Wings of Fire

"But... That is not possible. Impossible, to be exact!" Twilight said when Solaris told her his quest. She had decided to stay home in Ponyville while the others went to celebrate Solaris' first day of knighthood. If she was needed, Celestia could send her a letter through Spike anyway. "Blue Phoenixes just don't exist!" She stomped her foot lightly, as if that would prove her point. Solaris shook his head then sent back a statment.

"Not if Zecora assigned me in getting the feathers of one. There has to be at least one blue Phoenix out there." He furrowed his brow, thinking for a moment. "I have an idea. Blue fire is hotter than red fire, correct?" He turned to Twilight, who was walking past him to one of her bookshelves.

"Yes.. The scale of flame heat goes red, white, and blue. Why do you ask?" She looked at Solaris, sizing him up. Even if he wants to be a knight, she thought, sometimes he is too focused on combat. It will take a bit of studying before his mind is ready.

Solaris grew a small smile. "Well, I was just thinking that if a Phoenix is in a hot enough environment, its feathers will turn blue. Of course, that place may be too hot for ponies." He said, lowering his wings and head. Twilight looked at Solaris sympathetically for a moment, then seemed to snap into a realization trance.

"True, but you are a fire-based pony. Maybe if I find something to strengthen your resistance to flame, we could work this out. But first we need to find a possible place that a blue Phoenix could live." She jumped over to a different section of books, and began to browse through them. After a moment, she pulled out one with a bright red cover, and gave a sigh of satisfaction. "Here we go. Fire-related Scorcery and Other Spicy Spells by Pyrose Flameflower. There should be a fire resistance charm in here..." She opened the book up and began to flick through it, eyes flashing over each page.

Spike walked into the room, yawning. "What's going on?" He asked, rubbing his eyes. He had just got up from a short nap when he saw Twilight shuffling around one of the many spellbooks she owned. After getting no response, he turned to his right and began to walk, bumping into Solaris after a few paces.

"Be careful, Spike." Solaris warned. He spread his wings slightly, a natural reaction of winged ponies, and backed up. Spike muttered something in return and left the room, the sound of a faucet and a toothbrush arriving soon after.

Twilight turned, a look of triumph in her eyes. She walked over and set the book in front of Solaris where he could see it. "You study that spell while I find my maps. It's a spell that can only the caster can maintain. No other ponies can help, so be sure you get it right." She trotted off to the lower floor, hoofsteps echoing on the walls.

Solaris gazed over the page, muttering the spell to himself. "Looks like it only lasts an hour." He hissed, glancing that the average time of the spell. He was about to test it when Twilight came up, a scroll of parchment in her mouth. She set it down just in front of the spellbook and spread it out, showing a map of a region unknown to Solaris.

"Unfortunatley, I could only find one map that had a place hot enough for a possible blue Phoenix to live. It's the Mystery Volcano in Elemental Isle, just north of Fire Isle. There are rumors that the volcano is so hot, its flames look like water because they're so blue. There's about a mile radius of dead plants because of its heat, so there may be some Phoenixes in some surviving trees." As she was speaking, she tapped her hoof to a brown triangle with blue streaks on the map. It was far up on a bright red patch of land, which was surrounded by flecks of blue, yellow, green, white, and black.

"Looks like that's where we're headed then." Solaris said contentedly. He picked up the spellbook and the map, placing them in a saddlebag Twilight was offering. After getting other supplies, the two stepped out the door.

"Spike, we're headed to Elemental Isle. we may not be back for quite some time." Twilight called. After a moment of scuffling and a few bumping noises, Spike appeared at the door.

"But Twilight! I've always wanted to go to a different region! Please let me go with you. I promise to behave! Besides, I hear Fire Isle has awesome lava pools!" He already had a backpack on, as if he wouldn't take no for an answer. The pleading look in his eyes made Solaris want to accept, but Twilight shook her head.

"No, Spike. You don't know what kind of creatures live in Elemental Isle. Even if you could make sure you didn't get in trouble, you may not be able to handle them." Her eyes shone sharply with discipline, a slight frown on her face.

"Twilight, if he wants to go, let him go." A warbling voice called from a few paces away. A white Unicorn with a curly purple mane walked up, eyes closed in a look of satisfaction. "Besides, I want to know if there are any special gems in this 'Elemental Isle'. And if anyone can find them, it's little Spikey-wikey." She ended her sentence in a coddling voice, giving Spike a smile. Spike stood frozen for a moment, patches of red rising to his cheeks. After a moment, he shook it clear and turned back to Twilight, a pleading gaze on his face.

After a moment, Twilight finally gave in. "Very well. But you are to stay with us at all times." She gave him a sharp look until he nodded in agreement. Twilight made sure they had the proper supplies and then the three set off.

"We're almost there! So kind of Ferry Boat to sail us over." Twilight nodded to an older grey pony with a silver beard. He nodded back and walked over to the group.

"My pleasure, Twilight. I'm supposed to be meeting an old friend over in Fire Isle, anyway. If you want, they can be a guide for you." The stallion blinked slowly, glancing at Spike. The young dragon had gotten up on a box with some binoculars to see how far Elemental Isle was.

"Why thank you, Ferry. We'd love for them to show us around." Solaris said as he was rifling through his saddlebag. He took out the spellbook Twilight had given him and flipped to the spell he saw earlier. "Fire resistant bubble charm." He muttered. "For those with limited magical strength, it is advised you use the one hour spell. If you are able to, you can sustain it with your magic supply, but if you feel any fatigue, it is reccomended you stop." He thought for a moment then turned to Twilight. "Which do you think I should use, Twi?"

"Since you aren't very experienced with typical magic, I suggest the hour long one. If needed, I can sustain a bubble around us for a while." She peered over his shoulder and skimmed the rest of the page. "There are also a few items you can use to boost the time, but they're all back in Equestria. Oh well."

"Land ho!" Spike called as they pulled into the dock. He darted down the exit ramp, waiting eagerly for Twilight and Solaris to catch up. Once everypony was on land, a bright blue pony with a paler mane walked up. His eyes were the color of live coals, and small sparks shot out of his coat every once in a while.

"This is the friend I was talking about." Ferry Boat explained. "His name is Antonio Firecracker and is next in line for the Firecracker throne in Scorchland, the capital of Fire Isle."

"Woah! So he's like, a prince?" Spike asked. The dragon looked around the pony's body, amazed by the flames flickering on his mane.

"Well," said Antonio with a deep scottish accent. "I guess you could say that. My family isn't royalty, it's just the chosen family to represent Fire Isle in the Council of Elemental Isle." He looked at the two ponies and the baby dragon curiously, then turned, beckoning them further onto the mainland. "Careful. The ground and the air are slightly hotter than what you're used to."

As soon as they stepped a few feet onto land, the three began to sweat a bit. Solaris and Spike were used to it, so they kept their pace up. Twilight, however, began to fall back. Pretty soon, she was panting.

Antonio walked back to her and drew a berry from his pouch. It was pale blue with red spots, as well as small, round, spikes. He gave it to Twilight and explained. "That's a Merriweather Berry. It'll help resistance to heat, cold, etcetera. Luckily they grow anytime. I suggest the two of you have one as well. We're almost to the town, so we can get you some water there."

Solaris cautiously popped the berry Antonio had handed him into his mouth. After a moment of feeling the spikes, he bit into it. The second the juice hit his tongue his face puckered up. "Bit sour, don't you think?" He looked to Twilight and Spike, who were making the same faces.

Antonio chuckled and told them more about the berries. "While they grow all the time, the seasons control their flavors. Since you decided to come here in late Winter, they're sour." He urged them onward. "I can see the top of the church from here. Come on."

When they arrived at Pyro City, as Antonio had called it, Ferry Boat got a call on his phone. After bouts of conversation, he turned to the group. "I have to go. There's a surplus of goods down at the harbor, so they need an extra boat to deliver it. I'll try and be back soon. Watch yourselves, now. Antonio will show you to the volcano."

Antonio stopped in his tracks. "Now wait just a minute." He trotted over to Ferry, a slight scowl on his face. "Take them to the volcano? Are you stark raving mad? I'd rather die than take innocents to Mystery Volcano! Twilight started sweating the moment she set hoof on the mainland. How do you think she'll react when she gets to the mile line?"

Solaris took his chance to intervene. Walking over to Antonio and Ferry Boat, he spoke clearly and simply. "We have a fire resistance spell."

The two stallions exchanged glances, then fell into hushed conversation. Solaris walked back over to Twilight and Spike, giving them a reassuring glance. After several moments, Antonio walked over. "Fine. I will take you. But I recommend you use the spell when we get to the mile line. It'll become pretty intense there, and usually only Fire Isle ponies can withstand it."

The four made their way down the roads of Pyro City, Antonio sometimes exchanging brief snippets of Fire Isle history.

"This is where Hydroxia and Pyron dueled to claim land. Pyron won, but they decided to leave a water monument as a show of good faith. As you can see, we have an Aqua Amethyst, one of the many rare stones of the sea. Then we have an Ember Emerald. This is so far the only one known to be blue. Finally, between them, we have a nice piece of obsidian. We sometimes dig around cooled lava flows, and we've found lots of this stuff near water-soaked areas. Not sure why, but it's a good gesture of unity." Antonio tapped a smooth, black, stone on one of the three pedestals. It was carved into the shape of a raindrop, but also seemed to have tendrils of flame. Depending on the angle you viewed it from, it would look like either a spark of fire or a drop of water.

"But you said earlier that the Water and Fire Isles are enemies." Twilight interjected. "If you don't like each other, why make monuments to honor each other?" She pulled Spike back a few feet, noticing he was looking at the emerald dreamily.

Antonio chuckled. "It's more of a big brother, little sister relation. We fight alot, but in the end we're still friends."

"Oh." Was the only thing Twilight said in reply. She looked around at the various buildings, most of them made from obsidian like the stone on the pedestal. After a few minutes, she asked another question. "Just how many isles are there?"

Antonio paused for a moment, proceeding to count on his hooves. After a moment, he replied. "Well, there's Fire, Water, Earth, Air, Electricity, Dark, and Light. I believe that's seven in all. Of course, they each have their own different region, and then an area in the central isle, called Unity Isle. So if you count that, theres eight. And as you may have guessed, the waterways between the isles are big enough to have them count as islands. We're united, but seperated. Our motto is 'Diversa sed idem, separantur sed unita.' ''Different but the same, separated but united."

"Seven? That means that Electricity doesn't have an opposite..." Solaris murmured. He was looking over the items in a shopkeeper's stall. There were various fruits and herbs, but a trinket caught his eye. It was a pale blue pin in the shape of a moon. A slight movement to expose some sun revealed the surface to be a reflective kind of stone.

"True, but technically Electricity is a sub-region. It used to be part of Air. Electric ponies were sometimes born, and they loved to race around in the rain. Legends say thunder and lightning are Electricity ponies playing." Antonio walked over to the stall Solaris was by. "I see you've got your eye on something. That's a mane pin made from one of the region's gems. It's a common one, but very pretty."

"It reminded me of my sister and aunt. They both represent the moon."Solaris explained. He paused, then sighed. He had reminded himself of his sister's predicament. The castle knights were definitely looking for her, but would it be enough?

"Tell ya what." The shopkeeper said. "This is also a trading stall. Give me something I find interesting, and you can have the pin. Doesn't have to be too extravagant."

Solaris looked up. If he remembered correctly, he didn't have much in his saddle bag. He could risk a peek, though. Opening it up, he pushed past the spellbook and the map. Lying on the bottom was a small shell. Pure white, with a single brown dot. Twilight must have left it in there. I should ask her. He thought.

"Feel free, Solaris. It was for another pony, but she didn't want it." Her voice called. She walked over from the monuments, Spike hurrying after. "I almost forgot it was in there, anyway."

"Thanks, Twi." Solaris said. He gave a smile, then offered it to the shopkeeper.

"Ah. Seashells. These aren't very common here. The water around this isle is a bit too warm for aquatic life to live." She took the shell from Solaris and put it in a sack on her side. She then picked up the pin and handed it to him. "There you are, and thank you for the shell."

"Thanks for the pin." Solaris gave a small nod, and put it in the saddlebag.

"I think we've soent enough time sightseeing, Antonio. We need to hurry to the volcano." Twilight said.

"Right..." Antonio gave a nervous chuckle. "Did I mention there are several lava pits around it?"