Just a Little Filly's Story
“You will succeed in erasing the holiday, as you wished.”
“I’m sorry!”
Snowfall Frost slim frame violently shook under her hooves as flashes of that terrifying landscape ghosted under her eyelids. As the feeling of terror began to subside she began noticing the sounds, or rather, the lack of them. Cracking open her left eye, Snowfall was greeted by the silent visage of crackling coals in a roaring fire under a cauldron black as pitch. Opening her right eye, Snowfall could see the flames--frozen though they were--eating away at the dry cracked wood that served as fuel. Huffing lightly, Snowfall was greeted by a heady smoky scent and a rush of hot air that flew back at her. The warm comfortable airflow tickled her ears and made them twitch, but carried along that warm, comfortable stream was a voice one that summoned up dark visions from the far recesses of Snowfalls mind,
“Your actions will allow them to return.”
Snowfall coughed, throwing up a sheet of ash and dust, clouding her vision. When it cleared she found herself standing above her cauldron looking down into its murky depths. The contents roiled and boiled, bring forth strange phantasmal visions and foe urges. She saw something swimming beneath the surface of the brew and bent over to get a closer look. The warm steam bathed her face and gave off a pleasant hickory smell as she bent closer to the surface. The fumes reminded her of a far off place, a far off place, a far-
She remembered shattered lands, broken visions, bent words, and barbaric actions. She wished to forget. Snorting, she banished the chemical smells from her nostrils. Taking a couple of steps back she surveyed her full shelves. Maniacally grinning, she selected the necessary potions, implements, and other necessities in order to neutralize and then destroy the vile potion she had been working on. Laughing, Snowfall gathered everything she then reached out with her magic for one last item; A purple bottle with an obscured green label:
Dragon Toenails.
“Your actions will allow them to return!”
She gasped, and the bottles that were firmly held in her teal magic jerked to a clinking stop as she felt a cold hard voice curl and flex within her mind.
“You will succeed.”
The light around Snowfalls horn winked out and the auras around the bottles vanished. They dove down, ignoring Snowfalls grasp even as she retorted,
“No! I didn’t understand before but I do now!”
Her horn re-ignited and she caught many of the bottles right before they could touch the broiling contents of the cauldron. Those that she failed to catch shattered on the floor, showering Snowfall in shards of glass and copious amounts of magical fluids. With each crash and spill, Snowfall gasped and groaned in exasperation and frustration. Pulling her muzzle away from the floor she spat out,
“I see how important Hearth’s Warming Eve is! I still have time!”
Just as Snowfall finished the roiling steam from her cauldron coalesced and shot at her, leaving fragile snowflakes in its path. The darkening mass struck her squarely on the horn driving a molten wedge of pain through it and she could only watch in absolute horror as the rest of her bottles, trailing teal wisps plummeted down around her, shattering on the soaked wooden floors, further soaking them and Snowfall. Spitting out some glowing green plasma that had splashed into her mouth Snowfall gazed around, her eyes, vacant and staring, clearly in shock. They snapped into focus when she groaned in disjointed pain as the effects of the vile magical deluge took hold of her body.
First she shivered in both pain and pleasure as phantom sensation racked her soaked frame. Her teal eyes, rapidly growing bloodshot and dilated quivered in their sockets. Snowfalls body stumbled drunkenly to one side, her now bloodied eyes splaying in two directions but slowly rolling their way into her skull. As the last of her bloody vision faded Snowfall could just barely make out the cameo of a purple bottle with an obscured green label rolling across its shelf, balancing on the edge, then tumbling into the now placid liquid below.
And her world faded to black.
“And what happens?”
Standing in shadow, the dark mare dispassionately watched as the pony, she of the wild blue eyes stumbled back and tripped over the shattered neck of a bottle. There was little fanfare as the filly’s waterlogged body fell heavily against the wood floor. And this shadowy figure saw, with certainty in her misty eyes, the consequences of her actions as it rose from the black cauldron. Forlornly sighing, the spirit cast her spell then dissipated with the flow of time.
“You will succeed.”
Air. Moving air brushed lightly against the hair follicles. From there, an electrical impulse traveled from the nerves of Snowfalls cold and soaked form, up her nerves and into her brain. From there, many things happened. Neurons fired, chemicals traveled, and impulses were felt. And that is the first thing Snowfall felt. A kiss from the wind. And she woke up.
Snowfall woke up with a jaw breaking, ear popping yawn. Tasting the gunk in her mouth Snowfall smacked her lips together, making a wet popping noise. Lifting her head up, Snowfall felt another brush of air against her flank. But this time it wasn’t the warm, gusty air provided by her fire instead it was a cold, brutal breeze provided by an unearthly fog that poured from her brew and seemingly walked down the cast iron sides of her black caldron leaving a smooth translucent sheet of ice bonded to the rough pitted surface. The fog hit the ground and rolled like water across the floor, towards Snowfall.
Her eyes struggled to keep themselves open, but so long as they did, Snowfall saw a low ominous cloud rolling towards her. Her eyes shot open and adrenaline flooded her system. Scrambling up to get on all four hooves Snowfall turned towards the advancing cloud, lit her horn and cast one spell after another at the encroaching wall. They did nothing but leave mesmerizing spirals in their wakes. She stopped casting, her horn sparked uselessly and her body shivered as her fur began matting together with ice. Her eyes grew heavy and achy again and she fought to keep them open. And she was rewarded.
For deep within the heart of the cold lay a single spark. Surrounded by fuel; hate and anger, the embodiment of those most holy elements roared to life and scattered its foe. Snowfalls eyelids leapt open as she became awashed in flames that heaped upon her and curled around her, protecting her as her bedroom window burst open in a shower of splintered wood and shattered glass that spread out before the ethereal form of a being long thought forgotten. A Windigo.
Snowfall leapt back and her flames trailed her leaving faint glowing hoof marks in the wood of her bedroom floor as the Windigo stepped towards her so too did Snowfall step back. This continued with each one countering the others steps, one moving forward one moving backward and ever present were the coiling flames of Snowfalls fire. After what seemed to be hours since the deadly dance began, Snowfall felt the hard knock of wood against the back of her trembling frame. Frantically she turned around and saw the unforgiving surface of her bedside.
Turning back to her hunter, Snowfall cringed as she was blinded by the enveloping flames. Blinking back tears, Snowfall felt herself retch as the cold tendrils of the Windigo reached through her flames and wound around her tail freezing strands together from its very passing. Snowfall leaned back against the hard side of her bed as the Wendigo strutted ever closer, and with its approach came the cold. Each tendril was colder and sharper than the last. Snowfall blinked back tears of agony and suddenly she was falling.
Her gut brought itself up into her throat and she fought against it. Her legs flailed but were trapped by the dying flames of her tattered defenses. She tilted her head as far back as she dared and saw nothing but darkness. She never felt the impact as she smashed into the ground.
She woke with a startled yelp. Her head bashing itself against the hard wood of her bedroom floor. The pain brought with it a sense of clarity. And with that clarity she could see things. Like her chamber pot and other unmentionables that haunted the dark undersides of her bed. She snorted and dust flew up in her face, obscuring her vision. Better it remained that way for there were something under there that were better left unseen by mortal eyes.
Snowfall heard more than felt the rush of air as something came into her room. Then she felt more than heard the hooves of somepony grabbing her and rescuing her from her precarious position. The blue muzzle she saw swimming into view was accompanied by a familiar husky voice,
“Woah! Snowfall you okay? You were like, screaming and yelling up a storm. What happened? Didja have a nightmare?”
Snowfall tilted her head back, bringing more of her rainbow maned companion into view and drew a breath but coughed as she tasted the frigid air. She continued coughing for a few seconds as she adjusted to the cold air flowing through her lungs. When she could speak without wincing from the cold she had a very important questions to ask,
“Spectacles. Snowdash where are my spectacles?”
Snowfall blindly flailed around with her one free hoof in a vain attempt to find her absent spectacles. She scowled as she heard Snowdash let out a little giggle. She huffed and went to give Snowdash a piece of her mind when she was interrupted by the welcoming weight of her spectacles settling in their usual place on her muzzle and a light hearted chuckle from Snowdash.
“There. You look better. No-Not that you didn’t look good anyway. But you can see right?”
Snowfalls spectacles, surrounded by a teal glow, slid up her muzzle as she brought her eyes up to squint at Snowdash in some limited merriment.
“Yes Snowdash. I can see just fine.”
Snowfall proffered her hoof to Snowdash who gripped it and pulled Snowfall free of her warm cocoon of blankets. Snowfall violently shivered as her flank was met with a wave of arctic air. Snowfall gradually stopped shivering as Snowdash placed a light blanket across her withers, making a thin but effective barrier against the cold. Nodding her head in thanks, Snowfall lit her horn and much to the amusement of Snowdash, arranged the sheets on her bed just so. Looking at Snowfall from the corner of her eyes, Snowdash slyly commented,
“Awesome work Frosty. But you know what else I see?”
Snowfall froze in her work.
“I see-”
And a voice floated throughout the room, permeating every orifice with its ghastly sound,
“-As you wished.”
Snowfall found herself laying in the cold, belittled wasteland. Snow to her left. Snow to the right. Snow in front of her. Thunder and lightning shattered the sky, tore asunder the land. And half a league beyond she saw them. Coldly they rode and well upon the black winds of the north. And from far above descended a dark armoured hoof, fit to render judgement upon those far beneath it. Further and further it descended upon the land. When it hit, it threw the world into a fury of flickering firelight. And from all distant shores were heard desperate pleas-
“-Snowfall! Hey Snowfall!”
And the curtain fell, tearing the facade down revealing the broken world beyond.
Snowfall fell back against her dresser, breast heaving and heart throbbing, Snowdash’s front hooves rested hard upon Snowfalls rolling shoulders.
“Hey! Snowfall! You okay?! What happened? You looked like you were going to die! I-I’m gonna get Flutter Holly. Just- just stay here and stay calm, okay? I’ll be back in like ten seconds flat.”
Snowdash turned from Snowfall and prepared to launch herself out of Snowfalls recently repaired window. She had to get help, she had-
“Ow!”
-a pony biting her tail on take off and window ledge in her muzzle.
Snowdash’s muzzle collided with recently repaired window ledge emitting an echoey ‘thunk’. After that, Snowdash gentley slid to the floor, a hoof working its way to her muzzle.
Rubbing her bruised muzzle and mourning her lost ego, Snowdash turned and saw a few rainbow colored strands of air hanging out of Snowfalls grimacing mouth.
“Watcha do that for Snowfall?! That hurt!”
Snowfall disregarded the outcry of her friend in order to spit out the few rainbow colored strands that clung to the roof of her mouth. Wiping the last taste of rainbow out of her mouth, Snowfall turned to Snowdash and filled her vision with her own piercingly blue eyes.
“Snowdash. What. Did. You. Say.”
Snowdash rapidly backed up and thudded against the boarded up window. She took a breath and began,
“Well you were freaking out. Your eyes were all over the place and you looked like you were like dying and-”
Snowfall lept forward, pressing their muzzles closer. Her eyes held a slightly manic light.
“No! No. Not that. What did you say before that?”
Finishing, Snowfall crept away from Snowdash and petulantly waited on an answer.
“I-I-umm,” Snowdash huffed in annoyance. “I was going to say that I saw somepony in need of some cocoa.”
She motioned with her wing to a dented pewter mug resting on the floor next to Snowfalls bedroom door. A small, steaming puddle of chocolate colored liquid had formed around it.
Snowfalls face maintained a blank expression as she followed Dash’s wing to where it was pointing, then she saw the mug and its spilled contents, her eyes lit up, her ears perked up and her lips turned up in a smile.
She lit her horn and floated the dented pewter mug over to her muzzle and took a deep gulp. As she swallowed a ripple flowed across her body leaving Snowfall relaxed and happy as she tasted the velvety chocolatey goodness that was freshly mode hot chocolate. As soon as she almost succeeded in losing herself to the creamy swirls she was rudely brought back by a name.
“-Frosty.”
Her perfect mood was ruined. And who dared to call her ‘Frosty’!
Her eyes snapped to Snowdash and lit with an inner fire.
“What did I tell you about using that name-” She growled menacingly. Taking a step forward she caused Snowdash to back away in fear.
Snowdash’s wings had spread in a natural defensive manner but the rest of her body had contorted itself to fit beneath the deep window ledge of Snowfalls repaired window. And she was afraid.
“-Crash.”
Snowdash’s shivering teeth clamped shut with a echoing snap as her eyes glazed over and she softly said,
“Snow-Snowfall. I’m sorry. But please, please let’s never do that again.”
Snowfall’s animalistic gaze softened into a wry smile. She had to apologize too. She guiltily rubbed her mane.
“Yeah. I’m sorry Dashie. I-It’s just this weather been wearing on me over the past few days. It’s horrible.”
Dash gave a hard choked laugh.
“Heh. Yeah. That’s just about what you and everypony else is saying nowadays.”
Snowfalls smile fell coyly into line and she huffed,
“Oh really!” She spouted in an offended manner. “I’m just like everypony else?” She finished with a blatant wink.
Snowdash looked taken back by Snowfalls change in attitude but as soon as she saw the wink she knew and she was game.
“Yeah! You’re as annoying and as mean as everypony else out there.” She said, gesturing to Snowfalls new window with one of of her blue feathered wings.
Snowfall snorted derisively and continued on,
“Well then, if I’m as annoying and mean as those ponies then there’s only one thing I have to say to you, Miss Dash.”
‘Miss’ Dash smirked and sauntered over to Snowfall, getting muzzle to muzzle with her glaring opponent.
“Oh yeah? Well, how about we-”
Snowfalls continence plummeted and she spewed vile, poisonous words at Dash.
“GET OUT! Get out right now! I never want to see you again! AND If I see you I’ll call the gua- No! Even better! I’ll throw you in jail myself!”
Snowfall had drastically changed, and Snowdash was giddily scared. She had thought that Snowfall had been bad when she had called her ‘Frost.’ But whatever thing Snowdash was now. It was not natural.
Snowdash rapidly retreated under Snowfalls vicious vocal rampage until she was once again shaking and huddled under the oaken window ledge. She had to get Snowfall to stop. And she tried.
“SNOWFALL,” Dash shouted, using her wings to makes herself look bigger. “Stop! You’re scaring me!”
When Dash’s outburst had stopped ringing in her own ears, she heard silence. And some weird half crying half laughing sound coming from the huddled form of Snowfall. Snowdash peered over the edge of her wing, a grim grin plastered on her face.
They’re eyes met. Snowdash winked. And Snowfall understood.
Drawing in a breath Snowdash attacked,
“FINE! I’ll get out! And I never want to see you again either!”
Dash had raised her wings and extended them to their fullest, they made her look much larger than she actually was. It worked. She could see Snowfall cowering. She thrust her wings downward, propelling herself through the twisting confines of Snowfalls pleasant little abode leaving a sparkling rainbow trail in her wake as she flew out the front door and down the street.
Snowfall sat on her bedroom floor, giggling like a little foal as she watched the rainbow colored trail dissipate from her bedroom. Rolling onto her back Snowfall released another round of mirthful giggles and squeals. She had never felt so alive. The mere act of fighting or arguing had filled her with so much glee and energy! As she came down off her high,reality sank its fangs into her throbbing skull, she choked out a sob.
Falling to the ground, Snowfall saw that she was a monster. Since when had fighting and arguing felt better than helping and fun? Since when did those antithesis feel so, so right?!
Dreams and Wishes
Snowdash flew through the winding streets of Salem shedding hyperactive giggles and laughs as she sped above the snow laden eves. It had been so, so long since she had felt so alive. Not even flying had made her feel this good! She had been so dead beat since joining the new weather patrol and dealing with the weather. But as the ferocity of the weather increased, so too did the amount of work. First her schedule went from patrolling for a couple of hours at sunset, to flying around for a couple of days a week as she had to make up for other ponies quitting because of the stress. And now, now Snowdash was working five days a week with double shifts. She wasn’t even getting paid for the overtime!
Snowdash’s laughs and chuckles quickly died to a petulant silence as the thought of work wormed its way into her mind. And those few thoughts brought with them precious memories. Memories of a time gone by. Memories of a time when --instead of working-- Snowdash would be out at the pub, having a jolly good time with her many friends. They would all sit at one table or another, though oftentimes the barkeep, Tapster, would reserve a table or two for Dash and her pals. Celestia knew he could afford it.
Dash and her drinking partners would sit around telling stories, tall tales, or whatever else came to mind. Nopony judged. But there was a curious incident with a newcomer. Everypony put it off the young buck’s rambling as him having had too much to drink. But even as Dash shook her head to shake that memory out, the bucks last words still echoed through her head.
“I see days neither fun nor free”
And like a whip, Dash’s senses snapped into focus. But it was too late. Emerging from the low hanging eaves of South Street, Dash’s frantic flight came to a crashing halt as she felt the full impact of the frigid northern winds that had invaded her town. Sleet pounded on her wings and clung to her feathers, weighing her down and disrupting her flight. There was nothing she could do and even as she mightily struggled, Dash was closer to crashing to the frozen ground below. With a final ragged breath, Dash’s wings gave out and she plummeted to the frozen cobblestones that lined Salem’s Plaza.
Dash’s landing was not an easy one, despite feeling warm from her flying she was infact, frozen, the sleet and ice had accumulated along her coat and wings acting like an icey cast, preventing her from moving. So it was that Dash skidded across the omnipotent ice and she only came to a stop when she rammed into a frozen mound of snow. There wasn’t much that Dash could remember after that. Just that she was cold and sleepy. Why? Why was she so-
“-Dash? Snowdash!”
From the darkening edges of her vision came the form of a large white pegasus advancing through the slurry of ice and sleet. Dash closed her eyes, just-just for a second, they were just so heavy. And from a ways away, almost as if from a great distance, dash could hear a tinny voice.
“Lass! What’re you flyin’ out ‘ere for?”
Dash’s world rocked and shifted. She moaned and burrowed deeper into her blankets. But that voice wouldn’t leave her alone!
“Don you worry none, Snowflake’ll fix ya up.”
With that said, Snowflake the white pegasus picked up Snowdash’s lolling form and made his way along Salem’s frozen streets to his home.
As time flew by and Flake got closer to his humble abode, he had to take greater care of his charge. Despite his best efforts the young pegasus he had found curled up in a remote corner of Salem seemed dead set on making his life hard. Though it was only by the shock of the mare rainbow colored mane that Snowflake saw her. But still, her drew the mare closer to his body and she clung to him so there had to be something in her that wanted to live. No pony would be flying around on the eve of one of the biggest winter storms of the past month. But seeing as the other storms made everything worse-
-Snowflake shook his head and rid himself of such dangerous thoughts and set himself to pushing through the ever increasing winds, to his home. Several minutes of effort yielded the results he wanted; his home.
Brushing a small spot off just to the left of his doorway, Snowflake gently set the mare down in the cleared spot then bent his wings to work on twisting his front doors frozen handle. After a few seconds of straining and wincing the frozen mecanism gave way with a sharp ‘pop’ and more than a few snaps. Propping the door open with his left rear leg, Snowflake used his wings to bundle the frozen mare past the doorway. With the mare inside it seemed as if the weather unloaded everything it had. The wind kicked up, blowing frozen fractals into Snowflakes eyes, blinding him.
Stumbling backwards, Snowflake was forcibly thrown into his home by the wrath of the storm. Blinking whatever ice remained out of his eyes and flicking his ears against the silence, Snowflake tried to right himself only to find the clammy feeling of a mare underneath him. Jumping up he backed away until his rump smacked against the doorframe. Thankfully the splinter that jabbed him brought him back to his senses. With a quick shake of his head and a wry huff, Snowflake got to work.
Standing still for a couple of seconds brought further clarity. Gradually, faint shapes grew in detail as small pointed beams of light snuck through the cracks in his doorway and his eyes adjusted to the low light. His ears flickered and rotated, picking up the howling sounds of the wind racing past his home and the growing creaks and cracks coming from all around his abode. Taking a breath Snowflake turned to the still form of the blue pegasus mare.
“Don’ worry Lass. Ol’ Snowflake’ll fix you up.”
Turning, Snowflake approached a small brass lantern. Extending his left wing Flake picked up the handle of his storm lantern and turned so that the solid brass shutter was facing him. Setting it back down on the small table he drew his wing down the side of it until her got to the latch. He used the tip of his wing to open the shutters latch then promptly pushed aside the shutter revealing the glass chamber inside.
Taking a breath, Flake stepped back and brought the tips of his wings together then started to softly rub them against each other. Gathering the moisture in the air, Snowflake condensed it into a cloud. He continued to build and compress the cloud until it was rumbling and black. Lifting a wing he sent a faint puff of wind propelling his cloud into the rune etched chamber of his storm lantern the used his pegasus magic to ‘stuff’ the cloud inside, compressing it into the uniform glass cylinder. He used the tip of his right wing to close the lanterns shutter it closed with a soft ‘click’ and ‘pop’ as the physical mechanism finished locking the lantern magically sealed itself giving off a small line of light along the hinge. After a few seconds it gave off a soft ear pleasing hum and a growing aura of blue light. Within seconds, the light from the lantern had illuminated the small space of Flakes ‘home’.
Now that he could properly see, Flake moved towards the mare while carrying the lantern with his right wing. Once he was next to her, Snowflake moved her petite form until she was laying at the foot of his hearth. Setting the lantern down next to the mares rainbow colored mane, Snowflake moved over her and rubbed the tips of his wings together again and this time they sparked. Once he was satisfied, he extended the tip of his right wing into one of the glass tubes leading into his fireplace. With a light gasp he let the electricity that he had built up in his wings out and into his fireplace. With a whirr and a pop the fireplace lit up in blue flames. He was instantly bathed with a warm wind and warmth that served to ward off the unearthly chill that accompanied the new weather front coming through that night.
Stepping back from his fireplace Flake looked around his humble abode and gave off a soft huff as he saw the mess in his kitchen. Shaking his head Flake cleared his mind and sat down next to his rainbow colored mare and wrapping one of his large feathery wings around her petite blue form to keep her warm. With a soft sigh, Snowflake settled in for the coming night.
Snowfall Frost sat on her bare mattress, staring at the quill, paper and ink she had laid out on her desk after Snowdash left. She thought over her ‘accident.’ Did she want it to happen; was it really an accident or did she do it all on purpose. She couldn’t remember with all the details swimming in and out of her mind. However, what she did remember was the feeling of panic; the frantic search for something-anything to reverse the effects of her spell. But each attempt had been met with failure after failure and the final nail in the coffin had been the destruction of the cauldron. Snowfall had tried to mirror her original potion then add the neutralizer. It didn’t work. Instead, Snowfall’s cauldron melted and now, as her gaze shifted from her desk to her defunct fire place she saw the cold slag that marked the remains of the formerly magic cauldron.
Blinking and shaking her head Snowfall rolled off her bed and made her way to the desk. She had a letter to write and actions to explain. Lighting up her horn to pull out the chair resulted in a sharp backlash and Snowfall cringed, letting the magic energy flow out of her. Shaking her head again, Snowfall used her right hoof to pull out the chair. Her ears flicked over her head in response to the screeching sound the legs made against the wooden floor. Once she could hear again, Snowfall clambered onto the chair and sat, staring forlornly at the ink and the quill. Taking a breath, Snowfall lifted her right hoof up and looked at it, then back at the writing implements then back to her hoof, and she groaned as she picked up the quill.
“I can't even remember the last time I had to write by hoof.”
Softly grumbling to herself, Snowfall set to work penning the letter that would hopefully bring help for the town, and retribution for herself. After an hour of mumbling, crumpling up balls of paper and numerous broken quills, Snowfall had her letter. Putting down her quill for the final time she read over her work.
‘Dear Princess Celestia,
‘If you get this, send help.
‘My name is Snowfall Frost and I’m a Unicorn from the town of Salem. We need your help and we need it now. But I should explain why.
‘A month ago I tried and unfortunately succeeded in making a spell to erase Hearth's Warming Eve-
- but I never meant to complete the spell, it was an accident, I had flash backs from these visions I had and they made me mess up and instead of neutralizing the spelI, I enhanced it and it was cast and I can never pay enough for my folly.
After that night I tried to find a cure, a counter spell. But everything I used failed. I tried to recreate the spell then neutralize it but all that did was melt my cauldron and because my cauldron had trace amounts of magic in it I cannot use any other cauldron without first making a magic imprint. But with the weather throwing off everypony’s magic, I cannot make any potions, brews or spells.
So now we are trapped here in Salem. Anypony that went beyond the towns borders has never come back nor have any other ponies come to help us. Like I said, the weather’s thrown everypony’s magic off. Unicorns are the ones that are the most affected, even the most basic use of spells will cause us pain and without the use of magic I cannot determine what is causing this interference.
What’s worse is that as this month has come to a close so too have many ponies hearts and minds. Arguments and fights have broken out around town; and I must confess, I am not innocent. Earlier today I got into a fight with one of my closest friends, Snowdash. The fighting itself made me feel happy and I wanted more! Princess, there are even rumors that martial law will be implemented if the situation degrades further. Please come help us.
Your faithful subject,
-Snowfall Frost.
Looking over her letter, Snowfall gave a soft sigh of contentment. She had her letter, she had written proof of her guilt. And she was going to send it to the Princess. Hopefully the end would be quick and painless. Rolling off the stool and onto the floor, Snowfall opened the desk drawer, picked up a small unmarked clay pot and unscrewed the lid.
Green light bathed her face, giving it an evil witch like appearance. Even the shadows around the room seemed more alive. Setting the black clay pot on the wooden floor, Snowfall lifted her folded letter up, slid it into its too big envelope and licked it shut. She immediately wiped her tongue on her coat to get the chemical taste of glue out of her mouth. After she was satisfied that the rancid yet pleasant scent of her own coat had overpowered the chemical taste of glue, she held the letter above the clay pot and dipped a corner in. For the next couple of seconds, nothing happened and Snowfall’s ears drooped in despair as she forced the letter further into the jar of green fire.
Then with a ‘whoosh’ and a ‘crackle’ the entire letter and a not so insignificant portion of fur went up in flame. Snowfall dashed away from the jar with a startled yelp cradling her now hairless left foreleg. Snowfall’s eyes and ears slowly settled from their panicked state and as they did so she noticed that there were no burn marks on her foreleg nor was there a feeling of pain. She set her newly shaved foreleg down and giggled as the adrenaline drained from her system.
A knock sounded throughout the house, interrupting her musings. Snowfall quickly snapped on the top of her dragon fire jar then hastily shoved it into its drawer. Making her way out of the room, Snowfall closed her bedroom door and went to get the door. On the way down the stairs another knock echoed through her house.
“I’m coming! I’m coming. Just hold on for a few seconds.”
Getting to the bottom of the stairs Snowfall hastily opened the door to her mudroom and found herself muzzle to muzzle with the intense gaze of Flutter Holly. Jumping back with a startled gasp Snowfall covered her mouth with a shaking hoof.
“F-FLutter Holly-”
Flutter Holly took a quick step in and closed Snowfalls front door behind her, cutting them off from the blistering winds that heralded a coming storm. As soon as a remote feeling of warmth returned, it was promptly squashed by a frigid, judging word from Flutter Holly.
“-Snowfall.”
Snowfall fell down on her rump with a thump as Flutter Holly strode past her and down the hall into the breakfast nook with her nose held high. As she reached the open prench doors, Flutter Holly gave a quick dismissive look back at Snowfall.
“We need to talk. Get in here.”
Snowfall shakily stood up, obeying Flutter Holly’s command. She followed, locked in a mental stasis by the haunting vision of Flutter Holly’s eyes. Which was promptly banished by the abrupt halt brought about by Snowfall slamming her newly shaven foreleg into an askew leg of the chair that Flutter Holly had pulled out for her. With a wince and a soft moan of, “Owww.” Snowfall fell into her seat cradling her bruised forelimb. Her attention was dramatically called away by Flutter Holly’s calm and cold voice.
“Look at me.”
Snowfall looked up at her friend with her limp leg still clutched against her barrel.
“It hurts. Doesn't it?”
Snowfall nodded demurely and Flutter Holly gave a short derisive snort.
“Good. Now you know only a fraction of the pain that you caused Snowdash.”
Snowfall gave Flutter Holly a confused and hurt glance. Flutter Holly got up from her chair, its legs screeching against the worn wooden floor and huffed, advancing on Snowfall.
“That’s right. I know what you said to Snowdash. The ponies all along the row know what you said to her. I know how much that hurt her.”
Flutter Holly got muzzle to muzzle with Snowfall and stared her down.
“You- You took our friendship and betrayed us. We tried to give you space-” Flutter Holly prodded Snowfall’s chest with a hoof “-We tried to give you time-” Flutter Holly shook her head and backed off “-We thought you had changed but we were clearly wrong. You lied to us.”
Finished with her rant, Flutter Holly swiftly turned away and made her way out of the breakfast room and pranced back to the front door.
Snowfall simply sat in her seat, shaking as she had been for the entirety of the time that Flutter Holly had been in her home. After a few seconds, her sluggish mind finally processed what Flutter Holly had said and she shot off her seat and almost flew to the front door; to Flutter Holly.
Sprinting out into the front hall, Snowfall saw the outline of Flutter Holly’s body against the glaring light from the outside. With a panicked screech Snowfall came to a halt with a hoof against her friends freezing withers.
“Flutter Holly wait!”
Pulling away from Snowfalls hoof, Flutter Holly turned and spoke sadly, not looking at Snowfall.
“Snowfall look. I-I don’t want to see you okay? You hurt Dashie a-”
Snowfall blinked in confusion and spoke slowly, “-Hurt Dashie? I didn’t hurt her!” Jutting out a hoof to block Flutter Holly’s escape route Snowfall continued. “We were pretending. We were just pre -”
-And Snowfall’s hoof was thrust off the door as Flutter Holly forced her way past and onto the porch leaving them both exposed to the brutal snowy elements.
“- I know what I heard. Don’t lie to me. You two were fighting. And right now I can’t stand to be anywhere near you because you make me so, so angry.”
Flutter Holly turned and walked off Snowfalls front porch took a few steps forward then turned back and faced the broken Unicorn in the doorway.
“There’s another storm coming. Just- Just so you know.”
Turning before Snowfall could see the tears freezing to her face Flutter Holly mumbled a belated, “I’m sorry.” And took off into the swirling snow ignoring the panicked calls from Snowfall. As Snowfall faded from sight and hearing Flutter Holly relaxed and the furious beat of emotions that had flooded her mind her mind cleared. And she came to the horrible realization.
She was a monster. She was the one most likely to have thawed Snowfalls frozen heart but now, now she had done just the opposite. She had frozen both mare and heart in her own house and home. There was no ignoring it. She- no. They were monsters.
Snowfall sat in the open doorway, her tears frozen to her face and her mane plastered to her sides as snow built up around her. Her thoughts buzzed and beat around her head as the scenes from earlier jabbed and pricked at her mind. The cold brought her out of her small cage, the shivering brought on not just by cold, but by the feelings that coursed through her body and mind. With a flash from her horn, Snowfall slammed her door shut, shaking the house and shattering the ornate glass panels that adorned the back of her door. The tinkling sounds and bright dancing lights entranced Snowfall as she forlornly watched the glass shards fall and bury themselves in the small snowdrifts that had made their home in the mudroom.
She saw them and saw their reflections. Reflections of her past. The friends and the teacher; the past and the present; the mistake and the result. They were all lying there broken and separated. Weak and afraid. And that was not Snowfall Frost. NO! Snowfall Frost was not weak nor was she afraid! She was strong and independent. She had worked hard and learned from her few mistakes and soon, soon all of Equestria would benefit from her genius!
Stomping, Snowfall made her way up the stairs to her room. Sending another blast of magic through her horn she threw the door open and trotted to the desk. Jumping up onto the chair Snowfall lit her horn and ignited the wicks on several nearby candles then levitated fresh papers, quills, and ink pots from numerous points around the room and organized them on the desks ink stained surface.
Muttering, Snowfall jabbed her hoof at the blank paper that lay in front of her. “Help! Ha! I don’t need help.” With that, Snowfall lifted up a quill with her magic and stabbed it through the inkwell and into the desk as a spike of pain shot down her horn.
“Gah!” Snowfalls head hit the desk and she watched as ink poured out of the shattered ink pot bleeding onto her formerly fresh parchment. She lifted up her head then slammed it down again as another wave of pain flooded her head. Moaning, Snowfall threw herself off the chair and onto the floor with a solid ‘thump’ then rolled around, her hooves squeezing her head as the pressure soared past her tolerance.
Snowfall felt everything and nothing; pain and peace; cold and hot. But what she saw, she saw a kaleidoscope of colors; purples and whites, blues and blacks and- and black. She saw black and peace. Peace as if her body was floating on air, soaring through the stars. She was, in one word; Content.
‘BRRIIINNG’
‘BRRIIINNG’
‘BRRI-’
Snowfall swung her hoof out from under her warm covers into the frigid air and swung it into her alarm clock. The clock fell to the ground and all was silent. Cold but silent. However, in moving her hoof around she had let the cold air into her warm cocoon of blankets. She shivered and moaned as the cold air didn’t go away, instead it seemed to seep into her aching joints, preventing her from sinking back into her pleasant dreams. She curled up into a tighter ball, tucking her tail between her legs and buried her head under the heavy nest that was her down comforter in an effort to banish the cold. It worked. Now covered by her blankets and seeing only darkness with no way for the cold to get in Snowfall breathed a tired sigh of relief and snuggled down into her mattress, preparing to give herself over to her exhaustion.
She slept. She slept like she had for the past several days and nights for there was nothing better to do. Her horn was burned out and her magic seemed to be in no hurry to return. She lacked the physical strength to free her windows or the front door from the deep layers of ice that had adhered to them over the past several days. But to top it off, she was running out of food and wood. She had a couple cans of diced apples left; she never liked them because they were too bland. As for her supply of wood, it was nearly non-existent; most of it had been used in an attempt to cook or brew something, Snowfall couldn't remember what it was. So she did the only thing she could, sleep. As it turned out, Snowfall was very good at sleeping.
Plus, sleeping meant that she didn’t have to worry about much. She didn’t have to worry about the cold or the outside or even her ‘friends.’ All she had to worry about was food, fire, and water. Food was easy enough she had it stockpiled in the cellar so she didn't have to spend money, although it took effort to brave the cold every time she wanted foodstuffs. Fire was another matter altogether. Before her horn burned out all she had to do was put some wood together, make a condensed magical spark, float it over to the wood and let nature take its course. Now though, because of her lack of magic she had to do things like an Earth Pony. Not that she had a problem with Earth Ponies, it was just that Unicorns had magic that could be anything while Earths just had some very basic magics. It was the same with the Pegasi. Sure they had wings and could control the weather but the Unicorns had controlled the Sun and the Moon for years. Still, Snowfall had greater respect for those two species. Making fire by hoof was harder than it looked and colder too.
Although, there were some problems with lying in bed and not being able to sleep. When that happened Snowfall would think. She would think good thoughts, bad thoughts and anything in between. Even when she didn’t want too she would start thinking, often times it would start because of the cold then from there it would evolve into a tale of a wanderer traveling down a dark and winding path that ended in an ice covered town and plain with its denizens made of snow and frost. The wanderer would warily wander through the streets, wading through snow piles and watching as the wind swept the snow from roofs and deposited it in her intended pathways. When that happened the noble adventurer would backtrack and find another way around then press forward towards the destination. However, the destination would never be reached for there would always be something that blocked her path whether it was an ice wall, a chasm, or the stinging wind. All those trials forced the wanderer to turn away and once again she would seek another path.
But Snowfall was not that adventurous traveller. She could not wade through mountains of snow nor could she brave desolate wastes to get to her destination. No, she would lay curled up in her bed where it was safe and warm. There were no signs of snowy mountain passes or desolate windswept wastes. Nope not at all because it was her bed, the only thing that even remotely resembled a mountain was her rump. Which was not surprising because of all the lying around she did. But even so, if she was not making tales of fantasy then she would be thinking about real matters like the weather, food and fire. Or a letter. A letter that she penned days ago, a letter to which she received no reply, no acknowledgement. The matter of her letter began weighing heavily on her mind.
She didn’t need to send that letter in her moment of weakness nor did she need to use her time for it. She would’ve been better off not sending anything but now, because of her over exertion, she could no longer use her magic until- until...
Snowfall’s head ached and her jaw fell open a she came to the realization that she had never burnt out like this before. She had never used up so much magic as to cause her crippling physical pain. She had read up on these conditions before where if a Unicorn overexerted themselves they suffer burnouts, but in the books the symptoms only lasted a few days, a week at most. Snowfall shook her head, it had been how long. A week? Two weeks? She didn’t know, but she knew that, for her to experience this much pain, she must’ve broken something. It was the only option. The troubling matter was that even with her vast knowledge of magic and anatomy Snowfall couldn’t figure out what the problem was.
She knew she didn’t chip her horn, nor did she have an infection, the only thing she had done was over exert herself. Maybe the weather had something-
-And Snowfall face hoofed under her blankets. Of course the weather had something- no, everything to do with her condition. She had written to Celestia saying that the weather was throwing off everypony’s magic! That’s why it was taking forever to heal or even feel better. Snowfall moved her right hoof up to the top of her head and stroked the tip of her horn. Before, when she had done this it had resulted in pain on contact but as she gingerly pressed her hoof to the bony appendage, she didn’t feel pain at least not immediately. She pressed down and gasped, ripping her hoof away and jumping as pain zapped from her horn to her dock then spread throughout her body as a tingling sensation. She curled up into a ball as the sensations passed through her body making her shiver and moan in pain.
After a couple of minutes the sensations faded, leaving Snowfall with aching joints and a blinding migraine. Groaning, she shifted her blankets around into a tighter cocoon and stayed that way, letting the warmth from her attack bleed back into her body, relaxing her stiff muscles and soothing her cold joints. As she felt her body loosen and relax, Snowfall closed her eyes and searched for the darkest spoty she could. She found it and felt her body sink into the abyss.
They had been at it for days. They had gone through with the plans. The rumors that everypony had heard, the rumors about martial law and curfew, they were true. The guards along with concerned citizens would enforce those laws and rules for the safety of everypony. Ponies would be subject to search without question and imprisonment without bail. All ponies not associated with the Guards or the newly formed Constable Service would have to be inside from sunset to dawn or before a storm hit.
But as the days went on and the weather looked to continue its downward spiral, the rumors began. Rumors of foul magics being used and dark evil rituals being enacted began to fester within the minds of many ponies. The guards and Constables responded appropriately.
Together, the two organizations tracked down leads, executed plans, swarmed residences and ponies suspected of enacting witchcraft or dark magics. However, even as the fear of foul magics increased and the rumors grew to outstanding tales of smoky dark figures swarming poor innocent ponies in the dead night, the real events told a different story altogether. For in truth there were no Witches nor were there Dark Wizards, those tales were created by fearful ponies in the dark recesses of their homes. But it is only by fear that those fantastical tales may come back to life.
After days of searching, raiding, questioning, and arresting, the Guards and Constables had nothing to show for their efforts but a pile of lies, false evidence, and numerous cells full of poor innocent ponies who were in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Many of those ponies were put there by one zealous Pegasus. One prismatic Pegasus.
“Snowdash!”
The force of her landing had blown the light snowfall of that day into the Sergent’s face before he had even closed his mouth. With a huff he spat out the frozen water and glared at the source of his troubles and salvation.
“Officer Snowdash reporting, Sir!”
The bundled form of a pegasus was revealed to him as the falling snow recovered from the chaotic pegasus’ landing. The snow, once gone from the folds of her clothes settled back into the nooks and crannies, giving her the picturesque look reminiscent of the great statue that stood in the town square.
With her recent acts, Snowdash was quickly named the go-to pony for any job. Just point her in a direction and let her go. While she was a loose cannon and would often do things of her own accord, there were ways of controlling her.
“Officer Dash, please follow me.”
With that, Sergeant Feather turned and walked into the police compound, leaving Snowdash to scramble behind him.
“Sir-Sir! Where’re we going? You got another one for me to bust?”
Feather paused and let Dash catch up.
“Maybe.”
He resumed his steady march towards the offices. Ignoring the rest of Snowdash’s questions. He made his way across the training yard to the converted warehouse that served as the headquarters for the Constable Service. He opened it and motioned for Dash to go inside. She did, but not after giving him a withering glare. Feather shrugged nonchalantly. Stepping into the building, Feather closed the door behind him and and resumed his steady pace towards his office. Once again he did not answer Snowdash, instead he let her stew in her own curiosity.
When they finally reached the door to his office, Feather opened it and Snowdash shot inside leaving a dull rainbow trail behind. Feather sighed in exasperation, stepped inside his office, then closed the door. Turning around, he saw Dash already sitting in her chair, her eager face was turned to him her eyes beaming. That at least, made his job easier.
Walking around Dash, Feather made his way behind his desk, his left wing trailing on the polished brass trim. He did not sit, instead he pushed his chair out of the way and locked eyes with Snowdash as he pushed a file towards her.
“Snowdash, you are one of the best recruits the Constabulary has ever seen. Your drive is remarkable and your success rate is marginally better than most guardponies. You expressed a willingness to go where no others have gone and a need to do better than everypony else. Those traits are what have distinguished you in your service of the Constabulary. As such, it is with praise and honor that I promote you to the Guard.”
As feather had continued speaking, Dash’s eyes continued to widen until they were seemingly leaping out of her face. But what Sergent Feather said next was what shocked her the most.
“Officer Snowdash of the Salem Guard I hereby grant you the rank of Sergeant. All w-”
Feather never got to complete his sentence as he was tackled by a blinding rainbow colored blur. It also happened to be talking very fast, too fast for Sergeant Feather to make heads or tails of. However, as he signaled the need for air the rapid fire speech slowed down enough so that he could actually hear something. Even so, it was difficult because what he could hear sounded like the words ‘Thank you’ just repeated over and over again at a very fast pace.
Eventually he was able to pry the overly enthusiastic Pegasus off of him and sit her chittering form in a corner where she substituted his body with one of her own wings. He tried to get her attention but what he got in reply was jargon containing the words ‘Thank you’ and ‘Awesome’ repeated in varying patterns and intensities. He decided to give her a few minutes to calm down. In the meantime, he looked over at his desk and sighed. The paper work wasn’t going to fill itself.
Flake had been on leave, sitting in his little home by the town square when the doorbell rang. He, with his impeccable manners answered. He regretted answering the door. He regretted it because he had been dragged out of his home by his overly enthusiastic pegasus friend and dumped at the guards training grounds. Then he had been forced to sit there and not move until she came back. Oh how he loved his job. And not forgetting how he was repeatedly told about the ‘honor’ he would have in serving as the second in command for the ‘best Pegasus Sergeant in the guard.’ Still, all he did was save his friend and this is what he got.
Not that he didn’t appreciate his job, he loved it, it was just demanding. While he did love the rigorous work schedule it was just that, work broken into properly segmented tables. He had everything he needed to do written down and any interruptions to his reverie were not appreciated. However; when his new ‘Commanding Officer’ came to his house and picked him up he had no choice because if anything you are supposed to obey your commanding officer. Now Snowdash was his Sergeant and he was her second in command. All that was left for him to do was to wait while Dash got the squad together for a brief teamwork session of her own devising. After that she said that she had something special planned for all of them.
Snowfall grumbled as she tripped her way down the stairwell of her house. At two-thirty in the morning. Two-Thirty in the morning. Sompony better have a darned good reason for waking her up right in the middle of the best dream she ever had!
The knocking and scraping on her door had stopped and Snowfall breathed a sigh of relief.
“Miss Frost this is the Guard open your door! We have a warrant for your arrest due to your involvement in witchcraft and magical negligence!”
Snowfalls breath hitched in her throat and she started coughing as she stumbled the last couple of steps and landed on her shoulder on the carpet of her hallway. Her mind raced, the guards! They? Why? Wh-
“Snowfall Frost! This is the Guard! Open your door now! You have five seconds to comply!”
Snowfall Frost scrambled to her feet and rushed to her front door. Hastily she started undoing the locks and bolts on it. She was going fast, but apparently it was not enough. Just as she finished with the last deadbolt she was thrown back as her door shattered and shadowy shapes swarmed into her house. She was quickly lifted up and slammed against a wall as numerous voices filtered through the ringing sound in her ears.
“-ear!”
“Bedroom cl-”
“-holy Celestia!”
With a jolt, Snowdash was ripped from her painful position on her wall and was brutally thrown on the floor then restrained and cuffed faster than she could think. Again, voices started beating through the buzzing in her mind.
“-under arrest for witchcraft and magical negligence!”
With her mind foggy and her vision blurry Snowfall felt herself move under another’s power. She was not handled gently for it felt like she hit every bump, nook and cranny on her way out the door. And once she was out the door. Well, she was dragged through and on everything, gravel, ice, rocks, snow. All of it accumulated in her coat eyes and muzzle. Some of the debris cut her, some bruised her and still some gave her a rancid taste in her mouth. Did she know where she was being hauled off to? No.
That was why, when her punishment stopped so too did the fog and numbness. With the absence of such inhibitors Snowfall could feel every cut and bruise on her body. She wanted to scream but when she want to open her muzzle she found it to be bound shut with a metal contraption so she did what she could. Restrained, with a muzzle cinched to her skull and her hooves bound by metal hoof cuffs, Snowfall moaned and groaned as the feelings of pain flooded her system. With each roll and spasm Snowfall could feel grit and dirt being ground even further into her coat and flesh.
Though she could not hear the voices of the guards, she could feel the reverberations of something. And as she spasmed again she felt the pain only grow to encompass her body from dock to horn. And within moments she was blinded by pain and felt like she was being pulled along a grater. She couldn’t move nor speak she was trapped in her mind and she was terrified.
But in an instant her torture was over, she felt right as rain. The feeling was so foreign to her that by the point in time that she realized she could walk, move, and talk again she had missed the great magenta orbs staring at her with tears brimming in the corners of them. When she did notice them, she saw the eyes of a saviour, of someone who dealt with pain and overcome it. She saw a stronger pony than her. And with a single blink, she fell into them.
Falling. She felt like she was falling. She moved her head around but there was no ground, there was no place nor thing around her. She just felt like she was falling. And there was no one to catch her.
Looking into her glassy blue eyes Celestia could see herself reflected in them. She could see a mare drowning in an ocean of tears. An ocean of tears brought on by a scant few but perpetrated by so many all to harm those who were different than all others. The poor, the rich, the crippled all were at the mercy of the Guards and these ‘Constables’. With a shake of her head Celestia bent down and whispered in Snowfalls twitching ear.
“-Up.”
“Snowfall Frost. Wake. Up.”
And she did.
The first thing she was met with was those twin magenta orbs set in a white face. But now, those twin orbs held no tears, instead they let the water fall down and mingle with the dirt and grime that adorned the face of Equestria’s Princess of the Sun. Celestia.
Celestia had come! She had received her letter! And she could fix everything now! Everything would- Go. Back. To normal.
Snowfall gasped and rolled upright using the steady hoof of the princess as a firm guide. Shakily she turned around and opened her mouth only to find it blocked by a golden shod hoof. She brought her eyes up in warning only for the Princess to meet her gaze with one of her own. The water was evaporating into steam before Snowfalls very eyes and the look in the Princess's eyes and the set jaw of her muzzle said it all. She would personally render judgement upon the town of Salem.
Pulling her hoof away from Snowfalls open mouth Princess Celestia, Solar Diarch of Equestria, turned to the large crowd of ponies and made sure the consequences of their actions would be seen by everypony.
Lighting her horn, Celestia prepared to act. She flared her wings and spread her feathers as far as she could. Rearing up, Celestia cast her cold gaze amongst the crowds of ponies and spoke.
“My little ponies-”
Her voice echoed throughout Salem. It was deafening, unbearable in its tone and judgement. She had come down from her mountain home and saw it fit to render her judgment upon the guilty ponies of Salem. However, there were some who disagreed.
Despite the power behind her voice some ponies were not frozen in fear. One brave, nameless pony cast a rock at the Solar Diarch and she, the great foundation upon which Equestria was built, crumbled to the ground as the rock struck her horn with a sharp ‘crack’.
The crowds were silent, the victim was silent, the perpetrator ran away. As for Snowfall Frost, she lay beside the Celestial giant and watched everything unfold. She watched as Celestia fell to the frozen cobblestones and lay still. Snowfall could only watch in horror as the lifeblood of Celestia leaked from a crack on her horn and ran through her fur to the hungry ice below. She could see the dilated irises of her ruler. There they lay, one the master and commander, the other a simple mare who attempted to make a living.
But they were alive, and for one of them the insults would not stand.
With a hiss, Celestia sat upright and locked eyes with the Captain of Salem’s guards. Lifting a hoof to her head, Celestia winced as she brushed against her chipped horn. Jerking her hoof away she saw a dash of red smeared across the surface of her hoof. Bowing her head, Celestia let her pastel mane settle about her head as the consequences of her injury came to light. She could not use magic with a horn injury like that. She would risk creating a feedback loop or, a she would suffer a violent expulsion of magic. Despite it all, despite having lost her magic, Celestia, The Solar Diarch was not a mare to be trifled with for she had existed in many forms throughout the eons and had suffered much more than any mortal could comprehend. And so, she stood up.
Stalking through the fresh snow and ice Celestia made her way to the trembling form of Blitz, Captain of the Salem Guard. Leaning in, she peered into his eyes and watched as they widened in fear. Though she never did condone violence there were times in her history when she would use it for different purposes. Seeing that Blitz had backed up, Celestia belted out a hard laugh and watched as steam flowed out of her mouth and passed upwards. Then she stood to her full height, towering over all of the little cowering ponies. She took a step forward and felt the weight of the world on her back. But just this once the weight of the world was too much her. Celestia’s front knees buckled and she fell, prostrate before her little fearful ponies.
Snowfall lay paralyzed in the swiftly dropping temperature as she saw her saviors front knees buckle. She could only watch in fear as the white monolith that was her Princess collapsed to her knees as some thing penetrated the sky and fell upon Celestia’s back freezing her haunches with its touch. Whatever foul creature it was lay crouched upon her coiling its cold tendrils around her flanks, around her barrel and around her horn. Through all that Celestia’s kneeling form stood frozen in place as the creature roamed over her body freezing the flesh and the hair with a light touch. The ponies in the crowds watched as their Princess slowly froze. None moved as the creature continued its work. Slowly it slid into Celestia’s icey form as its tentacles left glowing swirls and patterns across her glacial form. Wherever the creature traveled, a cold harsh white light followed and soon enough, the light settled in her breast. In her cold, dead, heart.
Ponies all around her were silent and still. All frozen in disbelief as their idol lay permanently kneeling. And yet there was a small sound. So small as to almost be mistaken as a squeak from errant hooves on ice. But that was not the case. From the horrible cold white growth within her frozen breast came a hard cracking sound and it ended at the joint between Celestia’s wing and her barrel. The loud crack echoed throughout the area. The ponies shook awake from their trance and a second crack appeared mirroring the first one. For the next minute cracks spread throughout Celestia’s body causing many ponies in the rapidly dispersing crowds to blanch and pedal backwards.
For any who stayed they would’ve heard the end of the cracks. Then the twitching began. First her left eyelid slid downward with a sharp snap, it remained close. Then her right eyelid repeated the same motion and once again, it was accompanied by the cracking of ice.
Her right hoof, frozen to the flagstone by the fog cascading out of the cracks slid forward with a snap, a crack and a pop. Safely out of her line of sight, Snowfall sat watching as the ice pony in front of her absentmindedly moved each part of the body. With each movement and rotation more cracks snaked throughout each limb and each time that happened just a bit more of the cold fog crawled out of the cracks and flowed to the ground where it gathered around her figure. Cautiously, Snowfall crawled away from her Princess to safety. But, as cautious as she was, others weren’t. Snowfall locked eyes with a trembling stallion and motioned for him to run. He did so bumping into the corner of a frozen food cart. His errant movement shifted the cart, and an icicle fell to the exposed cobblestone with the sound of shattering glass. With eerie precision, Celestia’s head snapped around and her illuminated irises alighted upon Snowfalls quivering form.
Like her namesake, Snowfall’s freezing form was covered in the soft snowfall and sharp frost of the winter storm. But she didn’t notice any of the snow nor the frost. The only thing she did notice was the burning blue irises of her Princess and how they reflected her quivering form in their lifeless gaze. But maybe, just maybe...
Captivated by the Princess’s icey gaze Snowfall squeaked, “Princess Celestia?”
The word had no effect on the Princess, the only thing it did was to keep their eyes locked together. Snowfall’s blue eyes looked into Celestia’s fractured magenta eyes. In that moment Snowfall knew that there was nothing left of the Celestial Princess. The new Creature stood stock still, shadowy tendrils trailed from the exposed cracks in her crystalline figure. With solid, jerky movements, the icey equine turned the rest of her body around to face Snowfall who scooted away until she lay against the newly exposed wall. Fractured magenta irises tracked the quivering pony’s brief flight.
Stepping forward, it looked down at Snowfall’s balled up form until she was a scant foot away. Smoothly, she raised her cracked right hoof and held it in front of Snowfall’s face. Gingerly Snowfall uncurled from her ball and looked at the frozen hoof. With tears adhered to her face, she lifted her right hoof and gently tapped it against the creature's own. As soon as she made contact a shock passed through Snowfall and a cacophonic series of cracks could be heard throughout Celestia’s icey tomb.
Snowfall watched as the icey spot she touched with her hoof cracked and caved in. She could only stare with her hoof suspended in air as the pattern traveled up the extended leg. Time seemed to slow as Snowfall lay watching the body of her Princess crumble into a fine white powder. As each piece poured to the ground it swirled around Snowfall in a non-existent wind. Even as the magenta luminescence of the eyes faded away the non-existent winds kicked up the glassy particulate remains and they clung to Snowfalls body. With each flake that landed Snowfall felt a harsh stinging sensation then a small spot of warmth. Throughout it all she kept staring at the tip of her outstretched hoof. She no longer felt cold, pain nor hunger. Snowfall felt warm and content.
Her eyes locked onto the ghostly image of Celestia’s gaze as she felt the snow creep up and around her body covering her from hoof to crown. Gradually, as though she were a third pony, Snowfall saw her eyes glaze over and the snow cover them. The last thing she remembered was the indifferent blue glow that emanated from those snow covered eyes as the snow rushed up and filled her vision with white. With that Snowfall felt and saw herself fall apart as her body imploded in a flurry of snow. Her fine particles were carried up and away into the coming storm.
Far above the panicking town of Salem, Snowfall peacefully floated in the stormclouds. But far below her in the distant windswept streets she could see the townsponies fleeing as dark shapes plummeted from the sky. Some ponies dodged the shadowy forms and managed to escape. Others were not so lucky. Those that did not escape ended up like their Princess did. An icey golem, incapable of thought but as dangerous as anything that Snowfall had ever heard of. As the day drew to a close, the icey golems had hunted down the ponies that remained in town. By the time the moon rose the streets were empty and the spectres had slunk off past the horizon.
With the moon reaching its apex, Snowfall felt a tugging sensation in the pit of her stomach. Looking down, she saw the empty streets of Salem as she hurtled through the outlying storms of ice and sleet. When she cleared the majority of the weather she found herself to be in a flurry of snow and ice but she could see clearly. As she descended to the desolate streets Snowfall saw several crumpled and shattered equine forms strewn around the streets. When she felt her hoofs finally make contact with the shattered cobblestones Snowfall looked up and found herself on a snow swept street that was devoid of any life.
With her hooves under her once more, Snowfall took a step forward into a small mound of soft powdery snow and kicked it up. She watched as the small crystals blew in the wind, each turn and rotation giving off a different color of light. When the cascade of rainbow colors was over Snowfall’s gaze had fallen upon the gateway that led out of town. Now knowing where to go, Snowfall passed through the gates of Salem and left the town behind as she made her way out into the cold, hard wastelands.
Author's Note
So this tale is done, however I want to know what you, the reader, thought about this story. Additionally I'll put up an extended Author's Note in my blog sometime soon.
