//------------------------------//
// Lux 
// Story: Book 1 - The Behemoth came to Canterlot 
// by Equimorto 
//------------------------------//

The dust settled, and Bon Bon looked to where Lyra had been with worry. She sighed in relief as she saw the unicorn was still alive, having partially shielded herself with magic in places. Her mane was roughed up and she was breathing heavily, but she didn't look injured in any significant way. With that worry momentarily sedated, Bon Bon instead looked to see what had caused the damage. Not soldiers, as there were none immediately nearby, but something else.
The building they had been leaning against had been destroyed almost completely, alongside the one after it, a black crater left in the space between the two that extended well into the places they had occupied. A bomb or other explosive of some kind. But the two of them had been there just a little before, and neither had noticed anything. That meant whatever had caused that had come later. Bon Bon had but a moment to ponder that, looking past what remained of the wall beside her, before something else caught her attention.
It was only a small sparkle in the sky above them, at first. Then it seemed to be growing bigger, or perhaps closer, or perhaps like it was splitting into different parts. Bon Bon realised it was all three, and neither of them. What had looked like a little dark dot in the air above them became a purple sphere of crackling darkness, and from it a rain of bullets spread out and filled the space between the two ponies. As they saw its range grow wider both backed away in opposite directions, brought to the respective edges of the alley they'd been in before the widening stopped.
The hailstorm of black energy then began to spread forward and backwards, towards the centre of town and towards the edge of it, still just as dense and intense in the space between the two mares. Its bolts were somewhat like arrows, at least in size, though they were more reminiscent of spikes or icicles in shape, or perhaps giant needles. Every time one hit the ground it shattered into nothing, leaving a scorch mark behind. Buildings left and right began to crumble under the assault as the central sphere rose higher and higher to cover more ground with its range. The curtain of darts grew a little less dense, but still the area between them was constantly dotted with blows.
Lyra and Bon Bon found themselves essentially separated by the downpour, looking at each other through the constant rain of bullets. The ground they had stood on before began to crack under the incessant strikes, crystal slowly shattering and being consumed. Bon Bon frantically looked around to make sure she was safe, then turned back to Lyra. Nervousness filled her at the knowledge that more soldiers were on that side as well. "Stay there," she shouted over the cacophony the spell was causing. "I'll try to-"
She fell silent as she saw what happened next. Calmly, deliberately, Lyra began to step forward. A little at a time, through the constant rain of black bolts, she made her way towards Bon Bon on the other side. Not one of them hit her. Sometimes she moved to the left or the right, sometimes she waited or leaned back, sometimes she rushed through a little faster, but she did not blindly charge forward, ever. She was always measured in her motions, always giving the impression that she perfectly knew what she was doing. Always making it feel like she knew the way through that chaos, and was simply following it. Finally, after many seconds, she stepped out of the spell's range, in front of an incredulous Bon Bon. Only then did she look tired, suddenly, extremely so. But she shook herself a moment later. "That way," she said, pointing them forward.