*Chapter 6*

The winter's edge

**Through the ice and snow in the land unknown

my heart is calling out for you.

Through the ice and snow a little light shall glow

it's the love I feel for you.**

Olympos Mons- Through the ice and snow

Summer Blaze gently lowered Mirrorrim onto the bed in one of the Ponyvillian's cabins. The poor thing had exhausted herself not only powering the ship's engines with her superb come-to-life spell, but she had also helped drive off Nightmare Moon's lunar guard. Blaze pulled the thick blanket up to Mirror's chin and then, as was so ingrained his brotherly instinct and ritual of putting Dusk to bed, found himself halfway through the motion of kissing her forehead. He stopped himself knowing that Mirror would probably murder him with her bare hooves if she found Blaze kissing her anywhere. Blaze clicked off the light and left the room, gently closing the door behind him.

He trotted down the corridor and entered the dining hall. The dozens of tables and chairs that usually occupied the space were pushed against the walls, save for one, which currently held Summer Dusk and Fairweather.

Summer Dusk had fallen asleep halfway through her meal of oats and water, and now lay with her head on the table. Fairweather had draped one of her wings over the filly like a feathery blanket. "I know she may be uncomfortable, but I didn't want to move her. She needs all the sleep she can get, poor little thing," Fairweather said to Blaze.

"Thanks alot. I'll take her to bed," Blaze said back. He ignited his horn and Dusk was lifted gently into the air as he and Fairweather left the dining hall. Blaze settled her into the cabin directly across the hall from the dining hall. As he tucked her in, Blaze himself was overcome with a bout of drowsiness that was as sudden as it was undeniable. He carefully settled himself next to Dusk as was soon fast asleep.

He was in Canterlot. He was in the royal court along with hundreds of other ponies staring up at him. Blaze was dressed in a handsome suit of royal blue and he held before him a small cushion bearing a ring. He just now remembered that he was to be married to Luna. Celestia herself was at his side as she prepared to preside over the ceremony. The grand double doors at the end of the hall opened and Luna burst through them. It was plainly obvious that she was running for her life from some unseen assailant. She stopped at the foot of altar and screamed, "Blaze! Please help me!"

Despite her desperate call for help, Blaze seemed unable to move a single hoof. Blaze looked to Celestia for help but found that she had vanished from the spot. And then, from the same doors from which Luna entered, Nightmare Moon appeared. With a blast of dark magic, she vaporized the dozens of pony spectators gathered in the court. "Blaze, please, do something!" But there was nothing he could do. He could not move, he could not speak. The pony he loved was in dire jeopardy and he was powerless to help her.

Nightmare Moon opened her great dark maw, and like some otherworldly black hole, Luna was pulled inside, down into the black depths and lost to Blaze forever...

"...Blaze...Blaze, wake up!" Blaze snapped himself awake. Summer Dusk was poking him in the chest in an attempt to rouse him. "Are you alright? You were muttering in your sleep."

"Was I?" Blaze said.

"And then you started tossing and turning and you poked me with your horn," Dusk massaged a spot on her belly where Blaze's horn had evidently poked her.

"Oh, no, I'm so sorry." Blaze rolled off the bed as he tried to recall the details of his dream, or more appropriately it could be seen; his nightmare. He remembered Canterlot, and Princess Celestia. He then remembered Luna and her frenzied gallop through the hall. She called out to him for help, but Blaze could do nothing. Then Nightmare Moon swallowed the whole room into darkness. Was that what Luna was experiencing now? Being trapped in an endless and bottomless void of her own body? But Blaze knew she was in there somewhere. Luna; his Luna was alive inside that monstrosity somehow, begging for salvation. And Blaze would see her free, if it's the last thing he did. "I'll go topside and see how Nova and Ivy are doing. You should get back to sleep, Dusk."

"No, I'm alright," Dusk said, hopping from the bed. "I'll go with you!"

Blaze smiled somewhat dourly and let her accompany him onto the deck. The two stallions on deck seemed to not have moved a single inch from where Blaze last saw them; Ivy on the very bow of the ship, and Nova in the crow's nest. "You guy's can knock off if you want, we'll take next watch," Blaze told them.

Nova flew down from his position with a yawn, "Yeah. I was getting just a tad sleepy, ya know?"

Ivy Leagues refused the offer. "Nah, I'm okay. Why don' we make it a threesome? Six eyes is better than four, I reckon." Ivy, who was very much used to long days at work and even longer nights, was not bothered in the least at missing a few hours' sleep.

Nova, who had started towards the cabins below deck, came to a stop when he saw Fairweather trotting along towards them. He was the first to see the look of concern on her face. "Somethin' up, Fair?" he said.

In answer, Fairweather took position on the bow and gave the island they were approaching a long look through her telescope. "Something is off," she said. "We should have made landfall some time ago..."

"You know more about sailing than me, but maybe your foresight was wrong? It could be easy to misjudge the distance in the dead of night," Blaze offered.

"Maybe..." Fairweather mused.

"She's not wrong." The group turned to see Mirrorrim trotting across the deck. She seemed in full health, the few hours of sleep she managed apparently have rejuvenated her. With no preamble, she took the telescope from Fairweather and cast a long look at the distant island. Then she said suddenly, "Stop the ship."

"What?" Fairweather said.

"I said stop the ship," Mirror repeated forcefully.

"Okay...so how do you plan on reaching the island if we stop now?" Nova asked her. "Do you think it's just going to come to us?"

Mirrorrim looked at Nova as though she pitied his lack of perception in the issue. "In case none of you have noticed, we are wasting our time; that island does not exist."

There was a collective cry of "What?" from the others.

Mirror let out a huff of breath, as though she were trying to maintain her patience. "If one would look close enough, they would see how the image shimmers just slightly around the edges." The group cast a long look at the ethereal island in the distance. And now that he looked this closely at it, Blaze could definitely see a slight wavering ripple around the perimeter of the image.

"So what do ya think it is, Mirror?" Ivy asked her.

"No doubt an illusion created by Nightmare Moon," was her answer.

"But how could she...she doesn't...she couldn't possibly know what we're planning," Fairweather sputtered.

"Of course she knows," Mirror said sternly. "Nightmare's celestial body is the moon, and all the stars are her eyes; there is nothing that escapes her notice now. Have you forgotten that we're dealing with the princess of the night?" There was a somewhat abashed silence that followed this speech. "And the more time we spend chasing one of her illusions, the further we drift off course!" She said this pointedly to Fairweather, who hastened below to cut off the ship's power.

"I really hate to say this, but given how long we've been sailing towards that mirage...do we even know which direction we're headed anymore?" Blaze said tentatively.

The silence that followed was punctuated by the Ponyvillian giving a great shudder and gliding to a stop amongst the waves. Fairweather had cut off the power. Nopony seemed able to speak at the moment, until Summer Dusk spoke up. "Mirrorrim, you can read the stars, can't you? Wouldn't that tell us which way to go?"

Mirror shook her head. "This night time is not natural. With no daylight forthcoming, the stars do not move, thus I cannot properly read their positions." The dismayed silence that followed seemed about as still as the night that the ponies were now lost in. At length Mirror spoke again, struck by a sudden inspiration. "There may be something..." she said this more to herself than anypony around her. She cast her horn aglow and began to amble about the deck.

She went to the bow first, and no sooner than she reached the tip she doubled back, slowly walking her way towards the group of ponies, who stepped out of her way. They knew better than to disturb Mirrorrim during one of her moments; the five of them simply remained silent during the whole event, knowing she was on the verge of an epiphany. She came to a stop on the port side with a somewhat uneasy look in her face. "That's strange..."

Seeing it was now safe to speak to her again, Blaze asked, "What's strange?"

Mirror took just a small moment, perhaps of contemplation, before answering. "I'm picking up on a phenomenal drop in temperature in this direction," she said.

"What do you think it means?" Nova asked.

"I think it means," Mirror put an exasperated emphasis on the word, "That considering that one of our destinations lies beyond an ice shelf, we should no doubt head this way."

"You really think it's..." Blaze's sentence trailed away. Everypony knew what he was thinking, but hardly dared to believe it.

"If that is indeed the case, we've quite a while before we reach it," Mirror said. "I recommend everypony getting some sleep and a meal while I bring us there."

Everypony agreed, except for Fairweather, who volunteered to take watch alongside Mirrorrim. The rest of the ponies trotted below deck for some much needed rest.

...

Blaze didn't know how long he slept; two hours, maybe three. But it seemed like no more than an instant later he was awake. Thankfully, his dreams were not haunted by nightmares of him being separated from Luna, this fact of course lead him to thinking obsessively of nothing but the beautiful night princess. Just where as Nightmare Moon now? What was she doing? She had undoubtedly sent her Lunar guard to waylay them on their journey across the sea, and conjured an illusion to lead them astray. What else whould she come up with to stop them? Blaze's heart seemed to twist in his chest, knowing that his Luna was somewhere inside of that monster, being used against her own volition in an evil campaign to rule Equestria.

Blaze rolled from the bed, which he was surprised to find was empty, and left the room. He found Dusk in the corridor, "Hwi, Bwaze," she said through a mouthful of carrot. She swallowed and said, "Everypony is already out on deck."

The two made their way up to the deck and Blaze was nearly stopped in his tracks by an intense blast of frozen air. "Wow, that's brisk!" he said, as he joined the others on the bow.

Mirror was powering the ship with her come-to-life spell as the others gathered around her, their eyes all cast forward. "Mirror reckons we outta be there any minute now," said Ivy Leagues.

And then at once there was a cry from Fairweather, "Stop the ship!"

Everypony turned to her, including Mirrorrim. "And why would we stop now?" she asked.

Fairweather peered intently through her telescope. "We're less than half a mile off now," she said. "If we really are approaching an ice shelf, no doubt the immediate sea around it will be frozen solid; the Ponyvillian is not an ice breaker; if we continue, we risk severe damage to the ship"

Mirror hastily cut off her spell.

"So what do you suggest, Fair? That we swim the rest of the way?" Blaze said.

"Forget swimming," Nova Burst said. "How the hay are we going to keep warm in these conditions?"

"Fear not," Mirrorrim said. "I know a spell that will preserve our body heat and shield us from the cold." She cast an intense look out towards the mass of ice that was there destination. "And as for crossing this gap, I can get us there, just gather around me."

The ponies took their cue and huddled around Mirrorrim. "Are you sure?" Blaze asked her. "I thought you said you can only teleport to places you've already-" His words were lost in the sudden rush of color and frozen wind. And an instant later, his hooves came to rest on soft-packed snow. "-Been..." he took a few dazed steps and tried to clear his head. "Warn me next time your gonna do that."

"Mirror, can you cast that spell now? I'm really cold." Summer Dusk was shivering all over her tiny body. The cold had intensified now that they were on the ice field.

Mirrorrim focused her magic and the ponies were enveloped in a faint orange glow that instantly spread warmth through their bodies. "Everypony better now?" she asked.

"Snugger than a bug inna rug!" Ivy Leagues said.

"Alright then, let's get moving."

The six ponies set off into the snow covered expanse. Blaze marveled at the fact that he could no longer even feel the cold at all. A warm tingling had replaced his violent shivering and the snow seemed to simply melt under his hooves. How long they continued like this none of them can say; it was long enough, however, for Dusk to grow leg weary, after which Blaze scooped her up to ride on his back.

Just as Blaze was wondering if they were making any real progress at all, a snowstorm seemingly erupted out of nowhere, conjuring as fast as Blaze had had the thought. "What's happening?" Nova Burst said. The sudden onset of the blizzard had drastically reduced the ponies' visibility.

"Where in the world did this blizzard come from? Fairweather asked.

"I do not believe this storm is a natural occurrence," Mirrorrim said.

"Nightmare Moon?" Blaze asked.

"I'm not sure..."

Just then, Dusk spoke out, "What is that?" She was looking in the direction from which they came. The group turned in the direction of her pointed hoof and let out a collective gasp. Approaching from the horizon, clearly visible even against the blizzard, was a group of three creatures that none of them could recognize. Blaze thought they looked like ponies, but they appeared much crueler, much more sinister than any pony he's ever seen before. And unless he was mistaken, he swore he could see right through them

"They're Windigos!" Mirror cried. "Malicious spirits of winter!"

"What do we do!?" Dusk whined.

The answer seemed to come as soon as the question was posed. (*)From a source that none of them could identify, came an ear-piercing wail. Blaze immediately likened it to some kind of war cry. It's intimidating pitch seemed to penetrate his brain and cause him to erupt in goosebumps that had nothing to do with the cold(*). The oncoming Windigos were startled by the incredible sound and came to a frightened halt. And suddenly, the storm was broken, visibility was returned to normal and the source of the wail was relieved.

From atop a tall snow drift sprung a white figure. Even from here Blaze could see that it was a pony; a unicorn. The unicorn charged at the Windigos with no fear whatsoever, with their horn alight with fierce magic. The startled winter spirits barely avoided the unicorn's charge as they scattered. The unicorn intensified the magic in their horn, soon it seemed to form an immense glowing blade of magic, and with a great sweep of this magic blade, the Windigos were instantly cut down.

The unicorn pony maintained their position a good fifty yards from where the group of astonished ponies stood. "That was amazing!" Nova said. "Don't you think we outta thank them instead of standing here like lumps?"

"Well, Nova," Mirror said "here's your chance."

The unicorn was approaching their position, and before Blaze could even phrase out a thank you, the unicorn was upon them. Blaze recognized the unicorn as a stallion, although he was no doubt an adult, he was just slightly smaller than most stallions his age, including Blaze himself. Blaze was having a hard time looking directly at him, as his coat was such a brilliant reflective white, he made the snow around him look nearly gray. His hair was also pure white; his mane looked as though it were formed of white ice, the way it stuck up sharply from his head. His tail was much the same, Blaze was sure the hairs were sharp enough to puncture his skin. And his cutie mark was an ice-blue snowflake pierced by a cross of ice icicles

But most striking about him were his eyes. They were an intense, and electric glacial blue, not unlike two chips of cold ice. And when at last he spoke, it was with a voice of somewhat derisive authority. "I would ask you what you foals are doing out here, but I already know." He looked at each of them in turn. When his eyes fell on Mirrorrim, Blaze could see a distinct, if only temporary, softening of his gaze. "Oh, by the way, you're welcome," he said.

"Oh...uh, thank you..." Blaze trailed off, slightly intimidated, and also unsure of what this ponies' name was. he didn't seem in a rush to reveal it either.

"Had I not been here to drive off the Windigos, you all would have been dead by now."

"Hardly," Mirrorrim spoke up. "It would have simply been a matter of wielding our elements against them. You claim you do know why were here, yet you seemed to overlook who you are talking to." Mirror looked directly into the unicorn's eyes as she spoke. She clearly had not lost her composure in his fierce presence.

The unicorn stared steadily back into Mirror's eyes. It was as though they were sizing each other up, but if Blaze wasn't mistaken, there was something else in their gazes... The unicorn spoke up, "I know all about your elements and I know why you have come here." He still didn't move his eyes from Mirror's. "That said, I can tell you that your destination is not far from here. And while it is my task to guide you there, it is outside of my control or my concern that you arrive safely." He turned around and began trotting through the snow. "If you can't keep up, then don't follow! Of course there's no guarantee that you all won't freeze to death first."

"Unlikely," Mirrorrim spoke again. "With my warming spell in place, we are perfectly equipped for a long trek through the cold. This winter is as but nothing."

The unicorn stopped dead in his tracks. And slowly, he turned to meet Mirrorrim's eyes. "What would you know of the winter's power?" His voice was as cold as the snow that surrounded him. "You merely adopted the cold. I was born in it; molded by it. I didn't know the warmth until I was already a stallion, by then it was nothing to me but blinding!" The group was aghast at the unicorn's speech. Mirrorrim seemed especially captivated. The unicorn smiled a somewhat twistedly triumphant smile. "The winter will betray you because it belongs to me." And without another word he turned and began to trot away.

"Wait!" Mirrorrim cried. The unicorn again stopped and turned. "What is your name?" Mirror asked him.

The unicorn looked into her eyes as he said, "My name is Winterbrave."

And he turned to go again. The six ponies followed Winterbrave through the ice and snow.

*End of Chapter 6*

A/N:

Hurray for updates! Firstly, the explanation of the (*) the moment framed by these symbols is something I tried to capture strait from Olympos Mons. If you hadn't noticed by now, the musical inspiration for this fic is Olympos Mons original album, Conquistador. (If you have never heard of these guys, or their two albums, do yourself a favor and look then up) During the song, Through the ice and snow, at exactly the 29 second mark, vocalist Ian Eric Highhill lets loose an epically power metal wail that really sets the tone for the song. I tried for this same sound to escape the mouth of Winterbrave, (whom you've just met), which accounts for the ear-piercing wail the ponies heard. Obviously, this is nigh impossible to pull off with just simple words, unless of course, you are familiar with the song and sound in question. So great is my need for you to know what the hell I'm talking about, here is a link to the song- watch?v=uB5H3TyWCG0

Any-who, another recommendation; i you're looking for a great pony fic, check out The Young Prince- s/9589185/1/The-Young-Prince by fanfiction user, blucatcinema. It's quite the touching tale.

In conclusion, thanks to those who gave my story a read, I'll upadte again soon.

-B.D. Skunkworks