❅ ❆ ❅
After wandering through Snowpitt a bit, Agate decided to call it a day. Pretty much everyone was occupied with something, scurrying back and forth. A number were dragging sleds full of snow and ice blocks around the village, some of them going towards building more of the northerner's igloos, while others were brought towards the outskirts. There, groups of stallions were busy sticking them together into a rudimentary defensive wall. Elsewhere, others were still unloading, trading, moving, and securing various goods, adding to the sled traffic criss-crossing the village.
Those that weren't busy with physical tasks were organizing other things, talking about logistics and schedules and the plans for the next few weeks. Agate couldn't really help with any of that, nor with any of the manual labor. With a shrug, she went back to her totem.
The next morning, Agate's clearing was empty and silent again.
No ponies showed up to ask her anything, no birds landed on her totem to wake her up. After hopping out and habitually stretching her legs, she wondered where to go for the day. Judging from the scale of the preparations, the gathered snowpony tribes would likely be busy for at least a few more days, which left her with little to do.
After going through her options, she eventually decided to do something she hadn't done in a while: Go for a trot through the tundra. While she did go on many little trips with Gnarled Root and Spear Throw through the season, it was always with other ponies, and usually with a set goal, too. She missed the simple joy of wandering where her eyes took her, without anything to worry about.
Exiting the village through the south, she circled the outskirts, trotting northeast at a leisurely pace. Glancing at the ponies moving to and fro, she made her way towards the open plain, the snowy landscape stretching out into the horizon. The bizarre sense of infinity and endlessness that she felt the first time she laid her eyes on the tundra was mostly gone by now, though a spark of that wonder still remained. With a small smile, she reared up, and with a whoop, went from a trot to a gallop.
❅ ❆ ❅
"I wonder how far Nilas is... Or the sea."
After galloping for a while, Agate's pathfinding training kicked in. Even though she was trying to relax, her teachers were evidently quite good at their jobs, making keeping track of where she was second nature to the filly. She kept reflexively glancing left and right, memorizing the features, remembering the position of the Sun, the length of the shadows, and her relative position to Snowpitt.
Putting her skills to use, she did her best to remember her previous trips and some of the stories and directions she overheard the nomads talking about, successfully managing to find two of the "pony-guiding-stones", as the snowponies called them. Following their directions, she discovered a few (now frozen-over) watering holes and campsites, poking around for a bit before moving on.
The whole thing made her think of places even further away, such as the northern tribe's first settlement somewhere to the north, and their island outposts farther away still. Just how far away were they? Snowpitt's inhabitants already described the tundra as immensely vast and easy to get lost in, and the northerners claimed that their seas were even bigger than that.
Agate was a little tempted to gallop north just to see it. For someone raised in a valley with no real bodies of water to speak of, even seeing a lake for the first time was a fascinating experience for the filly. It was so wide, she couldn't even see the other shore in some places! And though that amount of water was astounding already, the sea was apparently far, far bigger than that. Hundreds, thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of times bigger, if the snowponies could be trusted. And she didn't really see a reason for them to lie to her about that. According to them, they explored the northern sea for many generations now, and they still haven't discovered the other shore, only more and more islands.
"....Maybe someday," She eventually decided, turning back towards Snowpitt.
As she steadily galloped southwards, something in the distance caught her attention. Strange fireflies danced in her vision, their glow distracting her from her thoughts. Something niggled at her memories, the sight evoking images of galloping through the dark and snowy mountains. It almost looked like... Like...
"The crystal path!"
Changing her direction a little, she put on a burst of speed, a smile on her face. Though the memories were from the darkest chapter of her life, the glowing crystal path evoked nothing but warmth, reminding her of the amazingly warm welcome the snowponies gave her, providing her with a home and a place without even being able to talk to her.
It still took her no less than two hours of non-stop galloping to finally cover the distance. Stopping in front of the first crystal, she carefully ran her hoof across it, enjoying its gentle glow. With a slightly melancholy smile, she stepped on the path, following it towards Snowpitt.
Usually, Agate was quite well aware of her surroundings, but in this case, she got a little too lost in her memories. As such, she hadn't noticed the two ponies ahead of her almost until she walked right into them. Blinking, she returned to the present, examining the pair. It was a mare and a stallion, their gray coats helping them blend in the evening gloom. They had a sleigh with them, from which they were retrieving crystals one by one, adding to the path. They seemed to be almost finished, only half a dozen or so pieces remaining in the sleigh.
"So, are you the ones who build the paths for the lost spirits? Were you here last year, too?" Agate asked.
"WHAT!"
The mare jumped high into the air, shouting loudly. The stallion flinched, whirling towards Agate with wide eyes. Landing on her hooves, the mare turned around as well, raising a foreleg defensively. They blinked in surprise at Agate, who took a few steps back, folding her ears in embarrassment, pawing at the ground nervously.
"Um... Sorry for scaring you?"
Pursing her lips, the mare squinted her blue eyes at Agate. A few moments later, a smile split her muzzle. "Cheeky little foal, aren't you? Are you trying to scare us into becoming spirits, too? Heh, it was a good scare, but it'll take more than that to put me down."
"What, no! I was just following the path, and I just... Didn't see you there! I didn't even know you were here until I was right next to you!" Agate protested.
"And you thought you'd give us a reminder to always be watchful while in the tundra, eh? Heh heh," The mare chuckled.
Agate groaned, putting a hoof over her eyes. There was just no arguing with this mare. Clearly, she had already made up her mind about what happened. The stallion, however, was still wary of her.
"What do you mean, you were following the path? The Calling hasn't happened yet... Where'd you come from? And how did you get here?" He asked, his posture tense and his hackles raised, ready to bolt at a moment's notice.
"I galloped," Agate replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes. "And I came from Snowpitt. I just went for a trot through the tundra, and saw the path in the distance as I was coming back. It... Brought back some memories, is all. Got a little lost in them and didn't see you there."
While Agate was explaining things to the stallion, the mare was examining her intently, squinting in the evening gloom. "Almost coatless... You're the traveler spirit, aren't you? Agate?"
"Yeah, that's me."
Finding out who she was seemed to put the apprehension the adults had towards her to rest. The stallion relaxed, while the mare went back to her sleigh with a chuckle. Picking up one of the remaining crystal pieces in her mouth, she went off towards the end of the glowing path, patting the snow a couple of times before depositing the crystal. After a glance at Agate, the stallion followed suit, pushing the sleigh forward and grabbing a crystal as well.
"I'm Snow Shoes, by the way," The mare introduced herself as she retrieved another crystal.
Agate nodded, reflexively peeking at the mare's hooves. Naturally, she wasn't wearing snowshoes, though she did have white socks that made it look like her legs were covered in snow. Agate wasn't sure if snowponies even knew what snowshoes were, given their ability to walk on snow with no trouble. Snow Shoes did seem to be extra good at it, not leaving a single mark while the stallion still left some shallow tracks as he plodded along.
"And I'm Wayfinder," The slightly darker-colored stallion said, picking up the last crystal and setting it down gently, turning back to examine the path with a critical eye once he was done.
"Looks nice and straight to me," Snow Shoes remarked.
"Suppose so. Have to aim it right, too. Can't have it leading away or past Snowpitt," He replied, turning around and searching for the village in the distance.
"It's good," Agate reassured him, spying the glow of her totem in the darkness. "It's aimed right at the village."
"I guess we're done here, then," The stallion said with a shrug, trotting over to the now empty sleigh. Grabbing the harness, he hitched himself up, with some help from Snow Shoes. Setting off at an easy trot, the pair went back towards Snowpitt, Agate following along.
Wayfinder kept looking around, while Snow Shoes was far more relaxed, humming a tune and smiling wryly while glancing at Agate now and then. Eventually, she spoke up.
"So, Agate, do you often go tromping through the tundra and looking for ponies to scare?"
"I told you, I didn't- You know what? No, I don't. You're actually the first ponies that I met on one of my trips. I think I'll make it a habit, though, but only if I see you."
The pair snorted, Wayfinder shaking his head and muttering under his breath. "Would do you some good to be more wary."
"Oh come on, the southerners are always going on about how much time they spend to keep their lands safe. It's not like they're making it up, either, you know that as well as I do. These months are the time to relax a little. I don't think you're being very polite to our hosts while being that high-strung," Snow Shoes replied with an eye roll.
"I... Guess you're right. Old habits die hard, though. Can't get too soft or I'll end up getting eaten when we go back north," He shrugged awkwardly.
"No one's asking you to get soft. Just relax a little. Being too cautious and jumping at every shadow is as much of a danger as being careless is."
"Yeah, yeah..."
"So you're northeners?" Agate asked, taking advantage of the lull in the conversation.
"Born and bred, yes," Snow Shoes said proudly, Wayfinder nodding along. "And you're... I'm not sure what to even call you. Southerner doesn't seem right, since you're from so much deeper south than the entire southern tribe."
"I'm a crystal pony," Agate replied with a shrug. "Doesn't mean much to you, I guess, but that's how we call ourselves."
"Right, crystal... That's what you said your people call the spirit stones, yes? Is that what brought you all the way out here from your lands? You saw the paths, and they reminded you of home?"
"Not really, no. We don't use these kinds of crystals at all back in the Empire, actually. They're all blue, red, or white. Some green here and there. I just saw the path when I was lost, from... Very far away, across the entire mountain range. It was the only hint of color that I could see in the darkness, so I went towards it."
"Really? That's a bit unusual, I think... I'm not really all that knowledgeable about spirits, but I didn't think that they could see the spirit stones from that far away. That's why we make the paths."
"Maybe it's because I'm a crystal pony," Agate shrugged again. "I think I can see them even better than the snowpony spirits can. This one time, during my trip through the mountains, I could even see... Huh..."
As she was talking, the filly looked back towards the crystal path, admiring the way it lit up the darkness. As she turned her head forward again, something odd flashed in the corner of her eye. Blinking, she tried to find whatever it was, but all she could see was the vast snowy plain all around her.
"Something wrong, Agate? Did you see something out there?" Snow Shoes asked, making Wayfinder tense up again.
"Nothing dangerous, if that's what you mean. Just... I'm not sure myself, give me a moment," Agate replied, performing one of her focusing exercises and sharpening her spirit sight.
Nothing immediately stood out to the filly. Sweeping her gaze back and forth a few times, she eventually saw the familiar glimmering, angular shape.
"Hm. Just a crystal in the snow. Nothing to worry about."
"Wait, where? That's not where the path is. Did we lose one? I don't see the glow..." Snow Shoes frowned a little, squinting in the direction that Agate was looking in.
"Maybe it sunk through. Suppose we should go retrieve it," Wayfinder shrugged, changing direction. "Can you point out where exactly it is, Agate?"
"Sure. Follow me, it's just over there."
The filly led them to a nondescript patch of tundra, making sure to keep her focus up. With a shrug, Snow Shoes began digging in the spot that Agate was pointing at, sending snow spraying in all directions. A minute later, she slowed down, looking a bit confused.
"Are you certain it's here? I still don't see anything, and I already almost reached the ground."
"Yup. You're almost touching it now," Agate reassured her, looking intently at a spot beneath the mare's hooves.
Hacking through the frost, Snow Shoes pulled out some frozen pieces of plants, examining them for a moment before popping them in her mouth and crunching loudly on the frozen snack. Seeing Agate's bemused look, she chuckled.
"What? You shouldn't waste food."
A few more strikes at the layer of frost revealed a glint of orange. With a victorious smile, the mare proceeded to uncover the citrine crystal before carefully picking it up.
"It's... It's not even charged," Wayfinder said with a confused frown, examining the dull crystal. "This isn't one of ours. All of the ones in the sleigh were glowing."
"...Maybe it's one we lost last year, or even a few years before," Snow Shoes proposed. "Not us personally, but you know. One of those that we lose every year."
"Do you lose a lot of crystals? What happens to them?" Agate inquired.
"Nothing unusual. Animals. The weather. Trickster spirits, or so some ponies say," Snow Shoes shrugged. "You know about the Calling, yes? How it attracts all kinds of creatures from the north? They sometimes stomp through the paths, scattering the spirit stones willy-nilly. Some get blown away or snowed over, and so on. We usually manage to find most of them, but the tundra plains are vast. A hooffull get lost every year."
"Hold up, how did you even see it? Spirits can't see regular spirit stones like that. The shamares need to work their magic on them first," Wayfinder asked, squinting at the crystal.
"Crystal pony," Was Agate's only answer, the tiniest hint of smugness in her expression.
"Hey, this is great! You could go hunting for lost spirit stones in your free time. I bet you could find loads of them if you can see them like that, even ones that were lost years and years ago!" Snow Shoes cried enthusiastically.
"...Can't exactly carry them, though."
"Oh. Right."
"I'm sure you would be able to find volunteers for your scavenger hunt," Wayfinder snorted, shaking his head. "But that can wait until tomorrow. For all the safety the southerners claim, I still don't want to stay around after nightfall longer than I have to. Let's go to Snowpitt."
"Alright, alright, we're going," Snow Shoes said placatingly, stowing the dark crystal in the stallion's sleigh.
The pair moved towards the village again, Agate tagging along. The trip went quietly at first, but it didn't take long for Snow Shoes to start peppering the filly with the usual questions about crystal ponies and life in the Empire. She was curious about the Crystal Heart's effects, especially the eternal summer under the shield.
"That sounds both amazing and terrifying at the same time. Warmth is nice, but to hold the seasons in one cycle forever... That is some serious magic."
"It's to balance out what's on the other side of the shield," Agate shrugged. "The land outside the shield is nearly eternally frozen, even worse than here, despite us being further south. The effects of the feast the windigoes had at the expense of our ancestor's squabbling and the subsequent winter still linger to this very day. When I went on my trip, there was already snow in the valley, even though it was only autumn."
"Wow..."
Wayfinder remained silent, though he did listen to their conversation quite attentively. They weren't too far from Snowpitt, and before long, they could see the faint lights coming from the closed windows of the houses. Agate kept them company for a while longer as they brought the sleigh to the now-familiar crystal storage shed. Unhitching himself, Wayfinder stretched with a pleased groan.
"Getting old for this..." He muttered under his breath.
"You're barely thirty," Snow Shoes snorted, rolling her eyes with a smile.
"Yup, really getting into my advanced years. You should pull the sleigh next year, I think. You're always going on about how you're faster than me."
The mare was about to reply with something rather crude, if her expression was anything to go by, but she remembered that Agate was standing nearby, watching the two with faint amusement. With a shake of her head, she turned towards the filly.
"Thank you for your company and the help finding the lost spirit stone, Agate. I'll be sure to tell the shamares about it tomorrow. I think we should go get some food in us now, though. The poor old lunk here clearly needs some energy."
"You're welcome. And thank you for making the paths. It was probably one of the paths you made that I saw from the mountains back then."
"Just doing our part. Scattering some spirit stones is easy. Other ponies contributed to the whole thing a lot more. Anyways, be seeing you," Snow Shoes said, waving goodbye.
Wayfinder gave her a parting nod as well, which Agate returned, the ponies going their separate ways. Returning to her clearing, she stayed out to stargaze for a little bit before going to sleep.
❅ ❆ ❅
The next morning, the clearing was quiet again, though not for long.
As Agate woke up and stretched, trotting in place for a moment, she heard something in the distance. Flicking her ears this way and that, she noticed that the sound was getting closer. Figuring that whatever it was, it would likely reveal itself soon enough, she decided to sit down and wait.
It didn't take long. With some surprise, Agate saw a good dozen foals approaching her, laughing, shouting, and otherwise making more noise than it seemed possible for such an amount of ponies, as groups of foals tended to do. Blinking, she watched them get closer, most of them still roughhousing. For a moment, she thought that they were just passing by as they went somewhere else, but one by one, they started filtering into her clearing.
"Oh, is that her? Hello, spirit!" One of them shouted, pointing at Agate.
That caught the other's attention, and they slowly quieted down, gathering around the ghostly filly. Now that she was able to count them, there were fourteen in total, all of them around Agate's age, with a few being a couple years older. A few faces were vaguely familiar, likely locals from Snowpitt, but she didn't remember ever speaking to any of them before.
"Hello to you too. What brings you over this early? It's..." Glancing at the sky, she tried to determine the time, but it was still pitch black, and she couldn't find the moon. Nights had already gotten long enough that days were limited to a couple hours of feeble sunlight. "Well, I can't tell the time all that well, but it's probably early morning."
"We're going hunting!"
"No, doofus, we're going foraging!"
"You're both clueless, it's called scavenging!"
Agate watched the group argue with some confusion as they all shouted different answers at her. A few moments later, the chatter was cut through by a familiar voice.
"Searching is an appropriate term, too, since we're going to be looking for things we lost. Good morning, Agate," Snow Shoes greeted her, catching up to the gaggle of foals.
"Good morning, Snow Shoes. What's this all about?" The filly inquired, examining the mare. She was hitched up to the sleigh that Wayfinder was pulling the day before, looking a little sheepish.
"Well, I told the shamares that we finished the spirit paths yesterday, and I mentioned the thing with the lost spirit stone that you found. They were quite interested in that ability of yours, and told me to ask you if you would be interested in seeking out some more of them. However, you see, a few mares overheard us talking, and what with everyone being so busy, asked if I could involve their foals in this little hunt. The foals overheard too, and before I could say no or that I need to ask you if you're busy first, well..." She trailed off, rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly.
"...Huh. Okay then," Agate blinked, after a moment of mulling it over. "I'm not busy today, no. We can go looking for crystals, no problem."
Naturally, the news made the foals explode in cheers, several of them zooming around excitedly.
"Yeah! We're going scavenging!"
"What's a kreestal?"
"I think that's what her tribe calls themselves, I remember listening to her story in the Great Hall."
"What? That's not right, she said we'd be looking for them."
"It's what my people calls spirit stones," Agate explained, raising her voice a little. "And we're crystal ponies, not just crystals. Anyway, uh... Let's go, I suppose? Snow Shoes will have to take the lead, though. We should probably look around where the paths usually are, and she knows their locations better than I do."
The mare nodded, raising her forelegs and clopping them together loudly, making the foals fold their ears instinctively at the sharp noise. "Alright, you crazy little swarm of fry, listen up. We're going outside the village, so if I tell you to do something, you do it, no questions asked. Yes, the tundra is as safe as safe can be right now, and even if some desperate animal didn't get spooked by the massive amount of caravans that passed through on their way to Snowpitt, we'll still be able to see them coming leagues away. Regardless, you should never get completely relaxed when you're outside village bounds. The most important thing is that you don't stray from the group. Stay near me, and everything's going to be alright. Let's go."
The gaggle of foals nodded, still talking animatedly, though the volume of their conversations went down almost to a whisper. After a moment of looking them over, Snow Shoes nodded back, turning east, the foals swarming after her. Agate followed along as well, taking a peek at the sleigh. It was mostly empty, though there were some sealed baskets and clay pots in it.
Unlike the day before, Snow Shoes didn't talk all that much, probably because of the foals she was keeping an eye on. The group circled the outskirts of the village, eventually exiting somewhere on the southeastern side. Squinting and rubbing her chin for a moment, Snow Shoes looked at the still-dark sky and her surroundings, eventually picking a direction. They trotted at a steady pace, the foals either trotting along or galloping ahead, though they seemed to have burned off most of their excess energy by that point, generally acting calmer.
Surprisingly soon, the mare stopped, turning to Agate. "Well, this is it. I think. Honestly, I have no idea how far the spirit stones got scattered from where they were placed. Might as well start looking around here, and circle Snowpitt at this distance."
"Alright," Agate replied, closing her eyes and focusing. A small part of her mind noticed her surroundings going deathly quiet, and it wasn't just from her concentrating on her other senses. When she opened her eyes again, she saw all the foals staring at her silently, their expressions full of wonder. Snow Shoes was looking on curiously as well, blinking slowly.
"You have... Interesting looking eyes, Agate."
"I know. There's more differences in how I look than just my lack of a long coat. Anyway... Let me see if there's anything around here."
The filly took a few steps ahead, the foals parting around her. Scanning the snow, she turned her head in every direction, eventually turning in a full circle. She could see the glow of a crystal path in the distance, but there were no loose crystals buried in the snow that she could see.
"Nope. Nothing," She concluded, to the visible disappointment of the foals. "Hey, calm down. The tundra is huge, there's no way we'd have found something on the first try. Let's keep going."
Agate took point this time, going towards the crystal path, scanning the snow intently every step of the way, her entourage following along. She kept quiet so as not to lose her focus on her spirit sight, and the others remained silent as well, likely not wanting to disturb her. The entire group glided across the snowy landscape almost soundlessly, the only noise being the very faint susurrations of the sleigh being dragged along. If someone were to stand with their backs to them, they likely wouldn't even have heard their passing at all, the fifteen ponies being as silent as the ghost that was leading them.
It couldn't last forever, though. Eventually, when they almost reached the glowing path, Agate noticed a stray crystal off to the side. It was a little hard to understand what she was seeing with her spirit sight, seeing as there were both properly placed crystals nearby and a (probably) lost crystal, but after a minute of making sure, she nodded confidently, pointing to the spot.
"I see one. Half a dozen paces or so to the left of the path, under the snow. Don't mess up the path itself."
That broke the floodgates, and the foals excitedly surged towards the spot that Agate indicated like a swarm of fluffy piranhas. Evidently, their snowwalking abilities could be used in more ways than one, as they started digging and spraying snow in every direction faster than it seemed possible. Snow Shoes just covered her eyes with a foreleg, a slightly crooked smile on her face as her front half was buried in moments.
"That's... A bit to the... Well, never mind, I think you all have it well in hoof..." Agate trailed off, giving up trying to give them a more precise location.
Shaking off the snow, Snow Shoes chuckled, patting Agate on the back. "Yup, best to just let them do their thing. I'm sure they'll have more fun this way, anyway."
It took a few more minutes, but one filly eventually cried in triumph, hacking at the frost beneath the snow with her hooves. "Ha! I got it!"
Some foals cheered, while others pouted in disappointment. Smiling, Snow Shoes went to the filly, giving her a pat and stowing the crystal in her sleigh. "Good job, but that's just one. Let's see how many more we can find, alright?"
"Yeah!"
At a glance from the mare, Agate nodded, focusing up once more. A moment later, she was ready to go again, casting her gaze around.
❅ ❆ ❅
"I think I found the most of them."
"No way, I did."
"If you want to argue which one of you found more, then you need to remember that it was actually Agate that saw them all first," Snow Shoes reminded the two arguing foals wryly, watching their ears fold in embarrassment.
It was a gradual process, but over several hours, the group managed to hunt down a good forty lost crystals one by one. Dawn (though the actual time was closer to midday) eventually came, the sun barely peeking past the horizon this time, giving everything a faint, ghostly illumination.
Snow Shoes took that as a signal to take a break, unhitching herself from the sleigh and retrieving the baskets and pots that Agate saw earlier. They were full of food, which got parceled out between the foals and herself. Agate took the opportunity to rest her eyes a little, splaying out in the snow while the others were crunching on dried fish and other preserved goods.
Once the break was over, Snow Shoes tidied up, putting the baskets back and hitching herself up again. Trotting up to Agate, she looked the filly over curiously. "You know, I don't really have much experience in working with spirits, and doubly so for foal spirits. Are you... Okay there, Agate? Do you need a break?"
"M'fine," Agate waved her hoof, rolling over and slowly standing up. "This is good practice for my spirit sight, I think. Dreamcatcher and the other shamares said that the only way to get good is not just to practice, but also to push your limits when you're able to."
"Alright then. You're our tracker, so whenever you're ready."
With a nod, Agate took a moment to confirm her location and the direction she was facing before setting off again, sniffing out - or, rather, seeking out - their metaphorical prey, her hunting party obediently following along.
They ended up spending the entire day on their task, scouring the area around Snowpitt in a large semi-circle as Agate led them in a zig-zag pattern, covering as much ground as possible. After another snack break and a whole lot of enthusiastic digging, their final tally was somewhere around a hundred crystals, which was almost enough to fill the sleigh to the brim. Snow Shoes was very pleased, as were the foals, who looked very proud of their contribution. Agate had to remind herself once again that crystals were more valuable here than in the Empire, as back home, such an amount wouldn't be all that impressive.
"Hoo. Okay, pulling a fully loaded sleigh is not that easy, heh," Snow Shoes chuckled, her posture slightly slumped. "Guess I owe Wayfinder an apology. Come on, little ones, let's go deliver these to the shamares so I can unhitch myself from this thing."
The foals cheered, picking up the pace slightly as the group made their way back towards Snowpitt. As they entered the village, Agate saw that the defensive ice wall that was being built over the last few days seemed to be complete. It wasn't all that tall, barely taller than an adult stallion, but it looked very smooth and slippery, with no place to get an easy hoofhold. They entered through a small gap, a pair of guards with spears giving them nods.
The village seemed a lot calmer now, all the ponies settled in, finished with their preparations, gift giving, trading, and all the other little tasks they were so busy with. Some foals were having fun building creepy, grimacing faces out of snow on top of the walls, using little steps made of ice blocks to clamber up, carrying little bits of snow and ice with mischievous expressions. The adults were watching them with faint amusement, giving bits of advice here and there on how to best make the snow stick together.
Snow Shoes led the group towards the ceremonial grounds in the village center first, instead of the crystal storage shed by Dreamcatcher's house, like Agate expected her to. Once they reached their destination, she saw why - the shamares were gathered there, along with a number of other ponies. Final preparations of some kind were being made there, with a huge stack of thick logs now present in the giant firepit, a few shamares fussing over it, murmuring and sprinkling the timber with some kind of substances they were pulling from small clay jars. Just like last year, the firepit was ringed with charged crystals, their orange glow already making the place look like it was bathed in the warm orange glow from a bonfire.
The shamares nodded to Snow Shoes as she approached the largest group, where most of the elders were congregating. Blizzard Heart stretched out her forelimbs, casting a quick glance over the group of foals before addressing the mare.
"Welcome back, Snow Shoes. How did your little expedition go?"
"You tell me, elder. I'm not a merchant, so I don't really know how much all this is worth. I think it's a pretty impressive haul, though," The mare replied, gesturing towards the sleigh.
Standing up, the shamare ambled over to the sleigh, looking in. For the first time since Agate saw her, a faint hint of surprise showed up on her usually expressionless face. She reached in to pick up a crystal, wiping off some pieces of frost and dirt stuck to it, examining it for a few moments before putting it back, looking at the nearly full cargo compartment.
"That is... Quite a haul indeed. And you found all of these just out there, lost in the tundra? Hrm. The young spirit has some truly interesting skills," She mumbled, rubbing her chin and giving Agate a sidelong look.
"It's really easy for me to see them. I didn't even train to do it or anything. When I use my spirit sight, I'm able to see them even through solid rock," Agate explained, which made Blizzard Heart look even more interested.
As they were talking, other ponies approached the group, mainly a number of mares. Evidently, they were the foal's families, as the young ones immediately started chattering to the adults about their day and how they were totally the ones that found the most spirit stones. The parents smiled approvingly, though they were also discreetly glancing at Snow Shoes as their foals talked. The mare rolled her eyes, and (also discreetly) pointed at Agate with a wry smile, which led the parents to change their expressions to something more skeptical. After a minute of squirming, the foals admitted that Agate was the one that actually found them all, which led to some gentle admonishments from the adults.
"It is good to strive and achieve things, younglings, but you should remember that trying to claim things others did as your own is no different than stealing," One mare lectured her daughter. "Now, what did you actually do, hmmm?"
"W-well, I helped dig out at least ten of them of myself..."
"See? You did your part. No need to try and make up things for no reason. You did well," The mother smiled, mussing up the embarrassed filly's mane.
After similar scenes played out with some of the other foals, the adults turned from lecturing to rewarding them for their hard work (though that was probably a lesson in itself, too), digging through their saddlebags and pulling out small clay jars of nuts, sweet berries, honey, and other treats for the foals, much to their shrieking approval.
"Um... I'm sorry, kind spirit, but I don't really have any treats for you..." One mare said awkwardly, seeing Agate watching the whole thing.
Agate snorted, shoving a hoof on her mouth so as not to burst out laughing. "It's-it's okay," She gasped, shaking a little from suppressed laughter. "I wasn't looking for any. I barely even remember what it's like to eat things."
The shamares chuckled while the mare smiled awkwardly. As the parents led their foals away, a few other shamares came over to examine their haul, whistling at the full sleigh. They patted Snow Shoes on the back appreciatively, while Agate received headpats.
"Wish I could find a jar of honey you could eat, Agate, but it seems that our thanks will be all that we're able to give," Earthsong sighed, rubbing one particularly dirty crystal clean.
"No worries. You helped me plenty. It's nice to return the favor."
"Satisfying as a good deed is, though, I think I'm done for the day," Snow Shoes groaned, stretching out a hindleg. "Should I bring these to the storage shed?"
"Yes. Don't think we forgot about you, though. Here. A little something for when we go back north," Blizzard Heart grunted, slipping a small package into the sleigh.
"Thank you, elder. Goodbye, Agate. It's been fun," Snow Shoes nodded, moving away.
"Goodbye, Snow Shoes."
The mare pulled the sleigh away with a small grunt, while the shamares went back to their seats. Blizzard Heart sat down on a log, beckoning Agate over. With a slight tilt of her head, the filly complied, sitting down next to the snowy mare. A number of familiar shamares were around, doing this and that. True Sight was slowly sipping on a cup of tea while she observed the proceedings in the firepit, while Sky Breath was slowly carving something out of a hunk of wood with a knife. Earthsong had cleared a tiny patch of snow from the ground, tapping the earth in a lazy rhythm. After a moment of contemplating something, Blizzard Heart spoke up.
"Could you tell me more about your ability to see the spirit stones through rock, Agate? When did you discover this skill?"
"A few days... No, I think it was more than a week ago now. Anyway, it was on my trip back to Dream Valley. When I discovered that mineshaft where Dreamcatcher later showed up in my dream, I had to go through a collapsed part. It was completely dark, but I could see some kind of glimmering shapes anyway, which turned out to be crystals when I got closer to take a look at one. I didn't even try to do it, but it happened. When I focus and use my spirit sight, I can see them very clearly now, through snow, frost, earth, and everything else. I think I always had a knack for it, though... I did see the crystal path across the entire mountain the first time," Agate mused, digging through her memories.
Blizzard Heart nodded, contemplating something with half-lidded eyes. After sitting silently for a few minutes, the old mare spoke. "Would you be willing to go on an expedition northwards, Agate?"
Agate's eyes went a little wide, thinking about the completely unexpected question. As she pondered her answer, True Sight flicked an ear in their direction, raising an eyebrow. "What's this about, Blizzard?"
"Spirit stones. Or a lack of them," Blizzard Heart replied evenly. At True Sight's still-raised eyebrow, she elaborated. "We might be running out of them soon. Needless to say, that would be a problem."
Several shamares frowned at the news. True Sight blinked in surprise. "That's the first time I'm hearing about this. When did this happen?"
"It might have been slowly happening for some time now, but first I heard of it was just this autumn. I overheard the miners that made the delivery of the spirit stones talking about how the deposits are getting "tapped out". When I questioned them about it, they explained that they're still finding spirit stones, but they're getting scared to dig any deeper in some places, as ponies can hear the distant roar of the sea through the rock. Kind of a hazard when you're digging around on an island, I suppose. And though it's been, hmmm... Dusty memories, how many years has it been since our tribe discovered the spirit stones?"
"Five, six hundred years? Or was it seven? I suppose we're lucky the deposits on that island were sufficient for that long of a time," True Sight mused.
"Right. We didn't need much, so ponies would only dig out a crate or two every year. Still, I suppose we were bound to run out some day, and unlike plants or fish in the waters, the spirit stones do not replenish themselves. Which is not something to panic about, but it might become an issue in the future. And yet, as our luck would have it, we are presented with a curious, foreign solution..."
It was blindingly obvious what the "foreign" solution Blizzard Heart referring to was, as the gathered shamares all immediately looked towards Agate, their expressions thoughtful. The filly squirmed a bit at the attention, her tail twitching. She expected them to say something more, but the elders remained quiet, not saying anything else. Gathering her thoughts, she spoke.
"You want me to... Become a northern explorer? To find another island with more crystal deposits?"
The task seemed a little daunting, but Agate felt some excitement, as well. She'd already heard lots of stories about all the crazy stuff happening in the north, and she was at least somewhat curious to go and see some of it. And while she had no idea about how to prospect and look for minerals, she was pretty sure that being able to see crystals through rock made her lack of formal training or knowledge irrelevant.
"Ah... Huh. I actually didn't think of that," Blizzard Heart mused, smacking her lips. "I would just have asked you to go take a look around at Shear, and maybe see if you can find more safe deposits there. Finding more islands would be quite good, though."
"Shear?"
"It's the island's name. Comes from the fact that it's so flat, like there was a hill that was shorn flat by the raging winds."
"Right, well... I... Well, I actually am interested in going to see more of the northern lands, and I don't have any real reason to say no, but..."
"But you have a duty to your kin," True Sight finished, her sharp eyes gazing at the filly with understanding.
"Yes, though I'm out of leads for now. I've been to the valley, I looked around, I did some other stuff... I have some plans and thoughts, but they'll take some time to actually do. I think I could go, if... If Icicle comes back from his expedition without managing to find out anything new."
"Icicle? Can't say I'm familiar with that name... What's this expedition in the middle of winter? Ponies almost never do those," True Sight scratched her head, a few shamares looking confused as well.
"He's going - well, him and a whole bunch of other ponies are going to Dream Valley later this winter. They want to take a look at some places that I missed on my trip," Agate explained, which made the shamare's eyes light up in understanding.
"Oh, that. Right, Long Stride came to ask us if there were any younger shamares that would be interested in going on a trip a couple days ago. I was too busy asking him if he was mad to inquire much about the actual details of the journey," The old mare chuckled, several other shamares smiling and shaking her heads. "I wasn't sure if he was seriously planning something or just toying with some ideas, but I suppose this answers my question."
"Yeah, they're planning it for real. A young stallion - Icicle - visited me yesterday. He wanted to know every detail that I knew about Dream Valley. I don't think that they set a time yet, but it sounds pretty serious. Long Stride himself will be going, apparently, but he let Icicle take the lead. So, yes. If they don't manage to find any more clues as to where the rest of the crystal ponies disappeared to... Well, I'd be happy to go travelling through the north for a while," Agate explained, looking off into the distance thoughtfully.
"Hrm. Well, I suppose that such a trip might be good experience..." True Sight trailed off, lost in her thoughts.
Picking up the conversation, Blizzard Heart spoke up. "You have my gratitude, Agate. Now, we still have the whole winter ahead of us before we return north, so don't worry about this entire thing. I'll go talk to Long Stride once we're a little less busy. Lots of things to do yet."
"Like the Calling?" Agate asked, looking sidelong at the firepit. The shamares were still puttering around it, doing shamare stuff.
"Indeed, the preparations are complete."
"When are you going to do it?"
"Tomorrow, at the last twilight of the day and night of the season." Seeing Agate's confusion, she elaborated. "The Long Night approaches. Tomorrow will be the last time we see even the tiniest sliver of the sun, until the next season starts. The dark will be cold and long, but it is in this dark that our beacons will burn the brightest, which will lead our lost kin to us."
Agate nodded, idly watching the shamares putter around the clearing. The conversation died off, the elders sitting quietly in either a contemplative or a melancholy mood - it was hard to tell. A few of the younger ones kept talking quietly, though they were hushed and subdued as well.
The hour grew late, and it didn't take long for the elders to start getting sleepy. Silent nods were exchanged as goodbyes, and one by one, they started filtering out of the ceremonial grounds. The younger ones soon followed suit, and Agate went with them, going back to her totem. She lingered for a moment once she got to her clearing, but decided to go to sleep. It had been a long day.
❅ ❆ ❅
The next morning, Agate didn't stay around her totem for long. There was a strange nervous energy in the air, something that made her ethereal hair stand up and gave her goosebumps. It wasn't too hard to guess what it was - as she was stretching and looking around, she saw several ponies in the distance, all of them moving towards the village center. Despite it being morning, the village was otherwise empty and quiet - which meant that ponies were already congregating in the ceremonial grounds, even though there was still a fairly large amount of time until the ritual started.
Besides the fact that she didn't really have anything important to do that day, Agate was quite interested in the whole spirit-summoning ritual, so she decided to join the ponies heading towards the ceremonial grounds. The snowy roads were quiet, and that didn't change once she got closer to the village center. Usually, large crowds of ponies always produced noise, a constant drone of conversation and activity. However, that was not the case this time.
As always, the snowponies trotted through the snow without making a sound, passing by noiselessly towards their destinations. The ones already gathered were mostly sitting quietly, or talking under their breaths, their conversations swallowed up by the muffling effect of the snow that was piled up on almost every surface. Some were sitting with their eyes closed, not asleep but not entirely present, either. Agate had seen shamares do such things plenty of times, but seeing regular, everyday snowponies act like this was a bit unusual.
Making her way to a more open spot, Agate looked around, taking in the entirety of the ceremonial grounds. There weren't as many ponies there as she thought at first, but more were slowly filtering in, despite the still-early hours. No shamares were present yet, which likely meant that nothing was going to happen until they showed up. Glancing around some more, she looked for a secluded spot where she could sit down and wait, but before she could find one, a soft sound of a song reached her ears.
Usually, she wouldn't have tried to find who was singing it. It didn't sound like the kind of song one sang to an audience, or even wanted to have an audience for it at all. However, the voice was oddly familiar, though for the life of her, Agate couldn't place it. Turning her ears left and right, she tried to pin down the singer's location, slowly moving in their direction.
A few moments later, she saw her. A middle-aged mare, golden eyes, gray coat, and mane the color of faded straw. She was holding a tiny wooden figurine of a pony in her hooves, seemingly singing to it. A stallion was by her side, with two fillies between them. Though she hadn't seen her in almost a year, Agate recognized the mare immediately. Eyes wide, she furiously racked through her memory, trying to recall her name.
"I haven't even learned their tongue yet by then. In fact, I think her name was the first thing I ever said in the snowpony language. Think, Agate, think... R? No. B, H? No... I think it was a G... G, g... Two words, actually, both starting with G... Glad? No, but something with "Gla"..."
Meanwhile, the mare continued to sing, unaware of the spirit filly watching her.
"A star
Has fallen down
Her light is out
She's quiet now
So hush
Don't be afraid
It's time to rest
It's getting late
Don't worry about the past
Let's make this moment last
Know I'll remember you forever
The star will rise at night
I'll see you shining bright
And one day we'll be there together
My child
My sunshine
You're safe now
It's fine now
Get warm
By my side
Don't cry now
It's fine now
Don't worry about the past
Let's make this moment last
Know I'll remember you forever
I'll see you in the stars
We'll never be too far
And one day we'll be there together."
"Glacier. Her name is Glacier... Glacier Glider," Agate finally remembered, or rather, recreated the mare's name by sounding it out in her head as she remembered saying it. Fidgeting in place, she wondered whether she should approach the mare or not.
After a minute of indecision, Agate screwed up her courage, taking a few steps forward. She wasn't all that close to the family yet, but it was enough to bring her into their peripheral vision. Glacier kept her gaze on the little wooden figurine, while her husband's eyes were firmly on his wife. However, one of the fillies idly glanced at Agate, turning her head towards the spirit fully a moment later, her eyes wide. After taking a good long look at Agate, she smiled faintly, poking her mother in the side.
It took her a good five tries, but eventually the mare blinked, wrenching her gaze from the figurine and turning towards her daughter with a confused expression. Wordlessly, the filly pointed towards Agate, Glacier slowly following the filly's hoof to where she was pointing. There was no recognition whatsoever in her expression at first, which made Agate fold her ears in disappointment.
However, slowly, Glacier's confusion turned to thoughtfulness, and then to recognition. It was a curiously slow process, as it took a couple minutes each for her expression to slowly change from a confused frown to a discerning squint, and then a slowly growing smile. The mare was clearly a million miles away just then, but bit by bit, she dredged up the knowledge of just who this little spirit was from the recesses of her memory.
"Hello, Glacier Glider," Agate spoke quietly. "I'm sorry if I'm interrupting something."
"Arg- hmm. Agate! Hello to you too, little mysterious traveler. Don't worry, you're not interrupting anything. It is nice to see you again, and more importantly, to see you doing so much better for yourself. Well... Relatively speaking, of course," The mare coughed, looking over Agate's ethereal form.
"Yeah... I really am doing better, though, all things considered. Before I came across Snowpitt, I was afraid I might end up wandering around in the dark forever. There's still some things that I need to do and I'm not sure how I'm going to do them, but that's immeasurably better than sitting somewhere on a mountainside forever."
"Oh, you poor foal... I heard what happened to your people. That's a massive burden that you chose to take on yourself, Agate. Are you sure you'll be able to pull through?"
"Oh, what's the worst that could happen? I could get into a bad situation and die? Oh, wait..." Agate replied sarcastically, rolling her eyes a little.
Both fillies started giggling, while the stallion turned away, coughing into a hoof. Glacier Glider blinked slowly, before letting out a loud snort. "Well, I see that you certainly adapted to being a spirit exceptionally well. Most ponies... Well, they don't do that well," She trailed off, glancing at the wooden figure she was still holding. Shaking her head, she continued. "How are you managing, then? What have you been up to while we were away?"
"Oh, all sorts of things. I've been learning a lot, first and foremost. Language, then stories, then... Lots of stuff. Pathfinding, herbs, history, things about the other tribes, all the kinds of creatures you can find around here, some magic here and there. I even ended up teaching the shamares some magic."
"Really now, teaching shamares? You're becoming quite the little lorekeeper, aren't you? All this in less than a year..."
"Not really. I just know some bits of magic snowponies don't, and it's barely anything. And there's still so much I have no clue about. I barely even know what's going on right now, even. All I know about the Calling is the part that the shamares do, and what happens afterwards, but... Well, that's it, more or less. All the other ponies look almost like they're doing shamare stuff too, though."
"Ah, I see. Well, it is rather simple, Agate. Needless to say, during an event like this, your thoughts inevitably turn towards death, and those of your kin that you lost. Before and after the Calling, most ponies tend to engage in... Remembrance, I'd call it. Even though we get to say goodbye, the loss still tends to hurt on days like this, especially if a pony was taken before their time, like... Like you," Glacier Glider explained, looking sidelong at the wooden figurine again. Agate had the feeling that the mare was about to say something other than "you".
"Did... Did you lose..?"
"...Her name was Dancing Flurry," Glacier began, holding the figurine up for Agate to see. It wasn't very detailed, but clearly lovingly made and well-kept, the edges worn smooth. "It's been two winters now, and it almost doesn't hurt any more. Almost."
"Oh. I'm sorry..."
"Come now, don't be like that, you don't need to give me your condolences. Things like that happen, terrible as they are. You, though... You lost everything, and worst of all, you didn't even get to say goodbye. I'm sorry for your loss, Agate, I really am. Would you like a hug?"
"...Yeah."
Glacier Glider passed the figurine to her husband, which he stashed in his mane. Coming towards the mare's outstretched hooves, Agate was engulfed in a fluffy hug, much like the first time the two met, though Glacier didn't try to smother her this time. Relaxing, Agate took the time to enjoy the rare sensation of touch and warmth. They stayed there for a good while, sitting in silence much like the other ponies. Still, eventually Agate stepped back, sitting down on the ground.
"Thank you."
"Any time."
Glacier patted the ground next to her, inviting Agate to scooch closer. Sighing, the filly complied, laying down on the opposite side of where Glacier's daughters and husband were. They didn't talk, though Glacier Glider soon broke the silence.
"Say, Agate... What about your family? Do you have anything to remember them by, or remember them with?"
"Not really... What do you mean, remember them with?"
"Well, I mean... On days like this, we tend to talk about all of our kin, not just the recently departed. Knowing your family history is important, after all. So. I am Glacier Glider, sister of Ice Crack, daughter of Sure Grip and Steady Spear, granddaughter of Wind Whistler and Crushing Hoof on my mother's side, Silent River and Stout Pine on my father's side, great-granddaughter..."
Agate's eyes went a little wider with each name Glacier mentioned. Sure, Agate knew her grandparents, and they mentioned her great-grandparents a few times, but she wasn't sure if she would be able to list all of her ancestors like that, even if the mare didn't seem to know anything besides the names of the oldest ones that she listed.
"So... Would you like to share anything about your family? You don't have to if you don't want to, but if you bury things somewhere in the back of your mind, you might find that you'll forget them completely someday."
Agate frowned, thinking about her family. She did miss them, but not to the point of not being unable to talk about them. However, she almost never mentioned them to anyone during the time she spent with the snowponies. Whenever they had questions for her, they almost always were about the Empire and crystal ponies in general, not specifically about her. To her unpleasant surprise, she found that she couldn't remember the details of her parent's faces as well as she used to. Time was already taking it's toll.
"I... My name is Agate. Daughter of Radiant Cut, my father, and Garnet Necklace, my mother. My paternal grandfather is Coal Hoof, and my grandmother is Crochet Hook. My mother's parents... They don't talk to us. I don't even know who they are. My dad's brother is Obsidian Spear, my uncle..." Agate kept talking as long as she could, quietly refreshing the details of her family in the back of her mind. Silently, she vowed to do this more often, even if there was no one to listen to her. It would be supremely ironic for her to potentially spend years looking for her family, only to find that, in the end, she forgot how they even looked like...
Glacier's family listened to every word, even trying to memorize the foreign names. Once Agate was finished, Glacier Glider nuzzled her, smiling sadly. "Usually, different families discuss their family trees only when they become one, such as in marriage. Still, I would be honored to call you family, Agate, even if it would be mostly symbolic. I'd make a poor mother, only showing up for the winter months."
Agate blinked, chewing on what she just heard. "I might be going north soon, actually... Not forever, but for a while. One of your elder shamares asked me for some help with something."
"Really? I suppose they don't call you a traveler spirit for nothing. Can you tell me what's the reason?"
The conversation turned towards far less emotionally heavy then, the group discussing Agate's present and future plans along with her various exploits and ponies that she met, Glacier's fillies sometimes asking to clarify various details. Time quickly went by, their chat only interrupted by a short food break. As the family was eating some dried fish, Agate looked around. A lot more ponies were present now, most of those that had been waiting since early morning getting a quick bite to eat.
It didn't take long to see the reason for their rush to fill their bellies and get their strength up. There was the faintest hint of light in the eastern sky, the dark of the night barely lit up by the very edges of the Sun. The last twilight of the season was here, and the ritual would soon begin. Out in the distance, she could see some dancing lights between the houses, slowly but steadily approaching the ceremonial grounds. Torchbearers, most likely, coming to light the huge bonfire.
It was time for the Calling.