Blood and Sunfire

---------------------------------------------------Chapter 2---------------------------------------------------

What Unicorns Do Best

A large thick cloud of dirt flowed around the chocolate colored fur of Knight-Captain Clover as she and her party of Battle-Mages trotted down the road. The diplomatic meeting in Frilacia’s capital city went over horribly as expected of Platinum. The Unicorns there were simply too consumed in their arrogant superiority and still very fiery hate for the pegasi. What came completely unexpected however was the name calling. Clover figured they would be cautious around her party but to openly call her a “Talentless-loving Whore”? She would have challenged the Noble to a duel then and there were it not for Princess Platinum’s specific orders.

“I see no reason they won’t try to antagonize you Clover, whatever happens don’t give in to their petty challenges!” Platinum’s words were still fresh in her mind... likely on account of the memory spell she put in place.

Stalliongrad was a nice enough city, when the nobles weren’t spitting at Clover that is. Frilacia bordered Equestria to the north-east, and ever since the founding there was a rise of Frilacian battle-mages taking up residency in the border town “New Saddle”. The town had a direct connection to the main road and could easily spew forth soldiers if a southern invader presented itself.

Or if they grew the balls needed to attack us, Clover thought.

The trip back from Stalliongrad had been a long and tiring one. The party was still a few hours away from the border and they were beginning to run out of rations. The entire trip was just one big disaster. Clover wondered if the Commander was any better off on her journey.

The heat of the summer day beat mercilessly down on the robed party. Uniforms made of metal breastplates and silk tunics may not have been the best choice for a long march in the sun. On several occasions she had to stop the party and rest in the shade of the trees on the side of the road, a problem which only delayed them further and occasionally wasted even more of their rations.

“Captain, just how far away are we?” Asked Lieutenant Star-Charmer.

The Lieutenant was one of Clover’s favourites but she really asked too many questions. Throughout the entire journey Star-Charmer had been playing a constant game of “Are we there yet?”. It was beginning to get irritating.

“Star-Charmer please... we’re getting closer to the border! Once we get there we will set up camp for the night and reach Canterlot on the morrow,” Clover barked.

Star-Charmer looked pained, as if Clover had just struck her. She was a remarkable mage but she got very sensitive over the tiniest things. Clover could hardly blame her though, the condition her fellow Mages were in was just absolutely terrible. Some of them even tried to remove their uniform, an action which got them hollered at by Clover. She hated making them undergo this but Clover just didn’t trust the Frilacians to uphold their promise of safe passage.

“Captain... can we take another breather?” Asked one of the Mages in the back of the column. The Mage in question was a new recruit, Crescent was his name.

“We have to make it to the border, Crescent... forced march and no complaining.”

There was no response from the Recruit, only a collective groan from the other Mages. They continued on for another five minutes, their tunics were drenched with sweat and their armour was searing hot under the summer sun. Eventually the chirping birds fell quiet and all seemed very still. The only sound was the trotting of hooves as the party continued to kick up a dirt cloud. The eerie silence was broken by a single odd bird call.

“Hold,” Clover ordered.

The column of mages halted behind her, a few even bothered to sit down for as long as they could before they would be forced to move again. The bird seemed to fall silent as soon as they stopped. Star-Charmer looked around in suspicion but there was no trace of where the call came from.

“What do you think that was?” The Lieutenant asked.

Again with the questions it seemed. Clover was nearly about to yell at her when they heard the call again. This time louder... closer, but still nothing could be found. Just when Clover was about to order them forward another sound reached her ears.

“Captain!” Came a strained cry from the back.

Clover and the others turned to find Crescent being wrestled to the ground by unknown cloaked unicorns. One of them held his legs down while the other was attempting to choke him with some cord. There was no time to waste, Crescent needed help and he needed it now. Clover called forth her willpower and focused it through her horn. A bright bolt of magical energy shot forth and caught one of the Assassins in the head silencing him immediately.

“Get him!” Clover yelled and pointed at the remaining Assassin who was still trying to strangle him.

The others wheeled about and charged towards where Crescent and the Assassin were wrestling on the ground. Another recruit was the first to get there, she focused her willpower and tore free the blade that was strapped to her saddle-bag. She wasted no time in striking the pony, slitting his throat for good measure. The others pulled Crescent to his feet and returned to Clover.

Too late did they notice that there were more of the cloaked assassins hiding in the trees. They charged forth yelling insults and  preparing spells of their own. These were clearly Frilacian mages, that much Clover was certain of. There were also far too many of them to fight off.

“Tactical retreat! Double time it down the road, move!” Clover yelled.

Clover’s soldiers began to break out into full gallop. Some would turn and cover the others by firing off bolts at the assailants, and then continue to run. Most simply ran in a disorganised manner. The Assassins came from all sides and tried to box the retreating Mages in, Clover and her subordinates only barely managed to escape but the Assassins were still hot on their heels.

“Captain, what do we do? We can’t keep running until we reach Canterlot!” Star-Charmer yelled.

“Keep running until we find an area that can be used as cover. If we can slaughter them while they’re in the open we might have a chance!” Clover replied.

“What cover? It’s an open road and the forest is likely crawling with more of them!”

“Lieutenant, just keep running!” Clover roared.

That was the end of that. The Battle-Mages continued their mad gallop for safety. It wasn’t long before useable cover actually presented itself... in the form of a blockade. Several overturned wagons and other pieces of wood were piled together to form a wall of debris in the middle of the road. Behind the wall was a collection of more Frilacian mages, each of them ready to shed blood. It happened so quickly, the blockade unleashed a volley of bolts directly at Clover and the others. Death on a mission of diplomacy definitely was not what Knight-Captain Clover had in mind.

She poured forth her will into one desperate attempt at salvation. From the tip of her horn was formed a mighty barrier that sent the bolts cascading in random directions. The others halted behind her and frantically searched for ways they could escape.

“Lieutenant, take the others and line up in front of me... when I give the word run for the barricade!” Clover yelled, fatigue was evident in her voice.

“...Captain are you su-”

“Do it now!”

The others formed into a line before her and waited. The horde of Assassins was gaining on them and time was of the essence. This had to be done perfectly.

“Captain?” Star-Charmer asked nervously.

“We’re running out of room here...”

“Just wait for it!” Clover replied.

When the advancing horde was nearly upon them Clover transferred the energy of her shield into a blazing white beacon of light. The horde stopped in their tracks and tried in vain to block out the light while those who manned the barricade were taken completely off guard and stumbled back in a daze.

“Go now!” Clover ordered.

The line of Mages ran for the barricade with their backs to the flare, ready to kill the previous occupants who were still rolling on the ground screaming. From behind Clover the other Assassins were firing blind hoping to accidentally hit her and cease her spell-casting. Their shots were of various degrees of power but ultimately the Assassins were very untrained apprentice mages and knights. Clover’s sorte jumped the barricade and came down hard on their enemies. They used magic to enforce their strength and proceeded to beat the enemy senseless, none survived the assault and the barricade was now officially an Equestrian fortification.

Clover had to yet again transfer her power quickly. She called back the flare and recycled every bit of energy she could in order to perform a quick desperate teleportation spell. She disappeared and reappeared behind the barricade in a flash of blue just as the still present horde shot concentrated bolts at her. The chain of spells left Clover severely weakened and tired, she was having trouble focusing her vision and could only barely hear Star-Charmer yelling at her.

“Captain... Captain are you alright?”

Clover just moaned a response and got up on her hooves shakily. The barricade was being ravaged by the hostile onslaught, if they didn’t act quickly they wouldn’t have any cover to hide behind. They needed to fight back, and now was the best time to start.

“Use fire,” Clover said weakly.

“Lob it over the barricade to the road...”

Star-Charmer nodded and looked towards the other Mages. Clover was reminded as to why she chose Star-Charmer as her lieutenant in the first place. The mare could be a seriously commanding figure when she needed to be. Within mere moments she had the others preparing their own miniature blazes. There was still a problem however, they needed to be guided to their target as they were firing blind. Clover supposed she could try to direct the path of the volley with her telekinesis but even then she needed to see the enemy herself.

Quickly she moved to the left end of the barricade and tried to peek around. The Assassins were standing in the middle of the road completely oblivious to their plan. They didn’t seem to notice Clover yet but she resolved not to test that. Quickly she pulled her head back around the edge and waited for the others to unleash the inferno. She expected them to take some time as many of them were still newly promoted mages, but this was a ridiculous wait. Finally Star-Charmer gave the order.

“Fire!”

Clover hated puns, but not was not the time to think about that. The the horns of the Mages erupted in a cloud of smoke and a dozen or so sizeable balls of flame were launched into the air. Clover looked around the edge again and saw the fireballs high in the air, some of them would hit their intended targets but the others would likely veer off into the woods if Clover didn’t intervene. She once more focused her willpower, all this would take was a slight push in the right direction. Her focus lingered and flowed around the scorching volley, for all of it’s hot intensity it was really quite soothing. Soon she felt as if she could see the enemy from the direction of the fireballs... that is of course if fireballs could even see. Clover was in the moment and nothing would break her concentration.

“Take cover!”

“Where you damned idiot?”

“Then scatter!”

The flames were slowly directed towards the Assassins who were now frantically searching for an escape. The flames seemed to speed up when they got closer to the ground splitting off from the bulk of the volley to individually seek clusters of assassins. Clover let go of her focus and allowed the fireballs to travel on their own paths. The only thing heard for the next minute and a half was the collective screams of the dying. Clover chanced another peek and saw the Assassins running in random directions many of them engulfed in flames.

“Star-Charmer... put them out of their misery,” Clover ordered.

“Yes Captain. Over the barricade, kill them all!” The Lieutenant replied.

Star-Charmer, followed by the tired Equestrian Battle-Mages, hopped the barricade and began to strike the Assassins down with flurries of magical energy. It wasn’t long before the road was littered with the still flaming corpses of the enemy. Nopony else was in sight for the time being, but it was still deathly quiet. A few of the Frilacian Assassins managed to retreat back down the road but they were too few in number to be considered a threat now.

Clover had never forgotten what it was like to see her enemy rout. During her years as an apprentice to the previous Knight-Captain of Lymorah, Regal Shadow, Clover had led raids against the Coalition whenever the Royal Family felt it necessary. The raids could hardly be considered a true fight, there wasn’t much the farmers could do when taken completely off guard by magic. That no longer mattered anymore... they were done killing each other, or at least Clover had thought. The events of the day clearly proved otherwise, and now they were even forced to kill their own kind.

The others needed to hear about this and quickly. Clover didn’t want to give her enemy the chance to regroup. The party did not tarry long in the distance a war-horn could already be heard.

“How many more of them are there?” Asked Crescent.

“It doesn’t matter. Down the road, go!” Clover ordered.

They turned to find three Frilacians dressed in rather expertly crafted attire standing before them. The one who stood at the front, wore an intricate helmet made to look as if it had wings spanning up the sides. A knight and his followers it would appear, a rather commanding knight at that.

“And where do you think you’re going my friends?” The Knight asked.

“You wouldn’t leave my Lord’s lands so soon now would you?”

“We’ve barely even begun to meet one another...”

Clover trotted up until she stood but only several feet away from the arrogant looking unicorn. Her eyes were burning with barely contained hate and fury. The stallion was more than close enough for Clover to just lash out, but in her tired state she figured it would be unwise.

“What is the meaning of this?” Clover growled.

“We were told that we would be allowed to leave unopposed!”

The Knight stood there for a few moments silently regarding her with a wide smirk. Against her better judgement, Clover began to feel the need to give him something to fear. Even before the founding of Equestria, Frilacians considered themselves superior to almost every other unicorn, let alone the pegasi and earth-ponies.

“Yes that is correct... King Crimson stated that you would be set free. Though you must realise, your presence here was a great insult to the rest of the nobility,” He replied haughtily.

“It was only a matter of time until somepony else tried to capture or kill you... perhaps both.”

The Knight strode forward confidently toward Clover, his guards in tow. The sudden action caught Clover off guard and made her shuffle in place. With all of her energy expended, she realized she wouldn’t stand much of a chance against the strange stallion should he try anything aggressive. It was then that Star-Charmer quickly relocated herself before Clover. She glared at the Knight and lowered her horn, a silent gesture warning the stallion to back off punctuated by the thumps of her hooves as she pawed at the earth. The trio seemed to take the message and halted their approach.

The sun was still beating down on Clover and the others, the Frilacians did a great job at hiding it but she could tell that they were affected equally if not more so by the harsh rays. They carried on in silence for some time before the lead knight started to chuckle, his small display of mirth turned into a bout of uncontrollable laughter as he looked towards Star-Charmer.

“Isn’t it just lovely to have a little guard dog?” The Knight choked out between laughs.

Star-Charmer was visibly insulted, her face turned a slight shade of pink and she murmured several curses below her breath. Clover was not surprised with what came next. This problem arose very often during Star-Charmer’s training; she was quick to learn but also quick to anger. The temper of this relatively recent addition to the Battle-Mage ranks was in no way bountiful.

“I expected Frilacians to hold some kind of respect for fellow mages,” Star-Charmer hissed.

“You’re allies with the dirt lickers... I can hardly call you fellow mages.”

“Our status is not measured in titles or social classes... it’s measured in power,” The ever ambitious Star-Charmer.

“From the display of your recruits, I’m beginning to get the feeling that skill is something Frilacians have lacked as of late... but what could I expect from low-born mules?”

The Knights laughter ceased and his face twisted into a grimace. The classical game of “Unicorn Superiority”, they were all born to play it... some better than others. There was only one thing this verbal exchange would lead to and Clover dreaded the thought of it.

“Perhaps you would like to demonstrate what your dirt loving mind perceives as skill?” The Knight growled.

“No, no one is dueling anyone!” Clover shouted and forced Star-Charmed back.

As much potential as Star-Charmer had Clover couldn’t be sure if the Knight had even more. To many factors were present, the heat and exhaustion to name only two. What the Equestrians needed now was anything but more fighting. Clover desperately searched for a way to distract the Knights and move them from their path.

“The Lymorahns are not only traitors but cowards too! So shocking,” The arrogant Knight pressed the issue.

“Clover... please?”

“That is Knight-Captain Clover to you Star-Charmer!” Clover shouted.

“Clover...” Star-Charmer said again.

The look on the mare’s face was one of desperate plea, it was as if Star-Charmer was a damned filly begging her parents for yet another gift. It was something that only she could get away with too. Clover made one last concerned look and then shook her head in irritation. The silent approval was given.

Clover trudged slowly back to her tired soldiers, mentally dreading the fight to come. There was one thing a unicorn had to do in order to spell-cast, they needed to believe in a cause. They cast spells with their own emotions as much as with their horns, the more passionate the unicorn the greater the mage, however there was a small problem. If said unicorn let their emotions control them instead of the other way around, destruction would ensue. An emotionally compromised unicorn could expend all of their power in too short a time and set the path for their own failure.

“Well hurry mule, my comrades don’t have all day!” Star-Charmer taunted.

The Knight merely narrowed his gaze and began to pace. They started stalking in a circle eyeing each other up, just waiting for the right moment to strike. Star-Charmer went first, a lance of bright red magic was sent arching towards her opponent. The Knight deflected it with a lance of his own and the two continued in their dance. This went on for some time, one would exchange a blow that the other would counter almost effortlessly. Their shots began to speed up until they would occasionally fire off multiple bolts in rapid succession. Some would collide in the air while others would splinter and fall off course.

Star-Charmer recalled her will and focused it through her horn. A small dome of pale red light formed around her just as her opponent lobbed a miniature fireball. The ball of flame washed over the shield and eventually dissipated. Reacting quickly, Star-Charmer recycled the energy used in the shield for her next spell. Her head buzzed with a familiar sensation as she projected mental power through the focusing point of her horn, three more magical lances put the Knight on the defensive.

Clover watched all of this with mixed emotions. On one hoof Star-Charmer seemed to be doing well, on the other hoof she was worried Star-Charmer might do too well. The fight escalated quickly, Star-Charmer sent a barrage of magical lances to catch her opponent off guard, when the Knight called a barrier of his own she made her move. Star-Charmer charged forward and used her telekinesis to tear free the blade that was sheathed on her armour. The Knight barely had enough time to duck after he brought down his barrier, prompting him to gain some distance and mentally grasp his own blade.

Star-Charmer lunged first, she jumped forward and pulled her blade down onto that of the Knight’s. He managed to put enough strength behind his block to force Star-Charmers blade away. It was the Knight’s turn to lunge, he made for an uppercut but was quickly parried by the quick mind of Star-Charmer. They began to put more force behind their blows, standing up on their hind legs and pushing with their forelegs. Eventually after a minute of struggling, the Knight pushed Star-Charmer away from the melee and used his horn to scorch the area between them with flame. Star-Charmer drowned the flames in water that her horn ripped from both the air and plants around her.

She fired one lance of magic as a distraction and then once again charged forth. Clover could begin to see it in her Lieutenant’s eyes, rage. Star-Charmer’s blade clashed against the Knight’s armour, none of her opponent’s blood was drawn but it sent the arrogant stallion to the ground. Star-Charmer stood there for a few moments and sneered. She waited for the Knight to regain his footing before she continued her onslaught.

With a shout she brought her blade down again, it was barely blocked. Then again, and again... something was wrong. Their blades interlocked and they began to once more push against each other. The Knight was close to shoving Star-Charmer off again, she just didn’t have the strength to do something like that for long. Right when he nearly had her on the ground, Star-Charmer slammed her right fore-hoof into the Knight’s face. She reinforced her blow with telekinesis and a sickening crunch was heard. The Knight reeled back and spat out a thick glob of crimson vitae. He forced a shield from his horn while he tended to his bruised face. Star-Charmer acknowledged the shield for a moment before hunching over in a stable position.

She directed her horn towards the shield and fueled her spell with will and purpose. It started out slow, a pinprick of bright light materialising at the tip of her horn. The light grew to the size of a hoof, eventually a head. Soon her horn was balancing a large ball of magic just waiting to be used. She let it go.

The ball arched outwards toward the shield. The bolt sundered the air around it, making a loud crack. Clover’s eyes went wide in surprise; never had she known her Lieutenant capable of performing a spell of that magnitude of raw power. Everypony looked on in curiosity, all asking the same question: Did the spell actually do anything?

The shield still stood proudly... for a few moments. It visibly began to break apart and fracture until finally bursting outwards and fading away. The Knight stood there staring at Star-Charmer in disbelief. She took advantage of his moment of weakness. With telekinesis she grabbed several rocks and slammed them into his head and neck. While he was stunned she grasped her blade and swung at him madly. Something was off about Star-Charmer. Clover realised that her Lieutenant’s crimson mane seemed to become more ethereal and alien, while her pearl coloured coat glowed intensely beneath her raiment. The signs of an emotional flare.

With a shout Star-Charmer struck at his head with her hooves again and again. He became battered and bloody but he still held on. Star-Charmer tossed him back a few feet and then began to ready another spell. It’s over, Clover thought.

At the height of her fury, Star-Charmer was practically a mare made of white hot flames. She began the spell that she planned to end her opponent's life with, a simple one of fire. When she was nearly ready to immolate the Knight, she stopped and swayed in place. It was becoming difficult for Star-Charmer to keep her focus. The Knight managed to rise to his hooves during the Lieutenant’s stupor. He saw his chance and laughed. Without her defences up all it took was a simple lance to send Star-Charmer back through the air. Her body lost all signs of the alien vibrancy it once possessed, and she was sent sliding across the dirt road. She wasn’t moving.

The Knight was still laughing by the time Clover made it down by her Lieutenant’s side. Clover turned Star-Charmer onto her back and began her inspection to see if she was alright. She definitely appeared to be unconscious, and a hole was melted through her breastplate where the bolt struck. There was some blood flowing out of the wound, all of this would have been acceptable if Star-Charmer was actually breathing. The injured mare didn’t seem to be reacting to any outside contact.

“Skilled mages don’t let themselves succumb to petty rage. I am Duke Ky-Berlhai, and you are my lesser!” The Duke punctuated his statement with red-tinted spittle.

Clover looked up to find the area around them to be crowded with a reinforced band of Frilacians. The damned duel was a distraction so that they could be surrounded. It boxed them in... and claimed the life of the one mage Clover truly adored. She looked back to find the rest of her party preparing to fight to the death. She realised they couldn’t win this.

“Stand down,” Clover choked out.

The others looked to her confused. If they fought now they would have no chance at survival. She prefered to wait for a more acceptable time, that is if one ever presented itself. She relied on the hope that Platinum would take notice of their extended absence.

The so-called Duke let out a final little chuckle and gave the order.

“Take them.”