Irreplaceable

by La Barata

Chapter 11 - Fear

Fluttershy flew, fast and strong, faster, actually, than she had thought herself capable. Owlysius had found Twilight, of that much she was sure, and if Applejack was right, that meant she desperately needed her friends with her. As she soared through the night sky, forest beneath her gave way to the swampy marshland of Froggybottom bog. Spotting a familiar silhouette on a cliff’s edge, she sighed, a weight lifted from her heart.
“Oh, thank goodness! Owlysius, dear, thank you SO MUCH for finding her! Could you please fly back and make sure the others are on the right path?”. With a hoot, the owl circled and left, returning back the way they had come. Fluttershy smiled. There she was, safe and sound. Twilight was safe.
Then she jumped.
Fluttershy’s heart, having so recently lifted, dropped like a stone as she screamed, the normally almost inaudible sound immediately whipped away by the wind. Too far away to do anything, even if she flew faster than she’d ever flown before, Fluttershy could only watch helplessly as her friend plummeted, spun around by the winds, and landed with a sickly splat in the marsh, rapidly sinking from view. Snapping out of her daze, she dove, making a beeline for the spot where her friend had disappeared, suddenly stopping as the entire surface of the swamp began to bubble. Rising from the slime and much, four mighty heads rose from the swamp. Before she could react, one of the long necks flicked, as if dislodging something, before snapping at the air.
Speechless, Fluttershy stared, disbelief etched into her features. Before she had a chance to move, to say a word, to even fully realize what had happened, a dark shape struck the beast like a thunderbolt, knocking it back.
A powerful scaly fist crashed into a large slimy head, creating a loud crack that echoed through the swamp. Reeling back, the head slumped to the ground. It wasn’t dead; the blow had simply knocked it unconscious, now only serving as dead weight to the monster it was attached to. Barely capable of conscious thought at this point, Fluttershy did the only thing she could: she hid. Taking shelter on the shore of the swamp behind a large boulder, she watched as the hydra fought the aggressor, a creature she could now identify as-
“A dragon!” she gasped. Could it... Could it be? Was it Spike? And what was he doing? A mighty beast in almost every sense of the word, the dragon was nowhere near fully grown. Standing close to twelve feet high, it was dwarfed by the mighty hydra. Still, though, it pressed its assault, darting, dodging and attacking, delivering punishing blows with head, claws and tail. It was strange, though. Despite the distinct size advantage, the hydra should be clearly outmatched, yet the fight was strangely balanced, as though the dragon were holding back. Mouth agape, Fluttershy spoke softly the only coherent phrase that would agree to be spoken.
“What are you doing?”.
As the dragon immobilized the second to last head, it spread its wings, creating some distance, and that was when the hydra struck. Horrified, Fluttershy watched it chew off three of its own heads. The yellow pegasus could only stare as, neck stumps bubbling like a vat of tar, two heads sprouted from each severed neck. I’d heard that a hydra could- could- but I never thought-!
Renewing its attack, the dragon pounced, striking again and again. Diving under it, the dragon managed to catch hold of the other beast’s tail and pull it over, knocking it flat on its back. As it leaped onto its foe, Fluttershy closed her eyes, knowing what would come next. A hideous ripping, tearing sound proved her correct. When she opened them, the dragon was perched on the great beast, the severed neck on the ground before it. What it did now, however, surprised her. Instead of attacking further, it seized the limp, dangling head from where it had fallen and shot off, disengaging completely from the other monster. Perching on a cliff, the dragon turned its attention to its grisly trophy. For once, Fluttershy’s curiosity overcame her fear, and she winged her way near to its perch, careful not to be noticed. She needn’t have worried, however; the dragon was completely engrossed with its prize. She watched, fascinated, as the dragon stuck its arm inside the great mouth, a look of fierce concentration on its face. Its expression changed, suddenly, shifting from an intense grimace to... well, to what she could only describe as concern, almost fear. The biggest change, she saw, were its eyes. Yellow sclera seemed to drain as the black of the iris boiled and ran, dissolving like ink poured into running water, leaving behind normal green eyes. SCARED eyes. The eyes... the eyes of a lost child, looking for its mother. As it began to withdraw its arm, it reached inside with the other, fitting both arms almost up to the shoulder into the mouth. Finally, he pulled his target from the great throat, carefully laying it down on the rocks before it. It was absolutely fixed on this- whatever it was, this soggy, filth caked- Her eyes widened suddenly.
“TWILIGHT!”
Still oblivious to her presence, the great beast lowered its head to her chest. It was all Fluttershy could do not to immediately rush to her friend’s side. She bit her lip, tears flowing freely down her face. No... The dragon raised its head and tenderly rolled Twilight onto her back. Grasping her chest between thumb and forefinger, it applied a gentle pressure, over and over again, rhythmically compressing her ribcage. Water began to ooze from her mouth and nose. With a cough and a splutter, Twilight’s eyes snapped open. Rolling onto her side, she began to vomit and cough, great gouts of mud, water and sludge spattering the stone as she emptied the contents of her lungs and stomach. The dragon sat silently, watching. It closed its eyes, squeezing the lids shut as tightly as possible. When they opened again, it was as if a different dragon was looming over Twilight. Gone were the sad, scared green eyes; the yellow and black had returned, as had its fury. Launching itself from its perch, it dove back into the swamp with a snarl.
Immediately, Fluttershy left her hiding spot, rushing to Twilight’s side as fast as her legs could carry her. Wrapping a foreleg around her back, she patted her friend’s chest.
“Shh, that’s right. Get it all out. You’re safe now. Oh, Twilight, what were you thinking?”
From below, the shrieks and roars of combat had begun again in earnest. Slumping back to the ground, Twilight closed her eyes again.

Lowering her head, she placed her ear to Twilight’s mouth, the gentle breeze of her breath shifting Fluttershy’s mane slightly. Relieved, Fluttershy smiled sadly. She was breathing, at the very least. With a slight jerk, Twilight’s eyes opened again, as did her mouth. What came out this time, instead of breath, was another torrent of muddy water. Her eyes widening in disgust, Fluttershy shot back, but only slightly. She’d been covered in much worse over her years of treating all sorts of sick animals. Giving her mane a quick shake to dislodge the largest clumps of mud, she continued to soothe her friend. Twilight’s eyelids fluttered as she mumbled something vaguely resembling a question, but Fluttershy shushed her, stroking her friend’s brow until sleep’s gentle embrace took her away. Now that she was completely convinced that Twilight was alright, Fluttershy turned her attention to the brutal battle taking place below her. From the looks of things, Spike had held back before, afraid of harming Twilight.
Fluttershy swallowed hard. Spike. It WAS Spike; there was no doubt in her mind, but what had happened? The little dragon, barely up to her shoulder, now dwarfed her, 12 feet of raw muscle and sinew. Gone was the appearance of an almost chubby baby, the dragon below her, though far from fully grown, was nonetheless a vicious warrior.
Now that Twilight was no longer a factor, the dragon held nothing back. A fight that had once seemed almost fair was now entirely one sided. The hydra didn’t stand a chance. The dragon ripped, slashed and tore at any part of the larger beast he could reach, his incredible speed keeping him safe from any counterattack. Any head that found itself within his reach was torn off, and the stump immolated with a gout of green flame.
He’s cauterizing the necks! Despite her horror at the sheer brutality, she couldn’t help but admire the strategy. Eventually, there was only one head left. The hydra staggered, hissing balefully at its foe. Before it could act, Spike was there, striking at its legs and knocking it down. For the second time during the course of the battle, the hydra found itself face down in the mud. Like a flash, Spike seized the final great head in his claws.
Fluttershy’s breath caught in her throat as she watched the scene unfold, waiting for Spike to deliver the final, ending blow. To her surprise, however, Spike let the head drop. Spreading his great wings- he had wings!-, he took off, circling once before returning to where he had left Twilight. The hydra picked itself up off the ground, staggering unsteadily. The remaining head turned, as if to examine the damage, before beginning to pick at the burned scabs left by dragonfire. Not all the necks could be saved, it seemed; seven heads had been reduced to five. Fluttershy nervously watched as it looked up at Spike, fury in its eyes, but she needn’t have worried. The mighty beast, lord of the swamps, turned and walked away. It knew it was completely outmatched against the dragon, and it wasn't about to waste the gift of life the dragon had given it.

Spike landed on the cliff, furling his wings as he perched. He seemed much bigger up close, towering above Fluttershy, like a hungry bird staring down a worm.
“Hello, Spike.” Fluttershy swallowed, trying to hide her nervousness. “How are you?” Really, Fluttershy? How are you? Come on, what kind of a question is that? Fluttershy silently cursed herself. “I mean...well...uhm...Mew!!” Spike leaned down, bringing his head to her level, and looked her in the eye. Again, Fluttershy noticed the strange shifting of his eyes, colours combining and colliding, as if fighting each other for supremacy. He looked to Twilight’s still form, then back to Fluttershy. She swallowed hard.
“She’s going to be alright. She just needs some rest, then she’ll be good as new.” There was an uncomfortable silence. Spike, a look of concern and anguish plastered across his features, seemed... wrong. Could this really be the same dragon who, moments before, had delivered a vicious beating to a hydra? This Spike was much closer to the one she’d known a month ago. “I’m...I’m guessing you saw?Wwhat she did?” The dragon nodded, slowly. Once again, there was silence. Fluttershy couldn't think of anything to say that could possibly improve the situation, so she opted to ask a question that had been eating at her mind.
“Spike...Is there any hope for you?” Spike looked at her, his eyes once again making that strange change from terrifying beast to gentle friend. Then he spoke. The voice could have struck terror into the heart of the bravest pony, but the fact that it was emanating from Spike, just the fact that he was still there, still capable of logical thought and conversation caused Fluttershy’s heart to soar like a bird. His words, however, were the windowpane that sent it crashing to the ground in a bloody mess.
“I... don’t think so”. Her eyes filling with tears, Fluttershy wanted to run to him, to hold him, to keep him there with her, but she held back, not wanting to leave Twilight’s side.
“No... no, please tell me that's not true!”. Spike opened his mouth to speak, but froze. His head snapped up, his eyes scanning over the forest for-
“HIM.”
Spike raised his head, giving vent to pure, raw fury, a monstrous plume of emerald smoke scorching the skies. Spike whirled back to look at Fluttershy, his face the essence of pure, unbridled fury. And there, eyes wide, staring him down, was Twilight, a look of sheer horror etched upon her face. Spike’s heart shattered, as did his sanity, his mind once again plunged into the mindless psychotic frenzy of madness. He roared once more and took flight, the last remaining fragments of his sanity urging him to flee before he did something he could never recover from.