A Crack in the Glass

Chapter Nine: Into the Abyss Beyond

The numerous pairs of eyes standing at the side of the street watched hesitantly at the center of the grassy field. It was strange, to most of the ponies in the group, that something such as a couple of complete strangers, two beings vastly different from them, would find it in themselves to be so nonchalant of their sudden arrival, disregarding that one of them couldn’t care less what impression he was giving off at any certain point. The couple’s laughter seemed as if it were too early for it to come out given the amount of time they had been in Ponyville, or Equestria for the matter. The group of ponies mumbled amongst themselves at the sight of Varkrai and Noitorum playing with each other, both of them running around and flapping their wings wildly in a frenzy. Granted, the ponies were somewhat relieved to see that “The Crow”, as Varkrai had come to be known as around Ponyville, wasn’t always an utter brute, and Noitorum, who still had a moniker pending, though “The Siren” had come up quite a few times, wasn’t always screaming her head off.

Nevertheless, all of Ponyville was happy to see the sun again. After the entire sky being covered in clouds the day before, it was refreshing to feel the heat of the sun on their coats against the cold autumn winds. Ponyville was starting to get its lively self once more with the weather clearing up, and even though two strangers walked amongst them, the ponies managed to cope despite their worries. They still had better things to do other than meeting new acquaintances, and while one of the feers wouldn’t like anything better than getting to know every single one of the ponies, the other’s mutual attitude toward the population kept the two species at a distance, for even the pleas of Noitorum’s friendship couldn’t get past her relationship with Varkrai. Even if the ponies wouldn’t have an entirely friendly conversation with Noitorum, the white winged feer still had confidence that she would win them over eventually, and she would make sure that even Varkrai had at least made a couple of friends. But for now, the ponies remained off to the side with their own affairs, keeping a faint eye on the new additions to Equestria.

All but one. As the group of ponies dispersed into their separate paths, one mare remained at the edge of the field, watching shyly as the ponies walked past and away from her. Honey Flower felt the dirt under her hooves shake as her legs suddenly became heavy. She was used to the feeling of being alone, but the still unfamiliar environment of Ponyville kept her uneasy. She slowly made her way over to a shady tree beside the street and sat down against it, looking out at the field as Varkrai and Noitorum continued to chase each other around. The vibrance of the, surprisingly still so, verdant grass and warm hues of the trees had almost been forgotten about in the dim atmosphere of the previous cloudy weather, but with the full shining sun now taking its turn to rain down on Equestria, nature once again was back in schedule. The birds sung and flew around in the late morning air, the wind blew through the leaves at a steady pace, and the pegasi ponies were finally given a rest now that the weather seemed to be acting normal and in their control once again.

Honey Flower smiled at Varkrai as he glanced at her for a second. The travel from Canterlot to Ponyville, as she was sure of it now, was one of Honey Flower’s best decisions she had ever made. She didn’t have the constant, pompous laughter of the unicorns splashing into her ears any longer, and she was finally away from the nightmare of the restaurant she had been working at before. It was amazing to her that she could actually make enough money from her job, as she had been hired very quickly after her departure from Sugar Cube Corner, to buy something worthwhile. She wore her new, warm, dark blue sweater snuggly around her front legs and torso, satisfied to be out of her old uniform and into a piece of clothing that actually protected her from the elements. The sweater may not have been her primary choice, and it still seemed a bit bland to her, but she kept it close along with a faded, tattered red scarf she had bought back in Canterlot. Even if the long strip of cloth reminded her of the disgusting city, it was the only thing that had kept her warm, and she couldn’t draw herself to dispose of it.

Not wanting to interrupt Varkrai and Noitorum, Honey Flower leaned against the tree she sat under and closed her eyes, listening to the peaceful conversations off in the distance and the grass sway and whisper in the wind. She just barely caught a glimpse of someone walking over to the two feers, a unicorn with a scarf wrapped around her neck, but Flower remained where she was and waited.

“Varkrai! Noitorum!” Twilight Sparkle called out over their playing as she drew near them. It was loud enough to get a hold of Varkrai’s attention for Noitorum to quickly dash forward and tackle him to the ground, making a loud thump as they both hit the grass.

“Ha! I win!” Noitorum gloated victoriously with a leg on each side of Varkrai, leaning forward on top of him and grinning in his face. Her triumph was short lived, as Varkrai didn’t hesitate to grab her knees and push them, sliding her legs out from under her and prompting her to fall face first into his newly stitched sweatshirt.

“Yeah, keep telling yourself that,” suggested Varkrai. He looked to Twilight Sparkle as he held Noitorum’s head against his chest, her muffled giggling just barely escaping the cloth as he tickled the bases of her wings. “There something you need?”

Twilight Sparkle made sure to back up as to not get slapped by Noitorum’s flailing pinions. “Uh... Is this a bad time?” she wondered out loud, just barely dodging a giant white feather quivering up and down.

“No no no, of course not,” assured Varkrai, trying his best to keep Noitorum in place. “What is it?”

Worried for Noitorum, who seemed to be on the verge of passing out from laughing too hard, Twilight Sparkle hesitantly spoke, “I was wondering if you or Noitorum could help me with something later on today. It won’t take long.” Twilight pointed a hoof to the now red-faced feer desperately trying to escape, though Noitorum still managed to have a smile on her face. “Is she okay?”

“Yeah. Don’t worry about it,” Varkrai ominously reassured with a blank stare. He eventually left go of Noitorum completely and looked down at her. Glad to just be out of Varkrai’s grasp, Noitorum laid on top of him limp and heavy, panting and trying to catch her breath while still giggling periodically. With her senses back, she quickly lifted up an arm over Varkrai’s head and let gravity smack him for her.

“I still won,” Noitorum muttered, prodding his nose.

Varkrai poked her hand off his face. “Uh huh.” He turned his head back to Twilight Sparkle, the unicorn still waiting for an answer. “What do you need help with?” Varkrai asked.

“I was hoping one of you could let me study your... solance, was it?” Twilight Sparkle requested. “It won’t be long, I’m sure. I just want to know the basics of it. Maybe I could also examine a dimensional gate?”

Hearing an opportunity to spend some time with one of the ponies, Noitorum perked her head up and locked her eyes on Twilight. “That’d be great! I wanna help!” Noitorum blurted out. She tugged at the collar of Varkrai’s sweatshirt as she stood up. “Come on! Let’s go! We can show her your armor! And we can do the thingy with the stuff! Maybe we can study her magic, too! It’ll be fun!”

Varkrai, wary of his sweatshirt ripping again, stood up with Noitorum. “Uh, Noi. You do know the properties of sub-dimensional energy, right?”

“Oh we’ll be fine! Don’t be such a wuss!” Noitorum scoffed. “It’s not like the entire town will be destroyed if we mess up!”

Twilight Sparkle felt her stomach sink. “Wh- what?” she stuttered.

Eager to not be the draw any more attention to himself in the future, Varkrai pried Noitorum’s hands of his sweatshirt and quickly explained, “It’s a hazard to mix two different energy manipulations at once. Sub-dimensional energy, the substance that makes up everything, is given unique sort of ‘codes’ to be one thing and one thing only unless manipulated otherwise, hence ‘energy manipulations’, which are possessed by technology or lifeforms. Those codes mix while being processed by manipulations, the results can be catastrophic,” Varkrai gave Noitorum a sharp glare. “and certainly not for recreational purposes. What I’m assuming to be your energy manipulation here is probably what you call ‘magic’. It wouldn’t seem to be anything else. It’d be wise to keep our energy manipulations away from each other.”

“Oh come on!” Noitorum pleaded. “I wanna see their magic!”

“And I don’t want to see us being vaporized,” Varkrai rebuked.

“On second thought... maybe I can just ask you questions about it rather than test on it,” Twilight Sparkle suggested.

Varkrai crossed his arms at Noitorum. “That’s probably for the best.” He nodded at Twilight. “It’s a lot safer than running the risk of annihilating the entire town because your magic nudged our solance.”

Her wrists bent upwards and her arms straight down, Noitorum pouted, “But we’re not that clumsy! I just wanna see-!”

Twisting a finger in the air, Varkrai formed a ribbon of solance around Noitorum’s head and tied it against her mouth. “Where are we going to do this?” Varkrai asked Twilight, ignoring Noitorum as she tugged at the band around her head.

Twilight kept a careful eye on Noitorum again as the feer careened off into field trying to untie the ribbon. “We’d likely just go back to the library and set up there. I’ve got plenty of quills and paper to record data on.”

“Sounds great,” said Varkrai. “We’re doing this now?”

“Yes. Is there something you need to do beforehand?”

Varkrai gave a quick glance at the nearest street by the field. Honey Flower still remained under the tree she had sat next to, though she was caught up in looking over a recipe booklet she had stored in her pocket. Varkrai quickly looked back at Twilight as she started to turn her head to the tree and said, “No. We can go now. Noitorum!” After no answer, he turned around and shouted again, “Noitorum! Come o- oh. Right.”

Already given up on trying to get the ribbon off her head, Noitorum was sat in the middle of the field bent over her knees with her arms behind her on the grass, her wings drooped over the ground and her forehead resting on a tree stump. Chuckling lightly at the sight, Varkrai snapped his fingers and the ribbon around Noitorum’s head disappeared, a sigh escaping her mouth shortly after.

“Come on, Noi,” Varkrai called out to her, almost in a hurry. “We’re heading out. Get your feathers over here.”

A sense of panic began to flow through Varkrai as he saw a twinge of movement over by the street close to the field. Before Noitorum had enough time to get up, Varkrai had already taken a few steps past Twilight Sparkle, motioning his hand quickly to both Twilight and Noitorum. He felt his heart beat faster with every step he had to place carefully in front of him, trying to angle his way towards Ponyville with his eyesight away from the tree he wanted to disappear. With either footsteps or hoofsteps coming up behind him, Varkrai wasn’t sure whether it was Noitorum, Twilight Sparkle, or the owner of the voice that stopped him in his tracks.

“Varkrai! Wait a second!” a familiar, quiet voice called out from not too far away.

Instinctively, Varkrai felt his wings spread out, but he suddenly stopped himself and let his jaw relax. He knew exactly who had been watching him at the edge of the field, who had been waiting to talk with him, and who he didn’t want to catch up with again. It was still in his interest to keep from getting too friendly with ponies that he didn’t need to be acquainted with, and despite having had the idea that the situation he was in would happen when he took Honey Flower with him to Ponyville, he wanted to keep that goal intact for as long as he could. However, stopped in place in the presence of a mare that he hoped wouldn’t have come across him again, the only thing he could do was sigh and turn around. Sure enough, Honey Flower stood directly behind, staring up at him with bright eyes and a smile across her face. With Noitorum and Twilight Sparkle standing beside each other watching him, Varkrai kept his feet where they were, and he painfully motioned his head to Ponyville.

“Why don’t you two just go on ahead?” Varkrai exhaled, trying his best to hide the fact he wanted nothing more than to fly as high as he could and never come back down. “I... need to take care of something.”

Staring directly into Varkrai’s emotions, Noitorum let a grin of pure satisfaction crawl onto her face. “Don’t mind if we do,” Noitorum agreed. “Let’s go, Twilight Sparkle. I wanna see what your magic can do.”

The mild back and forth questions of Noitorum and Twilight Sparkle had gone faster than Varkrai anticipated. The silence that the field had fallen into seemed to amplify Honey Flower’s quiet presence, augmenting her general existence to direct every single note of attention towards her. The wind even seemed as if it were drawing into her dim blue eyes that could peer through walls if they needed. Varkrai, for once, found himself feeling uneasy at the unmoving figure of Honey Flower’s haunting gaze. He began to wonder if the overwhelming heat spreading across his body was what others felt when he stared at them, but little else crossed his mind as he figured the best way to end the situation was to talk with her.

“Hi Varkrai!” Honey Flower spoke excitedly. “It’s good to see you again!”

“Uh... hey, Honey Flower,” muttered Varkrai, rubbing the back of his neck with an awkward smile on his face. “Is there something you want to talk to me about?”

The mare seemed a little too happy, continuously smiling and looking up at Varkrai. “Not in particular. I just wanted to say hi!” Honey Flower stood on her hind legs and clapped her front hooves together. “Look! I got a sweater!”

“That’s... great.”

“Yeah!” Honey Flower laughed lightly. “I won’t be having to borrow yours anymore, I suppose.”

Varkrai glanced towards Ponyville. “I thought you were low on funds.”

“I was, but I got a job at the restaurant near the center of town.” The mare stretched her head down to a pocket near her shoulder and brought out a card in her mouth, displaying it to Varkrai. “I get plenty of tipsh, and the job ishn’t that bad either! Here, it’sh a coupon if you ever want to come around and visit.”

“Mhmm.” Varkrai pinched the card out of her mouth and examined it, wiping off the saliva. Two bits off of any sandwich with a free beverage. “Bits?” he asked, stuffing the card in his pocket.

“You know, bits. Equestria’s currency. You live in Equestria, right?”

A sudden memory jumped back into Varkrai’s mind. He remembered back in Canterlot when he had first come across Honey Flower outside of her old work. She had never been outside of Canterlot or ever seen anything out of the cities borders. She knew nothing of other cities and towns, the way Equestria worked, or the dangers that loomed over the seemingly peaceful nation at every second. Her education was limited to a few books about the species of Equus and Equestria’s history she had read back in Canterlot’s libraries, but even then she had a hard time comprehending the words and barely got anything out of them. Having been living on the streets and outskirts of Canterlot for most of her life, Honey Flower had little information of her homeland or the beings within it. Varkrai, to her, was just another citizen of Equestria giving a helping hand to her along the way. It was apparent to Varkrai as to why Honey Flower had never really been afraid or wary of him. She didn’t know he wasn’t from Equestria or even the same world as her; she saw him as a normal, typical citizen, and as a friend.

“I...” Varkrai started. He felt a strange sensation travel through him, almost as if he had come across a long lost friend. “Of... of course I do,” he said at last. His mouth uncontrollably slid into a smile. “Yeah, I’m from Equestria.”

Honey Flower giggled. “Then you better start remembering the currency.” She lightly prodded at Varkrai’s sweatshirt. “Hey, you got it fixed! Sorry about ripping it, by the way. It was nice of you to let me wear it on the way here, though. Thank you.”

Varkrai found himself ceaselessly staring back down at the mare as she did at him. “It wasn’t a problem. It’s just nice to see that you have your own now.”

Quickly after a nod, Honey Flower’s eyes opened wide and her whole body perked up. “Oh! I almost forgot.” She reached into her pocket again, this time pulling out a small green gem attached to a silver chain just big enough to fit around her hoof. “I got this for you. A thank you gift for taking me from Canterlot to here. Take it.”

The jewel slid into Varkrai’s palm. The emerald barely spanned a length of his finger tip, and the green gem had some flaws in it that were hard to see past. The silver chain was tattered and chipped on a few of the links, and the casing around the emerald was faded partially with a few spots of rust.

“It was the only thing I could afford, but I didn’t know when I was going to see you again, so I thought I’d get it at the time,” Honey Flower explained. “I wanted to get you a better one, but this is as best as I could get with the bits I had.”

Gently, Varkrai wrapped the chain around his wrist and secured the silver on itself. He kept the emerald tight between his fingers. “You didn’t have to get me anything, so this is more than I could’ve asked for. Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” said Honey Flower, reflecting the smile on Varkrai’s face.

______________________________________________________________________

“And the pegasus guards have had their spears updated?” questioned Shining Armor.

“Yes, captain,” the royal guard responded. “They have been issued the newer models.”

“What of their armor?”

“In the forgery, soon to be brought back to them.”

“Good. Tell the smiths not to overwork themselves. We still have plenty of time.”

“By your orders.”

Shining Armor stood still as he watched the pegasus royal guard descend from the balcony overlooking the courtyard. The masses of royal guards in the field below crawled and crept with their orderly movements in lines, each of them carrying out their orders from their captain who watched over them so carefully. The elegant buildings surrounding the courtyard guided their paths with separate stations of order set up for their supplies, each guard stopping periodically to gather their equipment after having been parted with it for a day. Their faces doing most of the explaining, the vast majority of the guards, whether pegasus or unicorn, were overjoyed to see the modification done to their armor and weapons. From a few tips given by Varkrai and Noitorum, their armor had been reformed with a new metal and shaped to cover the upper halves of their legs, a clink of metal sounding every time they took a step. The familiar spears they had been issued before barely looked the same anymore. With longer reaches, spearheads shaped to efficiently slash and thrust, and reinforced handles to block oncoming attacks, the newly designed spears had received a generally positive response. Even though their world was under threat, the guards couldn’t help but feel refreshed and excited.

“How are the guards doing?” Princess Celestia asked curiously, walking out next to Shining Armor onto the balcony.

Nodding, Shining Armor said, “They seem to be taking the adjustments well. They could use somepony down there to get them in order, however. I’ve run my eyes across a few guards that have been using their armor as a mirror for the sun’s light to shine it in each other’s eyes. Must be the new recruits walking through.”

A puff of laughter escaped Celestia’s mouth. “As long as they have some enthusiasm for being in the guard. I would hate to have them detest their occupation.” Celestia quickly surveyed the guards’ equipment from the balcony. “I see you’ve incorporated a fair number of Varkrai and Noitorum’s suggestions into their uniforms.”

“The smiths have been working hard, but the output of their work has proved beneficial so far,” Shining Armor elaborated. He lifted a leg up to show the extension to his armor. “It’s a bit hard to get used to, but hopefully Varkrai is right that we’ll need it.”

Celestia admired the metal slates layered over one another. “I’m sure they’ll be of use later on.”

The phrase seemed more foreboding than it should have been. Shining Armor frowned and looked back out at the courtyard. “Varkrai, the one with the black wings, he told me about some of the beings out in the dimensions while he was here.”

“What did he say of them?” asked Celestia.

“Nothing very pleasant,” Shining Armor admitted. “There was a particular type of species he named. Humans, I believe they were called. He went into detail of the weapons they possessed and the mentalities that they had of other dimensions. Varkrai told me of the atrocities they committed against themselves and those who stood in their way. He didn’t paint them happily.”

Scanning the courtyard, Celestia became curious as to why Varkrai and Noitorum suggested so many changes in the royal guards. “Varkrai had nothing to say about them being friendly?”

“He mentioned that a few of them had tried to accompany him and Noitorum on their way, but he never said anything else beyond that.” Shining Armor fell silent for a moment as he thought to himself. He looked to Celestia. “How can we be sure that what we’ll be able to gather for defenses will be enough for what’s coming? What if we can’t hold back whatever comes through? What happens?”

Princess Celestia strayed from the answer in her mind, but whether on purpose she wasn’t sure. It had only been two and a half days since she first even set eyes on Varkrai and the information he brought with him. From handling political affairs and arguments between the cities and towns to processing a dimensional gate, Celestia wasn’t sure where to stand to keep herself stable. Everything seemed to be settling down beside her without question or care of what she had to say. She still had yet to send out a public message of Varkrai’s warnings to Equestria, but she wasn’t sure if the nation would be able to handle such a drastic change of events. Every other threat that had been declared on Equestria was sudden and immediate; there was no time to think or plan, and thus there was only time to act. Now that Celestia knew that something was coming, something that she did not know she alone could keep back, she wasn’t sure of how to carry out preparing for when the moment Equestria faced its enemy.

“That is something I do not know,” Celestia admitted, sinking slightly. “None of this is familiar to me, and I’m sure Luna lacks the knowledge of it as well. Nothing can be certain of what is to happen once another gate is opened to our world. Noitorum has reassured us that we will be capable of making it through, but Varkrai doesn’t seem so enthusiastic as her. Even if he is saying that we have a chance, there is something in his voice that resembles doubt, and maybe even fear.” She managed to forge a smile upon herself. “But we have time to prepare ourselves, and with Varkrai and Noitorum’s help, we can do our best to protect Equestria and our neighboring nations.”

Shining Armor’s ears straightened up. “What about the griffons? Do they know what’s going on?”

“In due time I will warn them, and I’m sure the news about Varkrai and Noitorum will reach them eventually, but for now our importance is making sure our forces are at their peak.”

“Doesn’t that seem a bit selfish? We aren’t certain of when the next gate will be opened.”

Sighing, Celestia subtly nodded. “Yes, it may be, but as Varkrai has said, we have a minimum of a month to reinforce ourselves. He seems rather confident in his estimate. Knowing the the griffons, they are already well equipped for battle, but it’s uncertain how they will take the news.”

“Right.”

Princess Celestia looked toward the sun as it hid behind the mountains, casting a colossal shadow over Canterlot. “Princess Cadence has been handling The Crystal Empire’s guard, has she?”

Shining Armor smiled at the name. “She’s made sure that the crystal guards have had their time to process the situation and get their minds straight. They don’t seem too upset, considering the circumstances. I just hope they can stay that way.”

“We all do,” Celestia agreed. “We’ll need as many of the guards as we can to be at their full potential. Luna, as well, has been making sure her guards can be of service, despite their limited numbers.”

Curious, Shining Armor looked up to the early evening sky. “Princess Luna has already been told of the situation?”

“Yes. We have spoken about Varkrai and Noitorum’s arrival, though Luna seems a bit wary of them. I’ll have to arrange a meeting with the two and Luna at some point. I’m sure Varkrai can explain what is happening better than I can.”

His gaze in the direction of Ponyville, Shining Armor asked, “Have you heard anything from him or Noitorum since they left?”

A sparkle of magic twinkled in the air about Celestia’s horn and a letter floated down in front of her. She unraveled the parchment and examined the news from Twilight Sparkle she had received earlier. “Your sister has been keeping a watch over them from a distance while they’ve been in Ponyville, apparently. Whether it’s for her own sake of studying them or because she wants to keep a safe eye on them, I’m not quite sure, but it’s probably for the best either way.”

A chuckle fell from Shining Armor. “It sounds like her.”

Celestia continued, “This letter just came in today. She had some assistance from Noitorum in learning about solance, the ‘energy manipulation’ Varkrai’s species possesses. She states that’s it’s rather unique, and slightly identical to magic, but not as complex.” The letter disappeared in a cloud and Celestia looked back down at the courtyard. “Other than Twilight Sparkle’s letter, I know nothing of how Varkrai and Noitorum are settling in. It seems that I can’t direct any letters to them through magic.”

“I’m sure Twilight can keep you informed about them,” Shining Armor noted. He went back to watching over the royal guards still retrieving their equipment. “They can’t get into too much trouble, right?”

Celestia began to walk back from the balcony. “I hope so.”

______________________________________________________________________

The Crystal Empire stood strong amidst the blizzard, but the crystal ponies seemed slightly more concerned. They gazed from the warmth and safety of the Empire out at the snow uncontrollably whipping back and forth. Fortunately, they were safe within the magic that protected their city and some of its surroundings, but the crystal ponies couldn’t help but feel in danger. The weather in the arctic had been calm and quiet ever since King Sombra had been vanquished, and even the harshest of the snow storms that crossed paths with the Empire were somewhat calm. The crystal ponies remembered the horrible storms that rained down across the north when Sombra held them captive. They remembered the sky being blocked out by dark clouds and grey snow, the only light coming from the violent flames burning about the streets. Despite Princess Cadence’s comforting words that they were safe for now, the ponies felt it inside themselves that something was wrong.

They knew already of the phenomenon that had taken all of Equestria by surprise, the two strange creatures that came from a world not like theirs. It was by Princess Cadence, their beloved leader, that they learned of the threats that were soon to come, and it was by her words that a subtle terror loomed over the Empire. It was not a panic, and there was no chaos to be seen, but the stillness put against the ferocious weather just outside their home whispered that something wasn’t right. The crystal ponies remained in their homes for the majority of the day. There were barely any gatherings of friends for a walk in the park; there were no fillies or colts out playing in the streets. The Empire slowly learned to fear once again, even if they were reassured that nothing was going to happen for a while. The inhabitants of The Crystal Empire remained at the edge of their kingdom, watching from the warmth of their home out at the wilderness beyond.

The snow sifted wildly with the arctic winds playing in the open, mountainous landscape of Equestria’s northern regions. Blotted out with dull grey clouds and blindingly white snow, the frigid sky of the frozen plains pelted the ground and mountain sides with winds fast enough to move the rocky giants themselves, simultaneously piercing everything in sight with needles of ice and snow without any indication of relent. No animal, aside from an occasional beast of the ice, roamed across the surface of the arctic hills, valleys, and fields. The numerous crevasses and ravines spread randomly throughout the icy surface gave little protection from the glacial gales, and even if they brought shelter to those who sought it, the peculiar inhabitants would prove more of an issue than the wind and snow. The mountain peaks sent clouds of snow and ice into the air of the deathly cold and haunting sky, while the overhangs of the stone titans rained shards of ice and loose boulders to the ground below. Every instant the biting grasp of the withering frost searched for those who dared to walk among the arctic desert, and every second the frozen floor beckoned the company of those who were weak enough to listen. A shadow stalked beneath the ice, and its voice would soon be heard beyond its cage.

A hum began to yell over the whistling of the wind. The ground shook with the intensity of the low grumble spreading throughout the ice, and the mountains seemed to shift and lean in to listen to the origin of the noise. Almost harmonizing with the wind, the hum of some sort of dilapidated machinery grew louder at the lowest point of a valley not far from The Crystal Empire, yet the blizzard managed to keep it secret to any listening ears. Snow shifted along the ground not only in the wind, ice cracked in the mountains, and the sleeping arctic wildlife stirred in their slumber. As the hum, now heightening into a shrill screech, peaked in its intensity, a careful gust of wind ran across the mountain tops, and a lost corrupted relic slid from its rest.

A bright light shot through the snowy air at the bottom of the valley. Like a flash of lightning, it sent a crack of thunder out into the valley, just audible over the harsh winds. The echo lasted for a mere second before the blizzard engulfed it, and the valley was once again silent save for the arctic hurricane, and quite recently, footsteps. The new pairs of eyes in the snow peered out from the goggles fastened to them, only finding snow and the curvature of the land in their sights. The foreign figures in the arctic surveyed their surroundings as they took step by step in the heavy snow built up to their shins, their movement further hindered by the burdening black armor that covered their entire bodies. They kept their fingers close to the trigger on their weapons as they listened in the wind, each of them keeping a close eye and ear for anything that moved in the blizzard. The group of four soldiers halted in their tracks and looked toward each other after a moment of stillness, three of them shrugging.

“Son of a bitch!” one of them yelled through his helmet and mask, raising his arms in discontent. “Why here!?”

“Keep your mouth shut, Hutch,” another scolded him quietly. “We don’t know where we are yet, or if we’re even alone.”

“I think it’s fairly clear that we’re in a dandy-candy winter wonderland!” Hutch shouted. He started to dig in the snow. “Look at this! Snow! I’m sick of being cold! Where’s the lamnirex!? Adrian!”

“I got it, I got it,” Adrian, the slightly more light-armored of them, assured him. “Don’t start having a hissy fit. Besides, we’re not leaving here. You wanted to get out of the fog, so we’re out of the fog.”

“Yeah, I wanted out of the fog, but I didn’t want to go somewhere even colder than where we were!” Hutch argued. His speech turned into nonsensical rambling as he wandered off a few feet from the group, repeatedly throwing his arms in the air and pointing to the snow.

“He’ll be fine,” Adrian said as he turned back to the other two, moving his sniper onto his back. “Aimee, have a look at the temperature.”

The smallest of the soldiers knelt down on one knee and dug at the belt around her waist. She pulled out a small circular thermometer attached to a string and wiped away the snow accumulated on her goggles. “Below freezing, for sure, but this thing’s been broken for a while now. Maybe negative fifteen or something?” She let the compass wind back to the belt. “I can’t tell.”

“Well, I suppose we can be glad that we weren’t ambushed as soon as we came through the gate,” Myers, the only one of the group with a hood over his head, digressed, letting a folded turret in his arms down on the ground. He checked the ammo belts around his waist. “I probably should’ve taken more anyways.”

Sighing, Adrian looked up towards a higher part of the valley. “Just be happy we didn’t need to use them,” he noted. He turned to look at the heavily armored soldier off to the side, Hutch still kicking and batting at the air and snow. “Hutch, knock it off. We’re going to have to get moving before we freeze to death.”

With a shrug, Hutch shook his head as he settled himself. “Where? There’s snow, everywhere.”

“We can find some place to lie down and set up the gate again so the rest can come through,” Myers suggested. “It’s not like this entire dimension can be covered in sno-” He felt a small tap on his calf. Startled, he jumped and stepped away from what had touched him, Myers frantically searching the snow with his eyes.

“What’re you all so worked up about?” Aimee asked, scanning over the area Myers had been standing.

“Something touched me!” Myers quickly blurted. He examined the side of his leg and wiped off the spot where he had felt the poke. As he looked down at his leg, he noticed a small hint of color in the blank canvas of the snow, a dot of red blaring out at him through his darkened goggles.

“What?” Adrian questioned, grabbing ahold of his sniper again. “What is it?”

Myers quickly snapped his pistol into his hands, aiming at the red amidst the ice. He slowly leaned down and took is finger off the trigger, reaching his hand out to move the snow out of the way of the object. He narrowed his eyes at the grey and red, what seemed to be, horn.

“Uh... I don’t know,” Myers stated, picking it up. “It looks like some sort of tooth, or horn, or something sharp.” He handed it to Aimee. “Don’t know what it is.”

Poking at the base of the object, Aimee noted, “Looks like it’s been snapped off of something, judging by the dull end of it.” She looked up at Adrian and Myers. “Should we keep it? I don’t know why this would be out here, considering that there doesn’t seem to be anyone out and about. Maybe it was left behind.”

“Wouldn’t hurt much, I guess,” said Adrian. “Just keep it in your pack. Could possibly be of some use later on. This dimension’s inhabitants could find it intriguing.”

Hutch sulked his way in between Aimee and Adrian, his shoulders drooped. “Can we get out of here now? I’m freezing.” He pointed at the horn as Aimee stuffed it in one of the bags tied to her belt. “What’s that?”

“No idea.” Shivering, Aimee looked towards a shallow path leading up to the top of the valley they stood in. “Want to take that way up? Looks easy enough.”

With a quick glance at the path, Myers nodded and started walking. “Yeah. Let’s try and find some sort of cave or cavern on the way. Any shelter’ll do for now.”

“Sounds just fine to me,” Hutch agreed, getting a grip on his assault rifle. “Anywhere out of this wind is great.”

The team of soldiers headed their way up the valley, sticking close to each other to get some sort of warmth as they walked in the open. Luckily for a shadow in the ice, they were blind in the falling snow around them.