighborhood."
"Where's Rainbow Way?"
>"Toffee break" Mercury replies, his brows completely horizontal, his face dead serious.
"...Toffee break" you reply with the exact same face.
>"Toffee break."
"Not 'coffee' or..."
>"Please" he bows down "do not judge the Royal Guard based on his actions."

(1/2)

>>25391216
"I'm willing to judge you better, Merc" you reply, easing up. "Don't fail us on that vigil, though."
>"Alright!" The unicorn salutes, and you leave him to his devices while going back to the cafe where you were supposed to meet Garrett.
>It seems like the griffon and Sunny have had a nice time. Sunny refused to talk too much until you arrived, and so Garrett interviews you both, after giving you the check, valid in all Equestrian banks. He asks you about your lives, and then about the events of that fateful Nightmare Night. You leave Lorie and Tess' names out of it, since theirs is a more personal issue, but tell Garrett the possibility of asking Mercury for his share of fame.
>"This is a really good story! You girls sure had it rough" the griffon asserts, after writing all of your answers.
"Say, have you been collecting stories about the townsfolk?"
>"A fair few. I'm interested in landmarks and other interesting stories."
"Have you heard anything interesting about... clocks?"
>Sunny looks at you from the corner of her eye while sipping on her coffee.
>"Clocks? That's odd" the griffon gives you a rather suspicious look, then relaxes back into the chair. "I talked with that fellow from the clock shop a couple days ago. He told me an interesting story about his grandfather, the founder of the shop."
>Both you and Sunny stare at him without saying word.
>"He told me his grandfather was so prolific at making clocks, he had to stash his work somewhere hidden in this island, and to date, this amazing collection of clocks has never been found" the griffon raises his claws. "Can you believe it? Hundreds and hundreds of clocks, they could be anywhere! Fascinating."
>Sunny and you almost fall off your chairs.

That's all for tonight, I need to leave early today. More tomorrow!

>>25391233
G'night then.
Welp, we need to pay Gearwork another visit asap.
On another note, we've got money. What should we do with it? Maybe Lorie can use it to buy materials for the tracker upgrades?

>>25391233
Looks like we found our lead.

>>25391233
I kinda wished we were Merc just so we could see his struggles with the complacent guard force. Apparently his kind is hard to come by.

>>25391233
Have ponies even looked hard for it? I guess what we should do is try to piece together where his grandfather often went?

>>25391233
Maybe the clocks are hidden somewhere in or near the network of mines under Trottingham? Last we saw, Tess was running deeper into the Tunnels, she's probably found loads of hidden tunnels, caves, and passages.

Added Trottingham to the archive:
http://anonpone.pineapplecomputing.com/trottingham

Ah, shit. We have to ask him about those clocks and try to find those nasty humpers.

boop

Bup

>>25394617
Thanks fAmm

>>25396540

>>25396540

Guys, I'm sorry but I'm afraid I won't be able to run the mini session tonight. Stuff has been happening and I've had a terrible day, my apologies for the inconvenience.
However! Wednesdays are good days for me, because I have more time at night, so tomorrow I'll make it up with a good session!

>>25399478
Fallout happening?

>>25399518
If it was that I'd plain say it.

>>25399557

should we let this thread die then and let you start a new one tomorrow?

>>25400107
If you guys don't want to bump it, I'll make a new thread. The OP images are going to be very similar, so it doesn't take me long to set up a new one. There won't be any problem either way, so choose freely. Tomorrow at this hour I'll be back.

page 10 bump
keep her alive guys!

I want Sunny to get into an angry rant and totally slip into southern mannerisms.

bunp

Pmub

>>25403401

Since you guys kept the thread up, I'll help bump it until we're running tonight.

Time for some ADVENTURE.

>>25404091

File: garrettsilverwing.png (52 KB, 400x400) Image search: [Google]

52 KB, 400x400

Less than two hours till start!

>>25408018
Mr. Silverwing doesn't seem to have much in the way of wings.

File: you could just imagine i went full nips on him.png (54 KB, 400x400) Image search: [Google]

54 KB, 400x400

>>25408042
Thanks for the detail!

>>25408080
>filename

I prefer my ponies and/or others with everything attached, thankyouverymuch.

>>25391341
>>25391342
>>25393129
>>25393923
>>25395446
>After a bit of a more relaxed conversation with Garrett, you and Sunny leave the cafe and immediately head back to the clock shop. This new revelation changes everything!
>However, Mercury Helm and another royal guard stand by the now closed shop, the gears around town slowly being cleaned by different teams of ponies.
>"Mr. Gearwork went back to his home" the unicorn explains. "He was advised to rest for a few days, and most of the guards in town are now deployed" he ends with a triumphant smile, then turning sour. "Which... isn't much, to be honest."
"Any help will do. Thanks Merc!" You quickly depart the street and search for Gearwork's house, which is pretty close to the shop, as you hoped.
>The gentlecolt greets you both and offers you a nice cup of tea and you don't lose time asking about his grandfather's clocks.
>"Why yes, my grandfather started the shop" he explains calmly, looking outside the window. "He was an incredibly skilled pony, and had a great imagination. I still have some of his blueprints, he made very artistic clocks, yes."

(1/2)

>>25408828
>"Is it true, then?" Sunny rushes to ask. "Did he hide all of his clocks somewhere?"
>"That is what my father told me" Gearwork replies, shrugging gently. "I completely believe it, there were still dozens and dozens of his clocks in our storage by the time I inherited the store" he then smiles and takes a sip of tea. "I like to believe he had a special place to visit when he wanted to look at his private collection."
"Any ideas of where that could be?"
>"None, I'm afraid. Not even my grandmother knew, but the rumor has always been there. It could be anywhere in the island, he was known for taking long walks in the forest and the coast."
>The forest and the coast... those aren't very narrow places to look in, but it's a start. It surely wouldn't be in the town itself. After a bit of chit chat, you thank Gearwork for his time and leave.
>"Well, the clocks that disappeared were all in the west side..." Sunny talks while you both walk aimlessly. "Maybe it's in that side of the coast, somewhere?"
"It could also be underground... remember the candy monster?" You reminisce. "There are many griffon and pony mines scattered around the isles."
>That leaves you a few options. The sun is setting and ponies are stopping the cleaning labor and turning home. The gadget in your leg says 72%. It seems to be advancing slowly, but it shouldn't be done until tomorrow. You could see if Lorie has anything new to add, try to investigate any of the suggested places, or go home for the night. You've been out all day and Sweet Seed might be worried.

>>25408834
Lets update Lorie about what we've found out.

>>25408834
Why not start our investigation with the forest? Since it's late we shouldn't go in too deep, just enough to get a feel for where we can search. If possible we should also check with Lorie and see how she's progressing.

>>25408834
Investigating the west coast seems like a good idea. Easier to search with the sun setting than a forest.

A map of Trottingham would be very useful so we would know where everything is in relation to eachother.

File: Map v1.png (105 KB, 600x600) Image search: [Google]

105 KB, 600x600

>>25408878
>>25408895
>>25408935
>In all fairness, both places sound equally mysterious. The western coast, of little elevation and many beaches, cliffs and coves scattered around. The forest, covering most of the isle and harboring many ancient secrets. However, you only have so much time.
"Huh..."
>"What's the matter?" Sunny trots up to your face and asks with a smile.
"I'm thinking what to do. I really want to go check on Lorie... but I'm also interested in checking the coast."
>"Well, there's not that much daylight left..." the earth pony looks up. "If we go with Lorie, you can take a look at the forest, maybe?"
"Maybe. Eh, sure, why not, let's do that."
>"Okay! B-But" the pony suddenly becomes tame. "I'll just go visit Lorie with you, okay? I'd kind of... appreciate no more late evening adventures in that forest."
"You better pray, sister, because things are going to get weirder."
>And so, you make one last trip south and visit the mathematician, who's hard at work in the next upgrade for the Construct Tracker...
>"I really hope you're including the 'patent pending' in your thoughts."
"Stop interrupting me while I think!"
>"Anyway" the unicorn settles down from working on her table. A lot of gizmos and tools are scattered everywhere. "I have nothing new, and I suggest you don't go to the forest right now. It's illogical, impractical and..."
"Hey, what a coincidence, I'm an illogical, impractical mare!" You mock Lorie, then ruffle her mane. She doesn't seem amused. "Oh, come on Lorie, loosen up. I just want to check the treeline and then head back home."

(1/2)

>>25409209
>"Suit yourself. There's a sixty seven percent chance that you'll find timberwolves, or worse" the unicorn says, not looking at you.
"...Now that you put it that way..."
>"Oh, Grape!" Sunny suddenly falls in your arms, a leg over her forehead in dramatic act. "Please don't go, I'll be really sad if you get eaten by timberwolves...!"
"Sheesh!" You push the earth pony away, albeit gently. "I get it, I get it! Look" you point outside. "It's night already, anyway. We'll do that tomorrow."
>Lorie smiles smugly, while Sunny simply appears to be relieved that you won't try anything new. You leave Lorie's cabin and say goodnight to Sunny, then head all the way back home. It seems like the recent attack has once again put fear in the hearts of ponies, very few actually staying at the streets at sunfall.
>"Welcome back! Where were you?" Sweet Seed greets you once you get home, your hooves aching.
"Oof... hi, Sweet... I'm sorry, I've been doing stuff... there's more monsters attacking Trottingham, and you know..." you lazily climb the couch and rest.
>"Oh, I see..." your friend looks at you seriously, then lowers his gaze. "Well, there's dinner for you in the kitchen. I'm going to bed now" he leaves without making eye contact again. He seems down for some reason, and so are you, so you should organize your night and go to bed properly, instead of falling asleep in the couch... right?

>>25409221
We should at least eat dinner. Then we not bother going all the way to bed and crash on the couch.

>>25409221
Maybe we should make him breakfest to appologize for not being around. Let's try to wake up early to make it! If we can find a clock that's not going to murder us.

>>25409314
>>25409445
"Ugh..."
>With heavy hoofsteps, you get off the couch and enter the kitchen. In the central table, there's a small bowl of milk soaked grape flakes. Nothing like cereal to celebrate a day of fighting off the enemies of Equestria!
>You enjoy the bowl on your own, as quickly as possible, while still thinking of all you have to do tomorrow: you need to start searching somewhere, and possibly get a guard or two to help. Mercury would be the best option, of course, but hopefully the other ponies deployed in town will wake up once they see there's an actual danger threatening Trottingham. Other than that, maybe Lorie will decide to come as well. She might be weird, but she knows her science.
>After a good dinner, you head to the stairs to the second floor...
"Yeah, nah" you turn around and crash in the couch. That's enough for one day...
>"Grape! Wake up, Grape!" You open your eyes and meet Sweet Seed's gaze, looming above you, slightly concerned. "Did you sleep on the couch?"
"Hmm..." you stretch lazily, your friend looking away for a second. "I think so. What, are you gonna remind me the couch is new? It's pretty comfy."
>"That doesn't bother me" the earth colt replies, now smiling softly. "Come on, help me prepare breakfast."

(1/2)

>>25409478
"Huh? What hour is it?" You notice there's not that much daylight outside. "Wow... I guess I went to bed pretty early."
>"Yep! See, isn't it wonderful?" Sweet says, already prancing towards the kitchen. "You start a new day full of energy!"
>You can only reply with a series of horse noises while following him with gloom. You're. Not. A. Morning. Mare.
>While preparing some fruits, some oats and juice, you notice Sweet Seed stays silent and doesn't look at you. Again? Didn't he do something like this last night?
"Uhh... Sweet?" You finally decide to ask. "Is everything okay?"
>"Huh? Of course! Why do you ask?" He finally turns to look at you.
"Well, it kind of seems like you're avoiding me..."
>"Oh..." he frowns. "That's not it, Grape."
"Then?"
>"Well, I was trying to... I mean, I wanted to talk with you... naa, nevermind."
"No no, please do! You're my best friend, the least I can do is listen!" You grab him and turn him around, putting your front hooves in his shoulders.
>"If I'm your best friend...!" Sweet starts, almost yelling, then quickly realizes and calms down. "Sorry... what I wanted to ask you is, well... do you think I could help you with your... adventure, thing, whatever you call it?" A light blush forms on the colt's face. "I promise I won't get in the way... just..."

>>25409489
Hug him close. Oh of course you can Sweet! I just got so caught up in it all I forgot about you. Can you forgive me?

>>25409553
"Sweet... you were holding on that?" You look deep into the colts eyes. "Don't be silly! Of course you can come!"
>"It's just... I know I don't have that many skills, but still..." he shakes a little. "I don't know why you didn't ask..."
>Without reply, you push Sweet close to you, giving him one of your signature hugs, snuggling him close. He's pretty warm, and smells nice, like fresh soil and open field. Sweet shakes a bit in your grasp.
"Sweet, it's nothing like that" you whisper into his ear. "I just... got caught up in the momentum. Every time, I've been here and there, trying to make things right as quick as possible. If I could have waited and ask, I would have asked you, definitely!"
>"R-Really?"
"Yeah. You know, this concerns all of us, so doing your part to keep Trottingham safe is the best thing you can do" you break the hug and smile at him. There's a serious heat in his face. "I'm sorry, can you forgive me?"
>"N-No! I mean, there's nothing to forgive!" Sweet shakes his head, smiling brightly this time. "Thanks, Grape..."

(1/2)

>>25409752
"Don't mention it. You don't have to take care of the vineyard for a while, right?"
>"Right. Harvest is over, I just need to keep it healthy."
"Then let's eat and away we go. I'll fill you in everything I can along the way."
>You tell him everything about the recent events, and your plans of checking on the coast and/or the forest. Sweet listens intently, with a rather serious face. He's really cute when he gets into things. Once you're done eating and talking, you grab the Construct Tracker, which calls 86%, and get out along with your friend. Then...
>"Kyaaah!" You hear a yell in the distance, and without thinking, you run down the streets with Sweet in tow, until you reach the source of the noise. In the middle of street, a pony is being attacked by a clock, her face being humped without mercy. "Somepony please take this off meee!"
>"Oh my gosh..." Sweet freezes in place. "It's even worse than I thought."
>You follow his gaze, and observe as a little march of many walking clocks, at least a good twenty of them, comes from the west side and starts latching onto ponies, riding them, humping them, booping their muzzles, and generally being extremely annoying. They will soon arrive where you and Sweet stand.

>>25409759
Are we strong enough to fly with a passenger?

>>25409759
Welcome to the "adventure" Sweet. Try to keep your dictance and stomp any that are separated from the horde.

>>25410038
>>25410054
>"G-Grape..." Sweet Seed starts retreating, and so do you. "What now?"
"Tsk. What a joke of a revenge, Tess..." you mutter, spreading your wings. "Sweet, mount me."
>"I b-beg your pardon!?"
"On my back, now!"
>The colt does as told, and you get ready for one busy flight. Granted, Sweet is a small pony, but even then, you're not used to fly with passengers. Nevertheless, the clocks are reaching your position, and you need to think, so you make the effort and fly well out of reach, for a short time, landing on a rooftop nearby. Huh, that was easier than you thought!
>"Why did you get us here? That changes nothing!" Sweet replies, now trying to stand in the straw and wood roof.
"Calm down Sweet. This is the adventure you were looking for" you say, winking at him. "We need to keep a distance, these guys are very annoying.
>"I-I'm gonna fall!" The colt replies, trying to keep his hooves straight.
"Oh please, you won't! Just listen to me: jump in there and try to stomp any clock you see separated from the rest, okay?"

(1/2)

>>25409759
Let's try to help a pony if we can. Take a clock off them.

>>25410130
>"Uh huh?"
"Try to smash the center, if you see a blue ball the size of your hoof, try to grab it, or just destroy it! That's the power core" you finish instructing the colt, then grab him again before he falls off. "Okay, I'm going to deploy you now. Don't fail me!"
>"Grape, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to offend you, just please get me down, get me down please!" The colt cries in your back. Huh, maybe he doesn't like heights. With a swift glide down, you land in a less attacked area, where a few ponies are trying to get the clocks out of their folk's backs.
"Alright, get in there and help anypony you can!"
>"G-Got it!" Sweet leaves you temporarily, his legs still wobbly. Now it's your turn. The guard doesn't seem to be around, and according to Mercury, there isn't that much of a guard to begin with, so you need to set your priorities straight.

>>25410133
>"Help, help!" A very close cry comes by your side: a small filly has a clock in her back, riding her much like a bucking bronco. This time frowning in disgust, you run up to the filly and grab the clock's little arms with the tips of your wings.
"Stop right... there!!" Putting a lot of pressure on, you get to pry the clock off the filly's back and smash it against a wall. The little pony runs into your chest and gives you a hug, shivering. "It's alright! Where's your mom and dad?"
>"T-There!" She points in the distance, to a couple of ponies running towards you. They thank you for helping their daughter and quickly get away with her, avoiding the few clocks left without a victim.
>The clocks aren't dangerous, just a bunch of cheeky wankers. You could try and make this quicker, or go find the guard, or start investigating while it all sorts itself out. Either way, the tracker in your leg calls 87%. There's not much time left until something big appears, if the slow filling bar is any indication.

I'll stop here for the night, be back tomorrow at the same hour!

>>25410130
>"Sweet, mount me."

Woah, lewd.

>>25410169
This is clearly a distraction. We need to leave this to the guard and get to looking for this clock cache. Before something dangerous appears.

Yeah, we should look for the guard since we know something bigger is about to show up. Or we could tell sweet to look for guard while we keep helping.

Sweet will now always think "what a strong back" whenever he looks at grape.

Bamp.

Blip.

>>25412652

>>25414608

>>25411622
I wonder how much Grape has friendzoned Sweet.

Also, I find Fins signature [HORSE NOISES] infinitely amusing.

>>25414608

>>25410808
>>25410944
>After helping a couple of ponies, it seems like the number of clocks is going down, but they're some slippery bastards, these constructs. You get back to Sweet and inform him that you will alert the guard and go investigate together.
>It doesn't take you long to find Mercury and his guard companion, near the clock store where they were appointed yesterday. They seem to be running a bit aimless.
>"Grape! Do you happen to have seen a lot of clocks walking around here, somewhere!?" He stops and asks you, looking pressured.
"The townsponies are dealing with them over there" you point. "Where are the other guards? Me and Sweet are going to find where these clocks are coming from."
>"Is that so? Well, I'd love to help, but there's too few of us and too many places to protect" Mercury replies, trotting in place and looking around. "B-But get back to us if you deem whatever you find dangerous!"
"I'll have that in mind" without holding the guards any longer, you and Sweet depart...
>"Grape, where are we exactly going?"
"Now that you mention it..." you stop and hold up a wing in thought. "I guess the coast is closer. We'll take a peek, and then decide to follow or turn back to the forest."
>"Are we going alone, just the two of us?"
"I don't want to lose time. Look!" You show him the Construct Tracker. It's well near 90%. "When this gets to 100%, some huge monster is going to attack, I just know it!"
>"A-And we're going to find that monster... the two of us..."
"I'll think about calling somepony else when we get there!"
>You trot all the way to the low elevation cliffs that oversee the beaches of the western coast. There are only a few fisherponies and boats along the dark, troubled waters. On first sight, the beach looks completely normal, other than the few scattered gears remaining from yesterday's explosion. You could investigate thoroughly, go back to town to find other available ponies or try a different direction, such as the forest.

>>25417416
How the hell did gears get all the way out here?

>>25417416
I say we investigate the beach. Try to pretend we're super observant like the protagonists in our mystery novels

>>25417483
>>25417607
"Wow, the gears even got here and everything..."
>"What are those?" Sweet asks.
"When I fought that big clock yesterday, the explosion caused little gears to spread all over town."
>"Amazing" the colt smiles, possibly reminiscing about how badass you were. He wasn't even there, and yet he reminisces, that's how good it was.
"Anyway!" You strike a cool pose. "Let's get down and explore the beach, we don't have any time to waste!"
>"Alright!" Sweet Seed salutes and follows you down the path that connects the cliff with the beach, a nice spot for tourists and townsfolk to enjoy in summer, but now only a sea of storms, quite literally. Up north should be the town port, connected with Equestrian cities.
>Walking with care, treading the soft, cold sand with mystery, you and Sweet act like the absolutely pro detectives you are, and scout the coastline and the rocky cliffs, searching for any oddities. It's just like in one of your favorite novels, when the detective and the killer meet under the moonlight, hiii!
>You focus on the face of the cliff, but find nothing that stands out. However...
>"Huh?" Sweet jumps beside you. "Grape, remember that one rock by the coast? The one ponies dive from."
"Sure!" You turn your head and look at one of your favorite spots in town, a large boulder in the water, near the coast. "Wait a minute..."
>"It's different, isn't it?"
>Sure is, you've seen that boulder so many times, you know its every nook and cranny. And now, suddenly, the top part has disappeared, flat plain when it used to be a jagged spike.
"That can't be right..." you mutter, quickly scanning the surroundings. The sea is turbulent today, so only pegasi will be able to get there safely. You could carry Sweet with you again, but that will leave you two practically alone for the time you spend up there. The tracker in your leg marks 91%. You either go in with Sweet, find somepony else quickly or ignore it and pray it's just a coincidence.

>>25417737
Let's go up there with sweet. Then again he can stay down here and we can go ourselves and give a quick look. He doesn't like flying and we will be flying unobstructed.

>>25417737
Go look and leave Sweet the timer. Tell him if it reaches 95 before we get back to go get help.

>>25417928
this

>>25417914
>>25417928
>>25417944
"Wanna give it another whirl, Sweet?" You nudge your friend, unfolding your wings. He, in turn, gives you a somber look.
>"...N-No?"
"Aw. Now I have to comply, because you were polite" you joke, then unstrap the tracker in your hoof. "Here, keep this. I'm going to check up there" you give it to Sweet. "It it goes over 95%, go find the guard or anypony available, preferibly more pegasi."
>"Are you sure? I mean, if there really is something there..."
"It won't be much different that the one time with the candy monster, will it?" You wink.
>"That time you weren't alone..."
"Relax, I'm just gonna take a quick look" you ruffle Sweet's already messy mane, then gear up and take to the skies. The wind isn't strong on the coast, but it becomes harsh as you go above sea. Hopefully it won't get worse before you're done.

(1/2)

>>25418039
>You were hoping this wasn't it, but sadly, reality is much more awesome; on top of the boulder lies a hole, and you can see the faint reflection of stairs on torchlight. If that doesn't spell a mystery for you, what sort of books have you been reading? Testing your luck once again, you land on the flat surface, wave at Sweet, far in the distance, and take a few steps into the spiral staircase going down into the boulder.
>It's dank and cold inside, but there are torches, and by the looks of it they're just fake, electric ones. Very nice to set the mood. As you keep going down, something starts adorning the walls: clocks, of many sizes and shapes, of kekoo and bells and those ones with the ponies dancing when it strikes the hour. Their number increases as you keep descending, to the point of literally litter the wall, not letting a single space with visible rock.
"This is completely nuts..."
>You curse your good luck and keep going down, until you reach the end. There's a corridor past the staircase, leading to a lit room. You can see shadows dancing in the distance, this all kind of reminds you of that Nightmare Night, by the caves. Judging by how much it takes to go down the stairs, the tracker will have gone up another one or two percent. Maybe, if you're quick enough, you can finish everything here... or maybe, if you're quick enough, you can get reinforcements.

>>25418046
We can't take tess on our own so we should really go and get reinforcements. Though let's first confirm she's here. Maybe everything is just automated?

>>25418092
>Cautiously, you walk down the ominous hallway, lit with more fake torches but still keeping a certain air of villany. Even then, you can't help but feel a certain excitement in your chest, your heart pumping faster the more you approach the end of the tunel...
>You lean against the wall and take a peek: the corridor ends in a room to the same level, and the sight is breathtaking: a massive cavern, carved under the seafloor and chock full of clocks, lining the walls, in rows and columns, of all variants, but all of them really beautiful. Just a massive amount of clocks, and in the center...
"Tsk. Here we go" you try not to lose your cool with the sight of many clocks being destroyed, their metallic parts somehow being added to a mass in the center, the gears spinning into each other, helping each other form bridges and chains to pull more gears from other clocks.
>You look around, but don't see Tess. Somehow, you can see that the monster is forming itself at this point, so perhaps the unicorn has departed, or who knows, she might not have been here after one or two initial visits. The new monster is huge, pretty much like the candy one, and it almost reaches the ceiling.
"Maybe, juust maybe, I shouldn't tackle that thing alone" you think, then turn around and start going back the tunnel. Yeah, you're going to need Mercury, and Lorie, and pretty much half of Trottingham to take on that monster. As you keep going back the way you came, heading for the stairs, you start hearing the mechanical noise of gears grinding, closer, as if...
"Oooh girl..." The moment you turn your head, you see a sort of giant hand, made entirely of clockwork, reaching for you all the way from the large room.

>>25418046
Let's check it out.

>>25418411
Run! Fly! Whatever!

>>25418411
Run the hell out. We have to find our friends. I wish we brought lorie and merc.

I'm sorry guys, I really want to do this update but my brain just won't work. I don't want to do something half assed, and I have a good idea for a drawing, so I'll use your suggestions and be back tomorrow with the update and hopefully the drawing.

>>25418658
That's ok Fins, you run when you feel like it.

>>25418411
Run your little ass out of there as fast as you can! Imagigine what it could do with all those clocks you passed on the way down here...

>>25421360

>>25421360

>>25420563

>>25423431

>>25423431

>>25418438
>>25418444
>>25419069
"Nooo no no no...!" You start running, then gliding, then flying all across the tunnel, sharply turning upward and using the shaft in the center of the spiral staircase to ascend as quickly as possible, reaching fresh air in a matter of minutes. Stepping on top of the beach boulder, you can feel the tremors that... thing, is making in the underground rooms.
>Without even looking back to see if it's still coming after you, you fly at full speed back into the beach, where Sweet keeps waiting for you with a silly smile.
>"Wew Grape, you just got here in time!" He shows you the tracker status. "It just hit 95%! Did you find anything in there?"
"This is bad, Sweet, this is very bad!" You grab the colt by the shoulders and shake him a little. "The construct almost got me! Almost!" You leave him be and breathe a sigh of relief. No, no relief allowed, things are still pretty dire. "We need everypony here right now. Those little clocks in town are nothing compared to what's coming!"
>"W-What's coming?" Sweet asks, now terrified out of his guts.
"The monster is huge! We need Mercury and Lorie and...!" You start instructing your friend, and in that moment, something explodes behind you. The top of the boulder has been smashed, and from inside, a fist appears, even bigger than the one that chased you, made of uncountable tiny gears, metal shining under the sunlight. "Oh my..."
>"Grape, look out!" Sweet gets you out of your stupor, to realize that the fragments of rock punched by the construct are flying all over the beach, causing the few ponies around to run. A good number of pony sized chunks of rock are flying your and Sweet's way.

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>>25425881

>>25425881
Can we look at their trajectory and get out of the way?We should also split up, sweet looks for merc while we go to Lorie.

>>25425881
Let's make sure everyone's off the beach first. We don't want anyone getting bouldered.

>>25425914
I approve of the split up manuver.

>>25425914
>>25425986
>>25426149
"Duck!"
>Your reflexes save you and Sweet, the rocks flying all over you, but ultimately crashing against the face of the cliff. Looking around, you see that the few fisherponies that were spread along the coast are running mad towards town. At least that will save you some trouble... Heh, sure.
>"W-What are we gonna do!?" Sweet yells, using your wing as cover.
"We're going to alert everypony before that thing gets out! Come on, go find the royal guard!"
>You climb the stairs back into Trottingham. From up the cliff, you can see the monster struggling to break the rest of the boulder and arise.
"That was my favorite diving spot, you monster!" You yell as a reflex act, then puff your cheeks and fly south while Sweet gets into town. Your destination is Lorie's cabin, and to your surprise, you find the mare already out and running towards the town. "Lorie!" You glide down and meet her.
>"What's happening!? I just heard a boom from my house!" The mathematician says. "I was calibrating the machine, and by the time I turned it back on, the main construct was up to 95%!"
"I know, we just found it, and it's huge!" You start nodding. "Follow me, I sent my friend to find the guard. I think we got there too late."
>"Why, did it start moving already? That's good news, actually!"

(1/2)

>>25426169
"Huh?"
>"At least that way the core isn't completely protected. The last thing the core does before reaching 100% is making a secondary layer that's much harder to break, a safety!" The unicorn informs you. "Even if it's moving, at least we just need to shoot the core to stop it!"
"Like that would be easy..." you keep running across the streets, and meet back at the cliff where Sweet, the guards and many other ponies are looking into the distance, where a sudden mist has covered the entire beach. "What the...?" You look up, and see the reason everybody is standing still. "Oh..."
>The monster isn't wasting any time, and two arms have broken out of the seafloor, trying to bring the rest out by digging.
>"J-Just what in Tartarus was your grandfather doing!?" You hear Garrett, the journalist, talk with Gearwork. Shortly afterwards, you hear the sound of a camera snapping a picture. "Good scoop though."
>"This is horrible, those hands can theoretically grab at least four or five ponies each!" Lorie squints while looking at the distant monster. A thin layer of mist is forming on the beach and the sea as the monster tries to rise up once again.

>>25426179
Any idea why things are getting so misty?

>>25426179
That mist presents a problem. Even if the secondary shell hasn't formed yet it doesn't do us much good if we can't see well enough to shoot its core.

>>25426179
I think Tess is trying to conceal her monster since it's not cooked through yet. Now it's our turn to get bent out of shape because of unicorns. The weather is the domain of Pegasi damnit! Let's try to blow the misty fog away with any other Pegasus around and try to spy the core. Guessing there's at least one Pegasus on duty to help.

>>25426219
>>25426250
>>25426267
"What's up with that mist? It's not even cold today!" You're starting to get angry at the fact that the arms are permanently covered by a thin layer of fog. That will make things ridiculously hard to find the core.
>"I bet it's one of Tess' schemes" Lorie says, immediately whipping her notebook up. "Let's see... it might be a concentration of pressure in a gas pocket... an effect of water and dirt turbulences... no, no, it's all too simple! The only logical answer is... a spell!"
"Of course!"
>"Unicorns! Grrr mumble..." all of the sudden, Sunny appears behind your back with a frown, immediately turning sweet once your eyes look. "Oh hi Grape, I've smashed a clock this big!" She extends her hooves. Damn, that's a big clock.
"Anyway, we need to get the citizens to safety!" You exclaim, running towards the royal guard. "Oi, what are you doing, standing there! Make a perimeter, protect the citizens, whatever!"
>The very few guards around, less than ten, start to fumble and hastily form a barricade in the cliff, pushing the audience back inside town. You notice a few pegasi are trying to fly over to watch, and that gives you an idea. Tess thinks she can solve everything with magic, but she just gave you the court!
"Wait! Every available pegasus, come with me!" You fly up over the royal guard 'barrier' and address the population of Trottingham. "We need to destroy that monster, and for that, the mist has to go first! Come on, brothers, sisters, are you going to let the town suffer because of a spell?"

(1/2)

>>25426451
>Little by little, a few pegasi in the crowd start rising up, between chants of 'no!' and 'freedom!' and other inherently Griffish things. The weather crew shows up in full, along with some other able winged citizens. Garrett Silverwing joins as well, to your interest.
>"I never said I was a passive reporter" he shrugs smugly. "Come on, I can get even better pix if we clear that mist."
"Whatever, welcome to the party" you smile back. At least he's got guts. That's more than Rainbow Way can say, whistling and looking the other way while he contains the population without interest. "Alright everypony, let's fly down there and flap our wings!"
>The dozens and dozens of pegasi fly in agile formations, descending the cliff and into the low beach, and together, you all start to flap your wings in the direction of the sea. Thinking about it, that hits Manehattan... well, they surely won't notice a bit more magic smoke.
>"Go pegasi! Wooo!" You hear Sweet yell, and afterwards, a few other cheers echo from up the cliff. That seems to have a positive effect, as you all clear the odd mist in no time at all, revealing the ascending body of the clockwork construct, shiny metal cogs mashed together, forming some two armed monstrosity.
"Everypony, get out, get out! Leave the rest to us!" But who exactly is 'us'? By now, anypony you could ask is up there on the cliff. Lorie, Merc, Sunny, Sweet, they're all there... Maybe you'll be able to ask some other guards or unicorns. Garrett also seemed pretty pumped up. You need to start formulating something while the monster keeps digging to come out of the ground.

>>25426460
we need at least 8 pegasus. So that two can hold onto our friends and be able to maneuver with them. We need to get merc near the core while everyone else provides a distraction.

>>25426460
It's time to dive bomb this beasty! Have some fliers team up with unicorns and get them in range of the core.

>>25426460
We can have unicorns open up on it with any offensive spells they have.

>>25426530
>>25426550
>>25426620
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sr2nK06zZkg
>The monster's torso is already showing up, and you can see, somewhere in its center, a blue ball of electricity the size of a full grown pony.
"There it is!" You turn around and fly up. "Alright, who's brave enough to do an air raid on that bad boy!?" You rally the ponies again. A couple of griffons, including Garrett, show up, and the weather crew as well. "We need to pick up unicorns, to break that thing with their blasts!" You point at the now blatantly showing power core, shining under just a few layers of gears.
>Mercury and a couple other guards offer themselves, now that the crowd is dispersing, thaking shelter on the other side of town or being just brave enough to watch from a safe distance. In total, four unicorns show up, so you have all eight pegasi grab them, two each, and work in tandem against the clockwork machine.
>"Grape, Graape!" You hear Lorie calling for you. "Don't underestimate its capabilities! It might be big, but it doesn't have to be slow!"
"Got it!" You say, grabbing onto Mercury along with a pegasus colt from the weather brigade. The entire group starts circling around the monster, its arms lumbering, trying to hit them without luck so far. "Right now it's pretty slow. We need to get that core!"
>The battle begins, and you kind of wish you were watching from all the way up in the cliff. It must be amazing, watching all these ponies flying around in circles, hitting the monster in places while avoiding its massive arms. The layers covering the incredibly shining power core fall off, one by one, but nobody manages to deal the last blow.

(1/2)

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>>25426726
>The construct is getting its legs out, and picking up speed. A good couple of hits send two of the flying teams away, although nobody seems seriously harmed. Garrett's team retires, and Mercury insists on doing the same. The way it's flailing its arms makes it incredibly hard to aim, so you retire and go back to the cliff.
>"Dammit, now it can walk towards here!" Lorie warns. The monster kneels on the seafloor and grabs a rock. "What is he doing...?"
"I don't know, and I don't like it" you observe as the construct rises again. Then, with a fast motion, he throws the rock directly past you. "Look out!!"
>It's too fast to do anything, and next you know, a couple of houses have been run over, their top halves completely flat. A family sticks out of one of the ruins, running out and looking for cover.
>"That's not good..." Mercury approaches. "And if it wasn't enough, the mist is rising up again. We need to land the final blow somehow!"
>"Ahem..." suddenly, you hear a cough behind you and turn around. It's none other than Scotch Case, the old mayor, and behind him... "Sorry for being late, lads, I was getting my assistant to help me dig this old thing from the archives."
"That... was in the archives...?" You look at the contraption, some sort of cannon gun with a very long barrel, manned by a couple of ponies and a minotaur, who you do remember to be the mayor's assistant.
>"Apparently it was. We were hoping it would serve you" the old unicorn replies, while taking a sip of his always present liquor case.

>>25426731
This should work. Tell them where to aim.

>>25426731
>Shadow of The Colossus

My nigga.

I'm going to need a picture of this cannon weapon. Anywho, we need to disperse the mist and distract it.

>>25426786
Just imagine a rudimentary anti aircraft gun, slightly mixed with a regular ground cannon from the earlier centuries.

>>25426731
And we've now arrived at the turret level. Fuck that Collosi's shit up!

>>25426731
Lets distract it so the can get a clear shot.

>>25426801
What millimeter we talkin'? It loaded the ol fashion way or is it kinda automated?

>>25426880
The barrel is about as wide in diameter as a pony's torso. Shells are loaded manually. I'm not a guns person so I'm afraid I can't give you specifics.

>>25426751
>>25426786
>>25426825
>>25426854
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKuLmC7UjzI
>This is cool, this is waay too cool for such a town as Trottingham. The royal guards and your friends all admire the incredible weapon, dusty but apparently in working order after being brought from downtown.
"Alright! I'm so fired up now!" You pump a hoof into the air. "Garrett, Garrett! Come take a picture of me with this thing!"
>"Now is not the time for that!" Lorie smacks you lightly in the back of the neck. "Hurry up and finish that power core, please!" She then points at the monster, still walking slowly towards the beach, a new rock in hand.
"Right! This is the second stage!" You say, and just then, a gust of wind passes nearby. No, it's not just air: the construct has thrown another rock, luckily missing ponies and instead demolishing another couple of houses. "Q-Quick, Garrett, help me run interference!"
>"Yes! Operation scoop pictures is a go!" The griffon grabs the camera hanging from his neck, unstrapping it with a solid tug.
"Mayor, please have your ponies and Miss Milford aim for the blue ball in the center!" You give the unicorn some instructions before taking off. The construct has taken another rock pretty fast, and is now dribbling it between its legs, taunting you. "You damn thing! I ain't no slam jam!"

(1/2)

>>25426961
>Immediately, you and Garrett start throwing pirouettes at him, barrel rolling down its arms and swirling around the glowing clock head. Immediately, you're assaulted by the arms, but since you only have to worry about yourself, your flight is spot on. This is the time!
>"Fire!!" You hear a voice in the distance, and a massive shell impacts on the monster, but right on its groin, smashing a good hole in it. Too low, hopefully they'll have another one ready soon.
>The frantic flight continues, fighting the friction of the air, the currents caused by the massive arms, and trying to get the construct to ignore its open core and focus on you and Garrett, who somehow still manages to take a close up picture.
>After a risky divebomb, you hear another shot, and this time, cogs rain on you as the center of the torso is struck with supernatural accuracy. The construct topples, and suddenly, the hundreds of thousands of little gears forming it start falling apart, the largest display of a house of cards you've ever beheld falling.
"It's beautiful..." you sigh, finally taking a rest in mid air while Garrett takes picture after picture. The sea shakes with the continuous rain of gears, and over at the coast, you see a myriad of ponies and griffons jumping in the air, waving and chanting names, mainly yours. "Finally, I can get a rest... huh?" Garrett pokes your shoulder, then aims a claw at his back. It seems like he's offering himself to carry you. Should you? Your wings are beaten, but no need to do it if you don't want to.

That will be it for tonight! I'll be back tomorrow.

>>25426970
Damn, they're gonna be fishing gears out of the sea for years... Why not accept his assistance? You're comrades in arms now!

>>25426970
We can accept his kindness for a bit but then we can fly the rest of the way ourselves.

>>25426970
>>25427792
Eh, why not just let him go all they way? First affirm that it he indeed wants to carry us and then compliment him on what a gentleman he is.

Hooray, we won.

>>25429539
We're going to have to go out and celebrate with our friends. Have to be sure Lorie doesn't try to weasel out of it because she has maths to do or something. Also have to be sure the guard has that ordinance on hand from now on.

>>25428643

>>25431970

File: 5381732.jpg (2 MB, 3008x2000) Image search: [Google]

2 MB, 3008x2000

>>25426890
Was this close to what you were thinking Fins? This cannon itself seems to fit in nicely with your setting. It was a one of a kind, made as a gift cannon with all sorts of artsy decorative engravings. Seems like just the thing Scotch would pull from the archives.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Queen_Elizabeth%27s_Pocket_Pistol&ved=0CBsQFjAAahUKEwj5nKuWppDJAhULJx4KHTPXA3Q&usg=AFQjCNGhLHSjJKy7tjLFHBBud9uH71G_bQ

Sorry if my gun autism is bugging you at this point.

>>25433177
Yes, that's pretty much it. Imagine it having it a couple of seats. It doesn't bug me, it's just that I wasn't trying to depict anything specific, so I can't appease the gun people, sorry if it made you go up the wall a bit.

>>25427103
>>25427792
>>25427815
>>25429539
>>25430119
"Are you sure...?"
>"Yeah, you look pretty beaten."
>Not to give him credit, but you've gone pretty fast for a long amount of time, plus the effort clearing the mist, and it probably shows in your flight being a bit wonky. On his part, Garrett seems to be holding up pretty well, considering he's a large griffon with a hefty wingspan.
"Well, alright then..." you fly carefully into his back and make yourself comfortable in his fluff. "You're a charmer, haven't they told you that before?"
>"Oh, please" the griffon scoffs while flying back to town. As you get near, you thank him for his help and climb off his back, doing the rest of the journey on your own. Lorie, the mayor, Mercury and many others are waiting there for you.
>There's a lot of celebration and congratulations between you, your friends and all the other participants, including the passive, but well meaning guardsponies and the pegasi and griffons who helped taking on the monster. Over at sea, a mountain of clockwork has formed, massive enough to rival the now non existing boulder. You all take a look in silence.
>"So..." finally, you hear Sunny's voice. "Somepony's gotta have to clean all that."
>"And we were just finished moving the sweets off that mine..." Scotch complains. "There's going to be a lot of a logistic effort, that's for sure."
>"All those clocks... grandfather..." Gearwork sulks, his eyes sunk deep in the mountain of gears. Garrett pats him in the back and holds a claw over his shoulder, while the rest of you keep silent. Yep, that is going to be a lot of work. But that will be after the party.

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>>25435586
>Which, by the way, happened that same night. You convinced Lorie to stay for a while, and even then, it was hard to keep her around. However, you had a great time with your other friends. Sweet, Sunny, Garrett, and many others, you got a lot of recognition for organizing the party to take down the second construct.
>"This is not good, though" Lorie told you later, before heading back home. "Tess wasn't anywhere to be seen, so that means she's been doing these constructs in advance."
"What's your plan, then?"
>"Well have to find out where she's hiding, or lure her out. The first option yields the better odds right now, so I'll get you back on that" with that, the unicorn left you to go back home before midnight. So did you, after another frantic adventure, doubtless one of many to come.

I'll just leave a little epilogue to this latest adventure, so that I can tell you guys I won't be running this weekend. No need to bump the thread if you don't want to, I definitely won't run, and it gives me a chance to prepare a new OP image. I think it will be better this way, since we'll start a new batch of objectives with the next thread. I'll see you on Monday!