The Sun and the Clover

by BG9

The Nine Sisters of Avalon

Vignette watched as this mis slowly began to part giving way to Avalon. The boat slowly puttered forward to the creepy looking island with Anon's school friends, Bonbon, Lyra, Trixie, and Coloratura on the hull. Flim stood by Valencia's side, his golden spear in hand.

"Are you ready for this, my lady?" he asked

"Yes. I have no choice."

"Then I will steer us in. If you feel even a twinge of doubt, I'll turn the boat around."

"Thank you." she said "Flim?"

"Yes?"

"Why are you doing this for me?"

"Because of my loyalty to Nightmare Moon. You know that."

"What makes you so loyal to her?"

"You ought to know that answer to that. She's charismatic, she's a natural born leader-"

"No, Flim." she said with a groan "I mean what inspired you to follow her in the first place?"

Flim looked surprised, stroking his chin

"What's with the sudden curiosity?"

"I just want to know. We could very well be condemned to a fate worse than death after this. I want to know why you'd risk that for me, even if it is in service of Nightmare Moon."

Flim walked to the side of the boat

"I and my brother were some of the few people left alive who knew what she was like before she turned into Nightmare Moon. She was a shy and awkward sort, normally kept her head down and didn't speak."

"Wait. So that means you knew Clover the Clever? And Celestia too. How on earth have you remained alive so long?"

"It's thanks to my brother. His vampire blood makes him practically immortal. He can still be killed by a sword to the gut like anyone else of course, but beyond that he'll live on eternally. When I was near death he gave me his blood, allowing me to stand here breathing today."

"How did that not make you a vampire as well?"

"It's due to my nature as a werewolf. Nobody knows why, but I can take on certain aspects of being a vampire like functional immortality without needing to drink blood or burning in the light of day."

"Incredible." she said

Flim didn't respond to that, instead just looking down.

"But anyway, continue." she urged

"The long and short of it is that she saved my brother and I. We grew up hard as orphans and she took us in, raised us. Even after she turned she never forgot that commitment to us. Deep down she's got a heart larger than life. To achieve her goals I will be called on, as well as my brother. And I will endure until then."

"What is her end goal?"

Flim looked at her for a while

"It's... not a thing I fear you could understand."

"Try me."

"Her goal is to eradicate magic from this world. She will call upon the devil to bring upon the end of magic."

"The devil..." Valencia said, remembering back to the time they freed Songbird "She spoke about that. But eradicate magic? Why do such a thing?"

"Because magic is a force of evil and cause of conflict. Despite what we're taught, magic time and time again has been used to wage horrific wars and allowed people to engage in evil experimentation. Man is not ready for this power."

"How does she plan to do that?"

"That is a question for Nightmare Moon, herself. Even I am not fully aware of the plan, only that at some point in the future I will be asked to give my life to see it realized."

Vignette clenched her fist

"Does she plan to ask me to do the same? What happens if I don't want to give up my brithright?"

"I won't lie. Either myself or one of Nightmare Moon's warband will be forced to kill you."

"Well.. let's hope it doesn't come to that."

"Lets."

The boat parked just off the shore of the island allowing her to get a good picture of it for the first time. It was covered in tall green trees and plants, completely overgrown. It was hard to believe that the nine most powerful witches to have ever lived in a place like this. The two of them got out and walked into the dense tree line. The trees and plants seems to part of their own accord, making a clear path. No doubt they knew they were here. They followed the path to its destination, listening to the sound of the various animals singing their songs. At the end of the path they saw what looked to be a a large stone longhouse with a roof of hay. It was something straight out of the middle ages. As Vignette caught sight of it, she felt a deep chill corse down her spine. She remembered all the stories she was told about them as a kid. How any deal with them ended in disaster. How they condemned people to horrible and grim fates like skinning them alive or feeding them to wild dogs or worse. She was sure whatever deal they preposed, she'd come out the loser and lose majorly. But she couldn't bring herself to stop, even if every bone, ever nerve in her being wanted her to run away and not look back. She and Flim walked to the door and knocked. A voice came from just past the trees.

"Well girls, it seems our guest has arrived a tad early hasn't she?" a voice giggled

"Yes. Shall we great her?" another said

"Don't play games with me." Vignette said, trying to hide the shaking in her voice "My name is Vignette Valencia, rightful heir to the throne. I have fulfilled my end of the bargain and demand you do the same."

"So demanding." a third voice said

Three figures emerged from the tree line wearing pitch black cloaks and large pointy witch hats. There was a tall one, standing at least fifteen feet tall with a large oak staff, a second one stood at her shoulders, looking to be mid twenties, and a short one that couldn't be more than a teen. But Vignette knew better. They were notorious tricksters, able to shape shift into whatever form suited them best. Some theorized they were not human at all, but demons who dawned human flesh.

"Greetings." the tall one said "Allow us to make introductions. My name is Autumn Blaze. The one beside me is Lemon Zest. And of course, our youngest sister, Radiant Hope. I presume you've got the friends of the Clover's Successor?"

Valencia felt her self begin to shake. Two of the most dangerous sisters stood before her. Autumn Blaze was the second oldest and was said to command the very concept of poison and plague. It was thought one of her main hobbies was sending her rats to infest villages with the black death, just for her own amusement. Lemon Zest was thought to be fifth oldest and was nicknamed 'queen of the dead'. King Arthur himself had to fight off an army of corpses she raised nearly ten thousand strong. Even the most accomplished mages of this age or the previous ones had trouble maintaining more than ten thralls at a time. Not only that, Zest was the only mage known to be able to bring the dead's personality back, and thus have them able to use their own magic abilities. Radiant Hope, however, had made little mark.

"As agreed. They're in the boat off the shore. You can retrieve them as soon as you give me the information I need."

Vignette blinked and suddenly all of Anon's friends were at the feet of the sisters. She turned her head to side to side in shock. She didn't even feel so much as a change in the air current.

"I'd suggest you watch your tongue lady." Autumn said "You're liable to bite it off making demands like that."

"We are not vassals of your court, nor servants of the house." Lemon Zest continued "You shall address us with the respect we're owed."

Vignette couldn't hold back the shakes now. It was as though they exuded an aura of malice and murder.

"N-now," he teeth chattered "How do I become queen?"

Autumn pointed left her arm extending far longer than any human arm should be able to.

"The west." Autumn said

"Head to the west and find the Tomb of the Old Lords." said Zest "There everything will be made clear."

"This isn't what we agreed. You said you'd tell me how to beco-"

In the blink of an eye, Autumn's face was right against Valencia's, with a look of anger and hatred.

"You don't make the rules here, welp. Make a demand of us again and I'll use your eyes for my broth."

Her heart rate sky rocketed and she went like a deer in the headlights. For the first time in her life, the great Vignette Valencia was scared stiff.

"Now. Off!" she yelled, waving the staff in her face

Her yelled sent a shockwave, shaking the trees and plants across the entire island. She and Flim made haste back to the boat and quickly sped off. The moment they were far enough away, Vignette sank to the ground and sobbed. By pure coincidence, Nightmare Moon was just arriving, spying the boat in the distance. She touched down in the same place Valencia had arrived, hopping off Discord who promptly turned back into a human form. Nightmare Moon took a deep breath, feeling the vibrant air fill her lungs for the first time in centuries.

"How many centuries has it been?" she asked herself

"Not enough if you ask me." Discord replied

"Well we can't turn back now. Let's go." she said

They began walking down the same path Vignette had treaded through not minutes earlier. Nightmare looked back to discord, a finger on her jaw.

"By the way. Have we heard back from Tempest Shadow yet? I sent her out to do some recon on Anon's group."

"We haven't in days no that you mention it."

"That's troublesome. Anyone we can spare to check on her?"

"No one we have that's capable of finding her. We'll just have to hope for the best unless we go after her ourselves."

"We'll have to do that then. But first, the Sisters."

In the west, Adagio, Sonata, and Aria had made a camp by the old fortress, atop the side of a mountain that overlooked the place. The fort itself was built into the side of the mountain adjacent, consisting of a tall outer wall, a large courtyard, and a giant tower. Despite it being abandoned for thousands of years, the stone hadn't so much as chipped or cracked. It looked as though it hadn't been deserted for more than a few hours. The three hadn't made camp in the fort due to the powerful magic barrier that surrounded the place. No mage had yet been able to break it down. No doubt Anon would be able to, if anyone could. Adagio sat looking at it as the sun sank into the horizon. There was something so peaceful about the whole thing, so quiet. Her ears perked up. Quiet. In a forest. She listened as hard as she could. Even with her specialized siren ears, ears that could hear for miles off even in her human form, for any sound. Nothing. No pattering of small creature paws, no insect wings buzzing, no fish splashing in the pound near the fort. Dead silent. Adagio got chills down her spine. Something was very, very wrong. She turned to her sisters.

"Sonata, Aria. Be on alert."

"What's wrong, Adagio?" Sonata asked innocently

"Listen. Do you hear that?"

Sonata tilted her head up and cupped her ear

"I don't hear anything."

"Exactly. It should be far more active right now."

Aria looked around as a thick gust of wind blew from what seemed like nowhere, extinguishing the fire. They all stood up, looking in the direction of the gust to see two glowing blue eyes in the darkness. All of Adagio's hairs stood on end. She could vaguely make out the shape of the creature lurking in the trees. It was a wolf, and a big one at that.

"Aria. Sonata. Stay close to me. It's the Amarok."

Sonata began to shake.

"Y-you mean," she gulped "The giant wolf from the Abyssal Trench that eat's hunters who travel alone and is impervious to magic?"

"The very one."

The Amarok slowly walked out of the shade of the treeline and into the light of the moon. It was huge, taller than all three of the girls standing atop the others shoulders and looked as thought it were made of some ethereal substance. The Amarok was an ancient beast, probably one of the first creatures to ever escape the Abyssal Trench and make its way into their world. The druids had worshiped it as thought it was a forest god and made regular offerings in its honor. It lifted it's head into the sky and let out a loud, sinister howl.

"W-what do we do Adagio?" Aria asked

They couldn't run. The wolf was connected with the woods itself, being known to teleport from point to point in seconds completely silently. But any magic based attack would simply course through it's half-corporeal form. They would have to fight it head on, a beast no man nor mage had bested in combat since it appeared.

"We fight. Let us sing."

They nodded. They began singing their sacred song. As they did so they began to transform into hideous beats. They looked like giant sea horses with fish tails, two horse legs, and the upper half of their bodies. The wolf waited patiently for the transformation to be complete, as though it were trying to respect some ancient code of honor. As soon as they were fully transformed, the wolf took and aggressive stance and charged. The girls dodged and each tried to strike it simultaneously. It was futile. The Amarok dodged with ease. It was far faster than the girls could ever hope to be. Aria began to sing again, using her special song-based magic to form a beam of light at the Amarok. Like Adagio had warned, however, the beam simply went right through it's body as if it weren't there at all. They were powerless.

"We have to run!" Sonata yelled, turning around

"No, Sonata don't!"

But it was too late. Fear had completely gripped Sonata and she began to race away. In the blink of an eye, the wolf had teleported on top of her, its jaws open, ready to tear her throat right out. It let out another sinister howl before going for the final strike.

"Conalteadh!" a voice yelled from the distance

The wolf glowed bright yellow for a moment and stopped, its jaws just centimeters from piercing Sonata's neck. Adagio and Aria looked to see who spoke. It was an old man with a beautiful fair skinned, autumn haired woman who appeared to show no emotion whatsoever. The old man had a large staff made of various animal bones with its tip consisting of elk antlers.

"Amarok." the man said with a powerful voice, slamming his staff into the ground "By the name of Rutherford, I demand you cease. An offering shall be made in three days time at this exact spot twice that of the girls."

Amarok looked at Rutherford and made a slight nod, vanishing into the night as quickly as it appeared. The sounds of the forest came back just as instantaneously. For now, the beast had left.

"Well if this isn't a surprise." he said, stroking his beard "Three sirens on sacred druid ground in a part of the world they aren't native too. To what business do you have here?"

"Who in the world are you?" Adagio asked "How did you get the wolf to stop attacking."

"My name is Rutherford, this is my wife Skystar. As for how I got Amarok to stand down, I simply used one of the five basic druid spells to channel the voice of nature through my throat. I will need to keep my promise however, that trick won't work twice." he said "But I forget myself. Who are you?"

The girls looked at one another, not sure what to say.

"How about this: You tell me your names and I'll give you shelter in Chalach, that fortress you see there."

"You can break the seal?"

"Why of course I can. Any druid worth his salt could do it with his eyes closed. Unless of course you want to spend the night with ole Amarok again."

Adagio sighed. They had no choice. The three began reverting into their human forms.

"My name is Adagio, the one with pig tails is Sonata, and the one who nearly got eaten is Sonata."

Sonata rushed to Adagio's side, hugging her tight.

"Adagio!" she cried, tears running down her face

"Shhh. There there. It's alright."

"Come with me then." said Rutherford "I'll give you protection and a place to stay on one condition: you help me prepare the offering to Amarok."

Comments

[redandready45]

Why you gotta make Autumn Blaze evil Knievel?