Homegrown Blades

by TheMessenger

Chapter 6

The crowd dispersed as the ponies returned to their jobs, leaving only a few selective pegasi behind with the dragon. They marched through the outpost together, with the dragon right in the center. Every so often, Rainbow Dash would glance over her shoulder to make sure he was still there.

"So, you two going to explain what's the deal with the dragon?" Fleetfoot asked, directing the question to Soarin and Rainbow. "He's not for Cloud Chaser and Cloud Kicker to play lesbian house with, I hope."

"Why, have a problem with house?" Cloud Kicker asked from behind.

"You know my answer. I'm a raging domatophobe," Fleetfoot shot back before returning to Soarin. "Well?"

"It's complicated," Soarin began slowly.

"It's really not. The kid you keep babying is our secret weapon against the crystal beasts."

Rainbow's declaration brought the entire company to a halt. The silence was finally broken when Fleetfloot blinked and said, "Seriously?"

"We don't know that for sure," Soarin jumped in. He glared at Rainbow. "I thought we agreed I'd handle this."

"Yeah, well, you started off with 'it's complicated'..." Rainbow emphasized with her hooves marking quotations in the air. "...so I lost all hope in your explanation."

"That's because it is more complicated than that," the Wonderbolt captain groaned. "Come on, keep moving," he ordered, and the squad continued their way. "Okay, you all remember that Rainbow was sent to Canterlot recently, right?"

A few vocal affirmations were made.

"Well, it turns out the R and D teams down in Canterlot managed to make some anti-crystal beast weapon. And no," Soarin added as mutterings began to rise among his subordinates, "the dragon wasn't it."

He stopped and waited for a small caravan of supplies pass by before continuing forward. Rainbow Dash started to speak, but Soarin swiftly cut her off with a swipe of his hoof through the air and a shake of his head. The group made it all the way into one of the many buildings in silence, this one distinguished only by the bunk beds and footlockers inside.

Soarin waited for everypony to settle onto their bunks before pointing at the little dragon. "He destroyed it."

Cloud Chaser rolled off her back and onto her belly. "Wait, destroyed what?"

"The weapon the eggheads designed to fight crystal beasts."

The cry of disbelief shook the entire barracks. Soarin pulled his hooves out of his ears and turned to Rainbow. "See? Think of what would've happened if you told them out there in the open."

Rainbow climbed back onto her feet. "Whatever," she mumbled.

"No way, this cutie?" Cloud Chaser pulled the dragon close, causing him to squeak. "You're kidding."

"Well, allegedly," Soarin added, rubbing the back of his head.

"Allegedly?" Rainbow walked right up to the stallion and glared. "What, you saying you don't believe me?"

"I'm saying you were only told that he destroyed their weapon, you didn't actually see it happen."

"Oh, so you think the ponies on our side are lying too, huh?"

"I'm saying it's possible and that the council's reasoning isn't completely wrong," Soarin responded, his voice rising in volume.

"I saw the crater, full of ash and melted scrap," growled Rainbow.

"So? Maybe their weapon just exploded. Ash and metal pieces don't necessarily mean dragon. Or maybe he did destroy it, but their weapon wasn't really all that great. Did you even see the thing intact?"

"There were pictures, and that weapon of theirs would've been awesome. Fifty feet tall with half a dozen cannons on each shoulder. Heck, try asking the guy who actually had to fight it!" Rainbow Dash jabbed a hoof at the dragon being crushed by Cloud Chaser before pushing past Soarin and exiting the building.

Soarin somberly marched to one of the unoccupied bunks and plopped himself onto it. "Well, that could've been handled better."

Fleetfloot sat herself on Soarin's pillow. "Hey, that's our Dash. You know everything'll be fine after she cools that hot-head of hers."

Soarin sighed. "Yeah."

"You really think the ponies in R and D would just lie about this?" Fleetfoot asked.

"Well, no, not really," Soarin admitted. "I mean, I thought the commanders made a lot of sense, but then they said they wanted more reports from SpARDA about both the anti-crystal beast weapon and our dragon. If they really thought the ponies back at Canterlot would try to cover all this up, why bother with the reports?" He sighed and shrugged.

"Um." The dragon raised his hand. "Is Rainbow going to be okay?"

"Huh?" Soarin turned over to face the dragon. "Yeah, don't worry. She'll be back after a quick flight, with a cooler head. Hm, say." Soarin sat up on his bunk. "You know, Rainbow was right about one thing. Did you, how did you..." Soarin sighed and fell back. "Never mind, we'll find out when the SpARTA reports come in, hopefully." He closed his eyes.

"Um, Captain Soarin, sir?"

The stallion glanced over. The dragon had been transferred to Cloud Kicker's top bunk. His little clawed feet swayed in the air. "Um, you said you liked my speech, back at the other building with the old ponies? I meant it, really. I want to help out, but, um." The dragon rubbed his hands against his slightly pudgy arms. "I don't know how I can help."

"Easy, you can keep me company," Cloud Kicker said as she pulled the dragon away from the precarious edge.

Soarin chuckled. "Don't worry, we'll find something productive. That fire breath of yours might come in handy. I noticed the campfire back there didn't give off a whole lot of smoke. Something small for now." Suddenly, he groaned and forced himself up.

"Something wrong, Captain?" Fleetfoot asked.

"Totally forgot to submit my performance review," the stallion grumbled as he removed himself from the bed and started toward the door. "Geez, what rank do I have to be to get excused from that. I'll be back soon." He turned to Fleetfoot. "Try to make sure those two don't overdo it," he said, gesturing to the two light lavender mares. "Maybe Rainbow's right, and that little guy's our ticket to victory."

Fleetfoot stared at the dragon, taking note of the smallness of his statue, the infantile chubbiness on his cheeks and belly, the utter apparent lack of muscles, the innocent gleam in his face that was barely diminished by those fiendish reptilian eyes. "That doesn't exactly fill me with hope, Cap."

Soarin simply shook his head and smiled as he pushed through the door and into the cold arctic air. He shivered and considered heading right back inside before forcing himself to take a step forward.

"Sorry."

He turned around. Rainbow stood behind him, leaning against the wall. She kept her eyes fixed to the floor. Seconds passed in silence, growing into minutes. Soarin found his voice and opened his mouth.

"I got angry and frustrated," Rainbow Dash said before Soarin could speak. "I mean, you knew I was mad with the higher-ups, and then you start agreeing with the in front of the entire squad?"

"I'm sorry, Rainbow. I didn't mean--"

"Let me finish," the mare interrupted. "It's just, I had to convince the director to give us the dragon. I couldn't come back here empty-hooved, with just some bad news about some destroyed asset. When the director kept saying I was wasting my time, and then the higher-ups started getting on my cause about wasting their time, and then after what you said, I keep asking myself, what if this really was a mistake?"

She slumped against the wall. "What if I've really been wasting my time with that kid, that I'm just deluding myself when I say he's what we need? Maybe the war council's right. Maybe you're right. I--"

Something fell next to Rainbow. She looked up to find Soarin sitting next to her, wincing as he rubbed his bruised flank. "Sorry. I was trying to act cool and, yeah. Sorry."

Rainbow lifted an eyebrow. "Cool?"

"Yeah, you know, the kind of stallion that sits down anywhere all cool like as he wraps his legs around mares that need comforting." Soarin reached toward Rainbow in a slow, exaggerated fashion, causing Rainbow to laugh and playfully push him away.

"Okay, forget I ever said I thought you could be right. You're a dork and a half."

"Yeah, well, yeah." Soarin rubbed the back of his head. "But hey, if you were actually listening to me, you'd know that all I said was that the council being right was possible. And heck, anything's possible. Sombra could find himself in a midlife crisis and retire to become a mariachi singer, that's possible." He grinned. "Maybe you're totally right, and the dragon ends up leading us straight to victory, that's possible. That'd be nice, but even if he isn't, I don't think you made a mistake. At the very least we got a volunteer." Soarin struck Rainbow's shoulder. "Don't worry, he'll be useful, somehow."

Rainbow Dash rolled her eyes. "Wish I had your optimism." She picked herself up and offered Soain a hoof. "So, what's the plan?" she asked as she pulled the stallion up.

"Well, right now I'm about to get chewed out for submitting my performance review so late," Soar said sullenly, causing Rainbow to shake her head.

"No, I meant about the war. What are we going to do next? What about the dragon?"

"We'll be heading back to the forward camp with reinforcements and supplies," Soarin explained. "If the crystal beasts really are getting closer, then it looks like Sombra's up to something. We'll have to prepare for an attack. As for the dragon, well, guess we'll be taking him with us. After all," Soarin said with a smile, "I'm not leaving behind my best flyer just so she can play babysitter."

"You really think we'll find something he can do there?"

"There'll be something." Soarin stretched. "Anyways, I've got to get going. Help the kid get his own bunk and space. See you at dinner."

*

The dragon watched groggily as the Wonderbolts checked and triple-checked the contents of their bags. They had all awakened to the song of a trumpet just in time to catch the sunrise before packing away. For the most part, the dragon stood to the side and watched the Wonderbolts work.

There was nothing more he wanted than to crawl back into bed, to dive onto the most comfortable cushion he had ever slept on and under the softest blanket he had felt. Instead, he forced himself up and stood in the frigid morning air with the Wonderbolts. The chilly wind sapped away at his desire to sleep, until finally he felt at least partially functional. He walked over to Soarin and Rainbow Dash, who were both huddled over a large duffel bag. Like the others, they were dressed in blue flight suits underneath a layer of light, sturdy plastic armor.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" he asked.

The two looked at each other before turning to the dragon. "You know, we don't leave for a little while," Soarin said. "You could always get some extra sleep, if you're still tired."

The dragon shook his head. "I'm fine. Come on, there's got to be something I can do."

"He could help Cloud Chaser with caravan preparations," Rainbow suggested.

"That's some pretty heavy lifting." Soarin tapped his chin. "Hey Spike." He lifted the duffel bag, almost as large as the dragon. "Could you take this over to Cloud Chaser back at the wagon? Tell her you're there to help."

"Sure." The dragon took the bag and went off. Rainbow and Soarin watched carefully as he ran with the bag raised above his head. They flinched as his foot stumbled into a shallow ditch, causing him to pitch forward and release the duffel bag. It's contents were flung out, spreading iron horseshoes and metal cuffs out into the snow.

"Okay, a little clumsy, but he can pull his weight around at least. There'll be plenty of that to do."

Rainbow nodded in agreement before returning to work. Her personal saddlebags sat beside her, empty save for a roll of bandages, a coil of thick wire, and a red flare. Nothing but the necessities. She turned to the bags beside hers, Soarin's bags, which were filled with small cookies, candies, and chip bags in addition to a first-aid kit and rope. "You packed enough?"

"Hey, I'm just being prepared." Soarin sniffed. "Don't come to me when you get hungry on the way there, because I'm not sharing."

Rainbow just shook her head. It wasn't too long before everypony had finished and had headed off to join the rest of the Wonderbolts at the line of wagons and carts. Several other ponies stood by, armored pegasus, unicorn, and earth pony guards with spears of varying quality, along with a few unicorn mages, experts of the magically art as designated by their stately robes. Rainbow Dash had even spotted the tight black suit of an earth pony special operative but lost sight after blinking.

The wagons themselves held a diversity of items. Some carried foods and other consumables while others held spare blades and armor. There were even some that carried Wonderbolt flight helmets, designed to protect a pegasus's face at high velocities and for quick and unhindered vocal communications. Most of the Wonderbolts here were carrying flight googles instead, not expecting to reach the painful speeds they'd have to meet during combat.

One particular cart caught Rainbow's attention. It and the others around it carried large silver cannons, giant lead balls, and barrels of temporarily inactive explosive powder. She frowned. As impressive as the artillery piece was, the small quantity gave her a feeling of unease, especially once she considered the number she had seen on the diagram for Project Fifty Three.

One of the wheels had suddenly sunk into the mush. Ponies around it rushed forward and tried to lift the cart out of snowy mire and on to solid ground. More ponies joined in as the wheel simply sunk further. A head of green spikes passed by her as its owner joined in to help. At last, the heavily burdened wagon was freed, and the dragon made his way to Rainbow's side as the rest of the squad joined around.

Soarin cleared his throat. "Alright--"

"Listen up, ponies!" screamed a nearby Wonderbolt as he stalked between the lines his own squad made. "I don't have to remind you how important this mission is! Do I?"

"No Captain, sir!" the entire team shouted.

"Well, this is a mission might be the most important mission of your entire damned life! There is no Princess Celestia here to protect you and no mommy to cry to! Do you lot want your mommies?"

"No Captain, sir!"

"Show off," Soarin muttered darkly. He turned to his own team. "Alright Wonderbolts, this is just a routine reinforcement of an at-risk position. You've all done this before, so don't worry. Just keep a cool head, make sure you've got an eye on your wingpony, and we'll have clear skies for days."

"Yes Captain, sir!"

The squad stared at the dragon standing at attention. He began to blush as a few members began to giggle at his excited outburst.

"Oh, uh, thank you, Spike." Soarin rubbed his neck. "So, if there aren't any questions..." He looked around.

The dragon raised his hand. "Where are we going?"

"Just one of the forward camps. It's pretty deep into the Frozen North, one of our last ones to be that far out there actually. It's, uh, so it might be a bit of danger."

"Oh." Spike nodded understandingly. "How are we going to get there? It sounds far. Are we walking."

"Well, the caravan and most of the guards are, along with Cloud Chaser since she's..." Soarin pursed his lips. "Injured? I mean, she can't fly, but it was only her--" Soarin cut himself off after catching the mare's glare. "Anyways, the rest of us are flying, and--"

The stallion smacked himself on the forehead. "Crap, I totally forgot about you. How are you getting there again?"

"He could ride in the caravan with me," Cloud Chaser suggested. "He doesn't look like he'd take too much room."

"I'd rather keep an eyes on him myself," Rainbow Dash said, stepping forward. "Council's decision," she added as Cloud Chaser opened her mouth. "I'd rather not lose him again."

"Well, how exactly are you going to do that?" asked Fleetfoot. "Walking's not your style, and you can't hover for prolonged periods with that wing of yours."

"Could you carry him?" Cloud Kicker asked, picking the dragon up and cradling him to demonstrate.

"Yeah, but for how long?" Soarin wondered. "This isn't the same as an extraction. For a trip this long, you'll risk dropping him."

"What about attaching him to your stomach?" suggested Fleetfoot, gesturing to Rainbow's lower barrel. "You know, just get some rope and tie him close to your--"

"No way, that'd look way too weird," Rainbow protested. "But what if I tied myself to one end of the rope and him to the other and just dangled--"

The entire squad answered in unison. "No."

"Could I ride on your back?"

Again, everypony turned to the dragon, who had spoken. "On my back?" Rainbow inquired.

"Yeah, like a backpack or something."

"That could work," Soarin said after a moment of thought. "There's still the problem of dropping him though."

"Her guard pads have those attachment loops. We could tie him to one just in case he does fall," said Fleetfoot.

"Good idea," Soarin said with a nod. He turned to Rainbow. "You okay with that."

"Yeah, I guess." Rainbow Dash shrugged. "Alright kid," she said to the dragon. "Climb on."

Carefully, the dragon reached up toward Rainbow's back. She winced. "Hey, watch the mane."

"Sorry, just, ah."

"Try bending down," Soarin instructed Rainbow. She did so, lowering herself to her knees, and the dragon slowly got onto her back.

"You on?" Rainbow asked.

"Yeah, I think--whoa!" The dragon yelped as the pegasus rose to her feet and made a grab to keep himself from fall."

"Watch the mane."

"Sorry." The dragon tried to shift himself into a better position. His heels nudged Rainbow's sides. A giggle escaped her.

"What's this, Rainbow Dash is ticklish?" Cloud Chaser teased as Cloud Kicker snickered.

"Oh shut it," Rainbow grumbled as she blushed. "Are we ready yet?"

"Hold on," Fleetfoot hooked the thick cord around the dragon's waist and gave it three solid tugs.

"Wow." The dragon looked around him nervously. "This is really high up."

"Just close your eyes if you're so scared of heights."

"I'm not afraid," the dragon asserted. "I just think it's very high."

Rainbow shook her head. "Then you're not going to enjoy the next hour."

"Package secure, Captain," Fleetfoot observed as she gave the cord one last tug.

"Okay then, Wonderbolts on me," Soarin ordered, slipping his goggles over his eyes and spreading his wings. The others extended theirs as well as they crouched down into position. Rainbow scowled as she felt the slight delay of her artificial left wing in comparison to her natural right one.

"Hold on kid," she instructed the dragon.

"To what?"

"Uh." Rainbow thought for a moment. "My neck." She gasped as the dragon's clawed hands clasped over her throat. "Not so tightly."

"Oh, sorry." He quickly loosened his hold.

"Not that loose either. Just, lean against me."

The dragon buried his cheek into Rainbow's cyan fur.

"Go!" shouted Soarin, and the Wonderbolts took off. The dragon squeezed his eyes shut as he felt Rainbow push off against the ground. The reciprocal force pressed through Rainbow's body and into the dragon, pushing his stomach up until he could feel its contents at the bottom end of his throat.

The dragon bit back the urge to vomit even as blood suddenly rushed from his head to the tips of his toes, leaving him light-headed and dizzy. His arms wouldn't respond, and he buried himself deeper into Rainbow's back to keep himself from falling away. The air grew even colder, leaving his entire body numb. Pressure seemed to build up in the dragon's lungs, making it harder and harder to breath. His eyes squeezed even tighter, the only action he found available as he grappled with his panic.

Something flared within, and gradually the dragon began to feel again. He took a few steady breaths and began to calm down. Blood slowly returned to his brains, his first thought being about how much he now hated flying.

"Hey kid, you alright?" Rainbow Dash called out. She felt the dragon shake his head against her and chuckled. "We're doing fine, just don't look down."

Look down? The dragon's eyes slowly opened. At first, all he saw was fur, light blue fur. He lifted his head slightly and discovered waves of rainbow hair flowing toward him. He turned to the sides and blinked. Those white things beside him, those were clouds, weren't they? They were so close he could touch them! The dragon's claws tingled in curiosity that was swiftly suppressed. Had the sky always been so blue, so clear? He took a deep breath. The air, it was so clean. It was exhilarating.

His eyes widened as he leaned just ever so slightly to peek below. A shiver ran through his body as he saw the bare white wasteland so far below, the few features such as hills and large stones no bigger than pebbles. Again, his claws tingled, this time with the strange desire to reach down as if to grab at and pick up the tiny objects that were so far away.

"Everything's so small!"

Rainbow laughed. "Yeah looks like it, doesn't it?"

The dragon had lifted his head, now sitting almost upright. "Wow. This is, wow." His body seemed to bubble with newfound energy.

Again, Rainbow laughed. "Hey kid, you holding on alright? I want to show you something."

"Show me waah!"

The pegasus dove toward the ground. Her grin became manic as she felt the wind cut the uncovered areas on her face. Suddenly, she changed her trajectory and sped upwards. Her path began to curve, ending in a complete circle before stabilizing back into formation, parallel to the ground.

"How was that kid?" Rainbow asked.

"That was awesome!" The dragon cheered. "Again!"

"Don't even think about it!" shouted Soarin angrily from behind. He rushed to Rainbow's side. "Fly responsibly or don't fly at all!"

"Sorry, Captain," Rainbow Dash apologized, but she kept her grin. To the dragon, she said, "Sorry, but Soarin's right. That probably wasn't the best idea."

"Aw," the dragon groaned. "Can we do that again some other time?"

"We'll see. For now just try to stay awake."

"Awake?" the dragon repeated.

"The next while's just cruising. Not a whole lot going on. A lot of us could do this in our sleep, not that that's good idea," she added. "Just, I don't know, keep yourself busy with something."

"Can we talk?"

Rainbow Dash hesitated. "I have to keep a eye out. Flying's not as easy as I make it out to be."

"Oh." She could feel the dragon deflate against her.

"We could play a game if you really want," Rainbow offered. "Ever heard of twenty questions?"

"No. How do you play?"

"Well, I think of something, and you have to guess what I'm thinking by asking twenty yes or no questions. Go ahead, try it."

"A yes no question? Okay, is it big?"

As the Wonderbolts flew on, the dragon and the pegasus continued their game, exchanging questions and answers. As they played, Rainbow Dash would scan the ground below, searching for signs of danger or of worthy notice. The dragon would glance over at the ground every now and then as well, and each time he was filled with an exhilarating charge.

Time passed. The sun slowly crawled along the sky. The dragon didn't seem to notice. Nor did Rainbow as the sight of the forward camp's shelters surprised her. She signaled to the rest of her squad before point out the ponies down below to the dragon.

"They're so small too!" the dragon had exclaimed excitedly. Rainbow gave the dragon a warning after seeing Soarin's signal and begun her descent. Again, the dragon found himself pressed against Rainbow's back with his eyes squeezed shut and his insides shuffling uncomfortably.

His teeth chattered together as they landed. He slipped off of Rainbow's back and fell face first into the snow.

"Hey, you alright kid?" Rainbow asked as she helped the dragon up. She removed the cord from his waist.

"Y-yeah, I think so." He took an unsteady step forward. "Why is the ground so wobbly?"

"You'll get used to it," Soarin said as he approached with the rest of the team. "So, everypony alright?"

The team answered with nods of affirmation. "Okay then. I'm going to talk to the ones in charge to see what plans they've got for us. You guys find the barracks they've set up for us and get settled in. Don't expect much. Understood?"

The team saluted. "Acknowledged."

With a nod, Soarin separated from the rest of the group toward the largest building. After a few questions, they found their own directions and followed them to a large canvas tent.

"Wait, we're staying in here?" the dragon asked. "Why isn't a building, like at the outpost?"

"Give it some time, and we'd might get some proper quarters, but right now there isn't any time," Fleetfoot explained. "This camp was for scouts mostly, so there wasn't any need for permanent structures." She lifted the tent's flap and led the way inside. "Don't worry, this will work fine."

A tarp covered the ground. A couple of cots were there, too few for everypony; Cloud Kicker rushed over to one and declared, "Dibs!"

"It doesn't work that way, you know that," Fleetfoot said with a roll of her eyes. "Those will probably be for the lightly injured."

"What, you mean Cloud Chaser gets a bed all to herself just because she lost a few feathers?" Cloud Kicker pouted. "Not fair."

"Yeah, you'd think you'd be used to that by now," Rainbow Dash said as she sat on the tarp. "So, what now?"

"Guess we wait for Soarin." Fleetfoot sat down as well. "With most of our stuff at the caravan, there's not--"

Shouts and the sounds of hammering hooves came from outside. Fleetfoot and Rainbow Dash shared a look before getting up to investigate. The dragon followed the two out and toward the growing crowd.

"What's going on?" Rainbow asked a nearby unicorn.

"It's one of the scouts, she--"

They were pushed aside by several ponies in stained white aprons and caps carrying a stretcher. The crowd separated, making a path for the medics to reach the pony collapsed on the floor. They carefully raised her from the ground giving Rainbow Dash and Fleetfoot an unpleasantly good look at the scout's wounds.

Her left hind leg had been crushed and twisted in more places than she had joints. The swelling left cracks and stretch lines in the skin, as if trying to pull it apart. The leg, purple and black from bruises, stood in horrific contrast to the natural ivory color on her other leg and most of the rest of her body. Massive red gashes extend from her shoulder all the way to her flank, where the incision was deepest. What her cutie mark was guesswork now, the area the image had once occupied now so red and raw, the muscles so obviously present with hints of white bone beneath.

Rainbow's eyes were unwilling drawn to the bent appendage hanging loosely from the mare's back. Feathers fell like dead leaves. The dragon tried to squeeze his way through. "What's going on?" he asked, standing on the very tips of his toes. Rainbow Dash stood firm and pushed him back down.

When the medics set her in the stretcher, the disfigured mare suddenly came to life, clawing at the air. "No time!" she screamed, pushing away the hooves of the medics. "No time, no time!"

"Hold on, we can help you," one of the medics assured. "Just relax and--"

"No!" she sobbed, grabbing the pony's apron and adding new stains. "There's no time."

"No time for what."

A agonizing screech drew everypony's attention to the edge of the camp facing Sombra's territory. A collective chill frozen everypony in place as a giant crystal claw fell forward and swept away several shelters. The dragon followed the gazes of the ponies around them toward the massive glass skull staring down at the camp with dead ruby red eyes. A large icicle extended out of the skull's forehead like a unicorn's horn, or rather, it was as if something had drilled the ice shard into the skull.

Lines and cracks appeared right below the silts beneath those red eyes, and part of the head separated and hung there unhinged, revealing rows and rows of jagged crystal spears aligning the cracks. From there it released another shriek along with a torrent of icy shrapnel. Several ponies suddenly collapsed screaming, their bodies covered in bloody cuts and crystal shards that only dug deeper as the ponies rolled in pain.

Fleetfoot recovered her senses first. "Move!" she shouted, shoving the closest ponies. The action jolted them out of their petrifaction. Ponies began to run, taking cover behind buildings and avoiding open areas.

Those ruby eyes seemed to glow at the sight of fleeing ponies. It took a step forward and crushed an entire portion of the camp, building, tents, ponies, and all. More cracks began to appear, extending upward and giving the skull a cruel, sadistic smirk. The claw closed into a fist and began to pound away at the afflicted area. The ground shook with each blow as the behemoth pounded the bodies and debris into dust, leaving behind a flat, pristine snow field before turned to the next part of the camp.

Ponies fled without purpose beyond escape. Weapons and armor were dropped abandoned. All that matter was getting away.

"Wait." Rainbow looked behind her as she ran with the crowd. "Where's the kid? Where's Spike?"

"Wasn't he behind you?" Fleetfoot asked.

"No, he, he must have, we left him behind!" Rainbow Dash turned around and prepared to take off. Something grabbed on to her leg, stopping her.

"What do you think you're doing?" Fleetfoot yelled. "We need to go!"

Rainbow Dash pulled free and flung herself into the air, taking flight. She flew over the crowd, scanning for a purple scale, a spiky green head, an odd bipedal figure. Another shriek from the crystal beast nearly knocked her down to the ground. She felt her courage freeze at how close she had gotten to the titan. Too close, far too close, if it wanted it could have picked her right out of the air. She turned around. She had to run, fly as far away as she could. She--

There! There was the dragon, less than a few steps away from the crystal beast, barely any further from the monster than she was. The dragon had fallen, pushed down by the crowd he just couldn't keep up with, and found himself surrounded by bleeding bodies. He couldn't look away from the monster, couldn't move even as every fiber of his body screamed danger. He tried to crawl away, but his hand slipped, unable to find traction in the snow and blood.

The crystal beast raised its claw above the dragon's position, blocking out the sun. The dragon watched as the claw descended toward him. He couldn't even close his eyes as the claw came closer and closer.

He felt a blow to his chest before the crystal beast actually touched him. Suddenly, he found himself in the wreckage of a building, covered in wooden splinters. The distance between him a and crystal giant had suddenly grown. Before he could consider how, a pained groan grabbed his attention.

"Rainbow Dash!" he cried, rushing to the pegasus's side.

Rainbow grabbed at her foreleg and winced. Something was damaged, maybe in shoulder. She could barely feel the limb. A dislocation perhaps? She tried to stretch her wings and frowned when the left one was unresponsive. She glanced over and saw why. The metal was twisted, and the hinges had broke.

"We have to get out of here," the dragon said, pointing at the crystal beast. "It's getting closer!"

Rainbow tried to get up, but the moment she pressed down on her foreleg, she collapsed. With her check on the floor, she felt the ground shake as Sombra's golem grew closer. Now, she couldn't even lift her hoof. The dragon tried to help her back onto her feet, but Rainbow simply fell back down.

"Spike, you need to get out of here," she said softly.

"What about you?" The dragon continued his attempts to lift the fallen Wonderbolt.

"Don't worry about me, just go!"

"Come on, we--"

"Stop it, there's nothing you can do to help!" Rainbow Dash tried to push away the dragon but couldn't even find the strength to do that. "Just run!"

"No, I want--"

A shadow fell over the two. Rainbow grabbed the dragon and pressed him close, hiding him away from the inevitable blow. She shut her eyes and waited.

And waited.

The crushing crystal claw never came. She slowly opened her eyes, the action delayed by the fear of finding the claw inches away. Instead, she found herself sitting on a rough purple carpet. Confused, she expanded her scan and found large trunks extending from her seat. She looked further and grew faint. There, standing right in front of her was the head of the crystal beast.

But there was something odd about it. She remembered it being massive, as big as mountains. How could she be so close to its head? Was it bending over? Rainbow looked over the side of her seat and gasped. No, the monster hadn't shrunk or bent over, she had somehow gotten higher, the ground below a good distance away.

More questions arose than answers. Her front was examined, as were her sides. Below her was the ground, several many feet away, while only sky was above her. The only direction left to check was behind her, but as a low rumble echoed from behind, she found herself hesitating. She took a deep breath. Whatever was behind her couldn't be worse than what was in front. Rainbow Dash turned.

A massive wall of purple stood before. Attached to the top was a giant purple snout. Smoke pillowed out of the nostrils, and she could see huge fangs from behind curling lips.

A purple carpet. Extending trunks. Purple wall. Purple snout. Smoke. Fangs. Just barely visible, the tip of a green spike.

"Spike?" Rainbow whispered. She tried to cover her ears as the purple colossal released a tremendous thundering roar. Her ears rung from the force, and as she shook with disorientation, the hand she now recognized grasped around her. Panic rose inside, but the grip stop just at the point of discomfort. Rainbow glanced up just in time to see the crystal beast strike the dragon's face.

The dragon caught the clawed fist with his cheek unflinchingly. The crystal beast pulled back and tried again. This time, the dragon caught the blow with his open mouth, trapping the crystal beast's fist between his jaws. The dragon bit down, his teeth grinding through the hard crystal with a loud snap.

The crystal beast stumbled back, shrieking as it grabbed at the remains of the ruined claw. The dragon reached forward with his free hand and stuck it into the open mouth of the skull. The dragon grabbed hold of the top jaw and pulled upward. The crystal monster shook violently as bits and pieces began to chip away until finally the top end of the skull was ripped free, separated from the rest of the body.

The dragon dropped the crystal and shattered it underfoot as he approached. Keeping the crystal beast's body upright, the dragon leaned forward and stuck his snout into the lower end of the skull. For a moment, Rainbow Dash watched in confusion and wondered what the dragon was doing until she saw the torrents of green flames spewing from his mouth. The entire crystal body seemed to glow green as slowly the crystal began to grow hot and warp.

At last, the glass shattered. The dragon lifted his head to the heavens and roared triumphantly. Rainbow Dash shivered at the sound. She felt the bangle the director had given her dig into her uninjured foreleg beneath her flight suit. Her eyes focused on the gray collar that seemed to have grown with the dragon to fit around his neck. Four gems, then say his name.

"Are you alright, Rainbow?"

The voice was so deep, so unlike the childish pitch she was used to, but she couldn't say it sounded completely unfamiliar. Rainbow Dash looked up. Those eyes, those reptilian eyes that had sent chills down her spine when they first met, they were the same, with the same passionate fire.

She let her foreleg grow limp. She grinned exhaustedly. "I'll be fine, kid. Just fine."