Like Something's Missing

by Icecane

Royalty, Conflict and Beginnings

Princess Celestia slowly walked through the chambers of the sanctuary, the dragon ancient Serilex beside her. Though the ruler tried to keep her composure, holding her mask of a regal calm, her attempts were proven difficult to hold in the wake of such realizations.

All around them, the dragons, both wingless and not, watched from afar. They gave a wide berth to strange newcomer who stood with their master.

A sense of power and radiance hung in the air as the princess passed. Just being in the presence of the ruler made the dragons uneasy, both from the sight of the rarity of a visit from such a creature, as well as what was felt among them as they watched silently. They felt compelled to show the princess a reverence due a god, caused just by being near it. It was unnerving to them, having only held such natural reactions toward Serilex himself.

But Celestia wasn't bothered by the distance the dragons kept, being too lost within the sights that were around her, and the tales that were spun by the powerful dragon at her side.

“There is so much to take in,” the princess murmured, feeling overwhelmed by the flood of new information and shattered veils that once made up what she believed. “I never would have anticipated this from dragons, all happening right under my nose as well.”

“You have your own people to worry for,” Serilex replied. “The affairs of dragons are not your concern, be grateful your woes are so much more simple.”

Celestia simply shook her head at the dragon's words. “And yet worry I must. Though I have ruled for many centuries, it is daunting to realize I still know so little of the world beyond the day to day rituals of my subjects.”

A smirk crossed the dragon ancient for a moment. “Consider it a testament of your ability to have found us, Princess. And I'll consider it a display of your understanding to keep what you've found from your people.”

“But why?” Celestia asked, her shrewd gaze locked onto the dragon. “You wish for your kind to know peace, yet you keep yourselves hidden away. Allowing us to assume the worst of dragons with little else to see except for what your enemies allow. If the world were to know of you-”

“They would display the same fear and panic that your ancestors before have shown.” The princess was stopped by Serilex's tone, showing his stance on the subject was as hardened as steel. “Can you truly believe that our history will be erased overnight? It will take time for the fears brought on by Doomaught's influence to fade. I have seen how your kind react to that which is different.”

“The three tribes,” the princess remarked, remembering Equestria's history well. “But it was resolved.”

“In the face of the near eradication of your race,” Serilex commented. “You hold their ability to understand in too high of a regard. It reminds me of a young dragon I met many years ago. Against my judgment, he felt that it was time for dragons to be seen in a new light. So he flew out to the lands of the griffons to bring peace, I believe his skull still hangs within their palace.”

Trying to ignore the rather horrific statement, Celestia's thoughts returned to the magical dragons around her. Their trip through the sanctuary continued down another hall. It was different than the others, holding little in added visual esthetics other than the designs already carved into the stone walls.

As they slowly walked the hallway, Serilex looked toward the princess. “If I may be so bold, though you've ruled a land held in a state of peace for so many years, I know you've witnessed those who didn't wish for it. Those who hold evil in their intentions and seek to disrupt that which you hold dear. Coming from all of the races across the world, from minotaurs and griffons,” the dragon's eyes focused on the princess, “to even a few of your own.”

Celestia paused after hearing that, remembering a night that occurred several hundred years ago, one that lasted longer than any other.

“The point is,” Serilex continued, “we all have our less desirable members. Doomaught and his kind are ours. But I know that one day, dragons will find a place for themselves in this world. Though I do not go so far as to think of dragons sharing villages with your ponies, or anything of the sort.”

The hallway they were traversing soon ended. Celestia found herself staring off into a vast chamber, much like that bearing the faces of the ancients. But no paintings of elder dragons were held within, instead only one thing stood in the chamber, situated in the very center.

There was a small pedestal, almost like a shrine as it depicted several dragons carved into the base, both wingless and not. The stone dragons held up a large stone dish, concave in shape, like a bowl. Within the dish was a large egg, larger than that of any kind of bird. But it was obvious to anyone who saw it what creature it belonged to. Teal flames encircled the dragon egg within the dish, causing shadows to dance across its surface.

Two dragons stood guard within the chamber. Upon seeing their lord and the newcomer approach, their posture immediately stiffened. Celestia was met with the stares of both dragons freezing onto her, watching every move she made closely.

But the intent gazes weren't what the princess noticed. Upon approaching the egg, the magical alicorn felt her hooves halt in place involuntarily as the air was nearly sucked away from her lungs. Almost collapsing onto the ground, she felt a powerful force strike against her, like a wave of invisible water, with about as much force as a speeding carriage.

Regaining her composure quickly, Celestia found herself under the gaze of Serilex, eying her reactions. “You can feel it too, can't you?” he asked, looking back to the egg. “Not many can.”

“What is it?” she asked, feeling foolish for asking as she could see the answer clearly, despite the obvious that there was more to it.

“A dragon egg,” Serilex replied, making the princess feel even more foolish. “But one of a very special kind.” Stepping closer to the egg, the dragon ancient leaned his head down toward the flame surrounding it. With only a small breath, a simple stream of teal flame trailed from his mouth and added to what was already there, making the blaze burn even brighter for several moments before calming. “A flightless dragon of grand power.”

The sun ruler frowned as her gaze lingered on the unhatched dragon offspring. “It feels as though magic seeps from it's very being.”

“Yes,” Serilex nodded, “it is a herald, to the powerful dragon it will one day become. Born of two wingless dragons and gifted with untold power, it's abilities will be of our greatest, given the proper tutelage of course.. Such a dragon is a rare occurrence, even by the chances of typical flightless dragons. Our history has only ever seen the birth of three such dragons. One of which was a deciding factor in stopping Doomaught's attempt to raze the world. Which is why he views such a dragon as a grave threat to him. Which is also why I make sure to keep it here, safe and protected.”

“Where did it come from?” Celestia asked, unable to remove her gaze from the egg.

“Another sanctuary I developed far to the north,” the ancient replied. “It's mother came here to ensure the child's safety.” A heavy sigh escaped the dragon. “She has long since passed, taken by those who fly under Doomaught. But she managed to bring the egg here, where I make it my duty to protect it.”

Leaving the chamber, Serilex and Celestia walked back to the main library, where the princess had entered the old sanctuary before.

“I hope you've come to understand my kind,” the ancient said, seeing a coming conclusion to the royal visit.

Celestia nodded, taking one last gaze around the impressive place of knowledge. “I do, I've learned a great deal here. And I'll keep my word, your secret will not be betrayed by me.”

“Thank you,” Serilex replied with a bow. “I still hold a deep respect for your kind, you help to show why that is. And it is good to at least know that the southern lands I once called home are in capable-”

The ancient was cut off as a powerful quake shook the sanctuary. Startled gasps escaped many of the dragons as they looked upward toward the ceiling. Large cracks broke through the stone surface, fragments broke free and crashed to the floor, books fell from the shelves and piled atop each other.

As more quakes continued to rattle the peaceful place, an all consuming sound of stone being shattered echoed from the entrance tunnel. They looked toward it, just in time, to hear a chorus of roars sound off and come closer by the second.

There was no time to react quick enough as dragons burst through the tunnel, falling over one another as they tore into the library. Chaos ensued as they flew through the air, knocking over bookcases as they charged at the first dragon they saw.

Flames erupted out immediately, both from that of the attacking dragons, as well as spells made from the flightless. Serilex himself blew a fiery blue inferno toward the tunnel entrance. The gaping hole of an entryway was then coated into a thick wall of ice, blocking the path momentarily.

The dragon ancient then turned to another wingless dragon, an his eyes narrowed in a fierce intensity “They must be attacking the outside mountains as well,” he shouted above the sounds of the conflict. “Protect the sanctuary and the egg chamber! I'll move outside and defend it myself!” The dragon nodded his head and rushed off down the halls.

Serilex turned to meet the determined gaze of Celestia. “I'm going with you.”

“This isn't your fight,” he stated firmly, “go now, protect yourself and worry for your own kind.” But the princess flew up to face the dragon, meeting his gaze in a lock of iron strength.

“I'm going,” she said, not a hint of a request in her tone, it was an order.

Serilex's expression looked surprised toward the ruler's conviction, but he nodded his head, relenting to her will. “Very well, stay close and prepare yourself.”

Landing beside the dragon, Celestia watched as a translucent flame crackled within Serilex's throat. Breathing out the blaze, the flames swirled around them both, completely enveloping everything in their sight. Then, the princess felt a powerful lurch surge through her as it felt as though she were floating without the use of her wings.

Then, the sensations stopped and the swirling flames encompassing them slowly dwindled. As the last of the flames died, Celestia could see that they were no longer in the sanctuary. Cold snow blew into her face, a blanket of white powder was crushed underneath her hoof and as far as her eyes could see, there was only a wasteland of ice.

Though feeling somewhat unbalanced due to the trip, the princess's reaction to the spell was quickly put out of her mind as the terrible sound of crumbling rock sounded, added by the crashing of large boulders into the snowy ground. But the sound was dwarfed in comparison to the only other noticeable one, a series of furious roars, each cutting through the sky like razors.

Looking out through the thick veil of mist and ice flakes, the ancient and princess could see a massive shade of black. Serilex's gaze turned skyward as the crackling of flame formed within his maw, with a blast of fire, a ball of white flames flew high into the sky and disappeared within the thick layer of clouds.

To Celestia's astonishment, she watched as the near impenetrable storm clouds began to break apart, parting over the area surrounding them and revealing a beautiful sunny sky.

The removal of the wintery shroud also allowed them to look toward the mountain that housed the dragon sanctuary, to look upon what was attacking them form the outside. An expression of shock was worn on the ancients face while Celestia's own was struck with a momentary lapse of horror as they saw a giant among dragons hovering over the mountainside, it's claws tearing through the very rock that formed the natural landmark. A horrible, monstrous thing, it was as though every fear, every terrifying tale ever told about dragons and their viscous ways were given a single visage. Though Celestia had never seen the monster before, she knew straightaway who it was.

The dragon was a massive creature, easily beating Serilex in size. Every scale across his body was like a knife pierced through his hide, looking sharp as any blade and as black as the deepest void. Several smokey grey horns were sprouted from the back of his skull, looking as strong as steel and rough as stone. The wings on his back had many spikes jutting out of it, the webbing holding a dark crimson red. Large spines tore from his back in a set of three, running down his back where they ended at his tail, with a long, serrated blade of a spike formed on the tip.

What was most frightening of the creature's appearance however was his mouth. A row of jagged fangs were displayed with the maw of flames. Sickening splatters of red could be seen permanently stained on the boney surface. Each fang was larger than a stallion, looking fully capable of piercing the strongest of metals, or the hardest of dragon scale, with great ease. Even the lips covering the fangs looked just as rigid and sharp, adding the ferocious look the dragon kept.

“Doomaught!” Serilex shouted, his surprise to the reunion being twisted into a furious glare.

The menacing dragon halted in his assault on the mountain. Turning toward them, the ancient landed on the ground, quaking the land under his weight. As he looked at them, Princess Celestia found herself entangled within his gaze. Scarlet eyes that burned with a never ending blaze of hatred and malice, like two fires were lit within the dragon's skull that now looked out at the world with an equally burning rage.

“Ah, there you are, pet,” Doomaught said, every syllable of his voice forced out in a beastly growl. His burning gaze landed onto the princess by Serilex's side. “And your betrayer as well, how appropriate. Without it for my dragons to follow, I would have never been led to your nest of vermin. Now, I'm here to crush you pests once and for all!”

At those words, Celestia felt her patience snap. “How can you refer to your own kind in such a way?!” she shouted, unable to hold her regal stature any longer in the presence of such a creature.

But her outburst was met with little of an answer. Doomaught's eyes narrowed into a glare of daggers as he bent his head upward and released a powerful torrent of flames into the air, all spewing forth by an ear-wrenching roar that threatened to shatter the very heavens.

“How dare you address me, insect!” the ancient snarled as the flames died. “You gaze upon a god now, and true master of this world you're allowed to inhabit! Begone from my sight, our matters are not the concern of a lowly, insignificant mortal.”

Celestia's serene gaze narrowed on the dragon, her wings flared to life as she stamped her hoof firmly on the ground. “Dragons are inhabitants of Equestria as well, if they are threatened, then it is my duty to protect them just as I would any of my subjects.”

“She holds great power,” Serilex warned toward his fellow ancient, “you would do best not to underestimate her.”

“And yet I see trash nonetheless,” Doomaught growled, before facing the ancient in front of him. “I have allowed your kind to taint my world for far too long, pet, no more! This day, I will see to it that every last wingless freak and traitor to the dragon kind be slaughtered!” A black, sharpened claw was pointed toward the magical dragon. “As for you, I will gnaw the very meat from your bones!” Then the ancient suddenly leaped forward, pouncing on the dragon and princess with his claws outstretched and ready to cleave into flesh. “This is your end!”

But the dragon missed his mark. Celestia took to the air while Serilex jumped to the side, both avoiding the dragon as he smashed into the spot where they once stood.

His landing caught him off guard as Serilex charged forward, ramming headfirst into the titanic dragon. They both tumbled back and crashed against the side of a mountain. With a swing of his tail, Doomaught threw the magical dragon aside, allowing himself to stand.

Celestia took the chance, firing a spell toward the mountain that they stood under, large chunks of rock cracked and broke free from the surface. An avalanche started and tumbled down toward the dragon. It did little to impede the ferocious dragon's wrath. Seeing the rocks coming, Doomaught swept his claws against the mountain, throwing the boulders across the landscape in simple swipes of his arms.

A dark purple flame erupted from Serilex's maw, it met the ground around him. The flames burned on the surface for only a moment before the fire seeped into the earth itself.

Within moments, large blots of dark purple began to appear on the ground around Doomaught. Barely a moment to react, the stains of color erupted upwards in a pillar of magical energy. Even the size of the dragon was made useless as he was thrown off the ground, only to land atop another pillar as it burst forth from the ground.

Growling in furious anger, the black dragon gave a single flap of his powerful wings, lifting him up into the air and away from the area of the spell. Serilex burned within the dragon's gaze as he swooped downward at the ancient. His arm was outstretched and readying his claws to slash out.

With a powerful downward swing, the claws sliced into the thick surface it ran across. But it wasn't the scaled hide of a dragon. Instead, a thick slab of rock had risen from the ground, held up in a magical aura, separating the two dragons.

Doomaught snarled as he slashed at the wingless dragon again. But the slab rose up, repositioning on just the right spot to block the attack. Again and again, heated growls crackled from the throat of the black dragon as he clawed at the stone shield. Though considerable damage was done to the slab, large pieces of rock being racked away and a continuous spread of grooves where the claws dug into, the stone resisted the blows.

Yelling out in a livid roar, Doomaught's maw opened wide and the dragon ancient bit down onto the slab. His mighty jaws locked in place, the razor fangs easily cut into the stone. Then, with only a clench of the muscle, the mouth of the dragon fully shut, crumbling the slab into miniscule rocks.

With Serilex's protection gone, the menacing dragon wasted no time in swinging his claws toward his target. As the tips of the claws were preparing to reach the vulnerable magical dragon, Doomaught felt a crippling pain shoot through the limb as a bolt of magic struck it.

Roaring in agony, the black dragon clutched at his arm as his fiery gaze locked onto the princess, her horn still lit as she prepared herself for further attack.

Seeing Celestia, a pathetic speck of a creature in the ancient's eyes, injure him in any way, brought his already boiling rage to immeasurable heights. Barely regarding his previous opponent, Doomaught turned toward the princess, a blood lust in his eyes.

Not forgetting the annoyance Serilex still presented however, Doomaught swung out his arm, ignoring the pain in the already injured limb. The attack struck the smaller dragon hard and threw him to the ground with ease, allowing the malicious ancient to turn his attention toward the princess.

Charging toward her, the black dragon let out an onslaught of swipes from his massive claws. Such a small target she was compared to the dragon, Celestia easily weaved herself through the air, her agile form dodging the swings.

His frustration growing, Doomaught halted in his attacks to instead use his flame. A powerful inferno formed within his jaws, crackling with as much intensity as a volcanic explosion. As the flames poured from his maw, rather than targeting the princess, the dragon aimed for the snow around her. Just as the heated flames met the cold snow, a massive cloud of steam erupted around them.

Celestia was blinded by the shroud of white, barely able to see beyond her own nose. Worried to fly sightlessly, the princess landed to slowly find her way through the veils. But, she was stopped as she witnessed a gargantuan shadow turn the white nothingness around her black.

Doomaught's angered face tore through the shroud he had placed, his lips already holding a powerful flame that was ready to be used. Only a moment to react, Celestia created a magical barrier around herself, shielding her just in time as she was consumed in a shower of fire.

Even with her barrier, Celestia could feel the heat from the flames, it was taxing her physically as the powerful inferno brought the barrier to its last legs. Thankfully, the shield didn't break as the flames stopped, but as the glowing red and orange disappeared around her, she was forced to look upon a dragon ancient towering above her.

A roar left Doomaught as he brought his clawed hand down on the princess. The weakened shield couldn't hold up against the raw power of the dragon's attack. It shattered, protecting the princess from the attack itself, but throwing her to the ground as her body was weakened. Seeing the vulnerability of his target, the ancient snarled triumphantly as he raised his claws up once again, ready to tear down the creature who dared to challenge him.

As Celestia's fearful gaze caught the claws bearing down above her, she closed her eyes, sending her visual world into darkness as she thought of her kingdom, her people, all that she was leaving behind in the coming end.

But that end never came. A powerful crash was heard, and the princess opened her eyes to witness Serilex charging into the preoccupied dragon. The front of the wingless dragon's body was coated in a thick assortment of rocks pulled from the ground itself, a makeshift armor used as a battering ram as he and Doomaught smashed into the side of the mountain.

Unable to conquer the unmatchable physical strength of Doomaught, Serliex was quickly overpowered. The vicious dragon seized his fellow ancient by the neck, slamming him against the mountainside and raising his other set of claws to make the final blow.

“Do you think you can hear them?” the black dragon asked as Serilex struggled against the tight grip on his throat. “The cries of your misbegotten kind as they are felled by my dragons? I want their dieing breaths to be the last thing you hear!” As the ancient dragon's claws were brought down on his target, he was surprised as a powerful burst of blue flame erupted from Serilex's mouth.

The flames struck Doomaught square the face, causing his swing to miss slightly. Instead, the claws tore through what remained of the rocky armor Serilex had made, reaching down to his face and cutting him across the right side.

The teal scaled dragon clutched at his wound as Doomaught fell back. Where the flames had burned him, a thick layer of ice had formed. Trying to scrape it away with his claws, the dragon's hand became trapped as it too was swallowed by the ice. The ice then began to expand, growing over his head and keeping his jaw frozen shut. His struggling grunts followed as he thrashed about, the ice growing more and more, threatening to encase him completely.

Not about to be beaten so easily, the monstrous dragon swung his free hand upward. The strength put into the swing shattered the ice covering him, allowing him to breath freely and summon his fire. But the victory of freedom was short lived as he felt a familiar pain shoot through his back, a powerful strike of magic hitting him with an amazing force.

Doomaught's scarlet eyes searched frantically about the battleground before landing on the princess, flying just out of his reach. His lips quivered from the consuming fury that twisted inside of him, seeing the foreign creature still defying him. A thick, forked tongue lashed out of his mouth, becoming eager to experience the taste of a pony princess.

The injured Serilex completely leaving his focus, the black dragon spread his wings out wide before he took off. With amazing speed, the ancient flew toward the princess, quickly breaking away the gap that was set between them both. But Celestia held no tinge of fear to the rampaging beast that now had her in it's sights, rather, the princess kept her determined gaze as she flew higher up into the air.

Higher and higher she flew, the dragon right on her tail, but she ignored it. All that had her attention was the magic that was building within her, and her focus on the bright orb in the sky that she commanded.

The air began to thin as Celestia flew higher than where the clouds could reach. Her pursuer kept going as well, determined to do nothing else until he was picking royal bones from his teeth. It didn't even cross his mind as the princess suddenly stopped her ascension. As she stood within the blazing light of the sun, Celestia fanned her wings out wide and in one powerful display of magic, a blinding light flashed across the sky.

Roars of pain shuddered through the skies as Doomaught clutched at his eyes, the small orbs burning with an intensity that rivaled the flames of the dragons. The black dragon's altitude began to drop as he thrashed about in the sky, in too great a pain to focus on keeping his height.

Seeing her spell working successfully, Celestia then darted downward. Her pristine white wings flapped as hard as they were able, a magical aura built around her body as her diving speeds grew ever faster, bringing her closer to the injured dragon that hovered in her path.

Feeling the sound barrier twisting around her, the princess pushed herself further, goings speeds she hadn't preformed in many years. Nearing the still injured ancient, the princess felt a strong resistance being forced against her, but as she kept going, she felt that resistance give way.

A powerful boom sounded off, rippling through the sky like a wave. The speeds gained shot the princess further at an incredible rate, adding to her attack as she charged into Doomaught. With her high speed strike, augmented by a strong barrier of magic placed in front of her, the black dragon was hit with a powerful force, striking him out of the sky.

Crashing to the ground, Doomaught's body struck the surface like an explosion, cratering the area and flattening the land as he slid to a halt.

Celestia was not done there, flying back to ground level, her horn sparked with a bright golden aura. A trail of gold light snaked down onto the ground around the weakened ancient. The spell created formed with that of the snow that surround him, causing it to shimmer in a magical glow.

As the spell took effect, the snow that surrounded the dark dragon sprang to life. Thick tendrils were formed and ensnared him, wrapping around his body and limbs with a hardened grip. Doomaught fought the magic back, even in his injured state, tearing through the snowy bindings that attempted to bind him.

Looking as though he was about to break free, Serilex approached the raging dragon, limping slightly from injuries sustained. A dark grey flame formed and was breathed down around the snow that was still attempting to capture the dragon. The white tendrils of snow then turned grey, hardening into a substance stronger than any metal, keeping the ancient locked firmly in place.

Above them, the spell keeping the skies clear finally dissipated. The patch of missing cloud was refilled and the land around them was again placed into an endless winter. Snow quickly began to fall on the three creatures, looking almost comforting in light of victory.

Princess Celestia and Serilex both looked down on the captured Doomaught, still struggling against his bindings like a trapped animal The magical dragon's face was hardened into a fierce scowl as he leaned his head down to meet the gaze of his fellow.

“You deserve so much for all that you have done,” the ancient said in a sharp tone. “This is no longer our world, Doomaught. Our time has passed long ago,” he regarded the princess at his side for a moment, “now it is theirs. All we can do now is lead our kind through this changing world, but the path you wish to take will only lead them into oblivion.”

Celestia looked away, not wishing to witness the sight as Serilex's maw crackled with another powerful flame. A bright yellow in color, it was cast upon the vulnerable ancient, who released one final roar of defiance before he was consumed in the magical blaze.

The fire only lasted for a few moments, the burning heat and crackling sound ending quickly. Celestia hesitantly turned her gaze to what was now left, and her eyes grew with a display of shock as she saw a still living Doomaught, lying on the ground with his bindings gone.

A thick, tense silence passed by as nothing was said or done. Then, the black dragon began to shift in his place on the ground, looking as though he could barely move.

“What... what did you do to me?!” the dark ancient growled weakly.

Serilex regained his natural indifferent demeanor as he looked down on the ancient. “You won't be able to use your limbs for some time,” he answered simply. “But your wings still work. I implore that you leave here now, fly back to the old lands and never return.”

Doomaught looked up at Serliex, holding such a burning hatred in his eyes, if it were any more severe, the ancient would burst into flames on the spot. Instead, the black dragon's maw opened wide as a torrent of flames flowed outward. The breath of fire struck the snow beside them. Like before, the area around them was consumed in a thick veil of steam.

As it began to clear, the princess and ancient saw that their foe was no longer before them. Though they could not see his black silhouette within the dark skies of the frozen land, they could hear the faint flapping of wings fading off in the distance.

With the malicious dragon gone, Celestia looked up toward the one who had fought by her side. “I... I had thought you would have...”

“Ended him?” Serilex finished for the princess, who developed a difficulty in bringing up the recent event.

Releasing a sigh, the magical dragon held up his clawed hand. Breathing a bright green flame into it, he lifted his palm up and pressed it against his wounded face. Sharp hisses escaped him as the fire burned into the exposed flesh and healed the wounds. After the spell was finished, he looked out into the snow covered lands.

“Truthfully, part of me wanted to,” he murmured. Absentmindedly, his clawed hand reached up and scratched his neck tenderly. “But that's only due to personal anguish caused by him. No, it would only prove that Doomaught's ways hold weight. Such bloodshed... it's not in my nature.”

The princess couldn't help but smile at the dragon, even as a cyclone of translucent flame encircled them both, taking them from the snowy landscape to a sanctuary of stone.

With the end of the teleportation spell, Celestia and Serilex were forced to look upon a chamber in near ruins. The stone walls and ceiling were cracked and beginning to crumble, bookcases and books were on the ground in broken heaps, and flames crackled ceaselessly where they were placed.

The worst of it was seeing the dragons who lied on the floor, unmoving as their wounds told far more than those who saw them wanted to know. The lifeless dragons wore wounds of either claw and fang or of spells.

Serilex immediately turned to a large flightless dragon, wearing dark orange scales and nursing several deep cuts in his shoulder. “What happened?”

The dragon was startled by the voice of the ancient but quickly regained his wits. “There were many of them,” he answered. “We held them off the best we could, but it was chaos. We lost only a few, but many more are injured. Then, the dragons that were left flew away almost out of nowhere. I'm certain we have you to thank for that, Lord Serilex.” The orange dragon's eyes caught the cuts across the ancient's face. “My lord, you are wounded!”

“It's nothing,” the magical dragon said dismissively. “Tell me now, what of the-” Serilex was interrupted as he heard his name being called frantically.

He looked toward the source to see a dragon flying toward them, showing an apparent difficult to fly straight as it looked like the webbing of his wing was torn badly. Nearly crashing as he landed before the ancient, the dragon looked at him in a panic.

“My lord, I-I swear we defended the best we could. B-but there were just so many dragons. And the quakes, we could do nothing to stop the walls from coming down on top of us. Lord Serilex, the chamber... i-it collapsed, and the egg...”

Not needing to hear another word, the ancient turned away from the dragon and rushed down the hallway, passing by other dragons as they repaired what was damaged or tended to their wounds.

Nothing else phased the ancient as he forced his way through, the tunnel, tossing aside any rubble that dared to block his way.

It wasn't until he came to what was left of chamber that housed the dragon egg did he stop.

“No...” he breathed as looked down at the dragon egg. Celestia could only hold a look of horror as she stood by the ancient's side.

Only one guard of the two had survived the attack. Now, he looked down sullenly at the dragon egg. Large cracks raced across the top of the eggs surface. Neither Serilex or the princess could feel the powerful pulse of magic emanating from the egg.

“Get the healers!” Serilex bellowed toward the guard. “We can't lose the egg!”

The sanctuary quickly fell into a silent pause as all thoughts were turned to the welfare of the egg.

Two dragonesses, holding great talent toward spells in restoration and healing, sat across from one another in the undamaged chamber of ancients, the cracked egg siting between them. Both held their heads low to the ground, breathing a powerful stream of green flames that swirled around the egg.

Serilex stood watch within the chamber, accompanied by Princess Celestia. The other dragons of the sanctuary crowded near the entrance, watching with bated breath for news of what would become of the dragon offspring.

Nearly two full days passed by as the dragonesses continued their attempts to revive the egg. Little rest was had among the dragons. Serilex never left his spot as he kept a silent vigil over the egg. Not even Celestia moved. Only twice a day did she ever leave the chamber, at the coming of dawn and dusk, preforming the duties she had no choice in. But she quickly returned, her worry and concern felt toward the creature as palpable as physically possible.

But, inevitably, the healing blaze stopped.

The healers told the ancient dragon that there was nothing more they could do. That the unhatched dragon was lost.

Serilex hung his head down, as did the other dragons, feeling the pain of losing one of their own. But his quiet sorrow was broken as he watched his royal guest approach the egg that was beyond help.

Celestia stood over the dragon egg, her eyes unable to break free from the hold it had on her. A crippling pain was felt deep within her chest as she looked upon a dragon who was denied a chance at life.

The dragoon ancient watched the princess as he saw her eyes shimmering, the look of total sadness and despair she held was worse than any of the dragons there. It brought a moment of surprise to him as he saw the cascade of tears flowing from her eyes, the princess was crying.

Celestia's lips quivered as a small stream of tears fell down her face and dripped on the egg her head hung over. The silent, almost inaudible sobs that came from the princess of day was all that could be heard. Dread was all that the princess could feel as the terrible pain of the dragon's loss gripped her heart with an unbearable squeeze.

To her, it was just as much her fault as it was anyone else, she had failed to protect the egg. It brought on the heart wrenching memories of that one long, terrible night, the night when the princess had failed to protect somepony who was very dear to her, losing them to the darkness. Now there was a death of an innocent child, unhatched from it's egg to see the world it's ancestors had tried to shape for it.

A stark look of surprise was held on Serilex's face as he witnessed the scene. Never before had he ever seen such a display of emotion, such a thing was unheard of among dragons, even the magical ones.

She was just a visitor, a creature who had no ties to dragons or reason to care for them, or even aid them in any way. Yet, she had risked her own life fending off the greatest threat they knew. Now, the ancient watched on as the princess wept over the loss of the dragon child, as if it was her own.

But, a gasp of astonishment soon escaped him, as it did every dragon in the chamber. Their eyes became frozen on the egg as they saw a light shining against the surface of its shell.

A brilliant, golden light shined out from the cracks in the egg. Serilex became breathless as an incredible magical force could be felt by him, unprecedented to anything he had ever encountered in his many years. Even Celestia stared down at the scene with wide eyes, seeing the beautiful light grow more and more before it quickly began to fade. Just as the light disappeared, so to did the cracks on the eggs surface. When the last of the light was gone, the cracks in the egg had disappeared, looking as perfect as it had before.

Serilex could only gape at the sight, unable to move. His jaw quivered as he attempted to speak, to say something, but not a word could be uttered.

Slowly, one of the dragonesses approached the egg. Lowering her head down toward it, she closed her eyes as she held a deep expression of concentration. The dragoness' eyes then flared open, she looked toward the ancient dragon, holding a look of utter shock.

---

The faces of the dragons became distorted, breaking apart in a mass of swirling colors.

Spike and his pony friends watched as the images were gone from the silver flame. The still burning fire then faded from existence, disappearing in a cloud of smoke that eventually dispersed. All six of the adventuring friends were frozen in a state of shock at what they saw. Never before had they seen their princess in such a state, preforming actions and showing emotions that they thought were impossible for the ruler.

“Still to this day,” Serilex said, “I have been unable to understand the magic I had encountered all those years ago. Nothing I have ever learned or seen could ever match it. But...” a soft smile crossed his face, “I have learned long ago, that the most powerful of magic is that which you can never understand. Perhaps... that was a display of such power.”

“And what... happened to the egg?” Spike asked, barely able to find his voice.

“It survived,” Serilex answered. “That day, I had learned that there was far greater things that the child needed to learn that I could not offer. So, only needing a moment's worth of consideration, I placed the egg in the care of your princess, who accepted without hesitation.” The five ponies matched Spike's gaze as they stared at the ancient while he explained.

“You... you what..?” Spike murmured, his emerald eyes spread wide as his mind raced.

“I knew it would be in good... hooves,” Serilex continued, “and that the child would be able to see the world it was born into with eyes of compassion and care. To grow under the magic of a race I have deemed immeasurably powerful in their own right. Celestia and I also both knew that one day, when the dragon was ready, they would be led here to the place of it's people.” A light chuckle escaped the ancient as he eyed the purple dragon with a whimsical joy. “And it seems, after all these years, that dragon has finally returned to us.”

Comments

[Sunset_Shimmer83]

amazing, so awesome. you're a genius

[MasterSpike]

Everyone who knew that was Spike's egg, take a drink.

[Biker_Dash]

This chapter was very much needed after the day I have had. It brought tears of joy and a warmth to my heart.

Thank you.

[Matthais Unidostres]

You don't let evil villains with god like powers go!! That's he stupidest thing a person could ever do, because they always come back. Now poor spike has to fight that guy on his own. Nice job breaking, hero!

[Icecane]

1465040 Aw, but it's not like the person letting the bad guy go knows that they will eventually come back. Not untill the bad guy comes back, kills one or two established characters and is then stopped once and for all. Leading to the person either being killed due to the bad guy's return or just becoming a sad character who laments over it all being partly their fault.

They like to assume a merciful warning is enough to either mend their ways or bring them to wallow in their defeat untill the end of time...

[Iryelb]

chzbronies.files.wordpress.com/2012/07/my-little-pony-friendship-is-magic-brony-spike-got-swag.gif

[Aotrs Commander]

1465520

Which is why I always say never leave a live enemy behind you...!

Excellent job, as usual.

[UltimateAnimeGamer]

1464570 Here Here!