//------------------------------// // To Defend the Empire // Story: Fairy Tail: The Draco-Pony Conflict // by edwinflores428 //------------------------------// A few days had passed since Spike's initiation into the guild and needless to say he was happy as a lark. The event at the town meeting had all but faded from his mind and now that not only was he begin trained by a group that made him proud to be a dragon, but his family had supported his decision. He'd been training with the guild for about a week now and it seemed that the dragons slayers had gotten into a little competitive feud over what type of dragon slayer he'd be. Natsu for instance was firm that Spike would be a fire dragon due to his little display from before, while Gajeel believed Spike should be a mineral user like him since he fed on gemstones and rocks. Even Wendy had her own say in the matter that Spike also had potential for learning sky magic to heal since he had the kindness, loyalty and chivalry to fuel it. Though Laxus eventually settled the feud, having them agree on all training him as none of them, not even Spike really knew what type of dragon he'd be. It was early afternoon on the eighth day of his training that Spike was currently being shown how to eat fire by Natsu. What's more the mane Six had come to watch as they were curious how their little dragon was coming along. "Alright, Spike. I'm gonna let loose with a roar and you try to breathe it in and then shoot it back at me. And remember, don't fear the fire; use it. Are you ready?" Spike swallowed before nodding. "Ok. Fire dragon ROAR!" FWOOOOOSH!! Natsu breathed a stream of flames towards Spike who stood his ground. Twilight, Fluttershy and rarity were all chewing their hooves in fear while Rainbow and Applejack were watching intensely and Pinkie? Well she was hungrily eating popcorn and slurping and milkshake as though she were at the cinema. "Wow! Those flames look so real!" "This isn't a movie, Pinkie for the last time!" Twilight said just before the wall of fire hit Spike head on. For a moment he was completely engulfed in flames before he began to slowly inhale them until the entire cloud had been sucked into his mouth his cheeks puffed up immensely with fire. "Ok now you gotta swallow it so you can make it your own fire and send it back!" Natsu called form across the field. Spike let out a strained grunt of understanding as he tried to gulp down the mass of flames, his face turning red from the heat before he let out a large burp causing the fire to escape his maw in a large burst and he fell over. "Spike!" Twilight rushed over to him as he sat up groaning, a wisp of smoke trailing form his mouth. "Are you ok?! Speak to me!" "I'm fine, Twilight. Just a little dizzy." Spike reassured as Natsu approached him. "I'm sorry. I goofed." "No you did fine. You're really getting the hang of inhaling. You just need to learn to contain the element and reconfigure it. Once you have that down no amount of fire in the world can harm you. Every flame will be under your command, even Garble's!" Spike's eyes glittered from his idol's encouragement, the Mane Six also smiling at Natsu's praise. "Well I think our little purple powerhouse could use a break." Lucy grinned as she pet Spike. "HEY~!!" a voice shouted. Everyone looked to see Happy, Carla and Lily flying towards the group. And they seemed to be carrying a large egg with them. It was about the size of Wendy and had three stripes, red, brown and grey. "Where'd you guys find that egg it's enormous!" Erza said as the exceeds set it down gently. "Dunno. It just fell out of the sky while we were on our way here so we saved it." Lily explained. "It's clearly not that of an exceed." Carla assured. "Unless it's like Lily and incubating in it's anthro form. Can that happen?" she asked him. "Well I've certainly never heard of it." everyone looked at the large egg before ti started wobbling and a crack appeared on its shell. "It's hatching!" Pinkie gasped. "What could it be?! A giant baby bird?! A giant baby platypus?!....Another baby dragon?!" Fluttershy wondered, Spike perking up on the last assumption as the egg shook more violently, cracks of light splintering across its surface. Until suddenly...CRACK-A-POOF!!! The egg exploded in a burst of coloured confetti and smoke and the gang got a good full view of its hatchling. It was a truly bizarre animal made from an amalgamation of animal body parts including a horse, goat, lion, dragon, snake, bat, deer and eagle. All of them molded together in a large serpentine body. "I'M BACK BABY!!!" it said in a cheerful flamboyant voice. "DISCORD?!!" the Mane Six and Spike said. "SURPRISE!!" "A SNEAK ATTACK FROM THE ENEMY!!" Erza blurted as she began to slash at Discord who dodged her multiple strikes. "Unbelievable! He dodged all of her attacks without even blinking!" Lucy gaped as Discord flipped behind Titania with a wide open smile. "He doesn't even care. he even looks happy." Natsu observed. "I thought I was gonna die." Discord squeaked in fear. "THEN QUIT SMILING ABOUT IT!!!" Lucy and Natsu shouted. "Let me deal with this!" Gray stepped forward removing his shirt. "I'll take this freak-show to the cleaners." but at that moment Discord poofed next to him dressed in a plain shirt and trousers, while standing behind a desk with a long rack of clothes streaming behind him. He quickly snatched up Gray's shirt and stuffed it in a plastic bag and sent down the rail. "That'll be ten bits for the cotton and dry, Sir." he held out his paw. "QUIT SCREWIN' WITH ME, CLOWN!!" Gray roared as he prepared to attack. "ENOUGH!!!" Twilight's voice magnified to bring attention. "First of all, this isn't our enemy or a dragon. He's Discord: the spirit of chaos and ally to our kingdom. Celestia had him sent on a reconnaissance mission a week before you arrived. I take it you're back with an update." she asked the last part to the draconequus who changed out of his cleaner getup. "Correct. I was about to tell you all after my greeting until this young lady so rudely took a swing at me." he pouted snootily with folded arms. Erza blushed slightly in embarrassment before she cleared her throat. "I apologise for my accusation and reckless behaviour." she bowed. Discord rubbed his lip in thought. "Hmmmm~. Well I guess I can forgive you. Right after you walk on your hands for ten hours while clucking like a chicken." "Discord~!" Fluttershy frowned. "Alright fine, no penalty." he huffed. "Aww booo!" Natsu jeered. "I thought I was gonna see Erza clucking while doing handstands. This opportunity will never happen again! YOU DELIVER!" he demanded though a piercing glare form the woman quickly silenced him. "But back to business. You're back with intel on the dragons I hope?" Twilight asked as Discord materialised an armchair out of thin air and proceeded to sit in it while wearing a pair of glasses. He laced his fingers and breathed through his nose before speaking. "Yes. After my weeks of surveillance and infiltration I have learned much of the self proclaimed King Garble's plans." "So he's calling himself a King now?" Spike snorted. "I know! A flamboyant arrogant monster just coming out and declaring his title as ruler without anypony else's consent?! Who does that?!" Discord asked earning cocked brows from the Mane Six. "What? Anywho, I've learned that he's amassing a great army of dragons and intends to strike at the heart of the Kingdom to spread fear faster than hsi own fire." "Canterlot. Where else?" Rainbow rolled her eyes. "Actually no, oddly enough. His first target is in fact the one place any dragon would dream to be and it just so happens our little Spike is one of its higher ups." "He's going after the Crystal Empire?!" Rarity gawked. "To a dragon it's a city made entirely of food. His army will munch every morsel until there's nothing left. And much like old man Sombra he intends to enslave the populace and turn the city into a gem mine to feed him and his subjects." Discord explained. "At the same time he will also be sending dragons here to obliterate the citizens hope in you lot and then finally Canterlot. The succession of these three attacks will obliterate any remaining hope or will to fight in Equestria if three of its strongest areas are defeated. Manehatten, Baltimare, Las Pegasus and many other sites will be picked like apples once Garble's amassed enough power." he concluded solemnly. The Mane Six and Fairy Tail looked amongst themselves with deep concern. "How can a dragon be so wicked? I know Acnalogia was destructive, but this Garble is just plain evil." Mira said. "All the more reason for us to stop him before he causes just as much chaos." Freed replied. "Does he know anything about us though? We could land a surprise attack." Levy suggested. "Well he did hear of your little escapade in town." Discord began. "But he's incredibly arrogant and doesn't acknowledge you as a threat." "The bastard's underestimating us?!" Natsu roared. "Hey cool down, Salamander this is a good thing." Gajeel interjected. "Underestimation is the best thing you can get from an enemy cause that means we can take them surprise, as Levy suggested. "Well in that case he's in for the nastiest surprise of his life." Natsu snarled as he pounded his burning fist. Discord disintegrated his armchair as he suddenly changed into a drill sergeant uniform and pulled down a map of Equestria. "Now I believe the proper tactic is to head off the Crystal Empire invasion with a small ragtag army including myself, the Mane Six and a handful of you Fairy Cake wizards. "Our name is Fairy Tail, man!" Elfman corrected. "Hoho yeah, like that's any better." Discord grinned. "Hahaha! This guy's a riot!" Bickslow laughed at Elfman's fuming expression. "Riot! Riot!" his tikis laughed with him. "As I was saying. While our squadron makes for the Crystal Empire, the remainder of your guild should stay here to man the town." Discord mapped out the battle plan. "Since you dragon slayers are their key weakness you should preferably be present at both locations." "Well I'm going to this Crystal City. I'm gonna show that Mouth Wash jerk what a real dragon is!" Natsu growled. "Mouth wash?" Lucy asked confused. "His name's Gargle isn't it?" Spike, Discord, Pinkie and Rainbow burst into laughter. "HAHAHA! Gargle!" Rainbow clutched her sides. "That's a good one!" Discord slapped his knee. "Well I'll bet he really needs a mouth wash with that bad breath of his!" Spike laughed. "But back on track, I\'m not lettin' Salamander show me up so I'm definitely goin'!" Gajeel said. "Well you'll be needing me to treat you if you get injured." Wendy piped up. "Then I guess I'll be holding down the fort here." Laxus concluded. "Then I and the Thunder Legion shall remain as well. After all, my enchantments will be needed to defend the town." Freed said. "I'm going with Natsu's group. Someone's gonna have to watch him." Lucy grinned as she and the fire dragon exchanged a high-five. "Then in that case the whole team might as well go." Gray stepped in along with Erza, both smiling. "Wherever Gray goes I'll be there to back him up." Juvia said determined. "Besides I'm sure my water magic will prove useful against the dragons." "I think I'll go along too. I'm the only one capable of feeding this big guy." Levy smirked tapping her fist on Gajeel's chest. "Only if your short legs can keep up with me." he snickered back making her puff her cheeks at him. "In that case, the rest of the guild should remain here to protect the town." Makarov spoke up. "The Thunder Legion, the Strauss siblings, Cana and myself. The rest of you shall go to the Crystal Empire and confront Garble." "We will not fail, Master." Erza assured. XXX The group bound for the Crystal Empire were preparing their backpacks for the journey since, according to Discord, they'd have a long journey ahead of them after they arrived. Twilight had just finished packing her bag when she looked to see Spike coming out of his room with his own bag. She frowned a little. "Um, Spike. You know I'm happy for you to be a part of fairy Tail and all...but are you sure you're ready for something like this?" she asked worriedly. "I know it's a lot to take in, but this is something I have to do. Especially with where we're going. I'm the Empire's greatest hero. Like you said, I saved them. Twice. And now that their home may come under attack any day, I have to do all that i can to protect them. I'm not saying I'm gonna go claw to claw with Garble but I can't just stay and do nothing. Not when I have ponies and people I can protect." he went over to the Princess of Friendship and gently pet her mane. "I've always believed in you, Twilight. So let me show you why you believe in me." Twilight stared at him before she wiped a proud tear from her eye and hugged him. "How could I not see how much you've grown?" she sniffed as Spike returned her embrace before they parted. "Come on. The others are waiting." "Then let's go!" Spike grinned as they rushed off to meet the others at the station. XXX Spike looked rather puzzled as he, along with the Manse Six stared at Nastu and Gajeel as they road the train to the Crystal Empire. Both of the dragon slayers were pale green and their cheeks swollen, occasionally letting out a strained gag as they tried not to let whatever was trying to escape their stomachs out. "So wait. You're telling me Dragon Slayers get severe motion sickness?" Spike asked Lucy who nodded awkwardly. "It's a curse for poor Nastu." she said rubbing her partner's back soothingly, though having little effect on him. "It's the same for Gajeel." "But what about Wendy? She doesn't look sick." "It comes with our level of power. Since I'm the weakest of the three I've yet to develop it. Gajeel's second strongest cause he got his sickness a while ago but Natsu's been dealing with it for years." "Don't...put me beneath...Sala-HNNGH!" Gajeel failed to finish his sentence as he covered his mouth. "Well, don't worry, we're almost there, you two." Twilight consoled the sickly duo. "Man they look sicker than I did after eating those horrific muffins." Pinkie grimaced. XXX The journey took about another hour, Natsu having to hurl out the window during, until they finally reached the Crystal Empire. And as soon as the train came to a stop, Natsu and Gajeel instantly returned to normal, the former jumping out the train window and kissing the platform. "FINALLY!! SWEET SOLID GROUND!!" he cheered as the others stepped off the train to join him. "Sheesh, and I thought Rarity was a drama queen." said Rainbow. "A drama queen?! Me?!" the unicorn questioned flamboyantly. As the group departed the station they were soon greeted by a large carriage with two royal crystal guards standing by. "Princess Twilight. We welcome your arrival." the first bowed along with his comrade. "As do we yours, Great and Honorable Spike the Brave and Glorious." they bowed to the little dragon who grinned sheepishly at the Fairy Tail wizards. "Long story." he said before the guards began to transport them to the city center, crowds of shimmering crystal ponies waved and cheered at Spike as they passed them by. "Wow. I know you said you were a hero but I never would've guessed you were this big a shot here." Lucy nudged him with a smirk as he rubbed the back of his head. "I know. I'm still not used to being pampered by them." "Well maybe now that you're in our guild you'll get a cut of the cash, eh?" Gajeel laughed as the carriage to a stop outside the magnificent crystal castle. The guild mates looked at it in astonishment as they were lead into the building by Spike and the Mane Six before being greeted by a couple of other ponies. A white stallion unicorn with a blue mane and a pink mare alicorn with a purple, pink and yellow mane. Twilight beamed when she saw them and ran to hug the couple who returned her embrace. "Welcome back, Twily." the white unicorn greeted her. "Good to be back, BBBFF." Twilight replied. "And of course, we're glad to see the rest of you back as well." the pink unicorn smiled. "Especially you, Spike." she pulled the dragon over with her magic to give him a hug. "Oh and you must be the Fairy Tail wizards twilight's told us about." "Correct. It's nice to meet you Miss..." Erza asked her name. "Oh where are my manners? I'm Princess Mi Amore Cadenza of the Crystal Empire, but please, call me Cadance. And this my Husband, Shining Armor; captain of the Royal Guard." "A pleasure." the white unicorn nodded. "My little sister's told me much about you prior to your arrival." "Sister?" Wendy quizzed. "Oh yeah. Shining is my Big Brother Best friend Forever." Twilight informed the group. "So that's what that jumble of letters stood for." Levy realised. "My name is Erza. And these are my comrades, Natsu, Lucy, Gray, Happy, Wendy, Carla, Gajeel, Levy and Juvia." Erza introduced the group to the couple. "Welcome." Cadance bowed to them. "We're grateful for your assistance in our battle against the dragons." "So Discord already filled you in." Lucy said. "Correct. Our top priority is to prepare the Empire for the attack. The citizens must be evacuated to the safe points before Garble's armies reach us." Shining informed the group. "Do you know exactly when they'll be here?" Gray asked Discord. "I can't say for certain. There's always the chance he changed his last plan I heard. But if not, they should arrive in just two days." "Then there's no time to lose. we need to prepare now." Twilight said as the group set about their business. But little did they know, just outside the window a clear shadow was watching them. it flew away from the tower and the city before reaching a nearby cave where it's invisible coat changed colour, revealing itself to be a dragon; a female. She had electric blue scales, green spines and large ruby red eyes. She also had quite the voluptuous figure, standing about the same height as Erza with a pair of strong wings. The dragoness glanced from side to side before holding out her hand where a small flame bloomed in her palm, shaping itself into a mirror as Garbles face suddenly appeared on it. "Melinda. Your report?" "Yes, Sire. I'm still posted at the Crystal Empire as you ordered. The Mane Six have arrived along with those human creatures as well as the Spirit of Chaos, Discord." "Just as I suspected. I figured they'd show up sooner or later." Garble smirked smugly. "That's not all, Sire. One of our own is with them." Melinda spoke. "A dragon is aiding them?! Who?!" Garble roared in fury which flinched the dragoness. "I don't know. They were small, with green spines and purple scales." garble digested the description before he burst out into mocking laughter. "Don't worry. He's no threat. That's just that little runt, Spike. He can't even light a candle let alone fight a real dragon like you or me. Just forget about him. Stay where you are until the squadron I send arrives." "Yes, Sire. Melinda out." the flame communicator poofed as the message concluded leaving Melinda alone in the cave and she stared at the distant city. "Just who is he?" she asked, the image of Spike still floating in her mind. To be continued...