/q/ - Quest

ADVENTURE!

[To Bottom]

File: 1428639504270.gif (964.04 KB, 500x280, NeverEnoughSpooky.gif) ImgOps Google

 No.622435

4chan being a shit, so this night's session of Nightmare Realm will be held here!


>Gloria

The secretary's annoyed gaze remains unchanged, but she gives an equally annoyed, raspy sigh as she takes out a piece of paper, a gooey hoof writing something down on it. She then rolls it up and drops it down a chute.
"Unless you want to be automatically sorted to The Eternal Plane of Pain and Fire, you will file your paperwork."
A few moments later, a door appears on the wall next to Gloria and opens. The room beyond is obscured by a bright light, but a black goat steps out and the door closes behind him. He also wears glasses, though without a bead chain, and a flame hovers in between the space of his horns.
"Ohpab. You forgot to give this angry creature her orientation."
The goat looks between the two of you with a raised brow.
"She did not come with the new arrivals," he replies, getting no response from the secretary other than another annoyed sigh again, "please, ma'am, let us take a step away, get you caught up to speed, give the lovely Miss Disgruntled the chance to finish her line."
He motions for her to step aside, much to the happiness to the growingly impatient line-waiters.

>Morning

"Yous tolds mes nots to attacks. Buts Is stills hads tos. Theys justs suddenlys appeareds, ands brokes throughs thes walls." His shoulders drooped slightly.
"Is dids nots ruins thiss chances ats peaces, dids Is?"

>Crux

"Hmph, about time somepony showed me manners," she says, entering before you. You both see the upper half of Tight Skin with a purple glow coming from below him, and hear the conversation.

>Azzanadra

"That can not be done," the voice begins, "none of these pumpkins hold the latent magical power required, a power the generally comes with age. Too young of a pumpkin will burst from the sheer stress of managing this network of minds."

"An alternative would be to put something else equally as powerful, be it pumpkin or not."

>Lumi

The two pumpkins stir, looking at Lumi with a half-awake expression 'carved' on their faces. However, they happily nod once they seem to wake up. They get under her and display quite a unique way of carrying her: they roll, the two pumpkins actings as rollers and shifting who is in front to keep the roller effect going.

>Melody

Yes. Yes she is.

 No.622436

>>622435
Crux chuckles.
"It's only polite to do so."
He fixes his tie a bit as he trots up to Morning, listening to Tight Skin.
"I'm sure with a bit of smooth talking, we'd be able to iron out the problems, right?

 No.622437

>>622435
"Wait… what if Mayor Tightskin agreed to it?"

 No.622438

>>622435

Upon hearing Mycelium' s words, Merucrial nods, things have been settled, as it seemed.

"Let us go then."

He says, leaving the chamber after the rolling pumpkins with Sundown on them, beckoning for his awake companions to follow.

To the Zombie Zoo. To the Mayor Tight Skin.

 No.622439

>>622435
"No. The chance for peace isn't ruined yet, and if it was ruined twas Gloria who ruined it. Come on, when I left the others they were engaging the Pumpking, lets only hope they didn't kill the Mycellium."

 No.622440

>>622435
"I'd rather have a pumpkin, keep one of their own kind in power so there's no more funny business, but we'll figure it out."

>>622438
>Missed the thread post
"I wouldn't call it forced evolution, more of a guided ascendance. With those candies, shaping up a new Pumpking should be easy. And studying the creatures of this plane is something I'd liek to do."

>>622435
>>622438
"Leaving already? Alright then."
Azzanadra follows, stopping to turn back to the fungus.
"Don't move, and keep calling all the pumpkins back here, aside from the two carrying our ally."
He turns back and follows the others to Zombie Zoo.

 No.622441

>>622440

Continuing the walk out the room, Lumi turns to Azzandra.

"Azz. We' ll need the pumpkins for the talk with the Mayor" - Mercurial reminds the unicorn, as it seemed he forgot that. - "If we keep them at town' s bay, we won' t have to go all the way back here and we' ll keep them at watch too."

 No.622442

>>622435
Gloria shifts her gaze between the secretary and the goat. She then steps away and moving towards the goat. "I do not need an orientation, I only wish to know where I am and where I can find my weapon. I have a mission to complete and I'd rather not be stuck in this place any longer than I have to." She speaks, her tone still annoyed but now a bit more calm. She knew this was either a dream or not the same world she was in, but after world jumping once she was able to handle a second better than before.

 No.622444

>>622441
"Right, keeping them close would save time if we pick one of them as the new leader."

>>622440
>>622435
"Correction, leave the pumpkins where they are."

 No.622445

>>622436
>>622439
"Sos thens…thats unfamiliars presences Is sents wass…ohs goodnesss. I'ms sos sorrys everyponys." He says, climbing out of the trapdoor and closing it, following Morning and Crux wherever they go at this point.
"Ifs Is hads knowns, I wouldn'ts haves sents hers theres."

>>622437
"He would make a powerful, if ironically hilarious, substitute."
You follow Lumi and Azz out.

>>622440
>>622438
>>622437
You all leave to Zombie Zoo, riding on Lumi's reanimated pumpkin with the two other pumpkins continuing their rolling of carrying Sundown. All around you, some pumpkins are heading towards the cave, while others simply remain still in their spots. They do, however, move out of your way, making for a quick and uneventful trip back.
>Arriving at Zombie Zoo now


>>622442
"Which is why you need this orientation. We have a precise and orderly procedure to doing things here in the Underworld, Miss…," he looks at Gloria expectantly, a hoof making a spinning motion for her to finish.

 No.622446

>>622445
"Wait, you summoned that pit? And Gloria is alive?"

Morning says, walking outside to head to the cave, only to see the others approaching. She walks up to them, now in her full battle regalia instead of her costume.

"Please tell me the Pumpking Mycellium isn't dead." she says to the others, Lich and Crux in tow.

 No.622447

>>622445
The Underworld? This is impossible, even Gloria herself knows that it is impossible. If she were dead she would be with her brethren. "…Gloria… Gloria Ashbringer, paladin of the Golden Claw." She says, her tone suddenly growing cold. "I hope that this is just the name of your realm and not what I think it is…" She follows the goat to her "orientation" as she speaks with him.

 No.622448

>>622445
Azzanadra looks down at the mixture of moving and still pumpkins from ontop their mount.
"Guess some are heading back on their own, that bodes well."

>>622446
Azzanadra looks down at Morning as she approaches.
"It is still alive, but subdued and under our control for the time being. We're going to pick a new leader for the pumpkins, given the fungus' unwillingness to cooperate."

 No.622449

>>622445
>>622446
Crux perks his ears up at the mention of Gloria's survival.
"So, she's just somewhere else now?"
He scoffs.
"Pretty sure she'll just fight her way back over here, just to get your head on a pike, eh Morning?"
He waves to the others.
"Hey crew, how's it hanging?"

 No.622450

>>622446
"Hey, where's Gloria?"

 No.622451

>>622446

"It is not." - Mercurial soothes Morning' s nerves - "We did as You told us and made sure it' s incapacitated. Even better, i guess.. for now, it' s under our control. We wanted to pick a new leader for the pumpkins but it' s kind of impossible… thus, we' re here to settle things alongside Mayor. Peacefully, at last. Hopefully a truce can be made now, without Mycelium' s influence.."

 No.622452

>>622448
Morning sighs.

"I suppose thats all that can be done given we've soured him on our trust. Thank you."
>>622449
"Let us hope she doesn't find her way back then."
>>622450
"We did battle, and the Lich banished her to, well I'm not sure exactly, but not here."
>>622451
"Let us hope."

 No.622453

>>622449

"Been tough, but we managed. This Mycelium sure was a stubborn one."


He stays silent on the matter of Gloria, though it pains him inside to think of the traitor…

>>622452

"Battle, You say? Good to see you' re alright… but… how' s the Mayor?" - Mercurial asks worriedly, looking around at the aftereffects of the dreaded aforementioned process."

 No.622454

>>622452
"Waitwhat?!"

 No.622455

>>622454
"She was killing innocents, I had to intervene."
>>622453
>He's standing next to me IC

 No.622456

>>622455
She facehooves, "Of course she was."

 No.622457

>>622446
>>622449
"Corrects. Thats pits leads tos thes Underworlds. Is targeteds everythings thats wass attackings mys walls ofs undeads. Is senseds somethings unfamiliars, buts thoughts its wass as news kinds ofs pumpkins. Sos shes shoulds stills bes alives, assumings shes doesn'ts upsets theirs orders."

>>622448
>>622450
>>622451
The Mayor walks up to you three.
"As news leaders tos thes pumpkins?" He asks, his voice filled with intrigue.


>>622447
He conjures up a form and a pen, writing as he walks.
"Okay, Miss Gloria. And it is the name of this realm, yes. Anyone and anything that has a soul and dies comes here for processing. Depending on several factors that you appear to have little patience for, you either go to The Plane of Eternal Pain and Fire, or Paradisio."
He gives an adjustment to his glasses.
"That said, you did not appear in the 'new arrivals' section of the Underworld," he conjures another form, "and from this, you arrived at the same time several sentient pumpkins were sent here at the request of Senior Accountant Tight Skin."
He gives a shake of his head.
"Tsk tsk. That sort of sloppiness just can not be allowed, no matter how many company picnics he may have hosted. Only complicates things further for all of us, mostly for you since you clearly are not a sentient pumpkin. And before you say anything: no, I can not simply send you right back."

 No.622458

>>622457
"The lich… when I get my claws on him…" She mumbles to herself, making a strangling motion with both claws before sighing and setting them back down on the floor. "Why can you not just simply send me back? Is there something blocking you from creating a portal to the way back?"

 No.622459

>>622457
She looks at the mayor like he was insane.

 No.622460

>>622452
>>622457
"Banished? I'd feel sorry for her, but that's what you get for impulse in a strange realm."

>>622457
"Yes."
Azzanadra says as he climbs down off the pumpkin to be on face level with the Mayor.
"We got the Mycellium under control, so there's no problems right now, but with its distaste to everything that isn't a pumpkin, we're gonig to remove it and put in a new leader so you can rebuild your town and work in tandem with the pumpkins. However, there's no pumpkin old or strong enough to take that role. We were thinking either you could hold the position for a time, or I was suggesting we could use those candies to power a pumpkin up so it could handle ruling them."

 No.622461

>>622460
>>622457
Morning just listens to the ideas and the Mayor's reaction.

 No.622462

>>622457

"Yes, Mayor" - "We heard the necessary requirements, but there is no pumpkin old and talented enough to fill this role… however, we do have Mycelium under our control now. We can use it to order pumpkins to listen to you peacefully now. You were the one who cared about them in the past, the one who planted them in the first place.. perhaps we could convince the pumpkins to help us in a good cause, seeing as it was Mycelium, which agitated them? Maybe even the restoration of the Zombie Zoo to its former glory could be possible with their help?

 No.622463

>>622457
He looks up behind himself to make sure Shadow's sticking to the party, and listens to the thrilling discussion between the party and the mayor.

>>622460
"You guys need candies?"
He opens his satchel to pull out a Nightmare Candy.
"Like, these ones?"

 No.622464

>>622463
"Oh, you got more? That helps the situation, we have a good stash of them too from when this one was defeated."
Azzanadra says, pointing back to the undead pumpkin mount.

 No.622465

>>622464
He pops the piece in his mouth and pulls out the other 13 pieces.
"Thish ish all I got, bud."

 No.622466

>>622458
"Let's see…first of all, I do not have authorization to use the spell required. Secondly, sending you back would send the wrong impression to everyone else here, many of whom have been waiting centuries before you. Thirdly, all anomalies MUST be dealt with appropiately, and all parties involved in its creation given proper consequences. Fourthly, the processes to bring someone back to the world of the living would take a lot of time. So long, in fact, that all those behind you refused and opted to take the faster route of being processed." During the time he spoke, he conjured a form and wrote several lines down before having it teleported away somewhere.
"That said, you expressed concern over a…sword, was it? Well, no weapons are allowed her in the Underworld anymore. Too many causing fights, and killing many important staff members here."


>>622459
"Iss somethings wrongs?"

>>622460
>>622462
"Mes ins suchs as positions? Beings Mayors wass funs ands alls, buts-" he gets interrupted as a form magically appears in one of his hooves. He reads it over, giving a defeated sigh.
"Ats thiss rates, Is wouldn'ts bes holdings this positions fors longs. Its woulds seems I'ves recieveds mys Notices ofs Terminations ons mys eternals lifes."

>>622461
>>622463
You hear all this.

 No.622467

>>622466
"You're what?"

Morning says in surprise.

 No.622468

>>622466
"Wait, you received a form telling you to die? How can somepony just declare that?"

 No.622469

>>622466
Crux raises an eyebrow.
"You're kidding, right? Please tell me you're kidding."

 No.622470

>>622466
"You- just-" she sighs exasperatedly and facehooves again. Then she hears his talk about not being mayor for much longer. "So… you're going to be in the underworld with Gloria?"

 No.622471

>>622466
"Mister.. Ohpab, was it? I require my weapon. It's a sacred blade of the Golden Claw… you can ask whomever has possession of it currently that nobody can properly hold it. I can also assure you that I would not harm anybody as it is part of my code to not harm without a reason… Although this code doesn't extend to the undead, being sent to the Underworld makes it an exception. I would gladly talk to anybody who possesses the spell to send me back, while I understand others wait behind me… I'm not dead. I was forcefully sent here by this 'Tight Skin' as you called him. As for proper consequences.. if you mean punishing Tight Skin, I'll happily punish him myself." She tells him, hopefully trying to avoid waiting past her expiration date just to talk to somebody higher up.

 No.622472

>>622466

Mercurial' s jaw drops a bit, his eyebrows twist. It looks as though he wants to say something, opening up his lips and closing them. In the end, he could not reach his own voice.

His entire expression just screamed: "Wut".

His companions did a great job asking for him the questions which troubled the Crystal Pony.

 No.622473

>>622467
"Mys eternals lifes. Its wass givens tos mes fors beings Employees ofs thes Years fors as straights twentys years…sos longs ass Is dids nots dos anys messs ups. Suchs ass sendings Misss Glorias whens shes wasn'ts ons thes forms."

>>622468
>>622469
>>622472
"Wells, Is won'ts dies rights aways. Is wills regresss ins ages untils I'ms ass youngs ass Is wass whens Is recieveds its, withs somes possibles times interests, ands penaltys fors thes messs ups."

"Alls things considers, I mights haves…," he closes his eyes in thought, "maybes twos days ifs mys maths is rights."

>>622470
"Nos, nots yets."


>>622471
"No need, we're already in the process of administering his punishment. Just needs approval from President Soul Harvest. That being said, he's also the only one with the proper authorization to perform the spell and, sadly, he is a VERY busy individual."

"As for the return of your weapon, your word alone doesn't carry much weight. Unless a very prestigious member here is able to vouch for you, you shall remain weaponless. Trust me, when we first implemented this policy, a few were lenient and ended up being the first ones being murdered. Shame, but that's what happens when you break protocol."

 No.622474

>>622473
"That horrible!" Morning protests

"Is there not some way to make an appeal?"

 No.622475

>>622473
>>622474
"Yeah, surely there can be some way to prove you were forced to do it on a whim."

 No.622476

"I'm assuming being a Paladin of The Light doesn't hold much title here in your Underworld." She speaks, hoping that the business goat would know of what The Light is or even holding a shred of hope that being a wielder of such a being can get her somewhere.

"Where is Soul Harvest and how do I meet him?" She speaks bluntly, although Ohpab knows that Gloria holds no right to see him, she still speaks as if she can be allowed an audience.

 No.622477

>>622473
"… I need a drink."

 No.622478

>>622473
"That doesn't sound right, how can they have the claim over life like that? Well, you're a lich, so necromacy does have some claim over life, but surely not on your level. What will happen to all the other zombies here?"

 No.622479

>>622473

At first, Mercurial thought that Mayor meant that he has two days until he' s young again. Judging from the reaction of those aroud him, it seemed as though he misinterpreted the message. Could it have been that Mayor really two days worth of life? That seemed just… absurd.

Well, no more than receiving eternal life as a reward for good job, but still..

"Mayor… what do You plan on doing with those two days?" - he asked very seriously.

 No.622480

>>622474
>>622475
"Its iss irons clads: nos griffons weres puts ons thes lists ofs things tos bes sents, buts ones wass sents. Theres iss nos compromisings withs thes Underworlds, nos grays areas."

>>622477
"Theres isn'ts muchs besidess anys waters yous mights finds."

>>622478
"Thes zombiess ares gones. Alls weres losts durings thes attacks ons thes towns."

>>622479
He gives a slight sigh.
"Its won'ts bes spents beings upsets abouts alls thiss. Lets uss finishs whats yous alls starteds withs thes Pumpkings."


>>622476
"The cause is, honestly, trivial. Being a paladin does mean you get to use the P4L4D-N form, however, which gives you better odds to being sent to Paradisio." He conjures and hands her three forms, in addition to about twelve other forms.
"Soul Harvest is in his office, hard at work. You COULD submit the paperwork needed to have an audience with him, but the process could take quite awhile. You might not even hear if you were approved or denied until well after you've been sent to…wherever you'll be sent to."

 No.622481

>>622480
"I see. Well then, lets see this through then. If you've to go at least I'll see you go with no business left behind."

"If the undead are redead, then that really leaves nothing to do but reinstate the Mycellium. The pumpkins will own the region, and nopony will slay them anymore."

 No.622482

>>622480
He stays silent and lowers his head as he listens to the discussion.

 No.622483

>>622480
"…Again, I'm not dead… My paradise will come when my life truly does end, spending it bathed in light with my brothers and sisters. Again, I do not do paperwork.. Either I find him myself, or you direct me to his office." She was not giving in, she refuses to wait and follow proper procedures like the others. This was something forced upon her, she will not follow their laws.

 No.622484

>>622480
"All gone, really?"
Azzanadra looks around the now empty town.
"Such a waste, so much damage from one being."

>>622481
"I'd rater not put that fungus back in charge. If all the zombies are gone, might as well leave the pumpkins be and instate a leader themselves, let nature fix itself since Zombie Zoo is now gone."

 No.622486

>>622481

"I am pretty sure the Mycelium will not let us go off the hook… to be honest, i' ve been thinking if we could use the pumpkin army to save the Princess… at the very least, as a distraction…"

>>622480

"Though i suppose life here won' t end as soon as we reach our goal… if we succed… yes, we should settle things right here and now. Pointless fightning has been plaguing this realm for too long. Mayor, are You ready to talk to the pumpkins? I can call them any time you pinpoint."

 No.622487

>>622480
She just pulls her pirate hat over her face and plops down on the floor.

 No.622488

>>622484
"Did you miss the part of them being inanimate plants without a King? They require a leader, and if things are as you say, nopony else is qualified."
>>622486
"A noble gesture, but I think we've meddled enough. We'll set things in order and save Luna ourselves."

 No.622489

>>622481
>>622482
>>622484
>>622486
>>622487
Tight Skin looks to each of you, considering all of what you have said.
"Thiss Mycelliums yous calls its dids alls thiss becauses ofs mes, yess? Thens Is wants tos meets mys tormentors faces-tos-faces."

"Takes mes tos its."


>>622483
The goat can't help but laugh for a few seconds.
"Okay, I understand. Here," he hands her a form, "fill this out and you'll be approved for Post Mortis Refusal Disorder therapy in no time. Trust me, I suggest you take it willingly."

"That said, you are now considered too unfit to meet Soul Harvest. He is quite busy, much too busy for one who can't accept the simple fact that they are dead."

 No.622490

>>622489
At this point, Gloria has lost her patience. She doesn't even take the papers this time, simply staring at him. "I do not fill out paperwork." everything in her stare only told him that she was very serious. "Take me to see Soul Harvest. Now."

>Intimidation

[1d10]

Roll #1 10 = 10

 No.622491

>>622488
"What said they are inanimate without a leader?"

>>622489
"Alright, let's head back to the cave, although I won't be releasing control of it."

 No.622492

>>622491
>>622489
"The fungus." Morning says following along.

"Or did you not receive the vision of having your head chopped open because everypony falsely believed you were a fruit?"

 No.622493

>>622489

While not a decision he' d opt for, Mercurial did not go against the dying one' s wishes.

"All right. Come, Mayor."

He made his way back to the Zombie Pumpkin' s top, with the help of it, of course… lifted whoever was inerested.. and off to the cave they were gone..

 No.622494

>>622492
"That was implying they were nonsentient? I figured it was a dramatization of what the fungus was believing."

 No.622495

>>622494
"That was implying they were inanimate, the pumpkins were suffering from locked-in syndrome without their King's magic."

Morning has a look of realization.

"Is that what you said to the Fungus that made him so sore at you?"

 No.622496

>>622495
"I told him he was blowing the natural process of produce out of proportion."

 No.622497

>>622489
She just climbs up onto the pumpkin and falls sleep herself, next to sundown.

 No.622498

>>622496
"Produce? They were thinking creatures, not just fruit! What were you thinking?"

 No.622499

>>622498
"Vegetables, technically. But it was taking it far too personally. I can see the dislike of all the vandalism and less than likable fields, but that's not enough to excuse its reaction. But, the pumpkins attacked with only with the fungus in charge, meaning that when the pumpking was in charge, the pumpkins can either be nonsentient, naturally immobile, or just don't move by choice."

 No.622500

>>622499
"Vandalism!? This was murder, these beings can think and feel. And we've no reason to believe the pumpkins under the King didn't move, only that they didn't attack."

"No wonder the Mycellium was so angry if you were treating massacres so lightly."

 No.622501

>>622490
"I-I…uhh…." The goat, clearly smaller than Gloria, begins to visibly sweat.
"Look, uhh, Soul Harvest's office is…is at the lowest level here. But you'd need proper authroization, the k-kind a Junior Orientation Guide simply doesn't have, and-"
"Ohpab," the secretary says, finishing with the last soul in line and closing her desk up, "need I remind you about speaking without the proper clearance?"
"We-well…no, but I-"
"As for you," the annoyed goo says, quickly conjuring and filling out a form, "if you aren't going to file your paperwork tonight, nor any other night, then we'll forcibly move you so we have more space for the next round of souls."
A door appears, and out steps two blue centaurs. Both wear sunglasses, and kevlar vests; and both grab Gloria by her front claws, their grip firm and strong.
"You should've filled out your paperwork."

>>622491
>>622492
>>622493
>>622497
You all board the pumpkin with Tight Skin and head back to the cave.

Upon arriving, you all enter the cave and return to the chamber of the fungus.
"Thats iss whats wass causings alls thiss troubles?"
There is a slight rumble in the air, almost a growl, before the fungus speaks.
"You…." Some roots in the tower seem with wriggle in minor rage.
"Wells, heres wes ares. Yous nos longers ins charges ofs yourselfs, ands mes nos longers ins charges ofs a towns ands abouts tos dies ins twos days."
The voice is silent.
"Sos tells mes, whats nows?"
The voice is still silent, Tight Skin staring at the roots, until….
"You are the only being strong enough on this remote continent. We want you…to become one of us."

>Paused!

 No.622502

>>622500
"They were vegetables, I'd imagine it was unclear to everypony that they were sentient. Still no reason for this mushroom to take over and rampage."



[To Top]