//------------------------------//
// Chapter 13 
// Story: A Heart Eclipsed 
// by Show Stopper 
//------------------------------//


Chapter 13



3rd Pony POV


"DRAGONS OF EQUESTRIA! HEAR ME!!!"

Sora groaned, massaging the bridge of his nose to stave off a headache. "How in Tartarus did an idiotic lug like this get to be Dragon Lord?"

The flight across the ocean had been mostly uneventful. With nothing but open water to look at, Spike had quickly grown bored and gone back to scratching at his scales. Sora had spent the hours contemplating his past interactions with dragons and preparing for his re-introduction. He'd planned a variety of short speeches, discarding them one right after the other. In the end, he had given up, resigning himself to winging it once he knew who the current Dragon Lord was.

"I mean look at this guy," Sora whispered, peeking around the rocks that concealed their little group. "He can't be more than five hundred years old. Heck, none of these dragons here have even reached their first century. Where are all of the ancients? Heck, I'd settle for someone with a speck of maturity."

"Perhaps we should remain quiet and hear what he has to say?" suggested Fancy Pants, trying to conceal his trembling at being so close to the flight of carnivores. "No need to go and provoke a confrontation yet."

"AS MANY OF YOU KNOW," the blue behemoth of a dragon continued, "ANNOYING PESTS MADE OF SHADOWS HAVE RECENTLY BEGUN APPEARING IN THE DRAGON LANDS. OH, AND IN EQUESTRIA TOO."

"And he doesn't even know about the heartless," Sora muttered.

"Forget that," growled Gale Wing. "How does Equestria get relegated to an afterthought?"

"UNFORTUNATELY, INSIGNIFICANT AS THESE PESTS ARE, NO DRAGON HAS FOUND A WAY TO CRUSH THEM FOR LONG. THEY KEEP APPEARING LIKE COCKROACHES, SCUTTLING OUT OF THE SHADOWS TO IRRITATE US AGAIN AND AGAIN."

The surrounding dragons muttered in agreement, and Sora noted that many of them seemed rather more concerned than Torch. Many of them were looking around frantically as if searching the crowds for someone. There are some dragons missing, Sora realized. Fallen to the heartless, no doubt.

"SURPRISINGLY, THERE ARE SOME CREATURES WHO HAVE MANAGED TO COMBAT THESE PESTS. THERE ARE PONIES IN EQUESTRIA WHO HAVE WEAPONS THAT CAN SOMEHOW DESTROY THESE IRRITANTS ONCE AND FOR ALL."

"I've got a bad feeling about this," muttered Gale.

"Why is that?" asked Fancy Pants. "It sounds to me like they're going to send ambassadors to Equestria requesting aid. I know that Prince Sol has wanted to forge an alliance with the Dragon Lands for some time now. Perhaps this could-"

"THIS IS WHY I HAVE CALLED YOU HERE. I WILL SEND YOU TO EQUESTRIA TO TAKE THESE WEAPONS FROM THE PONIES SO THAT WE CAN DESTROY THESE PESTS ONCE AND FOR ALL!"

"OH, HECK NO!!!"

Sora strode out from behind the rocks, marching towards the Dragon Lord and ignoring the stares he was getting from the surrounding dragons. "You cannot seriously be that yaying stupid! Did you not listen to a single tale that your elders told you? I know for a FACT that any dragon from a millennium ago would never be so bone-headed as to come up with an idiotic plan like that!"

All was silent as the dragons standing near Sora slowly backed away. The Dragon Lord glared down at him, contemptuously sizing him up. "AND JUST WHAT ARE YOU SUPPOSED TO BE, LITTLE THING. HEH, YOU LOOK LIKE A SCRAWNY MINOTAUR WHO LOST HIS HORNS. HA HA!" He glared around at the surrounding dragons. "BE AMUSED!"

Sora just shook his head as the dragons around him began laughing. "So you are as much of an idiot as I thought. Allow me to introduce myself. Aerora!" A blast of wind shot from Sora's feet, catapulting him through the air until he landed on the Dragon Lord's snout. "Sora, Warrior of Light. I'm the one who kept those 'pests' in line a thousand years ago. And if you think I'm going to sit back and let you attack Equestria, think again."

The Dragon Lord glared at him for a moment more before bursting out laughing. "HAHAHA. YOU ARE QUITE AMUSING, LITTLE THING. DO YOU EVEN KNOW WHO YOU ARE TALKING TO? I AM TORCH, LORD OF THE DRAGONS!!! WHAT I SAY, GOES! AND I SAY, IF THE DRAGON LANDS NEED THOSE WEAPONS TO FIGHT THESE PESTS, A RUNT LIKE YOU ISN'T GOING TO STAND IN OUR WAY."

"Yeah, see, that's where your plan is just stupid." Sora began to pace across Torch's nose, never taking his eyes from Torch's much bigger ones. "First of all, those pests are called heartless. They're born from the darkness in creatures' hearts, including the hearts of dragons. There are several dragons missing here today, aren't there?"

Sora waited for Torch's eyes to scan the crowds before continuing. "Second, those weapons are called keyblades,and you can't steal them. Literally, can't. They're bonded to their wielders' hearts. You take the blade, it will disappear and reappear with the wielder in a matter of seconds.

"Finally, there's the fact that you called the heartless 'pests' in the first place. You have no idea what they're capable of. The heartless come in many sizes and abilities, many of them even larger than you. How much of a 'pest' will you think they are when you have a living monstrosity bigger than the flamecano crushing you beneath its foot?"

"HEH, BIG WORDS FOR SUCH A LITTLE CREATURE," Torch taunted. "IF THE WEAPONS CANNOT BE TAKEN FROM THE PONIES AS YOU SAY, THEN THE ANSWER IS SIMPLE. WE WILL JUST HAVE TO TAKE THE PONIES THEMSELVES! I'VE ALWAYS WANTED A FEW PETS, AFTER ALL."

Sora stopped pacing, glaring Torch right in the eye. "Not happening, Torch. You so much as touch any of my keybladers, and I'll make sure that the heartless find you beaten and weak at the bottom of a crater."

Torch's eyes narrowed, all trace of amusement gone. "IS THAT A CHALLENGE?"

"It's a fact."

"IS IT NOW?"

Sora jumped, barely getting off of Torch's nose before his hand came crashing down. In a flash of light, Sora hovered before him in Final Form, Shifting Form and Superior of the In-Between hovering around him. "Oh, good. The 'giant dragon assumes that the puny creature before him can't possibly be a match' cliche. Just as well. I've been meaning to test these guys out." He dove forward, slashing across Torch's wrist. "Come on!" he shouted over Torch's roar of pain. "Let's see what you've got, wyrmling!"

"YOU WILL PAY FOR THAT, RUNT!" Torch took a deep breath and Sora cast Aeroga, readying himself to dodge or block the fire. Fire, however, was not on Torch's mind. His mouth opened wide as a green cloud spewed forth, enveloping Sora. His wind kept the gas at bay for a time, but Sora could see it slowly encroaching inward.

Not good, he thought. Could be acid, or it could be some sort of poison. "Aerora!" Sora slashed Shifting Form outward, a wave of air following it as it cut through the cloud and scattered the green gas.

"Analyzing energy sample."

"What?" Sora stared at Shifting Form as it glowed green, the keychain spinning wildly. It eventually came to a stop, blinking as is spoke again.

"Analysis complete. New spell acquired. Element: Acid. Command words: Acid, Acira, Acirga."

Sora's eyes widened as a grin spread across his face. He laughed as he looked back down at Torch. "Thanks for that," he shouted. "Looks like your attack gave me a new spell." He pointed Shifting form at the Dragon Lord, aiming right between his eyes. "Let's see how it performs. Acid!"

A sphere of green acid shot from the keyblade, impacting between Torch's eyes and splashing into them. He roared in agony, rubbing furiously at his eyes as Sora dove down to his feet. Two slashes from Superior send Torch tumbling off balance. The dragons below scattered as Torch fell from his makeshift throne to the ground below, kicking up a cloud of dust with his impact.

"Had enough?" asked Sora, hovering just outside the cloud. "Face it, Torch, you're outmatched. I've got more than a millennium of fighting on you, and my attacks hit harder than anything you've ever had to deal with, I'm sure. Give up."

"NEVER!" Torch's tail shot out from the dust, slamming into Sora and sending him flying backward into the mountain throne, his Aero dispersing as it cushioned the blow. "I AM THE DRAGON LORD!" he shouted, fanning the dust away with his wings, his eyes red and blood-shot. "I AM THE MIGHTIEST OF DRAGONS! THE UNCONQUERED FLAME! I WILL NOT BE BEATEN BY A TINY FREAK FROM MY FATHER'S AGE!!!"

"I was afraid of that," Sora sighed, getting to his feet. "Got no choice, then. Looks like I'll just have to beat some sense into-"

"ROOOOOOOAR!!!"

Sora, Torch, and every dragon and pony present turned to face the sky. A swarm of figures was approaching from the west, flying over the ocean.

"WHAT IS IT NOW?" demanded Torch. "MORE FREAKS TO HELP YOU FIGHT?"

Sora ignored him, shooting up into the sky to get a better look at the approaching swarm. As they flew closer, Sora felt the blood drain from his face. "Buysomeapples," he muttered. "This is going to suck."

"DON'T THINK THAT YOU CAN GET AWAY FROM ME THAT EASILY!" Sora rolled his eyes as he turned to see Torch flying straight for him. Well, lumbering straight for him through the sky. "I'LL BLAST YOU OUT OF THE SKY BEFORE YOUR REINFORCEMENTS CAN GET HERE!"

"That could work," shouted Sora back, "if they were reinforcements! Remember those 'pests' you so easily dismissed?"

Torch raised a suspicious eyebrow before looking out towards the cloud. "WAIT A MINUTE... THOSE ARE DRAGONS!" He scratched his head. "I THINK?"

"Not quite," said Sora. "Draconic heartless. Looks like a combination of Wyverns, Windstorms, and Wavecrests. I'm also seeing a few Dustflyers. And that big one on the back behind them all? I'll bet my keyblade that it's a Storm Rider, and that thing's about as big as you." He glared at Torch, who seemed to be having second thoughts about fighting the heartless. "Still think you can handle these 'pests' on your own?"

"I think you should listen to him, Dad." Torch and Sora turned to see a young, teal dragoness speeding towards them. "I've heard a lot of stories about these things from Grandma. We need his help."

"I THOUGHT I TOLD YOU TO STAY PUT!" Torch shouted. "THIS FIGHT IS BETWEEN ME AND THE FREAK."

"Finally a voice of reason," cried Sora, drifting over and holding out his hand. "Sora, Warrior of Light. Nice to meet you."

"Ember Truefire, daughter of Dragon Lord Torch" the dragoness replied, shaking his hand and ignoring her father's continued shouts. "Grandma Cinder's told me a lot about you."

"Truefire?" Sora grinned eagerly. "You're Cinder Truefire's granddaughter? Wow! How is little Cindy these days?"

"Not so little anymore," Ember replied. "She's almost as big as Dad. She lives up in the frozen north."

"She always did like the cold," Sora said, looking out at the approaching heartless swarm. "I don't suppose she could get here in time to help?"

Ember shook her head. "Not likely. Like I said, she's up north. No way we could even get word to her before the battle was over."

"Thought not." Sora turned his eyes back on Ember, switching to his heart-sight. He grinned as he blinked back to normal. "So, have you realized your potential and inherited her blade?" Ember nodded. "Good. We'll need all the help we can get."

"I! AM! TALKING!!!" Torch shouted, bringing his claw slashing down towards Sora.

*SHING*

Torch stared in shock at his hand, his diamond-hard claws sheared off just above the quick. Sora glared up at him, the general of a millennium past. "And I'm not listening," he said. "But you should be. You didn't even realize that your own daughter has one of those weapons you want so much. Your heart is as hard and stubborn as the stone you sit upon, and if these heartless are not destroyed, your heart will soon be devoured like the gemstones your kind so savor."

"Y-YOU CAN'T SPEAK TO ME LIKE THAT!" Torch roared, a tremor of fear now entering his voice. "I AM THE DRAGON LORD-"

"NO LONGER!" Torch and Ember flinched as Sora's voice rang out, louder than even Torch's had been. "YOU HAVE DISHONORED THE TITLE OF DRAGON LORD AND ARE AN EMBARRASSMENT TO DRAGONS! YOU HAVE SPURNED THE TALES OF YOUR FATHERS, INSULTED THE LEGENDS OF OLD, AND ENDANGERED THE DRAGONS THAT YOU ARE BOUND TO RULE!" He turned to the dragons below, addressing them. "AS AN HONORARY DRAGON ADOPTED BY THE TRUEFLAME FAMILY, I CALL FOR A VOTE OF NO CONFIDENCE IN DRAGON LORD TORCH!"