Scene #2019: Conservation of Energy

Owner	Pose
Mortimer Balman	Deep within the vast, untamed forests of the Everfree Forest.. Mortimer and a few of his crew have been training hard. Ulbrecht is beginning to learn the ways of battle, Reder is polishing up on skills and techniques he hasn't had need for in centuries, Falstaff is sleeping on what's either a pile of branches and leaves or the remains of a timber wolf, and Mortimer has spent most of the day doing that meditation under a waterfall thing, near the mouth of the river. Kind of a long walk out there. They have few to no supplies, surviving entirely off of whatever they can hunt or scavenge within the forest's depths. The water is fresh and clean, and there is meat to be found for those who have predatory bents; though Mortimer being in ponyform has been subsisting instead off of the tough grass and weeds and occasional berry bushes. They've been out here for a few days now, and have not made any efforts to contact anyone for any reason. The only contact from Mort's place to the outside world has been through Switchbait, who has been minding the house while they're out playing in the woods. The sun is going down quickly, the moon rising at an evenly swift pace. As per the ancient traditions, Mortimer dries himself off through no other means than full self-immolation, a bright pyre that sticks out against the endless creeping darkness. And, subsequently, acts as a pretty damn good warning to other creatures that might see the group as prey..
Bramble Patch	You don't do stuff in Everfree without a certain Pony noticing. Said Pony is convinced that appearances are misleading and they're doing something more than just some camping trip. But -what-? For that matter, how does a Pony even climb a tree? Then again, Bramble Patch might of just used her vines like a grapdling line. Or made the tree pick her up with freaky Everfree dark magic. The point is that she's sitting high in a tree with her binoculars, trying to figure out what the hell these weirdos are doing in -her- forest.
Twilight Sparkle	When she asked Switchbait where Mortimer was, Twilight was told 'In Everfree Forest'. Being the pony that she is, Twilight grabbed her balloon and started floating over Everfree. She wasn't really worried that much, but she was worried a little. Especially when Switch said Morty had been out here for a few days. Just in case, she has a few snacks and drinks in the balloon. Thanks to a bit of Staren's equipment, infrared scanners, they are able to easily find Mortimer. And Twilight floats the balloon down to hover above the waterfall. "Mortimer!" she calls out cheerfully, waving a hoof down at him. Then, she realizes he might not be able to hear her, so in a puff of magic, she appears down near the water's edge.
Staren	Staren came over to visit Twilight, heard she was going over to Mort's to visit... and there they found out about this little camping trip. While Staren's sure Mort and friends can handle themselves better than Loki and Korra did, it is still concerning! When Twilight shows interest in checking up on them he's all for it! When at last they find Mort, he waves. Twilight teleports down, so he drops anchor or whatever balloons do, then climbs out, starting to lower himself down from the basket with a grappling tag before remembering HE CAN FLY, manifesting energy wings and flying down to land next to Twilight and put a forehoof around her. He waves the other at Mortimer. "Heeey! Guuuuys! How's it going? I was never big on camping, myself."
Mortimer Balman	Mortimer stays alight for a little while longer, leaving small flames where his hooves touch the ground. Bramble would probably think he's showing off but it actually requires a LOT of concentration to keep your entire body /on fire/ like you're some kind of living torch and aren't that whiny kid from the Fantastic Four. It's good control exercise! "Huhn..? The hell're you kids doin' out here at this hour?" A blazing brow lifts and stares at Staren and Twilight Sparkle, tilting his head to the side slightly. "<Out past curfew huh? Your folks are gonna get pissed if you keep that up.>" Reder laughs, at a joke only he understands most likely. Ulbrecht, of course, stops digging at the ground and bounds over to the two- he's quite the colossal beast now, easily the size of a Ford F-150 pickup truck, and he's still growing. The two of them get giant puppon kisses.
Bramble Patch	GEE that balloon isn't AT ALL CONSPICEOUS. "What the hay are the eggheads doing here..." And then Staren drops the anchor, causing a crunch as it lands in the bushes below. Bramble Patch stands on her back hooves precariously on the branch to shake her hoof in anger. "HEY YOU FREELOADERS THIS AINT A PARKING SPOT FOR YOUR STUPID PURPLE PIECE OF SHI--" creak Bramble stops mid-rant at the creaking. Glances out of the corner of her eyes, then looks up at the tree. "Eh tu, spruce?" CRACK Followed by several more branches breaking as she falls through the tree canopy and into the brush below with a rather loud thud.
Twilight Sparkle	Twilight Sparkle never was one for subtlety. She nuzzles at Staren before she looks over as she hears something land in the brush nearby and feels a little flutter of her protective nature. But, everyone here is more than able to defend himself, so she just lets out a breath and looks toward Mortimer. "I could very well ask you the same thing." she says to Mortimer before blinking at Reder. "Huh? My folks have not set a curfew for me in quite a while. I was never out late enough to need one." she says to the turtle before...puppy kisses! Twilight eeks and giggles, giving Ulbrecht a playful ruffle. "Wow! Look how big you are!" Twilight says cheerfully, then looks toward Morty. "Um...just how big will Ulbrecht get?" she asks, just a hint of nervousness in her tone.
Staren	Staren smiles. "We wanted to check up on you!" He shifts to catboy form so he can properly fold his arms at Reder. "/We're adults/. My parents are glad I have someone to hang out and do stuff /besides/ save the wo--woah!" Staren reflexively raises his arms and activates his forcefield -- once it's clear Ulbrecht just wants to lick, he lowers the field and tries to keep his face from getting all slobbered. "H-hey! Careful boy, you're kind of intimidating you know that?" He tries holding out a hand for Ulbrechs to sniff and lick, then looks over at Bramble. "WE ARE VISITING MORT," he shouts, "NOT SETTING UP A BALLOON PARKING... Shoot are you okay? THAT LOOKED LIKE IT HURT!"
Mortimer Balman	Mortimer slowly lets the flames die down a bit, until he is less of a walking inferno and more like a glowing red fire. He chuckles some over his own crackling as the kids counter-fuss at his and Reder's jokes. "Heh, relax, kids, we ain't bein' seriou-" And then there's a shouting angry little Bramble pony. Who.. Falls to the ground, loudly, and it sounds like quite painfully. Falstaff blearily opens his eyes and shakes out, padding over to where Bramble has fallen so he can pick her up by the scruff- gently of course, with teeth that sharp you have to be very careful not to break the skin- and carry her back to the campsite, carefully setting her on the freshly turned and oddly soft ground that Ulbrecht has torn up. "Well what have we here, hmm? Little Bramble Patch, what're you up to now, eh?" Mortimer rubs his chin a bit and extinguishes the remaining flames that surround him, instead waving a hoof at a pile of sticks and dry leaves and creating a campfire. "Oh Ulbrecht could get huge, Twilit. The largest specimens of Thunderwolves have been recorded as being the size of Baneblade super-tanks.. Which are about thirteen and a half meters long, eight and a half meters wide, six meters tall, and somewhere in the neighborhood of three hundred tonnes. Ulbrecht probably won't get /that/ big.. I don't think."
Bramble Patch	Bramble Patch gets dragged out of the brush, looking as grumpy as ever as she's dangled from the Absol's mouth and hauled over the camp. Stays pretty much as such and folds her forelimbs once she's sat down. "It's my forest, I should be asking you that." GLARES at the Thunderwolf. "And if that thing poops anywhere I ain't cleanin' up after it."
Twilight Sparkle	Twilight smiles as Bramble is carried over. "There is no need to make such a fuss, Bramble Patch. We are just here to check on Mortimer and his companions." she says, then looks over at the tree that Staren dropped anchor on. "...I do not recall having such an anchor in my balloon. I guess Pinkie Pie must have put it there." she says, then walks toward Morty and Reder. She watches Ulbrecht as she walks. "That is...quite large. We will have to be sure that the ponies of Ponyville know he is no danger to them." she says. Once Bramble is set down, Twilight starts to help get the twigs out of her mane. Then she stops. Because she realizes Bramble might like them there. "So, how are things going in the forest, Bramble Patch?"
Staren	Staren's ears splay a bit. "That's, uh, that's pretty big." He looks at Bramble. "Mortimer's been out here for /days/. If it's your forest, how come you only /just/ noticed? Were you watching us instead?" While Twilight interrogates Bramble, who seems to be fine, Staren asks Mort: "So what /are/ you guys doing out here anyway? Just camping?"
Mortimer Balman	Mortimer puffs out some smoke, snorting a laugh at Bramble. "Dear me! I didn't realize I was in the /Ever-Patch/ Forest! Coulda sworn I'd gone to the /Everfree/!" Reder tortles, "<We musta taken a wrong turn at Fillydelphia, Sarge.>" Then another round of laughter. "I don't think /anybody's/ gonna be cleanin' up where Ulbrecht goes save fer the happiest dung beetles in the kingdom. Haw!" He'd turn and stretch his hind legs out, facing Twilight Sparkle now. "The World Martial Arts Tournament is comin' sometime by.. Summer, I think. I came out here t'train and practice some things I can't get Trainer Machines for anymore, since my world's.. Well, at the end of its story. I think I remember enough of my Master's old training regimens to perfect a few tricks.."
Bramble Patch	"Who says I was only watching him now?" Bramble Patch retorts. Then turns her head with a hmph. And spits a chunk of bark out of her mouth while Twilight is fussing. Eventually she does give the unicorn and weak push away. "Stop it, I don't want to catch your magic friendship germs. The forest is fine. The Boss is holed up in her castle plotting who knows what evil. Even I don't know. So don't bother asking." Give her credit, she gives Mortimer a pretty good glower, despite him being bigger and on fire. "It's only called EverFREE because it doesn't need some stupid ponies growing it and tending the weather." Then hmphs in the other direction again. "Besides, Ever-Patch is a retarded name. That's like some arrogant prick needing his name in big letters on the side of a goddamn building."
Staren	"Hey. Hey. You don't need to lay it on that thick." Staren says, when Mortimer continues heckling Bramble. He tilts his head to one side, then the other. "Training for the WMAT, huh? You fighting eachother then? Come to think of it, I'm not sure I've ever actually /seen/ you fight..."
Twilight Sparkle	Twilight doesn't seem to mind the push away. She was expecting it, after all. "Your boss has been rather quiet. Perhaps she finally realized that friendship is too strong for her to defeat." she says in a conversational tone. When Bramble gets picked on even more, Twilight too gives Mortimer a bit of a disapproving look. Then, she hmms. "I considered competing in the WMAT. Perhaps I will this year. Rainbow Dash seemed to have a wonderful time."
Bramble Patch	"AHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Bramble Patch topples over on her back with laughter. Screw you pose order, that was way too funny to not mock her over. "That's the funniest thing you've ever said egghead!" SHUT UP TYPING ISNT EASY
Mortimer Balman	Mortimer, sadly, does not care about disapproving stares. Bramble wants to be a putz he can be a jerk right back at her so NYAH thbbbbt :P. "Heh. You ought to join in, Bramble. Ought to be good fun fightin' this year, I think.. Ah, you too, Twilit? That sounds grand! Should be interestin' to see you in a good, straight up fight." He'd peer down at Bramble. "Hey Bramble.. Remember that time you've never held a candle to her in a scrap?"
Staren	"Really?" Staren hugs Twilight and sticks his tongue out at Bramble. "Hey, she can kick ass with her magic!" He turns to look at Twilight. "Although, I hope we don't end up against eachother. I dunno if I could bring myself to hurt you, even in a friendly contest."
Bramble Patch	Bramble Patch slaps a hoof to her face without bothering to get off her back. "You morons, I was talking about the 'friendship is too strong for her to defeat'. Gaaawd. Learn to at least be upset about the right insult!"
Twilight Sparkle	Twilight blinks as Bramble starts laughing. Then again when Bramble clarifies. She just rolls her eyes lightly. "Well, I suppose our previous record of defeating her is not evidence enough." she says, just a bit sarcastically. Twilight smiles as Mortimer and Staren root for her. "If we met as competitors, Staren, it would be disrespectful for either of us to back down simply because we are special someponies." she says, then blinks as she looks at Staren in catboy form. "Er...somebodies." She smiles, then hugs him.
Bramble Patch	Bramble Patch turns her head to the side and holds a hoof to her mouth while making gagging sounds when Twilight and Staren get all mushy about having to possibly face each other in a fight.
Mortimer Balman	Mortimer rolls his eyes. "Ye gods, yer worse'n Rainbow Dash somedays Patchy, I swear. Run off back to yer boss if it's that big of a problem. And tell her I look forward to her visit to town! I've got the loveliest little maid's outfit she'd look /dandy/ in." Why pull out the stops if you're gonna be a prick, amirite people? Right? ...People? Bah fine moving on then. Reder directs Ulbrecht to continue his digging, which Mort even helps with a bit, if only because he appears to be making a 'cot' of sorts using bunches of dry grass over the slightly damp earth to create a small bed to lay on. The others are following suit, except Falstaff, he seems to be content with his pile of branches and leaves. And grumbling idly at all the NOISE.
Staren	Staren hugs back. "I know, but I don't want to hurt you, either." He looks between Mort and Bramble Patch. "Hey, be nice. If we're going to beat them with friendship, we should be offering them... well, friendship instead of humiliating outfits. Although, I suppose there's nothing we can do as long as Nightmare Moon insists on ruling over everypony." He steps back and returns to pony form.
Bramble Patch	That actually gets Bramble Patch on her hooves quickly, pointing at Mortimer. "See! You admitted I'm worse than somepony else! And I thought you were just being a big ass." It's really hard to tell if she's being sarcastic or not, considering she almost prances as she trots away from him.
Mortimer Balman	Mortimer stares at Staren and says in a very matter-of-factly voice, "If I wanted to be humiliating, I'd be bringing out a string bikini and six inch plastic heels." Deadpanning a bit at the end there.
Twilight Sparkle	Twilight Sparkle sighs softly and rolls her eyes a bit when Bramble seems happy to be called worse than somepony. "Anyway.." Twilight looks to Mortimer. "Would you like any of the refreshments we brought?" she asks, then looks to Staren. "Do not worry. Even if you did, the tournament is set up to handle such things." she says to him as he turns back to a pony. Mortimer's response to Staren makes Twilight a bit confused. "Why would that be humiliating?" she asks. She is a pony after all, not a humanoid.
Mortimer Balman	Pause, BEAT PANEL, Mortimer replies, "I'll tell you when yer twenty one."
Bramble Patch	"Someone tell the old geezer to learn something that would be humiliating -in context- next time," Bramble Patch snorts before disappearing into the overgrowth of the forest.
Staren	Staren rolls his eyes at Bramble and Mortimer. And then he facehooves. "Ponies don't normally wear clothes, so the point of wearing a skimpy bathing suit is kind of lost. It would just look very silly." He sighs. "Which, I suppose, would be humiliating in its own way." He watches Bramble go. "...You know, I suppose they've already proven our point. Look how the three of them stick together. Nightmare Moon doesn't seem to be abusing them -- well, aside from that time she tried to make Jinx a kaiju -- so, maybe they were won over to her side /by/ friendship? Other ponies weren't accepting them, but Nightmare Moon did. And they have eachother..."
Mortimer Balman	Mortimer rubs his mane a bit. "Yeah that joke doesn't work too well does it? Oh well, no big deal." A shrug. "Refreshments yah say? Eh.. Sure. Bring any beer? ...Or tobacco? ...Coal, maybe?" Ulbrecht, hearing the word 'refreshments' which he knows equates to 'treats', flops to the ground on all fours in front of the two little ponies, wagging his colossal tail and inadvertently smacking Reder with it, which sends the wartortle flying for the river, "<WAAAAAAAGH?!>" SPLASH. Mortimer stares blankly at Staren for a moment. "Huhn. Damned insightful of you, son. Yer growin' up on me."
Twilight Sparkle	Twilight watches Bramble leave, then looks to Staren and smiles. "I think you are right." she says, seeming proud of his insight. "That is why I have been trying to show Bramble and Jinxel that there are other ponies who might accept them." she says as her horn starts to glow and a basket of the picnic variety appears. She opens it up, and...surprise surprise, there is alcohol! But, it is hard apple cider, not real beer. There are also plenty of vegitarian snacks.
Twilight Sparkle	Twilight smiles apologetically as she opens the basket. "I am afraid I did not bring any tobacco or coal. Tobacco is bad for one's health, and coal...well, it did not occur to me." she says.
Staren	Staren blinks at Mortimer. "I overanalyze /everything/, as people are fond of saying. And I have the best teacher!" Twilight gets a one-forelegged half-hug, then he stands and looks at the retreating Bramble. "Perhaps. But if they are friends, if they care for Nightmare Moon, they can't just abandon her. We can't break them apart, can we? That would be... un-friendship." He stares off into the forest for a moment. "Maybe that's why we've been unable to pull them away. We can't use friendship to break friendship. I don't think we even /want/ to." He shakes his head. "Wireless tried to stay in the Confederacy to free Taro. He wanted to help a friend. Even if he didn't understand them... well, it /is/ a powerful motivation, isn't it? Perhaps we need a new approach. But then what do we do?"
Mortimer Balman	Mortimer waves a hoof, reaching for a hard cider.. He pauses and looks to the skies for a few moments, half-expecting Rainbow Dash to just /materialize/ and crash into him in an effort to get at it. When he feels safe, he cracks it open and immediately begins chugging it down. "Ahh.. ...Twilit dear, my body produces more carcinogens /normally/ than the entire town's smoker population does. I'm not worried about it. As fer coal, well.. Naw, easy to forget! How many people find it /edible/ after all?" He lets out a hearty laugh and then reaches for another cider. Which is immediately yanked away by a cranky Reder, who grumbles and starts drying himself off on Ulbrecht. Mort grabs a third and tilts his head over to Staren. "Yer overthinkin' it, lad. Don't. Time is on our side- well, on yer side at least, and Twilit's. Yer young still, you'll think'a somethin' to make the world even better in your lifetimes.. They may never come 'round to our way of thinkin'. Nightmare Moon least of all, given what she is. But that's fine. The more she dwells alone out here with just those two, the more she reduces herself to little more'n a cute face and a firm flank." Trollgrin.jpg.
Staren	"...Dragons, maybe?" Staren muses, when Mort questions how many can even /eat/ coal.
Twilight Sparkle	"Hmm. I will have to ask Spike if dragons like coal." Twilight says, then shakes her head at Mortimer. "It doesn't matter. I will not intentionally bring a friend a substance I know is dangerous. Besides, it isn't dangerous just to the smoker." she says, then looks to Staren. "We support Jinxel and Bramble. Sometimes friends have a friend that we don't approve of. As for Nightmare Moon, I hope she comes around. I fear the alternative is banishment or even...destruction." She shakes her head and sighs softly. Mortimer's comment about NMM makes Twilight roll her eyes a bit.
Mortimer Balman	Mort sips at his cider. Ohh yeah that sweet alcoholic bite. There's no cacti around here for him to quick-and-dirty distill cactus juice, so this is a welcomed thing. "One presumes that coal would be pretty crap food fer dragons what eat /gems/.. But I dunno, we'll ask the boy later." Mort's eyes lazily roll over back to Twilit. "If it comes to /that/, well.. I'm sure the Queens know whom to turn to on that. No reason for you little ponies to get your hooves all messy, after all."
Staren	Staren rolls his eyes at Mort, in sync with Twilight. "I hope so too, I'm just saying, maybe it's something to keep in mind when planning any... future plans to get her to come around. It may be why standard friendship strategies haven't worked so far."
Twilight Sparkle	"If it comes to that, our queens may not be able to help." Twilight argues. "After all, they are no longer connected to the Elements of Harmony, and without them they were unable to defeat Discord or Nightmare Moon." She nods to Staren, then considers. "It has worked with Jinxel. Bramble Patch must be particularly bitter. Perhaps if I knew where she came from, I could find out just how badly they mistreated her."
Staren	Staren's eyebrows raise a bit. "Hmm... that's not a bad idea. On the other hoof, she might resent us digging up her past."
Mortimer Balman	Mortimer picks up a long piece of grass and chews on it a bit, slowly blackening it to ash. "Twilit.. I didn't mean the Queens would be the ones handling it." He points at himself. He's the one with a long kill list. He can handle doing horrible grisly things. He's good at that. Even his QT Mark is indicative of it. But that thought probably won't cross Twilit's mind. Which.. Actually, that thought makes him feel better. They don't think of him as someone like that. That's a really good thing! Warm fuzzy feelings inside.
Twilight Sparkle	Twilight nods lightly to Staren. "She might, but...would that be any different than how she feels about us now?" Twilight pauses a moment. "I wonder if she has considered that she is treating other ponies just like how they treated her? Being mean to us simply because we friendship and peace, like ponies were to her simply because she could only grow thorny plants." It doesn't occur to Twilight that Morty and his crew are all trained soldiers with many kills under their belts. "You? Why would they call on you? We are the defenders of this world. While we appreciate the assistance, we should handle problems like this ourselves. Asking others to fight our battles for us is not right."
Staren	Staren shakes his head. "Perhaps, but I think she could feel even worse about us, and aren't gestures of faith and respect part of winning people over with friendship?" He strokes his chin. "Well, unless pulling her away from Nightmare Moon is like, detoxing her from a drug, but I don't think it's quite like that. I like the idea of pointing out that she's perpetuating a cycle of meanness, maybe that will get through to her... probably not though." Staren looks at Mort, then blinks at Twilight. "You don't have to ask. We want to help. Equestria is a wonderful place we want to protect, and you're our friend."
Mortimer Balman	Mortimer pauses for a moment at Twilight's statement. "...No reason, dear. No reason t'all." A small smile came over his face, and he felt.. Tired. Very, very, tired. And /old/. He'd let out a yawn and rest his head on the grass. "You kids wanna stick around a bit and yammer, g'head. Reder, yer on watch for the next couple'a hours. Wake me at zero two hundred." Reder grunted, and shimmied up a tree a lot faster than you'd think an amphibian ought to be able to. "<Aye aye, Sarge. Sleep well.>"
Twilight Sparkle	Twilight sighs softly. "Well...if we ended up helping her, Bramble would forgive us. But...yes, I think you are right in that she would feel worse about us in the short-term." she says to Staren, then smiles as he points out that friends help each other. She hugs him again, then looks to Mortimer. "We should get back. I do not wish to interrupt your training. And, Spike is probably eating a tub of ice cream already." She giggles, then looks up at her balloon and her horn glows. Then, the balloon starts downward, carefully landing atop the river where no trees are growing. She hops up into the basket, then waves to Mortimer and the others. "Sleep well!" She waits for Staren to get in, or signal that he would like to stay.
Staren	That's a lot of hugs so far! Today has been a Good Day. Staren tilts his head at Twilight. "Maybe you should just not keep ice cream in the house." He eagerly climbs into the basket, then turns to wave to Mort. "Yeah, sleep well!" Like heck he's staying camping. Especially when the alternative is a balloon ride alone with Twilight. I mean /come on/.