"Simon!" Pilate hissed as he galloped around the hallway corner as smoothely as he could. The sound of his own hooves clopping against the tile floor echoed in his ears as he waited between pulses of O.A.S.I.S. to judge the direction of the group's sprint. "Simon, please, don't go that far ahead!"
"I don't get it..." Ebon Mane panted as he fumbled to keep up with the blind stallion. "Where in the fuzz... does the lil' guy think he's going?"
"I feel the frequency in his sensory nodes increasing," Pilate attempted to explain in mid-gallop. "It's almost like a magnetic pulse attracting the energy coursing inside him."
"Attracting him?" Ebon wheezed. "Towards what?"
"I would venture to guess Floydien."
"Well... that's perfect..." Ebon heaved and panted.
"You doing alright back there?" Pilate asked as they rounded another corner.
"Oh, me? Sure... but..." Ebon gulped and muttered, "How come you're n-not out of br-breath?"
"I've been running a lot over the past few weeks."
"Well, that explains it..."
"Simon!" Pilate hissed again, his legs struggling to keep up. "Perhaps Floydien is in trouble. Maybe that's why he's in such a hurry."
"Well... it's nice to know... the fella's so concerned for the guy..."
The two rounded another corner, and three bodies stood directly in front of them.
"Freeze!" shouted an angry stallion's voice.
Pilate skidded to a stop, wincing. O.A.S.I.S. flickered wildly, casting an echo of Ebon slumping down beside the zebra.
"Uhm..." Ebon stammered, "Think the squirrel with mad telekinesis will be concerned for us?"
"Not another step!" The stallion in the center reached for an enchanted object on his shoulder. "This is Squad Three. We found two galloping stallions on the fifteenth floor..."
Pilate's metal brow furrowed. He sensed electrified weapons hanging off the stallions' sides, as well as flat articles atop their skulls.
"Enforcers," he whispered.
Ebon's body fidgeted beside him. "How could you tell?"
"Do any of Nightshade's ponies wear berets?"
"Sadly, no..."
"Silence, the both of you! This property now falls under the jurisdiction of the Council of Ledo! Please explain your presence here immediately—" A crackling noise lit the air. All three stallions froze in place, squirming.
"Uhhh..." Pilate quivered. "What just happened?"
"The lights went out!" Ebon hissed.
"Props..." Pilate murmured.
"Quick!" Ebon charged forward. "Get 'em!"
"Mr. Mane!" Pilate's voice squeaked. As he jolted, he felt the streaking echo of Ebon's body hurling itself violently into the two stallions to the right. Their bodies became an incoherent blob of tangled limbs. The stallion to the left pivoted, unleashing his taser.
Gritting his teeth, Pilate charged bravely forward. He rammed his shoulder hard into the stallion.
With a grunt, the pony pivoted and easily shoved the zebra back with unicorn magic.
Pilate reeled backwards, almost collapsing of his rear legs. Suddenly, the stallion was grabbing him, trying to wrestle the zebra down with his forelimbs. The two struggled for a few seconds, until the enforcer resorted to telekinetically lifting his taser, preparing to stab it against Pilate's face. On impulse, Pilate spontaneously flung his skull forward, headbutting the stallion with his runic plate. The metal brow collided hard with the stallion's horn, sending a wave of pain down the unicorn's nervous system.
With a grunt, Pilate bucked the writhing pony off him. He spun, panting. "Ebon! Don't worry! I'll... help you...?" He froze in place, his brow furrowed.
Two bodies were lying on the floor. One stood above them, dusting his hooves off. He had no horn. "What?" Ebon said breathily, nodding his head. "Looks like we did good."
"How...?" Pilate pointed as his thoughts dripped off the edge of his tongue. "What business does a cook have in possessing such good combat knowledge?"
"Trust me," Ebon grunted as he kicked one enforcer in the gut and trotted over his wheezing figure. "Years of working in the restaurant business, and you'd be ready to buck punks too."
A shrill barking sound rang down the hallway. Both ponies turned, their ears pricked to the squirrel's voice.
"I do believe he has found a way to our destination," Pilate said.
"Good. Uhm..." Ebon shifted nervously. "You mind leading a blind pony around?"
Pilate smiled and drifted closer to the stallion. "Stay by my side, friend. I'll guide us through the darkness."
"Much appreciated..."
"I'll leave the flank-kicking and cooking to you."
"Both will do..."
They trotted around the corner, joining Simon as the squirrel led them towards the far end of a narrow corridor.
This story needs a ninja chief...
And that folks,is why you never underestimate ANYBODY in the austreoh series.Also happy Independence Day!
In the land of the blind, the augmented zebra is king.
MARY SEU!!! 1111
just kidding!
Cool stuff.
Unfortunately, those enforcers did manage to announce to everyone what floor Pilate and Ebon Mane are on. I have a feeling that this rescue/escape thing is about to get a lot more... problematic.
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thenoisecast.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/07/will-smith-et-jeff-goldblum-dans-independence-day.jpg
2824696 google.com/search?q=oh+you&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8&hl=en&client=safari#biv=i%7C0%3Bd%7CCADjblafmrwmTM%3A
EDIT: Dang it,the picture didn't work. Well I'll just say it. OH YOU.
I call Floydien on being the first to start explosions. When he re-unites with Pilate, he'll start using OASIS offensively again. That is, if his head doesn't explode first.
2824726
i.imgur.com/GYpGkAK.png
2824744 You win this time.
Ebon: I used to be the community chef for a clan of ninjas. In return for ample amounts of sizzling hot food they taught me the art ninjutsu. I returned to Blue Nova, making food by day, fighting crime by night. I was . . . THE DARK
KNIGHTCOOKER.Or something . . .
How old is Props anyways.
2822406 I could have sworn that there were some days it didn't update. I'll just attribute that to my atrociously structured sleep schedule.
Well, now. I swear, everybody has fighting experience in this series.
So this has basically been Pilate to me with his O.A.S.I.S./Squirrel vision powers.
Also, geeze, even the cooks are badass in this place. Ain't nobody gonna diss Ebon's veggie loaf and get away with it, that's for damn sure.
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25
2825324
Technically, it's an update every 24 hours, with dual updates on one day occasionally covering for two days.
What's that old saying about the blind leading the blind? I can only imagine what will happen when the blind pony leading the "blind" pony is being led by a squirrel.
I can attest to this.
2825789 Damn, there goes my idea that she's a reincarnated Pinkie Pie.
2824591
img.gawkerassets.com/img/18j46gny3923mjpg/ku-xlarge.jpg
I like your way of thinking, brother.
2825954
Don't discount the likeness, though. Thematically that's important (as well as a nod).
2826088 I don't doubt that Dash is going to have a breakdown when they meet, I was just hoping that she really was Pinkie.
2826181 I don't think maggots would bother her that much or she would probably just eat them
Ah, the telekinetic squirrel with godlike mana capabilities is unfortunately a squirrel.
Meaning, it has alerted all the guards on the floor to their presence, and is absolutely oblivious to the peril it was putting Pilate and Ebon in.
2824591
I cannot upvote this comment enough.
Ah yes, the zebra who keeps running. ...wait, wasn't Bellesmith the doctor?
I can hardly wait to see Floyds again. That character grows more interesting the more he is in trouble.
2825754 In addition to everything else he is now... BATZEBRA!
teenink.com/plus/uploads/pictures/Apr13/regular/f211290_1365764826.jpg
2826960
That picture is fabulous. Pilate needs a cape now, even if it does pose the threat of getting caught in things.
I hope we'll see Floydien soon. I like the guy. He kinda reminds me of Brucie from EoP for some reason.
INTRUDER ALERT
INTRUDER ALERT
RED SPY IN THE BASE
2825754 That's pretty much what I imagine his voice to be, too.
2826960You know hat that picture needs? Some fish with arms.
Badass.
A bit dubious, however. Ebon taking on two highly trained enforcers in hooficuffs, whilst out of breath, and kicking serious flank? There's possibly more to him than meets the eye.
IIIIIt's Dashie's evaluation time!
It was cool to see how Pilate fights with O.A.I.S.I.S. in this chapter, at least. Aside from that...more good fight scenes! Yeah! Uh...g...good...These are my thoughts so far.
-MASH
P.S. I still miss the Austraeoh days...
2904065
Me too
Escape just got harder. The enforcers told the other enforcers where Pilate and Ebon are. Anyway, Suspense!
-Spirit
Still not buying that Ebon is a cook. No restaurant can be that bad
Ebon is pretty badass.
Excellent, these two can bust flank on their way down to catch up with Props and Jasper!
The jig is up! Time to go loud.
I'm starting to get a Mr. Sicarian vibe form Ebon Mane.
Because it's about Ebon kicking flank in pitch darkness, get it? Get it?
This must be a unique experience for Pilate, leading someone while blind, because he can (ironically) see better.
05/15/2017 22:07 UTC
So now Floydien is magnetic?
That's cause berets are out of fashion
the irony.
2824560
But we already have a ninja cyborg...