For Cobalt and his friends, Onyx Storm, Blazing Storm, and Platinum Haze, the day started out rather normal.
"Find anything interesting in the mines Cobalt?" Onyx looked over at Cobalt inquisitively. Onyx is a dark gray, almost black, stallion with a mane that has no apparent pattern to it, other than it's black, as well as his tail. His cutie mark is an arrow laying next to a bow, showing his skill in archery.
"Nah, haven't found anything interesting since that ruby a few weeks ago," Cobalt replied, rather down. Cobalt is a blue unicorn stallion with a red mane and tail, styled with an uneven cut. His cutie mark is a pickaxe, symbolizing his skill in mining.
"Hey, Blaze! You alright? Haven't heard much out of you," Platinum commented. She didn't get a response. "Blaze?" Platinum is a gray unicorn, and the only mare in the group. She has a gray mane and tail which has a black streak through the middle. Her cutie mark features an anvil, showing her skill at the forge.
Blazing, nicknamed Blaze by his friends, is an orange Pegasus stallion with a brown mane and tail. His mane is spiked up while his tail was rather flat and straight. His cutie mark is an orange lightning bolt with a red wing coming off of the top of it, featuring his flying abilities.
"Cobalt, Onyx, Platinum? I have something to say to you guys," Blaze looked at each of his friends in turn. Without waiting for a response, he continued with his explanation. "Remember that hike I went on the other day, you know, to get some quiet after Platinum decided it would be a good idea to make an alarm out of frying pans, " Blaze was interrupted by an eruption of laughter from his friends. After they composed themselves, Blaze continued. "Anyway, I found this strange plant. It was mostly yellow, but it had green that was spread across it. Not only that, it had jagged-edged leaves..." Before he could finish his sentence, he fell to the ground with a perplexed expression, which never changed.
"Anypony care to explain what just happened to my brother?" Onyx looked both angry and worried, which is odd for him.
"A yellow plant... a yellow plant.... I don't have an explanation, but maybe I have something in my house. I'm not promising anything, but you guys know I have some interesting books in there," Cobalt offered
"Well, we don't have much time to figure it out, I'm not sure how well he can fare in this condition, so let's move!" Onyx ordered.
Platinum picked up Blaze with her telekinesis and the group was on their way to Cobalt’s house. The road there went straight through Ponyville, from their current location close to Platinum’s forge.
“Cobalt, why do you have to live in the middle of nowhere!” Platinum shouted over at Cobalt.
The group passed several residents of Ponyville, dashed across town, and Cobalt’s house came into view. From the outside, it didn’t look like it should even be standing. Cobalt’s house, even though old, sufficed for the little time he spent in it. He was either out in the mines or with his friends.
The three ponies, with Blaze being levitated by Platinum, rushed into Cobalt's house in the outskirts of Ponyville. "I'll look around, you see what you can do for Blaze."
Cobalt’s house was rather big, despite what it looked like from the outside. It had three rooms: the main room, his bedroom, and what looked to be a kitchen. Each room had bookshelves lining the walls. The bookshelves also seemed to be the only form of decoration, besides common furniture. The floor was stone, and cold underhoof. Looking rather worn, the walls were made of wood, and had evidently been there for quite some time.
Platinum and Onyx immediately started searching surrounding bookshelves. She looked over at Cobalt, who didn’t seem to be having any better results than she was.
“Got anything Onyx?” Platinum called over to him.
“Nope. I did find something interesting though. It’s a book on a dark lifeform, called a shade. It looks like Cobalt has a section bookmarked here,” Onyx then motioned Platinum to come closer.
“Listen to this: It says here that there were three original shades. The names of the pony they possessed lost in time, but the three shades got a reputation of being The Deathbringers. Those who stood up to them were never seen or heard from again. The strongest of the three, Dread, created many shades from her own spirit. Destroying herself, she created many more shades that were disguised amongst the normal citizens of Equestria the eldest, Midnight, sought to destroy all that opposed her, like her mother before her. However, she never got the chance. She was defeated by a warrior who was never named, but she sought her revenge,” Onyx stopped reading as Cobalt stormed back into the room.
“Guys! I think I found something!” Cobalt yelled as he came running into the room. “Look at this, it’s similar to what Blaze was starting to describe.” Sure enough, a picture portrayed in the book looked to be exactly what Blaze was starting to describe. It was an ordinary looking plant, for the most part. It was mostly yellow, with a little bit of green scattered across it. The leaves were a bright yellow and had needle looking spines surrounding them. “According to this book, it’s called Ohine. When it makes contact with a pony, it causes a state of paralysis within 72 hours. There is no known cure, but I think I have a solution for that.”
“I’ve been reading this book for a while, just let me go grab it. I hope I still have that section marked,” Cobalt then went back into his bedroom, which was now covered in books.
Returning with a red book, Cobalt opened it and read a bookmarked section to his friends. “Before the banishment of Nightmare Moon, there was an order dedicated to ancient magic. They were called The Guardians of the Rune. They created 10 runes, each with a different purpose and guardian. The names of the guardians were lost in time, but the runes are a legend that has continued to prosper for millennia. The first and most powerful of runes was The Rune of Wisdom. It had the ability to grant knowledge to the holder. The next was The Rune of Valor. It gave the holder incredible bravery in combat. The third was The Rune of Solitude. It was the most confusing rune and gave the holder the power of advanced teleportation. The fourth was The Rune of the Dead. It gave the holder the power to see the spirits of their ancestors. The fifth rune was The Rune of Fate. It gave the holder the power to see the future if current events weren’t altered. The sixth was The Rune of Chaos. It allowed the holder to wreak havoc on the world. The seventh and one of the least used runes was The Rune of Divinity. It gave the holder the power to cleanse others of impurities. The eighth and most used rune was The Rune of Contagion. It allowed the holder to create and transmit diseases. The ninth and most mysterious rune is The Rune of Misfortune. It’s powers are unknown, as it caused the guardian to die before he could identify its purpose. The last rune is The Rune of Truth. It would cause a target, designated by the holder, to speak the truth when asked to.” After he finished reading, he closed the book and turned to his friends.
“Guys, if we can find The Rune of Divinity, we can cure Blaze. However, there is one problem. I have no idea where the runes were taken after the guardians split up.”
“Well, we don’t really have any other choice, so we better get to it. Let’s ride!” Onyx got up and was ready to run when he was stopped by Cobalt.
“One more thing: try to pack some weapons, as we might need them for our journey. You know highwayponies have started to attack around Trottingham. It would help if we could fight them off.”
Onyx nodded and ran off to get his stuff. “Platinum, would you also bring along some of your creations? We might need them for what we’re going to do.” Platinum smiled at request and replied “You know, I have been wanting to try out some of my creations. See you in town!” With that, she dashed out of his house. In all the confusion, Cobalt missed Platinum levitate out Blaze. “Well, guess I better get to it.”