Traffic is Jammed {open}

[Twilight Sparkle]

Twilight stared at the sight before her, not quite believing it. There
was... jam, actual jam. Actual made from fruit and meant to be spread
upon toast and crumpets jam. It was a sort of purplish red color, which
really wasn't all that unappealing under most circumstances. It even
smelled pleasant, in a fruity, almost airy sort of way. It was also
spread completely across the street outside the restaurant district,
forming what appeared to be a near solid wall of product. Traffic was
quite literally stuck in place, the substance having not only gummed up
the wheels, but in some cases risen to tall enough heights to trap
people within their cars. A few citizens had gathered, and some were
attempting to help, but there was still this feeling of "what exactly is
going on here?"

"What exactly is going on here?" wondered
Twilight aloud. She'd come to this section of town to get something to
drink and possibly nibble on at the Hattery. After her meetings there,
she'd become rather comfortable, and had sought to return rather
regularly. Now there seemed to be a conflux of jam blocking the entrance
of that particular establishment, with a few people looking out through
the windows.

At least no one seemed to be hurt. Put out,
definitely. Perturbed, most likely. And it was quite likely that several
of the objects, cars and buses and such among other things, wouldn't be
useable. But no real harm. Nobody bleeding or anything of that nature.

"Is
anyone in charge here?" Twilight called, standing upon her toes to look
over the crowd. "Anyone? Anybody trying to fix this?" she waved at the
area, as if it weren't obvious enough what this likely meant. Twilight waited impatiently for an answer, already having considering at least trying something.

[Deleted]

A motorcycle swerved around the corner. Green eyes narrowed in determination when Megs saw the purplish substance and trapped patrons down the street. He revved the engine picking up speed, trench coat billowing behind him like a cape. When he got close enough he spun the back end around, tires screeching across the pavement and the bike came to a stop. He jumped off swinging what looked like a modified fire extinguisher over his back.

There appeared to be a woman and small child trapped in the closest vehicle. ”Hold on, I’m coming!” He aimed the extinguisher. A burst of blue chemical emerged melting away some of the jam clearing a path to the car. He managed to get enough of it away to open the drivers door. “Hurry. Before the path closes.” He ushered the woman and child on their way then headed for the next car. A quick glance over the shoulder revealed more jam slowing working its way to close the path he had cleared. “Hurry. That way.” He urged the second cars occupants on their way.

“Over here!” Megs looked to the voice seeing someone waving their hand through a car window. “On my way!” He climbed onto the cars roof looking for what would be the shortest path to the next vehicle, only had so much chemical after all. Alright if he jumped from this car, to the back of that truck. Yes that would work. He went to jump but unfortunately slipped at the last moment. ”Whoa!” His arms flailed wildly as he tried desperately to stop the impending doom. But alas it was no use. The world spun upside down and he went tumbling off the car, through a rather thick patch of jam, and finally came to rest near someone’s feet. He blinked looking up the person above. “Miss Sparkle. We meet again. Oh and I meant to do that.” 

[Twilight Sparkle]

Twilight was so wrapped up in her search for someone in charge that she hadn't noticed Megs at first, which was definitely saying something. However, you couldn't very well ignore someone bounding through jam for very long, and soon Twilight found herself turning to watch as the man flipped and moved about, demonstrating a bit more grace than Twilight would have thought him capable of (even after hearing of his dancing abilities and their little experience in the arcade). Twilight at least managed to close her mouth by the time Megs slid to a stop beneath her feet.

"Twilight's fine," she said. "I don't think anyone's called me Miss Sparkle before," she bent over, offering a hand to help Megs get to his feet. "I don't suppose you've got any idea what caused this? I just sort of showed up and, well," she waved her free hand at the surrounding areas.

Mid-wave, Twilight noticed another person stuck in jam. Some quick focus, some purple energy, and soon the person was free, free and skittering away from the jam as quickly as possible. But even with both of them, Twilight wasn't sure they'd be able to make much of a dent in this.

[Deleted]

“Twilight.” Megs agreed to the name and accepted her offered hand using it to help pull himself up. He looked down and grimaced at the gelatinous substance dripping from his clothes. He wiped some of it off his front and shoulder with a sigh. “These stains will never come out.” Oh well. One thing you got used to in the Superhero biz was the constant replacement of wardrobe. It just wasn’t a full day until some article of clothing was charred or torn.

He noticed the purple energy that seemed to flow from Twilight and found it most interesting. Perhaps he could find a way to contain some of that power. Could prove to be a better energy source than the batteries and chemicals he had so far been limited to in this world. Turning his thoughts back to the task at hand he looked back out over the slowly creeping mass.

“I've been circling the perimeter but have yet to find the epicenter. If my calculations are correct it should be that way.” He gave a nod up the street, the direction he had been heading before his unfortunate tumble. A thought occurred and he raised a questioning eyebrow to the woman beside him. She claimed to have no knowledge about this and he did not want to point fingers. However the energy she seemed able to emanate did make what he was thinking a possibility. “I don’t suppose you had anything to do with this? No offense its just purple does seem to be your color.”

[Twilight Sparkle]

Twilight nodded. She hadn't exactly done a lot in the way of exploring, but it did make sense for there to be some sort of center. She turned in the direction of his nod, her eyes narrowing as she tried to figure things out. This had to be connected to the whole cake and beachwear thing they'd experienced at the barbecue. Either that or things had just gotten too weird, and Twilight wasn't quite ready to believe that they'd drifted that far into the Wacky Zone, at least, not yet.

"What?" she said as she heard Megs' words, her head jerking to him. "Did I?" she looked at the jam, then back at the guy. "No! Of course not! Sure, it's my color and all," she looked at the jam again, then shook her head, "but I don't have that much power, at least, not any more. The whole moving things is about the extent of it any more. The Displacement stripped my abilities just like everyone else. I just... seem to have finally be getting some of them back."

As if to further prove this, she raised her hand. Twilight really didn't need to; her energies actually seemed to originate from somewhere in the middle of her forehead. It just helped her to aim, since she didn't have the horn to help do so. She parted some of the jam, the swirling purple of her magic working as a temporary plow. When she lowered her hand and relaxed, however, it seemed to surge back into place. Twilight frowned at it.

"Do you think that if I cleared a path for you, you could get rid of more of it?" she asked, turning to Megs again. "I think I could part it and give you better access. We might even be able to work toward the source of all this," she turned her head to look in that direction again, her face crinkling in concentration.

[Deleted]

He studied Sparkles face watching for any signs that she could be lying and finally decided to accept her answer “Just going through possibilities."  

Watching more of that interesting energy go to work it was too bad the shift had dampened her ability as she explained. He himself only had so much of the dissolving chemical on hand. In fact the tank on his back was feeling despairingly light. His eyes narrowed in thought calculating how much progress they might be able to make if they pooled together their dwindling resources. Watching how quickly the space she cleared filled back in made things look rather dire. Unless…His eyes widened shooting from the jam, to Twilight, and to his motorcycle. “I’ve got an idea! Follow me!” He bolted down the sidewalk jumping over a few small patches of jam and nearly slipping in another. Thankfully he was spared the embarrassment of another tumble and made it back to the two wheeled vehicle. 

Once to the motorcycle he pulled up the seat revealing the compartment underneath filled with a somewhat odd variety of items. He dug around pulling out a length of copper wire and a work glove. Brow knit in concentration he wrapped the copper wire around the gloves fingers. “No matter how much we clear more will takes its place right. We need to get to the source and cut it off.” Finished with the glove he bent down looking for just the right spot to attach the other end of the wire. Now where did he install that battery? Ah yes. There it is. “If we can amplify your energy we should be able to plow our way through. I drive.” He stood and offered the wire wrapped glove to Twilight. “You shoot.”    

[Twilight Sparkle]

Twilight followed. She still wasn't entirely sure why she was following, but Megs hadn't done anything to diminish her trust in him so far. He was helping people; he seemed almost eager to help people; and he'd helped Twilight in times past. There was no need to hesitate as she moved alongside his motorcycle. Though, as she heard his plan, she couldn't help but, well, hesitate. And maybe chew her lips a little.

"You want me to try and plug into that," Twilight pointed at the glove, "and attack that stuff?" she jerked her thumb at the jam, then shot a quick look over her shoulder. A frown creased her face as she waffled for a few seconds, trying to figure out the best way to word what she had to say next. "Look, my magic's not... it's not working like it's supposed to. Everything's wonky. It takes a lot more concentration to just do what I'm doing. And... and I haven't ever tried that," she pointed at the glove, "when everything was under control. You don't realize what happens when my magic goes out of control, and I mean my magic."

Twilight paused, again chewing her lip for a bit. She shifted awkwardly from foot to foot. The sounds of the jam and the, well, annoyance it kept causing people reached her ears. It all really did sound like something that would have affected Ponyville. Twilight half expected to see Pinkie Pie skipping past and scooping up some of the jam to put on toast or something. Though that just reminded her of just how little control she had over this situation, despite her constant searches to get out of here and her near constant contact with the weirdness that seemed to perpetually spring up here.

"It's just... ponies turned into cacti last time," Twilight offered. She shifted. "And there was that thing with the time traveling spell and.... I just don't know. Isn't there something else we could try?"

[Deleted]

Megs expected Twilight to grab the glove so they could get under way but instead he was met with hesitation. His hand slowly lowered, brow raising in curiosity as she spoke about her magic. About how it did not always work according to plan. Well that was definitely something he had experience with. Not necessarily with magic. But many of his past diabolical devices and grand schemes of villainy had ended in epic failure. Why even some of his heroic efforts did not go so well from time to time. But he had never given up.

He set the glove over the handle bars giving Twilight a moment to take a breath while he slipped the tank from his back and fastened it to the front of the bike. “Look I know you're afraid. But trust me.” Megs moved back in front of Twilight and set his hands on her shoulders. His brilliant green eyes looked down into hers with a sheer look of determination.

“I have failed countless times in the past but that never stopped me from trying. I learned from my mistakes and earned forgiveness. Did you give up magic when it did not go according to plan? Or did you get up and try again? That’s what I need you to do now. What they need you to do.” He gave a nod towards the people still struggling to get free of the invasive jam. “Just try.” He dropped his hands from Twilight's shoulders and once again offered her the glove. “If it doesn’t work then we will go to plan B. But my oversized brilliant mind tells me we won’t need a plan B.”

[Twilight Sparkle]

Wow, here was Twilight getting the pep talk from some guy she'd barely met. Weird. Usually she was
the one giving someone she'd just met a pep talk on the power of believing in yourself and
persevering against the odds. That was sort of her thing. So much so that Twilight couldn't help but gape at Megs as he gave his admittedly impressive speech. There also might have been some part in the back of Twilight's mind silently judging it against her own speeches. That part was actually rather jealous, which was not a sensation Twilight got often.

"Right," she said, sounding a good deal more confident than she had a few moments ago. She nodded confidently, taking a deep breath. Twilight shook out her hands a few times, bouncing on the balls of her feet. Feet, because she'd adapted to that. And she'd adapted to this new, strange world without her powers. and she'd faced a lot worse than living jam before. Heck, she'd been right on the battlefront for that whole thing with the desserts.

"If that's what we need to do, then we do it," she agreed. Another deep breath, and she reached out for the glove. The moment her fingers touched it, Twilight felt a very familiar surge of energy running throughout her body. Her eyes momentarily sparked white, and a few sparks of purple energy leaked out from around her. There seemed to be something coming from the center of her forehead, a slight glow in the shape of a star. Then she felt the glove start to crackle a bit.

"Yeah," she said, looking at it. She gripped it tight, licking her lips, "We might want to be quick about this. I'm not sure how long I'll be able to work this... You're going to drive, right? And we're heading for the center?" she turned and looked there, flexing her hand. She could do this, she could so do this...

[Deleted]

He stood waiting for an answer. Waiting to find out whether Twilight would try or back out leaving him to figure out plan B. Of course he would not admit to the fact that he had no Plan B. In fact he wasn’t even entirely sure this plan would work but Twilight did not need to know that. The corner of his mouth lifted in a smile when she took the glove. He almost jumped in surprise when he felt a small tingling jolt spring up his arm. His smile grew even more. This just might work after all.

“Ha ha! That’s the spirit!” He reached out and pushed the seat back down into position. He turned with a flourish, coat swinging out behind him as he jump on kicking the bike into life. The engine roared and he gave it a few good revs while waiting for Twilight to get secured. He could feel the rising excitement, the eagerness for the battle to come. His green eyes narrowed in on their purplish colored gelatinous foe creeping along the pavement.

“How about some theme music?” He called over his shoulder. Flicking a switch on the dash music sprang into life the sound of Ozzy Osbournes voice breaking the air over the sound of the motorcycle.

ALL ABOOOOOAAAARRD HAHAHAHAHAHA...

Crazy Train. Not bad. Megs revved the engine again for dramatic effect then peeled rubber. Tires leaving a smoking strip along the pavement as the duo went head-on into the jam.

[Twilight Sparkle]

This was still an insane plan. Twilight was almost confident of that fact. She still settled in behind Megs, still held on, still tried focusing her magic through the glove (which seemed to be obeying in the same manner that the ponies back home obeyed when you reined them in and tied them to a coach. Twilight half expected the glove to tell her to hoof off at any moment), Twilight even still believed that this might work, even as the jam seemed to burble and bubble all about them.

The music didn't help. The second Osbourne's laugh cut through the air, Twilight jumped, jumped and nearly lost her grip on Megs. Only quick reflexes helped her latch on to the scientist, and for a few seconds, she forgot to fight against the jam. As it encroached and Twilight actually heard it burble, however, she remembered her duty, snapping attention back to the glove. This was... exhausting.

"I can't keep this up for long!" Twilight yelled over the music and the roaring of the engine. "I'm guessing that the jam's center shouldn't be too far away, given the rate of spread and the fact that no suits have appeared just yet. Directionally..." Twilight hemmed, chewing her lip. She couldn't quite figure it out, mostly because her brain was being torn between the calculations and the whole parting the jam sea. Not a good mix for coming up with grand details, to be sure.

[Deleted]

Who knew a simple condiment could lead to such an exhilarating ride? Megs mused to himself as he pushed the motorcycle even faster. The feel of the wind whipping through his hair, the pounding music, the roar of the engine, the gelatinous foe bending to their will. Exhilarating indeed. He swerved left narrowly avoiding a trapped car, swerved right to avoid another. It seemed his plan was working.

There was a brief moment when a pool of jam failed to part. Thankfully he had the chemical tank fastened to the front of the bike and a quick spray cleared the patch . “Focus!” Megs called to his passenger. She said she could not keep it up much longer and added some thought as to the centers locale. He noted the jam seemed to be getting thicker in fact many of the smaller cars they now swerved around were completely buried in the stuff.

That’s when it caught his eye. A plum of purplish smoke rising behind the approaching buildings. “I think I know where it is.” Megs called back over his shoulder as they neared the next intersection. “Hang on. Sharp turn.” He didn’t even slow as they turned. The back end swung wildly and for a heart pumping moment he thought he might loose control but the two wheeled vehicle steadied. “Doing alright back there?” The question was barely past his lips when he saw the probable cause of this mess. It was awfully suspicious anyway. “Well there's something you don’t see everyday.”

[Twilight Sparkle]

Twilight shook her head, forcing herself to snap to attention. Focus! She could focus; she'd done it plenty of times before. The strain of calling forth her magic was pulling at her, causing sweat to begin dripping down her skin. Twilight felt a pulsing throb start from her forehead, right where her horn would normally be. Her hands, particularly the gloved one, wasn't feeling too hot either. Well, actually, it was very nearly feeling too hot. Twilight could see the glove sparking, and she couldn't shake the feeling that this was definitely going to be a one time usage.

Fortunately, Megs seemed to have a plan. Twilight blinked away tears as she focused ahead. Yes, there, a cloud of some sort. Twilight extended her will as best she could, and for a few seconds, you could actually see a force field appearing about the smoke. It looked like purple glass, not unlike what you'd expect to find in a snow globe. But it flickered for the briefest of moments before vanishing into the aether. Twilight panted with the effort; her magic might be back, but it wasn't that far back.

They were making progress though. Even those few seconds that Twilight had managed to hold it were enough for them to get several feet closer, and distance was crucial at this point. In the near distance they could see more puffs. More telling, there was a loud, burbling sound, like someone attempting to suck too much fluid out of a clog. Within moments, they'd be within sight of the mound: a near volcano of jam spewing forth yet more jam. The blurbing and glopping sounded like an overactive swamp, or possibly a toilet that had seen better days. Either way, it was clear that's where they needed to head, and Twilight pointed at it.

"That's got to be the source!" she called over the sound of the machine and their transport. "If we could cover it or something, we might be able to stop it. There's probably something powering it in the center..."

The question was, what, exactly? Twilight chewed her lip, while still struggling to focus on clearing a path. The jam was getting thicker and, worse, seemed to be flowing a little fiercer, so near were they to the source.

[Deleted]

“Too bad we don’t have any peanut butter.” Megs joked as they continued their path towards the jam volcano. Throw in a couple pieces of bread and they could have enough PB&J to feed the whole town. All jokes aside though they had a job to do. Find a way into the center of the jam spewing monument and put an end to its tyranny.

He was about to shout back to his passenger when suddenly sparks flew from the front of their ride. A few sparks landed on his leg burning through the fabric of his pants though he was far too focused on the well being of Twilight and the civilians to register his own discomfort. “Not now! Come on!” Megs tried to push it further but could feel the machines power slowly draining away. The battery that had served to enhance Twilights power let out another sizzling pop, the music and rumbling of the engine coming to an abrupt halt.

“Hang on!” He called back to his passenger while he struggled to hold the dead bike steady as it continued to roll, getting slower and slower by the second. Not good. This was definitely not good. He reached down grabbing the wire. Once again disregarding the feeling of heat searing into his skin as he yanked the copper wire from the bike. Green eyes quickly scanned the surroundings settling on truck which was half buried. A small oasis amongst a purple sea. They just might make it.“On the count of three! Jump for the truck!” Megs called to Twilight in an insistent tone. Well it was either aim for the truck or take a swim in jam, the choice was hers.  "One…two…..THREE!”

[Twilight Sparkle]

Twilight didn't get the joke. Not just because she was straining and starting to possibly see spots swirling in her vision, but because the whole peanut butter and jam thing just wasn't all that usual for an Equestria. No doubt she'd discover it in time, being a vegetarian by nature and all, but that really was neither here nor there. Actually, wait, that was mostly there, as in "out there in the future." But again, Twilight was mostly focused on focusing her power.

In fact, she was so focused that she nearly missed it when the bike slowed. Twilight couldn't very well miss the sparking; a lot of it was coming from the device attached to her wrist, after all, but she hadn't put two and two together. Somehow, Twilight had missed that the glove and the bike were somehow attached or something. Didn't matter, the result was the same: they stopped moving. The jam approached, only staved off now by Twilight's power. The sudden increase in pressure caused a sharp spike to flare in Twilight's mind and will, and she gasped at the sudden intrusion. The pain nearly made her miss Megs' words, but, thankfully, he was nearly shouting it. They were still going, momentum and Twilight's magic working together well enough.

The plan seemed workable. Get to the truck, an island amid the sea of jam. Twilight saw it, figured out the plan, and nodded. Then, just as she agreed, she got an idea, her eyes opening wide. "Wait, I think I can---" she began, only to have her voice covered more or less by Megs's shouting. Again, Twilight was thankful for the volume, but not as much for the talking. Muttering under her breath, Twilight focused her energies as best she could. The pain spiked, her entire body aching terribly. Yet purple light surrounded the two scholars and their vehicle. The momentum from the planned jump mixed with Twilight's magic and the bike's still retaining power. The three shot clumsily through the air, got partway, then winked for a moment. Twilight felt everything shift, and, still moving, they crashed into the bed of the truck. Twilight rolled off the bike, hitting the side.

Dazed, aching, and winded, Twilight blinked. Stars swam in her vision and focusing was incredibly difficult, but she was fairly certain she'd just managed to transport them the last few feet into the truck. Megs and Twilight were safe, and the bike was mired more or less with them, leaving a wealth of parts for Megs to work with. The only problem was that Twilight was most definitely the worse for wear. Well, that and the still spewing fount of jam only a short distance away.