The Phoenix King

by Turtlehaus

Chapter 41: Into the Snow (Part 2)

On the outskirts of the Arctic Bluff sat a iron framed sled that carried several saddle bags worth of provisions, metal chains fastened like reigns, and two ponies with a dragon bundle up quite warmly. With the help of Lord Borris and Lord Shannon, Princess Sapphire's requisition for this expedition was completed within a couple of hours. It included the heavy snow gear that Twilight, Fluttershy, and even Spike were currently sporting to keep them as warm as possible. The weather was rather fair for the time being, the temperature was below freezing, but it was of little annoyance to them now, especially with Warrick and Summer Hearth being there to provide them with extra warmth. Every pony watched Princess Sapphire and Court Wizard Floe standing off to the side saying goodbye to Lady Frost who seemed rather confident with them, but it was clear that she was rather worried for them.

"You look out for one another, do you understand me?" Lady Frost asked them.

"We'll be fine, mother." Princess Sapphire replied sounding mildly annoyed.

"I'm more worried about Sapphire leaving me in the White Walk the first chance she gets." Floe stated, eyeing her suspiciously.

"Don't tempt me." Princess Sapphire hissed glaring at him.

"If you two don't start getting along right this second, I swear by Celestia I will ground the both of you!" Lady Frost snapped at them.

Princess Sapphire and Floe flinched at her threatening words, falling silent and staring down at the snow. Lady Frost sighed at the trouble they were sure to cause along the way, but she knew that the other ponies would keep them from getting out of hoof.

"You're lucky that I'm even letting you go out there, because I know that your father wouldn't have let you." Lady Frost pointed out to them.

"Then why are you letting us go?" Floe asked curiously.

"Because I know he would go charging into the White Walk to find you and wouldn't stop until he did. Your father is dependable that way, but I sincerely hope that it won't come to that." Lady Frost replied confidently.

"We should get going, we have a long way to go." Princess Sapphire remarked.

Lady Frost hugged Sapphire endearingly, reminding her to keep an eye on Floe and to be the mature one. Floe was next, earning himself an even greater hug that immediately caused him to struggle against her grip. Princess Sapphire headed out to the sled, signaling to the Hearth siblings that it was time to get under way.

"Watch out for your sister, Floe." Lady Frost said to him; easing out of her hug.

"She's not my sister." Floe stated sounding annoyed at the notion.

Floe hurried off, rushing past Sapphire to get to the sled first before blowing a raspberry at her. Princess Sapphire proceeded to magically throw some snow in his face which caused Floe to start whining about the dangers of ice shards getting into his eyes. Warrick and Summer fastened the chains around their armor, beginning to drag the sled out towards the tundra, a couple of miles away would be the edge of the White Walk, and the location of the Frozen North's Obelisks.

Lady Frost watched them for awhile, wrestling with her feelings of going after them, tagging along, or stopping them all together. As Royalty, Lord Tundra and herself used to tell Sapphire what she needed to do, how she needed to do it, and a part of her knew it was time for her to make those choices for herself; even if it meant that they could possibly fail. It was a part of growing up, a trust that she had for her little Snowflake, but most importantly Lord Tundra wasn't due back from two more days.

---

The trek across the frozen tundra was a rather smooth ride. It was mostly ice and slush, making rather easy for the sled to glide along. Warrick and Summer's flames were burning a bit stronger then usual, providing Twilight, Fluttershy, and Spike with a constant breeze of warmth. Princess Sapphire and Floe walked at the sides of the sled, it was to protect Twilight and the others, but it was mostly to separate the two of them for the time being.

"If you need a break don't wait to say something." Warrick mentioned to Summer.

"I can handle it, sir." Summer mumbled.

"You don't have to call me sir, Summer. I'm just-"

"Yeah, yeah, I know; just make sure you're pulling your side of the sled." Summer cut him off.

Warrick nodded his understanding. There was a couple of minutes of silence between them, just the sliding of the metal against ice and the hoofsteps in the snow could be heard. Summer could feel her anxiety kick in, she knew Warrick meant well, that her shortness with him was just her jealousy of him making an appearance, and that he was only concerned for her because of her three day trip. There was no telling how difficult the snow was going to become the closer they got to the White Walk, and it was only a matter of time before either one of them was going to grow tired.

"So... how did Wendy take it?" Summer asked after a while.

"She's called off the wedding." Warrick replied.

"Again?" Summer asked curiously. "She's got to find something new to threaten you with."

"Please don't give her any ideas, I'm in enough trouble when I get back home as it is." Warrick mentioned sounding rather disheartened.

---

Spike was admiring his thermal suit, it was specially made for a young foal or filly, with minor modifications for his tail and scales; it even had a built in scarf that covered his face. Twilight and Fluttershy had doubled upon the winter coats they had received from the seamstress ponies back in the Ashen Fields with the generous thermal suits given to them by Princess Sapphire. Each one brightly colored purple and yellow, respectively, to make them stand out in the snow. Even with the subzero temperatures, they were rather comfortable in their suits, and the added warmth of the Hearth siblings flames really made a difference.

The frozen wasteland didn't even phase Floe or Princess Sapphire, they walked unhindered as if it were a stroll through the park. Spike climbed over some of the provisions to get closer to the side where Floe walked, laying himself down atop a satchel and folding his arms beneath him; watching him closely. Floe glanced over at the Spike, trying his best not to seem phased by his staring, but after a couple of minutes he started to crack.

"What?" Floe asked sounding bothered.

"What's it like being a Court Wizard?" Spike asked curiously.

"What?" Floe asked now feeling confused by his question.

"You're just a kid and you're like... the most powerful magician in the Frozen North; what's that like? Is it hard? Does every pony depend on you? Do you do parties? Cause I'd like to have a magician for my next birthday." Spike questioned him.

Floe smiled smugly, feeling that he had a chance to brag about himself.

"You could say that I'm something of a savant when it comes to magic." Floe mentioned sounding proud.

"You're a servant?" Spike asked looking sorry for him.

"Not a servant! A savant!" Floe snapped, flushing slightly. "It means I'm a learned pony, one that has incredible skill and knowledge in a particular study; in my case it's magic."

"How did you get to be so good?" Spike asked curiously.

"It just came naturally to me. What seemed complicated to many ponies was very easy for me to comprehend." Floe told him. "The Royal Family and Castle Fjord rely on me to solve any and everything magic that they might require."

"Aren't you part of the Royal Family?" Spike asked curiously.

"Only because Lady Frost forces me; they're not my family." Floe stated.

"You don't like being part of their family?" Spike asked sounding surprised.

"My real family abandoned me when I was a baby at the doors of Castle Fjord. The Royal Family felt responsible for me so they took me in, but we're not a family; we're just doing our jobs until we have to pretend to be one." Floe remarked sounding bitter about it.

"Pretend?" Spike asked, sounding confused.

"Forget it." Floe mumbled.

"Well, if it makes you feel any better I was hatched from an egg by Twilight; I don't know who my real parents are either." Spike told him.

"Don't you want to find out who they are?" Floe asked curiously, looking intrigued by this.

"I don't know, I mean, I never really thought about it that much. Twilight has always been there for me and I never really felt like I was missing anything." Spike confided to him.

"I'm not missing anything. Nothing at all. I'm fine by myself; all by myself." Floe remarked sounding defensive.

Spike could see that Floe was struggling with something and thought it best not to push it any further. Glancing up from Floe, something caught Spike's eyes that made him smile wide.

"PENGUINS!" Spike shouted pointing his claw.

Every pony stopped to look towards the direction in which Spike was pointing to see several dozen penguins waddling their way across the frozen tundra. Summer groaned at the sight of them, but Princess Sapphire looked rather glad at the discovery.

"Ms. Fluttershy, would you be so kind as to try and communicate with the penguins to discover anything useful for our expedition?" Princess Sapphire asked.

"Of course, I've always wanted to meet a penguin." Fluttershy replied softly, stepping off of the sled.

"Summer, would you accompany Ms. Fluttershy?" Princess Sapphire asked looking her way.

"Yes... my Lady." Summer sighed unhooking the chain from her armor.

Fluttershy and Summer walked off together towards the group of penguins, their approach had every penguin turning to greet them in a series of small squawks that accompanied them. Spike was starting to wish he had brought his camera to catalog this expedition, but noticed how solemn Floe had become. Climbing back over the provisions, Spike tugged on Twilight's thermal jacket to get her attention.

"What's up, Spike?" Twilight asked curiously.

"Twilight, I think something is bothering Floe. I was asking him stuff about his family and he said that he didn't consider Princess Sapphire or her parents to be his. I'm worried about him, he still just a foal and these sort of things can really bother ponies his age." Spike informed her.

"I think Princess Sapphire should be the one to talk to him about this." Twilight replied, looking over at her. "I'll go mention it to her."

Stepping off of the sled, Twilight walked over to Princess Sapphire who was surveying the area looking for any sign of other animals that might be walking around.

"Princess Sapphire?" Twilight asked aloud.

"Yes? What is it, Ms. Sparkle? Do you require more warmth?" Princess Sapphire asked, sounding concerned.

"No, I'm actually quite comfortable; thank you. I was hoping to talk to you about something." Twilight replied to her.

"Of course, what is it?" Princess Sapphire asked promptly.

"It's about Floe and-"

"We're done talking." Princess Sapphire stated abruptly looking rather annoyed.

Princess Sapphire turned her back to her, continuing her survey of the frozen tundra as Twilight stepped up beside her to push the issue.

"Look, I know Floe messed up, but that's not what this is about. Spike told me that Floe doesn't think you two are family, and that seems to have stirred up some feelings in him." Twilight informed her.

"He's right, we're not family, we simply treat him like he is." Princess Sapphire stated coldly.

"He doesn't believe that you are though." Twilight pressed her concern.

"I can't force him to believe anything, if that is what he wants to believe than that is his choice." Princess Sapphire stated firmly.

"Look, Princess Sapphire, I've read that Ice Ponies used to be cold, bitter, and unfeeling thousands of years ago, but I wasn't aware that it stuck around for this long." Twilight stated rather harshly.

Princess Sapphire gave her a rather cold stare, not liking what she was insinuating.

"Like it or not, you're the closest thing he has to a sister. He may be a Court Wizard, a pain in the neck, and likes to think he has all the answers, but he's still just a foal. Relation or not, you're all he's got and he doesn't believe he has even that much right now." Twilight said to her.

Princess Sapphire's face softened, Twilight could see that she struck a cord with her. Twilight had spent enough time with Princess Sapphire to know that she was much too caring, even under that stern exterior, to hold a grudge; especially against her brother.

"I will speak with him, Ms. Sparkle." Princess Sapphire said to her. "And thank you."

"Of course." Twilight said with a smile nodding her head.

---

"Squawk... Squawk... Squawk."

"You say that there is a popular bear up ahead that knows more about the White Walk?" Fluttershy asked curiously.

Fluttershy and Summer stood among the dozens and dozens of penguins. Summer tried to put on a friendly smile, but it quickly disappeared when a few penguins regurgitated some half eaten fish for her to eat. Fluttershy was busy listening to one of the penguins squawk about what was to come.

"Fluttershy, was it? Can we go now? I'd rather not have to eat some penguins lunch." Summer hissed through her teeth at her.

"In a minute, this very helpful penguin is just telling me about some of the things its seen in the White Walk, and some of it sounds very important." Fluttershy stated quietly to her.

Summer stepped back as another penguin upchucked his lunch in front of Summer; she groaned at the sight of it.

---

Princess Sapphire strolled over to Floe who was staring down at his hooves. She sat herself down next to him, watching him slowly turn away from her, trying to avoid looking at her. Taking a deep breath, Princess Sapphire took a moment to think of what she wanted to say, and reminded herself that Floe was just a foal.

"What happened last night... was an accident. I was angry with you, but what's done is done. You're more well versed in the Void Lore than I and we'll need your help if we're going to save King Smolder." Princess Sapphire began. "I... need you to know that I do care about you; so does mother and father."

Floe refused to turn around.

"You are part of this family, Floe. Mother wanted me to keep it a secret until your birthday, but she has filled out the necessary paperwork to have you as their legal adopted son, and my... adopted brother." Princess Sapphire told him. "Of course it will require your consent."

"You don't want me as your brother, do you?" Floe asked sounding bitter.

"I find it hard to believe that you want me as your sister." Princess Sapphire retorted.

"My family didn't want me. I'm not surprised you don't either." Floe mumbled.

"We don't know why your family left you at our doorstep. There could have been many reasons for it, but you need to understand that-"

"I found them." Floe cut in sounding shaken.

"What?" Princess Sapphire asked sounding rather surprised.

"My parents. I found them." Floe repeated quietly.

"W-W-When? How? Why didn't you tell us?" Princess Sapphire asked sounding concerned.

Princess Sapphire could see Floe rub his nose, his breathing labored from how emotional he was becoming, but he refused to turn around and let her see him like this.

"Why would I tell you? You would have helped me pack the minute I mentioned it." Floe mumbled. "You never liked me."

"That is not true." Princess Sapphire stated firmly. "We have our differences, but you are important to me."

"You don't have to worry, my real parents don't want anything to do with me either." Floe said sadly.

Princess Sapphire had just about enough of this 'pity party' Floe was currently throwing for himself. Taking him firmly by the shoulder, she spun him around, tears running down his face, but surprised by her forcefulness.

"You can sit there and pretend that no pony likes you and frankly it is really hard to like you at times, but if you think for one second that I care nothing for you than you are the stupidest Ice Pony in all of the Frozen North." Princess Sapphire told him, sounding rather stern with him.

Floe's crying had ceased. He was in shock at Sapphire's blatant words.

"Aside from mother and father raising you, nurturing you, and loving you, I would like to remind you of the pony that stayed up with you every night whenever you had a nightmare. Those days when you had the Cold Pox and that pony stayed by your bedside reading you stories until you fell asleep. The pony that stayed up late quizzing you on your Academy Exams on old Pony Magic so that you could be considered for the job of Court Wizard. And don't even make me mention the pony that had to stand in line for twelve hours to get you tickets to that concert featuring 'Colts Who Cry' while you were stuck in a meeting." Princess Sapphire told him almost threateningly. "Because if you have forgotten the pony that did all those things for you, than maybe you're the one who doesn't want anything to do with us!"

Princess Sapphire released her grip on him, watching Floe's face begin to look rather meek, seconds away from breaking down again.

"Now, you're going to sign those papers our mother is going to surprise you with on your birthday. You are going to act surprised so she won't know that I had already told you, and you will become the little brother I always wanted." Princess Sapphire stated to him.

Floe's bottom lip started to tremble, trying to force himself not to cry, closing his eyes as tears streamed down his face and nodded his head in agreement. Princess Sapphire's wing reached around him, pulling Floe close to her, hugging him tightly; feeling him clutch her tightly and beginning to sob.

"I... would like it very much if you were to refer to me as your sister from now on." Princess Sapphire said to him; gently stroking his mane with her hoof.

Floe nodded his head several times against her chest; still trying to calm himself down. Glancing over at the sled, Princess Sapphire could see Twilight nodding her own head in approval of Princess Sapphire's way of handling it. Spike was blowing his nose on a one of the satchel bags, having become rather emotional himself, and even Warrick wiped his nose trying to clear his throat from getting choked up.

Fluttershy and Summer were making their way back to the sled. Summer looked rather relieved that the penguins had not offered them any fish to take on their travels, and Fluttershy seemed very content on having met a rather informative penguin. The crunch of the snow beneath their hooves had reached Floe's ears, he pulled away from Princess Sapphire to try and compose himself so they wouldn't see him cry. Luckily, Princess Sapphire stepped in front of him to hide him from them for the moment, looking at the expectantly.

"Were you able to learn anything?" Princess Sapphire asked hopefully.

"Oh yes, Rupert was very helpful." Fluttershy reported softly.

"Rupert?" Princess Sapphire asked curiously.

"Rupert is the name of the penguin that told me we were all going to be lost forever in the White Walk and never be heard from again." Fluttershy stated quietly.

Every pony stared at her in surprised shock at her calm demeanor of telling them this news.

"I should also mention that Rupert also told me how we won't get lost forever in the White Walk and never be heard from again." Fluttershy added with a smile.

"What must we do?" Princess Sapphire asked with a relieved sigh.

"Rupert said that there is a creature within the White Walk known to them as the Faceless One, or as Ice Ponies know it as the Ijiraq. If we can convince it to let us go, it will give us a special stone that will help us find our way back." Fluttershy replied softly.

"How are we supposed to do that?" Twilight asked.

"Rupert said the polar bear that lives near the edge of the White Walk who could tell us more." Fluttershy said pointing further ahead.

"We should get a move on then." Warrick stated.

Summer returned to the front of the sled, hooking the chain back up while Fluttershy climbed aboard. With a firm pull, the Warrick siblings had the sled moving once more with Princess Sapphire and Floe following the sled from behind.

"Please... don't tell the other wizards I listen to 'Colts Who Cry'." Floe mumbled, flushing at his own words.

"You're lucky I'm your sister." Princess Sapphire stated with a smile.

---

It was another hour before they reached a rather large mound of snow where the sleeping polar bear beneath it roused from its slumber. Fluttershy had chosen to approach it on her own, worried that the flames of Summer and Warrick beside her would upset the polar bear. Every pony watched as the polar bear growled, moaned, whined, and seemingly mimed to Fluttershy the answers to the questions she asked of it. This went on for almost two hours, which had every pony lazing about and suffering from the boredom it brought. Eventually Fluttershy had returned, the polar bear walking off down the edge of the White Walk to find another patch of ice to sleep upon.

"What did it say, Fluttershy?" Twilight asked sounding interested.

"Benny had a lot to say. Did you know that polar bears also like to eat honey? Not to mention that they both enjoy hibernating for long periods of time, but just not during the same season. Rupert and Benny have also been friends for nearly two years after they both got stuck to one another from some sticky tree sap that Benny had accidentally rubbed up against near the base of Mount Everhoof." Fluttershy shared with her.

"I... had no idea." Twilight replied looking rather unsure of what that had to do with anything.

"What about the White Walk?" Summer asked getting to the point.

"Oh, yes, well Benny said that there is more than just the Faceless One that lives within the White Walk. He's heard strange noises that come from the White Walk every now and again, and warns us not to go." Fluttershy told them.

"But we have to." Warrick replied.

"Benny says if we still plan to go into the White Walk, we will be at the mercy of the Faceless One, and that only if we are honest with ourselves do we have the chance of convincing it to let us go." Fluttershy stated, climbing onto the sled.

"Being honest with ourselves?" Spike asked sounding confused.

"We'll have to cross the bridge when we come to it." Summer stated.

Every pony stood as the threshold of the White Walk. It was the most accurate title it could have carried. The ice beneath their hooves turned to the powdery white snow, the dense puffy white clouds high overhead stretched forever in almost every direction. There was no discernible landmarks, no mountains, no hills, just the white oblivion that stretched out before them.

Floe climbed atop the sled, digging through one of the satchels for one of the magical stones they brought along to act as there 'bread crumbs' to find their way back out of the White Walk. The stone itself pulsed dimly a soft blue, but with a bit of magic brimming from Floe's horn the magical stone started to shine a bright red that stood out quite a bit among all the snow around them. Dropping it behind the sled the magical stone slightly embedded itself into the snow, Floe nodded in assurance that the stones were going to work.

"The White Walk is a dangerous place, we do not know what we will find, if anything, so if any pony wants to back out now, this is their last chance." Princess Sapphire stated to every pony.

Every pony look a bit nervous about entering the White Walk, but no pony spoke up about turning back. Nodding her understanding, Princess Sapphire motioned for the Hearth siblings to continue on. Floe rode along with the sled, digging out another stone, focusing his gaze at the back of the sled, stirring his magic to see the magical stone he left in the snow and the one in his hoof react; once they were far enough away from the first stone Floe would drop the next one.

Slowly the sled and the ponies disappeared into the White Walk. Everything had become still and silent. The sound of crunching snow filled the air. From beneath the snow a massive skull of a buffalo, horns six feet wide, emerged out from the snow. Its body was hunched over, cloaked in fur, hundreds of branches skewered through it, and black smoke wafting through the wood. Its massive arms pulled close to its body, skin blackened and blue, with three thick fingers sporting splintered fingernails upon each hand. A soft clicking echoed from it, staring down at the hoofprints leading into the White Walk, as it tapped the magical stone that pulsed a soft blue. With a savage screech the creature rose six feet into the air, standing on large ostrich like legs, before sprinting off into the White Walk to give chase.