Having been granted rulership over the city of Vanhoover, and confessed their feelings for each other, Lex Legis and Sonata Dusk have started a new life together. But the challenges of rulership, and a relationship, are more than they bargained for.
Exiting the building, Lex slowly looked in every direction, noting the stillness.
He’d enhanced his vision with his horn’s dark magic, allowing him to see through the pitch blackness with perfect clarity, but that alone didn’t give him the same level of vision he’d have had during the day. For one thing, this form of vision didn’t make out color, reducing the world to black and white. Worse, however, was that it only worked out to about sixty feet. Beyond that, nothing was visible, as though everything farther away was enveloped in a thick, dark fog.
“There’s nothing here,” he called back, looking over his shoulder as he did. With his vision augmented, he could easily see into the building’s lobby, where the four ponies were huddled nervously. Cloudbank was carrying a single sack of oats on her back, representing the last of their food. Produce Aisle was carrying a lantern in his teeth, which had a layer of cloth wrapped around the glass to dampen the amount of light it put out. Cozy held a small kitchen knife in her mouth, nervously rubbing the necklace that was Lashtada’s holy symbol. Thermal Draft was carrying a length of pipe, but it was questionable as to whether it was meant to be a weapon or a cane, since she was leaning heavily on it.
Still, for all their fear, the group seemed resolute. Not one of them was refusing to leave or saying that this was a bad idea. It was a welcome change from how they’d acted initially. Hopefully they’d come around with regards to the Night Mare as well.
Mentioning the name of his divine patron hadn’t prompted awe the way that Lex had thought it would. Instead, the immediate result had been confusion, of all things. The group had initially thought that he’d meant Nightmare Moon, a name that Lex was only passingly familiar with. It had taken several minutes to resolve the misunderstanding, mostly because Lex had started to tell them about his goddess’s attributes, which were apparently similar to those of Nightmare Moon. It had been profoundly irritating.
It was only after that nonsense had been addressed that he’d been able to get back on track, and tell them about his goddess. Cozy had been openly hostile – whether because she still thought he was King Sombra, or because she was still upset that he’d pointed out how weak her own goddess was, or both – but the others had been surprisingly receptive. While they hadn’t wholeheartedly embraced the idea of worshipping the Night Mare, her credo of exalting and abetting those who were strong, and who used that strength to fight or even take control of the creatures and situations that frightened them, had seemed to strike a chord with them.
Or at least, Lex hoped that it had. For all he knew, they were humoring him because they were worried about insulting their would-be savior. Still, he knew that he’d done all he could; if they wanted to take up the Night Mare’s faith, it was up to them now.
After that, it had been time to leave. Although it was still several hours to midnight, let alone dawn, Lex didn’t want to take a chance, knowing that Sonata had been serious about going to search for him if he hadn’t returned by sunup.
“You’re sure you don’t see anything?” asked Cloudbank nervously, her quick glance at Drafty betraying the cause of her worry.
“Yes,” answered Lex curtly. “Now, whatever you do, stay close to me. Until we reach our destination I’ll protect you, but that will be almost impossible to do if we become separated.”
“Maybe we’ll get lucky and none of those things will show up,” grinned Drafty hopefully, glancing around. None of her friends met her gaze, showing how likely they thought that was, and her grin faltered.
Still, her statement prompted Lex to address the group again. “I know I asked this before, but I want to do so again. If you can tell me anything about these monsters, no matter how inconsequential, it will help me if we do encounter more of them.”
The four of them glanced at each other, but one by one shrugged or shook their heads. Cozy was the last one to do so, turning to Lex with a frown. “Like we said before, we haven’t gotten much of a good look at them. They don’t come out during the daytime. They’re pony-sized and they’re vicious. They can talk, but…”
A collective shudder ran through the group at that. “But?” prompted Lex. They had refused to answer when he’d asked them before, but maybe they would now.
For a moment it didn’t seem like they would, but then Produce Aisle gulped nervously and spoke up. “They…they said what they were going to do. To us.”
Produce Aisle lowered his eyes, apparently unwilling to go any further. Lex grit his teeth, and he considered pressing them for more information – knowing what these unidentified things had said might be a valuable clue – but he decided to let it go. He was about to turn away when he heard a different voice. “They said…”
Turning back, he saw that Cloudbank had taken a step forward, and was quite clearly forcing herself to volunteer more information. “They said…they said that they were going to eat us.”
“Eat you?” Lex’s brow furrowed.
Cloudbank nodded, trembling slightly. “I mean, they were…specific about it. About h-how…about what it would be like for us.” She took a deep breath, steadying herself. “They sounded so…it was like they knew it from experience, you know? Like they’d done it before.”
Drafty moved up next to Cloudbank and leaned against her, spreading a wing over her as she did. Cloudbank pressed against her in return, letting out a breath that was almost a sob. Off to the side, Produce Aisle was shaking so badly that his lantern wobbled, and Cozy was softly reciting a prayer under her breath.
“When was this?” asked Lex.
“A little while back,” answered Drafty, still comforting Cloudbank. “I’m not sure how long, but it was after the floodwaters had receded. We were asleep, but woke up because we could hear what sounded like a bunch of ponies going around the rooms on the first floor.”
Produce Aisle glanced around the lobby, as though expecting those monsters to still be lurking there. “We knew better than to go out. By that point it had already become every pony for themselves,” he said, still trembling. Despite that, it seemed easier for him – for all of them – to talk now, as though they’d only needed some prompting to begin recounting the horrors they’d experienced. It was enough to make Lex tilt his head slightly in consideration; he’d previously theorized that sharing personal histories played a role in social bonding. Was this related to that?
Not knowing what Lex was thinking, Produce Aisle continued. “We heard them come up to the second floor, and when they realized that the door to one of the rooms, ours, was locked, they started trying to break it down. We scrambled to reinforce it, and that’s when they realized that we were there.”
“It got worse after that.” Now it was Cozy’s turn to continue the story. “They pretended to be a rescue squad for a minute, telling us that they were here to take us to safety.” She paused to give Lex a sharp look, making it clear why they had initially been so reluctant to believe his offers of assistance. “But when we didn’t buy it, that’s when they started saying those awful things…”
“They gave up and left after a while.” Now it was Cloudbank’s turn again. “After that, we barricaded the stairway and started trapping the rooms in the first floor. When they came back the next night, we heard them screaming and howling, like they were enraged that we were defending ourselves. When we checked the traps the next morning, there was blood on some of them, but no bodies. After that, we’d hear them sometimes, but they seemed to have lost interest.”
Lex waited a moment for them to continue, but when nopony spoke up, he realized that there was nothing else forthcoming, and that realization made him frown. Other than the fact that their tale made it seem less likely that the monsters that had accosted them were those fish-creatures he’d fought – he somehow couldn’t see those things as having the presence or articulation necessary to perpetrate a deception by pretending to be rescuers – there had been very little useful information in what they’d relayed to him. Whatever those things were, they were in his city; he’d need to face them at some point, and he wanted more information when he did.
“What about your injury?” he asked, looking at Drafty.
“My…? Oh.” Her ears lowered, and she looked away, suddenly uncomfortable.
“Leave her alone,” snapped Cloudbank, before turning to Drafty with a softer look. “You don’t have to talk about it if you don’t want to.”
“No, it’s okay,” replied Drafty, forcing herself to smile at the other mare for a moment before turning back to Lex. “I didn’t see what bit me. Aisle and I were looking for food to scavenge, and I was looking in a basement when something leapt out at me. I screamed and tried to run, but not before it sank its teeth into my leg.”
“I still can’t believe you went down there alone,” muttered Cloudbank, but there was no real heat in her voice.
Nevertheless, Drafty winced slightly. “It was still daytime! We’d never heard those things when the sun was out, so I thought…I don’t know, I thought they were hibernating somewhere or something, and couldn’t come out until it was dark.”
“It was dark in that basement too, since it didn’t have any windows,” interjected Produce Aisle. “As it was, we were lucky to get away. I rushed down there and managed to stab it with a piece of broken pipe, and we ran away as soon as it let Drafty go.”
“And you never saw what it was?” pressed Lex.
But both of them shook their heads. “It was really dark down there, and it happened fast,” explained Aisle. “All I know was that it was pony-sized, and I think it was some sort of equinoid. That means that-”
“I know what ‘equinoid’ means,” interrupted Lex curtly. “A head, a torso, four legs, and a tail.”
“R-right. Sorry,” replied Aisle. “Anyway, that’s as much as we know about them.”
“And what about your group’s missing member?” asked Lex, looking at Cozy. “You said his name was Pillowcase. What happened to him?”
An uncomfortable silence fell, with the other three ponies wincing at his tactlessness. Cozy pressed a hoof to her necklace for a long moment, eyes closed. Lex was about to repeat his question when she answered. “Pillow went out yesterday, around noon, to try and find medicine for Drafty. We haven’t seen him since.” Her voice was flat and emotionless.
“Cozy…” Drafty’s voice was soft and apologetic, but was cut off as Cozy held up a hoof.
“You don’t have to say anything. I know I’ll see him again.” She brought the holy symbol on her necklace to her lips and kissed it gently. “We’re connected by a power that’s stronger than any danger.” Finally opening her eyes, she managed a wan smile. “Besides, I left him a note in our room, telling him that there’s a shelter at the docks, and that if he heads west for three hours at a walking pace, he’ll find it. That’s where it is, right?” She looked at Lex, who nodded in reply before turning back to the doorway.
He had more questions he wanted to ask, but they weren’t related to the immediate circumstances. Finding out more about what happened in Vanhoover during and after the flooding was likely to be a longer conversation than they had time for right now. Once they were back at the shelter, then he’d be able to properly ask them what else they knew.
Facing the darkness, Lex strode forward. “Let’s go.”
The ponies Lex found tell him how something almost got them.
What are those things, and is there any chance that they won't encounter them on the trip back?
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Huh... The disease sounds like regular Filth Fever. She would have to have rolled the lowest possible onset-time, but that would explain the... Well, fever, the lethality of it, weakening body and all, and the dex-damage would do good to keep her from moving too.
7922957 Don't forget, according to what Drafty's friends said in the previous chapter, she was sick for several days, and only lost consciousness yesterday.
Equinoid(nice pony pun) creatures that have gained a taste for equine flesh and are intelligent enough to try and deceive their prey to get at them but only hunt when it's dark...quite an interesting combination of traits.
Judging from what Aisle and the others said, these creatures, whatever they are, are likely nocturnal(or are highly sensitive to the light) and highly aggressive. They're no stronger than an average pony since they weren't able to break through the barricades but hunt in packs to compensate for this weakness.
Also, leaving a note that says where you're going to? Either Pillowcase finds it and safely arrives at the warehouse or Lex is going to get a firsthand...er, hoof look at whatever attacked Thermal Draft.
p.s:Now I really wish Severance had participated in the pillow fight cause it'd be hilarious if Pillowcase(should he make it) gets the punctured pillow but as you've said, it is an opportunity that's been missed. Oh well, cest la vie.
At least theyre now moving. Given the relative timing, will The Cripple be waiting for them back at the warehouse, or meet up with them on the way?
7923682 It's entirely possible. It's a big city, but the general area they're going to be in (i.e. around the waterfront) is likely much smaller.
7923585 I'm glad you liked that pun; I wasn't sure about it myself at first, but grew more comfortable with it when I had Lex make sure to explain it, just to be safe.
As for the nature of the creatures that accosted the survivors...I suspect that will become clear soon enough, if the worries of the surviving ponies are any indication. It's not like Lex has very good luck where avoiding conflict is concerned. That said, the clues about what they are have been sprinkled through the last few chapters.
That note may come back to bite Lex and the group later, but there was little alternative; not leaving one meant that, if Pillow came back, he'd essentially have been abandoned, and nopony wanted that.
7923000 Oh yeah. I wasn't sure if the onset-time already makes the target look and feel sick, but if it does... Unconsciousness though... I'm ot sure, but I believe ability damage works different in 3.5 and Pathfinder, so loosing Con doesn't drop you into negative hit points, making you fall unconscious. Maybe the Dexterity damage just hit harder on the dice? That's unlikely though, for as long as the mare has been unconscious...
Hmm... Then I think it must be a different disease.
7927230 The thing to remember is that taking penalties to Constitution - be they damage or drain (or some other penalty) - cannot lower your maximum hit points to 0 or less. That can only happen if you've also taken hit point damage from some other source; so long as you're at your maximum hit points (and you haven't had your Con score reduced to 0 via damage or drain, which immediately kills you), then you'll have a positive hit point value. That's because of the rule that a Constitution penalty can never lower your hit points below 1 per Hit Die (and hence can't have a character die in character creation due to low hit point rolls with a Constitution below 10).
That's the same in both 3.5 and Pathfinder, from what I can tell (in fact, the only difference seems to be that Pathfinder calls out the possibility of ability score penalties besides ability damage and ability drain - such as ray of enfeeblement - and expressly states that when your Constitution is restored, you immediately regain the lost hit points).
7927290 Oh yeah, that little rule was a thing, I forgot about that.
Hmm... The pony was bitten, but unless the enemy somehow dealt vile damage (is vile damage still a thing in pathfinder?) it would be virtually impossible for the mare to still have hit point damage left over: Not only does she have a cleric at her side (powerful or not, every cleric can somewhat heal) and the natural healing would have set off at least some damage, if not all, depending on how long the pony was out.
Wait... If this is pathfinder...
Are you using the unchained disease progression?
7928032 Vile damage isn't a thing in Pathfinder (as I recall, it was named that because it was introduced in the Book of Vile Darkness, which had no Open Game Content nor had any of its content added to the SRD). There are some enemies that do cause damage that can be difficult to heal though, such as bearded devils.
(EDIT: I had forgotten that vile damage was damage so evil that it could only be magically healed in a consecrated area. By contrast, effects such as a bearded devils infernal wounding are simply difficult to heal - in that case, to stop the continuing bleed damage - regardless of the conditions. So not quite the same, but still in the same spirit.)
That said, don't forget that Produce Aisle said in the previous chapter that Cozy healed Drafty's wounds after that encounter (i.e. she healed any hit points that had been lost).
7928393 Oh, ok. I just wanted to make sure of it.
Then the unchained disease track seems to be the best choice to me, as I don't know a disease that makes specifically unconscious...
Typos! Nuclear warheads armed and ready. Gotta catch em all before they spread!
I read this as 'as though everything farther away was enveloped in a dark fog'. I would also suggest adding 'thick' after 'dark' as it then grants more clarity to the writing, making it very apparent that it is difficult to see through.
I really don't think anyone would be grinning in this situation, but that's just me.
I read this without 'of'.
I read this as 'it was a welcome change from how they'd initially acted'.
The comma here makes it awkward. There shouldn't be a pause there.
I think this should be changed to 'whether that was because she still thought he was King Sombra, or because she was still upset that he’d pointed out how weak her own goddess was, or both, Lex couldn't tell'.
This is actually one word? Just asking.
I think 'you' would be better.
I read this without the 'quite'. It just seems to be more description that isn't needed.
Based on future text, I think that should be 'them' not 'us'.
I think you should use a name in there again. Two persons to refer to, and switching between them almost guarantees a mix up on the readers part.
Well, that is certainly a lot of perceived typos, good thing I brought out the nukes.
Anyway, survivors! That are giving him bad news. This is not going to end well. I really hope that the flesh eaters are not cannibals, as falling to that level means all bets are off.
8075384
Normally when you say "comment may be edited," I take that to mean that you're not done yet, but it's been five hours so I'm guessing you are...?
Hm, that does seem to be better. Changed.
I waffled on this, as I wasn't sure how much more underlining was necessary, since fog is already presumed to be tough to see through, and dark fog all the more so. But I decided that the cadence (insert Princess Cadance joke here) of "thick, dark" was better, so I added it.
Drafty is trying very hard to be an optimist.
Changed.
I think this one works just as well either way, so it can stand to be left as-is.
I agree. Changed.
In this case I disagree. I think that Lex's uncertainty is inherently understood in how it's written now, since the limited-omnisicence of that particular narration is defaulting to his point of view. Openly stating that he's not sure of Cozy's reasons seems redundant.
I checked, and it is.
I'm not completely certain, but I think "you're sure" is actually the grammatically-correct way to phrase this, although "you sure" has certainly entered such a wide degree of use that it's become acceptable as well. That said, for way it is now sounds better to me.
The phrase "quite clearly" is one that I think I use a lot, as I find that it quite clearly connotes a sense of something being immediately obvious, to the point where it can't be missed or misunderstood. Given that Lex is the sort of character who doesn't understand a lot of social nuance unless it's presented without any ambiguity, it seems appropriate.
Why would it be "them"? Cloudbank is saying that the unknown assailants were describing what it would be like for herself and her friends. Since she's part of the group, it'd be "us" rather than "them."
I'm sympathetic to your reasoning here, as I can see how the pronouns might be a bit difficult to navigate, but changing that to "Drafty moved up next to Cloudbank and leaned against her, spreading a wing over Cloudbank as she did" would sound rather awkward. Essentially, this sentence asks people to remember that Drafty is the subject of the sentence, and so it what's being referred to as "she," whereas Cloudbank is the object, and so is what's being referred to as "her."
Just so long as there's no fallout.
Things do seem to be getting worse and worse, don't they? At what point will there finally be some good news?
8075721
A typos got through! Man your battlestations! Hurry hurry hurry. "You hear explosions and screams in the distance"
Typo vanquished! We are victorious this day!
I thought I got rid of it, but I hadn't apparently. And in case the narrative didn't make it clear, it has been fixed.
Well, she says they know what it's like, from experience. I really don't think anyone can be eaten and live to tell the tale. Unless there are leftovers...
So I think they are talking about what it would be like for them to do the eating.
Fallout 4 was released months ago....
8075805
Whew! I'm just glad that I wasn't interrupting a marathon review session.
I feel like there's a misunderstanding going on here, Cloudbank was relating what the unknown attackers said it would be like for herself and her friends to be eaten alive. Since she was the one relaying that information, and was a part of the group being so threatened, she'd use "us" rather than "them."
You forgot the icon.