The Drake Six

by JNKing

Episode 53: Scales and Carapaces

“Banner’s way too much, brother,” Star was claiming to a nervous Spike. “At least the flowers are in place.”

“And by that, you mean ‘completely out of view’, right?” Spike noted.

“Oh yeah,” Star said. “Showed up with some roses once; didn’t go well.” She paused. “Mainly because the things pricked my thumb and I set them on fire in a fit of rage.”

Spike blinked. “I guess dragons aren’t the only ones who don’t like flowers.”

Star shrugged, before noticing a crystal lined pit he set out. “And, uh… what’s this?”

Spike jumped onto it with a grin. “I call it the Ceremonial Dragon Fire Flame of Friendship.” He grimaced. “Which should be flaming right now.”

He spat a glob of flame into the pit, and it lit up with a WOOM, flinging both Spike and Star onto their backs.

Star shook off the soot covering her freckles. “Might be too much, buddy.”

She helped her friend up as Twilight walked over to them.

“Spike, everything looks great,” she said. “You’re getting worked up for no reason.”

“I have lots of reasons,” Spike replied, before pulling out a list. “In fact, I wrote them down.”

Star chuckled. “He really is your son, Twilight. Or… little brother or…” She face-hoofed. “I ruined my joke.”

Twilight merely shrugged with a nervous grin of her own, as Spike consulted his list.

“Reason One,” he recited. “I invited Dragon Lord Ember to Ponyville today. Reason Two; the Dragon Lord is a Dragon. Reason Three; The Dragon Lord is a Dragon who is dating one of my best friends, so I don’t want to put their relationship on the rocks.”

“Well, considering they have rocks in place of beds…” Star stopped herself at the look on Twilight’s face. “He’s too young for that, isn’t he?”

“Oh yes!” Twilight snapped.

“Reason Four!” Spike snapped with equal fervor, “My friends and family can’t seem to accept that I’m older than a toddler and thus able to handle relationship talk.”

“You say that now, buddy,” Star replied. “But if I told you exactly what Ember can do with that tail…”

Twilight shut her snout. “You will not,” she said.

Star nodded in understanding.

Rolling his eyes, Spike went back to his list. “Reason Five; the Dragon Lord is coming her to learn more about friendship.”

“Which… is admittedly true,” Twilight said, pulling out her own list. “According to Ember’s letters, the dragons are trying to be friends, but competing is in their nature, and it’s leading to fights.”

Star chuckled. “Maybe we should bring up how the griffons are making headway. That might interest them in a friendship competition.”

Twilight winced. “But friendship shouldn’t be a competition. It should be natural. After all, if I had gone into Ponyville thinking I ‘had’ to make friends, things might’ve turned out very different.”

“Which brings me to Reason Six,” Spike concluded. “Ember wants my advice, and with all the above mentioned reasons, along with my status as one of the Equestrian ambassadors to dragons, I can’t let her down.”

Star pat his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Spike,” she assured him. “Ember’s a good gal. She’s gotta act tough, of course, but she’s got a soft side.”

Spike raised an eyebrow. “Should I expect a joke about how you found this ‘soft side.’”

Star shoved him playfully. “Dude, we just discussed that. I’m not gonna traumatize you, especially not when you’re already more worried about this than you need to be.”

Twilight came up and hugged Spike. “You got this, Spike. Everything looks perfect.”

Spike sighed, comforted by their words… before a voice noted, “Aw, group hugs. Got room for one more?”

The trio turned, and Star gasped in delight. “Thorax!”

Spike whirled around in shock. “T-Thorax? You’re here?”

“Of course I am, silly,” Thorax said, laughing as Star lifted him off the ground with a brief bear hug. “You invited me. And I’m not one to back out of an invitation.” He glanced at Star. “Even if someone’s a little too enthusiastic with their hugs.”

Star paused and quickly dropped him. “Sorry,” she said with a nervous grin.

“No apologies needed,” Thorax assured her, before smiling at Twilight. “Hey, Twilight.”

“Hey,” Twilight greeted nervously.

“Oh, did you do all this for me?” Thorax asked, walking over to the Ceremonial Dragon Fire Flame. “What’s this flame thing? It’s so pretty.”

As he observed it, Twilight went to Spike’s side. “You invited thorax over to Ponyville on the same day as Ember?” She couldn’t hide the disbelief in her voice.

Spike looked over his notes, and sure enough, he had two separate notes noting that he needed to talk to both Ember and Thorax on the same day. “I completely forgot!” he whispered in horror.

“Well, don’t panic,” Star replied. “We can meet with them both. You never know, they could just get along.”

“Are you sure?” Spike asked. “I mean, Ember is so tough and self-assured and intimidating. And Thorax is…”

At that moment, Thorax came over. “Spike, I’m so glad you invited me over. You are one of my closest, nicest, most caring, most understanding friends ever.” He hugged him, before gasping. “Oh, is that ice in the shape of a dragon?” He zipped away.

Despite his display of personality, Star was still grinning. “Well, I think it can still work. Opposites are capable of attracting, after all. This could easily be the start of a beautiful friendship.”

“Or it could be the start of a fight that leads to a war that could ruin Equestria as we know it!” Spike stammered.

Star gave him a deadpan expression before glancing at Twilight. “He still on about that adventure through time?”

“He’s had nightmares about it for a couple of weeks,” Twilight admitted with a sad nod.

“Oh, boy.” Star sighed and pulled Spike into a hug as well. “Spike, listen to me. Ember’s tough, but she’s not overly violent.” She glanced at Twilight. “From what I’ve heard, the yaks are more impulsive.”

Twilight shuddered. “You have no idea.”

Spike tilted his head. “Did something happen?”

“Please don’t ask.”

Spike looked down. “I just… I want this to work, you know?” He looked up at Star. “Ever since you and Ember got together, you’ve been happier than ever before. I don’t want to ruin that.”

Star winked at him. “And you won’t. Remember what Diamondback said; treasure is more than just silver and gold. And while the dragons outside their kingdom might be competitive, when you get in their good graces, you’re there for life.” She looked up, and her eyes brightened. “As I shall now demonstrate.”

Spike followed her gaze, and gulped as he saw Ember herself already flying over. Spike almost went to summon a fanfare from the ponies, but Star waved him off, already shifting into her Night Fire form.

Upon seeing Star’s dragon form, Ember smirked and pulled off a back-flip before landing in a three-point hero’s landing.

“Ten points,” Night declared, holding up a sign that said ‘ten-out-of-ten,’ before tossing it aside. “Anything exciting happen since I left?”

“Hard to,” Ember replied with a smirk. “You almost never leave.”

“Do I have a reason to?” Night replied with a grin.

The two laughed and punched each other playfully.

“Depends on how much you like color, I guess,” Ember noted, looking around in intrigue. “In the Dragon Lands, you know how everything’s just rocks or the color of ashes.”

“Well, let me spring for those fireproof curtains and maybe we can bring some color back in,” Night said, leading her over to Spike and Twilight. “But for now… guess who was kind enough to invite us.”

“Hey Ember,” Spike said, offering a hug.

Ember paused, before chuckling. “Oh, right, the hug thing doesn’t just extend to…” she stopped herself and gave him a quick hug. “Yeah.” She then glanced at the alicorn princess. “Hey Starlight.”

“Actually, I’m ‘Twilight,’” Twilight confirmed.

“Oh, right,” Ember face-palmed. “I’m still getting used to these pony names. Lots of ‘lights’ and shiny things…”

“She’s not kidding,” Star admitted. “My mom visited us in dreams. Ember messed up my pony form and my mom.”

Ember shoved her. “You both had dark coats and shiny manes!” She then noticed Thorax, who had alerted on Night getting shoved with the same look that he had when facing Chrysalis. “Speaking of shiny things…”

Spike’s eyes widened, and he desperately followed behind Ember, as he already saw fire burning around Thorax’s hooves, ready to change him into something battle-ready. Luckily, Thorax looked to Spike questioningly, and as Spike indicated Ember was okay, the flames died down. Star smiling in an assuring fashion at Thorax probably helped as well.

“Um… hello,” he said with a bow, before pausing and glancing between Ember and Night. “Wow, the bond you two share… it’s…”

“None of your business,” Ember said sternly, “And you are?”

Thorax blinked, a little startled at her terseness, but shook it off. “Uh… Thorax. King of the Changelings.”

Ember crossed her arms, looking him up and down. “Seriously?”

“Did you prefer Chrysalis?” Night asked, standing by Thorax’s side. “As in, the crazy changeling queen who tried to turn me and my friends into her love slaves.”

Ember’s eyes flashed angrily at that memory. “She’s lucky I didn’t burn down the entire changeling hive.” She paused. “Y’know, because…”

“I’m one of your treasures,” Night replied with a grin. “No shame in admitting that.”

“Well, yeah, and y’know,” Ember added, “The rest of your friends are my friends as well. Or… treasures, or… whatever.”

“I’m so proud of her,” Night noted to Thorax with a grin. “Either way, Thorax got to Chrysalis before you. Really laid the smackdown on her.”

Spike perked up at the intrigued look Ember got. “Really?”

“Yeah,” Night said. “You should’ve seen it. She starts trying to manipulate him, but he gives this grand speech about ‘ponies are my treasures, and I won’t let you hurt them!’ And then he charged up this big, epic bolt of energy…”

Thorax chuckled and ducked his head. “You’re… making it sound a lot more heroic than it was.”

“Because it WAS heroic,” Night gushed. “Dude, you toppled an evil queen and saved a nation.”

“Yeah, you should be proud of that,” Ember noted. “Not much is more impressive than a smaller dragon managing to take down a bigger dragon.”

Thorax hummed. “I’m not sure the rest of my hive sees it that way. Chrysalis was still our mother. And there’s a few of my siblings who still wish she was back.”

Ember grimaced. “And… what have you done about it?”

Spike felt his heart speed up again. Here we go… he started to worry, but Night waved him off with another grin.

How was she able to stay so confident? Spike wondered.

“I’ve tried asking them to please follow my directions,” Thorax offered. “I offered prizes, I…”

“Stop talking,” Ember said sternly.

Thorax shut up instantly. Spike waited for the insults to start, but Ember then grinned.

“That’s how you do it.”

“Whoa, really?” Thorax asked in awe. “You just… said it. And it still gave me chills.”

“Well, if you were willing to blast your own mother off your throne to save your siblings, I know you’ve got it in you,” Ember replied. “And if the others see you as the leader, there’s a reason for that too. When you make a decision, you let it be known that the decision is final.”

“And if that doesn’t work,” Night added. “Turn into a dragon.” She indicated herself. “Always works.”

Thorax tested her theory, turning into a massive dragon that dwarfed Ember and Night by comparison.

Night laughed. “See? Just like that!”

Thorax chuckled, before turning back. “Alright. Yeah, that’s good advice. I like that.”

“I knew it would,” Ember replied with a grin.

Night nudged her. “Hey. I told you about that.”

Ember groaned and rolled her eyes, causing Thorax to pause.

“Is something… going on with you two?”

“No,” Night replied. “Just being competitive.”

“It’s how dragons work,” Ember explained. “When we got a problem with each other, we hash it out with feats of strength and fire duels.”

Thorax raised an eyebrow. “How does that help?”

“It establishes dominance,” Ember replied, pulling Night into a headlock.

“And it…” Night noticed Spike still watching. “Well, I think some of us are too young to explain why being dominated can be fun for some of us.”

Thorax hummed. “And what about when it’s not fun?”

Night considered that. “Well, I guess the humiliation and shame can build up after a while.”

“But you’re not like other dragons,” Ember noted, taking Night out of her head lock and making her look at her. “They’d probably run away and bury themselves under a rock!”

“Why do you think that is?” Thorax asked.

“Because they’d be…” Ember paused and considered it. “Sad? Kinda low? Definitely not happy.”

“That’s because that kind of competition can divide you. And it doesn’t get to the heart of the issue. Talking about your feelings does.”

Ember groaned. “I think I’m allergic to feelings.”

“Not all of them,” Wing noted with a grin, before grabbing and tickling her under the armpits.

“NIGHT!” Ember shrieked, blasting Night in the face. Night merely shook off the soot with a cackle.

Thorax stepped back from the flames, but didn’t flee. “Well, you guys don’t need to be sappy or huggy-feely about it. But you should still be willing to let your friends… and especially loved ones… know how you feel.”

Ember considered it. “That’s… not bad advice.”

“And what do we say when someone helps?” Night asked in a singsong voice.

Ember rolled her eyes, but managed to say it. “Thanks, Thorax.”

Thorax beamed happily, while Spike found himself relaxing.

“They’re… actually getting along,” Spike mumbled in delight. “Wow.”

Twilight came up alongside him. “Remember, Spike,” she advised. “One of the most important parts of friendship is being able to trust your friends.”

Jackknife poked his head around a corner. “Didn’t we go through this already with me and Dash?”

Spike winced. “Yeah. I should’ve remembered that.”

Twilight rubbed his shoulder. “Maybe you need something to help build up your confidence. So you can have more faith in your friends.” She glanced towards Astral’s forge. “And I may just have an idea for that.”

Comments

[Comickook]

Again, this was a really well-done chapter with great dialogue, characterizations, general wrap-up and future chapter set-up. Most definitely a MUCH better version of the "Triple Threat" episode. Glad Spike had his dragon friends to keep him calmer and see reason much sooner.

And, yes, Spike and Night/Star both working with Starlight on sorting things out between Celestia and Luna would definitely be a good idea (Spike reasoning with Celestia, Night/Star reasoning with Luna and BOTH of them stopping Starlight from resorting to magic).

Anyway, I am definitely going to be looking forward to more of this.

[Booster Spice]

Spike should ask Rarity and Maud to get together on Maud can search for and demonstrate the Many different coloured minerals and rocks possible, Iron rocks have many, sulphur can be cooked to colours as well, so between the Yellows, Oranges, REds, Blacks, and others Dragon lands could have really cartoon hellscapes if required?

[nightshroud96]

This is certainly better than the trainwreck Triple Threat was in the show.
That episode having Spike's last proper interaction with Thorax be on a sour note(and technically with Ember too) irked me.

[JNKing]

11808931
Really glad you enjoyed this. Really glad this improved on the original.

Good idea with Spike and Star helping with Starlight. Considering Luna is Star's mother, she should be involved in that.

Thank you as always for sharing. I'm so glad to have you as a reader. 👍

[JNKing]

11809068
Agreed.

Plus, there was no way Star/Night was going to let Spike spend an entire episode dancing around the problem. Star's the type of dragon who will jump right into the deep end without thinking. And while that can lead to her getting herself into sticky situations, in this case, I imagine it allows her to tackle the source of the problem faster.

Glad you enjoyed.