23-Returned Favors
Chapter 23
Three weeks earlier...
Dawn Flame, a member of the Royal Guard, was utterly bewildered.
It was a good word, bewildered. It sounded far more exciting than confused, and wasn’t as time-sensitive as startled.
As for his reason of being bewildered, the Pendragon, of all ponies, had wanted to speak to him.
As with anypony that had been called in to speak with their boss, the first thing that had gone through his mind was nervousness, quickly followed by questions of doubt. Was he getting fired? Was he going to be put on a dangerous mission?
All of the answers that his mind gave him did little to relax him.
Before long, he was standing in front of the large doors of the Pendragon’s Council room, which had doubled as his office while he was in Canterlot.
Taking a moment to gather his nerves and thoughts alike, he knocked solidly on the door.
“Come in,” he heard a voice say.
Gulping, Dawn did just that. He marched to the center of the room, surrounded by the massive horseshoe shaped table and stood at attention. Saluting, he quickly barked, “Sir, Dawn Flame reporting, sir!”
The Pendragon simply looked up from a few papers that sat in front of him before muttering. “At ease.”
Dawn relaxed. Barely.
Alan rummaged through a few of the dossiers, his hoof sliding paper this way and that, before pushing one towards the pegasus guard. Opening the folder, and awkwardly flipping through a few pages, he finally found a single page, and tapped at a line of ink. “Is this true?” he asked.
Dawn’s eyebrows furrowed as he read the information. “Yes, sir, that is my daughter, but I fail to see the significance of that.”
Alan looked up at him. “Soldier, how long has it been since you’ve been home?”
Two years, eight months, and 29 days, his mind answered for him, his mental calendar had been agonizingly counting the hours from when he had had that stupid argument.
“Three years, sir,” he said, rounding up.
Alan looked at him for a long time.
Finally the white unicorn stood up. “Sergeant Flame, I have a mission of the utmost importance for you.”
Dawn snapped back to attention. “Sir!”
Alan paced around the table as he spoke. “After the siege, I had taken a mare and her son into my care. The colt’s father was incredibly brave and honorable, but sadly, died in battle. While I’m leading the armies to chase down the invaders come spring, I want you to keep them safe. Am I understood?”
“Sir, yes sir!”
“Good. You’ll find Miss Daisy Chain and her son Pipsqueak at the Ponyville Library.”
Dawn blinked. “P-Ponyville?”
Alan smirked. “That won’t be a problem, will it, Sergeant?”
Dawn hesitated for a second. “No, sir.”
<<<|Ω|>>>
Present day...
“And that, class,” Cheerilee said with a smile, “is how pegasi invented helium balloons.”
Every foal there looked liked they wanted to vomit.
“Now class, for our next lesson, we actually have a surprise guest coming in,” Cheerilee announced, walking over to the classroom door. “Since a lot of your brothers, sisters, moms, and dads have gone into the army, I’m sure you all have a lot of questions about what’s going on there, so today, we have one of Princess Celestia’s royal guards coming in to answer your questions. So please, everypony, let’s welcome our guest.”
The door opened, and in stepped Dawn Flame. His eyes scanned the classroom quickly before he stood up in front of the class. “Thank you, Miss Cheerilee,” he said, before turning to the foals. “Good Morning, class, my name is Sergeant Dawn Flame, and I will gladly answer any questions you have.”
He noticed one filly in particular gasp.
A colt raised his hoof. “Mr. Sergeant, how hard is it being a soldier?”
“Very hard,” Dawn answered, “A lot of the time you can’t be where you want to be, the training is difficult, and war is a very scary thing. But if it means I can keep you safe, then it’s worth it.” As he spoke he stood right next to Cheerilee’s desk, his eyes looking straight ahead, moving every now and then to look at the foal asking the questions, or to glance at the filly in the corner.
She didn’t look that happy.
Another foal raised her hoof. “What kind of food do you eat in the army?”
Dawn kept answering questions as they came, and only after a few minutes the class seemed to run out of steam. His eyes kept darting to that one filly, who had hidden herself behind a propped up book.
“What’s the scariest thing you’ve done?” another foal asked.
“The scariest?” Dawn asked. “Well...honestly...that would probably be coming home.”
The foals all looked at him with a confused stare.
Dawn Flame sighed. “You see, class, I have a daughter, an adorable little filly that I love with all of my heart. She’s feisty and has a bit of an attitude, and I don’t get to see her that much. You see, I was in the Royal Guard before the war, and back then, being a guard was more like being a baker. It was just a job. A job I was working hard at so that I could provide for my daughter.”
The stallion sighed.
“But she wasn’t happy. I hardly saw her, and she didn’t get to see me...and...” His posture broke, his ramrod-straight back collapsed, and he lowered his head. “...and...well...the last time I saw her, we had a fight.” He began to moved down the row of students, speaking as he went. “She told me to stop being a guard, to get a job closer to home. I told her that the job I had paid well, and it made sure she was taken care of.”
He thought he saw the filly shaking behind her small tome. “She said it didn’t matter if I wasn’t there, and...well, to make a long story short, I left mad. It’s been almost three years since I was home, and every day I’ve been gone I’ve been wondering what she’ll think of me. Especially when she was right all along...” He stood in front of the filly’s desk, watching her as she hid behind her textbook. “So, what do you say, Scoots, can you forgive your dumb ol’ Dad?”
Scootaloo jumped at him from behind her book, tears flying from her eyes as she caught him in a hug. “I’m sorry, Daddy! I’m just so sorry!”
His helmet clanged to the floor, forgotten as he grabbed his daughter. “I’m sorry too, Scoots, I’m sorry too.”
He held her tight for a few moments before turning towards the teacher. “Miss Cheerilee, do you mind...?”
Cheerilee, tears in her eyes, shook her head. “No, it’s perfectly fine.”
Dawn smiled. “Thank you. Come on, Scoots, let’s go get some ice cream.”
As the two pegasi left, the entire class watched them go in silence, except for one grey filly with a spoon on her flank, who was doing her best to keep her sobs quiet.
<<<|Ω|>>>
“I want soldiers on those outcroppings,” Ironclaw said, pointing at the top of the rock walls.
The entrance to the badlands stood before them, a massive gorge between two, massive, sheer walls of red rock. On the outside of those walls were most of the carts as well as a minority of the force.
Bait for the trap.
“Set up boulders along there, there, and there, and I want two Manticore machines set up, one on each wall.”
As the griffons around him began to fill out their orders, the General smiled to himself.
“Catch me off guard, will you? Well, it’s time to return the favor...”
<<<|Ω|>>>
Alan held a telescope in two hard-mana hands. A frown was on his face.
“What’s the matter?” Twilight asked.
Alan handed her the telescope, the spyglass being caught up in Twilight’s telekinetic grasp. “That gorge just screams ‘trap.’”
Twilight looked through the spyglass. “You think they’re setting up an ambush?”
“I would.”
“How do you want to proceed?”
Alan simply let one of the silver magick hands stroke his chin.
“You really like those hands, don’t you?” Twilight asked.
Alan smiled.
<<<|Ω|>>>
“Sir!” one of griffons called from his lookout. “The ponies are approaching from the Northeast!”
Ironclaw smiled. Perfect, they would fall right into his trap. “Move, quickly!” he yelled. “Soldiers, head toward the gorge!”
A crew of soldiers began shuffling towards the gorge, kicking up as much dust as they could to make it seem as though they had larger numbers. Meanwhile, the carts had been hidden in a nearby cave, and then covered by freshly cut branches to hide them so they could make a quick escape.
Two of the Manticore siege machines had been set up at the cliff peaks, along with a majority of the force.
What’s more, the general had changed orders a bit.
The bomb of lime, he quickly realized, other than blinding his forces, did no real damage. So why blind his forces when the Pendragon could have just as easily made a powdered poison? He doubted it was because they lacked the ability to create one.
What it told him was that his enemy had a heart.
A great, exploitable weakness of a heart.
And now that he knew the Pendragon’s weakness, all he had to do was get some leverage.
<<<|Ω|>>>
“You sure this is a good idea?” Shining asked.
Alan wasn’t. “Of course it is! If this universe follows the rules of comedy, then it follows the rules of action movies, and action movies say that when the protagonists, us, knowingly spring a trap, they do something amazing.”
He hoped Equestria followed the rules of an action movie.
Silence behind him.
“Well, I don’t know about that,” Twilight said. “But we do have support.”
“Right...” Shining answered.
“Just focus on the defense, you two,” Alan ordered. “Something tells me we’re going to need it.”
The pony ranks moved forward, getting closer and closer to the gorge, the Ira and the Vindicta floated wordlessly above them in the cloudy sky.
“Everyone ready?” Alan asked.
“Yes, I think so,” Twilight answered.
“Good. Well, then as a wise man once said: Hold on to your butts.” With that final word of wisdom, Alan drew Judgement with an ethereal hand and led the charge.
<<<|Ω|>>>
“Wait for it...” Ironclaw ordered, his small force was now being relentlessly chased by the ponies. “Wait for it...”
With a single order, the Pendragon had blinded a good number of his soldiers. Then it is only poetic justice that he should kill more with the same order.
He glanced to his side, where twenty of his soldiers stood next to large boulders.
“Now.”
<<<|Ω|>>>
The ponies let loose a wordless battlecry as they chased down their quarry. Their voices echoed off of the red rock walls as they chased down the smaller force of griffons. As they ran they passed many deep pits and crevices in the walls, some going so deep that the back could not be seen, others so shallow that if it were raining it would not provide enough shelter. The soldiers, however, took no notice, and were chasing their enemy with a vigor that many of them did not know they possessed.
However, three unicorns had their eyes elsewhere.
The griffons, sensing the ponies behind them, suddenly took a sharp left, and disappeared into one of the many caves that dotted the cave wall. Before so much as a single pony could follow them, the griffons rolled a stone in front of them, sealing themselves in.
That when the ponies noticed the boulders.
Massive rocks began to tumble down from the ridges, threatening to bury them underneath tons of earth.
And then something happened. A massive ceiling of mana suddenly slammed into the walls, first a light fuchsia color before suddenly shining a darker color. The massive stones smashed against the wall, breaking apart as the slammed into the shield.
The eyes of the ponies were drawn to its center, and then down a massive column of magick that originated from two unicorns.
Twilight and Shining, standing side by side, sweat dripping down their faces, held the shield above them. The mana shimmering between the colors of their magick as they both fought to keep it up.
“This way!” Alan yelled, screaming at the awestruck ponies. “Pull back now!”
Many of them, shaken from the cry, began running back the way they came, pulling the more stunned ones with them.
The shield wall began to lean forward, the boulders shifting to the front end as gravity worked. With a mighty mental heave, the unicorn siblings turned their protective ceiling into a massive ramp, and the large stones rolled forward, blocking off the gorge.
When the last stone hit the floor, the shield shimmered away, and Twilight fell to the ground exhausted.
“You okay?” Shining and Alan asked in unison.
Twilight resisted the urge to roll her eyes. “I’m fine, I just need to rest a bit.”
Alan looked up at Shining. “Get her to the Vindicta, posthaste.”
“Right,” Shining agreed, pulling Twilight onto his back.
Just as he did, three massive arrows dug into the ground that she had been occupying a second ago.
Alan looked up at the ridge, and what he saw did not please him.
“Horseapples.”
<<<|Ω|>>>
Ironclaw cursed.
Curse their magic to the ninth layer of Hell where it may burn in the great frozen wastes!
It was a gift exclusive to pony-kind it seemed, and now he had to deal with those who could break the laws of physics.
“Bombard them!” he shouted to the Manticore operators.
Two griffons standing next to a massive crossbow-like machine nodded before they began turning a crank. The massive sinew bowstring was pulled back, a large bolt from a feeder fell into its awaiting slot, and the bow was released.
We may not have magic, little ponies, the general thought to himself, but we do have science!
A familiar whistle broke his thought process, before the Manticore exploded into massive splinters.
Ironclaw turned to the see the larger, gold-banded ship hovering a few hundred yards away, and saw another cannonball rip through the second machine on the opposite ridge.
He began to see red.
“Get up there and kill them!” he yelled pointing at the ships.
Three squads heard the unspoken, “Or I will skin you alive,” and began heading for the ships.
“The rest of you, get down there and kill those horses!”
Not a single griffon was left on the edge.
And that’s when Phoenix division followed them from behind the clouds.
<<<|Ω|>>>
Alan, seeing the trap, had decided to relocate most of Fire Drake division to the Ira and Vindicta, where Thunderstorm and Nightingale divisions worked, along with Moonbeam Division.
And it was a good thing he had.
Pinkamena stood, one of her hind legs supported on a cannon, the other on the railing. In one hoof she held a cutlass, in the other she held on to a frothing stein of cider. On top of her head, along with her golden headpiece, sat a tricorner hat. Guzzling down the beverage, she tossed the empty metal tankard at a charging griffon before yelling in a cheery voice, “Drink up, me Hearties, Yo Ho!” The cannon beneath her suddenly sounded, throwing a cannonball at ten of them and sending them over into the proverbial drink.
Other similarly armed ponies were likewise dealing devastating damage as Fire Drake division worked closely with Rarity’s Moonbeam soldiers. Griffons would suddenly find themselves in quiet fields before their lives were taken from them. Others were blinded by the tried-and-true method of the Equestrian Flashbang. Others still found themselves fighting invisible enemies and a select few simply stopped what they were doing before curling up into a ball, completely unresponsive to the world.
As the battle on the Ira drew on, Pinkamena was almost dancing in the fight. Her cutlass slicing through griffons with ease as she laughed maniacally.
Now it was not, as many would guess, because the straight-haired mare was in fact a psychopathic killer. No. In fact, the reason for her laughing was in fact for a much less sinister motive.
It scared the living manure out of anyone that got close.
Griffons would pause as they stared at her, blood dripping from her armor and sword, and they delay would be just long enough for her to finish them.
She was giggling at the ghosties, and the ghosties were killed.
There was also another part of her that told her to laugh just because she had an element to stay true to, but mostly it was for psychological warfare.
“Yo Ho, Yo Ho, a pirate’s life for me!” she sang as she slaughtered.
Ooh, nice alliteration there.
Thank you.
She danced across the deck, dealing death to the dastardly defilers.
Man, you’re on a roll today.
I know, right?
“We pillage, we plunder, we rifle and loot! Drink up, me Hearties, Yo Ho! We kidnap and ravage and don’t give a hoot! Drink up, me Hearties, Yo Ho!”
She bounded to the middle of the deck, where a large round wheel sat. It was as tall as a pony and a half, and three times as wide. The wheel’s main purpose was to lower and raise the anchor, but it would do perfectly for her purposes.
She jumped at the top of the wheel, spinning as she sang. “Yo Ho, Yo Ho, a pirate’s life for me!”
A griffon grabbed a spear from the lifeless form of a spearpony and threw it at the pink terror with all of his might.
She simply ducked under the flying projectile, and it soared overhead.
With a graceful leap, she launched herself at the griffon, flying backwards along the path of the spear before burying her blade into his head.
She laughed again.
She yanked on her blade to pull it out of her latest victim’s head, only to find it caught on something.
That’s when three griffons slammed into her side, knocking her blade away from her. Unarmed, she suddenly found herself surrounded.
One of them, the leader in the offensive, stood forward. He flexed his claws. “This is for Howard,” he said.
Suddenly a blue blur smashed into the griffon, a sickening snap signaled that his spine had been severed.
From the mess of fur and feathers, a blue-and-yellow clad pegasus stood. “Keep your filthy claws. Off. My. Pie!”
Before the other two could react, Soarin slammed into them, tossing them back into the fray. He let loose a low growl before returning to the downed General. “You okay?” he asked.
Pinkie’s mane returned to it’s natural fizz, and she gave the Wonderbolt a smile. “I am now that my own Special Sous Chef is here.”
Soarin smiled back. “I’m glad to hear it, my little Sweetie Pie.”
They shared a quick kiss. And then Soarin tossed a charging griffon overboard.
<<<|Ω|>>>
On the deck of the Vindicta, the fighting was just as fierce. Griffons and ponies duked it out, each fighting for Crown and Country.
Fluttershy, however, was not.
No, she had another job to do, and for all intents and purposes, the Vindicta was her ship. She was the only General on board, and as such, it was her duty to give orders.
However, this was also the infirmary ship.
That made these griffons extra dangerous.
And she was not having any of it.
If anyone so much as thought of hurting one of her patients...
...well...she wasn’t exactly sure what she would do, but it wouldn’t be nice!
She flew forward, hugging the deck as she dashed amongst swings and parries. She zoomed along the wooden planks, her ears peeled back, but listening intently for any cries of—
“Medic!”
She made a hard bank left, following the cry, skidding to a halt at the feet of one of the wounded ponies. Her mind constantly checking the mare’s body over. Three major lacerations. Two three-inch puncture wounds. Pulsing...oh Celestia that’s a lot of blood.
She shut her eyes for a second and shook her head.
Focus. Pulsing, rhythmic bleeding. At least one severed artery. She noticed a large, blue bruise on the ponies green coat. She gave it a light touch and the owner of the nasty bruise yelled in pain. Possible broken hock bones.
She quickly pulled a syringe from a pocket in her armor, and drove it into the pony’s neck. As the merciful painkillers began to flood her system, Fluttershy began to bandage the wounds.
She worked quickly, applying pressure with one hoof as she worked with the other. She touched the bruise again. “Did you feel that?” she asked.
The mare did not answer, her eyes clouding with the effects of the drug.
Taking the cue, Fluttershy picked her up before flying back to doors to the lower decks.
A veritable castle waited for her, 37 spear ponies lined shoulder to shoulder protecting the door with their lives. They saw their General approaching and gave a small opening for her. Moving quickly behind the spears, Fluttershy handed the mare over to Nurse Redheart. “Major bleeding from two puncture wounds to the barrel. Severed artery,” she explained to the nurse.
Redheart nodded, applying pressure to the wound as Fluttershy leapt back into the fray.
Again she flew low, sticking close to the deck as she flew forward. Staying this low meant she could avoid most of the conflict, while every now and then tip a fight into a pony’s favor.
She zoomed by a griffon, taking his feet from under him as she flew by. The soldier landed hard before being set upon by three ponies.
So far no one was calling her, and anypony that needed immediate help was being taken care of. She quickly eyed the silver-grey pegasus mare named Quicksilver, and saw she was working diligently.
At least she didn’t need a repeat performance.
Her thoughts were interrupted by a furry body slamming into her. She flew backwards, landing into the anchor winch, before she became aware of her assailant. “Well aren’t you pretty,” a griffon said, his voice dripping with malice.
She looked up, catching the griffon in The Stare. However, that one wasn’t a problem. The problem was the two griffons in her peripheral.
The Stare was an interesting power. Anything caught in her field of view was instantly under its spell, and along with minor paralysis, put the victim under a charm where they had to do as she asked. There were, however, a few limitations on it. The first being that with the more targets under her gaze, the less sway she would hold on each of them. Second was distance. Sure, she could stare a buffalo down at thirty thousand yards, but it loses its effect when the receiver can’t see her eyes anymore.
The last one however, was that the further away from the center of her vision, the more impotent both of those effects became.
With two of these griffons on the very edge of her field of view, and the third in the center, Fluttershy wasn’t sure she could hold them.
If they had been a few hooves closer in, maybe...
Then she felt it.
The one on the left broke her influence.
“Ooh. That’s not a good thing,” he said, eyeing her. “You’re a dangerous little mare, aren’t you?”
Not good.
She could turn her head, and catch him in her stare, but that would leave the one on the right to get her. She had no choice but to keep her head exactly where it was.
“Roger, Roger, buddy, can you move?” The griffon asked as he slowly began to approach the timid pegasus.
“No,” the one in the middle, named Roger apparently, answered.
“That’s what I thought. Well, then, it seems we’re just going to have to deal with you, miss.”
Suddenly, a massive red shape blocked her vision, and she swore she heard a thunderclap as a massive hoof met the griffon’s face.
The other two griffons, now free, watched in horror as the one griffon that had freed himself was sent flying towards the side of the boat. His spine snapped on impact with the oak railings and he tumbled over the edge.
Both newly released griffons turned to the massive red stallion before them.
Big Macintosh looked them in eye and said only one thing.
“Nope.”
With another two ear-shattering blows, the other griffons were sent to join their friend. With a snort, Big Mac turned to the yellow pegasus. “Ya alright?” he asked.
She nodded. “Um...thanks...” she said before turning her gaze elsewhere.
“Don’t mention it.”
There was silence for a second before the draft pony spoke again. “Whelp...Ah suppose that makes us even then...”
Fluttershy nodded, her gaze never meeting his.
And then she saw something.
Acting quickly, she yanked on Big Mac’s fetlocks, pulling him to the ground.
As a startled cry escaped his lips, a sharp thwack sounded from where his head had been a second ago.
Looking up from the floor, Big Mac saw a spear, dug into the anchor winch, protruding roughly where his head had been a moment ago.
He looked down at the pegasus, still gripping his fetlocks, and blinked. She had just saved his life. Again.
She blinked back, before releasing him with a blush.
Standing, the farmer chuckled. “Keep this up, Fluttershy, and ponies may get to thinkin’ ya want me around.”
Fluttershy simply blushed harder.
<<<|Ω|>>>
In the air above the gorge, the dogfight of the ages broke out. Pegasi, with their metal claw shoes, dived onto the backs of griffons. Griffons, in turn, did their best to dodge and attack the pegasi. The ponies would then launch lightning bolts at the griffons as they recovered.
The fighting was fierce and deadly; however, even for all of their aerial finesse, the pegasi still had two advantages over the griffons. The first, was that, being part bird, the griffons had hollow bones, they easily snapped and broke with enough force, which, comparatively, was nowhere near enough to break a pegasus bone. The second, and perhaps more important advantage is as follows:
For the past 1,432 years, the griffons had almost always been at war with their southern neighbors, the ligers. Ligers, being both lion and tiger, are fierce, strong, and live in an almost barbaric society. However, they cannot fly.
Griffons were not trained for dogfights.
They were never trained to look up.
Thunderlane dove, an almost perfectly vertical drop, aiming straight for one griffon who would have done well if he had been trained.
The mohawked pegasus slammed into his back, sending them both down towards the ground. Acting quickly, Thunderlane wrapped him forelegs around the griffons neck and spread his wings. The sudden deceleration sent the griffon’s body down and forward, while his neck stayed in place.
There was a crack, and a snap, and Thunderlane let him drop.
Rainbow Dash pulled up next to him. “Not a bad move there,” she said.
“Saw a hawk do that to a crow who flew a little too close to her nest.”
“That fact only makes it cooler.”
Thunderlane smirked.
Rainbow Dash gasped, the quick intake of air only audible thanks to the pegasi communicators.“Woah! Heads up!”
Thunderlane glanced upwards, and saw a hell-bent griffon gunning down at him. Thunderlane blinked and he felt six talons dig into his wings. He screamed in pain as the griffon held him by the wings, the manic gleam in his eye sparkling as the griffon whispered.
“You killed my brother, and now we both will die.”
Thunderlane was suddenly aware that he had made this particular griffon go insane.
He looked up at Rainbow Dash, but saw to his horror, that she was gone, flying upwards with every bit of strength she had.
Gee thanks! he roared in his mind. Glad to know you cared! Bearer of Loyalty my eye!
He began to struggle against the insane griffon,swinging his forelegs around wildly, and trying to bite at his talons.
The griffon only laughed.
No! No! He couldn’t die! Not like this! He had to get back home! He had to be there for Rumble! He couldn’t just let him go on alone!
As the ground was coming up to meet him, an interesting thought crossed his mind.
This griffon, a brother to another, now dead, griffon, was about to kill him, an older brother himself. It could be seen as some sort of poetic justice, Thunderlane thought, before mentally yelling “What are you thinking!? I am falling to my bucking death! I shouldn’t be thinking about irony!”
He looked up again, wishing to send Rainbow Dash one last hateful glare for abandoning him, when he noticed a color-streaked blur racing towards him.
Before he could blink, there was a sudden explosion through the air as said blur rushed passed him, sending griffon, pony, and anything else in the shock wave through the air. Thunderlane’s ears were ringing and his world was spinning madly as both he and his captor corkscrewed sideways. Then, in another blink, the cyan general was in front of him, her steel claws biting into the griffon’s chest.
Thunderlane blinked, still dazed from the almost point blank Sonic Rainboom, and began to fall, only to be caught in the mare’s forelegs. “Woah, there, you okay Thunderlane?”
The stallion blinked, his mind trying to piece together what happened as well as a proper response, only for those two lines to cross. “You came back for me?”
Dash almost looked offended. “Of course I did!” she said, shaking her head with a smile. “I ain’t gonna leave my best wingpony hangin’.”
As Thunderlane regained awareness, his mind was quick to scold. And you thought she left you. You’re a failure as a stallion.
Thunderlane did his best to shake off the guilt before mumbling the word “Thanks.”
“No problem, now come on, let’s clear these skies.”
<<<|Ω|>>>
Back on the Ira, Rarity stood next to a small group of illusionist unicorns, and was doing her best to help the stationed Fire Drakes to clean up.
Next to her, Spike stood. His eyes glinted with a predatory shine as he fired his pistols, his green flame flashing frequently as he reloaded with a speed that would have made a Victorian sailor jealous.
Rarity, as with everything she did, moved with poise and grace as she headed down the deck. She moved without fear of attack because of her little Spike as well as the invisibility and mute spells one of the nearby mares was casting on them. With the enemy unable to see them, Rarity had order that the circle the deck, so as to avoid detection further.
“This way, quickly!” she ordered, leaping over a fight and rushing to the spot she chose.
The other followed, albeit slightly slower than their leader. If Rarity had noticed she would have realized that all of her adventuring with her friends had slimmed her down a bit and certainly helper her cardio, more so than a few of her soldiers. “Come on now, Darlings!” she called back.
She continued to weave through the battlefield, leading her small pack, with Spike closely behind and the illusionist further behind him. Still invisible, she sent out a blast of light, blinding three griffons, before they were killed by two swordponies.
Another leap, and one of the diamonds on her coat, which she wore under her armor, flew at a griffon, slitting his throat clean.
“Keep moving girls!” she cried, before suddenly noticing that the girls weren’t there. “Girls?”
Nothing.
Rarity’s eyes widened as she realized what happened. She had wandered too far away from the invisibility and mute casters, they couldn’t talk to her if they tried, and couldn't be seen either.
This of course meant that she was now neither invisible nor inaudible.
That thought went through her head just as she was pounced by a griffon.
“Well aren’t you a pretty pony?” the griffon asked, his eyes boring into her. Rarity tried to push him away with her hooves, but he held on fast. “A very pretty pony. I just may have to hold on to you...”
Rarity struggled some more, looking into the malicious, and hungry eyes of the griffon the pinned her.
Click.
His eyes turned to the golden tube that had been shoved to his temple, and the dragon on the other end of it.
“Mine.”
Kra-thoom!
Spike stood next to her, his eyes glinting wildly as he removed the griffon’s brain from his skull. The griffon fell over dead, and as it did, every griffon eye turned to the source of the loud noise.
They all saw him, a small, baby dragon with two strange weapons. Next to him lay a white unicorn, and a dead griffon.
They all put two and two together and came to a single realization.
The dragon had to die.
Twenty griffons charged the young drake, and he answered with two salvos of gunfire.
As they closed in on him, Spike dropped his pistols and began to rip at the griffons with with claws. The griffons attacked, and as they flooded the dragon, something happened in little Spike.
How dare they attack Rarity! Rarity is my marefriend! She’s mine! They have no right to hurt her! She’s mine!
“Mine!” he roared as he attacked, digging his claws into the griffon’s side, his dagger forgotten. His pupils narrowed as he began to tear through the incoming ranks with a feral rage. He swung his tail like a mace, and somehow the strength was enough to send griffon’s flying. “Mine!” he yelled again before biting into a griffon’s neck, ripping off a chunk of flesh in his razor sharp teeth.
A sudden pain erupted from his back.
Roaring in fury, he clawed and bit at the griffons, ripping them to pieces.
He gave a wordless roar, shattering eardrums as the sound rippled through the air. He sliced at another griffon before speaking. “I am Spica Draconis!” he bellowed. “Keeper of the Emerald Flame! Born of Fire and Magic! And She is MINE!”
There was a flurry of fur, feathers, and scales. Griffons were sent flying this way and that as the met the purple and green dragon. Their offensive was broken straight down the middle.
They scattered, some with their tails literally between their legs as they ran. Many jumped over the railings, escaping from the draconic rage.
Spike answered with a blast of red flame after them.
His chest heaved as he glared at the leaving griffons.
“Sp-Spike?”
He turned to Rarity, and, seeing her untouched, he relaxed a little. “Are you alright?” he asked, approaching her.
“Spike...you’re...taller...” she stammered.
Spike blinked.
He looked down, and rather than the usual potbelly he had known these past eighteen years, he was a slender stomach with shining lime green scales. He blinked again when he noticed his snout which, rather than being short and almost feminine, was now long and angular. He then truly noticed the distance change between him and the ground and dropped to all fours.
Or rather, he tried to, instead, he glided down. He didn’t even need to check his back for him to realize he had wings.
He looked at Rarity, her sapphire eyes meeting his emerald ones. “...Yes...yes, I am.”
Silence.
Before Pinkie spoke up. “Nothing to see here folks! Move along! All hands on deck! I want those cannons firing A.S.A.P.!” her mane going from poofy to straight as she spoke.
Spike and Rarity simply stared at each other.
Finally she spoke. “Spica Draconis?” she asked.
Spike blinked, before nervously blurting out an answer. “It’s my name in Dragonspeak, it roughly means ‘Dragon of Deep Emeralds’ or something. Princess Celestia told me about it once.”
“Dragonspeak?” she asked.
“I don’t use it that much,” Spike explained. “Growing up speaking Equestrian I actually find it kind of hard to wrap my tongue around some of those hisses.”
“Oh...and the ‘Emerald Flame?’”
“Celestia may have altered my dragon fire with a very ancient powerful artifact that has been forgotten by almost all of pony kind.”
Rarity blinked.
Spike blinked back.
“Well, you certainly look the part of a gentlestallion,” Rarity noted.
“Uh, thanks...”
Silence.
“Dragon of Deep Emeralds?”
“According to the Princess it has something to do with deep mysteries and hidden thoughts.” He smirked. “I guess it’s not out of place, considering.”
Rarity giggled, before finally standing. “I think you’re right on that account, My Little Emerald.”
“Little?” he asked indignantly. “I’m pretty sure I’m half a hoof taller than you on all fours.”
Rarity giggled again, and Spike smiled before escorting her into one of the Ira’s lower decks, one wing draped over her back and shoulders.
She was his.
<<<|Ω|>>>
Down in the gorge, the griffon fighters had met the rest of Applejack’s forces, including two tanks, the rest being stored in the Ira’s bottom most deck. Alan, however, had his eyes on the ridge.
Ironclaw paced the ridge, fuming.
That was about to change.
Alan began to focus his magic, and was about to do something which he would later admit was totally stupid.
At the moment, however, he was bent on killing that griffon, and had a few thousand Dungeon Masters to disprove.
A slight concave disk of silver magick appeared. It was roughly one inch thick, and three feet wide. He had picked the dimensions himself, doing his best to remember the spell description from the Player’s Handbook.
Satisfied, Alan jumped on the disk, and suddenly it shot forward.
Eat it, Trevor! he thought to himself. You can totally use Tenser’s Floating Disk as a flying mount!
Now that his theory was proven correct, Alan dropped the self-imposed rule of simply hovering three feet above the ground, and took off, soaring high above the gorge floor to meet his enemy at the ridge.
No one had even noticed the duster-clad unicorn as he scaled the cliff-side.
And then, with a jump, he was over the edge, sword drawn, and staring down the griffon.
Capped talons met blessed steel, and sparks went flying as Ironclaw pounced on the blade.
Alan, moved around the blade hovering above him, and sent a hoof into the griffon’s face.
Ironclaw answered with his claws coming down, one blocked by Alan’s blade, the other catching his side.
Alan pushed the griffon away, and the two stared at each other.
Ironclaw glanced at Judgement. “That is the human’s blade,” he noted.
"He died,” Alan answered. “He named me the new Pendragon.”
Ironclaw’s eyes narrowed. “Shame. I wanted to deal him a blow myself after the insult he dealt me.”
Alan smirked. “I thought it was well deserved.”
Ironclaw growled.
Alan charged, swinging Judgement, and Ironclaw ran to meet him.
Sparks flew as they met each other, and Ironclaw moved to push the sword out from between them.
Grabbing the blade with his gloved claws, he pushed the sword out of the way and leapt over it to get at the Pendragon.
Alan answered him with a small, two inch mana blade sticking him through the chest.
Jumping back, Alan had Judgement fly around, and meet up with him again. The blade was between him and the griffon, and the griffon growled as the small throwing blade disappeared, leaving the wound open.
“I find your persistence annoying,” Ironclaw hissed.
“I find you stupidity offensive,” Alan answered.
Ironclaw wished he had teeth to grind together as he and Alan circled each other. He stopped suddenly before charging the Pendragon again.
Alan raised Judgement to block, going for the Posta Finestra guard.
The griffon came down on the horizontal blade, but rather than pull it away again, he pushed forward, slamming the blade into Alan’s armored chest.
With a heave, the griffon pushed, and Alan suddenly felt his hooves slip over the edge of the cliff.
His eyes widened as he felt himself begin to fall.
“Goodbye, Pendragon!” Ironclaw smirked before tossing him over.
Alan fell.
Don’t panic! he screamed at himself. Just get the disk to save you!
Alan quickly materialized a disk below him, hoping to catch himself.
The disk shattered on impact.
The magical backlash hit him so hard, he almost blacked out.
He blinked, Judgement was falling next to him, now out of his control now that he no longer had a hand on it.
He blinked again. His eyelids opening slowly as he saw the ridge getting smaller as he fell.
He was going to die.
His eyes closed, but he thought he opened them once more, and he was sure he saw a pair of cyan hooves holding onto him.
<<<|Ω|>>>
Ironclaw grimaced.
That pony had given him quite the wound.
It was a shame he didn’t die.
Frowning, he pulled his horn and sounded a retreat.
“Another day, Pendragon. Another day.”
--------------------------------
Alright, did a little bit of world building in this chapter, mostly on the Draconic side of things.
“Um...DM...”
For those of you that caught it, Dragonspeak sounds like Latin, however the words have different meanings.
“DM...”
A little more shipping fluff.
“DM...”
A little tear-jerker with Scootaloo.
“DM...”
As well as a—
“DM!”
What Pinkie?
“Why does everyone else get nice, slow relationship build up, and I don’t?”
Because you’re Pinkie Pie.
“...”
If anyone, my dear Pinkie, could make a crazy, rushed, and slightly unrealistic relationship work, it would be you. And you would do it like that, because you are Pinkie Pie. Makes sense?
“Yuppers! Just wanted to check!”
Alright, comment, thumbs up if you hadn’t, and all that other good Jazz. Join us next time for Chapter 24, “Pendragon Down!”
Bye!
"What? I don’t get to say anything today? That makes me a sad panda..."
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I say!
2083769
...what?
You say what?
What are you saying man!?
LOVE IT!!!!
I LOVE THIS!!!!
*Twilight
2083772
No, you have misunderstood me good sir!
denver.mylittlefacewhen.com/media/f/img/mlfw588_jeee.gif
I say!
And remember Alan, when everything goes wrong put the Bag on Holding in the Portable Hole.
Can we get a kill count in the next chapter and how many are left standing.
2083807
Thank you, and fixed.
2083828
Say what?!
What are you trying to tell me!?
"I think he's saying he likes it."
Oh. Well why didn't he say so?
2083986
I'll see what I can do.
Oh snap! That is awesome.
Are you really trying to kill me man xD I'm dying from laughter.
And now I got hit by a bunch of feels. Thanks a lot man...
What the hell Pinkie?! D:
Spike is a fucking ultra-bad ass now.
To top it all. I really enjoyed this chapter.
Oh... and make sure Spike will fuck some shit up...
...
HARD!
new chapter? check
more world building (even for the griffions)? check
making the arbitrary joke on one Tenser's Floating Disk? check
also, thifrightens me. more so than regular psycho pinkie
looks like the war is winding down. looking for an epic end to this stupid bird who thinks he can best equestria's finest. my favorite part though was the family reunion in ponyville. made me d'aw all over myself. in a good way.
2084796
Fair enough. To tell you the truth I have been meaning to change that scene. Ever since I've wrote I never really felt happy about it. Still trying to figure a good way to rewrite it though...do you have any suggestions?
YAY! so spike does get the love version of greed growth, I always enjoy when the greed growth gets turned to a good thing like that.
love this story so much and eagerly await more.
Spike is now an ultimate badass of badassness
Alright well again you've def been improving which I think again will make this a shorter comment.
Probably one of the biggest things I noticed was I was confused at first what you meant by "Manticores" because in my mind I was thinking the creature and if that was the case then why didn't they unleash them earlier? Of course it's reveled two sections or so latter that they're a type of siege weapon. However, when you 1st introduced them you just gave us "Manticores" which had me a little confused until I got to the part latter on when you stated they were siege weapons.
Also please be sure to find a way to tie in the Scoot part to the rest of the story. It was a nice bit however if it doesn't connect to the rest of the story asides the "it's a nice bit and some happy feels" then it's really just taking up space. I'm guessing you do have a reason for it (everything else you've done does) but it's something I thought I should point out just in case... and to just be sure to keep it in your mind.
The next thing I'd say is the same as what I wrote down last time... I think you could start really working on finding those yummy descriptions because you've gotten good at making it that chapters are usually pretty clear and whatnot and adding good thick, and weighty descriptions (when appropriate of course) would be the next phase/level of writing for you to take on.
Also I'd like to make a note/thank you for having Alan kinda getting his ass kicked by the villain. After each point when one of your characters had gone through each of their ordeals I was beginning to wonder and worry if anything could touch them... I like my heros to be tough and awesome however I don't like them untouchable so having Alan get soundly defeated was nice after the several bouts of griffin doubts.
I am so going to use this to win the same argument with my DM about Tenser's Floating Disk.
Edit* I want artwork of Spike in this chapter
Hmm... needs more... shiny stuff... probably pencils... yes... pencils....
I could go for some pencils right now.
"MOM! GET ME SOME PENCILS! I WANT PENCILS!"
"Well I wanted an abortion, but not everyone gets what they want."
"..."
"CUPCAKES!"
DAMMIT!
Naw.
Aww, naw.
AWW HEEEL NAW.
You didn't . . . . . . you did.
Ship.
And Ship.
And Shipperoni.
2083861
postimage.org/image/rjvh3mlrj/
this is what I immediately thought of
2086739
It'd only really work if your mage was ≤100 pounds, and he'd only hover about 3 ft. off the ground.
2088101
Sweet Celestia...
2084184 Nice. Oh,by the way, Pinkie, have you seen my Accuracy International Arctic Warfare Bolt-Action Rifle? The one loaded with .338 lapua magnum rounds?
I get little Internet time. So I compensate by copying and pasting every chapter into word docs onto my MP3 (which sucks; don't get a Cody Touchpad). Let me tell you that Word don't like trying to paste omega. (Yes, there is a button to turn things into Word. Guess what? It sucks, replacing improper format from this to Word as a bunch of annoying-ass symbols.)
2088548 My mage is a halfling. (Don't ask just know shenanigans) and it's really just to spite my DM
2089814
...you win...
2010419 UP THE IRONS
And I totally agree
YO HO! YO HO!
PIRATA QUIERO SER!
TA-RAH TATAT, TA-RAH TATAT!
*does the math on the griffon death tally* Daaaamn, they're gonna be extinct by the time this is over!
Oh well, stupid is as stupid does! *rushes in to take part in the griffon genocide before there are none left for him!*
Im still reading the last few current chapters, but I find this story pretty damn awesome!
Keep up the awesome work!
Wow Spikes a bit of a badass.
Hmm lets see hard mana blades, discs, shields, hands... About time for wings.
And the technique could be very handy during sexy time.
Read through Chapter 5 now. Loving so far, including, oddly, the afterstory bits with Pinkie.
Spike went beast of those fools. Guess dragon greed can be a good thing depending on the instance.
Keep up the good work and keep on kicking flank.
2106273 DM... DM man, it's starting... DM, I ain't editing no clop, man. I AIN'T EDITING NO MUDDAFLOOPING CLOP!
2090713 Pirate I want to be?
2108165its the spanish version of a pirate's life for me
2113607
Porsupuesto, mi amigo.
2113749NO TE HAGAS WEY TU NO HABLAS ESPAÑOL!
2127122
Es verdad. No hablo español. Hablo Castellano. Ha vivendo en españa por siete años.
2113749 If it's an amigo, shouldn't it be tu puesto? Technically?
2128631
No, Porsupesto means (at least in Castellano Spainish), "of course."
2128633 Yeah no I was 100% kidding. I'm in Spanish 3... definitely not fluent yet, but maybe by the time I'm 16?
2128515aaahh
es que yo vivo en mexico desde que nací
and people keep thinking im actually american if not for my avatar
2130341
2131009NOW WHO'S UP FOR SOME QUESADILLAS?!
*raoring cheers*
VAMONOS!
i think the theme song of pinkie and soarins relationship would be "pour some sugar on me" by def leppard
I'm pretty sure Rainbow is a girl.
Nice saints row the third reference bro!
Crowning Moment of Awesome.
Sexual harassment... panda!