Chapters I grunt as my face hits the ground, a result of tripping over my own talons. I grimace and rub my chin. That will definitely leave a mark. I swiftly gather up the papers and books that are scattered across the ground and head to history, the only sound being the clicking of my talons as they hit the floor.
Oh please, please, please don't catch me.
When I reach the classroom and find the teacher glaring at me, I can tell that's not going to happen.
"Well Miss Hurricane, I'm glad that you could join us today," he scolds as I open the door. "Take a seat after you give me your field trip form." I follow his instructions and grab a pencil, ignoring the smug look on Daisy's face when I sit down.
What a wonderful way to start the day.
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Everything is absolute chaos as other students run around the courtyard, desperate to make sure that they'll be grouped with their friends. Of course, they blatantly ignore me. Ponies tend to avoid me, unless they've sunk low enough to try and cheat on a test.
"Hey, move it rock-eater!"
Daisy's taunt rings in my ears as my world spins and I'm thrown to the ground. I manage to catch her sneer as she trots off to her group.
Actually, scratch that. They do enjoy shoving me around.
"Woah, are you alright? That ground looks painful."
Before I have time to wonder who in the world says "that ground looks painful," a hoof is pulling me up to my talons.
I'm met with the smile of a turquoise Pegasus. Her mane is spiky and bright purple, with a blue streak running through it. In her ears are - oh please tell me those aren't diamond earrings. Damn rich ponies.
The bright red eyes that she has are a bit freaky, but with the dragon pupils I have I'm in no position to judge. I could swear that I've seen her before, but she immediately starts launching questions at me, leaving no time to think.
"What class are you in? I've never seen you before. But our school is really big, so maybe I've never noticed you. Did Daisy push you? Does she mess with you a lot? That must be tough. She thinks she's so high and mighty just because her family owns the bank-"
"Hey, slow down Lou. The poor thing probably can't hear herself think."
The Pegasus - Lou - is interrupted by a short, violet Earth Pony. She's seems a bit. . . Buffer than other mares. She doesn't really seem petite like other mares, and her voice is a lot deeper. Her red and pink mane is pulled up into a braid, and it's so long that it looks like it's never been cut before.
Lou rolls her eyes. "As if you're in a position to criticize. I've only just met you, but I can tell that you can talk my ear off any day, Razz!"
Razz sighs and turns to me. "So, Lou and I were sent out to look for another group member. Wanna come? We won't be too annoying. Maybe."
Before I can think about an answer, Lou is already dragging me to a large tree. My ebony mane covers my eyes while her voice goes too fast for me to even process what's going on. "I'm sure that this will be fun! I always like making new friends-"
BAM!
My face collides with a tree, scraping against my horns.
Great.
"Oh! Uhh. . . Are you alright?"
An auburn Earth Pony is standing over me. Shaggy white mane covers his worried magenta eyes, and he has to be one of the tallest ponies I have ever seen. Around his neck is a choker necklace, with a charm shaped like the sun.
I nod and push myself up. Gravity is being a real bitch today. I probably already have multiple bruises all over my body. It'll be fun explaining that to Dad.
The Earth Pony gives me a shaky smile. "S-so, I guess that Lou dragged you over here? C'mon, I'll introduce you to the others." He grabs my talons and leads me to a small group of ponies.
Razz rushes over and examines my face. "Um, are you alright? I mean, you did face plant that tree. We saw it all."
My face flushes. They saw the entire thing?
"Yeah, just a bit sore." And humiliated.
"Hey Wyn, who's this?"
I jump when a Unicorn seems to appear directly behind me. Her blue, short mane is covered by a gray bowler hat sitting on top of her head. Streaks of white cut through her sky-blue coat, looking like bolts of lightning. Her horn might be white, but the anti-magic device covers too much of it for me to see. Black glasses frame her electric blue eyes, and a pair of earbuds are wrapped around her neck. In her ear is an earring that's similar to Wyn's choker, except the sun has a spear driven through it. Is this another fashion thing that's going on that I'm unaware of?
"This is Hurricane. She'll be in our group."
Wyn steals the words out of my mouth before I can even think about them.
"Wait a minute, how did-"
I'm interrupted when a Pegasus barrels into my side. He has a pearl white coat that matches his silver mane with blue highlights, along with a smile that looks bright enough to light up the world. He crushes me in a hug as if we're old friends.
"Are you Hurricane? I've seen you around school, and I think that you're pretty cute - I mean cool. I'm Silver Diamond, nice to meet you!"
. . . What?
Who the hell does this guy think he is, tackling me out of nowhere?
Thankfully, the Unicorn drags him off of me. "Silver, what are you doing? You could crush her, you're so tall!" She sends me an apologetic glance. "I'm sorry, I don't think that he's usually this much of an idiot. I'm Sky, b-by the way."
I just nod. "It's fine. . . I guess. But what do we do now that we've got a group?"
Somebody behind me clears their throat. I spin around and find a Unicorn towering over me. His platinum blond mane stands out in contrast to his midnight black coat. His eyes are just downright weird - they look like chips of ice. They're nothing like I've seen before, but at the same time they feel familiar.
"Hello, my name is Obsidian. I'll be your group leader today." Obsidian smiles, but it just makes him look creepier.
Lou just trots up to him and smiles, oblivious to his unusual appearance. "Well then, let's get this show on the road!"
Obsidian nods and turns around. "Follow me, and we'll begin the tour." He walks off, and the rest of the group follows.
This may be my dragon instincts talking, but I can't help but feel like something terrible is going to happen.
Author's Note
Well, here it is! The first official chapter!
. . . To be honest, it's technically not the first. I can't tell you how many drafts I deleted for this book.
Anyways, I hope that you enjoyed!
Word Count: 1,182
This book is going to have lots of long chapters. You better get used to it.
This is flaming_hot_fandoms, signing off~
Sky Illegally Opens A Door
"Dude. . . where are we?"
Sky's question bounces throughout through the dimly lit hallway, reflecting what's on everyone's mind. Instead of taking us through the Old Equestria exhibits, Obsidian lead us through a door next to the entrance.
Now we're here, all of us either extremely bored or confused. Or, if you're me, both.
Razz shrugs. "Don't ask me. You're the nerd, so I thought you would know all about the museum."
"Sure I do, just not the places where only employees are allowed."
". . . Why not?"
"I work at t-the library, not the museum!"
Razz just shrugs again. "Same thing."
Sky grumbles and mutters something under her breath, while the rest of us snicker.
"So. . ." Silver starts after a few minutes. "This could be to be one of the weirdest field trips I've ever been on. What about you guys?"
Lou shakes her head. "Nah, I've been through worse. One time we went to a farm and a chicken threw up on me."
We all giggle except for Razz, who gags and covers her mouth. "Oh come on, you know how bad my stomach handles that stuff!"
"Yeah, my story is pretty gr-gross too," Sky sighs after we calm down. "Our class went to an arbor- arboretum, and one of the colts in my group started flirting with me. We were in fifth grade, and I never even met him before. It took me about five hours to figure out what was going on!"
Our laughter bounces throughout the hallway. None of us say anything about how she stumbles over some words. Out of the corner of my eye, I see Sky let out a sigh and smile.
"Our school took us to a play. The main role was so clumsy he fell off the stage and right on top of me," I pause as I remember the distracted Earth Pony that hit me like a truck. "On the bright side, I got to stay home for a few days with the broken leg he gave me."
I leave out the part about how Daisy would continuously try to run into my leg or drop books on my injured talons, or how Dad had to work late into the night to pay the medical bills. I tend to be lectured about how I shouldn't be so negative all the time when I say things like that.
"Stop."
Obsidian's command cuts through the air like a knife. As we stop walking, we all silence ourselves immediately, and a chill spreads over us. He turns around and gives us a death glare. “You all will listen to me very carefully. You will follow every order I give you, without complaint. Understand?”
I really, really hate this guy.
Razz snorts. “Or what? You’ll vaporize us?”
A smirk spreads across Obsidian’s face, and he looks very terrifying. “No, it won’t come to that. But if you don’t listen. . .”
A silver aura surrounds Razz, and suddenly she’s being lifted into the air! She screams and Sky jumps up to pull her down, but only ends up being levitated too, her hat falling off in the process. We all look back to Obsidian, and his horn is covered with the same light.
This idiot is using magic. . .
I lift my head up higher, hoping that he doesn’t see me trembling. “You- you can’t use magic with-”
“With this?” He turns his head so the anti-magic device catches the light. “Nothing more than a simple piece of fabric.” As if to prove us right, he lifts a hoof and pulls it off.
Lou turns around and walks off. “Nope. Not today. Hell no, not dealing with that shit.”
“Wait!”
Sky, who had fallen down earlier, runs up to her. She pulls the rest of us together after adjusting her hat. “Listen, this guy is crazy. But I have a plan. For now, everybody just stay calm and do what he says. I’ll take the wheel if anything goes wrong.”
. . . Is this the same pony who had trouble speaking a few minutes ago? A hard look is now set on her face, and I know that it’ll be hard disagreeing with her.
“Alright. Just don’t get us killed.”
She gives me a smile, and my stomach twists. It’s just like the one Mom gave me when I was really upset or scared.
“We’re in.” Silver steps forward, Wyn hiding under his wing. “If you keep hi- us alive, then obviously it’s a good idea.”
Sky nods and turns to Lou, who sends us all a scowl. “Fine. But if I die, my family will sue you.”
“Fair enough.” Sky turns around and faces Obsidian with confidence that seems to come out of nowhere. “We’ll do whatever you say. But hurt anyone, and there’ll be hell to pay. Got it?”
He smiles, and Razz falls to the ground.
“Deal.”
“So. . . That’s a nice necklace you got there.”
Sky is staring at Wyn’s choker. Obsidian had led us through a stairway that was even darker than the hallway before his horn lit up, and a few balls of light shot out and floated around us. Sky kept falling down so many times that Obsidian had to levitate her until we got to the bottom. Now we’re just. . . In another hallway.
Wyn nods, rubbing the charm. “Thanks. Uh, it’s a family heirloom.”
“So. . . does it have any meaning,like. . . You know, meaning? ”
“Not really. Silver has a pair of earrings, but in the shape of hearts. We’re brothers, you know.”
“Cool.” She nods, and the hallway fills with silence.
It stays like that for another half hour, until Obsidian stops again. I look up, and he’s standing in front of a giant metal door. The paint is chipped and faded, but it isn’t too hard to make out the picture.
There’s a large sun with a spear in the middle, just like Sky’s earring. It’s cradled by a silver crescent moon, with a large blue heart next to it. It’s all surrounded by a circle with five points on it. On each of the points is a different symbol. Apples, gems, balloons, butterflies, and. . . A cloud with a rainbow? Well, why not. . .
In the center is a magenta star that I’m sure that I’ve seen in history books. Maybe not, since I usually sleep during class. In the background is a navy blue shield.
Sky gasps and runs up to the door. “W-what-how. . .” She turns to Obsidian. “Why did you bring us down here? Why does this have the symbol for the Sun Dogs?”
The Sun Dogs.
The rebellion group that’s trying to take down our controlling government while keeping the world safe from Skades. Ever since they broke out of their mountain prison, Skades haven’t stopped attacking. . . Pretty much everybody in the world.
I don’t have anything against the Sun Dogs, but I prefer not to be arrested.
Silver walked up beside me, Wyn still under his wing. “So, uh. . . This is interesting.”
“We’re being kidnapped by this guy that can kill us any moment using magic which is, you know, illegal, and now it turns out that the Sun Dogs have something to do with this. Oh, it’s definitely interesting.”
“Well, it’ll be a nice story to tell my parents,” Razz says as she trots up to us. Her look of sarcasm slowly turns to horror. “Oh no. . . They’re going to kill me when I get home!”
“If we get home.” Lou’s statement brings us all to silence, before Wyn whimpers and hugs Silver’s leg. He sends Lou a glare before hugging him back.
During our discussion, Obsidian and Sky’s argument grew louder to the point to where they’re practically yelling.
“This is madness!” Sky paces in front of the door. “You kidnap us, threaten us, take us to an abandoned base, and-”
“You seem to know a lot about this place.” Obsidian catches us starring and smirks. “How about you tell them why? I knew from the moment I saw you, but what want to see if any of these imbeciles figured it out.”
Sky grinds her teeth together. “Fine. They were going to find out anyway.” She turns to us and points to her earring. “See this? It’s the Sun Dog token. Our little secret symbol so that we can find allies easily.”
I wait a few moments for her words to sink in. Wyn figures it out before me. “You. . . You’re a spy?”
“I was. Spies don’t get caught.”
While I’m still trying to figure out what the hell is going on, Sky groans and turns around. “Alright, so how do we open this?” Obsidian walks up behind her. “We need to levitate it at the same time. I’ll take the left.”
Sky nods, and then pulls her device off. We gasp, but she pays no attention to us. Instead, she closes her eyes and her horn lights up in a blue glow. The left side of the door is now covered silver, and the right is blue.
After a moment, the doors give way with a loud CREEEEEE. Dust pours down on us, and it’s really annoying.
In a few minutes, beads of sweat start to drip down Sky’s forehead, and the door isn’t close to being halfway opened.
This might take awhile.
It took awhile.
After a few failed attempts and a falling rock mishap, the door finally opened. I think Sky is going to cry from relief. I would too, if a mercenary forced me to lift a door that probably hasn’t been opened in forever.
“Come on, we don’t have time to waste!”
Obsidian’s sudden wave of energy is surprising, but I’m pretty hyped up too. Besides, you know, the constant feeling of dread knowing that I can die any second. I push myself in front of Lou and step inside the room.
What’s inside is a bit. . . Underwhelming.
There’s torn up banners hanging on the wall, too tarnished to decipher. Chairs and desks are scattered across the room at random, and papers litter the floor. In the center of the room is a statue depicting an Alicorn in battle armor.
“This is it?” Lou asks, voicing my thoughts.
Then Razz walks in the room, the last one to do so. The statue’s armor glows, and a raspy voice flows out of it.
“The six have arrived. . .”
The light shines even brighter, and it’s chest opens to reveal a compartment. I reach in before anyone can stop me, and pull out a small, glass orb.
It vibrates, and the voice speaks again, louder and clearer than before.
“When the arrow of twilight flies,
As the fire burns at the Sun’s demise,
As the stars fall and the sky is veiled by shadow,
The ice around the world will be thawed.”
Well. . . that’s not ominous or anything.
“It’s true!” Obsidian takes the orb from my talons and examines it. “At last. . . the Orb of Ciro has been found! Glory to the Skades awaits!”
Glory. . . To the Skades?
“Skades are the most dangerous creatures you’ll ever encounter.”
Mrs. Cheerilee, one of the oldest teachers in the school, is dedicated to making sure we stay safe from Skades. Most of her history lessons end with; “They ruined everything, but once the Bearers return, they’ll fix it all!”
She’s so sweet that nobody has the heart to remind her that any mention of the Elements, or their Bearers, is a federal offense. I think she’s really fond of them because she married one of their brothers or something. Whenever the giant red pony visits, he never talks much, so I don’t know.
Mrs. Cheerilee is one of the few teachers that isn’t prejudice against me for being a hybrid, so she’s my favorite. I try my best not to sleep through her class, so I catch the end of this one:
“Some Skades have the ability to disguise themselves. They might look like one of us, but they can’t hide their eyes. If you see someone with ice-like eyes, stay away and stay safe.”
So now, looking at Obsidian - and his eyes that look like chips of ice. . .
I really wish that I stayed awake during the Self-Defense course in gym.
Now There's More Criminals
While I was busy having a flashback to history class (what the hell, brain?), Silver had stepped in front of us, spreading out his wings. I never noticed how big his wings were before, but they're huge.
"Listen up, buddy. I don't know who you are, or who you're trying to be, but it's not working on me. If that ball thing helps the Skades, then you're not going anywhere with it." He gives Obsidian a glare that can cut through steel.
Apparently, I also never noticed how scary Silver can be.
Obsidian just gives him a mocking smile. "What is this? A little foal trying to play hero?" He laughs, putting the orb behind him. "I've been looking for this for six months, and you're not about to take it from me."
Silver paws the ground. "I wouldn't bet on it."
"Silver. . ." Sky leans in, whispering to him. "This looks like a bad idea. This is coming from the god of bad ideas."
He doesn't turn around.
"I know that you just want to help. Trust me, I do too. Unless helping can get someone else killed, and right now it can."
"I'm on her side." Lou takes a few steps back. "We should probably let the criminal handle this."
"Excuse me?" Sky says as Silver turns around, giving them a frustrated glare.
Razz nods. "I mean, she is magical and all that stuff. She's probably better at kicking ass."
"Guys. . ." Wyn looks at them warily. "Don't push him-"
"No, I agree." Obsidian steps in, smirking. "It's doubtful that you could ever lay a scratch on me."
Silver groans as he lifts up his wings. He flies up and shoots toward the Unicorn. Right before he reaches him, Silver is covered in the aura and gets thrown to the ground. I run up to him, Wyn right behind me. Silver sits up and rubs his head. "I'm fine, just a few bruises."
"But I will not hesitate to finish you off."
I turn around to see Obsidian approaching us slowly, his ice eyes gleaming. I stand in front of the brothers. I don't know what I'm doing, or if I'll live past the next few seconds, but I'm not going to stand by and watch their asses get kicked.
"L-listen up, bastard." I let out a deep growl, which usually drives off Daisy, but doesn't seem to shake Obsidian. "I honestly have no idea what's going on, but I know that you have no right to hurt anyone. So I'll give you some advice; stay away from my friends!"
When I'm done talking, my horns light up. All of my anger, and fear, is pointed at Obsidian. A beam of green light shoots out of my horns and hits Obsidian straight in the forehead. It pushes him against the wall. He screams, and then collapses.
. . . Holy shit.
Before we have time to process what is going on, laughter comes from the hallway. A hooded pony comes through.
"Well. . . I didn't expect that."
The pony pushes past Lou and stands over the fallen pony. She pulls down her hood to reveal a Unicorn with a lavender coat and light orange mane. She has an necklace just like Sky's earring. Her horn lights with a yellow glow and a ball of light comes out. It floats in the air for a moment before entering Obsidian's chest.
We don't speak for a few moments before Razz breaks the silence.
"Alright, I got a question." Razz walks towards the mystery Unicorn. "Actually, I got a few. Who are you, what just happened, and are we going to get arrested?"
The Unicorn laughs, shaking her head. "You're confused. That's natural." She speaks with a calm tone. "You see-"
"Okay, HOLD UP!" Lou steps forward and points at me. "Are. . . Are we just going to ignore that Hurricane used magic? And you- You!" She spins around and glares at Silver, who's starting to push himself off the ground. "You complete idiot. You could've been hurt, or killed, or worse!" She hops over him and stares at the Unicorn. "I don't know who the hell you think you are, coming in, doing magic-"
"To be fair," the pony answers, "it is my job." She holds an indifferent expression, as if she's simply discussing the weather. "My name is Lilac Dawn. However, my formal name is-"
"General," Sky gasps before bowing. Razz does the same after a moment's hesitation, and the rest of us follow suit with confused looks. I don't know her, but she sounds important. And dangerous.
Lilac's grin falls from her face. "Oh please, don't do that. I may be in charge, but I'm no more important than any of you. Honestly, you're much more important than me."
"Why's that?" Lou asks, standing up.
Lilac sighs softly. "What I'm about to tell you is a bit. . . Well, life changing."
"Yeah, this entire day has been a bit life changing. We can handle it," I mumble. I suddenly realize that nothing will be the same after today.
The general starts speaking in a hushed voice. "I'm sure that a few of you have heard of the Elements of Harmony."
We all nod. The Elements are hardly ever discussed; all we've been told is that they're old artifacts with dangerous powers. To mention them is practically a taboo. The people around you will start to look uneasy and find excuses to leave the conversation.
"Sixty years ago, the first Bearers we've had in a thousand years disappeared at the end of the war. No one has seen them since, but historians speculate that they last went to the Tree of Harmony. It is said that the Elements will choose new Bearers, and that will start the final war against the Skades. And, with all that I've seen today," she looks back at the orb, "it seems like they chose you all."
We don't say anything, too wrapped up in our own shock.
". . . How do you know?" Lou whispers.
"This orb is no simple glass ball," Lilac answers. "It was created by a sorcerer to honor an ancient god. The Orb of Ciro hasn't been active in ages, but it spoke when you six entered the room. Obviously, you all hold some divine power within you."
"I still don't like the fact that you were watching us the entire time." Silver glares at Lilac, who just shrugs.
"Not the entire time. I only caught up when you were trying to open the door. You see, I've been tracking Obsidian for awhile now. The Skades got him while out on a mission, and iced him over."
"He doesn't look that cold to me-"
"No, not like that. That's the term we use when Skades have taken control over someone's mind. I released the spell that was on him, so he should be waking up any moment."
As if on cue, Obsidian groans. He sits up, rubbing his head. I feel a pang of guilt when I realize that he probably didn't mean to do anything to us. He examines the room, his eyes widening when they land upon Lilac.
"G-General!" Obsidian stands up, his knees wobbling. "I- what- where are we? Who are they!" He points at us.
Lilac sighs before wrapping her arms around him. I see Sky's eyes widen as Lilac starts speaking. "Obsidian, you were captured on a search and rescue mission. You've been iced-over for nearly six months." She pulls away before continuing. "Your squad. . . your squad's bodies were found in a nearby river. I'm so sorry."
His eyes glaze over. I see his lip tremble before he nods before turning to us. "And them?"
"Well, meet the new Bearers!"
Obsidian gasps and practically falls over himself to get to us. "Oh my goodness- I had no idea- it's such an honor- w-what did I do to you while I was. . ." Obsidian stammers his way through his words, and out of the corner of my eye I see Sky smile sympathetically.
Wyn steps forward. "We're just as confused as you are. Today has been pretty strange for all of us, but you didn't hurt anybody." Silver winces and hides his bruised leg before his brother continues. "This has been great and all, but where do we go from here?" He turns to Lilac, who sighs.
"You see, while you're all Bearers, none of you actually have the Elements. In order to find them, we need to travel to the Tree. For all we know, that could take months, and will probably be very dangerous."
We let her words sink in. Then the room breaks out into chaos.
"No way am I running away for a dumb tree-"
"Dangerous? Like, dying dangerous?"
"But I'm just a spy, not a solider-"
"I'm not smart, but I'm not this idiotic-"
"I'm pretty sure becoming a fugitive would get me grounded-"
Lilac sighs again as she watches us all protest, while Obsidian looks completely overwhelmed. Only Wyn stays silent, thinking to himself.
As we all become silent again, too out of breath to argue, Wyn looks back at us. "I know this all sounds scary, but. . . think of who we could help." His eyes are pleading us not to talk back, and none of us do.
Lilac jumps in. "He's right. This is what'll save everyone. You'll be more than heroes. . . You'll be legends."
We sit there, thinking to ourselves. Then Sky speaks up. "I'll go." She walks up to Wyn and smiles. "Saving the day and kicking ass? Sounds great t-to me." She tries to paint herself as confident, though I hear the tremble in her voice.
Silver walks up beside her. "Same here. Can't let my little brother go without me, can I?" He grabs Wyn and ruffles his mane, Wyn struggling and failing to get away.
Razz looks down and groans. "Well, if I say no I'm going to regret it forever." She glares at Lilac. "But if I die, I'm going to kill you."
The Unicorn smiles. "Fair enough." Then she turns to Lou and I. "What about you two?"
Lou's wings twitch nervously. "Can. . . Can I think about it overnight? Do we have to leave now?"
Lilac shakes her head. "We'll leave tomorrow, and meet at the hill that leads to the forest. And what about you, Hurricane?"
My stomach twists as I silently come up with a list of reasons for and against all this.
Pros: Save the world, get out of town, and possibly make great friends.
Cons: Die trying, and these people might drive me crazy.
"I'll think about it, too. If that's alright."
Lilac nods. "Whatever you need. Everyone get a good night's rest, because tomorrow we change the world."
An ancient enemy has awoken.
Equestria is dead.
From its ashes, the three countries of Gielia, Cearney, and Icilda have risen.
Ponies live in Gielia, dragons rule Cearney, and Icilda is home to griffins.
There are no Elements of Harmony, no princesses, and no magic. Unicorns are now kept under anti-magic restraints, and fewer ponies are receiving cutie marks. Relations with other races have been kept in order.
Uprisings have been springing up everywhere. Unrest has been spreading.
A storm is coming, riding in on the north winds. And few know when it will arrive.
