open A Darker Fate: Beyond these Walls Chapter Two.

[Midnight Scribbler 1,705]

Clockwork Green

@@Commander Tangent,

@@Icy Void,

@,

 

Clockwork peered coldly at this response, he sensed something was off, but could not refute the unicorn's logic on this subject. Icarus showed up behind him, asking about the gem. Clockwork glanced over his shoulder to the doctor. "There is something greatly troubling about this stone.. I cannot place my hoof on what, but.. I don't think it will help us. At least, it does not seem to have done much of anything yet. Perhaps that will change." He returned his gaze to the stone for a moment, then turned to return inside. "I have seen quite enough snow for one day.. I'm going back inside to warm up. Perhaps there is something more to this place than meets the eye.. and much had met my eyes so far." With that he trotted back towards the door.

[Tricksters Pride 100]

Creepy Stallion

@, 

 

The stallion had decidedly not left her alone, as soon as she turned her back he muttered under his breath "Fine, the hard way it is." and grabbed the mare in a hold. Putting her between the three in the other patrons and himself. The first one (and seemingly less patient.), a pegasus mare, had backed off once he involved a civilian with an angry look on her face. the second one, a large earth pony stallion, sat beside the mare with an unhappy look. The last of the three, a smaller and unimposing unicorn stallion, had remained sitting... but he had subtly kicked over a short-sword, hidden by the earth ponies movements, to the mare. "Alright i'll be leaving now, no movements or i'll kill the mare!"

 

 

 

 

 

Strings

@@Windbreaker, 

 

Strings seems unsure and awkward for a few moments *'Well i can't just let her cry, that wouldn't be the right thing to do.'* But eventually he sighed and sat beside Gwyn and threw a comforting hoof around her shoulders. "... Not everypony gets along Little Angel, sometimes a pair of ponies will umm get together and later they will find out that they don't get along real well. Its not their fault its just a part of being alive, you cant get along with everypony no matter how hard you try..... And another ponies memories wouldn't tell you a thing, each pony kinda needs to develop their own view on life and to mix someone else's with your own would only cloud your judgment with theirs."

[Geek0zoid 1,468]

@@Commander Tangent,@@Midnight Scribbler, @@Icy Void,

 

White Eclipse

"Well, until we get back to the Crystal Empire, we should keep the other lockbox safe, as well as this gem. There has to be a reason for this jewel to be sealed in this box for so long. Perhaps it has it's own properties that can only be discovered through examination." Eclipse said with a sigh, closing the eye lockbox shut and giving it back to Midnight. "Perhaps we should just go back inside and get some rest. Tomorrow will probably be equally as dangerous, so we need to be ready for whatever comes our way." With that, the middle-aged unicorn began walking into the shack. The mysterious magic around his horn was glowing a bit brighter, as Eclipse noticed. He assumed that couldn't be good, but at this point, he didn't care. He just wanted to get some sleep.

[Umbreon 569]

Pavisa

 

@,

@,  

 

Pavisa looks around when the lockbox is opened outside, unaware of what the others had done since she was still inside the cabin.  What the..?  She briefly thought back to what Kingfisher had said earlier, about her feeling of paranoia...  Whatever had just happened, Pavisa wasn't exactly calm now either.  She started to feel a dull throb in her new horn, but it was so minor she was able to ignore it as she stepped up to Kingfisher and the new pony.

 

When Ronin brought up Kingfisher's nose bleed, Pavisa glanced at her friend to confirm it for herself.  "He's right..."  She thought back to the strange light that had caused it to happen the first time and started to glance around again - this cabin was starting to feel less safe by the second.  "...Fisher?  Tell me I'm not the only one who thinks we need to get out of here?"  The ex-guard took a moment to check that her halberd was still within hoof's reach - it hadn't had any useful purpose so far, and if it was more of what they've been going against it didn't seem like it would in the future, but she felt better knowing it was close by.

 

 

Zintiik

 

@@Midnight Scribbler,

@,

 

When Willow picked up Scribbler's prone form and started to make her way towards the path Orion was pushing together, Zintiik followed close by.  He sticks to the air for now, keeping a worried eye on Willow and Scribbler.  He hoped the stallion was okay - he'd never admit it, but he actually liked Scribbler.  Kind of.  He was kind of boring (in Zintiik's opinion) but he had stuck with them all this time.

 

"Okay, new rule - the only pony around that knows healing magic needs to STOP getting hurt!"  Don't worry so much, he's going to be fine...  We all are...  If worse comes to worse, I'll try helping in my own way...  No clue if it works on ponies though.

 

 

Stahl

 

@,

 

Stahl stares warily at the rift as they walk past the inn.  He could tell what she meant - it felt ominous.  His horn glows for just a second as he loosens his sabers in their sheathes, as though just to reassure himself they were there.  "How far have these things spread?"  It had been a few days since he'd been able to do his usual patrols - he knew things were bad, but he didn't know they were this bad.

 

"And this settles it, I'm getting back on the streets after this...  I can't believe so many of us have been ordered to the noble district with these things appearing over Canterlot.  We need to be seen now more than ever..."

[Ihei 713]

@,@,@@Midnight Scribbler,@@SilverHeart,@@Nomadic,

 

Willow Starsinger

 

Willow shivered from the cold, trying not to let Scribbler fall off of her. Willow carefully hopped from platform to platform towards the path. "Zintiik, where's Denarius?" Willow asked, trying to find a way to get onto the path. Willow felt she was about to collapse from the cold, but if she went down, Scribbler did, too. Willow hefted Scribbler across the path, watching her hooves so that she didnt fall.

 

Willow watched Orion make the path. She wished at times that this wasnt her life - she wished she could just poof home. With her parents - and Orion. But there were ponies in need - and she has friends. It was worth it, but Willow has grown distant from Orion. Her own brother - trying so hard to protect her - but to have her run into the face of danger. She could have sworn she felt the judgemental looks shot her way when she jumped after Kricket..

 

With every insult her brain threw at her, Willow slowed down her pace and energy. She kept going though. Just slowly, but not giving up. She kept herself encouraged by telling herself that when all of this is over, she will be home.

 

Or maybe she won't make it home.

 

@Tricksters Pride,

 

Aphrodite

 

Aphrodite flashed the quiet stallion a small smile before kicking the shady stallion and holding out the short blade. "I'm not afraid to use this," Aphrodite growled, kicking the shady stallion in the shin.

[Tricksters Pride 100]

Shady Stallion

@, 

 

(How you react to the strike is up to you and he expects her to be a horrible fighter so you won't be disarmed unless you want to be. As a recap you have one strike with his blade lashing out at your own before he lashes out with a hoof to try and render Aphrodite unconscious.)

 

The Stallion hadn't expected Aphrodite to respond with violence and had flinched when she kicked him and leaped back a few steps when she swung the blade in his direction. He was however armed and pulled out a blade of his own and swung it at Aphrodite's to try and knock it off balance before making a step forward and striking out at her head.

[Icy Void 19]

Midnight Sky

 

"You're right. It's not common for us to have time to rest, so we should take advantage of this peace while it lasts, plus I'm sure we'll be heading out to try and reach the Crystal Empire again soon." Midnight said in agreement with Eclipse as he turned and followed the unicorn back inside the cabin. Midnight could tell he was growing accustomed to the gem's weight, but the faint purple glow was still taking some getting used to, and he wondered how the others who had remained inside will feel about his new addition to his armor. Based on it's activity so far Midnight doubted that the gem was actually dangerous on it's own, but he'll probably want to set up a force field around himself when he sleeps just to be safe. After all, since the gem was only just released from it's seal it could just be in a dormant state right now, and that could prove problematic depending on the nature of the gem.

[Ihei 713]

@@Tricksters Pride,

 

Aphrodite

 

Aphrodite stared at the blade before rendering what was going on. Once she saw the stallion going for a blow at her head, she headbutted the stallion with her horn. "That ought to teach him," Aphrodite said, smirking mostly out of victory. "Maybe I still have it in me," Aphrodite thought out loud.

 

(OOC: That enough?)

[EcstaticWind 572]

Noble Persona & Gwyn

@@Tricksters Pride, 

 

Gwyn hugged Strings, still unsure of herself. ‘What am I to everyone? I wasn’t born a pony. I wasn’t even born at all. And all these memories that aren’t mine. Why? Why do I exist? What reason do I have for being here?’ Gwyn looked at Noble, who was still beside her. “Noble…Why am I here? I’m just an Aspect…so why do you care about me so much? What am I to you, other than another reminder of the Litany?”

 

Noble took off the mask again to look Gwyn in the eyes. “The truth is, I was lonely and broken. I needed somepony to talk to and so, I brought you into this world. And from my selfish desire, you’ve taken on a life of your own. That makes you special, Gwyn. And that’s why I care about you. Not because of the Litany, but because of who you are. My cute little sister who delights in causing mischief.” He said, close to tears as he nuzzled Gwyn to cheer her up. But every word was true.

Edited January 27, 2014 by Windbreaker

[Midnight Scribbler 1,705]

Midnight Scribbler

@,

 

Scribbler was barely aware of anything taking place. He could feel the warmth of somepony below him, the momentum of their movement. What he could hear was muffled and distorted as though it were part of a dream. Was it a dream? Was he in his bed this whole time, having a wild adventure? His eyes slowly opened, mere slits. Enough to confirm he was not dreaming, and the cold he felt was very real. The light shone into his eyes, becoming more bright than usual. The goggles, though they did protect him, didn't seem to have much effect as his mind was in a state of disarray. All he could see was a white light, and then he closed his eyes again, mumbling.
_{"W-what's going on? Where..where are we?"} His voice barely audible over the din of colliding chunks of land and the wind. Scribbler felt relief that somepony had chosen to save him, though he began to feel pathetic at the same time, knowing he'd been more burden than anything so far. His breathing began to strengthen, but he had far to go yet. He had used every ounce of energy saving Zintiik and Willow from plummeting to their doom. Parts of him wished they had left him, grateful as he was for his life. He felt as though his presence now would only serve to slow them down. And who knows what would end up happening if they didn't stop Noble.

[Tricksters Pride 100]

Creepy (And now unconscious.) Stallion

@, 

 

(Yep all good  ^ ^)

 

When Aphrodite's blade had blocked his own the stallion was surprised and faltered in his strike long enough for Aphrodite to knock him out with her headbutt, her horn giving him a small nick in his forehead and pinpointing the attack into one focused area. As a result he collapsed to the floor and the pegasus mare and earth pony stallion where quick to leap on him and tie him up. The quiet stallion having moved with them whispered something to them before turning to Aphrodite. "Heh it would seem that you do. Thanks for nabbing him for us, were not allowed to put civilians at risk... Though i don't suppose your looking for work Miss?"

 

 

 

 

 

Strings

@@Windbreaker, 

 

Strings seemed a little awkward with the hug and increasingly touching moment, though he still patted Gwyn on the back. "Ehhh i'm not so sure that the 'why' of living really matters, your alive and thinking and you live as you want to. That's the whole point of being alive. So why don't you just find something that you like doing and enjoy living....... And maybe we could change topics and save this for later? I'm not a very touchy-feely stallion and this is making me slightly uncomfortable..."

[EcstaticWind 572]

Noble Persona & Gwyn

@@Tricksters Pride, 

 

“Sorry.” Gwyn said as she let go of Strings, though she felt a lot better at hearing their words. The fact that Noble was about to shed tears also helped. “Are you crying, Noble?”

 

Noble swiftly put his mask back on. “No! I, uh…I got something in my eyes. Nothing to worry about. I’m perfectly fine.” He said, clearly trying to bring his voice to a normal pitch.

 

“Aww, you’re so cute when you're trying to act cool.” Gwyn teased. She was definitely feeling better now.

Edited January 27, 2014 by Windbreaker

[SilverHeart 741]

(OOC: Sorry, this will be a lousy post. But it's all I have the energy for at the moment.)

 

Mirror Image

 

Mirror Image lay in the snow. It felt nice...until the cold began to seep through her cloak. Standing up, she looked around for her companions. It seemed they had already started moving on without her. 

[The Elusive Cinder 1,328]

Kingfisher.

 

On seeing her companions returning, the ominous dread in the pit of her stomach clenched and a wave of nausea hit with the impact of a freight train. Kingfisher blinked - watching Midnight wander calmly back amongst them with the jewel hanging around his neck. She felt physically sick - more so as the glow drew closer.

 

"Please tell me that's not..." She started - but the absence of the tiny key confirmed her suspicions. They had opened one if the chests and now he was wearing whatever it was that they had found inside.

 

"That's... okay, this feels wrong. Does anyone else feel it? That claustrophobic feeling?"

 

She paused as a twinkling light in the caught her attention, but when she tried to look at it, it was gone. She sighed - left to her own devices she would have taken her chances and moved on - gotten as far away from there as possible after the feeling of unease - but she wasn't alone. They had ponies less accustomed to traveling - even some who might be too injured to move.

 

"So do we stay here and rest a few hours, or try to move on?" She asked. "Something doesn't feel right here... but at least we have walls and a roof."

[~Sole~ 852]

Ronin noticed how uncomfortable everypony seemed as he looked around the cabin, but couldn't understand why. "Is it because of me? No, thats ridiculous." He thought, as everyponies unease seemed to grow "but why then?" He questioned mentally, as he finished the hardtack.

[The Elusive Cinder 1,328]

Orion Starsinger.

 

Given the situation, he honestly felt that he was doing the most that he could with the tools at his disposal: but as some shards fell away into the bright abyss below and others just outright shattered from the impact of the spell, Orion realised that he was quickly running out of land to manipulate into extending the makeshift bridge.

 

"You need to get across Now!" He bellowed: grimacing as another bolt of blunt force was fired into one of the floating masses of land.

 

---------------

 

Emerald Gaze.

 

@,

 

Emerald watched the light as they passed: feeling a slight sense of pity for whatever pony had owned the inn where the worst if the chaos seemed concentrated - these weren't exactly the nicest parts of the city, but he had been found not long after the start of the disaster.

 

Apparently some ponies had presumed it to have been his doing and taken revenge. Permanently.

 

"The guard were spread too thinly to have any real effect: I don't agree with the decision - but I understand where it came from." The diplomat commented dryly. "As for these, they are appearing all across the city... Like I said, there's no proof that they actually do anything other than scare citizens..."

 

She paused awkwardly - a minor noble who worked within the castle...

 

"... ahem, or so I hear at any rate. "

[Geek0zoid 1,468]

@,@@Midnight Scribbler, @@Icy Void,  

 

White Eclipse

"Perhaps we should stay and rest until morning. Tomorrow is probably going to be just dangerous as today, if not more so. We need to be awake and alert for whatever dangers come our way tomorrow. Plus, we have injured. They need the rest." Eclipse said, making his way down towards the basement with Blast. He couldn't wait to get covered up in a semi-comfortable bed. It was better than any cave for, that's for sure. This new magic still had him interested, and not just because he wanted his headache to go away. Perhaps he'll explore this magic more the next day.

 

With that, both Eclipse and Blast took a bunk, with Blast taking the top and Eclipse with the bottom. Within mere moments, both stallions feel into a deep sleep.

[Ihei 713]

@Tricksters Pride,

 

Aphrodite

 

"Work?" she hadn't even thought about looking for work. Well, she is practically brokewith only enough bits to buy one last meal. "Why do you ask?" Aphrodite asked, curious about this job offering. She really did need the job though, no matter what job it is. She just needs a few extra bits.

 

(Sorry this was a bad post. I'm just about to go to school :3)

[RAGESTAR 479]

@@Icy Void @

 

Crimson's eyes widened in shock and disbelief as he saw the glowing stone hanging around Midnight's neck, it's magical aura reminiscent of the Litany. "Oh, I feel it all right, Kingfisher...that must be what was inside the damned box we found! Midnight, you damn fool!! You have no idea what that thing might be capable of!! None of us do!! For all we know, it could wield the same power as the Litany! We have to destroy it!" he said urgently, glaring at the stone with a, quite literally, fiery stare. "I'm not gonna risk losing anyone to some mysterious magical bullshit! Be it by death, or corruption...don't you remember what happened to Noble?" he asked darkly.

Edited January 27, 2014 by ragestar

[EcstaticWind 572]

Aegis Dare

@, @,

 

“Why do you care so much about Noble? I thought you hated him?” Aegis asked, having vanished to the kitchen to get some more stir-fry while the others were busy with the lockboxes. He approached the newcomer and offered him the bowl. “Try some of this. It’s probably easier on your teeth than the hardtack. My name’s Aegis, by the way.”

Edited January 27, 2014 by Windbreaker

[Umbreon 569]

Pavisa

 

@,

@@Icy Void,

 

Pavisa frowns as the others walk in and she sees the gem Midnight was carrying, as well as the lock box with the music note still on his armour.  Her vote had still been for the music note lockbox, and the gem...  She couldn't put her hoof on it, but it made her uncomfortable.  Maybe she was being paranoid, or Kingfisher's concern was rubbing off on her, but she didn't like the feel of this place any more than her friend did.

 

Stepping up next to Kingfisher, Pavisa mutters quietly "My vote is to get moving, and quickly..."  Even as she spoke she watched some of the others making their way to beds and sighs.  "...But, it doesn't look like that's an option.  I'll stay up and help keep watch, I can't shake the feeling that something's going to go horribly wrong."  She tilts her head slightly and glances at Kingfisher, letting the barest hint of a smile creep onto her face.  "...Ten bits we're sent running before morning?"  A horrible thing to bet on - precisely one of the few things that had been staying reliable and was somehow keeping her sane.

 

 

Stahl

 

@,

 

"Can't blame 'em for that, here I'm an officer in the Guard and I'm afraid of the things..."  Stahl shakes his head and pulls his attention away from the strange rift, trying to ignore the ominous feeling he was getting from it.  Distracted as he was he'd missed Emerald's short pause, but the charismatic stallion recovers from the sight of the rift and smiles again.

 

"The Guard is still spread too thin.  Something needs to be done about that...  How far out are these men we're making a delivery to, anyways?"

[~Sole~ 852]

Aegis Dare

@, @,

 

“Why do you care so much about Noble? I thought you hated him?” Aegis asked, having vanished to the kitchen to get some more stir-fry while the others were busy with the lockboxes. He approached the newcomer and offered him the bowl. “Try some of this. It’s probably easier on your teeth than the hardtack. My name’s Aegis, by the way.”

ronin accepted the bowel and thanked him "thank you aegis, and This does look a lot more appetizing then the hardtack. My name is ronin by the way, and I'm in you and your groups debt for allowing me to rest and have a meal in your home." He said respectfully

[RAGESTAR 479]

@@Windbreaker

 

Crimson scoffed. "I do hate the bastard! I'm just using him as an example, of what happens to somepony when they become greedy with some otherworldly powerful artifact, and end up turning against everyone...he never was my friend to begin with, but he was an ally of Orion...and nopony, not even him, deserves treachery..." he said with a sigh, not revealing that he himself is an example of that.

[EcstaticWind 572]

Aegis Dare

@, 

 

“No worries. Can’t let a pony starve to death. Actually, we’re just visitors here ourselves. This place is pretty much abandoned, except for us taking shelter here. Our train crashed a ways back and we had to find some shelter pretty fast, and that’s what led us here.” Aegis sat beside Ronin, admittedly eager to find out more about him. With an exotic sword like a Katana, he must have some interesting stories to share. “So what about you? What’s your story?”

[~Sole~ 852]

Aegis Dare

@, 

 

“No worries. Can’t let a pony starve to death. Actually, we’re just visitors here ourselves. This place is pretty much abandoned, except for us taking shelter here. Our train crashed a ways back and we had to find some shelter pretty fast, and that’s what led us here.” Aegis sat beside Ronin, admittedly eager to find out more about him. With an exotic sword like a Katana, he must have some interesting stories to share. “So what about you? What’s your story?”

ronin watched as aegis eyed his sword gave a slight smile "my story? I'm a swordsman... That's about all you need to know, I don't really do much else." He said jokingly, reluctant to talk about his past, especially to somepony hed only just met. And as he sat there he couldn't help but glance at his blade every few minutes, reassuring himself that it was still there.