New friends and new foes...
“The smog spread faster than we anticipated.” Commander Ruby Spiral explained, standing to attention before the opening of her tent. “The Wing teams were attempting to contain it, but I suspect all they accomplished was to shift the pollen apart from the clouds and get caught themselves. We had no warning when the pent up clouds suddenly dispersed and rolled over base camp. The whole fiasco was over in minutes. Luckily we had successfully evacuated the last of the surrounding towns earlier that day, but the cloud has been spreading unchecked since.”
“Fortunate for us then that the pollen doesn’t seem to remain potent for long.” Luna said, flexing her wings as if to brush imagined particles from the feathers. “I was well into the cloud's shadow before I first sensed the pollutant in the air. While the black cloud itself remains a problem, the area of induced sleep appears to have stopped.”
Ruby Spiral shook her head. “If we had just moved the camp further out, then… at least those who are affected by the pollen remain in a stable condition. There’s no need for food, water; it’s as if the stuff’s tailored specifically not to harm ponies. Just shut us down for a while.”
“Yes…” Luna said, sounding almost lost in thought. “I have considered that this plant didn’t come about naturally. It’s too… convenient.”
“So it doesn’t affect you the same way?” Ruby asked, and didn’t seem surprised when the Princess shook her head. “I wish I could go with you, Princess.”
“You’ve done your job, Commander. Now it’s time for me to do mine.” She turned away, lifting off the ground with a firm shove. Ruby Spiral watched as the Princess rose into the air and seemed to shimmer. Within moments the alicorn was gone, leaving the Commander staring up into the clear, starry sky.
“Well… I guess I can treat this like a small vacation…” Ruby said to herself thoughtfully, picking up a plate of cake that hadn’t been there a second ago. She stepped back into her tent and let the flap close behind her.
...
Luna blinked and focused her eyes, coming back to the here and now. In front of her, Commander Ruby Spiral lay on her field desk where she’d fallen, several reports still pinned to the table beneath her. She snored softly through her nose but otherwise made no move to wake. Checking her condition one last time, Luna spread her wings and lifted off, circling the camp slowly. There was nothing she could do for the ponies sleeping below until she dealt with the smoke.
Several minutes later she crested the top of the mountain. Below, the mouth of a large cave sat nearly completely covered in a lush carpet of vibrant, bell-shaped blossoms. A thick stream of black smoke poured up from the lip of the cave, but Luna only had eyes for the flowers. Alighting before the field, she called upon her power and the temperature around her dropped drastically. The suddenly arctic chill descended over the flowers in an instant, freezing them into solid statues. Luna nodded to herself and stepped lightly around the stems into the cave’s entrance. The preserved plants could be studied later, when there was time.
The cave turned after a short walk and opened up into a huge cavern. Stepping out into the open space, the plan Luna had been preparing slowly faded from her thoughts. She had come prepared to deal with a dragon that had just grown to adulthood and was looking to find a new territory for itself.
This wasn’t a young dragon. This one was old, over half a millennium old, at the least. He lay in the center of the cavern curled into a tight ball much like a sleeping cat, but he wasn’t asleep. Instead he glared at her as she entered as if he’d been expecting her. The thick stream of smoke curling from the side of his mouth suddenly ceased like a switch had been thrown and he slowly uncoiled his neck into the air. The pile of coins he lay upon was pitiful, barely making a thin layer between him and the ground.
“I see you Luna.” The Dragon growled in a voice like a rumbling avalanche before she could recover from her hesitation. “After all this time, I finally see you…”
Luna regained her composure and stood straighter, adjusting her approach on the fly. “This is a surprise. I was expecting to find a young dragon, one who did not know that this land has been denied to your kind for generations. Why have you come here, when you should have known that you could not stay?”
The dragon chuckled deeply, completely ignoring the threat implied in her question. “After all this time, is that really all you have to say to me? Do you not recognize me, Starborn?”
Luna frowned. “I have met few dragons over the years. I do not remember ever meeting y-”
The dragon’s head shot forward and for the first time Luna got a good look at his eyes. He’s blind!, she thought, leaning back slightly in surprise. His golden eyes were clouded, the lenses almost completely covered by cataracts. Or… nearly blind.
“Surely I haven’t changed that much.” The dragon continued, somehow still watching her as he pulled his head back and stood up. “I may have only been an adolescent when we met, but you left quite the impression. One of the last things I ever saw, so that’s another thing I owe you.”
“Who are you? How do you know me?” Luna asked. A dark suspicion had crept into the back of her mind, but that couldn’t be.
The dragon smiled. “I’ve been… convinced to go by the name Solrathicharnon again. Seems appropriate.”
Luna thought fast. The name meant nothing to her, but… In ages past, dragons collected syllables like they collected gems. Their names were a way to brag about their accomplishments. So in their old tongue…
“He Who Swore Revenge Against The Sun?” Luna translated.
“For a full day I glared into the sun, until my world went dark!” The dragon suddenly reared onto his back legs and roared. “I swore revenge against all alicorns for what you did one thousand years ago, pitting my fury against the only one I could find! For the murder of my family!”
Solrathicharnon leaned forward quickly and loosed a giant cone of fire directly into the Princess’s face.
…
Raindrops flew back down to her friends and shook her head. “I don’t see any way to get over the rubble.”
“Well, we aren’t going to give up!” Lyra declared, glaring up the uneven slope to where the crystal caves had been before the cave-in. “Somehow we are going to get Ditzy and Cheerilee out of there.”
“Are you sure you can’t just use your magic to clear a path?” Carrot Top asked, rubbing her head once again. She had hit it pretty badly when they were thrown clear of the mine cart, but she seemed to be getting over it quickly enough.
Lyra considered the slope once more, but sighed and backed off a step. “No, I’d probably do more harm than good if I tried. The whole thing could collapse if I start and we can’t risk bringing it down on their heads if they’re trapped.”
“I’m telling you, I saw them run down a different tunnel.” Raindrops gestured to one of the several different openings in the walls around them. “We should be trying to see if any of those other tunnels connect around back.”
“But what if they did get out and are trying to find us?” Carrot Top put in worriedly. “They might head back here and we’d miss them. We probably should wait.”
Raindrops stomped her hooves irritably. “And they might not be able to get back here. You can stay and wait, but I think we need to search for them!”
“Calm down!” Lyra said, stepping between the two of them. “We can’t split up any more than we already have!” She sighed, sitting down with a plop. How did Cheerilee make leading look so easy?
“Sorry, I’m just a little frustrated, you know?” Raindrops scuffed the dirt a little, and then suddenly chuckled. “We really didn’t plan this very well, did we? We just charged straight down into the first hole we could find and hoped for the best. And now more of us need rescuing than when we started.”
That drew a laugh from her friends, but it was a rueful one. Lyra found herself staring at the wall of stones again. I may have to risk clearing path through that after all. We can’t go after Trixie without the others. Of course, we don’t even know where she is right now anyway, or how to get her away from those creatures if we could find her. Raindrops is right, we are in WAY over our heads…
She was about to voice her thoughts when the earth just beneath her hooves shifted. She jumped back in surprise as an enormous dog-like creature launched himself from a hole in the ground that clearly hadn’t been there moments ago. The creature was a head taller than Lyra and heavily muscled, with bluish fur and arms so long they pressed against the ground as it stood up.
“Found you.” The creature said, looking at them each and gesturing at the hole it had come from. “Quickly, go down the hole, before others find us.”
The three ponies looked at each other in stunned silence for a few moments. “Um… who are you?” Lyra asked cautiously, eyeing the hole less more of the creatures popped out of it.
“No time for questions. Ponies go down the hole now, before salamanders hear and come back!” The dog made as if to grab Lyra, but she jumped out of his reach.
“Girls?” A familiar voice asked from out of the hole. “It’s alright, they’re not going to hurt us, I think.”
They were down the hole in a flash, squeezing against each other in the tight fit before it opened up into a large space. Cheerilee and Ditzy met them in a rush as they fell out of the passage and they spent the next few minutes in a group hug, laughing in their relief at being reunited.
“Argh, quiet ponies! Others could hear you!”
Lyra blinked and finally focused on the area around her. They were in an unnaturally circular cave lit by torches set into the walls, and several tunnels branched out at either end. The small passage they had come through appeared to have been somehow filled in with dirt, although where the dirt had come from was a mystery. There were two more of the dog creatures next to the first, one wearing a red vest instead of grey and the second about half the size of the others. It was the one in red who had spoken and he had his paws over his ears.
“There. Your pony friends have been found. Now get out of our caves!” The three dogs pointed towards the tunnel across the cave from them.
“No!” Ditzy said, untangling herself from her friends and rushing up to the creatures. “We still have one more friend to find. You have to help us find her!”
“That isn’t what we promised!” the red-coated one replied, narrowing his eyes. “We find ponies and you go away. Now go!”
“What are they?” Carrot Top asked Cheerilee softly, but the big one heard her anyway.
He flashed forward and growled right in her face. “Diamond Dogs. And you are trespassing!”
“T-trespassing?” Carrot Top sputtered, stepping back and bumping into the small one, who had somehow gotten behind her.
“Yes, these mines belong to us!” he said, reaching up and pulling a sliver of purple crystal from Carrot Top’s mane. “And when the ponies and the salamanders are gone, we can get to work fixing them…”
“Salamanders?” Raindrops asked, trying to keep up with the rapid shifts in the conversation.
“Those snake creatures that took Trixie.” Cheerilee explained, striding forward to the one in red. “Please, the salamanders are the ones who have our friend. It’s the whole reason we came down here in the first place. We won’t leave until we rescue her!”
“Perhaps…” the one in red growled evilly, as the other two ran over to stand at his sides. He pointed sharply at Lyra. “You, pony! Do you know how to find gems?”
Lyra thought quickly, but came up short. “I’m sorry, but I don’t know how-”
“Bah!” the red-coated dog interrupted, waving a paw at her in dismissal. “Then you ponies are no use to us! Leave these tunnels!” The three dogs turned and loped off into the opposite tunnel.
“Wait!” Ditzy shouted in desperation. “Uh… we’re not the only ones down here!”
The three dogs froze just past the entrance to the tunnel and the big one turned back. “More ponies?”
“Um… yes, the whole royal army. They were to come down after us with the elements.” Ditzy said.
The small dog pulled his ears down sharply in irritation and whined. “Not more ponies! It’s not fair! Salamanders take tunnels, ponies running everywhere. We found these mines! The jewels are ours!”
“We can tell the royal army to leave, if you help us.” Cheerilee offered, smiling woodenly. The others put on their most helpful smiles and nodded in unison.
The dog in the red vest scrunched its face in thought for a few agonizing seconds before slapping a paw over his face.
“Fine. Fine! We will take you. But nothing more! We lead, ponies get friend.”
“Yes! Thank you!” Lyra bounced, hopeful for the first time in what seemed like ages. I can’t believe that worked! Go Ditzy!
“Quiet!” the red-coated dog growled again. “We sneak, so no noises! Salamanders don’t dig like diamond dogs. We have blocked tunnels, forcing salamanders back to where they came from. This way!”
The dogs dashed off down the tunnel and the five friends hurried to keep up. Finally, Lyra thought, we have something like a plan. Hold on, Trixie, we’re coming!
…
Luna barely snapped out of her shock in time to leap to the side, the flames catching a bit of her tail and burning through the enchantment. A dragon’s fire breath could burn through magic, but to have seared through one of hers… It’s true. He must really be as old as he says. Which means that…
Luna shook her head and banished the feelings of guilt that threatened to well up within. This dragon may be a physical remainder from the darkest time in her life, but she could deal with the memories after she stopped it from killing her.
Solrathicharnon tried to track her with the cone of fire, but she easily swooped into the air and circled around behind him. She charged her horn and blasted a beam of pure force into his back. The magic slammed into his spine just below his neck… and was absorbed. Luna blinked, once again nearly paralyzed with shock. That… should not have been possible! How could he be that resistant to magic?
The dragon spun in place as Luna let loose a swarm of the magic missiles, hundreds of the beams lighting up the cave. They slammed into his arms, chest, and head and were completely absorbed, the dragon barely noticing the onslaught at all. His arm shot out through the stream of pure magic and slammed into the Princess, crushing her into the cavern wall. Great cracks spread out from the impact as the dragon leaned his whole weight into it.
“I have waited so long to have you in my grasp!” Solrathicharnon gloated, but a look of surprise dampened his victory as he felt himself being pushed back! Luna shoved off the wall, easily matching the dragon’s strength. With a snarl, Solrathicharnon swiped his tail along the wall before she could shove him back enough to escape, catching her in the side and flinging her across the cave.
Luna caught herself in midair and suddenly there were dozens of her, flying off on every direction. Solrathicharnon spat fire, catching one or two at a time which dissolved into a blue mist, but most of them swooped and ducked around his attacks. The dragon frowned, then spun around and slammed his hand down upon the earth behind him. The Princess slowly appeared under his claws, having turned herself invisible when she’d made all those clones.
“I may not see much, but I can see magic clearly.” Solrathicharnon growled, preparing to breath flames onto his
trapped opponent. “And you shine like the moon in an empty sky. Your little illusions can’t fool my eyes.”
“When did I say they were illusions?” Luna said, glaring up at him through his claws.
The dragon blinked in confusion, and that’s when the clones attacked. Rather than casting more magic, the first two simply bucked the dragon in the back of his head. Solrathicarnon bellowed in surprise and pain, the force of the kicks tipping him to the side and directly into the path of three more clones. They slammed into him with their hooves, knocking him further away from the first Luna and crushing him into the wall. The remaining Lunas whipped up a torrential gale to press him against the wall and hold him there.
The first Luna rose up from the ground with the support of two others. “You cannot win this fight, Solrathicharnon. I have the measure of your endurance now.”
“I will have my revenge!” the dragon roared, straining against the wind.
“I… understand your grievance against me, but this fight is decided. Stand down and you may yet survive.”
“Not after all this time…” he growled dangerously and suddenly spun, slamming his arms against the wall above him with earth-shattering force. The wall and a good part of the ceiling above him blew apart, raining slabs of rock and stalactites down upon the alicorns. They were forced to break off their assault to dodge the debris and within seconds Solrathicharnion was among them, lashing out with his arms and wings and knocking them sprawling from the air.
Luna concentrated and dissolved all her bodies into mist, flowing herself back together into one. The ones who had fallen to the dragon’s fire… she could feel the loss of diminished power, but refused to let it show on her face. Time to end this.
Magic crackled around her horn as she sent a powerful bolt of lightning arcing though the air as the dragon centered on her again. He leapt to the side, but the lightning curved after him and caught him on the shoulder. Solrathicharnon bellowed in pain and clutched his shoulder, which was bleeding slightly. His resistant scales had stopped the worst of the attack, but even they had limits.
“The fight is clear.” Luna declared, gathering even more power into her horn as the two of them circled the cave, glaring at each other warily. “Did you really think you could win against me in a fight? I have dealt with far more powerful foes that you.”
“Of course I don’t think I could win a fair fight.”
Luna almost missed a step, but caught herself and narrowed her eyes. What trick is this?
“I’ve had a thousand years to plan my revenge.” The dragon growled, one claw still clutching his injured shoulder. “Do you think just sitting in some random cave and attacking you head-on was all I could come up with? My plan is a thing of beauty, although I’ll have to replace the parts about attacking by surprise now. This was just to delay you.”
“Delay me? From what?”
“Your sister says hello.”
That stopped Luna in her tracks.
“We could keep fighting, but I know I can’t win that way.” The dragon continued to pace, but even in her shock Luna had no openings for him to exploit so he kept his distance. “Still, I could drag it out for hours. And by then, whatever your sister wanted you away from Canterlot for will be over. It might already be over. I’d rather I kill you on my own terms anyway.”
With that the dragon spun around and shot into the air with a great burst of its wings, vanishing into a network of tunnels at the back of the caves. Luna galloped forward to follow him, but hesitated. He might be lying about Corona, but dare she risk it?
Giving one last look at the caves, she turned and launched herself towards the exit of the cavern. Of course she couldn’t risk it. Pouring every last bit of her remaining energy into speed, she burst from the cave and streaked through the air towards Canterlot.
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(Joke) Alt. Title: Across The Lunaverse: FURY OF THE STORM!!!
Can't wait make fun of this universe in my own story. AND IT WILL BE THE BEGINNING OF SEASON 5!!!
"You sister says hello"
That line could be taken horrily out of context.......
I loved the entire Luna commander scene at the start especially the cake bit at the end. The description of the dragon and it's first line were brilliantly done. Great idea behind dragon names, that entire background for the dragon and the whole scene was fantastic. Good scene with the Diamond Dogs and CO, clever ploy on Ditsy's part, I like what you've done with the Diamond Dogs here, hmm of course this means the Changelings aren't likely to use the caves and does leave a question of how they came to be there in the first place, so many questions I love it!
The fight scene was excellently choreographed, Luna and the dragons behavior was well done and the ending was awesome can't wait to see what happens next!
Ooh, I like the way this is ramping up. Nice pacing in this chapter BTW.
Hot, damn! I love the Diamond Dogs, and the dragon and Luna fight. Badass.
Interesting to see the B-plot with Luna finally going somewhere. Still not quite sure how or if it connects to the A-plot with the salamanders. I'd originally thought them mere minions to Corona, but as of last chapter it seems they've got their own plot afoot.
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Well, they may THINK they have their own plan. I suspect Corona is as good at manipulating events as Celestia is. Only Corona is malicious.
Oh my god she is Xanatos.
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Xanatos is by FAR my favorite childhood villain, and he may have drastically influenced how I feel a good villain should act...
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All according to his plan....
upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/0/02/Xanatos.JPG/250px-Xanatos.JPG
I knew I should of waited for this to be finished before reading! Ahhh, now I must wait! easily though, amazing fic. Love the villain Solrathicharnon and the salamanders are fantastic as well. Love how this has been going and can't wait to see it continued
fix underlined bit.
________________
I have been the cliche over-powered distraction, Luna!
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ITs ok, I'm in the same boat.
And the fight was awesome, and the reuion heartwarming.