The sun rose slowly, ever so gently cresting the horizon and greeting the world with soft light and warm salutations. Subtle golds and sanguine reds mixed with verdant greens and pure whites to cast on the valley a pallor of calm and serene beauty, the sort of which could only be found in those rare places where nature was allowed to run rampant and free, untouched and unsullied by pony hooves. This was a place out of time, a place lost and forgotten by most, yet deeply cherished by a few. Here, far to the north, beyond the reach of Equestria at large, things were as nature intended. The piney trees never lost their green boughs, even if the snow fell nearly year round. The animals cared for themselves, hunting each other and gathering food for the harsh winters as they saw fit, and even the clouds would lazily drift apace on the northern winds, often clinging to the surrounding mountain tops, untouched and unguided by pegasus hooves. It was little wonder that when this place was discovered all those centuries ago it was called “The Free Northern Valley” in the lost tongue, and gained the name of Aercos Vale. Strange then, some might find it, was the small village, nestled where the valley river, mountains and forest met.
Truthfully, Aerinsor was hardly even a village at all. With a population of barely more than hundred or so, and barely covering a square mile, the small settlement was hardly more than a simple hamlet, all but lost amidst the far reaches of the untamed wilds, though to those that lived there it hardly mattered. It was a small place, cozy in its own right and rife with a deep sense of community, the kind of place where everypony knew each other’s name. It was a place of simple folk, living simple lives, happy in their own little haven away from the world. To the three young ponies that sat in the village square though, it was something much simpler, and much more precious; it was home.
They sat side by side, their backs to the town’s central statue as they watched the sun rise, their demeanor silent and resolute. Their eyes greedily drank in the sight as it unfolded around them. The golden light of the sunrise slowly crept across the ground, banishing the evening’s mist and bringing color to the gray twilight. The many cottages and buildings around the town square lost their gray night-time pallor as color slowly bled back into their frames and the accruement of frost on the various windowsills and stone statues and walls began to glint and glimmer like sheets of diamonds, giving the village a sense of vibrancy and life.
The three friends took in and delicately savored the moment, for they knew that it may full well be the last time they ever saw it again.
The encroaching wall of golden sunlight crept over the frozen cobblestones and dustings of snow and ice, inching ever closer to the three friends. It quickly alighted upon them, warming them slightly as it struggled to throw off the night’s chill, though one of them felt it more keenly than the others. He sat front and center of their small group, his face set into a neutral grimace, masking whatever he may have been thinking from the casual observer. The only indication of his thoughts was the absent minded way he rubbed one hoof along the contours of the crescent shaped scar upon his right check, something he did almost habitually whenever he was deep in contemplation. In truth, his thoughts were turning towards darker and more sinister paths, much as it had been doing more and more often as of late. Before such thoughts could consume him however, he was snapped out of his revere by the warm sensation of the dawn’s early light.
The light fell upon his bare hooves and unshorn fetlocks first, slowly crawling up his legs and over his shaggy crimson coat, seeping its warmth into the tufts of orange fur on his withers and atop his ears, as well as his sandy orange mane. The light seemed to glint and glimmer in his intense golden eyes, and off the sharp, tapered tip of his long horn. When the light touched upon his cutie mark – an edifice jutting from a blaze of golden flames – a small shiver went down his back. Due to his special talent, and rather unique gift, he was sensitive to even slight changes in temperature.
After taking a brief moment to thank the sun for snapping him out of his dark thoughts and for the picturesque scenery, he turned to his two companions on either side of him.
On his right stood his best friend, a large pegasus stallion not much older than himself. The pegasus was heavily built, and surprisingly thick with muscle for his age, his skin and dark blue coat taught against his frame. His midnight blue mane fell across his withers, framing his muscular neck, and his cock-sure smile was ever present. He was a bold sort of pony, always cool and confident, fierce and tough. As strange, unusual and unnatural as recent events had been, he was the least likely of them all to have any of it get to him.
The other pony though, was cause for greater concern. Two years his junior, she was a slender earth pony mare of a demure disposition, with a cream colored coat and chocolate brown mane and tail, with a calm and almost fragile sort of air about her. In light of everything that had happened lately, it was amazing how well she was holding up and how well composed she was. To those that knew her well though, it wasn’t too terribly surprising. She may have had a kind and tender heart, but once she put her mind to something she had an iron will, and a stubborn streak almost as strong as her mother’s.
Turning away, the unicorn hung his head in thought and looked at the golden medallion around his neck, holding it in his hoof. It was a simple thing, made of gold and about half as big around as his hoof, held by a simple chain of thick bronze links. On its face was inscribed a strange and complex symbol, full of shifting curves and sharp points, all wrought in a deep red and surrounding the single ruby that sat at its center. He’d had this medallion for as long as he could remember, and its nature and origins had always been a mystery to him. For as long as he could remember the strange hunk of metal had never left his side, traveling with him wherever he went, bringing him luck in his endeavors. The mystery of its meaning remained unsolved however, for even the various experts and scholars he had met over the years had been just as puzzled over its nature and purpose as he was, each failed attempt at deciphering its hidden secrets simply adding to its mystique. After so many years, all he had learned about it was the simple fact that it seemed to be magical in some way. Solving its enigma had become one of his life’s goals, driving him still to this day. In light of the latest happenings, these thoughts weighed heavily on his heart and mind. Recent events were making him start to wonder if he truly wanted anything to do with it after all. After everything that had happened, he was to wonder if maybe it was cursed.
Without looking away from the trinket he held, he asked a question aloud, his voice laced with edges of melancholy. “Seran, Terrikata, are you sure about this? Absolutely sure? This whole thing, all of it, is my fault, and I should be the one to face the consequences. I care deeply about you both, and I don’t want to drag you both off to who knows where with me and put you in harm’s way because of my mistakes. This is something that I must do, but are you two certain? Because once we leave there’s no turning back.”
The soft clopping of hooves on stone let him know that they had both walked up beside him, and his pegasus friend cuffed him across the withers with his wing. “Cress,” Seran began, laying his wing across the unicorn’s back, “stop beating yourself up so damn much over this. There’s no way you could have known, and even if you did there’s nothing you could have done. The only one who blames you is yourself. Besides, with everything that’s happened and all that’s at stake, do you really think I’d let you go it alone? You’re my best friend, you should know me better by now.”
Cress just stared into his friends eyes, taking in his words. Seran’s grin never left his face, his eyes sparkling jovially. Cress couldn't help but feel the corner of his own mouth begin to lift upwards ever so slightly as well. Looking away, he turned towards Terrikata and only got a brief glance at the angry look on her face before she reached up with a hoof and struck him on the back of the head. Surprised, it took a brief moment before he lifted his gaze from the ground and turned toward her, rubbing the back of his head and wearing a confused look on his face.
“How dare you say such a thing Crescent Flare!” She all but screamed, her vivid green eyes boring into his own. “It was bad enough when Birch moved out, but this? You must be crazy! After what happened if you think I’d let you leave me behind while you gallivant off to who knows where than there must be something wrong with you! I’m not… I-I can’t…” she said, her angry rant cutting off as tears began to cloud her piercing gaze and she fell to her haunches. “I… I can’t lose you too.”
Immediately, Cress pulled her close and wrapped her tightly in an embrace, allowing her to lean into him as she began to shudder and sniffle. “Don’t worry, Terri” he said, his voice soft and soothing, and warm as a winter’s hearth. “It’ll all be okay. I promise I’ll never leave you. We can stop him, and find Mom and Dad too.”
It took several moments before her shaking subsided and she regained her composure. Carefully extracting herself from the embrace, she managed to look him in the eyes again, sniffing once and quickly wiping away the tears from the corners of her eyes. “Thank you,” she said softly. He simply responded with a warm smile.
Truth be told, he was glad to have them both along. They had known each other for most of their lives, and were as close as any three ponies could be. To set out alone simply would not have felt right, as if he were leaving a piece of himself behind. He took comfort in the thought that no matter what, no matter how far they traveled, no matter where this journey took them, no matter what trials they may face they would all do it together, side by side until the end.
Composing himself, he couldn't help but feel a grin creep onto his features. Turning southward, he donned his saddle bags, his two companions doing the same on either side of him, satchels falling across their flanks with a weight that was both literal and symbolic. “Are you both ready to go?” he asked, to which he received a pair of affirmatives as Seran ruffled his feathers impatiently. “Well then, let’s go,” he said as he took the first step south, towards the untamed tundra and Equestria proper beyond.
As they reached the southern end of town, where the simple wooden buildings ended and the vast expanse of snow, frozen soil and piney trees began and stretched to the horizon, he took a look back at the only place he had ever known, at the town he grew up in, at his home. Briefly, he felt a pang of sadness well up inside of him. “Goodbye,” he whispered softly under his breath, his voice not even loud enough to reach his own ears over the morning breeze.
Turning away, he continued southward, never once looking back, as step after step, he leapt head-first into the unknown, and the wide world beyond.