Carry the Fire

by Slywolf930

Fuel

Fuel

What fuels you?
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The cave was dark. Spike could hear an echoing whisper around him. Like a wisp of wind, it flew in every direction, evading his attempts to determine whose voice it was. It whispered nonsense, encouragement, and deception with each syllable it spoke. In his futile attempts to discern the meanings, he felt the cave growing steadily warmer.

“Who are you?” Spike asked the air around him.

A light in the cave illuminated the walls in a blazing glow. A being emerged from the light, bathing in the radiance. It was a dragon, purple with green spikes protruding from its back. Spike remembered it from a past dream, back when he had run rampage in Ponyville. It was so long ago, he almost couldn’t remember that he had once been so massive as to destroy the entire town. But now, he saw the reflection of himself, towering over his small stature.

“You’re me, aren’t you?” Spike asked.

The dragon’s eyes were filled with light, but Spike could feel the gaze the dragon held on him. After a few moments of silence, the dragon nodded slowly. The light in the cave dimmed down back to darkness, all except the dragon’s eyes. Spike felt uneasy in the large cave with such a large creature. Knowing it was himself did not ease his anxiety.

“A dragon does not quiver in the face of another dragon. We stand tall and proud,” The large dragon boomed in the echoing caverns.

Spike fell back from the force of the voice, and then once again by the power in the words. He could hear himself in this dragon, slightly, but it was still there. This was him, but it was a much more fearless version.

“I can feel it, you want my power, you want my wisdom. You want to be me,” The dragon said.

“I left my home and my friends so I can mature,” Spike responded. He could remember some of the things that his friends had told him that day long ago after his rampage. All of the trouble he’d caused.

“Foolish dragon, you have not truly left your friends or your home. They are still in your heart, and they are still the only obstacle you face,” The dragon said. He bent down to look Spike in the eyes.

Forget them

Those are the words that his eyes spoke. Those two words were given clear as day in this dragon’s eyes.

“Never,” Spike said, challenging this dragon’s look with his own.

“Then you are not a true dragon,” The words echoed in the caves as the dragon’s eyes darkened and faded into pitch black.

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“Wake up,” Spike heard someone whisper in his ear.

Spike opened his eyes to find Lis standing over him. She was holding one of her talons to her beak, ordering him to stay silent. Behind her, on the other side of the cell bars, was a shadowy figure. There was barely enough light to see, but Spike could tell the shadow was not the same shape as a Diamond Dog.

“Get up, we have to move,” Cilia whispered, her claws slicing through the metal bars like butter. Before they fell to the floor, she grabbed them with her teeth and set them down softly.

“If you want to take her with you, she’s your responsibility,” Cilia said, noticing how Lis had backed behind Spike.

Spike gave Lis a reassuring nod before joining Cilia outside of the cells. She released Strife just as flawlessly from his own cell. They sliced off the muzzles that blocked their fire. Together, the four of them walked quietly down the cave system, Lis bringing up the rear and Cilia leading the way. Most of the guards were sleeping, unaware of the four escapees as they traveled silently. Others weren’t at their posts, taking an early nap as well.

“This way,” Cilia whispered just enough for the three of them to hear her.

Cilia and Strife ducked past one of the large openings in the rocks. Spike felt a tug on his tail and, startled, turned to see the dilemma. Lis was pointing her claw to a side passage of tunnel just to the left of them. From it, she could see the shape of an approaching figure.

Spike froze just before entering the beam of light that would have given him away. The figure was lazily moving forward and didn’t notice the darker than normal figures hiding in the clusters of rock. Spike nodded his thanks to Lis before joining Cilia and Strife on the other side.

Spike turned back to watch for any other guards that were really bad at their job, but Lis had just slipped through as well.

“Almost there,” Cilia said. Spike couldn’t help but notice that she had a disappointed tone.

The group continued around another corner and saw the minecart track was the only thing separating them from the cave entrance. At the cave entrance were two guard dogs, leaned up against the wall sound asleep.

“I’ll catch up later. There’s something I gotta do first,” Cilia said, dashing away from them and down the minecart track.

Cilia’s claws scraped against the metal and the guard dogs picked up on the noise. They rushed after her, leaving the cave entrance open.

“Is she going to be okay?” Lis asked.

“Cilia?” Strife asked, before giving her a look that explained just how okay she would be. “I feel sorry for the mutts.”

“Let’s go then,” Spike said, grateful that they could get out of the cave after so long.

The three of them rushed across the tracks, a final sprint towards freedom. When they reached the entrance, they were surprised to see two spears pointed in their direction. Diamond Dogs poked their heads out from the entrance and threatened to make them into kebabs.

“I got this,” Strife said, pushing Lis back with his claws.

Spike was going to protest, but Lis held onto his arm while Strife stepped forward to challenge the dogs. They charged with their spears, and Strife let out a breath of fire into their faces. They grabbed their heads, but the helmets protected most of their hair.

“See, these mutts don’t know who they’re dealing with,” Strife said, laughing at his easily defeated opponents.

“Who you call mutt?” A Diamond Dog asked from behind them.

Spike pulled Lis out of the way of an approaching spear. Strife sent another blast of fire to the new four dogs that came from behind. Two of them pulled up a large metal sheet and deflected Strife’s fire.

Spike was tempted to run through the open cave and reach safety, but the dogs would catch up quickly if they didn’t deal with them. Instead, he closed his eyes to picture the dragon he saw earlier. He could feel the warmth inside of him. The fire was still burning, and it would burn for as long as he wanted it to.

So long as he had the fuel to keep it going, he won’t be lost in the darkness. He won’t succumb to the dangers he’ll face. Instead, the fire he carried will fuel him. It will be his strength. It will protect those he doesn’t want to see hurt.

Spike remembered the moment Lis was struck. He remembered the times that his friends were in danger. Back then he wanted to do something, anything to help them. He was too small back then, and even now he was nowhere near the size he needed to be if he wanted to show off his strength. But this isn’t about showing off strength. It’s about being able to help those who need help.

Spike opened his eyes to the approaching Diamond Dogs. Strife was looking worried when one of them pulled out a crossbow, pointed at him. Two of them still carried the sheet of metal, and one of the others had the spear. Spike could feel the fire from inside him bubbling.

Spike shrugged off Lis’ grasp and stepped in front of Strife. He opened his mouth, releasing the green flames that were dying to escape. The Diamond Dogs raised their metal sheeting, but the flames didn’t stop. They spread out to the edges of the cave, continuing down the sides and scorching the dogs from behind. The cave became a funnel of fire as Spike continued to let out his flames.

When Spike finally stopped, there were no more screams, and the caves were a blinding light. Spike stared into the inferno he’d created until it dissipated into darkness. Inside, he was calm. Spike turned back to his friends, who were in bewilderment.

“That was awesome,” Strife said, giving him a big pat on the back.

“Cool,” Lis said, amazed at the spectacle.

“Didn’t know you had it in you,” Strife said.

“Neither did I,” Spike joked, before walking past them and into the harsh light of day. The wind hit Spike in the face like a spray of happiness.

Lis held onto Spike as the tears flowed out of her eyes. The three of them stood there, breathing in the scents of the world and bathing in the joy they felt from it.

After a few minutes to enjoy the scenery, they heard steps echoing from the cave.

Behind them, the cave was in a silent chaos. Not a word reached the surface, yet one dragon did. Cilia walked out of the chaos to the rest of the group.

“Well what are you all waiting for? Let’s get going,” Cilia said, her claws leaving red marks in the grass as she led the way into the sunrise. Spike, with the fire still in his heart, followed her. Like a light to pursue the darkness, he continued on.

You do not fuel the fire inside of you. The fire will fuel you.

Author's Note:

Author’s Notes:
I didn’t have a chapter name for this, because it originally was part of Chapter 4. I chose a name at random.
Also, I found this randomly amongst my other chapters. I'm not sure if I was finished or not, but here it is.
Thanks for Reading!

Comments

[OmniFox]

A picture of Lis?