/mlp/ - Clopper's Closet

>>OP
Memory check!
We've seen the symbol on the armour of the ponies attacking us enough times, and we know from Rose that it's a variation on the Stampede's symbol.
From memory, is the symbol on Silver's armour piece the same as our attackers, or a variation that might be the original Stampeded logo?

>>13004098
You pull out the armor and double-check the symbol in better light. Your memory isn't 100%, but you're fairly sure it's the same variation you saw on the enemy Rose knocked out a couple days back. So it isn't be the original Stampede logo.

Hmm.

>>13004284
Indeed.

Can someone remind me why it is that we need to talk to the sentries?

>>13004147
Alright, let's go talk to Rose.

>>13004315
We were going to ask about Silver's comings and goings, if they'd noticed anything.

should we maybe check Steady's tent too? I mean he's over there talking to Pinkie with Silver, and he's another suspect.

>>13004367
You stuff the armor back under your shirt and head to Rose's tent. Just like when you were going to Silver's tent, you keep low and quiet. Not wanting to get a facefull of angry hoof for barging in, you rattle her tent and check if she's awake.

"Rose? You there?"

A few seconds of silence, a groan, then: "Yes. What is it you want?"

"I need to ask you something."

The tent opens up, revealing an unusually naked Rose. Guess she doesn't sleep in her armor. "Ask it so I can go back to sleep."

You pull out the armor and show it to her. "What can you make of this?"

She snatches it, turning it around, inspecting it inside and out before handing it back to you. "It looks like a very typical body piece of armor. Same group that's been attacking us from the symbol on it. Looks to fit a larger pegasus, stallion by my guess. What of it?"

Frowning, you stash it back under your shirt. Should you tell her?

>>13004497
Tell her. Rose is one of the few ponies we can trust.

>>13004497
>>13004517
Hmm, I'm not sure about this yet, but we did wake her up...

>>13004497
She's probably not going to be condoning of our deceit, let's not tell her.

>>13004517
>>13004553
>>13004604
A yes, a no, and a maybe. Can you come to a decision?

>>13004631
I still say yes.
She might be able to help somehow.

>>13004631
Spill dem beans.

I wasn't able to join in last session, but I feel Steady's got a bit more going on that interests me.
From Silver's outburst during the earlier Silver/Rose debate we know Steady is cynical, and from him trying to steer us away from Celestia we know that from his time spent under the sisters he feels that they're out of touch with the more mortal ponies, and that they don't value stuff that should be important.
>She doesn't understand the kind of troubles normal ponies go through. She won't understand you. Yeah, she might dig you for a while, but to her, things coming and going is just another part of live, even the things we see as important.
Remember that second message? "We don't fight because we don't understand. We fight because we understand all too well."
He's in the position to have all the information, he's close with Silver so he could easily have been told about that conversation we think paste3 was reacting to (Hell, maybe it was Steady talking negatively about it that caused Silver to bring it up, and Silver just ferried what we said back since he wanted to defend the princesses).
And lastly, it seemed a little odd that the moment our next location was brought up in the meeting, he immediately excused himself and went off alone.

That said, all this is just smoke and speculation, but it might pay to keep him in the pool of suspects, and importantly ask Silver who he spoke to about that conversation.

>>13004758
All the more reason we should check his tent for evidence.

>>13004517
>>13004637
>>13004639
"Celestia and Luna have asked me to find the traitor in our camp. Someone's been giving away our position and who knows what else. They don't want this traitor sticking around when we finally find Twilight and the enemy's camp." You take a deep breath before continuing. "I took this from Silver's tent. He's my first suspect. I was hoping I could figure something out from it."

Rose stares at you, blinking a few times. At times like this you wish you could see past that impassive visage of hers.

"And why didn't you suspect me?"

"Because the enemy knew where our camp's second position was, but you didn't. You were left behind."

"Ah," she says, her face slumping back to weariness. "If you truly want my input: it's not Silver, and that armor doesn't belong to him. That, or the armorer had no idea how large his body was when he made it."

"Why don't you think it's Silver?"

"Kid's greener than the forest. He wouldn't know how to handle the pressure of staying hidden in an enemy camp while maintaining appearances. My suspicions would be on more experienced soldiers. Someone like myself."

"He could simply be a very good actor."

Rose sighs. "Yes, I suppose he could. Still don't think it's him. Now, if you'll excuse me, I've got sleep to catch up on."

"Aren't you worried just a little about this traitor?"

"I'm sure you'll do fine." With that, she zips the tent back up. You hear a thump as she collapses back onto her sleeping bag.

>>13004810
Steady is sounding more and more likely...
Check if he's still talking to Pinkie, then let's go rummage through his stuff.
If it comes down to it we can have him put the armor on to see if it fits him.

>>13004810
Brilliant, but we weren't looking for opinions.

>>13004852
We didn't tell Steady about the views we had on the princess that the pastebin talked about.

>>13004904
So? We need to investigate all possibilities.

>>13004852
>If it comes down to it we can have him put the armor on to see if it fits him.
What would that even imply? The armour was in Silver's possession, not Steady's, and we don't even have any good reasoning as to why anyone would have some of the enemy's armour.
On top of that, if it IS incriminating somehow, we'd just be giving the game away and possibly landing ourselves in hot water if we brought it out now.

>>13004852
>>13004873
Sneaking back toward the fire, you wipe the sweat from your brow. Rose is experienced in these sort of things. Maybe she's right. Maybe it is someone more experienced. It's difficult to start pointing that finger around again. Who's up for investigation this time? Steady? The same guy you had licks with a few nights back? The guy who playfully flirts with Rose and goofs around to keep the mood light?

You shake your head. This is like ripping off fingernails.

As the campfire comes into view, you see Steady waving to Silver and Pinkie, heading toward the tents. He must be going to sleep. You won't have a chance to peek around his tent without something to pull him away from it, and that could make him suspicious if he's the traitor. You haven't talked to the sentries yet, either. Could always go back and speak with the princesses as well, though it looks like their tent is empty at the moment.

>>13005048
Talk to the sentries.
And don't let sentimentality get in the way of finding the truth.
We won't be fooled again.

>>13005080
Scanning the area, you find a couple ponies looking out into the night. Those must be the sentries you're looking for. Taking one last glance at Silver and Pinkie at the fire, you leave the inner area camp and walk to the outskirts where the sentries stand. You announce yourself with a "Hey!" so you don't spook them.

They turn around, nodding to you before looking back out into the night.

"What can we do for you?" one asks.

"I'm actually investigating something and I was wondering if I could ask about what you've seen on watch."

"When?"

"Eh, any time within the last five days or so."

The other speaks up. "Seen a lot of stuff within the last five days. I hope you've got something more specific in mind."

"Yeah. First: are you two the only sentires or are there others?"

"Well, we're the only two now, but back when the camp was larger, before the attack, there were three others." His head dropped. "Dunno where they are now."

"Have you seen anyone come and go at odd hours? Maybe looking like they didn't want to be spotted?"

"Yeah. Some of the younger guys like to sneak off and get time to themselves. Often ponies just need to, eh, relieve themselves and the only real privacy is out in the woods. The older soldiers don't even try to be stealthy about it."

"Anything that sticks out in your mind?"

"Not really." The sentry snorts and wipes his snout, looking around before asking, "If you had a name or something, we might be more helpful."

>>13005480
You run a hand through your hair. Fuck. Saying it out loud is just... shit.

"Steady and Silver."

The sentry jerks his head back. "Those two? Damn, what they in it for? Never expected trouble out of those two."

"Can you please keep it quiet, though? At least for a while?"

"Yeah, yeah. Well, I haven't seen anything peculiar with them. How about you, Rock?"

"Seen Silver sneaking off a couple times. Steady's excused himself once as well, though he chatted with me before leaving. Dunno what either one was up to, but it didn't look any weirder than normal."

The first sentry shrugs. "Don't know what to say. With the loss of the other three guys, we couldn't tell you who all left and when. There's a lot of missing information. Hope we helped."

You nod. "Thanks for the info."

Rock nudges his partner. "Hey, she's still there, man."

"Really? What's she looking at?"

"Dunno."

You follow the sentries' gaze, squinting into the inky black night. At first, all you can make out is a slight movement, then the shape takes form, hues of blue giving it definition. Luna?

>>13005493
What's she doing?

>>13005493
Before we seperate, ask when it was they saw them sneaking off.

>>13005652
"When did you see Silver and Steady sneaking off?"

"Eh, Silver... that was... five and three days ago, I think. Steady snuck off the same day as the second attack. So two days ago."

"Thanks."

The three of you watch Luna a short while longer, trying to figure out why she's out there.

>>13005592
"Can you make out what she's looking at? Or what's she doing?"

"Nah, man, I have no idea. She does this every now and then, though. Guess she likes to think about stuff. Or get away from things for a while. Never asked."

>>13005783
I guess we could ask her what she's doing then what she thinks now that we've narrowed the traitor down to two people

>>13005783
>Steady snuck off the same day as the second attack.

Is there anyone else here? I don't want to keep going if there's only 1 participant.

>>13006102
One here, though I'm a bit tired. Not either of the two posts above you.

>>13006102
I'm here, I'm just at a loss for what to do.
Talking to Luna would be nice, but I don't want to interrupt her "Me time."

>>13006102
You picked a horrible time during the week, but I'm still here.

Maybe it'd be a good time to stop anyhow, 2/3 of us seem to be tired/busy and heading into a conversation with Luna sounds like a good breakpoint.

>>13005940
There isn't anything pressing now that you've spoken with the guards, so you figure you can chat with Luna about what you've found out, not to mention you're somewhat curious as to what she's doing.

"Later, guys," you say, waving at the sentries.

They mumble a farewell and watch you as you trek out into the night. It's noticeably colder here, away from the bodies and the campfires, but Luna doesn't look to be shivering at all. You rub your hands together, blowing into them as well in an effort to stave off the cold. After a minute or so, you look back, surprised at how far away Luna is from the camp.

Before long, though, you're a short distance away and open your mouth to greet her.

"Hello." Her greeting comes first.

"Hi, Luna. Do you mind if I take a seat?"

"No, please do so." She doesn't look back to you, eye fixed on the moon. So that's what she's been looking at. Makes sense.

You sit down next to her, curling your legs up to your chest. Damn, that wind is chilly. "Can I ask what you're doing out here?"

"You may. I am considering the situation. Trying to decide what exactly to do when we do find the traitor." She shakes her head. "It is not an easy thing to think on. My sister was always better at things like this."

>>13006302
I need to leave in another 30 minutes anyways. I was planning on going till then.

>>13006302
Aw...

>>13006330
Put him on trial? Throw him in prison? Send him to bed without supper?

>>13006491
Is there any precedent?
I can see the problem though. With how relatively few soldiers we have, we can't afford to guard them in the camp or escort them elsewhere, and just letting them loose is just another enemy we'll have to fight later, and it lets them give away any information they've still yet to give.

>>13006330
Don't think on it too hard, punishment may not need to be given out until this situation is resolved. He or she simply needs to be detained to prevent another information leak.

>>13006491
"Put him on trial? Throw him in prison? Send him to bed without supper? Those are just off the top of my head."

"I appreciate the suggestions, but I'm afraid it is not quite so simple. If I put him on trail, where will we hold him? There are no chains, no smithy to craft them, no cages. We have some rope, but that will not hold someone as craft as this traitor for long. And who knows what will happen to the guards I put on him. This is someone they've trusted for weeks or perhaps longer. How can I trust this traitor will not talk themselves free? There are other methods to pursue, but they are so severe and I do not know how effectively I could use them on a friend." She closes her eyes. "My sister probably has everything figured out already, but I am not so sure."

"Don't think on it too hard, punishment may not need to be given out until this situation is resolved. He or she simply needs to be detained to prevent another information leak."

"Yes, that is a small relief I am allowing myself. At least until this ordeal with Ironsides is over with." She turns to you. "This is leaving me much in the same state I was when I first saw you. I suspected you were a weapon the enemy was using to get close to Celestia. Your appearance was too coincidental, I thought, and there are many races here I do not know of. However, I also saw how quickly she'd grown attached to you, and I knew she would need every last bit of help to get through this. She loves Twilight, you know."

>>13006775
Your eyes widen. "Loves? Wow, I hadn't realized it was that significant."

"Indeed. She's practically her daughter in some ways. Twilight's more than just a student, she's a protege. A piece of herself. I feel sorry for those who put themselves in-between the two."

A long sigh escapes her lips. "Look at me, running my mouth. I have been thinking too much." A wing unfurls and wraps around your back, laying on your shoulder. "If you have something you are curious about, now would be the time to ask while I feel whimsical and open."


~

That's all for today. Full session this Saturday at noon (central american time)

>>13006791
Gotcha. Thanks as always, sorry if we were a bit quiet tonight.

>>13006867
it's fine. I knew this one was a bit odd on the timing.

Oh boy, Celestia Quest!