Miracle at the Braedenburg Gate (SoF Team 3; Closed)

[SteelEagle]

Calm waters stroke the bestide the ports of Hoofenheim, the aged Germaneic city a staunch presence in the east and one of Equestria's greatest holdings. But for as much history and splendor that is held here, a group of adventurers and ne'erdowells plan on opening upon the skeletons of the past in an effort to save the future. Maybe for each one of the individuals the reasons are different; adventure, fame, riches, sheer boredom, honor and duty- the reasons that a pony can find him or herself on the road with friends who are more like enemies than the ones you would find at a picnic are numerous if illusive, but there are a select few who have the motivation. And this small band of not-so-merry travelers have banded together to help far flung friends or outrace far flung rivals to capture the Staff of Fate. Their success will be marked by a continuation of normal Equestrian life for most and riches and fame galore for a few. Their failure- well, their failure will meam total doom in every way and realm of possibility. This is the Staff of Fate. This is Hoofeinheim. This is adventure!

And that...is the Braedenburg Gate!

[Imagination]

Trailblazer.

Former Equestrian Special Forces, professional Treasure Hunter, playcolt and all around great and handsome guy (by his standards) finds himself here. In Germaney. With a group of amateurs.[colour=#ff0000] "Amateurs, I say!"[/colour] He repeats, continuing his complaining. He didn't like working with others. They usually tended to impede progress. Slow him down. Such a lone wolf he was. They were tracking down the Iris for the Staff of Fate. It was something he had set his sights on a while ago, but never had the gumption to really go after it. Now, other ponies were trying, and it was totally ruining his plan. It would've been a FANTASTIC addition to his collection of other priceless ancient treasures on his private island home.

But then these ponies, and an irate griffon, had to tag along with him. He supposed the prize at the end would be worth the trouble... [colour=#ff0000]"Anyway, listen up. We needs leads on the Iris. I'm sure I have a few old Army contacts here, but I'm not sure how much use they'll be. You deadweights should try and get me whatever leads you can"[/colour] Taking charge, that was the best thing to do. If he could get information, he could map out the best possible location of the Iris. Just like any other treasure. He was grateful for his scout training. They've helped him find countless artifacts before, and its never failed him. History favors him, but these are still extraordinary circumstances. He'd have to give it his all.

Once they got the Iris, they'd have a bargaining chip, and could proceed from there. Find Pathfinder, find the Staff, stop Merlot's plan, and go back home with a new toy. That was his plan. He was sure the others had their own motivations, but he didn't care about that. He'd get the job done, and still find a way to be a step ahead. That's what he does, and he does it well.

With that, he was going to head to the REA garrison and keep an ear open. No doubt these events must have reached the populace. Maybe he'd overhear something useful.

[Hippo]

[colour=#000000]Arrow walked into the landscape of the history that Hoofenhiem contained. The Braedenburg Gate sure was a sight. Despite Arrow not being one too keen in on sight-seeing, this was something the little yellow filly had yet to experience, which was saying something. Arrow was a unicorn adolescent cutie mark found, but mischievous on a foal-like level. How she found herself in with this crowd was none of her concern. Her foster parent's unconditional allowance of her adventuring across Equestria was a given; she was sure they would let her go, even if she would have asked them. Arrow never asks for anything, and she takes everything she can, including the opportunity for adventure But she was no thief. She would only occasionally steal the sanity from the other searchers she somehow ended up with.

No matter. Arrow was the leader of this group, and she was certain that everything was going to her plan. She knew about the artifact, and she had overheard references to Hoofenhiem for clues. If one of the others in the group hadn't already said it, she would have been the one to inform. But she was content. She already had a trusty map to the artifact, and had a small journal that contained all the secret information she needed to find the item. And she would share this information with no pony. And no griffon.[/colour]

[colour=#0033ff]"So let's go then!"[/colour][colour=#000000] Arrow took the suggestion to look towards the local shops in the city. [/colour][colour=#0033ff]"There's a drinking bar right over there just like the Salt Block back at home!"[/colour][colour=#000000] Arrow wasn't rarely away from home. But she acted like she had traveled the world five times in her short-so-far life. As if she was pulling the group with a chain, she raced ahead of the group and scampered her little hooves towards the entrance to the joint. She looked back at them. [/colour][colour=#0033ff]"Maybe you guys should stay outside for this one. It might get ugly inside."[/colour]

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[RarityDash]

Germaney--it was an entire continent away from her native Aquelia and right at the heart of the classically minded East Equestria. Most would assume that someone like Gilda the griffon wouldn't have much history there or use for the place. Not too long ago that would have been true, yet as it were some of the griffoness' best recent memories had gone down in this quaint little land. She had made friends with a pony named Ignition outside Cloudsdale and after some nonsense the two of them had flown off to Germaney to enjoy the club scene. A long night of rough and tumble fun had ensued at the atmospheric club Unter-grund, culminating in some rather satisfying brawling. It had been a night of fun, and as rare as those were they were memorable.

Now here she was in Germaney once more, but Gilda couldn't say the circumstances were quite so favorable. There was no genuinely cool pony to pal around with, there were no unusual drinks to sample, no rocking music, no fun times to be had. Instead she found herself harnessed to a bunch of fools and ingrates, suckered into some fool quest. The iris of Immortality... the Staff of Fate... they sounded like the kind of things that could make her a nice sized fortune if she hunted them down. The lead had been so juicy, the idea of snatching such a relic so tempting she had had no choice but to follow it where it would lead her. Unfortunately, she had been saddled with a team.

Working with others was not something Gilda cared very much for. It always ended with her on the raw end of the deal; the last thing she wanted was a repeat of the Pathfinder situation, trekking through Tartarus with somepony else, finding what they sought and then getting left with nothing but bitterness. She wouldn't let that happen again. So for her, this "team" was only a temporary situation... something to ride until it was no longer to her advantage. Even still, these particular ponies were starting to try her patience. It was anyone's call just how long she'd be able to endure.

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[colour=#FF0000]"Anyway, listen up. We needs leads on the Iris. I'm sure I have a few old Army contacts here, but I'm not sure how much use they'll be. You deadweights should try and get me whatever leads you can"[/colour]

[colour=#0033FF]"So let's go then! [/colour][colour=#0033FF]There's a drinking bar right over there just like the Salt Block back at home! [/colour][colour=#0033FF]Maybe you guys should stay outside for this one. It might get ugly inside."[/colour]

Looming in the shadow of the Braedenburg Gate, evidently some landmark the dumb ponies cared about, conversation broke out. Gilda had been forced to endure the company of a lot of irritating ponies, but these two stuck out among the rest all the same. One was a hothead REA adventurer convinced he was the hottest thing around; the other was some upstart little brat who fancied herself to be the fearless leader of their band. Both were presumptuous as could be imagined and didn't know when to flip their nonsense switch to the off setting.

As Trailblazer wandered off on his own, Gilda rolled her eyes and stepped ahead of the other pony who was moving toward a bar. [colour=#996699]"Tch. If this place is anything like my favorite Germane bar, it's no place for cheeky little foals. It's the punks like you who might want to consider sit outside and let the adults handle this," [/colour]Gilda said, showing a profound lack of respect to the professed "leader". [colour=#996699]"You don't watch youself and you might get beaten on,"[/colour] she added with a laugh.

Her piece said, she threw the door to the bar open and strode in. The patrons stared some; it was unavoidable-- weren't many griffons this far East. She observed the place casually. It was a cleaner place than Club Unter-grund, but it lacked some in character. Still, it did have some atmosphere, as well as more than one customer who looked like the shady sort who might know something of value. Quickly surveying the place, Gilda found at least five ponies who looked suspicious enough to try and approach. For now, she just found her way to the bar and ordered a drink.

[colour=#996699]"Now... who would know something about the Iris...?"[/colour] she muttered to herself as she began to seek the place with her eyes some more.

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[Hippo]

[colour=#000000]Arrow was a little put off by being side-lined by the griffon, who was easily three times as high as she was. But the size did not matter to Arrow. Neither the carry of voice, nor the strength, or lack thereof, of her legs. However, as soon as she crossed into the building, she could smell the odor of older ponies and their intoxications The smoke of their bellows just out of reach hovering above Arrow like a dunce cloud. And she could hear constant unintelligible chatter. She wanted to see it. Fortunately, next to her was a tall strong griffon, who probably wouldn't mind if a little yellow filly decided to climb on top of her.

Before she grabbed, Arrow's eyes widened to the re-realization of the size of her wing. It was magnificent. More bold and powerful than and pegasus pony wings she had ever seen. She reached up, hooked her hooves onto the clasp of the wing bone, and lifted her tiny body on top of the half bird half cat beast. On top, she leaned forward, giving Gilda's neck a nice pelt to feather hug, and looked forward through the room.

She saw what looked like a bar with several ponies sitting at it. [/colour][colour=#3366cc]"There's the bar. I bet the barkeep has some secrets. They always do!"[/colour][colour=#000000] Arrow smiled gleefully, infecting any nearby beings with her cuteness, but then immediately she flattened her face. [/colour][colour=#3366cc]"Let's do this."[/colour]

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