The Prairie's Champion(s) - Part 1
The sun of Fœnum slowly rose over the horizon, casting its light across the land it touches.
Next to their campfire – which has burned out – Arizona was the first to be stirred awake by the morning's light when it first washed over her. The strong calf got up on her hooves to stretch, letting out a small moo to greet the day.
Turning to her left, Arizona looked to see the cute little dragon she had been traveling with, sitting on his haunches, holding the book up like a shield, and clutching a stick in the other claw. He was snoring loudly, while looking like he’s trying to stay awake.
"Howdy Spike," Arizona mooed loudly, startling the little dragon awake. ”Yer bright and early."
"Wha-huh?” Spike muttered, half-awake with bags under his eyes. “Oh yeah. Bright....early,” He snored, drooping to the ground and fell asleep.
With a light chuckle, Arizona patted the dragon on the head, “Rest easy now, Spike. I got this,” Arizona picked up Spike’s hat and puts it over his tired eyes, before she went ahead to roll up their sleeping bags, made sure to secure their belongings onto her back, before she later put the young dragon onto her back as well. Once everything was set, the heroes were on their way.
As the sun rose high up in the air, the calf couldn't help but finds herself thinking about her pa.
Some times before Spike arrived in Fœnum
Texas was sitting by a campfire, surrounded by the wagon homes of him and his herds.
Ever since the recent meeting and the urgent news from the Council of Elders, the bull was troubled.
He was in deep thoughts, when he heard the sounds of leaves rustling, “Is that you, daughter?” He called out to the young calf, who revealed herself.
“Yes, Pa...” Arizona answered, appearing from the shadows with her ears folded back. “It’s me.”
“Why are you hiding, my calf?” Texas asked.
“I...I’m afraid.” She admitted. “I know that we Cattlekind ain’t supposed to listen to those who live outside The Prairie, but I just couldn’t help myself. There’s been a decree, Pa. From the Council of Ungulates.”
“I know,” Texas confirmed seriously.
“You do?”
“I’m the leader of this herd, my calf. It’s my duty to know such things.”
Arizona then walked up to her father and sat beside him, “Then what’s happening, Pa? Why must we pick a champion? And what for? The Mule Deer fawns are saying the most horrible things...”
“Y’know, Arizona, I think a lot about what it means to be wanderers like us.” Texas began. “Moving from place to place wherever the grass decides to grow, out here in the open air with no home except the wagons we haul and the hills we roam... Wouldn’t trade it for anything.” He smiled brightly. “Them city folk inside their walls only concern themselves with what’s in front of their noses. The old stories... they took ‘em out of their history books. But our kind, Arizona, we’re folk of the land. We remember, with our voices...”
Without warning, the bull let out a thunderous bellow, “GATHER ‘ROUND EV’RYONE!”
With that, all the bovines in the heard exited out of their wagons as they gathered around the fire to hear what the strong bull has to say.
“IN DAYS OF OLD... all the hooded folks of Fœnum roamed together as one big ol’ herd.” Texas lectured. “And the world, well, it was one big ol’ field where the grass was ours for the grazin’. We had a peace that lasted long as the tunnels of ten packs of prairie dogs. But times... they’re always changin’, yessir.”
The bull looked solemnly as he continued, “You see, there were other animals on Fœnum. Little ones. They had fur like us, but instead of hooves, they had gangly, clawed toes.” He opened his eyes widely to lecture sternly to his herds. “Now, funny looking feet ain’t usually cause for worry, but somethin’ else was...their TEETH!” He said grimly. “And as time passed, these teeth grew longer and sharper than the thorns on a buffaloberry branch. And with chompers like that, well... I guess eatin’ grass just wasn’t gonna cut it. The Predators ripped our peace away quicker than a dandelion’s seeds in a twister.”
Texas looked up from the fire and smirked confidently, “But we didn’t stand by like frightened jackrabbits to be gobbled up like buttered biscuits. Nope!” He said wholeheartedly. “We fought back! So many of us were lost, we weren’t sure if we’d’ve been better off just lettin’ ourselves be their supper. But soon, we weakened those varmints well enough.... That’s when a mystic from the desert lands stepped in.”
“Usin’ her great power, she banished the Predators to some otherly place, lockin’ then away!”
Arizona gasped, “So that key everyone’s talkin’ about...” She said with an epiphany. “That’s the Prophet’s Key!”
“Well I’ll be,” Texas smiled proudly. “So ‘ya HAVE been payin’ attention to my stories!”
The proud bull’s smile turned to a solemn frown. “The Predators were gone, but so was our peace. Our great herd of one broke into many. We were weakened, and we were scared... ‘Cause though them Predators were locked up... it weren’t for good. No sir. The monsters swore, as they were sucked up into the funnel of that deep, dark nothingness, that they’d be back. And they’d be... hungry.”
Not long after that, Texas started calling out for volunteers, in which it ended with Arizona being the chosen Key Seeker, much to his reluctance.
After that, Arizona started practicing her kicks, punches, and lasso tricks out in the prairie, honing her combat skills for the coming days when she would have to fight the Predators. It was then that Texas came to see her.
"ARIZONA!" She mooed, catching her attention.
"Pa! What..." Startled at first, Arizona pouted as she pawed the grounds with her hooves. "You didn't come to try 'n stop me again, did'ya?! You may be my pa, but I'm not lettin' up, and if I've beaten ya once, I can–"
"No, I..." Texas shook his head, before he explained. "Your ma and I had a talk... and... I ain't about to let my daughter go off to save the world without some'a her Pa's wisdom." Arizona's eyes widened in surprise, before her Pa gave her a map. "Now listen carefully. You would want to go through Canyon Pass, across the bridge. It'll take ya straight out the Prairie... Go North to Reine City. They got a museum there with a buncha ol' relics from ancient times. Might be able to find a clue about the Prophet's Key. Find that key, Arizona. If anyone's worthy enough for it, you bet your horns it's one 'o mine."
Arizona looked up at her father with newfound love, and her ears folded back from the sudden anxiety she felt for protecting all of Fœnum.
"Thanks, Pa." She said, nervously. "I'll protect Fœnum... no matter what."
"Just remember what I always say..." With that, Texas went up to the young calf and whispered into her ears.
"Golly... you really think that's gonna happen, Pa?" She asked.
"Better to know it and not need it, than to need it... and not know it!" With that, Texas took his leave, "Good luck out there, calf."
After that, was about the time when a certain dragon arrived.
Present
"Better to know it and not need it, than to need it... and not know it!" Arizona repeated under her breath.
Spike was fast asleep, when he turned in his sleep and rolled off the calf’s back and landed, on his face, in puddle of mud.
“Ah! Wha-What?!” Spike exclaimed, awake from the impact. “What happened?! Where? What? When?!”
“Well good morning, sleepy head,” Arizona greeted.
“Oh, morning Ari,” Spike yawned, while stretching his arms out. “So, shall we hit the road?”
“Well, Mother Fœnum ain’t gonna save herself now is she?” The calf asked rhetorically as she helped the little dragon up onto her back, and they resumed their journey.
On the way, Arizona helped herself to one of the corns her mother had packed for her, when Spike felt his stomach growling hungrily, "Oh, I'm so hungry, I could eat a whole hoard of treasures right now," He groaned.
"Here, have an apple," Arizona said, offering the young dragon the fruit to eat.
"Thank you." Spike bites down into the apple. "So, where are we going again?" He asked, while munching in the fruit.
"We're on our way to Reine City."
"Reine City? What's that?"
"It's the capital city of deerfolks in the Tundra," Arizona explained. "From what ma and pa told me, it's kinda pretty. On some nights and days, when it's just right, there's a river of colorful lights that shine across the sky. Um, I think they're called, Au'rorar Bovin-Elis?" The calf struggled. "Otherwise, we just call them the Northern Lights."
"Huh, they sound almost like the lights that shine from the Crystal Empire," Spike commented. "Oh, sorry, go on."
"So anyway, Reine City stands between us and the unicorns. So before we get to the unicorns, we have to pass through that city," Arizona continued, before she exclaimed. "Oh! I almost forgot!"
"What is it?" Spike asked.
"Before we left, pa told me to go to the museum in Reine City," Said Arizona. "He said that it's filled with a lot of old relics from the past, and one of them holds the clue to where the Prophet's Key can be found. So while we're there, we might as well check it out."
"Sounds like a plan," Spike smiled, tossing his finished apple core behind him. "Reine City here we come!"
"Yeehaw!" Arizona hollered, breaking into a gallop, with Spike holding tightly onto her bandana.
Canyon Pass
Spike and Arizona traveled along the road, until they came across a running river in front of them.
"What do we do now?" Spike asked, as he got off of Arizona's back.
"Well, ain't no turn' back now," Arizona replied. "Forward onto this quest!" With that, Arizona jumped, crashing into the water, making a large splash which Spike shielded himself from, behind the book. "C'mon in, Spike! Water's fine!"
Unsure at first, Spike walked over to the water and touched the surface, testing how cold it is. But like Arizona said, it's just right.
"What's the matter, Spike?" Arizona asked. "Don't tell me yer afraid of water, are ya?"
"No, of course not," Spike replied, dropping the book off his back and held it up, over his head. "Just need to keep the book dry," Spike slowly waded into the water, which came just about up to his chin.
Before he could go any deeper, he was suddenly picked up, off his feet, "Whoa!" He yelled in surprise, before he looks down to see it was only Arizona.
"It's jus' me, Spike," The calf chuckled.
"Oh, thanks Ari."
The two friends were then on their way, crossing the river before reaching the shorelines on the other side, and Spike tied the book back onto his back. With that, the two were on their way.
Remembering what her father told her, Arizona headed straight through the canyon, towards where the bridge would be, as her father had told her. However, upon arriving at the bridge, both Arizona and Spike were dismayed to see that the bridge was completely destroyed.
"What the...what happened to the bridge?!" Arizona mooed in shock, before she frowned. "Geez, only made it more than ten gallops before hittin' an impasse."
"What do we do now?" Spike asked, feeling even more anxious and worried to get home.
"Hmmm... "Arizona pondered, before she said, "Canyons got all sorts 'a twists 'n turns. There's gotta be another way..."
With that, the two backtracked to the way they came from, before Arizona looked up and noticed a set of cliffs that both she and Spike could climb up on, "Might be able to make it up this cliff here..."
"Yeah...might," Spike turned his head, when he suddenly notices a strange pointy rock, with what appeared to be a symbol of a lightning bolt engraved on the side, flashing and glowing in an intensive aura of light. "Hey, what's that?" He asked, pointing at the rock.
Arizona followed Spike's gaze, and shocked expression matches with Spike's, "Huh, I don't remember Pa sayin' anything about mysterious glowing stones in the middle of nowhere..."
Curiosity getting the best of them, Spike and Arizona both walked up to inspect the stone, seeing how it was pulsing with a faint magical light. When they approached, the lights suddenly holds steady, as if the stone was sensing their approach.
Then, without warning, the two suddenly found themselves surrounded in a coat of light, "Hey, what's going on?" Spike asked, to which Arizona shook her head, unsure.
Then, a voice spoke from the stone, "Do you wish to begin the Jump Trial?"
"Huh?" Spike and Arizona both exchanged confused glances, before Arizona hesitantly replied, "Uh...sure..."
With that, a blast of light burst from the stone, shining on the cliffside, creating a path up to the top, "Demonstrate your jumping abilities to reach the top of your goal," The voice spoke.
"Oh, I get it now!" With that, Arizona started jumping up on the cliffs, following the paths created by the magic light. "C'mon, Spike!" She called out to the little dragon. "Let's get hoppin'."
"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Spike said, as he struggles to climb up the cliffs, carrying the book on his back, but his claws keep slipping down the loose rocky walls. "But I can't get a firm hold, I'm slipping!"
"Ya gotta jump, Spike! That's the way to go! C'mon, just like how I taught ya!"
"I don't know..." Spike shook his head. "I'm not a good jumper, I don't think..."
"Don't think, Spike! Just do it!"
Swallowing a lump, Spike nervously replied, "Okay. Here goes nothing." With that, the young dragon crunched his legs, before he catapults himself up to the cliffs, and landed on one of the cliff paths, highlighted by the light. "Whew, that was close." He breathed a sigh of relief.
"That's it, Spike! Now do it again!" Spike repeated his jump, following Arizona, before he was able to regroup with the young calf at the top. With that, the Jump Trial ended, and the two were no longer surrounded by the magical light. "Yee-haw! Looks like we've passed the Jump Trial!"
"Phew, made it," Spike said, tired but triumphantly.
"Hey now, looks like a path forward!" Arizona pointed to a path before them. "Better keep an eye out for more 'a those stones. Gosh, I wonder who put 'em there..."
"Maybe it's a perk to being a Key Seeker?" Spike voiced his opinion.
"Maybe. But let's keep going," The two hadn’t gone far, when they happened to pass by a shrub, concealing a bridge that connects them to the other side on another cliff.
“Hey, what’s this?” Arizona asked as she and Spike walked across the bridge to investigate.
Upon arriving, they were both amazed to see two wagons stationed below.
“Well, look’it that!” Arizona mooed in amazement. “Seems we found someone’s hidey hole!”
"Yeah, looks that way," Spike replied. "How are we gonna get down?"
Arizona looked around at their surroundings, before she pouted, “No way down without breaking a leg, though. Better look around some more...”
With that, the two resume their adventure, backtracking to the path they came from and continued north, passing by an old campsite on the way. Both Spike and Arizona looked to see a pile of old firewoods that have burnt out years ago, in a circle of stones, next to a pile of old bones, most likely from another ungulate who had camped there before their untimely demise.
"Ugh," Spike and Arizona both groaned squeamishly, with a cold feeling washing over them. Deciding to not think about it, the two decided to leave the bones alone.
They kept on walking, until they arrived at the end of a cliff, where another magic stone from before was waiting for them.
"Another stone..." Arizona commented. "Let's see what we got!"
With that, both Spike and Arizona walked up to the stone and were both encased in a coat of light, as the stone asked, "Begin the Long Jump Trial?"
"Bring it on!" Arizona mooed in confident.
With that, another blast of light shot from the stone, creating a path across a ravine, which leads to the top of a hoodoo that stands between Arizona, Spike, and the other cliff across them.
"Okay, Spike!" Arizona mooed. "It's jus' like how I taught ya the other day. Remember to jump good?"
"Uh... maybe?" Spike shrugged, feeling unsure. "Why don't you go first?"
"Watch how it's done, Spike," Arizona said, as she got down to her hooves, crunching her legs, before she catapulted upward, thrusting herself into the air, before she came back down and landed at the top of the hoodoo and jumped forward again, reaching the other side. "See, Spike! That's the way we do!"
"Ok." Spike whimpered, holding tightly onto the ropes that secured the book on his back, adjusting his hat, before he looked nervously ahead, "Jump good, don't fail me now!" With that, Spike lunged towards the hoodoo, but missed the ledge, "AAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!!!" The dragon screamed, falling down into the ravine below.
"SPIKE!" Arizona shouted, holding her hoof out in vain towards the little dragon.
Suddenly, Spike's scream was heard from up above, and he came landing back onto where he had started, "Aaaaaaah...huh? What the–" Spike exclaimed, darting his head, up and down at the ravine he had fallen in, to the hoodoo he had missed, then back at Arizona, who still stood on the other cliffs. "Ari? Wha-How?What? When? I just fell down...but now I'm here?"
"Well ya got me, Spike. By all accounts, it doesn't make sense," Arizona replied. "Maybe it's this magic light that surrounds us, keep us from falling to our deaths, or somethin'. But whatever that was.....it was mysterious....but convenient."
"Yeah...convenient," With that, Spike tried again, but like before he fell back down into the ravine, and again, he was picked back up by the magic. He tried again, but still, he couldn't make it.
At last, Arizona shook her head and jumped her way back to Spike, "Stop. I can't take it anymore," With that, the young calf picked up the little dragon, puts him on her back, and with a strong kick of her legs, she carried him across the ravine, onto the hoodoo, then back to the cliff. With that, the trial has ended.
"Thanks, Arizona," Spike thanked the cow.
"Don't mention it," Arizona replied. "But think of it as the last time I'm helping ya."
"Uh... duly noted," Spike sighed, feeling bad that he failed Arizona miserably. "You are still going to help me get back, home right?"
"What do you think?" Arizona mooed, somewhat bluntly, before she nudges onward with her head, "C'mon, let's go."
With that, the two were on their way, when they passed an adult brown cow, with her hair don up in a bun, and wore a turquoise bandana around her neck with white polka-dots.
"Howdy there cowgirl," The cow called out to Arizona. "Thought I heard hooves a-comin'...Would be nice t'have some company. Don't be shy!"
Spike and Arizona instantly flinched, "What'll we do now?" Spike asked.
"Don't worry, Spike," Arizona reassured. "Just keep a low profile, and let me do the talking'," Adjusting her bandana for a moment, Arizona composed herself before she turns to the cow, "Howdy partner!" Arizona greeted the cow.
"Well howdy!" The cow greeted happily. "I'm Madison. Nice t'meet'cha!"
"Howdy, Madison!” Arizona replied. "Name’s Arizona!”
"Well, aren’t you jus’ a bundle ‘a joy!" The cow cooed, before she took notice of Spike hiding behind Madison. "And who's your friend here?"
"Uh, who? This guy?" Arizona smiled nervously, trying her best to act casual. "This is Spike. He's a friend of mine. We're going on an adventure together!"
"Really? The both of you?" Madison asked, looking rather skeptical. "But y'all look so young. But even more importantly, if ya don't mind me askin'...how did you both get up here exactly? Didn't see you both come through the main road...."
"Well, seein' as how the first bridge was all busted up, we took a shortcut!" Arizona answered.
Madison was flabbergasted, "Wha... are you tellin' me you climbed all the way up the side'a the cliff?!" She exclaimed.
"Well, I did most of the climbing," Arizona answered. "Spike here had a bit of trouble with the jumping though, but we managed."
Still, Madison looked unconvinced, "You half-goat or somethin'?!" She asked.
"Well, how’d you get here?” Arizona asked.
Madison turned her head to the left, then to the right before she looked back at the two adventurers, “You both seem alright. I’ll let you in on a little secret,” She winked. “Promise not ‘ta tell no one?”
Both Arizona and Spike nodded, “We promise.”
Madison then pointed, “Over tinder’s where the other way comes out, but you can’t get there unless ‘ya go through the secret cave.”
“Secret cave?!” Spike gasped.
“It’s one ‘a them places y’can’t get ‘ta unless ya already know where it is. Heh heh...” Madison chuckled. "Say now, aren't you one'a Minnie's calfs? I thought I recognized yer momma's poofy hair sure as the sun shines! Wat'cha doing all the way out here?"
"We're on our way to Reine City," Arizona answered. "Y'all happen to know how to get there?"
"Reine City?" Madison asked. "Well bless my bonnet, sure’s a co’inky-dink if I ever heard one! ‘Was headed there ‘ya sell some grain ‘n milk.” The cow explained. “Ever since the decree went out, they’re buyin’ up as much as they can get!”
Madison huffed as she continued, “I tell ‘ya that Deerfolk city ain’t nothin’ but a slum of snoot bags... but they’re practically givin’ away their salts. Times are what they are.”
“What kind'a business'dya have there?!" The cow asked.
"We're lookin' for the Prophet's Key," Arizona answered proudly. "Yer lookin' at the Champion of the Prairie! I'm gonna find the ol' Prophet's Key and seal away them sharp-toothed critters everybody's been seein'. Just like the old stories!" Arizona felt a tap on the shoulder from Spike, "Oh, and I'm helpin' Spike here gettin' back home."
"Really," The cow nodded skeptically. "Do yer parents know where y'are?"
Miffed, Arizona pouted, before she asked, "Can we get some directions?"
"Now, now, no need to fuss." Madison reassured. "Meant no offense. You just seem a little young to be runnin' around looking for sharp anything," With that, Madison begins to explain, "The way out of the Prairie is past this here drop. But..." Madison pointed to the what's left of another destroyed bridge. “I’m waitin’ for the pronghorns ‘ta come by and fix the bridge. Just a day or two more."
"Dangit, that's two now!" Arizona stomped her hoof in frustration. "Sure are a'lotta broken bridges 'round here! Someone ain't doin' their job right..." Arizona's ears folded back as she sadly asked, "Do we have to turn back?"
'No! We can't!' Spike thought in despair. 'Not when we came this far!'
"Hey now, don’t fret." Madison reassured. “We’ll figure something out. Worry like that an’ you’ll end up with more wrinkles than the raisin by the time ‘yer my age.”
Arizona nodded in agreement, “Yeah, you’re right!” She mooed. “There’s gotta be another way through.”
“I don’t know about that,” Madison muttered. “Unless ya count the tunnel.” The cow then smiled as she brightens up, "Tell ya what. Why don'tcha camp here with me for the day? Might be the bridge is fixed in the mornin'."
"But... uh... maybe we do need'ta rest up for a bit," Arizona sighed. "Sure, why not?"
"It's a sleepover then," Madison smiled. "I'll get'ya both set up." With that, the cow turns to her wagons and got out some staffs for her guests.
Later that night
Spike and Arizona were both in their sleeping bags, close to the campfire, while Madison was sound asleep in her wagon.
Arizona was tossing and turning in her sleeping bag, anxiously unable to sleep, with Spike sharing her predicament, "Can't sleep..." She muttered. "Really wanna get movin'. I’m way too excited.”
"Same here," Spike replied, while clutching onto the book. "But what are we supposed to do? The bridge is out and we're not getting to Reine City or anywhere else that way."
"I know," Arizona looked up at the bridge in dismay. "Darn bridge... every minute we waste the sooner someone else'll find the key first!" The calf paced back and forth, before she looked up and saw a shadowy figure at the top of the cliff, highlighted by the nearest pole with a lamp hanging on the side. "Hey! Spike, look!"
Spike looked up, and his eyes widened in alarm to see the outline of a large, ferocious wolf, "Oh no!" He whimpered.
The wolf quickly darted away, with Spike and Arizona giving chase, leading them to the cavern, "Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Arizona asked Spike.
Spike can feel his heart thumping hard in his chest, seeing the cave drawing closer and closer, "I've got a bad feeling about this Arizona," He frowned.
Without a second thought, Arizona decided to follow the creature, which disappeared into the cave. "Spooky..." She commented, getting an eerie feeling crawling up on her shoulders. To further add onto the eeriness of it all, Spike and Arizona couldn't help but notice a pile of bones and skulls littered on the floor. No doubt, some poor bovines had met their fatal end here.
Still, the calf decided to proceed, only for Spike to pull on her tail.
"Uh, Arizona. I don't think this is a good idea," Spike said in disapproval. "Let's just go back and find another way."
"Well, what other way do we have Spike?" The calf asked. "The bridge is out, so there's no way of gettin' to Reine City or the unicorns that way. Besides, ya want to get home, don't you?"
"Yeah, I do. But I don't think it's worth going into a dark cave. Who knows what could be waiting for us in there. Look at the bones!"
"Ya think I didn't notice that? Don't worry. Whatever happens, we can fight our way out of it. I've trained my whole life for this. And I'm not gonna let my folks down, jus' because of a dark cave and a pile of bones," Still, Spike was hesitant. "Of course, I completely understand if you're afraid of the dark, so..."
"Hold on!" The dragon spoke up. "Who said I'm afraid of the dark?"
"Well, are ya?"
"No way! I've been to darker places than this," He said, recalling how both he and Twilight had once gone down a dark maze, beneath the Crystal Empire, facing their greatest fears and solving mind-bending puzzles, on their first quest to save the Crystal Empire.
"Great! Then let's go!" Arizona said, as she disappears into the darkness of the cave.
Spike sighed, as he reluctantly followed. "I just know I'm going to regret this."
Meanwhile
The apple core that Spike had discarded earlier was left to rot on the ground, swarming with flies, when it was picked up off the ground for closer examination by magic.
“Ah-ha,” Oleander said. “These distinctive teeth marks. Note the natural curved shapes left from the bites? Not by any ungulates, either. It’s that dragon!”
“Yes, yes it is,” Fred said in his usual monotone. “So what?”
“Don’t you see, Fred? It means we are on the right trail! We found it again! The dragon was heading north, with that little bovine calf! If we hurry, we can still catch up to them! This way!”
With a determined gallop, the dark unicorn followed the trail, down the Beaten Path, until she arrived at a running river.
"They must've crossed the river!" Oleander speculated, before a smug grin dons across her face, "Well, nothing like a simple teleportation spell couldn't remedy." Concentrating into her horn, focusing her magic, Oleander and Fred both disappeared in a burst of dark clouds, before they reappeared, on the other side of the river. "Now then, as we were," With that, the dark unicorn resumes her quest, to find and destroy Spike.
Meanwhile, back with Spike and Arizona
Abandoned Cave
Upon entering, the air around him grew cold, as Spike followed after the calf who ran in pursuit of the wolf, "Hey! Wait!" She called out, galloping after the predator canine.
"Hey Ari!" Spike shouted, running after the young calf. "Arizona! Wait up!" He panted as he hefted the book on his back, panting heavily as he ran as fast as his little legs could carry him.
Arizona wasn't slowing down as she galloped after the wolf, chasing it through the cavern tunnels, screeching to a stop as she makes a sharp left turn to head further in, after the predator. Spike barely missed her when he came around, stopping for a moment to catch his breath, when he looked and saw a white shining chest, sparkling in the moonlight, shining down through an opening from the ceiling of the cavern.
"Whoa! A treasure chest?" Spike asked, as he slowly approached the chest, but stopped just moment before he walked off the edge of a large hole between him and the chest. "Yikes!" He chattered. "It's so deep... and dark down there," Spike commented. "There might be sharp rocks at the bottom..." Spike looked back at his back and sighed, "If I only I have wings, I could fly across," Shaking his head, Spike regained his focus on the task at hand. "Nevermind that. I've got to catch up to Arizona!" With that, Spike turned in the direction of the other tunnel to resume his chase after the calf.
In the meantime, Arizona continued with her chase after the wolf, until she finally came to a stop and pondered, "Didn't Pa say these beasties were s'pposed 'ta be hunters?" She huffed. "Never thought I'd be the one doin' the huntin'." Arizona's words were suddenly eaten, when she finds herself surrounded by two hungry wolves, when they appeared in a puff of smokes. "Oh!" She mooed in realization as the wolves were set upon her.
Both wolves jumped at Arizona, but the young calf quickly turned her whole body to thrust her hind legs, landing a strong kick on both of the predators, before she whipped out her lasso to ensnare one of the wolves by the neck, bringing it to her as she makes quick work of it, with a punch, a headbutt, and a kick, just as the other wolf jumped in. Thinking fast, Arizona picked up the first wolf with her horns and threw it up in the air where it collided with its companion, before she leapt up and delivered another punch, an elbow strike, and twisted her whole body forward to land two kicks onto their heads.
With that, both wolves were defeated, leaving nothing but a tired and triumphant Arizona standing in place, "AN' GOOD RIDDANCE!!" She mooed.
At last, Spike finally caught up to Arizona, "Arizona? You alright?" He panted heavily, but flinched when Arizona thrusted her legs out, nearly kicking him in the face. "WHOA!"
"Oh, Spike!" Arizona mooed. "It's you!" She composed herself and then she apologized, "Sorry about that, Spike. Ya startled me there."
"Yeah, you kinda clued me in," The dragon hyperventilated, as he looked around to see some scratches, cracks, and a few footprints on the ground, as markings left behind from the fight between Ari and the wolves. "What happened here? Was there another fight?"
"Yup," Arizona confirmed. "It was all a trap. Them sneakin' predators tried to ambush me, after I lost the first one. But luckily I fought them off. No worries."
"Oh, that's great," Spike panted heavily. "But y'know, you could at least just slow down a bit? I can't run as fast as you can. Not to mention you kinda left me in the dust back there."
"Sorry Spike," The cow giggled. "Well, I don't think we'll be sleeping a wink for the night. What say we keep going deeper into this cavern? I want to see if we can make it to Reine City through here."
Spike's widen in alarm at Arizona's suggestion, since he didn't want to spend the night in a dark cavern, such as this. But then again, even if they were to go back, then they'd never go anywhere from the way they came from. Especially given the bridge would still be out. Who knows how long it will take for the bridge to be fixed. It might be weeks, or months. Spike can't wait that long to get back to Equestria.
With a reluctant sigh, Spike nodded, "Okay then," Before Arizona could gallop away, Spike quickly grabbed her by the bandana and suggested, "But let's just stay close and no galloping off and leaving me behind. Please?"
Arizona nodded, "Alright. But hold on tight, Spike." With that, Spike climbed onto Arizona's back as they resumed their journey through the cavern tunnels.
On the way, Arizona struck up conversation, "Still...after what jus' happen, I understand why Pa's against having me go from the start."
"I don't blame him," Spike replied. "Heck, Twilight would have a heart attack and die if she finds out I've been eaten by a wolf. Know what I'm saying?" He chuckled lightly.
"Sounds like how Ma would react if she finds out I was ambushed," Arizona mooed in response. "Still, I can't let these monsters run free in Fœnum again. Gotta keep fighin'! Everyone's countin' on me!" She said, and proceeded to march onward in determination.
Eventually, both Arizona and Spike came to the edge of a cliff, over a deep dark pit below.
"Oh, it's a dead end, Ari," Spike moaned.
"Dangit, there's gotta be more to this cave!" She mooed in frustration, when her ears perked up. "Is that water I hear?"
Spike slowly inched forward, listening from his frilly ears he confirmed, "Yeah, I hear running water below!"
"Well then," With a kick of her legs, Arizona leapt into the air, "GERONIMO!"
"NO WAIT–" But it was too late. Spike and Arizona plummeted down into the darkness below, "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!"
*SPLASH*
Both Spike and Arizona landed in the icy cold waters of an underground lake, as they came up to the surface, gasping for air.
"Phew!" Arizona hollered. "We made it!"
"Oh, my life just flashed before my eyes," Spike's eyes widened as he remembered, "The book!" Taking his makeshift backpack off, Spike quickly inspected the book to find its cover was wet, with the side of its pages soaked, but the contents written on them were still intact. "Oh, I thought I was done for."
"Seriously, Spike?" Arizona asked. "It's jus' a book."
"This isn't just any old book, Ari," Spike frowned. "It's the spellbook that has the teleportation spell that brought me here to begin with! And I need it in one piece when we get to the unicorns, or I'm never getting home!"
"Yeah, yeah, I hear ya," Arizona rolled her eyes. "Just hold on tight to that book. Cause we're goin' down." Doing as he was told, Spike held the book up, over his head as he held tightly onto Arizona's bandana, and they both leapt over a small waterfall, splashing into another underground lake, where they spotted a wolf, curled up into a ball, on an island.
"Whoa now!" Arizona gasped. "That one's a sleepin'!" She pondered at an opportunity, "Hmm...Maybe I can sneak up on 'im...?"
Spike gulped in worry, not wanting to take any chances, "Or how about we just leave it alone and keep looking for a way out?" He suggested.
"Leave it alone?" Arizona scoffed. "After its other friends tried 'ta ambush me? Fat chance."
Very quietly, Arizona slowly swam up to the sleeping wolf, careful not to disturb it awake when she pulled both herself and Spike up on dry land. The wolf was sound asleep, still curled up into a ball, not knowing of the danger it was about to be in, when Arizona reared up on her hind legs and stomped her hooves back down, creating a powerful shake that startled the wolf awake.
Disoriented and half-awake, the wolf barely had time to come to its senses, as Arizona quickly thrashed her hooves at the predator, followed by a jab and a stab from her horns, and it disappeared in a puff of smokes, as a sign of its defeat and Arizona's victory.
"Yee-haw! Take that ya yellow bellied varmit!" Arizona gloated. "Don't think ya'll could ambush a bovine twice!"
"Hey Arizona!" Spike called out, as he pointed to an opening in the wall. "Not sure how, if it was your stomp that did the trick, but this cave's all cleared out."
"Huh, must be from all that practicin'," Arizona smiled as she stepped into the cave. "I told ya, Spike. It's worth all the practice."
Spike and Arizona both entered the cave and found themselves in another tunnel, which was pitch black and they could barely see what was up ahead, "Sure is dark in here," Spike muttered.
"No kiddin'," Arizona replied. "How's about some of that fire of yours?"
"Sure thing," With an inhale, Spike exhaled a burst of a green fire, which flew towards a wall, lighting up a lantern in the process. "Whoa! Look at that!" Spike pointed to show the lantern was burning a fire of blue, rather than a usual orange or red.
"Whoa, that's magical," Arizona commented, before she turned towards another lantern and beckoned Spike to breathe on it. Spike did just that and much to their amazement, they discovered the lantern glowed a color of blue as well, "Well, how do you like that?" She gasped.
"But what does that mean?" Spike asked.
"Hmmm... this reminds me another of Pa's tall-tales," Arizona began. "I think there's some kind'a puzzle to this here cave. C'mon, let's go look for another lantern and see what it is," With that, both Spike and Arizona followed the tunnel, before they find most of it was flooded by the waters.
Arizona waded in the streams, while carrying Spike on her back, before they came across the third lantern, which Spike ignited. With that, a bright light mysteriously conjured itself at the end of the tunnel, to which the two quickly ran towards. Upon arriving, the two were stunned and surprised to find a large jade orb, with golden frames at the bottom that resembled as wings, and a strange white inscription engraved within.
"Woah." Arizona marveled. "Round glowy thing."
"But what is it?" Spike asked. "Why is it down here? And what does it mean?"
"I don't know, Spike. But I think we should take this with us."
With that, Arizona gave the orb to Spike for safekeeping, and they backtracked to the way they came from and resumed their journey through the Abandoned Cave.
After swimming across the underground lake, the two came towards another cave, which they entered through and found another glowing stone, much like the previous two they found earlier, outside of the cave.
"Looks like we got ourselves another trial," Arizona deduced as she and Spike went up to see what the next trial was.
"Can you jump across the chasm?" The stone asked.
"Jump across the chasm?" Spike and Arizona looked across to see the chasm wasn't too deep, with a few platforms to bridge the way across. However, the problem wasn't at the bottom, or the bridge, but a very low ceiling decorated with stalactites.
"Golly, this is a bit of a squeeze," Arizona mooed. "No turnin' back now, Spike. We're just gonna have to keep our jumps low or else we'll hit our noggins."
Spike frowned and quivered at the thought of such painful impact to his little cranium, "Not a pretty picture," He grimaced.
Turning to the stone, both Spike and Arizona nodded, accepting its challenge. Once again, the two were bathed in a coat of white light as they begin their trial.
For Spike, given to his fairly nimble stature, it was a hop and a skip for him, "Hey, this isn't so bad," Spike chuckled as he jumped across the chasm.
Arizona, on the other hoof, wasn't doing so well. The young calf was doing the best she could to control her jump, keeping her prowess at a minimum. But no matter what she did, she ended up ramming her head into the sharp stalactites above, "OW!" Arizona mooed, feeling as if a sharp sword had pierced through her skull, and she plummeted to the bottom of the chasm in a grunt. "Oof!"
"Ari!" Spike shouted, stopping onto a platform as he reached out for the calf, who lied on the cavern floor below. "Arizona! Are you alright?"
"Yeah, I'm okay, Spike," Arizona mooed, getting up on all four of her hooves, shaking her head brush the disorientations away, before she climbed back up and tried again.
At first, all was going well as Arizona did a few short hops for the first two times. But on the third, she kicked her hind legs too strongly and accidentally hits her head onto the ceilings again, sending her back down to the ground. Spike anxiously waited for her, grimacing and wincing each time she hits her head on the stalactites. Finally, he couldn't take it anymore, as he hopped back to the third platform, stopping the calf.
"Arizona, wait!" He said. "I've got an idea. Just squat down on all four, and pretend you're a rabbit."
"Why?"
"Just do it. Trust me." Arizona complied as she followed Spike's example. "Now just do what I do and just hop," With that, Spike hopped onto the next platform, with Arizona following. Much to their big relief, Arizona didn't hit her head on the ceilings again.
"Wow! I did it!" Arizona exclaimed happily. "I did it!"
"Whoa, easy there, cowgirl," Spike steadied. "Don't get too excited. We're not done yet. Just keep following and we'll be out of here soon," With that, the two kept on hoping forward, pretending their little rabbits, until they've at last crossed the chasm. With that, the trial has ended.
"We did it!" Arizona cheered happily. "We finally did it!"
"You did great, Arizona!" Spike smiled.
"All thanks to you," Arizona mooed, as she pulled the dragon close for a hug. "Thank you, Spike."
"Aw, you'd do the same for me."
With the trial done and accomplished, the two resumed their adventure into the cave, following another tunnel that took them to another underground lake. However, the lake wasn't the only thing they had discovered.
"Whoa!" Arizona gasped as she and Spike ducked their heads down, behind some rocky mounds, inching upward a little to look, seeing a couple of wolves patrolling the area, "We've got some lively ones here."
With that, the two quickly swam across the underground lake, reaching the other side, where Arizona caught one of the wolves by surprise, when she ensnared it with her lasso and quickly, but silently, beat it into puffs of smokes with a headbutt, a kick, and a punch.
During the fight, Spike turned his head to the right to see another tunnel, "I wonder if this is the way out," Spike pondered, as he went over to the cavern to investigate.
After Arizona stood victorious over the wolf, she looked up and noticed Spike walking towards the other cave, "Hey Spike. Where're you going?"
"I think this could be the way out," Spike pointed, as he guided the young calf into another tunnel, which took them into another large cave room, with a large deep chasm and three rickety wooden bridges that stretched across. Thankfully, there were no wolves in the room, so Spike and Arizona both walked across the bridges to reach the other side, without any trouble.
Upon arriving, the two walked into another cavern room, rounding a corner to find another glowing stone, with another challenge that takes them across a winding, treacherous stretch of the cave.
"Looks like this is gonna take everything we've got, Spike," Arizona mooed as both she and Spike accepted the challenge.
Spike stretched his legs and his arms, getting warmed up, "Let's do this," He said.
The first part of the challenge was another short hop trial, as Spike and Arizona pretended to be little rabbits again to avoid the stalactites above their heads, barely reaching to the second platform. Afterwards, once Arizona was cleared from the ceilings, barely an inch off of the platform, she performed a super jump to reach a tall cliff.
Spike breathed heavily as he tried to concentrate, "Okay. Super jump, here I go," He said to himself, as he sets his sight on the cliffside, flexing his legs down before he catapults himself forward, reaching his claws out and grabbed onto the edge of the cliff. "Phew, I made it," Spike panted, before he started to lose his grip. With a kick of his legs, Spike scrambled at the side of the cliff as he struggled to pull himself up. It wouldn't be so difficult, if the weight of the book he was carrying on his back wasn't so heavy that it was dragging him down to chasm below.
Just when Spike couldn't hold on any longer, a strong hoof thrusted forward and grabbed the young dragon by his green bandana, "Gotcha, Spike," Arizona said as she helped Spike up to the ledge.
Spike was too exhausted and scared for words, but he did manage to give Arizona a frightful and grateful smile. Arizona simply smiled in return before they continued to the last part of the challenge, which required them to jump onto some ledges, until they have reached the top at last and walked into another cavern to see a prize was waiting for them.
"Whoa!" Spike gasped, upon seeing their prize was the white chest he had seen earlier, from the other side.
Eager to find out what they've won, Spike rushed towards the chest to open its lid up to reveal, much to his and Arizona's bewilderment, "A potted cactus?" Spike exclaimed in disappointment.
"Huh, who would go and leave a good potted plant lyin' around?" Arizona asked in bewilderment, before she shrugged. "Might as well keep it until we find them." Turning to the right, Spike and Arizona entered another tunnel, only to realize too late there wasn't any floors to support them.
"AAAAAAAHHHH!!!" Spike screamed, as he and Arizona dropped from the ceiling and landed back on the cavern floors. "Oh! We're back here again," He noted, recognizing the bridges.
With that, the two backtracked to the underground lake they were in before, with the remaining wolf still patrolling the area. Looking ahead, barely visible by the moonlight piercing from the ceiling, Spike and Arizona saw another cave tunnel, just pass the wolf.
"That thing must be guardin' the way out," Arizona deduced. "Well, not if I can't help it," With that, Arizona quietly got into the water and started to swim silently across until she was close enough to the wolf, when she leaped out from the water and took it by surprise, with a strong stomp on the floor with her hooves.
The wolf was stunned by the shattering shaking floor, made by the strong bovine. Not giving it a moment to recover, Arizona rushed forward and rammed the wolf with a powerful head butt that she sent it flying across the floor, and it smashed against a wall, disappearing in a puff of smokes upon impact.
With that, the way to the next cavern was open for the two heroes. Upon entering, they stopped at the mouth of a chamber, with little bit of lightings piercing from the ceiling.
"Dang...I didn't know we had caves this spooky in Fœnum," Arizona mooed.
Spike couldn't help but chuckle, "Who's scared of the dark now?" He teased, to which Arizona pouted, looking unamused in his direction. "Look!"
Arizona followed, and both she and Spike saw a splotch of pitch-black, "Well dust my dungarees..." Arizona exclaimed. "That's a new one!"
The little splotch of pitch-black was hovering in the center of the chamber, appearing to mind its own business, when the two friends walked up to it, and it started to move like that of a living creature.
"Uhhh.... howdy?" Arizona greeted the creature. "I've never seen a little critter like you before." Both calf and dragon watched as the mysterious creature circled around them, observing its visitors at a distance, before it decided to come up to them, making motions as if though it was tilting its head, before it poked at their sides.
"Uh, are you hungry or something?" Spike asked. "I think it's hungry. You got anymore food on you, Ari?"
Arizona reached into her bag, hoping to find more food, but came up empty, "Uh...heh heh. I don't got no food. Not anymore," She said. Before they knew it, the creature started stroking and slithering them on the side of their bodies. "Hey cut it out now, that tickles!" Arizona giggled.
"Yeah, stop it!" Spike chuckled. "Please? Oh no, not the stomach. Not the stomach."
The two were both helpless, as the creature continued to tickle them nonstop. Eventually, the fun was over and they were more annoyed, "It's not funny anymore," Spike frowned, as he and Arizona tried to force the creature away. "C'mon, go. Get off! Shoo!"
"Go on, get!" Arizona added, shooing the creature away with her hoof.
But the creature refuses to leave. Having enough, Arizona reared up on her hind legs, before she slams her hooves onto the cave's floor, emitting a thunderous shockwave that shook the whole cavern.
"Whoa!" Spike shouted, falling off his feet. "Isn't that a bit of an overkill?" He asked.
"Well it worked, didn't it?" She asked, pointing out that the creature was nowhere in sight, before notice a few sparkles of green and blue shimmering balls of lights that laid on the floor, where the creature once stood. "Whoa... what the sam hill IS this stuff?!" Neither Arizona and Spike had time to ponder, when the balls of lights were suddenly absorbed into them.
"Whoa, what just happened?" Spike exclaimed.
"I don't know," Arizona replied. "But feel great! Jus' like that! Must be some sort'a magic... We better keep our eyes peeled 'fer more of these things..."
Next thing they knew, some of the rocks came loose, with a pebble falling from the ceiling and bounced off of Spike's head.
"Oh no," Spike moaned, as another tiny piece of rock broke from the ceiling, followed by another, until the entire cave shook, and more rocks came falling from the ceiling, blocking the entrance.
"Oh great!" Spike shouted in frustration. "We're trapped!"
"DANGIT!" Arizona mooed. "What'd I got ourselves into?"
"That's it, we're doomed! Doomed!"
"Oh calm down, Spike. There's just gotta be a way outta here. I got us into this mess, so I can probably get us out," Arizona walked around the darkness of the cave, kicking pebbles, while feeling up the walls for something, when her she touched something. "Hey, what's this?" She felt the object up again, before it reveals itself to be a beat up old lantern. "Hey Spike? Care to shed a little light on this?"
The young dragon complied, breathing a small puff of green ember into the lamp, lighting up the candle and the whole room.
"Ah that's better," Arizona said in relief, before something caught her attention. "Huh? Spike, hold this for me," She said, handing the lantern to the dragon, as she went over to investigate a rubble of rocks.
"What is it?" He asked.
"This here looks like a modest mass a' minerals," She observed. "Wonder if another good stomp would crunch through here?"
"But what if it causes another cave in?" Spike asked, feeling unsure about her tactic at hoof.
Arizona didn't listen to reply, as she stood up on her hind legs, and thrusted her hooves down again, this time, clearing the rubbles to reveal another tunnel in the cavern chamber, "GOT IT!" Arizona shouted in triumph. "C'mon, let's go!"
With that, Arizona galloped away with Spike following, "Wait for me!" He cried out, running after her, passing by some more bones of dead bovines, before they entered another cavern chamber, arriving at the end of a ledge, where a large pile of crystal mounds blocked their way.
"Oh wow! Food!" Spike drooled hungrily at all the large crystals jutting up from the rocky mounds. He wasted no time to rush forward to take a bite out of one.
"Spike, wait! That's–"
Spike gulped a chunk of the crystal down, before he smacks his lips, "Mmmm-mmmm! That's a little–" His lips suddenly dried up, and his skins shriveled to show some bones, "Salty...." He moaned in a hoarse voice.
Arizona couldn't help but giggle at the dragon's misfortune, before walking over and took out a canteen, "Here you are, little feller," She said, offering Spike the container for a refreshing drink.
"Thanks," Spike took the canteen, and didn't waste a second to pour every last bit of water into his dry mouth, rejuvenating himself. "Phew, thanks Arizona," He gasped in relief, finding his voice. "That feels good."
"Anytime, Spike. Anytime," Arizona mooed, as she turned to look back at the salty crystals. "Hmmm, this is definitely salt," She noted. "Them Reine City folk barter with salt, so better grab some while we're here. Just in case," With another stomp of her hooves, Arizona destroyed the salty crystals into fine powders, and allowing both herself and Spike another passage through the caverns.
"Okay Spike," Arizona began. "Looks like we're at the deepest part of the cave. So we best be careful, 'cuz if we jump here, we ain't gettin' back up."
Spike gulped nervously, "Okay," He nodded.
With a short hop, Arizona jumped off the ledge and landed on the floor with another big stomp, shaking the room slightly.
"Arizona?" Spike called from up the ledge. "Everything okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine, Spike," The calf replied. "Come on down."
Clutching the lantern's handle in his mouth, Spike carefully descended down the ledge, with his claws digging into the stony structures to get a firm hold, until he made it to the floor. Holding the lantern up, Spike and Arizona both looked around the cavern room they were now in. They looked up to see there was a path that leads them up to some more caverns. With that, the two didn't hesitate to walk towards the caves.
Unfortunately, Arizona didn't look where she was going, when she suddenly fell down a hole, "AAAAAAAAaaaaaahhhh!" She screamed, on her way down.
"ARIZONA!!!" Spike screamed, running towards the hole she fell into. "Arizona? Ari? Are you okay, huh?" The dragon frantically asked.
"I'm okay," Arizona called out. "Just stay right there, Spike. I'll find a way up."
"Okay," Spike reluctantly complied, as he stayed, huddled up close to the lantern at his side,
As he waited for the calf, an eerie feeling pricked up along the back of Spike's neck, as if sensing he was being watched. Turning his head in ever directions in the room, he cast frighten glances for any signs of the ghostly predators. The light from his lantern illuminated the cavern room slightly, creating shadows that covered the rocky interiors. Spike can feel his heart beating like a drum, imagining he saw the menacing figures of the predators in every shadows that surround him. To further his trouble, he looked across the room to see several more bones of many dead ungulates littered across the floor. Unlike the dead sticks that Applejack would use as prop bones for her family's Nightmare Night Maze, Spike knows for a fact that the bones he's looking at are the real deal. They're from actual dead creatures.
Suddenly, his ears pricked up to the sound of footsteps, coming from a tunnel nearby. His teeth chattered at the sound. He looked in the direction of the footsteps, getting himself ready for what was about to come out. Much to his relief, however, it was only Arizona.
"Howdy Spike," Arizona greeted. "Did ya wait too long?"
"No," Spike shook his head. "But I can't tell you how glad I am to see you're okay," He said with heartfelt relief. "But what happened down there?"
"There was an underground lake below, and the water broke my fall" Arizona explained. "And after I had the time to observe the layouts of the place, I think I figured where we should go next. Follow me!" With that, Arizona went up to another hole, just further ahead of the hole she fell in previously, with Spike following. The two fell down and landed on the top of a landmass that surrounded the lake.
"Now where do we go?" Spike asked.
Before Arizona could answer, a streak of movements caught her attention in the corner of her eyes, "Look!" She pointed to a nearby cavern, leading to another tunnel.
With that, Spike and Arizona gave chase, before arriving into another cave chamber, where a large wolf stood in their path. Unlike most of the other wolves they had seen, this wolf stood about as tall as Texas, with purple eyes that pulsed an even more demonic aura.
"That's a big bad wolf!" Spike quivered.
"All the more reason to kick its flank!" Arizona mooed bravely, before they notice the wolf was regrouping with its sleeping packs. "Uh oh, looks like it's gonna try 'ta wake up its pals...!" With a kick of her legs, Arizona charged towards the wolf before it had the chance to, "Yer goin' down ugly!" She mooed, when the whole room suddenly shook.
"What's happening?" Spike asked, as he turned and looked to see the openings in the room were all engulfed in dark purple fires, sealing the way out. "Oh no! We're locked in!"
"Ya mean they're locked in with us!" Arizona mooed, as she tackled the big wolf before it had the chance to wake up its pack.
Arizona thrusted her horns forward, but the wolf leapt to the side, evading the attack, before it snapped its jaws around the calf's neck, grabbing her by the bandana and threw her across the floor. Then it leapt into the air for a pounce, but was intercepted by Arizona's horns when she thrusted her head into the air, breaking its flight. Suddenly, the wolf sinked into the grounds below, becoming a streak of shadows until it leapt up, throwing Arizona off her hooves and it had her pinned down.
"Get off of me!" Arizona grunted, kicking her legs out from under the wolf, throwing it off.
The wolf then ran towards Arizona again, only to be hit by a flying rock, "Hey! Leave her alone ya big bully!" Spike shouted, as he continued to distract the wolf, by pelting it with more pebbles.
Angered for the intervention, the wolf turned its attention on Spike, only to be caught by the legs from Arizona's lasso and the calf brutally thrashed it around the cavern room, until it finally disappeared in a puff of smokes.
With that, the battle ended and the fires that blocked off the cavern's openings were lifted, "Huh, I'm guessing that wolf must've used some kind of magic to try and trap us in," Spike theorized.
"And if one of these predators can do it, then that means there's more of 'em out there," Arizona mooed grimly. "We better keep our wits up from here on out."
Spike nodded in fright, "Don't have to tell me twice," He whimpered. "I wish Twilight was here right now. She'd know what to do."
The two heroes proceeded to go forward with their journey, passing through the pack of sleeping wolves. Just then, one of the wolves sniffed the air, and it snapped its eyes awake. Upon seeing the young calf and her dragon traveling companion, the wolf let out a haunting howl that startled its entire pack awake.
Spike quickly ran for cover, hiding behind a boulder and watched as Arizona fought off the remaining wolves in the cavern room. Two wolves leapt at Arizona from behind, only for Arizona to buck her legs out, stopping them in their flights, before another wolf snapped its jaws at her throat, but missed and tore off a piece of her bandana.
"C'mere!" Arizona shouted, grabbing the wolf with her front hooves, throwing it onto her back and she bounced it a couple of times, before kicking it away with her hind legs, knocking it into the rest of its pack, knocking them down like bowling pins.
Setting her sights on the disoriented wolves, Arizona felt a surge of great power coursing through her body, all focusing onto the predators, "Y'all in for a BEATIN'!" Arizona shouted, when she crouched down, with her hind legs kicking the dirts up, and she bolted forward in a blinding speed, faster than a bullet, knocking all of the wolves into the air, where they disappeared into puffs of smokes.
"Whoa, Arizona!" Spike shouted, eyes widened in shock. "What was that?!"
"I...I...I honestly don't know, Spike," Arizona mooed in confusion. "It just sorta...sorta happened."
"Well, whatever that was...that was AWESOME!! Do it again!"
Arizona complied as she focused on a nearby rock, setting her horns on her target, and kicking the ground up with her hooves as she crouched herself downward, "Y'all in for a BEATIN'!" With a kick of her legs, Arizona springed herself forward, but didn't go as fast as she did before. "Huh...looks it's a one-time'a thing, or somethin'," Arizona mooed.
"Don't worry about, Ari," Spike shrugged. "It'll come again. Besides, if you can do it once, you can do it again."
Arizona couldn't help but smile at Spike's confidence in her, as they continued to be on their way, into the next cavern, which took them into a small room, with a small pond of waters on top of a hill, where another cavern leads the way out.
Arizona looked and saw another splotch of pitch-black, "Hey! There's another of those things again!" With that, Arizona charged towards the splotch and stomped her hooves down, causing the splotch to explode into the blue and green balls of shimmering lights, like before which were all absorbed into her.
With that, all of the wounds Arizona had from the previous fight were fully recovered and she felt another surge of great power coursing through her body.
"Oh yeah, that feels good!" Arizona sighed, before coming to an epiphany. "Hey Spike. I think I figured it out."
"What? What is it?" Spike asked.
"I think these magic lights that were comin' from these dark splotches were how I could do what I just did back there. So the more we collect these lights, the more we stronger we get and more chances of us doing tricks like what I jus' did earlier!"
Spike scratched his chin and pondered, "Hmmm, makes sense to me...I guess," He said, before he looked to see another splotch of pitch-black. "I got this one," With that, Spike ran up to the splotch and breathed fire on it, causing the splotch to explode into magical lights which were all absorbed into Spike, surging him with a magical force of energy. "Whew! That feels good!"
After that, the two heroes were on their way, exploring deeper and deeper into the caverns. But all the same, Spike looked anxiously at their dark surroundings, recalling the nightmare he had from the previous night, readying himself for anything that could jump out from the shadows, eager to make a meal out of him and Arizona.
"Spike?"
"AH!" The little dragon yelled, and out of startled impulse, he flailed his lantern at Arizona.
"Whoa, whoa!" The calf coaxed, while dodging the lantern. "Take it easy! It's me."
"Oh, sorry Arizona," Spike breathed heavily. "Sometimes I'm a little jumpy in dark places like this."
"That's alright. Just do me a favor and don't swing that light at me next time, okay?"
"Sure."
But all the same, Spike remained vigil and cautious for anything lurking in the dark. Eventually, he and Arizona came out the other end of the tunnel, to find themselves back in the room they were in before Arizona fell down the hole.
"Oh great!" Arizona stomped her hoof in frustration. "We're back to where we started!"
"Not quite," Spike held his lantern up, and looked at the layout of the room, and saw the entrance they came from at the top of the cliff, in front of them. "Actually Arizona. We're on the other side of the holes we fell in," He and Arizona looked to their left to see another cavern, with the hole that Arizona fell through, in front of it. "There's our next path."
With that, the two entered the cave and walked through another dark tunnel, arriving in another large room, where a whole pack of wolves were asleep, with a large alpha greeting the adventurous pair at the entrance. Before Spike and Arizona could react, the alpha wolf let out a haunting howl, waking up its entire pack and they sprang up to their feet, wide awake, turning their heads in the heroes' direction.
"DANGIT!" Arizona pouted.
More trouble appeared in the form of dark fires that barred the way out, "Can't go back! Here they come!" Spike pointed at the wolves charging towards them. "AAAAAAHHHH!!!"
"YEE HAW!!" Arizona screamed, as she charges straight towards a one of the attacking wolves, and caught it with her horns, flipping it in the air, before she quickly jumped up to throw fast kicks, an elbow thrust, before she flips and slams her hind legs in a powerful double axe kick, crashing the wolf to the floor, where it disappears in a puff of smokes. Two of the wolves rushed forward in an attempt to avenge its fallen members, but Arizona kept them off at bay, with her horns and legs, and the wolves inched away to avoid her strikes.
Then, without warning, the alpha wolf jumped out from the shadows and pounced onto Arizona's back, "Get off of me!" Arizona mooed, angrily bucking and kicking her legs out, in an attempt to throw the wolf off. But still, it held onto her tightly, as it clamps its jaws down, clawing at her, ripping tufts of furs into the air, and spilling drops of blood onto the floor, "AAAHHHH!!" Arizona screamed in agony, as the alpha continues to bite down on her, with two of its pack members rushing in to join the feeding frenzy, as the each took a bite at different part of Arizona's body.
"ARIZONA!!!" Spike screamed in horror. Thinking desperately, Spike picked up the lantern and ran towards the wolves, "Get off of my friend you filthy mutt! HI-YAH!!" He shouted, with all his might, swinging the lantern at the alpha wolf, shattering the glasses at its face, and spilling the fire onto the wolf's face, forcing it to let go of its prey.
Relieved to have the wolf off her back, Arizona didn't hesitate to throw a quick punch at one of the wolf's snout, which followed with a headbutt, then a strong back kick, before she lurched forward, ramming two of the savage canine with her horns, and thrusted her front hooves down in a thunderous stomp, defeating the wolves as they disappeared into puffs of smokes.
Arizona then sets her sight at the alpha, who snarled hungrily and angrily at her. Though wounded from the bites and the scratches she received from the wolves, Arizona was determined to end the fight, crouching herself low to the ground and kicking up the dirt, she mooed as she felt a surge of power coursing through her, once again, "Y'all in for a BEATIN'!" With a spring of her legs, Arizona rushed forward in a blinding speed of light, ramming her horn at the alpha.
Unfortunately, the alpha had anticipated the attack, and managed to hold its front paws up to block the strike from the calf, pushing her away, before lunging forward to grab her by the neck with its jaws and threw her into the walls. The wolf let out a loud howl to signify its triumph before it snorted and proceeded to eat the young calf. Before it had the chance, it was taken by surprise when a burst of green fire roared in the air, roasting at its face, to which it turned to see Spike running towards it.
"Get away from my friend!" Spike roared, as he leapt into the air and landed a kick to its head.
Angered by the dragon's intervention, the wolf barked angrily and it snapped its jaws at Spike, who quickly ducked his head and held the book up, like it was a shield. Remembering his training with Arizona, Spike waited until the wolf made itself vulnerable, in which he retaliated with a punch, a kick, and a tail whip at the alpha, which further infuriates the large wolf. Before the alpha could continue the fight, Arizona came charging at the wolf, catching it by surprise when she headbutted the wolf with a powerful force that sent it flying into the wall, where it vanished in a puff of smokes upon impact.
With the wolves defeated, the two friends quickly ran into the next cave, stopping midway in the cavern tunnel where they took a moment to catch their breath.
"That was too close for comfort," Arizona panted heavily.
"Ya think?” Then, Spike looked and his eyes widen in alarm, “Your neck is bleeding!" Spike shouted, pointing to where the bite from the wolves was shown, fresh on the calf's neck.
The wound was fouled and wreaks of bloods dripping from where the furs were torn, "It's nothin' Spike," Arizona tried her best to reassure, while still feeling sore from the wound. "Nothin' really."
"No it's not!" Spike said, as he went to inspect the wound, though the little dragon quickly held his nose close to block out the bitter smell of the blood. "Oh, that stinks!"
"Spike, I'm tellin' ya, it's fine."
"WILL YOU SHUT UP?!!" Spike roared, taking the calf by surprise. "How can you be fine? How can I be fine if you got hurt this badly from a predator? If it weren't for me, you wouldn't be alive, and then I'm...I'm never going to get home without you," He panted heavily, with a small tear trickling down his cheek. "If you've been killed, it'll be on me...because I didn't fight from the start. And I can't let my friends be killed, because of me. I need you Arizona! Not because you're helping me get home...but because you're my friend. I can't go on without you."
Arizona was at a loss for words. This is the first time she's ever seen Spike this stern, and scared before, "Well, I feel a little sore," She admitted. 'More ways than one.'
Spike struggled to steady his breathing. But the sight of Arizona's wound had kicked his mind into overdrive. He could barely think straight, "Come on, what would Twilight do?" He asked himself. "What would Twilight do? What would any of the girls do?"
"Well, what would you do if this has happened to you or any of yer friends?" Arizona asked.
"Well if this happened to me I'd–" Spike stopped as he thought about what Arizona had asked him. "Huh, what would I do? Normally, I'd just rely on Twilight and the girls to help me up and everything."
"But they're not here. It's jus you and me now, Spike."
The little dragon slumped down on his haunches as he sighed, "I hate to admit it, but you're right," He looked back at Arizona, seeing how hard she's trying to look tough. But at the same time, he can tell she's just as scared as he is.
'I've got to do something,' He said to himself, mentally. 'But what? What can I do? What would....wait, of course!' He pounded his fist in his opened claw, as he walked over to Arizona, taking his green bandana off, pulled out their canteen to pour some water to wet the piece of fabric, and he started to wipe the bloody wound.
"Ow!" Arizona gritted her teeth. "Take it easy, Spike! It hurts."
"Well you're the one who said it's nothing," The dragon argued, as he continued to wipe the blood away.
As much as Arizona hates to admit it, he was right. But to her, it feels a little embarrassing to be treated by someone smaller, yet surprisingly, older than her. Then again, his intentions are good.
"I'm sorry I scared ya, Spike," Arizona sighed. "Really. I am."
"It's okay, just hold still," The dragon replied, before he inspects the wound to see it looked clean enough. He then, looked through their belongings and found a first aid kit, "Good thing your mother packed us some medical aids," He said, as he got out cotton dressing, which he puts on over the wound and began untying Arizona's red bandana, tying it together with his bandana, before he wrapped them around the dressing, patching them over the wound. "There, that should do it. But try not to move it too much, okay?"
Arizona couldn't help but smile with a new amount of admiration, "You really are a pony's best friend, huh?" She asked.
"Well, I'm sure they would do the same for you," Spike said, as he sat down against a wall, dropping the spell book off his back and holding it tightly over his chest.
Deciding to pass the time, Arizona struck up conversation, "So these pony friends of yers. They really mean that much to ya?"
"Oh they're more than friends," Spike replied in nostalgia. "They're my family. The only family I have."
"Right. Ya mentioned that before. So how exactly did ya wind up becoming a part of their herd? By that, I mean, how did this Twilight gal came to hatch ya?"
"If you're asking how my egg came to Equestria, then I don't know. Princess Celestia just said I was found as an egg, and I was cold. Apparently, dragon eggs needed to be kept warm in order for us to hatch. So she took me in, and tried to warm up, but that did little good. I was that close to....ugh, death," Spike shuddered at the thought of what it must've been like to be born dead. "But then Twilight came, and she had this magical outburst, and boom! I'm hatched."
"Wow, that's quite a story, Spike." Wanting to keep the conversation going to know a little more about the dragon, Arizona asked, "So what happened after that?"
"Well, obviously, everybody threw me my first birthday party," Spike smiled in nostalgia. "At the same time, Twilight was congratulated, and she got into Princess Celestia's School for Gifted Unicorns. And me, I was adopted by her folks."
"Really? Jus' like that? No objections, or anything?"
"Well, there were some doubts, between Princess Celestia and Twilight's folks, since no pony in history has ever raised a dragon. But we worked out our differences and I'm officially a member of the Sparkle family."
"I see. So, this Twilight and her folks. What were they like?"
"Where do I begin?" The little dragon scratched his chin. "I've already told you before about what Twilight was like. But her big brother, Shining Armor, was a lot of fun, like all big brothers are, I guess. Mrs. Sparkle makes some delicious cookies, Mr. Sparkle really knows how to tell some good bedtime stories and all. And Cadence....she's practically every pony's big sister. She's beautiful, she's caring, and she's very kind. It was so hard to believe that before she was Twilight's foalsitter and now she's part of the family, after she married Shining Armor. We're so lucky to have her."
"Sounds to me you've got some swell family of ponies, Spike," Arizona smiled.
"Oh yeah. I owe my whole life to them. So you can see why I'd do anything for them in return, after the love they've given me after I was hatched," The young dragons thoughts turned solemn, as he thought in worry for Twilight and her family, back in Equestria. "I've just got to get back to Equestria soon! Twilight and her folks are probably worried sick when they find me missing."
Arizona looked sadly at Spike. Unlike many awful stories of predators, and dragons like him, he is far from the traditional tales of rampaging, fiery, greedy dragons of old. Instead, he's actually quite the decent little fella, with a caring heart. He's not a bad dragon after all. Her mind was made up.
"Well, Spike. If they really mean all that much to ya, then I've got yer back," Arizona mooed. "You've got a real family heart, Spike. And I respect that from a lot of creatures. I'll help ya anyway I can to get ya back home."
The little dragon smiled the biggest smile he could ever make since arriving in Fœnum. Admittedly, it was all a scary experience for him to be far away from home in another world, populated with ungulates, including bovines like Arizona. With every days he spent in this world, Spike grew more and more anxious, if not nostalgic to get back to Equestria, where his home, his friends, and his family are waiting for him. There's not even a day where he doesn't stop thinking how safe and sound he'll be in his nice warm bed again.
But all the same, meeting Arizona and having her by his side does make the journey feel less lonely and scary. Granted, the young calf may come off as naive, headstrong, and stubborn, but she's just as good-hearted, strong, brave, and honest, like Applejack. Therefore, in a way, to Spike, it feels like he still has a friend from Equestria with him.
"Thanks Ari." He thanked, hugging the young calf. "You're one heck of a pal."
"Uh....ya can thank me later when we get ya home," Arizona replied. "But yer welcome, Spike."
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What happened that made you want to post 8 whole chapters worth of story in a single chapter? I mean, it's LITERALLY 8 times longer than the average chapter length before it
Awesome update
Excellent job on this latest chapter. Definitely well worth the wait. The exchanges, characterizations, action and future chapter set-up are all well done in all the right places. I especially liked the teamwork Spike and Arizona showed against the wolves and snakes as well as the in-universe reason needed for building up the charge for the super-move, Spike sharing more detail of his family backstory with Arizona as the former was tending to the latter's wounds.
VERY certainly looking forward to more of this.
Ice age continental drift reference. I like that part! 😂
This interaction between arizona and spike almost reminds me of how kratos and atreus went on an adventure to deliver the mother's ashes in the God of War PlayStation 4.
WHAT ABOUT STARLIGHT AND GANG? HOW ARE THEY DOING? BEEN A WHILE SINCE WE LAST SAW THEM!
When is the next chapter coming out?
Update Update Update Update Update Update Update Update Update Update Update Update Update Update Update Update Update Update
Excellent work on this.