Part 2 of 2.
Captain's Log:
>https://www.anonpone.com/tinepone/
In this game, you play the role of Feather Dust, the tiniest pony in Equestria, as she tries to handle the colossal challenges of an inch-high pony's daily life.
>>27580786
Challenges like:
>dodging hellfire shot out by an angry flowering plant
>accidentally smash your propeller against your roommate's gigantic helmet
>nearly losing your newest crewmate to the aforementioned flower bombardment
>fawning over your roommate as he bravely carries your ENTIRE PARTY on his back to safety
>administering jumbo first aid to burn wounds and scrapes
>making cute faces
>upgrading your propeller from flimsy craft foam to rigid cardboard
>fantasizing over your hunky roommate
>getting carried away by your unmoored airship... again...
>giving the middle hoof to gravity by letting yourself freefall from the equivalent distance of several hundred feet
>scaring your hunky roommate with your daredevil descent
And scare him you did! Poor Gulliver looks like he's about to have a heart attack...
I'm fine Gully, at my weight I barely fall at all. Besides, I had you here to catch me.
>>27580906
>>27541735
>>27580906
Wee! Let's do that again!
>>27580906
>>27541762
>>27580979
>>27581044
>>27581069
>>27581094
>>27581141
>"Everything's fine, Zecora! Just having a little fun with physics!"
The zebra blinks, confused. "...Alright." she replies before retreating back into her room. "Good night."
But Gulliver is not so easily placated. He looks pretty upset. "Dusty, what were you thinking?!" he demands, a bit more quietly so as not to disturb Zecora again. "Are you trying to become the world's tiniest blueberry pancake?!"
>"Gully, I appreciate the catch, but I have faith in physics. Where a long fall could be fatal to a full-sized pony, a pony like me has a very low terminal velocity. Shoot, I could fall from a mile up and shrug it off."
"Well *I* couldn't shrug that off!" he snaps back in a whiny tone. "I'd have a stroke if you did that! Just because science says it's okay doesn't mean that it is...!"
>"Gully, I'm fine... At my weight, I barely fall at all. Besides..."
She gives him her cutest smile
>"I had you here to catch me."
Gulliver sighs softly. "Yeah... I guess you did." he relents. "But you shouldn't scare ponies like that. What if I grabbed you with my magic too tightly or something."
Feather Dust bites her lip. She hadn't considered that.
>"I'm sorry, Gully. I didn't mean to scare you. I just wanted to test my... Feather Fall."
Gulliver stares at her. "'Feather Fall.'"
>"Yeah-huh."
"Well, next time warn me first, okay?" Gulliver asks softly.
Feather Dust looks up at him with bright eyes.
>"Does that mean I can do that again?"
"Maybe tomorrow." Gulliver quickly responds. "Or whenever my heart stops pounding like a jackhammer again."
>"Deal."
"Cool, I'm going to sleep then." Gulliver drops down on his rump and sets eather Dust gently down on the floor. He starts to pull the blanket over himself, but then he stops. "Uh... How are we going to work this...?" he mumbles, half to himself. "I don't want to risk rolling on you, but you'll freeze without the blanket..."
>>27581617
Does Zecora have an extra pillow? Pull it a little bit out of the case, and I can use the pillow as a mattress and pillow, and the pillowcase can be my blanket.
>>27581617
I will sleep in your ear.
>>27581661
>>27581876
>"Does Zecora have a spare pillow?"
Gulliver turns and calls to Zecora: "Hey, Zecora, do you have any spare pillows?"
"I'm usually the only one here, so the answer is 'no,' I fear.." she responds.
"Crap..." Gully mumbles.
>"I could sleep in your ear."
Gulliver gives her a look like Feather Dust has 5 eyes. "Are you cracked?" he asks flatly.
>"My rump is."
Gulliver snorts with laughter. "How about my mane?" he offers. "That's only a few inches from an ear, and it'll be less icky, too."
>>27582166
Well okay then.
>>27582166
Hrmm...only if don't sleep on your back. You snore when you sleep on your back.
>>27582439
>>27582495
>"Hmmm... Well, okay, but only if you don't sleep on your back. You snore when you do that."
Gulliver cocks his head. "Wouldn't I squish you if I slept on my back while you were in my mane?" he points out.
>"...Um... No?"
"Oh. Okay." Gulliver lays down and pulls the blanket up over him; once's he's in a comfortable position, he gently lifts Feather Dust onto his head. Feather Dust sighs contentedly as she snuggles into Gulliver's mane.
>"Your hair is warm and fluffy, Gully. Perfect for sleeping on!"
"You're lucky I like you enough to mess with my hair." he responds softly, removing his glasses with his magic and fluffing up one end of the blanket like a pillow to rest his head on. "Good night, Dusty."
Feather Dust yawns and lays down on her side.
>"Good night, Gully."
Seemingly of their own volition, the candles in the room flicker and blow out. Soon enough, very tiny snores can be heard as Ponyville's puniest pony drifts off to dream land.
>>27582828
Have a dream where you are Celestia sized and you rock Gully's world.
>>27582927
C-can it be lewd?
>>27582946
I want Gully to sound Dusty
>>27582927
We big spoon him so hard that gully is all wrapped up like a present and doesnt even need a blankie because he has us keeping him warm.
>>27582927
Please, Inept. I need this.
>>27583071
I like this idea better than lewd, desu senpai
>>27583360
Me too, honestly.
>>27582927
>>27582946
>>27583071
>>27583310
>>27583360
>>27583533Like Gully and Dusty, I'm stopping here for the night. Thanks for playing; tomorrow begins the final in-game day!
>>27583653
Adorable.
>>27583653
It would be funny if we are naturally a big mare.
>>27586667
Agreed, that would be hilarious.
Save.
>>27589848
Again.
>>27590737
...and again.
No updates tonight because life is suffering, kay thanks.
>>27591920
keep your chin up
fuck
>>27591920
were all gonna make it
>>27580786
pg 10 save for ants
>>27586667
>>27587407
I hate to disappoint you, but even a normal-size Feather Dust would be smol.
>>27599060
That's fantastic. She gets to be with Gully AND she's still a smol mare.
>>27599060
Dust a chubby.
>>27599060
Wait...
She's not a smol pone.
She's a SHORT pone.
MY WORLDVIEW!
>>27599060
Holy shit I just realized... at normal size Dust would beSHORT and STOUT.
>>27599060
bump
>>27599060
I am disappoint. But just a bit.
>>27599060
Have a bump on me Inept.
>>27602121
Another one
>>27602121
And one on me.
Page ten save.
I want to make the tiny mare into the smol mare.
Sorry for the delay; bit of a schedule conflict going on.
The morning dawns amidst pleasant dreams and the world's softest snores...
>>27606551
Our sleepy little mare is gently roused from her slumber by a strange, somewhat sweet smell.
>>27606577
Somebody must be trying to start a fire and burn us alive.
Someone should probably do something.
>>27606577
Momentarily panic at Gully's absence.
>>27606577
Gully might be making breakfast.
>>27606648
>>27606659
>>27606666
In her half-asleep state, Feather Dust instinctively associates the sweet, slightly smoky aroma with fire.
>"Gully, what's burning...?"
There is no response.
>"Gully?!"
Feather Dust bolts awake and sits up, glancing around desperately in search of her beloved protector. To her relief, she soon spots him beside that large pot in the middle of the room, sipping something off a wooden spoon. Zecora is with him, as well. Feather Dust lets out a small 'phew' of relief.
>"Making breakfast, Gull?"
Gulliver grunts and floats the spoon into Zecora's hoof. "Not me." he responds, licking his lips. "Zecora's teaching me how to make mitini nyembwe."
>"Martini what now?"
"It's like a stew, but it's sweet and kind of rich." Gulliver explains. "It's got palm oil and nuts and figs in it."
"A hearty way to start one's day." Zecora interjects, stirring the contents of the cauldron.
"I was skeptical at first, but it's pretty tasty!" Gulliver insists. "You want some?"
>>27606893
Sure, why not.
>>27606893
Fuck yeah
>>27606893
Fill up a thimble for me, please.
>>27607013
>>27607094
>"Sure, why not."
In spite of her casual response, Feather Dust's tiny belly is loudly demanding food. She can't even remember when the last time she ate is!
"Cool." Gulliver turns to Zecora. "You got a thimble or something we can serve her with?"
"A thimble, you say? ...Yes, I just may." Zecora replies, tasting the stew herself. She smacks her lips, then adds a small shake of some kind of coarse powder to the cauldron. "Why don't you two have a seat? I'll serve you when the stew's ready to eat."
"Are you sure, Zecora?" Gulliver asks hesitantly. "You shouldn't overexert yourself too much, after last night."
"There's no need to worry." Zecora assures him with a smile. "I'll be healed in a hurry. There's no need for me to rest any longer: Whatever doesn't kill me, only makes me stronger."
Gulliver frowns, but he nods and backs off. "Okay..." Hopping down from his stepladder, Gulliver trots over to Feather Dust and picks her up, gently carrying her to a spot in the floor with some very slight, circular recesses set in it.
>'That's kind of neat. I guess it's because she doesn't have a table.'
Gulliver and Feather Dust sit down around the 'table' and wait quietly.
"So, how'd you sleep?" Gulliver asks after a few seconds.
>"Um... Pretty good. You?"
"My neck hurts a little from sleeping on the floor." Gulliver rubs the back of his neck and tilts his head from side to side. Feather Dust hears some bones crack and crunch.
>'Ew.'
A few seconds later, Zecora trots over with one large terra cotta bowl in her hoof and another on her head - and a much smaller cup of similar make perched on her tail. She sets one large bowl down in front of Gulliver, then places the smaller one in front of Feather Dust.
"It's hot, so eat slow." the zebra warns. "And give each sip a blow."
Feather Dust gives the orange broth a once-over.
>'Well... It looks harmless enough...'
>>27607806
blow and sip (very very small one).
Wait a couple of minutes to check for reaction.
Continue from there.
God damn it, look. I'm sorry, but I can't do this tonight. I'm constantly being distracted. I'd love to update, but I'm basically being forced to take care of several very needy and annoying house guests and they simply refuse to leave me alone. You might want to just let this thread die until all this bullshit ends and I can concentrate again.
>>27607833
Well all right then. Guess we'll see you in the next thead, Inept. You take care of yourself now.
>>27607833
It's ok, I was considering heading to bed early anyway. I'm struggling to stay awake.
Try and have a good night, Inept.
>>27607833
I'll bump this thread for a week while I wait for you, but no longer.
>>27608053
Nah dude, just keep it up 2 days at most.
Threads take 30 seconds to make and we have a general for discussion. There's no reason to keep a bumpfest up.
ï¿£
>>27610268
>bumping meaninglessly
quite pitiful aren't you?
>>27608067
Sounds fair.
>>27611181
I think I'll stick with bumping for a week or two.
Maybe a month at the most.
I'm going to bump this and then delete this bump.
>>27612540
You liar.
Page ten save.
Why not.
Dammit.
>>27624434
ha ha, you're still not getting updates
>>27624473
Fuck you.
>>27624473
Nope. Fortunately bumping the thread takes next to no effort for me, so no skin off my back.
ultimate power
>>27629766
bump
>>27633962
>bumping a dead thread
>>27634082
Like it takes any effort. Why should it bother you?
>>27634628
the same could be asked of why you're keeping it up.
>>27634794
Because why not?
Literally my only reason.
>>27635425
how about the fact that inept is dead and you only seem to have this belief of it living when she is. where's that spirit when they're updating?
Holy shit you guys are devoted. I'm so proud.
>>27607832
>'It looks like vomit...'
Feather Dust rears up and gives the small bowl a tentative sniff over its edge.
>'Smells kind of sweet, though.'
Unable to reach the concoction by herself, Feather grabs the tip of Gulliver's tail in her teeth and drags it over to the bowl, then she climbs onto it. She gives the stew a few quick blows of air, before leaning down and taking a tiny little sip before quickly backing off of it. She smacks her lips thoughtfully.
>'Rich and a little fruity... And it's got a bit of a kick to it after you swallow.'
Feather Dust isn't totally sold, but her hungry tummy has tasted food. It snarls angrily in demand of more.
>'Okay okay, you win.'
She takes another taste.
Then another.
And another.
"Now that you've had a drink," may I ask what you think?" Zecora asks with a satisfied smile.
>>27642278
Tell her it taste good.
>>27642278
Say it's different, but it's good. Thank Zecora for the stew.
>>27642278
I think it's
>'Rich and a little fruity... And it's got a bit of a kick to it after you swallow.'
>>27642390
>>27642583
>>27642730
>"It tastes good, thank you. Different, but good."
"Yeah, it's really great!" Gulliver adds in between bouts of trying to lick the bowl clean. "Where'd you learn how to make it?"
Zecora utters a proud little chuckle. "I would watch my grandmother cook when I was young." she explains between sips. "She learned from our matriarch how to tantalize the tongue. That's quite an honor among my tribe, in addition to what it lets you imbibe."
"So your grandma is kind of like a celebrity?" Gulliver asks curiously.
"That isn't quite the word I'd use," Zecora answers, before shrugging and grinning, "but it's still a translation I'll gladly choose." She takes another sip of her nyembwe. "Speaking of celebrities, might I inquire: How long have you lived with Ponyville's smallest flyer?"
"Dusty and me have lived together for a little over a year now." Gulliver answers, looking a bit embarrassed. "I actually had no idea who she was when we first met... I thought somepony was playing a joke on me. Dusty's brother showed up at my place carrying a box with airholes in it and said that my new housemate was inside. I was just about to shut the door on him when he opened it and there was a miniature pony in it."
>"And then he fainted."
Gulliver shoots Feather a dirty look really quick before trying to play it off by smiling nervously at Zecora. "Ah... heh... You don't usually see inch-high ponies everyday." he says sheepishly., before changing the subject: "Uhh, so, why don't you tell us a bit more about yourself, Zecora?"
With a bit more prodding, the rhyming zebra starts to tell Gulliver about her home and her life. Feather Dust quickly loses focus and starts to get bored by it all.
>'My hooves hurt.
>She probably can't even build a logic gate.
>Where are the circuits?
>'I wish I was at home designing a molten salt reactor.'
Gulliver, however, seems to be listening intently. For once.
>'...What's up with him...?'
>>27642982
I think it's good that he's making a friend. He's kind of a shut in, so we should encourage this.
>>27642982
We should look for our airship.
>>27642982
>Gulliver, however, seems to be listening intently. For once.
Well how about that. That sounds like something a lesser pony would get insecure over. Fortunately we're a goddamn adult.
Listen too. Maybe we found something that can actually hold Gulliver's interest and he can be an anthropologist or something.
>>27643197
>he can be an anthropologist or something
No shit. That was kind of the point of Gulliver's Travels. Meet new people, see the world.
Zebras included, apparently.
Whoops.
>>27642999
>>27643140
>>27643197
The proverbial lightbulb turns on above Feather Dust's head.
>'Wait, duh! Gulliver loves fantasy and adventure games! Talking to Zecora is probably like interviewing a real-life Shaman or something!'
Feather Dust tries to pay more attention to the exchange.
"So, the whole eastern continent was part of the zebra kingdom?"
"The Old Kingdom, called Zegypt." Zecora responds in a serious tone. "Where we zebras were kings. But that would not always be the state of things... Tension grew between Zegypt and Kush, because the Shah-"
>'Gah, this is boring. At least he's making a friend; maybe I'll just work on the Ednosptrad while they chat instead.'
Feather Dust sighs and leans back in her seat, scanning the ceiling in search of her dinky dirigible.
>'...'
...I SAID, 'in search of her dinky dirigible!'
>'........!!'
>"Where's my ship!?!"
>>27643709
GULLY HELP
>>27643709
Time to panic
>>27643709
>Fortunately, it doesn't look like there's a vent at the top of that, so it's probably still in the house, if in a place that' unreachable by us..
>>27643709
Shit, did it go up the chimney? Ride coco up through there and see if it's stuck at the top of the chimney. If the chimney doesn't have a roof we might need to get Gulliver onto the roof to fish it down out of the sky with magic.
>>27643765 (me)
Nevermind. As >>27643763 pointed out it's probably only a small opening into the outside since there's no big chimney visible from outside.
>>27643763
>pic
>>27643765Coco is in the Ednosptrad.
>>27643838
Well fuck.
Fortunately, clouds in this universe are magically neutrally buoyant at any altitude.Or at least they should be, confusing as to why ours isn't.So it really can't have gone very high.
>>27643872
It is my understanding that it would be neutrally buoyant up to it's initial altitude we got it at, but then we enchanted it to go higher and then weighted it down to be back at its original level, with the idea being we could remove crystals if we wanted a higher ceiling.
Iirc, the cloud was like sixty feet in the air or something before the weather pony retrieved it, so it's probably pretty high up now. If gulliver's magic can't reach it then we need wings. Maybe zebra alchemy can do it?
>>27643838
Shit.
Let's hope it got caught in the tree canopy or something. I'd rather repair branch damage than rebuild the airship.
Did we even keep plans?
>>27643932
I don't know about Feather, but I did.
>>27643838
>spoiler
I trust her.But really, I hope she's safe.
>>27643728
>>27643742
>>27643765
>>27643872
>>27643911
>>27643932
>"GULLY HELP!!!"
Gulliver and Zecora turn to the panicked puny pony, confused by the interruption.
"What is it?" Gulliver asks, his eyes wide with fear.
>"MY AIRSHIP WENT UP THE CHIMNEY!!!!"
Gulliver's face drops a little. "Seriously?"
>"I WOULDN'T JOKE ABOUT SOMETHING LIKE THIS!!"
"Okay, okay, I believe you!"
"Perhaps it is lodged inside of the flue." Zecora suggests, getting to her hooves and gathering up the dirty bowls. "Have a look, why don't you two?"
"Alright I'm on it." Gulliver gets up and retrieves Zecora's stepladder, positioning it under the large hole in the ceiling and climbing up to check inside. He squints into the darkness, before inspiration apparently strikes and his horn lights up. "...I don't see anything but soot and wood." he calls down. "It must have floated up into the canopy!"
>"Then let's go! Hurry, HURRY!"
"I'm afraid that there is no canopy overhead." Zecora sady replies. "Rather than risk a forest fire, I cleared it out instead. I'm afraid your airship has drifted into the sky - which means you may have to bid it goodbye."
Stopping for the night. Thanks for playing!It's good to be back.
>>27644216
I may be many things, the world's smallest mare, Equestria's greatest microengineer but a quitter I am not!
>>27644216
Welp, that fuckin' sucks.
Lost our airship and Coco is gone.
The saving grace on this is that if poison joke experimentation works out as planned, then we wouldn't have been able to use the ednosptrad anyway.
>>27644216
>"...which means you may have to bid it goodbye."
THE HELL WE ARE
WE GOT CREW ON THAT SHIP
WE ARE NOT LEAVING HER
>>27644216
Coco...
>>27643709
>Where we zebras were kings
WE
>>27645162
WUZ
Save.
>>27646838
>not saying KINGZ
HURRY UP HURRY UP OUR ANT IS IN THAT SHIP OMG
>>27644216
F
We're not losing the ship, people, and we're not abandoning Coco. We have plenty of options.
1) Head back home, come back with our old helium balloon and bottlecap ship. We can use that to get the the edno.
2) We are immune to fall damage, so we could just have Gulliver chuck us into the air repeatedly until we can grab ahold of it and pilot it down.
3) Maybe Zecora has some sort of alchemic solution that can make us float, or there might be a magical solution also. Hell, maybe we can set up a ladder on the roof and get Gully hi enough up to grab it with telekinesis.
>>27649793
That's assuming we can even find it. How easily can you track a balloon you let go of?
>>27649793
We need to find a Pegasus to help us out.
>>27649793
damn it we should of trained coco how to fly it
*cough*
>>27651571
>>27651734
Back to bumping, then!
>>27644230
>>27644242
>>27644376
>>27646985
>>27649793
Feather Dust stares up at the chimney in distraught. She worked so hard on that airship. She had to bribe official townsponies to get her a cloud for it! She set up diode bridges! DIODE BRIDGES!! She even had an entire crew to-
...Her stomach turns to ice.
>"Coco!!"
Zecora gives Feather a confused look, while Gulliver's eyes widen. "She's not..." he says, rather than asks.
>"She is! She's still up there! We need to mount a rescue and find her immediately!"
"Cocoa?" Zecora asks Gulliver.
"Her pet ant." he responds plainly.
>"She's not a pet, Gully! She's a BOATSWAIN! And she doesn't know how to swain the boat all by herself! Come on, we have to go find her!"
"How?" Gulliver asks with a troubled expression. "That airship of yours is basically a balloon. You ever try to find a balloon again after you let it float away?"
>"We still have to try, Gully! What if it was me?
Gulliver glances at the floor. "If it was you, I'd climb every tree in the forest until I found you again." he admits, before looking back at her with a firm expression. "Okay, we'll look. But how do we know where to even start? We have no idea which way the Ed... the Edno went after it got outside."
>>27659122
Find a pegasus on the weather team. They should know the direction of the wind overnight. Beyond that it'd be up. They'd also help with retrieval.
>>27659122
Zecora, I don't suppose you can tell if the winds are still blowing in the same directions as last night, can you? If they are, we can just follow them in the direction they're blowing to find out where it ended up. And if they aren't the same, do you know which way they were blowing before?
>>27659167
Not in the Everfree, they wouldn't. The forrest runs its own weather. A pegasus would be really helpful, though.
It can't float up above the clouds, right?
maybe fluttershy? she can ask the animals if they saw it. its fairly distinct.
>>27659195
>It can't float up above the clouds, right?
Not unless one of the crystals fell out. We enchanted it to go higher so we'd have the option but then weighted it back down so it would still be close to neutrally buoyant. It probably didn't rise too high.
>>27659207
That could work. Plus she lives conveniently right on the forest border. Let's at least try looking for it ourselves a bit first, though.
>>27659195
If wind blew in such a radically different direction, it'd cause regular tornadoes. They'd be able to figure out the direction of the wind by using the direction of the wind around it.
>>27659250
I've no doubt that the weather ponies keep track of the everfree weather like you said, but you're not going to have tornadoes just by having an uncontrolled forest weather next to the controlled weather of ponyville.
Guys. We should try to get the poison joke before leaving Everfree.
>>27659295
If the wind over the Everfree can move in the completely opposite direction of where it's going everywhere else, than where is the material coming from? The only way for it to move separately would be if all of the air in the Everfree moved in a circle like Jupiter's red spot.
>>27659348
I suppose that's one way it could work. The winds could also come in from above the layer of the thermosphere the ponies use, or from directions around the forrest that aren't settled. We just don't know. You can't say it's the ONLY way it could work without a lot more information.
>>27659307
It's not going anywhere. Zecora can still show us where it is after we rescue Coco.
>>27659448
I thought the Everfree was near the center of Equestria. So the air currents in the Everfree are like a waterfall? Regardless, the wind would have to be either very violent or completely stagnant to move independently of everywhere else.
>>27659487
I was just saying it doesn't have to be incredibly violent because it doesn't have to be independent of all weather, just weather that ponies control. I doubt the ponies are managing the weather up in the jetstream, for example. Cold air descends into the everfree from above the pony controlled zone and hot air ascends out of it.
Not saying that's how it works, just that there's a lot of different ways it could work and we can't assume. That's why we're asking Zecora.
>>27659540
I think ponies primarily control the clouds and only influence the wind. Otherwise there would be a lot ponies who's entire job is just standing somewhere and flapping their wings non-stop
>>27659580
Sounds plausible enough. Still worth asking to be sure though so we don't assume.
>>27659122
We'll never know if we don't at least go out and look around. Maybe we'll see a small speck in the sky.
Regardless, Coco's safety is important, but I think we should finish what we came here to do first. She'll be mostly safe up there, provided the Ednosptrad hasn't gone so high that an ant will start getting chilly or oxygen deprived. She's a brave botswain, she can take it.
We should try and hurry back to town to get as many pegasi searching the sky as possible. Even if the Everfree forest has randomized winds, wind is still predictable, and I'm sure any pegasi worth their salt would be able to chart out or at the very least guess where an airship might end up.
>>27659167
>>27659195
>>27659207
>>27659248
>>27659307
Feather Dust gets an idea!
>"What if we get a pegasus to tell us which way the wind's been blowing since last night?"
"That idea won't work, I fear." Zecora answers, trotting to her door and glancing outside. "Ponies don't control the winds out here. Just because the wind is now blowing west doesn't mean it is at anypony's behest."
"That's right, the Everfree does all that stuff by itself." Gulliver shudders a little. "It's freaky..."
>"Well, a pegasus can still help us by flying around and looking for the Ednosptrad! It's not like it doesn't stand out!"
"You made sure of that, huh?" Gulliver jeers.
>"Shut up."
Zecora turns back to her guests, the gears in her head turning. "If a pegasus is what we need, I may know one who's perfect for the deed..." she mumbles. "Her name is Fluttershy, and she has many friends who can scour the sky."
>"Fluttershy? That mousy hippie chick that lives by the East Ponyville Bridge?"
Zecora nods.
"What about the poison joke?" Gulliver interjects. "Shouldn't we get that before we leave the Everfree? Or maybe we can split up?"
>>27659792
The poison joke isn't going anywhere. Zecora will still be able to guide us there after we save our ant.
>>27659792
Coco first!
>>27659792
To social anxiety disorder's house!
>>27659792
>What about the poison joke
If Zecora is willing to guide us out of the forest/to Flutter's house and doesn't mind not tagging along with us afterward, we can ask her to grab a sample of Poison Joke while we find our airship, and then meet up again.
>>27659816
>>27659818
>>27659836
>"No way, Gully. On the Ednosptrad, our motto is 'No pony left behind.', and that doesn't just apply to crew members: Zecora's hurt, and you don't know your way around the forest. We've gotta stick together."
Gulliver nods. "I guess you're right..." He turns to Zecora with a serious expression on his face. "You should stay here and rest, Zecora. You need to take it easy until you're healed."
Zecora chortles. "A few burns and a scraped knee are not enough to stifle me." she responds gently. "You've been kind to me since we've met, and my promise to you hasn't been fulfilled yet."
Gulliver and Feather Dust exchange a surprised but eager look.
>"So you'll stick with us until we get my airship back?"
"And until I've gotten you your poison joke." Zecora replies with a smile and a nod. "That's been the agreement since it was spoke."
Gulliver smiles widely. "Thanks, Zecora. You're really great...ly. Er, greatly helping us."
>"Alright, crew! We've got a rescue plan! We find Fluttershy and ask her to help us find the Ednosptrad, we locate it, we get it back, we get Coco some medical sugar, and then we come back for the poison joke! Are we clear?!"
"Aye-aye, Cap'n!" Gulliver responds with a salute.
"I understand what you have planned." Zecora adds, making a gesture that Feather Dust and Gulliver don't recognize.
>"Then let's move out!"
The short, morning-lit path back to town is totally devoid of monsters. It's actually rather pleasant. But Feather Dust and her crew have no time for sightseeing. They soon cross the bridge and follow the hillside path up to a squat wooden cottage decorated with birdhouses and surrounded by fenced-in pens.
>"Is this her place, Zecora?"
"Quite right." the zebra responds.
"Should we knock first?" Gulliver asks Feather Dust with a crooked grin. "Or just barge in and start breaking all her pottery in search of bits and gems?"
>>27660224
Zecora should go first since she's her friend.
>>27660224
Knock. When she answers remember to frontload the conversation with the fact that our beloved animal is in trouble and we need her help.
>Gulliver smiles widely. "Thanks, Zecora. You're really great...ly. Er, greatly helping us."
Dangle that bait all you want. It won't mean shit once we're big.
>>27660256
>>27660273
>"We oughta knock. Don't worry, I have a plan."
Gulliver nods and wraps his hoof against the door. Immediately, several chirps, growls, barks, quacks, roars, and various other animal noises begin to emanate from inside the cottage.
>"Zecora, you're up. You're her friend. She'll talk to you, right?"
The zebra nods and steps up beside Gulliver, who steps to the side with a little prompting. A few seconds later, and the sound of several latches and locks on the other side of the door being undone can be heard before a yellow pegasus with long pink hair and deep teal eyes opens it.
"Oh, good morning, Zecora...!" she says in what could best be described as an excited exhale. "What brings you here?" She turns to Gulliver, her voice dropping an octave further. "And, um... Who's your friend...?"
"This is Gulliver and Feather Dust." Zecora answers, pointing to Gulliver and then up at his head. "They have a problem that has them quite fussed. They have lost something that they believe that you can help them to retrieve."
"Hi there." Gulliver says with an awkward little wave.
>"Nice to meetcha!"
When Feather Dust speaks, Fluttershy's eyes widen with amazement. "Oh, my...!" she gasps, staring curiously at the tiny pony. "I've never seen a pony as small as you before... A friend of mine was ALMOST as small as you are once, but that was an accident."
>"Neat. You'll have to introduce me sometime. But right now..."
Feather Dust puts on her most melodramatic face and voice.
>"My dear sweet ant friend is in grave danger!!"
Fluttershy, who was looking like she was about to faint a few seconds earlier, gasps and instantly focuses 110% of her attention on the tiny mare. "Danger?!" she echoes with worry in her voice. "What kind of danger? Is she sick? Did she break her leg?"
>>27660443
she drifts somewhere through the sky
>>27660443
Our ant friend is stuck in an airship that got free of its moorings and drifted away last night. We don't know where the wind could have taken her. We need to find her and make sure she's okay.
>>27660443
She's lost in the sky and might be scared and surely is missing us. Can I ride a bird to go look for her?
>>27660466
>>27660478
>>27660552
Feather Dust explains the situation to Fluttershy because I'm too lazy to type it all out for the umpteenth time.
"A tiny airship that you made yourself...?" Fluttershy mumbles with wonder in her voice. "That sounds amazing...! I hope I can see it when you get it back."
>"Thanks, but unless you can help us understand the wind currents around and in Everfree Forest, I don't know if that's going to happen..."
"Well, I'm only a part-time weather pony." Fluttershy answers, rubbing her hoof and glancing away. "I actually only ever help with weather when it's totally necessary. I don't know anything about wind currents except for what I hear from other pegasi."
Gulliver's and Feather Dust's faces drop.
"So you can't help us...?" Gulliver asks glumly.
"I don't think *I* can..." Fluttershy responds. "But my friends might be able to."
>"Your pegasus friends?"
"Oh, no...!" Fluttershy quickly replies. "I'm actually not usually this social with ponies. But I love animals, and they always have a lot to say... I'm sure one of them will know where your airship is...!"
Fluttershy trots out the door and onto the bridge. "Let me ask them." she says sweetly, before clearing her throat and tilting her head back. She takes a deep breath...
"EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!"
>>27660665
For a brief moment, everything is quiet.
Then, from a great distance, a gentle, rhythmic swooshing sound can be heard, steadily growing louder.
A shadow falls over Feather Dust and her crew. They tentatively look up.
Bats.
Hundreds of them.
No, THOUSANDS.
They descend upon the cottage like a stormcloud, their squeaks and the flapping of their wings drowning out Gulliver's cries of fear and Feather Dust's thoughts of jumping and running for her life. The shut-in ponies fear that the end is at hoof...
"Thank you for responding so quickly, everyone."
Fluttershy's smoky voice quells the flapping storm like a proclamation from Celestia. The bats stop flapping and squeaking, instead settling into a quiet hover. Feather Dust and Gulliver are astonished.
>"...They're standing at attention..."
"I'm sorry to bother you all so late," Fluttershy continues, "but a fellow critter has gone missing and needs your help. My friends and I would greatly appreciate it if anyone who saw anything useful during the night can tell us."
One of the bats squeaks.
"Oh, well, by useful I mean a small airship, somewhere at or near the edge of the Everfree Forest."
Another bat screeches something.
"Oh, okay, I'll ask." Fluttershy turns to Feather Dust and her friends. "They don't know what an airship is, or how it'd sound if they echolocated it."
>>27660802
Basically a big balloon with a soda can strapped to it.
>>27660802
Well, it's a cloth bag with a cloud in it, and has a metal can hanging from it.
>>27660808
>>27660847
>"Well, it's a cloth bag with a cloud in it so it floats - like a big balloon, actually - with a metal soda can hanging from it."
A loud squeak is heard from somewhere in the colossal colony. Bats clear out of the way, revealing a smaller-looking bat that appears to be the source of the noises.
"You saw it?" Fluttershy asks.
>"He saw it?!"
The bat nods and points one of its wings away from the cottage, back towards the forest. It continues to squeak and squeal something to Fluttershy.
"He says he flew past something metallic about an hour before sunrise. It was about 80 feet in the air, a half a mile southwest of the 'smoking tree' in the forest."
>>27661044
Alright, so we start from zecora's house and head southwest. Shouldn't be hard to spot.
>>27661044
Can I borrow a bat to ride up there?
Also, eighty feet is the hight at which we are neutrally buoyant under standard atmospheric pressure conditions, good to know.
>>27661088
How long do you think it'd take to get down from there?
>>27661101
From eighty feet? Not too long. A couple of minutes maybe. Going up or down is only marginally less efficient than going forward, thanks to the way we have the motor jointed.
>>27661057
>>27661088
>"So we should start back at Zecora's place and head southwest?"
"Sounds easy enough to me." Gulliver answers with a shrug.
>"We still need a flyer to get that high in the air, though..."
After Feather Dust says that, the small bat that'd answered Fluttershy swoops down until he's only a few feet from Gulliver's face, and he begins to squeak and chitter excitedly.
"What's up with him?" Gulliver asks, taking a nervous step back as Fluttershy dismisses the rest of the bats. "He's not hungry, is he?"
"It sounds like he wants to help you find your airship." Fluttershy softly calls back in response as the other bats scatter, freeing the meek pegasus up to return to the conversation. "This is awfully late for a bat to stay up, though..."
The bat continues to squeak insistently, to Feather Dust and to Fluttershy. The pegasus' facial expressions change subtly as she listens, nodding or uttering an affirmative grunt every now and then. After about 20 seconds, she finally nods decisively. "I understand."
Then, she turns back to Feather Dust and Gulliver. "He says that he wants to help you find your airship because he knows what it's like to be unable to fly, and he wouldn't wish that on any bat... or any flying pony. So, he's going to take you to exactly where he found your airship so that you can fly again."
The determined look on her face softens.
"U-um, if you want him to, that is..."
>>27661310
You forgot about our buoyancy problem. Going down is much harder for us.
>>27661327Whoops, wrong trip.
Anyway, stopping for the night. Thanks for playing; next time, the final jaunt into the Everfree Forest begins!
>>27661336
Kay bye.
>>27661327
Yes, thank you Fluttershy and bat.
Gully, put me on Fluttershy's snootle so I can hug her as thanks.
>>27661335
With the addition of the crystals it rises up really slowly, though, so that's how much we are losing from the downward speed. It really won't be that bad unless one of the crystals fell out or something.
>>27661348
Didn't look slow to me.
>>27661392
>Back at the helm of her airship, Feather Dust engages the motor and slowly descends to the floor of the library room. There, Coco chews through the crystal hangers and brings them aboard one at a time; by the fourth crystal, the Ednosptrad is just barely lifting off the floor.
Just barely sounds like it's slow to me.
>>27662690
>Several tense seconds pass.
I think the description of our buoyancy problem is inconsistent.
>>27663708
So, taking both of those together, either the buoyancy is inconsistant, the weight changed, or feather dust isn't good at estimating how long "a few seconds" are.
>>27661348
"We can rent a bat?" Gulliver asks with a twinkle in his eye. "Let's do it, Dusty!"
>"Alright, that'd be great! Thanks, Fluttershy! Gully, put me on her snootle so I can hug it."
"Okay!"
"It's quite alright. I... I'm sorry, what was that?"
Before Fluttershy can protest, Feather Dust is clinging to the top of her muzzle and rubbing her cheek against it. Fluttershy is now the second reported case of the dreaded tiny snootle hug. What poor innocent pony shall be stricken with it next?
After snuggling Fluttershy until she produces a humorous little squeaky noise, Feather Dust finally lets up on her attack and allows Gulliver to return her to her normal perch atop Gulliver's head.
>"Thanks to your bat too. We really owe you big time, Mister... uh..."
Feather Dust glances from the bat to Fluttershy and back.
>"Um, does he have a name?"
"Well, actually, he was wild born." Fluttershy responds, holding up a hoof for the bat to roost on. "So the only name this little fellow has is the one his parents call him by." She lifts him up and her gaze meets his. "Which I believe is... 'KeeKEEeechee'kee-ee-eheEE!?'"
The little bat nods.
"That might be kind of hard to pronounce for you, though..." Fluttershy laments. "Perhaps you should give him a nickname that's easier to remember."
"Sweet." Gulliver remarks, glancing up at Feather. "Whattaya think, Dusty? I bet you already know what name I'm thinking of... What about you? Any ideas?"
>>27668024
Doggo.
>>27668024
>KeeKEEeechee'kee-ee-eheEE
Why don't we just shorten that to Kiki? That way we have Kiki and Coco.
>>27668055
Res pls.
>>27668061
Kiki is good.
>>27668061
>>27668063
>"Well, if his name is already Keekee... chee... what you said, then why not just shorten it to 'Kiki?'"
"Because that's boring and I wanted to call him Bruce Mane?" Gulliver responds flatly.
>"Too bad, I wear the tiny pants in this house, so we call the bat Kiki."
"I'm calling him Bruce and you can't stop me."
>"Deal!"
Feather Dust turns her attention back to the bat.
>"What do you think? Does Kiki work for you?"
The bat curls one of his wings into the pteropine approximation of a thumbs-up.
>"Then it's settled! So, Kiki, can you give me a lift until we get my airship back?"
The bat flits off of Fluttershy's hoof and glides over to Gulliver, scooping Feather Dust off his head with one wing and letting her slide down to his tail, before flicking the tiny mare upwards and catching her atop his head.
"Dusty...!!" Guliver gasps.
>"Weeeeeee!!"
"When you find your ant friend, why don't you bring her back here so I can see if she needs any kind of treatment?" Fluttershy asks as Gulliver nearly has a heart attack. "Coconut ants are quite resilient to cold and hunger, but it's always best to be safe, don't you think?"
>>27668292
You bet, Flutters!
>>27668292
Lets do the thing where the bat flies and we find our floating can.
>>27668292
We might as well get Coco back to a professional just to make sure.
I just hope we're not too late.
>>27668300
>>27668607
>>27668775
>"You bet, Flutters! Now let's go find my ant - and my airship!"
"Are you sure riding a bat is safe, Dusty?" Gulliver asks uneasily.
>"Of course it is, Gully! You just worry too much."
"I think YOU don't worry enough..." the unicorn grumbles in response.
>"That's why I have you around. Now, enough dawdling: Time is of the essence right now! Onward, troops!"
With an affirmative squeak, Kiki and his passenger take to the skies, with Gulliver and Zecora in hot pursuit.
"Good luck...!" Fluttershy gently calls after the crew as they make their way back towards the Everfree Forest.https://youtu.be/P3asiN8hYyI
Stopping for theweekend. Thanks for playing!
>>27668928
Kay bye.
>>27668928thanks inept
>>27661327
>>27668292
>that look on zecora's face
thought something was on her mind but i guess not
I like tiny
