Ch. 1 -The Ice Pony Cometh
Cyan Frost
Leader of the Ice Ponies
-Chapter 1-
The Ice Pony Cometh
It was a cool day in Equestria, a chill blew across the lands that gently pierced itself into the flanks of everypony. The royal guards of Canterlot pondered a simile such as this as they stood watch at the doors to the royal Banquet Hall. Inside, Celestia held conference with the six ponies from Ponyville. As the chill slowly became a stronger gust of winter, Princess Luna galloped to the doors and strode into the hall to join the meeting.
As the doors slowly closed, a faint snowfall began to sprinkle down from the clouds. Everypony looked up in awe as they realized what was occurring. An unplanned snowfall on the day before Winter Wrap-Up! Weather ponies from all around flew up into the clouds in an attempt to halt the storm but it seemed like the clouds were frozen in place. In fact, any pony that touched the pillows of the sky found themselves with a chill that would make even the most cold blooded colt shiver slightly as their hooves made contact.
The snow fell harder and harder and a commotion rose from the unicorns of Canterlot. An elderly pony that ran the magic section of the library had apparently spawned the idea that he could perhaps perform a spell that would stop the snow. As his horn began to glow, his hooves began to frost over. Before he could act against the chill the ice covered encased him in its unforgiving grip. Luckily a local store owner nudged him inside as to not shatter him but thaw him out in the heat of the furnace.
The doors to the Banquet Hall flew open as the ponies inside burst out in a full on sprint to see what the commotion was about. As they reached the balcony they all stopped in their tracks and stared up at the sky. Celestia and Luna shared a quick glance and turned to face Twilight and the others.
“Do you remember the story of how Equestria was founded?” The princess of the dawn had a worried look upon her face, her upper lip covering the other in a way that made her muzzle look somewhat shortened.
“You mean like the time the Unicorn, Pegasus and Earth ponies all got into a fight about the storm and ended up settling right here?” Twilight spoke quickly, wearing a look of confusion equal to the others standing beside her.
Luna spoke slowly, in her usual powerful tone, the Royal Voice beginning to rear its head in the stress and panic of the situation. “We mean to speak of the Windigoes, the beasts of the sky that almost froze over all of pre-Equestria. The horses that fed off of anger and hate to brew a cloud of ice that caused the founding of where we stand today, and might have soon succeeded in the conquering of the land.”
“And y’all think that those frosted things are a’comin back? Causin this storm?” Apple Jack beamed at the sky, attempting to understand the Royal Court’s projector with the conversation.
“It is possible, but I am not so sure that they could be here, now. I have not heard of any conflict great enough as to cause this phenomenal occurrence.” Everypony hung on the words of Celestia, hoping for an explanation. “And this is not the kind of storm that would be caused. No. It is something different. Something powerful but mild, a force that does not want to be stopped, cannot be halted. I fear we will have to let it play out on its own.”
Just as she spoke a bolt of cyan lightning flashed down from the sky on the side of a mountain. A plume of snow billowed up from the sight of impact, causing a small avalanche. Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy looked to each other for some direction, then flew up and away. Celestia and Luna told the other ponies to stay where they were and flew after the pair ahead. Several Royal Guards did a double take, surprised by the sudden action, and bolted away to follow the Court.
Rainbow Dash flew faster than usual, sprinting on the edge of sound in an attempt to reach the sight before something could happen. Pinky Pie wondered what was so important about a flash of lightning and muttered her thoughts allowed. Rarity replied that she believed it was the odd fact that there was even a bolt of lightning to be seen, what in such a storm as this. Twilight performed a spell that summoned a telescope, one with enough ports for everypony to view what was happening.
In the thrill of the moment, the telescope focused on something rising from the impact. A large icicle, almost the tip of a glacier, rose from the snow and began moving its way toward the castle. The odd thing was, it didn’t slide or grind, it moved like a series of stalagmites, one appearing in front of the other so that it looked like a constant wheel of ice ripping out of the freshly fallen snow. A boom sliced through the air each time a new spike rose up, like a muted Sonic Rainboom that was so powerful it stopped and stopped at a speed faster than sound. It sounded like cannon fire that pierced the air for miles around Equestria.
Rainbow had to turn around mid-dash and make her way back to the balcony, being outrun by a piece of frozen water. The others, being fairly close to the balcony due to the lack of speed that was possessed only by Rainbow Dash, turned and made their way back to the palace. Celestia’s hooves touched the floor just as the ice-mass reached the foot of the wall. Instead of barreling through the side, it inverted and began to climb up to where the ponies now stood. The thing that scared everypony the most was that it didn’t lose speed on the turn. Not even a talented group of fliers like the Wonder Bolts could pull off a turn like that without losing speed. In fact, the thing seemed to be going faster.
It climbed up the underside of the balcony and over the railing to land in front of the group as Rainbow touched down behind Apple Jack. The whole herd staggered back a step when the ice began to take shape, snapping and crackling as if being run under warm water. Even Luna and Rainbow, the fearless equestrians they were, gasped at the sight before them.
In front of their very eyes, a shape was taking form. It had the horn of a Unicorn, the wings of a Pegasus, and a body with muscles tamed like an Earth Pony. Its body was crystal, solid ice that could move but still maintain density. Upon its flank rested an image of a bolt of cyan lightning coming from a cloud that also rained snow, the only true color on the pony that didn’t have a bit of iced texture to it. And as a snowflake floated down onto its muzzle, the horse turned, its gaze screwed onto everypony at once without looking at any one in particular. Its eyes emitted a kind of cold not known to even the wise princesses. The mouth of the horse flowed open like any others, but held with it a kind of frozen motion as its deep voice gripped the air.
“Greetings, Equestrians. I am Cyan Frost, leader of the Ice Ponies.”
