The Balinor Chronicles: The Celestial Herd
Chapter Thirty-Two: Strike
Step into my lair, said the dreth to the chorkant.
- The Ellimist Chronicles
Night's black Mantle covers all alike.
-Guillaume de Salluste Du Bartas
Dawn was just cracking over the Valley. The immense golden yolk of the sun was scraping its belly on the mountains when the call went up. The Supreme Ruler had gone overboard with his paints this particular morning, and the sky was painted with reds, yellows, and pinks of every color, with just enough orange to pull it altogether. The weather was fair, and the long horn-mark-shaped clouds in the sky reflected the colors of the sun, making the rising even grander. Even as the Rainbow assembled to meet Solaris the Golden One, Unicorns were gazing at the sky. It was a fine sight, they all agreed, and they would treasure it forever more. And they did, until the sun reached its height, witnessed the murders of many, and fell back to the mountains, set afire with anger.
Solaris was late that morning. He himself had been admiring the sky. So the sun broke before their leader appeared at the ledge on the mountains. A murmur went through the assembled. Just a rumor, but it was enough. Had Moloth known who had said it, he would have given the speaker more riches then there are in a gold mine.
"Solaris has forgotten us!" The words circled around the Herd. The Unicorns were afraid. Why this? Why now? Had Solaris…Could he have…Was it possible…that he had joined a separate Herd? All the fears were, fortunately or not, unfounded, but this change was not good in such troubled times. Or in any time, for that matter.
Before the rumors could reach any farther, Solaris stepped out onto his ledge. As he gazed out upon his Herd, he listened to the notes of their music. His eyes roamed over the color bands…and then they stopped. He tensed, pulling his body underneath of him, laying back his ears, and throwing is head up.
Mulciber, at the head of the red band, had grown concerned. He had started up the steep incline to the ledge where Solaris would have been, but turned around when his leader came out. He saw the same thing that Solaris saw. His eyes went wide, filling with flame. A thin tendril of smoke snaked out of his nostrils and rose to the sky.
In the rear of the Rainbow, but slowly picking his way forward, was Moloth. His dark red coat seemed even darker in the honest light of day, and his horn had been sharpened and glittered eerily in the light. The very presence of him was unnerving. Moloch picked his way through the Herd, shoving aside bodies that refused to yield to him. As he reached the middle of the Rainbow, he stopped. The Unicorns backed nervously away from him, as if they would become diseased if they came any closer to him. Moloch didn't mind. Indeed, it is doubtful that he noticed. He was more concerned with the Elementals.
"Solaris," He called out. "Why do you yet remain high and aloof? For I rather wish to speak with you."
"Moloth!" Solaris's voice was more a bellow of rage than actual words. "Your kind is not welcome here. Cease and desist." Moloth's eyes narrowed. He kept Mulciber, now creeping down the mountain, in the corner of his eye, but returned Solaris's glare. The Golden Stallion looked uncomfortable under the dark Unicorn's gaze. "I command you, as Lord of the Herd, to leave!"
"Since when," Moloth asked, his voice as slick as oil, "Since when have I ever called you Lord?"
Solaris shifted his weight onto his rear legs. Mulciber started walking faster towards Moloth. Moloth stood were he was, seemingly oblivious to his surroundings. But Moloth is not oblivious; rather, he is far from it. He keeps one eye on Mulciber, who is near close enough to attack; he ignore Solaris, who will cause no harm lest he grows wings; he keeps one eye on the tree line, behind the Herd; he listens for the other Elementals. For Moloth has gone into, forgive the modern analogy, the lion's lair to buy time.
He is purchasing time for the Twilights to circle to the side of the Herd without being noticed (this part succeeds). He is obtaining time for The Shifter, who needs to work his Magic slowly to avoid being noticed (this part does not). He is gambling all of this so that this idea of Arioch's might, might, might just work.
Cards, and their accompanying games, exist in most worlds. The games are rarely the same, but there is one that is universal. This particular game is called Tower. In it, a solitary player stacks groups of three cards to make, forgive the pun, 'towering' buildings of cards. This continues until the player runs out of cards. However, only the slightest breeze or imbalance in the table is all that is needed to knock the Tower over. Sometimes, the player will start again, but sadly, in most cases, the cards are put away until next time. The interesting part this is that it is about to happen in Valley.
Mulciber hesitated, gauging the distance between him and Moloth. Solaris gathered himself. Moloth himself tensed. Arioch disengaged fighting with the Mare, deep in the forest. Twilights took deep breaths of air.
And the tower crumbled.
Mulciber lunged, his ground-eating stride bearing his forward at speeds only an Elemental can muster. Moloth wheeled, coming in with his horn to meet Mulciber. As he spins, he whinnies, his voice shattering the terror that had bound the Herd and trumpeting his signal to the waiting Twilights. The Twilights charge, heads bowed, horns sharpened on stone ready to spear those in their way. Arioch ran from the Mare, takes two bounding leaps, and one the third is airborne, his body mutating into wings and fangs and claws. His very appearance in the air causing terror among the Herd. Solaris leapt, extending his body out long, almost falling upon landing, but picking up running all the same. The other Elementals rallied their bands to them, trying to lead them somewhere else.
In the midst of the chaos, a stocky brown stallion engaged the deepest blue mare he had ever seen. She was taller, but he had more straight power than she. He kicked, catching her in the ribs. She fell to her knees. Not waiting to se if she was dead or not, Canis slammed into a stallion the color of coffee that was getting ready to stab an orange Unicorn. Disentangling himself from the other Unicorn, Canis bolted for higher ground. He reared up, looking for the little bit of height that the trick afforded him. He was dismayed at what he saw.
The Herd was breaking. Here and there, Twilights were making bloody swaths through the band of Rainbows. Some of the more vicious groups had joined in, most notably the Comets and a majority of the Storms. Most, it seemed, had no clue what was going on. They milled about in a panic, unsure of what to do. The Elementals were trying to restore order, but it was too little, and soon it would be too late. Canis reared up, trying to make himself as big and imposing as possible.
"To me!" he hollered, "rally to me! Unicorns of the Rainbow, rally to me!"
The orange Unicorn whom Canis had helped instantly grasped his intent. He ran away from Canis, still aiming for higher ground. When he was a good distance away from the brown Unicorn, he too reared back and his piercing whinny grabbed attention. "To me, to me!"
The Herd slowly reassembled on the sloping edge of the mountains. Canis exchanged glances with the orange Unicorn down the line. Together they whinnied, took flying starts, and led their make-shift army down the slope.
By the time the Unicorns of the Rainbow had finally turned the Twilights and their traitorous allies away, the sun was setting in a brilliant flash of light. It seemed to reflect the anger of the day, setting the sky on fire.
And from the ashes, the Sentinels arose.