Bonus Chapters: Stories of Cyan and Lumina's Friends

Bonus Chapter 3: The Legend of Blaze the Dragon Buster; Part 3

I treated myself to the gems Uncle Golick had gave me as dessert once I finished dinner and got to my room. It was incredible how different each of those gems tasted, but in the end, I found that I liked emeralds the best. With that in mind, I slept until the following morning where my family and I were working on the garden as usual. What happened afterwards was different than what I had anticipated, but I realized I forgot Pops had a day off from coaching that day. Same goes for Mom giving me a day off from homeschooling.

“So what are you two going to do for your day off?” I asked while the three of us were having breakfast.

“Well sweetie, your father and I realized we haven’t spent very much time with you lately,” Mom responded. “So the two of us decided to spend the day doing whatever you want the three of us to do.”

“Whoa for reals?!” I asked with excitement.

“It’s the truth champ,” Pops replied while rubbing my mane. “Your mother and I love you very much Blaze, and I’m sorry I haven’t spent more time with you as a father than I should have. I may be training ponies to be great racers, but no one will ever replace my number one son. I know I haven’t said it very much, but it’s the truth.”

“Aww, thanks Pops,” I responded with a grin and a chuckle. “So we’re gonna do whatever I want to do today?” I asked for clarification.

“That’s right Blaze,” Mom answered.

I looked up and hummed in thought while I try to come up with ideas to spend the day. “Anything good going on in town?” I asked.

“I hear there’s a bit of a festival going on in town today,” Pops answered. “There will be a lot of gem and rock related items and events going on as it’s the theme for the occasion. I think there’s even a bit of a tournament going on with a really nice gem as the prize as well.”

Whoa! That’s a lot of gems! Hey! Maybe I can get something for Uncle Golick while I’m there! Plus I could watch some sweet fighting moves to help me get started training to be a Dragon Buster!

“Can we go to the fair then? Can we? Pleeeeeease?” I pleaded.

“Sounds good to me. What about you Pepper?” Pops asked Mom.

“I’ll be happy to come along,” she replied.

“YES!” I exclaimed while pumping my fist in the air. “Well let’s finish breakfast and get going then! I don’t want to miss the tournament especially!” I declared before I quickly scarfed down the rest of my breakfast.

“Alright alright, take it easy champ,” Pops said. “The festival won’t be going anywhere for a while today. We also have plenty of time before the tournament starts.”

“Try not to choke on your food as well okay sweetie?” Mom asked, to which I nodded and finished what I had left with a big gulp.

“I’m gonna brush my teeth and get ready to go,” I said before I excused myself from the table and went to the bathroom.

After a couple minutes of cleaning myself up, I changed into my open black vest and beige shorts, and latched the empty pouch my uncle gave me before I went back to the kitchen, and helped clean the dishes so we could get to the festival faster. The next couple of minutes were agonizing as I waited for my parents to get ready for our day before we finally left the house.

“So what have you been doing while I’m in the city Blaze? Have you made any new friends?” Pops asked as we walked.

“Besides the one I made years ago? Nah,” I responded.

“You seem to talk a lot about him over dinner from time to time,” Mom pointed out. “Will we be able to see him?”

“I don’t know…” I replied. “He has a bad streak of running into rude ponies during his time, and besides me who came up on accident, he’s hesitant to see other ponies to hang out with. I’d like to introduce you guys to him, but I don’t think he’s ready yet.”

Mom nodded in response before she answered. “Well he sounds to be a nice pony from the sounds of it, and as long as you aren’t getting yourself into too much trouble because of him, he’s okay in my book. I’d love to meet him sometime when he’s ready.”

“I was actually thinking of getting something for him while I’m at the festival today,” I added. “He’s really into gems, but too shy to go out into public. I thought it would be nice to bring back some kind of souvenir for him to have.”

“How nice. Then I guess we’ll have to get something good to give him that’s from all of us,” Mom said. “It’s the least we could do to give thanks for giving you company.”

“Thanks Mom,” I replied with a big smile.

We got to town a couple minutes later before we went to the main road that was lined up with stands. On each side of the street, they had food, and many gem and rock-themed products like jewelry, art pieces, silverware, clothes, and others. Of course, there were some stands that even just sold gems by themselves. My mouth was watering a little just imagining how some of these gems I haven’t tried yet tasted. We decided to buy a gem for Uncle Golick as the last thing before we left, so we took the opportunity to enjoy what the festival had to offer. Awesome music was playing, there was a contest for who had the best gem-themed art piece in the fair, got some great tasting food for lunch before we went to town square where the tournament was taken place. I had to try and not to get too excited from how awesome some of the fights were to take great focus. I wanted to take mental notes on how the winning ponies fought so I could learn how to do them myself, and train to be a Dragon Buster.

After the tournament ended and had dinner, we took a look around the stands to find a great souvenir for Uncle Golick to have. “You look like you were really into those fights back there champ,” Pops said as we walked. “Have you thought about taking it up as a sport?”

“Something like that, yeah,” I responded as I browsed what the shopkeepers had on display. I couldn’t tell them that I wanted to train to be a Dragon Buster, at least not yet at the time. I thought they might get worried that I want to do something so risky, if them knowing I have a dragon as my best friend/uncle wasn’t enough.

“Well there are some classes to teach you how to fight in town,” Pops continued. “Would you want to take part in it?”

“Would I?!” I asked while I turned around and smiled with glimmer in my eyes. “I’d love to take that up! Can I do it? Can I?!”

“What do you think honey?” Pops asked as he turned to Mom.

“I’m a little uncertain about this,” Mom admitted. “He’s grown pretty strong while working in the fields, sure, and taking something like that could be an opportunity to make some new friends… Oh why not? If Blaze is willing to move forward with it, then I don’t mind.”

“We’ll have to come back tomorrow and see if we can get you enrolled then,” Pops said as he turned back to me. “That okay with you champ?”

“That would be AWESOME! Thanks guys!” I exclaimed while I hugged them both. “Okay, let’s get that gift and head home. Could I stop by my friend’s place to give it to him before I settle in?”

“Sure thing sweetie,” Mom replied before we got back to browsing around the stands.

We ended up getting a yellow sapphire that was the size of my fist a couple minutes later. I put it in the pouch Uncle Golick gave me for safe keeping before we were on our way back home after a great day at the festival. As we left the city boundaries, my smile of anticipation from giving the gem to Uncle Golick faded away as I saw black smoke rising from the direction where our house was. “W-what?” I asked as I was confused on what was going on over in the distance.

“Oh no…” Mom said before the three of us began to sprint to the direction of the fire. As we ran, I heard roars that gave me more concern as I might have an idea on what may have caused the fire. When we got close enough, we saw that the house we once lived in was ablaze while off to the side, two large creatures were in a fight. One of those creatures’ silhouette was familiar, and the thought made my whole body tremble.

“UNCLE GOLICK!” I screamed before I sprinted to the scene of the fight.

“BLAZE! WHAT ARE YOU DOING?!” Pops yelled before he and Mom followed.

When I got to the scene, I was horrified for probably the first time in my life, if not, for Celestia knows how long since the last. Uncle Golick’s scaled body was covered in scorch marks, and fresh gash wounds while blood was still oozing from the openings. The jade colored dragon with red horns, wings, and spines he was fighting also had the same damages on his scales, but not as much as my uncle’s. The two of them were locked in each other’s arms, trying to overpower each other with strength before Uncle Golick glanced over and saw me and my family that were watching from a distance. “BLAZE! You have to get out of here while you still can!” He roared. The moment of distraction was enough for the jade dragon to pierce its sharp talons deep into Uncle Golick’s underbelly before he roared in agonizing pain, which left me stood stiff frozen in fear. The jade dragon then picked him up, and tossed him to the forest where he crashed into some trees that were already torn due to the destruction of their struggle.

“You have grown weak Golick!” The jade dragon exclaimed as he slowly walked over to my friend that was lying down. “I expected more out of you, but I guess even you can’t escape from old age.”

“Blaze, we gotta get out of here!” Mom said while gripping my shoulders. Her voice was enough for me to snap out of it before I shook off of her grip and turned to my parents.

“NO! I have to help my friend somehow!” I replied.

“THAT’S the friend you were talking about?!” Pops yelled.

“YES!” I answered. “And I don’t care what you say about him! Uncle Golick has been the best friend I’ve ever had, and I’m not gonna leave him like this!” I ran over to my friend who was lying on the torn down trees. I picked up some large rocks along the way before I stood before the jade dragon and started chucking them to his face and wounds. “HEY! Stop hurting my friend you bastard!”

“What’s this?” He asked before he turned and looked down to me. “And who are you puny pony?”

“I’m the Dragon Buster, Blaze Fullthruster!” I replied loudly. “And if you don’t stop hurting Uncle Golick, then I’m gonna make you sorry that you did!”

The bastard dragon gave a haughty laughter before he responded. “You pathetic pony dare challenge a dragon such as myself? You must have some death wish if you’re this foolish enough to approach me. And to think your kind is something so pathetic for Golick to protect!”

“Don’t you DARE spit in Uncle Golick’s name!” I exclaimed angrily. “He’s the best friend I’ve ever had, and he’s a far greater dragon than you’ll EVER be!”

“B-Blaze… Run… Please,” Uncle Golick said painfully.

“You are foolish to think Golick is a superior dragon,” he sneered. “He’s a disgrace of our kin, and should be removed for bringing ideas to cooperate and make peace with your pathetic kind. It’s that foolish thinking that has made him so weak to begin with,” he then kicked and dug the talons on his feet into Uncle Golick’s stomach, which made him cry in pain once more before the attacker repeated.

My nose flared and my teeth gritted as I tensed up in anger from watching the bastard hurting my friend. I rushed in without thinking before I got to the end of the attacker’s tail, and bit it down as hard as I could, which got him to stop and scream in pain.

“Why you puny little brat!” The dragon exclaimed in anger before he turned, crouched down, and was about to grab me until…

“KEEP YOUR FILTHY CLAWS AWAY FROM MY SON YOU BRUTE!” A voice yelled which stopped the dragon mid-way, and turned his gaze to the source. It was Mom standing from a distance with a slingshot and a small pouch that was pulled back by the rubber. “Have a taste of my chili pepper powder!” She exclaimed before she shot two pouches, and they exploded in a red dust in front of the dragon’s exposed eyes before he screamed in pain.

“My eyes! My eyes! They burn!” He cried while rubbing his eyes.

“There’s more where that came from!” Another voice yelled, which was Pops that flew fast over me with a javelin in hand. “TAKE THIS!” He roared before he went and pierced one of his exposed eyes. The dragon’s eye spurted blood before he cried from a more painful experience from before.

“Mom! Pops!” I exclaimed happily as they came in and gave me a tight hug. “But why are you doing this?”

“You think we’re just gonna stand by and let our son do all the fighting?” Pops asked with a smile as he ruffled my mane.

“We just need to help the yellow one right?” Mom asked. “If he’s your friend, and apparently your uncle, then he’s welcome to be a part of our family. I think just him telling you to get away earlier was enough for me to know how much he cares for you.”

“Now how about we show that bastard what happens when he messes with the Fullthrusters huh?” Pops asked as he took out a few more javelins from a quiver he was carrying on his back and handed them to me.

“YEAH!” I exclaimed with determination and confidence. The three of us then got to work in trying to subdue the jade dragon. He pulled out the javelin that was in his eye, with blood still leaking out of his closed eyelid before he roared in anger. I chucked the javelins I had to his underbelly, while Mom shot more chili pepper powder shots on his open wounds to give him a burning, irritating itch. Pops was flying around the beast while piercing more javelins in his wings. They looked to be the most sensitive considering how the beast roared in pain while he tried to smack my pops in the air with frustration.

“ENOUGH!” The dragon yelled in anger before he reached down, and grabbed Mom. She screamed as she was lifted from the ground, now inside the dragon’s grip.

“MOM!” I exclaimed.

“LET GO OF MY WIFE YOU BASTARD!” Pops yelled angrily before he zipped down towards the dragon, which looked like it was something he had planned as he held up his other claw, and closed it into a fist once he caught him.

“You puny ponies are becoming a real nuisance,” the dragon sneered as he brought my parents up to his eye level. “I’m going to crush you until I squeezed every ounce of life out of your pathetic bodies,” he then did as he said by tightening his grip, which got my parents screaming from the bone crushing pain that I could hear from below them.

“MOM! POPS!” I screamed.

“B-Blaze… Run,” Pops said in pain. “D-Don’t worry about us… Get out of here, now…”

“No matter what happens to us,” Mom added in with the same, pain taking tone. “Live…”

“HOLD ON! I’LL GET YOU DOWN! I’M NOT GOING ANYWHERE WITHOUT YOU GUYS! UNCLE GOLICK TOO!” I protested with tears welling up in my eyes as I took one of the javelins, and tried to jab the dragon’s tough skinned hind legs.

“Blaze… Always remember this,” Mom said, barely holding onto what breath she had left. “No matter what you decide to do, your pops and I… Will always be proud of you… We’ll always love you too…”

“Blaze… Show the world… How strong you can be,” Pops added in. “You’ve got… The blood of incredible ponies in our family… Show the world… How incredible you can… Be…” Pops finished before he and Mom’s body fell limp, with no more signs of struggle shown.

“MOM! POPS!” I screamed with tears streaming out of my eyes while the dragon laughed haughtily.

“Don’t worry brat! You’ll be joining your parents, as well as that pathetic dragon soon!” The bastard exclaimed with sadistic glee before he took my parents bodies in one hand, and tossed them to the side like trash.

I stood there shaking greatly with a mixture of great sadness, fear, and anger for what was happening right in front of me. My parents were killed, Uncle Golick was gravely wounded, and couldn’t get up. My hooves instinctively ran to my uncle’s body, turned back to the enemy dragon that was coming toward us, and I stood in a defensive position with my teeth gritted. “Blaze… Don’t worry about me… You must go…” Uncle Golick groaned in pain.

“NO! I promised I would fight until my last breath, and I’m not gonna pull that back!” I exclaimed as I glanced back at him before I turned my attention to the dragon before me. “Why must you be like this?! Uncle Golick never did anything wrong to you, nor did my family before you burned our home down! Why can’t you leave us in peace?!” I asked in anger.

“The weak do not deserve to live puny pony,” he stated. “The way they want to live in peace like that failure of a dragon behind you, as if they can’t hold themselves up, and rely on others just shows how pathetic they really are.”

“YOU’RE WRONG!” I exclaimed in protest. “Fighting to bring peace and protecting others should make you stronger! It’s something actually worth fighting for than your damn superiority! And Uncle Golick is NOT weak for sharing the same goal as me! His wish for a beautiful world makes the flame inside of me burn bright. As long as that hope still exists, these flames will NEVER die, and the light will show the way to a brighter future!”

“Bah! Such big words for a small brat,” the dragon scoffed. “Enough talk! Burn within my own flames, and share the same fate as your family!” He exclaimed before he sucked in air greatly, preparing for a fire breath.

I sucked in my own air, preparing to scream my protest at the top of my lungs; however, there was something burning inside of me that was unfamiliar. It was warm before the heat rose, and spread up to my throat. The dragon blew a ruby red flame at the same time I screamed, and that was when the unthinkable happened...

“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!”

As I screamed, a large, red-orange flame burst from my mouth, and pushed against the dragon’s. I didn’t think what was going on, as all I wanted to do was scream loud and hard enough to at least scare him away. My flame spoke for me, as it pushed against the dragon’s, and overpowered it enough to engulf his head inside. The dragon roared in pain as I continued screaming every last bit of air out of my lungs while my flames continued to burn his head. He pulled back as my flames continued to burn and spread across is body before he lift himself up with his damaged wings, and flew away. He cried in pain some more as he retreated, my flames still making an effort to burn every last inch of his scales as the dragon’s roar slowly died down when he was far enough away.

My throat was getting strained as my scream died down, and my flame along with it before it disappeared. I fell to my knees as I breathed raggedly from exhaustion. “I… Can’t believe I… Did it,” I said with my voice cracked from my throat strained. Before I relaxed, I realized what was happening to Uncle Golick, and I quickly ran back to his head where it was lying on the ground. “Uncle Golick! You’re hurt! What do I do?! There aren’t any bandages around to stop the bleeding and!”

“Blaze,” he interrupted my panic attack before he continued. “It’s okay… My time in this world is nearly up, and I’m just glad that you’re alright. I’m sorry I couldn’t keep your parents safe though.”

“Don’t talk anymore!” I exclaimed with however much my throat could take. “There’s gotta be something I can do to get you to live longer! Umm... WAIT! I got food!” I quickly took my pouch, and pulled out the yellow sapphire we got from the festival. “Dragons need gems for nutrition right? My parents and I wanted to give this to you as a thanks for being my friend. Here, open your mouth and I’ll toss it in.”

Uncle Golick complied as he opened his maw enough for me to toss the gem inside, and he slowly chewed to savor the taste before he swallowed. “Thank you Blaze. It was really delicious.”

“It looked like it, especially since it was same color as your scale and flames,” I said before I chuckled while I wiped tears from my eyes. “By the way, out of the gems you gave me, I found emeralds to be my favorite in the end.”

“Ah yes, those are my favorite too,” he said. He coughed harshly after he made a few chuckles.

“Are you okay?” I asked with my ears folded.

“I’ll be fine soon Blaze,” he responded with a smile. “There’s something I want to give you as well. It was something I learned in my travels that I’m sure would help you become a great Dragon Buster like you want to be,” he then spoke something that seemed to be another language for a little bit before he sucked in some air, and gently blew his golden yellow flame at me.

I was shocked at first, but it didn’t burn like I thought it did. It was warm, almost comforting as the flame spiraled from my head to hooves around me while I floated in place. It stopped after a bit before it went straight into my mouth as I gasped in surprise. The warm feeling I felt earlier was getting inside me while I was experiencing this otherworldly moment. I felt my senses changing than what I thought was normal as my hearing, smell, taste, and sight was heightened. The strain on my throat was even feeling better before the last of Uncle Golick’s flames went inside me, and I gently floated down to the ground. I blinked, and checked my body’s functioning to see if they were still working properly as I adjusted to this new change inside of me. “U-Uncle Golick… What happened to me? I feel… Different,” I said with my voice now repaired.

“Remember how I mentioned dragons have a different type of magic compared to ponies?” He asked, and I nodded in response. “Basically, I used that to give what life I had left inside of me to you.”

“W-WHAT?!” I asked in a panic. “Why did you do that?! Now your time here will be shorter now, and I…” My eyes had shut tight, and started to well up in tears. “I don’t want to be alone…” I choked.

“Blaze, you will never be alone,” Uncle Golick argued before I opened my eyes in confusion. “A piece of me, my flames, is inside of you now, and it will always stay in there. No matter where you are, I will always be with you, and watch you grow into a strong Dragon Buster. Even if your flames start to dim, mine will help it glow brighter than it ever did before.”

“But what about seeing the world grow beautiful like you wanted?” I asked. “I promised that I would help build it into that world. I promised to protect good beings like you, Mom, and Pops, but I failed… I couldn’t save you, or my parents in the end. I’m not even sure if I can do it now if I can’t even do THAT right,” I looked to the side in shame with my teeth and fists gritted tight as I shook in anger and frustration with myself.

“Blaze… You did save me,” he interjected before I turned back to him in surprise. “From the day we first met, you’ve saved me from my hard time of loneliness. The smile you carried always brightened my day, and I can pass on with content after spending the last couple years of my life with a good friend and nephew. Thanks to you, the world I see now is beautiful once more, and I know you have what it takes to help maintain it.

“The loss of your parents is a great ordeal, and I apologize once more for not protecting them like I wanted to. Don’t carry the burden of their death though. From their last words I heard, I could tell they want you to live happily like you usually do, and they do not blame you for dying the way they did. I’m sure right now, they’re very proud of what you’ve just accomplished. They’ve always been proud of you. That, and their love will always stay true in the afterlife as they watch over you.”

At that moment, I couldn’t help but broke down crying as I hugged around Uncle Golick’s snout. “I love you Uncle Golick!” I chocked.

“I love you too Blaze,” he replied calmly with a smile. Soon after, strange light started to rise from his body as he seemed to slowly fade out. I gasped at the development, and my heart raced in a panic. “My time in this world is coming to a close,” he said with that same tone.

“N-no! You can’t leave now!” I protested while my tears still streamed down. “I need you! Where would I go?! How can I get through this alone without your guidance?!”

“I’m sure you’ll come across new friends who will help you find that direction,” he responded as more of the light rose from him, and he faded out more to where he was transparent, and I could barely see what was behind him. “Until then, like a dragon, follow where the first gust of wind directs you, and explore the towns and villages along the way until fate shows you your next direction. Take whatever you can carry from my cave, and use it wisely. Remember what I’ve told you up to now, and show the world how great a Dragon Buster you can truly be.”

“I-I will… I promise,” I said as I sniffled, and wiped off the tears with my arm. I tried to give Uncle Golick the biggest smile I could muster like how he always liked them with a few small chuckles.

“Now that’s the kind of smile that will brighten the world around you,” he said with a smile before even more light rose from him at a rapid pace, and his body faded out even more to where I could barely see him. “Ah… I can feel myself getting heavier and tired… It’s time for me to go… Thank you for making the last couple years of my life worth living.”

“A-anytime,” I cracked as tears welled up once more, but I tried to keep them down as much as I could. “G-good-bye… Uncle Golick…”

“Good-bye… Blaze Fullthruster…” He sighed before he closed his eyes, and his lips curled to a smile. Soon, he faded out completely, and I watched the last of his light rise to the sky, where I presumed heaven for dragons would be.

I fell to my knees on the grass as I kept staring up to the sky. Tears started to stream down once more as I clenched my eyes shut, and I roared to the heavens as loud as my repaired throat could let me like a dragon would, making my proclaim to the land as the first Dragon Buster in Equestria.