Castle Bahamut

by Arby

Rating: teen
Tags: Dark, Adventure, Tragedy
Length: 53978

Shackled and chained, Spike is sent to the dreaded dragon prison, Castle Bahamut, after a miscarriage of justice. Inside, while sad and broken, he is the target of a devilish conspiracy.

Invading his life in the form of shackles and chains, tragedy strikes as Spike the Dragon is sentenced to imprisonment in the dreaded prison of the dragons, Castle Bahamut, until further notice.

Regardless of having been the victim of a miscarriage of justice, Spike has no time to shed tears as a deadly conspiracy inside the prison pins him as the target . . . but who is the one that framed him, and why?

Published 1970-01-01 00:00:00 UTC
Last updated 2013-05-01 20:15:43 UTC

-0- The Tatsuo

“Where did this murderer come from?”

“Dammit, Tores! How many dragons live in Equestria?”

“He's cutting over to fifth avenue—send Blue Star! Don't let that murderer escape!”

“Render the barrier! We can't hold him in the lower district!”

Prologue: The Tatsuo

Bulky stallions stampeded through darkened streets in Canterlot as rain patterned down on the rooftops. Puddles forming in the crevices were constantly disrupted as entire platoons were mobilized. Civilians watched in confusion and panic while very few knew of the tragedy that occurred recently as well as the danger jumping rooftops.

Guards of all races marched through Canterlot, reassuring civilians and standing guard in numerous areas. A white stallion with a blue mane branded in a golden Royal Guard armour marched at the head, his eyes bouncing back and forth as he scanned the rooftops.

“Captain Armour, orders, sir?” a grey Pegasus asked with a quick salute.

“He's nimble; no Earth Pony Guards! Have them escort the civilians to safety. I know he can't fly, so the Pegasi will be our eyes as well as clear the skies near the castle. Unicorns, broaden yourselves, stop lunging at him. Create a perimeter and stand guard so I may make a barrier!” Shining Armour demanded without flaw.

His stern expression seemed contagious as the other guards began working effectively, determined after getting clear orders. Shining Armour's horn flashed and he teleported to Canterlot Castle's walls. He stood atop the watch tower and looked down on the city. He picked up a megaphone and blew into it once to get the attention of the plethora of guards in the area to look up.

“He's heading for the castle, but hopefully we can keep him contained in the city. Regardless, have Theta Squad prepare to launch a magic net on the driveway. Epsilon Squad will be the last line of defence before the castle. We've tried our best to warn him so Epsilon Squad, you have permission to use offence spells.” His horn lit up and it illuminated the dark courtyard. “We are the Royal Guard, and we will not let him get to the Princesses!”

The guards all saluted and scrambled into positions below. In the distance, roaring could be heard as well as pillars of flame shooting up from within the city, gradually moving towards the castle. Shining Armour took a deep breath and prepared himself.

I promise I won't hurt him, Twily, Shining Armour thought as his nerves set on edge.

With the guards positioned, the entire castle was almost silent; the only thing heard was the sputtering of the rain against the armour as well as various shouts and gentle roars. It silenced just as soon as the commotion reached the edge of the city where the transition from community to castle occurred. Shining Armour leaned over the edge of the castle's gate, stippling his breath. The suspense caused him to shake and he looked around frantically.

Just as he opened his mouth to ask the guard, he heard several guards next to him on the castle wall slam into each other and he spotted a slender draconic figure draped in a cloak tossing them to the ground. What little light was there reflected off the purple scaled body and green spines. Green slitted eyes stared out of the hood as the dragon barred its teeth. Shining twisted his body to face him and the dragon fell on all four claws, growling.

[*][*][*]

Princess Celestia's chamber was silent, void of all noise regardless of the chaos below. She snored gently, snuggling her pillows pressed into her large bed. Her bedroom was modest while maintaining a grand feel, reflecting on her kind personality yet regal authoritative position. The door opened silently with little creaks and a figure stepped into the room. Dark in colour with a slim figure, it approached Celestia's sleeping form, stopping at the edge of the bed. A limb reached out towards her neck, caressing Celestia's chin.

“Dear sister, sleep well. The perpetrator will be apprehended,” Luna whispered softly.

She gently sat down on the edge of the bed, basking in the moonlight that shone through the window as the Pegasi cleared the clouds. She hummed a gentle tune, caressing Celestia's cheek. Warmth entered her body and she leaned over, resting her head on the silky sheets in comfort. Both princesses' seemed at complete peace and Luna allowed her eyes to close.

“Don't be shy, Spike the Dragon,” Luna whispered.

Several steps accompanied by scrapes came from a corner of the room coated in darkness. The dragon that stepped forward roared and stared down Luna. She never once opened her eyes nor did she seem to get excited for battle. Softly, her eyes fluttered open and she looked at the dragon through the darkness. She sat up and smiled at the dragon.

“We don't have to fight, Spike. Turn yourself in and I promise nothing bad will happen. We can sort this out peacefully,” Luna said quietly.

“Who said I needed peace?” Spike snarled.

He lunged forward and opened his mouth to roar. Before any sound could escape, Luna's horn lit up and engulfed the dragon's snout, stopping and holding him up in the air inches away from Luna. He began to swat at Luna helplessly, just out of her reach. He made several grunts and rumbles in place of roaring. Luna slowly stood up and walked forward, moving the dragon at the same time.

“Spike, please, for Celestia. For Twilight . . . and for your loved one,” Luna pleaded. Her magic grip loosened. “Why?”

He began to struggle, shaking in Luna's grasp. Luna grunted as he seemed to absorb the magic holding him up. He snapped at the Alicorn, his hood shifting on his head. Luna smirked yet it was an eyebrow arch from being sad.

“I remember, years ago, dragons used to love magic. It made them an ideal couple as well as ensured protection. So why throw that all away?” Luna asked once more.

He attempted to kick Luna, an action that threw the hood off his scalp. The moonlight illuminating his face, Luna's magical grip loosened and her eyes widened. Taking this chance, he bit at the violet aura, seemingly eating the magic. With no more grasp, he took off in a full run towards the window and jumped through the glass, shattering it and continued on until he leaped the balcony. Celestia's eyes blinked and she slowly raised her head at the sudden chill.

“Sister? Why are you here and . . . is that a draft in my plexiglass?” Celestia muttered, leaning up and nuzzling her sister's cheek.

Luna didn't return the affection, her mouth stuck open and her mind at a pause. She shook her head and Celestia began to take notice.

“Luna, what's wrong?”

Luna's head dropped and she muttered a 'no.' She jumped off the bed and ran towards the window, jumping through the large hole made and she looked over the balcony. The dragon was nowhere in sight.

“Celestia, there has been several murders in this young night's presence.”

-1- Relocation

“Um, excuse me, could you mount this cage to the ground? It keeps sliding.”

Smack.

“No talking. You're lucky we didn't put a muzzle on you.”

“But—“ Smack.

Chapter 1: Relocation

Shackles adorn my limbs. Swirling mind, clouded with confusion and chaos as well as pain. Oh, but that's not all; the room is spinning as well. I'm locked up in a cage like a wild animal, and that cage has no comfort. It's just bars; no bottom for the one inside. It keeps sliding against the wooden floor with each tilt of the room and I slam into everything. Sometimes, the floor and cage pinch my feet. It hurts, but I can't complain. If I do, the guards stun me.

Sound of waves came in through the window and seagulls crying to the skies. The room smells of shellfish and coals and has a moderate humidity. There is no doubt I'm on a boat. To where, exactly? That's the worst part. The shaking, the spinning stomach, the mental confusion and absurdity of the nature of this transport ship did nothing to help me understand what's happening and why.

[*][*][*]

Gentle breathing accompanied by a shifting hoof woke me from a nice, gentle slumber. The room wasn't the usual library I woke up in. A frilly canopy laid above, allowing some of the deep blue morning sky's light to give the pristine room a cozy atmosphere. Next to me, Rarity sighed quietly, caressing my belly.

“How long have you been awake?” I whispered.

“Fifteen minutes. You?” she quietly responded.

“Fifteen seconds.” I began rubbing Rarity's hoof gently. Carefully, I leaned over and kissed her cheek.

“Mmm, sorry. I was trying not to wake you,” she replied.

“That's fine. Might as well get up, though,” I said, sitting up.

A small tug on my arm kept me from standing and I glanced back, Rarity's pouty lip keeping me planted.

“Don't go yet, stay in bed for a few minutes,” she pleaded, using her best pouting face.

I tried my best to not succumb to that seductress' gaze, but I failed. I sighed, falling back into the imprint I left. She giggled and snuggled up closely to me, disregarding the status of her bedsheets. I wrapped my arms around her body and held onto her. The whole morning seemed surreal, something straight out of a romance novel but believable. I sighed, content with the situation and closed my eyes. Before I could fall asleep again, a frantic rapping on the door interrupted. Both Rarity and I groaned in unison and proceeded to get up.

“Could you get the door while I brush my hair?” Rarity asked with a stifled yawn.

“Yeah, sure,” I responded, cracking my back.

Thump thump thump, I was down the stairs. The knocking started again and I let out another groan. “Jeez, what do you want?” I asked as I opened the top half of the door. I was met with Twilight, holding a copy of the Equestria Daily.

“Spike, have you seen the paper yet?” she asked.

I shook my head. “I just got up, so no.”

She slapped it against my face with her magic and I grumbled. All of my complaints melted when I saw one word in the headline: “MURDERER.” Quickly, I lost my anger and grabbed the paper.

MURDERER ATTEMPTS TO TAKE PRINCESS' LIFE

The photograph shown under the headline depicted a plethora of Royal Guards scampering around Canterlot, horns lit up and ready for battle. I frowned and looked up at Twilight's face. She nodded dreadfully and I glanced back at the paper.

“Last night, a murderous dragon took the lives of famed singer Sapphire Shores, Wonderbolt Fleetfoot, Politician Earl Gray and the Mayor of Manehatten Register Levy while attempting to take the life of beloved Royal Sister, Princess Celestia of Equestria. Three other reports state that an attempt was made on three other ponies whose names are being withheld. Witness reports state that the dragon was no taller than the average pony and bore purple scales and green spines while wearing a cloak atop its scalp.”

Taking a breath, it was short and bated as it sunk in. I looked up at Twilight and gulped before continuing.

“The Royal Guards failed to apprehend the dragon and the killer is still at large. The public is in an outcry as to what to do. Who exactly was this drake that performed these dastardly crimes? The public may not rest peacefully until it is apprehended.”

Rarity's hoofsteps sounded behind me and she gracefully stepped towards us. “Oh, Twilight? What brings you to my boutique this early?”

[*][*][*]

One would think that rounding up the gang would be difficult, but apparently all of us were up early. Symbolism, or maybe we all just had the same idea. Regardless, we all met up at the usual place, Golden Oaks Library, and Twilight had me send a letter. Asking about the situation; if she was alright; if we're safe in Ponyville, the whole lot. The others were talking to each other about it. The generic stuff, such as “Who could do such a thing?”, “Is this the start of something?” Typical hysteria . . . but I was elsewhere.

Dragon. Purple scales, green spines. Sound familiar, Spike? Yeah, I bet it does. That's the sexy manbeast you see in the mirror. He's slightly taller than you, though, and killed others. He flippin' killed others. I faced my feet, scratching at my ankles to distract myself. The more I thought about it, the more I felt a bad feeling in my gut.

Or maybe that was the letter. Only seconds later, I belched out a fireball that poofed into a letter. Before Twilight could snatch it in her frenzy, I gripped it and opened the letter. The girls went silent and all eyes were on me. I undid the bow, rolled it out, and cleared my throat. I didn't want to read it, but as the scribe, I had no choice.

“Dear Twilight Sparkle, I am doing fine as well as my sister. I was shocked to hear of the murders, but to hear Luna describe the killer to me, I was almost rendered speechless. I have decided my next course of action as well as yours, as I wish to speak with you, the other Element bearers, as well as Spike as soon as possible. Depart for Canterlot on the 2:00 train, as all of our Pegasi guards are too busy. Hope you're doing well, Princess Celestia.” I finished up and rolled the scroll up, facing the others.

Uncertainty coated their faces as well as my own, but it was clear that this involved the safety of other ponies. Applejack was the first to stand, sighing.

“Right, Ah'll go to th' farm, work, an' tell Big Macintosh Ah'll be busy later today.” She shifted her had and nodded to the rest, while I gave her a half-hearted wave. “See y'all later.”

The others said their goodbyes and Applejack trotted off. Rainbow quickly followed after with a Weather Team excuse. None of us wanted to leave on our own to explore the day with the dark anticipation, but little by little, the others departed until only Rarity, Twilight and myself stuck around. There was a bout of silence before Rarity cleared her throat.

“I'd return to the boutique, but I've got no orders, and today we're closed. You don't mind if I stick around, do you, Twilight?” Rarity asked.

Twilight shook her head. “Stay as long as you like, Rarity. I'm sure Spike and I would enjoy some company, if Spike was going to stay anyways,” she said.

A quick nod, we sat down to bide our time until we left.

. . .

The seven of us approached the train station with a hastened pace. This dragon attack could mean anything, but the deaths of several major figures meant something. They could have been a coordinated attack by some dragons elsewhere in the world, or maybe some random psychotic beast. The descriptions matched me, so . . . could I have done that? Could my instincts have made me do that unconsciously? I killed the thought, having been with Rarity last night. She would have noticed something. My thoughts paused as we entered the station, having been met with the staff.

“We were notified by letter of Princess Celestia's requirement of your presence in Canterlot. That said, your fee is taken care of,” one of the staff said.

Twilight thanked him and we quickly boarded. A few minutes later, the train began moving, and the seven of us sat in silence. Normally, we'd speculate, or talk about the incident at hand, but the topic at hand was a murderous dragon. We should be fine, though. We've got Fluttershy. Dragon's aren't a match for her gaze.

[*][*][*]

The groan of metal and a steam engine snapped me out of my dream. The smokestack roared above and hooves as well as claws began moving out on the deck. The guards inside the room chattered in some dialect I wasn't familiar with, obviously to keep me from listening in. I felt the urge to vomit brewing in my gut, but I did my best to stay composed. Whether I was seasick or I just felt bad, my body definitely wanted to throw up. I resisted the urge to do so since I'll most likely get a smack again.

The ship stopped the major swaying and the engines slowly quieted down. Hoofsteps stopped and I sat with a bated breath for several minutes. My chest pounded and I anticipated what happened next. The world I knew was left behind, leaving me wondering my fate.

Finally, several guards stepped into the room while levitating a chain. It was short but appeared to attach to another chain. The guards in the room glanced over at me and their horns lit up. The cage opened up and the chains on my wrists were forcibly yanked, pulling me forward. I hit the ground on my stomach causing pain in my chest. I coughed a bit before being yanked to my feet and the guards gave me several slaps to the cheek to reorient me. It was unjust and stung, but it worked. Simply standing up both warded off the sickness and ushered in a new one. I felt dizzy, but not like I was gonna puke.

Rather than wait, the guard yanked me forward out of the room. In front of me and behind were three guards that escorted me down several halls while I could only catch a glimpse of the skies due to the tiny windows. Grey. Torches lit the halls and each chance I could, I glanced down other hallways to see if I had a single chance of escaping The result: None. This place was loaded. I resigned myself to my fate for probably the ninth time and waited. Before long, I was pulled out of the hallways, blinded by the outside light. I would have raised my arms had they not been restrained. Instead, I closed my eyes and slowly opened them and took in my surroundings.

A small volcano island with the sunlight obstructed by clouds and a fog coating the grounds. Small red flowers dotted the grassy area, presenting the idea that this place isn't too bad. And it worked; I didn't feel so dreadful after spotting the beautiful flowers shining brilliantly regardless of the lack of sunlight. In the skies, many dragons soared around unobstructed while the guards around me seemed to stare up with respect. I just felt insignificant and continued my observation.

On the volcano there appeared to be numerous buildings mounted into the side similar to Canterlot Castle, but unlike Canterlot, they seemed too small to be an actual prison for dragons. Most likely, it went into the volcano itself. I sighed and the guards quickly escorted me across the deck of the ship. Down the boarding ramp and onto the docks, I spotted another ship next to us. It wasn't like the Equestrian steamship, but a wooden Ark. Several odd creatures stepped out that looked like giant scaled eagles. They also carried out another young dragon, red in scales. His head was drooping while his teeth were barred. He was clearly larger and more muscular than I was, as well as a foot taller. We shared a glance before we were yanked forward. The guards continued tugging at us, silently escorting us towards the volcano base. The further up we went, the more dragons escorted by guards joined us from numerous harbours. I had no idea where I was, but it was clearly somewhere in between the continents.

Ten minutes, twenty, half an hour of walking through Torii, forested areas and dense fog, we approached several massive gates. A blazing heat invaded the area that felt soothing to my body while the Unicorns guiding me were starting to sweat already. Quickly, several Dragons in armour, six feet taller than me, stepped up and saluted the guards. They returned the gesture.

“Good job, boys. We'll take it from here,” they said in loud, rumbling voices.

They nodded and released us. Me and the other seven dragons chained up didn't even bother trying to run. I dunno about the others, but the fact that four nine feet tall dragons or so glared down at us cemented me pretty well. The Unicorn guards walked away, along with my chance at returning to Equestria. I felt completely without help as if they were what kept me alive.

Without so much as a warning, each claw of the larger dragons reached forward, grabbing the chains attached to our wrist cuffs, and yanked us off the ground. Suddenly, without care, and with sheer brute strength, I felt my wrists crack and strain against the solid metal cuffs. Several other dragons as well as myself let out startled, pained grunts as we were easily lifted three feet off the ground.

None of us dared to open our mouths and just let the guards work. Stifled whimpers left our mouths and they carried us towards the massive gates. All of the young drakes, including myself, eyed the peculiar design on the door, clearly a family symbol. Something about it irked me, but I shrugged it off.

Several shouts occurred higher up as dragons scurried atop the large walls. Quickly, the large gates groaned before opening up. The wider it opened up, the more I saw of what laid inside. A wide open courtyard with a rather short, red scaled dragon clad in a maroon and black uniform, surrounded by two taller dragons dressed in an all black uniform. Even the guards escorting us were taller than those three.

We entered the courtyard, surrounded by massive walls around ten stories up. Stone, two entrances to the side while the far end had a stone canopy as well as stone benches. The four guards dropped us in rows, all of us falling to the ground. They yanked us to our feet and dropped the chains. The aching remained, but I toughed it out. I was shuddering from the pain and shivering from the fear I felt. Several of the other dragons began complaining or chattering. I glanced over just as the guards gave them a slap. To them it was nothing but to the young drakes, they toppled over. I decided that speaking out may not be my best choice, and gulped. They were quickly stood up and then there was silence. Not wind, not even rumbling from the volcano or inside the prison walls. The silence continued until a deep breath from the warden shook us out of our trance.

“Alright now. I am the warden of this prison, Lockdown. Let me diffuse some tension by saying that I don't have to be your enemy as long as you don't treat me like it. Treat me with respect and I shall do the same to you young whelps.” He clapped his hands together and he slowly paced himself towards the end of the line. Closer up, he was only two feet taller than myself. “Now, I know what you're all thinking. That I'm not that big. I don't look too tough. You can take me in one-on-one. Let me also dissolve that notion. There is a reason why I am the head of this prison. Why I, out of hundreds of other dragon warriors, was chosen to lockup rowdy, young, violent drakes such as yourselves in this prison.”

He slowly walked down the line, staring down, or sometimes up, at the other dragons. A small frown covered his face. “I hold no doubt in my heart when I say that you could tie up my wings and pit me against every single guard here and I would still be untouched.” He let the silence hang in the air as if to allow the point to sink in. His frown changed to a smile and he nodded gently. “Now that we have the threat out of the way, allow me to elaborate more on your new settlement.” He turned around and motioned to the volcano and other towers that surrounded the volcano.

“This is Castle Bahamut, a prison situated in the centre of the Pacific, claimed by the dragons in the great war of 364 Pre-Luna's Return by the Great Dragon God, Bahamut. Since then, a truce has been made by nations surrounding the prison to round up the rambunctious, trouble-making drakes that stipple the nation with violence and crime. We aren't here to ruin your lives. Oh not, you've got thousands of years to do that. We're here to clean up your act because your countries, friends, families and adopted families deemed you a danger to their very way of life. To leave you in your surroundings would be suicide for the locals, so the bigwigs transferred you here. You will be in your cells only if you want to and at night times. We are not here to make life a living hell, but may Bahamut have mercy on your soul if you make life a living hell for others. We will not tolerate that, the other inmates will not tolerate that, and your friends and family back home will not tolerate that if they truly miss you . . . if they haven't already abandoned you to your fate.”

That struck a nerve. I felt my spine stiffen and my eyes nervously twitching. I focused back on him as he continued on.

“The rules are simple: Make no trouble for others, obey the guards, obey me, try not to start trouble, and if trouble has started, expect to be in solitary. There will be no flying, no magical breath, and no talking back.” He began walking down the row of dragons and stopped right in front of me, looking down at me. The smile, that seemed reassuring before, was now nothing more than an intimidating mental weapon. He prodded straight into my mind and rooted his authority into my core with just his gaze. “Son, do you think you're innocent?” I stuttered, trying to say anything. He chuckled and smiled. “Don't worry, you have my permission to speak.”

I nodded my head. “Yes, I am.”

“And why is that?” he asked, rubbing his chin as if he were actually pondering it.

I, of course, fell for it. “I w-was framed. I didn't do anything, I was at my marefriends the night of the crime,” I sputtered out with a broken voice, realizing how broken and scared I actually was.

His entire body jerked and I stepped back. “WRONG!” he shouted.

His claw yanked back and spread open wide. I didn't bother trying to dodge nor did I flinch, but he thrust his claw forward, planting it on my chest. I expected it to pierce my soft underbelly, but it didn't. Instead, a relatively flat palm slapped against my chest. Instead of feeling physical pain, I felt an odd warmth transferring between my chest and his hand. Then I felt pain. His hand pulled back and I buckled over instantly, feeling a searing hot pain in my chest. I raised my hands to clutch my chest, and nobody stopped me. I fell to my knees and let out shrill cries of pain and proceeded to writhe on the ground, my body contorting against my will. A few seconds that felt like hours, I blinked and finally focused my eyes. They were darting around, having no clear thought to direct them and I saw the other inmates looking at me with different looks. Some with disgust, some shook their heads, while others actually seemed scared. I struggled to stand up, but eventually I succeeded. I attempted to stand up straight and examined my chest to find an interesting new marking. It was the exact same as the symbol on the large gates.

“You committed an atrocious crime otherwise your beloved princess would have not required your transfer here. You're young, stupid, and heading nowhere real fast. Just like the rest of you. Here, we will smack you up into shape no matter how long it takes. Whether you want to see your friends and family within the next year or their gravestones in 300 is up to you. But we guarantee that we will shape you up and you will comply sooner or later.”

He began walking back and forth down the row again. “What I just did to this young whelp just now is how we make sure you do not use your magic breath. Any attempts at using it will result in a burning sensation that will ground you. Your wings, we will take a liberty with. If we catch you flying, you will be thrown into solitary once, twice, but thrice, we will sever your wings. If your wings grow while in prison, we will arrange for training so you may use them in the real world. When you are done training, the ban is in effect.”

He stepped back to the two guards standing next to him. “To my left is Ryuu, the captain of the guards and the overseer of the west of the castle and to my right is the co-captain of the guards and the overseer of the east side of the castle. They will take over from here and apply my seal. Welcome to Castle Bahamut.”

With that, the warden turned away and walked back into the castle while the guards escorted us towards one of the doors in the courtyard. I glanced up to the high walls and the skies one last time. My chest burned and my mind was losing all hope at escaping. Maybe it wouldn't be that bad? The warden did say that if we didn't cause any trouble, we'd be fine.

As we entered into dark, torch-lit corridors, I glanced at the walls and floor. It wasn't cobblestone like a dungeon, just brick aligned neatly and seemingly precise for dragons. The corridor itself must be at least 15 feet high. All of these details kept me distracted as the guards escorted us through what seemed like an infinite number of halls. We went down numerous sets of stairs, the heat intensifying until it was rather comfortable. The walls had a nice design and a patterned ceiling.

My thoughts were cut short as we came into a room that was somewhat squared and long. At the very end was a big, thick iron door. Benches were bolted into the walls made of thick iron. The guards behind and in front sat us down on the benches.

“Wait here so Ryuu and Tatsuya can give you your seals. Purple scales, since you were the demonstration, you just sit tight. We'll be locking up this hallway so you only have one way to go. Ryuu will oversee you, and Tatsuya will be providing the seals,” one of the larger guards said before the lot of them left, locking up the way we came in.

Quickly, silence took over and just as quickly, the other dragons began chattering together. Next to me was a cyan dragon with golden eyes about a foot taller than me with a steely glare, streamlined purple spines and a red bandanna wrapped around his neck. He looked at me with an eyeing gaze, almost disapproving.

“H-hello,” I said first. I would have extended my claw to shake, but I figured that it was a bad idea.

He merely glared at me and I slowly looked down at my lap, embarrassed. The door opened and the dragon next to the cyan one beside me was called forth. With a sigh, the green drake stood up and strutted into the room, the iron doors locking behind him.

“Hello,” a deep, feminine voice responded.

I looked up at her with confusion and gulped. She smirked, nodding.

“You look far too timid to have done anything serious, so what crime did you 'not' commit?” she asked.

I gulped and stuttered finding my words. “I was f-framed for murder,” I responded, trying not to let my voice crack.

She chuckled. “Right. Framed. I'll believe that you didn't commit murder, because I can see it in your eyes. The very word murder sets you on edge,” she said. I smiled, or tried to, and faced ahead. “My name's Gelid. And I 'did not' do a damn thing.”

I glanced over at her, frowning. “My name is Spike. And to be honest, I'm not sure if I didn't do anything. I'm not sure if my family even wants me back.”

The door opened up and the dragon from before stepped out, rubbing his chest while groaning. He sat back down where he was before, his laid back attitude seemingly gone. Tatsuya waved his hand at Gelid and she nodded. Before she walked over, she glanced over at me one last time.

“If you want it to be easier on you, try this on: Your family abandoned you. Get used to it, and it won't hurt as much when you realize it,” she said before Tatsuya shouted at her.

She strutted into the room, ready to face the sealing. The words prodded at my mind, but I never let it in. Instead, I denied it and thought of anything possible. It still returned to my mind.

They don't want me, do they?

[*][*][*]

Sealed and ready for homeroom, the guards escorted a completely willing line of inmates, myself included, into an area of the prison deep inside the volcano. The stairs we went down never seemed to end, but after half an hour, we finally arrived at an almost burning area. It was definitely cozy and actually quite nice, at least to someone who lived amongst ponies. Then I realized where we were. Yanked into the centre of the large room with many balconies and bridges with the ceiling over a hundred feet up, cells were carved into the volcanic sides. Torches gave a gentle light to the entire area, and all around I could feel eyes peering down on me. Inmates, other murderers . . . could I actually live in this hellhole?

Quickly, the guards divided us up and before we could take it in, we were led to different parts of the large room. Other dragons were thrown into cells while I kept walking. Finally, I was the last dragon left. A long day and finally, I was being shown to my 'home'. The cell door opened, revealing a modest room with a cloth-covered bed with rocks acting as the base. A small iron contraption that obviously was to be used for water as well as another larger iron contraption probably used for . . . necessities. I glanced at it, never seeming to register the room. No matter how much I looked it over, I never once felt like I accepted this, or like this was fair. Nothing was making any sense, and the more things kept stacking up, the more confusing it became. The shackles and chains were undone and I was shoved into the cell.

“Sleep tight,” one of the guards said in a low, gruff voice.

He closed the cell, slamming the bars shut. That single bang resonated with all the confusion in my head. It solved every problem in my mind, answered all the questions I had.

My family . . . Rarity, Twilight, left me. I'm in prison. This is for real.

-2- Motivations

“Out of the cell.”

“Huh, what time is it?”

“Six. In the morning. Out of the cell.”

“Okay.”

Chapter 2: Motivations

Glancing out the window, the skies were grey, covered in clouds untouched by Weather Ponies. Typically, it'd be the first thing they took care of in the morning . . . adding to the bad feeling in my gut. The train speedily entered Canterlot and slowed to a stop in the train station. Outside, many Royal Guards stood waiting. The seven of us as well as other passengers watched in awe as the guards, headed by Shining Armour, who waited patiently. Quickly, the seven of us stepped out of the train car and Twilight quickly embraced Shining Armour. His stern look vanished for a second as he quickly nuzzled her. I smiled at the show of affection but his glance turned to me. Expecting a potential brotherly smile, I was shocked when he shot daggers at me. It wasn't just that, though . . . his gaze seemed full of hatred and rage. I flinched as he did and the rest of the girls approached him. I stood back, wondering what his problem was.

“Hey kiddo, how was the ride over?” he asked, a bit of concern in his voice.

“It was fine, but what are you and half the Royal Guard doing here?” Twilight asked, motioning to the other guards.

He didn't respond and looked down at Twilight solemnly. He leaned down and hugged her tightly while the others looked at the scene.

“I'm sorry, I promise not to hurt him,” he whispered.

“Hurt who?” Twilight asked, purely confused.

As Twilight finished her question, numerous Unicorn Guards marched forward, passing by the girls, and surrounded me. Several others had entered the train and came from behind me, and I sputtered, looking around in confusion. Following suit, the girls did the exact same thing and Twilight spun around to see me at the centre. Immediately, her loving sisterly look vanished and the panicking face of a mother took its place. She threw herself out of Shining's grasp and ran towards the guards.

“Wait, what's going on!?” I asked, looking around frantically.

The commotion attracted several onlookers and quickly I found myself growing scared. The guards' horns lit up and I dashed forward to try to pass between a few of them. Before I could put up any resistance, an odd substance wrapped around me. It had the strength of iron bars but felt like a softball. It glowed brilliantly as it wrapped around my body, incapacitating me. I was once more placed in the centre of the guards, struggling to break free of the bonds.

“SPIKEY-WIKEY!” Rarity shouted, now trying to get past the guards along with Twilight.

Quickly, Shining Armour levitated the two mares back before they got hurt, much to my relief, but I still had the problem of being restrained. I looked around at the guards, seeing bruises and scratches as well as bandages on their bodies. Then my thoughts from earlier returned.

“Wait, I'm not the beast! I'm not the kil—” I was silenced as an Earth Pony guard walked up and bucked me in the gut.

“No speaking!” he declared.

“SPIKE!” the girls shouted in unison.

“Blue Star, I said not to hurt him,” Shining Armour grunted as he fought against his sister and Rarity's magic.

The stallion glanced over and mumbled out an apology before returning his glare to me. I was too busy coughing and attempting to breathe to return a glare. When I did, the guards had taken the liberty of freeing Shining Armour of the two mares and he approached me himself.

“Spike the Dragon, you are under arrest for the suspicion of committing murder. Come quietly, and it'll make the situation much easier for everypony,” he said in a stern yet reassuring voice.

Reluctantly, I nodded my head. “Fine. We can speak to the Princesses' and they'll clear up the mess.” He didn't respond and I glanced over to Twilight and Rarity. Rarity seemed ready to cry while Twilight was already doing so. The rest of the girls watched on, worried and I did my best to smile.

I was scared of this very thing. But the Princesses' and my friends will surely clear this up, I thought, causing my smile to become genuine.

Just you wait. I'm innocent.

[*][*][*]

I'm not innocent?

The skies remained the clouded grey, rumbling as if it would rain. According to the guard, who happened to not be a ruthless punk, it's always like that. It hasn't rained in several weeks, so we might get it soon.

Looking back down, the courtyard of the prison was full of activity, the opposite of the previous day. Gulping, I cracked my back, stretched my arms, and stepped out from under the shade of the overhang. I held my head high as if I wasn't afraid and as if I was innocent. The former is false, but the latter is true. I did nothing wrong, and it'll sort itself out soon. I'll be home in no time, but then again, is home worth it? They ditched me, didn't even try . . . and the princesses, or specifically Princess Celestia. She knows me. She has the final say, so why did she send me here?

Back in reality, I gained several glares from other prisoners, obviously checking out the fresh meat of the prison. The rumours of pony prisons are fresh in my mind, shaking my bones. Will I get beaten up? Do I need to join a gang for protection? Will I get . . . violated in the showers? Do we even have showers?

I examined the courtyard some more. Several dragons took to tail-wrestling, some decided to do physical exercises, and others just hanged out. Some did stay by themselves, so I don't think the gang bit is an issue. Then again, they're well-built. Looking around, I'm obviously the youngest, smallest, and weakest of the dragons. Some dragons far larger are using a rock the size of me as a football. A football.

Gulping, I felt myself in a cold sweat and looked around the courtyard once more, hopefully wishing I could see some folks that look . . . not intimidating. My excitement skyrocketed when I spotted Gelid polishing a rock with the spines on her tail. I casually (to the best of my ability) walked towards her. Her back was turned to me and I spotted two nubs in them, clearly wings starting to grow. She didn't seem to notice me, so I stood a few feet behind her as her tail carved something out.

“He—”

“Hey Spike,” she casually said.

“—y, Geli...” I stared at her.

“You smell like a pony. Not like some others who have a faint smell. You reek of pony, and to be honest, it's making me hungry,” she said, licking her lips for emphasis. Her head turned to show a playful glare. It never registered to me and I gulped, to which she chuckled to. “Haha, lighten up. I'm just at the age where instincts are starting to develop. I'm too young and fearful of what I could become to actually act on them.”

“Oh, heh, I knew that. For sure, same here,” I said, waving my arm around with several casual gestures.

“Even if I were a pony, I don't think I'd believe you. You're far too young, but there's something different about you,” she said, going back to carving the rock.

“Huhn?” I rubbed my arms nervously.

“You're developing early, it seems. You're emitting some pheromones,” she said, almost growling.

Glancing to the sides, nobody else seemed to hear her so I gulped and stuttered my words before composing myself.

“Well, maybe, I really wouldn't know,” I said, shrugging.

“Don't get any ideas, either. You're not my type, shrimp,” she said, causing a slicing sound on her last word. The rock broke in half, revealing what looks like a male gryphon. I frowned.

“Well I'm kind of taken, anyways.” I winced, and my whole body lost the faux confidence I had before. “Or, I was.”

“If you're expecting me to cheer you up, you should shut up and save yourself the trouble,” she growled, smashing the rock under her foot.

“If you're expecting me to believe you talked to me out of niceness, you should stop wasting my time,” I retorted with a growl of my own.

I surprised myself, since the growl actually sounded menacing . . . at least to me. She raised her eyebrow and turned her whole body towards me. She was only around a foot taller than I was, yet there was no intimidation or harmful intent in her step. She sat down against the rock rather than the bench just a few feet behind her and rested her arms on her knees.

“What's that?” she asked with what seemed to be actual curiosity.

“We're in prison. You didn't have to talk to me. I honestly said hi because I didn't know what else to do. You were entirely composed. I mean—” I rubbed my face, thinking of what to say. “You said hi, you introduced yourself, and now we're making smalltalk. I may be too timid to commit murder, but you're way too social to be like other dragons.”

“And how many dragons have you met?” she asked, raising her brow.

I was about to reply before stopping. “Seven.”

“Figures. But you aren't wrong.” She averted her gaze, staring at the ground. She kicked the other half of the statue over to me and I sat down on it. “Before we get into a long-winded flashback explaining each others' terrible and/or amazing lifestyle, why don't we get something straight: who are you?”

Raising an eyebrow, I paused, wondering what she meant. “Uh, Spike the Dragon?”

“No, stupid, who are you? What do you do? What are you to those in your old life?” she said, facepalming.

“Oh.” My head drooped. “I . . . was the friend of several others, the love of a mare, and the Princess of Equestria's personal scribe.”

She leaned back, her eyes slightly widened in surprise. “Oh? That's actually interesting. As for me, I was raised amongst a gryphon-dragon tribe. It was constant chaos and scrambles between us, but it was nothing serious. We were rambunctious, wild, and we had fun. There was one dragon I got along with the most. He was only about your size, Escther breed.”

“Meaning?” I asked in regards to the breed.

“Meaning he was a different breed of dragon, genius,” she replied flatly. I rolled my eyes and sighed. “Anyways, he wasn't everything to me, but he was everything I wanted in a friend. I was the introvert, and he was the gateway to a future. Maybe among dragons, maybe alone with him, traversing the planet for eternity.”

“And?”

“And what? I'm not explaining my life story, just a bit about myself,” she said, shaking her head.

“So you're just dicking with me.” I sighed, planting my face in my palms.

“No. I figured that if we're going to stay sane, we'd have to know each other. In prison, it truly is better to group up, and we both have something in common,” she stated as she gazed forward.

“Innocence?” I asked as she stood up. I glanced over, following her gaze to see the Warden strolling into the courtyard.

“A purpose for being here,” she said before walking towards the courtyard doors leading inside.

I followed her with my eyes before she disappeared. Turning to face the ground, I thought about it. Her last words repeated in my head before I looked up at the Warden. The other inmates stayed clear of the Warden regardless of how some of them towered over him by many feet. I clapped my hands together, stood up, and casually strolled into the yard. Gaze fixiated, I walked straight up to the Warden. Other inmates instantly began talking to each other and the Warden eventually turned his gaze to me. I stood several feet away from him and began talking.

“Inmate Spike,” he said, nodding his head.

“Warden Lockdown,” I said, returning the nod.

“I take it you have business with me. If so, I will hear it out, but only for a few minutes if it takes that long,” he responded.

“I just have a question, maybe more depending on the answer,” I stated.

“Very well.”

“Can I get out?”

He stopped in his tracks and stared at me with an “are you serious” stare. “Pardon?”

“Sorry, that was just a joke,” I said.

“My time isn't for jokes, but your attempt at alleviation is welcome,” he said, smiling to confirm.

“Right. Anyways, what I wanted to know about is what conditions would have to be met for my release?” I asked.

He rubbed his chin and hummed as if he was actually contemplating it. “A formal request from your leader, residential family, or if evidence comes up that proves your innocence,” he said.

“Okay. One more?”

“Sure.”

“Has anyone ever escaped from here?” I asked.

He was speechless before erupting into laughter. He almost keeled over from the act and he slapped his knees several times for good measure.

“Yeah, yeah, I get it,” I said, waving my hand as I shook my head with disappointment.

“I apologize, but it is utterly foolish to even think about it in the first place. It is natural to want to be free, but remember, young drake, you are in here because you're a criminal. Just do society a favour an—”

“And what!? Just stay in here like some broke equipment, serving a miscarriage of justice?” I shouted, swinging my arms with frustration as he brought up the notion of me being a criminal.

His smile faded and he frowned. “Dial it back, prisoner. I would have struck you had you not given me a good, needed laugh.”

“Dial it back, sit down, shut up and drink your milk like an obedient child!? I'm innocent, and you expect me to not do anything about this?” I shouted, stepping towards the warden.

Bad move. He made a short jump back and thrust his hand forward, punching me in the gut. Any other person, I would have taken it with an oof, but not this time. Instead, I was thrown back while feeling like my ribcage and torso was dislodged. Breathing became much harder, and that heat in my chest rose once more. My seal started to glow and my torso, on top of feeling like  it was dislodged, felt constricted and unable to move.

“Solitary, three days. Inmate, let this be your first warning regarding your new life,” he said, dusting his hands off before walking away.

I rolled around, attempting to focus my fumbling eyes on the Warden as if it would call him back. One large guard landed next to me, having dropped in from the tower, and picked me up with ease and care. Luckily I happened to be in a prison where the guards didn't just make the prisoners suffer. He carried me and I never once realized what was going on. I rolled in his hands, seeing bright lights here, dark walls there, blue hallway here; snapshots of where he carried me. Unfortunately, the hostility ended there. A metal door opened up and I was haphazardly thrown into a room, hitting the wall and landing on a bed. The constriction ended, but breathing was still painful.

“Dammit,” I said, forcing the words out of my mouth.

I pushed myself up to my hands and knees and stared at the door, watching the lights of the hall go out. Sighing, I leaned back against the wall and glanced to the ceiling. This solitary room wasn't fit for larger dragons at all; it was almost like a bathroom. Above my head, three feet up, was a very small window. Standing up and climbing up, I peeked through the window; the wall was about five feet thick and nowhere near wide enough to let me through. Sighing, I slid back down to the ground and hugged my knees.

“You want to get out?”

Perking up, I looked at the small gap in the cell door to spot no one. I looked around before fixiating my gaze on the window above me again. I stood up and climbed the foot up to the window and peeked out. This time, I realized the view was nice; I spotted the field of flowers further down that seemed to glow red, like a fire.

“If you want to think about getting out, you need to take down the Warden. If not, the seal remains.”

The voice didn't sound familiar, but it was high-pitched, reminiscent of a feminine tone trying to disguise itself as a child. Frowning, I panned left and right, trying to see the speaker to no avail.

“Who are you?” I whispered, turning around quickly to check for guards.

“I'm a cello, and you are a fish to a cat.”

“What?” I asked, feeling my fingers grown numb from hanging on.

Nothing. I asked once more only to have the whistling wind as a response. I sighed, and slid back down to the ground, pondering the day.

I've been here not even a full 24 hours, and I've already got myself thrown into solitary by the Warden. To top it off, I shouldn't even be here in the first place. Celestia . . . she should have bailed me out. My friends should have, too. They didn't so much as speak the instant photos came out. Why didn't they believe me, though? The body looks nothing like my own . . . and he was tall. Luna didn't even speak.

Once again, tears prodded at my eyelids and I blinked them away. Quickly, I found myself starting to sniffle. I cursed myself for retaining the urge to cry. Maybe I wasn't as grown up as I thought.

I've got no family anymore.

[*][*][*]

Atop a tower standing in the volcano was the Warden, overlooking the prison. The moon's light peaked through the grungy skies yet the lack of clear illumination left only the torches to light up the island. The red flowers, better known as Dragon Lilies, reflected the torchlight like snow on the ground, adding to the fiery atmosphere that the island had. Warden Lockdown leered at the sight and sighed heavily. The rails were much too tall to allow him to lean on comfortably, so he settled for a lower bar.

“Solitary? Are you serious?” a voice asked from behind.

“I cannot go light on him, even if he's the target,” Lockdown replied.

“You could have sentenced a physical punishment,” he responded.

Lockdown spun around and leaned back against the railing, staring at a larger, draconic figure draped in a cloak. Lockdown rolled his eyes and glared at the dragon.

“I'm a Prison Warden, not a dictator. I'm not going to kill them, but if roughing up has to be done, then fine. He wasn't doing anything physical, so I had to use a mental punishment,” Lockdown said, dragging a claw down his face.

“Feh, fine. Make sure the whelp is kidnapped as soon as he's out of solitary. Just have Ryu deliver him,” the figure said, turning to take off.

“Ryuu and Tatsuya aren't in, and if they don't agree with me, I can't very well take them out.” Lockdown flew to the top of the railing and sat down, looking at the empty courtyard, watching the very area where he ordered Spike's solitary. “I'll have Haruo do it, so don't bug him.”

“Very well. In return for your order, I expect results by the end of the week,” the larger dragon said as he lifted off.

“Expect the best and you'll be let down,” Lockdown said as a final thought.

The other dragon never responded, flying off into the distance. The Warden watched him briefly before returning to watching the silent ghost-town of a prison below him. Pensively, he hummed before sighing.

“Maybe expecting the worst isn't the best option either?”

-3- Retreat

“Up and at 'em.”

“Has it been three days already?”

“Yes. Outta the cell before we lock you in for another three.”

“Okay.”

Chapter 3: Retreat

"Okay, so I managed to discover the dungeons are utterly squash," I said as I sat down at a table.

Across from me were the girls as well as Celestia. To my left and right were Shining Armour and a guard pony I didn't know. I eyed them nervously and rubbed my shackled wrists. The girls all looked just as nervous as I did while Rarity and Twilight looked... terrible, to say the least. Neither of them looked like they slept since I was detained, and that was two days ago. Twilight had big black bags under her eyes and she seemed struggling to stay awake. Rarity's mane looks like she hasn't brushed it or even attempted to wash it since the day and she was constantly fidgeting, rubbing her hooves.

Reaching forward, I rested my claws on Rarity's hoof and her attention snapped to me. Her eyes were wide open and seemed so . . . lost and confused, moreso than I was. She didn't seem to be comforted by my gesture. Her eyes were prickled with tears and her lip puckered as she held back the urge to start bawling, something she must have done a lot of the past few days. Instead, she pulled her hooves back and looked down at them as she nervously rubbed them together. I bit my lip and glanced over to the rest. They all seemed so confused and I wasn't. I was perfectly collected.

"Spike, none o' this works f' us. We can't help you if'n you won't explain it t' us," Applejack said with a stern voice that trembled.

"I explained everything. I was at Rarity's the other night, she could vouch for me," I responded.

"C'mon, Spike, Rarity won't even talk unless she's alone with you, let alone on the stand." Rainbow Dash slammed a hoof on the table. "There has to be something more. Were you experiencing urges? Unknown urges? Maybe pent-up aggression? Oppression, exclamation?"

"That last one is a grammar tool," I stated, trying to keep my calm attitude.

"Girls, I have to ask you to silence yourselves," Celestia said, finally stepping in.

No hesitation as they all sat down, waiting the princess' orders. Celestia stepped forward, her face shadowed by the cheap spotlight shining down on me.

"Spike, Rainbow does have a point. Anything that could help you, please try and remember. Specifically, urges." She leaned forward, several inches from my face but not directly in it. "Have you felt the urge to attack others?"

"Of course not! Violence isn't the answer!" I said, shifting my whole body closer as if to peer into her eyes. "I dunno, maybe my subconscious kicks in while I'm sleeping?"

"Spike," Rarity said.

All eyes shifted to the fasionista and I looked at her with hopeful eyes. I nodded my head to let her know I heard her, but she wasn't even looking at me.

"Never mind," she said, letting her head drop.

The way her eyes diverted themselves from me, as if looking at me was horrifying, struck me hard. Celestia sighed and walked towards the corner, shaking her head.

"I don't know what to say, but I know I'm not the killer." I looked up at the girls, smiling. "You'll realize this soon. There isn't enough evidence to convict me," I said with brimming confidence. None of them returned the smile and Twilight and Rarity refused to look at me. Even though they looked distraught, I never lost the knowledge that I was innocent. Even if they stopped believing me, I couldn't. This time, I was going to remain strong for them.

[*][*][*]

This time, I got a good look at the hallways I was being yanked through. The place I thought was a staircase is just a tunnel leading straight up for several hundred feet. Artificially made, but there isn't anywhere to grab onto, the walls are made to prevent claws from digging in to climb, and there is security monitoring it. Only the smaller guards with wings could go through them. Kind of excessive, but it works.

I didn't bother looking out the window so I was a bit shocked to discover the terrible nocturnal weather waiting for me. Outside, being carried through the courtyards, thick rolling clouds resembling smog loomed ahead while thunder roared in the distance. I frowned, thinking back home to Rainbow Dash and her weather job. Surely, this weather would make even her get up in the middle of the night.

“I share your sentiment, prisoner. Even the guards dislike the weather 'round here,” the guard said as he escorted me.

“O-oh, yes, the weather... what's up with it, anyways?” I asked as he carried me into the prison.

“It's a psychological and environmental advantage. A horrible place makes anybody wanna leave, and motivates the dragon to reform. If necessary, we can use it for cover or as a distraction against an enemy or riot,” he stated matter-of-factly.

“Oh, that's smart... I think.”

No more words were spoken and shortly after, we entered the holding area of the prison. I passed by sleeping inmates and those that decided to stay awake a bit longer. The guard didn't seem to rough with me, but last time I thought that he threw me into a wall. Sighing, I allowed him to carry me. Smart way of carrying, too. I'm like a peanut in his palm; I try to do anything and he just squishes me.

Thoughts interrupted, the cell door was swiftly opened and once more I was thrown into my quarters and slammed into the wall, this time hitting the sink, rolling off and hitting my face on the bed frame. I groaned and rolled around, holding my face.

“I apologize, normally I'd have more restraint but you are smaller than the average killer,” he said.

“I'm not a killer!” I responded quickly.

He sniffed at me, chuckled, and stood up before walking away. “Yeah, then why are you in here.” Rather than ask me, he left it as a statement to allow the message to sink in.

“Good question. Why... am I here? Maybe a draconic urge I can't control...?” I crawled onto my bed and snuggled up with my 'blanket'.

I guess a shredded potato sack could qualify as a blanket. Shrugging, I laid my head against my rock pillow and allowed myself to adjust to the scratchy texture of the sack. The ceiling was void of any stalagmites of any size. Whomever was here last had cleaned the ceiling, or maybe the guards do it. This prison can't seem to decide whether or not it's a hellhole or not.

The Warden acted nice and I was fooled, then he turned complete raging lunatic. Then he acted nice again and repeated our first encounter. The guards act ruthless at first, but the one that carried me back even apologized after hurting me. A volcano with intense heat here and there, very fitting of hell. Terrible weather above to symbolize dark clouds of Tartarus itself . . . yet the prison is clean, well-kept for dragons, and the fields are full of those red flowers. It's like a child going crazy with dark crayons, unable to decide on the colour of his colouring page.

Ponyville clearly established itself as a bright, colourful town full of friendly ponies (sometimes prejudiced) and right now, they're celebrating my imprisonment. “The murderous dragon is gone!” “To think we actually thought it was friendly!” “Just goes to show you that you can't trust a dragon.”

I crinkled my nose in my attempt to hold myself from crying again. None of this made any sense to me. The murders, the dragon, and my friends. The murders; why were they committed? What drove the beast to do them? The dragon; why? Just, why? Why kill others? And last . . . my friends. Twilight, Rarity, Celestia and the others. None of them helped me. The instant photos came out that showed a blurry purple dragon, none of them attempted to help me. No comforting, all but Twilight stopped visiting me in the dungeons where I was held, and that's the other thing. Celestia . . . she knows me. So why did she not he...

That bitch. She was saving face. The public wanted me gone. They wanted the 'dangerous beast' locked away so they could sleep well. Celestia didn't start an investigation, going with the 'evidence' presented. If she overruled the courts, Equestria would question her leadership. They'd criticize her, bring her down and demand I be taken away. She wanted to look good.

Gritting my teeth, the few tears that broke free from my tear ducts evaporated into steam as my face heated up. My eyes arched into a frown before my face scowled and I had to hold back a growl. My body started to feel weird, as if it was growing. It was just like when I started hoarding after my birthday, and I loved it. I wanted to give Celestia a reason to imprison me. Make those murder charges legitimate and really make her hurt, just as I did then..

But I couldn't. I couldn't do that, because then my friends would further think I was a monster. There wouldn't be any shred of doubt. I'd truly be a murderous dragon, and that thought  is absurd. I'm no killer. I'm not even violent. I don't think I've ever hurt someone other than an accidental burn here and there in my youth.

All of this thinking of home is hurting me worse than hearing the bad news. I rolled over and stared at the wall.

“If you want it to be easier on you, try this on: Your family abandoned you. Get used to it, and it won't hurt as much when you realize it.”

Gelid's words echoed in my mind, each word clicking in my head like a church bell dinging, vibrating through my skull. Each time, it got louder until they were all I could hear. And the more I tried to deny it, the more true it seemed. The more it felt like the only way to move on. They abandoned me, and the more I said it, the calmer I felt.

If they abandoned me, I can stop worrying about them. I could... start a new life when I leave. I could stop troubling them with my draconic problems.

I could prevent myself from hurting Rarity and Twilight.

[*][*][*]

I fell asleep at Celestia knows when, but I know I hadn't slept the full night. I was far too tired to have slept the whole night. Instead of getting up or moving, I remained stationary. The rumbling of the skies made its way through the stone prison and ended up in the holding area. But that wasn't all.

Footsteps.

Click click click.

Not large. Could be the Warden.

A cell door opened, and it sounded close. Taking a curious glance to see who would want who at this time of night, I instead found my reflexes kicking in. A large claw lunged forward at my face and using my arms that hugged my rock pillow, I pushed off the wall and slid off the bed. The dragon scratched the rock pillow and I didn't think twice as I rolled out of the cell. A quick glance back revealed the build of the dragon to be nearly twice my size and muscular enough to make Big Macintosh look like Featherweight.

Gulping, I began a dash down the rocky path leading towards a staircase. Behind me, the dragon's steps echoed through the halls. Some rumbling in the cells occurred, an obvious sign that several others woke up. Ignoring them as the intruder's steps rapidly got closer, I practically rolled up the stairs. Torches lit the walls and I simply followed them up and up and up until I came out to a bridge with an arched roof and caged walls. Nowhere to go, but it seemed to lead to more holding cells. Rain spat down on the world and I glanced through the bars quickly. Below were the giant gates at the prison's front.

Behind me, the dragon's steps weren't heard, and I gulped. I watched the archway for a sign of him before deciding he was gone. I ran towards the other side, ignoring the aching pain in my muscles that demanded I stop. I proceeded into the west side of the castle and found myself not in holding areas, but empty storage areas as well as halls that lead to guards' barracks. Nervously looking back, I found myself conflicted about where to go. I spotted a staircase at the other end of the mellow darkened hallway and ran across the cracked cobblestone floor and practically hugged the brown brick walls. Each little crease in the stone stuck out to me as my senses seemed entirely heightened. The scent of warm, fresh bread entered my snout and my stomach rumbled. The prison food isn't the best, but...

Shaking my head as a thunderclap screamed the land quiet, I began another mad dash towards the staircase and almost ran up the walls. I continued running until I found myself on a straight slope. Without questioning it, I continued running. I could be anywhere, going anywhere, and I'd be lost. Escape? What chance do I have of escaping?

Where I was going became obvious as I stepped out of the archway. Instead of a roof above me, I was in a pathway atop the castle. The only thing higher was a large tower that overlooked the whole island, obviously for the guards and messengers. Or maybe it was the Warden's penthouse, who knows.

Spotting my chance to escape regardless of my recent thought, I climbed over the jittered wall blocking me from falling and stepped onto faded crimson shingles atop the castle roof. The slope wasn't too steep, but the rain made it seem like a 70° wall. Carefully sliding towards the edge, I spotted the edge of the castle. There was a drop of about 1,200 feet directly into the ocean and at the bottom, barely visible, were multiple sharp rocks. I was not getting out this way so I proceeded to continue my scale of the castle on the shingles rather than where I'd be easily spotted.

The night and rain provided the perfect cover as I scurried on a downward slope. The drop-off slowly rounded out until I was on part of the volcano. The more the land rounded out, the more the base of the volcano seemed full of life. The Fire Lilly's at the base of the island didn't have their brilliance due to the darkness... then again, they can hardly be seen.

Shrugging it off, I came back to the front of the prison as well as the gates. There didn't seem to be an easy way to get off the prison's walls, and I've been running around for at least thirty minutes. At the base of the wall was several trees. I figured that I've got nothing to lose, so I shrugged my shoulders, let my adrenaline take over, and I did a bunny hop off the top of the wall.

It wasn't a straight wall drop as I found myself eventually sliding down the wall's gentle groove before slamming into small branches, twigs, and a bunch of leaves. I didn't even register the pain as I hit a thick branch and slid down, getting several slivers in my underbelly, and slammed face first into the trunk of the tree.

Groaning, I allowed myself to reorient for several minutes. At least another half hour passed, withstanding the urge to fall unconscious, before I found myself even able to think straight and I forced my body to slide off the branch. I bounced off every single thick branch of the tree, not caring as I was too dazed to register the pain anyways. I hit the soft grass below the tree and stumbled to my feet before leaning forward, continuing my stumble towards the docks.

After what seemed like years, I crossed the massive yard in front of the prison where the Pegasi gave me to the Dragon Guard. I stepped on the first large step and felt a tingling in my chest. Ignoring it, I broke into a full, stumbly run towards the docks. Before I could register what was going on, my chest felt like it exploded from the inside and I fell to the ground, rolling down the large, wide stairs as I did. The further I continued, the more I felt like my chest was being shredded from the inside. Looking down, my chest was glowing as the seal was almost like a blazing fire of its own. Then and there, I felt like I understood how ponies felt when caught on fire.

This was burning.

The last thing I saw before passing out were several large dragons picking me up and one familiar word: “Solitary!”

Dammit.

[*][*][*]

High above, Lockdown the young whelp scamper around the prison's rooftops. Daintily sipping from a mug of some draconic beverage, Lockdown curiously watched the scene unfold, spotting the would-be abductor running around the prison in a frenzy after Spike; climbing up the walls, jumping, yet Spike never seemed to spot him. Eventually, Spike wound up at the front of the prison and hopped off the gates. After a few minutes, just as the Warden sighed and was about to signal the guards, the purple speck, barely visible amongst the raindrops, darted out towards the front of the prison and then a red glow emitted from him.

“Son of a...” Lockdown smashed his mug against the wooden railing of the tower and walked over to a small cone attached to a pipe. Flicking the lid open on the wide end, he cleared his throat and spoke into it. “Guard Unit 24, converge on the grand steps at the castle; we have an attempted escape. The prisoner is the one whom tried to escape days ago.” Pausing, Lockdown grunted and let out a coarse sigh. “Solitary, one week.”

Slapping the small lid shut on the communication device, the Warden stood up and shook his head before slapping himself in the face. He stomped towards the railing and hopped up so he could look over. Quickly, over ten guards surrounded the red glow and brought it back towards the prison. Upon entering the gates, the glow vanished and then the guards delivered their package to solitary for the next week.

“'I expect results by the end of the week',” Lockdown said in a mocking tone. “Looks like you're screwed.”

Faint steps quickly got closer until another dragon was up in the tower with Lockdown. Wearing a cloak and being completely drenched, he threw the hood off and slumped down on one of several stone chairs situated in the tower. Crimson scales with red spines, the dragon also stood taller than Lockdown and even had a larger physical structure. He sighed and wiped the water off his face and hung his head, waiting.

“What in Shinryu's name was that?” Lockdown shouted as he stood stern, watching the other dragon.

The would-be abductor looked up with a simple “Hmm?” as a response. Lockdown smacked himself several times in the face and groaned. He waved his hand out in hectic gestures towards the front of the castle.

“THAT! What the hell was that supposed to be? I've seen better abductions from a damn Marching Band! And now, that slimy old git is going to be ringin' my neck because he won't have his damn results by the end of the week! You'll be lucky if he doesn't go straight to you, to be frank, since this was your job,” Lockdown said, pacing around. “Six weeks planning and now that the little bastard is actually here, he's causing us more trouble than a goddamned riot!”

“Sir, to be hone—”

“WHAT, HARUO? What is there to be honest about? Are you going to admit that you're not that go...” Lockdown pinched his nasion and scrunched up his snout. Letting out a deep sigh, he placed his hands on his waist and faced Haruo. “Continue.”

“I don't mean to offend, but why him? Why can't we use another drake?” Haruo asked, leaning back in the chair.

Scoffing, the Warden shook his head and leaned against the railing, crossing his legs and wrapping his tail around the bar.

“During his birth, he was hit with a massive surge of magic from Twilight Sparkle, the Element of Magic. That magic has been dormant in his body for years. To compare the magic in him to magic in other dragons is like comparing a puppy to the Great Dragon God Bahamut in ferocity. What would normally take years will only take a few minutes with Spike since the boy clearly hasn't used it yet.”

Lockdown loosened up and looked over the prison once more, just as the rain started to let up. The overhang above shielded him perfectly and he sighed.

“Pure magic, untainted and unused by the boy... it's the purest we can get to magic without finding a crystogen jewel, or ripping it out of the Element's of Harmony. And it's not just pure, it's large. It is a well of magic, one that guarantees us the ability to cut back on time.” He spun around and walked over to Haruo. “You see? We need you.”

Snorting, Haruo shook his head. “If I didn't have my seal on, I'd be more efficient.”

“Impossible. Any flame is recorded in the logs magically, and flame not used by the guards or myself would raise immediate suspicion. They'd converge on you like locusts. They'd discover your ties. They'd discover me, and everything would be undone. Haruo, we NEED you to do whatever it takes to get Spike. I can't tell the guards to go easy on you, but I can give you as much resources as possible.”

Silence hung in the air between the two and Haruo was humming while he thought. Lockdown sat down in another chair and glanced over at his shattered mug before casting the thoughts off. Focusing on Haruo, he waited patiently.

“I've got an idea, but it's radical and potentially compromising,” Haruo quietly said.

“I don't care. Will it work?”

Haruo nodded his head. “Looking at his personality, if he doesn't fall for it, I'll really be surprised.” Just as Lockdown was about to speak, Haruo held his finger up. “But, I need you to be lenient and trust me as well as convince your leash-holder to get off my back. This will take at least four more weeks to guarantee success.”

Lockdown nodded without hesitation. “All of the flak is on you, than. The old git will give me hell for the latest incident, but after I tell him the plan, he'll be breathing down your neck. Mess up and we'll be saying 'hello' to the guillotine back home, so double-check your plan, then triple-check your double-checks. Leave no room for error.”

“I won't. Now if you excuse me, I have to return to my cell. It'll be morning soon and I want at least half an hour of sleep,” Haruo said as he stood up, stretching his back.

Lockdown nodded, not facing the young drake as he swiftly left the tower. Stuck with his thoughts, Lockdown glanced over to the shattered mug and sighed. Standing up, he quickly cleaned up the remains of the mug and dumped it off the tower. Down below, it pinged off the roof and fell into the courtyards.

“The guillotine doesn't sound so bad.”

-5- Countdown

“So how does this work?”

“Well, patience takes restraint.”

“That was not what I meant.”

“Ah, the boy.”

Chapter 5: Countdown

“Ah, has Spike displayed any rebellious tendencies?” Shining Armour asked.

“No,” Rarity responded solemnly, no more tears. Instead, she had a dejected, deadened expression on her face with eyes that refused to meet Shining's or my own.

“Any time in the past two weeks has he displayed any anger towards a living being, be it a pet or Aunt Frida?”

“Yes.”

“Thank you. No further questions, your majesty,” Shining Armour said, returning to his seat.

Rarity didn't budge from her seat or so much as show she was alive other than blink. Celestia nodded and glanced over at my lawyer.

“Does the defence wish to cross-examine the witness?” she asked in her mellow tone.

“No thank you, your highness,” Tether responded.

With that, Shining once more stood up. Celestia cleared her throat and glanced down at Rarity. “Miss Rarity, you may step down.”

Nodding, Rarity quickly scurried out of her seat and back into her spot right behind me. Shining Armour slowly strolled to the centre of the room while carrying several papers. A side-long glance at myself caused a stop in a gulp I was doing. Coughing up some saliva, I composed myself and Shining looked to the court.

“I call upon my first witness, Second Lieutenant, Blue Star,” Shining Armour said in a booming voice.

A buff cyan stallion wearing an extensive cast over his rear end stepped forward adorned in an officer's uniform. His left eye had some swelling while there was a limp to his step. He quickly glared at me before stepping onto the podium. The clerk approached the stand and stared at Blue Star.

“Do you swear that the evidence you shall give shall be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you Gaia?” she asked.

“Yes,” Blue Star responded.

“State your name and address.”

“Blue Star and my current residence is Canterlot Castle Barracks.”

Stepping forward, Shining Armour cleared his voice with an 'ahem' that caught all attention. “Now, Blue Star; it's very clear from your bandages that you were injured, but how did you come by them?” he asked.

Clearing his throat, Blue Star responded in a deep voice. “I was attacked by a savage beast. My rump is covered in stitches while my front side only has a small bump on my left eye.”

Nodding, Shining Armour continued. “Do you know for certain what the beast looked like?”

“Yes.”

“You saw its face?”

“Yes.”

“What did he look like?”

Crinkling his snout, he snorted and rubbed his scalp. “A murderous gaze, he had. Round head, purple scales, green spines and green eyes with thin slits as the pupil.”

Shining Armour didn't respond. Instead, he turned around and walked towards me, standing several feet away from the table I sat at. He stared me down with a determined gaze not wrought with revenge but a lust for justice.

“Is your attacker in this room?”

“Yes.”

“Can you identify him?”

Wordlessly, the stallion pointed his hoof directly at me.

. . .

“Cheerilee, it was reported that you spotted Spike after the time where he left Rarity's home. Can you pinpoint where he was going?”

“The train station.”

. . .

“He has acted violent once.”

. . .

“Well sure, he acted violent once. E'rypony acts up sometime in their lives.”

. . .

“I refuse to answer the question. Besides, my testimony doesn't count since we're family.”

. . .

“There was only one time Ah can r'member where Ponyville had t' worry 'bout Spike.”

. . .

“Yes, I was a 100-foot tall beast, and I had no control over it.”

[*][*][*]

Cloaked stacks seven feet high and more shuffled towards Lockdown as the warm wind of the midnight breezed passed their cloaks, revealing snouts in the cloak openings. Lockdown never payed them any mind, opting to sit back and let them speak first.

“Lockdown, it has been six years. The time comes where he's the ripest age and you squander his presence by sending him to solitary. The boy has been here several weeks but has only been in the normal prison program for just over three days.”

“Yes.” Lockdown snorted.

“I thought I made it clear that I wanted results by the end of the week, had I not?”

“Yes.”

“Drop that attitude or I'll rip off your jaw.”

“Go for it.”

“Insolent little—”

“Haruo needs time. He's got a plan in place, and he needs time. The first few attempts were direct simply to satisfy your needs to rule them out.” Turning towards the group of six cloaked dragons, Lockdown adjusted his jacket. “His latest plan requires time to work, and he guarantees with his life that it will. Spike being sent to solitary is mandatory for this to work. Even so, I have not found a good opportunity to abduct him myself.”

Silence before a dragon hummed, making himself known. In a squeaky voice by dragon standards, he stepped forward. “So what of this plan? How can you openly trust Haruo?”

Lockdown swatted the air towards the dragon and leaned against the large railing. “Tenacity. Both of them have tenacity; Haruo won't stop until his goal is achieved and will simply keep getting better ideas while Spike will constantly be trying to escape. One of these times, Spike will provide us with a perfect opportunity, and the only thing we as the guards need to do is to is make sure that he doesn't escape. React to his attempts accordingly and Spike will reach the inevitable point where his escape attempt will be chaotic enough that I could go snatch him. I see Haruo's goal and I agree with him fully.”

Glancing over, the cloaked dragons mumbled amongst themselves, seemingly discussing the “plan.” Lockdown's attention retreated to his thoughts as the collective group processed what was said. After a while, the chatter between the group faded and they faced Lockdown.

“This whole bid is on the will of a youngling dragon and his urge to be free. As acceptable as it may be, we will watch the whelp you call Haruo,” one of the dragons stated.

Lockdown shook his head while muttering something. Glancing over, his eyes transmitted his thoughts yet he still stated them. “Impossible. Do not watch him. If you're somehow found out, which you will be, the guards will investigate you. I may lead them, but the guards know nothing of the plan. Not to mention Haruo specifically told me to keep you off his back. If you want success, do that.”

The dragon sighed and shrugged his shoulders. “Sure, sure. But if we don't have results, our threats won't be so idle. Your 'willing retirement' will be arranged, and when all is said and done, you will be dissolving at the bottom of the ocean.”

“No, if you don't have results this time, we'll all be in here ourselves, serving a new Warden. If I go down, you can be sure you'll go down harder.”

The group collectively snorted before turning away. Wings extended from the cloak and several flaps signalled their take-off. Without so much as a goodbye, they took to the sky, leaving the Warden alone.

[*][*][*]

Once more I was being escorted back from solitary. Instead of utilizing my privacy, I spent my week moping about how the riot failed and how to prevent that next time I start a riot. If I start a riot. Truthfully speaking, starting a riot is the safest way to try and escape. The confusion catches all including the guards and Warden making an escape attempt easier. The issue is more than just the confusion, however. Someone needs to... kill the Warden.

Gelid has the motivation to commit the atrocious act, but I'd rather not exploit her not to mention I'd rather not have someone die. I could, if I have the right tactic, get him to undo the seal. Or... I could wait it out and get out on good behaviour. Which is unlikely due to these damned solitary confinements. Sighing, I glanced up at the escort, the same as last time.

“So, have you been to the dragon homelands?” I asked.

He glanced down with a curious gaze before returning to eyes forward. “Yes, I was born there.”

“What are they like? Like, the locales, and the other dragons,” I asked, stepping over a root extruding from the wall.

His eyes wandered as he hummed in thought. To the left was a railing with parts of the cells below. What sounded like nails on a chalkboard sounded behind me and I cringed, turning around only to see the guard scratching a scale with his claws. He glanced down before sheepishly grinning and coughing. I faced ahead, shaking off the ringing in my ear.

“Very rocky. But to be honest, our capital city is reminiscent of Castle Bahamut. Contrary to what one living a pony life would believe, us dragons have structures for homes and construct buildings for various reasons. Caves are often our homes because they're easy to make, easy to find, often have jewels, and are less disposable, especially if one is constantly roaming the world. For one such as myself, I'd settle down and raise a family, gather a hoard of my own and poke fun at others.”

Glancing down, I gave it some thought. “I've lived the cozy life of a pony so far: warm bed for the winter; food anywhere and everywhere; never tasted meat before; I've even been considered the legal age for intimacy by pony standards yet I'm still a baby by dragon.”

“I know, you're emitting pheromones like a Queen Bee,” he responded.

I almost stopped walking, opting to violently shudder instead before trying to repress the statement. “So to see this... is life in the homelands anything like this? Minus the incarceration?”

“Somewhat. Live in a society run by the leader, and if you act out, you're killed. The society itself depends on the clan you're in. The code of dragons is that each clan develops its own rules and societies and whatever makes you a warrior in one clan may be punishable by exile in another. But, there is one universal rule.”

Approaching my cell, I looked up at him. His face was stern, as if this rule was one that requires a serious, no-bullshit attitude when reciting it.

“If the king speaks, you obey. No questions asked. If the King of the Dragon's told every dragon on the planet to kill themselves, they'd do it. To not do so is dishonourable. Many a dragon would tear out their own heart for the king.” We stopped outside my cell as he fumbled with a ring of keys. He opened it as I stepped in, turning around so he could remove my shackles. “But not me. Fuck that.” We briefly stared at each other in silence before letting out several chuckles.

He undid the cuffs keeping my wrists restrained and I rubbed them for good measure. They were always uncomfortable, mostly because I have an older pair since I'm smaller than the average inmate. Glancing up as he spun the ring of keys around on his finger, he started walking away. Without thinking, I approached the bars and asked: “What's your name?”

His body froze and he slowly turned around with an expression of awe. He snorted, chuckling as he shook his head.

“Apep Ormr. And yours is Spike the Dragon,” he said, waving his hand as he walked away.

For the first time in prison, I genuinely smiled.

[*][*][*]

My potato sack blanket never felt so soft before. Even though I've only used it twice, or maybe three times, it seemed to get comfier each time I used it. Or maybe it's because there is no bed in solitary confinement.

Regardless of my status on blankets, the thought of last week still lingered in my mind. It was a pretty bad mess up, one that outshines our first Winter Wrap Up's fumbles by a long shot. I don't want anybody to die just so I can escape but I don't want violence either. There was an old saying Twilight told me about regarding violence; “There can be no peace without war.” She has always insisted otherwise, saying that love and friendship is the way to peace... but I know different. Not everybody is going to agree with you. Not everybody is going to be a nice guy. Someone will wind up in power of a strong nation and that someone may disagree severely with Equestria. That someone may wage war, and the only way for it to end peacefully is to remove the one commanding the nation... which cannot be done without violence. Just like how I cannot leave the prison without someone dying.

Sighing, I snuggled against my rock pillow while the potato sack vaguely smelled of sweat. Brushing that aside, I attempted to sleep. Regardless of the comfort I managed to attain, I found myself restless. The thought of another attack/kidnapping lingered in my mind and with Gelid's vague reasoning for being here, I was unable to find the catharsis required to sleep. Minutes rolled by until I changed my laying position. Shifting around, I remembered the last time I slept comfortably to try and assist with my slumber.

A frilly pink bed with thin, violet sheets. Central heating to keep the building warm. A white mare with a purple mane to keep me warm.

. . .

A soft ping in the distance snapped me out of my attempt at sleeping. I sat up in bed as quietly as possible and I allowed my hearing to take priority. After a second of buzzing, the natural sound was second nature and I heard a very soft ticking... like claws on stone.

Quietly rolling out of my bed, barely hearing myself in the process, I slid several rocks under my potato sack and hid myself behind the sink. My small frame was hidden in the shadows by the sink and in my hand I held a rock. It was slightly larger than my fist and had a particularly sharp edge to it which I had in the open. The ticking softly increased in volume and seemed to slow like something out of a horror film. I wasn't scared or anything, but I was wary that some asshole is constantly trying to kidnap me. I don't know how he keeps getting in here or whether or not he's part of the guards. If he was part of the guards, he'd be able to get me in solitary. Or solitary is safe, as hinted at by Gelid.

A figure stepped in front of the cell and bore a cloak just like the last dragon that tried to make off with me. Except I'm almost certain he wasn't trying to reenact the infamous “drop the soap” accusations most prisons have. Almost.

His hand reached toward the door and a gentle click came from the handle. The door swung open without any loud creaks and the figure quietly approached the lumps under my blanket. Upon closer inspection, he obviously realized it wasn't my head poking out from the end of the blanket and glanced towards the sink. By the time he did so, I had already leaped out from my hiding spot and swung the rock at the figure's face. It make contact with a sickening sqush acting as the indication of impact. Some fluids squirted and covered my hand and I didn't stop to see the damage, running out of the cell instead. I dashed to the left this time and glanced behind me to see the dragon almost two feet behind me. In shock, I looked down at my hand to see an odd clear fluid coating it.

A hand latched onto my arm and I swung my fluid-coated hand towards the dragon, slapping it against his larger head. He grunted and I still couldn't see his face due to the lighting of the room. He brought his free hand back and his body twisted enough for me to see that his eye was damaged, goop leaking from it. I would have vomited had I not been high on adrenaline.

Instead, strength brought on by the adrenaline allowed me to rip my right arm out of his grasp and I thrust my left fist up towards his gut. It connected with a satisfying grunt in confirmation and I followed up by jumping straight up. He keeled over so I slammed my skull straight into his snout while simultaneously wrapping both my arms around his neck. I kept headbutting his snout which seemed to get bloodier the more I made contact with it.

Having probably bruised and bloodied my scalp, I let go of the mystery drake and rubbed my head, having felt a wave of dizziness stream up my spine and into the back of my head like a bad hangover. I stumbled backwards and turned around towards the exit. Footsteps in the distance up the stairs in the exit came out of nowhere and I felt a sense of dread. There was no way I could cover up the bloody bastard behind me or the blood on my scalp. Spinning around in an attempt to make it back to my cell, the kidnapper had vanished entirely. There was a pool of blood that had made it into a small groove in the ground and being me, I had stepped in it. I ran back across the stone balcony and slipped as the blood on my foot finally found some smooth stone and I fell over just in front of my cell. As I tried to push myself up, a foot stomped on my back and I hit the ground with a thud, unable to breathe. And again...

“Solitary, two weeks!”

[*][*][*]

This isn't a coincidence.

I'm being kidnapped because I've come into contact with ponies. Specifically, unicorns. I have magic inside of me that the Warden needs. And that's just it. Not just any magic. It belongs to the Element of Magic herself. Moreso, I didn't just come into contact with the Element of Magic, I spent my life with her. At my birth, she infused me with enough magic to make me grow into a fully-grown dragon. I don't have a little bit of potent magic... I have a lot. Enough for the Warden to tidy up and go home after all is said and done.

The kidnapper himself is working with the Warden. That's why he keeps coming for me, and not just that. I'm safe in solitary, hence the reason he hasn't come for me here. Those Pegasi I spotted here aren't here for some training. This prison gets dragons from all around the world, and it'd make sense to have more than dragon's on deck for the sake of advantage. Not all dragons know what a Unicorn is capable of, or the strength an Earth Pony could have. Those Pegasi guard the area for solitary. The kidnapper isn't able to get me because the prison itself doesn't guard solitary... Pegasi guard solitary. Ponies. They're faster and more agile as well as have more room to move in such a small area. Tactically, they have the advantage should some escape as well as the fact that Unicorns can effectively nuke the area.

I'm 100% safe in solitary. I'm the Warden's grand prize for his conspiracy for that box or whatever. And that son of a bitch framed me for murder.

I'm going to fix this. I'll utilize my time in solitary and train myself. Exercise; do pushups, crunches, anything to raise my stamina and strengthen myself because one of these days, I have to face the Warden and that kidnapper again. A riot is necessary; the confusion will single out the Warden and separate him from the guards. And it has to be a big riot; everybody in the prison has to be rallied. Gelid can help, because she can help me stop the Warden. I can end this conspiracy and all the deaths (never mind the deaths that the riot will cause) of innocent lives.

[*][*][*]

Two Pegasi floated through the solitary caves, patrolling as well as making sure no dragons were causing fusses. Near one, they stopped to listen in on the inside. Grunting could be heard as well as snarling. Confused, one leaned his head over to the door, refusing to glance into the cell.

“Hey, what's going on in that cell?” the other Pegasus asked.

“I hear grunts. Is... is he doing what I think he's doing?” the one with his head against the door asked.

The first guard gently flew up to the window to see Spike slapping his head against the ground, mumbling something about regrets. The guard shrugged his shoulders and yanked on the eavesdropping Pegasus.

“He's just whining and suffering, like he should be. Go check the other hallway, dammit,” he said, shoving the Pegasus in a different direction.

. . .

Hearing the Pegasi leave, I smirked and laid out face-down against the ground. Pressing my palms flat against the ground so my limbs were in a T-shape, I began pushing my whole body up regardless of my exhaustion. For hours upon hours, I switched between doing push ups as well as sit-ups. Lacking weights, I could only do so much since I had a single rock in this solitary room, and I merely used it for a pillow.

The first four days were simply that; push-ups, crunches, jumping jacks, the simple exercises. Soon, I found myself doing the exercises with some ease, so I looked down to my rock. When I got my food in my rock bowl, I devoured it as fast as possible or moved it onto some clean smooth stone and used my pillow as well as my dish as weights. Uneven, so I switched arms often. Time seemed to fly by with the weights so I attempted to lift the pillow using one hand, alternating every few minutes. My arms felt like they were on fire at first after I over-exerted myself and the food always tasted like ass normally, but after burning up all my energy, it was like triple-scoop minty fudge mega-butterscotch ice cream; irresistible. It was only a potato and some water, yet it was heaven.

Like moths to a hot fire, I took to training with ferocity. I did my best to hid my exercises from the guards as well as try and utilize my food dish as a weight to the best of my ability. At the start of my sentence, I would have found my pillow a heavy boulder, but now it's like lifting a stack of books. There was some weight, but nothing to fuss about. I didn't have body-builder muscles, but it was definitely enough for someone to use self-defence. And this was only strength training.

Stormy weather here, supposed hurricane winds there. Once during my solitary I heard a ruckus outside, obviously a courtyard scuffle as several other people were audibly put in solitary. They'll suffer and wallow in here and potentially die later on, but not me. My will won't be broken, and I'll prove to everybody I'm innocent by... escaping prison. Huh. Well, the first step is to find the one who framed me.

And there was the deal of magic inside of me. I never knew I had it but now that I figured out I have a huge well of Twilight's magic swirling around inside me, I could try and use it. I just need one of those gems that conducts magic, or...

[*][*][*]

“Jeez, are you ever going to spend a whole day out of solitary? Or are you planning on punching the Warden's daughter next?”

“The Warden has a goddamn daughter!?” I asked.

“Heh, no. That was just a jab at the lengths you go to escape. I'll be honest, you're pretty damn ballsy,” Apep said.

Shrugging, I glanced at the hallways. “I just wanna go home and find the guy who framed me.”

“Gotta be honest again, but I'm starting to believe you're innocent. Most people would have given in to their guilt. Either that or you're just extra determined to escape. Regardless, you speak of such vigour and praise of Equestria and your friends. I really don't see someone like you as a murderer,” Apep said, opening a wooden door leading into the cell block.

“Why are you talking to me like this? Aren't you supposed to be, like, 'get in your cell, criminal scum' or something?” I asked. Shaking my wrists, I heard the shackle chains clinking around. “And why don't you yank me by my chain?”

“'cause I trust you, and prison guards aren't brutal. At least the ones who haven't been here for years. Truth is, most guards are scared of the inmates since some are combat-trained. A good riot will completely overpower the prison's current staff. If that happens, reinforcements come from various lands such as Equestria. Me? I just want people to do their time and learn a thing or two. Being brutal dictators won't earn the respect of prisoners nor will it make them want to act nice. The others could really learn something from you.”

Arriving at my cell once more, I hesitated. “Uh, don't mean to be rude or anything, but... are the guards blind? I'm being completely, 100% honestly entirely totally sincere when I say that I've almost been kidnapped three times. I think, I don't remember, been too long.”

He frowned as he pondered it for a second. “Maybe this kidnapper has help. I'll offer to guard this cell tonight.”

Sighing with relief, my whole body loosened up. I stepped into my cell and he undid my shackles and locked my cell. “Thank you. I haven't gotten a decent sleep in my cell since ever. Keep waking up to kidnapping and such or I'm in solitary which is plain uncomfortable.” Looking down, I felt saddened. “Although three weeks ago, that riot was my fault. I regret those deaths more than anybody.”

“And I believe you. Sleep well, Spike the Dragon,” Apep said as he walked away.

Nodding, I walked over to my bed and slid under the potato sack, falling asleep rather easily.

-6- Instigation

“I need your help.”

“With what?”

“An escape.”

A brief pause. “Alright, but I want you to do something for me.”

-6- Instigation

“Spike, well, he was wearing a weird cloak thingy. It wasn't a poncho, or maybe it was, I'm not too sure. Whatever it was, it concealed his body.” A typical Royal Guard stood on the stand while Tether Hitch was questioning.

“I see. Did the attacker ever fly or leap far distances?” Tether asked.

“No, no flying. But he did quite an impressive leap, jumping over a street from rooftop to rooftop,” the guard responded.

“So it's possible the attacker performed a feat that is physically impossible for Spike?” Tether asked, levitating a notepad in front of him.

“Well, yeah, but the building he jumped to was lower than the building he jumped from. I mean, he could have been on an adrenaline high,” the guard said, shrugging.

Tether allowed the silence to hang before responding. “No further questions.”

The eyes of friends and family behind plagued my conscience. I couldn't see them but I could tell all eyes were on me. I started to realize that even if it wasn't true, everything was stacking against me. The system is far from perfect. Before I realized it, Tether was sitting down again and Shining Armour was standing once more.

“I call upon my last witness, Spike's guardian and my sister, Twilight Sparkle, to the stand,” he said in a voice that almost cracked on my mother's name.

In a stoic, seemingly practised fashion, Twilight stood up and walked to the stand. Her face didn't have disappointment nor did it have any shred of fear displayed. She was perfectly calm and didn't even glance at Shining Armour. Either she was focused entirely on answering questions or was sharing my resentment for Shining Armour at the moment.

"Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help Mother Gaia?"

“Yes.”

“State your name and address, please.”

“Twilight Sparkle, Golden Oaks Library,” she responded in a practised fashion.

Shining Armour hesitated in speaking as even he could tell when his sister was seemingly angry.

“You've hatched Spike and spent many of your years raising him, is that correct?” Shining asked.

“No need to clarify, the court knows our connection, Shining,” Twilight responded in a pressed tone.

Shining Armour had a look of bewilderment for a second before clearing his throat, taking a glance down at the records he held in the air.

“Okay, I'll get straight to the point. Did you or did you not know where Spike had gone the night of the murders?”

“He stopped by the Golden Oaks Library at 7:13 PM and borrowed fifty bits and left before I asked him why.”

“What was Spike's mood during this visit?”

“He was excited and really jumpy in regards to purchasing a gift for the upcoming Hearts and Hooves' day festival in Ponyville,” she said, exaggerating the words for Hearts and Hooves.

I heard a gentle gasp escape what was obviously Rarity's mouth from behind me and I felt disappointed to say the least. I had hoped to keep it a surprise, but it wouldn't matter if I'm found guilty.

“Alright then. A few more questions; was, or is Spike entering a growth spurt or the draconic equivalent to puberty?” Shining Armour asked.

“That is a question I cannot answer. The only thing I have confirmed on behalf of Spike's own admission, and I apologize for this Spike, is that after one instance of intercourse, their bodies prepare for breeding. That's the closest you'll get to an answer,” Twilight said, not once hesitating or stopping to blush.

Shining Armour seemed to be shifting uncomfortably. I was shifting uncomfortably. I actually heard a young giggle emanating from Rarity's sister, Sweetie Belle. For a second, I forgot about the murder and hunched myself over, blushing as I buried my face in my arms.

“W-well, alright then. Theoretically, said... i-intercourse could also instigate puberty. We cannot tell, so that's simply a thought. Next question: I have noticed a change in Spike's appearance since I first met him to the current date. Are you aware that his body has taken a more brute appearance?”

“Yes.”

“Alright. Going back to my theory, has Spike ever had any aggressive behaviour or acted out-of-line with you or seemed different in a way you wouldn't consider Spike to be... Spike?” Shining Armour asked, his voice finding itself again.

“Of course he has acted aggressive. It's in the nature of every living creature to show aggression at certain points, but in regards to the second half... yes.”

“Can you describe an instance?”

“About six years ago, Spi—”

“No, never mind,” Shining Armour cut her off. “I was hoping for something more recent.”

I almost dropped my jaw at that while Twilight went for the more subtle eyebrow raise directed at her brother. “Hoping?”

“Uh, what I mea—err, I meant...” He coughed into his hoof and stared up at Twilight. “I'm the one asking questions here. Or not. No further questions.”

Celestia nodded. “Does the defence wish to cross-examine the witness?”

“Negative,” Tether responded.

Yeesh, what the hell was just accomplished? I thought.

“Your Highness, I wish to present some evidence found at numerous scenes in Canterlot,” Shining Armour spoke up.

He can just request that? I thought.

Celestia nodded her head and Shining Armour stood up, lifting two sheets with him. He stood in front of the Princess and turned around. “I call Spike the Dragon to the stand.”

Sighing, I carefully slid my chair back and made my way towards the stand. I sat down on the stool and looked down at Shining Armour, robotically proceeding through the usual. Finally, Shining Armour held the sheets up and I got a closer look.

“Unicorn Inspection Team scoped all of Canterlot, especially the area where you apparently made contact with my soldiers. As all living beings have magical signatures, those of which retaining the most being Unicorns, we had scanned and picked up traces of the magical signature left that didn't correspond with the guards present at the scene and when cross-referencing it with yours upon your initial incarceration, we have found a 79% match. The ashes created by your flame breath were also scanned and yielded a 95% match to your flame breath.”

He held up the sheet so the jury and audience could spot it. What looked like an infrared spectrum was shown. “This first sheet shows the magical signatures given off by Spike the Dragon.” He held up the second sheet which had another spectrum on it. “This is the data given off by the residue found throughout Canterlot. They are nearly identical save for a few parts near the beginning and end which can be explained as ignition as well as fading.” He turned back and faced me. “Can you explain that?” Shining Armour asked.

I gulped, remembering something Twilight once told me. “D-dragons can pick up certain magical signatures from spells attributed to their flame breath. An example being that I and another dragon can both learn spells that send and receive messages and have an almost identical magical presence. And as for the first part... I wouldn't know, not all of us have met dragons.”

Shining Armour stepped closer to the stand before merely being a foot away. “I have, numerous times. And I'm sick of all this constant negative contact with them as are my entire guard, Spike.”

“Objection, he's badgering the suspect,” Tether spoke up.

“Shining Armour, dial it back a bit. This is a trial, not an interrogation,” Celestia piped up.

The almost-growling face in front of my own, Shining Armour looked as though he would ignore the regal princess, sending a shrill scream wailing through my mind to panic. Luckily, he sniffed and walked back towards the table.

“And I have one more bit of evidence,” he stated, putting the sheets back in the briefcase where he pulled them out.

In its place was a stack of more sheets. Upon closer inspection, they were photos... of a purple dragon tearing up Canterlot. Spreading them out so I could see, many of them were blurred, but one could easily mistake the dragon for me. Several of them were almost perfect, catching the form, size and shape of the drake. He almost matched me in size, but it's nearly impossible to tell due to the rain and cloak covering his body.

“Photographic evidence placing Spike the Dragon at the scene of the crime. Photos of him running through Canterlot, photos of him attacking Royal Guards, photos of him destroying public property, photos of him attacking both guards and civilians with his flame breath,” he said, pausing as he pulled out three more photos. “And two photos of a purple-scaled, green-spine, cloaked dragon in Manehatten and Las Pegasus, both shortly after the murder of two ponies.”

Silence hung in the courtroom as I stared at those photos he held up as if they were a target for all of my hate and rage. Photos of a murder who took my image and is using it to ruin my life and pin the whole mess on me... and I couldn't stop it. The court had seen them all. My friends had seen them. The princess, my mother... Rarity. If there was ever something that could condemn you easily, it'd be photographic evidence. And Shining Armour had enough to fill a photo album.

“Just to remind you that we have an almost perfect match in magical signature as well as photographic evidence of Spike's involvement. And there is also the fact that he has no alibi on the night when good, innocent ponies were killed in cold blood... by none other than Spike the Dragon,” Shining Armour said, each word dripping with rage hidden by a uniform of the sun.

“And that is all, your highness.”

[*][*][*]

“And is that all, your highness?”

A loud smack radiated through my body as I tumbled to the ground, rubbing my scalp where the pain started. Gelid stood above me and sniffed at me.

“Apologies, but I really hate being called your highness. And yes, that is all I ask,” she responded, standing me up then sitting me down on a rock stool. Disoriented, I shook my head to reorient myself. Strangely, it worked.

Upon having a decent sleep for once in this prison, I woke up the next day, went through routine that was not routine to me, and proceeded to break. Gelid was forming more rock sculptures, and it seems like previous ones were kept in the yard. She pretty much made an entire house's worth of stone furniture all with a couple of weeks and a tail. This lovely living room of stone sat under the stone awning in the courtyard. Talented gal, she'd do lovely in the construction industry.

“Alright then, but if I tell you, you have to hear me out, okay?” I asked.

Gelid waved her hand and laid back on the stone couch. Oddly enough, the stone furniture felt more comfy the more I laid on it. Then again, stone was all I had in solitary.

“Alright, so I was told that taking down the Warden removes the seal on our bodies,” I said.

“Wait wait, who told you?”

Thinking, I almost stated what it was until I realized how stupid it sounded. Sighing in disappointment at being branded an idiot, I shrugged my shoulders and faced Gelid.

“A voice while I was in solitary,” I responded.

“And you just ate it up.”

Shaking my head, I shifted around on the small stool I had and stretched my back until it cracked. “I already have knowledge of spells and seals and the Warden's seal is something I like to call a 'Magnetic Seal'; my mother told me about these kind of seals that are created and linked with its creator yet it can be cast by any old average joe, and you can cast it as many times without fault or requiring a break. Costs no magic to maintain at all.”

“Instead, it's sharing a life with its own genesis; the Unicorn and/or Unicorn's magic, in this case it being a dragon. If the original gets a boost in magic, the seal gets a lot harder to break. If they fall deathly ill, you could practically remove it with an eraser. This is that case with the Warden; his seal is magnetic. It sticks to him and him only but anyone can use it. Kill the object the magnet is attached to and the magnet will drop. In this case, kill the Warden and the seal fades into nothing. The very existence depends on its origin. An arm functions just fine but if you kill the owner, the arm dies as well. Get my drift?”

She nodded her head. “Dragon's aren't supposed to be eggheads, but I guess you're cool.”

I shrugged. “In Equestria, I'm actually equivalent to a teenager in terms of intelligence. My mother is fifty times my intelligence. Or something.”

“Huh. Alright then, this all makes sense. So that's all you know about the Warden?” Gelid asked, sitting up on the jagged rock.

“All I care about,” I responded.

“Gotcha.”

“So, you gonna hear me out?”

“Sure, whatever.”

Sighing, I rolled my eyes just as Gelid's gaze locked onto someone. Thinking it to be the Warden across the yard, I slowly turned around to check him out, only to see a larger dragon standing directly behind me. I almost had a heart attack, opting to just roll off the stool instead. Glancing up, it was the same dragon that talked to me about confidence, and how I'm an apparent badass in the prison.

“Name's Haruo,” he said, waving to Gelid

“I know, now buzz off, we're talkin' here,” she responded in a raspy voice, her body no longer moving casually.

“I know, but that's an interesting notion you have there. Plannin' on killing the Warden? Pretty big stuff,” he said, taking my spot on the stool.

Grumbling, I stood up and walked over to the couch, sitting next to Gelid. By comparison, Gelid was a foot taller than me, and Haruo was two feet taller than Gelid. The sun almost silhouetted his figure but I could still see a goofy smile on his face.

“Okay, what's the catch?” I asked, doing my best to seem intimidating.

“Woah, calm down there, sport. You'll get a tummy-ache,” he said, chuckling at himself.

“'ey c'mon, I'll show you a sport,” I said, swinging a fist at him.

Gelid buried her face in her palm as Haruo started laughing heartily at my antics. I snorted, crossing my arms in mock-rage. Haruo calmed down just as quickly as he started and leaned forward, placing his elbows on his knees and his chin in his palms.

“Yes, the catch. What do you mean by that?” he asked.

“He means, what do you want in exchange for not telling the Warden?” Gelid responded, pulling out of her palm of shame.

He shrugged his shoulders, maintaining that odd smile. “I want in on your little escape plan, because why else would you want the seal gone?”

“Yeah, about that, I'd rather you screw off since you'll be escaping along with everyone else when the seal goes down,” Gelid responded.

“If, it goes down,” I corrected her.

“Hmm?”

I looked up at her with what must have looked like hopeless eyes. “You saw the other week, how those dragons were slaughtered. We can't screw this up,” I said.

“And how you gonna not screw it up?” Haruo asked, his smile fading.

“Last time, I just rallied up a couple of hotheads in the lunch room which wasn't that full to begin with. This time,” I raised a finger, pointing into the courtyard, “we'll use the entire prison. Every single inmate to overpower Lockdown.”

Gelid rolled her eyes and shook her head. “And how the nuts are you going to accomplish that? Last time I heard, you weren't exactly the motivational genius considering you practically murdered a bunch of buds enjoying lunch.”

I glanced at Haruo, waiting a second to see if he piped up to input. Nothing, so I sighed and looked at the two.

“Before I reveal it, I have to know for certain: You two are in for this, correct?” They both nodded their heads, seemingly tensing up. “Alright, here's what we do...”

[*][*][*]

A gentle stroll is lovely, especially since we have some decent weather today. The sun is trying to peak through the clouds and the wind is a warm breeze. Pretty much everyone is well-behaved today. No skirmishes, no bumping. Shame we have to ruin that. Geez, I feel heartless since some dragons will die in the ensuring battle. I should be trying to save everyone, so I will take on the guilt these sacrifices make and let them torment me my whole life... so I can stop Lockdown.

Walking around the prison all day was pretty boring. I had to wait until a place got crowded and until Haruo lured the other guards out. He stated he was confident in his ability to take out one guard, and hopefully we'll be seeing the rest of the inmates enter the large courtyard.

Above, the Warden could be seen staring down at us from his lovely little perch. Like a hawk, watching the ground for anything unruly so he may swoop down and end his prey. I glared at him, attempting to make my rage boil over my concern so that I wouldn't be weak in the upcoming... war. Yeah, war sounds fitting.

As if on cue, many more inmates flooded into the courtyard. Unfortunately, the three or so inside solitary will have to wait to see if we manage to overthrow the prison. Then again, I'm not thinking far ahead, I'm acting pretty selfishly. These dragons... some of them truly are murderers, so their deaths will be fitting. An eye for an eye. That sounds right. Maybe the same can be said... for my 'family' at home...

Regardless, it's time to start this.

. . .

Gelid was just ahead, winking at me once to signal that she's ready. A quick scan showed Haruo seemingly mingling with the rest of the inmates that were just released. A guard quickly ran in from outside, badgering the group due to Haruo's work. He bore a blade of some sort and was seemingly looking for Haruo. Time to get the eyes off him.

I walked forward and bumped into Gelid. Luckily for me, she bumped me hard enough to bump into someone else. A taller, lanky black dragon with a ring in his snout. He turned to tell me to watch it, but I was ahead of him on that for Gelid.

“Watch it, you cyan bitch,” I said, crinkling my snout and rearing my fists.

She spun around, legitimately looking angry. Nervousness flashed by me, but I realized that ever since my weight-lifting, I could actually match her. I was just shorter.

“'scuse me? I'm not the little kid here, shrimp,” she said, stomping towards me.

Instead of responding, I ran forward and jumped into her, wrapping my arms around her body and pressing my face into her chest. The bandana hid the fact that she had small lumps pretty well. Good thinking, woman. Using all of my might, I placed my foot down and did something awesome Rainbow Dash showed me one time while practising with a sandbag. I used my shortness to place my head under Gelid's arm and lifted her up. I kept one hand on her thigh and did my best to dig my claws in, grunting to make it seem authentic. Then again, Gelid told me to do something painful and something that would affect others.

I flipped backwards, slamming Gelid into the ground behind me while her legs flipped back and hit the very guy I bumped, knocking him into a group of three. The supplex sure sounded painful.

“FIGHT!” someone shouted.

I balanced myself and turned to face Gelid only to find the dragon she accidentally kicked lunging over her towards me. Instead of panicking like the old Spike would have, I ducked a bit until his body was leaping over my own. I punched both hands upward and impacted the underbelly of the black dragon. He rolled forward and knocked over a group of five. Behind me, I could hear Gelid grunting as she got up, shoving several other dragon's into others. Haruo was already in a shouting match with several other dragons, rearing to fight while the guard present was conflicted; numerous fights were starting to break out and above, several guards were already blowing whistles.

A roar sounded in Gelid's position and she charged right at me. I attempted to brace it but she thrust her arms forward, placing her palms in my arm pits and lifted me off the ground as she shoved me through a large group of dragons that gathered to watch the fight. After a few seconds, she threw me off and I hit one of the prison's larger inmates in the ankle. He was easily eight feet tall and turned to face me, spotting three dragons charging at him. He snorted and kicked at them, ignoring the fact that Gelid and I rested next to his tail as he sent one dragon flying. Shouts of gangs intruding with others, profanities as well as insults to the size of each others' genitalia were made. Needless to say, our job was done.

To keep up the ruse as well as get others involved, Gelid and I continued throwing each other around the courtyard into other groups of dragons, all whom started hitting the one that bumped them regardless of who caused the bump. By the time I got a chance to scan the area, ten guards swooped down and entered the courtyard wherein every single inmate present was in a fight with someone. According to Haruo, this is only 60% of the prison's inmate population. And it didn't stop; more dragons kept piling out after hearing about how “the boys are getting into it with Falken's gang” and such. The courtyards were slowly getting filled up with every inmate. As it was evident the ten guards sent down weren't enough to quell a full-scale prison riot with almost every inmate, a siren went off in the prison.

Just as fast as the riot started, guards began pouring into the courtyard out of the prison as well as dropping down from the towers. 10, 20, 40, 80 guards and more just kept coming. Inmates ganged up on one guard, there was some one-on-one going on, and it was complete chaos just as we predicted. Haruo was visible in the distance in the midst of it all while Gelid and I hid behind some stone furniture she made. Others lunged at him with their fists thrust toward his face and he blew them off. Sometimes he took the hit and backhanded them without looking, obviously used to combat. It really made me wonder what his age was since it was evident that not all dragons are 100-feet tall when fully grown, Lockdown being the prime example.

He made his way over to us without dying and he ducked down behind the couch next to ours. He pointed into the sky from under the awning.

“Those Pegasi realize that the guards have no chance with a full-scale riot,” he said.

Looking up, there were six Pegasi that took off in the direction towards the sun at speeds Rainbow Dash would be proud of. A quick glance into the chaos revealed that the guard I actually became fond of wasn't present, which was good. I had grown attached, which may bite me in the ass later. I already feel terrible since the guards are going to be suffering just as much as the inmates.  Taking my mind off the guards, we scanned the courtyards as well as the towers.

“The Warden isn't coming into the courtyard?” I asked.

Gelid shook her head. “Doesn't look like it. This is odd, considering he has always come out during these riots.”

“This isn't the usual riot. The fact that they're calling in backup from the mainlands means that it's not likely to pan out the way the Warden expects. He's either holing up in his office, retreating to the guard's barracks, or he's hiding elsewhere in the prison,” Haruo said. He pointed at the Warden's tower. “That is the safest spot for the Warden since it'd be a vantage point, but he could be anywhere.”

“Right, we need to split up an—” I was cutoff as a younger dragon flew overhead, smashing into the wall behind me. I glanced back once and noticed that an absurdly large guard was charging right for us.

“SEPARATE!” Gelid shouted.

We each dived away from the charge as the guard ran straight into the stone, shattering it and sending rocks flying everywhere. One hit me on the side of the head, but it wasn't too large so I was merely slightly dazed

“Split up! Spike, head towards the solitary confinement area. There's a path there that leads further into the volcano which may be where the Warden is hiding. I'll head up to his tower, and Gelid, go to the Guard's Barracks! Meet up here in twenty!” Haruo shouted as the guard turned towards him.

The guard started chasing after Haruo as he bolted in the direction of one of the exits of the courtyard. A quick glance towards the centre showed that many dragons were going down, and in the same ratio of inmates-to-guards, the guards were suffering the same losses either due to knockouts or death. Gelid and I looked to each other and nodded. We both bolted in two directions; Gelid, through the riot and towards the other entrance, and me... directly to the entrance to the cell blocks.

[*][*][*]

Gelid darted down the hallways, meeting no guards due to the riot occurring outside. Even this far into the prison, darting past the first cell block, she could hear roaring and fighting outside. She cringed every time she felt the ground rumbling, leaving anything that was happening to imagination. She attempted to shut that out as she ran up a set of shambled stairs, darting into a dank hallway heavy with a sweaty scent. Up ahead, numerous doors passed by covered in darkness with steam exiting. She had to be passing the guard's change rooms given the smell. Passing by, she heard a growling coming from somewhere in the hallway. Ahead, a doorway lead into a brighter lit hallway with stone walls in better shape than the rest of the prison.

Ignoring the growling that seemed to echo throughout the current area, she proceeded into the next hallway. It was more brighter lit, assisted by the positioning of a window allowing rays of the sun that somehow managed to break through the clouds. Probably due to the lack of Pegasi tending to the mass of water. Ahead, she saw a short dragon standing in the opposite end of the hallway. Pressed suit, strong stance and what appeared to be an aggravated attitude. The Warden stood in attendance, staring down Gelid.

“The intel was correct, you are after my blood,” he said in a stoic, almost disappointed voice. “I had hoped that it was for a reason other than petty vengeance.”

Gelid's eyes sharpened, the pupils turning to slits. Her whole body leaned forward and she prepared to lunge. Fangs barred and a growl rumbled from her chest. She went from idle, desperate fear to almost raging beast.

“It wouldn't have to be petty if you didn't have to be a complete monster,” she said, her voice choking as she held back inner rage.

“If I'm not, you'll have someone else to direct your anger at. It's in the nature of dragon's to feel anger towards an individual. To not would be against our very nature,” he said in a matter-of-fact tone.

“I wouldn't be here if it weren't for you. I wouldn't have to suffer through this prison or be suffering at all if it weren't for you,” she roared, taking a step forward. Lockdown gave her a bemused glare in response. “NONE of those dragons you slaughtered deserved to die! No one does!” She took a step forward. “But for you, I'm able to make an exception.”

She lunged forward, throwing herself onto all fours and ran directly at Lockdown. He didn't react or brace himself. Gelid hopped into the air above Lockdown and dive-bombed on him, her arms crossed to absorb the initial impact from either the Warden or the floor. He met her attack by jumping forward, head first into her arms while he reached his hands forward, grabbing onto Gelid by her elbows. His palms were placed flat against her forearm, preventing her from moving her arms. Her body ultimately descended, feet touching against the ground as her arms were still held in place, forcing her arms to be in a position that nearly broke them. The Warden's strength prevailed over her own and she found several tears welling up in her eyes.

Rather than succumbing, Gelid's tail lunged from under her towards the Warden's underbelly. The sharp tail almost stabbed into the soft flesh, missing its target due to Lockdown's release of Gelid's arms. She didn't pull back, instead continuing her attempted assault. She threw a punch forward towards the Warden's stiff snout, only for him to tilt his head, dodging. She repeatedly threw punches at him only for Lockdown to sniff them out by moving just out of the way. Wailing and wailing to no effect, she growled.

“STOP DODGING!” she shouted.

Complying, the Warden stood still and took one of Gelid's punches to his chest. He took a step back from the hit, but other than that he didn't feel any pain from it. His eyes had glanced down upon impact and slowly he tilted his head up to meet Gelid's eyes. She took a step back and threw a punch towards his face, feeling a satisfying crack upon connecting with the side of his face. She followed up by punching him in the face three more times, each time he took a step back from the impact. After her third punch, Lockdown caught Gelid's fist in one hand and caught the other just as she attempted to swing that one as well.

“Feisty but no skill to match it with. You should have trained,” Lockdown said.

“DON'T MOCK M—” Gelid's shout was cut off as Lockdown headbutted her in the snout.

He released her hands just as he did so, allowing her to bring her hands up to grab at her now bleeding snout. She shuffled back several feet in response and after having clenched her eyes shut for the duration of the initial pain, she opened them just as Lockdown stepped forward and thrust a fist into her gut. She released her snout and threw her arms out from the impact, gasping as she felt air leave her lungs. The Warden didn't hesitate, slugging her in the side of the head while she keeled over in pain. Her face swung to the side, her body turning with her. As she put one side closer to the Warden, he quickly swung his other fist at her knee, knocking her foot out from under her as she tumbled over onto her hands and knees in a coughing fit.

Gelid growled, feeling more rage bubbling up inside her head. She swung one of her hands forward regardless of her breathing troubles and latched onto the Warden's ankle. She yanked at it and successfully pulled his foot off the ground. He was unphased by it to say the least and took advantage of the fact his foot was off the ground to stop his heel right into the crane of Gelid's snout between her eyes. Rather than take the pain with a whimper and clenching of the wounded spot, an adrenaline high seemed to kick in and Gelid leaped to her feet, ignoring the pain and ringing in her skull as she threw her whole body forward. Wrapping her arms around the Warden, she pushed her feet off the ground and shoved Lockdown backwards.

Eventually his foot caught one of the cracks in the stone floor and they tumbled to the ground, Gelid on top. She pulled her arms out and sat on his chest. He laid sprawled out on the ground, looking up at Gelid with yet another bored expression. She proceeded to wail on the Warden's face, smashing her fists against him with all of her strength.

“NO, NO, NO, NO! STOP! JUST DIE, GODDAMMIT! DIE! DON'T GET UP!” she shouted, her voice cracking and tears bursting out from her eyes.

Lockdown's hands shifted and grabbed her wrists as she attempted to hit him again, stopping her assault. She let out a gasp, stopping her shouting from the shock of his grab. He yanked her body down, smashing his forehead against Gelid's. Lockdown released his grip causing the female to swing her body back, holding onto her forehead from the pain that was now registering.

The Warden threw her off himself and stood up as Gelid curled up on the ground, starting to feel the beating her body took. Lockdown sniffed and shook his head with a tsk-tsk before reaching down to grab her bandanna. She yanked her up by it and slammed his other fist down into her head, knocking her into the ground. He maintained his hold on her bandanna and forcibly yanked her to her feet, once again punching her, this time in the gut. She stumbled back into the wall as he let go of her bandanna and swung his arm once more, hitting her face again. She fell over to the side but the Warden grabbed onto her arm, yanking her up to a standing position once more. He grabbed her neck, lifting her off the ground, and threw his fist into her gut three times before dropping her. She was now struggling to cough as she fell down, curling up, and the Warden, just to seal the deal, kicked her in the chest for good measure.

Brushing dust off his jacket, he checked his body for any dust that might have been picked up during the scuffle and turned, walking into the doorway he stood in when Gelid entered the hallway. Before he left, he turned to look back at Gelid. She had just collected herself enough to choke back the tears, shut out the pain and look at the Warden with eyes filled with pain and tears, numerous bleeding cuts on her face adding to the look of agony. Smirking, the Warden reached up to his face, digging his nails into the scales above his forehead. He peeled them off, along with the rest of the face, revealing a magical cosmetic mask.

“If you can't beat me, what hope do you have against the Warden?” he said, his voice changing to one different than that of Lockdown.

A fake... but, he's... he must be the one who framed Spike... wait, if he's not Lockdown...?

He shrugged his shoulders, waving to Gelid. “If you don't mind, I have to go meet up with Lockdown. He's meeting a certain young friend of ours.” With that said, he walked out of Gelid's view just as she passed out.

[*][*][*]

Trudging through damp clothes dumped out of a basket haphazardly, I had wadded through a sea of sweaty, used towels deeper in the prison. The heat was more intense in this area, part of being further near the volcano. Noticeably, the stairs changed from the typical stone to more cracked, jagged brick that visibly could be identified as being over a hundred years old. There were wooden pillars reminiscent of a mine and the tunnel leading into the volcano seemed smaller than the large halls of the prison. Pretty soon, the tunnel was small enough for me to feel like I was in a pony mine. The wooden posts also seemed very old and almost rotten, and the presence of rotted wood was evident in numerous areas; this area was very old and constantly having new wood being implanted. The heat would be uncomfortable for a normal pony, so I must have been getting close to my destination.

If the Warden was hiding here, it'd make sense. I must have been descending stairs for over ten minutes now. What started as a gentle hum turned into a rumbling echo. Maybe it was volcanic activity?

Shrugging it off, I kept watching the torches as if they would automatically go out if I didn't acknowledge their presence. The stairs seemed to get older and older the more I went down. Rumbling... flickering... it was like the volcano had a heartbeat. Sweat started to build up from sheer nervousness.

Finally, the bottom was visible. I dunno where the stairs had spiralled. For all I know, I could be directly below the entrance, or I could be a hundred miles away. Or ten. I don't really know my distance. Regardless, I stepped onto cobblestone, staring into a room that opened up wider. A dim light encased the whole room while the ceiling was pitch black. Further ahead, a door could be seen several hundred feet away in a room that was mostly empty. Gulping, I started running forward. The only sound keeping me company was the rumbling echo and I could feel a heat coming from above.

Before I could reach the door, a dark figure dropped from the ceiling. Standing at five-foot nothing, I looked up to the figure that stood barely over me. The Warden stood with his back to me, arms crossed while seemingly humming.

“Warden,” I said, standing straight.

“Inmate Spike. How're you?” he asked.

I shrugged. “Not too bad. Tryin' to put an end to this absurd story. You?”

“A little warm. This place could really use some AC, but as for this absurd story... it will end after today.  Not in the way you expect it,” he said, turning to me with an idle glare.

I pointed a finger directly at him. “This seal. I kind of like it, very effective. Shame it's on me, though. For that, I'm going to take you down, you stupid bastard,” I said, smirking while barring my teeth.

“I shall be honest. You are a very pesky rat. I've wanted to obtain you ever since you came to my prestigious prison, but your tenacity and determination to leave here is admirable amongst all dragons. You are a true role model and will be a sorry loss. I'd love to have you in my army,” Lockdown said, fixing a button on his suit jacket as he walked towards me.

  “I'm not the same Spike. Before I was clouded by shock and guilt. Now, I've got the strength to backup my badass boasts, and there's no way I'm dying on this island, let alone join your army,” I responded. I started in a run towards Lockdown, noticing several cloaked figures dropping down from the ceiling in a circle around us. Ignoring it, I focused directly on my enemy. “SO WHY NOT JOIN THE INMATES YOU SLAUGHTERED!?”

Lockdown thrust his fist forward as I ran towards him. I anticipated this very move since Lockdown is in favour of fast attacks. I slid under his fist and heard a small gasp from the Warden's mouth as I headbutted the Warden's underbelly. He let out an 'oof' as he stumbled backwards, having not braced for such an impact. Instead of bouncing back, as the Warden expected due to his arms grabbing at where I would be had I stepped back, I took advantage of my smaller body by rolling between the Warden's legs and grabbing his tail. He spun around, trying to swing his fist at me. I held up his tail as a shield just as his fist made contact with it. It didn't do anything as far as pain but it did inconvenience the Warden. He grunted as I seemingly had the upper hand at the moment.

He kicked at me just as I let go of his tail and pushed myself backwards. Using the momentum of his kick, he spun himself so he faced forward, placing his left side of his closer to me in a combat-ready position. He did a short jab at my face, which seemed to be rather slower than before. It seemed like without fear or nervousness or guilt, my reaction time was faster. I tilted my head to the side, avoiding the hit as I reached my right arm up and grabbed onto his shoulder. I yanked him towards me and jumped up, smashing my skull into his snout. Rather than be satisfied with my hit, I didn't place my feet back on the ground after I jumped. I held onto his shoulder still and pulled my legs up, using all of my weight to yank the Warden backwards, smashing his face into the ground behind me.

I rolled away, just as the Warden staggered to his feet. I stood tall and anticipated a surprise attack yet nothing came. He brushed off his coat and checked himself for dust before facing towards me.

“Since when did you become a combat-pragmatist?” he asked.

I shook my head. “I'm not. I'm simply reacting to your movements.”

“Last time you were busy eating the stone, and you expect me to believe you somehow improved?”

“No, no. Last time, I was full of guilt since moments prior, you just slaughtered a large group of inmates and it was my fault. Now, my mind is clear and focused,” I said, smirking.

He let the silence hang before cracking his neck by tilting it both ways. He proceeded to crack the rest of the bones in his body before letting out a huge sigh that slowly developed into a coarse growl. “In that case, I'll have to exert myself a bit. Living among ponies, your mind has been very relaxed your whole life.”

Being wary, I ran forward before he started his counter-attack. He ran towards me, holding his right arm out to the side to clothesline me. I jumped up to latch onto his arm and yank him down again, but when I grabbed onto his arm, his body didn't budge no matter how hard I had put my weight into my pull. Instead, he swung his arm down, slamming me into the ground. His fist made contact with the old stone and cracked it. Releasing his arm as my left side started to go numb from that one hit, I rolled away once more and pushed myself up to my feet. Rather than running after me, he brushed off dust that had caught his jacket and slowly turned to me as he did, focusing on his sleeve.

I darted forward once more and threw my upper body forward as I closed in, punching him in the side. Rather than the hits I got in previously, my fist stopped against what was like a brick wall. The Warden merely shifted over a foot from the impact. His arm that he just brushed off came back, smacking me in the side of the face. I spun away from him and jumped, kicking at him. Once again, he nonchalantly reacted by grabbing my leg before it hit him and used my momentum against me. He ducked and swung his arm in an arc, causing me to hit the ground once more. Unlike before, this was actually me being slammed in the wall and I landed, face first into the stone.

Letting go of my leg, he crossed his arms as he looked at me from above. I rolled away, struggling to stand due to the buzzing ringing through my head. The room seemed to be spinning as I stood my ground as if I could fight perfectly. I think then, I knew for sure that I was going to lose.

Now Lockdown dashed forward to attack me than waiting for me. Punching at me, the fist connected with the left side of my head causing me to stagger to the right. The Warden grabbed my left arm and yanked me back towards him and brought his knee up to my side. The impact caused a pain that started just above my hip and spread out up to my diaphragm, which started to sting once more. The damage must have been severe, that day.

I started coughing from the pain, trying not to keel over yet I didn't even have that luxury. A hand wrapped around one of the spines on my head and yanked my head down just to meet the Warden's knee. I thought for sure I heard a crack and my snout seemed to explode with a pain like a fire that grew hotter. I started loosing feeling in my snout as well as my head while a red liquid dribbled out of my nostril and onto the ground. He didn't follow up on it and loomed over me as I started to loose consciousness.

This isn't like three weeks ago. Lockdown was ruthless and beat me down severely... he's barely touched me now in comparison, I thought as I felt my eyes shutting against my will, all feeling leaving my body. Wait... no, Spike, don... dun fuggin' sleeeeeep...

“Spike, you're mine.”

-7- EMERGENCY

“You are a rowdy youth, probably would have been a great warrior in adulthood.”

“Huh... whazzat you talkin' abou'...?”

“A warrior is a feisty young whelp. They typically grow up to become warrior kings, respected by even their own enemies.”

. . .

-7- EMERGENCY

“The jury will now consult with each other regarding their verdict,” Celestia said, her monotonic voice not changing tone once during the whole trial.

My eyes nervously followed the set of around 20 ponies in the jury stand up before leaving into another room. Once the door closed, silence took over the entire courts to the point where I could hear my own heartbeat. Actually, I could feel it due to how still my body went. I dreaded it, but I turned my head around to look at the ones I've grown to know in the audience. A hundred  eyes were laid upon me with kaleidoscope emotions. The six ponies I've grown attached to all had the same feeling I did: dread. For different reasons, I don't know... but right now, they were suffering in this silence just as much as I did. I pleaded silently that they would have faith in me and that would somehow make the jury's verdict turn in my favour.

. . .

A door opened, making me turn around. My whole body started shaking with anticipation while the jury took their sweet time sitting down in their stupid little jury box, each seemingly holding an air of superiority. None of them I could recognize, but all of them had the same eyes.

“Has the jury reached a verdict?” Celestia asked.

I held my breath, feeling the air grow heavy as time slowed down. A short, blue stallion stood up, adjusting a tie.

“Yes we have.”

I clenched my fists, leaning forward with wide eyes. This is it. This is what decides my future. I bit my lip, my whole body ceasing the shudders to let me wallow in silence.

“We find the defendant, Spike, guilty of all charges.”

And then I felt weird. I don't know what it was, but I felt a weird emotion coating my whole body, starting from the base of my spine. An odd chill that felt like it would hurt if it were physical... but it was all in my head. I glanced upward at Princess Celestia, wondering if it was true. For the first time since the trial started, since I was arrested, her expression changed.

. . .

“Spike—”

No.

“Your sentence is relocation to the juvenile dragon prison, Castle Bahamut, located in the centre of the Glucose Ocean until the faculty of the prison deem you fit to reenter Equestrian society,” Princess Celestia said in a stern voice.

A gavel hitting a chunk of wood. That's all it was, right? An old hammer being banged like the God of Thunder ringin' his presence. So why does the sound reduce me to tears? Why am I unable to hear what is clearly shouts coming out of my mouth? Why am I standing up with liquids streaming down my face? Why am I being rushed by several guards? Why are several snare poles being put around my head? Why am I snapping my jaw at guards? Why am I falling to the ground, unable to breathe as a pain builds up in my gut? Why is it a small chunk of wood can do this much to someone in mere seconds?

“MOMMY!” I shouted through a scorched voice as I fought against my captors, seeing a teary-eyed Twilight watching as I'm being hauled away by several guards.

Several shackle-like objects are placed on my wrists and ankles and before I could react, my whole body felt numb and the ability to resist was lost. My body hung over and drool drizzled out of my mouth while my jaw hung limp. The shackles buzzed, and so did the world. I couldn't even wipe the tears off my eyes before I was carelessly tossed into a cell. The guards looked down at me before spitting on my leg, leaving the room we were in. The door slammed and I was in total darkness.

[*][*][*]

I am in total darkness... is this death? Or am I asleep? We don't die in death. Or, I mean, we don't have a conscious mind.

I blinked my eyes before clenching them shut as what had to be the lights of heaven's gates shining down upon my face. Slowly, my eyelids went up as a spotlight above me shone down directly into my eyes. The damn thing was hot so I felt completely uncomfortable. Oh, and I was strapped to a table.

“Am I... a warrior or something?” I muttered, feeling drool drizzling down my cheeks.

“You could have been had you not had the misfortune of being hatched by the Element of Magic, young whelp,” Lockdown's voice echoed like a god booming his voice, echoing it off mountains.

My eyes looked around, away from the spotlight to see total darkness. Somehow, the darkness seemed bright so I squinted my eyes and slowly, they adjusted again. Lockdown loomed over me as did several other dragons, each bearing masks of typical animals. If I were more aware, I would have frowned and contemplated why, but I just drooled like a moron instead.

“Leave us,” Lockdown said.

The other dragons nodded, stepping back before disappearing into the darkness. I mumbled, trying to say something, stopped due to my drowsy mind.

“Spike... you find yourself at the final boss. The end of the game. The final showdown with the one who stole your lunch money. You fumbled it... and now you're here, where the 'bad guy' has won,” he said, slowly circling the whole group.

I felt more feeling coming to my whole body, and with it, I felt the dried blood in my nostrils. Uncomfortable didn't even describe it, and that's not counting the smell. He sighed, seemingly pondering his words.

“I'll give you a novel cliché: Am I really the bad guy, Spike? Or am I simply misjudged?” he asked.

“You're a murderous thug! I know about you, I know you set me up! And I know about what you did!” I shouted, my voice wailing out of control.

“Have you ever had to do something unforgivable to keep yourself sane?” he asked.

No snarky response from me this time. Instead, I opted to contemplate it now that I wasn't drowsy.

“Do you realize... what the fate of all dragons are, Spike?” he asked.

“Fate of all dragons? Don't give me that crap, no one has a fate!” I shouted, tugging on my restraints.

“This isn't the typical 'destiny' stuff you young folk read in novella. This is what has happened to every single dragon in history. There is an inevitable fate of all dragons.” He sat down on presumably a stool, resting his head on his arm while it laid on the table. I stopped tugging on my restraints and looked down at him. “No dragon since the Dragon God Bahamut's grand reign lived to old age.”

What?

“You are going to be one of the major cases, young whelp,” Lockdown said, his voice seeming somber. “Love. All dragons build relations over the years, with the creatures that seem like mere mortals to them such as ponies and griffins as well as other dragons... but as they continue to pass on, through natural means or criminal, they feel more and more lost in soul for their fallen loved ones.”

His fist clenched and his body seemed to shake. “They will grow mad over the years of constant agony and it will come to the point where a dragon rage unlike any other erupts. Others rise to slay the rampant beast, and the dragon is with his loved ones.”

“You mean... Because of my love, I will hurt others?” I asked, my voice meek and quiet.

“I truly wish I could speak better of my own kind, Spike the Dragon. I truly do, but I cannot.” He stood up, putting his back towards me. “When cast into darkness, they would step on the skulls of their own flesh and blood just to stay in the sun. To stay out of pain, even if they cause it. They would do anything to make it stop, even if they caused more in the process. The Great Dragon God, Bahamut, saw fit to start this vicious cycle so no dragon shall go without hatred.”

“Then how is he so great if all he's done is cause pain?” I retorted, feeling my anger rise.

He spun around, facing me with a gallow look. A scowl adorned his face and he shook his head. “Why has God created pain? Why has God given us the ability to hurt, and hurt others? We learn from pain. The Great Dragon God, Bahamut, has given us the ability to grow, and the people shall bow to their God even if they know he is responsible for all of life's suffering.” He walked over and stood above me, glancing down. A small crystal was in his hand, glowing red.

“What's a God to a non-believer? Your Bahamut is nothing but a cold fool,” I responded.

He shook his head. “You speak like a pony, Spike. A shame since you had shown such potential.”

“A real God stands by his people to suffer with them! A stupid fool like that is not worth my time, and if that makes me not a dragon, then I'll gladly live as a pony!” I shouted, feeling nothing but pride for my friends and hometown in Ponyville.

Silence hung as he shook his head, allowing it to hang.

“This is the will us dragons have. I was like you, wanting out of this vicious cycle. It is merely better to stand by your fellow dragon until the bitter end.” He held his hands out before the small crystal floated between them. “And we are together—” The crystal started to shine very brightly as a small red string seemingly went into my body. I felt something tugging on what seems to be my insides and I felt a rush to my head. “—SPIKE THE DRAGON!”

And then pain exploded. My whole body started burning hotter than any flame, hotter than the seal ever could. My muscles felt like they were being torn apart and my scales seemed laced with acid as I felt like my head would explode. It felt like a hand was grasping my heart and trying to yank it out of my chest yet never could. Shouts of agony and pure pain came from my mouth while what looked like a string of violet magic ran up the small string attached to the crystal. The familiar sound of Twilight's magic activating resonated in my skull, tuning out the screams coming from my mouth. Soon I couldn't feel anything except the tugging on my heart.

And then it ended. The pain stopped, the noise stopped, the numbness went away, the tugging went away. The string vanished, my body simply felt exhausted as if I was never in agony. Just a gentle sprint 'round the track.

“I didn't even need to take it all to get what I need. You are a lucky dragon, Spike,” Lockdown said, walking passed my feet into a patch of darkness.

Once more my eyes adjusted revealing a squared cube slightly taller than Lockdown. It had an engraving showing what appeared to be a divine dragon, at least from what I can see from my poor angle.

“Rise to the skies and take in the natural light of the sun! The blood of Bahamut flows through my veins, heed my wishes during your bask in the eternal sunshine commanded by the Blood Princesses!” Lockdown chanted, raising his arms towards the cube.

A rumbling came from the cave and Lockdown simply turned around and walked out of the room, no haste, no comments at all. Opening the metal door and leaving quickly, Lockdown seemingly forgot me there. The sound of magic resonated with the the rumbling, taking over as the dominant sound and a rainbow-aura surrounded the cube in question. Real magic allows one to control the circumstances given enough training... but a device with one purpose, plus potentially hundreds of years of magic and this guy... his plans are apparently world domination. Does that mean this cube grants wishes? If so, will that make Celestia completely powerless?

During my thoughts, the cube levitated in the air and moved straight up, parting the stone in its way as it ascended through the volcano to 'bask in the sunlight'. After a few seconds, I started wondering how I would get out, cut short as a familiar red liquid came into the room.

“Lava? I could use a lava bath, that'd be pleasant... but I'm tied down,” I commented.

Meaning it'll overflow, and I'll drown... oh.

Suddenly finding energy and motivation to do so, I started tugging as hard as I could, using all of my strength to tug at the leather straps keeping me pinned down. The lava touched the ground and started spreading out over the floor of this mini laboratory. Eventually it reached the door to the room, seemingly leading out into the large room I was just in. Cutting off the guessing, I attempted to reach up with my jaws and bite at the straps, only to realize I can't reach.

Thinking on a whim, I took a deep breath and attempted to use my flame breath. Several embers spat out and hit the leather straps before a severe pain stabbed me in the heart. My whole body went numb as if I were stabbed repeatedly in the torso over and over again, my ability to breath punctured as well.

Unfortunately, that may be true as the lava started spilling onto the table I was strapped to. My flames did nothing to the straps, but hoping the lava would, I watched to the best of my ability as the pain died down, feeling the warm lava approaching my body. Before coming near the straps, the heat of the lava caused the straps to burst into flames, acting as a hot pack on my body. I continued tugging on the straps even as lava encased them, feeling the small lake starting to cover my whole body. The strap I first blew fire onto gave way and I swung my hand over to my other arm and tugged at the strap. There was a keyhole, so unbuckling was null. Quickly, the lava came up to my neck even though I was sitting upright. I tugged until the leather strap came loose on my other wrist and merely had to pull my legs back a little bit to break those straps. I soon found myself treading lava above the table and proceeded to do the forward stroke towards the door Lockdown entered earlier.

I came up to the steel door and reached around for a handle, only to find none. Sighing, I closed my eyes, dived down, and felt around for a handle to find a small iron wheel lower on the right. I gripped it and twisted until a clang sounded, giving way. The lava slowly flowed out of the room, pouring into the massive hanger-like cave beneath the prison, just as I suspected. Some lava entered my mouth and I spit it out, taking childish amusement from the act, something I haven't done since I came in here.

Looking ahead, Lockdown was already far from gone, probably halfway up the stairs by now. I bolted across the room with a blinding fury building up in my chest... or, again, maybe it was something else, such as the seal having to respond to my fire breath. Either way, I have a contingency plan for when I need to use my flame breath in combat.

[*][*][*]

Haruo bolted through hallways towards the guards barracks, the sound of fighting growing ever quieter. After passing through a dressing room block, he came up to a hallway lit by torches and the skies outside. Ahead, Gelid was laid out on her side, back turned to Haruo a gentle breathing acting as the only indication of life. Rushing ahead, Haruo knelt down next to her and rolled her onto her back and held her in his arms, staring down at her face. Her face had numerous cuts and there was some dried blood in her nostrils, but nothing seemed to be fatal... yet he couldn't take that chance.

“Hey... hey girl, Gelid, buddy ol' pal, wake up,” he said, gently slapping her cheeks.

Moaning, she moved slightly before coughing, attempting to sit upright. Haruo held her down, resting against his right arm.

“Stay down until I'm sure you can get up,” Haruo responded.

Gelid moaned but did as she was told, sighing. Haruo held up his other hand, holding three fingers up.

“How many fingers am I holding up?” Haruo asked.

Fluttering open, Gelid had to adjust to the light from outside before attempting to focus on Haruo.

“Th... three,” she whispered, her voice hoarse. She coughed more violently this time, spitting out some blood. “Ah jeez.”

“Woah, is that from your mouth? If it's not, I'm taking you to solitary. Safes—”

She placed a finger on Haruo's mouth, silencing him. “I'm fine, just bit my cheek earlier,” she said, giggling to emphasize the 'fine' part

Sighing with relief, Haruo nodded his head and placed a hand on Gelid's chest. She flashed a glare at him and he clued in then.

“Woah, s-sorry, I'm just checking for anything broken or bruises,” he said, coughing and averting his gaze.

“I know, just having some fun,” she said, letting a slight groan escape her lips.

He gently poked several areas on her chest before moving down to her belly. Several times she pursed her lips, drawing a sharp breath. Visibly, several spots started to darken on her soft underbelly.

“Nothing is broken, but you're gonna be sensitive in several areas. Can you stand?” Haruo asked.

“Pull me up and we'll find out,” she said, stretching her legs out.

Nodding, Haruo stood up while his right hand came out from under her back, sliding up her arm until they grabbed each others' wrists. With a grunt, Haruo pulled Gelid to her feet, watching her stumble before shaking her head and stretching her arms. She looked around, pulling her hand from Haruo's grip and doing several stretches before nodding.

“I'm set. Did you find the Warden?” she asked. He shrugged his shoulders in response, causing Gelid to flash a look of worry on her face.

“I take it you didn't, since you're asking. So,” he paused. He examined her body, a hand on his chin. “Who beat the snot out of you?”

“A doppelganger, most likely the one that caused Spike to be in here.” She gasped, her eyes going wide. “Wait, Spike!” She grabbed Haruo's arm and yanked him back down the hallway, the same direction the doppelganger from earlier went.

“Woah, what?” Haruo asked as Gelid mercilessly dragged him along like a toddler.

“The Warden has Spike by now! He's in danger,” Gelid responded.

The two dragons darted through hallways, hearing the thunder of chaos occurring outside still. Passing through cell blocks, the cafeteria, passed the entrance to the Warden's tower. They entered the courtyard, spotting that the riot was still going on. Three guards dead, and many more inmates dead while there was still a full-scale war going on. Rather than go through, they once again attempted to flank the entire mob. Traversing under the stone scaffolding, they came up to many of Gelid's stone furniture, finding a lone guard sitting behind it, watching the chaos loom.

“Haruo, go find the entrance, I'll check out what this guy is doing,” Gelid stated.

Haruo shrugged and started running faster than Gelid as she released her grip on his hand. Gelid leaped over a stone couch, landing next to the guard behind the other couch. He let out a shriek and pointed a spear at Gelid. She didn't even blink, instantly swatting her hand at the spear, latching onto it and snapping it with a squeeze.

“Eeyagh, stay back!” he shouted.

“Can't. Riot. I'm supposed to kick your ass.” Gelid peeked her head over the couch, just as another dragon was slammed into a support beam for the scaffolding. It cracked but didn't give way. “Why are you hiding anyway, what're you doing?”

“Gah, this is nuts. I'm not gonna go in there and die. I've been here long enough to know when a cause is lost. Screw honour, I have a life to take care of,” he whispered, keeping his head ducked.

Gelid snorted in response. “Hiding like a coward. And you call yourself a guard.”

He shook his head. “No no, I call myself 'smart'. I've been here eight decades, longer than most guards here. This riot is too large to handle with our own staff, hence why I'm hiding until reinforcements arrive.”

“Whatever, I have a small fool to go rescue,” Gelid said, standing up and leaping over the couch.

The guard shuffled to his feet and placed his hands on the couch, leaning over the back. “Wait, by small fool, you mean Spike!?”

Gelid skid to a halt, turning around. “Wait, how do you know?”

“Well, you're  one of the smallest dragons here, the only one smaller is Spike,” he said, leaping over the couch.

He started running alongside Gelid, both of them going in Haruo's direction. None of the rioters payed attention to them, but some of the inmates were starting to be thrown into walls. The scuffle was turning incredibly violent and roars were continuous. At least 300 dragons were brawling in the courtyards at the moment. Gelid entered one of the doors leading into the prison, the guard following her.

“So what's your name?” the guard asked.

“Gelid,” she said as they stampeded down the stairs.

“Apep Ormr,” he responded.

“Alright. We should be heading deep into the volcano, according to Haruo,” Gelid said.

Just as soon as she finished that, they reached the bottom of the stairs that lead into a library. Before moving in, Haruo slammed into the stone just above the entrance of the staircase, causing both Apep and Gelid to duck their heads. Both rolled away to the sides of the door as Haruo hit the ground between them. Ahead, a larger inmate growled, staring down at them. He was easily larger than the trio and more of an obstacle. The library itself was over thirty feet up to the ceiling, more than enough space.

“What the hell are you doing?” Gelid shouted, standing up with her fists at the ready.

“Having fun, and since it's apparent you're a girl, I'm about to have even more,” the large dragon said in a deep voice, chuckling at the end.

“Ugh, boys,” Gelid said, almost starting to sweat out of nervousness.

Instead of indulging in carnal urges, the large inmate found Apep inches from his face as Apep wrapped his arms around the inmate's head, which was easily half of Apep's size. He flapped his wings and flew over the inmate's head, holding onto the inmate's head as he did. He wound up pulling the dragon back, slamming him onto several bookshelves, knocking many others over as he did. The inmate grunted as he slammed into the beaten-down dust rack, many larger tomes falling onto him.

Without missing a beat, Haruo hopped to his feet and darted towards the inmate, Gelid following. Before they could reach the inmate, Apep gave his wings a flap, launching himself into the air. Doing a back flip, he let out a shout as he landed on the dragon's throat just below his jaw. A sickening crunch sounded and the inmate immediately started gasping for air. Apep calmly stepped onto the large belly of the dragon, observing the library for any others. Gelid and Haruo watched with shocked stares.

“Holy Bahamut, what the hell?” Gelid asked.

“Order #5126: During a Level 10 Prison Riot, take down the inmates as fast as possible, even if you have to kill them. Anything to maintain control,” Apep said as he hopped off the body, just as the inmate went limp, no longer breathing. “Plus, nobody threatens a young girl in such a way.”

“Well, thanks,” Gelid said, scratching the back of her head.

Haruo shrugged again and they both ran towards Apep, hopping over several piles of books, wooden planks and the inmate's arm as they proceeded towards another staircase leading down. Instead of going straight down, someone else was coming up. Lockdown was casually walking up the stairs, glancing upward to see us three standing at the top.

“Oh, Warden Lockdown! I was just looking for you,” Apep said, playing off what must have been a rehearsed line.

Lockdown stood in front of the trio. He didn't even pause upon reaching them, his tail shooting from over his shoulder, piercing Apep's chest directly in the centre. He let out a stopped gasp before Lockdown pulled his tail out. Apep fell to the side, leaning against the wall as he struggled to breathe, blood seeping from his mouth. Lockdown continued walking and Gelid's eyes widened when she realized he was far different from the doppelganger she just fought. His two hands darted forward, grabbing Haruo and Gelid by the neck. Tightly squeezing, both found themselves struggling to breathe and clawing at Lockdown's hands. He continued walking, slamming both of their heads into the stairs, shattering the stone. Both let out a groan as Lockdown proceeded up the stairs, entering the library. Gelid and Haruo forced themselves to sit up, finding themselves low on time.

“Wait, that's the Warden... where's Spike!?” Gelid said with a hoarse voice.

. . .

Total darkness surrounded the hallways, but that didn't stop me. Up ahead, a light was visible, the light being blocked out for a second. I ran full stop, a mad drive keeping me on an adrenaline high. The closer I got to the light, the more I could make out figures. A cyan dragon stuck out before I realized who it was.

“GELID! HARUO!” I shouted. They both looked back and I saw them both carrying a dragon... and upon closer inspection... “APEP!”

I reached the top, out of breath but I didn't care. They both set down Apep onto the ground and I finally saw why. A gash in his chest with blood coming out and Apep was struggling to breathe. I ran forward and knelt down, looking at Apep. He focused on me and no emotion was visible.

“S-so I g-guess I k-know w... why you we... we... were in solitary,” he said, gulping at the end while forcing a smile.

“What do you mean!?” I asked.

“Hah, you're... you were safe in solitary,” Apep said as his breathing became more erratic.

“No, stop speaking, you need to rest. Don't worry, we'll get help. Are there any doctors here!?” I asked, looking around frantically.

Glancing up, Gelid and Haruo both shook their heads, not in response to my question. I felt entirely hopeless as the situation dawned on me. Looking back down, I felt tears once again staining my face as I saw the life leaving Apep's face.

“No. No no no. Not again, who did this!? Lockdown?” Apep nodded in response. I felt the rage starting up in my body again. “He is unforgivable! He even sacrificed his own son to make some wish, and now he's killing his own guards? No, this isn't fair.”

“It's okay, Spike. I'm one less person you have to worry about,” Apep whispered, his breathing slowing to a halt.

His eyes stopped moving, pulse stopped, and his breathing stopped. He was gone, and I was stuck looking down at someone who was good. An innocent person.

I was prepared for innocent deaths, right...?

Narrowing my eyes, I looked ahead at the staircase leading to the courtyard. Footsteps behind me came closer. A claw was placed on my shoulder and gentle voice addressed me.

“Spike?” Gelid said quietly.

I removed her hand from my shoulder and stood up, wiping away the tears in my eyes. I barred my teeth and my cheeks heated up, causing my tears to evaporate. I started huffing and felt an unbearable rage caress my whole body, urging me to let loose.

“I'll avenge him, and everyone else that died for his stupid scheme.” I dropped to my knees and slammed a fist into the stone next to Apep and I, shattering the floor. I dug my claws in and pushed off, starting a run towards the door. “I'LL AVENGE HIM!”

Gelid and Haruo followed me, both sprinting behind me. I darted up the stairs and it seems the Warden timed his leave perfectly as the cube with the Bahamut decal separated the stone in the courtyard, causing the entire riot to stop. Everyone looked on in confusion but Lockdown calmly proceeded towards it. Seven dragons, all wearing cloaks and masks dropped down from above, barring Lockdown from the rest of the crowd. Each were likely the large breed of dragons, towering over the rest of the group. Gelid, Haruo and I stopped at the entrance to the prison, realizing we were stuck watching. I was no longer needed alive, so charging in would simply end with my death. Lockdown stopped several feet from the cube and sighed once more as if this were all some boring tasks.

“Huh, so that's Bahamut's Sacred Heart,” Haruo said, rubbing his chin.

“Wait, whaddaya mean Bahamut's Sacred Heart?” Gelid asked.

I looked up as well, frowning at the notion that Haruo somehow knew of the legend or scheme Lockdown was in.

“Bahamut's Sacred Heart is said to be the key that Bahamut used to rule the world, correct?” We nodded. “It's actually older than that, but Bahamut was the one to find it. He cut out his own heart, replacing it with the magical gemstone. It gave him glorious power and made him essentially the father of all modern era dragons, but upon his death, he asked his heart be removed and sealed in stone. He was revered as a god, and it was thought that anybody who activated it would get their wish granted, but needed insane magic,” Haruo said, squatting and watching with curious eyes.

Looking back at Lockdown, a mixture of anger, confusion and disbelief took over. A stupid gemstone? All this murder and death over a gemstone? Better be one tasty gemstone, you slimy bastard.

Lockdown raised his hands towards the cube and he took several deep breaths. After those, he breathed fire onto the stone cube and the stone seemingly melted off, revealing a flesh-like oval-shaped object, that was clearly a gem but... somehow alive. An aura emitted from it, obviously Unicorn magic, as it stayed floating above ground.

“Great Sacred Heart of the Dragon God Bahamut, heed the calls of the heir of your eternal bloodline! Grant me one wish in return for the many sacrifices made! One wish for my years of boundless, eternal servitude!” he shouted.

The jewel started to glow brighter and the masked dragons turned towards it, seemingly curious as well. One leaned in closer. “Do it, Lockdown,” he said.

I gulped, watching the scene unfold. Lockdown's arms seemed to be shaking and he barred his teeth, taking in the warmth of the heart and the sun. His head hung low and he seemed to tremble. After a moment of silence, he looked up at the jewel and spoke.

“I wish you to return my son to me!” he said, his voice cracking up as tears streamed down his face.

. . . what?

Haruo and Gelid both had nothing to say, Haruo holding a look of sheer confusion and disbelief. The cloaked dragons all spun around in shock, simultaneously shouting “What?” at the Warden.

“I want my son back. I want him back. I want to see my boy! I want to see my boy! Give him back to me! Please, heed my call, Sacred Heart!” Lockdown said, his whole body shivering.

“LOCKDOWN! WHAT IS THE MEANING OF THIS!? WHAT HAPPENED TO OUR WISH OF OVERPOWERING THE EQUESTRIAN PRINCESSES!?” one of the cloaked dragons shouted.

“No more. There can be no future, no world to live in for me, without my son. I've always regretted what I have done. I've failed time and time again, and I want to do one good deed in my life time: Give my boy a second chance in this beautiful, beautiful world governed by Princess Celestia and Princess Luna!” Lockdown said, his voice sounding sincere and full of emotion and love in contrast to his droll voice that I'm used to.

“He... just wants his son back?” I asked, losing my rage, regardless of those killed for this wish.

“LOCKDOWN, YOU WILL PAY FOR THIS!” one of the dragon's shouted, dashing in while swinging one of his large arms at Lockdown.

Another dragon zoomed in from above, impacting against the larger dragon's wrist. A crack sounded and the mask dragon let out a cry of pain, shuffling backwards from the hit. The dragon that impacted the masked one's wrist hit the ground and spun around before sliding to a stop next to Lockdown. He was a mirror-match of Lockdown and stood at the same height. He peeled off his face, revealing the doppelganger underneath. He happened to look exactly like me to which I found a well of excitement building up.

“Hey, that's the impostor! He's only slightly taller than me!” I shouted excitedly.

“Calm down, skipper, he's not just gonna admit it. Why not figure out what happens next first,” Haruo said in a serious, slow voice.

I nodded and started breathing in through my nose and out through my mouth. Soon, I calmed down and watched the scene. The Heart of Bahamut started to glow and the sound of magic activating resonated with every dragon here. I felt a warm tugging at my chest that was similar to the feeling of magic being ripped out of me. A bright light encased the jewel and shone brighter than the sun. The population of the guards and inmates, as well as myself, stared away while Lockdown kept his gaze on the jewel.

As the light died down, a dragon was in place of the jewel. He was twice Lockdown's size and seemed to have the Heart of Bahamut inside of his body. He looked young enough to be my brother, yet he was obviously born of a large breed dragon. His eyes seemed unfocused and lost before glancing up, centring on Lockdown.

“Dad...?” he asked.

Lockdown's mouth arched into a smile and he found himself stumbling forward, chuckling with pure glee. He stopped moving, probably wanting his son to walk to him.

“Celtok... it has been so long,” Lockdown said.

Celtok looked down at his father, smiling as he stumbled towards him. His right hand reached forward slowly... and his claws grabbed Lockdown's head. Like an enlarged toy, Celtok pulled and Lockdown's head came clean off with a pop, his body falling over. I was far too stunned  to react as were everyone else. The cloaked dragons gasped at this sight, blood starting to coat the ground below him.

“LOCKDOWN!” the Draconic impostor shouted, lunging forward with full-killing intent.

Without batting an eyelash, Celtok swung his left hand towards the right, smacking the impostor with a strong slap, sending him across the massive courtyard and into the stone scaffolding, shattering the entire structure on that side of the courtyard. As the dust cleared, it was very obvious that the impact bisected the impostor, leaving him entirely lifeless. Before the cloaked dragons could retreat, Celtok swung his arm that seemed to grow in size, slamming it into one of the dragons on the end of the line. He slammed them all into each other with enough force to snap several of their necks, evidenced by the several cracks and snaps to come as their bodies were tossed across the yard, completely limp.

His other arm seemed to grow to the same size as his left, discarding the head of the Warden. The entire body changed colour and size, growing twice, three times his size, and continued growing. Soon, he was as large as half the courtyard, wings sprouting from his back. All of the guards and inmates scurried back while Gelid, Haruo and I were too stunned to do anything.

“I have given you your son... but his body belongs to me. And now that I am back, your presence is no longer required. The God King, Bahamut, has returned, my sons,” Bahamut said with a large, deep voice. And a single, mighty roar that carried out over the ocean was all it took to establish his presence.

-8- Smite

A gentle light emitted from the bodies of all prisoners and vanished quickly.

“THE SEAL IS GONE!”

“GET TO THE DOCK!”

True. I can breathe fire now.

-8- Smite

The cell was cold and the meals were bland and tasteless. I had no blanket, no mattress, just a metal frame with a metal sheet to support me. There was no way this was real, just some bad nightmare. One of the guards threw a newspaper at me, showing my photo on the front page along with “MURDERER DEPORTED TO DRAGON LANDS.”

“I'm an Equestrian citizen,” I said with a cracked, weak voice. “I helped with Winter Wrap Up... I announced the Running of the Leaves.”

The article slandered me repeatedly, bringing up all of my mistakes that were worth it such as my greedy growth after my birthday, or the fact that I 'kidnapped' a phoenix baby, or aligned myself with several younger dragons that made trouble in Equestria during the Great Dragon Migration. I guess that was all it took to turn the public against me.

It took photos and an impostor as well as science to turn my friends and hometown against me. And it took the realization that even if it wasn't true, I would turn into a monster to turn my mother and lover against me. A cold slap to my ego and heart, trapping me in the prison of agony and pain. I kept denying it and repeating that it's wrong, and Celestia would back me up, pulling me out of this cell. Maybe keeping me in hiding, right?

A clanging on the door snapped me out of my thoughts, the small window being slid open. A guard's menacing face showed itself.

“Dragon, you have a couple visitors,” he said with a deep voice.

“O-okay,” I said, gulping the fear down enough to speak.

The little window door was slammed shut and a click sounded, the heavy door to the room opening. Bars still kept me from going anywhere near the door, yet I already stopped trying to claw my way out. I figured that after a few days, I'd be told that I'm being taken out and put into hiding for a while until Celestia could give Equestria the news that the impostor was found. Twilight, Rarity and the others all pooled in, six mares and one dragon in the same room. It sounds alien to call myself a friend to them, but it's all I have. Benches around the room were moved as if Twilight had an OCD regarding them and each pony sat down, refusing to look at me. Uncomfortable silence took over until Twilight tilted her head to the side, her eyes looking at me.

I chuckled, snorting and shaking my head. “I figured you of all ponies would have spoken up, given you usually have a full speech prepared for situations,” I said, turning my back to them, leaning my back against the bars. Hanging my head down, I looked at my lap with sadness.

“Spike... for the first time in my life, I don't know what to say, nor do I know what to do. I feel like I failed as a mother,” Twilight said slowly, quietly.

I stood up quickly, spinning around and grabbing the bars with both hands. “No, of course not! You've done nothing but good for me, and for Ponyville,” I said with a sense of urgency. I sunk down to my knees, my grip on the bars loose. “I'm... I failed to convince everypony it wasn't me. No matter how sad I act, none of you will believe me.”

Applejack's head tilted up and stared right at me rather than a little glance. “Spike, it's jus'... Ah'm not sure any o' us know what t' think. N... none o' us want to think that sweet lil' Spike coul' be a cold-blooded killer, but th' evidence, the photos and magical signature stuff—” She turned away before hanging her head, basically whispering the rest. “Ah can't... trust ya at the moment.”

My grip on the bars tightened, blood rushing into my arms as I felt a pinch in my throat, holding back any retort I could have. Rainbow coughed, bringing several eyes to her.

“Spike, I'm really freaked out myself. I mean, I don't want to think so, but there's nothing saying you aren't this—” Rainbow muttered several words, trying to find an alternative before sighing. “This killer. I mean, this could be a really good act on your end for sympathy or to try to trick us, or maybe you are telling the truth, but—” She stopped again, this time groaning. “Darn it, I'm sorry, Spike. I just can't think right now. Just,” she paused, shuffling off the stool and walking towards the cell, “if you really are innocent, just stay strong while you're at this Castle Bahamut. Maybe we'll sort this out within the first three days, or maybe you wind up proving to the Warden that you're changed within the first week, but you can't be like us.” She sniffled, causing me to look up from the floor. Her eyes were tear-stained and she was starting to lose her composure. “Only you know the truth and if nobody believes you, stay strong and they'll believe you over time. Please, please don't let us believe you're a killer.”

Anger started to well up, and I found myself holding back a growl. I still barred my teeth and I had a twisted gaze upon facing Rainbow Dash. She stepped back away from the bars as I rose to a full stand, and I swore I could have broken the bars.

“Don't let you believe!? I DON'T CONTROL YOUR BELIEFS!” I shouted, causing everyone in the room to flinch. Tears were going down my own eyes now and I didn't bother trying to look tough. All eyes were sympathetic or scared or confused, and they were all aimed at me. “I don't control whether or not you like potatoes, or if you like triple chocolate ice cream! I don't control anything about you, so how am I supposed to control my image of you!? How am I supposed to stay strong when all of Equestria wants me gone?” I gulped, feeling some snot welling up in my nostrils. “H-how am I, a b-baby dragon, s-supposed t-to stay strong in a p-prison when my own mother c-can't even reassure me that everything w-will be okay?”

Rarity stood up, walking towards me as we both shared the teary expression, the difference being rage. “Spike—”

I pulled my hands back, slamming them against the bars. “DON'T! YOU SAID YOU LOVED ME! But no, you can't now, can you!?” I shouted. Her eyes widened, Rarity shaking her head with denial as her legs trembled. “How about your image now, huh? Can't be with a dragon. Can't be with a murderer. You gonna dump me? You going to lie to me again? That it's gonna be alright? No, you can't. One day, I'll be in prison, getting my ass kicked for petty reasons while you'll probably be screwing some pony you found in your depression because you're such a shallow bitch, 'Oh Spike, I love you, oh Spike, you've always been there for me!'” I spit a small ball of fire at Rarity, not singing her. It hurt me so badly to say this. It hurt me so badly to look at any of them or treat them bad. I love them, but they don't love me. “Take your sorry speech and shove it up your hoity toity snout, Rarity, because I don't give a damn.”

With that, I turned around, leaned against the bars, and slid down onto my behind. I wiped away the tears, huffing from the anger that welled up in such a small time frame. Without any warning, two hooves slid under my arms and wrapped themselves around my torso. They pulled me into a tight squeeze; even against the metals bars, I felt its warmth.

Like a foal admitting a wrong doing, Rarity whispered ever so quietly. “I love you, Spike.”

Just like that, the anger vanished yet I did my best to hold onto it, just so I can let them know how much this is ruining me. Another set of hooves wrapped around me, this time setting themselves on my belly.

“I love you, Spike,” Twilight's voice said.

My arms were trembling and they started moving by themselves. And again, more sets of hooves wrapped around my body until all six girls were holding me. Each told me the same thing...

“I love you, Spike.”

I broke down once more, no anger present in my body. Just the child inside of me letting out his last tears before the adult has to step in for good.

[*][*][*]

“Jeez, I need an adult,” I said with dull surprise.

A roar from the mighty dragon was all it took to cement its dominance over the entire prison. Unfortunately, this is a prison. As in none of us are likely to listen to authority. Being reckless, a majority of the dragons decided to hurl themselves towards Bahamut, some of them with wings taking off into the sky and were clawing at his body. Bahamut had a low rumble escape his mouth, leaning his head forward and snapping his jaw on several of them. The large dragon easily tore through the airborne drakes, causing those on the ground to freeze up.

“Ce-Celtok... what is...?” Gelid asked, shell-shocked.

Haruo immediately jumped up and ran over to Gelid and also grabbed my arm. “We have to get out of here, let's go!” he said, yanking us back into the library. Gelid didn't budge, her eyes locked on Bahamut. Haruo groaned and turned around, letting go of her arm. He slapped her face, finally causing her to snap out of it and face us.

“Gelid, get your shit together, we can't stay here,” I shouted.

She nodded her head dumbly and Haruo yanked her arm again, this time she followed. All three of us entered just as a huge bang sounded from the courtyard, the ground shaking and several dragon's screams stopping half way. None of this was registering other than the fact that it was dangerous.

“Wait, why are we going back into the prison!?” I asked.

“Run, hide, wait for reinforcements,” Haruo said with haste.

We tripped down the stairs, rolling down the bottom and into the library, just as the roof of the stairwell crumbled from some impact. Several stone and debris landed on our legs but none of us complained. Dust filled the library as the large wall crumbled, revealing the library to the courtyard. No longer was there a riot, just everyone attacking or fleeing for their life. Struggling to stand up, I was yanked to my feet as Haruo had already forced himself up along with Gelid.

“Head towards the cell blocks, let out anyone who isn't out,” Haruo shouted.

“What about solitary!?” I asked, darting down the hallway.

“They're safe, or were, so I'll go. GELID, FOLLOW HIM!” Haruo shouted, running into a different hallway.

I had no idea where to go from here so Gelid ran by, grabbing my arm and yanking me alongside her. Once more, the dank smell of cobblestone and a permanently overcast area seeped in, with the bonus of a very faint scent of blood. We didn't get far before realizing we don't have freedom at all. Several other inmates were following us, running from the chaos only for a massive claw to slam down on the hallway, most likely ending their lives. Only ten feet behind us, a sense of urgency took over and Gelid and I broke out into our fastest speed, fuelled by adrenaline. The roaring and shouts heard from inmates and prisoners was loud, indicating they were very close. In complete contrast, one roar from Bahamut made the residents of the island sound like mice.

Several twists and turns later and I was completely lost. All of my time here was mostly in solitary, so I never managed to learn the layout of the prison. We turned one corner and I finally saw the cell block ahead. Shouts and roars could be heard in here faintly, until Bahamut roared. That sounded like an explosion going off next to your ear, so no doubt everyone was awake. As I ran into the cell block, Gelid yanked on my arm, causing me to stop.

“We need the keys first!” she shouted.

Groaning, we backtracked several feet and took a turn into a small hallway, seeing one of the guard rooms. A heavy door was, thankfully, unlocked, and we entered, grabbed the key, and left. I broke the ring and slid half the keys off, throwing them to Gelid.

“Just see what works,” I shouted.

She didn't respond as we ran into the cell blocks, splitting up. Visibly, there were at least thirty dragons still in the block, each clawing at the bars or trying to break them.

“Hey dude, what's going on!?” an older dragon asked me as I fumbled with the keys.

“Dragon God Bahamut was accidentally revived by Lockdown. Warden is dead, inmates and guards are getting slaughtered, full panic,” I spat out. I jammed a key into the hole, twisted it, and it opened up.

He didn't waste any time as the door opened, dashing out and running for the exit. A loud roar sounding very close made us all look upwards to the ceiling and as if on cue, an impact shattered the roof of the prison. Stone and brick fell down causing Gelid and I to temporarily retreat into a cell as it passed. Bahamut's massive form loomed over head and he stared into the room.

Acting quickly, Gelid and I practically ran by each cell, jamming the identical keys into the holes for the inmates to unlock themselves. Rather than running off like the first one, they began helping each other out.

“A jailbreak; what has my species become? Why has my holy island become the housing grounds of such scum?” Bahamut said with a low, menacing voice.

I stopped trying and just threw the keys at the other cells and it seems Gelid and I had the same idea. She reached the end of the hall and ran across the balcony. We almost ran into each other upon reaching the stairwell and darted up it, continuing our mad dash.

“Dock! Get to the docks! Escape the island!” I shouted to Gelid.

“Spike, I can fly, just get on my back when we leave,” Gelid shouted.

The whole hallway shook and the ground beneath us became unstable. Looking out one of the small windows in the cobblestone wall, Bahamut was standing in the bay yet still reached the prison itself. He had smashed the wall below us, causing the dragons in the lower halls to fall into the bay. The ground beneath Gelid and I started to crack and we both started running our top speed once more. We cleared the hallway just as the rest of the wall came tumbling down. This side of the prison was completely destroyed now.

“Gelid, we can't fly, Bahamut will take us down!” I shouted.

The area of the castle we were in once again shook, this time the whole room shifted; part of it tilted to one side indicating it was either collapsing or falling over. We both were thrown against the wall as it shifted and felt gravity pulling us backward. The ceiling seemed to crumble as it did and Gelid grabbed my wrist. Flapping her wings, she started flying straight up, miraculously missing the heavy rock and cobblestone raining down on us. I had my eyes clenched shut and gripped her arms as hard as I could. Whether it bugged Gelid or not, I didn't know. Flying up, she continued dragging me through the air down the hallway as the walls started breaking apart. Finally having enough, we came to an area of the prison with larger windows and she yanked me through it, bumping my ankles in the process. Rather than go straight up, she seemed to heed my warning and stayed close to the wall, zipping towards the front of the prison.

We landed on one of the large walls surrounding the courtyard and turned back to see the part of the prison we left. The whole side collapsed into the sea and Bahamut was already in the sky. He landed on the wall looking down on the front of the prison. Several of the guards were launching fireballs at Bahamut, some of them massive, especially when placed against the dragon that I stumbled upon when Owoloysius came into the picture. Bahamut withstood it with ease and took a deep breath. All of the inmates fled the courtyards at this point, wailing on the door and hitting it with all their strength. Several other dragons had flown up and were manually opening the gate. By the time the gates opened and inmates were flooding out of the prison, Bahamut spat a great ball of white fire that was almost blinding to the eyes. I closed my eyes and turned away from the flames, only to hear screams and shouts of the guards. A dragon landed next to us and Gelid and I got into position, ready to attack only to find that it was Haruo. The light faded from the courtyard and we all looked down to see several of the guards on flames, others completely roasted.

“Heh, I never thought the day would come where I'd see us fire proof dragons burning to death. Can you imagine how hot that must have been?” Haruo said, chuckling with a solemn look on his face.

I slapped his shoulder along with Gelid. “The brightness was enough, now cut the shit, we have to go!”

He shrugged his shoulders and we both started running down the right wall of the courtyard. Emulating my tactic, I jumped off the roof first, once again impacting the tree. The pain was minimal compared to last time, or the adrenaline was just streaming throughout my body. Haruo and Gelid followed suit, both of them shaking it off the same as I did and we joined the herd of dragons running towards the docks. Down and down the large steps we ran; upon reaching the docks, several of the inmates had already ran onto the boats and were trying to push-off. It seems all those with wings had already found out that flying is a bad idea, so we all wound up flocking towards the boats.

The boats themselves weren't cheap and made of wood, rather opting for metal ships crafted as if they were for diving. Each of the ships here could carry us all, but they weren't being operated by the proper dragons.

Before Gelid, Haruo and I made it anywhere near the docks themselves, a massive white fireball impacted the ships. Each were hit by the hot flames and each engine wound up exploding, sending metal shrapnel as well as various other things such as chairs all over. Gelid, Haruo, many other dragons and myself were thrown back from the force. Us three slammed into a rock and I found myself almost completely limp, probably from shock. My eyes had forced themselves closed from the lights and I opened them up, seeing a plethora of smoke and inmates flying above. I pulled myself up into a sitting position, any ability to move fast gone. It was as if I just woke up and was too lazy to get out of bed; dazed and unable to move. I looked to my right to see Gelid face down on the ground, lying still while Haruo was constantly turning his head, his hands on his ears as his eyes were blinking. It seemed he was temporary blinded. His mouth was moving yet I heard nothing, a strong buzzing sounding in my ears. After a few seconds, I started hearing shouts as well as Haruo shouting.

“SPIKE, IS GELID OKAY!? I CAN'T SEE, I CAN'T HEAR!” he was shouting, smacking himself in the head.

Drowsily, I leaned over and poked Gelid's head, giggling as I did so. “'ey girl, c'mon, wake up sleepy head,” I said with a dull, almost drunken voice.

Gelid's body shifted and I tuned into the situation, my senses coming back full strength. My eyes widened and my whole body shifted. I leaned over Gelid's body, grabbing her shoulder and rolling her back onto my lap. Cradling her head in my arms, I slapped her cheek lightly.

“Gelid, wake up, wake up!” I urgently spat out.

An arm reached over her body, grabbing her left arm and yanking her up. Haruo hoisted her up onto his back and held her in a piggy back position and he looked down at me, squinting his eyes.

“High-tail it, Spike, don't go back to the prison. Head to the flower field on the right,” Haruo shouted, his joking tone completely gone.

I didn't object regardless of the question I had and started running along with the others. I was like every other dragon on this island right now; without hope. Lockdown is dead, the guards are dead, all ways to escape are completely gone, and the Dragon God is having a rampage. Is this what Lockdown was talking about? A dragon rage from agony? Or is Bahamut just mad?

Haruo, Gelid and I proceeded towards the flower field yet he never stopped running. Following suit, we passed the field and came to the edge of the cliff. We peeked over the edge, spotting a groove in the rock. Nodding, Haruo slid off the edge with a claw holding him up, the other on Gelid. He motioned for me to do the same and I nodded, following suit. He dropped down, his claw latching onto the ledge of the groove. Upon doing the same, I discovered that it wasn't a groove but a legitimate tunnel. We both ran into the cave until it was hard to see. Haruo then grabbed my wrist and yanked me, seemingly knowing where he was going. I simply trusted him, allowing him to lead me. We wound up hitting a metal door to which Haruo opened, revealing the bottom of the Warden's Tower. Thankfully, torches lit up the maroon brick down here so we had some light.

“Alright, we need a plan of attack. This island won't last if Bahamut is set on destroying us, which is very likely. He sees us as scum, defiling his 'holy land', so he's most likely going to wipe us all out,” Haruo said, gently setting Gelid onto the ground.

“So, what? Are we supposed to fight him?” I asked, leaning against the wall.

He shook his head. “No, that's just dumb. At least by ourselves. At the very least, we could do something to hold him off until help arrives, or we could think of a plan,” he said.

“None of us are anywhere near big enough to fight him, and he's fully grown,” I responded, sliding to the ground.

“No.” Glancing up at him, Haruo's face was void of his usually goofy self. He looked at me, not even giving me a reassuring smile. “Bahamut took the kids body, implementing himself in it. He didn't age it. The size of the very ship that carried us is the size he was at your age. Bahamut is genetically greater than any living dragon,” he said.

I felt any hope I had die out at that moment. Shaking my head with disbelief, my arms drooped down and I hung my head. Silence took over with the quiet roars and screams acting as background noise. Now and then, the ground would shake and the whole tower rumbled, dust coming off the stairs. I remembered something Twilight told me and my hopes started to reignite.

“No, we have a chance,” I said.

Haruo's face turned to me with complete doubt written over his face. “A chance. Right. I'm actually Bahamut's son, so I'm gonna become Godzilla and take him down. Sure. You have fun with your fantasies.”

I stood up, approaching him. “No, I'm serious. We have a chance. Lockdown said he needed magic from dragons and it typically killed them, right?” He nodded. “That's true for Unicorn's, remove their magic, and they die. Same for Pegasi and Earth Ponies. But if you take some magic, like, say, half, they get a little tired.”

“Get to the point.”

“I don't feel tired. I feel great. I feel absolutely amazing, and that's the thing; I'm still full of magic, more than what Bahamut has,” I said, feeling sincere hope.

“You don't have shit for training, so even if you have more, you can't use it,” Haruo responded, starting to try and wake Gelid up.

“At birth, my mother infused the magic into me, and only a little of it caused me to grow to monstrous sizes. And by that, I mean grew to be someone the size of Bahamut. I have a well of untapped magic, I just have to try and force it out.” I stopped, looking up. “We need to go to the Warden's office, I need a pen and paper!”

“Dammit, fine,” Haruo said, hoisting Gelid up once more.

Without wasting time, we both started the long climb up the stairs. Two minutes later, we reached the door leading into the Guards area and continued our climb. It was dangerous, what with Bahamut rampaging, but we had to keep climbing up the death trap. The fear of the whole tower going down was fresh in our minds so we never once slowed down, even thought we started to finally feel exhausted as our adrenaline died out. Through sheer willpower, we reached the top and came upon the room before the lookout. A modest office with exactly what I need on Lockdown's desk. I ran over, grabbing the sheet of paper as well as a pen and immediately began writing.

“What're you doing?” Haruo asked, setting Gelid down on a chair.

“One... sec... Haruo,” I said, finishing off the letter.

“'Celestia, shit is going down. Bahamut resurrected, need help. Wrongfully-convicted (you fuck), Spike',” I said, reading off the letter.

“You're just gonna up and insult your princess like that?” Haruo asked, chuckling.

“She's lucky I don't go up and give her a real reason to imprison me when I escape this place. Same goes for the rest of that Ponyville lot,” I said, snarling as I blew fire over the letter.

Haruo watched the letter vanish and leave in the direction of Equestria before facing me again. “You should stop, that's the anger talking.”

“NO, you don't GET IT!” I responded. “I HAVE to get angry. I HAVE to be enraged. Anger is more useful than despair in a situation like this.”

I turned to the window and looked down on the courtyard. Bahamut sat there, a large number of prisoners still attacking  even if it's a lost cause. I don't blame them. I'm in the same situation, trying to use a hair to motivate myself, tricking myself into believing that we have a chance at living.

“This has to be it... listen to me, this is our last chance. If this doesn't work, we're a lost cause. I need to access that well of magic, and the closest thing I have to magic is my flame breath,” I said, feeling nervous sweats coming off my scalp.

“So what you're saying is you need to exhaust your flame breath until you're forced to rely on the Unicorn magic?” Haruo asked. I nodded in response. “That could kill you.”

I pointed down at Bahamut. “No, THAT thing can kill me. This tactic SHOULD kill me.” I slammed both fists down on the sill of the window. “Times like this are why desperation attacks were made, except this is more of a gamble.”

“Gamblin' is stupid,” Gelid's voice said.

I turned around just as Haruo looked down. Gelid was slowly sitting up, rubbing her scalp. I ran over to her and cradled her head in my arms before she swatted Haruo and I away. “Fug' off, I'm good.” She spat out some blood to 'support' what she said. Pulling herself up, Gelid stretched her body, staggering towards the window. Peeking out, she had a dull surprise to the chaos.

Below, there was still the equivalent to an army attacking a titan to no success. She shook her head and spun around, looking at us.

“Even if this idea of yours doesn't work, we have to at least whittle down his stamina. Drop down, hope you do some damage,” Haruo said.

Letting out a deep sigh, I nodded. Peeking out the window, Bahamut seemed to be enjoying this. All he was doing was swatting them around, not even hard by his size. No fire, he didn't even kill anyone. Just smacking them around like punching bags.

“Alright, Gelid, you're up,” I said, turning to her.

“Wait, what?” she asked, shaking her wrists out.

“Fly Haruo and I out over Bahamut and we'll drop down on his head. We can't dick around so grab us, zip out there and drop us on a trajectory towards his head. We'll have to hope we fall faster than his senses can detect,” I said.

Haruo shrugged, Gelid nodded; the former took his place next to the window alongside me and Gelid fluttered her wings. She crouched down in a runner's position and prepared to take off, raising her wings high in the air. Haruo and I stepped out of the windows and hung out of the prison in preparation.

Gelid launched off, through the window while Haruo and I jumped, grabbing her feet. A dip in her dive occurred yet she held us up. The skies were almost completely clear, the sun peeking down on the whole prison.

“Gelid, veer right; we'll be in front of the sun,” I shouted.

She didn't nod but tilted her body. We veered right and just as I predicted, our shadow appeared above Bahamut's on the cobblestone ground of the courtyard. Haruo glanced at me and I nodded; we both let go and began the drop. We must have been a hundred feet above the ground and forty above Bahamut's head.

I tilted myself forward, doing a straight dive with Haruo emulating me. I crossed my arms in an X position, peeking over my forearms as I did my best to manipulate my body through the winds. The drop itself seemed to take forever, time slowing down as the moment was now caught in my head. Very slowly (or maybe it was the adrenaline taking over), Bahamut's head turned towards us, obviously due to spotting our shadow. Luck was on our side, and we were never attacked. Just as we approached Bahamut's head, us fully in his gaze, I let one arm fall limp to my side while I extended my other hand above my head to act as a spear. I didn't see Haruo but I could only assume he did the same.

I hit my mark. My fist pierced the Aqueous Humor of Bahamut's large eye. The damn thing was larger than me. My fist went right through the fine layer and hit his lens, pushing the bead into his Virtuous Humor. My head and body slapped against his cornea while my right arm was directly inside his eyeball.

Right away, I found myself panicking as his large eyelids slammed down on my arm. As if I wasn't stuck enough, now I had to worry about the lid ripping my arm off. I yanked my arm back enough to move so I set my feet against his eyelid, grabbed my arm with my free hand, and yanked on it with my legs acting as my power. Bahamut's shouts indicated that I did some damage, but Haruo didn't make any noise. Either he died or was in the same situation.

Bahamut threw his head back, launching me into the air backwards. Haruo was thrown back as well yet we were both flying limp, the force of the throw as well as the impact painful. We headed towards the guards tower near the rear of the island and, luckily, we flew right through the window of the top floor. We slid against the ground and extended our legs. Lucky too, because just as we did our feet hit the opposing wall, our legs absorbing most of the shock.

We skipped the groaning and leg rubbing and rolled onto our fronts, pushing ourselves up to our feet. Darting back, we leaned against the window to see Bahamut threw us from the centre of the island to the very far end. He shook his head, rubbing his eyes with his hands.

“Seems our attack was motivating,” Haruo said.

Looking to see what he meant, I squinted my eyes and saw hundreds of little fire balls aiming for his face coming from the courtyards. Every dragon was in the same desperate state as we were, giving up trying to escape and aiming to do as much damage as possible. Gelid's blue figure zipped towards us and hovered outside of the window. Bahamut blinked and a white light came from his eyes. After the light vanished, his glare focused on us. He took a deep breath and our warning lights went off in our heads.

“Hurry up, grab my legs,” she shouted.

“NO TIME!” I shouted.

Haruo and I both leaped from the window and grabbed Gelid's body, folding her wings down and we both dropped. Just as we jumped, Bahamut spat a massive fireball at the tower and we plummeted, the fireball barely missing us. Impacting the tower, the entirety of the guard's block was destroyed from the resulting explosion and collapse of the tower, destroying this part of the castle as well. It seems only the courtyard, Warden's tower and few parts of the recreational buildings were left standing; almost 70% of the prison was gone.

Gelid and I started screaming as we rapidly approached the ground. Haruo let go of her body and grabbed her leg, forcing me to do the same. Her blue wings started flapping as fast and as hard as possible. Our descent slowed down and just on time as well. Bahamut spat more fire at us towards where we would land, impacting the ground and base of the crumbling tower. The heat caught Gelid's wings and sent us higher into the skies. The heat itself was nearly unbearable as the white flames burned the stone below. We were nothing but Bahamut's shooting gallery. Understanding this, I let go of Gelid's leg causing the female dragon to have a lopsided balance, dropping her and Haruo as well. We tumbled down, regardless of Gelid's attempts to level out, and hit the ground below us hard. We were in what seemed to be an exercising courtyard, with draconic equipment all over.

My whole body was aching all over while my legs were sore and burning, the ability to stand not quite yet gone. I forced myself to stand as did the other two and we ran towards the nearest entrance. Bahamut roared once more, the sound directed away from us. The inmates seemed to hit their mark and do their part for protecting themselves so we had a minute of freedom. Unluckily for us, the area of the castle we ran into was destroyed so we ran atop rubble and shingles towards the courtyards. The walls were almost destroyed and Bahamut was now moving, actively trying to kill the inmates. He slammed the creatures that seemed like ants to him into the walls, killing them as well as breaking the walls.

Hard to believe that Lockdown only resurrected him twenty minutes ago. Swallowing the fear, I managed to speak without croaking.

“Oh god, what are we gonna do?” I asked, starting to feel the hopelessness of the situation yanking on my shoulders.

“We have to—” Haruo started.

He was cut off as a claw launched through the wall, sending three inmates through it. One of Bahamut's large claws grazed Haruo's stomach, causing a deep gash on his side. He let out a shout of extreme pain and tumbled to the ground, clenching his side. He did his best to hold the blood inside and rolled around, writhing in agony. Right away, Gelid and I tried to calm him down, even though Bahamut's claw was tearing apart the building around us.

“HOLY BAHAMUT OF ERASURE!” Haruo shouted, clutching the wound.

Looking up, many large bricks fell down, several landing on all three of us. I thought for sure my leg broke when a chunk landed on it yet it withstood the impact. It did send a fire throughout my whole body. Gelid and Haruo were both hit, yet Haruo seemed preoccupied with his gash to worry about it. Gelid, unfortunately, had a rock pierce her wing. Or, on second look, it tore off a chunk of it. All three of us were laid out in agony as the castle started breaking apart and none of us seemed to care.

I grunted, snorting repeatedly as I stood up. The pressure being put on my leg was killing me yet I persevered. Taking a deep breath, I stood up and looked out towards the castle. Bahamut was walking by, swatting inmates away like broken toys. I looked down to Gelid and Haruo, the former doing her best to stand as well. Haruo was blowing fire on the wound and within a few seconds, the whole thing was cauterized. He continued laying down, catching his breath while Gelid joined me in what has to be our twentieth wind.

Growling, we both ran out of the hole in the wall, joining a mob that was chasing after Bahamut. Alongside them, we started launching fireballs, praying that Haruo would be okay where he was. We didn't have much choice but to leave him due to the imminent death. All of us aimed for Bahamut's face, my attack on his eyes an obvious inspiration.

Airborne dragons were repeatedly taking off after being smacked down no matter how hard. Several were even missing limbs yet still fought. It was all or nothing right now

Bahamut turned towards our group and everybody stopped moving immediately. He kept having to blink to stop fireball attacks towards his eyes, yet he wasn't blinded. Gelid and I were once again separated as we ran in different directions as he swung his large tail down.

The spines dug into the ground upon impact and cracked the cobblestone and upon lifting up, threw several large rocks in numerous directions. Dragons all around me were hit by the stone but continued going, shutting out the pain to escape with their lives.

Someone shouted “NOW” and as he said that, every dragon shot their breath towards Bahamut. Various colours and types of breath were thrown into the air: purple; red; green; blue; ice; lightning; snow, and the traditional fire. I joined suit, and we didn't stop at just one. We continued huffing balls of magic breath at Bahamut and each hit all over his body, most of it the face. After a few seconds, all of us were completely exhausted and panting, trying to catch our breaths. Bahamut was still and we looked on in eager hope. Like the movies, we were dead wrong; Bahamut's arm slammed down into the ground and he swung it in a sweeping motion, throwing many dragons around into the walls, ground and each other. Very few, such as myself, hurled themselves into the air to avoid the hit.

When all was said and done, very few were left standing; not because of the will to fight, but because we were the only ones that could. Everyone else had their injuries taking effect, and there was only ten of us left. Gelid was standing on the other side of the courtyard and Haruo just ran in from the hole, staggering as he did. Rather than lift his arm, Bahamut surprised a few of us, including myself, by sweeping his arm back the other way. Stone was kicked up and two dragons along with myself and Haruo were thrown across the yard. I hit Gelid, knocking her over yet I had to be thankful since it broke my throw. We tumbled over, sliding until we slowly bumped into the wall. We staggered to our feet and Bahamut loomed over us all, lowering his head to look at the few standing in the corner.

“Purple one, you are the one responsible for my resurrection, so you shall gain my pardon. Leave the island immediately,” Bahamut said.

I looked over at Gelid and Haruo and they both motioned me to listen. “This may be your only chance, Spike,” Gelid said calmly. I shook my head in response and Haruo slapped me upside the head.

“Move you idiot,” Haruo said through his teeth

“I'm not leaving you,” I responded.

“Now is not a good time for your dragon honour to kick in, Spike,” Gelid said, trying to shove me away.

I smacked her arm away and looked up at Bahamut. “This isn't about honour. This is about friendship. There is good in us all. Nobody deserves to die, and I'll be damned if I'm going to get off scot-free while a big bastard who kills for no reason offs us,” I said, spitting at Bahamut.

Gelid and Haruo stood in shock at my response as did many other dragons. Maybe it was stupidity, I was fearless or I really didn't care if I died anymore, but I stared a god down, standing stronger than I ever have in this hellhole.

Bahamut didn't sigh or say anything back as I finished. A simple claw moved forward, towards my body and I was far too slow to react, the pain messing with my nervous system. Instead, I found myself being shoved to the ground by Gelid, the claw missing me entirely. I watched the massive claw impale Gelid in the belly and go through her whole body, drag her towards the wall and stop when his claw got lodged. Bahamut pulled his claw back and Gelid held onto her gut, attempting to stay standing before stumbling onto her knees and falling over.

I was ready for this, wasn't I?

I hesitated at first, but I slowly crawled over to Gelid as she lay on the ground, bleeding out. I rolled her back onto my lap and I cradled her head in my arms once more, looking down at a glazed look on her face. She smiled at me with half-lidded eyes, the curve of her mouth genuine and sincere.

“Spike, I saw my best friend again,” Gelid whispered quietly.

And then her breathing stopped.

-9- DRAGON RAGE!!

WARNING:

This chapter has earned the Teen Gore rating. MILD; not extreme but it is brutal.

MURDERER ATTEMPTS TO TAKE PRINCESSES' LIFE

“We find the defendant, Spike, guilty of all charges.”

“I love you, Spike.”

“Welcome to Castle Bahamut.”

-9- DRAGON RAGE!!

“Spike, I just want you to know that I'm sorry. I can only hope for forgiveness, but I cannot deny the law for one friend. If I were to overrule the courts, a potential uprising would occur. It's safer for us all if you just... wait in Castle Bahamut until we can sort this out. Comply and everything will be far easier for everypony. I just... I'm sorry. I can't pardon you due to the weight of the charges.”

“I am not perfect. I'm just one pony no matter how many ponies idolize me. I raise the sun, and live for the ponies of Equestria, but I am not a divine entity. I get exhausted, and worn down, and I cannot stop all violence in Equestria. I can only shoulder the blame and hurt that is directed at me by those who see fit over the years. Discord... my sister... King Sombra, all of them have impacted my life in a way that set the country against me. And I cannot protect you at this time. You have always been like a son to me, even if you never saw me as a mother... even though you see my pupil as a mother.”

“I'm sorry, Spike.”

. . .

“You can pardon my friends when their shenanigans causes trouble... but because I'm a dragon, you draw the line?”

. . .

“No... this is goodbye... until when, I dunno. But I do not wish to see you ever again.”

“When you return, ask anything and I'll grant it.”

“You cannot buy me, Princess.”

“I will do anything you ask of me.”

“Even step down from the throne?”

. . .

“Yes.”

. . .

“You can say that because we both know I'm never coming back.”

[*][*][*]

“Your friend...?” I asked.

I got no response. Silence took over even though it was far from it. My mind refused to take in any of the noise in favour of granting me a moment of silence for Gelid. Nothing else mattered at that moment, not the fact that the rest of the dragons got up and once again began their futile assault on the Dragon God. Not the flock of Pegasi that rained down from the skies along with several Gryphons. Not the flock of armed Dragons that followed in. Not the Unicorns dropped off by the Pegasi. All of it was like a movie playing in the background; unnecessary noise and colour.

“THE TARGET IS THE LARGE DRAGON IN THE CENTRE OF THE CASTLE RUINS!” a loud voice boomed over the whole island.

The Equestrian Royal Guard had deployed Unicorns all over the castle after the Pegasi dropped them off and immediately they had begun a magical attack towards Bahamut. Gryphons in what was apparently their nation's armour zipped by, clawing at Bahamut or launching spears and arrows and dropping basket ball-sized bombs yielding a small explosion. The Pegasi were grabbing clouds and kicking them to launch bolts of lightning. The Dragons themselves were seemingly hesitant yet lunged in with their full force; claws, flame breath that dwarfed the Prison Guards' as well as what was apparently draconic magic in effect. Gems were being materialized and launched similar to a bullet; each of the gems lodged themselves into various parts all over Bahamut's body.

Yet none of it mattered. Gems that were lodged in his body fell out with no visible damage; the flame did nothing, neither did the ice or lightning breath some dragons had; the magic attacks from the Unicorns were useless as well as the weapons by the Gryphons.

Using my strength, I lifted Gelid up, cradling her body in my arms. Haruo was apparently screaming in my ear yet I heard none of it. I walked the few feet towards the large, broken gates of the prison. I turned the corner and several Unicorn's almost ran into me as they rushed into the courtyard.

The flickering lights and sounds behind me were similar to a fireworks show in a rock concert; noisy and seizure-inducing. Bahamut was roaring, slams against the ground were made, Unicorn's were thrown back, Gryphons and Dragons were swatted down all around me. I continued walking to a tree just outside of the prison and placed Gelid's body against the trunk and closed her eyes.

“My own nation has allied themselves with the lower species? Cease this nonsense and bow before your God, Bahamut,” the large dragon roared, extending his massive wings and taking off into the sky.

Bahamut was no giant in comparison to the island but the prison was another thing; he towered over all structures except the Guard's Tower and Lockdown's Tower. With a single flap of his wings, all creatures on the ground had to brace themselves to not slide off and the ones in the air fought to not spiral towards the ground. Several more flaps followed and it was clear Bahamut was going to take off. From under the tree, I turned around and watched Bahamut lift into the air, each of the aerial armed forces separating to not get in the way. From in the air, Bahamut took a deep breath and spat a torrent of fire into the courtyards. The stone was seemingly vaporized yet when the blaze stopped, all forces in the courtyards were surrounded by a purple barrier.

“DO NOT TOUCH THEM!” Shining Armour's voice shouted.

I looked over at Shining Armour, my rage nearly tripling. I put it aside as we all had the same enemy. Bahamut was swatting the Dragons, Gryphons and Pegasi swarming around his body, launching attacks of all kind that proved useless. Tilting his body forward, Bahamut began moving around in the air. On top of being massive and nigh indestructible, he was faster than the other Dragons as well. He took off out over the ocean and turned around, coming back towards the island while taking a deep breath.

“MOVE, CLEAR THE CENTRE!” a Gryphon shouted.

Shining Armour stepped into the prison gates, his horn lightning up as all living creatures fighting Bahamut were shielded in their own lavender bubble. To my surprise, the inmates as well as myself were surrounded. Shining Armour was visibly straining himself as his legs shook. He was merely ten feet away from me and I was tempted run over and hit him, but the urge subsided.

In contrast to earlier, my rage wasn't the same. It didn't feel like frustration or complete hate towards others. It felt more genuine and like it was moving through my body. The feeling extended down my limbs and I felt the familiar feeling of magic I felt when Lockdown extracted it. I felt the warmth of magic reminiscent of times Twilight or Rarity levitated me into the air. My body felt like the time Greed forced my body to grow. My body... was feeling many things, yet rage stood out. It was as if the anger inside me was caressing my muscles, weaving itself through each cell. My body's numbness and pain subsided and I felt my bones moving. It was sickening... and I liked it.

Bahamut's flame coursed out over the island, incinerating the courtyard entirely as well as the rest of the castle. Only Lockdown's Tower was left standing after the attack while everywhere else was flattened or rubble. Numerous bodies piled up yet the Gryphons, Dragons, Unicorn's, Pegasi and Inmates were all almost even in numbers. Shining Armour's spell shielded every living soul that wasn't Bahamut. Looking around, he even shielded the trees, flowers and other vegetation on the island as well as the deceased.

“They will grow mad over the years of constant agony and it will come to the point where a dragon rage unlike any other erupts.”

“A Dragon's heart is prone to greed; a steady diet to make growth speed.”

“The Great Dragon God, Bahamut, has given us the ability to grow.”

Then I'll grow.

. . .

“We're not doing anything. All attacks hit him yet no damage is left,” Shining Armour said, watching Bahamut duke it out with a platoon of aerial creatures.

His eyes have been struck several times, only to heal. Weapons lodged into his wings, only to be patched up. Bombs opened a hole in his belly, only to be healed when the smoke cleared. Nothing was working against the god and nobody could tell why. A storm of flight creatures swirled around the skies anticipating retaliation from the dragon. The Unicorns on ground were split between launching spells to healing the wounded inmates as well as armed forces.

I stepped out from my shield towards Shining Armour as he levitated the crumbled gate walls off several inmates whom immediately took to the skies in panic. He looked around, eyes scanning the area before they landed on me. It was so simple; I could have gotten payback for sending me here. Just offing him and that's it, nopony would ever know. His eyes widened upon seeing me and for good reason; I was seething and steadily growing. I stopped several feet in front of him and looked at the now-smaller stallion.

“Not every Dragon is a murderer,” I said.

And with that said, a huge weight was lifted off my shoulders. Guilt and anger at my friends had disappeared entirely. None of them were at fault, it was just a misconception and I had done what Rainbow Dash told me to do: I had stayed strong... and now it's time to show it.

My whole body was encased with Twilight's magical aura and rather than an odd growing pain akin to my Greedy misadventure, my body grew in size, gently soothed and comforted as I did. The magic was warm and nullified any pain I felt and the anger and rage I had was directed at Bahamut. The one who had to be stopped.

Shining Armour backed off from me as I rose over him, my shape and form taking that of a sleek dragon with sharp spines. I stood five feet over him; three times larger than my other size yet horribly insignificant to Bahamut. It must have been Twilight's magic, as this growth didn't get out of hand; I never found myself giving into my rage and anger as I did with my greed. I was a tamed beast.

. . .

Bahamut soared through the skies, whipping Gryphons, Pegasi and Dragons around with his tail and sheer air thrown by his wings. Spells and fire lit up the skies like a thunderstorm at nighttime, the whole island as well as the surrounding ocean most likely visible to the nearest shore, and certainly to any ship still incoming from the mainlands. Bahamut's white flame had shot throughout the sky, roasting the few unlucky soldiers to get in its way and lit up the whole island as if the sun were spotlighting it; anyone looking at it would go temporarily blind from the sheer light.

Bahamut descended through the air and levelled out, flying back towards the island in an attempt to end the ground troops as well as the rest of the inmates... I wasn't going to have that.

As Bahamut approached and took in a deep breath, I turned away from Shining Armour as he discovered I wasn't going to end his life and broke out into a run. I leaped up into the air, launching off like a Pegasi taking flight as my new body had amazing strength. Like a bullet, I zoomed in on Bahamut and extended my arms. Feeling Twilight's magic inside my body, I closed my eyes in memory.

“Magic works like pretend; a good imagination means good aura shaping,” Twilight said.

“That explains why you blow things out of proportion,” I responded, snorting while cooking a meal.

Twilight crinkled her snout and pouted her lips, flicking me with magic. The impact made me rub my scalp and look over to her just as she giggled.

“I imagined a small hand next to your head in a flicking motion, and it happened. All you have to do is imagine your magic taking the shape.”

Imagine it taking shape, I said in my mind.

I opened my eyes to see an arm-shaped by magical aura extending from my arm. My now-five-foot arm had a ten-foot magical extension. The purple, magic hand grew to a larger size and wrapped around Bahamut's whole snout. I envisioned a weight below me as a magical aura formed below me with what looked like a cartoonish one-tonne weight dangling. I felt my whole body grow heavy and Bahamut was dragged down by his snout. His eyes turned to spot me and he snorted white fire at me, causing me to let go and allow the magical weight to drag me down to the ground. The magic impacted the ground and disappeared with a flash and I landed on all four claws, merely feeling discomfort from the landing. Looking above, Bahamut set his eyes on me and remained stationary in the air. Attacks from the others were still being made, all but ignored as Bahamut descended.

A quick glance around revealed I was on the large steps and I waited for Bahamut's response. He landed at the base of the large steps, the empty space next to the harbour his ground. His wings folded back in, he leaned over onto his two front claws and he lowered his head to better see me.

“A baby dragon challenging a God; no matter what you may have learned here, that is not brave or heroic. Just st—” I cut Bahamut off by thrusting my right arm forward, once again using my imagination as well as magic. An aura formed around my arm and extended off around twenty feet in the shape of a blade. The tip of the 'blade' pierced his left eye and I swung my arm to the right, cutting out part of his eye as well as the left side of his socket. “—uPID!” his voice took on a higher tone as his word turned into a shout of pain. He immediately pulled his head back, his left hand coming up to rub his damaged eye.

The flickering lights from the flying army above stopped to stare as Bahamut recovered from this attack with the exception that he showed visible pain. Not wasting any time, I ceased the magical flow, vanishing the blade around my arm and ran as fast as my legs would allow. I curved to the right to where his arm was pulled up and ran under his body. He truly was massive as in his 'laid out on belly' position, his belly was still 13 feet from the ground, three feet above my head. I reimagined the blade on my arm and sliced at his gut, this time watching as his wound wasn't healing right away. Instead, it was as if my magic was fighting against his magic; violet versus white.

No grunt came from this slice even though blood almost immediately started flowing out of him like a fountain (to him, it was nothing but a small cut) and I skidded to a stop on his right side. His right arm came back, an attempt to elbow me while I 'wasn't suspecting anything'. The blade once again vanished and this time, I attempted one of Twilight and Shining's own spells; a shield formed around me and I utilized the blade 'spell' once more. A large, knife-shaped aura formed in front of the shield. Its base was on the ground and pointing ahead of me in a diagonal manner so the tip was in the air. Bahamut's elbow didn't stop once, the magical aura slicing clean through his elbow and into his forearm. His elbow smashed against the shield, both the shield and his elbow cracking. The blade had sliced his bone yet the smash had done even more to it. That really got to Bahamut as he immediately rolled to the left, off the island and into the harbour while only smashing one of the ten docks. His body practically sunk in the bay while his head poked out, a trail of blood coming from my magical knife into the ocean.

He turned and glared at me, barring his teeth as he let out a loud growl through his sharp fangs. Using his (probably) still injured right arm, he thrust it forward, presumably into the ground. The cobblestone beneath me started to crack and the ground rumbled as it rose up. I figured out what he was doing and turned and started running backwards, far faster than I could before. The ground continued to raise up in a straight line until Bahamut ripped chunks of the clearing out from the rock and threw it up into the air towards the castle. Chunks of rock, sand and trees were flying everywhere and impacting all over the place as water flooded into what was left of the clearing between the harbour and staircase.

I turned around as Bahamut's massive form still allowed him to reach me even though I had made it across the 30-foot-radial clearing. He swatted his claws at me at such a fast speed that I barely dashed to the side. The large hand slammed into the staircase, the claws digging into the ground. With little effort, like a filly playing in the sand, his hand slid towards me, tearing up the staircase even after I jumped the railing and ran into the large field of fire lilies. He retracted his hand and crawled onto the land, just as those in the air resumed their attack. Bahamut stopped chasing after me, obviously tired of his smaller enemies, and raised his chin until he was looking straight up. Taking a deep breath, he blew fire into the air as it spread out, shooting off in all directions like a meteor shower; many were struck by the flames, many burst into flames simply by being near a ball of fire and very few had escaped the onslaught. Gryphons, Dragons and Pegasi alike slammed into the ground, either in a hurried attempt to get out of the skies or because they were already roasted to death. The population of the armed forces was lowered from its original 400 to only around 80, majority being Unicorns.

In response, I took a deep breath, feeling my magic as well as fire well up inside my gut. Blowing hard, I spit a fireball out of my mouth made of both green flames and violet magic; it was like watching a meteor as it impacted one of Bahamut's claws as he crawled forward. It hit his knee, causing an explosion of magic and green flames. He retracted his arm from the impact yelped as it did damage. Looking at it, the green flames were left burning on his bones and flesh while the magic itself seemed to be vaporizing his whole arm through.

“The magic that runs through you spawned from Twilight's magic, and unfortunately for you, it bonds with me. I know her, it has grown in my body. It counters your white crap and exposes your lie; you keep taking damage yet you're not invincible. Your magic just heals it in a flash.” I took a step forward, holding up a large fist towards him. My voice was far deeper and louder than before, perfect for my form as well as my emotions. “NOT ANYMORE!”

I ran forward as he visibly activated his magic this time, his eyes glowing white. Water spawned over his leg, putting out the flames while he visibly winced. My magic had died out and his wound was healing far slower than normal, like watching someone tear their skin off slowly in reverse. I leaped into the air, going towards his face. I yanked my fist back in preparation for a strike to the scalp. As I got closer to his head, he held his hand up to catch my fist.

“Not this time, Spike,” he said, the hostility dripping from his tongue like acid.

“RAAAAAGH!” I roared louder than I thought I could.

I thrust my fist forward, a magical blade forming around my arm the instant I did. As soon as the blade finished forming, the tip impacted his hand and pierced it completely. I put my legs forward while keeping the blade in place and my feet impacted his palm. The force shoved his hand back against his head, driving my blade right between his eyes.

Once again, he let out a loud cry showing his suffering as he stumbled back. Reaching over with my free arm, a magical claw extended off my own and I had it grab the top of his eyelid. With a firm grip, I yanked myself over, slicing towards his wrist and out of his arm just below his thumb. The magical blade had trouble further down, due to his thick skull, yet it still cut through and exited through his eye. The magic vanished as I stopped focusing, feeling exhaustion.

Now I understand why Twilight needs breaks, I thought, panting a bit.

I landed halfway up the staircase, Bahamut over 50 feet away from me. A throbbing in my head indicated I had used the magic too frequently and I shook my head, dragging my hand over my face to wipe the sweat from my brow. Bahamut pulled his hand back and his eyes once more glowed white as he healed his skull and hand. Only now was his arm just recovering from the flame attack.

“A fine warrior you would be, but those who strike Bahamut will not live. What is a peasant to their God? Servants of the Holy Land,” Bahamut said, his body shaking as he stepped towards me. “Too scared to move, as expected from a baby.”

I stood my ground and looked up at him, scowling at the larger dragon. My body shook just as much as his did, rage swelling up in my body. The exhaustion was getting to me yet I couldn't go down. I knew he could be hurt and I knew he wasn't invincible. In the midst of my thoughts, a clopping sound entered my ears. Shining Armour stood next to me and glanced at me as his horn began to glow. I felt my body feeling lighter, better as my stamina seemed to replenish itself. Shining Armour was exhausting himself to what seemed to be a near fatal point as his body dropped after, heavy and coarse panting coming from his mouth as his legs wobbled.

“I'm not scared, I'm angry,” I said quietly.

Shining Armour's horn glowed once more, this time brightly as he vanished due to a teleportation spell. Shining Armour was nowhere near us, which was good; the instant I said that, Bahamut stampeded towards me, his claws sinking into the ground and shattering the very ground he stepped on. I ran towards him as he extended his wings and thrust the tips of them at me like spears. I sidestepped both as they punctured the ground not a foot away from me and I wrapped my claws around both tips. He yanked his wings back in an attempt to tear me in half. I summoned up more magic and a hand came from my tail, the claws rooting themselves deep into the ground. It went far deeper than the island's shores, ensuring I was well-placed. Magic came from my hands and wrapped themselves around his wings so I didn't have to.

Using all the strength I physically had while exerting my magic, I yanked Bahamut off his feet and over my head. He swung his claws at me to stop the slam that would come; instead, I let go and threw him back into the courtyard. His body took up half of the space that was left from the ruins of the once-great prison. The magic vanished and I started running on all fours. A quick glance behind me revealed that Shining Armour and the other unicorns and living creatures had escaped the dead zone. Very good.

I ran past what would be the gates and leaped into the air as Bahamut rolled towards the gates to get back on his feet. Swinging my left arm to the right, a blade formed as I approached his back and the magical blade extended from my arm, slicing cleanly through his wing. The base itself had to be at least the size of a Redwood's trunk; blood flowed from the wound and Bahamut didn't bother shouting, his whole body moving faster than I thought to react to my attack. His left claw, closest to the door, slammed into the area where I would have hit. Instead, I abused the mass of magic that had welled up inside of me to craft a magic chute that slowed my movement in the air, causing Bahamut to slam his fist into his own side. He didn't act phased and turned his head to blow fire at me as his eyes lit up to fix the fact that I severed his wing.

“HOW ABOUT I CAUTERIZE THAT FOR YOU!?” I shouted.

Magic; lovely magic, what would I do without you? A magical claw reached forward, wrapping around the base of his wing as Bahamut pulled his hand back. I yanked myself forward and blew my green and violet flames onto his back. The fire spread out, engulfing both wing bases as well as several of his large spines. They singed and burned through him with the help of magic and vaporized the stubs, removing both of his wings. His white magic surrounded the area where his wings were, healing the scales while not healing the wings; they were gone for good.

Bahamut threw his whole body backwards, smashing his back against Lockdown's Tower. I was thrown through the wall and into the opposing wall on the other side. I landed on the steps with a grunt, feeling the pain shooting through my whole back. The training in prison as well as the magic and literal emotional growth did wonders for me. A magical hand reached up the few flights of stairs and grabbed onto the top floor's entrance, yanking myself up. Lockdown's office looked like someone threw a few papers around; it was relatively untouched.

I ran towards the window and threw myself out of it. Bahamut was still up against the wall, obviously suffering pain from the attack. As I fell down, I reached out both arms and magical hands reached forward and grabbed onto his jowls. His eyes rolled up just in time to see me yank myself down and smash into the centre of his snout. His mouth was thrown open from the impact and his body tilted forward, the “God” falling back onto hands and knees.

I let go of his jowls and kept my balance on his snout as he fell down. The wind was whirling all around, zipping by furiously so I crouched down to avoid being thrown off into free fall. Bahamut's front claws landed on the ground, causing the whole Dragon to brace. The bigger they are, the harder they fall happens to be true, I thought as I braced my legs.

As his head bobbed back up from the drop, I hopped off the tip of his snout and spun around in the air. Two claws came from my arms and grabbed onto his snout again. Instantly, he swung a claw at me, unable to breathe fire due to the sore mouth. His jaw still hung low and I smirked; I yanked myself up while avoiding the swipe and positioned my feet as though I were stomping on his bottom jaw. Imagine a knife. A blade formed around my legs and I put all of my strength in yanking me towards him.

The magical blade surrounding my lower half went directly into his jaw, slamming it shut on his tongue and continued. I let go of his snout, allowing the magical claws to vanish. I saw part of his tongue fall down, the Dragon obviously having bit it off. Simultaneously, I took a deep breath. Blade or not, Bahamut was still flesh and he was still large; my momentum slowed down in his snout and I found my legs in his nasal cavity, my head just inside his mouth.

Smells rancid; better freshen it up. I spat a torrent of the magical fire inside his mouth and once more, it did its job; his tongue seemed to melt rather than vaporize and his lower jaw had sustained significant damage. His lower jaw opened up to let the flames out rather than feed off his breathing. The tip of his lower jaw had already been burned off and I yanked my legs out of the flesh, my legs stained with blood, and rolled off his tongue.

I descended into the courtyard and this time, Bahamut got the jump on me. His eyes were thin as slits as he tilted his head forward, drool and blood dripping out of his damaged mouth as the magic dissolved his jaw until ceasing with Bahamut's white magic taking effect. His right hand came from below and slapped against my back, launching me into the air. I took a deep breath as I zipped by his head, pain ringing in my ears. Passing his face, I shot a burst of flames into his right eye, watching as it sizzled like... bacon in a pan. Yeah, Fluttershy made that for me once (almost made her pass out).

I flew up towards the top of the tower, slowing down until I landed with zero momentum on the shingles near the edge. Turning around and looking down, Bahamut rolled onto his back and held his eye as well as his jaw, both sources of extreme pain.

“If God can bleed, why do the living call him God?” I asked, staring down at the wounded creature.

Bahamut's white magic lit up in his eyes and his right eye was patched up; not healed, but functional. Squinting at me, his eyes were staring at the sun with my silhouette visible. No clouds in sight, the Pegasi had done their job and abused the clouds to oblivion. Bahamut took a deep breath once more, scowling as our eyes met. I leaped off the tip of the tower in a T shape as if I were an Olympic swimmer doing a dive. Bahamut spat out a torrent of white flame at me. Rather than look away, I faced it head-on, my eyes not bothered by the light. Each bend, each wave of fire was visible to me. It was as if I could stare at the sun and make out every detail. Time slowed down as if to grant me this opportunity to study the flame of a so-called God that had still had his way even millennia after his death.

His 'Holy Land' as the gathering of scum... the worst piece of shit in this prison is a thousand times better than you. Violet magic surrounded me in a perfect sphere. The fire did nothing to the shield as I went through it. Coming through the bottom of the flames was like a dolphin breaking the water; graceful and free. I fell, the shield disappearing as my speed built up. Instead, magic surrounded my fist taking the shape of a larger hand. As I came down, I thrust it forward and impacted Bahamut directly where his heart would be.

“THAT WAS FOR GELID AND LOCKDOWN!” I shouted as Bahamut lost all breath in his lungs from the impact.

Even though the fist had made contact, I continued falling at my speed. The fist vanished and I was halfway down the tower. To think all of this could happen in a few seconds is insane; talk about bullet time.

“Gods are myths, SO DO US A FAVOUR AND STAY ONE!”

The violet magic surrounded my body, this time in the same form; it wrapped around me like clothes on a mannequin. I extended my right arm, opening my claw as I headed towards his heart. I felt the warmth of magic surging through me, similar to my mother putting me to bed in early years. The anger was gone from my body at this point, my monstrous form replaced with the same body I had upon leaving solitary last. All of the magic in my body was flowing like blood and a lot of it built up into my hand, causing it to glow brightly.

I impacted his chest and went right through it. Bahamut arched his back from the impact and pain that shot through him (no pun intended) and I passed through him clean, like a bullet. Exiting his back, I threw my legs forward and braced myself with the help of magic, landing with some pain. Above me, Bahamut's body started to flake apart in brilliant white sparkles. Slowly, the white turned to violet as the warmth of Twilight's magic surrounded me and the whole island. The wind carried the sparkles away and I closed my eyes, allowing a wave of serenity and catharsis to wash over me. In my hand was the jewel that Lockdown sought to bring him his catharsis; Bahamut's Sacred Heart. It was no bigger than my fist at this time, obviously because it wasn't an actual heart.

“How long were you waiting for happiness?” I opened my eyes to see Shining Armour, other inmates and other armed forces walking into what was left of the courtyard, looking up in wonder as violet sparkles spread out like floating lamps. “Gelid... you're with your friend, now.”

-10- Solidified

“So, you killed someone.”

“Did I?”

. . .

“I'm sorry, Spike.”

-10- Solidified

“Your apology is worth just as much as my testimony, Celestia,” I said, standing up in the cell. “Worthless.”

I spun around and looked at her; the almost sewer-like look of the cell in contrast to her pristine white body was almost like an ugly painting. Snorting, the bars themselves seemed like high-quality bamboo than metal, due to all the gunk that built up on it. Clearly, the cells weren't used in a long time.

Glancing at me, Celestia's face contorted against her will as she tried to hide her emotion. Her mouth trembled before forming a small frown, her lower lip twitching ever so slightly. Narrowing her eyes, I watched carefully in heavy anticipation.

Cry. I want you to cry. I want to see your tears stream down your face and stain your cheeks. I want you to feel sorry. I repeated this in my mind as she stood there in silence for a minute, awkwardly fighting back the urge to break down.

She turned away from me, but not for the reason I thought. The instant she turned, the door opened and she walked out. After she left, my eyes tilted down towards the floor, my last attempt at leaving here gone with her. Instead of the door closing, two Royal Guards entered the room and had snare poles as well as shackles.

“Your ride is here, Dragon,” one of them said.

One stepped forward and opened the cell door, levitating the shackles inside. Two pairs, both attached to my limbs; one on my wrists and one on my ankles. He led me out, not caring that I was stumbling. These shackles were different from the ones I left the courthouse in. No chains on them, instead looking like gauntlets and shin-guards. The snare poles themselves, upon closer inspection, had no wire on the end. One of the guards levitated what looked like a collar and snapped it on my neck; it had the same design as the gauntlets and shin-guards. Glancing at the “snare-poles,” they were actually spears. Weapons rather than the poles and whatever these devices were, they felt heavy. That tingly feeling I get from my flame was gone entirely. All energy seemed to leave my body as the devices lit up. One guard left the room and the other butted the back of my head with the dull end of his spear.

“Follow him. No funny business or else I will mount your head above my fireplace,” the guard said, pushing me out.

I glared back at him, mumbling. “Try it.” No response meaning he either didn't hear me or wasn't going to do anything. I followed the guard in front of me as he led me through a low part of Canterlot that had moss-covered brick as well as rotting wooden chairs and older cells. Eventually, we came to a more-recognizable modern Canterlot Castle door. Upon opening, we were at the bottom of a flight of stairs. I followed the guard and immediately tripped on the bottom stair. Both guards looked at me, the one ahead stopping to turn. The weights were making it difficult and my lack of energy certainly didn't help. Instead, I spent a good ten seconds lifting my foot high enough to make it up one stair. Both guards sighed and their horns activated, levitating me into the air, dropping me onto the guard's back.

My arms and legs sagged while my expression was droll; I was starting to feel extremely exhausted. Rather than carry me the whole way, the guard dumped me off his back at the top of the stairs and I was once again led like a dog. The hallways were a huge contrast to the cells; moss-covered stone in favour of checkered marble tiles with the traditional Canterlot Castle vibe. Walking down the hallway, we passed by several other guards, each glaring at me as we walked by.

No more stairs came, luckily, and I was led out of the castle. Outside, somehow, there was no press. Just a row of guards, a trailer with a cage on it, my friends as well as the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Celestia and Luna stood there as well, although I didn't consider the former my friend. Luna just seemed worried and concerned while Celestia still had that near-crying look on her face. Twilight and Rarity as well as the rest of them all had dried tears on their cheeks. At the sight of me as well as my restlessness and the 'care' the guards had of me, tears had started up again... although from the looks of it, Twilight and Rarity had lost the ability. Their eyes were bloodshot and Rarity's mane was frazzled to a point where just a week ago, Rarity would have exploded at the sight.

Several guards approached me, their horns lighting up as the devices on my body were lifted off. I had no energy left so there was no point in holding me still as immediately I started stumbling around, feeling drool drizzle down my cheek. I almost felt myself going unconscious yet that didn't stop the guards from slapping on two pairs of actual shackles and smacking me as a wake up call.

“DON'T!” Twilight shouted from afar, taking a defensive step forward.

The guards and I looked astonished but it soon faded. Rather than challenge the Element of Magic, they chose to heed her word and levitated me carefully into the cage. Several Pegasi were pulling the carriage and flapped their wings in preparation. I was still rather dizzy from the spell cast by the devices as well as the slap so I groggily looked up at my so called friends. Luna approached from behind and leaned her head towards the cage.

“Spike,” she whispered.

I turned my head, a big glob of drool running down my chin and onto my chest. Her horn lit up and the drool vanished as well as rejuvenated my energy. I no longer felt exhausted but I was still considerably drained.

“What,” I said flatly.

“I want you to know that I believe you,” Luna whispered, never taking her eyes off me.

They gleamed like a child stating his hopes and dreams; full of sincerity and truth. Luna firmly believed I was innocent and that considerably lightened my mood. It soon diminished, a scowl coming upon my face.

“So why won't you help me?” I asked.

“If I were to do it, it would be even worse if Celestia were to do it instead. I must apologize, but I will ensure that your dreams will be pleasant, and I will do my best to assist your friends with dreams; they will be of nothing but precious memories for the both of you to remind you where home is. Stay strong, for they cannot.” With that, Luna backed off without waiting for a response from me. She turned her head and cantered back towards Celestia. She paused next to her as if to speak, instead taking off into the skies and vanishing into a castle tower.

I was perplexed as that somehow made my anger vanish. It was like hypnotism to them as dreams look real to those inside of them. Pleasant memories would be nothing but hypnotic towards my lovely side... and my dreams will be good while in prison. I'll have something to look forward to each day; sleep.

The guards pulling the carriage neighed, flapping their wings as they started running down a small runway. They took off into the skies and the wind rushed through the bars of the cage. Turning my head, I watched the Ponies I came to love shrink into ant-like sizes before vanishing entirely through the clouds.

It was like watching a valued item from boyhood be destroyed in front of you with the exception that you depended on it to have your way of life. My life in Ponyville, with Rarity and Twilight and the misadventures in friendship, turned into a memory. My life was truly different now and I did my best to stop the tears. They came anyway, only because the wind rushing into my face brought them out. I turned way back in the direction we came from, only to stop the wind from extracting my tears.

After an hour or so, I decided to try facing forward. I saw between the two Pegasi as the carriage descended. Ahead, a giant ship was visible in the distance at a harbour. It was metal and bore the Equestrian flag on top and several Earth Ponies seemed to be the operators. We landed, and from there on, I was shipped off to Castle Bahamut.

“Goodbye, mother,” I whispered as I left Equestria.

[*][*][*]

“No apology is needed, Shining Armour. He was already dead,” I responded as the violet sparkles spread out. The entire island felt warm, not because of the sun. A traditional warmth one felt in their chest upon hugging a loved one. “You didn't know better, anyways.”

“It is my fault that you're here. I pressed so hard to have you convicted because I was led to believe that you killed my soldiers. At first, I thought you were sticking your neck out for the inmates because you grew attached, since they're Dragons, but you could have killed me then, or anytime, or right now.” Shining Armour closed his eyes and took a big whiff of the air, the warmth reaching him as well. “But I don't know if my word is able to help you, if you're still going to be kept here at all.”

I pointed towards a part of the courtyard without facing it. “You shielded the dead. There is a Dragon that looks like me in every way over there as well as the testimony of other inmates that revealed the Warden was scheming to have me incarcerated.”

Stepping over as silence was still dominant, Shining Armour passed by speechless inmates that looked at the skies with wonder, temporarily forgetting where they were, why they were there or even their pains; it was freedom. Shining Armour levitated some crashed rubble away from a small area where he revealed a bisected, purple-scaled green-spined Dragon that was indeed a match for me.

Haruo's bewilderment to this phenomenon was short-lived as he made his way through the crowd of survivors in my direction. He stopped next to me, panting as he fought to catch his breath. I was completely calm at the moment and glanced to him nonchalantly.

“Well, I guess your Pony life totally saved you in the world of Dragon's,” he said, chuckling. “Oh, I also figured I should tell you I've tried to abduct you numerous times. Yeah.”

That certainly rustled my emotions. I gave him my full attention as well as a backhand with a closed fist. His head spun to the side from the impact and he turned to face me, spitting out some blood.

“Just bit my cheek,” he said with annoyance.

“'Just bit my cheek,' HAH!” I pointed an accusing finger at him. “DID I TRY TO ABDUCT YOU FOR WEEKS?”

“No, but you did crush my eye. Thanks for that,” he said with a dull smile, shrugging his shoulders once more.

“Well, I just, what?”

He shook his head and folded his arms, tilting his head back and stared at the skies full of sparkling magic.

“I was a mole. I was to scan the prison for any signs of disloyalty to the Dragon King as well as to make sure it's clean. Warden gave me special privileges as I offered to help him with his plan so I could get close. I also knew that to give you to him right away wasn't a good idea, hence why I kept having you put into situations where you were thrown into solitary.” He punched his chest twice and glanced at me, smirking. He patted my shoulder and grinned at me. “See? I saved you!”

“What if the Warden sapped me dry?” I asked dully, squinting my eyes towards him.

He had no response, his lips twitching before his smile grew wide, eyes closing as he gave me several hard slaps on my shoulder. “Hah, w-well, you're alright now. No foul.”

“I also could have drowned in lava,” I responded, slapping his hand off my shoulder.

“So, how about that freed... oh,” he paused, looking back towards what was left of the tree where I placed Gelid down.

I walked over there with a brisk stride, no anger or sadness. I glanced down at the cyan drake, a smile plastered onto her face. She looked like she was asleep, like any moment Gelid could open her eyes and shout “Fooled you!” Happiness spread throughout my body and my mouth curved into a small smile.

“I hope you found your happiness,” I said.

I knelt down next to her and slid my arms under her; one behind her kneecaps and the other behind her shoulders. Grunting, I struggled as I lifted her up, physical exhaustion seemingly returning that instant. Haruo stepped up behind me as if to take over the job. Shaking my head, he stepped back and I lifted Gelid up.

Gritting my teeth, I turned around and stepped across the path in front of where the gates used to be and onto the grass on the other side. It was far more lush than the ashes where I left Gelid and the fire lilies were abundant. Shining Armour and Haruo followed me, obviously having nothing else to do. Out of the corner of my eye, I could spot several Equestrian ships heading towards what was left of the docks. Shining Armour, rather than going to the docks, walked with me, both of them seemingly knowing what I was doing.

In the centre of the field, there was nothing but peace. Even the bodies were retrieved already and I felt no better place for it to occur. I gently set her down in the lilies, seemingly glowing, resonating with Twilight's leftover magic. Right away, I began tearing up the grass and flowers in a small area and using a technique I crafted for Rarity, I made sure my tail was stiff and I twisted my body around to use it as a shovel. I dug up dirt with it for a while before I felt tired and resorted to clawing at it with my bare hands. After ten minutes, a hole was just the perfect size and depth for a body.

. . .

Doing the deed was a blur in my mind; a bad memory and a horrible experience for someone at a young age to experience. Fortunately, I was no longer young. I look like it, but the circumstances as well as the experiences I had in the past month have erased any semblance of a young child.

“Spike, if there is ever anything I could—” Shining Armour started.

“Quiet. It's disrespectful,” Spike said.

He stepped back and bowed his head once more. In front of us, the hole was filled and Gelid's body was buried. All around us, the rest of the inmates were doing the same for the deceased to the point where even the new arrivals by ship had started to assist with it, seeing the fight was clearly over. None of the guards and armed forces, Gryphon, Pony or Dragon, had bothered to keep a check on the inmates; there was no need. None were going to show disrespect to the dead.

“I remember reading an old story about Gryphon's in olden days. Wars were fought, the children acting as the front lines. There was an old rhyme too, but I forget that... but Twilight taught me the story. About being thankful for what we have because not every society is as prosperous as Equestria. Some were so horrid that children barely breaking babyhood had to bury their lost parents. I always figured it was far off since Celestia painted the world as some sort of paradise under her rule.” Sighing, I squatted in front of the makeshift grave. “I knew it was wrong, but I guess part of me wanted to keep believing in such a myth. That there weren't such horrors in the world.”

Crying. Many were crying and I accepted it, but a voice cried out, gasping for air that I recognized. I turned my head and looked at Shining Armour, seeing the strong Stallion practically crumbling apart. His knees were shaking and his face was stained with tears as he struggled to hold in his breath, letting out yelps in order to act powerful in front of the others.

“I hate this. I'm sorry, Spike. I'm just... goddammit, I've screwed up before. Ruined mom's china during the Pancake Festival, flooded Ms. Hayfield's hayfield, but nothing like this. I sent an innocent baby Dragon to prison because I just wanted someone to bring to justice. I'm not smart like Twily, but no one is like this,” he said, stumbling to the ground like a punished child.

“Get up, you look ridiculous on the ground,” I said, turning back to the grave.

I didn't watch but I could hear him forcing a stop to his tears and standing up amongst the fire lilies. He didn't respond immediately yet he spent time thinking about his next words.

Haruo cleared his throat, drawing our attention. “I don't know much about Ponies, but the one thing well-known amongst the planet is that they love. A lot. So much that the Changelings attempted to invade  it to feast on their love. If someone such as this soldier can imprison you and feel so bad, I'd most likely laugh,” he said, chuckling even though he got a glare from both Shining Armour and I. “Er, but the thing is, this guy is a trained soldier and even though he knows you, you can only imagine what your friends back home feel. Your life has made you a gentle spirit, Spike, so don't let this get to you. It may not be the same, but home is still home.”

“You have a loving mother, and friends, and maybe even a potential wife in the future. The first Dragon in history to have such an amazing influence from Equestria and as evidence from your time here, a strong spirit. I would have broken down, knowing my loved ones cast me out to die,” Shining Armour stated.

“But I'm not you,” I stated.

A small silence. “You're better,” he whispered.

“I'm not, don't be naive. I just prefer waiting for the truth to be laid out in front of me.”

. . .

The docks were shattered yet we still boarded ships from the “harbour,” or what's left of it. Haruo stood behind me and looked over what was left of the docks as a large Dragon in what looked like a Royal Guard uniform landed. On his back appeared to be something akin to a pony bus, and my hunch was correct as many of the smaller dragons climbed onto his back. Each of the inmates were returning to their home nations since they clearly couldn't stay on the island. Perhaps they would be cleared after the chaos that occurred here or maybe they'd be placed into a normal prison. I was told that I was going to have another trial, with Shining Armour fighting for my freedom.

“So, since I'm not a criminal, I return to the Dragon's homeland of Zenebatos to write possibly the longest report ever since I have to detail each and every death here as well as the events I did each hour since I was placed in here... four years ago,” Haruo said, looking dejected as he squatted, hanging his head.

“You have a family, right?” I asked as I waited for the Equestrian ship to deploy guards to subdue their one dragon.

His eyes lit up as he stood up once more, full of energy. “Oh yeah! Forgot about them! I was ordered to try to kill them all to get thrown into prison as a sort of cover story. I was told that my parents would be briefed on why I attempted to axe their hearts out in the middle of the night, but, well, I'll see what happens when I return, ya know?” he said, patting me on the back.

“Heh, right. If not—” I paused. His expression shifted to that of curiosity as he awaited me to speak. “Ever feel a sense of finality from goodbye? Like, saying it is the very absolute last chance you get to say it since you'll never see them again? I hate that. My roomie at the Golden Oaks Library said goodbye and it hurt, probably because she thought she'd never see me again, so y'know what?” I extended my arm towards Haruo. He smiled and grasped it tightly and we shook. “I'll see you later.”

“Righty-o, then.” He spun around and took one step; just as I started to turn around, he coughed. “Oh, there is one thing,” he said. I turned to face him but he didn't do the same. “Someone says hi.” And with that, Haruo took off in a jog towards the large Dragon that landed, shouting 'wait' at them as it flapped its wings.

I stood there, perplexed with the ample time to think. I never took advantage of it, though; letting the guards come down and shackle me. None of them were rough, though; Shining Armour had said that I was innocent and I even got a few apologies. No response to any of them, I just sat there and allowed them to lead me aboard the ship. No cage, only shackles merely because I had to arrive in Equestria in shackles as per the law. Shining Armour instead let me go where I want on the ship as long as I listened to the guard's requests. Nodding, I walked towards the back of the ship and waited. Half an hour later, our ship departed from the prison and I sat next to the flagpole waving Equestria's grand flag. The prison had a purple glow as the violet sparkles never seemed to vanish from its atmosphere and a bit of sadness entered my mind. I could hear Shining Armour walking from behind and he stood next to me.

“It looks beautiful, even though that's where the others died,” I spoke in a low tone not quite a whisper.

I etched the remains of Castle Bahamut into my mind, creating a juxtaposition of the castle before and after my arrival. Somehow, the destroyed remains looked far better. All around, you could spot the large flagships of each nation as well as the large dragon departing, a sense of unity lingering in my mind; even throughout the wars, we could still band together for things... peace, serenity, prison, it was all quite the same in the end. We only ever wanted to stay alive in a world where death could happen each day, and when it does happen, someone always tries to find someone to blame. We all want someone to take the blunt of it so we could feel better, or sleep at night or feel like justice has been served. It's not perfect, but hopefully Equestria's Law System will take into consideration this case in the future.

My home awaited me in Equestria and I pondered what I'd do first: go to Pony Joe's shop in Canterlot; bitch at Princess Celestia; reconcile things with my friends, and my mother, and my lover; or maybe I'd go see a movie, or get some hay fries, or just enjoy life with the ones I love until it's my time to leave. Maybe explore my origins, maybe explore magic, maybe see if I still have magic and if I do, maybe train.

Maybe I'll settle down at home and have fun. Maybe settle down with Rarity. Maybe... yeah, that sounds good.

Maybe.

-4- Once More With Guilt

“This one hasn't even been here a week and he has already found himself on his second solitary sentence.”

“You're kidding me. What for?”

“Attacking the Warden and trying to escape.”

“Attacking the Warden? Jeez, man... either he's stupid or he has serious balls.”

Chapter 4: Once More With Guilt

“All rise for the majestic ferry of the sun, Princess Celestia.”

And so, all ponies present stood up. The courthouse was called La Luna, built to commemorate Princess Luna's return. It replaced the original grand courthouse and served for the trials that affected the nation. The likes of Chrysalis would wind up here, yet here I am, acting as the defendant. Behind me were over thirty ponies that I knew including the girls and several others from Ponyville. Several others were ponies affected by the murders and the rest, I really couldn't tell. I never bothered learning the ways of law, but regardless, I gulped and stood up with the rest of them.

Princess Celestia majestically stood at the helm of the courtroom, prepared to carry out the trial. The rest of the ponies next to her were faceless as far as I was concerned. I only had to speak when spoken to, answer a few questions, and it would be over.

“Be seated,” Celestia responded.

And then we were seated save for one well-dressed mare. Regardless of my resolve, I found my eyes refusing to focus on Celestia. Luna was staring at me and for a moment, our eyes locked. She didn't seem like Celestia. She wasn't solemn, nor was she confused. She had an almost guilty look on her face and I never knew why.

“The case of Spike the Dragon versus the Royal Crown of Equestria,” the female clerk read out.

Celestia nodded. “Are all parties present?”

A familiar stallion on the other side of the room stood up. Twilight's brother, Shining Armour, was with the crown. Gulping, I watched.

“Yes, your majesty. I am Prince Shining Armour, Captain of the Royal Guard and I will be testifying for the Royal Crown of Equestria,” he said in a rehearsed manner.

He sat down and I looked over to my so-called lawyer; a short, scrawny stallion with large glasses and thick lens almost hidden behind a combed black mane that shadowed his azure face. He stood up and spoke in a very squeaky voice.

“Yes, your majesty. I am Tether Hitch, acting on behalf of the accused, Spike the Dragon.” He promptly sat down.

“Thank you. Spike the Dragon, please rise to hear the charge,” Celestia said in an almost monotonic voice.

Nodding, I did so and felt a hundred eyes locking onto me. The clerk cleared her throat as she levitated a scroll. A blonde mane was done in an up-do as to not bother her waistcoat. Her average peach-coloured face glanced up at me once before opening the scroll.

“On the night of 23rd of November, 1003 ANMR, the charges directed at the accused consist of five counts of first degree murder, two counts of attempted murder against a royal figure, two counts of murder against a peace officer, 89 counts of attempted murder against a peace officer, five counts of arson, fifty counts of assault, and one count of resisting arrest,” the clerk read out from a scroll.

I stared in horror at the list, shaking my head slowly. She looked up from the scroll and glared up at me. My gaping mouth closed and my lip stuttered. Murmurs in the courtroom occurred and I looked around nervously before facing ahead.

“How does the defendant plead?”

“Not gu—” I stopped as my voice cracked. Clearly I was in a cold sweat and I quickly swallowed, removing that lump in my throat before trying again. “Not guilty.”

“Thank you, Spike,” Celestia spoke as she made a motion with her hoof.

I sat down in the chair and felt the weight of the situation resting upon my shoulders. My arms sagged and I sighed. Glancing to the right, the jury shifted uncomfortably as Celestia glanced over.

“Ladies and gentlecolts of the jury, please be reminded that while you are the judges of the evidence, I am the judge of the law. I may comment on the evidence provided and should I see it fit, my royal authority shall overrule if I were to deem your judgement unfit which will be followed by a reassessment.” She finished and glanced over at me.

“Without a doubt, you must prove he is guilty. Only then shall a sentence be carried out. The accused, Spike the Dragon, must be proven as the murderer, at the location of the crime, and the only one who could be proven as the murderer.” She glanced over at Shining Armour and he nodded his head. “I now call upon the crown to present their case.”

Standing up, Shining Armour cleared his throat. “Your majesty, I intend to prove that Spike the Dragon truthfully committed these atrocious crimes intentionally and knowingly. To start, I would like to call upon the mare who saw him last; the Element of Generosity, Rarity.”

Quickly, Rarity stood up from her spot in the courtroom and made her way to the stand, sitting down on the stool. From my view, I watched a confused, scared Rarity look up to Celestia for guidance and the two shared a small, solemn locking of eyes before Rarity faced ahead. The clerk approached Rarity and cleared her throat.

“Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help Mother Gaia?” she asked.

Rarity gulped and nodded her head frantically. “Yes.”

The clerk responded with a nod and stayed fixiated on Rarity. “State your name and address.”

“Rarity, and I live at the Carousal Boutique in Ponyville,” Rarity responded, her voice seemingly on the verge of cracking.

Shining Armour stepped forward as the clerk stepped back. “First off, has Spike displayed any unusual behaviour? Maybe he came to your home one night in a cold sweat, acting shifty?”

“No, he has done no such thing. He acted the same as he always does,” Rarity responded, her voice teetering on breaking the more she spoke.

He paused, allowing her to collect herself. “Could you pinpoint where Spike was, last night?”

I stared at her intently before realizing that I was thoroughly screwed.

“No.”

The entire courtroom began to chatter, including the girls behind me. I never once heard Twilight's voice. Even Shining Armour seemed confused.

“No? But he was at your boutique the next morning, correct?” he asked.

“Yes. Earlier that day, he had left. He didn't say what, but he left and said he would return later. I fell asleep before he did and I woke up next to him the next morning,” she responded, her voice finding itself.

“What time did Spike leave?”

She seemed lost in thought, poking her chin. “I'd say around seven, maybe eight in the evening.”

Shining allowed the silence to hang in the air. “The first murder in the nearby town of Dodge Junction which was the location of the Wonderbolt, Fleetfoot's, murder, took place at nine in the evening. By foot, that is enough time to make it there should he run, do the deed, and be on his way. By train, that allows him the time to make it to the location of the next murder which took place merely an hour later in Manehatten.”

Once more, the courtroom was silent excluding the clicking of a typewriter. Rarity looked right at me and our eyes locked. Her eyes watered and that was it. She let out several coughs before silently crying.

I don't know if Rarity was crying for me or herself.

[*][*][*]

Once more, the doors of solitary opened and I rubbed my eyes. There was no bed in the room and only a place to use the bathroom. My whole body was aching and I did not like the sound of more solitary. Looking at the one who opened the door, I spotted a massive Pegasus Guard standing there. He was much larger than Big Macintosh or Shining Armour, and it was rather intimidating. I looked up and wondered why a stallion would be in a dragon prison, but it was short-lived. He reached in with a wing and lifted me up. Effortlessly, he bit onto my tail and lifted himself into the air. I didn't feel any pain, so I never complained. Quickly, he lifted me up the shaft and dropped me at the top. A dragon guard saluted the Pegasus and picked me up. The same process as the other night seemed to be repeating, but it was mid-day. Instead of escorting me back to my room, he dropped me off in the courtyard. I would have held my arm up to shield the sun had the clouds not blocked it.

The courtyard seemed to grow quieter when I entered and I felt several eyes locking onto me. Once more, I walked towards the area I spotted Gelid at the other day. She wasn't there, but instead a rather large dragon with his back turned. He looked to be about ten feet taller than me and he glanced over his shoulder at me. Turning around, he looked down at me and I felt like I was going to be squished on the spot.

“You'll be one tough musha when you mature,” he said, patting me on the shoulder with one of his large claws.

I stared up confused for a second before two other dragons slightly taller than myself came over towards me. Instead of an expected beating, they shoulder-checked me and held me in a pretend choke hold.

I didn't think the dragon's were this buddy-buddy, I thought.

This happened with several other dragons, each commending me. I never knew why, but I was certain it had to do with my solitary confinement. One dragon approached me with a malicious look in his eyes, but having just learned, he wasn't going to hit me but rather, he extended his hand out. Surprised for a second, I reached up and shook his. His grip was firm and strong, a clear contrast to my own.

“You're the popular drake for the next week, Spike,” he said with a toothy grin.

“Huh? I didn't know getting my ass kicked and thrown into solitary counted as a popularity ticket,” I said.

He snorted as he pulled his hand back. He began walking, motioning me to follow. Looking up, he was a crimson-scaled dragon with orange spines with a slightly muscular figure.

“It's not that. No drake in the past 20 years has tried to attack the Warden, and you did it right off the bat,” he said.

Shaking my head, I groaned and slapped myself in the face. “I never attacked him, I just had to talk to him.”

“Not just that, you're also the first one to walk right up to the Warden without hestitation. That alone would get you some serious cred in here, but there's that crap that went down last week,” he said, glancing upward at the roof.

“What, my failed escape attempt?” I said drolly.

“Exactly! You're dead-set on escaping to the point where you don't seem to have fear. That's respectable in the world of dragons.” He took a deep sniff of the air and exhaled deeply. He didn't seem scared at all, freely wandering the grounds. “My name is Haruo, and I'm not afraid at all.”

Sighing, I hung my head. “I figured. So, does this make you the big boss of the yard?”

He glanced at me, chuckling before letting out a quick, loud laugh. “No, no, but I have the respect of many. The Warden has the most respect since he merely instigates fear by waltzing the grounds. The other dragon's first impression of you is a fearless badass, but that's only temporary. That could change over the course of your stay.” He turned his whole body to me and his eyes turned sharp. “And you do not. Want that. The last thing you want is to have dragon's lose respect. That is what leads to getting your ass kicked and murdered.”

“Wow. Thanks. That's reassuring,” I replied sarcastically. “Now is there a point to talking to me?”

“See? Look at that. Fearlessly demanding a point out of a dragon that obviously knows his stuff.” He pet me on the head to which I responded by swatting his claw away. He chuckled and I started to walk away. “My point is that some dragons have their eyes on you. One is dead set on getting you.”

Glancing back at him, he had already turned away and started walking throughout the prison, head held high. Shaking my head, I sighed while allowing his words to mingle with my thoughts. Turning away, I ran right into another familiar drake.

“'sup, Pony?” Gelid said with a somewhat gung-ho accent.

“Oh, hi,” I replied flatly. “What's up?”

She looked around as if to check before shrugging. “Just wanted to talk a bit. Learn more about my bullet shield.”

Raising an eyebrow, I looked up at her quizzingly as we walked towards a bench. “Bullet?”

“Oh, right, you aren't from the dragon lands.” She sat down on a stone bench under the overhang. Sitting next to her, we stared out over the courtyard. “Guards in the homeland stay behind during the Great Dragon Migration, to defend the homelands should another tribe of dragons attack. Brute, rash natures call for weapons and improvisations, so they developed a dragon-exclusive weapon. It's kind of like a catapult, except it's hand-held, launches ammo in a straight line, and the ammo is magic jewels that explode upon being embedded into flesh.”

The very thought of my stomach exploding into mush almost made me vomit, but for the sake of the conversation I held it back, swallowing that lump in my throat.

“Anyways, what I wanted to talk about...” She rubbed her chin and I waited. She coughed and sighed. “Right. I'm genuinely curious about your past life. I mean, living among many potential snacks and not giving into your carnivorous side takes serious restraint.”

Thinking about it, it would be for normal dragons. We're a bunch of meat lovers and ponies are just walking meals for me. I'd never think about eating a pony, but it was definitely an interesting question to someone like her. Looking up to her, all of her attention was on me. Genuine curiosity from a potential murderer. Lovely.

“Wait, I thought we talked about our pasts,” I said, remembering our second conversation.

“Right, that we did. But, I want to know about you. Each dragon learns a special type of breath, so what's yours?”

“Well, I mentioned I was a Royal Messenger, right?” I asked.

“Maybe, I don't remember.”

“Well, I am. My fire breath can teleport various things, mostly scrolls and letters directly to Princess Celestia. It can cause burns, but nothing painful or seemingly fatal,” I said, going through the motions of sending a scroll to add to the memory.

“Huh, that's kinda neat. My breath isn't fire, exactly. It's ice,” she said, puffing out her chest quickly in satisfaction.

“Ice? Darn, that's a nice thing to have.” I smirked, leaning back. “Doesn't that affect a cold-blooded creature, though?”

She shook her head. “Heh, nope. I can ingest the hottest and coldest elements. I can freeze other creatures and even dragons. I once killed a dragon by encasing it in ice. He couldn't melt it with his own heat.”

Shoot, I was right! I scurried away from her. “Jeez, you really are a murderer!”

She let out several loud laughs and punched me in the shoulder. I let out a quick “ow” and rubbed my shoulder. “No, no, I was even younger than you were. It was when I was first able to use my breath and I accidentally ended one of my elder siblings, and in my particular tribe, you're only prosecuted if you kill a weaker dragon. Killing an elder is considered a sign of strength. It's messed, but that's how my tribe worked.”

Pondering the thought, I realized that would have been lovely in my case. Then again, the one who framed me obviously knew what he was doing so of course I'd have been prosecuted.”

“Was your one friend in your tribe?” I asked.

Gelid stopped laughing and her smile slowly faded. She took on a more solemn face and shook her head. “Nope. I was forbidden from seeing him when I was younger until our families entered the Great Dragon Migration. We were allowed to mingle and eventually, our tribes formed a pact with each other. I was free to beat him into submission whenever he got ahead of himself.”

“I can't imagine having another dragon as a friend. I've only met dragons that turned out to be bad guys in the end. Even here, I'm unsure of what you intend to do.” Our last conversation struck me. Looking up to her, I pondered my words carefully. “Before, you said you had a purpose for being here. What was it?”

She clucked her tongue and whistled. Wordlessly, she transmitted the message that the story was long and I sighed, prepared to get told to mind my own business.

“What would you do for a friend?” she asked.

Well, at least it was something. Clearing my throat, I considered my answer. Memories of Twilight and the rest of the gang entered my mind. The friendly faces of Ponyville were still fresh in my mind, even if my last moment of peace was a month ago. “Anything.”

“Anything, huh.” She adjusted her bandanna and retied the knot at the back. Positioning it over her mouth, she coughed once. “I really would kill another living creature for a friend. Not as a favour, but to protect them.”

I shook my head and remembered the list of charges. “No. Murder is always wrong.”

A hard smack to my shoulder slapped me out of it. It wasn't out of malice according to the smile Gelid wore. Rubbing my shoulder, I frowned before waiting.

“Well duh. Even if it's wrong, I'd still do it. But what if it's too late to do it?” She hung her head.

My eyes followed her as she walked over and kicked a rock. No one noticed us, and that was fine with me. Catharsis is only achieved when I'm alone... or at least with someone I know in this place. The question poked at my conscience, wrecking what little reverie I could achieve.

“What do you mean too late? You were fully willing, so...?” The many implications left hanging let my mind run while.

“My friend was killed because I hesitated,” she said quietly.

It was barely audible due to the wind and chatter of the courtyard, but the weight of the sentence transmitted perfectly. The thought of losing a friend due to one's own failure to act would leave only one action...

“So, vengeance?”

She looked up and nodded her head. “My friend was killed for the very conspiracy that landed you in here.” She turned herself and walked towards me, sitting down on the bench. “They want magic.”

“They have magic, right?”

“Unicorn magic is needed.”

Looking down, I twiddled my thumbs in ambling motions as my lips sputtered trying to find words. Glancing up at the courtyard, the guards broke up a small scuffle and sent each prisoner in different directions. Above, the sun attempted to peak through the clouds, staying hidden due to the Weather Ponies.

“And us as dragons have that?” I asked.

She nodded. “Unicorn horns have a crystogen jewel in them as their core; crystogen jewels allow the generation and build up of magic while the horn is merely the conductor. Dragon's regard crystogen jewels as rare, so it's nearly impossible to get them. However, dragons that have interacted with ponies, specifically Unicorns, get raw magic left in their scales and muscles. Get enough in a container, and you can cast a spell, just like a Unicorn. Difference is that this time, they completely sap the magic out of the container.”

“Wait,” I said, giving her my full attention. “What does this have to do with your friend? Wouldn't he be unharmed?”

Shaking her head, she wiped her eyes with the bandanna. “No. When the magic was extracted, it had pulled out the draconic magic that our species needs to live. They needed as much magic as possible, and of course they take it all. The container merely dies as a result of the extraction.”

Putting two and two together, I felt a bout of sadness overtake my thoughts and I whispered bitterly, “I'm sorry.”

“It's fine... but that's why I'm here. I'm here to take revenge.” Silence, shortly followed up. Remember that conspiracy?” she asked.

“Yeah?”

“The Warden heads it. He killed my friend to open some Genie's Lamp or whatnot. And even worse—” Her voice cracked, which stuck out. Barely audible in a cracked whisper, “My friend was the Warden's son.”

Son.

Briefly, Twilight's warm smile flashed in my mind; a plate of burnt pancakes being handed to me, a sheepish grin as she wiped pancake mix off her face. Memories of home. Memories of my mother.

A father who'd kill his own son for some wishing contraption? Are you serious?

Tears pricked my eyes as the many thoughts passed through. A father killing his own son out of greed, a mother abandoning her draconic son, and the knowledge that you're just going to be another victim. It made me sick, and I almost vomited there. It truly isn't a world of sunshine and rainbows I lived in. It was hard, and never would I experience the bliss of Celestia's utopia in the same light again. I was in the real world.

“That's sick. How could he do that? Are dragons really that horrible?” I asked. “Am I going to be like him?”

“What? No, of course not. You're never destined to be evil. It depends on how you're raised,” Gelid corrected. She rubbed her hands together and sighed.

“Yeah, right.” The conspiracy pricked at my mind and I looked up to Gelid. “So, do you plan on stopping the conspiracy?”

She shook her head. “Hell no. I don't give a damn about the conspiracy or whatever plot the Warden has in his cauldron. I just want him dead.”

Sadness, followed by regret; very few things could be defined in my mind at that moment but whatever was wound up not being worth it. Gelid glanced over at me and bit her lip before opening her mouth.

“What about you? Are you going to nab the one that supposedly framed you?” she asked.

My turn to shake my head. I wasn't a vengeful person so I never considered it. “I just want to go home and reconcile things with my family, if they'll even hear me out. I'll get out not within 200 years. I'm getting out within the next year.” I stood up and brushed myself off. Passion came out of my voice and I snorted. “If I have my way, I'll get out within the next day.” I walked into the courtyard.

“What are you doing, Spike?” Gelid shouted out, not following me.

“Letting the populace fight their own battle,” I shouted before running into the prison.

Inside, I took a turn rather than head back to the cells. Quickly, I entered the lunch room where a hundred voices mingled in rowdy chatter. Several eyes turned to me and followed me as I approached them.

“You. What are you doing?” I demanded from a dragon twice my size.

“Huh? Th' hell do you want?” he asked, leaning over to me, staring me down.

I stood my ground, unphased by his approach. “You want that seal off your body? You wanna get out?”

He stared at me in silence before snorting, stiffling a chuckle. “What, you know something that I don't?”

“A lot of things, bud, but this one is actually worth your time,” I responded, crossing my arms.

This caught the attention of the other dragons at the table as well as surrounding tables. None of the guards paid any mind to the situation I was starting.

“The Warden's seal is the one that's on us. If we take him out, his seal stops functioning. His two lackeys, the captains, are just the antennae while the Warden is the one sending out the signal.” I glanced around to the other dragons. The one that was just in my face lost his malice and was starting to chat with others at the table. “And don't ask how I know. It's common knowledge of sealing spells; take out the caster, the spell falters.”

“Yeah, but what about the Warden? He's a damn battle god,” another dragon shouted.

Snorting, I smirked and shook my head in mock gusto. “He is one dragon. If all of us take him on at once, he can't fend us all off. He'll need help, and if we take out the Warden, no more seal. The number of dragons in the prison outnumber the guards. I mean, what's wrong with you?” I stood up on a table and all eyes in the lunch room were on me. “We're dragons, not kittens. I thought we were fearsome beasts, not scared of one drake and his cronies.”

Several shouts of yeah emitted from the lunch room. This was it. I just had to motivate them more.

“Are we baby cats?” I shouted.

More enthusiastic “No's” followed.

“Or are we dragon's!?”

“YEAH!”

Simultaneously, all of the dragon's erupted into cheer and the guards looked at each other nervously. Smirking, I glanced at the ones watching the lunch room just as several of the dragons rushed the guards. Quickly, my motivation plundered as I realized just what I was saying. I was encouraging several dragons to kill the Warden.

Good job, Spike. Then again, the Warden... he deserves this, right?

I hopped off the table just as the rest of the inmates poured into the halls. One by one, they exited into the courtyard in a mad frenzy, myself mixed in with the bunch. Luckily enough, the Warden was in the courtyard upon our storming and was quickly surrounded. He was clearly outnumbered, several hundred to one. I gulped, feeling a cold sweat start to break in as I anticipated the next few moments. The Warden sighed and waved his hand, stopping several guards in the air from landing.

“Please, don't. Return to your lunches,” Lockdown stated in a calm manner.

“KILL HIM!” several shouted.

Many inmates rushed him, all of them larger than the Warden. Some jumped into the air and lunged from above, others went for a straight-up rush, while others simply ran around the Warden, prepared if the first wave were to fail. They didn't have to wait long.

At a speed Rainbow would be proud of, Lockdown's tail stabbed at a dragon, impaling his gut. It wasn't a mere poke either... no, this would have penetrated him had the dragon not been four times larger. Not missing a beat, Lockdown spun around, causing his tail to slice out the side of the dragon and slashed the belly's of the others around him. Those in the air didn't stand a chance.

Reaching his arms up, his claws grabbed onto two dragon's heads and slammed them against each other with a sickening crunch.  The second wave lunged into action more ferociously than the passionate lot before them. I realized then the mistake I made in rallying the troops and felt the urge to attack myself. What stopped me was most likely the blood that seeped out of the slashed bellies of my fellow inmates. I could practically feel Gelid's disapproving glare on the back of my head.

The second wave of dragons met the same fate as the first and then the waves vanished. The entire group of dragons rushed Lockdown; clawing, snapping, trying to stomp on him, anything that would inflict injury. Lockdown... he simply killed them. There was no explanation that could fit it. Even as they realized the hopelessness and tried to run away, Lockdown chased them in a mere second and ended them. Blood coated the cobblestone and bodies littered the ground. Every attempt I made at moving away was met with a shove as others tried to run away and it came to a point where I merely closed my eyes and expected death.

Silence. Opening my eyes and removing my arms from my view, I looked around to see the carnage. Akin to a horror film, bodies and blood coated the surrounding area and feet from me was the serial killer. Except the killer was apparently allowed to do this without repercussions. He looked around at his handiwork before locking his glare on me. I froze up only to be met with a smirk. He stepped over several bodies as well as stepping on some to approach me. I didn't move since there was no point as he clearly proved. He stopped several feet in front of me and sat on the belly of a large red dragon, placing his hand on his knee for balance until he was level with my eyes.

“Look around you. Marvel at what you caused, criminal,” he spoke.

I shook my head, trying to shut out the truth to no avail. I did cause this. I caused the whole lot to attack. Several hundred dragons are dead because I rallied them... but it makes no sense. He's just one dragon.

“Marvel at your results and enjoy your stay in solitary for two weeks, fool.”

Baring my teeth, I growled and lunged forward. Lockdown hopped to his feet and brought his knee up, meeting my chin. My jaw slammed shut and my teeth clanged sending a ring throughout my skull. Without holding back, he took advantage of my stumble and brought his left claw down, slapping my left knee causing me to fall forward. I set my hands on the remains of another inmate to prevent myself from hitting the ground and the Warden couldn't have that. His foot came down on my popiteal, causing my knee to smash into the ground. Unable to let out a shout due to the suddeness of the hit, I attempted to reach down to rub my knee, that being my first instinct. Instead, Lockdown kicked my face rolling me onto my back. Forgetting my knee, I reached up and held onto my snout. Once more did the Warden not leave me be. His foot stomped on my stomach, not hard enough for permanent damage but hard enough to knock the wind out of me. My vision blurred and once more I felt myself being picked up, moved, and thrown against that hard metal wall. I promptly passed out.

[*][*][*]

“Son of a bitch, this isn't good,” Lockdown said as he paced back and forth in his usual tower.

Haruo watched the Warden tentatively as he ate a blue gem. The crunching along with the wind bugged Lockdown but he never showed it.

“Don't worry, this is all according to plan,” Haruo responded.

Lockdown spun around and stomped over to Haruo. Swiftly, he backhanded the jewel away from his grasp and Haruo watched the glow of the blue jewel disappear over the tower and he looked at the Warden, pouting.

“I wasn't done that,” Haruo said, feigning sadness.

“Do I give a good goddamn, boy? What does throwing him in solitary accomplish?” Lockdown shouted.

“I said trust me. This will work. If Spike keeps this up, he'll be down there in no time,” Haruo said, leaning back in the chair.

“He's safe in solitary. I can't get him from there, those blasted Pegasi are placed there on Celestia's request and for what reason I'll never know. Regardless, the whelp isn't leaving solitary until his term is up.”

Haruo shook his hands in the air and the Warden seemed to calm down. Leaning his arm against the chair's back, Haruo smirked. “One of these times, someone will come for you, and it'll be more than just Spike. There's one other dragon that wants you dead and gone, and not because she's an inmate. Spike will cause the granddaddy of all riots and hell will break loose. The chaos will be enough for even you to just simply walk out and grab him.”

“How can I trust you when you've done nothing but fail?” Lockdown replied quietly.

“As opposed to your successes?” Haruo responded.

Lockdown stood up, staring at Haruo with a deadpan stare. He clicked his tongue and shook his head, planting his hands on his hips. Smirking, Haruo let out a chuckle and Lockdown stepped over to the staircase. He stepped onto the top step and glanced over at Haruo. Opening his mouth, he sighed coarsely and shook his head before walking downstairs.