Canterlot towers rose towards the clouds and cast stretching fingers along the cityscape. Wild Rain’s fur warmed in the morning sun. The buildings around him however looked little like the spires. They were not run-down by most cities’ standards, but might as well have been mud-huts in comparison to the more regal parts of Canterlot.
The foot of the mountain ran with the city’s edge and formed one side of its walls. In the mountainside at long intervals were great doors leading to artificial caverns dating back from before the arrival of the three tribes. One of these doors did not look as grand as the others. This one was simple and unassuming wood that didn’t even try to hide the fact that it was several rough-hewn planks nailed together.
Rain walked up to the door and pushed it open with his hoof, just as he heard to do. Inside was a long hallway of naked stone leading deeper into the mountain. Inside it seemed darker than what was natural. He stood at the threshold for a few moments, weighing his options. Was he ready to go through with this? He was already here, and he’d never gotten this far before. He shoved his doubt aside and marched into the hall.
The door behind him slammed shut, causing what was left of the light to extinguish. Cautiously he trotted away from the door and deeper into the hall. After two years in the Empire’s Legions he wouldn’t think he would be afraid of the dark, but something about this dark was… Unnatural. There was no other word for it.
Rain spread his wings and felt his feathers scrape across both sides at once. Several dozen steps down the dark seemed to fade slightly. Wherever the light seemed to come from, it cast the hall into a hazy gray. The hall continued deeper and deeper into the mountain. Considering what was down here he wouldn’t be surprised if it went on so far that it came out on the other side of the mountains.
The light grew steadily brighter as Wild Rain walked along until he found the source of the light: another door at the end of the hall shining in the distance. He reached the door and pushed it open to find four other ponies standing in a small room. The room was framed with rough wooden walls, the ceiling and floor carved similar, but much smoother than the hallway.
“Hello,” said a small voice to one side.
Wild Rain looked over to see a young Pegasus mare with a ranger’s hood drawn up. He turned to glance at another three ponies, all stallions: a Pegasus wearing nothing but his fur, a Unicorn in full legionary regalia, and an Earthen squirming not to stand at attention. The Unicorn was obvious: trying to show off his merit. Though, if he got the same note as the rest of them then it wouldn’t be necessary. The Earthen? He must have been a knight judging by his stance. He might have even been a member of the royal guard. The Pegasus stallion was a mystery though.
“What you do to get in here?” Rain asked him. The simplest methods are often the best he thought.
The Pegasus turned towards him “I could ask you the same thing,”
“Yes. But I asked you first,”
“Three years in the ninth Legion,”
“Sixth Cohort?”
“No,” the Pegasus shook his head, “Third,”
“Huh. Still. Small world,”
They both turned toward the Unicorn and waited in silence for him to notice them. The Unicorn looked up at the ceiling. “Second Legion,” he finally said.
“Oh,” the Pegasus blurted. “Sorry?”
The Unicorn shrugged. “It gives me a better reason to be here than most,”
A door on the other side of the room opened with a screech. A grey Unicorn in a black and blue robe stepped through. “Follow me if you would please,” he said moving aside. All five of them moved towards the door and stepped through single-file. The gray Unicorn held up a hoof to stop the legionary. “You’re to wait here however,” The ranger looked back at the legionary as she stepped around him. He shrugged and nudged her through the door. The gray Unicorn closed the door behind him and brought up the rear as they walked down another hallway. This hall unlike the first was well lit and only a dozen meters. At the end was a set of stairs that opened up into a large chamber at the top. The chamber was a dome under the mountain with several doors exactly like the entrance cut out of the walls.
An old grey unicorn stood in the center of the room. Like the one that had lead the group through the door he was dressed in a black and blue robe, but his was much more ornate and the hood was down showing ragged ears that looked as if something had gnawed at the backs of them. “You stand here at a precipice,” he said. “You will sacrifice much to gain much, much more. But this way is not for the faint of heart. You may turn away now and none shall believe you are any less brave, but past this point there is no return. Speak now and turn away or stand and face the challenges before you. Either way, make your choice and accept its consequences,” The old unicorn waited, staring at each of the ponies before him. None wavered from his gaze. They all knew what they were stepping into. The old unicorn nodded and took their silence as acceptance. “The path has been chosen. May the light of the moon guide you,” he said, turning from them and walking to one of the doors.
Rain turned in confusion toward the other three for some clue as to what they should do next. Behind each stood a robed unicorn looking much like the one that had led them into the room. He whirled around to look behind him, fighting every instinct to jump as he met the eyes of the mare that was standing there. Her coat was the same gray as the others and in stark contrast with the strands of pink hair not quite hidden by her drawn up hood. She smiled almost unperceivably at his startled reaction. This close he could see her eyes were yellow surrounding black slits seeming to fall into oblivion. “Come with me if you are sure,” she spoke. She started to walk towards one of the doors as the others had, each leading a pony to a different door. Rain hesitated and looked towards each of the others he had come in with, but they were already following their own guides. The mare that had stood behind him was almost to her door by the time he looked back, forcing him to canter over to catch up with her.
Through the door was yet another hall, which seemed to be the theme for the builders. The room at the end had no other exits however and lacked any lighting at all. “Wait here for us to return,” the mare told Rain as she shut the door behind him. He was in all but perfect darkness just as he had been when he first stepped in from the outside world. The door seemed to bleed off a small amount of light from the hall but he still had trouble finding his own hooves. His eyes took several minutes to adjust to the blackness around him before he could make out his surroundings. The room was carved out of the raw stone, just as the rest of the structure. But stretching up from the floor and down from the ceiling were four large pillars marking out a perfect square, the ceiling falling away into the darkness in the center.
Wild Rain sat between the pillars to contemplate the path that had led him there, the paths that still stretched forward from him. He thought of everything he had heard about this place and the ponies in it. He thought about everything he knew about what was going to happen next.
A light shone down on him, burning his dark adapted eyes. He waited for them to become accustomed to the light once more before looking up again. What little he could see around the glare from the ceiling was a hole, stretching on for what seemed forever. The hole looked like it went straight up and the glare refused to go away no matter how long he was in the light. It must have been The Princess’s Sun. If it went as straight up as it looked than the time must have been about noon. If that was true than he had been there longer than he thought.
The door swung open behind him revealing two of the grey unicorns. One was the mare that guided him to the room. The other: a stallion levitating a leather case that clanked slightly as it bounced. “Stand in the light,” the stallion barked as he set the case on the ground. The mare with the pink mane walked around to his other side and placed a hoof on his shoulder. Rain looked over to the stallion and saw him laying out several cutting knives of various sizes, many pairs of pliers, and two short golden daggers. The stallion took out a small glass vial and held it up towards the light to see some refraction Rain didn’t even pretend to understand. Rain jerked back as the vial was thrust in his direction.
“Here, drink,” the stallion barked once again.
Rain took the vial from the air into his fetlock. “What is it? What’s it for?” he asked.
The mare took the stopper in her mystic grasp and replied “So you won’t die,”
Rain downed the whole vial in a single gulp, retching at the taste of sweat and moldy bread. The stallion took the opportunity to grasp Wild Rain’s mane and slash at it with the knives. The mare chanted in response: “The sacrifice of vanity, to become united under the guise of the Moon,” Rain watched the strands fall to the floor in clumps.
The stallion and mare returned to the case, replacing the knives and retrieving sets of pliers. The two turned towards Rain and his apprehension mounted. The mare tapped the pliers to his lips and motioned downwards. Rain opened his mouth and felt the metal instruments grasp his teeth.
“The sacrifice of bone, to aid you in your life under the Moon,” the mare chanted as the two pulled. Pain resonated through Rain’s lower jaw as the pliers twisted in his mouth. His head jerked down as the teeth finally came free. He winced and felt around the new holes in his jaw; the copper taste of blood gushing to fill his mouth. The two unicorns took the opportunity to grasp the matching teeth on his upper jaw. Before rain could register the grasp of the metal tools, they were out as well.
Rain felt their magic grasp his wings and began to panic. He tried to pull away by reflex but the magic held him firmly in place. “The sacrifice of power, so that it may be returned to you tenfold,” the mare’s words struck a chord of terror that amplified at the sight of the knives returning.
Lightning swam through Rain’s nerves as steel bit into flesh. Unmercifully small slices cut through the sinew that had given him the gift of flight. His remaining teeth clamped together, forcing the air in his lungs to fight for a way out. He sagged down, muscles giving out from under him. The two unicorns continued to hold his wings in place, unfazed by their patient’s sudden weakness.
Rain’s entire essence erupted in fire as blade scrapped bone. The very sound of it threatened to bring his last meal from the depths of his gut. He half-hung in the air, panting heavily. If he had the strength to look up he would have seen the two unicorns look towards each other and exchange a nod. As one the two twisted and shattered bone.
Rain barely caught himself; every muscle in his body screaming in protest. Standing on one shaky leg, he felt the weight of a hoof near his flayed shoulder. He turned his head to see the mare gazing back into his eyes. “Look up,” she all but whispered. He obeyed and stared up the shaft in the ceiling. “These eyes see the tyranny of the sun for the last time,”
Two golden daggers gleamed above his eyes in the yellow light of the sun and the orange glow of the mystic grasp that held them. The magic ceased and the blades fell. Rain let loose a wrenching scream. The blades turned and pulled, something wet following them as darkness filled his vision.
Rain fell to the cold stone floor, fluids draining from his wounds. He felt a strip of cloth drape around his head, covering the gaping holes in his head. The hoof left his shoulder. The door shut behind retreating steps. He was left in darkness, in silence. Alone with only his thoughts. His head swam and he wished in vain to pass out of consciousness. His mind however was aware of everything and every fiber of his being screamed in pain.
Rain lay for what had to be eternity feeling every torn tendon, every shorn strand of sinew, every maimed muscle. The door opened and hoof-beats echoed in the silence. A form pushed up against him and guided him into a standing position. The pony he leaned heavily on nudged him forward through the door. They came to a halt soon after. The pony tried to get under him as much as possible before they continued. A sense of vertigo came over him as he fell. The pony lowered him slowly until his hoof touched ground again. He’d forgotten about the stairs.
The fear of falling multiplied tenfold when sight was gone. Every step was a sheer cliff to a bottomless pit. The ground seemed to be farther and farther away every time, though Rain’s apprehension might have merely caused him to slow instead. They walked onward for what seemed to have been miles to him, pausing only for an occasional door.
One door opened to a cool breeze, the night air biting into maimed flesh and numbing the whole. The pony below him pushed away, leaving Rain standing on shaky legs. “Neophytes!” boomed a deep voice. “You have survived a great ordeal. No small feat,” hoof beats sounded off the stone floor as the voice started pacing. “You have given much: your very magic itself. But there are many kinds of magic in this world of ours. Those scholars in the palace have the idea that maybe we are descended from a Zebra tribe that learned to focus their own magic essences instead of using those of the world around them,” The voice inhaled sharply. “Now I don’t know how much stock you might give to that, but what it does tell is that we do not hold a monopoly on magic. Not we as Unicorns. Not we as ponies. Not we as living beings. There are fonts of magic all around us in this world more powerful than the greatest sorcerer to ever come out of Canterlot. Come now all, and let these magics return to you what is lost in the shape of the Moon.” Hooves shuffled and liquids poured.
“Ashes of a cold flame, blood of a dragon, queen of the night petals,” Another voice, this one feminine. “These shall awaken and focus in you the power of the Moon,” the sounds of drinking came from Rain’s right and moved closer until cool ceramic pressed against his lips. The vessel tipped back, sending the liquid inside rushing and dribbling down his face. He opened his mouth and resisted the urge to gag at the taste of copper and soapy dirt. He swallowed; the combination of the liquid going down and pain almost sent his nausea over the edge. The vessel moved away and the sounds moved off to his left.
The noises ceased and the booming voice returned. “Awaken!” it screamed as the hum of Unicorn magic resonated all around them. “Awaken wights of the night!”
Rain’s nausea returned. Pressure built within his skull. The muscles in his back, maimed and whole alike, rippled beneath the skin. Pressure turned to pain. The bones of his skull and jaw shattered and reformed. Sharp points pierced his skin where his teeth were removed, drawing fresh blood from the wounds. Bones shifted in his back, unconcerned about what they were forcing though. Jagged ends jutted through his back. Muscle and tendon agonizingly pulled along out of his body. Brilliant bright lights burned his eyes. His eyes…
Rain stood straight; his body still shifting around, but only just. He reached up to the cloth around his head and pulled down. Dozens of ponies surrounded him. They were Earthen, Pegasi, Unicorns, mares and stallions, young and old, with manes of every imaginable color. But all with the same black robes, all with the same grey fur, and all with the same yellow cat-like eyes.
Rain turned his head to the ponies beside him. He saw the Earthen from the entrance, but he was bigger, grand muscles rippling below the skin and the same fur and eyes as the others. Rain looked the other way, seeing the ranger and the other Pegasus. Their fur and eyes had changed like the others, but their old wings were gone: replaced by ones bony and black with fleshy membranes where feathers should have been. Rain looked behind him to see the same wings coming from his own back.
Turning back ahead of him, Rain saw the Unicorn from the legion standing with the crowd, cloaked in his own black robe and staring at the sky. The Unicorn looked straight at him with slit pupils widening in the night. With a blink the yellow eyes glowed moonlight silver-blue.
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Excerpt from Early Imperial Military History by Ellipsis
The Order of Eclipse is a pseudo-religious order of warriors and mystics that arose shortly after the war of Chaos. The original members were members of a Unicorn cult devoted to an obscure moon related deity. After the war and the proceeding shattering of thousands of years of culture, the cult reformed themselves and devoted themselves to the Diarch associated with the Moon. The order does not stand out due to its religious origins, a rare sight after the war, but it is significant due to the public opinion towards it. Unlike many forces from the losing side of the war between the diarchy, the animosity towards the Order lasted only a century, after which it regained an honor equal to, if not exceeding the Royal Guard. Contrarily, other forces from the losing side of the war, such as the second and fourth legions still remain “tainted” even after almost a millennia; the two acting as penal units to this day.
