Chapter Eighty-eight
Rainbow Dash
The next day came fairly quickly. I couldn’t help but make a mental check on the number of days we had left until war, even if I really shouldn’t have been keeping my mind on it. We were down to eleven now, but we had made an ally out of Twilight, and an advisor at best out of Xekora. I was glad that things seemed to be getting a tiny bit more promising, rather than a whole lot worse.
I sat up from my bed and ran a hand through my hair. There was still one problem that had been bugging me, and that was of the young boy asleep in the other room. I knew Scootaloo was pretty good with a spear, and phenomenally skilled with wind magic, but that was no excuse. He was only twelve years old, and did not belong in a war zone. While it wasn’t in my jurisdiction to decide or to take him somewhere else, I still felt like I should consider getting him away from here until things calmed down.
In the end, there wasn’t much I could do about it for the time being. When war drew closer, I would try to do something to get him to safety, but he would probably be safer by my side until then. The two of us made our way from my house to the fields outside of town, where the day’s training session would take place. The class that had been just Scootaloo and Applebloom a week ago had expanded to almost two dozen townspeople, and I wasn’t able to give the two kids the kind of attention I used to. I gave the whole group the most basic but useful overviews of skills I could, and tried to slip in some extra practice for my original pupils whenever I got the chance.
Luckily for us, Twilight had volunteered to assist in the magical training. We did not have an extraordinary number of Children of Fire in our town, but that may have been a good thing in itself, as those we did have received more instruction, and would be better prepared when the time came to fight. And of course, multiple members of the Silver Arrows were training up some additional archers, as they would be invaluable during defense.
My group trained well into the afternoon, alternating between practicing new techniques and sparring against each other to improve their reflexes and reaction times. There was a limited amount of skill I could pass onto these people in a two-week timespan, but they were learning what they could quickly. When the shadows began to stretch longer on the ground, signaling that the day was already half-gone, I dismissed everyone to get lunch and rest for a while. Scootaloo and I then made our way back into town, and grabbed lunch from our favorite sandwich shop.
Halfway through my sandwich, I felt Scootaloo tugging at my sleeve, and he pointed to something high up in the sky. I squinted, and after a few moments of searching, saw what he was motioning at. It was hard to tell from so far away, but it looked nothing like a bird. It almost seemed like a snake slithering through the sky, and I realized with a start that it seemed to be heading towards us.
“What is that?” I asked, standing and beginning to back away. The form above began to grow rapidly, making a straight drop for the ground. I put a hand on Scootaloo’s shoulder, ready to run if necessary, but sheer curiosity held me in place. The form rapidly approached the ground, and I could make out a distinct green color, as well as a heavy pair of leathery wings. Another dragon, perhaps? But what’s it doing here?
Sure enough, when it was about to hit the ground, the dragon tucked into an aerial roll and gave off a quick flash of light, and a human figure finished the descent to the ground in its place. He landed with one hand on the ground, then rose shortly and looked around at the dwindling people who had also paused to watch. He waved to them cheerily and, upon seeing us, strode over to Scootaloo and I.
“That’s... Fafnir, right?” Scootaloo whispered to me. “At least, I think that’s what Spike said he looked like...”
“I think you’re right...” I responded, then turned to the man approaching us. “Hey, you wouldn’t happen to be the Goldoan Fafnir, would you? What brings you all the way out here?”
He nodded. “That’s right, glad someone remembers me. I lived here for almost nine years before moving on to Manehattan. I returned for two reasons: the first is to join up with the resistance here, and help defend the town.”
My eyebrows raised. “Really? Wow, that should be a huge help! But... why? Unless you just want to help because you came to think of this town as home, which I can fully understand.”
Fafnir chuckled slightly. “Yeah, you... you might say that. That brings me to my second reason for returning. I’ll need to speak with the ladies of House Icarus. All three of ‘em. You got any idea where they would be this time of day?”
I scratched the back of my head. “Well, Rarity is in charge of one of the training groups, and should be off doing that, probably right in the house grounds. Opal is most likely helping with that. As for Sweetie Belle... Scoots, you got any ideas where she might be?”
“Uh... I guess she’s probably getting in some extra practice with Lyra and her training group. If not, then either at home or at the clubhouse with Applebloom, but I think she’s training too.”
I nodded. “Right, well, we’ll get them all rounded up for you. You want to just wait here for a few minutes while we find them?”
Fafnir sighed, then shrugged. “I suppose that’s fine. I’m certainly not going anywhere.” Scootaloo and I both set off, with him heading for Lyra’s group at the other edge of town, and me for Icarus mansion. It took about ten minutes to get from the sandwich shop to there when I wasn’t in a huge hurry, and I took the chance to look around at the streets around me. They all looked exactly the same, with everything in the same place... except a good chunk of the people. Only three days had passed, and yet so many people had already evacuated. How many more would follow? How many people would even remain to defend their home, and how many would simply find it better to uproot and leave for their own safety? I didn’t blame them, of course, as they most likely had family to care for. But if too many left, we would not have much of a chance to survive.
I arrived at the gates to the Icarus mansion, and quickly managed to get the attention of the two girls leading the training session. I then explained that Fafnir had requested an audience with them, and Opal laughed harshly. “Fafnir’s here? He finally decide to man up? Oh, this ought to be good. C’mon Rarity, you’ll want to be there for this too. Someone go to get Sweetie Belle?”
“Scootaloo’s got it covered.” I answered, a bit confused at Opal’s attitude. It seemed like she already knew what Fafnir was going to say, and wasn’t impressed by it. Rarity seemed mostly as confused about it as I did, but there was a note of curiosity in her eyes. Fafnir had been with her for a short time when she was just a baby, and had killed her mother’s killer, so she probably looked forward to meeting him in these more favorable circumstances.
I led the two back to the sandwich shop, where the Goldoan still waited. He perked up when he saw us approach. Opal folded her arms, and he sighed. “So, Fafnir...” she began. “My words finally get through to you, after seven whole years of sitting? You finally decide to come back? Hate to tell you, but you might be just a little late.”
“I know.” Fafnir said, holding up his arms apologetically. “I should have returned the moment she passed... nay, I should never have left at all. I was stupid and let my pride rule my actions. I know I’m too late to make things as they should be, but I thought that I might try as best I can to make them better, as right as they can be.”
I didn’t understand at all what the two Laguz were talking about, and by the looks of it, neither did Rarity. Opal closed her eyes, and after a pause said: “Well, you’re mind’s in the right place now, at least. Not really my call though. Whatever she decides, I’m willing to at least try and work through it.” Fafnir nodded thankfully, and Rarity cast the most confused of glances at her older sister. “Wait until Sweetie Belle gets here, everything will get explained one way or another.”
A few minutes of waiting passed, then we saw two of the three Crusaders quickly heading our way. Scootaloo moved back to stand by my side, and Sweetie Belle slowly paced over to her sisters, keeping her curious eyes on Fafnir. I put a hand on Scootaloo’s shoulder. “I’m not exactly sure what this is, but it seems like a private matter. We should let them have their space.”
He frowned, but allowed me to lead him away from the place where the four were gathered. As we walked he looked up to me expectantly and asked, “We’re going to listen in from a distance, right?”
I chuckled. “Was there ever any doubt? Let’s just go behind that building, and you can do the windy thing to amplify the sound to us.” He nodded, and we both swung around to the opposite side of the nearby building that I had specified. Scootaloo’s hands began glowing with a faint green energy, and after a moment I was able to clearly make out the voices of the three girls and the Goldoan dragon.
“So, you’re Fafnir, right?” Sweetie Belle asked. “You saved my mother way before I was born, and helped my sisters to fight that Rytas guy... I guess I should be thanking you!”
“Don’t worry about it, Sweetie Belle.” Fafnir said. “I guess you were told those stories somewhere along the line. I’m glad you mentioned that, actually, because that’s part of why I’m here. See... remember how, when our team of Goldoans first made port in Equestria, and your mother had already been with us for a time? Well, I was lucky enough to get stationed to this town, where she lived, when Celestia dispatched us all across Equestria. By then... a connection of some sort had already been made.
“I stayed here for almost nine years, meeting with Cybel in relative secret. See, because of how things were back in Goldoa where I grew up, I didn’t really want to be seen around with her much, because it seemed like people would disapprove of it at the time. A noblewoman like her being seen with a nothing like me, a Laguz no less? Instinct just told me that would not be a good idea. Even if it was perfectly acceptable here- and I can see that well enough now- I just couldn’t do it back then, and only met her in secret.
“Well... eventually, something happened, and I couldn’t stay here any longer. It was that same Goldoan upbringing that did it, really, and I now know I should have stayed... but I just could not remain out of pointless shame. If I was still here when people found out, they would know I was with Cybel for sure, and that would destroy her reputation; at least, that’s what I thought at the time. Because, what happened was... well, she had become pregnant.”
I heard a sharp intake of breath from at least one of the girls, and my eyebrows raised in interest. If he left almost a year before Sweetie Belle was born, then that can only mean...
“Do you understand what I’m saying, Sweetie Belle?” Fafnir asked. “I... I am your father.”
“Ah...” Rarity exclaimed, “I see... that was why you were so upset when you saw what Rytas had done to our mother... it’s because you loved her. But why on earth did you leave again when your daughter needed a parent to take care of her?”
“Like I said, it was my stupid unwarranted pride and shame. ‘If I returned now, everyone would know what happened between Cybel and I, and what’s more, they would look down upon me for being to weak to stay’. As you can see, my logic wasn’t exactly the most sound, and contradicted itself a lot. I’ve realized just how wrong I was, and... I know it’s not quite the same as if I had been there from the start, but if you’ll still take a stubborn idiot like me... I’d like to at least try to be a good father to you, Sweetie Belle, and do whatever I can for your sisters as well.”
A few moments passed in which no one spoke, and the most uncomfortable silence filled the air. At last, Sweetie Belle broke the silence: “So, if you’re my dad... That makes me half-dragon, right? Do I get any cool powers or anything?”
Fafnir laughed, much of the tension passed. “I can’t say I know for sure. You seem to age at a normal rate, which is good. Do you have any strange birthmarks or anything like that? I guess your senses would probably be heightened, though that might not be as noticeable...”
“Yeah, I can hear and smell stuff a lot better than most people.” Sweetie Belle said. “I don’t have any birthmarks though...”
“That might be it, then. It’s kind of a hit-and-miss with the offspring of Laguz and Children of Fire...”
“Aw... Phil gets to be a human phoenix, and I just get a good nose and ears... lame.”
Fafnir chuckled again. “Well... what do you think? Will you have me back?”
Another few moments passed before Sweetie Belle answered. “Well... I do wish you had come back sooner, but... I’d still like to have a dad. Okay... Okay, it’s alright with me. We can at least give it a try.”
I smiled, and though I couldn’t see what the four were doing, I could just feel that they had embraced in some manner of group hug. I tapped Scootaloo gently on the shoulder to get his attention and cancel his spell. “I think we’ve got all the juicy stuff we’re going to get. Let’s let them have their space.”