The Great Parent Rescue

by Kaipony

Out of the Frying Pan

Spike's stomach growled, a squealing gurgle that was mimicked by the creaking of the wheel's axles. "Are we there yet? I'm hungry." A sharp stone jutted out of the ground as though searching for an errant hoof, and caught one of the cart's wheels instead. The impact jostled the cage, interrupting any further inquiries from the dragon.

"Quiet down," Sand Briar called back from the front, where she and Cutlass were leading the small group. "You'll get your ration when we arrive."

Applejack waited until the focus was back on the trail ahead of them and then whispered over her shoulder. "You okay, Spike?"

"Peachy." Spike hugged his knees to his chest, his wings limp, and watched the scenery slowly pass. The small caravan had been traveling for two days, and the woods of the easternmost portion of the Macintosh Hills had quickly turned from full foliage into a scrubby brush. The wet smell of the swamplands having faded after the first day of travel as the air grew noticeably warmer. Up ahead was a thicket of short, spindly trees that looked more like kindling than living plants.

"You just hang in there," Applejack encouraged. "We'll have you out as soon as--" Applejack snapped her mouth shut as Nimbus Rake swooped by and landed next to her.

The pegasus tossed a dismissive glance in Spike's direction. "Not so fearsome once those muscles go soft as a pasta noodle." He turned his attention to Applejack. "You holding up okay? I haven't heard much of anything out of you since we started."

Applejack snorted. "I've been farmin' since I was a filly. All this walkin' is barely a warmup for me." She tossed her head back in Spike's direction. "Is, um... he going to be okay in that cage?"

"Don't worry about him," Nimbus nickered. "When we get home, we'll put him in an anti-magic cell. He won't be able to spit so much as a spark past the bars. Till then, the dose of enfeeblement poison he got will keep him from posing a threat."

"Poison. Anti-magic cages. Y'all sure, um, sound like you know what you're doing."

"We have to. The Scale Collectors aren't a bunch little foals who just got mad when some dragon stole their sweetroll." His demeanor darkened. "We aren't crazy either. I don't know how many times I've been walking through a market and heard someone telling stories about us that just weren't true."

"Why would they do something like calling y' all nuts?"

"Because they don't understand." The pegasus fanned his wings. "A lot of people think we're self-righteous nobodies who lost a pittance when some dragon sneezed in the wrong direction. They think we're mad with anger. Or worse, that we're some cast of evildoers that hunt dragons for sport."

"But that ain't the truth, right?"

"Right. All we're doing is for the sake of peace." He leaned in close. "Have you ever seen a real dragon migration, or one of those beasts just take what it wants, from whoever it wants?"

Applejack nodded carefully. "I sure have."

Nimbus pressed in closer, mild hope forming in his eyes. "Then you can understand what we're trying to accomplish?"

Applejack shook her head slowly. "Not really. I know that ya catch dragons and try to change them. And I get that y' all are hurting because you lost something to dragons. But I don't rightly understand your plan."

"Like I said, it's about peace." Nimbus scooped up a clod of dirt and held it up for Applejack to see. "Forget about guys like the Storm King. Those kinds of troublemakers come and go." He let the clod fall to the ground where it promptly broke into mismatched pieces upon impact.

"But, dragons?" Nimbus scanned the ground as they walked flicked a stone into the air and caught it with a wing. He held it up and appraised its rough exterior. "They've been around a long, long time." He spied another rock, this one with a smoother and more firm texture, and repeated the maneuver.

"They're not going to get any better unless someone feeds them some tough medicine." With a sharp crack, he smashed the stones together in his hooves. The second stone was unmarred, but the first had fractured into two differently shaped pieces.
"Someone has to force them to reshape how they act. Once that happens, the world will be in a much better condition."

"Says the pony going around capturing dragons and keeping them from their family and friends," Spike grumbled, loud enough for Nimbus to hear him.

"He is a talkative one," the pegasus commented.

Spike struggled to his feet, gripping the cage bars tightly. "You stole my parents. They would never have done anything to deserve that kind of treatment. And I'm going to save them. Just you wait."

Nimbus grimaced and reached into one of his saddlebags, idly playing with a case of poison darts. "Maybe we didn't give him enough, after all."

Applejack put her hoof over his, forestalling any further action. "I think he's had plenty. You keep talking about more than just ponies. Who else is working with you?"

"All sorts," Nimbus answered, putting the darts away. "We don't just work out of one location, you know? We have someplace set up in almost every part of the land outside of Equestria. Where we're going, there's us ponies and some Abyssinians. Our boss even managed to hire on a couple of Storm Guards, once their king bit the dust. Or," he chuckled. "Should I say, got smashed into dust."

"Abyssinians?" Applejack's ears perked up. She looked genuinely interested. "Those cat folk?"

"Sure. You know, you'd have to be pretty well-traveled for a farmer if you know about Abyssinians."

"You tend to meet all sorts at the markets," she answered smoothly. "When you make friends with your customers, they like to swap stories."

Nimbus was quiet for a moment and then shrugged. "I wouldn't know. We don't exactly announce ourselves when we're in public."

"So it's just y' all, some Abyssinians, and a couple of those guards? For a whole nest of captured dragons? Don't sound like much to me."

"We have more in our ranks than that, but a lot are often out hunting down leads. Plus, we don't have many dragons right now. When there aren't many that can stay behind, we don't end up doing much hunting. But when there's a rumor floating around like this one." Nimbus kicked the cart, jostling Spike off his feet. "We couldn't ignore the opportunity."

Applejack pretended to stumble and steered the cart till it was out of Nimbus' reach. "Where exactly is this place of yours?"

Nimbus grinned. "You'll see." The troupe marched into the thicket and threaded their way through. When they broke through the thinning trees, everypony halted. Laid out before them was the edge of the Badlands.

All the colors of brown mingled with rusty reds and lighter tans to create a palette that made one's eyes feel itchy and dry. Off to the west soared a range of mountains capped by dazzlingly white snow. As the altitude dropped, the snow gave way to stunted shrubs, which were then shoved aside further down by sharp boulders of slate and shale. Mesas poked into the skyline further away to the south and a dry riverbed bisected the hazy horizon.

Applejack barely had a moment to take in the sight before the Collectors started down a gravelly switchback that wound its way down to the bottom of a gorge cut into the Badlands floor. There was little room for conversation, as the width of the steeply graded trail required all of Applejack's attention. None of the others spoke, though they did glance back whenever her footing slipped and sent a small shower of pebbles and dirt over the edge. The trip down took almost an hour, but they finally reached the bottom and once again stood on flat ground. Sheer rock walls rose up on all sides. Nowhere to be seen was any discernible feature beyond the solid substrate of the gorge walls.

"This is it," Cutlass declared, stopping in front of a flat face of the striated rock.

Applejack looked about but found nothing except more rock, sand, and gravel. "I don't see anything."

"Exactly," the unicorn declared smugly. "Just follow Sand Briar." Without a word herself, Sand Briar marched forward straight into the rock face. Then, right through it. Her body melded with the stone and moved beyond it, leaving only hoofprints in the dirt.

"Whoa," Applejack breathed. She glanced about, and Nimbus jerked his head towards where Sand Briar had vanished. She swallowed down a nervous gulp and started forward. She put out one hoof when she reached the wall. It passed straight through the rock without any resistance. Then, putting one hoof in the front of the other, Applejack slowly pushed through to the other side and disappeared. Cutlass and Nimbus Rake stood outside a minute longer, scrutinizing the terrain around them, before they too passed through the illusionary rock wall.

Several silent minutes passed before Twilight's head poked out over the edge of the gorge above. "Did you see that?" she said flabbergasted. "No wonder nopony's ever been able to explore a Scale Collector base. If they're using magic of this level, we're lucky to have found them at all."

"And yet," Rarity countered, sauntering over to peer out beyond the edge, a splendidly arranged hat of dry grasses and manicured cacti perched on her head, "we have the element of surprise on our side. Oh! I knew I should have worn something brought along formidably breathtaking for a daring and dazzling rescue."

"I doubt anyone's going to be paying attention to what we're wearing," Rainbow deadpanned as she joined in looking out over the ledge.

"As I was saying," Twilight continued, her eyes glued to the illusionary wall. "With magic of this level, we're going to need to be more cautious. None of the reports I read said anything about the anti-magic cages we heard them talking about or that enfeeblement poison. If something unexpected happens in there, do your best to avoid hurting anyone. Dragons and Scale Collectors alike."

"But Twilight, you saw what those scoundrels did to poor Spike. And their plans for all dragons." Rarity shuddered. "Simply ghastly."

Fluttershy was next to creep up to the edge carefully. "Yes, but if we don't give them a chance to do better, of their own free will, then we're no better than the Scale Collectors themselves."

Twilight nodded. "Exactly. Now, follow my lead and keep your heads down. We don't know what's on the other side of that magic curtain." She started down the trail but was quickly overtaken by a bouncing pink pony.

"Let's go, you guys! We don't want to keep Spike and Applejack waiting."

Twilight blanched and slapped a hoof over Pinkie's mouth, quietly shushing any further comments. It took the five of them far less than the hour that Applejack and the Collectors had required. Once they were standing before the seemingly solid face of the rock, Twilight took the lead and motioned them forward. Crouching down, they pushed through the illusion together.

And together, walked into the scowling faces of the Scale Collectors. Twilight and her friends balked. They were completely exposed. Slumped on the ground, barely able to support her weight, was Applejack. A pair of darts protruded from just above her cutie mark. She tried to yell something to her friends, but a grating noise made a metallic clang somewhere above them and cut her off.

The top half of a large metal cage dropped from the ceiling and slammed over the top of the five would-be rescuers, narrowly missing pinning tails and wings to the floor. Clamps sprang out of the dirt and latched onto the bottom ring of the cage half, trapping the ponies inside between the two halves of a large cage. Twilight fired a blast of raspberry magic, but the bars of the cage greedily drank in the magic, dissolving the magic into a rainbow sheen that rapidly faded out along the metal. Rainbow Dash launched herself at the bars, and the cage rocked on its base, but neither the bars nor the locks budged.

A series of whistling sounds preceded yelps from each of the ponies. Sticking out from each of them was a dart. The strength in their bodies immediately flagged and, collectively, their legs and wings wobbled under their weight. Even Pinkie, usually an unflappable source of energy, sat down hard and struggled to maintain a sitting position. The enfeebled friends raised their eyes and watched as the Scale Collectors approached unhurriedly.

Cutlass, Sand Briar, and Nimbus Rake were all there, along with an unarmored gray earth pony stallion sporting a short, cream-colored mane. At the head of their group was a carnelian unicorn mare with cold, steely eyes. She, like the gray stallion, was unadorned and unarmored, but the lack of accessories allowed her mane to fall freely around her shoulders. It was a strikingly brilliant silver that reached down her chest and caught flickering torchlight like a mirrored waterfall. Even in her state of distress, Rarity could not help but give it a brief and mildly envious appraisal.

The red mare looked over her shoulder at the four ponies behind her as three lean Abyssinians joined them. "You were followed." Her voice was silky, but her words sang like spider's silk. They were soft, but stronger than iron, and held the promise of something frightful for those that lingered for too long.

Cutlass scuffed at the floor with a hoof and lowered her gaze to the ground. "Um, right. Sorry, boss." The other ponies lowered their ears and heads as well. Except for Sand Briar.

"That was a lot easier than I would have thought," Sand Briar quipped, forcing a smile to her face. Their leader whirled on her.

"Idiot!" she hissed. "We got lucky." She cuffed Briar behind an ear, who backed away rubbing the spot that was slowly darkening into a bruise. "But I guess I should have known this would happen eventually. You can't have a good thing going for long before the riff-raff start trying to come in out of the rain."

"Riff-riff?" Rarity sputtered weakly, cradling Fluttershy's trembling head. "How dare you!"

One of the Abyssinians stepped up to the red unicorn. He was the tallest of the three and was dressed in an ornate, embroidered burgundy cloak with a red felt fez, from which dangled a variety of gold, silver, and brass coins. Tufts of chestnut brown fur poked out from around his collar and the cuffs of his sleeves. Runnels of black ran across his forehead and disappeared back the nape of his neck into the garment.

"That was seven more doses than we were prepared to use this week. The extra poison will cost you an additional sack of scales," he meowed. He held out a paw towards the mare. "My associated will select them from the prime stock."

After a moment of consideration, she placed her hoof in the cat's paw, and the two shook on the agreement. "Very well. And if you can keep a good muzzle on this group for a while, you'll get far more than that in ransom profits later on."

That brought a smile to the feline's face. "It's a deal." He waved over the two Abyssinians behind him, a stocky male of sandy fur with a patch of umber on his head and a willowy female with solid khaki fur. "Scurf," he said to the male. "Start mixing up a new batch of enfeeblement potion. Seraval, I want you to have Clag and Hock open up the vault. Find me a bag of scales that sing in the torchlight."

"Yes, Purrveyor," the two said in unison before ambling off. The Purrveyor watched them go and then clasped his paws behind his back. He circled the caged ponies, eyeing each of them in turn and paused when he reached Fluttershy and Rarity. Both were leaning against each other to keep from falling over.

"Ah," he purred. "Pretty things like these two would go for quite a profit on the exchange back home." He crouched down and leaned in, leering at the pair. "There's always a market for well-mannered, attractive servants."

"Don't even think about it, furball," Rainbow growled as she tried to flap her wings. A few feeble flutters were all the pegasus could manage before she had to stop to catch her breath.

"Such spunk, even under the effects of our enfeeblement poison." The Purrveyor clapped his paws together. "Wonderful. I suspected it would work on ponies as well as dragons, but most ponies are far weaker. It's good to see that even against the stronger ones, it remains just as effective." He finished his inspection as a small hatch on the cage was unlocked, allowing Cutlass and the gray stallion to toss Applejack inside.

Even in her weakened state, Rainbow managed to crawl over to Applejack and rest a protective wing over her back. She glared daggers at their captors. "When I get out of this thing, I'm gonna--"

"Tsst," the Purrveyor interrupted. He leaned in again, the smell of old fish wafting off his breath. "Let me put it this way to you. Either you behave and follow our instructions, or there will be consequences for you and all of your friends." His eyes narrowed to a pair of slits, and his smile revealed sharp incisors.

"My two littermates and I are here for the money, and anything that keeps us from that profit has no value. That which has no value to us is trash." His voice dropped menacingly. "And trash gets thrown out to rot. Understand?" Without waiting for a reply, he straightened and marched away.

"I wouldn't mind him too much," the red mare said once the Abyssinian was out of earshot. "The Purrveyor represents a lot of the traders that are in the market for dragon scales. Their kind can get a bit high and mighty when there's money to be made."

"Who are you?" Twilight managed through the haze of the enfeeblement poison.

"I am Grout," the gray stallion proudly declared.

"Idiot," Cutlass grumbled, and she shoved Grout aside. The mare stepped forward to the cage, kicked the bars, and motioned to the silver-maned pony. "This is our leader, Ardent Bloom. Show some respect. "

Ardent Bloom stepped towards her new prisoners, a little grin on her face. "Welcome to our humble corner of the world, Princess Twilight Sparkle."

"D-do I know you?"

"No," Bloom declared, closing in on the cage. "But I know you. I know all of you." She paused to meet each of their eyes. "Did you think that such a band of famous ponies could travel around spreading rumors without someone mentioning a name? The Elements of Harmony. The so-called Princess of Friendship." Bloom grit and bared her teeth at Twilight. "She who has made a dragon her closest confidante."

"I wasn't raised in Equestria," Ardent Bloom continued. "I didn't have the luxury of the Canterlot throne to protect my family or me." Her foreleg swept out to gesture at her fellow Collectors. "Every one of us can tell you, in fine detail, just how the predation of dragonkind forever changed our lives." She quirked an eyebrow. "Except for me. Me? I was born into this life. Both of my parents understood the truth about dragons long before I was born, and they made sure to open my eyes to that truth as soon as I was old enough to understand."

"Understand what?" Twilight asked, pulling herself forward till her forehead was leaning against the bars.

Bloom reared up and placed her forehooves on the cage bars, leaning forward so that she was looking down on Twilight. "That dragons are a menace," she whispered just loud enough to be heard by her new prisoners. It is a testament to your blindness, Princess, that you haven't noticed that yet." Ardent Bloom dropped back down to all four hooves and paced around the cage.

"Equestria's summit in the Crystal Empire. The Wonderbolts embarrassing attempt to suppress a dragon run amok in Ponyville. Placing the Bearers of the Elements and yourself, a Princess of Equestria, in danger innumerable times due to incompetence and selfish desire. It seems that even a dragon raised by ponies is incapable of escaping his base instincts."

"H-how," Twilight stammered. "How do you know all that?"

"What?" Bloom snickered. "You thought hatching a dragon's egg was a normal part of an aptitude test for a filly? That an unborn dragon in Canterlot was commonplace?" Bloom shook her head and then slowly turned to glare at Spike. The little dragon was sitting, wide-eyed, in his own prison as he listened.

"What? What does that mean?" Spike entreated. He grasped the bars tightly, confusion washing over his face, but Bloom's grin hardened into an icy sneer. She looked away.

"Princess, if you understood who or what you're dealing with here, I think you might be impressed. But this is not the time." Bloom raised her voice. "Clag! Hock! Bring the little runt over here so he can join his...friends."

A pair of hulking Storm Guards plodded into view and hurried towards Spike's cage. The two still wore the armor of the Storm King, and their helmets obscured their faces as they had been during the attack on Canterlot. What Spike noticed, most alarmingly, was that unlike the ones that had invaded the capital alongside Tempest Shadow, these guards were armed. Slung across their back, each one carried a long tube. On one end was a series of barbed weights and at the other end was a kind of rubbery bulb. In their hands, they each held a large cudgel.

"Wha...what are doing to the dragons you capture?" Twilight demanded, using the cage bars to prop herself up.

"We correct their behavior and punish them, if necessary. As you would a foal." Bloom pursed her lips and brought a hoof to her chin thoughtfully. "You know, I wonder just how far the famous Twilight Sparkle is willing to go if she wants to see her pet dragon and friends freed." There was a sequel of metal and a surprised yelp from behind.

Twilight's eyes darted towards the commotion, and they sparkled with hope. "Run, Spike," she encouraged in a voice that was not quite at a yelling volume.

Bloom whipped around in time to see one of the Guards holding the door of Spike's cage, now swinging freely, and the other Guard holding its hand in pain. At that moment, Spike's tail disappeared around the opposite side of a stalagmite.

"Fools," she cursed, stomping towards the broken cage. She pushed her two earth ponies towards the new prisoners. "Briar, Grout. Get that lot secured. I don't want them talking to any of the dragons."

The gray stallion, silent thus far, stomped once. "I am Grout." He and Sand Briar hooked themselves up to the cage and started dragging it away as Nimbus and Cutlass hung back with their leader.

"What about the runty dragon?" Cutlass asked.

Bloom thought for a moment before answering. "He's still here, and I don't think he'll be leaving anytime soon. But just in case, I want Nimbus guarding the entrance." She glanced back at Twilight and her friends. "We now have leverage like never before in our quest to rid the world of the threat of dragons." She raised to voice to an almost shouting level. "And if that pipsqueak of a lizard knows what's best for his friends, then he'll stay out of trouble and give himself up."

Grout and Briar drug the cage deeper into the cave, giving their newest captives the chance to take in the surroundings. It was nothing like Sludge had described in his story about the Scale Collectors. There were no floating islands chained together within a miasmic cloud. No meticulously designed, open prisons that gave the illusion that freedom was just out of reach. It was merely a cave, but also a vast one. From their moving prison, they could see three great rock pillars supporting the vaulted ceiling from which hung innumerable stalactites. Somewhere in the gloom, bats squeaked.

The central pillar stood in the heart of the cavern, and another smaller column stood close to the entrance. Water trickled down the central pillar at a steady pace from a crack in the ceiling high above. It formed a small stream that cut a channel through the limestone floor. The stream wound its way to the right and then doubled back onto itself before continuing around and disappearing down a small chute in the eastern wall. All along the walls, the ethereal bright blue and yellow flames of arcane torches flickered in a cool, humid trickle of air that circulated down from the ceiling and wound its way around the walls and natural formations. The smaller western pillar to the obscured most of a natural ramp that led up to a dim ledge. Torchlight flickered from behind the pillar, beyond the limits of their vision, but as they moved further away, a portion of the ridge came into view, and the ponies let at a collective gasp.

Dragons. There were five of them that they could see, locked in cages similar to their own. All of them of a similar size, perhaps three times that of a pony. They sat, slouching or leaning against the bars, and barely moved at all. In the dim light, their scales seemed dull or flaking off, and all of their wings drooped. A couple had bags under their eyes while the rest stared ahead at nothing through half-lidded, torpid eyes. They could not see if more lat beyond in the shadows.

The cage was drug across a simple, wooden bridge near the central column, which allowed easy access across the small stream. Another bridge to the right crossed the water as it doubled back, the simple construction leading to a spacious and furnished cavity: the Scale Collector's own quarters. There was a fence around the whole of the alcove, behind which were several sleeping areas, a small open hearth with cooking gear, many wooden chests, piles of sacks, and a writing desk topped with shelves of scrolls. Further back, along the northeastern wall, was an ironshod hardwood hatch with a thick locking mechanism set into it near the handle.

The cage eventually ground to a halt within a shallow divot near the central pillar. It was on the side opposite of the dragon cages, affording only a view of the Collector's relative comfort and the guarded exit. Twilight and her friends saw that there was yet another tall support pillar of stone even further back into the cave that obscured any view of a dark, smaller alcove that lay beyond. Briar and Grout unhooked themselves and left the group alone with Ardent Bloom, who had followed close behind in silence.

Twilight glared at Bloom through the cage bars as the silver-maned mare reached through the bars and placed a hoof under Twilight's chin. "With you and your friends, I'll be able to barter for what I need; the one thing I've sought for years but have never been able to obtain." Her eyes blazed with longing. "The Dragonlord."

"The Princesses will come for us. Equestria would never help you even if you threatened us," Twilight spat, unable to muster the strength to pull away from the other unicorn's grasp.

"The Princess of Friendship and her friends in exchange for also never having to fear dragons again? I think you underestimate your value to your subjects, as well as most pony's feelings on the dragon threat." She let go of Twilight and Bloom walked over to the two Storm Guards that were still looking at the broken cage door in the hands of the one who had unintentionally torn it off, confused. She slapped the fractured door from their grasp.

"Get looking for that dragon," she snarled. "And find me a green dragonfire message bottle. It's time to spread the good word about our latest guests."

Comments

[Starlight Nova]

If the main OCs in this story were voiced, what would they sound like?

[FictionalNightmare]

"Get looking for that dragon," she snarled. "And find me a green dragonfire message bottle. It's time to spread the good word about our latest guests."

That’s just sick... imprisoning dragons and using their abilities against them...

[SpikeSmolder fan]

I knew things wouldn't go so well & I already hate this Bloom jerk, gotta wonder what she meant when they were talking about Spike there though.

Can't wait for the next chapter, looking forward to see Spike turn the tables on these creeps!

[TasermonsPartner]

9706124
I'm surprised that other dragons can use message fire. I thought it was just Spike...and possibly Ember, whom he may have taught it too.

Still, this is good story so far. Everyone is in character, the original characters are interesting (a bit cliched, but so are most of the villains in the actual show), there's good attention to detail (especially in the settings and landscape descriptions), and good dialogue.

Hope to see more soon!

[Kaipony]

9706115
That's not something I had considered when I was jotting down notes about them. When I read something, I tend to assign characters whatever voice first comes to mind. I'd like to think that other people do the same, and I wouldn't want to dictate to them what their own imagination could create. That does help me improve, though. I can start adding some basic thoughts about tones, accents, and pitch.

Thanks to everyone for the comments. They're a big boost to the motivation factor when I'm looking at stacks of handwritten edits in need of entering into the Docs page.

[Scyphi]

"The Princesses will come for us. Equestria would never help you even if you threatened us," Twilight spat, unable to muster the strength to pull away from the other unicorn's grasp.

"The Princess of Friendship and her friends in exchange for also never having to fear dragons again? I think you underestimate your value to your subjects, as well as most pony's feelings on the dragon threat."

And who's to say Equestria even needs to be involved? Knowing Dragon Lord Ember, the second she hears about this, she'll likely come to them to try and break them all out herself. And I actually almost want to see her try. I don't think she'd ultimately succeed, but Ember's still a force to be reckoned with so I'd like to think she'd still give them a run for their money.

[emeraldhuskydragon0]

All you crud buckets better leave the hecking dragons alone, or somepony is gonna disappear in the night with naught but a red trail!

[Godslittleprincess]

Well, that could have been worst.

[Jake The Army Guy]

Wow, this is really good! Things are getting tense! I wonder how they'll get themselves out of this predicament? Maybe something to do with Spike under the effects of a growth spell and ripping the cages open with his bare claws...