Fraternitatis

Prologue

The bitter chill of the European winter coupled with high altitude was a fearful combination. Snow fell in abundance in all directions as winter's icy grip made it's presence known in the European Alps. In the higher regions of these mountains, stood a house built from only the finest marble and timbers. The original builder of this home had spared no expense in defying nature and putting his grand masterpiece right where he wanted. What might seem strange to any onlooker was that the house was completely unaffected by the erosion of the harsh climate. It stood as pristine as the day it had been completed. This dwelling was protected by powerful magic. Upon entering the manor, one could see exquisite taste had gone into it's construction. Sculptures of marble and paintings adorned the walls. Suits of armour from centuries gone by stood ever watchful at various doorways. The main entrance hall was dominated by a spectacular staircase that framed the entrance in perfect symmetry. Anyone who entered this house would have thought that it was the secret getaway of Bill Gates or European royalty. But this couldn't have been further from the truth. As the sun's weak rays began to pierce the icy environment outside and stream in through the windows, a young man in his early twenties and sporting an old, worn dressing gown strode purposefully across the entrance hall and into an adjoining corridor lined with a luxurious red carpet. He stood at average height and his physique showed that he wasn't used to manual labour. His piercing blue eyes were framed by his bright blond hair, giving him a distinctive Aryan appearance. Yawning slightly, he walked down the corridor and stopped when he entered the kitchen at the other end. In the kitchen stood another, younger man in his mid teens. He slouched in his chair at the kitchen table cupping a mug of steaming coffee between his hands, attempting to fight off the cold. His face was one of weariness, with deep frown lines etched into his forehead and dark purple shadows under his eyes. His light brown hair was a mess, sticking up at odd angles and giving off the general impression of disorganisation. As the first man entered the kitchen, he gave the younger man a soft grunt of recognition as he headed straight for the coffee machine on the kitchen bench. The tired-looking youth at the table gave a small smirk of mischief when he heard the slightly frustrated groan of the older man from behind him when he realised that the coffee machine was empty. He smirked a little more when a second groan, more exasperated than the last sounded as the older man found that there was no coffee in the pantry either.

"Seriously, Thomas? You drank all the coffee again?" sighed the blond in a thick German accent. "You were up all night going over those molecular transference books, weren't you? I told you not to do that! You know how fixated you get!" he growled, his frustration deepening as he realised that he was not going to have his morning coffee today.

"Hehehe....sorry Erik....but if it makes you feel any better, I know I'm close to a breakthrough this time!" responded the teenager with a distinctively English accent that shifted from a formal RP to a cockney as he took a particularly loud sip from his mug, as if to emphasise that he had coffee, while the other man did not. Erik simply face-palmed, his sluggish movements now amplified with the denial of much-needed caffeine.

"C'mon, Thomas! I keep telling you, that kind of transfer just isn't possible!" he sighed in exasperation, lecturing the younger boy as if he were scolding a small child that believed he could fly. The younger man responded with a look of resolute defiance in his eyes, despite the tiredness he felt.

"Master told us that anything is possible, you just have to find the way to get it done!" he stated, earning another groan from Erik.

"That old man is long gone, brother. If he were as wise as he claimed to be, then don't you think he would have had the foresight to avoid what happened to him?" This argument rolled off of their tongues, as if they had had this conversation thousands of times.

"He's not dead! He would have survived somehow! I just know it!" denied Thomas, his jaw set with determination and his gaze stern. Erik sighed again as he massaged his temples.

"I'm not going to even try arguing with you today..." he sighed as he shuffled out of the kitchen, back across the entrance hall and into the library at the other end. The library was vast and contained volume after volume of ancient and dusty tomes, each one a treasure trove of mystical knowledge. Large scrolls of ancient parchment adorned the walls, showing off the ancient texts they contained. Rows upon rows of shelves that stretched from the floor to the ceiling and crafted of only the finest timber made up the library. In the centre of the room was a large reading table constructed out of a rare wood found only South America. Upon it was another, older man pouring himself over the mountains of books and scrolls that hid his face from view. Erik shook his head.

"Studying at god-knows what hour, as usual..." he mused. The table was covered in piles of tomes that towered up to nearly a metre high, each one precariously balanced on the other.

"What is it?" grunted a slightly irritable voice from behind the stacks of knowledge. "I'm busy, go away, Erik." said the man in an much more nasal accent than the other two inhabitants of the house. Erik however, did not heed the older man's words.

"Thomas drank all the coffee again.....you're the expert on conjuration, can't you help?" pleaded the blond man, his shoulders sagging. The other man sighed in frustration as he put down his book and stood up from the table, revealing his features. He stood at least six foot tall and had a slightly muscular physique. His frame was clad in the dark robes of a wizardly scholar, lined with patterns of silver and sporting wide sleeves and a drawn back hood. His face was slightly more angular than the younger man before him, his thin jaw lined with short black facial hair that framed his face sporting an expression of boredom and exasperation. He looked to be in his mid twenties, though his intellect and world weariness far exceeded his peers. His normally bright green eyes darkened with his mood and his black hair hanging in bangs, further framing his features.

"Come on, Jules! It takes you five seconds!" pleaded Erik.

"I told you to stop calling me that, Erik. My name's Julius." he grunted. Julius sighed again, before speaking once more. "Alright. Hold out your hand." he commanded, flexing his fingers as he prepared himself. Erik gladly held out his right hand, thanking the older scholar as he accepted the coffee beans that appeared out of nowhere, blossoming into existence in his palm.

"There, now leave me be." snapped Julius, giving Erik a dismissive wave of his hand. Erik was about to retort, but his train of thought was interrupted when Thomas bounded into the library, still in his singlet top and boxer shorts.

"I think I’ve got it! I know I have!" he said triumphantly. Both of the other men present groaned in annoyance. Ever since the three students of magic had lost their master, Thomas had been determined to find a way to bring him back from wherever he had disappeared. That was over three years ago. Ever since their master's disappearance, each of the three former pupils had gone their own way in studying the mysteries and intricacies of magic and it's arts. While different in appearance, speech and manner, the three young men had formed a relationship of brotherhood, and  lived together as if they were indeed brothers. Erik had pursued the discipline of the softer side of the magical arts, preferring to delve into illusion and powers of the mind. He hated the idea of violence, but that wasn't to say that he didn't know how to handle himself should the need arise. He held a deep curiosity for the unknown, and constantly sought to explain things. He was a man of science and research as well as a scholar of magic. Thomas, who had been merely thirteen at the time of his master's disappearance had chosen the headstrong and brash path of battle magic. Despite his normally childish and immature demeanour, he was a prodigy in manipulating the elements to his will and the art of combat. On more than one occasion, the other brothers had to clean up scorch marks and prevent spontaneous bolts of lightning from destroying the house. Thomas was young and inexperienced. What he made up for in pure talent, he lacked in restraint and control. His only other studies were of figuring how to return their missing master. He had poured himself into his studies and tried his hardest to master the art of magical travel and movement. Julius, the oldest of the three, had almost completed his training under the master's tutelage three years ago. Since then he had silently confined himself to the library and the training hall, rigorously pushing himself to new limits. He never seemed to stick to one specific area of magic, having trained for longer than either of the other two men, he seemed to branch off into all fields of the arts. This was quite a feat, seeing as most wizards (though, there weren't many in the first place) preferred to specialise in one or two areas. Julius was a prodigy of untold potential, his skills had never been fully shown to his peers, and for that reason, they kept a fairly respectable attitude toward him. They listened to his council and opinions. They never tried to make him furious for any reason, not knowing the exact depths of his abilities. This arrangement suited Julius just fine, as it allowed him to spend his time doing what he liked the most, studying and further expanding his skills. Apart from their fierce brotherhood that they had developed over time, it was apparent that none of the brothers had much in common, except for the way in which they had been chosen to study magic. All three had been uniquely gifted in magic at birth, and all three were orphans that their former master had taken under his care, seeing their potential. They had spent their childhoods in this house, forbidden to leave the confines of the estate, having been magically tied to the land and physically unable to leave. Not that their childhood was a bad one, no. They had been properly cared for and raised with morals and responsibility. Their master had been as much as a mentor as a father to them in every respect. They all loved him (though at times, they would deny it) and they all missed him for more reasons than any child would miss their father. They needed to complete their training in order to leave the house and go out on their own into the wide world. They had pledged their loyalty and allegiance to their master, and they were bound by a magical vow to fulfill that promise. As a result of their master's absence, they were stuck in a loophole. If their master did not return and finish their tutelage, they were magically bound to this place indefinitely. Erik had simply given up on any return of their master and adoptive father, and had simply resigned himself to his own works. He hated being cooped up here in the Alps, but he had accepted long ago that he was here to stay. Thomas, on the other hand, seemed to come up with a new “fail-safe” scheme every week.

“Hey, don't give me that look, Erik! I really have it this time! I know what I did wrong!” he exclaimed, as he rushed over to the study table and pulled a book out of the middle of one of the towering stacks, not caring that the rest of the stack toppled in a heap and earning an annoyed glare from Julius. Thomas opened the volume and flipped through the pages feverishly until he came across what he was searching for.

“Hah, Eureka!” he exclaimed triumphantly, pointing out a passage in a book entitled Nordic Runes of the 8th Century Volume IX. “I mistranslated a couple runes last time!” he announced, almost shoving the old book up Erik's nose in his eagerness to show him what he had found.

“Thomas, this says that these rituals are incomplete.....of course their not going to work.” sighed Erik, feeling a stress-induced headache coming on.

“I improvised, ok? I can't take everything in the book as the word of God!” argued Thomas.

“No. They are precise instructions that have been carefully constructed by wizards that were much cleverer and more experienced that you. The fact that they don't work means that they are incomplete. Just face it, Tom.” countered Erik, shoving the book out of his face and back to Thomas.

“You'll see!” he grinned in return, choosing to ignore his older brother's advice. Julius didn't say anything. He simply sat back from his studies and observed the younger brothers bickering. He had no patience for their arguments, so he chose to either ignore them or quietly observe, rather than make his own points. He knew that both of them were wrong, but he chose not to correct them. It wasn't his place, he was no master, and he didn't pretend to be; despite their clear dire need for close and watchful teaching. He sighed again as he bent down below the table and opened a compartment on the underside, retrieving some chalk and handing it to Thomas' eager hands.

“Do you really have to encourage him?” asked Erik incredulously as the chalk was passed into Tom's hands.

“I have no part in this. I just don't want him messing up my carefully prepared notes...” said Julius flatly, indicating to the mess of loose leaf pages scattered around the desk. Erik huffed in annoyance as he resigned to one of the couches in the corner as he watched the enthusiastic teen trace a ritual circle adorned with ancient Nordic Runes on the wooden floor with the chalk.

“Try not to fall asleep this time, at least, will you?” drawled Erik, earning a sheepish look from Thomas accompanied by a blush on his face. The last time Tom had attempted a ritual of this nature, he had sat in a meditative pose in the circle for three hours before dozing off and falling asleep, the lack of actual magic happening boring him.

“Don't worry, I have plenty of energy from all that coffee this time!” he replied, grinning from ear to ear. Erik returned his grin with a scowl, being reminded of his lack of morning coffee irritating him.

“Alright-y” he said cheerfully, sitting down cross-legged in the middle of the circle. He calmed his nerves and slowed his breathing, closing his eyes and furrowing his brow in concentration. He sat there for a good ten minutes while the other two brothers looked on with a sense of general disinterest.

“I give it another ten minutes before he falls asleep again.” said Erik, breaking the silence

“Five.” replied Julius, finally giving into Erik and Tom's childish games for once.

“You're on.” declared Erik, checking his watch.

“Will you guys shut up?! I'm trying to concentrate!” snapped Thomas, his eyes opening and frowning in irritation.

“Oh, come on, Tom, we have to entertain ourselves somehow. It's not like you're gonna magically make our master appear in front of us like nothing's happened. For all we know, he could be dead by now!” he snapped back, giving in to his irritation.

“SHUT UP!” yelled Thomas, his grief rising to the surface. Thomas had always had a short fuse, but this time he was exceptionally pissed off. He was tired of the way Erik had simply given up on their master and sat contently on the couch, more concerned about what he was going to have for lunch than reuniting with their stolen master and finishing their studies under his guide. Tears welled up in his eyes, overflowing down his cheeks with one dropping from his face and onto the floor. Suddenly, Julius' attention was focused. It seemed like it was all happening in slow motion, as if caught on film by a high-speed camera. Thomas was glaring daggers at Erik while a tear fell from his face and onto the floor. The second that tear hit the floor, the runes and the ritual circle blazed in a brilliant blue light, burning the image onto Julius' retinas, causing him to shield his eyes while his hearing picked up the surprised yelps of both Erik and Thomas. A roaring sound like rushing wind in a blizzard filled the room and accompanied the bright light of the ritual circle. The noise was deafening, matching the intensity of the light with an equal measure of sound. As quickly as it had begun, it was all over. The light faded and the noise subsided, leaving the ritual circle empty of it's previous inhabitant. The runes on the outside of the circle still glowed a faint blue hue that shimmered and sparkled with mystical energy as the effects of the ritual faded, like dying embers in a fireplace. It took a little over five seconds for the shock to settle in and for Erik to spring out of his chair and over to the circle.

“Scheiße!” he cursed in his native tongue, his fear and dread taking hold as he realised just what Thomas had done. Erik frantically tried to reactivate the circle, but the ritual had only enough magical energy for one use, and the runes consequently shattered and broke apart as their function had been fulfilled. “Scheiße!!” he cursed again, realising that he had little chance of repeating the exact same ritual. Thomas had successfully completed a trans-dimensional portal ritual, but they had no idea where he would have ended up or even if he was still alive. He could have teleported twenty miles under an ocean, or in the middle of a star, or even into the void itself! “Thomas.....” Erik muttered in disbelief. “Thomas...” he said again, as if saying his adoptive brother's name would bring him back to his side. “THOMAS!!!” he wailed, tears streaming down his face as his knees gave out and he fell onto all fours in despair. “THOMAAAAAAASSSS!!!” he screamed, his sanity taking a serious blow as the very real possibility of losing his brother for good sailed it's way through his consciousness. His bloodshot eyes turned to Julius, who was still staring slightly open-mouthed at the used-up ritual circle.

“Julius! DO SOMETHING!” He screamed, his normally calm composure shattered. Julius quickly got up rather stiffly, his left leg asleep from sitting at the table for so long. He hobbled over to the spent ritual and let his consciousness stretch out and analyse the tattered remains of the ritual. All magic leaves a trace in it's wake, and this ritual was no exception. Julius was well-versed in reverse-engineering a multitude of spells, illusions and rituals, but this was something he had never come across in his studies. He frowned in frustration as he realised that it could take a considerable amount of time before he fully understood just how to compose the exact same ritual down to the very last detail. The fact that the ritual was in fragments, rather than a complete picture of what it once was didn't help either. The missing fragments that made up the rest of the ritual would take some deciphering and assumption on his part. He hated assuming things. So many things could go wrong. He stood up calmly, walking over to his weeping brother and picked up, letting him support himself on his arm.

“I can't do it right now, Erik. It could take a few days for me to produce the same result. I'm sorry, but it's the best option we have...” he said in a careful, balanced tone.

“B-b-ut w-hat-t if h-h-he's not ok on the o-o-other end?” sobbed the younger brother, his grief giving way.

“There's nothing we can do, but hope, little brother...” said Julius, his voice steeling itself as he already started making mental preparations. He would not get any sleep tonight.

* * *

The sun shone brightly and cast an atmosphere of general happiness as the citizens of Ponyville went about their daily routines. Young fillies and colts made their way off to the school house, while adult ponies made their way to various jobs and errands for the day. Pegasi patrolled the skies, clearing any sign of overcasting clouds that were not scheduled for the day. It was nine in the morning, and an average day in Ponyville was in full swing. At the Ponyville Library, which incidentally was made out of a hollowed-out tree, Twilight Sparkle dragged herself out of bed, groaning with protest at having to wake up at this un-Celestial hour. She shuffled sleepily over to the bathroom and splashed some water on her face in an attempt to wake herself up. She couldn't sleep in today, she had a very important assignment due. She had spent half the night starting it, and she was almost finished, but she was also required to run some errands for the day. She walked downstairs to find her assistant, Spike, having already made her breakfast.

“Uuuuggghhmmmm.... thanks for breakfast, Spike.” she mumbled, rubbing some sleep out of her eyes. Her assistant turned to greet her with a hopeful look in his eyes.

“Uh oh, I know what that look means!” Twilight mused to herself as she already knew what the baby dragon was going to ask her.

“My pleasure, Twilight, and may I say that you look lovely this morning?” said the dragon, trying and failing at sneaking a subtle compliment.

“Yes, Spike, you can go visit Rarity today.” she sighed, knowing full well that the young dragon had a raging crush on Ponyville's resident fashion designer.

“Gee, thanks Twilight! But—how did you know what I was going to ask?” the dragon asked, scratching his head.

“Oh, call it a hunch.” shrugged Twilight, too tired to deal with anything more complicated than eating or sleeping at the moment as she turned to her first slice of toast topped with hay-bacon strips. “Just make sure you get back before four o'clock, ok? I need you to send a letter to Princess Celestia. My paper is due today.” she instructed.

“Will do, Twilight. Just as long as I get to be with.....her” he finished, almost dreamily. If Twilight wasn't so tired, she would have chuckled at the lovesick baby dragon's antics. But she simply had too much on her plate at the moment—both metaphorically and literally—as she wolfed down her remaining pieces of toast and hay-bacon strips and began to prepare herself for the day's errands. She went back upstairs and grabbed her saddlebag and a few books she needed for her trip out today. She walked over to her dressing table and grabbed a few coins and slid them into the money pocket of her saddlebag before heading out the door.

“See ya later, Twilight!” called Spike.

“Bye Spike, see you later.” she responded, her mind already focussed on the task ahead. “Now, let's see.....first I have to go to market..” she thought to herself as she trotted over to the town centre. Market stalls lined the street, selling all manner of food, tools and other wares. As she made her way over to the magical herb stall, she passed by Applejack's apple cart.

“Well howdy there, Twi! You jus' runnin' errands t'day?” asked Applejack, her friendly accent warming Twilight's heart every time she heard it.

“Actually, I have a ton of stuff to do today, AJ. I have to submit my major assignment to Princess Celestia today, and I still haven't finished it!” she said, with a slight undertone of franticness and stress. Applejack simply chuckled, knowing all-to-well what happened when Twilight was late for an assignment.

“Don't you worry yourself too much, Twilight! A'hm sure ya can get it done on time! Jus' make sure ya don't make any problems like las' time, ya'hear?” she said playfully, gently prodding Twilight on the shoulder as he finished her sentence. Twilight's ears narrowed slightly. She was still a little ashamed of what she had done when she had gone a little fruit bat-dung crazy when trying to invent problems rather than solve existing ones for her Friendship Reports.

“Umm, actually, this is an assignment for a potion I have to try and make. It has nothing to do with my Friendship Reports, it;s just really difficult to get right, you see.” she explained. Applejack simply chuckled again.

“Well, alright, jus' don't go an' stress yourself too much, ohkaye?” she said, shaking her head a little. She knew Twilight's talents lied in scholarly pursuits, but she just couldn't fathom herself just why it took that much effort. She would rather harvest a thousand apple orchards than go through the tedious assignments and research projects that Twilight routinely completed for Princess Celestia.

“While I'm here, can I buy an apple?” asked the bookworm unicorn.

“Have one on me, Twi. You gotta keep your strength up for all them books!” she said cheerfully, tossing Twilight a free apple from the back of the cart.

“Thanks, Applejack. Maybe I'll see you later, huh?”

“Maybe, Twilight. Good luck with your paper!” she replied, waving to the lavender unicorn as she trotted toward the magical herb and ingredient stand at the end of the street. As she trotted up to th stand, she was greet by the owner, knowing Twilight to be a regular customer

“Hello, Miss Sparkle! What can I get for you today?” greeted the stallion.

“Hey Mr. Herb! Can I get some blue-tint ivy and some Green-belle flowers today?” she politely asked.

“Oooh, sorry Miss Sparkle. I'm all out of Green-belle today. Sorry!” her face fell at those words.

“Great, now I have to walk all the way to Zecora's place for them.” she paid for the blue-tint ivy and thanked the store stallion before trotting off toward the Everfree Forest. Within a half hour, she was almost there. Trudging through the thick forested area and sticking to the beaten path that lead directly to the mysterious zebra's hut. She caught sight of the exotic dwelling and gently knocked on the door. She was greeted by the kind and thoughtful face of Zecora, he Zebra features a rare thing in somewhere as far north as Ponyville.

“Good day, Twilight Sparkle, how are you? Is there something I can do?” she greeted the scholar pony with her usual customary rhyming method of speech.

“Hi Zecora, I was wondering if you had some Green-belle flowers? I need them for a potion assignment.” she explained.

“Hmmm, Green-belle? An interesting notion. What, pray tell, is this potion?” she asked, curious of the younger pony's attempt at potion making.

“Princess Celestia has tasked me with brewing something called the Drought of Inner Peace” explained Twilight, hoping that Zecora knew of the potion's requirements.

“Ah! That's quite difficult to brew! Just a moment, I will get some for you.” she said, disappearing back into her hut and retrieving some green-belle flowers from a basket in the corner. Twilight thanked Zebra for her help and started to head on back to the library, ready to begin brewing the potion. She had just cleared the tree-line of the Everfree when a strange noise assaulted her senses. It sounded like a kind of....wailing. Almost like something was in pain. She looked left and right, but was unable to single out the source of the noise.

“Hhmmmmmmnnnnnnn!”

She heard it again, louder this time. She looked directly above and spotted something that made her stare in shock. Hanging from a tree branch was the strangest creature she had ever seen It appeared to be almost completely hairless and lanky in stature. It was wearing what appeared to be primitive clothing, and was clearly in pain. The thing was slung over a tree branch and swaying slightly in the wind, earning a feeble groan of pain as it's body was gently rocked from side to side. Suddenly and strong gust of wind appeared, and the creature tumbled out of the tree entirely, with Twilight scampering out of the way just in time to avoid being squashed by the creature’s body.

“Hey, Twilight! What's up?” said a slightly gruff voice to her right. Ah, that's what had caused that sudden burst of wind. Rainbow Dash had just landed next to her. “So what are you doin' in the Everfree Fores—whoa! What the hay is that thing?” Rainbow Dash did a double take as she spotted the strange creature on the ground.

“I have no idea, Rainbow....” she said quietly, observing the weird thing. “But I think it's hurt somehow...can you go and get Fluttershy?” she asked.

“Umm, sure thing, Twi. I'll be back in a flash.....just, be careful...we don't know what it can do, ok?” she said, concerned. Twilight nodded absent-mindedly as Dash took off in the direction of Fluttershy's cottage for help. Meanwhile, she stared at the thing. It seemed to be anatomically similar to monkeys and bears, though with odd proportions and elongated limbs that ended in claw-like appendages. She looked a little closer and she became a little startled when she realised that it was looking right at her in the eye. It's eyes were glazed over and misty, endemic of a concussion. Whatever this thing was, it had taken a fairly solid blow to the head.

“H-help....me........” Twilight froze. She was stunned. This thing could talk! It was intelligent enough to ask for help!

“I-it's ok, you'll be alright soon.” she tried to soothe the creature's distress, but before she could say anything further, it's eyes lost their light as the creature passed out. Whatever this thing was, or where it had come from, it needed help, and quickly! She regarded the creature for a moment, taking in it's strange, oddly proportioned form and lack of fur.

“What the buck is going on?!” she thought to herself and she heard the faint approach of Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy in the distance.