Big Brother Garble

by ColtKit Productions


Life in the Nest, Part 3

Garble directed Spike into one of the smaller Caverns inside the volcano. The much taller dragon actually had to get on all fours. In order for him to fit comfortably underneath the low ceiling.

"I loved this place when I was your age." Garble smiled, a bit of nostalgia in his eyes.

Spike quickly realized why. They were in a comic book store!!! Sure, they were drawn on stone tablets, bound together by... leather... but they were still comics!!! Dragons had their own comics!!!

Spike looked down one aisle. Finding it filled with books about dragon cowboys, IN SPACE!!! Some of them were fighting aliens. Where others were living as space outlaws.

"Over here!" Garble called, as he made his way to the back. With Spike giddily following, passing other aisles of rice based candies, and stone action figures. But Garble had one particular set of shelves he wanted Spike to see.

At the very back, Spike blinked, not seeing the big deal. They were just singular tablets. Sure the colorful art was cool, but he really didn't see the appeal.

Then Garble picked one up, and pressed an arrow at the bottom... and the picture... CHANGED!!! It now had the traditional 9 panels of a comic!!!

"This is an Omnibus," Garble informed, turning it around to show off the back. Which had a few columns worth of comic titles. It was just this massive index! With at least 300 different comics!!! "It's a complete collection of a saga."

"You see," Garble demonstrated. "You can read any of these comics, just by touching the title. Then it will appear on the front of the tablet. You can turn the pages by touching the side arrows, down here at the bottom with the other symbols. Then the up and down arrows allow you to move through the comics. You can even bookmark places, by pushing the star, or pressing the little rectangle to return to your last viewed page.

"Unfortunately these things have a time limit. But that's more cuz the enchantments need time to recharge. It will remember everything, but you can only read for about 5 hours, before it needs to rest. When it does that, it will save your place, and return to the cover page. This little lightning bolt, will slowly fill until it turns completely green. Then you can read again. Not a big deal, as that takes about 20 minutes.

"Since these things are for Whelps, they are also enchanted to be indestructible."

Spike awed, absorbing everything about the amazing comics. "I don't think even ponies have stuff like this."

Garble smiled at that. Always happy to hear when Dragons did something better then ponies. "Kobolds are Master enchanters," he boasted, as if it was his accomplishment. "We even got tablets that pull you inside, and let whelps go on adventures." Not mentioning all the safety features, to insure no permanent injury, and certainly not real world death. Even if you got hurt or worse inside the tablet. The little whelp should experience the fun of simulated danger, before realizing it was just simulated.

Spike awed.

"And I would have bought you 1 of each, if you hadn't thrown a tantrum this morning," Garble gave a mock glare... unfortunately Spike seemed to think he was serious. "Idiot! What kinda monster do you think I am, to show off this stuff to a Whelp, and then tell them 'you can't have it'."

Spike blushed, still not used to Garble's sense of humor. Frankly it just seemed mean. Like when he jokes about pouring lemon juice into the boy's eyes.

"So... I can get one?" Spike confirmed.

Garble groaned, pinching his snout. "Yes you can get one. AND ONLY ONE! 1 Adventure Tablet, and 1 Omnibus. I don't want to hear you whine for more. Just 1 of these tablets cost 3 months of your allowance. You should only expect these as a Hatch Day or Holiday present... when is your hatch day?" Garble suddenly felt horrible he didn't know.

Spike blinked, taking a moment to translate that. It was probably the dragon equivalent to birthdays. Doing a quick count on his fingers, Spike answered, "About 3 months ago, on the 9th."

Garble... was crushed, he missed his little brother's hatch day by 3 freaking months!!! He was hoping he would be able to celebrate it with him.

"Well, since your hatch day wasn't that long ago. You may pick up two extra Omnibus."

Spike's eyes sparkled like a pony's. "REALLY!!?" The whelp grinned madly.

"I said it didn't I!" Garble snapped.

Spike shrugged, "You say lots of things."

"... Just get your comics."

###

After Spike chose all his comics, Garble walked him to the counter.

Spike gulped, seeing the little kobold there. He was a bright blue, with very shiny scales, and orange tattoos... but that wasn't why Spike gulped... he felt... something... like a strong need to get close to the little creature... a strong desire... to protect him.

Spike yelped as Garble whacked him upside his head.

"Don't just stand there, staring," Garble grumbled. "Give him your tablets."

Spike blushed, wanting to rub out the slight sting, but he couldn't, as his claws were filled with a small stack of stone slabs. Putting them on the counter, the Kobold looked disapprovingly at Garble.

"You realize," the Kobold scolded the Rookie dragon. "If you keep spoiling him like this. He's likely to fall prey to his greed."

Spike's eyes grew wide at that, "Wait WHAT!?"

The Kobold smiled patiently, "Calm little one. It's the equivalent of greed fuelled tantrums. Nothing bad will happen."

"Last time that happened to me I nearly destroyed the town!!!" Spike panicked. Immediately wanting to put the comics back.

The Kobold just chuckled, while Garble blushed that Spike would just ADMIT that. Greed Induced Big-ness was just under bed wetting on the embarrassment scale. Something natural, that happens to many whelps growing up, but still something the baby dragons liked to tease each other about.

The Kobold commented, "Pony towns are rather fragile. Just be a good little whelp, and appreciate what you have. Then there shouldn't be a problem with unwanted big-ness."

Spike blinked, "You know I was raised by ponies?"

The Kobold shook his head. "Every whelp is precious to the nest. They are hatched slowly, over the 500 years between mating seasons. Whenever we get new Whelps, EVERY DRAGON immediately takes notice. Accepting Whelps into our nest is no different then a hatch day."

Spike coughed up his note pad again and started writing. The Kobold looked on in amazement. There were rumors about what the whelp could do with his pony fire... but too actually see it.

As little Solar Spike scribbled away, Garble reached for the pouch under his wing. Taking out a large Diamond and three hoof sized sapphires. Before giving them over to the Kobold.

"Can you tell me any more about these size changing powers?" Spike eagerly scribbled, "I saw Lava Frost turn into a Celestia sized dragon. So I'm guessing all Dragons can change shape. Is it all triggered by feelings of greed."

"Well you're at it," Said Garble. "Mind explaining a bit about Kobolds," he asked.

The Kobold was looking on in amusement, as he licked the gems, to test their purity. After all, Rookie dragons can't be expected to make very pure gems. They were, after all, very young. Thankfully these seemed a sufficient trade.

However all that stopped when Garble said. "He seems to think your slaves." With everything grinding to a halt.

Spike quickly learned, Kobolds were not slaves, and truthfully not even servants. Such entities don't threaten to tan little whelps backsides, "until they learn respect".

"I'm Sowwie," Spike looked as cute as possible. Channelling his cookie thieving eyes of doom. "I didn't even know there were such things as Kobolds until this morning."

That just annoyed the Kobold more, "What were those Ponies teaching you! To have such bad manners. I'm half tempted not to sell you anything."

"Woh now," Garble glared. "Yes, the Whelps got some screwy ideas in his head. But I don't mean he TREATS Kobolds like slaves. Rather he was worried dragons were mistreating your creatures."

The Kobold frowned. Not understanding how any dragon could do either of those things. Kobolds and dragons were bound to each other, on a biological level. They were completely dependent on each other for survival.

The little reptile groaned, "It's shameful a whelp could think that." he insisted.

"But it's not HIS shame," Garble countered. "Blame the ponies. You know how xenophobic they are."

Spike was shifting uncomfortably. He wanted to defend the ponies... but every pony he met... either thought he was a pet, or screamed when they first saw him. Few, outside his friends and family, acknowledged him as anything more then a lesser creature... he wanted to defend the ponies though...

"Ponies are prey animals," Spike tried. "Their bound to be skittish around predators."

Garble growled, "They got you thinking your own creatures are monsters that enslave anything we don't eat!"

Spike shifted, and suddenly realized the Kobold had lost his angry expression. Now he was looking at Spike as if the whelp was an abuse victim.

"My pony family never treated me like that," Spike assured... then had to admit, "But most ponies were scared of me, whenever they first met me. At least, back in Canterlot. The ponies of Ponyville immediately recognized me as a member of the royal family!" Spike declared proudly.

The Kobold sighed. Making a note to speak with Lava Frost. They needed to get the Whelp in to see some mind healers. He was far too young to have such twisted thoughts of his own creatures.