//------------------------------// // Wind's Howling // Story: Destiny's Calling // by Crimson_Moon //------------------------------// There exists a prophecy in Equestria that I hope never comes to pass... Older than the Two Sisters themselves, it foretells a Wolf of White Hair, the reject of its kind, twisted beyond recognition, that will bring about the destruction of life as we know it. Celestia help me, I hope this is just another Fable but something tells me this one has merit... The prophecy begins with the heralding of others. My studies have shown these to be signs, and I pray that they never come to pass or we will all be doomed: When Equestria's sun rises to honor it's guardian, the Lesser Sister of Two shall claim her throne of Darkness yet again. Only Harmony can bring peace to her inner conflict, and maintain peace throughout the land. Chaos will bow before Harmony as a new yet old threat rises to lay waste to the lands it's sibling once sought. Harmony once again restores peace. When the Sun's Guardian retires, a Conjunction of the Spheres will occur, heralding the age of Monsters upon Equestria. The sign of these times will be the arrival of a stranger born of Rivia, whose mere being was rejected by his kind. Malformed and filled with Malice towards the beasts the land will be plagued with, he will arrive and wreak havoc upon these lands, bringing only death and destruction. This "man born of monsters" does not care of the blight it brings, nor the peace it has potential to form. It's apathetic nature is an unknown Law to the Universe. Destiny ties him with the White Wolf. Harmony... Harmony cannot stop the Heralding of Myths. So it has been foretold. What it means, I am not sure of but my friends and I, the Pillars of Equestria, will seek out the beginnings of what I think leads to the first sign: The Pony of Shadows... "Do you really think this 'Heralding of Myths' is upon us sister?" An Alicorn coat as blue as the night sky asked her older sister, setting down an old and weathered page out of a journal- Starswirl's journal. "Your pupil does not know of this Prophecy, yet from her report of the creature Zecora found near Fluttershy raises questions." Princess Celestia stood silent, overlooking the city of Canterlot on a marble balcony, Luna sitting aside her. "Well? Speak your mind, Sister!" The younger Alicorn shouted. "The signs are all there, Lulu." Her gaze peered past the city, past Ponyville, and remained on a certain hut in the Everfree, fixated on what might come out. Her ear twitched nervously. "At first, the prophecy seemed nothing more than another rumor from what I thought was a crazy hermit. After all, he told me my own sister was to turn into a creature of darkness, why should I believe him on this?" A single tear slid down her cheek, and Luna inched closer hoping to comfort her sister. "But this time I will listen. If this is really the White Wolf, or even the 'man of Monsters', I will kill him before he has a chance to upset this peace we have enjoyed for so long..." "Sister, I-" Luna reached towards Celestia only to be interrupted by her Lunar Guard approaching and whispering something into her ear. "Understood, Zion. You may leave us." Bowing to both princesses, the bat pony left hastily. "Sister?... Tia?" This time Celestia turned, and when she met her sister's eyes, it made the mare jump: her irises were a brilliant orange, and shimmered as if the sun itself gave life to them. Quickly they disappeared and her eyes returned to their usual color. Luna grew apprehensive at the sight, but still continued to speak. "My scouts have reported back. The creature will be here within the hour." "Good." Was all the alabaster Alicorn said before teleporting away. "Oh Tia..." Silently, the Alicorn gazed upon the city alone, the pale moonlight reflecting across her coat. Geralt awoke to the sounds of creaky wooden wheels and occasional conversations spoken in that foreign tongue he heard from earlier. Looking around, he found himself locked in some sort of prison transport, the metal bars occupying his view slightly rusted and worn. The view outside was blurred by some sort of magical barrier as well. "Hmm..." The Witcher grunted. Slowly, he stood up only to be cut short by iron chains anchoring him down to the floor of his mobile prison cell. "No use escaping, it's obvious they need me locked up. I wonder if it was that zebra's doing." Suddenly, the only wall not occupied by iron banged, the strange voices from earlier now directed at him. "Hmm..." He grunted in response. The drive was long, and even meditation didn't help with the passing of time, allowing the Witcher's mind to wander. "No memory from before, and I'm in a strange place..." He mumbled, trying to keep quiet for his escort. "It sounds familiar, but I don't know why. I remember passing through a small town outside... Somewhere, but everything past that is a blur. Hmm..." Geralt closed his eyes, trying to remember what he could. "I know my name, and that I possess magic. The rest is still a haze..." The carriage stopped, silencing Geralt's train of thought. A quick rocking of the cabin indicated his escort was getting ready to transport him, likely to another cell or at the end of the chopping block. A vague memory excites the imagination into assuming the worst. The barrier dropped and his view of the outside world became clear again: a marble city shining in the moonlight met his gaze, along with the view of what his mind told him should be extinct- Unicorns and Pegasi. It troubled him a bit that he couldn't remember why he remembered their species. "Hmm..." The door to his cage unlocked and two white Unicorns approached, outfitted in Golden armor and levitated Spears with their magic towards Geralt. One of them unlocked the chains to his feet and motioned for him to exit. He did as told, and followed these Unicorn Guards to a set of golden gates blocking off a palace. Speaking to the two Pegasus guards that stood watch, they stepped aside and the group proceeded through the palace to a set of ornate doors. One of the guards pushed Geralt with the tip of his spear. He took the hint and opened the doors, entering then briefly turning around before having the doors slam back into place. "Hmm..." A royal sounding voice shouted from behind, causing him to turn around. On the other end of the massive room sat two horses, the likes of which he had never seen before or even heard of: Winged Unicorns, one coated in a midnight blue and the other in a brilliant white, each boring into him and demanding... Something in that strange language of theirs. The one thing that stuck out the most to Geralt however, was the two crowns they both wore. Never one to insult royalty, the Witcher kneeled. "Your highnesses... I think." He spoke grizzily. The blue horse spoke first, but he still couldn't understand. "My apologies, but I can't understand you." It turned to the other Winged Unicorn, and asked it something, the other one nodding back. Suddenly, the blue one's horn lit up and immediately Geralt felt pain rush to his head. Can you hear us, White Wolf? Grunting in pain, he clutched his head, breaking out of the iron chains from earlier and setting the White one on alert. "AGH DAMMIT!" He moved one of his hands to stop the pain by casting Quen but was stopped by a golden aura holding it in place. Do not harm us! He howled more in pain. "I'M NOT YOU DAMN HORSE! I JUST NEED TO CAST A SPELL! I'D RATHER NOT DIE!" The aura suddenly dropped and Geralt took action, casting Quen as quick as he could. The pain immediately left, but the blue one only showed a look of mild concern now, it's horn fizzling out. It tried to cast its spell again, only for the magic from it's horn to once again flicker and die. It spoke to the Witcher, more than likely asking what it did. "I cast a protection spell on myself, because your magic was going to make my head explode!" He pointed towards the horse. It looked shocked, probably not even taking into account that it's magic was the cause to his discomfort. Grunting, the Witcher gestured for a pencil and paper. Nodding, they both understood. If magic was out of the picture, maybe the written word could still work. A notebook and quill appearing before him, he began to write: I'm Geralt of Rivia. What are your names? He tossed the book to the two horses, one of them catching it in their magic and hovering the quill over. They both read it, then replied. Vér erum ruleranórr Equestria. Hvat er þinn intent? "Hmm..." He looked at the foreign language written on the paper. Suddenly, realization struck his features. He recognized it, somehow! It was like a haze of a memory, but he remembered speaking this language in some place called Zerrikania. "Dwarfish it looks like. I wonder..." Geralt scribbled something else down, this time in a different language from that same place, yet far older: Vis hi mindoraan daar? The two looked on in recognition. Hvernig gerþúr veit at tunga? "In the land I come from, I learned many languages, but not the one you speak. Either that, or your latent magic is preventing me from understanding. With your permission, I'd like to try something." For a moment, the room filled with silence, the two horses staring at each other and whispering, though it didn't matter. He still couldn't understand. The White one turned and nodded its head. "Thank you. With your permission-" He gestured for the blue one to come down, it being the more level headed of the two. "I am going to cast Yrden- a cleansing spell, from where I come from. It might hurt, I don't know how it'll react. Do you still wanna do this?" He kneeled down, tracing the rune on the floor using the tip of the quill. The winged unicorn hesitated, only stopping for a moment before continuing. "It's very important to stay still, if you move and the spell sees you as hostile, it will cause pain. A lot of it." The horse gestured with it's hooves, asking how much it would hurt. "Imagine that-" he pointed to it's horn. "But broken off and bleeding." It shuddered at the mental image, but nodded its consent nonetheless. "Okay, here goes nothing..." Addendum: It has been many years since I have had the chance of writing my thoughts down on paper, and find my hoof unsteady with age. Celestia, I know you are reading this, because of the enchantments on this old quill of mine, so I pray you read this in time. The Prophecy, this Heralding of Myths- it's real. The translation however, was incorrect in the Man of Monsters' role, though there is still debate among even these new scholars I find myself surrounded by. The new prohecy is as follows: A 'man of Myths' will arrive, haunted by his past yet unable to remember. He is the vessel in which Equestria's future destiny lies. Do not treat him as hostile, else the prophecy will hasten itself and the White Wolf will make itself known. Be quick to Ally yourself with him, but whatever you do, do NOT let him declare his Law of Surprise. The Law is Universal, and as such cannot be broken, else Destiny will intervene. Heed the warnings this prophecy offers, for if you don't... Equestria...will...BURN...