//------------------------------// // Act 1/Chapter 6: Triumph and Tragedy // Story: Power of the Dragonflame: The Resurrection of Torch // by Mystic Mind //------------------------------// Hazy woke up bright and early the next day. Not wanting to stir up Rain, they slipped out of bed quietly and teleported to the field. Hazy yawned, holding their hoof over their mouth. This entire week they always arose predawn to double- and triple-check their spell notes. Despite so many attempts yielding less than perfect results, there was no way Hazy was giving up after they poured so much work into their agriculture plan. Taking a deep breath, Hazy closed their eyes and gradually released the flow of magic through their horn. With gentle nudges here and there, they wrapped their arcane aura around each seed of the surrounding soil. Hazy pictured the seeds in their mind, connecting each to their consciousness through the spell’s intricacies. As the last seed popped into place, Hazy took their magic up a notch. The plants began to grow, ascending through each stage until they pierced the topsoil and sprouted into full, fresh carrots. Opening their eyes, Hazy grabbed the leaves in her magic, and with a measured yank of telekinesis, pulled a grand total of thirty carrots out of the ground. One look at the carrots lit up their face like a Hearth’s Warming Tree. After months of testing and re-testing, their growth spell had finally produced a one-hundred percent increase in crop yields! “I did it! I did it!” They cried, jumping for joy. “I knew I could do it! I was totally right! Woohoo!” “Ugh, what’s all the yelling about?” Peridot opened her window, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. “Peridot, I did it!” Hazy called back, still bouncing around like Pinkie Pie on a sugar rush. “I perfected my spell!” Before they knew it, a crowd began to gather, curious to witness the spectacle themselves. “My goodness…” Silver’s jaw dropped. “I’m sorry I ever doubted you, Hazy. I guess old stallions like me are just stuck in their ways after all.” “What do you mean, Silver?” Hazy looked at him with wide-eyed wonder. “You helped us plant the seeds and teach us how to care for them. All I did was make them grow. If anything, I should be thanking you for being such a great teacher!” “Oh, erm, well…” Silver stuttered. “Thanks, I guess?” “Silver, are you blushing?” Peridot teased. This was the first time any pony in the village had seen him act so bashful. “I, well… I suppose I did help, didn’t I?” “I’m here! I’m here!” Rain Dancer whooshed past the crowd, landing in front of Hazy. “What happened? Did something go wrong? Ya didn’t hurt yourself, did you, Hazy?” “Nothing’s wrong, silly,” Hazy giggled. “My spell worked, look!” “Wow,” Rain picked up a carrot, rotating it in her hooves. “Not even the slightest blemish.” “I know, right?” Hazy was so caught up in their excitement, they didn’t notice levitating off the ground. Luckily, Rain Dancer was there to pull them back down to earth. “Oh, sorry,” Hazy said with an awkward chuckle. “Guess I got a bit carried away.” “Oh, shut up and kiss me, silly pony.” With Hazy wrapped tight in her hooves, Rain leant in to give them the deepest kiss of their life. A tremendous, ecstatic cheer rang through the crowd. Only Peridot remained silent, because on the horizon, she spotted something flying toward the village. “Erm, Rain, I don’t mean to ruin the moment, but were we expecting any dragon business today?” “Not until next week,” Silver replied, not wanting to split Hazy and Rain during their moment of passion. “Why do you ask?” “Ain’t it obvious?” Peridot gestured above her, and sure enough, Garble was descending toward them. “Ugh, just as my day was starting to look up,” Rain groaned, fluttering back down. “Alright, you peeps sit tight. I’ll deal with this.” “Are you sure, Rain?” Hazy asked. “I know how pleased everypony here is, but I don’t know if Garble will ever admit defeat.” “Don’t sweat it, I’ve got this.” Rain flew off to confront the anti-social dragon. Somehow, Garble looked uglier than usual today. “Yo, Garble, we made our delivery already. Your friends were fine with the smaller load, so what gives?” “Out of my way, stupid pony!” Garble batted Rain Dancer away with a backhanded slap. “Rain!” Hazy rushed to their marefriend’s side. “Are you alright?” “Why, that rotten, little son of a bitch,” Rain growled through gritted teeth. Passive-aggressive insults were one thing, but this was too far. “Garble! Get your scaly ass back here!” “What in Equestria is going here?” Silver asked, but Rain was not in an explaining mood. Without another word, she shot off after Garble, with Hazy teleporting after her. “Oh, for Celestia’s sake,” Silver grumbled, breaking into a gallop to catch up. Regarding Garble's attitude, Something didn’t sit right with him. He was hardly a pleasant individual, but to be outright violent was new. It was only after Silver galloped halfway across town that he realized where Garble was heading. No... he thought. He wouldn’t dare. By the time he caught up, Garble landed on the roof of the food barn and took a deep breath. “Everypony, get down!” Silver lunged forward, tackling Hazy to the ground. Fire erupted from Garble's mouth, and the barn exploded. Nearby ponies were knocked off their hooves, while others became engulfed in flames, screaming in agony as they ran for the river. Rain's jaw dropped. She'd never seen anything like this before. As the smoke rose higher, she could only watch in horror as an entire year's worth of food, and the last hope of friendship between ponies and dragons, burnt to cinders. “Rain!” Hazy’s voice snapped Rain out of it. They were shaking so much, they could barely stand, their face frozen in horror at the sight before them. “Garble!” Rain snapped, clenching her jaw. “I swear to Celestia, when Lord Ember hears about this, it’s your head on a platter!” “Ember isn't here anymore,” Garble scoffed. “She abandoned her title of Dragon Lord, just as she abandoned all of you. Long live Torch, the true Dragon Lord!” “He's mad,” said Peridot as she caught up, colour draining from her face. “There's no way Ember would let this happen.” Silver didn't reply. He wanted to agree with Peridot, to believe that this was the work of a single rogue dragon, but he couldn't. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew this day would come, no matter how much he'd hoped it wouldn’t. Unable to take the horror show any longer, Rain Dancer charged, throwing her hoof at Garble's cheek. Garble grabbed the punch in both claws, flipping her over his shoulder and slamming her through the burning roof. “Rain Dancer!” Hazy screamed in anguish. Their horn burst to life, unleashing a torrent of arcane bolts in Garble's direction. Shot after shot struck the dragon, blasting away pieces of burning roof with each round. By the time the spell was done, the roof of the barn was completely obscured by the thick, black smoke. “Is he…?” Peridot began, only for the words to catch in her throat. Garble was still standing, his arms crossed over in front of his face. His skin had been seared off, exposing bone, but he was still alive. When he lowered his arms, he revealed not an expression of pain, nor one of even mild annoyance. Instead, he was laughing. “Really? Is that the best you've got?” Hazy growled in frustration, digging their hooves into the dirt as they began weaving another spell. “Oooh, so the little pony wants a second round?” Garble smirked and held up his fists. “Alright then, put up your dukes! Give me everything you've got!” Hazy lowered their head to cast, but the spell fizzled out. They tried to focus, but still nothing happened. No matter how much they strained and grunted, all they could manifest was a few, tiny sparks trickling from their horn. “Oops, times up,” with one more inhalation, Garble spat a fireball straight for Hazy. “Oh, no you don't!” Shooting out from the building, Rain Dancer threw herself in front Hazy. “Rain Dancer, no!” Hazy cried, but it was too late. The fireball struck home, exploding on contact. The next few seconds were a blur. Time seemed to slow, the world spinning around them. Hazy collapsed to their knees, eyes tearing up at the sight of Rain Dancer lying at their hooves, dead. “Here’s a friendship lesson for all of you pathetic ponies,” Garble announced, all eyes now on him. “As the old saying goes, you play with fire, prepare to get burnt.” And with that, Garble took off. At first, nopony spoke, the full gravity of the situation still setting in. “Hazy...” Peridot began. In truth, she had no idea what to say. She just knew it had to be something, any form of consolation for her friend. “I'm sorry.” Hazy sniffled. Grabbing the scorched remains of Rain Dancer in their hooves, they held their fallen marefriend against their shoulder, and screamed.