A.N: Now I only own the characters you have never read about in Balinor, ok, have fun!
The sun was warm as I opened my eyes in the peaceful meadow but something was wrong, I could feel it, something was watching with an evil mind behind the gaze. I tried to sit up but my arms refused to hold my weight, even my muscles Protector had drilled so hard into strength failed. I was resting my head on the ground once more when there was a terrifying scream that pierced through my skull and sent shuddering waves along all my nerves, even ones I had almost destroyed in battle.
"Stormcloud Diego!" It tore my throat and I could hear the stunned silence. Struggling to my feet I gathered re4athe into my gasping lung and screamed again.
"Soar Diego! Come to me!" There was a thud and then the grey shadow landed behind me.
*Come Lady, all is not right.* Leaping onto the broad back I waited. Suddenly I realised we had forgotten Rayel. I swore.
"Rayel Crystalsong, get up!" No answer, not a flicker of movement except the pounding of hooves coming towards us, it was a stampede. Diego was fidgeting and making me panic. Where was Rayel and Gem? I knew something was wrong but I couldn't figure it out. Then it happened, a voice littered the air with malice, it was calling a name, two names and the screaming took over and the voice I knew too well. I fell from Diego's back with my ears clenched beneath my hands. The massive grey reared as he felt my agony, the hooves were still coming. Diego screamed a challenge and then the hooves slowed on the green grass. Slowly a great gold stallion stepped forward, eyes challenging and nostrils flaring red. The horrible screams had stopped and I stood by my grey steadily. No deformed Dawnwing Stallion was going to scare me.
"Stand down golden one or I will call on the power of the Guild." He just looked at me confused, but the effect calmed him.
"How are you strangers?" The tone was glowing and powerful, much like the stallion.
"I am Zanna Dawnwings, Protectress of Dalidon, Bonded to Stormcloud Diego, Fleetest of the Heaven Chaser. I am the Partner of Protector and a member of the Guild. We will fight Darkness and his Bonded Dark One until the end. Who are you?"
"I am Numior the leader of the Celestial Unicorns. This is the Celestial Valley and this is my mate, Atlanta the Dreamspeaker." A lavender mare stepped forward, her violet eyes warm and welcoming but I saw in them a sadness reflected in the glorious coats of the other unicorns who began to come forward. The lavender mare stepped closer to me.
"You are one of the wanderers that have stirred the evil here, I am sorry to see the pain and hopelessness in your dreams. We will try to help you."
"That is very kind of you, we must be a terrible threat if the danger is as great as you say." The mare nodded, her eyes were sad but there was hope in them. Suddenly a small grey shape came darting up to me. One of the mares dashed forward, trying to slide between us.
"My name's Myra, are you really able to talk to the big grey? I said hello but he didn't answer." The mare was a dark green and stood behind Numinor's shoulder.
"He has difficulty speaking out loud but he's very good at thought speaking, it's where he talks in your head." The filly nodded. She looked steadily at Diego with a concentrated look on her face. He smiled and lowered his head, the tip of his horn touching the ground at her tiny hooves.
*She says she'll try really hard at her studies if you let her and the other foals talk to me and Gem, they want to play too.* I smiled.
Do you want to play?
*I believe that it would be fun. I miss the young Flitters.* I nodded. The filly ran her short horn up Diego's in welcome. Her mother seemed to relax a little as her filly came back to stand with her.
"He says he likes to help with little ones. He called me a Flitter mummy." The mare looked at Diego.
*They are the young of the Heaven Chaser clan; they flitter among the mist when they haven't been or the first flight. She hasn't changed colour from foal grey so she is like a Flitter.* The mare looked startled and then laughed.
"I think the filly has shown us what we needed to know. For now you can stay here." The golden stallion then greeted Diego and the rest of the heard calmed down. They seemed to split and then I realised why there were so many stallions, they were all paired. There was a single stallion for every mare. Diego looked somewhere at the back for a moment, Gem was walking with a smile on he face, Rayel sat proudly on his bay back.
"They are my friends, Rayel Crystalsong astride Mahogany Gem, Darkest of the Firestones."