Blood Legacy: Book 1: Darkness Rising

The dim light of the candle was one of two things that lit my way as I walked among the shelves of the old fort’s library. The tall bookshelves towered far above me, but since I was a unicorn, reaching the books on the top shelf proved to very easy. The other source of light was from none other than the bright full moon, which graciously shined it’s pale light through the stained glass window near the top of the room.

It’s light reflected nicely off my pale purple coat, as well as my darker shade of purple mane. My cutie mark was that of an open spell book, which you could tell, meant that I was extremely gifted with magic. The candle began to flicker ever so slightly as I stopped and gazed up one of the shelves, and with a quick breath, my horn began to glow a shade of deep blue, as a few of the books among the shelf became enveloped in my aura, and slowly made their way down to me.

I had to be extra quiet, since I technically wasn't allowed to be here this late, mainly because the other students at the fort, were fast asleep, but as midnight drew ever nearer, I found it increasingly hard to fall asleep. Although I could never explain it fully, I had always found great comfort in the world of literature, not to say I wasn’t the social type, I had many friends among the other students, despite that being a few amount. But when it came to more trivial matters, such as stallions, dates, and overall ‘Girl Talk’ I never really found much interest, which in truth, should interest me since I'm a mare of my early 20’s.

Many of the students here had a similar origin story, either they were left here by their parents when they were little foals, or their parents had been killed by bandits, and they survived, the list went on. I guess you could say my origin story was similar in some ways, I have very vague memories of my parents, and most of the time I can't remember their faces, but they still linger in my mind.

All I did know was that the head teacher at the school, Satchel, had taken me in when I was very small, and raised me as a pseudo-daughter. Not that he paid me special attention in the classes when other students, but he had told me he was close friends with my parents, and that was why he was my adoptive father, and I had no reason to argue. Satchel is a great stallion, and he taught me everything I know about magic.

As my mind reflected through my earliest memories, I failed to hear the library door creak open, and a new presence fill the room. “Star Dust? What are you doing here?” an elderly voice spoke.

I shrieked and nearly jumped a few feet in the air, before I instantly spun around and took a defensive stance, but I felt my heart rate slow when I saw that it was merely Satchel, all dressed up in his dress robe, levitating a candle next to him with his unicorn magic, his dark brown coat illuminated by the light. He had all the typical physical attributes of being a senior citizen, including a grey mane and short beard, as well as a wise look on his face, indicating that there was more to him than ponies initially seen.

Satchel served as the head teacher of our school, along with three other teachers, who each taught certain subjects, while Satchel taught things like ‘Advanced Magical Learning’ and “Equestrian History’. I took a deep breath and calmed myself from that momentary shock, as I gave a sheepish smile. “Sorry Satchel, I…I guess I couldn't sleep…again. So I came here” I said as I began to put the books back in their pile.

Satchel stared at me for a moment, but his confused expression quickly turned into a warm smile. “I see, you certainly have an aptitude for reading, even after class hours. Of course, I shouldn't have to explain to you, again, that the library is off-limits at this hour, especially without an escort” he said with a wise and stern tone, but the smile never dropped from his face.

I chuckled nervously, but he quickly walked over to me and began to levitate the books back up to their proper places on the shelf. “Now then…care to tell me what really brought you here?” he said in a more concerned tone. The nervous smile began to fall from my face, as I remembered the entire reason I had come here in the first place, true it was from lack of sleep, but that was brought on by something different.

“I see…” he said as he stroked his beard lightly and examined my disturbed expression, “You had that same nightmare again didn't you?” he asked, but I felt too ashamed to look up into his eyes. So I did the next best thing.

I nodded.

“Yeah…the same one…like always” I said in a somber tone as I turned away from him and lowered my head, my ears pinned back against my head. By this point, I knew I would never be able to lie to him, because he always found a way to see through it, or somehow get me to admit the truth, through some clever wording.

But it was the same nightmare I had been having for weeks on end, every night always the same one, always the same sights.

Fire.

Buildings Burning.

The terrified cries of mares, stallions, and foals.

I felt a chill run down my spine, but I quickly heard Satchel walk over to me, and place a comforting hoof on my shoulder. “Star Dust, listen to me. I know you must be wandering what these nightmares mean, and I know your frustrated, but I can promise you, the answer will come in time.” He said in his trademark wise tone, which always managed to make me feel better.

I looked up at him and managed a smile, and he quickly returned one, “Come! I have something that will help you sleep.” he said as I levitated my candle to me and walked with him out the door.
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(Vale Town Fortress, Satchel’s Private Study)

Satchel calmly walked through the upper levels of the fort on his way to his study, where he would catch up on some work before heading to bed himself. After giving Star Dust something to help her sleep, he sent her off to her quarters to try and sleep, even making sure she got there safely. They were lucky enough to have an entire fort as their home, which meant each student could have their own room, and even though they had close to 20 students there, the place still often felt empty.

Satchel entered the room with a heavy sigh, and stretched his old bones before he made his way over to the desk. He loved the crackle of the fireplace and, despite the containment spell he placed on it before he left, he enjoyed the warmth on his coat. But before he could fully settle in for the night, the warmth he felt was quickly interrupted, when he felt a cold breeze tickle his coat.

He turned towards the source, and saw that his window was wide open to the outside, letting the cold in, and making the drapes flap gently. Just as he began making his way towards the window, a voice cut through the silence, “Good evening, Master Satchel” a calm and dignified voice rang out, nearly making Satchel jump out of his skin.

He immediately turned to face the intruder, and saw a cloaked stallion standing by the fireplace, a glass of wine levitated by him. The intruder removed his hood, revealing a stallion with a dark blue coat and natural silver mane, which only brought comfort to Satchel. After calming down from the initial shock, Satchel recomposed himself and stood properly, “Master Cross Fire, what an unexpected surprise. I should have known it was you, you always did have a knack for making things purposely obvious.” He said in a smooth tone.

The other unicorn stallion chuckled, and gently sipped from his glass, “It’s good to see you as well, old friend. Nice to see that your reflexes haven’t dulled…too much. I hope you don't mind, but I helped myself to a glass of your wine, it’s rather tasty.” He said as he sipped again.

Satchel groaned slightly and walked over to his wine cabinet, removed as glass and the bottle his friend had poured from, and poured himself a glass. After returning to his desk, and taking a sip of his wine, Satchel turned to address his friend. “So…to what do I owe this surprise visit? Business or Pleasure?” he asked in a calmly fashion.

The other stallion chuckled lightly and placed his glass on a nearby table, “Well, as much as I would want to say I am here to catch up on lost time, I’m not. Sadly, I'm here on important business, the Grand Master sent me” he said, and just as Satchel heard those last words, he nearly dropped the glass that was near his lips.

Satchel cleared his throat and swallowed nervously, and then turned to his friend, still trying to remain calm and dignified. “The Grand Master sent you? Has something happened?” Satchel asked with a concerned voice. Cross Fire simple sighed and drank down the last of his wine.

“I’m afraid so. Something that involves your student…Star Dust” he said in a somber tone. But hearing the name of his pseudo-daughter be mentioned at a moment like this, only brought dread to his mind.

Satchel waited for his colleague to continue, which he did after composing himself again. “As I'm sure you are aware of, a few months back, one of our intelligence convoy’s was raided by imperial soldiers, and many classified documents were stolen. One of such documents, held Star Dust’s location, as well as the other students here.” He said as he let Satchel soak up and process the words.

Satchel stood dumbfounded for a moment, fear beginning to cloud his mind, but he swallowed nervously and drew a shaky breath. “How? How could they have possibly found that information? Those files were heavily coded!” Satchel spoke out in a more outlandish tone, which was unusual, compared to his normal calm demeanor.

Cross Fire simply nodded, “Yes, those files were coded, but we believe that the Emperor’s Spell Master, Night Storm must have completed the code. We believe that they will be coming for her.” He said in a calm yet worried tone, as they both could only imagine what would happen if she was found.

Satchel found himself at a loss for words, which rarely ever happened, but this time had been different. Cross Fire noticed his friend’s hesitation to speak, so he continued with the real reason he was here. “The other Masters and I…talked it over with the Grand Master. We believe…that it is time we move her” he said in a straightforward tone.

Satchel’s ears perked up at the words, as he stared into his friend’s eyes.

“What? You want to move Star Dust? But…I'm not sure if she’s ready, she hasn't finished her studies!” he began to babble various reasons as to why she shouldn't be moved, even though he knew deep down, that this was the best move. He wanted nothing more than to protect her from harm, that was the promise he made to her parents, and the other masters.

Cross Fire placed as hoof on Satchel’s shoulder to calm him, “We know you care greatly for her, and that you think of her as your own daughter, but doing so will not bring back your own daughter. The Grand Master placed her in your care, so that she might grow up away from all this trouble, and you've done a tremendous job, she’s a very gifted magic user, just like those before her, and you've taught her everything you known. But…she would have to find out the truth sooner or later, you know you can't protect her from it forever.” He said in a wise and comforting tone, which Satchel felt was strange since he was normally the go-to stallion for wise advice.

Satchel stood there for a moment, simply taking in what his friend said. He didn't want to believe that it was true, but he knew there would be no other way, the only thing he cared about was Star Dust, and the other students, which brought up another question. “If were moving Star Dust, then what would stop the empire from slaughtering the other students here?” he asked his friend.

Cross Fire seems slightly surprised by the question, which made he take a few steps back slightly. “Fear not my friend, the students here will all be moved to new places, but our main priority is Star Dust, if the empire notices a sudden exodus of ponies from Vale Town they will be encouraged to attack quicker. The other students will be moved shortly after Star Dust, in smaller groups every other day” he said with a more confident smile.

Satchel sighed and watched as his friend approached the window, and opened it once again, letting the cool night breeze in. Cross Fire quickly hopped up and turned to his friend, “The other masters wish to have a meeting tomorrow, so I would suggest you find a way to clear the students out for the day, we will discuss further details then, farewell Satchel” he said as he jumped back and disappeared, just as his magical aura closed the window behind him.

Satchel sat by his desk for a few moments, simply letting everything he had just learned fully sink in. he levitated his glass over to him and downed the rest of his drink, before placing the glass on his desk.

Tomorrow was going to be a hard day.
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(Vale Town Fortress, Star Dust’s Room)

Satchel was right when he told me that his little trick would help me sleep, mainly because the second my head hit the pillow, I was pretty much asleep. Satchel had told me that his trick meant for a dreamless sleep, especially for those ponies like myself who had troubled dreams.

The next thing I felt was the warm of the sun, draping down across my face, shining through my closed eyes, making it harder to stay asleep.

Ugh! Go away sun! Let me sleep some more!

I groaned to myself, but the light persisted to wake me up. I silently cursed to Celestia about her mornings, but I knew I couldn’t fight it. I slowly pushed myself out of the bed and looked around the room, my tired eyes finally resting on my clock, which read well past my usual wake up time.

Crap!

My eyes shot open in shock as I hurried out of bed and nearly tripped as I made my way to the bathroom to try and get ready, “Can't believe I slept in…” I grumbled to myself as I hoped into the shower and turned the warm water on. Despite the nice feeling it had as the warm water ran down my coat, I quickly washed all parts of my body and coat, and then dried myself off with a towel and moved to the mirror, towel still wrapped around my waste.

I knew Satchel wouldn’t like the fact that I was late to class…again, so I had to try and hurry. I fixed my mane to it’s normal form, which was tied back into a tail of it’s own, that hung around my shoulder, which I had come to accept as my usual style. I quickly smiled to myself and went out into my room to collect my books for the day, silently praying that Satchel wouldn't be mad.

Just as I set my books into a pile on my desk, I heard a quick knock on my door, “Come in!” I called out as I put the books in my bag, along with all the necessities, such as paper and pencils. I heard the door quickly open and I turned to see none other than Satchel at the door, smiling warmly at me.

“Ah! You are awake, judging by the way you're going about, I take it you slept in?” he said with a light chuckle. Despite my initial hopes, I felt a light blush appear on my cheeks, as I set my bag on my back and walked up to him.

“Yeah…sorry about that, I slept like a baby all night, but…I’m ready for class now!” I said in the hopes that he wouldn't scold me again, as it had been in my nature to occasionally sleep in, or fall asleep during some of his more boring lectures.

But I surprised to see him chuckle again, “Actually, that’s why I'm here. A little situation has come up, and I need to have a private meeting with the other instructors. It’s nothing you and your friends should worry about, I just want you to know that classes are canceled for today.” He said with a smile. I could tell based on the way he looked at me, and the feeling I had, that my jaw had nearly dropped to the floor.

“Say what?” I asked in a dumbfounded way.

He smiled again, “Like I said, it’s nothing bad, I just need to discuss some…new learning plans with the other teachers. That, and I know your birthday is tomorrow, so think of this as an early birthday present. I suggest you go and meet some of your friends!” he said as he stepped away from the door.

Birthday? Oh! That’s right, I turn 24 tomorrow!

I composed myself to a point where the bag had dropped from my back and thumped to the floor. I felt a pang o stupidity at the fact that I had momentarily forgotten about my own birthday, but I was still dealing with a bunch thoughts rushing around my head. Instead of questioning the reason of canceled classes like a more attentive student should do, I instead leapt at him and wrapped my hooves around his neck, catching him partially off guard.

“Oh! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!” I said as I rushed out the door, most likely leaving a dust outline of myself in the room.
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(Vale Town Fortress, Main Hall)

I happily trotted down the hall towards the fort’s main entry way, where I would find something to do with my time, although I wasn't entirely sure what, but I would find something.

After making my way through the maze of halls that served the fort, I couldn't help but admire the structure of it all. In many of my classes, we learned about the history of our ‘school’, that it was once a military fort, to warn and protect from northern invasion, but that was back in the old days. We had been told that the place was abandoned, shortly before Emperor Grey Sky had overthrown Celestia and Luna, but still had many valuable items that were forgotten. The story was pretty simple, a group of caravan traders decided to raid the fort for any valuables and saw the rich potential, so they opened a small trading post, where ponies traveling west from the Crystal Empire would have a place to trade while traveling to the western border.

While our town wasn't rich, the caravans that came up here from Van Hoover, brought with them enough supplies so ponies here could live comfortable lives. But living up near the northern most portion of the empire, meant that we had many climate problems to deal with, especially in the winter, when heavy storms would bury us in large layers of snow, but…it was a life of peacefulness and happiness.

“Hey Star Dust!” I heard a female voice call out, by that point I had entered the Main Hall, and turned back to see a unicorn mare of my age, running up after me. She caught up with me and stopped to take a quick breath, “Calm down Crystal, don't wear yourself out this early” I said with a light chuckle, she smirked at me and gave my shoulder a light punch.

Crystal had a light grey coat and a shining light blue mane, and her cutie mark was that of a of open scroll and a quill pen by it, dipped in ink, indicating that she was a very well-rounded pony in many subjects. She smiled at me and we began to walk, “oh shut up! If any of us is a light-weight, it’s obviously you! Miss Read-All-The-Time!” she called out in a playful manner. I knew she was kidding, but I still couldn't help but let a light blush cross my face.

Crystal and I had been friends since our early years at this school, we met in one of our classes, realized we had many similar interests, and we became lifelong friends. But if I had to choose which one of us was the more outgoing and daring type, it would definitely been her, since she was more comfortable talking about stallions and other various girls things, and while I did partake in those conversations with other female students, she was much more…vocal.

I smiled at her snide comment, and bumped her back, “Maybe I do read a lot, but that means I'll be smarter than anypony here!” I said with a proud smile as we continued walking, eventually making our way out to the courtyard.
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(Vale Town Fortress, Courtyard)

Much like the rest of the fort, the outer wall was indeed a testament to it’s time, built with the heaviest stone available, it was easily one of the strongest forts built, long ago. But if one good thing were to have come from Grey Sky’s rule, it would be that after uniting the surrounding kingdoms, let Equestria have access to riches we've never had before, which made old places like this pointless and a relic of the past.

Aside from occasionally being allowed into the town below, the walls and hallways of the Vale Town Fort was all we knew here, as it had become a regular site in our lives.

Crystal and I calmly made our way across the courtyard, and over to the gate, whilst many of the other students were out enjoying the day off, playing common sports and talking with friends.

“It’s so weird that Master Satchel would give us the day off. I mean, he’s done it in the past, but that was really only for holidays, or some other reason, but why today? Is there some holiday we don't know about?” I asked as we walked along the path.

“Who knows? But I'm not one to complain about a day off. Let’s head into town and enjoy the time there, tomorrow is your birthday after all, I say we get a head start on celebrating!” she said with her usual enthusiastic voice. I couldn't help but smile at my friend’s endearing gesture, which is strange considering she had probably one of the most tragic foalhood of anypony here.

The first time she ever told me about her life before this was when we were little, and she snuck into my room one of the nights, as a terrible storm raged outside. I was confused as to why, but she confessed that she was always afraid of lightning and thunder, but after asking her why, she broke down and told me her story. I wrapped us in a blanket and lit a few extra lamps to keep us warm.

She told me that she had grown up in a small town in the western mountains, and that it frequently saw bandit activity. One night, during an unusually violent extortion of her family’s shop, the bandits got cocky and tried to make a move against her and her mother, in which her father jumped to their safety, resulting in his being shot. Not satisfied with just one death, they beat Crystal’s mother and dragged her off with them, leaving her alone with her dying father.

By the time the authorities had arrived, Crystal’s father was long dead, and her mother was long gone. She was put up for adoption when she was founded by one of the school’s teacher’s, who had been traveling in the area, looking for ponies to join them.

It was in these moments, that I questioned how she could look past her brutal past, and remain as happy and enthusiastic about life, but I was not sure if I would ever know.

By now we had made our way to the main gate, and noticed the guard in the tower look down at us. “Hey! We want to go into town!” Crystal yelled up, but the stallion simply gave us a suspicious look. Crystal groaned and called out again, “It’s fine! We have permission from Master Satchel, you can ask him if you like!” she yelled up. The guard stallion simply shrugged and walked to the lever.

After a few seconds, we listened as the heavy oak doors began to creak open, letting the mid-day sun shine in our faces. As soon as it was big enough to fit through, Crystal turned to me with a smug look, “Last one there has to do the other’s homework!” she yelled as she sprinted off at full speed, which was unfair since she was slightly more athletic than I was.

“Hey! No Fair!” I yelled as I quickly sprinted after her, both of us heading straight into town.
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(Vale Town, Market)

As we came into the town, we both stopped near the edge of the marketplace, Crystal pulling in just a few seconds before me. She stopped to catch her breath as I slowed to a trot next to her, “Ha! You have to do my homework now!” she said in a mocking tone.

I simply took a deep breath of air, and smiled at her and gave her a light punch in the shoulder, “Not a chance! You got a head start” I said as we made our way in to the market, where we saw the usual ponies going about their daily lives.

Although we were located in a more remote part of Equestria, we still had a few trading caravans run up here to trade, since we were one of the few places, where ponies could get Heart Stone for a relatively cheaper price, then what traditional government funded stores sold it for.

Heart Stone is a rare mineral, only found in the Crystal Mountains north of the Crystal Empire. Legend has it that the tyrant King Sombra, forced many of his slaves to mine it for his purposes, since it was one of the few elements to have magical energy stored inside it, which could be harnessed with the right spell. Rumors say that Emperor Grey Sky has turned the Empire into a large mining camp, where they mine the mineral, and ship it to New Canterlot.

Vale Town was also known to be popular for hunters, since the area was full of game. Timber Wolves populated the area, and the hunters would sell the wood from them and other various obtained items, since it was commonly known that Timber Wolf wood burned longer and brighter, as well as smelled nicer.

As Crystal and I walked along the shops and stands, the friendly townsfolk greeted us in kindly manners, in which we returned as well. The town seemed as lively as it always did, with ponies going about their daily business, which was one of the many things that I loved about this town, it’s serenity.
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A few hours had passed as Crystal and I went about town, visiting our favorite shops, while Crystal rambled on and on, about how she would love to meet a nice stallion, settle down, open a shop of her own, and have a few foals. I could only roll my eyes at her enthusiasm of her future, but I wasn't one to crush somepony’s dreams.

By the time we had finished running around town, greeting the locals and catching up on lost time, we saw that the sun was beginning it’s descent on the horizon, which came quicker than usual since Vale Town was located in the middle of a valley, or…vale, as the town was aptly named.

As we walked towards the edge of town, and back up to the fort, we both failed to notice the strange hooded pony, walking up to us, she seemed to have the height and shape of a mare, but we were too engrossed in our conversation. Instinctively, we tried to move to the side slightly, but just as she was next to us on my side, she moved close, faster than I could have thought, causing our shoulders to brush against each other.

As if the exact moment we did, I felt an instant cold chill crawl across my coat, and I wished I had brought a cloak of my own, but that wasn't the strange part.

The sight of me walking along the street with Crystal simply flashed away, and I was assaulted with familiar sights:

Fire! Everywhere!

Buildings erupting ad becoming engulfed in flames!

Charred corpses littered around me!

Then…just as quickly as it had come, the visions flashed away…all in a manner of seconds, almost to quick for me to catch on. I quickly found myself kneeling back on my haunches, panting heavily, with Crystal standing in front of me with a worried expression.

“Star? Hey Star! Snap out of it!” she said with a raised tone, and my eyes snapped to meet hers.

I looked into her eyes for a moment in confusion, and then looked around, and saw that everything was as it should be. I stood up and shook my head, “What happened?” I asked her with a distant tone, but she seemed to relieve herself of her complete confusion and manage a smile.

“Well…you spaced out for a moment. You look you had seen a ghost or something.” She said with a more amused tone, which only made me blush in embarrassment slightly. Then I remembered the strange cloaked pony, and I turned around to look, but I saw nothing more than the usual sights of shop keeps cleaning up for the night. “What…what about that pony that passed us by, where did she go?” I asked looking over to Crystal, who seemed to have that confused look on her face again.

“What are you talking about, Star? It was just us walking on the street, there was no other pony.” She said in a calm voice. I looked around again, but there was no sign of the mysterious pony. I sighed and shivered slightly, as the natural late day chills began to blow in. after a few moments of silence, Crystal spoke up again, “Damn, you look kind of pale, we should get back, you look like you could use some rest.” She said as she nudged me along the path, which I obeyed her order, but couldn't shake the feeling that came over me.
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(Vale Town Fortress, Courtyard)

As Crystal and I finished climbing the hill, I had finished explaining for the tenth time, that I don't know what caused my ‘spacing moment’ as she had come to call it. But I wasn't aware that I was in for another surprise.

As we both came up to the gate, we saw that it was already open, and Satchel was standing in front of the gate, talking with an unfamiliar pony. As we walked up they turned to greet us, the other pony appeared as a dark blue stallion unicorn, who looked just as old as Satchel.

This can't be good

As we came up, we both noticed a cart inside the courtyard being loaded up with traveling gear, we came to stop near the two older stallions. “Star Dust. Glad to see you're back safe, I hope you enjoyed your time with Crystal. How are you my dear?” Satchel asked in his usual tone, but I could sense some sort of falseness to it, that I never could see before. Crystal smiled, “I'm doing well Master Satchel, just so you know, I've been keeping Star out of trouble” she said with a nervous laugh, which only earned her a more confused look from me, and unimpressed looks from the two elder stallions.

Satchel smiled again and nodded, “Glad to hear that. But…we have important business to discuss with Star Dust, if you would be kind enough to give us a few minutes, she'll be with shortly.” He said as he gave her a reassuring smile. She looked at him for a moment and then smiled calmly and walked inside the gate, leaving just me and the two elder ponies.

Just as Crystal left, I finally managed to form the right words into speech, “What’s going on? Am I in trouble?” I asked in a worried tone, but Satchel chuckled lightly.

“No Star, you are not in trouble. We have something important to discuss with you, you may remember my colleague Cross Fire, we both studied magic together.” He said in a respectable tone, while the other blue stallion smiled and gave a slight bow, “it’s a pleasure to see you again, I can understand if you don’t remember me, you were a small filly when we last met.” He said in a tone that matched Cross Fire, only it didn't quite have that fatherly element to it.

I stood there with a confused expression, and waited for them to continue, Satchel was the first to speak up. “Star Dust, we have both been tracking your progress over the years, and we've decided to initiate your final tests.” He said with a proud expression, but I reacted differently.

What? Final Tests!?

Millions of thoughts instantly formed in my mind and began to swim around like a crowded market place, trying to purchase thought space. I shook my head to try and silence them, as I pushed up my dropped jaw, “Final Tests? Why now?” I asked in a shocked, confused, and concerned tone.

Satchel briefly glanced at Cross Fire, who simply nodded, and then turned back to me. “Well, you have been doing well in your studies, and while your fellow students are nearing their final tests as well, you are going to be the first. Now, I'm sure you've noticed the wagon we've been packing here, your test…will be taking a trip with Cross Fire and myself, to test your magical abilities in a different environment, to see how well you can adapt to various situations.” He said in a happy tone, but even I could see that he was some different truth to this story he was telling me.

I simply stared at the two in disbelief, not entirely sure how to answer, but Cross Fire stepped in to attempt to ease my misgivings. “I know this may come off as a shock, but this will mean that you can advance to the next level of your studies. You should only be gone for a few weeks, but you will return to see your friends soon enough. You're encouraged to sleep on this, so I would suggest you begin packing and get some rest.” He said, as if he had come prepared to make that little speech.

I stood there for a moment simply staring at him, m gaze quickly shifted to Satchel, who simply stared at his friend in concern, but he looked to me with a reassuring smile.

Despite my initial concerns, I slowly began to make my way to the fort, my mind still racing with confused thoughts.

I knew this was going to be a long night.
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(Vale Town, Outskirts)

Just outside the valley, up along a hill, where the edge of the valley met the Northern Forest, a unicorn stallion in sleek black armor stood, his gaze stretching over the valley, but locked on one single target.

Vale Town Fortress.

They had arrived earlier in the day and made camp not far from the valley, just as they had been ordered to do.

The stallion stood there, simply gazing from afar, at the peaceful northern settlement, as well as the fort it surrounded. He felt the cool night breeze tickle his coat through the armor, and he inhaled deeply, sighing with relief. But his thoughts were interrupted, when another set of hooves broke the silence, and a male voice shattered his thoughts.

“Sir! The soldiers are all ready to go, by your command!” he said with a salute. The armored stallion opened his eyes, and spoke up in a calm, but menacing tone.

“Not yet Lieutenant. Sent a message to the Emperor, let him know we are in position, and inquire on how we are to proceed. The time is nearly here.” He said in a menacing tone, that would scare the daylights of any other pony.

The Lieutenant saluted and walked off back into the trees, the Black armored stallion turned to follow, but not before glancing back at the distant fort, menace glowing in his eyes.

“Soon…you will be mine, girl!”