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Peril in the Crystal Mines (PM to Join)


Bellosh

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"Don't even make jokes about that.", Pocket Change politely whispered back to the stallion, "We're all going to be keeping our hooves to ourselves for this little visit. Not only do we need to worry about breaking anything ancient and or valuable, there's also the risk of getting involved with old and lost magics that are best handled by the professionals.", the guide warned. "And you'd be surprised that sometimes sink holes have a habit of opening and turning say an old field or home into a valuable historic find." He watched as Flakey acquired her not-so-fashionable helmet. "Don't worry kid, you may look like an 'Handy Horse' action figure, but that helmet is going to be your best friend, as in you're gonna need to keep your best friend on for the entire duration of this visit.", the older stallion stated before catching sight of the crystal walls, "Oh wow." he gasped before turning his attention back to the group and making sure all of his group got a helmet before they continued on.

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The Crystal Pony was not the only one who wasn't very pleased for the mandatory requirement that they all had to wear the hard-hats. "Oh feathers.", Wind Walker grumbled, "Not only am I gonna get hat-mane, I'm sure I look like Pocket by now. El Dorko Supreme.", she growled, "So if the nasty king didn't die because of cooties, what did he die of?", she asked, "And don't let it be boring. These things usually are."

"Hey there, I'm Bebop Slide. What's your name?"

"I'm Wind Walker, and that's Flakey.", the little blue filly pointed a hoof towards the little crystal pony, ", her frown vanished as the filly thought up of something, "That's a mouthful. Can we call you Beb? Or Bop? Or how about B....."

The unicorn stallion tour-guide glared back at the filly, "Don't you even think about calling her by her initials!"

Wind Walker rolled up her eyes, "No fun. So, how's Bebop?"

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As the elevator came to a stop the filly casually strolled out with the rest of the group, her eyes lighting up a bit as she saw all the crystals peppering the walls and the many spelunkers at work. This place was incredible! The many colors of crystals could make a rainbow jealous with their lustrous brilliance and the faint sparkling of those crystals not clearly seen in the depths of the cave could be a sight akin to the stars in the night sky.

As one of the spelunkers and the tour guide with the blue pegasus pointed out a box of hard hats, Bebop didn't waste anytime levitating one over to her head while she listened to her new friend talking to her and questioning as to what she should call her.

"I'm Wind Walker, and that's Flakey.", the little blue filly pointed a hoof towards the little crystal pony, ", her frown vanished as the filly thought up of something, "That's a mouthful. Can we call you Beb? Or Bop? Or how about B....."

The unicorn stallion tour-guide glared back at the filly, "Don't you even think about calling her by her initials!"

Wind Walker rolled up her eyes, "No fun. So, how's Bebop?"

Anypony looking at her could see that the brown filly was indeed laughing but she made no sounds at all. Planting the hard hat on her head bright-tan mane with a playful smile she began to once again write something down.

"I'd let you call me by my initials, but I think My grandparents would throw a fit if they heard somepony called me that so Bebop is fine. It's nice to meet you Wind walker... and you too flakey shards" oddly enough she was sure to include the ellipses in her written statement in regards to Flakey.

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"So if the nasty king didn't die because of cooties, what did he die of?" And don't let it be boring. These things usually are."

Flakey Shards was too busy having the grown-ups strap a dorky hardhat on her head to be in the right mood to make the story of the Crystal Empire’s liberation sound exciting. Without much emotion in her voice, the monotone crystal filly explained as such; “Basically, a midget dragon grabbed the Crystal Heart, but he fell off the tower and was just about to be snatched up by King Sombra when the Princess swooped in to recover both the Heart and the dragon. She then set down and told everypony to fill the Heart with light and love, and that made everything shine so bright that Sombra exploded. And then we all lived happily ever after. The end.”

"I'm Wind Walker, and that's Flakey .....That's a mouthful. Can we call you Beb? Or Bop? Or how about B....."

"I'd let you call me by my initials, but I think my grandparents would throw a fit if they heard somepony called me that so Bebop is fine. It's nice to meet you Wind Walker... and you too Flakey Shards"

Okay… this Bebop filly was really freaking Flakey out. Why couldn’t the little crystal pony ever run into a kid who wasn’t weird? There was Brighty the teacher’s pet, Liney the depressing kid, Windy the… well, she wasn’t too weird, and now Bebop the filly who wrote instead of spoke. Obviously, this demanded an explanation! “So kid,” Flakey asked in a suspicious manner; “Do you… ever say anything at all?”

Bebop’s oddness didn’t hold Miss Shard’s attention for very long, as she rudely shouted at the tour guide; “Hey you, Mister Change! When do we go exploring these caves?” If Pocket Change was going to bore them with an introductory educational of safety lecture, then forget it. Flakey planned to sleep right through the entire speech.....

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“Do you… ever say anything at all?”

Bebop sighed silently and then gave the crystal pony a rather flat, annoyed stare. Her horn still lit up in her orange aura she begin to write down her answer. Bebop really didn't care for having to explain her unfortunate state of affairs in regards to her lack of a voice. She assumed by this filly's tone she was the kind who would want to know the details of something that seemed weird in her eyes, she had heard this tone a few times in her life but she had rarely heard it as blatantly as she did in this crystal pony's voice. Levitating the notepad towards the light blue crystal filly, the young unicorn's flat look remaining for a few moments before she walked over to the nearby box of hardhats.

"If I -could- say anything do you think I'd be using my magic on this pen and pad? The part of my body that lets me make sounds and talk doesn't work so I have to write this stuff out. Chances are once you've finished reading this I'll be showing you what I mean."

After levitating the hardhat on to her head it seemed Bebop had indeed taken to demonstrating her problem. Behind Flakey she was making a look and action like she was making a very loud scream although absolutely nothing could be heard from her until she stopped and levitated the pencil and pad over to her saddlebag and dropped them in.

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Professor Ambertome was just as (if not more-so) excited to attend this trip as most of his students were. Having been teaching in the crystal empire most of his time to get his students all caught up on all the history the kingdom had missed out on, the crystal stallion was positively ecstatic about actually seeing this world that was surely so full of new knowledge. Given the professor's energy he was able to easily keep an eye on most of the students. Thankfully in his class there weren't many problem fillies or colts... with the exception of a certain blue crystal filly in his class by the name of "Flakey Shards". He had found himself mostly keeping an eye on her since he'd been on this trip as her obnoxious behaviour was more than likely going to push a few ponies' buttons.

Turning around he was treated to the site of a dark brown unicorn filly ... was she making faces at her? It looked like she was trying to be one of those strange performing mime ponies he'd read about. Cantering over to Flakey and her "friend" he cleared his throat to get their attention.

"Miss shard, you're not trying to antagonize these ponies are you? if not I guess I should ask the same of your friend there." the stallion spoke very quickly as he looked around the group and bowed politely pocket change,"We're in your hooves, Mister change! Teach us well!"

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"Don't even make jokes about that.", Pocket Change politely whispered back to the stallion, "We're all going to be keeping our hooves to ourselves for this little visit. Not only do we need to worry about breaking anything ancient and or valuable, there's also the risk of getting involved with old and lost magics that are best handled by the professionals.", the guide warned. "And you'd be surprised that sometimes sink holes have a habit of opening and turning say an old field or home into a valuable historic find." He watched as Flakey acquired her not-so-fashionable helmet. "Don't worry kid, you may look like an 'Handy Horse' action figure, but that helmet is going to be your best friend, as in you're gonna need to keep your best friend on for the entire duration of this visit.", the older stallion stated before catching sight of the crystal walls, "Oh wow." he gasped before turning his attention back to the group and making sure all of his group got a helmet before they continued on.

"Oh, come on. I was just kidding," Curio assured the tour guide, Pocket Change, in a quiet voice. He wasn't, but hey. He adjusted his own hard hat and checked that the shuttered lamp was still working. Sure, it was old compared to everypony else's, and made him look ridiculous, but it was the functionality that counted most.

"It's not like we're going to unearth some eldritch horror," he added to Pocket Change, this time loud enough for everypony to hear. "Like some ancient crystal monster. A crystalbear or some other cave dweller. Oh, I wonder if those Cragodiles from the Everfree forest come in crystal varieties?" he mused. He was mostly just poking fun. Everypony knew there was no such thing as a crystal bear, right?

...right?

Once the group was ready to set off, Curio checked his helmet once again and flicked open the shutters. Light played across the crystals, shimmering and glimmering and altogether making his wallet itch. How many bits could this cave contain? How many stories could he weave about the crystals within? It almost made the earth pony's mouth water. He turned and followed Pocket Change and the rest of the group.

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“Ugh. That’s both boring and silly at the same time!”, the filly groaned, “Midget dragons. Magic hearts. Who comes up with this stuff?”, she combined her eye-rolling skills with another groan, “I betcha the adults just told you that cause they knew what really happened and being dumb old adults they didn't want you to hear what really happened. They don’t think we can handle the truth! I betcha Shining Armor probably charged in with his sword and sliced the dumb King’s head off and then Princess Cadance blasted what was left of him with her magic! Kerboom!", she mimed a 'mushroom cloud' with her front hooves. The filly frowned a little as Flakey questioned the unicorn, "She's either too shy to talk or she can't talk at all."

Wind Walker's eyes grew a little larger as she took a good look at the 'silent kid'. She looked so sad, so frail, so shy, it reminded her a good deal of her very best friend Fast Track. When she first met him after he and his parents had moved to Canterlot from Cloudsdale, he too acted like Bebop. That is, until she befriended the colt and invited him to her little social circle of friends. She studied what Bebop had to write next and it crushed her heart. She couldn’t talk at all and maybe even ever! She would never be able to yell, laugh or even sing along with her favorite music! Wind could imagine how life would be if she couldn't speak. She wouldn't be able to joke with her friend Wiseacre at school. She wouldn't be able to call her big brother Sky a 'big greedy dumb dummy' for spending too much time and using all the hot water up in the bathroom. And she would never be able to sing along with the children's choir at school during Hearth's Warming Eve.

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"Wind Walker.", Pocket Change spoke up, "Are you and your little friends even paying attention to what I've been saying?", the stallion was not pleased. "I was finishing up with the safety rules. If you fall into a endless pit or get eaten by a Grue, please don't come crawling to me. Or floating. Cause you'd be ghosts. So please pay attention. We're going to be entering one of the chambers. As before. Please stay together in this group, remember your buddies and do not even think about using projectile magic! Many of these crystals contained in these chambers are highly reflective! You try tossing a spell towards these babies and you'll end up with your own spell coming back at you."

"It's not like we're going to unearth some eldritch horror," he added to Pocket Change, this time loud enough for everypony to hear. "Like some ancient crystal monster. A crystalbear or some other cave dweller. Oh, I wonder if those Cragodiles from the Everfree forest come in crystal varieties?" he mused. He was mostly just poking fun. Everypony knew there was no such thing as a crystal bear, right?

"The Everfree?", the unicorn let out a sigh, "That place has always been a hot mess. I heard stories that many of the creatures found there were created and animated to watch over ancient magics. Even after their masters had long passed into the underworld, their creations still guard the woods, ready to attack anypony foolish enough to trespass their domain. Let's not test to see if any animated golems or elementals are still lurking about in these caves and caverns daring any pony to try his or hers luck by trying to steal one of these crystals."

Once he was sure everyone in his group had their safety gear on, Pocket Change lead them all into their first chamber. The walls were covered in jagged rocks and crystals of all sizes and colors. There were small enchanted torches mounted on certain sections of the walls. "While there is still a good deal of research going on, we have learned that these crystal caverns were once frequented by many great and powerful wizards. Once these caverns were filled with all manners of gems that grew along beside the crystals. Like the crystals, these gems were capable of altering and enhancing magic, so over time, the more precious gems were stolen by greedy mages, and eventually they sealed up the entrances in hopes that the great cave system would eventually heal itself over time with its magics.", he glanced at his group before asking, "So, anypony have any questions so far?"

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  • 2 weeks later...

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“Ugh. That’s both boring and silly at the same time! Midget dragons. Magic hearts. Who comes up with this stuff? I betcha the adults just told you that cause they knew what really happened and being dumb old adults they didn't want you to hear what really happened. They don’t think we can handle the truth! I betcha Shining Armor probably charged in with his sword and sliced the dumb King’s head off and then Princess Cadance blasted what was left of him with her magic! Kerboom!"

What cool things Flakey Shards previously thought about Wind Walker momentarily died with that outburst of dumb. Adults simply weren’t clever enough to believably tell a lie like that! Heh, did this kid actually think that the Tooth Fairy also existed? Meh, whatever... at least Windy was no teacher’s pet still.

"If I -could- say anything do you think I'd be using my magic on this pen and pad? The part of my body that lets me make sounds and talk doesn't work so I have to write this stuff out. Chances are once you've finished reading this I'll be showing you what I mean."

So… this new girl couldn’t make any sound, huh? That sounded like a cheesy trick to Flakey Shards, who had plenty of experience in faking blindness during some past cons. But then again, the fact that this Bebop filly would do such a thing elevated the crystal filly’s opinion of her… for the time being. Right now though, Flakey simply shrugged and rolled with it.

"Miss Shard, you're not trying to antagonize these ponies are you? if not I guess I should ask the same of your friend there."

Stupid teachers, bleh. The only thing that Flakey Shards liked about Mr. Ambertone was that he wasn’t Bright Shards parent. Other than that, he was nothing more than a bothersome annoyance that only tried to ruin the bratty filly’s fun. Oh well, there was no problem caused by killjoy teachers that couldn’t be fixed with blatant lying. “I’m being a good filly Mister Ambertone,” Flakey deceivingly spoke through an excessively wide smile; “I would never tease my other classmates.”

"While there is still a good deal of research going on, we have learned that these crystal caverns were once frequented by many great and powerful wizards. Once these caverns were filled with all manners of gems that grew along beside the crystals. Like the crystals, these gems were capable of altering and enhancing magic, so over time, the more precious gems were stolen by greedy mages, and eventually they sealed up the entrances in hopes that the great cave system would eventually heal itself over time with its magics. .....So, anypony have any questions so far?"

Aside from the enchanted torches, nothing stood out too much in Flakey’s eyes. However, she paid just enough attention to Pocket Change’s lecture that she had a legitimate question. “Hey Mister Change!” she rudely shouted over some other kid who raised a hoof politely; “That Merlot guy told us earlier that nopony knew why they closed the mines. What makes you think this place used to be a wizard hangout?”

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  • 2 weeks later...

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Seeing as Flakey Shards was pretty much un-phased by her antics, Bebop went back over to Wind Walker. Sitting down as Mister Change began his lecture she hid her horn under her newly acquired hat to hide it's glow. Beside the blue filly, bebop's notepad floated over with a small written statement upon it.

"So where are you from, again? I was born Dodge Junction but I live with my grandparent's in Ponyville."

The dark brown filly left the notepad down beside her new friend. Wind walker seemed like the most down to Equestria of the fillies here, even if she was a bit excitable so it seemed best to stick to her.

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“I’m being a good filly Mister Ambertone. I would never tease my other classmates.”

Seeing as nopony seemed to have their feelings hurt, Ambertome could at least believe the first part of her statement. Miss shards reputation among the teacher's colleagues was quite well known so he could only raise a questioning brow at the second statement,"Well I suppose this means you've suddenly turned over a new leaf, Congratulations!" he said in a slightly playful tone.

Soon Flakey's rudeness seemed to pop up again as she stepped over somepony else's question to ask her own, even if it was a good question it was still quite impolite.

“Hey Mister Change! That Merlot guy told us earlier that nopony knew why they closed the mines. What makes you think this place used to be a wizard hangout?”

"Miss Shards, I'm going to have to ask you to hold your questions until you're called on." The stallion did look to the unicorn slightly curiously,"Although she does bring up a good point. How do you know that, Mister Change?"

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“Yes, that’s correct, but it doesn’t mean through study and research, or even simple common sense we can’t figure this all out together. It’s either that, or I can just point out interesting rocks during our little trip here”, The unicorn replied back, “I’m sure you of all ponies are aware how important crystals are to those who study and use magic.”, Pocket Change made sure to eat up all the new information he could find after the ‘return’ of the great ‘Crystal Empire’. He had heard the stories after Celestia’s Champions had returned. They had both freed the crystal ponies, re-discovered their lost traditions and even defeated the shadow of the empire’s former king, the dark and dreadful King Sombra.

“Crystals can be used to enhance magics in many ways, from extending the duration of the spell, enlarging the size of said spell, and even making certain spells quicker, among many things. Some of the more rarer crystals could even move the spell beyond what it was even originally intended for. So naturally a place like this was a haven for unicorns. I’m guessing.”, he glanced around the caverns, “Many probably tried to keep the crystals here, but some mages were bound to desire the crystals for their own personal use. Eventually it got out of hoof and as you have seen, the mines were closed off. ‘course, there could be other reasons. Maybe the ponies here dug too far into the rock and ran into something unpleasant. What do you think?”

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Wind Walker was obviously bored to tears by now. She glared back at the stallion as he rambled on about rocks or something. Thankfully she had some company. The little blue filly quickly read Bebop’s notepad as it was written upon, “I’m from Canterlot.”, she whispered, “Ponyville? That’s a pretty fun place. I know a few kids there. Do you know Apple Bloom? Her big sister is one of the heroes that’s always out saving the world and such. How’s it like living there? Heard something exciting happens nearly every week.”, while the filly was curious why she didn’t live with her parents, she quickly decided it wasn’t any of her business to ask.

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"Miss Shards, I'm going to have to ask you to hold your questions until you're called on. Although she does bring up a good point. How do you know that, Mister Change?"

“Yes, that’s correct, but it doesn’t mean through study and research, or even simple common sense we can’t figure this all out together. It’s either that, or I can just point out interesting rocks during our little trip here.I’m sure you of all ponies are aware how important crystals are to those who study and use magic..... Eventually it got out of hoof and as you have seen, the mines were closed off. ‘course, there could be other reasons. Maybe the ponies here dug too far into the rock and ran into something unpleasant. What do you think?”

Pffft, that tour guide guy didn’t know anything, and now he wanted the rest of the group to use their noggins to help him figure out the mystery. Well, Flakey Shards had much better things to do than using her brainpower for scholarly deeds. Like… picking on Liney! She was pretty quiet thought; maybe that moody filly got enamoured with Mr. Change’s tales, since she lapped up anything about magic.

In an attempt from having to perform some actual critical thinking, Flakey Shards condescendingly made a suggestion at once. “I got a better idea,” the crystal filly pointed at that stallion miner bringing up the rear of the group; “Let’s get that weird miner to solve the mystery of the Crystal Mines. That’s his job, isn’t it?” As always, Flakey flagrantly disregarded the wishes of her teacher.....

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  • 3 weeks later...

[Well, my computer's back working again, so that's good :D]

----

Curio looked over at the group when the little crystal filly mentioned him. He blinked. Weird miner? Yeah, he could work with that. He'd be the weird miner, and that'd be his cover. Awesome! He'd been listening to Pocket Change too. So these crystals were valuable for multiple reasons, not just their appearance. "Well, I think the miners did dig too deep. They may have uncovered a crystal cragodile or something like that. I've seen them before, on other expeditions. Cragodiles, not crystal ones. This is my first time in a crystal cavern," he explained. "But if you want me to solve the mystery of these crystal caves, then I will!" he stepped forward and in blatant disregard of safety (and of signs), charged forward into the caves.

He returned a few moments later and adjusted his jacket. "That was the latrine. My mistake. Got turned around. This way!" he said, heading down another passage and looking back at the others. "Come on, it's a crystal mine. Let's go find some really cool stuff!"

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  • 2 weeks later...

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“Yes, that’s correct, but it doesn’t mean through study and research, or even simple common sense we can’t figure this all out together. It’s either that, or I can just point out interesting rocks during our little trip here.I’m sure you of all ponies are aware how important crystals are to those who study and use magic..... Eventually it got out of hoof and as you have seen, the mines were closed off. ‘course, there could be other reasons. Maybe the ponies here dug too far into the rock and ran into something unpleasant. What do you think?”

“I got a better idea, Let’s get that weird miner to solve the mystery of the Crystal Mines. That’s his job, isn’t it?”

"I'm starting to wonder if that filly will ever learn to act right..." thought the amber colored stallion to himself. Rather than chastising Miss Shards like he had done mulitple times before, the Professor instead just gave one of those intense, stern glares he'd give students who were misbehaving,"Miss shards, if our friendly guide here does make any mistakes- and I'm sure he will do his best- I assure you the class will go over them in depth tomorrow in class, okay? I'll be sure to make any corrections in the unlikely event he does make a mistake."

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“I’m from Canterlot.”, she whispered, “Ponyville? That’s a pretty fun place. I know a few kids there. Do you know Apple Bloom? Her big sister is one of the heroes that’s always out saving the world and such. How’s it like living there? Heard something exciting happens nearly every week.”

Bebop gave a nod and hoping not to draw attention to herself by using her telekinesis she took the pencil in her teeth and began to write down her reply. Looking around a couple times to see if anypony was watching she gave a slightly sly smirk as she slid another note over to Wind.

The Note itself said that Bebop had not spoken all that much with Applebloom but she did speak to her a while during the running of the leaves. Bebop didn't join in the racing, instead she joined on the sidelines and had a picnic with a Applejack's sister and green pegasus named Quicklime. In regards to how active Ponyville could be, Bebop had to admit that town was exceptionally lively. There were always a lot of interesting things going on in town if you knew where to look. The famous Cellist had even opened up a music lessons shop recently!

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“Mistakes?”, the unicorn was offended, and while the desire to stuff the teacher’s goofy bow-tie into his mouth to keep him from uttering anymore such insults did pop into his mind, Pocket Change decided to play it cool and professional. “Beyond little children not behaving.”, his eyes fell upon the little crystal pony, “Or ponies touching things, there will be no mistakes here.”, he glanced towards the assorted rock formations, "We are still in the very beginning stages of our exploration and understanding of these very special caves. Statements will be made, theories will start, but they will simply be advanced as more information presents itself."

"Before we continue, just a quick little bit of information about caves in general.", the stallion's horn lit up briefly which projected a low, but noticeable light, which pointed towards several of the rock formations that rose from the floor, "These are stalagmites. They are created from an assortment of different materials such as mud, peat, lava, blah blah blah..."

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The little blue Pegasus filly groaned, "So boring. He's talking about school stuff. And we already covered this. We know this.", she moaned. While the desire to fling herself over the edge to end the boredom did seem like a perfectly logical solution, she decided she could at least be 'un-bored' in the company of Bebop and even Flakey. Wind Walker glanced down at what the unicorn had written, "I was there, but at a different area, I guess. Met Princess Celestia and wow, she is so awesome..I did notice a lack of kids where I was at, and probably would have looked for a place with more ponies my age, but I couldn't, since the princess was there and the candy was really good."

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".......you should never touch any of the stalactites and stalagmites since the oils and dirt on your skin and hair could actually alter the surfaces of these naturally formed rock formations and actually change its growth and even its color.", the guide droned on, "So once you're ready. We shall move ahead."

Pocket Change turned off his 'pointer-light' and lead the small group into the next 'room'.

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Curio poked his head down the chamber he'd charged off in, to find an off-shoot tunnel of the main mine. He trotted into the darkness as Pocket Change's words about the stalactites and stalagmites echoed off the walls of the cavern. He flicked open the shutter on his light, letting the enchanted candle guide his way into the darkness a little bit.

He came out shortly after, screaming and stumbling along the floor of the cave. He skidded to a stop and smacked into a rather large stalagmite. Chasing him were a flock of bats, chittering and swarming past him and out the entrance of the cave, some distance above them. Curio got up and shook out his head, then dusted himself off a little bit. "Mangy beasts," he mumbled, closing the shutter on his light now that he'd returned to the group again, which was just heading out.

"You mentioned something about these rocks changing colours?" he asked, straightening his ancient miner's helmet and REA greatcoat, trying to ignore the fact he'd just screamed like a little filly.

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The next chamber the group happened upon was more or less a tunnel; one running perpendicular to the path they were already trotting on. Running through the middle of this tunnel were a set of what looked like miniature railroad tracks. To undiscriminating eyes, the tracks looked unaffected by the ravages of time, although it had yet been determined if they could still be used.

“So weird sissy miner,” Flakey Shards mocked the other adult for his fit of terror just moments ago; “What do you think this place is? Is it something awesome?” The crystal filly felt like being difficult, for she already knew that those tracks were probably for minecarts. She wasn’t that dense after all, but she always enjoyed giving a hard time to grown-ups she didn't care for. Like all those babysitters who refused to look after the brat anymore.....

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  • 1 month later...

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“Mistakes? Beyond little children not behaving. Or ponies touching things, there will be no mistakes here.”, he glanced towards the assorted rock formations, "We are still in the very beginning stages of our exploration and understanding of these very special caves. Statements will be made, theories will start, but they will simply be advanced as more information presents itself."

The crystal stallion smiled a forced smile at Pocket Change's initial look at him, "W-well I did say 'unlikely' you know... anyway, no need to worry about the foals here misbehaving. They are under my watchful eye after all." said the professor before Pocket chance did just that. Since Ambertome was still fairly limited of his knowledge in regards to the crystal mines he was still eager to listen to whatever mister change had to say about this site. It was going to be an excellent learning experience for both him and his students... even if some students weren't too respectful of the teaching process.

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"Before we continue, just a quick little bit of information about caves in general. These are stalagmites. They are created from an assortment of different materials such as mud, peat, lava, blah blah blah..."

"So boring. He's talking about school stuff. And we already covered this. We know this. I was there, but at a different area, I guess. Met Princess Celestia and wow, she is so awesome..I did notice a lack of kids where I was at, and probably would have looked for a place with more ponies my age, but I couldn't, since the princess was there and the candy was really good."

Bebop nodded with a quiet yawn as Pocket change's speech dissolved into nothing but a series of 'blahs' as he spoke. Wind was absolutely right, they had already covered this in class. Bebop herself had already memorized all this stuff for the trip. There was something in what the blue pegasus said that caught the little musical pony's attention though; the statement that her new friend had in fact met princess Celestia!

Quickly the filly wrote down a question, her hasty response showing the surprise behind it. Sliding the note again to Wind walker she made sure the side with the writing was up so she could see it. Upon the note was the question, "You met Princess Celestia?!"

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“Uh.”, The stallion was completely flabbergasted, dumbfounded and extra gobsmacked over what had just happened with the older stallion. While he did not see what had just just transpired in the darkness, there had been a good deal of racket that could be heard from where the group was standing. "Yes. If you touch them, the oils and dirt you have in your..", he stuttered, "On your person will disrupt and stain the formation of the speleothem. It would be like changing an artist's paint as he worked on a portrait. And for the record.", it was obvious who Pocket Change was speaking to at the moment, "You all need to stay with the group. We are not responsible for any ponies who wander off. You stay with the group, or you suffer the chance of ending up a permanent part of these caves."

"Anyways.", he cleared his throat, "As you may notice, there's less natural light entering this room as compared to the one we had just left. If this was a proper run-of-a-mill cave, there would be even less vegetation than the previous areas. We generally refer to this as a 'Twilight-Zone*', and it's bappity-Bap-Blah-Blah.."

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Wind's right ear waggled a moment as Flakey teased the older pony. He might be weird, but she wasn't sure he a sissy. He looked a bit like a pony that might show up in her adventure books. He probably would be suited a silly sidekick, but even those guys got to save the day once and a while. "Oh!", she was so lost in thought that she nearly jumped as her new filly friend sent her a 'text'. "Celestia...", the Pegasi was obviously excited to speak of this event, and tried he best to keep her tone as less disruptive as possible. "I was still kind of banged up after the whole mess that was Nightmare Night so my older sister made sure I had a..er..", she grunt-whispered, "Babysitter. He was one of my sister's military colleagues, and he wasn't that bad. Any-who, I spotted a pony selling candy, so I went in line and Princess Celestia showed up. She was like right there as close as you are to me and she was so AWESOME! She was so pretty and so nice and just being near her made me think less of all the bad things that had happened and more of what really mattered. Ponies, zebras, griffons and others joining forces and kicking those stupid Changeling's skinny behinds. It made me realize why all of Equestria loves her so."

It was now obvious that Wind Walker was talk just a little too loudly, which caused the unicorn to glance back at Ambertome. As he did, what sounded like a growling could be heard from the darkness.

(OOC: I'll let the next poster decide what's making this noise. Horrible monster? Bat with an empty belly. Duh-Duh-Duh!!

* Yep! They actually call it that! A room in cave with low light!

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  • 3 weeks later...

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Minding her own business, and nopony else’s, Flakey Shards completely drowned out everything except for her daydreams. All of this talking was so blah-blah-blah that when a inequine growl manifested itself, that caused the crystal filly to perk up. But almost as soon as the noise was heard, silence reigned in the cave again. Seconds later, the growl came back, followed by another rhythmic quietness. The cycle of noises just kept on repeating itself, very much like how the process of breathing always sticks to the same tempo.

Flakey couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Just some rocks, stone spikes from the floors and ceilings, and the faint image of the night sky up ahead. Wait, that last thing was pretty odd come to think of it. “Mister Change,” the filly asked incredulously; “Is it normal to see stars in these caves?”

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  • 3 weeks later...

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"Anyways.", he cleared his throat, "As you may notice, there's less natural light entering this room as compared to the one we had just left. If this was a proper run-of-a-mill cave, there would be even less vegetation than the previous areas. We generally refer to this as a 'Twilight-Zone*', and it's bappity-Bap-Blah-Blah.."

As Mister Change continued to speak about the caverns, Bebop raised a brow almost skeptically. "Was that supposed to be a joke?" she thought to herself. considering this was part of the area that the newest princess had found herself trapped in by the changeling queen. Since it was hardly something worth visually commenting on, Bebop decided she may as well just leave it be and return to listening to her friend as she elaborated on her meeting with Princess Celestia. while Pocket Change's speech devolved into a series a 'blahs' once again.

"I was still kind of banged up after the whole mess that was Nightmare Night so my older sister made sure I had a..er..", she grunt-whispered, "Babysitter. He was one of my sister's military colleagues, and he wasn't that bad. Any-who, I spotted a pony selling candy, so I went in line and Princess Celestia showed up. She was like right there as close as you are to me and she was so AWESOME! She was so pretty and so nice and just being near her made me think less of all the bad things that had happened and more of what really mattered. Ponies, zebras, griffons and others joining forces and kicking those stupid Changeling's skinny behinds. It made me realize why all of Equestria loves her so."

Bebop look changed to one of worry as she wrote down her next sentence on the her notepad. During the fateful Nightmare Night that the changelings invaded Bebop had been home on the outskirts of Ponyville in her Grandparent's home; Sick with the flu. During that night she could hear the panicked cries of ponies during the invasion and even witness the battle outside of ponyville that had resulted in the Ever free forest catching Fire. She was very happy to see that the nice Zebra lady who lived there was alright and she'd heard she'd even gotten an award for some of her deeds during that horrible night.

Slipping her note to Windy again. On it she asks Wind if she managed to get a hold of the princess' autograph or anything like that. She also asked if she was going to the canterlot castle trip that she'd heard was planned.

----------------------------------------Meanwhile-----------------------------------------

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It was now obvious that Wind Walker was talk just a little too loudly, which caused the unicorn to glance back at Ambertome. As he did, what sounded like a growling could be heard from the darkness.

The look was entirely necessary as the crystal stallion had found himself once again fully awestruck by the incredible caverns.This place was so amazing! Before long he had to be snapped out of it as the the group's guide looked at him in the hopes he'd get control of the students. Looking to the Blue pegasus filly he spoke up in a strict voice to address the situation, "Miss Walker! You and your little friend can continue your con... versa... what in the world is that sound?" Asked the stallion as his ear's twitched to the direction of the noise in question.

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OOC: I apologize for my upcoming bit of god-moding up ahead. Just moving the story along a bit more..Think of this more as an GM-type post... :geek:

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Wind Walker shook her head, "No, I didn't think that would be right, I would have..", she glared back at the crystal pony stallion. It was bad enough she had to deal with Mister 'Dumb Flank Blabbity-Blab Pocket Change' blather on and demand they pay attention to whatever he was jabbering about, but now she had to listen to another boring adult? While he was kind of cute with his little bow-tie and silly little granny-glasses, she was still annoyed. "How about you take your...er...oh.", she also heard the noise. It almost sounded like her father after a long day at work. He would come home and take a 'power nap' on his beloved recliner, usually with the day's newspaper plastered over his face. It sounded like that, but louder, and even he didn't shake the room with his snores. "What the hay?"

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Pocket Change wasn't sure what to make of all the noise. Something was sleeping, but what? A dragon? Why would there be a dragon under the castle? He managed to let out a little whimper as he figured out what sort of creature they were near. Stars? "Oh dear.", he whispered, "We need to get back to the elevator. Calmly and quickly. Without making a sound.", he whispered to the others.

Before them in the cave an Ursa Major. Also known as a 'very big bear'. Its snoring was causing the cavern to shake. "No time.", he whispered, "We need to move."

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The small group of ponies turned and started to make their way back, but one hoof hit one loose rock. That rock hit another, as did that rock, which hit another, making just enough noise to cause the great beast to stir. As it moved, the ground itself near Flakey Shards, Wind Walker and Bebop Slide opened up under their hooves. The three little fillies soon found themselves tumbling through small tunnel. Before disapearing into the hole, they could hear Pocket Change let out a loud, "No!", before more rocks covered the former hole. They all went down...down....down...down.....until they reached a much larger opening and down they fell.

OOC: I'll let the next poster decide what they fall into...

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...How did a hibernating star bear get inside this cave? Why couldn’t the stupid thing sleep someplace else? In her frustration, Flakey Shards subconsciously kicked a pebble over a slope while backing away from the Ursa Major, somehow causing a chain reaction of rolling rocks loud enough for the monstrous creature to hear. *CRACK* Flakey looked down towards her hooves to see a large crack in what the filly recognized to be a floor of muscovite. If education in the Crystal Empire did one thing right, it was teaching children how to recognize minerals painlessly.

Muscovite happens to be a brittle substance however. Before Flakey could do anything about it, the ground caved in beneath her, Wind Walker, and Bebop. Miss Shards may be the most spite-filled child in existence, but even she wasn’t immune to fear. That fear led her to scream the entire way down, down into the abyss deep under Canterlot. So dark was the shaft that Flakey didn’t even see the underground lake below until just one second before splashdown.

Which was very bad news, because the crystal pony didn’t know how to swim. Upon landing in the water, Flakey found herself submerged in a dark pool she did not know how to get out of, and immediately started panicking, flailing her legs here and there as she feared an imminent drowning. Never had the girl been so scared in her entire life.....

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"Oh dear. We need to get back to the elevator. Calmly and quickly. Without making a sound."

"No time We need to move."

"I-Is... that and Ursa Major?" Asked the professor incredulously as he stared in disbelief at the gargantuan Star patterned creature before them, his tone hushed and quiet so as not to wake it. Pocket Change had the right idea for now. They needed to get out of here quick and quietly, Ambertome had read how dangerous a disturbed Ursa could be.

Looking towards the Group he spoke up in a hushed but firm tone,"Okay, Everyone. Remain calm and proceed quietly to the elevator. Everything will be fine. Just. Remain. Calm." The stallion hurried as many of the children as he could before the snoring of the massive mammal began to shake the cave even further. Then something terrible happened, a rock had tumbled down below and disturbed the Ursa. Luckily for most of the group the creature didn't seem to Wake, but it's movement had caused some of the cave floor to collapse and it hole it brought into existance had quickly swallowed up three of the fillies in the group!

"No!"

It took so much work on AMbertome's part not to join in on Mister change's declaration of his dissatisfaction of the series of events that had come to pass, instead, Ambertome quickly clapped a hoof over pocket change's mouth to keep him quiet and not dragging out that expression. Quickly he whispered to Pocket,"Mister Change, I'm worried about those fillies too... but we have to get the rest of these foals to the elevator. Once we do , we should come back with some guards to help us get them out of there. All we can do now is hope they remember the first rule about when you get lost; stay put."

While Ambertome made sure to hurry the rest of the group towards the elevator, he couldn't but look back at the dark abyss of a hole the fillies had been swallowed by, a look of intense worry and fear spreading over his face. For now all that remained of the trio that had fallen into the depths of the mines was a small notebook that was left at Pocket Change's hooves. With another loud snore from the ursa a large boulder fell from the ceiling and covered up the hole.

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Bebop only took a few steps before her hoof collided with that pebble. From there things only went from bad to worse to... OH SWEET CELESTIA WHY?! As the little jazz loving filly set into motion the events that lead to her ,Flakey , and wind plummeting into the darkness. Flakey was screaming all the way down... and wow could she be loud. The air that rushed past her face was initially pretty exhilarating, but that feeling was quickly replaced by one of dread as she realized that she had no idea what might be waiting for them at the end of this fall. Once that thought sank in the filly would have been happy to join Flakey in screaming in terror.

Before she knew it though, she heard Flakey's scream ended by the sound of a splash. Soon enough another splash signified the end of Bebop's fall and the little filly was at first panicked but eventuallly managed to calm herself enough to tread water in the underground lake. Looking to where flakey was she could see that the crystal filly was still pretty terrified, however it looked like she didn't know how to swim. Bebop couldn't just let her flail about in the water and potentially drown, so she paddled over and Took Flakey's hoof and pulled her along with her as she swam towards what looked like a small shore.

Pulling herself and Flakey ashore the filly began to look around for the blue pegasus, her eyes darting up and down at the water and the air above it. Before she could spot her though the trio's source of light was quickly sealed off by something above. Bebop took a deep breath and concentrated, a small glowing light forming on the end of her horn. It wasn't bright enough to light up much more then five feet in front of her, but right now this was all she could do to try and make sure Wind Walker found them! She really had to thank her "special friend" back home in Ponyville for teaching her some light magic.

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"Yes. Of course.", the unicorn whispered back as the pair lead the rest of the group back to the elevator, "I know that Pegasi kid and her family. She's Major Brass Hat's little filly. That's a pony you don't want to make mad." The unicorn's mind was racing! How in the world did such a large creature find its way into the caverns? Or was it always there? If so, why in the world was there an elevator that lead directly to the great beast? There was no reason the underground should not have been thoroughly inspected before any tour groups were allowed in.", Once the rest of the group had made it to the entrance, Pocket Change pushed the open button and prayed that the little fillies were somewhere safe.

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While Wind Walker had always considered herself a rather agile and athletic little pony, like the others, she was also unable to control her tumbling and later plummeting, or even slow it down. She let out a yowl as the three fell directly into the cold waters of the underground lake. As with all potential R.E.A members, she had learned to swim at an early age, so once she was able to relax her body, she quickly swam up and glanced around. Thankfully Bebop had used her unicorn abilities to start a small, but noticeable light. Even a few feet in the water, she had heard the crystal pony's cries. The blue Pegasi was able to swim over to the pair, "Thank goodness you two are alright.", she made her way towards the other side of Flakey, where she helped the unicorn by taking the filly's other hoof, "We need to find dry land. We rest for a moment and come up with a plan. Once my wings are dry, I can see if I could find another opening back up."

The filly glanced around into the mostly dark underground, "I think I see land, or least bits of it. There's also something glowing. Might be moss or mushrooms.", the little pony tried to not to think of what else it could be. While she considered herself to be brave, Wind Walker still had horrible nightmares of the changeling monsters who invaded Ponyville last year. Those horrible beasties with their scaly skin and glowing eyes. She still couldn't believe what had just happened! Why was there a monster in Canterlot? It couldn't be evil, or Princess Celestia would not have permitted it to be underground so close to where ponies lived. Maybe it wasn't nasty. Maybe they overacted.

Once she believed both Flakey and Bebop were ready, she helped the pair swim towards the very faint light and tried desperately not to wonder what else was swimming in the lake with them...

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Upon first contact with a solid object, Flakey’s hoof immediately gripped it as hard as she could. Without the means to see in the dark, the crystal filly had no clue what she was holding onto dear life to, encouraging her to do nothing else but thrash about all the way to land. Only when Flakey Shards felt she was finally on a firm, rocky surface did she calm down, taking a few moments to spit out cave water from her mouth.

By this time, Bebop’s light source revealed the identity of Flakey’s savior, but gratitude was the furthest thing from the crystal filly’s mind. The immediate terror of the deep water gave way to the insidious pitch-blackness surrounding all the little equines in a void. Walk Walker flying high above claimed to have found another light source off to the distance, but Miss Shards found herself unable to see anything past the light Bebop provided.

“There’s no other light anywhere!” screamed the fear-stricken Flakey Shards, unable to fully collect herself; “We’re going to be stuck down here forever, I know it! Oh, Liney was right; ALL CAVES ARE STUPIDDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! In times of great hardship for the spoiled brat, temper tantrums were never far behind.

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"Thank goodness you two are alright.", she made her way towards the other side of Flakey, where she helped the unicorn by taking the filly's other hoof, "We need to find dry land. We rest for a moment and come up with a plan. Once my wings are dry, I can see if I could find another opening back up."

"I think I see land, or least bits of it. There's also something glowing. Might be moss or mushrooms."

Thank goodness was absolutely right! Bebop was elated to see that Wind Walker was okay, She was severely worried about her on the swim over here. With Flakey's incessant screaming through the first half of the swim she couldn't bear the thought of listening to that alone. As soon as she got to shore she was going to tell Windy how good it was to see her okay too.

When everypony managed to reach the shore she smiled at her friend began to look through her bags for-- hold a on minute, where was her notebook?! It was impressive that BEbop was keeping her light spell going as she was becoming increasingly frantic as she dug through her tiny saddlebag and only to find bits of lint and her harmonica. This couldn't be happening, that Notepad was a gift her parents! There was no way she could just up and lose it! where could it have gone? The color practically drained from her face as she turned and looked at the lake with big wide orange eyes, eyes that were soon swelling with tears as she realized what could have happened to her keepsake from her folks.

The filly obviously wasn't very good at hiding her feelings as she choked back some tears and tried to look strong for her friend (and Flakey). Flakey in the meantime was giving her own assessment of the situation, An assessment that went something like...

“There’s no other light anywhere! We’re going to be stuck down here forever, I know it! Oh, Liney was right; ALL CAVES ARE STUPIDDDDDDDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

As loud and obnoxious as Flakey was, Bebop couldn't help but agree with her. Caves. are. stupid. And underground lakes are even stupider. Since Bebop had now way to communicate for the moment all she could really do was pat Flakey on the back and look to windy. Bebop was all for her plan to head to that patch of land with the glowy bits on it, but she wasn't sure if flakey would be able to keep up since (from what she'd seen earlier) she couldn't swim.

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