Rise of Char

by Turtlehaus

Chapter 44: The Fall of Char

With Shining Armor taking a breather, Ray Horizon stepped in to direct parts of the battalion of Flame Pony Soldiers to make safe the Narrows while the other part swept the regions of the Dark Marsh for any lingering spiders.

With the dragon having temporarily left the fields to do battle with Discord and the Royal Families in the neighboring region, every pony was able to take a momentary breather while they discussed what their next step should be. Every pony except for Sapphire that seemed to have a thousand yard stare, standing completely frozen. Twilight carefully approached her, ever so lightly tapping her on the shoulder to see if she was okay.

"Is everything alright, Princess?" Twilight asked.

"We have to find Smolder, immediately!" Sapphire suddenly shouted to the rest of the ponies.

Twilight jumped in surprise. There were very surprised and confused looks coming from every pony looking her way, but it was clear that Princess Sapphire looked very distressed about it.

"Don't worry Ice Cube, Smolder can handle himself." Rainbow Dash said trying to ease her worry.

"Actually, Smolder looked pretty messed up when he disappeared." Gleam interjected, sounding concerned.

"If Smolder's hurt we'll need to find him as soon as possible." Shining Armor stated.

"That's not the point! Smolder is going to open a portal to the Void!" Sapphire shouted frantically.

"The Void?" Nightshade asked looking puzzled; noticing the seriousness on every pony's face.

"It's another dimension that sealed away the Mad King; its perpetual darkness." Peanut explained to him.

"It also tried to suck in the rest of Equestria with it." Cosmic added, shivering at the memory of it last time.

"Now wait just a minute, how is Smolder going to open the Void? He doesn't have the Elements of Harmony." Applejack asked, not seeing things add up.

"He doesn't need the Elements of Harmony." Twilight said, magically producing the rubbing she had kept of the etching down in the dungeons.

Every pony crowded around to take a look at the rubbing to see what Twilight was talking about and what Sapphire had figured out.

"The two Obelisks' are like keys to unlocking a portal to the Void." Twilight began, pointing her hoof to the two figures on the rubbing.

"What would Smolder want to open the Void for?" Fluttershy asked sounding nervous.

"Most likely to get rid of that awful dragon. Just like how we got rid of the Mad King." Rarity suggested.

"Well that's good, right?" Nightshade asked, almost wishing he had been here when the Mad King had returned; if only to understand what was going on.

"The portal we used to banish the Mad King was no bigger than a barn door, and that nearly sucked us in with it." Applejack replied.

"The portal Smolder intends to open is bigger than Castle Char." Sapphire said very nervously.

"So that's bad?" Nightshade asked, not knowing what was worst, the dragon or the Void.

"A portal of that size could swallow all of Equestria in a matter of hours." Alex Papyrus remarked.

"Sparky wouldn't risk opening it if it was going to hurt any other pony." Pinkie Pie interjected, trying to smooth things out.

In that moment, a giant rune appeared within the sky, from the rune, flames rained down as the Great Dragon Char emerged eclipsing the sun. Fortunately, the dragon had appeared at the back of the castle, while every pony was near the front. Dropping out of the air like a rock, the Great Dragon Char landed with an earth shattering crash behind Castle Char. The force of its landing shaking the castle's stone doors to pieces, collapsing many walls throughout, and the North Tower crumbled to a heap of old stone.

Every pony laid flat upon the ground, waiting for the shaking to stop. No pony questioned the need to stop the rampage of the dragon; Smolder's plan suddenly seemed to be the most appropriate way to handle it. Except no pony knew where Smolder was.

"Fall back to the Narrows; we have to keep it protected!" Ray shouted aloud.

The battalion of Flame Ponies rushed back towards the Narrows, not sure how they were going to defend against a dragon attack but didn't think to ask questions until it started breathing fire in their direction. Ray, Solar, Wisp, Flare, Tiff, Alex, Gleam, and Goldie ran to the Narrows leaving the other ponies behind, to seek shelter and prepare for a possible final stand.

"We need to get to the Obelisks' before Smolder does!" Sapphire shouted.

"The east side of the fields is clear. I don't think any spiders are going to stick around while the dragon is so close to the castle." Shining Armor informed her.

"We're coming with you." Twilight spoke up, stepping forward towards Sapphire; Applejack, Rarity, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy behind her.

"Cosmic, Peanut, Nightshade and I will stay here and defend the Narrows if the dragon decides to come this way." Shining Armor stated.

The four colts watched Princess Sapphire, Twilight and her friends take off towards the eastern edge of the fields. Shining Armor turned to his three pegasi friends, who were all smiling at him, ready to fight alongside him without having to be asked.

"We might not make it." Shining Armor remarked, while the dragon's roar shook the very air around them.

"We've been in worse spots before." Cosmic replied, sounding tough.

"Like what?" Nightshade asked, looking puzzled at the notion.

"Remember when we accidently switched Princess Celestia's shampoo bottle with your horseshoe polish?" Cosmic reminded him.

There was a visible change in the color of Nightshade's face having suddenly remembered that particular day.

"Doesn't that stain?" Shining Armor asked in disbelief; a smile forming on his face.

"Nightshade had to devise a plan to somehow sneak back into Princess Celestia's dressing room, switch out the bottles, before Princess Celestia took a bath that night." Peanut explained the events leading up after Nightshade's mistake.

"What happened?" Shining Armor asked looking interested to hear what came next.

The sudden bellow of the Dragon caused the four colts to turn towards it to see Char beginning to smash its claws into the back end of the castle. Shining Armor looked back towards the others, knowing that once the dragon was done with the castle, it would surely come for them. Nightshade, Cosmic, and Peanut looked at one another, nodding to each other before stacking their hooves atop one another.

"If we make it through this, I'm asking for extended leave and extra time off." Cosmic stated, trying to sound brave.

"If we make it through this I'll ask Ms. Flare on a date." Peanut stated, hopefully.

"Wait! I want a do over! I want to ask out…" Cosmic said quickly but slowing down near the end of his thought. "…Goldie."

"If we make it, and we will," Shining Armor said confidently, finding courage in his friends and placing his hoof atop theirs. "I personally knight each and every pony here."

"Does that mean we have to work longer hours?" Cosmic asked, sounding hesitant at the idea.

"It means you get a pay increase, and ponies will have to start calling you, Sir." Shining Armor explained. "It also makes you look good in front of the ladies."

"If I make it through this, I'll ask Belle to marry me the moment I get back." Nightshade stated, flushing at his own words.

"You're kidding? Private Can't Talk to Pretty Ponies, is going to propose?" Cosmic asked mouth agape at Nightshade.

"Never going to happen, he'll get cold hooves the second he sees her." Peanut remarked not believing a word of it.

"I'm serious!" Nightshade insisted, still very red in the face.

"If you were serious you would have picked out and bought a gem to propose with." Shining Armor said rolling his eyes.

Nightshade remained very quiet, and very still. Peanut, Cosmic, and Shining Armor stared at him, their eyes slowly widening as they soon realized that Nightshade's silence was in part due to him having actually bought a gem to propose with.

"You've actually gotten a gem?" Shining Armor asked in disbelief.

"Let's just do the on three thing so I can go bury my head in the dirt?" Nightshade remarked, looking extremely embarrassed; trying to bounce his hoof up and down to have them start the chant.

"I want us all to make it out of this so we can all see Nightshade propose to Belle." Shining Armor said changing his mind.

"Night-Belle on three!" Cosmic shouted, having smashed the two names together.

"One, two, three, Night-Belle!" Shining Armor, Cosmic, and Peanut shouted throwing their hooves in the air; all except Nightshade who looked so embarrassed.

---

The displaced air of the dragon's landing pushed me through the corridor, knocking me off my hooves and sent me rolling several times into the Main Hall. I could hear the groaning of the old castle, having taken so much abuse, but willing to remain standing while I still remained in it; at least for now. Getting to my hooves I could hear the Great Dragon Char's claws tearing at the back of the castle attempting to reach in. The entire castle shook from its aggressive slashes; the top of Castle Char being torn away piece by piece. Wanting to put as much distance between the dragon and myself, I decided to make a run for the main entrance while I still had the chance.

That's when the roof of the castle caved in with the head of Char breaking through the ceiling, snapping wildly, its eyes scanning the room for me; smoke spewing from its nostrils.

I didn't hesitate to run. Fear was driving me now. I raced towards the entrance of Castle Char, paying no mind to the heaps of fallen spiders strewn about the hall. The only other thought that ran through my mind was every pony had gotten away safely; Sapphire would have made sure of that.

The sounds of stone bricks being thrusted against one another filled the hall; the dragon had removed its head from the ceiling, and proceeded with its immense steps to circle to the front of the castle. Each step shook the floor beneath me, making it rather difficult to keep all of my hooves on the ground, the sound of its breaths were snorting in frustration of being unable to reach me. Having nearly reached the entrance, the massive claws of the Great Dragon Char had reached in through the front entrance, attempting to grab hold of me.

Sliding to a stop, digging my hooves hard into the stone, I watched as its claws struck the ground before me; just inches from reaching me. Char's claws dug deep into the ground, stretching its claws as far as it would go, feeling around. I turned back, looking towards the Throne Room at the top of the stairs, having made up my mind quite quickly, and made a desperate run for it.

The smashing of stone echoed across the Main Hall, Char once more thrusting its head through top of the ceiling. I dared not to look back, running as fast as my legs could carry me, pouncing up the staircase towards the throne room. I could feel the sudden swell of heat behind me.

The dragon was preparing to breathe its fire. Knocking through the stone doors of the Throne Room, I looked backed, feeling a pulse emanate from my forehead and watched the stone doors slam shut behind me. The dragon's fire filled the Main Hall, swirling to ever corner of the castle, blowing stone doors off their hinges, slamming against the throne room doors and shattering them with little effort.

Not only could I feel the fire surging behind me, I could see the light of the flames growing intensely in front of me the closer it came. I leaped past the throne, jumping through the already shattered window, only to feel the tail end of the flames throw me several yards further then I was expecting; slamming hard into the dirt.

Rolling over, groaning from the hard fall I took. The Great Dragon Char continued to thrash against the castle, believing that I was still somewhere inside; at least for a time. Looking out over the fields I could see no sign of any pony, yet I saw two Obelisks towering in the distance, spaced about thirty meters apart. I blinked several times in disbelief, hardly believing that my plan had a chance to work.

All that I needed to do was reach the Obelisks in time before the dragon realized where I was. I stole a glance over my shoulder to see if the dragob had noticed my escape, what I saw was the arm of the Great Dragon Char striking the west side of the castle, with its massive claws, rendering the entire west side to rubble, trying to dig its way inside. Covering my head to shield myself from the debris, being pelted by the remnants of the castle, I could feel myself be buried beneath the rubble, and the weight of the stones beginning to mount.

That's when I lifted my hooves to escape from being buried beneath the rubble and a stone struck me in the back of the head. I fell to the ground, the world spinning, and my head slamming against the dirt; debris washing over me.

There wasn't much room to move; clouds of dirt were beginning to settle. From a space between the debris, I could see some sunlight to mark a path for me. The hit from the rogue stone had nearly knocked me out, it did enough to keep me from moving, trying to shake the daze, and keep a level head. I lay underneath the ruins of the castle.

Each moment that passed made it harder to keep awake, looking at the small bit of light coming from the space; numbness being replaced with pain. My mind started to fade, my thoughts beginning to drift away, my vision started to blur, and my eyes began to close. The little light started to take shape, turning into a hazed dim glow, so small and so piercing; the same way Mira had looked at me from the mirror.

"What about your promises?"

Mira's words floated into my head. I could almost see her face, the way she looked at me, how frightened she was. Wondering if I would come to help her, as I had promised, or would I end up ignoring her like Lord Smoke had done so many years ago. I wouldn't know what was waiting for me on the other side, I couldn't let any pony follow me, and put them in danger. This was something I needed to do, something I had promised to do.

"I am the King." I whispered to myself.

My flames plumed under the rubble, grinding my teeth, eyes shut tight, forcing myself to move. Crawling through the stones of my home, choking on my empire of dirt, I dug myself towards the light.

Pressing my hoof against the light, the rocks began to shift, cascading away from me drawing more rocks and dirt from above with it. Almost like water the dirt rolled over my head, suffocating my flames, my fire starting to rise within me attempting to escape. Pressing my wings against the rocks around me, I pulled myself up out of the rubble, feeling the dirt stream off of me; wings beating hard trying to fan the dirt from me. As soon as I felt my flames ignite, the ground beneath me began to spin, I was running towards the light, the sun that beamed down on me.

---

Turning its head towards the only thing moving in the fields, the Great Dragon Char locked its eyes on the lone Flame Pony racing away from the castle. Turning itself towards the fields, Char roared shaking what few bricks still clung to the west wall of the castle to the ground, before slithering its way after the small Flame Pony.

On the eastern side of the fields, Sapphire, Twilight, Rarity, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie and Applejack were sprinting opposite the dragon, attempting to reach the Obelisks' first, but keep a large distance from them and the dragon.

"There's Matchstick!" Rainbow Dash shouted out, pointing to the small flame running up the fields.

Sapphire raced harder, cursing her fractured wing, begging for a miracle to keep Smolder away from the Obelisks'. She could see Smolder in the distance, the dragon no more then a couple hundred meters away, coming to a halt in the middle of the fields. Positioned between the two Obelisks', the dragon coming dangerously close to reaching him, and it caused Sapphire to cut inwards and sprint head long towards the Obelisks' risking being noticed by the Great Dragon Char.

---

The Obelisks' markings began to pulse neon green. My flames seemed to pulse along with it. This seemed familiar to me, as it was from the visions I had of Lord Smoke having opened and closed it. I mimicked Lord Smoke's gesture, spreading out my wings hoping that it would result in something.

My fire was suddenly being pulled from my wings, the obelisks feeding off my flame, causing them to shine dimly. My muscles tightened after feeling the sensation of hundreds of needles being jabbed into me, I could sense that I was going to need more fire to activate them in time. The lumbering stomps of the Great Dragon Char were nearing. I began to dig deep for my flames, letting go of all my restraints, allowing myself to relive every happy moment, every painful memory, facing every hope and desire I knew would end here and now if I failed to do this.

The Obelisks' released a powerful dark green pulse that leveled the upturned earth around the area, and impacting the Great Dragon Char hard enough to stop its approach. I collapsed to the ground. A small flicker of my flames remained, breathing heavily, closing my eyes, feeling my heart beating a hundred times a minute.

A large crack boomed across the fields, a single black orb appeared high above the space between the two Obelisks', the air around it shaking at its presence. The orb had caught the dragon's eye, watching it carefully with new found interest. The orb began to stretch itself vertically, a black line drawing itself in the air while Char roared at it in confusion. For a moment, the black line hung in the air, drawing complete silence. Like a crack of thunder the line jutted open in an instant, creating a massive black portal hovering within the fields; touching the ground and reaching far above Castle Char ever stood. The light from Equestria shown into the portal, revealing a decrepit castle perched precariously upon a jutted cliff; everything else was blanketed in black sand.

The Elder Dragon positioned itself, lowering its body, ready to pounce at whatever loomed within. Roaring its challenge, wings raised ready to defend, spitting flames to taunt its unseen opponent. Something massive stirred in the darkness, with Char's eyes scanning the blackness attempting to lock eyes with something.

A black mist started to billow from the edges of the portal, causing Char to shift uncomfortably in place, roaring at the portal in frustration. The scales upon Char's stomach started to glow, fire beginning to build within its belly; preparing to illuminate the dark world. From the darkness a massive storm of black clouds reached out through the portal grasping the Great Dragon Char like a hand clutching a toy. Char struggled against the blackened clouds, shrieking in terror, attempting to free itself. A breath of fire from the Great Dragon Char disappeared within the clouds, seeming to have absorbed it before forcefully dragging Char back towards the portal.

I opened my eyes. The storm raging above me, struggling with Great Dragon Char, feeling the ground quake from the dragon's thrashing. I could do little more than lift myself up at this point, my flames so low that I was sure a strong breeze would extinguish them.

The storm raged overheard, mixed with the frightened cries of the dragon, nearly having pulled it to the entrance of the portal. Char's claws struck the ground beside me, forcing me to slide a few feet closer to the portal, shielding myself with one arm trying to drag myself out of the way of its thrashing. Glancing through the portal I noticed two dim yellow glowing eyes staring back at me through the darkness.

"Mira?" I asked, trying to adjust my eyes to the darkness.

"Smolder! Get out of there!" Sapphire shouted.

I looked away from the Void, seeing Sapphire several yards away, racing towards me with Twilight and the rest; about to brave the wild thrashings of the Great Dragon Char. A swipe of Char's tail struck the ground in front of Twilight and the others, stopping them short, shielding themselves from the explosion of dirt that flew from it. Sapphire was far enough in front for the tail to have struck behind her, nearly knocking her off her stride but refusing to stumble while she raced towards me. My eyes met Sapphire's; her face was full of fright and worry.

"You are the stupidest, most unreasonable, infuriating, half-witted, thick-headed, misguided…" Sapphire did not stop mumbling all the things she believed me to be; none of them good.

Helping me to my hooves once more, Sapphire attempted to drape my arm over her shoulder again but I pulled away; staggering back a few paces. Sapphire took hold of my arm, stopping me from backing up into the Void.

"We have to get out of here!" Sapphire shouted, pulling on my arm, but I refused to budge.

Sapphire stared at me, insisting that I move from the spot by tugging on my arm. I could see how worried she was for me. Clutching my chest piece, I pulled off the metal seal Wingston and the others had given me the night of my Coronation. I took hold of her arm, placing the seal in her hoof; smiling weakly at her.

"Smolder what is-"

I leaned forward, giving her the best hug I could muster, although I felt I was merely leaning up against her for support. The black clouds of the storm started to overtake the Great Dragon Char completely. Its shrieks were soon muffled as the clouds ripped Char off its claws and pulled it closer to the portal.

"Smolder?" Sapphire asked sounding confused.

"I have to keep my promises." I whispered to her; before stepping back.

The Obelisks' flickered for a moment, the edges of the portal wavering. There came a sudden crack of thunder from the storm, millions of terrified cries started to leach from the black clouds. Within the storm clouds the darkness twisted, snapping the bones of Char's legs causing the Great Dragon Char to shriek its last cry before being dragged into the darkness beyond the portal. Sapphire took a step towards me, while I mirrored it with a step back. It was obvious to her what I intended to do.

"Smolder." Sapphire said pleadingly.

The Obelisks' power faded. No longer pulsing its neon green, causing the portal to close inwards, like invisible curtains being draw over it. I stepped back a few more steps, crossing the wavering threshold of the portal; smiling at Sapphire all the while. Over my shoulder, Sapphire caught a glimpse of the two dim yellow eyes watching us from within the darkness.

"I'm leaving the rest to you and the others." I mumbled.

Sapphire watched the edges of the portal close between her and Smolder. A black line drawing itself up above the fields before once more creating the small black orb that faded from sight. Looking down at her hoof, Sapphire gazed at the metal seal in her hoof, watching the it slowly forming frost. Princess Celestia, Lord Tundra, Lady Frost, Princess Cadance and Discord touched down near the other ponies, as Twilight and her friends began to explain what had transpired. Clutching the metal seal tightly in her hoof, a few small snowflakes fell from her eyes.

"Stupid Flame Pony." Sapphire whispered.