Twilight's eyes twitched open as the sound of heavy downpour against the tent's walls reverberated throughout it. She sat up, rubbing her eyes softly. One look at how dark it was told her that it was still nighttime.
“Guess I should get back to sleep.” She muttered to herself. After all, the others were still slumbering: Lyra, Trixie, Vinyl-
Vinyl's sleeping bag was empty.
- - -
The heavy rain pelted her cloak as Vinyl rode the Chocobo through the swampland. Murky blue water splashed as the large bird ran through it. The only light came from cloud-filtered moonlight and the blue glow of Vinyl's magic from her horn.
In the distance was the old, worn down Temple of Chaos. The left tower had crumbled down almost entirely, the front wall had holes in it.
Inside it was somepony Vinyl had to rescue, or die trying.
- - -
“Oh, Vinyl, what have you done?” Twilight groaned as she, Trixie, and Lyra made their way out of the woods.
“I'm sure she's fine, Twilight.” Lyra said, not even convincing herself. “She couldn't have gotten far, right?”
“She's a summoner. She could have summoned something to ride. I wouldn't be surprised if she's there already!” Twilight replied, getting more panicked the more she talked.
“But that's stupid! Why would she waste her magic on getting there?” Trixie asked.
“Because love can make you do really stupid things sometimes...” Lyra said with a sigh, “...And so can hate.”
- - -
The only light source was a circle of candled around an intricate and somehow unnerving circular pattern on the floor. On either side of the circle sat two pillars with a pattern similar to the one on the floor etched into them.
It was to one of these pillars that Octavia was chained by the neck.
She lied down on her side, silent. Her hair was a mess from not being combed for several days, her eyes bloodshot from a lack of sleep, her body covered in a tattered black dress. Despite this, she refused to show weakness in her expression, instead looking more annoyed than distressed.
In the center sat a dark knight, on his knees in meditation. His body was covered in pitch black armor, making his form hard to make out. A large sword with a violet hilt sat in its matching scabbard.
“Someone is approaching.” The dark knight said, his voice deep and foreboding, echoing in the room in a way no voice should. “One pony. Did Celestia give in to my demands, or does she not care for you as much as I thought?”
His rhetorical question was answered when the door burst open, revealing a green-cloaked white mare wielding a short sword and intense fury.
“GARLAND!” Vinyl bellowed with all the rage she could muster.
“Vinyl?!” Octavia whispered in shock.
Vinyl glared at the traitor meditating in the center of the room. If looks could kill, half of the continent would have been atomized.
Her rage was fueling her strength, and she would need every bit of it if she was to defeat this sword master. She had spent all of her magic keeping the Chocobo summon to get here. Not that Vinyl cared; She wouldn't consider ending him in any other way but her own blade.
“So. A mage wishes to fight.” Garland said as he slowly stood. “Do you have any idea what you are dealing with?”
“Yes. A pathetic pile of-” Vinyl said before catching herself. “No, you aren't even worth that.”
Garland and Vinyl started their stride towards one another. Vinyl kept her rage-infused stare while Garland's expression was indeterminable under his helmet.
The dark knight drew his sword.
“You will know my name, for I, Garland, shall slay you where you stand.”
In an instant, metal clashed with metal as their blades met. Vinyl leaped back, then back forward with a horizontal slash from the left; Garland blocked it with ease. Vinyl then tried an upward swing, but that was also blocked. Garland bashed Vinyl's face with the hilt of his sword, causing her to step back.
The summoner growled, a fire burning in her eyes, then she dashed at the dark knight with a flurry of slashes. Each and every slash was blocked.
The last slash was parried, and with a thrust, Vinyl's sword was knocked out of her hands. The knight kicked her in the gut then punched her in the face. Vinyl grunted, and fell to her knees. She looked up, and saw that the knight's blade was pointed right between her eyes.
Octavia's eyes widened. No... I... I can't let this happen!
Her eyes turned pitch black as shadows emanated from her hands. The same shadows then began to wrap around the dark knight. His strength started to weaken, his limbs feeling numb, his mind going blank. After a minute, he dropped his sword before falling to the ground.
Vinyl blinked, not sure what to make of it. She then saw Octavia, and realized. “D... Death magic...?” She said before falling to the ground herself.
Everything started to fade, the world growing more distant...
“Vinyl!”
That voice...
Vinyl's hand clenched into a fist, then she started to push herself up with a renewed strength. She had to save Octavia.
She grabbed her fallen sword before slowly making her way towards her lover. The tip of the blade dragged along the ground as she walked forward, step by step.
Once she was close enough, she raised her blade, and brought it down onto the chain. When it didn't break it, she did it once more. Finally, on the third strike, the chain broke.
“Y... Yeah... Hoo ra...” Vinyl said with a tired smile before passing out.
- - -
Octavia held the unconscious Green Mage in her arms, her only warmth in this freezing castle. Her hands slowly brushed through her fillyfriend's hair. In desperation, she had revealed her darkest secret. In saving her, she might have just lost her. Ice cold tears, unnoticed by their weeper, dripped onto the white unicorn.
Vinyl's eyes fluttered open. “...Oowww... My everything hurts...”
“Take it easy.” Octavia said. “He hit you pretty hard, from the looks of it.”
Vinyl replied with a soft chuckle. “Yeah... Wait a sec... I remember... Octy, what did you do to him?” Her tone was more curious than angry.
The gray bard gave out a sigh. “I... Vinyl... I've been keeping a secret for so long... Since we've first met, even...”
“That magic... I've only heard about it, but... It was death magic, wasn't it?” Vinyl asked.
Octavia closed her eyes and looked away, before giving a subtle nod.
Then Vinyl cracked a grin. “So that's why your hands were always so dang cold.”
“What?” Octavia replied, dumbfounded.
“Well, you've always had really cold hands. And cold kisses, for that matter.” Vinyl said.
“You... You're not mad?” Octavia replied.
“Of course not.” Vinyl replied. “I love you. Something as trivial as your magical alignment won't change that, not ever!”
“But... I'm a necromancer!” Octavia nearly shouted.
“Don't care.” Vinyl replied with a shrug. “Heck, why not come with us on our quest?”
“'Us'? 'Quest'? What are you talking about?” Octavia asked.
“I came here with my friends Trixie, Twilight, and Lyra. They're mages, too. We're gonna fix the crystals!” Vinyl explained.
Octavia's jaw dropped. “You're a Light Warrior?!”
The summoner gave a thumbs up. “You betcha, babe.”
The death mage giggled. “Never change, Vinyl.”