The Murderer

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Under the moonlight, Gale crept in the shadows of the Everfree Forest. He ran up into a tall canopy of a tree. He watched as the Crystal Empire guards pursuing him ran on by, murder is a serious crime and the guards will not give up easily. However, after sometime the guards gave up on the search as the forest was tabooed among ponykind.

The forest is the only shelter a renegade dragon could have. A damp cave would do for the night, as long it is uninhabited. No matter how many times he slept in the Everfree, he could never let his guard down while in the mysterious forest. After finding a flint and some dry leaves, Gale made a little fire for warmth. Gale never could breathe fire like normal dragons do. He then awaits slumber, but it is never easy, nothing is ever easy for Gale. Under the moonlight he recalls his home, burned to the ground by the lightning storm that he caused.

He was merely a little baby dragon and wasn't able to contain the winds he summoned. Winds so strong not even the weather ponies could hold back. News of the incident spread throughout all of Equestria and Gale was branded a monster. Gale woke up startled by the howls of the timber wolves. Gale quickly left his shelter and ran for the exit of the forest. The howls of the wolves filled the forest; the timber wolves had caught up with Gale and soon had cornered him from all sides. The wolves circled him, waiting for an opening to strike Gale down. One of the wolves grew impatient and pounced towards Gale. The dragon had managed to dodge the attack but the wolf was still able to leave a gash across his chest.

In desperation, Gale took a deep breath and unleashed a roar as loud as thunder. The echoing roar sent the pack running away frightened. However, the roar had drained every drop of energy in Gale and rendered him unconscious. By the time Gale came through it was already morning. The morning sun burned his face and blinded his eyes. It is as if Celestia herself is pouring over her hatred upon him. Thus began another day for this lonely dragon. Gale moved out in search of the nearest town to find a contractor for another job. Every now and again, Gale will do numerous jobs for contractors to get a sum of Bits. Gemstones aren’t very cheap to buy and even exiles have to eat sometime. On the other hand, the wound the timber wolf left him does not look good. His scales are torn and his skin sticky with blood. The pulsating painful sensation adds up to his torment. After a short march along a dirt road, Gale could not move another step and blacked out. Rustling of the leaves, rushing sounds of the river stream, it was all very peaceful and intoxicating.

Then there was a sharp horrible stench. It was so sudden that gale woke up in a jolt.

“Ah! You have awoken, my strange little dragon”

Gale tried to focus on the voice but his head pounded against his skull and the stench was not helping either. He raised his eyes towards the voice and saw a strange pony, she had her mane in a mohawk and her body was striped black and white.

“You may call me Zecora, my dear friend. Might I now know the story at your end?” urged Zecora.

There was no reply from Gale.

“There is no need to be scared, I am not a creature to be feared” said Zecora.

“They call me Gale” whispered the dragon.

“Ah, Gale, the name of powerful winds, an unusual name for one of your kin” said Zecora.

“I am not a normal dragon; I don’t even think I even am. The name was given to me by-” Gale’s voice trailed off. He needed to be careful not to reveal himself, especially when it is in the situation he is in at the time.

The creature pony looked at him deeply for a couple of moments. And then she nodded as she had agreed on something.

“You, dragon, have a dark past you would rather not share, that is understandable in the state you fare” said Zecora in conclusion.

“But still your wound has not fully healed, the cut and gash had I only sealed, ailments and ointments did I add, I could have done more but I apologize, young dragon lad” explained Zecora”

“It is alright, this is already too much for me to ask of you. But if it is alright I would like to ask for directions to the town near here, I’m meeting somepony” said Gale.

“The town you seek is Ponyville, follow the dirt road and you’ll find it over the hill” said Zecora.

Ponyville, it was the town he was told to be. The mysterious notes that he had been receiving, all led to Ponyville.

Gale thanked Zecora for her help and left her cottage. By nightfall he saw a glimpse of the glowing streetlamps of the sleeping town.

Perfect, thought Gale, it is easier to move around the town at night, it is less likely he would raise any suspicions. Besides he loved solitude.

“Halt! Who goes there?” a sudden voice came from behind him.

“Nopony should be out this late at night it can be dangerous here so close to the Everfree” He continued.

He was a guard, no doubt about it. He must have been patrolling around the area. Oh how careless Gale thought himself. He never though that guards would patrol this far out from the town, this town must have been in many other predicaments before. But there is not time to think of an escape plan. There was only one way Gale could think of.

“Who are you? I have never seen you in Ponyville before” the guard presses on.

Slowly Gale bared his claws.

“You better come with me, I’ll bring you to Ponyville-“

“No, I cannot risk that” said Gale, followed by a swift strike from his claw.

The dragon’s claw slashed through the unfortunate guard’s neck. A smooth clean cut, the colt’s skin was as soft as butter and his warm blood trickled down Gale’s arm.

Another murder, but what else is new, thought Gale.

Twilight

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The discovery of the murder had been faster than how Gale had anticipated. A couple of hours after dawn, Ponyville was thrown into a state of utter panic. During the night before, Gale had taken extra precautions after murdering the guard. The dragon had thought that he had safely secured the body so that nopony would ever find it. Unfortunately a pony, who was bucking an apple tree near where the guard was buried, found the guards carcass. Gale never thought about the ponies that could be working at the apple orchard, he had been too careless. Now, everypony in Ponyville knows there is a killer prowling around, and they would be right! The sight of the chaotic spectacle spreading over Ponyville brings pangs of guilt to Gale’s heart. The dragon then asked himself why had he done that, why must he result in murder? Was there no other option at the time? They would soon find him, accuse him, blame him, point at him, reject him, call him a murder, call him a monster.

The blazing rays of the sun shun down upon his face. The flare was hot on his skin. His sea green scales caught the beams and projected rays of sea green light. Gale was a monster; he came to this conclusion a long time ago when he razed his hometown and killed everypony living in it. But Gale did not choose to be a monster. The destruction he had caused were merely accidents, Gale was sure of this. There was always an inner fire within Gale that he could not control, whenever he was in a predicament, that fire bursts out making Gale lose all sense of reason.

“Attention ponies of Ponyville, please calm down!”

Suddenly, Gale’s train of thought was interrupted by a purple unicorn; she was accompanied by a little dragon. Both of them were trying desperately to bring order to the panicking ponies.

“Please, everypony settle down! We must stay organised if we are going to solve this problem, if we just cool our heads we could think this through!” said the purple pony to the crowd of frightened ponies

“Twilight, they’re not listening!” said the dragon as he was trampled by ponies.

Twilight! That is name of the pony Gale was looking for. Through a number of resourceful informants, the pony named Twilight has a great connection with the ruler of Equestria, Princess Celestia. The answers to the mysteries of Gale’s past are being hidden from him by the Princess. But because of what he had done, Gale was chased down to the Everfree Forest to be left in exile. However, if he could get the pony named Twilight, it might help him get some answers.

Gale left the treetop he was hiding at the outskirts of the town. Carefully, Gale moved with extreme caution, dashing from building to building, blending himself to the silhouettes away from the gaze of the sun. The chaotic state of Ponyville had actually made it easier to sneak around; nopony would be able to pay attention to him in the stampede they made.
Closer and ever closer, Gale moved left to right, ran on roof tops and through flower patches. His heart raced as he got closer to his goal. He would finally be able to move one step closer to the truth of his origins, about his abnormality as a dragon and many other questions.

Then all of a sudden, Twilights horn started to glow, emitting a strange magical presence. The magical aura passed through Gale and everypony else. In an instant everypony stopped their madness and listened to the slight hum of Twilights magical aura. The effect though was different with Gale. The aura had somehow caused his scales to pulsate with the same glow of Twilight’s horn. This reaction was unpleasant to Gale and it rapidly worsens as the magical presence continues to overwhelm him, his head started to throb with pain and his vision blurring out. Gale felt like he was suffocating, like his chest was being crushed inside him. The pain! The pain was too much for him to bear! It was like torturing surges of agony was going through every inch of his body. What kind of sorcery is this!? The magic was so horrifying, so very agonizing. And yet it was so very familiar, the pain, the sensation, it was something Gale had felt before. The feeling of Twilights magical glow rubbing off Gale’s scales had unearthed something at the far end of his memories, but he could not tell what.

“Hey! It worked, the ponies calmed down” spoke the dragon by Twilight’s side,

“The harmonizing spell, it would calm down anyponies disturbed heart, it was also the same spell I used to hatch you Spike, only i have gotten a lot better at casting since back then” Replied Twilight.

What!? A spell used to hatch dragon eggs? Why would the unicorns need to hatch dragon eggs? What did they need the dragons for? All these questions spun around in Gale’s mind as he recovered from the magical surges. He felt the urge to just rush out and grab twilight, at that moment he was even more curious than ever.

But it was impossible now that the ponies stopped moving, it was eerily quiet. The sudden peace caused by the magic had made it harder for Gale to move around without revealing himself.

“Alright then, now that we have calmed down we can finally get a hold on the situation, Spike take note on the situation, we will get to the bottom of this” said twilight to the crowd.

Then at that moment the clouds were split apart by a Pegasus with a rainbow coloured mane.

“Hey, Twilight! I heard about the incident!” said the Pegasus as she flew around with great grace and speed. The flight of the Pegasus was such a sight to behold; Gale had never seen such a spectacle before. The Pegasus then flew next to Twilight to confront her.

“Was somepony really murdered?! When!? Where!? Who’s the killer!? Show em to me so i could give em a piece of my mind! Nopony causes trouble in Ponyville and gets away with it!” said the Pegasus.

“Rainbow Dash, we had just calmed the townsponies, don’t get them to panic again, and don’t worry we will solve this crime, but we must hurry, who knows if the killer is gonna strike again, tell the other girls to meet me in the library for a briefing” said Twilight.

“On it, obviously this killer has never heard of your friendly neighbourhood Rainbow Dash” said Rainbow Dash as she flies away.

“Don’t worry everypony, we will make Ponyville a safer place again” said Twilight followed by a thunder of happy cheers from the ponies.

The situation has worsen for Gale, not only he has to deal with the guards of Canterlot tracking him, Gale now has to deal with these ponies, how was he going to be able get Twilight at this stage? And then the crowd of ponies dispersed from the town square, giving Gale a chance to move around, the magic from Twilight had weakened him so his movements were sluggish, his breathing slowed down and just as he reached atop of a small hill, he lay down and slowly his mind began to fade, listening to the sounds of animals around him, it was peaceful, so very intoxicating, maybe the magic had affected him too. Little bunnies running around, birds chirping, the sound of flowing water, there was even a small cottage built there. It was very peaceful. Then everything was dark.

Kindness and The Hydra

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Dark, it was very dark. Gale felt his body though unable to move as if he was paralysed. His scales scrape against the wooden flooring his body laid on. Somepony was dragging him. This worried Gale. Had they caught him? Have they alerted Canterlot? He must escape at once. But where was he? All around him there were sounds of animals, the tweeting of birds, the scurrying of little feet, even the yawning of a bear.

“Oh…my, your awake,” said a sweet small voice.

Gale immediately spun around, and brandished his claws on the pony’s neck. All motion stopped for a moment.
Then the pony dropped down on her knees and began crying.

“I’m sorry, I’m so s-s-s-sorry,” the pony whimpered on the floor.
Another few moments pass, even Gale was taken aback by the pony’s manner. She looks so very frail an innocent. This pony could not possibly cause him any trouble.

“I did not know you were t-t-taking a nap, if I knew I would n-n-not have disturbed you. B-b-but it is very dangerous sleeping out in the open, you might catch a cold, and with that nasty wound-. Oooh I’m so v-v-very sorry,” whimpered the pony.

Gale considered his position, the whole town is on to him and will most likely to turn him over to Canterlot after the incident he had caused, and Gale could not possibly abandon his quest when his goal is just in reach.
Then a sudden sharp pain throbbed upon his wound, Gale winced trying to hold back the pain.

“Oh my, that wound looks terrible, are you alright?” the pegasus flew towards Gale and caress the wound.
Her sudden change of attitude startled Gale, but the pain was too overwhelming for Gale to make any sort of resistance.

“I had changed the bandages and applied ointment while you were sleeping; I hadn’t got the chance to give you some pain relieving herbs before you woke up,” said the pegasus as she flew from one cupboard to another for the herbs.

Gale stared at the pegasus working her way through her cottage and kept his thoughts to himself. From a time to another, ponies do him favours out of generosity. Gale never understood them. Without a care and gratitude, Gale readily accepts the help and move on.

The pegasus mashed the herbs with a mortar and pestle then added the herbs in a pot of boiling water. The room was then thick with the aroma of freshly ground herbs. Gale inhaled deeply, the scent is wonderfully rejuvenating, the pain from Gale’s wound seem to dim slightly just by the scent alone.

The pegasus scooped up the herbal broth with a ladle and filled a soup bowl.

“Here, this will make you feel better, be careful, it’s hot,” said the pegasus, carefully placing the bowl on Gale’s claws.

Gale stared at the silky herbal broth. At that moment, Gale thought the pegasus very naïve. What did she hope to gain from all this kindness?

Then somepony knocked on the door.

“Hey Fluttershy! You there!?” yelled a pony.

Gale panicked; he had almost forgotten that he was a wanted fugitive. Gale tried to move but his body would not cooperate. The pain from his wound had numbed his body, slowing his movements.

“Twilight is holding a meeting at the library, better hurry up cuz it’s kinda important,” said Rainbow Dash.

Gale could not think straight. The thought of being caught overwhelmed his body with fear. He remembered when he was sentenced to exile and was force to live in the Everfree Forest for a crime he did not purposely commit. But this time, Gale was aware of his actions. If he is caught, the punishment will be even more severe, no doubt. But worse of all, Gale would not be able to pursue the answers to his questions.

As these frightful thoughts swirl around Gale’s head he noticed the pegasus, Fluttershy staring at him. He stared back at her and their eyes met. After a moment Fluttershy’s gaze softened, she then gave a nod as if she was coming to an understanding.

“I…uh, I am so terribly sorry Rainbow Dash. I would love to join all of you but unfortunately I’ve got a patient to take care of. He is very ill. You understand, right Rainbow?” replied Fluttershy.

“Sure, no problem. I’ll tell Twilight that you’re busy. But be careful Fluttershy, it’s not safe here in Ponyville anymore,” said Rainbow Dash before flying off.

At that instant, Gale was stricken with awe and disbelief at how Fluttershy defended him. It had left Gale even more confused than ever. He had thought Fluttershy’s acts of kindness very foolish but after what happened, the heavy weight of guilt started tugging at his heart.

Fluttershy turned away from the door with a look of relief on her face. She approached Gale and took the herbal broth from his claws. Gale had almost forgotten that he was still holding it.

“It’s alright now, no need to worry. You are safe here,” said Fluttershy.

Gale had changed his perspective of Fluttershy. The element of kindness seems to radiate all over her.

“Thank you,” said Gale. It was all he could muster.

“Oh, you don’t need to thank me. I know how it feels like being shy. I can’t stand being looked at by other ponies, it makes me feel so very nervous,” said Fluttershy.

Fluttershy then fed Gale the broth. Each spoonful fills Gale’s body with warmth and calmed his nerves. The pain from his wound then is nothing but a dull prod on his skin.
At that moment Gale realized how much he longs for the comfort of a home. He had been living in exile ever since the incident. The cottage, lovely food and Fluttershy’s kindness reminds him so much about his life before his exile. As Fluttershy feeds him, tears roll down Gale’s cheeks.

“Oh, my! Are you ok? Please don’t cry,” pleaded Fluttershy.

But Gale just could not.

A week had passed since then. Gale had gotten used to the simple life around the cottage. Most of the time, he helps Fluttershy with her chores. Gale would feed the chickens, herd little animals to their homes and occasionally scratch the bear’s back. Fluttershy was reluctant when Gale offered his assistance but eventually accepted because of how persistent Gale was. Every day was a simple routine and life was peaceful. However, Gale never let his guard down and kept an eye on the situation of the town. There were fewer ponies patrolling around the town’s borders. Gale guessed that they are probably not so keen on finding him after such a long time.

Then, one morning, Gale found Fluttershy very agitated. She kept pacing back and forth in the living room whispering to herself. She looked very worried about something, so Gale asked what was bothering her.

“oooh…my animal friends told me something very frightening happened at the lake. The animals living there are panicking. I want to go there to investigate, b-b-but if it is as scary as the woodland creatures say...,” Fluttershy’s voice trails off.

Gale’s eagerness took him over. Of course he would help Fluttershy with her troubles. Ever since Flutershy protected him, Gale had considered himself in debt to Fluttershy and will help her out with anything without question.

“Is it alright if I accompany you to the lake?” asked Gale.

“YES!” a sudden burst of delight and relief spread across Fluttershy’s face. Her reaction startled Gale.

“Oh, I’m sorry. I mean, yes. I would love some company,” said Fluttershy, returning to her original tone of voice.

They set off for the lake later. Soon they were following a stream that leads to the lake. Gale then noticed, as Fluttershy said, that the animals are beginning to become restless. They seem to be frightened out of their wits and are running away as if being they are being chased. Gale became curious, what could cause such maddening fright within the creatures?

Suddenly, Gale heard Fluttershy gasped before seeing Fluttershy running ahead.

“Wait! Fluttershy, it’s not safe!” yelled Gale.

He ran after her. Each step closer to the lake, a cold chill crawls up his spine. Gale knew something was terribly wrong.

Soon enough, he caught up with Fluttershy who was sitting by the bank of the river. The sound of low sobbing can be heard. Gale went to Fluttershy’s side hoping to try and comfort her but then he saw the reason why she was sad.
Animal carcases littered the lakes surface.

Dead fish float on the lake surface. Bodies of other dead animals lay along the bank of the lake.

Gale walked closer to the water to investigate. He dipped his left claw into the water and retracted as his claw sizzled. The water was poisonous.

Then the waves began to lash violently on the bank. The water started to boil. A harsh echoing cry came from the lake.

“Fluttershy, Get away from there!” yelled Gale.

But Fluttershy was paralyzed by fear and sadness, so much that she could not move or even speak. She sat there as the water broke apart and burst as a monstear breached the surface of the lake. It was a hydra and it had four snake like heads snapping and spitting poison everywhere.

Gale grabbed Fluttershy’s hoof and moved her just before one of the hydra heads could reach her. Fluttershy then had regained her senses and started galloping away.

Gale however stayed behind, thinking he could give Fluttershy time to flee. The hydra stood before him, hissing and biting. It flails its heads around, spilling poison as it walks. Fortunately, dragon scales are resistant to it.

Three heads lashed out snapping at Gale while the fourth head spat poison. Gale responded to the attacks with grace and speed as if the wind itself flows with him. After the third head missed Gale and sank its teeth in the dirt, Gale took the opportunity to climb on its neck then slicing it off with his claws.

“No! Don’t! You will only make it angrier!” warned Fluttershy from a distance.
Nut it was too late. The stump where the head used to be began to bubble. Viscous liquid poured out from the stump later solidifies and took shape of not one but two hydra heads.

“Run Gale!” yelled Fluttershy.

The hydra cocked its heads toward Fluttershy and hissed. A jet of poison burst out of the hydra’s jaws.

“RUN!” Gale yelled.

Fluttershy tried to fly away, but as she left the ground the hydras poison caught her wings. Gale heard Fluttershy cried out in pain and watched as her body fell to the ground.

“FLUTTERSHY!” Gale called out, rushing to her side.

Gale held Fluttershy body. Her wings were horridly corroded. Fluttershy was still. The hydra was upon them. Poised to strike at them.

Then all sound ceased. The sky darkened swirled. Flashes of lightning encased the sky. Gale opened his jaws and unleashed a thunderous roar fuelled by rage. The very air around gale was heavy with static that even claws sparked with electricity.

The hydra had been dazed by the sudden force conjured by Gale but only for a moment, it went all out lashing its heads towards Gale. But then a sudden gust of wind forced the hydra back. Gale moved with extreme speed, using the wind to propel him from the ground and onto the hydra’s back. Gale raised his claw, spiked with electricity and with one slash he culled the hydra.

The hydra dropped dead, liquid poison and blood spill from its body. The wind became steady and it started to rain. Gale then came to Fluttershy once more. He succumbed to grief, tears poured uncontrollably from his eyes. He tugged her hoof and called her name but to no avail, Fluttershy lay still. Finally exhaustion overcame Gale. He lay down beside Fluttershy and fell into deep sleep.

The Exiled Dragon

by TheNinjaTanuki

The Murderer

Twilight

Kindness and The Hydra