Age of the New Sun

by Foreshadow

Chapter 3

“So, then I said to him, ‘Jinx, that’s not the potion, that’s just oatmeal!’! It was hilarious! Right, Comet? ...Comet? Hellooo, Comet Strike?”

Glimmer Pearl waved her hooves in the blue unicorn’s face, snapping her back to reality. It was midday. Comet, sitting with Glimmer, Pinklily and Arrowburst in the dining hall, leaned back from her slouched position and masked a yawn behind a hoof, saying, “Yeah, sure, it was pretty funny.” Comet’s mind might as well have been on the moon. All she could think about were the Nightspawn and the books the recording of Celestia had given her.

“What is with you, Comet?” Glimmer asked with a frown.

“She’s just been staying up late,” Pinklily assured the ivory unicorn gently. “She hasn’t been sleeping well after... well-”

Pinklily looked to Comet as if for permission, and when the other unicorn nodded, she continued, “You know, she’s the one who saw the Nightspawn first.”

As Arrowburst gasped out a “No way,” Glimmer’s silver eyes went wide and she grabbed one of Comet’s hooves in both of hers.

“That must have been horrible!” she said.

“It was scary, sure,” Comet said, nodding, though she didn’t really want to talk about it. “Anyway, where’s Jinx today anyway?”

Pinklily rolled her eyes at the obvious change in topic, but Glimmer didn’t seem to care. Her ears perked up at the mention of Jinx and she smiled.

“He’s applying for a job at the storeroom,” she said proudly, and then leaned in closer to the table and beckoned the others in as well. “Do you think I should ask him to be my coltfriend?”

Comet blurted, “What?” without thinking and Arrowburst began to laugh. Pinklily looked surprised.

“Of course, if you want to,” she said.

“I will, then,” Glimmer said brightly, beaming at them. “I’ll go right now. Try to get some sleep, Comet!”

She hopped up from the table and skipped from the room jubilantly. Again, Arrowburst started to laugh, and Pinklily shook her head, smiling.

“Glimmer’s such a scatterbrain,” she said fondly.

“I like her,” Arrowburst snickered. “She’s silly.”

He finished his lunch quickly and then said, “Guess I better get to class. See you later!”

“Good luck,” Pinklily said, and Comet nodded her agreement.

Arrowburst grinned at them and he, too, trotted from the dining hall.

Almost immediately, Pinklily turned to Comet, saying, “So, what are we going to do?” Comet looked at her with wide eyes and her ears folded back. The pink unicorn frowned.

“Don’t you think those things are going to attack?” she asked.

“I... Well, I hope not,” Comet mumbled.

“So you don’t have a plan, then?”

“I was just going to work on my magic, just in case,” she said.

Pinklily frowned.

“You’re thinking you’ll fight them off if they get in.”

“I don’t want to, but...”

Comet sighed and put her hooves through her forelock tiredly.

“I’m already using, you know... that magic, might as well make use of it.”

Pinklily stared at her quietly for a few moments before nodding. She seemed to understand, and she patted Comet’s head with a tired smile crossing her face.

“That’s very responsible of you,” she said, “especially since I know you’re terrified.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Comet joked, trying to brush it off; she stuck her tongue out at her friend.

“Well, I’ve been worried too, to be honest,” Pinklily admitted. “That lightning totem I showed you yesterday? I’m going to make more and have the Sunwalkers put them near the ways in and out. Good idea?”

Comet was surprised; she hadn’t realized Pinklily could really do such a thing, but she smiled and nodded, relieved to not be the only one of her group of friends taking things seriously. Pinklily seemed pleased and she nodded at the threshold to the dining hall.

“Mind if I show you how they work? They might come in handy.”

“Sounds good,” Comet agreed brightly.

The two unicorns finished lunch together and then headed out of the dining hall and into the area near the main doors. There was a group of young Sunwalkers chatting there, and Comet unwittingly walked closer to Pinklily as they passed. They were almost at the first set of stairs when a male voice called, “Hey!” after them, causing Comet to jump despite herself.

“Just ignore them,” Pinklily advised.

She picked up her pace, but Comet stalled in her tracks when she heard the same voice call out her name. She turned to look, as did Pinklily, only to see a familiar tan pony rushing towards her. He was garbed in the golden Sunwalker armour, minus the helmet, and in an instant, he was in her face, looking surprisingly pleased to see her.

“Comet Strike!”

The stallion’s eyes were alight and he grinned into her face as Pinklily looked on with uncertainty. Comet skittered backwards just a fraction, her face a picture of shock. Pinklily uttered the start of a question, but Comet accidentally talked straight through, saying, “Runestone?”, stunned. He beamed in response.

“You remember me!” he said jovially.

“...I was about to say the same to you,” she replied.

Pinklily looked between the two, her brow raised, and she turned to the blue unicorn.

“You know this Sunwalker?” she asked.

“Yeah, I-” Comet began, but the stallion immediately turned to her friend.

“Comet Strike helped me out when somepony spiked my drink,” he told her, and then took her hoof to shake it. “I’m Runestone, good to meet you!”

“Pinklily,” the mare replied, a hint of skepticism in her voice. “...You are a Sunwalker, right?”

For the first time in recent memory, Comet saw Pinklily look flat-out confused. Runestone shuffled a little shyly on his hooves.

“Technically,” he admitted, but his embarrassment faded quickly as he turned back to Comet. “I just wanted to thank you again. For the help. Last night.”

“Oh that... that’s no problem,” she assured him; she was feeling a bit flustered.

“I really, really appreciate it, though,” he said, and then looked back at the other Sunwalkers and snorted a bit. “Yeah, brotherhood my hoof.”

Comet smiled sympathetically and tried not to laugh.

“I think I know who did it, if that helps,” she suggested.

Runestone opened his mouth, but then reconsidered, glanced back at the group, and then let out a large, annoyed sigh.

“No, I think it’s best I don’t know,” he said a bit reluctantly. “Thanks, though.”

Comet shrugged and Pinklily looked between the two with interest. She tapped her chin with her hoof in thought, and then turned to Runestone.

“Hey,” she said, “I was just going to show Comet some totems I made to defend the ways into Canterlot. Might help you out to know how they work as well. What do you think?”

Pinklily had a sort of strange expression on her face mostly masked by a gentle smile, like she was testing him or something. Like most Sunwalkers, Comet assumed he wouldn’t want any part in the magic, but when Runestone’s ears perked and he said, “That sounds interesting, sure!”, Comet couldn’t help but give him a rather surprised look.

“What?” he asked with a laugh.

Pinklily beckoned to him and he followed her up the stairs eagerly.

“So, Pinklily, what do you do here?” he asked.

“Enchantments, mostly.”

“Oh cool!”

Up in the workroom, ducking around other students to her work station, Pinklily lead the two ponies to a workbench where there were two large, polished crystals resting in metal stands. She lifted them both up at once to show them to Comet and Runestone; the stallion looked at them in awe through the glow of Pinklily’s magic.

“What do they do?” he asked curiously.

“I made them to shoot electricity at anything that attacks the city,” she said. “I don’t know how effective they’ll be, but they should help, at least a little.”

“Pinks, that’s really cool,” Comet said, her ears perking up.

Pinklily looked flattered and she nodded, saying, “Yeah, I thought so too, but I’m not really sure how to put them into use. Sunwalkers, no offense, usually won’t go anywhere near this kind of stuff.”

Comet’s ears drooped, but Runestone looked thoughtful, inclining his head as he peered more closely at the crystals. The blue unicorn turned to to him curiously.

“Got an idea?” she asked.

“Yeah, actually,” he replied with a smile. “I could take them to the Sun-Commander. If they work, I’m sure he’d love to use them. Especially, after... you know, two ponies went missing.”

He turned his attention to Pinklily, as did Comet. She was surprised to see her friend’s eyes wide. She looked stunned.

“You’d do that?” she asked Runestone a bit eagerly.

He nodded and a grin flashed across Pinklily’s face. She whirled and scrabbled around her worktable hurriedly. Comet tried to peer over her shoulder and then shared a puzzled look with the stallion beside her. They could hear the sound of pen on paper.

“If you two could take them, that would be great. I’ll work starting the enchanting process on a couple more while you’re gone,” she said hurriedly.

The pink unicorn spun around quickly, presenting a folded letter proudly.

“If you could give him this as well,” she said, and Runestone nodded and took it from her to place it in a small pocket at his belt.

Comet took one crystal and Runestone took the other on his back, and the two headed from the work room. The blue unicorn could barely articulate how relieved she was that Pinklily had created these totems; even though it wasn’t much, they made her feel safer already.

“That’s what she does, right? Enchanting?” Runestone asked Comet as they went. “Her Soul Mark, it’s-”

“Yeah, crystals,” she confirmed.

“Yours is a... comet? How’d you get that?” he asked curiously.

“Oh, just... star mapping, that stuff,” Come lied with a smile on her face.

“And your magic, it’s-”

“Ice magic, mostly.”

“Cool!”

He looked at her innocently and Comet couldn’t help a laugh. It seemed to take him a moment to clue in, but when he did, his face went a little red and he snickered to himself, saying, “Pun not intended.”

“Yeah, I figured,” Comet laughed, nudging him with her shoulder, “Why are you so interested in magic?”

“I think it’s interesting. I’m interested in... interesting things,” he said, wide-eyed. “What, no non-unicorn’s ever asked you about magic before?”

“Not since I was a filly, no,” Comet said with a shrug.

“Weird!”

They headed down the stairs together, Comet watching the Sunwalker’s back as he balanced the crystal rather carefully. There was a public Sunwalker office on the first floor where the Sun-Commander was set up, one that wasn’t beyond the Temple of the Sun; that’s where they were headed.

Upon arriving, Runestone knocked on the door and announced, “Sir, it’s Runestone, may we come in?”, hoping the Sun-Commander was in. When they heard a tired but gruff, “Come in, colt,” Runestone pushed the door open and he and Comet trotted in. Stonehoof was at a sparse desk in a room rather bare save for ornamental swords and shields along the walls, and an armour rack that currently bore the golden armour the Commander was rarely seen without. He was currently hovering over a map, his dark blue eyes intense. He looked up to see them as Comet closed the door behind him and sighed when he saw her.

“I keep seeing you everywhere, filly.”

Comet gulped.

“Sorry... sir?” she replied a bit awkwardly.

The Commander shook his head and got to his hooves, looking at what they carried curiously. Before he could ask, Comet presented her crystal to him.

“Sun-Commander, we brought these defense totems made by the unicorn enchanter Pinklily. She says that they can help protect us from attacks from the outside,” Runestone said.

Stonehoof looked at him a little suspiciously, but he passed him the note from Pinklily quickly. Stonehoof’s eyes rushed over the note, his brow furrowed, but when he looked up, he seemed a bit calmer.

“I’ll take them out for testing,” he said, and then turned to Comet. “Your friend, yes? Thank her for me.”

Comet nodded quickly. Runestone put the other crystal on the Commander’s desk and the two ponies left rather swiftly.

“He seems tired,” Comet said once they were out of earshot.

“Worried,” Runestone agreed.

The unicorn’s ears drooped and she pawed the ground. She wanted to ask Runestone how much he knew, but she didn’t want it to seem like she was only sticking around with him to interrogate him. He looked at her curiously, almost as if he knew and was waiting for her to ask something, but when she didn’t, he continued talking.

“He’s mentioned that us Sunwalkers are really going to have to take on a lot more responsibility, since he thinks the attacks will continue,” he said, and though he tried to keep a straight face, he sounded a little scared. “But... you know, we’re meant for fighting rogue unicorns, not... those things.”

“Nightspawn?” Comet volunteered.

“You know about them?” he asked, surprised, and then laughed a little. “I thought we were keeping that part quiet.”

“Not doing a very good job,” Comet joked, sticking her tongue out. “Actually... I was the one who found them first.”

“What?!” Runestone barked, eyes as wide as saucers. “Seriously? You’re not serious, are you?”

Comet looked back at him a bit shyly, her ears drooping, and his face fell.

“By Celestia, you’re serious, aren’t you?”

She nodded and Runestone looked to the floor and shook his head.

“I’ve only heard rumours... That must have been terrifying.”

“Scared me out of my fur,” Comet agreed, and then quietly added, “Do you think the Sunwalkers can actually do anything? I heard the King is actually going to fight them. That’s a pretty big deal, right?”

“Well... I don’t know, actually,” the colt admitted. “I suggested that maybe unicorn magic against those things would be a good idea, but the others just laughed at me.”

“Attack magic is banned,” Comet pointed out.

Runestone’s ears drooped.

“Right, right, of course,” he said quickly, and then sighed and muttered, “That’s stupid.”

He almost immediately grinned with embarrassment and said, “Um... don’t tell anypony I said that, okay?”

“Not a word,” Comet assured him.

His smile brightened and he huffed out a relieved, “Phew, thanks!”

He held out a hoof to her and, after hesitating for just a moment, she bumped her hoof against his. Somehow, he seemed even happier, and he said, “Hey, Comet Strike-”

He was cut off as, behind him, another Sunwalker in full armour said, “Hey, blankflank!” rather loudly.

He turned casually and Comet followed his gaze, frowning, as the passing pony shoved a helmet at Runestone, saying, “Come on, it’s our shift. Meet me outside.”

“Sure, see you soon.”

“Now, blankflank.”

Runestone’s ears drooped and Comet felt a sting of anger at the Sunwalker.

“Hey!” she shouted after him, stepping forward.

The Sunwalker whirled on her, looking at her with eyes narrowed. Fear hit her very suddenly, but she gulped and said, as Runestone looked at her like she was crazy, “You’re going outside?”

“What’s it to you, unicorn?” the pony asked.

“Just, you know, be careful. I’ve heard those things outside... they travel in herds, together. Like, a lot of them. And they’re dark, so after the sun sets, you probably won’t even see them coming. Also, I’ve heard they eat ponies,” she said.

The Sunwalker snorted, but the nerves were clear on his face. He turned, his tail swishing in an irritated sort of way and he headed off.

Comet let out a deep breath and Runestone looked at her with with eyes and his expression said that he was trying very hard not to laugh. When Comet turned to him again, before she could say a word, she nearly jumped to see a long, fuzzy black leg poking out of the helmet he was holding. Quickly, she grabbed the owner of the leg with her magic and lifted it up to reveal a large, black and googly-eyed spider.

“Oh!” Runestone squeaked, scooting away from it a little, and then peered into his helmet worriedly.

Comet rolled her eyes and released the thing onto the floor, where it skittered away quickly.

“They really have it out for you, don’t they?” she asked, her ears drooping low: the thought of it made her feel terrible.

“Guess so,” Runestone admitted.

He put the helmet on his head a bit cautiously and smiled at Comet brightly.

“Thanks, Comet Strike,” he said, and suddenly looked a bit shy. “I... You know, I didn’t expect you to have my back, but I’m really glad that you do.”

Comet nodded and smiled; felt her face heating up a little. She ignored it, or tried to at least, but when the taller pony ruffled her mane playfully, she knew she was blushing.

“It’s... It’s not a problem,” she stammered. “But, uh.... seriously, you should be careful outside though.”

“Absolutely,” he assured her. “Thanks. See you later!”

He began to head off and Comet replied with, “Good luck,” rather quickly, but before she could leave, Runestone turned around quickly.

“Hey, we should hang out again sometime,” he suggested.

Comet was a bit surprised, but she sort of liked the sound of that. She nodded.

“Sure,” she agreed.

The stallion grinned widely.

“How about tomorrow? I have some free time in the afternoon then. I was thinking,” he said, “what if we go outside? And... I dunno, have some lunch or something?”

Comet stared back blankly, unsure if he was unaware of her situation or if he didn’t care. Runestone looked back at her with a smile on his face, and leaned in a little closer, perking his ears as he waited for her answer.

“I can’t go outside,” she said after a moment.

“Well, technically, but I could get you out,” he said with a shrug. “Just say you’re into botany and you need a plant for some potion, I sign you out for the day, and we go out, sit on a nice grassy hill and eat sandwiches.”

The notion was very tempting. He was a nice stallion, and any chance to get out of the tower would be a welcome one. However, with the Nightspawn she had seen out past the walls, she wasn’t sure if it was safe. Then again, all her readings had told her that they didn’t do well in the sunlight. She swiveled her ears back and forth as she thought; all the while, Runestone waited for her patiently.

As per usual, Comet’s sense of curiosity far outweighed her want for caution, and she nodded.

“Yeah, alright. Sounds fun.”

The stallion’s face brightened immediately and he grinned widely at her.

“Great! See you then!”

He trotted off with a skip in his step and Comet had to hold in a laugh. She supposed Runestone must have been quite lonely, what with all the other Sunwalkers picking on him. His sunny disposition seemed to make him a target, along with the fact that he had no Soul Mark yet. She felt quite bad, and now a sense of worry started to gnaw at her. She hoped her new friend would be okay, outside, patrolling in the darkness.

---

Before returning to Pinklily, Comet stopped in to visit Warmspark. He was even more angry than the had been before, but otherwise, he was doing better. Comet was starting to worry that he might find a way to do something crazy and destructive, putting an extra layer of stress on her mind. The sight of the nub of his horn still made her very unsettled.

Back in the workroom, as she moved to rejoin Pinklily, Comet saw that there were much fewer students than before, but a few were gathered around the pink unicorn’s table as she demonstrated more crystals. These ones were a bit smaller, but seemed to do the same as the other two. Comet hung back until Pinklily was done talking to them and they headed out past her.

“Hi, Comet,” Pinklily said when she trotted up. “How’d it go?”

“The Sun-Commander said to tell you ‘thank you’,” she replied.

Pinklily let out a relieved sigh and smiled at Comet.

“Great. And... your new friend, he-”

“Got called onto patrol duty,” she said with a shrug.

Pinklily nodded, but she began to look just a little worried. She didn’t get a chance to ask more, though; the two were promptly distracted by a shy knock on the open door.

Jinx stood in the doorway, smiling shyly, and though his ears were drooped, his purple eyes were alight.

“Glimmer asked me to go out with her,” he said bashfully.

“Ooh,” Pinklily cooed. “And you said?”

Jinx blushed and scraped a font hoof on the ground, mumbling a shy, “Yes,”. Comet laughed and trotted up to him, patting him cheerfully on the back. It was good to see her friend happy, plus it took her mind away from the clouds in it.

“Just thought I should say,” Jinx replied, and then looked between the two. “She wanted to know if you wanted to hang out with us. She wanted to give you guys something.”

Comet and Pinklily shared a glance.

“Would you like us to?” Pinklily asked.

When he nodded and smiled brightly, Comet said, “Let’s go find her.”

Jinx seemed to know where Glimmer was, so the others followed him. He had a certain bounce in his step and, though he didn’t seem to notice, glittering sparks were trailing from his horn. Comet smiled to herself and when she looked to Pinklily, she could see her looking fondly at Jinx.

They found Glimmer near some stained glass windows and benches she had moves into a circle up near the dormitory. She looked like she was trying very hard to hide something behind her, grinning the whole while.

“Jinx Lulamoon! Jinxy! Jinxypie!” she cooed, waving her forelimbs at him.

Comet bit her lip, trying not to laugh, and Jinx blushed furiously as he approached the elegant unicorn and she squished him against her in a tight hug. He ‘oofed’ quietly and she rubbed her narrow snout against his cheek affectionately before letting him go and gesturing to the seats around her. He sat beside her and she ruffled his mane as Comet and Pinklily sat across from her. Almost immediately, she produced what she had been hiding; a small platter of strawberry shortcakes.

“Ta-daa!” she sang happily. “Take one! I made them myself.”

Jinx took one readily, though Pinklily and Comet both hesitated for the same reason: Glimmer Pearl was a terrible baker. Cautiously, though, the blue unicorn took one, thinking that the cakes didn’t look too bad, and Jinx was eating his quite happily. She took a tentative bite, but had to force herself to swallow it. It tasted like she had forgotten sugar entirely. Beside her, cool as ever, Pinklily ate her cake, stonefaced. Comet had no idea how she did it.

“Uh, thanks Glimmer, that’s really nice of you,” Comet said with a forced grin.

Glimmer looked quite pleased and looked at Comet with a sort of shine in her eyes.

“So I heard you have a coltfriend now, too?”

Comet’s jaw all but hit the ground and she began to stammer incoherently, until Pinklily began to laugh and patted her head, telling Glimmer, “She just met him last night, Glimmer, they’re not going out.”

“Aw,” she said, pouting. “I was hoping we could double-date. Right, Jinx?”

Jinx looked back shyly and he said, quietly, “That sounds kind of like fun,” as Glimmer put her hooves all over his mane again.

“N-No, that’s... not a thing,” Comet stammered.

Glimmer shrugged, but then leaned forward, peering at her with wide eyes and ears perked as Comet took another hesitant bite out of the ‘cake’.

“So, where did you go behind that pillar in the Temple?” she asked.

Shock struck Comet so hard that she choked on her food and began coughing loudly. Pinklily thumped her on the back while Glimmer looked apologetic and Jinx looked between the ponies rather cluelessly.

“How did you-?” Comet demanded, but Glimmer cut her off.

“I followed you,” she stated a little proudly.

Comet stared at her, wide-eyed, unsure of how to feel. Pinklily was looking at the ivory unicorn with a sort of disapproving frown. Finally, Glimmer seemed to catch on and she drew back, sighing.

“Sorry,” she said a bit reluctantly, “It’s just that I notice that when stressful stuff starts going on around the tower, you always start vanishing at night. I just wanted to see where you were going.”

She smiled embarrassedly and said, “Sorry,” again. Comet sighed and rubbed a hoof through her forelock. Pinklily looked at her with both curiosity and expectancy. Comet took a deep breath.

“Can’t talk about it out here,” she said, “I’ll show you tonight, okay?”

The tall unicorn seemed satisfied and she grinned.

“Thanks!” she said brightly, and then gestured to the cakes broadly, saying, “Come on, eat! Eat!”

---

Comet spent the rest of the day with her friends, and it surprised her when she realized that it was actually making her feel much better despite wondering what she would say to them once she showed them what was in the temple. She was still a little on edge, but she felt a little less stressed with ponies to talk to. Her mind sometimes slipped to Runestone, especially as the sky outside darkened. She hoped he was okay.

Though Glimmer was getting antsy and impatient, Comet made the group wait until late at night, past the time when most ponies were asleep, before sneaking them into the Temple of the Sun and leading them down the passage to her training room. Pinklily had been there before and kept up quickly, but Jinx and Glimmer trailed behind: they were in awe. The stallion pressed close to his new fillyfriend as she stared, wide-eyed, at the glimmering halls of crystal around them.

Down in the room of turquoise and purple crystal, at Glimmer’s insistence, Jinx lit the room brightly with his magic, sending a golden sheen across the walls, illuminating the many ridges and scars of Comet’s training.

“Dear sweet Celestia,” Glimmer gasped. “This...! This place!”

She scampered around, putting her hooves all over the walls. Pinklily rolled her eyes but still wore an amused expression on her face. Abruptly, Glimmer whirled on Comet, dashing up to her and getting so close to her face that she had to step back.

“What is this place? How did you find it? It’s amazing!”

“I was wondering that as well,” Jinx agreed. “It’s... really cool.”

Glimmer giggled and twirled on her back hooves, and then locked her forelimbs around a large jutting crystal, sighing happily.

“Can I just bring this back with me?”

She didn’t sound serious; Pinklily laughed and said, “I think that’s pretty well stuck down.” Playfully, Glimmer stuck her tongue out at the pink unicorn, but then turned to Comet.

“So, what’s the deal with you and this place?” she asked as she detached herself from the crystal. “How’d you find it?”

“I didn’t, actually,” Comet replied with a shrug. “Nimbus... you wouldn’t know Nimbus, but Jinx, you might remember...”

She looked to the bright blue unicorn curiously, and he nodded, looking interested.

“Nimbus was a Sunwalker, sort of my guardian. He showed me this place when I was just a filly. I’ve been using it as a training room, as you can see.”

She gestured around the walls, directing Glimmer and Jinx’s eyes around the deep slash marks in the crystal.

“...What the hay kind of magic does that?” the ivory unicorn mused aloud, but then she donned a look of shock and hopped up and down, looking at Comet as if she had just unraveled the greatest mystery in the world. “That’s why I almost never see you practice. You’re using forbidden magic!”

Jinx looked stunned and Comet’s ears drooped bashfully. She nodded and Glimmer peered at her inquisitively.

“But... you’re so... you,” she said. “Forbidden magic... That seems way off your register.”

Comet couldn’t help a sting of embarrassment; she merely shrugged in response.

“Then... Comet?” Jinx asked hesitantly. “Is your Soul Mark from that too?”

Comet nodded and almost immediately, Glimmer Pearl sat in front of her with a look of anticipation on her face.

“What?” Comet asked, confused.

“Story time,” Glimmer announced.

Comet sighed and put a hoof to her forehead. She was starting to get a headache. To her surprise, however, Pinklily patted her on the shoulder, saying, “I was there. I’ll tell it,” gently.

Comet felt relief splash her and she dropped onto her haunches tiredly. The pink unicorn laughed and sat beside her.

“Do we really have to?” Comet asked.

“Knowing the story helps you know the pony,” Glimmer announced.

Jinx seemed to agree as he plopped down beside her; she immediately wrapped her forelimbs around him and squished him to her.

“Let me,” Pinklily said again. “It was a while back. Maybe a year or so after I got mine. There was a comet shower and we both really wanted to get a closer look at it than what the tower allowed. Security was more lax back then, so we managed to sneak outside and get out of Canterlot.”

“Wow,” Glimmer gasped, surprised.

“So,” the pink unicorn continued, “we traveled out into the badlands a little bit to watch the comet shower but when we got there, they seemed to be burning up in the sky too fast. To try to see them a little longer, Comet cast an ice spell on them, but... it worked a little too well.”

She cut her eyes at Comet and shot her a smile. The blue unicorn’s ears drooped and she felt her face heat up embarrassedly.

“Anyway, the comets stopped breaking up at all, and they were going to land right on us, and that’s when Comet found her spell.”

Comet remembered well. It was most commonly believed that for a unicorn to get their Soul Mark, they had to discover their spell, a spell that was thought to come from deep within. Comet’s happened to be an intense blast of tri-coloured energy, mimicked in the tail of the comet on her flank.

“She blasted the comets out of the sky, saved us, and that’s about it.”

Comet was surprised to see Pinklily shoot her a look of pride. Glimmer looked between Comet and Pinklily with wide eyes, and then began to clap her hooves jubilantly. Jinx joined her and smiled at Comet.

“That’s really cool,” he said. “I’m jealous.”

“Oh, no, don’t be,” Comet said hurriedly. “Because that’s what my magic focuses on, I’ve had to practice in secret my whole life. It’s a major pain.”

“Sounds like,” Glimmer agreed.

She got to her hooves and ruffled Comet’s main affectionately.

“Wish you had told us sooner,” she said, skipping away quickly. “I could practice my telekinesis with you! And...”

She placed a hoof on a protruding crystal.

“Maaaybe you could cut me off one of these?”

She leaned her head back and fluttered her eyelashes. Comet sighed and couldn’t help a quiet laugh.

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll try.”

Comet had known the three other ponies since she was young, and yet that evening, in the room of crystal, was the first time she had ever practiced magic with all of them at once. In truth, she enjoyed it very much. By the time the group made their way out of the room, Comet was actually feeling rather good. She didn’t feel nearly as scattered or frantic as she had before. For the first time in days, Comet slept well.

---

The morning snapped into focus for Comet with the worried chatter of students and whatever relaxation she had garnered from a proper night’s rest vanished. She rolled out of her bunk a bit clumsily, casting a cautious glance around the dormitory. There was no one else in bed anymore; it was mostly empty, though she noted a small group of ponies standing nearby, and another, slightly larger gathering just beyond the entrance-way. There were even a couple Sunwalkers involved.

This can’t be good.

Comet approached the small group quickly and interrupted a young mare mid-sentence, saying, “Sorry to butt in, but... what’s everyone going on about? Is everything okay?”

“You didn’t hear?” one stallion asked, his ears perked but his eyes worried. “Another Sunwalker vanished last night.”

“Yeah, everypony’s freaking out,” another mare put in.

Comet felt her heart sink and her ears drooped back.

“I... uh... thanks, I... I gotta go,” she stammered.

She was out of the dormitory in an instant, rushing brazenly through the group at the threshold with only one pony on her mind.

Comet raced down the stairs to the first floor and through the Temple of the Sun, all the way down to the barracks, where she slammed a hoof against the closed door a few times as she panted for air. She didn’t hear the approach of hooves over the pounding in her ears; she jumped when the door was opened by a stocky, white pegasus.

“...Yeah?” she asked.

She seemed rather confused by Comet’s presence, her eyes roaming the unicorn uncertainly.

“Is Runestone here?” Comet asked quickly.

The pegasus seemed to draw a blank. She scratched her head with her wing and repeated, “Runestone,” quietly as if trying to jog her memory.

“Yeah, Runestone, he’s... like, a big tall lanky pony, tan, no Soul Mark,” Comet said quickly.

“Oh! The blankflank!” the pegasus said, her eyes brightening. “Yes! ...Well, not exactly, he’s been out since the sun came out this morning.”

Comet could have melted onto the floor.

“So he didn’t-” she began quietly.

“Get taken by the Nightspawn?” the Sunwalker finished; her ears drooped.

Comet was taken aback, and almost began to apologize before the pegasus said, “No, not him, we haven’t been told who yet.”

“I’m sorry,” Comet said quickly.

The pegasus looked a bit sad; she nodded and said, “You might find him in the dormitory hall,” before turning and heading back to join the other Sunwalkers. Looking in, Comet could have sworn they looked just as rattled as she felt.

The blue unicorn left through the Temple of the Sun again, trying to ignore a few dirty looks shooting her way and returned to the dormitory hall. She didn’t need to find Runestone immediately: it was enough to know that he hadn’t been taken in the night. After all, her book had told her Nightspawn couldn’t operate in sunlight. She didn’t see him near the dormitory anyway, but she did see Glimmer Pearl, staring at her intensely from down the hall. Comet all but froze in her tracks until she saw the tall unicorn give her a joking grin and bounce up to her.

“You have fun later! I’m going to visit Warmspark, I’ll tell him you said hi, okay?” she said brightly before skipping away.

Comet turned to ask her what the hay she was talking about, she she had already vanished, humming pleasantly around the corner. The unicorn wasn’t sure whether to feel charmed by her happily oblivious nature or frustrated by it. She decided it was a little of both.

Comet went to wash up, wondering what to do with the day until noon. She supposed the book on the Elements of Harmony could be a good place to start. Stashing it in her saddlebag, Comet snuck back into the library and down into the secret passageway.

The room below was undisturbed, for which Comet was very grateful. She was relieved to have a place to go during the day now, even though she thought it unwise to practice magic there. Cautiously, she tested the strange door that seemed sealed by magic. She still couldn’t open it, and the recording of Celestia in the crystals above wouldn’t reappear to offer any explanation.

Comet lay on the floor to read the book, flipping back to the start. It detailed Celestia’s rise to power against a creature of chaos named Discord, but Comet was surprised to find parts of it censored, and badly. Black ink was smeared over portions of illustrations and of words, and as Comet tried to read past that, she found it only get worse as the historical tome continued to the already read portion about Nightmare Moon. It was as if a someone had removed a key figure entirely.

The unicorn’s ears drooped and she frowned at the ink-stained pages before her. She hadn’t realized that so much had been taken out. When told verbally, the story didn’t seem to be missing a thing, but seeing this tome, so marred with an angry vandal’s pen, she felt, in a way, lied to.

Maybe no one knows, she mused, and then peered hard at the dark splotches, trying in vain to see through them.

She sighed when she pulled back. She was half-tempted to ask the Archmage if she knew anything, but that would mean admitting where the book came from, and that didn’t seem to be a very wise plan.

After reading and rereading the censored passages, trying to figure them out, Comet felt her stomach growl and decided to leave her hideout. Perhaps it was nearly noon? She returned to the surface world quickly and quietly.

The library was quiet as ever when Comet emerged from the tunnel to push the bookshelf back in place. The scraping noise it made was unpleasant, and loud as well, but she didn’t hear anyone to complain until a sharp, “Ahem!” drew her attention. Comet’s heart all but exploded out her chest and she spun with eyes as round as the moon, only to see Runestone, without armour this time and carrying a bag over his back, leaning casually against a bookshelf nearby, looking at her with an unnervingly amused expression.

“Wha- umm... ur... I can explain,” Comet babbled hurriedly.

The stallion smiled and yet he looked a little confused.

“Explain what?” he said. “Your ‘secret’ study room? Pinklily mentioned you might be back here.”

“St-Study room?” Comet repeated, and then stared at him blankly before realizing her best friend had given her an out. “Y... Yeah. Sorry. It’s just... kind of private, I wouldn’t want other ponies to... you know, find it, start using it, get sticky oatmeal hooves all over it...”

“Don’t worry,” Runestone assured her with a laugh. “I’m not really one for studying.”

Comet blew out a sigh of relief and nodded, saying, “Of course. Right,” as she tried to keep from looking as flustered as she felt. He laughed again and then gestured towards his saddlebag.

“I have lunch,” he explained. “And I’ve signed you out. Just make sure we get some... what’s it called? Puzzlegrass samples, before we come back, so no one suspects we were just out there to sit and do nothing.”

“Right,” Comet said.

She tried to conceal her surprise. She didn’t realize he would be so efficient. He grinned at her and nudged her with his snout, saying, “Come on, let’s get going.” Comet jumped but followed him out of the library quickly, silently thanking Celestia for Pinklily as she went.

When the two ponies arrived at the main hall, Comet suddenly felt rather small looking out the main doors. She hadn’t been out in a long time. She wanted to take a moment to brace herself, but Runestone didn’t consider it very much; he simply trotted up and pushed the door open casually. The gape between the wood was all but glowing. The light stunned Comet for a second and she had to step back, blinking quickly, trying to get her eyes to adjust. She saw Runestone beckoning her to follow and so, quickly, she did.

Stepping out into the fresh air, Comet couldn’t help herself from taking in a deep breath. Her eyes settled into the light quickly, and she saw before her a set of stairs leading past two armed guards to a cobblestone walkway. They still had a little ways to go before reaching the outside. She kept close to Runestone as they trotted across the stone walks, through rows of abandoned stores. Not many ponies lived in the actual city of Canterlot. There was an inn and tavern where outside researches sometimes stayed and houses where a couple of retired Sunwalkers made their homes. The place was beautiful despite its slow state of disrepair. Despite that, Comet found it a bit creepy and stagnant; it was a bit of a ghost town. She had read in history that it had once been the seat of Celestia, and had been the hub of Equestria; one of the busiest cities in the world. That position was now taken by a bigger city far to the north called Zenith, where a Pegasus king and queen ruled.

“So,” Runestone said, jarring Comet out of thought, “when were you out last?”

“Um...” She had to think about it for a moment. “Three or four months ago, I can’t remember.”

“Really?” The stallion looked surprised and then he shook his head, a small frown creasing his brow. “That’s really quite dumb. I don’t understand why they don’t let you go around Canterlot at all. For Celestia’s sake, it’s a walled city, what sort of trouble could you possibly get into?”

“The ruins of the palace, for one,” Comet said with a sigh. “Holy site, forbidden, especially to unicorns, blah blah blah.”

She noticed Runestone roll his eyes and she smiled a bit despite herself.

“And... we are allowed out, just... you know, either like this, or we can get a ‘free Canterlot pass’, but it takes a few days to approve and you only get one if you have a good record, have no classes, and are going with a friend.”

“Seems unnecessarily restrictive,” Runestone replied.

They continued through the city quickly. The exit, a portcullis and guard house made from the ruins of a train station in the middle of a tall wall, was opened for them as they passed. Beyond that lay a stone bridge with grooves where train tracks had been removed. Near the end of the bridge, they passed through the final guardhouse before the magic barrier and Comet caught her first glimpse of the field that served as a buffer between Canterlot and the start of the dangerous part of the Everfree forest. It was the first time she had seen it from ground level since she had found it swarmed with Nightspawn. She felt a little trepidatious, but it wasn’t enough to deter her. At the edge of the barrier, she stepped through after Runestone without hesitation.

Cheerfully, Runestone trotted around in the grass; he seemed to be looking for something. Comet kept close, trying very hard not to give in to her urge roll around in the greenery. She turned an eye to the sky above, marveling at the blueness and the fluffy, but slightly grey clouds that drifted above. She let out a quiet ‘wow’, though abruptly found herself stopped in her tracks and flopping to the ground as she ran into Runestone and tumbled over. He whirled on her, a look of worry on his face for only a moment before he began to laugh at the blue unicorn splayed in the grass.

“I guess this is as good a place as any,” he said brightly.

He plopped down onto the grass and scooted back to give Comet a little more room as she regained herself and he opened his bag. Comet, as she blew her mane from her face, watched curiously as the stallion pulled two wrapped packets and two flasks out of his saddlebag, and then nudged one of each towards her.

“Cider,” he said a bit proudly. “Not fermented, this time! I made sure.”

“Great,” Comet said with a laugh. “Thanks for getting the food. I’m starved.”

“I made it,” he said proudly as he unwrapped his, revealing a sandwich inside. “I hope it turned out.”

Comet wondered how a sandwich could not turn out, but she shrugged to herself and floated hers up and removed the wrapping.

“Thanks,” she said. “You didn’t have to.”

“No, no, Comet Strike, consider this your thank you for the other day,” he said brightly, his mouth half-full, and he swallowed loudly. “You know, you’re the first pony that’s never commented to me about how I don’t have a Soul Mark.”

“Oh, come on, that can’t be true,” Comet said, trying to sound reassuring.

“It is!” Runestone insisted.

“...So you get bullied a lot, then?”

She immediately felt bad for him.

“Not bullied, exactly,” the stallion said quickly, but then, after tracing a circle absently in the grass with a hoof, he sighed and said. “...Yeah. I guess so.”

“I was late in my year as well,” Comet said quickly, but then bit her lip and laughed embarrassedly. “Sorry... We’re the same age, aren’t we? I guess that doesn’t help.”

Runestone couldn’t help but chuckle a little and a bit awkwardly, hitting herself internally, Comet took a bite of her sandwich. She was stunned to find it was dandelion and raspberry jam, her favourite. Runestone watched her with interest and his ears perked as he asked, “Is it good?”

“Yeah,” Comet said. “Raspberry jam with dandelions is my favourite.”

Runestone grinned and though the sandwich was good, Comet eyed him suspiciously.

“How could you possibly know?” she wondered.

“Honestly?” he asked, and then laughed. “I asked your friends what you liked. I... well, I wanted to impress you. Sorry.”

He smiled sheepishly and Comet felt herself blush. She was taken aback.

“Impress me?” she repeated, her brow furrowed with confusion, but then she shrugged and took another bite of the sandwich. “Whatever, that’s cool. This is really good.”

“That’s a relief,” Runestone said with a bit of a giggle, “because, you know, normally, I’m a terrible, terrible cook. But there’s not much in a dandelion sandwich with raspberry jam so-”

“Almost impossible to screw up, gotcha,” Comet laughed.

Runestone nodded, his smile never falling.

“You should have seen this one time,” he said. “I swear, I burned soup.”

Comet smiled and took a sip from her flask of cider. Across from her, the pony grabbed his as well and took a deep, clumsy swig until he nearly fell backwards and Comet had to try not to spit out her drink. Runestone grinned shyly as he righted himself and Comet felt her ears perk of their own accord. She sort of liked his smile.

“Question,” she said a bit hesitantly. “Why...? Why are you a Sunwalker?”

He inclined his head.

“Well, you don’t seem to want to be here at all, is all I meant,” she said.

“Oh! Right, that,” he said. “Yes. Well, I’m an orphan. Probably like most here, I expect. I went from the orphanage in Trottingham to working part time for the Apple Family in Dawncliff, and then I ended up stuck in the Temple of the Sun where I eventually got passed on to here.”

Externally, he didn’t seem to mind, but Comet flinched anyway, her imagination running away with her. She didn’t like the sound of that at all. Unsure of whether to offer condolences or to try to make light, she paused, only to have him ask, “What about you? How’d you get here?”

“Oh,” Comet replied, surprised, “I’m apparently from one of those northern pony herds. From what I’m told they were attacked. A young Sunwalker called Nimbus found me when I was probably just a few hours old hidden under some stuff and brought he me back here, took care of me and stuff. I haven’t know much else.”

She sipped her cider again and had to stop herself from spitting it again as Runestone said, “Pity. I feel like someone like you is wasted in Canterlot.”

Comet gulped and said, “What does that mean?”

“Well, you’re kind, and smart and good at magic, and seems like you’d be of more use to King Tornado or something like that,” he explained, though his face had gone a little red.

“Oh, stop it, you,” Comet joked, waving a hoof at him.

He grinned at her again, but his smile slowly fell and he looked up to the sky with ears drooping.

“Hope it doesn’t rain,” he said as a shadow began to pass over his face.

Comet turned her gaze upwards as well to see, to her surprise, a mat of dark grey clouds drifting in towards the city.

“Think we should go back?” she asked.

Runestone shrugged and took another glance up as the shadow began to pass the field. Comet felt a little bit chillier without the sun on her fur, but she didn’t mind. She sipped her cider again absently until the sound of a snapping branch drew her attention from the clouds to the wooded area behind Runestone. She leaned around him, ears pressed forward curiously. He turned his head to look, and Comet got to her hooves. She was starting to see something in the shadows of the trees. Something with bright white eyes.

Comet felt like her blood had turned to ice and she took a step back. With clouds above smothering the sun, whatever she saw stepped forward. She heard Runestone curse but she was barely paying attention. The hard, twisted black hide of the creature in the trees seemed to ripple with shadow, it’s face, though almost equine, was stretched too far forward and its teeth were like a carnivore’s.

“Run,” Comet said, unable to force out more than a whisper. “Run, now.”

Runestone whipped around to face her, eyes wide, and the Nightspawn behind him charged from the forest’s cover, followed by more as if they had peeled themselves from the shadows of the trees.

Comet wasn’t sure when she had started running, but before she knew it she was barreling towards the bridge. She was terrified; could only think of getting away and how stupid she had been. She saw Runestone at her side when she glanced right, but was shocked by a sudden rumbling beneath her. She yelped as she felt a front hoof sink down into the dirt and she, stumbling, dashed out of the way as, to her horror, a snarling, clambering Nightspawn began to wrench itself from the ground as it caved around him. Almost dazed, Comet spun and kicked him, hard. She heard the impact; sort of felt it before propelling herself forward until she realized she was going completely the wrong way. Spinning, trying to find the bridge, Comet was horrified to see more dark shapes pulling themselves out of the ground. Runestone was still running, but not towards the bridge: he was dodging the Nightspawn from below, but Comet shook in terror to see more heading straight for him from the tree line.

She stalled, trying to calm her rasping, frantic breath. She couldn’t do it. Gritting her teeth, she charged forward. Her lungs were burning and her eyes were watering, but she lowered her horn and pulsed magic outwards. Beams with tips like knives erupted out around her body and whirled outwards as she went forward, keeping her eye on Runestone. She couldn’t look at anything else.

She felt her magic cut and knock away, but as she got closer to her panicked friend, she saw a large, musclebound Nightspawn get in her line of sight and lower its head to charge with a guttural roar. Her heart pumping a mile a minute, she lashed out, the blue energy bursting forth and shooting straight into the chest of the running beast. Its black body gave way, only to reveal another behind it. Comet yelped and stumbled back. She was knocked off her hooves almost immediately, wide, vacant eyes staring in her peripherals as she felt teeth sink into the back of her neck. The fangs burned like fire. Before a cry had even left her mouth, she saw the shape of the beast fly over her head and Runestone soon followed, spinning to kick the creature in the face with his back hooves. Comet jumped up and, cringing, fired another burst of magic that scattered Runestone’s opponent. He looked back at her, his eyes wide and scared, and he shouted, “Run!” Comet did without hesitation, almost keeping pace with the stallion in her panic.

As they tore across the field in the right direction, Comet couldn’t help but steal a glance over her shoulder. Her heart sank to her hooves. Behind her, amassed so tightly as to resemble a singular creature, the beasts gave chase on quick feet. Comet felt her throat catch and her breath shorten. She wished she hadn’t looked.

Spurred on by fear, she pushed her body forward, though it was starting to ache. She felt like there was something whispering in her head; felt like her heart was going to beat right out of her chest. Over the madness of blood in her ears, she heard Runestone cry out and she skidded to a stop in the dirt and whirled to see her new friend tumble head over tail in a tangle of flailing legs, his pelt like a beacon against the black mess of monsters moving towards him.

Comet felt terror seize her, turning her blood to ice, but through that she forced herself to move back towards Runestone. She was at a gallop, but her legs felt like lead. In her peripherals, she saw a darkened pegasus-like creature break ranks and rush towards the stallion, who, dazed, was barely starting to right himself. Her thoughts were screaming, No!; she might have shouted it aloud as well, and quickly, she shot out a burst of magic, cold and sharp and fast. The blue burst of power ripped through the diving pegasus-beast, and Comet, shaky legged, ground her hooves into the dirt to stop as she stood protectively before Runestone, staring, determined, into the blackness.

She summoned as much magic as she could muster into her horn, letting it glow a radiant and sparkling blue before her and, with a deep breath, lowered her head and fired the energy forward. She wasn’t exactly sure what she had done, but a boom like thunder followed and blue magic arced and shot into the creatures at the front of the pack with a blinding light. She had to take a step back, and took only an instant to realize that they would too. A quick sense of triumph took her, and she whirled on Runestone to tell him to run. She saw, however, that he was not even on his feet yet. His silver eyes were wide with shock, his jaw dropped open and his gaze fixed directly on her. Comet didn’t have time for this, nor for explanations; she quickly dipped her head and started nudging him to his feet. He got the hint almost immediately and was up and running with her in a second.

The rush to the barrier felt like only seconds. The two ponies pushed through and halted, panting, and Runestone dropped to his haunches on the stone of the bridge. Behind them, the fastest few in the group plowed, hissing and snarling, against the barrier, bouncing back and onto the grass unceremoniously. Comet jerked away, eyes wide, and Runestone was on his hooves, pressing close to her in fear.

The slower of the group held back from the barrier, white eyes staring daggers at the two ponies beyond their reach.

“Do you think they can get us?” Runestone breathed, his voice trembling.

Comet stiffly shook her head and began to step back.

“Come on,” she said quietly. “Into the guard house.”

Runestone nodded and began to step backwards along the bridge. He didn’t want to turn his back on these creatures, and Comet certainly couldn’t blame him.

They hurried back into the guard house, and Comet paused to shove the door closed tightly behind them. As soon as she had, however, and before she could even demand where the guards were, she was abruptly yanked backwards and though she yelped, she found herself slumped over her friend’s shoulder as he hugged her tightly. His body was trembling.

“Comet Strike, you saved my life!” he squeaked.

A bit hesitantly, Comet put her forelimbs around him as well and patted his back reassuringly. He squeezed her and laughed in a sort of shaky and relieved way.

“You’re bleeding,” he said. “I... I can’t even believe...”

He shook his head, seeming unable to finish, and then pulled back to look into her face. She was surprised to see his silver eyes glossy, and his ears were drooped back despite the grin on his face.

“How could I ever repay you?” he asked.

Comet smiled shyly.

“Well, if you could not tell anypony about the magic I used, that would be great.”

“Well, obviously,” he said immediately, and smiled. “I mean a real thing, not a common sense thing. Of course I won’t tell anyone.”

A jolt of shock passed through the unicorn and she stammered out, “I... I’ll have to think about it, then.”

She smiled a little and he laughed and let her down onto her own four hooves again. His words stunned her. Of course he wouldn’t tell. Of course. Trying not to seem rattled, Comet spun and headed for the small window near the door.

Outside, gleaming warmly, the sun had burst through the clouds and now showered the meadow with its rays. There wasn’t a trace left of the dark monsters that had been baring down on them before, and nothing in the grass either but the tar-like splotches in the green where a few had fallen. Comet let out an unwitting sigh of relief and felt Runestone leaning over her as he followed her gaze.

“Twilgiht’s tail,” the stallion gasped. “Where’d they go?”

He pulled away to give Comet room and she almost uttered an ‘I don’t know’, but a curse came out instead as she saw the clouds begin to pull over the sun again. She wasn’t sure what would happen, but she let out a shriek when she saw the black puddles that had once been Nightspawn begin to rise and, rather grotesquely, take shape again.

“Dear Celestia, no,” she gasped.

“What?” Runestone demanded.

Comet backed up and shoved him towards the window, pointing, and he immediately whinnied and skittered backwards. He looked at her with wide eyes and squeaked, “Use your spell again! The big bright one!”

“I... I can’t, I don’t even know what I did,” Comet said quickly. “Maybe guards are coming? Someone has to have seen that!”

She hurried to the other side of the guard house and peered out, hoping beyond hope that there would be someone coming to their rescue. There wasn’t.

“Okaaay,” she said.

She bounced from hoof to hoof and hurried back to the window. Not only were the ‘dead’ Nightspawn rebuilding themselves, but more from the woods were hesitantly edging back onto the field.

“Okay. Okay. Okay.”

She paced back and forth. Runestone watched her fearfully and he began to say her name, but Comet was out the door and along the bridge before he knew what happened. She heard him call after her, but she didn’t stop. Pausing only for a moment in front of the barrier, Comet winced and began to build up magic again. She faltered for a moment, tired, and she heard Runestone call for her again. His hoofsteps caught up to her quickly and he grabbed her and pulled her back, saying, “Comet, I’m sorry, it’s not fair to ask you to do this.”

“But-” Comet began, but she all but jumped into his forelimbs in fright when a high, wrenching screech ripped through the air.

“What the hay was that?” Runestone shrieked.

Before Comet could even speculate, a dark form streaked downwards from the clouds and sped low over the field. To the pony’s surprise, the reforming Nightspawn scattered like smoke and followed the creature. The other Nightspawn began to yowl and roar, and, on heavy paws, the dark form, his body seeming to absorb the remains of the monster, a griffon landed. He was dark brown and grey, and massive, his huge wings almost entirely blocking out the pony’s sight of the Nightspawn. They heard them roar, but the griffon roared back, the sound echoing up and down the gully and ringing in their ears. Neither of them were sure what happened next, but as the sun came out once more, the griffon vanished, taking the fog of the Nightspawn with him. There was nothing physical of the monsters left.

Comet felt herself release a breath she didn’t realize she had held and a trembling Runestone pressed close to her. They looked at each other, neither sure what to say or do, but they were jarred out of their stupor by the griffon’s sudden reappearance, landing heavily before them.

The dark-coloured griffon was huge: probably three times as large as Runestone. He didn’t seem injured in the least, though the skin of his grey forelimbs crawled with the energy of the Nightspawn. His golden eyes locked on them and his feathered crest raised and fell. To their surprise, however, he clacked his grey beak and smiled kindly at them both, saying, “My, you foals look like you’ve had quite the day. I am glad I arrived when I did.”

“Me too,” Runestone squeaked.

The griffon bent forward and looked at the wound on Comet’s neck carefully before pulling back and smiling a little once more.

“I am Graham, a pleasure to meet you ponies,” he said. “Who might you be?”

“Urm... I’m Comet Strike, he’s Runestone,” Comet said hesitantly.

She couldn’t understand why he was so calm.

“Might you be able to direct me to your Archmage?” he asked. “I’ve been requested, and I have some business here.”

“How did you do that?” Comet asked.

Runestone and Graham looked at her with varying levels of confusion.

“Do what, little one?” the griffon asked.

“You stopped the Nightspawn. You... took their... something? How did you do that?” she asked quickly.

The griffon’s crest raised and he looked a little surprised, but then smiled.

“I am the Commander of the Wardens of Harmony. I am here, among other things, to deal with the Nightspawn.”

Comments

[ThePartyCannon]

Double update! Over 19,000 words! Was my body ready? Probably not.
I'll let you know how I liked it in the morning, after I'm done reading it all and I finish recovering from the (hopefully) awesomeness of it.

[Foreshadow]

904876

Thanks, friend, I really hope you like it!