//------------------------------// // A Periodic Tale of Elements: Generosity - Chapter One (Dark, Adventure) // Story: xjuggerscrapsx // by xjuggernaughtx //------------------------------// The Ritual “Please don’t do this!” Clover said again, quickening his pace to catch up to the wizard. Ever since they’d met with the royal couple, his unease had grown steadily. Now, Clover was beginning to feel nauseous. “There must be another way!” Grimacing, Star Swirl shot Clover a look of irritation. “Really? Then what would you suggest?” Clover’s jaw worked as he wracked his brain for some sort of insight. “Well, I… uh...” “Having trouble, Clover?” Star Swirl said, pushing his hat back from his eyes to wither his apprentice with the full power of his intense stare. “Didn’t we just go over this? That idiot Sombra has cocked this up entirely. The city’s half-deserted. The army’s wiped out. The beast is practically in the castle’s throne room, but somewhere in that dusty wreck you call a brain, you’ve got the easy answer all worked out, eh?" Star Swirl looked his assistant up and down, curling his lip. “Well, spit it out! We’ve no time left!” Clover flushed, scanning the hallway for answers that didn’t exist. He wanted to look anywhere but at Star Swirl. “Well, no. I mean, I don’t have—” “Then stop wasting my time!” Star Swirl barked, whirling and heading down the hallway once more. “It’s not like I want this, Clover!” he yelled over his shoulder. “I know that it probably surprises you that I didn’t spend our meeting with the king daydreaming about tomorrow’s lunch or whatever it is that you do when you ought to be listening, but my mind works rapidly, Clover. Very rapidly!" Motioning impatiently to the guards outside the throne room, he tapped his foot as they hauled the huge, metal doors open. “Haven’t I already told you that they waited too long? At this point, there is only one sure way left!” “But the cost…” Clover muttered, making sure that his protest didn’t reach his master’s ears. Sighing, he followed the wizard into the gleaming throne room. I’ll just have to trust him, he thought, trying to rid himself of the feeling of impending dread. But how can I be part of this? How can anypony? ~~~ “Now, you both remember what your instructions are, correct?” Star Swirl said impatiently to the king and queen as he inspected the patterns of runes he’d etched into the audience chamber’s marble floor. “Well, speak up! Can’t you see I’m busy?!” he barked as they nodded. “Yes!” the royal couple said in unison, flustered. Clover thought that King Sombra looked like he hadn’t slept in weeks, and even the radiantly beautiful Queen Chrystal was showing signs of fatigue. Why? he thought, suddenly furious with the two rulers. Why did they wait so long? Now look what it’s come to! “Good,” Star Swirl snapped, nodding at the runes. “Now, you stand here,” he continued, pulling the queen into a glowing circle of twisting magic. “Unhoof the queen!” shouted a guard, running toward the wizard. With a nonchalance that chilled Clover, Star Swirl waved his free hoof at the charging soldier, who hit the floor face first. Clover winced at the hollow thud his skull made against the stone. “I have no time for this,” the wizard shouted. “Clover, clear the room! Only the king and queen may remain with us. All others are to wait outside.” Clover swallowed hard as he eyed the hulking guards. Seven remained in the room, and each one seemed to be carved from stone. They outweighed Clover several times over, and their spears looked very, very sharp. “You heard him,” Clover said, doing his best to replicate Star Swirl’s tone of authority. “Clear out! The king and queen are safe with us!” he said, hating himself. If the guards heard him, they made no sign of it. “Obey them,” King Sombra rumbled to the guards as he made his way into the larger circle opposite his wife. “This is for your safety." The guards look at each other uneasily, moving uncertainly away from their posts. Sombra smiled at them gently. “Don’t worry,” he said. “It’s going to be alright." The guards let their eyes travel over their king’s new crop of welts and bruises, tightening their grips on their spears. “That’s an order!” the king snapped. One by one, the guards filed out of the room. The last two stopped to retrieve their comrade, throwing suspicious glances behind them as the slammed the heavy doors closed. Although the throne room was vast, Clover felt it shrinking, choking and constricting him. The slamming doors had the sound of finality, and Clover imagined that was the last sound that bodies interred in a crypt ever heard. Star Swirl tapped a hoof impatiently, glowering at the king. “Get a move on!” he growled. Clover sucked in his breath quickly between his teeth, his eyes darting between the king and his master. For just a moment, something blazed in King Sombra’s eyes. Something that chilled Clover’s heart. Apparently his master had caught it, too. “Oh, please don’t let me interrupt your dignified stride, your majesty!” Star Swirl sneered, his eyes narrowing. “The whole of the Crystal Empire is on the line, but what’s that against your ego, hmm?” Clover tensed as it looked as though the king might actually try to strike his master, but Sombra suddenly slumped, lowering his head as he trotted forward into the circle of eldritch power. Thank goodness, Clover thought. This is hard enough as it is. “Now, remember what I told you both!” Star Swirl snapped, rechecking his runes. “There is no room for error here. You must both do exactly as I’ve told you, or all is lost." He stared at each of them in turn. “For the final time, do you understand your roles? If you have any questions, you must bring them up now, and do it quickly! We are nearly out of time!” As if on cue, a deafening clap of thunder shook the castle. Stumbling and catching himself on the halfwall that separated the observation gallery from the royal dais, Clover eyed the room’s wide marble columns nervously. It looked like nothing could ever collapse such solid construction, but he’d sworn they’d just rippled like water. “Is that—” Queen Chrystal began, cringing. Even from his removed position, Clover could see her trembling violently. “Yes,” Star Swirl cut in, flipping rapidly through his spellbook. “The beast has broken through another barrier. He could be here in days or minutes. We have no way of telling how long the spell will continue to hold against a being with that kind of power. We must start immediately! Clover, get into position!” For a moment, Clover hesitated. This… he thought, miserably. This is the point of no return. He stood, letting his eyes wander over the king’s earnest, worried face. How can I be part of this? “Clover!” Star Swirl’s voice snapped out like a whip’s crack. “Remember your oath to me!” Starting, Clover shook himself and trotted over to the king. “I-I’m sorry,” he whispered. “I didn’t want this!” Sombra smiled down at the magician’s assistant, and Clover’s heart ached at the sadness the smile conveyed. The unicorn king’s eyes were lined with red and his skin hung from his cheekbones in sallow, unhealthy curtains. “It’s okay,” the king said. “I’ve made a lot of mistakes, but through this one act, I will set it all right. I can be a hero again,” he said in a shaking voice, “even if I’m not around to enjoy it." He gazed across the marble floor to where Chrystal stood, and Clover watched as the corner of his mouth managed a small upward turn. “I’ll know that she’s safe, and that’s all that really matters to me." Clover fought the bile that tried to force its way up his throat. “We begin!” Star Swirl cried, launching into a chant that rolled and dipped through sonorous phrases. As always, his horn began to shine, and within seconds, Clover had to shield his eyes with his hoof, lest the horn blind him. Wind seemed to swirl in from the floor, blowing all of their manes into tangled knots. As Star Swirl’s chanting reached a fever pitch, he pointed to Clover. “Your majesty,” Clover said urgently. “Remember what we’ve told you! Concentrate on the empire. Concentrate on your people. You must think of your family and think of your bride!" Clover watched as the king’s face slackened, his thoughts propelled out of control by the spell’s power. “Concentrate!” Clover screamed, allowing himself a sigh of relief as the king’s eyes began to focus again. “You’ll be their savior, King Sombra,” he bellowed, “but you must focus!” Slowly, Sombra’s face tightened and he snarled, gritting his teeth against the spell’s mental pressure. Clover stepped back as the king was lifted from the ground and he floated above the mirror-like marble floor. Ascending and descending at the same time, Clover thought, as he watched the king’s mirror image recede from him. A subtle change in Star Swirl’s tone brought Clover out of his thoughts, and he galloped over to the queen. She was shaking as she watched her husband rise above the ground, caught in the throes of Star Swirl’s magic. Her eyes streaming, she looked down to where Clover stood miserably. “Something’s wrong, isn’t it?!” she screamed at him. “Look at him! Something’s going wrong! You said he’d be safe!” “No!” Clover said, attempting a smile. It felt ghastly. “Everything is going just as Star Swirl said it would. It’s all under control. Just remember what Star Swirl said." The queen took a few steadying breaths, trying to look anywhere but at her floating husband. “You need to think of your love for the king, and only that.” “Now?” the queen said uncertainly. “Yes, now,” Clover said, doing his very best to radiate calm. “Your love will fortify the spell and protect the empire, but you must be steadfast. Think of everything that you’ve ever loved about your husband.” Queen Crystal closed her eyes, her face relaxing into a state of tranquility. She started briefly as her hooves lifted off the floor. “Focus, your highness,” Clover called out to her. “Remember your love!” Throwing her head back, Queen Chrystal allowed herself to be carried by the spell’s swirling winds and she rose high above the floor, and out of the range of Clover’s voice. Finally! he thought bitterly. I’ll gag if I try to say another word! Star Swirl thrust his hooves high overhead, tilting his head back and squeezing his eyes shut in concentration as he reined in the vast cosmic forces he’d summoned. His chanting soon became a command, and Clover shivered as the primal forces of magic ripped through the room. He could feel the air around him pulsing and bending, caught between otherworldly forces. Before him, Star Swirl seemed to writhe and shimmer as reality itself buckled under the spell’s pressure, and Clover’s stomach heaved. Having completed Star Swirl’s appointed tasks, Clover gave in to the nausea and vomited. Wiping his mouth with the back of a hoof, he let his eyes roll up to the figures floating above him. Delicate pink tendrils of translucent energy emanating from the queen were twisting through the air. Clover breath caught in his throat as they coiled like a single living thing, and then plunged into the king’s chest. Arching back, Sombra screamed, and the queen’s eyes snapped open. Clover gasped as glowing veins of green and black shot from the king, through the tendrils of the queen’s love, and into his bride. Queen Chrystal cried out, and the energy flowing from her snapped, dissolving away into the air. Suddenly the royal couple were both falling. “NO! Clover screamed at them. “You must do this!" Feeling panic rising inside him, he quickly looked to Star Swirl, who was choking and gasping his way through the ritual’s final moments, but he could see the sorcerer’s skin beginning to split from the effort of controlling the faltering spell. Star Swirl’s embroidered cape darkened as blood from dozens of wounds seeped into it. “Remember your promise!” he screamed at the royal couple. “Remember your love for the Empire and for each other! You can save them all! IF YOU’VE EVER LOVED YOUR HUSBAND, YOU MUST CONCENTRATE ON IT RIGHT NOW, OR YOU WILL LOSE EVERYTHING!” he bellowed. Even at this distance, he could clearly see the tears falling from the queen’s eyes as they streamed out behind her. To Clover, each one of them seemed like an accusation. I’m sorry, something whispered in Clover’s mind, and suddenly he was the one falling. Writhing on the floor, he gasped as darkness flooded his mind. Every wrong he’d committed, every moment of despair, every loss threatened to overwhelm him. Shaking, he managed catch Chrystal out of the corner of his eye. The twisting pink energy had burst from the queen once more, and now slammed into the her husband. Soon Sombra was screaming again as the pair ascended. The queen’s tears flowed freely now, but Clover could see that her jaw was set and the power between them was strong. “INCATUM FINALOS!” Star Swirl roared, and the twisting beams of energy flared. Clover was momentarily blinded. Squinting and blinking, he shielded his eyes with a hoof, and then gasped; Sombra was fading before his eyes. Clover could clearly see the wall behind him. In fact, the only part of the king that seemed substantial was his beating heart, surrounded by the queen’s writhing, green-and-black-laced tendrils of pink energy. Unable to look away, Clover traced those eldritch lines back to the horrified queen. Floating above him, she screamed as she watched her husband fade away. Clover vomited again as he watched her begin to blacken and shrivel. The spell’s sucking her dry! he thought. What have we done?! With a clinical detachment, Star Swirl watched as the last of the queen’s love fortified Sombra’s beating heart. Fishing a velvet bag from his supplies, the magician trotted to the circle that Sombra had once stood in and waited. As the pink aura faded from around the heart, it began to harden and cool, gleaming like polished crystal as it floated above him. As suddenly as it had begun, the spell ended, and both Chrystal and the heart dropped unceremoniously to the floor. Star Swirl neatly caught the falling heart, and Clover dove to catch the queen, but he was nowhere near close enough. He winced as she slammed into the floor with a sickening thud. For a moment, all was silent. Then Star Swirl tied the string at the bag’s mouth closed, and sat down heavily. “There,” he said wearily. “It’s done.”