//------------------------------// // Prologue 2: Communication // Story: My Little Warriors // by DisgruntledBrony //------------------------------// Luna took a sip of her tea. She had planned on going to bed, but after Celestia had taken the girls past the throne, Spike had been left alone. She felt sorry for the small dragon. He had saved the Crystal Empire, a crowning feat for anypony, and then he had watched as an even darker evil tore it asunder. After the group had left him in the medical ward, Luna had offered to keep him company. He happily accepted, and now here they sat. “What is the Princess showing them?” Spike inquired, having already finished his tea. As a dragon, he was resistant to heat, and did not have to wait for it to cool. “That is something I cannot share, Spike. Twilight may choose to share it with you when she returns, but tis not something that should be known by everypony.” “I hope they come back soon. I’ve got the strangest feeling that Twilight’s gonna get hurt or something.” Luna smiled. Spike was merely worried about his surrogate mother. Her eye gave off a slight twitch as she felt Celestia sever the last ward protecting the chamber. “I can tell you, however, that they are currently safe, and have arrived at their destination.” Spike let out a sigh of anxiety. “That makes me feel a little better. I just get so antsy when-” Spike stopped talking, his eyes widening. “When what?” asked Luna, confused as to why Spike had stopped so suddenly. “Do you feel that?” Spike asked Luna could sense nothing but the signal of the crystal, very faint due to its distance in the heart of the mountain. “Feel what?” She asked curiously. Surely he cannot feel the signal from this far. He is much to young…right? “My blood…” He said. “It’s like it’s on fire.” “Perhaps the tea was hotter than you thought?” Luna suggested, a smile pulling at her lips. “No…this is…I’ve…never felt this before…” Spike suddenly jumped up from his seat, shaking the small table and knocking his empty cup to the ground. “Twilight’s in trouble!” A mere second after Spike had spoken, the air around the entire palace shuddered. Shockwave after shockwave rolled across the white towers. A few of the smaller ones could not take the pressure, and collapsed. The guards immediately jumped into action, pegasi already on their way to aid and wounded. Trusting the safety of her subjects to them, she turned to Spike. “It seems you shall get your wish. We are going to see what just happened.” Spike seemed only marginally happier about this. “Do we have to walk the whole way? That would take too long!” “No. Since my sister is there already, I can use her as a target and teleport us there directly” “Then lets go!” Spike ran over to stand beside the princess of the night. With a flash of light, they were gone. The creature landed on the dais. The wings folded back to rest upon its back. As it stepped away from the light of the pit, more of its details could be seen. It was completely hairless. It stood taller than Celestia, horn included. And its eyes. Black slit pupils wreathed in fire, the flames constantly moving as if they were actually burning. These eyes were currently searching the room, staring at the small group of ponies that lay on the ground at its feet. Then it spoke. The voice was not loud, but anger would be heard beneath the baritone sound. What is it angry about? Celestia wondered to herself. The creature spoke no language that she was familiar with. And with her age and political experience, that was a very big deal. The voice spoke again, its eyes moving over each pony in turn. The anger in its voice had diminished slightly, but that did not change the fear that it instilled into the shaking ponies. A flash of light appeared behind the creature. Luna stepped out of the light, Spike by her side. “BEGONE, DEMON!” She shouted in her Royal Canterlot Voice. The small cavern echoed with her shout as she lowered her horn and charged the creature. The pressure holding Celestia down doubled. Luna slammed into the ground, the impact knocking the wind from her lungs. Celestia watched as the creature turned and walked over to her sister. Removing one of its upper limbs from the mare it held in them, it reached down. Celestia tried to say something, to distract the creature, but the pressure now held her head against the ground. She couldn’t open her mouth even if she wanted to. As the limb extended to its full length, the claw at the end turned upward. It appeared to grip something in the air, and then slowly began to raise the limb. Spike rose with it. When Spike was at eye level with the creature, the creature spoke again. This was a new voice. It still sounded deep, but it consisted of guttural growls that a few unknown words could be heard through. Celestia’s eyes widened. She recognized this language, though she had never been able to speak it. Her voice simply could not exude the harshness that the language required. The strange creature was speaking the language of dragons. Spike stared, entranced, as the creature spoke. Dragons were born with the innate ability to speak this language, so Celestia was not surprised when Spike talked back. He gestured at Twilight, still in the creature’s grasp. The creature looked down at the young mare’s body, then spoke to Spike once more. “Everyone, stay calm. He’s going to let you go now. He doesn’t want to hurt anypony.” Now this surprised Celestia. Had the young dragon somehow brokered a deal with the strange creature? A few seconds passed before the pressure began to lift from Celestia’s body. She flared her wings, working her sore joints. Despite Spike’s claim that this unknown monster wanted peace, she was still wary. She lowered her head and prepared to charged. “Spike, translate, please. Release my little pony.” Spike relayed the message. The creature turned to look at Celestia before slowly shaking it’s head. Its turned back and spoke to Spike again. As it opened its mouth, Celestia caught a glimpse of sharp incisors in its mouth. “He says he can’t. Not until he can trust that you won’t attack him. He means her no harm.” Celestia snorted in frustration. She had expected such a reply, and she was in no position to demand it of him. “Very well, then. My name is Celestia. I am the leader of these ponies. Who are you?” Spike repeated the message. At the sound of her name, the creature turned its head and stared at her. Then it spoke in yet another language. "Can you understand me?" The now obviously male voice asked. Celestia nearly fell over. This beastly creature was speaking the language of alicorns. Very few people knew of the existence of this language. The number of people who knew enough to speak it numbered in the single digits. "I can. Who are you?" Ignoring the question, the creature asked, "Why have I been awakened?" Deciding it best to comply with the creature that held her student hostage, she responded. "A never before seen evil has been awakened, and the power you gave off was similar to its. We were trying to harness said power to better defend ourselves." "Then the seal was broken before I awoke..." The creature furrowed his brow. Now that the initial fear of the situation was gone, Celestia examined the being more closely. His skin was pale, though not as pale as her fur. Speaking of fur, he had none. He stood tall on his two legs, with no tail to balance him. His muscles shown through his skin, though she had to strain to see the faint outline. His head was shorter that a ponies, lacking a muzzle, with the nose and mouth separated by a small area of skin. The ears were the only thing that looked remotely normal. They rested on the side of his head, and rose to a small point at the top. The wings...wait, where had the wings gone? She was sure the creature had risen from the pit on a pair of dragon wings... The creature lowered its arm, allowing Spike to touch the ground again. As soon as he was released, the purple dragon ran to hide behind Celestia. She turned her head to watch him, then noticing that the others had moved behind her as well. All except her sister...Who was still on the ground, breathing faintly. Following Celestia's gaze, the creature stared at the still mare. "I apologize. I did what I felt was needed to defend myself. However, I may have overestimated her constitution." The creature turned back to Celestia. "Time is short. She should have the answer to any questions you may have." he said, motioning with his chin to Twilight. "You still have yet to tell us what and who you are." The creature chuckled. "She can better describe to you what I am. As for my name? Call me Zeke. And with that parting name, Twilight's body began to stir. At the same time, Zeke fell backwards, landing hard on his back, the mare held close to his body to protect her.