1x1 with яαιnнeαят and Éibhear the Blue.

[kannagi]

(gahh, sorry for late post. I just got braces, and I've been having some... technical difficulties xD)

Dylan
Dylan nodded in agreement, but he also felt kind of stupid. Why didn't I think of that before? Rose is a much better leader than I am. "Great idea, Rose. I suppose we could hike through the woods towards it. It shouldn't be hard to follow that trail of smoke."

"Why do you not want to take your pegasus?" Amaryllis challenged. "It would be faster to travel by air than through a treacherous forest."

Dylan winced at her suggestion. He knew she would say something. Truth is, he felt guilty for dragging Sam and the others along this far. They were tired, and Whimsy was limping from landing awkwardly. The other four couldn't hear their complaints, but if they did, he knew they would understand. "Sam... er..." It's okay boss, we can carry you a little farther. The black stallion's hazel eyes blinked wearily, but they shone with determination. "Are you sure?" He whispered back, but the other three were already trotting forward. It seems they agreed with Sam, as they all had their ears perked forward eagerly. "Okay. Well, uhm. They said they would fly us." He said, turning back towards Amaryllis and the others.

[ragemonster]

((That sounds like it sucks. D: I'm sorry.))

Rose

Rose looked doubtfully at Whimsy's limp. "Are you sure they're up to it?" she asked Dylan. He, too, looked doubtful. "And I don't think Whimsy's up to carrying me. His leg..." she gestured to the gray stallion's foreleg, which he was favoring. Chiron would have to take a look at him when they got back to camp. She could imagine how displeased Chiron would be once he saw Whimsy's condition, but he probably wouldn't blame it on the trio of campers or Amaryllis. Rose was thankful for that.

[kannagi]

Dylan
I'm fine! I swear! I just.. can't... walk on it... The gray stallion's ears pinned back, a tell-tale sign of discomfort. You could tell a lot about a horse by his ears. "Whimsy is reluctant to admit he can't carry you." He translated quickly. "He should turn back, now," he added, scolding the pegasus. I could carry you and Rose. Sam offered, but he didn't look much better, either. "I don't know... Rose, Sam offered to carry both of us. But I'm not totally comfortable with that, either. What about Amaryllis's pegasus? It's like, immortal, correct?"

Amaryllis snorted. "It is just a regular pegasus. But she is well rested, so she is our best option for carrying Rose."

[ragemonster]

Rose

"It's okay Whimsy!" she said, rushing to pat the pegasus reassuringly on the flank. She didn't want him to feel bad, but she also didn't want him to damage his leg further. Rose glanced back and forth between Sam and Amaryllis' pegasus. She wasn't totally comfortable with the idea of riding with the frigid Huntress, but her steed did look better. Rose said —keeping the reluctance out of her voice— "I'll ride with Amaryllis. If that's alright?" she said, unsure, to the Huntress.

[kannagi]

(Gahh I lost internet connection again! >.< *throws internet router at wall* Wow I have a lot of excuses >.o)

Amaryllis
Amaryllis sighed. She suddenly remembered something Artemis said to her before embarking on this quest. "Be open to the males. Try to get along with their incompetence and share. It is vital for you to work as a team." Artemis was far wiser than her, so she always took her advice to heart. But those words of knowledge would be much harder to follow than she originally perceived. "...Alright. Thou may mount her first." She said cautiously.

Dylan
"Are you okay with staying here?" Dylan asked Whimsy. The pegasus nodded solemnly, before flying off somewhere, probably to graze. "Well, that settles it. Lets go." Dylan headed over to Sam and mounted the sore stallion gingerly.

[ragemonster]

((Don't worry, I know the feeling. xD))

Rose

Rose sighed and mounted the pegasus, tensing when it skittered a bit, but otherwise having no problem hauling herself up on the winged horse. She wondered what the beast's name was, but before she could ask, Amaryllis swung up behind Rose and they were off, wing rushing through her hair and cutting off the ability to speak without shouting one's self hoarse.

As a group, they flew towards the train— which looked much faster now that they were close enough to see it properly. It was a cargo train, not a passenger train, Rose was disappointed to see. Oh well. It would save them money anyway, stowing away on this train instead of having to pay for tickets.

[kannagi]

Dylan
Dylan mounted Samillion, who was snorting impatiently, whilst pawing the ground with his hoof. Let's go. Before Dylan was completely comfortable ontop of Sam, he lurched forward when he saw Amaryllis's pegasus take flight. "Sam, wait!" Dylan hissed through a clenched jaw as he gripped the reins for his life. "Martin and Jacob are still back there! We can't seperate... again." They'll catch up. Sure enough, the two other pegasi slowly ascended to the right of Sam.

The train flew down its tracks, moving quite fast for being such a large cargo train. It must've had hundreds of cars.

Sam was skimming the trees with its wings now, preparing to descend on a cart. Which one? He asked, but didn't wait for an answer. He landed roughly on one the color of faded salmon, causing Dylan's teeth to rattle in his mouth. "Couldn't have at least tried to land softer?" He said, slighly annoyed, but Sam ignored his complaint. Well, Boss. If you climb down that ladder there, you should be able to pry that cart door open. Amaryllis's pegasus landed elegantly next to Sam, while Fletcher chose a place two carts down, followed by Winter. "Bye, Sam. I'll see you again, once I'm done with this stupid quest. I'll bring you a sugar cube, okay?" Yes! Oh, I love sugar! Sam whinneyed with excitement. Be safe, okay? With that, he took off into the sky, probably to regroup with Whimsy.

[ragemonster]

Rose

Rose winced when she saw Sam land roughly. She could just imagine how unpleasant that must've been for Dylan, whereas her landing on Amaryllis' pegasus was soft and quiet. Rose slid off the strawberry roan mare * and cracked her knuckles. They were stiff from the cold, and her movements were sluggish. It is absolutely freezing! she thought. Her breath condensed into clouds as she exhaled, and she wrapped her arms around herself as the first few snowflakes started to fall. "Terrific," she sighed. Of all the times for a quest, why did they have to go in winter?

((*I wasn't sure exactly what color Amaryllis' pegasus was, but I'd always pictured her as a strawberry roan. Sorry if that's not what she is. D:))

[kannagi]

(To be honest, I never really set a color xD I just figured that since all the Huntresses' animals like the wolves and deer were described as "silvery", then the pegasi must be silver, too. But I don't really care ^^)

Dylan
Dylan's teeth chattered. "Well, it's not like we had a ch-choice." He watched Amaryllis's pegasus depart after the Camp Half-Blood pegasi. It's probably following them back to Camp to wait for Amaryllis, he figured. He wobbed cautiously over to the frozen ladder on the side of the train car. He was having quite a hard time walking across the roof of a train car, which was covered with snow and ice.

He kneeled in front of the ladder, checking to make sure Sam was right about it opening the door. Sure enough, there was a hatch that needed to be pulled out to slide open the door. He swung over the ledge, gripping tightly to the ice-cold metal. It seemed sturdy, unlike that one back at the barn. With one hand, he steadied himself on the ladder, and with the other, he pulled with all his might to open the door. Pop. With a loud hiss and the groan of the rusted door, it slid open just enough for a kid his size to slip through.

[ragemonster]

Rose

Rose watched as Dylan, shivering along with her and Martin, perched precariously on the ladder and shoved hard against the latch on the cart. With a groaning pop, the door slid jerkily open enough to allow them to squeeze through. Rose waited for Dylan to slide into the cart, then followed after him.

The cart was hardly warmer than outside, but had the benefit of blocking out most of the wind. Some managed to get through the chipped or loose slats in the cart, though, and Rose clenched her jaws together violently to make them stop chattering. The shivering, though, she couldn't control. Jacob was the last of them all to slide into the cart. He had a little more trouble with it, seeing as he was bigger than the rest of them, but had no problem sliding the door into place when he wriggled through.