Of all the things she had seen in her life, the Ôsavon mountains were perhaps the most awe-inspiring. It was blindingly obvious that this wall of rock had no business being here, there was not a single foothill to be seen. They just shot out of the ground at a scarily steep angle, like some great force had yanked them from the earth. In fact, the face of the mountains was so steep that snow had a hard time clinging, most of it was concentrated at the broken, jagged peaks on top. All around, there were scattered piles of boulders and even larger chunks of stone that had tumbled down from the top, thanks to the never-ending power of erosion.

But nothing rivaled the utter devastation that lay before the great rend that cleaved through two-thirds of the wall. It was a gaping wound, and the land for miles around showed the signs of it. There was a quite literal fan of debris radiating out from the rend, the fragments growing larger the closer they got. Even though grass and shrubs had moved in, it had been clear that this event had been cataclysmic in scale when Snowy discovered green chunks of glass in a little stream.

“It's just some glass, Snowy.” Tempest had sighed when the other mare had brought it to her.

“Not just glass, Tempest, this is naturally-formed glass.” She explained. “This wasn't made by any human. Something happened here that was hot enough to turn whatever this was into glass, all on its own.”

“...Incredible...” Tempest breathed in awe. “We really are on the edge of the world, aren't we? Artificial mountains and rocks turned into glass... Incredible.”

“Circumstances aside, I am kind of glad we got to see this.” Said Snowy, with a little smile. “It really is something out of another time.”

“Let's just hope it's all that's left of that time.” She commented back. They flew on, getting closer to the rend. The gap was shaped something like the Equestrian letter V. There was a long ravine that led down from the summit of the gap, Tempest could only assume it was the same for the other side. She spotted a path far below. At the peak of the ravine was a little boxy building. Kakâdras! “Sure looks small!” Remarked Tempest as they flew, higher and higher. Snowy didn't answer, she was focused on staying in the air. They'd covered nearly thirty miles with only one stop, it was quite a feat for the other pegasus. Now, the sun was setting, and they had to get the castle before it was too dark to navigate.

Kakâdras was anything but small, as they soon found out. There was an large outcrop that pushed out from the rend wall, and upon it was a terraced structure of dark stone. It was a series of keeps stacked on top of one another, wide and low at the bottom, but narrowing as they went up. The entire design reminded Tempest of one of those fancy Equestrian cakes she'd seen many years ago, just square and off-center. On the top was a relatively squat tower, from it streamed a checked black and white banner, with a red eight-ray star in the center. Whomever controlled this place was certainly showing their allegiance to the Empire. However, all was not well with Kakâdras. Even from a distance, Tempest noted the scaffolding and hastily-applied patches on the fortress; in addition to several cracks running through the walls. The corner of one of the upper walls closest to the rend had been completely obliterated. A conspicuous boulder sitting in the courtyard below was a likely suspect for that.

The two pegasi descended, gliding down to the only obvious gate. Snowy immediately sat down, and bowed her head; she must have been exhausted. It irked Tempest that the fortress blocked the view of the other side of the rend. The Far North is a furlong away, and I can't see it! she fumed quietly.

“Who goes there?” Came the call from the gatehouse.

“Friends of Îrilôs Taizâres, Duke of Fâharîon!” Announced Tempest.

“And what would you be? Alicorns?” The sentry asked.

“Pegasi, from Equestria. Lesser cousins of the alicorns.” She replied.

“What business do you have up here?” The interrogation continued.

“We were sent here by Duke Îrilôs. He said that...” Tempest turned to Snowy. “Do you remember the name of the garrison commander? Îrilôs said he was kin.” She whispered.

“Sir Lîetôs.” Replied Snowy, after a moment of thought.

“He said that Sir Lîetôs could help us.” Tempest finished her answer.

“Stay there.” The sentry vanished from the gatehouse parapet, down into the gatehouse.

“It's not like we have anywhere else to go.” Grumbled the Queen of Highcrest, watching the sky get darker and darker as the minute went by. It was getting colder too, they were over a mile above the ocean, if her math was right.

“It is impressive.” Snowy remarked to her, looking up at Kakâdras. From the ground, it looked even more like a pile little of castles.

“How big do you think it is?” Asked Tempest, gazing up at its crowning tower.

“Bigger than Nikadîon, in terms of area.” Said Snowy, squinting. “It's got to be several hundred feet tall.”

“How did they build this? Why did they build this?” Tempest wondered. “It seems like a waste of money, and it can't have been easy to haul all this stone up here.”

“I don't know... But look at the angles.” Snowy pointed to the walls. “Humans didn't build castles this angular until just a few decades ago, and this is a lot older than Nikadîon or any of the Karthâ fortresses.”

“Are you saying humans didn't build this?” Tempest gave her a skeptical look.

“I'm saying it's unusual. Just another mystery I guess-” Anything more she had to say would have to wait, as the sentry had returned.

“Very well, Equestrians, you may enter. But the Captain will have to talk to you himself.”

“Fair enough.” Tempest agreed, watching the gates swing open. Oddly enough, it was not an arched portal, but a peaked one, like the roof of a house. Maybe Snowy is right. This is definitely not a normal castle. Any castle that was taller than any building she had seen before was already unusual enough, but these little things caught her attention more. As they emerged into the courtyard, Tempest noticed an identical gateway that led northeast instead of southeast, as their own gate did. That must have led to the Far North. It's right there! Tempest snorted in frustration. She would have to see it before they left, that was unquestionable. She didn't come all this way just to miss it by a matter of yards! On another note, the lack of people about was not what she was expecting. There was only a handful of armored soldiers, one was scrubbing away at some stain in a corner, others just went about their business, whatever it was.

“Where is the Captain, anyway?” Asked Tempest to the sentry. He was in full armor; perhaps to keep warm during the night shift? His visor was closed too... All of the soldiers had their visors closed.

“Up there.” The sentry pointed to the tower far above. “More stairs than I care to climb. You two can fly up there, you've got wings.” Snowy let out a small, defeated sigh.

“The flying never stops...”

“Come on.” Tempest ordered, but in a gentle tone. And so it was back into the air for a minute, as they circled up the tower. As they flew up, Tempest noted six tiers of walls and courtyards to the terraced fortress. Most were devoid of any human activity; there weren't even any fires or lanterns lit. Here and there were soldiers cleaning the place up. They arrived at the base of the octagonal tower, which was no more than thirty feet high.

“Are you the Equestrians?” Asked another armored soldier from behind his visor. He sounded just like the sentry below, oddly enough.

“No, we're griffons.” Replied Tempest dryly.

“Funny.” The soldier said. “I take it you won't hand over your sword, even if I ask?” Tempest shook her head. “Well, in you go.” He opened the door, and waved them forward before following them in. Should security really be that light? “The Captain is up top.” Inside, it appeared the tower was hollow, except for a winding stairway going around the inside. Above was a wooden ceiling, and that's where the stairs led through. They climbed up, noting the portraits of whom could only be the former Captains of the Kakâdras garrison. Most of them were middle-aged or older, and most of them wore southern style armor; heavily decorated and colored instead of the flat metal of the Vûrdasha. The last portrait was of an older man standing next to the door at the base of the tower; the artist had obviously preferred realistic portraits rather than the more glamorous ones decorating the lower stairs.

Tempest saw a variety of odd artifacts once the two emerged onto the wooden floor of the upper level, where yet another armored guard was. The were plenty of rusted bits of weaponry and equipment, various skeletons, and even some pottery. I wonder if this is stuff they found in the old homeland.

“Ah, we've been expecting you.” Said a white-haired man, who was sitting behind a desk. Unlike all his men, he was not in armor. Rather, he wore the standard clothes of the high nobility, long and obscuring. This had to have been Sir Lîetôs, of some cadet branch of the Imperial family. “You know my name, but I do not know yours...”

“I am Tempest Blackwind, this is Snowy Farpeak.” Stated the pegasus.

“You're the Equestrians from the court of Aharôs Loiar?” Asked Sir Lîetôs.

“What's left of them.” Affirmed Tempest.

“Good.” Sir Lîetôs said quietly. “I am to understand that Prince Reshîv as assumed control of Vatherîon?”

“He has. Aharôs- er, Prince- er, King Aharôs is now headed this way too.” Tempest cringed at her double mistake. “Your kinsman, Îrilôs, said you could help us.”

“Well, that may be true.” Nodded the Captain of Kakâdras, with a conceding look on his face. “You two must be quite weary.”

“V-very much so, Sir.” Snowy admitted quietly.

“Please, take a seat.” The Captain gestured around the room. There were no other chairs, but there was a fur carpet in front of a low-burning fire. Tempest sat as offered, and Snowy wasted no time in laying down and curling up next to her. She kept her eyes open, however. “You must have come a long way.”

“Oh, quite a ways.” Agreed Tempest. “All the way from Vatherîon to here, never stopping more than a night. It took about... I think five or six days. It's been kind of a blur to me.”

“No doubt.” Sir Lîetôs said with a nod. “Alas, that you cannot just ignore sleep and press forward.”

“Alas, that I had a certain pegasus who needed to stop every other hour.” Replied Tempest, laughing. She put her hoof on Snowy's shoulder, hopefully she'd understand the joke. Her friend just rolled her eyes.

“You can't all be swift as the wind.” Sighed the Captain. “Miss Tempest- Would that be a proper way of addressing you?”

“Sure.”

“Well, Miss Tempest, I can't help but notice you're carrying something around your neck.” Lîetôs pointed to it. Huh- oh, that. The little black crystal Sidâl had given her months ago, to ward off dreams and nightmares. She usually wore it only at night, but she'd put it on for their entire trip so far. It'd been so long since she thought about it that she had forgotten it was there.

“This thing? A man named Sidâl gave it to me. He said it would help me sleep.” She answered.

“Sidâl.” Murmured the Captain. “Did he now...”

“Do you know Sidâl?”

“Oh, I know him, that's for sure.” Lîetôs frowned. “I know him quite well.”

“How?”

“That's of no concern. But be advised that Sidâl has no power here, Tempest Blackwind.” He warned. “I wouldn't expect that little trinket to work.”

“If you say so...” Tempest's ears shifted back a little, she didn't like his tone at all. Snowy was gazing intently at the stairwell, where some of the portraits were visible.

“I do.” Stated Lîetôs. “But, Miss Blackwind, I am interested in something you might be able to tell me about.”

“Ask away.”

“What can you tell me about, hmm, King Aharôs?” Asked the Captain. “He's a person of interest to me, I'd like to know more about him.”

“Well... There's quite a bit to tell.” Tempest thought for a moment. It was certainly not a question she expected, but it seemed harmless enough. “I mean, he seems like a really cold-hearted, harsh, and unfriendly man, but... Alright, he kind of is, sometimes, but not always. Not to me.” Lîetôs blinked at her.

“How old are you?” He asked.

“Fifteen.”

“Ah... Continue.” Lîetôs smirked to himself; Tempest couldn't imagine why. So, Tempest continued, giving her best effort to nail down Aharôs's character. She had no idea if she was successful or not, because even she couldn't fully unravel the mystery of the King. And I'm arguably the closest person to him! Come to think of it, she really was... Tempest hoped he was doing well, wherever he was right now. Eventually, Tempest switched from trying to explain her guardian, to simply telling stories about him. All of them were true, of course. They started off as rather light-hearted anecdotes, like the time they had gone into the local woods to find a hive of bees. With time, though, Tempest turned to darker, more recent subjects, like the burning of the city in Verâd. “He sounds like a fair man.” Said the Captain.

“Fair. Cruel, but fair.” Commented one of the soldiers, still standing, still in armor, still with his visor down. It was the one who had come in with them from outside.

“Precisely, Avenîl. I admire it.” The Captain stated, smiling to himself. I thought Avenîl was a female name, thought Tempest. The soldier gave a start at this, like he was offended. Maybe he was.

“I still wouldn't go so far as to say he's cruel...” Tempest objected, despite her momentary confusion. “He's not evil.”

“No one is.” Lîetôs said.

“He's just dealing with tough situations. What would you do?” Asked she.

“The same thing, actually. And I am quite cruel myself. Cruel, but fair.” Laughed the Captain. There was an edge to his voice that made Tempest shiver. “But come along, Equestrians, we must get you to where you need to be. I've kept you long enough.” For the first time that night, he stood up, revealing a height she'd never seen in any human before. He had to have been at least six and a half feet tall, if not more! Sir Lîetôs led them back down the stairs; Tempest had to coax Snowy back to her hooves.

“Finally, time for bed.” Snowy said with relief, looking at the portraits as they went. She lingered on the one of Lîetôs by the door frame, her expression changing to troubled. I wonder what's gotten to her now, grumbled Tempest to herself. When they stepped back out into the uppermost courtyard, Tempest noted that Lîetôs's head barely got under the peak of the frame. Outside, a few more soldiers were present, one scrubbing away at a stain.

“What are you all cleaning here?” Asked Tempest. “Surely, you can't be that tidy.”

“I am a tidy soul.” The Captain spoke. “But what would the Queen of Highcrest know of that?”

“What- How-” Tempest's eyes went wide. “I never told you that!”

“Tempest Blackwind, daughter of Maelstrom Blackwind.” Announced Sir Lîetôs to the night, laughing. “I knew who you were the moment you told me your name.”

“Tempest!” Hissed Snowy. “S-something is wrong!”

“What do you mean?” She replied, getting the sinking feeling that something really was wrong.

“The portrait of the Captain- his head didn't come within half a foot of the door frame. But we just saw him barely get under it here...” Pointed out Snowy, starting to tremble. Tempest felt her stomach flutter through her as she realized the implications. “Old men don't grow a head and a half overnight.” They looked at Sir Lîetôs, who looked right back at them, still smiling.

“Why are they so intent on cleaning this place then... Why would they want to clean stains unless they were...” Her blood went cold, as she whipped around to look at the soldiers. All in armor, all with visors closed; silent and unspeaking but for one. That can't possibly be-

“So slow, Tempest! You're certainly a poor replacement for Maelstrom.” Sir Lîetôs said, his voice dropping and taking on some strange distortion. Before Tempest could respond to his insult, the Captain's entire body flickered and flashed; before the mask dropped away. In the place of the Captain stood a tall, looming figure, wrapped in darkness, melting into the night on either side of him. A plated hand pointed out at them. “I told you, Sidâl has no power here. He and Îrilôs were wrong to send you to this place.”

“W-what?” Squeaked Snowy, ears going flat back.

“I don't know what he has planned with you, but it ends now.” The figure spoke, a purple light gathering in his hand. Tempest panicked; she jumped into the air and swung her sword out just as the light shot at her. To her amazement, her blade just absorbed the energy.

“Snowy!” Shouted Tempest. “Go!” She didn't need to be told twice, the mare bolted into the sky, darting off as fast as she could away from Kakâdras.

“You're full of surprises.” Commented the figure, now stalking towards her.

“Yeah, well-” There was another flash of purple light, and the figure was right in front of her, armored hand around her throat. She tried to choke out a call for help, but no sound came. Oh fuck- Tempest realized that there was no rescue coming from Streaming Breeze and Coldstar like there had been before. No, no, no, this isn't how it ends-

“Like mother, like daughter. Killed by your own arrogance.” Rumbled the figure, tightening his grip. From his other hand he produced a long dagger, and nicked the side of her face with it, drawing a drop of blood. “I always said Sidâl was too forgiving. In fact-” Something slammed into him, knocking him aside and sending Tempest crashing to the ground.

“Kaia bâlon, Hell-wraith!” Snowy yelled, sounding more terrified than anything, as she leaped away from the fallen shadowy figure. “Go, go, go-” Whined the pegasus, as Tempest shakily launched into the air herself. She rushed after Snowy, and overtook her in a matter of seconds, but that didn't matter. They blindly sped on, not caring where they were going, as long as it was away from Kakâdras and the thing they had encountered. Tempest didn't know when they stopped, but they did.

“Alright-” She panted. “Alright... Where are we?” Snowy just dropped to the ground and did nothing more. “I guess you're out, then.” Tempest remarked, letting herself fall too. Maybe this was all just a nightmare, maybe when she woke up, they'd be in the real Kakâdras, with this insanity never taking place...

She awoke to sharp sun's rays, and a cool mountain breeze. Tempest blinked the haze from her eyes, and immediately stood up. It was morning, the sun was coming up. The Ôsavon rose in front of her, a wall of rock that blotted out a good deal of the sky, and the grassy plain- Wait... As Tempest whirled around, she realized there was nothing but forested hills in front of her. And when she looked at the Ôsavon, the sun was in the west instead of east, despite it being morning...

“Oh.” She realized. “Uh... Snowy...” She poked at the other mare until she opened her eyes.

“What?” Snowy asked, groggily. She shot upright when she saw where the sun was, relative to the wall of rock.

“We, uh, well...” Tempest swallowed nervously, and glanced at her sword.“We're in the Far North.”

Author's Notes:

That day has come. Coming shortly: The epilogue of Part I!