Power of the Dragonflame: The Resurrection of Torch

by Mystic Mind

Act 1/Chapter 12: Warriors of Light

The monstrosity hadn’t gotten far. Roaring with bestial fury, it blasted everything in sight with long jets of fire. Twilight couldn't believe her eyes. Not only was this dragon identical to the one she'd seen in her vision—wings full of holes, bloated belly, even down to the scar above its right eye—it showed no hesitation in attacking innocent civilians caught in its path.

The three Crystal Paladins had it surrounded. Like Stellar Shine, they wore golden breastplates, but also wore identical helmets, carrying different weapons to suit their fighting style. One was a Pegasus, flying up and over the dragon’s head in a backward loop, then righting himself to strike a flurry of blows with his gold-tipped bo-staff.

The other two were unicorn mares who fought side by side, one of whom danced between the dragons' front legs, striking at its underbelly with a pair of razor-sharp chakrams held in her magic. As soon as a wound was cut open, her partner teleported in, thrusting a claymore straight up to carve out its insides.

The dragon lurched forward. For a moment, it looked like it would keel over. The unicorns teleported away, ready to join their comrade for the final blow. Just as the Pegasus pulled in his wings, diving toward it, it stopped in its tracks. Then, its jaw dropped open and its head pulled back.

Twilight and her friends skidded to a halt as the dragon released an incredible flame jet. So great was the blast, it enveloped the entire street ahead of it, melting the glass off nearby buildings and scorching stone. For ten long seconds, they all watched in horror, expecting to see the remains of three charred carcasses at any moment.

But when the smoke cleared, the opposite was true. The twin unicorns stood firm, shielded from the flames by a barrier of golden magic. The Pegasus stood behind them, sporting a couple of burnt feathers, but otherwise unharmed.

“Twilight, now’s our chance!” Stellar’s magic flared, conjuring golden chains to wrap around the dragon’s limbs.

“Right!” Twilight cast a magical thread that flowed through her friends. “Spike, Smoulder, you’re up first.”

“On it!” they leapt into the air, firing blasts of flame at the zombie dragon’s wings.

The undead roared in frustration, trying to thrash itself loose and retaliate, but Stellar’s chains held strong, allowing the younger dragons to stay safely out of range. Before it could unleash another cone of fire, Twilight’s magic exploded to life.

Each of the six harmonists transformed, their manes doubling in length with streaks of iridescent colours. Overflowing with the power of friendship, together they summoned a huge wave of rainbow magic, crashing over the rotten monster.

Finally, Stellar cast his spell, a huge blade of pure light around his horn. With a single thrust, Stellar stabbed his sword straight through its head. As the grand magics faded, every creature waited with bated breath to see if the spells had been successful. As their vision re-focused, the dragon collapsed, its dark magic extinguished.

When the dust settled, Twilight and co were greeted by a crowd of stunned civilians. They had been hiding behind a magical barrier cast by Princesses Celestia and Luna, amplified by the innate magic of the Friendship Cathedral. At first, no creature said anything, too awestruck to convey what they’d just witnessed.

So, it fell to Twilight to break the ice. “Citizens of Canterlot,” she began. “It’s with a heavy heart that I make this announcement: war has come to Equestria.”

A panicked chatter began to spread. “I won’t lie to any of you,” she continued. “Hard times are coming, but we will persevere. The ones responsible—both for this attack and for the disappearing unicorns—want to divide us through fear. It’d be easy to pin the blame on dragons, especially Lord Ember, who was forcibly overthrown.

“But wild accusations are exactly what the Dragonflame Cult desires. They are a minority of ponies who pursue dragon supremacy, but we are better than that. Where they promote hate, our friendship and love for one another can shine brighter than ever! It won’t be easy, and there’s a lot to prepare for. Equestria has faced many challenges throughout its history, from Wendigos to Tirek and, of course, Moonshadow; all overcome thanks to the power of friendship.

“We’re a nation that’s stronger than ever before. Together, we will defeat the cultists and their zombie dragons, no matter the odds!”

The crowd erupted into a chorus of cheers, many chanting Twilight’s name. “Well said,” Stellar Shine placed a hoof on her shoulder. “I never knew you were so good at impromptu public speaking!”

Twilight blushed. “Well, I have had a lot of practice since you became an Alicorn.”

“My Lord!” the Pegasus paladin walked up to Stellar Shine and saluted. “What’s our next course of action?”

“For the moment, check for civilian casualties,” replied Stellar, before turning back to Twilight. “Let me introduce you to honoured Vindicator Solar Flare. He was one of the first ponies to join the Crystal Paladins after its formation.”

The Pegasus removed his helm, revealing a sky-blue mane that wasn’t far off Rarity’s in style. Now that Twilight got a good look at him, he had a sunburst yellow coat with a golden sun cutie mark to match. “It’s an honour to meet you, Princess Twilight,” Solar knelt at her hooves. “If I may, you were one of my biggest role models growing up. Hearing all about your great feats of heroism, I knew I wanted more from life than just the weather team. Then you opened your friendship school and, well, here I am today.”

“Telling your life story again, Solar?” teased one unicorn, saddling her chakrams.

“Come now, sister,” the other protested, sliding her greatsword back into its sheath. They looked almost identical to one another, both sharing the same amber-coloured coats and streaked, blue and silver manes cut into a Mohawk – the primary difference being which mane-colour was dominant. “It's not every day you get to meet your heroes.”

“Funny,” Solar retorted with a sly grin. “I seem to remember you, Ivy Charm, going full-on fan-filly when Twilight gave her blessings to the order.”

“No, I didn't!” Ivy lied, straightening her posture. “I mean, it was totally amazing to be ordained by the Princess of Friendship, but I in no way freaked out! Back me up here, Caramel.”

“Sorry, but Solar's right,” Caramel nodded. “There's no need to hide it, Ivy. We all had the same reaction.”

“But Caramel...” Ivy whined, shuffling on her front hooves. “In front of the Princess?”

“Wow, Twilight,” Rainbow Dash grinned. “Looks like you've got quite a fan club going on here.”

Twilight resisted the urge to hide behind her wings, despite the ever-growing blush that threatened to consume her face. Instead, she cleared her throat and bowed back to the Paladins. “It's a pleasure to meet you all.”

“The pleasure's all ours,” Stellar gave a gentle smile. “Let me formally introduce you to my best Battle Mages: Ivy and Caramel Charm.”

The two unicorns stood to attention and saluted.

“What's the status on civilian casualties?” he asked.

“None so far,” said Ivy. “We're lucky our preparations were already in place, otherwise, the situation would've been much worse.”

“Most ponies involved suffered only minor burns,” added Caramel. “A handful of severe cases, but none that are life-threatening.”

“I should add our location helped a great deal,” said Solar. “Despite its rotten appearance, that dragon was physically tough. Were it not for the collective magic of the Cathedral, we may not have been able to hold it off.”

“Thank you for your report,” he turned his attention to the crowd ahead of him. “For now, help the wounded get the medical attention they need. The Princesses and I have much to discuss about the forthcoming war.”

“We'll help with the dragon citizens,” Spike volunteered. “They must have a ton of questions right now, and without Lord Ember to answer? It could get ugly.”

“We've both spent a ton of time around Ponies,” added Smoulder. “No offence, Twilight, but every creature needs to hear a dragons' take on this problem. I don't think they'll trust us, otherwise.”

“I agree,” Twilight nodded and turned to her friends. “I know I've asked a lot already, but I need one more favour.”

“If you're wantin' us to help out the paladins,” replied Applejack, “then it's no trouble at all.”

“After all, it is what we came here to do, isn't it?” added Rarity.

“I still have tons of stuff left over from the party!” Pinkie bounced on the spot, eager to get the fun and games started after being silent for so long.

“I wish I could join you all,” Fluttershy grimaced. “But the petting zoo animals must be so frightened right now! I need to make sure they're all okay.”

“Don't sweat it, Fluttershy,” Rainbow Dash reassured her. “Do what you gotta do. I can always keep the flyers company if you need me to.”

Fluttershy smiled back, breathing a small sigh of relief. “Thank you, Dash. Maybe a short flight would help them relieve stress.”

“I knew I could count on my friends,” Twilight bowed and turned back to Stellar. “I'll reach out to Princess Cadence once we're inside the cathedral.”

Though Twilight appeared outwardly calm, she felt a fresh swell of anxiety deep in her gut. The decisions she made today would affect the entire future of Equestria. No matter how many talks of lectures of guidance she'd given over the years, nothing left her with greater uncertainty than a war with undead dragons.