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Spamotron said:
The assignment to look for Dirt Flaxen seems odd. That sounds like a job for a Detective Agency not an Adventurer’s Guild. Any idea why the record company is coming to us instead?
You tell Twilight Sparkle that you do have some questions, though not all of them are related to the guild.
Twilight Sparkle: “Of course. Pinkie, can you get some whistles ready for our newcomers?”
Pinkie Pie: “You got it!”
As Pinkie Pie zooms out of the room, Twilight Sparkle gestures for you to come along. You and Moonflower follow her into the guildmaster’s office, and the oaken doors magically close behind you.
Twilight Sparkle: “You must be curious about our progress on this ring of yours. Since my last letter, it’s been going… slowly. To tell you the truth, the more Moondancer and I learn about it, the more complicated it becomes.
So far, we were able to isolate three nested spells within the enchantment: a pocket dimension spell, a time travel spell, and some kind of intricate alteration spell. The latter is, admittedly, testing our knowledge of pony anatomy.”
Moonflower: “Whoa! An enchantment can be more than jus’ one spell?”
Twilight Sparkle: “Technically, yes. Are you familiar with the fundamentals of spellcasting?”
You nod, and recall from your lessons with Crystal Charm that spells are, in essence, a series of instructions for the arcane to perform.
Twilight Sparkle: “Precisely. These instructions sometimes require additional information, called intentions. For example, a Teleportation spell requires an intended location in order to be cast.
If you have another spell which results in a location — say, a Detect Object spell —, then you may be able to use that spell as the intention for the Teleportation spell, creating a Teleport to Object spell.”
Moonflower: “Oooh! I think I kinda get it!”
Twilight Sparkle: “In the case of the ring, the spell seems to trap the body in a momentary pocket dimension. This pocket dimension is used as an anchor for the time travel spell, which uses the body’s age as its intention. This grants access to the body at the time of its creation, and allows for the alteration spell to rewrite very specific parts of the genotype, before ending both previous spells.
That’s the simplified version, in any case. We weren’t able to figure out the specifics of the alteration spell yet, but we’ve been brushing up on our biology.”
You grin at the expression, and playfully ask Twilight Sparkle if she and Moondancer put any of the theory into practice. The princess responds with a knowing grin of her own.
Twilight Sparkle: “I don’t suppose you had any ulterior motives when suggesting her as a study partner…?”
With a sheepish smile, you decide to change the subject. You ask Twilight Sparkle where you could learn more about magic and spells.
Twilight Sparkle: “Books on spellcasting and magic scrolls are available in most libraries. I’d recommend starting with beginner-level spells — you may be a fully grown pony, but you’ve only had your horn for one moon.”
You nod, and ask if she knows where you can learn more about alicorn magic.
Twilight Sparkle: “Uhh… I’m afraid there’s not much to learn. If I’m not mistaken, alicorns like us have the ability to use Light and Dark magic, but nopony else can use those two elements without suffering terrible consequences. Because of this, very little is known about either one.
What little we do know was sealed away in the royal library’s forbidden archives for safety. After witnessing what happened to the Paladins of Dawn, I think you understand why.”
You nod, and thank the princess for the insight. Onto business, you decide to ask Twilight Sparkle about the voyages you saw on the board earlier. One of them seemed out of place — something about a missing pony?
Twilight Sparkle: “Oh! You mean Dirt Flaxen. Actually, he’s not missing. From what I understand, the Kirin know where he is, but refuse to tell our sponsor. Since we specialize in matters outside of Equestria, they came to us to help resolve this conflict.
I admit it does sound suspicious, but the Manehattan Music Management insists that Flaxen wouldn’t willingly disappear overnight because he’s, and I quote, ‘contractually obligated to be available for his next tour’. There’s definitely more to this story than we were told, and if you’re interested, we’ve dug up a few leads to get started on the right hoof.”
Relieved to hear that Dirt Flaxen may not be in immediate danger, you consider the other options. You ask about the artifact that the museum is looking for.
Twilight Sparkle: “Let’s see here… Canterlot historians have been debating over a possible misinterpretation of Commander Hurricane’s coat of arms after a restoration of his shield a few hundred years ago. The museum, intent on settling the debate once and for all, is sponsoring us to find any artifacts with the original coat of arms’ design intact.”
Moonflower: “We jus’ gotta fetch a thing? That sounds super easy!”
Twilight Sparkle: “It’s not that simple; the Castle of Pegalithos is somewhere deep in Old Ponyland, far beyond the Frozen North. Very few ponies have gone back to those lands since Equestria was founded, and fewer still have returned. The trip alone is treacherous, and we don’t know what to expect out there.”
A perilous fetch quest, then. Still, you entertain the thought of working with historians. After all, there’s a chance you could run into your fillyhood friend Honourshine!
Moonflower: “Oh yeah!”
Twilight Sparkle: “Did you say Honourshine? What a coincidence! That’s the name of one of our sponsors.”
You pause. Honourshine was here? You ask if she works with the museum.
Twilight Sparkle: “Actually, she’s an independent sponsor researching some kind of creatures called Elves. I can’t say I’ve ever heard of them before, but after being proven wrong about the Yggdrasil Tree, I decided to approve her sponsorship.”
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