Winds of Wintercrest

by Lost_Marbles

Waking Up in the White

Rarity opened her eyes and immediately regretted it. The white blinded her and stung her eyes like a thousand hornets. She shut them and groaned while wiping her face with a boot, smearing her face with frozen snow. The rough boot on her face felt sticky. Oh, if it was mud, she was going to freak out.

Slowly, she opened one of her eyes. At first, everything was fuzzy. She could see her boot, but nothing more than its basic shape and color. It took a few moments, but everything became clear--on her boot was a dark red substance.

Blood.

She gasped and felt her chest tighten. She hyperventilated as she stared at the blood. She was bleeding! Why? What had happened to her?

Then it all came back to her. The boulder, the creature, Rainbow Dash, Astral, and the fall.

Astral! He pushed me! How could he? Did he? He wouldn’t have, would he? And what about Rainbow? Was she okay? Oh, goodness, and Sweetie Belle. Rarity struggled to put her hooves under herself and pushed up, but her legs trembled under the strain, and she collapsed. She mentally checked herself over. She was sore all over, but nothing unbearable. Could it be that she was injured and didn’t know it? Numbed by shock? There was the blood on her boots. She tried to roll over to look at her body, but a heavy weight on her torso held her down, and the lumpy ground she was on made it difficult as it swelled and contracted below her.

She raised her head and looked at the ground beneath her. It was white just like the snow, but the color was a bit off. The white beneath her had a very light green hue to it. She felt hairs tickling her chin, blowing in the wind like blades of grass, and further up, only a couple of feet from her nose, was the face of the creature.

Rarity suppressed a scream in her throat, but she couldn’t stop shivering. While remaining as still as she could, she looked around. The creature had one long, gangly limb wrapped around her and had pulled her close to its chest. The other was stretched out, its hand clenched in a fist.

Rarity looked up toward the mountain. From the sloped, snowy opening where she lay, the cliff they had fallen from was well out of sight, hidden behind the flurry of snow. The wall was far away; as the disturbed snow showed that after they hit the ground, the two of them had rolled down the slope. She had survived the fall, but now she was trapped with the creature in an opening with few trees and even fewer places to hide.

The creature grunted beneath her, and Rarity snapped her attention towards the beast. It groaned, shifted about in the snow, and clenched Rarity tighter against its chest. She bit her lip and held her breath. Even the calm wind and light flurry seemed to freeze in fright.

She had to get back to Rainbow. Back to Sweetie Belle. Back to the lodge to get help for Winter Lily. She had to move. If it was injured, she could get away, but if it wasn’t, she’d be no better off waiting for the beast to wake up with her in its grasp.

Cautiously, she lifted its arm with her magic and slid it off her back, stopping every time the creature groaned. The long, double-elbowed arm was much heavier than it looked. Once it was off her, she looked at the ground to her side; the hand was still in the way, and she carefully nudged it aside. Once her path was open, she leaned to the side while keeping her eyes on the beast’s face and rolled over. When she hit the soft, cold snow, she remained still and waited to see if the creature woke. It groaned and snorted, but nothing more.

Like a worm, she shifted on the ground and tried to free as much wiggle room between her and the beast before getting up on her hooves. She didn’t want to risk slipping and falling against the beast. All it had to do was reach out, and it would have her. As gingerly as she could, she got up on her hooves. The snow crunched loudly under her boots. After each step, she paused and glanced in the creature's direction. Much to her dismay, her footsteps were soaked in the creature’s blood. Should the creature awake, it would be only a matter of time before it tracked her down in this white wasteland.

One after another, she took a step away from the creature, the rapid beating of her heart drumming in her ears as she inched toward freedom. Each step made it harder for her to resist taking off in a full gallop; the temptation continued to gnaw at her.

She was almost there, only a few steps away from freedom. She stopped and curled her tail between her legs as the creature rolled and groaned. Its arm that was laid out on the snow shifted towards Rarity, and she lifted her front hoof as the closed hand came closer. As the hand approached, she tightened her muscles, and her insides clenched. Only inches away from her, it stopped. Luck had managed to save her once again. Rarity sighed and shuddered before continuing her slow march to freedom, but something caught her eye.

The fingers of the beast loosened and revealed something in its grasp--a long, cylindrical piece of ice--Astral’s horn!

She could get it and bring it back to Astral. Once he got it back, they’d be able to find the fillies, save Winter Lily, and lead everypony back down the mountain. He might even be able to return to normal. If not, Twilight might be able to save him from this curse. Then Astral and Winter Lily would be together again--lovers reunited after years of torment.

But should she get the horn? She could ignore it and walk to freedom. Astral pushed her off a cliff! Or did he? He was completely made of ice. It could be likely that he had tried to pull, but couldn’t get a grip. Without magic, it was very likely he couldn’t grasp anything with icy hooves. Maybe Rarity remembered what happened wrong because of how fast everything happened, or because she had probably hit her head and just dreamed it.

Yes, that was what happened. Astral was a kind-hearted stallion who’d do anything to save the mare he loved. A loyal pony like that would never betray his friends. He had even given his promise that no harm would come to her or Rainbow.

Oh no, Rainbow! I hope she’s alright. I must hurry.

She took a deep breath and set her hoof down before reaching out with her magic. She pulled the horn from the thickest end and slowly slid it from the creature’s loose grip. She breathed heavily through her nose as the horn passed each finger. With the horn free, she looked back at the creature; it hadn’t moved since she last looked at it. She put the horn in her chest pocket.

With only one step to go, Rarity raised a front hoof again to freedom.

“Lily… Lily…”

She froze.

“Lily… Please, don’t go…”

Rarity gulped and looked behind herself.

The creature was mumbling. It spoke. Was it dreaming?

“Lily… I don’t want to lose you again…”

Rarity shivered. She wanted to go, to leave, to be free from all of this. But she couldn’t stand to hear such mournful pleas. She turned away from the creature and took a step forward. The snow crunched under her hoof.

That was when she felt the fingers brush against her thigh. She froze.

“Lily… Please.”

The fingers ran through her tail, and she cringed as she felt its grip tighten. She pulled, and her tail slipped out of the weak grasp. She took another step before she heard the creature sob.

Come on, Rarity. Don’t look back. Just go. Run. Get out of here. Sweetie Belle needs you. Rainbow Dash needs you. Lily needs you. Just go.

She bit her tongue and raised her hoof again, ready to take off at the slightest provocation. But she couldn’t put it ahead of her. The weight on her conscience pulled her hoof back down, and she looked back at the creature. It was looking at her from a corner of its sunken, yellow eyes.

Come on, Rarity. He foalnapped Sweetie Belle. He’s the reason Astral and Lily are in torment! He’s… he’s a bad pony.

“Lily,” it whispered. It made no effort to get up. Rarity turned around enough to see the whole creature. She wish she hadn’t. Blood was matted around its thighs where Astral had gored it with his jagged horn stump, and many other cuts leaked blood along its arms from the fall. The weakened beast winced as it heaved long, heavy breaths.

It’s his fault he’s like this. If he hadn’t try to steal love he hadn’t earned, he wouldn’t be like this. The jealous bad-guy always gets his just rewards. He brought this on himself!

Then she looked into his eyes. Those weren’t the eyes of a monster, but a pony hurt and in despair.

...right?

The creature coughed as it locked eyes with Rarity before looking up at her horn, no longer covered by her hat. Weakly, he whispered, “You’re not Winter Lily?”

Rarity shook her head and turned to face Miracle Cure.

He remained silent. Tears welled up in his eyes as he looked away from Rarity, his gaze turned up to the gray sky.

Now’s your chance! Leave! He can’t chase you. You’re safe! All you have to do is find Astral and Rainbow and you’ll be out of here in no time. Go!

She turned away and sprinted, but her conscience anchored her only a few steps away.

Don’t look back! You shouldn’t. You mustn’t!

Then she heard Cure weep.

But, I can’t just leave him like this. He was--no--IS a pony. I… I don’t think I could live with myself if I left him there, even if he is--no--WAS a bad pony.

“You look just like her,” whispered Cure.

Rarity licked her dry lips as she turned around and focused on the blood-speckled snow between them. She couldn’t look at him. “I’m sorry, but I’m not her.”

He shuddered as he took another deep breath. “Is, is she still…?”

“Frozen? Yes.”

The creature blinked a few times, and tears trickled down his hairless cheeks. Neither spoke for what seemed like a short eternity. Rarity began to lose herself in thought as she studied the blood speckles in the snow. She didn’t want to think.

She didn’t want to feel.

“Miss, are you hurt?”

Rarity jumped at the sudden question. “Uh… no, I don’t think I am.”

“Oh, good.” He rolled his head towards Rarity. “So, why are you still here? You are not Lily. Go.”

He doesn’t act like a monster? Why?

“I’m looking for my sister. She and her two friends got lost and… and--”

Cure coughed. “Three fillies? Is one of them orange and another yellow?”

A sudden rush of warmth and release flowed through Rarity as shivered with hope. “Yes! That’s them! Where are they?”

“I saw them--” Cure took a deep, pained breath “--with a purple mare. Further down the mountain.”

Rarity almost fainted in relief but fought to stay up, shaky knees and all. She closed her eyes and sighed. Oh, Cheerilee. You wonderful mare. I’m so making you a dress when we get back. No, a dozen! She wanted to run, go tell Rainbow, and get the Tartarus off this cursed mountain. She put a hoof to her chest and smiled. Then she opened her eyes and saw the bloody mess that was Cure in front of her.

And her heart sank.

“Um, but what about you? I-uh, um…”

Cure took another pained breath. “Don’t you worry about me. I’m a beast. An abomination. Leave me.”

Rarity looked at Cure in his eyes. “You’re not an abomination.”

“Miss, you don’t know what happened. I’m--”

“Rarity,” she said. “Call me Rarity.”

More tears welled up in Cure’s eyes, washing away any doubt in Rarity’s mind that what lay before her was a pony. A pony just like her.

“I am Miracle,” he said. “Miracle Cure. And I am a cursed pony. You don’t need to be mixed up in this. Leave me be and go home to your loved ones.”

Here it was: the offer to go, to be free. She was safe, and nothing but the snow would stand in her way, but she couldn’t. “I, I can’t. I’m lost. Astral told me he would help my friend and I get back and save Lily if--”

Cure snorted. “Astral? You listened to that emotionless shell of a pony?”

Rarity took a step back as Cure shuffled on the ground. “That no-good pony is how I came to be this way. He cursed me. He stole everything from me. Even my wife, and he keeps her as a trophy.”

Rarity felt stones drop in her gut. “But he told me--”

“What!? What did he tell you?”

She didn’t think she should have, but she recalled the story Astral had told her, including what he had said about Cure chasing the fillies. All while choosing her words very carefully as to not anger Cure.

“That’s what he told you? Lies. All lies.”

He turned up on one side, but flinched at the pain and resigned to laying on his back. “Astral was a recluse, a freak. He always admired Lily from afar. Sure, she was friends with him, but it was because Lily was a kind and generous soul. Astral was obsessed with her. He’d skulk about and fume with jealousy whenever he saw me with her.

“He left for magic school and came back years later. By then, Lily and I were engaged, but shortly after, she fell terribly ill. None of my potions could help her. I had a book on cures for rare diseases. However, I was missing several ingredients.

“I couldn’t wait for ponies to pass through with the ingredients I needed. I set out to collect them, and I swore to Lily that I would return safely. I wrote letters to her from every town I visited. It took weeks, but I collected all the ingredients I needed for the cure.

“When I got back, the town was shocked. Everypony thought I had died. Only the first few letters made it home. After that, they had heard nothing of me. Lily was heartbroken. She mourned for me for over a month. The whole time Astral was consoling her, and ultimately convinced her to move on, to marry him.

“The snake. Lily had ‘miraculously’ recovered shortly after I left. It had to have been more than a coincidence.

“One day, I saw a bonfire pit behind Astral’s house. It hadn’t been there when I left. I dug at the dirt, and I found pieces of burnt paper with writing on them. My letters.

“I knew what he had done. I invited him down into my cellar. I was going to blackmail him to get Lily back. But the fool, he attacked me. Lily was nearby and heard our fighting. She came in right when Astral’s magic hit a shelf of my potions. There was a magical reaction, and all three of us were caught in it.

“I blacked out, and when I awoke, I saw Astral freezing Lily into a block of ice. In a blind rage, I attacked him, and his horn broke off. I took it from him so he wouldn’t do any more harm.

“I ran to get help, but that was when my body began to change. Ponies fled or attacked me. My hideous form scared them. I was driven up the mountain, and that’s when the snow came.

“Ever since, I’ve been wishing for a way to save Lily.”

Cure took another long, painful sigh.

“I know where she lies, but I can do nothing. I dare not tear up the boards that hide her from me, for she would be buried in the snow. Lost forever.”

Rarity sat down and watched Cure roll his head away from her and quietly weep. She wanted to comfort him. To go up to him and rub his shoulder. Tell him she could help if she got back down to the lodge. But she kept her distance as Cure uttered curses under his breath, and all the while the snow became thicker and the winds stronger as before.

But there was something wrong. His and Astral’s tales matched in some places, but wildly differed in others. Both claimed to be betrayed by the other. How could she know whom to trust? Cure had saved her because he thought she was Lily. Would he have done the same had he not been mistaken?

And then there was Astral. Rarity didn’t want to think about him. She looked back in her pocket where his horn was tucked away.

A voice echoed in the distance. It was far away, but quickly grew louder and closer. “Rarity!”

Rainbow Dash--she’s okay!

“Rarity! Where are you?”

She turned around, lit up her horn, and waved her hooves in the air. “Rainbow! Over here!” She couldn’t see her through the snow and the wind, but she must have been close. As fast as she was moving, she must have been flying--or at least she was well enough to glide down from the cliff. How well she was able to in the wind and the snow, she wasn’t certain, but if she was flying, that meant she wasn’t too badly hurt.

“Rainbow! Rainbow!”

Rarity turned toward Cure. She wanted to tell him that she could help. If he could lead the two down the mountain, they would bring aid to help him. Even help Lily.

But she saw his fading shadow hobble off into the white, the snow behind him soaked with blood.

“Cure!” she called. “Wait! Stop! We can help you. Cure. Cure!”

But he didn’t stop. She couldn’t tell if he didn’t hear her over the strengthening wind or didn’t want to listen. She wanted to chase after him. Oh, how she couldn’t bear to see his form limp off into that cold, empty blizzard. But if she went after him, Rainbow might not be able to find her in this growing storm.

“Rarity!” Rainbow’s call, though closer, was muffled by the howling winds. Not only that, but the snow was quickly erasing Cure’s path, filling his tracks and bleaching out the blood. If she chased after him now, she might not be able to find him.

“Rarity, there you are!” Rainbow trudged through the snow and out of the curtain of snow. She went to hug Rarity, but pulled back, immediately looking her over. “Are you alright? Can you walk? You didn’t break anything did you?” Then she saw the blood. “Gah! You’re bleeding! It’s okay, Rarity! I’m here. I’ll get you--”

“Settle down, darling! I’m alright, really.” Rarity grabbed Rainbow with her front hooves and pulled her into a tight hug. She then pushed her away when she realized that she was covering her friend in sticky blood. Not that it seemed she noticed. “...and just so you know, this isn’t my blood.”

“Astral told me the thing dragged you off the cliff.”

Rainbow turned around and nodded. “I’m alright, Rainbow, but I’ve got something to tell you.”

“I came down as fast as I could. Come on, we need to go back and look for the fillies and--Oh!” Rainbow pointed at the piece of ice jutting from Rarity’s front coat pocket. “What is that? Is that…? Astral’s horn?”

Rarity had almost forgot it was there. Rainbow tried to pluck it from Rarity’s pocket to inspect it, but it slipped in her grasp. She looked back up at Rarity and pointed up to the mountain wall. “Come on, let’s give Astral his horn, find the girls, and get out of here. He’s waiting at the cave. All we have to do is follow this wall, and we’ll find him.”

Rarity sighed. She was happy that Rainbow was okay, but she felt a lead weight in her belly. Since her other means of getting off the mountain and finding aid had left, she had been dragged deeper into this dilemma and was beginning to wonder if she was doing the right thing. She pushed aside those nagging doubts and walked with Rainbow up the slope towards the mountain wall.

“Oh, what was it you had to say?”

“Rainbow, the girls aren’t here. Nor are they up in the cave. Cheerilee found them.”

Rainbow jumped in place. “What!? How did you find that out? Did you see them? Where are they!?”

“He told me.” Rarity pointed behind her at the blood trail.

“Who?”

“Cure did.”

Rainbow gaped in shock and disbelief. “Wha-whu-huh? The monster that tried to kill you told you the girls are safe, and you believed him!?”

“I know it sounds weird, but please listen. Cure said he saw them with Cheerilee.”

“Rares, I know you’ve been through a lot, but that thing just tried to kill us. For all we know, it may have taken Cheerilee when she found the fillies, and she may need saving as well. Now come on. We need to find Astral and get a move on.”

Rarity opened her mouth to argue, but she didn’t have it in her. Was Rainbow right? She stared at her feet as she walked alongside Rainbow.

Rainbow leaned against Rarity as the winds picked up. “Anyway, I’m glad you’re okay. You sure none of that blood is yours?”

Rarity nodded, but kept her eyes on their hooves. “Yes, I’m sure,” she said with a tired sigh. “Let’s be on our way and get off this horrible mountain.”

The two friends went their way, back into the unforgiving white.

Comments

[Darksonickiller]

6904566 To a downvote

[Starlight Nova]

6902327 Who is Solaire?

[Starlight Nova]

What's the point of spoiling out that one part in the synopsis when you have a gore tag?

[Mal Masque]

“I saw them--” Astral took a deep, pained breath “--with a purple mare. Further down the mountain.”

Oh hey, Astral, when did you get here?
All joking aside, this is where things get complicated. At first I thought you were striding into the territory of "monster is really a man, man is really a monster" kind of story, but with the way you've written Astral and Cure so far, I'm now getting the vibe of "two halves of the same story told from different perspectives". Not that it's a bad thing, or anything, I'm just a little surprised at the route you're taking. Good job, Marbles, you've made me feel conflicted about characters. Not many authors can accomplish that.

[Lost_Marbles]

6904698
You know what? You have a point. The gore tag itself is a warning, so me going out of the way to point out something that points out what I want to point out is redundant.

Thanks.

I hope you're enjoying the story.

[Lost_Marbles]

6904728

Fixed.

Oh, and my editor noticed that, too. "Going the Rashomon route?"

I kind of am, but at the same time, I'm not. I hope it'll be clear at the end.

[Mal Masque]

6904695 (\_-_-_/) Praise the Sun, that's who.