>2 0 Rules
googl/GZeKHu
>2 0 Multiclasses
googl/3Gzb5Z
>1 4 rules
googl/jyvXV
>1 4 Multiclasses
googl/6Tvgb
>Expanded Racials 3 5 (New Release!)
googl/LdJNFf
>OP Image:
googl/IpKEC
>optional dice-bot script
http://jsbin com/amemah/latest
>ooc chat
http://cytube/r/Pretendhorse_Playhouse
>Alternate Chat
http://cytube/r/mlprpg
This is where everyone is! Stop by and say hi!
>IRC:
Channel is #MLPRPG
Host is Rizon
http://client01 chat mibbit com/?channel= is the recommended client No downloads needed! Its all browser based!
>>25530211
Give me your sheets for our first adventure with The ARC!
>>25530280
http://pastebin.com/j62tTscg
>>25530280
http://pastebin.com/vRww120p
>>25530280
http://pastebin.com/fh6GWM7Y
>>25530280
http://pastebin.com/qyRrMRF1
>>25530280
http://pastebin.com/9vTN2LUk
>>25530280
http://pastebin.com/1PQgpd9m
>>25530285
>>25530296
>>25530301
>>25530304
>>25530318
>>25530364
Occam Artifice 5/5
Fixer Heater 5/5
Ewe Turn 5/5
Canopus 5/5
Guru 5/5
Archimedes 5/5
I do believe that this is the easiest party to build I've ever seen. Not a single Knight or Earth Pony to be found.
I will be noveling now. And, I would like to say something before I do. Due to the fact that some integral information may have to be presented fast so as to not allow awkwardly incorrect reactions from other players, I will on occasion just respond to a single person to provide quick additional information. To make this possible and also build a big post at the same time, I'm making most of my post in a txt document. Which means I will probably be moving slightly slower than normal since that will involve a lot of copying and pasting of numbers all over the place.
>>25530425
It is the 34th of Summer in the year 1312 ANM. And such a nice summer it has been. But, of course it has been. The weather is entirely controlled in Equestria. Everyone has been enjoying the longer days and nice weather the same way everyone does every year these days: by quickly running to their cars, driving to work, and then quickly running in the building. Who wants to actually interact with nature?
And, speaking of work, it's Friday evening! Most ponies are off for the weekend! And, just as you get home from whatever it was you were doing, you check your mail and find a peculiar letter. Who actually sends letters any more? The envelope simply says Wild Ride.
This is the last thing any of you remember. You opened up the letter, and you found an invitation to a party inside. The invitation reads: "You're invited to my house for a night you'll wish you could remember!"
And, ironically (or perhaps appropriately), the moment you read that invitation is where all your memories end.
>>25530296
You feel like you've been sleeping for days. In fact, this is the first self-aware thought you've had in your sleep for... you can't remember how long. As these thoughts begin to cloud your sleep, consciousness overtakes you.
You become increasingly aware of a sizzling sound. Like something hot creaking and crackling. You're sitting in a chair a dark place. It's definitely not a place you would have expected to wake up, wherever it is.
As you try to get your bearings, you realize that you're bound to your seat.
>>25530301
You wake up as the pain in your back begins to be more and more unbearable. And, the reason for that pain is quickly apparent. You're sleeping on an incredibly hard surface. It's also slippery. It's as if you're inside some sort of bowl.
The horrific stench of vomit fills your nose as you become more conscious. It smells very nearby. But, it's too dark to see.
(part 1/2)
(part 2/2)
>>25530304
The light flooding through your eyelids becomes unbearable. Apparently, you left your shades up on your window before you went to bed. And now Celestia is getting a crossmap noscope headshot on you with the sun's beams.
As you get up to lower the shades, you realize this isn't your window. This isn't your room. The bed is comfortable and well made, but it isn't yours.
If that was the only thing wrong with the situation, you probably wouldn't be so disturbed. However, every inch of every wall, the window, and the ceiling has the same phrase repeatedly written on it over and over again. Even furniture is moved away from the wall so as to create more space for writing this one phrase.
"EAT MY CHICKEN! EAT MY CHICKEN! EAT MY CHICKEN!"
>>25530318
The smell of something burning instantly sends your old and well tested self preservation instincts into overdrive. You immediately wake and stand up, ready to deal with whatever fire is threatening your life.
However, you find yourself in a kitchen. Not your kitchen. This kitchen is well stocked with what appears to be many expensive, although particularly dated appliances. The tile flooring also looks very out of date. Whoever owns this kitchen has very bad taste in interior design, but a lot of money to spend.
>>25530364
>>25530285
You both are sleeping in a comfortable bed. The mattress is soft. The blankets are thick and warm. Though, they seem to be left very askew, barely covering your bodies.
As if you both notice the same thing at the same time, you both awake with a startle when you realize that there is another pony in the bed with you. This realization is quickly followed up with the fact that neither of you are wearing the clothes you usually wear. Or... any clothes at all.
>>25530587
The first thought that goes through Fixer's head is that he's late for work. He lunges forward, trying to break the bindings on his chair, while looking around whatever place he's in.
[1d10]Struggling to break free
>>25530597
The Guru's nostrils flare as he detects the burning spell. "Huhmm... huh... left the oven on..." He turns over, eyes flaring open. "Wait. Guru does not have an oven...."
He stands up to a ready stance, his aged body reacting fairly swiftly to the new surroundings as he finds himself far away from anywhere he'd think familiar.
He takes a look at all of the antiquated cooking ware, taking a hoof to touch a few of them. "Hmph. This does not appear to be a dream." He looks down at his hooves, taking a deep breath to calm himself. And thinks.
>"That letter... where did I put it?"
He takes another whiff of the burning smell, growing agitated.
>"Where is that coming from..." he thinks to himself, searching for the source
[1d10+1] Zebra senses, what's burning?
>>25530597
"Aw for fuck's sake..."
Occam quickly takes the sheets from the bed and holding them to her body, then smelling her breath,
"Nope, no alcohol. The envelope? Oi, what the hell is going on."
Occam says, reaching around in that few minutes of sleepy blurriness to try and find her razor to shake at him.
>>25530597
>>25530715
Archimedes awakes with a start, leaping out of the bed and stumbling backwards, tripping and hitting a wall.
He looks around, his long purple hair falling over his face, breathing hard.
"Where am I? Who are you? Oh please tell me we didn't..."
>>25530597
Canopus groans as he pulls himself out of bed, looking around the room with no small amount of confusion. He tries to think straight, but he is still somewhat groggy from the sleep. His first instinct is to check he has all his personal possessions with him. After this, he moves over to the window to get a glimpse of the outside world.
>>25530587
My snout twitches and wrinkles as I pick up the acrid scent. It doesn't immediately set off any alarms; I've always had a sensitive digestion, and dozing off next to the toilet after a night-long puking session is a familiar memory from my childhood.
Nor does the back pain register as unusual, the bed in my cabin is like sheet rock. But it's not this slippery, and definitely not... concave...
I scramble up with a violent start, my hooves pedaling wildly as I flail for purchase. My heart rate enters full panic mode. I finally manage to wedge myself in between the two curved surfaces. My pulse doesn't steady as I blink through the gloom.
My thoughts are a jumble. I have to remind myself to breathe. I perch motionless for the better part of a minute, unwilling to move or make the faintest noise, waiting desperately for my eyes to adjust.
>Hawkeye - See in dim light or nighttime
[1d10]
>>25530749
>>25530597
She grumbles, cracking her neck, murmuring something in a foreign language before looking Archimedes directly in the eye,
"Do you know what the hell you or I am doing in this bed?"
>Word of Power: In combat, forces an enemy to miss their next attack and renders them helpless on a crit. Outside combat, can extract information on a success
[1d10]
>>25530709
In your struggle to break free, the top half of the bindings go forward with the top half of your body. It's a familiar feeling. The familiarity of it causes you to get a better idea of what you're looking at.
As you take it all in, you realize you're sitting in the driver's seat of your car. You're buckled in. The car seems to be parked in an unfamiliar garage. But, the poor lighting makes it hard for you to see much. The only reason you assume it's a garage at all is because the car is in doors.
>>25530710
The letter is nowhere to be seen.
As for the smell, your zebra senses immediately lead you to one of the burners on the gas range stove that is nearby. It seems someone was cooking some sunny-side-up eggs, but forgot about them. The good news is that they don't look too badly burnt. Strangely, the yolks of the eggs appear to be improbably large. At the very least, they are not normal chicken eggs.
>>25530715
The letter is nowhere to be seen.
As you hastily get up and back away from the bed, you trip over something. It's your own clothes and the rest of your belongings hastily thrown on the ground. Someone else's clothes and belongs appear to be tossed amid the mess as well.
>>25530749
You hear a quiet crunch as you hit the wall followed by the faint sound of something fluttering. As you look around the room, the crunch makes sense. Every wall and the ceiling are all made of mirrors. The bed is shaped like a heart.
>>25530751
You quickly find your belongs sitting next to the bed you were sleeping on. Everything seems to be in order. Except your revolver and some ammo. They don't seem to be anywhere in the room.
Looking out the window gives you a serene morning view of a clearing in the woods. You don't know what woods. But, this building you are in, form the looks of what you can see, is some sort of luxury cabin in the woods. It seems that you're at the backside of the house. Either that, or there is no road leading up to the cabin.
>couldn't even fit "(part 1/2)" on the last post
(part 2/2)
>>25530784
You can see enough to figure out that you're in a bathroom. More specifically, you seemed to have been sleeping in the tub. There's a toilet next to you. Presumably, that would be where the stench of vomit is coming from.
>>25530917
Guru comes upon the stove, mumbling softly to himself as he stares down at the unusual eggs.
>"Mmmm... bizzare. It's such a waste whoever was meaning to cook these would just leave them to burn. Someone should eat these."
He looks at the stove nozzle, reaching over to switch off the stove and move the frying pan to a cool burner. He looks through one of the pantries for a plate to put the eggs on so that he might put them in the fridge for later eating.
>Putting the eggs in the fridge, then exploring outside the kitchen as he tries to figure out where he is.
>>25530917
>>25530749
Occam quickly dons her clothing and bookbags, holding out her razor and standing on the other clothing until she gets a reply.
>>25530917
He curses under his breath as he sees his revolver missing. Donning his coat and satchel, he checks his phone to see if he can get a signal, although inwardly he doubts it.
>>25530925
I position my back to the wall and suck in several deep, slow breaths, pricking my ears for any sound of danger and gluing my stinging eyes to the darkness at the far end of the room.
I quickly begin to retrace my steps. Maybe this is just my own bathroom. It wouldn't be the first time I'd slept in the tub. It always seemed slightly safer than my bed, and not the first place any... thing... would come looking for me. My bloodstream refuses to be re-assured.
Gingerly, I step over the rim of the tub and onto the floor without. I take another full minute to keep from withdrawing back into it.
Slowly, I begin to make my way towards what must be the door. It feels like at least a mile of distance. Crouching as low as I can, I rest a hoof as lightly as I can against it, opening it a crack to try and see what's outside.
>Hawkeye
[1d10]
>>25530826
Archimedes feels his lips moving against himself
"I have no idea where you or I are or why we were lying in this bed."
Before shaking his head and gripping his jaw, still backed against the crunched mirror.
"Do you always throw around compulsion spells as your first way of getting information?" he says before spotting his staff among the belongings, holding up a hoof which it then flies into.
"Did you bring me here? Did you...violate me?" he asks angrily, still pointing the staff at her.
>>25530917
Fixer undoes his seatbelt, getting out of his 1296 Haynda sedan, pulling his tool belt from the passenger seat, where it usually is, then looks around the garage. Considering he usually parks on the street outside his apartment building, this is odd.
>>25531018
"Me? What would I want to do with you!"
she says, lowering her razor slowly, backing off the clothing,
"And besides, if I wake up with some old guy in some kinda fucked up loveshack, of course i'll want the unadulterated truth out of them! Luna above..."
She looks around, peering at the odd decor more closely,
"Princesses... So neither of us know what the hell are we doing here. Did you by chance get some weird envelope about a party? That's the last solid thing I can grasp onto before this morning. Knowing my luck, some sick psycho killer locked us up like in that one movie. Seesaw?"
>>25531109
"I'm twenty-six you bitch." Archimedes retorts, lowering his staff slowly.
"An envelope?" the naked wizard asks, rubbing his head.
"Wait, envelope! I received a letter and then...blank. Something about a night I'd wish I could remember."
"Wait, did you say Seesaw? Those movies are B-grade trash." Archimedes says calming down.
>>25531165
"The events happening thus far is B-grade trash movie stereotypes. Next one of the mirrors will be a monitor with a puppet or something. As much as I hate to say it, truce? You never want to break up from a group in these situations, and since you so aptly named what I did to get you to talk, at least I know you're not an idiot."
Occam sighs, looking around for an exit,
"Come on, we gotta get out of here."
>>25530972
You put the overcooked eggs on a plate and put the plate in the fridge. It shouldn't be too bad.
There are only two doors in the room. One leads outside. You try to open it, but it appears to be locked. Instead, you decide to exit out the other open entrance and find yourself in a sort of living room. There are stairs in the wall to your left that lead up to another floor. There are three more closed doors across that same wall. The room is full of large sofas and chairs all facing a large table and the wall to your right. The table and many of the sofas are littered with drinks and snack foods only half eaten and drunk.
In the middle of the wall to your right, half way across the room, is a large television, at least 80 inches wide. There is a unicorn mare standing in front of the television, staring at it. There is a remote floating in a blue telekinetic aura next to her.
The television shows nothing but snow and static. About every five seconds, the floating remote does a little twitch, presumably as a result of the unicorn "pressing" a button. The screen attempts to change channels, but every channel seems to be the same empty static. That doesn't seem to stop the unicorn from trying the next channel.
On the opposite end of the room, you see another unicorn mare lying on the ground, not moving.
(part 1/2)
(part 2/3 because I'm bad at separating posts)
>>25530995
Your phone seems to be out of batteries. Actually, it seems to have some sort of strange black ooze you've never seen before caked onto the back of it where one might open it up to find the battery. The phone feels a little hot.
Instead of whatever curse your meant to say under your breath, you hear your own voice mutter, "Chicken...".
>>25531016
As you step out of the tub, you hear a jangle and a crunch as you step on a pile of knick-knacks and jewlery left between the tub and the toilet. However, none of it seems to be yours. In fact, everything that belongs to you still seems to be on your person.
The light in the hall on the other side of the door seems to be on. It fills the bathroom with glorious light. Aside from the pile of jewelry, the only other thing noteworthy in the bathroom is the open medicine cabinet filled with prescription bottles.
The hallway has 6 closed doors and an open entrance that leads to stairs that go down. The stairs are in the middle of the hallway. The doors are set up so that there are two on the opposite sides of the hallway from each other on each side of the stairs and one door at each end of the hallway.
For the sake of simplicity, I will refer to the side of the stairs that you came out on to be the South side and the other side to be the north side.
Your options of where to go:
South hall end door
Bathroom (current location)
South door 2
North hall end door
North door 1
North door 2
>>25531165
>>25531109
As you argue, you're both increasingly aware of the incredibly unsettling sensation as if you're being watched. And judged. Angrily. It makes the hairs on the back of your necks stand up.
(part 3/3)
>>25531069
As you climb out of your car, you nearly trip over a bag of tools and books that are not your own. It's a completely ridiculous place for one to leave their stuff considering it's literally the only thing in the entire garage that could, at the very least, fit one more car.
There are only two ways out of the garage: the garage door, and another closed door which presumably leads into the building.
The crackling and sizzling sound from before seems to be coming from your own car. Black ooze seeps through the cracks of the hood. Little strands of it practically crawl slowly out of it at a slow pace.
>>25531292
Fixer lets out a noise like a startled ostrich as he nearly trips over the bags. He picks the bags up, though, figuring he could look inside for IDs or names on the belongings and call their owner later, like any good citizen.
He heads over to the door into the building, pressing the button to the garage door opener, then turns around. As he sees the black ooze seeping through the cracks of the hood, he groans, heading out through the opening garage door, then pulling out his automotive assistance membership card and dialing them on his phone.
>>25531209
>>25531284
Archimedes looks at Occam still slightly untrusting, slowly walking over and grabbing his satchel, putting his belongings up, a spellbook [not textbook], a manga with a picture of a unicorn with a long black ponytail and a chineighse mare with her hair in loops and twintails, a dagger, and other misc. possessions.
"It seems I don't have a choice." he says looking at his phone, the back of which is afflicted with a black gunk, dropping it.
"Whoever put us here apparently had the foresight to ruin any chances of getting word outside."
He begins getting dressed, pulling on his robe, attaching his cape, fitting a circlet over his forehead.
"I never caught your name." he asks as he finishes squaring his headpiece, ignoring the bad feeling for now.
>>25531277
Guru smiles as he closes the fridge. "There we are. Too good taste to allow to waste." He turns about from the kitchen to explore the next room over.
As he fails to open the door that leads outside, he grumbles as he explores the rest of this floor, shaking his head at the mess left behind by its former inhabitants.
>"Something is not right here. Why is there no one around..."
Entering the room with the television and the two unicorns, he pauses as he looks at the bizarre sight of the unicorn watching pure static, and a slowly growing concern with the unmoving one at the far end.
He taps on the unicorn watching TV's shoulder. "Miss? Are you well?"
>>25531284
I dart my leg back as the jewelry crinkles, leaning down to eye it with a baffled expression. I feel sweat starting to moisten my inner coat as I come to the realization that this I'm in a strange place with no memory of getting there. My stomach begins to flip as I wonder if this is where the rest of them wound up, and I'd finally been caught up to...
For the first time the recollection of the letter dawns on me. Why did I touch it?! Stuffed into my rusty mailbox full of dried leaves, at an address not in any records, that nopony should have... The right thing to do would have been to pack up and leave the instant I saw it.
I dab my moistened brow. I try to distract myself by reading the labels on the prescription bottles. I pocket any painkillers or chemical stimulants. Not that I planned to be sleeping for the next year...
Realizing my vest is still on my body is a small relief, and I unhinge the barrel of my tranq rifle, sliding two darts into the chamber and quietly cocking it.
I swallow and step gingerly into the hallway. I set the end of the barrel against the south end door, nudging it open and leading with the business end of the gun.
>>25531377
>>25531284
"Occam, Occam Artifice. Yours?"
She state simply, checking her own flip phone and then dropping it back in her book bag. She shivers, looking at the surrounding mirrors.
"Yeah, this is uncanny though. If I wasn't afraid of the bad luck that comes with it, I'd smash all these mirrors."
Occam continues looking for an exit.
>>25531284
He gasps and drops the phone in shock as he hears his own voice bewitched and the strange black goo. Fumbling to pick it back up, he leaves the room to explore the rest of the building, assuming there's a door. If not, he climbs out through the window and flies down into the forest to get a view of the place from outside.
>>25531449
"Archimedes." he says looking around the mirror-filled room, stepping over to the door to see if its unlocked.
"And there is no such thing as bad luck. I'd think somepony advanced enough in magic to do what you did would know that."
>>25531530
"If there's spells that can affect the probability of something happening, I'm sure natural things can as well."
Occam says, shrugging.
>>25531554
"Not breaking mirrors. That's just a stupid superstition."
>>25531343
The garage door doesn't seem to open. Also, your phone is out of batteries. There also seems to be the same black substance stuck to the back of your phone that is coming out of your car.
As for the contents of the bag, it seems to be some sort of scientific logs. But, there are so many symbols that you don't recognize, it's more gibberish to you than anything else. The parts that are more writing than math seem to be observations about things that make next to no sense. There are some more regular tools such as wrenches and hammers, but there are also some tools that look more silly than useful. There doesn't seem to be any indication of who the bag belongs to.
>>25531406
The moment you tap her on the shoulder, she jumps about a foot into the air, turning around to look at you while doing so. She screeches like a little girl as she lands on the ground.
"Good... fucking... shit..." she mutters to herself as she gets back up, clearly just stringing together whatever panicked words spring to her mind. She is a light brown unicorn with a pink mane of curly hair. Her hair is pulled back into a pony tail, but it doesn't do much to tame the rabid curls. She wears glasses that are too big for her face. And, that's saying something considering the size of pony eyes.
"Let me get this straight," she says as she dusts herself off. "You wake up in a strange situation, and your response when finding someone else in the same situation as you is to walk up to quietly sneak up on them!? I almost had a heart attack!"
She sits down on a nearby sofa and rubs her temples with her forehead, breathing slowly. "Just... give me a moment..."
>>25531425
The south hallway end door doesn't open. It seems to be locked.
(part 1/2)
(part 2/2)
>>25531449
>>25531377
Your phones are both suffering from the same problems. You notice that a part of the mirrored wall is a door. Since it's still a mirror, it's very hard to notice. The only thing about it that really made it look much like a door at all is just the fact that there is a doorknob sticking out of it.
>>25531468
You exit through the only door available to you. As you do, you see a nearby scared looking sheep with a gun discovering that a nearby door is locked. (see: >>25531425)
South door 2 is now known as south bedroom which is across the hall from the bathroom.
>>25531530
The door is unlocked.
Exiting through it, you find yourself in a hallway. On the other end of the hallway, you see a scared sheep with a gun and a confused looking burly batpony.
North door 1 is now known as Mirror Room.
>>25531600
The Guru freezes in place as the mare is sent jumping up into the air, leaning back onto his flanks as he holds his hoof up in the air in a stance.
"I am sorry. I only sought to see that you are well. Please, take a deep breath." He claps his hooves together, taking in a deep inhale through his nostrils. Then, breathing out, "Let your negative energy flow freely from your spirit." He smiles, and rubs his beard. "There? All better yet?"
He moves over to the unmoving mare on the side of room, kneeling besides her and trying to sense her presence through concentration
[1d10] Phase Aura, checking to see if she's still well
"I am the Guru. Who are you, my friend?"
>>25531600
Fixer drops his flip-phone in disgust. He goes to his car and tries to start it up. After that, he heads to the door and tries to open it. Should it not open by itself, he starts pounding on it near the knob with his hammer.
[1d10]Hitting door with hammer
>>25531638
Occam peers out the door, immediately receeding her head back in.
"Aw come on a gun? That's not fair."
she then shouts out into the hall way.
"Hey gun sheep, you're not going to shoot us, right? We just woke up here, so either you're the psycho who did it, or you're one of us."
>>25531694
>>25531638
Archimedes ducks back in with her.
"That's your master plan? Ask the potential lunatic if she's going to shoot you?"
>>25531610
He clears his throat to get the sheep's attention.
>>25531425
"Are you... er... Are you lost too?"
>>25531685
Specifying- pounding on the door to the house
>>25531731
"As opposed to hiding in a room with one exit? Yes."
>>25531734
That's what you meant to say. Instead, all you said was:
"EAT MY CHICKEN!"
>>25531610
I leave the doorknob alone, thinking better of trying to break through. I lower the barrel as I turn slowly back towards the hallway.
>>25531694
I whirl towards the far door, mashing as much of my woolly body into the corner as I can, the barrel quivering. I clear my dried throat.
"W-who said that?! ... An' how do I know you're not a ps-psycho?!"
>>25531734
>>25531759
I'm abruptly aware of a batpony at my end of the hallway imploring me to sample his poultry. "YeeEEEK!!" I shut my eyes and squeeze the trigger.
>Trick Ammo - Knockout
[1d10]
>>25531770
>>25531753
"Get down!" Archimedes says, pushing on her head to get her further inside the room as he ducks in with her, back to the mirror wall, breathing heavily.
>>25531759
>>25531770
Momentarily bewildered by the strange curse put
on him (perhaps he was exposed to Poison Joke?), his instincts quickly kick in as he flaps to the roof to avoid getting shot in the face.
[1d10+1] Dodge
>>25531672
You don't need phase aura to see that this pony is dead. There are three bullet holes in her chest, an old pool of dried blood covers the carpet around her. The parts of her coat that aren't covered in blood are dark green. Her mane is a light grey. Her cutie mark is a star in the middle of a magnifying glass. A revolver lies on the ground next to the dead unicorn.
The still alive unicorn breathes in and out as you instructed. But, she stops abruptly as you ask a question. She looks over the back of the couch at you.
"Me or the dead - Yeah... I-I guess you mean me," she giggles nervously to herself. "I am... M-my friends call me IQ."
>>25531685
Your car doesn't even try to start.
Turning the knob opens the door for you.
On the other side of the door, you find an old zebra hunched over a dead body with a revolver nearby on the ground. There's another unicorn mare sitting on a couch nearby.
>>25531770
>>25531734
Canopus gets a tranquilizer to his chest for his trouble. He falls over, most of his body paralyzed. The only thing he can move for the time being is his mouth. Which is... less than useful for him right now.
>>25531812
>>25531753
You both witness this from your position in the doorway. However, the longer you stay in the mirror room, the more and more panicked you feel.
>>25531876
>>25531871
Never mind. He dodged the shot. LIKE A BOSS!
>>25531876
>>25531871
I frantically try to chamber another pair of darts with my clattering hooves, winding up on my back with the quivering barrel aimed at the leathery figure on the ceiling.
"S-stay away from me with your chicken!! What did you do with the rest of them?!!"
>>25531876
>>25531672
Fixer looks at the situation with confusion.
"I'm the boss around here," he says out loud to the zebra, the dead body, and the nearby unicorn,"I just woke up in my car, it's oozing black gunk, and so is my phone. I need your names, and I want you to tell me how you got here. I'm really freaking out, right now, so do me a favor and just be really calm about it, and not shout or anything." He wields his hammer as if it were a firearm, pointing it at The Guru, first.
>>25531876
>>25531920
He flaps back down to the ground, realizing words won't help him in this bizarre situation. He slowly reaches for his satchel and shows the ewe his pencil and notebook before beginning to write in it to show to the neurotic sheep. "I have a spell on me," he writes. "Are you lost too?"
>>25531876
>>25531812
"...Ow. He clearly didn't shoot at us. I'm heading out, if this was the guy who did it he wouldn't let himself get surrounded by all his captives."
Occam says, grabbing her razor and raising it up in one hoof while she raises the other in a surrender pose, walking out into the hallway.
>>25531920
"Hey, sheep. Another gal entering the hallway, I was the one who shouted from the doorway over here. No need to shoot or anything, I want to get the fuck out of here as well."
Occam says. clearly showing the one weapon she has and setting it on the floor behind her.
>>25531976
To your horror, your own hooves only manage to write out the phrase:
"EAT MY CHICKEN!"
>>25531876
Guru closes his eyes and shudders. "I am sorry." He says to the corpse, taking his hoof of it. "This may not be how you sought your life to end, my friend, but end this way it has. Let your soul be at peace."
[1d10] He tries Aura Phase again to see if he can pick up any disturbances from this murder.
He turns back to the pony on the couch, "It is nice to meet you, IQ. Lay down, you should rest. Tell me, where are you from? Did you know this pony?"
>>25531999
"Hey hey hey hey hey, don't ignore me!" Heater shouts, sounding annoyed yet panicked.
>>25531988
He groans internally and tosses the notebook aside in frustration. He gestures at his throat and his hooves awkwardly, trying to convey the message that he can't communicate properly.
[1d10] if you need it
>>25531977
>>25531876
>>25531920
"Wait, stop, we should-argh."
Archimedes moans, stepping out of the room with her, holding his staff ready, not lowering it when she lowers the razor.
"Put the gun down." Archimedes says to the deer.
>>25532033
sheep*
>Mental fart.
>>25531931
>>25532014
"Hmmm?"
The old zebra turns up his head to look at the unicorn, smiling as he does so. "Ah. Another confused soul, I take it? Greetings." He bows his head, "I am the Guru. I think you'll find my calmness at an adequate level. You say you are the boss? Do you own this building? You should not leave such a mess around, my friend."
He points towards the couch, "Please, if you are 'freaking out', then I recommend you sit, breath, and unfreak your spiritual energy."
>>25531976
I blink, ready to squeeze the trigger if he closes the distance between us. I raise an eyebrow at the pen and notebook, calming slightly. At the repeated phrase I nearly fire again when I hear a sound at the other end.
>>25531977
"He-help! He wants to make us eat chicken!! I think he's some kind of deviant!"
>>25532015
I scramble to my feet as Canopus starts gesticulating, nerves bundling up again. "Don't... come any closer..."
>>25532033
"No! I don't know who any of you are!!" I start weighing the value of making a panicked break for the stairs.
>>25532063
He takes a step back, turning out the insides of his satchel to show that he carries no weapons (save for a blunt switchblade). He puts his hooves up in the universal gesture for harmlessness.
>>25531931
"It's my belief that we are in the middle of a paranormal situation," IQ says excitedly. "Isn't that just amazing? I mean, these sorts of things are supposed to be exceedingly rare, and yet everyone here was selected for one. Talk about lucky!"
"We're all trapped in this building. I've already tried every door and window I could get to. They don't open. They also don't break. Nothing breaks. Nothing that could lead to outside anyway."
She sits back down despondently on the couch. "Beyond that, I don't know what's going on. If something has trapped us here, it hasn't attempted any form of communication. So, I don't know what it wants."
No disturbances are picked up with phase aura.
>>25531999
"I'm from Philliedelphia originally," IQ answers, happy to provide information. "I don't know who that pony is. She was dead before I got here. Er- this room, I mean."
As IQ talks, Guru and Fixer both become increasingly aware of a knocking coming from the middle door on the opposite wall.
>>25532015
You manage to get a general sense of peace across with your gesturing. At the very least, you definitely don't convey anything about chickens or eating them.
>>25532033
>>25531977
As you both exit the mirror room, the door slams shut behind you. Out of the corner of your eye, you could swear you saw someone else in the room, off in the distance. But, the door shuts too quickly to confirm if you actually saw anything or not.
>>25532063
Archimedes holds a hoof up, gesturing to not shoot.
"Just calm down. My name is Professor Archimedes. This is Occam Artifice. Just, lower the gun." the young wizard implores.
>>25532054
Fixer frowns at Guru, breathing heavily. "Alright, I'm gonna count to ten, then talk," he says, slowing his breathing down to take deep breaths, counting to ten. "I don't own this building, I meant to say janitor, but I don't work here, either. I'm just kind of panicky, you know? Anyway, there's some weird black goop going on in the garage, I don't feel like messing with it. I'm going to go look around, I'll give you a holler if I find anything of note, okay?" After waiting for confirmation, Heater looks around the level of the house that he's on.
>looking around the ground floor level of the house/building
>>25532063
"I think we should avoid eating chickens AND shooting each other."
Occam walks up to the other bat pony, and examines it.
"If you would, I'd like to examine you for any anomalies of magical origin. This is my field of study, and judging by your apparel and your attempt to communicate, I can assume you can say more than "munch my cock" normally."
She pockets her knife and looks at the odd batpony.
>>25532015
[1d10] talent
>>25532106
"Mare, if I was annoyed enough, I'd throw my hammer at you like a turtle. For now, though, I require you to assist me in information gathering."
Fixer found that he was operating at a level higher than he normally would- as his discomfort at the situation he was in evolved into fear and paranoia, his mind was working in ways that it normally wouldn't to his average, slacker-tier ways.
>>25532111
Fixer shouts at the knocking, throwing his hammer at the wall.
[1d10] Throwing hammer
>>25532088
>>25532106
>>25532109
>>25532148
I startle as the door slams, but after my eyes dart between the three for several tense seconds, I incline the barrel slightly towards the ground.
"W-who are you ponies... And what is this place... ?" I sniffle, shivering slightly.
>>25532179
>>25532148
>>25532106
Archimedes approaches as Ewe finally lowers the gun, walking over with Occam.
"That's what I'd like to know. We just woke up ourselves. As I said, my name is Archimedes, this is Occam. Whats your name?"
>>25532179
"I'm a university student, and no clue."
Occam says, shrugging.
"Sorry I can't be of much more help then that."
>>25532111
He nods, "A wise choice. A calm mind is a powerful ally."
As you explain your career he rubs his beard. "Ah, I see. This place is indeed strange: the eggs I found burning on the stove were strange as well. But, if we unite, we will overcome."
As you mention you're about to investigate elsewhere, he says "Well yes, I imagine I will be hollering for you if I do. But, a question: how did you come to this place? All I can recall is opening a letter... and then I was here."
>>25532106
"I have been there. It is not a very clean city, but I do like their attitudes." He looks at the corpse, leaving it alone for the time being. "I am sorry you had to see that. It is not something pleasant to see." He looks at the TV, "Why were you watching the TV? Is static entertaining for you?" He asks more out of curiosity than of sarcasm.
As he hears the knocking coming from the middle door on the opposite wall, he holds up a hoof. "A moment, before you answer." He closes his eyes, and focuses his mind...
[1d10] Astral Projection, looking on the other side
>>25532179
He shrugs, by now knowing better than to try and speak. He mimes sleeping, then points at the dormitory he left.
>>25532201
>>25532207
"Ewe Turn..." I pull of my cap and sit back on my haunches, breathing heavily. "... I woke up in the bathroom. I think somepony was sick in there."
>>25532241
"So we all just woke up in the same place...?" I chew pensively on my lower lip.
>>25532262
"You get a letter about a party by any chance? That's what we last remember."
>>25532213
"Thanks, old horse, I should try to keep calm, considering how strange this situation is." With that said, Fixer shouts at the knocking on the wall and throws his hammer at it.
>refer to >>25532167
>>25532274
He nods vigorously at this, remembering clearly the letter that got him into this mess.
>>25532274
I nodsheepishly. "A hundred miles from the nearest post office and I find it stuffed in my mailbox with the wet leaves... I should've never touched it."
>>25532148
You don't get a sense of anything magically out of the ordinary about him.
>>25532213
"Television and other electronic devices are a common way for paranormal creatures to communicate on our level. I was hoping to pick something up," IQ answers through your request to not answer yet.
The Astral Plane seems... hazier around here than usual. But, you are able to travel through it as easily as usual. On the other side of the door, you find a small closet. There seems to be a pegasus dressed in a suit wrapped up in some coats struggling to get free in the closet.
>>25532167
IQ stares at you with her head tilted. She blinks. "You'd throw your hammer at me like a... turltle...?" she repeats the phrase in a confused tone.
But, before she can get an answer, you suddenly throw your hammer at the door without any warning. She jumps slightly in surprise again. "What is WRONG with you!" she shouts in frustration.
The knocking on the door stops for a moment. "Hey! Who's throwing shit!?" a voice calls out from the other side of the door. "Don't go breaking anything!"
>>25532241
As you mime, you become increasingly aware of the fact that you are absolutely famished. Your stomach grumbles loud enough for everyone to hear.
>>25532179
>>25532201
You all can hear conversation and banging downstairs.
>>25532306
>>25532283
>>25532274
"Somepony must have drugged us. I wonder why though. What was there to gain?"
>>25532288
>>25532306
"Alright, one constant in this mess of variables.
Good."
>>25532317
"Nothing magical about the other batpony, odd. I'm just going to call you Batty for now, because you seem to be acting like it."
Occam says, looking to Archimedes,
>>25532319
"Kill us? rape us? They've failed at both so far. At least, I hope they haven't. Come on, if there's one thing all of us wants, it's to get out. Let's find a way out of here."
>>25532317
"Don't think about it too much," he says to IQ, looking her over. "What're you doing here, anyway?"
He shouts back at the voice calling at the other side of the door. "Why shouldn't I break anything? Is this your house?"
He looks around for something to break, in order to possibly hold it hostage.
>>25532317
>>25532319
He desperately wants to weigh his thoughts in the matter, but being unable to, he simply shrugs again. Getting an idea, he picks up his busted phone and shows the black substance to the group in the hopes it means something to them.
>>25532354
He nods at this, moving to Occam's side to show he's allied with him.
>>25532354
Archimedes looks disgusted at her implications.
"Wait, nothing magically wrong with him? Then why is he sprouting nonsense?"
He looks to Canopus.
"Do you have a past background of mental illness?"
>>25532317
"Somethings going on downstairs. Lets check it out."
Archimedes says, descending the stairs slowly.
>>25532319
I scratch my head and put my hat back on. "I don't eat anything I don't make or gather myself... And you three are the first other ponies I've talked to in... almost a year."
"Unless there was something on the letter." My eyes start to dart erratically. "Some kind of powdered knockout aerosol. I heard they're experimenting with it in Canterlot. They're trying to put it into the clouds so the pegasi can trigger it over populated areas."
>>25532354
I shoulder my rifle and pump the chamber. "Y-yeah... I really want to get out of here..."
>>25532381
I wrinkle my snout at the black substance. "Ew, what is wrong with him?"
>>25532403
He thinks for a moment, then shakes his head.
>>25532403
I creep down the stairs behind Archimedes, leveling my rifle. I try to peer into the room below.
>Hawkeye
[1d10]
>>25532381
"Our phones have the same thing, another constant. Good thinking to bring it up."
>>25532403
Occam follows cautiously.
>>25532283
As he suddenly throws his hammer, he sees that the Guru does not respond, but is completely still and unmoving, as though lost in a trance.
>>25532317
On the other side of the door, the muddiness of the astral plane prevents Guru from hearing the bang of Fixer's hammer on the door he just astral-phased across, the Guru cringing as he looks about the area.
"So... disturbed. This is not normal. What has happened here?" He looks on towards the closet from the other side of the door, watching as the pegasus struggles in some coats.
A moment later, Guru's eyes re-open, and he stands away from the corpse. He looks towards IQ, "I see someone on the other side. I understand your curiosity, but try not to... pick anything up through it, as you said. I sense an imbalance here. Will you be okay alone if I check out this room?" He asks as he opens the door, ready to go help the pegasus.
>>25532381
"Whoever caught us must have known to ruin our phones. I left mine behind, nothing you can really do for damage like that."
>>25532409
Archimedes listens to Ewe's explanation until he reaches the part about pegasi.
"Trigger knockout aerosol over populated areas? You're kidding right?"
>>25532414
"Then I have no idea. Just stay calm, we'll figure all this out."
>>25532472
Fixer looks over at The Guru, an annoyed tone to his voice once more. "Hey, are you paying attention?" He asks, a frown growing on his face.
>>25532490
He turns his head once out of his astral trance, "Hmmm?" He smiles, rubbing his beard. "Ah, sorry. Did you say something? There's a pony on the other side of this door." He stares at the damage made by the hammer. "Hmm. That's new."
>>25532528
"Yeah, he was knocking on the door and I threw my hammer at him." He squints at Guru. "Were you doing an astral projection?"
>>25532374
"What are YOU doing here?" IQ answers defensively.
"You're damn right it's my house!" the voice answers angrily. "Now help me out of here!"
You find an expensive looking table lamp. It would really suck if it broke.
>>25532430
As you creep around the corner of the stairwell, you find a well lit living room with three ponies having a strange argument with a closet door and each other. There's also a dead pony on the other side of the room with a revolver on the ground next to her.
>>25532403
As you enter the living room, IQ looks over at you. "Oh, there's more," she says delightedly. "Isn't this just amazing?"
>>25532381
Your stomach continues to roar loudly.
>>25532472
"You... what?" IQ says in a confused tone as you open the closet door. The pegasus rolls out in a bundle of coats, grunting in pain as his head his the ground several times.
IQ suddenly vomits on the ground in front of the couch. She sits, doubled over in nausea, staring at her own vomit. After a moment, the peagsus uses his now increased spaces available to him to untangle himself.
"Thank you," the pegasus says. He wears an expensive looking three piece suit. His coat is a dark yellow and his mane is light green. He looks around the room, surveying the scene.
"Damn," he says with a joyous laugh. "Musta been one hell of a party. To bad I don't remember shi-"
He stops talking as he looks over at the dead body. "Shit," he finishes his sentence. "No one has called the police yet have they?"
>>25532482
I shrug my shoulders defensively. "I-I don't know... I saw a graph that connected all the weekly weather patrols to reports of ponies getting really thirsty in the middle of the day. What, you think they'd report that on the news?" I nestle the stock my rifle a little closer to my wool.
>>25532550
Now that everyone is MOSTLY together, I'll list all the known locations and the ones that are unknown.
Downstairs:
Kitchen
Living Room
Closet
Garage
Door 1
Door 3
Upstairs
South hall end door
Bathroom
Bedroom 1
Mirror room
North door 2
North hall end door
>>25532550
Occam goes to assist the pegasus.
"You alright there? Don't go spewing your internal organs just yet."
>Inure: Gastrointestinal problems
[1d10]
>>25532603
*unicorn
Occam is unphased by the corpse at the moment.
>>25532551
Archimedes is about to respond to the stupidity of that, before IQ addresses him.
>>25532550
Archimedes looks to the corpse in the corner, and the crowd of new ponies.
"Amazing? Whats going on down here? And do you know where we are? Do any of you?"
>>25532543
He perks his ears up, "Yes, of a sorts. You know of the technique?"
>>25532550
As the pegasus rolls out over the floor, Guru side-steps over him to let him roll out of the way, smiling as he is thanked. "You are welcome, friend." He watches as he untangles himself, then looks to the dead body. "No, I have not. I do not understand the situation in full." He stares to look at him, putting a hoof on his shoulder, "You said this is your house? Do you know who I am? My last memory was opening a letter, and then I awoke here. I do not know what happened in between either."
He turns to IQ, "And, I take it, neither do you?"
>>25532550
Fixer answers to IQ first. "I got an invitation, then don't remember anything after that. I probably missed a few days of work, so I'm pret-ty annoyed right now, especially since I might get fired as a result. It's hard getting a stable job, y'know?"
To the voice on the other side, which ultimately belonged to the unicorn in the 3-piece suit, Fixer says, "So why am I in your house, mister voice horse?" In response to if anyone has called the police or not, he says, "I tried calling my auto club first, when my car started oozing goop, but my phone started oozing goop as well. Also the battery was dead. Where's your phone?"
>>25532482
As you enter the living room, the red unicorn in a jumpsuit looks at you with annoyed look. "Who're you, then?" He asks with annoyance, "Are there any others with you?"
>>25532640
"My father was capable of it, but I never learned the technique. I could tell when he was doing it, though, you had the same look about you."
>>25532551
Fixer looks at Ewe curiously, unsure of what to make of her.
>>25532550
He covers his mouth and recoils at the sight of the dead body. He shakes his head at the pegasus, showing his dead phone. He also notices the revolver next to the corpse, and tries to see if it's his or not.
[1d10+2] Appraise
>>25532550
I fixate on the dead pony on the couch. I jostle its shoulder slightly, before coming around to an angle where I can make out the bullet holes.
"Oh... oh my-" I bolt to the corner of the room and puke violently, body heaving.
>>25532672
"Oh, grody, don't do that," Fixer says, trying to ignore the dead body as he had already been doing.
>>25532667
"Oh cool, a bat pony," he says, as he sees you, "I've never seen many bat ponies, sorry to pick you out or whatever."
>>25532654
He smiles, "Ah, I see. It is a helpful technique, to detach one's soul from their physical body. It is one of the final steps to achieving true inner peace."
>>25532698
I spit, wiping my mouth off. "What happened to him?!" I shriek behind me.
>>25532709
Fixer seems to grow annoyed once more. "Yeah, aren't you special," he grunts under his breath.
>>25532716
"Well, that's a good question, looks like he got hit with a fatal case of death," Fixer says in a way that doesn't answer her question but makes it seem like he's contributing in some fashion.
>>25532698
He looks over to Fixer, merely nodding and giving a friendly smile. He would greet the unicorn more formally, were it not for his current predicament.
>>25532641
"Archimedes. Professor of Arcane History at Canterlot University. As far as I know everypony with me is in the same boat you're in. Woke up with no memory of what happened or how we got here, except for the thought of opening a letter?"
>>25532742
"CU? That's where I go."
she thinks for a moment,
"In fact, I think I have you as a teacher next year. That's going to be awkward if we live that long..."
>>25532719
He smiles, and rubs his beard. "My friend, we are all special."
>>25532635
>>25532631
>>25532667
>>25532672
The Guru turns to look at the new gathering of ponies, stepping up from his position by the downed pegasus.
"Well, this WAS quite a party it seems. Hello, everyone. It is good to meet you all. I am the Guru."
He turns towards the corpse, "This is the household of our pegasi friend, and the poor mare's fate I do not know. There is a great imbalance here."
>>25532742
"What an amusing coincidence," Fixer says, with a sarcastic tone, "Except I'm completely unamused at the black gunk oozing out of my car and phone. You experience any of that, either?" He hefts up the bag he picked up, with various notes and things inside, "This ring a bell for you, professor? Any of this yours? I'm not as well-versed in the magic, it's probably more up your alley with the symbols and gibberish."
>refer to >>25531600
>>25532764
"So then..." I turn towards the pegasus. "It's his house?"
"... And he's the one who sent the letters?" I tighten my grip on the stock of my rifle.
>>25532603
IQ wipes her mouth and looks up at you with an interested and amused expression. "Huh. I feel better," she comments. "What did you do?"
>>25532635
"In the middle of some paranormal activity," IQ says happily. "It's just so exciting! I've studied this stuff my whole life!"
>>25532640
"Bro, I just woke up in a closet," the pegasus laughs. "I don't know shit about any of you. The only thing I know is some seriously crazy shit must have gone down here last night."
He laughs again before shaking his head. "I'm sorry. I guess I should introduce myself... maybe again. My name is Wild Ride," he says as he gives everyone a courteous bow. "You may have heard my name before. I'm the inventor of the motorized swingset after all. I'm a preeeetty big deal."
None of you have heard of him before. But, any of you who had a back yard growing up (except for maybe Guru as it may have been before his time) would remember the hours of enjoyment they spent on their motorized swing set.
"Hmm?" IQ responds to your question distractedly. She stares at you for a moment. "I don't know anything about any of you. I just know that this is definitely paranormal. Nothing else could make the walls unbreakable. Not mention the bizarre gaps in everyone's memory."
>>25532641
"Phone?" Wild Ride responds with a laugh. "Bro, there ain't no phones in the Love Aboad."
>>25532667
There's no doubt about it. That's definitely your revolver.
Also, your stomach growls again.
>>25532716
>>25532733
"I think she was a she," IQ chimes in, looking over at the dead unicorn mare.
(part 1/2)
(part 2/2)
"OKAY!" IQ suddenly says in a very loud voice as she stands up a little unsteadily. "So, obviously everyone here is very confused. So, I'm going to let you in on what I know."
"First of all," she says, raising her hoof up. "You can call me IQ. Occult study is... well it's pretty much my passion in life. And, I can say that there is definitely something supernatural and Occult going on here. Something called us here. Something has made all the walls and windows and doors unbreakable and unopenable. Whatever it wants us to do, we have to figure it out so we can get out of here."
"SO!" she says loudly again. "Has anyone seen or otherwise experienced anything that would be a clear indicator of something that something want's someone to do? And, are there any rooms left unchecked?"
>>25532811
I blink, digesting all of this.
I jab a hoof at Canopus. "He wants me to..." I blush involuntarily. "... eat his chicken."
>>25532811
"I simply used magic to tell your body to stop having problems, specifically your gastrointestinal system. As for the occult, me and Archimedes woke up in a mirrored room which shut itself after we left it. Some kind of malicious entity such as a poltergeist? Spirits seem to be the most simple answer, as I wasn't getting magical signs from Batty. Oh yeah, and the other batpony? All he can say and write is "eat my chicken", so don't expect much from him besides basic bodily movements."
>>25532760
>Nothing to say to this, just acknowledging it.
>>25532764
>>25532811
Archimedes looks to Guru, then to IQ.
"Occult activity? Like witchcraft and ghosts? Imbalances? That is just pseudomagic [pseudoscience] isn't it? You don't honestly expect us to believe we were brought here by some extra-magical entity or another do you?"
>>25532769
Archimedes takes the bag in telekinesis, pulling out papers and looking it over.
"None of this is mine...give me a second."
He reads over it to see if he knows what any of it is.
>Keeping in mind his greater knowledge of magic and minimal knowledge of Wikka.
>>25532799
This leads to further questions, questions that he cannot answer. He groans in frustration and in hunger.
>>25532811
He rolls his eyes at the mention of the occult and paranormal, but nonetheless raises his hoof, glowering around the room. His patience is beginning to wear thin.
>>25532799
The motorized swing-set was, unfortunately, an alien concept to the country-raised Fixer.
"Huh? Motorized swingset? What's the point, it just makes you go back and forth?" He complains, his fear coming through as a different negative emotion, "Alright, then, if this is your place, take us to the front door, or the back, or wherever it is that gets us out of here. I'd have run through your garage door, you know, but I'm just too nice to ruin someone else's property."
In response to the question about the phone, he shouts, "What kind of non-civilized shack is this place when you don't have a phone?"
In response to the gender correction of the dead unicorn, Fixer lets out an annoyed kind of whine that indicates stress at the notion of one of his race being killed under mysterious circumstances while he was in the same building.
>>25532811
"I don't know what's going on, so far- I'm a janitor and maintenance horse at a Chineighse place with minor learnings in conjuring magic." With that in mind, he has a thought, and pulls off his woolen cap, thinking to himself,
[1d10]Give me a key that opens the front door of this house.
>>25532840
>>25532738
"What? Who eats chicken, besides Diamond Dogs?" He looks at Canopus, puzzled.
>>25532851
"Did you have a phone that black stuff was oozing out of?" Fixer asks, "That happened to my phone, and my car, as well. I'm thinking it has to do with Unicron batteries, but I don't have any specific theories."
>>25532863
"Well, that's too bad, I got all my hopes up when you said you were a professor of magic," Fixer says with a sigh.
>>25532872
"Hey, did you wake up without any memory of what happened before? Reply once for yes, and for no, reply once, wait five seconds, then reply once more."
>>25532789
He notices the grip on the rifle, and pushes a hoof forward. "We do not know that, my friend. Please, take a deep breath. I sense your unease, but there is no need for violence."
>>25532799
He smiles, "I have not heard of you, but I am glad to know your name. I am the Guru, and I wish you peace."
He turns towards IQ, "I see. It must not be a small coincidence you were brought here then, but why us, I wonder."
Moving to the walls, he adds "I assume a phone will not save us. Let me see if I can feel the imbalance, and locate a source..."
[1d10] Phase Aura, detect spiritual residue and light up a trail to see
>>25532863
"I do not expect you to believe anything. You are free to see things as with your own eyes. But, there is a disturbance here. I have sensed it. Can you not feel the negative energy around us?
>>25532896
He nods at Fixer, screaming internally at his inability to speak.
>>25532896
"Aye, that was one of our two constants, besides the party invitations."
>>25532896
"Magic history. And how would my being a professor magically make this my bag?" He says continuing looking through the info.
>>25532908
"I do not 'sense' anything that cannot be explained within the confines of magical and natural law. All of this is explainable as simply enchantments and compulsions."
>>25532896
"I have no idea, but it's disgusting and I'm not doing it."
>>25532908
"W-well then maybe you can ask him to explain why I, why we all got a letter with *his name* on it and then woke up here with no warning and why I'm trapped in his house with all of you ponies I've never met and batponies and a dead mare!!" I don't loosen my grip, and my voice starts to rise several octaves.
>>25532940
He nods in agreement to Archimedes' last statement, doubting the involvement of the paranormal in this situation.
>>25532925
"Okay, nodding's good, too," Fixer says, finding it strange that nodding or head-shaking wasn't the first thing he thought of.
>>25532935
"Alright, so now we know that-
1. Battery powered objects are oozing mysterious black ooze. I haven't investigate the ooze, but I don't feel too keen to find out for now.
2. We all read an envelope inviting us to something, then blacked out
3. We can't get out of this building through the doors.
Have you tried, say, breaking open the doors? Ramming against them, or maybe a window instead?"
>>25532950
"Hey, carnivores can't exactly help where they get their protein from, it's not their fault they can't join us in the vegetarian master race."
>>25532940
"Well, on a level of assumptions, I had thought general magic theory and application would be under your umbrella. You'd have knowledge of things besides magic history if you're a professor, wouldn't you?"
He goes over to the dead mare, pushing his nose into the sleeve of his jump suit as he investigates her dead body, to find the details of how she died.
[1d10]Appraise
>>25532940
He nods his head, "Ah, I understand. Then, as a professor of magic, do you know how we could undo these enchantments? I feel there is more to them than at first glance."
>>25532950
"Wild Ride... ah." he nods his head, "Yes, that was on my letter as well. But, he claims not to know any of us. And he seems as tense as us all. This is not a peaceful situation, but," he takes in a deep breath, and exhales, "You cannot let the fear and negativity cloud your judgment. We do not need two dead ponies."
>>25532979
"No, we have only just exited our starting room, met up in a hallway, and made our way down here."
>>25533011
"Alright, what do you think we should do next? I'm for pounding on the doors, really, but I get the feeling it won't do much. Any thoughts on escape, miss? What's your name, by the way? My name's Fixer."
>>25532840
IQ looks between you and Canopus for a moment. "That-that could be something," she says in a cross between hopeful and confused.
>>25532738
>>25532872
She looks to Canopus. "Are you experiencing any strong urges right now? A simple nod yes or no will suffice."
However, as your raise your hand, your stomach rumbles again. "FASCINATING!" she exclaims excitedly. "It sounds as if you need to eat! Perhaps this Poltergeist has affected your hunger!"
>>25532851
"Well, let me stop you there for a moment," IQ says as if she's some college professor giving a lecture. "Because, there is a difference between a spirit and a poltergeist. A spirit is simply a being of pure thought. Any Astral Projectionist can confirm that they exist. There's nothing particularly supernatural about them. But, a POLTERGEIST," she says with increased excitement. "Now, THAT may be something. A spirit can't interact with the physical world. It's only thought, not even energy. But, when a spirit is able to attach itself to something - energy or matter - it becomes a Poltergeist."
>>25532958
The Guru turns towards the silent bat pony. "You do not seem to speak much. Are you alright?"
(part 2/3)
>>25532863
"It's true," IQ says with an excited nod. "Nothing in magic or science can explain how a Poltergeist can come to be. They simply shouldn't be able to exist. But, they DO! And, THAT is amazing!"
"What?" Wild Ride says. "So, you're saying that there's some kind of ghosty thing in my house trapping us here? Seems like an excuse to get away with murder if you ask me. I'm not buying it."
However, IQ is too distracted to respond to Wild Ride. She notices Archimedes going through some books. "Oh!" she says suddenly as she hastily takes the books away and stuffs them back in her bag and puts them on her back. "Those are mine. They're my notes. Observations about paranormal places and events I studied after the fact. A-and some tools, too."
Before she took it away, you can say that the symbols written in that book were definitely nothing about magic. "S-so," she continues distractedly. "The question becomes HOW do they exist? Well, the most common answer to that is... Well... Have you ever heard of Wikka?"
>>25532896
>>25532979
"Everything that leads outside is immovable," IQ says again. "No key will work. No breaking or ramming will work. At least, until we figure out WHY this is happening."
The dead unicorn was shot three times in the chest. However, as you inspect the body, you begin to hear a crackling sound coming from it. It sounds like it's coming from the bullet wounds.
>>25532950
"Alright, alright," Wild Ride says. "That's a fair question. I have these parties all the time. I invite random ponies and we have a wild ride," he says with a wink and a click of his teeth.
"It doesn't usually end up like THIS though..."
(part 3/3)
>>25532908
As your Phase Aura lights up the room, IQ looks over at Wild Ride with a slightly startled expression. She looks around at the rest of the room and everyone in it, then simply says, "Huh..."
Also, everyone's phones begin to glow. Or, specifically, the black residue on them begins to glow. "Interesting..." IQ muses. "This... stuff... coming from your phone is what we in the Occult Studies world call magical residual. To put it simply, it's what happens when Wikka comes into contact with dense Magic. The two fight it out and this black goo is what is left behind. It's not quite magic any more. It's more of a piece of matter now. That's why your phones aren't working. There's nothing charging them. The magic in your batteries has become matter."
"Which means we aren't just dealing with a Poltergeist. We're dealing with a Wikken! Oh, this is even more exciting!"
However, this revelation is cut short as a terrified female scream can be heard from upstairs. Wild Ride's ears perk up. "Well, it looks like we haven't found all our partiers yet. Let's go see who it is."
Wild Ride doesn't wait for everyone else. He just runs up the stairs.
>>25533001
"I'm not trying to *kill* anypony, I'm trying to figure how he knows where he lives since nopony knows where I live and I've tried very hard to keep it that way, and why he wanted to invite me to a party and what I'm doing in his house with a dead body and--"
>>25533060
>>25533079
I listen tensely to this explanation and am about to reply when I leap at the scream from upstairs. I tug down on the flaps of my trapper hat, pulling the woolly hat over my eyes.
"I just want to get out of here..."
>>25533060
"I've never heard of Wikka," Heater says, "But magic isn't really my domain, either. What do you know about it, Miss Quotient? And how do you know so much, already? What were you doing before we awoke?" He looks at the body uneasily.
"I'm hearing some weird noises coming from this body," he says, as he starts pushing it into a corner, away from everyone else, "Sounds like my car when it was oozing black gunk. Stay away from this, I've got a bad feeling about it." After pushing the unicorn into the corner, though, he looks to see if there was a wallet or something on her so he could at least know her name.
>>25533079
"The most I've found about Wikka is seedy websites without any verifiable proof. Are you saying you have print sources on it? I know so little abo-"
Occam pauses.
"But we should find out where the auditory stimulus is coming from first. Some people should stay with the body though, I don't want anyone or thing taking it, I haven't even gotten to examine it yet."
Occam remains downstairs, examining the bullet wounds in the corpse, scrying with her razor.
>perception/talent
[1d10]
>>25533047
"Oh, and it's Occam, Occam Artifice. It probably would have been a pleasure in a different situation."
>>25532979
"I can and I do. Give me a moment" he says going through the papers.
>>25533001
"I wouldn't know, until I know whats causing teh enchantments in the first place."
>>25533050
>>25533060
"There's no such thing as poltergeists. I'm walked the realms eternal, the only 'spirits' I've seen have never walked in flesh, and had no power in the material world."
Archimedes looks surprised as she takes and gathers up all the books, but stops when she mentions wikka.
"Wikka? What do you know of it?"
>>25533079
Archimedes doesn't rush up immediately, still speaking with IQ.
>>25533050
He scowls at the word poltergeist. "Bullshit," he thinks and mouths, but presumably mouths the dreaded words instead.
>>25533058
He irritably shakes his head.
>>25533079
He starts at the sudden scream, nodding in agreement as Wild Ride announces his plan. He looks at the rest of the group and puts one hoof on the stairs, looking quizzically at them to see if they want to follow.
>>25533160
"Maybe, I dunno. How old are you? I feel something compelling me to call you kiddo."
>>25533177
"Eh? Something mister professor doesn't know, huh? I guess this Wiki stuff must be pretty top-tier information if it's not within your purview, huh?"
>>25533182
Fixer raises an eyebrow at Canopus. "You gonna fill us in on what happens if you go up with him?" he asks, frowning at Corpus, not necessarily in reaction the batpony, but to convey a negative feeling towards him.
>>25533208
He shakes his head and shrugs, hopefully getting the message across that he's just as in the dark as the rest of the group, if not even more so.
>>25533079
"Wikka... I do not believe I am familiar on the subject. But, this Wikken then, is the cause for the Poltergeist that's causing this... oddness. Can it do this with any magic, this goo?"
He watches the glow of everyone's aura light up the room, looking to see if any lingering effects of the Poltergeist can be seen to discern a source from whence it came
[1d10+1] Now that the phase aura is lighting up lingering magical effects, see if there's a trail that may lead to the Poltergeist.
After surveying the room, he hears the cry from upstairs along side Wilde Ride, running behind him, "Agreed. IQ, come with us, it is safer in a group."
>>25533177
As you dismiss the existence of poltergeists, he rubs his beard. "It is true that he who doubts nothing knows nothing, but we should not keep our minds so closed. Opening one's mind to all possibilities is a key to enlightenment."
>>25533182
He smiles, "Ah. Well, may I at least know your name?"
>>25533194
"I'll lie and say 47, so you don't call me kiddo."
she does not look to be 47, on the contrary.
>>25533182
I sigh and shoulder my rifle, nudging the barrel towards the staircase. "I don't trust him, I'd rather not leave him alone. Let's go."
>>25533194
"Wikka. Its an ancient word for witchcraft. Ancient peoples used to believe in hexes, curses, and all sorts of other pseudomagic. The introduction of logic and empirical study to arcane phenomena brought an end to that nonsense."
>>25533220
"For the record, my name's Fixer Heater," Fixer says, "I'm not much, I just clean up and do maintenance at a Chineighse place."
>>25533221
"47, huh? I guess that makes me 58... kiddo," Fixer says, as he seems to relax, smiling at Occoam.
>>25533229
"Well don't you sound sure of yourself, huh? It must be comfortable knowing so much, but I bet it freaks you out when you encounter something you don't know much on, huh?"
>>25533224
"Hey, fuzzy, let us know what's happening up there, huh? A bit of shouting goes a long way, you know?"
>>25533100
"I know you're not. But, a hoof on the rifle does not create the most easy-going of atmospheres. I'm sure he'll answer your questions with or without the rifle at the ready."
>>25533248
He nods his head, "It is good to meet you, Fixer. You sound quite hardworking."
>>25533220
He shakes his head and points at his throat.
>>25533224
He nods and moves up the stairs following Wild Ride, assuming the rest of the party are behind him. Inwardly, he regrets not having recovered his gun from the corpse, but it probably would have raised questions he could not answer.
>>25533248
>>25533220
"Actually it excites me. I like learning new and usual things, if I didn't I wouldn't study magic. I won't come up and completely discount the possibility, all I am saying is that 'poltergeists' have never been observed and we have no reason to believe anything supernatural is happening here." he says to Guru and Fixer.
>>25533248
"Just follow us up if you hear shots..." I pump the cartridge.
>>25533272
Fixer comes up to Archimedes, patting him on one of his shoulders, "Well, good, that's the kind of attitude that gets things done," Fixer says with a smile.
>>25533273
"Sure, if I don't go deaf all of a sudden, I'll come up to help."
>>25533267
"You cannot speak? Or, you choose not to? Do one of the others know your name?"
>>25533272
He nods his head, "I am not a philosopher of magic, so I will take your word if are not yet convinced this is out of the ordinary. I would be more concerned with helping ourselves out of the current situation. Whatever is happening here is what it is, but it must be set back into balance, before another dies."
>>25533113
"Well, that's- My name's not actually Intelligence Quotient," IQ says distractedly. "I just go by IQ- or that's what everyone calls me. It's - please don't make me go into it."
"Before everyone else woke up, I was doing what I imagine most of you all would have been doing if I hadn't done it first. Tested all the doors and walls. Looked for ways to communicate with a Poltergeist. I didn't realize that Wikka might be involved. That changes a lot!" she says excitedly.
There is no ID on the dead unicorn.
>>25533152
Nothing magically wrong with the dead body. But, you could swear you see small movement inside the bullet holes. It's not constant. But, something moved in there.
"I mean-" IQ begins. "How can you have print sources on something that so few believe in. I AM the source of the information I know. B-by which I mean I've studied it a lot."
>>25533100
"Well, I'll be honest," Wild Ride says before he runs upstairs. "I... don't actually remember sending any invitations for this party... Weird..."
He then runs upstairs.
>>25533177
"Wikka makes the impossible possible. It can also make the possible impossible. Wikka is like what magic is to physics. It's simply something else entirely. I've dedicated my life to finding examples of it and understanding how it works."
She gives you a concerned and grave look. "Your excitement is not like mine, though. Wikka is, first and foremost, severely dangerous. It changes the natural laws of the world. The results of doing so are... incalculable. It's not to be taken lightly. It's how situations like this happen. And how Poltergeists come into being. Put simply it's... not good..."
(part 1/2)
(part 2/2)
>>25533182
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBCbreEmCM8
You and whoever else so chooses to do so follow Wild Ride up the stairs. By the time you get upstairs, he's already at the north end doorway. He tugs on the door a few times, but it doesn't budge.
>>25533220
There is no trail leading anywhere. But, as you follow Wild Ride upstairs and stop at the North end door, you look to your left and see an illumination from your phase aura through the North door 2.
"Strange..." Wild Ride mutters. "This leads up to the attic. But, it's locked... It shouldn't even have a lock on it..."
As he struggles with the door, the sound of shattering glass can be heard coming from the attic. Followed by the terrified screaming of one male and one female. A moment later, the door bursts open and two griffons come barreling out.
"There's something up there!" the female griffon shrieks as she hides behind Canopus. "PROTECT ME!"
A moment later, a cold wind can be felt coming down from the attic. "Oh Celestia!" the male shouts. "It's coming for us!" he runs down the stairs and doesn't look back.
>PAUSE
