The Phoenix King

by Turtlehaus

Chapter 6: Arriving & Deriving

The Kingdom of the Frozen North glittered like the Crystal Empire. Its castle stood strong yet elegant like that of Canterlot. It held all the hallmarks of a thriving Kingdom, but was vacant of any warmth that the Kingdom of Flame Ponies had offered. The Kingdom was bitterly cold. Blankets of white frost and snow layered the ground as far as the eye could see. Having just crossed into the territory of Ice Ponies, Twilight and her friends had already began putting on their gifted winter coats to prepare for the sub-zero temperatures that were sure to follow. Fortunately for them, the recently retired General Hearth offered much in terms of a furnace for every pony to warm themselves next to.

"Aren't you the least bit cold, General?" Rainbow Dash asked through chattering teeth.

"Nope." Hearth replied shaking his head side to side.

"Thank you for letting us warm ourselves with your flames." Fluttershy said appreciatively.

General Hearth had positioned himself in the center of the carriage, allowing the six of them to sit around him; much like a campfire. With every passing minute the carriages were growing closer to the Kingdom of Ice Ponies, while the temperature continued to drop at an even faster rate. Spike was lucky enough to sit underneath Hearth's chest, clutching his fiery hooves for extra warmth.

"Don't mention it." Hearth replied; feeling sorry for how cold every pony looked.

"Good afternoon, this is one of your… eh… pilots speaking."

From within the carriage, a pony's voice could be heard. From the top corners of the carriage, every pony spied a sort of speaker. It seemed to be a simple designed way for the pegasi ponies pulling the chariot to speak to the passengers within.

"We've just passed Yakyakistan… eh… temperature currently below freezing… eh… hope you've enjoyed the ride thus far." The Pegasi Pony's voice filled the carriage.

"How about some blankets or hot cocoa?" Rainbow Dash asked, speaking directly into the speaker.

"Eh… we really don't have anything like that on board… eh… cocoa tends to spill on take offs… eh… we'll be arriving at the Ice Kingdom shortly… so eh… sit back, relax, and enjoy the music." The Pegasi Pony's voice rang out in the carriage.

"Music?" Spike asked in surprise.

The carriage was quietly filled with muffled humming coming from over the speaker. It would seem that the Pegasi Pony speaking before had started to simply hum to them all; which didn't seem to impress any pony.

"We'll settle with awkward silence over the humming pal." Rainbow Dash said into the microphone.

"Every pony is a critic." The Pegasi Pony mumbled over the speaker.

After about a half hour of flying, the carriages began to descend to lower altitudes. The temperature became so cold that frost began to develop upon the metal workings within the carriage.

"We're approaching our landing sight… eh… please gather all your belongings… eh… wait until the carriage comes to a complete stop… eh… and enjoy your stay at the Ice Kingdom." The Pegasi Pony's voice filled the carriage once more.

"I-I-I-I think I preferred the f-f-f-fire over the sn-sn-sn-snow." Applejack said through her shivers.

The carriages lurched forward coming to a complete stop. Snow pelted the side of the carriage, giving no pony reason to hurry to open it. Instead, every pony seemed to huddle closer to General Hearth for warmth.

"M-M-M-Maybe we can just wait until the snowing stops." Rarity offered, shivering at the cold.

Lord Tundra and Lady Frost stepped out of their carriage to the awaiting entourage of Noble Ice Ponies eagerly waiting to welcome them back home. First was Commander Sleet, an Ice Pony with a highly decorated career with family nobility dating back to the first generation of Ice Ponies. His bright blue hide was matched with his thick snowy mane that billowed to the point of it being near slush. His cutie mark bore the image of an icy shield. For all his pedigree, Commander Sleet was known to have a warm personality, but embodied the idea of revenge being served cold.

"Lord Tundra. Lady Frost. Welcome back." Commander Sleet said cheerfully.

"Commander Sleet, thank you for holding the fort down in our absence." Lady Frost said appreciatively.

"It's not like anything or any pony would brave the snow to start trouble with us." Commander Sleet remarked with a chuckle.

"Where is Princess Sapphire?" asked the Chancellor.

Chancellor Stone was a cerulean blue Ice Pony with ghastly white smoke for his mane and tail. His cutie mark depicted a shelf of ice that had a crevasse running through. His status amongst the Ice Ponies was comparable to Wingston's in the Ashen Fields. His role was to advise the King and Queen, while handling much of the governing of Ice Ponies through a committee of elected peers, and brought new laws and sanctions to the King and Queen for final confirmation. Chancellor Stone was elected into his position by the Ice Ponies, to bridge the gap between common Ice Ponies and the Noble ones.

"Sapphire has set about a task to assist the King of Flame Ponies." Lord Tundra stated. "At her request, we are hosting some of her friends for an unknown duration of time. They are to be treated like honored guests."

"Of course, My Lord." Chancellor Stone said bowing his head.

"Where exactly are our guests?" Lady Frost asked curiously, looking about.

Every Ice Pony turned to look at the carriage that had yet to be opened. The snow storm raging outside had started layering the carriage, Lord Tundra and Lady Frost watched as the Pegasi Ice Ponies attempted to coax out Twilight and her friends with the promise of more warmth inside the castle; they didn't seem to be making any progress.

"Honey, why don't you get rid of the snow storm to make it easier on our guests." Lady Frost suggested.

"What? Like… make it stop snowing?" Lord Tundra asked sounding surprised.

"Of course! What do you think I meant?" Lady Frost snapped at him.

"Listen to what you're saying! Stop it snowing at the Kingdom of Ice! Do we even have a spell for that?" Lord Tundra asked in disbelief.

"One moment, my Lord." Another pony remarked.

Court Wizard Floe, nearing the age of twelve, Floe was an Ice Pony savant when it comes to magic. Having been recognized by those three times his elder in his abilities, Floe was made Court Wizard by the aged of eleven and has had made great strides in Ice Pony wizardry. Although his age does tend for him to throw fits and act like a little filly, every Ice Pony had adopted the saying 'go with the Floe' when it came to matters of magic. With his azure blue hide and eggshell white mane, not to mention his oversized wizard's hat, Floe's cutie mark bore an open book with mystical symbol scrawled across the pages.

"Here it is, sire." Floe said, holding up a book nearly twice his size to Lord Tundra.

"Now let's see here… head back… shoulders in… knees apart… knees apart?" Lord Tundra asked looking puzzled.

"It's for stability, my Lord." Floe stated.

"Right then." Lord Tundra said confidently.

Taking the appropriate stance, Lord Tundra's horn started to shine brilliantly; focusing his magic. With an explosion of white light, Lord Tundra's horn shot a beam of magical energy towards the sky above, disappearing within the clouds. Several seconds had passed before the snow stopped falling, the snow clouds in the sky started to thin as the storm vanished completely.

"Not bad for an old colt, huh?" Lord Tundra asked, looking for approval from Lady Frost.

"You mean a dumb colt." Lady Frost corrected him.

"Dumb!" Lord Tundra snapped, sounding offended.

Lady Frost did not entertain him with further words as she moved towards the carriage to formally welcome their guests to the Kingdom. Carefully opening the carriage door just a bit, Lady Frost could feel a noticeable degree of warmth inside; no doubt General Hearth's fire keeping the inside relatively warm.

"The storm is gone every pony, it is… less cold out here now." Lady Frost said, sounding apologetic.

The carriage door opened all the way as Applejack, Rarity, Fluttershy, Twilight, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, Spike and General Hearth stepped out into the icy road. As expected, there were shivers that overtook the ponies. It was obvious to every Ice Pony that formal introductions and tours should be held off until they were inside the castle.

"This way every pony." Lady Frost said quickly, ushering them towards the large Ice Sculpted doors.

No pony wasted any time in following Lady Frost into the Castle, although General Hearth stayed behind. His reason for being here was elsewhere in the Frozen North, to reconnect with his family that had ventured north to escape the Mad King's rage.

"We weren't expecting any Flame Ponies." Commander Sleet stated approaching him.

"I've come for a visit." Hearth replied simply.

"Commander Sleet, I would like to introduce you to the Ashen Fields own Commander, General Hearth." Lord Tundra announced strolling up to the two of them.

"Retired." Hearth added.

"Hearth? Warrick Hearth?" Commander Sleet asked, looking quite flabbergasted.

"The very same." Hearth replied.

"I don't believe it! This is extraordinary!" Commander Sleet exclaimed taking Hearth's hoof and shaking it.

"What is?" Hearth asked curiously.

"Coal believed you dead! This is unbelievable! He'll absolutely flip when he sees you!" Commander Sleet exclaimed.

"Coal? So my brother is still alive?" Hearth asked, surprised that one of his brothers was still bucking.

"All of them are! The Hearth family and mine have had many wondrous years together!" Commander Sleet stated in excitement.

"I-I-I don't follow." Hearth stated, still overwhelmed at the news.

"Where do I begin? There is so much to talk about!" Commander Sleet stated, also at loss for words over this.

"When the Hearth family arrived in the Frozen North, they were taken in by the Sleet family to help them adjust to life here. Over the years the Hearth family has regained Nobility amongst our Ice Ponies and has invested back into our community with their insight and knowledge. The Hearth and Sleet families have been good friends ever since." Lord Tundra explained.

"It's about to become a single family, for your nephew is marrying my daughter next week!" Commander Sleet exclaimed joyfully.

Hearth had no words. Everything being said seemed so foreign to him. The family he had once known was just a memory now, their lives had continued while his had been static for so long. It was clear to both Commander Sleet and Lord Tundra that Hearth would need time to process this, but more importantly reconnect with his family.

"Lord Tundra, with your permission, I would like to be General Hearth's personal escort." Commander Sleet requested.

"I think that would be a fine idea." Lord Tundra said nodding his head.

"You will come to my home, where you will be welcomed by my family as well as your own. We shall have a feast tonight in your honor and celebrate the return of a forgotten hero." Commander Sleet said.

"Hero?" Hearth asked in disbelief.

"Everything will be made clear, but first, let me take you home." Commander Sleet said, ushering Hearth towards the ramp leading down from the castle.

Inside the castle every pony began to notice that the temperature was a bit warmer. Staunches of fire were set up, several fire pits had been set up to provide them with warmth, but to an extreme that nearly every room in the Kingdom seemed to have heat. The Main Hall itself had no less than twenty different pyres of fire that warmed the room, which made the frost melt from the walls and the ceiling.

"Isn't… isn't the castle going to melt?" Spike asked curiously.

"Sweet Celestia, no, little dragon. The castle is made from marble and stone, the ice is merely a layer." Lady Frost said with almost a laugh.

"I hope you didn't go through all this trouble just for us." Rarity said, sounding apologetic.

"No trouble it all, we entertain other nobility from foreign lands from time to time and provide them with the same level of comfort. It is merely a matter of preparation." Lady Frost explained.

"So you don't mind that everything is melting?" Rainbow Dash asked curiously, watching water drip from the ceiling.

"Believe it or not, we tend to have an excess of ice build-up within the castle and need to remove it before it becomes a problem. Doing this will only be beneficial to us in the long run." Lady Frost replied.

"My Lady, the King's sculptures are melting at an alarming rate." A Royal Ice Pony guard reported, hurrying towards her.

"Let them melt." Lady Frost said coldly.

"But… My Lady…" The Royal Guard said slowly.

"I want to see puddles." Lady Frost said with an icy voice.

The Royal Guard nodded in his understanding before rushing off. Lady Frost had a smile on her face, as if winning some sort of long standing battle. The large ice doors to the Main Hall shut closed following Lord Tundra's entry. Strolling past the ponies to Lady Frost he looked about at all the melted ice in the room.

"Are the Guards taking care of my sculptures?" Lord Tundra asked, sounding concerned.

"Of course dear, you have nothing to worry about." Lady Frost said cheerfully.

---

The Kingdom of Naught was deathly quiet in its stillness. Unseen wind blew the fields of dust like waves in water. Fractured light in the far off distance gleamed, offering a sense of space in the blackness. A muffled thump echoed throughout the Void, shaking the ground, and unsettling some of the creatures that rested within the shadows.

Within Mira's cave nearly every stone jar had been knocked from the shelves. Bits of rock sheered from the cave walls. The ground had shattered leaving several places of uneven dirt. I stood within the epicenter of the explosion. My wings had shielded me from the blast. Cautiously peering out to see what sort of damage I had caused.

"I told you to focus!" Mira's voice snapped at me.

A black orb of magic hovered before me. It began to dissipate revealing Mira within; her markings shining in response to the use of her shadow magic.

"I was." I insisted.

I felt Mira's small hand strike me across the face. Normally, I would protest this sort of treatment, but seeing as I was responsible for nearly destroying her home I felt I had that one coming.

"Try again." Mira instructed.

Letting out a loud sigh, I complied. Keeping my hooves apart, knees slightly bent, I closed my eyes and took in a deep breath. Mira had begun teaching me Black Magic, it was the only magic she knew, and I was failing to grasp what she called the simplest of spells. I was to merely construct a magical orb from shadows, but every attempt I made ended with an explosion.

I'm not sure how long we had been training. There was no semblance of time here. Whenever we got tired, we would rest. Whenever we got hungry, we ate; reluctantly. I had lost track of the days but it didn't seem to matter. What did matter was my inability to perform a single spell competently, but with all of my failings, Mira continued to push me to do even the slightest bit better. Needless to say, slightest wasn't even close to how little I improved.

There was a force that surged through my body. Energy that swirled through my mind, but it had no means of escape. My forehead began to throb again, my magic attempting to reach out through my nonexistent horn.

There came a sudden flash of light, erupting from my forehead, blowing me off my hooves and sending me slamming back against the wall. I was slow to get to my hooves. My head was thriving with pain. I could hear Mira sighing, sounding very annoyed with me.

"Are you even trying?" Mira asked.

"Of course I'm trying!" I snapped, surprised at the notion I was merely half flanking it.

"It's a simple spell! Orb! Shadow!" Mira shouted back.

I watched Mira hold up her hands, the markings on her arms began to glow as two shadow orbs within her palms immediately sprang up. I knew that complaining would only end in another fight, but the truth of it was that Mira had a lot more practice with it then I did.

"Can't you just teach me something other than Black Magic?" I asked hopefully.

"Shadow Magic, or Black Magic as you ponies call it, is the opposite of Light Magic; the magic you ponies use in abundance. So no, I can't teach you how to use it." Mira began to explain, the shadow orbs popping like bubbles in her hands.

My head was still pounding. I swayed on the spot, supporting my head, grinding my teeth at the pain my head was feeling. I listened to what Mira had to say carefully, knowing that I would be asked to try again very soon.

"Light Magic will feed off of love and joy; it is what makes ponies so powerful. Shadow Magic feeds off of hate and anger, something that ponies tend to avoid." Mira continued.

"Anger and hate can corrupt you." I said, sounding annoyed.

Mira floated towards me. Pointing her finger right in my face, her eyes in straight stare; as if she was looking right through me.

"There's bad in you, it's in your blood; son of the Mad King." Mira stated. "Now you can deny it, and you can run from it all you want, but that bad will always be there."

"I'm nothing like him!" I shouted in protest.

The flames of my mane flared. A force of magic emanated from my hooves, like a ripple, slamming all the loose dirt and debris up against the caves walls. For all my bolstering, Mira had made her point, my anger gave me focus; my magic responded to it.

"Remember what you're feeling right now. Put it inside you so you can learn to control it and live by it." Mira instructed me.

I watched Mira raise her hands to me once more, palms up. I could see black flames starting to form within her hands. The flames started to grow in size; the fire flaring wildly. I stepped away from it. The fire flaring aggressively, its power growing just as much as its size, and yet she seemed to have complete control over it. Mira closed her hands into fists extinguishing the flames. I noticed that Mira's face had remained unchanged.

"You don't need to express anger or hatred, you just need to feel the rage and channel it." Mira stated.

There was a part of me that knew this to be true. With my battle with the Orc I had felt myself give into that anger, that hatred that I had tried to suppress. I felt powerful; unstoppable. Even so, without Mira's intervention I would have surely been consumed by it. My flames started to diminish. I calmed myself, knowing that Mira had made her point.

"So... you can't teach me any Light Magic?" I asked, hoping for something a little less strenuous.

I heard Mira hiss at me. Her hands trying to slap my face as I raised my hooves to defend myself from her onslaught.

"Even if I could, the Void devours anything with light!" Mira snapped at me.

"Well this isn't working!" I stated.

"It's because of your stupid horn!" Mira shouted poking me hard on the forehead.

"It's not my fault!" I shouted back.

"It's entirely your fault! It's your stupid horn!" Mira yelled, throwing her hands in the air.

"I can't just make it grow!" I shouted, feeling my flames plume with anger.

"Of course you can!" Mira shouted, reaching out her hands as if to strangle me.

I did not respond right away. It came as a surprise to me that Mira really believed that I could just grow my horn.

"H-H-How?" I asked.

Mira face palmed herself. She muttered words in a language I had never heard before, and I was sure none of them were good but were all about me. She hovered around in small circles for a bit, I decided to wait patiently for her to speak.

"Were you born with those wings?" Mira asked after a while, pointing to my back.

"No, they came in later." I replied, looking over my shoulder at them.

"How?" Mira asked, crossing her arms.

"Uh…" I mumbled, thinking back on it.

My thoughts brought me back to my fight with my father. Being incased in stone was a bit hazy for me, but the image of my mother had stuck with me. I had told Wingston of my experience and dismissed my ideas of it being my actual mother trying to reach out to me. Rather, it was merely my mind projecting my heart's desire to see her in my last moments.

"I… was… uh… statue." I muttered, unsure of how to explain it.

"A what?" Mira asked having a look of confusion.

"I was trapped, cemented in rock." I explained. "I had this… this… vision of my mother."

Mira didn't interrupt me, which mean that I could continue with my explanation.

"She spoke to me… I think. I felt my fire grow and when I escaped my tomb I… I had wings." I said, unsure of it myself.

"What did she say?" Mira asked.

"Um…" I began, trying to think back on it. "I… I love you."

I felt myself shift uneasily at Mira's look of disgust at my words. It was true that it felt sappy, but it what I heard; or at least wanted to hear.

"That's it?" Mira asked.

"Yeah, then I broke free and I had wings." I said.

"You just had wings?" Mira poised my statement as a question to me.

"What else do you want?" I asked feeling like this wasn't going anywhere.

"What were you feeling?" Mira asked, ignoring my question.

"I-I-I don't know… pain? Anger? Loss or something?" I asked, unsure of my own answer.

"I would bet that you've felt all of these feeling before when you didn't have wings?" Mira asked, sounding interested.

"Yeah, I would say so." I agreed with her.

"Did you talk to her?" Mira asked curiously.

"I-I-I couldn't move. I really wanted to but…I barely got out two words… just before she disappeared." I said, thinking back on it.

"What were they?" Mira asked.

I shifted uncomfortably, knowing that my response wasn't too much better.

"Goodbye, Mom." I said with a heavy heart.

"Well that was it." Mira said in a decisive voice.

"What was it?" I asked curiously.

"The reason you got your wings." Mira replied, pointing to my wings.

"What? What do you mean?" I asked, not understanding.

I watched as Mira floated down closer to me. Her finger touched my chest, right around the area where my heart would be. She tapped it a few times to signify the answer I was looking for.

"There's something inside you that's keeping you from getting your horn. You're fighting with yourself, your magic is trying to get out but you're holding back." Mira explained to me.

"But I've been trying to cast magic all day." I stated, not convinced.

"Look where that got you." Mira remarked floating away.

"I don't understand any of this." I mumbled, rubbing the sides of my head.

I felt Mira's hand strike me upside the head. I leaned away, annoyed at this, but Mira leaned in to glare at me all the same.

"Do I have to spell it out for you? You accepted it." Mira stated to me.

"Accepted it?" I asked.

"That your mommy was dead, gone forever, never coming back!" Mira shouted at me.

I stared at her. At a loss for words. Mira didn't seem to have trouble finding any.

"You're wings were a result of you freeing yourself mentally, and emotionally, which triggered a physical response, your wings, and allowed you to grow as a pony in the process." Mira explained further.

I lowered my head. There was a twinge of pain in my heart over these words. It was true that I had come to peace with the notion that I wasn't going to ever see her again, but I had chosen not to use such words to describe the reason. Mira had painted the picture prettier clear which my heart could not, but it was true nonetheless.

I wasn't sure if Mira took notice of my pain, or if she even felt the slightest bit of remorse for being so blunt about my mother. Although, she did give me some space and time to think about what she had said and busied herself with fixing her stone jars. If what she said was true, and I would be hard pressed to find a better explanation for it, I needed to find out what was stopping me from growing a horn.

"What… do I need to do?" I asked slowly.

"What are you asking me for?" Mira questioned me, picking up a stone jar.

"How am I supposed to find out what's stopping me from growing a horn?" I asked again.

"Probably the same way you got your wings." Mira suggested.

"I have to be a statue again?" I asked miserably.

"No! Stupid Flame Pony!" Mira shouted in frustration.