Solid Script Equestria
Chapter 28: Side Chapter 1: A Dragon Slayer’s Mission
Previous Chapter Next ChapterSpike POV
I release a slow yawn as I watch the landscape go by the train. We have been on the train for a couple hours already, and we should be arriving at our destination within a couple of minutes.
It was only a week after all that crap with the Tantabus and Lex officially becoming a mom. Of course all of us in the guild could sense how nervous she was about it, but I reminded her that she had the entire guild to lean on. ‘It takes a village’, they say, and Lex has one hell of a village to work with.
Anyways, after the whole fiasco with her kids and Sonbā turning into an Alicorn, things went back to how they were in the guild, with the exception of Lex spending more time with her kids and Sonbā, in particular learning from Mrs.Cake and Creamy Heart, Button’s mom, about taking care of a baby. So far, they said she is a natural, especially after she learned a spell to let her feed her kid.
Though it was more than a little awkward for everyone but the baby at first.
Anyways, I decided to try and take on a higher ranking job than I usually do so I could get some more money for the guild. With how things went with the Tantabus, I don’t doubt that we’re going to be getting more members before long. So after searching the board and finding nothing I think would work, Emerald actually gave me a job that was literally asking for someone like me.
It was an A class quest. Apparently a new town on the edge of the Dragon Boarder call Gem Junction has been getting harassed by a group of dragons, said dragons demanding ‘tribute’ of the towns gem mining operations so they don’t burn down the town. My job; chase off the dragons and make sure they don’t come back.
I knew that it would be a fools errand to take this job alone, even with my recent growth spurt. I mean, I am still getting used to the fact that, while I am technically twelve, thirteen in a month, my body is that of a twenty year old drake now. So I talked with some of my guild mates, and three others decided to come with me.
First was obviously Twilight. Once she found out I was going on a ‘combat job’ she decided to come with because she was worried about me. She also wanted the chance to visit a newly established town, as well as the chance to meet more dragons. Though I thought she got enough of an up close and personal meeting with dragons during the migration.
Second was Azure Skies. She pointed out that having a member of the royal guard would help calm the populace a bit, and her magic would work well against a dragons fire breath since she can just absorb it, and I know from personal experience her flame do burn dragons. That was not a fun time.
Last was Rarity. It took some convincing, but Lex eventually relented and allows Rarity to come with us. She wanted to see the gem mines and see if she could help out and maybe see about opening a new boutique. I also noticed she has been stealing quite a few glances at me lately, so I figure she wanted to hang out but was unsure on how.
So, the four of us got our gear and took a couple trains to get to the town. Since it is a new village there isn’t any tracks that lead to the actual town, so our stop is at a coaling station a couple miles out. We didn’t know how long this job was going to take, so we packed a couple days worth of clothes and provisions. Though it took a while before we managed to get Rarity to only pack three bags.
Looking out the window again, I see the coaling station, so I get the girls attention and we get ready to leave. Once the train stopped and we departed, Twilight took out a map and the quest sheet and we headed out. The town was at the base of one of the nearby mountains, so we needed to be a little careful just incase there is a rock slide.
“Oh I am so excited! I didn’t even know that ponies were establishing new settlements this far out.” Twilight squeals excitedly. I just roll my eyes at her excitement.
“Twi you can geek out about new towns after our job is done. We need to think of a plan for taking care of the dragons aside from me using my magic as intended.” I reply, taking the lead as we overcome a hill and see the town at the bottom.
“Well, I don’t know about you two, but I am sure we can handle a couple of ruffians. Especially with you around Spikey-Wikey.” Rarity says with a flutter of her eyes. Before all of this, that would have made me as dumb as Snips and Snails, but for some reason it wasn’t have the effect it used to. Instead I just gave the mare a deadpan stare and sighed.
“Rarity please, can you not call me that in public. Honestly, I am not a child.” I tell her, heading down the hill alongside Azure, leaving the two unicorns to recover from my blunt turn down.
“Hmm, that was odd. Spike never used to turn you down. Maybe he’s actually growing up.” Twilight mutters, pulling the still recovering Rarity along with her before they caught up. Rarity was silent, trying to understand what just happened.
After a couple of minutes we reached the outskirts of the town, and it didn’t look that great. There was a couple of broken carts in the street, scorch marks on the gravel, claw marks on some of the buildings. It looked like those dragons showed up earlier. Making our way into the town proper, we don’t see anypony, but we do hear some clangs of metal on stone nearby. Making our way to it, we see some kind of staircase tunnel leading down into the earth. I guess this was an entrance to their mines.
“Looks like one of the entrances. And from the sounds of things there is at least somepony down there.” Azure says, the dull clanging of the mine echoing to us. I frown and look around the area more, seeing a few empty carts for the gems and some tools, but no ponies.
“Something’s defiantly up. Where is everypony?” I question. The four of us look around a little more, before arriving at what looks like the town hall. It looked a little like that sheriff building in Appleloosa, but instead of a silver star, it had an amethyst and ruby on the top. I check the quest sheet and see that the job was commissioned by the mayor of the town, so this would be the best place to look for him.
Knocking on the front door, the four of us wait patiently, noting the eyes slowly peaking through the blinds in many of the houses. Before long we hear several locks being undone on the other side of the door, before it slowly begins to creak open, a single golden eye with a slit pupil looking through it.
“H-hello?” The voice question quietly. I look to the others who shrug to me and I clear my throat, earning the ponies attention and see as their eye widens in fear.
“Hello there. We’re looking for the mayor of the town. We’re the wizards from Fairy Tail responding to his request.”
That sentence seemed to do the trick as the eye widens again before closing the door. We hear even more locks being undone before the door swings open, the pony behind it slowly walking out. To our mild surprise, it was a thestral, the mare having bright gold eyes with a dark green coat and brown mane and tail. She was wearing a white dress shirt under a blue blazer and tan jeans and a pair of red glasses.
“You’re from Fairy Tail! Perfect! Come in come.” She says with a fanged smile, letting the four of us in. The building looked more like the town hall in Ponyville from the inside, there was even a stage and podium. The mare lead us through the building, before arriving at the door to the mayors office, the plaque reading ‘Obsidian Deal’. The mare knocked on the door twice.
“Mayor Obsidian? The wizards from Fairy Tail are here.” She says, the door being opened by the mayor a second later.
“Perfect timing. Come in all of you. Thank you for leading them here Shade.” The mare nods before leaving us to walk in. Sitting behind a desk made of polished granite, a crystal stallion was looking the four of us over with a critical eye. He was rather large, almost as big as Sonbā, but he was clearly strong. He had dark purple fur, like his first name, and a ruby red mane and tail and purple eyes. I guess some crystal ponies decided to leave the empire over the last several months.
He flinched as he looks to me, taking a second to look me over a little more carefully than the girls.
“So, you are from Fairy Tail then?” In response the four of us just show him our guild marks. He nods with a smile. “Well then, I thank you for coming so quickly. My name as you could probably guess is Obsidian Deal. Now, I won’t beat around the bush, we need help. Those dragons I mentioned in the request, their getting aggressive. Many of my town are stubborn as the gems we mine, so they would not give up their gems without a fight. I am not foolish enough to believe a bunch of earth ponies and thestrals can take on a group of dragons alone, so I was hoping you could help.”
“Do you know how many there are?” Twilight questions.
“Last time they were here, there was a group of eight. Six drakes and two dragonesses. Their leader was very arrogant and cocky, and from what I can tell the only reason the place hasn’t been attacked yet is because of one of the dragonesses keeping him on a leash as it were. I believe they are either related or romantically involved.”
“Doubt the last bit. Dragons aren’t really about emotions and affection.” I add, the others looking me with raised brows. I just shrug.
“Well either way, they said they would be back before long and if we didn’t have the gems ready for them, they would burn down the town and take the gems we were supposedly hoarding ourselves.” I just shake my head at these drakes idiocy before smirking.
“Well you have nothing to worry about sir!” I remark with a salute. “We never got introduction out of the way. Spike Sparkle, Emerald Dragon Slayer, at your service. These are Sergeant Azure Skies of the Night Guard, Twilight Sparkle, Element of magic, and Rarity Bell, Element of Generosity.” With that, the mayors eyes shot open wide enough to match Pinkie.
“I’m sorry, did you just say you’re a Dragon Slayer?” I nod. “But you’re a dragon yourself.”
“It’s the name of the magic I use, Emerald Dragon Slayer Magic. Developed it myself actually, and I haven’t had a chance to try in on any actual dragons yet.” I reply with a grin. The girls just roll their eyes.
The mayor doesn’t get to respond before the door burst open and a teenage thestral colt flies in.
“Uncle Obsidian! They’re back!”
There was a beat and then with the sounds of magic, all of us were outside the building, watching as several ponies came out of their houses with tool and headed to the edge of town. Without warning, I grabbed Twilight from behind and took off into the sky, Azure carrying Rarity behind us.
“So, what’s the plan Twi?” I question as we fly over the town.
“Right now? Keep the residents from causing a battle to break out before we show up. And, as Lyra says, we’ll play it by the ear.” I look to her with a raised brow.
“Since when do you like to improvise?”
We didn’t have time for her to reply as I see where the ponies are gathering and begin to dive, flexing my wings once we were close enough to the ground. Note to self, thank Gilda and Rainbow for those flying lessons when we get back to the guild. Touching down on the ground, I get more than a few nervous and even angry glares, before they noticed the guild mark on my shoulder. Gotta be thankful I am wearing my vest. Azure and Rarity land a second later.
The four of us look over the edge of town, not seeing anyone before turning to the crowd.
“Alright, who saw the dragons on their way here?” I question, one of the stallions raising his hand. I motion him forward. He was a brown earth pony with a darker brown mane and tail, wearing a pair of dirty overalls and a t-shirt, and a mining helmet.
“Me, I saw some figures flying over the mountain where I knew the dragons were set up, so I thought it would be best we get armed for when they arrive.” We nod before Azure walk up.
“While I find your initiative admirable, please, take cover and leave this to us.” She says.
“Well who the hell are you guys anyways?” A stallion yells from within the crowd. Azure straightens up and everyone can tell her military stance.
“Sergeant Azure Skies, member of both the Royal Night Guard as well as a member of the Fairy Tail wizards guild. Your mayor contacted the guild about the dragons, so we’re here to help.” She responds, the ponies all looking to us with wide eyes.
“Wait, Fairy Tail? You mean that magic guild?!” The thestral colt from before yells with an awed smile. We just grin and show off our emblems again, everyone suddenly excited.
All of us perk up as we hear some wind blowing by and look to the hill nearby, seeing several figures rapidly fly over it and head towards us. Some of the crowd began to get scared and back up, but my team and I stood our ground, Twilight even placing a hand on her rapier. Before long the group stopped before us. Looks like the mayor was a little off though, since I counted nine dragons, not eight. For some reason some of them looked familiar, but I couldn’t place them.
“Well? Where’s our gems ponies?” One of the dragons, a heavyset brown one with blue swirls on his horns asks annoyed. In response I step up and glare at my draconic brethren.
“Sorry to tell you guys, but these ponies are not handing you a single shard. So I suggest turning around and leaving them alone.” I all but order, the drakes looking confused at my appearance.
“Oh yeah?! And who the hell are you to-” one of the dragons said, before pausing and stepping forward. It took a sec, but then I remembered who he was.
“Garble?” I look to the red dragon in surprise. He hasn’t changed at all since the migration, how didn’t I recognize him till now?
“Well well well, if it isn’t our old friend Sparkle-Warkle.” He says mockingly, five of the dragons laughing, while the other three look to me in confusion. I just growl, the dragons actually stopping as they hear me.
“The names Spike. You dipshit.”
That caused everyone to be quiet, while Garble was suddenly chocking on air. He glared to me and stepped up to try and intimidate me, but that is kinda hard to do when you’ve faced down a Deathstalker plus we were the same height now.
“What was that?!” He yells, his snout almost touching mine. I raise my hand, and push him back hard, almost causing him to trip.
“I said, my name is Spike, you dipshit. Or did you go deaf as well as stupid since the last time I have seen you?” I question with a grin, trying to get him angry. As he was silently steaming, thinking hard for a comeback, I quickly looked over his crew, some of the dragons coming back to me.
The heavyset one was named Chunk if I remember. He was wearing a pair of blue overalls and a red t-shirt, obviously made of fireproof material from the Dragon Lands. He was mostly a dumb follower of Garble, but he did show me how to differentiate certain gems from one another.
The one next to him with purple scales and blond spines and hair was Pyro, he was wearing a simple pair of blue jeans and a red t-shirt. He was the second in command for Garble’s gang last I saw him.
The pale pink one with rose spines was Fizzle. He was wearing a pair of tan cargo pants and a black t-shirt. Fizzle was actually pretty nice to me during the migration, even teaching me how to lava surf, and he didn’t take part in that damned raid for the Phoenix eggs. I wonder how Peewee is doing?
The light blue one with grey scales was Frost. I didn’t really talk to her so I don’t know much about her. She was wearing a blue tank top and denim jacket and black jeans.
The grey scaled and green spined one was Smog. I think he had some kind of birth defect so he can’t breath fire, but billows smoke. He just had a pair of black shorts on.
Those were the dragons I knew, but there was a trio that were there that I didn’t recognize. Guess they were new recruits for Garble or something.
First was the drake, he had dark green scales and cream coloured spines, with a grey underbelly, wearing a blue muscle shirt and grey cargo pants. He seemed like an annoyed sorta guy, shaking his head at Garble while said dragon was getting insulted by me. Next to him was a dragoness with black scales and grey spines, her body being covered by rather a nice looking blue blouse and ripped black jeans. She was shaking her head as well, before noticing me looking at her and raising a brow. I just shrug to her and look to the last one, a yellow and brown dragoness with gold spines. She was wearing the same thing as Fizzle.
“Hey are you even listening to me?!” I turn back to Garble with a bored expression as I realized he has been ranting as I have been looking over his crew.
“Say what? Sorry Garble, but once to actually say something worthwhile, be sure to find me.”
“Ooo, burn!” I hear the yellow dragoness say with a laugh.
“Shut up Amber!” He yells, marching over to the now scared looking dragoness. Now that I look at her, I noticed she wasn’t all that taller than I was before my growth spurt, so she couldn’t be all that older than me. Without really registering what I was doing, I rushed past Garble and stood before Amber.
“Back off Garble.” I snarl. That seemed to catch the group off guard.
“Say what? Why are you protecting her Spar-Spike? She’s with us!” Garble yells.
“Is she? Or is she just following you because your a ‘big bad dragon’?” I question mockingly, Garble growling in anger. I turn my attention to the dragoness, who is looking between Garble and I curiously. “Well, are you?” I question her.
In response she just blushed and fiddled with her claws. I roll my eyes and glare back to Garble, the drake still angry.
“Oh yeah, well what are you going to do about....THIS!”
Garble, and a couple other dragons turn and take a breath, before releasing a torrent of flame towards the townsfolk. The ponies all scream in fear for their own safety, before getting confused as Azure runs in front of the fire and take a breath herself.
“Pitch Black Roar!” Everyone freezes as Azure releases her own breath of fire, the black flames slowly overtaking the dragons fire before they both go out.
“What the hell?” The dragons question as Azure wipes her mouth and ignites her fists. Garble feels a tapping on his shoulder and turns to see a very now pissed off me.
“You just fucked up.” I state simply before cocking my arm back and punching Garble hard in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him and sending him flying into Frost.
“W-what are you?” Garble gasps. I just smirk and ignite my hands.
“I’m a dragon slayer.” I respond before taking my own breath. “Emerald Dragon Roar!”
Frost and Garble gulp right before they are caught in my spell, sending them both flying into a couple of trees. The other dragons either looking to me in awe, fear, or anger.
“Hey! No one does that to the boss!” Pyro yells, charging me and the girls along with Chunk and a slightly nervous looking Smog. The other four were just hanging back and watching. I roll my eyes and we separate, Twilight taking on Smog, Azure taking on Pyro and I had Chunk. Rarity was staying back to protect the civilians.
3rd Person
Twilight VS Smog
The grey and green dragon charged to the purple unicorn, thinking a simple pony wouldn’t stand a chance against him. Even if he couldn’t breath fire, he more than made up for it in his scales toughness.
“Get rocked pony!” He yells, swiping at Twilight, who suddenly turns into magical writing and disappears, before appearing a little ways behind him.
“Seriously? Get rocked? That’s all you could come up with?” She questions before gripping her rapier.
“Dark Ecriture Pain!” Four digital letters appear before her before four beams of magic are launched to the unprepared dragon. They strike home, causing Smog to feel like his is being stabbed in the spots they hit.
“Aaaahh! Damnit!” He rushes forward, trying to ignore the pain and slashes at Twilight, the mare blocking with her sword. While not nearly as athletic as her friends, Twilight has been taking some time out of her schedules to learn how to fight, and it shows. She actually was able to hold strong against the clearly more athletic dragon.
“Dark Ecriture Burn!” The word appears along the sword, causing Smog to yelp back as it feels like his claws are being burned. He frantically waves his claws to get the feeling to die down, growling at Twilight all the while. Twi just keeps her eyes on him, taking note of his movements and planning on how to defeat him.
“Grrr, you stupid mare!” He roars, charging again. Twilight just rolls her eyes and continues to dodge him, slashing when she finds an opening before getting annoyed.
“Alright, this is getting dumb.” She mutters, jumping back a few feet. “Dark Ecriture Fear!”
The word appears on the drakes chest, and his breathing suddenly becomes heavier, his eyes widening and pupils shrinking as he looks to Twilight. In his eyes the nerdy mare with a sword was becoming twisted, mangled into an abomination of indescribable proportions. She smiled as the spell takes effect, Smog seeing a twisted, fangfilled grin in his eyes.
“W-w-w-w-what the hell?!?” He screams before Twilight teleports behind him.
“Dark Ecriture Overload.”
The letters appear on the drakes back, before all but exploding with a burst of purple magic, the dragon releasing a very high pitched yell as he blacks out as the spell overloads his senses. He could feel it all, and at the forefront of it, was pure, unadulterated, PAIN.
Twilight couldn’t help but smirk to herself as the grey and green dragon slumped down, unconscious, licking her lips without realizing it. Then she shook her head, trying to rid herself of the, admittedly creepy, sadistic thoughts.
‘Note to self, talk to Lex about dark magic increasing the stimuli responsible for pleasure. And see if Trixie wants to go for coffee tomorrow.’
Azure VS Pyro
The thestral mare easily danced around the clumsy and untrained dragon, Pyro roaring in annoyance as he keeps missing the swipes of his claws and swings of his tail. The cheering crowd behind them certainly didn’t help his annoyance.
“Hold still damnit!” He yells indignantly.
Azure rolls her eyes and actually complies, the drake smirking as he tries to swipe at her with his claws again. He didn’t even get close to her head before Azures fist slashed out, covering in the same blueish-black flames, slamming and knocking the claw away before pulling back.
“Pitch Black Punishment!”
Pyro’s eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as Azure vanished for a second before appearing less than a foot away from him, her flame covered fist being driven into his stomach, burning him and knocking the wind out of him as the black flames sent him flying back.
He was send sprawling onto his back, the purple drake whining as he feels his stomach and scales are burned. That shouldn’t be possible, dragon scales were supposed to be fire-proof! He bathed in lava damnit!
“You alive?” Pyro hears the mare. He growls and manages to roll onto his stomach, eventually getting to a knee. He looks to the thestral with anger, annoyance and pain, black spots dancing in his eyes.
“Damn...ponies...suck.” He mutters before passing out. Azure tilts her head, looking to her flame covered fist before shrugging. The ponies that watched were a little disappointed by the end.
‘That was easy. I guess Dark Regulus is even stronger against dragons than I thought.’
Spike VS Chunk
Spike lazily dodged and swerved around the larger build dragon, staying on the tips of his toes and smirking as every punch and strike he threw hit their marks on the heavier drake. Spike wasn’t even bothering to use his magic, the brown dragon proving to be a joke compared to the sparing matches he’s had with his guildmates.
Chunk meanwhile, while cautious, was all but fuming in frustration as they smaller built Spike continues to make a fool out of him. He wasn’t even using whatever he used against Garble!
Spike eventually released a yawn as he stopped in his tracks and caught the opposing drakes clubbed tail mid-swing, barely moving an inch from the blow.
“Alright, I guess that was a long enough break.” Spike mutters before smirking and pulling. Chunk yelped as he was suddenly lifted off his feet and swung around by the tail, Spike smirking all the while.
“I’m going to hurl!” Chunk manages to yell, barely holding himself back from launching his lunch as he was rapidly spun around in a circle. Spike eventually stopped by spotting Garble and Frost and letting go of Chunk, the drake flying right into his boss and friend. The trio were left in a scaly heap of pain, Garble unfortunately being stuck on the bottom. Spike wiped his claws against each other, feeling very satisfied at beating a bunch of dragons.
The ponies that had gathered to watch were all left slack jawed at the aftermath of the fight between the dragons and a couple of wizards. The remaining dragons weren’t that much better, Amber and the other dragoness just staring at Spike in shock, awe, and possibly a small, atomically small, amount of arousal.
Fizzle shook his head and walked up to the younger drake.
“Jeez Spike. Since when did you get this awesome?” The pale pink dragon question, looking over his ‘friends’ with pity as Azure and Twilight tossed their opponents onto the pile of dragons. That question momentarily threw Spike off before he recomposes himself.
“About two or three months ago. Hey, learning Dragon Slayer Magic can apparently cause one to go through a growth spurt. Who knew?” Spike replies with a shrug. Fizzle and the other three dragons tilt their heads curiously at the younger dragon.
“So, are you going to try and fight us too?” Rarity questions, creating a small mirror behind her back just in case.
“Hmmm....nah. Honestly the only reason the three of us are here is because that red idiot is my cousin and he said he could get us a bunch of gems for snacks.” The black and grey dragoness states. “I’m Laruma by the way. And the dolt next to me is Beat.”
“Shut up Larlar.” ‘Beat’ growls in annoyance, earning a smack in the head by the now named Laruma. The wizards look at them with raised brows.
“Are those two together?” Azure questions.
“No, but those two have been ‘rivals’ since they were hatched, so they always fight with one another over the smallest things.” Amber sighs, watching at the duo begin to wrestle with one another.
“Oookkkayyy. So....Fizzle!” The pink drake jumps at Spike’s call. “How have things been in the Dragon Lands?”
“Eh, boring and annoying. After the migration Garble has been even more irritable that before. Honestly I was planning on bolting after this last failed raid. Frost and I nearly got eaten by an older dragon for trying to steal from his hoard when he was supposed to be bathing.” The wizards wince in pity for what the drake went through, Twilight in particular remembering when she and her friends had to get a dragon to move from its cave.
“Yeah, that sucks. So, what now?” Azure questions.
“Well I don’t know about the others, but I am not looking to fight with someone with the title ‘Dragon Slayer’. So I’m good.” Fizzle states, staying in the air with his wings.
“Yeah, I am with Fizz.” Amber mutters, deadpanning at the still wrestling Beat and Laruma.
Spike goes to comment, before a low growling earns all their attentions, even those of the distracted dragon duo. They watch as the pile of dragons before them shifts as the unconscious dragons are pushed away. Eventually Garble becomes visible, but he is not really paying attention to them, and continues to growl, slowly getting louder.
“Uh, boss?” Fizzle questions with worry, stepping behind Spike.
“Garble....Want.” He growls out, before they hear a loud crack, and see Garbles wings grow a bit.
“Garble...WANT!” He repeats, his arms and legs gaining muscles and his spines getting sharper. Spike’s eyes widen as he realizes what’s happening.
“Oh crap. Greed Growth!” Spike shouts in alarm as the red drake continues to grow. The ponies that gathered all begin to panic as Garble already has grown to be eleven feet tall, nearly twice as big as Spike.
“Everypony take cover!” Azure commands, the ponies not wasting any time and heading into town to hide. Meanwhile the conscious dragons drag their unconscious ‘friends’ out of the way and to the nearby wooded area. Eventually Garble stopped growing, but that didn’t really calm anyone down as he was now three stories tall, and actually looked a lot like the dragon Twilight encountered. Maybe it was his dad or something?
His roar especially didn’t help, the large dragon having lost all reason and only had one target; take what was his.
“And now I am starting to regret coming along.” Rarity deadpans, staring up at the large dragon.
“Well this is what we signed up for, so get over it Rarity.” Spike states, lighting his hands with his sparkling green fire. Without warning Spike launched himself up to Garble’s face and pulled his arm back.
“Emerald Dragon Shattering Fist!”
The attack does make Garble stumble for a moment, before the enraged dragon roars and unleashed a breath of fire on the tiny-to-him drake. Spike didn’t flinch, his scales protecting him easily against the flames. Though his shirt was destroyed.
“Damnit that was one of my favourite shirts! Emerald Dragon Shining Blaze!”
Back on the ground the ponies and dragons were watching in awe as the young drake took on the mountainous dragon, stunned by the newfound bravery Spike is showing.
“Ok, wow. Since when was Spike such a badass?” Fizzle questions the mares.
“Probably around the time he got his wings.” Twilight mutters, unsheathing her sword. “But he won’t be able to beat Garble on his own. Dark Ecriture Pain! Wings!”
Just as the four beams of magic fly up and hit Garble’s arm, the drake feeling like he is getting pinched, four purple and blue wings appear on Twilight’s back and she launches herself up to her draconic brother. Azure follows close behind, leaving Rarity with the dragons.
“Hey, is he single?” Laruma questions Rarity, the white mare sputtering at the blunt question before yelping and running back as Garble nearly steps on them.
“What kind of question is that?! He is twelve for Celestia’s sake!” Rarity admonished, running to take cover with the dragoness.
“So? I’m fifteen, but because I went through a greed spurt I am physically and mentally in my twenties, and Spike seems to be around the same.” Laruma points out, flying and hiding on the top of the building they were next to. “Besides, it doesn’t seem like you have many complaints about him!”
Rarity blushes before shaking her head and watching the fight, seeing Spike, Twilight and Azure flying around the larger dragon while attacking with their magic when they can.
“Pitch Black Hammer!”
“Emerald Dragon Shattering Fist!”
The two smashing attacks hit Garble in the face, the drake growling in mild pain as he stumbles back a few steps. Twilight flies around him to his back, aiming her spell at his wings.
“Dark Ecriture Destruction!”
The wide arcing beams of magic wrap around Garbles wings before bursting, Garble roaring in pain as he feels the nerves of his wings being destroyed, the webbed appendages going numb and laying on his back. He turns and tries to swipe at Twilight, but the mare effortlessly flew around him and out of range.
’Another mental note; thank Lex for the Dark Ecriture flying lessons.’
“Damnit, this is taking longer than I thought.” Spike says through gasps, trying to regain his breath from all the magic he was using as well as flying around. He hovered still for a moment, trying to get his breath back, but Garble noticed and smirked, before raising his clawed fist above him.
“Spike move!” Azure yells too late as Garble throws his fist at Spike, the purple drake not being able to dodge and being send flying into the mountain, just above the entrance to the mine.
“Spike!” Rarity, Amber and Fizzle rush to the fallen wizards side, Twilight and Azure giving their all to keep Garble from destroying the town. The trio arrive at the crater, Spike’s feet and claw sticking out of the wall he was embedded in.
“Owwww.” Spike grumbles, Amber and Fizzle flying up to him.
“Well....at least your alive.” Amber mutters lamely, Spike managing to give her an annoyed glare as Fizzle and Rarity dig him out of the wall. Once he was out, the lost balance and fell face first into the earth below.
“Why?” Spike mutters, his snout stuck in a hole before he pushed himself up. The trio rush down to him, seeing the bruises slowly forming on his skin, and the cracks in some of his scales.
“Oh that’s not good. I think you might need to rest for a second Spike.” Fizzle advises. Spike just growls and gets back to his feet, flapping his wings in an attempt to get the dirt off and then airborne again.
“No time. I may be low on magic, but that doesn’t mean I am going to stop until this town is safe. That’s my job right now.” Spike declares, trying to get all the loose dirt off his wings, going to a knee with a groan as he feels over his chest, feeling one of his ribs are cracked.
Rarity shakes her head in worry, looking around for something that could help out, before something popped into her mind, something Lex had informed all the members about not long after everyone gained their magic abilities.
“Wait a minute. Dragon slayers can replenish their magic and slightly heal themselves when they eat their elements.” Rarity mutters, Fizzle and Amber overhearing her. Her expression lights up along with her horn as she uses the same spell that earned her her Cutie Mark. Slowly, a magic aura sweeps over the area, several spots remaining lit up as the wave of magic passes over them.
“Quick, we need to grab as many emeralds as we can and give them to Spike!” Rarity tells the other two dragons, looking around to some of the spot and moving the dirt and rocks with her magic. Amber and Fizzle look to one another and shrug before following the mares direction, digging up several gems from the spots she highlighted.
Spike was trying to figure out how to beat Garble, watching as the other two mares were struggling to keep the large dragon out of the town, when he caught a scent. A very familiar, earthly scent that made his mouth water slightly. Turning to the others, he sees as Fizzle, Amber and Rarity bring over several armfuls of different coloured gems. But the thing about them, was each one was a type of emerald, each of varying sizes and shapes.
“What?” Spike states, the trio laying the gems on the ground next to him.
“Well, I recommend eating up Spike. Hopefully this will give you enough energy to take down Garble.” Rarity says, panting slightly from the use of so much magic so quickly. Spike looks to her her and the dragons with surprise before nodding with determination and grabbing a handful of the gems before stuffing it into his mouth, the gems shattering in his mouth like hard candy. After a minute Spike consumed the pile, and took a breath, the trio looking to him with a little worry as nothing happens.
Spike then looked up, and they saw his smirk.
https://m.
Spike suddenly roared, the sound reverberating through everyone nearby. Rarity, Fizzle and Amber watched in awe as Spike’s scales seemed to realign and fix themselves before becoming harder and shiny not unlike the gems he just gorged himself on. Magic was bursting around him, an emerald light causing enough of a commotion to earn the attention of every pony and dragon in the town.
Spike stopped roaring and smirked to himself, raising his slightly larger wings, and with a mighty beat, was send flying through the air like a purple and emerald missile. Twilight and Azure barely had time to think about what that was before Spike appeared before Garble with his fist pulled back, the limb shining like a gem with emerald fire and electricity wrapping around his arm.
“Emerald Dragon Shattering Bolt Fist!”
The sound of thunder ripped through the air as Spike slammed his arm into Garbles chest, and to everyone’s shock, sending the large dragon off his feet and into the air for a few second before he fell on the forested area nearby. Everyone’s jaws got acquainted with the ground as Spike quickly flew over the recovering dragon.
Garble growled loudly and got to his feet as Spike appeared above him, with his leg raised high, the same emerald bolts and flames wrapping around his leg like a serpent.
“Emerald Dragon Carving Talon!”
Garble roared in pain as Spike’s attack ripped through his scales like wet paper, the slashing leg attack leaving a large (to Spike) gash on Garbles shoulder. The red drake tried to grab Spike, but the smaller drake was flying faster than he had ever before, almost coming close to Lex’s speed.
“SSPPIIIKKKKEEE!” Garble roared in frustration, and tried to torch Spike with his fire breath, the smaller drake easily flying around the torrents of fire. Spike the gains a serious expression and begins to quickly fly in a circle around Garble. The larger drake began to gain a feeling of dread as Spike flew faster and faster, becoming nothing by a green and purple blur around him.
‘No way, I won’t let it happen! I refuse to be beaten by some pony loving loser!’ Garble thought angrily, but it was too late as Spike roared.
“Dragon Slayer Secret Art! Gemstone Tempest!”
With that, a veritable cyclone of multicoloured gems surrounded the large dragon, each shard as hard as diamond and as sharp as razors, whirling around and slashing the drake. Garble roared in pain once again as he felt his skin and scales being slashed to bits, his own greed taking a back seat to self preservation as he curled up on himself, trying to fight through the pain. He didn’t notice as he began to shrink before he lost his footing and was send spiralling into the centre of the cyclone. Eventually the pain became too much as Garble blacked out, about three seconds before Spike lost control of his spell, the cyclone and shards disappearing and leaving only several hundred gems and two dragons.
(End music)
Everyone’s eyes were the size of dinner plates as they looked at the aftermath of the fight, seeing uprooted and destroyed trees, several holes where gems were ripped out of the ground to be used by the spell, some scales and blood from the formerly giant Garble and of course, the exhausted and panting Spike hovering about two dozen feet in the air.
Spike was tired, trying to get his breath back. He had never used such a powerful spell before, it was just a fluke he thought of in the middle of the fight. He knew he would be getting an earful later from Twilight and maybe Lex. That wasn’t important right now though. What was though, was the fact he was so tired his wings were beginning to beat out of sync and he was losing altitude quickly. He could barely process it.
“Spike!” His friends called in worry as they see him beginning to fall. Azure and Twilight were about to fly up, but were beaten to it as they see Laruma fly up and catch the falling drake.
Spike felt as a pair of arms and claw wrapped around his chest, and managed to look behind him to see Laruma slowly lowering them to the ground. For a moment, their eyes locked, and Laruma gave an impressed smirk and wink. Spike just chuckles weakly.
The wizards and dragons all rushed over to where the duo were landing, Spike managing to stay upright for a second before tipping over. Luckily Fizzle ran up and threw the younger drakes arm over his shoulder.
“Alright. It’s official. You are the most badass dragon I have ever seen.” Beat states in a monotone, matter-of-fact tone as Fizzle helps Spike over to sit on a stump. Behind him, Amber and Azure nods, while Laruma smirks and flicks out her tongue. Rarity glares at the dragoness, while Twilight checks over Spike’s injuries.
“So, what do we do about them?” Azure questions, pointing to the five unconscious drakes. The ponies look to one another in contemplation, while several members of the community come by.
“You don’t have to worry about them.” Everyone turns to Beat. “We’ll bring them back to the Dragon Lands for you guys. We’ll also spread word that this place is off limits to dragons, just so this kind of thing doesn’t happen again.”
“Can you really manage that?” Mayor Obsidian questions sternly. Beat nods.
“My father was a member of the old Draconic Guard before it was disbanded half a century ago. Even though it was so long ago, his word still carries weight.”
Slowly, Obsidian nods as he looks over the remaining dragons grabbing their ‘friends’ and beginning their trek to the dragon lands. He then turns to the four wizards, who are smiling to their draconian member.
“Now then. I think it would be best we talk about your payment. And the amount I’ll be taking out of it for damages.” Obsidian says sternly, shocking the quartet. They then take a better look around.
They see all the broken trees, all the holes in the area, one destroyed bar, a couple of broken houses, a few damaged storefronts, and of course, all the still burning fires around the area. The four of them turn to one another, and sigh. Spike eventually says what they were all thinking.
“Well, it looks like Lex is going to be killing us when we get back.”
Spike POV
Two days later....
I sigh to myself as I lean against the wall of the coaling station, wincing as I reflexively spread my wings. All things considered, we got off easy.
We lost nearly half our reward money to pay for the damages done to the town as well as my medical expenses. While I was recovering Rarity, Azure and Twilight were all but forced to help out around the town with repairs and stuff. And then we got some complaints for Lex about Rarity whining and trying to change the miners outfits to look more pretty, so that happened.
It took a full twenty four hours before I was good to leave, and even then my left arm was in a sling with several bandages around my chest as they found I broke three of my ribs, as well as cracked one of my bones in my right wing and suffered from a minor concussion. But hey, I survived, and I have a new story to tell the kids back at the guild.
Anyways, the four of us were waiting at the coaling station, our train home was scheduled to arrive in about fifteen minutes, so we had time to relax before the train ride back. Though, I am not sure how much relaxing we would be getting as we hear a voice calling out to us.
“HEEEYYYY!!” The four of us look around, before looking up slightly, seeing Laruma, Amber and Fizzle flying over.
“Fizzle? With Amber and Laruma too? What are you three doing here? Shouldn’t you be back in the dragon lands by now?” I question, walking over to the dragons with the girls. The trio of dragons land and brush themselves off slightly before I notice that Amber and Fizzle have large backpacks on and Laruma has some kind of suitcase.
“Well we made it most of the way before Chunk and the others woke up again, so Beat said he could handle taking them the rest of the way on his own. And....well this is going to sound really awkward....but would it be possible for the three of us to join your guys guild?” Laruma says, surprising the four of us.
“I mean, it really isn’t up to us, but I don’t think it would be a problem.” Twilight mutters.
“Yeah, and besides, it would be cool to have a few more none-ponies as members of the guild. It shows how diverse and accepting the guild it to have a bunch of other races as members.” Azure adds, nodding to herself. Rarity was oddly silent, and I noticed her stare, almost glaring, at Laruma and Amber. Mostly at the former though. I just raised my brow before shaking my head, almost getting a headache from the action.
“Like they said, while it isn’t in our control, I don’t think Faekage Lex would mind having a few more dragons join the guild. But you have to be aware that the guild isn’t like some fillies school club or, magic forbid, a cult. We’re all a team, we’re all family and that means we look out for each other. You guys won’t last long in the guild if you only look out for yourselves.” I warn. The three dragons stay silent for a second before Amber walks up with a determined glint in her eyes.
“I’m in. I wanna see what Equestria is like, and I also wanna see what being a wizard is like. Who knows, maybe I’ll surpass you Spike.” She was trying so hard to sound tough, it was adorable! I just laugh and pat the shorter dragoness head causing her to pout.
“Maybe, but you’ll need your own magic first. Who knows, you three may end up creating your own magic before long.” I say with a grin, the trio nodding in determination. We get interrupted by the whistle of a train as the steam engine pulls up to the station.
The four of members look to the dragons behind us, and we all motion forwards, the seven of us heading into the train. I smile as we all get situated in the cabin. Guess this is how Lex felt when she found the employees all those months ago. I am not going to lie, it was a good feeling.
The feeling of an accomplished leader.