Chapter 3
“Tell me, Flurry, what can you sense? Tell me anything and everything. What can you observe from your surroundings in your current state?”
With every word spoken, Flurry’s ears twitched and Sunburst could see her wings fidget against her sides. She was a visceral creature, Flurry Heart: not one for prolonged bouts of thinking, but good for swift action. Flurry was a warrior through and through—and a proven one now at that—but warriors didn’t have to be stupid. Shining Armor was a canny warrior and Sunburst hoped that Flurry might take after her father… perhaps, with time and maturity. Sunburst clung to his sunny optimism and hoped that Flurry might surprise him now that she was put on the spot. When she began sniffing, Sunburst stepped back and waited for her report.
“I smell wood shavings,” Flurry began, and her nostrils flared wide. “Somepony has been sharpening pencils, I think. Sunburst, Starlight washed your cloak, I can tell, because she puts lavender oil into her laundry, because that’s how Twilight likes the laundry to be done. I can also smell woodsmoke, and I know that’s coming from Spike. Sumac is near because he has that musky, sweaty colt smell. I can hear the sound of fabric against hair and the wind is moving against my face at a speed relative to a slow walk.”
While all of this was impressive, it was all physical senses, and nothing that Sunburst had hoped for.
“Wait…” Flurry’s ears pricked and the filly strained to listen to something. “I can hear my mother’s voice. She’s distant, and above me, so she is probably on a balcony somewhere. She is… she is… talking—no, she is whispering with Luna because she doesn’t want to be heard. They are discussing Sinister and Luna is trying to get my mother’s help to convince Dim about something. Also, Skyla just cracked one off.”
How did she do that? Incredulous, Sunburst cast a side-eyed glance at the palace, which was quite a distance away. In the darkness, he couldn’t see anything, and he had no way of knowing if Flurry was telling the truth. But if she was… if Flurry could actually hear her mother’s distant voice, that was incredible.
“Skyla!” Sleet’s voice rang out, piercing the night. “A nanny could just die! Oy vey, you cracked an egg, you little stinker!”
With his ears pricked and a smile on his face, Sunburst stood still—rigid—so he could listen to Sleet wail and lament her situation while Spike giggled. Flurry’s physical senses were amazing, but Sunburst was disappointed because that was all she had registered. Not one mention of magic. A lecture would have to come later, perhaps. Or she might pull through, he was hopeful.
“Also, somepony is using magic, I can both hear and smell it happening. A horn is being charged up.” With that final statement, Flurry went silent, then stood there with her nostrils flared wide.
Maybe with some time, Sunburst hoped, she might have more to say. “Chartreuse, what about you? What can you sense around you?”
Sunburst was surprised by the sudden tingle that overcame his face, and his eyes were dazzled by brilliant light. It was a gentle touch, though it did leave his glasses askew. A moment later, there was a tug on his goatee, followed by Chartreuse’s enthusiastic laughter. Sunburst too, found himself chuckling, caught up in the magic of the moment, this time of discovery.
“I can sense you, Master Sunburst, and I can feel your glasses and your goatee. It is very, very difficult, but after listening to Dim’s advice, I can actually feel the individual hairs on your chin, though I don’t think I could count them. The details that I can feel match the memory of you I have in my mind.”
The creeping prickle moved down Sunburst’s neck, over his scarf, until it found the clasp of his cloak, and Chartreuse said, “I know what this is. It’s the puzzle clasp for your cloak. It exercises your telekinesis with each use. When we first met, I had trouble opening it. Now I find it quite simple.”
When the glow departed, Sunburst watched as it settled upon Flurry, who squirmed.
“This must be Flurry, I think. She’s ticklish. This is actually harder than I thought and this might be Sumac. They both have a horn, and wings, but wait… Flurry is heavier and far more solid than Sumac—”
“Thanks a lot!”
“Oh, don’t mention it, Flurry, and thank you for speaking. I felt your mouth move and I heard your voice, which confirms that this is actually you.”
“Did I just get duped?” Flurry asked as she stood there, slack jawed.
When Sumac laughed, Flurry let out a huff of righteous indignation but could do nothing to defend herself. The glittery glow lept from Flurry and seemed to be searching, moving around, a cloud of light and crackling energy. It found Sumac, overtook him, and Chartreuse began to examine his features with her telekinetic touch.
“I have found the charming rogue,” Chartreuse announced. “Flurry’s face is rounder while Sumac has fine features. He is slimmer—I would call him willowy but that is not flattering to his gender. Normally, he wears glasses, round ones like you, Sunburst, but right now he is wearing a blindfold, so his most distinguishing feature is missing. I can also feel a scar on his jaw, one hidden beneath his pelt. The hairs lay in a different direction in one tiny spot.”
“Applejack’s barn.” Sumac offered no further explanation.
“I am exhausted.” Chartreuse’s magic expired even as she spoke and her horn spat out a shower of sparks. “Trying to sense that much detail… I cannot keep going, I’m sorry—”
“It’s fine, Chartreuse.” Sunburst did his best to sound reassuring. “You did well and I am impressed by your efforts. Your magical endurance, it shows improvement and I can tell that you’ve been making an effort to do better.”
“It shows?”
“Yes, Chartreuse.”
“Thank you.”
Taking a deep breath, Sunburst turned his head to study a blindfolded Sumac. Flurry had extraordinary senses, no doubt amplified by magic and Sunburst was still wondering if she could hear her mother’s voice from this great distance. It seemed possible, for sure. Chartreuse showed promise and it was obvious that she had been hanging on Dim’s every word, learning how to observe fine details with her telekinetic touch from him. So far, two of his students showed promise of exceptional extrasensory ability.
“Okay, Sumac… I want you to reach out with your mind… and wow us. I know what you are capable of, so no excuses and no slacking off, or I’ll tell Lemon.” When Sunburst heard a worried gulp, his smile broadened just a tiny bit, and became a good-natured smirk.
“I can’t always control this so well… my magic has become erratic,” the colt warned and his orange tongue flicked over his lips. “It’s puberty, messing with me. Be ready with food and drink.”
“Sumac?” Sunburst felt the first pang of worry, a pressing sense of concern for his student. Sumac was usually so confident in his abilities, boastful even, and his warning almost seemed out of character.
“I’ll be fine, just be ready to revive me if something goes a little too right.”
Brows furrowing, Sunburst nodded and then thought about how stupid that was of him, because Sumac couldn’t see. At least Sumac was optimistic about things going right, and Sunburst was certain that this was Lemon’s influence on the colt. Like himself, Lemon believed in the best of the ponies around her, and her constant positivity left the world a sunnier place.
Just as he was about to say something, Sunburst was struck dumb by the sheer force that washed over him, some intangible presence that overloaded his own magic sense and left his horn smarting. Chartreuse cried out, Flurry whimpered, and Sunburst gritted his teeth. This was like standing too close to Celestia when she raised the sun. His eyeballs were vibrating in his sockets and the gristle in his ears buzzed in a manner most unpleasant.
“Twilight and Starlight are near… they’re watching—”
“Really?” Spike sounded alarmed to Sunburst’s ears. “I promised Twi I’d be right back! Oh no!”
“Twilight took great pains to conceal herself and Starlight, and while I can’t sense her directly, I can still sense the residual magic that she cast to hide her presence. There is still ice orc magic all around me… it hasn’t faded away yet. Dim is close… much closer than Twilight. His magic is distinctive because he is Void-touched. When I focus on him too much it burns my mind, because of his connection to the Infernium, the same plane that Vinyl draws her magic from. Speaking of Vinyl, she too, is watching and probably judging me. I can feel traces of Sombra’s magic here… it still pollutes the ground. There are astral presences about, powerful ones, and we are being watched even now.”
With a flap of her still-folded wings, Flurry let out an exasperated huff, followed by an angry outburst. “I don’t sense any of these things! For all I know, Sumac could be saying anything he wants and we have no good way to prove it right or wrong. At least Chartreuse was believable.”
Feeling dismayed, Sunburst’s mouth was pulled down into an uncharacteristic frown. Flurry’s outright denial was typical of how she coped with these sorts of situations. With a sigh, Sunburst shook his head from side to side while trying to collect his thoughts so that he might know what to say. Constructive criticism was hard sometimes.
“Flurry, I can tell exactly where you are standing. I can sense all of you, but your horn and your wings really stand out.”
“Oh yeah?” Flurry’s incredulous tone rang out in the darkness. “Prove it!”
Before Sunburst could react, Sumac reached out with one wing and slapped Flurry right across the face, and this was no light, playful slap either. It was a meaty collision, a hearty smack, and Flurry reeled backwards from the blow. Sunburst heard a gasp from Sleet, and somewhere, out in the darkness, a familiar laugh could be heard. Sunburst would have to have a polite chat with Dim later about not laughing at the misfortunes of others. Schadenfreude was just unkind and really, Sunburst believed that Dim was a better pony than that.
With a shriek, Flurry turned on Sumac, but he was already gone, sidestepping her. Flurry’s own wing slap landed on nothing but air, so she tried again, and again, but Sumac kept ducking away with a casual, unhurried calm. Sunburst was about to say something, but he felt claws on his leg. Looking down, he saw Spike looking up at him. When had Spike drawn so close?
“Trust in their friendship,” Spike whispered. “This needs to happen, I think. This is a language that Flurry understands.”
Then, just as Spike said the word, ‘understands,’ Sumac landed another punishing blow on Flurry’s cheek, followed by a second that landed square on her hindquarters. Dim’s rollicking laughter rebounded through the darkness, and Sunburst’s mouth moved, but no words seemed forthcoming.
Sumac utterly lacked raw strength and combat prowess, but had cunning, intellect, and speed. Flurry was a brute—Sunburst didn’t want to think that Flurry was dumb… and she wasn’t—but Flurry was a physical thinker and not a mental one. She wasn’t one for cerebral pursuits, but excelled in all things action. Sunburst was terrified that one of his students might get hurt, but… there might be a lesson to be learned here.
“Hold still, Professor Egghead!” Flurry slashed with her wings but connected only with empty air, because Sumac was behind her. “Hold still and take what is coming to you!”
Sunburst saw her ears pivot around and shivered with terror.
“Why would I want to do that?” Sumac’s words were almost his undoing, and Flurry bucked out in his general direction.
This was a near-miss, and Sunburst wasn’t sure if his nerves could take it.
Sumac was circling now, silent, and Flurry’s ears rotated, trying to hone in on him. Sunburst watched with dreadful anticipation and could not help but think that Flurry was a predatory animal while Sumac was more like prey—but what wily prey Sumac was. The colt whistled, a somehow mocking sound, and Flurry fired off a blast of magic.
Much to Sunburst’s relief, it bounced harmlessly off of a shield that Sumac raised in just the nick of time. Sumac whistled again, and Flurry lobbed off another shot. What was Sumac doing? Sunburst didn’t understand, but combat was strange to him and violence was some vast, unexplored frontier. Again, Sumac whistled and within seconds, Flurry responded with another well aimed blast.
Suddenly, the night air was filled with whistling, which seemed to come from all directions, a veritable cacophony of shrill sound. Flurry’s ears quivered for a moment, overloaded, and pinned back to her head. She froze and Sunburst realised that her primary advantage in this situation was lost, undone by a simple ventriloquism spell that Flurry didn’t seem to know how to counter.
Leaping in, Sumac landed a flurry of blows upon Flurry, smacking her face on both sides.
It was like watching a dragon be undone by a mosquito. Flurry recoiled from the many blows, and unable to go on the offensive, she raised her wings to protect her face from Sumac’s stinging slaps. This continued for a time, until Flurry shielded her face with one wing while trying to feel around with the other. Sumac retreated, light on his hooves, a terrible grin could be seen on his face when he used his telekinesis to grab his friend by the tail.
When he gave it a sharp yank, she cried out, whirled around, and tripped over her own legs. With Flurry down, collapsed in a heap, Sumac stepped in and pounded out a quick staccato rhythm on her backside, beating on her like bongos, and then pronking away before she could retaliate. With a roar, Flurry regained her hooves and then stood with her wings spread, still defiant.
“Sissy tail tugger!”
Chartreuse had retreated, and now stood with Skyla and Sleet a safe distance away.
Sumac stepped up his antagonism with arcs of lightning, zapping Flurry’s horn and her wings. She cried out from the painful jolts, but Sumac was relentless in his opportunistic assaults. The whistling continued, a bewildering sound, and again, Sunburst was tempted to end the fight. Looking down, he glanced at Spike, who still clung to his leg, and he could see the worried look on Spike’s face.
“Spike, are you okay?” Sunburst whispered to the anxious dragon.
“No,” Spike replied, shaking his head, “I’m watching my niece get humiliated. I want to go help her, but that wouldn’t be helping her at all.”
Sunburst knew that it was usually Sumac that was on the receiving end of a beating and the colt was no stranger to abuse. What must Sumac be thinking right now? Was he enjoying this? No, Sunburst decided. Sumac might be having a bit of fun, but the colt just wasn’t the type that would delight in Flurry’s suffering. When this was over, Sumac would be there to pick Flurry back up again, because the two of them were inseparable friends.
“Do you yield?” Sumac asked while he pronked around outside of Flurry’s physical reach and his voice could be heard from every conceivable angle.
“Never!” In defiance, Flurry finally raised a shield, something she should have done quite some time ago. Barrel heaving, she stood there, sucking wind while her tail slapped around her hind legs. “Once I figure out how to get my hooves on you, I’m gonna wring your scrawny neck!”
“Good luck with that, slowpoke!”
Now, it seemed that the two were at an impasse and Sunburst agonised over making a decision…
- The humiliation of the butt-bongo attack! Such savagery!
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Snerk...or this.
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Blargh, if Sumac was a little bit older…
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I was trying to eat cereal to restore my blood sugar. Now, I am dead.
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For some reason, I keep hearing Phil Collins, Coming In the Air Tonight...
Sumac is in his element here, Flurry barely has a chance.
Is this an archaic spelling of presences? I'm not finding it anywhere.
Fun story enjoyable. YES it is a little sad Flurry needs this lesson but better now than at a critical moment.
Silly FLURRY no one is going to stand still to let you throttle them
Sumac, I think, is teaching Flurry the lesson in a way she understands - actions.
flurry is an angry little unicorn.....
she likely could snap poor sunburst's head off
That chapter was awesome. Still laughing my head off
Clearly teaching young unicorns or alicorns is a rather dangerous task. At least nobody got turned into a potted plant... yet.
Did he make his Bardic Music check?
This fight scene was a pleasure to read. Good flow and entertaining.
She keeps this up she is going to need to change her name to Fury Heart.