The teen dragoness continues to hover before you all, and seeing as how you’re not going to break the ice, Grandbuggy coughs into his hoof.
Puzzling Frost’s Comment
“Ahem…hello Princess, I’ve come to meet your father. I’m sure he’s told you of me?” Grandbuggy says taking a step forward. The blue dragon huffs at her title and sighs.
“Yeah, yeah, I heard of your arrival from the other dragons. My dad’s in the cave,” she grumbles rolling her eyes. Grandbuggy smiles and nods at this before turning to you with a sheepish expression.
“Now Nightshade I know you’re not keen on not partaking in this, but it’d be better for all of us if you stayed out here. I don’t want you caught in the middle if this meeting goes south.” Grandbuggy says leaning down to look you in the eyes.
“But Grandbuggy I’ll be fine! I took down that giant plant monster! I can handle myself,” You whine in annoyance.
“I know you can dear, I’m not saying you can’t but this is something we can’t risk. Remember this is for your mommy remember?”
“Yeah I know…” you groan as you look at the ashy ground.
“Here you can make friends with the princess here, having her be on our side would really help things out,” he says to you with pleading eyes. You sigh in reluctance but you nod your head.
Sure, make friends with a teen dragon I’m not allowed to pummel, that can only go well…
He smirks and pulls you in for a hug, and despite your moodiness, you reciprocate. You may be huffy, but you aren’t that much of a brat.
“Alrighty then, don’t get into too much trouble, and avoid anything your pops would consider fun,” he says before he looks up in thought. “Or rather, go ahead. Fire is all the rage with dragons, might be a good conversation starter.” And with a smirk he walks into the cave entrance.
Well too bad I’m not a pyromaniac like you or Daddy, you think to yourself as Greta gives a thumbs up to you and follows Grandbuggy.
“Don’t worry nina, I’ll make sure he doesn’t do anything too loco,” Ahuizotl assures you as he follows the rest.
The dragon princess watches as your companions enter the cave before looking back at you.
Kichi’s Comment
Zapper frost’s Comment
The Pony Spartan’s Comment
“Ugh, did I seriously just get volunteered for babysitting duty?” she complains.
“Hey, I’m not a baby!” you bark back. “And it’s not like I want to be here either…”
“Yeah, well, I don’t exactly have any frilly pony things around here, so don’t even ask for tea on some tiny pink plastic table,” she says as she lands in front of you.
“And what’s wrong with tea?” you challenge. “I mean sure I prefer soda and all, but it’s alright.” She raises a brow at that.
“What’s soda?” she asks and your jaw drops.
“You don’t know what soda is?!” you shout in outrage and she just shrugs.
“It’s pony stuff, and quite frankly, you’re the first one I’ve met.”
“But soda is like the life blood of the universe! It’s sweet, bubbly, and 9 times out of 10 you can put ice cream in it!”
“…Ice cream?”
“AAAAAHHHHH!!!” you shout in frustration and she winces.
“And there’s the crying I was expecting, ugh!” she looks away from you.
“Well it’s your fault! You’re missing out on two of the greatest inventions ever!” you shout.
“Oh whatever,” she grumbles. “Now can you stop whining already? It’s bad enough my dad made me sit out on this meeting, the least you could do is make it suck less.”
“Wait, you weren’t allowed in either?” you ask curiously.
“Heh! No,” she spits. “My dad is like overprotective to the extreme. So what if a so called living legend has returned, oh I guess you can’t go see that Ember! Grrr…”
In that moment, a bit of sympathy hits you.
“I know right? They think they always know what’s 'best for you’ or that 'you’re too young to understand' or some other stupid reason.”
“Exactly!” she says triumphantly, pointing at you. “And when you argue, they hit you back with that ‘I’ve gotta protect you,’ BS.”
“Oh don’t I know it!” you agree getting riled up. “I mean, how many times do I need to show that I can defend myself before they get the message? Zombies, bulls, freaking kaiju? Can’t they see I’m tough?”
“Yeah!” she encourages. “And then they butt in every time you try to talk to a guy and make them all scared of you, like you couldn’t deal with them in the first place!”
“Preaching to the choir,” you agree.
"Adults…" you both groan at the same time before you both look each other in the eye and laugh.
"Ember," she says offering a claw.
"Nightshade," you respond as you shake with your hoof.
“Heh, never thought I’d have so much in common with the first pony I met,” she chuckles.
“Yeah, well, I guess our dad’s are just the same amount of dumb,” you giggle.
“Do all ponies have overprotective dads?” she asks sincerely.
“I mean…” you trail off as you think about it. “I don’t think so? Then again I don’t really know that many families. My friend Sweetie Belle’s parents are nice and let her do basically whatever, Scootaloo’s parents are always out of town on business, and Applebloom’s parents are straight up dead, so I don’t really have that much frame of reference.”
“Huh…” Ember says sounding a bit intrigued and confused. “Well speaking of which, where is your dad? Because though I don’t doubt that the Disaster in there fathered you, you kept calling him Grandbuggy.”
“Oh, well he’s actually my Great Grandpa, and as for my Daddy he’s not in this reality right now…it’s hard to explain,” you say.
“…Alright then,” she just shrugs and goes with it. “But I gotta say, you don’t look much like a bug.”
“Yeah, I tend to keep that part hidden,” you say as you flash some green flame on your face and give yourself some fangs. “Most ponies would flip I think.”
“Probably…speaking of, are you like royalty or something? Dad once told me horses with wings and horns were in charge.”
“Oh yeah, most alicorns are. There’s four of them now that are princesses but I’m…not really a princess I don’t think, though in a weird way I am related to them…it’s complicated.”
“Sounds like it,” she says as she scratches her horns. “So…since we’re not exactly allowed into the cave, you wanna go do something fun?”
“Like what?” you ask.
“Well, how good are you at fooling others out of treasure?” she asks with a conspiratorial grin.
Puzzling Frost’s Comment
With Grandbuggy
Further in the cave, the rest of the Outcasts notice several carvings sketched into the walls.
“Intriguing,” Ahuizotl gapes as his inner archaeologist bubbles up.
“Yeah, it’s like a tapestry made of rocks,” Greta says as she views claw drawn portraits of past Dragon Lords.
“Well, paper doesn’t do so well out in these lands,” Grandbuggy chuckles as he passes a depiction of a group of dragons fighting what looks like a big red ape with a horse body.
“It may not be eloquent, but it is fascinating. Oh hey Fix, I think that one’s of you,” Ahuizotl points to a mural depicting a changeling in a bowler hat drinking with a large blue dragon.
“Oh for Pete’s sake,” Grandbuggy grumbles and looks away from the drawing. “I’ve left several marks on history, and yet it’s this that these dumb lizards choose to remember.”
Shaking his head Grandbuggy walks forward into the central chamber where everal dragons stand ready as guards for their lord. Ahuizotl and Greta gasp and hold there breath as they catch site of the being beyond them. There, sitting upon a mountain’s worth of gold and jewels lies the largest dragon they have ever seen.
Twice the size of Smaug with thrice the number of scales and closed wings so massive they would not be able to fit in the large chamber if unfurled. Large black armor adorns his chest, and atop his head is a humongous crown of red crystals, and two curved white horns that could easily pierce an airship, one of which is decorated with a large gold ring.
Upon their entrance, he clenches a jaw large enough to swallow ten manticores and raises a claw as large as three hay carts to point at them. In said claw is the Bloodstone Scepter that they’ve traveled oh so far for, looking like a toothpick in his mitt. The massive beast opens his mouth revealing rows and rows of sharp teeth, strong enough to turn diamonds into dust.
“WHO DARES ENTER THE CHAMBER OF TORCH, THE UNDAUNTED, THE MOUNTAIN BREAKER, 13TH LORD OF THE DRAGONS?!” he roars, his voice echoing throughout the mountain itself. Greta and Ahuizotl gulp in sheer terror as they cling to each other, but Grandbuggy just grumbles as he picks at his hurt ears.
“Still a loud blowhard as ever eh Torchie?” Grandbuggy jokes. The dragon guards growl at this, but cease as Torch raises a claw. He opens his eyes, the orange irises glowing like fire surrounding black slits that narrow as he lowers his head to the group’s level.
“You’ve gotten old,” Torch says looking to the old changeling.
“You got fat,” Grandbuggy says right back, never breaking eye contact. The guards look to each other nervously while Greta and Ahuizotl feel their souls leave their bodies in fear. After an eternity of silence though, Torch smiles as he lets out a hardy laugh.
“HA HA HA HA ha ah. Oh it’s good to see you again old friend,” he says merrily, lifting a fist.
“You too you big lug,” Grandbuggy chuckles lifting his hoof to bump the fist. The guard’s jaws drop at the exchange while Ahuizotl and Greta fall to floor with a thump.
The kaiju sized dragon lets out another hearty laugh as he sees them fall.
“Oh, it has been far too long. The years may have finally caught up with you, but that bowler is still as fresh as ever,” he says pointing to Grandbuggy’s hat.
“Ayup, and it don’t matter how many times you try to win it, this here hat ain’t never leaving me,” Grandbuggy smirks back.
“Heh, I’ve got time,” Torch chuckles as Greta and Ahuizotl sit back up. “Who’re your new friends? More companions of the Doctor?”
“That’s Ahuizotl and Greta, and nah they’re not companions, just your usual pair of criminals and graverobbers,” Grandbuggy chuckles.
“Hey!” they both say in indignation as Torch laughs.
“Nice, very nice,” he nods. “Though I heard through the vine that you had a pony with you too?”
“Oh right, my Great Grandaughter Nightshade. I left her outside with your kid,” Grandbuggy explains.
“Great Granddaughter?” he says in shock before he smirks. “Why you old dog, did you and Orchard Smith actually start a family?”
Grandbuggy suddenly looks downtrodden at the question as he looks down and bites his lip.
“Not…not really,” he says solemnly. “We had a daughter, but things with me and Smithy…it didn’t work out…”
Torch notices the mood shift and how tender the subject is and gasps out,
“Oh…Uh…sorry about that ol’ chum.”
“Yeah…” Grandbuggy nods as Greta and Ahuizotl eye him curiously. He then coughs into his hoof and looks back up. “But enough about the past, why don’t we get down to business and catch up?”
“Business you say?” the giant says with a greedy glint in his eye. “I like the sound of that.”
Grandbuggy then goes on to tell him exactly what they’ve come there for. A petrified dragon egg, and a piece of the Bloodstone Scepter.
“And do I even want to know what you need those for?” he asks.
“No, not really,” Grandbuggy says simply.
“Eh, never hurts to ask. I do happen to have a petrified egg, actually it came from my nest when I was young.”
Grandbuggy lets out a sigh of relief at that.
“I’ll be willing to play just about anything for that. But for the Scepter…We’re gonna have to play something a bit harder for that,” he says ominously.
“I figured as much. It is almost time isn’t it?” Grandbuggy says in understanding.
“Yup! Almost time to retire and let one of the whelps run things for a millennia or two,” he says wistfully.
“Sounds like a plan,” Grandbuggy nods. “So…”
Changer T Emerald’s Comment
Ello Calebero’s Comment
“What game are we playing?” Grandbuggy asks.
The massive dragon leans down, his head easily dwarfing everyone else.
“Well since you’ve got some friends with you, we got the usual. Black jack, hold’em, war, old maid,” he lists off.
Grandbuggy contemplates silently for a moment before he smirks trollishly.
“How about…UNO?”
A collective gasp echoes from the guard dragons inside the cavern as Torch looks utterly bewildered. He narrows his eyes and grins.
“Oh that’s evil…Is this vengeance for the Monopoly incident?”
“You bet your sweet bippy it is,” Grandbuggy nods and the dragon smiles, showing off his column sized teeth as Ahuizotl and Greta shudder in fear once again.
“I accept.” And with a thunderous snap of his fingers, the guards break formation and after a few moments, a regular sized chest is brought out. Grandbuggy doesn’t even wait for permission as he opens the chest, and takes out the colorful cards.
Down with Chrysalis’s Comment
"Now Fix, need I have to remind you of Da Rulz?" Torch says in a playful mocking voice.
Grandbuggy simply rolls his eyes at the question before he starts shuffling the deck.
"Oh please, you think I've forgotten the sacred rules of the gamble at my age? I've been playing for far too many years to forget them!"
"Fix-"
"Why, I dare say I invented gambling. Don't let those history books fool ya, those ponies were mean as buck when it came to their card games. I got a new hole in me cause one feller decided he didn't like losing at his own game,"
"Fix!"
"Course, it was The Blackjack Kid, so I guess he would be a bit pissed off for some random changeling kicking his ass at his namesake, but that's no good reason to stab someling ya know?"
"FIX!"
Grandbuggy's head leans back slightly at the force of the shout, but not before he plugs his nose at the smell at the dragon lords breath.
"Geeze Torch, lay off the Amber and Arsenopyrite! Your breath smells worse than a Diamond Dog's tunnel during a heat wave!"
While most of the other residents in the hall stare at Grandbuggy like he just signed his own death warrant, Torch just gives a mighty deep chuckle before saying,
"Yes yes of course, but if you could stop gloating for five seconds maybe you could pick up all those cards you've managed to scatter all over the place?"
Looking down, Grandbuggy sees a mess of cards scattered all over the floor. As skilled as he is at gambling, the old bug is not a shuffler.
"Heh heh heh, guess old age is getting to my hooves," he chuckles in embarrassment.
“Oh please, you couldn’t shuffle worth a damn back before your shell had wrinkles in it,” Torch cackles.
“He does have a point,” Ahuizotl agrees having been in quite the number of games with the old bug.
“Ah shove it ya dang overgrown weasel,” Grandbuggy barks before reluctantly handing the cards to Greta.
“Uh, why me?” she asks.
“Because you play them vidya games, so you’re probably good with your claws,” he explains.
With all eyes on her, Greta gulps and starts shuffling as best she can, which is leagues better than what he did.
“Alright! Progress!” Torch cheers before turning to one of his guards. “Bring some drinks and make it snappy.”
“Yes my lord!” the dragon says as he flies off.
“I ain’t doing no drinking competition again,” Grandbuggy says sternly.
“You say that now,” Torch says mischievously. “But we’ll see how it goes. Since you ain’t attached no more I know a few ladies who are awfully anxious to see you again. Remember Emerald and Cinder?”
Grandbuggy’s face pales at those names and sweat appears on his brow.
“Is that something we should be worried about?” asks Ahuizotl as the guard returns and sets down fairly large tankards full of ale in front of them.
“I sure hope not,” he says breathlessly as he takes a huge swig of his drink.
“Oh this only bodes well,” Greta says tiredly.
With You
“And so then I realized that magic missile wasn’t going to work on all of them, this was back before I knew I could summon legions of the damned myself you see, but then Daddy showed up with a Chainsaw and went hog wild.”
Ember listens to your tale about Sunny Town with the utmost attention as you walk together towards your destination.
“That’s…pretty freaking awesome actually,” she says impressed.
“Yeah, but then Pyramid Head showed up, he’s this enemy from a videogame, do you have video games?”
“Uh…”
“I’ll take that as a no. But yeah, he showed up, rained on our parade, and so my cousin Applebloom and I told Daddy that we had to bury Ruby. Oh and this was way before I found out Applebloom was my cousin by the way, though I guess she’s technically a second cousin. I’m sure she’s going to freak out as much as I did when I found out since her older sister has kissed my Daddy. But yeah, then we…”
And you continue chatting her ear off about your little escapades, giving little tidbits of info here and there so that she can understand the story better.
“So wait, why didn’t your dad just use his dark power or whatever?” she asks.
“Oh, that’s back when Mommy was still sick and weak after saving Daddy from dying when an alternate universe version of another one of my cousins stabbed him with orichalcum,” you explain, causing her head to spin.
“That’s…I’m having trouble following your life’s story,” she admits.
“Yeah,” you nod reluctantly. “Maybe I should have started from the beginning, but if I had we would be here all day.”
“Well what I’m getting mainly from it is that your Dad’s had some pretty epic adventures and makes you sit out for most of them,” she summarizes.
“…Yeah. Yeah that sums it up pretty much,” you say gritting your teeth a bit. “I mean, if he wasn’t in another dimension right now, he would never have let me go treasure hunting with Grandbuggy. That’s why it’s so important that we get all we need to get before trying to figure out how to get this stupid broken amulet out of my chest.”
She looks down at the crystal wound and nods.
“It’s a shame though, it looks pretty badass,” she says truthfully.
“I know, right? The only downside is I might become crazy and start wishing for the downfall of my enemies as I stand above them as their one true ruler where my word is absolute…But mostly because my Dad will flip out like he usual does.”
She raises a brow at that before shrugging.
“Yeah I can understand that. My dad and mom got hit badly by lightning like a thousand years ago, and now every time there’s a storm, he makes me go in a cave!” she huffs.
“That sucks,” you sympathize. “What you’ve got to do though is start leaving the bag-er-cave after they’ve made you go inside and start pushing the boundaries.”
“Does that actually work?” she asks.
“I mean, a bit. I used to not be able to leave to even talk to ponies. I mean sure, I used to sleep a lot when I was younger, but I still wanted to meet new folks, but no, it was always ‘Get in the Bag! It’s Dangerous!’” you spit.
“Yeesh,” she shakes her head. “Well alright then. Next time there’s a thunderstorm, I’ll just go for a nice little fly, Dad’s opinion be damned.”
“Heck yeah! That’s the spirit! Show your Dad what you really think!” you cheer.
“Yeah, I’ll show him up for being so clingy,” she nods.
“For being overprotective,” you add.
“For not letting me have dangerous fun,” she throws out.
“For always acting like a psycho,” you pitch.
“For always trying to make me safe…” she says a little softer.
“For putting himself at risk for me…” you trail off as well.
“For caring too much…”
You both stay silent for a moment as conflicting emotions wage war in your head before the Teen dragon coughs and breaks the silence.
“But yeah, if it came down to it, who do you think would win in a match between our dads if we were ‘In Danger?’” she air quotes.
“Oh my daddy would, no contest,” you hoofwave and Ember looks at you incredulously.
“Really? You haven’t seen my Dad yet. He’s literally the size of a mountain, and I’m not misusing the word literally here.”
“Yeah, but my Dad has both the power of my Mommy and Sombra, and when he goes into his Awakened form, he’s pretty powerful,” you argue back.
“I heard he beat Smaug, but that took a lot of effort, and Smaug is nowhere near my Dad’s level,” she counters.
“True, but after everything my Dad’s done, you still think so?”
“I’m just saying, maybe you’ve embellished a little,” she argues. “I mean, I may not know how Changeling’s work exactly, but dismantling their entire magical mind magic and reducing their Queen into a bumbling mess of obsession by himself?”
“My Mommy is literally a goddess of the moon, and that’s what you have trouble believing?” you sputter.
And for a little while longer you two keep arguing about who’s dad could beat up who.
“So by your logic, you could beat up my Dad because you beat up yours?”
“I mean…I’m sure I could,” you boast. “I beat up Sombra and my Dad once.”
“I thought you said that Spork guy you keep mentioning helped you with that,” she points out.
“No no, his name is Spike and…Yeah you know what, I bet with Spike at my side, we could take your Dad down,” you smile.
She raises her brow at that.
“You really have a lot of confidence in this guy huh?”
“Well yeah, he’s like my top best friend,” you say. “If it weren’t for him I’d think that all dragons were just monsters and not nice like him.”
“Whoa wait a sec, he’s a dragon?” she asks in surprise.
“Yeah…didn’t I mention that already?”
“No not really,” she says. “You just kept saying his name over and over again and how great he was, I thought he was like your mate or something.”
“Wh-What?! No! No it’s not like that!” you say in embarrassment as your face flushes.
“Well now I know that since you said he was a dragon, which is pretty interesting…”
The crystals in your chest glow faintly as your eye twitches at that.
“What do you mean interesting?” you ask inquisitively.
Yeah, why is he interesting when you think he’s not my coltfriend?
“Just that there’s a dragon living with ponies. You’d think a guy like that would be all soft and squishy, but from what you’ve said he sounds tough,” she informs.
“Yeah…he is tough,” you say with a bit of a snarl as you feel angry for some reason and your shards glow more.
Who does this hussy think she is?!
“For sure. At least he’s doing his dragon heritage proud. I actually wouldn’t mind meeting him,” she mentions off hand and you grit your teeth and fly in front of her face.
“Huh? What are you-“
“No, No I don’t think you will be ‘meeting him!’” you growl.
“Uh, what’s going o-“
“Back off from what’s mine or I’ll cut you down whorse!” you threaten as your eyes glow brightly white.
“I don’t even know what you’re talking about!” bemoans Ember as she takes a few steps back.
“Spike isn’t yours! Get that through your head!” you command, your voice on the edge of the RCV.
“Alright, alright, jeeze, cool your jets you jealous little horse!” she growls back.
“What?! Jealous?! I’m not jealous!” you sputter as your eyes and shards stop glowing.
“Yeah, well you could have fooled me,” she grunts and gives you the stink eye. “If you’re involved you don’t have to worry about me, I was just curious about a Dragon raised by ponies is all.”
“In-Involved?!” you squeak as your face goes deep red from embarrassment. “I-I-I’m not-We’re just-“
Ember places a claw on your head and lowers your body back to the ground and now that you’re no longer threatening her, she’s smirking again.
“You’re even worse than Crackle was when she was still with Garble,” she says before shuddering. “So many unprovoked bitings…”
“Ye-yeah, b-but Spike and I aren’t dating or anything,” you stutter. “I just worry about him a lot and-and…”
“Relax Shade, it’s fine,” she reassures. “In fact this just shows that you’re attracted to the Apex Species on the planet, which is fine by me. Dragons are awesome after all,” she boasts.
You hide your face behind your wings as you look away from her.
“I’m so sorry for snapping at you! I don’t know what came over me…b-but it’s not because I like Spike like that or anything!”
“Baka!” a cockatrice bellows after you say that.
“Shut up!” you yell at the chicken snake as it slithers away.
“Huh, must have gotten out of someone’s pen,” Ember says as it goes behind a rock.
“Y-Yeah, well let’s just stop talking about this in general huh?” you plead and she looks at you in amusement.
The Pony Spartan’s Comment
“What, is crossbreeding illegal for ponies or something?”
“Huh?” you ask.
“I mean, you’re a hybrid and you obviously like a dragon, so is that against pony law?”
“Uh…I don’t think so?” you say truthfully.
“Huh,” she ponders. “Well it would make sense why the Dragon Unicorn hybrids went into seclusion.”
“Say what now?” you ask.
“My dad told me there was a race of Dragon Unicorns that came about because of a birthday party that got way out of hand, and that they lived separately from ponies and dragons. I think your Great Grandpa was actually responsible now that I think about it.”
“Wow, that’s the first I’ve heard of such a thing,” you admit.
“Yeah, I think they called them the Nirkins or something. But yeah, you’re tough enough, don’t let stupid ponies say you can’t crossbreed.”
“Uh…sure,” you say confused. “Quick question, what does crossbreed mean?”
She looks at you in shock at that.
“For real?”
“…Yes?”
“…How old are you?”
“I’ll be four soon,” you answer and her eyes widen.
“I see…” she says nervously. “Uh, you’ll find out when you’re older.”
“OH FOR BUCK’S SAKE!!!”
A FEW MOMENTS LATER
After cursing up a storm over being once again denied the answers to the mystery of what the buck adults are always talking about, you decide to let it go since it gets her to stop talking about you and Spike.
Yeah she doesn’t know what she’s talking about…Though maybe I should keep her from meeting Spike alone just in case…
Eventually you all get back to talking about random stuff and you regale her with more of your deeds, when suddenly she says,
Roker12’s Comment
“Oh look, here we are.” You are now by the shoreline, and a little ways offshore is a lone volcanic island.
“Kind of a crummy beach,” you admit seeing more rock than sand.
“Well we’re not here for the beach,” she says pointing to the volcano. “That’s the Gauntlet of Fire. When my Dad finally decides to up and retire, I’m going to conquer that trial and be the next Dragon Lord.”
“Cool,” you respond. “But I thought you said we were going to scam others out of their treasure?”
“What, I can’t point out something cool?” she says with her hands on her hips.
“…Sorry,” you apologize.
“No worries. But yeah, when I get in charge, there’s gonna be a lot of changes around here. But that comes later. Right now we pick our sucker now that you’ve brought him back.”
“Huh?” you ask as she starts walking along the beach.
“The messengers said that Garble came back with you right?”
“Oh yeah. His dad was super grumpy about that and made him go hang out with his sister.” She smiles mischievously at that.
“Perfect. That guy’s such a tool, getting treasure out of him and his dumb friends will be a cinch.”
As you crest a small hill, you hear voices coming from the other side. One of them you recognize as Garble, but the other is new.
Puzzling Frost’s Comment
“Come on Smolder, quit hugging me so much. My friends might see,” you hear him whine.
“What’s a matter Gar Gar? Afraid someone will realize that you missed your little sister?” the voice says teasingly.
“Yes! I’m on a quest for vengeance, I can’t be seen as weak.”
“Oh, like your little bongo drums didn’t scream that?” the younger female voice snarks.
“Shh!” he shushes. “No one knows about that but you and Crackle.”
“Oh now I can’t talk about it? You just bragged about owning those Hippie Ponies with your skills,” she huffs.
You hold back a snort of laughter learning that tidbit.
Definitely saving that for later, you think as you and the Princess crest the ridge. Sure enough, you see your punching bag with a female dragon, a little bigger than Spike with a familiar coloration.
“What the heck? Scootaloo? Did you get turned into a dragon?” you ask as both of them turn to you.
“Oh great, just perfect,” Garble grumbles as the Scootadragon raises a brow at your words
“Scootawho?” she asks.
“My pegasus friend, you’ve got her same color scheme,” you explain.
The little dragon looks at her older brother before back at you.
“Well I’m not a bird horse, I’m a dragon,” she says before looking at Princess Ember with sparkly eyes. “Hi Princess!”
Kichi’s Comment
“Ugh, hi Squirt,” Ember waves lazily. While the not-Scootaloo dragon gushes a bit, you look to Ember who rolls her eyes.
“The little twerp has been hanging around me a lot asking me to be her mentor and big sister and other stupid stuff, it’s really annoying,” she explains. You look back at the orange dragon and her excitement, then back to Ember’s nonchalance, and back.
“…Seriously, this is exactly like looking at Scootaloo trying to get Rainbow Dash’s attention. You both even have the same color schemes,” you say in shock.
“Is…is that an issue?” Garble asks and you glare daggers at him.
“I don’t know, how about how you never said your little sister was like one of my best friends?”
“How would I have known that? I’ve never met your stupid pony friends!” he points out.
Smolder looks at you two arguing before a huge grin comes across her face.
Down With Chrysalis’s Comment
“Hang on a second, are you the pony that kicked Gar Gar’s ass and who he’s sworn eternal vengeance against?”
“That’s me,” you say cheerfully with a smile causing the dragoness to laugh.
“Really Gar? To that little pony?”
“There’s more to her than that! She’s like a demon made flesh. Her Dad’s the freaking Offender, and you saw what he did to our Dad!”
She looks back at you in intrigue.
“Really?”
“Mmhmm,” you nod.
“Dang. I know I should probably feel mad about that but…eh,” she shrugs. “Plus you’re hanging out with Princess Ember so your coolness meter goes up even more so. Sorry for doubting you Gar Gar.”
And while he rolls his eyes, Ember speaks up.
“Yeah yeah, we all know each other, but we did come here for a purpose.”
“What?! What is it?! Can I help?!” Smolder says excitedly.
“Actually yeah,” Ember smirks. “Garble, go get your stupid friends together while you’re temporarily unbanished.”
“What for?” he asks wearily.
“We’re gonna have ourselves a little betting competition,” she explains.
Ello Calebero’s Comment
“Oh Awesome! I’m gonna go get my board!” Smolder cheers as she flies off into a nearby cave.
“Claws off! That’s still mine!” Garble calls as he chases after her.
You look back to Ember in confusion.
“Board? We’re not playing cards?”
“What? No. We’re going lava surfing,” she says as if it’s obvious, pointing to a lava flow coming out of a hill.
“Ohhhhhh,” you nod before her words fully comprehend. “Wait, we’re what?!”
“What? You’ve never tried?” she asks.
“Um, I’m not exactly fireproof, so no,” you snark.
“Well that makes this even easier,” she says mischievously as she leans down and whispers in your ear. “What you’re gonna do is use that fancy pony magic of yours to sabotage the competition while I sweep the victory board.”
“You know, that sounds really sneaky and low…but Garble’s friends are probably the same idiots that my Dad beat up before, so why not?” you shrug.
“Good,” she smiles. “Just be sure to bet everything on me.”
With Grandbuggy
WARGAMES’ Comment
“I keep telling ya, I really would have shanked that blowhard!” Grandbuggy slurs as he holds a few cards in his hoof.
“Dat was a butter knife, never would have gone past his *hic* scales!” Torch counters, a bit buzzed himself.
“If I’d had a rusty spoon, things would have been different!” Grandbuggy grumbles.
“Um, it’s your turn,” Ahuizotl informs the giant, pointing to the yellow 8 on the table placed before them.
“Hah! I’ll keep it yellow so that you can use that Yellow 5 that I know you have!” Torch says triumphantly as he places down a yellow 3.
“Oh, you wanna see my Yellow 5?” Grandbuggy taunts.
“Yes!” Torch bellows.
“Do you really want to see it?” Grandbuggy trolls.
“For the gods’ sake, just play it already!” Greta groans.
Grandbuggy hiccups and places his hoof on a card in his hoof, before he suddenly reaches for the draw deck.
“No…” he says ominously as he picks three more cards before getting a yellow.
“AAAHHHH!!!” both Torch and Greta growl as once again the old bug refuses to put down the card, prolonging the whole endeavor.
“Why?!” Greta whines.
“Because you don’t deserve to see it!” Grandbuggy laughs as he takes another swig of his ale.
“Why do you play these mind games Fix?! I just want to see the damned Yellow 5!” Torch bellows.
“Well if I did that, then Ahuizotl wouldn’t win,” Grandbuggy says.
“And that’s game,” said creature says as he places down a Draw 4 card, and has no others in his hands.
“What the?! When did you say Uno?!” Torch demands.
“Back when you all were chattering about butter knives and shankings,” He says victoriously. “So I guess that means that petrified egg is mine.”
“Seriously?!” Greta says wide eyed. “Did you plan this?”
“Actually no. I just took advantage of the situation,” Ahuizotl says truthfully.
“Well I’ll be. One of the newbies played us like damned fiddles!” Torch says impressed before glaring at Grandbuggy.
“You just kept distracting me with a fake Yellow 5 that never existed didn’t you?!”
“Well actually,” Grandbuggy smirks as he turns his cards over, and sure enough, there is a Yellow 5 in the hand.
“OH YOU’VE GOT TO BE KIDDING ME!” Torch shouts as he throws his giant tankard against the wall while Grandbuggy laughs his butt off.
“I think I’m gonna abstain from the next game,” Greta says, placing a talon against her sore head.
“It would be wise, too much stupidity can be detrimental to health,” Ahuizotl nods as the griffon walks back towards the entrance.
“So, what game are we playing next?” Grandbuggy says as she takes another drink.
Down With Chrysalis’s Comment
As Greta walks outside, rubbing her temples, bemoaning how loud a drunken dragon can be, she spies a black and purple blur heading towards her at high speeds. In only a few seconds, you land in front of your Griffon friend, panting a bit as you start tossing bits of treasure and gold onto her.
“What the heck are you-“ she starts but you interrupt her.
“No Time! Just hide some of this in your bag!”
“Where did you even get this?” she squawks as she reflexively starts putting gold in her bag.
“Cheating on a race, though I may not have been as sneaky as I’d hoped,” you admit.
“BACKSTABBER!!!” Ember’s voice reaches you.
Looking back, you see the very irked Princess of Dragons flying very fast towards you.
“What the buck did you do?!” Greta asks in alarm.
“Well, she and I rigged the race in her favor, but then I saw no one was betting on Scoota-Smolder, so I changed my bet and made her win with magic,” you admit.
“YOU WHAT?!” Greta screeches.
“Give Me My Share!” Ember shouts as she gets closer and closer.
“The Game Was Rigged From the Start! Muhahahahahaha!!!” you cackle as you fly with the rest of the ill gotten treasure into the massive cave.
“I’ll Rig Your Game!” Ember shouts as she swoops past the very flustered Griffon.
A few moments later, and a whole heard of teen dragons, along with Smolder reach Greta.
“Hey, did you see where Princess Ember and that pony went?” asks Smolder.
Greta, with a vacant look in her eye just points into the cave.
“Alright, awesome! This way guys!” she says excitedly as all of them fly in.
After they disappear into the darkness, a dusty looking Garble flies up to her.
“You OK?” he asks.
"Ya know, I miss the Crimson Vengeance and the killer animatronics sometimes..." Greta sighs as she facehooves.
Back with you, you swoop left and right, laughing the whole way. You hadn’t set out to pull one over on Ember, but it’s all in good fun. Plus, maybe it is a bit of payback for her being so interested in Spike earlier.
“Get Back Here!” she shouts behind you and you smirk.
“Nah! You Gotta Catch Me F-WHAAAA *CRASH*” Your playful taunting results in you crashing through a pony sized door and tumbling hoof over head into the main chambers and onto a card table, where Uno cards go flying everywhere.
“Oof. Distracted flying is never OK,” you mutter to yourself before you look up…and see that Ember wasn’t kidding.
“HOLY BUCK YOU’RE HUGE!!!” you say in startlement at the Dragon Lord.
“Shade, great to see ya. Do ya got any chips?” Grandbuggy says with a slurred voice and you smell alcohol throughout the room.
Oh great, the old bug’s sauced, you think before the kaiju above you starts bellowing thunderous laughter.
Kichi’s Comment
“Well now, you’re betting your own Great Granddaughter for the Scepter? Pretty ballsy since I haven’t chosen the game yet!”
“What?! I didn’t bet her!” Grandbuggy says in indignation. “She slipped and fell.”
“A likely story!” he guffaws. “But now I know you mean business.”
“I’m not a betting chip!” you shout back up huffily.
“Yeah Torch, I wouldn’t bet my own flesh and blood for just a stupid piece of red stone,” Grandbuggy says with conviction.
“Hmmm, I suppose that’s fair,” the dragon nods sagely as his daughter bursts into the room.
“There You Are!” she points at you and you chuckle nervously. “Give me my share or I’ll-“
“Ah! Perfect timing Ember!”
“Hey! Dad! What are you-“ Torch grabs her in his claws before placing her on the table next to you.
“There, now I’ve *Hic* Bet my own daughter. Fair deal right?”
“Dad! What the Buck?!” she chides.
“…You know, I guess it does equal out in the end,” Grandbuggy admits with a shrug.
“Grandbuggy! What the Buck?!” you shout at the drunken fool.
“What? It’s like the law of equivalent whatchamacallit,” he says swaying.
“Uh, gentlemen? Perhaps we shouldn’t be betting anyone’s offspring?” Ahuizotl tries to interject.
“Nah, nah, this is good,” Torch claw waves.
“Yeah, I mean, you know the guy’s serious if he’s putting his own kid on sale,” Grandbuggy hiccups.
“Winner Takes All!” both of them shout and giggle like idiots.
“Just wait until Mom here’s about this!” both you and the Princess say in unison.
Changer T Emerald’s Comment
Back in Human Land
Bugze clenches his fists and the fingernails dig into his weak human palms as B2 argues with Human Sombra.
Whoa, whoa, whoa, what’s wrong Selly? He asks as he can actually feel the anger radiating off of her.
I don’t know, I just feel incredibly full of rage at this very moment! She growls.
Is it one of those parental instincts things I normally get?
YES!
Huh, usually I feel those to-OH THERE IT IS!!! He grits his teeth as the sense that something incredibly stupid involving Nightshade is happening.
“Are you alright Mr. Bugze?” Puppy Spike asks from Sombra’s couch.
“DID THAT F@#$ING DOG JUST TALK?!!” Humbra shouts in alarm.
“Yes yes, get with the program,” B2 rolls his eyes. “He belongs to the magic girl that flew away after we burnt down the Haunted House last night.”
IN EQUESTRIA
“Oh this is so stupid!” Ember says crossing her arms and giving you a stink eye as the two guardians start talking about what game to bet you all on.
“Yeah, I agree and all…but on the plus side, at least he’s not being so overprotective right?” you say try to find a silver lining.
“Because he’s drunk and trying to sell me into slavery!” she growls and points at you. “And I’m still mad at you for tricking me!”
“Children, calm down, the adults are talking,” Grandbuggy shushes you.
“Oh Buck Off! If you lose this match, I’m giving your twenty bits to Slendermane!”
“AGH! Don’t say that!” Grandbuggy belches.
“Oh what idiocy have I just walked back into?” asks Greta as she walks through the crowd of intrigued Teen Dragons.
“Fix is plastered and now Nightshade is being used as a wager,” Ahuizotl says with a sigh.
Greta doesn’t say anything to this as she just rubs the bridge of her nose.
“So who’s gonna kick his ass after all of this?” she asks.
“Well if he sobers up, he’ll be the first to punch himself in the crotch,” Ahuizotl says.
“ALRIGHT! QUIET DOWN!” Torch thunders and everyone looks to him. “I Know What Game We Are To Play!”
Puzzling Frost’s Comment
He then pulls out a deck of cards from the game chest and Grandbuggy pales.
“Ah Geeze, not that overly complicated trash!”
“Indeed! I have become a master of it!” Torch says as he starts going over rules and loopholes that make his cards beyond invincible.
“And with this deck, you shall not be able to wi-“
5 Minutes Later
“WAAAAAHHHH!!!” the Dragon Lord cries as Grandbuggy now has a shard of the scepter in one hoof and Ember pouts on his pile of gold he’d also won.
“Good game Torchie, good game!” Grandbuggy laughs as the rest of the dragons look on in shocked silence.
With one card, ONE CARD, Grandbuggy totally annihilated Torch’s unbeatable hand.
You are still annoyed by the whole situation, though you are also very relieved that you aren’t a dragon slave. You look over to the other unwitting pawn in this.
“Sooooo, does this mean we own you now?” you ask the pissed off teen who just grumbles to herself.
“MY SWEET BABY! I’m So Sorry! Don’t Leave Me!” Torch cries looking at his daughter.
“You’re the one who bet me you idiot!” she snaps as she turns away from him.
“I Didn’t Mean Tooo-hoo-hooooo,” he whimpers.
“Ohhhh, he’s so gonna be in trouble when her mom finds out,” Smolder gushes excitedly, which causes Torch’s eyes to widen.
“AH TARTARUS! Don’t Tell My Wife!” he bellows out.
“Too Late,” a stern giant green dragoness says from the cave entrance, looking rather cross with her husband.
“Oh Boy, better take a step back,” Grandbuggy says worriedly as he uses his magic to pull you and Ember away from Torch’s feet. It seems that even as drunk as he is, even he has SOME common sense left to avoid the resulting marital spat. And not a moment too soon.
Ember’s mom full on tackles the drunken giant and starts walloping him across the head as he cowers beneath her.
“WHAT! WERE! YOU! THINKING?!” she punctuates with every strike.
“I Wasn’t!” he whines behind his arms.
“OBVIOUSLY!!!” she yells as she gives him a kick.
Meanwhile, you, your group and a bunch of teen dragons watch the spectacle in amazement.
WHAT DO YOU DO?
Well now we have a literal flame thrower, Thats useful
It’s cool dude I’m also looking forward to seeing Godzilla tomorrow too. Woo!
Nightshade observe as Ember mother began to punish Torch, and how resistant was he, as he not only was hit between the legs but also punched him and used him as a jumping comb only for later jump in his belly, then began to fly and began to fly in circles only to throw Torch to the floor and just when they were thinking that she stopped, she decided to put the elbow and began to run to Torch hitting him, after that he began to strangle him until in the end she throw him to the floor.
"And say thanks that I decided to let you with low punishment, but this will not be all, we will talk in the future about getting drunk and betting my little baby, but for now, you will be sleeping in the children cave for a hundred years..." Say Ember mother
"What? But..." Began to say Torch only to be answered by a glare that could rival 'the stare' of Fluttershy
"Did you say anything?" Ask Ember Mother
"No! Nothing" Say Torch
Meanwhile Ember and Nightshade that had been looking at the fight, look with stars in the eyes
"Did you see those moves?" Ask Nightshade
"Yeah, she is very good" Comment Ember
"How did she learn that?" Ask Nightshade
"It seems she learned from Aunt Godzilla and Great Granny Tiamat" Answered Ember
"But if she is that strong, why is that Torch is the dragon lord?" Asked Nightshade
"Because I'm not in politics and want to dragonsit a group of giant babies" Say Ember mother that approached them while they were talking as if it was nothing.
"So... What now?" Ask Ember
"Well... While what Torch did was not correct, I think this could be a good chance for you to see world and get a friend, I know that you want to be dragon lord in the future, still not sure why, but if you want to be a good leader, you need to experience the world, and don't limit yourself to the dragon lands, if not, you will grow like those stupid dragons that think ponies are weak and the Princesses only drink tea and eat cake..." Commented Ember mom
Meanwhile in Canterlot castle
Princess Celestia was drinking tea, talking with some nobles and eating cake
"Atchuum" Sneezed Celestia
"Is there any problem princess?" Ask Background noble #1
"Quick! We need the royal medics!" Shout Background noble #2
"Don't worry, it must be someone talking about me" Commented Celestia as she began to serve herself another piece of cake
"Of course, it must be that..." Say Background noble #3
Back to Dragon lands
"I have a bad feeling... Leaving that aside, I think a little travel to see how our neighbours live and be with a friend could be good for you" Say Ember mom
"But Mooom" Whined Ember making Nightshade try to hide her laugh
"But nothing, is better to get everything ready" Say Ember mother
"Yes, Mom" Groaned Ember
------
How do everyone think Ember mother should look? I was thinking of her looking like Blue Eyes White Dragon, maybe others have a better idea...
In the end there was not much inspiration, only Torch punishment and a talk...
9653956
I'm going off the head canon that this is her mom since she was with Torch a thousand years ago.
images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/08684d4e-45e4-41bb-8ffe-e08af440b0f2/dblf578-633c332d-fe13-40b0-95f4-d305be8a0262.png/v1/fill/w_1024,h_577,q_80,strp/ember_s_mom_by_starryoak_dblf578-fullview.jpg?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOjdlMGQxODg5ODIyNjQzNzNhNWYwZDQxNWVhMGQyNmUwIiwiaXNzIjoidXJuOmFwcDo3ZTBkMTg4OTgyMjY0MzczYTVmMGQ0MTVlYTBkMjZlMCIsIm9iaiI6W1t7ImhlaWdodCI6Ijw9NTc3IiwicGF0aCI6IlwvZlwvMDg2ODRkNGUtNDVlNC00MWJiLThmZmUtZTA4YWY0NDBiMGYyXC9kYmxmNTc4LTYzM2MzMzJkLWZlMTMtNDBiMC05NWY0LWQzMDViZThhMDI2Mi5wbmciLCJ3aWR0aCI6Ijw9MTAyNCJ9XV0sImF1ZCI6WyJ1cm46c2VydmljZTppbWFnZS5vcGVyYXRpb25zIl19.jmvDFXu4RTKZhs8f7Nl00iY4awo49D5A2JIOERPw7tc
9653244
Wait, what about that weird red dude that always follows them around for some reason?
Eyyyyyyyyyyyyy!
9655033
Him? oh no he is USELESS.
The gang now with ember go and get into a new routine where garble challenges nightshade wily coyote style and every time he fails ember hits him with savage one liners
In the pile of loot nightshade finds grand buggys old kangol barret from before he got his sick bowler hat
It can basically turn into a changeling version of Captain America's shield. Made with oricalcum some other metals and a piece of the same material as the changling throne so only they can use it
On the way out of the dragon lands they run into the dragons that Grand buggy was trying to avoid
9655444
Well I know that
Ok so I think I know how Nightshade can use the Alicorn Amulet. She can use it to protect, or overprotect (cough) spike (cough), or get really,really,really freaking mad. If anyling have any other ideas we can give Nightshade ideas of how to use the Amulet safely, or have lady luck screw her with it.
It cant get any worst then that...Right?...RIGHT?9655666
She gets really over protective of spike and punches a dragon that turns out to be spikes mother in the future
ON WITH THE SHOW!
“YOU! STUPID! DRAKE!” Shouts Embers mother as she holds Torch in a full nelson. Then with great strength she lifts him up over herself and drops him on his head which lands with a thud.
“AAGH! Sapphire please dear I’m SORRY!!” Torch cries in pain. Sapphire then leapt up and drop kicked him through the wall and out of the mountain. This of course attracts the attention of all the nearby dragons as they see their leader be pummeled by his wife.
“By Bahamut's scales! The Dragon Lord is being beat up by his wife, again! Quick get lets go check it out!” One dragon says to its neighbor as they fly off. Back with you, you look out the massive hole that Sapphire made. She roars as she flies after her flung husband. Followed by some very annoyed and stressed looking guards.
“And I think that’s our cue to leave.” Ahuizotl says grabbing your bag and stuffing it full of coins and with the shard of the Bloodstone Scepter.
*1 Bloodstone shard added*
*One Quadrillion's worth of gold and gems added*
He hands the bags back to you as you all march out of the original cave entrance.
“Do we have to leave now? I wanna see the fight!” You wine and turn to see Ahuizotl, holding Grandbuggy in his tail paw.
“We best leave now chica while the literal heat is off us. Dios Mio. I don’t want to have to deal with a very large and very angry dragon. Especially when that dragon is an angry mother.” Ahuizotl shivers as you all walk through the Dragon Lands. “Besides it’s best we take this puta somewhere where he can’t fall into a lava pit.” Ahuizotl huffs as you look to see Grandbuggy passed out from his drinking.
“Yeah I guess your right. But what do we do about miss dragon princess?” You say stopping to look at the miffed dragoness who is rubbing her temples.
“Dragon law states I have to stick with you guys for at least three months. Only then can the winner of the bet decide if I can return or not. And as such your grandpa over there doesn’t look like he’s in any condition to do so.” She says pointing at Grandbuggy who laughs in his sleep. You facehoof at this before realizing something.
“Ok, but then what about her?” You ask pointing to Smolder who’s casually strolling behind you with Garble. She opens an eye at your acknowledgement and shrugs.
“Eh, Dad did say it was time to go spread my wings, besides someone has to make sure Gar Gar doesn’t do something stupid.” She chuckles. Garble groans in embarrassment as he buries his face in his claws. Ember nods to this.
“Well I can agree on that, I have been wanting to see what’s beyond our mountains. And now Dad can’t stop me from doing so eheheh, heh, ugh.” Ember sweatdrops. “Plus you still owe me for backstabbing me in that race.” She huffs. You shake your head in amusement. You continue to walk in relative silence as the screams of torment from Torch still echo in the distance.
“Wow this place sure is quiet now.” Greta points out. Everyone perks up at this and stops. The normally loud and vibrant valley of dragons is very quiet. A shadow overhead gets your attention as you see a dragon fly toward the beat down.
“Huh, guess her rampage attracted more dragons than we thought.” You say as it flies off into the distance. Ember giggles at this.
“Well it is rare to see the Dragon Lord be put into a position of such embarrassment. The last time this happened was when my mom repaid my dad for pain she went through when she went through labor and had me. I wouldn’t be surprised if nearly every dragon here went to see the commotion. Plus my dad can be a bit demanding at times, so I guess this is as close as the other dragons will get for payback.” Ember says before looking to you. “By the way, why did you need that shard of the Bloodstone?”
“Well its to help my Mom get a body of her own. You see she’s lives in my dad’s head along with Mr. Sombra and Daddy doesn’t want them to stay in his head forever.” You say calmly. Ember along with Smolder look at you in confusion before Garble butts in.
“It’s best not to question it. Makes your head hurt less.” He jokes. You all have a good laugh at this.
*Meanwhile*
Up on a nearby mountain. Flash watches with shock and fear as the Dragon Lord gets his rear handed to him.
“First the princesses disappear, the sun and moon go out of balance, then a plant monster attacks, and now this?! This has dark magic written all over it. No doubt about it. Nightmare Moon is up to something.” Flash states angrily. His scanner opens up as he sees most of the life forms in the area are heading toward the fight, save for a small group leaving the Dragon Lands. His suits scanner lights up and shows the source of the dark magic trail he’d been following among the group.
"That must be her. The dark magic trail leads away from the Dragon Lord’s cave. She must of bewitched the Lord’s wife to attack him.” Flash quickly flies down near to the group and gasps at what he sees.
“It can’t be...is that? The Dragon Lord’s daughter! Nightmare Moon must be kidnapping her!” Flash gasps. His sensors blare with warning signals as they home in on Nightshade.
“Wait, wait. Nightmare Moon’s a filly? Did she possess the filly that always followed the changeling around? Or did she separate from the changeling and form her own body, but got stuck as a filly?” Flash glares as he stares down at them.
“If that’s the case where is…” Flash pauses before gasping. A sickly looking changeling in the paw of the supposedly fictional villain Ahuizotl?
“Look what she’s done to him! She’s been draining him of his life force. She also probably created Ahuizotl from the Daring Do books to help her. The same is probably for that weird pony in the suit a few yards back. I’ve got to stop her while the dragons are away!” Flash said with determination as he flew toward the group.
A little farther away.
Slendy continued his slow trot toward the group however unknown to him another was heading in the same direction close behind him.
The blue stallion walked casually through the valley toward his prey.
“Heh, with those dragons gone I no longer need to hide. Just need to stay out of sight of that thing up ahead. But at least now I can move more quickly through this wasteland.” The stallion pulled up his binoculars again looked at the trail he was following.
“Seems whatever that dark power I’ve been following is close, and that guard pony in the metal suit isn’t far behind. I can let that fool weaken the target and when the moments right I strike!” The stallion said in declaration. He sighed as he put the binoculars away. He reached for his neck pulled a small looking necklace hidden in his fur, it had a small blue gem that glowed faintly in the center of it. He clicked a button on the side of it to reveal a hidden compartment within that held a photo of a unicorn mare.
“Soon everything Flag Burner has promised me will be in reach. And then we can have revenge on those evil ponies and their tyrannical princesses.” He sighed closing the locket and continued his trot toward his goal. He past by a small lava pool, as he walked by it began to harden and turning into obsidian, then it began to be covered by a small layer of ice. The icy trail behind the stallion started growing larger and wider as his excitement rose. “Soon, everyone will know exactly what Pompeius Frost can really do.” He said as his eyes glowed a deathly blue.
And that's all! I thought it be better for everyone to give Ember's mom a name so it be easier for people to identify her, as well as made the amount of gold that Granbuggy won a lot more then what Smaug gave to Bugze. I mean come on, this is the DRAGON LORD'S gold pile we're talking about. Even if it's just a small bit of it, that's gotta be a lot of gold. And for those who don't know Pompeius is Puzzle in Latin. Feel free to add onto this!
9655666
9656293
She encounters an elderly zebra that imparts some important and unique knowledge about managing to control dark magic fueled by negative emotion. The information would likely be explained in this order:
1. All positive emotion and all negative emotion each have a basic core root emotion that they all stem from, love and fear.
2. These two root emotions follow the logic of opening your heart to others (love) and closing it off to others (fear), so anything that isn't fear or love directly can be an offshoot of these emotions. ex. Kindness is another form of love because you're choosing to show empathy and open yourself up to another to spread wellness to them. ex2. Mistrust is another form of fear because you're shutting out the actions and words of another in favor of putting distance between the two of you and you aren't willing to open yourself up and accept another for whatever reason.
3. These two roots are so closely intertwined into all creatures that nothing can live without one or the other, and in fact are each core spiritual forces that keep everything alive. Love is what brings creatures into existence (sex and birth), and fear is what keeps them alive through basic instincts and other things.
4. Because these two forces are the roots of light and dark emotions, and because they are so closely intertwined and integral to everything's survival, that means that the automatic bodily function of breathing, your heartbeat, and your blood flow are also expressions of fear on the most basic level, and can therefore be used to power the Alicorn Amulet, so long as Nightshade has the mindset to focus on it. (And since it's tapping into opposite intertwined forces instead of just one that's an offshoot of one, the Amulet's power is therefore exponentially more powerful and pure in its intensity when tapping into these two forces, and also infinitely less corruptive. Maybe have the shards turn blue to symbolize this purification.)
Let me know if that makes sense, because in my mind, it did. Not sure how others would read it though.
I think Embers mother should have to honor the bet because of some dragon code, and unfortunately have to let her daughter go with the outcastes, after beating torch senseless of corse. At first Ember will be pissed until she realizes that now she can go on all sorts of adventures until her father calls for the gay lit of fire and Ember gets to meet spike and becomes the next dragon lord
I do believe that before the gang gets a chance to leave, a few certain dragons stumble upon good ol drunk Grandbuggy...those dragons being the girls he may/most likely had a thing with in the long distant past. And since we haven't done a nifty reference in awhile, I do believe this is what should happen to good old drunken Grandbuggy:
The entire beginning of this clip is perfect for a drunken Grandbuggy running into old exes. I mean a thousand years of waiting is bound to piss off any dragon folks.
Oh, and as a added scene. I feel like somedragon should make a comment about Spike after Nightshade mentions him again, this time stating how he was cute when she saw him back in the dragon pools. This poor dragon proceeds to get blasted by magic out of nowhere, and everyone looks at Nightshade in shock as her smoking horn indicates that the blast came from her. She, however, just looks confused and shrugs everyone off as she slimily doesn't realize she blasted a dragon through a wall for no reason.
Then we cut over to Spike, where we can get a update on where in canon we are along with him getting a shiver of dread. When asked, he just says he feels like he just gained something very good, yet at the same time it scares him for some reason.
9676181
Spike: "Twi, ever get that feeling like you are the luckiest creature alive, except its followed by extreme terror."
Twilight: "You probably just have a belly ache."