The Multi-Dimensional OC Bar

"Looks decent enough." Aerv says. "Fire magic, huh? I know some of it. Along with all different sorts of magic."

Joy wasn't finished yet.  "Oh, cool!  What sort of show needs real armor, though?  Because that ain't no costume."  Crow spoke up, fake smile firmly in place.  "Isn't.  Isn't a costume."  Joy looked at him, he smiled and nodded, and she turned her attention back to Ician, waiting for him to answer.

"That's good, the enchantment activates immediately." Storm said. "You should be well protected depending on the enchantments you have." He shrugged again and the flames receded, his tail however continued to smoulder.

Storm turned to Aerv "Yeah, I'm pretty good with fire but I'm terrible with almost any other form of magic."

Aerv gulps down whatever was left in his vodka bottle. He then spit some flames into the battle. After that, his eyes started glowing bright red and the two flames started dancing around the bottle, changing colors and sizes. After that, he let the flames out of the bottle. The now-free flames started dancing around the table and changing colors.

Whoever was looking at Aerv's eyes could see that they turned from white to pitch black and the two dancing and color-changing flames were engulfed in shadow. The lights around the table also went off. The table now seemed empty. Aerv blinked and his eyes went back to normal white and the flames re-appeared on the table again. Aerv picked them up with his claw, played around with fingers and then the flames jumped into Aerv's mouth again.

"A beautiful display Aerv." Storm said clapping a few times. "I should have guessed you would be better than me with fire magic being a dragon." Storm again formed his tornado and began to spin it in a figure eight. He picked up his glass again and took another sip of cider. He grimaced "Warm." he says which is all the explanation anybody really needs.

"Huh." Ician looks at Aerv. "Impressive. Though really, I shouldn't be surprised. I've seen too many bizarre things in my time." He sweeps his hoof in a gesture. "Mostly in this Bar, though."

He turns to Joy. "Oh, well... a parade. Military parade. Right. You know, with armour and all."

"This was just... one of the most basic spells. Controlling the fire. I sometimes use this trick when I have to defend myself. Except I use fireballs. Large ones." Aerv says. "And some added dark magic makes sure the enemy can't protect with just some enchantments."

Ician frowns. "That's wonderfully comforting to know. I can only hope that..." He trails off, remembering Joy's presence, and leans in closer to Aerv and Storm. "... that the changelings don't have this 'added dark magic' yet."

Aerv shrugs, still clenching the compass in his claw. "I kinda doubt it. I'm the sort of dragon that is more... magical. Hence why I'm so small. My specie is most powerful with magic... but even without, we can be quite deadly if we so want." he says, slightly proud of himself and then realizes there's a filly among them. "I'll... stop talking about it now.."

"Good idea." Ician agrees quickly, taking a small step away from them. "Say, I must ask... why do you seem so attached to that compass? Is it an heirloom of sorts, perhaps?"

"I... well.. you could say so.. It's the only thing that keeps me from 'snapping'." Aerv says with slight discomfort.

"Ah..." Ician looks away. "Even I'm socially well-versed enough to know I should ask about something else." He stares at Aerv. "So... how's life?"

"You.. asked this already." Aerv says, his eyes glowing again as another bottle of vodka flows into his claw. "Funny how resistant I am to alcohol... It takes a lot of bottles to actually get me drunk.." he says and starts gulping down another bottle.

"I just boil the alcohol when it reaches my stomach." Storm says. "It's uncomfortable though so I don't do it very often." He adds a flame to the tornado in the table giving it a pair of bright orange twists at the sides. "I can loose control if I use too much magic so I don't normally do things like that." Storm downed his cider and went to get another. "He asks that a lot!" he called to Aerv from the bar.

Joy was entranced with the display of magic, her mouth open in a smile as she watched the flames dance. Crow's mind was elsewhere, and he looked towards Ician. His smile was gone, on his face was a look of intense curiosity. "I'm sorry, but could we backtrack slightly? Did you mention changelings?" He realized he had no idea what the rest of the hive was doing. He'd been cooped up in his lab for far too long.

Storm returns to the table with his cider and smiles when he sees the young filly so entranced by his little tornado. He elongates the flames until they are above the tornado then bends them to form a star, he then widens the edges until the star resembles a flower before returning the flames to their original sizes. He takes a drink of cider and presses the glass against his head, as he begins to push his absolutely-no-chance-that-anything-bad-could-possibly-happen-at-all-ever limit.

Aerv slightly releases his rusty golden compass, looks at it for a moment and then clenches it again. "So.. Storm, you said you're a blacksmith? What kind of armor and weapons do you make?" Aerv asks curiously.

Joy gasped, clapping as the flames swirled. Crow glanced back at the filly, then to the flames on the table. The false smile reappeared. "Very good." Joy nodded enthusiastically, entranced with the display. An energy filled the air, a sort of wave of raw emotion, as far as Crow could tell. whatever it was, it soon filled the room, giving its occupants an irrational sense of wonder and happiness. Even Crow was affected, but he ignored it. This was a fairly regular thing with Joy.

"Normally I don't make any, I mostly just repair stuff. Like the crystal guards armour, wagons ponies use to carry things I did a bit of work on a train once to." Storm said. "I could make pretty much anything though so long as I have a specification." He added for clarification."But obviously I can only apply techniques I've already learnt. I normally use iron to make high grade steel. I can use my pyromancy to control within a few degrees the temperature of the forge and the metal I'm working, I can make weapons even stronger that way. Why, you in the market for some weapons and armour?"

Storm felt the wave although he didn't know it. He did however feel his usual anger subside a substantial amount allowing him to continue his display for Joy. "I take requests, just nothing too complicated if you please." He said to her with a smile.

"Not really, my hard scales and sharp claws saved me numerous times, besides, I don't even know how to hold a sword." Aerv says, gulping down his vodka.

A note of confusion entered Joy's face and voice.  "Requests?  Um..."   She watched the flames for a little longer, thinking.  "Uh, can you make colors?  And how big can you make the fire?"

"Hm?" Ician, distracted by the flames, looks at Crow. "Oh, changelings? We don't know very much about them right now. Just a few suspected involvements in..." His eyes flick to Joy for a brief moment, then back to Crow. "... Some incidents."

Crow's attention snapped back to Ician, his expression curious.  "What type of... incidents are you referring to?"  He then glanced to Joy, and back to Ician.  Smile on.  "Don't worry, anything you have to say, she can hear.  I'm certain you're no worse than her 'uncles'."

Ician looks between the two of them and sighs. "Just... A military incident. A team of scouts killed in action." I shakes his head. "I've been sent to investigate, with a team of..." He hesitates. "... Friends outside the army."

Crow raised his eyebrows in an approximation of surprise.  As soon as he heard Ician's response, he had to know more.  He couldn't tell if it was some sort of loyalty to his species, or a scientist's instinct to keep learning.  Of course, he ruled out he first option after a half a second of introspection.  He didn't 'do' loyalty.

His mind returned to the task at hand: find more information.  He turned his expression into one of curiosity and mild confusion.  "Assume I never read the news.  Where's all this happening?"