“Hey! Hey! Neltharion. Are you in there?”
Neltharion turned to glare at his friend, who had just started knocking on his head as if he were a door. His friend was a lithe dragon of the blue flight. His flight focused on performing magical feats of splendor. They were eccentric and known to be trouble makers. Neltharion’s own flight, the black dragon flight, were much more bulky and to the earth. “What is it, Malygos?”
“I was just wondering if you still dwelled in the land of the living.” Malygos said. “Ever since you woke up this morning, you’ve been acting unlike yourself…Did you die overnight? I have to know, because it would be so awesome if it turns out you’re a zombie. I’ve never met a zombie before, let alone a zombie dragon. I wonder if they prefer gems over brains.”
Neltharion tuned out his eccentric friend, as he focused on his flight pattern. The black dragon had a lot going on in his mind and his blue counterpart wasn’t helping. ‘If anything, he’s making it worse. I sincerely doubt the alicorns could stand his brand of antics long.’
The dragon had a lot to think about after all. He was the prince of all dragons, and soon to be king, lest his father miraculously heal his war wounds. ‘He could if he allowed the alicorns to help.’ He chuckled. ‘He’d never swallow his pride to allow that. He’d just say his ancestors would frown upon him if he did. History would remember him as a coward.’ History wasn’t too kind, and he knew it.
For the last several thousand years, Dragons and alicorns had waged war upon one another. Nobody remembered why, but hate and prejudice kept the war strong and alive. Only recently, with the Dragon Empire crumbling after its defeat and capital plundered, did the dragons surrender.
Neltharion frowned. He’d always wanted to do his share for his country, but his father never let him fight. He wanted his heir to live to a ripe old age. The black dragon scoffed. ‘I’m over two thousand years old. You’d think he’d let me out more.’
“...And then I said, ‘Emeralds? Are you kidding me?” Malygos said, to which Neltharion finally turned his head.
“Wait, what?” Neltharion said.
“You tuned me out…again.” Malygos complained, throwing his scaly hands up in the air. “Am I that boring? Please, tell me I’m not. I have a reputation to uphold.”
“No, my friend.” Neltharion started. “I’m just thinking about how I got roped into this.” He immediately thought of the terms of the peace treaty. As well as forfeiting a good chunk of their territory, they had agreed to a marriage so that they could strengthen their bonds. With him being the only heir to the dragon throne, it fell to him. Though, he was doubtful of an interspecies marriage, especially their two species, lasting or at least remaining happy.
“Isn’t it obvious? Your father got so impatient for you to lay something, that he settled with an alicorn.” Malygos said. “Though, I’ve heard she’s rather beautiful.”
Neltharion laughed. “I’ll believe that when I see her.” He sincerely doubted he would find his bride to be attractive.
“Oh, you say that now, but just you wait.” Malygos told him. “The moment you two look into each other’s eyes, you won’t think of anyone but them. That I’m willing to bet on.”
“Really?” Neltharion asked, raising an eyebrow. His blue friend nodded. “Then I accept that bet. If I win, then you have to keep quiet for a whole year.”
Malygos gasped. “A whole year!” He furrowed his brow. “Well then, if I win, I want to be your permanent babysitter.”
Neltharion stopped his flight in its tracks. “My dearest friend, I think it’s a little too early to be talking about hatchlings.”
“It’s never too early, my friend.” Malygos hovered by his side. Comparing the two, he was much smaller than his bulky friend. Though, his snout was longer and narrower, while Neltharion’s was small and more stout. “Well….” He crossed his arms.
“Fine.”
Flying through the massive cloud cover, the two dragons finally saw their destination. They couldn’t help but marvel at the city. Tall tower pierced the sky above. The structures were beautifully made, serving both practical and appealing aspects. Neltharion couldn’t help but feel a ting of jealousy. Draconic cities were far plainer. He made a mental note to himself. ‘When I rebuild our capital, it shall be far grander than Asgard could ever be.’
“Now, my friend.” The black dragon said. “I want you to be quiet. I’ll do all the talking.”
“What?!!” Malygos cried out.
“Hear me out. This is an important day for our races and I don’t want anything to go wrong.”
“I assure you, that nothing will.”
“What about the time you ‘intervened’ in the affairs of the draconic council?”
Malygos raised a single talon. “That was one time.”
“And that one time nearly caused a civil war that could have destroyed our culture as a whole.” Neltharion shot back.
Malygos grumbled and looked away. “Fine.”
“Thank you, my friend.” Neltharion smiled.
_____________________________________________________________
Within the largest tower of Asgard, which stood proudly in the center of the magnificent city, stood an old, grey Alicorn. The king of Asgard, and more importantly, all Alicorn kind, Odin. His short white mane was thick, but well kept. A metal eye patch covered his right eye, one of his many battle wounds. His armor, which was crafted from the hardest material known, shone brightly in the sunlight. All but his helm was worn, for that was still in his chambers. He needs it not for this instance.
With his good eye, the ancient stallion watched the two dragons descend upon his city. His wings fluttered a bit, ready to take off so as to engage the two in combat. A dozen killing spells and fighting techniques sprung into mind. He chuckled at himself. ‘Old habits die hard, as it appears.’
He knew that he couldn’t kill them. Not now anyways. Not with the impending union between the two races. He sighed. A part of him hated to see this day come. Naturally, he would have gladly continued the war until the Alicorns proved triumphant or were burned to ash. It was one way or the other. Of course, the politicians didn’t see it that way. Nor his own daughter.
His remaining eye grew misty. ‘My daughter.’ It was her that had arranged this marriage. She wanted nothing more than to end this conflict. He’d rather die a thousand deaths than see her with his sworn enemy, but she was adamant. He relented, but that didn’t mean he liked the idea.
“Father.” A voice said behind him. He looked back to see his eldest daughter walking up to him. He smiled. She was perfection. She had an azure coat, with a multi-hued mane, consisting of blues and purples. “Pray tell, is there any reason why you watch our guests from up above instead of greeting them in person.”
“You know as well as I that I’m not the most sociable pony.” Odin said, looking down once again. The two dragons had landed in front of the tower gates. “Besides, I believe most dragons would feel utmost uncomfortable in my presence.”
“As you would in theirs.” Hera put in.
Odin chuckled. “Yes, I would.” The two were silent for a moment. “You don’t need to go through with this, my daughter.”
“Yes, father.” Hera raised her head up high. “For the betterment of our race, I do.”
Odin sighed. He had tried on several occasions to persuade her otherwise. “If you insist.” He relented.
Hera smiled and kissed his cheek. “Thank you.”
“No Hera, thank you.”
“I best be off.” Hera said, turning around. “I need to show our guests some common Alicorn courtesy.”
_________________________________________________________________________
Neltharion planted his feet firmly into the ground. He knew he was scarring the pavement beneath, but he could care less. ‘Let the alicorns deal with it. I bet they’d love another chance to use their slaves.’
The two guards, clad in golden armor with spears in hoof, stood ready. When the dragon finally landed, the earth shook slightly, causing them to jump a bit, hovering in the air with their wings, before landing. He chuckled. The dragon enjoyed the knowledge that they feared him. He could tell they were looking for the smallest reason to oust him from the kingdom, for their horns glowed softly. A spell was formed in their minds.
“Is this how you treat your guests?” Neltharion said. “As I recall, it was your king who invited us over. So, don’t blame me for intruding.”
The two guards looked at each other, before looking over at the door. One of them walked over and inserted his horn into a small hole. His horn glowed brightly and something could be heard from within the door. The door started to open just as the guard took out his horn.
The other pointed inside. “You may enter.”
Neltharion inclined his head. “Thank you very much.”
“Wait!” The other guard yelled. “You two are far too large. I’m afraid I’m going to ask you to stay here.”
“I don’t think size will be much of a problem.” Neltharion grinned from ear to ear. Yes, he was five times the size of the alicorns before him, but he had a little trick up his sleeve. The two dragons started to glow brightly. The guards lowered their spears, thinking that this was some kind of trick. The dragon’s bodies started to shrink until they were about the size of the alicorns themselves. “There, problem solved.”
The alicorns mouth’s hung open. They nodded. Malygos couldn’t help but chuckle as they strolled on past. “Well done.”
“Oh, it was nothing.” Neltharion said. “Just a little draconic magic.” As the two walked, he couldn’t help but stare in awe at the infrastructure. Yes, the outside was impressive, but the inside was beyond anything he could imagine. Each room had a different pattern and setting. Beautiful shades of colors brought the place to life. Magnificent paintings were hung up on the wall. Self-portraits of the kings of old watched his every move. He felt the odd sensation that they were observing his every move, with such distrust.
Here and their, servants bustled about, trying to avoid him altogether. They looked upon him with immense fear. Neltharion didn't like that. These ponies, ponies of one race and mortal, were slaves to the alicorns from the very day they were born. He detested the very idea, as did many of his race. Of course, there was nothing he could do about it. 'Maybe I can later.' He thought.
But then, something caught his eye. It was a glass window depicting a great battle between two foes. One was what looked like a savage black dragon, while the other was a noble alicorn. He could tell it was a mare, since they had taken great pains to make sure she was the most stunning thing in the window frame. He snorted. ‘Really? Us savages? What kind of fairy tale is this? Probably, she was some adventurer looking to get her name in the books, so she killed the first dragon she came across. Poor fellow.’
“Lady Universa.” A feminine voice said from beside him. Neltharion looked to his side, but was dazed at what he saw. The most stunning creature he had ever seen stood there and she was an Alicorn. “Legend says she was the first alicorn to kill a dragon.”
It took him a moment to answer, since he was lost gazing at her beauty. “Yes, it must be a great event in your history.” Neltharion snorted, plumes of smoke billowed from his nostrils.
“It was.” The mare nodded. “For this was no ordinary dragon. This was Alduin.”
Neltharion’s eyes grew wide. “Alduin; the destroyer of worlds.”
“Yes,” the alicorn mare responded. “He was terrorizing our race, in hopes of driving us to extinction. She alone had the courage to face him. And face him she did.”
A new sense of respect filled the black dragon. Alduin had been the scourge of everyone, including his own kind. His mind had fallen prey to the forces of chaos and so he sought to bring the world down to his level. “She must have been a skilled spellcaster.”
“She was, but that wasn’t the deciding factor in the battle.” The mare pointed out. “It was her skill with the sword and her own body that allowed her to overcome her foe.”
Neltharion nodded. Dragons were resistant to most forms of magic. This helped them deal with magic using races, such as the alicorns and the elves before them. “Why haven’t I heard of this battle before? The dragon elders told us that Alduin succumbed to his own powers. Powers that had not been his and thus tore him apart.”
“It may be that both these sides are true.” The mare said. “Or it could be that your kind didn’t want to lend the credit to the defeat of your greatest shame to one of your enemies.”
“True.” Neltharion nodded. “My apologies, I forgot to introduce myself.” He turned and bowed before her. “I am Prince Neltharion Earthwarder, son of Narzzguul, king of all dragons.”
The mare bowed before him. “I am Princess Hera, daughter of Odin, king of all alicorns.” She lifted her head. “It’s good we met, Neltharion. Time spent together before the wedding will do us good, don’t you think?”
Neltharion was silent. ‘I’m marrying her?’ He thought. ‘Maybe this can work. Malygos was right in this regard, she is gorgeous. Speaking of which…’ He started to look around.
“Is something wrong?” Hera said.
“No,” Neltharion told her. “It just appears my friend has wandered off.”
“Oh, he’ll be fine.” Hera reassured him. “I mean, what kind of trouble could he get into here.”
“You’d be surprised.” Neltharion said. “Malygos is notorious among my kind for being a trouble maker.”
“Well, at least you have one. We have two.” Just then, the sound of someone yelling could be heard. Hera sighed. “Right on cue.”
Neltharion followed his bride to be, ‘Never thought I’d see the day I’d marry an alicorn.’ To the disturbance. Turning into the hallway, they came across a strange sight. Malygos was rolling on the floor laughing, with a small pale blue alicorn, with a helmet displaying two long curved horns on it, doing the same. On a cloud above them, sat an older, purple alicorn, about Hera’s age. She had a large white, fluffy mane. She was holding a hoof over her mouth, trying not to laugh.
But what really got them was what they were laughing about. With all four legs tied, a large white alicorn, with a golden mane bobbed up and down. As he went down, he went face first into a blueberry pie, coating his face with the blue goods. “When I…” He went down again. “Get out…You’re all…going to…get it.”
“If only I had known alicorns were this much fun.” Malygos said, trying to stop the consistent giggles from coming forth.
“A shame really.” The mare on the cloud said. “This is just too rich.”
“I’ll show…you rich.” The stallion said, in between smashing his face into the pie.
Hera and Neltharion both sighed and shook their heads. “Shall I cut him down?” He asked.
“I’ll get him.” Hera’s horn glowed and soon, both the pie and the rope disappeared. The stallion went face down onto the floor.
He soon got to his hooves and glared at the three. “Why you miserable ingrates. I’ll make you pay for this. Do you even know who you’re messing with?”
“A snobby alicorn noble.” Malygos inquired.
“Nah, that’s just Zeus.” The mare on the cloud said. “Prince of the western kingdom.” The stallion puffed his chest out in pride. “Thankfully, Odin rules those parts now. I’d hate to see what would happen if they fell into his hooves.”
Zeus glared up at her. “Eris, if mother hadn’t sworn me to keep to myself, I would have slain you a long time ago.”
“And then where would you be without a little ‘pizzazz’ in your life.” Eris said. As she said that, she spread her arms out wide, spreading what looked like miniature stars in their wake.
They flittered down over Zeus, causing him to sneeze. “You vile *ACHOO* idiots will *ACHOO* rue this *ACHOO* day.” His horn started to glow and the dust disappeared. “I swear on my father’s grave I will end you all.”
“Ah, ah, ah,” Eris waved her hoof back in forth, as if scolding a foal. “Temper, temper.”
“Eris, must you taunt him so.” Hera said.
“Yes, yes she must.” Zeus groaned. Eris nodded, looking rather smug. “May I ask, why are there dragons in Asgard. If I recall, we were mortal enemies.”
“Not anymore.” Neltharion answered.
“I wasn’t asking you, beast of the nether world.” Zeus spat at him. Neltharion growled, bearing his teeth. He had just met this stallion, yet he already hated him with a passion. ‘For his sake, let this hatred grow no more.’
“Zeus, we already went over this.” Hera said. “A peace has been made between the dragons and alicorns. The war is over.”
Zeus laughed. “Over. I think not. They’re just using this as an opportunity to strike with our backs turned.”
“We would pull such and underhanded tactic.” Neltharion said. “Our honor would never allow such a thing.”
“As if a being such as you could have any sense of honor.” Zeus put his snout up into the air.
Plumes of smoke came out of his nostrils as his glare intensified. “You shouldn’t have done that.” Malygos said. “He takes his honor very seriously.”
“Neltharion.” Hera put a hoof on his shoulder. “Don’t.”
He couldn’t tell why, but the simple touch and word soothed him. Everything about her just made him calm. The smoke cleared and his glare died aware, replaced by a sense of awe.
Hera smiled and nuzzled him. “Thank you.” She placed a kiss on his cheek, which caused him to blush.
Zeus scowled. “What is the meaning of this? Hera, you ought to know not to mingle with such vermin. Your place is with our own kind. With those of royal blood.”
“With you?” Hera raised an eyebrow.
Zeus smirked. “Yes, with me.”
“I think the lady has a say in the matter.” Neltharion said. “I mean, it was she who arranged our marriage.”
Zeus’s mouth looked like it was coming off its hinges. The black dragon found this odd. ‘Even I had been informed on this matter. Is he much of a nuisance that his own elders neglect to inform him on the goings on with the world?’ “Is this true?” Hera nodded. Zeus scowled. “This wasn’t supposed to happen.”
“That’s life.” Malygos said, putting on a pair of black sunglasses. “Deal with it.”
“Hera, I tell you now. This marriage won’t last forever. It will bend and break and I will be the one to pick up the pieces.” Zeus said, storming off. Just before he got out of distance, a small thunderbolt hit his backside. He yelped and jumped into the air, as his mane sparked in the air.
The little alicorn laughed. “Loki,” Eris said. “Good shot.”
“Thanks big sis.” Loki smiled.
“I believe that lad will make an excellent marksman one day.” Malygos said, putting a hand to his chest. “With my help of course.”
“Really?” Loki looked up at him with big eyes. Malygos nodded. Loki squeeled in delight and hugged him. “Thank you Mr. Malygos.”
“Don’t call me mister.” Malygos told him. “It makes me sound old.”
“Those bags under your eyes tell me otherwise.” Eris pointed out.
“I didn’t get much sleep last night.” Malygos rubbed his eyes.
“Ah-hu.” Eris rolled her eyes.
“Now see here…” Malygos began.
The other two had left soon enough. Hera sighed. “I’m sorry about that. Zeus is hard to handle sometimes.”
“No need to apologize.” Neltharion held up a hand, as if to stop any further apologies. “We all have members of our kind that we wish not to interact with.”
“Thank you for understanding.” Hera said.
“By any chance, why did you come to the conclusion that a marriage would settle this feud between our two people?”
“That was easy. If we can show our people that we can get along in harmony, then they will see that so can the populace as a whole.”
“Clever.” Neltharion rubbed his chin. “But didn’t you dread the thought of being with a dragon.”
Hera blushed and looked away. “To tell you the truth, I found it a rather exciting idea.”
Neltharion smiled broadly. “Indeed. Though, did you not think of how I would react and treat you?”
“I think you would treat me well.”
“But you do not know me.”
“That is true.” Hera nodded. “But I do now.”
“Hardly,” Neltharion pointed out. “For all you could know, I may very well be another Alduin.”
Hera stared at him for a moment. She looked into his eyes, as if trying to pierce his soul. ‘Can she?’ He wouldn’t put it past her. He had heard tales of the alicorns and their powers. Soul reading wouldn’t surprise him if it were among them. With eyes like hers, he wouldn’t mind being read.
Finally, she spoke.
“We shall see.”
____________________________________________________________________________________________
Author’s Note:
Thank you all for reading my first chapter of ‘How they met’. I hope to fill up some gaps in the character histories and this story ought to do so. If you have any questions or whatnot, feel free to ask. I may get around to writing a story to answer them, or just answer them personally.
The greek gods concept was not of mine creation. That is lent to a friend of mine, 13foxywolf666. She’s an astounding artist and if had it not been for her, Celestia’s family tree would be broken and her past years null and void of anything.
Loki is owned by me, though I have gotten his description from some favorable artists. (so it’s kind of owned by me.)
Neltharion and Malygos…I have a strange imagination.
Don’t worry everybrony, I’ll soon have another chapter done and posted. If not for this then one of my other works. Since they all are interlocked, it’s best to try and read them all to fully understand this world of my own making.
Thanks once again for reading another tale in ‘Evowizard’s saga’…In this regard, I couldn’t come up with a better name for it. Anyone else got any names that would be good for these worlds of mine?
Please leave your comments and thoughts.
Fare thee well!!!