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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2014 7:03:02 GMT -5
Hoplite looked between Fillydelphia, the Praetorian, and Watermark with increasing worry and anxiety. This was getting worse by the second, with the Feral hardly being impeded anymore by Filly's onslaught, Watermark still being unconscious, and Phalanx still being trapped in the fallen cage. Hoplite looked to Watermark desperately, slapping the side of Watermark's face and continuing to shout feverishly at the zebracorn.
"Watermark, you *need* to wake up! If you don't, we're all dead, my sister and you included!" he shouted at the barely stirring zebracorn, fighting the temptation to do something worse than slapping the zebracorn's face. He turned back to Fillydelpha, "Can you get that cage up and off where Phalanx went down?!" he called desperately. If Watermark didn't stir soon, he'd have to make sure he could get both the zebracorn and his sister out, and the only significant obstacle was that gigantic cage on top of the corpse pile.
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Post by Red Charge on Jun 16, 2014 7:11:17 GMT -5
The slap got Watermark's conscioussness up, but he was blurry still. "Wha... I'fell and then I wuz in the middle of the oshen... there wuz no land..." The unicorn muttered, trying to get his eyes to focus. "Izzat you Hoplite? I think I'll need a kiss to really get back up on mhoovez y'know?"
Fillydelphia had already passed the feral's claw (with Sapphire still impaled) and was just about to jump through the door way when her hoof was grabbed by the feral. She hoofed away at the concrete floor, no she was almost there! Before she was flung along to the opposite head of the room, head-first with no helmet. She smashed into the wall and fell limp on the floor. The only things moving now were Hoplite and Watermark, but the Feral was now growling at Sapphire again, apparently she had woken up from the shock and on pure adrenaline was trying to wrench herself free from the claw.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2014 7:16:28 GMT -5
Hoplite looked to Watermark in...what exactly was this? Anger? Disgust? Confusion? He settled on a mix of all three as his gaze shifted to Fillydelphia being sent flying into a nearby wall. Hoplite cringed as he thought the Feral would come for him next, turning to the beast in worry. Sapphire was apparently conscious now and was struggling inside the claw.
Hoplite turned back to Watermark, snarling at the barely conscious Watermark. "Even in a life-threatening situation...ugh!" he leaned down quickly to the zebracorn's head, curling back his lips...
And bit the zebracorn's left ear. He wasn't sure if it would scar, but he could definitely feel either blood, sweat, or corpse grime where his teeth touched the zebracorn's ear.
Oh, yep...yep, that's definitely corpse juice...and it's on my tongue. Oh, sweet Celestia, wake up before I vomit, Watermark!
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Post by Red Charge on Jun 16, 2014 7:22:21 GMT -5
"OW! What in the world is wrong with you, who bites an ear honestly and ... what the flaming skulls is that?!" Watermark asked, immediately jumping to his feet as he noticed the feral. His nose soon caught the pungent odor of the corpses and he had to cover his mouth, then removed his hoof when he realized it was also wreaking of the corpses. "Where in blazes, oh to tartarus with this." Watermark immediately expanded the water tendrils tattooing his body and washed himself clean, somewhat at the very least. Then turning to the threat at hand he shot his water stripes as whips, catching the Feral's neck and using the tendrils to twist it violently, snapping the vertabrae to the skull so it now hung lifelessly from the neck by a thread of rotting meat.
The feral immediately turned to Wateramark and charged forwards with its one good claw, but even as it did a cage full of corpses collapsed on it from above, having been pulled down by Watermark's tendrils. The creature's back was broken and with that it became completely lifeless. Watermark threw up at having to extend the sudden effort after having being just awoken from a magically induced coma. That or the smell, either way he threw up and not a little bit either.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2014 7:32:23 GMT -5
Hoplite stepped back as Watermark finally awakened, shrieking about the ear bite the earth pony had resorted to. Smiling faintly, he watched as Watermark took things in and washed himself, once more being reminded about the foulness of the room and everything else in it. He watched with a slight sense of awe as Watermark easily fought off the Feral, snapping it's neck and breaking it's back with a falling cage.
And being reminded how he had gotten corpse grime on his tongue...and promptly vomited roughly around the same time as Watermark.
It wasn't until several moments later, many of which were dry heaves at the end of it, that Hoplite finally was composed enough to do something. He stumbled a bit, walking over to the cage Phalanx was buried in. Or, rather, *was* buried in. By this point, Phalanx had gotten most of her upper body out of the pile of corpses and was greedily sucking in fre-...well, not-so-fresh air and...crying. Hoplite's ears fell to the side of his head as he imagined what she had gone through in there. All the same, she had the same sort of residue near her lips that hinted that she had already done her own share of vomiting all the same.
"Hey, Fal! Fal, calm down! It's alright!" he tried to reassure his sister as he ran to the side of the cage, pressing his hooves up against the bars. Still, the pegasus kept crying. "Fal! Fal, I'm here! We're all okay! You're out of the pile, the Feral's dead!" Still, the pegasus kept crying, but at least now she was looking to her brother and not weeping with her eyes closed. Hoplite turned back towards Watermark, " Hey, uhh, lots of things for you to catch up on there, Watermark, but first things first: we got wounded *and* my sister's kinda stuck in here. Plus, she's crying. Would you mind lifting the cage already?"
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Post by Red Charge on Jun 16, 2014 7:50:44 GMT -5
Watermark was about to wipe his mouth with his hoof but even after washing himself with his water tendrils he thought better of it. He stumbled over to Phalanx' cage and used his water tendrils to lift it up enough for her to crawl out. "The Golem Maker is a SICK individual." He uttered, going after Sapphire.
"You alright Saph?" He asked, as the mare was on her last leg, trying to lift the claw from herself. By now her face was a mixture of tears and blood. "I don't want to die." She was barely able to raise her voice over a whisper.
"I know," He said stroking her tan mane. He reached for his satchel and pulled out some potions. "But there's nothing we can do." He pulled out several potions and poultices. Sapphire's eyes widened with disbelief. Somewhere in her head she was sure if they could get Watermark up, that he could save her somehow. She was forced into this, she didn't even want to be here.
"This will help with the pain and make it easier for you." He said giving her a potion to drink and applying the poultice to her gut slowly.
"I'll just say this." Watermark said, giving her mane another stroke and gave her one prolonged kiss on the lips "You're a beautiful and amazing pony and I'll be honored to join you in the ether." .
At that, he left to inspect Fillydelphia, who was still strewn limp on the ground near the wall. He shook his head at the other two, she was gone the moment her head struck the wall. His heart fell at this, the poor mare. Lost her entire family, then dying like this. He cradled her head in his hooves and tears began to slide down his cheeks at the two losses he wasn't even awake to prevent. It was his fault after all, bringing them there, falling into such a low-tech and stupid trap, taking so long to wake up. Nothing was worth this.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2014 8:08:05 GMT -5
Hoplite knelt down as Phalanx crawled over the pile of corpses to him. The horror of what had happened in that cage clearly showed on the pegasus' tear-streaked face, and Hoplite found himself tearing up in empathy. Phalanx weakly wrapped her grime-covered forelegs around her brother, burying her head in his shoulder and wept loudly. Despite himself, Hoplite found himself looking about the room, watching as Watermark tended to a dying Sapphire Bomber grimly.
Even from here, he could tell the look of hopelessness that Watermark and Sapphire both held in that moment. She was going to die, and Watermark couldn't save her. His gaze followed Watermark as the zebracorn approached Fillydelphia, watching as he started to cradle the limp form of the unicorn. The weight of the price that had been paid in this room came crashing down on him, and he began to weep all the same.
His gaze went back to Sapphire, still impaled and barely clinging to life. He had to say something, do something in her last moments. It was only right he say good-bye after all, even if Phalanx couldn't. He slowly got to his hooves, supporting a still-sobbing Phalanx as they approached Sapphire.
It took him a few moments to regain his composure, but he looked to Sapphire and finally managed to speak up. "Nopony I know could've done what you did, Sapphire. Even down here in this wretched place, you were brave enough to put your life at risk to save Watermark. Orders or no, what you did saved not only Watermark...but me and my sister as well. I cannot thank you enough for that, and I will make sure that what you did wasn't in vain," he paused for a moment, cracking a smile as he choked back a sob, "Fal's gonna miss you, and if she could I know she'd say her good-byes...so I'll just say them for both of us. Good-bye, Sapphire, we'll *never* forget you."
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Post by Red Charge on Jun 16, 2014 8:19:25 GMT -5
Sapphire wasn't smiling, but she was trying to say something. Unfortunately, she was no longer able to talk and her eyes lost their focus even as she tried to move her lips, she was gone. It took Watermark many more minutes to recover from crying over Fillydelphia's body.
"We can't even carry them." He said as he approached Hoplite and Phalanx, "Not if we're going to get those golems. But I will be back, for everyone here." He said, looking around at the many corpses gathered over the years. "They all deserve proper rites." He turned to inspect Phalanx, "Will you be alright Phal?"
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2014 8:30:36 GMT -5
Hoplite sighed, lowering his head as Sapphire finally passed on. Phalanx seemed to have seen both Sapphire and Fillydelphia's fresh corpses, and was once again back to burying her muzzle in Hoplite's neck. Hoplite could only stare blankly at the floor, his tears and sobs running out. Toughen up...smarten up...you've done enough crying for one day, and you're still stuck down here, he thought to himself as Watermark approached the two.
Hoplite looked to Watermark with a frown. Even after all this, he still wants to steal golems...even after what we've had to go through to get him back. He looked down to Phalanx, or as much as he could with her face in his neck, curious as to why she wasn't responding to Watermark's question. "Fal...I know it's all a mess right now, but...we need to keep moving. When we get home, well..." he breathed a heavy sigh, "When we get home, we can mourn. Right now, we've still got this wretched quest to deal with."
Phalanx pulled her head away from Hoplite with a bit of difficulty, meandering over to where she had left her spear. She grabbed the weapon, kicking Hoplite's shield in her brother's direction. "F-...fine, whatever. Let's just go, then," Phalanx muttered just loud enough for Watermark and Hoplite to hear.
Hoplite forced a cough, "Uhh, Watermark's still wanting his golems, we can't leave yet."
Phalanx blinked, her expression still grim, "I know."
Hoplite picked up and fastened his shield, looking to the zebracorn expectantly, "Lead, and we'll follow."
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Post by Red Charge on Jun 16, 2014 8:43:15 GMT -5
Watermark lead the two back through the corridor, spending one last minute to look back at Sapphire and Fillydelphia, as an afterthought he went to each of them and took their militia emblems from their chest pieces, depositing them in his satchel. With Watermark leading them through the lair they came back to the upper floors in a hurry. Watermark easily read through the many writings in Equiterian in the ruin and was easily able to lead them to the unactivated golem storage, where they were able to commandeer four large golems along with their control rods. Watermark did not seem troubled after being told of the abomination and with the four large golems as body guards, made his way back to the entrance with the two. The golem army looked at him as he crossed with the four golems, but did not attack him so long as he was armed with the massive constructs.
Watermark ordered the golems in Equiterian to open the entrance door and they did so effortlessly. Then before the three ponies knew it, they were outside, safe, breathing fresh sweet air. Watermark had a look of keen determination on his face as he led them. With the golems guarding them they easily navigated the forest to the local river, where they could all wash off the grime and stench off of them.
"We need to rest, there's a long way back, the golems will keep us safe." Watermark said.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 16, 2014 17:01:42 GMT -5
Hoplite and Phalanx barely exchanged a word throughout the whole venture, instead doing little more than following Watermark. They were still more than a little shaken at what had transpired in the room full of cages, enough so that their usual banter didn't emerge even once. Admitted, they did look at the golem army Watermark had accrued with a suppressed sense of awe, but even still they hardly spoke up.
Before they knew it, they had been led back out into the fresh Everfree air, something Hoplite had never before today thought he'd miss. Never know what you have until you lose it, he thought grimly to himself, thinking back to the militia ponies. He chanced a look at his sister, frowning as he noticed her head still hung lower to the ground than it used to. I'm not sure if we'll ever be 'okay' after that.
They were soon led to a river and informed that this was a quick rest stop before heading back to Hoofington. The two siblings exchanged a wordless glance with each other before stripping out of their armour and heading to the riverside and bathing whatever grime they could out of their coat.
"You ever think we'll forget the smell?" Hoplite started, forcing a chuckle.
"What about that place *won't* we forget?" Phalanx replied grimly.
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Post by Red Charge on Jun 17, 2014 1:44:30 GMT -5
Watermark himself was washing downstream from them, not close enough so he could overhear them. He was quiet, cleaning himself and his cloak in the stream. He looked at the four golems standing guard at the river bank. He was not aware whether or not Hoplite or Phalanx had any idea what they actually accomplished that day. Capturing four active golems from the Golem Master meant for one that Hoofington would be beyond Malachite's forces to invade and the boon it would be to construction and other tasks would be immeasurable. In addition to that, unlimited access to active golems and their control rods meant dabbling in the most mysterious of the magical art - golem making.
If Watermark was able to gleam even a little bit from those golems, just the basic concept behind golem making, that would be an achievement that would further Equestria beyond their wildest dreams. No more will ponies have to die in battle when stalwart golems could rush to fight in their stead.
However one thing was clear to the Hydromancer, he'd have to go back to the Golem Maker's dungeon and give proper rites to all of the dead there and discover what exactly happened to make the place so unsettling. Watermark saw the writing on the wall, "The Father has forsaken us". What did that mean? Maybe not today, or tomorrow. But one day Watermark would have to go back and find out.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 17, 2014 2:00:35 GMT -5
Hoplite and Phalanx had soon bathed whatever grime they could out of their coats and manes. Despite that, Hoplite noticed Phalanx kept trying to wash off grime, even after he reminded her that she had got rid of all of it. He shook his head, getting out of the river and moving their gear over to the riverside. He tossed Phalanx's helmet at her, the pegasus catching it before it could get lost in the current. "Your coat's fine, our armour isn't," he commented as he waded back into the river holding his own helmet.
The two exchanged a quick glance before they set to work rinsing their armour. For several minutes this was all they did, the silence only being broken as both of them started cleaning their chest-pieces. "Do you figure it was worth it, Fal? The golems, I mean," Hoplite asked, making small talk.
"In the grand scheme of things: yes. Hoofington's got a more sizable garrison, Watermark's got some toys, and Equestria would have significant reinforcements were these things put to use outside of our town," Phalanx replied blandly.
Hoplite smirked, "You read my mind there, Fal."
"On the other hoof," Phalanx continued, "We lost two good friends in there. Two militia ponies, sure, but friends nonetheless."
"Could've been worse. For a minute there, I thought I'd lost you," Hoplite commented.
"I thought I was gone too," Phalanx sighed, her gaze unwavering from her chest piece, "But hey, at least Watermark's safe."
Hoplite smirked, "Y'know he wanted me to kiss him when I was trying to wake up?"
Phalanx's gaze finally shifted. First to Hoplite, then Watermark, then back to her brother, "I don't know whether I should be confused, surprised, or laughing hard enough to fall underwater. The lengths he goes to..."
"Give the guy credit, he was barely conscious and had *no* idea where he was," Hoplite rolled his eyes.
"Think that's his goal? Before one of you die, get you to smooch him?" Phalanx was smirking! Actually smirking, despite what happened back there.
"Wouldn't say before one of us die, I'd be more inclined to say 'Within the month', honestly."
The two chuckled a bit before grabbing the last pieces of their gear to rinse out in the river.
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Post by Red Charge on Jun 17, 2014 2:07:02 GMT -5
Watermark finished cleaning himself and his cloak and retreated back to their camp, two of the golems following him. The other two stayed near Phalanx and Hoplite, watching over them as they washed their armor. When the two finished washing up they noticed Watermark staring blankly at the fire, it was one of those looks he had whenever he wasn't really around but rather using one of his aquatic watergolems to communicate with someone else. He must have been checking in on Hoofington... and letting them know what happened.
He didn't talk for the rest of the night and when he eventually closed his eyes it was early morning, only an hour or two before they had to wake up. The four golems kept constant vigil over the three ponies, not moving, talking, sleeping, just four tall constructs in a circle around the camp.
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Post by Deleted on Jun 17, 2014 2:21:35 GMT -5
Hoplite grumbled and stretched as he and his sister were roused from their sleep. Wordlessly he and his sister donned their armour and readied their weapons, waiting for Watermark to lead them out.
They followed Watermark closely enough that no dialogue between them would go unnoticed by the zebracorn, and considering he didn't seem in much of a talking mood the trip went by in silence. After the Golem Maker's dungeon, the fear they used to have of the Everfree forest seemed almost trivial, doubly so since the trip went by without any interruption either.
It wasn't long before the group found themselves re-entering Hoofington through the shield the Red Mages had put up, and while on one hoof Hoplite was grateful to be home, he had a nagging feeling that this wasn't quite over yet. He turned to Watermark, "Well, we're home...so what happens now? Where're we needed?" he asked simply and dully.
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