Light and Darkness – The Shadow of Midnight

by Rakoon1

The Shaman

The winter advanced in a way that it didn’t take long for spring to announce its arrival. That was the busiest time of the year for fairies, as they had to prepare the fairy dust to then use it to revitalize the Enchanted Forest. Even the headmistresses had to divide their time between the academy and their responsibility to the realm. Fortunately, they could count with their staff to ease things.

The weekend that would predate the first day of spring was close and the students couldn’t help but feeling expectant with the beginning of a warmer season. The only setback was the end of the winter activities, but even that was promised by Apple Bloom to be solved, as she was planning in creating an indoor rink both for ice hockey and ice dancing.

During one of her Enchanted Music lessons, Sweetie Belle was conducting the class of older students that was playing their respective instruments, filling the room with musical magic, with notes floating around.

“That’s it!” she told to her students. “Let yourselves be filled by the music that you’re playing. Let it involve you.”

At that moment, she felt another dream vision. She saw the mountain region of the Enchanted Forest and, at the top of mountain, there was what appeared to be a temple. Inside, she saw a young pegasus mare with a moderate azure coat with a crescent moon surrounded by two curved feathers, a white and light phthalo bluish gray mane and brilliant cerulean eyes. After that vision, Sweetie Belle saw that the students had stopped and were looking at her a little worried.

“Is everything okay, Professor Sweetie Belle?” one of them asked.

“Yes, it is” Sweetie Belle replied. “If you don’t mind, I will end the class for today… But please I want you to keep practice. I don’t want any mistakes for this song next time.”

As soon the students got out, Sweetie Belle had Apple Bloom and Scootaloo getting in.

“Did you see her too?” Scootaloo asked.

“Yes, looks like we have another job” Sweetie Belle replied.

“But Ah don’t recognize dah place” Apple Bloom said. “Obviously it’s here at dah Enchant’d Forest, but that’s all Ah could get.”

“Yeah, me too” Scootaloo said. “Too bad we don’t know that much about the Enchanted Forest.”

“We may not know that much, but we work on an academy full of inhabitants of this realm” Sweetie Belle said. “We just have to ask to one of them.”

And so the Cutie Mark Crusaders went to the teachers room, where they found Ebony. They approached him for information, telling him about the place they have seen. Soon after they ended up describing the place, he said:

“Yeah, I know that place. It’s the Temple of Concord. It is located in a neutral location, so it doesn’t belong to any kingdom. It’s a sacred place that has been spared from the war between kingdoms. It is also the stage of the Concord Competition, a battle competition that takes place once a year at the end of winter to celebrate the Spring equinox.”

“Wait, you make battle competitions in a place called Temple of Concord?” Scootaloo asked. “I don’t get it.”

“The Concord Competition is like a way to keep a certain level of peace between the kingdoms, even the ones in war” Ebony explained. “Many inhabitants from the kingdoms across the Enchanted Forest go there to fight. The rules are very strict so that there’s no… incidents. I’ve already fought there a few times when I was younger. I wished I could fight this year.”

“And why is that?” Apple Bloom asked.

“Because this is the first competition since the main kingdoms are in peace” Ebony said. “Normally, there’s a lot of tension and there isn’t that many competitors. But this year there are many of them and, I have to say, it will more much friendlier. But why do you wanted to know about the Temple of Concord?”

The Cutie Mark Crusaders were expecting that kind of question, being that the reason why they already had an answer.

“Well, we were trying to find a good place to go during weekend here in the Enchanted Forest” Sweetie Belle replied. “I mean, we work here and yet we haven’t seen that much of it.”

“Yeah, and then Scootaloo heard a few students talkin’ ‘bout this competition an’ she got curious ‘bout it” Apple Bloom said.

“Hey, I love sports” Scootaloo said. “Ebony, could you tell us the way for the temple? We know that it is in the mountains, but we don’t know the exact location…”

“Of course” he replied.

Soon after they were free from their duties at the academy, the Cutie Mark Crusaders departed to the mountain region. Once getting to the temple, they found it full of ponies, griffons and deer. At that moment, a battle was happening between a female griffon and an earth stallion with a moderate scarlet coat with an Inca pyramid with one palm tree at each side as a Cutie Mark, a light gray mane and brilliant amber eyes, using a feathered necklace and earings.

“Wow, this place is crowded” Scootaloo said, taking flight in height to better see the fight that was happening.

The female griffon had been able to through the stallion to the floor. Using her wings to give impulsive, the griffon made a big jump and prepared to make a powerful kick. But the stallion was quick to join the hooves and a cloud of red smoke involved him. When the griffon hit the place, the stallion was gone. That really confused her.

“I can’t believe it” Scootaloo said. “That guy disappeared.”

“Ah thought magic was not allow’d” Apple Bloom said.

“Well, for what I could get to know, magic is not allowed if used directly against the opponent” Sweetie Belle said. “If that guy used magic, it was to escape the attack, so is not against the rules.”

Another explosion of red smoke appeared and, from it, the stallion came out, ready to give a kick to the griffon. She responded with another kick, with the two attacks colliding. The shock caused the two to fall on the floor. The griffon was the first to get up and, using that as an advantage, she attacked the stallion, putting him apparently unconscious.

Without her knowing, one of the stallion’s hooves glowed with an orange light and one of the stones that composed the ring and was under one of the griffon hind legs was risen slightly in a way that caused the griffon to start lose balance. After that, the stallion was risen from the floor a few hooves from the floor and then he advanced and gave her a kick that caused the griffon to fell off the ring. With that, he was declared the winner by the referee.

“Did you guys saw that?” Scootaloo asked. “How did he do it? He looked like he was done.”

“He used magic” Sweetie Belle said. “It was very discrete, but I was able to see it.”

“So we have a cheater in dah competition” Apple Bloom said. “So much fer respect here… Do ya think we should tell.”

“I don’t think it’s the best thing to do” Sweetie Belle said. “First, we don’t have actual prove that he cheated, and second we have to focus on what brought us here.”

“Ya’re right” Sweetie Belle said.

The pony that was presiding the competition came to the ring and then said:

“Dear brothers and sisters of the Enchanted Forest, as the head of the Temple of Concord, it is a great pleasure to announce you the semifinalists of this year tournament.”

The first one to appear was a big earth stallion.

“Stone Bane from Stonult.”

The second one was a slender unicorn female.

“Silver Drop from Evermist.”

An explosion of dust and the earth stallion that had won before appeared.

“The mysterious Shaman.”

At last, the one pony that the Crusaders were interested on appeared, with the head of the temple saying:

“At last but not least, Night Glider, from the kingdom of Obstang.”

“There she is!” Scootaloo exclaimed, pointing.

“We know, Scoots, but try not tah call any attention to us” Apple Bloom adverted.

And so the semifinals began. The first match was between Night Glider and Stone Bane. The two bowed respectfully towards each other and prepared to begin their match. Looking to the determination in her look, Sweetie Belle commented:

“She seems very sure of herself.”

Stone Bane was the first to attack, doing a rapid succession of attacks on Night Glider. But she was able to dodge all of them and even managed to land a kick on Stone Bane. That let him enraged and so he lunged at Night Glider with the same succession of hoof-attacks but she dodged them all once again and then managed to make a spin and cause the hulking brute to trip. But he wouldn’t go down that easily and so he picked himself up and charged Night Glider again but shed leaped over him and onto the other end of the ring. She blocked more of Stone Bane's attacks and, when she had an opening, she kicked him square in the face, knocking him out. With that, the head of the temple approached her and declared, while raising her hoof:

“Winner!”

And the crowd cheered. Even the ponies from Stonult, who just saw their competitor losing, gave their respects to Night Glider. After that, Apple Bloom sough the opportunity to approach Night Glider.

“Okay, gals, I’m going ahead. Ya try tah notice any sign ov anycreature that may work fer dah talent thief.”

They nodded and then Apple Bloom approached Night Glider and introduced herself:

“Howdy, Night Glider, mah name is Apple Bloom and Ah’m a Cutie Mark Crusader. Ah help ponies find their talent and make their dreams come true. Ah and mah friends were very impress’d an’ we would like tah help ya go far.”

“If you got impressed now, that’s because you’ve not see anything yet” Night Glide said. “At the final, I’ll be at my best. Now, if you excuse me, I need to get ready for the finals.”

But before she could go, Apple Bloom said to her:

“Ah know this may seem a little stupid request, but, are ya sure ya want tah win this competition?”

“Are you kidding?” Night Glide asked. “I’ve waited a long time for this. I have to restore my kingdom’s honor after our king refused to get in the Alliance when our jinchuriki was kidnapped. After I’ve won, everyone will see that Obstang is not a land of cowards.”

“Ah understand yer motivations and don’t ask me why, but we think ya might be in danger” Apple Bloom warned.

“What are you talking about?” Night Glide asked, not understanding Apple Bloom’s warning.

It was then that the second match was declared to begin. Before returning to her place, Apple Bloom said:

“Trust me.”

“I don’t like what you’re saying” Night Glide said, even more suspicious.

At that moment, Sweetie Belle appeared and told Apple Bloom:

“You’re going to scare her, Apple Bloom. Good luck, Night Glide.”

And so the young competitor moved away, while the two Crusaders returned to their places. The head of the temple declared, while the Shaman and Silver Drop got in the ring:

“And now the second semifinal will begin and decide who will face Night Glide.”

“Ah just hope Night Glide gets tah be okay” Apple Bloom said.

“We’ll keep an eye on her” Scootaloo said.

“And we’ll step in if needed” Sweetie Belle added. “But for now we don’t have any other choice but watch the competition.”

And they turned to the ring, where the second battle had begun. Silver Drop started the match by leaping into the air and diving down towards the Shaman, who remained sitting on the floor with his back hooves crossed, with a fierce kick. However, the Shaman is able to grab Silver Drop's hoof and calmly flip her with enough force to knock her out, winning the match with a single move. The head of the temple declared the Shaman the winer.

It didn’t take long for the final match to start. When the finalists were on the ring, the head of the temple said:

“The final will now begin. May the best fighter win.”

After they bowed to each other, Night Glider and the Shaman started the fight, leaping onto the large red beams that adorned the ring, where Night Glider unleashed a flurry of swift kicks at the Shaman, who dodged every single one. The two quickly leaped into the air again where another confrontation occured. This time, the Shaman managed to grab one of Night Glider's legs and hurled her across the ring but, luckily, she managed to grab onto one of the red beams and hops on top of it.

“Why doesn’t she uses her wings?” Scootaloo asked. “It would be so easy.”

“Because flyers can’t fly during the fights, so that it can be fair” Sweetie Belle said.

“Oh…” Scootaloo said. “Well, I guess that would be the main reason for me not compete here. I mean, that and the fact I can’t fight like that.”

The Shaman tried attacking this time but Night Glider dodged his kick. She faked out the Shaman with a quick kick towards his shoulder only to land a kick on his face. The two fell back to their respective beams and Night Glider lunged at the Shaman, unleashing another flurry of swift kicks. The Shaman blocked most of them until Night Glider broke through his defenses, kicking his face repeatedly. The Shaman became disoriented and Night Glider took the chance to land one final kick to his torso, causing the Shaman to plummet down onto the floor.

However, their fight was far from over and, when Night Glider landed back on the floor, she circled around the Shaman before unleashing another flurry of kicks when he stood back up. The Shaman blocked all of her kicks but was still disoriented from the fall which left him wide open for Night Glider to land another kick to his face. The Shaman quickly recovered and lunged at Night Glider but she dodged his punch and kicked him square in the face again, knocking him down.

She then leaped into the air and prepared to give the finishing blow, however, the Shaman made an evil smile and quickly pulled out a strange stone that released a bright orange light and created a puff of red smoke that involved both him and Night Glider and then unleashed a light that blinded everyone watching and, when it faded out, everyone saw that both Night Glider and the Shaman had both disappeared.

Everycreature was astonished by what just happened, but the Cutie Mark Crusaders quickly realized what happened and so they hasted to get out of the temple. After they saw they were alone, Apple Bloom said:

“If he wants tah take her tah Neverland, then dah Shaman couldn’t have gone far.”

“But how will we find him?” Scootaloo asked. “He can be anywhere.”

“Don’t worry ‘bout that” Apple Bloom replied, summoning her dreaming cloak.

She then approached a nearby bush and touched it, starting to focus. Using her wood nature, Apple Bloom was able to connect with the surrounding plant life.

“Ah feel…” she said, starting to see something. “Ah feel dah plants want tah show me somethin’.”

She could see that, not that far from there, Night Glide was lying on the grass, semi-conscious. The Shaman was beside her, smiling, and then he poured the young pegasus with pixie dust. While the dust was starting to make effect, she asked:

“What’s happening…? Where are you taking me…?”

And so she fell asleep. The Shaman then turned to the empty and shouted:

“Open the portal, hurry!”

A portal to Neverland opened. After seeing that, Apple Bloom broke the link and then said to the others:

“Night Glide is at the forest, but we need to worry.”

Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo also summoned their dreaming cloaks.

At the place where the portal opened, the Shaman made de asleep Night Glide to levitate and prepared her to cross the portal. The Crusaders were getting there, seeing what was happening.

“Night Glide!” Apple Bloom called. “Get away from her!”

And she caused roots to come out from the ground and attack the Shaman. He gave a big jump to avoid them. But that didn’t stop Night Glide from crossing the portal.

“NO!” the Crusaders shouted.

The portal started to close and the Shaman tried to reach it, but he didn’t get it on time and the portal closed before he could have a chance to cross it.

“The portal is closed” he said, turning then to the Crusaders. “You should have let me go. You made a huge mistake.”

And he got hold of four of the strange stones he had used previously.

“I must make you pay for it dearly” the Shaman told to the Crusaders.

He then started to throw the stones who then exploded like bombs, only to return then to him. The Crusaders used their super jumps to avoid the explosions or hit the stones with their attacks, but all that prevented them from approaching the Shaman. Tired of all that, Sweetie Belle turned to him and asked:

“Do you like to play with rocks?”

The Shaman didn’t reply to her, only throwing the stones to her. Sweetie Belle then said:

“Well, then, take this!”

And she used her swift nature to enhance her speed, using it to catch the stones and throw them back to the Shaman. He caught them, saying:

“Interesting challenge… But unfortunately, I can’t help myself.”

He then used the stones to create the red smoke with light to blind the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Despite he was able to blind them, he wasn’t able to prevent what happened next. A supersonic scream hit him hard and threw him against the ground. It was Sweetie Belle who had sent that scream and she asked, recovering from the light and approaching.

“Aren’t ya a little hurry tah leave?”

That irritated the Shaman who got up and made her stones levitate above his hoof, ready for the next attack.

“Step away, Crusaders!” he ordered them. “Don’t force me to use my strongest magic.”

“Bring it, Shaman!” Scootaloo replied.

He proceeded to create more explosions and when he saw his adversaries preparing to make a move on him, he let himself be clouded in the red smoke and disappear.

“Where did he go?” Apple Bloom asked.

Using her prodigy abilities, Sweetie Belle was able to sense the Shaman behind a tree.

“There!” she exclaimed, pointing.

Once discovered, the Shaman threw his rocks again, but Apple Bloom made roots appear toss them back to him who caught them. After a few more throws that proved to be unsuccessful, Scootaloo used gale nature on the Shaman, but he was quick to use a stone to create a dome of energy to protect himself. However, as soon it disappeared, Sweetie Belle used another supersonic scream that threw him down again.

“Got you!” Scootaloo said, launching electricity that surrounded the Shaman, forming some kind of prison.

The Shaman saw the Cutie Mark Crusaders starting to approach him. Angered at them, he threw another rock to the ground, creating more red smoke, and, when it cleared, he had disappeared.

“Those magic rocks…” Sweetie Belle said. “They give him an unending source of power.”

Suddenly, she heard steps that she recognized.

“Watch out!” she exclaimed.

They turned and saw the Shaman who threw his rocks again, but this time it created a big snake. It attacked the Crusaders viciously. They tried to dodge it, but it was too difficult. It was then that the snake was able to know down Scootaloo who fell close to the Shaman. The two of them looked to each other, but then she noticed Apple Bloom behind him.

“Now, Apple Bloom!” she exclaimed.

While Scootaloo used her light nature to stunt the Shamon, Apple Bloom created roots that pinned him against a tree, binding him there. The tried to use his stones again, but Sweetie Belle casted a gust of wind that made him drop them.

“You’re done” she said.

Without the stones, the snake he had summoned disappeared. The Crusaders approached the Shaman and Scootaloo said:

“Okay, punk, it’s time for you to give us some answers.”