Blood Legacy: Book 1: Darkness Rising

The last thing I remember feeling was an overwhelming amount of rage boil through my veins, but that feeling quickly gave way to an unbearable amount of sadness and fear flow through me. I felt like I was trapped in some alternate dimension, unable to control my own body and magic, but I could see it all unfold before me. I can’t exactly remember what I saw, but I knew it was horrible, it was a part of me that I had never known existed.

It wasn't me!

Only this side of me, seemed perfectly more content with causing pain and terror whenever it was unleashed. The visions of what happened still elude me, but I can clearly remember the screams, the sound of metal ripping through flesh, and the gut-wrenching sounds of bones cracking.

Never before in my life had I felt such a rage, one that would cause me to lash out at the nearest living thing. But I had also never felt that brutal amount of fear and sadness, that washed over, as I vividly remembered the sight of my adoptive father die before my eyes.
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I felt a strange sensation of cold, like I was caught out in the middle of the icy northern tundra, with no hope of warmth or safety. But in a way, I felt welcomed inside of it, like I was embracing a new side of me I never thought possible.

With a heavy groan, I felt my eyes began to inch open, but my vision had become to blurry to tell where I was. The last place I remember being, was inside Satchel’s study, but that was before I was taken by the overwhelming darkness. Along with the strange chilling sensation, I felt a throbbing pain in my head, that only seemed to increase as my eyes opened further.

Not long after, my vision began to return and I looked around to see I was in a sort of tent, with a single lamp lighting up the place. Judging by the level of light outside, I saw that it was still nighttime, and although I wasn't sure how long I had been out, before I could investigate further, I heard the clopping of approaching hooves, and I immediately turned my head to fake my sleeping.

I heard the flap of the tent by pushed aside and closed my eyes so that they wouldn't know I was awake. “She’s still sleeping?” I heard a young female voice ask, one that I instantly recognized as Crystal’s, but a male voice quickly broke into conversation.

“She’s been through a tough ordeal, it will take time for her body to rejuvenate itself. I’m not sure how long it will take, but we better hope she wakes up soon.” The male voice answered back, one that I could scarcely remember as Cross Fire’s voice.

I suddenly felt a weight on the side of the bed, and a hoof stroke down my cheek lightly, followed by Crystal’s sigh of sadness. “What was that we saw? I’ve never seen anything like it.” She said in an unsure tone, but I heard Cross Fire sigh sadly.

I began to feel the urgent need to open my eyes, and let them know that I was listening to their conversation, but I was just as eager to hear Cross’s answer, as Crystal was.

“It’s…not something I can explain to you now, but I will in time. She should be fine when she wakes up, but as for her mental state, that I cannot say. But…she is one very lucky mare, it’s not the first time something like that has happened to a powerful and gifted unicorn. We should go, we must finish tending to the wounded.” He said in a quiet tone, as if not trying to wake me.

I felt the weight lift off the side of the bed, and the tent flap open and close again, and then silence. I allowed myself the smallest peek, and saw that nopony else was in the tent, I sighed sadly to myself and closed my eyes for real, and let my tiresome body fall into sleep again.
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(New Canterlot Castle, Throne Room)

Emperor Grey Sky paced back and forth in front of his throne, his mind racing with many thoughts, just the night before, he felt an incredible magical disturbance in the night, one that prevented him from sleep.

As he paced impatiently, the door to the throne room opened, and Night Storm calmly walked in. as the Emperor paced, he turned to see Night Storm walk up with a calm expression, and watched until he took a respectful bow.

“You summoned me, My Lord?” he asked as he stood up, the calm expression on his face. Grey Sky simply sighed and stopped his pacing to face his advisor, and Night Storm could see the displeased look on his face.

“Tell me Night Storm, what news from our agent?” he asked in an impatient tone, and despite his aggravated state, he did his best to remain as calm and dignified as possible. Night Storm stood there for a moment and sighed.

“Ah yes! The Black Ranger…radioed in this morning, he has done as you asked, and wiped out the school of Light Seeker apprentice’s. But…there was a problem, when he confronted the girl. As he reports, he was bested by the girl, when she unleashed an overwhelming increase of magical energy, and killed three of his finest soldiers with swift ease. He made a tactical retreat, but he wants to assure you that he will capture her again. As for the others, we have reports that he managed to kill one of the Order’s highest ranking masters.” He said as he reported the news, as the agent had described it.

Grey Sky stood listening for the moment, letting all the information sink in, before he turned and made his way over to the nearest stained glass window, and simply gazed outside. “So…she truly is the one were looking for. That explains the disturbance I felt the night before. Now…your telling me, she’s escaped and running rampant across my lands?” he asked in a tone, that seemed to tense more and more as he spoke.

Night Storm watched in his usual calm demeanor, in all the years he’s served the Emperor, this wouldn’t have been the first time he’d seen him tense or angry. As his loyal advisor, he knew better than to say anything that might provoke him further. Emperor Grey Sky raised his hoof and looked at it, before his expression turned angry, and he yelled out as he punched the stone next to the window, with enough force, that the stone cracked around his hoof.

Night Storm merely flinched at the sight, but he had seen it before, and the power his Emperor held was amazing. Grey Sky pulled his hoof back and examined the light scrape on his hoof, which magically healed itself. He slowly turned and walked back over to Night Storm who remained as still as always, even despite his Emperor’s tense mood. Grey Sky walked right up next to his advisor and brushed his mane away and spoke directly into his ear, “Tell the Black Ranger to pursue them, if she were to reach the Light Seeker’s before that, then your job will become that much harder. If she succeeds in her task, then she could threaten everything I have built. Am I Understood?” he asked in a slow and menacing tone.

Night Storm simply stepped away and turned to meet his eyes, “Of course your majesty, their only option is to go south from Vale Town, and I will have the Black Ranger monitor those roads. I assure you, we will find them. I shall have him use the Shade’s.” he said before giving a respectful bow, and making his way out of the room. Grey Sky simply watched him go until the door closed behind him, leaving the Emperor as the only one in the throne room.

But before he could return to his throne to relax, he felt the pendant around his neck vibrate against his chest, his eyes widened as he pulled it and saw it glowing faintly, with the symbol of his master. Grey Sky cleared his throat and smoothed his mane back, before he turned to his throne, and pressed the pendant.

He looked up to see a magical window open before him, only to be greeted by a pair of fiery eyes glare back at him through the void. He himself got down and gave a respectful bow, “Master Nocturne, an honor to see you again. To what do I owe this surprise visit?” he asked in a calm tone, but no voice answered at first.

A loud booming voice answered back, “Spare me the formalities Grey Sky! I have felt a great disturbance in Equestria…one of great magical power.” The voice answered back. Grey Sky felt the slightest bit nervous toward this comment, but he recomposed himself, and addressed the shadowy figure.

“Indeed My Master, I have felt it too. I am confident that it is the mare we’ve been searching for, she’s finally come out of hiding. She managed to escape the first time by sheer luck, but I’ve entrusted by best agent to track her down and eliminate her. I hope this pleases you Master.” He said as he gave a confident smile. But his smile fell from his face, as the fiery eyes narrowed and growled at him.

“Do not underestimate this girl Grey Sky, she is the only one that could hope to stand up to us. So long as she is prevented from discovering the truth, she is not your greatest concern.” The voice said in a menacing tone, but Grey Sky felt confused by the statement.

“I’m sorry my master, but…I do not understand. If she is the one the prophecy spoke about, then she should be our main concern!” he said back, but was quickly silenced by an evil hiss, that seemed to emanate from the window.

“If she is not yet aware of it, then she cannot hope to stand against us. You must use this time to finish the job I tasked you with, taking the Gryphon kingdom over.” The voice hissed at him. Grey Sky frowned slightly and looked away for a moment, and then looked back and nodded.

“As you wish, My Master. The weapon we are building to help us in the war, will be ready in the following months. Then…we shall seize victory in the Gryphon’s homeland, and they too shall fall under my banner, and then the world will follow suit. I will do as you ask, and I will stop the prophecy from coming true.” He said as he gave a respectful bow of his own.

He watched as the window faded and the pendant stopped glowing, he sighed and placed it inside his robe, before returning up to his throne.
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(Vale Town Fortress, Courtyard)

The next time I woke up, I felt much better than I did the first time, the intense throbbing sensation in my head was gone, and I found myself able to sit up. As I did so, I looked around the tent, and saw the glow of what appeared to be the early morning sun, which only made me wonder more, about how long I was out. I looked around the tent and saw that I was alone for the time being, but something caught my eye on the table beside the bed.

It was a glass of water, and the second I saw it, I realized just how thirsty I was and tried to levitate it with my magic, but I was greatly surprised to see a weakened aura envelope the glass. My aura enveloped it and I tried to lift it up, but the slightest magical effort, made my head begin to throb again, and I lowered the glass to the table.

I simply settled with reaching out and grabbing it with my hoof, and greedily sucked down the chilled liquid, sighing with relief as it parched my throat. As I drank the water, I heard the tent flap be pushed aside, and a light gasp from a familiar mare. I turned to see none other than Crystal, standing with the flap open behind her. Instead of running up and throwing her hooves around my neck like she normally would have done, she must have realized I wasn't in the best physical shape, and simply smiled widely and walked over to the bed.

“You're finally awake! Thank Celestia!” she said as she sat by me on the bed and gently reached forward and hugged me, careful not to hurt me any more than I already was. I could see the faintest of tears in her eyes, and I couldn't help but smile, and tear up myself, as I hugged her back.

We separated and she scooted away slightly, as she levitated another pillow behind me to help me up, I chuckled and groaned a little as I adjusted myself. “Heh Yeah. What happened? How long have I been out?” I asked rubbing my head, finally realizing that I had a bandage wrapped around it.

She cringed lightly at the question, but took a deep breath and put on a more serious face. “You've been out for about a day now, maybe a little more. As for what happened…I’m not quite sure how to explain it.” She said with a troubled look on her face. Seeing that look, only worsened my already sour mood, but I waited for her to respond.

She bit her lip lightly and then turned back to me, “I’m not sure if I can explain it now, but this is what I remember seeing. Cross Fire was worried that you might have fallen into a trap, and we raced up to find you, but…as we approached, we heard the sound of fighting, and then when we walked in…” she tried saying, but I could see the hurt and confusion in her eyes, as if she was still having trouble believing what she saw.

I waited patiently for her to continue, occasionally sipping on the fresh glass of water she had poured me. She wiped her eyes a bit and cleared her throat, and turned to me with a morbid, concerned expression. “You…you were holding a stallion up by the throat with your magic, choking him. Another stallion lay next to you, bleeding from the throat, and in one quick swoop, you…snapped his neck, like you would to a pencil.” she said as if expecting me to explain my actions.

I guess I couldn't blame her, I should have an explanation for my actions, but…I was as lost as she was. But before I could speak up, she continued on with her tale, “But that wasn't the weirdest part. Your eye’s…they were glowing white, and…you had these, transparent, I guess they looked like wings, at your sides. But, while you did all this…you were smiling.” she said with a terrified look in her eyes, as if she couldn't tell it was really me she was talking to.

I quickly began to feel sick to my stomach again, but I washed it down with some water, even as the gruesome images from last night flooded back to memory.

You're killing him!

Good, they all deserve to die!

I felt the words echo in my mind, but I shook it off and looked down at the sheets for a moment, before I reached over and took her hoof in mine. “Crystal…I can't even begin to explain to you what happened. All I know…all I can believe, is that the pony you saw up there…it wasn't me.” I said with the best confidence I could muster, only hoping she would understand.

She gently smiled at me and wiped a single tear away, before placing her other hoof over mine. “I know, but…regardless of who that pony was, I knew you were inside there somewhere, watching it all happen. Listen Star, for the ponies who care about you, seeing you in all that rage and pain is terrifying. The Star I know would never do such a thing, and I know that, but…it doesn't change the fact that you played some part in it.” She said in an honest tone, which in truth, was all I could ask for.

I looked down for a moment, as the memories of that night began to flood back to me, even the cause of all that rage, pain, and sadness.

Satchel…was dead.

My eyes immediately began to tear up again, as I vividly remember holding in my hooves as he died, as he whispered his dying words to me.

My Teacher.

My Friend.

My…Father.

I began to openly cry as I leaned forward into Crystal’s shoulders who seemed only too happy to hug me back, even tolerating the tears that slipped down on to her shoulder. She began to cry with me as well, as I let all the pain and sorrow out in one fell swoop, weeping into her shoulders.

“It’s…it’s all my fault! He’s…he’s dead and it’s all my fault! I…I…I should have been there for him, but…I was to fucking late to save him!” I cried into her shoulder. I rarely ever cursed, and the word felt strange leaving my mouth, but I was too caught up in my emotional rage to care who heard it. Crystal didn’t seem to care either, as she simply let me rant, all the while trying to calm me down, so we wouldn't attract the attention of those around the tent.
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After my emotional breakdown had subsided, Crystal had informed me that Cross Fire wanted to discuss business with us, when I was able to get out of bed, and with Crystal’s support, I managed to make it out of the bed and walk beside her, giving me support as I leaned.

We walked out of the tent, and into the bright morning, momentarily blinding me, but I quickly adjusted, and was shocked to see the damage around us. The exterior of the fort had scorch marks and missing pieces of stone all across the walls, even one of the towers ad caved in on itself.

As we made our way across the courtyard, I noticed other ponies with unrecognizable armor sets on, but they were helping to assist any injured. According to what Crystal had learned from Cross Fire, was that some of the town’s ponies heard the fight, and tried to aid, but many had been injured, and only two stallions were killed.

My heart began to grow heavy again, as I saw many of the injured ponies being treated for cuts, bruises, and burns. My mood only worsened, when I saw a cart full of bodies, covered by a white sheet, as one pony began to pull it away.

As we walked along, we came to the front of the fort, where we saw Cross Fire, talking with some other stallions. He turned to see us coming, quickly finishing up his conversation, and turning towards us, he calmly smiled at me and nodded to Crystal. “Star Dust, glad to see your back on your hooves. How’s your head?” he asked in a kindly manner.

I stepped away from Crystal and balanced myself, gently rubbing my head with a pained expression, “Still a little fuzzy, and my magic seems to be really weak right now.” I said as I lowered my hoof and cringed again. He nodded in understanding and watched me closely.

“Yes, that is to be expected. Physically…you should be fine with a day or two, and you should be back to your old self. But mentally…wounds like yours will take time to heal.” He said in a sorrowful tone. I frowned slightly as well, but he quickly walked up to me and placed a hoof on my shoulder, “I know it may not mean much, coming from me, but I offer you my condolences. Satchel was a dear friend to me as well, we've known each other many years, but…I can't even begin to fathom the bond you shared with him.

Therefore…I thought it’s only fair, that we wait until you had awaken to give him a proper burial.” He said in a calm tone, but I could easily tell the sorrow behind it.

After a few moments of silenced followed his little speech, Crystal spoke up, “Anyway, Cross Fire was going over our next plan.” Crystal said gesturing to him, simply trying to lighten the mood, and neither of us could blame her or complain.

Cross Fire cleared his throat again, “yes indeed, as for the casualties on the assault, as far as we are concerned…you two are the only surviving students here. Many of the teachers are unaccounted for, so we have no choice but to presume they are dead, as for the town’s population, only two deaths, some severe injuries, so we must tend to their needs before we go” he said in a calm tone.

I could tell he was truly saddened by the losses, but the way he spoke about it, made it suggest this wasn't the first time he had seen a massacre like this. But the last thing he said was what really caught my attention. “Go? Go where?” I asked in a confused tone, looking between Crystal and Cross Fire.

Cross Fire cleared his throat, “Now that your position has been compromised, I have been tasked with escorting you to safety. The Emperor’s forces will probably be searching every route in the region, but our best bet would be to walk to Van Hoover.” He said in a tone, that only made me more confused.

“What!?” I yelled in a confused tone, cringing slightly, but I continued none the less. “What are you talking about? What compromised position? What safety? What about the Emperor? And what’s in Van Hoover!?” I yelled at him, but he didn't even seem fazed by it, despite the quick flurry, in which the questions came out. Crystal on the other hoof, merely shook her head in confusion, and looked awkwardly between us two.

Cross Fire breathed in deeply, and cleared his throat, “There’s too much to explain now, but I promise I will give you the answer’s you seek. For now…all you need to know it that you are no longer safe here, Emperor Grey Sky will likely send his lackey here again, and I can guarantee you won't be as luckily a second time if he finds you.” He said as he calmly walked away, leaving both Crystal and I very confused, as we simply stared at each other with shocked expressions.

The silence was broken by a deep rumbling, in which I realized it was my stomach growling hungrily, which made me blush heavily. Crystal shook off her shocked expression and turned to me with a smile, “looks like somepony is hungry! Let’s get some food, and then we should go and back things up.” She said as she walked off, but before I followed her, I briefly glanced back at Cross Fire who was talking with one of the armored ponies, but I quickly turned and trotted after my friend.
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After Crystal and I had gotten something to eat, Cross Fire came to us and told everypony that we were having the funeral ceremonies at sundown, which only made the sinking feeling in my heart return.

As sundown came, all the students, teachers, and the two stallions from the town were buried in respectful graves. Despite this not being a actual cemetery, each of the fallen had their own grave dug, and the body was placed in with the utmost care. Even though the attack was mostly directed at the fort, many of the ponies from town made the walk up the hill, to witness the ceremonies.

Even though the ponies of Vale Town rarely interacted with the school directly, whenever the students came to town for a visit, they were greatly welcomed with open hooves. The students and teachers of the school, managed to live in harmony with each other, until they peace was shattered by war and death.

Cross Fire insisted on giving Satchel a more formal ceremony, in which the ponies of the town, graciously offered large piles of wood, that would be stacked into a pyre. Crystal and I stood next to each other, in the front row of the audience, despite them all be formed into a sort of half circle. The sun was beginning it’s slow descent on the horizon, as some of the armored ponies carried out Satchel’s body on a bed.

His body was wrapped in a clean white sheet, and as they moved along, my heart sank to the lowest level it could, as tears slowly began to well up in my eyes. They placed his wrapped body on to the top of the pyre, and we all turned to see Cross Fire walking behind them, a solemn look on his face, as a he levitated a torch beside him.

I felt my heart tighten as he passed by us, and I don’t know what urged me to do what I did next. I placed a hoof on his chest and stopped him, and he turned to me with a confused look, as did Crystal. I frowned sadly and gestured toward the torch, he looked between me and the torch, and then sighed sadly before levitating it over to me.

Instead of using my magic, I grabbed it in my hoof and hobbled forward, until it was at the minimum safe distance. I looked at the torch with sadness and then reached back and threw it at the base of the wood stack. The soldiers had dug a small trench around, to prevent the fire from spreading.

The torch landed in between two large sticks which immediately caught fire, and began to spread the rest around. The tears in my eyes had finally begun to spill down my cheeks, as I stepped back, to which Crystal wrapped her hoof around my shoulder. The fire slowly began to climb it’s way up, until it began to lick at the pristine white sheets.
For me, it felt like hours had passed, as the flames slowly began to consume the lifeless corpse of my adoptive father. It was then that I turned to look at Cross Fire, who was standing next to me, he had a sad look in his eyes, and I could even see the fire reflect in them, to which he then began to whisper something quietly to himself. Despite the fact that I was next to him, I couldn't quiet tell what it was he said, but I was sure it was something along the lines of:

“Goodbye…Old Friend”