open A Darker Fate: Beyond these Walls Chapter Two.

[Geek0zoid 1,468]

@,@@Midnight Scribbler,

 

Blast and Eclipse

Blast facehoofed as Kingfisher carried on with her constant ranting. Within moments, the doors were slamming open, with mares and stallions giving complaints to the group. One even threw one of their alarm clocks at everypony.

Blast gave a large sigh.

 

"Well, like I said, I'm experienced in telekinetic and psychic magic." Eclipse said, not smiling back to Clockwork, as he rarely smiled. "I have many different kinds of spells, ranging from simply picking things up and throwing them at others, throwing a kinetic energy ball from my horn, or using a psychic push to shove barricades or groups of enemies out of my path."

[The Elusive Cinder 1,328]

Orion Starsinger.

 

@,

 

"The Litany? No." He answered softly. "I wasn't strong enough to control it... now it's my fault that monster of a unicorn is out there somewhere."

 

He shook his head - rubbing his face with a hoof.

 

"I've got to fix this... Then we can just leave: go wherever we want and leave all of this business behind us." The unicorn reassured her, pulling her into a hug. It wasn't easy - knowing that there was still so much to do before they were free of everything he had caused... trying to make sure that, no matter what, she could have a decent future.

 

"We're a team, okay? You and me - we can beat anything that gets thrown our way because we look out for each other - no matter what!"

[Midnight Scribbler 1,705]

Midnight Scribbler

@@SilverHeart,

 

Scribbler noted Mirror's slightly tired tone. He began to feel uncomfortable with how his question had been recieved, and felt conscious of his choice to pose his opinion, though he put it forth anyway. "I don't believe Orion is wise to pursue the litany's power. Not for the purpose of obtaining it.. It was foolish for him to think using the power would bring good upon his family.. He was being torn apart by it, and was fortunate to have been torn from it's grasp. The Litany is far more dangerous than I'd imagined.. I believe it must be destroyed.. but I don't feel Orion sees this.. Nor would he be very happy to hear it from me.." He paused to think a moment. "I would have tried to destroy it back in the tunnels.. Had Willow not touched it.. I don't even know if I could have, but I wish I had at least given a shot at it." He paused again, looking intently to Mirror. "What would you have done, in my place?" He was curious to see what Mirror's response would be to this. "If you had the book, in your hooves right here at this moment. What would you choose?"

 

Clockwork Green

@,

 

Clockwork winced as his head began to throb with the growing headache. "Ah, yes.. I suppose you did mention that last night. Forgive my forgetfulness, this headache is breaking my thoughts apart at the moment.. I too have similar abilities.. though you might say they're a lot less refined. I can cast certain spells with my battery, although it costs me my ability to fly if I drain the reserve, so I tend to save it for only the most dire of needs." He sipped at the bottle of wine from the previous night, hoping the alcohol would quell the hangover enough to sustain himself until that medical expert showed up. He corked it, and replaced it into his bag. "Ugh, Icarus, I could use your talents right now."

[Umbreon 569]

Pavisa

 

Quietly making her way past the others, Pavisa starts down the road towards the direction of the train station.  She was eager to be out of Canterlot...  So the sooner she could get on the train, the better.  As she walked the ex-guard frowned with worry, a thought creeping to the back of her mind.

 

I'm jobless and poor...  How in Equestria am I supposed to afford a train ticket?  She turns her head as though looking back at the others, though in reality she was looking at her helmet hanging from her flank.  Has word spread out that I quit yet?  I might be able to bluff my way on board...  Celestia, I hope nopony is assigned to keep an eye on the trains coming and going!

[Commander Tangent 861]

Icarus made his way out of the INN and tavern, and into the streets of Canterlot. He noticed everypony else was exiting the building as he left down the street.

 

@,

 

Icarus noticed the pony from last night, Pavisa. She was looking back, or more, looking a a helmet on he utility belt. She seemed to be in a saddened mood.He continued on to the train station, eventually catching up to the pony.

 

"What seems to have you saddened?" He asked.

[SilverHeart 741]

Midnight Scribbler

@@SilverHeart,

 

Scribbler noted Mirror's slightly tired tone. He began to feel uncomfortable with how his question had been recieved, and felt conscious of his choice to pose his opinion, though he put it forth anyway. "I don't believe Orion is wise to pursue the litany's power. Not for the purpose of obtaining it.. It was foolish for him to think using the power would bring good upon his family.. He was being torn apart by it, and was fortunate to have been torn from it's grasp. The Litany is far more dangerous than I'd imagined.. I believe it must be destroyed.. but I don't feel Orion sees this.. Nor would he be very happy to hear it from me.." He paused to think a moment. "I would have tried to destroy it back in the tunnels.. Had Willow not touched it.. I don't even know if I could have, but I wish I had at least given a shot at it." He paused again, looking intently to Mirror. "What would you have done, in my place?" He was curious to see what Mirror's response would be to this. "If you had the book, in your hooves right here at this moment. What would you choose?"

 

Mirror thought in silence. Chances were, that she would read the Litany. Just a little bit, not much. Yes, a few pages would be fine, Willow seemed fine after all. She couldn't tell Scribbler that though, she still needed to ascertain whether or not he saw her scars. And for that trust was key, so she wouldn't lie. "I don't know, I'm sure I lack the abilities required to destroy something like that. If I can't destroy r, what could I do?"

Midnight Scribbler

@@SilverHeart,

 

Scribbler noted Mirror's slightly tired tone. He began to feel uncomfortable with how his question had been recieved, and felt conscious of his choice to pose his opinion, though he put it forth anyway. "I don't believe Orion is wise to pursue the litany's power. Not for the purpose of obtaining it.. It was foolish for him to think using the power would bring good upon his family.. He was being torn apart by it, and was fortunate to have been torn from it's grasp. The Litany is far more dangerous than I'd imagined.. I believe it must be destroyed.. but I don't feel Orion sees this.. Nor would he be very happy to hear it from me.." He paused to think a moment. "I would have tried to destroy it back in the tunnels.. Had Willow not touched it.. I don't even know if I could have, but I wish I had at least given a shot at it." He paused again, looking intently to Mirror. "What would you have done, in my place?" He was curious to see what Mirror's response would be to this. "If you had the book, in your hooves right here at this moment. What would you choose?"

 

Mirror thought in silence. Chances were, that she would read the Litany. Just a little bit, not much. Yes, a few pages would be fine, Willow seemed fine after all. She couldn't tell Scribbler that though, she still needed to ascertain whether or not he saw her scars. And for that trust was key, so she wouldn't lie. "I don't know, I'm sure I lack the abilities required to destroy something like that. If I can't destroy it, what could I do?" She asked him, watching him closely.

[Umbreon 569]

Pavisa

 

@@Commander Tangent, 

 

Pavisa blinks and turns to the pony who'd addressed her, recognizing him as one of the newcomers who had joined them last night.  She still wasn't sure what she thought about the newest additions to the party, but they all seemed fine to her.  They were crazy enough to want to actually travel with them, after all.  The ex-guard makes herself smile at Icarus' mask, tilting her head slightly.

 

"No clue what you're talking about.  I'm just not much of a morning pony and this train leaves far too early for my tastes."  Pavisa couldn't bring herself to open up to her friends - she wasn't about to try and explain anything to somepony she'd just met.

[Commander Tangent 861]

@,

 

I doubt that, it has to be something with that helm, and what she refrained from saying last night.

 

"If you didn't want to tell me, you could have just said so" Icarus said in a neutral tone.

 

hmmm, I wonder what it is she is hiding from me... Perhapse then I could figure out more about this group.

Edited December 11, 2013 by Commander Tangent

[Midnight Scribbler 1,705]

Midnight Scribbler

@@SilverHeart,

Scribbler pondered her words, and looked to her with honesty, before returning his gaze to the view again. "Then you understand where I stood, it was a very difficult moment. Knowing I might not stand a snowball's chance in hell at destroying it.. yet.. Knowing I needed to find a way to keep Noble from obtaining the book... Mirror.. What I saw in there.. Noble cannot get the book or we will all be in peril. This is why I must stick with the mission.. I can't go home, knowing this power yet threatens us." He looked to Mirror again. "No matter what happens out there.. I want you to know, I've got your back as long as you have mine. We're going to need all the friends we can get in this fight." They wandered out from the winding pathway into the streets below. It was only a couple blocks from here before they reached the hotel.

[EcstaticWind 572]

Aegis Dare

 

There was too much noise now. Aegis ducked out the door, pushing through the angry ponies in his way. Once he was outside, he took a deep breath and yelled at the top of his lungs.

 

“SHUT UP! EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU! It’s too damn early for this nonsense, so anypony not part of this band of misfits, get outta here!” It took a lot to make Aegis angry, and such an event had been achieved effortlessly this morning. “You got wax in your ears? Get lost!”

 

Blissful silence followed, though Aegis had a feeling that it wouldn’t last long.

[The Elusive Cinder 1,328]

Kingfisher.

 

"... Huh. Remind me not to bother you when you're writing." Said Kingfisher in a much more normal tone with a bemused grin on her face - after a few moments of stunned silence - watching the disapproving faces vanish one by one. "Wish ponies listened to me like that - normally have to wave a sword at them to get that kind of effect..."

 

She double checked that she had everything she might need and nodded to the ensemble: signalling that it was time to leave.

 

Stepping out into the street, the first thing she noticed after the frost was the sky - 'morning' usually consisted of a sunrise in one form or another but today... It was just a few hapless beams shining through a sky that was otherwise blanketed by rolling storm clouds. 'Well thats not ominous or anything... She found herself thinking as she walked the short distance to the station.

Edited December 11, 2013 by Cinderscribe

[Geek0zoid 1,468]

Blast & Eclipse

@,@@Midnight Scribbler,@, @(And the rest)

 

"Perhaps you should rest a bit, Clockwork." Eclipse said to him, taking the bottle and throwing it away. "I mean, you seem mad already. Don't make it worse." Eclipse looked over to Kingfisher and the others.

"Well, look who's here already." Blast said to Eclipse, tauntingly. "Did you sleep at all last night?"

Eclipse simply frowned in annoyance. "Actually, here's a better question; why aren't YOU here sooner? You're suppose to be the fastest one here, and the older one has already hoofed it to the required destination." Eclipse fired back, almost forcing a smirk.

"Very funny, old man." Blast said, sitting down next to Clockwork. "By the way, we're missing Aphrodite again. Have any of you seen her at all this morning?"

[Ihei 712]

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

 

 Willow Starsinger

 

"What if the other group gets it first? Then what?"

 

Willow was afraid of what could happen: there was already a maniac of a unicorn on the loose, because of that very book. Would Willow and Orion really be able to stop them from trying to find the Litany? Or was Orion just trying to make her feel better? She hated when Orion tried to make her feel better: mostly, it didn't. She tucked herself into the bed but still looked to Orion. "Where is everypony else?"

 

Aphrodite

 

"I couldn't stay there. I was surrounded by so much.. drinks! I would've been tempted to drink again.."

 

Aphrodite paced about in her room debating to herself whether or not she should go back out to meet the others and.. drink. She despised drinking because she always had bad experiences out of them: bad hangovers, doing bad things while being drunk.. she couldn't take it anymore so she stopped. But every now and then she would be tempted. And she didn't feel to be tempted now.

Edited December 11, 2013 by Shaymin

[Umbreon 569]

Pavisa

 

@@Commander Tangent,

 

The ex-guard huffs with a smirk as she steps into the train station.  "Don't know what you're talking about, Doc."  As she steps into the station she reaches back with one hoof to take ahold of her helmet, bringing it up and placing it over her head.  If she was going to have to bluff her way into a ticket, it would help to look official.

 

@,

 

Pavisa steps up next to Kingfisher, giving a small grin and jerking her head towards the ticket booth.  "What do you know, I think we actually made it before the train left...  We still need to get tickets, right?"

 

 

Zintiik

 

The changeling looked down passively at the unconscious old mare at his hooves.  Apparently the couple had been together for quite some time...  That made her harder to fool, but the feeding went so much quicker in these situations.  Couples eventually reached a point where they took these important emotions for granted - that was the best opening a changeling could hope for...

 

Zintiik had fed rather well from this little endeavor.  But, it was time for him to make his way back to the hotel where the others were staying...  Taking the risk to get greedy and stay around longer would only result in trouble for the changeling, especially without being able to flee back to his hive.

 

As he made his way back to the streets, he shed the disguise of the old guard in favor of the bland pegasus Tactic Wind once more.  It was safer this way - he didn't want to run into anypony that may have known the guard.  Spreading his wings, Zintiik takes to the skies and starts to fly back towards the hotel where they were supposed to be staying. 

[Commander Tangent 861]

@, 

 

Icarus let out a small laugh.

 

Now that, is a cliche attempt to hide something.

 

Icarus walked up to the second ticket station, and bought the ticket quite smoothly. The Pony in the booth kept giving him odd looks, and seemed to be quite nervous though.

 

I am not sure what some ponies find so unsettling  about this mask, but I guess it can be odd for some.

 

After acquiring a ticket to the crystal kingdom, Icarus stepped towards the rest of the group, waiting for them to buy their tickets.

[Frosty V 309]

@Cinderscribe

 

Frost returned to his room to make sure he had packed everything in his rush to get up that morning. He did not pay any mind to the weather, guessing it was a normal day for the town in this season. Once he had double checked everything he walked out shutting the room door quietly behind him before trotting outside.

 

Frost spotted Kingfisher once again and trotted up to her, smiling widely. "Hey....you wouldn't mind if I tagged along with you to the train will you?" He asked in an awkward sounding tone. "Your really the only pony I know...besides Blast, but I wasn't sure if he would be riding the same train...." he trailed off, fearing he had spoken to fast.

[EcstaticWind 572]

Aegis Dare

 

@, 

Aegis flashed an apologetic grin. “Sorry. It’s probably because of the yelling. Anyway, everypony ready? And are we missing anypony?”

 

@, 

“What lovely weather… That’s a good sign for sure.” Aegis said sarcastically when he noticed the weather, glad he bought the cloak now. He stepped up and bought his ticket, then walked up to Pavisa. “Hey, Pavi. Have you got a ticket yet?”

[The Elusive Cinder 1,328]

Kingfisher.

 

@,

 

"Guess so." Shrugged the sailor as she fumbled through the envelope from Bardic - fully expecting everything to fall into place. Not to be disappointed, she pulled out a ticket - already paid for - and held it up for the stallion in the booth to see. With a curt nod, he watched for a moment as she passed before returning to watch the rest of the party.

 

"Kind of creepy how he plans things out in so much detail..." She muttered as she looked at the ticket while approaching the train.

[Geek0zoid 1,468]

Blast

@@Windbreaker,@, @,

 

"Probably?" Blast replied back Aegis. "Pfft. THAT'S the understatement of the century." Eclipse had already gone on the train, since he bought his ticket the night before. Blast purchased his ticket on the same night as well. He flashed his ticket to the stallion and cleared his entry. But, before he got on, he looked back at the city of Canterlot, as this was possibly the last time he'd ever see it. He got on the train and sat in an empty booth, saving it for Aphrodite when she got on.

[The Elusive Cinder 1,328]

Orion Starsinger.

 

@,

 

"It's... not quite that straight forward. Besides: they won't even know about it - never mind be looking themselves: we can forget all about them - they won't trouble us any more." He said confidently. "I don't imagine those three will be very long, I'm going to try something, when they get back. Did you pack your bags ready for the morning like I told you? Plenty of food and blankets?"

 

He probably should have prepared better himself - but the saddlebags he had collected earlier would probably have a few supplies in them - his contacts were very reliable after all. Hopefully this would be a nice, simple expedition that would be over before any of them knew it.

[Midnight Scribbler 1,705]

Clockwork Green

@,

 

Clockwork glared at the unicorn as the bottle fell to the ground, spilling. He got up, picked up the bottle, and corked what was left of the wine. He turned around, stuffing the bottle into his pack, and sat back down. "The next time you choose to knock an expensive wine out of somepony's hooves, you'd better have paid for it." He said in a venomous tone. "You owe me." Just then, blast showed up, speaking in an upbeat tone. Clockwork groaned, annoyed by the very presence of such energy at the moment. His head throbbed painfully, and now he was low on wine. Today was turning out to be less than amusing for him.

[Commander Tangent 861]

@Windbreaker,@Shaymin, @Cinderscribe, @, ,@Midnight Scribbler

 

Icarus entered the Train and looked for a seat. The train seemed mostly devoid of ponies other than the group, so he took the nearest empty booth, and sat down. He looked out  the window at the darkened skies.

 

 

Very odd, I wounder what is causing these disturbances in weather.

 

He quickly made one last check of his inventory to make sure he had everything he needed. Once he finished with that, he sat back, and waited.

Edited December 11, 2013 by Commander Tangent

[Umbreon 569]

Pavisa

 

@,

@@Windbreaker,

 

 Pavisa glances at Aegis and shakes her head.  "About to go do that, actually."  It seemed as though most of the party was already going through the gates to get on the train...  She'd have to make this quick.

 

Stepping up to the ticket booth Pavisa takes a deep breath, standing up straight before rapping a hoof against the desk.  She did her best to look like an official member of the Guard - not too difficult, considering the full suit of armour.  "I'm on an official assignment for the safety of Equestria.  By order of Princess Celestia, I need to be on this train."  

 

As the pony behind the booth seemed to open his mouth to protest, Pavisa thrusts a hoof towards his face to cut him off.  "You can send the bill to the Canterlot barracks if it's an issue.  Or do I need to go explain to Princess Celestia herself that you decided the safety of Equestria wasn't worth a handful of bits for a ticket before the only train to the Crystal Empire left?"  The ex-guard narrows her eyes from under her helmet...  And the stallion working the booth meekly hands her a ticket.  Good...  Looks like my bluff worked.

 

As she walks towards the gate with her ticket in her hoof, she grins at Aegis and jerks her head towards the train.  "See?  No problem."  She steps through the gate to catch up with Kingfisher, smirking slightly.  "When we meet your friend, tell him to send more tickets next time...  I don't think that'll work twice.  Especially once word spreads that I'm not actually with the Guard anymore."

[Frosty V 309]

@, @

 

Frost walked up to the ticket booth and showed his ticket for the train he had bought the day before and after given the go ahead to move to the train he trotted off. He brushed past Kingfish, letting out a "sorry." as he did so. He climbed into the train car and walked slowly down the aisle, looking for an empty seat. Once he found one he put his bags under the seat and slumped down in the seat. He turned his head to see Blast, he smiled slightly. "I didn't think you would be on this train....thanks for the ticket money again it really helped." He chuckled.

[EcstaticWind 572]

Aegis Dare

@, 

 

Aegis grinned slyly at Blast. “Even us writers can be dangerous beasts. Remember that.” He chuckled as he boarded the train behind Pavisa. ‘I’ll need to figure out my situation soon. Is Pavi flirting, or just being friendly? Wish I could tell which it is.’

 

Once he found his seat, he brought out his journal and began reading through it. “Well, isn’t this cheery? Orion’s on the loose, Noble’s probably out there causing trouble and the weather’s gon crazy. We’ll all need therapy and a long vacation after this…” Aegis muttered.