Chapter 17
Rainbow Dash and I had awoken together hours before the sun rose, and with only a brief explanation of what happened the previous night, we gathered supplies before leaving for the unnamed town that was the site of a landslide. While Rainbow Dash had tried to dissuade me from going with her (she tried to reason that I wasn’t part of the Volunteer Rescue Squad), I could tell from the expression on her face and the sparkle in her eyes that she was grateful I was helping her. Other than that, the flight was long and quiet, and the unremarkable landscape of peaks and valleys didn’t distract from the quiet that surrounded us. It worried me; I was used to Rainbow Dash being so vibrant, boisterous, and playful, that seeing her so reserved and quiet seemed off-putting in a way I can’t really explain.
The good news is that, with such a distance, I had the room and enough empty air to build up to a speedy cruising velocity, so it only took us an hour of flying to reach our destination. What I discovered upon our arrival was every bit as bad as Rainbow Dash had made it sound: the land was seismically active, and it appeared many small earthquakes over the years had shaken loose an entire side of a mountain, which had collapsed on the innocent town in its shadow. Only a smattering of several buildings had escaped the devastation, while the other 80% of the town had been buried under tens of thousands of tons of dirt, rock, and snow. Looking at it from the perspective of a first-responder, I now understood why they referred to the ones who immediately perished as the lucky ones, since the rest were doomed to slowly suffocate or freeze to death, most without any hope of salvation.
Pushing the detrimental thoughts from my mind, I turned my attention to the cyan pegasus hovering next to me. “So, where to, boss?”
Rainbow Dash tossed a look my way before reaching into the small pack on her hip and pulling out a folded sheet of paper. Unfolding it revealed a grid of the local area, and she pointed to an unshaded area. “Here. We’ve been working through the area piece by piece with two teams:” she pointed to the shaded areas -- one building from the bottom, while the other built from the top, “one starting from the north and moving south, the other starting south and moving north. We’ll eventually meet in the middle, but there’s a lot of ground to dig up before then.” She folded the paper again before shooting me a glance. “Is there anything special you can do to help?”
I nodded before closing my eyes and consciously focusing on the protective instinct within me, and focusing it toward Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo. With the days of practice I had spent on this very thing, the change came easy to me, and I felt my clothes stretching a bit as I grew in size. After a few seconds, I released the “active” desire, and instead let the feeling simmer beneath the surface to keep my growth stable as I opened my eyes. I was now around three feet taller than I had been, and the rest of my body had grown proportionally to match.
Cracking my neck from side to side, I answered, “One guy able to lift what would normally take four or five should be some help, I think. I’ll stick to you, so you just lead me where I’m needed most.”
Rainbow Dash was staring up at me in awe, her mouth opened slightly as she seemed to try and do her best to comprehend what just happened. Eventually, she shook her head hard and commented, “Right, I’ll ask you about that later. Right now, we got work to do. C’mon, I’ll show you where we’re gonna be working.”
We wheeled in the air before slowly descending toward a portion of the area that, frankly, looked like the rest of it; I could only assume that Rainbow Dash knew where to look simply because she had spent so much time here. The ponies already working in the area gave her greetings and waves, but nearly fainted in shock when they saw me. I just barely kept the irritated growl in check by reminding myself that I was essentially twice as tall as most of them, and I hadn’t exactly gone through the official channels to get here. With that being the case, I just followed Rainbow Dash’s lead as she began pointing out areas to start digging, or toward large pieces of rubble that needed to be moved. I pointedly ignored the sight of a sizable stack of large, black body bags that we would likely be using.
To my endless discomfort, we ended up using them quite soon.
With my strength, we were progressing much faster than the ponies had been, and we quickly began to uncover bodies in varying states. I’ll admit, I chose to ignore them, letting the other responders tend to the dead, as I knew I would not be able to handle it myself -- just seeing them for fleeting moments was enough to send tremors up my spine, and start my gut roiling with an ill feeling.
Rainbow Dash was professional and efficient, and the ease with which she recovered the deceased, took notes on their appearance, and bagged them, was practiced in such a way that I could only imagine she had been doing this all week. My heart broke for her, and I wanted to hug her until that haunted, defeated look in her eyes calmed, but we still had a job to do, and...Scootaloo was counting on us, even though she didn’t know it.
To keep my composure, I ignored everything but the job, focusing completely at the task at hand, and Rainbow Dash’s commands as I continued digging and hefting boulders and chunks of rock and rubble sometimes weighing over a ton. My arms felt warm from the exertion, my chest and heart working hard to ensure I could continue to lend my assistance, but my mind was completely focused only on the job itself. I couldn’t think too hard about why I was doing this, and what we were digging for, or else I would start crying. I couldn’t do that, though; both Rainbow Dash and these volunteers were counting on me to help, so I was going to ensure I didn’t let them down.
It was midday, and even though the sky was clear and the sun directly overhead, the cold winds of the mountains still chilled the ponies to the bone. I was fine, of course (and I imagined some of the ponies were jealous that I was perfectly comfortable in this weather), but was still dirty and dusty from digging through the remains of what was once a town. The team that had been on scene when we started, which included Rainbow Dash and I, were now taking a break to rest and refuel with some lunch before we got back to work. I had unpacked the food I had brought with me, so Rainbow Dash and I enjoyed a simple meal of cucumber, tomato, and havarti cheese sandwiches, with apple juice. No words were spoken between us, and the mood was somber, but I could practically feel the determination radiating off of Rainbow Dash. I admired that drive to do what was right, but at the same time I found myself worrying for her emotional state; there was no denying that the days, weeks, and months following would be hard for everyone, and I worried that Rainbow Dash was going to shut herself off like she usually did. It was no secret that she didn’t like appearing weak or vulnerable in front of others, even her closest friends, so I was going to make sure I kept a sharp eye on her.
I was startled out of my internal musings by the feeling of a weight settling against me, and I looked to see Rainbow Dash leaning against my side as she continued eating her food. With my current size, she only made it up to my middle abdomen, and it would be impossible to wrap an arm around her like I normally would. Instead, I coiled my tail around her rump almost possessively, and shielded her from the air with one of my large wings. The other ponies watching us gave questioning glances, but Rainbow Dash either didn’t notice or didn’t care, and I was of the same mind. The others around us were colleagues, not friends, so I wasn’t going to waste time explaining the complexities of our relationship to ponies I likely wasn’t going to see again.
Rainbow Dash finished her second sandwich shortly after (and me, my sixth), so we both stood and stretched briefly before taking flight to make our way back to our assigned grid. Upon landing, Rainbow Dash took her notepad out of her hip pouch and began reading over the notes she had taken. Glancing from the area to her notes and back a few times, she eventually pointed to a half-buried church-like building, and gave the order to start digging.
I wasted no time in carefully excavating the area, hauling huge chunks of earth and rubble out of the way as I tried my best to keep the area stable so as to avoid a collapse. It didn’t take long to get through the top layer, which opened up the area to where I could see the street that underlaid the destruction. I wasn’t at all surprised when I found no bodies, since nearly all of the victims we had found had been earth ponies or unicorns inside of buildings, so I prepared myself for a grisly find I would likely discover upon opening the building.
“Spike,” Rainbow Dash began, though I didn’t turn around to look at her, “...I just want to say thanks for this. You didn’t have to be here.”
Though she couldn’t see it, I found a ghost of a smile upon my face. “No, I didn’t have to, but you needed me. You’ve always said you would never leave your friends hanging, and I’ve always thought it would only be fair if someone was there for you that way. You’ve done more for us all than anyone can rightly ask for, so I’m just doing what any good friend would do in return.”
“Yeah, I know,” she muttered, seemingly trying to make my actions out to be more than they were, “but I still appreciate it. We haven’t always said thanks for the stuff you do for us, and I just thought it’d be nice if I did.”
My smile widened just a bit, and I nodded with a grunt as I lifted a particularly large stone out of the way, exposing the side of the buried structure. “Well I appreciate your appreciation, and thank you for your thanks.” I tossed a smirk over my shoulder at her as I motioned to the building. “Anyway, I think I’ll need your help here. I’m sure you know what we’ll probably find.”
Rainbow Dash returned my smirk with one of her own before her lips settled into a flat line and she let out a sigh as she trotted over to me. “Right, let’s do this then.” She slid down the small slope made by my digging, and made her way into the rubble of the building itself, beginning her search as I watched from above. Since the area I’d dug out was too small for me, I was on watch duty, and kept a sharp eye alert for any shifting of the debris and rubble.
It only took a few seconds before Rainbow Dash called out, “Spike...we found them.”
I looked around the entrance I’d made and started gently moving more of the rubble away, trying to make a space for me without causing the entire thing to fall down on top of Rainbow Dash. Every shift and crumbling of stone caused my heart to leap into my throat and I held my breath as I kept moving rubble, until eventually, there was a space big enough for me. I carefully squeezed through the new opening I’d made, and entered the interior of the destroyed building.
True to my assumptions, it was a church of some kind, complete with an altar and pews. Rainbow Dash was stood at the other end of the room, looking down at a destroyed portion of the wall where the initial landslide had crashed through. Moving closer, I took my first good look at two pony bodies, the only focused observation of victims I had taken all day. On the left was a brown-furred, purple-maned stallion, his eyes shut and his face twisted in a grimace -- part of the collapsed roof lay on top of him, and if he hadn’t died from internal injuries, he had likely suffocated from being unable to take a breath. Next to him was a pink mare, with a dual-hued golden mane, whose eyes were shut peacefully as she lay on her side, completely unharmed save for some glass cuts on her arms and cheek.
They were holding hands, unwilling to let go even in death.
A strangled cry came from Rainbow Dash, and I felt my own throat quiver as I suppressed a sob of my own, but we still had work to do. Slowly, so as to not disturb the fragile equilibrium of the rubble around and above us, I strained and lifted the giant chunk of stonework off of the stallion, carefully moving it off to the side. Rainbow Dash composed herself and moved the smaller bits of debris away from the stallion, uncovering the couple completely for the first time. She knelt close, and began taking notes on what she had found, including the state of the body, how we had found them, and where, before standing and letting out a shuddering sigh.
“There…” she paused, swallowing hard, “there was nothing wrong with her.” She sniffled as she furiously rubbed tears away. “T-there was nothing wrong with her! I-if only we’d looked here sooner, we could have gotten her out alive! Instead, Allgood froze to death next to her dead or dying husband, knowing t-there was nothing she could do to survive! I-it’s not fair! IT’S NOT FAIR!”
With that anguished shout, Rainbow Dash repeatedly slammed her fists into the wrecked wall, screaming with each punch, tears streaming from her eyes. Before I could shake myself out of my shock and stop her, an ominous rumbling from above gave only a moment’s warning before the rest of the wall and the ceiling began to collapse, and I acted without thinking, tackling Rainbow Dash as I tucked her in my wings and threw us to the floor. If I hadn’t been a good deal larger than I normally was, the chunks of rock and rubble would have killed me, but the pain was still enough to cause me to grunt and groan.
Once the dust settled, I opened my eyes and looked around, finding us in a tiny space created by my own body and the unsteady settling of debris above us. I was pleased that I hadn’t been crushed by the weight, but the way the collapse had trapped us meant I wouldn’t be able to get us out. I quickly took stock of the situation, and was glad to find that save for a few new bruises and maybe a strained wing joint, I was uninjured, but our current position would not give me the leverage to escape. Rainbow Dash was virtually unharmed, and other than the uncomfortable situation of being in a small, enclosed space, she was otherwise fine. Since she was laying on her back, however, this put us face to face, and I could clearly see the tracks of tears even in the dim light.
“Dash! Dash, are you okay?!”
The other volunteers moved fast, and I felt calmed by their presence. Offering a short, “We’re okay,” I looked back to Rainbow Dash and did my best to shift into a more comfortable position, but was largely unable to do so due to the confined space; as it was, I was practically laying on top of Rainbow Dash, with my legs off to the side, and my wings were caught underneath her. Save for some minor shifting, we were essentially immobilized until the others dug us out.
“I feel like I should make a joke about you looming over me,” Rainbow Dash muttered, her tone flat and lifeless, “but I’m just not feeling up to it right now.”
I snorted softly at the ridiculousness of her comment, given the mood and situation. “Maybe something about a wild dragon boy taking advantage of a mare when she’s in a vulnerable state, and how I should be ashamed of myself for it.”
Rainbow Dash smiled slightly, but it was clear neither of us were in a particularly joking mood. Still, our banter felt comfortable and familiar, and it did wonders to keep us both calm while buried under a ton of dirt and rock. I knew for a fact that Rainbow Dash was claustrophobic, and while I didn’t share her phobia, I didn’t particularly like being buried alive. We both knew our words were mostly an effort to distract and calm the one between the two of us that could potentially freak out, but we didn’t mention it to each other.
“You’re really warm.”
I opened my eyes again, having closed them to keep the lingering dust out, and noticed Rainbow Dash laying there calmly, her own eyes closed as she was apparently focusing on remaining in a calm state of mind.
I shrugged as much as I was able. “Dragons run hot. I don’t feel temperature extremes all that much, but we give off a lot of heat due to the fact that we don’t have fur to insulate. If I were susceptible to the cold, I would be freezing right now; as it is, you won’t be freezing with me around.”
Snorting softly to hold in a laugh, Rainbow Dash just shook her head. “I guess I need to get myself a dragon assistant like Twilight, then. Maybe once you and Ember have a few little whelps of your own, I can have one to keep me warm.”
Even though she couldn’t see it, and though I knew she was joking, I still squinted hard at her. “Dragons aren’t puppies, Dash. Besides that, I couldn’t stand on clouds until my wings came in.”
“I’m surprised you didn’t get all stuttery and blushing like you normally do,” she quipped, smirking with her eyes still closed.
I thought about it, and she was right. Mostly though, it was, “Because...I can see Ember and I getting to that point one day. The way we got together wasn’t ideal -- hay, it’s downright strange, considering what’s considered ‘normal’ -- but it’s working, and we compliment each other’s personalities very well. I might not have felt the whole ‘love at first sight’ thing with her like I did Rarity, but I’m,” I swallowed as I struggled to properly translate my feelings into words, “...I-I’m really starting to fall for her, hard. I already cared about her, and everything that’s happened since the whole dragoness incident has built off of that. She’s funny, and confident, and cute, and-”
“All right, I get it. Enough with the mush,” Rainbow Dash interrupted, mocking up a look of revulsion at my words. She went silent for a few moments before she mumbled, “...never thought I’d hear you talking about starting a family, though.”
Again I shrugged, shifting myself a bit to take some of the weight off of my right arm, which was starting to go numb. “I never really had the choice to have that wish, until recently. Without some kind of magic I’ve never heard of, I can’t have a family with a pony. I could marry Twilight, Rarity, Lyla, or all three, but I could never father children with them. I won’t lie and say it isn’t something I’ve wondered about from time to time, but there was no point wishing for an impossibility. But then, Ember came into my life.” I found myself smiling at the thought that, someday in the future, I would become a father to children of my own flesh and blood. It brought a unique warmth to my chest that I’d never felt before, and I couldn’t stop the smile that crossed my lips.
Rainbow Dash opened her eyes finally, staring directly at me for a few silent heartbeats, before she gave a smirk and a single laugh. “I think you’ll be a fun dad, Spike. Goofy, but fun.”
Smiling right back, I replied, “As long as I’m a good dad, I’ll be fine with that.”
Rainbow Dash’s smile slowly fell away as she looked off to the side, where a certain pink feather could be seen sticking out of a pile of rubble. I tried not to squirm at the thought of what had happened to the remains of the two ponies we had found, but Rainbow Dash was going to bring them to mind anyway. “Speaking of parents...what are we gonna do about Scootaloo?”
“We’re not gonna think about that right now,” I ordered, closing my eyes and shaking my head. “We’re going to take this whole thing one step at a time, which means excavating these two poor ponies, and getting them back to Ponyville for a young mare that’s going to be devastated. I have no idea what we’re going to do and I can’t think about it right now, because if I do, I’m just going to start panicking. We’re going to handle each part of this situation as it comes at us, and that’s all we can do. We’ll tackle this thing head on, but until we get to it, we’re not going to drive ourselves crazy thinking about it.”
Rainbow Dash’s eyes lowered to her chest as she seemed to think. She eventually looked back to me and seemed unsure as she asked, “How do you destroy somepony’s world without hurting them?”
Yet again, Rainbow Dash was going to ignore my advice and keep worrying about this, and I had no choice but to support my friend, even though it was going to hurt me too. Just thinking about her question caused my heart to hurt, and an odd, sick feeling to rise in my stomach as I forced out, “You can’t. No matter what we do, no matter how you say it, she’s going to be hurt. Two pillars of a young mare’s life are gone, and there’s nothing that’s going to fix that. All we can do is support her in her time of grief, and be there to help heal the wound it will leave on her heart.” Hardening my face, bringing to mind some talks I had with the Two Sisters about loss, I advised, “There’s no getting around the fact that this is going to leave a scar in Scootaloo’s life. Our job is to make sure the scar eventually fades, and that it doesn’t result in self-destructive behavior. That’s all any of us can do, and it’s not going to be quick; grief of this scale can take years to recover from, so going into this, we all have to keep in mind that this will be a marathon, not a sprint.”
Rainbow Dash’s face twisted in a grimace. “I’m not good at marathons.”
“You never had a reason to be before,” I soothed, rubbing a hand along her shoulder as I gave her an encouraging smile, “but you have a good reason to become good. Her name is Scootaloo, and I know you would do anything for that little pegasus.”
Rainbow Dash opened her mouth to say something else, but was cut off as the rubble above us began shifting around, and we could hear the other ponies talking to each other. We held our collective breath for a few seconds, and were relieved when a final chunk of the building was lifted away from my back, exposing us to the fresh air once more. One of the stallions reached down and pulled me to stand, and I pulled Rainbow Dash with me as we were carefully lifted out of the hole. I was mildly amused it took four ponies just to lift the two of us, but held my laughter as I instead gave a grateful smile to our saviors.
Rainbow Dash wasted no time in pointing next to where we had been trapped, ordering, “C’mon, we gotta start digging. We found two victims, and…” she went silent her words began cracking from emotion.
“We found who she was looking for.” I finished, gesturing with a hand toward the nearby pile of rubble and debris. “Get over here and help me dig them out.”
With me and nine other ponies focusing on one area, it took practically no time at all to uncover the deceased bodies of Mane Allgood and Snap Shutter, and though the sight still made my stomach churn a bit, I was simultaneously relieved that, at long last, Rainbow Dash would be coming home. Compelled by her duty, though, Rainbow Dash took out her notebook once more to add more details, specifically, the fact that further damage to the bodies had been suffered due to the collapse of their temporary resting place. She left out the fact that she had inadvertently caused the collapse, but I wasn’t going to give her grief for it.
Rainbow Dash took her time, carefully pulling the bodies onto stable ground before slipping each one into its own black bag, and zipping it up. After doing so, she stood and stared down at the two bags -- even though they looked exactly the same as all the rest we had used all day, we both knew these two were special, and the grief they would bring wasn’t over yet.
“Well, I guess you’ll be heading off then?” one of the volunteers asked, the mare sounding disappointed, but understanding.
Rainbow Dash turned to the mare and shook her head. “No. Today will be my last day before rotating home, but I’m not going to skip out early on a day of work. C’mon ponies, we still have work to do.” As the ponies began to disperse to their designated areas, Rainbow Dash glanced to me with a hopeful expression.
I gave a somber smile and shook my head. “I’m not going anywhere, Dash. Where you go, I go.”
Though the mood was still depressing, the fragile smile she gave brought just a little more light to the day.
Evening had fallen hours ago, and we were just approaching the outskirts of Ponyville. The day had been long, and I was aching all over due to slightly overexerting myself, but we had accomplished what we set out to do, and that would be enough. As it was, though, Rainbow Dash was forced to follow me closely, since the new moon didn’t give any light for her eyes to see by, and so she had to rely on my superior night vision.
Flying over the castle, I dove toward the balcony closest to us, which was the one that led to the commons room. I opened the door quietly, not wanting to wake Twilight or any of the others, allowing Rainbow Dash to enter before I did. After closing the door behind us and creeping inside, I motioned to the stairs and nudged the pegasus in that direction.
“You shower first, and then head to Twi’s room. After I’m done, I’ll meet you there,” I whispered, setting my bag down by the door to be dealt with in the morning. Rainbow Dash offered no resistance, following my request without question, clearly too tired to argue or say more than a subdued “okay”.
I watched Rainbow Dash climb the spiral stairs toward the private apartments until she disappeared to the upper floors, then released a long, tired sigh as I slumped to the ground. I was tired -- exhausted, actually -- so I was happy to know that it would take a few days to transport the bodies back to Ponyville. The day itself had been draining enough, so I was going to need the next few days to mentally and emotionally prepare myself for what was to come.
“Spike.”
Normally, the voice would have startled me enough to quite literally jump into the air, but as it was, I was too tired to do anything resembling that. Instead, I simply turned to Twilight and nodded to her. “We did it.”
She stepped forward with her arms open, causing the silky robe to open and show she was wearing nothing other than underwear. I smiled and prepared to embrace her, only for Twilight to scrunch up her nose and step away with a sheepish smile. “Er...after you get a shower.”
I chuckled tiredly and nodded. “Yeah. I’ll meet you in your room, then. Dash is staying the night, too.”
Twilight nodded with a soft smile. “I’ll make sure she settles in and gets some rest. Ember is waiting for you in your room, by the way. She said she wanted to talk to you privately whenever you got back.”
I watched Twilight walk away for a moment before heaving a tired sigh and following behind her up the spiral stairs. Normally, the sight of the playfully bouncing, pink-striped tail would cause a rush of warmth to flow through me, but all I wanted at the moment was to hug her and fall asleep, so lust wasn’t something I was capable of at the moment. I reminded myself (and mentally assured my aching body) that after a shower and a change of clothes, I could finally call it a night and get some well-deserved rest. Rainbow Dash was still washing, however, so I would kill some time by going to see what Ember wanted.
When we reached the top of the stairs, Twilight broke off toward her room, and I headed toward mine, where a certain blue dragoness awaited. I’ll admit, my gait was definitely more of a “trudge” than a “walk” at this point of the day, but I still made it to my room with little trouble, and entered without hesitation. Without even greeting the dragoness currently reclined on my bed, I removed all of my clothes, including my underwear, and then toppled face down onto the bedspread. The neat-freak in me was screaming at the fact I was probably soiling the bedspread, but I was beyond caring by that point.
“Long day?”
I grunted and let out a long sigh. Turning my head to the side, I answered, “Spent all day digging through a few dozen tons of earth and the remains of a town, looking for bodies. I’ve seen more dead bodies today than I ever needed to. At least I know that being a mortician or undertaker is not for me.”
I felt as a clawed hand settled on the side of my head, and I was too exhausted to even open my eyes at the moment. “Are you gonna be okay? I know that can’t have been easy; even dragons feel uncomfortable around dead bodies.”
Frowning, I mumbled, “I had the easy job, frankly. I was mostly just a glorified digger, while Dash was the one handling all the bodies. Still, I had to see them, and that’s…” I shivered a bit, and it certainly wasn’t because I felt cold. Taking a moment to calm myself, I opened my eyes to find Ember’s crimson eyes glowing in the dark room, gazing at me with stark concern. “I’ll be okay, I promise. I’m mostly just tired, so I need a shower, and then some sleep.”
Ember briefly glanced away before suggesting, “If you’re that out of it, we can put off your training until-”
I shook my head and raised a sore arm to place my own hand over the one of hers that was still on my head. “No, I don’t want idle time. We’ll keep going as normal. On the bright side, I was able to alter my size pretty easily, and as you can see, I’m back to normal.”
“How much did you grow?” she asked, looking genuinely surprised.
I thought back to how tall I had been compared to Rainbow Dash when I grew, then did a quick estimate based on how tall she normally was when I looked at her. “Three or four feet, I think. I still ache all over from the change, and I was ravenous with hunger, but the change is a lot easier since we’ve been practicing. Still, I felt like a glutton when I cleaned out a market stall on the way home.”
Ember chuckled softly. “The energy has to come from somewhere, Spike. A bigger body uses more energy, and the change itself is taxing all on its own. You’ll adjust, with time. I’m actually impressed you were able to pull off the change so easily, though.”
“I had good reason to do it, other than simply ‘practice’ like the other times I’ve done it,” I returned, secretly a bit giddy that Ember was proud of me. “You taught me that willpower was extremely important, since it would allow me to channel my emotions more effectively, without them overwhelming me. Well, for the first time, I had a real, important reason to do it, so it came a lot easier for me.”
Ember smiled softly, flipping her hand around in mine to lace her fingers with my own. “A dragon will do anything to ensure what they treasure is secure and protected. Your situation is unique, and you keep surprising me with what you’re capable of when one of your friends is involved.” She snorted with amusement. “I wonder if you’ll be able to best me one day.”
“Let’s not get ahead of ourselves,” I shyly mumbled, blushing a little bit at the praise. “Compared to you, I’m still just some dumb kid that doesn’t know anything.”
“Ignorance isn’t the same as the lack of intelligence,” Ember retorted, sounding suitably disappointed with my words. “You’re anything but dumb, Spike, so I’d appreciate it if you didn’t refer to my mate that way.”
Her tone was actually defensive, and even a little upset at my words, so I felt myself shrink a bit at the admonishment. “...sorry. It’s just...that’s how I feel around you sometimes. I know I’m learning, but here I am, a dragon, having to be taught how to be a dragon.”
Ember smiled down at me again, shaking her head. “If there’s anything you’ve definitely proven, it’s that there’s no one way to ‘be a dragon’. All I’m teaching you is the things that are nature instead of nurture -- things you need to know about and understand, because even though you were raised with ponies, these things will still affect you.” She then shifted a bit, glancing away as her own bout of shyness caught up. “Besides...I like that you aren’t like other dragons; I like you the way you are, and I don’t want you to try and be like the other young, male dragons I know.” She then spun around on her rump with her back facing me before reclining again, laying herself over my back. “Anyhow, what I wanted to ask you is if, after I’ve finished your re-education, you would visit the dragon lands with me. I’d…” she went silent for a moment, and I felt her wings twitch against my own, “I want to introduce you to my parents -- this time, as my mate. Dad especially wants to see what you’ve become over the years.”
At the mention of Ember’s parents, I couldn’t help but feel a little self-conscious. “I don’t expect he’ll be too impressed. Among certain ponies, I’m seen as a hero, but I don’t imagine dragons have as positive of an opinion of me.”
“Not all of them are like those adolescents you met years ago,” Ember assured, running a curled digit over my cheek affectionately. “The elder dragons, like my parents, will respect your courage and intelligence, even if they don’t understand pony customs. I’m confident you’ll be just fine.”
Well, when it came down to it, Ember did know the dragons of the homeland better than I did, so I would have to defer to her judgement of them. Speaking of the other dragons, however…
“Did you ever find out who that dragoness was?” I asked, mentioning the issue for the first time in over a month.
Perking up, Ember turned on her side to look at me. “Oh, yes I did. Sorry I didn’t tell you, but I’ve been...distracted.”
Knowing it was a compliment, I just smiled and nodded. “It’s cool. So, who is it?”
Ember’s expression fell into something a bit sour as she practically hissed, “Sapphira.”
Raising my brow, I deduced, “I get the feeling you didn’t like her even before she tried to abduct me.”
Ember gave a stern nod, still frowning from the mention of the dragoness. “You guess right. She’s from an old clan, older than my clan by a few centuries, but Sapphira herself is only a few decades older than us -- which, considering the lifespan of dragons, is practically nothing. She was the last one to win the Gauntlet of Fire before you, though there’s been rumors she cheated by bypassing most of the event. It’s never been proven, and there were no eyewitnesses, but her position as dragon lord has been contested a few times. She’s not well-liked outside of her clan, but don’t mistake that for weakness; she’s very powerful, and honestly, the only reason you overpowered her was because you caught her off-guard, and had the help of Lyla.”
Nodding slowly once, I let a breath out of my nose. “I told you what the royal family wants to do because of her, but I really don’t want to cause problems for you. Any ideas how to go about this?”
“Her clan isn’t going to surrender her,” Ember bluntly stated, shaking her head gently. “She’s not exactly popular among the clans, but each clan generally keeps to itself unless something like the Tirek event happens. You won’t be getting any help from them, and marching into the dragon lands armed is going to make dragons anxious, and possibly hostile.”
I groaned and slowly moved my hand up, rubbing the bridge of my nose with two fingers as I tried to fight off the headache that was starting to build. “Great, so this is going to be difficult no matter what.”
“However,” Ember began, reaching down and again taking my hand with her own, “since we’re mated, you are unofficially a part of my clan, and are under my protection. I can’t directly help you, but I can ensure the Narrowscale clan doesn’t get involved. This is counted under the Retribution Clause of the old laws, and a representative of the wronged group -- or nation -- is allowed to reclaim their honor by demanding a duel with the dragon that committed the wrongdoing.”
My eyes widened at the information, and I found myself becoming a bit more hopeful. “Oh, really now?”
Ember nodded before turning her eyes back to the ceiling. “I’m betting she was counting on you not knowing about it, since the Retribution Clause has to be specifically mentioned by you for it to be valid. You have to announce, and I’m quoting, that she ‘has disgraced me and herself through dishonorable actions, and I come for the return of my honor.’ Those are the exact words of the old texts -- translated, of course, but they will be enough to ensure you are given your chance. If she is beaten, her life is essentially in the hands of the combatant that defeated her. You have the choice to fight her yourself, of course, but a proxy would be accepted, so long as the one fighting for you is related to you, and aware that their life is quite literally on the line.”
“What about Luna?” I asked directly.
Ember raised her own brow. “The princess of the night? That Luna? Why would she fight on your behalf?”
Grinning, I confirmed, “As the adopted son of Celestia-”
“She’s your kin,” Ember finished, her eyes widening in surprise. She held the look for a few moments of silence before she spoke again. “Well...there’s no rules against alicorns, mostly because no dragon ever expected a single pony to fight one of them.”
Smirking as a plan began to form, I nodded. “That’s good news. Luna was furious about what happened, and I imagine if I hadn’t been the one to drive Sapphira away, she would have gladly been the one to do so. I think it’ll be pretty easy to talk her into a duel.”
Ember pursed her lips for a moment before asking, “Exactly how strong is she?”
“Ancient sects used to worship her as the Shadow of War,” I explained, smiling wider at the shocked look my words produced. “While I don’t doubt the legends have been embellished over the many years she’s been alive, she knocked me out with a single punch when I was in my greed-grown form, and all she had to show for it was some raw knuckles. That’s not even taking into account the vast stores of magic she has access to, and the likely thousands of battle spells she’s had millennia to learn and perfect.”
Ember went silent again for a few moments before quietly replying, “Spike? If I ever start getting a big head for whatever reason, always remind me to never piss off your family.”
Before I could respond with a witty comment, the sound of the bathroom door opening and closing could be heard, so I groaned and nudged Ember off of me before pushing myself to stand. “All right, I’m gonna go clean myself. I’ll see you in a bit.” As I made my way to the dresser to get myself some clean nightwear, Ember was right beside me, which caused me to raise a curious brow.
She just grinned. “I’m gonna help you get clean. Splitting a job between two people makes it go faster, right?”
While Ember was practically always naked anyway, the thought of her washing me brought a flush to my face. Still, the suggestion sounded nice, so I just gave a goofy grin and a nod, and the two of us quickly made our way to the bathroom.
While intimate, there hadn’t been anything distinctly sexual about bathing with Ember, but I was definitely going to be asking her to join me from now on. Currently though, we were walking together toward Twilight’s room, with the dragoness leaning her head against me as she nuzzled my arm like a happy kitten. I promised myself I was going to do my very best to make sure Ember was happy from now on, because a happy Ember was an adorable Ember.
We arrived at the royal bedroom only a few minutes later, and Twilight was already waiting just outside in the hallway. She was still dressed only in underwear and a robe (which, by the way, was quite distracting), but now stared at a book in her hand while she, presumably, waited for us to arrive. Upon hearing the sound of our approach, her ears twitched from atop her head, and she glanced up at us with a smile.
Giving a rather salacious smirk, she teased, “Took you two long enough. If you really wanted some alone time, you could have just said so.”
While the comment brought a blush to me, Ember just continued walking, smirking as she returned, “If Spike and I had mated, the entire town would be banging on your door about the noise. You’d also need to repair or replace the whole bathroom.”
Twilight’s face began to flush as a faint pink became visible on her cheeks, and she turned away as she silently opened the door to the room. Ember followed the mare, retaining her victorious smirk, while I followed just behind, thoroughly embarrassed. To my surprise, Lyla was apparently joining us for the night, as she was settled behind the already-slumbering Rainbow Dash, holding the slightly smaller pegasus in her arms as she, herself, was drifting off to sleep. With that in mind, I took more careful steps to reduce the noise I made, and followed Ember and Twilight to the obnoxiously-large bed of the princess.
Twilight slid in next to the unoccupied side of Rainbow Dash, ensuring she didn’t wake the pegasus, while I took my place next to Twilight, and Ember occupied the remaining space closer to the edge of the bed. As had become normal recently, Ember carefully tucked her head underneath my chin, and wrapped her tail around my waist as she snuggled closer for warmth. Also like usual, I silently smiled at the cute display, and wrapped the dragoness in my arms as I closed my eyes for a good sleep. With the exhaustion of the day creeping up on me, and the presence of my friends and family around me, sleep came quickly, and I found myself drifting away before I knew it.
I found myself opening my eyes only a few moments later, to a vastly different visual. The landscape was blank white, as far as my eyes could see, but I wasn’t afraid or even particularly surprised. I had seen this very sight many times over the years, so I knew what it meant.
“Aunt Luna,” I greeted happily, turning around to meet the presence behind me.
The mare herself seemed to materialize out of thin air, quite suddenly appearing with no flash of light, no theatrical construction, or anything particularly flashy -- she was just suddenly...there. She dipped her head respectfully (respectful of me, the dreamer, not of a superior), and moved to embrace me in a hug.
“I heard what happened, Spike. I am so sorry,” she said, her tone showing true concern and sorrow.
Taking a deep breath of the familiar, comforting scent of the alicorn in my arms, I released the breath and nodded against her shoulder. “Thank you, Luna. It was hard, and there’s more hardship to come, but I’ll be okay. Thanks for coming to see me.” I pulled away from the embrace, holding the mare at arm’s length, as I asked, “How is Rainbow Dash?”
I was well aware that Luna could not tell me the contents of another’s dreams, but cluing me in on the emotional state of another wasn’t breaking any rules. With that in mind, Luna sighed heavily and shook her head. “She is not well, dear Spike. She tortures herself with blame, and fears what her young charge will say or do when she learns of the truth. I will do what I can to ease her suffering within the dreamscape, but she will need the support of her friends in the waking world. You and I both know the young mare has a tendency to isolate herself from others when in times of strife; you must not let this happen. Be assertive, and forceful if you must, but do not leave her to suffer alone. Promise me, Spike.”
“No offense meant, Auntie,” I began, “but I would do so anyway. She’s one of my closest friends, and I’m going to make sure she’s not alone.”
Searching my face for a few moments, Luna eventually relented with a smile. “Good. I have faith in you, and you must have faith in the bond the two of you share. The coming months will be difficult, but I am confident you can overcome them, together.”
I nodded to her before a thought struck me. “Oh, by the way, Ember told me how we can handle this whole thing with that dragoness -- her name’s Sapphira, by the way.”
Releasing me completely and tilting her head in interest, Luna nodded to me. “This is good news. What must we do?”
I couldn’t stop the grin from appearing on my face as I answered, “A duel. It can either be me, or a ‘champion’ I choose, and as far as Ember knows, there’s no rule about who I choose, so long as they’re kin. Legally…”
Slowly, an evil grin of her own appeared on Luna’s face. “I am your kin. Oh, this will be fun!”
“Now,” I interrupted, hand raised to stop her, “I have a feeling that the elder dragons might try to stop it, on the grounds that we’re not ‘true’ kin, seeing as how we’re not even the same species.”
“However,” Luna continued, poking me in the forehead with a finger, “because of how you were hatched, pony magic is forever a part of who you are, and that cannot be debated. Dragons impart some of their own magic through their flame to hatch their eggs, which does the same.”
I nodded firmly. “Exactly, and that can work in our favor. If I can get permission for a few journalists from Equestria to see the duel happen, I think that’ll be enough to appease the ponies making a fuss about all this, and we can wrap all of this up, once and for all.”
Tilting her head the other way, Luna looked me over before commenting, “For never being a part of diplomacy, you are rather shrewd. I look forward to how you will further grow and mature in the coming years.”
The praise caused me to flush with embarrassment. “Th-thanks, Aunt Luna.”
She gave a single nod to me. “Now, I have said what I came to say, so I must depart. I will impart to you sweet dreams for your service to those in need. Know that the families of those affected thank you, dear Spike.”
While it’s true I had been primarily focusing on Rainbow Dash and Scootaloo’s needs, it was also true that I had helped quite a bit up north, and other families were going to be grateful that the remains of their loved ones were recovered. Bowing my head respectfully, I humbly replied, “I’m glad that I was able to help. Goodnight, Princess.”
“Goodnight, Spike.”
With that, the world shifted as Luna disappeared, and a forest clearing appeared. The voices of my friends began to filter in, along with the sounds of a vibrant wooded area, and I looked around to find all my friends arrayed in a lazy group as we sat on a blanket for a picnic. The knowledge that this was a dream began to fade, so that I could fully enjoy it, but before it did, I sent a mental thanks to the night’s guardian.
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Reading this makes me feel something akin to the Warp.
Yes...
YES...
I CAN FEEL IT.
I CAN FEEEEEL THE WAAAAHRP OVERTAKING MEEEEE...
i.warosu.org/data/tg/img/0497/49/1476309132992.jpg
IT IS A GOOD PAIN.
9514382
Could you please explain? I have. O idea what your talking about, but I want to.
9514923
Ah, an unbeliever. Might I recommend the work of our Bearer of the Word, the Book of Lorgar?
9515243
I sorry, but I need more. Is that an actual book?
9515254
About as real as (semi-)anthro anime pirate reindeer doctors.
9515274
...Touche.
Interesting new chapter. Spike already utilizing his magic to this degree, and control, was nifty. Dash shutting herself off from her friends for the pain she'll be giving Scoots will be upsetting, but thankfully Spike - and presumably the others - know that's coming, and will work to act against it. Worst case scenario, we potentially see Dash attempting to self-harm.
Luna potentially being Spike's champion will be a fun event - I doubt it'll all go so smoothly as they're hoping, though. The Shadow of War curbstomping a "fledgling" lord of a clan would be pretty amusing, though.
As always, thanks for the new chapter - this one came real quick, too!
I Have Come To Eat Candy And Kick Dragon Butt. And I Am All Out Of Candy.
.... Prepare for an epic Curb stomping! I also want to say I look forward to the next update this is on of my favorites that I've found since joining this site.
You couldn't ask for a better champion.
This looks like a job for Tank.
Huh. Surprised that Spike had already accepted his infertility among Ponies. The fact that you said that 2 (potential) herd mates are going to raise a fuss about it makes me feel that they hadn't even thought about it. I immediately thought that Spike is going to exasperate the conflict by saying something along the lines that his biology was never questioned until something was biting them in the butts, but even he could see the writing on the wall for this one.
Luna vs Sapphira, round two. Coming soon to pay-per-view event near you.
Question: If Sapphira won the GofF before Spike, then how did Torch manage to become
FirelordDragonlord intermittenly?9517090
Each clan has its own GoF competition. The winner of one does not become Dragon Lord of another clan.
I can't wait for Luna to just lay Sapphira out.
Going to be interesting once Cadance hears about Twilight and Spike - almost willing to put money down on her being the one to solve the children issue.
Love it! Please have Luna do a maniacal laughter with a shadowy arrival for the fight!
Amazing Job!
9522818
Luna is a "ye olde style" lady whose personality is thickly steeped in the old ways of honor, discipline, chivilry, and respect. While Princess Celestia has had 1000 years to adjust to a peaceful rule, Luna is still quite comfortable and familiar with battle, and duels. She's a master duelist that is skilled in both combat, and psychological warfare.
9522886
She is also Nightmare Moon, sooooo.......
damn i need to reread this again :D hope it will occupy my till the next chapter is here