All For Love, And All For One

Aug 7, 2014 19:45:12 GMT -5 Akash said:

"POP!" the little elephant lets out the loudest trumpet he could as he called for his father. His father was in army before he would surely know how to deal with this train. Hathi Jr. was as fast as his feet could carry him towards the last place he saw his father. He could find Scar or Zira if he happened to bump into them but he doubted that.

"By thunder! Junior, what on EARTH has gotten into you?!"

He spotted the baby elephant rushing away from the deep outlands. Fear gripped his chest. Was his son alright? Was he being chased by tigers? The pounding large feet of the male pushed towards the boy, worry gripping his heart but a stern expression on his face. If Hathi Jr. was just playing a prank or some nonsense like he'd been stung by a bee, Hathi was going to be very cross with him.

"Junior! Are you alright, cadet?" He lifted his trunk to touch his son's shoulder but he spotted the train a half second later. "What on EARTH is going on here?!" He bellowed. He turned to see Haki sounding the alarm.

"Step back, hyena, let a real war call rally the troops!" And with that the male let out a loud trumpeting bellow. One that awoke a certain slumbering female lioness.

Junior hovers by his father's huge feet looking up at him panting slightly. "The train sir" he points his trunk towards Casey Jr. not a second later Hathi answers his own question as he spots it for himself. "I'm ok Pop" he confirms with a nod of his head after all, cadets have to be tough in times like these at lest that what was his dad told the rest of his herd. Hathi Jr. winces at the loud trumpet "That should alert them, huh sir?" he grins up at his father.

Casey had closed his cylinder cocks, instead focusing his steam on keeping up pace. So there was no longer a defensive screen between them and the pursuing Outlanders. Their movement was their only shield. He could feel his fire beating ferociously inside his belly, steam filling his cylinders with life giving energy. Steam which he was using just to keep their train moving. Bunting the circus flatcar ahead of him.

As Casey whipped sharply around a corner and came into view of the large elephant and his son sounding the alarm, he suddenly felt his drive wheels loose grip on the magical irons. Merlin may have created the perfect running surface, but friction and gravity where still laws of physics. Eyes wide and with a startled yelp of steam, Casey poured on the sand. Trying to stall the slip. But it was too late.

“Sun uv a bitch!” He screeched, his whole body violently twisting side to side. Curses flowing from his mouth as he gained his footings.

The wheels spun uselessly for a few seconds, causing the whole train to jerk violently forwards as the flat car yanked on Casey's front coupling. Their speed let up for barley a second as the steam locomotive recovered from the violent wheelslip, his own momentum being used up in keeping them moving forward. However, the slip had two massive effects. The first being that they lost their momentum, and it gave the pursuing Outlanders a window to catch up.

The other, came up in the cab.

Lady's ears perked as she heard the alarm being sounded. Even over the sound of the steam locomotive's exhaust, came the distinct cry to arms. As it was, the doberman and the bear already seemed determined to catch up with them, and as she looked out the cab window she could see both getting nervously close to Casey's tender. The spaniel placed both her forepaws on the window ledge, and leaned out, looking forward as Tramp exclaimed he could see their destination. The train was rocking back and forth as Casey climbed into the Outlands, still fighting the grade that the whole encampment seemed to be laid on.

“Oh! I see it. Are you sure that's it?” The cocker yipped. Turning her head to look back over to the gray mongrel.

Suddenly the whole locomotive violently jerked side to side. Tools clattered on the foot plate, and lumps of coal spilled over the tender deck. The rush of steam and high beat tempo of the drive wheels spinning filled the air, and Lady could actually see spark flying from the drive wheels as they tried to gain a grip of the corporal rails.

The cocker felt herself suddenly sling into the air as the seat was suddenly jerked out from under her. With a pained yip, her muzzle suddenly slammed into the windowsill, forelegs being pulled out from under her. With her hind legs cycling in the air, her upper body was tossed into over her and Lady took a somersault.

Right out the window!

With a horrified shriek, her claws clattered on the window ledge and she grabbed on, Her head and upper body still inside the cab, but the rest hung limply out the cab window, her hing legs just above Casey's churning drive wheels.

As well as  the waiting jaws of the Outlanders outside. If she fell and managed to not be hurt by the landing, the Outlanders would descend upon her in horde.

“Tramp! Help!” She cried into the cab, brown eyes wide, ears splayed out on the windowsill, or fluttering in the slipstream over her own face.

Oh What Luck

What Luck!

"How lucky am I?" Griffin though gleefully and he puts on a burst of speed as the train slowed slightly and leaps forward teeth snapping at the cocker's hind-courters with a sickening cackle. Mr. Griffin loved a good game with his prey and this could be one? "Haki! help me out over here!" he barks out.

"Come o-" he was cut off as Magnus lumbers beside him being much larger the bear had no trouble reaching the dog and he takes a few snaps of his own at Lady attempting to nab her.

Just as Tramp opened his mouth to affirm it was indeed the pit, a sudden, sickening lurch made him lose his balance. His shoulder thumped against the side of the window frame before he was dislodged from his perch to land, hard, on his back, and he grunted in pain as he gazed at the cab's ceiling, momentarily dazed. He dimly heard the sound of tools and coal tumbling about.

But Lady's frantic call snapped him out of it, and he rolled onto his belly, rising to his feet once it was clear he wouldn't be knocked back down. Rushing adrenaline blocked the pain in his injured leg as he sprang across the cab to brace himself against the window's edge as he got a firm grip on the scruff of Lady's neck, and heaved backwards, hauling her bodily back inside the cab, and away from the questing jaws of both bear and hyena, as well as whatever other creature might have managed to gain ground.

But, once he had hauled Lady clear, there was nothing to hold him up, and he tumbled backwards again, pulling Lady with him, and once more thumped against the foot plate. But this time, he wasn't taken unawares, and he was able to roll with his landing, and save himself from getting winded.

"I've got you," he said, paws wrapped around her for a moment as he lay on the cab floor. That had been a close one. Too close for comfort. He got back to his feet, giving Lady some space to do the same, and eyed the bear just outside the window. Then he darted forward, bracing himself in the window for a brief second as he snapped at Magnus' nose before dropping back inside the safety of the cab.

Not today, you slavering brute. Not today or any other day.

"AH!" The bear swung his head as Tramp's teeth sank into the soft flesh of his nose, and he dropped back, now even more enraged that the cocker had managed to be saved. "Whatever you are planning, mutt, I'll put a stop to it!" Magnus bellowed, head swinging again as he shook the pain away, his dark orbs glaring at Tramp, and the train itself.

The loud trumpet had awoken the largest animal villain of them all. Nelleke rose to her feet and yawned before her yellow eyes widened at the sight of the train mowing past her, and other animal villains racing after it. She saw Magnus take a nip to the nose from a dog that was inside the train, and she let out a snort, giving a roll of her orbs and started forward.

"Vakasa, get on," she said as she approached the gorilla, and lowered her head and neck. "You have hands, do you not? That thing is human made, you could stop it," she explained, waiting for the ape to climb onto her before starting forward again. She glared at Shenzi. "Get after the train, stop it, I don't care if you throw yourself in front of it. Do what you must," she hissed.

Vakasa nodded and scrambled up Nelleke's thick, strong neck and settled down near her shoulder blades, hanging on tight. This was new, never had he rode atop a dinosaur before. Sure, horses back at the circus, but never dinosaurs. "You heard her, Shenzi. Move it," he huffed, frowning at her before peering towards the train. "Yeah, I'll do what I can," he said, looking down at Nelleke, offering her a smile.

Once the gorilla was settled, Nelleke took off, her powerful legs taking her forward as she quickly caught up to the slowed train, having loads of practice due to hunting her prey with her mate. "I'll try to slow it down, you need to leap aboard if you can," She told him before swinging her great head, her horns connecting with the train car, attempting to throw it from the tracks.

Lady went wide eyed as she tucked her tail and hind legs up, just as she felt the waiting jaws below narrowly miss her tail. In return, she grit her teeth and narrowed her eyes before kicking out with one hind leg, aiming to plant her foot in-between the hyena’s eyes. She looked down her body to see their pursuers and find out if her aim was solid, only to feel Tramp's teeth around the scruff of her neck. The spaniel felt herself be pulled into the cab, falling head over tail with the Tramp. She closed her eyes and tucked as the two dogs fell to the footplate.

She shook her head, opening her eyes to find herself in wrapped in his paws. Her eye fluttering for a few seconds. Lady suddenly realized how uncanny it was, this was the 2nd time he had pulled her to safety from a set of searching jaws.

“Oh Thank you,” she wheezed. Her heart rate still having yet to come down from the sudden rush of fear and adrenalin. Brown eyes full of relief.

The spaniel delicately twisted herself back to her paws, showing off her sporting dog agility. She watched as the mongrel lept atop the seat box and bit back at the bear. She too pulled her lips up, bearing her teeth and let out a low healthy growl, supporting her former mate from the footplate. Lady rarely if ever bared her teeth...making the sight all the more surreal.

Her show of brevity was cut short when she felt the locomotive lurch to one side, as if it had been struck by something. Looking out the Fireman's side window, she saw the strange sight of the Gorilla, who atop his charge was at window height.

“Tramp look!” the cocker yipped. Backpedaling herself to the tender deck.

She suddenly realized, other then chasing away a rat, she had never been forced to fight anyone. Even with that gang of dogs on her heels, she was more prepared to hunker down and defend herself then outright fight back. Just as she was preparing to do now. She stood ready to tuck herself into the coal bunker and leap out, teeth ready, should anyone reach into the cab gangway.

Casey looked over his shoulder and witnessed the creature approaching, reading itself to batter the iron horse. He raised an lamp iron eyebrow at the primate on it's back. He recognized the gorilla...but from where he could not place.

However, his thoughts where scattered as the creature mashed it's head into the side of his firebox. He grunted at the hit, clamping his eyes shut. The hit was enough to knock him around on his springs, but his wheels held to the rails firmly. The creature had smashed it's appendages into his steam dome, right between the cab and his bell. While it did little more then scratch the ever loving crap out of the paint, atop the dome stood his safety valves.

Casey had been having trouble with his safeties for months. Jim Hawkens had done some work and mitigated most of the problem. The safeties where set to automatically opened up when the boiler pressure became dangerous, and let off some steam until the pressure return to normal.

Nelleke had hid the valves hard enough to damage the springs, and the valves jerked open. Both venting much needed steam, and creating a geyser of scalding hot steam right above the locomotive. Any attempt to hit him again would bring the prehistoric battering ram a cloud of flesh melting steam. Along with the Irish tented curses of the Baldwin built steam locomotive.

“Yeh blasted creature, look whit yah done!” The locomotive bellowed. “Yah stupid thin'. I hope yah fuckin' face melts off!”

Now, safeties blasting out a feather of steam above him, the locomotive continued his charge. He was damaged, but not out or down. He had slowed slightly since entering the Outlands. But with a determined smirk on his smoke box, Casey Jr. dug his drive wheels in, and rods clanking continued to shove against the circus flat. He gave little thought to the two dog's in his cab, or their pursuers. All on his mind was that flatcar coupled in front of him.

"That's good, son, jolly goo-you blundering dunderheaded woman, what in heavens name are you doing?!"

Hathi gently nudged his son aside as the dinosaur beast and the gorilla attacked. He let out another trumpet towards them, an angry look blazed on his face. "No sense of decency and decorum at all. Junior, do NOT take that as an example. Now i want you to run to tell the others, alright? Sound the alarm! On the double son! On the double!" And with that the elephant trampled towards train. Sliding in front of the dinosaur - he's lost clean sight of the gorilla- he let out another trumpet.

"You want to take yourself out, woman?! Stop what you're doing instantly! That is an order!" His teeth bared as he stared daggers up at the train. Was it speaking? No it couldn't be. trains were the creations of man. Man's creations didn't speak.

"You stand and guard our outlands, do you hear what I'm saying? On the double! Hop to it!" His eyes shot to the train again. His nerves rattled. But a colonel wasn't supposed to be rattled so he froze that feeling, leaving it for later.

"I say! Who goes there?" He called to the train car, seeing movement, "Announce yourselves!"

Haki's golden eyes flicked up briefly toward the Indian elephant's eye-level, before she looked back down. For a moment, the brownish hyena took in what was around her. This was a freaking nightmare. But she still stood firm in her initial idea. Haki was convinced they needed to do something to those rails. Even if the locomotive stopped in time to avoid trouble, it still would have stopped and that was enough for her. The female hyena attempted to hold back her rage so she could think clearly. Over and over again, Haki ruminated on how she would completely destroy any organic life that came out of that blasted man-made monstrosity. Haki remained still as she watched, without a word, as the ape and the therapod came charging after the steam-powered vehicle. For a second or two, she observed. Yes, that was certainly doing something. However, Haki did not like how Nelleke undoubtedly was going to hurt herself in her brave effort. The scalding air seemed to be coming generally from the front of the engine, Haki presumed. Perhaps...

"Go for the back of the machine!" Haki hollered, in spite of her uncertainty on how effective such a tactic would be, or if the beast could even hear her over everything else.

Somebody needed to instill order in their defense. Haki wasn't at all sure how she or the army would deal with the immediate threat, but no one could blame her for trying. ...Unless her tactics were horribly wrong. She hoped that wasn't so. After shouting her order, she twisted her neck around to gaze up at Hathi. The hyena wasn't sure if the elephant outranked her, but, as hyenas tended to be viewed as underlings even if that actually did have a high rank, she took a respectful approach.

"Sir, I think it would be wise if our soldiers targeted the rails. It's too dangerous to target the machine itself. I don't want to loose any allies today. If any of those within happen to fall out of the machine, I say kill them all," Haki said, before taking a few steps backwards, "I'll attempt to locate Scar or Zira - surely they have an idea on how to deal with this."

Fearing time was wasting, Haki did not linger for long to take Hathi's response, she just went. The big hyena went tearing across the dirt toward the big termite tower. Haki, in any other situation, would be above relaying info, but it didn't look like anyone else was going to do it.

"You heard her, Shenzi. Move it"
"Get after the train, stop it, I don't care if you throw yourself in front of it. Do what you must,". She was beginning to catch up with the dogs and the heroes' steam engine when she heard the orders. Oh believe me I will. I need to sink my teeth into something.. The sheer thought of that made her shiver and smile in intentional excitement. In the same way that she did when Banzai said "Mufasa" just before his death.

Those where good times, before this damn war friggin' started. And I hope that one day, I will be there, watching the "great king" fall. I will sink my teeth into his hide. He will die a gruesome and painful death for what he has done to the OutLanders. I hope he will fall soon..


Then Shenzi sped up...