• Published 4th Jan 2015
  • 1,522 Views, 81 Comments

Trial by Kinship - Metool Bard



Poachers hunting dragons? Not if Spike has anything to say about it! That is, if he can get past some awkwardness...

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Friendly Fire

The crab beast made its first move, swiping at the posse with its large claw. The attack caused everyone to scatter in all directions, effectively surrounding the creature. The only one who didn't move was Needles. She was rooted to the spot by her panic.

"Ah-ha! Not so tough now, are you?!" Steel boasted. "Now, taste our wrath!"

He then took one of his arrows and set it alight. Flint rolled his eyes.

"Here we go again," he muttered.

Steel pouted. "Oh, quit being such a pessimist, Flint. I can easily take this guy out!" he proclaimed. He proceeded to fiddle with his bow, trying desperately to make sure it didn't catch fire. While he struggled, the crab placed its claw to its shielded faceplate, rubbing it and generating a great amount of static electricity. Azure sparks crackled from its armor at it turned to face Toro and Trigger.

"Wrong move, ese!" Toro barked. "Señor Trigger, let him have it!"

Trigger didn't need to be told twice. He breathed his flame into the powder chamber of Toro's cannon, and it fired. The blast hit the creature's faceplate, causing it to stumble back. Once it did so, it discharged the electricity it was building up into one large blast, which was hurtling right towards Flint and Steel.

"Steel, c'mon! Forget the stupid arrow!" Flint hollered, flying out of the way.

"Hang on, Flint! Just, give me a minute!" Steel shouted back, still fitting the arrow to his bow. "Ah-ha! Got it! Alright y— yikes!"

Steel tried to swerve out of the way, but he was a second too slow. The blast grazed his wounded claw, sending electric jolts through the arrow still embedded within it. Steel writhed about in midair as electricity shot through his entire body. Flint smacked his forehead.

"I tried to warn you," he sighed.

The crab creature flipped itself upright and let out a garbled screech, swiping its claw again. It then leapt straight up into the air, crashing down right in front of Trigger and Toro. The resulting tremor created by its landing caused Toro the stumble over, which in turn made Trigger fall from his perch. While the two of them struggled to get their bearings, the crab creature lifted up its faceplate, as if it were attempting to smash it into them. Just as it was about to bring the faceplate down, it tripped to the side. Toro looked over at the beast, noticing that Spike had singed the creature's leg with his own flame.

"That was too close," Toro panted. He then gave Spike a nod. "Muchas gracias, Señor Spike."

"Don't thank me yet!" Spike hollered back. "That thing's not going down yet!"

Sure enough, the crab leapt up, did a complete one-eighty in midair, and landed in front of Spike with a resounding thud. With an agitated screech, it lifted its faceplate again.

"One good turn deserves another, amigo!" Toro proclaimed, aiming his cannon. "Señor Trigger!"

Trigger wrung his claws nervously. "Um, do I have to?"

Before Toro could answer, the faceplate came down with a loud crunch. Luckily, Spike was scooped up by Big Macintosh and Braeburn at the last minute.

"Phew! Thanks for the save, guys!" said Spike.

"Thank us when this is over, Spike!" Braeburn responded. "C'mon, Big Mac! Let's show this varmint a real show!"

"Eeyup!" Big Macintosh replied.

The two ponies charged for the crab creature, bobbing and weaving through its legs as if they were barrels at a rodeo. Fuming, the crab hopped around, trying to corner the stallions. While it was distracted, Flint saw an opening.

"Heh! Now you're mine!" he bellowed. He went into a sharp dive, letting loose a steady stream of black flame towards the crab's backside. He was just in range when a blurred shadow came out of nowhere and blindsided him, forcing him into a tumble. He got up and shook his head violently.

"Alright, who's the wise guy?" he growled, rubbing his cheek. "I knew I couldn't trust—"

He stopped mid-sentence as he saw what hit him. Two gigantic scorpions stood over, snapping their claws and drawing back their tails. Toro noticed this and snorted.

"Deathstalkers," he growled. "They must've heard the commotion and came running."

"Um, they weren't the only ones," said Steel with a swallow. "Look."

The posse took a moment to check their surroundings. In the midst of their battle, several beasts of various shapes and sizes came out of the woodwork and completely surrounded them. Three black wyverns descended from above, while large creatures with the bodies of bears and the wings and heads of owls lumbered from behind the rocks, blocking every exit. To top everything off, the antlion had finally managed to venture out of its nest, its mandibles snapping as it let out a roar.

"This doesn't look good, fellas," said Braeburn, obscuring his eyes with his hat.

"Nope," Big Macintosh concurred.

"Any bright ideas, Mr. Noble Dragon?" asked Trigger.

Spike knitted his brow, racking his brain for answers and the creatures got closer and closer. Needles's chest heaved up and down, the glow within it becoming brighter by the second.

"Um, not to rush you or anything, but some of these guys look pretty hungry, Mr. Spike," Steel whimpered.

Those words caused a lightbulb to go off in Spike's brain. "Hungry? Wait, that's it! Braeburn, Needles said that antlion thing would eat just about anything, right?"

Braeburn blinked in confusion, but then gave Spike a wide smile. "Ten steps ahead of ya, buddy!"

He reached into his saddlebags, pulled out an apple pie, and threw it directly at the antlion's mouth. The antlion caught the pie in its jaws and munched it down, pie tin and all. After a short paused, it let out a satisfied rasp and clicked its mandibles.

"Looks like the critter likes it," Braeburn chuckled, taking out another pie. "Don't worry, y'all! There's more than enough to go aro— oof!"

He was interrupted by the crab creature, which knocked him over with one swipe of his claw. It then scuttled in closer, building up static in its faceplate once again. The other creatures closed in from all directions, each of them ready to attack.

"So much for your brilliant plan," Trigger scoffed.

"I don't see you offering any suggestions, wise guy," Flint snarled.

Needles's claws clenched into fists. Amber smoke billowed from her nostrils, and the heat in her chest was slowly becoming unbearable. The crab saw the smoke and turned towards her, ready to unleash its electric blast. Meanwhile, a deathstakler skittered over to the wounded Braeburn, drawing back its stinger and poising to strike.

Just then, a cloud of what appeared to be dust enveloped the deathstalker. When the dust died down, the deathstalker was completely petrified. Everyone looked up to see the antlion towering over them, letting out a loud rasp. It snarled and spat at the other creatures, snapping its mandibles at anyone who got too close to the posse. Trigger's jaw dropped.

"I-I don't believe it," he stated.

Braeburn sniggered weakly as Big Macintosh helped him to his feet. "That right there is the power of Appleloosa's apple pie. Ain't that right, Big Mac?"

"Eeyup," Big Macintosh said with a nod.

"Great, whatever," said Flint, rolling his eyes. "Now let's bail on these guys while they're—"

He was cut off by the crab discharging its electricity. The blast hit the antlion's body, causing it to roar in pain. Steel frowned.

"Flint, this poor creature's outnumbered," he said. "We can't just leave it here."

Flint shot Steel an annoyed look. "Oh, for crying out loud, Steel! Are you really suggesting we risk our hides for this stupid thing?!"

"Why not? It did the same for us."

"Just a few seconds ago, it was planning to eat us!"

"Well, it doesn't want to do that now, does it?"

"I'm actually with Mr. Flint here. We should probably leave," said Trigger, giving Spike a sideways glance. "Unless, of course, our noble hero wants to save this dumb animal."

"Why must you continue to put all this pressure on Mr. Spike?" Steel asked, folding his arms. "It's highly uncalled for."

"Oh, so now this is my fault?!"

"I never said that! I'm just saying—"

"Is this really the time to argue?" Toro growled. "I don't care what we do as long as we do it, and do it now!"

"Right, let's get going then!" said Flint.

"No, we have to stay and help!" Steel insisted. "Right, Mr. Spike?"

Spike was completely at a loss for an answer. "Uh, maybe?" he offered weakly.

"What kind of weak answer is that?!" Trigger chided. "And here I thought you were supposed to be noble. Ehheh... Ehheh..."

"Will you lay off?!" Braeburn yelled. "This ain't exactly an easy decision here!"

"Oh, so now the ponies are gonna preach to us," said Flint, rolling his eyes. "Terrific."

"Hey, I saw that!" Braeburn shouted.

As the posse continued to argue amongst themselves, the antlion did its best to fend off the other monsters. Big Macintosh and Needles were the only ones who remained silent. Needles's mind raced furiously, her heart began to pound, and the temperature within her chest skyrocketed.

What do I do? Why can't I figure out what to do? she thought. I-I can't take this anymore! I-it's too much! I-I just—

She tried to take in a deep breath to calm her nerves. Once her lungs reached maximum capacity, however, something inside her exploded. She let loose a stream of amber flame, catching the attention of the posse and the beasts. The flame spiraled up into the sky, growing longer and longer the more Needles exhaled. She tried to stop herself, but found that her muscles would not respond. The flame took shape, forming what appeared to be a large dragon with a slender snakelike body, a billowing mane, and twirly whiskers. Once the fiery dragon was fully formed, Needles doubled over and coughed, her lungs burning for oxygen. When she recovered, she could only stare at the thing in disbelief.

The fiery dragon let out a roar that shook the skies and dove down towards the monsters. It swooped and swerved around them, igniting anything it touched. Roars and rasps of pain echoed throughout the canyon. The crab was the only monster with enough stamina to fight back, but even this was a lost cause. With one pass, the dragon ripped off the crab's claw. With another, it shattered the faceplate into a million shards. The crab sputtered and spat, shooting bubbles of electricity through its now-exposed maw. Every shot missed its mark, although a few managed to slam into the antlion. In a matter of minutes, the creatures that were still conscious fled in all directions.

"Well, that's one way to do it, I guess," said Flint, rubbing his head.

"Yeah. Nice goin', Needles," said Braeburn. "You really saved our hides th—"

He was cut off by the fiery dragon flying over him, burning the tip of his hat. Needles gasped in horror.

"Wait, no!" she shrieked. "That's enough! Don't hurt them!"

But the dragon paid her no heed. It looped around again, aiming for the posse a second time.

"Needles, this isn't funny!" Flint roared. "Call that thing off!"

"I-I don't know how!" Needles cried, gripping her head and hyperventilating.

The fiery dragon roared and opened its claws. Suddenly, large fireballs rained from the sky. The posse scrambled this way and that, trying to avoid getting hit. One stray projectile struck the entrance to the antlion's nest, causing it to cave in. Needles curled up into a little ball and rocked back and forth.

"Please stop. Please stop," she muttered. "I-I don't want this. You're hurtin' them. Dang it, what do I have to do to turn you off?!"

As if in response to Needles's outburst, the fiery dragon roared in anger and continued its rampage. The flames that made up its body burned with the intensity of the sun itself, and even the canyon itself became charred black. Spike's heart and mind raced in unison as he held onto Big Macintosh's harness for dear life.

"Guys, we have to get to Needles!" he yelled. "She needs our help!"

Big Macintosh and Braeburn nodded, running towards Needles at full gallop. Toro dove underground and carried Trigger with him. Flint tried to fly elsewhere, but Steel grabbed him by the hand and dragged him across the sky. When Needles noticed that everyone was heading towards her, she shook her head.

"No! Stay back!" she wailed. "D-don't come any closer! I don't wanna hurt any of you!"

Her cries fell on deaf ears. Soon enough, everyone huddled around her.

"Okay. Now what?" inquired Flint.

Spike took a few short breaths before responding. "Okay, first thing first. Needles, you gotta pull yourself together."

"I-I can't!" Needles bawled. "I-I don't know what to do! I don't know what's goin' on! I don't know anything!"

Spike shrugged. "I don't know anything about this, either. That hasn't stopped me. And it shouldn't stop you, either."

"B-but—"

"No buts. Noble dragons don't give up, no matter what."

Needles paused and nodded. She then scrunched her eyes tightly and concentrated, trying to think of a spell to get rid of the fiery dragon that approached her. Sweat poured down her brow as she racked her brain. Just as the creature was upon her, a hoarse rasp echoed in her ears.

"What the—?"

She opened her eyes to see the antlion protecting the posse. Although heavily wounded, it stood its ground, clicking its mandibles and coughing. The fiery dragon was not deterred. With one swift slash, it flipped the antlion over onto its back. The beast wheezed in agony. Right then and there, Needles snapped.

"Aaaaaaaaaah~!"

She let out a shrill, harrowing wail that was accompanied by the dragon's roar. Once her cry stopped, exhaustion overtook her. As she slowly collapsed to the ground, the fiery dragon dissipated. All that was left of it was a small wisp of flame with tiny little eyes. The wisp yawned and floated down to Needles, slipping into her mouth. All was still for a time. Spike was the first to move as he reached out a claw to Needles.

"Hey, are you alri— ow!"

Before he could touch her, his claw was slapped away by Trigger.

"Back off!" Trigger snarled. His demeanor suddenly softened as he approached Needles. "Needles, my dear. It's going to be fine."

He leaned in close and pursed his lips. He was inches away from Needles's cheek when her eyes snapped open. In one swift motion, she sent Trigger flying with a forceful slap. She got up and turned savagely towards him, her cheeks flushed red.

"What is the matter with you?!" she screamed. "Here I am, feelin' the most vulnerable I've ever felt in my entire life, and you think that's an excuse to kiss me?!"

"I-I didn't mean anything by it!" Trigger protested. "I-I wanted you to feel better. Ehheh..."

"Well, it didn't make me feel better, you creep!" Needles snapped. "Nothin' you do ever makes me feel better! You know why? 'Cause you never use your freakin' brain!"

"Now come on, Needles. Y-you don't truly mean that, do you?" Trigger whimpered.

Needles pinched the bridge of her nose. "Trigger, I'm gonna put this as plainly as I can. Everythin' that you do annoys me, and I wish it didn't. Because I know why you do it. You want me to be happy. I'm your girl, and you would move mountains just to see me smile. Well, that's all fine and dandy. But guess what? Actin' like a lech and worshipin' the ground I walk on does not, and I'm gonna repeat that, not make me happy!"

Trigger blanched. "B-b-b-but—"

"No! No more excuses, Trigger!" Needles snapped. "I don't wanna hear any apologies or anythin' like that! I just want you to think! What about that is so hard?!"

"Now, that's simply uncalled for! I think!"

"Yeah, about me! Nonstop!"

"I, thought girls liked that. Ehheh... Ehheh..."

Needles's eye twitched. "Y'know what? I'm done. I've got more important things to worry about than a nuisance like you."

"W-well, I can help!" said Trigger, not backing down. "Don't you want me to—?"

"Trigger, a giant dragon made out of fire just shot out of me and nearly incinerated everyone! I'm even upset that it hurt that there antlion! I don't know why I'm upset about that, but I am! Can you help me figure that out?! Huh?! Can ya?!"

Trigger hemmed and hawed, struggling for a response. "Well, uh..."

"That's what I thought," Needles scoffed. "Now, I'm gonna go get myself sorted. If any of you try to follow, I'll make you regret it."

With that, she stomped off. Once she was gone, Trigger shot a glare at Spike.

"This is all your fault," he hissed.

"What? What did I do?" Spike asked.

"Don't give me that!" Trigger snarled. "You just had to waltz in here with your fancy-schmacy Dragon Code and make me look bad in front of Needles! You're trying to take her away from me!"

"Dude, no! J-just no!" said Spike. "That's not it at all! I'm just trying to—"

"What? Be a great and noble dragon? What rubbish!" Trigger spat, advancing towards Spike. "You just want Needles all for yourself! Well, you're not getting her!"

"Dude, I don't want her!" Spike cried.

Trigger snorted. "Oh, so she's not good enough for you, huh?!"

"N-no! Don't go putting words in my mouth!" said Spike. "I like Needles. She's one of the only dragons I've ever met who isn't a total jerk. She's nice, she's funny, and she cares about other people. And you know what? She's cute, too. There, I said it."

"Ah-ha! I knew it!" Trigger barked. "Now you'll pay!"

With that, he pounced for Spike and wrestled him to the ground. The two of them rolled and tumbled back and forth. Spike tried to pry Trigger off of him, but Trigger held him fast.

"Alright, that's enough," said Braeburn. He and Toro separated Spike and Trigger. While Spike paused to catch his breath, Trigger squirmed in Toro's grip.

"Let me at him!" Trigger yelled. "He admitted it! He admitted that he likes Needles!"

"Yeah. I like her," said Spike, giving Trigger a dirty look. "But what I was going to say before you tackled me is that I don't see her the way you do. Needles is a good friend to me; nothing more, nothing less."

"You liar!" Trigger squawked. "You can't trick me! You've been making me look bad since you first slithered into the Dragon Dance Festival!"

"And whose fault is that?" asked Toro, raising an eyebrow. "Señor Spike hasn't done anything wrong. You're just jealous of him."

Trigger huffed. "Oh, that's just outrageous. I'm not jealous of this runt."

"Um, you kinda are," said Steel meekly. "I mean, that's just the vibe I've been getting."

Spike sighed. "Look, man. Maybe Needles is right about you; maybe she's just not thinking straight. All l know is that she's going through some tough times right now, and a smooch isn't gonna cheer her up. I'm gonna go talk to her, as a friend."

"Oh, no you don't!" Trigger roared. "She needs me!"

"After she just chewed you out like she did, I highly doubt that," said Spike frankly.

"Oh, and I suppose you know how to help her."

"No, not really. I'll be honest, I don't know anything about this Dragon Magi stuff. But at least I'm gonna try."

"Not on my watch, buster! I won't have her falling for you!"

"Dude, what is your deal?! I already told you; I don't have a crush on Needles!"

"Liar!"

"I'm not, honest! There's even a girl back home that I really like!"

"Give me a break! You just said you don't get along with other dragons! Who is this girl, a pony?!"

Spike blushed. "Um, would you believe me if I said, yes?"

Trigger blinked, and then snickered. "Ehheh... Ehheh... You really expect me to buy that, don't you?"

"Well, at least I actually listen to Rarity! And she's not all I think about, either!"

"Oh, yes! Tell me more about this imaginary girlfriend of yours, o mighty noble dragon!"

"Oh, you did not just insult Rarity!"

"Enough."

Spike and Trigger stopped quarreling and turned towards a stern-looking Big Macintosh.

"This ain't gettin' us anywhere," he said firmly. "You two need to iron out this here problem, y'hear me?"

"But, there's still Needles," said Trigger. "We can't just leave her."

"We ain't," said Big Macintosh. "I'm gonna go talk to her."

The Dragoons all did a double take.

"Wait, you?!" Flint asked. "What makes you think you'll be able to help her, pony?"

Big Macintosh shrugged his shoulders. "I'm at least gonna try, instead of arguin' with everyone else."

"Yeah, that's a good point," said Spike sheepishly. "Alright, big guy. Go get 'em."

"Eeyup."

With that, Big Macintosh trotted off. Trigger scratched his head as Toro set him down.

"You sure you're okay with this?" he asked.

"Trust me, Big Macintosh has a way with words," said Spike. He then sighed and turned to Trigger. "Now then, what's say you and I have a bit of a chat, huh? I think you could use a lesson or two on how to be a noble dragon."

Before Trigger could protest, Spike waddled over, grabbed him by the tail, and dragged him off. Toro shook his head and sighed.

"I'd better keep an eye on those two," he said. "I may need your help, Señor Braeburn. That is, if you think Señor Macintosh will be okay."

"Oh, he'll be fine," said Braeburn. "It's like Spike said. He has a way with words."

With that, Toro and Braeburn went after Spike and Trigger. Steel stroked his chin in thought.

"Hey, Flint?"

Flint sighed. "What?"

"How come it's the prepubescent dragons that are involved in this romantic drama and not us?"

Flint deadpanned. "Because shut up. Now let's just bail before—"

"Uh uh uh! We're not abandoning the team!" Steel scolded.

"And why not?"

"Because we're supposed to be noble dragons, that's why not. Flint, for once in your life, just be reasonable, okay? If not for the others, then at least for me."

Flint pinched the bridge of his nose. "Alright, fine. But only because I don't wanna miss out on my gem payment when all this is done. Also, you're a suck-up."

"Well, at least I'm not a jerk," Steel retorted, picking at his wounded claw. Unbeknownst to the two dragons, several hungry eyes were watching them from the shadows...