Spirit of Winter 14: Exile

Part 1

>A ruck sack is leaning on a white pillar.
>A cool breeze with the smell of rain is flowing through the windows.
>The sound of chalk is echoing through off the floor and walls.
>There’s a smell of cleaning solvent wafting through the air.
>You are the Spirit Lord Winter: Anonymous.
>You have an hour before you are to be exiled to the Sibearian Mountains near the edge of the known world.
> You've cleaned your gun twice over; all you were doing is helping yourself coup with your anxiety.  The guards had no idea what it was, so you told them it was a walking stick and in your boot is your bayonet of course.
> You haven’t even brought a whole lot of food with you, considering you don’t really need to eat.
> Twilight remains focused on her task and hasn't said a single word since you left the Inquisition Hall.
>Everything’s been patched up, the hole in your chest has been replaced with flesh and bone and the pins that once circled it are now gone.
>The guards have brought her a few boxes of chalk as well as several crystal vials.
>Her drawing has spreads from pillar to pillar in the throne room.  And only a few feet of standing room remain at the door as well as the throne.
>The runes and symbols that Twilight has drawn are like nothing you've ever seen, not even back on earth.
> You've been told that Applejack, Pinkie, Rarity,  Rainbow and Flutter something are supposed to attend your banishment.
> They're apparently the wielders of the most powerful magic relics ever known and they are suppose to turn you into stone if need be.
>Frankly you’d want them to if what happened at the Summer Sun Celebration happens again.
>If you turn into that thing again.
>So far It’s just you two and both Princess Celestia and Princess Luna.
>Celestia is watching you closely, and so Is Luna to a lesser extent.

>Apparently ponies were able to take pictures in the chaos.
>You can say the most things don’t scare you.  After living in the wild for so long you've just stopped being scared of things.
>But the sight of what you became.
>Even the memory of it, makes the hair on your arms stand on end.

Twilight?  Are you almost done?
>”I still have to secure the outer ring of the seal; every precaution has to be taken for an expulsion of the magnitude.”
I’ve heard it’s a great ordeal to even have one Jinn expelled.
>”I’ve never had it done to me, but from what I’ve read... It can be painful.”
As long as you’re the one doing it, I won’t mind.
>Twilight smiles widely.  She’d run into your arms if it wouldn’t smear the chalk.

----------

>”It’s finished.”
Is there anything I should, uh, do?
>”I’m going to need to draw a rune on your back.”
>You give a nod before removing you coat and your under layer before turning around.
>”Hold still.”
>You feel something wet touch your back.
What’s the hell is that!?
>”Don’t worry it’s a paint.”
>With a few strokes it’s over.
>”Please take a seat in the middle of the seal.”
>You don’t really have anything to say.  Because there is nothing to say.
>Twilights horn begins to glow as soon as you take your place.  It’s not long before you begin to feel the pain.  It’s like someone is cutting into your back with a box cutter.
>Then the moaning begins.
>Inside your head you can hear a soft groan.
>Guess it’s the Jinn.

>The pain begins to dull after a while but that doesn't stop you from gritting your teeth.
>You need to distract yourself.  Maybe just look around and think about other things.
>The strained glass in the throne room is nothing short of beautiful.  All the stories they tell and the history they have behind them, there’s even two with Twilight in them.
>Next to the throne there is a window depicting princess Celestia and Luna doing something or another.  But what strikes you is the angle of the sun at the top.  It’s at an angle that reflects almost perfectly what is happening behind you.
>Triangular flaps of skin have been cut away from you back and are being pulled toward Twilight.  From the center of your back a strange black mist is being drawn into a crystal bottle.
>It really is enough to make you a little dizzy.  Surprising, considering you’ve had your head blown off and your chest torn open.
>At least there’s no blood running onto the floor; even though you’ve practically been skinned like a mink.

----------

>Ten minutes before the hour.
>You’re running out time.
>A few minutes ago Rarity, AJ and everp0ny else came into the throne room and have taken their places next to Celestia and Luna.  Each are wearing gemmed necklaces, that you have been told are the Elements of Harmony.
>Not only this but it has begun to storm outside.  There’s the occasional crack of thunder outside that elicits a yelp from the mare named Fluttershy.
>”Sister, the time draws near.”
>”Indeed.  Are you almost finished Twilight?”
>”*ngh* Yes Princess, I didn't think Anon had this much jinn in him.  Please, a few more minutes.
>”Very well.”
>The minutes crawl by as Twilight finishes the expulsion.  But It’s not long before the silence is broken.”
>”Anonymous?”
Y- Yea Rarity?
>”Are you... Are you alright?”
I’ve been better.
>”Oh… Well I- I just wanted to apologize for my behavior that... night.”
What?
>”I was overwhelmed with infatuation.  I should have recognized the signs when I saw them.  Instead I was blinded by my infatuation for somep0- someone who I now see as a brother.  I can’t help but think this is all my fault.
Don’t say that.  This is no one’s fault; something like this was beyond anyone’s control.  At least we know what’s wrong and we’re fixing things.  Don’t blame yourself.”
>”Hey Anon.”
>At the very end you see that Rainbow mare. Rainbow Dash.
Yea?
>”This, uh, might not be the best time but, I um, well...  I wanted to say that I- well I... I forgive you.”
>You try your best to smile, but the ritual makes it difficult.
Thank you.  Rainbow Dash.

>”Okay... Almost...   Done...  I just have to... seal this last bottle and- There!”
>Twilight gives a sigh of relief.
>”Okay that’s all of it. Phew!  I was worried we were going to run out of seals.”
>The pain has now completely gone away.
>”Give your seal a few seconds to heal before you get up.”
I feel fine.
>There a bit of a sting, but it’s not too horrible.
>You stretch before putting your clothes back on and grabbing you ruck sack from the pillar along with your gun.
>You feel something incredibly warm against your waist.
>It’s Twilight.
>”Are...  Are you sure you’ll be alright?  You know you can take the Winter Guard with you.”
This is something I have to take on by myself.  It won't be the first time I'd live in the bush.
>Twilight's eyes go wide as you kneel down in front of her.
Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.  I thought I told you to stop worrying about everything.
>Twilight looks up and gives you that smile.  You can barely explain it but you find yourself leaning toward her.
>Slowly both yours and her eyes begin to close as you both grow closer to each other.
>”Magic!  If you please, take thy position.”
>Twilight has gone from a hundred to zero in a few seconds.
Go on, I’ll be fine.
>Twilight nods.
>With Twilight in her place next to Celestia, you make your way to what could have been your execution or you sealing.

>Celestia’s horn along with Luna’s begin to glow and a second seal begins to form bellow you.
>”Art thou Anonymous Trolololovich Legionstev Spirit Lord of Winter?”
I am.
>”Dost thou accept the crimes that thee hath been accused of.”
>They’re both using the old speak.  This is it.
I do.
>They both begin to speak in unison.
>”Then by the power vested in us.  We, Goddesses of the Sun and Moon, do take half of thy essence and power.”
>You feel yourself rise off the ground.  Your limbs are pulled back and your eyes become colorless as a thick fog begins to pour out of your mouth eyes and ears.
>It doesn’t hurt.  But once it I over you feel as if you’ve just walk a thousand miles without food or water.
>”To ensure the safety of our subjects, we do exile thee to northern mountains far beyond the borders of Equestria. “
>The seal around you begins to glow.
>”For when spring hath passed and passed once more, yee shall return from this banishment.”
>For a moment you are returned to the ground.  Then you feel your body start to come apart and a light begins to shine in your eyes.
>”So say we the Goddesses of the Sun and Moon!”
>You can’t even describe the feeling.  Because there is none.
>You can’t see, you can’t speak and you can’t breathe.
>For a second you feel as if you are dead.
>Until the light gives way.  You feel the wind on your face and the sound of a river in your ear.
>You fall to your knees and feel the wet earth at your hands.
>A mountain casts a shadow by the afternoon sun and trees bend in the breeze.
>Here you are.


Part 2

One… Two…Three!
>You cringe slightly as your makeshift axe makes contact with a length of pine.  Luckily it stays intact.
>Last time you tried this, the axe exploded and sent several shards back in your face, one right into your eye.
>It didn’t hurt, but it was pain to wait for your left eye to come back.  Were you at full strength the air around you would have condensed and frozen, stopping the shard all together.
Sweet.
>Looks like this thing will hold up.
>You repeat the process until the log has been cut all the way through.  As soon as it’s finished you simply toss the axe into the river.  It would have slowed you down and melted to the point of becoming useless.

>Grabbing a length of rope you begin to tie the small logs together and begin to drag them back to camp like an ox.  Truth be told this has been more difficult than you had though.
>When Celestia took half you essence from you, she either weekend your useful powers or took them away all together.  You can’t flash freeze things anymore, fatigue now sets in as well as hunger, gasses take longer to liquify, you can no longer change shape, and your spirit must remain attached to your body.
>But on the bright side you still can’t be killed, you don’t have to eat or drink either, and the cold still doesn’t bother you.
>But that doesn’t mean you don’t get freezing cold.  The first few nights you actually woke up shivering.
>Where ever you are, you’re pretty far north, the night has gotten below freezing and the wind in the evening is brutal.
>Your camp is about two hundred yards away from the river.
>You eventually figured out that you can’t stay under a little lean to for two years, so you’ve begun building a hut of sorts.
>It’s a bunch of logs propped up against a horizontal beam that you’ve cut holes into in order to keep it supported.  It’s around eight feet long, a little over three feet long and another three feet high.
>You plan to put moss over it once it’s finished in order to keep the thing insulated.
>Hopefully this place gets rain otherwise your hut might turn out to be a fire hazard.

----------

>You give a long sigh.
>Welp it’s finished, your little home is finished.
>Now it’s time to test it out.
>You crawl in and lay down.  Enough room to sit up and just enough room to turn around.
>The nights are going to be a whole lot better.  Just because you're undying, doesn’t mean that you don’t get uncomfortable.
>You’ve also noticed that you’re more susceptible to temperature change.  All in all you feel that you’ve become more mortal than ever.
 >But now you have this little hole in the forest, that you can call home for now.
>...
>Kind of subjective term...  Home...
>You don’t really have one.  For the most part you’ve mooched off of Twilight and Celestia.  And you can’t exactly say that you had a home back on earth.
>You shudder slightly.
>Earth… Earth was your home…
>What if you went back?  What would you do differently?  Would you go back south?  Get a job, buy a house, and find a girl?
>You shudder again.
>Near a small bush you notice something.
>It obliges you to get up and walk to it.
>It’s a small purple flower.  You can’t name it, but you crouch down and run your fingers along the petals.
>Yeah...  This is your home now...  Equestria is your home and your country now.

----------

>You reckon three months have passed.
>Oh god.
>Out of all the problems you have, boredom is this biggest.
>You have fire wood, you have a shit load of dried fish and you’ve yet to see a rabbit in the area.  You’re pretty sure you drove them to extinction here.
>Falling flat on your back you give a sigh that is reminiscing of a dying ass.
>There just nothing to do.
>You turn your head to you right.
>A stick...
>’Pick it up’
>Practically crawling on you stomach, you slide over and grab the stick.
>’You should draw with it.’
>Sitting up you walk over to your log bench and begin to draw all sorts of things in the dirt.  Words in Russian, cartoons, and games of tic tac toe are always fun.

>Now you’ve drawn everything there is to draw, or at least everything you know how to draw or how to vaguely draw.
>You think you’ve been doing this for a week now.
>Every day, get up, build a fire, maybe have breakfast, go take a shit, sit down and draw, have dinner, draw some more, go to sleep.
>Now there’s nothing left to draw.
>Oh my god.
>With your jaw hanging open you trace two horizontal lines connected at the top by a diagonal line.
>Huh?  That looks good.
>’What should you call it?’
>Hm...  Errr, ür.
>’ür?’
>Yeah ür sounds good.

----------

>You got some sleep last night.
>The first bout of sleep you’ve had in several weeks.
>All you’ve been doing is making up symbols and giving them names.  It’s not really significant, just a bit of fun and something to keep you occupied.
>’What will this one be called?’
>In front of you are two crossed lines, with two small diagonal lines crossing the top right side.
>Hmmm.  Well that one is called ‘Gibo’ and the other is ‘a’uja’.  So it’s called Gibo a’uja.
>With a piece of charcoal you scratch the symbol on the inside of a piece of bark.
>Jesus how many of these have you drawn?
>Sitting near the entrance of your hut are several pieces of bark riddle with… Let’s be honest; runes.
>You hate to admit it, but this is actually sort of fun.  It’s probably the most fun you’ve had in a long time.
>All this time you’ve forgotten about the days before you came here.

>You do this for a few minutes, but for the first time in the week you’re stuck.  You struggle for a few minutes but absolutely nothing comes to mind.
>Guess creativity can’t flow forever.
>Maybe a bite will help you think.   Next to your hut, is spit with which you smoke and dry the fish you catch.  And it’s empty.
>It’s not really a problem.  You’ll just go down to the river and fish a little.
>It’s about a ten minute walk from you camp to the river and you’ve already begun to wear a trail into the ground.
>The river so far has been absolutely stocked with fish.  If you took the time to learn to fly fish you would have eaten better when you first came.  But you’ve compensated.
>It’s not very deep either.  All you really have to do is roll your pants up and wade in the calmer parts.
>Nearly up to your knees in what would be frigid water to others, you count to one hundred and stay completely still.
>It’s weird though.  How you just thought up those things.  But again you’re bored so you shouldn’t over think things.
>99, 100.  Now then.
>Straining your eyes you begin to scan the pool for any sign of movement.
>It’s not long before you see a trout lazily swimming against the current making no progress.
>Tapping you finger on the surface of the water, the fish is frozen in a block of ice in a matter of seconds.
>Water has been easier to freeze because of its low freezing point; that and the fact that the water is already near freezing.
>You quickly grab the fishcicle and throw it to the shore.   Again you see another trout and you repeat the process.

>The sun is starting to go down and you’ve caught enough fish for dinner tonight, and all of tomorrow.
>Back on the bank of the river, you unthaw the river trout that are now thoroughly dead.  Sill humans, thinking that freezing things keeps the alive.
>Grouping them together and tying them together with some twine, you dink the trout into the river and freeze them together.
>Fresh, frozen fish, nothing better than that.
>’Look at your feet’
>Your foot gives way slightly as you walk over the wet rock.
>What the shit!
>’pick it up’
>You reach down and grab the rock that almost made you fall and break your neck.
>It’s really smooth.  Makes sense considering it came out of the river.
>But there something oddly tantalizing about it.  You can’t put your finger on it but, this rock has you captured.
>It’s smoothness, its shape, and its color.  It’s just so hypnotizing.
>The light has begun to flatten around you.  You should probably hurry back to camp.
>With the rock in hand you quickly jog back to camp.

>The light is dying as you set down your fish.  Fire is your first priority.  It’s not that you’re cold, it’s just that you need to cook a few of these things, and then smoke the rest.
>You brought a whole lot of matches with you, so an ignition source is not a problem.
>Within a few minutes, you’ve got a small fire going.  A few good sized sticks and a log late will have this thing going hot.
>As if it’s not hot enough already.
>Quickly you take out your knife and gut the fish.  Once that is done, you make a messy fillet out of them.
>Now with some trout cooking over the fire you kick back and take a breath.
>You guess this isn’t so bad.
>You’ve got a nice hut that keeps the wind and rain off of you.  And you’ve got a full stomach every night.
>This isn’t so bad…
>But, there’s no warm bed, or eggs toast and coffee.  No books to read, people to talk to, no cakes or pies.  No warm glow coming from a hearth, no lips to tell you goodnight, no mare to worry and pine over you.  No Twilight to keep you company, to embrace you, to warm your cold bones…
>NO!  No you can’t think about these things.  It’ll just make everything worse
>Think about something else; just think of something other than… her… oh god…
>’where did you put that rock?’
>You glance around and see the rock you took from the river near the fish.
>Taking it you hand you hold it close to the light of the fire.
>’Find some charcoal’
>What if...
>Behind the log you’re sitting on, is the bark you’ve been writing on for these past few days.
>In the fold is a small piece of charcoal that you used.
>What if...
>With the piece of charcoal in hand, you draw ‘sigil’ for sun, into the rock.
>For a while you simply stare at it for a few seconds, before your begin to squeeze it.
>As you squeeze the rock you begin to feel a slight chill going through your arm.
>Your eye catches a blue light coming from in between your fingers.
>You try to let go, but your fingers have gone stiff, like they have frozen in place.
>The light coming from your fingers grows brighter and brighter.
>When it finally fades your fingers finally open: dropping the stone.
>Your eyes become pinpricks when you see the frost that has formed on your knuckles.
>The only thing that is more shocking it the stone.
>You’re slightly hesitant to pick it up, but curiosity overtakes you.

>You almost drop it again when you pick it back up.
>’Sigil’ is now carved into the stone.
>Like someone has taken a chisel and actually carved it into the rock.
>You have to know, you just have to try this again.
>Just once…

>Through the night and into the morning, you stoked the fire and looked for rocks.
>Now you have a pile of rocks with various symbols in them that goes up to your knees.
>Well.
> Celestia never told you that you can do something like this.  You begin to question it this is raw magic; before you thought that you were just a spirit who could use the power of winter.  You never thought that you could use raw magic.
>But then again you don’t even know if this is raw magic.

----------

>It’s been, you don’t know how many days, weeks or months anymore.
>All you’ve been doing is going through your rituals and keeping boredom away.  There are some nights where you don’t even sleep, even if you try you simple stay awake.
>You’ll often just wander through the forest.  You don’t even have to think about finding your way back.  All you have to do is follow the trail of frost.
>You’ve done all you can to not think about that night.
>The night when you first made those things…
>You even avoid looking at them.
>The night when you first made them; when you held one.  You remember holding one, and then you remember your whole body going cold.  Ice crystals began to form along your arm and you could feel your blood run cold.
>It’s felt horrible it felt like... That day...  It reminded you of that day...  The day when everything came crashing down...

>But everything should be fine… You- you just can’t touch them, look at them, or think about them.
>Everything is going to be alright, you got some sleep last night.  It’s going to be okay.
>Slowly you crack your eyes open.
>You feel your eyes ache as they adjust to the light.  Yeah, you slept pretty good last night.
>Rolling onto your stomach you look outside.  You were pretty lucky that the opening to your hut faced the south east; waking up to the sun hitting our face was always nice.
>But...  Something is different.
>There’s snow.  There is snow everywhere.  It’s just a light dusting but there is snow on the ground none the less.
>You star at the frozen land scape for a few minutes before your eyes catch something.
>The snow around you…  It’s moving?...
>It is!
>The small crystals of ice are floating.
>Floating toward...  No...
>It pains you, but you do it anyway.  You look over to the pile of stones.  Just this once, it’s not like something like this happens every day.
>You turn your head to the left.  And to your astonishment; the snow is in fact drifting toward the rocks.
>You stare in astonishment for what feels like hours.  Your thoughts are only brought back when something begins to crawl from in between the cracks.
>You’re absolutely mesmerized.  A little creature that looks as if it is made of glass is crawling out from in between the stones.
>Now it’s...  Running...  It’s running on two legs toward you...
>It’s a tiny little thing.  No more than a few inches tall.
>Good god- it- it looks like a person...  A little glass person...
>The little figure is now standing in front of your face.
>You are absolutely speechless.
>The little person stands there for a few seconds before it gives you a little bow.
>What is this?...
>’Winter draws near.'