Fallen Rainbows
Oct 12, 2010 21:10:26 GMT -8
Post by sunstar on Oct 12, 2010 21:10:26 GMT -8
Not saying a word! Tell me how this chapter turned out, please!
Fallen Rainbow
Math wasn’t her favorite subject, nor was it her worst subject. Megan Aubade sighed. Her attention was drawn to the window of her math classroom. The classroom looked like a classroom should, if you could get pass the 50 or so desks crammed into a space the size of a standard bathtub. You practically had to sit on the lap of the kid sitting next to you just to have room to write. Twice, Megan had nearly wrote an answer on the wrong paper.
Outside, it was calm and beautiful. A gentle breeze brushed past the trees, making the leaves wave. The grass was green, and the leaves were green, making Megan think they were artificial. They had to be, to still look green and beautiful near the end of October, not to mention completely frozen. The road that Megan could see looked like glass. Halloween was only a week away.
Blond with blue green eyes, Megan was average height and slim. She was wearing her good clothes, looking forward to changing into her worn blue overalls when she got home. She’d take TJ for a ride, and maybe they would ride to the old covered bridge and go up to the waterfall. May be not. Time was short because of the short days. In two months, Winter Darkness would begin. Megan hated Winter Darkness. It was the time of the year when the sun would leave the sky and not return for four weeks. Winter Darkness could be pretty too. Especially when Full Ice settled in, turning Little Falls into a frozen wonderland. Sometimes the ice would rise and freeze over their heads, forming a vast ball of ice. All the lights dancing on the ice was pretty. The best time of all was the first reappearance of the sun. It turned the frozen world into a cascade of rainbows.
Little Falls was situated in a high valley near the peak of Mount Falls. Mount Falls wasn‘t very tall, and the town itself rested just below the shelf of rock that made up the peak. Main Street held the general store, vet and doctors offices, and a single bus stop. Ice glittered in the dying light as it hung off the roofs of several buildings. Main street made up what was known as Town Center. A Courthouse set just off Main Street leaned over a tree ringed in ice as if it were crossexamining it. Megan’s school, Little Falls Penitentiary, took up an entire left side of Main Street. In fact, the school had once been the prison. Scattered through the woods, sometimes in clusters, were houses, and slightly lower then the town, were the farms were Megan lived. Streets twisted through Little Falls like snakes in a garden.
Megan pulled her mind back to her calculus homework. She wrote out an answer on a paper she was sure wasn’t hers. Looking up, the clock read 2:59. One minute left until the bell rang. School would be over. After what felt like years, the bell finally wheezed into some semblance of a ring. School over at last, Megan rushed out into the frozen early evening. Buses lined the block, kids piling into them for the ride home. Megan chose to walk. She lived only ¾ of a mile from school. It was ether that or a very cramped two hour bus ride to get home.
She knew the back woods and its trails by heart. Heck, she could walk them blind folded without getting lost. The trees at the mouth of Frost Trail remained incased in ice all year round. The reason for this was because Mount Falls peak formed a sheltering cave that blocked out most sunlight. Also, it was one of the farthest places up north. Frost Trail stayed cold all year round due to the fact it was surrounded by Glacier Falls, a giant glacier that formed part of the wall around Little Falls. Megan walked past the frozen trees and as usual, she slowed to take in the sight of the frozen waterfall. You could see fish frozen in the water. One fish had froze just as it was leaping from the falls.
Long ago, Little Falls was a temperate paradise. Something had happened that forced the peak and glacier to fuse together and transform Little Falls into a mostly frozen wonderland. No one knew, or remembered the cataclysm that had caused this to happen. Legends told of a violent earthquake followed by strange lights in the sky that lasted for days. A huge glacier fell from the sky as the peak of Mount Falls was yanked upward. When it was finally over, Little Falls was trapped within a ring of rock and ice.
A soft wind whistled through the frozen leaves that would never know an autumn ground. Megan walked on, her feet taking her toward the ancient foot bridge. It was covered, and inside, you could see a frozen spider web complete with a spider eating its dinner. In the upper corner, there was a bees nest complete with several bees frozen to it. The red and brown wood had frozen long ago, but the wooden walkway was kept thawed by a heated stream passing under it.
Megan suddenly froze, sure she heard her name being called. She realized something else. The hot stream was silent. The wind had stopped.
Scrape. Scrape…
The hairs on her neck rose. She saw something black out of the corner of her eye. Very slowly, she turned, and screamed. A black humanoid crawled on its stomach toward her. It’s arms were at its sides, and it knees were reversed so they were off the ground. It moved by using only its feet. It lifted its head. Empty sockets and a lolling wet tongue made up its face. Megan tried to run, and failed. The thing reached her at last and lifted itself up to her eye level. Up close, the sockets gleamed with an unearthly fire. It’s mouth opened as it leaned toward its meal. Megan screamed.
“Back! Get back!” A brilliant golden light shot pass Megan and threw the creature backward. Hissing and screaming, the creature twisted itself toward its attacker. Megan gasped. A golden female pony with long red hair and a horn and wings stood between her and that… thing.
“Who are you? What are you?” Megan could only stare and gap at her savior.
“I promise, I’ll answer your questions later.” The pony replied, “Back! You do not belong in this world! Be gone!” Lowering her horn, she thrust it at the creature, “I just hate Redead…” the creature hissed again and lashed out. Expertly, the pony leapt back and dove forward again. Clearly, this wasn’t the first time she had fought a creature like this. Finally, the creature gave up and scraped away. The pony lit her horn and a strange black and white rainbow flowed from it to surround the creature. Slowly, the darkness faded away to reveal a normal man. The pony walked up to the man and gave a sniff, “Sadly, I came too late. He’s dead.” Lighting her horn again, the body vanished, “This isn’t good if the Redead have found their way into your world.”
“Are you a little pony?” Megan was shell shocked.
“little? I’m not little. First things first. I am a Dralicorn which is a dragon alicorn. My name is Sunstar, and I am the chief Guardian of the Guardianship. My duty is to protect the Flow and the Source from which it begins. What you just saw, the black and white rainbow, that is only a small part of the Flow.” Sunstar noticed the red heart shaped locket Megan wore, “Is that the Rainbow of Light?”
“Yes, it is. My name is Megan Aubade and I was given it by the Moonchik. Is Ponyland in trouble?” Megan asked.
“Ponyland? Oh! You mean Equinova! It is in big trouble, and I need the Rainbow of Light.” Sunstar answered, “Why don’t we find a place to sit and I’ll tell you the whole story?”
“Are you a Princess Pony?” Megan pointed at Sunstar’s symbol.
“Yes, I am a princess. I am one of the twin princesses of Riverfalls.” Sunstar nodded, “Shall we get moving?”
“Riverfalls? Is that near Ponyland?” Megan didn’t move.
“It’s the entire east side of Equinova.” Sunstar explained, “We need to get moving.”
“Yes, we should.” Megan walked out of the covered foot bridge. After that, it was a few twists and turns until Megan reached her home. The sun was nearly gone. Megan didn't care. She cared more about her friends and Sunstar being here met trouble. Plus there was that thing that had attacked her...
“What is it with all the ice?” Sunstar asked, “It’s cold here!”
“Of course it is cold. What did you expect at nearly 10,000 feet above sea level, and surrounded on two sides by a glacier?” Megan asked.
“I see.” Sunstar shivered, “And you humans are crazy enough to call a place like this home. The Mountain Ponies would love it here, not to mention the White Clan.”
“White Clan? What is that?” Megan asked, leading Sunstar to the barn, “We can talk here. It will be warmer inside too.”
“You don’t know about the White Clan?” Sunstar stared in shock at the human girl, “And they say you were Equinova’s greatest hero.” She stepped into the barn.
The building was large, and red. Stalls lined a huge indoor arena. TJ called to Megan. Other ponies dozed, or chewed on hay. Sunstar stared at the other ponies. These ponies looked like the Wild Ones of her world.
“The Wild Ones let you keep them here?” She asked.
“Wild Ones?” Megan looked confused, “Here comes Molly and Danny. It’s okay. They know Ponyland.”
“Equinova.” Sunstar corrected, “The Wild Ones are ponies that have… well… lost their intelligence, for lack of word. It’s been getting worse. They don’t live as long as normal ponies, not that they aren’t normal, and prefer to live in vast herds. A Wild One is born in every 5 births. They can’t talk nor can they create. They can’t eat the food we eat and thrive on grass and apples.”
“Megan!” Danny Aubade was a red head with blue eyes and freckles. He stopped short as he saw Sunstar for the first time. He was wearing jeans and a blue shirt, having already changed from his school clothes. Molly Aubade was blond like Megan. She was wearing her pink overalls over a white work shirt. Her eyes were wide as she saw Sunstar.
“Who is this?” Molly whispered.
“No need to whisper, little one. My name is Sunstar, and I’m a Dralicorn, which is a dragon alicorn. I am the chief Guardian of the Guardianship.” Sunstar smiled, “Megan, is she your foal?”
“No, she’s my sister, Molly.” Megan replied, “Danny is my brother. These ponies must seem wild to you. To us, they are tame. In fact, we use them as a form of transportation when it gets too cold for cars.”
“I’m not a foal! I’m a human girl!” Molly cried out indignantly.
“I apologize.” Sunstar turned to her.
“Is Ponyland in danger?” Danny asked, “Who is it this time? The witches? Agg? Lavan? Queen Bee? The Lava Demons? The Ice Ogres? Grogar? Tirek? Somebody new? Somebody open the fairytale door?”
“Its Equinova, and how do you know about these monsters? You are too young to have lived during the time of the Princess Ponies.” Sunstar studied the humans.
“The Princess Ponies are still alive. We just defeated Lavan, again.” Megan said.
“Oh my god.” Sunstar looked up at the roof of the building, “I’m in the past. Might as well tell them everything.”
“Here.” Megan pointed out the big hay pile, “Come.” She led the way into the hay pile, revealing it to be a play house of sorts. The top was open, letting in light. Sunstar sat down as the humans made themselves comfortable.
“Okay, I’m going to start at the beginning. I am a Guardian and my duty is to protect the Flow and provide help to my people. Sadly, I failed, badly. Soon, my world will be devoured and your world will be next. There is no stopping the Mass of Chaos. If it touches you, you will become a minion called a Redead. The man you saw me kill was one. This is not good. Already, it is sending its minions to prepare the way into your world from my world. The Mass has one weakness. It can’t stand the combined power of the Rainbows. I am on a quest to find them. You, Megan, have one of them, the Rainbow of Light. I also need the Rainbows of Darkness, Fear, Hope, Life, Death, and Rebirth.”
“We’re doomed!” Molly cried, “Megan used the Rainbow of Light to destroy the Rainbow of Darkness!”
“That is not good. We’ll have to hope that the remaining six are strong enough to destroy the Mass.” Sunstar said, her tone solemn.
“Megan!”
“Megan!”
“It’s Firefly and Locket!” Megan scrambled out of the playhouse, “Come on!”
Sunstar followed the humans outside to see a pair of pink Pegasi. One had blue hair while the other had pink hair.
“Megan, we need your help!” this came from the pink haired Pegasus.
“It’s really bad.” the pink Pegasus with blue hair cut in.
“Firefly, Locket, this is Sunstar. Sunstar, these two are Locket and Firefly. What happened? Did Lavan escape?” Megan asked.
“She’s a winged Unicorn!” Firefly squealed.
“Are your wings and horn real?” Locket asked.
“Yes, they are real.” Sunstar answered.
“Megan, it’s the smooze. It’s back.” Locket explained.
“Did you go get the Flutter ponies?” Molly asked.
“Flutter Valley is gone!” Firefly cried out.
“No! It’s not supposed to happen yet! The Mass can’t be there already! Tell me, is the smooze black with purple lightening?” Sunstar asked.
“How’d you know?” Firefly asked.
“I know because I’ve seen it, in my world. It’s devouring our worlds and I know how to stop it.” Sunstar said, “We need to find the Rainbows.”
“Wait. Come with us and tell this to Majesty.” Locket let Danny climb on while Megan got on Firefly.
“Wait! You can’t be serious about taking human foals into a potentially dangerous zone!” Sunstar objected.
“Sunstar, I helped defeat the monsters, so did Danny and Molly. We will be fine. Will you carry Molly?” Megan replied.
“Fine, you can come. Um, what do you mean by carrying Molly?” Sunstar asked.
“She means that she wants you to let me ride you.” Molly said, climbing on. Sunstar staggered a bit but followed the two Pegasi into the sky. She had to work harder to stay aloft. Firefly took the lead, heading for a rainbow. She began to climb higher and higher into the sky. With a hard down thrust, Sunstar worked herself higher into the sky. Carrying Molly brought back memories of carrying her children in flight. She coasted by Locket, who was rising ever higher, the rainbow below her. They passed into a thick cloud, but the rainbow remained bright even as full night fell around them. Sunstar dropped for a closer look and gasped. The Rainbow was graying in places where bits of the Mass devoured it. She alighted onto the Rainbow and lowered her horn so it touched the softly glowing radiance.
“She can walk on Rainbows?” Firefly squealed, again.
“Rainbows are light magic.” Sunstar explained, “I can walk on them because I was born half light magic. This one is sick and dying.”
“It’s the Mass, right?” Molly asked as Sunstar began to walk along the Rainbow.
“That’s right. See the black and purple spots? The Mass is eating her. I feel her agony. She has tried to fight it off but she can’t fight anymore.” Sunstar said.
“The Rainbow is a girl?” Danny asked.
“It talks?” Firefly added.
“Light magic.” Sunstar explained, “I guard it, so yes I can communicate to it. Light Magic is often referred to as female while dark magic is referred to as male.”
It wasn’t long until the Rainbow began to arch down below Sunstar as she took wing, following Locket who was high above her. Firefly was even higher still. Sunstar had to wonder just how the Pegasus breathed in that thin air up there. Firefly suddenly dropped down to Sunstar’s level, her flanks heaving as she took in great gulps of air.
“Firefly, how many brain cells died in this attempt? You can’t fly into space. It is a vacuum. There is no air up there!” Locket reprimanded Firefly sternly.
“Stars!” Firefly wheezed, “Billions of them!”
“How about a black and white rainbow?” Sunstar asked.
“No rainbows, just black sky and pretty little stars… dancey little stars…” Firefly’s voice was high.
“Is she always like this?” Sunstar was worried, now.
“Unfortunately yes.” Locket replied, “She’s a adrenaline junkie.”
“So many little stars…” Firefly giggled.
“Wasn’t she carrying someone?” Sunstar asked.
“I made her leave Megan on my back.” Locket said, “Firefly, go down. Follow pretty Rainbow.”
“Stars pretty…” Firefly started to climb again, “Want nother look!”
“No! Bad Firefly! Firefly down!” Locket ordered.
“WANT NOTHER LOOOOOOOOK!” Firefly refused to listen.
“Allow me.” Sunstar lit her horn. Seven white stars seemed to fall from the sky and dance around the clearly insane Pegasus.
“Stars!” Firefly chased the stars.
“She’s oxygen deprived. It should clear up once we get lower.” Sunstar smiled, “Reminds me of a good friend of mine.”
“We are going to dive through the clouds.” Locket instructed, “Have you dove through clouds before?”
“Yes, and I hated it. I hate getting wet.” Sunstar prepared to dive. The stars dove and Firefly, still giggling madly, followed them as Sunstar followed her. Locket was still overhead as she dove with them.
Firefly dove faster, her giggles reaching the ears of her friends and the guardian. The giggles stopped suddenly. A terrified scream rent the darkness. It was cut off mid ululation quite suddenly. Fear prickled the spines of the three children and the two ponies. Sunstar nearly dove before remembering Molly on her back.
“Firefly!” Megan screamed.
“SHHH!” Sunstar hissed, “Listen!”
Far below them, a steady roar grew ever louder. Sunstar felt her blood run cold. She knew that roar. Fear took root in her mind.
“Molly, bury your face into my mane and hang on tight. I am going in. What ever you hear, don’t look!” With that, Sunstar dove, a golden shooting star streaking toward the land far below her. Molly did as she was told without an argument.
SCREEEEE!
The human girl gasped and tried to crawl into Sunstar’s mane, at least that’s what it felt like to Sunstar. Gliding, Sunstar turned after what was once Firefly. Thick leather wings beat the air. A torn, tattered brown coat hung off a bony frame. Bones stuck out of the coat like white spears stabbing at the sky. A limp colorless mane and tail hung in wet tendrils off the body. Black eye sockets burned with eternal flame. The face had been replaced by a sharp beak that chewed the air. The only thing that was still Firefly was the dimming symbol. Sunstar swallowed, her throat dry.
“Firefly, look at me. You are going to be okay.” Sunstar dodged as the beak came centimeters from biting her neck, “Firefly, please!”
“Firefly! It’s me, Molly! You know me!” Molly tried.
Firefly roared past Sunstar, nearly forcing Molly to fall.
“I’m sorry, Molly.” Sunstar lit her horn, “Firefly…” She and Firefly clashed, tearing at each other with beak and horn. Molly screamed, somehow burying herself even deeper into Sunstar’s mane. Sunstar angled herself to send a burst of light magic at Firefly. The attack hit, forcing the former Pegasus to scream. The symbol burned brighter, and the Redead form dimmed a bit to allow spots of pink fur to show through.
“Firefly! You stop it! I know you are there! Fight it!” Megan screamed.
The Redead looked up, “Megan? Augh!”
“Sunstar! Save her!” Megan pleaded.
“Can do!” Sunstar curled her legs to her body, gathering power for her signature attack, “scrap! Can’t! no sun!”
“Rainbow! Give Sunstar your strength!” without thinking, Megan released the Rainbow of Light.
“Megan! No!” Sunstar screamed, “That’s what the Mass wants!”
“Use it’s power! Save her!” Megan pleaded.
Sunstar curled her legs and absorbed the light from the Rainbow, “I know this isn’t sunlight, but please, God, let this work!” She released the attack, “Strike of Light!”
Rainbow tinted light plowed into Firefly, breaking the Redead’s hold on her body. Firefly plummeted toward the ground. Sunstar dove, using her magic to slow the Pegasus’s fall until they both landed on the ground. Locket had barely set all four feet on the ground when Megan shot off of her and raced toward Firefly. The Rainbow of Light showed its anxiety over Firefly by tying itself into a knot and untying itself again.
“Firefly? Firefly!” Megan held the Pegasus’s head, “Please! Wake up!”
Sunstar, relieved of Molly, came over and gave Firefly a sniff, “She’s alive, but the Mass still has a hold of her. It can repossess her at any time.”
“Can’t you break Its hold?” Megan asked.
“It would take a power far stronger then me to successfully break the curse. Even the Light can’t help.” Sunstar looked up at the Light, “The Locket isn’t safe anymore. You know that. You know where you must go.” The Light bent it’s top half up and down as if it were nodding. It streaked around Sunstar before entering her horn and coloring the top spiral of her seven spiral horn red. Sunstar hid her red tip by turning it back to its old shade, “Before you even ask, Notice my horn? It has seven spirals. I can hold the Rainbows, but I can’t use them. That falls to the Guardian of the Rainbows, who will have seven spirals on his or her horn like me.”
Fallen Rainbow
Math wasn’t her favorite subject, nor was it her worst subject. Megan Aubade sighed. Her attention was drawn to the window of her math classroom. The classroom looked like a classroom should, if you could get pass the 50 or so desks crammed into a space the size of a standard bathtub. You practically had to sit on the lap of the kid sitting next to you just to have room to write. Twice, Megan had nearly wrote an answer on the wrong paper.
Outside, it was calm and beautiful. A gentle breeze brushed past the trees, making the leaves wave. The grass was green, and the leaves were green, making Megan think they were artificial. They had to be, to still look green and beautiful near the end of October, not to mention completely frozen. The road that Megan could see looked like glass. Halloween was only a week away.
Blond with blue green eyes, Megan was average height and slim. She was wearing her good clothes, looking forward to changing into her worn blue overalls when she got home. She’d take TJ for a ride, and maybe they would ride to the old covered bridge and go up to the waterfall. May be not. Time was short because of the short days. In two months, Winter Darkness would begin. Megan hated Winter Darkness. It was the time of the year when the sun would leave the sky and not return for four weeks. Winter Darkness could be pretty too. Especially when Full Ice settled in, turning Little Falls into a frozen wonderland. Sometimes the ice would rise and freeze over their heads, forming a vast ball of ice. All the lights dancing on the ice was pretty. The best time of all was the first reappearance of the sun. It turned the frozen world into a cascade of rainbows.
Little Falls was situated in a high valley near the peak of Mount Falls. Mount Falls wasn‘t very tall, and the town itself rested just below the shelf of rock that made up the peak. Main Street held the general store, vet and doctors offices, and a single bus stop. Ice glittered in the dying light as it hung off the roofs of several buildings. Main street made up what was known as Town Center. A Courthouse set just off Main Street leaned over a tree ringed in ice as if it were crossexamining it. Megan’s school, Little Falls Penitentiary, took up an entire left side of Main Street. In fact, the school had once been the prison. Scattered through the woods, sometimes in clusters, were houses, and slightly lower then the town, were the farms were Megan lived. Streets twisted through Little Falls like snakes in a garden.
Megan pulled her mind back to her calculus homework. She wrote out an answer on a paper she was sure wasn’t hers. Looking up, the clock read 2:59. One minute left until the bell rang. School would be over. After what felt like years, the bell finally wheezed into some semblance of a ring. School over at last, Megan rushed out into the frozen early evening. Buses lined the block, kids piling into them for the ride home. Megan chose to walk. She lived only ¾ of a mile from school. It was ether that or a very cramped two hour bus ride to get home.
She knew the back woods and its trails by heart. Heck, she could walk them blind folded without getting lost. The trees at the mouth of Frost Trail remained incased in ice all year round. The reason for this was because Mount Falls peak formed a sheltering cave that blocked out most sunlight. Also, it was one of the farthest places up north. Frost Trail stayed cold all year round due to the fact it was surrounded by Glacier Falls, a giant glacier that formed part of the wall around Little Falls. Megan walked past the frozen trees and as usual, she slowed to take in the sight of the frozen waterfall. You could see fish frozen in the water. One fish had froze just as it was leaping from the falls.
Long ago, Little Falls was a temperate paradise. Something had happened that forced the peak and glacier to fuse together and transform Little Falls into a mostly frozen wonderland. No one knew, or remembered the cataclysm that had caused this to happen. Legends told of a violent earthquake followed by strange lights in the sky that lasted for days. A huge glacier fell from the sky as the peak of Mount Falls was yanked upward. When it was finally over, Little Falls was trapped within a ring of rock and ice.
A soft wind whistled through the frozen leaves that would never know an autumn ground. Megan walked on, her feet taking her toward the ancient foot bridge. It was covered, and inside, you could see a frozen spider web complete with a spider eating its dinner. In the upper corner, there was a bees nest complete with several bees frozen to it. The red and brown wood had frozen long ago, but the wooden walkway was kept thawed by a heated stream passing under it.
Megan suddenly froze, sure she heard her name being called. She realized something else. The hot stream was silent. The wind had stopped.
Scrape. Scrape…
The hairs on her neck rose. She saw something black out of the corner of her eye. Very slowly, she turned, and screamed. A black humanoid crawled on its stomach toward her. It’s arms were at its sides, and it knees were reversed so they were off the ground. It moved by using only its feet. It lifted its head. Empty sockets and a lolling wet tongue made up its face. Megan tried to run, and failed. The thing reached her at last and lifted itself up to her eye level. Up close, the sockets gleamed with an unearthly fire. It’s mouth opened as it leaned toward its meal. Megan screamed.
“Back! Get back!” A brilliant golden light shot pass Megan and threw the creature backward. Hissing and screaming, the creature twisted itself toward its attacker. Megan gasped. A golden female pony with long red hair and a horn and wings stood between her and that… thing.
“Who are you? What are you?” Megan could only stare and gap at her savior.
“I promise, I’ll answer your questions later.” The pony replied, “Back! You do not belong in this world! Be gone!” Lowering her horn, she thrust it at the creature, “I just hate Redead…” the creature hissed again and lashed out. Expertly, the pony leapt back and dove forward again. Clearly, this wasn’t the first time she had fought a creature like this. Finally, the creature gave up and scraped away. The pony lit her horn and a strange black and white rainbow flowed from it to surround the creature. Slowly, the darkness faded away to reveal a normal man. The pony walked up to the man and gave a sniff, “Sadly, I came too late. He’s dead.” Lighting her horn again, the body vanished, “This isn’t good if the Redead have found their way into your world.”
“Are you a little pony?” Megan was shell shocked.
“little? I’m not little. First things first. I am a Dralicorn which is a dragon alicorn. My name is Sunstar, and I am the chief Guardian of the Guardianship. My duty is to protect the Flow and the Source from which it begins. What you just saw, the black and white rainbow, that is only a small part of the Flow.” Sunstar noticed the red heart shaped locket Megan wore, “Is that the Rainbow of Light?”
“Yes, it is. My name is Megan Aubade and I was given it by the Moonchik. Is Ponyland in trouble?” Megan asked.
“Ponyland? Oh! You mean Equinova! It is in big trouble, and I need the Rainbow of Light.” Sunstar answered, “Why don’t we find a place to sit and I’ll tell you the whole story?”
“Are you a Princess Pony?” Megan pointed at Sunstar’s symbol.
“Yes, I am a princess. I am one of the twin princesses of Riverfalls.” Sunstar nodded, “Shall we get moving?”
“Riverfalls? Is that near Ponyland?” Megan didn’t move.
“It’s the entire east side of Equinova.” Sunstar explained, “We need to get moving.”
“Yes, we should.” Megan walked out of the covered foot bridge. After that, it was a few twists and turns until Megan reached her home. The sun was nearly gone. Megan didn't care. She cared more about her friends and Sunstar being here met trouble. Plus there was that thing that had attacked her...
“What is it with all the ice?” Sunstar asked, “It’s cold here!”
“Of course it is cold. What did you expect at nearly 10,000 feet above sea level, and surrounded on two sides by a glacier?” Megan asked.
“I see.” Sunstar shivered, “And you humans are crazy enough to call a place like this home. The Mountain Ponies would love it here, not to mention the White Clan.”
“White Clan? What is that?” Megan asked, leading Sunstar to the barn, “We can talk here. It will be warmer inside too.”
“You don’t know about the White Clan?” Sunstar stared in shock at the human girl, “And they say you were Equinova’s greatest hero.” She stepped into the barn.
The building was large, and red. Stalls lined a huge indoor arena. TJ called to Megan. Other ponies dozed, or chewed on hay. Sunstar stared at the other ponies. These ponies looked like the Wild Ones of her world.
“The Wild Ones let you keep them here?” She asked.
“Wild Ones?” Megan looked confused, “Here comes Molly and Danny. It’s okay. They know Ponyland.”
“Equinova.” Sunstar corrected, “The Wild Ones are ponies that have… well… lost their intelligence, for lack of word. It’s been getting worse. They don’t live as long as normal ponies, not that they aren’t normal, and prefer to live in vast herds. A Wild One is born in every 5 births. They can’t talk nor can they create. They can’t eat the food we eat and thrive on grass and apples.”
“Megan!” Danny Aubade was a red head with blue eyes and freckles. He stopped short as he saw Sunstar for the first time. He was wearing jeans and a blue shirt, having already changed from his school clothes. Molly Aubade was blond like Megan. She was wearing her pink overalls over a white work shirt. Her eyes were wide as she saw Sunstar.
“Who is this?” Molly whispered.
“No need to whisper, little one. My name is Sunstar, and I’m a Dralicorn, which is a dragon alicorn. I am the chief Guardian of the Guardianship.” Sunstar smiled, “Megan, is she your foal?”
“No, she’s my sister, Molly.” Megan replied, “Danny is my brother. These ponies must seem wild to you. To us, they are tame. In fact, we use them as a form of transportation when it gets too cold for cars.”
“I’m not a foal! I’m a human girl!” Molly cried out indignantly.
“I apologize.” Sunstar turned to her.
“Is Ponyland in danger?” Danny asked, “Who is it this time? The witches? Agg? Lavan? Queen Bee? The Lava Demons? The Ice Ogres? Grogar? Tirek? Somebody new? Somebody open the fairytale door?”
“Its Equinova, and how do you know about these monsters? You are too young to have lived during the time of the Princess Ponies.” Sunstar studied the humans.
“The Princess Ponies are still alive. We just defeated Lavan, again.” Megan said.
“Oh my god.” Sunstar looked up at the roof of the building, “I’m in the past. Might as well tell them everything.”
“Here.” Megan pointed out the big hay pile, “Come.” She led the way into the hay pile, revealing it to be a play house of sorts. The top was open, letting in light. Sunstar sat down as the humans made themselves comfortable.
“Okay, I’m going to start at the beginning. I am a Guardian and my duty is to protect the Flow and provide help to my people. Sadly, I failed, badly. Soon, my world will be devoured and your world will be next. There is no stopping the Mass of Chaos. If it touches you, you will become a minion called a Redead. The man you saw me kill was one. This is not good. Already, it is sending its minions to prepare the way into your world from my world. The Mass has one weakness. It can’t stand the combined power of the Rainbows. I am on a quest to find them. You, Megan, have one of them, the Rainbow of Light. I also need the Rainbows of Darkness, Fear, Hope, Life, Death, and Rebirth.”
“We’re doomed!” Molly cried, “Megan used the Rainbow of Light to destroy the Rainbow of Darkness!”
“That is not good. We’ll have to hope that the remaining six are strong enough to destroy the Mass.” Sunstar said, her tone solemn.
“Megan!”
“Megan!”
“It’s Firefly and Locket!” Megan scrambled out of the playhouse, “Come on!”
Sunstar followed the humans outside to see a pair of pink Pegasi. One had blue hair while the other had pink hair.
“Megan, we need your help!” this came from the pink haired Pegasus.
“It’s really bad.” the pink Pegasus with blue hair cut in.
“Firefly, Locket, this is Sunstar. Sunstar, these two are Locket and Firefly. What happened? Did Lavan escape?” Megan asked.
“She’s a winged Unicorn!” Firefly squealed.
“Are your wings and horn real?” Locket asked.
“Yes, they are real.” Sunstar answered.
“Megan, it’s the smooze. It’s back.” Locket explained.
“Did you go get the Flutter ponies?” Molly asked.
“Flutter Valley is gone!” Firefly cried out.
“No! It’s not supposed to happen yet! The Mass can’t be there already! Tell me, is the smooze black with purple lightening?” Sunstar asked.
“How’d you know?” Firefly asked.
“I know because I’ve seen it, in my world. It’s devouring our worlds and I know how to stop it.” Sunstar said, “We need to find the Rainbows.”
“Wait. Come with us and tell this to Majesty.” Locket let Danny climb on while Megan got on Firefly.
“Wait! You can’t be serious about taking human foals into a potentially dangerous zone!” Sunstar objected.
“Sunstar, I helped defeat the monsters, so did Danny and Molly. We will be fine. Will you carry Molly?” Megan replied.
“Fine, you can come. Um, what do you mean by carrying Molly?” Sunstar asked.
“She means that she wants you to let me ride you.” Molly said, climbing on. Sunstar staggered a bit but followed the two Pegasi into the sky. She had to work harder to stay aloft. Firefly took the lead, heading for a rainbow. She began to climb higher and higher into the sky. With a hard down thrust, Sunstar worked herself higher into the sky. Carrying Molly brought back memories of carrying her children in flight. She coasted by Locket, who was rising ever higher, the rainbow below her. They passed into a thick cloud, but the rainbow remained bright even as full night fell around them. Sunstar dropped for a closer look and gasped. The Rainbow was graying in places where bits of the Mass devoured it. She alighted onto the Rainbow and lowered her horn so it touched the softly glowing radiance.
“She can walk on Rainbows?” Firefly squealed, again.
“Rainbows are light magic.” Sunstar explained, “I can walk on them because I was born half light magic. This one is sick and dying.”
“It’s the Mass, right?” Molly asked as Sunstar began to walk along the Rainbow.
“That’s right. See the black and purple spots? The Mass is eating her. I feel her agony. She has tried to fight it off but she can’t fight anymore.” Sunstar said.
“The Rainbow is a girl?” Danny asked.
“It talks?” Firefly added.
“Light magic.” Sunstar explained, “I guard it, so yes I can communicate to it. Light Magic is often referred to as female while dark magic is referred to as male.”
It wasn’t long until the Rainbow began to arch down below Sunstar as she took wing, following Locket who was high above her. Firefly was even higher still. Sunstar had to wonder just how the Pegasus breathed in that thin air up there. Firefly suddenly dropped down to Sunstar’s level, her flanks heaving as she took in great gulps of air.
“Firefly, how many brain cells died in this attempt? You can’t fly into space. It is a vacuum. There is no air up there!” Locket reprimanded Firefly sternly.
“Stars!” Firefly wheezed, “Billions of them!”
“How about a black and white rainbow?” Sunstar asked.
“No rainbows, just black sky and pretty little stars… dancey little stars…” Firefly’s voice was high.
“Is she always like this?” Sunstar was worried, now.
“Unfortunately yes.” Locket replied, “She’s a adrenaline junkie.”
“So many little stars…” Firefly giggled.
“Wasn’t she carrying someone?” Sunstar asked.
“I made her leave Megan on my back.” Locket said, “Firefly, go down. Follow pretty Rainbow.”
“Stars pretty…” Firefly started to climb again, “Want nother look!”
“No! Bad Firefly! Firefly down!” Locket ordered.
“WANT NOTHER LOOOOOOOOK!” Firefly refused to listen.
“Allow me.” Sunstar lit her horn. Seven white stars seemed to fall from the sky and dance around the clearly insane Pegasus.
“Stars!” Firefly chased the stars.
“She’s oxygen deprived. It should clear up once we get lower.” Sunstar smiled, “Reminds me of a good friend of mine.”
“We are going to dive through the clouds.” Locket instructed, “Have you dove through clouds before?”
“Yes, and I hated it. I hate getting wet.” Sunstar prepared to dive. The stars dove and Firefly, still giggling madly, followed them as Sunstar followed her. Locket was still overhead as she dove with them.
Firefly dove faster, her giggles reaching the ears of her friends and the guardian. The giggles stopped suddenly. A terrified scream rent the darkness. It was cut off mid ululation quite suddenly. Fear prickled the spines of the three children and the two ponies. Sunstar nearly dove before remembering Molly on her back.
“Firefly!” Megan screamed.
“SHHH!” Sunstar hissed, “Listen!”
Far below them, a steady roar grew ever louder. Sunstar felt her blood run cold. She knew that roar. Fear took root in her mind.
“Molly, bury your face into my mane and hang on tight. I am going in. What ever you hear, don’t look!” With that, Sunstar dove, a golden shooting star streaking toward the land far below her. Molly did as she was told without an argument.
SCREEEEE!
The human girl gasped and tried to crawl into Sunstar’s mane, at least that’s what it felt like to Sunstar. Gliding, Sunstar turned after what was once Firefly. Thick leather wings beat the air. A torn, tattered brown coat hung off a bony frame. Bones stuck out of the coat like white spears stabbing at the sky. A limp colorless mane and tail hung in wet tendrils off the body. Black eye sockets burned with eternal flame. The face had been replaced by a sharp beak that chewed the air. The only thing that was still Firefly was the dimming symbol. Sunstar swallowed, her throat dry.
“Firefly, look at me. You are going to be okay.” Sunstar dodged as the beak came centimeters from biting her neck, “Firefly, please!”
“Firefly! It’s me, Molly! You know me!” Molly tried.
Firefly roared past Sunstar, nearly forcing Molly to fall.
“I’m sorry, Molly.” Sunstar lit her horn, “Firefly…” She and Firefly clashed, tearing at each other with beak and horn. Molly screamed, somehow burying herself even deeper into Sunstar’s mane. Sunstar angled herself to send a burst of light magic at Firefly. The attack hit, forcing the former Pegasus to scream. The symbol burned brighter, and the Redead form dimmed a bit to allow spots of pink fur to show through.
“Firefly! You stop it! I know you are there! Fight it!” Megan screamed.
The Redead looked up, “Megan? Augh!”
“Sunstar! Save her!” Megan pleaded.
“Can do!” Sunstar curled her legs to her body, gathering power for her signature attack, “scrap! Can’t! no sun!”
“Rainbow! Give Sunstar your strength!” without thinking, Megan released the Rainbow of Light.
“Megan! No!” Sunstar screamed, “That’s what the Mass wants!”
“Use it’s power! Save her!” Megan pleaded.
Sunstar curled her legs and absorbed the light from the Rainbow, “I know this isn’t sunlight, but please, God, let this work!” She released the attack, “Strike of Light!”
Rainbow tinted light plowed into Firefly, breaking the Redead’s hold on her body. Firefly plummeted toward the ground. Sunstar dove, using her magic to slow the Pegasus’s fall until they both landed on the ground. Locket had barely set all four feet on the ground when Megan shot off of her and raced toward Firefly. The Rainbow of Light showed its anxiety over Firefly by tying itself into a knot and untying itself again.
“Firefly? Firefly!” Megan held the Pegasus’s head, “Please! Wake up!”
Sunstar, relieved of Molly, came over and gave Firefly a sniff, “She’s alive, but the Mass still has a hold of her. It can repossess her at any time.”
“Can’t you break Its hold?” Megan asked.
“It would take a power far stronger then me to successfully break the curse. Even the Light can’t help.” Sunstar looked up at the Light, “The Locket isn’t safe anymore. You know that. You know where you must go.” The Light bent it’s top half up and down as if it were nodding. It streaked around Sunstar before entering her horn and coloring the top spiral of her seven spiral horn red. Sunstar hid her red tip by turning it back to its old shade, “Before you even ask, Notice my horn? It has seven spirals. I can hold the Rainbows, but I can’t use them. That falls to the Guardian of the Rainbows, who will have seven spirals on his or her horn like me.”
