Post by Deleted on Apr 10, 2013 0:21:55 GMT -6
While the town, filled with the disenchanted Crystal Ponies, was almost a little bustling with activity, the Crystal Palace itself had remained relatively quiet. Most ponies, until this point, hadn't been allowed inside; but now that they had had time to become accustomed to the Empire and the way it worked, the large castle seemed to be an obvious place to start searching in earnest.
Cadence breathed a sigh. She'd been keeping her field of love active for a couple of days now, and she knew that she couldn't hold it up forever. Even while Shining's barrier was active and and she could gain a little reprieve, she still needed to keep the field of light active. Conditions would worsen immediately if she were to stop completely. Still, Shining's shield spell did lighten her load considerably when he aided her. And when he helped at night, she could even lessen the light spread, allowing for little more than a projection hiding Sombra's existence and showing a rather basic, starry night scene. During times like those, while she couldn't sleep, she could slip into a meditative state at the very least, resting her mind and body without fully cutting off her faculties. It was nothing compared to a good night's sleep, but it was something.
Right now, however, was no time for rest. The ponies volunteering to explore the castle and dig up some information for them were beginning to gather outside the throne room, and soon enough Shining would let them all in and they would discuss the details of their. She took a deep breath and tried to imagine away the barely noticable bags that were beginning to form under her eyes.
"Alright, Cadence, you can do this..."
The doors opened, and Princess Cadenza sat up straight, beaming widely at the ponies who walked in following her husband's lead. She waited until everypony was settled in before she began. "Thank you, all of you, for coming here to help us. I can't begin to express my gratitude to each of you. I will try to keep this short, as there is much to do and less time than we would like to have. We are here to find as much information about the Crystal Empire and King Sombra as we can, and since this was his seat of power for the short time that he was here, this is a primary location for buried information. Split yourselves into groups, but make sure to travel in no less than twos. While the palace does look safe, I won't lie to you and say that there is no risk of danger. Be vigilant and keep a wary eye."
She took a deep breath and continued. "We will have several ponies acting as checkpoints in the castle. They will be spread through the palace in groups of two. You'll recognize them by the red sashes tied around their upper arms. If you find any information, please return it to one of them, and they will relay it back here. I would like one or two of you to stay here with me. We will be documenting and organizing any information found by you and getting as much out of it as we can." She paused, taking another breath. "...If any of you run into any dangerous situations, please immediately return to the nearest checkpoint and tell them." She relaxed her shoulders and peered over the group. For just a few moments, she dropped her officious tone. "Don't be a hero. We're here to gather information, and every little bit helps. Good luck."
She nodded and with that the group dispersed.
((Ok, I'm going OOC for a sec here. Obviously, I'm not railroading you at all, just laying the groundwork for how things are gonna go. There are gonna be PLENTY of NPCs around, and I'm definitely not gonna have anyone just sit around with Cadence twiddling whatever ponies have instead of thumbs if they don't want to. Also, the checkpoint runners are going to be NPCs, and they can be found in most major nexuses of rooms or easily recognizable places, so just assume you can find them if you need to. Feel free to explore some different rooms, and have fun!))
Cadence breathed a sigh. She'd been keeping her field of love active for a couple of days now, and she knew that she couldn't hold it up forever. Even while Shining's barrier was active and and she could gain a little reprieve, she still needed to keep the field of light active. Conditions would worsen immediately if she were to stop completely. Still, Shining's shield spell did lighten her load considerably when he aided her. And when he helped at night, she could even lessen the light spread, allowing for little more than a projection hiding Sombra's existence and showing a rather basic, starry night scene. During times like those, while she couldn't sleep, she could slip into a meditative state at the very least, resting her mind and body without fully cutting off her faculties. It was nothing compared to a good night's sleep, but it was something.
Right now, however, was no time for rest. The ponies volunteering to explore the castle and dig up some information for them were beginning to gather outside the throne room, and soon enough Shining would let them all in and they would discuss the details of their. She took a deep breath and tried to imagine away the barely noticable bags that were beginning to form under her eyes.
"Alright, Cadence, you can do this..."
The doors opened, and Princess Cadenza sat up straight, beaming widely at the ponies who walked in following her husband's lead. She waited until everypony was settled in before she began. "Thank you, all of you, for coming here to help us. I can't begin to express my gratitude to each of you. I will try to keep this short, as there is much to do and less time than we would like to have. We are here to find as much information about the Crystal Empire and King Sombra as we can, and since this was his seat of power for the short time that he was here, this is a primary location for buried information. Split yourselves into groups, but make sure to travel in no less than twos. While the palace does look safe, I won't lie to you and say that there is no risk of danger. Be vigilant and keep a wary eye."
She took a deep breath and continued. "We will have several ponies acting as checkpoints in the castle. They will be spread through the palace in groups of two. You'll recognize them by the red sashes tied around their upper arms. If you find any information, please return it to one of them, and they will relay it back here. I would like one or two of you to stay here with me. We will be documenting and organizing any information found by you and getting as much out of it as we can." She paused, taking another breath. "...If any of you run into any dangerous situations, please immediately return to the nearest checkpoint and tell them." She relaxed her shoulders and peered over the group. For just a few moments, she dropped her officious tone. "Don't be a hero. We're here to gather information, and every little bit helps. Good luck."
She nodded and with that the group dispersed.
((Ok, I'm going OOC for a sec here. Obviously, I'm not railroading you at all, just laying the groundwork for how things are gonna go. There are gonna be PLENTY of NPCs around, and I'm definitely not gonna have anyone just sit around with Cadence twiddling whatever ponies have instead of thumbs if they don't want to. Also, the checkpoint runners are going to be NPCs, and they can be found in most major nexuses of rooms or easily recognizable places, so just assume you can find them if you need to. Feel free to explore some different rooms, and have fun!))