The Messenger

by Mindhawk

Chapter 3 Rush to the Start

The silence is deafening, horrifying if you will. And just as you thought that tonight couldn’t get any stranger, something just blows all your thoughts out of the door. As your eyes adjust to the dark, the light from the street lamp just outside illuminates three silhouettes, standing in the entrance of the hallway.

These figures had a maleficent aura about them, masking their appearances underneath their black hoods. They all appear before the barkeep, moving silently towards the barkeep, as if they were all just hovering above the ground. These three figures seemed to intimidate all those around them, even the dog which was barking outside was reduced to a faint whimper, and ended up cowering in the far corner.

These beings gave a cold chill to the atmosphere we breathed, the light was quickly giving way to these unwholesome individuals. They bore three dark cloaks which cove red the majority of their bodies, save for a slit down the middle, where you would find possibly their very hands and torso. The barkeep remains motionless behind his pedestal, observing what these beings could possibly want. And with a quick shift, he notices the closest to him of the three travellers reaches into his cloak, the hand by which is an armoured what appears to be claw of such, there being five digits on each hand, they closely resemble to those of an insect like tendency, long and bony, with a grafted tendon on the end of each finger.

The cloaked stranger pulls out what looks like a scrap piece of paper, and without muttering a single syllable, starts to breathe deeply, facing the poor unfortunate landlord. You look around to notice everyone is starting to shift in their seating arrangements, you look to see if the bearded voyager has any advice in this situation, but it appears as if he has slid out of the back entrance, leaving you flabbergasted, looking around frantically by turning your head left to right.

A slight tap comes from the window, its Starswirl, at least he has the courtesy to wait for you before just legging it like a chicken for some unknown reason. He looks as if he is mouthing you something from behind the frosted glass. You couldn’t tell what it was at first, but it seems to be slightly clearer the closer you get to the window.

“Run if you want to live you fool”.

You try and stand up, but the gaze of the third being to the left of the one holding the paper up at the bar is starting to slowly move his head in your general direction. You quickly gather yourself, and hastily make your way towards the exit.
Slowly now, you think to yourself. You don’t want any trouble, just walk away. This evening had started out so normal, so quietly. How did it suddenly turn into this? An old man from the past suddenly turns up, and now you feel as if your lives are in danger. All you wanted to do was gaze into the stars, and dream, dream of adventure, of lands far beyond that of the one you’re a part of now.

You step outside, quickly turning right, hoping to see quick thinking Starswirl waiting for you outside. But he doesn’t seem to be anywhere in sight, so you make your way down the road, and that’s when you hear it. A loud scream arising from the brewery of where you just departed from. Your gaze jolts around to check its origin, waging if you should return or not, but instead, the fear of those beings coming to attack you turns your fast pace, into a sprint for your life.

The sound of quick footsteps emanates on the cobble road. Another scream can be heard, and another, and before you even know it, the sound of terrifying panic ensues behind you, the town folk have been awoken by this spectacular commotion, with lights flicking on all around you in the houses all around. You feel like such a coward, running from these foul creatures, but you can’t do anything for them now, not if you get attacked too.

“Quickly, follow me! Keep your head down”.
That can only be one person. It appears that Starswirl waited for you behind brick wall, belonging to a bakers shop to your right. He doesn’t seem to be out of breath, indicating that he stopped after a while, to pick a hiding spot, to wait for you to finally catch up.

Like a new born puppy, you followed the mysterious Starswirl’s word, and stayed close to the ground. Your knees start to hurt from the position at which you are rushing at.

The night air feeling cool and crisp, the sounds of crickets in the distance, as you ventured onto a dark and lonely road, leading out of the country town, and into the fields that lay beyond. But, as of many nights in the past where you would wander to clear your thoughts, this journey, was not as merry or care free, and you had expected from the past. For the screams, and glow of fire lit the sky of the world where you once hailed from.
The cries of the poor towns folk echoing throughout the land. You look back in horror, as all you once knew to be fruitful and cheerful, is shrouded in a cloud of horror and smoke. A single tear runs down your cheek, as your head gazes towards the small life you once knew. Starswirl has picked up on this, and scurries on ahead, turning around to grab your attention.

“The life you once knew is gone Logan, but if we stay for too long, we will meet the same fate as those poor people back there. Our mission is far too important, we must keep going”.

Wiping away the your tears, you turn back to your guide, and keep wandering down this dark dusty road.
The scene keeps playing itself in your mind through the night, all the screams, the hooded figures, the fires, the sheer fear in the eyes of the citizens. You feel so guilty, as if it was all your fault, that if you did something, then maybe it would have turned out differently. Then, it suddenly dawns upon you, it may be a little too late, but you have questions that need to be answered.

“Hold up. Starswirl, what was that back there?
You stop in your tracks, and the old traveller turns to you
“You ran out of that pub fairly quickly, and you said they found you, YOU. Those things, whatever they were, were looking for you weren’t they. Now, I have been very patient with you, even followed every word you said, heck I even left a life behind. Now, I am not taking a single step further until you explain to me what just happened back there, and what is going on?”, you take an aggressive stance, and start to raise your voice towards the end. Like you would, since it appears that whatever is going on, is incredibly dangerous, and could prove to be quite fatal.

Starswirl simply stands there, looking at the ground, sighing to himself, ready to finally confess as to what is going on. He looks to his right, and finds a tree in a field close by, next to a long stone wall.

“We shall rest there for the remainder of the night, it’d be far too risky to stay for too long, so we will venture forward to our destination at the break of dawn”.

“Starswirl, answer my question!”

“I WILL, you must learn to be patient my young friend, but first we must make camp. Then, and only then, will I fully clarify to you our circumstances.”

With slight hesitation, you do as he says. He called you his friend, this notion sends a slight shiver down your spine. This man pulled you out of everything you’ve grown into these past few years, and he expects you to call him your friend? It might be because of him that those people back there lost their lives to those vile mortals. But, the thought of getting some shut eye soon does bode well in your mind, so you feel ready to once again follow this man’s notion.

You get the camp set out, Starswirl conveniently had two blankets pulled from his satchel bag, and managed to start a camp fire using the broken twigs and branches found at the bottom of the tree, quite how he started the fire without flint or tinder is beyond you, but this didn’t stay in your mind for very long. Clutching at your dusty blue jacket for warmth against the night time chill, sitting on the opposite side of the fire, you stare blankly at the dancing flames as they escape into the air. Coming back to reality, you stare into the man’s eyes, and with every fibre of your being, try desperately to read his thoughts, as to what exactly is coming to pass.

“Starswirl, please, just tell me, what is going on? You talked about a message to this so called Princess Celestia, is that what those beings were looking for? Why didn’t we warn those people back there? And who are those people chasing you?”

“Those people who are chasing us, are not people.”

You’re taken aback at that comment, raising both eyebrows to the very possibility that they were not human.
“Not people? What do you mean?”

With a wave of his hand, something amazing happens right before your very eyes. The flames that were tickling the night air, have somehow woven their way onto the old man’s hands, flickering away between his fingers and right palm, and yet they didn’t seem to be burning him. He was manipulating the fire with his hands! This is impossible, and yet it’s happening right in front of your own two eyes.

“Logan, I am not of your world. For I come from another land, a faraway kingdom, filled with magic and sorcery. In this land, I was known as one the greatest and wisest of all its sorcerers. And it was here were I became known as Starswirl the bearded”.

And with one breath, he blew onto the fire in his hand, and as if by magic, a shape resembling a castle sprouted out of the undistinguishable flames. It looked amazing, with spires towering over what appeared to be a mountain side, with plenty of smaller flying beings dotted around the tops of the rooks.

“This is the kingdom of Canterlot, my home, and home to the greatest of all the kingdoms of the land of Equestria, peaceful, and prosperous”.

Then, as quick as the image of peace came, the kingdom disappeared under a dark cloud of smoke, engulfing the beautiful image that lay before you.
“But this peace was not to last. For you see, a darkness soon crept upon it, unleashing an unspeakable horror over this great land. It called itself simply by the nightmare. And with it, arose a terrible force of corruption, greed and fear. It poisoned one of our princess’s minds, and sent her into a spiralling chasm of madness, sending her into an abyss the like of which she could not return from without some scars”.
A silhouette of a creature formed on his hand from the flame that remained, resembling an elegant yet powerful creature with a horn and wings.
“The great and powerful Celestia, sought to be rid of this evil once and for all, and in doing so, with sheer remorse, banished her sister, along with what remained of the nightmare, to the moon, where she was thought to remain for all eternity.
“But with such great power, it could not be locked away forever. So, as a last resort, I journeyed to Canterlot, for an audience with her majesty, and the other mages and royalty of my world. And we came to agreement, that if this evil was to ever return, then we would each venture to the farthest reaches of the kingdom, in search of certain individuals, who possessed the power to vanquish these threats.”

With a shift of his hand, six smaller figures appeared before us, in the fire itself this time.

“Now, not too long ago, this evil reappeared in the form of the fallen princess Luna, promising to cover all the land in darkness, as it once tried to before. Fortunately, Princess Celestia had foreseen this event, thanks to her beloved pupil, and May I say very talented young pony known as Twilight, and sought her young pupil, to find the elements of harmony, a group of magical items that if worn by the correct users, grant amazing power. This power was used to finally vanquish the evil from Princess Luna’s heart, freeing her from this hatred, and reuniting her with her sister”.
The six figures disappeared in a flash of white light, and like that, the fire returned to normal. But his face burrows deeper into a frown, as he returns to his story.
“But, even though this evil was defeated in the form of the fair princess, it was not vanquished completely. For you see, it only manifested itself in a small fragment of it’s true power in Luna, and therefore did not fully unleash itself onto the world, instead using Luna as a simple catalyst, a doorway if you will, to ready it’s true power. Fortunately, it did not however foresee that the elements of harmony would be discovered, and retreated to regain its full capacity. And I fear, that the time has come. Our enemy has regained its full strength, and is starting to seep out of its dark tomb, into the light of both our worlds”.

With this story, he looks to you, with a soul piercing gaze, his frown has returned to his normal state, blowing smoke from the fire.
“Those creatures that you saw back there, were three of its followers. They call themselves the dark messengers. Living breathing figures of animosity. Formed from the evil of man. They came to be physical beings shortly after the last great war began, emanating throughout time, from all conflicts, as a source of hate and violence. They manifest themselves only when the weaknesses of men transform into all out conflict, and darken the chances of the human race ever being able to become as peaceful and prosperous as Equestria. Now, the human race may have contained this evil, but along with the power prejudice and fear, they came to pass, and manifest into the harbingers of wickedness that came to be earlier on tonight.”

You look to him with the same gaze.
“And just what do they want with you?”

“Our only hope to save both worlds, is to return to Equestria, and use the elements of harmony once again, to stop this force before it continues to spread, and consume everything in its path. That is why I called upon you Logan. I am old now, but I still have plenty of magic left in me to make it through to Equestria, and I need you to be my assistant as we make our way into my home world. You’re young, and physically capable to take on such a task. So, I chose you because you are pure of heart, and I truly do believe you’re loyal and honest enough to not use this information to your advantage.”

You feel touched by the compliments he just gave you, and you even give off a slight smile. But, this is just too much information for you to be able to comprehend. So, this land that he often spoke of is in fact real, proving that he is from another world by using actual magic, the stuff of legend. And that he must return to stop an all-out war with an unstoppable force known as the nightmare. And even more so, has asked you to accompany him on his great and noble quest.

You question him further “So, is the answer to this conflict in that parchment you have in your satchel bag?”
“It is indeed, but only the princess must see it, that is why I must bring it to Princess Celestia, so that she may decide on what to do. For you see, in this parchment,” he takes out the scroll from his bag and holds it in his left hand, “holds the true power that can once and for all destroy the nightmare, so that it may never return. That is why those foul monsters were looking for it, it’s the one thing that can stop their master’s plan”.

You begin to understand now. Those things wanted whatever is in that scroll, as to wipe out all that is good in both your worlds. You feel something burning up inside you. Something you never thought you would feel before. You’re not sure if it’s excitement or even fear, but whatever it is, it is taking hold of all your senses. You all of a sudden want to help him in his task, you want to travel to far lands and slay the nightmare, and meet magical sorcerers, and visit kingdoms no one has ever seen before. And with that thought, you smile to the wizard, and put out your hand for his to shake.

“Starswirl, can you promise me that I will be able to come back after all of this?”
The aging wizard looks upon you with empathy “I’m sorry Logan, but I cannot promise you that. But if you do come back, you will not be the same young man who left, you will change, be it for better. Or for worse”.

“Then, I will help you in any way I can Starswirl. I promise you, we will get this done”.

With a smile, and a nod, he droops his eyes, and proceeds to lean against the tree, still fairly close as to be near the fires warmth. You smile back, and return to watching the flames lick the burning cinder, wondering what may happen on this journey. Your eyes begin to droop as the flames die out. The time for peace appears to be over, and the time for an adventure begins.