//------------------------------// // Fiery Finale // Story: Fallacies of the Elements // by Dapper Guy //------------------------------// Spike took his place in the center of the stage. He flexed his claws in anticipation, his heart beating with volcanic fury. Twilight… His rage welled up in his heart, the mere thought of Twilight’s current situation weighed down on his scaly shoulders. Removing one of the wooden poles that were held in his sash, he locked eyes with Trixie. “So, snow cone, why did you come back?” spat Spike. Twirling the pole in his claw, he began passing it between his digits in a slow manner. “Did you think Twi would honestly even bother with you? That Twilight would waste her time on you?” Trixie glared at the young dragon while retaining a good distance from the smart mouthed dragon. His jibs stung, but she refused to let his words get under her skin. “Trixie thinks that actions speak louder than words, gecko.” Spike let out a blood curdling hiss that shook everypony to their knees. Trixie’s violet eyes nearly fell out of their sockets as a primal fear took reign over her mind. She lowered herself to the wooden planks of her stage, knocking her knees together with fright. “I’m not in the mood, Trixie.” Spike spun the pole until it blurred in his hand, creating a dull, whistling sound. Inhaling deeply, he released a thin jet of emerald fire towards its end. With a quick snap of his wrist, he held the now burning pole in his claw. Both ends of the poles burned with magical fire. Rising up to her full height, Trixie approached her newest challenger. “Trixie wishes for this duel of talents to commence,” she said, her usual charismatic voice noticeably weaker by a few decibels. A small cloud of smoke blew over her face, sending her into a coughing fit. “Fine.” Pulling the other pole from his sash, Spike lit the second pole as well. Tightly grasped in both of his claws were two ignited wooden poles. Everypony watched in absolute silence as he commanded their attention with blind interest. “Pinkie.” The pink maned pony’s ears perked up as her blue eyes flicked up towards him. “I think I need some music for this,” announced Spike. A fair bit of color returned to the once bubbly mare as her mane began to lift up. Hopping towards Sugar Cube Corner, Pinkie Pie returned with a set of bongos hanging around her neck. With a hop, skip and a jump, the party pony was on stage behind the unicorn and the dragon. “Ready when you are, Spike.” Each of the Elements cracked a smile as the sound of Pinkie’s happy go lucky attitude could be heard. She began to slowly beat the wooden drum set, building up the rhythm as Spike began to move in accordance with the music. Both poles were spinning faster than the pony eye could follow, small wisps of green smoke trailing off into the air as Spike began to prepare for his performance. For Twilight. Flinging the pole in his left claw into the air, it spun wildly in a broad arc before returning to his outstretched claws. Pinkie Pie’s tempo began to pick up as Spike threw the second pole in the same manner as the first. A faint smell of pure fire hung in the air, clean, biting, but not entirely unpleasant. All eyes were drawn to Spike as he continued on uninterrupted. “Get ready, Spike!” chirped Pinkie Pie, a faint glow surrounding her as her hooves beat the drums even faster than before. Spike threw both burning poles into the air in unison, crossing each other at the apex of his throw before falling back to earth. Clasping both as they came within reach, the fires burned fiercely as he held the blazing hot ends in his claws. The fires licked at his body, yet there were no signs of pain or even the tiniest bit of discomfort on his face. “I was born ready.” Pinkie stopped, then began to beat the bongos at a slow building rhythm while Spike started to sway from side to side. The poles blurred in the air as he juggled them. His movements became more fluid as he continued on without any interruptions. “Everypony ready?” he shouted out as he felt his inner fire roaring higher than before. He hurled up the pole in his right claw, a blazing wheel of fire whirling straight up above his head. As it reached its apex, Spike threw the second pole straight towards the first. The two collided in the air, violently crashing into each other. A clear, crisp crackle rung out as four poles, two burning and two unlit, fell down towards Spike. The young dragon watched, slit eyes darting between each piece as they hurtled towards him. Spike threw his arms out, palms up, as he looked upwards expectantly. Slim, scaly arms snatched up each wooden piece, his movements so quick that nopony could keep up with his actions. Snatching up each one, Spike began to lazily toss and catch the broken shards of the poles at a slow pace. Everypony’s eyes were glued on the spectacle at hoof as he shot up two more plumes of fire. Now all of the pieces were lit ablaze on both ends. Smoke drifted up, small flecks of burnt wood chipping off the shortened poles. “Everypony ready to see some real magic?” roared Spike. Trixie felt her body lunging forward before quickly drawing back as the brash, young drake began to rile up the crowds. You think yourself above Trixie, lizard? I will crush you under Trixie’s hooves, slowly… Swish! As a single pole stood above the drake’s head, he slashed it clean in half, straight down the middle. Now there were five. Swish! Swish! Swish! Eight thin poles now were being thrown between the drake’s claws. Each one was burning at both ends, crackling with mystical fire. Hopping in place, Spike performed a quick clawstand, keeping himself supported by the strength of his arms alone with his tail elevated straight up. Spike whipped his scaly appendage in a roundabout manner, as he began to juggle his eight pieces of wood. Spike knocked each one in the air rhythmically with the flat end of his spaded tail. Everypony watching began to stamp in tandem with his actions. Laying belly down on the stage, Spike curled his tail in a small loop as he bundled the now smoldering sticks into a tight bundle. The poles fell in between his green fins and locked into place. “Has anypony ever seen a green sun?” Everypony looked at each other skeptically at the rather bizarre question. “A green sun?” somepony asked. “Preposterous,” said another. The questions and speculations grew more vocal as ponies discussed the young drake’s words. “Ponyville, it’s time to see the light.” Spike launched up all eight burning poles, sending them spiraling into the sky above him. Throwing himself backwards, he began churning a ball of fire inside of his mouth. He could feel the acidic taste of his stomach’s contents stinging his gums as he gathered up the right amount to finish up his trick. As his cheeks filled to bursting, he peeked out the corner of his eyes to see Pinkie with a radiant smile. A small dribble of nauseous liquid dripped from the corner of Spike’s mouth. The orange, viscous substance dripped down on to the stage. As soon as it made contact with the wood, it burnt a hole the size of a bit clean through. Now. A pillar of fire leapt from his maw. It was wild and widespread, a literal cloud of green embers. Forcing his lips into an oval shape, his draconic magic was focused into a single incendiary beam. It burned through the poles high above, and as soon as it came in contact with his magic, exploding into a fine, green powder. Carefully snapping his mouth shut, Spike watched as the green dust hung in the open air. It looked like emerald stardust was dancing in the sky. Here comes the sun. Clamping his claws around his throat, the young drake winced at the ongoing storm roiling around in his mouth before letting loose an immense green fireball. The sheer size of it was twice his own size. The fireball zoomed straight up towards the glittering dust. A split second before the two fiery entities met; a sudden hush fell over everypony. Only a faint “Mother of Celestia” could be made out. Ponies shielded their eyes as the resulting starburst blinded their eyes. As the light began to die down, everypony stood in surprise at what Spike had done. A small, green sun hung in the air. It held a rich, green outer color with an opaque white center. Ponies could feel the heat it gave off, lapping over them in warm waves of enchanted fire. A constant flicker of emerald sparks shot and fizzled into nothing from the drake’s magical creation like a small firework show. “Top that, Trixie.” Whether it was the light from the green sun in the sky or her own emotions, Trixie seethed with envy. The stage mare could barely even hear her own thoughts as the rambunctious crowd’s voices called out Spike’s name. Okay, lizard. No pony or iguana gets to upstage Trixie. “Trixie sees that you think you’re hot stuff,” she snorted. Spike merely replied with a deadpan look as he slapped a claw over his face. “Well, I think it’s time for Trixie to cool that ego of yours.” Rainbow Dash threw her hooves over her head. “She’s going on about ego?” tossing a sideward glance at her friends. “Sounds like ya’ll have somethin’ in common there, Dash,” chided Applejack. Ignoring the vehement glare from Rainbow, she turned her attention back to Trixie as she felt a familiar chill begin to grow. “Oh, that’s not good.” Applejack, Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy turned their heads to Rarity who was busy chewing on the end of an eye liner. The white unicorn gently stroked her lashes. “This is not good at all.” “What’s got you all bent out of shape, Rares?” asked Rainbow Dash, the two other Elements nodding their heads. “Well first off, this heat is absolutely playing havoc with my mascara.” Applejack rolled her eyes up. “And second, unicorns should never try and mix magic.” “Um, I don’t understand what you mean, Rarity.” Fluttershy watched as small blue shapes began to form around Trixie whilst the other Elements talked. She could see her physically straining now, as if casting magic was causing her violent, internal pain. “There are different kinds of magic, and each unicorn has a specific magical frequency that belongs solely to them that cannot be copied,” explained Rarity. The sound of forming ice turned the Element’s collective gaze back to what was unfolding in front of them. Trixie looked worse for the wear than before. Her hat had fallen off, lying dejected from the sweating magician. Her cheeks were purple and puffy as she strained herself, her horn sputtering and fizzing. Despite the obvious look of pain, Trixie remained steadfast as ghostly, clear sheets of ice condensed around her. “What’s your point, Rarity?” asked Applejack, never removing her eyes from Trixie. The air seemed to swirl and distort in front of her eyes, as fluctuations between heat waves and icy breezes blew through her mane. “It’s something every young unicorn learns its unsafe to even attempt it. Never try to force magic to fight against another magically inclined creature. If unicorns try to duel with magic directly, they could both end up gravely injured. Using magic on a pegasus or even earth pony may also have disastrous outcomes, often in the most unexpected ways.” A freakish gale cut into Rarity’s monologue, buffeting the Elements with a nerve wracking chill. “That’s why channeling magic from one unicorn to another takes years of medical research and training for it to be performed flawlessly. It’s not like pouring a glass of water from one container to another. You have no clue what was inside of it beforehoof.” Rarity pulled out a manebrush and began to stroke her mane. “What I’m afraid of is that Spike is a dragon, a magical creature. If Trixie tries to upstage, or worse, control that sun, then the end result could be... dramatic.” Psht. Psht. Psht. Psht. Four clear walls of ice, twice the height and width of a full grown stallion, surrounded Trixie. The sweat droplets dripping from her mane before freezing and then clinking as they fell to the stage. Ice crystals snowed down around Trixie, her magic creating a miniature snowstorm around the magician. Two more walls were still forming, while small wafts of steam emanated from the existing ice creations. “Trixie thinks it’s time to put out that little candle of yours, gecko,” she wheezed feebly. Throwing back her head, Trixie stared deep into the green sun. “All lights will fade. Eventually.” The walls burgeoned and thickened, taking on a more rugged appearance in contrast to the finely cut sheets they were before. The six slabs of ice circled around the green sun before ensnaring it. Finally, the bottom and side walls connected as the top wall slammed down hard, completing the ice cube. Trixie felt the reserves of her magical powers rapidly dwindling, as her ice walls began to vaporize as soon as they enclosed the sun. Chunks of ice chipped off and cracked against the wooden stage. No. It won’t end like last time. “Trixie, Trixie, Trixie can’t…” she stammered, her body crumpling to the floor. Oh, Trixie, you could never disappoint us. “NO! I won’t disappoint anypony ever again!” Trixie leapt up, rearing back on her hind legs. Ice shards stabbed into the dissolving walls that surrounded the green sun. The icy prison swelled, shaping into a giant ball of ice and snow as it blotted out Spike’s sun. Plip. Trixie felt a warm liquid running down her nose. A small rivulet of blood stained her worn stage. Her nerves screamed out to her in pain, her vision swam, and the nauseating coppery smell of blood invaded her senses as it trickled down. Yet, she continued to press onward with her assault. Galleons of water poured down as the sun continued to melt away her ice. Hairline cracks ran up and down the frozen construct, but more ice would immediately be applied before any chunks could break off. A whistling sound started to rise in pitch, resulting in a few ponies clasping their ears. “Okay, pretty sure that's not supposed to do that,” said Rainbow Dash. Everypony began to shuffle backwards as the sound rung out like cathedral bells of Notre Mare. A geyser of hot steam burst out from the side of the giant ball of ice. Emerald tendrils of fire splayed out as if it was an infection from a festering wound. The ball’s white shell shook violently, chips of solid ice shattering from it before dissolving into mist. KRSSSSSHHOOM! A shockwave knocked everypony over, sending foals, mares, and stallions flipping head over hooves. As the storm dissipated, everypony recovered from the shock and regarded the outcome on the stage. The green sun was still there, but now looked nothing more than a small, fizzing ball of weak fire. Spike looked crestfallen at what his once proud feat now had been reduced to, barely the size of a foal. Spwht. A small, iridescent spark broke off and lazily drifted down towards Trixie, who remained blissfully unaware of it. “Ha.” She raised her head, and her eyes were red with exhaustion, her mane covering the rest of her face. “Trixie wishes to hear what everypony thinks now.” She bared her teeth at Spike, smugness and weariness painted on her face. The spark traveled down on a gust of wind. It flew over her head, across her back, and finally landed on the very tip of her tail. Fssssst. “Come now, let Trixie hear it,” she yelled, placing a hoof to her ears. She looked down at everypony, drinking in their expressions as they all looked up at her. Trixie earned this. Trixie deserves this. “Uhhm, Trixie...” began Spike, raising a claw with a very frightened look of concern. “Silence. Trixie asks that you keep your pitiful whining down until after Trixie hears her well-deserved respect from the crowds.” “Trixie, you’re on fire,” said Applejack, pointing a hoof at the show mare’s behind. Despite being painfully obvious to the rest of Ponyville, Trixie couldn’t see the billowing cloud of white smoke rising up behind her. “Yes, Trixie is certainly burning with the glory of victory.” “Trixie, you’re like, actually, on fire,” interjected Pinkie Pie, who had now placed herself between Rarity and Rainbow Dash. The bongos were still hanging around her neck. “Not ‘you’re awesome on fire’, but ‘scary, burny, get some water’ kind of fire.” Trixie picked up her wizarding hat and placed it back on its proper place on her head. “Trixie does not understand what you are saying. Trixie needs to hear other words of appreciation and gratitude from her adoring and doting fans.” “You’re! On! Bucking! Fire! You fluffing plothead!” annunciated a grape colored mare with a bouncy mane from the back, shaking a bottle of wine at her. “YEAH!” added Bulk Biceps near the back of the crowd. “Whu-“ Sniffing at the air, Trixie finally looked back to see that she was indeed, on, fire. “Ah, Trixie is indeed on fire… AHH!” Faster than a bolt of lightning, Trixie crashed through the back of the stage, tearing down the curtains as she made her immediate exit. Ponies cried out in laughter as they watched the once Great and Powerful Trixie make a complete fool out of herself once again. Tears began to roll down pony’s faces at the humiliation of the once cocky mare’s fall from grace. Her shrill cries for water could be heard as she ran down Market Street. and towards Ponyville’s Fountain. A small cloud of steam wafted up in the distance, followed by a long sigh of relief. “So, does this mean that Spike won?” asked a wall eyed pegasus flying towards the stage. “I do believe it does, Miss Hooves,” agreed a rather dapper looking brown stallion with a spikey mane. Everypony called out for Spike, who returned the cheers with a small wave before walking off stage. His sun gave out a final pitiful pop before vanishing into nothingness. The Elements looked on while everypony else began to disperse. Normally the young drake would’ve basked in the attention, but now it seemed he didn’t care at all. “Guess he’s not up for a party, huh?” Pinkie’s color dimmed a few shades as Spike entered the library, shutting the oak door close behind him.