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1 - An Offering1,592 words
2 - Training737 words
3 - Exchanging Thoughts992 words
4 - To Adventure1,021 words
5 - Into Snowy Depths824 words
6 - Somber Thoughts861 words
7 - Return Home915 words
8 - Confrontation1,456 words

5 - Into Snowy Depths

Luna held firmly to Tsuki's back as they bounded to the top of the mountain. Reaching the peak, they could see both Equestria behind, and the frozen reaches that made up the Crystal Empire ahead of them.

The difference was quite stark, with neat and ordered weather in one direction and wild bunches of clouds that had a will of their own, snowing down across a land that seemed to have enough snow already.

Squinting, Luna could just barely pick out the hint of a glow in the distance. Was that, perhaps, the Crystal Empire itself? It offered no comfort as Tsuki began leaping down from ledge to ledge and seemed to not be aimed at the faint bit of hope.

They were descending into coldness and driving snow. They couldn't see much of anything. Luna wasn't sure what sense drove Tsuki onward, but he seemed quite determined and kept jumping out of the snow just to come down in it again. His large feet seemed to help, but his immense bulk, combined with her own, drove him into the snow at the end of each descent.

Despite all that, they pressed forward.

At least until the snow gave out beneath them as they landed, plunging them into darkness.

Luna woke first. Her horn glowed at her will, casting soft light across what seemed to be snow-touched, but not buried, stone. She could see Tsuki sprawled out a short distance away and rose to her own hooves. "Tsuki? Are you alright?" She felt a little banged up, but overall intact.

Tsuki stirred at her call and slowly rose up to sit on his haunches. "Okay." He nodded at her. "We are here."

"Where is here?" She waved a hoof around before she spotted something curious. The stone wall near them wasn't nearly as natural as it had first appeared. "What in Equestria...?" She approached it to see pictures etched into the rough surface.

Tsuki came up behind her and thrust a paw past her at the drawings. "We are here!"

The drawings were clearly of Tsuki's kind. They were playing, praying, and showing all signs of a civilization. The wall told a tale of a people, not a herd of animals. They even showed a scene of them arrayed in military line against some large splotchy object Luna couldn't identify. "This is remarkable... Daring Do would be beside herself, were she here."

"Who?"

"The one who brought you to us."

Tsuki bobbed his head. "Nice mare. Not as nice as you." He grabbed for Luna and hugged her firmly to confirm her niceness. "We are here!"

"Yes... yes we are. Now, what is 'here'?" Luna pulled herself free of the hug carefully and began to wander a little, casting the light of her horn around slowly. "If your kind is here, they are hiding quite well."

Tsuki bound from where he had been standing, closing the distance with Luna's wandering at the end of that powerful leap to land beside her. He thrust a paw off into the dark.

From that darkness, a grey nose emerged into the light of her horn, followed by a reddish one, then a last in a pink shade.

Three of Tsuki's kind stepped forward, peering at them with wonder and caution both.

Tsuki seemed devoid of caution and stepped towards them immediately. "Hello!"

The three rabbit-like creatures shied away at Tsuki's approach. One squeaked as another gave a firm growl and stepped in to protect the other two.

Tsuki shrank back at the aggressive posturing. "Friend?"

Luna shook her head and did not approach, lest she frighten them further. "Your potential friends do not speak as ponies do. They are as restricted as you were when first we met."

Tsuki looked back at her. "Help them. Make them talk like Tsuki talks." He pointed with a paw at one of them just before being tackled.

The most aggressive of them had jumped forward and tackled Tsuki to the ground, growling at him and baring sharp teeth.

Luna did take a step forward then, wings flaring with worry for her Tsuki.

A new voice spoke, driving all three of the feral rabbits to suddenly scatter. "They are not yours to interfere with." The voice was deep and menacing. Accompanying it was the sudden opening of two immense eyes of green, purple magic wafting from either. "Princess Luna, it has been some time."

Tsuki drew back to Luna, clearly frightened by the immense presence and using her as a comically small shield against it.

"Sombra!" Luna hissed out the word, taking a defensive stance. "What are you doing here?"

Author's Note:

In the dark of the north, who else would be awaiting our heroes? It this the cause of the typo befallen Tsuki's people?

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