Raging Star

by Kaf_Kraked_Poni


S1: Ep.10 - Breaking Point

The sun baked the earth in a scorching wave of heat, it beat down upon the backs of its two victims as they trudged through the dusty wastelands of Sapphira. To be more precise, our heroes found themselves just along its outskirts, traveling for an undeterminable amount of time. Suddenly, the younger of the travelers stopped, catching the attention of his companion.

“Viololá… Viololá… Viololá, please… I’m hungry,” Raging Star moaned, holding onto his gut.

“How many times have I told you,” she huffed, wiping the sweat from her brow,” we don’t have any food to eat?”

“Use your magic!” the child cried. She growled at him and knocked the boy in the head.

“It’s not that easy! You need energy to use magic, and I don’t have any energy right now!”

“OWW! You had enough energy to hit me just now,” he yelled, grabbing his head.

“You idiot, that hurt me more than it hurt you!” the Unicorn replied, massaging her hand.

“We’re going to die out here,” he said, falling onto his back. He scratched his chest with his tail, and used it to wipe some sweat off of his body. Viololá decided to sit down as well, muttering something to herself while she watched Raging Star. “I still don’t get why you couldn’t save my clothes,” he said then, turning his head towards her.

“I told you,” she started, “your pants got caught on some briars while we were trying to escape. It was either you or your pants, and personally, I thought they were dirty anyways.”

“So you decide to stitch me a skirt?!”

“It’s not a skirt, you brat!” Viololá shouted. “It’s just a temporary covering until I can find some material to make pants out of!” Raging Star groaned again, laying on the floor with his tongue hanging out.

“It reminds me of Satyan Square,” he said. Viololá’s ears perked up. “The heat… the dirt… It’s all too familiar.”

“It must have been hard,” she replied, moving a strand of hair behind her ears.

“It was,” he said, closing his eyes now. “I can’t believe I’m still alive either.”

“I don’t doubt your survival skills,” Viololá chuckled nervously. Anything stupid enough to attack you would agree, she thought.

“How did we escape again?” The inevitable question rang in her ears. “All I remember is you, and being next to somethings really nice and soft.”

“Watch what you say, boy,” Viololá chuckled. She paused for a moment, trying to word the explanation carefully. “A giant monster,” she finally said after a while.

“Huh?” Raging Star sat up. “A monster?”

“A giant monster woke up from the gorge below, and it started attacking Satyan,” she began. “We were able to escape in the confusion, but a rock fell on your head and I had to carry you away.”

“Did… Did it kill him?”

“I don’t know,” Viololá replied. Raging Star smirked.

“Good,” he said, shocking the Unicorn.

“Good?!” Viololá jumped up. “That madman is chasing you down to kill you, and because he’s not dead you think it’s good?”

“Of course I do!” the boy shouted back. “Satyan is my kill. No one else can do it except for me! Not some monster, not some horse-”

Horse?! Viololá was tempted to throw a punch.

“It’ll be me, and only me,” Raging Star finished.

“You are the strangest child I’ve ever met,” she groaned. “Any person in their right mind would do well to stay away from someone like him.”

“I’m not crazy!” the boy yelled. “I just got issues with him.”

“Well, you have issues all right,” she replied.

“Whatever,” he said back, crossing his arms. “Where are we even going?”

“Equestria,” the Unicorn answered. “My home.”

“I don’t want to go to a stupid horse country,” he spat. “I want to go someplace that’ll make me strong enough to kill that dumb cow!”

“Well, Equestria isn’t just some stupid horse country,’” Viololá argued. “There happens to exist two powerful sisters that know a lot about magic.”

“Magic? Two sisters?”

“Ha, not some dumb horse country now, is it?” the Unicorn teased. Raging Star blew a raspberry and crossed his arms again.

“Whatever, like some dumb Unicorns are going to be able to teach me how to fight.”

“Not Unicorns,” Viololá smirked. “Alicorns.”  

“That sounds even stupider,” the boy yawned. Viololá  swung her hand to smack him again, but he successfully ducked under the assault. “Whatever-corns, unless they can help me smash Satyan’s face in, I’m not interested.”

“Really now? Even though when we get there we’ll be greeted with food and proper clothing? I’m sure the princesses can also teach you more powerful magic than I have,” the Unicorn said.

“I told you, I’m not going.”

The mare rose to her hooves and brushed her legs off, growling at the little boy in the dirt. He growled back, firmly stamping his feet on the ground as he also lifted himself up.

“I saved you, remember?” she asked.

“Thanks,” Raging Star began, which caused Viololá to back up some, “but I told you that once we escaped, I would be going someplace else on my own.”

“You stubborn…”

“So, if you really want to help, you can tell me where I can find the strongest race in this world.”

“No can do, boy,” she huffed, grabbing him by the tail. He flinched a little, his knees buckling under the pressure in his fuzzy extension.

“H-hey! S-stop!”

“Wow, that really does weaken you, doesn’t it?” she asked, tugging on it a little more.

“Cut the crap! Let me go!” he groaned, slamming his fist on the ground.

“I can’t really do that, I think you should come with me,” she tried to say again.

“I don’t want to go with you!”

“Why not?!”

“You’re really asking that while pulling on my tail?!” He strained against the grip on his tail, slowly rising from his knees. His face nearly split from the pain, but he fought on, flexing his tail muscles in sporadic intervals. He gave one final push and Viololá was forced to let go, repelled back by a powerful shove. She stumbled, but quickly regained her balance. Raging Star was panting, sweat rolling off of him in cascading buckets. He nearly retched on the floor, but Viololá stopped him.

“That tail is a powerful weakness,” she observed. “No wonder you wrap it around your waist. It’s still a hazard though.”

“Don’t act like you didn’t do anything! I should kill you right now!”

“All I’ll do is grab your tail then,” she scoffed. “I have you right under my thumb now, and I don’t need to physically grab it either.”

“Even more of a reason to leave you,” he sighed, rubbing his tail.

“Listen,” Viololá started again, “I don’t mean to come off as I do, Raging Star. It’s just that I can’t leave you alone out here. It wouldn’t be okay on my conscious.” She smiled at him, but he turned away. “I know you don’t want anyone to go with you, and I understand why you wouldn’t, but I can promise you that if you go with me, it’ll be a lot better than being alone.”

“You’re not my mother, you’re not my parent, you’re not even my species, so I don’t have to listen to you,” he replied. “Stop trying to be nice to me, I know you hate me too.”

“What? Why would I hate you?”

“I can smell it, idiot,” he growled. “I’m not being funny either. I can actually smell the emotions you’re giving off, and a lot of your feelings are of anger and hate. I thought you wanted me to go.”

Viololá dropped her head and rubbed her arm. She walked over to Raging Star and squatted down to his level.

“If you can smell my feelings, then you must know there’s some part of me that doesn’t feel like that--some part of me that feels for you, Raging Star,” she said softly.

“That’s what’s confusing me… you’re all over the place and jumbled up. I can’t trust anything you say,” he told her.

“Fair enough,” she said, standing up again. “I still think it’ll be worth your while to come with me. If anything, the ponies in Equestria could at least help you with your magic. After that, you would be strong enough to face anything that came against you.”

“I can handle myself already,” he rebuttled.

“I think when you see how strong the alicorn sisters are, you’ll want to improve your magic. They’re probably as strong as Satyan,” she teased again. The boy sighed, walking off in the adjacent direction.

“Do what you want, but I’m going this way!” he shouted.

“Seriously?!” Viololá choked, chasing after him after clearing her throat. “I can’t just let you go!” I really can’t let you go because you’d go on a rampage at the sight of a moon… but I can’t tell him that…

“If you can prove to me that I really need you to help me survive, then I’ll go with you to Equestria,” Raging Star told her without stopping.

 “You were the one just asking for food a minute ago!” the Unicorn scolded, rushing over to him. Raging Star removed his shoulder from her grasp and sprung forward, evading another quick grab. As he bounded away, his foot tripped a thin piece of wire resulting in a loud crack from an adjacent rock quarry. A large boulder flew from the quarry spiraling quickly at Raging Star’s head.

“Duck!” Viololá called out, taking cover. Rather than listen to the Unicorn, Raging Star turned on his heels and faced the flying projectile. It crashed into his face, shattering into thousands of smaller fragments. He fell on his back as the shower of rocks piled on top of his flattened body.

“We got one!” A hoarse cry sounded from behind the rock spires. Viololá jerked her head over towards the formations and saw three winged figures leap over the grounded boulders, making their way towards the two.
 
“Dragons,” she muttered.

“The other one is still awake,” a crimson scaled dragon hissed.

“Look at that, it’s a pony,” the one from before, a deep forest green-hued drake chuckled. “It’s been a while since I had pony.” He rubbed his scaly pot belly and licked his lips.

“Enough fooling,” the last dragon hissed, flaring his electric yellow spines. His sky-blue scales reflected the harsh sunlight over Viololá’s body. “Kill her, and then we can eat.”

“Hey, who’s eating without me!?” Raging Star shouted, breaking free from his tomb. The three dragons took off into the air, landing a few feet away from the duo. They stared at the boy, mouths gaped open and  wings stooped low. Viololá sighed, placing a hand over her chest.

“Th-that’s impossible… We hit him square in the head!” the green dragon stammered.

“Maybe you used a clog of dirt instead of a rock,” the blue one hissed at the smaller red reptile.

“I know a rock when I see one, and I loaded the trap with a freakin’ boulder!”

“Hey!” The dragons focused on the small boy. “I heard someone say food!”

“Shut up, kid!” the blue dragon roared. “We were talking about you and your pony friend. You’re both going to be food for us!”

“So, do you still think you can do fine without me?” Viololá asked, rising to her hooves.

“I’ve killed a dragon before… One a lot bigger than these three,” he replied.

“What’s that?” the red one shrieked. “You’ve killed a dragon before? Ha!”

“Real cute kid, but a hatchling can completely overpower a full grown pony,” the blue dragon chuckled. “And you… I don’t know what you are, but whatever it is, it’s no match for our superior race!”

“That’s just like that Terrano guy, he was all talk too, but I showed him!” The three drakes took a step back in unison.

“Stop spewing bull, kid,” the blue dragon growled. The spines over his head and back began to erect higher. “No way a runt like you could even tickle Terrano!”

“He tasted pretty good too,” Raging Star said, sneering at the trio. Viololá placed a hand over her face and shook her head.

“That’s enough!” the green dragon shouted, spitting out a few flames as he spoke. “I won’t have you talk about my kin like that!”
 
“Hey Viololá,” Raging Star said, grinning at the Unicorn. She raised her eyebrow at him and crossed her arms. “I’ll show you that I don’t need you after all. I can hunt all on my own!”

“What do you mean hunt?” she asked.

“Dragon meat is yummy, and I want it in my tummy!” he sang. Shivers ran down the Unicorn’s spine and she gagged a little.

“You’ll be in mine after I’m through with you!” the dragon cried, gliding over to Raging Star. his powerful wings thrust him forward at a blinding speed, forcing Viololá to cover her face from the kicked up debris.

“It’s dangerous here!” she shouted, jumping out of the way. As she landed, four sets of iron bars sprung from the ground and enclosed her in a rusty metal cage. She fell to the floor from the surprise and was quickly detained by an oppressive claw from one of the spaces between the bars. Her face was forced to the floor and her arms and legs bound.

“I know all about Unicorn magic,” the red dragon’s voice came from behind her. You can’t perform spells when you’re bent over like this. How embarassing for you!”

She struggled in his grasp, but he planted his talons firmly over the back of her head and used his free arm to pull on the binds he had wrapped over her. She let out a short gasp and winced in pain. The dragon lifted her up by the bind and forced her to bend over again, but made sure she was able to see the battle unfurl between the tailed boy and the winged beast.

“Kick his ass, Raging Star,” she said into the dirt.


“If you like dragon so much, eat this!” the green brute shouted, swinging his fist at Raging Star’s head. the boy ducked under the attack and lunged forward, tackling the dragon in the gut and pulling both of them onto the floor.

“What?!” the blue dragon hissed, electricity surging up and down his spikes now.

“Just let me tenderize the meat!” Raging Star yelled, throwing his fists into the downed dragon. The reptile blocked and dodged as many hits as he could, but the boy was releasing furious flurry after flurry, wearing down the drake’s defense. The dragon waited for a lull in the barrage and lifted off the ground with his wings, upsetting Raging Star’s balance on him. He grabbed the boy by the hair and slammed his unoccupied fist into the child’s gut.

Raging Star cried out, releasing some fluids before being tossed into the sky. The dragon jumped into the air and kicked upwards at the boy, performing a single flip from his follow-through. He grabbed the boy’s body again and performed several somersaults in the sky. Without stopping a single movement, he chucked the boy to the earth and began his own descent, smashing into Raging Star’s back just as the child crashed into the dirt.

“No!” Viololá shrieked. The red dragon tugged on her binds and she let out a small whimper.

“Dead as a door-huh?” the green dragon started, but was suddenly launched off of the boy’s body.

“Ouch…” Raging Star moaned, rubbing his face and back. “You cheated… flying into the air like that!”

“How are you still moving?!” the green dragon asked, sitting in the dirt. “I stomped right on your spine! Your whole skeletal structure should be liquid right now!”

“You’re not that fat,” Raging Star growled, charging at the vulnerable lizard. “I told you I killed Terrano, so now I’ll kill you!” He jumped into the air and clasped his hands together, balling both of them up and raising his arms high. As he swung down, his attack collided with a different set of scales, and a sharp tingly pain danced all over the child’s body.

“Stop using his name like that,” the blue-scaled drake hissed, flaring his wings and spines to their fullest. Electricity crackled over his body and he released a steady blanket of smoke from his nostrils. “You won’t disrespect dragons anymore!” Raging Star exploded off of the dragon’s defense, twitching occasionally as he stood up.  

“Hey, I wasn’t fighting you!” His body flinched a few more times. As he steadied his breathing, he regained full control over his arms and legs. “You have powers too?”

“I’m a dragon,” the lizard said, spitting out a lightning bolt from his mouth. It struck the ground in front of him, leaving a smoking crater of charred earth as the light vanished. “We all have powers.

“Like it matters,” the boy growled. “I’m still going to smash your snout in!” He charged again, dodging the rain of lightning that poured from the blue dragon’s throat. Just as he was close enough to strike, the lizard roared at the child, summoning a blue sphere to surround himself and his partner. Raging Star crashed into the shield, receiving another barrage of vicious volts throughout his body.

“I like my food fried!” The dragon withdrew his shield and swung his tail around, knocking Raging Star into the stone quarry they had originally sprouted from. “Then again, I don’t like my meat too tough.” The green drake chuckled on the floor, and his blue companion helped him to his feet.

“Raging Star!” Viololá screamed, her arms being pulled back on as she cried out.

“Shut up, you’re next!” the red dragon growled.

“Let’s go check on the boy, make sure he’s dead,” the blue one chuckled.

“Nobody can survive that,” the green one replied. “4,000 volts of pure death!”

“It’s not the voltage,” the other corrected. “It’s the amps! 4,000 volts backed by the 300 natural amperes coursing through my veins. Still, you’re right. No one can survive that.” Both dragons walked over to the crumbling quarry and peered at the smashed rock underneath them. A grin lined their faces at the sight of the child’s hand poking out from under the rubble.

“Kill the pony now,” the blue one said, waving his claw at the crimson dragon by the cage.

“With pleasure,” he chuckled, billowing smoke from his mouth. “I’ll make it just hot enough to singe the fur off of your coat,” he growled into her ear.

All three dragons suddenly turned their heads toward the now trembling pile of rocks. Their eyes opened wide and they circled the quarry in a cautious perimeter, making sure to put enough distance between themselves and the low tremors.

“Impossible,” the blue one choked.

“Wh-what is he?!” the red dragon gasped.

“M-monster!” the green one cried as a fountain of energy exploded from the quarry.

The force shoved the dragons away, clearing the area immediately around the now crouching child. He held his arms out at his sides, exuding a visible flaming aura around his being. Viololá’s cage rattled from the amount of energy that was escaping from the boy. Raging Star furrowed his brow at the three shaking lizards before him, but a smug grin replaced his ill countenance.  

“I told you, I’ve killed a dragon before,” he said, taking a step forward. The three drakes scrambled to their feet and took an offensive stance towards the small monkey.

“It doesn’t matter if you’ve killed Terrano!” the blue one cried, flaring his wings out. His spines erected higher than before, giving off manic sparkles of electricity. The wind current changed, blowing dust in Raging Star’s direction now.  

“We’re the Elemental Brothers, and we’ll still kill you and your friend!” The crimson dragon exposed his front claws and blew out a cloud of black smoke. His scales began to break apart, and steam poured out of his broken skin. The fissures on the surface of his body burned a bright red as his scales deepened in hue. Lava oozed from his mouth, like a hungry predator salivating over his next meal.

“Terrano was a relative of mine,” the green drake hissed. His scales sprouted vines and the dry earth under him moistened. The dragon’s eyes narrowed onto the child as his scales now transformed into a granite coat of armor. A hazy green fog rolled off his lips, littered with tiny yellow spores. “I’ll make you pay if you really did kill him.”

 “You know, you guys are really making me mad!” Raging Star growled. “I’m tired, hungry, and a little annoyed that you tried to kill me. I’ll make sure to end your lives for good!”

“What does he think he’s doing, talking all high and mighty like that?” Viololá gasped. She used her magic to break free from the iron bars. After cutting herself loose, she quickly put some distance between herself and the four bodies in the center of the wasteland. As much as she wanted to get involved (mostly to prove Raging Star wrong about their debate earlier), she knew it was out of her hand.

“He can’t tell friend from foe when he’s like that, hmm?” A deeply aged voice sounded from behind the Unicorn. She jumped, spinning around next to strike her ambusher. Her fist collided with a scaly palm and she let out a small gasp as the reptilian creature laced his fingers over her hand.

“Get off of me!” she cried, pulling her arm away.

“Wait!” the creature cried out, shrinking it’s extended neck into the base of its shell. “I do not wish to fight! I am merely passing through, like you are.”

“Wha-? A Tortoise?” Viololá asked, lowering her stance. The bipedal tortoise chuckled, revealing his head again, this time at a not-so-extringent level. He appeared very well aged in his face, yet his form was as stalwart and full as if he were a young lad. The only exception to this was that he carried an oddly shaped walking stick in his other hand.

“Toh To Ga,” the tortoise said, bowing. “My name.”

“Oh… um… Viololá,” the stunned Unicorn replied. She was gawking at the insane outfit the ancient reptile had on. He was garbed rather unconventionally, sporting loose fitting pants with a sash around his waist, almost reminiscent of Raging Star’s last pair. Over his body hung a large overcoat, decorated in bright colors of all kinds. It wasn’t the flurry of hues that caught Viololá’s attention as much as the intricate pattern woven into the fabric.

“It’s rude to stare,” he said rather bluntly, walking ahead of the speechless Unicorn. “You were just about to watch your friend, weren’t you?”

“He uh… I mean, yeah,” she replied.

“Well then, we’ll get to formalities a little later,” he replied without facing her. “I need to see something about this child. I could feel his presence since you both stepped foot in this part of Sapphira.”

“You can feel-?”

“Didn’t I say we’d forgo the formalities until later?” he scolded. “I think we’d spend our time more wisely by watching the coming events unfold.” He directed the Unicorn’s attention to the four figures staring each other down a few hundred yards away. She remembered then what was going on, and took a position next to the short tortoise.

“Just don’t overdo it,” she whispered, her gaze grazing Raging Star. “And please remember that I’m not your enemy.”

“We’ll see about that,” Toh replied.


“Roll over this kid!” the blue dragon roared, charging Raging Star first. A streak of lightning trailed behind the dragon, charring the ground he tread upon. Before Raging Star could blink, the blue one swung his claws, zipping his arms wildly about and striking the boy’s body with sharp electrical shocks.

The tailed child held his arms up in defense, shielding his face from all the strikes, but exposing his torso. The blue dragon kept his assault up, orbiting around Raging Star at intense speeds.

The green dragon inhaled deeply and brought his right leg up. He smashed it into the ground, launching a colossal chunk of earth into the air. The entire piece rivaled in size to a second story building and spanned as wide as a train boxcar. He grabbed the rock and tossed it higher into the sky. The red dragon flew into the air and inhaled. He spewed his magma breath all over the boulder, setting anything flammable on the earth ablaze and melting it down to a meldable texture.

From below, the lightning dragon caught the sight of the fireball above and halted his barrage. He released another field of electrical energy as a protective sphere and zipped into the sky behind the floating island. The earthen dragon held the rock high with some telekinetic power as the blazing drake continued to douse the floating field. Finally, the lightning dragon rammed into the rock, using his sparks around his field to split it into thousands of red hot coals.

“I present to you,” he started to say,

“Rain of Tartarus!” the other two shouted. The green dragon brought his hands down and the coals fell towards their target below. The lightning dragon zoomed behind each one and gave it a strong tail whip, increasing the rate of their descent.

“That won’t stop me!” Raging Star yelled, releasing more energy from his body. As the meteors fell, he smacked, bashed, and slammed each one out of the way.

“No, no, no, that won’t do,” Toh said, shaking his head.

“What?” Viololá asked, pointing at the child. “He’s pushing back the offense!”

“He’s flailing his arms about and getting lucky,” Toh said rather sternly. “There is no form in his technique, if one would even call it that.”

Raging Star waited for a the last meteor to fly at him and held his arms open wide. The rock landed in his grasp and he swung it around, firing it back at the two dragons in the air. The Lightning one was able to dodge the flying rock, and the magma dragon shattered the boulder as it approached him.

The green drake stomped violently on the ground, causing spires of dirt and rock to shoot out at Raging Star’s feet. He leapt out the way and danced along the ground, edging closer to the pounding lizard with each step.

“Watch out, he’s coming for you!” the two dragons in the air shouted at their stomping partner. The green one quit his shuffle and sprayed his sulfurous mist at the child. Raging Star stopped, and jumped away as the yellow fog latched onto his makeshift covering. The spores ate at his clothes, eventually exposing his lower half to the sneering dragons before him.  

“Oh my…Great…” Viololá sighed, placing her face in her palm.

“At least he’s not shameful about it,” Toh chuckled.

“Look at little winkie here,” the blue dragon guffawed.

“I don’t know what race you are,” the green giant chuckled, “but I’m pretty sure you reproduce asexually. There’s no way you’d screw anyone with that!”

“At least I have something down there,” Raging Star spat back. “And I don’t need to gang up on a little kid like some wimp to prove it.”

“Oh ho, talking smack now?!” the green dragon roared. “I’m gonna sit on you, and then we’ll see if I don’t have anything down there!” He flared his wings and charged at Raging Star, cocking his fist back for a punch. Raging Star bent his knees and waited. The dragon lunged forward, throwing his fist at the small boy.

Raging Star crossed his arms, and took the full force of the green drake’s attack. The ground beneath him split and his body rocked, but he stood firm.

“Is that all you got?” he said, smirking.

“How did you-?” the dragon gasped, but began to tremble.

“Come on, your insults hurt worse than that.”

Raging Star now held the dragon’s wrist in his grip.

“H-hey, let go!” the dragon hissed, struggling in the bind.

“What are you doing! Kill him! He’s just a kid!” the blue one shouted.

“He’s got one heck of a grip!” the dragon cried, using his other claw to pry the child off. Raging Star swiftly held the other wrist in his grasp and began to laugh. His face still held that evil intent and his smile seemed to grow wider as he realized his victim was helpless.

“I don’t know why,” he said, “I don’t know why but it’s making me happy to see you in pain.” Raging Star twisted the dragon’s wrists, and the beast howled into the air.

“Knock it off!” he roared, blowing his mossy breath at the child. Raging Star let go and circled around the chubby lizard. He stomped down on the dragon’s tail, and the beast cried out in pain once more. When the gas had evaporated, Raging Star jumped over the dragon and grabbed his arms yet again.

“What did you say about your arms? ‘Tear them off?’”

“Shut up you-ARGH!” the granite dragon bellowed. Both of his arms flopped to his side, swinging loosely as he stumbled about, crying in pain. Broken chips of stone crumbled to the floor.  

“Sweet Celestia,” Viololá gasped, covering her mouth. Toh watched silently, observing the malicious grin that still lined the boy’s face.  
 
“You know… I’ve wanted to do that to somebody for a long time now,” Raging Star said. “Good thing you guys came here. Now I can vent a little!”

“Sonofa…” the red dragon muttered, gazing at his partner below.

“I’ll kill him!” the blue one cried, flying down in a streak of light. He appeared before Raging Star as fast as lightning and began scratching at the boy. Raging Star pulled up his arms in defense again and ignored the stinging that was circulating throughout his body. The electricity hurt, but for some reason that was only making him feel better.

“Stop playing around and kill me then!” he shouted, breaking the dragon’s combo with his voice. In the moment that it took for the blue one to regain his balance, Raging Star and already latched onto his arm and pulled him close. With his free hand, pumped his arm through the lizard’s torso. “Nevermind, looks like I got to you first.”

“Outrageous,” Toh To Ga scoffed. “He must be some kind of animal to mercilessly attack his opponent like that!”

“He’s lost it,” Viololá muttered. “He nearly snapped my neck the last time he was like this…”

“So you knew about this boy’s rage?”

“It’s… not new to me,” she replied. “I knew he had some pent up anger… but this is something else entirely. It’s like… he’s getting off on causing them pain.” She winced as Raging Star retracted his arm. The dragon coughed up blood and stumbled back, holding his gut. Raging Star flicked his wrist, spraying the blood on the ground.

“One punch… All I needed was one punch and I might’ve been able to take him…”

“Y-you… Damn you… Damn,” the blue one coughed. His electric fervor died and his spines drooped.

“You see!” Raging Star shouted, “all I needed was one punch! But he got to me first!”

“What are you talking about!” the blue one cried, walking back towards his disarmed partner. “You’re crazy!”

“Just one punch! Like this!” Raging Star burst forward, surprising the two stunned dragons. He smashed his fist into the stone dragon, shattering the chubby drake’s chest. His scales returned to their original green tint and he fell on the floor, laying face down and on top of his broken arms.

“AUUUGH! It hurts! Get me up!”

“Bastard!” the blue dragon choked, falling to his knees. Blood now lined his entire hand and streamed steadily down his body. He felt weak, and his vision began to fade.

“Here, let me help,” Raging Star said, holding his palm out towards the dragon. “My friend taught me this.” A ball of green energy formed in the child’s palm. It grew larger and larger, dangerously exceeding a controllable size.

“You taught him that?!” Toh To Ga yelled.

“No!” Viololá’s voice cracked. “I only taught him how to draw out his magic!”

“He’s not stopping… He doesn’t have control over his chi!” Toh To Ga grabbed the Unicorn’s hand and pulled her away. “We don’t want to be around when he releases that!” She followed him, turning her head back to try and catch a glimpse of Raging Star.

He’s more dangerous than I thought… I have to warn the princesses more than ever now!

“Let’s get out of here!” the red dragon panicked, flying away.

“Don’t leave us!” the green one sobbed.

“Get… back… here!” the blue one coughed. Raging Star looked up and smirked.

“Actually, he’ll be the first to leave,” he chuckled, swinging his arm around and upwards. “Time to die!” Raging Star released the magic blast, his feet digging into the earth and tearing up the ground from the recoil. The energy wave pursued its target like a mad demon, eventually catching up to the red drake.

“NOOOO!” the dragon yelled, flipping around and holding his arms out. He tried to catch the blast, but was instantly vaporized, exploding into a giant cloud of dust in the air.

“That should’ve been Satyan…” the boy growled, his grin disappearing. “That should’ve been Mr. Satyan in that blast… but instead, it was a stupid, smelly DRAGON!!!” Raging Star’s energy spiked once more and he rushed over to the blue lizard.

He grabbed the creature by the bottom jaw and squeezed. The dragon’s jaw broke and he threw both of his hands together. Another blast charged in his palms and he fired it point blank, leaving nothing but a scorched mark in the dirt.

“Get on with it,” the last dragon said. “Just end it already!”

“If you’re in such a hurry to die,” the child replied, cocking his head to the side.

“That’ll be enough, boy,” Toh To Ga entered from the side. Raging Star turned his head and growled at the ancient tortoise. He furrowed his brow at Viololá, who flinched.

“There’s that hate again,” he said to her. She swallowed, trembling some.

“Leave your opponent. You’ve clearly proven that you’re the better fighter.” Toh slammed his staff on the floor. “He’s in no shape to defend himself.”

“Like I care about that!” the boy shouted, facing the tortoise fully. “If you want to die too, just keep talking!”

“It would be a million years too early for you to even fight me, let alone kill me.”

“Is that a challenge?!”

“Raging Star, calm down, please,” Viololá pleaded. “You’ve proven yourself… You don’t need to continue.”

“Ha! You think I’m doing this to prove something?!” The boy laughed. “I’m doing this because it’s fun. I’d destroy this whole planet if I had the power to!” The Unicorn did not reply. She looked towards the stoic tortoise and backed away, accepting the inevitable conclusion to this confrontation.

“Your chi is all over the place,” Toh To Ga said. “You’ll kill yourself if you keep letting it all out like that.”

“Shut up!” Raging Star formed two spiraling orbs in his outstretched fists. “That’s it… I’ve had it with everything! I’ll tear this whole place apart!”

“What’s wrong with you!” Viololá shouted. Raging Star increased his magic and brought his fists close to his side. The spiraling orbs began to glitter with a starry overtone. The magic danced around his fingers like a weaving snake. “No, not that, Raging Star, don’t use the Ursara Minor!”

“Then you shouldn’t have shown me how,” he chuckled.

“I’ve had enough of this,” Toh To Ga interjected, tossing his staff on the floor. He shuffled over to the boy and held his hands behind his shell. Toh peered at the incapacitated dragon and helped him to his feet. “I suggest you leave.”

The drake obeyed, flying off as fast as he could. Raging Star’s eyes darted in the dragon’s direction and he took off, chasing the lizard. Toh To Ga stepped in, blocking Raging Star’s path.

“Okay… you get to die now,” the boy fumed, charging at the old tortoise. “Ursara…!”

“You won’t get too far,” Toh said, shifting his body to the right. His right foot slid outwards, and he raised his right hand up, facing an open palm at the child. His left arm rested gently by his side, and he planted his left foot firmly into the ground.

Raging Star tossed his first punch. “Minor!” the boy shouted, swinging his energy filled fist at the tortoise. Toh To Ga flicked his right wrist, bringing it down so that Raging Star’s hand would glide right over it. With the next flick, he pushed the boy’s attack off course and brought his left hand up, palm open once again to strike the child in the throat. Immediately, the energy in both of his hands vanished, and he lost control of his body.

Toh’s body fluidly transitioned from a right stance into a forward horse-stance. His left hand clamped over Raging Star’s neck and his right arm hung loosely by his side just as his left had moments before. He shifted his footing so that he was completely inverted from his last position, bringing his left arm down as he slid his right foot back.

Within seconds, Raging Star was pinned on the ground, with the tortoise holding a grip over the back of his neck.

“Calm down,” he said, raising his right index claw and touching Raging Star’s forehead. The child struggled at first, but began to relax. Toh To Ga replaced his index claw with his whole hand and murmured something in a low voice. An orange glow lit up the space between the old tortoise’s palm and Raging Star’s head. The boy halted all movement, and laid there, breathing quietly.

“You could’ve reached for his tail,” Viololá chimed in after a moment. Toh To Ga looked over to her and smiled.

“I did not want to harm him, just calm him down.”

“You… you can let go!” Raging Star said, huffing and puffing.

“I believe I can,” the tortoise chuckled. “I’ve quelled your hate, for the moment anyway.”

“Hmph, kill joy,” the boy bit, picking himself off of the floor. “The heck happened to my skirt?”

“It wasn’t a skirt!” Viololá shouted.

“You do not remember what just happened?” The Tortoise squinted at the boy.

“I remember it all,” he replied. “I just wish it all didn’t happen so fast… or happen in a red blur anyway.”

“Most interesting,” the old reptile mused. “I’m actually surprised to see you’re still standing as well.”

“Why is that?”

“Because I’ve sapped nearly all of your energy.”

“You… What?!” Raging Star flinched. The pain from the battle began to kick in and he suddenly was overpowered by fatigue.

“A little late, but I suspected as much,” Toh To Ga said, grinning.

“Damn you… stupid turtle…” The boy collapsed.

“Tortoise,” the reptile corrected.