A Bridge Between Brothers

by Rammy

The Shock

ബഐബഐബഐ Garble ബഐബഐബഐ

Four days! Four of shittiest days I ever had since my early days under H.K. That feeling of being watched was always around and not matter how much I tried to find whoever was doing it all I got for my troubles was one failure after another. I hated it. And thanks to that, I couldn't get any restful l sleep nor hunt properly.

So far I had not found any easily defensible locations nearby. The holes are out as I'm not dealing with untrustworthy diamond dogs and caves are out for the same reason. I dare not enter the forest too far as that left me dealing with way too many blind spots. That left me sleeping in a tree at the edge of the forest. In a tree! It's one thing for Spike but not me!

As for my hunger situation, normally I could catch prey quite easily, but between my lack of good sleep and that constant feeling in the back of my head I was letting prey slip through my claw way too often. I could eat only gems from the gem fields but they alone are not enough for the amount of activity I was doing.

TI would be so easy if I didn't promise... I sadly grasped the necklace feeling all the expertly carved facets on the gem. I still have not been able to give it to Spike like I promised. I just not been able to find out how to approach him... there was that one moment with Discord that he was beginning to return to the peewee I remembered... but then... I can't risk him chucking the necklace... Not with those dirt lovers around. If they got a hold of it I might never get it back.

As much as I rather be and do things on my own, I knew I wasn't going to last much longer without some help. And the only help I had access to was the ponies... ugh. I'm glad that I knew where Twilight and Spike lived, a large tree on the edge otherwise... Wait, the tree was on the west side of town... and I was east... Damn it! I really don't want to interact with too many ponies... Hopefully skirting around the edge of town will be enough.

---

I breathed slowly as I prepared for the the next step. I had managed to make my way to the western side of town without incident. Thankfully, the ponies were too spooked by the forest to be anywhere near it. Don't know why, it's just an typical, ordinary forest to me. Now I just had to make my way north between a bunch of trees with red things and the town...

I slowly but deliberately walked into the open. I didn't want to needlessly spook the ponies. I was almost to by destination when I dropped down, slamming my claws to my ears and cringing at a very loud piercing cry coming from my right. Damn it, I was so close!

I looked over to see three ponies staring at me in fear, one of them was even shakily pointing a hoof at me. Great... pink, pink, and more pink...

"The dragons are attacking!" The pink one of the right shrieked before falling over, passed out.

"It's a big scaly monster spawn of Discord here to eat our foals!" The other pink one cried out before joining the first in slumber.

"Run, before he causes the ground to become soap!" The pale yellow pony with a red and pink mane screamed, somehow dragging the other two ponies away at a speed I didn't think was possible. "Everypony hide!"

I rolled my eyes. What a bunch of namby-pampies...

"Halt!" A voice barked out from behind me. Great... even more ponies... Male and a bit angry from the sound of the voice.

When I turned I was surprised. I didn't see just a male pony but three, all decked out in bronze metal armor.Armored ponies? Well, maybe they aren't complete nampy-pampies after all... except for that brush on the tops of their helmets... what are they suppose to do with those? Fight against evil dust and grime!? I watched carefully as the three ponies then surround me glaring at me while they did. I smirked as they raised their spears at me. Three ponies with pointy sticks against one dragon? Well, I have to give them credit for their fearlessness... before I laugh at their stupidity. It's goign to take a bit more then that to stop me espically sense I don't see a win amoung them...

"By order of the Princess you are hear by under arrest." The one in front of me ordered, I think... its hard to tell who exactly is talking when all three look the same... fur, mane, hell even the armor looks the same...

"For what?" I resisted the urge to growl. I can probably take on the three ponies but I was trying to remain on the ponies good graces given I had no where else to go.

"For being a bucking dragon!"

I can't believe this shit. I eyed the ponies a bit, looking for an opening to attack so I could escape. I noted that every single one of them was staring me down, looking for any false movement on my part. That is, except for one part, my tail. Idiots... With practiced ease I whipped my tail around knocking all three ponies down before they knew what happened. I then rushed off before the ponies could recover.

Luckily, Twilight's home a short distance away. I burst through the front door and slammed it hard behind me, knocking a few books from the many shelves. Great, my friend is lives in egghead heaven...

"RAINBOW DASH!!!! HOW MANY TIMES HAVE I TOLD YOU TO PRACTICE AWAY FROM..." Twilight roared flying in from one the room upstairs. Whoa, she could almost outmatch my dams roar... The whole tree shook from the sheer force behind Twilight yell.

"Oh, it's you... Sorry about that, Rainbow Dash has been crashing into the library a lot lately trying to... oh, nevermind that, what are you doing here, Garble? I thought I told you that Spike was not coming to the gem fields for a few days..."

"You did, but I'm having an issue that I'm hoping your pony magic can help with."

"Uh, sure... what's the problem?"

"Well, I think someone is using magic to spy on me..."

"Interesting..." Twilight scratched her chin before pulling several books from the shelves. "I wonder if..."

"Wonder what!?" I growled out, annoyed that Twilight got sidetrack into reading books.

"Normally scrying spells can't be passively detected... it defeats the whole purpose. So either the caster botched the spell in some way or your dragon biology weaken the spell in a way to let you detect it..."

"That nice and all, but that is not helpful!"

"Well, if it truly is a scrying spell then we should be able to trace the mana back to the caster..." Twilight mumbled as she flipped through one book after another, "Another reason that scrying spells are constructed to not be easily detectable..."

Twilight was interrupted when the door slammed open. I looked back and sighed. It seems that those armored ponies from before tracked me down. Not surprising, I wasn't really hiding where I was going.

"What now!?" Twilight grumbled as she turned to face them.

"There you are you dirty little lizard..."

"Oh, for the love of... Guards! Stand down!" Twilight snapped, pulling the spears that they had lowered at me out of their grasp. "Garble is under the protection of the crown! Didn't you read about him in the dossier for Ponyville? I know he's in there; I wrote it myself!"

"But..." The lead pony sheepishly sputtered before Twilight glared at him in anger. She is so like my dam... "Sorry miss, Twilight..."

"Sorry about that Garble," Twilight apologized as the 'guards' sheepishly left one by one, "thanks to Discord broadcasting the Summit to every major city in Equestria ponies have been on edge about dragons..."

"Whatever." I shrugged. I really didn't care much about ponies to begin with as it was.

"Okay," Twilight exclaimed as all but on book flew back to the shelves. "I think I have the correct spell. Now, whatever happens, hold still. I don't know how much magic I have to use on you to get the spell to work..."

I watched as her horn glowed brightly for a few minutes. As it went on it was clear to me that whatever spell she was doing must have been difficult for her given the sweat that started to pour down her muzzle and the gritting of her teeth. Suddenly, with a grunt, her pink magic enveloped me. I nearly jumped as it did. I hoped what ever her magic was doing was working because her magic was causing me to inch all over.

"It had to be the Everfree..." Twilight facepalmed... facehooved? as the magic faded "Okay, let's go while we have daylight... The forest is especially dangerous after nightfall..."

---

Several hours later we were deep in the Everfree forest when we came upon a strange dead tree. It was not like any other tree in the forest so far. I think plants really look all the same to me... green.

"The spell was emanating from inside the remains of that large bog tree... Odd that there is one so far inside the Everfree..."

"I don't give a damn about a oversized veggie! I just want to stop being spied on!" I growled out preparing that largest fireball I could.

"Wait!"

"Fine..." I grumbled as I let my building flame die.

Twilight slowly walked around the tree taking a good look at it as she did. Its a tree... that's spying on me. I don't know why she insisted on looking it over. Stupid plant huggers...

When she made it back over she whisper shouted to me. "There is an entrance on the other side masked by some vines."

I jogged over to her and then followed her as she walked to the other side and pointed to a curtain of vines. I raised an eyebrow at the very poorly disguised opening. I pulled them aside and walked inside to find a hollowed out space similar to Spike and Twilight's home.

A large black pot bubbled away under a fire in the center of the room. Whatever was in it was smelt bad. Speaking of smell, I don't remember seeing or smelling any smoke outside. Twilight seemed more interested in other things and was currently inspecting the various jars that lined the walls along with the bunches of dried plants hanging all along the ceiling. What kind of a home is this? I didn't really care for plants and jars, but that pot.... that pot on the other hand...

Please do not be dragon cooking in there... Please do not be dragon cooking in there... I chanted as I slowly made my way to the pot.

I blinked as peered inside. It didn't contain dragon body parts but it did leave me confused. All that was in it was a pool of black liquid except for a bit of swirling color that looked almost like a dragon and something else... It reminded me a bit of the crude drawings I would make with the blood of the kills my dam brought in when I was a hatchling, except the rainbow colors part.

"Well I think we have discovered the source of your feelings of being watched." Twilight noted as she walked up and peered into the pot with me. "This looks like zebrian magic... but I didn't think it was possible for it to be mulitcolored..."

"What do you mean? It just looks like a pot with stuff in it."

"Well, if I'm not mistaken this image is being produce by a type of scrying spell using zebrian magic. Look, see, although a bit crude, it clearly shows a red and orange dragon, you, and a purple unicorn, I, standing next to a cauldron... just like what we are doing right now..."

"How perceptive of you." That voice, I know that voice!

I slowly turned to see the one person I never thought I'd see again in this lifetime. "M-M-Master?!"

Author's Note:

Okay, time for a serious question how many, besides RadicalDishonesty, saw this coming... (please use spoiler tags)?

Comments

[RadicalDishonesty]

Usually I wouldn't say this about that character, but thank goodness what was revealed in this chapter was revealed.

Only that character has the knowledge about dragons and the desire (maybe...) to stop the upcoming war without ending in genocide for either race.

[Rammy]

7953167 okay who are you and what have you done to RadicalDishonesty?