> Phase Shift > by redtau > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- > Prelude: A Brave or Foolish Thing > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- I sat there, stunned by what I was reading. I couldn't believe it. Simply could not... She was gone. Sarah Jordan was just ...gone. I mean, I knew she was gone. I had been there in the conversion pod maintenance bay when the alarms had first sounded. ARCO's very first lost jumper. We all knew the drills, everyone had practiced. It had stuck me as only slightly odd at the time that I seemed to be the only tech remotely worried. Then again, given ARCO's track record there was little chance this would be an actual loss. The first probe was launched, and we all seemed to hold our breath waiting. We waited for four hours. Everyone expected a damaged pod to be rushed into the bay, or a wounded jumper to be carried out on a stretcher. While waiting for the probe, I looked up the relevant jump information, curious to see what kind of problems we might be dealing with. And I saw her photo staring back at me. Sarah Jordan. She's gotten so much flack from other techs when they have to repair her poor dinged up pod in the past, and I'd heard she had trouble dealing with the other jumpers. I thought they were intimidated by her. In three years of jumping she has logged more hours and survived more dangerous missions than all but the first jumpers. Personally I loved working on her jump pod. It was always a creative challenge to fix and each scar brought with it the jumper herself. I sighed and grinned, thinking of the parts I'd replaced while basking in her presence, listening to tales of narrow escapes, when the ping of a new email drew my attention. to: All@ARCO.com from: Rescue@ARCO.com subject: Lost Jumper Good morning everyone. Let me start by congratulating everybody on near perfect response times for this event. It is clear that the drills are working as they should and everyone responded beautifully. It is with a heavy heart that we, at RESCUE, must inform you that the jumper, Sarah Jordan, is gone. Initial signals from her pod indicated a rough but successful landing, but we can only assume that this was the last errors of a dying computer system. We have sent fifteen drones to her last dimensional coordinates to scan for our fellow jumper and work to bring her home. So far no evidence of Ms. Jordan, her companions or her pod have been found. We could not locate a landing site or even an trans-dimensional entrance vector. All dimensional transit is suspended for one week while we review her logs and data to attempt to piece together what went wrong. Grief councilors will be available to anyone who needs them, and details of her funeral services will be forthcoming. Thank you, James Matherson Dimension Jumper and Head of RESCUE Oh I was pissed. I was beyond pissed. Drones? When you have someone missing you don't just send drones, especially when the drones didn't find anything. And what was with the incorrect landing info? The AI's built into the pods weren't nearly companion level, but they were a damn sight better than most desktops. They wouldn't give bad reports. They might give them in German, as David's pod often did. The AI claimed it was a more precise language to communicate in, but I suspect David feeding it a book of German insults might have more to do with that. I'd said as much to the VP of Resource Acquisition, the corporate term for the head of the jumpers. He told me to calm down and that things were being handled. He also denied my requests to see the raw data for Sarah's jump. Said they were sealed during the investigation, pending processing and archiving. Well, fuck him and the horse he rode in on. If no one else in this God damned place was going to do their fucking job and save the Best Damn Jumper ARCO had ever seen, then I was going to do it. First thing I needed were the records of her jump. That was fairly easy, all jumps were processed and forms filed in the main archives. They were locked down, and not being the computer whiz I wished to be, I settled for going to the secondary archives. The physical archives. Ever since the massive server crash about five years back, management has been a bit twitchy about storing everything electronically. So it all goes into storage somewhere, usually in the wrong folder in the massive collection of filing cabinets in our basement. Such files contain a lot of sensitive information, so the door had an electronic lock. I could get by with the right key card, which I didn't have. I could also get in with the right number code, which I also didn't have. Fortunately, the door had to adhere to fire code, so it opened outward into the hallway. That meant the hinges faced the hall. A few minutes with a hammer, a flat headed screwdriver, and a pair of locking pliers, and I pulled all the pins out of the hinges, swinging the door open on the lock. I'd forgotten how big this place was, and was glad some poor idiot had the foresight to label the aisles. Here we are, jumpers. Lets see... Aa- Ad, Eh-El, Ho-Hp, Jn-Jo! The cabinet was locked, but I'd come prepared. Most tech's and maintenance personnel can pick locks with little more than a screwdriver and a paperclip, a necessary skill in a world where CEO's tend to leave their keys in their office. My brother, bless his heart, had actually gotten me a real set of lock picks for Christmas. As a gag, he'd locked them into a metal toolbox and lost the key. Sarah's file was enormous. I realized in retrospect it would have to be. She had made roughly fifty jumps a year for three years, and each jump required six probe reports, one preliminary report, one launch report, one return report and a personal debriefing summary of not less than 500 words. A small folder with red markings stuck out, and out of curiosity I pulled it. Ice World I don't remember Sarah going to any ice world. I pulled out her summary and skimmed it. World summary: Fae World. Fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck fuck .... It continued like that for the whole page. 497 of the 500 words were just the word fuck. The last word was "NO" in capitals, bold, underlined, and italicized. Realizing that it was only a matter of time before someone noticed the door was off it's hinges, I transferred the huge file into four boxes and loaded them all onto a cart. I pushed my prize all the way back to the jump bay, noticing that with the week long shutdown, most of the techs had opted to take a vacation. I stashed the boxes in a pod I'd just finished overhauling yesterday and went to grab the other things I needed. A quick stop through the office supplies scored me a copy of the "Dimension Jumper's Primer," a short book that supposedly had information on the most common situations you would encounter on new worlds and how to deal with them. I tossed it into a backpack, along with a rope, pen light, knife, utility axe, purification canteen, a dozen MREs, and a few other odds and ends. The last two things I grabbed, the things every jumper absolutely needs, were the companions. I could already hear people running around so I didn't have time to run through the activation, I just grabbed a spirit companion and an AI companion and ran towards the pod. Locked inside and with the view window polarized, my pod was indistinguishable from the dozens of others littering the launch floor. I knew that someone was going to be digging through the tapes and trying to work out where I was before too long. Opening one of the boxes as best I could in the tight space, I dug through the folders until I found the last one. I popped open the internal keyboard and began entering the thirty seven different coordinates. Now came the most dangerous part of this foolhardy mission. Once I pressed go, the launch bay would ID my pod and prep it for inter-dimensional jump. Normally there was a half hour setup, but I'd already done all the checklist items so I wouldn't be stuck and visible for more than about fifteen minutes. The real danger is that I was firing myself right at where Sarah had gone, and whatever had happened to her might happen to me. Still, nothing ventured and all that. I pushed the start button. [START UP PROTOCOLS RUNNING...........DONE] [CHECKING VECTOR PROTOCOLS...........DONE] "HEY! I think someone's in that pod!" Oh god they did that a lot faster than I thought they would. I crossed my fingers and hoped the lockout protocols would take a while to start. If I was very lucky, it would be a security guard. *BANG BANG BANG* "Alright you! Get out of there! Someone go shut this thing down!" Yup, security guard. Well trained and reliable but they had no clue where the E-stop buttons were. [CALIBRATION STARTING...........DONE] [UNLOCK DIMENSIONAL GROUNDING? {Y/n} ] "Yes." [START DIMENSIONAL SHIELDS {Y/n} ] "Yes!" [START SHIELDING.. "Yes!" [CORRECT PHASE VARIABLE..] "YES!" The banging outside was becoming worrying. [LAUNCHING POD] A loud whirring noise like a jet engine drowned out the guard banging and I breathed a sigh of relief. "Wait, what do you mean correct phase-" A hole in existence opened below the pod, and I fell through into an ocean of darkness. > Day 1: This Strange New World > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Notes on another world Day 1 Well, I have to say I was expecting a lot worse. When I landed I had a full two weeks in the conversion pod while it acclimated my body to the surrounding world. The forest around me has produced a number of interesting sights and readings, and unfortunately all I can do is read those, the pod's owners manual (version 1.117a and in desperate need of spell check), and the little media I picked up on first time dimension jumping. So far, I've spotted a huge variety of creatures, including what looks like a manticore, a wolf made entirely of wood, and over two dozen kinds of snakes and spiders. God, I hate spiders. I have been unable to activate either the spirit seed I brought with me, nor the class C AI module. I'm not entirely certain what I should do as the "Dimension Jumper Primer" simply say "activate your companions" in the section on jump prep. I got out for a little bit and I managed to get the pod to determine the most likely direction of civilization. The reports received from the first few drones showed images of a town, and the pod should have put down only a few miles away. It should be a bit of a hike, but fortunately it'll be mid morning, so I should be fairly safe from most of the larger beasts out there. The pod hissed and the door slid open, allowing me out for the first time. I put away my journal and pen, and picked up my standard issue backpack filled with rope, flashlight, blanket, MREs, a pair of filtration canteens, and a utility kit with everything from pliers to a hatchet. I stuffed the spirit seed, about the size of a computer mouse, into one pocket, and tucked the basket ball sized AI companion sphere under my arm before setting out. The farm I found at the edge of town was large and spacious, thick with apple trees full of bright red apples. As I approached, I noticed a small red horse. It had half an apple painted on it's side, and ran off when it spotted me. I shrugged and kept walking, intent on finding the farm's owner. As I got closer to the farm house and barn, the red horse returned with a bright yellow one. I stopped and watched them as they approached, finally coming to a stop not far from me. "" I was surprised when it talked, but it was clear that the small horses, possibly ponies, were sentient. I sat down my backpack and pulled out my primer, flipping to the first contact section. When you first encounter the a sentient species, it is important to observe their cultural norms. Your companions should be able to compensate for cultural and language barriers, given enough forewarning and data. Be friendly, kind, and honest. Remember that, though you are equipped with vastly superior technology and wisdom, they are not to be looked down on. If you still feel superior, keep in mind that they most likely outnumber you several billion to one and you are running on limited time and energy until you obtain an anchor. Well that was certainly encouraging. I looked up to see the orange one, male from it's stature, wearing a stetson and motioning me to come closer while making cooing noises. "Do you think I'm an idiot?" "" the red one exclaimed. "" <"Ah'm not sure, Macareina,>" the orange one responded, "" "Well, you two sure are talkative. I wish I could understand you," I said, walking a little closer. They retreated, the orange stallion gesturing over and over, guiding me towards the barn. "If you two think I'm going to be livestock, you're sadly mistaken." "" I looked over to see a younger yellow colt with a red bow tie running up. It stopped a good distance away and eyed me warily. "" The orange one yelled. "" "" The yellow colt ran off, while the orange and red ponies continued to try and draw me into the barn. "If you guys are trying to trap me, I'm going to pull out my utility hatchet and hack my way out." "" the orange one said. "" the red one responded. My stomach grumbled, and both ponies stepped away from me. "Heh, sorry. I guess I'm hungry." The red pony left while the orange one continued to coo at me in a calming fashion. A little later, she came back with a small bowl of apples. The orange pony offered one to me. "" "" the red one chimed in. I picked up the apple and looked it over. It looked like an apple, and it kind of smelled like an apple. If the conversion pod had done it's work, I should be able to eat food in this world the same way I could on Earth. Bracing myself, I bit in. It was crisp and juicy and delicious. I had to admit, it was one of the best apples I'd ever eaten. You couldn't get this from the grocery stores, this was just picked freshness. As I finished it off, the red mare tossed me a green apple. This one was a little more tart, and had a strange flavor I couldn't place, but I gobbled it down all the same. "Wow, I don't think I'll ever go back to supermarket produce after this. I'd better find some farmers co-ops when I get back." I stood up, but did so too fast and had to lean against the barn. "Woo, dizzy." "" "Yeah yeah, I'm fine. Just a little light headed." I said, waving at him. I had no idea what he said, but the tone was worried so I made comforting noises in response. I sat back down and held my head. "Hoo, I must still be getting used to this world. I don't remember this backpack being so heavy." "" "" "" I could tell they were fighting but I wasn't really sure about what. There was a bit of yelling, but I was feeling so tired I could just take a nap. They would be done by the time I woke, I was sure. I locked my backpack with a thumbprint keyed lock, tucked it under my head, and closed my eyes. > Night 1: Four walls do not a prison make > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Notes on a new world Day 1 continued While the hospitality of the indigenous species is not perfect, it is still better than might be expected. A strange creature wandering out of the forest and into a barn might otherwise have been met with fear or violence. I suspect that I have been met with more caution and curiosity. It is with some sadness that I woke this morning to find myself locked in a cage. I put away the notebook and pen light and turned my attention back to the combination lock that had frustrated me for the past two hours. The light of the moon was strong, but it still made it difficult to see the symbols on the lock. I had to work by feel as much as sight, and with no clue as to what the combination might be I was forced to try every single one. Each of the four tumblers had sixteen symbols on them, giving it a staggering number of combinations. At best guess I had tried slightly more than half of them, though I was starting to worry I had missed a turn somewhere. It was going to be light soon and I wanted to be out before then. "" I froze, looking over to the barn door. There was a silhouette, a small pony. I realized that while I could see it in the moonlight it couldn't see me. A moment or two passed and I shuffled back under the covers, pretending to sleep. A warm glow of light sprang to life, and I rolled over to see the small pony had found a lantern. He was young, and didn't seem to have any markings upon his flank. He also had a big red bowtie around his neck. I recognized the same colt I saw with the other two ponies earlier. "" it said, walking closer. "" As he came closer I sat up. It was odd how he was able to carry the lantern and walk on just three legs. I had to wonder if physics in this world were just a little off. Might as well try to comunicate. "Hello. I'm Justin, who are you?" "" "Yeah, didn't think you'd understand me. Any chance I could get a non drugged apple?" I pointed to a barrel of apples nearby. "" The little one went over and pulled one out, rolling it to me through the bars. I rolled it back to him. "" I mimed picking up and eating the apple. "" he said, rolling the apple back to me. I rolled it back and pointed at him, then mimicked the eating again. "" He seemed confused but after a moment he bent down and took a bite of the apple. "" I nodded, then made beckoning motions to get the bitten apple back. The young colt tossed it to me, and I ate with abandon. Now that we had this protocol sorted, three more apples came in rapid succession, each with a small bite. "" The colt lifted the lantern and went to leave. "Hey!" I cried, getting him to turn around. I pointed to the lantern and made a begging motion. "" he said with a laugh. "" I couldn't make out what he was saying, so I just mimed putting the lantern on the ground while I lay back down under my blanket. "" He put the lantern down a good ways from the cage, turned a knob on the side so the flame became dimmer, then left. I woke to the orange stallion banging a spoon against my cage and yelling. "" "What? Huh? I'm up, I'm up!" "" it said, rolling me an apple. I rolled it back. If he seriously thought I was going to fall for the same trick twice, he had another thing coming. I'd run through all the possible combinations the night before, only to discover that the lock had a keyhole as well at the end of the tumblers. The security was annoying, but I couldn't just pick the lock. He rolled it back to me. I rolled it back to him and pointed at the barrel of apples nearby. "" He rolled the apple back, then took an apple from the barrel and held it up, showing he was going to take a bite. Something sailed past his head and out of the barn. "" he said, dropping his apple and turning to look for the thrown one. " There was a soft tap against his hooves, and he looked down. Now there were two apples in front of him. He looked up at me, and I just tossed up and caught another rock I'd pulled through the bottom of the cage. "" He picked up both apples and walked over close to the cage, holding both up. After a moment's hesitation, I picked the apple on the left, reaching out for it. He pulled it back and tossed me the one on the right, munching down on the left apple quickly. "" I glared at him and threatened to throw the apple, but he just glared back at me. With a sigh I ate it down and then curled back up under my blanket. "" > Day 2: Education Is Key > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Notes on a New World Day 2: My captors have placed me upon a fair sized cart and covered my cage in a tarp. I must say that they are handling me with great care and, despite their attempt to drug me, must consider me valuable. Already I have had to review my basic understanding of biology to reassure myself that I am not headed for a stew pot, though I fear a zoo is more likely to be my final destination. The fact that I am covered implies that either they want to keep me in the dark about where we are going or, more likely, to keep others from seeing my unusual appearance. By pushing up individual pins in the lock and rotating the tumblers managed to partially pick this lock. I was nearing completion with the last tumbler when the cart came to a stop. Quickly, I noted down the combination I'd gotten so far and slipped my picks back in my bag before lying down. A strange purple glow seemed to surround the cage, and it was lifted down with an ease and care that exceeded the care the farmers had used to load me. I could not see how I was lifted or by whom. Light and shadow moved across the canvas covering, and then it was drawn back. I was inside some kind of library. It looked like the whole room had been carved from a single block of wood, like it was built into a tree. Around me were more ponies, in a variety of shapes and colors, along with a small purple lizard. The two farmers were joined by a bouncing bright pink stallion that had a grin somewhere between gleeful and manic. I grinned slightly as I watched the orange stallion yawn, the drugged apple he had eaten still wearing on his system. "" the orange one said, stiffing another yawn. A purple stallion approached the cage, and I saw he had a small horn protruding from his head. I hadn't noticed horns on the farm ponies. Maybe it was a mutation or mark of rank. The horn glowed, and I saw the same glow encase my bag. "Magic, huh? That's going to make this interesting." The aura disappeared and the purple pony stepped back. "" "" Orange asked. "" a yellow stallion asked quietly. I grinned at it and waved, and received a huge surprise. What I had taken for saddlebags or maybe just a deformation in their bodies opened up into large feathery wings. The yellow stallion then wrapped the wings around himself, using them, his long pink hair to try and hide from me. "" Purple said. "" a white one with a horn said. "" "" An excited voice came from overhead. I looked up to see a powder blue stallion with a rainbow colored mane hovering on big blue wings. "" "" the pink one asked, bouncing around the others. "" Purple said. His horn started glowing, and he picked up my bag. I reached out and grabbed it, holding it close. "" he insisted. I shook my head, hoping it would be clear enough that I wasn't giving it up. Finally he gave up, dropping the bag. "" The ponies and little dragon trotted into the next room, and I was left on my own. In the library. In a cage. I counted slowly to thirty, then pulled out my lock picks. "Pancakes for lunch?" Elusive asked, eyeing the syrupy stack in front of Dusk. "Hey, this is breakfast for me," Dusk said defensively, carefully cutting the stack into sections of equal area. "I got so excited over this new creature Applejack found that I didn't stop studying until just an hour ago." "Ya haven't slept yet then ah take it," Applejack said, waiting for his own stack of pancakes. "Nope," Barb responded, passing out two more stacks to Rainbow Blitz and Butterscotch, while lifting a bowl of oatmeal and fruit over to Elusive. "Dusk has been so excited I'm surprised he didn't rush out to the farm last night." "I told you, Barb," Dusk said between mouth fulls of pancakes. "It would take too long to drag all the books and equipment over to the barn." Barb set a stack of pancakes down in front of Applejack and got to work on another stack. "Barb!" Dusk chided. "You already ate breakfast once." "I know, but your other guest hasn't," Barb said. Applejack sighed. "Ah'll give em mine, seein' as everypony else has already bitten into theirs." He got up, picked up his plate and shuffled out into the living room. "I can't believe I nearly forgot about it," Dusk said. "I must be more exhausted than I thought." "Well, giving him food should help to build a bond of trust," Butterscotch said. "And it was awful generous of Applejack to give up his breakfast for it," Elusive chimed in. Applejack came back in chuckling and sat down as Barb finished another stack of pancakes. "Silly thing was fiddlin' with the lock. Won't be gettin' out without the key." "Applejack!" Elusive protested, "it's not nice to laugh at another creature's misfortune." "Yeah," Barry chimed in. "It looks kinda upset about that." "What do you mean it looks-" Applejack startled as something reached around in front of him and pulled away his plate of pancakes. Everypony jumped up, except for Barry who was busy emptying a can of whipped cream onto his pancakes. The creature stood next to the table with a stack of pancakes in each hand. It set down one set and took the other back into the other room. "Um, you did lock the cage, right Applejack?" Elusive asked. I smiled and waved at the ponies from inside my cage, biting into another fork worth of drug free pancakes. Purple pulled at the lock to test it and, finding it locked, started to examine the rest of the cage. "" Orange asked. "" White inquired. "" Yellow said quietly. Purple picked up my pancakes and set then just outside my reach beyond the cage. "What, you want me to do? Tricks?" "" Purple coaxed. "" Yellow chided. "" Pink said, pulling a bucket of popcorn out of seemingly nowhere. Realizing I wasn't going to get any more food without giving away a few of my secrets, I pulled out my lockpicks and got to work. I'd already memorized the combination, so setting it was a snap. A few minutes work and the lock popped open. I pulled it off, then swung the cage door open and picked up my pancakes. "" Purple asked confused. "" "" Pink exclaimed. Purple picked up my picks and held them close, studying them. I finished my pancakes, picked up the plates and took them to the sink. A lot of this world, doors, sinks, tables, all fell into easily recognizable forms for me. I washed and dried my hands, dodging around the skittish purple lizard and came back out to find Purple trying to pick the lock using my picks. Realizing that he could break them if he wasn't careful, I came over and plucked them and the lock from his magical grasp. "" "You don't use them like that. Here, let me show you." I set the combination and showed it to him, then put the tension bar in, pushing down on it slightly and showing how it rotated the tumbler just a bit. "" He picked the lock back up and tried again, and instantly I saw my education had been somewhat lacking. Instead of applying tension and pushing the pins up sequentially, he was pushing up a pin, releasing and then trying to turn the lock. I took the lock and picks back again and tried to show, but without three hands it was difficult. Applying torque with the tension bar wasn't easy without something tied to the lock to resist. "" Orange said a bit smugly. "" White offered. Purple pointed to the lock and then to the cage, and I nodded, surmising he was going to reapply the lock. He ushered me into the cage and closed the door. At which point Orange slapped a completely different lock on. This one had no combination, no key hole, nothing but smooth metal and a single gem. "" Purple asked upset. "" "" Blue said. "" "<'Cuz the only thing to come outta the Everfree that hasn't lead ta near destruction of Ponyville has been Zicoro. Everythin' else from hydras ta parasprites have been bad news.>" After looking over the lock for a bit I dug a rock out of my backpack and started to hammer at it, hoping to break it. "" *BANG* "" *BANG* "" *BANG* "" Yellow called out between the banging. "" Blue shouted. "" Orange added, leading the way outside. The constant banging from inside the library drew more than a few concerned looks from passersby, but Dusk simply waved and mumbled something about renovations. "Ah think ah may have made a mistake," Applejack said. "Really?" Dusk asked, his voice heavy with sarcasm. "You think you might have made a mistake? What is wrong with you?!" "Dusk, try to understand it from his side." Elusive said. "The last thing that was nice and cute that came out of the Everfree ended up eating all the food and most of the town." "OK, yes the parasprites were bad, but Barry got rid of them," Dusk said. "I'm sure he can handle this one, too." "What? I've never even seen one of those things before," Barry said. "Not even in my Ponyfinder Beastiaries." "Um," Butterscotch said. "What if it never calms down, or has a monster form, or eats dragons?!" Barb cried, slowly working herself into a panic. "Um," "I wonder how fast it can run," Blitz mused. "I mean, it's not too strong, but it might be fast." "Um," "Blitz, I can't believe you are concerned over its speed," Elusive scoffed. "And while I do recognize your concerns, Applejack, you have to see its clothes and equipment. It's not just some wild animal." "Um," "Well I'm not going to let it out unless we can calm it down!" Dusk said. "We can test it's speed once it's stopped banging on the cage." "Um, it has stopped." The ponies and dragon were quiet for a moment. It was true, no more banging could be heard from inside the library. "It couldn't have picked that lock," Dusk said. "It's a magic lock, only a unicorn can unlock it." They peeked in through the window to see the strange creature relaxing in it's cage, flipping through a book. The door was closed. Dusk stormed into his library and right up to the cage. From there he could see that the creature had a small stack of books from all over the library. History, fiction, science, math, even a few children's books. He poked the lock to find it battered but intact and still locked. "Ok, how did you get those books," he asked, pointing at the stack. "" "I didn't understand any of that, but you are going to put those books back right now!" "Dusk, perhaps yelling at it isn't the best idea," Elusive said in a calming tone, laying a hoof on Dusk's shoulder. "We don't even know how it got out this time." "Maybe it just pushed right through the bars!" Barry said, trying to squeeze through the bars in the door. "No, they are too close together." As Barry pulled back, the hinges shifted. With a curious look, Barry pulled more. The door swung on the lock like a hinge. The real hinges now lacking their pins simply detached and let the door hang slightly crooked and wide open. Silence filled the library as the thing reached into a pocket and pulled out a hinge pin. "Oh," Dusk said, "that is clever." > Day 4: Around Town > -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Notes on a new world day 4 My hosts, who I've taken to referring to by their color, have proven intelligent and generous. Purple seems to be the smartest and has subjected me to a battery of simple tests, some physical, some magical, and recording volumes of data on me. Sadly, dispite our best efforts we have not been able to comunicate verbally. Purple is some kind of writer, but he has a tendancy to use his little dragon to burn letters he doesn't like. I wonder what the criteria is for burnable since he clearly throws away a number of pages in the trash can. Blue is the most athletic and is somehow in charge of the weather. I was amazed to see him pushing around clouds the other day. He seems most interested in physical comparisons and the least patient when trying to bridge the comunication barrier. There are times where, when I have not wanted to test my strength against his, I have been intentionaly unhelpful with comunication. Orange is warry of me, more so than most of the others. I suspect something in his past prejudices him against either outsiders or the unusual. Not that I blame him. I still refuse to take food from him on principal, often swaping whatever I am given for what he is eating. I do it randomly though, so as to prevent a double swap. Pink is..... energetic. He bakes, something I have learned to love in the last few days, but is more social than I can normally deal with. I get the impression he is suggesting something to Purple about me, but Purple keeps shooting him down. Strangely though I have even less ability to comunicate clearly with Pink he is the one most likely to understand my requests. His giberish and my giberish must mix in his head and come out making sense somehow. Yellow is shy, but friendly. He takes care of animals, and brought a few over for me to meet. Most are nice, but that rabbit has a bad attitude. He is startlingly quiet, and more than once I have be startled by his appearance when I thought I was alone. White is a tailor. He was more interested in my clothing than me. I get the sense that, next to Purple, he is the most frustrated by the language barrier. Once or twice he has shown me fashion magazines, but I don't know if he wants me to dress up in his fashion or give him tips on mine. Finally there is the dragon. Young, childish, a little chubby, and tough. Purple seems to use it to burn up documents he doesn't like. It She seems very attached to White, though White is somewhat oblivious to her advances. She is the most like me in structure, posessing dexterous claws and a non-vegitarian apetite. That last bit is something I'll have to broach sooner or later, one can only eat so many eggs. Without written or verbal communication things have been going slow. I've managed to work out a few simple pictograms for food, water, rest, etc, and carry a small chalkboard, chalk and eraser with me everywhere. I've proven to the ponies that I'm not a threat, at least when I'm not threatened, and today they are going to show me around town. I put up my journal and gave Purple the thumbs up. He had been impatiently waiting for the last twenty minutes for me to get ready to go. He and the lizard were escorting me around town, hoping to keep me out of trouble and safe from ponies who jump to conclusions. First was the market. I was a pretty big attention draw, standing nearly a head taller than most of the other ponies. The conversation around me made me feel more like a pet being shown off than a friend, and I glared at one or two ponies who tried to pet me. From the way Purple was talking I got the sense he was repeating the same story over and over again. Not able to communicate very well, I settled into the fallback of diplomats everywhere: smile and wave. I did get to see at least one friendly face. Orange's sister, a large red mare that I wanted to call Big Red, was minding a cart full of apples. The little brother was there too, and he ran up to say hello. He offered me an apple, first taking a bite out of it. "" Purple asked, watching me accept the apple and eat it easily. "" "" "" the lizard chimed in. We went by the more permanent shops after. Bookstores, clock makers, the works. I pointed curiously to a shop that seemed to sell sofas and quills, and nothing else. "" Purple said, as I conveyed my confusion over how such a store could stay open more than one week. The blacksmith proved to be quite a learning experience as I watched a burly pony operate the forge without the aid of magic. Next stop was White's home/ buisness, a three story botique. Inside was filled with what I could only assume was high fashion for ponies. Having seen the more rural life many lived here I didn't think there would be much call for such extravagent garments around town. Then again, most of the ponies I'd seen walked around completely naked. White was there, and even had a timid little brother to introduce to us. "" White instructed. The little one edged closer and made soft greeting sounds, so I smiled and waved. At that point I noticed something. While White had a tattoo or brand of some kind, this younger one did not. I pointed to the three blue diamond's on White's side, making an inquiring motion. "