The Twelve Schools

by Delta04

Prologue: On The Run

The cobblestone was barraged as frantic hooves laboured to escape, enchanted arrows raining from the sky and spewing forth torrents of flame and arcs of lightning.

“Quick! Down here!” Sombra stumbled slightly, almost letting go of the wounded Trixie laden on his back in his hast to catch up with the voice of Starswirl, echoing down from an alley off to the left of the street that he was charging down.

He moved as fast as he could without letting go of Trixie, who was now wheezing heavily upon his back as her wound was subjected to violent bounces brought about by their speedy escape.

“Its okay Trixie,” He mumbled back, “we'll make it out of here. I promise you we'll all be fine.”

The dark coated stallion made a sharp turn once he reached the darkened alley from where he heard his companion yelling earlier, once again almost losing Trixie to the cold street floor, only managing to grab her with his red magic aura as she was half way off of his cloaked back.

The moment he was off the street he ducked behind the only cover he could make out in the darkness; a lone pile of rubble, caused presumably by the fallen wall directly adjacent to it. Both buildings that made up the wall of the alley were in disrepair, although the one on the opposite side was in far worse condition, with boarded up holes along its side.

Among one of the wall’s decrepit planked barricades there was a familiar pony, the owner of the voice from before.

Starswirl waved a hoof, beckoning for Sombra to pass through one of the many, many holes in the wall and join him, something which he would do, if it weren't for the entire platoon of soldiers still running past the street he was on mere moments before. Luckily it seemed none of them saw him enter the dank, dark alleyway.

Sombra poked his head around the corner, only to pull it back quickly once seeing an amour clad pony looking right back at him. With any hope the soldier hadn't seen him but it was doubtful that he didn't notice him. Sombra’s breath held, and his heart hammered in his chest with enough force to allow him to feel his blood pump throughout his whole being.

The silence was unnerving; horrifying, even. With the passing of a tense few seconds with nary a movement at all, the guard galloped off after his comrades, allowing Sombra to let air into his aching and burning lungs. He pulled Trixie onto his stomach, looking over her bleeding form and briefly thinking of inspecting her wound. He thought better of it; she would be fine for a few more seconds until he was within the relative safety of the crumbling building.

With his ears standing at attention for even the slightest disturbance, Sombra slowly crawled out from behind the rubble to look down the alley into streets beyond. With a loving ease he lifted the catatonic blue mare onto his withers with his bright red magic, careful not to pull at the arrow stuck into her side.

Making sure that both Trixie’s and his cloak wouldn't get caught on the low hanging wooden planks, the dark grey unicorn began the arduous task of shuffling on his barrel through the dirt and dust covered floor. With a grunt of effort Sombra pushed himself clear of the barred entrance, feeling the weight on his back being liberated by the careful and delicate hooves of Starswirl as he looked over Trixie's haggard form.

“How is she?” Sombra asked in a quiet, worried whisper. “Will she be okay?”

Starswirl rolled Trixie onto her back before unclasping her dark cloak and placing it within his worn brown saddlebags. “She'll be fine,” he said, “we just need to get out of here.”

Sombra nodded and silently walked over to a smashed window with a cracked and creaking wooden frame, cautiously looking out onto the dim, moonlit streets below from his slightly elevated position. The slum district of Canterlot would normally have been filled with the poor and desperate but they had all most likely run off at the first sight of the royal guard. It left the buildings feeling more dead and abandoned than they normally were.

“What of the others,” Sombra called back, “did they make it out?”

The sounds of shuffling hooves and lightly clicking tools was heard, and moments later the arrow had been cut right down to the fur of Trixie's coat as Starswirl’s mediocre medical skills began removing the arrowhead from the smaller mare’s barrel. “...I don't know.” He finally admitted.

“Then the plan remains unchanged?” Sombra asked, slowly walking back over to the pair in the centre of the room. The room was dirty; cluttered remains of furniture and rubble piled up into mounds strewn about the dust coated floor, and as such he had to navigate over and around various obstructions.

The older pony looked up, watching Sombra lay down beside Trixie, placing a small kiss on her forehead and squeezing her hoof tightly. The blue mare’s breathing had returned to a regular rate after having the arrow removed, not fully healed yet safe enough for now.

Starswirl placed a comforting hoof over Sombra. “I told you she'll be fine,” He softly spoke, “we just need to get her to Zecora as soon as possible.”

“...I know...” Sombra spoke, voice distant as he stared at the sleeping unicorn. “Its just--”

Sombra's ears flicked. He barely had time to leap to the side as an enchanted arrow lodged into the wall in front of him, originating from the window he had just been looking out of moments before. It was glowing wildly and flashing a threatening red colour, sigils swirling angrily along its shaft with increasing speed.

Without any verbal communication between the two, Starswirl helped lift Trixie onto Sombra’s back as they prepared to run once again, Sombra being the physically stronger of the two. They galloped up what little was left to be called stairs, for they knew going outside on even ground with the guard outside would not end well.

More arrows sailed in from the walls, smashing brick and throwing rubble everywhere as they impacted the far wall. One arrow came very near to hitting Starswirl as it travelled through the air at near supersonic speeds and cut through his light blue cloak. With a hum of power the light grey unicorn’s horn activated, casting yellow dancing lights across the room as his magic aura began to coalesce into a large domed shield.

The first arrow detonated, blossoming a large fireball and sending out a shockwave of force that knocked Sombra of his hooves and made Starswirl’s horn flare brightly under the strain of holding the shield. Sombra collided with the unstable wall before him with a loud grunt of pain as all air vacated his lungs, falling to the floor clutching his barrel in discomfort.

Forcing himself to his hooves, Sombra looked around wildly once realising that Trixie was no longer on his withers. Losing her now would be devastating for him.

“Let's go!” Sombra’s head snapped towards the shout in alarm. There, standing further up the stairs carrying Trixie aloft with his magic was Starswirl, already turning around to run once seeing Sombra in good health.

Sombra did not hesitate to follow. With a burst of speed he charged up the stairs after the galloping Starswirl until they both made it onto the second floor. This room was in even more of a ruined state than the first floor, with a gaping hole in the floor where it had collapsed after being crushed by something that had fallen down from higher up, leaving the doorway to the upper levels inaccessible.

The second arrow exploded from below, sending a shower of wooden splinters into Sombra’s underbelly and Starswirl’s shield, shattering it. Sombra gritted his teeth in pain while Starswirl grasped his aching horn as their world shook from a third explosion, sending more shrapnel through the air.

Trixie had been dropped onto the creaky wooden floor panelling during he second explosion and was now lazily waking up, a lack of blood making it difficult for her to rouse. Both stallions went after her when the fourth arrow detonated, setting fire to the ground floor and breaking down one of the few remaining supports for the surprisingly tall structure.

“You get across, I'll pass her over to you.” Starswirl made a motion to indicate the large broken floor space, quickly picking up the mumbling Trixie.

Sombra nodded, dashing forward towards the gap. It would have been too great for a normal unicorn to jump, but for Sombra it wouldn't be a problem. While leaping into the air, bits of Sombra’s dark fur became little but a swirling, wispy fog of even darker smoke and shadow, more and more of him changing as he sailed over the flames below. Smoke billowed outwards once Sombra’s hooves hit solid ground again, forming himself into a tangible state once more as the remaining smoke dissipated.

“Quickly!” Sombra yelled as he spun around to face the older unicorn.

With a flick of his white-yellow magic Trixie was tossed across the gap towards Sombra’s awaiting hooves. He was forced to the floor as Trixie collided with him, using himself as a cushion to brace her rough landing. With a heave of effort he pulled her off of him and placed her gently on the steadily warming floor. By now smoke had begun filling the air, making it harder to see and dulling the ponies’ other senses.

Starswirl made a running start towards the drop. He leapt into the air, quickly making it clear that he would not make it if he didn't do something hastily. The air around his hooves glowed with power as Starswirl’s magic made a compensation to save him, forming a small, solid glowing platform of solidified magic. He kicked off into the air, shattering the platform in the process, filling the building with a resounding crack of power and a fizzle of energy.

With a thud Starswirl landed on the floor besides Sombra, who had by now pulled himself up and placed Trixie back upon him. Panting hard, both stallions stumbled towards the stairs leading to the next floor. The stairs were burning hot and threatening to burst into flame at any second, further spurring the two young ponies forward.

The new room was in little better condition than the last, with the key difference being the lack of flames as they had yet to spread this far up. It gave them a small amount of time to gather and plan their escape amongst the detritus across the dingy room. This room, too, was filled with holes, though in far less abundance than the previous two rooms.

With a loud boom and a crushing wave force the fifth arrow released its fury upon the building. The guard never spared any amount of force for their objectives it seemed. They definitely weren't worried about collateral damage.

The two unicorns were now presented with another problem. The room, now set alight in flame, was the highest in the building. They had no where else to go.

“Do you think you can teleport us out of here?” Sombra enquired, eyes darting around at the growing flames in steadily increasing anxiety.

“No, I don't have a target destination in mind and I don't have time to set up a ritual for a long distance teleport,” Starswirl sighed, turning to Sombra with a hopeful look in his eyes, “I don't have any tricks to get us out of here, but do you?”

Sombra examined the room further for any signs of escape. Nothing in the room would be useful in their situation, even had it been in a useable condition. The room was lacking any windows as it was likely a form of attic or storage room during its long gone prime.

They could always break through a wall.

“Hey Starswirl...” Sombra called back over his shoulder, remarkably calm all things considered, “do you think...”

There was a loud crack and then the sound of flames as three ponies, one unconscious and in the grasp of another, came bursting forth from the side of an old building in the slum district of the high and mighty Canterlot, disturbing what little peace there to be had in the dirty streets and neglected buildings.

The ponies that were awake at this Creator-damned hour paid it no mind, keeping their distance. After all, if it’s something you don't know about and it involves guards, fire or any other hazardous things it was best to leave it be and continue with your day. Such is the ways of the low-lifes’ of high society.

The building could take no more abuse and promptly started caving in on itself, spewing copious amounts of flame into the cool night air as it teetered to the side from its midsection. The roof structure failed first, collapsing downwards and crushing what little remained of the original support structure, killing the already doomed construction.

The heat soared outwards, carried aloft by low winds in the dark. Embers fell upon the cobblestone and lit up like tiny flares, searing any and all it touched. Specks of light were sent scattering through the streets as ash and smoke was guided by nothing but hurried hoof steps and run down carriages to escape the danger so nearby. Fire was spreading to more buildings and it would not be long before practitioners of the more helpful arcane arts showed up to douse the blaze before it burnt down the whole city district.

Sombra hit the roof first. He met little resistance with the adjacent building and instead fell straight through into whatever lay beneath, Trixie in his tight hold. Starswirl was less fortunate, hitting the roof and sliding down its angled slope, pulling many of its shingles out with him in his descent.

At the last second Starswirl halted his painful death of fiery destruction by biting into the gutter pipe traversing the edge of the building’s roof, hitting the side wall with his momentum. The unicorn looked back at the tiles hitting the inferno beneath him, realising very clearly that that was almost him. Shakily he pulled himself up and onto his hooves, stumbling over to inspect the hole in which he saw Sombra fall into.

It was dark, hardly enough light to see the floor at all. From what he could see, Starswirl noted that both Trixie and Sombra were in good health for the time being, so long as the fire didn't spread too rapidly.

“Hey!” Starswirl shouted down over the din of flames in the background, making Sombra look up at him, “come on, we need to get going!”

“Alright! Alright! Help me get Trixie back up.” Sombra replied, already picking up said mare with his magic.

Trixie floating through the warm air in a red-turned-golden aura of magic as Starswirl pulled her up through the small hole and onto the slanted roof, careful not to let her fall into the raging fire below. Sombra followed suit and jumped, once more turning to shadow as he barely made the height, having to pull himself up onto the roof using naught but his forehooves.

“Alright let's go--” Sombra was cut off by pegasi guards approaching from the direction he was heading, nearly being hit by the non-enchanted arrows flying his way, “--the other way,” he finished quickly, ducking to avoid being impaled from more arrows flying overhead.

Starswirl concurred without a word.

They took off from the sloped roof, gracefully leaping from one building to the next in order to escape their pursuers. Sombra glided across on shadows and fog in elegant bounds while Starswirl flashed with golden energy, blinking between their realm and the next to transcend the meaning of distance.

Their chasers had an advantage, or two, in this case. They could all fly, and every time Starswirl blinked it wore him twice as much as it normally would as he was carrying for two, Trixie being under his care. It was beginning to show; ragged breaths came from the older pony, only getting worse with each jump. He was not a Master in the Aether arts, after all, and continuous use would wear him down.

Sombra, likewise, was having difficulty going on after overusing his chosen secondary magical study. He was by far faring better than his peer, only starting to feel the drain of energy as Starswirl began slowing down. Both realised they couldn't keep this up, for they knew that slowing down would be to suicide themselves to the guards’ arrows.

As one, they stopped mid-leap, coming short and falling down into another of the many dark alleys of Canterlot. Without words they linked hooves and the younger stallion turned to face the shadowed floor of the cobblestone pathway between buildings. They would hit it soon without anything to stop or slow their descent, and as such the guards stopped their assault to watch them perish as they fell.

Sombra made certain he held onto his two companions tightly, a gesture returned in kind by the only waking other.

It had always been an awkward experience for Sombra, and likely always would be. Luckily, he had years to build tolerance to traversing the Shadow. Starswirl and Trixie were far less fortunate.

To them it felt unnatural, despite them believing in the nonexistence of such a concept. It felt so unreal; fake yet not, endless darkness within but a moment, to be whisked from one place to another through the trail of cessation and end. So violent yet gentle and disturbing was the journey that it awoke the sleeping mare, who was dazed and confused as to her surroundings.

Starswirl briefly mused that it must feel like this for others whenever he teleported them somewhere.

The room they had appeared in was in bad condition; they were still within the slum district, it seemed. It was actually occupied when they arrived, startled ponies hastily leaving was all Starswirl could see while his head spun from the odd experience.

Once he could see straight again, Starswirl noticed that the room was actually in better condition then he first thought. There were no holes in the walls, floor or ceiling, and only minor cracks could be spotted along the few windows that opened to the outside world from within the dark building. The floor itself was free of any rubble, dust or broken furniture.

Unlike the last building this one was rounded, roughly circular in shape, with two doors being the only visible way out, each at opposite ends of the room. Both looked to be barred and blocked with wooden beams and metal locks, for whatever reason Starswirl couldn't tell.

Sombra was already up and running towards a window. He didn't want to attract more guards so he hid himself in shadow, disappearing in an inky blackness of swirling nothingness. Starswirl and Trixie were only able to see him as that because they were bonded, along with the rest of their group, and they alone could see Sombra when he was like this. Down below Sombra could see the streets; they appeared to be on the third floor, making what few ponies could be seen look like little flytrs’, hiding amongst the shadows.

Trixie groggily got to her hooves, almost collapsing from the pain in her chest, “W-where are we?” She asked.

“I don't actually know to be honest,” Sombra called back to the two, not looking away from the window as he scanned for anything that might give away their position again. “I kind of just picked a random shadow and went for it. Not like we had much of a choice anyway.”

Trixie nodded lazily while Starswirl voiced his approval in the form of a quick, “Agreed.”

Upon further inspection, Starswirl noted that his medical skills were much better than he had originally thought. Trixie’s wound was largely gone, with only a small, thin little cut as evidence to its existence. That led him to wonder if it was his skills or Trixie’s magic that had healed her. While looking over towards the blue mare beside him for any other outstanding wounds she may have gained, Starswirl noticed a glint out of the corner of his eyes.

Above them, floating between the hanging light of the room and the ceiling, was a magical sprite. It hovered daintily across the air, its light green glow not quite bright enough to garner much attention unless one was extremely perceptive.

“Sombra... I think its time to go now...”

Curiosity piqued, Sombra turned away from the window and looked towards his fellow. “Why?” he asked, before noticing the sprite. His eyes widened in surprise. “Oh...”

Trixie, still quite thoroughly out of it, hadn't noticed the sprite yet, concentrating more on staying awake than observing her surroundings. She simply left her two companions to their own devices while she nursed her aching wounds.

Starswirl knew that they couldn't make another run for it, as did Sombra. Since escape by traditional means didn't seem plausible at this moment, Starswirl began preparations for an alternate escape.

The others could do nothing but wait for him to finish, not that Trixie could do much to help in her current state.

Starswirl pulled off his bags, bringing out some enchanted chalk and a single, green crystal. He went about drawing intricate patterns on the floor, patterns few could read and even fewer could use. Soon the floor was covered in a mix of swirling lines and geometric shapes. With a flash of his horn he moved the crystal to the centre of the markings and began to pour magic into the sigils before him, making them glow with a bright white light.

Sombra began pacing nervously; his sensitive ears could hear guards in the distance.

“How much longer?” Trixie asked anxiously.

“Just a little longer!” Starswirl gritted. By now his horn was a blinding cone of energy and the sigils were so full of power that they leaked into the air, filling it with an energising buzz.

With a blur of shadow and smoke Sombra appeared at the window again. Outside he could see the searchlights of the nearing guards flashing in the night, casting foreboding shadows that grew larger as they drew closer. They were just outside now, looking into windows along the street to try and find them.

“Starswirl!” Sombra yelled out.

“I'm trying! I'm trying!” Starswirl called back over the roaring sounds of magic that filled the air.

The guards could now hear the magic emanating from Starswirl and called to their fellows with shouts of ‘over here!’, and ‘this way!’, with loud clacks of hooves on stone being the indicator that they had been spotted. They didn't have much longer.

“Starswirl hurry!” Trixie weakly screamed out, as the first of the guards started banging on the doors in an effort to break in.

“Done!” He yelled back, just as his horn flashed one final time before the whole room was engulfed in a bright light that shone as brightly as the sun itself.

When the guards finally broke in they found nothing but a singular sprite, gently floating about before drifting towards a unicorns outstretched hoof, landing softly before being fizzled out of existence.

They had lost them.