The rain falls.
Houses lean over the cobbled streets, hunching their stony backs against the onslaught. Beneath their dripping eaves, the steady sound of hooves marching in lockstep sounds.
Hundreds of bodies, grey, black, and silver, walk in a mournful silence. Yellow and red eyes are downcast. Leathery wings are bunched over shivering backs.
Though the rain obscures in, they are crying.
A tortured wail pierces the air. Several ponies gather around a young colt, who has fallen across one of the several coffins arranged in the town square. They nuzzle his shoulders sympathetically as he sobs into his hooves. Rain streams down his mane.
One by one, the ponies pass by the coffins, offering short words, condolences, or gentle pats on the back. They all avoid the colt.
Even after the last of the ponies leave, the colt remains. He strokes the letters carved into the coffin, and another sob escapes his throat.
"I'll kill her."
His voice is hoarse. His eyes are bloodshot.
"I'll kill her. I'll kill her."
His eyes turn upward, against the rain, and stare into the darkness. A castle looms over the town, bent, broken towers and steely gates. A light flares up in the topmost tower. Against it, a figure can be seen, dark and imposing, horn glinting, wings outstretched.
"I'll kill her. I'll kill her. I'll kill her!"
His voice rises. It seems that the figure in the tower turns towards him. He does not look away, though his body trembles and he wants nothing more than to run and hide.
"Do you hear me? You monster, you beast, you bitch?! I'll kill you! If it takes me a thousand years, I will kill you!"
In their homes, the others shiver. They can hear the colt's voice through the walls as he screams against the storm and the figure in the tower. They hope for his sake that she cannot hear him. They have suffered enough grief. They do not want another death.
The colt continues to scream until he has lost his voice entirely. The figure in the tower has long since disappeared, and yet still he stares, rain stinging his eyes.
Hooves against the rocky streets. Another pony approaches him.
"If you like, you can avenge him."
The colt turns to look at his visitor. Red eyes, a smile. He can only dimly recognize these features. He gives a hoarse croak.
"We have the means. We have the power. We just need the right moment. You can help us. You can be there, when it happens. If you like, you can deliver the final blow. I will leave it to you."
"Why..?" the colt manages. His throat is torn from screaming. His voice is small.
"You have a fire in you. I can see it. You have more strength then I had at your age. We can use that strength. We can hone it. We can turn it into a weapon with which you can gain your revenge. If you like."
"A... fire..."
Images in his head. Memories. A stallion, larger than life, with a gentle smile and a warm laugh. He spoke, and the darkness was banished. There was a thing in the sky called the Sun, and it brought light even larger and warmer than the fireplace by which they sat. There were times when the rain turned to soft ice, and drifted down to melt on your nose. There were fields of grass, green and lush, like nothing he had known before.
The stories remain. The voice is gone. It has been taken. She has taken it.
"I can see it growing. Brighter than the moon. It is truly a thing of beauty. The things that you can do with that fire... I can only imagine. Will you do it? Will you risk it?"
More images. The figure in the tower. The laughter. The blood. Waking up that morning, and he was gone. He hadn't returned. Leaving the house, looking up and down the streets. Panic, panic, panic. Being pushed back inside ("Don't come out, don't come out, stay inside where it's safe, stay inside stay inside stay inside"). Crying. Fear. Where was he? He should be home by now. Night falling again. Screaming. "Anything, anything! Leave him alone! I'll do anything!" A flash of light. Crying, crying, crying. Opening the door. She was standing there. The stars were in her mane, the light of the moon shone throughout her. And he was dead he was dead he was dead he was dead and she was laughing laughing laughing and-
"I will risk it."
His voice is weak. He feels nothing. There is only that image in the forefront of his mind.
"Anything, anything!"
"I will risk it."
He is stronger now.
"Leave him alone!"
"I will risk it."
He raises his eyes from the ground. He looks into the red eyes, and sees surprise there.
"I'll do anything!"
"I will risk it."
He is powerful. He can feel the flame leaping around his heart. Rage erupts within him.
"I will risk everything. I will... I will... I will do anything."
The smile widens.
"You are a brave little boy. I respect that. Follow me."
The colt follows, and does not look back.
I will risk it.
The thought echoes in his mind. It is his strength. Now that it has been said, he will not turn back on it. He will go through with it. It is the only thing he has left.
She laughed, and a part of him died with that flash of light. He could think of nothing more to live for. Until now. Until this moment. Something new fills the emptiness. It is desire. Desire for revenge. He will take his revenge, one way or another. Consequences be damned. There is nothing left for him, except for this. This is all.
The rain is slackening off, and soon the only sound is that of two sets of hooves against the cobbled streets. The houses remain hunched over, windows dark and sightless. There is no one to watch the progression of the colt as he sets off.
I will risk it.
It will be many years before he sets hoof in this town square again.
Author's Note
So. There's that. Hope ya enjoyed the prologue~ I'm hoping this is a good story~ Feedback is much appreciated!
Chapter 1: The Queen's Request
The moon shines brightly, illuminating the the town square as the ponies of the Lunar Realm bustle about their business. They sit behind stalls and attempt to sell their wares to passersby, or dance around each other, trying to avoid collisions. It is a scene which could be observed in any place where a large number of ponies tend to gather. The chatter and gossip is of the same thread (who's sleeping with who, who has a birthday, some minor scandal or another), the giggling of children is just as sweet.
I wonder what this would look like in the daylight..?
A stallion sits at a table at a tidy little cafe, resting his head on his hoof as he observes the traffic outside the window with yellow eyes. He has a dark coat, some sort of blueish grey color, his mane is a rich black. A pair of leathery bat wings adorn his back, and his ears have tufts of fur at the top.
As the stallion watches the shoppers going about their business, he conjures up memories of the stories he was told by his elder brother.
The sun is supposed to be yellow.
He attempts to imagine a yellow light filling the town square, but can't quite seem to make the image in his head right. He hasn't ever had the chance to experience true sunlight. Nopony from the Lunar Realm has. Most of them consider it to be little more than a myth.
Even when their Queen arrived, claiming to have been banished from the Solar Realm, they still dismissed it. Such things are little more than tales for foals. And anyways, though none of them say it aloud, they all thing that their Queen isn't quite right in the head anyways.
"Gisher!"
The stallion starts, jerking his head around to seek the voice. As he turns, he comes nose to nose with another stallion. This one has a silvery coat, complimented by his dark blue mane. His eyes (the same yellow as Gisher's) glitter.
Gisher plants both forehooves on the stallion's chest and shoves him away.
"Syanka! Don't scare me like that!" he growls, returning to his previous position. Syanka slides into the seat across from him.
"Don't be mad at me..." he whimpers, looking pleadingly at his friend. He reaches a hoof out and gently places it over Gisher's. The scathing look that follows causes him to retract the hoof quickly.
"You're thinking about your brother, aren't you?" he asks.
Gisher nods in reply.
"Would you feel better if I told you that Vari has found a way to get close to the Queen?" his voice lowers considerably. Gisher turns to look at him, his interest piqued.
Syanka slides a flyer across the table, and Gisher scans it quickly.
DESTINY
It proclaims in large letters.
Your destiny awaits you at Her Majesty's castle. There will be openings available in the Royal Guard. Attend the Royal Banquet this weekend and show Her Majesty your worth. Those who excel will be rewarded beyond their wildest dreams! There are no limitations beyond your own courage.
"A group of us are planning on attending. Vari says that he wants you join us."
Gisher's eyes glow.
"I will be there."
***
The two stallions take leave of the cafe, heading down the street and out of the little village. They take their time, not hurrying, chatting idly about this and that. Although they seem at ease, they are both stretching their senses to the limit, ensuring that they are not being followed. Once they are certain that they are alone, they turn off the path and head into the densely wooded hills.
Now there is no sound between them as they creep among the bushes. The harsh calls of night-bound birds fill their ears as they approach the rocky face of a cliff. Syanka stands guard as Gisher pounds a hoof into the rock face. There is a slow grinding, and a pair of red eyes glow from a crack in the cliff.
"Gisher! Syanka! You've returned!"
The stallions hurry inside, and the cliff face closes behind them.
A mare stands in the flickering light of a small torch, her hooves resting on the lever which operates the mechanism that opens the door. She flips her silver mane out of her eyes and drops onto all fours, trotting over from her station to greet the boys.
"Kirkas!" Syanka spreads his wings, expecting a hug, then droops as the mare trots past him.
"Did you get me anything while you were out?" she asks, nuzzling Gisher's cheek.
"I picked up those little pastries that you like," he responds, reaching into his saddle bag and retrieving the cellophane wrapped treats. Kirkas grabs the package from him and tears into it.
"Vari is waiting for you in the mess hall." she says, shoving a pastry into her mouth. Gisher thanks her, and heads off further into the cave. Syanka follows him, snickering.
"What are you laughing for?" Gisher snaps, turning towards his companion.
"Kirkas is awfully attractive, don't you think?" Syanka chuckles. Gisher turns back around.
"Not really. Did you see the way she was eating? You'd think they were starving her down here." he mutters. With his back turned, he can't see the giddy grin spreading across Syanka's face.
"Right! I couldn't agree more!"
***
They enter the main cavern, a huge space beneath the foothills of the mountains. Moon ponies of every description wave to them as they pass through. Despite the noise and chaos, there really are relatively few ponies here, a fact which worries Gisher to no end. They are supposed to be the rebel force opposing the Queen's tyrannical rule, but with just under two hundred members, they were hardly enough to match her powers.
The mess hall was just directly across from the tunnel from which they had entered, and they hurry in, joining the group which has gathered in the center. Gisher pushes through the crowd, leaving Syanka behind. As he reaches the innermost edge of the ring, he beholds the stallion who had called him in the first place.
Vari is a large stallion, black from nose tip to tail. A streak of silver dashes through his mane. His eyes are hot red coals, and they can stoke the fire in anypony's soul. His smile is small, but it gives him an air of general knowledge, as though he has some small secret stashed away on all that he looks upon (which is most likely true). He turns that smile upon Gisher, now, and gestures for him to enter the circle.
"Here," he says, voice booming, "is our hope. As you all should know, Gisher has been training diligently for his chance to bring down the so called 'Queen.' Now he will get his chance."
Everypony whistles and stamps their hooves. They had each seen the young stallion hard at work, and many of them admire him for it.
"As you know, each of you who has gathered here will be entering the Queen's contest." Vari continues, "The hope is that several of us will be able to enter the Royal Guard, and from their go about weakening the Queen. If we succeed, we can oust her from the throne and return the Lunar Realm back into the rightful hooves of it's citizens!"
More hoof stamping.
"Perhaps you should say something?" Vari suggests. Gisher feels his face growing hot as everypony turns to look at him.
"I... umn..." he stammers, "Well... many of you know why I'm here. You knew my brother as well, I believe." There are many sympathetic nods from the crowd, "You know that I intend to destroy the Queen with my own hooves, but... well, that doesn't mean that I'd want to do it alone. If we can succeed in weakening the Queen, it will be our victory. And when she falls at last, that too will be our victory, no matter who lands the final blow. So I encourage all of you to fight with all of your will power!"
He lowers his head, blushing, as the crowd cheers. Vari nods his approval.
When the crowd has dispersed, Vari leads Gisher to his office.
"Are you afraid?" he asks as soon as the door is closed.
"A bit," admits Gisher, scuffing a hoof against the ground.
"Good. It would be foolish if you weren't." Vari sits down at his desk, and gestures for Gisher to take a seat as well. The stallion does so gratefully. His legs have begun to tremble.
"Now then. We have a pony on the inside who has gained a bit of information on how the testing to become a Royal Guard will work. There will be the usual: tests of strength and agility, reflexes, the like. These are the things that will be done publicly, during the banquet. However, there has been rumor that there is another test, which is performed in secret by the Queen herself on those who she deems worthy of being her personal guard. We don't have much of an idea of what it is, because those who fail it aren't seen again."
He locks eyes with Gisher.
"That being said, are you still willing to go forward with this? You aren't the only one with a quest for revenge. There are others who would gladly do this task for you."
"I will risk it."
Gisher gazes steadily back into Vari's eyes. Those four words have been his driving force since that rainy day so many years ago. Now, at long last, everything is in place for him to act upon those words.
Vari smiles.
"I thought you might say that," he says, "However, that isn't the only matter that I called you here to discuss. Seeing as you are from the town around the castle, I need you to act with extra caution when talking to other ponies. Some of them will no doubt recognize you, despite the years you have been away. You must have a plan for dealing with this in the forefront of your mind at all times. Not all of them will be trustworthy, no matter how well you once knew them. The Queen will no doubt be on her guard. Be careful of what you say, and who you say it to."
"Of course," replies Gisher. Vari nods in approval. He has known Gisher since long before the boy himself remembers. He is certain that he will not be disappointed.
"Alright. That is all. Why don't you go find Syanka and make sure that he is being kept out of trouble?"
Gisher smirks, and then leaves the office, still trembling, although he is not sure whether it is fear or excitement.
I hope I can go through with this... he thinks. Despite his brave exterior, he is terrified. However, the resolve that he made as a colt still burns within him, and he forces his quaking limbs to still themselves.
I don't have a choice, now. I must go through with it. I can't turn back.
He continues walking, his resolve hardened once more.
