Icy Void

Midnight Sky Midnight had been about to agree with Clockwork until Eclipse just plain snatched the lock boxes off Midnight's armor and took them outside. "Well it looks like our impatient friend here has just sped up the voting process. Oh well, might as well get it over with, with our luck I guess it won't really matter if those lock boxes contain something dangerous anyway." Midnight said to Clockwork, not bothering to mask his annoyance, before following Eclipse outside. Midnight just hoped that they didn't end up killing everypony when they opened whichever lock box they were going to open. "Hold on Eclipse, I've got the key maybe I should be the one to open them. After all, with that new magic you seem to have gotten still being a bit unstable it could negatively effect whatever might be inside assuming it's magic. Case in point being that blast that I managed to hear from the second level. Plus we should decide which box we'll open, because the key will only open a lock box once before breaking. So will we open the eye or the music note?" Midnight said without taking the key out of the hidden pocket he had stored it in to make sure Eclipse's impatience didn't effect the decision. He wouldn't admit it, but the fact that they were about to finally open a box had him very excited. These lock boxes are extremely old, and even have a ward that has managed to block his telekinetic scan, so this could be a very significant moment in history happening right here in the middle of an arctic wasteland. Initially he had wanted to open the box with the eye, since the eye can be a potent magical symbol, but after Pavi's accounts of that strange music Midnight wondered what could be inside the musical note box.

Midnight Sky Seeing that this Ronin seemed to be okay, at least to where he wouldn't die, Midnight turned his attention to the noise over by one of the walls. "What a wonderful new draft we have here, but maybe you could have given the rest of us some warning Eclipse." Midnight said in a neutral tone as he approached where Eclipse, Blast, and Clockwork were talking. "And as for these boxes, I don't think opening them in an area charged with old and possibly unstable magic would be very wise seeing as we have no idea what they could contain. A decision like opening these boxes should be made by a vote of the entire group anyways, since it is still a possibility we'll all die once we open one." Midnight said with a glance at the lock boxes strapped to his armor. Despite what he said though, Midnight was also beginning to think that opening them would be a good idea. Besides the fact that his curiosity was killing him and these lock boxes could hold something helpful, he was also becoming aware of the nearly hypnotic magic radiating from them, constantly drawing his attention to them. Midnight suspected it was similar to the magic energy that surrounded the key, and while he was still resisting most of the magic energy, Midnight had no idea when he'll finally give in and as such he'd be a very happy pony to be rid of those mysterious lock boxes.

Midnight Sky Ever since they had all come down stairs for some of Aegis's rather good food, Midnight had been sitting off on his own thinking about what has been happening lately. First Pavi grows a horn, then apparently some random beam of magic shot from Eclipse's horn and Crimson nearly lit the cabin on fire. Then to top it all off there's those strange letters Pavisa found and this new pony who just arrived. All this and Midnight still didn't know where his sister had disappeared to, but he hoped she was all right wherever she had gotten off to. "Well, whether or not he's a threat doesn't really matter right now. Right now this new pony is in serious need of help that we can provide in this frozen wasteland. And if he is a threat then we'll take of it promptly." Midnight said to Crimson as he walked over to get a closer look at the newcomer. Aside from his sword this new pony didn't seem to be carrying much, which just Midnight curious as to what a pony would be doing way out here with so few provisions.

Midnight Sky Midnight had kept a close eye on Pavisa's new horn throughout the duration of Icarus's examination, making sure she didn't accidentally release any magical energy. With how new the horn was, any magic it contains is likely to be unstable until Pavisa gets used to it, and Midnight would rather not see this lodge get blown up with everypony still inside. While he really wanted to look over those papers that Pavi had found with Blast and Crimson, Midnight figured that could wait until after Pavisa was taken care of. That and this whole mess was actually really interesting, an occurrence as rare as this was exactly the sort of thing Midnight endeavored to research and the possible Litany connection also made it relevant to their current mission. "The doc is right, Pavi. Even in the off chance that you do cast a spell, I should be able to confine it with a force field so that nopony got hurt. And not only are you important to this group, you're almost like Fisher's second in command. If you weren't here we'd all feel it." Midnight said. He had no idea if his words would be helpful in making Pavisa feel better, this kind of pep talk wasn't really his thing, but he felt he should try. Pavisa gave up her job for this little quest and her friends, just like he had given up his home and family to try and find his own path, so he wouldn't let her waste that sacrifice out of self pity. Besides, seeing Pavisa like this bothered Midnight, and he had a feeling that it bothered the others as well, especially Kingfisher.

Midnight Sky Midnight nodded at what the doctor had said. "Right, the shock of all this alone could make her magical energy unstable. Even if she has not developed any magic with that horn, it's better to be cautious." Midnight said in agreement with Icarus. Midnight wished he could do more to help, but this was all beyond his capabilities. All he could do is confirm that the growth of Pavisa's horn is due to some form of magic, but that was pretty obvious. When he heard Pavisa's account of what happened, something caught Midnight's attention. He doubted that Pavisa hearing the music she had heard from the train car could just be her imagination or some coincidence, though the implications weren't exactly clear. But if when she said her headaches had started is true, then there are a few possibilities Midnight had in mind for what had caused this horn to grow from Pavi's head. "So your head has been hurting ever since our time in that cave. Interesting." Midnight said, more to himself that to Pavisa. The first and most likely possibility in Midnight's mind was that the Litany pedestal from the train had caused this, and that the music had just triggered the reaction. After all, he did vaguely recall seeing the pedestal dissolve when it was struck by that magic lightning. It's possible the residual Litany magic from the pedestal, rather than disperse, just absorbed into the nearest thing that can hold magic energy and it just so happened that Pavisa was closest. But even if his theory was true, Midnight had no idea what this could mean in the long term.

Midnight Sky Naturally as soon as he got comfortable, something had to happen. After hearing Pavisa's scream Midnight had rushed to help her with the others, but he never expected to see that a horn had grown from her head. "This is interesting, you've gained a horn but not through any method I've heard about. I know of just a few very rare earth ponies that have gained horns through a sort of magical metamorphosis, but this is totally different. Instead it looks to be more like a rapid, near spontaneous, growth based on the suddenness of this happening as well as the blood and obvious pain. I wonder what could have caused all this. Could it have something to do with that pedestal from the train car that disappeared or was it something else entirely?" Midnight thought out loud. This situation was just too strange, Midnight didn't even think to wonder where his sister had gotten off to, but since he could tell she was safe it didn't matter right now. In all his years of magical research, Midnight had never heard of anything like this, and he hoped that Pavisa would pull through.

Midnight Sky When Midnight and his sister entered the lodge, he could tell his sister was eager to explore it to see all the decor, and Midnight wasn't one to begrudge his sister something she enjoyed when it seemed safe enough. "Go on Sunshine, I know you want to look around this place. Just don't get yourself into trouble." Midnight said to his sister. "Really? Thanks Midnight!" Sunshine exclaimed excitedly before running off and going off to who knows where. Even though letting his sister roam in a strange new place like this lodge worried Midnight, he knew that sometimes he needed to give his sister some space, and sometimes he needed some space for himself as well. Looking around the lodge, the others seemed to take no time at all to make themselves comfortable, but Midnight just couldn't let go of his suspicions. The fact that there was a lodge out here in the middle of nowhere was strange enough, but for it to be fully intact and for the fire to still be lit when they arrived was just too strange. Clearly somepony had been here at least a few hours before they all arrived, and if so would they return? Midnight didn't want to know how a pony who lives in this barren wasteland would react to a whole group of strangers lounging around in their house, and the fact that the others appeared to be relaxing just put Midnight even more on edge. But since this was the best shelter around Midnight knew that they'd just have to take that chance, so he might as well try and relax a little as well and as such Midnight walked over to the lounge looking area and sat down to rest. After running for their lives from that strange light, resting felt wonderful.

Midnight Sky As he watched Kingfisher begin to make her way toward some sort of dip in the ground, Midnight realized that he was still levitating his sister with his magic. "Oh, um sorry Sunshine." Midnight said as he set his sister down. "It's all right. I would have liked a little more warning before being carried like a sack of potatoes, but that can't be helped." Sunshine replied in her usual cheerful attitude. Now that he was sure Sunshine was okay, Midnight did a quick check of his equipment. Thankfully he had slept in his armor, both because it kept him warm and it meant that all of his possessions were still with him, even the lock boxes, which were still tightly fastened to his sides. The only thing wrong was that his armor had a few dings and scratches in it from trying to get away from that strange light, whatever it was Midnight knew that it could have killed anypony if it had come into direct contact with them. Hopefully they didn't encounter anything else like that, and Midnight also hoped that it didn't have anything to do with the lock boxes, because if that were the case then his curiosity is endangering the whole group. Looking over his shoulder, Midnight was also glad to see that Sunshine still had her saddle bags, and thus all of his medical supplies, even if they weren't needed with that doctor around it was still good to have something in reserve just in case.

Midnight Sky His sleep had been peaceful, a rare occurrence for Midnight, especially given the circumstances. But it was interrupted by a sudden burst of light, sound, and something akin to magic. "What now!?" Midnight yelled as he got up and jumped away from the source of this energy, taking some time to get a look at it. "Right behind you, Fisher!" Midnight said as he saw what this energy was doing, grabbing his sister telekinetically before turning to run out of the cave.

As an extra note, all the burn medicine and bandages that Midnight Sky was carrying should now be in Sunshine's inventory.

Midnight Sky "Alright, then we're agreed. Since it was my idea to grab these I guess I should be the one to tote them around, but I think it would be safest if somepony else held on to the key, as a precaution." Midnight said to the others before strapping the lock boxes back onto his armor. Now he just had to figure out how he was going to carry all of his things, because these boxes added weight that he really didn't need. It seemed the best way to fix this would be to have Sunshine carry his medical gear, though he didn't like having to make his sister carry his stuff for him. "Hey Sunshine. I think I'll need you to carry my first aid stuff for me, since I'll be lugging around these lock boxes for awhile. If you don't mind, that is." Midnight asked his sister. "Of course I don't mind! It's not like I'm carrying a lot of stuff anyway, so don't worry about it Midnight." Sunshine replied. Midnight could tell she meant it, his sister was just kind-hearted that way, so he took out his jars of burn salve and his rolls of bandages and levitated them over to Sunshine, who then tucked them into her own saddle bag. Now that that was taken care of and things were settling down, Midnight took the time to snack on one of his biscuits, after all he'd been through today Midnight hadn't had time to eat since this morning and he was certainly beginning to feel the hunger now that his life wasn't in imminent danger. It was almost nice in this cave, with a fire, friends, and no immediate problems. It was good to have some time to relax for a change, even if they had to walk the rest of the way to the Crystal Empire.

Midnight Sky "Aegis has a point, because wasn't this Bardic fellow the one who sent out those letters when this all began that told us to go after the Litany. If that really is the case I don't see why the harm in waiting to see if he could tell us anything about these. He might even be able to explain what happened earlier with that big magic creature and the pedestal that Pavisa was carrying earlier. What do you think Fisher, you seem to know this Bardic?" Midnight asked. He didn't say it out loud, but Midnight was also worried about the possibility of what Eclipse suggested. After all, these lock boxes were very well protected in that train car with the strange magic that had clung to it until they had disturbed it, and the boxes themselves were also quite well protected both by plain strength of the material they're made from and the strange and likely old, but still very powerful, magic that completely sealed the contents from the outside world to where even his scanning magic could not reveal what was inside. In this situation though, he believed it was best to try and get more information, if at all possible, before they decided anything, as Aegis suggested. After all, while they could be a trap or some cruel joke, the lock boxes could just as likely be something that could be immensely useful to them in the future.

Midnight Sky "Sure thing, and I'm as curious as the rest of you. I tried scanning for what was inside when I first found them, but some sort of magic that I'm not familiar with blocked my magic. Plus I'm pretty sure they're locked tighter than a normal lock, so is anypony good at picking locks?" Midnight said as he levitated the two boxes onto the ground in front of him. Out of sheer curiosity Midnight personally wanted to know what was inside the one with the eye on it, but the one with the music note was a good mystery as well. Hopefully they could open both, but Midnight had a feeling that just opening one could be problematic based on how well sealed off they both are. Then Midnight remembered something, back in the train car, Eclipse and Crimson had begun to argue over a key, it could be that that key is for one of the lock boxes, that made sense at least. "Hey Crimson, Eclipse, which one of you has that key you were fighting over? You know, the hypnotizing one. I think that could be related to these boxes somehow, after all, what good is a key if it doesn't unlock something, such as these two lock boxes that just happened to be in the same train car." Midnight asked the two of them. If his hunch was right, then that key could turn out to have been worth the trouble, and if he was wrong then he'd have to hope that they could somehow force the boxes open, though he personally doubted that being possible. However despite his curiosity, Midnight also had a feeling that these could just as easily be a trap, after all one just had to look at where they were hidden to know that something about them was not normal. And nopony could know how long they've been exposed to the remnants of Litany magic that hung around that pedestal, so anything could be possible.

Midnight Sky "Yeah, things did get a bit complicated." Midnight said after the green pony's remark. "And I can take care of lighting that. Also, we haven't been properly introduced, my name's Midnight Sky. I suppose I should welcome you to what our life has been like for the last week." Midnight said as he created a small pseudo-fireball and lit the fire pit. Now that all was relatively well, he might as well get to know their new additions. It's not like there was anything else to do at the moment.

Midnight Sky As they neared the cave, Midnight began to make out a yellow glow coming from it's entrance, soon later he realized it was Sunshine. "Glad to see you're well." Midnight said to her as he ran right into the cave before collapsing to the ground. "Yeah, I really hope we don't need to do that again anytime soon." Midnight said with a small laugh in response to Pavisa's remark. Never in his life could Midnight have imagined gathering some firewood to be dangerous. Then there was the matter of the strange items they came across in that strange train car, but so much had happened that Midnight figured that finding out what was inside the lock boxes he had picked up could wait for later. Sunshine Rays As she waited for the others to get back to the cave, Sunshine decided to figure out what had happened. "So what happened out there? I was so worried the storm had gotten you guys, and where'd you get those boxes Midnight?" Sunshine called over to where her brother and Pavi had stopped. Whatever had happened had certainly been exciting, Sunshine could tell by how worked up Midnight seemed compared to his normal self, and Pavi looked tired considering all they did was go and grab firewood. "Well, I think I'll let Pavisa explain most of it, but I will say that I got these lock boxes from a mysterious train car that had ended up causing us a bit of trouble. But I don't think I have the energy to tell you all the details. And whatever Pavisa and the others don't tell you I can tell you later." Midnight responded to her, though she felt his explanation was a bit vague.

Midnight Sky If the sudden halt in the storm had surprised him, then Midnight was doubly surprised when it intensified and even struck the group of ponies. The first two bolts thankfully missed a direct hit, though they were still close enough to hurt, but then the third one hit the pedestal on Pavisa's back. The shock wave from the other lightning bolts had stunned him, so Midnight didn't get a good look, but he could have sworn that the pedestal actually absorbed the lightning and dispersed itself rather than shatter. Of course it was hard to say when he was still trying to regain his bearings. "Pavisa is right, let's hurry. If we wait much longer then next time we won't be so lucky!" Midnight said, shaking his head to clear his vision. Midnight then took of running for the cave, focusing his magic into a bright light that the others should be able to see. Thankfully he had used his scanning continuously for so long that the area here was essentially engraved into Midnight's memory, and it wasn't long before he started being able to make out what had to be the rock pile in the distance. "Just a little further, we just need to stay alive a little longer." Midnight muttered to himself. Sunshine Rays So far Sunshine had been in a daze, in shock from the train wreck. But when she had regained her senses and heard that Midnight and some others were outside again, it turned her shock into worry. Since then she had remained still, staring at the cave entrance in hopes that the others will come back safely. When the storm began to sound more violent however, Sunshine couldn't help herself. She ran to the entrance and looked out into the storm, and with her magic she began casting a beam of light out into the storm as a beacon for the others. She had to make sure her brother got back all right, if she lost Midnight she'd lose the only family that had ever actually looked out for her besides her big sister River Dance, who had acted like a mother for her and Midnight since their mother was always too busy with royal duties and with caring for Summer and Frozen. Sunshine needed her brother alive, he was the only family she had left now that they were here in Equestria, and she would not let him go without trying to help.

Midnight Sky "Come on everypony, as long as we stick together we will make it back to the cave!" Midnight called back at the others as he trudged on. Normally the weight of his armor wasn't a bother, he had grown accustomed to it after years of wearing it, but in these situations with wind and snow pounding down on him it was hard to ignore it, especially with those two lock boxes he had picked up. And even though the storm had managed to not kill them so far, it was certainly still a bother. Midnight could only be glad of three things, one that his sister was safe in the cave, then that they had a fire specialist with them, and finally that with help from Eclipse's magic Midnight found using his scanning magic continually less tiring. "We're about halfway there, we just need to push through!" Midnight yelled back to the others after a few more steps. He could only imagine how cold Eclipse and Pavisa must be, Eclipse wasn't wearing a very heavy outfit and Pavisa's armor wasn't made for weather like this, he'd have to thank Sunshine for making him wear his armor back when all this started, he'd probably be dead without it. Midnight just hoped that that thing didn't attack again, though with their luck he wouldn't be surprised if it did.

Midnight Sky Midnight had been about ready to intervene with the ongoing argument when he felt a blast of something hit near the car, a bit too near for comfort. "Right, let's go. I can still use my telekinetic scanning to guide us back to the cave, but I need each of you to stay close. Being separated in weather like this would be deadly. Now let's go, I have a feeling that this storm isn't exactly natural. It feels all too much like the one from before when that whatever it was attacked." Midnight said, turning and walking to the train car's door. Once again he'd have to lead the way through a magic and malevolent snowstorm, once all this business with the Litany and Noble was done he'd have to arrange for a vacation, somewhere warm and sunny. With a sigh Midnight began sending out his pulses from where he stood in the train car's doorway so he could try and get an idea of where to walk. Thankfully it wasn't too difficult to find the way they had come, though their tracks were almost entirely covered by this storm. "All right, stay close and follow me if you want to live. Crimson, keep your fire ready in case we're attacked." Midnight said to the others as started walking, hoping to prevent another argument from coming up by forcing them to hurry up and follow.

Thought I should mention that Midnight took the key in my last post before Pavi lifted up the pedestal, but since a whole argument has arisen out of the key I think I'll just edit my post tomorrow. Sound good to everyone involved?

Midnight Sky Midnight was relieved to see his friends on the other side of the curtain, and seeing the pedestal explained quite a bit. "Well if that thing really was at one point a pedestal for the Litany, then that would explain all the strange magic I've been sensing in here. Even though it is not the Litany itself, it's exposure to the book has caused it to absorb the residual magic of the Litany. That's probably also part of why my own magic has been dealing with interference." Midnight said. "Let's maybe refrain from the pedestal that probably once held an artifact that has proven to be an annoyance. We really don't need to deal with another Litany test right now." Midnight said casually when he saw Pavisa reaching out to the pedestal. "That said, I don't think we should leave it here where it could cause trouble in the future. Think you can levitate that thing without activating any magical traps that it may hold Eclipse?" Midnight asked. Even though he could levitate it himself just as easily, Midnight had a feeling that the pedestal was not responsible fro the fog earlier, which could mean that the thing that had attacked them earlier could be near, in which case Midnight wanted to have his horn free in case he needed to cast a pseudo-fireball or at worst his chaos burst.

Midnight Sky Now that he had his fire going, Midnight could tell that it had little effect. While the heat of the flame had indeed thinned the fog around him, it only added a very slight extension to how far he could see. Deciding he might as well try and find the others, Midnight tried using his telekinetic scan to find them, but for some reason he couldn't find any sign of them anywhere in the car. While walking to try and find the others without magic, as Midnight assumed that this fog was interfering with his own magic, Midnight eventually came across a peculiar red curtain. Normally he would have ignored it and moved on, but for some reason or another he could distinctly sense the magical energy of his brother Frozen on the other side. "Now what could the Prince of Winter be doing here?" Midnight asked aloud, even though he knew nopony could hear. Against his better judgement, Midnight Sky pushed past the curtain. The possibility of his most hated sibling being here was just too curious to leave unchecked.

Midnight Sky As he was sifting through the lock boxes, two in particular caught his attention. Unlike the rest, these were decorated and each had a symbol emblazoned on it, one with an eye and another with a music note. And they didn't just look different, but there seemed to be some magical energy about them, though Midnight had trouble deciphering what exactly the magical energy was for. Just as he levitated the two lock boxes up, deciding that they posed a mystery worth solving even if it could be risky, the air became thick with fog almost instantaneously. This fog was clearly unnatural, it was too thick and came too quickly, and Midnight's visibility was reduced to zero. He didn't even bother calling out to the others, the fog was so thick that it would be like talking through water, they most likely wouldn't hear. "Well there's only one way to thin air this thick, apply heat. Hopefully Crimson will get the same idea, I have a feeling his fire will be far more effective than mine. That is, assuming I can successfully make my fire with so much magic in the air." Midnight said to himself, though he could barely make out his own voice. Midnight quickly strapped the two lock boxes to his armor and began focusing his magic. With some effort, he was finally able to light a flame and slowly enlarged it until it was the size of a watermelon. Hopefully the heat would thin out some of the fog, though as far as magic battles go, this certainly wasn't what Midnight would have thought of.

Midnight Sky When Pavisa opened the car's door, Midnight could feel a very subtle, though strong, breeze of magic flow out from the car as if a pressurized can had been opened. Not comfortable with that little feeling, Midnight ran over to join the others inside the car. He almost wished he hadn't with the disturbing feeling he started getting as soon as he entered the lavish train car. "Yes, do be quick. Other than them needing these supplies, I have a really bad feeling about this car and would rather not be in here long." Midnight said in a weary tone. Hesitantly he began to search through the various lock boxes, trying to figure out what was in them while hoping this wasn't some trap or illusion.

Midnight Sky By the time Pavisa pointed out the intact car Midnight had gathered a moderate sized stack of wood from the benches and tables in the passenger car he had been in. "All right, but be careful. It's suspicious that a derailed train car is in such pristine condition, and I have a bad feeling about it, though I'm not sure what exactly." Midnight said as Pavisa went to investigate. In truth the whole area gave Midnight a bad feeling, between that strange creature and this not entirely natural storm Midnight Sky wouldn't be surprised if they were being played with. On top of all that, whatever magic that thing had been radiating, it was interfering with Midnight's ability to sense the Crystal Heart. At this point he could barely even sense it at all, let alone which direction it's in. At this rate Midnight wouldn't be surprised if the cave their companions are in collapsed, with all the misfortune they've had so far.

Midnight Sky Back out of the cave, Midnight was reminded once more of his eldest brother Frozen Stars, oldest prince of Neighland and designated ruler of the northern region of the country. On top of all that Frozen was born an alicorn and had a natural talent for ice magic, which combined to make him the equivalent to a god of winter, though his heart was as cold as his ice. Just off the top of his head Midnight could remember Frozen freezing him alive in a block of ice, which he had been trapped in for a couple hours before his eldest sister and Frozen's twin Summer Breeze found and freed him. But even more similar to the current situation was the time that Frozen trapped him in an illusion of being lost in a blizzard, the only difference was then he had been alone and there hadn't been a country's existence at stake. So in a way, Midnight felt that this whole adventure would be a good benchmark to see how he could compare against his brother. But for the time being Midnight forced himself to focus back on the task at hand, gathering firewood. "Right, we shouldn't have trouble scavenging from the train wreck. At least so long as that thing doesn't come back, but since it's energy is vaguely similar to that of a pony I know I should be able to give us some advance warning if it get's close." Midnight said as he walked with Eclipse and Pavisa. It was curious, that creature's energy felt a lot like Frozen's, just more malicious. Hopefully that didn't become a problem in the future.