Nothing is more precious to a dragon, not life, not even its hoard, than the egg and wingless. ~ Unknown
"Šizra?"
Šizra knelt down in front of Spike and lowered his hood and Twilight nearly fell off her throne in shock. Šizra is a pony!? Twilight internally yelled as she stared slack jawed at the dark blue stallion.
No... she realized as the initial surprise faded, not exactly. His piecing red eyes were silted, a couple of fangs peeked out of his mouth, and a single diamond shaped patch of scales covered part of the top of his snout. There were also the two black horns she almost didn't see in the mess that was his mane. She could already see Rarity dragging the stallion(?) by the ear to the salon. If she was not mistaken Šizra was a hybrid.
"Young one, do you know how you were hatched?"
"Yeah, Twilight hatched me with magic when she was six during her entrance exam for Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. She..." Spike chuckled. Twilight groaned as she rolled her eyes, Spike always found the other things her mana surge did funny. At least she could shut him up by bringing up the fact that the first thing he did was suck his tail. "She ended up turning her parents into potted plants and me into a ceiling destroying giant!"
"Was she an alicorn when she hatched you?"
Twilight blinked in confusion before glancing around at her friends who also were confused. Why would he ask that?
"Well, no. Twilight merely had a mana surge when Rainbow Dash's Sonic Rainboom startled her or something like that."
"A mana surge?" Šizra whispered, his head tilting a bit.
Twilight bit her bottom lip as the piling questions continued to build becoming harder and harder to bear. How could he not know what a mana surge was? But she pushed those aside as she became alarmed. She had been watching Šizra expressions as the two talked. What has started as shock and amazement had been slowly morphing to rage.
"Yeah, apparently it's a common thing for young unicorn ponies to have." Spike shrugged, apparently unaware of how angry Šizra had become.
"Thieves..." Šizra suddenly hissed.
With that Twilight telekinetically reached out to pull Spike back only only stumble back herself when Šizra gaze snapped to her. "Dirty lying thieves..."
She gulped in terror as she scrambled to get away, forgetting that she could teleport. Any remaining thoughts of Šizra not being part dragon vanished as she saw dark blue flames licking out of his fang filled mouth.
"EGG SNATCHER!!!" Šizra roared spewing out a massive wave of blue flame right at her.
It happened so fast that Twilight didn't have a chance to do anything other then yelp in fear. The next thing she was aware of was not the smell of burning fur or the sting of heat but a faint snapping sound followed by a brilliantly bright light, blinding her even with her eyes shut. When, after a few seconds, she didn't feel any pain or heat nor smelt any burnt fur she slowly opened her eyes to see that she was standing in a field.
What happened? She wondered as she looked over her unmarked body. Did I die? Is this the fabled Eternal Pasturelands? With touch of sadness she looked around to see her friends, Spike, and Discord were all here as well. All of them confused except Discord who saying something but for some reason she couldn't seem to hear him.
Discord shook his head and floated up to her and slapped her. "Snap out it! We aren't dead yet! I just teleported us to a field just outside of Ponyville, but if we don't move..."
"Where are..."
"Doesn't matter!! IF we don't flee and flee now HE WILL KILL US ALL!" Discord bellowed, his arms flailing about wildly.
"Flee!? Are you nuts!?" Rainbow yelled as she start to hoover, not noticing that she was able to fly again. "What about Ponyville!? We have to go back!"
"You don't want to fight him." Discord whimpered, shaking his head at Rainbow Dash's suggestion. "You can't fight him! His power will make that landscaping project during Twilight's fight with Lord Tirek, you know the one that remodeled a few mountains with Twilight and Tirek shapes holes, seem like a playground tat between a rock and a blade of grass! He will vaporize that entire mountain range just to make sand for a dragon sized a zen garden!"
"Oooh, ooh! What about the Elements?" Pinkie pipped up. "Now that the tree is safe we can use them on the big meanie."
"They won't work..."
"Wha' do yah mean 'won't work?!'" AJ questioned, her eyes narrowing.
"And how would you know?!" Rainbow accused, her hoovering becoming more erratic.
"BECAUSE HE MADE THE ELEMENTS! THE CASTLE! THE MAP!" Discord screamed, grabbing and shaking Rainbow Dash, making her dizzy.
"Discord..." Fluttershy murmured, gently pulling the dizzy Rainbow Dash out of Discord's grip. "Please, calm down."
"The only thing that we can do is run and hope... run and hope." Discord whispered looking down in shame.
"Ilcktulsivitātes Hzathtola!" The voice of Šizra bellowed. To Twilight's frighten ears it sounded as if it was coming from everywhere at once. "Have you forgotten? I can track your magic!"
"SHIELD NOW!!!" Discord screeched.
Thinking quickly Twilight took a cue from her first student and pulled up a prism shaped shield around them. It was just in time too, as a wave of blue flame crashed over it. She grunted as further waves of flames washed over the shield, leaving her no time to figure out a way to get them out their situation.
*Schick*
"Leafcutter..." Discord squeaked out.
Twilight nearly lost her concentration as she saw what made that sound. Imbedded in her shield was a sword, or at least she thought it was a sword. The blade had some weird swirling design on it and the hilt looked like it was wrapped in thorny vines. All in all it made it look more like one of those overly fantastical swords used in ogres and oubliettes then a practical sword to be used in real battle. Either way, if she did not remove it quickly her shield would fail completely.
"Well wha' evah it is it's cuttin' through like Twi's shield was warm apple buttah!" AJ's jaw dropped as the 'sword' started to cut through the shield leaving a large opening behind it.
"Twilight!" Starlight shouted. A single look between Twilight and her was all that was needed. A stream of magic shout out from Starlight's horn into the failing shield.
For a infinitesimal moment Twilight thought that the addition of Starlight's magic would be enough as some of the cracks were slowly closing and the sword had stopped moving. But then slowly but surely the sword began moving again.
"Discord, any assistance will me most appreciated right about now!" Starlight grunted, sweat already pouring down her forehead.
"DISCORD! HELP, NOW!" Starlight roared out as the sword began to cut through the shield even faster then before.
With a snap Discord teleported them away. Unfortunately, that meant that they were now outside the safety of Twilight's shield. Twilight fell to one knee as she felt her spell shatter. And from the pain she felt she doubted if she could get a shield back up without time to rest first, time that they didn't have.
"We... we need... run!" Twilight gasped out, struggling to breathe as she finally saw Šizra. Everything around Šizra shimmered from the heat of the dark flames that hugged him like a cloak. All that could be clearly seen was his demonic glowing red eyes.
A wall of blue flames shoot up out of the ground behind them cutting off their escape. Her mouth dried as she struggled to cast a spell but all she could get was a few sparks.
"We are doomed!" Rarity wailed.
But before Šizra made another a move, Celestia and Luna appeared in a dual flash of teleportation. Both were decked out in armor and wielding a sword in their auras. Twilight couldn't decide if she should sigh, cry, or collapse in relief when Princess Celestia looked back, her nodding once before turning to face Šizra.
"Šizra!?" Princess Luna muttered in surprise.
"Yah know him?" AJ shouted in shock.
"Yes." Luna nodded grimly. "He was an invaluable ally during the early part of our reign, especially after the Pillars 'disappearance.' It was he that taught us the art of war and battle... without him Equestria would not be."
"Twilight do you know why Šizra is trying to kill you?" Celestia asked, keeping a close eye on the now angrily pacing Šizra.
"He thinks Spike's egg was stolen!" Twilight exclaimed, "He wasn't was he? Please tell me that this is just a misunderstanding! That Spike wasn't taken from his parents!'"
"No, he was not stolen, but..." Celestia slowly enunciated, "whatever happens next... do not interfere."
"But Princess!" Twilight protested. With how powerful Šizra was if Celestia tried to take him on... This was not like when she try and failed to take on Queen Chrysalis.
"Twilight, I need you to trust me."
Twilight gulped but conceded with a squeaky. "Okay."
Celestia gave Twilight a small smile before looking at Luna. A single nod was all that passed between the two before Luna moved into front them while Celestia calmly walked towards Šizra.
"Šizra!" Celestia shouted, her sword, Dawnbringer, if Twilight remember correctly rising in her aura.
"Thief, murderer, egg-snatcher!" Šizra roared, rushing Celestia with his own sword.
Twilight flinched as the swords clashed together. The two jumped back to only rushed towards each other their sword again meeting in a shower of sparks. She marveled as the two almost danced around. She never liked the sword dueling that her brother had done in preparation for becoming a royal guard but this was entirely different level from that. She could feel the speed, the power, and the killing intent behind each swing. This was no duel this was a battle to the death.
"Remain wary Twilight." Princess Luna warned as the sky darken and the air became heavy. "We are still in danger..."
Twilight looked up to the gathering clouds and shuddered. It felt just like when the magic of all the princesses was pushed into her before she got used to it, only more so. If she was feeling right then it meant that Discord was not exaggerating for once and could if he control it with such ease it was no wonder Discord was terrified. She really hoped Celestia knew what she was doing.
Šizra suddenly let out a roar that knocked everypony back with a blast of wind from the power of his voice. Lightning started to strike the ground from the boiling clouds above, tearing open the ground where they struck. Twilight shook in awe and horror, that was not mere weather lightning it was true lightning! Šizra was casting an extremely difficult, high mana spell that required immense concentration to cast while sword fighting with Celestia!
The sky darken further as Luna quickly cast a shield over them. "Twilight can you still produce a shield?" She shouted above the thunder.
"No!" She shouted after several attempts only produced a few sparks. For now all they had was Luna's shield.
Twilight nearly facehooved when Discord stepped past them holding an oversized golf bag. What was he thinking?! Now was not the time to be playing golf! But instead playing golf Discord was pulling out clubs that were large enough to be used by former Dragon Lord Torch. One by one he jammed them handle down into the ground in a wide ring around them.
"3-wood, iron 9, putter, gap wedge, a sandwich? What the chaos is that doing in there?" Discord frowned before throwing what suspiciously looked like a blt over his shoulder. "Iron 6..."
Twilight's eyes widen when she realized what Discord was doing. He was making crude lightening rods out of the golf clubs. It probably won't help much alone but at this point anything was better then nothing. Unfortunately, before he was able finish, a lightening bolt hit Luna's shield shattering it and then striking him.
"DISCORD!!" Fluttershy screamed, rushing to Discord, who had been flung back, his fur singed.
"I'm fine Fluttershy..." Discord whispered, reaching up with his eagle talons to cradling Fluttershy's check, "I just need to rest..."
"Is he?" Spike asked when Discord passed out, pulling Fluttershy away from Discord enough so that Luna could check on the draconequus.
"No, he will live." Luna said after a moment, straightening herself back up.
"Šizra! Please! Calm down." Celestia shouted, bringing everyponies' attention back to the fight.
The only response was another roar followed by multiple magic missile blasts to go with the lightening and slashing sword. Twilight eyes nearly bugged out of her head as she watched the magic blasts twist and turn in the air following Celestia as if the spell were being guided around. How could anyone have that kind of control? She was beginning to worry that Discord's comment about her battle with Tirek look like raking a zen garden was downplaying his abilities by a far margin.
At this Celestia managed to parry a few of the blasts away but several managed to hit her sending her tumbling many hooves. Her sword flying high before being blasted away by another one of Šizra's mana blasts.
"Princess!"
"You must stay back." Luna reminded, putting out a wing to block Rainbow's advance.
Celestia groaned as she slowly got to her hooves, closed her eyes, and took a deep breath. When she opened them she stared down the slowly approaching pony dragon hybrid. Her horn glowing like she was about to cast a spell but instead she spoke. "On my life and by my magic I do swear I will only speak truths to the one known as Šizra about the one known as Spike."
Twilight gasped, recognizing what Celestia had just done. She had read about it in some really old scrolls in the restricted section of the archives. "Princess Luna was that... a geas!?"
"Yes, it was." Luna nodded, not taking her eyes off of her sister and Šizra.
"Wha' in tarnation is a gaysh?"
"A geas," Twilight corrected, "is a magical contract that was used by unicorns in the days before unification usually during trials. If one lied or did not fulfilled the vow given exactly their magic would... would..."
"A single misstep, one slip accidental or otherwise and one would become nothing but ash." Luna grimly supplied. "'Twas not a pretty sight and from what we have witnessed, a very painful way to die..."
"What!?" Rainbow protested, fighting to get out of AJ's grip who had grabbed her tail to prevent her from moving. "Is she nuts?!"
"No." Luna sadly shook her head. "'Twas a very dangerous move, yes, to utilize a geas, but I fear that mine sister was right. Šizra's power eclipses our own by many magnitudes. Not once were we able to best him in duels even with with both of us giving it our all."
Šizra made no further move to attack, though the lightning was still flashing all around them, he merely just stood there staring down Princess Celestia with narrowed eyes. After a few tense moments he finally spoke. "Speak, but know this, if I don't like your words on my life and by my magic I do swear this day Equestria will burn."
Celestia shuddered before she hesitantly started to speak, "Spike's... Spike's egg was found in the crystal mines under Canterlot nearly a thousand years ago by some miners... I don't recall off hoof who exactly but they, thinking it was merely a curiosity, sold the egg to the Royal Magical Society of Canterlot. Some time later I was shown this 'curiosity' to my shock. I knew that it was far more then a curiosity, it was a dragon's egg. How it got to where it was found, buried hooves deep in solid crystal I was never able to fully discover but I knew from experience and what little knowledge I could recall a dragon would protect their eggs even more fiercely then their hoards. To find one in that matter would only occur if..."
"His parent's were long dead..." Šizra finished, the flames that had been encompassing him shrinking a bit.
"Yes..." Celestia choked out, tears swelling in her eyes. "Spike's egg was found twenty-eight years five weeks and two days after I had banished Luna. I was so alone... and so was this egg... I... I knew what it was like and I couldn't bear to see... For the dragon within to never know the warmth of the sun nor the cool of night. So I tried and tried and tired to hatch him... but no matter what I did it never hatched!"
"Of course not! Your mana's affinity is fire, good for a Uzuthscktüis... but not a Tzircktstelescktüis."
Twilight found herself leaning forward a bit, trying to get closer so that she could get every word. There was so much that she and Spike didn't know about dragons and especially about Spike's history. While she had found records detailing that his egg was found abandoned in a cave shortly after Nightmare Moon's banishment it got murky after that until it began being used as a test for prospective students for Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns some fifty years ago. She was not aware that Spike was found in the same cave system where Cadance and her were entrapped in nor that Celestia had tried to hatch him. Her attention was momentarily broken as she heard the sound of sobbing. She looked down to see that Spike was leaning again her side, his lips quivering, tears falling.
"Oh Spike..." Twilight knelt down, her heart aching over how this must be affecting Spike. "I am so sorry I..."
"After it became clear that I was not able to hatch the egg. I had it returned to the Royal Magical Society of Canterlot where it was stored until a few decades ago when it was donated to my school for gifted unicorns to be used as a test of magical ability." Celestia continued, "Then a prospective student with a massive surge of magic... From the beginning they loved each other like siblings... I thought about seeing if a dragon would be willing to care for him but... I couldn't tear them apart. I just couldn't..."
Twilight nearly collapsed as the oppressing pressure from the build up of mana suddenly lifted. She hoped that it merely meant that things were calming down and not a sign of escalation. She looked over to see that Šizra had lowered his sword. With a glance up she saw the sky was starting to return to normal and behind them the wall of flames that had blocked them before had disappeared.
"Celestia Solaris es atsrīvoju tevi tho jūsu zvērests..."
Luna sighed, her body sagging a bit. "Šizra has released Celestia from her geas."
"Then is it over?" Rarity questioned, looking ready to faint. "Please say yes, I don't think my mane can handle any more drama right now."
"'Tis over, for now..."
Twilight nearly collapsed along with her friends from the relief. Never before had she felt so hopeless and lost in a fight. She slowly sat down and pulled the still crying Spike into a hug. This was not how she would ever wanted him to find out about his parentage (not that she knew it was this bad).
"Twilight..." Celestia called out softly. Twilight twitched as she reined in the urge to go to the princess. Spike needed her more right now then whatever the princess needed.
"We got 'im Sugercube." AJ whispered putting a comforting hoof on Twilight's shoulder.
Twilight hesitated for moment until her friends one by one nodded a silent go on. She mouthed a thank you before taking one last look at Spike. His origins may have been terrible but he was never going to be alone again. With a sigh she slowly got up and walked over to Celestia and Luna.
"Yes Princess Celestia?" Twilight's mouth went dry at the worried look on the sisters. Something told her that contrary to Luna's assurance things were far from over.
"Did Šizra reveal why he thought Spike was coltnapped?"
"Uh... no."
"Did he say anything at all?"
Twilight took a few calming breaths like Cadance taught her and slow explained everything from the moment Discord had teleported her friends into the map room earlier that day until the moment the two sisters arrived. At the end of her story Twilight caught the look that passed between the sisters and something deep in her stomach dropped as she was sure whatever it was she was not going to like it.
"I urge you to let Šizra teach Spike."
"WHAT!? ARE YOU NUTS?!" Twilight shouted then cringed slightly when she realize she had shouted and to whom. Thankfully, Šizra ,who was now sitting down at the top of a nearby hill, didn't seem to react to her outburst. "He threatened to kill Discord then actually tried to kill us all!"
"Yes, I know, and I am not counseling to you to not be leery of him..." Celestia whispered, wearily looking over to Šizra who was staring off towards the Everfree Forest. "Far be it for me to suggest anything otherwise... As you saw when provoked he is extremely dangerous, far more than anyone you have faced before..."
Twilight could feel the blood in her veins turn to ice as her mind played out one possibility after another each worse then the last. What if their response to Spike's greed on his birthday was not up to Šizra's standard? Or if allowing Spike to participate in the dangerous Gauntlet of Fire was deemed wrong? What would Šizra do then?
"Then wouldn't it be safer to get somedragon less volatile to teach Spike?"
"Thou must understand that Šizra's interest in Spike is also disquieting..." Luna answered this time, slipping a bit back into her old speech patterns. "Whether for good or ill is still unknown but he will not stop until he is satisfied. It may behoove us all for thou to keepeth him close so thou may have a chance to head off another misunderstanding and thus his ire..."
For hours Šizra sat on that hill still staring off towards Everfree. The sun was low in the sky when Twilight slowly approached him. The events of earlier in the day still playing in her head. In all her years she had never doubted Celestia's wisdom except once... well now twice. And with all her skepticism with Discord Celestia had been right to befriend him...
Twilight stopped a few hooves away. She was leery about getting too close and though she was here to speak to him she had no idea where to start. If this was going to work she needed some sort of reassurances.
"Uzuthscktüis, fire..., letuscktüis, ice... jūracktüis, water... Tzircktstelescktüis, true, pure raw mana..." Šizra suddenly uttered, startling her.
Twilight mind raced, she had remembered the words Uzuthscktüis and Tzircktstelescktüis from before. Šizra had spoken them when Celestia had noted her failure in hatching Spike. She was sure that the suffix cktüis meant dragon and if she was connecting the dots correctly then Šizra had just explained what the prefixes meant. If so, then, Šizra had just revealed that Spike was a 'mana dragon.'
"Millennia after millennia, searching the entire world over and over, dozens upon dozens of times.... All with the slimmest of slimmest hopes that maybe others had survived the cataclysm..." Šizra continued, "In time, fleeting hope turned to despair and emptiness. I truly was the last of the spark dragons... and the last of the alicorns... But then Celestia and Luna managed to find a way to ascend and then by pure accident a young Tzircktstelescktüis egg is found by one of them. My hopes and fears now manifested."
Twilight felt a bit ill thinking about it. All those years without another of your kind... How can anypony begin to figure out what that truly must feel... Lonely to be sure... painfully lonely... "I'm sorry..."
"Swallow your sanctimonious pity!" Šizra sneered, spinning around and snapping his jaws a hairsbreadth away from Twilight's muzzle. "You understand nothing!"
Twilight stumbled back swallowing the scream that threatened to come out. She took a moment to get her breathing and heartrate down before countering. "Then help me understand instead of resorting to violence..."
"Foolish naïve child!" Šizra snapped at Twilight again, although this time Twilight managed to stand her ground. "Violence is just violence; its neither good nor evil. When, were, why, and how, those are what makes it good or evil."
"And what of earlier?!" Twilight countered, her anger flaring a bit. "When you tried to kill us over the mistaken belief that we might have coltnapped Spike? Was not that violence 'evil'?"
"In that you are not wrong," Šizra admitted, turning to look away. "In that you are not wrong..."