private That Shrinking Feeling

[Kay Dreamer 884]

"Whoohoo!" Kay clapped her hooves together, and grinned at Anala. "Numbers is up. Now we just have to get you to where he is, and I can, well... I'm sure I can climb." She glanced apologetically at Scribble and Blaze, as they urged the two mares to hurry. "Sorry fellows... Ready up there, Numbers?"

 

Kay put her head down and began lending as much levitation strength to Number Cruncher's attempt to lift Anala as she could. Slowly but surely, it seemed to be working. Straining a little, she called out. "Anala! Are you... you almost up? I don't know how long I can hold this!"

 

The whistles of the train rattled Kay Dreamer to her very bones. She swore could feel the air in her lungs reverberating with the noise, despite it's distance from them. Her eyes became wide as she remembered; train tracks usually had trains on them. Gulping, she hoped it didn't plan on actually moving any time soon. "We really better hurry," she whispered.

Edited May 18, 2014 by Kay Dreamer

[Rainbow Eclipse 3,927]

Anala was taken by surprise as she was levitated from the ground and up towards the tower's peak. "Anala! Are you... you almost up? I don't know how long I can hold this!"

 

"Yeah, I'm nearly there, you're doing great! Just hang in there!" she told Kay and Cruncher.

 

Her pupils dilated as she heard a noise. The rattling of a train. "And you'd better hurry..."

[Kay Dreamer 884]

Giving Anala one final burst of levitation power to push her to the top of the tower, Kay Dreamer cut the spell. Now it was Kay's turn to have a slight horn-ache. Not nearly as bad as what she thought Scribble's must have been, but annoying enough. Rubbing her head, she looked up to the top of the tower, calling out.

 

"Is everypony okay up there? Anala?"

 

The sound of the train whistle had set her on edge. She wanted to be away from the tracks as soon as possible; preferably on the Ponyville side, after all the effort they'd made to get this far.

[Rainbow Eclipse 3,927]

Upon being placed on top of the tower, Anala put all her effort into not making it topple.

 

"Is everypony okay up there? Anala?"

 

"Yep, I'm okay. Thanks for the help, guys!" she replied. "Uh, this may get most of you tense, but I think a train might be headed this way," she added. "But I have an idea! We rush over to the other side as fast as possible, but if the train beats us to it, we duck down and the train will just go over us!

Edited June 16, 2014 by Blue Eclipse

[Kay Dreamer 884]

Kay wasn't sure how much she liked Anala's plan. Crouching down while a giant train passed overhead sounded little short of absolutely terrifying. She kept her fears to herself though; they'd come so far. It would be pointless to back away now.

 

Gulping, Kay Dreamer looked up at the wobbly tower her new friends had managed to form themselves into. 'Oh, now I have to climb that, don't I...?' she thought to herself. It wasn't that she was afraid of heights... No, she'd happily trot along the edges of solid walls or stones. She'd even been up in one of those marvellous balloons once. There was just something about a wobbling ladder made of ponies which set her nerves on edge. Kay Dreamer was small and reasonably nimble, but if every other pony lost their balance, she didn't fancy being so high up. Those stones looked hard.

 

"Well, here goes," she said, trying her very best to sound optimistic.

 

Taking a deep breath, she put a hoof on Blaze's back, and hefted herself up. Balancing herself on the small portion of his back not already taken up by Scribblegroove, she placed her front hooves on Scribble and hopped again. Not daring to look down from her perilous perch on Scribble's flank, she climbed carefully over Number Cruncher until she was standing on Anala’s back and hoping against hope no pony beneath her slipped.

 

Rearing up onto her hind hooves, Kay stretched, and... she was still a few hooves short of the edge. "Oh, cottonstalks!" She would have stomped her hooves, had she not been standing on Anala. 'Oh... I need to jump for it.' She cringed at the thought of what would happen if she missed. Shouting downwards, she warned the others.

 

"I'm not tall enough- I need to jump! I'll try to go to the side so if I miss, well... I won't collapse the tower at least." 'I'll just collapse every bone in my legs,' she thought, but she didn't give voice to that worry out loud.

 

Crouching down, she tensed her whole body and gathered every shred of bravery she possessed. Taking a deep breath she leapt up and diagonally, her front hooves just making purchase on the top of the rail. She kicked out with her hind legs, but the lip of the rail meant her back hooves had no surface to latch onto. Dangling slightly to the left of her friends, she felt her hooves begin to slip. Terrified, she tried frantically to hold on. "Scribble!? Numbers!?" She cried out desperately. "Somepony help, I can't- I'm going to fall! HELP!"

[Rainbow Eclipse 3,927]

@@Kay Dreamer,

 

Anala found she was able to support Kay with little effort. She smirked. You're pretty strong, aren't you? Those words rang through her head, having been said to her in the past numerous times by various ponies. If I can deal with ponies jumping into my arms during scary movies, this should be a piece of cake, she thought to herself, recalling an incident at the theater with Riley.

 

"I'm not tall enough- I need to jump! I'll try to go to the side so if I miss, well... I won't collapse the tower at least."

 

But then what are the rest of us going to do? thought Anala, not having thought deeply into it.

 

She watched as Kay leapt over to the rail, but it seemed that the green mare had slightly miscalculated, because due to the lip of the rail, Kay began slipping backwards.

 

Anala instinctively played the hero, reached over, and pushed Kay's hind legs forward.

Edited May 18, 2014 by Blue Eclipse

[DukeofCanterlot 158]

Number Cruncher needed to stop Kay from falling.

He saw that Anala had already made an attempt by pushing Kay's hind legs forward.

It seemed to be working, but they needed to keep balance. There was a danger in both of them falling off.

 

"Perhaps, I can use my magic to help Anala keep her balance and she can push Kay upwards."

Numbers knew a balancing spell - one which could help a pony stay still. Numbers was currently using it on himself, the danger was that he might lose balance himself, but if it would help keep Anala steady and Kay would be able to get on the rail.

Hopefully, Scribblegroove was in good enough shape to put up a levitation spell, if any of the three on top were to fall to the ground.
 

[Kay Dreamer 884]

Kay's flailing hooves finally found purchase on Anala's out flung forehoof, and she pushed against it as much as she dared. Straining, she finally achieved a better grip on the rail and pulled herself up. Lying flat, she took a moment to catch her breath and calm her racing heart. Her forelegs felt like jelly, yet she still had to figure out a way to pull the others up - soon. Standing up cautiously, she threw a nervous glance at the train puffing quietly at the station. It seemed benevolent enough for the moment.

 

Kay lay down on her stomach with her head poking over the lip of the rail, dangling her front hooves toward Anala. "Anala! Can you jump and catch my hooves? I'll use a bit of levitation magic to make you light enough for me to pull up!" Kay's horn sparkled yellow again. She hoped the combination of upward momentum and pulling Anala with her own (admittedly meagre) hoof-strength would make the spell less demanding this time. Whatever the chances, she had to try something or they'd never get the group across.

[Rainbow Eclipse 3,927]

@@Kay Dreamer,

 

Anala tried not to be knocked off the tower or dismantle it as Kay did the necessary to get a better grip.

 

"Anala! Can you jump and catch my hooves? I'll use a bit of levitation magic to make you light enough for me to pull up!"

 

"Sure thing," replied Anala, nodding at Kay's plan. Soon, her body was glowing yellow, so she knew that this was the moment. She jumped out, intending to lock hooves with Kay.

[Kay Dreamer 884]

Kay mustered the largest burst of levitation magic she could, and unleashed it as soon as Anala umped. Locking hooves with the white mare, she pulled upwards; dragging her over the lip of the rail. Though the spell left her slightly dizzy, it was not nearly as hard as she thought it would have been. 'I guess Anala has a really powerful jump,' she thought.

 

Giving her head a little shake, she glanced down and realised the next pony was going to be far more difficult. Number Cruncher was further down than Anala was, and she doubted very much that he could jump as high as the athletic mare... Plus, she was still the only unicorn on top of the rail. While Anala could help her pull the stallion up once he caught their hooves, Kay was the only one who could get him into hoof-reach. No, if she tried this alone, she risked dropping him onto the hard rocks below. She looked down at Scribble and hoped he was feeling well enough to help with this...

 

She yelled down to the three stallions. "Hey, guys? I can't levitate Numbers that far on my own! Scribble, could you help me? We should be able to lift him together!"

 

She turned to Anala. "Can you get ready to catch his hooves once he's within reach, like I did with you? I should probably stand up for this one..."

Edited May 20, 2014 by Kay Dreamer

[I used to be a stranger 7,993]

As Anala spoke, a loud 'PUFF' sounded down the length of track, followed by some hissing. Another 'PUFF' resounded. The train was in motion, and beginning to accelerate.

 

"Anala! Kay! There's no time! We'll figure out our own way! Get down from the track before the train comes!" Blaze shouted. A twinge of fear reverberated through him, hoping Kay wasn't too scared to find a way down from the track.

 

As the train proceeded, the time between puffs decreased, and it became louder. Number Cruncher and Scribblegroove hopped off Blaze's back. The ground began to rumble akin to an earthquake, and a sharp sliding ringing sound emanated from the rails as the train got closer. Blaze thought it would be the most disconcerting thing in his entire life, to witness the equivalent of a steel mountain hurtle past, directly above his head. The ground shook violently, and the rattling of the engine was so loud, nothing else could be heard. The rails and wooden sleepers depressed into the stony track bed as each wheel set rolled by, with thick whisps of steam accompanying each axle.

 

~~~~~Turn 7~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Player Actions

Get to the other side of the railroad track, if you can find any way around the rails.

If the train is passing over, there are momentary dangers with the axle as they come and go.

Chronology

Kay, Anala

Player Actions will be taking place at the same time, or before, other players actions, regardless of when they are posted in this thread sequence, until all players meet up again in the middle of the railroad track.

 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 

Blaze covered his ears with the roaring enormity of the locomotive. The tender and one freight car rolled past, and only at this did he notice along the rails: it bent under the weight of each car. He approached the rail beside one of the wooden sleepers, watching the steel wall ripple up and down for one more car as it passed.

"There's enough room here for us to fit under, inbetween the wheels when they come by! The rail won't bend like this when the train is gone!" He gave a great shove to a rock, opening a small tunnel-like gap under the plate of the rail-- just big enough for one pony. It slammed flat with tremendous force as another axle set rolled overhead. Blaze leapt back. Inside the gap, one of the ballast rocks had been crushed.

 

"After you!" replied Number Cruncher, courteously, and gesturing towards Blaze's tunnel.

 

Blaze took a deep breath, waited until an axle was already close approaching, and as soon as it passed, he dove and scrambled under the baseplate of the rail. To Cruncher and Scribblegroove's eyes, Blaze disappeared from sight into the forboding tunnel.

Edited May 20, 2014 by Blue

[Kay Dreamer 884]

Kay felt it before she heard it; a tingling vibration running up through her hooves and legs, which grew to a violent shudder, ringing with a high-pitched whine. Looking up, she saw the train approaching, picking up speed as it did. It was a monstrous size. Kay Dreamer had never seen anything of such enormity in her life, especially a something made of heavy steel and smoke... and it was baring down on her with increasing momentum. She felt as though she were moving in slow motion as she turned and looked at Anala, wide eyed... Then snapping to her senses, she picked up her hooves and ran - along the track.

 

It occurred to her almost immediately how this tactic was not going to work. She couldn't outrun a train, even as a normal-sized pony! She had to jump, but which way? She was so high up, and to jump to the outside would undo everypony's hard work in getting her onto the rail in the first place. But the inside... She brought herself to a halt and looked down. A large wooden sleeper lay below the rail she stood on. It was still a very long fall... but it looked to provide a much safer landing than the stones and rough wood on the other side. She just had to hope the space beneath the train and the sleepers was safe enough for a one inch high pony.

 

Looking back up, she saw the train was nearly upon her. "Come on Kay... MOVE," she yelled, before flinging herself off the rail, to the wooden plank below.

 

The roar of the train blotted out all other thought as it passed overhead. There was a cacophony of darkness and noise. Thin strips of light whipped past, illuminating little yet disorienting the tiny figure on the wooden sleeper. Kay lay immobile in the place she'd hit the wood, her ears flat against the roaring sound. She'd shut her eyes tight as the train rolled overhead, but she forced herself to open them as she realised she hadn't been squished. Her chest hurt badly from a botched landing and her breathing was shallow, but she was alive. Looking around for Anala in case she'd jumped to the inside as well, Kay was extremely surprised to see Blaze pop out from underneath the rail instead, a few sleepers ahead of where she lay. She tried to call out, but the pain in her chest made it difficult to breathe, and her voice became little more than a whimper.

Edited May 21, 2014 by Kay Dreamer

[I used to be a stranger 7,993]

Blaze wriggled and fought his way though the jagged tunnel, with the dooming flat steel plate above his head.

One of his hooves slipped register, faltering his movement. In the same moment, he could feel the smooth underside of the rail stop its rising action, in anticipation of another set of axles to soon pass over the rail he was under. "Ah! C'MON! MOVE!" he screamed at himself internally. Barely his head poked out on the other side, he jumped with all his might to push the rest of his stallion body out. Blaze could've sworn he heard a "pop!" from how he tumbled out of the gap, but any sound was completely overwhelmed as another set of axles passed by.

He was scratched and marked, and his hair was a mess, but these things were insignificant to the terrific sights and sounds surrounding him as he looked up at the undercarriage of freight cars hurtling overhead. He looked around and saw Kay a short sprint down the track. "KAY!!" he yelled.The brown stallion scrambled to get over the chunky rocks and down farther along the track, but the tremendous rumbling vibrations of the train made him stumble as he stepped onto one of the sleepers. He stopped, huddling down so he wouldn't fall over. "I'M FINE! STAY THERE! WE'RE OKAY, WE MADE IT!" he shouted, putting a hoof to his mouth.

It was in this moment he noticed Kay looked strangely weak, clutching the floor of a sleeper. Maybe she's hurt. Oh, Celestia I hope not, I hope she's just winded.

Edited May 21, 2014 by Blue

[Rainbow Eclipse 3,927]

Anala heard a puffing noise and felt a vibration on the rail, gradually increasing. Looking at Kay, she felt scared, which was not a common thing for Anala. She returned to her instincts and knew she'd have to jump. But if she jumped outwards, all their effort would be undone. So she jumped inside the track, landing on a wooden sleeper.

 

She looked to see Kay running away from the train, and facehoofed. But then, Kay flung herself off the rail and into the tracks.

 

The mighty roar of the train almost blasted Anala's eardrums. She squeezed her eyes closed as brief thin strips of light whipped past.

 

After that terrifying and unusual experience, Anala saw Kay. She didn't even have time to ask if she was okay before she saw Blaze wiggle out from underneath the rail.

[Scribblegroove 565]

As soon as Blaze jumped under the rail, Scribblegroove understood his plan. Everything had gone so quickly. Kay had made it up the rail, thankfully, along with Anala. Down on the ground, or at least the rocky pebbles, were Blaze and Cruncher, the remains of the now dissasembled pony tower. It was just Cruncher and him left now, since Blaze had jumped under the rails... risking himself getting squished under it.

 

The loudness of the train, and the way it made the light of the sun get blocked out in short intervals made this situation even more confusing and disorienting. In a moment of desparation, Scribblegroove simply let out a cry of fear and stood straight still, his ears pointing down and his eyes looking at the slim hole under the rail in front of him.

 

He waited a few seconds before coming to the conclusion that even if there were another way, he would not find it quickly enough, and he could not risk having their group get separated. He got himself together and looked at Numcer Cruncher. He inhaled and got a few steps back...

 

"See you on the other side..." He said dramatically, his voice humorously cracking because of his barely tamed fear. He then waited for the perfect moment to charge, and moved for the opening under the rails. He tried to preserve the motion of his run-up, but the ground was slippery and he didn't have much room. For a moment he thought that he would be too late, and that the rail would cruch him like a bug, but at last he saw the opening and rushed out from under the rail. He gasped, realising that he hadn't breathed while rushing under the big steel beam. He looked up to see Kay, Blaze and Anala, who had successfully made it to the other side as well. He sighed in relief. At least they were relatively safe now.

[DukeofCanterlot 158]

All that noise...Number Cruncher knew he had good reason to worry about the train. He saw that Scribblegroove managed to make it into the hole safely. Cruncher wasn't about to die like a bug on the train tracks. Not now.. he needed to get in there fast. The train was almost approaching. He didn't have enough time to utilize unicorn magic. Oh well, it was probably best to do what Scribblegroove did.

 

Cruncher was an active runner but this was certainly the craziest run he ever did and it was only about a foot at most.
 

Made it just in time. Another second of hesitation and he would have been dead...

 

Cruncher sighed with relief when he saw the other four made it and commented with a chuckle, "Sorry that I took so long."

[I used to be a stranger 7,993]

The train continued to trundle on its way, and the flickering shadows and rumbling of its traverse suddenly passed, as quickly as they had come. As it sped off, the sharp singing of its wheels against the rails resonated through the track, quickly fading into quiet but still present for a good distance away. The train's whistle echoed as it fled.

 

Blaze stood up and swiveled his head, looking for his friends. Anala, Scribblegroove and Cruncher all had made it into the track bed in one piece. But his mind scrambled, still quite shaken by the train, and seeing Kay still lying on the sleeper. Blaze looked back to the others with concern, before turning and running over to Kay.

"Kay, are you okay?"

[Kay Dreamer 884]

As soon as the train chugged away from the group and the immediate danger was over, Kay found herself able to think with far more clarity. She forced her shallow breathing to deepen, pushing at the pain in her chest. She couldn't get more than a half-breath in before she winced, but that was still better than a few seconds ago. She moved her legs tentatively in preparation to stand up, when she saw Blaze race over.

 

"Kay, are you okay?"

 

Looking up, she produced a wobbly little smile. "I don't know yet..." Her voice was thin and uncertain, but she was relieved to hear she didn't sound too frightened. "I can breathe better now, at least. I'm going to try standing up."

 

Pushing herself onto her hooves, she gasped and immediately stumbled sideways into Blaze. Deciding to use the sturdy Earth Pony as a support, she forced herself to stand up straight and assess the damage. The right side of her chest twinged with a constant, sharp ache. It wasn't quite bad enough to prevent her from moving, but she worried about how much it might slow her down. Glancing downward, she noticed her right front ankle was slightly swollen too, though not as immediately painful. She figured she must have twisted it when she landed. That might explain why she landed so hard on her chest. She grimaced in frustration. "I think... I think I hurt a rib," she said. "And an ankle, though that doesn't seem quite so bad. I think can walk." Standing up made her chest feel slightly better; or at least easier to manage, if still painful. She look a few tentative steps, favouring the swollen ankle. Glanced around Blaze, she was relieved to see the other ponies had made it past the rail unscathed.

Edited May 22, 2014 by Kay Dreamer

[I used to be a stranger 7,993]

Although Kay seemed to be in good spirits, her injuries made some parts of her tell a story that she was still a nervous shambles on the inside, or at least that's how it seemed to Blaze. He grimaced on the inside.

 

"This is my fault." he said, looking around. "I was way too gung-ho about climbing that rail. Anypony could've figured out the train would pull out on its own soon enough. We should've waited. Then you wouldn't be all..." Kay limped to immediately stay off one hoof as she took a step.

"...Hurt." Blaze shuffled nervously, looking down. "...We should slow down, and make sure we think a lot more before rushing around. I'm sorry, Kay. I don't want to get anypony else to get hurt if I can help it."

[Rainbow Eclipse 3,927]

@@Blue,

 

"Hey, now," said Anala reassuringly. "It was my idea to build a tower to get us over. Sure, we had to get over somehow, but I just feel that this is just as much my fault. If anypony here jumps into things too much, it's me. For example, I didn't even stop to think twice before I ran up to strike that snake."

[Kay Dreamer 884]

Hearing the words of the ponies around her, Kay shook her head immediately. Putting on her bravest face, she frowned at both Blaze and Anala.

 

"It's not your fault I'm no good at jumping," she said, looking them both in the eye. "I'm... I'll be fine. I'm sore, but I'll be fine." Truth be told she was a little shaken by her injuries, in particular how much it hurt to breathe deeply, but she was a stubborn mare and she certainly didn't want the other ponies thinking this was their fault. 'There's nothing to be done about it anyway', she figured in her own mind. Feeling guilty wouldn't help them get to Ponyville.

 

A memory of the last time she'd been badly hurt trickled into her mind. She chuckled, wincing abruptly when the muscle movement intensified the sharp pain in her chest. "I suppose this would be a poor moment for me to tell everypony how I nearly broke my own horn off falling from the roof of the Crystal Library?" she quipped, in an effort to diffuse the morose atmosphere which seemed to have descended over Blaze.

[I used to be a stranger 7,993]

"I suppose this would be a poor moment for me to tell everypony how I nearly broke my own horn off falling from the roof of the Crystal Library?"

 

Blaze looked back and forth between the two other mares. He then noticed that his heart was still pounding. In less than a minute, he had crawled under a complete deathtrap and nearly had himself crushed, tried to run, held on to a giant swaying timber for dear life, and then ran. In an attempt to try and dissolve his adrenalin, he let out a deep breath. There was still a long way to go before they all reached Twilight Sparkle's Library, and it was possible that the worst wasn't over yet. Kay had the right idea, trying to keep everypony in good spirits. Pep and excitement the whole time would probably get them into deeper trouble.

 

"Or maybe it would be a bad time for me to tell how I fell off a ferris wheel and broke a leg."

[Rainbow Eclipse 3,927]

Anala watched as the other two ponies referenced some supposed incidents that had occured in their lives. They had nearly gotten killed numerous times on this wack-o adventure, so perhaps yes it was a good idea to keep in high spirits.

 

"Or the time I was playing soccer and got a tooth nearly knocked out?"

Edited May 23, 2014 by Blue Eclipse

[Kay Dreamer 884]

Kay smiled. That had worked flawlessly. The lightened atmosphere made everything seem like less distressing, even a tender ankle and chest, and she found herself responding positively to the mood around her.

 

"I also got my head quite stuck inside a tuba once," she reminisced. "I wouldn't recommend that. It smelled nasty." She glanced at Blaze, suddenly curious and not quite comprehending his last comment.

 

"Um. This may be a completely stupid question, but..." She ducked her head slightly, sensing impending embarrassment. "What's a ferris wheel?"

[I used to be a stranger 7,993]

"Oh, well, uh..." Blaze studdered, suddenly somehow self-conscious from Kay's look. "It's a giant wheel that-- well, not a giant wheel like that train-- you ride it. It's a kind of fun-ride, where there are chairs mounted to the outside that turn with the wheel. You see it at fairs and amusement parks. ...I thought it would be fun to stand when the ferris wheel got to the top, so I fudged my safety belt. The wheel would turn only a little bit so other ponies could get on, but I was excited, so I stood up before the wheel had really moved very far, and I fell out less than half way up." Blaze shook his rear right leg. "Took over a month before I could walk again. In that time, I was mostly stuck at home and mom taught me the family trade of root-beer brewing, since I had nothing better to do."