After a team of pegasi return cursed with frost that cannot be thawed, Sunny and her friends must confront a far older threat that looms in the frozen North.
"To answer your question, no, they are in critical condition. Despite our best efforts, we expect that in less than forty-eight hours their body temperature will drop to a level that’s incompatible with life."
After Sunny Starscout and her friends restored magic and united the pony tribes once more, roads were built between the cities and a treaty was signed proclaiming a union between the three tribes, granting the right to all ponies to freely move and live in whichever part of the fledgling Equestrian Union they wanted.
The resulting economic and population boom forced the newly-forged nation to glance outwards at the massive stretches of unclaimed land that laid at their hooves. Soon teams of pegasus pioneers ventured outside the borders to broaden their horizons.
All seemed well, until one day a team arrived home in distress from their northward journey. Their rapidly-weakening bodies were covered in frost that didn't seem to melt, even though it was the middle of summer. None of them could give a good explanation what happened, other than that they experienced something terrible up north. Fearing the worst, the government decided that further investigation is necessary into this concerning phenomenon and there is only one group of ponies, who can fulfill this task.
It has merely been a few years since Sunny Starscout and her four unlikely friends did the impossible and returned magic to a world, which didn’t believe in it anymore. What started out as an awkward period of re-connection eventually blossomed into full-blown friendship and not much later the leaders of each tribe announced to the world the forging of a new alliance, one that would elevate their individually meager states into a union of nations.
This was a year ago and Sunny wanted nothing to do with it. That is not to say, she wasn’t elated with the news, but after the new government’s tenth attempt to give her the “Princess of Friendship,” the “Ambassador to Friendship,” or one of several other ridiculous titles, she wanted nothing more than to just return to her smoothie shop and help her local community. Even with all her newfound fame, she didn’t feel like she wanted any special treatment and all things considered, she was pretty content with her current job. As she closed her business for the day and began trotting back towards the lighthouse, a mare she used to have a much more strenuous relationship with approached her.
“Ah, hello Ms. Cloverleaf, how is business?” greeted her Sunny. The elder mare, who was usually positively beaming since her factory re-branded into a company manufacturing affordable consumer electronics, now looked suspiciously worried.
“Oh Sunny, you know you can just call me Phyllis,” she chided her softly, before her face took on a much more serious look, “sadly I’m not here for small-talk. Can I follow you to your house? We need to talk in private.”
“Ms. Clo- Phyllis. If this is about Sprout, you should know I have long forgiven him. It is not my fault he still runs away screaming whenever he sees me.”
Phyllis’ eyes went a bit wide upon hearing this, but she quickly composed herself.
“No, it’s not my son I wanted to talk about, though it seems like I have to have a heart-to-heart with him too,” she sighed, as the pair arrived to the lighthouse. The old building never looked nicer. Its reconstruction was one of the first projects that members of all three tribes worked on. Seeing how incredibly effective the pegasi logistics and the unicorns’ mastery over levitation was, combined with the raw strength of an earth pony helped legislators push towards unity. Even those who weren’t moved by sentimental reasons could not deny the economic benefits.
The two mares entered inside the building and Phyllis cleared her throat before speaking up.
“As you may know, recently more and more pegasi have been flying outside to scout the areas we ignored till now, due to our unfortunate paranoia and ignorance.”
“I’m with you so far,” replied Sunny, who felt a bit confused at why she’s being told this. The scouting parties were a hot topic in the media, it was more or less impossible that someone didn’t hear about them.
“Yes, however, what only very few know is that recently one of the parties returned injured.”
“That’s terrible! What happened to them?”
“I haven't been told all the details, but what I do know is that they are covered in frostbites and suffer from some sort of amnesia. Zephyr Heights' best physicians are looking after them, but we are a bit afraid that there might be something lurking out there that we have absolutely no idea about.”
“This is awful,” Sunny’s voice quivered a bit, “but I’m still not sure why you are telling this to me. I’m neither a warrior, nor a tactician. I can’t defend Equestria.”
“Sunny, dear, no one is asking you that. However, you are by far the strongest pony out of all of us and certainly the most resourceful one too. After all, you were the one to unify all of us.”
“Only with the help of my friends,” retorted Sunny with the slightest bit of offense in her voice.
“Yes, yes, I didn’t mean to ignore their contributions. Either way, a chariot will arrive soon because some higher-ups want to meet us to discuss the details.”
Sunny frowned as she listened to the elder mare and began pacing around the room. She looked at her father’s photo. She then turned to face her again.
“What if I say no?”
“Dearie, I can’t exactly force you,” Phyllis smiled apologetically, “if you say no, then I’ll ask you to please keep silent about this conversation between us and that’s the end of this story. However, we have no idea what’s out there and who knows what might happen to us if we’re hit unprepared. Even worse, we don’t even know how to treat those poor pegasi. The doctors might have mostly stabilized them, but due to some nasty curse, their bodies are rapidly losing heat and we aren’t sure how long we can mitigate that.”
Sunny wanted nothing more tonight than a good night’s sleep. An urgent government summons and a potentially dangerous adventure was the exact opposite of her wishes. Yet, she couldn’t sit around idly when the lives of innocents were on the line. She glanced once more on her father’s photo, then stared deeply into Phyllis’ eyes.
“Alright, I will get to the bottom of this,” Sunny said with less conviction in her voice than she intended. Phyllis gave her a reassuring smile.
“I’ll leave you to pack and lock up. Meet me in ten minutes outside.”
Sunny wasted no time. She picked up her trusty saddlebag and then surveyed her home for things she could use during the trip. Maretime Bay experienced warm summers and gentle winters, so she didn't really have too much in terms of warm clothing, but after she dug through her father's belongings again, she found his old scarf. It wasn't much, but she figured it would at least keep her neck warm. She also placed her father's journal into the bag. Perhaps it could hint at the identity of whatever was causing these anomalies. And, as Sunny reluctantly admitted to herself, having it close also made her feel safer.
Suddenly she heard knocks on her door and upon turning around she saw Phyllis standing in the door.
"It's time," she said and Sunny trotted out behind her, locking the door and taking one final glance at her home.
As it was late in the afternoon, most ponies were already at home and the few who weren't regarded the duo with unsuspecting glances. After all, now that there was peace, it could only mean good if the town's hero and its leader shared a friendly evening stroll, right?
Their short walk ended at a road at the end of the city, that still looked freshly paved. One of the most successful first legislation of the Union was a system of roads that connected Bridlewood and Zephyr Heights to Maretime Bay, allowing ponies to visit each other, without the risk of getting lost.
A dark mass appeared in the distance, which steadily grew as it approached. It was a large machine, which could easily fit ten to fifteen ponies inside. Its outside was covered in elegant dark-gray plates, which were in turn adorned with golden frills, giving the vehicle a regal look. Despite its impressive size, however, it made little noise, other than the quiet screeching its tires. The humbly named 'chariot' was the peak of Equestrian engineering. It was built by utilizing the smartest engineers of the Bay, the superior factories of the pegasi and casting a massive, collective spell on the road which allows the chariot to move without an internal power-source as long as it stays on the road.
The vehicle parked next to Phyllis and Sunny and the driver seat's door opened. A primly dressed unicorn stepped outside and walked up to them.
"Ms. Cloverleaf, Ms. Starscout. Please take a seat," he motioned as he opened a door on the side with his magic. As they stepped inside, the chauffeur closed the door and then returned to his own place. Upon making sure that they were properly seated, he reached down without another word and started the car again. As they rode, Sunny didn't feel like she was in a talkative mood. None of her usual topics felt appropriate at a time like this, not to mention she was worried. Phyllis looked at her and opened her mouth, but upon seeing the young mare's face, closed it again. The rest of the journey passed in silence.
The peaks of Zephyr Heights’ castle shone in the distance. Originally serving as the royal palace, it was now shared between the court of Queen Haven and the parliament of the Union’s interim government. Many weren’t happy with putting the seat of power so close to one faction’s home, fearing it would lead to an imbalance in power. However, neither Bridlewood nor Maretime Bay had the necessary infrastructure to house a serious government, so, despite the concerns, ultimately everyone had to give in an accept the situation, at least for the time being.
Sunny would have preferred to walk through the city. It has been quite a few months since she last had time to visit the pegasus capital, but Phyllis insisted that they should be as discreet as possible. Thus the chariot stopped right in front of the castle and the two were ushered in, not through the main entrance, but a recently built, smaller door used by members of the government.
As Sunny and Phyllis walked through the corridor, the young mare surveyed her surroundings. This wing of the castle was surprisingly barren compared to the usual decadent opulence the city basked in. The walls of the hallway were painted with a calming beige color and its floors were made out of sheets of exquisite marble, but otherwise there wasn’t much in terms of decorations. This was a conscious choice. The intent was that once somepony enters the building, they should lose all preconceptions of their tribe and think with the combined benefit of all in mind. With the government constantly boggled down by more pressing matters, nopony bothered yet to commission art that would please all three tribes at the same time.
At the end of the hallway stood an inconspicuous door, behind which the Unified Party for the Good of All Ponies held its meetings. Sunny had been here a few times before, mostly to deny whatever silly roles they wanted to honor her with, but she still couldn’t help but be shocked at how undignified this supposedly dead-serious parliament was.
The room was mostly empty, save for a number of simple desks, arranged in a vaguely crescent-like pattern. One could hardly see an empty spot on them as their tops were completely dominated by stacks upon stacks of papers. Behind every desk sat one or two ponies of all varieties, all of whom were reading, writing or discussing something undoubtedly very important. Their spirited gesticulation made it obvious that they were all trying their best, but the lack of cohesion did not exactly inspire confidence in Sunny.
However, all of this suddenly left her mind as she noticed the small group standing in the middle of the room. The four ponies she held dearest to her heart seemingly haven’t noticed her arrival yet, as they were facing towards the middle of the crescent, where a single earth pony sat. She stared at them with a stern, yet concerned look. Her dress was a simple black and white one and on her face sat a thick pair of glasses, that gleamed from the light of the lamps inside the room. While she was beyond her prime years, her face and posture radiated authority, in stark contrast to the organized chaos around her. Unlike all the other desks in the room, hers was entirely empty, save for a small card which heralded its owner as “Clear Conscience, President of the UPGAP.”
“Hi Sunny! We’ve been waiting for you!” Izzy suddenly turned around and threw herself into her friend’s hooves.
“Oof,” Sunny felt like all air has left her lungs after the unicorn slammed into her with force that the Sprouticus Maximus could envy, “hi Izzy. Hello everyone.”
“Ah Sunny, we’ve been worried you might not even turn up and we’ve all came here for nothing,” said Hitch with a sly smirk.
“Hey Sunny. Looks like you came just in time,” greeted her Zipp.
“Oh, group picture time!” squealed Pipp and took out her phone. Clear, who until now regarded the scene with exasperation on her face, sighed then spoke up.
“Miss, you are inside a government building, on a meeting that concerns our national security. Please put that thing away,” she gestured towards her, with a slight tinge of irritation in her voice.
“Oh. Right. Right. Sorry,” she stammered and quickly put the phone under her wing.
The mare then turned towards the new arrivals.
“It is good to see you Phyllis,” she said with a stiff smile, “and I’m happy that you’ve been able to join us as well, Sunny Starscout,” her smile disappeared, " Before we begin, Phyllis, you are my good friend and I know you are just as concerned as we are, but I cannot bend the rules. Your job here is done. Please leave the room.”
“Oh. Right. Yes, of course,” the older mare replied with a slight frown, then left silently through the door.
Clear then turned back towards Sunny, who has since joined her friends in front of her table.
“Forgive me for that,” she said while massaging her temple, “one of our rules is that either all leaders have to be present or none of them. We can’t exactly allow ourselves to be accused of favoritism,” she chuckled bitterly, “not that it matters much anyway. Our last meeting ended in a bitter argument, so I figured it’d be better to handle this matter without their help.”
With that, she leaned down and picked up a paper from her desk’s compartment then adjusted her spectacles.
“Right. Let us begin,” she said taking a deep breath, “as you may know the recent advances in our effort to unify the three states has lead to an unexpected economic boom, which in turn lead to a massive increase in population growth. Our minister of city-planning, Housing Crisis”, - a brown stallion poked his head out of a stack of documents upon hearing his name, before delving back inside when he realized he wasn’t needed - “has predicted that in fifteen years all known territories of Equestria will be populated and urbanized.”
“But,” Sunny furrowed her brows, “isn’t that a good thing?”
“Please allow me to finish, " said the mare as she peered up from her paper, “yes, it is a very good thing. We’re entering an unprecedented golden age of advancement. However, a government can’t sit on its success, we have to have contingency plans for the future. This is where the pegasi scouts come into the picture. We hope that by mapping the outlying territories we can find new places to settle once the agglomeration is full.”
“Until that one group came back injured. Yes, Phyllis told me about the situation. Please tell me, are they alright?”
“You are right,” Clear sighed, “I shouldn’t be wasting time with trivialities. To answer your question, no, they are in critical condition. Despite our best efforts, we expect that in less than forty-eight hours their body temperature will drop to a level that’s incompatible with life.”
“You can’t be serious.”
“Sadly I am. They will die and we can’t do anything. Unless, of course, you, Sunny Starscout, are willing to help us.”
“Ms. Conscience, I agreed to come here and hear you out, but what do you even expect us to do? Wouldn’t an army or a group of specialists be far more suited for a task like this?”
Clear chuckled softly in an almost sorrowful way.
“Sunny, I hope I can call you that, the UPGAP has no standing army. We petitioned for it, but none of the leaders agreed to it. Not after that little blunder your friend, Sprout Cloverleaf, has caused.”
“But it ultimately lead to our unification!”
“Yes, but it also showcased how much harm even a single madpony can cause with unchecked weaponry. Until the memory of this event fades from the collective consciousness or a very good reason is found to arm ourselves, I’m afraid we are completely incapacitated. This is one of the main reasons why this anomaly has to be investigated as soon as possible. As for our specialists, they are some of the brightest minds of this generation, but that’s exactly why we cannot send them out without any idea of what’s waiting for them out there.”
She shifted on her seat and leaned forward.
“We only ask you to make sure that the premises are safe. Once that’s done, you can immediately pull back and we’ll take over. We don’t expect you to play the hero, just scout ahead," Clear placed the sheet down and looked over the group, "believe me, it pains me the most to send a bunch of civilians to investigate a potential threat. However, you and your friends have proved yourself to be the closest thing we have to an organized group that can defend itself, "she then turned to Sunny, "everypony in this room has already agreed to help out and we have great faith in your mastery over the power of all three tribes. Can I count on you?”
Sunny listened to her silently. She then looked over her friends. They all smiled reassuringly at her.
“Come on, Sunny, it’s gonna be fun! Like when we first met!” laughed Izzy.
Sunny wished she could look at this with the same excitement as her, but instead all she felt was worry. Not to mention, this whole thing felt like she was being roped into something that she couldn't say no to. Still, what she also could not do was to leave her friends behind.
“Alright, I will join the investigation,” she said, both to her friends and to the elder mare sitting in front of her, “but we will turn back at the fist sign of danger.”
“That is all we expect,” Clear Conscience nodded, “the pegasi in question went missing not too far from here. The flew northwards and returned two days later than scheduled, in a rapidly-deteriorating state. We will guide you to their point of departure, but afterwards due to there not being any roads or settlements in this area, you will be entirely on your own. I wish I had more details to give you, but the scouts’ condition makes it impossible for them to recount their experience. My aides will provide you with food and protective clothing. Good luck.”
It wasn’t long before the small group reached the end of Zephyr Heights and peered towards the wilderness laying in front of them. Unlike the wild rush and noise of the bustling and ever-growing cities, the countryside was still very-very quiet. Despite what her father's journal said, Equestria, as far as Sunny knew, had no sentient creatures outside ponies and the few critters that co-existed with them, so there was nothing out there to break the silence aside from the soft whistling of the wind.
“Well, what are we waiting for?” Izzy visibly bounced up and down from her excitement.
“Right. We should not let those ponies down,” doubled down Hitch on the unicorn’s words.
The five ponies stepped off the road and began walking into the unknown lands beyond. It was an uneventful journey. Aside from the samey looking, stocky trees and rocks, everything was just a green carpet that gently rolled as far as they could see.
“So, what do you know about these parts?” asked Sunny as she turned to Zipp and Pipp.
“Not much, to be honest,” replied Zipp, “I came out here a few times to practice, but, " she chuckled, “the only thing you can really practice here is dying from boredom.”
“Dunno,” said Pipp, “I never really left the city before I met you. No signal. Can’t talk to my fans.”
Sunny sighed, “so we have absolutely no idea where we are even going or what we might be facing.”
“Nope.”
"Great."
The silence was only broken by the soft clopping of hooves and the occasional small-talk between each other. The sun hung lazily in the cloudless sky. The hours seemed to blur into each other. After walking what felt like leagues to her, Sunny’s initial worries slowly morphed into frustration. They were frolicking in green fields while back home ponies were fighting for their life. Her inner simmering was extinguished prematurely though, as Izzy suddenly stumbled and almost fell over.
“Ouch!” she yelped, “what is this?”
The rest of the group quickly rushed to her side and looked where she pointed. Before them, hidden in the thick grass, laid two thick, dark-brown, almost black beams.
“Are these... Train tracks?” Zipp asked.
Sunny felt confused. As Clear Conscience has told them, they were hours from any known settlements. And even if these were tracks, they looked absolutely ancient from all the rust and deterioration on them. They also couldn't see any station nearby, though based on the fact that they were standing in an empty field, whomever built these tracks must have abandoned it a long-long time ago.
Sunny leaned closer to inspect it and to her surprise the rails felt very cold to the touch, despite it being a toasty summer day.
“I think we might have found a clue,” she said, “shouldn’t we turn back now?”
“Come on, Sunny! Aren’t you interested in where these lead? Maybe we can find out more if we follow them.”
“Yeah, we can’t turn back now!” Izzy, who already got over her fall, chimed in.
“Sunny, I know you’re worried, but lives are on the line,” said Zipp in a more serious than usual tone.
“That’s not... What I meant,” Sunny hung her head. She sighed again, “alright, let’s follow it. Pipp, Zipp, can you fly ahead and check if you can see anything interesting? Just be very careful and turn back if anything seems weird.”
“Gotcha.”
The two pegasi flew up and whizzed past the rest of them. Soon they became little more than colorful dots on the backdrop of the blue sky. Sunny, Izzy and Hitch followed the tracks in the meantime. A few minutes have passed.
“Umm, Sunny,” Izzy broke the silence, “I don’t want to sound like a spoilsport, but I can’t see Zipp or Pipp anymore.”
“What?!” Sunny blinked twice and frantically surveyed the sky. It was as Izzy said.
“But-but they were there just a moment ago! Hitch, Izzy, we have to find them. Let’s go!”
The other two nodded and they broke into a gallop. The green fields were almost mocking them with how spacious there were. There was no logical place where two grown pegasi could hide. Even the trees’ canopy was too thin for that. As Sunny frantically ran, with her eyes still glued to the sky, she suddenly ground to a halt. Did she just feel a cold wind hit her muzzle? That could not have been the case, it was summer.
“Did you feel that?” she asked the others. The wind blew. Grass swayed and the trees groaned as their twigs twisted. There was no other sound.
Sunny Starscout stood alone.
“G-guys? This is not funny. We are on a mission, remember?” she stammered. This made no sense. They were beside her just a moment ago. As she felt her heartbeat increase, her face was hit by another cold gust of air. She tentatively took a step towards where it came from, but as she placed her hoof down, the air in front of her seemed to ripple and parts of her leg disappeared. The stump, that used to be her left hoof, suddenly felt like it was being prickled with a thousand needles.
Sunny screamed from the sudden pain and fell back onto her haunches. She began hyperventilating. She closed her eyes for a moment, trying to collect her strength, then took a rugged breath. Finally she looked down. To her surprise, both of her hooves were still intact. She tried to calm her breathing as she took a closer look. Her hoof was indeed uninjured, but it was also covered in rime that hardly seemed to melt, despite the summer heat.
Sunny didn’t know what to do. This wasn’t part of the plan. Her mind screamed that she should flee immediately and let the government handle the rest. This wasn’t a fun adventure anymore. Where did her friends go? What is in front of her?
Sunny continued to take deep breaths and tried her best to calm her trembling heart. She could not abandon her friends. She slowly stood up and put her right hoof forward. Just like before, as if she was submerging herself into a vertical pool of water, the scenery in front of her rippled and her hoof disappeared. She began to feel the prickles. This time, however, she doubled her resolve and instead of pulling back, she put her left hoof forward, which also sank into the invisible barrier in front of her. Finally she threw herself forward. The picture of the green field swallowed her up, rippling wildly, before its surface slowly calmed to how it was before.
The other side of the barrier was nothing like Sunny ever experienced. The landscape could only be described as a frozen wasteland. The temperatures were below freezing and, as far as the eye could see, every single tree and rock was covered deep in snow. Grim mountains stood guard in the distance, though Sunny wasn't sure how tall they truly were. Their peaks, along with the rest of the sky, were covered in thick, dark clouds. Behind her, like she was peering into a bizarre inverted snow-globe, the Equestria she knew glimmered in all its warm glory, separated from the cold outside by a round, shimmering veil.
Sunny immediately attempted to go back. However, the veil pushed her back as if she was trying to pop an extremely resilient balloon. She tried again and again, kicking and punching the veil, but before long she lost her fervor and just felt exhausted, cold and alone. The cold air hurt her lungs and her exertion has only made the frost ache that much more. Sunny's hooves burned as she took out the protective clothing she was given and put them on. She also wrapped her father's scarf over her face, making the air she was breathing a bit more bearable.
Having ensued her immediate survival, Sunny turned around and surveyed the grim world in front of her. She could not spot any landmarks in the gloomy darkness. She squinted her eyes. Wait. She suddenly noticed what appeared to be a tower in the distance. She thought it was a mountain at first, but no. It was different. Not only was it a pristine white, compared to the dirty-gray look of the peaks, it was also far-far closer. As Sunny continued to look at it, it seemed to glisten like a crystal.
With no other good destination in sight, Sunny adjusted the scarf over her mouth and began her slow journey towards the tower. There was almost no sound, the snow drowned out everything, except for the soft crunching the snow made under her hooves.
As Sunny walked deeper into this frozen world, the woods became sparser and sparser and she soon found herself in a massive clearing. The tower stood in the middle and a haphazard formation of massive lumps of snow stood around it. She couldn't help but think that the shape of these things and the way they were arranged were strangely familiar. As she ambled between them, she saw some black rods jutting out of the ground with iced-in globes of glass hanging from their ends. Things suddenly clicked in Sunny's head. She must be in a snowed-in city and these were once houses and lamps.
Sunny shuddered at the thought of being alone in a long-dead town. Were these homes empty? Would she find the frozen remains of the ponies that lived here inside? Feeling the dread mount inside her, she quickly decided to move on, instead of pondering these questions. As she walked towards the tower, she could not stop herself from anxiously looking left and right, almost expecting something to jump on her. Yet, because she was so preoccupied with watching the streets, she didn't even notice a pair of steely blue eyes peering down at her from a balcony on the side of the tower. The eyes then looked away into the sky and motioned towards the lonely mare down below. A shadow in the sky responded to its master's call and silently began descending towards the ground below.
As Sunny crept towards the tower, she finally fought down her mounting fear and decided to take a better look. Even with all the snow on it, she could easily spot the carvings and elegant arches that the distance hid before. Beautiful patterns of snowflakes and brilliant crystals adorned the massive building. Whatever the purpose of this spire was, it was a monumental work created by someone or something. Her awe didn't last long, however, as something caught her eye and she spun around. Did she really see movement in her peripheral vision? She couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. Aside from her own hoofsteps in the snow, everything seemed as undisturbed as before. Sunny shook her head for a moment and continued moving.
Finally, she arrived to the base of the spire. It too was a truly masterful display of architectural art. Instead of a solid foundation, its bottom was hollowed out and the spire was held up by four more intricately carved, gigantic arches. The empty space inside was protected from snow by the rest of the building and Sunny figured, it must have served as a town-square of sorts. With nothing obscuring the view, Sunny could see that the floor was pure crystal decorated with even more intricate patterns than she saw on the walls. In the middle of the square, a spike jutted out from the floor, while another hung from the ceiling. It looked like a shrine of sorts, but whatever object of worship belonged between them was long gone and missing. Sunny trotted forward, hoping she might be able to gleam some information, but just as she was about to lean closer, she suddenly heard a noise behind herself. As she turned around, she merely saw a blurred shadow, before something hit her on the head. Sunny's vision immediately went dark.
A headache. That was the first thing Sunny felt after waking up. Then cold. Cold above her and even more freezing cold below. This must be one of Sprout and Hitch’s usual pranks, she thought. Back when they were little, it wasn’t unusual for the duo to have a bit of mischief with her. They probably just threw a water balloon into her bed, while she was sleeping. But even those aren’t supposed to be this cold. Nor are they supposed to cause massive headaches. Realizing something was really wrong, Sunny ignored the protests of her throbbing head and forced herself to open her eyes.
Her vision cleared slowly. The first thing she realized was that she was inside a massive chamber made out of crystals. Its dim illumination came only from a few torches that burned with an ethereal green light, which refracted from the walls to illuminate the entirety of the room. The memories immediately rushed back to her. Her friends are missing. She got lost inside a frozen world. She was attacked. Now she was likely inside the spire. As she clambered to her feet and looked up, she realized she wasn't alone. In front of her, in the other end of the chamber, a shadowy figure stood, peering down at her.
Her eyes now fully adjusted to the darkness, Sunny warily measured up her captor. It seemed equine, just like she was, however, its entire body was covered in black armor and its head was hidden behind an intricate helmet. The helmet’s face resembled a horse’s skull. Three horns jutted out from its temple, in a shape that resembled a grotesque crown. The only opening in the helmet were two eye-holes, through which Sunny could see two eyes that burned with intense dark-blue flames. Without as much as uttering a word, the nightmare-creature took a step towards her. Sunny reflexively tried to step backwards, but her hooves remained firmly planted. To her horror, she realized that during the time she spent gawking at the being, her hooves froze to floor.
“Who- who are you?” she asked with a quivering voice.
“Silence,” rang out the armor in an unnaturally hollow voice, “you too have trespassed into my domain.”
“I’m sorry! I was just trying to find out what happened here. Wait... Me too?”
Despite the extreme cold, a drop of sweat rolled down from Sunny's temple. The armor didn't reply, just pointed behind her in a sweeping motion. Sunny turned extremely slowly and looked behind herself. The sight she beheld was too much. Her vision went dark and she almost fainted. Four pony-sized mounds of ice stood behind her. She could see the dark outlines of two pegasi, an earth pony and a unicorn. Her friends stood behind her. Frozen solid in ice. Sunny's head was spinning and she desperately fought against her tears. The armor spoke again.
“This is the punishment of all intruders. What power grants you the right to step into this realm?”
Sunny knew that if she had no compelling argument, she would be joining her friends. She glanced back once more. Maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing, she thought, her mind clouded by the empty calmness of defeat. She could not help them. She could not even help the pegasi at home. What right she had to live? She accepted her fate and closed her eyes.
No.
She chased these thoughts of despair away and opened her eyes once more. This wasn't her time yet. Her friends would never forgive her for throwing away her life. They would want her to live. They would want her to return safe. She could not trample their memory by dying here.
Collecting all her bravery, Sunny replied:
“I am Sunny Starscout, daughter of Argyle Starscout. I am the unifier of the three pony tribes and representative of the newly-founded Equestrian Union.”
The armor, which until now continued its slow, almost mechanical march towards her, lurched to a halt. To Sunny’s horror, its eyes flared up even brighter as it glared her down.
“There are only two ponies who may call themselves a ‘unifier.’ You, intruder, are nothing more than a cheap liar.”
The being then held out a hoof towards the ceiling and a small cloud of thunder formed. A billowing, horse-like mass emerged from it, with malicious white eyes and a crooked frown. While Sunny was already terrified of the armor, this creature struck an even deeper, almost primal fear into her heart. The feeling only intensified when her mind made the connection and she realized what she’s looking at.
She was staring at creature of legends.
She was staring at her death.
Yet, rather than pleading for her life or screaming in agony, Sunny instead took a deep breath and pushed her tears aside. She glanced back at her friends once more. Even in her predicament, she couldn’t help but smile as she walked through her journey with them in her mind.
Her escape with Izzy. How Zipp confirmed her beliefs. How Pipp decided to trust them, despite her ruined show. How even her oldest friend finally came around and saw the truth. How they never gave up hope in her, even when she herself has.
As her heart and soul was filled with these kind memories and the thoughts of her friends, she felt like the ice was a bit less cold and the chamber a bit less dark. Even the vicious creature stopped its advance and looked at her with a confused and scornful look. Sunny didn't care. She leaned deeply into her father's scarf and remembered the time she spent with him. All those late-night stories of ponies being friends. How he never gave up hope, up until his disappearance. And how his actions eventually allowed his daughter to come this far.
While these images flashed in front of her eyes, Sunny's rapidly beating heart slowly calmed down and she began to glow a little. A pair of translucent wings and horn materialized on her. She ignited her horn and Ice shattered behind her. Sunny looked back. Her friends were all lying on the floor, unconscious, but - thank the Stars - still breathing. With newfound bravery, Sunny turned her head back and stared right into the eyes of the armor.
“I am no liar and I know you well!” she shouted, “You are the Lord of Chaos, the snake called Discord! And this... this is a Windigo! A creature born of pure hatred.”
Hearing its name, the mist-demon snapped out of its stupor and lashed at Sunny.
For a moment there was silence. Sunny braced herself and reflexively closed her eyes. No impact came. She slowly opened one of her eyes. The Windigo hovered in front of her, one of its hooves hovering mere inches from her face, but it wasn’t looking at her anymore. The armored figure gestured slightly and the creature reluctantly moved back.
“Sunny Starscout,” the armor rattled in a way that almost sounded like hollow laughter, “you are indeed correct about the identity of my minion. However, the Lord of Chaos I am not. Still, it is curious that you know these names. I must know, how are you aware of them?”
“I... I learned them from my father’s diary,” said Sunny. She noticed that her transformation also melted the frost from her hooves and she could move once again. She leaned back and took out her diary. The sight of the six-pointed star made the armor flinch and take a step back.
“What is the meaning of this? How can this bear Her insignia?” asked the being, however, this time its voice sounded less hollow and, as Sunny realized, almost alarmed. Suddenly its eyes lit up in flame once more.
“You don’t even realize the significance of this item. This is not yours to read. Unlike these others, you aren’t merely a trespasser. You are the daughter of a thief and you are a thief yourself,” the voice sputtered with unmistakable rage.
“I fully know its significance!” Sunny didn’t allow herself to be intimidated. Not when it came to the protection of her father’s most important memory, “I don’t know who you are, but this journal was my father’s and now it is rightfully mine. I may not know where he got it from, but I do know, that there wasn’t a single pony who deserved to read Princess Twilight’s thoughts more than him, who believed in her so much! It was only because of this diary that we were able to convince the three tribes to finally put their differences aside!”
The helmet’s flames suddenly evaporated.
“Could this... Could this all be part of Auntie’s plan?” it asked itself quietly.
To Sunny’s shock, the middle horn of the helmet was enveloped in a soft, yellow glow, which soon spread to the entire helmet. It twisted slightly, then began to float off its wearer before landing on the floor nearby with a very soft clank.
Sunny stared with her mouth left agape. In front of her stood a mythical alicorn mare. Her coat was a very faded pink and her ethereal mane, which flowed freely despite the lack of wind, was a mix of a pale blue and soft purple. Her beautiful, eternally young face was twisted into a frown. Even without flames, her blue eyes stared with piercing coldness at the earth pony in front of her.
“Who are you?” Sunny found herself asking again.
“My name is Flurry Heart,” she replied in a somber, yet strong voice, “I am queen of this frozen empire, daughter of Princess Mi Amore Cadenza and Prince Shining Armor, niece of Princess Twilight Sparkle. I am the defender of Equestria.”
Sunny's heart skipped a beat. She felt like a train just hit her. Not only was the being in front of her a pony just like she was, she was also a flesh-and-blood alicorn and on top of that, a relative of Twilight Sparkle?! Yet, despite the awe she felt, what the queen said didn’t sit with her right.
“How can you claim you’re the defender of Equestria when you turned everything outside a small portion of it into a snowy wasteland?” she cried out, “how can you say this while you hurt my friends and nearly killed me?”
“You are mistaken on all three accounts,” Flurry Heart said with a small smile as she shook her head. The smile didn’t reach her eyes, however. Those were betraying her true emotions of pain and hurt. Her smile dropped before she continued.
“Just like with every other pony that wandered out here before, I merely intended to scare them and then allow them to return home, so that your kind will learn its place and stop interfering in my matters. I only wanted to do the same to you as well. That warm world of friendship and laughter is not familiar to me anymore, so I cannot know why you even bothered to come outside, Sunny Starscout. This world of mine isn’t one you wish to take part in. There is nothing out here for you, except death and suffering.”
She sighed.
“You have called my Windigo a ‘creature born of pure hatred.’ Indeed, eras ago they were the biggest problem Equestria had to face. Back then things were so much easier. If you knew of the horrors which lurk beyond my tower, you would wish you faced merely a Windigo.”
“I don’t understand,” stammered Sunny, her anger evaporating.
“Of course you don’t. How could anyone expect otherwise? You’ve spent your entire life in ignorance, prancing and singing about friendship with your friends, without a care in the world. That’s what all ponies do. That’s what I used to do,” she cast her eyes over the ground, before looking back at Sunny, " yet today the only reason you still have a world to even call home is because I’ve been holding vigil over it for centuries," the queen slammed her hoof down, which echoed loudly in the chamber, "you dare accuse me of being the source behind this chaos, yet it is only my magic that keeps the everlasting winter out of your realm and it is only my mastery over these creatures you so abhor, that you weren’t yet overrun by real nightmares.”
“Even if what you say is true, I don’t understand, why are you doing this for us?”
Flurry Heart scoffed, “for you? Don’t be ridiculous. I serve an oath I swore many years ago.”
“An oath?”
“Yes. I promised to my aunt that I will always look after her subjects. I held myself to this word, even after she disappeared.”
“The Princess? What happened to her?”
“That is something even I do not know. Regardless of the reason, my aunt’s disappearance thrust the world into an all-encroaching chaos. As far as I know, this is the only segment of the world that survived.”
“And you have been standing here alone ever since...”
“Yes.”
“You must be very lonely,” Sunny said quietly, casting her gaze towards the floor.
“What?”
“You seem like a good pony to me, Flurry Heart. You have protected us for centuries, without anyone ever thanking you for it or taking part in your strife.”
“I”, Flurry Heart replied her voice losing much of its strength, “admit the years haven’t been kind to me,” she shook her head and her voice regained its power, “it doesn’t matter. I do this merely to uphold my oath. And just like the others, you too will forget you ever met me and things will continue as before. Even if you are a disciple of my aunt and even if you mimic the appearance of one of our kind, I cannot allow anypony to endanger themselves out here.”
As she said this, her horn began to glow, enveloping Sunny and lifting her off the ground. Yet, unlike what Flurry expected, Sunny did not collapse, but held her head up high. Her eyes shone resolutely.
“Queen Flurry Heart, as representative of the Equestrian Union and unifier of the three tribes, I offer you my and my nation’s friendship.”
The alicorn’s grip softened on her, yet her eyes remained just as piercing. She remained silent.
“I may not know the extent of the hardship you have faced over these years, but you do not have to face them alone anymore. If we were able to unify the tribes, there is no way we cannot help you!”
“No,” Flurry Heart shouted suddenly, tightening her grip twice as powerful, “this is and has always been my burden alone!”
“Is that really what Princess Twilight would want?” Sunny asked, struggling to breathe. She could not allow her chance to slip, so she pressed on, “no. She would want you to be happy and surrounded by friends.”
“I am the product of a by-gone era. Nothing more than a forgotten folk tale. I have nothing in common with your kind anymore. The only thing I'm still good for is protection.”
“That is not true. You are a pony, just like me, and that means you possess the magic of friendship in yourself! Even if you consider yourself guilty of the Princess’ disappearance, it’s a crime you’ve long repented for!”
The alicorn relented her grip, gently placing the earth pony down.
“The magic of friendship..." she whispered. Tears began to leak from under her closed eyelids. "Sunny Starscout, do you mean the words you have said?”
Instead of answering with words, Sunny just walked up to her and hugged her. For a moment there was silence. Then, as the two mares embraced each other, Flurry finally broke down and began uncontrollably sobbing into Sunny’s mane.
“It all happened so quickly. My family... They all disappeared. I cannot even remember how many centuries I’ve stood guard. Only their horrid assaults. My entire empire was gone in days,” she drew rugged breaths between each sentence, as she spoke, “I utilized the darkest and strongest magics I knew to try and save them. I entombed myself in this cursed armor, befit only a tyrant. I conjured up Windigoes. I became a mockery of everything my mother and aunt stood for and yet even with all my sacrifices, my subjects still died. The only thing I could ultimately save were you.”
“Shh” Sunny cooed. The Windigo, which until now hovered behind its master, turned its head away in utter disgust, before evaporating into small puffs of cloud. As they hugged, Sunny didn’t feel so cold anymore. Indeed, even if the chamber was still less than warm, its temperature now was more of akin to a cold breeze, rather than the previous bone-chilling frost.
After a few moments that felt like eternity, they separated. Sunny looked deeply into the mare’s eyes. They too seemed less icy than before. Her tears glistened like crystals.
"Now, tell me, Sunny Starscout, why did you come here?"
"We came to find a cure for the pegasi that ventured here before us. They are dying from a frost that cannot be thawed."
The queen froze.
"I... I went too far. I... I never meant to hurt anypony. Scare them, yes, but this? Oh Sun, Moon and Stars, how much needless suffering have I caused?" she whispered with a pained voice. She closed her eyes and lit her horn for a few seconds in silence, before speaking again, " your friends suffer my frost no longer. Oh, Sunny Starscout, can you ever forgive me?"
She hung her head in shame. To her surprise, however, an orange hoof reached out and gently raised it back up.
"It is done," the young mare replied.
Flurry Heart let out a breath, she didn't know she was keeping in.
"I don't deserve this, but... Thank you, truly," she whispered. A sad smile played about her face, "I suppose your quest is finished. Is this our goodbye?"
Sunny just smiled.
“The reason why those pegasi came here in the first place is because we are looking for new places to settle. Perhaps we could work together to revitalize this dead empire.”
Flurry Heart’s eyes widened a bit at this idea.
“I... I suppose the remains of the town are safe," she said, her voice quivering with a mix of hope and disbelief, "Those creatures from beyond don’t dare to come close anymore. But who would even want to come here? It would be massive work to breathe any life into the city. Even with my magic, I cannot keep the snow out. That would require an artifact I do not possess anymore.”
“You underestimate our combined strength,” Sunny laughed and nodded towards her friends, some of whom blinked blearily as they slowly woke up, “I saw it with my own eyes how resourceful we can be.”
At this point the alicorn couldn’t help but laugh a little herself and this time, her eyes shared her joy.
“Sunny Starscout, you truly are an inspiring mare.”
“Please, just call me Sunny.”
“Very well, then I must insist you call me Flurry.”
“I am very happy to have met you, Flurry. My friends and I must return home to deliver the news, but we will come back. This is my promise to you.”
“I shall eagerly await your return. May I accompany you until the border?”
Sunny looked back at her friends who were staring at them with varying levels of shock and awe.
The Equestrian Union would like to officially open its border towards Your domain as discussed previously. We would like to begin preparations for the cleanup of the city whenever it is convenient to You, so that we may proceed to the stage of allowing immigration into Your empire as soon as possible.
As mentioned in our previous letter, work has already began to reopen the EU-Crystal Empire train line. The new tracks are being laid down as we speak and I recently received news that the new railway carts are almost finished. We hope to soon connect Your empire to our grid, so that we can communicate even faster and speed up our work.
The Equestrian Union would also like to appoint Sunny Starscout as its official ambassador to Your empire as, - at the time of first meeting with You, - she technically did not possess this title. We do believe this is a preferred move by both parties and we look forward to facilitating an even friendlier relation with You.
Finally, allow me to speak candidly to Your Majesty. We cannot thank You enough for Your sacrifice. Sunny wasn’t willing to tell me the entire story, for which I do not blame her, however, based on the little she did tell me, I feel like it is not just simply our moral duty, but an obligation to remember why we can still be here today. She mentioned an ancient celebration, she read about in her journal. One that has something to do with the Sun and the Moon, I'm sure You should be the one telling me about it. We were hoping to reinstate this old practice to further our cultural unity and with You being a direct descendant of the royal line, it would be our great honor if You could personally open the celebration.
With our greatest thanks and respect, Clean Conscience, President of the UPGAP"
