//------------------------------// // Chapter 36: A Journey of Ice and Water // Story: The Equine Scrolls: SkyFiM // by FireOfTheNorth //------------------------------// Chapter XXXVI: A Journey of Ice and Water “And you all made fun of me for packing so many scarves.” The Imperial Dignity set sail later that day and, true to her word, Radiance got us the best accommodations on board. Unlike on the Inquisitor, all we had to do was sit back, relax, and let the seasoned sailors handle things. The Dignity was far larger than the Inquisitor, and the four of us were each allowed to occupy a private stateroom. The journey to Leyawhinny would take four days in total, since we’d be forced to detour around the Pegasari Dominion before circling Unicornica and arriving on its eastern coast. That suited me just fine. We’d been so busy rushing around lately it’d be good to have a few days to rest up and fully heal. The first day passed swiftly, as the Dignity made its way around the western isles of the archipelago that made up the pegasus homeland. By the time the sun set that night, we had already passed Stalliondril, and we continued to skirt the cloud layer that marked pegasi territory as we traveled through the night. The next day passed much the same, with very little to do on the ship than chat with my friends and read A Brief History of the Empire; Vol. I. Later in the day storm clouds began to build to the south. Rather than alter our course and delay our arrival in Leyawhinny, the captain decided to continue through the storm. We were forced belowdecks as freezing rain began to pelt the Dignity. As the storm howled outside, I turned to finishing the book I’d snatched from Blank Flanks Barrow all those weeks ago. “Though Camelon may have perished in the battle, his legacy will live on,” the newly appointed Emperor Talhooves announced to the assembled Unicornican warlords, “For the first time in centuries ponies have a chance to be united under one banner. This Empire will unite all. My Empire; the Alicorn Empire!” he finished, flaring his new wings. Emperor Talhooves had a plan to subject the Northlands to his will already in place. And with his new magic and wings, nopony would dare stop him. The story of the Alicorn Empire’s rise is continued in A Brief History of the Empire; Vol. II. A knock on my door interrupted me as I began to tuck the book away and reach for another. “Come in,” I called. “Miss Sapphire,” the crewmember who opened the door said, “The captain requests your presence on deck.” Puzzled, I rose from the bed and strapped on my armor, hoping it would provide at least some protection from the elements. As I stepped out of my room, I saw that Steadfast, Mephalda, and Mystic had also been called out of their rooms. “What do you think this is about?” Mystic asked. “I don’t know,” I said, “But I intend to be prepared.” The frigid rain was still pelting down as we left the comfort of the cabins and stepped out onto the deck. A layer of ice coated the deck, making it hard to get up to where the captain struggled to steer the boat through the storm. Eventually we reached the wheel, which the captain fought with using both his magic and his hooves. As we approached, he turned the wheel over to the other crew members nearby. “I thought you should see this,” he called over the squall, passing a telescope over to me. Gripping it in my magic, I focused it where he directed. In the distance through the rain I could barely make out a few small figures flying beneath the cloud layer. As I watched, they shot back up through the clouds. A few moments later, they emerged from the clouds again, much nearer to the boat. “Pegasi?” I asked, passing the telescope to Mephalda. “We believe so,” the captain replied, “And it looks like they’re intent on seizing our ship.” “Why would they be after us?” Mystic asked, “We’re a passenger and cargo ship.” “They’re Blackwings,” Mephalda said, passing the telescope on, “Somehow they must’ve found out we’re on board.” “They’re not exactly our biggest fans,” I told the captain as he looked to me for explanation. “Well, I don’t intend to let them have my ship,” he said, looking in the direction the Blackwings were coming from, “If we’re going to stop them I’m going to need everypony’s help.” At the captain’s orders, all crew members armed themselves and prepared for the ship to be boarded. Steadfast, Mephalda, Mystic, and I stood up top in the freezing rain with our weapons drawn, waiting for the Blackwings to make their move. At last they emerged from the clouds directly above the ship and swooped down toward us. They went for the sails first, running their blades through and shredding them. One was suddenly stopped in his mission as an arrow from Mephalda hit him in the chest. It bounced off his chest armor without harming him, but did manage to knock him off course. With the fierce winds and pounding rain, he had no time to stop himself before he crashed into the deck of the ship. Steadfast was standing near where he’d landed and cracked the Blackwing across the back with his warhammer as he tried to get up. Flaring his wings, the pegasus sent blades skittering across the deck, one sticking in Steadfast’s fetlock. As he pulled it out, the Blackwing was able to stand back up. Drawing a sword from beneath his cloak, he went on the offensive now, pushing Steadfast back. I was too far away to help him with my blades, but I tried sending a blast of lightning at the back of the unsuspecting Blackwing’s head. I quickly cut off the spell as the lightning defused through the storm, jumping from raindrop to raindrop and spreading uncontrollably through the air. I was forced to leave Steadfast to handle things as I heard a thump on the deck behind me. Whirling around, I drew both Calcion’s Cleaver and the Blade of Hoofingar. The Blackwing who’d landed behind me’s blade met both mine with a vicious shriek. I was forced to back out of the block and duck down as she sent hidden blades flying out of her wings. I Shouted, and my blades began to spin more rapidly as I advanced on the Blackwing. Yet as fast as my Voice-augmented swords were moving, the Blackwing was able to block nearly all my strikes. By the time the effects of the Shout faded, all I had accomplished was to get a few nicks on her and put a few chinks in her armor. Now that my striking speed was reduced back to normal she had the upper hoof, and went on the offensive. As she brought her sword around toward my neck I blocked with Calcion’s Cleaver. Lightning sparked through the night, electrifying the rain around us as the swords met. I tried to swing the Blade of Hoofingar around toward her side, but she blocked with the blades in her wings, keeping me at bay. Pulling both my blades free, I backed away from the Blackwing. As she began to advance toward me I leapt at her, swinging my swords around toward her neck. Deftly she blocked both my strikes with her sword, never giving an inch, even as I put all my strength into my push. With a flick of her neck she sent my swords flying back, forcing me to retreat. She was good, in fact she was significantly better than me when it came to swords, but I had something she didn’t. I Shouted, and her sword flew from her mouth and went sliding across the icy deck. Now that she had no sword, I brought both of mine down toward her chest. With her wing blades she blocked them in midair. Pulling out a knife from within her cloak, she pushed toward me, her wing blades keeping my swords from moving. I didn’t have the focus to Shout again so soon, so I dropped my swords instead and focused on blasting fire into her face with my magic. It stunned her momentarily, just long enough that I was able to draw my war axe and sink it into her throat. As the rain washed my blade, I searched around for my other two weapons, which had been thrown away when the Blackwing had charged at me. The Blade of Hoofingar was stuck into one of the masts nearby, and I was able to retrieve it easily. Calcion’s Cleaver, on the other hoof, was another story. Frantically, I searched for my favorite sword, until I saw it a little ways away, sliding across the ice coated deck. As the ship listed in the storm it began to slide toward the edge. Giving a shout, I threw myself toward the blade, sliding across the deck on my stomach. At last it was in reach and I snatched it up, but I was too close to the edge and went sliding off. Grasping the sword in my teeth, I swung it around into the edge of the deck, leaving me suspended over the side of the ship. With great effort I managed to pull myself back up, but at least I hadn’t lost Calcion’s Cleaver. I was suddenly forced to duck down as a massive fireball went flying over my head. I turned to see Mystic fighting no less than three Blackwings on her own, keeping them at a distance with both a ward and offensive spells cast frequently from her horn. But there was no way she could keep it up forever. As I watched they began to circle her, making it difficult to keep them all in her sight at once. I charged in to help, Calcion’s Cleaver and the Axe of Whitetrot held in my magical grasp. As I slid down the stairs, one of the Blackwings heard me coming and turned to face me. <> I Shouted, causing a cast of frost to cover his body. The covering only grew thicker from the rain, making it even more difficult for the Blackwing to wiggle free. Before I could even attempt to finish him off, my blade was met by the sword of another of the Blackwings circling Mystic. She pulled back and struck again, forcing me to block again. As I tried to swing my war axe toward her side, she blocked with her wing blades. I managed to disengage the axe from her wing before she could pull it away, but I didn’t have time to dodge as the tiny knives came flying out of her feathers. Thankfully, they did little more than bounce off my Griffin armor, adding more tiny dents to my already impressive collection. Striking with Calcion’s Cleaver, I managed to push the Blackwing back a step, but she held me in the block and didn’t allow me to push her any farther. I swung the Axe of Whitetrot around toward her legs, but changed direction at the last second, hooking it around the Blackwing’s sword. Tears came to my eyes as the wing blades meant to block my war axe instead opened fresh wounds along both my fetlocks, but I forced myself to stay focused on the fight. With a twist of both my blades I managed to throw the Blackwing’s sword from her mouth. Calcion’s Cleaver came down on the side of her head, slicing through her helmet and electrifying it at the same time. The Blackwing fell to the ground jerking uncontrollably while blood soaked through her hood. I turned quickly to the sound of breaking ice, meeting the blade of the Blackwing I’d frozen with both my swords. Anger burning in his eyes, he aggressively pushed forward, forcing me to slide back across the slippery deck until my hindquarters ran into the railing running along the edge of the ship. I blocked with the Blade of Hoofingar as he swung toward my side. I quickly added Calcion’s Cleaver to the block as a single sword proved ineffective at halting his blade. Drawing his sword back, he swung around toward the right side of my head. Using both my swords, I forced his blade off course, and it cut through the railing behind me instead of my face. Pulling it from the splintered deck, the Blackwing swung his sword around at the left side of my head. Once again I diverted his blade and it cut through the railing instead of me. An evil grin upon his face, he brought his sword straight down at me. As I blocked, I once more began to slide back. Only this time the railing began to give way behind me. If I didn’t do something fast I was going to find myself in the water! <<>> I Shouted, sending the Blackwing rolling across the deck. As I pulled myself away from the edge and downed a healing potion to repair the still-bleeding wounds on my forelegs, I watched the Blackwing tumble across the deck as a ball of cloth and feathers. At last he came to a stop just in front of Mystic. In a moment he was reduced to a cinder as she blasted him with pure concentrated magic. Looking around, I could see no more Blackwings on the deck. It appeared they’d given up. That is, until I looked up. Above the deck of the ship perhaps a dozen of the pegasi darted amongst the lines and cables securing the sails. At the center of the swarm was Mephalda, who was rapidly firing off arrows in order to keep from being surrounded. It was obvious the Blackwings realized who she was, as they paid us no mind and focused on attacking her. Of course, I couldn’t just do nothing and leave her to be overwhelmed. As I charged toward the central mast, I fired shards of ice up toward the hovering Blackwings, striking a few and causing them to plummet into the sea. Mystic joined me, firing off bolts of magic I couldn’t identify. Once I reached the central mast I began to climb. Mephalda was in the crow’s nest and I was going to reach her. Up the makeshift rope ladder I climbed, taking shots at a few of the Blackwings as I passed by. I was nearly to the crow’s nest when I was suddenly knocked off the ladder. I went rolling across one of the crossbars the sails were hung from until I manage to grab ahold of the beam. Holding on for dear life, I looked up to see a Blackwing land nearby. Unsteadily, I forced myself to my hooves, careful to remain balanced atop the beam. With catlike agility the Blackwing bounded toward me, drawing a sword as she did. Drawing the Axe of Whitetrot, I somehow managed to block her first strike. Her next swing nearly knocked me from my precarious position. I Shouted before she could get another swing in, marking her for death. As she doubled over in pain, I struck her on the back of the neck. As she fell into the sea, I retrieved her sword. Looking up, I could see that Mephalda was in a bad situation. All the remaining Blackwings were clustered around her, intent on finishing her off. “Mephalda!” I called, hoping she could hear me over the storm, and threw her the Blackwing sword. She snatched the blade out of the air as it spun past her and, quicker than I could follow, stabbed it into the chest of the nearest Blackwing. Pulling it out, she swiftly struck down two more in one swing before plunging it into another of the Pegasari assassins. With another flurry of slashes, she knocked away the last two, sending them plummeting to their deaths. “Thanks!” she called to me after she looked around to confirm the last of the Blackwings were vanquished, “I thought that was going to be the end of me!” “I appreciate the sentiment,” I said, hanging upside-down from the post and clinging to it for dear life, “But could I get a little help here?” ◊◊◊ ◊◊◊ ◊◊◊ We stayed alert for Blackwing mischief for the rest of the night. Thankfully, no more came and we emerged from the storm intended to entrap us as the sun rose in the east. After we were in the clear the captain steered us north-east, leaving pegasi territory behind in order to circle Unicornica. As we left the reach of the Blackwings, we all headed belowdecks to sleep, catching up on the rest we’d lost the night before. It was smooth sailing all morning and I slept well, eventually waking and feeling refreshed, my aches and pains gone. With nothing better to do, I began to read the book Calciar and Eruthar had given me: Minotauran Inquiries; Vol. I. Of all the races one could choose to study, the Minotaurs are perhaps the most intriguing. This is, of course, due to the fact that their entire race utterly vanished over a thousand years ago, leaving behind nothing but empty cities filled with advanced technologies, but also guarded fiercely by the Minotaurs’ creations. This volume will cover Minotauran architecture and what can be learned from studying it. For Minotaur anatomy, see Vol. II. For an in-depth discussion of their culture, see Vol. III. For information on their religion, see Vol. IV. And for theories on their disappearance, see Vol. V. Before I could read any further, a knock came at my door. “Come in,” I called, setting the book aside to read again later. Gradually the door opened, and Mystic stuck her head through. “Is something happening abovedecks?” I asked, hoping the Blackwings had given up on following us. “No,” the unicorn said, trotting into the room, “I just didn’t know if maybe you wanted to talk.” “Sure,” I said, making space for her on the bed, “About what?” “I don’t know, just talk,” she said, “About you, Steadfast, and Mephalda, I guess.” “What about us?” “Well, from what I saw last night, you guys really look out for each other. I mean, you’re all really good friends, and it’s just – well, I’ve always had trouble making friends.” “Well, you’re not alone in that.” “You? Really?” “You bet. Steadfast and Mephalda are the first true friends I’ve made in a long time.” “I thought it was just me. I guess it’s hard to make friends when you’ve got your nose buried in a book all the time.” “I don’t think that’s quite it,” I laughed, “I had the same problem, but I think my lack of a cutie-mark alienated me more than my love of books.” “Well, whatever the reason,” Mystic said, completely ignoring the fact that I’d admitted to being a blank flank, “I don’t want to be alone anymore. I want what you guys have. I want friends.” “Hey, I’d say you’ve got some already,” I told her. “Really?” she said hopefully. “Of course. You’re practically one of us already.” “Oh, thank you!” she said, giving me a hug, “You don’t know how much this means to me.” “Judging by how hard you’re squeezing me,” I said, fighting for air, “I have some idea.” “Oops, sorry,” she apologized, and then began laughing. I soon joined in as well. ◊◊◊ ◊◊◊ ◊◊◊ That night, I awoke to frantic knocking upon my cabin door. “Huh, what?” I said, sitting up in bed as the door flew open. “Sorry to disturb you,” the crewmember said, “But the captain thinks you ought to come up top at once.” Forcing myself to wake up, I rolled out of bed and set about assembling my gear, banging my shins more than once as I struggled to pull on my armor. Eventually I was ready, and headed up top where my friends were already waiting. The stars were invisible behind the veil of clouds above us, and a frigid wind whistled past as I made my way up to them. “What is it?” I asked, “More Blackwings?” “I’m not sure,” the captain said, “All I know is this storm shouldn’t be here.” “The storm yesterday shouldn’t have been there either,” his first mate pointed out. “Yes, but this is different,” the captain said, “That was near Pegasari Dominion territory. This is too far away for them to try something without angering the Empire. We’re nearing the Ear of Unicornica, for Julimanos’s sake. Also, we haven’t spotted any pegasi at all yet.” “Then where did this storm come from?” Steadfast asked, “Clouds can’t move by themselves, can they?” An icy whinny came from far away, no louder than a whisper in the breeze. “Did you hear that?” I asked, though nopony else seemed to have. Again the whinny came, closer this time, and the others around me confirmed they’ve heard it. “What is that?” the captain asked. “Well, it sounds like WINDIGOS!” I shouted the last word as one of the icy creatures suddenly came barreling out of the snow that was beginning to blow around us. I pulled out the Axe of Whitetrot and prepared my horn for flames spells as I waited for another of the creatures to attack us. The snow began to blow harder until another of the vaguely horse-like creatures emerged. In an instant, it was torched by my magic and reduced to no more than a puddle and a few odd shards of ice. More suddenly flew out of the storm, coating the deck and masts with ice. Careful not to hit any parts of the ship, both Mystic and I, as well as a few of the unicorn sailors, began to fire flames at the creatures. As one galloped through the air past me, I swung my war axe around and chopped its head off. I had no time to strike another that was rapidly charging toward my face. Right before it reached me, it suddenly fell out of the air, struck down by a flaming arrow shot from Mephalda’s bow. The battle against the windigos seemed to be a losing one, as they clearly outnumbered us. The ship began to creak and groan as it became frozen bit by bit. But we wouldn’t give up. I was determined that we would reach Leyawhinny no matter what stood in our way. I Shouted into a swarm of windigos, destroying them in an instant with the force of my dragon breath. More of them turned toward me as they saw I could snuff out so many with one move. Keeping up a wall of fire in front of me with my magic, I retreated from the swarm. However, more came flying from the storm, attacking me from all directions. As I swung my war axe through them it eventually flew from my grasp, sliding across the deck. Without my weapon, and my magic becoming dangerously low, the windigos swarmed over me. Ice formed over my horn, keeping me from doing magic, and I could feel my body temperature begin to drop as frost began to cover my coat, seeping under my armor. My vision faded until all I could see were the blurry outlines of the windigos around me. I heard a yell come from somewhere close just moments before Steadfast jumped over me, my axe in his mouth. Swinging it wildly, he ignited every windigo around me and forced the others to back off. Hoisting me onto his back, he carried me away from the swarm of ice-creatures. I heard voices, but was unsure exactly what was being said as Steadfast dropped me off. After what seemed like an eternity I could feel warmth begin to return to my body. My vision cleared until I could see Mystic standing over me, pouring warmth into me with her magic. Steadfast and Mephalda were both nearby, watching over me. At last I regained enough strength that I could sit up. “What happened?” I asked, looking around. “You almost died,” Mystic said, “But then Steadfast saved you.” “All I did was bring you back here,” my earth pony companion said, returning the Axe of Whitetrot to me, “It was Mystic that used a spell to both repel the windigos, and now to heal you.” I was so lucky to have such friends, and was about to tell them so before I saw a spire of rock suddenly loom up in front of the ship. “Look out!” I called out too late. The Imperial Dignity ran head on into the rock and was smashed to matchwood in an instant. Level Up Health: 230 Stamina: 220 Magicka: 210 New Perk: Keen Eyes [Block] -- You are extremely aware of your surroundings, and are therefore able to block attacks much more easily, no matter from what direction they come. Follower gained -- Mystic: A student from the College of Winterhorn, Mystic is a highly trained sorceress in all kinds of magic. Capable of writing her own spells, Mystic brings a high-powered attack and defense to the battlefield. New Quest: The Frigid Northlands -- Make your way through the blizzard on hoof to the Imperial City.