//------------------------------// // For Cake And Country // Story: The Powers That Be // by Anthri //------------------------------// The castle was the largest constructed building any of them had ever seen before. A wall surrounded the entire city and guard towers dotted the wall. The city was old and looked more like ruins, a shadow of its former glory. A town resided inside the walls, with a pathway going straight from the main gate into the the main castle-tower in the center of the circular city. The tower was as large as any of the mountains in the range that surrounded the city, despite the fact that some of the top was missing, broken off years ago by a force unknown to them. The part that broke off, lay rested on some of the close proximity mountain sides behind it. Another noticeable feature was the spiral ramp that climbed the entire thing until it reached the broken room. Lining the side of the ramp were the occasional pillar that bent at the top to form a complete threshold connecting to a higher part of the circular wall. “I want to discuss what I know about the dragons.” Fhil told the group. “We've heard about the white dragon known as Av. He seems to be a warmonger so peace with him seems unlikely.” he shook his head. “He looks a bit mean.” Rarity stated nodding. "And this place looks old and dirty! Were actually going in there?" Fhil looked at Rarity with disbelief. "Are you serious?" "Darling, if were going to talk these creatures out of war with us, we have to make sure we at least look professional. You of all people should know that." Rarity winked at Fhil. He was about to answer her but Apple Jack beat him to it. Applejack put her hoof around Rarity, "I don't think dragons care about how clean and well dressed we look..." Rarity wasn't having this, "Well the sooner we can win this war the sooner I can put some culture into their society!" Fhil decided to continue telling the strategy before the dragons found them and decided to gang bang them then and there. “The red snake-like dragon, his name is Atlas and his story involved overthrowing another dragon leader because he was deemed to weak to lead. So this dragon has ambition to lead, as long as he believes he can win.” Fhil looked at the gate of the city. There was a giant hole that broke the iron bars. “The big yellow one, that would be Huxio. He found a diamond dog city and ate everything in sight.” “He sounds like Pinkie Pie!” Rainbow Dash laughed while hovering off the ground. Pinkie's face turned a shade of red. “Hey that's not true! I don't eat dogs! I eat cake and candy and cookies and-” she rambled. “Okay Pinkie!” Twilight interrupted her pink friend. "Go on Fhil, we are listening." Pinkie stopped talking smiling sheepishly. “Well you could probably use that.” Fhil suggested to Pinkie. “What?” Pinkie replied. “Your love for eating, I don't know.” Fhil shrugged his shoulders. “You want to feed a dragon a cupcake? Oh that would be the biggest cupcake ever made! Think about it, record breaking at the fair, everypony gather around to see it! Come from miles and then I give it to a dragon to eat!” she rambled again. “Yea. Do that.” Fhil put a hoof to his forehead. Applejack stepped in front of Pinkie and put a hoof to the pink ponies chest, "Hey now, you better not compete with me for biggest food cause my apples will win that contest!" "But Applejack, making a huge cup cake sounds like so much fun!" Pinkie's face begged Applejack to reconsider. Applejack sighed, pet Pinkie's mane and walked away. “What else do you know?” Twilight asked Fhil trying to keep the urge to choke her friends at a minimum. Fhils eyes found the top of the broken tower. “The ruler of this city who resides on a throne of bones formed by the remains of ponies. That's the purple one, Skadholm. That is also the name of this city.” “That's just lovely.” Rarity grimaced. “Oh, I don't think I'll go after all.” Fluttershy whispered with a high pitched squeal at the end. “He's actually the friendliest of them all. Skad let me find my wife before they really went to town on Canterlot.” Fhil told them. I never got a clear answer of his past but I know he grew up under ponies and it didn't work out well.” “Like Spike?” Twilight asked. “Yea but he didn't have somepony like Rarity to make him normal again.” he said. Rarity blushed at this with every pony looking her way. Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes, “It doesn't take a genius to figure out why.” Fhil nodded, “Use that too. That is all I know about the dragons. There is still Ryalon, the blue one with blonde hair who can go into a invisibility like state. There is Alexandra the green one who is probably the dragon that attacked the zebra town with the same name...” “Dragons name themselves after towns?” Twilight asked. “Ah yes, so you can probably guess that Skadholm has either conquered this city or made it himself. I'm not sure but we'll probably find out.” he shook his head thinking about the events he went through up until now. “Well, this Alexandra dragon appears to have hypnotic abilities using her eyes, other than that, she is a normal dragon, smaller than the rest of the leaders.” “You know, Fhil, you are almost like a seventh Element of Harmony.” Twilight smiled at him. He blushed at this. “I don't know about that.” he replied to her. “Purple, blue, red, yellow, white and green.” Applejack said. “I think that's all of em.” Fhil and the group walked towards the city with Fluttershy trailing several feet behind. “Keep up Fluttershy or you'll miss the party!” Pinkie yelled. “Oh, Celestia. Help me.” She mumbled. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ At the top of the tower, Ryalon looked over the edge and saw the ponies approaching as a colorful line of dots in the distance. “They have come as you planned.” she looked at Skadholm who was sitting on his throne. “They want to end this as soon as possible.” he replied. The yellow dragon stood up and stretched. “I think I'll be the first to say hello.” Huxio took a running jump off the edge and into the ruined city, gliding down with his small four wings branching outward. Ryalon shook her head at Huxio's grace. "You're right Skad dear. That is one fat dragon." They both laughed. Atlas looked on at the scene as well but didn't say anything. His flight was soon to come and a grin appeared on his face. Av and Alexandra were talking to each other about her plan of action. Atlas heard her laugh at Av and scurry down the ramp leading into the tower beneath them. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Arriving at the gate, the hole in it was comparable in size to the large yellow dragon that chased after Luna during the battle. Soon enough that same dragon came through it, licking his lips. His eyes were hidden from them because of his long brown hair. Fluttershy was the first to react to the immense size of this dragon because she quickly turned a shade of grey. “Hello”, Huxio said. “I'm here to eat you.” Fhil stepped forward. “Hello to you too, Huxio.” Huxio couldn't believe what he was seeing at first so he parted his hair with a claw to get a better look at the unicorn. “Fhilly? Why are you here?" He quickly figured it out and his laughter echoed off the walls of the dead city. "Wait. You want to turn all this around don't you?” the dragon asked. Fhil just grit his teeth. “You can't do it.” Huxio laughed again slapping his knee in dramatic fashion. "Wait!" Pinkie's high pitched scream mimicked the dragons laughter, echoing around them. Pinkie Pie pulled out a cupcake and showed it to the dragon. “What the hell are you doing?” Huxio asked curiously. “I was saving it for later but... I really want you to try this!” Pinkie yelled at him. Huxio bent forward to see what it was. “What is it?” “A cupcake!” she screamed again. Cupcake parroted several times before stopping. Fhil looked at Twilight. “Where did she get that? I didn't see it before.” in which Twilight replied quickly, “Do not ask me that, do not worry about it. When it comes to her, anything is possible. I got a headache stressing about it once.” Huxio scratched his chin, “What?” “I wanna win the fairs contest! I want to have the biggest cupcake in the world!” Applejack took her hat off and hid her face in it. "Not this again." “Are you nuts? I don't understand what you're talking ab-.” he said angrily. Pinkie threw the cupcake into the mouth of the dragon who was still talking. He chewed it and tasted it slightly. “I liked what I could taste but I need more. You say you want to make a giant cupcake?” Pinkie smiled. “Yes. I can make more than just that! Cakes, cookies, candy! Anything sweet. I'm surprised that you have never had one before.” she admitted. Twilight and Rainbow looked on in shame at Pinkies question. Rarity face-hooved and Applejack kept her face in her hat while whispering to herself, "We're all going to die." “I'll call a shop up and tell them I'm coming.” Huxio replied. “Ohhhh yeah...” she laughed at herself. The large dragon moved out of the way and sat down near the pink pony. “You have the resources to make a large cupcake?” “Yes, I work at a cake shop back in Ponyville and I think Mr. Cake and Mrs. Cake would be on board for it!” She said still screaming at him because of his size. “Tell me more about these sweets.” Huxio said, pointing to the city allowing the ponies to pass. “I'll stay and talk to him.” she said as they began moving. “Be careful Pinkie.” Twilight said as they passed the dragon walking into the city. The city was a ghost town and some buildings that once harbored shops had crumbled under their own weight. Most of the city was still intact though, clearly the ponies of its time had used expensive material to maintain it. The road they walked was still recognizable, albeit cracks from the dragons who had stomped it into the ground. The group trotted down the road that led to the cities center tower. Each pony looking in a different direction in awe. “Do you like it?” a feminine voice said from the shadows of the buildings the lined the road. “Who's there?” Twilight yelled using her horn to light the area. “My name is Ryalon and I see you have Fhil with you. I bet he told you all about me!” she said giggling in the shadows. “He doesn't know a thing about me.” she corrected. They heard her moving in the shadows, falling rocks coming off the buildings she touched. The ponies stayed close to each other and focused on the noise. “I know you learned a little about us. You tried to deceive us along with your master.” She kept moving, her movements more forceful and revealing. “We are not tools of fate. Not pawns! We choose to kill and destroy! YOU CANNOT LIE TO ME FHIL! YOU ALL ARE LYING FILTH!” she roared. “No ponies lying to you dragon!” Applejack yelled at her. She didn't like to be called a liar. “And where is the pink one? What of Huxio?” she looked up from her hidden place and saw the yellow dragons large form past the gate. “Wait, I see him sitting down over there. What are you ponies up to? He always eats first then ask questions later.” her angry tone started to turn into a more curious one but her she remained suspicious. “Let's just talk for a minute Ryalon.” Fhil said. The dragon appeared between the group and the way into the tower, her blonde hair blowing in the wind. “Not with you Mr. Negotiator. I want to talk to the insolent cow-mare.” she pointed a claw to Applejack. The orange pony with a cowboy hat on, stepped forward. “We can talk this out but I promise you, none of us are here to fool you.” Applejack nodded. “Are you so sure?” Applejack nodded at the female dragons question. “Then how about we make a wager?” Ryalon said with a quick flap of her wings. “We have nothing to hide from ya.” Applejack told her looking back at her friends for approval. They nodded to her. “Stay here with me. Alone. I will let your friends continue onwards. But while we remain here, you must convince me not to kill you if you truly come in peace.” she smiled wickedly. “No Applejack!” Rainbow Dash yelled. “It's okay Rainbow, I got this.” Applejack said confidently. “Then by all means, my little ponies, pass into the tower and try as you may to survive.” Ryalon mocked as she pointed to the towers door. That is the second pony Twilight was forced to leave behind. She could only hope for their survival until she finishes this. The group proceeded down the stone road towards the tower, hoping this would end peacefully. Their next challenge would test that resolve more so than what they have already done. Entering the tower, the ponies found a massive room that's only inhabitants were more shops that lined the circular walls, going many stories up on many step platforms. It was a city within a city Twilight thought. The buildings here too had aged and showed signs of falling apart. In the center of the room was a very large statue of a pony in royal attire although its head was missing, lain at its hooves. It was an earth pony with a long beard and glorious looking crown. This statue was in middle of what looked to be the remnants of the towers inner marketplace. On the other side of the tower, opposite of the door, was a spiraling ramp that went above the city and outside of the tower walls. She assumed that it connected to the outside ramp they saw earlier. “We need to get up that ramp ponies!” Twilight told her friends. They started trotting fast towards it but as they passed the statue, a strong breeze came from above and its cause landed in front of them. The dragon Alexandra appeared before them with that intense stare that immediately ensnared them. “They say I'm weak but I've proven myself worthy of leadership time and time again.” she said angrily. None of the ponies could speak, just stood there staring into those eyes of hers, the ones that had many rings around the pupil, glowing an intense color of red. “As long as you are under my stare, I can devour you without a fight.” she boasted. However one of the ponies started moving on her own. A yellow pegasus with a butterfly cutie mark. Fluttershy shook her head snapping out of the trance and shot a stare of her own straight back at the dragon. “What?!” Alexandra was shocked. Instantly the trance was broken for the others as the dragon used her strength to keep herself from being overtaken by the stare of such a fragile creature. They stared off for minutes, nopony saying anything to ruin Fluttershy's concentration until they started talking themselves. “How is this possible?” Alex asked, visibly struggling to maintain focus. “I do this a lot!” Fluttershy said angrily. “Ever since I lost to Discord, I've been trying to stare down bigger foes.” “Hah, well it seems it's paid off but for how long?” she mocked. “I won't lose.” “I'll eat your friends once you do.” “No you won't.” Fluttershy gritted her teeth. “Well they can't take me out while I have you in a trance either, they are to weak.” “Then let them go on ahead and we'll settle this here and now!” Fluttershy suggested. The ponies looked on in worry for their friend but decided to follow her suggestion and made way for the ramp again. “Ah damn, you will be a satisfying meal once I win.” the dragon threatened. Rarity, Fhil, Twilight and Rainbow went up the ramp leading to the top of the tower leaving once again, another friend behind. The female dragon smelled their scent leave the room to her great annoyance. “Great, now I have failed too.” she said, a memory swirling into her mind. ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------- She was born with the ability to stare down foes and convincing them to see things her way. Although it was rare for a dragon to have a unique talent like hers, Craig never saw anything more than a regular dragon from her. She desperately wanted to be a leader and begged Craig to reconsider. “I'm sorry but I do not see your sight as a useful ability.” she remembered him telling her. However, the white dragon Av, had an idea that he could use her as a tool to stir up trouble. Av suggested that she go and attack the lead zebra settlement in the south and by destroying it, she would rise to leadership. This plan, unknown to Craig, was carried out in secret behind his back, for he loved the pony race because he loved her, the one that made them. Craig had made a home of a nearby mountain in order to keep tabs on the temple of Chaos. The black dragon saw smoke in the distance from this zebra town and with haste, flew to its rescue. What he found, angered him greatly. Alex had set the forest on fire and cooked the zebras in their own homes. It was one sided and she was victorious. With great disappointment, he accepted her into the fold of leadership. Av attended the ceremony and grinned the entire time.