Andifferous

"That's not a bad idea, Winter." Dusty replied, glancing around the room. "Hold off until things get interesting though. They don't seem to concerned with us just yet, but that could change any moment. " He glanced back over his shoulder into the cave. Dunder and Midnight hadn't emerged from the dark tunnel yet, and he was hoping they weren't about to do something stupid. "Look.... you guys go on ahead and get that cart moving... act casual unless something goes wrong. I need to check on Dunder and Midnight."

Dusty could hear the shouting echoing down the caves from behind them, which meant the gryphons and 'dogs were closer than he thought. He wasn't entirely sure, but he thought he could hear sounds coming from up ahead too. That could either be very good, or very bad depending on what it was. He very much doubted that he'd led them around in a circle, but maybe another group had taken another path and was trying to cut them off? "Guys I think there's something up ahe-Whoah!" He cut off abruptly, hooves skidding in the soil and stone as he ground to a halt. The tunnel had rounded a sharp bend and abruptly cut off as it joined with a much larger cavern. The tunnel emerged about halfway up the wall of the cavern, with a steep but navigable rocky slope down to the cave floor. More pressing was the issue that this seemed to be the main chamber of the mine. Small groups of Diamond Dogs were all about, some lounging about in neglect of their guard duties, others digging at various parts of the cavern, working to unearth more gems. Thankfully none of the gryphons were in here, and judging by the slow pace and relaxed guards, news of their escape hadn't gotten here yet. "Huh." He said quietly, taking all of this in, eyes playing over the chamber, before they fixated on something in particular. A very battered rusty old minecart, sitting at the end of a set of rails. The tracks meandered off into the shadows of another cave. "I think I found our ticket out of here." He said, a grin forming on his face.

Semolina smiled a little, hoping that the mayor wasn't overwhelmed by the map and the different things she had pointed to. She had to admit to herself she had gotten just a bit over-excited while trying to help the older mare plan out her next couple of days. She breathed a faint sigh of relief when the mayor explained that she had simply been distracted. Nodding a bit she took a couple steps back to give her some space, ready to go back to maintaining the little shop. Her ears perked up at the mention of the coffee, and she trotted over with the pot carefully held in her teeth. Another quick pour and the mayor's mug was re-filled, leaving about a half-cup left in the pot. She set that down and flipped open her notepad, holding it up to show the pre-written message. -Anything else I can get for you?-

Hmm, I do love a good villain, and as much as I hate to admit, I've put some thought into this. Well if I were a villain I'd go for the whole mad scientist bit (provided I actually have super-smarts or something), cause havoc and chaos with deadly ray-guns, giant robots, and any other sort of evil scheme that suits my fancy. Robbing banks, stealing rare gems, blowing up landmarks for no good reason... HOWEVER, That wouldn't be my real bid for power, instead it would be through ownership of several major corporations, probably dealing in downgraded tech from the mad scientist bit. Slowly but surely I'd take over the world through cut-throat business practices and careful investments, until I have enough corporate power to start ordering around governments. The mad scientist/supervillain bit is all just a careful ploy, there to keep the heroes distracted and prevent them from focusing on the real scheme. Also because sometimes rampaging through a city in a giant robot is just plain fun. And while I'm busy out there keeping a close eye on the local superhero population (its good to keep them in check, but getting rid of them altogether is a bad idea, sometimes you need a super-dude to save the world), my corporate minions will be busy growing, gathering more and more control over the world for me, until finally I have a firm grip on the reins of the world economy, and the entire world will heed my beck and call! From there? who knows, maybe set a bunch of stuff right, maintain my iron grip for a while? Possibly just retire to a nice quiet fortress on the moon, where i can keep an eye on things. Or maybe be "overthrown" and take a vacation, and then start it all again, working upward from the bottom once more, just for the challenge of it!

Semolina pondered for a bit. To be honest, she had been mostly focused on getting her little shop up and running. It took up most of her time and as a result she hadn't really explored the town all that much. True she had taken the occasional day to visit the beach, but beyond that the town was still very new to her. Certainly nothing like the bustle of her hometown of Fillydelphia. Looking around her shop, she spotted a small little rack by the door, that had been given as part of owning a small business in Trottingham. It had several different printed flyers on it, advertising different seasonal entertainment and assorted tourist traps. After a brief moment she selected one that seemed to be just about the town in general; more importantly it possessed a fairly detailed map of the town. With Trottingham relying on a strong tourism industry, such stands and pamphlets were fairly commonplace, to help wandering vacationers find their way around the town and surrounding area. Setting the pamphlet on the table she opened it up to the map. Looking over it a bit, she pointed to several local attractions that customers had chattered about. An old but prosperous vineyard to the north of the town, a small business where some pegasi used their chariots to give aerial tours of the town, and a few other things she'd heard good things about. She gave the mayor a smile, not knowing if any of them were worth it, but hoping this would prove useful.

Semolina's eyes lit up as the mayor offered to spread word of her little shop. Something like that would be a huge boon to her small business, if things went well enough she might even have to hire additional help! The older pony's compliments left her beaming and blushing a little bit, almost forgetting about her request. She gave sort of a 'just-a-moment' smile, before darting off into the back. a few minutes later she returned with a hoof-full of flyers with the name and address of her little bakery written on them, (still don't have a decent name for the bakery) She set them on the table with a smile and checked to see if the mayor needed anything else. She'd happily give her whatever sort of bread she wanted, although the jam wasn't her doing. That came from a preserves and canning shop a few stores down, but she'd happily guide the mare in the right direction.

Semolina thought for a moment, before starting to tap the floor with her hoof, trying to signify how many months her little store had been open for, but paused halfway, reconsidering. Just tapping was a little too vague; it could mean years, months, days, even. Picking up her notepad she flipped to an open page and started writing again. It would take a couple of moments, but it was the easiest way to convey her thoughts. -I opened this store up a little after the last Winter Wrap-Up.- She wrote out. -But I've been baking since I was a filly.- She smiled a little as she set the notepad on the table, turning so the mayor could see her baguette cutie mark.

Dusty took a deep breath and nodded. Everyone giving their encouragement helped a bit. "T-thanks everypony. I.... I just sort of panicked a bit there." he said. "I think I just need a minute to try and re-gain my bearings." he looked around, re-tracing the steps in his head from outside the mountain. "This mountain is practically a sponge with all these caves inside." He paused as Dunder pointed. "Dunder, wait a minute." he stated as the leader was ready to move down another tunnel. If his suspicions were correct though, that would just lead them deeper underground. Looking at the various paths they could take, he pointed toward the one that, by the map he'd put together in his head, should lead them toward the base of the mountain, and that much closer to the surface. "This way." he said, a little uncertain, but starting down it. At the very least it was at a near perpendicular to the direction they had been going, might throw their pursuers off a bit.

Dusty slowed his gallop down to a trot, to allow the others to catch up to him. He panted a bit, looking about the dark caves nervously. He was definitely worried now, and despite his efforts to hide it and appear calm, it was starting to show through. He had to admit to himself at this point that he had no clue where he was going; true the air smelled a little fresher and less dank, but there didn't seem to be any other changes, the caves were still dark, and still no markings anywhere. Every turn he took seemed the same as the last, and in his memory it was all a jumbled mess. There wasn't enough detail to take in to tell any of it apart; for all he knew he'd been leading them deeper into trouble. The pegasus slowed to a halt in the cave, looking at the rock walls around them. "I... I don't think I can do this." he said quietly, "I have no idea where we are."

Still looking for interested ponies. Open to just about any!

Certainly seems like a good idea for a show. Look at how popular "Cash Cab" is, after all. I'm afraid I can't offer too much on the speech, not really my forte' but I look forward to seeing how this progresses.

Dusty's mind was racing as he let the way at a full gallop, pausing only for an instant or two when he wasn't sure which direction to take. He had realized that the slope of the ground could probably be misleading, and apart from a few chipped stalagmites there were no markers around to keep track of where they were. He could hear the shouts of pursuit, which meant there was no time to slow down, and try as he might he was starting to panic a little. Having nothing else to go on he ended up judging their direction by the smell in the air, trying to navigate toward cleaner smelling air, and away from the natural dank musk of stale cave air. He really, really hoped it was working and not just getting them more lost.

Ooh, that could be interesting. Would this be looking for a job at the bakery? Or perhaps just a friend? Also, new plot idea to throw into the pool; maybe some of her friends make a misguided attempt to find her a new voice, despite her protests that she gets on fine without?

Its still in the general idea phase, but I'm looking for somepony to RP with Semolina Flour http://www.canterlot...na-flour-final/ , up in Trottingham. I'm certainly willing to discuss ideas, perhaps something along the lines of her hiring somepony to help out during the busier times, and the antics that ensue from trying to teach them to bake properly. Or possibly just making friends around town with other ponies. If you've got any ideas to throw out there I'd be happy to hear it!

Dusty nodded at Dunder's orders. That female gryphon obviously had a way with words, which was bad. Still it was time to make their escape. "Okay.... here goes.." He said softly, taking a deep breath before charging into the cave, leading the way. He kept a sharp eye on his surroundings, trying to take paths that led uphill. He tried to think back to his books, trying to remember any situations like this, but with all that was going on it was difficult to focus on old memories. "Guys keep an eye out for any signs or markers... anything to say where we are.." he said over his shoulder. So far he hadn't seen anything like that around this cave, but there had to be something... he hoped.

Dusty listened to the female gryphon, quite clearly their leader as she spoke up. It seemed like she was trying to turn things back in their favor, to intimidate the dogs back into submissiveness. With the gryphons standing side by side like that he couldn't get a clear look at the dogs, to see what was going through their heads. He hadn't gotten too much while he was aimlessly poking at the ground with his pickaxe, a few small gemstones but that was it. Dunder was right though, they did need to get out as soon as possible. On a whim he decided to tuck the pickaxe into his vest, using a couple of straps that were better suited for a map tube. still, it might come in handy. "Dunder, I can get us back out the way we came in," he said quietly to the fellow pegasus. "I don't think we can make it back up that shaft though. I... Maybe I could try and find a way up, but it'd be pushing our luck..." he stated Navigation was supposed to be his talent, but under the current circumstances it was rather frustrating; if he knew the caves at all, or could even just figure out how the 'dogs navigated around then he was sure he'd have it. The frustration and concern showed on his face as he looked around the mines. "Whats your call?"

Dusty tried very hard not to grin broadly as one of the 'dogs made the first move. "They just wanted to take advantage of you 'dogs." he said, keeping his distance from the gryphons as they burst in. He had really hoped that this fight wouldn't take place right here, but an opportunity was an opportunity. It was unlikely they'd get another chance at this. "You!" he shouted to one of the dogs run, tell your pack what's happening!" he said, looking around to the other ponies, nodding over his shoulder a bit, trying to gesture that they should, for now at least, retreat a little deeper into the mine. It would do them no good if when fighting broke out they were caught in the middle of it.

Dusty was sure to keep his mouth shut, quietly watching the gryphon from a distance. True the foolish creature had singled himself out, and even in their injured state the adventurers could probably beat him. But that would ruin their plans. Even the slow witted guards would see through their words if they tried something like that. He stole a glance around at the other ponies, hoping they were thinking the same thing. The distrust and suspicion they'd planted in the 'dog's heads needed time to grow yet, and they still needed a way out; with Dunder's broken wing there was no way they could quickly escape the same route they'd gotten in. He tried to make eye contact with the others, gesturing with a slight nod of his head toward the back end of the cave, preferably somewhere a bit out of sight where they could talk. He trotted slowly that way himself, taking every effort to look cowed and submissive.