The sun rose ever so slowly, cresting the horizon at an almost languid pace and throwing the valley into a soft glow of sanguine colors. Subtle golds and muted reds mixed with the vivid greens of the forest and majestic purples of the mountains to create a vista that was absolutely breathe-taking. The sight had moved some to wax poetic and still others were simply left speechless, their words escaping them as they beheld the scene. But they all agreed on one thing: it was an absolutely beautiful thing to see.
In fact, it was one of the very reasons why the self-same valley was settled in the first place.
The township of Mareskow was not a large one; in fact it could hardly be considered a town at all. It was a small place, its population only a few hundred strong. It was the kind of place where everypony knew one another, and everypony was friendly. And for three ponies that stood in the center of the town, it was home.
They faced eastward, sitting side by side and sharing a silent and resolute demeanor as they watched the sun rise. They greedily drank in the sight as it unfolded around them. The bleak gray mists that clung to the streets early in the morning faded and dissipated, fleeing before the warming of the chill air and the invading light. The many thatched-roof buildings around them lost their night-time gray tinge as bright colors slowly bled into their frames, giving them a sense of vibrancy and life.
The three friends savored the moment; they knew that this might well be the last time they ever got to see it from their home.
The encroaching pall of sunlight inched its way ever forward, soon alighting upon the three friends and filling them with welcome warmth, although one felt it more keenly then the others. He sat front and center of their small triad, his face set in a blank and unblinking mask that effectively hid whatever inner machinations may have been running thought his mind. The only indication of his thoughts was the absent-minded way he ran a hoof back and forth along the large crescent-shaped scar on his cheek, something he did habitually whenever he was pondering something deeply. In truth his thoughts had been turning to darker and more sinister paths, much as they had been doing more and more often as of late, but thankfully before such worries could consume his mind the sharp sensation of morning's light snapped his focus back to the world around him.
The light fell upon the tip of his abnormally long and sharp horn first, as it was the highest point on his body, and continued down his sandy orange mane and fiery-red coat. When at last it reached his cutie-mark – single blade jutting from a blaze of golden flames – he let out an involuntary shudder. Given his special talent he was sensitive to even the slightest change of the temperature and the shock of the sun's warmth after a night's coldness was enough to send a jolt up his spine.
He took a moment to silently thank the light for the reprieve from his own dark thoughts before turning to face his two companions.
The first - a heavily built pegasus stallion with a cyan colored coat and midnight blue mane and tail - was not cause for too much worry. The pegasus was a fierce, tough and bold sort of pony, always able to handle whatever came his way in stride. As strange and incredible as recent events had been, he was the least likely of the three of them to be seriously affected.
His other friend – a slender earthpony mare of a demure disposition with a cream colored coat and chocolate brown mane and tail – had him far more concerned. In light of recent events he was surprised she was still holding together at all. He eyed her appraising, and when she noticed she offered a small but reassuring smile that put him at ease. She may have been tender at heart but once she set her mind to something there was no stopping her. And like she had told him earlier, this really was her place as well.
Truth be told he was glad to have her along. They had known each other nearly their entire lives and he was loathe to make such a journey without her comforting presence by his side. He looked both of his two friends in the eye before asking in a flat voice that was both soft and strong, "Seran, Terrikata, are you both sure about this? This whole thing is my fault, and you are my friends. I don't want to drag you two in to something that might be dangerous because of my mistakes. And after all, once we leave there's no turning back."
His older pegasus friend just scoffed at the warning before responding. "Cress, there's no way I'm going to back out now. There's too much at stake for me to let you go and do this on your own. We're friends after all, I can't just let you have all the adventure without me now can I?" He said, throwing on a casual smirk and exuding an air of confidence. The unicorn simply eyed his friend sceptically for a moment. The pegasus tensed slightly under the glare before admonishing his previous statement. "And besides," he said, the confident smirk he held being replaced by a more downcast expression, "this is personal now."
The red pony softened his gaze and nodded, accepting Seran's words and not pressing the issue any further. He turned to his other companion and raised an inquisitive eyebrow at her irritated expression. "What?" he asked, trying to determine the cause of her perturbence.
"You know I don't like it when you use my full name Crescent," she answered with a huff.
He chuckled lightly at her indignant reply before responding, "Alright, fine Terri. Just don't call me Crescent either, okay?"
She lost her perturbed expression and with a small smile said, "Okay Cress."
Cress felt somewhat more relaxed after their small back-and-forth, his mind welcoming the distraction of idle banter with friends over the alternative of dwelling on the unhappy events of late. He was also rather happy that no matter what, his friends would always be by his side.
Composing himself, he rose to his hooves and donned his own saddlebags; his friends following suit and doing the same. "Are you both ready?" he asked, to which they replied in the affirmative as Seran ruffled his feathers impatiently.
At that, they all set out southward, towards the city of Stalliongrad and Canterlot beyond. As they walked the solitary road Cress looked over his shoulder at the only town he had ever known one last time. "Goodbye," he whispered under his breath, the sound not even loud enough to make it to his own ears.
And so they marched onwards, toward their destiny. They were fully aware that they held the fate of the world in their hooves but little did they know - for better or for worse - nothing would ever be the same again.