Chimes In the Dark

by Faindragon

Chapter 6: The Orb - Part 2

The chime echoed through the statue of the sun, magically making its way to its twin statue, the moon statue in the throne room. The mare on the throne smiled, it was so much fun in the mental torturing of Notharam. Notharam, the one that had betrayed and abandon her, left her to die. She stopped the laughing, thought back at the memory of that betrayal. What had gone wrong? How had it all come to this? And how could she change this? No, she would have to make sure that the sacrifice was made, that they all was sacrificed, for the good of all. A soft chuckle emerged from her throat, they didn’t know how long time it really was left, nor what this was all about. She lifted the quill with her magic and made the fourth line on the paper. Four chimes had passed, and they weren’t even close to survival.

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Notharam could only watch in horror as the statue slowly changed again, showing him the fluffy city of Cloudsdale. The sun was high on the cloudless, deep blue sky, it had to be summer. He could see himself, together with the other three pegasi of his group. The light brown Thunder talked with a pegasus guard, while the two red twins pegasi Nimble and Eastern Bolt as usual fought over something that wasn’t important. He could see himself lending against a cloud pillar, with a bored expression on his face.

He remembered this day, it had been the day they had departed for a longer journey, he and his squad. The squad had at this time been eight ponies, half of the original size. He could still remember the name of all the ponies that had been part of the squad. The squad members had been four pegasi Thunder, Nimble, Eastern and Notharam; together with the unicorns Four Star and Pendant as well as the earth ponies Iron and Aura.

In the clear vision of the statue could Notharam see that the squad had headed out, quickly heading towards a distant point in Equestria. Thick, black smoke rose to the sky, the smoke of something burning. Notharam remembered this, it had been on the third day of the journey.

The view in the sun statue faded away and was replaced by something else. A house on a hill replaced the view. The house was on fire with thick, black smoke emerging from it; smoke that had started to cover the sky and the hill. He could see himself, and wasn’t surprised to see himself being the one that spotted the house first. He had always been the fastest one, and since he wasn’t very talkative had he nearly always been flying in front of the others. The others were a great bit behind his past self when his past self began to dive towards the burning house. He could see how the others in the squad hurried up, the ones without wings running upside the hill as fast as they could, while the pegasi quickly dove towards a nearby lake, starting to get water that would extinguish the fire.

‘But how is this related to any of the other ponies here?’ Notharam thought. ‘The only one who had been in that house was a mare unicorn.’

The view changed, now showing the inside of the burning house. Notharam could see his past self carefully going in, protecting his muzzle from the smoke with his right-wing. He could see himself looking in all directions, looking after the source of a crying if his memory didn’t fail him. His past self trotted through one of the doorways, and the view changed to show the room he entered. It was a kitchen with flames emerging from the floor, fire that had started spreading on the walls and furniture as well.

He saw himself galloping through the room, avoiding the fire and the furniture, making his way towards a staircase. His hooves had started to get covered in soot, and small soot dots had appeared on his coat. The view from the statue changed, showing him on the upper floor.

The upper floor wasn’t in the same mess as the lower had been, but the smoke was really thick. The wing hadn’t been working as good as a filter up here; he saw from the statue view that he coughed, although no sound was heard.

He saw something in the view of the statue that he didn’t believe in. The fire from the floor below had spread up the stairs at the same moment as he had entered the upper floor, and now stood completely still at the top step of the staircase, as if it waited for something. Then he saw that his past self started to trot again, carefully finding a way towards the sound that he had heard then but couldn’t hear through the statue. And the fire followed him, spread where he had trotted, only some steps behind him. Nearly no light emerged from the flames, but he could see how the wood in the floor and walls, as well as some of the supporting beams, had turned black of soot.

Once again did the view change; this time showing a bedroom which past Notharam entered. He could see how the fire slowly spread into the room behind him, spreading up the wall and onto the big beam in the ceiling. Past Notharam, however, had only eyes for one thing. His eyes were on the crying unicorn mare in the corner, who was surrounded by small dancing flames. The unicorn was covered with soot, small part of her light green coat shining through the dark grime.

The small flames stopped in the strange dance, turning as to face Notharam. Notharam could see how his past self became afraid; he could see it in his eyes. They had widened, the small flames reflecting in his eyes. That’s when the flames had jumped at him. He could still remember how the flames had seemed to have small eyes looking at him, flames of rage burning inside the eyes he had imagined back then. He saw how the flame put his coat ablaze, how his muzzle opened in a wordless scream, still no sound emerged from the statue.

The fire must have done a good job; Notharam could see how the big beam started to bend under its own weight. It must have been a loud crack; Notharam could see himself quickly spinning around, the small flames flying of him, crashing into the wall.

The past Notharam looked up at the beam, and then threw himself away; threw himself towards the corner where the unicorn lay. It was not a second to early, the beam fell down with what must have been a really loud noise. Ot fell down, crushing the floor at the door on its way down, and it would have crushed Notharam as well if he had been a second slower in jumping away.
The crashing beam had released thousands of sparks, sparks that sat the entire room on fire. It happened to fast, a dozen spark landed on the bed, suddenly it was all in flames, he thanked his lucky star that he wasn’t hit.

Notharam had done what was best in that moment; escape the scene. He could see himself, chased by the flames he had shaken away from himself, running towards the unicorn. He took a firm grip of her, and flew out of the window. The unicorn had almost seemed dead, only hanging in Notharam’s grip. The view changed.

He had landed ten meters away from the house, exhausted with his lungs full of smoke from the fire that still ravaged the house. He collapsed in the summer grass, the unicorn lying next to him. The others of the squad galloped forward, finally catching up, galloped forward to the two ponies lying unconscious in the grass. The pegasi used the water to wake them up, saving the house was out of question; he could see from the statue how it collapsed under its own weight.

The view changed, it went fast now. It showed him and the rest of the squad standing together with the light green unicorn with a cutie mark shaped as a quill. They stood together, waving goodbyes, before they turned different ways. The squad kept going towards their southern destination. The unicorn, whose name was Feather Quill, should head home towards Canterlot.

Notharam was shocked, that unicorn, could it be…

The view changed, Notharam could now see Feather Quill standing in front of a huge building. Two things gave away what building that was; the first being Emerald Scroll standing together with Feather Quill, hugging her. The other was the big sign in front of it, a sign with the text ‘Royal Library of Canterlot’ written on it.

No, it couldn’t be. That unicorn whose life he had saved… It couldn’t be Emeralds daughter… Had he, by saving the life of a unicorn, doomed another?

The ice-cold voice answered as if it could read his mind.
“No Notharam, you didn’t doom another unicorn, you doomed them both.” That cold chuckle was heard again. “In fact, you have doomed around fifty others. Forty-nine other ponies have you doomed together with yourself. You are the one everything revolves around, you are the last one that will be sacrificed. You are the last sacrifice Notharam.”

No, it couldn’t be… Who was this maniac whom was so focused around him? What had he ever done that got him ending up in this situation? A maniac who had killed, or sacrificed as she put it, forty-nine other ponies just to get too him?
The voice was heard once again.
“Don’t flatten yourself, Notharam. It might be you that is in the focus, but that’s only because I hate you. I have already told you why, do I really have to tell you again? No, don’t answer that. And I haven’t killed forty-nine, I have only killed forty-six. You four are the last on the list, I could have picked you from the start. But where would the fun be in that? “ The voice chuckled again. “Shall we see what ties the lovely Mistrunner to your life? What have she done that makes her one of the victims here? Why is she sacrificed?” The voice laughed.

And the sun statue changed once again.
He could see himself as a little colt, sitting in school class. He had grown up in Ponyville and it was so many faces that he recognized. He could see Four stars sitting with her muzzle in a book, Thunder was as always trotting around in the class room, not standing still for a second. He saw it now, the only one that he had never seen in class, the quiet one in the back of the room, with eyes on the colt version of him, Mistrunner.

The view changed.
He could see himself, slightly older, playing airball with the other fillies and colts. He had just passed the ball to Thunder who scored, doing that silly victory dance he always did. But something caught Notharam’s eyes, at the far end of the field, nearly hidden behind some trees, with eyes on him, Mistrunner.

The view changed.
He could see himself with a pony he never thought he would see again. Next to him at the small hill stood Silverstar, the two of them standing still; looking up at the night sky. And behind them, in the bushes, with a blush on her face and eyes on him, Mistrunner.

The view changed.
He could see himself standing together with a group of other ponies, it was when he joined the army. And in the background with eyes on him, Mistrunner,

The view changed.
He could see himself hugging Silverstar goodbye, tears streaming down both their eyes. It was when he would leave with the army for the first time. And in the background, standing still with eyes on him, Mistrunner.

The view changed.
At his and Silverstar’s wedding did she stand in the crowd, with eyes on him.

The view changed.
At the funeral of Silverstar, standing in the crowd, with tear filled eyes looking at Notharam, Mistrunner.

The view changed.
He gained the Medal of Honor. And in the background, standing at a library window with her eyes on him, Mistrunner.

“I got it, I understand, stop it.” Notharam whispered begging. ”I have seen enough, do you say that Mistrunner deserve to die only because she have looked at me?”

The cold voice was back, whispering into his ear.
“She loved you, Notharam. All those years you just ignored her, as everypony else. That cutie mark on her flank isn’t from the mist, it was in fact not even the mist that gave her its name. Her cutie mark is representing how she felt that everyponyelse saw her. Like a mist, a thing nopony cared about, a thing you only let your eyes wander over, nothing to see there.” She chuckled. “You ignored her, Notharam. You didn’t care anything about her at all, nopony did. Did you know that she was abused in her home? That her father hit her nearly every day, but who noticed? Nopony noticed.”

Notharam couldn’t believe it. Somepony had to have noticed that Mistrunner didn’t feel well, anypony at all. And why hadn’t she talked to anypony? Talked to him?

“She was afraid, what do you think your thick-headed colt? She didn’t know what to say, or how to act… And you didn’t help her, she looked up at you, saw you as her knight in shiny armor, and what did you do? Yes, you ignored her.”

Notharam’s inner was in chaos, it felt like his heart would break after the sight of the wedding and the funeral. Now he felt sadness, sadness for Mistrunner who had lived a miserable life, looking up at somepony who hadn’t cared. His inner was in chaos.

The voice returned once more, mocking him.
“Now, when you have seen why they are here, what ties you together with the rest of the ponies, why they are doomed; let me show you something else. THIS will make you afraid, my dear Notharam, THIS will show you how little chance you all have of survival.”

The laughed was heard once more.

And the clock chimed.