//------------------------------// // 58 – "It's Never over till Ya Lose Consciousness!" // Story: Spike Quits His Job and Goes on Numerous Quests // by B_25 //------------------------------// ~58~ "It's Never over till Ya Lose Consciousness." The wave of heat had already washed over the bar as the oncoming flames showed themselves at the back of the dragon’s throat. No one had time to react to their sudden demise but to flinch or gasp, before altogether closing their eyes. Twilight charged her horn with azure aurora, flickering as it stretched to the tip of her horn before fading entirely. Rarity peeked through her closed eyes at the event, deciding it was all or nothing as she jumped in front of Twilight. An orb of blue light spawned just in front of the bar’s door just as the flames unloaded, propelling against the ball before the ball itself expanded into a flickering thin wall. A cry was heard from behind the bar as Rarity fell down onto her hooves, using her right forehoof to keep the weight of her charged horn afloat. Applejack and Pinkie rushed to her side immediately and threw their heads underneath each of her forehooves, raising her back up while allowing her to solely focus on maintaining her magic. The alabaster unicorn had her eyes clenched because of her spiritual exertion, while the watched as the coldness of the flames absorbed every inch of space in every window. Not only were they in the epicenter of a ball of flames, but the magical thin wall protecting them had begun to waver. “Hold it together Rarity!” Rainbow shouted from against the counter, fighting through the pain to crawl toward her friend and rest a hoof on her hind leg. “He’s gonna run out of breath sometime soon, so please, keep it together!” “...trust me...darling…” Rarity’s head began to dip as the aurora enshrouding her horn expanded outward, causing Applejack to use her other horn to raise the white mare’s chin. “...I am aware...of the implications...that should occur if I were to falter. It’s...funny…” Rainbow Dash rose her head from the floor and looked through the crack between her friends at the face of Rarity. “At times like these...I better understand...your life philosophy.” She drew a heavy breath as beads of sweat began to race across her face. “...that most problems in this world...can be solved...by working longer...punching harder...and flying faster…” “But you forget the key piece that connects those three.” “Oh?” “It’s never over till ya lose consciousness!” “...touche...darling...tousche…” The bright golden glow of the flames began to dim, granting the girls a sense of hope as the flames began to wane. They still weren’t out of the frying pan, metaphorically speaking, but they now knew something could be done about their situation. But in life or death situations, a leader is always needed to lead everyone on the same course toward safety, lest chaos scatter and destroy them all. It was never who was the most qualified, strongest, or wisest for the job. It was whoever took charge first with an unquestionable resolve. And despite her injuries and requiring Fluttershy to help carry her, Twilight Sparkle was the first to make her voice known. “Girls!” Twilight Sparkle made sure that her voice resounded off the wooden walls of the establishment, earning even the clenched alabaster eyes. She waited for a second by glancing at all of her assembled friends before continuing. “We don’t have much of a clue on how long these flames will keep going on for, or how much magic Rarity still has in her magical reserves. It may be risky, but we need to escape through the back exit and find another place to hide.” Fluttershy had already come to carry half of Twilight weight once she realized that they weren’t going to die, deciding to keep silent as she would go along with whatever her friend said. She had allowed Twilight to throw both of her right hooves over her yellow back, making it so Fluttershy would be looking up to her. A buzzing sound numbed the kind pegasus ears to the world around her, as she watched Twilight’s mouth move as words were coming out of them. She glanced to her right to find a thin wave of flame riding upwards while simultaneously burning through the barrier protecting them. Fluttershy looked back to the mare she was supporting and found herself not inside a bar. The walls were still wooden, but they were more oval and akin to oak, rather than the straight and refined ones she had seen a moment ago. And when she looked into the face of her friend once more, she thought herself in a nightmare more terrifying than the situation she was in. There was a line on her friend’s neck that separated the lavender fur from the purple scales that comprised the now head of Twilight Sparkle. ‘S-Spike?’ Fluttershy thought to herself as she looked up at her morphed friend’s head, staring deep into the vertical iris of her draconic friend. ‘W-what are you doing here?” The semi-transparent dragon’s head only grinned, displaying the shine of his fangs as his head faded away from existence, leaving only Twilight bare face. Be it the truth of hallucination, Fluttershy still saw the shine off one of Twilight’s fangs. Her legs began to wobble underneath the newfound weight of her friends, suddenly realizing that she had picked her friend up in instinct alone. Everyone’s eyes were on Twilight alone, not a single one drifting to the one pony keeping her up. Fluttershy looked up to Twilight, who, even damaged and needing help, seemed so far away from her. She then looked down to the floor, pondering this empty feeling for a moment. ‘Is this how Spike used to feel when he was around us when he was working underneath Twilight?’ The buzzing ceased from her ears as Fluttershy heard the noises of the world once more. “That’s why I think one of us should stay behind with Rarity while the rest of use the mountain’s natural streams as concealment.” Applejack sighed, and it wasn’t because of the added pounds on Rarity, who she would never make mention of lest her tail would be chopped off due to some unforeseen circumstance. “I guess there ain’t any time to be arguing now.” Twilight shook her head while Fluttershy looked dazed at her side. “Alrighty then.” Applejack gestured her head at Pinkie, then nodding to the Rainbow Dash on the floor. “You go an' grab Rainbow and leave with the rest of the girls; I’ll make sure Rarity here doesn’t falter, and that I get her out in time.” Twilight only nodded. Pinkie slipped her body underneath Rainbow’s barrel and lifted the pegasus on her back. Steadying the wobbliness she incurred by the added weight, Pinkie smiled to her friends before leaning to left, doing a little dance until she balanced herself out at her leader’s side. “Ready?” Twilight said to Pinkie, who only nodded in response. She then looked to Applejack. “Make sure you two get out as quickly as possible.” “I hear ya, Twilight.” “As do I,” Rarity finally spoke. With but a bittersweet smile, Twilight began to lead her friends out of the bar. The back door chimed as their hoof steps became faint. Beads of sweat began to roll down Applejack’s face as the room had grown hotter. “And I thought lil' Spike’s burps went on forever.” Rarity could only giggle under the pressure. “Tell me about it...darling...”