The sun's warming rays fell upon the pond, casting a shimmering reflection onto the surface of the water.

By the waters edge sat six ponies under shade, as they attempted to cool themselves off with whatever they had at their disposal.

"Shoot," Applejack said, "Ah'm sweatin' worse than Ah do after a hard day's work, and Ah ain't even done nothin'!"

"I feel like I've flown a marathon." Rainbow Dash groaned.

"I feel like I've made a thousand dresses in a day." Rarity whined.

"I don't mind the heat," Pinkie Pie said, "since I work in a bakery and all. I'm kinda used to it."

Fluttershy didn't speak, preferring to lie under a tree.

"All the magic in the world can't keep me cool." Twilight said.

"Speak for yourself." the voice was male, and came from the tree Fluttershy was lying under. She squeaked and hid behind her mane.

Looking up, Twilight and the others saw a humanoid figure that resembled a bovine.

"Oh look," Rainbow Dash said, "it's our favourite tauren."

"Hi Zorann!" Pinkie Pie said excitedly.

Zorann leapt out of the tree and landed next to Twilight. Unlike the others, he appeared unphased by the heat. The six friends looked at him in awe.

"All right, sugarcube," Applejack said, "spill. How are ya not feelin' the darn heat?"

Zorann chuckled.

"Being friends with a Frost mage has its advantages." he replied. "Speaking of which, where the heck is Luxxoria?"

The sound of laughter caught everyone's attention, and they looked out onto the lake.

And the blood elf who was skating along the surface of it.

"Whoa, cool!" Rainbow Dash shouted. "How's she doing that?!"

Zorann lightly tapped Dash's forehead.

"Hello?" he said teasingly, "She's a FROST mage?"

Dash blushed.

"So, she's basically just froze the lake?" Twilight asked.

"Damn right I did!"

As the elf walked back onto dry land, the water thawed, eliciting a groan of disappointment from Dash.

"Aww, come on!" she whined, "That looked like fun!"

"Sorry, Dash." Luxxoria replied, "But the spell requires me to channel the frost beneath my feet, which is a huge drain on my mana reserves. That, and the ice is only strong enough to support one person."

Dash grumbled angrily to herself.

Luxxoria smiled.

"If you want," she said, "I can show you another spell. One that'll benefit all of you."

"Benefit us how, exactly?" asked Applejack.

"Let me show you," the elf replied, "and you'll see."

The six friends shared a glance with each other and shrugged.

"Excellent." Luxxoria said, clapping her hands together. She raised them above her head, and looked towards the six ponies.

"I almost forgot to tell you," she said, "but er, don't freak out."

"Freak out?" Pinkie asked, "Why would we freak o-"

The air around the six friends suddenly became colder. Their breathing quickened, erupting from their muzzles as mist. As Luxxoria concentrated, large blocks of ice fell from the sky, smashing into the ground around the group.

As she finished casting, Luxxoria's arms fell down back by her sides. The ground was littered with bits of ice, and the air was still chilly. The only thing the elf cared about was the looks of shock etched upon each pony's face.

"That spell..." Twilight said, "... you used that when-"

"-when Zorann and I attacked Ponyville." she completed the unicorn's sentence, "I know. But just like Zorann and his healing, my spells can also be used to make life easier."

She held her arms out and waved them over the ice blocks.

"For a start, it's not so damn hot any more."

The ponies relaxed at her words.

"I guess that's a good thing." Dash said hesitantly, "Besides, if you wanted to hurt us, we'd be dead, right?"

Zorann sighed.

"Yes, I know she used that spell to kill ponies on that day," he said, "but remember - I brought them back to life, and I like to think that we've passed all that now."

"Yeah," Luxxoria said, "I thought we were friends?"

"We are," Twilight said, "but it's hard to get used to your magic. Remember, you tried teaching us, but it didn't work out."

Luxxoria exhaled sharply.

"I never would have thought that learning magic from another world would nearly kill you." she said, "It's a good thing Zorann was quick on his feet with those heals."

"Well, at least we tried." Twilight said with a smile, "There's no denying that."

Luxxoria smiled as Zorann shivered.

"It's too damn cold now." he groaned.

The eight friends sat in Sugarcube Corner, the table and floor littered with empty bottles.

"Hey Lux," Zorann said, "any more water?"

"Check my elemental," she replied, "I'm using it as a cooler."

She snapped her fingers and the wall of water approached, several bottles floating within it.

"Just as well these things don't have faces," Zorann said as he reached in and grabbed eight bottles, "because it would have a really pissed off expression right now if it did."

The others chuckled as they opened their fresh bottles.

The door to Sugarcube Corner opened and a pegasus entered. She was grey with a blonde mane, and she had a saddlebag stuffed with envelopes slung over her back.

"Zorann and Luxxoria?" she called out.

"Oh, hey Derpy." Zorann replied, "Over here."

The mailmare trotted over and took a couple of envelopes from her bag, passing them to Zorann. He gave one to Luxxoria, who put it on the table, before smiling at Derpy.

"Thanks, Derpy." he said, "Get yourself a muffin, and tell the Cakes its on me, okay?"

Derpy smiled and trotted over to the counter.

Zorann turned his attention to the envelope, glancing at the outside of it. As he did so, his face fell.

In one corner of the envelope was the image of a golden lion against a blue background.

"Oh, no," he groaned, "a summons from Stormwind."

Luxxoria snatched her envelope from the table and tore it open, wrenching the letter out and casting her eyes over it, while Zorann read his out loud.

Zorann and Luxxoria,

I hope you've enjoyed your little holiday in Equestria, but I'm afraid that I must ask you to return to Stormwind immediately, to assist me with an urgent matter.

My son, Anduin, has gone missing.

His last known location put him and his fleet off the coast of an uncharted island, which we now know to be called Pandaria.

His fleet was ambushed by the Horde and shipwrecked. We have launched a rescue mission, and have now succeeded in establishing a foothold in this new land.

We have gained the help of the locals, and I am putting out a call for all able-bodied Alliance to join in the search for my son. You may be former Horde, but you're also the best chance I have to find my son. And your knowledge of the enemy may prove invaluable to defeating them.

Say your farewells - for I don't think you will be returning to Equestria any time soon - and meet me in Stormwind as soon as you possibly can.

For the honour and glory of the Alliance,

VARIAN WRYNN
King of Stormwind

P.S. Not everyone is used to the idea of former Horde helping the Alliance. Luxxoria should have received an item which can help rectify this problem. Make sure she uses it.

Looking up from the letter, Zorann could see the pained expressions of the six ponies, while Luxxoria had her head buried in her hands.

"Crap," he muttered, "we've been drafted."