//------------------------------// // Chapter 84: Into the Labyrinth // Story: The Equine Scrolls: SkyFiM // by FireOfTheNorth //------------------------------// Chapter LXXXIV: Into the Labyrinth “When those Elements are ignited by the . . . the spark, that resides in the heart of us all, it creates the sixth element; the element of . . . magic!” That night was one of the most enjoyable of my life, as we talked until we passed out from exhaustion. The dawn came soon, waking us and calling us to return to civilization. No Minotaurs appeared to have left Bthardamz yet. A few bronze pipes poked out of the ground near our camp, and as dawn came, spurts of green fire began to leave and enter them, shooting through the air. “What are these things?” Steadfast asked as one shot out right next to him. “The Minotauran Inferno Communication System,” Mystic said, “With it, they can send a scroll across the Northlands in just a few minutes instead of days. They’re communicating, getting ready to move.” “We have some time before they do,” I said, shouldering my saddlebags, “That note in Underkeep said they had to allow a full day without the Council responding before they could take action alone.” “But what if the Council replies?” Steadfast asked. “They won’t,” I said firmly, “I’m pretty sure the Council was in Morrowhinny, maybe even on the slopes of Red Mountain, and it no longer exists.” “We’ve got till this evening, then,” Steadfast said. “Right,” I said, “That’s all the time we’ve got to warn everypony. Let’s start with Jarl Stormcloud. He needs to know that his land will soon be overrun with enemies from within.” ◊◊◊ ◊◊◊ ◊◊◊ “Minotaurs, you say?” Stormcloud asked when we told him. “That’s right,” I said, “They were never really gone, they just transported themselves forward in time so that their invasion would come as a surprise. They’re not moving yet, but by this evening every Minotauran ruin in Horizon will release Minotaur soldiers across the land.” “As much as I’d love to send my troops to check out every Minotauran ruin in Horizon, I’m afraid I can’t,” Stormcloud replied sarcastically, “I have bigger problems to worry about. The thrice-accursed Dominion has taken Seclusion, and if that wasn’t bad enough, the Imperial Legion is pouring through the Pale Pass, attacking Splitten as we speak.” We hadn’t been gone that long, and already the war was heating up. If all three armies now fought for Horizon, the situation was decaying indeed. “The Pegasari Air Fleet is preparing to move, sending advance ships over Marethal toward Whitetrot,” Stormcloud continued, “Also, Griffinium’s been spotted entering Horizon from the west. The only consolation is that the pegasi and the Griffins might end up tearing each other apart. I’ll be sending troops in the morning to meet them here, where the Griffin city and the Pegasari Air Fleet are set to meet. Hopefully we can take them by surprise.” “Jarl, what’s that mark there mean?” I asked, gesturing to the spot Stormcloud had indicated the fleets would meet at. “That?” he said, “That’s the ancient earth pony city of Labyrinthian.” ◊◊◊ ◊◊◊ ◊◊◊ We set out with the Stormcloud troops the next morning, which just happened to be headed right where we wanted to go. Overnight, the southern reaches of Hjaaltrot had turned into a battlefield. The massive flying mountain that was Griffinium floated in the sky, surrounded by Griffin defenders. The Pegasari Air Fleet surrounded it, pounding away at every part of the city. This time the Dominion had pulled out all the stops, and had sent every airship they had. Nearly twenty of the flying ships filled the skies. Beneath all the fighting was a massive maze of ruins that had once been a grand city. It was built in typical ancient earth pony style, and I was happy to see it was also built in the style of the Dragon Priests. Even from a great distance, I could tell that this was our destination; this was Labyrinthian. Pegasari soldiers flew down from their ships as we approached, and we broke away from the Stormcloud army. The gates of Labyrinthian were in sight when the flying soldiers rained down on us as well. Mystic and I shot lightning up at them as we galloped, striking some out of the sky before they reached us. We suddenly stopped right before the gates as the crushing sensation of magic hit us. This was different than all the other times we’d approached Dragon Priest lairs; it was far stronger. The magic was inside my head, chipping away at my sanity. Mystic managed to collect her thoughts long enough to cast her magic blocking spell, but it only made the pressure bearable; it didn’t erase it entirely. Pegasari troops swooped down at us as we recovered, but they were soon hit with the crippling effects as well, falling to the ground. I drew Dawnbreaker and charged them, swinging toward a pegasus with a war axe. She blocked my strike with her weapon, and I dragged my blade down hers, slicing through her throat. <<>> I Shouted, throwing the majority of the soldiers away from us. I blasted flames at another of the pegasi as she tried to attack me. She kept her distance, falling to Mephalda’s arrows instead. I cut off my flame spell and blocked with Dawnbreaker as a Pegasari soldier with a battleaxe swung at me. The pegasus swung his blade down at me, locking it over my Draconequus sword, and forced me back. Steadfast crushed the helmet of another pegasus before turning toward the one fighting me. As he tried to smash him, the Pegasari soldier spun his battleaxe around, knocking Dawnbreaker to the ground and blocking Steadfast’s warhammer. As I tried to pick Dawnbreaker up, he stepped on the blade, but I already had the Blade of Hoofingar out and stabbed it into his side, cutting through his armor and into his heart. I swung both my swords around at one of the pegasi trying to get through Mystic’s ward. She saw me out of the corner of her eye, and brought her greatsword around to block. As I kept Dawnbreaker pressing down on her sword, I hooked my ebony blade under it and into her chest armor. I ducked as another Pegasari soldier swung a mace at my head. As she tried to do it again, I blocked her with Dawnbreaker. I spun my blade around, throwing the blunt weapon from her grasp. She jumped back as I swung my ebony sword at her, using her wings to help her. I shot a blast of lightning into her chest, dropping her to the ground, and stabbed my sword through her back. The rest of the Pegasari soldiers fled, not finding us worth the trouble. Or, maybe they were flying off to get reinforcements. It didn’t matter either way. If they returned, we’d no longer be here. Cleaning my blades, I turned around and pushed open the surprisingly still intact gates to Labyrinthian. It was odd to see an entire Draugr town built on the surface instead of deep underground for a change. No Draugr townsponies walked around, however. Labyrinthian had been explored before, at least on the surface, and any ponies that hadn’t been wielding weapons had been easily killed. However, other than the complete lack of anything going on around us, it was a bit like walking through Windhorn. They were probably built around the same time, in fact. The magical pressure on my mind at the base of my horn continued as we trotted through the massive ruin. The throbbing was incessant and distracting, almost causing me to miss seeing opposition ahead. A few Blackwing agents stood in the street, keeping watch for their fellows who were rooting through the nearby buildings. Mephalda fit an arrow to her bow and let the shaft fly, striking one of the Blackwings in the head and sending her tumbling through the street. The rest turned toward us, drawing their weapons. Mystic and I blasted lightning at the pegasi agents as we ran to close the distance with them. I drew Dawnbreaker, slashing at a Blackwing with a mace. She ducked under my blade and swung her weapon in toward my foreleg. The mace hit my foreleg, glancing off the gauntlet and twisting my hoof out of place. I hobbled away, keeping my foreleg raised as the mare swung the mace at me again. I brought Dawnbreaker up to block, angling it so that her blunt weapon slid off. As she swung at me again, I blocked with my Changeling war axe, hooking the blade around her weapon and holding it in place. Dawnbreaker shot forward, piercing her armor and sliding into her chest. I had no time to heal myself as a Blackwing with a warhammer jumped out at me from a nearby building. I blocked with both my weapons, holding the mare off. She pulled her hammer back and swung it back down at me. I jumped to the side, swinging Dawnbreaker through her neck as I did so. I crouched behind a stone for a moment and twisted my foreleg back into position before casting a healing spell on it. Once it was back in the correct position, I gave it a test, putting my weight on it. When it held, I advanced around the boulder, searching for more Blackwings. One came at me from above, swinging twin blades in her forelegs, and I shot flames up at her, roasting the feathers off her wings. As she crashed to the ground, she shot what was left of the charred blades from her wings at me. She stood on her hindlegs and lunged for me, swinging her swords around at my neck. <> I Shouted, and her blades went flying. I blasted her with a paralysis spell as she swung a hoof at me, and stabbed Dawnbreaker through her chest to finish her off. Another Blackwing flapped toward me, but Steadfast struck him while he was still in the air, knocking him to the ground in front of me. With my Changeling war axe I batted away the sword he swung at me and swung Dawnbreaker through his neck, taking his head off. With the Blackwings dealt with, we continued to the Draugr city, keeping our eyes out for anypony else who wished to attack from above. A great shadow covered Labyrinthian, cast by Griffinium, which hovered above it. So far, the Griffins were holding the Pegasari off, and even striking out at some of their ships, but the pegasi were beginning to make strikes in toward the flying city. It didn’t help that their airships constantly pounded Griffinium both above and beneath with their cannons. Chunks of stone were constantly being blown off the city, and they were falling down below, demolishing Labyrinthian beyond what time had done to it. As the battle between pegasi and Griffins raged overhead, bodies were also a common sight to see raining down on the Draugr city. A large keep dominated the center of the city, the streets around it ringed with stone arches. If we were going to find our Dragon Priest, it would be in there. As we approached the arches, a few Draugr soldiers emerged, looking up at the conflict above them. One of them noticed the four of us galloping down the street at them, and motioned to its comrades that they were about to come under attack. Dawnbreaker flew swiftly through the air, lopping off the head of one of the Draugr before it could even draw its weapon. The next soldier I encountered was prepared, a sword ready to block my swings. I brought Dawnbreaker down as hard as I could, causing the Draugr’s sword to jerk back and dig into its shoulder. The zombie surprised me, striking out with its forehooves and pushing me back. I brought Dawnbreaker up to block as it swung down at my head. I forced the Draugr’s sword back, staggering it before I swung my Draconequus sword around at its forelegs. My blade sliced right through the rotten flesh, taking the zombie’s leg off entirely. Undeterred, it wobbled a bit but still managed to swing its sword around at my neck. I swung Dawnbreaker back around, knocking the blade aside, so that it flew over my head instead. The Draugr swung down at my back, sliding its blade across my armor and doing no real damage, and I stabbed Dawnbreaker through the zombie’s neck. <<>> I Shouted, freezing two of the Draugr solid. I darted past them, slicing my Draconequus sword through their frozen bodies. A Draugr with a pike stopped me as I tried to slash through its head. I slid by sword along the staff until I caught it under the blade, and threw the zombie’s weapon away. My Draconequus blade swung around, sinking into the zombie’s neck. A roar came from down the street, and I turned to see a snow manticore charging toward us. Apparently, Labyrinthian had been deserted for so long that wild animals were beginning to take over the place. There was no time to fight the manticore and the Draugr at the same time, so I employed one of my lesser used Shouts. I Shouted, and the manticore immediately came to heel. With the monster now obedient to me, it went rampaging through the Draugr, stabbing them through with its stinger and ripping them apart with its claws and teeth. As the last of the Draugr was torn to shreds, the manticore padded up to me, giving me an affectionate lick. Shaking the slobber from my armor, I sent the manticore off to go pursue some Blackwings that had landed in the distance, and tried to put as much distance between myself and the creature as possible before my Shout wore off. “Oh no,” I said as the four of us reached the top of the stairs to the keep and looked back over the city. In the distance, I could see that the Stormclouds and Pegasari were fighting each other. Now a new force was joining them from both the east and the west. The Minotaurs’ armor glinted in the sunlight, as did the polished flesh of the automatons they’d brought along to help them. There were now four factions on the field around Labyrinthian. “We can worry about the Minotaurs later,” Steadfast said, “We’ve got to get that last Element before things get too crazy. I nodded my agreement and turned away from the land battle. I looked up as we neared the gates to the keep. Directly above us, Griffinium floated in the air, taking a severe beating from the Pegasari Air Fleet. My eyes dropped back down to our objective, and soaked in the words printed above the grand gates. TEMPLE OF MAREOKEI CHIEF PRIESTESS OF THE DRAGON CULT Before we trotted into the temple-keep, I noticed that there was an inscription beside the gates. One of the Draconic words glowed with blue fire, and I moved closer to soak up the knowledge of the dragons. My mind was filled with thoughts of sand and how it slipped through the hourglass, propelling time along. Memories began to come back to me, memories that had once belonged to the dragon locked away in Underkeep. I now knew how I could control the flow of time more carefully and for a longer duration. <> I Shouted, and everything around me came nearly to a stop. As time resumed, I trotted back over to the doors, and helped my friends to open them. Standing side by side, we stepped into Mareokei’s temple. The grand entryway was empty, the Draugr guarding it now lying dead outside. We strode forward, following the passages at the far end of the room deeper into the temple. It wasn’t until we entered another grand room near the center of the temple that we encountered more of the undead. Carvings of dragons adorned the walls, as well as one mare over and over: Mareokei. The Dragon Priest was waiting for us, but first we had to get through her guardians. The Draugr soldiers filling the room were none too happy to see us here. A Draugr wizard near the back of the room shouted orders while pulling out a staff. Blasts of lightning went flying over our heads as we entered the room, and arrows began to rain down on us from the Draugr archers. <> I Shouted, burning a path through the center of the room and charging in. I swung Dawnbreaker around toward a Draugr with a greatsword, striking its blade. As another of the zombies tried to jump me from behind, Mephalda took it out with a few well-placed shots from her bow. I slid my Draconequus sword down the zombie’s weapon, and swung it back around toward its forelegs. It jumped up on its hindlegs as I did so, and its attempt to swipe my head off went high. I stabbed Dawnbreaker forward, but the Draugr swung its blade around, knocking my sword to the side. As the Draugr swung its weapon up toward my chin, I jumped back, swinging Dawnbreaker around at my opponent’s neck at the same time. My blade sliced through the front of the zombie’s neck, injuring but not killing it. I swung Dawnbreaker back around into the zombie’s head, slicing through its helmet and dissecting its brain. As the Draugr died, I was suddenly hit by a blast of lightning. I went sliding across the floor, dropping my Draconequus blade. My limbs spasmed uncontrollably, and I wasn’t able to get up. Draugr hovered around me, one preparing a spear to thrust through my body. <<>> I managed to Shout out, taking on my ethereal form. The Draugr’s attacks failed, passing straight through my ghostly body. I rose, and galloped over to retrieve my Draconequus sword before my Shout wore off. As I picked my weapon off the ground, I watched Steadfast slam his warhammer down on the Draugr wizard’s staff. The magical item shattered, and magic went blasting out in all directions. Steadfast ducked to the ground and avoided the worst of it, but the Draugr was completely destroyed. As my body returned to its natural form, I swung Dawnbreaker around at the nearest Draugr, slicing through its armor and torso, killing it. I let out a blast of fire from my horn, scorching the Draugr around me. As a burning Draugr galloped out of the flames at me, I swung Dawnbreaker through its scorched body. A warhammer struck me on the back, knocking me to the ground. I tried to rotate on the ground and managed to redirect the Draugr’s next attack using my Draconequus blade. The warhammer struck near my head, and the zombie pushed my blade aside, raising the weapon to strike me again. As it swung the weapon down at my head, I pushed myself forward until I was under the Draugr, and stabbed my Draconequus sword up into its underbelly. As the Draugr died and dropped its weapon, Dawnbreaker’s hilt began to glow, the star burning brilliantly before destroying all the Draugr in the room. I blinked the afterimage from my eyes and brushed the magical ash off of me before standing up. We trotted over the fallen Draugr and their ashy remains, and stepped through the door at the far end of the hall. A long tunnel, walls were covered in carvings that depicted Mareokei’s life, led down to another great room. In it was a horde of treasure that nopony had been bold enough to loot before; chest stacked up to the ceiling and urns surrounded by piles of gold and jewels. Also, in the center of the room there sat a single, empty sarcophagus. Above it hovered a terrifying Draugr in flowing robes. Mareokei stared down at us, disdain in her eyes. The green fire that burned around her dragon amulet and her twin staffs also seemed to flow from the corners of her eyes. She fired both staffs at us simultaneously, one shooting fire, and the other shooting lightning. I dodged the twin blasts of magic and rolled across the temple floor. Mystic fired her own blast of lightning up at the Dragon Priest, striking her lightning staff. As Mareokei turned the staffs on her instead, Mephalda shot an arrow through the air, striking the staff and nearly knocking it from her magical grasp. As she swooped down at the ground, Steadfast swung his warhammer through the air and knocked the Dragon Priest’s lightning staff out of her grip. She swung her fire staff around, striking Steadfast and sending him flying, burning him with fire as she did so. He pulled out some healing potions and began to down them as Mystic stepped between him and Mareokei, putting up a ward to stop the flames. Mephalda shot arrows into Mareokei’s back as she tried to roast Mystic. I galloped toward the Dragon Priest, jumping off the sarcophagus in order to reach her. I grabbed her, wrapping my hooves around her neck and slashing Dawnbreaker at her. She blocked my swing with her staff, knocking my weapon to the side, and pointed the staff at me. I grabbed her dragon amulet as I jumped off, avoiding the blast of flame that came at me. She settled to the ground, but surprisingly her staff was still grasped in a magical grip. As she spun around, I could see that the bizarre black magic still burned in her eyes. I jumped behind her sarcophagus as she sent more flames shooting at me. Arrows sprouted from Mareokei’s neck as Mephalda fired at her. As the shafts began to pierce her rotting face as well, she turned toward my pegasus friend. Mephalda shot in, dodging the fire, and stuck both her Blackwing blades in the Dragon Priest’s chest before rolling over her. Mareokei stumbled a bit, but still lived, and shot more flames at Mephalda, catching her tail on fire. Ice spikes began to pelt the Dragon Priest, fired by Mystic covering Steadfast’s charge. Mareokei was taken unaware as my earth pony friend swung his warhammer into her side, crushing her ribs and smashing her organs. The Dragon Priest spun around at Steadfast, firing flames at him. Mystic put up a ward around him for protection, but left herself vulnerable, and was taken unaware as Mareokei pulled a shorter staff out from under her robes and shot ice at her. Mystic was soon covered in the frost, immobilized, her ward around Steadfast dropping and causing him to get burnt again. I Shouted, and galloped in toward Mareokei, Dawnbreaker and the Blade of Hoofingar swinging wildly through the air. My Draconequus sword struck first, knocking the ice staff to the ground. Mareokei held up her remaining weapon in front of her, blocking every swing I attempted at her. Eventually my Shout wore off, and the Dragon Priest swung her staff in a long arc, throwing the Blade of Hoofingar from my magic. Flames shot past my head as the Dragon Priest angled her staff down at me. I frantically tried to hold it back with my Draconequus sword. She continued to move the staff around, continuously shooting fire from the tip until it began glow red hot, and I struggled to counter. At last she broke through my defenses, and the flames went billowing down my side, scorching half of my body. <> I Shouted out through the pain, and time around me slowed nearly to a halt. I wanted so badly to heal my injured flesh, but I had to use this time for the greatest benefit, and I gritted my teeth against the pain while I swung Dawnbreaker around. My Draconequus sword knocked the Dragon Priest’s weapon from her grasp, and I swung the blade back, preparing for a final strike. Time snapped back to normal as I swung the sword through Mareokei’s neck, taking her head off. The fire in her eyes died as her head rolled across the floor and her body collapsed. Carefully, I pulled my armor off and surveyed the damage, before casting a healing spell on my burns. Painfully they healed, sealing back shut. I pulled the final Element of Harmony from around Marokei’s neck, a dull pink six-pointed star, before trotting over to help my friends with their own burns. Another inscription in Draconic waited on the back wall of Mareokei’s tomb, a single word calling out to me, and I obeyed, approaching the wall and soaking up the knowledge of dragons. I learned fear as the dragons knew it, true fear that dwelled in the hearts of both mortals and immortals. Soon the memories of the dragon I’d killed at Uragbashar surfaced in my mind, teaching me how I could use fear to my advantage, and place it within the hearts of others. I Shouted, careful not to hit any of my friends. “Already?” Mephalda asked as I turned around. I was puzzled about what she meant by her question for a moment before I looked down at my chest. From it was emanating a pink glow. I held up the final Element of Harmony, and saw that it was beginning to glow, drawing power from the other five also around my neck. With a brilliant flash, I suddenly left this world. ~◊~ ~◊ LUH ◊~ ~◊~ The entire world around me was tinted pink, my friends frozen in time and space. I waited for the explanation that was sure to come. ‘Magic,’ the voice spoke, right on time. ‘Honesty, Loyalty, Kindness, Generosity, and Laughter are all great virtues,’ the voice said, straying from the normal speech, ‘When all five of these great virtues work in harmony, amazing things can happen. But virtues like this are nothing if one has no friends to share them with. When the five great virtues are united in friendship, something amazing happens, and a more powerful Magic than anything else is formed.’ ‘This magic springs up in one’s heart the moment they realize how happy they are that they have someone to whom they can easily share their deepest secrets Honestly, when they realize that they will be Loyal to these friends no matter what, when they realize that the Kindness of and to their friends brings out the best in them, when they realize that giving Generously to their friends is better than receiving, and when they know they will always have somepony around who will lift their spirits and Laugh with them.’ ‘Mareokei knew what it meant to have friends, and she knew the magic that it could bring. But, she foolishly squandered this magic, always craving more. As her friends descended into madness and destruction around her, she followed, practicing the dark arts and selling her soul to the Ideal Masters. She became the most powerful wizard in all the Northlands, but for all her power, she was alone, and could do nothing to change the fact that she would never feel love from another pony again.’ ‘She sealed herself within the great capital city she had built, back when Horizon was prosperous under the rule of the Dragon Priests. There she pondered the decisions she made in her life, and mourned for the friends she had lost. At last, she allowed the darkness to consume her, becoming black magic incarnate, a walking opposite of the bright magic she had once represented, and her Element faded and became useless.’ ‘Now you know that great magic she once had. Do not squander it, nor wish for more. Treasure this magic and remember its source, the friendships you have forged. For the spark of your friendships keep the magic within the Elements alive. Some may say the Elements themselves are the most powerful force in all the Northlands, but they merely relay what is within your heart. Allow the magic from within to guide you, and you can do anything you set your mind to.’ The world around me suddenly swirled away, the pink fading from my vision, and I returned to Labyrinthian. ~◊~ ~◊~ ~◊~ “You’ve done it!” Mystic exclaimed as I returned to reality, “You assembled the complete set!” “We did it,” I said, “The Elements are powered by us, the bonds we’ve forged. Or, so I was told by the Element of Magic.” “Now we can defeat Alduin, right?” Steadfast asked hopefully. “I hope so,” I said, “But we can’t very well do that from here. Let’s get out of this ruin.” We left Mareokei’s crypt, and I recounted everything that had happened when the Element of Magic had spirited me away. There was no sign of the manticore or Blackwings outside as we left the temple, and we had a clear path out of Labyrinthian. As we headed down the ancient street, the sound of a great blast came from overhead. Looking up, we could see that a huge chunk of Griffinium’s underside had been knocked off. The giant slab of stone fell slowly through the air, crushing the Temple of Mareokei. There was something wrong with Griffinium itself. As we watched, the entire city began to tilt ominously, while the Pegasari Air Fleet continued to pound it. Then, it began to fall out of the sky. “Run!” I yelled, galloped toward Labyrinthian’s exit as I saw that Griffinium was going to land right on top of the ancient earth pony city. The mountain of stone came crashing down, smashing Labyrinthian. We were nearly hit by the debris cloud as we exited the city. Griffinium continued to fall and shatter, crushing Labyrinthian completely until there was nothing left. Everything was buried beneath the remains of the Griffins’ capital. “This has to end,” Mephalda said breathlessly, looking at the destruction. “It will,” I said firmly, looking up at the ships flying high in the sky. Level Up Health: 380 Stamina: 380 Magicka: 370 New Perk: Cartographer [No Skill] -- You are a whiz at using a map and can plot the best course with ease. All travel times are now reduced as you can use shortcuts to your advantage. Word of Power learned: KLO -- Sand; Slow Time – Combined with TIID, KLO slows time down to nearly a halt, allowing you to accomplish much more while everypony around you moves at a snail’s pace. Word of Power learned: FAAS -- Fear; Dismaying Shout – And the weak shall fear the Thu’um, and flee in terror. Element of Harmony acquired Element of Magic activated New Quest: Peace -- Find a way to bring peace to the Northlands, no matter what it takes.