Chapter Twenty-four:
Link Story: Spike, Shantze, and Light Flicker
They watched as their friends flew away, off to fight a monster that called himself a god. They couldn't go, they weren't allowed to go. At least that's what they were told.
"Well, let's get going." Shantze said after everyone else was far enough off.
"Wait, what?" Spike asks confused. "Where?"
"To Canterlot."
"But we were told we couldn't go."
"Pfft, so what? Just because they said we couldn't doesn't mean we can't. Right Light?" The griffin turned to the orphan girl.
"Well," She started uneasy.
"Oh come one! You can't be serious!" Shantze yelled at his friend. "I bet they'll need us. Hey, I bet they need us right now.
Meanwhile in the sky
"Dammit these things are everywhere!"
"There's too many!"
"We're all going to die!"
The dragon and unicorn looked at one another uneasily. "Okay look," Shantze began. "Grown-ups always say 'not until you're older,' well when will we be older? I say that we show them what we can do!"
"Fine, I'm in." Light said giving in knowing that her friend would only keep ranting. But deep down she too wanted to go.
"I don't know," Spike backed up a little.
"Oh come on Spike," Shantze said moving towards him. "How are you supposed to grow up to be a big, strong dragon if you're afraid? What will happen if something like this happens again when you're older? What if the only one able to protect everyone is you?"
Spike visualized that possibility.
--In Spikes’ mind--
"Spike! Oh Spike help!" Rarity cried out as she looked to the dark sky as a dragon flew overhead for no apparent reason.
"There's nopony to save us!" Rainbow Dash panicked. "What will we do?"
"Wait, who is that?" Twilight pointed to a figure way up on a hill. His masculine not quite musclebound figure leaving a glorious shadow with the sun behind him. His purple scales, glinted with their shine. His spikes from which he gets his name, sharp and dazzling. And his chin, so perfectly chiseled the gods themselves must have crafted it. And the best asset of all, his long flowing mustache.
"It's Spike!" Pinkie Pie calls in glee and a massive cheer could be heard.
He ran down the hill at speeds a cheetah couldn't match and stopped at a giant tree, three times his width. He inhaled deeply, and with the power of a volcano he exhaled green fire, lighting the top of the tree. He sinks his claws into the bark, and with the strength of an Ursa Major he unrooted the flaming tree. He turned back to the sky that the dragon occupied and with one hand he tossed it at the beast. With a crack of thunder the tree hit the dragon and fellsto the earth. Another round of cheers is heard all around as he towers over the townsfolk.
"You're our hero Spike!" Twilight congratulated.
"Oh Spike," Rarity cried over the crowd and jumped into his arms. "You're so brave and masculine. You're the only one for me." She leaned in to kiss her rescuer.
--Reality--
Spike stands there with a gaw-gaw expression on his face.
"Uh, Spike? You okay?" Light Flicker poked him. He snapped out of his trance and shook his head vigorously.
"Okay, I'm in."
"Great!" Shantze said with a grin. "So how do we get there?"
"We could try the train station." Light suggested.
"That won't work." Spike announced. "The train's turned into a steamboat that flies around. We may be able to fly it, but I wouldn't trust it."
"Is there another way?" Shantze asked.
"Mmm, we could try taking the Hiker's Path." He suggests. "There's an old dirt trail that leads up the mountain. It's a long path but it will get us there."
"Any faster roads?" Spike shook his head. "Well, looks like we're hiking. Do you remember the way?"
"Yup, come on." Spike lead the way, running as fast as he could on his stubby legs. Light Flicker and Shantze didn't have trouble keeping up with him. They ran respectable well for ones so young.
"Hey what's that?" Light asked pointing to something falling from the sky. It was thin and reflected when it fell in the right angle with the sun. They ran to where they saw it fall, near the forest's edge, not too far off from where they were. They finally found it, stuck in the ground was a sword. But not a regular double-edged sword most used. It was curved and sharp on only one side. It was polished to a brilliant shine and had a tint of orange in the steel. The guard looked like a coiled snake with its tail in its mouth. Light and Shantze recognized it instantly.
"That's Jesse's!" Shantze says.
"Then why'd it fall from the sky?" Spike asks confused.
"Uh, guys. What's that?" Light Flicker pointed to a large figure falling from the sky. They couldn't tell what it was at first, but Shantze's eyes widened when he saw it.
"That's Jesse! He's on the back of one of those Lesser's!"
"How could you tell from here?" Spike asks only seeing a dot.
"I have eagle vision." He answered. "This isn't good. He's been separated and is without his sword." Shantze flew to the large handle and began tugging at it.
"What are you doing?" Asks the purple dragon scratching his chin.
"We need to return this to him." He said trying to pull the sword out of the ground. Spike and Light joined in and helped pull it out. With their combined strength they managed to wrench it free. "Great," Shantze says flying above the other two and holding on to the sword. "Now all we have to do is find Jesse and return it to him."
Unfortunately for them, a stray Lesser noticed the three and lands with the thud that shook the ground. It had a boar's face, and much like its master, it was made up of a multitude of different other creatures with no pattern. They all shrieked in fear as the beast squealed at them, with a horrid hunger in its eyes. Thanks to their small size they were able to bob and weave around it, all the while screaming.
The pig-faced Lesser towered over all three of them, his shadow loomed overhead. Suddenly, his chest burst forth and a streak of fire and smoke was replaced. The Lesser turned into smoke and drifted off in the wind, floating towards the castle on the mountain. The fireball turned out to be their fire elemental friend Flex, the phoenix. He extinguished the fire that wrapped his body and flew over to see how they were.
He began squawking at them in anger, they were not to leave the town. He stopped his inaudible nagging and motioned to the sword in Shantze's claws. "The sword?" Shantze asks. "It fell from the sky. We saw Jesse fall, and his sword was knocked away from him. So we were going to return it to him."
Flex motioned them to follow him to the forest. They join him, but before they could start their search, a scream echoed through the air. A demon's scream. Six Lessers drop from the sky and surround the children and phoenix. The children screamed once more, scared of the monsters that circled around them. Flex gets in front of the kids, willing to risk his own life for them.
One Lesser could no longer take the suspense any longer and lunged at the kids from the left. Flex tackled it mid flight, knocking the creature over on its side. Another one went for them while Flex was preoccupied. Light Flicker screamed and hugged Shantze tightly for comfort.
But instead of feeling their flesh being torn from them, they hear a whistling sound cut through the air. When they open their eyes they find that the Lesser has an arrow embedded in its forehead. Everyone's attention was on it as it disappears into smoke and drifts off. Three more arrows shot from the forest and hit each of three Lessers in their eyes, killing them instantly.
The other to Lessers became frantic as more of their comrades fall. Before they could defend themselves, a great white pony appeared from the foliage holding a bow and arrow. Only she was different than any pony that has been seen before. From the waist up she looked sort of like Jesse, but with a pony's body.
She lets fly another arrow that striked a Lesser in the neck, killing it instantly. Something jumped from her back. It looked like a blur of red as it rolled off the ground and hid behind the last Lesser, obstructing the view of the children. The Lesser didn't fight back, it never had a chance to. It too disappeared with a knife where it was standing, and holding that knife stood a very beaten human.
"Jesse!" Shantze and Light Flicker cry and run up to him along with Flex. Shantze drops the sword and hugs his chest while Flex perches on his shoulder cooing and Light Flicker holding his leg.
"Hey guys," he said past a weak smile. "Nice seeing you again. Hey Flex, I sort of took a nasty tumble, need a patch up buddy." The phoenix obliged and bathes Jesse in his healing light. His cuts closed, bruises healed, stamina rejuvenated, and all his strength returned. He stretched and released a thankful groan. "That's so much better. I really don't know what I'd do without you pal." The phoenix cawed in excitement and perched back on Jesse's shoulder.
"I'm glad we came as soon as we did," the weird pony creature said. "Any second later and we may have come to a not so pretty sight."
"That's for certain." Jesse replied.
"Jesse, who's she?" Light Flicker asks eyeing her.
"Guys, this is Chex. She's another one of those half-human creatures. She's what you'd call a centaur."
Shantze pulls away from his hug. "Oh, we found your sword." He flew over to where he dropped it and picked it back up. "We were going to return it to you when we saw you fall. We thought you'd need it." Jesse gripped his sword in his right hand. Everyone gave him room as he swung it around, taking comfort in the feeling.
"Thanks kids," he says with a grateful smile. "But could you answer me one question?" His expression soon switched to something darker. "Why the hell aren't you in town?!" He shouted.
"We wanted to come help, we couldn't just sit back and wait for the rest of you to make things better! Not this time!" Shantze said persistently. Before Jesse could send them back to Ponyville, a great number of Lessers crawled out of the forest. Chex readied an arrow while the kids hid behind him.
"There's too many," Chex said trying to pick one to hit first. More Lessers emerged from the tree line and began to slowly close in around them. "We need to get a message for help."
"Great idea," Jesse says sarcastically and igniting his sword. "So how do we do that?" Chex say nothing do to the fact that she has no answer. Jesse looks close at each of the Lessers, then to Flex, and finally Shantze. A poor idea clicks into his head. "Hey Chex, what do you notice about them?"
"That they're all disgusting and seem to be made up of more than one creature?"
"Well yeah, and that they can't fly." He squatted low and pricks off a feather from Shatzes head. He complains how much that hurt while rubbing the spot where Jesse pricked. "Be glad that it was just a prick, you're still in trouble for not listening to us and staying in the town. Flex," he hands the feather to the phoenix. "Take this and no matter what, do not look back."
The phoenix gentle takes the feather in his talon, instantly know what has to be done. Jesse of all knows that Flex is not just a senseless creature like most animals. As fast as his wings could carry him, the phoenix flew to the sky, finding the only one who could help them.
"Kids, I suggest you get as far away from here as you can." Chex called to them as she backed away. "I doubt that we could protect you and fight them off at the same time."
"But-"
"No buts!" Jesse cuts Shantze off. "Just run..." The young griffin boy was about to try and convince his protector to let him stay, but Light Flicker puts a hoof on his shoulder and gives him a teary look and shakes her head. The young child refused the truth that he couldn't help, that he was useless. But after looking at the watery gaze of his friend, he realizes the reality of the consequences if he stays. The three of them ran as fast as their short legs could carry them.
A Lesser chases them and tries making it past the two-man wall. An arrow greats its head let loose by Chex. Another Lesser saw this as an opening and jumps at her, mouth gaping open. It is split down the centre of its body by a crescent flame. "This is just a major pain in the ass." Jesse proclaimed.
Chex nocked back another arrow, readying it for another Lesser to try and attack. "Are things always going to be like this with you?"
"Nope," he says lowering his sword to his side. "Sometimes things get even more interesting than this!" Without warning, he jumped into the swarm of draconequus, a fire in his eyes.