//------------------------------// // Chapter 1: Neue Anfänge // Story: Fight for Equestria // by Sakura //------------------------------// Cold morning sunlight pierced through the small cave hidden in the Crystal Mountains. The light bounced off the multicolor walls, creating a spectacular display of soft colors on the floor and the black shape hidden in the shallow back of the cave. Sirocco lifted her head to greet the morning sky, taking in a deep breath of the cold mountain air. The pegasus slowly stood up and stretched her muscles, which had stiffened up during the night. Flipping her black and cyan forelock out of her right eye, Sirocco left the safety of the small cave, ventured out into the powdery snow, and began her journey once again. Sirocco wasn’t truly sure what the true purpose of pointlessly walking in the mountains was. She hadn’t seen another pony in days…or was it weeks? Had a month passed already? Shaking her head, the black pegasus threw the thoughts of time out of her mind. She still felt confident that there were other ponies out here that had escaped the invasion. The feeling still existed, but it faded with each day that passed. The pegasus decided to take a small break. Sitting on a large rock, she gazed upon the mountains. The sun was still rising, casting its bright rays on the colorful crystal formations that jutted out of the side of the mountain rocks. The light then bounced off the crystals, creating beautiful rays of color that seemed to cover the whole mountainside. The old school textbooks weren’t lying. The Crystal Mountains were truly a sight to see in the stillness of the morning. Once the sun had completely risen, Sirocco stood up, stretched her wings, and took off into the cloudless blue sky. She looked down, scanning the snowy landscape below. Rocks broke the stark white with specks of chocolate brown and earl grey, like a kind of cookie. After what seemed like a few miles, a flash of dark blue flashed across the black pegasus’ eye. She paused, taking a moment to look down. A small speck of blue moved on the ground. Looking closer, Sirocco could see another shape with it, but this one was white with black stripes. Descending slightly, the pegasus could see that they were ponies. Sirocco felt a small rush of adrenaline. This was her first time seeing other ponies since the invasion of Equestria. Excitement filled her chest, and she smiled for the first time in weeks. She lowered herself down the the snow, landed, and trotted as best she could to meet them. When Sirocco drew closer, she could clearly see that the blue pony was a pegasus with a white mane, tail, and main flight feathers. Her cutie mark was three wolves howling, though only one was a full body profile facing towards her tail. The other two were heads, facing in opposite directions. The other pony, not much to Sirocco’s surprise, was a zebra. She had the normal coat and mane pattern of black and white, as well as bright blue eyes. Trotting through the snow, Sirocco slowed her pace as she came close enough to better see the two companions. The black pegasus noticed the blue pegasus had a bandage around her right wing, and looked extremely tired. The zebra appeared to be carrying brown saddlebags and helping the pegasus. Sirocco approached the two ponies. The pegasus flinched back, but the zebra stepped forward in a defensive stance, her eyes locked on Sirocco, who stopped abruptly and said the first thing that came to her mind- “So, uh….I take it you’re from Equestria too?” The zebra relaxed upon hearing the question, closing her eyes and nodding her head yes. She took a step forward, took a breath, and spoke. “Yes, we are from Equestria. My name is Reneighah, and this is Whitewolf Stormrunner,” she said, motioning towards the pegasus, who nodded. “We escaped during the invasion through the Everfree, then came around the Rambling Rock Ruins towards the Crystal Mountains. And who are you?” “Me? I’m Sirocco. I came here when….whatever those things are….invaded. I don’t even know how long I’ve been out here. You guys are the first ponies I’ve seen for a significant amount of time.” To Sirocco’s surprise, Wolf spoke up first. “You are the first pony we’ve seen, too.” Reneighah nodded. “We assume there are more who have escaped, but they must be in hiding. The only other ponies we have seen have been in the cities and towns. I propose we search for more escapees and band together.” As both Wolf and Sirocco nodded in agreement, a sharp wind began to blow. Dark clouds began to form overhead, and flecks of snow began to fall. “Come with me.” Sirocco said, turning around. “I found a cave to stay in not far away. We can talk there. I know we just met a few minutes ago, but I’ll trust you if you trust me, okay?” “We will” Renieghah said, while Wolf nodded. The zebra stepped back to be at an even pace with the blue pegasus, who slightly leaned on her shoulder for support. Sirocco turned around and saw the two ponies struggling to walk through the snow. Falling back a bit, the black mare took her place on the other side of Wolf, helping her through the white snow. Sirocco watched as Reneighah dropped her saddlebags in the cave floor. The three ponies had finally reached the cave after what seemed like an eternity in the storm, which had gotten considerably worse. Snow was blowing in all directions, and the wind howled with it. “So now that we’re here, how will we find other escapees? We can devise a plan while the storm keeps blowing.” Wolf said, lying down at the back of the crystal cave. Reneighah sat down next to the blue pegasus, across from Sirocco. “Well, I’m sure you both know that all species of ponies have their own magic, correct?” the zebra said, looking to both pegs, who nodded. Reneighah continued. “Ponies, as well as other life forms, have magic, though it is only clearly visible through unicorns. I think we can use this magic to find other escapees.” Both Whitewolf and Sirocco had confused looks at the mention of the last sentence the zebra had said. Wolf opened her mouth to say something, but Reneighah held up her hoof. “I know it sounds weird, but with the supplies I have, I think I can make it work.” She continued, pointing to her saddlebags, which had herbs, bowls, and mixers spilling out of it. “I can make a brew that will allow us to sense the magic of other ponies. If there are others in close enough proximity, we will find them. I don’t know how long the effect will last, but it’s worth a shot. We’ll have to wait until the storm is over, but that will give me time to make the potion.” The storm lasted long into the night. The howling wind made it difficult to sleep, but the two pegasi still somehow managed to doze off, followed later by the zebra when the potion was done and sealed in a jar. By morning, the air was peacefully quiet. The sun’s ray pierced the cave floor like they always did, lighting it up with bright colors. Sirocco yawned, pulling herself up from her resting place on the floor. Rubbing her eyes with her hoof, she saw that Reneighah and Wolf were already awake, putting the finishing touches on the potion. The zebra turned and motioned for the black pegasus to come over by the crystal rock that was being used as a makeshift table. Once Sirocco had sat down at the table, Reneighah spoke. “This potion will let you track the magic of another living creature. When you are close to a life form, you will feel a general tug in its direction. The stronger the tug, the larger the life form is. It only lasts about three hours max, so we must hurry. We’ll spread out towards Neighagra Falls and the Crystal Empire, but we can’t get to close to civilization. Wolf, I’ll go with you. We’ll search the ground. Sirocco, you’ll search the air. We’ll meet back here with any escapees we find. Are you two ready?” Both ponies nodded. Reneighah pulled the cork out of the jar, took a sip, and passed it to the pegasi. Wolf drink her share, then Sirocco took the remaining amount. The liquid felt warm going down her throat, a welcome change from the surrounding cold. She passed he jar back to the zebra, who placed it back in the saddlebags. “The three hours start now. Let’s go!” The sky was relatively clear, save for a few clouds dotting the blue atmosphere. It had been around thirty minutes since Sirocco had left the cave in search of other ponies. In all honesty, she was getting kinda bored. The scenery looked the same everywhere, it was still super cold, and the only colors that crossed her vision were white, brown, and the occasional multicolor crystal. The pegasus was beginning to think this was a lost cause when she suddenly felt a small tug. Hovering in the air, Sirocco tried to pinpoint the direction of the tugging. She turned in every possible direction, until finally settling on going right, where the tug felt the strongest. Once she felt that her course was set, Sirocco sped off over the horizon, until the tugging began pointing downward. Descending, the pegasus landed on a snowy slope, scanning the landscape for even the slightest change in color. She soon found one. A small amount of purple broke the stark white of the mountains. At a brief glance, one could mistake it for another crystal. Upon looking closer, however, Sirocco discovered that it was in fact a light purple pegasus pony, half buried in the snow. Sirocco trotted as best she could in the knee-high snow towards the purple shape. It appeared to be sleeping, though how it managed that was a mystery. When the black pegasus was close enough, Sirocco reached out a hoof and poked the pony. When the shape didn’t move, it occurred to Sirocco that she was probably outside last night during the blizzard. Her eyes widened in realization, knowing that she had to act quickly. She assumed the pony was still alive, since Sirocco found her from her magical energy. It was basic knowledge that magic stopped flowing after a life form’s death. The pony was alive, but only just. Brushing the snow off the pony, it was revealed that it was a light purple pegasus mare with a dark purple mane with blue stripes. Her cutie mark was a microphone with two music notes behind it. Not sure of what to do, Sirocco franticly looked around the landscape, spotting a small cluster of large rocks, forming a small little shelter area. Straining to lift up the unconscious pegasus, Sirocco moved her towards the rock pile. She would place the pegasus there, until she had time to came back for her. The rock pile looked sturdy enough, anyway, and would provide some protection from the snow. While she was moving the pegasus, Sirocco heard a soft plop, like something had fallen. Looking down, she saw a small wooden doll pony lying in the snow. Quickly moving the pegasus under the rocks and finding a comfortable spot for her, the black mare went over to pick up the doll and return it to the pegasus, as it must have been hers. Looking over the doll, it resembled a brown earth pony mare with long blond mane. The painted on cutie mark was a simplistic eye outline. Sirocco found it strange that the purple mare went through the trouble of bringing this thing, but it probably had something of importance to her. She shrugged and was about to place the doll back with the pegasus when she heard a small voice. “I don’t belong to her.” Sirocco jumped upon hearing the words, as she was sure no pony else was around, and it couldn’t have come from the pegasus. That would mean that the voice somehow came from the doll. That thought was all Sirocco needed to flinch back on drop the doll on the ground. It landed with a soft thud on the frozen earth, landing on its side. After hearing nothing for a few minutes, Sirocco began to think it was her mind playing tricks on her and moved to pick up the doll. She was about to lift it off the ground when the heard the voice again, though softer this time. “Sorry for scaring you. I know this can be a little unsettling, but you would have found out sooner or later. Can you put me down please?” The pegasus obliged, not fully sure of what she was doing. Was this doll really talking to her? Glancing down at the doll, she saw that it was in the process of standing up on its feet. Finding balanced, the doll looked up into Sirocco’s eyes, and spoke once again. “My name is Figureen, and yes, I’m a doll. I hitched a ride with this pony, who brought us here, to the Crystal Mountains.” She looked over the sleeping mare. “I do hope she wakes up soon, she’s really quite sweet…” Sirocco shook her head, trying to figure out what to say. “So you’re a…living doll?” Figureen nodded, looking back at the black pegasus. “Yes. Strange, I know, but you’ll get used to me, I hope, should you choose to stay here.” “Stay here? I would, but I can’t…I’m trying to search for other escapees right now, but I’ll come back, I promise.” The doll nodded again, and turned towards the purple pegasus. “I’ll stay with her, in case she wakes up or anything else happens. Just don’t forget to came back for us.” Sirocco turned and exited the cave. “I will,” she said, before taking to the skies once again. Some time passed before the pegasus felt another tug. She was still in the mountains, but based on her rather limited knowledge of geography, Sirocco guessed she was getting close to Neighagra Falls. This time, the tug turned her left before descending to the ground. Landing, Sirocco again studied the landscape for a sign that a pony was there. A quick flash of silver crossed the mare’s eyes before hearing the tussle of a few plants behind her. She looked back, seeing nothing. Upon returning her head back around forward, she was met by the long slender end of a unicorn horn inches from her face. Stepping back to see who was in front of her, Sirocco saw an alicorn mare with a silky silver coat and flowing golden curly mane. Her cutie mark resembled a starburst. Bronze eyes showed anger when Sirocco made eye contact with the pony. After a few minutes a unnerving silence, the alicorn spoke first. “You’re not one of them, are you?” Sirocco rapidly shook her head no. “If you mean those water horses, then no, I’m not! I’m just a regular Equestrian!” The silver coated mare held her position for a few minutes, then slowly lifter her horn away. “My apologies, then. From a distance I thought you might have been a Kelpie.” Confusion spread across the black pegasus. “A Kelpie? You mean those black horses?” The alicorn nodded. “I’m not one hundred percent sure, but I think that’s what they were. Almost everything adds up to the description of the species.” She paused. “I’m Maryana, by the way. I used to live in Canterlot Castle learning from Princess Celestia and Princess Luna…until they came.” Her bronze eyes moved downward to glance at the hard earth. The next thing she said came out soft and whispery. “I don’t even know if the Princesses are still alive…..” “I’m sure they are! The sun and moon are still on their regular cycles, so Celestia and Luna must be alive!” To Sirocco’s surprise, tears started to fall from Maryana’s eyes, and her voice started to shake. “That does not mean they are alive. The cycles of the sun and moon don’t tell you that. Celestia once told me that even if her and Luna were to ever die, they would cast an eternal spell to keep the celestial bodies in order.” She rubber her eyes with her hoof. “Sorry…I’m just so scared…I didn’t wish for this to happen.” A black wing wrapped itself around the sobbing silver alicorn. “None of us did.” Sirocco said, shedding a few tears of her own. “None of us wanted it, but that’s how it ended up. But we’ll fix it, I promise. Some new friends and I are gathered farther up in the mountains. We don’t know what exactly we’re going to do, but we will try our best to take our home back. Would you like to come join us?” She whispered, pulling away from Maryana. “I would like that. I’ll do anything to make Equestria the way it once was, no matter what the cost.” Maryana responded, forcing herself to look up and smile. “Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s go.” Silver wings spread as she took off from the ground, hovering a few feet above the black mare, who did the same. “Alright, but I have to make a quick stop for some pony else. I found her and something else out in the snow, so I’m going back for them.” Maryana gave a small solute. “Lead on, soldier.” Finding the rock pile took a while, but the two ponies finally managed to find it. Landing outside the entrance, Sirocco cautiously entered while Maryana waited outside. Expecting to see just sleeping pegasus and doll pony, it shocked Sirocco to not only see the pegasus awake, but a brown wolf laying down next to her. Recovering from what she just walked into, Sirocco instantly became defensive until the purple mare spoke to her. “It’s okay! I know who you are. Figureen told me what happened.” She said, her voice sounding sweet and melodic. Her hoof moved to a spot on the ground where the wooden doll sat, watching intently. The mare spoke again, this time pointing to the wolf, who had a curious expression on his face. “This is Chaz. Figureen said he wandered into the cave shortly after you left. She was wary of him at first, but when laid down next to me to warm me up, she figured it was okay to trust him. I was scared when I woke up and first saw him, but he’s actually a real sweetheart.” She smiled. “I’m glad you found me. Now if Figurine is right, I hear your looking for other escapees?” Sirocco nodded. “Yes, but I’m heading back to the home cave now. Can you fly? My companion or I will carry Chaz and Figureen. By the way, what’s your name? I don’t think you said what it was.” “Oh, my name is Melody. I can fly, and I’ll carry Figureen.” Melody responded, picking up the doll pony, who then climbed onto her back and held onto her mane. “You can get up now, Chaz.” Chaz the wolf stood up and moved over to where the other ponies were standing. “I’m ready to go!” he said, smiling. “I’ll carry you, Chaz.” Sirocco said, before turning around and exiting the cave with the rest of the company to meet Maryana waiting outside, who trotted forward to meet them. “I’m Maryana. Sirocco told me about you guys,” the alicorn said, extending a hoof, which Melody shook. “I’m Melody. Nice to meet you!” she said, before turning to the black pegasus, who had a wolf currently on her back. “Are we ready to go?” “Yep!” Sirocco responded, spreading her wings and taking off into the cerulean sky, the others following suit a few seconds later. Once the pegasi had met up in the air, they turned and headed towards the crystal cave. Upon landing, Sirocco noticed that Reneighah and Wolf had already returned and were waiting outside the cave to welcome the newcomers. They waved when they saw the party land and approach the cave. Sirocco waved back, and motioned for the others to follow her. “Everyone, this is Reneighah, and this is Whitewolf Stormrunner.” she said, pointing to the two ponies. “Reneighah and Wolf, this is Maryana, Melody, Figureen, and Chaz.” Sirocco switched hooves and pointed to the new refugees. The zebra stepped forward. “Welcome, everyone. We are glad you had the chance to escape Equestria, and have here to join us. We too have just returned from a search party looking for other ponies, who are currently inside the cave. Please, come inside.” The ponies, doll, and wolf made their way into the cave, where four other ponies turned their heads to look at the newcomers. Reneighah cleared her throat. “Everyone, this is Sirocco, Maryana, Melody, Figureen, and Chaz.” the zaba announced, motioning to the respecting pony and wolf. “And you guys, this is Sea Breeze, Fang, Digit Blaze, and Nerdz.” Sirocco looked over the four ponies. Sea Breeze was an aquamarine pegasus mare with a light blue mane and purple eyes. Sirocco waved, and Sea Breeze waved back. Sitting just to the right of and talking to Sea Breeze was Nerdz, who had a pink coat with small purple flea bits specking the pink. Her purple mane was pulled back in a dark pink headband. She didn’t appear to have a cutie mark, but then again, she did seem a lot younger than the other ponies. To Sirocco’s suprise, Digit Blaze was a kirin, or dracony, as some ponies liked to say which was a cross between a pony and a dragon. His mother or father had to be a unicorn, because a slender unicorn’s horn sat on his head. His coat was a brilliant amber, and his blue eyes sparkled in the dying sunlight. Fang was a white unicorn stallion, making conversation with Blaze. A short dark blue mane and tail fell loosely around him, while his brown eyes were focused in the kirin next to him. His cutie mark was a horseshoe with blue flames surrounding it. Reneighah turned back to Sirocco. “We actually have a fifth one coming, but she said she had some things to do before she joined us. Her name is Night Rain, and she said she’d arrive sometime late tonight. I’ll stay up to wait for her. In the meantime, we’re all settled in for he night, and it looks like your new friends are getting acquainted nicely. Well, if that’s everything, you’d better get some sleep. You’ll need it for tomorrow, anyway.” And with that, the zebra sat at the mouth of the cave to wait for the last pony. After staying up and bit longer to talk with some of there other new ponies, everyone, including Sirocco, found a spot on the ground and curled up to go to sleep. Most every pony slept by themselves, but Sirocco couldn’t help but notice that Melody and Chaz where laying next to each other, just like when she had found them earlier. “One day, we’ll have our own beds again,” the pegasus thought as she drifted off to sleep. “Someday.”