Eclipse
Reddux the Tyrant
Chapter VI
Eclipse
“I’m not going back!”
Fine growled as he crawled into his tent, making his way to the saddle in the corner. “Yes, you are.”
“I refuse!” Fleur glared at him through the tent flap. “You have to take me with you.”
“No.” He pushed back out and hovered some bread before her face. “Take this, should last you ‘till you get back to the city. Now git.”
She snarled and hit the loaf with her forehoof, sending it flying into his face. “I brought my own food. And I’m not going back.”
He grabbed the bread in one hoof and glared at her. “I’m not taking a kid with me. I don’t even like kids. Go home.”
She bared her teeth. “I can’t go home!”
He pointed north without a word.
“That’s not my home,” she snapped. “I will never return to my uncle. I would rather die.”
“Come with me and you will.” Fine turned back to the tent. He took a bite out of the bread as he went inside to replace it in his saddle.
“That’s better than the alternative,” she told him. “You can ignore me, but I’ll keep following you.”
“Why?” He pushed his head out of the tent to glower. “What possible reason could you have to follow me? You have no idea who I am!”
“Maybe not,” Fleur replied, pointing a hoof at him, “but you have what I need. You taught me that mirage spell. You can teach me more.”
“Not a chance.” He sat just outside the tent and rubbed his forehead in both hooves. “I don’t take on apprentices.”
“It’s either you teach me, or I watch you.” Fleur stuck her muzzle in the air. “One way or another, I’m learning more. Spells like that are my key to independence.”
He threw up his hooves. “And you’ll die trying to learn them!”
Fine heaved a deep sigh and bowed his head. Of all the things he could have to deal with, foals was not one he was prepared for. “Listen, little miss, here are some facts. First thing, nopony is supposed to know I exist, much less where I am. I—”
He paused, raising his head to study her.
“Come to think of it… how did you even find me?”
She kept her eyes hard. “Remember that spell I hit you with before you left?” He nodded. “It was a tracking spell.”
He sat up straight, his eyes going wide. “Tracking spell? You mean… when you were trying to hurt me, you were really… you tricked me?”
She smirked. “Not so incapable, huh?”
“And this spell let you follow me all the way out here?” He studied her smirking face, trying to find some indication that she was lying. He saw none.
“Huh.” He lowered his head and rubbed his chin. “That’s… impressive, actually.”
Her ears perked. “So does that mean—”
“Don’t—” he raised his hoof just before her muzzle, “—jump to conclusions. Second point: I need to move quickly and quietly. I have a lot of work to do and time is not on my side. I can’t waste time foalsitting you.”
She sneered at his hoof, pushing it down so she could set her demanding eyes on him once more. “Perhaps I could actually help you. You think of that?”
Fine rolled his eyes. “You’re fourteen, and that’s not my call regardless. You’re just a kid! Third point: what I’m doing is dangerous. I don’t mean ‘playing on wet rocks’ dangerous, I mean ‘big, mean, fire-breathing lizards actively trying to kill you’ dangerous, or ‘getting chased by angry ponies with sharp, pointy objects’ dangerous. It’s not safe for fillies.”
She moved forward, pressing her muzzle against his. “Safe? You want to talk to me about safe?”
She pulled back, a fire in her eyes and her breath coming in sharp intakes. It had to be the single most menacing expression Fine had ever seen in a child.
“Let me tell you what this kid has gone through in her short, unimportant little life,” she growled. “When I was four, I watched my mom freeze to death in the harshest winter the Griffa plains has known in centuries. When I was six, my father fell overboard in a storm on the way to Equestria. Then I get to meet my ‘hero’ uncle in Estéril Pezuñas.”
She shivered, abruptly wrapping her hooves about herself. She never lost that fierce expression, though. “I spent the next seven years dreading the night, never knowing when he’d come by to visit, to put his filthy hooves on me. I was his ‘pretty little niece’ for far too long! Do you know what it’s like being used as a doll and passed around like a party favor?
“But oh, no,” she stomped and leaned towards Fine. “That’s not all! I finally get away. I spent a year on my own, always dirty, always hungry, doing odd jobs for scraps. I couldn’t count how many nights I had to survive by digging through garbage. I made it to Sueño on my own, thinking maybe the sea would be enough of a barrier to protect me.
“And then what? Dragons!”
Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she threw her hooves high with a shout. “I watched an entire town burn! I remember being trapped under a beam, screaming for mercy and knowing I was just seconds away from roasting alive! I saw hundreds of ponies floating in the ocean, a sea of corpses.”
She moved forward, once again pressing her muzzle to his. She was screaming now. “This kid has seen more crap in her fourteen years than most ponies see in their entire lives! Don’t tell me that I don’t know what I’m getting into, because it can’t be worse than what I’ve already seen!”
Fine stared, eyes wide and mind numb. He worked his lips, but no sound came out.
Slowly, Fleur retreated. The fury in her eyes faded, her lip began to tremble. She turned her back to him, entire body slumping as she wept. “Then I… I had to go back. B-back to that horrible castle, back to being a b-bucking doll. After all I went through, what d-did he do? Just put his hooves on me again.”
Her hooves reached between her hips and she sobbed. “I have as many n-nightmares about him being inside me as I do about the d-dragons. Please, please, don’t send me back. I’m tired of being a feeble filly. Teach me how to protect myself. Please…”
Fine watched her, observed how she trembled. His thoughts went to the things he’d seen by the time he was her age… and he realized they didn’t compare. They didn’t even come close. He turned away, gritted his teeth and tried to block out her weeping.
He was an Archon. He had a job to do, and it didn’t involve her. He couldn’t look after her, he probably couldn’t do his job with her around, and he certainly shouldn’t let her get involved in what he was doing. The correct action was to leave her alone and let her try to make it on her own. He shouldn’t help her and he knew it.
Any yet… for all his internal arguments…
He pressed his face against his hooves and gritted his teeth. Hoofknife wouldn’t approve. Fine shouldn’t care this much. He was supposed to be disengaged. The fate of one filly, no matter how tragic, was not as important as the fate of a mission that could save millions of lives! He knew the logic, he’d used it for justification a half-dozen times already in his career. It was the right thing to do!
Fine leaned back and stared up at the sky, listening as her sobs began to come under control. He envisioned an old friend, an ancient mare who, for once, decided to be kind. He lifted the knife that hung from his chest, slowly turning the black blade before his eyes. He studied its smooth shape, recalling how it used to adorn her neck like a trophy.
“Dammit, Sugarcube,” he whispered, “the one time you set a good example. Am I turning soft like you did?”
Fleur’s crying had stopped, though she was still sniffling. “Well,” she muttered, “I guess I’m too young and dumb to stick with you, huh?”
Fine groaned, letting the knife drop back to his chest. “Alright.”
He could almost hear her tense up. “What?”
“You can come,” he grumbled, turning to her. “I’ll try to put up with you and maybe teach you a spell or two, but when I tell you it’s over and you have to stay behind, you will do it, do I make myself clear?”
She turned to look at him with one eye, her face covered in tears and her voice unsteady. “You… y-you mean it? You won’t try to… to leave me behind while I’m sleeping or anything like that?”
“Doubt it would do me any good to try, thanks to that damn spell you put on me.” He stomped to the side of the tent and settled himself down in the brown grass. “Look, I’ve been out and about ever since yesterday morning. I need to sleep. Just… just shut up and let me rest, and tonight when we start moving again we can talk specifics, alright?”
She turned to him, rubbing her cheeks. “You’re sleeping out here?”
He growled and rested his head on his cannons. “Only room in the tent for one. Just get in there.”
Fleur stared at him, shuffling from hoof to hoof. “I… I thought…” She winced at his glare. “O-okay. Um… thank you, mister.”
“Fine Crime,” he muttered, turning his face away. “Call me Fi—”
He covered his eyes; a flash of light erupted through the sky, so bright it blinded.
It came from the north.
Fancy stood at the back of the mass of ponies. Statesponies, officers, guards, diplomats, all present to provide a sense of formality to the discussion currently ongoing between Celestia and Sihalay. The dragon was lying on the beach, but even in a state of repose she towered over the ponies. They’d been discussing the situation for over an hour now, Celestia sitting before Sihalay and looking so incredibly tiny in comparison.
Fancy’s presence had been mandatory, just in case Sihalay desired to speak to the only – well, only present – survivor of the Slaughter of Sueño. Thus far he’d not been mentioned, but he suspected it was only a matter of time. Though the thought made him shudder, he steeled himself for the coming meeting. As far as he could tell, the queen of the dragons was trying to help, and he wasn’t about to back down from her questions.
He just wished they’d call on him already.
“How are you holding up, First Lieutenant?”
Fancy jumped at the familiar voice, barely able to contain his shout. He turned to find Captain Oak Feathers standing beside him with a concerned frown. “Sorry, didn’t mean to get the jump on you.”
“That’s quite alright.” He took a moment to recover his breathing. “I wasn’t expecting to see you here. Isn’t the 42nd supposed to be headed for Guardia del Este?”
She nodded. “We’re waiting for the Third Battalion to arrive tomorrow. We’ll travel with them, act as their scouts in case a dragon decides to approach them on the move.”
“I see.” He turned his attention back to Sihalay, who had a claw over her lips as she listened intently to Celestia. He couldn’t hear what was being said. “Maybe these troop movements won’t be needed in the end.”
Oak cast a dubious look his way. “Do you want peace, or a fight?”
“All I want,” he muttered with a scowl at the ground, “is justice.”
“Hmm…” Oak turned to watch the proceedings in silence.
Fancy cast a brief glance her way. “So… any luck finding Miss Purpurnyj?”
She shook her head. “Most of my scouts have returned. She’s gone.”
“I can’t believe she ran away again.” Fancy thought on everything he’d seen, the little hints that disturbed him for reasons he couldn’t fathom. “Y’know, sometimes I think about it and wonder if it’s not better this way.”
“How do you mean?” Oak asked, not averting her eyes from Sihalay.
“I don’t know,” he admitted. “I just… I got the impression she wasn’t happy with her uncle.”
“The thought had crossed my mind.” The captain observed him with a critical eye. “You’re not feeling responsible, are you?”
He was. Fancy knew he probably shouldn’t think of himself as responsible for Fleur, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that he should have read whatever signs she’d been sending him. “We both made it out of hell. Us survivors have to stand by one another.”
Oak raised an eyebrow. “Well, if you say so.”
“Fancy.” They turned to find Sir Deeds pushing his way through the crowd. “There you are. Celestia just gave me the signal. You’re about to be introduced.”
Fancy cringed as a sinking feeling invaded his gut. “V-very well.” He silently cursed himself for the stutter.
Sir Deeds paused before him with a somber frown. “Hey, don’t worry. This one’s not out to eat us… yet.”
The First Lieutenant barely contained his whimper.
Oak used a wing to pat him on the shoulder before telling Sir Deeds, “You, sir, are a master of reassurance.”
The Lord of Estéril Pezuñas raised an eyebrow, his face going hard. Oak returned the expression with a lecturing frown.
The tense moment came to an end when a great call erupted through the sky. The ponies looked around, ears perked for the source of the roar. Fancy noted Sihalay, who reared back with a deep frown and turned her head south. Ponies scattered, and Fancy found himself being shoved back by Oak before he could see what was happening.
Something landed on the beach nearby, something huge and red. Fancy knew it had to be a dragon, but in the confusion Oak and Sir Deeds had fallen on top of him so he couldn’t get a good look. As the three worked to disentangle themselves, Sihalay’s voice rang out.
“What is the meaning of this interruption? This had best be important.”
“Forgive me, Mate of the First Fang, but I come with ill tidings.”
That second voice was loud, powerful and… familiar. The memories of mocking laughter echoed in Fancy’s mind and his blood turned to ice. He pushed Oak off and raised his head, sucking in a sharp breath at the sight of a massive red body.
The dragon loomed over the beach, over twice the size of Sihalay. Overhead flew his two villainous companions, the black and green dragons, circling the meeting site like vultures.
Oh yes, there was no mistaking them.
The red dragon was holding something large in his claws. With head bowed, he leaned forward and offered it to Sihalay.
Fancy wanted to shout out, to provide some kind of alarm, but the combination of his lost breath and Sir Deeds still in the process of getting off his stomach foiled his efforts. His mouth opened, but only a hoarse wind escaped it.
A choked cry came from Sihalay. Her claws shook as she reached forward to take the object.
It was the head of an orange dragon.
“No.” She stared down at it, tears welling in her eyes. “No… Blazen…”
At last Fancy was free. He sucked in a deep breath, grateful for the air in his lungs.
Sihalay’s eyes went dark. She began to look up. “Who is responsible for—”
The crunch filled the air like a thunderclap. For an instant eternity, the world went silent. Sihalay remained perfectly still, eyes bulging and jaw loose.
The red dragon’s fangs were clamped around her throat.
The world erupted in chaos. Sihalay began thrashing as the red dragon pushed her back towards the sea. Ponies scattered like ants and the two dragons in the sky roared their approval.
Fancy’s pushed himself to his hooves, his heart hammering in his chest and entire body trembling. He looked out to the waterline and watched as Sihalay clawed at her attacker with weak limbs, her mouth opening and closing as she struggled for air.
Then came another thunderclap in the form of a snap, and her body fell limp.
Amidst the fleeing and panicking ponies, Fancy watched the scene. Thus was he one of the few to see Celestia rising from the masses, her wings opened wide and her eyes glowing with a white fire. Her scream pierced the heavens and brought every pony on the beach to a halt.
“What have you done?”
The dragon bellowed in response, blood flying from his fangs as he grasped the head of Sihalay and began to pull. Scales warped, sinew stretched, and soon her head was ripped from her neck. He grabbed the head of Blazen, which had fallen nearby, and threw both of them high in the sky. The green and black dragons each caught one.
“Go!” He reared his head back flung his arm to the south. “Spread the word! The clans shall know that the Hoard of Blazen is no more! I am Reddux, and I claim all that was his!”
The two dragons wheeled off and departed for the south, roaring their response.
The explosion of light was so intense, so powerful that even when turning away and covering his eyes Fancy was blinded. Celestia’s voice was no longer the calm, serene tones he’d become accustomed to; it radiated a heat so intense he thought the words alone would scorch his mind. They reverberated in his ears, booming and fierce.
“Treacherous fiend! You will have nothing but sunfire for your betrayal!”
There was a great heat that sizzled the air and a roar. At last Fancy’s eyes had recovered from the momentary flash, and when he looked up he saw Reddux flying high around a beam of violent yellow energy. Celestia was no longer a pristine white princess, but a living inferno, her coat a pulsing white flame and her mane a searing orange.
Fancy could only watch in awe as Reddux opened his great maw to engulf Celestia in flames, but she rose up from them unphased and, opening her lips in a cry that shook her earth, sent a stream of white flame at her foe. Reddux dodged, swooped in and attacked with his claws, but Celestia rolled away and flew past him.
Oak’s voice rang out, infinitesimal compared to the raging duel that filled the air with noise. “Redwings, to me! We must help the princess!”
Sir Deeds thrust his hoof out – it passed over Fancy’s face and blocked his view of the duel. “Belay that! Everypony back to the castle!”
Fancy turned on him. “Sir, we must help!”
“No!” The dragonslayer shook his head with force and gestured back to the castle. “Celestia can’t fight that thing and watch for us. We’ll only get in her way. Back to the castle. That’s an order, Captain!”
Oak trembled, her lips worked and her eyes blazed. Uniformed pegasi were landing all about her, their eyes on the battle even as they awaited her order. She stomped her hoof a few times, her wings opened and closed and her face was locked in a grimace.
With one last, two-hoofed stomp and a shout, she cried, “Everypony to the castle!”
There was a splitting roar, though whether it came from Reddux or Celestia Fancy couldn’t tell. He turned about to see Reddux flying in a sweeping dive over the land, Celestia’s mighty beam following close and blasting a trail of destruction.
Ponies were fleeing, but Fancy couldn’t move. His legs were locked, his body leaning forward as he kept his eyes set on the scene. Though his breathing was shallow and his body trembled, he didn’t even consider following the others.
“Fancy!” Sir Deeds was in his face. “I gave you an order, First Lieutenant!”
Fancy ignore him, craning his neck as he watched Reddux chase Celestia high into the sky. She left behind massive red orbs that erupted in shimmering light as the dragon closed in.
Sir Deeds shook him. “Damn you, Fancy, get your flank moving!”
“I’m staying,” Fancy said, voice just loud enough to be heard over the shouting of the fleeing ponies. “I have to see this.”
“You can see it from the castle.” Sir Deeds tried to drag him. “Come on!”
Fancy shoved him away with a snarl. “I will watch this. I am not going to run away!” He sucked in a gasp as Celestia barely managed to dive beneath Reddux’s swinging, spiked tail.
“It’s a tactical withdrawal, you idiot!” Sir Deeds glared at him before letting out a shout and turning away. “I don’t have time for this. Stay here and burn, if that’s what you want.”
Fancy’s eyebrows rose as Reddux, dodging another of Celestia’s fiery blasts, dove and flew right towards them. He took a few steps back, mind frantic for some kind of response as the beast approached. Sir Deeds saw the dragon coming and promptly bolted, but Fancy didn’t move. Though his chest threatened to burst and he couldn’t breathe, he stood before Reddux and struggled to work his magic.
At last something happened: crystal-like projectiles flew from Fancy’s horn. He gasped as Reddux’s huge, menacing eyes turned on him. The beast’s lips curling up in a smile of wicked amusement.
The magic crystals shattered against his scales as he flew directly over. As far as Fancy could tell, the only one that was able to do anything was the crystal that pierced the leathery fabric of a wing, but it was no consolation.
Reddux’s thick tail whipped down, smashing the sandy beach. Fancy screamed and leapt aside, but was caught in the wave of sand and dirt. He tumbled and lost all sense of orientation as a cacophony of sounds filled his ears.
He ended up on his belly, half-covered in sand and a long trench at his side. He raised his head and wobbled as the world spun… then ducked with his hooves over his head as fireballs the size of a pony rained down indiscriminately all around him! An intense heat seared his coat and he looked up in time to see the blazing Celestia pass over, the fiery projectiles blasting from her horn in rapid succession. A torrent of living flame, she probably hadn’t even noticed him.
Goddess damn him, Fancy felt so useless! He tried to get to his hooves, lost his balance and landed against the pile of sand at his side. Realizing he would be of no help, he merely watched the fight.
Reddux had flown over the city of Estéril Pezuñas, and Celestia’s massive attacks came to a halt. The two circled one another. Though Celestia was too far away for Fancy to see her as anything but a dot, she radiated light like a fiery star. A flash of light indicated a spell being cast, but at this distance he couldn’t tell exactly what it was.
Fancy climbed to his hooves, at last able to keep his balance, and galloped for the town in hopes of a better view.
Reddux swung about and flew for the shimmering light, but a blast of energy struck him and sent him reeling. He clutched at his shoulder and toppled, only to regain flight and go sailing back towards Celestia. Fancy cringed as the beast’s tail dropped into the city, clouds of debris rising where it hit some unfortunate structures.
There was another blinding flash that made Fancy glance away, though he didn’t stop running. When he looked up again a collection of massive, feather-like appendages were rising from behind Celestia. Even from this distance, when he could just barely make out the princess’s shape, the flimsy-looking things were huge and shimmering yellow, splayed out like the tail of a peacock. They swung about, whipping towards Reddux and leaving streaks of light in their wake.
Reddux dodged the first attack, but the second hit him. Though the feathers were still small compared to his mountain of mass, he roared at their touch and was knocked sideways. He spun in midair, incredibly long tail swinging for Celestia, who dropped enough to dodge. The tail swiped through the feathers like butter, their forms fading into a bright mist.
Fancy gasped as her shimmering light wobbled and dropped a short distance. He pressed himself to move faster, ignoring the burning in his chest. He knew he couldn’t help, but he had to at least be there!
Reddux capitalized on Celestia’s moment of recovery, flying in close and reaching his claws for her. Fancy was close enough to see the yellow sphere that encompassed her flaming form, and though Reddux’s claws completely engulfed the light he screamed from what must have been a painful experience. His muscles bulged as he fought to squash Celestia in her shield, his bellow shaking earth beneath Fancy’s hooves. The dragon strained and shrieked, and Fancy could just make out the smoke rising from his claws.
There was another magnificent flash, so incredibly powerful it actually hurt Fancy’s eyes! But he didn’t dare look away, and as he watched Reddux fell back, his arms spreading wide from the force of an explosion that knocked him back and made him howl in pain. The crystal orb had shattered into a thousand pieces, and those pieces now darted at Reddux like tiny blades of pure light.
Though he roared with pain as the thousands of spears of light pierced his body, Reddux recovered and swung a mighty claw. Another shield formed, but shattered upon impact. Celestia cartwheeled through the sky, her mane and tail forming a flaming circle about her tumbling form.
Fancy slid to a halt, eyes wide and his breath coming to an abrupt stop as he watched her fall. He thought he might have screamed.
Yet the fight wasn’t over; Celestia righted herself and fired her massive solar beam, this time landing a hit against Reddux’s side. The dragon howled and spun wildly, clutching at the blackened flesh; even his magic-resistant scales couldn’t withstand the full blast of Celestia’s condensed magic.
Yet even as he spun away, his tail whipped up and caught the princess, a direct blow that sent her sailing like a comet. The flaming streak smashed into the keep of Estéril Pezuñas at an incredible speed.
Fancy’s hind legs gave out. He stared, gaping as the ramparts shook and stone collapsed, burying the princess in the rubble. He barely noticed as Reddux crashed into the city below, his vast form crushing buildings and citizens alike.
Worry tore through Fancy’s like an earthquake. As he watched the dust fly from the castle, he saw no shining lights; his princess didn’t erupt from where she’d fallen in a blaze of righteous fury.
Celestia didn’t do… anything.
He slowly turned his head at the sound of Reddux’s bellow. The dragon hovered above the city, a claw at his side but his face spread in a triumphant grin. He spoke, voice reverberating through the sky.
“You are broken, Celestia! You can no longer protect your race, a race that will be cleansed in dragonfire. You will live on to watch as the dragons bathe Equestria in the blood of all ponies, trapped in the feeble confines of your puny body. And then, when you know that all is lost, when the last rays of hope die and you long for the sweet caress of death, you will be made little more than a slave!
“I am Reddux! Remember my name, for it shall be on your lips in worship for the rest of eternity.”
With that the dragon reared back and let out a massive breath that engulfed the city. It went long and hot, the flames spreading like wildfire. When he could breathe no more, the dragon turned about and flew south, his hideous laughter mixing with that which was already in Fancy’s head.
Smoke had blackened the sky by the time Fancy reached the castle. He made straight for the keep, his mind frantic as he thought on the dire possibilities. Ponies were scrambling, confused shouts coming from all around. He overheard some officers trying to gather soldiers to help the burning city. Ponies whispered prayers, others sobbed. Most everypony had somewhere to go.
Fancy drove through them with a purpose, pushing the crowd aside with his superior size and not caring who he offended.
At last he reached the courtyard of the keep, a choked cry rising from his throat at the sight of the crumbled wall. Guards and soldiers were working to pull away the massive stones and debris. There was an intense urgency to their actions, an urgency that filled Fancy in turn. He felt cold, as if the warmth of life had fled him, and he promptly rushed in to help.
“Fancy!” Oak appeared over him, covered in dirt and sweat. “There you are. I thought you might be dead.”
He reared back. “Has there been any sign of her?”
Oak shook her head and dove back for the keep, joining a trio of other pegasi who were trying to use ropes to lift a particularly large piece of debris. With a whimper, Fancy jumped into the mess.
Minutes seemed to pass like hours, or maybe hours were passing like minutes. Fancy had no way of knowing. All he knew was that he had to get to Celestia, had to see for himself that she had survived. He was soon coated in grime and sweating profusely, but he didn’t dare rest. He worked till his legs and back were sore, used his magic until he overdosed and was suffering a migraine. He wouldn’t quit until he saw her beautiful white coat in the sun.
“Over here!”
He jerked about at the voice. One of Celestia’s guards waved and ponies were crowding around him. Fancy rushed forward, shoving his way through without apology. When he at last burst into the inner circle, his heart sank.
Celestia lay in a crater, half-buried in debris. Her pearly coat was matted with dirt, her glorious mane had faded to a dim pink. Cuts, bruises and burns covered her entire body and two of her legs had been twisted into sickening positions. She was bleeding profusely and one of her wings was smashed beneath a large boulder that three earth ponies were struggling to move.
Fancy stared at her, a high-pitched ringing in his ears and his jaw hanging loose. He watched her chest rise and fall in a slow, shuddering rhythm, gazed upon her face and saw it twisted in pain. The sight produced a horrible aching in his chest that almost brought him to tears. He reached a trembling hoof towards her, worked his lips… but could do nothing.
It was the most terrible feeling in the world.
The boulder was at last rolled off her wing just as Sir Deeds managed to push his way through. He knelt before her, brought his ear close to her lips and spoke in an indecipherable whisper.
Fancy saw her lips move… slowly.
Sir Deeds sat up and took a shaky breath. “O-okay… okay.” He spread his hooves as if to keep the crowd back, his shifting eyes set on her vulnerable form. “Everypony… just… stay back, we need room. She’ll be okay. Where are the bucking medics?”
Fancy dropped to his knees beside the princess, fighting back tears as he watched her breathing. Sir Deeds caught his eye. His eyes were wide and he was taking deep, slow breaths as they stared at one another.
“She’ll be okay,” Sir Deeds whispered, eyes still locked with Fancy’s. “She…. she’ll be okay.”
Fancy wasn’t sure who he was trying to convince.
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Okay, that was excellent, and am I right in thinking Fleur was sexually abused? As to the duel, that was fricking awesome. By the way I assume this is a typo?
“DBelay that! Everypony back to the castle!”
Or does dbelay have some meaning I'm not aware of?
5069984
Fleur more or less just told Fine in his face that she was abused, so yes.
Yes, that's most definitely a typo.
Wonderful, I now have at least one upvote regarding the duel. Let us see if the future dragon battles are as good.
5073196
It seems Knighty's doing some sort of maintenance/upgrade/whatever-the-hell-he-wants to the site, so certain things are buggy right now.
So, it seems to me that if Celestia were able to recover from such trauma as a dragon attack, then she must have Type B immortality. (Mortal but ageless, and able to heal from any almost any wound given enough time.)
This calls into question several things about Twilight's Inferno, such as why Twilight's wounds didn't heal once she got out of Tartarus. I mean, she was in the real world for years and not a thing happend.
Also, this has really been bothering me: if it's a foregone conclusion that the Dragons would "wipe out Equetria" as Celestia has said, then why haven't they done so already? Seriously, if there's no question that
the dragons would win a war with Equestria (a nation which we've seen, has a metric shit-ton of gems just laying around) then why haven't they!? There has to be a deterrent, some reason that they've not already tried this before,
and so far I just haven't seen any. Dragons can't seriously be that hard to kill. Surely there must be some strategies for dealing with them. Heck, we saw the wonderbolts shear off Spike's dorsal spines in Measures of Excess.
There's just no plausible reason as to why the dragons wouldn't have already attacked. And from where I stand, that's a big problem.
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It just so happens that you're bringing up an issue that the very next chapter is intended to tackle. There is a reason the dragons don't attack, and we'll hear it from the lips of an actual dragon.
Also, just because it happens in the show doesn't mean I'm going accept it. the show contradicts itself plenty of times. If Spike's scales were really of significant strength, the pegasi being able to slice through them must have been made up of diamond or something. All the indications of the show are that dragons are exceedingly powerful to the point of OP, otherwise they wouldn't be that big of a threat in the first place. I operate under the assumption that spikes scales are purely decorative and not of any real strength, because it's the only way I can justify that particular moment in the episode (which was clearly done purely for comedic effect anyway and thus not to be taken seriously).
As for Twilight/Twilight's Inferno, I operate under the premise that she was still a 'new' alicorn and her powers/anatomical differences hadn't properly formed yet. Aside from that, there's nothing to say an alicorn would recover from 'any' wound, it's just that none of Celestia's wounds are immediately life-threatening. Head cut off, knife to the heart? She's dead. You're right about the agelessness, though; my concept is that alicorns simply don't age once they reach maturity.
Your first argument might be "So why didn't Twilight have Celestia's apparent physical resilience?" Again, she's not a fully developed alicorn in TwI. Add to this the fact that she lost her magical center – her horn – and her innate magical healing would slow if not completely stop.
I should probably mention that I believe alicorns regrow their horns if there's something left to grow. Considering Twilight's horn wasn't cut off but ripped from her head with a bit of the skull, too, there's nothing left to regrow.
I mostly finished a key chapter of mine and am very happy to pick this story up again! I think you did great with the fight. I really enjoyed it and nothing rubbed me the wrong way. The end result fits what we learned in Fancy's talk with Celestia earlier and her worry about a war with dragons. This is getting good.
Fine and Fleur shall make a interesting forward recon team, can't wait to see how their abilities compliment each other.
Tough way to go for the dragon queen. My hate burned even stronger when Reddux ripped her head off. I generally love dragons, and to see him do this to his own kind..
I thought the duel was done pretty well. I'd imagine Reddux isn't very maneuverable, so his pure power had to be the deciding factor here. Celestia is very powerful with magic, but even Alicorns have their limitations. When you described how she was broken in that crater, it was just so pitiful. Made me hate Reddux even more if that's possible, lol. Onwards!
Oh damn. I'm getting Age of Wings and Steel flashbacks from this. Did it at least partially inspire you for this scene? Not only how Merystallistryx smote Celestia against the mountain in the final battle, but also how Merys' companion attacked the fort outside Canterlot and required no fewer than three quarters of Celestia's elite Firewings to slay her. You find a dragon such as Reddux headcanonically inerior to the Princess? Well, that's your prerogative; but then again, Reddux is your character. You can make him as powerful as you need to.
Thought it does take me back to Sunset and Twilight standing up to Reddux in Inferno. The fact that our Twilight managed to survive such an encounter, and then later when Trixie helped the other Twilight put him back in his place...
I'll chalk it up to Tartarus making him weaker. Here, he's at what I imagine to be full power, and if he's anything like Merys, I find it believable that he could go toe to toe with Celestia. Especially at night, when her power is not as great, considering that raising the sun effectively recharges her magic.
edit: oh snap, I just realised that this isn't strictly the same continuity as the TvE universe, even though your characters are the same in name and profession.
I suppose that Reddux and his cronies just left the city to burn for their own enjoyment. I don't see why he wouldn't finish the job here and now. They must have a reason.
So I thought I'd come back to this chapter and reread it because of a sudden realisation.
At the risk of spoilers, I present to you a very similar scene with just as much emotion behind it.
"Everyone that I have cared for has either died, or left me. So don't tell me that I would be safer with someone else, because the truth is I would just be more scared."
Even immortals suffer brushes with mortality.
I think this was a good lesson that this world's Celestia is not, in fact, a living god, but rather a very powerful pony with realistic limitations.
I thought the fight was fine, and I agree with the idea that Celestia is immortal but not impermeable, that was one reason I don't care too much for Superman and the like, who probably would survive being tossed into a black hole, but for giggles he can't stand being exposed to so much as a single grain of kryptonite.
As to the Fleur side of things, Let's pit dear old uncle Dragon slayer against Reddux, maybe back in the day he was a good guy, and despite Celestia's belief in destiny, was incredibly lucky and the fame went to his head, years later he's little better than a desktop warrior, who cares more about his image and standing than the individuals who work beneath him. I am no saint, but I felt my stomach twist when Fleur's abuse was brought to light.
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I had some important ideas for the background of Daring Deeds, the primary one being that he's actually a very capable soldier and leader who legitimately cares about the ponies under his command. Or, to put it another way: in private he's a monster, but on the job he's a decent fellow, and neither of those roles are an act. It was meant to make him a more complicated villain, but since I didn't invest a lot of "screentime" in him the only thing anyone ever saw or cared about was his abuse of Fleur. I don't particularly mind – he is meant to be reprehensible, after all – but it did disappoint me that nobody brought up the behavioral contradiction.