//------------------------------// // 9 - Carmelite // Story: Horse Of The Rising Sun // by TCC56 //------------------------------// Starswirl lay just as the Prioress had said - on his side where he'd fallen in the middle of the library. She had propped his head up with a pair of thick books, but otherwise the ancient sorcerer hadn't been moved. He certainly wasn't going to be moving himself - he was solidly unconscious. The heap of wizard occasionally twitched, spasms running through his limp limbs. His breathing, at least, was shallow but unlabored so he was in no danger there. But his coat was pale, thick with a lather as if he'd been running like Tempest had been earlier in the day. Beside him, Script let out a sigh of relief. "Exhaustion," he pronounced. "Magical exhaustion. He'll be fine after he has some time to recover." Unlike the locals, Tempest didn't take it as a good diagnosis. "That's impossible. He's Starswirl. The old goat may not be in the prime of his life anymore, but he has stronger mana channels than anypony alive who's not a Princess." Her eyes turned, locking on to Reliquary Heart. "You need to start explaining what happened." A following firm NOW was unspoken but implied strongly enough to be unmissable. Scribble took a single defensive step to interpose herself between Tempest and the Prioress, but Reliquary moved forward first to prevent it. "We were researching," she began, a slight tremor of fear in her voice. "He thought we might be on the trail of something, but we hadn't found it yet. We were going to have to pull a few more volumes to track down a spell that was referenced in the order's early literature - but by that point we had already read through so many we were out of table space. So - Script?" She looked over to the scribe. "You'll be proud to know I remembered your spell." The stallion's ears perked. "You actually remembered to use it?" An uneasy but earnest laugh slipped free from Reliquary despite her nervousness. "For once, I actually did." She turned back to Tempest. "Script was tired of how none of us can seem to put the library back in the order he likes it, so he developed a shelving spell. Cast, and all the books float themselves back to the appropriate spots. He made us all learn it, but remembering to cast it is a different story." She sighed. "I got around twenty books into the air with it and then it cut out early. One of them hit Starswirl in the head." Tempest frowned sharply. "That must have been a pretty big book to knock him out like this." The Prioress wildly waved off the semi-accusation. "No! He was fine! A little annoyed but fine. And I was really embarrassed since I must have cast the spell wrong. At least, I thought that until I tried to reshelve the books again and my levitation kept sputtering." Script and Scribble exchanged a look of concern - it was Scribble who spoke up with a voice far more hesitant than normal. "Prioress, maybe you should lay down? You know that weak magic this long after having your turn with the barrier is a bad sign of ponies your age and--" "Scribble," came scolding retort that made the assistant cringe. "I appreciate you're looking out for me but that's not what it was." Reliquary turned her head back to Tempest. "Starswirl thought it was strange, so he asked me to run through a few exercises for him. Foal's play - and I failed every one of them." Four sets of eyes turned to the ancient wizard as he groaned, shifting as consciousness slowly returned. Both Script and Reliquary knelt beside him, ready to help Starswirl as he came back. As they did, Reliquary continued. "So Starswirl started running some exercises and tests himself. I didn't understand most of them, so I tried to reshelve the books by hoof. I wasn't paying attention until he dropped the ball he was testing with." Another groan, and Starswirl's eyes fluttered. Gathering close, Script helped the sorcerer sit up as he came to. He wasn't able to find words yet as he slowly regained his bearings, so the Prioress continued even as she put a steadying hoof on his side. "Starswirl didn't say what it meant. He was too frantic. Whatever it was, it was important. So he grabbed some parchment and a quill to--" "--To write to the Princesses," Starswirl finished, holding a hoof to his head. "How long was I out?" "Half an hour or so," confirmed Reliquary Heart. The old sage blinked several times as his eyes readjusted and came back into focus again. "And my message?" That time, Reliquary hesitated slightly. "I don't know. The parchment you had disappeared after the flash." "Teleported," corrected Starswirl. "It was a message to the Princesses. I..." He grimaced - not from physical pain, but his ego took a blow as he admitted weakness. "I couldn't get it to Canterlot. I had to drop it in Stirrup Hill with a command to have the mail carry it the rest of the way." Tempest's concern for the sorcerer's wellbeing was quickly replaced by a far deeper concern - one that rose from the depths of her gut. "Couldn't get it to Canterlot? Is there a shield or some sort of interference?" The words balanced on a knife's edge - she knew full well that cutting off communications to the capitol was an obvious step one for an attack. (Unless you started by taking the capitol, a tiny voice reminded her.) Her concerns were quelled when Starswirl shook his head. And then the world shattered when he explained. "My magic wasn't strong enough to reach that far anymore." It was Script who voiced what they all were thinking after a moment's ominous pause. "But... you're Starswirl. How could your magic not be strong enough?" "Anymore," came the growling correction. Starswirl looked to the scribe, then flicked over to one of the nearby books. "Reshelve that one - the brown one with the silver binding." Unsure, Script hesitated for a moment before he complied. The book lifted in his golden magic, floating across the room to the shelves. Halfway there, the glow around it sputtered and the book fell to the floor with a dull thump. Vexed, Script re-lit his horn and lifted it again - only for the book to wobble and drop again moments later. A third attempt, and the magic aura wasn't even able to get it off the ground. Panic raced into Luminous Script's eyes and tone. "I--I don't understand." He reached out with his magic, grabbing other items around the room - books, quills, lamps, chairs - all moved for only a few moments at best as his magic failed over and over. "What's going on? Why can't I pick anything up?!" Starswirl's chill voice cut through the panic, but the words did nothing but prompt more fear. "Magic is vanishing." He paused just long enough for everypony's heart to stop, like he was some self-absorbed below-average illusionist. "It's being drained by something, I know not what. But whatever the force is, it pulls harder with each passing moment. I fear if I had waited and tried to teleport that letter now, I wouldn't have even been able to reach beyond the confines of this valley." "The valley..." Prioress Heart's face pinched - then her ears spiked up and eyes popped wide. "The barrier!" "Temporarily safe," stated a grim Starswirl. "It channels power directly from the world's own paths of power, so it is resistant. But by the end of today, all unicorn magic and spells will fail. Then artifacts will lose their power, and then the magic of creatures will be drained away. By the time the sun sets on the third day, all magic will be gone from Equestria entirely. Perhaps for good." A snow-thick blanket of silence fell over the room, broken only by Tempest's hooves as she shifted from side to side. None of the locals spoke, trapped in the paralysis of apocalyptic change. Starswirl himself was quiet, lips pulled to a thin frown as he let the others process. Tempest didn't wait - not long. She stomped one forehoof, iron shoe ringing off the stone floor to pull all the attention to her. "We need to act. Starswirl, how long will the barrier hold?" A frustrating shrug was his response. "The magic to power it will hold for another day or two. But it's being channeled and ponies are mortal." To his side, Script winced hard at that word. "In an ideal situation, it will last as long as they do." Starswirl turned to the Prioress. "Which begs the question of just how bad the strain is on them." Reliquary was silent for an agonizing moment more before she spoke. "It's been a long time since anypony tried to test that. In the early days they did, but not in generations. The six hours we use now are near the limits of what a pony's body can handle. A particularly fit pony such as Captain Bridle might be able to make eight, but most would pass out before then." "And too long would result in damage, just like the sun-raising spell your barrier was based on." Starswirl stroked his beard in thought. "So we have only-- how long ago did the current rotation begin?" Script opened his mouth, but the words died in his dry throat. Scribble picked up in his place, even as she leaned against him in a supportive nuzzle. "Bit went in about an hour and a half ago. Him, Stellar Flux, Astral Ink, Cookie Pusher, Rosemary and..." She trailed off, muzzle scrunched as she tried to remember the last name. "Midnight Star." Script's voice was hollow, even as he did his best to be helpful. "Navy blue with a white blaze and socks. Her birthday's two days after mine. The three of us - Bit and her and I - all share the same birth month. And...and..." His knees wobbled under him. "And they're going to hold it for as long as they can, aren't they? Even if it kills them. And then the barrier will be gone and the windigoes are going to get in a--and we'll all freeze and--" His rapidly accelerating voice was batted away from panic as Tempest gave Script a shove. "No.." She was the focus in an instant, all attention on her. "Now's the time to act, not cower. We've got about four hours to save every life in this valley before we lose the shield. And the faster we do that, the more likely it is the ponies powering the barrier won't get hurt." There was a moment of hope in the group's eyes before Prioress Heart dashed it. "But the windigoes--" "Twilight Sparkle," came Tempest's immediate counter. Three sets of eyes blinked; Starswirl's widened. "Yes. Twilight." She nodded to him. "This isn't a here problem, it's an Equestria problem. Even if your letter doesn't get through, the Princesses aren't going to miss what's happening and they'll use every resource they have to solve things. And that means Twilight Sparkle." She smirked a tiny bit. "Would you bet against her?" Starswirl chuckled quietly. "Never." An irate Luminous Script barged between the two outsiders. "Excuse me, but this is our home that's about to be destroyed. Are you going to let us in on the secret?" "Equestria's greatest weapon - Princess Twilight Sparkle." Tempest couldn't hold back a little smile when she said the name. "If I told you even half the things she's done, you'd never believe another word I said. But whatever's causing this, she'll beat it." Circling past Script and coming up beside Tempest, Starswirl nodded. "Princess Twilight is the one who freed Princess Luna from Nightmare Moon. As well as saving myself and the other Pillars from Limbo." "She also beat me," Tempest added and moved off the subject just as quickly before any questions could get asked. "But that's not the point. She'll fix this. We just need to keep everypony safe for a day or two while she does it." Hesitantly, Scribble bit her lip and looked at the pair. "You're sure?" Her lack of certainty was countered by a rough snort from Tempest. "The alternative is that we sit in the town square and let the windigoes turn us all to ice." "She's right." Reliquary stepped forward, placing herself between the two outsiders and the two locals. "This is the greatest challenge the House has ever faced, and everything our ancestors fought and struggled for is on the line." Back straight and head high, the Prioress gave her command. "It is up to us to ensure that the House of the Rising Sun does not fall. What this Princess Twilight does is irrelevant - our duty is to protect our ponies and we will not fail in it." Once more wearing a smirk, Tempest shot a look at Script. "You were right. Known across Equestria by thirty." Reliquary Heart shot a deathly irritated look at Luminous Script, which lasted for barely ten seconds before the room's tension broke into laughter. It was less humor and more relief - a moment where the emotional rubber band snapped back to normal, bouncing briefly into amusement. It passed quickly. The laughter petered out to awkwardness, and Tempest took control of the conversation again. "The way I see it, the most important thing is that we need to gather everypony into the priory. It's the only building big enough and it's the one most likely to withstand an attack." "The guard can do most of that," Script pointed out. "Everypony knows to listen to the bells for warnings and take shelter when it rings. And even without Bit to lead them the town guard can gather ponies out of their homes to bring them here." With a little bounce, Scribble grabbed hold of the idea. "Oh! And we can use the records to create a checklist of every pony in town and make sure they're all safe!" "Good, good." Tempest grabbed hold of that, using it to suppress the urge to start shouting orders. It wasn't her army to run - they had to work together. "So we'll have everypony inside and we can be sure they're all here. But we also need to make sure that we can survive for a few days until rescue comes. That means food, water, warm clothing and fuel for heat." Script firmly nodded. "The water's easy. There's an underground aquifer that's too deep to freeze. It's what supplies the town and there's a well connecting to it in the kitchens. Food shouldn't be too hard either. If you're saying we only need to hold out for a few days before this Princess Twilight rescues us, there's a lot more than that just in our homes - let alone what's in the storehouse. The same goes for coal - we just need to bring it here." "Warm clothes are easy, too." Scribble paused. "Maybe not warm enough to hold off a windigo, but who doesn't have a coat and some blankets?" Tempest wiggled her hips, drawing attention to her dark frock. "I wouldn't mind extra, and more is better." She turned to Starswirl, mouth opening to speak - and stopping as she found the sage in close conversation with the prioress. Their exchanged whispers - faces practically pressed together - were too hushed to be understood but the dire tone was clear enough. Tempest cleared her throat loudly and the pair practically leapt apart. Starswirl adjusted his hat with a jingle and an embarrassed blush. "Ah, yes, Miss Heart - the, uh, the Prioress--" She cut him off. "What Starswirl is trying to say is that we also need construction materials." Reliquary pursed her lips. "To secure the building." That thought poured water on Tempest's thoughts, dousing the ember of hope. "Secure enough to keep out the wind itself? That's a tall order. But you're right, we don't have a choice." A deep breath - and Tempest nodded, mostly to herself. "We focus on the ponies first. Have the guard go from house to house, bringing everypony in. When they do, have each of them haul as much food, clothing and fuel as they can. Those first, then the materials for a blockade. Sealing ourselves in won't help if we starve or freeze." Around her, the other four nodded in agreement. "We have a plan. Now we must hope that Princess Twilight comes through." Starswirl's voice stretched for hope, barely clearing desperation. "She has not failed Equestria yet."