Raven Rawne

@Dark Horse The mare smiled back and made an elaborate inviting gesture towards the half completed "bridge. "Why thank you mister, I'll make sure to toss you some rope if you suddenly decide to take a swim in this charming place..." She then stepped on the planks with her forelegs to hold them tight on the spot, and observed intently as her companion took his steps on the makshift crossing, Out of nowhere, the stallion lost his balance and, with a fitting cry, leaped onto the boulder. Sadly he also upset the planks so much that they slipped from under the mare's hooves, sending her forward with their momentum. Luckily she landed in a way that left her forelegs dangling above the murky water, rather than face first into it. Still, her nose was suddenly too close to the source of the stench and she reflexivly rolled onto her side and frantically crawled back, away from the end of her bridge. With an angry face, she looked up at the stallion - who suddeny became trapped on the boulder - and growled. "What the FUCK was THAT, Saffron?!" His shocked question have her pause, however, and the mare looked down at the water. Sure enough, a circle was expanding on it, with the boulder in it's center. "Well for once you're right, that big thing DID move... Probably sunk deeper into the mud once your weight pressed down on it." She stood up and discovered that the two planks they used were effectively gone, leaving them with the two Saffron had next to him. "Just great..." She murmured, but the stallion had a plan B, it seemed. Crystal approached the newly set planks and gave them a lookover. Sure, they were held both by Saffron's magic and hooves, so it's not like she could have more reassurance then that but... His frustrated call to get moving made her roll her eyes, but the crystal pony did as he said. Slowly, she tested the planks and crossed the gap, one step at the time, with slightly bent knees to compensate in case the damn thing sunk again. It didn't and she soon was right next to the stallion with a victorious smirk on her face. "See? That wasn't so hard. Now onto the next side... I think you can go first." She shrugged at the last comment, but couldn't enjoy the effects of her snarky remark because the boulder moved again. Upwards. Crystal barely held her balance on the slimey surface, and cursed loudly to mark her disapproval. "How can it go UP?! It doesn't make sense! Ahh, forget it, let's just cross that bridge and get away from this blasted rock already! Lay them down if you may?" - she pointed at the stallion and then on the other side of the gap.

@Chrylestia600 Sorry for the long wait but I just can't come up with anything good looking. So I decided to ask you some more details. First, do you want them both portrayed in full body, or can I do partial bodies, like for example if they looked down from somewhere or peeked out across a corner. Second, you want them look evil? Normal? Cute maybe? And lastly, what is their sibling dynamic? I try to make pieces that capture the characters, not just their looks.

@Mickey Adaptus The bats nodded solemnly. Nothing new to them really. The mare tisked. "It's one way to start your own group, yeah. Not pretty but unfortunately, it works. Even if you bring the whole sum it doesn't mean he'll let it go, I'm afraid. So how much do you need?"

@Astral Flame The mare nodded. "Yeah, I don't like the smell of meat either. In our situation it seems best to leave what you can't use. Plus, we won't be trailed by hungry predators on the way out so there's that." She listened to the filly's plan, weird as it sounds, and surpressed a laugh. "Sorry, it just sounds so off. But then, you did kill that thing so... I'll meet you in the morning. I reckon you sleep in the day, right? You can sleep inside as I pull the wagon."

@Dark Horse Crystal observed Saffron as he took his turn to inspect the bookshelf. "Yeah, should be good enough, and easy to pull apart. Now we just need to - hey!" - she shelded her eyes from the dunst and splinters that started flying all of a sudden, when Saffron hit the shelf with some piece of metal. Once the initial surprise passed, she let out a small laugh and shook her head. "You have NO idea! I always end up doing property damage when I'm angry." She shind her Stable pins, habitually apparently, and took a step back as the stallion was working. Soon enough they had four planks at hoof. Her ears perked up at the news of barrels and rope. "Oooh? If they're in good shape, I know a pony who would give a half decent price for them! And rope is always in demand. So they didn't take eveything that wasn't nailed down then, good, good..." Before she could indulge in her scavenger's musings, Saffron spoke up again, and she cocked her head as he mentioned the ruined metropolis - more so how he did so, but she wasn't one to pry. With a quick nod, she grabbed two planks and slid them on her back, and supported with a foreleg. It was a bit awkward but, she got used to lugging building materials. The pair left the buildong and Crystal sneezed from all the dust and the renewed assault of the swamp air. "Uuugh, why those stupid masks are made so you can't talk in them? Anyway, they could actually make some buch off this place, the way I see it. I saw ponies making compost from rotting plants, good for growing crops. Maybe they could make some kind of rope stuff out of it too, who knows. And if they had water purifiers, they could sell clean water too. Not bad if I may say so, if you can't smell a thing that is." She went second this time, reasonong that the unicorn would have it easier with laying the planks with his magic, then handed her materials when he laid out the first ones, and shook off the dust off her reinforced Stable suit. And of course shined the pins. Crystal looked over Saffron at the rickety crossing, and smiled. "Wanna flip a cap on who goes first?"

@Astral Flame Natural Order winced slightly at the mention of meat. "Yeah... griffons do for sure. And some animals too but, problem is, who would buy raw meat from unknown source? You can't tell what it was once it's chopped. And believe me, I hunted for meat a few times, but every time I already had a client." She shook her head. "Never been a fan of tending to meat. Plus, any predator will be on our backs on the way out. But if you insist, we can take it too, I guess." Natural approached the window and opened the wooden shutters, then glanced outside and up into the sky. "I don't know about you, but I need some rest before we head out." The mare retracted her head back inside and adressed the filly. "Wanna discuss something else or we meet again in the morning?"

@Astral Flame Natural Order poured slightly. "It's the thing with stories - they get repeated on and on without even checking if they still apply. Guess that would be a thing when it comes to thestrals keeping to themselves..." She stood up and approached the filly with am extended hoof. "Astral, I have no idea how to get you an audience, but I can take you to Canterlot and do my best to help." She looked back at the wagon's interior. "Hope you don't have too much luggage, or we might need to sleep outside, heheh." With a genuine smile, the mare kept the hoof in the air for the usual hoofshake. "If you want it, I'm in. But we'll pack you up in the morning okay?"

@Dark Horse The mare gave him an odd look, but nodded. "If you can haul them back on shore, yeah. And don't worry about magic around me, I used to live with unicorns most of my life." She pointed a foreleg at the wooden catwalk, then immediately placed it over her muzzle again. "That's the way, or so I think. Although one of those boulders ruined a part of it, so we better salvage some planks and put them on top of it to cross. Looks too slippery for my taste..." Crystal looked around, and decided to head to a nearby house that was accessible through the bridge "network". She asked the stallion over her shoulder: "Maybe there's a dining table inside, we could use it if you help me carry. Hopefully there's also something long and sturdy, like an ironing plank, to cross the other half of the gap." The house was in rather bad shape, to be honest. Standing slightly askew, with paint peeling off from all the moisture, wooden structure no doubt beginning to rot from the inside. But the roof looked okay, at least from thin angle, so maybe that's why they bothered witm making a crossing to it. Crystal reached the doors first, and tried to open them, but they didn't wantto budge. She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Why do they even lock these things?" She didn't wait for an answer, but spun around and gave them a good kick with a hindleg. Something shuddered inside, but the doors snapped open, together with some parts of their frame. She looked back at her newfound companion and smiled sheepishly. "Forgot my keys. Now let's see what's inside, eh?" Turns out, not much.Most of the furniture and other items were gone, but, judging fro what was left, it was probably a storage area. Crystal slowly walked inside, looking around. She spoke aloud about her findings. "Lots of dust, no fresh prints... some grooves in the floor, like they pushed something heavy around... oh, bookshelves! Just the thing we need. Smash one in half and we have our bridge, the sides will do nicely." - she walked to the nearest one and inspected it closely, trying to anticipate if it would hold a pony or not. Finally, Crystal added. "...mmmayyybe smash two. Just to be sure." Then, she looked back at the stallion and adressed him: "Anything catch your eye? If it's any consolation, we're the first ones to pick this place after whoever lived here left. Which makes me kind of curious why they did it in the first place - I've seen worse places where ponies lived. Much worse."

@Astral Flame The mare put the tea box away on the stove - one of the few clutter free spots - then took a sleeping bag off it's hook and placed it underneath her to have something comfy to sit on. She let out another small yawn as she made herself comfortable. "You mentioned that you're... looking for your parents? Seems like an odd place for a pony to be in the first place but, here I am so... Maybe you want help with something? You did save me back there so it's only fair I try and do something for you in return, right? Plus, I don't much like the idea of leaving you in here. Ponies may be guarded, but they're not bad. Not all at least."

@Astral Flame The mare nodded and fished a small oil lamp from another secured shelf, then put it on the floor and lit with a match. The wagon's interior was illuminated with a small flame, just enough to see where stuff was, but not nearly bright enough to read, for example. Natural Order looked up at the thestral and rubbed the back of her head, confused. "Come to think of it, I haven't seen many of your kin outside Hollow Shades, yeah... Hardly any to be honest, but I never really wondered why." She looked around, searching for something, and with a small "aah", the mare rummaged inside one of the topmost crates, then fished out a paper box. "This should be familiar. I buy some every time I pass the town and have some bits to spare." It was tea, made exclusively in Hollow Shades. Taking it out of the crate caused the whole wagon to smell like it - a collection of dried fruit and who knows what else that made up it's unique taste.

@Dark Horse Crystal tensed at the sudden outburst of laughter, but the strange stallion seemed quite talkative and, most importantly, didn't pose an immediate threat. For now at least. The mare nodded as he talked, putting together a puzzle of provided information. "Well..." She started, unsure how to reply. "Sappy as it sounds, I'm looking for a place to call home. Again. Not much luck so far, though." She tapped her chin with a hoof, momentarily lowering the guard around her nostrils and immediately regretting it. "Come to think of this place is rather weird, yeah. Whoever lived here had time to pack up, it's like they just... left. And those weird boulders all around the swamp, I haven't seen anything like it." Crystal eyed the stallion in front of her, cocked her head a bit, thinking, then continued. "I was about to check that building too, and I think this walkway is the right one so... Maybe we go there together? Guess we can sort it out who takes the glorious pre-war loot when we find it, right? So far I found only junk at best." She then added abruptly, and humorlessly: "Just write Crystal Clear on my grave if I lose that gamble."

@Astral Flame Natural coked her head curiously at the filly. "Royal Night Guard? Well I guess there's plenty to learn for that career in the Everfree but, why are you here in the first place? Seems an odd place for anypony, even more so for a young one like you." She got up and sifted through her things, apparently looking for something. "I've been in Hollow Shades last month, sold some fruit seeds from Forbidden Jungle to a client who wanted them. Bought some supplies but nothing for trade this time, since I needed to make some repairs. Hayseed isn't the friendliest place to visit, or pass through." She finally took out a box of matches and looked back at Astral. "You okay if I light a lamp? Can't see the tip of my nose here. Oh and, just how did you know I was in Hollow Shades?"

@Astral Flame Natural bit her lip, hearing the way Astral reacted to her mentioning parents. She decided not to push it and just glanced as she passed her into the wagon. Now she could see - a thestral. Not that it bothered her, she's been to Hollow Shades many times. The question was rather strange, given the circumstances, anand the mare simply nodded. "Sure, go ahead. There's a pillow on top of the water barrel." Although it was dark inside, one could see shapes of things inside. Internet left corner next to the entrance was a tall water barrel she mentioned. Opposite, a stack of strappedcrates.straight ahead a tiny stove with a pipe jutting through the roof, and to the sides, various tools and stuff packed on shelves or strapped to walls. All in all, every inch seemed occupied, aside from the floor in the middle. Natural yawned slightly and came inside, closing the doors to keep the bugs out, then sat on the wooden floor. "The axe is just a tool, for wood and the like. But it will do in a pinch, yeah. Crossbow was a gift, and a good one too. Saved me lots of times and, yeah, helped me earn some too. But I try to avoid fights, I'm no warrior type. How about you? Like I said, you could just fly away from that thing, yet you charged it like some book hero."

@Astral Flame The mare eyed Astral curiously as she moved down to ground level. Somehow she suspected she wasn't a pegasus after all. Still, it was too dark for her to be sure. Once the filly fired away her questions, Natural stepped out of the doors and pointed inside with a foreleg. "It's no luxury but I like it. See for yourself if you like. Although I guess I could get an oil lamp first, it's pretty dark inside. Oh and, no, I won't make fat stacks that will make me set fir a month with those herbs. I mean, I send any surplus to my parents anyway but, I tend to catch odd jobs and sell whatever I find for a living." She shrugged. "Can't stay in one place, or get a job like most ponies do. I'm a free spirit, you see. Travel around till winter comes, which I spend with my parents, and hit the road when the snow melts."

@Mickey Adaptus Second Wind shrugged. "Stuff happens. All it takes is one loudmouth. But I get you'll have enough to pay him up now? Cause we can't afford him barging in here to collect from us by extension, for example." Gold Rush looked at the wall and simply said. "Lots of cleaning afterwards..."

@Astral Flame It was too dark to tell the details, but Natural decided that the figure moved like a pony alright. Pegasus maybe? She had wings, so... The mare continued to lean out from the small window, craning her neck outside and peering into the dimly lit world outside. She probably had a funny expression now. "You could fly away, you know that? Anyway, glad you didn't." She listened to her newfound company, and saviour too. The last question made her laugh genuinely, but she quickly caught herself over how much noise she was making. "Err, sorry for that, I just found it funny, cause it's dark and I'm just poking my head out so... Name's Natural Order. I just wander whre my fancy take me, gather herbs and stuff for sale. Some alchemists I know pay good coin for ingredients that can be found in the Forest, so I take the risk every now and then." She looked up at the tiny speck of the starry sky that was visible in the clearing. "But seems I'll stay longer than usual. Never spent a night in Everfree, to be honest.Anyway, give me a moment, I'll open the door." Natural ducked back inside the wagon, closed the shutters and after some bumps and screetches from the inside, the doors opened, and she slowly stepped outside, looking around as if she could see anything anyway...

@Astral Flame It took a small eternity. It always did. Natural was braced against the doors, axe in hoof. Waiting. Listening in. Trying to tell if it was safe outside, and then setting for waiting some more because she heard something. A loud roar pierced the air at some point. Sounded like agony. The mare decided she will probably be stuck here for the night, and very slowly, silently, reached for a cup and tapped from the water barrel. This will be a long night... Moonlight shone bleakly into the wooden box through cracks in the shutters. A sure sign that she won't go anywhere today. Outside, something stirred. The telltale sound of dragging something heavy across the foliage. Is stopped momentarily by her sanctuary, and a voice was heard, telling something to nopony in particular. It sounded... nah, probably another trick if the Forest. Natural rose to the window and peeked through the cracks, standing on her hindlegs and leaning on the side wall. A small silhouette dragged a big shape, somewhere out of sight. Natural waited some more, and finally decided to peek outside. She hastily collected her crossbow and bolts, but didn't dare to go for her basket. Or hat. It was dark and who knew what was nearby. She shut the doors again and begrudgingly started some preparations to spend the night. The knock was unexpected, and almost resulted in an axe flying towards the still closed and barricaded doors. Natural held her breath and listened in. It did sound like a filly but... how? She peeked through the window, opening the shutters ever so slighty, but then opened them all the way and poked her head out, consequences be damned. And there it was, a small pony figure in the moonlight, walking away. The mare hesitated for a spell, but called out, quietly. "Hey! I uhh... did you save my hide back there?" Now that she said it, it did sound rather... ridiculous. Saved by a filly in the Everfree. But Natural Order saw stranger things.

@Astral Flame Natural Order picked leaves from a large bush and loaded them into the basket. Once dried and ferried to a distant town, they will fetch some nice amount of bits. She remained alert, her ears in constant motion, picking sounds all around. She was halfway done here when suddenly, a fiery trail shone on the outskirts of her vision and something landed a ways off behind her, causing a ruckus. There was also that commanding cry. She didn't look back, or even glance at the basket. This was Everfree after all. Natural ran as fast as she could back to her wooden safety zone and slammed the doors shut, then leaned on them, braced for impact. But nothing tried to batter into the little wagon. There were sounds of a fight outside though. With trembling hooves, she slid a wooden bar to lock the doors, picked an axe off the shelf and peeked through the window, slowly opening the shutters. She couldn't see anything without poking her head out - something she'd rather avoid right now. Her mind keenly noticed that her crossbow was also out of reach.

@Dark Horse Crystal Clear was getting sick of those walkways. They were narrow, rickety and she almost fell into the murky water a few times as the railings rotted away, providing no protection when the beams under hoof started moving. She cursed her luck when she almost went down with one of the walkways, resulting in a big noise and rapid heartbeat. Still, she was okay so, maybe it wasn't that bad. But if anything was alive in here, they sure knew she was poking around... The mare briefly considered removing her mask - she couldn't have it on and shoot - but judging from the snell that got through it, she would probably throw up if she did so. With waning interest, she pressed on through the wooden catwalks towards that big Admin building. Maybe there will be something worth her time there. Crystal just walked out of a corner around a ruined house when she heard noise to her left - something fell on the floor, and not a Sparkle Cola for sure. She tensed up and turned her head, craning her neck forward and squinting through the almost clean goggles. It was hard to see into the dark room at first, despite the obvious fact that she was staring through a collapsed wall, but... "Well shit." -she cursed, but only a muffled sound escaped her mask. Another pony, sprawled on the ground as he was, but, being a unicorn, he still had an advantage. Stupid forehead pokers. Crystal slowly raised a foreleg and tapped her pistol holster, signalling she's armed. Then, very reluctantly, took off the mask. No way to talk with in on her face, unfortunately... The stench was appalling to her senses, and her eyes watered with tears for a moment, but she didn't earn a new hole in her skull so that was something. After the momentary distraction, she looked at the stranger again, this time using her sleeve to protect her nostrils. "Now we're both on the same level, *cough*. You live here? Thought the place was empty but I didn't lift anything..." She really hoped she could talk her way out of this. The stallion could shoot her if she retreated, and - guess what - one of those weird stones ruined the path ahead! Although she could jump on it and then across, probably... the Admin building was rather close too.

@Astral Flame "Why do they aaaalways grow so deep?" - a mare's voice asked aloud, a hint of tiredness in it. Moments later, a mare walked into a tiny clearing, a wagon in tow. She looked around, and then up, since the canopies were too tight to see the sky on the way in. "Damn, gotta go back soon." She was clearly musing aloud since there was nopony around. The mare slid out of the harness and glanced at the crossbow hanging on the wagon 's front wall. Then, she stretched her back, corrected the hat on her head and donned the green cloak that was hung next to the weapon, then walked to the back of the mobile home. She emerged moments later with a basket, and wandered off into the nearby bushes to pick whatever caught her eye. The wagon remained shut and motionless.

@Mickey Adaptus The bats looked at each other, then at Jack. The mare was, as usual, first to speak. "SSooo... you're in debt to a criminal. Any idea which gang he's from? We're in Scarlet Scorpion territory, and, as you may probably guess, we're members. They couldn't pass the opportunity to gain access to certified locksmiths, heheh."