//------------------------------// // Chapter 13- Evacuate the Town. The Dragon Approaches. // Story: Flames of Equestria // by Mick0339 //------------------------------// Fire rained from above as the town was bombarded by the closing threat. Ponies frantically, and frenzified ran for their lives, pushing others aside, and calling for everypony to run. Aldon, however, was walking in the opposite direction, towards the threat; towards the looming disaster of the dragon. Ponies gave glares of fear towards the man as they ran, but Aldon paid no mind to them as they did it. He simply continued to walk in the direction of the coming storm. His fists held in a clenched ball of anger. His left eye was indeed a red tint, while his right eye still held faint traces of blue. The scar on his left eye seemingly pulsated as he moved, and he could feel his blood boil. He gave wry smile as he continued to stare down the dragon in the distance. The air around Aldon fluctuated as he moved, a seeming heat wave appearing around him, bending all available light, which was slowly being blocked out by the destruction taking place around him. The fire raining from the sky destroyed buildings from left to right, the same as long range artillery of modern day war, nothing was untouched. Ponies, Fillies and Foals all ran, with the parents carrying their kids on their backs. Aldon looked around to make sure all of them were fine as could be, andn ot in any danger. "Somepony HELP!" A mother in need said while ponies ran by. Her child, the same as her mother, was a azure blue, with pink eyes and a purple mane. The young one cried while holding a hoof of a pony being crushed under a nearby building. The tops were slowly being burnt to a crisp as it creeped to the bottom, where the earth pony was being crushed. Said earth, pony, opposite the unicorns of the two females, was a light shade of green, with blue eyes and a trimmed red mane. An odd couple, but the tears in their eyes held true as Aldon approached them. The mother cried out ot the ponies who gave quick glances and continued to run. None of them, save a few who treid in vain, let the pony to be crushed and burned alive. The little filly was holding the hoof of her father with increasing pressure. Tears ran down her eyes as the mother continued to shout for help. "Daddy!" the little filly said, as the father tried to give a nestle. "Please. Don't go!" She said, as her father tried to get them to leave. "I don't want to leave you. Daddy, I love you," the filly said, as she gave a hug to the exposed head of the pony. "Please, Hunny take her and go," the pony pleaded, as some of the gathered ponies tried to lift up the rubble in vain. The mare looked into her husband's eyes and continued to cry her eyes out, but slowly reached for the filly. "No! Mommy please!" she screamed as the mother brought her up. "What about Daddy?" She asked, tears pouring down as the flames did from the sky. "Miss, we can't," A larger earth pony in the shade of brown and black said while struggling to pick the wood up, "it's too heavy." The other ponies, similar in size, but varying in color from red to purple, continued to try in unison only in vain as every time it only lifted an inch and wouldn't budge any further. "Mira!" The trapped pony shouted, drawing the mare's attention. "GO!" He shouted, as she slowly nodded her head in complete disbelief and slowly began to run away. "DADDY!" The filly yelled, as she was carried past Aldon, both giving glares to the man, and continuing on, screaming their heads of in sadness. Aldon approached the ponies, who were all dwarfed by him, as the pony pleaded with the others to go as well. "Please, just help my wife and child. Leave me and help them please," the pony pleaded. "It's too heavy. Trust me I would know," he said trying to jab in a joke. "The others might be cowards and pass by, but we won't let you die," one said, pissing out the words as he continued to struggle to lift up the destroyed burnable material in vain. The trapped pony shook his head. "Please go! You're just going to get yourselves killed." The ponies shook their heads, until Aldon loomed over them and they looked back in awe and horror. "The monster," one of them whispered. Aldon at that point, put one hand under the rubble, gripping a sturdy, everlasting piece. The Ponies saw it in his eyes, the mix of emotions. His right eye was the form of kind thoughts, while the left were the emotions of darkness. However, to truly experience life, one must have both. "Not even all of us could lift it, he couldn't possibly do it." Another whispered as Aldon slowly continued to tighten his grip on the object. His back bent over, and the pony staring up at the man in the same spectacle of manner as the others: awe and horror. Aldon knew, that anything judged by actions not words. Intelligence merely gave the impression that they could judge by the other, but everything in the world and cosmos identified enemy, ally, monster, savior, angel, devil by actions, not by words. So with renewed vigor and pulsating emotion, he lifted up the rubble, to his full height, bringing everything on top of the rubble with it, then with a mighty yell, clamoured a leap of strength to chuck the rubble completely over, removing the pony from constraint permanently. The ponies looked at the man, who stood tall, and unscathed by harsh words, then directed his mixed gaze at the ponies, revealing his pulsating scars and veins; almost seemingly brimming with power and strength. The grounded pony slowly rose up to his feet, struggling to stand, but slowly moved out as the others moved to support him. "Evacuate the city," Aldon said devoid of any expressions or emotions. The ponies all slowly nodded, walking away from the fire and wreckage of the previously standing house. The dragon was closer, as Aldon observed it from his eyes. It was nearly on top of the city, with just a few more steps to go. A single pony standing before it ahead of Aldon, a pony he knew all too well. His friend Hammerhoof. "Everypony! This way!" Twilight yelled to the fleeing ponies, while Fluttershy and Rainbow Dash overlooked the skies for injured ponies to assist or ponies who would be trapped under buildings. Ponies screamed and whizzed by, as Twilight and Rarity secured falling flames by blasting them away with their magic. Pinkie Pie and Applejack, who had come after meeting up with the other girls, were assisting injured ponies to the edge of the city. "Twilight!" Rarity yelled in the chaos, "when are the guards going to be here? And the princesses?" "I don't know Rarity, but we need to focus on evacuating Ponyville before focusing on the dragon." Rarity nodded, pouring more power into her horn and magic. Twilight did the same, as the intensity of fireballs increased on their barriers. While Twilight was continuing on the barrier, Rainbow Dash flew by at full speed, going to assist a pony under some light wreckage, as Fluttershy zoomed by as well. The two mares landed down by a structure, to help up an older earth pony, as he thanked the pegasi for their assistance, and even lead him to the evacuation site. "That big dragon spoiled my party cannon!" Pinkie yelled in a fit as she continued by Twilight, holding a burnt unicorn. The coat was unrecognizable with ashes and burn marks on the body, but they could still make out it was female by the weak feminine voice coming from her and the pleads to have her child again. Pinkie nodded her head, as Applejack held that very foal, walking by her and the son gave a hug to the mother, and despite her pain she smiled and let tears roll down her eyes. "Thank you so much!" She cried as they foal supported his mother the rest of the way out of the town, to safety. "Ah reckon that mother ill' be happy." Applejack turned back around with Pinkie to help another burn victim escape. Fluttershy flew by Twilight again, only to lie her attention on the princess. "Fluttershy!" Twilight called, "where is Rainbow Dash?" Twilight had lost sight of her friend as she went to their left, and disappeared into the destruction. "I don't know. She said about finding Scootaloo. But I thought they were at Apple Acres." Twilight continued to pour more power into the beam as she pondered the thought. Where was Rainbow Dash now. Was Scootaloo and the cutie mark crusaders in town. They noticed the countless amounts of non ponies fleeing last, and even the griffin and his family. He smiled at the mares while they smiled back as they moved on. Everyone moved to leave the scorching town by the dragon's deed. That's when it dawned on her, where was Spike? He was nowhere nearby. "Rarity?" The unicorn turned her attention to her friend, "do you know where Spike is?" Rarity's eyes widened as she realized it as well. "He's not here!" she seemingly gasped. "Where is my little Spikey-wikey?" Rarity began to turn her head frantically looking for the little dragon. He was indeed nowhere near as ponies continued to search. With Rainbow Dash gone, Fluttershy was their best hope at quickly finding the dragon. "Fluttershy!" Twilight called. The mare, helping a little pink filly to her parents, looked to Twilight. Fluttershy rushed to her friend's side. "Fluttershy, please can you go find Spike? I have no idea where he's gone." More fire rained from the sky, being shot down by Twilight and Rarity's magic. "Ok, I'll see if I can find him." Fluttershy flew off to look for the young dragon. The city was surely in panic as she flew. Charred earth, remains of ponies in ashes. And others still trying to escape by running on the main road out of the town. Fluttershy hated the mean dragon. Why did he want to attack the town and hurt everypony? And where was Spike? He didn't go towards the dragon did he? Fluttershy continued to search for the young dragon in the chaos, looking down streets, alleys, even near the castle of friendship, but he was nowhere. "Spike!" Fluttershy timidly yelled, looking at the immense dragon approaching. That's when she saw Spike in the distance, in the one place Fluttershy feared he would be. He was standing in front of the dragon, staring at it, while the dragon stared at Spike, and for a moment time froze as the carnage stopped and they bore into each other's eyes. Hammerhoof was behind the young drake, wanting to put a stop to the young one's actions. Time stood still as Fluttershy burst into speed that could almost rival Rainbow Dash to save Spike as the dragon had a claw raised into the air ready to pounce on the little guy. She gave it everything she had, but it wouldn't be enough, the descent was just too fast, and Spike was frozen in fear. What would she say to Twilight? She had let her beloved Spike get killed? He was her friend too, and she couldn't even save him. It made her tear up inside. The sadness swelled as his fate drew nearer. "Lad you need to move!" Hammerhoof screamed to the young dragon, however before he could finally strike down, a huge object struck the side of its head. The dragon slowly stumbled back, and Fluttershy picked Spike up in haste, doubling back to Twilight, confusion and happiness in her thoughts. However, she wanted ot know how the food cart struck the dragon at such a speed. "I want daddy!" A filly screamed, walking by Twilight. "Mommy, why did he have to stay?" She asked with both of them having tears streaming down their faces. "Sweetie, daddy wanted us to be safe. He was trying to protect us." Then in the distance they could hear cheers and the two turned to look at the golden light approaching. The mare husband, and the filly's father. They both charged in unison. "Mira!" The earth pony yelled back, in joy of seeing his family. He was upheld by fellow ponies who tried to get him out. "Miru!" The wife yelled. While the small filly yelled Daddy. The ponies began to walk away from the love scene, but the mother and filly looked at the men with tears in their eyes. "Thank you!" she said, "thank you so much!" The ponies shook their heads. "Mira, they weren't the ones that saved me," this intrigued Twilight. "They couldn't lift the building's rubble, but that creature did it with a single hoof. He even threw it over the other side, allowing me to escape. He saved my life." Twilight couldn't help but smile. Her friend would be looked at as a hero for sure. "Twilight!" Fluttershy yelled, "I found him!" she screamed. Spike was on Fluttershy's back, with fear and awe in his eyes, plastered in frozen emotions. "Spike!" Twilight and Fluttershy yelled, as Pinkie and Applejack also joined in. The mares rushed to Fluttershy's landing spot to make sure the dragon was fine, which he was. He was just startled and frozen in time from the event. That's when Rainbow Dash zoomed back, with heavy breathing. "Scootaloo is ok. She's at Sweet Apple Orchards," Rainbow said. Rarity shook her head. "Didn't you hear us when we said they were there?" Rarity asked. Rainbow Dash shook her head and lightly blushed. "Spike," Twilight called, which is when the dragon got out of his frozen face. "Yes Twilight?" He asked looking around, "wait was that real?" He asked. Fluttershy nodded, "yes, you were almost crushed." Twilight grabbed the dragon and started hit him with her hooves, "what were you thinking?" Twilight yelled. "You almost died! Why would you go towards the huge scary dragon? Spike I could have lost you!" Twilight said as she embraced the little dragon in a hug, "please don't do that again!" Spike meekly nodded. "I'm sorry Twilight," he said as he returned the embrace. "Girls, ah think all of the ponies are out. The town has been evacuated." Explosions sounded in the distance as the dragon roared. They all gasped at the image of the dragon being harmed so thoroughly as one of his wings had punctures and its chest looked like it caved in. To say the least, something was hurting it deeply as it howled, but equally so continued to regenerate, with its wings repairing themselves and chest popping back out. A fight was ensuing, and it wasn't between the princesses and the dragon. They were still on their way.