//------------------------------// // Chapter 16: Reunion // Story: Dragon’s Odyssey // by GrumpyMonk97 //------------------------------// The tension hung so thick in the air it could be cut with a knife. Spike had started acting differently the closer they drew to Opaline’s ritual site, something Emziko had caught onto given the change in his behavior. He had been quieter and more distant, which was similar to how he was when they had first started their journey together. He had opened up to her considerably the more time they had spent together, and she had to admit that she felt a certain bond forming between them. She noticed how he always seemed reluctant to get closer to her, and how it seemed like it was out of guilt rather than lack of interest. Now isn’t the time for that. Emziko thought to herself. “So Spike.” Emziko cleared her throat to get Spike’s attention. His focus returned from his thoughts as he turned to address her. “You said that this Opaline is dangerous, but why is that exactly?” “You’ve heard of alicorns right?” Spike asked her. “Just stories. They have power that’s pretty close to godlike from what I’ve heard.” Emziko answered. “Well Opaline is one of these alicorns. And from what I can tell, she’s trying to get her power back from whatever caused all the ponies to lose their magic.” Spike explained. “Do you think this ritual she’s doing has something to do with that?” Emziko asked. Spike’s face became grimly serious as he gave it some thought. “Going off of what we learned from Carrion, definitely.” He replied. As they continued, Spike felt a strangeness in the air that felt vaguely familiar but he couldn’t figure out what it was. “Woah, what’s with all these plants?” Emziko asked. Spike looked to what she was referring to and saw that the plants were withered and decayed, almost as if something had drained the life out of them. This seemed to stretch on for several acres as the woodland slowly shifted to one of miasma and death. They both heard a ghostly shriek before Spike suddenly tackled Emziko into cover without warning. “Hey! What’s the big idea?!” Emziko yelped, desperately trying to make the blush across her cheeks less noticeable as Spike loomed over her, his eyes trained directly ahead. She craned her neck to see what he was looking at and saw two ghostly figures floating through the now dead field looking for anything even remotely alive. “Careful. Wights directly ahead.” Spike whispered softly, not taking his eyes off the dark specters. “I’ve seen a lot of monsters on my travels but never anything like that. Those things are freaky.” Emziko shuttered. “We must be getting… close.” Spike trailed off, looking down to see his position. He and Emziko looked into each other’s eyes, being mere inches away from each other due to the confined hiding space they were stuck in. Spike felt his heart beating faster as they seemed to drift closer almost subconsciously, and as they almost closed the gap Spike pulled away, feeling a deep sense of shame in himself. “We need to keep moving. Seems like we’re close to the ritual site.” He said quickly as he composed himself and moved on ahead. Emziko studied him for a moment before shaking her head and rushing to catch up with him. As Garble and Smolder continued their flight from the Crystal Empire towards the destination Ember spoke of before, Garble winched as his injuries flared up again, something Smolder definitely took notice of as his pace slowed somewhat. “Don’t overdo it Gar. You’re technically supposed to be recovering right now.” Smolder reminded him. “I’ll be fine. Besides, there’s more important things to worry about right now.” Garble shot back. Smolder shook her head and turned her attention back to the ground below. The journey had taken longer than expected due to some kind of invisible force blocking their path, forcing them to take the long way around. She spotted a cliffside that looked to be a safe place to rest. “Why don’t we take a breather? My wings could use a break.” Smolder said. “Sounds good.” Garble responded. As they landed on the cliffside, Smolder couldn’t shake the feeling that they were being watched. Her eyes darted every which-way to try and find who was watching them. Just as she was about to pass it off as her imagination, she suddenly felt herself restrained by what looked to be a magical net. Garble was quickly restrained in the same fashion as a gaggle of Minotaurs emerged from within the nearby bushes. Smolder struggled and thrashed to try and break out of the net, even blowing out a stream of fire breath and scorching one of the Minotaurs in the face. He responded by throwing a few strong kicks to her gut and face. “Easy now boys. Opaline wants these ones alive.” Smolder growled as she heard that familiar voice. She turned her eyes up and saw the minotaur Obsidias standing over her. His horns that Ember had broken had been replaced by glowing purple crystals which shimmered and sparked with arcane power. He dropped to one knee and looked Smolder in the eye, resting the head of his mace on the ground beside him. “They’ll be perfect bait for the others.” Meanwhile, Ember and Flurry Heart found themselves only a short ways behind Spike, having managed to catch up surprisingly quickly. “Aww. These plants are all dead.” Flurry Heart commented. Ember noticed the decayed state of the clearing as they continued on, hoping that what had happened here wasn’t what she thought it was. They eventually heard voices from up ahead and took more stealthy positions to see what the commotion was. Peering around an old rotten tree, she saw a squad of Minotaurs patrolling the area and conversing about “the captives.” Both of them quieted their steps, taking a stealthier approach in order to avoid detection. Luckily for them, the Minotaurs didn’t seem to notice their approach as they meandered around the area while engaging in casual conversation. “Ready?” Ember whispered. “Ready.” Flurry Heart answered with a nod. Sneaking up behind one of the Minotaurs, Ember gave him a good whack over the head with the Scepter, causing him to fall over unconscious. One of the other Minotaurs took notice and called to his companions for assistance. One Minotaur took a swing at Ember with a large broadsword, which she blocked with the Scepter. She pushed him away and Flurry Heart followed up with a strong mule kick to the Minotaur’s gut, sending him flying backwards. As two more Minotaurs closed in on Flurry Heart, she reached into the satchel at her side and flung out a pair of Bolas, causing the Minotaurs to trip over their own feet. “Nice moves.” Ember called out as she parried a blow from another Minotaur. “Thanks. Capper taught me a few things.” Flurry Heart responded with a wink. Ember was suddenly blindsided by another Minotaur who charged her and slammed her into a nearby tree. She responded by shooting out a breath of flame into his face and kicking him hard in the chest with both legs. As the final two Minotaurs charged them, Flurry Heart tossed out caltrops which caused them to lose their footing. “Nice work.” Ember said as she gave Flurry Heart an encouraging nod. She strolled over to one of the Minotaurs who was still trying to recover and placed a foot on their chest, pinning them in place. “Where do you think you’re going? I’ve got some questions for you. Overheard you mentioning something about captives. What’s that about?” Ember asked. “I’d let her know if I were you. She’s not always so nice.” Flurry Heart chimed in. “Our boss caught a couple dragons a little while back. Said they’d be the perfect bait.” The Minotaur explained. “Bait for who?” Ember asked, a slight growl edging its way into her voice as she pressed her foot down harder. “Some purple dragon or something. Obsidias told us the pony wanted the purple dragon. I don’t know why.” The Minotaur choked out as Ember applied more pressure. “Wait Obsidias!? And he’s working for Opaline now?” Ember slapped a hand to her forehead as she recalled their last encounter with Obsidias. “You know him?” Flurry Heart asked. “Yeah. A real piece of work we got involved with a little while back. Best part, he hates dragons.” Ember explained. “And it sounds like he’s laying a trap for Big Brother. We need to hurry.” Flurry Heart said as her eyes went wide in realization. “Agreed.” Ember concurred as she slammed her foot down on the Minotaur’s head, knocking him unconscious. She pulled out her communicator and held it in her hand for a moment before dialing Spike’s communicator. It’s a long shot, but it’s worth a try. Ember thought to herself. Meanwhile, Spike and Emziko had taken shelter in a small cave only a short ways ahead. The monster presence had greatly intensified the further they went, a sign that they were definitely close to Opaline. Spike had also noticed an unusual amount of Minotaurs in the area who almost seemed to be looking for something, or someone. At that moment, they both heard a muffled ringing sound echo through the cave they were hiding in. “What’s that?” Emziko asked as they looked for the source of the noise. Spike patted himself as he could tell the noise was coming from his communicator, eventually pulling it out and seeing that it was Ember. “Oh no.” He said nervously under his breath. His head dipped in shame as he recalled how he had left the Crystal Empire without warning. “What is it?” Emziko asked. “An old friend. And a conversation I’m not sure I’m ready to have.” Spike responded. Emziko placed a hand on his shoulder. “You can do this.” She said. Spike gave a nod and a small smile as he answered his communicator, being greeted by Ember’s visage as he did. “Hey Ember. Been a bit hasn’t it?” Spike said nervously. “Spike!? Thank goodness. Listen, where are you?” Ember asked frantically. Spike was a bit taken aback by her statement. He had at least expected some kind of lecture. “Uh, we’re in a cave somewhere close to Opaline’s ritual site. It’s to the northeast of Klugetown.” Spike relayed to her. “Great. We’ll be there soon. There’s something we really need to talk about.” Ember said seriously. “Alright then. See you soon.” Spike responded. As the communicator hung up, Spike leaned back against the wall and let out a heavy sigh. “I take it we’re about to have company?” Emziko asked. “Count yourself lucky Emziko. You’re about to meet the Dragon Lord.” Spike said with a slight grin. Emziko’s face changed to a look of surprise as she let out a nervous laugh. Spike’s grin belied the sinking feeling he had in the pit of his stomach. He abandoned those who had agreed to help him in his mission. He let his fear get the better of him. I suppose I have some time to think about what I’m gonna say when she gets here. After some time had passed, Spike heard someone approaching the entrance to the cave. Lifting his head up, he met Ember’s gaze as she stepped inside. He gave her a brief wave, still feeling a bit nervous about how he had left things last time they were together. Ember gave him a small smile but chose not to say anything just yet, simply taking in each other’s presence for the time being. “Big Brother!” Flurry Heart cried out as she dashed into the cave and enveloped Spike in a hug. Spike let out a gentle laugh as he hugged her back. “Hey kiddo.” He said quietly. “You had us all worried sick! Why did you just take off like that?” Flurry Heart asked, her face a mixture of anger and worry. Spike averted his eyes in shame but before he could answer, Emziko cleared her throat. “So Spike, you gonna introduce me to your friends or what?” She asked as her eyes darted between the two strangers. “Oh, right. This is Princess Flurry Heart and Dragon Lord Ember. Guys, this is Emziko.” Spike gestured towards Emziko, whose eyes went wide as she learned that she stood in the presence of royalty. “Woah.” Was all she could muster as she soon composed herself. “It’s nice to meet you.” Ember said as she gave Emziko a small bow. “Spike listen, as much as I’d love to hash everything out, we have a problem. Smolder and Garble have been captured. Obsidias is back, and now he’s working for Opaline.” “Obsidias? As if we didn’t have enough problems.” Spike groaned as he ran a hand down his face. “Somebody you know?” Emziko asked. “A Minotaur who hates dragons. Nearly killed me when we ran into him a while back.” Spike explained. He pulled back his cloak to show the scar that remained on his torso from Obsidias’ mace. “Yikes.” Emziko said. “And now he’s got two of our friends as prisoners. Celestia knows what they’re planning on doing with them.” Spike continued. “Which is why we should set out as soon as possible. Emziko, how good are you in a fight?” Ember asked. “I can hold my own.” Emziko answered as she puffed herself up slightly. “Good. Cause something tells me we’re gonna need all the help we can get.” Ember said. She gestured towards the entrance to the cave. “Shall we?” “Well, guess we oughta get to it.” Flurry Heart said as she made her way out of the cave. As Spike made his way out, he was stopped by Emziko, who wore a sly grin on her face. “Never pegged you as the doting big brother type.” She said. “I’m full of surprises.” Spike responded with a grin of his own. “I can tell. I think it’s cute.” She said as she gave him a nudge in the ribs. They shared a laugh as she walked ahead of him out of the cave. Spike soon followed after, and as he passed by Ember he saw that she had an eyebrow raised and the remnants of a smile threatening to creep their way up her lips. “What?” He asked. “Oh, nothing. Nothing at all.” She said happily as she exited the cave. Spike shook his head as he followed after her. He had to admit, the time he had spent with Emziko made him the happiest he had been in a long time. There were some days they spent together where he didn’t think about Opaline or this whole quest at all. He just enjoyed her company. As he recalled these memories, his smile slowly faded to a look of worry as a new feeling overtook him. He pulled out that picture Flurry Heart had given him, the one he had taken with Sweetie Belle. He smiled as he looked upon it, only for a single tear to roll down his cheek and a single thought to cross his mind. Would she be angry with me?