Séance and Mane six play D&D: Thieves of Night

Chapters

Prologue
Starting out
The reunion
Until next time

Prologue

The morning was the same as any other in Canterlot, the murmur of chatter flowed across the fresh air as ponies of all shape and size conversed about business, gossip or news. The sky, however, was nearly consumed by dark storm clouds. The weather called for heavy wind storms with rain, and the warning of the clouds as Pegasus ponies moved and arranged them was even more of a hint. Where most ponies were preparing to go home or work, one stallion was moving with haste through the crowd.

His tan coat moved quickly as he attempted to bob and weave between unicorns and earth ponies. An image of a 20-sided die being kicked into a soccer goalie net sat on his flank, symbolizing his dedication to both physical activity and gaming. His white saddle bags hung low as they held the collection of dice, books and paper. The stallion’s mane was tucked under a black and gray hat that read in bold red letters “Dungeon Master”

“Excuse me, pardon me, coming through!” Séance repeated as he moved with relative grace through the crowd, attempting to reach the book store before the storm began. A new gaming book that he special ordered should have arrived on that very day and he wanted to use it to work on his new character concept. However, as he danced through the crowd, his attention slipped for a moment and he collided into a pearl white unicorn.

The stallion’s instinct forced him to reach out and grab the tackled pony and roll them over him, slamming himself onto the ground and protecting the unfortunate horse. As Séance Blitz’s back slammed against the hard concrete street, he released a quick grunt and released the pony in his hooves.

“Oh my, I am terribly sorry darling.” The pony on him said with alarm and a rather proper accent. Séance slowly opened his eyes to see a beautiful white mare removing herself from him, her purple mane falling gracefully on one side of her face. The stallion slowly lifted himself up, groaning in the minor pain that aggravated his already weighed down back. “Not a problem, miss. My fault, I was in too much of a hurry and lost focus.”

He quickly glanced at the mare and spotted her cutie mark; three blue diamonds placed flawlessly near each other. Not noticing any physical harm on the mare, Séance’s eyes fell to the mess that now decorated the sidewalk; his paper and dice flew out of his bag during the collision. “Well, I deserved that.” Séance quickly said with a chuckle as he moved to gather his fallen equipment.

“Darling, let me help you with that.” The mare said as she began to levitate and organize some of the paper and odd looking dice. Séance glanced over to her again and gave her a small smile as he said “Thank you, Ma’am. You don ‘t have to, though.” With a soft voice, the mare quickly replied “Nonsense, dear. I couldn’t just leave you here to clean up this mess.” The colt chuckled lightly as they finished gathering the gear.

After a quick moment and several attempts at stuffing his saddle bag full of the gaming supplies once again, Séance bowed his head to the mare as he said “Thank you very much for helping me, ma’am. I’m Séance Blitz.” The mare gave the stallion a gentle smile as she returned the bow. “It was my pleasure, darling. My name is Rarity and it’s always a treat to meet such a well-mannered stallion like yourself.” Her compliment made the earth pony blush slightly as he chuckled, fixing his hat.

Rarity’s eyes spotted the writing on it and asked “Dungeon Master? Are you a guard at the castle, Séance?” The stallion quickly chuckled at her words as he shook his head, fixing the hat again out of habit. “No, I play a game with my friends called Dungeons and Dragons and I’ve been practicing being the Dungeon Master for some time now.” The mare’s eyebrow rose in confusion as she was filled with more questions.

Seeing her confusion, Séance quickly explained as best he could. “Well, Dungeons and Dragons, or D&D as most gamers put it, is a game of make-believe and fantasy were a bunch of ponies gather around, make characters and embark on an adventure for fame, fortune, Honor and in more cases than not, a fight against boredom. I find that it helps explore other pony’s ways of life and as we explore what we have inside ourselves.”

The mare’s eyes slowly rose as the stallion explained in brief words. “My, that sounds like it could be very fascinating, but a game of make-believe and fantasy? Not to be rude, darling, but doesn’t that sound a bit childish?” Séance let out another short chuckle as he replied “In some ways, it is. But it can also be seen as a way to explore your imagination, see what personality you have just waiting to reveal itself. It’s also seen as a stress relief and keeps some ponies from going completely bonkers.” The stallion makes a quick silly face as he says the last part.

Rarity giggled lightly at his face as she looked to him. “Well darling, I wish you the best of luck in your gaming.” Séance bowed to her, taking a few steps towards the book store. “It’s been an honor to meet you, Rarity. Maybe you’ll be interested in joining me one of these days; I actually will begin working on a campaign tonight so it would be the best time to be interested in trying it.”

“Actually, darling.” The mare started walking towards him. “After you explained it, I’m sure a few of my friends would be interested as well and you’ve been such a gentlecolt I’d love to join you.” Séance’s eyebrow rose with interest as he straightened out. “Really? I was simply joking, but if you were interested, I’m heading to the book store to get a book then heading to my house to prepare. I can tell you of some of examples and situations I’ve seen during my days as a gamer.”

With a gentle smile, Rarity joined Séance in his walk. “I don’t see a problem with that, darling. By all means darling, unravel the tales of your adventures.” The two ponies shared a laugh as they began their travel down the street, discussing the game of Dungeons and Dragons.

Starting out

Séance hummed happily after spending yesterday with the lovely madam Rarity and hearing of her friends and her actual adventures. His teal living room was decorated with his assortment of interests, several photos hung of his family, friends and him doing a mixture of activities. The Eastern wall displayed his many achievements, a mixture of martial arts, soccer, football, singing, gaming and dancing trophies and ribbons decorated a stand as well as momentous of his past. The tiled floor was decorated with chairs, rugs and books, a table standing in the center. On the North-west wall sat his entertainment stand that blared an electronic melody that subconsciously made the stallion’s head bob and weave as the tempo and tones changed. The table was nearly covered by books, papers and dice, but still held some form of order.

As the tan earth pony finished the last of his notes, a quick rapping resonated from his front door. With a grown smile on his face, the stallion lowered the volume on his entertainment stand and began his walk to see who had come to visit. When he opened his door, he was greeted with not just the beautiful Rarity, but five other mares; one of them was Princess Twilight Sparkle!

Séance’s eyes quickly shot open after seeing her. His mind raced with a barrage of things to do, but he simply did what he was taught to do when you see royalty; bow and show respect. With a quick motion, the stallion’s upper body fell in a routine bow as he spoke with an overwhelming sense of respect. “I am honored that you would come and visit me, Princess Twilight Sparkle. What can I, Séance Blitz, do for your majesty?”

Twilight chuckled lightly at his reaction to seeing her. “Please rise Séance, Rarity told me about the day you two spent and about the game you were hoping others would be interested in. I’ve always found fantasy books to be interesting so I thought I’d give it a try.”

The stallion slowly rose as he was asked and nodded to her. Though he thought it would be rude he asked “If it’s alright with you, Princess Twilight Sparkle, may I call you Twilight for simplicity’s sake?” The princess smiled lightly as she nodded to Séance. “I am in your home, Séance Blitz. I have no problem with what you call me.” So I can call you sweet cheeks, he thought for a moment, but kept it inside his head; respect above all else.”

Séance glanced across the six mares standing before him and remembered he had met two of them previously, the sky blue mare laughing at his reaction to Twilight. “Long time no see, Séance. I didn’t know you lived in Canterlot.” He simply smiled at her as he replied to her “I like the busy life style, what can I say Rainbow?”

“Well, shoot partner.” The orange mare added with a raised eyebrow. “For once I’m comin to you, feels kinda weird ta me.” With a reassuring smile, Séance nodded to the farmer pony as he said “Please don’t, Miss. Applejack, I am happy you came to my home.”

Without letting his guests wait any longer, Séance took a step to the side and said with a warm smile. “Please, come inside and make yourselves at home. Welcome to my humble home.” With that, the six mares walked inside and quickly began scanning the interior. He didn’t mind, however. He was always happy to have guests in his home, beat spending the days alone with nothing to do but work on notes.

Rarity stayed with Séance, however, as she decided to introduce two mares he didn’t recognize. “Séance, allow me to introduce two wonderful friends of mine; Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy.” The stallion’s steel-blue eyes met the large, happy and over energized blue eyes of a pink earth pony. Her mane and tail as fluffy as a cloud and three balloons sat on her plot. The mare quickly stepped forward, waving quickly as she said in a hyper voice “Hi, I’mPinkiePieandIlovelovelovepartiesandfunandmakingfriends. EveryponyinponyvilleismyfriendandafterhearinghowyouandRaritymetandhowyoutwohadsuchasuperduperawesomedayIwantedtomeettheponyandbefriendswithyousoIcouldhavemorefriends!” Séance simply blinked at the overly excited mare and nodded to her in a mixture of confusion and fear. “Can you do me a favor, Pinkie? Breath.” The pink mare giggled at the stallions request and inhaled deeply before hopping off in his living room.

“She has a lot of energy, doesn’t she?” Séance asked with a raised eyebrow looking towards Pinkie Pie. “Yes, but she’s just really excited to meet you dear. I kept you in high regards.” He smiled at Rarity as he nodded; it appears he has a reputation. The shy little yellow mare was the next one to meet his gaze, their eyes locking for a moment before she looked away. He saw that the young mare was incredibly shy, and actually surprised she had the courage to come to his house. He walked up to her and attempted to be as nice as he could to her as he spoke in a gentle voice. “And you must be Fluttershy, I’ve heard of your deeds and how you care for so many animals. Thank you for spending your time with them, I worked with animals in the past and I had a hard time doing it.”

The shy mare looked up to him as she gave him a small smile. “O-Oh, it’s nothing really. You just need to be nice and ask them kindly.” Séance straightened his form out as he chuckled. “It’s that simple? Guess I was overthinking it.” After attempting to lighten her mood with a simple joke, he extended his hoof to her, giving Fluttershy a warming smile. “Come on, let’s join the others.” It appeared his winning charisma got through to the shy mare as she took his hoof and followed him and Rarity to the living room where the others had already ventured to.

“Well I’ll be, partner.” Applejack exclaimed looking at his awards. “You sure are talented to have so many awards in different situations.” Séance smiled at her as he walked over to his trophy case, looking up at it. “I’m not really talented, I just train a lot and give everything I do all I got.” Rainbow Dash was the next to speak; looking through all the photos he had hanging on the walls. “Wow, you’ve been everywhere! And look, this one has you and me at the Iron Pony Competition a few years ago!” The stallion laughed as he began walking over to his seat. “I have to thank all my friends for bringing me along in all those situations.”

Before he sat down, Séance quickly realized he had been rude. “My apologize everypony. Is there anything you all would like; Drink, Snack, anything?” Pinkie was the first one to announce her need. “I’d like a cup of chocolate milk and some double chocolate chip cookies!” The stallion couldn’t help but laugh as he shook his head. “I’m not sure I have double chocolate chip cookies, Pinkie. But I’ll see if I can’t whip something up to satisfy your sweet tooth.”

After gathering all their refreshments and snacks, the group of ponies conversed for around half an hour. After a few moments after conversing, however, Séance spoke up. “Now, to be honest I’m surprised so many of you are interested. Can I answer any questions before I get started with showing how to make a character?” Twilight quickly raised a hoof to grab the Dungeon Master’s attention. “I’ve read some of the Player’s handbook and they show these human-like creatures. Are these the type of characters we’ll be playing?” The stallion nodded his head as he said with a soft smile. “Yes, there are six species to choose from; Human, Elf, Half-Elf, Half-Orc, Gnome, and Halflings. Each of these species have their own special talents and gifts.”

Rainbow Dash was the next to grab the stallion’s attention, grinning as she spoke rather loudly. “Are we going to be going on adventures like Daring Doo?” Séance smiled as he nodded to her. "We will be, and some that would make even Daring Doo second guess. I have most of our first adventure ready and we’ll be starting off small. But after we get our hooves wet, we’ll get started on the real work. And trust me, Rainbow; there will be plenty of action.” The sky blue mare pumped her hoof in the air as she exclaimed her joy.

Seeing as no other pony had questions, Séance gave a big grin and began handing out character sheets. “Alright, I want you all to come up with a character concept; what do you want to play? After I hear your concepts, I can help you choose which class would be best for you.” Twilight raised her hoof again, causing Séance to chuckle. “I want to be like Star Swirl the Bearded!” Taking a few moments to think, the stallion nodded as he shrugged. “Then the class Wizard would be the best for you; not only are they the best spell casters in the game, but they also get a familiar and are pretty good at making magical items.” The princess raised an eyebrow as she asked “Familiar?” “A companion, a creature that you share a special connection with and can actually communicate telepathically and have them cast spells.” She quickly revealed her fascination as she nodded. “I definitely want to play one of them!”

“I want to play somepony like Daring Doo!” Rainbow Dash exclaimed. The tan stallion chuckled lightly as he said “I like your passion, Rainbow. But I don’t advise making a character exactly like a pony that already exists. Don’t restrict yourself to be like them, be who you want to play. However, I see Daring Doo starting out as ether a Ranger or a Fighter. For you, Fighter; they are the front line warriors and are one of the toughest classes in the game. Not only that, but with their massive amount of feats they obtain and their proficiency with almost every weapon and armor in the rules, there is almost nothing they can’t physically do.”

The mare quickly nodded before Pinkie grabbed his attention, flailing her hooves in the air. “What class loves fun as much as I do?” Séance quickly nodded as he rested his chin on his hoof. “That would be the bard; seekers of adventure and all around entertainers. They are also very good because with their inspire courage ability, they can lead their friends to do incredible things.” She quickly giggled as she nodded her approval.

“Fluttershy, I don’t normally do this, but I suggest the Druid for you.” The shy pink manned mare looked over to Séance with an interested look as he explained “Druids are the protector of the wild and all who inhabit it. They start out with an animal companion and a special talent to communicate with animals.” She quickly gave the stallion a soft smile as she nodded and said quietly. “I’d really like that, if it’s not too much trouble.” The Dungeon Master quickly shook his head. “I’d love for you to play one for one main reason; so far, we have no healers. The wizard and bard can cast healing spells, but that’s only a certain number of times a day. Don’t get me started on how useful it is to have somepony who can tell which plants or what water is safe.”

With a small smile and a bright blush on her face, Fluttershy nodded weakly before Applejack spoke. “I want to be a real cowgirl, like me.” Séance raised an eyebrow to her request, opening one of his books and looking through the classes as he asked, not really looking for confirmation “Cowgirl? Which class would be best for that?” After reading over a class, he quickly exclaimed “Take care of animals!” And looked to her with a big smile. “We’ll have two characters who can lead us through the wild if you choose this class; the Ranger.” He fixed his position in the chair as he explained “The Ranger is normally a hunter and lives in the wild. But there are always acceptations and being a farmer is one of them. You won’t live in the wild, but with the Wild Empathy ability they get, you’ll be able to do the same thing as Fluttershy’s character; converse with animals and be able to understand their thoughts. But instead of being the passive one, you’ll get the favored enemy ability, which at your choice you can select a type of monster and get bonuses when interacting with them.”

“That sounds like the kind of character for me partner.” Séance gave a sigh of relief, knowing Applejack was happy with her character class. He’d have to look through his books to see where she would progress from there, but for now she had her class. The stallion leaned back in his chair and looked at the last pony that had yet to speak. “Any ideas yet, Rarity?” The white mare put her hoof to her chin as she continued to think. “There are so many choices, I’m afraid for once I can’t think of a reference I’d like to use.”

With a slow nod, the stallion thought for a moment before speaking. “After speaking with you the other day, Rarity, I got a good idea of your likes and I think I know a class you’d enjoy; the Rough.” The look on her face appeared as though he had struck a grievous wound to her pride. Before she could speak her displeasure, however, Séance explained “I’m not saying you have the personality of a thief, but you are indeed an expert and lover of fine art. I suggested the Rough class because that’s what I’d like to see people play more; actual Experts. The trap finding ability is rather helpful to the party. Besides…” He narrowed his eyes as he looked to her, grinning mischievously “Why not try being the bad mare? It could be fun and it’d be just between us.”

Rarity gave him a stern look for a moment, but then began to think. A rough mind not be as bad as she first thought, especially how Séance explained it. Being the bad mare in the group too? That would certainly be a nice twist and she could try it. Explore different personalities that are just waiting to show themselves, as he had said when he first explained gaming. She gave the stallion a rather sinister grin as she said “Alright, darling. I’ll play the Rough.”

Now that everypony had their character concept, Séance fixed his hat and began leading his new gamers through how to make their characters. After over an hour of rolling, referencing and explaining; the group had finally been completed, and with relative quickness since they had chosen to use the equipment packages in the books.

“What character are you going to use, Séance?” Twilight asked after finally completing the characters. The stallion smiled as he arranged some of the papers on his side and glancing at the clock. “I’m playing the class Knight; this will give you guys a second heavy hitter besides Rainbow Dash, as well as a few of their own personal perks.” His eyes grew wide as he saw that only a short amount of time had passed since their arrival. “Wow, if you all have the time, we could get the beginning out of the way.” The group glanced at the clock and saw that they had only been hanging around for around two hours. “I don’t have to check on Angel till two more hours.” Fluttershy said with a soft smile. Séance glanced around at the group and smiled when it appeared none of them really needed to be anywhere.

With a soft smile, the stallion glanced around and chuckled. “Well, this is rare; normally I only have time to work on the characters than everypony has to leave.” All the mares giggled at the tan pony’s shocked expression. After shaking out of his momentarily pleased thoughts, he looked around and refilled everypony with refreshments, food and waited for them to use the restroom if they needed to.

Once everypony was satisfied, Séance closed his eyes and took a deep breath, running through his head the multiple scenarios that could happen and bring everypony together so they could begin adventuring. His mind processed the variables and ways he could do the introduction and eliminated the thoughts that would cause more confusion than help. They were all new gamers and it was up to him to leave a good impression on them. Suddenly, a thought clicked and he couldn’t help but smile as he looked at everypony. So simple, yet it was perfect.

“Are we all ready?” He asked, looking to each pony and wanting a confirmative nod. After seeing Pinkie, Applejack, Rainbow, Twilight, Fluttershy and Rarity nod to him, he cracked his neck and opened a book, casting the dice. Though it was pointless since he knew the upcoming scene, it was more to get him in the mental mood. The director had his actors and it was finally the moment he had waited for; to weave a glories and beautiful epic that they would all remember for ages. Now begun their adventure into the world of Dungeons and Dragons…

The reunion

Rebecca Daring and Galen Nightwave were practically siblings even though they were polar opposites; where one desired action and excitement, the other wanted nothing but honor and glory. Despite their differences, however, they were close friends and always looking out for each other. However, one day Galen had to leave their village of Neihilb to pursue his dream of being a glories knight. Rebecca remained in her village to protect it whenever trouble arrived. The past few years were peaceful, until the last few weeks.

Unwary travelers and merchants have recently been the victims of robbery and kidnapping. The village had sent several men out to save them, but none have returned and the worst is assumed. Every time Rebecca attempted to join a rescue party, she was ordered to remain in the village as a last line of defense. Regretfully, she had no choice but to follow her commands.

Not all friendships ended, however in the small village. The farmer Amanda Jackson was always willing to assist with searching for food and supplies when Fiona Sylna was involved. Being two of the best hunters in Neigilb, they were often very busy. Only recently have the two friends been less and less willing to enter the forests due to something disturbing the animals. A greater evil was beginning to cloud the village.

The sky was clear save for a few roaming clouds on that fateful day. Rachel Diamond and Patricia Party were riding along in a caravan filled with wandering merchants, who continuously kept speaking of legends and rumors that Neihilb had been cursed. The sole reason they were even traveling this road was because they were ordered to deliver supplies to the condemned village.

“I don’t see why we should be afraid of something as silly as a curse.” Rachel quipped, wearing a dazzling blue and white dress under her loosely fitting leather armor. Her flowing purple hair was tied up to prevent it from getting in her way too much, but was fashioned to accent her sapphire eyes. A bejeweled rapier rested on her waist while she kept her hand lightly holding onto her short bow.

“I agree with you, Rachel!” A high pitched voice resonated from behind the magnificent rough. As Rachel looked back, she saw her Halfling companion, Patricia Party. The overly energetic bard wore bright pink, studded leather armor that hugged onto every curve of her body correctly. If the males were not focusing on Rachel, it was this cute little ball of energy, though the short sword that hung on her side showed she was as lethal as she was adorable. Her crossbow hung on her back, prepared to be drawn should the need arise, though she’d prefer to party than fight.

“Patricia, darling, please tell me you know of anything worth exploring near this tiny village of Neigilb.” Rachel begged her Halfling friend. The energetic creature put her finger on her bottom lip as she thought, attempting to recall any useful information. “All I know is that the village is supposed to be cursed, but one of the knights of King Long’s army dose come from the village and has been asking to return home a lot.”

Rachel raised her eyebrow in interest at the information. “Really, dear? One of King Long’s knights came from Neigilb?” She pushed her hair to the side a bit as she thought of what a knight’s home town could possibly look like. “Maybe this little adventure won’t be as boring as I thought.”

After traveling a few more miles down the road, a loud and pained grunt broke out from within the caravan; one of the merchants had been shot with an arrow from the wood line! Before the hired guards for the caravan could set up a defense, however, a storm of arrows swarmed the wagons. Rachel and Patricia both dived for cover, narrowly avoiding getting hit by the raging arrows. With the horses startled, the caravan scattered and chaos was assured.

Through the chaos of the ambush, a single shrouded merchant rose from the back of the wagon, drawing one of the arrows that hid behind his shroud and drew it back before sending it flying towards the wood line, a high pitch shriek resonated from the direction of the arrow, showing the attack landed. Rachael glanced to the sudden counter attack and gripped her bow as well, sending an arrow soaring through the air, unaware of its landing spot. Patricia joined in on the retaliation, sending her crossbow bolt forward and receiving another loud scream.

***

Séance couldn’t help but chuckle at Pinkie’s roll after seeing the die twenty reveal her first 20, and so early in the game too. “Alright Pinkie, the reason why I asked you to roll after rolling that first twenty, was because you threatened a critical hit, in gaming terms. That means, since we’re using the vitality/wound point system, if you hit with the second roll, you deal damage directly to wound, which spoiler, you did, congratulations.” The pink mare simply giggled at Séance’s complement. “Anyway, it’s the ambush’s turn now…”

***

As the arrows soared back and forth from the retaliating wagon and the forest, Rachel narrowly dodged an arrow that would have possibly pierced her shoulder. Seeing the threatening situation, the shrouded individual reached into one of the bags and conveniently drew a rather large steel shield and raised it in front of the rough, face still concealed by the hood but unleashing a rather confident and strong aura. “Fall behind my shield.” The figure commanded Patricia, defending the startled damsel. The Halfling gave the figure a giddy smile as she said “Okie, Dokie, Jokie.” And dived behind him, smiling at Rachel.

With the figure acting as cover and protecting Rachel and Patricia with his shield, the retreat was successful. Though they had no choice but to leave the remainder of the caravan behind, the shrouded figure slowly lowered his shield, glaring at the distant ambush, shoulders slowly rising and falling as he attempted to regain his breath. When Patricia spotted the emblem on the figure’s shield, however, she quickly recognized who it belonged to; a knight of King Long’s army. The burning silver phoenix on flying before a flag was the iconic symbol of the King’s knighted army.

“Hey, you’re the knight who’s been trying to return to Neigilb, aren’t you?” Patricia exclaimed with a happy smile, ecstatic that she could meet a knight. The figure’s hood moved towards her, but didn’t respond. It simply returned the shield to the bag and sat back down; assuring that the hood concealed its face.

“Well, it appears our savior is a bit on the shy side.” Rachel teased lightly as she slowly picked herself up and moved to rest next to him. “Even if you are shy, I have to thank you for saving us back there.” Patricia, taking the less-than-flirtatious approach, hugged the figure tightly. “Yeah mister knight, thank you so very, very much for saving us.” The shrouded figure weaved slightly after having the halfling tackle him.

“I couldn’t just stand idly by and let everyone fall to the ambush.” The figure said in a low and quiet tone. Rachel smiled to the man as she recognized the male-like voice. “So you are a man. I wonder how cute you are behind that shroud of yours.” Slowly, the rough reached her hand towards the man’s hood, attempting to get a glimpse of their savior’s face. Before she could touch the cloth, however, the man’s hand suddenly shot out and lightly gripped Rachel’s wrist, catching her off guard.

Slowly moving her hand away, the man remained silent, only whispering “Forgive me.” After the demonstration of his speed and strength, Rachel decided to stop prying, less she begin to anger their savior. Patricia, on the other hand, continued to chat with him through the trip to Neigilb.

Rebecca continuously grunted as she practiced fighting against invisible forces, her bastard sword swinging in when needed and her large wooden shield rising to defend herself. Her rainbow hair was concealed by the scale mail that covered her entire body as her incredibly balanced form combined her fierce, devastating offense with a quick and nimble defense. Not far from her was the daughter of the wise man, the Elvan apprentice Twill Spellweaver, studying her spell book quietly.

After a few moments of the two doing their own activities, the wise man, an Elf by the name of Manil Spellweaver, began to approach the two with Amanda Jackson and Fiona Sylna. Twill was the first to act, quickly rising from her seated position to greet her father. “Good evening father, how can I help you?” Hearing the elf’s voice caught the strong warrior’s attention, stopping her training in respect of the wise man’s appearance.

“Amanda and Fiona have informed me of some troubling news, Twill. They have discovered the meaning of the darkness that clouds our village, a group of goblins and bugbears working together and growing dangerously in numbers. According to Fiona, their appearance has also caused the wildlife to grow scarce.” Twill nodded in understanding while Rebecca spoke out in outrage. “Then we need to strike back. Just waiting here until these monsters attack or we starve is pointless!”

Manil looked to Rebecca, reminding her that she had raised her voice to the leader of the village, normally a very bad move. “I’ll over look this, Rebecca, because you are right. I have hired Amanda and Fiona to lead you and Twill to the base of our enemy and attempt to dispose of them in whatever way you see fit.” Rebecca nodded, anxious to begin her adventures, but Twill wasn’t as confident. “Father, I mean no disrespect, but every time we’ve sent a scouting party out to find the missing merchants or travelers, they have never returned. Is it wise for us to go as inexperienced as we are?”

Amanda smiled as she spoke up. “And that’s where you would normally be right, Twi. But, Fiona saw a wagon escape nearly being captured by an ambush, taking two goblins out in retaliation.” Fascinated, Twill and Rebecca looked to Fiona to explain. “Umm, well, they looked like they had some experience, there was a halfling in pink who used her cross bow with impressive accuracy and a woman who hit a bugbear from the back of their wagon.” Twill thought for a moment as she looked to Rebecca. “Well, that would make six of us, which makes one more than an average scouting party.”

“A-actually, there was another one, I couldn’t tell if it was a boy or a girl, but they wielded a shield and protected both of the women. I think he’ll help us if we ask him.” Twill glanced to Amanda and thought of the odds of success, applying Rebecca’s combat skill, Amanda and Fiona’s tracking skill and her spells, their odds alone were not very good. It all depended on who these three extra hands were, if they would help them at all.

Suddenly, a man started running up towards the group, calling for Manil. “Wise man Manil, you should see this.” He said after reaching them and catching his breath from exhaustion. The elf glanced down at the man, waiting patiently for him to gain his second wind. “Rest for a moment, my friend. Speak when you have your breath.” After a few minutes of huffing heavily, the man spoke once again. “A-A wagon holding supplies arrived, carrying three adventurers. B-but one of them, one of them is…he’s a knight from King Long’s army.”

The elderly elf’s eyes rose in shock at the news, looking to the young women who stood before him. “Amanda, Fiona, Rebecca and Twill, gather your things and meet me at city hall. If what our friend here says is true, we may have a chance after all.” The four women nodded in agreement to the wise man’s words, going their respective ways to regain their items.

As the wagon finally reached Neigilb, Patricia was the first to leap out of the wagon, happy to see a new town that was ‘cursed.’ The giddy halfling glanced around the village, hoping to see tale-tale signs of a curse, but the village was like any other. The bard’s disappointment would be short lived, however, when the villagers began to gather around the wagon to greet the new comers. Rachel smiled lightly as she stood before the men, their eyes staring at her beauty as she began to walk towards the end of the wagon.

Before any of the men could assist her down, the shrouded figure revealed an intimidating presence, causing most of them to back away in fear. However, being the second to move away from the wagon, he was the one to assist her down, taking her hand with surprising gentleness. When she reached the ground, the man quickly moved towards the side of the wagon, grabbing his bag. Patricia decided to lighten the mood, drawing her lute and playing an enjoyable tune with it, dancing lightly as her song flowed through the air.

“Is scaring everyone really necessary, dear?” Rachel asked quietly, following the shrouded man. He didn’t respond, simply moving towards the forest while Patricia distracted them. Annoyed at being ignored, Rachel pursed him, whispering angrily “Don’t you ignore me, I am talking to you!” However, her whispering was quickly muffled when the man tossed his cloak to the side, accidently hitting her.

Rachel, however, thought it was on purpose to quiet her. Furious, she fought with the cloak and threw it to the ground. “How dare you!” She hissed quietly, looking towards him only to see he had reached the wood line. Now red with rage, she stomped towards the rustling in the woods, turning the corner as she opened her mouth to give him a piece of her mind. However, she lost her voice the moment she noticed he had very little on him besides the cloak.

The man before her was indeed human, standing at six feet of handsome muscle. His flesh was a bronze tone and his muscles were nicely shaped, the only article of clothing was a pair of shorts that covered his modesty. The face was angular, yet strong with sun dyed blond hair running down to his shoulders and emerald green eyes staring into her blue pools.

Seeing her savior standing almost completely revealing, Rachel had forgotten what she was angry about and now instead of red with anger, she was red with embarrassment. She quickly turned around and covered her eyes, attempting to not see him as he was. “Oh my, darling, I-I am so sorry, I didn’t know you were…”

“Don’t fret madam; it is my fault for being so rude to you until now.” He said calmly and now with more emotion than he had before. “I had to pose as a merchant to avoid brining too much attention to myself. I am under King Long’s orders to return here and investigate the disappearance of the travelers and merchants.” The chime of chains dancing against one another rung from his position, showing he was equipping his armor.

Still red with embarrassment, Rachel waited a few moments before even daring to speak again. “S-So Patricia was right; you are indeed a knight of King Long’s army. This is your hometown too, correct?” The knight was silent, the sound of a sword falling into its scabbard resonating before he spoke. “Yes, I haven’t been here for some time, though, around 5 years. I swore I wouldn’t return until I became a knight and now that I am one, I want them to see me as a symbol of pride and honor, not a half-naked merchant.”

Rachel glanced to the townsfolk, dancing happily at Patricia’s music, laughing as she entertained the masses. A rustle behind her, however, informed her that the knight had finished redressing himself. Turning to look upon him once more, she saw why he wanted to reveal himself with his armor on; he was indeed a symbol of pride and honor of the Long army. The chainmail that protected most of his body glistened with polished wax, the large shield on his back had the rising silver phoenix which showed his allegiance, a beautiful long sword rested on his waist and the long bow he had used earlier was now over his shoulder as well as a strap which held his quiver filled with arrows on his back. The only new addition was the onyx embroidered halberd that he held in his right hand, letting the upper part of the weapon rest on his shoulder. The embodiment of King Long’s Pride and Honor stood with purpose before Rachel, prepared to reveal himself to his home.

“My name is Galen Nightwave, my lady.” He said, bowing before the beautiful rough. She smiled lightly as she gave the knight an elegant bow of her own. “Rachel Diamond, what an honor to meet such a valiant knight such as yourself.” With the introduction complete, the two walked back towards the town, Galen smiling as he waved to the towns people. At the moment they spotted Galen, they quickly stopped their merriment and looked in shock. Galen looked to the fastest looking person in the group and approached him. As he spoke, his voice held power and reason. “Tell wise man Manil that a knight of King Long’s army has arrived. Make haste, friend, we have little time.”

The young man nodded as he turned tail and ran, calling Manil’s name. Galen looked to the villagers and nodded, looking to Patricia to stop her performance momentarily. Once she did, he slammed the bottom of his halberd on the ground and spoke with confidence and power once again. “I am Galen Nightwave of Neigilb, knight of King Long’s 37th offensive battalion and I have been assigned to return to you, not as the young boy who once lived here, but as a man with newfound pride and honor. Let you all take witness today, that I, Galen Nightwave, swear by my honor, that before this week is over, the trade route will once again be safe and all who oppose Neigilb will be met by my blade!” To emphasize his last statement, he raised the halberd with his right arm, demonstrating his strength.

A roar of cheers erupted after he finished his speak, Rachel and Patricia looking to him with widened eyes. He glanced to Patricia and smiled, nodding to her as he walked into the crowd, shaking hands and speaking with the townsfolk. The halfling knew when she was nodded to, it was time to party and that was just what she did, with newfound vigor, she began playing her music again, sending the entire town in a parade of merriment. Happiness and joy filled the town; new hope had given the once cursed village.

As the four adventurers made their way to town hall, they spotted a mob of people demonstrating an incredible amount of merriment and happiness. Twill spotted that only one wagon was there, could this knight be so important? Rebecca, however, spotted him, being one of the tallest people in the crowd and the only one wielding a halberd. “Hey, there he is. It’s the knight.” She exclaimed, running towards him to meet him. “R-Rebecca!” Twill shouted, annoyed her ally would simply run off to meet a knight, though she couldn’t deny she wanted to meet this knight that was supposed to help them.

Following their rather comrades towards the group of happy people, Rebecca called out with excitement. “Sir Knight, Sir Knight!” Grabbing his attention, the knight did indeed turn to meet the eager young warrior. However, when his electric green eyes met her crimson eyes, they both remembered each other instantly. She slowed to a walk as she looked up to her childhood friend, amazed by how much he had grown and how much stronger he appeared to of grown.

“Long time no see, Galen.” She said quietly, attempting to disguise her joy. The knight smiled as he stood with pride before her. “It has been too long, Rebecca. I have indeed missed you so.” That appeared to have destroyed the remainder of her discipline, because she instantly dropped the tough girl act and flew into her friend’s arm, hugging him tightly

After sharing a warm moment together, Galen’s eyes rose to see Manil, the elderly elf holding his wizardly blue robes as he walked towards him. “I thought the knight would be you, Galen. We all have missed you in the village.” Rebecca blushed as she quickly turned around and regained her posture. Galen stepped forward, halberd in hand as he spoke “Forgive me, wise man Manil. It had taken longer than I wished to gain the title of Knight, but now that I have finally become one, I return to you as a symbol of Neigilb’s pride.”

“And what pride you give, Sir Galen. It feels like yesterday that you left us to pursue your dream. Now that you’ve gained it, I am afraid our village needs your help.” The wise man moved to reveal Twill, Amanda and Fiona, looking to the three as he continued “You should remember Twill, my daughter, Amanda Jackson the daughter of Jack and Fiona Sylna. Amanda and Fiona have discovered an enclave of goblinoids and fear that they are preparing to attack the village.”

The knight’s eyes looked to the woman and nodded. Rachel speaking up for him as she said “We actually ran into an ambush during our travel here, the caravan was almost completely destroyed save for the wagon that we arrived in.” Manil nodded lightly as he stroked his long, grey beard. “Then we have little time indeed.”

“I shall go and conquer the goblinoid tribe that cowers in the forest.” Galen said with a strong nod before turning to Patricia and Rachel. “The journey will be difficult and we are guaranteed to meet resistance on this adventure, but will you two join me in this campaign?” Patricia hops up happily as she says in a cheerful voice “Of course, silly! Adventure sounds like fun!” Rachel gave the knight a small, coy-like grin as she spoke. “I guess I do owe you for saving my life back there, so I’ll join you.”

The knight turned to Twill and the others as he gave them a confirmative nod. Twill gave their new companions a small smile before looking to Fiona and Amanda. “Alright, we’re all ready. If we hurry, we might be able to save the caravan before it’s too late.” Fiona gave everyone a small nod as she turned and began walking towards the forest, the party in tow not too far away.

Until next time

“And that’s where we’ll leave for now.” Séance said, closing his book to add emphasis to their conclusion. Pinkie quickly slammed her hooves on the table as she shot herself up, gasping “What?” Twilight and Rainbow Dash moaned in unison as they complained, Twilight first with “I didn’t get to see how magic works in this.” Rainbow Dash with a more annoyed “I didn’t beat any baddies down.” Rarity also showed some of her displeasure as she said “And I was just getting into my character.”

The stallion nodded, noting everypony’s of their complaints as he sat up. “I know, but I want to leave it there for two reasons; to give the adventure more of an intense feeling and because…” His steel blue eyes glanced up to the clock, noting the time. “We’ve been playing for almost two and a half hours.” Fluttershy looked up at the clock, eyes going wide as she gasped “Oh no, poor Angel bunny is probably going to be really mad that I left him alone for so long.” After Fluttershy, the entire gaming group began expressing their surprise, causing their Dungeon Master to begin laughing.

He quickly stood up, walking over to the door and opening it as he began waving the ponies out. “Sorry about that, but gaming dose that sometimes. Now go, don’t worry about the mess, I’ll clean it up. I hope you’ll all come over next week.” Taking his advice, most of the mares began walking out his door, expressing their enjoyment and confirming next week would be fine. After a few moments of conversing, only one mare remained; Rarity.

Concerned, Séance closed the door lightly and walked up to her, asking “Everything alright, Rarity?” The white mare glanced at him, realizing she had drifted off into dream land for a moment. “Hm? Oh, everything is quiet alright dear, it’s just…” her face began to turn pink as she looked over to his chair. “Was that scene where I walked in on you changing really necessary?”

Blushing a little, the stallion chuckled as he walked around the table, first grabbing any trash left behind as he said “Well Rarity, that’s kind of what happens in a gaming session. I didn’t expect I needed to explain his physical description like that, but when you decided to continue your pursuit I told you what you would have seen.” The slightly embarrassed mare glanced to her companion and gave him a soft smile, regaining her proper composure. “Alright darling, I understand you were just doing your job as our director. I must say, I didn’t expect to have so much fun.”

“Yeah, sorry about acting as the main character, though my guy’s only a support. I used him as the glue to bring everyone together, so don’t expect for him to solve all your social problems, should they arrive.” Séance said with a small grin as he walked towards the trash can and discarded the scraps, moving to remove the dishes next. Rarity smiled as she watched him clean up, standing up to prepare for her dismissal. “I do like how you separated my charisma with Pinkies, her being more adorable and me being a bit more on the attractive side.”

Séance didn’t respond until he returned to living room, looking at her with a sly smile. “Well, that was a bit of a more challenge. I used your strength, constitution and charisma to determine what you two would look like. Your charisma scores are the same, but you have higher strength than her character and a much higher constitution. I thought of it, and were Pinkie’s character may have a bit of a belly and have a very cute, almost child-like, face, Your character I made look more mature, symbolizing your constitution and strength above her scores.”

With a raised eyebrow of interest, Rarity slowly moved towards her host and stood before him, giving her a rather seductive look. “So, Séance, how do you think my score is compared to Pinkie’s?” The unprepared stallion’s eyes shot open as he pulled his head back from the beautiful mare. He felt as though she wanted to score her on her attractiveness, but wasn’t sure how to say it. Panic struck his mind as he blushed brightly, staring into the mare’s beautiful blue eyes.

The mare giggled at Séance’s reaction, turning around and lightly swaying her hips to him as she began walking towards the front door. “Don’t worry, dear. I was only teasing.” The stallion blinked, still blushing as he hurried to the front door, attempting to keep his manners. He did make it to the door before her, opening it so she wouldn’t need to. As she walked out, He spoke quickly grabbing a jacket form the hook of the door. “L-let me walk you to your apartment. It got pretty dark suddenly, so I don’t feel right letting you walk the streets by yourself.”

“Oh darling, you don’t need to. I can handle myself pretty well, you know.” Rarity giggled at her friend, though he locked the door behind them. “I still am walking you home; my mother raised a gentlecolt, not a jerk.” The mare’s eyes widened slightly at Séance’s words, watching as he quickly put the jacket on, the sound of keys sung from his pocket. The stallion seemed pretty determined to follow his moral codes and it was pretty dark, he wasn’t bad at keeping a smile on her face, ether.

Not really wanting to argue with such a kind stallion, Rarity smiled at him and continued walking down the street; talking about whatever came to mind. Eventually, the mare asked “If it’s alright of me asking, darling, how did you start gaming?” Séance blinked for a moment, searching his mind for the distant memory. Eventually, after a few moments of silence, he spoke. “My mother’s friend introduced me to it about . . . I want to say ten years ago? I was still very shy back then; if anypony even looked at me I’d cower in a corner and think they hated me.”

Séance’s eyes looked up at the sky, unaware of Rarity’s expression. “I didn’t have any friends, no interests in the world and lacked the ambition to even try and make something of myself. One day, however, Cross Bow was over working on some notes, my mom and him having a blast as they joked and told stories. I didn’t know what possessed me to look, but I saw he had one book closed and kept looking at it, the unique cover just continued to draw me in. After seeing what I was looking at, he asked me if I wanted to try and make a character.”

The stallion’s shoulders shrugged as he looked down the poorly lit street, continuing his story. “I didn’t see a point in it, but my mother insisted that I give it a try. So, not wanting to argue with her, I walked up and listened to Cross’s explanation of the system. That moment, my shell seemed to shatter as him and I conversed continuously over concepts and adventure ideas. After a while, I made my first character and was hooked instantly after my first adventure with him. Maverick Stupefy; the legendary Marauder.”

“Oh darling, I’m sorry you were so shy at such a young age. Did you have your cutie mark back then? I could only imagine how the other fillies and foals picked on you.” Séance simply smiled over at Rarity as he neared her hotel. “Actually, I didn’t get picked on at all, even though I didn’t get my cutie mark two years after being introduced to gaming. I was a very big and bulky foal, even for my age.” He emphasizes his words when he puffs up his chest and makes a very goofy face, looking like a very big brute. Rarity couldn’t help but giggle at her friend’s silly faces.

The mare stopped before the door to the hotel, glancing at the entrance. Her stallion friend stumbled a bit, but quickly found his footing and stopped, glancing at the entrance as well. “This is where I’m staying; it has been such a nice evening with you, Séance.” Rarity gave him a soft smile and nodded her head, the stallion doing the same. “I’d have to say the same; it’s always fun to spend the evening with such fun friends.”

“I’ll be busy for the rest of the week with work and training to stay in shape, but next week, if you can get the others to come by earlier, we’ll be able to spend more time gaming.” Rarity smiled at Séance as he explained his schedule, nodding lightly to him. “I’m sure they would like that. If I may ask, darling, what do you do for employment?” The stallion smiled as he gave Rarity a teasing glance, putting his hoof to his lips as he answered “That’s a secret. A gentlecolt never reveals all of his trades at once.”

Taking the momentary confusion the mare gave him, Séance quickly turned and ran, leaving Rarity more confused. Before she could give chase, however, he had vanished into the veil of darkness, the sound of his hooves tapping against the stone quickly fading. Left confused and bewildered, the mare couldn't help but look around to see if there was any explanation for the stallion’s sudden leave. Not seeing any regular answers, she found herself smiling towards the direction of his departure. What a unique earth pony…