//------------------------------// // The Cathedral and the Bell // Story: Sunset Shimmer - The Princess of Lordran // by ratedoni //------------------------------// It was quiet in the world, at least it seemed that way for the weary warriors as their tense bodies still ran with the adrenaline that pumped through them. Undead or not, there was very little difference among the three, with armor and weapons worn down from usage. Wind moved the trees not too far away from the cathedral, bringing the smell of a forest, the first sign of life in the dried husk that was Lordran. Alongside the rays of the immovable sun, it was a serene scene that made the perfect counterpoint to the blood and clash of weapons and rock. For a few seconds, everything remained the same atop the cathedral, with only the wind playing a tune of loneliness, whispering in the wind, and crackling of distant fires. Everything was still on the roof, until slowly, the weary warriors slowly began to relax tense muscles and their minds stopped their battle focus. Dropping the now bloodied halberd, Sunset almost fell backwards due to her body losing all the energy. Her tired mind attributed it to adrenaline leaving her body now that the danger was over, but when she took a step she then felt the sting and one of the reasons why she felt light headed. Moving her cloak to the side, she saw a red spot growing and the cloth damaged. She must have been hit harder than she thought to have an injury like that. Sunset knew that the injury didn’t feel that painful right now, but if there was something she had put attention to both in Equestria and the Human World, it was about biology and first aid. It had become invaluable to understand what she could about her own body and the alien form she had gained across the mirror, so she knew that she had some problems. The cut didn’t feel deep enough to have reached her ribs, but still, it would be a very painful injury that could take some time to heal. Thankfully, she was an undead and a simple jump over the roof will make her wake up completely fine. Before she could continue that train of thought, Sunset remembered something that could be a little less gory and quickly tried to get a hold of the container inside her robes. She felt twitches of pain along her side as she tried to get the object from her body which made her movements slow down a bit. Her body may be dead, but all of her nerves seemed to be working. If pain was a sign of being alive, then someone truly needed to investigate the whole undead deal. As her fingers curled around the flask, Sunset thought about her situation and how bizarre the whole idea of being already dead was. It just didn’t make sense according to the magical theory she knew from back home. Sure, she was less powerful than Princess Twilight since she never really finished her studies. She could be sincere and admit it if only to herself, but she knew a thing or two about dark magic and necromantic theory. Whatever she was right now broke all the laws and theories that were written in those books. How could she move? Even more amazing was the fact that she retained her personality, minus the darker aspects of it, probably due to the lingering effects of the Elements of Harmony. One thing for sure though, Princess Twilight probably knew more about them considering she was bonded to them permanently. Thinking about that made Sunset wince, and not because of her injury. It had been some time since she thought back on her days on Earth and CH, especially why she was stranded on Lordran, the reason why she was dead and with no real plan beyond her promise. She could go back to the topic of being banished some other time, right now she had to take care of herself and the injury that was starting to get pretty annoying. Taking the small vase from her robes, Sunset noticed how warm it felt to the touch which took her by surprise considering how little her body’s nerves worked. Sure, she had noticed the heartbeat of the fire inside, clearly indicating the medicinal properties of the magic trapped inside the flask, but the chipped and old looking flask didn’t betray the powerful enchantments that had been etched inside the artifact. It was almost hypnotic how calm and concentrated the magic inside the flask were. Thankfully, she was taken from the trance by her mentor. “Sunset, are you alright? You seem a little out of it.” The woman’s hood had been blown back during the fight, but her hair looked as pristine as ever; Sunset was sure that if there were wind, it would be moving alongside the breeze. Beyond some marks in her shield, courtesy of the gargoyle’s halberds, Madeleine looked perfectly fine and not even winded. Sunset already had an idea of how strong Madeleine was, but this just confirmed that she was indeed a powerful knight. “I got cut, it hurts a little bit.” Showing her flask, Sunset was for a moment lost about what to do now. Sure, she has had the flask since she started her journey but since then she hasn’t even payed attention to the enchanted object. “So… what do I do now?” with such a comment from the youngest member of the party, Madeleine blinked once before she had to put her fist in front of her mouth to fight back the laughter that was starting to dominate her body. It wasn’t that funny, but the combination of relief, adrenaline and non sequitur were enough to make the three warriors lose their composure and laugh. It was a sound that hadn’t been heard for a long time in the now dead lands of Lordran. It was the sound of people living, still surviving and having hope for tomorrow, and it was enough to make the girls back on Earth look at each other before getting up and almost ran away from the library. Once outside, they all let a loud cheer. Jumping around in celebration, the six found themselves doing something they would have never thought possible just a couple of weeks ago. They were together as friends, celebrating the victory of the one that had separated them for a long time, as if their favorite team had won the championship or a family member had been awarded something. It was still up in the air their true thoughts about the situation they had put Sunset Shimmer in, the way in which Twilight Sparkle had been left stranded on their world. Why were they able to see Sunset Shimmer in that other world? Was there any way in which they could help Sunset or Twilight? Those were questions they still had to find answers to, but for now they were happy for the success of the young girl and her companions. “Alright, I think we all needed that.” Back atop the cathedral, the trio of warriors finally calmed down from their adrenaline filled relief after the arduous battle. “But now that you talk about it, I’m not quite sure how those things work. I’ve seen many undead with those at hand, but I don’t know how they work at all.” “If I may interrupt you two, the only thing you need to do is to put the flask close to your lips and do the same motion you would do for drinking out of it,” the solar knight said getting closer to the two women, his sword having been retrieved from the corpse of one of the gargoyles. The squelch and torrent of blood made Sunset think of those creatures as not simple machines or summons. The mystery of their existence only grew along many more questions that Sunset had of this place. Shrugging her shoulders, Sunset decided to stop thinking about such things for now, instead focusing on her injuries and taking a metaphorical sip of the light filled flask, feeling the energy flowing through her body, reminding her of the old healing spells she had been a subject of in the past, when her own rambunctiousness and curiosity made her visit the Canterlot medical clinics after a botched spell back home. Her body began to shiver, not in cold, but of relief as the cut on her side closed down as if by magic, although it probably was some kind of magic involved in all of that. The flask seemed dimmer now, less bright, which made Sunset realize that the flask could only hold so much power before it had to be… what? Refilled at a bonfire? Lordran was a place filled with strange artifacts and creatures, many of which she hoped she could get a look at, if she survived that is. “Well, now that we have all of that under control, why don’t we take a look at the reason why we are all in this place?” Madeleine pointed upwards, at the tower close to them and at the bell currently sitting unmoving, waiting for the moment to ring its sound across the empty city. The trio all nodded before silently moving in the direction of the last tower, knowing that they still had much to do. They all knew that they will have more problems ahead of them and that many mysteries were left unanswered for now, like the power that Sunset was able to show in the form of a fireball. Still, the trio went on, letting Sunset get up the ladder alone while the other two stood down, serving as sentries and guards for the young undead. Sunset didn’t need to ask why. After all, it was her mission to ring the Bells of Awakening, while the other two knights were in Lordran for their reasons, it was Sunset’s promise to Oscar what made her climb the cathedral and face the dangers of the abandoned city. As she climbed, Sunset thought back of the monsters she had faced, like the boar, the bull demon and even Havel, but her mind brought the image of Rhea to the front, how empty those eyes looked and Sunset had to grit her teeth to rein back her temper. Never before had she felt that connected with someone without realizing it and it made her feel confused about the whole experience. Sunset knew that the elements of Harmony were in part responsible for her new perspective of the world and her emotions, but the level of empathy that she gained was something else, like feeling sorry of Oscar and his pilgrimage that had been cut short too soon and the hopeless mission of Rhea which was most definitely an execution in disguise. Finally reaching the top of the tower, Sunset was face to face with the artifact that had been the main force behind her own pilgrimage, finding it less than impressive. It just looked like any other bell she have seen, almost rusted in disuse. Taking a hold on her lever at the side, Sunset pulled and soon, across the abandoned city, the sound of the bell ringing filled the corridors. Across Lordran, those who were close to the source of the noise turned their eyes upwards in surprise. Demons and undead alike stood a second in silence, while those in their pilgrimage couldn’t believe their ears. A blacksmith close by stopped the hammering on his anvil. A man with bulky armor and a round helmet stopped his study of an unmoving door. A young mage, inside his room full of barrels stood, feeling some small amount of hope reignite inside of him. Another mage, this one of fire, struggled even harder against his bounds, energized once more in his desire to survive. And believe it or not, as if it were an act of the gods themselves, Rhea of Thorolund heard the bell ring all the way down in the catacombs and a smile appeared on her face.