We stand united 1x1 Maple Bat

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Festus sighed... his wings opened and he haded himself with them "Maybe it just burned the fur... It might grow back..." He let go of his hand "Well I hope it was worth it to you... I feel like that was a rather poor choice but hey... I've made some bad ones too." He was ready to start moving again but didn't want to say he was just yet. Mostly due to worry for Jack.

Ember shrugged once again. "Still... I think it was a unique idea... better than needing to head back to town to fix it up." She looked at festus and saw he looked ready but didn't comment anything herself.

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

"Well, I can't say its a really big problem, even if the fur won't regrow, it will serve as a memory, as do all of my other scars." Jack admitted.

"Heck, I even have a scar that serves as a good reminder to my friend Wiliam, me and him both made a cut in our right hands as a sign of eternal friendship." Jack said as he showed Festus the scar.

"Perhaps it is an odd way as a reminder, but I and he were very good friends, all before... the entire mess happened." Jack said.

"Aren't there dragons out there who also take their scars as a sign of pride? From ponies, it doesn't seem very likely except for their most hardened and toughest warriors, for gryphons it would be alot more in that pride I presume, given their overall attitude and all." Jack asked them, wondering if it were the case.

Jack also wanted to start moving but he was wondering about this question first.

[Maple Bat 3,568]

"THat's not too odd. I mean it shows you both care for each other... but like whoa... That's super extreme." Festus said to him "Wish I had a friendship like that. Only person I'm that close to is Ember. That and maybe the others that we got trapped with us. Celestia, You, Fluttershy but I digress." He put a arm on Jack "Not that I'm implying of course."

"WEll you don't really need connects to be strong. Take me for example." Ember stated holding her arms out. "WEll we should probably keep going... Since it'll get dark soon

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

"Indeed, we should get going, it should be 30 with flying, Ember, could you carry me again? We are going to need a good pace if we want to make it there in 30 minutes or even less." Jack said. "I wonder how Evelyn is-" Suddenly Jack felt something. "Well speak of the devil, i can feel her life force pretty close, but not that near, seems she is making a pretty good pace at will, tough i am not sure if she will catch up to us."

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Evelyn did land close to them "I thought we were gonna be fighting. All I see here is sand..."

Ember chuckled "Oh Festus needed a break. So we decided to stop for a while but we're ready to get going again." Ember started walking the way she was flying earlier "Let's not waste any more time. I still want to see what Jack's planning... Or well... What his mentor is planning."

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

"Indeed, should take about 30 minutes from here, let's not waste any time." Jack mentioned.

He ran to Evelyn and gave her hugged her foreleg for a few moments. "It is good to see you." He said to her with a smile.

He then let go of the hug and climbed on her foreleg, then straight onto her back.

"We should get moving, it is like Ember mentioned, it is going to get dark soon." Jack told her.

[Maple Bat 3,568]

"Wah?" Evelyn was pretty surprised at the sudden hug. "Uhh... We... Saw each other moments before... just before you got dragged off by mini dragon here"

"Hey! I;m offended!" Festus responded sarcastically. "Just because I'm young doesn't mean I'm weak ya know."

"Apparently! I mean you did survive a bullet wound with no permanent damage... well except the broken scale." Now that Evelyn mentioned it one of Festus' scales was splinted form when he had gotten shot. it looked like it hurt but it really didn't. "I mean it could have paralyzed your arm completely but nope. Not with you."

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

"I don't think age really matters these days anymore, I had been learning to fight very early on, at the age 6 by my foster father. Not everyone has the luxury to live in a safe place, infact.. everyone in that city is very lucky, I sure know how everyone else is feeling who is forced to vent for themselves." Jack mentioned.

He then looked ahead.

"We should really get going now, Ember is already ahead of us." He said.

 

 

After 28 minutes of travelling, they finally arrived, the town itself was a ghost town, but it had an eerie atmosphere to it, on some walls where things are written red like *Death has come* and *Help us*, but that written text no longer had much of a purpose as there where a couple of graves, but most of all dead bodies, alot of them scattered throughout town.

"Well, this sure looks like it, nothing short of remains and flow of death in the air." Jack noted as he looked down from above.

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Festus was creeped out by everything, He was walking around the town with ember while the other 2 were flying. "I..." He looked really upset "Why... couldn't we prevent this..." 

Ember put her claws on his head "There was nothing we could've done... The damage was done when we got to the planet... So really..."

Festus frowned "I... Just don't know"

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

"I hate to say it Festus, but this is what everything looks like beyond what most know as safe havens, death, destruction, what you currently see now is the only type of things you will see in Cyril and most other planets, except for conversion centers and other structures that our enemy builds, I guess you can understand why I became so angry at some of the others for not caring about the lives of others." Jack said with sadness as they landed

"Sometimes words are not enough, and you need to see the truth with your own eyes before you can fully understand what is going in these places. But still... Imagine what would have happened if I hadn't warned anyone 5 months before? Equestria could have ended up like that, i know it is hard, but it is the truth." He said as he placed an hand on Festus his shoulder.

"I hope you guys now understand why i have become this way." Jack said avoiding their gaze.

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Festus dropped his sword, which he had unsheathed when he walked into the town. "If the Equestrians saw this... All they know about it is what you told them and well your logic can be a bit hard to follow... If... If they saw this... perhaps they'd realize the true severity of the situation... Maple and Luna did admit they were wrong as well so maybe... don't hold it too against them... Woody's been a mess and then Celestia's doing her best." He sighed again.

"How'd you know all that? I didn't." Ember asked him handing his sword back "Remember we need to go as well."

Festus took his sword back "Perhaps the sooner we get out of here the better yea... And I just gathered from a few different conversations I overheard. Plus I spoke with Woody an hour or so after you." 

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

"Don't worry, the anger that I showed before back then has subsided to a great amount, Against Maple, I am not really holding anything at this point, she had admitted all her mistakes and even... the things she did for me, instead of blaming her I should apologize to her at this point. Againts Luna i just can't stay mad.. She is my mother now and she has supported me in no matter what situation, with Woody i can't really say i blame him either, he knew about these things before we even got captured, or atleast to an certain extend, i guess i just don't really feel comfortable being around him alot, with all the blaming and stuff. And to be honest i think Celestia has been very good so far, she may not be as active as the others, but she constantly keeps a cool head and never lashes out, but at the same time she cares about the safety of others and admits her mistakes. If.. only she was a bit more active, i had told her before she has a great potential, but both Luna and Celestia just tend to sit on the sidelines for most of the times except for very big engagements." Jack said.

He then climbed off Evelyn's back and jumped to the ground.

"I am going to get things ready, going to need a few minutes because i am going to be using some form of bait to lure the infected for when my mentor goes into action, when it happens it might be best if the 3 of you take an good vantage point so they won't attack you." Jack advised as he walked a bit further into town to gather the things.

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Festus smiled "I just... Don't want to lose our friends because of bad experiences, But you did have every right to be mad earlier so its ok I was mad too and maybe you took it from me? Anyways, That aside I think I see a good place to watch from Ember can you help me up onto that roof there. Looks like a good spot."

Ember grabbed Festus and tossed him up there. "We're ready when you want to begin." She flew up to the building too.

Evelyn smiled at him "Good luck. I'll be getting you out if things get worse though."

 

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

"Thanks." Jack said to Evelyn as he gave her a thumbs up.

He then walked over to the bait he had put down on the ground and drew his knife.

'I see you followed my advice with the enhancement of your knife? That makes slashing even deadlier.' The voice said to him.

'I know, though it did burn the fur off my left hand, I even think I suffered a second-degree burn from that, why didn't my magic work earlier when it touched that heated metal?' Jack asked him.

'Rather simple, back when you still had that curse, your body used to produce a great amount of heat, which made you rather resistant to the touch of such this hot things in occasions, perhaps you got used to that feeling and forgot you still had that luxury? Getting rid of something doesn't always make it better.' The voice said to him.

'Alright, so how I am going to do this? How do I give you control?' He asked him.

'Just lay down the ground, your body will go numb for a few seconds, but that is when I get control, last time I sadly didn't have much time since *miss cake devourer* woke up on the wrong side of the bed and was stopping me, much to my displeasure. But hey, atleast it was not *miss eardrum crusher*! She could kill her opponents by making their ears explodes with that volume, geez!' The voice said to him in a joking manner.

Jack nodded as he was laying down on the ground.

'Alright, so what now-' he, however, couldn't finish his thought as his body went numb from the very moment.

Jack was lying motionless on the floor for a few seconds until he moved again, he had once again orange eyes, with a more sharp appearance, and his voice had once again changed as well.

'Ok, what is happening... why do I feel like an afterthought?' Jack thought with a bit of panic/

'Relax, nothing is wrong here, but atleast you know how i am supposed to feel being stuck up like that, i get to move once to for a change.' Kiran thought to Jack as he stood up.

He was making his hand a fist and put alot of pressure in it, testing to see how strong the muscles in it where.

[Maple Bat 3,568]

After getting up on the building the 3 dragons watched in a bit of confusion Festus was the first to voice this concern "Well... I feel as if something was... supposed to happen..." Festus couldn't notice the eyes from where he was. "I'm a bit disappointed" 

"Well... from what I can tell... something did..." Evelyn said moderately confused by the other voice in Jack's head. "I think the show's about to start so we best sit quiet and watch for a bit

Ember nodded not saying anything just fixing her gaze on Jack, Maybe hoping to even learn something from this

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

When he was done testing out the strength of the muscles, he drew the knife and then started to make a cut in the bait, which happened to be some sort of meat, but when the cut was made, a weird smell was emerging from the meat itself.

While the smell was hanging in the air, Kiran stabbed the knife into the ground, making only the handle visible, and then he closed his eyes and then folded his arms.

This was going on for around a minute, at first it looked like he was just resting his eyes, but for those who were paying good attention, he was focusing on any type of movements and sounds, while he kept his smell in check due to the smell coming from the meat itself.

At one point his left ear made a very slight twitch, which meant he had heard something, and it was correct, as a couple of infected were rushing straight towards him, some had been hiding in basements while others had been right behind a corner or other places.

But even when one infected was coming very close, he was not moving, not even moving a muscle.

It was when the infected was only a few meters away, that he then suddenly kicked the handle of the knife itself upwards, the knife spinning through the air.

When the blade had reached its right rotation, he quickly grabbed the knife and made a 180 degree rotating while he was still holding the knife in its very same position.

And in almost predicated manner, the knife hit its right target, straight in the face of the infected, who was killed instantly when it went through its head.

But this rotation was not meant for just a single enemy, as another infected was trying to attack him from behind.

Of course, he had no time to drag his knife out of his killed enemy and attack that other infected in this very momentum, instead, he used his right leg to kick the infected straight off balance, causing it to tumble to the ground.

And with a swift manner, he dug his knife out of his previously killed enemy and stabbed straight into the other infected's head, giving it a swift death.

2 more infected where coming his way, so he decided to a variated attack, he threw the knife at one of the infected, aiming at its head, and yet another one killed.

The 4th infected was charging at him, and all Kiran with was as move his arm a bit back, preparing for a punch, and when the infected came close, he punched it straight into the face, making the infected stagger a bit back.

But he was far from done as he stomped on the infected's foot and then held it in a strong grip, before snapping its neck.

He casually walked to the 3rd now death infected, and grabbed back his knife, cleaning the blood of it from the smelly fur of the infected he had killed with it.

More and more infected where coming, but he seemed to be far too relaxed looking in terms of his body stance, yet he was constantly one step ahead of his enemies.

 

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Ember applauded the deadly performance. "That was awesome! I am not disappointed!" She laughed audibly

"Well, it was impressive. It was also pretty dangerous.. Let's hope it doesn't have to be done too often... I can't imagine what's going through his head right now..." Festus added worriedly about Jack... More along the lines of his mental state rather than physical state "I just..."

"He'll be fine" Evelyn quickly added to cut him off "I mean look at him does he look scared or tormented... He doesn't to me."

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

Kiran was taking out infected to infected one by one, in each time a unique way, and it was going on for quite a while, after 30 infected he was still going, not showing any sign's of fatigue yet.

But most of all, there was a big grin on his face, the comment of Ember seemed to increase his showcasing performance even further.

'I know you where skilled but this... This is just absolute madness!' Jack thought with shock.

'This could be you one day Jack, but it takes more than just getting stronger and constant training, it takes mental exposure as well, some of us went through things that caused us to behave this way, while others didn't, in short words, don't see any form of trauma or any scar in the mind as a problem, but embrace it and see it as a tool to exact your purpose even further, it is in such ways that you can strive even further while the others among you try to get stronger only physically.' Kiran thought back.

'It all comes down to *Psychological warfare*, something that many seem to overlook, sometimes you even have to apply it to yourself to break beyond your own barriers, let that be a lesson.' He thought.

'Wow.. I.. am not sure if i am capable of that.' Jack tought with concern.

'You are, you have done it multiple times already, you remember that brain meltdown you had earlier? It was you fighting against yourself unintentionally, emotions are a big weapon, and for you that could either make you very strong or prove to be your very downfall, and today for you it proved to be the latter about 3 times, go figure how strong you mentally are.' Kiran tought

 

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Festus watched quietly. He was still worried "I... going to help... I don't want him to get hu-" Ember then knocked him back down.

"Don't just yet... He's handling fine." Ember stated upset that he wanted to end it already. "He just started... Let him have his fun... but once he gets close to hurt I'll throw you in there." She told him assuring him that he was ok.

"No. I'm not gonna wait until he gets hurt!" Festus hopped down from the roof and ran over to jack slicing at a few infected on his way.

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

Kiran cursed silently when he saw Festus suddenly joining the fray.

He reacted quickly as he took some of the bait and was covering a dead body from an infected with it, and then threw that body straight into the enemies, causing them to divert their attention straight to the corpse instead.

Kiran quickly turned around and grabbed  Festus his arm, not in a hostile way, but more in a way *stop for a moment way*.

"I understand you worry about Jack, but he is fine kid, I am in control and I am not goofing around when that is the case. I want to ask you to not interfere with this.

I haven't fought properly in over a decade and I can't pass down this opportunity." He said to Festus with a mix of an irritated and an understanding look.

'Huh, what is going on?' Jack thought.

'It is your dragon friend Festus, he dived down in order to help you, or rather me in that regard, but he is interfering with my battle routine. He really needs to get out of the way, because I can't hold a discussion with him here while those infected are still out there. It would be extremely appreciated if either Evelyn or Ember could scoop him away from here because you know how impatient I get like this.' Kiran thought, his last words sounding more irritated then usual.

'I guess you are right, just please go easy on him alright? He is a very good friend of mine.' Jack thought.

'I  cannot promise anything, it is going to depend on how well he will listen, and you know I am not Good with this whole *social* thing..' Kiran thought with a scowl.

Edited November 5, 2017 by Mickey Adaptus

[Maple Bat 3,568]

"I don't know what you're talking about." Festus yanked his arm out of Jack's grasp, "But I'm not letting you fight alone. No matter what... I promised you..." He stopped and thought deeply "I know... you want to do this to show us how strong you are but I'm not letting you get hurt... I'm not going to lose you... Not my first friend." He held up his weapons and took a battle stance, facing the infected again. Holding his shield at his chest, Which was a little higher than normal.

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

Kiran raised an eyebrow.

"I think you are misunderstanding, this is not Jack you are talking to right now, you do realise that right? Well, i have to admit your loyalty is very impressive, especially towards him, can't say i have a problem with that, just please don't get too much in my way alright? I need a good amount of space if i want to carry out my attacks properly." He said.

'Wow, you are taking this rather well, a few moments ago you were saying *Get him out of my sight, I don't want him to interfere* and you are letting him fight alongside you.' Jack thought with surprise.

'Hey, don't me wrong, I still prefer to fight alone, but your friend over here understands and treats you alot better than some of your other friends I have seen, no questioning, no blaming, just pure loyalty and companionship, that is what you need. If he is good with you, he is good in my book, remember that.' Kiran thought.

He then got an idea.

"You 2 want to join the fray as well? If he is going to join then we might as well just let everyone fight, no use in holding back anyone at this point." He called out to Ember and Evelyn.

[Maple Bat 3,568]

Festus would have asked what he meant by it not being him but an infected hadn't fallen for the bait, tried to strike 'Jack' while distracted Festus blocked it with his shield and slashed the infected across the chest and spun into a swift kick, knocking it back.

Evelyn was about to jump down but Ember stopped her. "For now... Let's watch. I wanna see were Festus needs work. And Jack said he could handle this. There's no reason for us to risk this."

"Still I'm gonna be ready to get one of them out of there if they need help." Evelyn said standing up "And nothings gonna stop me from that."

Edited November 6, 2017 by Maple Bat

[MickeyAdaptus 2,211]

"Good one, but perhaps it is time I learn you a trick where you could take out 3 infected in at the span of 5 seconds. Follow my movements and you will see how effective this is against those non-sentient puppets." Kiran said.

He was started walking towards a group of 3 infected that were separated from the main horde.

"Watch this."

Kiran stabbed one of the infected in the head, followed by a fast rotation in which he used his tail to sweep at the infected behind him, his tail impacting like a whip, causing the infected to tumble to the ground.

But he was still rotating and his knife landed straight into the head of the 3rd infected, which killed it with precision at its weak point.

Then he quickly dug the knife out of the infected's head and quickly ended the second one who had lost its balance from the tail sweep.

"You got that one memorized? Good, This is a pretty simple trick, not that spectacular, but it's effective nonetheless. Now repeat it like this, stab, rotate, tail sweep, stab, and kill off the one you stunned with your tail. Try it out, I am interested to see how much potential you got, it already looks promising but i want to see more." Kiran told him.

Edited November 6, 2017 by Mickey Adaptus

[Maple Bat 3,568]

"Well I don't know if you noticed but I'm better with the shield. But... I did get an upgrade on it." Festus large tower shield had changed into a rounder shield, it was still big but the change in design was worth noting. The shield covered his entire chest plus it was wider now so others could get behind it too if needed. Festus the looked at the large group seeing another 4 split off "I got those ones." He stated then he threw the shield at them, The new design caused the shield to bounce around hiting all 4 before flying somewhat back to him he ran over to the fallen infected and sliced them after getting his shield, after the 3rd one died the 4th one got up and attacked Fesuts full strength but the dragon blocked it he however flew back from the force of it hitting the ground with a thud.