//------------------------------// // Prologue // Story: Silver Bells // by mamori86 //------------------------------// Silver Bells -Prologue- In the crisp winter air, the only sound that could be heard was the soft step of hoof on freshly fallen snow. “Nothing quite like the first snow of winter.” The pony grinned, his head tilted towards the sky to enjoy the flurries dance to the ground. “Winter really is the best season! Except for spring, and summer, and autumn… they’re really all quite splendid really.” Turning a corner, the earth pony found himself face to face with a rather impressive hedge maze, a fine frosting of crystal had settled in during the night. But he wasn’t there for sightseeing; he had business to attend to. Trotting in and out between the various stone statutes of the garden, the sound of hoofsteps abruptly stopped. “Hello there, old friend.” Despite his warm greeting, the statue remained silent. Before the colt was a rather odd figure. To begin with, it bore the head of a horse, antlers of a deer, and horn of a goat. One arm looked to be that of a lion, while the other resembled the talon of a bird of prey. One of the legs looked to be reptilian, the other a goat’s. The figure also had the tail of a dragon, and a pair of mismatched wings, one birdlike, and the other mammalian. The face was contorted as if frozen in eternal shock and horror. “They really got you, didn’t they? Not that you didn’t deserve it, you always did take things just a bit too far.” Standing on his hind legs, the pony placed his front hooves on the statue. “…Oh, it’s you.” The disembodied voice of Discord echoed inside the colt’s head. “I honestly didn’t think I’d see you again,” the voice chided. “What? I’m not allowed to check in on my fellow spirit?” “That’s not what I meant. After you didn’t come back, it was assumed you had, ‘kicked the bucket,’ so to speak.” The earth pony turned to look skyward as the moon peaked out from behind the clouds, basking the garden in a ghostly light. “A lot happened…” “Yet here you are. Though I admit, you look a bit different.” The voice of Discord held an obvious trait of a smirk in its tone. “You make a rather boring looking pony if you ask me. Tan coat and short brown mane and tail. Hmm, green eyes, and… what’s that on your rear?” The pony glanced behind himself. “Oh, that? Sort of looks like a green flame, pretty neat, eh?” “…Tempest, why are you here. I know you’re not here to free me, as much as that would be… appreciated.” The pony chortled. “Is that a hint of hope I hear in your voice? No, I’m not here to free you, not this time anyhow. I was just passing through and thought I’d say hello. It’s that time of the year after all.” Keeping one hoof on the figure, the colt turned his head, and placed the other into the satchel hanging over the blue scarf hugging his neck. Levitating no more than an inch away from his hoof was a small, round, silver bell, no larger than a walnut, suspended by a string. “Interesting, you can manage magic without a ho… wait, where are you planning on putting that vile thing, Tempest?” His undeterred smile grew larger as he hoisted himself into the imprisoned spirit and carefully hung the bell from Discord’s antler. “Don’t worry, these are a bit different than the ones we used to make. In fact, when it’s time, I believe you’ll be quite pleased with the result. Consider it my gift to you.” “Wait, wait, Tempest, get this thing off of me! Is this one of your tricks? A gift? Please… I know what these bells are, they purify. Purify, things like me.” The colt shook his head, still perched on Discord’s arm. “I already told you, these are different. You’ll see in a couple days, once I’ve finished in Ponyville. Oh, and one more thing before I go.” “I..bu…what?” “I go by Ember now.” With that, Ember leapt from the statue, leaving it once again in silence.