//------------------------------// // Deserts and Deathbeds // Story: Dragon's Bane // by Sazura //------------------------------// Do you desire something? Chase after it The horizon will not come to you ~~~ Shining Armour watched as the landscape beneath him unfolded. His thoughts drifted to his departure from Canterlot. And Cadence. She had not taken the news of him leaving well. He missed her terribly. An empty void filled his stomach, fuelled by the fact that Shining may not see his beloved for a long time. In the end, however, they both understood their positions. Shining had a duty to fulfil, as did Cadence. To either side of Shining, powerful wings assaulted the air as they strained to keep aloft the mighty dragon they were attached to. For lack of a better method of transport, Magna had allowed Shining to ride on his back for the duration of this journey. An offer Shining rather reluctantly accepted. The back of a dragon was not designed for ponies, and more than once Shining had almost slipped and plummeted to the ground. They had left the border of Equestria several hours ago, and had entered a region that was vastly uncharted by pony knowledge. The clouds moved and twisted on their own, dictated by wild and unruly winds. The expansive landscape unfurled from the horizon, vastly varying in its nature. A desert would connect to a rainforest, followed by a deep lake. Shining knew this was not an environment he was adapted to. After several more hours of flight, Shining began to notice a change in the air. It smelled like…emptiness. Ashes. Death. The land that rolled under him was black and scorched. A barren wasteland that stretched out as far as his eyes allowed. There was no life. Apparently they had arrived at their destination, because Magna and the others began to level into a slight descent. Shining Armour braced himself for the impact. Magna’s claws cracked the dried earth as he made contact with the ground. Shining quickly jumped down from the dragon’s back, glad to be back on some kind of stable ground. “So…what exactly are we looking for?” Shining asked. He examined the environment around him. It all looked identical. “The most favourable option would be an egg. If not…the King’s remains,” Magna instructed. “The King must have experienced quite a battle here…” said Leethum. “Do you mean…your King did this…?” Shining was bewildered. This scorched land must have expanded for several hundreds of leagues. “The previous King was often regarded as the most powerful, even among his fore bearers. Do you remember how I told you the members of the Lineage do not age regularly? The King’s mind was so ancient he would have dwarfed the mountain your capital city resides on,” Ahtrax said. The dragon paused for a second before continuing. “His fire also had the power of true death. Anything it touched would be obliterated from this world forever.” Shining shuddered at the thought of such a mighty creature. He could feel it in the atmosphere around him, now. There was indeed no trace of life anywhere. The air smelled dry and desolate, filled with an emptiness difficult to describe. Shining’s horn glowed, and he cast his mind at the cracked earth that lay underneath him, scanning for any sign of life. To his shock, no response was heard. There were no ants burrowing underneath, no roots attempting to penetrate the dry ground. Only barren emptiness. Without a word, the dragons began walking around the wasteland that surrounded them, occasionally taking to the air to gain the advantage of height. “Brothers…over there. What is it?” Leethum exclaimed suddenly. The other two dragons were still rooted to the ground, and were unsure of what Leethum was talking about. Magna hoisted Shining off the ground easily, and took to the sky to follow his companion. Shining’s eyes scanned the desolate landscape. On the horizon, he spotted something. A glint of white shone against the black backdrop. “Could it be…?” Ahtrax mused. A dark look had crossed his face. With silent agreement, the dragons accelerated towards the mystery object. Even with the speed of the dragons, it took almost an hour to reach their destination. Shining could see what it was now. And he was awed. There, slightly imbedded into the earth, was the largest skull Shining had ever seen. The inside of the jaw could have easily fit the entirety Canterlot Castle, and then some. Out of the ground beside it lay the skeletal figure of a gargantuan wing. The rest of the skeleton, Shining assumed, was buried in the lifeless earth. One thing was clear, however. The King’s skeleton had been recovered. “What could have killed him…?” Magna thought to himself. None of the dragons took the discovery with any sign of significant surprise, as if they were expecting this. Then Shining truly understood the extent of Magna’s question. The King was killed by something. Something even more powerful than this humongous creature, who had the ability to literally breathe death. I may be in over my head, Shining thought to himself. ~~~ Spike felt the ground beneath him rise and fall. This had awakened him from the uneasy rest he was attempting. His eyes opened, and he saw that the grass had turned a deep shade of blue. Gusts of wind met with his face as he struggled to understand what was happening. A giant black eye stared back at him as he sat up. “Augh!” he cried as he backed away. “It is reassuring that the sight of me is that terrifying, childling,” Koblat chuckled. A sound that resembled a small landslide. It was strange to hear the fierce dragon making any sort of noise that implied he had a sense of humour. Spike didn’t reply. He could see now he was on Koblat’s back, with the ground several hundred feet below him. The wind was from his wings as they worked to keep him aloft. “What are you doing?” Spike yelled. “…It is time we left the Everfree Forest. There is someplace I must see,” Koblat replied. Despite the current situation, Spike’s heart leapt at the mention of the forest. It meant that Ponyville wasn’t as far away as he thought. In fact, he was sure he could glimpse a town over the horizon. “Now...childling. Hold on tight. This will get very, very rough,” Koblat ordered. Spike could sense the seriousness in the other dragon’s words. As much as he hated to comply, he grabbed the nearest spike protruding from Koblat’s back and held on tightly, unsure of what was about to come. The landscape disappeared from under him. Wind blasted his face from all directions, and the rare moment where he could manage to strain his eyes open, he could see Koblat’s wings blurred with motion. The ground beneath him had transformed into a mix of colours, no single tree or building gathering any form of definition before being whisked away. Spike was sure of one thing. They were flying exceptionally fast. Except it felt like it was over in a flash. Koblat’s wings suddenly halted and caught the wind that he was battling. Spike was thrown forward off the dragon’s back, tumbling in the air. He panicked. His legs flailed, hoping to conjure solidity from the void that he was falling through. He saw a flash of blue, and found Koblat had caught him with one of his gargantuan claws. The pair landed safely, and Spike took the time to take in his surroundings. There was something wrong with this place Koblat had taken him. He found it difficult to describe. It just felt…empty. A scorched wasteland expanded itself around him. Despite this place being barren and desolate, Spike felt something resonate within him. “What are we here for?” Spike asked worriedly. “That is none of your concern, childling,” replied Koblat. With that cryptic answer, Koblat began walking forward. Spike hurried to keep up, knowing that if he somehow lost sight of his unwilling companion he’d be truly lost in this wasteland. He followed behind the larger dragon’s footsteps for the better part of half an hour, unsure of what their final goal was. Spike heard only the dull thud of his claws on the earth, and allowed the monotonous beat to lull him into a tired trance. He was broken out of his temporary state, however, when he noticed Koblat had stopped walking several meters behind him. He wore a scowling expression, his eyes darkening at something Spike could not see over the horizon. Without giving Spike time to ask, Koblat launched himself forward, picking the baby dragon with surprising grace, and once again they were penetrating the air with impossible speed. Spike managed to catch a glimpse of something white before being whisked away again. Koblat banked to the left, coming to a stop facing the mysterious object. Protruding from the ground was the largest skeleton Spike could possibly imagine. And standing next to it, was Shining Armour. Oh, along with another three dragons. ~~~ Shining Armour felt a brutal wind blow past the skeleton. For a second, he feared that the King had somehow resurrected. Rational though, however, told him that was impossible. Instead, another dragon of a deep sapphire blue hovered in the air above them. This dragon was even larger than Ahtrax. “Brethren, what are you named?” Ahtrax yelled at the mysterious dragon. “Shining, help me!” Shining looked around to locate the owner of that voice. It was one he had heard many times before. “Over here!” He looked up to see Spike wildly flailing his arms around, clasped inside one of the blue dragon’s huge claws. “Spike!? What…wait, we’ll get you down from there!” he yelled in reply. He wasn’t quite sure how exactly to help in this particular situation, however. “Answer the question, brother!” Ahtrax roared again. “My name is Ahtrax, leader of the dragon race, and I demand a name!” “I have no desire to give the likes of you my name,” rumbled the blue dragon in response. Despite feeling hostility emanating from this new dragon, Shining felt quite secure in the knowledge there were three dragons on his side. Ahtrax took to the air, allowing him to stare this other dragon dead in the eye. “Do you plan on defying me? Do you know what would follow?” Ahtrax threatened. “I am well aware,” the blue dragon simply replied, “and I invite you to try it.” Fire flew from Ahtrax’s mouth, propelling itself towards the unprepared dragon. Except, it never hit. The dragon simply vanished from the air, materializing behind Ahtrax. With a massive swipe, the dragon slammed his claw into Ahtrax’s side, knocking him into the dry earth with a thunderous boom. Magna and Leethum were taken by surprise as well. They had not expected Ahtrax to be beaten down so easily. As they too prepared to take into the air, however, the dragon disappeared again. Shining wasn’t sure how he was achieving that particular feat, but that was not the issue at hand. Ahtrax propped himself on his claws, gingerly taking care to not put too much pressure on his wounded area. “Brother, are you hurt badly?” Leethum growled. “A small injury. No matter.” Ahtrax had a look of shame in his eyes. “That dragon bested me easily. Who was that?” “Hey, I don’t really know if this the best time to bring this up, but he had someone very important with him,” Shining interjected. “Yes…” Magna pondered. “Could it be?” he directed this question at the two other dragons. “It seems we found what we came to Equestria seeking,” Ahtrax nodded. ~~~ Spike held on for dear life. Once again the landscape below him was a coloured blur, and Koblat showed no sings of slowing anytime soon. The scene he had just witnessed shocked him into a state of numbness, but the extreme speed he was travelling at didn’t allow him to process it. After what felt like an eternity, though it was more likely several minutes, Koblat landed on the earth next to a roaring river. Spike slid off the dragon’s back and collapsed into a heap on the soft riverbank. He could hear the sounds of Koblat drinking from the river, and didn’t bother to start interrogating him just yet, though hundreds of questions ran through his young mind. Eventually, however, their need to be answered eclipsed his fatigue. “So…what was all that?” Spike piped up. He wasn’t even sure if Koblat would tell him. “That place…holds significant value to me. I could not stand the thought of others soiling it,” Koblat answered. Still as cryptic as ever, but it was better than nothing. “Who were those dragons? And who did that skeleton belong to?” “I do not know those dragons. I would assume the one that attacked me holds the current dominance over our race. Rather pathetic, if I would say. He was weak. The matter of the skeleton…I will tell you another time, childling.” “Why did he attack you?” “Because I defied his order. Though he was weak, he owns the title of our race. Any defiance will be answered with force. It’s just the way of our race. Though I do not expect you to know that, being raised by ponykind.” “…Why do you know so much about me?” “Enough questions. Even I get tired.” Spike did not argue. Truthfully, the day’s events had also tired him out. He wanted to sleep so badly. To just curl up beside Twilight and allow her comforting warmth to wash away all his questions, fear and uneasiness. But no, he had no idea where she was right now. He knew she would be looking for him tirelessly, along with everypony else. Right now, though, they may as well not be. He felt moisture hit his face. He looked towards the sky to see darkening clouds above him. Slowly, the fall of raindrops increased, and had soon developed into a steady downpour. Spike allowed himself to lie on the wet riverbank, and finally succumb to the feelings he was keeping down these past few days. Tears flowed freely from his eyes as he cried for his home, his friends, Twilight, and the life he feared he might never return to. A frightful emptiness stood as a substitute for his friends. An empty void. Nothing else. Suddenly, a sapphire blue replaced the dark gray of the clouds. He looked over a Koblat. Silently, the massive dragon laid a wing above the weeping child. Spike could not see his face. He did not complain. It wasn’t as good as a warm bed and reassuring hugs from Twilight, but beggars can’t be choosers. He allowed himself to drift off to sleep. A flash of fire. A thunderous roar. A streak of silver claw. Two dragons battled each other in the gray sky, each attempting to bite, claw and burn their way to victory. One dragon was massive. Each roar escaping from his throat resembled a heavy thunderstorm. His fire was jet black, and burned even the air around him. The other dragon was smaller, coloured ruby red. Desperately winding his way around the other’s breath with amazing agility. Neither seemed to have the advantage. One was built for power, the other for speed. Spike continued to watch this battle of unknowns, unsure of when it would end, and what consequences the victor would bring ~~~ Twilight felt the hot sand burn her hooves. She was tired of these extremes. The group had left the Frostbitten Mountains several days ago. After their second encounter with the mysterious unicorn, it had taken the group another day to leave the arctic environment completely, and enter the next phase of their journey. The Dry Plains. The largest and driest desert charted by ponykind. Now, instead of blistering cold, they had to deal with scorching heat. Fluttershy was suffering particularly. Her burns had not yet completely healed, and she was worse off for it. Few words were exchanged between the group. There was nothing to talk about anyway. They were hell bent on achieving their goal. It was day three of the desert, and supplies were starting to run short. They had to somehow make it through the desert to the Fathom River before they ran out. The group walked on. Occasionally checking the map to ensure they were headed in the right direction. Getting lost now would endanger everything. “Hey, guys. Ya’ll reckon we should set up camp? Startin’ to get mighty cold around here,” Applejack suddenly piped up. She was right. The sun was starting to set, and the desert’s temperature dropped into the negatives without Celestia’s sun. Not wanting to deal with cold again anytime soon, Twilight and Rarity magically erected the tents, whilst Fluttershy and AJ prepared a simple dinner. Pinkie and Rainbow sorted out odd jobs here and there, not wanting to appear unhelpful. They sat around a magically conjured fire while the cold set in. Dinner was a simple affair of soup and bread. “Can you believe a mere two weeks ago we were enjoying a simple picnic in the park?” Rarity suddenly brought up. “Yeah…” Fluttershy answered. “Pretty cool we got to go on this camping trip, though,” Rainbow joked. Everypony looked at her in unison, unsure of how to take it. “Oh, come on, somepony help me lighten the mood a bit.” The spectrum maned prankster pony looked around the group in a disapproving manner. This elicited a small giggle from Pinkie. “I’m sure I can help with that,” she smiled. “Go ahead, Pinks,” Rainbow challenged. A loud bang erupted from behind Rarity, causing her to jump to her feet and collapse in a heap in the sand. Behind her, lay a small firecracker attached to a timer. “Kyaaahhh!” Rarity let out a piercing scream. This caused Rainbow and Pinkie to erupt into a fit of laughter. Bewilderment was rampant. The truth, however, eventually dawned on everypony. “Rainbow…Pinkie…were you two setting up pranks whilst we were setting up camp…?” AJ asked suspiciously. “Of course not. Not like you grumpy pants needed some cheering up or laughter or anything,” Pinkie giggled naughtily. She broke into another fit of laughter, joined by Rainbow shortly after. AJ, Twilight, Rarity and even Fluttershy found the humour in it eventually. For a few short hours after that, everypony found comfort from the small piece of home that Rainbow and Pinkie had managed to bring with them. ~~~ Rainbow hesitated in front of the tent. Inside, Twilight lay sleeping soundly. She wanted to catch her alone, but since the group were pretty much inseparable at this time, that wasn’t an option. She understood this wasn’t the appropriate time to worry about petty matters such as romance. She never even bothered with it back home. But her feelings could not be ignored and she wanted to continue their conversation from the mountains so badly. Slowly, Rainbow breathed out and unzipped the entrance to the canvas. “Hey, Twilight, you still up?” she asked, not expecting a coherent answer. It surprised her, then, when she heard Twilight’s voice reply. “Rainbow? What’s up?” “Umm…well…I just…wanted to talk for a bit.” “Sure…come in,” replied Twilight rather hesitantly. “You okay?” “Well…it’s just about…you know. I’m not sure if you remember when we were talking back at the cave.” “I remember, Rainbow. I wouldn’t forget something like that. I mean, you took away my first kiss, remember?” Rainbow was glad for the cover of darkness. Her cheeks had turned bright red. She was sure her face could have been used as a radiator right now. “I…sorry…?” “Don’t apologise. Like I said. I didn’t hate it.” Rainbow wasn’t sure what to say after that. She wished she could act like her normal self when it came to Twilight. Fearless. Confident. Everything that defined her as a pony. But no, Twilight’s presence seemed to disarm even the most fundamental things about her. “Rainbow, I’m cold,” Twilight said suddenly. Slowly, Rainbow processed the hint. She slipped into the sleeping bag next to Twilight, and wrapped her quivering wings around the unicorn as she had so many times before. Twilight responded in turn by turning to face the nervous pegasus, her own body shaking from the alien feeling of having another pony so close. Rainbow wasn’t sure what would come next. She couldn’t fall asleep now. She couldn’t relax. Her mind was racing with elation and dread. So she went with her gut. Did the only thing that made sense to her at that moment. Slowly, she closed her eyes and leaned towards Twilight, hoping to steal the unicorn’s second kiss. Their lips met halfway. Shock ran through Rainbow’s body. Bewilderment drove her to attack Twilight’s lips with greater ferocity, and as Rainbow continued, she felt Twilight give up what little resistance she had and allowed the pegasus entry. Passion burnt in Rainbows gut, and she held Twilight closer as she continued her assault. Twilight returned it in kind wrapping her own hooves around Rainbow’s shoulders and pulling her closer, the desire to explore Rainbow’s mouth overwhelming. The pair did not let go of each other, not tiring of the activity, their desire only increasing as time went on. Eventually, however it had to stop. They were getting a little too loud. Wouldn’t want to wake the neighbours. They simply lay in each other’s arms for a while, unsure of what would happen next. “Hey, Rainbow…we should do that again sometime.” “Yeah…agreed.” They fell asleep shortly afterwards, a new passion driving the newly born couple. Sadly, they were unaware of the dangers of the desert that were already upon them.