Adjacent Adventure

by Merallakos

Zipp Digs a Hole

Confirmation from Zephyr Heights had finally come in. Sweets had already begun queuing production of the mobile base's tracks and suspension. Much of it was already adapted from the Sprouticus Maximus. The scaffolding for the frame was already unfolding on the floor, and chassis elements from old war machines were neatly organized to the right, outside of Storage.

In comparison to the production of the Sprouticus Maximus, things seemed like they'd be even smoother, especially with the extended deadline which would allow for much more intensive testing and optimization. Not that was saying much, as the Sprout’s vehicle got about an hour before it was put into use.

From Sweets' vantage in Toot's office, she saw no reason development would not be speedy and smooth.

Sweets looked down at her desk. The three personnel slots open on the mission. Anypony was allowed to apply. Sweets had taken two copies of each application from Pony Resources and had given four away to prospective candidates, but the last two she'd yet to fill.

There was a knock at Sweets' door.

"Who is it?" Sweets asked.

"It's me." It was Toots' voice, and it sounded like he'd gotten over his cold.

"Sorry, no name, no service."

Toots came in anyway. "Hey, so I've been thinking."

"About?" Sweets got out of Toot's chair.

"Well," Toots came around to the side of the desk. "First of all, you're way too organized."

"Pffttt," Sweets scoffed.

"Second, you've been doing really well. I uh, talked to Phyllis, and she really appreciates the work you're doing here..."

"Yeah, and what's your point?"

"Well," Toots ran a hoof through his ginger combover. "I know we usually work as a team. Do things together, partners and all that... but I was wondering if it'd be okay if we split up."

"Sure." Sweets moved the chair over to Toots, "You want your job back?"

"Well," Toots paused, flipping one of the applications on the desk so he could read it. “Pilot. Nice.”

"I'm encouraging ponies to apply." Sweets explained.

"...Right. Well, I was thinking I'd take a different position. And I was wondering if you wouldn't mind staying here?"

"Uhm." Sweets put a hoof to her chin in thought. "Hm... Yeah, I guess I can stay." She slowly settled back into the chair.

"Oh, good!" Sweets smiled. "Uhm, also, I'm seeing another mare."

Sweets frowned. "Toots, our relationship was never romantic."

"Whaaaat? C'mon, you're telling me you're not at least a little jealous? She's a unicorn."

"That's pitiful, Toots. Go back up to Phyllis and get your job."

"Alright," Toots laughed as he turned to the door. "But if you ever change your mind," He made a very terrible impression of a smolder, "You'll know where to find me."

Sweets had a very spontaneous fit of coughing as she good-byed Toots. Closing her door, she all but collapsed on the floor laughing. Eventually it subsided, and she settled back down at her desk with a smirk. It would be weird without Toots, but she'd already proven herself more than capable. Besides, pegasi were cooler than unicorns anyway.

---

Zipp, Thunder, Z.Z, and Izzy all made their way to the Crystal Tea Room to look for Tomas. In wake of Alphabittle's "business trip," the Crystal Tearoom had closed, but the regulars had come anyway: setting up a picnic outside the tree, between its wide roots. Sitting atop one root was a mare dressed in red beret, with purple dyed hair swept over one eye.

"Hey, Moon Sonnet?"

The mare scowled.

"Hey. Moon Sonnet," Izzy repeated, "you know where Tomas lives, right?"

"His place," a set of bongos played faintly as Moon Sonnet paused, "Is my place.”

"Can you tell us where it is?" Zipp asked.

...Moon Sonnet stared blankly at Zipp.

Zipp gazed back.

Izzy side-hugged Zipp, raising her eyebrows.

"...Okay," Moon Sonnet decided, plopping off the root. "Follow me.”

As Zipp, Izzy, Thunder and Z.Z. followed Moon Sonnet deeper into the forest, it became darker. The massive trees grew closer together. The varied terrain sloped downwards, and a dark carpet of soil covered the trench-like path recessed into the roots, boulders and vines. Where not covered in plant life, the path was sporadically paved with pentagonal slices of glowing crystal. Of course, being Bridlewood, there were crystals everywhere. Sprouting from the ground, hanging from the trees, growing on trees.

Tomas' house turned out to be a cottage, built atop a large root berm. Spread around the house there were several yam-vine laden trellises. A set of stairs was carved into the root base leading up to the cottage. Dappled crystal-light sparkled across the vines and cottage. The overall effect was quite cozy.

Zipp noticed a long crystal that looked surprisingly similar to the type required for her base hoisted under one of the eaves of the house. Crystalline braids wrapped around it, disappearing into the abode.

Moon Sonnet led the way into the cottage. Tomas, as it turned out, was in a rustic kitchen, boiling a kettle on an electric stove.

"Visitors." Moon Sonnet announced.

"I can see that," Tomas said. "Who– uh, What are you all doing here? And, uh, would you like some tea?"

Izzy entered first, and the rest of the group followed, crowding into the small space.

"Hi, I'm Izzy," Izzy held out a hoof.

Tomas shook it, "I remember you, you helped steal the Unicorn Crystal from Alphabittle. Tea?"

"Yes."

Tomas took a cup and saucer from a cupboard, pouring Izzy a cup of tea.

"I'm Zipp," she gestured at her guards, "and this is Z.Z. and Thunder. I'd love some tea."

"Alright, Zipp." Tomas poured another cup of tea. "And what about you, ...Thunder and.. Zee, was it?"

"Zoom Zephyrwing," Z.Z. clarified. "You can call me Zoom. I'll take tea."

"Do you have any energy drinks?" Thunder asked.

"...No, but maybe I can mix something up?" Tomas pursed his lips,, possibly considering what might constitute an energy drink.

Thunder nodded, "Make something wi–"

Z.Z. clamped a hoof over Thunder's mouth. "He wants tea."

"Oh, uhm, of course." Tomas got halfway through filling Thunder's teacup before the kettle ran out.

"Oh, oh no." Tomas squirmed. "Uh, I can uh, I can make some more tea!"

"No no no, it's fine," Zipp soothed. "We can just share." Zipp poured some of her steaming hot tea into Thunder's cup. Z.Z. followed likewise.

"Uh, that works. I guess."

Thunder immediately downed the cup. His carefree smile quickly turned into scorching panic. "FFFFFFFF–"

“No!" Tomas rushed to the sink.

"Ah, maybe you guys should take this outside," Zipp advised, patting Thunder on the back.

"Hold on," Tomas filled a canteen with cold water, rushing back to Thunder, who was still hissing in agony.

"Drink this, it'll cool you down." Tomas hooved Thunder the canteen.

Thunder grabbed the canteen. Relief radiated through Thunder's face as he gulped down the water. "I, uhhh–"

"–We're going outside," Thunder stated.

"Yeah," Thunder nodded his thanks to Tomas, taking the canteen out with him.

"Aaaaanyway," Zipp turned back to Tomas, "We were wondering if you knew anything about manacrystals."

Zipp stared down at a smattering of heptagonal crystal tops embedded into the smooth, soft gray earth. Each one had the diameter of a hoof, if not a little smaller.

"These are the crystals?" she asked.

"Yes," Tomas replied, tossing Zipp a shovel. "There's a stream here during spring, and each year when it dries up, it leaves a little more sediment and a little more crystal. This wide part is actually a dried up pond that used to be quite a bit deeper a hundred or so years ago."

"Seems plausible," Z.Z. said.

"It's true," Izzy confirmed.

"Would it be possible to levitate the crystals out?" Z.Z. asked.

"Well I haven't tried it," Tomas stroked his beard, "but if they got scratched on the way, it would decrease their potential. Excavation usually works, and with you four and Moon Sonnet, we’ll be finished in no time!"

"It was worth a shot," Z.Z. leaned on her shovel.

"Alright," Tomas addressed the group, "so, has anypony used a shovel before?"

"Me." Moon Sonnet raised a hoof.

"Us," Thunder and Z.Z. said.

"I dig my own crystals all the time!" Izzy answered.

"Uh..." Zipp said, embarrassed. "No."

"Okay, Moon Sonnet, you teach Zipp how to dig." Tomas gestured at a flat area away from the riverbed. "The dirt pile is over there, don't get too aggressive because you never know when you'll run into another crystal. Hopefully we'll be done before lunch."

The scraping of shovels filled the air as Zipp smiled hopefully at Moon Sonnet for guidance.

"Watch." Moon Sonnet held the shovel in front of her, hooves at the top, the shovel's tip resting in the ground. "The wooden part is the shaft, the metal part is the blade. You want to put one hoof on this step" she placed one hoof over the blade of the shovel, "and then," she jumped, landing on both steps and sending the shovel sliding into the packed silt. "Push it in."

Zipp repeated the motion, noting her shovel was now stuck in the ground.

Moon Sonnet nodded. "Now pull the top of the shaft down," she dislodged a chunk of the ground, "and take it to the pile." The yellow unicorn slid one hoof down to the collar of the shovel and carried the load over to the designated dumping spot. "Easy."

Zipp easily dislodged her chunk of ground, however she found carrying it to be surprisingly strenuous.

"Wait," Sonnet took Zipp's left hoof, sliding it down the shovel towards the blade. "Leverage is important. Keep your hoof close to the collar, that's the part where the shovel and the shaft meet. K?"

"Alright," Zipp dumped her load of dirt.

"Now from the top."

Zipp positioned her shovel near her previous pit and quickly dislodged some earth. Once more she deposited it in the pile.

Moon Sonnet nodded. "Now you can dig."

While Zipp had never used a shovel before, she quickly adapted. With so many other ponies helping, it was actually a lot of fun. Before long, they discovered that it was much faster to have Zipp, Thunder and Z.Z. break up the riverbed while Tomas, Moon Sonnet and Izzy used telekinesis to move the broken earth to the pile.

It was a good two hours of digging and six feet down before the group managed to expose the full length of the first crystal. Another three full length crystals were painstakingly extracted and were just as carefully cleaned and wrapped.