Runaway Part 1 (Spike)
Aftermath of A Fallen Star
By Rated Ponystar
Formerly Edited by The Unnamed Pawn and Commander X5
Pre-Read/Edited by: Magic Man, Chaotic Note, and Grand_Moff_Pony
Runaway Part 1 (Spike’s POV)
***
I remember the first time I went on a ship. Princess Celestia had decided to take Twilight out for a cruise as a reward for graduating the 6th grade. I was still a young baby dragon then, barely out of diapers yet able to walk and talk. She insisted that I come with her since she never left me alone when she could help it. Princess Celestia tried to assure that I would be okay in the hooves of the nurses and nannies that took care of me when Twilight was at school or busy with the princess, but my... my mother wouldn’t given in.
Princess Celestia agreed and I was so happy to go on a ship. I had thought it would be like in the books Twilight read to me at night. We would be attacked by pirates or sea monsters and get into a great adventure before finding treasure or some lost civilization.
Turns out the only adventure I had was in my room thanks to a bad case of seasickness. The sea didn’t agree with me, and I ended up staying in my bed the entire trip. However, I wasn’t alone. Twilight was there. She was there with me the whole time. Even when I told her to go and enjoy her trip she refused to leave me. She took care me, feed me, and read to me as I slowly recovered.
That was when I first thought of her as my mom. I knew we were different. She never really birthed me and all. Still, you don’t need to be the same species to love each other. We fought, but we always made up. When one of us needed each other, we were there. She’s risked her life for me, and I’ve done the same for her.
Most ponies see a dragon and they think a monster, or even a servant, as some called me when Twilight trained me to be her assistant. Some even said I was better off being dropped in the Everfree Forest. Twilight, and even more importantly Princess Celestia, refused to do such a thing such a thing. Twilight even stated she’d rather not be Princess Celestia’s student then abandon me.
I don’t think any son can ask for a better mother.
Twilight was my mother, and I didn’t needed a piece of paper to tell me that. Although, seeing her officially make it so didn’t stop me from crying tears of joy. I thought Twilight would be with me forever. I thought she would never leave me because I would never leave her.
And then she was taken from me. She was murdered.
“Hey, kid! We’re almost there!”
A voice echoed outside my cabin door as I ended my thoughts and walked over to it. Opening the door, a scruffy looking minotaur glared down at me. “Captain wants you off as soon as we dock. Don’t know why he allowed a little dragon like you to come along with us. This ain’t no trip to Manehatten.”
“Because I pay as good as the next passenger. Can you please leave?” I stated, glaring back at him. Months ago I would have been more polite, but I’ve learned that no matter how nice you are in this world, there are some people who don’t deserve kindness.
The minotaur rolled his eyes and muttered something, but I shut the door before I could hear anymore. I walked over to my backpack and pulled out the remaining half of the jewels and bits I promised the Captain when I met him at Balitmare. Getting there wasn’t easy since I knew the princesses were sending their guards out to find me and I was almost caught a few times. I then turned to the one who had been my key in avoiding danger and smiled upon seeing his sleeping face yawn before waking up.
“Morning, Peewee. Ready to see our new home?”
He gave a joyful tweet before fluttering over and landing on my shoulder, nuzzling my cheek. I admit, when I left home I was sure I would never see anyone I cared about again. In a way, I didn’t want to for a lot of reasons. Having Peewee around somehow made me feel a little less lonely in the world and I’m sure he felt the same way. It was like... I could understand him and he could understand me. I didn’t get it, but I welcomed his company.
Putting on my backpack, I exited the cabin and made my way towards the stairs, avoiding the other crew members who were eyeing me with suspicion or humor. They were a rough looking bunch that consisted mostly of minotaurs and griffins, but also a few ponies as well. I was worried they would know who I am, but none of them were born or lived in Equestria much to my favor. Still, I kept myself locked up in my room as much as possible and leaving only to get a meal or use the bathroom.
Heading up the stairs, I made my way to the deck of the ship and covered my eyes upon the sun hitting me square in the face for the first time in nearly two weeks. The smell of the ocean hit me full force as I took a moment to breath in it’s air while Peewee tweeted a bit before taking off. Poor fella hadn’t had a chance to stretch his wings since we got onboard.
I made my way for a large barrel and jumped onto it to get a look at the islands that were coming up. My heart started beating as I eyed them with my claws clutching a nearby mast for comfort. There were so many islands, both big and small, but each of them was dangerous in their own way.
Normally, I wouldn’t have dared to come here, but this was the only place the princesses’ reach had no say. The one area that all the leaders of the world avoided: The Erebus Islands. A place where groups of mercenaries, raiders, thieves, warlords, and more were all fighting and controlling on a different land each day. There was no ‘government’ or ‘order’ in these lands, just chaos and a drive for profit. There were small communities, towns, and such, but they were filled with a worst of the worst. It was a lawless set of islands, but a perfect place for me to hide.
It was risky, chances are I could be killed, but I couldn’t go back. I couldn’t go back to Equestria. Not when there was no Twilight. Not when everything she ever worked for was crapped on by the very ones she wanted to help. Not where I was but a weak dragon who could do nothing to save his mother.
Here I could be strong. Here I could be free. Here I could stay away from everything that killed the old me and become a new me.
***
Taking my first steps off the deck, after paying the captain of course, I was greeted by a very active port. Ships were coming and going. Armed groups were joking or playing dice while some were getting orders from whoever was leading them. They were most likely going to join one of the warlords fighting for dominance in the many islands that made up the area.
Originally, this group of islands was a prison for the various governments around the world. One day they broke free and took control of them for themselves. Since then, there has been two attempts to retake them, only both failed miserably. The scumbags that live here may cut each other’s throats on a daily basis, but they love their freedom and anarchy more. The government's decided to just abandon the islands all together and so that was how it came to be.
Twilight once read to me a Daring Do story where she had adventures here. When I learned it was real, I researched all I could about it. Mom was very thorough in making me as smart and dedicated to learning as she was. It was better to be here than the dragon lands. For one thing, despite being a dragon I knew so very little about them and I doubt I would be wanted after that whole Dragon Migration fiasco. Second, there were dragons that did live here. Ones who wanted away from the warring clans and could make their own hordes.
I did see a few dragons as I entered what looked to be market area. They, along with other races, were walking around and shopping while vendors sold their wares. I saw the strangest things as I walked through with my companion shifting closer to my neck. There was all kinds of strange fruit and even meat on sale which made me sick (having been raised by ponies I swore to never eat meat). There were strange amulets, trinkets, decapitated and shrunken heads, swords and armors, females in skimpy outfits who were on sale for a “good time” although I don’t know what that was at that age, and some pony with white hair pointing up while in a wizard's outfit claiming to have magical tomes that could unlock the secrets of the universe.
Yet, the most amazing thing for me was the interaction between all the different races. They were... treating each other like normal. A griffin and a pony talked as if they were best friends. A minotaur and a zebra having an argument about price before settling on a bargain. A changeling doing an obvious cub game scam with a dragon. In Equestria, such a thing would be considered unnatural. Non-ponies were usually ignored, feared, or hated by at least most of Equestria with others accepting them as friends or giving them a chance.
It’s was ironic that the nation that I grew up in, which promoted Friendship, seemed to only care about that with its own kind rather than work to build it up with other races. I knew the arguments they make about most of the predator races who once tried to eat them, I can understand why ponies would be afraid of changelings due to the Canterlot Wedding incident, but Zebra’s and Kitsune? The obvious reason why they fear them was their way of life and different magic. They were not all like this, but when half a nation wished your mother dead or removed from power because she wanted to improve relations with non-ponies you tend to get a bleak outlook on it.
I almost laughed in the realization that such a crude place with murderers, thieves, and scoundrels was less racist than a land like Equestria.
“Oi, kid!” shouted a vendor with a strange accent, getting my attention. I turned around and saw a blue scaled older dragon with yellow eyes and white underbelly smiling at me. He was taller than Garble when I first met him, and wore a red trench coat that had a hole for his tail as well as some strange patch on the left side of the front jacket. It was a dragon skull shooting red lightning out of it’s mouth. A pretty cool design, but he didn’t seem like a mercenary kind of type with the way he was dressed.
“Yes?” I asked, stepping forward.
“Yeh butchers a little downtrodden, want some of this here elixir?” asked the older dragon, grinning as he showed his teeth. He lifted up one of the many red potion bottles he had in front of him. “Just a mint drink of this and thou’ll feel better in no time. Cures anything from a broken heart, to a sword to y'r belly. Just ten silvers. Could save y'r life one day.”
“Um, I don’t have silvers, but even if I did, I wouldn’t want it,” I said, rolling my eyes at the obvious scam. “Chances are it’s just wine to make the person who drinks it feel so good they’ll believe it’s working.”
“Oi, I said it would make ye feel better. So it’s not really false advertising,” chucked the dragon as he uncorked the bottle and took a few sips.
I sighed before leaving him to his drinking. I then thought about what he said about needing “silver” and realized I needed a new currency. Despite Twilight leaving me everything in her will, I wasn’t able to get anything from it until I was sixteen due to my age and got a small monthly payment until I finally left Equestria. I looked inside my bag of money. I only had a few bits left that could last me a few days and some jewels I saved, but no silver.
Before I could think about trading them, an earth pony with a long beard and smile walked up to me. He had a brown vest with some leggings on, but looked to be friendly. “Hey, what’s a kid like you doing in a place like this?”
“Uh, just shopping?”
“Please,” snorted the pony. “You got a mainlander’s look to ya. Just arrived here in Judecca I take it?”
“That obvious?” I nervously asked, rubbing the back of my head.
“More so than griffin when she’s in heat,” he joked. “Since you’re new in town and I’m feeling nice, I’ll show you a place where you can stay for free. Owner’s nice and all.”
“Oh, thanks,” I said cheerfully as I began to follow him out of the market. Peewee gave a soft and worried sounding whisper to me, but I ignored it since I could feel my stomach growing and my back ache for a bed that didn’t go up and down with the ship.
***
I should have realized it was a trap when we turned into an ally, but I was too interested in the house designs that reminded me of Ponyville (only less friendly looking and more sealed up) before a claw grabbed my by the neck and slammed me into the wall.
“Check the bags. And shut up the bird!”
“Peewee...” I whispered upon hearing my companion get hit and knocked to the ground. Despite the blurriness in my eyes, I could see the pony who betrayed me and two bulky looking griffins go through my stuff, tossing it on the floor.
“Some jewels and bits, not bad. Rest is junk like books and such. Oh, and this photo,” said one of the griffins.
That took my attention. I looked up and saw that he was holding the photo of me, Twilight, and my friends in Ponyville. The only photo I took of Twilight and the family I left behind.
“Give that back!” I shouted, getting up and making a dash for it, but the earth pony kicked me in the face and knocked me down again.
“Just kill the brat and let’s get going,” ordered the pony as he turned his back to me. My eyes widened as one of the griffins took out a long and sharp knife while the other held me down, giving him a clear shot at my belly. Despite our scales being strong, the underside was all soft with no protection.
I watched as the knife raised itself, ready to end my adventure in a second. But before I could see Twilight again, something shattered against the griffin’s head and made him yell in pain. I could see blood and shards of glass from his head wound which only seemed to make him angrier when he noticed. The four of us turned around to see who threw it. “Told ya it could save your life one day, mate!” shouted the elixir selling dragon with a smile as he casually walked up. “Now, I know were suppose to all be a bunch of bloody wankers who’d flog their own mothers for a quick buck, but killing a bairn? Really? Kinda lower than low yobs.”
“This ain’t your business stranger,” growled the earth pony. “Unless you're acting like some knight in shining armor.”
“Ouch, that’s kinda hurtful to say since I’m a dragon and all. But truth is that’s a customer of mine who owes me ten silver for that bottle that I used to save his life.”
“Ugh, just get rid of him,” ordered the pony.
The griffin with the knife was all too happy to obey as he roared and flew towards the calm dragon. I half expected him to be gutted like a fish, but instead I saw it for the first time in my entire life. In a split second, the dragon’s eyes glowed blue as his claws erupted in blue fire that came out of nowhere. With a cry of his own, his flaming blue hand punched the dashing griffin in the face, knocking him straight into the air with his face on fire. He then grabbed him by the leg, roared and slammed him straight into the wall, shattering a big hole into it as the griffin fell through. A pegasus on a toilet looked up from the hole that was now made in his lavatory, folded his newspaper and left after flushing.
The three of us were gasping at the sight of the dragon who seemed to be living fire itself. Flames enveloped his fists, hands, even his tail. His eyes were glowing bright blue as if there was fire inside them as well. Stepping forward, he stretched his neck a little and smirk. “So which of yeh two ladies is next?”
The other griffin let go of me and charged forward, but before he even had a chance, the dragon shot out a fireball from his hands and it hit the griffin dead center. He screamed as the blue flames covered his entire body in minutes only to be silence permanently when the dragon kicked him in the face. The pony was now looking ready to run, but the dragon got to him first and grabbed him by the throat, raising him into the air. “P-P-Please! Mercy!”
“Hmm, I don't know. What dae ye say kid?" he asked me.
I looked at the pony who was willing to kill me. Who hurt my friend. Who was going to take my treasure. I knew Twilight would say he should be spared. That he should be given another chance. That I was safe and that’s all that mattered.
But Twilight’s not here. She’s dead. She tried to show mercy and it got her a tomb.
“Just make it quick,” I muttered, lowering my head to not see it. I felt sick to my stomach by what I said, but a part of me was glad for it. I didn’t know if that was a good thing or a bad thing. I still don’t to this day. I only heard a snap and the body fell lifeless.
I quickly remembered about Peewee and rushed over to him, he was fine and was coming through. The dragon who saved me shut down his flames and walked over to my money bag. Taking it, he took a few jewels and tossed it back to me. “Rule number one in Erebus kid. Nuffink is free. Everything has a price, even smashing deeds. If someone offers to help with no payment? Dae yerself a favour and stick em in the back before they dae ya in.” He dusted his claws and turned his back to me. “Well, bessy be on my merry way. Dae yourself a favour kid and get out of here. Head back gaffe to ma and pop and live a mint life. Chao.”
I sat there, holding my phoenix with my scattered objects and burned or dead attackers. I could have said or done a bunch of things but the one thing I had to know I quickly asked, “What is your name?!”
“It’s Marc, mate,” he replied with a backwards wave and just like that he turned the corner and was gone.
That was my first day in the Erebus Islands.
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IT BEGINS
7726341
I doubt teleportation can go that far from the middle of a nation to near end of one ocean.
Here we go.
Holy throne....
So Spike is about to get a crash course in how to survive. I bet when he returns he will not be fully friendly to Equestria, probably much like Mystic. I do wonder how these two will react when they find out they are related.
Hm, I think I need to consider how dragon magic works in my own headcanon.
Hmm,,, well, this beats my version of Spike's disappearance, hands-down. I bow before you, good sir.
I'm guessing the reason Spike didn't toast the griffon who was about to gut him is due to how he was raised. Been shown in the show at least twice what his fire can do. (melting a steel lock in a second and melting down a block of falling ice the size of a city block pretty quickly as well)
I didn't think Spike would flee to dangerous place like Erebus Islands, just to get away from all the injustice that occurred back in Equestria. I wonder how is a little dragon and a little Phoenix going to survive there.
..and thus began the career of the Dread Pirate Roberts...
"Judecca."
Very pointed reference there. Good story.
Right. Great. By the time he gets back, he might be half-way inclined to let them suffer a bit before naming his terms.
Well, looks like Spike's going to harden up and come back to Equestria looking for revenge.
Possible future convo between Spike and Majesty:
Majesty: "You dare challenge a goddess like me? I who have power beyond anything you can hope to achieve?"
Spike: "You might have power, but you don't have what it takes to win. You don't know what it takes to fight, and steal, and kill just to survive. I, on the other hand, have that in spades."
Methinks I like this setting.
So this is where Spike has been at. I had almost expected him to be ruling the dragon lands alongside Princess Ember. Unless this is his training grounds.
I better get cracking on chapter 5 of my AU story.
All hail pirate king spike the dragon!!!
I love settings like this. Can't wait to see where you're taking this world.
When Marc went all blue flames mode I was just thinking HOLY SHIT HE'S RIN OKUMURA