Beat of the Heart

by Short-tale

Chapter 4 Dr Claw

The cave of Dr Claw was filled with shadows. Luna had knocked on the door. A robotic voice said” come in” and the door opened itself. It was so dark that Luna’s great eyesight could barely make out any details at all. All she could see was a high-backed armchair. The couple made their way in still holding hands.

The darkness did not relent. It was saturated with gloom so that no light penetrated it. All that was lit was a fire in the fireplace in front of the chair. They approached and Luna could see a metallic arm gleaming from the side of it. The robotic looking appendage was gently stroking a black and white cat.

“Dr Claw?” the little dragon asked though the question was lost to the wind in the cavern. No response came. Luna reached her hand out and touched the chair. It spun around revealing there was no body inside.

“Ahh,” shouted Garble in shock.

“It’s just a robotic arm, you dolt,” the Princess again found her hand striking his head. But it was less forceful. It was playful. Garble gave her a look that suggested he noticed.

“Correction,” said a voice. “It is an arm-chair.”

“Duh,” snarked Garble. “I can see that!”

“It’s an arm chair,” Luna said, pointing at the mechanical arm that waved at them in greeting. “Dr Claw I presume?”

A bronze dragon appeared from the darkness. He wore a three piece brown suit and had large round goggles over his eyes. Two large horns curled off of his head. “Great whistling drakes! It’s two fledglings,” he cried.

“Good day, Dr Claw,” Luna said in a formal tone with a slight bow. “We are students of Craterlot High. I am Luna and this is Garble, my boyfriend. We are wondering-“

“Students! But you are thousands of years old!” cried the drake. “And he, well, he doesn’t appear to be any different than he looks.”

“How how could you..”

“The goggles, my dear, the goggles. I developed these in case any dragon tried to sneak in here and mess with my equipment. Little did I know when I invented them they would show me everything that is hidden. Including souls and emotions. Right now both of you have two souls. It is not natural. Is this why you are here? I don’t have any equipment to get rid of extra souls.”

“My my soul?” gasped Luna. “Wait two souls?”

Dr Claw’s enlarged eyes peered at her through the dusty lenses he wore. The small amount of light glinted off their convex form as Dr Claw’s eyes fixed on Luna. “Yup! Two souls,” he said with a nod of satisfaction. “One of them is being pushed out by the other. The one you’re using now is going to be forced out by the other one. Uhhh. Great Whistling Drakes! You’re not even a dragon!”

“Well that saved me having to explain.”

“No, now you must explain,” Dr Claw emphasized. “In great detail. Hold on while I set up my scanning equipment.”

The bronze scales gleamed in the light as the excited Dr turned and disappeared into the darkness. A strange click and buzzing noise sounded from the shadow. They grew in decibel level as the cave was bathed in a blue glow from high placed light sources. The intrepid doctor turned on various machines and gyroscopes. The room hummed with electric current.

“Now if you please come with me, I’ll be able to see what’s the issue at hand,” Dr Claw said with a wave of his claw. He ushered them into two large cylindrical cages. Garble eyed the containers suspiciously. “Are you sure these things are safe?” he asked.

“Of course, I tested them on my assistant and she came out mostly unharmed,” assured the doctor. “Now just step in the chambers and allow your bodies to be scanned, if you please.”

The dragon couple looked at each other in worry but Luna boldly stepped in. Garble finally relented and climbed into his. Loud alarms sounded and a red light flashed. A green line made of light descended on them to their feet then returned to its place of origin.

“Yes, yes, I see,” the elder dragon muttered to himself. He looked at a monitor in front of him and squinted at the display. “It would seem you’re both from a different dimension. Did you know that?”

Luna sighed. “Yes, that is why we have come to you for aid.”

“Oh, it is? How did you know about my study of extra dimensional travel? I haven’t published anything on the subject yet.”

“Your counterpart from my dimension sent us here.”

“My counterpart? That’s it!” the dragon shouted with a snap of his claws. “You have supplanted your own counterparts! That’s why you have two souls! Oh dear this isn’t good. From what I can see the original souls are pressing against their bonds and will eventually push you out.”

“What will happen to us?” Garble whined.

“Your souls will remain here unattached, wandering and never finding their place. Or some such thing. But you have time. Looks like at least three days. I assume my counterpart was smart enough to give you a recall device.”

“No, this occurred by accident from that infernal pegasus,” spat Luna.

“Oh dear. A pegasus you say? That is strange,” the dragon placed his claw to his chin in thought.

“Not really,” shrugged Garble. “Pegasi are all over the place in that town. I can barely tell them apart.”

“It was Derpy!” cried Luna with a slash of her mighty tail.

“Yes?” asked a voice from a stack of empty boxes. A silver dragon popped its head out. There was no mistaking it. Luna could see the eyes pointing in different directions from there. It was Derpy. Well a dragon version.

“No!” the Princess shouted. “Stay away from me! You have caused enough trouble!”

“Ahh Derpy, good morning,” Dr Claw exclaimed, turning back to the agitated wyrm. “She is a little different but not usually a troublemaker. So tell me what you were in the other dimension?”

“I was a Princess of night and dreams. An alicorn that co-ruled our land. I raised the moon and my sister raised the sun.”

“So..uh Princess,” said the doctor, a little taken back. “Well I am sorry to say but it looks like the resident soul has already begun to take your body. Specifically the emotional control center of the brain. Have you been feeling unusual emotional fluxes?”

“I don’t think I ...my anger,” gasped Luna. “It has been quite potent as of late.”

Doctor Claw nodded knowingly. “She has regained some control. So I think it might be best to get you two home.”

Luna sighed. She was about to berate the dragon again but remembered it wasn’t she who was feeling this heat. It was the dragon her within her. She internally apologized and felt some of the fire relent.

“Mmm probably sooner than later,” the elder dragon said again examining her with his goggles. “I will have to modify this machine to extract the resonant soul vibrations and return them to the base vibration. I will have you home in no time. And by no time I mean I will be ready in two days.”

“Are you sure?” asked Garble. “I don’t want my soul trapped. I haven’t even used it.”

“Oh yes, barring some unseen complication, I should have you right back. But in the meantime be wary of your emotions. They could turn out differently than you expect.”

“Ooh a Princess?” Derpy said, approaching. “Your Highness.” The dragon bowed her head and her large crest knocked a bottle off a nearby shelf.

“Please keep her out of here while you fix it,” sighed Luna.

***

“Are you sure it will be safe this time?” Garble whined as they walked back towards the river.

“We have no recourse. We have to get home,” the Princess explained.

“But you saw that little grey dragon. She could mess this up again.”

“Yes. She does seem to be just as meddlesome as the Derpy in Equestria,” pondered Luna. “We need a distraction for her. Perhaps someone at school could befriend her.”

“We don’t know any dragon. Who would be so friendly that could handle her?”

“I think I know a dragon that would.”

***

“Oooh hi,” cried Pinkie Pyrite as the pair returned to Crystalcube Corner. “It’s that cute couple from before. You're Spike's friends right?”

“Yes, we are. I am Luna and this is my boyfriend Garble,” introduced the former princess. “We are in need of your aid. There are a few dragons that I think you could help if you can keep Derpy distracted. For the next two days.”

“Wow!” cried Pinkie as her frill reached maximum expansion. “You’re asking for my help already? Aawww I knew you two would make great friends. And great friends help each other.”

“So you will help?”

“Absotootly! Especially once you help me it will feel like true friends.”

“That is ...help you? Do you need our assistance?” Luna said, picking up the vibe Pinkie was sending out.

“Oh!” cried Pinkie with a face full of surprise. “You want to help? I do need some help.”

“What sort of help?”

“I need some dragon to do a poetry read. Ink Scale was supposed to read some of his works for the customers but cancelled due to too much confetti at the welcome party. Who could have guessed that five barrels was too much?”

“Five barrels?” gasped Garble. “That would fill an entire house!”

“It did. That’s the problem. He’s in there somewhere we just can’t find him yet. We’ll get him before long don’t you worry, but right now we need a poet on stage. Do you know any? Hmmmm?”

Pinkie stared at Garble like she knew exactly who she was asking. It made sense. If Spike was friendly with Pinkie he would have mentioned his best friend is a poet. Luna stared at him curiously as well. There was some part of her that was extremely interested in seeing what this dragon had inside.

Garble immediately threw up his hands in protest. “No! No! No! I can’t do that in front of other dragons. I never perform in front of any dragon except Spike and Smolder.” He crossed his arms then caught Luna’s stare.

“I must say, I would like to hear it,” Luna purred. She could feel the curiosity poke something deeper. But was it her or the displaced soul?

“You haven’t even let your girlfriend hear it?” cried Pinkie. “That would be the most romanticaltastic thing ever! Now you have to do it. Luna is sure to swoon.”

“Yes! Yes! I would indeed enjoy a good swooning.” A strange sensation came over her. It felt like her body was too warm and tingled with energy. She was fascinated with the sensation. Would Garble actually do something like that for her? She kept the same amused expression on her face as she stared down the flustered dragon.

“Sheesh alright! I’ll do it. But you have to keep Derpy busy tomorrow,” Garble said, turning a bright shade of red.

“Okie dokie artichokie!”

“Do you have any instruments? Bongos would be nice.”

“Are you kidding me?! I have every instrument you could think of and some you don’t,” Pinkie cried as her frill opened fully and shook. She began to pull a myriad of instruments from behind the counter. An expensive looking pair of bongos caught Luna’s eye while Garble seemed to be overwhelmed with choices.

“Here is what you require,” the Princess said, presenting the glistening drum set.

“And here’s yours,” the presumptuous male dragon said, holding up a tambourine.

“What?”

“I thought it would be nice if you helped me out,” said Garble with a smile. “Like a girlfriend would.”

Luna found herself blushing. What was this lightness she felt? It had been thousands of years since she had entertained love. Why now? Why for this dragon? She hoped it was merely her dragon counterpart reacting.

“Very well,” said the startled dragon. She had no qualms about standing on stage in front of others. She had done so numerous times. This time it felt different because all eyes were not on her or her sister. They were on “her boyfriend.”

Garble looked shell shocked. He placed a beret on his head with shaky hands. Perspiration began to trickle down his head and soak into the felted cap. He glanced at Luna quickly then his brow furrowed. He sat on the chair and began to bop the bongos in an odd rhythm. The tambourine shook in Luna’s hand at odd intervals where she thought it might help.

He stopped playing. Then spoke.

“The sky. The sea. The ground. The rain. All gathered together… all moving as one. Two not seen, not heard. Strangers in a strange world. Against the earth. Against the sky. Against the sea. Against the rain. Moving ..together. Against all.”

“No one sees who they are, just another set of hands and eyes to view the great place that others built. But do they truly understand the meaning..”

“The system doesn’t see itself. All know the rules..but two have seen the oppression that happens. They fight to be themselves, to be accepted as they are. But bars hold the self inside..bars made of steel. Bars of dragons. Bars of eyes and looks and laughter. Bars of feelings.”

“Break the bars, break the self. Break the feelings, break the mind. Be free be free be free. Together.”

His bongos struck a strange quick beat that somehow corresponded to the string of words he put together. It was a type of poetry Luna had never heard. Something unique. She couldn’t fathom that this lout had such depth. The crowd began to snap their fingers but not in time. It was a strange form of applause.

The bongos started a crazy rhythm that was fast and upbeat. She tried to keep up with the chaotic tempo changes.

“True love.. true love.. what is true? What is love? Can anything be true? The self knows only so much. It’s not true. It’s just self. Red hearts?..soft cupcakes? A kiss and touch of claw. Is that love?”

“Love is movement. Love is stuff. Love is bought with scales. Love is a word of emptiness. Empty boxes, empty gestures, empty tokens, empty...love?”

“It’s deep. Deep underground. Deep in...the body. It’s in the tails. Love moves, love grooves, love sees, love breathes. Love captures. Love releases. Truth.

“True hearts, true tails, true self. No way, no how, no why. Self. Truth. Looove.”

The bongos stopped and the audience snapped its fingers. Luna was drawn in by the flow of the rhythm. Did that poem mean something? It was like a painter slapping the canvas with color. The activity had meaning not necessarily the end result. There was purpose here. Not just in the words, but on the way they were worded. It was powerful and delicate.

Garble stood up and bowed to the clicking of the audience. He looked at Luna with an intensity and knowledge that she couldn’t fathom. The performance was over. She left with her body tingling with the raw energy of it. She felt as if she just danced on the edge of a knife. She followed him off the stage without question or word.

“Well?” said Garble as they exited the building. He turned on Luna, his beret still perched on his head. “It was lame wasn’t it? I just spoke how I felt. Like a lame pony.”

“I thought it was quite unique and genuine,” responded Luna, still impressed but confused. “I can rightly say I have never heard anything like that.”

“I’m a beat poet,” declared the beret clad dragon. “We don’t do rules and rhymes. We speak from the heart and try to show what the world really is like.”

“Well I can appreciate your intention. I am still not sure I truly understand the method.”

“I can try to teach you, but this is something you kind of gotta get,” Garble said with an air of haughtiness.

Luna’s eye ridge raised. Then she noticed the sun beginning to set. “We must find your sister and Spike. It is time to depart.”

“Tomorrow then,” said Garble, his eyes oddly soft. “We’ll...make a date out of it or something.”

“A ..true date?” The thought that Garble would actually want to try and date her had never crossed her mind. She was a pony. He was a dragon. They were worlds apart in actual age. The only reason for this arrangement had been because of this predicament. Still she had asked a lot of him lately. One date with a dragon that she was supposed to be dating seemed honest enough.

“Yeah, I mean, it’s to teach you poetry...my kind of poetry.”

“Very well. We shall meet after school. You must inform me where.”

Garble nodded. Luna didn’t miss the flush look he had on his face. It seemed like he was genuinely trying to impress her. Some part within her stirred. Probably the true dragon. But it filled her up with a giddiness that she hadn’t felt in a while.

Spike and Smoulder met them at the river and the group took into the air once more. They were heading home. Well Luna’s temporary home. In a few days things would return to normal and this would be like all the other strange dreams she had encountered in her travels.

Comments

[Winter Quill]

“Five barrels?” gasped Garble. “That would fill an entire house!”

“It did. That’s the problem. He’s in there somewhere we just can’t find him yet.

Pinkie is always Pinkie no matter what species she is.