Getting to know the neighbourhood. (Private)

"Ah, that is sad but reassuring." The pony happily nods when she hears that people will be if not accepting of her, then open to the possibility. "And taboos like are there things you can't say or do? Like not looking straight in the eyes, or only eating after the alpha has done so." She's never going to forget that one time with the minotaur war party. Nice people, but she never thought they would take honour so literally.

"God, I'm not the one to ask about that," Kira groans. "You'll have to learn from your mistakes on that one."

Kira continued walking. It looked like the end of the buildings was up ahead, since there didn't seem to be any more after the ones immediately in sight.

(Sorry, I'd be more descriptive about the town, but I don't know much about it and haven't read any canonical descriptions of it.)

"Ah, if nothing spring to mind, then I'll probably be fine." Since she assumes Kira needed those herbs for something, she keeps an eye open for a workshop.

((That's fine. I just assumed they are wooden houses, and other jungle materials. There is a river nearby, right?))

(Yeah, there is. I'm not sure if there's like a market square or anything, or if the ground is grass or stone walkways. I did mention wooden and stone houses, right?)

Kira continues walking past where the houses seem to stop, heading toward a lone, large tree in the distance, which appeared to have some kind of cubic metal constructs behind it, visible just barely around the sides of the trunk.

"It's more that, every society seems to have it's own, and there's so many different ones that I pretty much stopped trying to keep track."

((Well, we can assume there is an open place in the town's center. The houses are probably build in a circle around it to form a basic defensive layout. There might even be a catapult in the middle. If it were my town, then there would also be weavers or tanners to make outfits for Jade as a thank you.

Since we just walked through the town, is this tree we're walking to in the middle, or on the other side of the village?))

(Basically, we entered from the west maybe, went through the centre, turned to the south and went back out to the town's edge.)

Sybin takes a good look around, and likes what she sees. It's primitive, but not bad.

"So, what did you say your mission her was, again?" Kira asked. She had lead Sybin up to the tree and was now making her way around to the other side. A large, metal cube would slowly start to come into view. None of it was actually in the tree, but simply situated next to it instead. However, there would only be a window to be seen on the side wall, and it had a deep red curtain blocking it.

"My mission, which I choose to accept, is to assess the danger level of this world. If I report back positively, then soon more of my people will come." She looks at the strange metal cube, wondering what it is.

"So, can you tell me a bit about this place? Like, do you live here, or is this only a workplace?"

"Both," Kira answers as she continues to walk. Soon enough, another large, metal construct comes into view, connected directly to the cube; one of the walls of the cube would seem to connect with this larger part of the building at an obtuse angle, with the tree positioned directly behind. Though it would likely be difficult to tell, the larger part is in the shape of a horizontal half-octagon, with the longest side facing outward.

Kira makes her way around to the longest wall, which is adorned with two more curtain-shielded windows and a large, metal door - which also had a curtained window on it - not unlike a normal household door aside from being solid steel.

"Anyway, you can consider your mission complete. Go home and tell your...ponies not to come here."

(If you need a better explanation of her home, just lemme know in a PM.)

The pony takes in the house and its add-ons. Perhaps they are for gathering rain water, or to heat a furnace?

Still, Kira's word sting. "No offence, but so far we encountered nothing that can't be fought off with teamwork and ingenuity. We ponies evolved from proud herd animals, and working together, we have conquered all opposition. Dragons, blizzards, fey, and even demons from Tartarus." Her voice is strong with national pride, and she actually believes what she is saying.

((I feel like such a Mary Sue. i_i I really don't think that she alone can defeat a predator, you know. Unless they swallow her, of course. All she'd have to do is trepanize herself inside the throat, and then have her soulspark form a chainsaw like blade. For any other situation, my plan is to run. "The lowly mice can defeat the mighty lion by jumping in her hole. She lives, and he got nothing.))

(Oh don't worry, I'm not seeing anything that constitutes sue qualities yet. ^_^)

Kira walked to to the front door and flipped up her skirt, flashing Sybin a likely uninteresting view of her jeans tightly outlining the curves of her rear, and dug a house key out of her pocket. She insterted it into a lock above the doorknob and turned.

"What about someone like Jade?" Kira countered. "Do you really think that'll be enough to survive an onslaught from a being that size or bigger? What about a pack of beasts half her size?"

Curious, the pony tries to see inside of Kira's place, while she thinks about how to phrase her answer without sounding arrogant. "I am not saying one pony could take her, and definitely not when wild animals outnumber me, but I don't have to. All I need is to target their senses, and run away while they're temporarily disabled. After that, go into stealth while thinking up a way to defeat them--preferably by analyzing them to prepare tailor-made weapons. Even if they track me back to my base camp, if I were here with my people then yes I believe we could kill them with brute force."

While she talks, her spark flits around her, as if agitated by her words and looking for a foe. If this thing really is a part of her, then this behavior reveals that she sees herself as a proud and confident warrior. "We would then examine their remains and tactics to make Bane weapons against them, after which ALL skilled Incarnates would now have weapons effective against this threat, able to snipe them from a distance.

"We're not just a country, but a spirit. I have at my disposal the experience of all ponies before me, and soon what I learned today shall be added to their collective knowledge."


(I describe a Mary Sue as someone who is extremely hard to challenge, and handles threats that the locals struggle with. So far, the only weakness I discovered in her is that while running from one predator, she might get caught by another. That, poison, and breaking a leg.)

(Yeah, no, I'm beginning to see the sue-ness now. ^_^; )

"Well, aren't we high and mighty?" was Kira's sarcastic response, her tail flitting once as if to emphasise her tone. Sure, she could talk big, Kira thought, but she'd likely be singing another tune after facing something truly dangerous. The threats of Felarya weren't to be taken lightly, and this pony would have to learn that the hard way.

She stepped into her home without another word, pocketing her keys once more and stepping out of the doorway to allow Sybin to pass. The inside of her home was not unlike the outside, seemingly comprised entirely of metal, with not even a carpet on the floor. There were some electric lights in the ceiling (which was a good several feet higher than Kira), illuminating the half-octagonal room. Piles of scrap metal and broken gadgets and machine parts littered the room, the tallest of them coming up to Kira's knee. Against the left-hoof wall was located a long work bench, cluttered with tools and papers, and above it the wall was filled with blueprints and sketches of various projects. In about the center of the room sat a dark green couch, facing toward the rear wall. The coffee table in front of it wouldn't be visible from the entrance. The area in front of the right-hoof wall was designated for weight training, and as such there was a rack of weights against the wall and a bench-pressing seat. There were also a pair of doorways leading from the room on each of the two diagonal walls. The one at ten o'clock had a closed steel door, barring Sybin from seeing inside. The one at two o'clock had no door whatsoever, and led into the cube-shaped structure the two of them passed outside; a room furnished with cupboards, counters, and other quaint kitchen essentials.

With wide open eyes, Sybin takes in Kira's home. To be honest, it suits the feline. She marvels at the efficiency of the layout, and the many ideas that are in the process of being realized.

"I had no idea that you were such an inventor, and a body-builder as well. This is marvelous."


((It's just...why wouldn't a civilization analyze a threat and prepare accordingly? It's not about damage, but about winning. To be honest, Bane weapons are more precise than damaging, are meant to hit weak spots.

The strongest character I ever made was an illusionist. Couldn't do a single damage, but after just half an hour, she had fooled the bad guy's brigand minions into thinking that she was an even stronger demon-worshipper than their boss, and that she had a bone to pick with him. While she was at it, they were free to loot his castle and take revenge for being mistreated. So long story short, I marched up to him with a small army, converting and charming many of his monsters.

To be honest, I had a hard time convincing the local authorities I wasn't a villain myself without tipping off my minions, but explained to my minions that I was fooling the good guys, by pretending to double-cross them. ))

((I think maybe you're just one of those people who is good at exploiting elements of a setting to your advantage without outright breaking the rules, but because of that effectiveness, it's almost unfair, especially in a medium like RP where there are other people involved. See, that's the thing I don't think a lot of RPers think deeply enough about, how adding just a second person to the mix makes RP different from typical story writing. You have to think about the other person/people playing with you, and find ways to keep them involved and on equal footing with yourself, otherwise someone's going to get too far ahead of the other and make them feel inadequate or something. It's really a hard thing to do, though. I myself have been guilty of stealing the spotlight in group RPs, and I think Taihaku might be getting rather hyper-competent in A Grande Adventure (which might be why she keeps getting knocked out for indefinite periods of time, due to exhaustion, embarrassment, and a drowsiness spell so far).

The point is, even though, yes, your idea isn't against the rules, it does seem like something that would upset the status quo, which makes some people, myself included, uneasy.))

"Glad you like it. Don't touch anything," Kira said flatly. She shut the door behind her, then passed behind Sybin, stepping around a pile of parts as she headed to the left side of the room, and set her sack of ingredients on the table. She sat down on a wheeled stool before the long table and bent over, her tail flitting excitedly. She rose back up with a small-ish wooden crate, which she also set on the table, and opened the top of it, revealing rows of small jars full of things not unlike what Sybin had collected for her earlier.

"So, what are your plans?" Kira asked as she began sorting the contents of her sack into the jars.

((I guess that is the right way of describing it. I just don't do stuff out of TvTropes. All my villains read the Evil Overlord Handbook. ^^))

Kira's black tail is as hypnotizing as ever, as it swings on the rhythm of the feline's excitement. Sybin happily stares at the swinging appendage, and wonders if Kira can use it to pick up stuff, until its owner's voice calls her out of her musing.

"Oh, I just plan to stick around and see what I can find out about this world. Maybe seek out a place to set down a potential colony, but so far my people aren't nearly numerous enough for this to happen in the foreseeable future. Inter-dimensional travel is already hard enough as it is that we'd rather just stay in our home world. If it wasn't for this dimension being such a whirlpool that distorts ours, then we wouldn't even have sought this place out."

She stomps her hooves on the ground, the layer around her hooves not enough to prevent them from causing a solid sound. "We like to keep our hooves firmly on the ground, and don't really go out much."

Having answered the question, the pony tries to get a look at what Kira is doing. "Sooo, what are you working on?"

The table was low enough that Sybin would be able to get a good look at what Kira was doing, and there was enough lateral space that she wouldn't even have to look over her shoulder.

"Just sorting the ingredients from today," Kira answered, putting the glowing mushrooms from earlier in a jar, corking it, then switching it out for another jar from the crate. Kira then looked over to Sybin, giving her a smile. "Thanks again for your help with that, by the way. You did really good work, and you found some high-quality stuff. Feel free to stick around for a while if you like. Can't say things'll be interesting, though, so it's your choice."

"I guess you picked a good spot to pluck them, then." The pony looks around at the various tools and projects, and concludes that she has no idea how to make sense of the more sophisticated artifacts. "And thank you for guiding me so far. I'll be careful not to disturb you any further."

Still, her curiosity gets the better off her. "What did you need the herbs for? Medicine? Oils? And what else do you craft?"

((So, do I stick around, poke stuff "what does this do?", or go outside to the village?))

((Honestly, it's your call, but also honestly, I'm not sure how much of the setting I'm prepared to orchestrate for you if Sybin leaves Kira. If that happens, I feel like I won't really be interested in continuing the RP, leaving you to fill in the blanks of what Sybin does afterward until her next RP, which I personally don't think would be that bad or difficult, to be honest. I do it all the time between my (mostly unfinished) RPs. Also, didn't you notice Kira actually smiled at Sybin? That's not a common occurrence!))

"Some are for medicine, yeah, but I use most of them for alchemy," Kira explained without turning her head from her work. "Making concoctions that provide magical effects."

((She smiled at me? I thought she was just happy about her find, and not really praising me. Oops.

But yes. we've come to a cross-roads, and it's time to relight the fire! ( •̀ᄇ• ́)ﻭ✧ ))

Alchemy. Sybin's ears perk up as she hears the familiar word, and a stupid, crazy idea sparks in her mind. "Kira, I would like to hire you as my guide in Felarya. In return, you will get access to the finest materials and resources I can request from my people, and when our journey is over, you can provide this town with everything it needs." As she talks, her spark gives of a hazy yellow light, showing a few images of what she thinks her people can provide Kira and Safe Harbor.

"Just think about it: protective walls of bramble berries could surround this village, supplying both food and defenses. You could grow your own reagents easily with the right pots that ensure that the rapidly grown fauna does not lack its magical properties, and if we work together we could everyone's dreams come true!"

Eying the felines' posture, she has one final thing to add. "If you would prefer, I could request the alchemists at home to send me a transmogrification potion to temporarily turn me into a bipedal like you. With a bit of training, I am sure I would get the hang of it."


((Losing her quadruped status would also lower her power, as she can't do the whole "tank" approach to combat then. Also, our characters could look like sisters XD ))

"First, that last part's completely up to you. I don't give other people control of my body, and you shouldn't, either," Kira answered, shooting Sybin a serious look.

She then paused to think about the pony's offer, and her body reflected this; she swiveled her chair to the side, put her left elbow on the table, and rested her head on her left hand while hunched over and looking toward the ceiling. She did already have a good thing going in Safe Harbor as a mechanic/repair woman/warrior/inventor, but this job wouldn't offer her just money, but rare alchemic ingredients and interesting provisions for the village! Plus, depending on where she and Sybin went in Felarya, she might be able to pick up a few new things, like recipes and ideas for inventions, not to mention ingredients she usually relied on her friend to bring her.

On the downside, she really didn't like leaving her home much, especially not to babysit people in the most dangerous parts of Felarya, and that's not even taking account the possible decrease in defensive power Safe Harbor might suffer if she were to leave for an extended period of time. Though she didn't want to put too much stock into herself...Safe Harbor got along great before she came along, after all. She was helpful, but not integral. Hmm...

"Okay, I'll agree...but I have a some conditions."

"Sure." Her tail swings in excitement, and she rolls her shoulders straight. "I am in your debt, and you are the one who knows best here, so I'll listen."

So far the feline had not turned her astray yet--though she did underestimate Sybin's paladin training--and she was certain that whatever Kira requested would be reasonable.


((To be honest, I feel like I am trying way too hard to prove that ponies can be cool, and I want to tone it down. It would still be interesting to see how Felarya reacts to them, but I'm not sure if this is the way. Besides, most of who and what she is, is homebrewed by me to expand on the show. It really is how I envision the Crystal Empire, but there are probably few who share my opinion.))

(Like Kira says, it's up to you. Kira doesn't want to force things on Sybin that she wouldn't have force upon herself, and I don't mind either way. ^_^)

"First, even though I'll be in your employment, I won't tolerate being bossed around, and I won't tolerate unreasonable people."

Kira lifted her head from her hand and sat upright as she continued. "Second, don't depend on me to make all the decisions, either. Be sure to think for yourself, like earlier today when you ran from Jade. That was a good decision, given the circumstances. Third, and this is a big one, I will reserve the right to terminate our agreement at any time, should I have any reason or desire to return here and resume my current occupation. And fourth, should anything happen to me but result in your survival, you will return here and inform Jade and the residents of Safe Harbor of my departure from life, and that I leave all my possessions to the town for them to do with as I please."

The neko then paused with a thoughtful look. "...You'll also have to tell my dad, too. Other than that, I can't think of anything else right now. Do you have an issue with any of that?"

((In that case, I'll let her transform. Horses are not made to traverse forests anyway, and I feel like she is OP, even though she's not.))

"Oh, no objections at all," responds the paladin pony, and she shakes her head. "All those points are things I would do anyway." Her ears fold down as she adds, "Though the way you say it, your father would take it hard?"