//------------------------------// // Chapter 32 // Story: A New Dragon in Ponyville // by Vedues //------------------------------// “Fluttershy, give her to me!” Fire Eyes grabbed the young dragoness and pulled her to her chest, ignoring the animalistic growls she was making. “Whisper, listen to me!” Fire Claws knelt down next to the pair. “You don't have to leave your friends. We'll stay here! You aren't going to lose anything! It's okay! Everything is okay!” They were all pouring as many feelings of selflessness and gratitude into the hatchling as they could, but greed was different than other emotions. It was like a fire that consumed everything in its path. Magic couldn't suppress it. Outside emotions could only slow it down. Even the Stillness was nearly useless once true greed took hold. Cliff was at her other side, pleading with every star in heaven for a way to save Whisper. “What's going on?” Autumn asked, her voice heavy with concern. “...Greed growth,” Burning Torch replied. “You should all,” he choked down a sob, “stay away from her.” “I won't leave my friends,” Whisper growled. Her voice was growing deeper. “You can't make me!” Friends, Cliff latched onto that word, sending it through the link. She needs her friends! It didn't always work, but a berserk dragon could sometimes be reverted by giving them the object that they were focused on. The more she was consumed by greed, however, the lower the chance of success. “We need the other Crusaders. Fast,” Burning Torch announced. “Where are they?” Applejack glanced at Whisper, who had more than doubled in size, and was biting her sister's arm in an attempt to get away. The farm mare shook her head. “Nuh uh, ah don't want AB anywhere near here!” “I'm afraid I must agree,” Rarity said. “They might change her back!” Cliff shouted. “Cliff,” Rainbow began, obviously torn, “isn't there something else we can do?” I don't know how much longer I can hold her! Fire Eyes stared pleadingly at her oldest friend. We only have a minute or two before she's gone completely! There was only time to make a snap decision, but that was all they needed. The coven turned to Cliff, knowing that this choice would betray the trust of their closest pony allies. It was unthinkable, but Whisper would die if they didn't. Go. Cliff shot out of the palace window as fast as he could. Behind him, he heard surprised shouts, and a pair of feathered wings taking off in pursuit. “Wait, don't do this!” Rainbow Dash went after you. Be careful! Under normal circumstances, Cliff wouldn't have had a chance against the blue pegasus in a race. Her top speed was double his own, her reaction time was incredible, and she could somehow pull off ninety degree turns without slowing down. However, dragon magic was powered in part by emotions, and the young dragon was currently linked as one in a group of four extremely emotional wyrms. A continuous stream of Speed Bursts took him to Sweet Apple Acres before he even touched the ground. He spotted the Crusader's clubhouse, and released another blast of energy to shoot towards it. Momentum Transfer brought him to a complete stop at the front door. It also sent out a powerful burst of air, shattering the tree-house's windows, and shaking the entire structure. Cliff opened the door to see three shocked fillies. “No time to explain,” he said, mindful that Rainbow Dash would only be seconds behind him. “Whisper is in trouble. Will you please help her?” He knelt down and opened his arms. Apple Bloom, Sweetie Belle, and Scootaloo must have sensed his urgency, because they ran to him almost immediately. The earth pony voiced all of their thoughts with a simple, “let's go, then!” A modified version of Spider Climb firmly held the three fillies on his back. Aided by the link, Cliff activated an especially taxing spell; Momentum Bubble. As long as the Crusaders remained in place, they would be protected against the intense g-forces that came with high speed movement. Rainbow Dash was almost on them. Her slower acceleration had given Cliff the time he needed, but the young dragon could just make out a mach cone shrinking to a point around her. He jumped out of the tree-house just as a multicolored explosion rocked the area. Mach ten. Cliff grimaced as he forced his way through the shock-wave. I max out at four point eight. He went invisible, hoping to throw her off. They were at the edge of the orchard when the young dragon's invisibility wore off. His instincts screamed at him to dodge. Momentum Redirection shot him to the right, just as a rainbow-patterned blur flew past. She immediately angled back, her mouth moving as she shouted something. The words reached them just after Cliff dodged her next charge. “Scoots, you and the others need to get away from him!” Unfortunately, he was moving too fast to hear how the Crusaders were reacting, or for them to hear his reassurances. It didn't matter in any case, because dodging the blue pegasus required his full concentration. Momentum Redirection let him instantly change directions with no loss of speed, and his surged Reflexes spell combined with wyrm instincts made him just slightly more agile than Rainbow Dash, but she was still much, much faster than him. They dodged and jumped, twisted and dived, like a crazed version of tag. Cliff's invisibility and rudimentary skill with illusions let him break away a few times, but he couldn't maintain either for very long, and as a pegasus, Rainbow's eyesight was powerful enough that she always caught onto the ruse before he could get very far. All the while, precious seconds were ticking away. Cliff had no choice. He turned to face his pursuer, and readied a spell that might shatter his bones. Rainbow Dash hit, and Cliff surged Momentum Transfer, absorbing as much of her speed as he could. The result shot him high into the sky, nearly soaring over Ponyville completely before he could disperse enough momentum into the air around him to regain control. He angled his flight towards the palace and moved the Crusaders to his chest, curling around them protectively before crashing through one of the windows. “Go to her,” Cliff whispered, stumbling to his feet so he could throw a shield over the windowsill. The living room looked like a war zone. Twilight, Spike, Autumn, Rarity, and Applejack were blocked off by a combination anti-magic field and shield. Applejack and Rarity screamed at their little sisters to run away. Twilight and Spike looked hurt, betrayed, and utterly shocked. Autumn was hyperventilating from the furious storm of emotions raging around her. Fluttershy was at the other side of the room, huddled in the corner. Her eyes were filled with the same kind of fear as when she first saw Cliff. It broke the young dragon's heart to see her like that. Burning Torch and Fire Claws were standing perfectly still, their eyes closed as they poured everything they had into strengthening Cliff's spells and keeping the Princess contained. Fire Eyes was trying to hold onto Whisper, who was now even larger than she was. The white dragoness's scales were stained with red from the wounds her sister had inflicted. The three fillies would have been entirely justified in fleeing as quickly as possible, but they didn't. Instead, they ran to Written Whisper, hug/tackling her like they so often did to Cliff. “Wow, Whisper. Calm down!” Scootaloo said. “How'd ya get so big, anyway?” Apple Bloom asked. “Is it a growth spurt like what happened to Spike?” “Did you get in trouble for what happened to Diamond Tiara? She totally deserved it the way she's been acting lately.” Sweetie Belle smiled sympathetically. Rainbow smashed into Cliff's shield, shattering it and stunning them both as they collapsed in a tangle of limbs, but none of Crusaders seemed to notice. Whisper had frozen completely when her friends arrived. She looked down at them, clutching at her legs and chest, and tears began to form in her eyes. Suddenly she was a normal sized hatchling, weeping freely as the four of them embraced. “I-I couldn't leave you,” she whispered. “Now why'd ya think ya were gonna hafta leave us?” Apple Bloom asked. “Yeah, us Cutie-mark Crusaders gotta stick together,” Scootaloo said. “What happened anyway?” Sweetie looked up from their group hug. “Why is everypony so tense?” Cliff gingerly climbed to his feet and extended a claw to Rainbow Dash. The two exchanged a long, sad look before she took it. Taking that as a sign, the older dragons dropped their spells, and all of them, including Cliff sank to the floor, clawed hands raised in surrender. “You may now punish us as you see fit, Princess Twilight,” Fire Claws said. “None of us will resist.” The alicorn looked around her in disbelief. “What?” “Wait, punish?” Scootaloo looked at Rainbow Dash. “Did they do something wrong?” “Yes,” Fire Claws said gently. “It's okay. Don't let it trouble you.” She turned to the alicorn princess. “Just promise that you'll take care of Whisper, like you've done with Spike.” Since Twilight seemed incapable of words, Applejack stepped forward. “Is... she safe now?” Burning Torch nodded. “Yes.” “Okay then.” The farm mare walked over to Cliff and gave him a long look before she spoke. “Ah don't know if ah'll ever be able ta forgive ya for puttin' mah sister in danger, Cliff.” She sighed and shook her head. “But ah think ah understand why ya did it.” “Perhaps an explanation is in order.” Rarity stepped around Spike, who was still frozen in shock. “You all seem to acknowledge that you did something most unbecoming. I would like to know why.” “There wasn't time to argue, or explain, I'm afraid,” Burning Torch said. “We only had one minute, maybe two, before Whisper transformed completely. If we could give her the focus for her greed before that, there was a fifty-three percent chance that she would return to normal. If we waited until after, the chance dropped to thirteen percent.” While Burning Torch explained their reasons, Cliff's gaze moved to Fluttershy. She was sobbing into Autumn's chest as the crystal mare rocked her back and forth. Sensing her grandson's desire, Fire Claws sent him what the yellow pegasus was feeling. Guilt. Anger. Sadness. Most of all, fear. All of them terrified her, especially Cliff. She was easily twice as frightened of him as any of the others. “Princess Twilight?” Cliff cut the others off. “Please allow me to wait at the Dragon House until you decide our punishment.” He couldn't stay here any longer. For a moment, it looked like Twilight was going to refuse, but then she followed his gaze to Fluttershy, and her expression softened. “I understand, but please wait for a moment.” She turned to her friends. “Do any of you want to press charges?” “What did you have in mind if our sisters weren't able to help?” Rarity asked. “A shield to protect them.” Fire Claws looked down and blinked away tears. “Then... slit the berserker's throat before it could kill anypony.” The Crusaders immediately began asking what berserker the adults were talking about, except for Whisper, who curled into a tiny ball, shivering slightly. “Then I suppose you made the best choice you could, given the circumstances. I shan't press charges.” She gathered the four Crusaders in her magic. “Come, let's play upstairs, away from all this dreadfulness.” As soon as she was out of sight, Rainbow smacked Cliff across the face. Hard. “That's for making me choose between my friends!” Then she hugged him. Also hard. “Don't ever make me do that again, you jerk.” “I'm sorry,” was all he could offer her. “You'd better be.” She furiously rubbed a tear away as she turned to Twilight. “I'll talk to Scoots' parents. Trust me, they'll understand.” All eyes turned to Applejack. The farm mare shook her head sadly. “Ah woulda done the same thing if AB was in trouble.” Twilight nodded. “Then as a princess of Equestria, I decree that you shall not be punished. However, the next time you use brute force to get your way, I'm afraid I won't have any choice but to do something more severe.” “We understand,” Fire Claws said, “and since it looks like we can't risk leaving anytime soon, we need to figure out what we're going to do next.” Fire Eyes, who had been wrapped in the Stillness the entire time, severed her link and left without a word. Cliff was about to go as well when Twilight place a hoof on his shoulder. She nodded her head towards Fluttershy, who was still sobbing. “Maybe, you should talk to her first.” The young dragon's only response was to reach out and join his heart to Twilight's. First the coven let her feel Fluttershy's immense terror, especially towards Cliff, then he shared his own unbearable heartbreak and regret that things had worked out this way. Twilight could only weep softly as he too left without a word. -_-_-_-_-_- Walking through the streets of Ponyville, accompanied by two guards, Cliff did his best not to think or feel anything. Strangely, the occasional pony shouting at him seemed to help. His grandparents were still there in the link. Their love and concern was all that kept him moving at times. A couple of ponies asked what in Equestria he and Rainbow Dash had been doing earlier. The young dragon simply ignored them and continued on his way. The Dragon House was empty when he arrived there. Cliff worried about Fire Eyes, but couldn't muster the energy to go looking for her. Instead, he buried himself in the communal nest and let the warm emotions from Fire Claws and Burning Torch lull him to sleep. -_-_-_-_-_- It was late afternoon when Cliff regained consciousness. He was alone, in body and heart. His grandparents must have cut the link while he slept. Not that he could blame them. Maintaining a link became more difficult as the members moved further apart. Fluttershy is more scared of me now than she was when we first met. He let the thought come slowly, feeling it out in his mind. Was it worth it? Images of Whisper, alive and happy, flashed through his mind. …I don't know. He got up. A hollow pain in his stomach reminded Cliff that he hadn't eaten since breakfast. With a sigh, the young dragon went to the kitchen and ate some leftover chicken from the fridge. He couldn't stop thinking about Fluttershy. Should I go see her? What if she's still afraid of me? It's not like I could blame her. We did betray her trust and attack her friends. He snapped a chicken bone with his teeth. Spike and Twilight were hurt too. I don't think Spike even said anything to us after things calmed down. Then there's Fire Eyes. She must have been seriously traumatized to nearly lose her sister like that, especially after everything this town has put her through. Full, but in no way satisfied, Cliff set out for the palace. He had a lot of relationships that needed mending, and family seemed like a good place to start. Spike and Twilight were in the living room, along with Fire Claws and Burning Torch. They all looked up from where they were sitting when Cliff walked in. “Hi,” he said awkwardly. Twilight smiled softly. “Hello, Cliff.” Spike nodded. “Hey.” “I just wanted to tell you both that I feel horrible about what we were forced to do earlier, and I hope that you'll let me try to earn back your trust.” He bowed and held it. “Cliff, get up.” Twilight lifted him back to a standing position with her magic. “I meant it when I said that you're like another brother to me, and I think my friends and I are as responsible for what happened as you are.” She approached the young dragon and gave him a hug. “So I'll forgive you if you can forgive me.” A smile touched his lips. “Thank you.” He squeezed back before releasing her. It hadn't escaped his notice, however, that his younger brother had remained silent. “What about you, Spike? How do you feel?” “...Ugh.” The younger dragon looked at him from his spot on the couch. “Four words, Cliff: We'll. Protect. Your. Sisters. I get that you were attacked not too long ago, and ponies in general haven't done much to earn your trust, but if you had just taken a few seconds to tell everypony that you'd keep the Crusaders safe, then none of this would have happened! You probably would have made it back faster without having to dodge Rainbow Dash the whole way.” Fire Claws nodded glumly. “Don't worry, Cliff. He's been giving us the same speech for the last three hours. He isn't actually mad, just frustrated.” “You can say that again,” Spike muttered. “Look... just try to think a bit before you act.” “I'll do my best.” The younger dragon took a deep breath. “Okay. One last thing, stop thinking about all this in terms of 'us' and 'them.' Twilight and I both know all the basics of linking. We could have helped keep Whisper under control until you got back. The fact that you didn't ask means that, on some level, you don't really think of us as coven-mates. Even worse, you registered us as potential enemies, and took preemptive action against us.” He got off the couch and approached his brother. “No alliance, or relationship, is going to work if you always act like that when all the cards are down.” His words stung, because they were true. There wasn't any reason or explanation he could offer that would change that. “...I understand, and I'm sorry.” In a strange reversal of normal, Spike reached out and tousled Cliff's head spikes. “I know that you love me, bro, but try trusting me, okay? Not my skills, just me.” “Okay.” Cliff forced a smile. “I promise that I will.” “Good, then we can move on.” Spike gave him a hug. “So who're you going to apologize to next?” “Fluttershy, if she wants to see me.” “Actually, Cliff,” Fire Claws said, “she's upstairs with Autumn, Rarity, and the Crusaders, but it would probably be for the best if you didn't go see her right now.” Sensing her grandson's dismay, she quickly added, “it isn't what you think. What happened earlier reawakened her phobia of dragons. Just seeing us scares her right now, and that's overwhelming her with guilt. Autumn is finally getting her to realize that she isn't a bad pony for being afraid, but seeing you... it would probably make her feel worse than the rest of us combined.” There was really nothing Cliff could say to that. His fiance would be terrified at the sight of him, and hate herself for feeling that way, and it was his own fault for rushing ahead without taking a few seconds to explain himself to her friends. “...I understand. Could you just... ask Autumn to pass along a message?” His grandmother nodded. “Tell her that I love her, and not to blame herself for things she can't control.” “...Autumn just told her.” Fire Claws smiled sadly. “I think it helped.” “I hope so.” Cliff sighed. “I guess I'll go find Fire Eyes now.” “Wait, Cliff,” Burning Torch called after him. The young dragon turned back. “What is it, Grandpa?” “It seems some good has come from all this. We've been talking about it, and Twilight believes she may have found a way to reverse the berserker transformation.” “Really?” He turned to the alicorn. “How?” Berserkers were immune to emotion control magic. Twilight grinned. “There's a memory spell I can use to let subjects relive certain events in their lives. If I hone in on memories of charity and selflessness, it should be enough to snap a dragon out of its frenzy.” Cliff could barely believe it. “H-how difficult is that spell to cast?” “Most unicorns could learn it with enough effort,” the alicorn frowned slightly, “but the target does need to be held still for a few seconds.” “It's not a perfect solution,” Burning Torch said, “but it's still better than we could have hoped for.” Cliff had to agree. Restraining a more powerful berserker was nearly impossible, but weaker ones, like when a hatchling transformed, could be managed. Countless lives could be saved because of this! He actually managed a real smile, in spite of everything that had happened. “Thanks for telling me. Hopefully I'll be back in time to help with dinner.” “If you find Fire Eyes,” his grandmother said, “could you tell her? I know this will help her feel better.” He nodded. “Will do.” -_-_-_-_-_- Finding his old friend was more difficult than Cliff had expected. She wasn't at the Dragon House, so he dismissed his guards and went to their training grounds in the Everfree Forest. When he didn't find her there either, he could only sigh and continue combing the forest. Hours passed, and he was nearly ready to give up when a flash of white on the hills caught his eye. Fire Eyes was sitting alone on a rocky outcrop, staring out at the horizon, where a sunset would be in another few minutes. She barely even blinked as he came up to her. “Hey, Eyes,” he said gently. “I've been looking for you.” “...Can't see why you'd bother.” She continued to stare into the distance. “Probably because you're my best friend, and have been since before I can remember.” Cliff settled down next to her. The world was slowly fading to gold and red around them. “You don't need me anymore,” she sighed. “Nodragon does.” “What?” He looked at his friend in shock. “Why would you even say that?!” He tried to form a link with her, but she pushed it away. “Not now, Cliff. I feel like enough of a loser without dragging you down too.” “I'm trying to help because I care.” He tried to put an arm around her, but she shrugged that off too. “Don't you get it?!” Fire Eyes was suddenly on her feet. “I haven't helped anydragon since I got here, but you've all been helping me! I'm not contributing anything to this coven!” The ferocity in her voice stunned Cliff for a moment. “Yes you are. You're teaching Spike and Twilight how to use magic and how to fight, you helped us with that drake-” A bitter laugh cut him off. “We both know that the coven could have handled all of that without me. All I gave them was a 'bad dragon' for the newspapers to attack for a few months. Face it, Cliff. I'm a failure here. I haven't made any friends, I don-” “What about Rainbow Dash?” “I barely see her anymore. She's too busy with her job and her friends.” The white dragoness paused and stared at the horizon again before flopping down next to Cliff. “I can deal with ponies giving me crap everywhere I go. I can deal with having no job and being forced to sit around the house, doing chores I hate. I can even deal with having all of Equestria think I'm a monster. The one thing I can't deal with, though, is what happened today.” She sighed. “I couldn't help Whisper at all.” “None of us could.” “I should have been able to! I'm her sister, by the stars!” The energy went out of her, and she slumped against her companion. “...In the end, what she needed wasn't me. It never was me. It was these ponies.” “Whisper needs you too,” Cliff assured her. “She just forgot it for a moment.” Fire Eyes shook her head. “That's a nice lie, Cliff, but let's face facts. None of you need me around.” She closed her eyes. Unable to think of a response, the young dragon put a clawed hand over one of hers, and gripped it tightly. She squeezed back with a surprising amount of strength. After a few moments of silence, Fire Eyes whispered, “I'd give anything to feel useful again.” Cliff stared at the town in the distance, wondering how things had come to this. Suddenly, his friend began to tighten her grip on his claws. “...Uh, Fire Eyes?” he said when it reached the point of being legitimately painful. The dragoness didn't respond. Instead, she snarled fiercely and let out a roar that must have been heard back in Ponyville. Her body shook violently as she did so. “Fire Eyes!” Cliff wrenched his hand away. “Snap out of it!” He recognized the signs. He didn't know how he had missed seeing them earlier. A sudden palm-strike sent the young dragon hurtling backwards. He rolled to his feet at the bottom of the hill. Looking up, his worst fears were confirmed. Fire Eyes was more than four times her normal size, and growing quickly. “Don't do this to me!” Cliff shouted in desperation. “I almost lost Whisper today. I can't lose you now!” “You won't need me as long as you have them!” the berserker roared back. As soon as the words left her mouth, the beast more than doubled in size. “If I get rid of them, you'll need me again!” Oh no... was all Cliff could think. He ran between her and the town. “Fire Eyes, this isn't you! Stop, please!” The berserker released a shock-wave, demolishing the hill she was on, and forcing the young dragon to shoot away. “Make me,” she growled. -_-_-_-_-_- Cliff crashed through a window into the living room, fighting down his rising panic. Twilight, Spike, and his grandparents were there, and surprisingly, so were Rainbow Dash and Autumn. “Whoa, Cliff!” Rainbow jumped. “You scared me. Look, there's a berserker out in the Everfree Fores-” “It's Fire Eyes.” He gasped for breath. “Rank six.” While the others reacted with shock, Fire Claws immediately snapped a link into place for herself, her husband, and Cliff. After a moment's hesitation, she extended it to Spike and Twilight as well. Speak the details, she commanded. We all need to hear this. “Listen!” Cliff cut off the other chatter. He took a deep breath before pressing forward. “She retained some intelligence, she can still use a few spells by instinct, and she's angry at Ponyville in general. If we don't stop her, she'll level the town.” The three more experienced members of the link started moving instantly. Burning Torch grabbed Rainbow Dash and told her to get Celestia as fast as she possibly could. Fire Claws told Autumn to gather the other Element Bearers and start evacuating the town. Cliff confronted Spike and Twilight. A roar echoed in the distance. “Twilight, can you use that memory spell if Fire Eyes is unconscious?” “What?” She had been trying to keep up with the rapid, emotion-based discussion of the others. “I, yes. It would be like a vivid dream, but should have the same effect. Isn't a rank six berserker-” “Extremely rare, and with an estimated power of three hundred forty-three, yes.” For a berserk wyrm to retain any amount of intelligence, or spell-casting, or to have a target it wanted to destroy were all rare. Having all three was nearly unheard of. Cliff had to force himself to say the next bit, “Y-you can help us fight if you choose, but even with your help, and burn spells, each of us would only have about a...” his grandfather quickly did the calculations and sent it to him, “fifty-five percent chance of survival. You don't need to go risking your lives over this.” “Are you kidding me?!” Spike grabbed the other dragon by the shoulder. “I became an adult specifically to help when things like this happen. I'm not going to abandon you now!” “Spike, you don't understand!” Cliff shook his brother. “Not one of us has ever faced a berserker this powerful! If you go out there to fight her, odds are either you, or Twilight, or both, are going to die!” He looked deep into the younger dragon's eyes. “You don't have to do this.” Spike returned his gaze. Grim determination reflected through the link. “You said fifty-five percent chance of survival if we all go. What are the odds if it's just you three?” Rainbow took off, followed quickly by Autumn. Another roar, this one much closer. “...One in five.” “And that, right there, is why I'm going.” Spike broke off and turned to their grandmother. “I'll need some guidance with the burn spells though. It's a good thing I'm a fast learner.” Cliff couldn't decide if he felt more proud of the younger dragon, or terrified for his safety. “What's your decision, Twilight?” “If we can distract her long enough for either Rainbow Dash or Autumn to get back, Celestia or the Rainbow of Harmony can fix this.” She emanated as much determination as Spike. Their decision made, the three dragons began casting a spell that would take about a year off of all of their lives for every hour it remained active, but increase the power of their spells by twenty percent during that time. Luckily, it could be cast on others as well. Spike and Twilight allowed it to be used on them without complaint. “Whoa,” Spike gasped, his claws twitching uncontrollably. Twilight was experiencing a similar problem with her wings, and Cliff knew they were both feeling the strange combination of icy skin and burning hot insides that came with the spell. “The twitching goes away once you start moving,” he assured them. Cliff, Fire Claws sent him, Fluttershy is still upstairs with Rarity and the Crusaders. We can afford a few seconds for you to go see them. Just in case... No we can't. Every second they let the berserker get closer to Ponyville could spell the death of an innocent pony, and they both knew it. Cliff began casting spells. Thank you though, for offering me the chance to at least say goodbye. They all finished casting their enhancement spells as quickly as they could, and then they were off. -_-_-_-_-_- The berserker was just clearing the Everfree Forest when Cliff reached her. By some bit of morbid irony, it was nearly the same place where he and Fire Eyes fought the drake. As the fastest runner, Cliff was a few seconds ahead of the others. He went invisible and launched himself at one of the monster's rear ankles. Somehow, she anticipated the attack, and kicked at him with the same foot he had been charging towards. Momentum Redirection shot him straight upwards. Away from the blow, and directly into the path of her swinging tail. He changed his momentum again, flying between her foot and tail with barely any room to spare. Cliff hit the ground hard, barely dispersing enough speed to keep from breaking his legs. “Weakling.” The berserker lashed out at him with her tail. Speed Burst got him out of the way on time, but only just. A tendril of fire wrapped around the berserker's arm, pulling her back from a followup attack. Rays of green light followed, charring scales across the monster's white hide. Careful! Cliff warned. I think she still has her precognition! He pulled a gemstone out of the ground with telekinesis and hurled it as hard as he could. The stone impacted against the berserker's ankle and embedded itself in the scales there. A beam of purple energy announced Twilight's arrival. She must have poured a lot of unicorn magic into it, because the blast sheared off several scales along her foe's ankle, right where Cliff's gemstone had hit. The alicorn teleported away from a fiery counterattack, landing next to Cliff, and shooting again. This time, however, the berserker dodged out of the way, and sent out a magical shock-wave. Cliff was blown backwards, which actually saved his life. Their foe slammed her tail into the ground where Twilight was, and where he had just been. Whatever type of shield magic the alicorn used, it was obviously superior to anything Cliff could do. The protective sphere around Twilight was smashed into the ground, but it still held firm. Before she could recover, the berserker brought her teeth down, biting into the ground to crush at the shield. Get out of there! Cliff sent. A berserker's teeth could bite through anything, magical or otherwise. He shot forward, slashing at the monster's eyes with Ghost Claws. Meanwhile, a thick tendril of flame wrapped around her lower jaw, and one of Burning Torch's shields pressed against her upper jaw. Combined, they relieved enough pressure to let Twilight turn her attention away from the shield and teleport to safety. Furious, the berserker shook Cliff off and pulled on the fire around her jaw. Fire Claws was ripped out of the underbrush and towards the monster's slashing claws. She quickly let the tendril fade, and shot away. Unfortunately, the berserker somehow accelerated as she chased after her, knocking the purple dragoness through a tree and into the ground on the other side. Grandma! Cliff charged the monster's ankle again as his grandfather moved between their opponent and his downed wife. Undeterred, the berserker pushed past them both, ignoring their blows as she moved in for the kill. Thankfully, Spike was close enough to throw up an illusion. He framed it in front of the berserk dragoness, taking everything she saw normally, and angling it up and to the side. In the heat of battle, she didn't notice until her claws hit only air. Meanwhile, Fire Claws jumped back to her feet and shot away as she healed herself. With a growl, the berserker latched onto Burning Torch's shield and crushed it between her jaws. The unfortunate thing about more powerful dragon shields is that they were connected to their caster. Talented users could minimize the feedback, but regardless of talent, having one destroyed was going to hurt, a lot. The brown dragon clutched his chest and gasped. Cliff crashed into his grandfather, knocking him away from a slash that would have killed them both. More energy beams from Twilight and an illusion from Spike bought the two wyrms enough time to get away. She gave me a broken arm, Fire Claws reported. It'll be healed in another few seconds. The others all sent extra willpower to help. How are you, Torch? Nothing so bad it needs healing. The brown dragon formed another shield. Here she comes! Cliff went after the charging berserker's ankle again, but she countered with something completely unexpected. She fell flat on her stomach, right on top of him. Every member of the link surged their willpower into his Scale Armor and hastily cast Shield, but the sheer weight of the berserker's body shattered the latter almost instantly, and nearly collapsed his entire chest cavity. Fire Claws created a small pit just beneath Cliff, dropping him away from the crushing force, but the damage had already been done. Almost every bone in his body had been cracked or broken, and the shock was so bad that he couldn't breath, see, or hear, let alone move. Just remaining conscious was a struggle. Twilight, teleport down there and heal him! Something crashed into the berserker with enough force to make her whole body shift. Then suddenly Cliff felt a hoof on his back. Sweet relief flowed through him as Twilight ran the hoof up and down his body. Meanwhile, the monster above them arose and charged at somedragon with a roar. Look out, Fire Claws! I've got it. Focus, Spike! We need a distraction. When her hoof reached his head, Cliff's eyesight and hearing returned, accompanied by an agonizing migraine, that was mercifully healed almost instantly. Thanks, he sent. They need you. Go! With a nod, the alicorn took off, firing more energy beams as soon as she cleared the hole. Cliff launched himself after her. His body still ached, as there hadn't been time to heal him completely, but at least he could fight once more. The berserker was bearing down on Spike, Fire Claws, and Burning Torch, in spite of their best efforts to distract or stop her. He landed on her back, slashing wildly with Ghost Claws before shooting away when she tried to swipe him off. Taking advantage of her distraction, Burning Torch and Fire Claws released bursts of lightning. More angered than injured, the berserker motioned, and an explosion shook the area. Greed acted as an amplifier to almost any spell, making those few berserkers that could still use magic especially deadly. Even at the other end of the field, Cliff felt a wall of air slam into him. Trees were blasted to tiny fragments, and thousands of pounds of dirt were hurled into the air. Burning Torch created a shield in time to protect himself, his wife, and Spike. However, because he had been forced to rush its creation, the backlash was many times worse than normal. Spike ran across the newly formed crater to his grandfather as Fire Claws created a wall of living flames to hold back the oncoming berserker. Get him out of here! We'll distract her. The message didn't come from any one member of the link, so much they all agreed on it simultaneously. High above them, Twilight threw all of her power into a telekinesis field, slowly dragging their foe away from her companions. Cliff went after the beast's ankle again, though more carefully this time. If they could just immobilize one of her legs, that would buy the town some time. Caught between three pests, a normal berserker would have paused, unsure of which one to attack. However, this one had access to Fire Eyes' mind, allowing her to think and plan. A burst of silvery flame in Twilight's direction broke the alicorn's concentration long enough for her to launch another explosion at the fleeing shapes of Spike and Burning Torch. To their credit, both acted without hesitation. Burning Torch threw out another shield as Spike surged his weaker version and wrapped himself protectively around his injured grandfather. Spike! Twilight teleported to his side instantly. Forcing himself not to run to their aid as well, Cliff continued to slash at the berserker's ankle, and was rewarded with the first drops of blood as its hide finally yielded to Ghost Claws. Twilight, she's about to use Explosion again! Fire Claws shot every ranged attack she knew at the beast's face, hoping to distract her. At the same time, she pulled back her flames and began to refine them into something more solid. The alicorn teleported herself and the two dragons away just before another explosion rocked the area. They landed in the middle of town, surrounded by many frightened ponies. They're both alive! Twilight sobbed in relief. I'll heal them. I'm fine, Spike sent back, but grandpa's hurt pretty bad. Heal his chest and head, Fire Claws instructed. Her fire had begun to take the shape of a giant spear, and the grass at her feet was beginning to smoke and turn black. Then get back here. Torch will be unconscious for a while after that, but we still need the two of you. With the others gone, Cliff and Fire Claws went invisible to see how the berserker would react. The results weren't encouraging. She let out a triumphant roar and began running towards Ponyville once more. Cliff was in front of her instantly. He threw his willpower into three spells simultaneously, absorbing and reversing the berserker's momentum, before shooting it right back into her chest. The force of the blow knocked the berserker back, rolling once before she came back to her feet. Cliff took only a small fraction of the blow, but it was enough to send him crashing into a building on the edge of Ponyville, and then through it, and into the one behind it. Cliff felt like the world was spinning around him, and somepony had bucked him in the chest repeatedly. He gasped for air. I need extra willpower! Fire Claws shouted through the link. He gave up as much as he could, and felt Twilight and Spike do the same. Whatever she was doing, it was eating up an unbelievable amount of willpower. Cliff healed his dislocated shoulder and then shot back into the fray. The knowledge that his grandmother was facing that thing alone was all the encouragement he needed. He reached the battlefield just in time to see a boulder the size of a small house get ripped out of the ground and smash into the berserker's side, knocking her back towards the forest. Meanwhile, Fire Claws stabbed her spear into the monster's good ankle. Impossibly, the blade sliced right through the scales, nearly severing a major tendon beneath. When the berserker swiped at Fire Claws, her spear took off one of her claws before she jumped away. Stay back, Cliff! His grandmother warned just before another explosion rocked the area around her. Time seemed to freeze as the explosion reached its limit, and then reverse as it was sucked into the fiery spear. Fire Claws threw it with a roar. The weapon burned a line across Cliff's vision before slicing completely through the berserker's upper arm. It seemed to wink out of existence as it came out the other side. Pained roars erupted from the berserker as she clutched her wounded arm. Fire Claws dropped to her knees, breathing heavily. Cliff couldn't blame her. Just creating a plasma blade took more willpower than he had on a good day. He found another gemstone in the ground nearby and pulled it out with Telekinesis. A light from the berserker's palm made Cliff's legs go weak. She was healing herself. Despair was quickly cut off as Fire Claws surged determination through the link. If we don't hold her here, all of Ponyville will be destroyed! Twilight and Spike reappeared just before Cliff launched another gemstone. Six Speed Bursts going off at once were enough to propel the gem through the skin Cliff had weakened on the berserker's other ankle. It was getting harder to focus, but Cliff managed a grim smile as the monster roared in pain. Taking advantage of her distraction, Fire Claws cut two more gouges into her other leg. Twilight followed up with a blast of energy as she took to the sky once more. A wall of fire from the berserker made her teleport away and prevented her from continuing the assault. Meanwhile, Spike readied an illusion, which distracted the monster long enough for the others to land a few more hits. Though blood still poured from the wound on her arm, the berserker had healed it enough to use the limb once more. She growled and charged the group, moving unsteadily on her damaged ankles. A rumbling in his chest told Cliff that their foe was about to cast something again. He warned the others and shot onto the berserker's back, hoping to distract her if she was readying another Explosion. Instead, she rolled out of the way faster than should have been possible, and slammed her tail into the young dragon in midair. Caught completely unprepared, he was sent hurtling into the ground. A sickening CRUNCH and a wave of agony told him that at least one of his legs had been shattered. Struggling to remain conscious, Cliff could only look mutely up at the monster that had once been his best friend as she half limped, half ran forward to finish him off. A purple shield appeared around him just before the claws descended. “I'm here, Cliff!” Twilight said over the crashing sound of the impact. I'll heal you! Don't bother. He could barely think straight through the pain. It would use more willpower to heal me than I have left. The berserker's claws crashed into the shield over and over again above them. Focused as she was on her assault, she didn't notice the rainbow patterned streak of light flying towards her, or the sonic rainboom it had left in its wake. An explosive impact knocked the white berserker away, rolling several times before she came to a halt. Meanwhile, a stunned Rainbow Dash landed next to Cliff and Twilight. Pull her over to me and get back to the fight! Cliff ordered. Spike and Grandma need you out there! The alicorn hesitated. An illusion dropped into place around them. It looks like they're gone. Now give us a hoof! Spike shouted, barely dodging an explosion. Okay. Twilight moved Rainbow over to Cliff before teleporting away. Muscling his way through the pain, the young dragon grabbed the unconscious pegasus and shook her. “Huh- wha?!” She jumped upright, making Cliff wince as the movement jostled his broken leg. “Rainbow.” Cliff grabbed her mane and pulled her to look at him. “Where's Celestia?” He meant to shout it, but it came out as more of a whimper. “She'll be here soon. The guards were running to get her, but I couldn't just wait around while you guys were in danger.” In the distance, the berserker cast Reflexes again. She lacked the focus to maintain the spell, but just casting it gave her a few seconds of unbelievable agility for something so large. Spike's illusions made her waste most of it attacking false targets, but she did score a lucky hit, forcing Fire Claws to waste more willpower on a Shield. Cliff pulled his attention away from the others and back to Rainbow. “Listen, they need another fighter to keep her occupied. I can link you to the others and cast some protective spells, but I only have enough willpower to keep them going to a minute or two.” The blue mare shook her head. “Forget those. Just give me anything you can to help me fly faster and hit harder.” With a nod, Cliff let most of his spells drop. He nearly blacked out as the magical enhancements to his body disappeared and the full extent of his injuries hit him. After a few moments, he recovered enough to reach out to Rainbow. “Stronger, faster reflexes, and more resistant to damage.” He winced from a combination of pain and willpower loss. “That's all I can manage.” “How long can you hold them at full power?” A bolt of lightning from the berserker hit both Twilight and Spike. The alicorn's pegasus magic protected her from the worst of it, but Spike wasn't so lucky. “...A few seconds.” It was getting harder to think. Spike! Twilight teleported her younger brother away. He was alive, but needed immediate healing if he was going to stay that way. Rainbow Dash's face was a mask of determination. “All I need is ten.” Then she took off, a speck in the sky within seconds. Dash is coming, Cliff told his grandmother. Just hold out a little longer! She dove so fast that it was impossible to even follow her, leaving not one, but two, sonic rainbooms in her wake. A rainbow patterned mushroom-cloud engulfed the berserker when she hit, hurling the monster into the woods. It probably made an unbelievably loud crash, but Cliff couldn't hear anything over the ringing in his ears or the pain shooting through his lower body as he was tossed away like a broken doll. Twilight reappeared in the aftermath, jaw hanging open in awe of the massive crater her friend had just made. Fire Claws, ever the practical one, rushed down to help the collapsed pegasus at the pit's bottom. Unconscious, but alive. Her smile could be felt thought the link. The stars have been merciful to us today. An eruption of fire from the forest contradicted that thought. The berserker was back up. She was battered, bleeding, and extremely angry. Twilight, how long do you need to cast your memory spell? Fire Claws asked. A few seconds, standing on her head. I'll give you as long as I can. The purple dragoness mustered as much willpower as she possibly could. It probably won't be enough, but we're out of options. Twilight sent back agreement. If she said anything, Cliff was too far away to hear it. If this doesn't work, take your friend and run. To Cliff's surprise, the alicorn reflected fervent denial. You're all my friends, and I'll never abandon you! There was no time to argue, as the berserker was almost upon them once more. If I can do this, Fire Eyes will come back to us, the dragoness sent, more to herself than anydragon. A wall of fire exploded from her outstretched claws, wrapping around the berserker completely, except for the top of her head. Twilight landed there a second later, her horn already charging the memory spell. Fierce determination rolled off of Fire Claws, as she tried to will her magic to do the impossible and restrain such a powerful foe. Not even her unshakable strength of spirit, however, could keep the berserker from thrashing wildly within its bonds. Unable to hold her place, Twilight could only watch as the tendrils of flame began to snap like cords. Let me help, Cliff whispered through the link. He formed the spell that had earned him his name all those years ago; Spider Climb. Push through the wall. Twilight did, and her hooves immediately locked into place on the berserker's head. She jammed her horn down, and activated the spell. Oh no... Despair flooded through them. Her mind is so clouded that it will take me nearly a minute to restore it. Twilight wept. They all knew that holding Fire Eyes for so long would be impossible. Do what you can. Fire Claws could barely breathe through the strain. Seconds ticked by like hours as the two fought to contain the berserker. Twilight funneled every bit of willpower she could spare into Fire Claws' spell, but more and more tendrils snapped regardless. Her memory spell seemed to hurt the beast as it shook and twisted to get away. With a final roar, she burst free, clutching her head in pain. Twilight narrowly avoided being crushed as she teleported away to stand beside Fire Claws and the fallen Rainbow Dash at the bottom of the crater. Drained from overuse to two different fields of magic, it was all the alicorn could do to stay upright. The link shattered. None of them had the willpower to maintain it anymore. “Fire Eyes,” Cliff tried to shout. It was barely louder than normal speaking. The berserker looked between her claws at the young dragon, who was painfully dragging himself over to the others. “I'm sorry,” he gasped as another lance of agony shot up his leg. “I know you probably can't hear me in there, but I'm so sorry for all of this.” Cliff reached the edge of the crater, and tumbled down next to his grandmother, Twilight, and Rainbow Dash. “You should have stayed hidden.” Fire Claws gently propped the young dragon up against her. “You might have been safe.” He winced from the movement. “Couldn't let you face this alone.” The dragoness smiled gently. “Idiot.” She looked up at the berserker, who was starting to growl angrily again. “Eyes, you're my best student, and my best friend. If you survive this, don't blame yourself for what happened.” The monster's claws crashed down on them. Cliff fully expected to be killed, until they deflected off a purple barrier. “Sorry,” Twilight whispered, dropping to her knees. Tears clouded her eyes as more blows rained down on them. “I can't focus enough to teleport us away, and I can't hold her off much longer.” Fire Claws shook her head. “You've given more than should be expected of anydragon. Thank you, Twilight. It was an honor.” Cliff leaned over so he could see her on his grandmother's other side. “I never told you this, but you were just like a sibling to me as well. Hay, Grandpa asked me if we could adopt you a few days ago.” The berserker bit down on them, slowly crushing the shield between her jaws. “I remember that.” Fire Claws smiled. “I told him that you already had you own family. You didn't need another one.” Twilight closed the last few inches between them and wrapped both dragons in a weak hug. “Applejack taught me that you can never have too many family members.” A golden aura surrounded the berserker. The alicorn continued, unaware. “If... you don't mind, could we say that we're family... here at the end?” The last few words came out in a broken sob. The dragoness gently shushed Twilight and held her close. “Of course.” Cliff, however, was finally realizing what the golden light meant. He shook the two of them weakly, and pointed. As soon as they looked up, the jaws around them were forcibly pried back, and the entire berserker was lifted into the air. Princess Celestia landed in the middle of them, and surrounded the group in a protective shield of her own. “Twilight, are you alright?! Where are the others?” “Celestia!” The purple alicorn ran to her friend and mentor, or stumbled towards her, more accurately. The Princess of the Sun lifter her up and hugged her fiercely. “You frightened me, my dear friend.” “I'm sorry,” Twilight sniffled. “E-everypony is alive, but Spike, Rainbow, and Burning Torch are hurt.” She motioned towards the unconscious pegasus. “The others are in front of town hall. We were trying to restrain Fire Eyes so that I could cast a memory spell. We think it will turn her back to normal.” Celestia absorbed this information with a grim nod. “I understand. I can hold her still for you, assuming you're able to cast it.” She brushed aside some of Twilight's frazzled mane. “This battle must have been a difficult one.” “I can cast it.” Twilight smiled weakly. “Thank you so much for coming.” “You are my friend, Twilight. I rushed here as soon as my guards told me what was happening.” She surveyed the ruined field. “I only wish I had been able to arrive sooner.” With a sigh, she lifted the smaller alicorn into the air with her magic. “In any case, please allow me to help.” Twilight landed on the berserker's head moments later, surrounded by a protective field of light, just in case. Cliff wasn't at all ashamed to admit that he cried when his oldest friend emerged from her frenzy weak and bleeding, but very much alive. Fire Eyes was lowered down to them, and he and his grandmother just held her and let the tears flow. He felt her offering a link to him, and gladly accepted it. Sorrow, guilt, love, fear, joy, it was impossible to tell where his emotions ended and those of Fire Eyes or his grandmother began. Celestia gently healed them all before teleporting away to retrieve the others. Burning Torch and Spike awoke soon after, with a generous amount of healing provided by the white alicorn. Burning Torch was added to the link, and unlike Cliff or Fire Claws, had enough willpower left to help maintain it. He silently joined the group hug, radiating amazement that they were all still alive. Spike went to his sister, and they were both swept into an embrace by Celestia's massive wings. Around the edges of the pit, Cliff could see a small crowd beginning to form. Whisper jumped out of the group and scrambled down to join them, sobbing as she embraced her sister and was added to the link. Cliff wished that Spike and Twilight could be added as well, but with Fire Eyes so emotionally vulnerable, he understood her desire to link only to those she knew and trusted most. Even with all of their support, she was still too overcome by what had happened to even speak. Rainbow stirred, and got up with a groan. “Remind me never to do a triple rainboom into a giant dragon again.” “I certainly hope that you are never required to,” Celestia told her with a faint smile. “Thank you, Rainbow Dash, for pushing yourself so hard to reach me. If not for that, I would have arrived too late to help.” The pegasus scratched the back of her neck. “Ah, it wasn't all that much. Twi and the others deserve the real credit.” Unknown to them, Cliff and the other dragons entered into a silent, and very serious conversation. He blinked away a few tears when they reached their inevitable conclusion. “Celestia?” “Yes, Cliff Runner?” She turned to him. He ignored the crowd. “We've talked about it, and... we think it would be best for us to go home.” Rainbow shouted, “what?!” Twilight's jaw dropped. Even Celestia seemed at a loss for words. “You mean back to the Dragon House, right?” Spike asked. “Please tell me that's what you mean.” Cliff shook his head sadly. “Spike, what's the point of us staying in Ponyville any longer?” He hugged the others more tightly. “Equestria has been attacking us since we got here. Do you really think that's going to change after today? After they've seen what we can become? Even if they did, it wouldn't be fair of us to stay.” “We still want a better relationship between wyrms and ponies,” Fire Claws moved to shield Fire Eyes and Whisper from the crowd, “but if the media attacks, and the protesters, and the hatred is going to get one of us killed...” “Then it's not worth it,” Burning Torch finished. “Nor would it be worth the lives lost if the next one of us goes berserk in a crowded marketplace.” He gently stroked Whisper's back, who was crying into her sister's shoulder. “We're dangerous, Spike.” Cliff blinked away a tear. “It was wrong of us to put all of you at risk like this.” “What about Fluttershy, huh?!” Rainbow shouted. The crowd behind her was growing larger. Cliff thought he saw a yellow and pink pegasus, but he refused to look at her, knowing it would shatter his weak resolve. “You two are engaged, and you're just going to abandon her like that?!” “What am I supposed to do?!” Cliff shouted back. “Fire Eyes has more control than I ever did. If I stay here, I could kill her in another few weeks!” “Isn't that her decision to make?” Twilight asked. The young dragon bowed his head. “I'm not going to ask her about it. We all know what she would choose.” He blinked away more tears. “I'd be fine with risking my life, but I'm not going to let her die because she's too kind to think about the monster I could transform into!” None of them spoke. Even the crowd was silent. “Spike, keep an eye on Twilight, our sister. She needs you more than you realize.” Cliff forced himself to smile. “We'll come back to visit you every month, but for now, we're just tired of all of this.” He finally gave up fighting the tears, and let them flow once more. “We just want to go home.” Spike exchanged a tear-streaked look with Twilight. “What are you going to do about Whisper?” he asked. “Remember what happened when she thought that she would be forced to leave Ponyville?” The hatchling took a deep breath, and turned to face him. “I-I'll be okay, Spike.” She tried to put on a brave face. “I'll see the other Crusaders when I come back to visit, but,” fresh tears began to fall, “I can't lose my sister again.” Even with his dreams being crushed to dust around him, the little hatchling's feelings of love brought a weak smile to Cliff's lips. “We'll be going now. Thank you for everything, everypony.” He tried to rise, but his legs gave out beneath him. Celestia gently extracted herself from Twilight and Spike to approach the cluster of dragons. “None of you are in any condition to travel. Would you be willing to spend the night in Canterlot Castle?” She lowered her head. “It truly is the least I can offer after how thoroughly I failed you all.” Fire Claws shook her head. “You didn't fail us, Celestia, Equestria did, and we failed them just as completely.” Cliff finally gathered his courage and turned his gaze to the crowd. Fluttershy was there, looking more hurt and betrayed than he had ever seen her. Tears ran freely down her cheeks. The other Elements of Harmony were with her. Pinkie's hair had gone straight somehow. She looked lost and confused. Applejack and Rarity were trying to comfort their friends, but the looks they were shooting his way revealed deeply conflicted emotions. No matter his reasons, Cliff's decision to leave was tearing out Fluttershy's heart, and they simply couldn't forgive him for that. What hurt most, though, was the emotion slowly building in Fluttershy's eyes. She still loved him. In spite of terrifying her. In spite of all his stupid mistakes during their courtship. In spite of his cowardly, selfish decision to leave, because he couldn't live with the fear of hurting her. In spite of everything, she still loved him, and would come running down in another few seconds, willing to abandon her entire world to go with him. Cliff knew he wouldn't be strong enough to tell her 'no.' It was taking everything he had not to go to her right then. “We accept your offer.” He looked away with a sob. “Please take us there. Quickly.” Celestia nodded just as Fluttershy started to run forward. The yellow mare was only halfway to them when Celestia and the Ponyville Coven disappeared in a flash of golden light.