Chapter 1: An Arrow Shot Into the Air
Light exploded all around the room and cackled like it was a live thing, twirling its way around the room like a snake. The source, a large orb brimming with magic twirling in the center of the room surrounding a sphere of dark purple metal that shifted with each energy outburst that the orb around it inflicted. It hummed ever so softly as even more power was feed to it by four out of the five ponies that occupied the room. Everywhere it went electricity threaded its way between the walls and the ground. The force was so strong that whenever it connected to something solid it was blown apart.
“Keep it together!” One stallion yelled. Sweat dropped from his head and plastered his orange mane to his yellow coat. His hair had come out of his pony tail and now blew wildly around his head. His dark green eyes scanned the room in worry.
“No shit Sunrise! I thought that with all this magic around I should stop! Give it no direction and kill us all that’s exactly what I want!” Sunrise eyed his companion darkly.
“Well excuse me for being concerned with everyone's safety, Starfeather!” Starfeather stuck her tongue out at him and went back to filtering her magic into the orb. The dark pink swirls all around her navy blue body glowed brightly and were beginning to creep into her gold eyes. Another burst of energy flew around the room putting even more of a strain on the companions. The blue stallion was having an especially hard time. He was practically laying on the floor breathing hard with his silver mane stuck to his neck and face. Sunrise felt a flash of self hatred. They were doing this to help him, heal him and he was suffering the most, in the most pain and Sunrise had inflicted it on him. Had asked him to do this. He felt his stomach lurch. He bit back his anger though, none of that was his fault, when he spoke his voice was even.
“You okay, Noonsky?” Noonsky flinched and struggled to get up. His alkymi circles started to falter as he did so.
“I'm fine.” He attempted to smile but it came out as a grimace. “Really, I--I’ll get through this. I'm fine” Sunrise looked at him skeptically but his reply was cut off as his magic started to cross over with Starfeather’s. He swore slightly and directed it back toward the middle of the orb. He glanced back at Noonsky. The stallion had gotten back to his feet and his alkymi circles no longer looked like they were about to fade out. Turning away he looked down at the stallion holding the orb up and preventing it from exploding on the ground. Out of all of them he seemed to be faring the best despite his position.
“Doing good Forestfate?” He got a grunt in reply. He looked fine. Though Forestfate had a notorious ability to hide things that were bothering him. He was strong though, this wasn't anything he can't handle. There wasn't much he couldn't handle. Sunrise turned his attention to the mare singing across from him. The swirls around her body glowed brightly as she hit higher and higher notes. As he watched her, her body shimmered and glowed, reforming and turning into a male body. His notes switched from tenor to soprano. He didn't appear in pain just a little stressed but… “Doing good over there buddy?” he didn't answer, “Brightsong?” Brightsong opened his eyes, he shimmered again and he had a female body once more. She looked over with her slanted speckled red and blue eyes and smiled with her pointy teeth. She was okay too. He saw Starfeather look down at the book in front of her. She looked up, her gold eyes meeting his.
“Entering phase two!” She shouted. Sunrise, along with everyone except Forestfate merged their magic with each other, no longer keeping it separate. Sunrise felt the chaos of Starfeather’s disorder magic, Noonsky’s alkymi circles which felt so much like a calm sea, and Brightsong’s enchanter magic, wild and free and light. He fought to combine them against the nature of his own magic. After everyone's magic merged, Forestfate activated his armor. Before he was holding the orb up with only his bare back but, in a flash of orange, gold armor encompassed his body. It looked at first glance to be of standard military issue but the designs on it portrayed stories of long lost times. Times with hunts and fights, love and heartache, joy and sorrow, pain and pleasure burning as brightly as fire and colder than a sheet of ice from the crystal north. The shoes and helmet had wings at the side with swirls going up and down them. After it appeared, a glowing horn formed on the helmet, brilliant yellow and longer than an average unicorns. On his back two wings of the same color formed at the same time, double the wing span of an average pegasus. ForestFate closed his eyes. When he opened them again there were no pupils, no iris, just a glowing orange. Magic shot out of his horn and wrapped itself around the orb. Trying to break and form it to his will. It was working. Sunrise saw the orb condense on the metal, slowly getting smaller and heavier. He tasted victory on his tongue, felt it flowing through his veins with his blood. With the beating of his heart and the thrum of his magic. It vibrated throughout his very being. Then the orb began to fluctuate. It shimmered and lost its shape, expanded and contracted growing bright one instance and fading the next. Forestfate groaned and fell to his knees on the floor. Starfeather opened her mouth to tell everyone to stop when the orb wobbled one last time and slid off of Forestfate’s back. The room around them exploded and Sunrise was thrown into the night sky. A silent scream on his lips as his friends were ripped from him. He didn't know if he would see any of them again, nor if he would live to see another day. He shut his eyes.
