//------------------------------// // How To Dash Your Dragon // Story: Urohringr // by Imploding Colon //------------------------------// "Well, I'm coming with you," Josho said, cleaning his shotgun from where he sat on the opposite end of the mess hall's lounge. "I'm not particularly fond of these silver-sucking hickjobs. I dunno about you all, but having actual ponies east of Alafreo shoot iron death at us was a pretty nifty wake-up call. I'm proud to lend a hoof." "Not sure there's much to lend in this situation, Josho," Rainbow Dash said, hovering in a tight little circle. Starlight twinkled outside the portholes. "Somehow, I feel as though what's freaking out these ponies is mostly just inside their heads." "Just like I said! Hickjobs to the core!" "Rainbow, what do you mean by that?" Belle asked. "Clearly everypony here in Amulek has seen something... something that they fear greatly." "It just doesn't make any sense!" Rainbow's voice cracked. "Why would Axan hold up here of all places and do this to a bunch of strangers?!" "You're certain it's not like her?" Pilate asked. "I mean, she has a rather nasty history of taking up roost right under ponies' noses and terrorizing them for generations." "Yeah, but she's past that now... ya think?" Rainbow folded her arms in mid-hover. "Ever since Silvadel, she's had this... this dragon boner for 'following Austraeoh around.' Seems counter-intuitive for her to turn heel once more." "More like double-heel, the way I see it," Josho said. "Am I tired?" Eagle Eye muttered, rubbing his head. "Or did Rainbow just say 'dragon boner?'" "She's in the twilight of her years, Rainbow," Belle said. "A dying Divine." "So?" "So... what if she's losing her mind?" Belle gestured. "It's happened to her siblings before. Maybe Axan's reverted to her past self without knowing it?" "In that case..." Josho pumped his shotgun. "The dayum fire lizard probably needs to be put down." "Oh, great..." Rainbow rolled her eyes. "A dying east horse and a dying death dragon, drawn together by fate." Eagle squirmed. "Well, when you put it that way..." "Well, what the hell else are you going on the expedition to the mines for?!" Josho cackled. "You don't plan to shake the dragon's hand, do you?" Rainbow Dash bit her lip. "The symbol is out there, right?" Everypony turned to look at Roarke. "The symbol," she calmly repeated. "If you can't find the dragon, at least you can find out the source of what's broadcasting 'Yaerfaerda' to your eyes..." Her lenses pistoned outward. "Right, Rainbow Dash?" The pegasus sighed. "It's too much of a wet sopping coincidence for both the symbol and a friggin' dragon to be here in the same place... waiting for me." "If we never had altered course from Val Roa, we never would have discovered this," Pilate said. "If you ask me, Rainbow, pursuing this is the best possible thing you could be doing right now." "And does it have a best possible outcome? Huh?" Pilate bit his lip. "Rainbow, are you getting any better?" Bellesmith quietly asked. "I mean, in regards to the dizzy spells and—?" Rainbow shook her head. Belle's gaze fell slowly to the floor. She fought a lump in her throat. "Well, I'm coming with you," Josho uttered. "You've said that three times already..." "I'm going too!" Eagle Eye stood up. "I mean... this is a job for me as much as for the old stallion. There's no telling what horribad stuff we'll run into. You'll need a good shield alongside the journey!" "Thanks, EE. I appreciate it," Rainbow said. "It's best that I come as well," Roarke said. She turned towards Rainbow Dash, meeting her gaze. "My tools of the trade could be very useful." "That..." Rainbow sighed and smiled gently. "...would be really nice." "Then I think a good night's sleep is in order," Belle said. "If nothing else..." She rubbed a hoof along her brow. "Nnnngh... we don't have to sit up all night, dwelling on this." "Don't worry, Ding-Dong," Rainbow said. She touched down beside the mare and rested a forelimb on her shoulder. "If Axan is behind all this, then she sure has some explaining to do." "Right..." Belle squinted at her best friend. "And if she refuses to?" Rainbow Dash clenched her teeth. "I-I've put down a dragon before. I... uh... I wouldn't hesitate to do it again." Silence. Josho grumbled, "Well, I'm coming with you—" "WE KNOW THAT ALREADY!" The next morning inside his cabin, Eagle Eye finished fitting on a leather sling. He attached his shield to the back of it, adjusting it telekinetically and balancing the weight on his flank. He took a deep breath, then turned and looked at the cot. Ebon sat on the bed's edge, clutching his skull and wincing. Worriedly, Eagle Eye squatted down and tilted the stallion's chin up. "Hey... how are you doing...?" Ebon gritted his teeth. "I... I-I can't explain it," he wheezed, eyes misty. "It's like a ton of bricks keeps hitting my head. Over and over and over again..." He shuddered. "If it weren't for you lying by my side, I'd never have gotten any rest last night." "I'm sure it'll pass," Eagle said with a weak smile. "You've been through worse before. Together, we'll get you through this." "I know... it's just..." Ebon hugged himself, sniffling. "It's a scary ride..." "I bet..." Eagle clenched his jaw. "Ebon... I-I wish that I could stay here with you all day. But..." He squeaked, "Rainbow, she... sh-she's brave and all, but I'm starting to feel with each morning that she hasn't much time with us left, and... and..." "Shhhh..." Ebon reached out and patted Eagle's forelimb. "I know, EE. I know." A bittersweet smile. "She needs you more than ever right now. I'm proud of this step you're taking." "I promise, no matter what..." Eagle leaned in to nuzzle the other stallion. "Whatever happens, I won't become an immortal dragon's barbeque." Ebon giggled breathily. "You'd better not! That'd make a really lame epitaph." "If I die, cremate me and mix my ashes into a bath shampoo." "Ewwww..." "Tell me about it." Eagle touched noses with him. "All the reason for me to come back alive." Ebon stared up at him proudly. After a deep breath, his ears folded. "I love you." Eagle's lips curved. "I love you too." Silence. Slowly, Eagle turned, twisted the cabin door open, and trotted out into the main corridor of Noble Jury. As soon as he stood alone outside, his body slumped. A grimacing expression crossed his features. With glossy eyes, he nevertheless cleared his throat, pivoted towards the bow, and marched off to make an exit. His shield clattered with each brave hoofstep he made. Roarke's hoof splashed into a deep puddle of mud. She paused in her march and raised her forelimb, watching as the fresh rainwater dribbled off her metal braces. She tilted her head back and stared at the misty treetops above the procession of ponies through the forest. "... ... ...I detest this place." "You know, for the first time..." Eagle Eye trotted past the mare with a smile. "...I think we're on the same page." "That is one severely soiled book," Roarke droned. "Awwwwww..." Rainbow fluttered overhead, smirking. "Would it make things easier if I carried you?" "No. It wouldn't." "Please, stop grumbling." Josho trotted by, trailing Eagle Eye. Two dozen stallions marched loosely around them as they all trekked uphill. "As if you've ever had a problem with Rainbow Dash on top." Eagle giggled. "Hrmmmm..." Roarke's ears folded back as she trudged on after the group. "I'm murdering you two," she grumbled. "Right after we murder this dragon." "Hey!" Booster Spice smiled from what he overheard. "Now that's the spirit!" "Can it, Booster," Drakshaa spat, using his thick muscles to pull a javelin launcher uphill through the forest. "Rnnnnghh..." He sweated and grunted. "Every expedition before has failed. I don't see how this one will end up any better." "That's because you've never had sheer awesomeness along for the ride!" Rainbow said. "My buddies and I? We've survived zeppelin battles, artillery bombardment, zombie hoardes—" "Foxes," Eagle added. "Foxes—wait... what?" Rainbow did a double-take their way. "Didn't we tell you about the foxes?" Eagle Eye remarked. "Ohhhhhhhhh damn those foxes," Josho hissed. "Brrrrbrbrrr... right on, old stallion." Eagle gulped. "Scarred for life." "If you ask me, you ponies are full of it," Drakshaa sputtered. "You were better off flying away in that crazy contraption of yours. So if you all turn into smoldering embers, it ain't our fault." "But, according to your governess, Merigold, the dragon's not killed anypony yet!" Eagle Eye remarked. "Yeah. It just likes to taunt us that way." Drakshaa's sweaty face frowned. "Scaley bastard." "You ever think that maybe the thing just wants to scare you off?" Eagle said. "I mean, what's happened to your silver mines is terrible, but maybe it doesn't want to feast on pony flesh at all! I mean, maybe it just—" "Hey!" Drakshaa shouted across the way to Josho. "Fat unicorn! Does your daughter here ever shut up?!" Eagle Eye did a double-take. "Daughter?!" "Haah haah haah!" Josho grinned wide. "I'm starting to love this guy!" Rainbow giggled. "... ... ...she does have a nice mane," Roarke added in a dull tone. "For a breeder." "Hmmmph!" Eagle marched at a faster pace, upturning his nose. "Well, at least some of us are trying to be serious!" "Awwwwwww... come on, princess!" Josho marched quickly after him. "Don't be like that! Here, want a ride on P-Papa's sh-shoulders? Snkkkkt-haahaahaa!" "Old stallion! Quit it!" Rainbow rolled her eyes. "So... uhhh..." Rainbow glanced down. Keebroo glanced up at her while marching up hill. "You're not from around here, huh?" "I kinda sorta figured that was already established, bro." "It's 'Keebroo', actually." Rainbow smirked. "I know. That was the joke." "It was?" "Ungh... Keebroo," Drakshaa groaned. "Did you really need to bring your dumbass along just to disprove me?" "Hey!" Keebroo frowned aside at him. "A pony can be brave without having to be a total flankhole!" "That's news to me." "Don't mind him," Keebroo muttered, trotting ahead of Rainbow. "He's just sour from having lost the mines. He took his job super seriously." "Jee. I had no idea." "I mean, isn't it obvious from the way he—" "I was being sarcastic, kiddo." Rainbow giggled. "You really need to chillax. All this dragon stuff has gotten your nerves frazzled." "Yeah... I guess so..." Keebroo gulped. "I mean, a lot of my family have left Amulek. It's not easy living here without them." "Why'd you stay if you miss them so much?" "Why wouldn't I?" Keebroo lifted his head, smiling at the thick tree trunks stretching through the thin mist around them. "This place makes me feel alive. The scent... the taste... the cool hush of the mountain air? It's home. Would you leave home even if you had no choice—?" He winced suddenly. "Oh, jeez... I'm sorry..." "Heh..." Drakshaa smirked. "Nice going, idiot." "It's alright." Rainbow glared in Drakshaa's direction. "Really..." She turned to look back at Keebroo. "I've flown so far and for so long that—the way I see it—I'm always at home." "You are?" "Yeah. So long as I'm with my friends." She smirked. "I bet you have a lot of ponies you'd call family just as much as your own flesh and blood." "Oh. Totally. And I would die for them too!" "Eh heh heh..." Rainbow hovered low enough to pat the stallion on the shoulder. "Let's just focus on you living for them, okay?" "Oh... yeah! Sure!" "Good kid." Keebroo smirked. "Though, I would have loved to see the place where you came from." "Oh?" "Sheesh... winged ponies..." He shook his head with a smile. "I bet I'd have to travel the whole world to see more of your kind." "Eh heh heh heh..." Rainbow gulped and sweated slightly. "We're a lot closer than you think..." The trek took the better part of four hours. They stopped twice for a breather, waiting for Booster Spice to whip out his map and confirm the progress that they were making. The whole time, Rainbow took several opportunities to study the faces of the stallions who made up the expedition. Several of them looked emaciated, frazzled, and worn to the bone. It was obvious that weeks of stress had taken their toll on the poor equines of Amulek. In some haunting fashion, Rainbow was certain she had seen those expressions before. This only made Rainbow grow more and more anxious the higher they scaled the mountains' southern faces. Though it was approaching daytime, the morning haze did not dissipate. In fact, the fog grew tighter and tighter. It became apparent that the higher they climbed, the more impenetrable the mists. A cold chill hung in the air, making everypony shiver—including Roarke. Several times, Rainbow Dash flew low enough to keep a constant check on the metal mare. For the first time in many an adventure, Roarke looked and acted as though she was completely out of her element. Her energy appeared sapped, and her march was a clumsy and uneven shuffle. The two spent most of the trek in silence, and it ate away at Rainbow's chest. Soon enough, the ground evened out. The forest grew thinner, and if it weren't for the fog, Rainbow imagined she could look straight up and see an unhindered sky lingering above the continent. Instead, a cold drizzle blanketed the expedition, not enough to soak them but just the right amount of precipitation to keep them constantly shivering and uncomfortable. As the plateau stretched further and further, Rainbow Dash began to spot broken wagons and delapidated mining tools—the signs of much equipment abandoned in the heat of miners' panicked evacuation. "Huh..." Rainbow Dash fidgeted in mid-air. "I've... n-never thought that hard about it that hard, really..." "Oh, but I spent all night calculating it!" Booster exclaimed. "I mean, assuming you have the same bone density as a common pony, it is simply impossible for wings as small as yours to carry your body weight and proportion through the air!" "Huh..." "I mean... eheheheh..." The blonde stallion adjusted his goggles. "No offense." "None taken." Rainbow smirked and pointed at her flapping wings. "So, Einstallion, how do you explain this?" "I can't, really. Though I'm willing to make an educated guess." "Like...?" "Magic!" "Unnnnngh..." Rainbow rolled her eyes. "No, truly!" Booster Spice smiled in mid-trot. "If unicorns are born with a magical proficiency, then what's to say that other equines can't be? Perhaps there is a permanent enchantment passed along the bloodline of you pterodactyls—" "Pegasi." "Excuse me—pegasi. I speak of a hypothetical enchantment that allows your wings to carry multiple times the weight that they should!" "Hmmm..." Rainbow flexed her forelimbs from where she hovered. "You know, I've always secretly wondered why it is that we can walk on clouds." She shrugged. "Guess that's what I get for having dropped out of flight camp." "W-wait...!" Booster gawked at her. "You can walk on clouds?" "Can it, Nerd Spice," Drakshaa hissed. "Please, Drak—we're having a scientific discussion here—" "No! For real!" Drakshaa raised his hoof. All of the stallions stopped in their tracks. "...we're here." Josho jerked to a stop. He levitated his shotgun while glancing left and right. Roarke's lenses pistoned outward as she scanned the misty treeline. Eagle bit his lip. He peered ahead, then pointed straight forward. "There..." "Right..." Drakshaa nodded and strolled ahead with a rattle to his cart. As they stepped forward, they saw the remnants of a camp emerge through the mists. Crumpled tents, buckled fencelines, and charred gates lingered on either side of them. The charred remains of wooden shacks lay in blackened piles and embers. "This is our last encampment. We've built and rebuilt it four times straight. The damn dragon always flies by to burn it to the ground once again." "If that's the case, then why do you always return here?" Roarked droned. She turned to glare at the stallion. "Why even show up today?" "Because she thinks we're coming back to build again," Drakshaa spat. "That ain't the case! Today..." He unhitched himself from the cart and patted the pronged head of the javelin. "...we've come to kill her good." "I see," Roarke said in a dull tone. "Just like you killed our ship good. Hmm?" Drakshaa shook his hoof. "Now listen here, you toilet-eyed tool—!" "Give it a rest, Drakshaa," Booster sighed as he plopped down his backpack full of tools and began preparing a spot to load up the launcher. "We're here to skewer scales, not each other." "Hrmmf..." Drakshaa angrily went about unloading the cart with the help of other stallions. "This was a whole hell of a lot easier without having to babysit for foreigners." "Now now... if Merigold were here, what would you say?" "Bite me." "Nnnnngh... Drakshaa, you're like the missing link, y'know that?" "Uhhhh..." Eagle Eye glanced around at the wreckage. "Just how large is this place?" "It was a pretty big encampment," Keebroo said. "At least... mmm... the first time we built it." "Well, better get a lay of the land," Josho muttered. "Would be a damn good thing to know what is up or down in this place in case we have to bump horns with a dragon anytime soon." He trotted off into the mists. "Hop along, princess." "Er... s-sure thing!" Eagle galloped after him. "Don't go too far!" Roarke shouted. "We don't know this place like these breeders do!" She leaned back, exhaling. Turning her head—she did a double-take at Rainbow's gaze. "What?" Rainbow slowly smiled. "It's almost as if you were genuinely concerned about them." "I... am genuinely concerned about them," Roarke droned. She stared down at her hooves, fidgeting. "Is that truly so hard to believe?" "Mmmm... no..." Rainbow leaned down to nuzzle her. "But I like it, all the same." Keebroo popped up between the two of them. "Hey! Want to see the mine shafts?" Rainbow winced, rolled her eyes, then put on a sweet smile. "Sure thing, bud! Just... uh..." She glanced at Roarke, then back at him. "...show the way!" Minutes later, Roarke and Rainbow tailed Keebroo to the northern edge of the encampment. They could hear the stallions barking at one another while they set up the launcher, but they were too far away to be seen in the blinding mists. While the trek was awkward and treacherous for the two mares, Keebroo obviously knew his way. The young stallion darted left and right, skirting around abandoned wagons and collapsed structures. At last, the grass gave way to gravel and stone. Mine-cart tracks appeared, leading down a dark, dark hole in the side of the mountain. "Aaaaaaaand... voila!" Keebroo gestured down the shaft. "There it be! The best silver deposits in all the land!" "I... did not expect us to be able to get this close," Roarke said, her lenses whirring as she looked about fitfully. "Surely the dragon—" "One time, she didn't show up for an entire day," Keebroo said. "We thought that she was gone for good, but it turns out she was just biding her time. We... uh..." He ran a hoof through his mane, sighing. "We nearly got an equipment hut rebuilt by the time she struck. We tried running into the shaft for cover, but that's when she started spitting fire. We were driven back. For all our efforts, we still haven't been able to fully access the mine for weeks..." "I can't help but think that just being here is taunting her," Roarke said. "Well... uhm..." Keebroo gulped. "That's the whole point... y'know? We gotta show that we're not afraid of her... th-that we can take her out!" He blinked at the ponies with wide eyes. "I mean... that's why you're here too, huh? To help us?" "Hrmmm... more or less." Roarke clenched her jaw. "Still, I don't like this. Everything's too quiet." "Like I said, sometime the dragon bides—" "It doesn't make sense... not from what I've learned about dragons and how territorial they can be," Roarke said. "Why hasn't she attacked yet?" "I... I-I wish I could tell you." Keebroo gulped. "I thought you ponies had experience with dragons or something like that." "One of us does." Roarke pivoted and glanced up. "How about it, Rainbow? Does any of this make sense to you?" Her lenses retracted. "... ... ... Rainbow?" Rainbow Dash hovered in place, shivering. She stared down the mineshaft in a cold sweat. Roarke's lips pursed. "Rainbow!" She trotted up and lifted a hoof, giving Rainbow's tail a tug. "Look at me!" At last, Rainbow wrenched her eyes from the shaft. Sweat was collecting around her brow. Roarke asked in a quiet voice, "Is it happening again? Are you—?" "No." Rainbow shook her head. "It's not that. It's... something else..." "Like...?" Rainbow gritted her teeth as she stared down the shaft. The symbol was as close as ever now, practically blinding with its light. The longer she peered into the mine, the more she was certain the lines and circles would burn into her retinae. "It's here, Roarke..." "What is? Yaerfaerda?" "It's. Right. Here." Rainbow gulped. "I can practically taste it, I'm so close." Roarke glanced down the shaft. Her lenses pistoned outward to their full length. "I don't see a thing." "Trust me, it's down there." "Uhm..." Keebroo gulped. "What is?" "Silence, breeder." Roarke trotted closer to Rainbow. "Rainbow, should... should we go down and investigate?" "No! Not a good idea!" Keebroo stammered. "If that dragon attacks and you're down there—" Roarke growled. "Did you or did you not hear what I just said?" "Roarke..." Roarke looked at her. "This place..." Rainbow swallowed a lump down her throat. "This mist... it's all so dang familiar." "You couldn't possibly have been here before." "No, but I've still seen this sort of crud before." Rainbow sighed heavily. With a shudder, she turned towards Roarke. "Listen, let's go find Josho and Eagle and then—" FWOOMB! A ball of green flame erupted just above them, sending stone shards falling all around. "Gaaaaah!" Keebroo sprawled across the ground. "Luna Poop!" Rainbow shouted, eyes wide. Not a second later, another ball of emerald flame came sailing through the mists, aiming for the mineshaft. "Rainbow—!" Roarke dove high, slammed into Rainbow's side, and shoved the two of them to the ground. POW! The mountainface exploded behind them, erupting in flames. "Guhhh..." Rainbow slowly sat up, disentangling herself from Roarke's limbs. "Look, girl, was that really friggin' necessary?" "But..." Roarke grimaced, standing up. "...b-but the flame and its trajectory and you were in the way and—" "Stop being cute and help me the buck up!" "There's more incoming!" Keebroo hollered. In a panic, he turned and galloped towards the center of the encampment. "Hey guys! Guys! She's here! Load the javelin!" "No, wait!" Rainbow's voice cracked as she stretched a hoof after him. "Don't split up! Don't—" She winced. "Dang it!" "Breeders," Roarke spat. She clenched her mouth silently as both mares heard loud shouts and explosions from the other side of the mists. "Searo's Womb..." "It's go-time!" Rainbow kipped up, flapped her wings, and broke into a swift glide. "Come on! I gotta get a visual!" "Don't fly so fast!" Roarke sputtered, galloping the long way around plumes of flame. "I can't keep up!" "For the last time, I can carry you—" "Look out!" Rainbow looked up, gasped, and rolled to the side as another plume of green flame flew down. CRASSH! The remnants of an abandoned shack exploded behind them. Splinters rained down like wooden hail. "Guhhh... mmmf..." Roarke gritted her teeth. With a twist of her neck, she expanded the metal plates across her leg braces. Armored up, she plowed through a debris field and galloped towards the sound of shouting stallions in a straight line. "It certainly seems as though she wants to kill us!" "Let's just make sure that Josho and Eagle Eye are—" "Aaaack!" Eagle Eye flew in from the side, his shield trailing with smoke as he skidded to a stop in the grass. "Unnngh..." "EE!" Rainbow darted down and stood at his side. "EE, are you okay?" "Green flame..." Eagle winced, shuddered. He looked up at Rainbow. "I thought this 'Axan' monster spat red flame." "Green...?" Rainbow glanced across the mists. She spotted flickering plumes of emerald heat. Her ears folded back. "Oh no..." "What?!" Roarke hissed as Amulek ponies galloped to and fro behind her. "What is it?!" "Josho?!" Rainbow stood straight up. "Where's Josho?!" "Follow the gunshots," Eagle wheezed. "Huh?" As prophesied, shots rang out, echoing across the mists. Rainbow spun. "I'm checking on him! Stay here!" "Rainbow!" Roarke shouted. "Just do it!" "Don't go too far on your own! Rainbow!" Roarke stood beside Eagle Eye, gritting her teeth in frustration. In the meantime, Rainbow soared over the heated battle. Plumes of flame erupted to her left and right while stallions fled in terror. She skimmed straight past Drakshaa and Booster Spice, who were frantically pivoting the freshly assembled ballista around. "Quick! Raise it by forty-five degrees! She'll come from the northeast! I know it!" "Less words and more muscle, geekstrings!" "Drakshaa, this is important! If we don't get the right trajectory, then we won't have a chance in—" "Look, will you shut up and help me pivot the damn thing already!" "Make sure you hit a friggin' dragon this time!" Rainbow shouted as she flew past them. Her ears rang with more gunshots as she threaded through the fog. "Nrnnghh... Josho?!?" "Over here, speedy!" Rainbow followed the sound of his voice. She spotted the obese stallion standing atop a delapidated wooden shack. She landed nimbly beside him while he was reloading his smoking gun. "You really picked a cruddy place to stick your fat neck." "That's because it's a shithouse, Sherclop." Josho pumped his shotgun, eyes high. "I think I spotted it." "You did?!" Rainbow asked, breathless. "Yup. Damn fast. I can barely keep my eyes on it." "That... that's..." "How fast was Axan, huh?!" Josho flung Rainbow a sweaty look. "Ain't she big and leathery and lumbering?" "Pretty much, yeah." "Well..." Josho gulped and glanced skyward again. "I don't think this is her." "Josho, she's spitting green flame," Rainbow said. "That's not like Axan either." "Yeah..." Josho paled. "But I do know who it is like." There was a dim green flash through the fog, followed by a shrill whistle. "Uhhh..." Josho's pupils shrank. The whistling grew louder and louder. "Darn it, jump!" Rainbow plowed into Josho's side like a rampaging bull. "Ooomf!" Both plunged off the outhouse's roof in the nick of time. The wooden shack exploded in a green burst of flame. "Guh! Augh!" Rainbow rolled to the side along with Josho. She winced, pushing herself up on noodle-weak limbs. "Nnnngh... can I go for a single month without explosions?" "I've got a better question!" Josho wheezed, sitting up with the help of his rifle's butt. "Can't you do one of them sonic sky farts and clear up this damn mist?" "Sorry, but no-go." "Why in Ledo's coinpurse not?!" "Considering that the last sonic rainboom I did in Durandana nearly killed me, this isn't exactly a good time," Rainbow wheezed. "Besides, this isn't exactly normal 'mist.'" "Oh yeah?" "No. As a matter of fact, I think it's—" As Rainbow spoke, something rolled out of the fresh crater that the last dragon breath had made. The pegasus found herself blinking at a craggy rock still trailing with emerald smoke. "Uhhhm..." "What... in the buck...?" Josho stammered. "Josho, are you seeing what I see?" "You mean the oversized charcoal gallstone right in front of us?" "Yeah..." Rainbow glanced at teh smoldering crater. "That's what was just launched at us, wasn't it?" "Pretty dayum sure." Josho looked aside at Rainbow. "Since when did dragons spit rock loogeys." "They don't," Rainbow said. "At least none of the ones I've ever seen." "Rainbow, what the Hell is going on around here?" "I don't know. But, from the sound of things, the battle isn't going very well—" "There! There she is!" Booster's voice hollered through the mists. "She's flying in low! Take her out, Drakshaa!" Josho spun. His breath left him. "Rainbow—" Rainbow turned. Her blood instantly ran cold. The mists parted for a brief moment, granting the ponies a clear view of a dark shape slicing down through the mountain fog. The first noticeable thing was a series of jagged branches slicing through the air. But they weren't trees and they weren't brambles. A loud shriek pierced the air—a hauntingly familiar banshee cry—and the creature thrashed its antlers about before opening twin jaws, glowing with an aquamarine heat from deep within. A pair of tails raked left and right, adding weight to the draconian menace's heavy dive. "Nevlamas..." Rainbow's ears folded back as her face paled. A twinge of yellow flickered across her eyes. "Celestia above, it can't be. How... h-how..." Josho was shouting something. Rainbow couldn't hear him through the pulse pounding in her ears. The dragon's wings brought a howl to the air. With a ferocious growl, the chaotic monster dove even lower, spitting bright green fireballs. Josho telekinetically yanked Rainbow to the ground as the former encampment exploded around them. Bursts of fire lit the mists up with a necrotic green hue. The creature surged overhead. It passed by far faster than Rainbow could have guessed. "Dammit!" Josho stood back up. "Can't get a clear shot!" "She's too fast..." Rainbow stood up, panting. "And small." "Huh?!" Josho flashed her a sweaty look. Rainbow was shivering. "And her breath isn't the same color as her inner shell." Rainbow nevertheless stared at the mutated dragon as it flew off on a bending course. "It... it's not her..." "What?!" Josho cackled. "You... you mean..." He turned to gawk at the rampaging creature. "You mean to friggin' tell me that there are two mutated chaos dragons on this goddess-forsaken plane?!" "I don't know..." "There's another Divine with two mouths and antlers and—?!" "I don't know, Josho. Dang it! I don't know!" Rainbow shouted. "Maybe Nevlamas hatched babies or something! I just don't friggin' know!" She began hyperventilating. "This is bad... this is very, very bad." Josho peered over the sight of his shotgun. "If that monster that Chrysalis and the Xonans used to wreck Seclorum's camp had a dayum brood, then we're all doomed." He grunted to himself. "Rainbow, we gotta find the others." Silence, save for the distant shouts of stallions. "Rainbow?" He turned and gasped. Rainbow had collapsed to the ground, overcome with shivers. "Oh, for Pete's sake... Rainbow!" Josho ran to her side and shook her. "Stay with the program, Speedy! We need you! Nopony's faced Nevlamas like you have! Stay with me!" "I... I-I can't..." Rainbow wheezed, her pupils turning blood red. She whimped and clutched her rattling pendant. "The chaos... it's... I-I can taste it..." "I got a fix!" Booster Spice shouted. "It's now or never, Drakshaa!" "It's... it's not going to work!" Rainbow hissed. Her eyes flickered again and again. "Tell them! She's too strong! Her brood..." Josho spun and hollered. "Guys! Save your javelin! We gotta get out of here! This is beyond us!" "Shut up!" Drakshaa hollered back. "We're ending this! Here and now!" "Come on, ya idiot silver hicks!" Josho snarled. "Learn from the experts! We can't beat this thing! We gotta—" "Fire!" Booster shouted. "Josho—!" "Rainbow, keep your head down!" A black iron barb flew low overhead. The air howled. Rainbow tossed her head aside, squinting. With her last thread of vision, she caught the javelin slicing through the air. It met the antler'd dragon head-on. But then something else happened, something foggier than the mists surrounding them. Rainbow wasn't certain, but for a brief blink it appeared as though the creature split into two—completely dodging the projectile altogether. Where the two halves went, she couldn't see, for all was turning into darkness. Rainbow wept quietly into the dizzy beyond, and was out like a light.