The Necromancer's Forces

by InTheNavy

Chapter 5

“Do you have to bring all this crap?” complained Bradley, eyeing the cases that filled the store.

“Yes. It's my essentials.” Rarity commented, trying the best to hold her composure

“Essentials! Ha! My buddies and I were thrown out of a helicopter for three weeks with nothing more than a knife and a chocolate bar each!” exclamied Bradley, tiptoeing around insulting Rarity.

“Well, I'm not like you or your buddies. I can't kill a man with my bare hooves, or throw someone into orbit.”

Bradley avoided eye contact, he liked when someone would compliment him, but he was missing the nerve to take a compliment head on. He lifted his pack off of the floor, and placed it on his pack. He placed himself ontop of the largest case, watching as Rarity packed the final case.

“Good. Now I'm going to carry one, case for you.”

“What! I can't be expected to carry all of this by myself!”

“Essentials?”

“Fine. I'll make do with the bare minimum.”

Rarity showed Bradley which case he should carry, and he heaved it up onto his shoulder, barely noticing the weight of the case, full of clothes. Bradley peered out of the door cautiously, and once assured that there wasn't a patrol near, he departed. He had Rarity draw him a crude map of the location, after failing to find one in her home. A small cottage close to the forest was circled, and he began to walk towards its general direction. Rarity found some difficulty in keeping up with the massive male, as every one of his steps was two of hers.

The journey was slow and arduous, with the pair stopping and hiding while waiting for a patrol to pass so they could travel safely. Eventually they came to the edge of town, coming up to a large clearing with the main road out of Ponyville bisecting it.

“Okay. I don't like this. Is there any way around?”

“No, there is no other way to get to the cottage.”

“Fine. I'll take your case, and I'm going to sprint to the edge of the clearing. You stay here, and if I make it farther than half way without anyone coming chasing after me, you come too.”

Without waiting to hear Rarity's responce to his plan, he lifted the case that burdened her so much. Rarity doubted that he could run with the two cases, now strapped to his shoulders and back, as she could barely walk with the one. He tested his new weight distribution by jumping into the air and landing on one foot. Once satisfied, he eyed the field one last time, making sure that there were no guards in plain sight. He pulled a pair of wires from his chest pocket and found two small buttons on the ends, of which he placed into his ears and pressed on a small coin on the wire.

He started with a run, and Rarity believed that she could have easily outran him if she needed to, but he was not slowing down, but accelerating. His legs pumped faster and faster, his arms reaching infront of him, opposite of his legs. His pace went to a speed far faster than any pony could run, although he would still be cought by Rainbow Dash if she were chasing him. It dawned upon Rarity that she had forgotten the plan; so intrigued with Bradley's running and speed that she had forgotten to run herself.

Bradley now stood on the far side of the field, arms outstretched in a guesture of confusion. Rarity began to run across the field, although she took a much longer time than Bradley had. She met him behind an old tree, out of breath. He stood, watching the edges of town.

“I think we got out without anyone noticing us.”

“How can you run that fast, with the weight, and still breath?” queried Rarity, who was confused as to the logistics of Bradley's running.

“Ah. Humans, me, I mean. We sweat, meaning that we can run without stopping to pant.”

“That's cheating.” commented Rarity, who had by now composed ourselves.

“Maybe? It allows us to run for long distances.”

“How long?”

“I ran fourty kilometres on my training?”

“I don;t know kilometers, how far was that run, in kilometres?” commented Rarity, stumbling around her new word.

“Maybe half a kilometer, at best?”

“That's not possible.”

“Maybe for you.” joked Bradley, chuckling a little as he handed the case, now unattached from his chest rig, back to Rarity.

“Puhlease? It weighs so much, but you barely notice?”

“Ugh... Fine.” Bradley reattached the case to his chest rig, affixing it behind his backpack.

The pair continued throught the forest, not using the road at Bradley's command. They traveled through the brush, far enough from the road that they could see it, but someone on the road could not see them. Bradley moved in front of Rarity, crushing plants and breaking sticks with his form so Rarity was unobstructed. Whenever a patrol would move on the road, they would stop, out of fear that Bradley would break something or topple something that would lead to their position.

This slow, methodical method of movment carried on for the rest of the day. The two talked in a hushed tone for quite a while, quieting whenever a skeletal patrol would move by.

“Night is almost upon us, are we close to your friend's house?”

“Yes, her cottage should be in the next clearing.”

“Okay”

Finally, the clearing came to them, and they moved to the front of the cottage. As soon as his feet touched to front stoop, Bradley coarsley slammed on the door. Waiting for a reply, he stepped back, Rarity standing at his side. When no reply came after waiting for a few minutes, Rarity became restless, fearing for her Friend. Thoughts filled her mind; Maybe she got away? Or she moved to another, safer location? Or could she be hiding?

“I don't like this. This could be a trap.”

“I'll go around back, and try the back door.” added Rarity, hoping that Fluttershy had just hidden in her home.

Bradley flipped down a pair of elongated spectacles from his helmet, and flicking a switch, the night's darkness faded as his technology began to cut through the darknesses mystery. He brought the crosbow of a fallen skeleton up to his shoulder, hoping to get off a good shot at anything that tried to startle him by hiding in the night. Donning the bottom portion of his face mask, and pulling up a hood over his helmet, he offered no reflective points, or white marks.

He snapped around when he heard the door behind him creak open, coming face to face with the new threat. Unfortunatley, his goggles were cought off guard by a lantern and he was temporarily blinded by them. He swore as he raised his weapon and flipped up the goggles. Before him were three terrified ponies, one of whom was large enough to be a threat to the earthen warrior. He yelled; “Friend or foe?”