The Great Crusade
With the choice of the alicorn declared, the Humans, and Sol most of them, became involved in helping to learn the dreadful art of war, yet it would be over a century later that the preparations were deemed complete.
Rows after rows of magnificent weapons and armours were forged, combat skills, tactics and strategies were sharpened in training and mock combat, battle magic was developed along with new spells for the treatment of wounds, logistic and transportations lines were established, and academies of war, designed to collect and study all the lore that could be collected on the future battlefields, were founded.
For the task of venturing outside the borders of the Everfree were created the Crusading Legions, and many volunteers flocked into them, alicorns who, after being screened and selected for their attitude and capabilities, were redirected to their most appropriate role. (1)
The alicorns would not abandon the Everfree however, on the contrary most of the populace would still remain within its shores, so that the island became like a spring to a mighty river, providing the resources for the legions.
The threat of these newly revealed monsters spurred the building of great fortifications in and around many settlements, walls and towers of adamantine granite now surrounded the cities, mighty fortresses defended the countryside, and the Royal Guard, created at first as a mostly ceremonial organization, grew to vast numbers and became a security force with the duty to protect the civilians.
Mightiest of all fortifications on the island remained however the mountains of the Grey Wall, which were still impassable even to the magic and flight of the alicorns. With the council of Azibo, a great road was then carved underneath one of the narrower sections.
This underground passage connected for the first time the interior of the Everfree with the open world, and it was named the Underpass, the road of a thousand columns.
This tunnel led to the only outer shore of Everfree that could allow the creation of a safe anchorage, and on it was swiftly built a large harbor, a fortress city with shipyards, armories and all the necessary means to create and sustain a vast fleet, and it was named simply The Gate, the door to the world.
Finally, on the day of departure, a mighty host embarked on a fleet of white ships, and prepared to sail for the first time in history, on the waves of the ocean.
At the head of this force was Faust herself, who would command the expedition from the front lines, while her beloved Laurent remained in the royal palace.
This separation, although painful, was deemed necessary by the royal family and the High Council, as it was established that at least half of them would always remain on the Everfree. This way, should the unthinkable happen, at least half of the remaining figures of authority would be safe from harm.
As the fleet began to hoist the anchors, the Humans themselves manifested to bid good luck to the expedition, and they declared that they would send many spirits to help the alicorns on their errand, but they themselves would not appear in form visible on the outside world, at least for the time being.
This was a point of wonder for many, but the wise understood that this task of defense was assigned to the Titans and the alicorns, and should the Humans ever intervene directly in such an important matter, they would have to utterly break their vow of not interfere with the evolution of the world, rendering the very existence of the hammer and the scalpel vain. (2)
Then, by the will of Naseema and Eimi, the terrible storms that had until then surrounded the island for its protection suddenly ceased, and blue skies and fair winds blew on the calm water.
And so, with a blow from the horns that was loud enough to shake the very buildings of the harbor, the fleet set sail.
The distance to the nearest new land was long, but the sailing was quick, and soon the shores of the southern continent were reached.
Vast beyond sight was that coastline, with low beaches of white sand that extended inland in a scorching desert, here and there spotted by the occasional oasis or, more frequently, the husk of some seemingly long dead shrub.
An encampment was swiftly erected near the estuary of a mighty river, which would become the base of operations of the Crusader Legions in that part of the world.
To the surprise of many, those first years passed in prosperous peace, and the mighty legionnaires became explorers in that strange and wondrous new land, and many things that were unknown on the Everfree were discovered, and the alicorns marveled at all that they found, like single majestic trees that grew on the back of tortoises the size of hills, packs of small and quick flightless birds with glowing crimson feathers that raced through dry savannahs, and many more wonders that amazed the minds of even the most scholarly members of the expeditions.
The Battle of First Tears
Tragically, although expectedly, as the first decade of the crusade passed, the host of Everfree came face to face for the first time with one of those enemies they were called upon to fight, in an occasion that would forever be remembered as the Battle of First Tears.
It was the beginning of the eleventh year since the departure of the expedition when one day, answering to the warning given by spirits, the crusaders First Legion assembled for battle with Faust herself at its head, and in an open field near the base of a mountain, the alicorns saw for the first time a creature of nightmares.
It was a horrible being, like a deformed and grotesque spider the size of a town, with tentacles where one would suppose the head should be, and emanating a repulsive stench of decay.
Dark shadows like black fumes seemed to appear on its body even in full daylight, and the ground around it was skittering with other smaller creatures, the being’s spawns.
Both the “mother” and its brood consumed all life they came across, and with each meal the horrible creatures swelled both in power and number.
Faust called it an Abomination, a term that would then be used to name all these intruders from the void, and with a valiant cry, lead the assault against it.
Great was the might of the alicorns, magical and physical attacks struck the abomination and its spawns with great destruction, and indeed the lesser spiders were quickly being dispatched, with their corrosive forms turning to ash, and every wound inflicted to the mother was accompanied by an unearthly screech that was the sound most horrible any mortal had ever heard.
But that Abomination was also mighty in its own right, and it reacted to every offense with strikes of its contorted limbs and tentacles, and spits of toxic liquid from orifices all around its body.
The defenses of the alicorns were solid, but unfortunately they would prove to not be enough.
Indeed as Faust was battling the Abomination face to face, she didn’t notice one of its limbs preparing to strike her from behind, but Adamant Shield, one of her personal guards, did.
The young soldier pushed his Queen away from danger at the last moment, saving her life, but in doing so the foul limb impaled him instead, piercing his magical shield and silvery armor, and poisoning his courageous heart. (3)
Faust was for a moment as if frozen as her guard fell, death mercifully taking him even before he hit the ground, and the entire host felt as if struck by a blow that took away their breath.
And it is said that at that moment the visage of Gaia turned to sorrow, almost visible despite her mask, while Mortis turned his head southwards, and for a second it seemed like he wasn’t really there, but somewhere far, far away.
But the battle was not over yet, and as the Abomination approached its victim to devour his body, the alicorns felt something vast, something powerful and dangerous approaching, even before it could be seen.
Suddenly, the world around the Crusaders became fire, and the Abomination was struck back by a force of elemental fury that made the entire legion cower in fear.
A Titan had come. (4)
The battle between the two beings was short and completely one sided, the towering form of furious flames, which was all that was visible of the Titan, obliterated the Abomination in only two strikes, the first one to push it away from the alicorns, and the second, much more powerful, to destroy it in an immolating inferno, until every trace of its existence was erased. Then, just as it appeared, the Titan left the battlefield, disappearing quickly over the horizon.
And so the first battle of the Great Crusade came to an end.
But it was not with songs and celebrations that the day ended, the effectiveness of the Legion was put to the test that day, and Faust realized that much more work was needed before the legions could become a fighting force capable of destroying an Abomination by themselves.
Indeed the wise have said that this first encounter had been set purposefully as an easy match to give them a taste of things to come, and the Titan was ordered to intervene only if alicorn blood was spilled.
And spilled it was, for the brave Adamant Shield sacrificed his life to save his queen, and his loss was felt like a grievous pain in the heart of the entire legion. Weeping was heard and tears fell like rain as his friends and companions mourned, and the reality of war began to make its way in the minds of the crusaders.
But it was not with desperation that the alicorns reacted, instead the pain was met by a wall of righteous anger, and many oaths of vengeance upon any and all Abominations were sworn.
The body of this first victim was taken back to the encampment, where it was ceremoniously cremated in purifying light to erase any possible trace of corruption caused by the Abomination.
Then his ashes were brought to Everfree with great honors, and great crowds gathered to render homage to the memory of Adamant Shield, who was declared a hero and martyr for the life of the world.
Under the direction of Mortis himself the ashes were then taken into a vast net of caves near the peak of Thronus. There, in a chamber deep within the rocks, they were scattered, and the mourning alicorns witnessed in amazement a light like a star appearing in the darkness of those tunnels, with its silvery glow shining in contrast to the dark ceiling, and Mortis declared through his Herald that those caves will house the remains of those who fell in the defense of the world against the Abominations, and each of them would be forever honored with a new eternal light.
And so it was that those long tunnels became known as the Caves of Stars, a hallowed place held in high reverence and frequently visited for mourning and remembrance. (5)
The Colonization
The alicorns moved quickly after the dark awakening that came with their first real battle, and new Legions were quickly mustered and sent to the four corners of the world.
Soon all continents hosted at least one new settlement, each built to support the wandering hosts of the crusade, but also to become the first starting point for a new wave of exploration and colonization of those new, strange lands.
In time many civilians also began moving to these new colonies, most for support to the legions, but some also driven by the fire of exploration and discovery, and as the years passed the towns grew into proper cities, and prosperous provinces sprouted and flourished on all the major landmasses of the world.
Many years later these provinces would become like mirror images of the great homeland on the Everfree island, shining with the skills of the alicorns, who in turn greatly expanded their knowledge and influence over the world.
The one wisdom that the alicorns would have loved to remain ignorant of, was the experience of combat.
While the usual fauna and flora posed no threat to them, every so often a new Abomination would appear, and every time it surprised the crusaders with new and disgusting shapes and powers.
On some occasions, especially during their first interventions, the alicorn’s role was mostly limited to contain the collateral damage caused by the presence of a Titan, but sadly even in those cases almost every encounter demanded a steep toll.
Indeed during some of the most legendary battles Faust herself had to pay a price in sorrow and tears, as some members of her own family too were lost.
Such were the cases with Silver Knight, one of her grandsons, who fell while leading a raiding party to flank the enemy during the Siege of Ardenia, and Sunny Dawn, one of her very own daughters, who spent herself while healing and protecting the wounded during the ambush of the Coral Abyss, and sadly many more.
In the span of many millennia the Caves of Stars became filled with the light of the brave fallen, so many in fact that no illumination was needed to travel into its halls, and traversing its interior felt like a journey through a river of white lights.
Yet this continuous practice and experience on many battlefields hardened the alicorns, just like the sword faces the furnace multiple times before it is tempered into a deadly instrument, and soon the powerful, but inexperienced, crusaders turned into proud and mighty vanquishers of these Abominations.
Indeed as time went the need for the appearance of a Titan diminished, as the alicorns became so mighty that they could face and destroy many of the most foul of enemies, and in the end only the most terrifying Abomination called for the awakening of the world’s original guardians.
It was in the last stages of colonization that something new began to emerge.
While at the beginning of the alicorn’s quest new enemies would appear quite frequently, as time passed these invasions became more and more rare.
This decline was met with mixed feelings, on one side the less need for battle meant fewer losses among the alicorns and more time to consolidate the settlements and heal the land, on the other side many felt that the risk of complacency and laziness, that would inevitably come with the lack of a real threat, would become a crippling fault when the next Abomination appeared.
More worrying was the fact that with time even the Humans seemed to isolate themselves more and more. Indeed, while soon after the Masking they appeared often to the alicorns anywhere on Everfree, as the millennia passed their presence would begin to be witnessed almost only in Corona itself, and in the later years rare were the occasions when they would be seen outside of the Temple of the Aspects.
Faust herself was troubled about this new development, so much in fact that she resorted to officially requesting their heralds for a meeting, so that she could consult them herself.
Her need for requesting the Human’s advice had also become a rare event, but in this case the reason was simpler, as thanks to her growing number of experienced advisors, and her own mastery in the matters of the world, she could solve almost every issue without need for external counsel.
Indeed it had been a long time since she last met with the Aspects for official matters, but once she was alone in their temple, they did not fail to answer her call.
Contrary to her fears, the Humans were not disappointed or angry, quite the opposite, they were filled with happiness and pride at their children’s accomplishments, and had decided to loosen the supervision that they maintained on them.
This new freedom meant less interference in the alicorn’s affairs, but also less direct help as their civilization needed to become more autonomous to grow.
When asked about the fewer Abomination arrivals, the Humans answered that, while the influence of the Universe could be felt a long way in the depths of the void, it could not pierce its infinite distance, just like a lighthouse could not be seen by a ship hidden in a distant fog.
The beings encountered until then were the ones in direct sight of the Universe, and as they were exterminated their numbers dwindled until few were left, and indeed it was foreseen that there would come a time when no more Abominations would be expected to arrive within the boundaries of Creation, with the only exception of some extremely rare cases, where by chance one would wander in sight of it. But the alicorns should not grow complacent, for these wondering fiends would be without doubt the strongest of their wicked kind.
Faust was ecstatic, while the prospect of having less interactions with the Humans saddened her, the idea of being considered responsible enough to be entrusted the mastery of the world filled her with an anxious pride, indeed she felt like a filly that for the first time was given the keys of her parent’s home, and in many ways that was the case.
The knowledge that the Abominations would eventually almost disappear was an even greater cause for celebration and a wave of relief spread through the Kingdom at the news, even if Faust herself called for prudence, as the coming of these fiends would not truly stop forever.
Yet the promise that they would become a rarity, instead of the norm, was nevertheless a joyous occasion.
And so it went for many more years, the alicorn spread and increased in numbers and might all over the world, all the while the frequency of invasions dropped ever more until, many millennia after the embarking of the crusade, they seemed to stop altogether.
But it was not a time of peace yet, and on a still night the Herald of Dreams warned Faust that the Humans could perceive a great fiend approaching the Universe, one of might and terror unseen since a time well before her birth.
The Battle of the falling sky
For the first time in many ages, three Titans awoke at the same time, for the horror of this Abomination surpassed any other of its kind since before even the advent of the alicorns, and the Crusaders were awed by their presence, as they appeared like immense raging clouds that dwarfed any weather of the world.
Such awe was soon met by an equal amount of hatred and disgust at the sight of the Abomination they were called to fight.
A great shadow above the highest clouds, marked by sickly green lights, was all that the alicorns could see, and before any order could be given, the three Titans of Air rose high beyond the sight of the crusaders, and attacked the Abomination.
The main battle was mercifully being fought too far high in the sky to be clearly witnessed, but its effects were easily felt even on the ground.
Pieces of some unknown foul matter began raining down, and from each of them spawned a creature worthy of nightmares.
To Faust the task was clear, while the Titans tore to pieces the main body, she and the Crusaders would destroy any horrid offspring that dared set its presence on the world.
To anyone who witnessed the battle, the crusaders would have seemed to fight like a magnificent machine operating with lethal coordination and efficiency, indeed the difference in skill between the Battle of First Tears and the one being fought at that moment was like the distance between a kindergartener and an accomplished professor.
No spawn survived a full minute on the world before being turned to ashes by the assault of the legion of alicorns, while the land itself was equally protected by their healing magic.
Even if the battle was decidedly in favor of the crusaders, it still lasted a long time, indeed the sun rose seven times before finally, with an unholy screech loud enough to part the clouds, the Abomination met its end, and its remains were obliterated in a wall of howling winds.
The crusaders took some more time to clean up the remaining fiends, but soon the world was free once more from the threat of those foul beings.
And so, as the sun set on that seventh day, the battle was won, and the Titans retreated back to their slumber.
Among the crusaders the casualties were light, with many wounded but no fatal injury, and Faust finally breathed a sigh of relief. Then something unexpected happened, and the Herald of Gaia herself manifested among the alicorns bringing joyful news.
“Rejoice alicorns of the world!”
Shouted the White Doe.
“The Humans have cast their gaze in the emptiness that surrounds the Universe, and there they have seen that no more Abominations are forthcoming, and many eras of peace are at hand now!
You have been successful in your appointed task and the world is now safe, therefore the Creators grant you now its mastery, so that you might grow even more in wisdom and skills, and under your dominion Creation might flower in an everlasting bloom until the end of Time itself.
Rejoice alicorns of the world!”
The legionnaires stood in stunned silence, the task they set up to complete was now completed, and the Abominations were no more.
Then, in the quiet of the evening, laughter rose from Faust, a mirthful expression that was soon shared among her troops, and soon the entire battlefield was filled with hollers of happiness.
The news spread fast to the entire Kingdom, the age-long crusade was finally over, and great festivities were declared in all the realm. In a grandiose show of military might the crusaders marched through the main cities of the outer provinces before sailing back to the Everfree and mounting a magnificent parade through Corona itself.
And there, on the steps of the Royal palace, the entire royal family was finally reunited again, as with the end of the war no more reason was to remain apart, and everyone could finally live together in the hard won peace.
Annotations
(1) Some drawings here and there make me guess the size of a legion at about ten thousand strong, most of them as combatants but a good few on logistics and rearguard duties.
(2) This determination of the Humans to “not intervene directly” seems to contradict the very creation of the Titans and the alicorns (the “hammer” and the “scalpel”), plus they didn’t seem to mind give special blessing to various other species, and one could argue that even being physically present and visible in the world constitutes some sort of intervention. I am by far not qualified enought o give a competent reasoning behind their actions, so I'll leave it up to whoever might end up reading this book.
(3) It’s hard for me to imagine something, anything really, being able to slay an alicorn, but that should give an idea of the threat that these enemies really posed, and explains why the Titans were made so powerful.
(4) I find it curious how the entire legion (and I suppose Faust herself) could cower in front of a Titan, but not even flinch at the presence of a Human, but I guess that is to show how much effort the Creators put into appearing as little threatening as possible.
(5) It must have been really unsettling for an “immortal” species to have their first dead and first cemetery, today we cannot imagine life without death and when that moment comes it is mostly considered as a grievous but inevitable part of our journey. What must have it seemed like to them, who never had to deal with it before?