My Little Pony: The Pyres of Friendship

by Scribe of the Nightwings

The Rite of the Faithful

Author's Note:

Apologies for the delay. Life tends to take up much of one's time.
Now, onto the story!

Chapter 6: The Rite of the Faithful

The following morning, the blackwagon was well on its way to the destination of the next Rite. According to Jodariel, it would take the rest of the day for the wagon to pass through a stretch of the Valley known as Fallflat before they would reach the location of the next Rite, the Spring of Jomuer. When Twilight tried to ask her more about the Spring, Jodariel simply stated that the alicorn would know it when she saw it. Though it was very cryptic, the purple mare took her word for it and went back to the window. As she watched the landscape pass by, the purple mare’s eyelids felt heavier and heavier until she finally decided to rest her eyes before she and the rest of the group arrived at the Spring.

---

“READER…”

“IT’S TIME WAKE UP, READER. YOU HAVE A RITE TO PARTICIPATE IN AND ULTIMATELY FAIL…”

“WAKE UP, TWILIGHT!”

---

Twilight’s head shot up from its resting spot on the window as she opened her eyes. The alicorn looked around the wagon to find it was strangely empty. Her frantic eyes finally landed on Applejack looking right at her. “Wh-What?” the alicorn mumbled as she was trying to make sense of what was happening.

“I said to wake up, Twi.” Applejack told her. “While y’all was snoozin’, we arrived at the Spring. Rukey asked me to go get ya, he has something he wants to show you.” The apple farmer then made her way to the exit. “Just come on out when yer ready, Twi. Don’t forget to bring that Book of yours.” With that, she went outside, leaving Twilight alone in the wagon once again.

The alicorn took a deep breath and began to collect herself. She could’ve sworn that she heard the Voice again, and that she was looking at that stain-glass window she saw back during the practice Rite. Was the Voice communicating with her through her dreams? The purple mare was honestly having a difficult time remembering, due to the details of her dream being rather hazy. It was plausible that she was just imagining things, but it was equally plausible as well. Nevertheless, Twilight shook her head clear and went to get the Book of Rites. With the Book tucked under her wing, she made her way out of the blackwagon to examine the Spring of Jomuer.

As Twilight exited the wagon, she was met with an incredible sight. It wasn’t the actual Spring that captured the alicorn’s attention, though it was a rather gorgeous with crystal clear water. The thing that caught her attention was the skeleton of what looked to be the remains of a gigantic scorpion. The creature’s tail and claws were outstretched across the Spring and its maw was open, revealing its razor, sharp teeth. On top of the giant’s remains was what looked to be a giant boulder that must have crushed the creature in the first place, leaving behind its remains. Twilight was so captivated by the sight before her that she didn’t even notice a certain walk up behind her.

“Hey sister!” the purple mare jumped a bit when she suddenly heard Rukey’s voice. “Admiring the view, I see. Well anyway, I need you to follow me. It’s time I introduce you to the Slug Market!”

Musical Cue - Dirty Deal

Twilight was about to ask the Cur what exactly the Slug Market was, he insisted that she follow him right away. The mare decided to humor the Cur and followed him to where she was taking her. The two had walked a bit from the Spring before they arrived at the Slug Market. Twilight was greeted to a large, red creature with a beard growing down to his chest. On top of the red creature was a smaller, green creature wearing a blue salesman hat. The red creature was holding an awning over both of there heads while also wearing a ginormous backpack containing various odds and ends. Both of the creatures also had eyestalks protruding from their heads, although they seemed to be just decorative as they had tradition eyes as well. Finally, true to the store’s name, there were many slugs of various size and color surrounding both of the creatures. “Welcome to the Slug Market!” the green creature greeted them. “Ehh, how’s it going, Mister Greentail, been awhile and all that!”

“Hey, Ron. It’s going.” Rukey greeted back.

The creature, who apparently was named Ron, then took notice of the alicorn standing next to the Cur. “Say, who’s your friend there? Never seen something like her before.”

“Oh, this is Twilight, she’s just from out of town.” Rukey jokingly told him. “Anyway, how come you’ve set up shop all the way out here? Isn’t this a little out of the way?”

Ron was more than happy to answer the Cur’s question. “Oh, well let’s just say you guys ain’t my only customers! You see, Dad and I, we know this business pretty good, we’ve been around the block, and so…”

While the salesman continued with his story, Rukey pulled Twilight aside while Ron wasn’t paying attention. “Here’s the deal, sister. Got an informant says that there are a few knick-knacks here that are connected to these Rites. See if you can spot them.” Rukey then pulled out the blackroot that Jodariel had found and the droppings that they had foraged yesterday from his pouch. “Should be able to pawn off some of this stuff to make the trade. Don’t worry too much about Falcon Ron, okay?”

Twilight gave a nod and looked back to Falcon Ron, who was apparently finishing his tale.

“…so anyways, you guys got anything for me? I’d be willing to part ways with a few of my wares in return.” The red creature swung his backpack up front and opened it up to reveal a plethora of odds and ends. The purple mare was a little intimidated by the selection at first, but she decided to start off simple. She started by selling the blackroot and the droppings, receiving a hefty amount of gold pieces in return. After receiving some spending money, Twilight looked over the items to find anything that would be useful for the upcoming Rite. After a quick onceover, she spotted a light, glowing blue rock. Falcon Ron explained that particular item was called an Ashen Coal. The salesman explained that it was especially useful for keeping campfires going longer than usual. After some consideration, Twilight decided to purchase the Ashen Coal, believing that it would make the Nightwings’ pyre stronger. She then decided it was time to return to the wagon for preparations for the next Rite.

“See you, Mister Greentail! And to you to, Miss Twilight, you seem really nice, you know?” After some (somewhat awkward) farewells, Rukey and Twilight left the Slug Market and made their way back to the wagon in about five minutes.

Musical Cue - The Eight Scribes

Evening quickly fell on the land as the Nightwings donned their raiments and collected their masks for preparation. While Twilight was already familiar with the pre-Rite rituals, Applejack had no context of what was going on. “So, y’all have to wear those fancy robes and those freaky-lookin’ masks to participate in these Rites? And then Twilight guides you around the field with some kinda…link, you said?” Applejack asked Hedwyn.

The Nomad gave her a nod. “That’s pretty much it. It sounds strange out loud, I know.”

“Hey Applejack, mind if I tell you something really quick?” Twilight asked her friend.

Applejack nodded and walked over to her friend. “What is it, sugarcube?” she asked. “If yer wonderin’ what I’ll be doin’ during this shindig, I’ll just be on the side watchin’ with Mae.”

Twilight did think that was probably the best course of action, but it wasn’t the reason she wanted to talk to the farmer. Twilight wanted to explain a certain other aspect of the Rites. “Listen Applejack, during the Rite, you might hear a voice coming from the sky and spectating it. Just try to ignore him if he talks about you. He’s not exactly the most…polite.”

Applejack tilted her head in confusion. “Voice in the sky? You sure yer not just hearin’ things Twi?”

Twilight was tempted to debate whether or not she really was just hearing things, but she decided to let the orange mare hear him for herself. “I…you’ll know it when you hear it, Applejack.”

The apple farmer looked to her friend with slight concern but ended up just shrugging. ‘Alrighty then, guess it’s almost time to get this show on the-What in tarnation?!”

Twilight quickly turned around to see what suddenly surprised her friend to see Mae walking out of the wagon. Twilight also noticed that the moon-touched girl was also donned in the blue and orange raiments of the Nightwings and was also holding a somewhat smaller version of Hedwyn’s mask. The alicorn was both surprised and puzzled as to why she was wearing the raiments. Could it be possible that Mae wanted to participate in the Rites? Was that even allowed? “We can go home?” the girl innocently responded.

“Mae!” Jodariel quickly scolded her. “I thought I made myself quite clear that you were to not touch those robes.”

Mae put on an apologetic look. “Oh! I’m sorry Miss Jodariel, I just thought that maybe you were being funny at the time?”

The Demon appeared to be somewhat baffled at her response and ended up just letting out an aggravated sigh. “…Unbelievable.” she muttered under her breath.

It was then Applejack’s turn to walk up to the girl and question her. “Sugarcube, you can’t just be walking around in those robes like that, the others need ‘em for something important.”

“But, they feel really nice, Miss Applejack.” Mae countered. “You told me earlier that I should always feel comfortable with how I look and what I wear. Isn’t that why you wear your hat all the time?”

The girl’s admittedly sweet sentiment caused the words to get caught in the farmer’s mouth. “Yeah well,…that’s for a completely different reason and…uh…” Applejack was struggling to come up with a way to explain what was wrong while also trying not to trip over her previous words of encouragement.

“Uh, hey chums?” Rukey suddenly interrupted. “Something’s happening in the sky. It looks like we’re up.”

True to the Rukey’s word, the group looked up to see that the eight, multi-colored stars were surrounded by the blue halo. Just like in the previous Rite, a line connected all of the stars to for the constellation that the alicorn had become quite familiar with. The stars burned bright as a light covered the Spring, resulting in a faint glow emanating from the water. This was the signal for Twilight, Applejack and the Nightwings to make their way to the shore of the Spring to commence the Rite for this eve. Hedwyn, Jodariel and Rukey put on their masks to complete their wardrobe for the night’s ceremony.

---

“READER! WHAT BRINGS YOU TO THE SPRING OF JOMUER? WHY IT MUST HAVE BEEN THE STARS!"

“What in tarnations…” Applejack whispered to herself as she heard the Voice emanating from the night sky.

“ALTHOUGH, IT SEEMS THAT YOUR TRIUMVIRATE NOW NUMBERS FOUR EXILES DONNING THE SACRED RAIMENTS, NOT THE EXPECTED!”

“THE RULES OF THE RITES WERE NOT CREATED FOR THE LIKES OF YOU TO BISMIRCH!”

The Voice’s disapproving tone confirm to Twilight that she would only be allowed to have three of the exiles perform in the Rite, and not four. The question remained if Mae truly wanted to participate, who would have to sit out for the night?

“IT ALSO APPEARS THAT ANOTHER ONE OF YOUR KIND HAS JOINED YOUR BAND OF MISFITS. SHE CERTAIN DOES FIT IN, WHAT WITH HER…’RUSTIC’ LOOK AND BEHAVIOR.”

Twilight could hear her friend grumble a bit at the Voice’s commentary. “Ya weren’t kiddin’ when you said he was rude, Twi.” she managed to say.

“PREPARE NOW TO CONFRONT THE FATE!”

At the grand announcement, three figures emerged from the other side of the Spring. Twilight looked across to see that the adversaries composed of a Cur, a Nomad and a Savage (the slang for young Nomads ostracized for their deficiencies or differences, even prior to their sentencing, according to Hedwyn). All three of them were donned in their raiments and masks, with purple and yellow being their colors.

“THEY STILL HONOR THE TRADITIONS OF THE SCRIBES, AND SURELY HAVE BEEN LONGING FOR THIS CHANCE.”

Twilight looked over to see that the sigils on both sides of the field had lite up to form both of the triumvirates’ pyres, with the Fate’s pyre producing dark, purple flames. What confused the alicorn was that it appeared the pyres on both sides were on the surface of the Spring. Was the water shallow enough to stand in, or would the exiles have to swim the Celestial Orb to the adversary’s pyre? Before the mare could think more on the subject, she turned back to see that two of the figures were walking to the Nightwings’ side of the field.

The Cur and Savage walked up before the Nightwings and removed their masks. The Cur appeared to be quite old, much older that Rukey. A white beard and eyebrows decorated his face of brown fur. He was wearing bone-shaped jewelry on his ears and around his collar with a plume of blue hair on top of his head to complete his look. Judging by his age and calm demeanor, Twilight guessed that he was the leader of the Fate. The Savage was a young man that looked to be close to Mae’s age. His face was tan, with a bit of blue paint on his nose and bone jewelry on his ears. His hair was black and tied up in a bun. Unlike the Cur, however, he had a look of intensity and suspicion that made Twilight somewhat uncomfortable.

The old Cur then bowed to the alicorn and the Nightwings and properly introduced himself. “I hail to you, exiles of the Nightwings, and am grateful that you chose to grace us with your presence once again. I am called Dalbert Oldheart and this is my son, Almer. Before you ask, yes, he is adopted.”

Twilight was honestly quite bewildered with the Cur’s politeness and formality. She certainly wasn’t expecting this after her interaction with Lendal and the Accusers. “You’re not…surprised or appalled by my appearance?” the alicorn asked cautiously.

The old Cur chuckled a little and answered her question. “A Cur my age witnesses a lot of things over the years, my dear. While you are certainly unique, you are not the most strange or hideous creature I have encountered.”

Almer let out a groan of frustration and finally spoke up. “We need not greet them, Father! They are our adversaries!”

Dalbert held up a paw to silence his son. “We shall face you in the field this night and may the victor’s Pyre burn eternal. But first we offer you a token of good faith, in show of appreciation that the Nightwings have returned.” He then approached Twilight with an item in his paw. Sensing that the Cur’s motives were sincere, she used her magic to lift up the item to inspect it. It appeared to be a small, metal brooch depicting a symbol that she was not familiar with. “That talisman is known as a Tailwind Crest.” Dalbert explained. “Anyone in your triumvirate who holds it during the Rite will receive an increase in speed. Use it wisely.”

Twilight gazed at the talisman one more time before handing to Jodariel for safe-keeping. “Thank you, Dalbert.” the alicorn thanked him. “Let both of our triumvirates give it our all tonight.”

Dalbert gave one final bow before he made his way back to hi side of the field. Almer gave Twilight one more look of suspicion and proceeded to follow his father. With the introductions out of the way, Twilight turned back to the group to form a plan of what to do next. The Nightwings temporarily removed their masks for easier discussion while Mae continued to look to Dalbert and Almer.

“That Cur was very kind…And his son was so caring, wasn’t he?” Mae commented. While Twilight could agree with Dalbert behavior, she wasn’t too sure that Almer was trying to be as kind as his father.

“Uh, Mae,” Applejack said. “I don’t think that Almer boy was tryin’ to be nice to us. It sounded like he didn’t even want to look at us.”

Mae shook her head at the farmer. “I don’t think so, Miss Applejack. I think he was just protective of his father. He is rather old for a Cur.” The moon-touched girl then changed the subject as she turned to Twilight with an excited look on her face. “Miss Twilight, when may we start the Rite?! I want to help lead the Nightwings to victory!”

Twilight took a minute to collect her thoughts. “Alright,” she began as she looked to the Nightwings. “we need three exiles to conduct a Rite. But, now we have four of us that want to participate, now that we have Mae. So, the question remains: Which one of you wants to stand out for tonight?”

The Nightwings looked amongst themselves at the alicorn’s question. Hedwyn was the first to speak up. “If someone has to stand out tonight, I’ll volunteer.”

“No volunteering, chum!” Rukey chastised Hedwyn. “It’s like you said a few days ago, we have to trust our Reader’s decisions. It ought to be her call.”

Jodariel nodded in agreement with the Cur. “Very well then. Reader, head to that small vantage point near the Spring and cast your decision.” She then pointed Twilight to a small outcropping that overlooked the Spring.

The alicorn started to feel uncomfortable again at the prospect of choosing who would conduct the Rite. She certainly didn’t want to offend any of the Nightwings by refusing to choose one of them. Thankfully, it appeared Applejack recognized the purple mare’s growing anxiety and offered some support. “Don’t you worry none, sugarcube. Nobody’s gonna get upset if’in you don’t choose them tonight. Just go with yer gut!”

All of the Nightwings nodded in agreement as they all put their masks back on. Twilight was still a bit hesitant but decided to make her way to the outcropping anyway. Once she had made it, the alicorn had a full view of the Spring; both pyres burning brightly. She looked to the other side of the field and got a good look at the Fate’s sigil, an awaken eye. She also saw that Dalbert, Almer and the Nomad had suddenly materialized right next to their pyre, their auras surrounding them. The triumvirate looked as though they were standing right on top of the water. Before the mare could be further amazed by this occurrence, the Voice gave her some instructions.

“NOW READER, CHOOSE AMONG YOUR BAND OF EXILES WHO WILL CONDUCT THE RITES TONIGHT.”

The Book of Rites floated from under Twilight’s wing and opened in front of her just like last time, however something was different. In the last Rite, the pages were blank, but now the names of Hedwyn, Jodariel, Rukey and Mae were listed on the left page. On the right page, the Ashen Coal and Tailwind Crest were written. Realizing this was probably how she was to choose who would perform in the Rite, Twilight began to make her decisions. Firstly, she thought Mae deserved to participate tonight, since she was so eager to prove her abilities. She focused on Mae’s name on the page and then the words began to shine.

“MAE”

The moon-touched girl suddenly appeared near the Nightwings pyre, clad in her raiments and mask. Not long after, Twilight formed the link that she had made with all of the other Nightwings before. Once the connection was made, the girl perked up. “Miss Twilight! I…It’s like I can feel you next to me! By the Scribes, so this is what it’s like to be under the guide of a Reader!” Twilight could feel the smile spreading on the girl’s lips.

The alicorn then focused back on the Book to choose two others for the Rite. After weighing her decisions, she decided Jodariel would be a good choice for tonight. Before she chose her, however, Twilight focused on the Tailwind Crest then onto Jodariel’s name to equip her with the talisman. She figured that the Demon could use a boost in speed if she was going up against a Cur like Dalbert.

“JODARIEL”

The Demon was then summoned onto the field. “A wise choice, Reader.” she said in a serious tone.

Finally, Twilight had a choice between Hedwyn and Rukey. While the Nomad had proved himself very well last time, the alicorn ultimately decided to choose Rukey for his speed and maneuverability. She also made sure to give Rukey the Ashen Coal to boost their pyre’s health by a small bit.

“RUKEY”

The Cur appeared on the field and gave a small howl. “Alright, let’s show these guys what we’re made of!”

With all three of them on the field. Twilight looked over to the sideline to confirm that Hedwyn was standing at the shore of the Spring along with Applejack. The purple mare tried to find any form of disappointment on his face, but it appeared that Hedwyn was content with her decisions.

“Well, looks like yer hangin’ back with me tonight, partner.” Applejack told the Nomad.

Hedwyn responded with a nod. “It would appear so. I’m sure Twilight had her justifications. Here’s hoping that we are victorious tonight.”

With both triumvirates at the ready, the Rite was about to commence. However, Dalbert called out to the Nightwings one last time. “Nightwings! I trust you all are well-prepared, for these old eyes yet see that the Rite shall be commencing momentarily.” The old Cur then looked to Almer at his side. Are you quite ready, too, my son?”

“I hope so, Father. Now, let me show you!” the Savage said in determination.

Musical Cue - Glorious Tradition

A beam of light began to shine down in the middle of the Spring. A few seconds later, the Celestial Orb fell down and landed onto the field. The Rite then officially commenced at the Voice’s command.

“BEGIN.”

Mae and Dalbert both ran towards the Orb in hopes of picking up first. The old Cur reached the it first, but he consequentially ran right into Mae’s aura, causing him to be banished. The moon-touched girl picked up the Orb and retreated towards the Nightwings pyre when the Nomad adversary gave chase. Twilight temporarily switched to Jodariel so that she could cast her aura out to banish the Nomad. The alicorn then switched back to Mae and guided her over to the other side of the field. The girl made a mighty leap over Almer and plunged right into the Fate’s pyre.

“THE NIGHTWINGS ARE FIRST TO STRIKE THE ADVERSARY’S FLAME.”

“Woah nelly!” Applejack cried out as the field was reset. “Is Mae okay after jumpin’ into that fire like that?! I don’t see her anymore!”

“Calm down, Applejack.” Hedwyn reassured her. “Mae’s fine. She’s only banished for the time being. She’ll be back.”

After the field reset, Twilight had Jodariel go straight for the Orb. Unfortunately, the Demon didn’t even make it to her goal before Almer banished her with an aura cast. Dalbert then used this opportunity to rush toward the orb and picked it up. Twilight tried her best to have Rukey intercept him, but the old Cur was faster than he appeared and circled around Rukey. The alicorn could only watch on as Dalbert made a successful plunge into the Nightwings’ pyre.

‘AN IMPRESSIVE PERFORMANCE BY DALBERT. PERHAPS OLD DOGS CAN LEARN NEW TRICKS AFTER ALL.”

Twilight shook off the temporary loss and regained focus on the field. Now that she had all of her triumvirate back on the field, it should be easy get past Almer and the Nomad. Mae grabbed the orb before Almer could and passed it to Rukey. The Cur dashed to the other side; easily avoiding the Savage and the Nomad and causing a small amount of damage to the pyre.

“DELIVERANCE.”

As the field reset again, Twilight noticed something odd was happening. From the waters of the Spring, a small, ball-sized droplet emerged and softly floated above the surface.

“Look forth, my son!” Dalbert called out. “The waters of Jomuer Many-Mane bring blessings unto us this eve! Perhaps our chance has come at last!”

Almer, for his part, shook his head. “We need more than blessings to prevail against them, Father. Please, keep fighting!”

Twilight was still confused on how exactly these small droplets could provide any advantage for the Rite. Thankfully, the Voice gave a brief explanation to the alicorn, albeit in a rather patronizing tone.

“BEST YOU TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE MOON DROPS THE STARS HAVE BESHEED ONTO YOU, READER. BUT WILL IT BE ENOUGH TO BEST DALBERT AND HIS FAITHFUL SON?”

The purple mare ignored the Voice’s doubt and focused onto Jodariel. As the Demon picked up the Moon Drop, Twilight felt a sudden surge of energy rush into the horned woman. Her movement was vastly increased, casting an aura cast to banish Almer and picking up the Orb in mere seconds. Once the orb was in her possession, Jodariel rushed for the Fate’s pyre, easily outmaneuvering the adversaries despite her large presence. The Demon’s stamina felt unlimited as she finally plunged into the pyre with a mighty jump.

“JODARIEL DOUSES THE ADVERSARY’S FLAME BY A SIGNIFICANT AMOUNT!”

The Fate’s pyre was over halfway diminished now. Two more strikes from either Mae or Rukey would end the Rite in their favor. However, it appeared that The Fate was aware of this as well as Dalbert was quick to claim the Orb and made a rush towards the blue flames through the side of the field. Twilight saw this and had Mae intercept the old Cur, banishing him with her aura. The moon-touched girl passed the Orb to Rukey and carefully trotted to the center of the field. The Fate’s Nomad was ready to block him from the center, but Twilight was expecting this. She ordered Rukey to make a heel turn towards the side of the field and attack the pyre from behind. The tactic worked, as the adversaries were ill-prepared for Rukey’s quick paws and could only look behind them as the Cur jumped into the shrinking flame.

“ONLY A LICK OF FLAME REMAINS NOW. FINISH THESE NIGHT’S PROCEEDINGS, READER.”

The Fate’s pyre just needed one more hit from the Orb to completely douse it. Twilight acted quick and had Mae make her way to the Orb. The Nomad adversary tried to banish her, but the Mae dodged the aura cast and casted one of her own to banish him. The moon-touched girl grabbed the Orb and quickly retreated as Almer pursued her. She almost would have been banished by the Savage’s aura field if Twilight hadn’t noticed the Moon Drop nearby. Mae grabbed the Moon Drop and was then able to outrun Almer and make her way to the other side of the field. With her augmented agility and unlimited stamina, the moon-touched girl had no issue circling around old Dalbert and plunged into the dying pyre. With one, final blast from the Celestial Orb, none of the purple flame remained on the adversary’s sigil.

“AND IT IS DONE!”

As the field reset and the triumvirate returned to the shore of the Spring, the Nightwings’ pyre shot up into the sky and exploded into their sigil, just like in the last Rite.

“THE NIGHTWINGS PREVIAL! T’WAS A GLORIOUS PERFORMANCE, I MUST ADMIT.”

“LOXALAS!” Mae, Jodariel and Rukey yelled out in victory.

“YEE HAW! Now that was somethin’ alright! Way to go, you three!” Applejack yelled, waving her hat in the air. Unfortunately, the country mare’s celebration was cut short.

“OH, DO TRY TO CONTAIN YOURSELF. PERHAPS THEY SHAN’T BE QUITE SO FORTUNATE NEXT TIME.”

With the mood now downtrodden a bit, Applejack returned her hat on her head. “Well he sure is a mighty buzzkill.” She muttered under her breath.

Twilight paid know heed to the Voice’s words of discouragement as she made her way back to the shore. Mae was so ecstatic by the victory, she was jumping for joy with a wide smile on her face. “Mae, you were amazing! I’m so proud of you!” the alicorn congratulated the girl.

Mae looked to Twilight with her bright smile. “Thank you, Miss Twilight! Thank you so much for helping us win! Scribes bless you!” The alicorn gave a soft blush at such high praise.

“Nicely done, my friend.” Hedwyn said as he joined the group.

“I’d rightly say so!” Applejack agreed. “I’ve never seen somethin’ like that before. But HOO-WEE, that was mighty impressive!”

The groups merriment was interrupted by a sigh from Rukey. “Kinda feel bad about Dalbert though. He seemed pretty okay for someone whose supposed to be our adversary and such.”

As if on cue, Dalbert and Almer both made their way to the Nightwings. While Almer had on a sour expression, Dalbert still had his calm demeanor he had before. “Exiles of the Nightwings! The dawn is yours, and may you earn your freedom!” the old Cur bowed once again to his adversaries. “Reader, may you honor me with your name?”

The purple mare was rather taken aback by Dalbert’s courtesy and respect. Instead of swearing vengeance like Lendal had done, the Old Cur wanted nothing more than to honor the ones that had bested him fair and square. With that in mind, the alicorn decided to grant his request. “Twilight.” She introduced herself. “I am Twilight Sparkle of Equestria.”

The old Cur gave a nod. “Very well. May the stars guide our paths to cross again, Miss Twilight Sparkle.” He then turned around and made his was back to the rest of his triumvirate, his adoptive son in tow. Twilight had to admit, it felt good to have seen at least some sportsmanship in this Rites. She doubted that many of the other adversaries she would eventually face would be this courteous about losing, but it was nice to know that not all of them would be her enemies. However, it did raise the question as of why the old Cur was here in the first place. The Downside was a place meant for criminals of the Commonwealth, so what exactly did he do that deserved such punishment? Twilight supposed that it didn’t really matter at the moment. It was like Hedwyn said on the day they met, the past mattered little and they were all equal nothings down here. At least Dalbert was a nothing with a sense of honor.

As the pair walked away, Twilight overheard Almer speaking to his father. “I’m sorry, Father. The dawn could have been ours….we’ve failed. And I have failed you!” It was clear that the Savage was taking the loss much harder than his foster father was.

“Nonsense! We are the Fate! We do what is ordained, and nothing less.” Dalbert reassured him. “Now let us go, my son, for I am weary once again.”

Almer just stood there on the shore as the old Cur continued on his way. He looked down at the ground at his feet and appeared to be in deep thought. Twilight was tempted to walk over and give him some words of encouragement, but her attention was driven elsewhere.

Musical Cue - A Step Closer

“Uh, Twi? What’s goin’ on?” Applejack asked.

The alicorn turned around to see what the farmer was referring to. Three beams of light encompassed Mae, Jodariel and Rukey, causing them to slightly hover off the ground. Twilight recognized this from the last Rite. “Enlightenment.” She simply answered her friend. Last time, Hedwyn was the only one to receive a Mastery from enlightenment, so she was curious to see if Rukey and Jodariel would gain Masteries themselves now they’ve acquired more experience from the Rites.

Twilight’s suspicions proved true when a bright glow flashed over Rukey for a few seconds, indicating that he became stronger.

“IT SEEMS THAT THE EXILE RUKEY HAS GAINED A BLESSING FROM THE ALPHA CHIEF HIMSELF.”

“Now that’s what I’m talking about!” the Cur announced excitedly. “Looks like old Rukey Greentail’s got some more bite in him, eh chums?!”

The alicorn looked over to see that the same light had flashed over Jodariel as well.

“DEMON SUCH AS JODARIEL ARE ABLE TO ACQUIRE ENLIGHTMENT, IF THEY ARE WILL TO STRIDE FOR IT. THE DEMON SCRIBE BESTOYS HIS FAVOR!”

“Hmmm,” Jodariel mused as she felt the new power coursing through her body. “Perhaps there is some credibility to these Rites after all. I shall have to see how this experience will assist us in our path forward.”

The beams of light retracted from the triumvirate and returned up to the sky. The stars gave one last burst of light and then returned back to their normal glow. The Spring of Jomuer stopped glowing and the waters went back to sparkling in the moonlight. Thus, concluding the Rites for tonight and a final message from the Voice.

“UNTIL THE STARS ALIGN.”

As the Nightwings returned to the blackwagon, Applejack noticed that something was different. “Hey Twi, where did Mae run of to?”

Twilight also noticed that Mae wasn’t with the group heading back and started to look around for her. After a quick scan of the area, the mares saw the girl walking over to back to the shore. They followed after her only to stop a few feet away when they saw she was approaching Almer, who was still sulking on the shore. They were even more surprised when she began speaking to the boy.

“Um…excuse me?” Mae asked in a nervous voice. “I mean, would you excuse me for a moment, do you think?”

Almer looked up again to see that the moon-touched girl was talking to him. “You…You’re one of them.” he said shakily. He was quick to raise his guard again and resume his cold demeanor. “What do you want? Father needs me, and I have already wasted enough time as it is.”

Mae looked like she was about to say something, but she shut her mouth suddenly and closed her eyes in frustration. “Oh, I’m sorry,” she finally said. “I think that I forgot what I was going to say. I’m so embarrassed, I…”

Almer had on a bewildered, yet annoyed look on his face. “What is the matter with you? It is against the Rites for us to even speak like this!” Twilight wasn’t very convinced by that claim, considering Dalbert’s earlier conversations with her being so courteous and sincere.

Mae was starting to look a bit flustered now. She held her arms behind her back and started to rock back and forth a bit. “Um, I did not know that, I don’t think? No one said anything like that to me. But then, all this, it’s very new to me. So, I thought, maybe…” The girl was trying her best to look the boy in the eyes, but always seem to look to the side.

Almer let out a huff of annoyance. “You cannot be serious.”

Mae then began to perk up again. “Yes! I like to laugh, I like to laugh a lot! What do you like to laugh at…?” She gave a wide smile to the boy, hoping that would finally get him to open up. Unfortunately, Almer wasn’t so impressed.

“…This is a Nightwings trick. Father told me not to speak with any of you.” The Savage then turned away from her and started walking away. “I have to go now.” he stated coldly. With that, the boy went off in the other direction. The alicorn had a feeling deep that that his father gave no such order to not speak with any of them and just used that as an excuse to leave the conversation.

“Wait! Almer, wait, I think that was your name, was that even your name?!” the moon-touched girl called out to him. But it was too late, he had already left the Spring before he could answer Mae’s question. When he was out of view, Mae slumped her shoulders down and looked dejectedly at the ground. The mares couldn’t help but feel bad for the poor girl. It was very apparent that her social skills weren’t up to speed, and all she really wanted was to happily interact with new people. After a few moments of silence, Applejack finally trotted over to the girl to provide some comfort.

“Come on, sugarcube.” she said in a gentle voice. “Let’s get on back to the others. Jodariel’s probably worried sick about ya.”

The girl looked to the country mare giving her a gentle smile and decided to return it. “Oh, alright then, Miss Applejack. I don’t wish to worry anyone.”

As the two started their way back, Twilight stood in place and began thinking. There was something about Mae’s attempt to speak with Almer that seemed so familiar to her. She couldn’t place her hoof on it, but she did have a theory. Perhaps it was possible that Mae was trying to form a friendship with the Savage. At first, the alicorn was in support of the moon-touched girl experiencing friendship and would love to help her along the way. But she then remembered that Almer was part of the Fate, their adversaries. Would such a friendship hinder either of the triumvirates’ abilities in the Rites?

Twilight shook her head and decided to ponder about this at a later time. Right now, she just wanted to get back to the blackwagon and get some sleep for tomorrow.

---

Musical Cue - Through the Valley (White Lute)

As Twilight, Applejack and Mae returned to camp, they saw that Hedwyn and Jodariel were having a conversation. When the trio arrived by the campfire, they broke their conversation.

“There you are, Mae.” the Demon told the girl in a somewhat stern voice. May you please not wander off like that again. You should know that it is very dangerous to be by yourself at night.”

Mae looked down a bit at the horned woman’s scolding, but Applejack was quick to come to her defense. “Calm down, Jodariel. Me and Twi were keepin’ an eye on her. She weren’t in no danger.” Jodariel still looked a bit peeved, but she eventually faltered and gave Mae a small nod, much to the girl’s relief.

Twilight looked around the camp and noticed that a certain Cur was out of sight. “Where did Rukey run off to?” the alicorn asked.

“He already went inside the wagon to get some sleep for tomorrow morning.” Hedwyn answered her. “We wanted to want outside for you to come back so that we can look to the stars for our next destination.”

“Alright then,” the alicorn confirmed as she looked towards the night sky. “I suppose I’ll look to were the next star is pointing at, and then we can get some sleep for-“

Twilight paused her train of thought when she saw something strange in the sky. It was the same blue sparkle that she saw the night the Nightwings defeated the Accusers. Hedwyn, Jodariel and Applejack also looked up to see that the sparkle was getting brighter and brighter. No more than a second later, the sparkle opened into a poral-like gate that was all too familiar to the purple mare.

“Wait a tick,” Applejack said, also looking at the portal. “Is that there the thing that I fell out of and landed me here?”

Before Twilight could answer the farmer, the group heard a scream coming from the portal. It was a rather soft scream; a scream that both mares instantly recognized. Their suspicions were later confirmed when something, or rather somepony, fell out from the portal. She had her eyes shut tight with fear and she desperately tried to flag her yellow wing to lessen her fall.

“FLUTTERSHY!” both ponies yelled as they quickly rushed over to catch their friend. Thankfully, the portal opened much closer to where Twilight and the group was, so the mares had time to get under their falling friend in hopes to catch her, though Applejack was a bit faster than Twilight. Applejack got directly under the falling pegasus and held out her hooves to catch her from the sky.

“Don’t worry, Flutters! I gotcha! I gotcha! I got-“ the farmer didn’t finish her last sentence as Fluttershy landed right on top of her. Twilight started to get worried that both of her friends got seriously hurt. However, it looked as though the pegasus’s excessive wing flapping did dampen her fall.

“Fluttershy, are you okay?” Twilight asked the yellow mare. Fluttershy moved her soft, pink hair out of her face and began to look around nervously. When her sights landed on her alicorn friend looking on with worry.

“Twilight?” she quietly said as she regained her bearings. She then looked down when she noticed the ground below her felt lumpy and gasped. “Applejack?!” the yellow mare explained as she quickly hovered off the farmer. When Applejack got up and adjusted her hat, a smile spread across her face as she looked to her two friends. “Oh Applejack, Twilight! It’s so nice to see you again!” she softly exclaimed as joined her friends for a quick group nuzzle, which the two mares were happy to return.

When the three separated, Applejack was first to greet her friend. “Good to see ya again, sugarcube! I hope the landing wasn’t too rough for ya.”

The pegasus looked over her body one more time for any cuts and bruises. “No, I think I’m okay.” When she was done inspecting herself, Fluttershy looked around and saw the strange, new surroundings. “But, where in Equestria are we?”

The alicorn’s smile lessened at Fluttershy’s confusion. She realized that she had to be careful with introducing Fluttershy to the Downside and its inhabitants, given the mare’s timid nature. “Well Fluttershy, we’re not in Equestria anymore. In fact, we’re in a different world entirely.” Before Twilight could explain any further, one of the Nightwings decided to make a premature introduction.

“Another one of your friends, I presume?” Jodariel said as she stepped up and looked down at the pegasus. Fluttershy took one gaze at the cold, imposing Demon and let out a small shriek. She then cowered behind her two friends in an attempt to hide herself from the horned woman. Twilight wasn’t exactly surprised by this reaction. Sure, Fluttershy had definitely become braver and bolder over the time the purple mare had known her, but she was ill equipped to handle the shock of a completely alien world.

“It’s alright, sugarcube,” Applejack comforted the pegasus. “Jodariel won’t hurt ya.” The farmer raised her eyebrows in realization and looked to the alicorn. “Twi, you should probably cast that translation spell on Fluttershy here so that she can understand the rest.”

Twilight inwardly chastised herself for entirely forgetting about the language barrier of this world. She made a mental note herself to immediate cast the spell as soon as she ever finds another one of her friends in the Downside. For now, though, she focused all her energy on her horn and casted the spell on the pegasus. Once the spell had done its job, Twilight began to calmly introduce Fluttershy to the Nightwings. “Fluttershy, I want you to meet Hedwyn, Jodariel and Mae. They are the Nightwings, and they’re going to help us get home.”

The timid mare peaked over Applejack’s barrel to get another look of the trio. While Jodariel still looked somewhat intimidating, it looked as though she was trying her best to relax her intense look. Hedwyn was on her right, giving the pegasus a soft smile and friendly demeanor that Twilight had grow to admire. Finally, Mae was peeking from behind Jodariel, almost equally as shy about meeting the yellow mare. While Fluttershy did look less nervous now, she still stayed behind her friends. “It’s a…nice to…meet you.” she murmured. Hedwyn looked like he was about to say something, but he was cut off.

“Heya, chums!” Rukey called out as he exited the blackwagon. “I think we got a problem!” As the Cur walked over to the group, he soon noticed Fluttershy hiding behind Twilight and Applejack. “Hey, who’s over there? Is that another one of the Reader’s friends from Equestria or something?”

As soon as Fluttershy saw Rukey, it was like a switch was flipped inside her head. Gone was the scared, timid mare and in her place was the passionate animal lover that Twilight knew all too well. “Oh my goodness!” she happily cried out. The pegasus dashed past her friends and the Nightwings and made a beeline for Rukey.

“Hey, uh, what’s-“ Rukey couldn’t finish his thought before he was pulled into a tight embrace by Fluttershy. The mare paid little attention to his squirms as she began to pet and hug the Cur. “Hey,” Rukey struggled to say. “What’s the big idea here?! Why is she hugging…me?!” Both Twilight and Applejack couldn’t help but let out a small giggle at his struggle against Fluttershy’s affection.

“Oh my gosh, you talk?!” the animal lover exclaimed. “Oh, that’s so amazing! You have to tell me all about what’s it like being such a handsome dog!”

Rukey growled in frustration. “For the last time, I AM A….wait, handsome?” he asked. It appeared that the flattery seemed to have calmed the Cur down to a point where he calmly addressed Fluttershy. “Eh, listen chum. The name’s Rukey Greentail, and I’m actually not a dog. I’m a Cur, and I would love to tell you more about myself. Would you just…please let go of me!?”

The pegasus then immediately let go of Rukey and began to apologize. “Oh, I’m sorry, Mister Greentail! It’s just that I get really excited to meet new animals. My name is Fluttershy, and I would love to hear all about Curs! I also really like your necklace! Do you like bones?! Do Curs like to chew on them and then buried them?!” Rukey gave a small chuckle of embarrassment from the barrage of questions from the animal lover. Thankfully, Jodariel spoke up and unintentionally saved him.

“Rukey!” she said in a strong tone. “What exactly did you have to tell us?”

When Twilight heard Rukey’s news, her eyes went wide open with shock.

“Oh, yeah. Well, you probably won’t believe this, chums, but it looks like that minstrel that has been tagging along with us is gone!”

Comments

[KnightOfZaku]

Thanks for another awesome chapter.

I knew when Fluttershy made her appearance she would go straight for Rukey. I forsee many hugs and possibly belly rubs in our favorite Cur's future. I'm also gonna take a shot in the dark and say that when Sir Gilman joins the Nightwings. He'll declare himself to be Rarity's personal knight.

[Scribe of the Nightwings]

9519158
Well thank you. I had are really fun time writing for the Fate. And something tells me that Flutters is gonna really like the next member that joins the Nightwings. :)