Driz

(( OOC: Don't have my banners atm, lel. )) The mare simply watched as the rest of the group jumped into action to put an end to the monster's wrath, and the scuffle was over before her input was required. More than anything, she was peeved for not getting to beat up a demon that time around. Letting out a short sigh in disappointment, she soon brought her weapon back into her saddle and then turned to look at the destruction caused during the fight. Lory was somewhat impressed to see that the train was still moving to begin with. She was becoming somewhat impatient: eager to arrive at their destination as soon as possible. Otherwise, she would really want to break something. She trotted over to Elias. "Mind telling me what's the deal between you and Bambi?" Lory didn't ask: she demanded. "Such a weird coincidence for us to find 'er in this train, huh? What a small, small world this is..." She made sure to add a pinch of sarcasm at the end. === Helios smiled calmly, still holding the patient in his hooves. "There is no need to thank me." He told him, slowly helping the pony back up on his - three - hooves by giving leverage with his wing. "Perhaps the ponies who would be deserving of your gratitude are the ones who bravely fought away the beast." He tilted his head towards the group: a proud, satisfied smirk still gracing his feature. It was a weight off his back to know that the group's combined efforts weren't in vain. With the possible exception of a few individuals, it did strike him like he'd chosen the right team to join. After confirming that the armless pony was out of danger, he made his way towards the others to check in how they were doing. "What an exciting promise of a journey..." He joked out loud; a hint of actual excitement in his words.

Lory simply stood still, watching in horror as the beast attacked the defenseless passenger. She didn't know exactly how to proceed - how to act in order to help. If anything, her reckless assault would most likely only worsen the situation. Maybe enrage the monster, ending up hurting the victim even more. After Techno jumped into action, frozen in fear she simply prayed everything would work out. If the opportunity would arise - in other words, if no innocent bystanders were in the way -, she would act. The mare was rung back to her senses on Elias' request. She stared at him for a few seconds, questioning herself of his intentions. Like at the inn, it probably was some way to deal with the situation she wasn't aware of. Either way, any attempt at resolving the problem was welcome. "G...Got it!" She nodded. Ripping a chunk of hair out of the monstrous being shouldn't be much trouble, she assumed. However, as soon as she dashed off towards the beast, she was met with the unexpected. Lory's eyes accompanied the body in slow-motion as it was abruptly and forcefully flung towards Helios and Legion. Eyes shot wide open, she was stopped in her tracks once again. "F...Flame spell!?..." She appeared to be caught off-guard at first. She kept looking back and forth at the dying pony on the ground and the beast wreaking havoc at the opposite side of the cart. It was about a somewhat delicate subject: one the rebel mare wasn't exactly happy to speak about... To say the least, she much preferred fighting against the beast with her physical, albeit makeshift weapon, than casting a spell to help the pony in need. After a few seconds of reluctance, she ultimately decided to disregard Legion's orders, choosing instead to step forward and face the enemy. "HEY UGLY-FACE!!" She called out, flourishing her weapon around the air as to call his attention. "COME AND GET SOME!! Grade A pony meat right here!" === With an oof, Helios was brought to the ground on the impact: the chef bleeding profusely over his grey chest fur. Raising his head back up to meet with the monster, he furrowed his brow in displeasure, soon returning his attention to the hurt pony on his hooves. "Understood." He nodded, doing as he was told. He grabbed the coat and pressed it against the pony's stub: in a matter of seconds, the coat was already completely drenched in blood. Scanning over the area with a quick motion and noticing that Lory wasn't ready to assist, thinking rapidly, the professor swung open his right wing, spreading it across the cart. Under his wing, a hidden leather belt was found, with a selection of mysterious-looking vials and small glass containers strapped onto it. Skimming through them, he soon chose one of the vials: one containing a viscous, marble-white colored liquid* inside. Popping the cork open, he held opened the unconscious chef's mouth with one hoof and tilted the flask over the his mouth with the other, making sure every single drop would go down his throat. "The wound is too wide... This might not be enough." Helios thought out loud, still attempting to stop the bleeding any way he could. A few moments past, the stallion grabbed yet another marble-colored container, following suit to the last one and forcing the pony to drink it. "Come on... Pull through..." (( OOC: (*)The liquid is basically a homemade herbal medicine made by Helios using an ancient zebra tribe's recipe. It's meant to accelerate the user's immune system and cell transportation, healing wounds considerably faster... A health potion, if you will. :v Doesn't need to work, if you don't want it to. ))

The mare gasped in shock at the deer's words. In her mind, working through her memories attempting to reach the time earlier when the doe had told them about the captured foals. Abruptly so, she was rung back to her senses: she'd completely forgotten about how dangerous that situation was. About how many more lives were at risk. Gritting her teeth in anger, she promptly unsheathed her trusty lead pipe, levitating it to her side. "My offer still stands; remember? I kick your skinny-old flank, keep the children and the crates." She warned while pointing the weapon towards the doe. In such a crowded, narrow space, Lory didn't feel much comfortable with starting a brawl. But perhaps she'd have no choice: plus, that could be their best chance. Yet, most of the rebel's conviction was lost once those two engaged in an over-lengthy kiss. She fought against the urge to barf while watching the scene in pure bewilderment. Her expression swiftly became one of utter shock, however, when the unfortunate chef began deforming into some kind of beast. "Y...You demented witch!" She exclaimed, assuming a defensive stance. Her muscles were tensed up, frozen in surprise. Yet, she was ready to fight. === "I do believe I have seen and heard enough." Helios spoke up, raising up from his seat and making his way to the corridor between the chairs. His first instincts were to assist the innocent civilians caught in the crossfire to escape, but from the looks of it, all of them were locked in with those monsters. Facing the corrupted pony, the professor determinedly held his ground: his chest stuffed forward and his composure; ever calm and collected. The days he'd spent working alongside the Solar Guards were not forgotten in the slightest. "If possible, I would still like to suggest that we remained courteous as to avoid the hurting of innocent bystanders." He directed his words to the evil doe with resolve. "But if you so wish, we could take the more arduous road and... as my comrades would say..." He shifted his hooves onto the train's floor. "Do this the hard way." From the looks of it, Helios didn't have any sort of weapon at his disposal but his large size and even larger wings, safely tucked in. But of course, he did have a few tricks up his sleeve he was willing to use if the situation ever turned dire.

Ah, sweet! No worries. Sorry about that, it's just that I was a bit confused after I went back a few pages and looked at our first encounter with the thing: Unsure whether a small continuity issue or intentional, but it kinda bamboozled me... Apologies for my nitpicking.

@GoldieS Just a question before I have to go and edit my last post real quick... Is that doe in the train the same one with the rat from before, or is it a different one?

As soon as Lory heard the familiar voice approaching, her ears immediately perked up. She'd always had a certain aptness for remembering sounds and voices and associating them with their bearer: therefore, she knew it meant trouble then. Didn't take too long for her eyes to meet with the mysterious doe from before, slowly walking across the train cart. The mare simply peeked over at the doe and the stranger that accompanied her, still facing the window and trying to stay low profile. "Ah, crap nuggets..." She exhaled, burying her head inside her forelegs, disheartened. For some reason, she half-expected Elias to call the demon's attention. She assumed the cat wouldn't be one to let an old enemy walk by unnoticed. So much for taking a breather, she thought. Now with Elias taunting the doe, trouble was inbound: no use trying not to attract attention anymore. After a brief period of reluctance, Lory lifted herself up from her seat. "You lost, Bambi?" She asked, staring at them both; a menacing look in her eyes as if saying 'go away or face the consequences', similar to a wild animal defending its territory. === Inside the train, Helios followed after Ozzie and Legion, picking a vacant seat next to the Lunar Guard commander. He planned on discussing their objectives and priorities for when they arrived at the town, but such plans were interrupted once the apparent commotion began taking place. At first, the stallion looked confused. Even though the rest of the group seemed to know the doe, he did not: whether friend or foe, was a mystery. He simply eyed as some of the party members rose up to what seemed like a wild-west stand off. For his part, he kept his attention focused at the scene, ready to take action if needed. "An acquaintance of yours?" He silently asked Legion, albeit he probably already knew the answer.

Lory eyed the newly-arrived Pegasus stallion for a few seconds, scanning his shape from top to bottom. She had her brows furrowed in an annoyed expression - as of custom -, still half-asleep. "As if we needed more Royal Guard freaks foalsitting us..." With a dismissive click of the tongue, she complained under her breath. Turning her head, ultimately she decided to follow suit to the rest of the group and ignore the Solar Guard's presence, promptly boarding the train. Inside, she took an empty seat next to a window in the coach class, staying a considerable distance away from the rest, staring out into the distance with her hoof on her chin, holding her head up. === "No need to worry about it, Mr. Ozmodius." Helios responded to the greetings with another formal bow. Afterwards, a kind smile graced his feature. "It is simply understandable how unquiet their youthful minds must be. The recent events taking place across Equestria have been quite... unexpected, to say the least. Admittedly, I am a bit troubled, myself." He explained, then turning to face Legion. "General Chalice told me about your group, Commander Onyx. He explained the situation and kindly asked me to assist in your searches." He sent a quick glance at the train. "I have established a minor base of operations in the Town of Nowhere, from where I have been closely studying the runes and the uncanny occurrences possibly related to them." The professor lowered his head a bit, becoming somewhat mournful. "The Town could use all the help it can get... It would be a pleasure to accompany you." He confidently stated, walking his way towards the train. "Shall we embark?"

Right, so approved by @GoldieS, here is Helios Whitequill. He's a handsome Pegasus researcher - as well as an ex-Solar Guard - who has some backstory with the Hayseed Swamp, and a possible relation to the runes and the abductions. He'll be joining the group for a while, so feel free to ask him any questions~ That being said... Unfortunately, I don't think I'll be able to make any more posts for today... I'll be catching a plane and will be travelling the entire time, so... I'm terribly sorry if I leave you guys hanging. I'll post again as soon as I possibly can, tho! So hold on tight~

It more closely resembled a quick nap than a good night of sleep, but at least Lory had managed to get some quick shut-eye before departing to Canterlot's train station in the morning. After a reinvigorating shower at the castle's quarters as well - albeit somewhat tired - she seemed ready to embark. Sitting down on the platform staring blankly at the train and its workers, she opened her mouth wide, releasing a lengthy yawn. Afterwards, small droplets of tears formed on her eyes, as she promptly wiped them off. "To think we would be traveling to a more comfortable place from here... But noooooo, it's a shabby ol' swamp." The mare complained to herself. === "Pardon my intrusion." Standing a safe distance away from the group on the station platform, called out a polite stallion. It was a large, bulky Pegasus: his coat painted grey and his mane and tail a light-tone of brown. He sported a somewhat fashionable-looking goatee, as well as a peculiarly odd tattoo stamped on his right hind leg. His overall posture emanated a gentle air of politeness and respect. He looked over at the group with his gold-colored eyes, courtly approaching them at a steady pace. "You must be the expedition group General Storm Chalice spoke of. Am I correct?" He inquired, then bowing down. "Professor Helios Whitequill, at your disposal. I shall be of assistance to you from here on out during your stay at the Town of Nowhere." He introduced himself. "Pleased to make your acquaintance."

FINALLY-- uh-- ah... I mean... Cool...

C-arr-sed to never find da booty!

That one. === Son, when you grow up, would you be the savior of the broken, the beaten and the damned? Will you defeat them; your demons and all the non-believers. The plans that they have made?

Jailed for capitalizing the v in :v

Lory giggled joyfully while waving her hoof at Legion in a dismissive manner. "Right." She nodded in agreement, then bringing a hoof to her chin. "Just a question, though... Do you guys have any spare rooms around here I could use? To take a shower, at least? The place I was gonna stay in tonight kinda exploded, y'know..." She asked the superior guards, blinking a few times and displaying a wide smile, in an expression that implored 'pretty please'.

"The town of Nowhere?... Pfft." Lory giggled "Well that's cliche..." She commented to no one in particular, poking fun at the town's name. She wasn't very fond of the idea of traveling to the Hayseed Swamp, but she did agree to assist the group in their searches. If that meant getting closer to finding any leads regarding the mysterious attacks and abductions happening in Canterlot, it would be satisfactory. "Ah--TCHOO!!" The mare forced out a loud, obvious sneeze, covering her muzzle with her foreleg. Rubbing her nose with her eyes closed tight, she soon glanced over at the group. "...Sorry, I'm allergic to bullcrap." She explained herself.

@TBD You can't summon back on your summoner! That's against the rules! @Mirage, tell TBD that's against the rules!

Lory leaned forward onto the table that separated the two, placing both of her hooves onto the mahogany wood and getting a good, close look at the commander. "I don't need you patronizing me, buddy." She growled, her eyes narrowed. "If you want to help me so bad, then get off my back, and try to put through that thick skull of yours that I will not become one of your pawns so that you can order me around." She stared at Legion for a while longer, making sure he understood every single word she spouted. Afterwards, she lifted herself from the chair and scratched her muzzle nonchalantly. "If that's everything you wanted to talk about, I'll be leaving now... Guess I'll stick around with y'all for a while longer. There are certain things I need to do... See ya 'round, cap." She turned around and began walking towards the exit. "Oh... Also..." She remembered, rotating once again to face Legion. She was silent for a while then, seeming to be struggling to speak as if choking on her words. She looked around the room for a while, scratching the back of her head. It didn't take long for a reddish tone to paint her cheeks. "S...Sorry..." She mumbled, staring at the ground. "...For everything..." With a pout, she swiftly resumed her leave, trotting back towards the throne room to meet with everyone else.

@SparklingSwirls Well, that was rude. I was in the middle of doing absolutely nothing and you interrupted me. Ah, whatever... Now I shall summon @TBD to come out of their secret hideout and say hi.

"Ooooooo, look at Mr. Psychologist over here!" Lory mocked, waving her hooves in the air in a childish way. "What, you wanna study my brain, sweetheart? You want me to tell you how I feel? Sure, I'll tell you how I feel. I feel like I just watched the Hell bus picking up its lucky passengers for one hell of a road trip. Destination: Eternal Goddamn Suffering." After she said that, she began staring blankly at Legion, becoming silent for a long while. She bit her lower lip with her eyes shot wide and face slightly shivering, sensing that if she continued speaking any longer she was going to display an emotion she didn't want to display at any cost. Instead, she attempted to calm down a bit before continuing. "...I've seen ponies die before." The mare explained, reclining back on the chair and, that time, avoiding eye contact. "The Manehattan Underground, as we called it, used to be a constant warzone, too. The entire city was divided in two: those in favor of the guards taking control of the Underground and reforming it, and those who rebelled against the oppression and fought for their rights to live and be happy as they damn well pleased... You can have a guess on which side I took." She chuckled. "It was eat or be eaten..."

Once Lory took a seat, she remained silent. She crossed her arms and kept looking into the distance, peeved, just like a misbehaved student being called to the principal's office. The similarities were striking. She didn't really pay much mind to Gold afterwards, more concentrated on her own thoughts and opinions at the moment. She didn't know what to make of that encounter, battling divergent opinions inside her head. Her eyes slowly made their way across her sockets to meet with Legion's. She maintained the relentless expression of discontent. "...About what?" She asked, shrugging. "What counselor? I don't follow. There's nothing to talk about. What are you talking about?" With a pinch of sarcasm, she played hard-to-get.

"BULLCRAP!!" She strongly refuted, deliberately choosing not to take into consideration most of what Elias had explained. "That... thing that attacked the mob just now. That kidnapping deer lady from earlier. That weird guy who kept hitting on me. Hell, even the dude that blew up the bar! ALL of them had something to do with you." Lory pointed a hoof at him, now appearing to be somehow more mournful than angry. "You're always attracting bad stuff... You keep making deals with those shady monsters and who ends up paying the price are the ponies that have absolutely nothing to do with your business!... Why don't you realize that?" She narrowed her eyes as her voice steadily decreased in volume. "...You're no better than those demons." The mare kept her stare fixated onto Elias for a couple more seconds. She was visibly heartbroken: distressed. Distracted from the world outside, she didn't even take note of the barrier spell that had surrounded them. She was rung back to the real world by Legion's command, to which she simply perked one ear. After a couple more moments of reluctance, she turned around and began sluggishly trotting away, towards the commander's office.

"YOU KNOW DAMN WELL WHAT THAT WAS FOR, YOU GODDAMN MONSTER!!" The crazed Lory screamed at the top of her lungs. She fought against the guard's attempts at seizing her, like a rabid dog on a leash, wanting desperately to approach Elias once again. "Did you enjoy sacrificing all of those lives? Huh!? DID YOU ENJOY IT!?" She furiously questioned. "How bucking proud must you be working with those hellish freaks. How BUCKING proud!!... Next time tell your friends to kill two birds with one stone and devour Equestria whole already! Buck, why wait, am I right!?... GO AHEAD!! Summon more demons right now! Just try and drag me down to hell as well, I bucking DARE you!!" She unceasingly taunted. At that point, she began running out of breath. Likewise, her eyes became moist, reflecting the throne room's light with passion.