Fractured Spirits

“This… This can’t be happening…” Fire Surge managed. The five ponies stared in bewilderment as all of Ponyville burned around them. The storm’s lightning struck buildings and nearby trees. “How could this happen? Who would do such a thing?” Thunder Specter asked the question on everyponies minds.

The odd group walked into the village in a daze. The fires burned strong and bright around them, defeating the rain that came down to put it out.

Ponies ran around left and right, with what belongings they could find. The voices of screaming ponies filled the air as the five ponies looked around at the destruction of their home.

“Invictus, we have to get home.” Intredus finally spoke to his sister. His sister didn’t respond. “Invictus, we need to get our belongings out of there before it’s too late.” Intredus again tried to speak to his sister. “It doesn’t even matter anymore.” She responded. “What? What are you talking about?” Intredus tried to get his sister to explain.

Invictus whirled around to him again. “Don’t you get it? While we were wasting our time in the forest, the storm came here and has probably long since destroyed our home! Not only have we lost both our parents, but even our home has been destroyed!” Invictus yelled at her brother.

Intredus remained calm as he responded. “Invictus, you don’t know that yet. We don’t know if our home has been destroyed yet. We should at least go to see if it is. You need to try to keep calm.” Invictus was obviously getting annoyed. “You see that’s just the problem. You’re always too calm about everything! Why can’t you let yourself see just what’s happening! It isn’t just us, but all of the ponies here that are losing their homes!”

“Hold on a moment. Intredus has a point. Even if we can’t help others we should at least save what we can from our homes.” Fractal said, but was quickly cut off by Invictus. “You just stay out of this! It’s your fault our mother is dead, and it’s your fault we got here so late! If you weren’t such an idiot your leg wouldn’t have been hurt and we could have gotten here quick enough!” Invictus yelled at him now.

“Well if you would listen to what I was trying to say maybe we could actually come to an agreement!” Fractal countered. Invictus tried to hit him again but Fractal jumped out of the way this time. “Why would I even bother? I know you would just lie to me so you could get off clean! I’m not going to let you get away with what you have done to me and my brother!” She yelled angrily at Fractal as he stood his ground prepared for another attack.

“Everything always points back to me doesn’t it, our lateness, your mother’s death, your families’ pain? Have you even considered anything else for the last five years?” Fractal retorted as they continued to argue.

Lightning struck a nearby building, and the storm rolled with energy as it continued its journey through the corrupted village.

“Why won’t you just admit it already? I know you did it and I won’t accept any other answer!” Invictus responded loudly.

The lightning had begun to strike all around them now, hitting buildings and anything tall it could find. The area had been completely abandoned; all the ponies living in the area had run off somewhere safe. The black clouds seemed to gather above them overhead.

“Guys.” Intredus attempted to interrupt but they just kept bickering. Fire Surge looked up into the sky, and then turned towards Intredus and Thunder Specter. “We need to get out of here… Something bad is going to happen.” He said to them. “Well something bad is already happened, we won’t get anywhere as long as these two keep arguing.” Thunder specter responded.

Fire Surge shook his head. “No, not that, the storm! It’s gathering directly above us! Haven’t you noticed how frequent the lightning is?” Intredus and Thunder looked up above them at the looming storm’s black clouds.

“Guys, come on.” Intredus turned to Fractal and Invictus again. “We have to get out of here!” Intredus tried to grab their attention but they wouldn’t listen. Thunder specter joined in. “Fractal, Invictus, come on get a hold of yourselves!” It did nothing at all. The Pegasus and earth pony were too caught up in their arguing to notice the storm above them.

Finally, Fire Surge was fed up. “If we don’t get out of here soon, the storm could kill us!” Surge yelled above all the other voices. Everypony immediately turned towards him, at his sudden change in personality.

“Listen, the storm is strong enough to destroy houses. Once the place here is completely leveled, the lightning will strike the next tallest thing, us!” Surge explained to the confused ponies quickly.

“Surge is right. We need to get out of here before our lives are really threatened. We need to find somewhere safe.” Thunder Specter said the Fractal and Invictus. The two looked reluctant to stop arguing, but they realized they were in danger, so they decided to listen.

Intredus sighed. “You need to realize there are other ways through things then arguing. Arguing never gets anyone anywhere.” He then said to them. “Right now, we need to work together to survive this storm.”

They decided to go towards Invictus and Intredus’s house to see if it was still up.

The storm continued to gather in the village, destroying everything in its path with wind, rain and lightning. The wind blew straw and leaves through the air as they walked through the burning town.

When they reach the house, it was still standing and undamaged. “What did I tell you? You can’t just assume it’s been destroyed when you haven’t even seen it since you got back.” Fractal said to Invictus. “Just shut up.” Invictus responded.

“Come on; let’s get some food and personal belongings.” Intredus said to his sister. The two siblings quickly ran into their house. A short time after, they each came back out with a bag full of supplies. “Where do we go now? We can’t stay here in the village.” Fire Surge asked.

Intredus thought for a moment, and then looked out towards the end of the village opposite to the forest. “Well I assume the safest place would be as far away from the storm as we could.” The other four thought this was smart, so they decided it was the best place to go during all this.

As they were walking, the fires continued to burn strong and bright. They passed many burned down buildings, including the library, which Intredus had grown quite fond of, and the school. Intredus could only hope everypony got out of there safely.

Intredus could tell that Fractal and Invictus wanted to keep arguing about their twisted past, but they would never find a solution through their constant arguing. As much as Intredus wanted to know what happened, it would have to wait until after the Princesses had fixed the storm. Then they could sort everything out properly.

As they approached the edge of the town, they saw other ponies gathered ahead, many severely injured. The ponies were covered in everything from bruises, to burns. The air was filled with such pain and sadness it could easily have an effect on anypony nearby. The rain continued to beat down mercilessly on all the suffering ponies gathered beyond the village, soaking them to the bone.

The five ponies stopped when they arrived and took a look at there surroundings. It was a wet, grassy field with tall soft grass. It was the perfect place to rest a while and recover your energy. But if the Princesses didn't stop the storm quickly enough, it would carry on through here, and destroy even this safe haven.

"Why would anyone do something like this? Who would put these ponies through so much, especially the fillies. Their lives will never be the same again." Fire Surge spoke first. Thunder Specter spoke next. "Not only that, but who would have the power to do it? This is the sort of thing only an Alicorn or other great creature could pull off."

Intredus started thinking after hearing that. Since the Princesses weren't behind it, it must be some other creature or being.

"Well there's no use trying to worry about it now." Fractal said. "We all need some rest after what we've been through today." Thunder Specter nodded. "Maybe the storm will be gone when we wake up. Who knows! It could be afraid of sleeping ponies!" He then said. Everypony managed a smile at this. Everypony, except Invictus.

Intredus could see his sister was in deep depression about everything. She was obviously very stressed out by all that had happened and what she had learned all together in one day. Intredus walked over to her as she collapsed onto the ground in exhaustion.

"Invictus. Hey, how are you feeling?" He said as he lay down beside her. "I'm cold, i'm wet, my home is being destroyed, and I should have died several times in that forest." She responded, fighting back tears. "And now, on top of that, all these poor ponies are worse off then me, making me feel like they hate me for getting away injury free!" Invictus finished.

Intredus sighed. "I can understand that you are going through a lot. Trust me, we are too. Your emotions are just much more sensative to things happening around you, so you feel things stronger than most ponies." Intredus told her what she was already aware of. "But you see, you need to look at the bright side whenever you can. It's how I remain calm during these times." Intredus explained to her.

Invictus turned to her brother with tears in her eyes. "How can I find any bright side to all this?" She said pointing towards all the suffering ponies. "There isn't a single pony here without some kind of injury, be it physical or emotional! Everyone is hurt somehow!"

"Although that may be true, it doesn't mean things can't turn out for the better later. The storm will go away, and we will be able to live life again properly." Intredus reasured his sister. "How can you know that? How can you possibly be sure about anything? What if it doesn't go away? What if we have to run the rest of our lives from this storm?" She asked angrily. Intredus let out another sigh.

"I don't know anything for certain. However I do know this; We are still alive, and we can remain alive as long as we work together and remain calm. Look at it this way. You finally found the person you were looking for. You survived a sacrificial suicide mission. You even fought and defeated your own goal of getting revenge on Fractal and worked with him. These are the positive things that have come through all this!" Intredus tried to make his sister understand. "What i'm trying to say is, no matter how bleak or terrible the situation may be, there is always, and I mean always a bright side to look at. Whatever doesn't kill you, makes you stronger, and I think we all experienced that today."

When Intredus finished, Invictus looked down towards the ground. It seemed like he may have finally gotten through to her. "I'm going to get some sleep. I need to think and rest." She finally said. "Alright, try to sleep well." Intredus said to her before laying his head down. "I'll try..." Invictus responded.

Then, after a long exhausting day, sleep finally overtook Intredus and the other ponies, and they all fell asleep.

Fractal had a difficult time sleeping. With the pain in his leg, and the constant thunder and lightning overhead, it was nearly impossible to sleep for more then an hour at a time.

Fractal finally gave up after a while, and decided to get up and look around. It was darker then ever now, night had fallen on the refugee's of the storm, and the only light around was the occasional small flashlight the other homeless ponies were using.

Of course, the thick layer of black clouds in the sky didn't make things much better. Not even the moon's light could pierce the powerful storm. Then Fractal began to wonder if the moon was even there at all, if the princesses of the sun and moon were too busy finding the source of this storm.

Fractal looked at his comrades. Thunder Specter lay perfectly still except for the rising and falling of his chest as he breathed. Fire Surge seemed to be having a bad dream, as he was moving around a lot in his sleep. Fractal noticed his head was lying on a bunch of moss. Leave it to Fire Surge to find something in the wilderness to make himself more comfortable. Fractal thought to himself.

Invictus was sleeping quietly, but she was shivering. Fractal took into account all the emotional trauma she had been through, what with the death of her mother and loss of her home. Still, she blamed everything on Fractal, which he couldn't understand. Fractal let out a sigh as he thought of everything that had happened. I'm always in the wrong place at the wrong time, everytime. He thought to himself. His luck never was the greatest, no matter how much of a dare devil he was.

Fractal turned to where Intredus was sleeping, but found just flattened grass. Intredus was gone. He must be having the same problem I'm having. He probably couldn't sleep. Fractal thought to himself.

Fractal winced as he took a step on his bad leg. He wasn't entirely sure what he had done to it. He must have done something to it when he crashed into the forest. It couldn't be broken, or else he wouldn't be able to walk without excruciating pain. Fractal decided to conclude that it was sprained. He avoided putting too much pressure on it as he walked through the crowd of survivors.

The wind and rain wasn't as strong here as back in the forest. It wasn't a torrential downpour like in the other places, and the wind wasn't constantly fighting against you. It came in waves almost, like a natural storm. The thunder and lightning were farther away towards the village and forest, so it wasn't a real threat, but it was making it's way forward, slowly approaching the field. Fractal shuddered to think of what would happen after that.

Some unicorns were using their magic to generate light, which was a great help. Many had used a spell to cast the light into the air so that it illuminated an area. Fractal smiled faintly at how all these ponies were able to work together when the time was so dire. I never thought I would wish I was a unicorn... Fractal thought to himself.

After some time, Fractal came to an area free of ponies. It was completely empty, except there was one pony standing out in the field. It was a yellow pony, an earth pony. Fractal slowly approached the earth pony, but the earth pony spoke before he was even close enough to be heard walking. "I suppose I'm not the only one who enjoys getting away from the crowd." He said. Fractal managed a smile. "Sometimes I just feel like I do things completely different from most ponies." Fractal responded. "I like to get away and relax, and enjoy the time I have."

The yellow pony turned around. He was considerably older, probably in his 30's or 40's. He looked strong, and full of life. He was completely unharmed, not even black from smoke. Then Fractal noticed the scar across his face, and his eye's went wide. "You... you're that pony I saw in my dream!" Fractal said quickly. The yellow pony smiled. "Finally putting the pieces of the puzzle together?" He responded. "Yes, I was there. In fact I have been following your trials for quite some time. Your surviving the Wolves and the storm, your conflict with Invictus, and now your thoughts as you worry about the future." He continued.

Fractal stared in shock as the earth pony named the events that happened in the last day. "But... but how, and why?" Fractal stuttered. "Listen Fractal, there is so much you don't know. So much you need to discover. This world holds so many secrets and lies, you can't begin to comprehend them." The yellow pony went on. Fractal was incredibly confused now. "What do you mean, why are you telling me all this?" Fractal asked. The bright coloured pony walked towards Fractal now. "That's just it isn't it? You can't figure it out on your own, you're some one who prefers to do things instead of think about them."

Fractal began to feel nervous now as the earth pony continued to move towards him. "You need some one else to help you understand things. Some one with a great understanding of this world we live in, who can show you how the pieces in the puzzle fit." Fractal stopped moving back, and began thinking about this. "When you are building a puzzle, there are always pieces that look like they fit, but when you try to get them together, it never works. You can't force it to work by getting angry at it. The world is like a chess board Fractal, if you don't look at all the possible outcomes, you will never find the safe path."

The earth pony stopped approaching. They were only a yard apart now. The yellow pony looked at Fractal with an unreadable expression. Thinking hard, Fractal thought of all the events that had taken place since the dream. Racing with Thunder Specter, beign chased by the wolves, crashing into the forest, waking up to find Intredus... Chess board... Intredus's cutie mark was a chess piece! "That's it isn't it. I need to work with Intredus to figure out how the pieces of the puzzle fit correctly. The puzzle pieces are everything that has happened so far, and he can help me find out why they happened?"

The yellow pony smiled at this. "Now you've got it. However it isn't just Intredus. All six of you must learn how the pieces fit." He said to Fractal as he turned around and began to walk away. "Wait... six? There's only five of us. You meant five right?" The yellow pony kept walking. "I meant what I said. Put the pieces together and solve this mystery for yourself. Good luck." He called over his shoulder, and then he disapeared into the rain.

Fractal stared after where the yellow pony had gone in confusion for a moment. Suddenly a rock came skipping across the ground towards Fractal, and stopped right before his feet. He looked at the rock, catching the reference to his dream, and looked back up.

Still so many unanswered questions... Fractal thought. But now, Fractal had an idea of what to do next. There was no way Fractal would run from the storm forever. He wanted to figure it out, but he couldn't do that on his own. There was only one person to go to in that case.

"Fractal? What are you doing out here?" Almost on cue, Intredus came walking in from the left through the thick rain. "Just getting away from the crowd." He replied. "Hey Intredus, what does your cutie mark represent as your talent?" Fractal then asked. Intredus looked a little surprised by the random question. "Well, when I first got it, we thought it represented that I was good at chess. We discovered later that, since chess is a game of strategy, that it represents strategy." Intredus explained.

I hoped he would say something like that. Fractal said to himself. "Are you curious as to how this storm works?" Fractal then questioned Intredus. Intredus looked a little suspicious as to why Fractal was suddenly asking so many strange questions. "Yes, yes I am. Why do you ask?"

Krious’s ears folded back and his eyes strained to see the two distance figures making their way through the powerful storm towards him. The rain came down hard on the dark purple unicorn, as he stood atop the large oak tree. The branches bent and swayed as the wind blew through the leaves, threatening to snap at any moment.

“Here they come Krious! Look at them; they are struggling to make it through the storm! Didn’t I tell you? I knew you could hold even them back!” The voice said to Krious in his head. Krious saw now, one figure was white, and the other was difficult to make out against the black clouds. They both had wings, far too large for a Pegasus, so it had to be them.

“Alright Krious, on my signal, unleash all your strength into the storm! Don’t hold back! The only way they will seal your magic is if absolutely necessary. If you make a strong enough storm, they will have no choice!” The voice assured him. Krious nodded his head in determination. This was it. This was the moment of truth.

The two princesses became more and more clear as they approached, until he could almost make your their faces.

Suddenly the voice yelled in his head. “Now Krious, now!”

Krious braced himself against the trunk of the tall tree. Taking a step back with one leg, Krious clenched his teeth. Pure energy coursed through his body as he prepared to super charge the lethal storm above him. The all too familiar memories of his past shot through his mind, the death of his family by his own magic, the ignorance of the village, and the thought of never worrying about it ever again. Krious’s eyes burst open, glowing blue with power. Krious yelled at the top of his lungs as all the energy burst from his horn into the blackened sky as a blue beam.

The storm exploded into life as the blue beacon struck the clouds. The wind blew harder and stronger than ever, sending weak trees crashing to the ground. The tree Krious was standing on bent and swayed as the wind blew.

Krious struggled as all the energy left his body. He could taste blood in his mouth from clenching his teeth so hard. His legs started shaking, ready to give out on him, but he continued anyways. His mind was screaming to stop, but he ignored it, knowing full well what would happen if he stopped now.

The beacon continued to channel energy into the storm. Lightning struck all around Krious in a frenzy, and began targeting the princesses. Krious watched through squinting eyes as he saw the two alicorns weaving through the sky, trying to avoid the lightning coming from all directions. Krious could barely make out their faces, determined and prepared, maybe even desperate.

Krious suddenly saw how much danger they could be in. If I’m even more powerful then them, what if they get hit? “Voice! This isn’t safe! What if I hurt them?” Krious cried through all the energy he was using. “Don’t worry, it’s all part of the plan! You won’t hit them at all! They are smart enough to avoid harm! It’s only the illusion of extreme peril! If they think they are in true danger, they will come to you first!” The voice explained quickly. “Don’t worry about that, focus on the storm!” Krious accepted the explanation and focused on the storm again like the voice said.

“Yes... It won’t be long now...” The voice said quietly in his head.