//------------------------------// // Consequences // Story: Dragons of Hourglass // by Rammy //------------------------------// He of Music, Ugh. I sometimes hate trying to communication this way but I don’t want to get He of Hourglass involved to do this face to face. I have seen bits and pieces of his true self come out but he needs to be out of the library. I know you know what his real song is and I trust you can find a way to get it to come out. And please try to keep him from hiding his problems which I’m sure didn’t help in this situation. He needs at least one confident that he can go to for help and you know it can’t be me because there are some things he will be unable to tell me. Harmony Eternal Beats sighed as he quickly flamed the scroll from Harmony away. Here goes nothing... “Firstclaw? It’s time to come out. Harmony wants you to begin your socialization with the Dragon of Black and Green Scales and the Dragon of Orange Scales and Spikes.” He really hated to enter Golden Heart’s hoard without permission but he had a job to do and that was to get Golden Heart out of the library by any reasonable means. With a gulp he entered the library. “He of Hourglass? Firstclaw?” Eternal Beats asked as he slowly opened the door to Golden Heart’s Hoard Chamber. Golden Heart was facing away from the door lying on his hoard bed. The desk that usually was next to it was in pieces next to the far wall. “I have lost him and I don’t even know him…” He sadly mused out loud not acknowledging Eternal Beats’ presence. “What do you mean?” “He has been around since I chose nearly nine months ago. And yet, I hardly ever really just ‘shoot the breeze’ with him… Usually it’s Keeper related...” Golden Heart sat up and faced Eternal Beats. “You were right to be worried about not growing… It made the animal within that comes out frustrated and instead of being satisfied at the end of the growth spurt allowing our minds to reassert it stuck around... I… I… wanted it… I may lose myself and the thing is I want to lose myself. I want to be a dragon and take He of Harmony into my library and never let him go… as is my right… My mind slowing changing I no longer think of him as a friend but merely a thing that is mine. If He of Music wasn’t already white all the color would have left his face. He could feel the distortion of Golden Heart’s song. He needed to get him back from the brink… again. “Yes… mine...” Golden Heart rubbed his hand together, hungrily. Eternal Beats angrily slammed his tail on the library floor startling Golden Heart off his hoard bed. “WHY DO YOU THINK HARMONY IS HAVING YOU DO THIS! YOU ARE GOLDEN HEART...  SLOZSZELTS SIRTS! What does your name mean?” “You know exactly what it means.” Golden Heart snapped as he got up off the floor. Eternal Beats clutched his head in frustration. Of course I knew what your name means!!! “What. does. your. name. mean!” Golden Heart grumbled before he answered. “A heart that is like gold purified by heartfire.” “Exactly, and if you let yourself become the beast your heart will know only hate, rage, and greed. Everything that would not purify aka strengthen your friendship with Harmony or anyone else for that matter. It will only tarnish it, and tarnish gold is not as valuable. No self respecting dragon wants to have a hoard that becomes less valuable.” “What have I done! What was I thinking!” Golden Heart wailed as he realized that his clanmate was right. “I’m a horrible dragon!!!” Eternal Beats eyes rolled before he started singing. Don’t let the mistakes and sorrows of your past hold you back Because when you feel like nothing going your way Take one step back and two steps forward Eternal Beats smiled as he was really liking his new singing voice. He even almost lost focus as he admired it. Don’t think about the past, the future is around the corner. Now take one step back and two jumps forward The future is right around the corner and you’re one step closer The past is only the past, so we have to move onto the future cause its within your grasp Now take it and never let go “Thank you.” Golden Heart whispered as he grabbed Eternal Beats into a bone crushing hug. Eternal Beats took this time to listen to his Firstclaw’s song could hear that the distortion was fading away. Eternal Beats finally pulled away from the hug and started for the door. “Let’s go Firstclaw, all this serious talk is really not my style…” “Of course not…” Golden Heart couldn’t help but roll his eyes. “Your style seems to only consist of leaning back on a tree branch and play or sing whatever comes to mind for hours…” Eternal Beats looked downcast at that. “I’m too heavy for that now…” Golden Heart smirked. “Let me guess… you tried it and the branch came crashing down?” When Eternal Beats rubbed the back of his head chuckling a bit nervously Golden Heart realized it was worse. “It was the whole tree!??!?” With the straightest face that he could muster, which was very hard at the image of Eternal Beats knocking down a whole tree, Golden Heart suggested, “Let’s go tell Dragon of Black and Green Scales and Dragon of Orange Scales and Spikes.” Eternal Beats narrowed his eyes. “You wouldn’t dare.” Golden Heart gave his best fake innocent smile before whispering, “Try me.” As Golden Heart slyly walked past Eternal Beats, Eternal Beats could hear that Golden Heart’s song was back to normal and even seemed brighter than before. He breathed a sigh of relief before he finally registered what his Firstclaw had said. “FIRSTCLAW!!!!” He screamed in fake anger before he ran off after him, laughing. Harmony slowed his flying to get his bearings and as he did he noticed that again Metal Claws avoided his gaze. “You have been looking away anytime I merely glance in your general direction. Don’t try to lie.” “I… It’s… I’m worried about my Firstclaw and.... I…” Metal Claws rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. “Still have feelings of shame from your past treatment of me and afraid of me over what I did about He of Hourglass yesterday?” Harmony sighed, normally he would let this run its course, but they didn’t have the time for that. He spotted a good area to land and began to glide down towards it. “Come, I think I should start training you so when the next beast growth dragon shows up you will have a fighting chance to kill it.” Within minutes they landed in the clearing that Harmony had spotted. “Before we begin you need to actually listen for once… You know as much of I do that He of Hourglass risked the dishonor mark yesterday, but it never crossed my mind…. I just couldn’t... but something needed to be done or…” Harmony could no longer form any words as he started sobbing uncontrollably. He was so worried about Golden Heart. He couldn’t bear losing him after losing Spike. He’s like an alicorn version of Golden Heart… “Harmonious Knight… brother… I,uh...” Metal Claws tried to find a way to console Harmony but found that he had no words. Between his shame and fear of him he wasn't sure how or what could help. A scroll popped in front of Harmony and he stopped crying to read its contents. Metal Claws shook his head in amusement as by his count this was his eighth scroll today, and it wasn’t even noon yet. A small chuckle from escaped Harmony before he popped the scroll away. When he looked up he saw Metal Claws looking amused. Harmony was sure it was because he had gotten another scroll. “What? Can’t I correspond eight times in one day?” “Don’t answer that.“ Harmony flashed the scroll away. “Let’s get started, shall we?” Metal Claws reluctantly got ready as he knew how skilled of a fighter Harmony was. He gulped as Harmony started off by charging right at him without warning. Not expecting this, he only had a second to raise his arms in defense. Harmony hoof slammed into his poor defense and he fell backwards and onto his tail from the force of the punch. Harmony stood over Metal Claws and shook his head in disappointment. “What are you? A tree?!?  Don’t stand so stiffly, and stagger your legs so that one is slightly in front of the other.”   Harmony helped the dragon to his feet then moved the appropriate distance from Metal Claws before barking out, “Again.” This went on over and over for nearly an hour. Again and again Metal Claws would get knocked down only to be told to try again. Understandably Metal Claws frustration was beginning to build to rage. “How is being slammed on my tail repeatedly supposed to help!?” Harmony looked at Metal Claws angrily. “With an attitude like that it’s no wonder dragons hide away in caves afraid that someone will discover that dragons are a bunch of wimps and not the apex predator that they claim to be.” Metal Claws growled in anger at Harmony insulting dragons. How dare he insult dragon kind. He rushed Harmony claws ready to slash. Harmony just yawned as he watched the dragon run right at him. He stopped both clawed hands with his hooves which startled Metal Claws. The dragon didn’t have a moment to do anything else before Harmony flipped knocking down him down with his back hooves. “Again.” Harmony commanded. Metal Claws slowly got to his feet. This time he used his tail and fists randomly in an attempt to catch the alicorn off guard. Harmony seemed bored as his casually blocked or avoided every punch and tail swipe. Again Harmony insulted him. “You call yourself a dragon? I’ve had bunnies give harder punches then you.” Metal Claws roar was cut off by Harmony knocking him on his snout with a crouching spin. “Again.” He shouted once Metal Claws got to his feet. Now Metal Claws was furious, and he was not going to let Harmony win. He started off with a fake slash with his right claws with a uppercut right behind with his left. Harmony saw this and smirked as he blocked them with ease. “You are nothing but a namby-pamby, weak, useless, liz-ard.” Harmony barely got the insult out before he was hit square in the jaw by a red scaled fist. Harmony tumbled back several feet before his back slammed into a boulder. His ears rang and his vision blurred for a moment. He rubbed his jaw before falling back to four legs. He got a good punch in… nice. Now let’s see if my plan worked. Metal Claws lowered his right clenched fist before he raised his head. From the look on his face Metal Claws was beyond livid as smoke leaked out between his clenched teeth. “You... YOU… I SHOULD END YOU!” “Finally! This is the Metal Claws I know.” Harmony exclaimed as he shook off the dirt from his fur. Metal Claws fire died as he blinked in confusion at Harmony’s statement before he realized what Harmony was trying to do. “You did this to get me to hit you in rage?!! Why?” “It was two fold. You needed to regain your confidence and you need to be able to fight without letting your rage overpower you. Did it work?” “Yes, it did, outsider.” Metal Claws smirked, cracking his knuckles. Harmony frowned at the use of the term outsider before he realized that he was being messed with. Readying himself to start sparring again he proclaimed, “Oh, it is on!”