Along the shores of Baltimare Harbor, in the halls of old 33 Hoebuck, our heroes have discovered a dark secret. What started as a mundane mission to stop illegal immigrant smuggling has uncovered something far more horrific - a cult from Griffonia. The party has successfully challenged and defeated many of the cultists and hired criminals, but in the process, has nearly died themselves. Now, low on health, they must both recover and put an end to the evils in 33 Hoebuck once and for all - before it puts an end to them first.
Way up north, in the Iron Range of Whinnysota, the ponies their inquire into exact who or what is damaging so many machines. Investigating and following leads, they may unveil the faults and problems of the Haysabi Iron Mine, and gain favor with Changeling authorities.
Damn it, I missed 123,000
1760 replies and 24 files omitted.
>>123950EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE
>>123950>>123951Looking over back to the scene, the gun fire has cooled somewhat. The guards around Zu Lang seem to have remembered they could fly, and in any case take interest neither in Brie nor the Owl Bear.
One of the guards by the Pit continues shooting at the horrid owl bear creature, while another stares back in silence at Zu Lang, who had been barking orders until Brie attacked. The third looks at the ponies in the pit, afraid of being back stabbed by the ponies, and afraid of transgressing against Zu Lang's orders
Drie, the Lieutenant, has collapsed. His right leg was always weak and shaky, but the fear, the sounds, and the anxiety have induced some kind of breakdown, something between PTSD and a stimulation of damage done to his body during the war or after. He lays down on the ground in something like an epileptic fit. His companion lays down next to him, switching between tending to his disabled companion, and shooting back at the owl bear monster.
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>>123952|/ /| /- TO BE CONTINUED
Down da down down da down down da down, down da down down da down
Bdldldldldldldl
>>123952Maybe tomorrow we can pick back up.
After some much needed rest, Iron's body starts to twitch slightly before stretching his legs outwards, yawning softly before smacking his lips.
>>123962Creaking one eye open at the area where the hoof is poking him from, Iron mumbles something dismissively, akin to most children when their parents want to wake them up.
>>123963It's White Sands, standing up and looking down at him
"Are you alright?"
poke >>123964"Mmm?" Iron asks with his mouth closed, craning his head forwards as if he didn't understand the question.
His legs, meanwhile, start to shift from side to side, trying to gain momentum.
>>123965Another intrusive poke
"Are you dying of blood loss? The gnoll says there are probably more of these bastards upstairs"
>>123966"Mmm..." Iron mumbles before twirling his laying body so that his chin rests against the wall thanks to his legs' efforts, only causing him to groan slightly.
>>123967"He's lucky they are letting him off the hook. Bastard is smart to turn when he did. Gnolls can be clever despite how dim witted they are. But the rest of them will not see such mercy" She adds
There is a pause for a moment. And another moment.
Poke poke"Hey. Do you need medical help or something? We need you fighting. The unicorn raided their drug stash and found some things"
>>123968Iron continues to stretch his legs outwards, planting his wide snout onto the wall, unfortunately causing his entire body to shiver strongly at the touch before letting out another groan.
"...fine, I am..." he mutters before pushing his snout against the wall, his hooves starting to align towards the floor "it is but a rest."
>>123969The mostly smooth white washed wall has just enough tiny bumps and inconsistencies to make rubbing soft body parts, like his snout, against it unpleasant.
Now she places a hoof onto his shoulder
"You will rest in bed tonight with a proper pillow, mattress, and mare. But before then, these bastards need to die. Be ready."
>>123970In a bout of lazy strength, his hooves prop him up as his body sways from side to side, laboriously standing up as his snout torture continues to wake him up, making him shiver in unpleasantness. "I am moving, hold your apples," he mutters
>>123971She moves a step back, not wanting to be knocked aside by the unwieldy mass of pony
Iron can see that he is in a hallway with cold, tile floor, poor illumination brought by a single lantern, and filled with many of the creatures rescued from before. Jubilosa, Khoi, Undertoe, and Meadows are clearly visible
>>123972After a minute of constant snout and wall torture (SWT), Iron groggily stands up with his face against the wall, before saluting the sun with his body pose. "...there we go..." he mumbles softly before hopping to face White Sands, shield bared. "Alright, I am ready."
>>123973"Great. I think he is arranging.... Auxiliaries? Or something. Just make everything is good to go.
Make them pay."
Meadows looks quite a bit stronger than she did before. Though earlier she looked like she was barely able to stand. Now, she looks like she could jump and prance, if only given the room
Undertoe is wearing her black socks again, and she has one of Iron's rifles swung around her shoulders. Her gold chain has been removed from her neck and is now placed around the rifle.
Khoi and Jubilosa watch the lumbering Iron as he gets up
Khoi:
"Oh good. You awake now"
>>123974Iron blinks softly, seeing the room around him in mild confusion and bewilderment, particularly at the rifle on Undertoe's neck.
(I will have to take it back when the job's done,) he thinks to himself
Nodding at Sands' statement, he turns to Khoi. "Indeed," he answers plainly "was there ever any doubt?" Opting to press onto the unicorn's body in feigned dizziness with his, he looks at the kirin. "I am invincible," he lets out happily and with pride.
>>123975Iron presses into the fluffy unicorn, finding her body almost surprisingly soft as it gives way and moves back slighty against him. White Sands smiles
The Kirin forms part of a smile - something he's not sure she's seen him do - and responds
"Let us hope so. You have taken quite a beating, but have given more out. They say there are still more of these monsters. Let us put an end to them. May tonight be the last time they every prey upon the unfortunate"
>>123976Iron nods once, cracking a smile of his own at the positive reception. "The gods will be with us," he proclaims "and we will crush the enemy where they stand."
The native can't help but rub coats with the unicorn mare he's next to as his ears are straight up and his head looks from side to side in mild excitement and duty.
>>123977As Iron rubs coats with the unicorn mare it's almost like an elephant against a tree. She wobbles a little, as she is not that much more than half of Iron's mass, but she still stands about as firm as she can, and her smile turns a little more devious as Iron progresses. Her coat is longer, fluffier even, than the average pony.
Khoi talks to Iron again, her voice softening a bit
"I had hoped to find peace when I came here. I hope I will find it soon enough"
>>123978Iron nods at Khoi, apparently ignorant of the turbulent contact with Sands' body.
"That peace is what all true warriors strive for, in the end," he comments idly "I will be sure to contact you in case I got any work for you."
>>123979"Work?"
Her eyes open wider, and she tilts her head
"You have work?"
>>123980Iron nods. "I cannot guarantee anything," he admits, ears folding slightly but quickly straightens out "but if I need an extra pair of hooves to do some busywork travelling to gather ingredients and the like, I will be sure to look you up."
>>123981She places a hoof to her chin
"Hmmm... Alright"
>>123982With a nod, Iron proceeds to hum softly as he opts to extend a foreleg towards Sands' coat, gently carressing it idly.
"Be sure to tell me where you will go once this event is concluded."
>>123983"Where
I will go?!"
Her eyes are very wide in an expression of concern as her mouth is closed
"I thought I was going with you"
>>123984Iron blinks once before his eyes widened, obviously realizing he forgot such a thing, facehoofing softly.
"Right," he mutters before putting a light smile "my memories tend to flow out with my blood."
>>123985She giggles, and places a hoof over Iron's shoulder
"Hehehe"
>>123986Iron can't help but smile back in mild embarrassment, thankful his joke worked.
"So, what did I miss?" he asks to the two mares in his personal space
>>123987Khoi takes just a step back, and blinks
Khoi
"The grey one found a hospital room-
"Infirmary" White Sands interjects. Khoi stops to look at her, then looks back to Iron and continues
"Then he found a room where they make books"
>>123988Iron looks at Khoi in confusion.
"Hoe-spleen-tal?" he asks "In-feem-ary?"
>>123989Khoi:
"To help"
White Sands:
"He found drugs and patches"
>>123990Iron nods, before glancing at Undertoe with mild suspicion before turning to the two mares near him.
"Has anyone taken any more weapons from my body?" he asks
>>123992Iron hums softly, wondering how true their responses are.
[1d20+2 = 15]<Sense Motive check >>123993Khoi seems more or less to display uncertainty, but seems sincere in not having any knowledge of things taken
White Sands sounds truthful enough
>>123994Nodding once, Iron decides to turns to Khoi, wondering what sort of question he should ask her.
"It might be the blood loss again, but did you ever tell me what you were?" the native asks the kirin
>>123995She lifts her left hoof up slight, folding her foreleg slightly, and her eyes express a kind of uncertainty. But after a moment she places both hooves down and answers
"I am a Kirin"
>>123996Iron cocks his head in mild confusion, looking up and down at the kirin in question. "I haven't seen one of you before," he mutters before tentatively raising his remaining foreleg up in an attempt to touch the chestfluff in mild curiosity "despite the fact you catch on fire repeatedly, your fur is not charred..."
>>123997She leans back, but the fact remains that her chest fluff has a hoof pressing against it. She looks down at the hoof touching it. She looks back up to him
"Yes... it is magic fire resistance"
>>123998Bonds looks up at Khoi's face, cocking his head slightly as he retracts his foreleg back in the original position, still caressing the fluffier unicorn next to him. "You mean you can do magic?" he asks
>>123999"Yes" She says simply, as her eyes return to a calm, only mostly opened position
Blue Skies is still best pony >>124001"Well..."
Her horn is a mahogany color with a red, upwards arrow along the center. The horn splits into two, diverging horns a few inches up. Now, it lights up a light reddish color
Iron can feel a soft tugging at his ear
"Like this"
>>124002At the tugging, Iron turns around at Sands, wondering if she was about to ask anything until Khoi announced it was her.
"Oh!" he exclaims "Almost fooled me with that move, sneaky kirin."
>>124003As he moves aside, he can feel it tugging just a little harder before letting go, and he looks back to a nearly bewildered White Sands. When he returns his eyes to candy apple red eyes of Khoi Lua, she is wearing a slight, smug smile
>>124004Iron snorts softly as he looks back to the smug kirin's gaze. "You may have deceived me once, fluffy one, but I learn," he playfully asserts.
>>124005She closes her eyes and moves her head down in a nod.
"We'll see"