//------------------------------// // Bonus #5 - Battle of the Reptiles: Spike vs. Reckless Godwin // Story: Ponyblade Chronicles // by ZeroChill //------------------------------// A thick mist rolled in from the shallow waters of the swamp, covering the damp land with its condensation. Gnarled trees poked out from beyond the mist, their branches void of any leaves. Spike walked down a path free from the grass. He walked at a snail’s pace, scanning the steep cliffs, hills and trees. His knees shook, but he gripped his newly-found claws hard. “I had a hunch this place was dangerous, but really? The first thing that tried to kill me was a basin of poison after I walked outside!” Throwing his claws into the air with an irritated huff, he shouted. “And as if the poison didn’t try to do it, a bunch of weird creatures were just waiting for me to get out of there! Heck, I could’ve sworn I saw a few Timberwolves thrown into the mix… at least I thought it was. If it weren’t for these claws and those evasion drills I’ve practiced, I would’ve been finished!” Walking down the path, his eyes picked up a large fortress made entirely out of stone on top of a high cliff. He hummed, rubbing his chin with one of his claws. “Well, considering that I’m stranded in the middle of nowhere and nopony’s around, it wouldn’t hurt to check that place out. If only I knew how to get on top of that cliff…” Spike looked upon the cragged wall, seeing a cluster of vines that led up towards the cliff. He smiled without a care in the world, jogging towards the wall covered in vines. Pulling himself above the ledge, Spike let out an exhausted sigh. “Tired. So… very… tired.” He slumped over the ledge for a few seconds until he heard the sound of footsteps passing nearby. His head jolted upwards and he faced the direction where the sound was coming from; a small group of bipedal lizard-like creatures in pale-green scales and brown buckles of clothing walked down from a ramp leading into the fortress. One of the creatures lifted his head into the air, sniffing and wrinkling his nose to find a specific scent. Another one of the creatures faced that creature. “Is there a reason you dragged us out here?” It said in a raspy voice. The creature that was sniffing looked upon the other creature that asked. It slanted its eyelids. “There’s a creature nearby that smells like us Igna, but has a scent that reeks of a different type of ether. I don’t know what it is, but it is triggering my survival instinct!” The Igna stated in a raspy, but lighter tone. Spike gulped on air, ducking his head underneath the ledge. The longer the Ignas roamed around the area, the more sweat broke out from his scales. His teeth were clenched hard and his eyes were wide open. One of the Igna walked over to the ledge where Spike was clung onto and gazed around. His heart pounded out of his chest, feeling like it was ready to explode at any time. Just as its eyes would have looked downwards, another Igna shrieked and pointed at a source. “Intruder!” It shouted. All the other Ignas jolted upwards in response and ran towards the source. There, a teenaged dragon with light green scales, green-yellow wing membranes and yellow eyes slowly lifted his claws into the air, completely surrounded by the Ignas. “Ummm… err… I don’t mean trouble sirs.” The teenaged dragon stated, his knees shaking and beads of sweat dropping from his face. “I was lost and am looking for information regarding my wherabouts. We dragons should stick together, you know?” He stated, shrugging his shoulders and smiling under heavy pressure. The Ignas leered towards his direction. They unsheathed their swords and shields from their backside and one pointed its blades towards the dragon’s neck. The dragon pursed his lips with a stone hold and gulped with a cold shake. “Mistaking Ignas for Dragons is a complete disgrace. We know that you want; you want to take the Nopon in our fortress so that you can get the Giant’s Treasure with her information, thief.” The Igna holding the dragon at blade point stated. “We have ways of dealing with thieves like you. Mainly, we eviscerate them, eat a good amount of their internal organs and cast their bodies into a nearby basin of water where the Upas will devour what remains. We are carnivores after all, brother.” It stated with disdain. At this point, Spike’s scales turned a lighter color and the dragon was about to collapse underneath the pressure of its feelings at any second. His wings unfolded in an instant and took off into the sky, shouting a mantra of apologies with a stream of tears falling onto the ground. “We scared it good!” One of the Ignas shouted. The rest of the Ignas retreated back up the ramp into the fortress. When the area cleared up of the Ignas, Spike climbed over the ledge. His body was shaken by what happened in front of him. “Those Ignas… are not friendly at all.” He said to himself, dusting off his femurs with his claws. “Wait, did they say something about having somepony captive in there?” Deep within the walls of the fortress, a female Nopon with peach-colored fur, a yellow and white dress, round glasses and a large backpack, shook and cowered before an unusually large Igna wielding two axes before her. “We know that you know about the whereabouts of the Giant’s Treasure located in this marsh. We have been watching you meticulously studying everything that has to do with the Giants. Tell us how to get to it.” It stated in a booming, raspy voice. “K-Kacha no know anything!” The Nopon, Kacha, stated. “Kacha just studying ruins!” The Igna smacked Kacha with the blunt side of the axe in the right hand, causing her to shriek. “I can smell a liar. You know too much about the Giants to not know how to get their treasure. So, I’ll make things interesting for you my little Nopon; either you tell me what you know regarding how to get the treasure, or my people and I will go around smashing every location related to the Giants in the Marsh.” With these words coming out of his mouth, Kacha gasped in horror. “You no serious, no?” She asked. “Smelly-breath Ignas can’t! Giant relics too important to historians.” “And I really don’t care if I can’t get their treasure! Either you tell me what you know or I will destroy as many things related to the Giants as possible and kill you.” At the Igna’s proposition, Kacha broke down; she looked directly into its eyes with a notable frown on her face. “K…Kacha will tell.” Spike followed up the path that he saw the Ignas leave towards. He crept around with soft steps, looking around every corner before approaching further. Much to his surprise, the path had no Ignas at all. From there, he sprinted until he was blocked off by a door that would not open. “And I was so close. Maybe there is another way around?” He asked himself, turning around and walking back where he started. Upon turning back around, Spike saw a group of Ignas walking around an open area, keeping watch over it. He saw another ramp towards the side of the building. He smiled. “I hope they don’t mind me using the front door.” Spike ran up towards the ramp until his movement came into an abrupt stop upon colliding with something. He fell back and looked forward, seeing three Ignas before him. The Ignas turned around and glared at him with a stare of death and their weapons gripped in hands. Spike only looked upon them with widened eyes. “That’s everything you know about the Giant’s Treasure, Nopon?” The large Igna asked. “Y-yes. Kacha tell you about location of key and way to unlock treasure. Kacha leave now.” Kacha stated, walking out through the front door. An axe dropped right in front of her, blocking her path. She shrieked. “You aren’t going anywhere, my little Nopon. I can’t trust you enough to not tell anyone your secrets. We are just going to keep you here for an indefinite amount of time. You are fine with that, are you not?” Kacha’s mouth hung open at the words of the Igna next to her. “But… but Kacha need to go back to family. Grampypon very worried about Kacha.” Hearing her words, the Igna let out a chuckle. “Your family does not need to worry one bit. After all, you are safe here and we won’t destroy any relics. You should be thanking us for our kindness of letting you live.” Suddenly, an Igna ran through down the corridor leading outside, panting heavily and eyes wide in desperation. “S-sir! An intruder!” It was all it said when the body of another Igna flew into it, knocking it into the wall and causing it to pass out. Spike walked down the corridor, looking at his claws with a smile apparent on his face. “These claws are cool! And, I guess I don’t know my own strength sometimes.” The large Igna growled underneath his breath and ran up to Spike. Spike, who saw the Igna, arched his arms and legs out. “You must be a brave fool to venture this far out into the Marsh to appear in the Exiled Fortress in the face of Reckless Godwin.” The large Igna, Reckless Godwin, stated. “And it was not a wise idea to treat my men standing guard like that either.” “Look, I originally came here just to see if you had any information on where the heck I am. But, your kind are not friendly and I hear you are even holding somepony captive.” Spike said, looking towards Kacha cowering in the corner. “Do you have any idea how clichéd the damsel in distress by a monstrous creature trope is? I would appreciate that you let her go so that you won’t have to resort being that creature.” Reckless Godwin flashed his axes and drove his axe into the ground before Spike, hissing with an urge to perform violence permeating from his breath. The axe was stuck into the ground, causing large cracks to appear in it. “A smartarse… just for that, I’ll personally kill you.” He hissed out in a cold voice. Spike’s nerves froze up, seeing the Reckless Godwin lift the plunged axe effortlessly out of the ground. His breathing and heartbeat accelerated upon seeing the edge of the axe pointed towards his direction. His body was trapped in a prison of fear. “Spike, you can do this. Don’t let this overgrown lizard scare you.” He said to himself, his arms and legs slowly loosening out of his fear. The axe swung vertically, and Spike jumped far towards the side against the slice, dodging it. “Stand up and fight, dragon!” Reckless Godwin shouted. His claws being engulfed in flames, Spike eyed his opponent with determination. “My name is Spike, not ‘dragon’. By the time I’m done with you, you will know my name!” Spike inhaled deeply and shot a green fire from his mouth, enveloping the Reckless Godwin in its flames. The Reckless Godwin swung both of his axes once, causing the flames to dissipate. He rushed up to Spike, smacking him three times in succession with the blunt side of his axes. Spike audibly grunted with each hit, the final hit causing him to fly across the room into the wall and fell to the ground. Spike stood up from the ground, rubbing the back of his head. Reckless Godwin then became enshrouded in a green energy and smashed his axe into Spike twice. The blows caused him to fall onto his back. He tried getting up, but found himself unable to. “Is this how easily you fall? You talk big but perform so poorly. I’ll be sure to make your death quick.” Spike scrunched his eyes, clenched his teeth and grunted. Reckless Godwin jumped towards him, crossing his axes just above Spike’s throat. The blades of the axes are poised on each side of his neck. Reckless Godwin’s grip on his axes tightened, ready to decapitate his victim. Spike found the energy within himself to place his hands upon the ground. Pushing himself at an acute angle, he slid past Reckless Godwin’s legs and avoided the move. Spike jumped and slashed Reckless Godwin’s back with his claws. Reckless Godwin grasped his back in an instant, holding the wound within his claws. “You’ll pay for that!” “Not today. Fiery Claws!” The flames within the claws igniting to its peak, Spike shouted. Spike slashed Reckless Godwin with three consecutive diagonal slashes, the wounds inflicted letting out a hissing noise of water evaporating quickly. Reckless Godwin’s eyes shut in front of the burn inflicted on him. “Infernal Guard!” Spike called out, a red and orange aura surrounding him. “Enough games.” With those words, Reckless Godwin crossed his axes. A hazy blue aura gathered at the crossed portion and exploded, catching Spike within his radius. Spike shouted out as his nerves screamed in agony. Then, his hard scales soften to that of an infant’s skin. On top of that, a green light encircled Reckless Godwin, releasing shockwaves that stunned Spike right at his mark. Spike dropped down onto his knees with black and yellow electricity enshrouding him. “My body… it feels soft and tingly. Was that magic?” Spike asked, his eyes wincing. “You have a lot to learn if you don’t know about ether, boy. I merely shunted your defenses and disallowed your use of arts.” Reckless Godwin stated, smacking Spike with his axe and sending him flying to a stone throne at the back of the room. Spike’s aura dissipated. “That… hurt bad.” Reckless Godwin smirked, his morale renewed by seeing Spike injured to the point of death’s door. He crossed his arms, ready to do a wide strike. Gripping the handles of the axes, he found that his hands were hissing with steam. He roared in pain, causing him to drop his axes onto the ground. “How… wait a moment. That aura! Striking him while under that aura must have…” Reckless Godwin began stating until Spike lunged at him, slashing him once and interrupting him. He walked forward with each slice until Spike and Reckless Godwin were outside in front of the corridor. “Now, let go of your captive. I can push you off with a few more strikes, you know.” Spike stated in a prideful tone. “I can see you are not like any other dragons, Spike. You are young, but have a warrior’s heart. For that, I commend you. But, there is much for you to learn, such as underestimating your opponent.” “What are you ta-“Reckless Godwin swung his tail, striking Spike square in the head. The blow knocked him high into the air, and then Reckless Godwin kicked Spike all the way into the fortress. Spike lied down upon the ground unconscious. Kacha, who was watching the battle unfold before her eyes in bated breath, saw him laid on the ground. She sprinted towards him and shook him multiple times. “Please! No die in front of Kacha!” She pleaded with desperation eminent in her voice. Reckless Godwin walked into the room, huffing out hot air. Kacha sprinted in front of Spike’s body and extended her arms outwards with a scowl visible on her face. “You no hurt brave warrior no more, bully! Me no care if you hurt me.” She shouted. Reckless Godwin lifted his axe high into the air, the blade flashing before the light in the room. He then plunged the top portion of the axe into the ground before him and repeated with the other axe, unarming himself. “You are much more trouble than you are worth, Nopon. I would kill you, but I do not want to bring any bad karma to myself. Just go, and take Spike with you.” The eyes behind Kacha’s glasses widened. “Me… free to go? No lying?” “No lying. Leave before I change my mind, and don’t let any of my Ignas see you.” Reckless Godwin stated, the back doors of the fortress sliding open. “Kacha thank you for sparing warrior.” She stated, tossing Spike onto her backpack and leaving. “Wait! Tell Spike to get stronger so that we may fight again.” Reckless Godwin stated. Kacha nodded and smiled, walking out of the gate. Spike groaned, his eyes opening and revealing light to him. In his line of vision, two Nopon stood above him; one was Kacha, and the other one was a blue-furred Nopon with beady black eyes and a large back tied in front of him. “He alive!” Kacha shouted happily. “Wait, where am I?” Spike asked, his voice slurred. “You at Nopon Camp, young warrior.” The elderly Nopon next to him stated. “Me named Bokoko. Grandlittlepon Kacha brought you here after leaving Exiled Fortress.” “Wait… what? Does that mean I beat the Reckless Godwin?” Spike questioned in a daze. Kacha shook her body. “No. Brave Warrior no beat big lizard. Actually, big lizard beat you to bedtime. Big lizard let us go, saying we too much trouble for him.” “Really?! That’s… actually believable. A similar thing happened with a group of Diamond Dogs when one of my best friends was captured by them. She proved to be too much for them to handle.” Spike stated. “My name is Spike. I just have several question about… everything.” “Spikepon come to right Nopons for questions. Grampypon is traveling merchant, and Kacha studying giant ruins on Bionis.” “Bi-what?” Spike asked, slanting his mouth and lifting an eye in confusion. “Let’s start with that weird word you said.”