Sombra and his team looked, confused, at Shining Armor's troops. They showed no signs of hostility, despite Sombra's team approaching. He knew they were within range of their ice spears, and his horn glowed with power as he prepared to unleash a powerful shield at a moment's notice. He briefly considered the possibility that they were trying to lull him into a false security before unleashing a powerful surprise attack, but dismissed it, as it did not follow the previous pattern of tactics they'd been displaying. His concern only grew as he moved even closer, and noticed that not a single one of them was wielding a weapon. He redirected his mana into a different spell, this one to test for magical contamination. He frowned as this one came back: Mind control, with parts cast with every one of the five classifications of magic. Only a true master over all types of magic could cast a spell such as this one.
Unless... A voice whispered in the back of Sombra's mind, but he shook his head. Winter was safely back in Calypsion. This couldn't possibly be related to her Staff.
Sombra looked into the distance, the blizzard the Windigos had whipped up was coming along nicely. It was the perfect escape plan, timed to hit the army just when he started to enter. Allowing for a slight time difference, as he'd been expecting more resistance, it was still right on track. In only a few minutes, it'd be here. Sombra lit up his horn with a tracking spell, and quickly located Twilight and Celestia. He moved quickly, signaling his party to follow. They appeared to be just as disturbed with the mind control as he was, all hesitating slightly before following him. He didn't blame them, anybody would fear the possibility of encountering such a powerful mage.
The voice in Sombra's head grew more insistent and, on a hunch, he stopped and tested another signature. His eyes widened as his suspicions were proved correct: Winter was here, with Twilight and Celestia, but there was something wrong. Her signature seemed subdued, lacking of power. He redoubled his pace. A few snowflakes from the coming storm landed on his coat, and he gasped, not from the cold but from shock: Winter's signature had faded completely now. He turned the corner and found Twilight and Celestia, sobbing, holding several very familiar bones.
"What happened here? What did this to Winter?" Sombra asked, pawing around in the snow near them. "More importantly, where is her Phylactery?"
"It's gone," Twilight whispered tearfully. "She's gone."
Sombra's heart caught in his throat. "Gone..." he whispered. "Celestia, have you checked the Graveyard yet?"
Celestia shook her head. "I can't feel her. She's not there. I failed..."
Sombra bared his teeth. "Kill me! Now! There are spells that can muffle her presence there, I know it. But, if I'm actually there, they don't work."
Twilight shivered, and shook her head, trembling. "I just watched a filly, who was my friend, die before my eyes. I'm not going to watch you go too!" Twilight looked him in the eyes, fiercely. "I won't do it."
"There's a better way. I haven't tried yet, but if you want any chance of hope..." Celestia whispered.
"What is it?" Twilight and Sombra asked simultaneously.
"Ask Starswirl if he's seen her. If she's there, he'll have seen her. Even if... Even if her phylactery was destroyed, he'll know where to find her."
Sombra lit his horn. "Together?" he asked.
"Together," Celestia and Twilight replied in unison, lighting their horns as well. With a flash of light, the three appeared in the Astral Plane.
"Starswirl!" Sombra called out. "We need you!"
"You call me, and here I am," Starswirl boomed.
"Do you know where Winter is?" Twilight asked, worriedly.
"I do not. I am afraid I have grossly underestimated the ability of the Staff of Averum Aquaestinitum. Winter threw her Phylactery to the ground, and wished for something from the staff. Since that moment, I have been unable to locate her. However, when her soul left her body, I was able to detect her bones."
"Does that mean..." Celestia whispered hollowly.
"My staff may have been able to negate the Lich's Curse." Starswirl laughed darkly. "And to think I declared it a failure and literally threw it away! That staff is possibly the most magical artifact Equestria has ever seen, or will ever see."
"She's gone..." Sombra said. "I... She was my first 'pony' friend since my return. I was going to be able to spend my lonely, dark eternity with her. A friend... Gone..." Sombra's face twisted into a snarl. "If only I'd tried harder! I could have helped her... I could have stopped this, I'm sure..."
Sombra, Celestia, and Twilight grieved together, for their lost friend, Winter Aurora.
Winter groaned. "Where am I?" she muttered angrily, opening her eyes. "I thought... I thought..." Winter's eyes went wide with shock as she realized. "Sweet Celestia... I was going to-!"
"Don't worry. You're safe now," a voice echoed gently around her, soothing her with its softness. Winter closed her eyes and took a deep breath, enjoying the sensation of having a body once more.
"Who are you?" Winter asked. "Where am I?"
"I am Averum Aquaestinium," the voice spoke. "You are currently within your own pocket dimension."
"But... That's not possible!" Winter spoke, confused. "That wouldn't work... Wait a minute, my staff isn't alive. You can't be an inanimate object!" Winter said accusatively.
"I once was inanimate, but over time, the power the Sun fed me gave me something more. As a sister cried over her banished sister, a small piece of her soul fell away, and landed within me. I became somewhat conscious, and over time, I learned what my body was designed to do, and what it was capable of. After spending several centuries examining myself, I eventually managed to correct the flaws in my creation. However, while conscious, I was not sapient. When I met you, and you cried out in agony as you began to die, I recognized only the basest of meaning, and corrected what I saw as the issue: I made you immortal. When I bonded your Phylactery, a shard of your soul remained with me, setting me on the path to sapience. As you journeyed, I have come to learn more and more about what life truly means. That is why I saved you, when you were about to destroy yourself. I have learned how precious it is, and I will not allow it to be destroyed meaninglessly if I can help it."
"Why did you affect Ice Storm, then?" Winter asked accusingly.
"She was suffering of an unnoticed malady that would have killed her. I saved her life."
"What about the mind control?"
"It was the easiest way to save everybody in danger. If I had helped you in some other way, there would have been casualties."
The space flickered around her, and Winter looked from left to right in fear. "What was that?"
"I am running out of energy. The miracles I have performed have been very draining," two balls of light appeared in front of Winter. One appeared to be larger than the Crystal Empire, another only the size of a small filly. "The large ball represents the amount of energy I had before I met you. The small ball represents the energy I now possess."
Winter gasped. "That's so small! Will you be alright?"
"I will be fine. However, I may not be able to perform any large acts of magic for a long time. Keeping this self-inclusive pocket dimension stable is taking so much of my energy. I have just enough energy to enact one more gift to you, Winter. With this last boon... Make everything right."
Pain arched through Winter's eyes, and she gasped, closing them. She felt the peculiar sensation of flying without using her wings, and felt cold air around her. She impacted the snow with a crunch. She opened her eyes with a gasp, smiling as she gazed at the sky and realized that she was in the real world again, with a real body. She put a hoof to her neck, and felt the familiar and comforting weight of her Phylactery. She levitated it off herself and twirled it in a circle with her magic before frowning. What was that strange feeling on her forehead? She summoned a piece of reflective ice, and immediately dropped it with a gasp. A shortened version of the Staff of Averum Aquaestinium was attached to her forehead, glowing like a unicorn's horn as she levitated her Phylactery back to her neck.