The Fall Of Innocence

  The Smoldering Inn

"...Alas. Wars are as sure and bitter as winter in this world...."

          - Equinna, Fall of Old Shera

The trio advanced from their previous location, all the while Atla was explaining everything.

"I came downstairs and searched around. Everypony had left of their own accord. I looked through multiple cabinets, and found nothing. Then I searched the drawer behind the counter, and found a letter addressed to the innkeeper." Atla told his sisters as they ran through the dark streets. "I read it's contents and found out why that colt had attacked us." Soular, they had left on one of the beds for somepony else to find. "The most magnificent and respected innkeeper had been told to alert the guards should a Unicorn arrive." Celestia caught on almost immediately. However, Luna needed more of an explaination than the one she'd received.

"If she were to go  to a guard because of Unicorns, why did we get attacked?"

"I was getting to that, dear sister. In the horrid lighting, the innkeeper had mistook us for Unicorns." They galloped around a corner, alarming a guard who was drifting off to sleep. "Another thing I found was a mysterious signature, "At the bottom were the words, 'Protection of Bliss'."

"Protection of Bliss?" Luna said curiously under her breath, then aloud, "What do you think it means?"

Atla's panting words shone with determination. "That is what we are going to find out, Luna."

Three Alicorns sped down an alley, kicking up dirt everywhere. They were headed to an inn. Little did they know what awaited them, and what events would unfold after.

As they rounded a corner and entered a small, square courtyard, a large wooden building came into view. It was very cleanly put together, the iron door enlaid with silver. Surrounding it was an iron fence, about eight feet high. An expertly laid cobblestone path led to the wrought iron gate.

The trio of Alicorns slowed to a halt, watching the cozy inn from the alley. There were five windows in the front, three small ones on the bottom, two long windows on the top. Light shone from behind curtains in the windows, showing that it was still active. The Alicorns slowly canter up to the open gate. As Celestia's hoof landed on the first step up to the door, a low dull THUD issued from the stairs. She froze. This place was simple and practical. All but the heavy iron door, inlaid with silver markings. The other two reached the steps and eagerly moved up them. Celestia hesitated, then walked up to the others.

Celestia sensed something terrible wrong as Luna's energy field held the door handle and started to turn the knob. Just as Luna had started to pull the door open, a loud screeching noise sounded from inside the inn. Everything seemed to slow down. Celestia looked at the iron door to see it start to glow in the middle. She dove forward and tackled Luna out of the way of the door, just as it grew red hot and shattered outwards. Angry red shards slamming into the wood and flying everywhere.

Atla hadn't time to move, so he had performed a Protection Spell. The shards had skimmed the surface of his shield. As Celestia picked herself up, Atla let his shield break, and moved next to where the door had been.

Smoke was covering the doorway, so none could see in or out. Luna got up and joined her brother's side while Celestia scanned through the smoke. She picked up more than one life signatures.

"There is a lot of them in there!" Celestia released her spell. "I can guess about seven to ten!"

"Good!" Atla looked at his sister, an interesting light in his eyes. "We could use some practice!"

"I would be more careful, brother." Luna warned. "That was a very powerful Incineration Spell!"

"And we are very powerful Alicorns!" Atla charged some Paralization Hexes, and dove in.

He burst through the smoke as three curses whizzed past and out the door. He loosed a hex in the direction where he thought the curses originated from. Then he dived left, and Levitated a table to him, to serve as cover. Just then, Celestia flung herself through the door and was met by several curses. She sent a ball of Frost forward to her left, and jumped to her brother. A few curses made contact with the over-turned table, making an audible CRUNCH.

Atla formed a Cleansing Spell as Luna stumbled through the doorway. She looked wildly about for her family as a bright blue Curse caught her side. The impact made her gasp loudly, knocking the breath out of her. She swung around to face her assailant. She couldn't see anything through the thick cloud of smoke, so she turned and found her brother blasting a spell up at the ceiling. A blue haze spread throughout the room, making swift work of the smoke. Luna rushed over and fell behind the table.

The spell worked, and they could now have a proper fight with these attackers. Atla poked his head up and aimed a hex at a jet black Unicorn. Just as he shot his hex, Luna lifted herself and threw a spell of Blindsight at a bright red Unicorn hiding behind the bar. She ducked back behind the table. A loud scream about somepony's eyes told Luna she had hit well.

Dark green, and very angry, a large Unicorn charged from his cover, yelling loudly. Celestia rose up quickly and hit him full in the face with a blast of fire. The fire had no affect as he continued his reckless charge. The green Unicorn leaped over the table and turned to face the trio. Atla rushed forward and engaged him in horn to horn combat as Luna shot another Unicorn in the face with a Bolt of Lightning.

Atla swung his long horn down at the large Unicorn's neck, intending to break his spine. The green Unicorn expertly parried his attack, and drove his shoulder into Atla. He was thrown back, and fell. He landed hard on the ground, and was attacked by the green Unicorn again. The large Unicorn thrust his horn forward directly at Atla's throat. Atla rolled out of the way as it was driven into the wooden floorboards. Atla got to his hooves, and realized that the other was stuck. He lowered his horn and charged this Unicorn. The large green Unicorn blasted apart the floor in a desperate attempt to get free. His horn was pulled loose as Atla's slid in between his ribs. He gave a cry of pain and toppled to the ground, Atla's horn still in his ribs, pulling Atla to the ground. Blood spurted in the gap between Atla's horn and his flesh, splattering Atla's silvery coat with crimson. The green Unicorn thrashed around on the ground as Atla ripped his blood-covered horn free. Atla sighed at the sight, and ran to his sisters who had just taken out the last Unicorn. The green Unicorn gasped heavily, his lungs punctured. He died, blood soaking his orange mane and pooling around him.

Celestia and Luna both inhaled sharply at Atla's blood spattered mane and coat. "It's not mine." He reassured them. Their eyes lingered over the large limp body of the green Unicorn, understanding filling their eyes.

"Ah! Well that was a most spectacular party, was it not?" Atla exclaimed in a jolly voice. "I do hope you left some alive!" His mind roved to his deceased opponent.

Luna's face was worried. "We intended to, but they all commited suicide." Celestia nodded in agreement, then added. "We aren't very good at Paralization Hexes, as you are. WE weren't hoof-picked for the Royal Guard."

"That is a shame." Atla said more to himself than to the others. "Well, we have to hope our dear innkeeper is still here, and well! Come, let us find her!" The others consented and they searched the dead bodies with much regret. They didn't find out much from the crumpled corpses, except that all were Unicorns.

Celestia walked past one of the many shattered tables and chairs, searching through bodies. She looked at one female Unicorn, who couldn't have been older than her sister. (At least when compared with lifespans, not direct years of age.) Atla moved over to the bar, looking for some leads as to why they were attacked, again. He looked throught the many cabinets and drawers expectantly, but in vain. There was nothing. Nothing at all. So he CLIP-CLOPPED to the foot of the staircase that most likely led to the rooms.

"I haven't found anything!" He called to his sisters, still searching. "And by the way of the mass silence, I assume you haven't either. Let's go up and have a word with our innkeeper!" He motioned to his sisters, and they started up the staircase.

"I don't know anything, I swear! I was only to follow those instructions should a Unicorn appear! It is obvious now that we were all deceived." A dandelion yellow Earth pony told her interrogators. The three Alicorns had found her upstairs in a rented room, completely oblivious to the shootout below her. They had purposefully opened her door and walked inside, Celestia binding the surprised Sun Blossom. The Alicorns figured that was because of a Softening Spell. "All I was told was--"

"We know what you were told." A dark blue Alicorn had cut her off. "Atla here, found your letter in a drawer." She indicated a silvery coated Alicorn, his eyes green, by the door. "What we want to know is WHO gave you the letter."

Sun racked her brain, thinking back to a few weeks ago. Who was it? Who was it? She couldn't think of it now. Sun tries again. Searching through her memories, she finds a vivid image of a crimson coated guard handing her a letter. Said it was from "high up".

Sun turned to the blue Alicorn's impatient eyes. "A guard gave me the letter!"

A pearly white Alicorn responded. "We're going to need more than that to go off of."

Sun inwardly cursed her rushed reply. "He was crimson-coated! And--he had wings."

An inner knowledge shone through the blue Alicorn's eyes. It obviously had some significance, for the white Alicorn muttered "Flame Shard" under her breath.

Sun didn't understand. "Flame Shard?"

The silvery Alicorn walked over. "Don't you worry too much about that. We have business elsewhere now, sisters." The other two nodded solemnly. "I didn't catch your name, miss--?"

"Sun Blossom. My name is Sun Blossom." Why did he want my name?

"Alright, Sun Blossom. My name is Atla, here is Luna," He looked at the blue Alicorn. He then pointed at the white-coated Alicorn. "She is Celestia. We came here for answers. And we received a few. Thank you for your time, Sun Blossom." He turned to leave.

"Wait!" Sun didn't know what she was doing, but she didn't want to be left here alone. "Let me come with you. I want to find out why I was involved in all of this, and who did it." Also another reason.

Atla turned abruptly, smiling. "Then you'd better come with us, yes?" He held out his hoof as Celestia removed her bindings.

As the group walked out into the street, (Sun Blossom was alarmed by the bodies, which then took a few minutes to explain) the sun just starting it's slow but inevitable ascension, Luna said, "We came because of questions. We are leaving because of questions. The world has an interesting sense of humor..."

"That it does." Celestia responded. "That it does, dear sister."

They raced through the narrow cobbled streets, on their way to the great white building. They needed to have a word with Flet Flight about Flame Shard. But, as they sped past three old mares in a deep discussion on what color wool should be dyed and how, they heard many shouts. The group stopped and redirected themselves towards the shouting, curiosity present on their minds. Luna also noticed how the sun was blotted out by clouds so suddenly, and how the sky seemed to grow unusually orange.

Celestia was the first to round the corner into the square and see what was the cause of the shouts. A large group of guards were in the process of fighting off a large Dreconi. The Dreconi was seven feet tall, his horn gnarled and twisted. He swooped low and impaled a cobalt-coated Pegasus on his horn, while a guard rushed forward and swung a long heavy broadsword in his mouth at the Dreconi's armor-plated leg. It created a loud CLANG, and the Earth pony guard dropped his sword in the recoil of his swing. The Dreconi braced his right front-leg on the impaled Pegasus, and ripped him off of his horn.

Celestia stood, terrified as the rest of her group followed her. They all stopped, mouth's agape, at the horror of it. A Dreconi? In Sholdan? Just then another shout reverberated throughout the entire block. "THE CITY IS UNDER ATTACK!!! TO ARMS! TO ARMS!!!"