Icarus

Chapters

Oak's Family
Aureus Puerum
Sleeplessness and Foreshadowing
Close Calls and Sibling Talks
Dangers
Anger in Both Worlds
Venus' Determination
Entity #413-A

Oak's Family

"I think we're going to try and start a family again."

At these words, Aspen nearly choked on his afternoon sandwich. After what had happened only two months prior, this was a sudden change from his brother's depressed attitude. Catching his breath, he turned sharply with a look of shock on his face. He sighed, put his food down, and shook his head. "Oak--"

"Aspen, I know what you're thinking, but we can't just give up after...after Ash," said the pony named Oak, a muffled hint of sadness hidden under the last two words.

Aspen, with his yellow mane and pale-brown coat, frowned. He wiped his mouth and hooves and stepped up to Oak. He knew this would come eventually, but this soon? With another sigh, he spoke.

"Oak, I understand that. I wouldn't want to just give up on family, either, but Ash's passing is still fresh, y'know?" Aspen said softheartedly.

"I got that," said Oak, frowning. "But Diamond and I have been parents for sixteen years. The best sixteen years of our lives. Ash was our son. He was special. We felt like the luckiest parents in the world."

"You've gotta give it time, though, Oak. Two months isn't a lot, and having another kid so quickly after could bring up a lot of bad feelings." Aspen explained to his brother, hoping he would get the message.

"But we're ready!"

"Don't take this the wrong way, but what are you expecting? Do you really think you could replace Ash?" Aspen asked disquietly.

"NO ONE can EVER replace Ash!" Oak snapped upsettingly. "He'll always have that huge part of my heart."

Aspen nodded. "Which is why you may be disappointed when the time comes," he advised. "Having a kid will be great, but there's not a chance in Tartarus that they'll live up to Ash's level in your books. It won't ever be the same."

"But this would do us good, both of us. Me and Diamond." Oak said softly.

"Aha! There's a good point to bring up." Aspen said, nodding his head toward his brother. "Diamond."

"What about her?"

"You ever consider how she would feel about all of this?" Aspen inquired seriously.

Oak raised an eyebrow, confused as to where his brother was taking the conversation. "I'm sure she wants to start over just as much as I do," he said cautiously.

Aspen leered. "You're SURE? You don't know for sure?"

"Aspen, where the hell are you going with this?" he sighed annoyingly.

"Think, Oak," said Aspen, tapping the side of his head with a hoof. "What if Diamond is thinking the same as me? You can't just have it one sided. If she doesn't want to, you can't force her," he elucidated clearly.

There was a short pause in the conversation, before Oak looked at his older brother and asked, albeit with a minor drop of maliciousness hidden more or less by dismay, "Why are you discouraging me?"

The burly, yellow maned pegasus flinched. The last thing he wanted to do was discourage his brother on any decisions he wanted to make, and wanted him to think that way even less. "You know I'd never do that to you," he said softly, surprised.

"Then WHY are you telling me all of this?" Oak asked a little louder than intended, causing Aspen to flinch again.

"I'm being REALISTIC, Oak!" Aspen countered quickly.

"No, you're just making me reconsider this, is what you're doing!"

Aspen facehoof'd and sighed. Oak turned and looked into the break-room mirror. His green mane was short, but kept well and his brown coat was always well groomed, no matter what the situation. His emerald eyes were deep and longing. The green maned pony sighed.

"When I found out I was going to be a dad, I was ecstatic. I would have someone to teach, someone to bond with, someone to help me learn what being a father is like. Me and Diamond were both so happy and excited..." Oak explained, and he chuckled. "You should've heard her when she found out she was pregnant. I thought she had fallen in the bathroom and hurt herself. I rush over and get two hooves around my shoulders and her lips to mine. And she told me."

Aspen leaned against the table opposite from his brother, and listened intently.

"And the day Ash was born," continued Oak. "...Celestia, it was the most beautiful and heart warming thing I've ever felt. To see this little bundle of joy, to hold him, to know that I helped create him...I can't explain."

Aspen thought he heard his brother sniffle, but said nothing.

"Raising Ash was a huge blessing on our lives. Even WE learned things about ourselves, about others...all because of him. The day he died...it felt like the whole world crashed around us. Our only son, our only child, taken from us." Oak explained in a quiet voice. "I know...I know it won't be the same... But I want to do that again. Experience that again, learn teach, bond, all over again. I don't want to give up like this."

Aspen took all this into consideration while listening. The day Ash died, Oak was not the brother Aspen knew. He was quiet, on edge, and detached looking. And the two months up until that point that followed were hard to watch. Every day Oak looked more and more depressed. Maybe trying again would work... With a big sigh, Aspend spun his brother around slowly and put his hooves on his shoulders.

"Look, I know it's not my place to try and decide for you what you do. If you want to restart your family, then it's up to you," he reasoned. "All I ask of you, just one thing, is to talk to Diamond, and be honest with her, alright? For me?"

After a moment of silence, Oak nodded slightly. "Alright...I will...Thank you, Aspen."

Aspen opened his mouth to speak, but a gruff voice from the door stopped him.

"Hey, you two, break's over in two minutes. Get your plots back to work."

Written by Kerry Leventis, AKA Minimoog Voyager

Aureus Puerum

At the Seaddle General Hospital, working hours were long and hard. Job openings were constantly available because of staff getting injured, sick, taking maternity leave, or just finding the job too stressful to handle. At some points it seemed like the staff would be permanently short of ponies, but it would always pick back up. There were only a select few who were veterans of the staff and who had never permanently left. These were the ones truly dedicated to their jobs and the most respected. They were called the 'Elder Staff.'

Among the 'Elder Staff' was Diamond Heart. Diamond was a thirty-four year old mare with a snowy white coat and a pale lavender mane that was usually kept up and out of her face, and had a sort of shiny complexion to it. Her large, rose colored eyes would often mesmerize any who would stare into them, and they would have a beautiful twinkle whenever she was happy. Unfortunately, the happy twinkle in her eyes hadn't been seen for a solid two months.

Ever since her son, Ash, had died.

It was the worst time in her life, especially coming home with her husband, Oak, to an empty house (whereas Ash would be home with a few friends), and having to bear it for the next eleven hours until she went to work again. It was taking a toll on her and her husband's marriage, as well. Lingering feelings of blame and anger would arise at random, and the two would argue pointlessly until one left in a huff for a few hours, or went to bed.

A worried Oak, realizing this, proposed that him and Diamond take a trip down to their childhood town for a visit, as a way to get away from the city and all of the bad feelings, and spend some much needed time together. Today was the day they would leave on that trip, and Diamond had been given permission to leave work early by her boss.

Despite all of the stress and emotions, however, Diamond kept herself strong and fought any kind of breakdown, living up to her cutie mark, a diamond heart, representing her strength in any kind of situation.

"Diamond, I'm going to need that ibuprofen."

"Right here." Diamond chirped without looking away from her clipboard, tossing the bottle toward the other nurse, who caught it and stepped back into the room she came from. Diamond had been doing paperwork on an unfortunately failed surgery for the past hour, and it was finally at an end. Just the conclusion.

Crack.

Orrrrr her pencil could break. With an irritated sigh, Diamond yanked open the top drawer on her wooden desk and fished her hoof through it for another pencil. She pulled one out and slid it into the electric sharpener, being sure to press her other hoof on the blasted thing so it wouldn't fall off. Like the last time she tried to use it.

After finally finishing her report, Diamond stapled the papers together and left them on her desk. She gazed up at the clock. 3:24PM. There was another sixteen minutes until Oak would arrive to meet her. Tucking her chair in and grabbing her jacket, she made her way to the door.

Passing the other rooms in the sickly green hall, with its shiny floor and wooden frames, Diamond greeted several colleagues and co-workers with 'Hey's,' 'Hello's,' and 'How are ya's.' She stopped in the lobby; large, wide open, the same sickly green as the halls with the same wooden frames and dozens of black chairs, at the front desk to talk to her friend, Quill for the next few minutes. The usual stuff, how the day was, plans for the weekend, exchanging a few laughs, until it was already 3:38PM. Diamond said her byes and stepped out of the glass doors.

As expected, two minutes later, Oak arrived on the dot.

Diamond smiled her usual cute smile and trotted up to her husband. "Hey," she cooed, giving him a tender kiss on the lips, with him returning it.

"Hey, hunny," said Oak softly, finishing their embrace with a hug and holding her left hoof with his right. He caressed it gently and looked her in her shiny rose eyes with his emerald green ones. "So, are you ready to head over to Ponyville?"

Diamond nodded. "What are we going to bring?"

The burly earth pony with the green mane paused and put his other hoof on his chin. "Hmm... Well, it all depends where we'll be staying. Probably a motel or something," he thought aloud.

"So I don't think we need to worry about food." Diamond added. The two of them began their walk back to their house before leaving.

"No, definitely not." Oak nodded, sounding a little off. All that was running through his head was telling her. Telling her he wanted to have another baby. She would surely agree! No doubt about it!

Oak opened his mouth to bring it up, but suddenly remembered what he promised his brother, Aspen. He would ask Diamond how she felt about it. He decided to wait until they were at home before asking her. For now, the two would just plan their living conditions in Ponyville.

It hadn't gone as well as Oak had hoped it would. Once Diamond and him had packed their stuff into two bags, Oak decided to finally bring it up. It wasn't met well. Diamond had snapped and accused Oak of trying to replace Ash, which hit a nerve and upset him. He snapped back, which only fueled the fire.

As the two of them left their house and walked to the train station, they argued and argued, getting more and more heated every minute, until it seemed like either or both of them would end up screaming. Finally, they stopped and walked along in bitter silence.

Why does she have to be so stubborn? Why can't she see it the way I see it? These, and many other thoughts toward his wife went through Oak's head, and he cast an occasional side glance at her. Whenever they'd catch each others eyes, Diamond would humpf and look away crossly.

It was only around the point where they reached the forest path that Oak started to feel guilty. He hadn't asked, he had just tried to force what he wanted on her selfishly, and he was seriously considering apologizing. But Diamond had never been the kind to just accept like that. It took much more than a 'Sorry.'

Oak and Diamond stepped onto the squashy dirt path that lead to the train station and was met with a cool breeze that massaged their faces, rustled their manes, and sent shivers up their spines. The multi-colored leaves on the trees rustled and crinkled as the wind passed through them. The afternoon sunlight was slowly sinking into the sunset and all around it changed from sky-blue to evening-orange. It was an average fall/autumn evening.

Oak was brainstorming up various ways to try and apologize to Diamond, but most of them seemed unlikely to work. Still, he had to try. He allowed himself a few more minutes to think, before sighing. Here we go.

"Diamond..."

"What?" Diamond answered grumpily.

Oak sighed again and stared ahead, the wind blowing in his mane. "I just... It wasn't right of me t--"

WHOOSH!

A rather heavy and unusually sudden gust of wind blew them back. Diamond almost toppled over, only to be saved by her husband. A strange whistling sound rang out ahead of them, not too far away, followed by an odd golden aura that formed behind a wall of trees. Oak and Diamond stared in curiosity and mild alarm. The golden aura grew curiously until it gave off a visible glow that flooded the area around them with this strange light. The whistling sound grew louder, and was immediately followed by a humming sound so loud it caused the ground to vibrate and made the two ponies witnessing this fall over. They gaped at each other, both with unease in their eyes. The aura grew hugely, and spontaneously shot off bolts of energy, which hit the trees and vaporized whichever part of them instantly. Several of these bolts impacted close to Oak and Diamond, who cried out in alarm and jumped to their hooves.

Just as it seemed like this aura would explode or something similar, it dissipated with a shrill and loud whistle, sending a cascade of sparks flying in all directions, and a huge wall of smoke where it had been. All that was heard now was the gentle rustling of the wind in the trees.

Oak and Diamond stood rooted to the spot, paralyzed with shock and alarm. Their hearts pounded hard in their chests, their eyes glued to the wall of smoke. Oak shook out of the trance and pulled Diamond by her right foreleg.

"Come on, let's go. Fast," he said churlishly, yanking her leg to go faster, but not very effectively. Diamond was still rooted to the spot, staring at the smoke. She seemed to be muttering something.

"Diamond, come ON!" Oak barked apprehensively, pulling harder.

"Wait."

"What?! Diamond, let's go!"

"Oak... Look..." Diamond said in a whisper, pointing toward the now-thinning wall of smoke.

A small figure could be seen through the smoke, but what it could be was unclear. Oak gaped and squinted his eyes, trying to get a better look.

"What is it?" he asked his wife in a whisper. Diamond didn't answer.

After a few seconds, the smoke cleared completely, to reveal a light-brown figure, which seemed to be curled up, laying completely motionless. A black tail could barely be made out, along with something gold-colored.

Oak went wide-eyed and gasped. "It's...i-it's a pony..."

They stood there, their eyes transfixed on the small pony laying around eight meters from them. It was either a colt or a filly.

"Should...should we...see if it's alive?" Diamond asked anxiously.

Oak, without taking his eyes off of the pony, nodded. "I will, you stay here," he whispered, stepping forward slowly.

As he got closer to the pony, he started to notice more of it. He was a colt, for sure, a small one, and he seemed to have a black mane and tail. His light-brown coat was neat and shiny, and his mane was sort of poofy, but short and straight. The most eye-catching and noticeable part of him, however, were his wings. A pair of bright, golden-colored wings stood out from the rest of his darker colors. Oak tilted his head curiously at this and leaned in to get a better look. The feathers on his wings were preened and shiny. It's as if he had been recently groomed.

Oak leaned further and spotted a piece of slightly crumpled parchment laying beside the colt. Oak picked it up, and looked it over. The scrawl was untidy, sloppy and stained with tears, as if some poor, dismayed pony had rushed to write it.

Please, whoev whomever you may be, please please PLEASE take care of this colt. My son. Our world is unsafe too dangerous for him, for he is invloved involved in something that no colt should be, and his death demise is inevitable as long as he is here. As a mother, I canot cannot tell you how much pain this brings me to have to part with him, but I am hoping with all my stregnth strength he will have a good home. Please, take him in, love him as one of your own. Give little Icarus a good life.

Oak reread the note over and over, staring wide-eyed at it in wonderment. He was so fazed that he didn't realize his wife had been shouting at him for the past ten seconds.

"OAK! WHAT DOES IT SAY?!" Diamond shouted angrily but fearfully for the seventh time, almost screaming.

Oak, unfazed by his wife's tone, turned around slowly, a look of pure mystification plastered on his face, and raised the note slowly to show her. The snowy-white pony trotted forward quickly and snatched it from her husband's hoof. She read it over four times, before looking up frenzily at Oak, but saying nothing.

Oak returned the look and the silence. He peered over at the colt. He had been left, taken away from a different world that is apparently too dangerous. That's what got the two of them. "Our world is unsafe too dangerous for him" ... "Our world" ...

Icarus...

Could it be possible that this colt, this 'Icarus' was not from this celestial plane? He DID appear out of thin air. Well, not even. Out of some kind of energetic aura. Regardless, this was something serious, a lone baby colt was laying in front of them whom is apparently from another world, and with him is a note pleading for him to be taken care of. To be loved. To be raised. Where would they find someone who would take him? Should they go to the adoption center? What would THEY think about this? How--

An explosion of cognizance boomed in Oak's head and he went wide-eyed. This was it. This was the answer they were looking for. This was their chance to start a family. He looked over at his wife, his beautiful, gorgeous, amazing wife, and smiled hysterically.

"Hunny... Hunny, this is it," he mused softly.

Diamond looked at him, puzzled. "... This is what?"

Oak chuckled and shifted so that he was completely facing his wife. "This is our chance... Our chance to be parents again!"

Every feeling Diamond was experiencing at the moment was instantly replaced by shock and agitation. She glared.

"No. Nuh-Uh," she grunted, shaking her head.

Oak scoffed. "Diamond, come on, this--"

"No, Oak!"

"--is an opportunity being served to us on a silver platter!"

"I said no! We can't just do this! We need to discuss it first!" Diamond debated heatedly.

"Well, we're discussing it now!" Oak countered quickly and pleadingly.

Diamond simply shook her head and turned around. Oak was losing her. He looked down at Icarus again, and back up at his wife.

"What about him? What will we do with him?"

"We'll take him to the orphanage."

Oak groaned and put his hooves on Diamond's back. Time to go full force.

"Look, hunny... You know I loved Ash. We loved Ash. He was the best thing that ever happened to us, and he brightened our lives up. Every day with him was special. And these have been the best sixteen years of our lives. Am I correct about all of this?"

Diamond said nothing, but nodded.

"Exactly. Now, PLEASE believe me when I tell you that nothing can or ever will replace Ash. He's indented into our hearts, our memories, and always will be." Oak made clear. "Now, what if we could relive all of that? Not just for us, but for him-" he pointed down to Icarus, "-as well."

Diamond kept silent, this being a sign she was coming around. Oak held back a joyful giggle and went on.

"We could give this colt a good home. We can be his parents, we can love him, feed him, give him whatever he wants, and give him the best life we can give," he elucidated pleadingly.

The snowy-white mare standing in front of him turned around, and, very very slightly, that little twinkle could be seen in her eyes. She gazed down at Icarus.

"Ash would've wanted us to go on, to live on, and I'm positive he'd want us to give to another colt the same thing we gave to him." Oak added in as a final point.

To Oak's great surprise, his wife gave a tiny smile, and looked down at Icarus once again.

"You're right... Ash would've wanted us to move on. For one reason or another, this colt has been left here, and we happened to be here when he was," she said in a soft voice, not looking away from Icarus.

Oak smiled.

"So." Diamond continued. "Let's call him our son..."

Oak couldn't contain himself as he burst into a fit of happy giggles. He hugged and kissed his wife lovingly, and she returned the gesture. This went on for a few minutes, before Diamond nervously scooped Icarus up and stared down at him. He was sleeping, with an expression of contentedness, both him and the couple completely unaware of the horror he had been taken away from. They watched the rise and fall of his tiny chest, and smiled.

Things would sure take a change now.

Written by Kerry Leventis, AKA Minimoog Voyager

Sleeplessness and Foreshadowing

17 years later...

Seventeen years had passed since that night. The night when Icarus had arrived, apparently delivered from another world, into the care of Oak and Diamond. The task of raising this colt with golden wings was as difficult as taking care of any other young one, but also much easier because of the fact that the couple had experience from their son, Ash, whom had passed away over seventeen years ago. They knew all the tricks and needs and always kept their eyes on Icarus.

At first it felt strange, eccentric, because of Icarus not being their blood child, and for a few very brief days, the couple actually reconsidered, and almost ended up bringing him to the orphanage. After a few weeks, however, the colt grew on them, and they grew to love him to no bounds as their true son. Icarus had blessed their life; everything seemed a little brighter once he had arrived, for he had given Oak and Diamond a new-found strength and a new lease on life, and shared an incredible child-parent bond that seemed unbreakable.

When he started kindergarten, Icarus was instantly liked and accepted by his fellow classmates and teachers, and he made many friends whom he would play with both in-school and after school in the backyard, or, if Oak or Diamond brought them, at the park. He was invited to every birthday party (especially the birthday parties of fillies who had a cute crushes on him), and his own birthday parties would be big and exciting.

He was a well-behaved and good-mannered boy, and Oak and Diamond were actually envied by other parents for having such a good child, and praised by teachers for raising him to well. ("I've never seen such a kind little boy!")

Once the colt had reached reached the age of thirteen, however, he had become slightly hostile toward his adoptive parents, his good manners had mostly melted away, and the 'Unbreakable' bond had faltered significantly. He had become rebellious and moody, often getting himself into fights and other forms of trouble and completely disregarding his parents' and his teachers' words of warning. Didn't help that his friends would always egg him on.

Icarus wasn't completely normal, either, and it was something himself, his parents, and his friends observed, too. Though they were things one would have to be paying attention to see, they were still noticeable. Icarus' icy blue eyes would sometimes give off a faint golden glow when angered, he would get random bursts of strength, and objects would move of their own accord when he was bored. Not to mention that he seemed to be capable of flying for unnatural lengths of time.

That was another thing. His wings. The only known pegasus in Equestria to have golden wings, Icarus was the subject of gossip and mild teasing from those who were not his friends. They would make rude or sarcastic comments toward how they looked, why they were gold, and many other things. Icarus usually avoided and ignored these people as best he could, but it sometimes wouldn't be enough.

Despite Icarus' attitude and rebellious nature, he still loved his parents more than anything and often wanted to apologize for everything, but hadn't had the guts to do it.

It was 2:18AM. Another sleepless night. Icarus had been laying in bed for the past three hours, wide awake, worried about the day to come. A court hearing.

Icarus and a few friends had fought a large group of students from a rival highschool in the streets, putting a portion of them in the hospital. Worst part was that he had provoked it and egged his fellow students on, and taunted the rival ones. He was arrested and taken home, but was ordered to appear in court in two weeks time. The next day was the day of the court hearing.

"Idiots should've stayed away." Icarus grumbled to himself, staring up at the ceiling of his bedroom. "None of this would've happened if they would've just took my warnings and left, but no, they always want to test me. Well, their loss," he tittered quietly. "They're the ones in the hospital."

Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip. Drip.

Icarus only just noticed the faint drips of the tap coming from the bathroom just outside his door, which was left open. He groaned. He didn't want to get out of bed. He was sleepless, but comfortable.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

"Fffff..."

He sat up and looked around his bedroom. The pale moonlight gently illuminated the room.

Directly to the left of his bed was the window, and his bed was pressed against the corner and wall. On the far right wall and corner was his wooden dark blue dresser. To the right of it sat his desk, littered with an assortment of papers, quills, a spilled ink pot, Sports Equestriated magazines (which he had forgotten to hide from view) and a picture of his parents, Oak and Diamond, with him as a young colt. To the right of that, at the end of the rectangular shaped room, the blasted mahogany door that never stayed shut. The pale-blue walls were plastered with posters of The Wonderbolts, Dungeondweller, Blue Stahllion, and various other famous icons.

With an irritated sigh, Icarus sat up and stepped out of bed. He made his way through the shaded room and toward the door to go into the bathroom and turn the damn tap all the way off. Before exiting his room, Icarus looked left and right down the dark hallway. He shook his head and entered the bathroom.

He flipped the light-switch and the small room was flooded with a luminescent glow from the automatic lantern. He looked at himself in the mirror.

Icarus, now seventeen, was rather small for his age, but was still quite the stunner to the mares, and well-intimidating to stallions, with his stocky face, and piercing, icy-blue eyes. His black mane was untidy, mainly from laying in bed for so long, and his bangs rested down part-way over his right eye. He had bags under his eyes. The feathers on his golden wings were not preened and jutted out on random spots.

Icarus turned the tap and a stream of cold water flowed down into the bowl and down the drain. He put his hooves under the stream, leaned forward, and splashed his face with the coldness. Not like he would get any sleep anyway. He turned the tap again and dried his hooves and face on a towel, sighing.

"What are you doing awake so late?"

Icarus nearly jumped out of his skin as he heard the voice, and turned toward the source. Diamond was standing in the door frame, wearing a white housecoat and looking groggy. She hadn't aged very much during these past years, and was still as beautiful as ever. Her pale-lavender mane was done up in a ponytail.

Icarus sighed softly. "Can't sleep. And the leaky tap was bugging me."

Diamond nodded. "You have to try, though. Big day tomorrow."

"Yeah, I seem to have been reminding myself all night." Icarus said softly, rubbing his right foreleg with his left hoof and looking to the left uncertainly.

Diamond blinked. "I know you're nervous."

"How could I not be?" Icarus said coldly, inciting a sigh from his mother.

"Why did you do it, Icarus?" Diamond asked airily, leaning against the door frame and crossing her forelegs. Icarus raised an eyebrow.

"Mom, we talked about this a thousand times," said Icarus blandly.

"And every time, you only told me parts of the story." Diamond added quickly.

Icarus shook his head and moved toward the door. "Nevermind..."

Diamond moved out of the way for him, but stared. "If you want to plead your case tomorrow, you're going to have to tell the truth."

Icarus grunted and spun around to face her. "Mom, can we just stop this conversation?"

"Alright." Diamond sighed. "But I'm only trying to help you. No matter how angry I may be with you, I still love you very much."

Icarus stopped and looked down. Celestia, he had to apologize some time...

"And nothing will ever change that." Diamond said as she turned and stepped down the hall toward her and Oak's bedroom.

Icarus watched her walk away and shook his head sadly. He inhaled slowly. "M-Mom..."

Diamond stopped and looked back to her son. "Hm?"

Icarus sighed and opened his mouth to speak, but the words wouldn't come to him. What would be the best way to start this?

"It was me," he said feebly. "I started it."

Diamond walked back over to Icarus and nodded.

"We were walking down main street, and so were they." Icarus said softly, not making eye contact. "We...I thought it would be funny if we throw them a few wisecracks. What harm would that do? We were just goofing around."

Diamond said nothing, listening intently.

"One of them challenged one of us to fight, and like the stupid idiot I am, I egged him on." Icarus said shamefully, staring at the carpeted floor. "It broke into something much bigger than we expected, and before you know it, the police are there, most of us are being loaded into ambulances, and the rest of us are being arrested."

Diamond nodded and put a hoof on his shoulder.

"And now..." Icarus murmured, and chuckled pathetically. "...Now I'm...we're screwed. So screwed."

Diamond tsk'd. "No, hunny, you're not screwed. Don't think so negatively. Yes, you did something...ehhh...not so good, and it was a mistake. And you are NOT stupid, you are NOT an idiot."

"Mom, we put ponies in the hospital," said Icarus sadly. "And I AM an idiot for getting into this mess."

"No, you aren't," shushed Diamond. "You simply made a mistake. All of us--"

"Have made much simpler mistakes that are easily resolved." Icarus butted in.

"--make mistakes. And you know what we do? We take responsibility for our mistakes."

Icarus looked up at his mother. "Take responsibility? So, just let them send me to prison."

"Icarus, they won't send you to prison. You're not of age yet." Diamond assured him.

"I will be in a week." Icarus said quickly. Diamond blinked.

"Your hearing is tomorrow. Not in a week," she said soothingly.

"Mom, I--"

"Icarus, you have to trust me. Things will work out. You won't go to prison. We got you a good lawyer. The most you'll have to do is community service. You know, maybe helping at the old folks' home, or cleaning up parts of the city." Diamond explained positively. "That doesn't sound so bad, does it?"

"Well...n-no, not really." Icarus said hesitantly, rubbing his foreleg with a hoof and looking to the left again.

Diamond put her right hoof under his chin and tilted his head up to look him in the eye. "Exactly. It'll all work out, Icarus. I promise you. Just be honest, stay calm, and try to comb that mane of yours," she said, smiling and playfully tousling his mane.

Icarus chortled and playfully swatted her hoof away.

"There's that smile. I love you a lot, Icky," cooed Diamond.

Icarus smiled sincerely. "I love you too, mom."

Diamond kissed her son on the forehead. "Now, get to sleep. You need your rest."

Icarus nodded. "Goodnight."

"Night."

Icarus stepped back into his shaded room feeling a lot better, and much more confident. He plopped himself down onto his bed and pulled his cozy blanket over his body. He rolled into a comfortable position. Now, he could sink into a deep sleep and be fully rested and alert for tomorrow... He closed his eyes.

Drip. Drip. Drip.

"UUURGHH!"

Ares trotted down the grey stone steps with a saddlebag on his back, and a nervous look plastered on his face. The further down the steps he went, the narrower the stone walls to his left and right became, until he could see the bottom and it was difficult to move through.

Luckily, Ares hadn't needed to worry about anyone following him (Though, because of his paranoid nature, he did anyway), because these stone stairs were located in the outlands of Domus.

Domus was a vast world filled with utopias, cities, temples, and castles, ruled by the majestic Queen Alcyone, whom fought tooth and hoof to keep everypony safe and well after what had happened seventeen years prior... Although, the past ten years have not been successful for her.

A series of murders and robberies were committed, crimes which broke the peace and prosperity that had been rebuilt over seven years. For the first while, it resulted in a huge uproar from many cities; death by anything other than natural causes, or accidents, were unheard of since the powerful tyrant, Ceyx, died seven years earlier. Some even assumed Ceyx had returned and had his followers doing some dirty work. Little did they know, they weren't far from the truth...

Ares was one of the last living followers of Ceyx, and had taken it upon himself to revive his master as quickly as possible, by stealing hidden artifacts that Ceyx himself had cursed and using them to revive him, a feat Ares assumed would be simple.

He had underestimated.

These artifacts, it seemed, had been placed under protection in royal castles for isolation, and the guards stationed in the castles wouldn't just let Ares walk in and take them. He had been given no choice but to kill any who tried to stop him, and discard any evidence against him.

Now, over the course of ten years, Ares had found fourteen of the eighteen artifacts required to revive Ceyx. Every artifact the weakened tyrant absored, the more strength he gained, but not enough for him to be able to overthrow Alcyone, like seventeen years ago. He would need ALL of them.

The paranoid stallion finally reached the bottom of the steps, and was met with a collapsed, faded-yellow wall. With one final glance behind his back, Ares stepped forward, and a second later, the debris was pulled out and floating mid-air. He casually stepped inside, and the debris stuck back into the spot it was seconds earlier. So noone could find this place.

The path ahead was illuminated by torch light, and the enclosed space was a cramped, musty, dirty tunnel that led into a dark drop. Ares had come here countless times over the past years, and this was routine to him. As he trotted toward the hole, feeling much more relaxed now that he was out of the public eye, his reflection in a puddle caught his eye. He kneeled down.

Ares, being a twenty-eight year old pegasus, had lost his youthful complexion to stress and fear. His face was muscular, but sunken, and his icy-blue eyes showed nothing but exhaustion and worry. His dark-cobalt-blue mane was thinning like never before, and his dark-grey coat always seemed to be messy. Same applied to the feathers on his wings.

With a sigh, Ares stood back up and jumped down the hole, spreading his wings half way down to slow his descent. He landed with a gentle 'Thud' in a giant circular room made of stone.

Clumps and patches of moss stuck to the decayed, dark-green stone. It looked as though the room was ready to collapse at any time. Ahead stood a bridge made of the same material that connected the side Ares stood on to the other side, which had a door. Two voices could faintly be heard from the door.

Ares walked forward onto the bridge. It seemed as if the the side railings had decayed and crumbled. He looked down the side. Nothing but darkness below. Many ponies had perished crossing this bridge, falling and impacting the ground below, however far down it may be. Ares pictured a pony hitting the earth from that high and his innards splattering all over the surrounding ground. He shuddered at the thought and shook it off.

As Ares neared the door, the voices became clearer. One was angry, the other was fearful. One was soft and weak, the other was shrill and strong.

His master, and another follower.

"How many times must I warn you, Callias?!" hissed the smaller voice. It belonged to a male, but it was very raspy, rusty, and weak, and the owner of it had to stop and take in breaths of air during every sentence.

"M-Master, forgive me, oh, forgive me, master! I-I tried!" weeped the shrill voice.The voice of a mare.

"Tried?! With my state, just 'Trying' is not enough, Callias!"

"M-Master, please..."

Ares walked through the large door frame and examined Callias worriedly. She was a unicorn, with an auburn coat and red mane, both of which were very dirty and messy. Even through the unwashed look, though, she was very pretty. Ares felt dismay bubbling up inside his chest. His master was sitting in a crumbled and decaying stone throne, cloaked in shadow. Heard, not seen.

"I've had enough of your failures, Callias," hissed the raspy voice, disregarding Ares' entrance. "I've been relying on you, and you've done nothing but fail me!"

"I-I-I know, m-master, b-b-b-but I..." Callias was stuttering horribly, making her hard to understand.

Ares noticed tears streaming down her face and her trembling legs, once he stepped closer. This only increased the feeling in his chest. The worry visibly crossed his face. His master noticed.

"Can you not see that I am busy, Ares?" hissed the voice, causing Ares to flinch.

"Errr... Y-Yes... Sorry... It's j-just that I...I just..." Ares struggled for words, fidgeting his hoof.

"What? Say it already!"

"I-I have...uh..." Ares stuttered, but facehoof'd and threw his saddlebag down.

Its contents rolled out. A purple crystal ball with what appeared to be a hazy lavendar fog floating and curling around inside of it, along with some cloth to protect it.

If Ares and Callias could've seen their master, they would've seen his lips curl into an unpleasant grin.

"Yes... That is perfect, Ares... This makes, what, fifteen?" his master inquired raspily, sounding pleased.

Ares nodded quickly, but his expression remained nervous.

"Excellent," his master chuckled weakly, before turning serious once more. "Do you see, Callias? Ares knows how to do his job, unlike you!"

Callias whimpered, her face tear-soaked and her hazel eyes shining with evident terror.

"M-Master Ceyx... Y-Y-You have to und-understand--"

"UNDERSTAND what?" Ceyx hissed cruelly. Callias whimpered again and kneeled.

"T-That I-I searched exactly wh-where you told me to, a-a-an-and it was not there!"

Silence.

"P-Please, master Ceyx, you must believe me, t-th-th-there wasn't anything!"

Silence again, and then a scoff from Ceyx.

"Enough. Ares, kill her," he rasped casually.

Ares felt his heart sink to his stomach.

Callias whimpered shrilly and muttered something along the lines of 'Please... No..."

"NO!" Ares blurted out desperately.

Ceyx gaped at him in surprise. He had always been too terrified to speak to Ceyx with anything louder than a regular indoor voice.

Ares felt his cheeks grow hot instantly, and his heart pounded quickly. Before his master could say anything, he spoke again.

"C-Could you give Callias one more chance? I-I swear, I will accompany her on the next scout out, and I promise you we will bring you back something," he assured Ceyx.

There was a long silence from their master. He seemed to be considering. Ares was hoping with all his might that Ceyx would spare Callias, and that he wouldn't have to end her life. The reason?

Ares and Callias had been lovers for a while, now, and Callias was pregnant. With something like fatherhood approaching, Ares couldn't bare to live without her, let alone have to harm her in anyway.

The silence was carrying on for a worrying amount of time. Seconds felt like hours. Ares HAD to convince his master. No question, he HAD to.

"A-Actually, if you spare her, we'll bring you back TWO artifacts," he added in, trying to hide desperation from his voice. Next to him, Callias was trembling in fear, tears still streaming down her face.

"Mmm..." Ceyx hummed. "Very well. Callias, you may leave. Ares, I need to speak to you."

Callias let out a mix between a sob and a laugh of relief and backed away. Ares looked back wistfully and gave her a warming look. She nodded shakily and left the room without another sound.

Ares let out a silent breath of relief and stepped forward, the fear having left his body almost completely.

"You've done a fine job bringing this to me." Ceyx rasped softly. "I'm all the more closer to coming back."

"Yes, father." Ares nodded his head. Ceyx growled.

"You will call me master," he snapped, making Ares flinch in nervousness again. "I created you, but I am still your master, and you shall address me as such."

"Y-Yes... Sorry, fa--master... What is it you need?"

A long pause followed, and Ares thought for a moment his master hadn't heard him. "What is it y--"

"I heard you, fool." Ceyx said bitterly. He inhaled. "I've been out of power for seventeen years," he said weakly. "A long, miserable seventeen years."

"In which we have been trying to restore you, master."

"Yes, and for that, I am grateful, and will reward you once I am in power again."

Ares nodded gratefully and shifted his position uncomfortably. What was Ceyx getting at?

"Now," his master continued. "You know the sole reason I faded away all those years ago."

"Yes." Ares answered cautiously. It surely couldn't be that time already?

"And you know what Alcyone did to HIM?" Ceyx asked, emphasizing 'Alcyone' and 'HIM' with extreme bitterness.

Ares tilted his head worriedly. "Err...yes, he can't be touched until he is of age. But--"

"Exactly." Ceyx sighed. "His wings. They hold the power I needed to stay alive."

"That is something that's made me curious, master." Ares said dreamily. "Why didn't you just send someone. Me? Why didn't you send me to get him?"

"Because of something that his stupid mother did to him." Ceyx rasped bitterly. "It made him invulnerable, and frankly useless to me, until he was of age."

So, that time WAS drawing near.

"Now, if I've calculated correctly, he will be of age within mere days," he finished."

Ares stepped back. "M-Master...what are you suggesting?"

Ceyx stepped down from his throne and into the light. To anypony new, he would've been a horrifying sight. Ceyx was small, well under four feet, but he looked undead. Only skin and bone. His coat was all but gone, and his skin was a sickly rotten color. His face was sagging and his eyes were bloodshot and yellow-ish. He shook unpleasantly with every step he took, as if his legs would give out any second.

"I am suggesting that you prepare for a journey shortly, Ares," he rasped simply.

Ares shifted uncomfortably once more and looked down.

Ceyx painfully waddled over to the crystal ball resting on the cold stone floor. "Now, leave me. Go and comfort your mare."

Ares' heart skipped a beat, and he felt his face grow hot again. "M-Master, what-what do you mean 'My mare?' Callias i-is merely...a friend."

Ceyx chuckled weakly. "Do not lie to me, Ares. I know about you and her. I only spared her because of you. You had better be grateful that I am generous."

Ares stuttered and struggled for words, but ended up letting out a feeble and nervous giggle. "T-Thank you...master..."

Ceyx grinned. "Now, leave. I must be left alone."

Ares didn't argue, and bolted out of the room and across the bridge. Callias was sitting on her rump, wiping her eyes. Ares stopped right in front of her and pulled her up and into a hug. She wasstill trembling.

"Ssshh sshh sshh... It's alright, love..." Ares cooed, rubbing her back soothingly. Callias continued to cry for the next little while, until which she calmed down, and her and Ares left the underground temple.

Written by Kerry Leventis, AKA Minimoog Voyager

Close Calls and Sibling Talks

When Icarus awoke the next morning, he felt confident, but nervous still. His mother's comforting words from the previous night had helped significantly, but not enough to fully comfort him. The thought of him going to prison, or being taken away from home still lingered in his mind unpleasantly. With a nervous sigh, he sat up.

The morning sunlight filled the room with a cozy warmness, making him wish he could just stay in bed and sleep the day away. Sadly, the day wouldn't allow it.

"Icarus!" Diamond called from downstairs. "Come on, you don't want to be late!"

"Coming, mom!" Icarus called back down tiredly. He groggily stepped down from his bed and walked toward the door, and into the bathroom. He took a fast shower, brushed his teeth, and combed his mane the best he could.

"There, close enough," he grumbled tiredly.

"Icarus, put some gel in your mane to slick it back!" Diamond's voice rang back up.

"Do I have to?"

"Yes!"

Icarus groaned and opened the medicine cabinet. 'Equestria's Finest Mane Gel.' It'll do. He stuck his hoof into the gooey substance and it made an unnatural squelching sound. He ran it through his mane and shaped it back.

The result was... Oh, Celestia...

Icarus facehoof'd. He thought he looked like an old stallion. "Yeah, this'll make a great impression," he muttered grumpily, staring at his mane in the mirror and poking at it. He sighed and left the bathroom to go downstairs. The delicious smell of fried eggs and hay-sausages swam up into his nostrils and invoked his salivary glands to make his mouth water. His stomach was churning from the nervousness, but he was still hungry.

His parents were seated at the table.

Icarus sat in the seat across from his father, Oak. Oak had also not aged very much over the years. Now fifty-two years old, he had a few wrinkles, and his green mane had streaks of grey in it, but he otherwise looked youthful and full of life. He gave his son an uncertain stare.

Icarus returned the stare and grunted. "What?"

"What's with your mane?" Oak inquired tentatively. Icarus sighed and put his head down on the table.

Diamond walked in, carrying two plates in her mouth. Two sunny-side-up eggs and five sausages on each plate. She placed them down in front of the two of them, and turned to Icarus.

"Eat. You need the energy," she said sternly.

Icarus didn't protest. He starting chowing down right away. Diamond took her seat next to him.

"The hearing is scheduled in twenty minutes. We'll eat and get going," she said calmly.

Icarus nodded, but he felt his stomach take a dangerous lurch and stopped eating. He sighed.

"I'm not hungry..." he lied, and pushed his plate aside.

"Come on, you can't skip breakfast." Oak said disappointedly.

"I ate a bit. Can we just go? I need some fresh air." Icarus snapped grumpily, and walked out of the dining room. "I'll be waiting downtown, by the courthouse. Meet you there." Icarus called to them, and left the house.

Oak and Diamond exchanged worried glances.

Icarus trotted through the city streets, a look of grumpiness plastered on his face. He growled and tousled his mane until it was back to normal and the gel was out.

Main street was as busy as it usually was in the morning. The towering skyscrapers reflected the morning sunlight from their glass windows, and ponies everywhere looked tired and half asleep as they made their ways to work and school. The roads stretched ahead with dozens upon dozens of ponies in wagons and carriages, and not too far in the distance, the Equestria Needle could be seen. Icarus had always wanted to go inside, but never got around to it. And right now, he didn't care.

"Oy, Icky!"

Icarus turned his head unenthusiastically toward the one who called his name. Running up to him was his best friend, Pink Sprinkle (Who just preferred to be called Sprinkle), a tall mare, seventeen, with a soft-pink mane and bright-pink coat, and shiny grey eyes. Instead of her usual white headband, she had a black one rested atop her head, holding her mane in place. She was one of the most gorgeous mares Icarus had ever laid eyes on, but he only liked her as a friend. This time, however, she looked worried and upset.

"Icky, why are you not wearing a suit?" Sprinkle asked in her usual high voice, prodding him with a hood. She stood at least half a foot taller than him.

"Suit?" Icarus said, raising an eyebrow. He only just noticed that Sprinkle was wearing a black satin dress. "I was supposed to wear a suit?"

"Well, no," squeaked Sprinkle, shifting uncomfortably. "But it would look much better to the judge."

Sprinkle, too, had been involved in the street brawl, and had hit a student from the other school over the head with a rock. They had gotten a concussion.

Icarus shrugged. "If the judge doesn't like it, he can stuff it. Not like I'm walking in there with a big sign that says 'BUCK YOU!' glued to my face."

Sprinkle, out of character from her usual hyperactive and happy nature, and joyful expression, was calm, serious, and looked very worried. "I-I guess..."

"Where's your dad?" Icarus asked, not making eye contact.

"He's inside. He's been pissed at me for the past two weeks." Sprinkle answered, staring at the giant wooden doors of the courthouse.

It was huge. Made of grey marble, it shone against the morning sunlight. The four pillars, two on either side of the doors, all four about five meters from the wall, all running horizontally. On top sat a giant bronze statue of Princesses Celestia and Luna. It looked aged, obviously made many years ago. Multiple ponies in business suits went in and out, the giant doors swinging open and closed every time.

"Lovely. Lemme guess, warning you to stay away from me again?" Icarus said bitterly, scoffing.

Sprinkle blushed, and nodded. "Sorry."

"Don't be." Icarus said softly.

"You're gonna get it the worst, Icarus," drawled a cold voice from behind the two ponies.

Icarus and Sprinkle both spun around simultaneously to be met with the bony and mean face of Cloud. A student from the rival school who has had run ins with Icarus in the past. He had a pure white coat and blonde hair which was well groomed and combed into a fancy curve over his forehead. He had a pointed snout, something that was a good insult point for Icarus. Being the son of one of the richest families in Equestria, his black suit didn't even make a dent in his fortune.

Icarus scoffed. "You'd like that, wouldn't you?"

"Ah, well, 'twould make my day, to be honest with you." Cloud chuckled rudely. His accent made it obvious he was from Coltford. Icarus shrugged.

"Not like you're entirely innocent, either, though," he said casually. "If my memory serves me, you tried to ram me through a window, did you not?"

The blush was very visible through Cloud's white coat, and he said nothing.

"Are you done trying to piss me off? Can we go now?" Icarus asked impatiently. Cloud smirked.

"As you wish. I just hope mommy and daddy could afford a good lawyer for you. Celestia knows you'll need it," he laughed.

"Don't talk about my parents." Icarus said shortly, turning around and walking away. Sprinkle cast a glare at Cloud.

"Now now, Icky-poo, there's no need to be ashamed," laughed Cloud harshly. "I know they're terrible parents for raising a buffoon such as yourself, but I'm sure somewhere, deep down, rests their common sense."

Icarus spun around, glaring. "Shut your mouth," he snapped gravelly. A few students from both schools stopped to watch, casting nervous glances at Icarus.

"Going to resort to violence again, are you? Typical." Cloud giggled meanly. "Did mommy and daddy teach you to deal with you problems this way?"

Sprinkle put a hoof on Icarus' shoulder. "Ignore him..."

"I'm warning you, Cloud..." Icarus muttered venomously, tensing up significantly. Cloud wasn't intimidated. Instead, him and the students from his school were taking great amusement from this.

"Oh well. SOME ponies don't know how to raise a child. Some are just much less intelligent, I suppose. I think it's best that your late brother is gone, now that I think about ti.. Spare him a life of stupidity. Though, he was stupid enough to get himself killed the way he did."

Cloud had done it. Both groups of students gasped. He had gone WAY too far.

Icarus let out a terrifying growl of anger, and lurched forward at an ungodly speed, straight to Cloud's face. An inch before impact, a bright red magical aura stopped him mid air and pulled him back. Sprinkle had restrained him. He was still trying to fight the aura and have at Cloud, who looked disturbed and stepped back. The students from the other school formed a horizontal line in front of Icarus and Sprinkle as an attempt to defend Cloud.

Cloud chuckled at the wrong time. His father approached from behind and smacked him in the back of the head.

"Enough," he growled grumpily, and took his son by the side. "Come on."

Once Cloud and the other students were gone, Sprinkle released Icarus, who was glaring in the direction they went.

"Good thing you stopped me, Sprinkle, because I think I would've killed him this time," he murmured darkly.

"Icarus!" Oak, from a distance, called over to his son. Diamond was beside him. They too, were dressed up.

Icarus took a glance back and sighed. "Come on, let's go," he muttered to Sprinkle, who frowned. They made their ways into the courthouse for the hearing.

The cold mornings of Domus were usually and unpleasant. Especially if one didn't wear the proper clothing to keep themselves warm. It didn't help, either, that Domus was cold year round, with it being the coldest at night and in the morning. Few were accustomed to it; everypony would try to avoid being outside as much as possible during those times.

On top of a tall chapel turret, a tall, slender mare stood, looking down on the city below, her jet black mane moving in the gentle breeze of the early morning. She focused on the ponies passing by below, zeroing in on their faces, making sure she wouldn't target the wrong one. She had been standing up on the turret for hours, waiting for the one she was supposed to meet, but with no luck. She was getting impatient. She tapped her hooves, hummed, whistled, anything to relieve her boredom, but to no avail. Getting impatient was not a good thing for her. It eventually transitioned into anger.

Down below, Ares was walking down the street, casting nervous glances at everypony whom he passed, and vice-versa. Callias was trotting alongside him, looking clean, unlike the day prior, and stuck close to Ares' side.

The mare up top smirked and stepped forward. She had spotted her target. She jumped down onto the side roof of the chapel with a soft 'Thunk', completely out of sight, and punted a small shard of debris over the edge.

It sailed past Ares' face, who shrieked and jumped back, almost knocking Callias over, and drawing some curious and suspicious eyes. Ares felt his face grow hot and chuckled nervously. He peered toward the source and saw a head poking out from the lowest roof of the chapel. He felt the muscles in his jaw tighten.

"Cally, wait here, I will only be a few moments," he said distractedly, his eyes glue upwards. Callias looked the same way, puzzled.

"Why? What are you--"

"I'll be right back, I promise." Ares said quickly, backing away and running into the alley beside the chapel.

After sure he was out of site, he jumped up onto the roof, to be met with a white mare with a jet black mane, both of which had a shine. Her eyes were as hazy grey as a cloudy sky, and had a coldness to them. She was tall, at least a foot taller than Ares, but looked dangerously beautiful. Ares sighed and frowned.

"Hello, Fenix," he said flatly. Fenix gave a throat laugh.

"Not happy to see me?" she asked sedately, turning around and walking toward the wall that attached the lower roof to the higher one.

"If 'Not happy' means dreading, then yes." Ares said, rolling his eyes and following her.

Fenix hummed and leaned against the wall. Ares watched her suspiciously.

"So... What do you want?" he asked ardently.

"Father told me about something you'll be doing in the next few days." Fenix said casually, outstretching her right foreleg and looking at her hoof.

Ares frowned. "What did he tell you?"

"Oh," hummed Fenix, clopping her hooves together. "Nothing much. Just about a bit of traveling you'll be doing."

"Traveling? To where?" Ares inquired irritably, taking a step forward. His wings unfurled slightly.

"Father asked me not to tell." Fenix said coolly. "I wouldn't want to betray his trust, would I?"

Ares scoffed. "The sly Fenix Artemis is afraid of someone for once, huh?"

Fenix's smirk disappeared. She pushed off of the wall and back onto her hooves.

"Not fear," she grunted coldly. "It's respect. Our father is a powerful sorcerer."

Ares chuckled coldly. "'Powerful,'" he said, curling his hooves as emphasis. "All he is right now is a helpless little bony excuse for a pony. Nothing more."

Fenix stepped forward so that her face was only a head away from her brother's. "And all you are are a helpless little coward excuse for a pony who can't even defend the one he loves."

Ares scowled. "I defen--"

"Not in FRONT of father, as far as I was told." Fenix interrupted quickly, staring coldly, before turning around.

Ares felt a pulse of anger in his chest, and opened his mouth to speak before Fenix cut him off.

"Just so you know, there is another artifact the the neighboring city, a few miles north," she said , stepping close to the ledge. She peered down at an auburn mare. Callias. "Pretty girl you have there," she said loud enough for Ares to hear. She turned to look at him. "Would be a shame if anything happened to her."

Ares tensed up and growled lowly. He glared, his icy-blue eyes radiating bitterness.

"You touch her, Fenix, and I swear I'll--"

"You'll what?" Fenix giggled harshly. "What makes you think you stand any kind of chance against me?"

Ares stepped forward. "Hurt her, and you'll find out," he growled menacingly, inciting another laugh from his sister.

"Whatever you say, brother," she said jumping off the chapel and onto another building. "Father is expecting two artifacts," she called once more, and disappeared from sight, leaving Ares upset and scared for Callias.

"Bitch..." he muttered.

He jumped down back into the alley and walked out, cursing his sister under his breath. He still wore the scowl. Callias immediately trotted toward him.

"What's the matter?" she asked concernedly. Ares looked her in her hazel eyes wistfully and shook his head.

"N-Nothing... Just...stubbed my hoof, is all," he chuckled nervously. "Come on, let's get going."

Callias cast him a worried look, and followed along.

By Kerry Leventis, AKA Minimoog Voyager

Dangers

In the heart of Detrot City, the Unnatural Entity Investigation Agency (or, the UEIA) headquarters lay dull and boring. Business had been slow, lately. Their purpose was to investigate any unnatural or strange entities that would appear in random parts of Equestria, whether dangerous or harmless. The agency was started twelve odd years ago, after a number of strange creatures and other entities had started popping up at random, and many of them were hostile. Luckily, the number of civilian casualties had only been four, so no uproar was caused.

The Princessess could only cover so much of the land themselves, so they requested the agency to be created, so as to make life easier. And it did for the first nine years, until it seemed like the number of entities dropped significantly, and the UEIA was needed less and less.

Still, it was wise to keep the agency open if anything did pop up, which did happen once in a while. New recruits were constantly hired and trained vigorously, and at the end, divided into the field most appropriate for them. Among these recruits was a unicorn named Venus.

Eighteen years old, she was a new recruit, and had been in apprenticeship for the last two years of her highschool education, giving her early experience in the UEIA so that she was prepared to join. The youngest recruit in the entire agency, she was one of the best, getting the job done fast and efficiently. It was best not to be fooled by her looks, however.

A light-fandango colored coat and a dark-orchid colored mane, cutely tied and braided into a ponytail, and magenta eyes were just a beautiful mask in front of the tough, skilled-fighter personality Venus had. She was not one to toy with, and was more than willing to lay a beating down on someone who deserved it. She wasn't very easy to anger, but once she was, she was not a force to cross. Especially when stallions always told her she had a nice plot.

Venus trotted through the main lobby, circular, with blue walls and a white border. On either side of the heavy entrance doors sat multiple black, squashy chairs, and a large white desk in the center with a rather grumpy looking unicorn writing notes.

"Afternoon, Deet." Venus greeted cheerfully as she passed, and got a grunt of acknowledgement in return. She gave the same greeting to everypony she passed, until she reached the cafeteria, where she bought herself a tray of food and sat down. She pulled a report from an escaped fire entity out of the pocket of her dark blue jack and opened it.

Entity No. : #431-A

Hostile? : Yes

Status : Not Captured

Description: 431-A appears to be some form of bipedal creature composed entirely of flames, generating a heat of up to 600° C. 431-A's height varies, depending on how many fuel sources are in the proximity of it, but the tallest it's been seen is 11'5" (eleven-foot-five-inches).

Proximity Instructions : If any UEIA agents are to approach 431-A, utmost caution must be used. It has been reported to attack via lobbing fireballs, or using its own body to consume agents in flames. Proper fire-retardant clothing/suits are mandatory, and no UEIA agent will be permitted to pursue 431-A without it.

Other: 431-A is capable of growing in size, depending on how much fuel (flammable objects) is within proximity. It is also capable of duplicating itself. 431-A was last seen in the Neightherlands starting forest fires.

The attached picture was of a terrifying looking, and oddly shaped creature made of flames. Not pony-like in the slightest.

So, that was Venus' fourth mission. Capture 431-A and bring it in for containment and eventual disposal. Too easy.

Well, a lot easier than #429, which was a bloodthirsty giant reptilian creature who almost swallowed her whole. THAT took quite a bit to take care of, and there wasn't a chance she could do it herself.

"Hey, Venus," chirped Venus' friend, Aqua, an aqua-blue unicorn mare, sitting beside her friend.

"Hey." Venus greeted, stuffing half a sandwich into her mouth and chewing quickly.

"What's the rush?" Aqua asked, an eyebrow raised.

"Gowwa go 'o wuh head'f offife." Venus replies with a full mouth, inciting a giggle from Aqua.

"Swallow it, then speak," she smiled.

Venus finished chewing and swallowed. "That's what she said. Anyway, I'm gonna go to the head's office."

"The head? Why?" Aqua asked. Venus burped quietly.

"Find out more about this," she said, poking the picture of 431-A.

Aqua examined the picture and gasped. "No way, you're NOT going after that?"

Venus slurped her Jell-O and nodded.

"Aqua, Colter was KILLED by that thing," hissed Aqua.

She got a blank expression in return.

"Colter was the BEST agent in the UEIA." Aqua said matter-of-factually. Venus smirked.

"So?"

"'So?' Ven, this thing will burn you ALIVE," groaned Aqua irritably.

"It can't hurt me if it can't catch me," chuckled Venus, finishing her lunch, putting the file back in her pocket, and getting up. "Gotta get going, talk later, Aqua."

And with that, she trotted off to the head's office.

Minutes later...

"Enter," said a rough voice from behind a maple colored door. Venus turned the knob and entered. The source of the voice, Hart, leader of the UEIA, smiled. "Venus. Come in, come in," he said softly. He was a dark-blue pegasus with a black, greying mane, cut short, and blue eyes.

Venus closed the door behind her and sat herself in the black-leather armchair in front of the brown desk. The office was plain. Just a desk in the center, a small window at the back, two shelves on either side filled with books and files, and khaki-brown walls.

"So, how can I help you?" Hart asked, setting a quill down.

Venus silently put the file on his desk. "I could use more info on this thing."

Hart took a look at the file, hmming. He looked up and surveyed the dark-orchid mare with a curious expression.

Venus stared at him for a few moments. "Oh. I'm going to capture it for you," she said as though it were a simple chore.

Hart tilted his head. "You're going to try and go after it?"

"Not try," laughed Venus. "I WILL get it."

Hart sighed. "Venus, Co--"

"Colter was killed, yes, I know." Venus rolled her magenta eyes. "Colter was a great guy, but he just rushed into things."

"So do you," laughed Hart playfully. Venus also giggled.

"Maybe so," she said, smiling. "But I have a STRATEGY rush."

"Oh, THAT'S what you call it." Hart laughed again, but went serious. "Venus, you can't be serious."

Venus also went serious. "I'm dead serious. I want to catch it."

"I know you're eager, but you can't just canter on over an' expect to just take it out," sighed Hart.

"I know THAT." Venus said. Her left ear twitched anxiously. "But I have a strategy. I know what I can do."

"Strategy or not, this thing is dangerous," said Hart softly, frowning. "You're just one mare."

"I-I know, sir, but--"

"And if it can kill an entire team, it can sure as hell kill one mare."

"Yes, but--"

"Besides, you're a rookie."

"I am, but--"

"And while you're an outstanding agent, I'm going to have to deny you going after it."

"But, sir--"

"And that's final."

Venus' happy mood faded into disappointment. "O-Okay..."

Hart frowned. "I'm sorry, Venus,' he said sincerely.

"It's alright..." Venus grumbled, getting up. "I'll be in my dorm."

She left the room, pouting.

The hearing had gone much better than Icarus had thought it would. Indeed, he was sentenced to many hours of community service starting in eight days time, but it was a small price to pay for freedom. Now, Icarus was completely worry-free once more, and his mood was instantly lifted.

Walking out of the courthouse with his parents, and Sprinkle, whom was going to stay at his place for the night (Oak and Diamond managed to convince Sprinkle's father that they wouldn't do anything and that they would be sleeping in separate rooms; Icarus weren't planning on it, anyhow). Sprinkle had gotten the same sentence as Icarus.

Icarus and Diamond walked off to the side, while Sprinkle and Oak talked.

Diamond peered at her son to the right, a small smile on her face. Icarus felt her gaze on him and tried holding back a grin, but failed.

"Theeeeere's that handsome smile," giggled Diamond. Icarus chuckled as well. "What did I tell you?" she asked playfully.

"Alright, alright, you were right." Icarus laughed.

"No no, come on, what did I tell you?"

"That everything would be alright," snickered Icarus.

"Aaaaaand was it?" Diamond asked cutely, inciting a giggle from her son.

"Yes, mother, it was alright. I'm sorry for doubting you," he smiled brightly at his mother, sounding much more cheerful.

Diamond tousled her greying pale-lavender mane so that it was back to its former glory, and playfully nudged Icarus.

"Never doubt your mother," she said wisely. "I may not be the wisest mare, but I know a thing or two."

"Yes, yes, mother, I know." Icarus smiled, stepping aside and unfurling his wings.

They were truly a sight to see. Unfurled, they gave off a reflective glow and looked wonderful. Each and every feather was shiny, almost like a bar of gold.

"Ohhhh, yeah..." Icarus groaned. "Feels good to stretch them after so long."

"I'll bet." Diamond smiled, running her hoof along his left wing. "You groomed it well."

"Pfft, didn't groom it at all." Icarus smiled. He looked ahead and saw Oak talking to Sprinkle. "Hey, you mind if I grab a bite with Sprinkle?"

"Not at all, hunny." Diamond nodded and smiled.

Icarus used his wings to propel himself forward, to the left of Sprinkle. Oak smirked.

"I'm gonna go and see how your mother's doing, Icarus," he said, and stopped, waiting for Diamond to catch up.

Sprinkle looked at Icarus and smiled. Icarus returned it.

"Wanna get a bite to eat? It's on me," he said happily.

Sprinkle nodded. "Sure, where to?"

Icarus shrugged lazily. "I dunno. Wherever."

The two of them discussed where they would eat, until they reached the Seaddle Plaza, where they decided on their favorite pizzeria.

Something was approaching Seaddle quickly. Not pony. Not any kind of natural creature. It burned and demolished anything in its path. And with a city like Seaddle, that meant big trouble... It got closer and closer every minute... Would it be hours? Days? Who knows...

Written by Kerry Leventis, AKA Minimoog Voyager

Anger in Both Worlds

The next few days sailed by worry free for Icarus and his fortunate friends (the unfortunate ones were legal age and were sent to jail). He was so happy he wasn't in trouble, that he didn't get into any arguments at school, or into any scuffles with students. Everything seemed much better. Plus, his eighteenth birthday was in only three short days.

The afternoon bell rang, signaling the end of the school day. Hundreds of students poured out of the main doors; pegasi would get a running start and fly home; advanced magic unicorns would teleport home. Icarus and Sprinkle walked side by side, chatting about Dungeondweller's tour dates.

"Well, if he's playing in Whoofsconsin, then he's bound to come to Seaddle," mused Icarus happily.

"Yeah," said Sprinkle. "And if he does, my brother will be able to get us tickets."

"How?" Icarus said.

"He has his ways," laughed Sprinkle. "Though I don't entirely know about all of them. At least, I'm not supposed to."

The two of them shared a laugh, occasionally greeting friends passing by.

"No, but if he plays at the Seaddle music fest, I'm getting us in there, whether we have tickets or not." Icarus said seriously. "Who knows when he'll come here again?"

"IF he does." Sprinkle added.

"Right," nodded Icarus. "Who's to say if he WILL come?"

"I mean, I'm not saying there's not a possibility. This place is ripe with clubs and stages for him to play on, but it's really up to the club manager."

Icarus nodded and flared his wings, and laughed. "Hell, if I could, I'd carry him and him stuff over here to play."

"Not before I fangirled," giggled Sprinkle.

"Yeah, I bet you would." Icarus chuckled, playfully brushing his wings over Sprinkle's face, who laughed.

"Hey, you manage to get a hold of Kino, yet?" Sprinkle asked, scratching her ear.

Icarus looked at her and raised an eyebrow. "Sprinkle, I've been grounded for two weeks. I haven't heard ANYTHING."

The pink mare blushed. "Oh... Right, sorry."

Icarus nodded. A young colt ran into Icarus with a loud 'OOF!' from both of them. Icarus looked up quickly.

"Urgh, sorry!" the colt groaned. He was obviously in grade six or seven.

Icarus stood up, rubbing his head. "Yeah... It's alright."

"Agh, so, Cloud is talking smack about you down at the north park. I think he wants to fight you," said the colt cautiously.

Icarus felt a twang of irritation in his chest. He raised an eyebrow. "Ohhh. Is that so?"

The colt nodded quickly. "He said that you're too afraid to face him."

Icarus tilted his head. "I am, huh? Well, gotta go disprove him."

Sprinkle put a pink foreleg in front of him. "No, you just got out of trouble, you don't want it to happen again."

"I'll be fine," grunted Icarus, pushing past her. He jumped up and spread his wings, and flew toward the park.

Minutes later...

"Oh, PUH-LEEZE! ICARUS? Idiot couldn't fight his way out of a paper bag!" Cloud laughed meanly. A few others laughed as well.

Icarus landed with a thump, and the small crowd gathered around the blonde haired pegasus with the pointed snout all looked back, worried expressions crossing their faces. Cloud, however, looked amused.

"Oh, hello there," he said snobbishly. "It's the stallion of the hour!"

"Think you're funny, huh?" Icarus asked coldly, advancing toward Cloud slowly. Cloud's smile didn't falter in the slightest.

"Who said that?" Cloud asked innocently. "I've only been telling the truth."

"Enlighten me," grunted Icarus bitterly and impatiently, his golden wings flared.

"Ohhh," hummed Cloud, putting a white hoof to hit chin. "Where shall I begin?"

The other students surveyed the two of them, and crowded closer.

"Well," smirked Cloud snobbishly. "Your father, for starters."

Icarus' right ear twitched in quickly-rising anger. "Please, go on," he said viciously, but softly.

"A construction worker? REALLY?" Cloud cackled. "The old git is so stupid he works for, what, two bits an hour? Pathetic!"

Icarus tensed up significantly. Oak was actually the highest paid in his line of work, and him, Diamond, and Icarus were upper-middle-class ponies. Still, leave it to Cloud to taunt anyone with less money.

"Don't fool yourself, Cloud," grunted Icarus. "Least my dad EARNS our money. What does yours do? Scams, threatens, and begs. 'Ohh, please, sir, give me all your bits! If you don't, I'll have you lose your job! Boo-hoo-hoo!'" Icarus said, putting on a high, whiney voice. "THAT seems pretty pathetic to me."

Cloud's smile vanished and he scowled. "Don't you dare call him pathetic," he growled fiercely. "Your mother--"

"--Is a hard working mare, who happens to make more money than YOUR mother." Icarus interrupted, his lips twisting into a sneer. "But ohhhh, boy, I have a LOT I could go off of with her. Don't even get me started!"

Cloud straightened up. "Not another word."

He was irritated that Icarus was not reacting the way he had planned, instead fighting back. He thought of the day of the hearing; Icarus' brother. Surely Cloud's friends would back him up this time?

"What's the matter? Getting to you?" Icarus asked coldly.

Cloud scoffed and smirked nastily. "How is your brother? Enjoying his dirt nap, I assume?"

This time, Icarus' smile vanished, just as Cloud had hoped.

"Ah, well, either way, another idiot gone. I can't believe he died from a CARRIAGE accident, can you? So stupid."

Icarus felt anger like never before bubble up in his chest. He fought to keep himself in check, not wanting to get into more trouble.

"Like, as if he was THAT unlucky! How pathetic do you have to be? And your parents, ugh, don't get me started..."

He was shaking with anger, now. He wasn't sure if he could take another word.

Cloud put his hooves under his eyes to mock crying. "'Uuhhhhhuhhhh! We made our son travel via carriage and now he's dead! Uuuuuuhuuuuuu! So typical of us!'"

Icarus grinded his hooves against the ground slowly but violently, panting audibly. He was staring at the white stallion in front of him, focusing all the hate he could muster.

Cloud finished his impression, getting uncertain chuckles from the small crowd. They noticed Icarus' state.

"Your brother is better off dead, just like your damn parents should be."

Before, he realized what he was doing, Icarus flew forward at an ungodly speed, straight for Cloud, catching him completely off guard.

He slammed into Cloud, hard, inciting a cry of pain. They flew back, but Cloud's position threw them off and they rolled for a few meters in a haze of dust, grass, leaves, and frantic cries from the crowd.

Once they had stopped, Icarus delivered a hard punch straight-forward to cloud's snout. He heard a crack, and blood poured out of his nostrils along with a shrill cry of pain from his mouth. He delivered another punch to the left side of his face, before Cloud retaliated. He lurched his neck forward and head-butted Icarus straight in his snout. Icarus recoiled in pain, and he felt warm blood dribble down past his lips, but put his left hoof on the back of Cloud's head, and punched his right hoof against his green eye. Cloud grunted loudly in pain, and swiped his forelegs back and forth quickly, hitting Icarus twice on either side of his face, who faltered to the left, giving Cloud an advantage. With a lot of force, Cloud punched Icarus on the right side of his face with his left hoof, now stained red-ish with blood. Icarus grunted and rolled off of Cloud, who tried to get to his hooves. Icarus rushed him from his midsection.

In a desperate attempt to escape, Cloud flared his wings and took off into the air, pulling Icarus up with him. Icarus punched Cloud in the stomach and released mid-air, flaring his own wings and flying into the blonde pegasus. They slammed into the wall of a neighboring building, cracking it, and breaking two of Cloud's ribs. This surprised him; Icarus was unnaturally strong. Icarus lifted his right hoof to punch, but was intercepted by another headbutt to the snout, causing him major pain and the compulsory reaction to put his hoof to his face, leaving him open. Cloud delivered multiple swift, hard blows all over Icarus' upper section.

Catching him off guard, Icarus accidentally let his wings give out, letting him fall. Just before he hit the ground, he managed to correct his position, but it wouldn't be enough. A fall from that height would surely break some bones. As his hooves impacted stony ground, his wings flashed a brilliant gold, temporarily blinding the group of students, and a large shockwave flew upwards, uprooting two trees and a whole lot of stone into the air. The students shrieked in shock and ducked out of the way to avoid this. Icarus looked around frantically, and at the badly damaged ground (couple with a small puddle of blood from his snout).

"W-What the fu--AUGH!"

A brick had hit Icarus right on the left of his neck, causing him to fall to the ground. Cloud had pulled a loose brick from the cracked wall above and thrown it, and was reaching for another. Icarus picked it back up and punted it back with an unusually strong force. It narrowly missed Cloud's head, and shattered next to his left ear.

Cloud reached for yet another, before a booming, echoing voice stopped them.

"All residents of Seaddle, please return to your homes immediately!"

"UNACCEPTABLE!" Ceyx roared angrily and raspily, coughing violently as he finished. Ares and Callias trembled. "I TOLD YOU! I TOLD YOU TO HAVE THE ARTIFACTS! I WARNED YOU THAT YOUR MARE'S LIFE WAS AT STAKE IF YOU DIDN'T!"

Fenix was standing on the left side of the decayed stone throne, smirking amusedly.

Callias was pressed against Ares, almost in tears once more. Ares was feeling the same way as his lover, but was much better at hiding it, much like he did every time Ceyx got angry with him. But, that didn't stop him from trembling, as well, and casting nasty glares at Fenix, whom had ratted them out.

"And yet..." Ceyx said, lowering his voice coldly. "You didn't, did you? Does her life mean nothing to you?"

Ares' jaw dropped. "M-Master, Callias means EVERYTHING to me!"

"You've disproven that pretty quickly," hummed Fenix, smirking nastily. Ares glared again.

"Silence, Fenix," rasped Ceyx calmly, before turning back on Ares and Callias. "You've failed me, Ares. You know that I need these artifacts to rise back up, but you thought only of yourself."

"That is NOT true!" Ares snapped loudly, making Ceyx jump and Fenix go wide-eyed. "I LOVE Callias, and I was trying to protect her!"

"By running away from me? I could have you killed any time I want," rasped Ceyx menacingly.

"Not a good way to protect her," said Fenix.

"I said silence, Fenix." Ceyx said a little sterner.

"Look," grunted Ares seriously. "I ask you for one final chance. I WILL find the final artifacts, you just have to give me time."

"Unfortunately, time is not a luxury we have, Ares," rasped Ceyx with an amused air to his tone of voice.

"What else can be done? I doubt Fenix can find them both, AND find Icarus in time." Ares said, nodding to his sister standing beside Ceyx. Fenix glared at him and opened her mouth to speak, but stopped upon seeing the look on her father's horrifying, sagging face.

"And why should I? You will only fail me again." Ceyx said, clopping his hooves together.

Ares shook his head. "As I said before, what else could be done? Fenix won't accomplish it in time, and I know after he turns eighteen, you won't live much longer after that," he said. "The artifacts will only bring you so far before their power fades."

Ceyx shook his head. "While all of this is true, you still need punishment," he said, turning his icy gaze over to Callias, who whimpered. "Fenix, you may have your fun with her before you kill her."

Fenix smiled and stepped forward, brushing a lock of black mane from her eyes. Callias gave a terrified and shrill groan of fear and backed away. res felt his heart sink, but anger rise.

"If you kill her, you kill ME, too!" he shouted at his master for the first time.

Ceyx growled. "Watch your mouth, boy. No, I don't think I will kill you. Once Callias is out of the way, you'll be more focused."

Before he realized what he was doing, Ares stomped the ground, cracking it badly. "If you kill the mare I love, you're going to have to kill me, too, because if she's gone, I'm not going to BOTHER helping you or my whore of a sister-" he pointed at Fenix. "-ANY MORE! And without me, you're frankly FUCKED, because there isn't a chance in HELL that you'll get the artifacts AND catch Icarus before you shrivel up and whither away! THEN what, Ceyx?"

Ceyx roared with anger, making the entire chamber shake.

Fenix lunged at Ares, spinning around and slamming her back hooves into him. He flew back, crashing through the stone wall and onto the bridge. He bounced and nearly rolled off. Fenix jumped up into the air and slammed down, a field of dark purple energy gathering around her body. Ares kicked upward, his hooves glowing blue, and hit her directly in the stomach, inciting a roar of pain from her. She flew up and hit the ceiling, causing a large portion of it to collapse onto the bridge. Ares narrowly avoided it as that part of the stone ceiling, and the bridge, both fell down into the darkness below. Fenix landed beside him and got up.

She had her hooves on him to strike again, before a magical aura pulled them apart and back into the chamber, past a sobbing Callias. Fenix was set down, hard, but Ares was pulled close to the fuming Ceyx, who had a look of anger plastered on his face.

"You listen, and you listen well," he said softly, but with every word dripping with venom and bitterness. Ares was only an inch from his father's ugly, sagging face. "If I do not have the remaining artifacts within one week, I will have Fenix torture Callias to death, and you WILL watch every second of it. Do you understand me?"

Ares nodded. Words could not describe the terror he was feeling, but it was overtaken by anger and intent to prove himself. He nodded savagely. Ceyx released him roughly. "Now, get out of my sight. All three of you."

Ares got to his hooves, as did Fenix.

"And I will make you regret it if you fight again," added Ceyx raspily. "Out."

Fenix humphed and trotted out faster than anyone else. Ares stopped and helped Callias up slowly.

"Come on," he whispered. "Let's go home, love, come on. It's okay," he cooed softly, lifting her up and leading her out.

Once they had exited the underground lair, Callias wrapped her forelegs around Ares and sobbed into his shoulder. He whispered comforting words to her, rubbing her back, and kissing her neck.

"I-I can't do this anymore, A-Ares..." Callias whispered shakily, sniffling loudly.

"I-I know, love... I never should have gotten you involved... It was so stupid of me, and now you're paying the price for it..." Ares said, feeling dismay rising in his chest.

"B-But I wanted to help you..."

"You wouldn't have wanted to if I hadn't filled you in. I love you so much, Callias, I don't want anything to happen..."

"Then why can't we just leave? We can g-go away from here! W-We can tell queen Alcyone about all of this!" Callias said hysterically.

"One word to the queen and your girlfriend is dead in an instant," drawled a cold voice from behind.

Ares spun around, putting Callias behind him, to be met with the icy glare of his sister, Fenix. Her black mane was slightly messy from the scuffle.

"Go away," grunted Ares coldly.

"Don't worry, I am going," hummed Fenix. "But know this: I will always be watching you. One hoof out of line, and your girlfriend will die. I'll kill her, and you'll watch the light leave her eyes. I am not intent on letting father's plan go to waste, and I will NOT let anyone ruin it."

Ares chuckled savagely. "Do you think he cares? Do you think you're daddy's little girl? What do you think he's going to do once he's back?"

"He's going to--"

"Betray you. Betray us. He's using us. Using you. You're too blind to notice because you're so intent on serving his every command."

Fenix stepped forward. "This coming from a stallion who serves only out of fear, and not any kind of loyalty. You're a coward, Ares, and you only serve him for your own personal gain," she said coldly. "Besides, if you really think this way, why did you become one of his followers?"

Ares' heart skipped a beat. The reason was not something he was proud of. He looked back at Callias and frowned, and back to the tall, white mare. "Because of something I did. I'm in our father's debt."

He turned around and began walking, pulling Callias with him. "That's all you need to know," he added as a final word.

Fenix scoffed and jumped up into the air, flying to her own home.

Written by Kerry Leventis, AKA Minimoog Voyager

Venus' Determination

After being rejected to approach Entity #413-A, the next few days had been dull for Venus. There had been no other assignments or entities to capture, so all she could do was mope around the UEIA HQ, looking for something to do. She hung out with Aqua a lot, but Aqua had been assigned to a mission and was away for the time being, leaving Venus alone again. She laid in her dorm bed, staring up at the ceiling boringly. Her dark-orchid mane was not tied up and braided as usual, instead hanging down loosely and messily.

Knock knock knock.

"Come in," sighed Venus without looking up. The familiar creek of the door, and then a deep voice.

"You've got a letter, Ven," said the voice. Venus looked up, puzzled, to see the face of her brother. A large, muscular, dark blue unicorn stallion with a long black mane. His name was Supernova. He was part of B-Team, the UEIA's best unit.

Venus took the eggshell-white envelope and ripped it open. She pulled the neatly folded piece of paper and read it over.

Dear Venus

How are you, hun? It's been a few months since we've seen you. The house has been really quiet without you. Your friends have been asking about you, and I have to tell them the same thing each time. Venus is gone to work for the UEIA and make lots of money! Haha, it's always funny to see how surprised they are!

So, your dad's condition hasn't been improving... In fact, it's been steadily decreasing... He's getting worse and worse, and I think his time is coming to an end I don't know how much longer he's going to last. The doctors tell me that if it doesn't look up within the next week, he has to spend the remainder of his life in the hospital. It's not something I'm looking forward to, but if it has to be done, then so be it...

So, how is work going? I hope you're doing well. Not getting into *too** much trouble? Haha, with you, I wouldn't be surprised, even AT work! Tell your brother I said hi, and that I think about you two every day. Remember, keep up with your work!*

- Love, mom

Venus sighed, feeling gloom rising up in his chest. Dad was slowly dying, and she wasn't there to be with him... But, it was for a good reason! The only reason she took apprenticeship and joined the UEIA was to be able to pay for her dad's medical expenses, for the money was tight at home. Supernova could only supply so much; he had a foal of his own with his fiancee and needed to support them and himself.

Venus had taken a vow to earn enough money to help their dad out, but it seemed like her time was running out much faster than anticipated, and worry was starting to overtake her confidence. Of course she wouldn't show it on the outside. She had earned a reputation for being tough, and showing any kind of softness would ruin that instantly. No matter how hard it was, she'd have to keep the emotions bottled in.

Venus only just realized she had tears in her eyes.

She wiped them away quickly and looked up at her brother. Wordlessly, she gave him the letter. He read it, his face hidden by the paper. She stepped off of her bed, rubbing the side of her head. What would she write back? She had made a lot of money, but hadn't made nearly enough to cover the medical costs. She didn't want to disappoint her mother... Maybe just a little white lie...

Venus pulled a piece of parchment from her drawer and a quill and ink pot. She set it down on the top and started writing. Her brother sighed from behind her. He put the letter down and rubbed his face, muttering something quietly.

Venus shook her head and focused on the letter.

Hi, mom, 'nova and I are doing just fine. Work is great around here, and there's always something to do - Venus scoffed when she wrote this - I've got a good load of money saved up from the work, and I'm getting closer to our goal. Tell my friends I said hi, and tell dad I love him. We love him. We'll keep in touch!

Love you, mom.

- Venus and 'nova

Venus read it over twice, before sighing and crumpling it up. She'd write it later. Right now, the mood wasn't all too warm and she had no idea how to do it. She looked at her brother.

"Hey, 'nova, I'm gonna head down to the cafeteria. Get something to eat. I'll see you around."

And without waiting for an answer, she left the room.

One Hour Later...

Venus had been sitting at a table, alone, playing with her food; hay fries and a veggie burger. She just didn't have an appetite. The thought of her dad passing away was a little too disheartening. She brushed a lock of her dark-orchid mane out of her face and sighed. She pushed her tray of food aside and stared at the table, thinking of ways to get money. Legally. She got up and walked around the cafeteria, occasionally greeting friends, but rather unenthusiastically.

All around her, ponies on break were talking; what they would do on the weekend; what had happened the previous night/day; who got hit in the face with fireworks, though none of it was really interesting. She had the displeasure of encountering a group of stallions who started hitting on her, and after they started talking about her plot out loud ("Girl, your plot is fine! I would spank and rub it all day if I could!"), Venus proceeded to kick one of them in the groin and keep walking.

She stepped out of the back door of the cafeteria and into the dark-green side-hallway, where there was nobody. Peace and quiet. Until...

"All units from B-Team, suit up and prepare for deployment! This is not a drill! I repeat, all units from B-Team, suit up and prepare for deployment! This is NOT a drill!"

Venus' head jolted up to the intercom system. B-Team had to go? But they were the strongest unit in the UEIA! Why would they be needed?

The answer his Venus instantly.

Entity #413-A.

Her intent to capture it returned as quickly as it faded in disappointment. This is her chance! It would get her mind off of things, and she'd finally be able to find the blasted fire entity.

A thought struck her: How would she get over there? She didn't know where 413-A was, and she knew for a fact that she would instantly be denied access to go; her boss had told her she wasn't allowed.

"B-Team, get your asses ready, you've got to go!"

The voice over the intercom made her panic a bit. She was going to miss out on her possibly only opportunity to capture the creature of fire that has caused so much damage. Frantically thinking up different ideas, each less possible than the last, they came by.

B-Team, dressed in heavy, dark-green suits, black masks with two deep plexiglass eyeholes, and saddlebags filled with equipment that clattered with each hoofstep, trotted quickly down the very hall Venus was standing in. As they passed (WITHOUT greeting the light-fandango colored mare), the UEIA logo; a scarlet and black shield with a black silhouette of an alicorn and the words Unnatural Entity Investigation Agency in shining gold; was visible on the sides of the suits. On the front was their white nametags.

Venus scanned the crowd trotting passed her, biting her bottom lip. Think! This is the last chance!

And then it hit her. She facehoof'd at her own stupidity. Supernova was part of B-Team. She scanned the troops, until she spotted the nametag 'Supernova' plastered on one of the suits. She waited 'til he was close enough, and then pulled him aside.

"H-Hey! What are you doing?" Supernova hissed, his deep voice muffled by the black mask.

"'nova, I need a favor," whispered Venus, bringing her mouth close to her brother's ear.

"What? Venus, I have to go, I don't have time!" Supernova said frantically, peering back at his fellow B-Teamers. Venus tsked.

"Take me with you," she said quickly. Supernova flinched.

"Uh...No?" he said, shocked.

"Look, hear me out--"

"Ven, I have to GO!"

"Hear me out!" Venus put her hooves on him to stop him leaving. "I want to go after 431-A. And you can take me."

"Hell no!" Supernova said loudly. Venus flinched and put a hoof on his masked face.

"SSSSHHH! Look, 'nova, I NEED to do this," whispered Venus.

"I'm not taking you. You're too young, and it's dangerous." Supernova said sternly, turning his back. Venus' stomach turned.

"I can use the money to help dad," she blurted out suddenly. Her brother stopped. "If I assist, my paycheck will be pretty good, right? Pretty high?"

"And they'll probably fire you," sighed Supernova, his back facing her.

"Let them." Venus said coolly. "AFTER I get the paycheck."

Supernova said nothing.

"If I can help you and the team catch this damn thing, I'll definitely have enough money to help dad, and everything will be okay! Dad'll be okay, mom'll be happy!" Venus added in, clopping her hooves on the marble floor.

Supernova turned around, looking at Venus.

"I won't do anything stupid. You can watch over me," frowned Venus. Maybe that last part wasn't wise to say. "Please."

Though Venus couldn't see his eyes through the mask, Supernova was staring at her from behind it, considering. Venus clopped her hooves together nervously.

Finally, after what felt like minutes, he said, very softly, "You do what I say. You do not leave my sight. If I tell you to stand down or desist, you stand down or desist. Do you get me?"

Venus nodded and felt her spirits life. She tried to push past him. "Let's go!"

"Venus, do you GET me?" Supernova asked seriously and sternly, stopping her. She looked at him with her magenta eyes.

"Yes, 'nova, I got you. Let's go!"

"Whoa whoa, it's not gonna be that easy," whispered Supernova. "Go get something on from your dorm and meet me at the back of the base in ten minutes. Go."

Venus had run back to her dorm, thrown on her jacket, and re-braided her hair back into a ponytail.

Ten minutes later, she had run to the back of the base. Supernova was waiting there, still in suit. He was standing beside a magic-powered, dark green carriage. He gestured her over.

"Alright," he said nervously, peering around for anyone who may be watching. "Jump in, stay low. And remember what we agreed on."

Venus nodded ecstatically and dived into the carriage. Within a minute, they had taken off into the sky. Supernova seemed very tense.

Two Hours Later...

"I repeat, all residents of Seaddle, please return to your homes immediately!"

The booming voice echoed throughout the entire city, and an eerie silence had fallen onto everyone. A warning? From who? Why? The questions were answered.

"We, the UEIA, and Princesses Celestia and Luna, oblige you to return to your homes and remain indoors until we declare it safe! There is an approaching threat that we must deal with, and all civilians must be out of harm's way!"

The group of students standing around watching the fight all had the same idea; they bolted instantly.

"Later, Cloud!" one of them called as they flew off.

Cloud gasped. "W-Wait! Hang on!"

"Your friends are abandoning you, Cloud. Shows how much they care." Icarus said loudly, turning around to walk away. Cloud growled and flew forward, landing in front of him. His white coat was stained red on his snout and chest.

"I'm not done with you," he said viciously, pain eminent in his voice.

Icarus scoffed. "Well, I'm done with you," he said bitterly, jumping up to take flight. He spread his golden wings, but was pulled back down to the ground by Cloud.

"You aren't getting away that easily!" Cloud growled. "You've had this coming for a long time, and I'm going to enjoy it!"

Wordlessly, Icarus stepped forward and headbutted Cloud in his already broken snout. Cloud shrieked in pain and fell onto his haunches, clutching his face.

"And with that," sighed Icarus. "I'm off."

He jumped up and spread his wings again, taking flight. As he flew, he spotted a pink mare on the ground running toward Icarus' house. Icarus swooped down and saw it was Sprinkle.

Hovering beside her as she ran, Icarus put a hoof on the side of his head and crossed his hind legs.

"Need a lift?"

Sprinkle jumped and stumbled in surprise. Getting up, she took one look at Icarus and gasped. Both sides of his face were bruised and his brown fur was stained red where his snout was, yet he looked positive and cheerful. He chuckled.

"Oh, no..."

"Relax, the fight went fine." he laughed, holding out a bloody hoof.

The pink mare stopped running. "That's not what I'm worried about," she said irritably. "Are you okay? Where's Cloud?"

"I'm fine. Cloud, not so sure. His snout was bleeding pretty badly."

Sprinkle facehoof'd and groaned. "Ohhh, Icarus..."

"What? It's not like anyone died!" Icarus said, shrugging.

"That's not the point! Ugh, never mind, let's just go, quick!"

The two of them made their ways back to Icarus' house. Diamond had been standing at the window, looking out for her son. She felt relief wash over her when she saw the two of them, but it was quickly replaced by alarm when she saw the blood on Icarus. She opened the door right away.

"Come on, inside!"

"Mom, do you know wh--"

"Icky, what happened?" Diamond interrupted, pulling him in with an unusual motherly strength and examining him roughly, getting a few grunts of pain in return, especially when she prodded the spot on his neck where he had gotten hit with the brick.

"AH! M-Mom, I'm okay!" Icarus grunted loudly, pulling back.

"What happened?!" Diamond asked, eying her son with concern. Icarus felt his face grow hot.

"I f-fell..."

Diamond stared at him in disbelief for what felt like minutes, before she spoke once more. "Have you been fighting?"

"No."

"Icarus."

"I haven't been fighting."

"Icarus."

"Mom, I haven't been fighting."

"Icarus!"

"What do you want me to tell you?"

"The truth."

Icarus growled softly and sighed, looking away. "I didn't start it..."

"So, you were fighting?" Diamond asked softly, though her tone revealed that she was upset.

Icarus looked back at Sprinkle, who shrugged. He groaned. "Yes."

"Son of a..." Diamond murmured, scowling. "Icarus... Dammit... You JUST had a court hearing! And you go fighting already? AGAIN?"

"Mom, I DIDN'T start it..." Icarus muttered.

"It doesn't matter if you didn't start it, you still did it!" Diamond said upsettingly, glaring daggers at him. She looked past him to Sprinkle. "Sprinkle, why didn't you stop him?"

Sprinkle went wide-eyed and opened her mouth to explain.

"No, mom," interrupted Icarus. "She tried. I flew. She had no way to stop me."

"But--"

"Mom, it was my fault, okay? Yes, I fought. Yes, Cloud will probably go whining to people now."

Diamond groaned.

"But Sprinkle isn't at fault. Leave her out of it." Icarus said seriously, wiping his face.

Diamond sighed and turned around, muttering something along the lines of 'Unbelievable' and 'Always with the fighting,' and walked into the downstairs bathroom.

Icarus glanced back at Diamond, who looked uncomfortable. She didn't make eye contact. The floor suddenly seemed very interesting to her.

Diamond peeked her head from the bathroom. "Icarus. In here. Now."

Icarus sighed and trotted into the bathroom. Diamond closed it behind him. There was a pile of wet cloth. She picked one up and told him to lean over the sink, where she started cleaning him up, saying things like 'Unbelievable, Icarus,' 'Ridiculous,' 'Childish behavior,' and 'You're better than this!'

Icarus said nothing; Diamond would only get angrier if she got a sarcastic or witty comment from him. He kept his mouth shut, listening to her angry words. After about ten minutes, they finished up, and Icarus' cheek bruise was barely visible The blood was all gone from his face and hoof. They stepped out of the bathroom, Diamond looking none-too-happy.

"Sprinkle, I'm afraid that after it's safe, you have to go home," sighed Diamond. "Icarus is grounded."

Icarus opened his mouth to argue, but groaned and shook his head. "Fine," he muttered, heading up the stairs.

One Hour Later...

A convoy of pegasi and dark-green carriages landed in a large proximity around the forest in Seaddle with a loud and ground-shaking smash. Instantly, dozens upon dozens of dark-green-suit wearing unicorn UEIA troops marched out quickly, their hoovesteps sounding like a stampede to nearby homes. The mask-muffled voices of the troops rung out all around, shouting orders and compliances, setting up barricades, and stationing troops to guard.

A little further away, another carriage landed, and out stepped another UEIA troop with then nametag 'Supernova.' He scanned left and right. The distant chatter and hoofsteps of his fellow troops were very audible, but they were out of sight.

"Okay," he said. "It's safe."

Out stepped Venus, her mane slightly tousled from the position she way laying in. She cracked a kink out of her neck. "Ouch..."

"Alright, Venus, remember. Listen to me, do what I say, and stay the hell out of sight." Supernova said nervously, looking around.

Venus looked at him. "How am I supposed to assist if I can't be seen."

Supernova shrugged. "Once we have it cornered and we're catching it, you pop in and help. They'll have no choice but to say you assisted."

Venus frowned. "So, lay low until you've got it."

Supernova nodded.

"Right... I can do that..." Venus said uncertainly. So, she wouldn't be putting forth a big effort, like she wanted...

No, that's not what was going to happen. She would catch 413-A herself. But how?

"Follow me." Supernova said, trotting closer to his fellow troops. They passed a downed tree and walked into a thicker part of the forest. The evening sunlight faltered significantly as the brush above blocked it our a fair bit, and ahead lay a dark dirt path with some downed trees. The voices and sounds grew louder. Venus payed no mind to it. She was going to run. Run toward 413-A and capture it before Supernova or any other troops caught her. She just needed a good time to run.

They stopped at a small gap between two trees, where sunlight shone through.

"Alright, you wait here," whispered Supernova. He stepped through the gap, leaving Venus alone.

Venus stood there for the longest time, wondering when she could run.

Until she realized she was alone.

Without another thought, the light-fandango mare bolted forward, running as fast as she could. She had to get as far away from them as possible, or else risk getting caught and sent back to the base and most likely fired. She ran quite a distance before the brush above thinned and more sunlight shone through.

It was only then she realized there was a hostile orange glow not too far away. This, she assumed, was 413-A. Catching her breath, Venus ran forward once more, toward the threat.

Written by Kerry Leventis, AKA Minimoog Voyager

Entity #413-A

Icarus had been up in his room for the past hour. The faint and slightly-distressed sounding chatter of Sprinkle and Diamond downstairs meant that they were talking about something serious, though he couldn't quite understand what it was. He had been laying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling, occasionally touching his bruised cheek in boredom.

Icarus was grounded, but at least he had shown Cloud not to mess with him. That was some satisfaction out of it. What would Oak think? Where was he, at that? Icarus realized he had been smirking at the though of Cloud, beaten up and bloody, and shook his mind clear of it. He focused back on his dad.

Oak didn't come to the front to see Icarus and Sprinkle when they got in, so where was he? For a split second, he thought Oak was outside, caught by whatever this threat is, and felt worry crawl up to his chest. Something bad could've happened. He could be injured, or...worse... Icarus wasn't sure he could handle that... What would he do without his dad? Would Diamond and him get along without him? How would Diamond take it? Would Uncle Aspen give them some help? It was Diamond who reeled in more income from her job as a surgeon, but Oak still had a major part in it. Icarus and Diamond loved Oak very much... If they lost him... He quickly shook the feeling off and smacked himself in the face (gently, of course). Oak would NOT want him thinking this way. He was fine. Probably went to Uncle Aspen's house, who's home was the closest to his work-place.

The worry started to melt away, as Sprinkle stepped in the room. The pink mare closed the mahogany door with a gentle 'Click,' but it merely creeped back open as it usually did. Damn door.

Icarus sat up, looking at her blankly. "So. Grounded for three months, right?"

To his surprise, Sprinkle smiled slyly. "Nope," she said, sitting at the foot of his bed.

"No?" Icarus said, eyebrows raised. "Er...why not?"

"I convinced your mom. No worries." Sprinkle said coolly, and she winked.

Icarus smiled. "Well...thanks."

Sprinkle nodded and looked at him. She put a pink hoof under his chin and lifted his face to see the extent of the damages from the fight. Nothing serious. A bruised snout and cheeks. Barely noticeable.

"Hmmm," said Sprinkle faintly. "If I knew a good healing spell, I could clear that right up."

"It's advanced magic," hummed Icarus, staring at her with his icy-blue eyes.

"Yeah, so, I don't think I can help you out this time." Sprinkle frowned, retracting her hoof.

"It's fine." Icarus waved a brown hoof reassuringly. "I'm not upset or anything. I'm actually pleased."

"Pleased?"

"Well, I'm sure Cloud's in way more shit than I am," chuckled Icarus. Sprinkle facehoof'd.

"As good as it may be, you still shouldn't have reacted to him. It was tough convincing your mom to keep you out of grounding," she explained, looking cross.

"Did you just expect me to sit there and let him insult me and my family?" Icarus asked slightly irritably. "He deserved it."

"Be that as it may," said Sprinkle, ignoring the first part. "Cloud lives for pissing you off. He WANTS you to react, and try and make himself look better."

"Yeah, he's certainly not gonna look better with a broken snout, is he?" Icarus chuckled harshly.

"That's not... Ugh, Icarus, you can't resort to violence every time someone doesn't go your way." Sprinkle said seriously. Icarus looked at her, puzzled. She was usually very hyperactive and super happy, but the past week she's been...Out of her usual character.

"Says the girl who gave someone a concussion because they made fun of her coat color." Icarus said quickly, inciting a blush out of the pink mare.

"They went way over the line--"

"If you were there, you would've seen that Cloud went way over the line, too." Icarus interrupted.

Sprinkle sighed. "Look, I'm just saying that it wasn't smart of you. You really could've gotten hurt. Or in trouble."

Icarus scoffed and turned on his haunches to look out his window. "You're sounding like my mom..."

Sprinkle blushed again. "W-Well...I--"

"Hang on," grunted Icarus, as he noticed a group of ponies flying toward the forest in the distance. It was only now he noticed an eerie orange glow from within the forest off in the distance, and an unusual number of ponies dressed in dark-green were heading into it in large groups. "Huh..."

"What is it?" Sprinkle asked, scooting up beside him to look out the window.

"What's going on...?" Icarus said softly, more focused on the sight.

"I think that's the reason we have to stay indoors." Sprinkle said worriedly. "I hope it's nothing too serious."

What could be happening? It was obviously dangerous; the UEIA wouldn't have sent everyone inside if it wasn't. But what? A number of scenarios and reasons floated through Icarus' head, sounding more and more ridiculous.

He looked down at the street outside his bedroom window. The evening sunlight cast an orange glow on the deserted area, along with the eerie light from the forest. It was an unusual sight. This was a neighborhood where one would always see kids playing, adults sitting outside watching, pegasi flying by, the occasional carriage/wagon, and an overall friendly vibe would be felt from it. Now, it was dead quiet, with the only sounds heard being the gentle breeze and the distant shouts from the ponies dressed in dark-green.

"So weird..." Icarus said slowly, focusing his attention back on the forest. "Hm...I should check it out. Could be int--AH!"

"DON'T even think about it!" The pink unicorn said sternly, after smacking Icarus on the side. "You are NOT going out there!"

Icarus, rubbing his side, grumbled. "I just want to see what it is."

"No way! I know you're okay with bending the rules, but these guys look OFFICIAL!" Sprinkle said loudly, inciting a cringe from Icarus.

"SSSHHH! Do you want my mom to hear?!" he said, putting his hoof to her mouth roughly.

"If that's what'll stop you, then yes!" Sprinkle said seriously. "You could get in a lot more trouble than just a grounding!"

"Not if I'm stealthy," said Icarus cockily.

"If they're official, they'll have gotten some training, so it's not that simple!" Sprinkle said, sounding more and more irritable. "You could get in--"

"A lot more trouble than just a grounding, yes, I know. I'll be back in a bit." Icarus said half-heartedly, opening his window as he stared into the distance.

"I-Icarus, no! I-I'll...tell your mom!" Sprinkle blurted desperately, trying to hold her friend back. She felt her stomach churning.

Icarus looked back and shrugged. "So tell her. I'll take the grounding from her," he said coolly. "I just wanna see what's up. Ten minutes, tops."

And he jumped out and took off, being sure to fly low so that nobody would see.

Sprinkle fell back onto Icarus' bed, clutching the sides of her head in fear. "Oh no...Oh no no no no..."

Venus had slowly and steadily made her way toward where Entity #413-A was, being sure to duck into cover once in a while; her brother had surely come back to see she was not there, and had come after her, so it was for the best she laid low.

The bright orange glow had gotten considerably brighter; a sign Venus assumed meant she was getting closer to her target. Not to mention the ever increasing heat. She considered sliding her jacket off and leaving it behind, but that could alert Supernova to where she went, ultimately getting her caught. She was sweating, but, with a sigh, decided to push through. In a few minutes, she'd have 413-A captured, and she could have a nice mug of cold cider back at the HQ, so everything would be fine.

Venus slid out from under a log, her dark-blue jacket caked with dirt and mud ("Son of a..." she grumbled under her breath) from laying under it. The area looked a lot more like a jungle than a forest, and felt the same way. She brushed a beetle from her dark-orchid mane and surveyed the path ahead. A few downed and charred trees lay defeated, looking gloomy. Thin wafts of smoke floated up from their remains into the air.

"Venus!"

The mare darted her head back toward the source of the voice. It was definitely her brother's. And he was yelling, which meant he was far enough from his squad mates so that they wouldn't hear him and think he was wandering off.

"Shit! Shit shit shit..." Venus muttered, running forward. She jumped over the charred trees and ducked under a halved one that had been uprooted. The branches and leaves scratched and brushed at her face, and any second a tree root threatened to trip her. It would surely sprain something.Then she would have no choice but to return home, defeated. She took this into consideration and took extra care not to trip. At one point, Venus' braided mane got caught in a branch and slowed her down with a loud 'EEP!' It took her too much time to get it uncaught, by which time she could hear her brother calling her name clearer. She bit her bottom lip and kept running, tucking her mane into the back of her jacket.

Sweat was gathered on her forehead, and her breathing was heavy. The exertion of running coupled with the heat was too much. A nice cold drink would be heavenly right about now...

As if reading her mind and deciding to be cruel, a powerful wave of intense heat swept over Venus as she jumped over a fallen tree and stopped dead in front of two crossed, charred ones, from which a bright glow emanated. She had no choice but to drop her jacket; the sweltering heat and her heavy perspiration would surely mean dehydration. She could at least delay it with less layers.

Venus dropped the dark-blue jacket onto the forest floor beneath her. Her usually well kept light-fandango coat was matted and clumped at points from the sweat. She made a mental note to take a shower when she got back, but was snatched from her thoughts from a loud hissing sound.

In front of the two crossed trees, mere meters away, stood a being composed entirely of flames. It stood tall, well over five feet, with two appendages sticking out of either side of its upper body, and two long legs. It was bipedal. It had a faceless head. The flames swirled and danced around its body, and the ground beneath was scorched black. It seemed to be standing completely still. The eerie sound of the crackling flames on its body were all that emanated, with the occasional hiss from the heat.

Venus stared at Entity #413-A standing before her.

"Theeeere you are..." she whispered, the flame creature casting a bright orange glow that clashed with her light-fandango color.

Venus started quickly contemplating ways to subdue 413-A. It would have to be magically, obviously. But, which spells did she know? What was in her ability to perform? More importantly, what would capture this creature with ease? Maybe if she knocked a few trees into it? No... That would be stupid, they would just burn... Is there any source of water? Venus surveyed the area around 413-A. The ground was scorched black and trees were charred and on fire, but there was no water. She could look for a stream and risk getting spotted by the flaming creature, or caught by her brother... What about a water spell? Venus was none-too-practiced with water spells; all she could create was a few measly drops.

All these thoughts buzzed through her head, as 413-A hissed and moved its legs. It moved slowly to a clumped patch of trees, seemingly with the intent to burn them. Venus, not thinking, dashed out from the trees. She focused with all her might on a stream of water. Her horn glowed pink, but nothing came out except the magicking sound. This alerted the creature, who spun around and stared at Venus. She froze, wide-eyed.

"I have your attention, now what do I do...?" Venus muttered ever-so softly, not moving a muscle. It's as if 413-A was waiting for a perfect moment to attack. Or...Would it? Would it attack her with its deadly and hungry flames, or simply flee?

She decided to her lift her foreleg to take a step forward. The creature remained stationary, completely still except for the dancing and weaving flames. Goddess, the heat was unbelievable... Sweat dripped down her forehead and neck, and the air was hot and dry. She lifted another hoof, stepping closer, her horn glowing.

"What am I doing?! Think, idiot! You're so close to victory OR death, THINK OF SOMETHING!"

These thoughts rung out in Venus' mind, and she felt panic start to rise in her chest. She was a mere four feet from 413-A, getting ever-closer, and she hadn't a clue what she would do. A stunning spell? That could work... Just have to focus and hope it doesn't attack first.

Venus closed her eyes and focused on the stunning spell; a novice piece of magic that knocks down the victim and sets them into a stunned trance until it wears off or the counter-spell is used. Its strength can vary from simple stunning to full unconsciousness depending on how magically powerful the unicorn casting it is.

Venus could feel the magic gathering in her horn, as the aura embracing it took on a red tint to its pink one. The feeling sent shivers up her spine; it was surreal, as though a gentle energetic pulse was being delivered to her body from that point and spread down her back. It was almost relaxing. She could see the orange glow of 413-A through her eyelids and prayed it wouldn't move or do anything.

When all the magic had gathered (the process had taken about three seconds), her magical aura glowed red. She took a nervous breath and opened her eyes. Now was the time.

SWASH!

A bright flash of red with a loud reverberating sound blasted through the silence from Venus' horn. The jet of bright red hit 413-A. Or so she thought. It had gone through its body as if nothing were there. The moment the spelled passed through, the flame creature let off an ear-splitting hissing-screech of anger and lurched forward, its body losing shape as it went straight at the unicorn in front of it.

Venus only barely realized what it had done and narrowly rolled out of the way. She felt the intense, blistering heat singe part of her coat, a mere centimeters away, and let out a cry of shock as she stumbled, leaving herself open for another attack. 413-A took this advantage and screeched again before lurching at Venus once more. She was better prepared and jumped back. The creature hit the ground a foot away from her, sending a small shockwave of fire and sparks in all directions. The mare shielded her face and turn on her hooves, and broke into a sprint. She needed to get some distance if she wanted to go onto the offensive.

Venus ran faster than she thought she could, driven by the aggressive screeches of 413-A pursuing her. She heard a whooshing sound, felt a searing pain on the outside of her left ear, and saw a bright flash of orange narrowly pass her head and momentarily cloud her left eye. A fireball exploded a short distance in front of her, throwing up a cloud of smoke that stung her eyes as she passed through. She put all her energy into running.

Icarus had landed behind a vacant wagon, hiding him from view of the UEIA troops stationed around the forest. He crouched down to be sure he was unseen, and peered through one of the wheels. They were positioned every few meters apart from each other. Smart.

"Now, let's see..." Icarus muttered, scanning the area around him, looking for some kind of opening. Anything that would allow him entrance. Sure that they weren't looking directly his way, Icarus bolted from behind the wagon and into the alley to his right and to the narrow end of it to get a better view of that side. He peeked around the stone corner of the dark alley and spotted one of the troops throwing a rock in the air and catching it out of boredom.

Icarus sprouted the idea of leading the troop over into the alley and knocking him unconscious, but that was a horrible idea. Like Sprinkle said, they'd ought to have had some training, and would be able to dispose of Icarus easily... It would be quick and efficient.

But...they wouldn't kill a civilian, would they? Not like Icarus would KILL him, only incapacitate him! The worst they would do is escort him home. Home, to a very infuriated Diamond and Oak, and--

"Stop that." Icarus muttered harshly to himself. "You're making yourself nervous."

He took a deep breath and decided to go for it. The odds looked pretty good, anyway. Caught? Sent home. Succeed? Find out what's up. He looked back at the steel garbage cans, neatly piled, stacked, and balanced, and quietly trotted toward them. Turning 180 degrees, Icarus delivered a hard, swift bucking kick to the cans, and the result was much bigger than expected.

With a huge clanging crash, the metallic cans fell and impacted off each other, the alley wall, the ground, and the decaying emerald-green dumpster.

The UEIA troop's head darted up toward the alley. From his point of view, he could see nothing but the far dark wall, until one of the fallen cans rolled from the corner and into sight.

Icarus flew up to a balcony ("Shit, please let the windows have curtains...") and landed with a gentle 'Clunk,' and huddled down on the far side of it, away from the corner.

The UEIA troop shrugged and waved over to a troop on the far left of him, who nodded. The troop trotted coolly toward the alley and entered, suddenly cloaked in darkness. He lifted his black mask to see easier and turned the corner to see the pile of fallen metal cans.

CRACK!

The troop fell limply as Icarus jumped down from the balcony and planted his hoof into the back of his target's skull, and the momentum gave him enough force to knock him unconscious. He landed with a dull thud on the hard concrete.

Icarus looked down with a grim smile of satisfaction, before it faltered. The reality of what he had done just set in. He just attacked an official! He would surely be in trouble! Oh, no... What would happen? Would they send him to prison? Maybe there were a few harsher ones who would happily kill Icarus. Oh, Celestia, he had to run!

But, wait... Nobody would know, right? Not like anypony was watching! And now he was wasting precious time. Every second passed would make the fellow troops more and more suspicious until they finally came to search for their missing ally.

Icarus had to act now. He stepped over to the exit of the alley and craned his neck around the corner. The troops weren't looking in his direction. Now was the time.

In a blur of brown and gold, Icarus propelled himself forward with his wings and into the unguarded area of the forest edge, entering successfully and spinning 'round behind a tree. He waited and listened, half-expecting to hear approaching hoofsteps, or the angry shout of a troop, but they did not come. Icarus sighed and, taking one last cautionary glance back, booked forward deep into the forest.

Icarus ran for a short distance, glancing up at the orange glow not-too-far away as he did. It was getting strangely hotter, and the air was very dry. There was a sudden movement very close to him, and, thinking he was caught, stumbled and rolled, sending a cloud of dirt jumping into the air.

Icarus hopped up to his hooves and looked back in a ready stance, his heart up to his throat, to see nothing more than a bunny scurrying away in fear. Facehoofing, panting, and sweating, Icarus turned back to his destination and continued running.

The heat was so intense, Icarus felt as though he was in a sauna. The humidity was prickling at his skin straight through his coat, and there were several times when he had to stop to take in large gulps of hot, stale air, before continuing on.

Before long, Icarus could hear a distant whooshing sound and several energetic cracks; magic spells being fired off. Thinking he was being pursued, Icarus turned sharply to his left, using his golden wings to balance himself out, and pressed himself hard against a tree. He slowly peered his head around the tree and looked back to see an empty path. Nopony was following him. He breathed a sigh of relief and stepped out from the tree.

With a sharp whistle and a bright flash of orange, followed by a loud 'THUMP,' something zipped past the opening to a field a few meters ahead. The impact of whatever it was made Icarus jump and his heart skip a beat. The whooshing sound was getting louder, and so were the frequent magical crackles. Something was approaching quickly.

Another fireball barely missed Venus' head; the size of the deadly orb was as big as her body, and zipped past her, exploding violently in a cascade of fire and smoke far up ahead. The unicorn craned her head back without wasting time and fired a volley of weak, red stunning spells. They all simply went through the fiery monster that pursued her without so much as a making it flinch. With a cry of alert, Venus pressed forward, pushing her legs to their limits.

Venus was making good distance, slowly pulling ahead of 413-A. She desperately fired back stunning spells, but to no avail. The entity merely screeched angrily and its pursuit never faltered.

As she turned her head back once more, Venus' hoof impacted with a pointed rock jutting up from the forest floor. The momentum, combined with the speed Venus was running at and the angle her hoof met the rock with, caused her to tumble over in a cloud of dirt and dust. She hit the dry forest floor face first with a loud and hard thump, and rolled. She let out a generous cry as she felt the shock of pain course through her snout and jaw like an electric current. Stars floated into her eyesight and the world spun around her.

The dazed Venus felt the heat intensifying to an unbearable degree, and the orange glow that surrounded her became ever brighter. Too dazed to think, she lifted her head and turned around, and there stood Entity #413-A, poised to strike.

Icarus stepped forward cautiously toward the opening to the small field where the orb of orange had passed, the near-blistering heat shoved aside by his curiosity. The glow was unbelievably bright overtop the trees, and the crackling and whooshing sound was so loud, it was as though the source of it was mere feet away. No,w Icarus could hear audible running hoofsteps, panting, and one last magical spell being cast.

A loud, echoing cry of obvious pain pierced straight through the crackling and whooshing sounds and entered Icarus' ears a second later. Without thinking, he lurched forward in a blur, his wings propelling him forward, out into the field.

Icarus turned, flooded in a bright orange glow, and yelled out in surprise at what he saw.

A giant, flaming, bipedal creature, at least eleven or twelve feet tall, stood meters away, the flames that composed its body dancing and licking at the ground. Cowering under it was a dazed looking mare with a coat the color of light-fandango and a mane, braided and tied into a ponytail, the color of dark-orchid. The beast towered over her, raising a fiery arm upwards, ready to strike.

Acting on pure impulse, Icarus shouted, "HEY!" at the top of his lungs. The fiery creature stopped its movement, and a terrifying silence lingered in the air for a moment, before the creature retracted its arm in a blur of orange.

With a deafening, hissing screech, the creature swooped forward, the crackling sound growing stronger. Icarus cried out in shock and only very narrowly ducked out of the way. He felt blistering heat pass over his body, and, without a second thought, jumped forward, flapping his wings frantically, toward the helpless mare, still sitting on the ground. Icarus heard another screech from not-too-far behind him. He reached out his hooves quickly, and slid them around the mare's midsection. He picked her up easily, inciting a startled gasp from her as he flew forward in a blur.

"Hey!" the mare blurted in surprise, squirming hard. She almost slipped from Icarus' grasp, who gasped and grunted.

"STOP! I almost dropped you!" Icarus growled angrily, panting frantically and flapping his wings hard.

"Sorry, but it's not every day I'm picked up by a pegasus while being chased by a FIRE MONSTER!" she shouted aggressively.

"Did you just expect me to leave you!?" Icarus asked loudly, the terror and shock in his voice very audible. He peered back just as a fireball zipped over him. "SHIT!"

"I don't need your help!" the mare replied. "I'm perfectly capable of--WATCH IT! Of taking care of myself!"

Icarus zipped back and forth in a bee-line, narrowly avoiding the relentless attacks from the pursuing monster behind them. His panting was a sure sign of his increasing exhaustion. The intense heat, combined with carrying the mare and flying as fast as possible was taking a toll on Icarus. He felt the muscles in his forelegs starting to burn, and his lungs felt as though they were on fire. His heart raced steadily. "My plot!" Icarus growled to the mare. "That thing was about to fry you right there!"

"I only tripped!" the mare growled back at Icarus shrilly. She looked back to see the creature only feet away and getting ever closer. "FLY FASTER!" she screamed in a panicked tone, curling her tail up in fear.

"I'M TRYING!" Icarus screamed back, almost dropping her again as another fireball narrowly missed his head.

The mare looked back and fired several desperate jets of red from her horn, with no effect whatsoever. The creature simply screeched loudly and blasted forward a wave of hot flames.

"LOOK OUT!" she screeched, squirming in terror as the approaching death caught up fast.

Icarus descended uncomfortably fast; both screamed as the ground seemed to jump up at them, but they neither slammed into the earth nor did they burn up from the unlifting attack. He flew close to the ground just as the menacing glow that illuminated the ground increased and decreased within a second. The creature missed by a few feet. Another screech signaled its next attack. Icarus gasped and, with a groan of effort, pulled up sharply. He heard the impact of the flames against the area he was just seconds ago flying in, and silently thanked Celestia and Luna for the narrow avoidance of death once again.

"Get behind cover!" the mare screeched again. "Get behind cover NOW!"

"WHAT COVER!? Everything here can be set on fi--AUUUGHH!" Icarus screamed out as a searing fireball hit him square in the middle of his golden wings, and they gave way. Icarus and the mare helplessly plummeted toward the ground. "No, no, no, NO, NO, NO! COME OOOOON!" he screamed as they descended toward the ground very quickly. He weakly extended his wings, and they miraculously glided forward, just lightly scraping the ground as they passed over. Icarus turned to the right without a second thought, and flew straight into the branches of a tree, cracking a few of them down to the ground and earning a bunch of cuts and scrapes as they did. They finally stopped next to the center of the tree, perched high above on a thick branch.

Icarus pushed himself up with his aching forelegs, laying directly on top of the mare, his front hooves on either side of her shoulders. He now noticed, up-close, that she was rather beautiful. Yes, her light-fandango coat was matted with sweat and dirt, and her dark-orchid mane was messy, and she had a painful looking, bloodied bruise, and a bleeding snout, but her magenta eyes sparkled up at him; she looked so pretty and innocent.

Icarus felt his face grow hot as he realized the position he was in. Without thinking, he blurted out breathlessly, "I'm Icarus."

The mare looked startled, but slowly replied, "I-I'm Venus."

Icarus noticed the orange glow intensifying at the corner of his eye, and he said, in a panicky tone, "Hi, Venus. Let's get out of this tree before we burn to death!"

And with that, he rolled off the branch, pulling Venus down with him ("AAAHH!"), and none too late, either; the entire top of the tree was consumed by flames half-a-second later. Icarus spread his wings to take flight, but did so too late and slammed into the ground face-down. Venus landed on him, and he felt something in his lower chest crack, followed by a feeling as though someone inserted a spinning blade into his sides. He felt his energy drain out of his tired body instantly, and his breath became shorter and shorter. The pain was so powerful that Icarus' vision started to fade. He felt as though he was weightless. The roar of the flames and the screaming of Venus all started to sound more muffled and distant every second. He felt his eyelids close.

"GET UP!" Icarus heard Venus' voice say faintly, echoing all around him but barely understandable.

He was in a tall, circular dark room made of large moss clumped, dark-green stone bricks, on a cold, hard stone throne that was badly decaying. The room smelled awful, a sickly sweet aroma that would make anypony gag. From his point of view, a large, square door frame could be seen, and to the left of the door, a large hole in the wall. Further, what looked like a bridge with no hoofrails connected the floor to the other side. In front of him were two figures, one small and quivering, the other tall and still, standing further back. Both were cloaked in shadow and weren't distinguishable. The quivering figure was sobbing. He felt extremely furious, but slightly amused, as well.

"M-Master, please, I-I beg of you, give me one last ch-chance!" he sobbed, his voice quivering in fear.

And then, Icarus felt his mouth open, and heard himself hiss in a very raspy, rusty, and weak voice, "I have given you enough chances, Leos, and you have failed me yet again."

"I'm sorry, I r-really am!" Leos said pleadingly, his front hooves pressed together. "B-But you must understand, Ma-Master, that the artifact w-wasn't there!"

"You lie." Icarus heard himself hiss harshly, but with a rather amused air to it.

"No!" Leos blurted out loudly. "I am not lying, I-I swear it! I-I search t-the entire ch-chapel and found nothing!"

"Then why do you return to me," rasped Icarus, "empty hoofed? Why did you not simply search elsewhere? If I recall correctly, you promised me you would have found the artifact, did you not?"

"M-Master, you were the one who told me where to go!" Leos cried. "You told me to search exactly there, i-in the chapel!"

The pony standing further back gave an audible scoff.

Icarus felt anger pulse up in his chest. "Are you implying that it is my fault? That I made a mistake?" he rasped menacingly, leaning forward slightly.

"N-N--O-Of course not, M-Master! Why would I-I ever--"

"Pathetic," scoffed the pony further back, evidently a mare.

"It is not my fault that you failed to find the artifact." Icarus heard himself wheeze, glaring. "I gave you instructions. You failed to follow them, as you have one too many times, Leos."

"I know, M-Master, my apologies, M-Master." Leos spoke quickly, his voice and body shaking. "I swear t-to you, if you g-give me one last chance, and more time, I will not fail you! I-I will prove I can be as g-good a servant as Ares!"

"I have told Ares the same thing, Leos," rasped Icarus warningly, irritation in his voice. "Time is not a luxury we have. Every day I grow weaker, and if I do not have the three remaining artifacts soon, I will die. And if I give you another chance, you will simply fail me again. I can already foresee it."

"I will not fail you, Master! I-I will not!" Leos shrieked desperately, sitting on his rump and holding his front hooves together in a praying fashion. "I will--I will have the remaining three artifacts for you, I promise!"

The mare standing back giggled harshly and quietly. Icarus felt a burst of satisfaction. He chuckled wheezily.

"You overestimate yourself, Leos," he rasped coldly.

Leos nodded his head in shame. "Y-Yes, I suppose I do..."

"You think yourself so capable of achieving goals that are far beyond your ability." Icarus rasped, feeling more and more satisfied every second.

"Y-Yes, M-Master, it is true..."

"But this is ludicrous, even for you." Icarus chuckled cruelly, his anger and satisfaction intertwined horribly.

Leos said nothing, staring at the floor and trembling in fear. His lower lip was twitching. Icarus couldn't see the mare's face, but he could tell she had a cruel grin on her face. He could see the distinct outline of a long mane.

Icarus also stayed quiet. He sat back against the cold stone throne, surveying the quivering stallion in front of him. How he would love to just kill him, to end his life now. To strike him and hurt him. But, he sadly was not strong enough to do so.

"What do you have to say for yourself, Leos?" he asked wheezily after a few long moments.

Leos looked up mournfully, terror and dread in his eyes. "I-I have nothing I can say to redeem myself, M-Master... I only beg you to give me one final chance. I will not fail you. I can assure you. If I do, you can kill me in the most painful way imaginable and flesh it out for as long as you can. I promise you, I shall not fail you. I swear on my life. My allegiance will not die."

Icarus felt immense satisfaction, and even slight pity. His lips curled into a horrible grin. "What say you, Fenix?"

The mare standing further back, Fenix, tilted her head slightly. "I don't think you should concede, Master. He will not succeed. I know it."

Icarus stared at her, and then at Leos, back to Fenix, and then back at Leos. He smiled evilly. "Very well, Leos. I will grant you one final chance."

Leos looked up instantly and exhaled shakily. "T-Thank you, M-Master, thank you! I will not fail, I promise! You will have the final three artifacts, I--"

"But, a punishment is in order. I think a dose of pain will do. Leos, what you are about to feel is only a fraction of what will happen to you if you come back empty hoofed again."

A tense silence followed. It was broken by Leos' cry of pure agony. He fell to the dirty floor, screaming and thrashing violently, his voice echoing throughout the room here and out there. Fenix giggled harshly, watching intently, as her ally suffered.

The screams started to sound distant and muffled, and it's as though Icarus' sight was creeping away from him. Everything went dark and he felt no more.

He woke up to screaming and shouting, and a crippling pain in his chest. He opened his eyes and saw frantic blurs, flashes of light, a bright orange glow.

"STAND DOWN, INSIGNIA IS DEAD, YOU CAN'T SAVE HIM, YOU IDIOT!" a muffled voice screamed loudly somewhere nearby.

Icarus heared a fiery screech and roar, and the orange glow started to diminish.

"IT'S RETREATING, KEEP IT UP! VENUS, GET YOUR ASS BACK!"

Icarus turned his head to see a light-fandango blur being roughly shoved back. The blur stumbled and landed beside Icarus, and he saw, more clearly, that it was Venus, looking terrified. She panted heavily, the bruise on her face dripping blood down to her chin. Icarus felt someone roughly snatch him up, and saw the scenery in a blur moving past him. Time seemed to fly as the heat and stale air from earlier lessen as they moved further and further away. The air became cooler and the heat practically disappeared. Icarus only vaguely heard a frantic discussion next to him, and a voice, directly addressing him, asked, "Where do you live?"

Icarus answered the pony's question drowsily, his vision too blurred and his speech slightly slurred. The discussion continued for another few minutes, but Icarus never heard the end of it. He felt his eyelids grow heavy once more. They closed, and he was embraced by unconsciousness.

"Now, get out of my sight, Leos, and do not come back until you have the artifacts." Ceyx rasped harshly at the convulsing figure of Leos on the cold, hard ground. "Or else."

Leos, trembling violently and twitching, tried to get to his hooves, but found himself jelly-legged and unable to stand. He tried, and fell back onto his side, panting and whimpering. The white mare in the corner cackled loudly, slapping the ground. "Look at him!"

Ceyx himself chuckled, smiling horribly. "See him out, would you, Fenix?"

Fenix nodded, laughing. She stepped over to the agonized Leos and lifted him up roughly with her wing. She guided him out of the room. Minutes later, she trotted back in.

"Thank you." Ceyx rasped softly as she entered.

"Master," Fenix said softly. "May I ask you something?"

"You may."

"Why did you concede to this? Leos will only fail." Fenix said earnestly, frowning.

Ceyx sighed, grumbling softly. "I know this, Fenix. It knew it from the moment I agreed to let him search for the artifacts. Leos thinks too highly of himself, and tries to set out to accomplish goals that he constantly underestimates."

"Exactly." Fenix nodded. "I mean no offense or insult, but do you think it, maybe...unwise...to allow this?" Fenix said this very delicately and in a small voice for fear of an outburst from Ceyx. To her surprise, however, Ceyx hummed.

"It is very unwise, my dear, but I do not have many options." Ceyx said serenely. "While you would be a good servant to set out and retrieve, I also need you hear to tend to me. I am too weak on my own."

Fenix nodded. "Of course, Master, I understand."

"As I told Leos, I grow weaker every day, and I will die shortly if I do not have the final three artifacts. While Leos may not be the wisest choice to search for them, he is one of the only options, and I must take what I can." Ceyx explained calmly, surveying his daughter with mild interest.

"I understand." Fenix said softly. "I am honored that you choose me to tend to you, Master."

"You are easily my most powerful and important servant, Fenix." Ceyx rasped seriously. "Without you, I would not be alive. You are one of the only ponies in existence who I owe my life to, and you will be greatly rewarded once I am returned to power."

Fenix felt the joy nearly explode inside her. A giant smile creeped on her face, and she threatened to laugh in happiness, but tried hard to fight it. She cleared her throat. "Thank you, Master, I am honored beyond believed."

"You have no need to thank me, Fenix. Now, I wish to be alone. I will call you back if I need you." Ceyx wheezed, gesturing to the door with a rotten-looking hoof. Fenix bowed and stepped out.

Written by Kerry Leventis, AKA Minimoog Voyager