A Song of Storms: Snow and Shadows

by The 24th Pegasus

Chapter 1: Siege

Chapter 1: Siege

To understand what transpired during the Eternal Blizzard of 421 After Empire, it first becomes necessary for us to find the tipping point. Thus our story begins in the year of 409 AE, which foreshadowed the breakdown of relations between the Pegasi of Cirra, the Unicorns of the Diamond Kingdom, and the Earth Ponies of the Low Valleys.

By 421 AE, the Hurricane-Lapis-Muffintop Accords, otherwise known as the Tri-Pony compact by the denizens of the three tribes, had provided the means for fifteen years of relative peace between our disparate races. Weak after our exodus from Dioda, Cirra graciously accepted the mantle of keepers of the weather and guardians of the land offered to us by the unicorns and the earth ponies. Our soldiers patrol the skies, responding to threats against any of our three tribes and policing the lands of the other two. The clouds come and rain on schedule for the earth pony farmers, and the skies are kept clear around the Diamond Kingdom for the unicorn astronomers and scholars who study the heavens. In return, the earth ponies give us food and the unicorns give us trade.

For fifteen years, the Tri-Pony compact guided our relations and kept the peace between us, but it could not cure hatred. Hatred against the earth ponies, considered the lowest race by the unicorns and the pegasi. Hatred against the unicorns, a squabbling nobility whose only concern was luxury and comfort. Hatred against us, the pegasi, the third race, who appeared from across the ocean, claiming food and resources and taxing an already delicate system. Us, the newcomers who dictated how the other tribes should run their lives with our military presence.

If any surprise should be found in this, perhaps it should be that the peace lasted as long as it did.

-----

High above a valley washed with the cool breeze of a summer morning, a black pegasus rode columns of hot air up and down over an elaborate stone city below. The gentle tug against his primaries and the whistle of wind past his short, sky blue mane filled him with a mixture of exhilaration and calm known only to the pegasus race and the joys of flight. Commander Hurricane, at the prime age of twenty-nine, felt absolutely alive.

It was a feeling he seldom had the time to enjoy anymore. In addition to being the supreme officer of the Cirran Legion, Hurricane was Commander Maximus of Cirra, emperor in all but title. He was emperor once, but he had voided that rank long ago in the face of the worst victory in Cirran history. That victory had cost the Cirrans their home but had won them their lives, allowing them to flee across the ocean from those who would destroy them. Those were dark days indeed, but Hurricane and his ponies had survived with incredible sacrifice. The sacrifice of thousands of volunteers who gave their lives in a destroyed cloud-city, once the pinnacle of Cirran might. A sacrifice in blood that could never be repaid.

An arrow struck the onyx armor across Hurricane’s chest, bouncing off harmlessly and tumbling towards the ground. With a sigh, the Commander brought his attention back to the battlefield below him. Flexing his wings, he heard the satisfying grind of wingblade scales sliding past each other. Checking that his sword was tightly locked in its scabbard, Hurricane twisted his wingtips and spiraled towards the ground.

Thousands of armor-clad pegasi streaked through the smoky air across the city, flying in neat formation as they approached its stone walls. Smoke rose from the buildings immediately within the walls of the city, their roofs torn open from the fiery rain of siege weapons on the cliffs above. The ramparts along the walls were bristled with unicorn soldiers, and flashes of light indicated the discharge of mana towards the ponies on the shores of the river that flowed through the city and the valley alike. The assaulting army numbered twelve thousand in strength, but what they lacked in magic they made up for in those monstrous engines of war that battered the walls.

Approaching the centermost tower along the walls, Hurricane flared his powerful wings and gently set himself down amongst the unicorns defending them. His unshod hooves left hollow clopping sounds across the stone as he strode over towards the center of the tower, where a unicorn clad in blue and gold armor reviewed a series of maps.

“Chiseled Gem. It has been quite a while since we last talked.” Hurricane placed his hoof on the center of the map, drawing the unicorn captain’s eyes away from the paper and towards his face. A scowl grew across Chiseled Gem’s features, and he turned from the table towards the battle against the northern walls.

“Hurricane! About fucking time you showed up! These crystal bastards have been throwing themselves against our defenses for two days now. I thought the Legion was supposed to be fast!”

The Commander regarded the situation before him with a disinterested attitude at best. “We are when we need to be. I figured the walls of this city would be strong enough to last a few days and soften up the barbarians for us before I commit soldiers to its defense. I'm glad to see that I was right. And it’s Commander Hurricane. Now, what can I help you with?”

Chiseled Gem turned back towards the table and pulled a piece of parchment over towards Hurricane with his magic, which Hurricane took and flattened out against the stone railing. “These damned siege engines are our biggest concern right now. The Crystal warlords know they aren’t getting through River Rock’s walls with numbers alone, so they’ve been flinging massive boulders at us to break them down.” As he spoke, a gargantuan rock covered in oil and flame slammed hard against the top of one of the walls, shattering the walkway and sending dozens of unicorns falling to their deaths. The captain winced at the sound of its impact and pointed towards where the constructions were reloading. “Their fire is keeping my soldiers suppressed. Otherwise, we would have routed these barbarians yesterday.”

“Well. Consider those engines destroyed,” Hurricane replied. Lifting his head towards the sky, he produced a shrill whistle that pierced the air with unnatural clarity. At his signal, four thousand Cirran legionaries descended from the clouds and began to rip through the crystal pony lines in front of the city. The sudden descent of the mighty pegasus armies threw their advance into turmoil, and the unicorns along the walls were able to push the barbarians back with lethal charges of magic.

As Hurricane took to the air, Chiseled Gem called out to him. “The Diamond Kingdom owes you one, Commander.”

“More than one.”

It may have been cold over River Rock, but just outside of the walls the blood and sweat of the Crystal warriors made it positively humid. What had once been hardy farmland and floodplains worked by unicorn tenets to supplement the food shipments from the Low Valleys had been trampled into mud and gravel and fertilized by fallen equines. Even in death, the bodies of the Crystal soldiers provided a glare with whatever magic it was that gave their coats a crystalline sheen. Gemstone weapons were scattered uselessly across the rocks, and the wounded attempted to crawl back to the camp on the far ridge.

The arrival of the Cirran Legion brought with it a systematic and ruthless efficiency that served as a remarkable contrast to the desperate efforts of the unicorn soldiers to defend their home. Whereas the Diamond soldiers attempted to use their magic as a wall to take down the foremost line of barbarians as they advanced, the Legion dissected their ranks into chaotic and disoriented pockets of resistance which they then preyed upon from the sky. The leading regiments of Crystal soldiers were quickly and brutally neutralized, although not without the cost of Cirran lives.

Hurricane had his sights set not on the soldiers around him but on the five massive catapults along the western cliff face, just out of range of the unicorn mages. They had completed another volley against the city walls, tearing massive holes along the perimeter and smashing the gates to pieces. If the Legion had been ten minutes later, the Crystal barbarians would have already breached the interior of the city and begin to threaten the castle itself. Hurricane, however, had known exactly how much time he had to play with, and fortunately the Legion had already finished shredding the leading regiments of the assault and was moving through the remaining ranks, pushing them away from the city walls.

Without taking into consideration how many soldiers there might be defending the wooden structures of the catapults, Hurricane dove headfirst onto the uppermost platform. His hooves smashed the floorboards as he struck them, and he transitioned the momentum into launching himself at the nearest Crystal soldier he could see. The stallion had no time to react, and his hexagonal irises widened in surprise as Hurricane tackled him off of the platform and towards the level below. A panicked shriek began in the soldier’s throat, but the stallion was quickly silenced as Hurricane drove his head into the floor, producing an audible crack. Flipping once as he left the body, the Commander popped the latch on his scabbard and drew his sword with lightning speed.

There were seven crystal ponies on the floor around Hurricane, and they quickly grabbed their weapons and left the machinery of the catapult to attack the pegasus intruder. Seven swords were pitted against Hurricane’s new skysteel sword and wingblades, causing the pegasus to smile around the hilt of his weapon. The advantage lay with him.

Not waiting for the circle to close around him, Hurricane charged the largest of the seven barbarians. The brute carried a massive axe in his jaws and began to swing it as Hurricane approached, but his strength was nullified by the speed of the Commander’s attacks. Diving low, Hurricane passed under the swing of the axe and struck at the knees of the large stallion. The red soldier shouted in pain, collapsing onto his forelimbs as Hurricane slid under him. With one swift jab of his sword, Hurricane decorated the blade with blood and silenced his opponent.

His sudden and swift execution of the strongest fighter of their group gave the remaining six bandits pause, but they pressed against Hurricane anyways and encircled him. With a furious chorus of howls, they swung their swords at his shadowy figure in any way they possibly could. The pegasus appeared trapped between them, forced to respond quickly with his blades to avoid losing limbs.

But for all their efforts they could not touch Hurricane. Sliding to the sides and ducking under slashes, Hurricane struck out with his wings against his assailants. One was dropped with a quick flick from his right; another was felled with a stab from his sword through the chest. In a matter of seconds, Hurricane had cut down all but one of the soldiers. The last one backed away from him in fear, his sword shaking violently in his mouth.

Hurricane walked closer to the survivor, forcing him into a corner. The terrified stallion struck out at him with his blade, but Hurricane disarmed it easily. Raising his own weapon over his head, he drove it towards the cowering soldier.

The wall produced a dull thunk as Hurricane planted his sword in it. Grabbing the sniveling creature off of the ground, Hurricane raised him to eye level.

“Now would be a good time to start running.” Tossing the young soldier aside, Hurricane clamped his jaws around the hilt of his sword and worked on pulling it from the wall. A pattering of hooves on wooden floorboards was audible over the roar of battle, and by the time he freed the blade from the spruce wood, the crystal pony was long gone.

With the siege weapon free of its personnel, Hurricane took the time to examine the machinery involved in it. Complicated gear-work and counterweights were connected along a central shaft towards the bucket that held the rocks. It was an impressive feat of engineering, even if the Legion had no use for it. What was most alarming about it was the complexity of the system. If this was a native crystal pony design, then their combat engineers far outstripped the skills of even the best unicorn mathematicians and physicists.

Regardless of the skill of the machine’s assembly, it needed to be brought down. Fluttering up to the end of the throwing arm, Hurricane located the structure that supported the counterweight. Drawing his sword, he began to hack away at the thick ropes supporting the ballast. With a resounding clap, the taut cords snapped apart, dropping the hefty weight towards the ground below. The counterweight smashed through three stories of supports on its way down, causing the front of the catapult to buckle and collapse upon itself. The tree trunks that formed the skeleton of the machine groaned as they stretched and bent until the siege engine finally fell to pieces.

Hurricane spared little time in observing the destruction of the first siege engine. Instead, he watched as his legionaries swarmed the remaining four catapults like a swarm of hornets. One of the centurions had procured a set of torches, and within seconds the next catapult was engulfed in seething orange flame. One by one, the remaining weapons fell in catastrophic ways until the volley of boulders against River Rock was finally silenced. The shoreline outside the city was littered with dead bodies of all kinds, and the Crystal armies were in full retreat from the onslaught of the Legion.

“What are you doing! Stop the retreat, damn it! Archers, bring those blasted peggers out of the sky!” A rough voice from far behind the Crystal lines shouted its raging orders at the fleeing soldiers that streaked past. Hurricane searched for the source amongst the numerous dark bodies that were galloping away from the city until he found it. A rather tall, gray and red crystal pony stallion screamed at his subordinates, stomping his hooves in frustration as they ran with their tails between their legs. He was covered in diamond armor from head to hoof, absolutely protected from brute force and magic attacks to anywhere but his face. A platoon of archers surrounded him, bows tightly drawn and ready.

Recognizing the pony, Hurricane descended from his perch to put the stallion within earshot. “Warlord Heavy Trot! Haven’t you realized you already lost?” shouted Hurricane towards the warlord below him. Snarling, the crystal pony turned his head upwards and drew his sword.

“You! You and your damned Legion did this! River Rock was on the verge of collapse, but instead I’m sitting over thousands of dead! How dare you involve yourself in things that don’t concern you!”

Hurricane snorted in derision. “Legendary as your reputation may be, Warlord, you are a fool. You and your barbaric ponies have attacked the Diamond Kingdom before, and was the response of Cirra any different?” The archers shuffled uncomfortably, but their bows remained taut. “In case you didn’t realize, Cirra and the Kingdom share mutual interests. Though I would pardon you if you didn’t understand such political intricacies. Crystal ponies only conduct politics from the end of the sword—and nopony can wield a sword better than a pegasus.”

Heavy Trot ground his diamond-studded teeth and stepped forward to challenge Hurricane. “Then face me, coward! Let’s see whose sword is faster in honorable combat!”

“What honor does your kind deserve, ruthless savages who plunder homes and kill innocents for their things?” Hurricane spun in the air and folded his rear legs under him. “I’ve fought traitors with more honor than you.” Striking out his legs, Hurricane proceeded to buck the air.

A powerful roar of thunder filled the air as the atmosphere was ripped apart behind the Commander’s hooves. A long bolt of electricity materialized, smashing across the sky faster than any bow could fire. The thunderbolt connected with the Warlord’s face, filling his body with three million volts of electricity. The earth pony’s mouth contorted into a shriek of agony, silent under the current that strangled his vocal cords. The archers surrounding him dove away from the bolt, fearing that the electricity would pursue them as well. As quick as the lightning connected it was over, and Warlord Heavy Trot was reduced to a charred mangle of flesh and bones in a diamond suit of armor.

Hurricane perched atop the remains of one of the catapults as he watched the survivors of the Crystal armies run for their lives through the valley and ridges that so defined the Diamond Kingdom. Pegasi flew past him on either side in tight formation, chanting the victory song of the Cirran Legion as they spiraled into the clouds. Despite their enthusiasm, several of the centuries flew with holes in their ranks in remembrance of their fellow soldiers who had died and could not fly with them. Hurricane took a quick count of his soldiers. He had brought four thousand legionaries with him to fight twelve thousand Crystal warriors, and he supposed he lost about five hundred.

The unicorn soldiers that lined the remains of the walls as Hurricane returned to River Rock were celebrating and embracing each other in absolute euphoria. Despite the destruction in the northern quarter of the city, their homes were safe and civilian casualties were low. Even the officers threw off their helmets and joined in with their subordinates, raising their hooves to the sky as platoons of legionaries flew across the city in perfect formation.

Hurricane was greeted by a round of cheering from the unicorn officers manning the observation tower as he set his hooves down. Chiseled Gem walked up to him, a hearty smile adorning his weary face.

“Commander, you did it! Glad to see that the Legion is still as sharp as ever. Things would have been pretty bad if you hadn’t have shown up.” The unicorn captain threw a hoof across Hurricane’s back, which the black pegasus shrugged off. Instead, Hurricane distanced himself to a respectable length and gave Gem a soldierly nod.

“Glad to have helped, but don’t expect us to bail you out all the time. Just because the Legion is dedicated to providing military aid to all the tribes doesn’t mean that this should become a regular occurrence. I could understand that from the earth ponies, but you unicorns have a military of your own. You should be able to keep your borders under control from these kinds of threats.” Hurricane walked past the unicorn officers and towards the city streets below.

“Of course, Commander. Regardless, if you ever need unicorn aid, my soldiers would be happy to help.” Giving as best an approximation for the Cirran salute a wingless pony could, Chiseled Gem returned to discuss repairs with his officers.

Hurricane stepped onto the frosty streets, where the unicorn nobility was emerging from their houses to see that their world was still secure. Ignoring their pompous glares and remarks, the Commander forced his way through the growing crowds towards the castle at the end of the main street, built into the side of the steep valley walls that the city was nestled in.

It was when Hurricane was ascending the steps outside the massive doors to the castle did he notice that he had picked up a companion. A light jingling of bells told him who it was, and a slight smile was drawn to the Commander’s face. Without turning his head, he began to speak to the unicorn following him.

“A pleasure to speak with you again, Star Swirl. How fares the King these days?”

The elderly unicorn known as Star Swirl accelerated his canter to walk by Hurricane’s side. He was an old stallion with a long, white beard and a blue robe across his back. A series of bells at the hem of the robe tinkled lightly across the cobblestone roads, and a blue hat decorated with constellations flopped gently with his gait. His gray coat alluded to an uninteresting life, were one to judge a pony by his color. Hurricane, however, had known ponies with dull coats before, and they were anything but uninteresting.

Star Swirl the Bearded’s voice was remarkably friendly and quite grandfatherly. “He does well, Hurricane. It was his fifty-seventh birthday just last week.”

“Send him my regards then, and my apologies for missing an important event. Now, was there something you wished to discuss?”

The wise mage nodded and led Hurricane into the halls of the castle. The unicorn guards that were stationed at every doorway saluted the two ponies as they walked past, and Star Swirl began to ascend a massive spiraling staircase that led to the upper levels of the structure. His pace was slow as his arthritic limbs extended and contracted, and Hurricane maintained a respectful place by his side.

“Nothing of absolute importance. I just wanted to say that I watched the fight from the observatory deck of the castle. Taking down a siege engine alone, hm? I see that politics haven’t dulled your blade, Commander. I don’t know many ponies who would even attempt such a feat; far fewer would be able to pull it off.”

“I appreciate the praise, Star Swirl. You know there are few ponies who I regard as highly as you, and not many of them are unicorns.”

A slight laugh left the elder stallion’s lips. “You do me a great honor, Hurricane. I know you give your trust sparingly; perfectly understandable, mind you, considering what you went through.” A massive doorway imbued with all color of gems greeted them, and Star Swirl’s horn lit as he opened it. “Here we are. Commander, if you would.”

“Thank you.” Pulling off his helmet, Hurricane placed it on a table and sat down, allowing his eyes to wander the room. Bookshelves of incredible height stretched from floor to ceiling, with each column holding thousands of tomes. A massive window overlooked the eastern horizon, where the sea was just barely visible through the end of the valley as a blue mirror between rocky crags. The sight awoke a profound feeling of homesickness in the Commander’s gut.

Star Swirl followed Hurricane’s gaze and sat down next to him. After a long pause, the unicorn began to speak softly. “I was there, you know.”

Hurricane raised an eyebrow but remained silent.

Another brief smile came across Star Swirl’s face, and he used his magic to levitate a pipe to his lips. “I was there in Ouvrir, the small town where your kind first made contact with us. It had started out as a day full of dread. The Diamond Kingdom and the Low Valleys were at each other’s throats, and the good King Lapis had every intention of delivering an ultimatum to Chancellor Muffintop; surrender your food reserves, or face the wrath of the Diamond Kingdom.”

Star Swirl drew several puffs from his pipe and released a smoke ring into the air, closing his eyes and chuckling softly to himself. “Instead, when we arrive, we find the whole town absolutely enthralled with these new arrivals. A company of flying ponies! Why, it was absolutely amazing!” The unicorn drew on his pipe once more and held it out before him. “Lapis was so amazed by such a race of equines that he put aside his ultimatum in favor of establishing relations with the pegasi. He hoped that the leader of such an impressive band of military imperials would be able to foster and hold the peace between us.

“He still holds that belief, you know.”

Hurricane showed no reaction. Instead, he kept his eyes focused on the late morning sun to the east. A distant land called out to him, longing for the return of his kind, but it was overrun with death. The griffons had won, and Gryphus assuredly held control of Dioda from coast to coast. Any surviving Cirrans who couldn’t join the exodus would be hunted down and exterminated like vermin. No matter how much he longed for those distant shores and for the friends and family who died for his life, he could never return.

Sensing his companion’s discomfort, Star Swirl decided to change the topic. “I saw how you got rid of the Crystal warlord out there. A thunderbolt to rival that of the mightiest storms! The sight of a pegasus producing such a feat of Arcana is amazing. How did you do it?”

Relaxing a little, Hurricane stretched his wings across the back of the chair he sat in. “I wouldn’t call it Arcana, Star Swirl. That’s the type of magic unicorns have, am I correct?”

Star Swirl nodded his affirmative.

“I’m not at all an expert on how unicorn magic works, but I imagine it takes a good deal of focus to perform spells. I have seen many a Diamond soldier in my eight years defending our tribes, but never has one manipulated nature in such a way in combat.” Hurricane scratched his forehead with the tip of his hoof. “I’m not sure how to explain it, but I think it was more of an emotional action. There aren’t many things that anger me, but Heavy Trot and his callous disregard for pony life managed to kindle some sort of disgust. I directed that anger towards him, then…” Hurricane produced a whooshing sound with his breath to describe the rather violent death of the Crystal warlord.

At some point, Star Swirl had produced a quill and parchment to take notes on, and he set those aside when Hurricane finished speaking. “Interesting. Such effectiveness against an enemy encased in diamond armor is highly unusual of Arcana, but it sounds like your magic is controlled by emotion rather than focus. Empatha, I would call it. But here’s something I don’t understand. If it works off of emotion, which I’m sure can be found in the heart of every soldier on the battlefield, how come I have not seen more of your legionaries perform similar feats of magic?”

Hurricane thought for a long time before coming up with an answer. “Because it was never taught, I suppose. It took more than just a simple outburst of anger or energy to produce that thunderbolt. Hell, even I don’t know at all how it works. I think it takes some sort of innate focus, knowing what you want to do with your emotion. Desperation is too diffuse an outlet, I suppose, for pegasus magic to be directed from.

“I’ll have to instruct my top commanders to look into this more when I return. However, this—what was it you called it? Empatha? Anyway, Cirran lore tells of the great figures such as Roamulus being able to command nature. Given, many of these tales are exactly that: lore. How accurate they are is subject to the sands of time, but military records from the early Cirran Empire, between zero and forty After Empire to be precise, show that several legates and commanders expressed magical abilities closely tied to their emotions. The mercenaries of the merchant city of Nyx were supposedly extremely adept at it. After that era, I assume it fell out of favor. Nothing more was said about it since.” Hurricane cast one last reluctant glance towards the east. “Some of that knowledge might have saved the Empire, had we known about it then.”

In such a short time, Star Swirl had already produced nearly a ream of notes. The sheer amount of thought that went behind those observations astounded Hurricane, but then again, it was one of those traits peculiar to the unicorns. Even the most self-obsessed noble was surprisingly observant. The pegasi, for the most part, either acted upon the information that came to their face or bucked at that which came from behind.

“This is very intriguing, I must admit.” Using his magic, Star Swirl stacked the notes and levitated them towards a desk covered with parchment of various sizes. “I will look forward to reviewing these notes at another time. Actually,” the elder rose upon his aged limbs and walked towards a rather large chest in the back of the room, “you might want to see this first.”

Hurricane stood up and followed the unicorn, wondering at what it could be that motivated the usually rather slow mage to move in such a way. Standing a respectful distance behind the old stallion, Hurricane waited as he rummaged through the chest.

“No, no. I thought I got rid of that. No. Ah, here we go.” Stepping away from the trunk, Star Swirl produced a diamond container which he laid on the table. Shuffling a few feet to his right, he gestured for Hurricane to step forward. “If you would, Hurricane. It took me a blasted amount of trouble to get those things in there, and I would rather not deal with the side effects of handling them myself.” Seeing the Commander’s skepticism, the unicorn smiled reassuringly. “Don’t worry, Commander, they’re only harmful to unicorns. I very highly doubt that they’ll have any sort of effect on yourself.”

Taking a deep breath, Hurricane grasped the container between his hooves and twisted the lid. The diamond came apart easily, revealing a large set of black crystals inside. Hurricane dumped them onto the table, where they clattered about with an unsettling acoustic vibration. Other than the strange noise, they didn’t appear to harm him in any way. Star Swirl, on the other hoof, winced as he drew closer.

“Void crystals. Many of the Crystal warriors carry them as necklaces when they go into battle, though I had never quite understood why... until now. This latest siege gave me the chance to gather a few from the dead and study them. Painful business, that.” Here the unicorn paused to rub at his horn, which was producing rogue sparks of Arcana with its proximity to the stones. “In case you haven’t noticed my sparkler of a horn, void crystals are highly adept at absorbing Arcana. I would go so far as to say that they actively consume it.”

Hurricane lifted a small crystal in his hoof and felt it vibrate. Examining it closer, he could see thin lines of mana being drawn from some of the surrounding magical devices; crystal lamps and Star Swirl’s horn, to name a few. He set the stone he was holding back on the table and pressed his hoof against it. After a moment of intense resistance, the black crystal collapsed into a layer of fine, black powder, producing a crack of mana in the form of fire.

“Fascinating, to say the least. So the Crystal ponies carry these with them when they fight unicorns?” Hurricane turned away from the table and flexed his wings. “I don’t see how much use they would be to me, however. I’d barely be able to keep a necklace on in combat, and I wouldn’t want the thing dangling in my face when I’m performing complicated aerial maneuvers.”

“I figured as much, and I did come up with a solution for you. Your helmet, if I may?”

Hurricane shrugged his wings in indifference. “Sure.”

Nodding, Star Swirl took several steps away from the desk and levitated Hurricane’s helmet over from where it lied on the far table. Grasping the sturdy onyx helmet between his hooves, Star Swirl ran a hoof across the gold trim. “This will work nicely. Would you mind crushing several of those crystals for me? Mighty difficult for a unicorn to break them, mind you, and I’ll need a fine powder of the stuff next.” When Hurricane nodded and began to place several of the void crystals under his powerful hooves, Star Swirl’s long horn crackled to life, and the gold trim of the helmet started to glow.

After Hurricane had reduced a sizeable portion of the crystals to black dust, Star Swirl set the helmet down. “And now the fun begins.” Pushing the helmet closer to the powder, the unicorn quickly retreated from the table.

There came the same acoustic sound from the dust as the helmet drew nearer, and the pile shifted across the table. With a loud hiss, tiny flakes of void crystals flew towards Hurricane’s helmet, sizzling loudly as they affixed themselves to the onyx surface. In a few short seconds, the pile of crushed void crystals had fused itself to the metal.

“How…?” was all Hurricane could mutter as he took the helmet and examined it. The piece of armor looked no different from before; in fact, it actually appeared much more polished and refined than it had been. Placing the helmet on his head, Hurricane could feel no difference in its weight. The blasted singing the crystals produced in their larger forms was thankfully absent as he knocked a hoof against the surface.

“Simple. The parasitic nature of the crystals draws them towards sources of Arcana. I merely charged the gold trim of your helmet, which is an excellent sponge for Arcana, and the void crystals became attracted towards it. The slow diffusion of mana from the gold across the rest of the helmet helps to fuse the void crystals in place. Now it should be able to absorb even the most powerful blows of unicorn magic across its surface, although the low concentration of the powder won’t hurt unicorns in proximity.”

Without warning, Star Swirl’s horn alit and fired a blast of magic at Hurricane’s head. The pegasus jumped back in alarm and flared his wings, but he remained unhurt. The damned crystals were singing again, but their vibrations quickly dissipated as the Arcana was consumed.

“See? Not a scratch on you,” Star Swirl remarked as Hurricane took the helmet off and looked at it. Not even a scorch mark was visible against the polished metal. Smiling, Hurricane set the helmet down and shook his head.

“Star Swirl, you damned genius. Thank you. How will I repay you?”

“Please, Commander, this is how I’m repaying you on the behalf of the Diamond Kingdom. River Rock would have fallen if you hadn’t have shown up, regardless of how much the Guard praises itself for the victories of the past. Come now, we can get the rest of your armor plated before lunch.”

Hurricane was more than happy to assist Star Swirl in finishing the plating, but a loud knock on the study doors drew their attention. Before Star Swirl could go to them, the massive doors slammed open ahead of a white and purple unicorn mare.

“Princess Platinum,” Star Swirl greeted the mare, bowing before her. “To what do I owe you this lovely visit?”

“Not now, Star Swirl,” Princess Platinum responded, storming past him. “I have much more important business I need to discuss with the Commander here.”

Hurricane groaned inwardly and set his hoof against his brow. Of all the unicorns he had ever met, Princess Platinum had to be by far the worst. With a silvery coat and delicately coiled mane and tail, the Princess was the definition of pampered. A silver crown studded with amethysts and a flowing robe of royal purple with white fur hemming confirmed her positioning as the daughter of King Lapis.

“Please, for the love of Mobius, make it quick,” Hurricane muttered. The last thing he needed was for his ears to start bleeding from the mare’s whiny voice. Actually, if he recalled properly, Platinum barely of age. She was only just sixteen, a year past being called a filly. Regardless, the young mare acted as if she was already in charge of the Kingdom.

“I don’t know what sort of strange gods you believe in, Hurricane, but I will not be talked to in such a way! I am Princess Platinum, daughter of the mighty King Lapis IV, heir to the throne of the Diamond Kingdom! I am above the common rabble such as yourself, and I demand I be treated as such!” Lifting her chin skyward, the mare put on such a foalish display of superiority that Hurricane was tempted to smack her like he did when his own children acted out. Rather than risk a diplomatic incident, however, the Commander guided his hoof towards grinding more void crystals into dust.

“Just because you’re royalty doesn’t mean I answer to you,” Taking off his cuirass, he pushed it towards Star Swirl, who began to charge it for him. “And Cirra is most certainly beyond your concerns. The only unicorn I ‘take orders’ from is King Lapis, and even then we regard each other as equals.”

“Being the daughter of the good King Lapis, I have the authority to speak on behalf of the Diamond Kingdom! And you, Commander, I saw you bring down the siege engines on the cliffs. I also saw you let the Crystal barbarians retreat! Why did you not use your mighty Legion to cut them down as they fled? They brought injustice upon unicorn lands, and so they should have paid for it!” The indignant Princess tried to lean towards Hurricane and leer into his face as she was used to doing with her servants when she was mad, but the black pegasus only responded with calm indifference towards the small mare glaring at him.

“Was there any need to? Those ponies were led by a warlord of incredible brutality. He was the one who ordered these ‘injustices’ against the unicorns. I dealt with him, so I consider the matter closed. Furthermore, news has begun to reach my borders that the Crystal Ponies are striving to unify under a banner of peace, while such efforts are forestalled by the Warlords and their remarkable barbarism. However,” this time he lowered his head towards Platinum’s, causing the unicorn to take two frightened steps back, “if you feel that justice still has not yet been done, then send your own soldiers after them. I lost five hundred legionaries today, and I’ll be damned if I lose any more for settling your childish grudges.” Returning to his full height, Hurricane pushed a pile of crushed void crystals towards the charged cuirass and watched as they fused to the onyx surface.

Platinum's face contorted into anger and frustration. Not once in all her sixteen years had anypony ever defied her in such a way as Hurricane did on a consistent basis. For the self-obsessed filly’s mind, it simply didn’t make any sense. “Childish grudges?! Why, I never!” Turning to the gray unicorn assisting Hurricane with preparing his armor, the princess stamped her hoof against the ground. “Star Swirl the Bearded! Show this pegasus brute what happens when you defy the lovely Princess Platinum!”

“Now what’s that? I’m sorry, my dear Platinum, but I’m finding it difficult to hear in my old age.” The old unicorn winked at Hurricane, and a flicker of a smile formed in the corners of the Commander’s mouth.

“Unghh! You two are useless! Useless!” shouted the filly as she stormed out of the room. When the doors finally shut behind her, Hurricane took the time to rub his wing feathers against his tail in a traditional Cirran curse.

“Kids these days, hmm?” Star Swirl laughed as he finished his inspection of Hurricane’s cuirass. “Looks good to go, Commander. I assure you, there is not a finer specimen of armor in all the land.”

Hurricane quickly donned his new armor and looked it over. “Thank you again, Star Swirl. Hopefully I won’t have to use the void crystals but, well, you never know. Cirra thanks you for your generosity.”

Star Swirl escorted him towards the door. “On behalf of King Lapis and the Diamond Kingdom, I thank you and your Legion, Commander, which our beloved Princess forgot to do. May the Sun and Stars watch over you.”

Hurricane paused to shake Star Swirl’s hoof before departing. “And may Mobius cast his mercy over your skies.”

“Mobius, hm? Have I told you that your mythology fascinates me? The earth ponies’ is too dull or incomprehensible, and our unicorn myths and legends are only concerned with the mighty Kings of the past. Perhaps if we happen to find time to—” Star Swirl laughed and tapped his skull. “My apologies, I should not be keeping you. These kinds of ramblings tend to happen when you’re a unicorn scholar. Anyways, I hope the new armor pleases you, and may you return again one day in peace.”

“If the Gods are willing, then it will be so.” Hurricane snapped his wings open to the side in perfect perpendicularity to the floor in the Cirran salute, then walked down the spiraling staircase, leaving Star Swirl to tend to his notes and studies. As he left, he took the time to admire the paintings and sculptures that decorated the halls of the River Rock castle and captivated the expression of ponykind in the way that only the unicorns could perfect.

He didn’t notice the first flakes of summertime snow beginning to fall.

Comments

[Rushelers]

Yay, finally here, time to start reading. I'll edit this comment later with comments on the first two chapters.

Okay, just read the first two chapters, and I surely approve of them. First off; the thought of two of my favourite verse's being put together is great, it makes it a lot easier for myself (and others) to remember what (for example) the different forms of magic of the different races are called. I also look forward to picking the stories apart looking for references between them.

I must also say I love your portrayal of Star Swirl and Princess Plast-ahem, Platinum, Star Swirl is probably one of my absolute favourite characters, and its unfortunate he is barely ever noticed at all, even in the Canon (A few passing mentions the only evidence he existed at all).

Wondering what has happened to the rest of Hurricane's family, and you have made me really curious about King Lapis, so I look forward to reading about all of them.

[Rayvinne]

He didn’t notice the first flakes of summertime snow beginning to fall.

You have no idea how much that confused me for a moment.

I'm so tired.

[Boott]

I love the foreshadowing.
Only 2-er 1 chapter in and its looking like this is going to be a blast.

[SolidFire]

First chapter of the actual story and future events are already being hinted at. Loved the opening battle. He certainly proves his ranking while in the throes of combat, doesn't he. I liked how he handled his... talk, with the Princess. It's going to be fun to watch him grow even more as a leader in this story. Maybe one more chapter before bed.

~SolidFire

[FancyFan]

Oh Starswirl. Will you never stop being awesome?

[RexDraconum]

“What honor does your kind deserve, ruthless savages who plunder homes and kill innocents for their material wealth?” Hurricane spun in the air and folded his rear legs under him. “I’ve fought traitors with more honor than you.”

I don't actually doubt that.

RexDraconum, a.k.a ArchangelGabriel.

[Amos Anon]

The Commander regarded the situation before him with a disinterested attitude at best. “We are when we need to be. I figured the walls of this city would be strong enough to last a few days and soften up the barbarians for us before I commit soldiers to its defense. I'm glad to see that I was right. And it’s Commander Hurricane. Now, what can I help you with?”

What an a$$hole. This is a different Hurricane than I remember from the last novel. Of course, who knows how time may have changed him.

[BirdsBooksBrownies]

9819258
You're right, he does seem a bit more snooty (for lack of better words) than he was in the previous story.