8 - Meanwhile, on Catachan...
What is it to be a Ranger?
”To serve the public trust.”
Why are you a Ranger?
“To protect the innocent.”
What does a Ranger do?
“Uphold the law.”
- The Ranger’s Oath, est 295 S.R.
Twilight Sparkle - Day 1
Avici Jungle - The Imperial Provinces of Minic
The Avici Jungle is quite possibly the worst habitable place in the galaxy. That thought should be noted as stretching the word habitable to the very last point before it breaks. The Avici Jungle is without a doubt the absolute worst place one could find themselves in on all of Mar’rath, and that includes the Blightlands.
The jungle stretches three hundred and ninety five kilometers from the Alterian Sea to the edge of the Dragon’s Mountains. At its thickest, the jungle is over two hundred kilometers wide, and at the thinnest point it covers sixty six kilometers. While thin, the region is a natural wall. One which the entirety of the Imperial Provinces could not penetrate in thousands of years with billions of soldiers.
The only other force to stop the superpower’s expansion is Mar’rath’s other superpower. The Avici Jungle: strong as a global superpower with an army of wizards with god on their side.
Few people are capable of believing this fact. Every year thousands die attempting to find a way through Avici.
“Forget the legends,” they say. “Our caravan can make a road. We’ll charge a toll and make millions!”
Their bodies are never found. Their property is found on rare occasions. It inevitably has bites taken out of it.
The Avici’s entire ecosystem seems consciously hostile to all foreign life. Cut some vines to clear a trail, and a dozen more will grow in their place, and will somehow become harder to cut. Burn down a section, and within a year the jungle will have grown back, it’s trees appearing to be all old growth.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, every known plant species found within the Avici is toxic, making foraging for native food impossible. Most plant species are also carnivorous.
Some plants secrete pollen into the air which is poisonous and also highly corrosive. Others secrete sticky liquid to capture passing animals and slowly dissolve them, much like giant Venus Fly-Traps. If Fly-Traps were man sized and utilized neurotoxins to ensure it hurts the entire time you’re dying. Other plants poison the ground and turn the immediate area around them into boggy wastelands to trap prey.
Then there’s the animal life.
Legends speak of a frog-like creature, no bigger than a quarter of a meter, which will explode if threatened, spraying fertilized eggs and a supertoxin across an entire kilometer of land which is so potent it kills species normally immune to poisons and toxins within hours, and essentially everything else upon contact.
People living near the Avici have never seen such a creature, but do not doubt it’s existence. Frankly it’s much less mind shatteringly dangerous than half the things lurking within the vines. Many are large enough to simply take a bite out of a train car, or a caravan waggon. Some are person sized, and fast enough to catch up to high speed transports.
Every single animal species found in the Avici is an apex predator. There are no herbivores. There are no omnivores. Only carnivores. Here, predators feeds on predators, and as a result all predatory species breed like the common rabbit.
It’s little wonder that the Imperial Provinces of Minic, a nation populated almost entirely by a race arcanely engineered to be the perfect predators for the undead, and their impossibly stealthy arcanotech-genius allies, have decided their empire’s northern expansion stops at the Avici.
The Cartographer’s Guild, famed for their perfectly accurate maps of all the world, including the Dragon’s lands, have officially stated they will never map the Avici and consider their maps to be fully complete due to the Jungle being “not a part of the world. The Avici is located within the deepest recesses of Hell.”
The Goddess Null once led the other five Divines on a Crusade to purge the Avici of all life. Not a one of their avatars survived the first night. NaN was allowed to unleash her full arsonal upon the Jungle after this. Yet the Avici remains where it’s always been.
No force on Mar’rath could tame it. The Jungle was beyond all possible conquest, even by the gods.
Twilight Sparkle sat on a log somewhere near the middle of the Avici Jungle, idly munching on a slice of “Celestia Knows What This Abomination Is, But It Smells Tasty” steak which she had roasted over her camp’s fire and seasoned with the bark of a “But Why Does it Bleed?” tree, giving it a nice punchy flavor.
Against all logic, chance, and conceivability, the mare had managed to construct a camp for herself within the Jungle. She had a tent made from the leaves of a plant which had gotten a bit too invasive for Twilight’s comfort (hence why she’d ripped it to shreds with her bare hands), a nice stone fire pit (made from the remains of the rock-creature she’d headbutted to death), a nice bone stand to support the cauldron which had come with her starting equipment, a small tent made from the hide of a truly massive snake she'd killed from the inside, and a nice table made from a fallen tree upon which sat the tools and equipment form her half dozen different character classes.
It had taken Twilight a while to work out that her game’s avatar was in fact a carnivore rather than an herbivore. It would have taken less time if Scorrus vomit didn’t attract packs of “Celestia Knows What This Abomination Is, But It Smells Tasty”. CKWTAIBIST for short.
After her six and a half hour character creation session with Yog, who had warned her of Hastur’s plans to separate her from the group (and given her much greater choice in her avatar’s construction so as to keep the game fair) Twilight had at last chosen to be a Scorrus.
The Mice-folk, as most people called them, were humanoid rodents, something between a rat and a jerboa. They stood about as tall as a pony, even though they walked on two legs, and were all very slender through their long fur inevitably made them appear to be chubby.
Amusingly enough, the Scorrus shared another thing with ponies other than their size. Their coloration.
Twilight had lavender fur, with a bright magenta pattern running down her back exactly identical to a king cobra’s scale pattern. Her hair was long, reaching the base of her tail, and bright blue, with an identically blue tuft of fur at the tip of her furless tail.
Her skin was a light pink, and visible on her tail, nose, hands, and feet. All in all, she looked as if someone had painted a mouse-like creature her colors, and then for some reason gave them a snakeskin pattern.
She would have fit right in with any Scorrus community, even after she trimmed her fur back to reveal her very lean athletic shape, and even with the incredibly well built legs she had. Those legs were the genetic hallmark of the Hoplight family, and while Twilight would therefore be banned from any sport involving jumping she would otherwise have been a normal person.
Except for her skills and physical prowers. And the animated set of rusty-orange colored half plate which covered her back, shoulders, and arms. But not her legs, chest, or stomach.
Twilight understood her legs being left bare. While enguaged with the pack of Ckwtaibists she’d had to make a small jump. A small jump which had allowed her to clear the tree canopy by several meters. Aside from boots, any restriction of her legs movement range would prove disastrous during landings. But the belly?
Why? This makes no sense. There’s TONS of vital organs there. But this armor doesn't even have a chain belly-skirt! Twilight grumbled to herself. And this is just normal for a whole species! I get that we can turn invisible by making our fur change color, but stealth isn’t an excuse to not be protected. It only delays enemies trying finding you.
“I seriously don’t get how we survived this…” Gadget said incredulously, again.
Twilight blinked, pulled out of her contemplation by her friend’s words.
It’s so weird hearing her voice come from the back of my neck. As soon as my potion finishes cooking I’ll see if I can start to modify her into something more...logical. Twilight thought as she gave Gadget a pat on the left pauldron.
“What part of incredibly unbalanced min-maxing don’t you understand?” Twilight asked with a giggle as she kicked the last of the twelve Ckwtaibists skulls out of her camp and into the jungle.
I thought I’d cleaned all of them up… I hope they aren't like Timberwolves and can rebuild around the head once broken apart. Or have some sort of post-mortem mobility... Twilight worried with a wince.
“Your only weapon is a big knife. I ran out of ammo after the second giant snake. You killed TWELVE of those… Gorilla-pig-lizard things with just a big knife; without any of my help!” Gadget exclaimed, waving the crossbows attached to her shoulders in disbelief.
Twilight flicked the knife she’d been given upwards, slicing a bite size piece the large chunk of Ckwtaibist. It was most definitely a “big knife” as shortsword might have been a more accurate term.
Long, thin, clip point blade forged from pattern steel, a simple brass guard, leather handle. The sort of thing which compelled young boys who owned them to proclaim, “That’s not a knife. This is a knife,” while drawing it before waving the thing about like some kind of magic wand.
Twilight, like any adult who knew what such knifes could do, set it down atop her improvised table without any flourish and resumed eating.
“Yes. But while this is a reality, I got to choose who I am here in terms of O&O logic, with no stated level cap. And this “game” has the entire future of my world riding on it, so of course I break the game to ensure I’ll win,” Twilight explained yet again, doing her best not to roll her eyes in frustration.
“But you failed! You asked Scary-old-man if you could start with a Candle of Invodiction and he said no,” Gadget protested irritably.
It’s oddly quiet… There’s got to be something big around. Best keep an eye out for it, Twilight noted to herself before continuing.
“Candle of Invocation,” Twilight corrected with a grin. “Too bad they don’t exist in this “setting”. I’d have Pun-puned my way to victory in ten seconds flat! I'm still cheating though. The whole world’s at stake, Gadget.”
“But if we break the contract, he wins,” Gadget protested yet again.
“Yes. But the contract doesn't say we can’t break the RPG mechanics or he’ll automatically win. It says we simply act as if these rules are laws of physics for the duration of this challenge. Therefore any hole within the the RPG rules is a loophole in physics, and is fair play.
“In this case, since I couldn’t use the most broken character build in all of existence, I’ve gone for a set of classes which- Uh, long story short, I’m the one mare party, a self healing, self buffing, utility casting, item crafting, fighter. Which is game breaking even though it’s legal because then no one else at the table will get to do anything.
“It’s not really cheating… I’m only saying cheating because that’s what this is… Well, when I used to play at least.”
“Then, you killed those gorilla pig-”
“Ckwtaibists,” Twilight reminded, easily pronouncing the consonant salad due to her experience with speaking in dead languages.
“Those I-can’t-pronounce-thats, using abilities you have because of how you set your avatar up? Some sort of “kill anything” ability?” Gadget asked, hoping for any sort of clarification.
“Nah,” Twilight giggled before sitting back and adopting a more serious expression. “I don’t think everything is working quite as intended. I don't magically have a lifetime’s knowledge in how to use this knife, for example. Nor do I know why you only cover my back, shoulders, and arms. Or if Scorrus normally don't wear clothing since you’re all the ‘clothing’ I have.
“I may have the abilities of an Archer, Serpentine Knight, Druid, Witch, Engineer, and Psion all at twentieth level, but if I didn’t know the specific powers I had via the character sheet Yog gave me, I’d have no idea how to use them, or even that I could.”
Gadget was quiet for several minutes during which Twilight continued to eat her steak, and Gadget recalled Twilight’s whirlwind of death which dispatched the 12 monstrous creatures with apparent ease.
“But… But you’re a wizard, not a warrior! You told me everything about the real you! You’re not the kind of person who can take on a pack of overmusciled death boars with just a knife and a grin,” Gadget wined, her spell-nexus begging to overheat as she simply couldn’t accept reality.
“Gadget, I’ve been talking to you off and on for a week. There’s no way I could possibly have told you everything about me. But yes, I am first and foremost an Archmage of Eques-”
Twilight jumped to her feet mid sentence as a loud boom hundred to the west. This was a mistake. The mass drivers her avatar’s Hoplight blood called leg muscles fired, sending her upwards at a good fifty five kilometers per hour, twerking her head solidly into the branch of an overhanging tree.
She fell back down, landing the forty meter fall on pure instinct, despite being completely preoccupied with clutching her aching head.
“Ooooowww… So happy Yog told me these guys bones don't break,” Twilight groaned. “Why don't you have a helmet, Gadget?”
“Why don’t I have a fucking breastplate?!” Gadget added, perhaps a bit more angrily than the situation warranted. “That was an explosion. A big one. We should check it out.”
Twilight shook her head. “No can do. The world can't be under a pre-existing crisis. Odds are that explosion is our friends already in battle. If we go to them, then my plan fails.”
Gadget pointed one of her crossbows at the bubbling cauldron, using her magical scenes to watch the pale lavender liquid as it bubbled and simmered.
“You really think we can just out wait an Old One?” She asked hesitantly.
Twilight nodded, immediately gurgling a surprise as her jaw popped out of place, having been slightly dislodged by the impact.
No sooner than Twilight thought about reaching up to relocate the bone, but before she could, her jaw popped cleanly back into place of its own accord via muscle groups she hadn't felt before.
“You okay?” Gadget asked nervously. “I need ammo… These repeaters only hold five rounds you know.”
Twilight nodded and focused on the muscle groups she’d felt move. A quick thought and her jaw popped back out of place, allowing her mouth to stretch open impossibly wide for a-
Oh! Twilight exclaimed as puzzle pieces fell into place. That’s why they are carnivores! The snake patterns! They are not purely rodents they are part serpent as well. That explains the reptilian camouflage, and climbing abilities as-
“Ohhh… THAT’S why you don't protect any of my front side,” Twilight said allowed, her jaw sliding back into the normal position as she spoke. “And also why four of those steaks haven't filled me up. Fun fact, these guys eat like snakes so. I should be swallowing an entire small animal in one go and just letting it sit for a week or a few days.
“And that means, well, good luck making armor that can stretch to fit properly when your belly changes measurements form day to day.”
“Oh! That does make sense,” Gadget agreed. “In which case, you’d have many sets of armor depending on how far along you were with digesting a weekly meal. Assuming you were wealthy. You’d also want to be able to eat while in armor, and if I covered your chest that would prevent your ribs from, uh, whatever they do to let you swallow something.
“Didn’t Yog mention the Scorrus being famous as arblists? Perhaps they fire from the prone position most of the time?”
Twilight nodded, smiling happily as the mystery came to a close. “Yeah! Well that or Scorrus are known to eat people they fight with mid-battle. But that seems ridiculous. I can’t see any large animal fitting in here.”
Gadget nodded her crossbows, thoroughly wishing this body allowed her to move off her wearer and have an equinoid form so as to allow for a proper conversation.
“Well, since that mystery is settled, how about you explain to me exactly why we’re not rushing to help your friends? What is your plan? You haven’t really told me anything,” Gadget asked, feeling jsut a little hurt.
Twilight blinked. “I… Haven't? Sorry! I guess I got caught up in the actual planning.”
Clearing her throat, Twilight began her explanation. “Since this jungle seems to be quite far away from civilization, as my first jumping accident indicates, it’s a location where there’s very little chance of innocents getting hurt. As such, we’re going to sit here and prepare for battle until “The King” arrives to fight us.”
Twilight stopped, giving Gadget the opportunity to ask a question. “He’ll just wait for you to die. It’s a bad plan.” Gadget said fatly.
Twilight’s lips pulled back into a sinister smile. “Yog said there was nothing preventing me from taking a class at any level I wanted. Witches in this world, the truly powerful ones who can reach the pinnacle of their power and wisdom, are immortal.
“I’ve got all the time in the world. I won't die until something kills me. Just like back home! And with Equestria’s entire future on the line, I am more than happy to sit here for a thousand years because that means Equestria gets a thousand more years of existing.”
Gadget nodded her bows once more. “Okay, fair point. But that doesn't explain why you're not taking your OP self over to help them fight him now and stop the problem NOW instead of in a millennia or two.”
“Never put all of your eggs in one basket,” Twilight said firmly. “Lyra and Vinyl are long time O&O players too. They will have done the same thing I did and likely helped Sky and Chem through whipping up absurdly powerful avatars. If they fail to stop whatever a certain evil jerk creates, then simply adding me to the fold wouldn’t have changed much.
“In other words, if he can stop four game breaking builds at once, then he could likely stop five at once. Therefore the best option is for me to sit here, wait, and amass power. I’m not going to die of old age. If my friends lose, they will be safe in stasis until the game is over, however long that takes.
“King Jerkface will get angry of waiting eventually and come for me, since if they are all dead and the game is ongoing, then I must be alive. Between now and that possible future date, we are going to break this build even more than it already is. Before you ask, we’re going to do that by using the abilities I picked via this class selection.”
“What’s stopping him from doing the same once your friends are defeated?” Gadget asked sagely.
“Nothing. Which is why it’s good this is so far from civilization. More than Equestria is at stake here, Gadget. All of Equis is. I’m not holding anything back,” Twilight explained as she stood up and walked over to her cauldron. “Step one: Brew a huge batch of Legend Lore potions. Step Two, drink them and use the revelations to, amongst many other things, find the names of this world’s own Elder Things and learn all about them. Step Three, use Psychic powers to contact said things and ask if they are happy with a foreign Elder Thing messing with their home.
“Step Four… Well that depends on how all that goes.”
Gadget wished she could blink. “Uh, do you think that’s the best idea?” She asked worriedly.
“I won't do it if the knowledge I gain says they will just kill me.” Twilight scoffed. “I’m not that dumb!”
“Nonono!” Gadget protested quickly. “That’s not what I meant. You’re an Archmage. I assume you know how to safely commune with ancient beings. Heck, you made Yog grumpy with your constant questions but he was still FRIENDLY to you and seems to like you.
“I meant that while your in your trance, using those portions of Shrooms to learn all the forbidden lore, what’s to stop some huge snake from eating you?”
“Gadget,” Twilight said shaking her head slowly. “I’m also an Engineer. Based on the portable forge and workshop I started with from that, well, I’m going to take you off and make you a proper body before I drink those. I’m planning on getting started right after I feel full.”
Twilight paused for a moment, eyeballing the large leg she’d been cutting steaks from. It was all roasted, and smaller than her torso…
Right. First note to self. Do NOT tell Cadence about this part using the phrase ‘Suddenly I wanted to swallow a huge piece of tasty meat’.
“Okay, but do you think we can survive here? Sure you killed that pack of monsters but can you CONSISTENTLY do that? All day? Every day? For years?” Gadget asked skeptical.
Twilight giggled and picked up the roast with both hands. “Did I ever tell you about the the time, I got stuck inside another dimension’s space-prison which they had filled full of dinosaurs and covered with an antimagic field?”
“Uh, no. No you did not,” Gadget said, inwardly cringing as Twilight unhinged her jaw and swallowed a chunk of meat slightly larger than her own head in one go. “Guuuh! Your current species is creepy!”
More than you think, Twilight thought to herself as she felt the meat chunk go down super easily. Opinion revised. I can probably eat something as big as I am. That felt like nothing… Though I do feel like I had an okay meal now. Their hunger must be psychological and not biological.
“Well,” Twilight said, pausing to wipe her lips clean. “Suffice to say, things like this in a place like this was Tuesd-”
Trees cracked, the ground trembled, claws scraped at dirt and stone. Twilight wheeled around, snatching her knife from her work table as a colossal monstrosity barged into her clearing.
The beast’s taloned hands featured claws as long as Twilight was tall. It’s thick leathery hide was covered in plates like an armadillo’s, it’s square head was filled with saber-like teeth. It’s burning eyes knew no fear, only hunger. Two great horns protruding from it’s head, notched and chipped from countless battles with others of its kind from which it had emerged victorious, and with a full belly.
It looked upon the tiny thing standing between itself and the tasty smelling thing upon the fire, and roared. It’s roar was not a challenge, but a statement: Your day is bad now.
Gadget screamed, her integrated bows twanging away futility as she fired, ignoring their empty magazines in desperation, praying that providence would magically allow her to send steel bolts of death into the monster’s immense, gaping maw.
Twilight casually reached back and picked up her cauldron. So this is what made everything all quiet. Bigger than I expected. Kinda cute though.
Using her tail tip to quickly form the arcane runes, Twilight cast a multitude of spells. All of which were directed at her. All of which were related to persuasion and interacting with animals.
“Hey, big guy!” Twilight cooed, holding up the cauldron. “Do you want some? It’s okay, I can make more.”
The Tarrasque growled, eyeing the cauldron suspiciously. Whatever compelled it to not simply eat the tiny thing was a mystery to it. As big a mystery as why that particular water smelled so good.
“If you hang around I can make you some as treats once in awhile,” Twilight said persuasively, giving the monster a huge grin.
Gadget continued to scream and dry fire.
The Tarrasque bared its fangs, confused as to why the tiny thing did not flee and leave it the tasty water. Confused until an ancient memory surfaced, of even tinier yellow and black things which made tasty thick water inside little balls. This less tiny thing had a little ball too, it must make the tasty water too. Only instead of making an annoying buzzing sound, this tiny thing offered it’s bounty to the Tarrasque, clearly recognising it’s station as king of all it saw.
The Tarrasque was pleased.
“Go on, lay down,” Twilight commanded, a bead of sweat dripping down her forehead.
The great beast lay down, chuffed once, and tapped he cauldron with its nose. The tiny thing would live. For now.
“What?” Gadget asked, falling silent.
Twilight quickly but gently poured the half finished potion into the beast’s mouth, then returned her cauldron to the fire, immediately beginning to brew a second batch.
“Charm Monster, Charm Animal, Glibness, several hexes, and a good old fashioned dose of Fluttershy’s kindness,” Twilight said in answer to Gadget’s question. “Keep an eye on him, would you? I think it will take a few more pots before he decides to not eat us for good. We’ll be needing a mount to explore this place. I mean, no need to set up permanent shop RIGHT here, right?”
“What?” Gadget asked again.
Twilight giggled. “As I was saying before, this guy wanted a treat, about thirty years ago I was trapped in a space-prison full of dinosaurs.”
“THIS EXPLAINS NOTHING!?” Gadget screamed uncertainty.
“It totally does,” Twilight disagreed, starting to chop up more of the root sand herbs her potion required. Good thing the ingredients are part of the witch's starting gear. “Trust me, after you tame a T-Rex, everything else is cake. And that’s without a lifetime of helping out a best friend who loves all sorts of monstrous creatures and magical assistance via spellcraft!
“What’s more, in this world I have the power of O&O physics despite it being a real place! I just buffed the hay out of a Handle Animal check. It’s not tamed, only calmed. By the rules it will take about two weeks and five checks to actually tame this guy. The “fun” thing is, I can't actually fail the check since I can buff myself to a plus ninety on any Charisma based check. I think I’ll call him Bitey. Welcome to incredibly broken character builds.
“Oh! That’s right! I was telling you the story of that time I lived through this exact situation once before but without magic. So, I woke up on this beach…”
Veena the Challenger - Day 2
The Hoard - P 12,364.2 km & A 12,403.7 km by 89.4 degrees at 9.25 km/s
It is an important and popular fact that things are not always what they seem. For instance, on the planet Mar’rath, the various peoples had always assumed their sun was the only sun in all of existence.
After all, those little pinpricks of light in the night sky couldn’t possibly shine with enough light to make flowers bloom on some strange place not of their world. No, clearly only the sun was bright enough to be a source of life, and any hypothetical other place would be so far away that none could see it. Therefore the sun would be too dim to be seen, after all everyone’s seen the circle of light produced by an oil lamp. The sun must work the same way only larger, naturally.
Hospices have taken to citing this fact as the reason behind Astronomers' statistically significant increase in concussions and their irrational need to smash their face into walls and desks.
Those Astronomers sitting in their beds while nursing their particular variety of skull fracture most likely would not be happy to know the dragons never had such problems understanding cosmology, while their own people continue to insist the other planets in their star system are ‘mere decorations’. It’s fairly hard to not understand the diminutive appearance of stars is due to the simple fact that distant things appear to be small when you can simply fly to them.
Not naturally of course. Your average dragon can only hold their breath for an hour or so, and without air to press down upon flapping, your wings won't get you anywhere. But get enough draconic heads together and eventually someone will hit upon the idea that the mysterious space above the sky is sort of like the ocean, only very very thin. Allow some time to pass and you have adventurous dragons with scuba tanks and rocket packs walking about on the moons in search of treasure.
Mar’rath’s dragons had emerged from the old world’s ashes part animal and part mechanical, but more importantly, not bound by the Will of Null. With no need for space suits, an instinctive grasp of technological systems, and the ability to tell a certain person to shut up and go home, the dragons were having moon adventures while their homeworld’s other species were starting to figure out what a good idea planting crops is.
In the modern age, with the “Primitives” having developed the railroad, indoor plumbing, and worked out what a good idea doctors washing their hands between patients is, Mar’rath’s dragons held dominion over a cosmic empire. Encompassing thirty seven starsystems and a little rogue planet just up the galactic “coast”.
Over time, the dragons had left their homeworld for the other planets in their empire. Some out of boredom, some out of wanderlust, but most out of disgust. The few million dragons remaining on their homeworld were there for one reason and one reason only.
Ensuring the safety of their primitive siblings.
The dragons know two things to be true. First, space is big, really big, bigger than anyone can ever properly describe. With all the impossible bigness of space to happen in, everything that can happen does happen, and it happens all day every day. Which meant it was only a matter of time before some other species worked out how to fly between stars and decided, “If those primitives can't protect their world they don't deserve it.”
Second, someone needed to keep a talon firmly pressed down upon a certain person’s non-existent throat. Someone had to ensure that same person remained firmly rooted to the ground, and never set sail upon the cosmic sea. The Hoard was that talon.
A thousand million tons of titanium, gold, and carbon shaped into a graceful saucer shape. The Ranger Base orbited across Mar’rath’s poles, high up enough to be invisible to the primitive instruments below them, but close enough to help if needed. Helping people was precisely what the Hoard was built for.
In simple terms, it was a police station. In less lame terms, it was a space police station manned by cybernetic dragons. It was also a busy police station. The dragons cared little about their homeworld in terms of politics. It’s not where their center of power was, it was merely a world they protected out of a sense of duty to their terrestrial kin. As a result, Mar’rath was a Draconic border world.
All sorts of interstellar scum wound up in or near the system. Smugglers, pirates, pirate smugglers, roaming bands of militant hippies, Rouge fleets, alien probes seeking intellectual discourse with random sea life, one-of-a-kind advanced starships crewed by actors from science fiction TV shows, interstellar Hitchhikers and drifters, overly religious farmboys believing they are fighting some kind of Galactic Empire, Captain Harlock…
The galaxy was full of scum, crazies, and predators. And while Veena had not chosen the life of a Space Ranger, she enjoyed it. She enjoyed it, even though today was her first day as a full fledged Ranger. Her time as a Cadet undertaking every ride along she could manage filled her heart’s primary solenoid with pride.
I may not get to go on adventures with my sister, but this is almost as good. I think, Veena thought to herself as she walked down the packed corridor.
Dragons were not the only species to make up the Ranger Corps. There were a dozen or so others, mostly humanoids (including Humans themselves), but dragons still held the vast majority. How could they not?
Veena stood one and a half meters tall, talon to head and was seven meters nose to tail tip, the perfect size to fit into nearly every major species vessels. Her polished white scales were a natural radiation barrier and strong enough to prevent pressure issues, forming a natural spacesuit. Like all dragons, her wing membrain’s solar cells worked much more efficiently in vacuum allowing photosynthesis to feed her well enough to survive until her water ran out.
Her gold eyes didn’t have issues with cosmic rays and adjusted to the brightness of direct sunlight just fine. Veena was sleeker than most dragons, minimizing her silhouette, making it hard for targeting systems to spot her. Her tungsten talons could eventually rip through a ship’s hull. Her breath could be used in vacuum almost as efficiently as in atmosphere.
With only light armor, a few gadgets, a jetpack, and an oxygen mask, Veena was the prefect starfighter. All dragons were. That’s why Rangers simply had such things permanently attached to them.
Veena’s armoring was simple, after all she was just a Trooper. A standard deployable helmet, breastplate with standard manual equipment toggles, bracers with the standard issue computer system and display, greaves, and the tri-thruster jet pack attached to her spine, with wing slats to protect her wing’s leading edge. All naturally formed from tapering organic shapes which blended in to her own body, making her look just the tiniest bit bulkier in places.
Since a Ranger’s armor never came off, the Ranger Corps didn’t regulate its color, but Veena had gone for the traditional green with electric purple accents. The traditional colors went well with her all white scales and she was thankful for the complementary colors.
“Excuse me,” Veena said as she scrunched up against the left hand wall to slip past a human and an agarthan ranger who for some unknown (presumably stupid) reason had decided to stop for a conversation in the middle of the main corridor.
The pair ignored her, continuing to discuss some routine something or other which slipped by Veena’s mind just as easily as she slipped by them. She had more important things to do.
It’s gotta be to assign me to my first partner, right? the dragoness asked herself as she continued moving towards the Commander’s office. I’m a special case. Maybe they want to assign me to someone in particular now instead of waiting till the graduation ceremony at the end of the month.
She progressed down the white, smooth, cylindrical hallway for a few more moments until arriving at a burnished durasteel door bearing the label:
Mantle the Adamant, Base Commander
Veena silently giggled as she noticed someone had scratched out the Base and carved the word Space into the brass nameplate above it.
I swear that matches the Commander’s talon writing. she thought to herself as she pressed the doorbell below the plate with a knuckle to avoid impaling the plastic button on a claw tip.
Most people watching dragons interact with physical controls never understood how they managed to have any sort of dexterity with their fingers curled inwards like that. Unfortunately, it was just one of those things you couldn’t verbally explain to another species.
“Trooper reporting as ordered, sir,” Veena said before releasing the button.
There was no need to say her name. Her voiceprint would be more than enough.
The circular door irised open a moment later, granting her access to the quiet small room. The commander’s office was large enough for the Commander himself, his desk, a computer console, and one young dragon such as Veena. It was decorated sparsely, the circular room’s light blue paint job being essentially the only decoration/distraction.
The commander was an older dragon, and as such he was three times Veena’s size. Too large for most fieldwork, just like most dragons in their five digit years. His silver and yellow bulk filled half the room as he sat coiled comfortably but professionally so his head was centered above his desk.
“Be seated,” the Commander ordered, nodding to the spot in front of his desk.
Veena complied, entering taking a seat as the door closed behind her. She immediately offered a salute, holding herself at attention.
“At ease,” the Commander said in a rehearsed voice. “Trooper the Challenger, you have been selected for a special assignment given your unique qualifications. We do not have enough intel to compose a mission briefing for you, as such I will personally dictate your assignment too you. Do you understand?”
Veena nodded and let her left hand drop as she adopted an attentive quadrupedal pose. “Yes, sir! I’m grateful, sir, but what qualifications? Does the mission require stunt flying?”
“Negative, Trooper,” the Commander informed with a shake of his head. “Your qualifications are the circumstances regarding your recruitment and your lack of experience. To put things bluntly, Trooper, you’re still expendable and this assignment will be of personal interest to you. It’s also the sort of operation which benefits from having the agent involved be emotionally attached.
“Last night at twenty-one fifty-two hours a barrage of nuclear weapons was detonated off the shore of Weave. The target was the Dark Fortress, which according to reports from the Riders not only survived the strike, but regained mobility and is currently on course for the mainland.
“The strikes came after a Numerican commando team reported the Dark Lord had revived. Given the structure survived the nuclear strike via magical reinforcement of it’s shields, there are few other explanations. The Rider on the scene was able to give his organization a full report, which they passed on to us along with a request due to something… Well, interesting.”
“Interesting, sir?” Veena asked tilting her head to the side before her eyes widened. “Oh! Am I to attach an artillery beacon to the Fortress, sir?”
“Negative,” the Commander said firmly. “At least, not as it stands currently. According to the Riders, one of Lord Zennious’s generals, a kobold by the name of Lyra Heartstring, has somehow been listed as an initiate to their Order. More interestingly, the Council examined the entry and determined it had not been placed there via foreign agents. The entry is genuine.
“This would be a curiosity and nothing more if the Rider’s Council had not decided to use the Initiate's hearing as a means to gather intelligence on the Dark Lord. While most of Lyra’s memories are too fogged to examine, they were able to get clear instances of many things happening on the night of the bombing.”
“What did they learn, sir?” Veena asked eagerly, her heart burning hotter and hotter as she eagerly awaited her first proper mission. Her first chance to make a name for herself.
“You’re aware of how the Council selects a Rider’s partner, correct?” The Commander asked.
Veena nodded. “Of course I am sir, my mother’s on the Council.”
“Then you’ll understand that upon witnessing Lyra risk her own life for the sake of her friends, and then not twenty minutes later do the same for a stranger qualifies her as a Rider.” The Commander stated calmly. “I was told it is quite common for stasis spells to result in the Council’s Mind Walking spell to return fogged memories at best, however since Lyra was willing to risk nuclear annihilation to save the life of someone she had only just met, and the Council is required to vote after using their spell, the Rider’s Council has elected to induct Lyra into the Riders.”
Veena bit her lip as she suddenly came to understand why she had been called her.
“Sir, with all due respect, I am very much looking forward to being a Ranger. I passed training. I finished my time as a Cadet with honors, sir. What’s more, I’m not exactly allowed to enter the God’s territory anymore… Technically, I’m not supposed to set talon on Mar’rath at all.”
The Commander nodded. “I am aware, Trooper. However, this is a special case. You see… Lyra does not register as belonging to Null’s little kingdom.”
Veena blinked. “Excuse me, sir?” she asked in surprise.
“Her arcane signature is not of any documented type and isn’t bound to Mar’rath. She can leave the world without dying yet would retain her ‘magic’.” The Commander said, falling silent to see if his Trooper could put it together.
Veena’s mind churned for just a few milliseconds before she understood. “Then she’s either an alien, or Null’s trying to get part of herself offworld.”
“Exactly, Trooper,” The Commander sighed. “We need an agent to figure this out. The Riders can’t send one of their own to handle this due to the possibility of the event being staged to allow Null to escape containment is quite high.
“Space isn’t the Rider’s jurisdiction, it’s ours. The Rider’s can’t blow her out of orbit if she reaches it, we can. What’s more, being planet bound, the Rider’s don't have a means of keeping in constant contact with us. Therefore they have requested a Ranger bond with Lyra as a means of observing her.”
Veena coughed into her left talon awkwardly. “Um, sir? Are you somehow not aware of how I gained my title?” she asked heastently.
The Commander’s lips twitched slightly, forming for a brief instant the smile a father would have upon seeing his hatchling’s first steps.
“I am very much aware of your attempts to obtain permission for your sister to return home by force, Trooper,” the Commander said, returning to his serious face.
“Then you know I’m banned from going planetside. So, why are you giving me this assignment sir?” Veena asked for a second time.
“I told you,” the Commander replied with a light smile. “You’re the right person for the job. You have a personal stake, you are intelligent, and since you have no service record nor ongoing assigned duties, you’re expendable.”
Veena flinched slightly at the word ‘expendable’. “Just how likely is my death on this assignment, sir?” If Lyra is an Avatar of Null, then she’ll recognise me on sight and probably remember that time I tried to put my tallon up her ass…
“To put it bluntly, Trooper, we’re hoping she has a reaction upon seeing you specifically which blows her cover. What we do in that scenario is classified above your clearance level, Trooper. However, if there is no reaction, we will require a spy. It’s a risky assignment but I think you’re suited for it. There’s also the chance that this Lyra is an alien. In which case after being bonded too her, you’d have your Patrol Partner.”
They are literally hoping I’ll be attacked on site. Well, if I am, that’s a whole world potentially saved… I can live with that. Veena nodded. “I understand, sir,” she said with a nod. “I- I did sign up for this sort of thing. Didn’t I?”
The Commander smiled. “That’s a good Ranger. Once more, for the record: Given your history with a certain wannabe goddess, I feel you are determined enough to stop her plans, and given your training record you’re emotionally stable enough and intelligent enough to be able to do so stealthily.
“Your mission is to go planetside and ascertain the truth of the ongoing situation. For this reason you will be bonded to Lyra using a modified version of the Rider’s Bond. The modified bond will not disable your technological abilities, but you will still be soul linked to your partner. We can’t guarantee you will not die if they do, but the Riders have given us a prototype device which might prevent the Feedback from killing you if they die.
“If this is an escape attempt, you need to stop it but also remain undetected if possible. It’s best for all if Null has no idea we interfered. As such, while we will not be removing your equipment, nor switching off your inorganic capabilities for the sake of the mission, you are to deactivate all non-essential systems for the duration of the mission unless the need to use them arises.
“Said need will likely arise as if this is NOT an escape attempt, then the Dark Lord has returned. As you will be in the position of someone close to one of his generals, you are to assassinate him at the first opportunity. Understood?”
“Yes, sir,” Veena agreed with a nod. “When will the bond be made? I would like to try and acquire some better weapons before I’m sent out, sir. When I challenged Null I uh, I sort of just had my scales and claws, sir. I think I might have done more than annoy her if say, I had a reciprocating plasmoid launcher?”
The Commander rolled his eyes. “Request denied. You’ll have your standard lasers and your natural weapons but nothing else. The base Ranger armor isn’t something a Planetbound Dragon couldn’t have but if we gave you any advanced equipment it would be suspicious.
“As for deployment, it’s to be performed immediately. Lyra was sent into a coma during the blast, but the Rider’s report she is recovering and will be up and about within a few days. We want her to become aware of your bond upon awakening. It will feel like she earned her dragon during the rescue attempt. You’ll be able to meet up with her easily enough.”
“How so, sir?” Veena asked with a tilt of her head. “I mean, I know my family lives in Wieav but it’s a large country and-”
The Commander chuckled. “If the Fortress doesn't deviate from its current course, it will arrive at the village of Safeton within two days.”
Veena’s eyes widened in surprise. “T-they’re going to my hometown?”
“Correct,” the commander answered. “Since Safeton is well known for offering sanctuary to anyone who asks, it’s almost certain given the Fortress’s course that Lord Zeneanus intends to disguise himself and use the town to finish awakening, repairing, healing, or whatever it is that he need do.
“As your mother is capable of performing the Bonding ritual, and the target is heading for her location, her request to perform the ritual herself has been granted. You are to report to her as soon as possible.”
Veena nodded and stood up on her hind legs to offer a salute (an easy thing for her particular species of dragon to do), “Yes, sir. I’ll find out what’s going on as quickly as possible.”
The Commander nodded in satisfaction and turned his head to check a monitor on his console.
“Given our current position, you could fly home on your own if you like. Or would you prefer a transport? There’s a disaster relief shipment scheduled for-”
Veena lowered her talon. “I’d like to fly on my own sir. It may be the last time I get to re-enter,” she interrupted, hoping her Commander wouldn’t be too set.
The Commander nodded one final time. “Very well. Proceed to the nearest airlock and do your duty, Trooper,” he offered Veena one salute of his own. “Dismissed.”
Veena turned to leave, a grim but determined look on her face. This isn’t the career move I had in mind… But at least I’ll wind up with a place in the history books. Maybe one day sis will get to read about me. Too bad we never got to meet…
Veena opened the door to the hallway and began to walk out.
“Oh, and Veena,” the Commander said quietly. “Off the record, if you do get the chance, show that Paperclip Maximiser what we think of her little theme park.”
The Challenger grinned. “I’m up for a rematch, sir!”
Ten minutes later saw the white bay doors of a launch airlock his open, depositing Veena gently into the vacuum of space. Her helmet had long since been activated, the telltale shimmer of its oxygen-containing forcefield visible around her face and neck as she floated within the airlock.
On a whim, Veena instructed the mechanical portion of her mind to shuffle her music selection. The song Radar Rider filled her mind.
Not bad, Veena thought as she pushed off the space station’s wall and shot down towards the planet below
A few precision pulses from her jetpack and Veena was on target to reenter somewhere near her hometown. No more than an hour’s flight or so. This was only her fifth reentry, landing precisely is an art that takes years to master.
Veena’s mental count reached zero. It was time. Flicking her pack on with a thought, the dragoness initiated a full power retrograde burn, slowing herself until she begun to fall sharply into the atmosphere below.
Minutes later she hit the first layers of the atmosphere, the air gripped at her bare scales, pulling at her, slowing her down. Within mere moments the air around her caught fire covering Veena in a blazing streak of red-orange plasma, making her visible as a shooting star to the primitives below.
If she were any other species, this would have been Veena’s end. If not now then surely when she plowed into the ground at several times the speed of sound. But for a winged creature with the thermal shielding of a dragon?
Few people knew why the dragons had continued going into space after discovering there was no treasure for them on the moons.
WEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Vena mentally cried as she plunged through the heavens, having the time of her life.
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I think its funny that Twiligh's plan is basically this:
I like these dragons. A lot.
8682753 I do too. I'm sad I never got to do much with them in my games.
I love it a classic MEEP story where it starts normal and then gets crazy
8682808 That's my cliche and I'm sticking to it :3
Wouldn't going epic be a better use of XP? Or are they using AD&D rules for multiclass?
Well, Twily is both Sly Marbo and Old Mare Henderson. With bitey. Which is a tarrasque. The fact this world can add A to that instead of THE is frightening on its own, but now Purplesmart has one as a pet. She does know she can take most kingdoms with that, doesn't she?
Shame she never realised Lyra and Vinyl are roleplayers first gamers second. They are a bunch of first level dorks that can't even claim to be decent murder hobos. They are simply fucked.
So the planet acts as a containment zone for an AI that survived a great cataclysm and wants the whole world to conform to it's vision. But it's kept in check by a space empire of cyber dragons whose space superiority fighters are themselves, but with jetpacks. I wonder if land dwellers have any idea how lame they are in comparison to their neighbors.
And of course that, since they do have a GM, narrative tropes apply. So Derpy' sister becomes Lyra's dragon. Standard stuff, really
Not gonna lie, Twilight's introduction was every bit as epic as I had hoped it would be. I really like how it is implied the others were so terrified of Yog they didn't think to question him on anything or bend the rules, while Twilight is all like, "You ain't scary. I'ma sit here and ask all these questions." It is also a mark of how good Twilight is at friendshipping that Yog still seemed to enjoy her company despite the questions.
Really looking forward to what will happen between Lyra and Veena when Veena learns the truth.
Twilight Sparkle confirmed Catachan?
so when is derpy going to show up back home?
8683449 Soon.
8683176
Depend son weather you want to be tall, or wide. Do you want one realy good set of skills, or a bunch of good skills?
She does. not about the A vs THE part though. Once she finds out well... spoiler spoiler spoiler.
"What do you mean you play the game as intended?!"
Nope. But you now know why dragons call them Primitives. And are right >.> If just a teeeeeny bit rude.
8683427
*Twilight is poofed into the void*
*Twilight eye twitch* "Apparently today is "no nap for you day!"
Yog: I like this mortal already.
And then Twilight happened to it.
Nice.
Oooo, and so we do have Gadget on this trip. Excellent.
I love it.
If you aren't cheating you aren't trying hard enough. And Twilight tries hard.
That seems reasonable. Not that the other four min-maxed to anywhere near this same degree, but still.
Good lord. A plus ninety?
Neat.
Now that's a really interesting idea. An interstellar civilization sharing their planet of origin out of a sense of protectiveness of their non-interstellar fellow civilizations.
Null doesn't get to have Space Adventures, it seems. I'm curious about why the dragons have it out for her to this degree.
Okay, so we're going to get that dragon companion after all. I was wondering how Lyra was going to get one at all given how events have worked out for her so far.
Random prediction, this Veena is Derpy's sister.
8683786
The Jungle had not prepared itself for death by friendship...
I actually calculated out what the max would be. Most of it comes from a semi-broken feat that let's glibness effect any CHA based check, that's a +30 right there. Scorrus share an ability with Nymphs where once per day they can use their CHA score instead of their CHA mod on a CHA based check, and with how many levels Twi has, since her caster classes use CHA she's dumped almost all of her ability score increases into it, so we've got another 30 points for ability scores, we can assume she dumped half into CHA and started with her 18 in CHA giving her a once per day bonus of +35 for any CHA based check.
That's a +65 to CHA checks from those two effects, which do stack. I'm not sure if more effects such as specific buffs to Handle Animal will ad on to them, but even if they don't she couldn't fail that roll since crit fails only apply to attack rolls not skillchecks and calming the big T would only take a 55.
If Handle Animal buffs also apply then she can get to a +90 total on an HA check.
#MinMaxing
It's one of my favorite scifi ideas. I'm happy I got to use it here.
8683786
Null doesn't get nice things because Null is not a nice person.
I'm thinking the sister might be Derpy, but Derpy isn't trapped. I'll go for the dark horse and say she has NaN as a mother and Null is using her sister/NaN's daughter as leverage.
Hehe
. . . Hm.
Just because there aren't gems doesn't mean there isn't treasure.
Also, I enjoyed the explanation of the dragons. So they're essentially cyborgs from the last age, wow.
Also, that intro+Twilight shrugging it off=lol
Canon alicorn twilight would have either already died, used deux ex machina to make them her friends, or be mostly depleted on magic and weak.Loving this twilight, even if she's nothing like canon.
8685296
To be fair, she's about forty years older than canon Twilight, has lived through multiple wars, and had to become skilled as a hero in her own right after the Elements were broken when Tartarus decided to take a vacation in her back yard.
8685296 It's character growth over time. She wouldn't have been like this in my first stories at all either.
8686149
kewl. But yeah, she's badass.
This scene came to my mind at the end of this chapter:
Also: cybernetic dragons policing outer space? Awesome!
8692243 I was writing the Chapter when a roomie started watching Heavy Metal, and I knew what must be done.
Also Space Core's reaction to Space Cops makes a lot more sense now, dosn't it?
8692265
Oh my God! I should have known! Still awesome!
Very much so. Your space cops are the best space cops ever!
Challenge accepted, one word “infinity” if you understand the brainaching concept, then it’s the perfect world
Chekhov's Gun is cocked and locked.
Oh God. Twilight is pun-pun. Hope this world doesn't have telemarketers...