The Phoenix King

by Turtlehaus

Chapter 48: Unavoidable Choices

Water from the lake was gradually being drained. Inch by inch the Obelisks were being revealed and step by step Applejack and Rainbow Dash were getting closer. Daring Do circled the pillars, scribbling notes and sketching the markings open the Obelisks.

“How exactly are these things supposed to stop the Storm?” Rainbow Dash questioned looking at the Obelisks strangely.

“Tear said something about activating the portals. Apparently all of them in unison would have had some sort of effect on it.” Daring Do replied checking her notes.

“Seems rather complicated having to coordinate something like this, especially how far apart each set is.” Applejack commented.

Daring Do slowly floated away from the Obelisks taking some interest in Applejack’s statement.

“So what does happen when one of these Obelisks turn on?”

“There was like this weird green pulse that came off of them.” Rainbow Dash began. “Then there was this booming crack that filled the air before a big black orb formed in the middle of the air.”

Daring Do hesitant to write. “Are you serious?”

“That’s pretty much what happened. Aside from the orb drawing itself thin and snapping open like a party popper.” Applejack added.

“Kind of like what it’s doing now.” Rainbow Dash mentioned pointing her hoof towards the Obelisks.

The markings upon the Obelisks were beginning to pulse a dark purple. Magical neon green cipher appeared at their base gleaming through the water. The runes within the cipher began to appear, like wheels each line of runes began to spin in opposite directions, increasing in speed.

“What in the hay is going on?” Applejack shouted in surprise.

Just as quickly as the cipher had appeared, the pulse of the Obelisk began to weaken and the runes slowing from their spin. Black bolts of lightning emanated from the Obelisks, causing loud claps of thunder, just as the bolts struck Daring Do, Applejack, and Rainbow Dash in an instant.

The thunder drew crowds of jungle ponies to the edge of the lake, their voices raised with concern as the jungle soldier ponies arrived to handle the situation. Chieftain Talon rushed from the village towards the crowd gathering near the draining lake to find out what had transpired.

“What is all the commotion about? Where did the sound of thunder come from?” Talon demanded reaching edge of the lakebed.

“Chieftain, it’s the outsiders.” A soldier pony spoke up from down in the draining lake.

“What of them? Where are they?”

“They’re gone, there is no trace of them, sir.”

Within the muddy and mucky sludge of the bottom of the lake were two sets of hoof prints where Applejack and Rainbow Dash once stood. Talon’s eyes were drawn to the Obelisks, a soft glow slowly dying from them, as small cracks of black lightning spurted from its markings.

---

Duke Wellington stood where Rarity and Pinkie Pie was last seen. All that remained was a single strand of hair Rarity’s luscious mane and some confetti from Pinkie Pie. Flabbergasted by the sudden light show the Obelisks had put on, the Duke had no pony else but Misses Minerva and Mr. Bartlesby to derive answers from.

“What happened? Where are they?” The Duke demanded rather harshly.

“I don’t know sir, it must have a defense mechanism on that thing.” Mr. Bartlesby hazard a guess staring flabbergasted at the Obelisks.

“And what we going to do just stand around her with our mouths open?”

“No, sir!” Misses Minerva replied nervously.

“Well find them! Bring them back!”

“Yes, sir!”

Mr. Bartlesby and Misses Minerva rushed off, unsure of what they could possibly do to meet the Duke’s demands, but began going through their research all the same. The Duke stared at the fading runes beneath the Obelisks, sneering at the trouble this would surely bring, and feeling his stomach drop at the thought of those two being lost within the Void as well.

---

Lord Tundra flew with great speed over the arctic tundra of the Frozen North, heading towards the White Walk where Sapphire and her expedition team had gone to search for the Obelisks. Lady Frost followed close by, trying her best to keep up with him and subvert his rather dated views of his daughter.

“Sapphire is old enough to do things on her own now, Charles!” Lady Frost called to him.

“Leading an expedition into the White Walk is not a sign of maturity, Martha! It’s insanity!” Lord Tundra shouted back sounding rather frightened.

While Lady Frost thought the world of Sapphire, there was no contest in which of them would tear the world inside out to protect their daughter. Lady Frost would honestly say it was her, but knew that Lord Tundra would not hesitate to bring utter ruin to any pony that simply made their Sapphire cry. Something had caught Lord Tundra’s eye, Lady Frost watched him dive out of the air towards the ground below and she quickly followed suit. Landing in a rather spacious area of fresh powdered snow, Lord Tundra gazed out into the valley wide eyed.

“Charles…” Lady Frost began striding up to him.

“It’s gone.” Lord Tundra remarked in amazement.

“What is?”

“The White Walk. It should be here, but it’s not.”

Lady Frost took a moment to process what he had said. It suddenly dawned on her that the area in which they stood was several miles in to the White Walk already, having crossed the border a while ago without realizing it.

“How can this be?” Lady Frost questioned it.

“It… must have been Sapphire and her friends.” Lord Tundra muttered.

Lady Frost took his hoof, nuzzling her head against his shoulder. Lord Tundra looked down at her, seeing her smile back up at him. He smiled too.

“She’s not a filly anymore, Charles. She’s got your strength and courage. Once she has her heart set on something there is no stopping her.” Lady Frost told him.

“She gets that from you.” Lord Tundra remarked with a smile.

“I know it’s hard for you, being her father and having to watch her rely less and less on you for things, but she will always need her father. You’ve shown her what a good, decent colt should be, and how to slug one if the need ever arises.”

“I’ve never created anything as beautiful or as pure as what we have with Sapphire. I’m so afraid of losing that.”

Lady Frost kissed him on the cheek, trying to comfort his worried heart.

“Let’s find her and the others. Then you can tell her that.”

Lifting her wings once more, Lord Tundra followed suit with a smile. The two rulers of the Frozen North took flight into the arctic winds, soaring over the White Walk in search of Sapphire’s expedition team. It wasn’t too long after that they spied two large pillars in the distance, the Obelisks looming on the horizon. As the two of them grew closer the making of a camp could be seen with a rather odd sight, there were just three ponies crowding near the Obelisks. Lady Frost and Lord Tundra floated down towards the edge of the campsite where Floe rushed towards them looking very upset.

“Lady Frost! Lady Frost!” Floe shouted sounding rather frightened.

Lady Frost quickly drew him in with her arm, wrapping her wing around him to comfort him. Lord Tundra could see the two Hearth siblings still poking around the Obelisks.

“What is it, Floe? What happened? Where is your sister and the others?” Lady Frost asked in a calm but concerned voice.

“The Obelisks began to power up from a ritualistic quad cipher when the spell failed halfway through! There was a unstable feedback of dark energy that caused a discharge of black magic that struck Sapphire and the others!” Floe shouted.

“A ritualistic what?” Lord Tundra questioned looking puzzled.

“Sapphire and the others got pulled into the Void!” Floe cried.

Deep within the White Walk, where large frozen ice columns of ancient ice pony ruins once stood, the ethereal caribou walked silently atop the snow. From far away a single word ‘what’ reached its ears, shaking thousands of years of old snow from the columns around it. It paused to look back in curious interest as to what had happened.

---

Black lightning erupted within the dark caves beneath the fields of Ouroboros. In a flash of black fire, Princess Celestia and Wingston found themselves standing within a very dark tunnel looking disoriented. Rubbing his long fingers against his eyes Wingston stepped forward, jabbing his staff into the black sand beneath his feat, noticing rock not too far beneath him. Princess Celestia stepped up with him, her horn giving off a bright glow of white light to the darkened area around them. It appeared to be a rather large cave lined with black rock and carpeted with black sand. Looking behind themselves, there were two large Obelisks imbedded with the rock wall, bit of black lightning sparking from them as it quickly faded away.

“This isn’t happening.” Princess Celestia mumbled.

“We’ve been pulled into the Void somehow.” Wingston stated.

“How is that even possible? What could have done this?”

“I’m sure that whatever happened, it is in some way tied to Smolder.”

Princess Celestia turned her head about the cave. “I have a bad feeling about this.”

Turning back around, Princess Celestia noticed Wingston already limping off into a tunnel.

“Hey!” Princess Celestia called out hurrying to catch up with him. “Where are you going?”

“I am going to find out where this tunnel leads.” Wingston explained to her.

“I can see that, but can you not see that we are now trapped in the Void?”

“Not really what I was expecting, but I gathered as much.”

“Shouldn’t we come up with a plan before wandering aimlessly through these tunnels?”

“This is my plan, wander aimlessly though these tunnels until I find something.”

Princess Celestia narrowed her eyes at him. Recollections of Smolder’s similar attitude when approaching plans had Princess Celestia questioning if Wingston had been a major source of influence.

“Nevertheless, this was unexpected and ill timed.” Princess Celestia remarked.

“Most things in life are.” Wingston replied.

“If I didn’t know any better I think you’re happy with our current development.”

“I would never wish for any harm or misfortune to fall upon you, my Lady.”

“You want to find Smolder, don’t you?”

“Do you not?”

Princess Celestia pursed her lips. The idea was not the first to pop into her mind, but seeing as they were stuck here it would seem like the best course of action to take. Walking on, they found that the tunnel to a rather steep slope that Wingston surely could not make on his own without slipping and falling into the darkness. Graciously accepting Princess Celestia’s assistance, he climbed upon her back and the two ventured down into the darkness below.

---

Null stepped across the black sand of Ouroboros, his shredded body spewing clouds of the storm, taking his time to reach me. He resembled my father, but inverse. His body torn, power seething from him, instead of rage there was a hunger that surrounded him. For the first time in my life I felt my blood run cold. Where my father had sought to rule and the Orc fought to conquer, this Dark King only sought to feed.

“Your words mirror the last flame pony that stood against me.” Null’s raspy voice cut through the air.

His approach was prefaced by strong winds thrown by the storm surging from his body. My flames were blasted back, feeling the great emptiness that resided within him.

“I killed it slowly, listening to its cries as I tore its life from it.”

I took a step forward. My fire exploded from my body with a thunderous boom and that roared in my silent anger. I felt Mira’s fingers weakly claw into my sides, for some reason she was refusing to absorb my fire to sustain herself.

“You… can’t win… Smolder.” Mira whispered.

“Your confidence is very reassuring.” I muttered. “Hurry up and take some of my power before this kicks off.”

I felt Mira slide from my back, rolling off of my wing and landing in the black sand. Turning back to her, I could see Mira’s stardust like hair a ghostly white, her markings lacking even a shred of green. Kneeling down to her I could tell that Mira wasn’t going to last much longer.

“Hand over the Arcana, flame pony King, and I shall promise you a quick death.” Null commanded holding out his hand to us.

“I already told you.” I stated aloud. “You will not touch her again.”

“A slow death it is then.”

Null raised his arm with storm exploding from his palm, billowing towards us in a deafening roar that echoed throughout the world. The impact of the storm threw a cloud of sand into the air, the ground being pulverized by its force. A streak of fire flashed across the fields, Null’s eyes tracing it, watching the flame pony run.

Sprinting across the endless sea of black sand, I carried Mira upon my back again, using my magic to secure her to me. The sand was working against me, my hooves digging deep, my fire flaring through the sand and absorbing much of my speed. Mira was fading fast. I could only assume that within her weakened state she could not recover on her own. I couldn’t fight Null knowing that I would be leaving Mira to die and I decided to chose to run than face him now.

A monstrous groan rolled over head. I watched the storm reach out like an arm before striking itself down hard against the ground before us. Bolting to the side I raced along the edge of the storm, dragging itself against the ground to give chase. It felt like a tornado was chasing us, the black sand being pulled from beneath us, the winds howling with its thunderous groan drawing ever closer. A length of the storm drew itself from its massive size, like a tentacle reaching out, flinging itself towards us. I leaped to the side watching nearly a mile long wall of the storm come crashing down beside us. Glancing over my shoulder I could see the mass of the storm creating more cyclones that stretched out from it like fingers. The first twister touched ground before us, having only just dodged it with a hard flap of my wings to throw myself to the side. Mantling over the upturned earth that scarred the land, I flared open my wings and took the air.

Two more twisters struck down trying to consume us, but my flying took us further and faster from the storm. My Flash Step burning hard to increase my speed beyond my own capabilities. I banked around the swirling vortexes of the storm, watching the clouds reach out, but failed to grasp us. The cyclones raced alongside us, like snakes slithering through the air, trying to pluck us out of the air. Flying wasn’t something I felt I had mastered yet. It felt almost as natural as running at times, but the disorientation of flying upside and not knowing where the ground was made difficult to fly unhindered. Lifting one of my wings a bit higher I rolled over a stretching cyclone before diving towards the ground with tremendous speed. The storm was quick to follow, the cyclones forming into one massive tornado that drove itself hard towards the ground.

I pulled in my wings, tucking my head and hooves close to my body, tumbling like a small ball towards the ground. In the last moment I flared out my wings, feeling my fire leap from hooves and propelling me like a shot straight across the top of the fields. The storm impacted behind us, the tornado collapsing, although spreading itself wide like water crashing after us. The clouds formed just like a wave raising itself high to envelope us. I beat my wings hard, trying to climb higher into the air, using my flames to propel me away from the reach of the storm. Up ahead I could see the makings of a city, it was massive to behold, it loomed in the darkness and I felt it was our best chance of hiding from the storm.

I cut low out of the air, feeling my hooves drag across the sand, feeling the swell of the storm right behind me. With a sharp turn I flew straight through a destroyed wall of a building, before smashing through the glass of an already shattered window. The storm impacted the side of the city, crashing over it like water on rocks, pouring itself into the ruins, the streets, and the alleys. It felt like maze, with my speed I made split second decisions to lean right and left, flying through open doorframes or shattered windows. I could hear the storm groaning all around me. The ruins of these buildings provided me just momentary protection before the storm crushed it to rubble behind us. Flying through the missing wall of a four story building I found myself out in open air, a wide open area that had remnants of old markets that had long since been abandoned. The buildings behind us exploded into rubble, the storm crashing through with its cyclones slithering after us. A torrent of the storm drew up alongside us.

Movement from the corner of my eye had me looking to my left. In that moment I turned to see Null staring back at me, strands of the storm swirling from his back as if he were a puppet on strings. I could see that searing helmet up close, his husk hide tearing away, and I could feel that emptiness that surrounded him.

“You will not deny me my destiny!” Null’s voice boomed over the storm.

Shadow magic flared from his hands, black lightning sparking from his arms, Null lunged out taking me by the throat before bringing us both crashing down into the city below. The storm washed over the market place, pouring into every street and building groaning in its power.

A thin bead of light broke the surface of the storm. With a sudden swell of its clouds the storm spewed a pillar of fire high into the air forcing it to retreat with its winds howling pain. Null had been thrown back by my flames, slamming hard through a ruined building, having taken the last of what was supporting it and having it collapse in on him. I stood breathing hard, a noticeable bruise upon my neck from where Null had grabbed me, hundreds of cuts from the storm lined my body and I felt so very cold. Parts of the storm were still burning from my flames, but it was quick to try and consume me again. My horn brimmed with magic, flaring my flames from every part of my body and forming dome of fire around us. With a sudden thunderous clap the dome of fire expanded out, burning the storm back as the fire swirled like a typhoon. Eventually the flames died away, small embers falling from the air, the flame pony and the Arcana gone from sight as the storm groaned in anger.

From the rubble Null stood from the ruined building staring at where the flame pony had once been. The lingering flames upon his body burnt themselves out with storm raging over his head. Raising his hand towards the storm, Null stopped abruptly staring intensely at his now shaking hand. There was silver skin where the blackened husk should have been, taut, renewed, smooth, and it felt warm. The storm fell upon him, Null’s cries of anguish shrieking within its thunder as it consumed his hand. Falling upon his knees, Null drew his hand to his face again, seeing the familiar blackened husk that peeled from his skin.

“What is this magic?” Null hissed.

---

I kept my flames low, walking along a tunnel beneath the city, taking each step carefully hoping to remain hidden. During the expanse of my fire shield I ran towards a building to make our escape and found a tunnel inside. I dropped in, using my magic to bury the entrance and hoped to Celestia that the storm would not find us again. I winced at the cuts I felt over my body, the storm felt like a blanket of razors being dragged over me, and the grip that Null had felt as if he was trying to crush my very soul. I had never imagined Null and this storm being so powerful, Mira claimed it to be starving but it didn’t appear weak at all.

“Mira…” I whispered.

Lifting her with my wings from my back I placed her on the ground before me. Her body had gone limp, I lowered my ear to mouth to hear her struggling to breathe. I brought my hoof under Mira’s head, lifting up to face, pressing my horn against her head to share my power with her.

“No…” Mira whispered to me.

I lifted my horn from her. Mira’s eyes were barely open, a glossy grey instead of their normal yellow.

“It’s okay, Mira. Take it.” I brought her hand to my face.

“I have… to die…”

I held her tighter in my arms. “No, no, no, no you don’t. I’m here, Mira. I can save you.”

“It’s okay… Smolder…”

“It’s not okay!”

Mira managed to smile at me, seeing how upset this had made me.

“Null can’t… escape when I’m gone…”

“We can defeat him, together this time, just like we planned.”

“Goodbye… Smolder…”

“Mira, please!”

Mira’s eyes had fallen shut. I gasped trying to keep myself from becoming emotional, holding Mira close to me as I slightly rocked back and forth cradling her. I was about to lose her, just how I’ve lost everyone else I tried to save.

“Mira, can you hear me?” I whispered to her.

I was met with silence.

“If you think I’m going to let you die then you’ve forgotten who you’re dealing with it. I’ve lost a lot of things in my life, ponies I loved very dearly, and it’s all because they made a choice. Now, you still have a choice before you. You can stay with me and we can save your world together or you can die right here, right now, and I promise you I will find a way to bring you back. And don’t even bother telling me that it’s impossible, that it can’t be done, because you know that I’m stupid enough to try anything if it means saving some pony I love.”

I placed my hoof upon Mira’s chest, looking down at her with a very determined expression.

“Now, you have just one question answer, Mira, how is this going to end?”

After everything Mira had been through, all of her suffering and torment, I was being selfish in asking her to continue fighting, to be with me. I couldn’t bear to lose again, to have some pony I cared for being taken from me by the cruelty of another. All of my doubts and sadness faded away feeling Mira’s hands grip my hoof.

“I didn’t… deserve…” Tears beginning to well in her eyes. “A friend like you…”

“Of course you did.”

I felt my strength begin to fade, it didn’t care though, Mira had decided to stay. The white stardust of her hair began to run with a soft shade of blue, her marking softly glowing green again, but that was all the fire she took from me. Covering her mouth Mira coughed hoarsely, her breathing still labored, with spots of blood on her hands.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“I need… to get home…” Mira mumbled clutching her chest.

I didn’t’ see anything wrong with Mira’s chest before, carefully turning her on her side I could see a cauterized hole in her back. A mixture of anger and fear swept over me, realizing that Mira dying may not be entirely up to her now. I had no idea where Mira’s cave was from here, this tunnel could lead anywhere or nowhere, but I knew if I could find Azimuth’s Tomb I could get her home. Lifting Mira with my wings, I carefully laid her upon my back, feeling her arms grip my neck tightly.

“Just hang on, Mira.”

Together we set off down the tunnel, my flames still burning strong, while Mira’s soft blue stardust like hair trailed in the air.

“Smolder?” Mira asked softly.

“Yeah?”

“You’re still a stupid… flame pony.”

I found myself smiling. Folding my wings over her I walked on, knowing I had won one small battle today, and it made all the difference to me.

Comments

[Night_Striker]

huh nice chapter and now the rest off the maine 6 and company to come to gheter

[Stellar_]

Aw yus