Chapter 16.

Pine’s flame part two.”

Pine flew through the fires as he banked left to avoid them Ash in his fury smashed into Magma they two started claw and rip each other apart. Then as the two clawed and bite,

Pine flew to Ember then said, “We need to move you can’t stay here.”

Ember smashed herself into another dragon then blasted him down with her fire.

She then said, “I won’t leave you.”

Pine flew across then he aimed his crossbow then his right front leg flicked and then his arrow hit the eye and it fell down to the earth. Pine swore then moved right as another blast of flame then as he attacked from the south he dropped low and then he aimed his crossbow and shot another with a single shot he then aimed his crossbow at another and then he deflected another attack as the fires grazed over him. He avoids the attack. Then he slows himself to see where he was going then he scans the skies as he felt the cold rain starting to fall. The wonder bolts created a large rainstorm and was dousing the flames from the dragons then came the lightning strikes hitting the dragons as Pine suggested earlier in the eyes and their underbellies to distract them and keep them at bay. Pine then saw the dragons fly upward then Pine flew upward and started to fire his crossbow into the underbellies of the smaller dragons hitting vital regions and some fell dead to the ground below. Pine then saw the dragons turn their attention to him he drops his cartridge and as he flies through the rain he then loaded the crossbow with another as he pulled the string back with his teeth then he dodges the flames washing over him. He keeps his head low trying to catch on fire and thanks to the rain; the flame did not reach its full height and was quickly smothered as well. Pine then raised his crossbow and steadied his leg then as he fired the bolt into the flame spout of the dragon, then the gases filled his mouth, the flames blasted through his head, and then he dropped to the ground with his flaming corpse still on fire. Pine then viewed the sky and then he saw another dragon coming at him he drops low and keep himself under him. The dragon had to veer sideways to see Pine then as she raised his crossbow he realized that the rain has dampened the string so he instead flew straight at the dragon and as the dragon burst out flame. Pine veered upward and then he takes the crossbow in his mouth and annually loads the next bolt then he the dragon flies upward and as the fore consumed the sky Pine flew sideways then aimed for the underbelly found a weak point and fired the bolt slammed through. Blood spurted outward and then the dragon puked blood  then it fell.

Then the dragons all looked at Pine they all started to attack at once then Ember came out of nowhere she slams onto the first dragon that tried to attack him then Pine flew with her then attacks the slams a loaded bolt into the first dragon’s eye. It roared then Pine takes a bolt and flies into his mouth then fire upward through the upper cavity and then flies out as the dragon fell to its death Ember then saw Ash fly upward clinging onto the great Magma who was biting blasting flame at him. Then as he tried to pull him down Pine flew straight at Magma loading another bolt into the crossbow and then he saw giant lightning strikes from the sky hitting him continuously without mercy. Red wing was ahead as she flew upward with her wings crackling form the lightning. Then she dove downward into the battle and stuck magma into the chest with her spear and fell then Ash flew upward his body was covered in burns pieces of scale were gone his face had a large claw marks he spat put blood.

He then said “Pine can you finish him off?”

Pine removed the string from his crossbow then replaced it with another from his tail then said “Yeah.”

He turns to Ember he then said “Ember tell the wonder bolts to keep the rain going, keep them alive,”

She nods and flies upward then Ash said “I can provide you cover there’s still a few of Magma’s followers still flying about but you did well.”

Pine shakes his head then said, “You won’t make it your losing too much blood and the rain will dampen your flame stay here and help your daughter I’ll finish this.”

Pine then flies downward through the rains into the dark clouds of smoke coming to meet his face. He then started to fire his crossbow into the bodies of the dragons trying to take him he banks left and then through the rain he aims his crossbow and forces it into the first dragon he slams his body upward into another causing him to grunt. Then Pine pulls a small dagger from his belt then slams it into his underbelly until it reached its heart then his closed and dropped the body then another dragon came upward and then he tried to blast flame on him Pine then drops his body downward. He then see’s he was surrounded they all blast flame at him from all sides. Pine then banks backwards and then sideways then flies straight through the sides of two dragons then he backs upward. He then see’s Red wing battling Magma blasting him with lightning strike after lightning strike then he watched as the dragons all tried to attack her. Instead Pine loaded another cartridge he then slams it into his cross bow he loads it then he dives downward and then he continues to keep shooting the dragons he continues to fire into the eyes and the underbellies some miss but three dragons go down. He the  dives down as magma was going to devour red wing pine flies under and with his cross bow and tries to shoot him in the eye. Magma backed up to dodge the bolt and Red Wing flies back her left wing was injured.

He then said “Go back with the others.”

Red wing then said, “You can’t do this alone you’ll die.”

Pine then loaded his cross bow again then said, “I know but if I don’t stop him then were all doomed.”

He flies downward and and into the battle....

15 years earlier...

Ash chuckled as he saw the young pine looking at the crossbow they were in Ash’s cave. Ash was deep in his bed of jewels and Pine with his small skinny frame and his long light yellow mane his little nose and with his green round eyes starred at it with curiosity.

Ash then said “I found this near my cave I thought it fit you.”

Pine then took the leg attachment and then placed it on his right front leg then as he started to place the crossbow and slotted it on his right front leg.

He then said, “What is it?”

Ash then said. “This weapon is the hardest to use. It will require a good eye and a steady leg you need to concentrate and focus.”

Pine then said, “How does it work?”

Ash then said, “It’s a simple design the crossbow is not usually used because most ponies need four legs to stand and lifting one leg with such a heavy object takes a lot of stamina and strength which you will gain if you keep with your training.”

Pine then said, “So how do I load it?”

Ash then pointed to a small cartridge and then said “first pull the  string back then slot it in the back then slot the cartridge into the left side."

Then Pine said “It’s heavy.”

Ash then said, “I told you it would be, but now for the hard part lift it and you will use the power of your kick back to shoot the string attached to the pulley.”

Pine fired it and he flew backward hitting the ground.

Ash then said, “I told you it will be difficult.”

Pine then said, “How do I fight with this?”

Ash then said, “Remember the other day when you challenged those young teen dragons?”

Pine got up sniffling then said, “They almost killed me I just wanted to play.”

Ash lowered his head then said, “Dragons don’t care for tears Pine they only care for power and when you show weakness they will exploit that. But if you can show them your strength they will never be able to hurt you in fact they will respect you.”

Pine then said “But I was taught to be kind?”

Ash chuckled then said, “Kindness is a strange word if I was kind to every dragon I met I would be dead. Tell me if a dragon gets angry at his mate destroys her eggs then kills her what am I to do? Should I pardon that dragon? Exile that dragon? or execute that dragon?”

Pine then said, “I don’t know?”

Ash then said, “I must judge as a chief I must judge on the act and one such as monstrous as that would be met with one punishment. Death if a dragon dare strike down innocents as such especially against his own family he would do the same to others and keep killing. Yet I would judge that dragon and commit him to die.   Everything has a good and bad consequence sometimes there’s no easy way out of a situation.”

Pine then got up and said, “So how do I decide?”

Ash then pointed to Pine’s heart then said, “That will tell you what the right decision is. Follow that and you will never be wrong.”

Pine got up and then said, “Are you sure? If I follow how my heart feels then I am doing the right thing? Is that what you’re telling me?”

Ash then said, “The decision is up to you. Your heart is full of different emotions love, hate, regret.”

Ash sighed then pulls himself lower into his bed of jewels then said, “I wonder why I took you in and I think it was because of my mate she had a soft heart my daughter took after her. The day Ember brought you in groaning and weak, I became the laughing stock of the entire dragon race. “The dragon that raised a pony,” That’s what they whisper behind my back.”

He chuckled then said “But I didn’t care, I saw you get up start fighting I saw you fly outside these caves and seen you do things most dragons here would never even consider. Pine I am going to teach you how to fight because living with dragons it’s going to get rough it will be hard but I see a fire in your eyes.”

Pine then wiped the tears from his eyes then said, “I want to be strong but kind as well somehow maybe I can do both.”

He then picked up the crossbow.

Then Ash said, “Keep firing it until you can’t fall then we’ll work on your aim.”

Pine lifted the crossbow then said, “I won’t fail you Ash.”

Pine blinking through the rain with his loaded crossbow fully extended his head bowing against the steady downpour his eyes blazing the mark of the pine on fire glowed he felt something he never felt before. He steadied his aim Magma’s giant eyes glowed back he starred at him then aimed carefully he felt his heart slow he breathed slowly. Then he kicked back his leg as Magma breathed the biggest burst of flame Pine has ever seen it covered the entire front of him and it spread even with the pouring rain. Pine soared downward and tried to avoid it. However, he knew in the back of his mind the flame will reach him and he was going to die he then thought of Luna and thought of how he never told her how he  felt.

Then Ember out of nowhere shielded his body with her body and was hit by the fame then Pine screamed “No!”

But his bolt hit magma through the eye and into his brain. Magma fell and then Pine flew downward to Ember but she was on the ground her body was burned her scales torn her body was smoking from the large burns.

Pine flew down to her then said, “Why did you do that! I knew what I was doing I knew what I had to do!”

Ember smiled then said, “For thirty years I lived with regret now I won’t. Take care of my egg its purple please don’t let my hatching end up like its father.”

She closed her eyes Pine flew on her body then shouted, “You need to raise it! you hear me!”

He slammed his head against her body and cried and cried he just hugged her head as Ash flew down.

Then Pine turned and shouted “Why didn’t you stop her! “

Ash then said “I tried I told her you knew what you were doing. You knew magma would have never expected a straight on attack like that. I dove with her but my wounds held me back. I wasn’t fast enough.”

He broke down then shouted, “I failed her!”

He roared into the sky then Pine saw Ash cry, something he has never seen a dragon do with tears in his eyes.

Then in tears he slams his head forward and came close to Pine, as did the wonder bolts Red wing came close.

Then Pine said, “All of you go!”

Red wing then said “Pine.”

Pine shouted, “Go! All of you!”

Red wing nods then the wonder bolts fly off and the rain subsides the moon shines downward.

Then Ash came by his side and as Pine still weeping sat by his side and sat solemnly next to him.

Pine gets up then said “I won’t let her death be in vain. I’m going find her egg.”

Ash gets up then said “I’ll bury her in the mountains I’ll bury her next to her mother.”

Pine turned to him then turned to the dead magma his body in a crumpled mess.

Pine then said, “Why is it that the innocent die?”

Ash then said, “I’ve been asking that same question since the day Cinder died.”

Pine then said, “If I do raise her hatchling it’s going to be in Canterlot. Those were her dying words and not even you will be able to stop me.”

Ash then said, “If those were final words then I won’t.”

Pine sheathes his crossbow pulls down his cloak and flies hard into the north.

Next Chapter: chapter 17: Necro's sacrafice Estimated time remaining: 4 Hours, 18 Minutes