The jaws clamped shut fast, spike pulled his head back into the floor praying his spines wouldn't prop him up. With luck, they slid to the side, allowing his face to drop, letting the closing maw only just catch a single scale of his cheek. Said scale splintered and it's shard flew into the air. Spike had no time to worry though, he knew this creature was obviously gunning for his life!
Suddenly, a tick in the back of the purple dragon's mind came to life, a spark of creativity. Pure instinct!
Obeying the instinct, Spike rolled back, unbalancing the creature that leaned on his chest, snarling and snapping for his throat! As soon as the attacker's feet left the floor, Spike threw his hands up along with his legs, and pushed hard and fast. The momentum of the roll and the force threw the creature off of the startled dragon, and sent him flying overhead into the wall with a deafening crack due to spikes new strength.
Spike sprung to his feet and looked straight to the attacker, and his jaw dropped! It was a dragon! A white dragon with blue spines! It now hung upside-down it's back embedded into the wall, writhing to get free. In the sudden pause of action, Spike rushed to Rarity and scooped her up, never once letting his eyes leave the momentarily subdued enemy. The mare cried out in fear at her sudden involvement in the dire situation, but Spike ignored her cry, and rushed for the door. Soon enough, Rarity was clinging onto Spikes toned chest, terror gripping her every fibre.
"S-SPIKE?! That was a dragon!" Rarity spluttered in horror.
"I know!" Spike grunted as they passed over to the threshold and into the afternoon sun.
From behind there came a blistering shriek, shattering every window of the carousel boutique. The bulbs inside the building all blew with a flash of light. The curtains whipped through the now open holes in the wall as an unbelievable wind rushed past them. Spike cried out as the same wind hit him in the back like a train! The dragon pitched forward, his arms slackening their grip on Rarity's sides, sending the scared mare sailing further forward onto the grass ahead.
"Spike!" She screamed, rushing to her hooves. The dragon was already pushing up, gritting his teeth against the pain in his spine. He needed to get Rarity out of danger! He pulled up one knee to support himself, but almost instantly he felt something snake it's way around his ankle, with a plummeting feeling in his stomach, Spike looked up to the beautiful mare, who had stopped at the site of whatever held his foot.
Spike was scared, he felt the coil tighten, and he knew what was about to happen, his breath shook as he locked gazes with the unicorn and whispered desperately. "Run!" Before the dragon tail that had ensnared him, dragged him back into the now gloomy interior of the boutique!
"SPIKE!" Rarity screamed as the clawed purple hands of her friend vanished into shadow. She stood there a moment, praying to hear something, yet nothing came. Then, a loud slam emitted from the inside that shook the very foundations of the building, only seconds later there came another, and the building seemed to almost teeter on collapse! Rarity wanted to rush in, but fear clung to her legs, denying her movement. Twilight! She needed to get Twilight and the others to help! With newfound hope, she turned and rushed off in the direction of Ponyville town centre, her heart hoping, she could find them in time!
......
Inside the boutique, the white dragon was flinging Spike around like a rag doll, it's tail -though slim like the rest of the dragon- held unbelievable strength! The creature crouched low to the ground, all four limbs hugging the floor like a cougar, while the tail stretched impossibly ahead of the creature and threw Spike from wall to wall.
As the purple dragon was flung into the wall for the third time, he managed to reach out and catch a sturdy piece of wall with his claws. With all his might he pulled himself closer, trying to free himself from the deadly grip on his leg. Through squinting eyes he glanced at the tail, and saw it glimmering with a hew of bright blue, like the spines of the dragon before him! Was that magic?! That would explain the strength of such a puny specimen, even slimmer and smaller than he!
The sight of the magic sparked a reaction inside Spike, the realisation that magic was his best hope! Spike concentrated, still straining as the tail tried to pry him away from the crumbling wall. He tried to find that little tick again, that instinct that had helped him already against this assailant!
When he opened his eyes, they glimmered emerald green through the darkened room. He knew what to do!
Letting go of the wall suddenly he was flung into the air once more, but this time he was prepared. Tucking forward his hands came close to his leg, and the tail that held it! So he grabbed hold of the tail and dug his claws in as hard as possible.
SLAM!
He struck the wall again but ignored the searing pain. His claws were almost penetrating the scaly exterior of the tail, but they almost seemed to be resisting his attempt more than a natural dragon's scales should. Focusing on his claws, Spike willed them to push through, to cause enough pain to free himself. Almost instantly he saw his claws lengthen an inch, ending in far more deadly sharp points! Spike pushed just as he was pulled from the wall for yet another strike to the side of the house! After only a brief moment of resistance, his claws scraped through the gaps between the scales and sunk into the soft flesh below.
The white dragon screeched in pain below. Retracting its tail defensively, therefore releasing the purple dragon who landed roughly on his feet in the centre of the living room. He stared at the creature who's tail returned to the average length for a dragon his size with a glance from the attacker's glowing yellow eyes.
He was using magic!
Spike took his chance and made for the back door, the only exit now available to him! But with only a few steps under his belt, a sinister swoop heralded the white dragon pouncing onto his back. To the frustration of the purple dragon, the assailant grabbed him and hauled him back into the centre of the arena that once was a boutique. Spike saw in his periphery, those jaws gaping open again as the head swung down towards spike's neck. Spike's worry for Rarity, his concern for his own life, and the frustration of being denied escape again, all poured out in one single move from the furious purple dragon.
Spike flung his palms up and caught both jaws of the creature above, he pulled hard, bringing the creature rolling off his back. As the body of the target fell before him, spike leant back and placed his weight into a single kick. The foot connected with the dead centre of the enemy's chest, and with a flash of his green eyes, Spike urged the kick to have more force. His magic obeyed, as the foot pushed, a sudden surge of force added to the kick and sent the white dragon zipping back and through the nearest wall with the sound a sonic blast!
Silence ebbed in slowly, the only sound now was Spike's ragged panting as his stared into the oblivion that was the hole he'd just made in the wall. The faint echoing of crumbling wood and rattling plaster told the dragon that his enemy had been blasted through into the basement steps. Spike smirked with pride, no one messed with the new Spike! The smile was wiped off his face however when he saw two yellow orbs staring back at him from the gloom.
"Uh-oh!" He managed as he took a step back in caution. The eyes narrowed, Spike tensed his muscles, priming himself for more of a fight!
Sure enough, the white dragon burst from the dark hole like a nightmare! It's clawed hands were stretched ahead, seeking a throat to snap! Spike ducked just in time, the monster sailed over his head just as Spike had wanted. Time for some payback! Spike shot his tail up and snagged the ankle of the creature above and with one strained pull, he slammed the other dragon face first into the wooden floor, which splintered and snapped beneath the fallen reptile!
With magic fuelling his drained body, Spike turned. His tail followed, picking up speed as it dragged the dragon around with it.
"Rrrrraaaaaagggggghhhhhhhh!" The purple dragon growled as he flung the white one to the wall that separated them from the sun of the outside. The white and blue dragon's face connected to the wall, the plaster -like the floorboards- splintered and cracked drastically. A second passed, then the wounded attacker began to slide down the wall, revealing a few dust filled sunbeams shooting through the cracks into the dark room. Spike smiled genuinely for the first time since the attack began, the light meant there was life waiting outside! HOPE! All it would take was surviving this white and blue demon!
Said dragon sprang to its feet, catching it's second wind as it caught site of its fellow dragon, the sight of the beast holding its own against him sent his mind into a fiery frenzy! No! Not this easily! With a only a miniscule flash of magic around it's palm, the enraged dragon flung it's hand toward Spike. A ripple, like tapping a glass tank of water, shot forward through the air. Once clear of the hand, the ripple condensed around itself and exploded into a bright blue ball of energy that streamed towards spike with horrifying speed.
He couldn't evade, he couldn't dodge! All Spike could do is wince and brace himself for the contact of the vicious spell!
Outside, Rarity had returned with her re-enforcements. At the forefront of the group was the newly crowned Princess Twilight. Utter horror plastered across her face. What was going on? Rarity had mentioned a dragon attack, and Spike was now fighting it off! HOW?! He was only a baby! From beyond the shattered windows there came the thunderous cacophony of noises of the battle inside. Twilight's heart froze over at the thought of what the dragon must be doing to her little assistant.
A thunderous smash shook the very building to its core, cracks appeared in the wall nearest the group of terrified mares. Had spike made that wall? With his small frail body as the dragon threw him against it?
Twilight couldn't wait, couldn't let her near life long friend die at the hand of this absurd and unprovoked attack! She took a step forward to the boutique, but was stopped by a rushed Cyan hoof.
"Are you crazy Twilight?! You're not going in there alone!" Rainbow Dash assured. "Two grown up dragons isn't a fight you, even with you being a princess, want to get in between!" Twilight frowned.
"'Grown up dragons?' What are you talking about Rainbo-" The explosion came without warning. The roof of the once grand establishment was incinerated by the burst of blue magical energy that burst out towards the sky! The walls were next to go, toppling to the ground like a house of cards! "SPIKE!?" They all screamed.
All danger forgotten, Rainbow took to the sky and rushed towards the now smoking mass that once was the boutique. Close behind her were Twilight, taking to the air as well as the others who followed on the ground.
"SPIIIIIIIKE!" Twilight screamed as she reached the seemingly solid wall of smoke. Her heart was somewhere in the region of her throat, as it thundered loudly, trying to escape and find the assistant itself!
"You in there buddy?" Rainbow cried as she circled round trying to look through the smoke to find the purple dragon.
A sizzling noise as the wood and timber burnt slowly from the blast was all that could be heard. Then, almost as if on cue, a gust of wind blew and sent the smoke loud billowing into the faces of the ponies on the ground. Rarity coughed and spluttered, her eyes stinging wildly as the smoke attacked them. But through the tears and smoke, she didn't dear blink. A moment later, the cloud passed over them, showing the carnage before them.
Were the boutique once stood, now lay a smoking crater. Paper still rained from the sky as all of Rarity's hard work was lost in the heat of the magic and slowly burnt to a crisp on the wind. Mannequins were scattered around them, some with heads missing, some whole but burnt so their white material was nothing more than a pitch black. Shattered glass lay everywhere, ground almost to a fine dust! However, in the centre, two things remained whole and ultimately unharmed.
The adult purple dragon's scales were a darker hue than usual and they glistened brighter, almost like a suite of dark metal armour. His spines were pressed back curving down the back of his skull and pointing to the floor, and his quills clung to his cheeks, almost as though they feared to fall off to the floor. His eyes were closed, but as the ponies watched, three of them aghast at Spike's new appearance, those eyes opened. The irises almost burned green as the slightest vapour of emerald seemed to emanate them and drift away in the breeze.
Spike shrugged and cricked his neck. He had no idea how he was doing all of this! Was his magic simply in tune with his thoughts, no incantation or conscious thought needed. As he shrugged, his scales quivered and ebbed back into their brighter shade of purple, their sheen diming slightly. The dragon guessed that must be the case, because when he embraced for pain, his magic helped him to stop any coming his way! He looked around, he'd heard the cries, and knew what they meant. He spotted Twilight hovering a few feet of the ground, concern obvious in her deep violet eyes, and his heart panged, this wasn't how he'd wanted her to see his new form. Then again it wasn't his fault, he was merely defending himself from this thing!
He glanced back to the white dragon, who was hunched forward, panting angrily, his golden eyes filled with burning hate. His black teeth were bared in a snarl, small snorts of flame even emitted from his open mouth as he panted with such force. Spike glanced back to his friends.
"Be careful!" The white dragon's frills quivered at the words. This dragon was odd, living amongst ponies, he'd even saved one before! And now he was showing genuine concern for these inferior pests?! His golden eyes flashed over the group nearby, all frozen in fear and astonishment. Which one? Which one would be the easiest? His pupils shrank as his vision zoomed in on the most fearful of the six!
Fluttershy!
With a sudden screech, the dragon unfurled wings out of nowhere, their opening shot small flecks of his blue magic into the air. Spike recognised what he was seeing, the flight spell!
The dragon burst into movement like a bullet! It's black teeth ground together as it shot forward through the air, not towards Spike, but to the yellow mare's who's eyes widened in mortal peril as she locked gazes with the violent creature.
"NO!" Spike shouted, the sudden danger bringing life back into his aching limbs. There wasn't that much distance between the two reptiles, but then again there wasn't much distance between them and the group of his friends either! With all his strength, he rushed forward in four bounds, reaching out his right arm for all it was worth. With a final lunge forward, Spike's heart soared as he felt his claws sink into the ridges of the dragon's wing! The monster cried out in pain, it's trajectory thrown off by the sudden weight to its right wing. Spike clenched his teeth and furious anger seeped through him like a poison! Attacking him was once thing, attacking his friends was another, but attacking defenceless little Fluttershy... That was unforgivable!
Spike tugged hard and managed to drag the dragon to ground. The two skidded across the ground, but never once did spike let go! He rolled with the other dragon, grunting and crying out as his assault had meant a tumble roll through the rough terrain that was now the ground. Amidst the rolling, Spike saw the throat of his enemy, tantalisingly close. The rage took hold again, a small part him was horrified how quickly he adjusting to the situation, but it was dwarfed by the rest that only wanted to end this! Spike reached out with his free arm and felt his fingers curl around the scrawny week point!
Their rolling halted suddenly as the white dragon's back slammed into a collapsed beam lying in their path. Spike didn't hesitate, as he came to a halt above it. He swung his still elongated claws back, his face that of pure rage. With a scream he brought it down, the claws ringing as they passed through air.
"Raaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrgggggghhhhhhhhhhhh!" The eyes of the dragon flashed, and they shifted from their golden to a pure sky blue. With that change, it's face did to, from anger to pure terror! IT flinched and brought its hands up to its face is surrender. But Spike hadn't noticed!
"SPIKE NO!" Twilight screamed, her horn flashed and Spike vanished in a purple explosion of light. Another appeared feet away and when the light faded, the teleported dragon collapsed.
The sudden stop of adrenaline meaning the strain hit him like a bus!
In the gloom, the dragon gasped as though he'd not breathed for a millennia! From his position on the floor, propped against the wall of his cavern, he stared at the spot he had seen the purple dragon from above, ready to kill so easily... if only he knew! He smirked, his golden eyes flashing in the light of his treasure trove. Getting to his feet, he swept up a flagon of mead nearby and emptied the entire pint down his throat.
After wiping his mouth and panting still for breathe, he frowned. How had he been ejected from the other dragon's mind? Either he was losing his touch after so much laziness, or the little servant was getting stronger.
Stronger and more obnoxious. It was his job to do whatever his master commanded. Admittedly the master had gotten a little heated during the fight that he had controlled from the safety of his cave, and perhaps the blue and white little darling's survival instinct had finally rejected the foreign mind, but the fight was just so... exquisite! IT had been a long time since anyone could best him while controlling his little slave... This needed the personal touch.
The teeth gleamed in the dark as a set of black wings expanded from the cloak like position they had been in before. He'd need to go there himself and test if he could really defeat this new caster in the world.
"I'd expect nothing less..."