“Once upon a time, in the magical land of Equestria…”
There were two regal sisters who ruled together and created harmony for all the land. To do this, the eldest used her unicorn powers to raise the sun at dawn; the younger brought out the moon to begin the night. Thus, the two sisters maintained balance for their kingdom and their subjects, all the different types of ponies. But as time went on, the younger sister became resentful. The ponies relished and played in the day her elder sister brought forth, but shunned and slept through her beautiful night. One fateful day, the younger unicorn refused to lower the moon to make way for the dawn. The elder sister tried to reason with her, but the bitterness in the young one's heart had transformed her into a wicked mare of darkness, Nightmare Moon. She vowed that she would shroud the land in eternal night. Reluctantly, the elder sister harnessed the most powerful magic known to ponydom, the Elements of Harmony. Using the magic of the Elements of Harmony, she defeated her younger sister, and banished her permanently in the moon. The elder sister took on responsibility for both sun and moon, and harmony has been maintained in Equestria for generations since…
About twenty years ago, the incredible story about the tragic fall of the regal Princess Luna to the terrifying Nightmare Moon, despite the ferocity with which it was pushed upon us, was all just a fabrication. A sort of mare's tale that parents would tell children to keep them in bed at night.
...until now.
In the massive expanse of the old throne room chamber, the light of the translucent moon shone through the cracks and holes made in the battle between the two sisters years ago, reveal the familiar details to the regal princess. The grey marble walls still stood tall and proud despite a few decades of neglect. At the far end of the room was where the two royal sisters performed centuries of their duties but like the rest of the castle, they were now weathered from misuse and covered in cobwebs and dust. Between the two thrones was a large hole where Luna made her malicious stand against her dear sister Celestia. Through the hole the princess could barely make out the overgrown Everfree Forest that surrounded their once beautiful castle, as it too has been left forgotten and neglected for some time. Several feet away from her was an orange pegasus with a purple mane and tail; she was bruised, bloodied, and unconscious, but the princess could still sense the life force still beating strong within her. Celestia looked up through the hole in the ceiling. She saw the darkened face of the shimmering orb and felt a great sense of apprehension and grief. She immediately shook these feelings away and looked down at the cloaked pony. This strange figure was facing away from the regal alicorn, being showered in the luminescence of the moon. It was looking up at the contraption in the center that held the Elements of Harmony. These stones harnessed the most powerful magic known to ponykind and were used to save the land of Equestria. To the shock of Celestia, they were gone.
"What have you done with The Elements of Harmony!", boomed the voice of Celestia.
The cloaked shadow snickered.
"Answer me you cur!" Celestia exclaimed in her proud voice which produced a whirlwind that pushed away the dust and cobwebs that had once littered the alicorn's old throne room.
The cloaked shadow sighed. "My old master..." The figure finally spoke up. "The Syners had warned both you and Luna the dangers of using such power because it was not a weapon, even for ones such as yourselves to wield. Not even your old master, Star Swirl the Bearded, heeded their words centuries ago. The Spark, nature's purest form of energy, will change you, it will transform you. Now... They are no longer the ponies you once knew." The hooded figure mocked.
"First Discord..." A towering shadow of a draconicus looked beneath the princess, it's yellow marble eyes looking spitefully at her.
"Then Nightmare Moon." A black silhouette now standing beside the shadow of Discord, both blocking the cloaked pony.
"And now me..." The shadows of both Discord and Nightmare Moon hissed and shrank into nothingness before vanishing, leaving only figure alone still looking at the contraption. "Your greatest work..."
Celestia was taken aback at these words from her old student, but still holding strong, maintained her standing in the room.
The cloaked pony continued. "It was the will of The Spark that you would be here, our long-awaited reunion has come... at last."
"I'm glad I gave you something to look forward to." Celestia boasted.
"When I went out to fight in the Spartan Wars beside our armies, I was but a child. But, upon my returned the realization came to me that I had nothing left to learn from you." The pony turned away from the automation, revealing a silhouette of the individual's features, hiding much of it away under its hood. The pony beside Celestia let out a heavy gulp, she turned to see that the unicorn’s hooves were shaking slightly in fear under his armored hooves. She looked back to the figure once more.
"We need not be adversaries." The dark pony negotiated, offering a hoof to the princess. "I will show you and your people mercy if... you tell me where the remaining Syners can be found."
After a few moments of silence the pony lowered his hoof and sighed. The unconscious mare was levitated into the air. Her eyes bulged open and pupils shrank to the size of marbles. Celestia looked on in horror as the pony was being suffocated. She was writhing in pain, curling her hooves involuntary on her chest gasping for air. Celestia could sense the pony's very heart being stopped. She looked down at the princess, tears falling down her cheeks as she reached one of her hooves out to her for aid. The princess took a bold hoofstep forward. "There are no Syners here! You and your apprentice saw to that at Trybrum."
The pony levitated a mask from its saddlebag, completely unfazed to the sounds of the suffocating mare. In the light of the moon, it possessed the black face of a griffon with a long, thin v-shaped visor for the eyes and painted with the white striped patterns of a zebra. Celestia saw as it slowly descended into the pony's hoof and watched as the figure looked at it thoughtfully.
"Perhaps, Star Forge..." A loud snapping noise came from the pegasus’s chest. A great spur of blood spout from her mouth. Her eyes rolled back and shook for a few moments in place. The still pegasus hoofs collapsed to her side. "...will confess what you will not." The now dead pegasus’s hoofs swayed back and forth with her still hanging body in the air. Celestia looks in shock, her once innocent subject now hangs in the air like a haunting decoration.
The orange pony was released from the invisible grasp, falling lifeless to the stone floor. Celestia ignited her horn and teleported, catching the corpse in her hooves. Once more the princess blinked from the air and back to where her soldiers stood, kneeling and placing the pegasus on the ground carefully. The empty pupils looked up at her filled with absolute terror. She closed her eyes from the great pain of both guilt and grief. Placing a hoof above the mare's eyes she closed them so she had a more peaceful expression on her lifeless face. "Take her away from this place, I will not have any more of my subjects die today." She ordered her two guards now in front of her.
"But, your highness," the pegasus stallion argued. "We can't leave you alone with this mons-"
Celestia cut him off with soft eyes and a smile. "I won't be alone, now go." The reluctant pegasus looked away from the princess to his unicorn companion, who nodded back in agreement.
Bowing his purple head with humility, revealing his white and rainbow outlined mane fell upon his face. "Moon and Sun watch over you my Princess."
Celestia bowed her head as well her soft smile spreading to a prouder one. "And to you as well Cross Guard, my old friend, on this night I promise you that I will not lose here." She stood up towering above both stallions.
The pegasus hoisted the mare on his back and began to make his ascend above the ground, careful that his passenger would not fall off. Cross Guard kept his gaze on Celestia for another moment before turning around and leaving. The unicorn stallion followed pace below them as they made their way down the long passageway to the throne room's exit.
"I'm afraid, none of you will leave this castle alive," the ominous stranger’s voice carried through the room, not keeping its gaze off the mask.
Cross Guard and the unicorn were frozen in their place, and slowly were being pulled back towards the hooded pony. They both struggled to find liberation from this invisible force.
"Enough!" Celestia's Canterlot voice boomed once more as she snapped her position around raising her hoof towards this dark entity.
The figure raised its head slightly, but refusing to meet Celestia's gaze still fixed on the mask. The castle began to shake violently as cracks began to split along the walls and rubble from the ceiling began to fall but stop short from falling to the obsidian floor. Soon a great dome of stone and dust towered above the two of them. Celestia glared at the pony, using all her concentration to push back the pony's grasp on her guards. A great fissure in the ground began to form on the stone ground pushing the two further back from each other. The dark pony sighed lowering its head, the three were freed from the figure's hold as they galloped from the room. Celestia turned back to face the exit, using her magic to seal the doors behind them.
"Your plan has failed, princess. The Spark has forsaken you, just liked the darkness has clouded your vision." the pony said, mocking the alicorn once more but still giving her any form of physical acknowledgement. "My power now eclipses your own."
"Then why do you fear to look upon me!" Celestia countered, the pony said nothing in response. Celestia began to make her way to the dark figure keeping her gaze upon her fallen student. "I was beginning to believe I knew what kind of pony you were, behind that mask, but it's impossible now."
She stopped a mere few feet in front of the cloaked mare. "My student... could never, be as vile as you."
"Your student..." The pony paused turning the mask around. "She was weak..."
The mask began to levitate once more pressing against the shadows face. " So, I destroyed her..."
With a soft click and hiss the mask now covered the pony and the visor of the mask gave a red glow. "Now, I am Nightmare Revent, Lord of the Shadows, vanguard of the Umbra and the true will of the Spark."
The regal princess bowed her head in grief for a moment then slowly rose as a new emotion took over, anger. "Then... I will avenge... her, death."
"Revenge is not the way of the Syners." Revent mocked.
Celestia slowly shook her head. "You got one part of that wrong..."
The masked pony looked up curiously. The two now locked gaze at each other Celestia's glare widened as Revent was frozen in place by the ‘Princess's Stare.’ "I... Am no Syner."
With one fluid motion, Celestia's wings unfolded and kicked the air below her hooves carrying the white alicorn high into the air. Pressing her hooves together a golden light began to envelop them. White crystals began to pull out the front of her forehooves and from their base came out two white crystal blades with a golden hue of fire emitting from its blades. In another precise maneuver, Celestia swooped down at the paralyzed mare, the blades of her hooves crossed on each side of her neck preparing to deliver the decapitating blow. She swung the two blades at Revent but was shocked when met by the defending blade of Revent's own black crystal sword. Celestia's two blades atop of Revent's using her size and strength to press down on the dark pony.
"Most impressive, my old master..." Revent praised Celestia could tell there was a smile of pleasure growing behind that mask.
"Your powers are just as terrifying as before, letting your feelings of your falters and failures carry you now in this fight, the Syner's were right to respect your abilities with The Spark."
"But..." The sound of praise of Revent turning to one of criticism. "My pain... Is greater than YOURS!" She screamed as the pony changed her stance, allowing the princess's blades to fall once more immediately the pony spun violently to the left side out of the way before the blade clipped Revent's shoulder guard leaving the princess open for an attack.
Revent swung the crystal blade, it's crimson fire met the tip of Celestia's horn. The princess bowed her head from the deception as the blade met her rainbow hair, cutting the locks off a few inches shorter. As Celestia fell to the ground, Revent raised their crystal blade to strike the princess down. The princess returned by throwing her saber detaching from her hoof spinning on the bladed center as a double-edged sword. Revent pulled back from the attack as the blade grazed her face chopping the tip of the griffin's beak as it flew into the open night. Celestia swiftly moved to the right side away from the stunned pony towards the automation. The Dark Syner began to charge at the princess with the crimson blade, its edges digging into the obsidian floor. With a maddening war cry, Revent swung with relentless proficiency. The Nightmare and princess both waited for an opening. Celestia blocked each incoming attack. The flurry of clashing blades pushed the two closer to a deadlock. As Celestia was losing ground and fighting space, Revent swung with a backhanded strike with the sword but instead of pulling away they pushed down on the princess's sword proceeding the dark pony to buck Celestia hard in the chest. The alicorn collapsed to the ground gasping for air as the wind had been knocked out of her. Completely stunned and helpless, the Fallen Syner proceeded to strike down their old master with one final blow.
Celestia!
* * *
I awoke from my sleep in a cold sweat, trying to make sense of what I had just seen. Brushing my purple and silver mane, I tried to breath slowly to calm myself. My stomach violently turned as I leaned over the side of my bed vomiting a vast amount of bile and stomach acid. I spat the last out of my mouth and gasped once more before leaning back onto my bed. Fatigue... dehydration... How long was I out? Continuing my labored breathing, I lazily scanned the room, finding my surroundings quite curious. Waking up in as strange place was not an abnormality to myself as traveling was pleasure of mine while studying under Celestia's person tutelage, learning about different cultures around the world. I found myself in a large wooden cabin, my shadow hanging over the room by the large window panel from behind me. It must be morning. I turned my head, my eyes squinting from the sunrise from the western horizon. Giving the room a second look over, the space that I was in was accompanied by rows of cots on either side that were screwed into the wooden floor, each with blankets and sheets that were neatly folded into the sides with chests in front of each cot that were also bolted down. All of these cots were vacant telling me that there was the nopony else was in the room.
My maze of questions began to fill my mind, unfortunately they were halted when a new, and most certainly unpleasant one, pushed all the others out of my mind. I realized that my sheets were wet and damp. Oh, please don't tell me... Reluctantly, I pulled the covers to find the source. Please let it have just been my period, please let it have just been my period, please... The large yellow stain told me otherwise. Well... shit. Suddenly, the room began to shake and I was violently tossed from my bed. My face followed by the rest of my body fell to the floor, writhing in pain. To top it all off, my blankets and pillow fell on top of me. Right in my mouth, dammit! I took a moment to rationalize what had just happened as the darkness of my urinated covers gave me privacy from the outside to contain the ocean of questions now flooding my mind. As much as I wanted fragrance my own piss in my nostrils... I cursed in my mind. ...I won't get any answers under these covers. I pulled the wet sheets from myself to venture out once more and sate my mind of it's questions.
I was met by the orange glare of the rising sun seeping through the wide horizontal window panel. Its immense glow blinded my sight with as it was rising from the edge of the land. Turning away, my head was throbbing and as I looked down there was a small pool of blood now dripping on the floor. Quickly, I realized the source was from the nostrils of my broken muzzle. I rose to my hooves but to no avail as the room began to tip once more. Desperately, I tried pulling myself up against the shifting surface of the floor, digging my hooves against the wooden surface to acquire some footing. All in vain, as I began to spasmodically roll against the hard surface until I was stopped against the glass wall. My pillow and blankets followed suit and fell beside me. Not this time! I pulled myself up slowly and was met the gaze of my reflection it's purple eyes staring back at me. The two of us gazed at each other for a moment, as the large cracked and bloodied window panel was now my acquainted floor. Inspecting my twin, I saw that my reflective companion's torso and forehooves were bandaged. Wrapped around my neck was a tiny dragon’s tooth lined through a thin piece of string. Closing my eyes, I heard the sound of a pleading voice echoing in my mind, We have to stop the experiment, the artifact cannot- No! I heard the familiar sound of my own voice. This is the key to all my years of research, we're so close to unlocking its secrets! KEEP GOING! The voice cried out in defiance. NO! It's too-
Amicus... As I opened my eyes, tears fell from my face and onto the glass. My blurred view finally came into focus after my sobbing had ceased for a few moments. Taking one last sniff, I gazed back at my transparent twin and looked away in disgust but gasped at the second horrifying revelation, we were in the air! "What the..." I whispered to myself in a plea of confusion and fear.
Immediately, I relieved my gaze of this horrifying image, cringing in pain from the dying numbness of my grief, brought forth the vengeful return of physical trauma that had been inflicted prior. This was no moment to give in! My mind snapped at me. Taking a deep breath, I relaxed my mind and pushed myself away from the situation and concentrated. My horn began to hum, a purple and silver aura enveloped my horn, slowly spreading across my body. When sensation of the blanket of magic had covered my entirety, I exhaled. Warily, my body rose slowly against the glass, isolating my mind from the fear and questions that plagued me. Focus! I must remember, what Celestia taught me! I opened my eyes to see my companion looking back at me from behind the glass, the two of us being pulled away from the hazardous surface. Now all I had to do was get myself away from the glass. Halting my ascend, I levitated my body the right side of the mirror towards the wall beside it.
While I was not a gifted unicorn, I could successfully perform teleportation of at least five feet. My levitation range of grasp was no further than the previously mentioned distance, with the greatest weight I could carry was nothing heavier than a cow. However, my body was bruised and bloodied, but I kept strong as I inched further away from the glass surface. The rumbling within the room, the great distance below me, all pushed away. Through the reflection of the window, I could see a faint glow that radiating from my chest and forehooves, followed by a sharp pain not only broke my concentration of my levitation spell, but sent me into a complete sense of paralysis. My helpless body descended back towards my fate like stone, but before I could collide with the window, the room had rotated itself so that my face could be reintroduced into the wall below the window. I groaned in annoyance and agony. Will this madness ever cease? Slowly, I pulled my head up to look back at the bloodied reflection in the window. "Celestia doesn't need to know about this right?" The pony behind the glass shook its head back at me. Good.
My head slumped back to the hard-wooden floor, I heaved a heavy sigh as more tears began to fall down my cheeks. But before I could continue my grief, the door of the room flew open, a loud slam against the wall followed respectfully. Quickly my instincts took over as I jumped back on my hooves, my horn ignited with a violet glow. However, my lightheadedness told me that was a mistake, my body almost on the brink of complete exhaustion, my rump kissed the ground beside my bed. Wiping away the tears that blurred my vision, a black earth pony stallion with a pink mane focused into my vision as he galloped into the room, ignoring my presence entirely. My dizziness broke the adrenaline and unexpected happening, reminding my person that my nose was still bleeding. Using my magic I pinched my muzzle to stop the blood from staining any more of my pale coat. Looking towards my bed intruder, who was now rummaging through what I assumed was his chest a thought popped in my mind. Another pony?! Celestia be praised! The pony's panicked expression told me that these transpiring events were unexpected, but unlike myself, he possessed a greater grasp of the situation than I. Rubbing the blood off my face with my bandaged hoof, I called out to him. "Ah... hello?"
Unfortunately, my words could not reach him. The stallion was still going through his belongings mumbling inaudibly to himself in a half delirious state. As he was continuing this prattle, I took a moment to turn away from him at the glaring horizon of the setting sun. My eye squinted and I put raised a hoof above my face so I could see the outside more clearly. As my vision began to adjust, I could see that there were blurs passing by the glass panel. The golden clouds in the sky were flashing within and then torn apart in an instant from dozens of what I could obviously hypothesize, were pegasi, battling an unknown foe. Once more the room shook and the sound of a scream from a young filly came from behind. I turned around believing that it was someone else now in the room, but that was not the case as my sight readjusted, I stared back at the shaking black mass. Oh, goodness... The stallion shook his head in frustration. "Come on you..." His words now more audible than before as he began to adorn the golden armor. "...you swore an oath now is the time to make good on it."
"Hey..."
"To protect the innocent..." He continued putting the sword hilt and crossbow upon his armor's belt.
"Hello...?" I tried once more, my frustration now complementing the utter futility of the situation.
"... so that the precious treasures of Equestria will survive."
"Can you PLEASE! Stop shut the hell up for a mere second and look at me." I hollered at the greatest capacity my lungs could carry my voice.
The gray stallion stopped, his tiny pink pupils were almost camouflaged by his bloodshot sockets and awed expression were now fixed at me. Ah... sorry? He took a few hoofsteps closer to me. In return, I took several back until my rump bumped into the wall. “Yes?" Was all he could mutter, as he slowly looked at the sight of the cracked blood-stained window and my bruised and bandaged body.
Remember, he's just as confused as you are but he knows what's going on, you must be calm, suave. I took a deep breath to keep my composure, however my childish curiosity was the victor. "What'sgoingonhere?!Whyareweinthesky?!HowinEquestriareweintheair?!WhereisCelesia?!"
I inhaled one last time and finally whimpered. "And do you have any dry clothes...?"
My ears dropped with the widest smile I could pull across my face, to mask the embarrassment within me. My thoughts bucked me hard in the gut. Way to go...
He stared at my blankly for a few moments, in awkward silence, taking in everything I just asked him. Then he spoke dumbfound "Whats going on?!" He to another step closer towards me. My ass was literally making out with the wall now. "Whats going on? Whats going on, flank for brains is we are under attack by an Umbra battle battalion."
I turning my head away from him as I privately hoof slapped myself in the face. Yea, no Shit! Wait? What did he say? Umbra?
After a few more moment, he said bitterly. "Equestria... is at war."
I gasped, looking back at the grim pony in utter horror and shock. "Since when?" Was all I could muster to ask, now with even more questions flooding my mind. He sighed in defeat with the realization I still had no grasp at what that meant. "Look... My name is Silver Lining, I'm a soldier in the Equestrian Guard, just like you." I swallowed hard at that statement.
"We're on board the airship, The Stratus Opus." Pointing his hoof to the window behind me.
Taking a deep breath, the Earth pony made his way closer to me. "Look... I know you're confused right now." He stopped a mere hoof step away.
"But right now,. I need you in this fight." Again, pointing his hoof at the damaged window to the battle outside. "They need you." The stallion placed his hoof on my shoulder. "And you took an oath to defend Equestria, it's people and crown from tyranny."
He took his hoof off my shoulder. "I promise that I will answer any question that is within my realm of comprehension, but right now, you need to get your things and suit up. Our brothers and sisters are out there fighting and we need to get to them soon or the Opus and everyone below us will be in danger."
I bobbed my head solemnly. Letting out a heavy sigh of relief, the stallion showed a smile spreading itself across his face. "Good, now get suited up and then we can leave."
I nodded before mentally bucking myself in the head once more. I shuddered that he would see my stained mattress. A nervous and slightly awkward grin spread across my face. "Look... I'm pretty talented with my magic, I don't think that I will need any armor... or weapons..."
"No." He said plainly. "The Umbra have an army of many different willing races of Zebra, all of whom are willing to accept death than face the punishment of failure."
He continued with an even more shocking statement. "All of whom fight beside former members of the royal guard, even some of the Wonderbolts have sworn their allegiance. You will need all advantages that your hooves and hide can possess." This statement froze me in shock. Even our own, but why.
I hung my head in defeat. Unfortunately, he makes a powerful reason. Unable to argue any further, I slowly but purposefully made my way to the chest in front of my urine-stained bed. I knelt now fully engulfed in shame, but I was optimistic that this scene to my companion would laugh his way up to a higher state of morale. But before I could open the chest, I cringed as the stallion's hoof was now placed on my shoulder. Sweet Celestia, here we go. I looked up at him pathetically, as a confused look met the portrait of my humiliation. Say something you idiot. I opened my mouth but was interrupted by Silver Lining. "What were you doing sleeping in Nelly's bed?"
I'm sorry, what? I looked down at the chest with the name 'Nervous Nelly' etched on its surface, below that was the image of a chicken without it's head. Ewww..."How and why that pegasus became a member of the royal guard is a mystery to all of us, a terrible weather advisory for any fool who would try to get the jump on her though." He said letting out a soft chuckle as the stallion shook his head.
I looked up at him my mouth agape, completely taken aback. He's serious... Pulling myself back together, I slowly began to trot down the corridor with Silver Lining impatiently following behind me, we were looking at the chest in front of each cot a name and cutie mark for each respective pony. Ponies of which I'm sure the black stallion would never see again and I would not have the privilege of meeting. I continued down the room until I spotted the chest with my cutie mark, a ten-pointed star with two more similarly pointed stars inside of it. As I pulled the dry blue clothed undergarments, Silver Lining spoke up. "I'm sorry for not asking you or to give you the chance to tell me." Popping my head out of the golden royal armor I turned my focus back to the somber pony. "But... what is your name?"
"Star Forge."
* * *
As the two of us galloped through the hallways of the lower region of the ship, I could hear the sounds of battle raging from the deck below us. Silver Lining kept his word and told me everything he knew before we would meet the enemy. He was confident that the Umbra had not reach this section of the ship, or at least... not yet. Just over a decade after Luna's banishment, the Griffon Spartans had invaded the land of the Zebras, Mulaesulae. The leader of the Spartans, Grypas the Dominant, believed that there was a great treasure within their lands that would immortalize him and his people forever. In this war of conquest, Grypas and his Spartans conquered the lands of the thirteen tribes driving the cultures of the zebra to the brink of extinction. Princess Celestia had sent the royal army to support their allies against the invaders. However, even with Equestria's efforts in the war, the Griffons still pushed making their way to the shores of Equestria. Celestia would have been forced to pull back on her support. At the darkest time of this conflict, word had been sent to Canterlot of a turn in the war, that the allied regime was gaining several victories. It was discovered that our forces were receiving tactical and military aid from two mysterious individuals, Revent and Pecus. The two said that they were from an ancient order known as the Syners. Pecus had followed his friend, Revent, in their crusade against the Griffons, defying the wishes of their Elders.
As the war progressed, more warriors joined the cause, the Zebras calling Revent The Returning Savior. The Syner was also able to unite the thirteen tribes, a feat not seen since the Zebra's first Caesar. In the later times of the war, Revent and Pecus had become more battle hardened and dispassionate, with a win at all costs scenario.
Eventually, Revent sprung a trap against the Griffons at the war's final battle, where the Syner had lured the Spartans to the island of Astros the home island of the Starketteri tribe. In this battle, Revent stood victorious over Grypas, who challenged the mysterious warrior in single combat. The monk used a secret dark weapon hidden on the island by the Starketteri centuries ago known as the The Dark Maelstrom. This weapon decimated the Griffon and allied forces by ripping the land apart and consuming it into a green fireball of death. The war ended when the three sides signed a treaty at Roam, known as the Triumvirate of Peace. Revent was left to the task of deciding the fate of the remnants of Grypas's army. She refused to follow the example of the Spartans and kill the remaining Griffons off, so they were stripped of their armor and weapons and were to return to their kingdom in peace. They were sent back to their lands under the leadership of their new king, Grover, the son of Grypas, ending the Spartan War.
"Wait... hang on, do you hear that?" Stopping his exposition, the two of us slowed our gallop into a slower trot until we stopped in a three-way intersecting hallway, the stallions left ear perked up at the sound at the end of an adjacent corridor.
"What's wrong?" Enveloping the hilt of my blade with my magic at the ready.
After a few moments, I could hear a faint voice from the end of the hallway. Uncannily, the two of us galloped down the hallway towards the source of the sound. As we approach the hallway I could hear the voice more clearly now. "....is Cross Guard, the Umbra have overwhelmed our position!" The voice sounded like another stallion.
Once we had reached the source, I was perplexed to see that it was a bronze bell with hole in the middle with a single pipe that ran up the wall running through the ceiling of the corridor and spread across the expanse of the hallways. Silver Lining, now on his hind legs, leaned into the horn and spoke into the bell. "Cross, it's Silver Lining, I was off my shift when the attack happened. I'm on the lower deck of the ship and found somepony else when I made my way to the barracks. What's the situation?" The pipes were reverberating as the sound was carried through them and carried to somewhere else on the ship and there was a pause for a few moments.
"Who was that?" I asked still admiring the design of the contraption.
"That was Cross Guard, captain of the royal guard, use to be a Wonderbolt. He’s the princess’s closest advisor. Rumor has it that he’s the fastest pegasus alive. He has more battle experience than almost everyone else on this ship put together."
"Almost?" I asked curiously.
"You're joking right, tell me that fall didn't give you complete amnesia?" He asked now looking at me baffled.
I raised a doubtfully eyebrow at him. "The pony who would be leading the charge against the Umbra, Princess Celestia."
Moon and the Sun, give me strength! "Oh... right." I cringed as a shade of red now filled my face. "Wait! Celestia is on THIS ship right now?"
The stallion nodded. "The Umbra must have known she was here. The Opus isn't the only airship our forces possess. We have been moving from city to city collecting more civilians to keep them out of the fight. Keeping the Umbra at bay on multiple fronts, while the rest of Equestria can gather its strength. But, it seems that they have the numbers and resources to keep that from happening. Right now, she's the only thing that can stop them from total victory."
Celestia... Alive! The pipes began to rattle once more and the stallion's voice came out once more. "Silver Lining it's good to hear from you, the Umbra forces are advancing on our position. You and anypony else you can find on your way needs to make your way to the bridge before it's too late."
Silver Lining once more stuck his muzzle into the bell. "Understood Cross, may the elements protect us all."
After a few more moments, the pipes rattled once more and the pegasus's voice echoed from the speaker. "Swift hooves Silver, Celestia has been in desperate state trying to keep the ship protected when the battle began. Unfortunately, something has been trying to keep the sun down and has made it difficult for her to begin the day, I believe that something of the Umbra's doing." The was a loud booming noise from above us and the ship began to shake slightly, an envelope of my magical aura enveloped the both of us to keep us in place before the shaking stopped. Suddenly the pipes began to shake again, eagerly the stallion pressed his face into the bell. However, I noticed that the bronze pipes the pipes were traveling towards the bell, they were becoming crimson. Quickly, I enveloped Silver Lining in a levitation aura and snapped my neck away from the bell as the stallion was sent flying into the wall as a large ball of fire erupted from the horn like a dragon. The stallion recovered quickly shooing me a panicked look. "Wait!" I warned the stallion.
The grey pony placed his hooves back on the scorching speaker without hesitation, ignoring the pain from the hot metal as he frantically shouted back into the speaker. Damn... Earth Ponies are tough! "What do you mean?" The stallion stammered. After a few minutes of silence, he yelled into the bell once more. "Cross Guard, are you there?" More silence.
"Damn them!" He yelled banging his helmet against the bell several times, I bowed my head solemnly, fearing the worst.
A few seconds later, the stallion stopped, resting his head in the hole of the silent bell panting heavily. The pony looked to me desperately, I could not think of any words of encouragement. He looked back into the dark hole and sighed resting his head on the bell once more. The hallway was silent, the only sounds were from the battle raging in the decks above us. Reaching into my brown saddle bag I pulled out a roll of bandages. "Let me look at your hooves." I offered now unwinding the roll with my magic.
"I'm fine." The stallion lied.
He pulled his hooves from the speaker and fell to the wooden floor in agony, staring in horror at his singed hooves. I rushed over to the cradled stallion. As I passed from the cooling bell, I could see from the corner of my eye the small pieces of fused fur and flesh still of its surface. I turned him over. "Here let me-" He pushed me away again. "I said I'm fine!" Some ponies...
I took a deep breath, preparing myself to engage in an ancient technique that is as old as pony history, negotiation. I was astonished as a filly when Celestia told me that this skill required no magic but took years of practice and dedication to master. Luckily, I learned from the best. "Look..." I said calmly. "Right now, you're probably suffering from second degree burns, how are you going to be able to walk much less hold a weapon when the moment comes to fight?" I crossed my hooves giving him a criticizing glance. "How are you going to be able to make good on your oath if all you'll be doing is make yourself an easy target."
Silver Lining sighed in defeat as I heaved one of my own in the back of my mind. I was not one to revel in the spoils of triumph too often. Being a good sport, I gave an understanding nod with soft smile. Pulling the grey pony up from the floor, I proceeded to wrap the burns with my magic. "So where did this Cross Guard say to meet?"
The stallion cringed for a moment but relaxed after a few moments as I enveloped his hooves with a painkilling spell. "I believe he said the bridge."
"But this ship is so huge! How exactly are we supposed to know where to go?"
"Well... I mean I-" I put a hood over his mouth.
"Shhh..." My right ear perked up. "Do you hear that?"
There was a soft humming noise coming from behind us. "Ihfinksominisihmurahg."
"What?"
He looked at me unamused. Oh... My cheeks turned red again as I took my hoof off his mouth. "I think something is in your bag."
Keeping my focus on wrapping the bandages on the entirety of Silver Lining's hooves, I reached around my saddlebag until I felt a small soft-covered book inside. As I finished tending to his injuries I discovered that it was a journal was a brown small notebook that had the words 'My Journal' lazily etched on the front cover.
Inside the book's vanilla pages was an assortment of different curiosities. On the first one was inscribed with the illustration of a ten-sided clover, the symbol of my family’s crest. The next was saw the illustration of a faceless and maneless mare pony, each section of it separated under a different set of equipment that was currently equip. The right page of the illustration had a list of all the items of each category in my bag. The next page contained a sketch of the explored areas of the ship. I flipped the next page that contained a narrative recording of all that had currently transpired, from the dream to right now, to waking up, Amicus, the Crusades that Silver mentioned with additional information the book had written in that I may read later and even MY OWN PRIVATE THOUGHTS! WHAT THE FU- I closed the journal angrily and cursed in my mind knowing that would be written down too. "Here take this." I offered the journal to the wounded stallion.
He pushed it back to me. 'I'm afraid not, that book won't do me any good." He sighed. "Besides, it would be invaluable to you if something were to happen to me."
"Fine!" Using my magic, I levitated the book before punting it down the way we came. "I don't want some creepy book writing down my thoughts."
Moving towards Silver Lining, still lying on the ground, I was about to offer him a hoof up when my ears perked up yet again. I turned my body towards the direction of the sound, it was coming from where we just were. More ponies or... Umbra? I pulled my sword out at the ready. When it came across the corner the hair from my mane to tail stood up. The book was walking towards us on its lower corners. Using my magic I tried to stop it, but the very presence of it made the possessed book move faster. I don't want you! I began to quickly step back away from both the book and Silver Lining who was still on the floor chuckling to the amusement of this spectacle. I released the magic before tripping on my tail, looking at the book as if it were an unwanted child. As it passed the stallion, I shot him an impatient look from across the hall. "Help. Me." I silently mouthed to him.
He rolled his eyes before steadily getting back on all four of his hooves. Trotting ahead of the book, he reached down to pick it up but as he grabbed the book's soft cover it began to glow a similar aura as my magic. Almost instantly he was flipped over the book and fell on his back, he gasped as the air was knocked out of him. He glared up at me. "What are you trying to pull here Star forge? We're wasting time!"
I shook my head pleadingly. "I'm not doing this!"
He cocked his head at me doubtfully. I pointed to my horn, no unicorn magic here. The stallion attempted once more by grabbing it with both hooves, but the book continued towards me, slowly dragging Silver Lining across the floor. "Are you even trying?!" My voice ringing with criticism.
He shot me an angry look as his vein bulged from his neck. "It's like a feather trying to pull a boulder up a mountain!"Damn, this is some strong magic!
I raised an eyebrow. "Wait? Why would a-"
"Sweet Celestia, Star Forge! Just take the damn book!"
I groaned in submission. "Fine." I knelt, signaling Silver Lining to let go of the journal, it lept into the air as I opened my right saddlebag for the book to fall into. My ears perked up from the sound of the stallion's whistle. "That's some powerful magic you put into that." He rubbed the back of his neck as he walked up to me. "A little warning next time."
I tried to mirror the confidence he had with his words and feelings with my own. “Yea, sorry about that.” I lied to him rubbing the back of my neck.
"Alright then..." He turned away from me. "Let's g-"
"Hold on a minute." I halted before he galloped away by pulling the stallion's pink tail with my magic.
As the aura disappeared, he turned to face me impatiently. "What is it now, Star Forge?"
"If we're going into battle I think I might have something that will help us." A smug grin spreading across my face.
Using my levitation, I pulled out my short sword, using its edge to make a quick cut below my bandages. As the beads of blood fell down my hoof, the black stallion took a few hoofsteps back. "What is it?" He asked nervously.
* * *
In the sick bay of the lower deck of the ship, I used an extra set of bandages to wrapped a set of vanilla parchment with crimson writing symbols around Silver Linings hooves. The room was lit by artificial white bulb hanging above an examination table in the center of a room. From my studies with joint Equestrian species told me that the lights were powered by unicorn magic and designed by pegasi engineers. Along the back side of the room was a cabinet with a scarce amount of medical supplies, more bandages weak healing potions that I could make more potent later. "Have to say Star Forge, growing up by the ocean travelers coming from foreign lands, I had seen a lot of crazy shit."
I pulled away from the cabinet as the last of the supplies levitated into my bag. “Oh yea?” I turned around towards the stallion. “Where’s that?”
He pushed his head through the neck in his blue garments. “Marelyn, far to the northwest of Canterlot almost touching The Frozen North. But I gotta say, this one takes all.”
I pulled an innocent expression across my face. "What? You don't trust me?" Cocking my head slightly.
"No, it's not that I just don't trust things past my understatement." Fitting his golden helmet on his bandaged wrapped head.
I continued scavenging the unexplored cabinet doors, levitating anything that I found useful in saddlebag. "That we had to use our own blood?"
He answered with a concerned grunt. "Well, even if I had some ink with me..." I paused as the last bottom cabinet was filled with a few dozen vials of unused ink. Don't say it! Don't think it! Don't FU-! I snatched a few into my saddlebag before politely closing the containers' doors. I turned back to the stallion. “We still needed our own blood for it to work."
The grey pony tightened the belt straps around his armor. "It just seems a bit..." Silver Lining paused for a moment as he pulled the strap on his belt, tightening his sash of vials around his chest. "as an unorthodox form of unicorn magic."
"You mean the talismans?"
"Sure…” The stallion began to spin around showing the bandaged writing around his hooves, the hilt of his sword and grip of his crossbow and around the vials of red liquid on his belt. I still don't understand exactly what we would achieve with all of this."
"Are you familiar with Mole Feather's Principle of Magic?" Silver Lining's silence gave me the distinct impression he did not.
I sighed. "In layman's terms, Feathers said that all the magical energies in this universe remains constant. He also said that Equestrian energy or magic cannot be created or destroyed but..." Pulling back my purple mane to reveal similar crimson letters wrapped around my horn. "It can be transferred."
He still looked back at me blankly, as if I was now speaking another language. "With these talismans, you can use my unicorn magic and I can use your enhanced strength in combat.
His eyes widened with excitement as a sly grin spread across my face. He sat down to the floor, restrapping the plates on his limbs. “What about you?”
I raised a curious eyebrow. “It's safe for me to assume you have a strong grasp in magic, you from Canterlot?”
I shook my head. “Spent most of my childhood there, but I wasn't born in Canterlot.”
“A small mining town wedged between the Smokey Mountains and the Unicorn Range.”
The sound of the soft humming of the magical light orchestrated the dimly lit room as the stallion was fitting the last of his armor on his body. "So... is it true about the Marelyn Statue?" I asked to cease this awkward moment.
"The one of Chancellor Puddinghead?" He looked at me amused by this question.
I nodded eagerly. "Did she really think it was made of chocolate?"
He smiled broadly. "Got the bite marks of her incisors and a molar tooth wedged in it's bronze textured foundation to hold up its claims."
We shared a soft laugh before this moment ended as quickly as Silver Lining's expression changed to one of doubt.
"Well...?"
"Well...what?" I asked as beads of sweat began to roll down the back of my neck.
He sat on the floor in front of me unmoving. He crossed his hooves giving me a look of disappointment in my inabilities at deception. "What's the catch."
"What catch?" The stallion raised an eyebrow.
I sighed, defeated once more by the superior common sense of my opponent. "Well..." I gave my best innocent face. "This transference can be dangerous because the window of magic transference is so fast but also so small that it's invisible to the naked eye. However, if a foreign form of energy is introduced between our link it could possibly... tear our bodies apart on the atomic level."
"Wa-"
"It would be completely painless because of how fast it would happen, but then again..."
I paused, dreading at the thought of this possibility before my mouth started rambling without my mind's consent. "Well I mean... you wouldn't be able to hear yourself scream as the carbon oxygen and nitrogen are torn apart at the molecular level..."
"Ah-"
"And that's makes up over ninety-nine percent of our bodies, did you know that?"
"Star-"
"Don't forget the calcium and iron fused in our bones and that only makes up less than one percent of our bodies, Jeez!"
"St-"
"And from all that violent splitting of those elements within our bodies it could potentially destroy... the entire ship, but then again... that's all theoretical."
He stared at me plainly for a few moments before asking. "Anything else?"
I bobbed my head up and down a few time mulling over how to explain this last part. I swallowed hard. "Ah..."
"Yes...?"
"I haven't really gotten to field testing this talisman yet..." I blushed bowing my head at the enraged stallion.
"Wha-"
There was a loud explosion coming from across the hallway from outside the room. Peeking our heads out of the doorway, a black plume of smoke filled the hallway, it's source emanating from the far end from us. I looked up up at the stallion eagerly. "Like I said before, completely theoretical, but I guess there is no better time for a field test than now, and if this theory is true I can die knowing that i was right."
Before the stallion could react, I galloped down the hallway towards the source. The voice of Silver Lining bellowing from behind me.
* * *
Once I had reached the end of the hallway I stopped in my tracks as the sound of voices came from behind. I peered my head from the corner. There were two ponies in silver and black armor, their helmets had long black visors covering most of their faces leaving only the muzzles exposed. The tops of their helmets wore a blue horn-shaped crystal. So these must be the... "Umbra." Came a voice from behind me.
I jumped, turning to face the individual behind me. Before my magic could pull my sword out from my hilt, the black hoof of Silver Lining covered my mouth. Putting the tip of his hoof pressed against his lips to tell me to stay quiet. I nodded as he pulled his invasive hoofs away from me. Quietly, the two of us now peered across the corner's hallway once more, the pair of Umbra were now talking moving away from us. The pained grunts from one of the ponies fallen ponies turned the two Umbra's attention back towards us. A blue unicorn stallion with a short green mane slowly pulled himself up from the floor. "You, stripped bastards..." The unicorn wheezed. "You... won't get away... with this."
A large grin pulled across the muzzle of the Umbra to the left of him. He turned to his companion "Ightszembogentus."
The other looked back. "Getohumpzuegoue."
"They’re arguing about which one should kill him." I whispered to myself not acknowledging for a moment that Silver Lining was in earshot.
"How do you know that." He asked curiously.
I turned away from the corner and back at the stallion. "When you're the student of the Princess you tend to learn a thing or two about other cultures. One of those being language."
"Mind you, I only know Baspek."
He scratched his mane. "Is that what they call their language?"
I looked back on at the three. "Not exactly, the Zebra's system is governed by a Caesar but this individual is elected by one of each of the thirteen tribes and elected by representatives from each in their senate. Baspek, is the base form of each of their thirteen separate dialects, which is used in these deliberations in their political conclaves like a debate or election."
He grunted in understatement before I continued. "This is a more straightforward but harsh spoken dialect not slurred like the Orah. I can assume that they are either warriors from the Achu or Roamani tribes, neither of which I would like to tangle with but, oh well."
"Why not?" He whispered obviously offended by my tone of cowardice.
I looked back at him, the experiences of my travel in their lands etched in my eyes stared back into his own. "Well, first the Achu are raised in a volcanic badlands and trained to be pure warriors. The Roamani have such a powerful breed of warriors that their capital Roam resides in their village, not to mention that their Caesar was Roamani."
Turning once more towards the Umbra who were debating this prestige by slamming their armored heads together. The two viciously pushed back and forth between each other completely oblivious of the unicorn that was between them. The unicorn took this moment to slowly turn and run towards the hallway that we were hiding behind. Both of us pulled away from the corner. Before the stallion could pass us a flash of blue light filled the direction from which he was fleeing from. In an effort to protect himself, the unicorn stopped in his tracks right next to us. He proceeded to ignited his horn pulling up a barrier in front of himself. There was a soft but unnatural rumble of lightning that emanated from the light source. In half a second I could see a bolt of blue light pass the corner, but to my horror the energy of this ray of light passed through the barrier. It was as if the energy did even acknowledge there was a barrier there, it did not break through, it literally ignored the unicorns magic.
The bolt contacted his chest, this half a moment of shock was immediately replaced by excruciating pain as the blue unicorn let out a scream of pure agony. This did not last any longer than it began as the bolt's energy began to spread through his entire body in the next second after contact he was suddenly silenced. I did not know if he was alive at this point, but as this blue illumination was covering every aspect of his body he was becoming transparent. In the next instant, his head turned towards us and all three pairs of eyes met, there was enough life in his eyes to convince me that he saw us. The question the accusations that were going through his mind as our contact continued haunted my own. And then, there were only two as he became completely all that was him gone, turned into a pile of ash.
No flesh, bones, hair not even his clothes or armor was left, he was... completely, disintegrated. Which means, all of that dust in the hallway that was on that unicorn, it was from other ponies. My knees were weak and I was paralyzed with fear but then I heard laughter followed by a painful grunt. "That was not your kill to take Paragus!" The zebra said to his companion.
"I simply took the moment before you could realize it, besides Zimo, there will be other." Continued with another chuckle coming from the Umbra who had taken the shot.
And just like that my shaking stopped my blood became hot with anger. This was no war for them, this was merely some sport to these monsters. Silver Lining broke my spell of frustration when he whispered in my ear. "Star Forge..."
Shaking my head, the corner of my eye met his gaze. "What is it?"
"I believe have a solution to your talisman."
Raising my brow curiously. "Please, tell me."
He placed a hoof on my shoulder. "You're going to have to trust me on this on." I nodded nervously.
"If we attack them in a linear pattern we might be able to reduce the risk of them severing this bond you told me about."
I looked away and nodded once more. He pulled the wrapped glass vial from his sash and handed it to me. "I was wondering what these were."
I attempted to uncork the vial to waft its contents before the stallion stopped me. "What are you doing?" He asked in a panicked whisper.
Looking back over the corner at the two Umbra they still did not know we were there, I turned myself away. "What?"
"That tiny bottle is filled with Enchanted Incendiary Pheromones, extracted and synthesized from dragons to use as an explosive!" I dropped the bottle, catching it with my levitation before it hit the floor.
I covered my mouth looking back over they still didn't hear us. "Look..." He said with a soft sigh of defeat. "Here's the plan."
He whispered into my ear, I listened carefully and nodded when he finished.
"Completely theoretical though, right?" He teased.
"Indeed..."
The two of us carefully pulled away from the corner, the two umbra had not spotted us, yet. I stood behind the earth pony turning towards me his face was glowing from the excess perspiration from his nerves, I couldn't blame him. He smiled before nodding to me, I returned the gesture. He turned back to the unsuspecting pair and scream. "For Equestria!"
The two Umbra sprung immediately turning to us their horn now glowing. Silver Lining tossed the vial. "Incendiary!" One of the zebra shouted as their glow slowly began to dim. I heard the unprimed vial shatter as it the ground.
"It's a dud!" The other barked as the outline of the stallion was enveloped in the blue light from the end of the hallway.
"Now!" Silver Lining shouted.
I ignited my horn. Here we go! Drawing my sword slew my blade towards the stallion's hind legs. I apparated behind the two zebras my hooves now glowing green from the Earth Pony's enhanced strength. The blade cut through the back leg of Umbra to my right passing through it like butter, but I did not stop as it decapitated both his partner’s hind legs. The two's shots scorching the ceiling as they fell to the ground wailing in agony. Once more I apparated into the thin air not in the forearm of the stallion, be both looked as the Umbra were enveloped in fabulous colors of fire. Blue, green then orange the two screamed in agony before their bodies went still. I looked up at stallion who bore a look of satisfaction, with a wise smile of my face I boasted. "Looks like their chances of survival went up in flames!"
He sighed at the cheesiness of that terrible one liner before dropping me and stepping over me towards the charred corpses. He knelt down in front of the bodies of ponies covered in the disintegrated ash. "You can rest in peace my old friends, you have been avenged."
I stopped behind him. "Did you know many of them?"
He growled. "Yes... some were those I knew from Mareport." He pointed to a few bodies he could spot. "Others from basic training in Canterlot for the volunteer army."
I gasped in shock. "Volunteer army? You mean none of you are actually royal guards?"
He shook his head bitterly. "The invasion happened so fast, most of us were lucky to get a couple months in before we were deployed."
I moved closer to him sitting down in front of the kneeling looking him with utter disbelief, but he could not look at me, only at the corpses on the floor. "So that means... you're all civilians?" He answered only with a nod. "I'm so sorry..."
"We all thought numbers could win this war, but we did not realize what kind of enemy we we're dealing with. Some of these ponies were just regular folks."
He pointed to the one pegasus mare on the far end. "Painters..."
The stallion pointed to the pile ash of the unicorn behind us. "Musicians..."
Pointing his grey hoof weakly at the orange and blue earth pony mare in front of him. "Mothers..."
He pulled his trembling hoof slowly to his chest tears falling down his cheeks. "Fathers..."
He turned into a melting puddle of grief as his body heaved and wheezed in sorrow. All I could do is hold him closing my eyes wrapping him tightly with all the feelings I could muster towards these lost strangers.
* * *
I avoided searching the bodies of the ponies for anything of value but instead pilfered the corpses of the two Umbra. They were both indeed Roamani from their striped patterns and scars on their faces revealed to me when I removed their helmets. I took a few healing potions that I could find using one to ease the pain on my hooves from the glass that I had stepped on when I teleported from behind the two Umbra. Out of curiosity I wished to study this technology that utilized these foot soldiers to use this kind of magic but refrained from doing so as now was not the time. Carefully, I stored the helmet inside my saddlebag without any magic afraid that direct contact might trigger or set it off. There weren't many individuals that I knew from my travels that could have achieved this feat in alchemy or enchantment. All of those that I did however were either gone or didn't wished to be found. I sighed as I slammed my rump on the ground, turning my attention to Silver Lining.
He was no longer crying; his eyes were red and his sleeve was covered in excess snot from his sobbing. He was still looking down at the mare silently. I stood up and approached him and try to console him in this moment of grief. Before I had the chance to open my mouth he up spoke. "It's our fault this happened Star Forge."
I knelt beside him. "What do you mean?" I asked my gaze fixed on the mare in front of us.
The stallion casually brushed the ash off mare's blonde mane and face. "After the end of the war the zebras’ homeland was in ruin and they had lost many lives. Their Caesar was killed just prior to Revent and Pecus’s intervention in the war, their senate in complete disorder."
I cleared my throat. “And our people just left them?”
He swallowed hard caressing her blue skin. "Equestria elites, were willing to help them. For a price."
I turned to him with a less-than sympathetic face. "Makes sense, before Luna was banished there was no EUP Guard or military. In fact, Celestia was against making an army."
He kept his gaze away from me, a resentful expression was beginning to spread across his face. "I know that, Star Forge.” He growled at me.
“That's why those damn politicians from Unicornia and the royal unicorn family from Canterlot wanted major reparations for the military's service. military to find anything of value taking whatever they found of value, sacred artifacts, gold and silver even taking ‘indentured servants’ to work under the royal families."
I raised an eyebrow. "And Celestia let this happen?"
He shook his head. "I'm not sure about the details, from the ones who survived that were there had said they were under the impression that it was Celestia who gave the orders."
"Survived?" His bloodshot pupils met my gaze as he turned towards me.
"Many zebras were resentful of these acts and more were put down, that is until they had found something."
I leaned in closer my mane twitching with anticipation. His expression slowly morphed into a look of fear. "Black Gold... the treasure that the Spartans were searching for."
Our heads turned to the sound of clashing swords and flashes of blue auras. Without hesitation, the two of us sprang from the floor and galloped to the battle. I took the lead on our approach, the lights were coming from the corner of another hallway. This section of the ship was lit by the same bulbs in the sick bay offering a very dim field of vision. I passed the corner first and was met with a large incendiary explosion. A slid across the floor as the corpses of ponies and Umbra that had taken the brunt force of the blast flew quickly past my field of vision. Silver Lining help offered me a hoof up. "Are you alright?" he asked?
I was hacking up pieces of dust that I prayed to Celestia were not from other ponies, so all I could manage was a simple nod. As I rose to my hooves, I saw a pegasus mare battling three Umbra at once. The dimness of the room was difficult to see but I was that two of them had no horns and were clashing blades with this mare. The third one, to her ten o’clock, ignited his blue crystal horn. In a feat of desperation, the mare tried to block it but thus she dropped he sword from the intense heat as it disintegrated into a pile of ash. The mare tried to get some elevation, but the Umbra next to her proceeded to buck the pegasus hard in the throat making her fall to the floor, he snickered with great pleasure.
The Umbra, now atop of her, raised his hooves to crush her head. Quickly, my horn ignited illuminating the dark room, my hooves glowed a dark green color and the sword in my grasp was enveloped in my magic. I tossed my sword across the hall in a straight horizontal direction, the sword impaled through the chest a geyser of blood erupted from his mouth. In the next instant, my right hoof was now through his chest my face was sprayed with his blood as I twisted my hoof. My satisfied expression met his sneering expression of pain. Another spur of blood erupted from his mouth as I used Silver Lining's donor strength to push him higher up. My sword apparated in my left hoof as I jabbed the blade violently through his visor shattering the black glass and a spray of fresh blood spatter followed suite. Planting my hind leg below my hoof, I turned to face the other two Umbra now charging at me. However, they had forgotten about my companion as his crossbow's arrow plunged into the left one's neck as he stumbled upon his companion for assistance.
Pressing my hind leg against the corpse's chest, I freed my arm and blade from the body. The zebra pushed his dying companion off him in time to for his blade to meet the end of mine. The Umbra's sword swung violently against mine, as he stood on his hind legs pushing us both away from the fallen mare and his comrade. the other pulled the arrow out blood flowing out life a stream he inched further away from the projectile. Silver Lining appeared behind him as his horn glared once more intending to disintegrate me and his own companion. I swung my blade low while the Umbra prepared to block it.
Silver Lining aimed his crossbow above his target's head he nodded, signaling me to change places again. With a quick flash, I hacked off the horned Umbra's leg as he took the shot. The blast from the horn contacted the Umbra's tail setting it aflame. The dark pony shot the bladed zebra directly penetrating his visor and impaling his eye, however the warrior's reaction at this made his blade swing upward hacking the stallion's right eye. Silver Lining dropped his crossbow, grasping his slashed face as the crimson stream poured out from the gash. I tackled the zebra who was now flailing his hoofs in the near darkness against my face. He continued to struggle as hack at him repeatedly until the sound of cracking of his skull between the edge of my blade made him fall still.
Looking up I saw Silver Lining stumbled back trying to recover from the inflicted damage. The purple aura of my magic lit the near darkness of the hall way. I could see the purple silhouette of his face more clearly. His eyeball turned towards me glaring intensely the right half of his face blanketed by the darkness. "No!" He shouted. "He's mine..." He looked back at the half dead zebra slowly dragging his body and sword towards him.
I would have protested but a thought came to me. He needs to deal with his grief his own way, Star Forge. The light from my horn dissipated leaving only the artificial light bulbs to allow us to spectate the fight. The zebra let out a war cry as his sword struck deep into Silver Lining's outstretched hoof. The stream of crimson trickled down his forearm spattering his armor and dampening his blue sleeves in a sea of black. He grabbed the edge of the blade still in his arm pulling the Umbra in for a nasty headbutt. Bits of his visor and drops of blood fell to the wooden floor as the zebra stumbled backwards. "That was for Brush Stroke..." His words pass from his mouth through gritted teeth.
The Umbra swung his blade once more, Silver Lining ducked his pink mane from the mohawk that the helmet formed grazed it's edge. The pony pivoted turning his body into a one hundred-eighty degree turn. "This one's for Marble Slab." His hind legs bucked the zebra hard in the stomach sending him flying several feet across the room until he fell with a hard thud.
The stallion grabbed his crossbow bow galloping towards the zebra. Silver Lining landed on top of him and raised his crossbow preparing to deliver the final blow. "And this one-" The Umbra jabbed his sword through the pony's chest, it’s tip dripping with the crimson coloring of Silver’s blood.
"No!" I screamed galloping towards my friend.
The stallion gasped as he coughed up blood, his body stiffening from the impact. The zebra chuckled softly then then quickly grew louder at his victory. His laughter stopped as Silver Lining let out a vicious scream as he grasped both of his hooves above the butt of his weapon, bringing it hard into the zebra's hoof, snapping it upwards with a loud crack. I stopped short of him at this turn of events. Silver... The Umbra howled in pain as he released his grasp from the hilt of the weapon as the armored pony pulled the blade from himself tossing it across the hall.
"Is!" He brought the end of the crossbow down on the Umbra's face, the zebra's screams became soft choked gurgles as blood and visceral spattered on the pony's maddening face.
"For!" Driving the weapon down even harder the zebra sprawled from the force of impact with a loud cracking noise following with it.
"Shining Shore!" He yelled at the top of his lungs driving the end down once more snapping the weapon in half.
He panted heavily with the severed weapon his bloodied left hoof. The pony exhaled deeply dropping his destroyed weapon before his body slumped on the floor to the left of the corpse with a hard thud. "Silver!" I ran over quickly pulling the saddle off my back.
I galloped over to my fallen friend, applying pressure of my hooves atop the leaking stream of blood pouring his chest. His dilated eyes stared unblinkingly up at the ceiling. I gently placed my ear atop the sticky crimson surface to his chest listening for a heartbeat. There were no signs of life. Silver, don't you die! I gasped in relief with a soft sob as there was a slow thud from his heart. Praise Celestia, this bastard is still alive! I pulled my head away strands of blood falling off my silver strands but I did not care. I looked back down at his blank face. Then a thought came to me from out of nowhere. He's suffering Star Forge end it. It was my own voice coming from my mind, I don't know where this came from but it did. No. If he had something to live for? Something to go back to? Then why didn't he ask for my help? Neither do I, but it doesn't have to be that way, not if I can save him. You can't save every pony Star Forge.
I hated these thoughts in my mind, my vision was beginning to blur as tears began to fall down my cheeks. Feeling another set of hooves meeting my own, I wiped my eyes against my arms, seeing the face of the pony that we had saved. She looked at me calmly. “Do you have any medical supplies on you?" She asked plainly.
"What?" I asked completely dumbfound.
'I'm Grey Matter, the medical officer on this deck, do you have any gauze and healing potions or are you going to waste my efforts in saving this stallion?"
Getting no arguments from me, I immediately pulled my hooves from his blood. Pulling the saddle off my back, smearing it with my own hoofstains. In a fit of frustration trying to search for the items in this poorly lit hallway, levitating every item from my bag until I had found the bandages and all of the disinfecting potions I could find placing them next to the mare. "I need you to turn him to his side." She ordered.
I did as she instructed, my levitation turned him to the left facing the pegasus. As my magic pivoted him over, he let out a deep and painful gasp. Drips of blood fell from the gash protruding from his back and onto the pooling crimson smeared across the wooden floor.
“Now, I need you to remove his armor and under armour.” Pouring the contents on her hooves.
My magic pulled every belt that his armor that was strapped on his body. I began with his helmet; his pink mane fell across his face as I unstrapped the rest down to his hind legs tossing them lazily to the side. I cut through his blue and crimson stained under armor with my sword like butter to impatient to remove it manually.
Grey Matter tied the back of her mane into a bun, calling me to the other side that she was preparing to begin. I hurried myself over kneeling by the pegasus’s side. I kept Silver lining upright the light from my horn making the wound more visible for the mare to see.
She turned to me. "I need you to do two things for me..."
"Star Forge."
“All right Star Forge, I need-” I snapped my head away from the now hyperventilating stallion over to the shocked mare.
The Pegasus was searching her bun in her mane and then to her own saddlebag before stopping short, muttering under her breath. "Celestia, damn me..."
She slammed her hooves beside us. "Damn it!" Grey Matter screamed.
'What is it?" I asked looking back and forth between her and Silver.
"Needle pins... I don't have any."
"What!" I yelled streaks of sweat falling down my neck.
"Why?" Looking at her as if she had plunged the sword into Silver herself.
"The attack happened so fast and members of the crew had been 'misplacing' supplies during the voyage." Shaking her head in shock.
'Misplaced?' That word did not sit right with me. I looked down at the dying stallion's head in my hooves, his breathing becoming slower and raspier by the second. Then a thought hit me as I reached my hoof into the neck of my under armor, pulling out the necklace of Amicus’s baby tooth. Cutting the thin string to my teeth I levitated it over to her. "Will this work?" I asked with a pleading look in my eyes.
She looked at the thin tooth in her hooves curiously for a moment. The pegasus nodded to me before uncorking the second vial with her mouth. I turned my head back down at Silver Lining whispering into his ear. "It's going to be now, Grey Matter is going to fix you up."
I watched as the mare tied the thin line of stitching string through the tooth's hole at the end of it's thin base. "I'm going to begin now, I need you to keep him steady."
The wound punctured his liver but grazed his lung, I need to begin there first. Keep you horn's light glowing nearby for me.” I nodded patiently.
“I also need you to use your magic to reopen the wound with enough room for me to operate. Do you understand?” I nodded unconsciously before freezing for a moment at what she asked me to do.
“Do you understand?!” She shouted. “There's no time to perform any anesthetic spells and I need him to stay conscious during this."
I turned to her in shock. "All right!" I blurted, steeling myself to the surgeon's request. I grasped Silver’s head only slightly firmer keeping his gaze fixed on my own.
The pegasus sighed leaning her head in closer towards the wound. By her orders, the light on my horn brightened her allowing her to see the damage more clearly. Now for step two, I swallowed deeply. It's just like taking off a bandage, a very deep flesh wound, bandage. Closing my eyes, I hugged the stallion's face tighter as my magic enveloped his wound splitting in half like the sound of duct tape. A loud scream erupted from Silver Lining as his body squirmed in pain, even when it was consumed in the grasp of my magic.
"Star Forge-"
"I know!" I screamed as my envelope of silver and purple light strained his movements.
Grey Matter moved in closer into the opening I made for her as she began to work. Silver Lining tried to wrench free from my magic and my grasp. These actions made me furious but, I kept my biting my tongue keeping myself focused on making sure he would live. Then Silver Lining mustered the strength to mutter the words to my ear. "Please... stop..."
I pulled my head away from him in disbelief. My blood began to boil, and my temperance finally snapped when tears began to fall from his slashed eyeball to the floor, as if he wanted this to happen. "Stop?" Was all I could mutter to him.
"STOP!" I shouted in pure rage. "I understand that you were upset about that the Umbra had done. To your friends, your wife Shining Shore, but that's no way to be when you have your own children to think about."
I swallowed hard. "Who is supposed to come back to THEM! When this war is over."
He coughed defiantly, spitting some blood from his mouth. "This war is not just for them, but for the treasures of Equestria, every pony’s children, this land's... legacy." He said weakly.
This statement stunned me. "We all went into this battle knowing we would die, we're fighting a losing war so they can have a chance."
I looked over at Grey Matter who had stopped for a moment, my eyes pleading to her if this was true. She was silent for a moment but gave no arguments otherwise to his statement. The mare bobbed her head once before continuing with her work on Silver's insides. I turned back to the stallion's gaze as both of his eyes were now staring back at me. He sniffed and coughed once more but nothing came out this time. "This is our generation's destiny Star Forge."
I hid my face behind my hair. "I understand." I paused for a moment before I swallowed again. "But I will not accept this."
"I know what it's like to be told a hopeless situation and to have to accept it, but that's not what kind of pony I am."
"Wha... t, do you mean?" He muttered with enough strength to show me a shred of curiosity.
"When I was but a filly, I got the two things that I'd always wanted, my cutie make and a day to celebrate it with my mother." I chuckled slightly at this memory. "I galloped down the stairs of my home squealing at the top of my voice." My smile turned into a frown. "But when I came down there was no pony home, not the in the living room, or the kitchen I couldn't find her anywhere." I shook my head in disbelief. "The happiest day of my life became a nightmare, my town was attacked by... something, I slept through it somehow. Nopony died, but everyone was too shaken so I chose not to show anypony until things calmed down."
I was silent for a moment again as I collected my thoughts. "It was ah... a few months afterwards, when the dust had finally settled, I got to celebrate my Cuteceanera hosted by the owners of the town’s Mining Guild. All I heard at the party was how great of a unicorn my mother was and how proud I must have been to be her daughter. They had told me that somepony special wished to meet me. I was taken to the estate's study where I met Princess Celestia."
My body began to shake uncontrollably. "She told I was to be her personal student. I was to move to Canterlot as soon as I was able."
I chuckled again for a moment. "It was the most overwhelming moment for me in my life, how could I refuse but my childish curiosity had to beg the most important question, 'why?'"
"The princess told me that it was my mother's, dying wish and that she was no longer with us. That is when I finally understood, it was no party it was a wake."
I now looked at the shocked stallion. "I couldn't accept that. There was no body no note no proof that she was gone, that is why, I'm telling you this now."
I grasped his limp hoof tightly. "I know you think that this war is hopeless and I am humble at your resolve, but i will not anypony think for a moment that this is a losing war. That dying for their future is right. Who is going to pass on what you have learned, to tell the tales of how Equestria survived just like has always had when faced with adversary. We all may most definitely die here, but don't you dare think that this is the end, I won't accept that. And neither should you."
* * *
After Grey Matter had finished her operation, she allowed me to put Silver under my anaesthetic spell so he could relax from the trauma. The pegasus was dabbing the vials on the gauze wrapping them around his chest, hoof and the right side of the unconscious stallion’s face. While the last of the potions worked their magic on healing his wounds I decided to brush up on some reading from my journal. I sat slouched against the wooden wall beside the pile of Silver Lining’s armor that I had tossed across the hall in the rush of the moment. The information that my mysterious plot device possessed to remedy my questions provided additional details about the Spartan Wars. The Griffons had used their own weather factories to unleash monsoons, tornados and hurricanes upon the Zebras. I assumed these were destroyed after the war ended. But no other significant facts; unfamiliar names, no dates, even any information about these mysterious Syners was limited to Revent and Pecus.
I flipped back to the pages that recalled the vivid happenings of my dream. Celestia called Revent her student. What did she do to the elements? Why did she turn on her own people? Why did she want to kill my teacher?
I growled at this uncanny series of questions. I tossed the journal by my saddlebag. Once more, the soft-covered book sprung to life, walking back to me before lying back down by my side. I combed my white hooves through my mane as I looked up to the white bulb of light, pondering the possibilities.
“Is everything alright?” Grey Matter asked sitting beside me, the dizzying swirls from the grey shades that was her mane became more visible in the dim light.
“Just catching up on some history.” I said levitating the book into her hooves.
“The Spartan Wars?” She turned to me raising an eyebrow.
“It’s a sort of obsession of mine. Understand the past to rationalize the present and help remedy the future.” I snickered halfheartedly before I snatched the book from her grasp and closing it by my side.
The mare was silent for a moment smacking her lips as her thoughts began to race in her mind. Hesitantly, she turned to me and asked a very curious question. “Star Forge, how old are you?”
I shrugged. “Eighteen years old.” Probably…
She chuckled. “What, did you sleep through class on this lesson. Considering that war began fifteen years ago.”
This statement snapped me to attention. What the fuck! Fifteen years! Is that how long I’ve been out? The pegasus passed Amicus’s baby tooth back to me. “This is yours.”
I nodded thankfully, rolling the thin fang between my hooves. “I just wanted to thank you for saving his life.”
She shook her head nonchalantly. “Think nothing of it, I was just doing my job.”
After a few moments of silence the pegasus spoke up again.
“May I ask where you got that from? It’s quite a curious object for some pony like yourself to come into possession with.”
I frowned at this. “Pathfinder, one of my mother’s oldest and closest friends, a dragon at that too. She gave me one of her eggs when she returned from the dragon migration after my mother disappeared.”
She listened closely rubbing her chin thoughtfully, nodding trying to put the pieces of my story together. I ceased my fidgeting with the tooth, looking at it thoughtfully. I motioned myself to the pegasus. “You said you are the doctor on the sick bay of the ship.”
She turned to me with a raised eyebrow. “Yes?”
I swallowed hard. “You have records of personnel onboard the ship.” She nodded pulling out a white covered book from her saddlebag.
“Is there a dragon on this ship somewhere?” My eyes pleading to her for the right answer.
She sighed deeply. My blood ran cold as this did not bode well for my answer. “The Opus was filled with civilians, officers; wounded or far too gone to continue fighting. It was a mass exodus to the capital and the surrounding towns. Equestrians, Griffons Zebras and even a few dozen families of Feilones were brought to Canterlot but no dragons were on board this ship, I’m sorry Star Forge. ”
I closed my eyes rubbing my hoffs against them, desperately trying to cope with this news. “How bad was it there?” I asked looking into her grim expression.
“Overcrowding is rampant there. The royal castle is filled with refugees, temporary housings have been constructed within the walls. Princess Celestia had left the task of keeping the order to her niece, Princess Magnus Armore Carthe.”
I chuckled softly. Maggie huh?
Grey Matter scoffed. “Unicornia was the Umbra’s first target, the entire city was burned to the ground.” She shook her head disbelief. “Nopony knew what had happened before it was too late.”
She tapped her hooves slowly against the white covered book. “Thing went for the worse when Pegasopolis was destroyed by Blind Spot and his men just to gain the enemy’s favor.” She growled softly. “That, piece of shit, traitor.”
I scratch my mane curiously. “That name sounds familiar.”
“He was one of the first original twenty Wonderbolts at the first anniversary of the Celestial year of peace. He was a respected leader and tactician during the Spartan Wars.”
She sighed deeply. “It struck a chord in every pegasus when we found out what had happened.”
I put my hoof on her shoulder. “I’m sorry.”
She brushed her swirling mane away from her face, taking a deep breath. A soft smile spread across her face as she turned back to me. “You said that you studied magic as Princess Celestia’s student?”
I nodded honestly. She exhaled solemnly in response, the mare reached into her saddlebag. “So, I guess this would explain where these came from.” Pulling out the parchment from her bag passing me Silver Lining’s talisman.
“This wouldn't have anything to do with your mother, would it?” She asked now facing me.
I was hesitant for a moment. The inability to anticipate where my answer would go made the taste of anxiety palpable in my mouth. “This, saved your life and kept us from being turned into a pile of ash like-” I stopped remembering the unicorn I could have saved, who now is another faceless casualty in this damned war. “-the others…”
This answer did not settle well with her, leaning in closer to my proximity glaring at me. “You are the princess’s pupil, why did you not inform her or any of the officers about this to help aid our forces before this battle began, we could have saved countless lives.” She hissed.
I was taken aback by the unexpected shift in tone of this conversation. I stood up now, my eyes narrowing down on the pony who had saved Silver’s life. “I wasn’t really in a position to know what was going on. Because APPARENTLY, I’ve slept through fifteen years of world fucking history!”
I slammed my back into the wall as I slowly slid back to the floor. My hooves were pulling the roots of my mane as I tried to pull the hairs from my head, nearing the verge of sobbing. I felt the hoof of the pegasus stroke my arm. I turned towards her, the mare’s upset and shocked expression quickly melted to a more sympathetic one. “I’m sorry, Star Forge.”
I sighed pathetically. “Why are you asking me all of this?”
Grey Matter simply chuckle at that question. ‘It’s my sort of obsession as well. I use to be a doctor, not one of the body but of the mind, a therapist for children when I lived in Pegasopolis.”
“A... therapist?” Sweet Celestia, just what I needed right now… I thought sarcastically to myself, I nodded away these troubles to listen in to how this came to be.
“When the Spartan Wars ended, my office was filled day and night with young soldiers that were haunted by their fears during the conflict. How they had wished to turn away from battle, live with the shame and consequences of treachery, rather than face death at the claws of the Griffons.”
“My time there, I heard many terrible stories and confessions but there was one name I heard from all of them.”
My ears perked up and my eyes widened at this. “Their stories of Revent. How she healed the sick brought those backs from the brink of death and overcame impossible odds. Some of them called her a hero, a savior, others called her a murderer, a cold-hearted tyrant. But, they all agreed that in the end, if Revent had not gone to war when she did, none of them would have returned home.”
“Well then, how did you end up working here?” I asked raising an eyebrow.
She casually shrugged, her turquoise eyes looked up thoughtfully at the ceiling. “Well… there’s not much to say. When the war broke out here, I was drafted into this volunteer force. I had no combat experience but my medical background was enough for them to make me a surgeon. A dozen stack of medical books later…” She tapped her hoof playfully against the floor, smiling vacantly at the ceiling. “Here I am now.”
She turned to me with a trying-to-make-the-best-out-of-this look across her face. I shook my head impatiently. “Stop treating me like a child, you still didn’t answer my first question. Why! Are you asking me all these questions?” I accused as my teeth grinded against each other.
She smacked her lips her expression matching the impatience of my own. “It’s the other part my job, to know everything about every pony on the ship. Their pre-existing conditions, allergies, relationships.” Pointing to Silver Lining. “But, you…” The pegasus pointed a trembling hoof at me. “You are a complete anomaly.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked defensively.
She grabbed my under armor with her hoof pulling me in to meet her haunting gaze. “I don’t know, and that drives me crazy.”
I grasped her hoof that was wrapped around my undergarments. “Are you accusing me of something?” Talking to her in a more whispered tone.
From the corner of my eye, I could see her reaching from behind for her weapon. The light of my horn now drowned the room in silver and purple light. “The Umbra managed to get on board by the dozens with no pony knowing how. Then, I came upon these curiosities wrapped around Silver’s hooves and head.”
She pulled at the neck of my garments showing a similar piece of parchment bandaged around my chest. Grabbing at the hilt of her sword, her chin trembling and eyes widening with anxiety. “What, am I supposed to think?”
My eyes softened in the light of my convicting incrimination, pleading to her my innocence. “I’m not the enemy here, Grey Matter.”
She shook her head hysterically. “What you’ve seen on this ship, is a mere fraction of what the enemy is capable of. They possess magic and technology that is beyond our comprehension, not to mention the legion of Dark Syners, who swear their undying loyalty to The Lord of Shadows.”
She pulled me in closer, my muzzle pressing against hers. The pegasus's turquoise eyes dilated, her mouth hung open and agape advertising a look of horror. “I’ve seen what these… things are capable of. They’ve torn ponies apart with just their mind. I’ve had to treat so many traumatized ponies, whose minds were infected by them. And even if they do recover, they lose themselves, sometimes they forget who is friend…” Her tiny pupils drifted away for a moment, lost in thought, before they returned, narrowing down on me. “...and who is foe.”
“Grey Matter!” Silver Lining growled. Both of us snapped to attention as the half-conscious stallion slowly rose from floor.
“Star Forge’s actions and words that I have seen speaks otherwise. You, must remember the oath that we made… this is not the way.” He glared at her with disappointment.
I watched as the anger and fear on her face turned to a more soft and remorseful expression. Slowly, she released me from her hold. Taking no time to keep my distance from her, I made my way towards Silver Lining as the pegasus mumbled to me almost out of earshot. “I’m sorry.”
Reaching the light-headed stallion, I moved up beside him and leaned my shoulder against his to help keep him balanced. “I’m out of it for a couple hours and I see you are already causing problems for yourself.” He said growling in pain.
I chuckled as we made our way past the soft sobbing mare sitting beside the wall. “Just, making some new friends.” Resting him carefully beside his pile of armor.
I levitated a canteen from my saddlebag to the grateful stallion. He chugged down its contents viciously for a few moments before taking as satisfied gasp for air. I stowed the canteen back into the saddlebag before levitating it over my loin. Moving to Silver’s pile of armor, I began to strap each part atop each other. “What are you doing?” he asked looking over my shoulder.
I turned my head towards him. ‘We have to get moving now, you're too injured to fight, so... I’ll just, carry them for you.”
“How are you going to be able to carry my armor and supplies and me at the same time?” His glossy eyes looking at me curiously.
“Ah, unicorn magic.” I said pointing lamely at my horn.
He crossed his arms slowly giving me a doubtful look. I groaned impatiently as the pile began to ascend above the floor but quickly descend back to the floor cluttering across the surface with a hard thud. I jumped back at this shocking revelation as the sound rang through the hallway. I looked back at him in frustration. ‘I’ll improvise, ok? I’ll carry both you and your armor over my shoulder and chuck them at those bastards if I have to.”
“Star Forge, you’ve exhausted your magic, you need to rest if you’re going to be able to carry all of this.” Grey Matter chimed in rubbing her bloodshot eyes before brushing the swirling colors of her mane was from the mare’s face. I turned to face the mare with a sour look on my face. “We don’t HAVE time for that, we need to move now!”
Make no mistake, I saw a smile begin to form on her face when the word ‘we’ came from my mouth. These thoughts were quickly shot down when she was met by my unsettling glare. I sighed looking down at the pile of armor shells and the stuffed saddlebag from the corner of my gaze. Grey matter took a step forward. “Please, let me help you.”
I looked back to the stallion who returned an honest nod and smile to me. I smack my lips before turning back to face her. “We’ve all been at odd ends today, now’s not the time to be at each other's throats.”
She nodded understandingly with an optimistic look on her face. Silver Lining gave a sympathetic groan behind me. I grabbed the hilt of the zebra sword cutting beads of blood from out of my skin from above the stub of my hoof. The stallion began to chuckle from behind me as the blood streamed down my arm dripping to the floor. “Your turn.”
* * *
I carried Silver Lining over my shoulder along the corridor, who limped along with me, but I could tell his health was improving from the healing potions. Grey Matter had a spare undergarment for the stallion, so at least he wasn’t completely naked. When I was living in Canterlot, I had endeavour to carry many heavy objects on my back. Whether it was my saddlebags filled with books, foreign souvenirs, or Amicus when he was a baby during longer nights at the library. I did my best to support him as we hobbled to where Cross Guard had instructed us to rendezvous. Using the transference capabilities of the talismans, I could to use my levitation again, while Grey Matter took it upon herself to be the stallion’s pack mule and carry his saddlebag along with her own. I attached the remaining parchment talismans within the stallion’s armor in the case a ‘situation’ arose.
After I had appropriated the link between Grey Matter and myself, I begrudgingly had to explain in further details of the talisman's capabilities. The stallion took quite the sympathetic amusement of Grey Matter’s shock when I told her the theoretical risks of severing the link by outside magic and that I has no prior field testing on actual Equestrians.
“So, I can use your unicorn magic?” The pegasus whispered, now to my left side.
“Yes…” I muttered as we crossed a corner.
“And you, can use... my, magic…?”
“It's more of… I can use your enhanced speed and can walk on cloud surfaces.”
“That. Is. So. Awesome.” She giggled in anticipation. Her hooves levitated from the ground as her wings glided her lowly above the floor.
She must have completely forgotten about the risks I had previously mentioned. I shook my head, chuckling in amusement. Well. At least I have one less paranoid pony in the group. “Hey.” I snapped at her.
Grey Matter looked down at me. “I’m running on the verge of empty and I don’t know when your endurance will leave you, so please…”
“Oh, right.” The mare blushed as she landed gracefully beside me.
“Star Forge…” Silver Lining whispered into my ear.
Now for the other one. I turned my head to the stallion. “Yes, Silver?” I asked playfully.
“I thought, you said, you had no ink.” He muttered angrily.
Oh, fuck! The back of my neck shivered as the warm air coming from his nostrils, was telling me he wanted a good reason. I smiled weakly to which the stallion growled impatiently. “I found some.” Was all I could muster to say.
He coughed weakly. “Where…?”
My mane began to twitch. “In the sick bay.”
His face twisted into a look of annoyance and humor. I couldn't tell if he was on the verge of tears or laughter. “Look I-”
“You took a lot of blood from me!” He barked.
“Look, I only took about a pint from you.” I whispered to him in a desperate attempt to lower his voice.
“A pint!?” Grey Matter pitched in.
Not you too. I stopped and turned to meet her with a look to stay out of this. She wrinkled her face and snout at me in defiance. I rolled my eyes as we continued. “Look, Equestrians have eight pints of blood and you need four to stay alive, right?”
“Five.” The pegasus countered.
I groaned in annoyance, I turned once more to her as we crossed the second corner. “And obviously, he has more than five since he-”
I stopped as Grey Matter met me with a look of terror. “What is it?” I asked raising an eyebrow.
She pointed behind me as Silver Lining ushered me to turn around. “Star Forge...” He whispered in a panicked tone.
I turned myself around, almost a dozen Umbra a few yards away hallway, were all looking at us now. Two were standing perpendicular behind five others watching a wrestling match between them. Two more to our right, were now raising themselves from the wall with their weapons now drawn. Another across the other side of the hall, was sitting against the wall with his helmet off. He grinned broadly across his face as he continued to scalp the severed head of a mare. Slowly we began to step back as the rest moved forward at the same pace. The helmetless zebra’s chuckled faintly but quickly grew louder, as the entirety of the mare’s purple locks fell from the ground. Sitting there the zebra looked at us, full of lust in his emerald eyes. He licked his lips. “Hello there.”
“Hello.” Was all I could say back to them.
Improvising time Star Forge! I chucked the armor at the crowd of zebras, who now began to rush towards us. I screamed like a maniac, charging towards them with harmonizing protest from Silver Lining in my ear. The pieces zipped past the five in the center as the two were knocked back by the force. The two charged at me with their swords swinging at me. I grabbed Grey Matter in my levitation, dropping all of us to the floor before I met the blade’s edge. I fell with the heavy earth pony on top of me to the wooden surface with a hard thud. Silver Lining groaned a top from me as I cocked my head, my horn giving a silver flash. The pieces of armor blinked from behind crowd with a dozen uncorked vials of EIP’s were now hidden inside them. The corridor erupted into a fireball as the two unconscious Umbra were vaporized from the initial combustion. The five in front of them were sent flying past us, bits and pieces of shrapnel scattering in all directions. Amidst the chaos, the zebra in front of me turned to the scene in shock. I used this moment to rise and pivot myself, as I delivered a powerful kick to his groin.
I turned to the frozen pegasus, who was awestruck by these developments, ordering her to move. Pulling Silver Lining onto my back, we darted past the confused crowd, with Grey Matter taking to the air in front of us through the narrow corridors. My back was glowing with the enhanced speed the talisman's connection had with Grey Matter. Taking sharp and precise turns through the vast hallways in the dim maze of the ship. After a few minutes on the run we moved into a dark, unlit corridor. I ignited my horn so we could see more clearly. Turning back, I could see the light of the hallway becoming more and more blurred as we ventured deeper inwards. We approached a three-way split, Grey Matter jumped to the right, Silver Lining and I took the left. The light from my horn ceased as we cached our breath, waiting for them.
Respectfully, I rested the queasy stallion against the wall. Sliding to the corner of my side of the corridor, my heart was pounding in my throat and my ears still ringing from the explosion. I inhaled slowly, trying to calm my nerves, my readjusting eyes looked to Grey Matter, her sword at the ready. She nodded to me, in turn I slowly drew my sword from its scabbard. After a few minutes, we heard hoof steps passing by from the end of the hallway. Peeking my head towards the distant light, I could make out five or six shadows at the other end. I could not understand what they were saying from this far away. I could assume that the group was arguing which way we took. We just kept waiting. I looked down at my sword my hooves were trembling, the taste of sweat and iron was palpable when I licked my lips. Finally, the shadows split from the end of the corridor, I exhaled a sigh of relief as I slid down against the wall, now sitting beside Silver Lining.
After a few minutes of silence, my horn illuminated the dark space once more, the silhouette of the stallion rising from the floor and slowly trotting past me towards Grey Matter. “Glad that you still know your way around the ship.” The stallion complemented to the pegasus as he unstrapped his burdenous saddlebag from her.
“Yes, if we continue down this way we will make it to the maintenance shaft that connects the outer interior to the interior extremities of the ship.” She said pointing to the void of the hallway in front of us.
I handed the stallion my spare sword before taking a few hoof steps past them feeling a gust of wind coming from down that way. “Do you feel that?” I asked turning to them both.
They slowly made their way to me. “Yes…” Silver Lining said as his mane casually brushed by the wind. “It’s a, draft.”
“You mean? A hull breach?!” Grey Matter gasped looking at the stallion then gazing back towards the darkness.
I shook my head in uncertainty. “I don’t think so, the vacuum should have sucked everything out of this level.”
I continued towards the direction of the soft breeze refreshing my exhausted body. “Maybe we should find another way to the bridge.” Grey Matter interjercted.
The stallion tightened the strap of the scabaras to his belt. ‘We’ve already wasted enough time getting here, who knows how much longer they can hold out. This is the fastest way and right now we cannot afford any more confrontations.”
“The uncertainties of darkness is not a preferable environment compared to where we just were.” The pegasus argued.
“I would prefer to not have to backtrack and draw any more, unnecessary attention.” Silver Lining retorted.
“Star Forge.” The stallion turned towards me now, snapping me out of my contemplation.
I turned my head away from the abyss, back to the arguing ponies. “Yes?”
With a swift hoof slap against his bandaged face, the stallion sighed in defeat. “We’re split on a decision, what should we do?”
I looked back into the darkness basking in the radiance of the unknown, my mind on the fence.
* * *
