Dawn of a New Age

by GTthe4th

Chapter 9: Echoes of the Past

---

(Warfang Temple, shortly after the Guardians’ speech)

“You’ve gotta be kidding me.”

“Would I lie to you?”

“You mean to tell me that you guys have a library here the size of Twilight’s castle?!” Starlight shrieked, rearing up on her hind legs and throwing her forehooves out to the sides. “That’s twice the size of the Starswirl the Bearded wing of the Canterlot Archives!”

“You would know,” Rainbow snickered, hovering upside down beside her.

“So would I!” Pinkie bounced in front of Starlight’s view.

Blades grinned and started down a hallway. “Ya think that’s cool? Wait ‘til we show ya the trainin’ hall, I love that place.”

“Oooor,” Flashwing said, grabbing onto Blade’s tail and pulling him back. “We could go the designated route on the tour.”

“But that’s borin’!” Blades whined.

“We’ll be heading to the training hall eventually, just be patient,” Flashwing replied, only to facepalm. “Oh, who am I kidding...?”

“Words hurt, Flashy.”

“Never call me that again or you lose a tail.”

“How do ya think I got this sword at the end, dingus?” Blades deadpanned, lifting his tail up and showing the sword attached to the end of it. “Did ya think I was born with it or somethin’?”

“Now there’s a story I'd like to hear,” Rainbow said, smirking as she bumped his claw with her hoof.

Flashwing sighed. When she and Blades had agreed to the Guardians’ request to give the Ponies a tour after the speech, she didn’t think it would be this difficult. The timid Pegasus, Fluttershy, kept to her side at all times, and seemed to be fond of admiring all the artwork and architecture from afar. The same could not be said for the other three, who kept zipping around this way and that at every possible moment, with Blades often egging them on.

Starlight was dutifully scribbling down notes and examining every piece of minute historical or architectural significance she could locate (a trait Flashwing suspected she inherited from her mentor) and asking a whole variety of questions, Rainbow kept flying off into the rafters to explore, and Pinkie...was Pinkie.

Frankly, Flashwing couldn’t figure out Spotlight on a normal day, and ever since they arrived on Equus, the days had been anything but normal, and Pinkie was the crown jewel on top of that pile of abnormality, dethroning Spotlight with about as much effort as taking a nap. The pink Earth Pony was nowhere and everywhere all at once, talking about a variety of topics ranging from the weather, to confectioneries and baked goods, to her job in Ponyville, to Warfang, to her adventures with her friends, and even to someone named, of all things, “Cheese Sandwich”, who she was apparently very fond of.

For as much as she liked the Ponies, Flashwing also didn’t think she’d ever get used to them and their adorably innocent, yet strangely meaningful behaviors. Or the names. Especially the names. Who named their child after food, rocks, or clouds?

“Yo, Flashwing, you in there?”

Startled, Flashwing jolted out of her thoughts as Rainbow lightly poked her side. Clearing her throat, she replied, “Yeah, I’m good, just doing some thinking. Why don’t we take the route through the gardens? That way we can cut out all the boring hallways and take a shortcut to the training hall at the same time.” Then, with a look towards Pinkie Pie, she added, “Plus, we might even see the Earth Dragons do their thing, that’s always fun.”

Blades nodded. “Sounds like a plan to me; how ‘bout it, girls?”

“Eh, I guess some fresh air wouldn’t hurt, especially if it’s a shortcut to the cool stuff,” Rainbow answered with a shrug.

“I agree,” Fluttershy whispered with a meek smile. “A walk through the garden sounds lovely.” Pinkie gave a short, exuberant nod.

“Then it’s settled,” Starlight declared. “To the gardens we go!”

The two Dragons led the Ponies down a few more winding corridors, passing several curious Moles and awed Dragon acolytes along the way. Pinkie smiled at each and every one, waving as she did, while Fluttershy hid behind her mane. Eventually, the hallways became less crowded, and opened up into a large amphitheatre, currently in the process of being rebuilt. Most of the walls and pillars were already completed, along with the stage, and the remaining rubble and broken seats were being removed by several teams of Moles.

From above them the domed glass ceiling let the glorious rays of the morning sun in, bathing the entire chamber in golden light. Two fountains on either side of the amphitheatre shimmered in the light, rainbows reflecting off of the water and onto the walls, illuminating the runic lettering that decorated them.

But what drew the Ponies’ attention were the three white marble statues standing tall at the back of the main stage. All three were Draconic in nature, with regal faces that the Ponies didn’t recognize. The two on the left and right were in pristine condition, with sapphires in their eyes and gold circlets carved into their foreheads, while the third in the middle lay broken with its head laying on its side at the base. There were several cracks in its side, and the jewels that were once in its eyes were missing. The crown had been forcibly ripped out, judging by the damages.

“Welcome to the Grandmaster’s Hall,” Blades said proudly. “This is where the Guardians, led by the Grandmaster, meet up with the leaders of the city and their most trusted advisors to discuss city policy and Warfang’s future. This is our last stop before the gardens.”

“The Grandmaster, I’ve heard that before...” Starlight mused.

“The previous holder of the title was Ignitus, Guardian of Fire,” Flashwing filled in for her. “Terrador is acting Grandmaster, until a new Guardian of Fire can be chosen, after which all four Guardians will let the city officials elect one of them to be the next, permanent Grandmaster.”

“And the statues?” Pinkie asked, looking up at them. “They sure look super important.”

“Since Warfang’s construction, there have been three Grandmasters,” Flashwing replied, stepping towards the statue on the far left. “The first, Grandmaster Zilas of the Ice Element, the founder of the Guardians. She led our people into the First Golden Age, and helped forge the alliance with the Moles. We owe her everything.” She pointed over to the statue on the far right. “Ignitus, of the Fire Element. He was the longest-ruling Grandmaster, and the first to serve two terms.”

Fluttershy sent a grim look towards the middle statue, and the fallen head. “And this one? Why is it broken?”

At this, both Dragons slipped into solemn silence, and Blades kicked at the head and spat upon it. “Malefor...” he hissed. “The youngest Grandmaster, and also the first Purple Dragon recorded in history. He was supposed to bring a new era of peace, but he--”

“He ruined everything,” Flashwing whispered. “Ignitus groomed him to replace him as Grandmaster when he came of age, and when the time came, Ignitus retired, allowing Malefor to take his place. For one year he led the Temple and Warfang, and his power grew tenfold, and for a time, all was well. But with power came arrogance, and with arrogance came greed. He began to seek forbidden knowledge and magic from the ancient texts in order to increase his power even more, and even brought back the cursed art of necromancy.”

Fluttershy gasped and held a hoof to her mouth, Rainbow’s eyes narrowed, Pinkie’s mane deflated and she flopped to the floor, and Starlight exploded in rage. “Necromancy?!” she roared. “Dark magic! It corrupts the mind and the user, and supplants all things good within them. Every mage in Equestria knows not to foul ourselves with it, or we risk losing ourselves to its influence.”

“You’re not far off,” Flashwing said with a nod. “When the Guardians discovered his wrongdoings, they demanded an explanation, and when Malefor told them of his plans for recreating the world in his image, they stripped him of his title and cast him out of Warfang. Ignitus was reinstated as Grandmaster, and so began the long struggle against the traitor and his followers.” She glared at the fallen statue’s head. “This is all that remains of his rule. The acolytes of the time tore it down and vandalized it, and left it the way it is now, stripped of all former glory and prestige. It’s a reminder to all Dragons about putting too much hope onto one person, and to never fall down the path of evil.”

A shiver went down the Ponies’ spines, and they looked into the empty eyes of Malefor’s statue. The sockets stared back at them with darkened glee, and the dark smile on the fallen head seemed to mock them, as if promising to return. For a brief moment, they imagined what he looked like in real life in all his power and fallen grace, and they all took an involuntary step back from it. The eye sockets continued to stare back, until they averted their gazes.

“Eugh, that story always gives me the heebie-jeebies,” Blades muttered. “Come on, let’s go somewhere a little more pleasant. The gardens are just down one more hallway on the left of the Grandmaster’s Hall.”

“Y-yes, please...” Fluttershy murmured, clearly unnerved. Rainbow pulled her close with a wing and walked side-by-side with her, forgoing the air in favor of keeping her friend company.

Leaving the amphitheatre behind, the two Dragons led the Ponies down a hallway which, after a short walk, opened up on its side to reveal an enormous, bountiful garden filled with trees, flowers, freshly-trimmed hedges, and crystal-clear fountains and streams. Fluttershy’s mood instantly brightened as she saw bluebirds and chickadees flitting about in the tree branches, chirping and singing to their little hearts’ content. Pinkie let out a quiet gasp of joy and zipped over to one of the fountains, looking into its reflective water and watching a few goldfish swim around.

“Whoa...” Rainbow let out, taking out her camera and snapping a photo. “Okay, not gonna lie, this is pretty cool.”

“It’s like a sanctuary,” Fluttershy whispered, slowly moving down the steps from the Temple and feeling the grass under her hooves and the gentle breeze in her fur. “Just like home.”

Flashwing grinned. “Glad you like it. Want to explore?”

“YES!” Fluttershy shouted, which, to everyone else, sounded more like a slightly less quiet squeak. Then she blushed. “Um, if nopony...er, no one minds we spend a few minutes here first, that is...”

“Not at all,” Blades said with a wave of his wing. “I may like fightin’ as much as the next Dragon, but even I like to enjoy a few moments of peace and quiet. Take your time.”

Starlight opened up her saddlebags and pulled out her notebook once more. “I’m curious to see if you have any plants here that might be native to your own world. I’m sure there’s bound to be a few.”

Flashwing shrugged. “Sure, look around, we’re in no hurry. Besides, maybe you can see one of the Earth Dragon acolytes do some gardening. I have a feeling you’ll enjoy that.”

“How so?” Starlight wondered.

There was a twinkle in Flashwing’s eye as she winked conspiratorially at Blades. “Oh, you’ll see.”

Starlight’s ears flattened and she sent them both a deadpan gaze. “This really is how Twilight must be feeling right now, isn’t it?”

---

(Primordial Hive)

As she walked alongside Thorax and Protus on the bridge leading to the Nexus, Twilight let out a quiet, somewhat squeaky sneeze. Spike held out a tissue, which she accepted gratefully.

“Bless you,” Protus chuckled.

“Thanks.”

---

Starlight let out a vexed sigh and rolled her eyes skyward. “Well then, if you two aren’t going to give me any hints, I guess I’ll have to find out on my own.” With an engineered huff of pomposity that Rarity would have been proud of, she spun on her hooves and trotted away.

Blades snickered and nudged Flashwing in the side. “Wanna tail her?” he asked.

“Oh, hell yeah,” Flashwing replied with a subtle smirk, and the two Dragons sneaked after the retreating Unicorn.

Starlight meandered through the gardens for a few minutes, taking in all the sights and watching her friends do their usual antics. Fluttershy had already gathered a small following of birds, bees, and bunnies, and was conversing with them as if she was an old friend. The animals, on the other hoof, were wondering who this butter-yellow creature was and why she was insistent on them forming a choir and how it was important for teamwork. They didn’t even know what a choir was, for heaven’s sake.

Rainbow, meanwhile, busied herself with snapping photos of various arrangements of flowers and plants with a giddy grin on her face. When she saw Starlight’s smirking gaze boring into her, she blushed and quickly explained that it was just for posterity, and for practice with her camera. Starlight had to admit, they were pretty good photographs, much improved since yesterday, but still, she took note of Rainbow’s reaction anyway as the embarrassed Wonderbolt flew off to another corner of the gardens.

Starlight continued to explore, occasionally bumping into an increasingly-hyper Pinkie, who she was certain was experiencing the aftereffects of the sugar intake of the krytos from breakfast. Starlight thought about asking what she was up to, but thought better of it when she saw her dive into a fountain and emerge from underneath a bench with a fishbowl in hoof.

After a few more minutes, she found herself wandering into a small clearing with benches surrounding a perfect cube of obsidian with an silver plaque on its front. Seeing nobody around, she leaned forward and squinted, reading the small words carved delicately in the metal:

In loving memory of shadows.
Forever near, never forgotten.
May the Ancestors forgive me.

“Loving memory...of shadows?” she muttered, arching an eyebrow and looking down at her own shadow in confusion.

“It’s Blackout’s contribution to the garden,” Flashwing said, coming up from behind her.

Startled, Starlight jumped and took a few steps back from the obsidian cube. “H-how long have you been--?”

“Oh, we’ve been followin’ for a while now,” Blades replied with a cheeky smirk. “A darn shame that there’s no Earth Dragons out today, present company excluded. Would’ve loved to have seen your reaction to what they could do.”

“Maybe some other time,” Starlight said, looking back at the cube. “What did you mean it was Blackout’s contribution?”

“It’s a semi-recent thing,” said Flashwing. “He put it here about fifteen years ago, not long after he and Spotlight became the first Rangers. There’s a pretty sad story behind it too, but it’s not my place to tell it. Only he can do that, so maybe you should ask him someday.”

“Well, it certainly sounds interesting, especially since he seems to be asking for forgiveness,” said Starlight, motioning to the plaque.

The faces of both Dragons fell, and Flashwing shook her head. “Everyone forgave him long ago, but it’ll never enough for him. Please don’t ask us about it, save it for him.”

Starlight nodded, understanding in her eyes. Everyone had a little bit of darkness in their pasts, after all, and she was no exception. “Of course.”

After an uncomfortable silence met the trio, Blades looked around and his gaze fell upon one of the pathways leading away from the clearing. “Hey, look over there, is that who I think it is?”

Flashwing and Starlight joined him in looking, and they saw the faraway outline of a slim Water Dragoness, sitting on a bench in another clearing. Flashwing smiled. “Yep, that’s her alright. That’s Echo.”

“Echo?” Pinkie echoed, hopping into view from another pathway, followed by Fluttershy and Rainbow.

Blades nodded. “Strange to see her out and about in the gardens these days,” he murmured. “In fact, can’t say I’ve ever seen her here.”

“We should go say hello and ask her what she’s doing!” Pinkie cheered. “It’s always nice to bump into close friends unexpectedly, like the time I bumped into Rarity in Canterlot during a shopping trip, or the time I bumped into Maud in Manehattan while she was studying for her rocktorate, or the time I bumped into Cheese--” Rainbow stuffed a hoof into Pinkie’s mouth with a grunt of annoyance, only for Pinkie to continue mumbling through the obstruction.

“I don’t know...” Flashwing said, sending an unsure glance down the path. “Echo’s a private Dragon, even before we came to Equus. Ever since we got here, she’s been...moody.”

Fluttershy’s ears perked up. “Moody?”

“Yeah, more irritable, less likely to talk, that sort of thing. She tries to hide it so as to not worry everyone too much, but we’ve known her for years. She’s...kinda like a sister, in a distant sort of way. We’ve noticed the difference.”

“What was she like before?” Fluttershy asked, her curiosity piqued.

Blades shrugged. “Eh, she was mostly the same as she is now before we got to this world, really. Still moody, still quiet, still private, but she at least smiled a bit more. That’s the big one: she hasn’t smiled in a long while, even before we got here.”

“Well, we could always say hi, and then keep going,” Rainbow suggested, removing her hoof from Pinkie’s mouth.

Flashwing shrugged. “I suppose it couldn’t hurt to say hi, as long as we give her some room. Alright, let’s go see her, but if she wants to be alone, I’m bailing.”

Leaving the mystery-laden cube behind, the Ponies and Dragons ventured down the path towards Echo, watching in silence as she came into view. Once closer, they could see that she wasn’t just sitting on a bench, but was in the middle of doing something that surprised all of them, even Blades and Flashwing.

She was painting a picture, quite expertly at that. She guided her paintbrush in gentle strokes over the canvas on her easel like a master, carefully putting the finishing touches on a tower made of steel in a small city of similar buildings. Upon closer inspection, the city she was painting looked like nothing any of the group had ever seen, for it was underwater.

Her claw trembling, Echo pulled back her brush and gazed upon the tower she had finished in silence. Her emotions were masked, as usual, but her gaze spoke volumes. She was in deep distress, and her pupils had shrunk to mere pinpricks as they darted to and fro across the painting.

“No...” she whispered urgently. “It’s not the same, it’s not...” With a sigh, she set aside her paintbrush and leaned back on the bench, staring into her claws with a despondent expression.

“Echo?” Flashwing spoke up once she was close enough, her tone filled with concern. “You okay?”

Startled out of her reverie, the Water Dragoness looked up and saw the approaching Rangers and Ponies, and grimaced. “Y-yeah, I’m good, just...busy...”

“I never knew ya painted, Echo,” Blades said, looking at the picture in admiration. “It’s good too.”

“No it’s not,” Echo immediately retorted, glaring at the picture in disdain. “It’ll never be good. I can’t make it good.”

“Whatever makes you say that?” Starlight asked, coming into view. “I agree with Blades, it looks lovely.”

Echo put her head in her claws and whispered, “I know what you’re all trying to do, and I...appreciate it, but I don’t need this. I want to be left alone.”

Flashwing’s face fell. Despite her earlier words, she could see that the Water Dragoness was depressed, and she was hesitant in moving away. Friends stuck by each other, after all. “Echo, are you okay? Do you want us to--”

“Please, Flashwing,” Echo said, looking up with a stern but pleading gaze. “Leave.”

Blades sighed an put a claw on Flashwing’s shoulder. “C’mon, Flash, let her be. We’ll talk later.”

Flashwing glanced his way, and then back at Echo. With a heavy heart, she turned away and walked back up the path alongside him. She craned her head back and called out, “Girls, let’s go.”

Pinkie’s mane deflated, and she looked between Echo and the two Rangers. “But...”

“Pinkie,” Starlight murmured, putting a hoof on her back. “She’ll be fine.”

“But she’s sad, Starlight,” Pinkie protested quietly. “I know sad when I see it, and she is the saddest Dragon I’ve ever seen. Can’t we at least try?”

“Hey,” Blades said, walking back towards them. “If ya want to help her, I’d suggest we listen to what she wants. She wants solitude, so let’s leave her be. Don’t worry, we know her best, and she’ll be right as rain in no time, trust me. She always is.”

Echo, hearing every word, said nothing.

Pinkie looked about ready to cry, so before she could, she looked away. She didn’t want to see Echo’s sad face for even a moment longer. With great reluctance, she, Rainbow, and Starlight joined the two Rangers in leaving the clearing. Starlight then noticed that a certain Pegasus wasn’t following them, and when she turned around, she spied Fluttershy sitting in the middle of the path. Echo had returned to her painting, and Fluttershy was watching her with a curious, contemplative gaze.

“Fluttershy, we’re leaving,” Starlight called.

“Hm?” Fluttershy glanced behind her and squeaked. “O-oh, I’m sorry, you girls go on ahead, I’ll catch up later.”

Starlight knew that tone of voice, and that look that Fluttershy had sent her. This was a mare on a mission, and nothing could keep her from staying behind. She glanced over her shoulder, watching as Blades and Flashwing turned a corner and disappeared behind a bush, and then softly nodded at Fluttershy before following them. Pinkie, seeing Fluttershy staying behind, sent her a large, beaming smile, and her eyes glistened slightly as she realized what Fluttershy was planning on doing.

The Pegasus smiled back and then turned towards Echo, softly treading closer to her until she was within a few meters from the bench. She of course knew what Echo had said she wanted, but she knew that the Dragoness needed something else at the moment, something that she hoped she could give.

Fluffing her wings slightly, she settled down in the grass and watched silently as Echo continued to paint, unaware of her presence. The paintbrush’s strokes were as slow and steady as before, and the colors just as vibrant, and yet there was a melancholic touch to every stroke, as if each one had a purpose beyond mere artistic beauty. No, there was far more at stake here than just a picture. Echo was painting history.

Her history, Fluttershy realized. That look in Echo’s eyes wasn’t just despair, it was also fond memory. But memory of what?

Fluttershy rested her head over her hooves and watched Echo for several minutes in silence, letting the master paint her masterpiece. Suddenly Echo stopped, and she lowered her brush to her side. Without turning around, she growled, “Why are you still here?”

“Oh, a-am I disturbing you?” Fluttershy replied. She had been so entranced by Echo’s painting, that she had almost forgotten why she was even there in the first place. “I-I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to, I was just...taking it all in.”

“All of what?”

“Nature,” Fluttershy answered with a demure smile. “Nature is a beautiful thing, so full of life and love. The birds in the air, the flowers in the grass, the tall trees in the forests...they all have so much history and beauty. It’s my favorite thing in the world, and it, um...it brings back a lot of fond memories.”

Echo set aside her brush and frowned at the intruding Pegasus. “And so you chose this spot in particular for your little bird-watching safari? Conveniently right behind me? Right after I told you all to leave me alone?”

Fluttershy’s smile fell. “Um...do you mind if I--”

“Yes.”

Fluttershy squeaked and hid her face behind her mane, peeking a solitary eye out. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to make you uncomfortable, I just noticed you were feeling sad, so I thought--”

“You thought you could waltz in and sit next to me, thinking that you could help solve my problems,” Echo hissed in a bitter tone. “Well, I’m sorry too, because it doesn’t work that way, Fluttershy. I don’t need your pity, I don’t need your talk, I don’t need your company, and most of all, I don’t need your help. If I were you, I’d leave the helping up to the professionals, they know what they’re doing most of the time, and don’t try to stick their noses where they don’t belong unless asked first.”

Echo spun around and faced her painting once more, and the two of them fell into silence. A moment later, Echo heard the sounds of Fluttershy getting up off the ground and slowly walking away. She glanced at the Pegasus and watched as she began to leave up the path the others took, her head hung low and her ears drooping. She had never seen Fluttershy look so distraught, and Echo decided from that point onward that she never wanted to see her that way again. It looked unnatural, as if the kind Pegasus was never meant to be sad.

What am I doing? She’s just trying to help, and I’m treating her like some miserable Grublin.

Shame and guilt flooded into her, and she let out a despondent sigh. “Fluttershy...”

The yellow Pegasus stopped mid-step and craned her neck around.

“I’m...I’m sorry I snapped,” Echo said. “I...I could use a bit of company, actually. Maybe a second pair of eyes for my painting. A critique, if you will.”

“Are you sure?” Fluttershy asked quietly.

Echo nodded slowly. “Positive,” she replied in a near-whisper. “Please don’t leave.”

Something in Echo’s voice nearly made Fluttershy’s eyes water, and she returned to her spot next to the bench. However, Echo scooted over and patted the spot next to her with a claw, beckoning the Pegasus to sit. Once she did so, Echo looked down at her lap and returned to silence. Fluttershy did the same.

The two remained silent for a few moments before Fluttershy spoke again. “It really is a nice picture,” she said honestly, turning towards Echo. “What is it?”

“It’s my home,” Echo replied softly. “Before Warfang, before the Rangers, before...everything.” Her eyes turned misty. “Aquaria Towers, home of the Seahorses.”

Fluttershy’s gaze returned to the picture, taking in the watery backdrop, the sparkling towers of white marble, and the golden lights shining from their windows. The ocean floor around them was covered in a rainbow forest of kelp and coral, and peppered with smaller homes built out of old clam shells and giant nautiluses. For a moment, the world around her melted away, and she imagined herself as a Sea Pony swimming around in the cool waves, and listening to the sounds of the ocean and admiring the colors of countless schools of fish swimming past...

She shook her head and turned to reality, and she looked at Echo curiously. “I thought all Dragons lived in Warfang?”

Echo smiled sadly. “I was the exception. Water Dragons, like Light, Shadow, and Crystal Dragons, are a rare breed, so when my mother gave birth to me, it was a miracle. My parents and I were the only Water Dragons for miles, and we had made our home on the Silver River. The first year of my life was...honestly, I can’t remember too much of it, but it had to have been good, up to a point.”

“What happened?” Fluttershy asked. “I-if you don’t mind me asking, that is...”

Echo’s face fell. “Malefor happened, although I was too young to remember it. He had heard that my family was living on the Silver River, and, in an effort to decimate the Water Dragon population, had sent his Ape soldiers to eliminate us, an act I only heard about until many years later. My parents had sacrificed themselves to save me, and had sent me adrift on the river, until I eventually washed out to sea.”

Fluttershy put a hoof to her mouth and gasped. “Y-you’re an orphan?”

Echo nodded. “To this day, I can’t remember their names or their faces, but I knew deep down that they loved me beyond words. For two years I somehow survived on my own, scavenging the ocean for food while the Apes hunted me, my old life forgotten. Eventually they gave up, after realizing I was too slippery for their own good, and they ran off back to their master empty-handed.” She then smiled and closed her eyes. “And that’s when the Seahorses found me...”

---

(The Dragon Realms, the Smoldering Sea, many years ago)

The little Water Dragon’s eyes widened as two creatures she had never seen before emerged from behind a forest of kelp, staring at her with equally-wide gazes. They had snouts similar to hers, and were scaly, yet that’s where the similarities ended. They were purple, had no arms or legs, and had short flippers at the sides of their bodies and a fin behind their large heads. Their large torsos joined with a tail at the end, the tip of which curled towards them.

The adrenaline pumping through her veins from her most recent run-in with the big hairy Apes spurred her towards action at the sight of them, and before they could say anything, she spun around and slipped between two kelp stems, intending to lose the newcomers in the maze.

“Stop!” one of them shouted, a female by the sound of it. “We don’t mean you any harm!”

“Come back!” the other cried, this one a male.

None of their voices mattered to her, and she kept swimming faster, soon arriving at her home of two years: a small underwater cave buried in the sand. Kicking her heels, she dove down into the hole and into the short tunnel beyond, swimming it’s length until she reached its end, where she kept her modicum of small possessions. There she stopped and hid, her only movements coming from the gills at her neck.

Minutes passed, and then the voices returned.

“Little one? Please come out, we didn’t mean to scare you,” said the voice of the female, speaking into the tunnel.

“Yeah, we just want to talk,” added the male. “We promise, we’re friendly.”

She had heard those words before. The big Apes had said those same words, and had tricked her many times with promises of food and shelter, only to try to spear her with big metal sticks or crush her with bigger rocks. Still they had never found her home, and she hadn’t been caught. She wasn’t about to let a couple strangers do what they couldn’t; she remained silent.

“It’s okay to be scared,” the female continued. “I would be too if I saw someone like us. We’re not exactly well-known in the rest of the world.” When she received no reply, she continued, “W-we saw what those Apes were doing, chasing you. Don’t you want to live without having to run all the time? We have a home of our own, and it’s big, with lots of space and lots of kids your age. Please, come back with us. We can help you, hide you from the baddies. You won’t have to run anymore; wouldn’t that be nice?”

The little Dragoness had to admit, it was a tempting offer. These two didn’t seem like the Apes. The Apes were big and scary, but these two were smaller, spoke softer, and seemed just as curious as she was. It was certainly a better offer than what the Apes had tried to do before.

Gritting her teeth, she rose up from her pile of trinkets and whimpered, “It...it would be nice...”

Silence greeted her, and then the male beckoned to her once more, his voice gentle. “Come out, little one; you’re safe now. We won’t let anything happen to you.”

Moment’s later, the little Water Dragon poked her snout out of the hole, her jaw trembling and her eyes wide as she stared at the two strangers. Both of them had kind gazes, looking down at her with compassion and concern. The female floated over to her, and the Dragoness ducked back into the tunnel slightly. The female paused and let herself sink lower to the ocean floor, waiting patiently as the little Dragoness slowly crept back out again, this time fully.

Both strangers looked on in horror as they saw the state of her. She had clearly not been eating well, and her body was thin and her scales pale and flaking. Looking closer, they could even see the outline of her rib cage peeking out from under her belly.

“Oh my stars,” the female whispered, moving both of her flippers to her mouth. “You poor thing...”

Slowly, the male offered a cautious flipper towards the Dragoness, keeping his gaze locked with hers. Despite his alarm, he managed to keep his smile steady and unwavering until he laid his flipper on her shoulder. The Dragoness trembled under his touch, but remained still, even as she was slowly pulled into a warm hug.

“Who are you?” the Dragoness whispered into his ear.

His smile grew and he rubbed the back of her head. “I’m Levi, and this is my wife Meri. We’re Seahorses from Aquaria Towers, a hidden city not far from here.”

“What’s your name, little one?” Meri asked, carefully inching forward.

The Dragoness lowered her head and sniffed. “I don’t remember...mommy and daddy didn’t name me yet. They aren’t here anymore; they’re gone.”

The two Seahorses glanced at each other. “Do you know where they went?” Levi asked hesitantly.

She shook her head. “No, they’re...gone. They...the Apes...” She closed her eyes and turned her head away. Whatever tears she had would never be seen.

A second pair of flippers joined in on the hug, and Meri pulled her close. “I’m so sorry, little one.”

None of them said a word after that for a while. The two Seahorses eventually pulled away to give the Dragoness some space, and then, in an effort to cheer her up, Levi said, “Well, we can’t just call you ‘little one’ all the time. Do you want us to give you a name?”

After a moment, she nodded.

“How about Periwinkle?” Meri suggested.

Levi made a face. “Ack, no, she’s not a Periwinkle. She’s definitely a Starlight.”

“My sister’s named Starlight,” Meri countered. “Cherry.”

“No, Crinkle.”

Meri was about to suggest another name, only to falter when she saw the look the little Water Dragon was giving them. She sighed, and said, “Well, this isn’t working. Bouncing names off each other like this like an echo in a canyon won’t do. Maybe we should sleep on it and decide in the morning?”

Levi nodded. “Yeah, that might be best. What do you think, li--”

“Echo.”

Levi closed his mouth mid-syllable and blinked. “Excuse me?”

The Dragoness looked up at him with a shimmering gaze. “Echo. I like that.”

Levi and Meri exchanged a look, and Meri smiled and nodded. Levi grinned and patted little Echo’s head. “Echo it is.”

---

(Warfang Temple gardens, present day)

“They took me to their sanctuary city under the waves, hidden far from the world,” Echo said, her tone wistful as she looked up into the sky. “I didn’t even know I was so close to it.”

“How were they able to keep a city like that hidden?” Fluttershy asked.

“They had an ancient artifact known as the Pearl of Wisdom, passed down from generation to generation, which allowed them to project a cloaking shield over the entire city, hiding it from view or from any magical scans,” Echo explained. “King Flippy the Fifth, the leader of the city, was the only one who could use it, since the Pearl would only respond to those of royal blood. When he foresaw Malefor’s coming wrath upon the world, he erected the shield to protect his people. It had the added bonus of keeping us away from Warfang’s prying eyes, which meant that even if it was conquered, we would still never be seen.”

“So what happened next?”

Echo leaned back. “Well, Levi and Meri took me in. They presented me before King Flippy, and explained my situation. I was given sanctuary, and, eventually, they adopted me.”

Fluttershy smiled. “That must’ve been a wonderful feeling.”

“It was,” Echo agreed with a nod. “I had never felt so loved. I didn’t have to scrounge for food or wonder if the next day would be my last. I was finally free to live, although it took a while for me to get used to it. I would rarely leave our tower, not even to speak with the other kids, until I was eventually coaxed out by my mom. Even then she had to bribe me with prawn, which I discovered I liked.”

Fluttershy giggled.

Echo continued, “Years passed, and I grew up. Mom and dad taught me the ways of the ocean and how to survive, as well as how to make friends. I studied history, music, the arts, and even some basic martial arts techniques in case I ran into any sharks or eels. But I was still a Dragon living among Seahorses, and they knew that I needed more. The pain of my parents’ deaths still touched me, and they could see that I was starting to get withdrawn. Little Echo wasn’t so little anymore, and so I was given permission on my eighteenth birthday to venture out with the other gatherer and harvester teams to get more food and more building materials, as well as to explore on my own time. Mom and dad were so proud when I was given charge of a team of my own.”

Then her frown returned, and she closed her eyes once more. “Then one day, I was visiting the mainland shore alone to gather some herbs for mom’s supper...”

---

(The Dragon Realms, mainland shoreline, many years ago)

The swish of a talon sang through the air, and another clump of parsley fell to the ground, only to be picked up moments later and tucked into a small, watertight container, joining a myriad of other herbs and small roots.

Satisfied, Echo let out a contended sigh, and looked out over the ocean behind her. The sun was already beginning to dip below the horizon, casting an orange glow over her home. She rarely saw such a sight, so whenever she did, she savored it. It was truly one of the most beautiful things in the world, and yet so many ground-dwellers never appreciated it. To them, it was just another sign of the waning day. To Echo, it was a sign that true beauty still existed in the world, and that not even the darkness could steal it away.

It also unfortunately served as a sign that she had to get home soon.

Humming a tune she had been working on for several days, she began to pack up her tools and gear, placing the various containers and satchels along the utility belt around her torso, when a faint noise reached her. She paused, and craned her neck to listen.

The noise seemed to be coming from a long ways away, most likely further down the beach, or into the forested hills beyond. While faint, she could still make out shouting, sounds of ringing metal, and guttural roars.

Roars that she recognized, even after not hearing them since childhood.

Her eyes widened, as memories of the Apes flooded back into her mind. Their spears, their rocks, their infernal machines, their jeering laughter.

The flames.

The roar of an immense Purple Dragon.

The blood of her parents seeping into the Silver River as she floated away, screaming for them...

And here they were again, far from her home and far from here, yet still near. Still on the hunt; still prowling on the same lands her parents once lived on.

She looked down at her containers, then out over the ocean that was her home, and then back to the forest from which the sounds came. The screams grew louder and more desperate, and she knew at that moment what she wanted to do. She didn’t need to do it, and it was reckless and selfish, but damn it, she wanted it. Her mind was filled with memories and rage, and all she heard in those screams was her own voice, and the voices of her dying parents.

As the sun slipped further past the waves of her home, she made her decision. She stripped off her utility belt, grabbed her fillet knife handle in her teeth, and charged up the beach towards the commotion, fully committed to revenge.

She ran for what seemed like hours, though it was only for a couple minutes. The autumnal forest sped past her in a blur of green, red, and yellow, and the shouting morphed into the sounds of battle. The clanging of metal she had heard was the sounds of swords meeting, and of axes and hammers smashing against plate mail.

Finally she burst into a clearing and ducked behind a fallen log, peering over to see what was happening. A small squadron of Dragons and Moles were backed up against a large boulder, with Apes and other gnarled and grotesque creatures surrounding them --- Orcs. Several bodies lay behind the melee, all still and lifeless. Many of them were from the Apes and their allies, but some were Dragons, and a few Moles.

A glimmer of blue scales caught her attention, and her gaze shifted to the side, seeing a fallen Dragon laying on her side and bleeding from a large spear wound at her side. Her face was forever frozen in an expression of agony, and her claws were clutching at the air above her.

Echo knew she wasn’t a water Dragon. The color was off, the scales weren’t right, nor was the snout the correct shape. This was an Ice Dragon, if her mom and dad had taught her correctly. But it didn’t matter if she was a Water Dragon or an Ice Dragon, or even an Earth Dragon. All she could see was her former home burning, and her parents dying from the same wounds.

“No...not again...!” she hissed, vowing to avenge the fallen Dragoness and her comrades. Whispering a silent prayer to the Ancestors, she jumped over the log and charged the nearest Ape, flicking her knife out from her mouth and into one of her claws, raising it above her head and burying its blade into the Ape’s back.

With a pained roar, the Ape fell forward into one of his comrades, sending them both tumbling to the ground. Echo pressed her assault, lifting the Ape’s head up from his braided hair and slamming it repeatedly against the ground, and blasting the second with a stream of high-pressure water from her mouth.

In their confusion at the sight of the newcomer, the Apes and Orcs briefly forgot about the Dragons and Moles, and they paid for it. Feeling energized at the sight of their new help, the Dragons and Moles charged the enemy lines and scattered them throughout the clearing.

Two Orcs swung their crooked swords at Echo, and she leapt into the air, kicking her hind legs into their faces and swinging her tail around to hit a third, knocking them to the ground. Before she could counterattack, an Ape grabbed her tail from behind and swung her around, sending her flying face-first into a tree. Dazed, she looked up to see a large war hammer falling towards her, and she braced for its impact.

Only it never came. The Ape was sent tumbling to the ground next to her as a Mole slashed at his ankles, the hammer strike going wide and slamming into the soil next to her. Letting out a gasp of air, she glanced at her savior, and the Mole nodded grimly before returning to the fight. Echo rose unsteadily to her feet and soon joined him.

Arrows whizzed past her face, and she reared back to dodge, just as two struck her Mole companion in the chest. He fell backward with a grunt into her arms, the life already leaving his eyes.

Horrified, she gazed into his eyes and a trickle of blood began to flow from his mouth, and he reached up to touch her face, only for his hand to fall limp.

It was happening again. The massacre was happening again, and she was still powerless to stop it. She hadn’t changed anything!

“No...please, no...” she whispered, falling to her knees even as the battle raged around her. She clutched the Mole’s body to her, and wept. Her hot, stinging tears fell from her cheeks and drenched his fur, and she didn’t care even as an Orc towered over her, bringing a sword down to her neck.

Time seemed to freeze, and for a brief moment, she saw the faces of her parents lying dead by the riverside. Before her despair could return, however, she saw something more, something that was new. As the river swept her away, it deposited her into the waiting embrace of her mom and dad, and they looked down at her with kind eyes and smiling faces. She saw her new home, a city of grandeur and harmony. She saw her friends, and their families. And then she saw herself in the mirror.

She was a Dragon --- a Dragon among Seahorses. They were peaceful and kind, while she was engineered by evolution to be mighty and terrifying.

And yet, despite her instincts and her desire for revenge, she was no fighter. She knew only peace in her life, and she was not ready for war. Yet she was still a Dragon among Seahorses, and that meant something more to her.

It meant that she was meant to be a protector of that peace.

Her eyed opened, and instead of their usual bright yellow, they were now solid white.

The sword stopped inches away from her neck, and the Orc’s face morphed into a mixture of shock and dismay. A shield was now protecting his would-be victim, made out of water.

Echo slowly lifted her tear-stained face from the Mole to her enemy, a snarl of fury on her lips. “Never. AGAIN!” she screamed, and the water surrounding her suddenly shot forward and surrounded the Orc’s head.

The Orc dropped his sword and clutched at his face, screaming inside the bubble of water that now encased his head. He took off his helmet and threw it to the ground, and when that did nothing, he smashed his face repeatedly against the ground to try to get the water away from him. It was fruitless, and within seconds, he drowned in the bubble of water, the air only a few inches away from his lungs.

The water vanished from his head and returned to Echo, and she rose to her hind legs, spreading her forelegs out even as she roared. All eyes, from enemy and ally alike, focused on her as water poured from her mouth and eyes and floated in the air around her in a spiral.

Before anyone could react, the water shot toward every Dragon and Mole, encasing them all in a bubble shield and protecting them further harm. Swords and arrows bounced off or got stuck, and the Orcs and Apes panicked, realizing that their advantage was now lost. It was over in moments, as the Moles and Dragons made quick work of the stunned Apes and Orcs, while the few that managed to regain half of their already low levels of wits fled the clearing in terror.

Once it was over, the water in the air evaporated into mist, and she fell backwards into the leaf-ridden ground. Several Moles rushed to her side, one of them digging into her pack for some bandages. Echo’s eyes fluttered as the white gave way to golden yellow, and once they had readjusted, she saw the faces of the survivors staring down at her with concerned looks. There were four Dragons and seven Moles in total, all alive thanks to her.

“Is she alright?” a deep, growling voice asked. This one didn’t come from any of the faces that now hovered over her. A new face joined the group, a smaller fifth Dragon, with scales as black as night and eyes as pale white and lidless as death itself. And yet, his expression, while stern, held as much concern as the others.

“She’s alright, captain,” one of the Moles reported. “A bit bruised and dazed, and she’s got a nasty bump on the head from that crash, but she’ll be right as rain in a few days.”

“Good, good...” the black Dragon murmured, looking down at Echo. “You’re either one of the craziest Dragons I’ve ever seen, kid, or one of the bravest. Either way, you saved our asses, and for that, you have my respect. It’s not often we see many Water Dragons these days, and the ones in Warfang will be happy to know that another survived Malefor’s rampage.”

“W-who are you?” Echo whispered.

“Captain Blackout,” the black Dragon replied. “This is my squad, or what remains of it. Now, what’s your name?”

Echo sat up slowly and rubbed her head. “My name is Echo...of Aquaria Towers...”

One of the other Dragons let out a small gasp. “Aquaria Towers...the Seahorses survived?!”

Echo nodded. “Y-yes, they did.”

“We should head back, sir,” another Dragon said over his shoulder as he stared out into the forest. “The Apes will be back soon with more of their Orc buddies, and I don’t think our new friend here is in good enough shape to help again.”

“Let me go,” Echo pleaded, looking up at Blackout. “I need to go home. I don’t...I’m not ready for this.”

Blackout looked her over, and then nodded once. “You can go. Before you do though, I want you to take this.” He reached under his chest armor and produced a silver disc, placing it in one of her claws. “It’s an invitation to join the fight. You’ve got skills, skills that the Guardians could use to help protect not just our way of life, but also our people. All you need is training. If you ever want to make the trip to Warfang, present that to the gate guards. They’ll let you in, at my behest.”

She looked down and examined the disc. The emblem was emblazoned on it was unfamiliar to her, and the runic words written on it she couldn’t read. Turning it over, however, revealed one word that she knew.

Ranger.

She looked back up at him, only to find that, without making a sound, all of the surviving members of the squad had vanished into the forest. An Orc horn sounded in the distance, and Echo recovered her wits, sprinting away from the battlefield and towards the beach.

The last rays of the sun vanished beyond the horizon, and Blackout’s shadowed gaze followed Echo until she reached the safety of the water, before he too vanished into the darkness.

---

(Warfang Temple gardens, present day)

“Well, as you could probably guess, my mom and dad, as well as all the other Seahorses who cared about me, were right peeved when I told them what happened,” Echo recalled.

Fluttershy winced at the liberal usage of foul language, but for Echo’s sake, she remained attentive to the story.

“Still,” Echo continued, “They understood why I did what I did. For several days the Seahorses kept me close, letting me recover from my injuries, while also debating what they should do. In the end, a decision was made.” She sighed, closing her eyes. “They brought me before King Flippy, and I explained my side of the story again. He then...he then asked me what my heart was telling me. I looked into those old, tired eyes, and I told him that my heart beat to the rhythm of my people, and that as long as I lived, I would use my newfound strength to protect them all from Malefor, and to ensure that Aquaria Towers never fell to the darkness.”

She looked up at Fluttershy. “Do you know what he told me next?”

Fluttershy shook her head, fully entranced by the story. “No.”

“He told me that just as they were my people, so too were the Dragons. I was a child of two worlds, and if I was to walk the path of protecting them both, I would have to go where I was needed most.” She glanced up at her painting. “I said my goodbyes, I packed what few provisions I thought I would need, and then left for Warfang a few days later. Before I left the city, I gave my mom and dad one final embrace, and they told me once more how proud they were to have me as a daughter. I remember being glad that we were underwater, because if we weren’t, the tears I was shedding would’ve drowned me.”

She sighed again, looking away from the painting in anger and hopping off the bench. “I should’ve stayed there.”

“Why?” Fluttershy asked as she watched Echo pace.

“Because then I would still be living in peace!” Echo hissed. “Blackout and Spotlight recruited me into the Rangers alongside Sprocket, Flashwing, and Blades, and for years the six of us fought to hold back the tide of evil that was sweeping across the world, and we were DAMN good at it too. But my peace was gone. I became lost in the blood and the loss of life, enemy or friend, it didn’t matter. I was no longer the little Echo my mom and dad were proud of. I had become a killer.”

Fluttershy shook her head. “You’re not a killer, Echo. You wanted to protect your home and your family, and you were doing that. The fact that you even knew that you were changing proves that you still had that good side in you.”

“Protecting my family...” Echo snarled, smacking the painting with a claw and sending it tumbling to the ground with a clatter. “Do you know what I was doing when Spyro and Cynder were killing that bastard Malefor? I was fighting for my life on the battlements of Warfang, stabbing an Orc with his own sword while strangling a Grublin with my tail. I wasn’t protecting anyone else but my squad and myself. MYSELF! My family was the last thing on my mind. Mom and dad were forgotten, just a memory. Aquaria Towers was just a phase, one that had passed.”

She sucked in a breath, and her voice hitched as she stared at Fluttershy, pointing to the walls of Warfang. “And...a-and while I sat there, in a pool of my enemy’s blood, the world around me vanished in a flash of light, replaced by...by...by THIS PLACE!!” She spat on the ground in front of Fluttershy, even as she began to tremble. “I can’t go back now! For years I dreamt of the day when the war would be over, and I’d be able to return to Aquaria Towers, changed, yet still their little Echo from so long ago. But I can’t now. They’re gone...gone forever, and I don’t even know if...”

Her knees gave out beneath her, and she fell to the ground, looking miserable and wretched. “I don’t even know if they’re still alive...at least with my birth parents I accepted their deaths, and moved past it. But this...this is unacceptable. The Seahorses raised me, cared for me, loved me as one of their own...and I repaid them by forgetting about them.”

She looked over herself, and snarled, standing up again and raising her head high. “Now all I have left is my painting. It’s all I can do to remember them. But no matter how hard I try, I keep forgetting details. Little things, like the placements of certain buildings, the subtle color differences in the coral reefs in our back yard, the sun’s rays reflecting off the surface of the water...it’ll never be the same. It’ll never be Aquaria Towers. It’ll never be home...” She glanced down at the painting and reached towards it, picking it up off the pavement and holding it in front of her. She gently caressed it with a claw, passing over one shorter tower in particular as her eyes began to shimmer. “They’ll never know if their little Echo kept her promise...”

Throughout her entire rant, Fluttershy never said a word, merely content to listen. But now she was sniffing, and tears stung at the corners of her eyes as she buried her face in her hooves. The words Echo spoke had not only broken her heart, they had also moved her in a way she had never been moved before. They reminded her of the fragility of life, and the love of family. Memories of her own family flashed through her mind. Her father and mother, with their warm smiles and low self-esteem, and her brother and his obnoxious, overbearing, utterly endearing behavior, and she wept even more.

She needed to see them again; to hold them close and to tell them she loved them. Especially her brother. She never told him nearly enough times.

How could she be the Element of Kindness and yet neglect her own family?

“I’m sorry...” she whispered in a choked voice. “I-I’m sorry, Zephyr...”

“Why are you crying?” Echo asked her, stepping forward and holding up Fluttershy’s chin with a claw. “What’s done is done, and you can’t change that.”

“No,” Fluttershy said, meeting her gaze. “B-but you can change what will happen next.”

Echo shrugged. “I suppose, but what use is there crying over the past? You can’t change the past, so all there’s left to do is grit your teeth and bear it, and take responsibility for your mistakes.”

“Is that advice for me, or for yourself?” Fluttershy wondered aloud with another sniff.

“What do you mean?”

“You are blessed, Echo,” Fluttershy whispered. “You didn’t just have one family, you had three, all of whom loved you.”

“Three?” Echo repeated. “I had only two, and both of them are gone.”

Fluttershy shook her head. “That’s not true. You had your parents, then your mom and dad, and now you have the Rangers. They told me themselves that they know you better than anyone else. They think of you as a sister. To them, you’re family.”

“The Rangers? Family?” Echo scoffed. “They’re my teammates, coworkers, acquaintances at best. We’re nothing like a family.”

“And what makes you say that?” Fluttershy asked quietly. “What makes you think they don’t love you, trust you, care about you, and want you to be okay?”

“Because nobody can truly love a ki--”

Fluttershy held up a hoof, and despite the tears rolling down her cheeks, she took on a stern face, and Echo paused. “Now you listen here,” the Pegasus said. “We’ve been over this already. You’re better than you think you are, Echo. You may have...killed some people, but you were doing it to protect others. You never meant for any of it to happen, it just happened, and something had to be done, so you did it.”

“And how would you know so much about war and death?” Echo demanded. “You, a shy little Pegasus who can barely even speak above a whisper?”

“Nature is constantly at war with itself,” Fluttershy replied calmly, lowering her head. “I don’t like to talk about it, but I see it every day. Death is just a part of nature, and all animals must eat. But some animals...they kill not because they’re hungry, but because their little babies are in danger.” She looked back up and locked gazes with Echo. “You’re the same way. You don’t do it because you’re hungry for death, you do it because you’re protecting your two families: the Seahorses, and the Rangers. All six of you...you’re just like me and my friends. We love each other, trust each other, and...I think...i-if it came down to it, we might...even d-die for each other. The Rangers see you as a sister, and that says it all in my eyes. What does it say to you?”

Echo blinked at her, and sat down on the ground. Regret flashed through her eyes, as the weight of her words pressed down upon her. The Rangers were always just a squad to her, but she was family to them. They never told her. Did they just assume she always knew? How could she, when she was only fighting for herself? “...Some sister, huh?”

Fluttershy nodded, her brother once more appearing in her mind. Neither of them said anything, until Echo lowered her head and closed her eyes, her jaw trembling. Fluttershy fought back another wave of tears as she asked, “Do you want a hug?”

Echo replied only with a nod.

Fluttershy threw her forelegs around her and buried her head in Echo’s shoulder, and Echo did the same. Both of them wept silently for themselves, for each other, and for their families. They both needed this. It was as if a weight had been lifted off both of their shoulders, and the future had opened up for them.

Echo pressed her head against Fluttershy’s chest and whispered through her sobs, “Thank you...for being here...”

Fluttershy smiled and wiped a tear from Echo’s cheek. “Anything for a friend, Echo.”

“Friend...” Echo hummed. “I’d like that, Fluttershy.”

Down the path leading from the clearing, the other Ponies and Rangers watched silently from behind some bushes and Fluttershy and Echo made peace with the past and held each other close. Pinkie was almost catatonic with joy, Starlight was crying from the beauty of the moment, and even Rainbow had a tear sliding down her face (although she would later insist that some wiseguy was cutting onions from a nearby window, or something).

Blades and Flashwing turned to each other and smiled, and Blades put a claw on her shoulder and squeezed it. At any other time, Flashwing would’ve broken his arm for that, but just this once, she let him do it.

“She’s not bad at this sort of thing, eh?” Blades remarked.

Starlight nodded, wiping away a tear. “That’s our Fluttershy.”

Pinkie finally had enough and burst at the seams, a fountain of tears pouring out of her eyes as she let out a joyful cry and hugged an unsuspecting Rainbow to her. Rainbow stiffened and her eyes went wide in surprise, and then narrowed in annoyance as her mane got drenched.

Meanwhile, in the clearing, Fluttershy’s ears twitched and she turned around, spying the not-so-hidden observers among the bushes. Smiling, she waved them over, and Echo looked up to see what she was staring at. When she did, her lips pursed, and she rolled her eyes skyward.

Blushing slightly, Flashwing and Blades crept forward, with Starlight and Rainbow dragging the emotional Pinkie behind them. Echo and Fluttershy let go of each other and dried their eyes before approaching the group. “Even after being lawfully ordered to leave by a senior Ranger, you still refused. I do believe that’s grounds for a court martial,” Echo said.

“Oh, that was an order?” Blades replied innocently. “Funny, and here I thought it was a request. You did say please, after all.”

Echo snorted out a laugh and punched him in the shoulder. “Kid, one of these days that mouth of yours will be the death of you.”

“I keep telling him that, he never listens,” Flashwing quipped.

Echo shook her head. “You two...come here. That is an order.”

Smiling, the three Dragons met in a large hug, and Blades patted Echo on the back with a wing. Not to be left out, Pinkie dove head-first into the hug, wrapping her forelegs around Echo and somehow lifting all three Dragons off the ground. Rainbow snickered and joined her, followed by Fluttershy and Starlight.

“Ahem.”

Everyone froze and looked up, seeing Spyro, Cynder, and Sparx hovering above them. Sparx was rubbing the bridge of his small nose and shaking his head, Cynder was smirking, and Spyro had a sly, knowing look on his face. Spyro waved down at them. “Are we interrupting anything?”

“Yes!” Pinkie’s muffled cry emerged from underneath the hug pile. “The biggest snuggly-wuggly cuddle party Warfang has ever seen!”

Sparx lifted his gaze to the heavens and mouthed, “Give me strength...”

“Room for two more?” Cynder joked.

Spyro blushed. “Later, Cyn. We need to get back to the northern gate as fast as possible.”

“Why, what’s going on?” Flashwing asked, dragging herself out of the pile, much to Pinkie’s displeasure.

“The Pony and Equestrian Dragon delegations are here,” Spyro announced, pointing to the north. “They’re almost to the northern gate, and the Guardians asked us to find you. The other Rangers have already been assembled.”

Pinkie gasped and shot out of the pile at blinding speeds, knocking away the other Ponies and Dragons like bowling pins and sending her flying into the air in front of Spyro, where she inexplicably hovered in front of him by spinning her tail. “Princess Celestia’s on her way?!” she shrieked.

Spyro, still blinking in confusion at the sight before him, merely shrugged. In truth, he didn’t even know what Celestia looked like, but he had to give her an answer, or else be stuck with wondering how she was even doing what she was doing. Pinkie gasped again and fell back down to the ground, grabbing Starlight and Fluttershy and dragging them away from the gardens. “To the north, girls! The future awaits!” she hollered, her voice fading as she and her unwilling hostages reentered the Temple. Rainbow facehooved and began following her.

Echo cocked an eyebrow. “Did...did Pinkie just kidnap them?” she asked at length.

“Yep,” Cynder replied, glancing over to Spyro, who was still dazed at the bizarre defiance of logic and physics he had just witnessed.

Rainbow froze at the steps leading into the Temple and scrunched up her face, a wave of déjà vu passing over her for a moment before she shrugged and continued chasing after Pinkie.

---

(Warfang, northern gate)

After corralling Pinkie and reclaiming her “hostages”, the Dragons and Ponies flew off to Warfang’s northern gate. Fluttershy opted to fly next to Echo this time, leaving Blades and Spyro to carry Pinkie and Starlight, respectively. As they approached the gate, they could see a large crowd of Moles, Cheetahs, and Dragons gathering on the walls and looking to the north with wonder and excitement in their eyes.

It didn’t take long for the Ponies to notice what had caught everyone’s attention: eight chariots being pulled through the sky by Pegasi teams, along with a small host of Equestrian Dragons following close behind. At the head of the convoy was Celestia’s royal chariot, easily recognizable by the gold and crimson trim along its large white wings, and the head of a Phoenix at the front.

From up ahead, Cynder waved a claw to those behind her and pointed downward. They followed her gaze to see the Guardians and the remaining three Rangers waiting for them in front of the gate, all of them looking up at their Pony visitors with expectant faces (although Spotlight seemed more overjoyed to see Pinkie again).

Spyro and Blades floated down slowly and dropped their passengers off a few feet away from the Guardians as the others began landing one by one. Once they had all arrived, Terrador nodded to them. “Good, you’re all here. You haven’t missed anything yet, they’re still on a direct course for the gate.”

“Calculation: they will reach us in approximately five minutes,” Sprocket droned as he sat next to Volteer. “Side-note: they interrupted an important experiment. Current status: annoyed.”

“Oh, give it a rest, dear boy,” Volteer said, making Cyril do a double-take. “Even a scientifically-minded individual such as I has to emerge from his laboratory every so often to smell the roses he experiments on daily. You could learn a thing or two from the flowers, you know. And besides, this is a world-changing event for all of us, I thought for sure you of all Dragons would see that.”

“Rebuttal: I do,” Sprocket replied with a pout. “Wanted to finish experiment first. Inefficient this way. Time wasted.”

“I don’t think any time spent on making new friends is time wasted,” Spotlight pitched in, earning a smile and a nod from Blackout on her left.

“You said it, sister!” Pinkie exclaimed, bumping her rump against Spotlight’s with a grin.

“So, how do you think this will play out, big guy?” Sparx asked, looking over the Guardians at the oncoming delegates.

“In truth, I do not know,” Terrador admitted. “Which is partly the reason why I asked you all here.” He gazed down at Starlight with hopeful eyes. “I could use any advice you can give on this manner. What is Princess Celestia like, as well as this ‘Dragon Lord Ember’?”

Starlight put a hoof to her mouth and giggled. “Oh, you won’t have any trouble with Celestia. She’s like a mother to all Ponies --- gentle, wise, compassionate, and beloved. She’ll know right away that you’ve treated us well, and she’ll take that as a very good sign in your favor. She’ll be friendly and open about her intentions, although she may keep a few things secret, as is the way with all leaders.”

Terrador nodded. “Understandable.”

“Now Dragon Lord Ember, on the other hoof...” Starlight hummed. “Honestly, I can’t say how that meeting will go. I’ve not really had many interactions with her, although I’ve heard from Spike, a Dragon friend of mine, that she’s ‘pretty cool’. She’s snarky, gruff, and quick to anger, but she’s far more reasonable than any other Dragon under her command, and she’ll probably be even more friendly towards you since you’re all Dragons.”

“Well, that’s certainly a relief,” Cyril remarked. “At last, some civil conversation among leaders.”

“Visitors on approach!” someone yelled from the walls.

Sure enough, the chariots in the air began to slow down and spiral around, landing a short distance from the gate. The Equestrian Dragons did the same, forming a perimeter around the chariots and their Dragon Lord as Celestia, Blueblood, and Captain Stargazer disembarked from their respective rides. The Pegasi teams unhitched themselves from their chariots and took up their spears, gathering in formation around their ruler.

Terrador rolled his shoulders. “Go time,” he murmured as he took the first step forward towards the delegates. The Guardians, Rangers, and Ponies followed him.

The Equestrian Dragons and Solar Guards opened up a gap in their lines, allowing Ember, Celestia, and her advisors to make their way towards the approaching Guardians. All of Warfang fell silent as they bore witness to what would surely be a historic event, while the Equestria Dragons gazed at their Warfang brethren with both curiosity and thinly-veiled jealousy at the sight of their city.

Celestia’s group and the Guardians halted about five meters in front of each other, and she and Terrador locked gazes as they sized each other up. Terrador raised an eyebrow, and so did Celestia. Not to be outdone, Ember stepped forward and planted the Bloodstone Scepter in the ground with an imperious look on her face.

Celestia was taller than Terrador had expected, but not by much. She seemed to radiate with heavenly light, and her rainbow-hued mane flowed with an unseen, ethereal breeze. She was smiling, but underneath that smile Terrador could see eyes of ancient strength and a mind of calculating wisdom. She was a leader of true strength, and yet Starlight’s analysis seemed correct: she carried with her an aura of motherly grace that commanded respect, and judging by the awestruck reverence and loyalty her Ponies showed her, it was well-deserved.

Satisfied, Terrador spoke first. “On behalf of the city of Warfang, I, Terrador, son of Braze, Acting Grandmaster of the Temple and leader of the Guardians, do welcome you and your companions to our city.”

Celestia nodded and smile sagely. “I, Princess Celestia, daughter of Faust, accept your welcome, Acting Grandmaster Terrador.”

“And so do I, Dragon Lord Ember, daughter of Dragon Lord Torch and servant of the Eastern Lair,” Ember declared.

Terrador nodded and motioned to the other Guardians. “My colleagues and fellow Guardians: Cyril, Guardian of Ice, and Volteer, Guardian of Electricity.” He then pointed to Spyro, Cynder, and the Rangers. “These are the Heroes of Warfang, Spyro and Cynder. Behind them are the Rangers, some of our finest Dragons: Captain Blackout, Lieutenant Spotlight, Specialists Echo and Flashwing, Navigator Sprocket, and Scout Blades.”

Celestia nodded to each one in turn, her smile growing wider with every moment. “Behind me are Prince Blueblood, Duke of Canerlot, and Captain Stargazer, the Captain of the Lunar Guard. My sister, Princess Luna, regrets being unable to participate in these negotiations, so she has sent her Captain to act on her behalf.”

Blueblood put a hoof to his chest and bowed his head low in respect, and Stargazer saluted. Blackout and his team returned the gestures in kind, while Spyro and Cynder merely bowed their heads, not knowing exactly what to do.

Ember coughed. “I brought no advisors, but my Dragons are strong and true. They are eager to meet you all, and very curious.”

Celestia turned her gaze back to Terrador. “Well now, now that the introductions, welcomes, and greetings are out of the way, I believe we can drop this stuffy formality charade. It’s much better to greet one’s neighbors with an air of friendship, is it not?”

Cyril chuckled. “Quite right, Princess.”

“Please, none of that, we’re on equal standing here. Just call me Celestia.”

“Princess!” Starlight called out, as she, Pinkie, Fluttershy, and Rainbow emerged from behind the Rangers. “We’re so glad you made it!”

Celestia chuckled and drew all four Ponies into an embrace with her large wings. “Starlight Glimmer, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy, words cannot begin to describe how proud I am of the four of you. You four became the first Ponies to reach out to an ailing nation, and because of your efforts, we now greet one another as friends. Twilight would be proud of all of you.”

“Thank you, thank you, I deserve every awesome word,” Rainbow boasted.

Starlight blushed and patted the ground as Celestia let go of her. “I-it was nothing, Your Highness. Just doing what Twilight taught me...us. Taught us.”

“Nah, just you,” Rainbow teased.

“Rainbow Dash,” Fluttershy scolded. “Are you saying you didn’t learn anything about Loyalty or friendship for all these years?”

“Nah, I’ve learned stuff about friendship,” Rainbow conceded. “But I was already the Element of Loyalty long before today. The universe knew I was awesome.”

“Element of Arrogance, I’d wager,” Cyril muttered.

“As if you’re any better, ha!” Volteer jeered.

“Shush you.”

“Celestia, I must compliment you on choosing these four to come to us,” Terrador said, ignoring his two bickering companions as if they were but flies in the wind. “They’ve been a tremendous help to Warfang, not just in restoring morale and hope, but also in acclimating us to this world. It’s as if their mere presence can’t help but make even the grouchiest of us smile. Or, in the case of one particular Cheetah, collapse from insulin shock.” He winked at Fluttershy, who blushed and hid behind her mane.

“Now this is a story I need to hear,” Stargazer said with a grin.

Celestia laughed. “Yes, my little Ponies tend to have that effect, and for the life of me I can’t figure out how they do it.”

Ember rolled her eyes. “You Ponies and your puppy-dog eyes and cutesy smiles...it’s no wonder Spike likes all of ya so much.”

“If I recall correctly, you weren’t opposed to the idea of an alliance yourself, Dragon Lord,” Blueblood reminded her with a smirk.

“Only because you said please,” Ember retorted, matching his smirk.

“A Dragoness after my own heart,” Cyril chuckled. “You and I will get along just fine, young lady.”

“Watch it, old-timer,” Ember snarked, holding up the Bloodstone Scepter. “I ain’t no lady.”

“Another swing and a miss with the pomposity regulator, eh ‘old chap’?” Volteer cackled, only for Cyril to smack him upside the head with his tail.

Celestia craned her neck back to her troops. “Relax, everypony, and feel free to greet our new friends. I have a feeling that you’ll all learn many new things today.”

Ember shrugged and nodded to her Dragons. “Yeah, same to all you lazy dolts. Go play, or fetch some gems, or something. I’ve got this.”

Terrador motioned with a wing towards the gatehouse. “Come right this way, friends. The city is eager to meet you all, and there is much to talk about.” He glanced at Ember. “Especially you and your Dragons.”

Celestia bowed her head. “Gladly, Terrador. But first...” She extended a hoof, a hopeful expression adorning her face.

Terrador glanced down at her hoof briefly before taking it with a claw and shaking it slowly.

“Welcome to Equus, Terrador, son of Braze. May this new friendship make our nations stronger, and may Harmony guide us on the paths on which we now tread.”

---

Author's Note:

Lots of world-building, lore, backstory, and heartwarming fluff in this chapter, and a bit more plot progression. This was ultimately Fluttershy’s shining moment, as well as a chapter I had planned for a while, and I really hope I gave her the perfect scene she deserved. An angel like her deserves nothing less than the best.

This is the start of a beautiful new friendship, one that will be explored further in later chapters and stories.

The next chapter is going to be HEAVY on Changeling lore and plot progression for Thorax’s side, as well as some more cultural exchanges between Changelings and Ponies. It might also take a while to write, since it’s quite a bit to unpack, so please be patient.

Comments

[schorpioen007]

Very nice story ^^

[GrimmWolfDragon]

Very good great chapter, can't wait for the next one.

[DracoMan671]

I'M SO HAPPY

[Bencsik Alex]

OMG! It's a very good story so far! I wonder what will happen next.

[Comma Typer]

...and I'm caught up for now!

I won't say much here since I'd be repeating myself, but it's still great that you've brought out a lot of crossover lore and backstory in this place without me having to look up a Spyro wiki to get my bearings. I also like how calm this chapter is, though we know that, with Chrysalis's plans and the secret Hussars moving in, this chapter's otherwise out-of-place serenity is still grounded with a sense of purpose—more bonding and friendship to build up before it gets tested later on.

That's it for me. Looking forward to the rest of the story!