Chapter 9
Sombra was just clearing his head of his frustrations when he smelled the smoke. He sniffed the air and saw it drifting from the Eastern end of the palace.
But my tower is…
Before he could finish his thought, he galloped back into the palace and towards the blaze.
***
Cadance got to the south wing just as an alarm went throughout the palace. By now, dozens of guards would be scrambling to get inside and help out with the emergency. There was a particular part of the wing that Cadance had scouted out; a dead end hallway that ended in a large window. Under the window was a small, empty cupboard. At least, the cleaning staff assumed it was empty since none of them could open it.
Cadance had been visualizing her escape, and so far it was going well, but now the actual escaping needed to occur, and that meant getting out of the castle. Cadance’s horn glowed, sputtered, and went dark. She was very exhausted from using so much magic, but she needed to persevere. She tried again, and this time it worked, her unlocking spell opening the cupboard. Inside were several lengths of sheets tied into a long rope. She’d been working on this for nearly a year, lucky to get enough time to steal a sheet, run here, and tie it on even once a month. But now it was complete. It wouldn’t reach the ground, but it would reach a few stories down to a roof, where Cadance planned to climb down the drain pipes to the ground floor.
It was a daring, yet incredibly dangerous and foolish plan. But she was a foal with very few options.
***
By now, the original quartet of guards was joined by a dozen more guards as they fought their losing battle against the green flame. They brought buckets of water and threw them on the fire, but it seemed to do little more than draw it closer to them, backing them up along the hallway and threatening to swallow them alive. The King rounded the corner and saw the emerald flames blanketing the walls and floor. He quickly used his magic to pull back his soldiers, throwing them behind him like they were toys.
“IDIOTS!” Sombra roared, “That is no ordinary fire! It’s Surtur’s Flame, water only makes it stronger! The flame is magic, and can only be stopped-”
King Sombra fired a magical blast from his horn at the flame and a portion of the wall of fire vanished.
“-By other magic.”
***
Cadance shimmied along an exterior ledge four stories from the ground. The wind was freezing, threatened to blow her right off, and she shivered in her dark dress. She moved carefully, one hoof in front of the other, along the narrow ledge. She was nearly to the drain pipe she was heading to when a part of the ledge broke under her weight and she tumbled forward. Giving a gasp of surprise, she reached desperately for a drain pipe. She grabbed the pipe in her front hooves and ground to a screeching halt, her grip enhanced by the adrenaline of her near death. She clung there for a moment, breathing heavily and trembling. Finally, she got a hold of herself, remembering her parent’s love for her and their praises of her great courage, and she let go a little so she could slide down carefully.
***
Sombra alone used his magic to battle the flame, pushing the fire back down the hallway towards the tower from whence it originated. The process was long and tiring, but soon all the fire was extinguished and Sombra found himself in what was once his study.
The king took a moment to be horrified by what he saw: everything was destroyed, his inventions, his designs, his notes and books. All of them burnt to ash by Surtur’s Flame, which meant they were mystically destroyed and irretrievable, even by one as powerful as him. Sombra, despite having all the Crystal Scribes and Scholars at his beck and call, still kept his notes to himself; a habit from his days as a lone researcher. There were no other copies. Anywhere.
Years of his life’s work were completely gone.
And there was only one pony that could have done this. After all, Surtur’s Flame is harmless in its liquid form; it requires magic to activate it. And there were only two Unicorns in all of the Crystal Empire. His horror gave way to rage, and his demeanor turned cold and dark.
“Where is Cadance?” He asked aloud to his soldiers. His voice was little more than a whisper, and yet the guards heard it with perfect clarity.
“S-s-she must have run off when the f-f-fire broke out, sire.” One of Cadance’s bodyguards stammered, the terror evident on his face.
“I want the palace on lockdown,” Sombra hissed, “Nothing leaves, nothing enters. Search everywhere. NOW!”
The troops rushed to do as they were bid, but another pony approached the king. General Citrine, Sombra’s most loyal subordinate, approached. The general’s armor was more ceremonial then when he was a commander, and his armor was not composed of dark crystals. His loyalty was nothing Sombra needed to have reinforced with dark magic, and it paid to have at least a few clear minds in his court.
“General,” Sombra said, grimly “It appears a great tragedy has befallen our kingdom once again. My dear niece was conducting an experiment against my wishes and accidentally started a blaze of Surtur’s Flame. Unfortunately, she was fully engulfed and her body could not be recovered. Do you understand me, General?”
“I do, sire,” Citrine said as he bowed his head.