From the Shadows to the Forge (Private)

[IceStorm]

 

The morning came a bit sooner than Ice Storm was hoping for and she rose herself from the soft slumbering state that she was in. The mattress in this room was softer than anything that she had felt before and she never work once throughout the night. Thankfully the sheets around her were still pristine white silk as they were before she went to sleep. She was thankful for that as this night hadn't been any more lenient than any other and she was as soaked as she ever was in the morning. She gently pushed herself out of bed, being extra careful until she was out. She squished her way towards the door that she presumed was the washroom and made her way into it. She closed the door behind her and with a plop, removed the garment and got into the shower.

 

The water here was much hotter than in her home, or most other places that she stayed at for that matter. She enjoyed that. Soon the steam in the washroom from her shower was so thick, it was like she was walking through a cloud bank. She was having difficulty even spotting the spigots so that she could shut the water off. She stepped out of the shower, grabbing one of the towels provided and immediately felt the softness in it. It felt all warm and cozy, and wicked the water from her coat fairly quickly. As she opened the door though, a bellow of steam entered the room and if she didn't know any better she'd have thought it was trying to form a thunder cloud. She left the towel folded neatly next to the bed on a chair, as she didn't want to put anything damp on the bed and possible ruin the sheets. They were silk after all.

 

At this point Ice made sure that she had everything that she had arrived with, and she kepts the other two garments that she picked up from last night. They weren't as... cute as the ones that she normally wore, but they were just as effective. Plus she doubted that it would be the same pony behind the counter of the infirmary and she didn't want to turn them in to somepony other than whom she'd retrieved them from to begin with. She also had her star charts her books and the notes that the princess gave her about the armor. That was the other thing they would have to do today. They would have to go to the royal forge so that her measurements could be taken. She was already looking forward to the new armor, and couldn't wait for it to be finished so she could try it on. That was still easily a month out yet though.

 

Once she was sure that she had everything, she opened the door. "Good morning Miss Storm," she heard from next to her nearly making her jump out of her hooves. "My apologies," she heard the guard, whom was one of the lunar guards, speak. "Princess Luna sent me to wait for you this morning. She wishes for breakfast with you. Shall I lead you to the dining area?" she heard the mare speak. She nodded and followed. "By the way, welcome to the guard," she heard the guard say with a smile. Ice nodded back in thanks as she followed, obviously leaving the Lunar Wing as the colors began to brighten and transition into more red and yellows vs the blue and silvers. It wasn't too long until she was lead into the dining parlor. It was actually a lot closer than she thought it was. "Enjoy, Hope to see you on watch," the guard smiled before giving her a nod and continuing along her way. As she did, Ice pushed the door open and entered the dining hall.

[dragonofruin]

Princess Luna presided over a largely empty dining room, sitting at one end of the table with a plate of food before her. It wasn't so much breakfast as it was lunch, and there wasn't a whole lot on her plate. If she was to begin training Ice Storm how to fight today, it wouldn't do to overdo it. She was taking her time eating, not wishing to have finished by the time Ice Storm joined her, and her wish came true as the doors to the dining room were opened and in walked the mare herself.

 

Luna looked up, a small smile lighting up the princess's serene face. "I would say 'morning', but it is more like 'afternoon'. Did you sleep well last night, Ice?" She followed up her greeting with a question to ascertain how her guest was faring. If Ice Storm's body language and her face had anything to say, Luna thought that the mare was doing quite well. It was a good sign. It meant the first day of their training would go well, and the spar that was to start it off would help the alicorn judge what Ice Storm was capable of, and where she'd need improvement.

 

Keeping these important points in the back of her mind for later, Luna returned her attention fully to Ice. There was a place set at the table for the unicorn, though the plate was empty. The princess had felt it best to leave it that way until Ice came down to eat so that her food wouldn't grow cold- the kitchen was just a room over, connected to the dining room by a single door so that the servants wouldn't have to go far to deliver food for any meal. All Luna would have to do was call for them, and tell them what Ice Storm wanted. The dark alicorn gestured to the chair to her right where the table was set, inviting Ice to join her.

[IceStorm]

Ice Storm made her way into the dining hall and she could see that it was mostly empty. Aside from herself, Luna and a few of the guards. In fact they didn't even really seem like guards, they were just kitchen staff apparently. It seemed that the princess was already eating and it looked like whatever she had was fairly light. She looked up to Luna's face and returned the smile that was on the princess's face. She couldn't help but giggle a bit when the princess said that she would tell her good morning, but that it was pretty much afternoon at this point. Ice nodded to the follow up question on if she slept well. "Indeed, I slept very well. I must ask who makes your bedding, I simply must have a set of those sheets," she  smiled happily as she approached the table and sat down next to the empty plate.

 

As she did one of the kitchen staff came over and asked her what she would like from the kitchen. "I would like a simple fruit salad please, extra strawberries with a strawberry glaze. I would also like a hot strawberry and clover tea please," she said with a smile as she looked back to the princess. "How about yourself? Hopefully the dreamworld didn't cause you too much of a headache last night?" she asked the princess. It felt nice to be able to talk like this. She was also looking forward to starting her training and getting her measured for her new armor. She herself wasn't sure of how much she should push against Luna. She knew that Luna was very, very powerful, and she could probably withstand pretty much anything a simply unicorn could through at her, but at the same time Ice was still scared of potentially hurting her if Luna wasn't sure herself what to expect. She would cross that bridge when she got there though. Luna was a strong princess and she would be able to best assess how to handle the situation once they were there.

[dragonofruin]

"Unicorn seamstresses, I believe. There are some living in Canterlot who have learned these skills that were passed down from the days of the three tribes. The unicorn seamstresses of those days were particularly skilled at weaving tapestries, among other things. Princess Platinum had her seamstresses make the tapestries hanging in the old castle, once we befriended her. 'Twas quite generous," Princess Luna replied, throwing in a little bit of history. It was something interesting to add.

 

She waited quietly while Ice Storm requested a fruit salad with tea, the latter item of which swiftly reminded Luna that tea existed. Autumn was soon to set in, which made it the perfect time of year for certain drinks, many of them containing cinnamon or the favored 'pumpkin spice' ponies had created. Without hesitation Luna requested cinnamon tea for herself and turned back to Ice, her small smile still in place.

 

"No, it didn't. There wasn't anything to worry about at that hour. A few small nightmares here and there, nothing too concerning as of yet. I only ever really interfere if a pony frequently has nightmares or repetitive ones. Only then do I know they will become a problem and begin to damage a pony's psyche." Luna returned some of her attention to the rest of her food, levitating a forkful of pasta up to her mouth and eating it while she let her mind wander a little ways. Once they'd eaten, they could spar.. but until then, she wasn't sure what to talk about that she hadn't said already. "I could put in an order for some new bedding to pass along to you, if you wish, on the topic of sheets," she added, breaking what little silence had fallen after her answer about the dream realm. "I am glad to hear that you slept well, though. I did, as well, and this bodes well for our first training session."

 

 

[IceStorm]

Ice nodded when Luna told her that it was a unicorn seamstress in Canterlot. She said that some of them in Canterlot had learned the skills handed down from the days of the three tribes. "I remember about that. I didn't know the tapestries in the old castle were that old. Some of them in the non open parts of the castle still look pretty good to!" Ice told her in response. Truthfully she didn't remember much about what the school had taught her on the three tribes. Only that they eventually started a war with each other and summoned creatures called windigos, which were apparently much like herself except evil. They brought extreme winters whenever they showed up. Sounded like her kind of ponies except for the evil part!

 

Her fruit salad was soon brought out to the table, and it was larger than she was expecting it to be. Much to her delight, they didn't skimp on the strawberries. In fact, there was a lot of strawberries. That was perfectly okay with her. She listened as she ate a bit, as the princess mentioned the nightmares of last night and there wasn't anything that needed her direct attention so nothing kept her awake too long. that she only interfered when the nightmares were repeated and could possibly damage a pony's psyche. She nodded and cleared her mouth before trying to speak. "That is good that not many ponies are having nightmares right now. I'm not completely sure, but that should mean as a whole Equestria is okay at the moment. I would suspect that frequent nightmares from the same region could throw some red flags at some point," she commented. She didn't know if it was right or not, but it made sense to her anyway.

 

"I would very much appreciate if you could put an extra order in for the bedding, and I would be more than happy to give a bit extra for it since you're ordering it for me. I would love to have those on my own bed at home," she commented as she heard Luna comment on the first day of training as well. "Indeed. I'm very much looking forward to it. At the same time, I'm a bit nervous. I don't know where my power cap is. So I'm honestly not too sure what to expect for myself," Ice Storm added taking a few more bites of her salad.

[dragonofruin]

"They are, and they were beautiful and brought a vibrant color to our grey castle. We were grateful that Platinum had them made for us. They, and some large decorative vases of flowers given to us by the earth ponies, brought some life to our home. It was wonderful, before it fell into ruin." Before she had ever destroyed it. The unspoken sentence seemed to hang in the air, at least to Luna's perceptions, whose guilt often lurked in the back of her mind or over her shoulder whenever she thought about what was. She let it go with a soft sigh and nodded her agreement to Ice Storm's comment about the nightmares.

 

"Indeed. When the Crystal Empire returned, that had been a serious problem. I was often busy in the dream realm for nights since attempting to soothe those nightmares. It is one of many reasons why my dislike for King Sombra remains so strongly. Every now and then some nightmares still crop up, but.. the crystal empires are recovering under Princess Cadance's rule. They needed another crystal princess to lead them, one who wields love magic like she does and like the original, Princess Amore, had," Princess Luna replied. "You would be correct, too, to think of them as 'red flags' should they crop up at once. It means something is amiss."

 

Princess Luna took another few bites of her dwindling pasta and licked her lips. "I'll be sure to do so. As for the training.. there was something that I was thinking of doing. Our first training session should be a spar. I want to test your abilities, your strengths, to see what you're capable of. Once we have a good idea of that, I'll know where to start helping you hone what you have. Power is no good if you cannot learn to wield it efficiently."

[IceStorm]

It was fascinating and it made Ice Storm a bit proud of herself as she listened to the princess confirm her theories on now nightmares and dreamwalking can be an indicator of a much larger problem if there is an influx of them at any one given location over a period of time. She thought it was obvious, but at the same time, sometimes things that seem blatantly obvious couldn't be further from the truth. There were so many examples that she could go off of for that, that she would literally be here all day trying to think of all of them. When she heard the princess say that was why she disliked Sombra so strongly, she nodded in response. She added that it was the love magic that Cadence had that played a large part in protecting the empire now. "When those kind of things pop up, is there any similarity in the nightmares that would provide you with clues on where to start your investigations at?" she asked.

 

When Luna spoke of the training and wanted to start with a spar, Ice nodded. She told her that she wanted to test her abilities so she would know where she needed to start helping to hone what she has. That power wasn't any good if you couldn't wield it efficiently. "I suppose that sparring would be the best way to test the limits of my power, but... how do I even begin to know what the actual limits of my power are at this point? Everything I do, especially anything Ice based, feels like a whim. I have no idea how to what to expect or even how to say, 'this is the extent'. And while I know that you're very powerful yourself, the last thing I want to do is underestimate my own force and cause you to do the same and accidentally hurt you," she told the princess.

 

Honestly she didn't know if she could actually hurt her or not and she didn't want to insinuate that the princess couldn't protect herself, but at the same time, she had no idea what she was walking into so how could she give the princess an accurate warning of power? If she actually hurt Luna, one, she would feel incredibly broken for hurting her friend, second, she was certain that there would be repercussions. She doubted that many of the guards or others would listen to her and could take the training as an opportunity to cause harm to the sisters. There was a multitude of things that could go wrong, and that concept alone terrified her.

[dragonofruin]

Princess Luna was given pause by the question. Now that was something she'd never considered, let alone tried to do.. but most of the dangers Equestria had faced thus far came on too quickly, or went right for the kingdom's heart, to have left any foreboding hints. Nothing had been especially sneaky, or only worked on one area of the country.. not like King Sombra's rule over the Crystal Empire had been- and that had been before she'd learned how to dreamwalk.

 

"Well.. no," Luna hesitantly admitted. "There has not yet been a force that tried to lay low and only terrorize a part of Equestria. Most of what we've dealt with, has come right for us or for what else it was targeting. It made itself quite clear. Any fright that that enemy may have caused only resulted in a few nightmares after the fact." She lowered her fork to her plate, becoming thoughtful. "Though you do have an interesting point.. It's certainly something I can start looking for within the dream realm, and see if I can pinpoint the locations of those dreams.." she mulled it over with a little nod of her head. This would be useful, and she would've never considered it if Ice Storm hadn't brought it up.

 

"By seeing what you can do," Luna replied, answering to their other topic. "I can always set up a few targets for you to try the limits of your power.. even magical targets. I'm sure there are a few spells that would serve that purpose. In any case.. I can do my best to prepare. We alicorns are much tougher than we seem. If at any point the sparring becomes too intense, or something goes awry, we can always call it off for the day to recover."

[IceStorm]

When the princess told her that there hadn't been yet a force that tried to lay low and terrorize Equestria, she gave pause. Did she not know about WRAITH? Well, to be honest, aside form the one time in the Crystal Empire, WRAITH had hardly been a threat. It actually wasn't surprising that they hadn't heard of them. She was somewhat surprised that WRAITH wasn't using scare tactics like that though. that regime was very anti-princesses and they wanted nothing more than to get rid of them. planting nightmares in ponies would be the most efficient way of doing something like that. However, they probably understood that if they infected dreams like that, it would be easy for Princess Luna to track them down and destroy them completely.

 

The fact that Luna mentioned that every threat that has been made or any conflict that had arose had made itself very clear and targeted them directly. There was no subterfuge or misdirection. They had made it very clear what their intentions were. If things continued like that, it would make her job with STAR much easier. Once a source was confirmed, destroy the source and put an end to the threat before it can mount an assault. They can't invade if they have already been either eliminated or imprisoned. She still had to wait for evidence though, and named targets. If she struck too soon, then she would be going against her own views. The princess did tell her though that she had an interesting view point and that it was something that she could start looking into as well as pinpointing a location for those dreams. "Indeed. Something like that can be pivotal information. Especially, for me and how I desire to help protect Equestria," she stated.

 

When the princess told her that she could adjust herself by seeing what she could do, and that she could set up some targets to test the limits of her power. Even magical ones. She said that she was sure there were some spells that could serve that purpose, and if things got too heated, they could always call it a day so that they could recover. Ice nodded as she finished her fruit. "I hadn't even thought about using other targets beforehoof. I suppose that would make sense. I am ready to head to where we will be training when you are. I am anxious to get started," she smiled. She was still a bit nervous, but at least she could get an answer before possibly hurting a princess.

[dragonofruin]

Princess Luna nodded and picked at the rest of her pasta, eating small bites and sipping from her cinnamon tea. It hadn't taken them too long to bring it out to her, and it was wonderful. After the past few years since she'd been back in Equestria, she was coming to enjoy the foods that had become popular during certain seasons, and every time she ate or drink anything of the sort, she thought of chilly days and the vibrant colors of fall leaves. Soon, perhaps with her sister's approval to do so, the early nights too.

 

Sighing contentedly, Luna set down her empty cup of tea and pushed her chair back from the table with her rear hooves. "If you're ready, I believe I am too. Please do not be afraid of performing, of attacking me. Albeit, I can admit to some nervousness and I want to express it's fine to be nervous. It's exciting and a big unknown." Smiling, the princess slipped out of her seat and took a few steps towards the dining room's great double doors, with a glance back towards Ice Storm to see if she was ready to follow her. In the case that she was, Luna would then begin to lead her back through the castle and out towards the guard's training grounds.

 

It was relatively clear enough today, given that they were going to be training here and Luna didn't want any innocent bystanders to come to harm, should an errant spell miss an intended target. After her past actions under a different name, Luna wanted to do her best to keep other ponies safe, to ensure that nopony would again be hurt by a careless act on her part. She strode out onto the grass on bare hooves, squinting slightly in the light of her sister's sun. Eventually the skies would become more silver and gray deeper into the season, but for now it was still bright and sunny. Her eyes would adjust.

 

"So, how shall you wish to begin? Targets, or straight into a spar?"

[IceStorm]

"I think it would probably be best to start with the targets so that I can get a test for where my limit is. Also started with the targets would give you a sample size so that you would best know how to defend yourself and what kind of precautions you would need to take. After we figure that out, sparring would be a lot safer. Then I won't need to hold back... though you're right it is a bit exciting to finally see what I can do now," Ice Storm commented as she followed Luna through the castle once more. The path to the training grounds was different, and it looked a lot more frequented. there were guards a plenty on the way to the grounds but once they got there it was relatively empty. She presumed that the princess probably intended it to be so. After all, if they were going to be going near full force combat to test the limits of what she was capable of, there would be a lot of high powered magic flying around. It would be way too easy for a bystander to get hurt.

 

The weather outside of the castle was, pretty close to perfect for Ice Storm as well. the temperature, while considered chilled to cold by most was perfect for her and the colorful leaves on the trees and bushes made everything look quite nice. She saw Luna squinting a bit waiting for her eyes to adjust. She figured that the princess actually didn't get outside much during the day unless there were diplomatic events taking place that required her presence. Still though, it felt nice to be at the training grounds with what was one of the most powerful mares in Equestria. She was certain that she could learn a lot under her as her pupil. With a smile, the orbs broke away from her necklace and began orbiting her. "I am ready when you are. Tell me where the targets are, and what I need to do."

[dragonofruin]

Princess Luna nodded and wordlessly spread her wings, leaping into the air to quietly fly across the field to a shed, where most of the targets were stored. They were made of wood, too easy to break, but Luna had had an idea in mind. A pony couldn't find their limits if something crumbled so easily beneath their magic.. so she would make them harder to destroy. The alicorn set about setting up the targets, levitating them into place in a row much like one would when preparing for archery practice. Her magic brightened, and each target glowed as she used a spell on them for her intended purpose.

 

Once she was finished, she flew back and touched down off to Ice Storm's left, wings fluttering. "I know they initially look too brittle to stand up to a unicorn, being made of wood, but these will be your targets. I enchanted them to keep them from breaking easily, and I did this to encourage you to push yourself to destroy them. It'll be difficult, but they are not indestructible. Go ahead and find a comfortable distance for your spellcasting and do whatever you can to do so," Luna explained moving off to the side where she seated herself to watch, her wings loosely folded at her sides. She felt sure enough that this tactic might help Ice Storm find out what she can do.

 

If not, then sparring would have to be their next activity.

[IceStorm]

"Actually you would be surprised. If you really want a challenge for unicorns, use some of the Askrwood from the forests of Whitescar. It naturally absorbs magic to a point. I actually don't know what happens when it reaches that point, but I presume it would splinter just like anything else," Ice Storm responded to the princess. It was true, they were only made out of wood, but wood could be surprisingly durable. When she told her to take her distance, and begin when she was ready, she made her way closer to the range. She wasn't too much closer, but she made it a point to get away from the princess. She knew her range hadn't gone down any and she was certain her accuracy hadn't changed. As she prepared herself, the orbs around her began to rotate a bit as they orbited her, causing their orbit to speed up a bit as well. She had to get herself into the proper mindset that she was facing an enemy. She closed her eyes and counted to ten.

 

When she opened her eyes, her demeanor changed. No longer was she the carefree mare that was just conversing with the princess, but a warrior with a drive to fight and a will to protect. The targets in front of her where an invading force. What they were she couldn't make out, but she didn't need to. She just knew they were threats. A quick flash and the set of ice armor that she always wore into battle up to this point was on her. It wasn't anything fancy, nor was it as regal as the armor that she would be having made for her, but it was enough for today. Her horn lit up again, staying at range as some tendrils from the orbs shot to her horn as a glowing orb of frost formed above her that she lept up into the air and kicked the orb down to the ground. instantly most of the training field around the targets was turned into a sheet of ice. Terrain was often a deciding factor in fights and it was always better to be on a terrain that most had an issue with. However the magic on the targets made them immune to the surrounding ice. in face, there was no ice around the targets at all. it stopped a good bit around them on all sides.

 

"Noted..." Ice said to herself, nearly forgetting that the princess was there at the moment before channeling more of her magic, and firing a thick sub-arctic beam of cold towards the enemies. When it cleared, a majority of the targets had been destroyed. The ones that were not destroyed appeared to be damaged and a couple outright frozen. There was one target though that looked like it had been untouched... At this point Ice took a deep breath. This exercise was meant to find out the scope of her ability. It wouldn't do her well to hold back here. The once thin tendrils of magic that had linked the spheres to here horn were now that of rivers. The amount of aetherical energy flowing around her had caused the moisture in the air around her to freeze, creating a a frozen mist that fell to the frozen grass beneath her. Her once icy blue coat was now almost pure white. With a lean back, and a push forward she fired... What left her horn was a glowing shard of super compressed ice that up hitting the target, exploded in a magical fury, freezing and hitting the shattering point of not just the targets, but the weapons and the armor on the stands in the surrounding area. Ice took a moment to catch her breath, her color starting to return to normal.

[dragonofruin]

Princess Luna took the askrwood suggestion into consideration for more durable targets, though she'd never had any experience with the caribou and their land. She wasn't even sure how they might be meant to approach them about such a thing. Still, she filed it away and quietly allowed Ice Storm to move forward unhindered to test her might against the magically reinforced targets set up on the field.

 

The alicorn observed the way Ice chose to change the terrain with her magic, that if they were moving targets, they'd have trouble keeping their footing. It would normally be a pretty useful tactic, she thought, against all save winged opponents- and she would be just that, once they got into sparring. It hadn't escaped her notice how Ice's body language changed, either; it was more firm, serious. She could sense the way Ice's magic felt as much as she could physically feel the way the air dropped around them as the cold mare fired her magic at the targets. It surprised Luna to see how her physical appearance was affected by her magic, and with the opalus spheres magnifying it. It was fascinating to watch, and it gave Luna a means to judge how strong Ice Storm might be and what she might be up against.

 

In the chill emanating from the mare out on the field, Luna did not shiver. She'd known a special kind of cold during her banishment and it hardly phased her, but magic could make it dangerous. She marked how many Ice Storm had managed to obliterate, and how many she hadn't quite destroyed- had they been ponies, it still would've caused a lot of damage, if not killed them outright. The moonbringer made a noise in her throat and twitched her wings, upon which frost had settled, and winced when the next attack shattered the weapons on the outskirts of the field. Those would.. take some replacing, though they were little more than training tools.

 

"You've done quite well," Luna stated at last, "and you'll make quite the sparring opponent. Mind you, the targets you were up against were stationary and weaponless. If you feel you have a good judge of your limits, then.. perhaps we can move on to the spar." She couldn't help admitting to herself that the prospect of it, of going against somepony so potentially dangerous, was thrilling. The first action she would get to see in years that didn't involve somepony catching her entirely unawares.

[IceStorm]

After taking a few moments to collect herself a bit more as she heard Luna talk to her. The praise was appreciated and a bit unexpected. She looked around the battlefield to survey the damage and she was, genuinely surprised. "Sorry about the weapons and armor. I wasn't expecting that much of a burst," she commented as she continued to look. There were wood splinters all over the ice and there was no part of the training grounds around where the targets were that wasn't ice now. She stepped onto the ice and started making her way down to the epicenter of the blast, her footing stable under her. She turned to the princess and she gave her a smile when she asked if she felt they could move onto the spar.

 

"Hopefully I was able to give you a good enough sample size for you to prepare for. I might be able to go a bit more than that but if I can it shouldn't be much... I did hold back a little bit because I wanted to make sure that whatever I used stayed inside the training grounds. I didn't want to have a chance of possible hurting an innocent bystander that might be passing by or worse yet,  damaging someponies house from a wayward beam," she commented. "That said, I'm ready when you are."

[dragonofruin]

Princess Luna merely shrugged and stood, the chilled grass crackling dryly under her bare hooves. "It's nothing to worry about, I suppose. It's little more than training equipment. Easily replaceable. Anything of any worth is still back in the barracks, though.." Her teal eyes flitted towards the shattered equipment, thoughtful. Perhaps she shouldn't be too quick to dismiss it all; there might be a few legitimate weapons and armor among them. Surely not enough to be of much of a loss?

 

She couldn't worry about it too much. As long as no ponies had been harmed, then everything was fine. "It has, indeed, given me an idea of what to expect. These.. opalus spheres of yours certainly magnify your power in an impressive way. I can only be glad that they are nothing like the Alicorn Amulet; if they could corrupt you, well.. you would have made an impressive enemy. As it stands, they aren't, and you're always in control of yourself." A faint smile pulled at the corners of her lips and she opened up her wings. Her excitement was mounting. Ice Storm had shown her what she was capable of and now, it was time for them to spar.

 

Without a word, the alicorn launched herself skyward with a powerful sweep of her wings. No immediate action was yet taken as she focused her efforts elsewhere first, desiring to do something about the weather first. It wouldn't do if she were caught at the wrong angle where the sun blinded her sensitive eyes. She used a trick she once used to merely make an entrance and exerted her power over the weather- clouds grew dark and stormy, casting heavy shadows over the field as they swarmed across the sky. Luna knew well enough that Ice Storm might not have as much trouble seeing in the gloom as most ponies might, being that the mare seemed nocturnal, but.. Luna was aware that Ice Storm would alter the terrain to suit herself. She was just as willing to do the same- plus, it would give her a weapon to use that she hadn't had a chance to put to real use in a long time.

 

Laughter bubbled its way out of her throat and she dropped down through the clouds, her horn alight, and thunder softly rumbled as if in echo. Her glittering mane streamed out behind her; she was a speck of color against the deep greys of the storm clouds, occasionally lit from above by the occasional flash of lightning. Luna was just showing off, putting on something of a display for Ice Storm, but she wasn't entirely sure how she was going to go about this- she'd have to put holding back out of her mind, to set aside her hesitation. This wasn't a friend she'd be attacking without cause, but her opponent.

 

Spreading her wings, she pulled out of her dive and struck the ground near Ice with a beam of silvery magic; some encouragement. "Come! Test your might against me then!"