Secret of the Frost Kingdom

The winding turns kept Overwatch awake and alert as he gazed out the window, watching the mountains go by. Sleepless tugged at his consciousness, and was visible in his fluttering eyelids, his thoughts becoming blurry and clearing up as he shook himself to stay awake.

Night Shade watched her target like a Griffon soaring above its prey. He's defiantly drowsy, when the train enters the tunnel I probably can knock him out and get him into the caboose behind this car... She made note of the other ponies in the car, about 3 others all in the same sleep-deprived state as the Captain.

She didn't notice the duo that sat 2 seats behind her, sitting low in their seats to stay undetected."We're approaching the tunnel Shadow Rouge, should we strike then?"

The hooded mare brushed her turquoise mane aside to eye the maroon stallion next to her, pulling his hood over his black and gray mane.

"Might as well, I'll knock her out while you cast a sleeping spell on the bystanders.."

His red-eye met her's, noticing the eagerness in the blood-red eye. He hesitated, holding the gaze until Air whisper furrowed her brow, "What?"

He shook himself out of it, looking away from her, trying to refocus on the imminent plan.

Overwatch started to doze off, his elbow against the window seal and hoof holding up his cheek. Night Shade readied herself as the tunnel was approaching, her breathing slowing down as she ran the Paralyzation spell through her mind, her eyes seeping yellow smoke.

Air whisper's ears pricked up as she noticed Night Shade's eyes beginning to smoke, "What is she doing?"

Rouge Shadow noticed it as well, "I don't know, but she's up to something..."

"Do you think she knows we're here?"

"She can't know we're here, we got aboard under a shadow spell... Get ready for anything..."

The air stood still, only the sound of the train's wheels clicking against the rails. The sudden whoosh and lighting dimmed in the car signaled the entrance to the tunnel. Night Shade made her move turning invisible as Shadow Rouge sprang to his hooves, moving quickly to her general area.

Night Shade whipped around to the sound of hoof steps behind her, her eyes widening in shock to the presence of Shadow Rouge and Air whisper in the back, and she casted a shield to protect herself from an attack from Shadow Rouge's Incapitation Spell, the quick spell absorbed into her shield leaving her unharmed.

Overwatch stirred to the burning sensation on his chest, and looked down to his amulet to find the heliotrope gem glowing white-hot. "Whoa.. hot! Hot! Hot!" He stumbled out of his seat as he tried to remove the burning amulet when he fell out of his chair and into Night Shade behind him, knocking her off-balance with a yelp form the mare and out of focus as a bolt of magic barely missed her.

"What in Equestria?" She looked down to the Captain, her eyes shrinking to discover that he was awake. Another bolt of energy emitted from the maroon Stallion, but rebounded away from Overwatch, leaving a black mark in the wall. He noticed the attacker; a maroon unicorn about the same size as Overwatch with a horn shrouded in black smoke and eyes burning black fire and smoke. Overwatch jumped to his hooves, shoving the Mare off behind one of the seats, "Stay down!"

Overwatch's horn glowed green as he casted a concussion spell, making a bright flash of light followed by a powerful discharge originated from the tip of his horn, making the maroon stallion fall back stunned by the flash, "Augh! What the heck?"

Overwatch charged at him with a rising yell, right when the Maroon Stallion lifted his head to see a blurry green flash impact him, throwing both of them through the car door and towards the caboose door.

The door was blown off its hinges from the force of the maroon stallion being tackled by a blur of his storm grey attacker, losing grip of each other and splitting apart at opposite ends of the caboose.

Overwatch laying flat on the floor, and shook his head to focus on his maroon opponent, also getting to his hooves and assuming an open stance. The two breathed heavily, both of them inspecting their respective opponent, trying to sum up their weakness and advantages.

"Ever taken hoof to hoof training?" Overwatch taunted the maroon stallion,

"No.. but I don't think that will help you," the maroon stallion drew his face into a snarl.

"I beg to differ," he swayed back and forth, ready to counter anything thrown at him.

The maroon stallions horn glowed and he disappeared in a flash of sparks, but as Overwatch anticipated he leaned forward on his front legs and bucked the reappearing stallion in his chest, stunning him long enough for Overwatch to follow up with an elbow jab, plowing how opponent into the side of the car.

Another teleportation spell made his opponent flash behind him, trying for a overhead double hooved slam, but Overwatch side stepped and as he threw down his front hooves, Overwatch took advantage of his downward momentum and tripped him off balance to fall forward. He followed up with a precise jab below the downed stallion's rib cage, knocking the wind right out of him.

The maroon stallion rolled off to the left quickly getting to his hooves, and winced to the pain under his ribs.

His anger rose in spite of his opponent, his eyes burning gray smoke and casted a quick volley of force bolts. Overwatch's amulet burned against him as the bolts veered off their target, blasting holes into wooden floor of the the caboose.

The Maroon Stallion couldn't believe his eyes, and they flushed red with anger, and he scrapped the floor with his hoof, lowering his horn to point at his target and he charged forward and with a brisk pace spell accelerated faster.

Overwatch had seconds to react and noticed the floor board beneath him was sticking up from the hole, and with all his strength, stomped on it, flinging the board up and threw the charging stallion off balance and he crashed forward and Overwatch threw and uppercut underneath the stallion's jaw right before he collided with him, jerking his head upwards. The two rolled over another, both throwing punches to another in the confusion.

Air Whisper groaned as she got off the floor or the car, her ears still ringing as she stumbled to balance herself, still feeling the after effects of the spell the Storm Grey Unicorn casted. Her eyes shrank as she realized that Shadow Rouge was missing, and her eyes searched the car for her partner, when she heard the sounds of struggle from the next car over.

She appeared in the door of the Caboose, finding Shadow Rouge wrestling with the Storm Grey Stallion, both of them bruised and cuts bleeding from their face or nose. She decided to help her partner is distress, focusing on a paralazation spell to subdue the attacking stallion, but had a hard time aiming for the Storm Grey stallion as the two constantly shifted.

"Shadow Rouge! hold him still! I might hit you!" she called out to him, squinting her smoke seeping eyes.

"What does it look like I'm doing!?" He glanced over to her, leaving him open for Overwatch to knock his balance off and side step him while grasping his left hoof and twisting him into a forward somersault, slamming him into the floor of the car.

Air Whisper took the precise moment and released her spell, but like Shadow Rouge's previous attempt, the spell veered off its path as Overwatch's amulet glowed white hot against his chest. She noticed how the Amulet reacted when she casted a spell, and called down to her partner, "Quick! grab his amulet!"

The Maroon Stallion hesitated, and eyed Overwatch's amulet, as did Overwatch realizing its importance. Overwatch shifted to a defensive stance, bending his knees to lower his height and readied himself to prevent any attempts to let his opponent take his Safeguard.

Then out of the corner of his eye, the Mare teleported next to him, and tried to rip his amulet off him. Overwatch retaliated, only to be stopped by the Maroon Stallion the grabbed him from behind, allowing the Mare to grab his amulet and ripped it off his neck. Overwatch, with his back being held back by the Stallion, using his rear hooves stepped on the Mare to gain enough momentum to flip himself behind the Maroon Stallion, and wrapped his front arm around the Maroon Stallion's neck and threw himself backwards.

The Maroon Stallion struggled as Overwatch kept him in a choke hold, until a sudden zap rippled through him, making every muscle in his body stiffed up, losing all feeling in his entire body. He fell to the side, releasing the Maroon Stallion from the choke hold, and fell to the hooves of the Light Gray Mare, her eyes falling upon him and then darting to her partner, "Maybe you want to give him a taste of his own medicine Shadow Rouge?"

Shadow Rouge took rasp breaths, rubbing his neck and broke into an evil smile, "With pleasure..."

The Maroon Stallion picked him up with magic and threw him out of the caboose, landing between the Caboose and Sleeper car outside. He tried to get up but couldn't feel his body respond to his dire plea to move. The shadow of the Maroon Stallion fell upon him, and his head was lifted up and felt a arm squeeze around his neck, the air slowly escaping his lungs.

"Maybe next time, you will learn not to get involved..." The Maroon stallion taunted him, tightening his grasp around his neck, making his vision blur as the precious air was suffocated out of him. His vision blurred more and more as the minute passed by, his hearing becoming muffled and spots appearing in his vision.

He was about to lose consciousness when a bolt of magic struck the Stallion, and his maroon arm lifted from around Overwatch's neck, the rasp breath sucking in as much air as possible. He was lifted by the Midnight Blue Mare, her eyes somber as she casted a smoke screen to distract the Maroon Stallion and Light Grey Mare as she uncoupled the Caboose from the Sleeper car, and dragged Overwatch inside the sleeper car as she used a telekinesis spell to slow down the Caboose, making the Train pull ahead as the Caboose slowed several meters behind, until it disappeared into the dim light of the tunnel.

The last thing Overwatch could remember before he passed out was the Midnight Blue Mare looking down to him with her piercing Crimson eyes, dragging him into the car as he let the world fall to darkness as his eyes fluttered closed; unconscious.