The market in Cooke Avenue where Twilight and her group resided was dwarfed by the market on the Lower East Side. Gin was slightly dizzy from all the civilians, soldiers, and various machines roaming the streets. She had never seen a city of such size, not even in Equestria. Evelyn was used to the bustle of Ausrüstung, and her focused demeanor matched most of those patrolling the streets, but her outfit set her apart from others. Her unbuttoned white lab coat was already odd, but the strange suit she wore beneath it attracted a good amount of attention as she walked by other ponies who tried to catch a glimpse of it in the most polite way possible.

"You do realize others are starin' at you, love... right?" Gin informed Evelyn as they walked beside each other down a long sidewalk full of other ponies.

"I think they are looking at your ridiculous fedora..." Evelyn sassed her back, scoffing as she shot Gin a glare.

"Oh can it, you bloody egghead! I rock this fedora and you know it!" Gin bantered with her playfully, fastening her hat.

Both mares rolled their eyes in response to each other's comments, Gin crossing her arms, and Evelyn raising her chin in a spoiled manner.

"Hello? Eve, Gin? Are you guys there?" Masami's voice buzzed in their ears.

"What is it Masami?" Evelyn responded as she stepped into a nearby alleyway with Gin.

"Rainbow Dash and Liazo had a kerfuffle with some shrouded fellows in an alleyway on Cooke Avenue, have you guys seen any strange lookin' ponies yet?" Masami wondered. "I think they plan on setting up some bombs, they put up red markers on some maintenance rooms on Alkali Street, and I believe they'll be targeting teleporting stations next. Can you check Mason Station on Corrigan Street? Just make sure there isn't anything fishy going on."

"Very well, Masami. In fact, we're already on Corrigan." Evelyn turned to Gin and gave her a snarky expression as she began moving down the sidewalk again. "Are you going to just stand there? Come on!"

"Hey! Who made you the boss, princess?" Gin complained as she caught up with the small mare.

"I did, just now," Evelyn laughed as she tucked her hands into her coat pockets, "and unless you want to get lost and mugged by wild hobos, I suggest you follow my lead."

"Alright, your majesty!" Gin sarcastically bowed as she followed the scrawny mare, snickering a little as she caught sight of the frustration on Evelyn's face.

As Gin walked beside Evelyn she noticed how much taller she was than her. She was about a head taller, and Gin considered herself to be slightly below average height. Gin's first guess when she saw Evelyn was that she was around fourteen, maybe fifteen, although her personality contradicted her appearance. She wasn't spoiled, a little snobby, but she remained collected and mature like an older mare when relaxed.

Gin tried to not be rude when she popped a burning question of hers, as one slip could've set her off. "Hey, Evelyn... random question, but-."

"How old am I?" Evelyn cut Gin off mid-sentence. "Twenty-two. Not what you were expecting, right?"

"Wow, I-." Gin was stunned by her words. "How-?"

"My mother was short... I am as well." Evelyn answered Gin's question before she could even ask. "In my opinion, I like my body this way, not all buxom like Masami. I don't get any attention from stallions, and I like it that way."

"Aww... have you been checking me out?" Masami teased Evelyn through her communicator.

"Silence, you promiscuous doxy! I told you I don't partake in sexual relations with mares, or anypony else for that matter!" Evelyn yelled into the microphone, although no one else could hear Masami, making Evelyn look like a fool in front of the various ponies walking by.

"I'm taking that as a "maybe"..." Masami mocked the poor mare further, to which Evelyn reached into her mouth and removed the microphone with a disgruntled expression.

"Ugghh...There's the station, we should check the boarding area first." Evelyn explained impatiently as she approached the stairs leading to the underground station.

Somehow, Mason Station was even busier than Corrigan Street, jammed packed with well-dressed stallion and mares, and manual workers in their overalls. Mason Station had one large waiting center with shops and benches, and around it was about a dozen teleporting stations- each connecting to a different district in Eisen. In the center of Mason Station was a grand and opulent fountain made of marble. Gin and Evelyn made their way to the fountain, as it was a good vantage point to scout for anything out of sorts. However, just as Gin was sitting down at a bench beside the fountain with Evelyn, she was nudged backwards by a shrouded stallion passing by, and she lost her balance, falling onto the small mare who had already sat down.

"Uggh! Get your oversized posterior off my sternum!" Evelyn wheezed as she tried to lift Gin off.

"Are you calling me hefty, you stuck-up snob?" Gin growled as she stood back up, completely forgetting the stallion who pushed her.

"No, I merely stated that your rear is disproportionate to your body is all..." Evelyn corrected Gin as she lifted her chin, confident that her comment would enrage the rowdy mare.

"Why you little!" Gin snarled before realizing why she fell backward. "Wait, where did that stallion go?"

"What stallion?" Evelyn asked as she looked around the station frantically.

"Over there..." Gin whispered as she pointed towards a stallion heading to a teleporting chamber. "He pushed me down..."

"We need to-..." Evelyn trailed off as she began to sniff around, smelling the aroma of smoke in the air. "Do you smell that?"

"Smells like a cannon just fired some grapeshot..." Gin analyzed the smell intently.

"Where there is smoke, there is fire, but where?" Evelyn surveyed the area to look for a fire, but nothing seemed to be burning. "An incendiary device perhaps? No, that couldn't be."

"Wait... look over there." Gin pointed towards the strange stallion shrouded in a ragged robe, the same one who pushed her. "You can barely see it, but... there's smoke coming off that guy."

Sure enough, there it was. Barely visible in the dark room, but noticeable nonetheless. It radiated off the stallion like an aura, and as he passed by other ponies, they all began to notice. His breathing was heavy and slow, and he had a hump in his back that made him look crippled and old.

"Who is that stallion? He's givin' me the creeps." Gin whispered to Evelyn, who was trying to avoid catching the attention of the mysterious stallion that simply stood silently in the middle of the station.

"I don't know, but he could have some sort of bomb strapped to him... security will investigate shortly,"Evelyn answered her as she stood up. "We can't get his attention or he'll see us and recognize me."

After a few minutes, the stallion moved over to a nearby food stand. The stand owner didn't say a word, as the strange stallion offered no salutations, and his demeanor was far worse than grim- almost bone-chilling. The stallion did not purchase anything, he simply stood in front of the stand owner breathing heavily.

Eventually, the stand owner mustered up enough courage to speak to the shrouded stallion. "E-Excuse me s-sir, but I have other customers... you need to buy something."

The stallion looked back at the non-existent line-up and chuckled lightly. "I don't see anypony else..."

"P-Please, you have to leave!" The stand owner stuttered as he began backing away slowly.

A police officer showed up within minutes, his hand on his holstered pistol and a curious look in his eye. "What seems to be the problem here?"

"Officer, he won't leave me alone!" The stand owner cried as he kept backing away.

"Sir, either purchase something or leave." The police officer instructed the odd stallion nicely as he placed his hand on his shoulder. "Sir, please- ugh!"

The malicious looking stallion slammed his palm into the police officer's chest, blasting him backward into a nearby pillar and rendering him unconscious as the back of his head slammed into the stone structure. The other ponies walking by noticed right away, and soon, the entire populous of the station was running for their lives and screaming in horror. Gin ran over to the police officer who was slumped over on the ground next to a giant crack in the stone pillar behind him where he had impacted.

"He's alive, but he'll have a nasty headache in the morning!" Gin yelled over to Evelyn as she felt the police officer's pulse.

Evelyn approached the stallion cautiously, making sure she didn't make any sudden movements. "I don't want to hurt you... listen, my name is-."

"I know who you are, Evelyn," The stallion coughed violently, "And I know why you're here..."

"Alright... okay, can you tell me why you're here perhaps? Maybe who you are?" Evelyn asked slowly as she activated her suit.

"Something that was left to wither." The stallion wheezed as he removed his robe and cowl. "Ashurr... the first member of Infernalgear."

The unknown stallion was horribly burnt. His skin and fur were gone, and the only remaining flesh on his body was a mixture of muscle and melted fat tissue. On his back was a pressurized metal tank with two tubes that sprouted from the top and attached to his neck, suggesting his lungs were severely damaged, and he required a breathing apparatus. The gas tank was attached to a robotic frame that covered his arms like medical braces. The only thing on his body that retained a slight trace of morality was his sky blue eyes, that might of once had life in them. He coughed and wheezed as he pressed a button on his neck, and in a matter of seconds, the gas tank on his back pumped air into his lungs, or... that's what Gin and Evelyn thought it was until smoke escaped his mouth.

"Oh, dear Archibald Mason!" Evelyn gasped as she watched the charred stallion exhale a large cloud of smoke. "What are you doing with that?"

"I breathe in brimstone like a regular pony breathes fresh air... it fills me." The scorched stallion laughed and coughed at the same time. "And now... it shall fill you too, that is Gek's will."

Ashurr released an explosion of smoke that blew Gin and Evelyn back with great force. The two recovered but coughed as they felt smoke fill their lungs. It was hot and heavy and reeked of death... like the ashes of the deceased. Gin waved the smoke away, but it seemed to have a mind of its own; independently seeking out her nostrils and mouth.

"Who the hell is this guy?" Gin coughed as she tried to blow the smoke away.

"I have... no idea, but he is obviously insane." Evelyn hacked as she breathed in a considerable amount of ash.

Evelyn huffed as she got to her hooves and retaliated. She charged up her suit, then released a wave of energy from her hands that staggered her foe. Gin also joined in the attack and fired her many flintlock pistols she kept tucked in her jacket. Each shot impacted his torso, but blood did not exit through his back, only puffs of smoke shot out as each ball passed through him.

"Uhh, that isn't good..." Gin gulped as she saw each wound heal over rapidly.

Ashurr screamed and fired a burst of smoke at Gin, which knocked her down again, and Ashurr followed up with a firm kick that struck Gin's chest with piercing strength. Evelyn charged another blast of energy and fired it in the form of a beam that rocketed Ashurr into a nearby wall, smashing it down as his body made contact.

"Are you okay?" Evelyn asked Gin as she hoisted her back up.

"Ah, it's nothing... just landed on my big, oversized rear is all!" Gin growled as she prepared two new pistols.

"Alright, I'm sorry!" Evelyn rolled her eyes. "Listen, we've got to get out of this confined space, or we'll suffocate!"

"Agreed..." Gin coughed again as she took in another breath of smoke. "We've got to beat him up faster then."

"Uggh! You are so very infuriating!" Evelyn grunted as she powered up her suit.

"Well, you aren't exactly "Little Miss Sunshine" either!" Gin snapped at the scrawny mare.

Gin was interrupted as a howl escaped the large hole in the wall, announcing Ashurr's next attack. He jumped out of the hole with a devilish look in his eyes, and he propelled himself toward Evelyn first, knocking her back into a nearby food stand. She recuperated quickly and fired an orb of charged particles at his face. He dodged the sphere and blasted her again with a forceful shot of smoke that made her stumble. Gin stepped in when she realized Evelyn was losing ground and punched the charred stallion in the face as he flew by. Ashurr didn't seem fazed, and he returned fire with a barrage of smoke bombs that exploded as they hit the ground, sending blasts of concussive force and clouds of smoke in all directions.

Gin was tossed around violently by the explosions, and she was picked up by her throat before she could even stand again. Ashurr began to choke the poor mare, as his eye's became an evil red in his rage. As Gin struggled to break free from his grip, she felt his hand clasp tighter around her neck.

"I'm going to enjoy strangling you, bitch..." Ashurr snickered as he gripped her even tighter, causing her to gasp for air. "You're gonna- Arrghh!"

Ashurr was so hard-set on choking Gin, he completely forgot about Evelyn, who fired another focused beam of energy directly at the gas tank on his back. The tank burst open, and smoke escaped the metal container in a pressurized explosion. Ashurr dropped Gin in response to the attack and began to wheeze and cough as he breathed in fresh air.

"Arrggh! No! No, no, no! This wasn't supposed to happen! You were all... supposed to die! Stupid, stupid, stupid! Kaiser will... punish me for this!" Ashurr panted as he struggled to breathe in the smoke that was leaving his tank.

As he captured all the smoke in his lungs, he released a giant smokescreen that shrouded him from Gin and Evelyn, and as it cleared he was nowhere to be found. Gin hacked as she got up again, massaging her aching neck.

"Are you alright, Gin?" Evelyn asked the aching mare as she got up from the hard ground.

"Just a little light-headed is all... thanks." Gin grunted as she moved her head around to regain her balance.

"We've got to leave before this smoke chokes us..." Evelyn urged Gin as she ran up the stairs leading back to Corrigan Street.

Gin followed her up the steps back onto the sidewalk where they regained their strength from the intense fight, panting rapidly as they finally breathed in some clean air. The police had completely evacuated the street, and not a single soul was present. Evelyn activated her communicator once again to get in contact with Masami, and she placed the microphone back in her mouth.

"Masami, can you hear me okay?!" Evelyn shouted into her microphone, but there was no response. "Masami? Damn... the smoke must've damaged our communicators. Does your communicator work?"

"Nah, it's all fuzzy..." Gin sighed as she tried listened to her earpiece.

"We better get back to Masami and Draven, they'll probably be worried right about now." Evelyn uttered with a serious tone as she scratched her chin.

"What the bloody hell was that just now? I've seen some messed up shit, but that tops it all!" Gin chuckled as she thought about Ashurr's scarred face, and how it made her skin crawl.

"I have no idea... he was a cultist for sure, as he had the same robes that Liazo described. However, he is much more than a regular member of the cult. Perhaps a part of an inner circle, maybe?" Evelyn suggested as she brainstormed.

"And who do you think that Kaiser guy was that he mentioned? You think he's the leader?" Gin inquired as she thought about what Ashurr said.

"I wouldn't doubt it... most cult leaders usually have their drones do the work for them," Evelyn answered Gin as they both began walking back to Riker's Street. "We have to warn the others, I have no doubts they'll send more of their heavy-hitters to test our strength."

Author's Notes:

And now you've met the first member of Infernalgear, Ashurr! As always, I hope you enjoyed! Leave a like if you did! See you in the next chapter!!