//------------------------------// // Chapter 15: Out Of The Shadows // Story: The Last Healing Dragon // by Gearsmash King //------------------------------// "DRAGON!!!" A pony screamed, running into the safety of her house. Lazarus watched as several ponies shrieked and scattered, running for safety. Twilight looked up at the dragon and gave him a nervous and apologetic grin. However, Lazarus didn't return her grin or even look back at her. He just stood in the middle of the street and watched the panic unfold in front of him. "Princess Twilight!" A voice called out, "Run! Before that monster eats you!" Twilight looked over to where the voice had come from and saw Mayor Mare. She was hiding in the doorway of Town Hall, shaking uncontrollably. Lazarus made no effort to approach her. Instead, he lowered himself to the ground and rested his body on the stone road. Twilight, however, trotted over and casually smiled at the frightened mare. "It's alright." Twilight said, assuring her, "He's not going to hurt anypony." "Are you sure?" The mayor asked, "He looks like he's just waiting for the right moment to attack!" They both looked back at Lazarus, who just simply gazed at them. "Actually," Twilight continued, "your half right. He is waiting, but he's waiting for you to stop hiding from him. He just wants you to know that he has no interest in harming ponies." "How do you know?" "Two reasons. First, he told me and my friends. And second, have you seen him smash any buildings or chase anypony?" The mayor looked around and saw that the streets were empty, buildings were still standing, and ponies peeking through their windows. After a moment, Mayor Mare stepped out of her hiding place and cautiously approached the dragon. Twilight walked beside her to help make her feel comfortable. When they reached him, Lazarus lowered his head to their level and stared. "You're afraid, aren't you?" The dragon asked in a low rumbling voice. Mayor Mare stood her ground and nodded her head. "Well, I guess the best way to fix that, is to introduce ourselves." The mayor nodded again. "My name is Lazarus. Guardian of the Everfree Forest." "M-Mayor Mare. I'm in charge of Ponyville most of the time." "Pleased to meet you, Mayor." Lazarus smiled warmly at her, without showing any teeth. His eyes faded to blue and Mayor Mare had a slightly confused look across her face. "Why did your eyes change from white to blue like that?" She asked, feeling less afraid, "And where are your pupils?" "I used to have slit pupils, like most dragons." Lazarus replied, "But, because of something that happened, my eyes don't have pupils anymore. However, they still change whenever my emotions change." "Are you blind?" "No, I can still see very well. But if I was blind, my other senses would guide me just as well." As they talked, ponies began to emerge from their hiding places and slowly approach the dragon. Several ponies watched Lazarus, making sure that it actually was safe for them to approach. A bunch of fillies and colts wanted to rush toward him, but were held back by their parents. Everypony kept their distance, except for one pegasus colt with a wooden sword, who had escaped his mother's grasp. "For glory and the princess!" The colt called, running at Lazarus. The colt's mother chased after him, but wasn't able to stop his next movement. The colt ran up and swung his toy sword at the dragon's leg. Whack! Lazarus whipped his head around to face his attacker. But what he saw wasn't what he was expecting. He knew that it was a child that had decided to attack him. However, the colt didn't seem scared, but proud. Either it was because the colt had successfully gotten close to a dragon and hit it with a sword. Or, he thought that it was some kind of joke. Before the colt could do anything else, his mother reached him and stood between him and Lazarus. "P-please, don't be angry!" The mother pleaded, shielding her son and keeping her eyes closed, "He didn't mean it!" Lazarus looked from them to Mayor Mare and Twilight, before looking back at the colt. Upon looking at the colt's expression again, Lazarus could tell what he had intended to do. "You do know that was a foolish and stupid thing to do, right?" The dragon rumbled, "Attacking a full grown dragon, that you know nothing about. A true fighter doesn't blindly attack their opponent. They study and learn about them, before they fight. It's something that every skilled fighter knows. Otherwise, they lose everything." The colt's expression changed from pride to shame as he realized just what might have happened to him, causing his ears to droop and eyes to lower to the ground. Lazarus knew that the colt was just playing around, but he had spoken the truth. "What is your name, little one?" Lazarus asked softly, "I, sometimes, want to know who I'm up against." "Jetstream." The colt replied. "Are you sure it's not 'Sir' Jetstream?" The colt looked back into the deep blue eyes of the dragon. Lazarus winked at him and smiled, before... "Oh no!" Lazarus said, playing along, "You didn't bring your army with you, did you?" "What kind of knight would I be if I didn't?" Jetstream smiled, pointing his toy sword at Lazarus, "Get him!" All at once, Lazarus was swarmed with fillies and colts as they began climbing on him. Parents watched as their "little heroes" attacked the dragon in a frenzy of tickling and poking him with wooden swords. "Ha, ha, ha!" Lazarus laughed, "Stop, I can't- Ha, ha, ha, ha!" Even though he knew it was a game, Lazarus made sure not to move around too much. He didn't want any of the foals to get hurt. Unfortunately, that still managed to happen, when an earth pony filly with a pink bow tried to climb onto his back and fell to the ground. "OOOWWW!!!" The filly screamed, landing on the stone road and breaking her leg. The playing stopped as everyone saw the filly holding her leg, which was bending in a way that it shouldn't. "Let's get her to a doctor!" A mare exclaimed, running over to the filly. "Don't worry, everypony." Twilight said, approaching them, "There's a doctor already here." "You know healing magic?" "Not entirely. But he does." Twilight pointed a hoof at Lazarus and everypony stared in confusion. "But he's a dragon!" The mare protested. "Let me show you what kind of dragon I really am." Lazarus said, before blowing a small blue flame into his claws, "Let's have a look at that." He brought the flame close, but the filly squirmed. She was trying to move, but the pain in her leg kept her from going anywhere. The mare stroked the filly's mane and glared back at the dragon's flame. "Your scaring her!" The mare exclaimed, holding the filly gently. Lazarus pulled the flame away and looked at the filly, who had fear in her eyes. "It's not going to hurt you." Lazarus said softly. "Ya promise?" The filly whimpered. "I promise." With that, the filly managed to relax, allowing Lazarus to bring the flame to her. The flame made contact and engulfed her leg in blue. After a moment, the flame died out and the filly's leg was in it's proper form, with a bed of ashes under it. The filly stood up and walked around, testing to see if it actually worked. To her surprise, her leg felt like it had never been broken. She looked back at the dragon with wide eyes, as did everypony else. "What's your name?" Lazarus asked, giving her a warm smile. "A-Apple Bloom." The filly replied, still amazed by what just happened, "How'd ya do that?" "It's something that I was born with. I'm, what most would call, a Healing Dragon." Apple Bloom's eyes widened further. She wasn't expecting an answer like that, but it did explain how he managed to fix her leg. "Are there anymore like you?" Mayor Mare asked, saying what everypony was thinking. Lazarus looked back at her with white eyes, just in time to see Twilight put a hoof on her shoulder. The mayor looked at the princess and saw a sympathetic, but stern expression on her face. It was an expression that answered the question and made her wish that she never asked. "Your the only one, aren't you?" Mayor Mare said, making sure the crowd got their answer. "Unfortunately, yes." Lazarus replied, "But, I try not to think about it too much. It brings me pain." Everypony spook quietly amongst themselves, putting the pieces together and seeing the sad picture that they made. "However, I didn't come here to sadden you with my past." The dragon said, lightening the mood, "I came here in hopes that I can be part of your world and not scare anyone." Several ponies exchanged glances, while others murmured to each other. Lazarus turned his attention to the foals again and smiled. "Now, who wants to go for a ride?" He asked, lowering himself to the ground. "Are you going to run fast?" Jetstream asked, hovering in place. "Oh, we're not running." "Then what are ya doin'?" Apple Bloom asked, carefully climbing up. "We're flying." "Flyin'?" After they were all settled, Lazarus lifted himself and left the ground. Several adult pegasi followed, acting as spotters for the foals. The dragon didn't fly very fast, but he did keep a reasonable speed. They made a few laps around Ponyville, before landing back at Town Square. After Lazarus was laying on the ground, the adult pegasi helped the foals, who couldn't fly, get down. "That. Was. Awesome!" Jetstream whinnied, "Could you go faster next time?" "Maybe." Lazarus replied, looking at the group of smiling and excited foals, "But, I don't know when next time will be. There are always other things in the way." The sun was getting low in the sky and Twilight still had to get the gems to her castle. "Lazarus," Twilight said, wrapping the crate in her magic, "we still have stuff to do." Looking at her, Lazarus nodded. "Very well." Lazarus sighed, looking back at the foals, "I have to go, children. But, maybe, we can have fun some other time. Good-bye." With that, Lazarus and Twilight left and everypony else went home. The castle wasn't too far away and that was good, because Twilight wanted to get those gems somewhere safe, fast. It made her feel uncomfortable, carrying such power in a small wooden box that anyone could open. But, she quickly pushed the feeling out of her mind and distracted herself with a conversation. "You're really good with kids." Twilight said, grinning at the dragon. "There are some things you never forget." Lazarus replied, "Even after a few thousand years." Twilight felt sorry for Lazarus, because of what had happened. She never saw the memory that showed what happened to his family. But she knew enough to know that she didn't need to ask. "What were their names?" Twilight asked, trying to be supportive. Lazarus stopped walking and gazed down at her, his eyes fading to orange again. "My sons were, Damian and Hector." The dragon moaned, recalling their faces, "My daughter was, Quinn." "And your mate?" "Saleen. And, if you wish, you may call her my wife, instead. You don't have to use 'mate' all the time." They smiled at each other as the castle came into view. The sun had set completely and the sky was filled with shimmering stars. The moon hung high and bathed the castle in a mysterious light. It was quiet and peaceful, perfect for flying. And flying was something Lazarus liked to do during nights like this. "I'm going to put this somewhere safe, as soon as possible." Twilight said, opening the door to the castle and levitating the box beside her, "Thanks for walking me home." "And thank you for helping me with the other ponies." The dragon replied as his eyes faded back to white, "If it wasn't for you, they would still be hiding from me. But they're still a little afraid of me, I know that." "Give them time. After the way you behaved around the foals today, I'm sure they'll warm up to you." With that, they bid each other good-night and went their separate ways. Lazarus took to the air and sailed towards the Everfree Forest, keeping a watchful eye for anything out of place. Twilight went inside her castle and trotted to her library. She placed the crate next to her center table and looked around. "It wouldn't hurt to have another look, would it?" Twilight said to herself, slowly lifting the lid. The crate was halfway open, before she quickly closed it again. Slam! The lid slammed hard and Twilight shook her head. "No! Bad idea!" Twilight scolded, cursing her curiosity, "It'll cause huge problems if I do that!" "What'll cause huge problems?" A voice asked, coming from the library door. Twilight quickly pivoted on her hind legs and spread her wings as far as they could reach. In the doorway, Starlight Glimmer looked curiously at the princess. "Oh! Er... Good evening, Starlight." Twilight stammered, keeping her wings spread wide, "Did I wake you? I'm sorry." "I heard a loud sound come from in here." Starlight replied, stepping into the room, "Are you alright?" "Yup. I'm good." Starlight stopped and looked at Twilight's outstretched wings. "What are you hiding behind you?" She asked, trying to look around the wings. "Nothing." Twilight lied as guilt formed on her muzzle. Starlight raised an eyebrow, catching onto the lie. Twilight's expression changed to defeat as she realized that she had been cornered. She folded her wings and revealed the crate. Starlight was confused for a moment, until Twilight reopened it. "Oh, sweet Celestia!" She gasped, staring at the two gems, "Are those..." "Yeah." Twilight sighed, closing the lid again and looking at her, "And I need to hide them, but I don't know where." "I might have a few ideas." They exchanged looks, before Twilight could think of a response to the sudden answer to her problem. "We can talk about it in the morning." Twilight said, after finding the proper words, "Maybe we could get our friends to help." Starlight agreed and left the library, followed by Twilight. Before leaving, however, Twilight looked back at the crate and felt a small shiver run through her. "Hopefully, we'll find someplace secluded and difficult to get to." With that, she went to her room and fell into her bed, drifting peacefully to sleep.