The desert was got. Even by dragon standards, it got me a little bothered and the more I went on, the more I felt dumb. My destination was far off, but I'm the one that decided to take the San Palomino Desert. My other alternative would be taking the train and have the others know where I went or where I'll end up... or pass through the Badlands, which may be worse than the desert. Several days after I left Ponyville, I've gotten through most of the desert and gotten 'round Macintosh Hills. Up ahead, about a few miles, was the train tracks leading south. If my watch was correct, I had several hours to go before the train went by; I had to memorize the schedules when I was younger, which finally came in handy.
I trudged onward, my scales and eyes untouched by the sands due to the gear I wore. The wind wasn't cooling at all but at least it blew in the direction I was headed. Eventually, the hazy train tracks came into focus and they were on raised wooden blocks. Large blocks; the train was several feet off the ground and one could only guess the blocks were deep underground. As if on cue, I heard the train in the distance and I looked over. It was a tiny dot and I felt a thousand pounds lift off my shoulders. I hopped up and dragged myself onto one of the tracks, feeling the vibration much more than one would on regular tracks. Balancing on the beam, I jumped up several times and waved my arms. The train's horn blared as they must have seen me and I could hear a screeching as the brakes had started. I let out a deep breath I unknowingly held and started panting heavily. I hopped to the sand beside the tracks and waited as the train screeched to a halt. The engine had long since passed me but someone still popped out of the car closest to me; it was a passenger train and two faces showed themselves. A hairy dog and a short pony, both wearing uniforms that the Equestrian Railway provides.
"Hey you, what are you doing out in the desert!?" the dog asked while the pony stepped back, fumbling with something.
"I'm trying to cross into the next nation."
"I'm—" I made a violent cough as I couldn't say what I wanted.
I stumbled over, falling into the desert sand as I closed my eyes. I sunk in a bit and found it oddly relaxing. The six day walk through the desert took its toll on me and I had long since run out of food and water. Pretty stupid... A warmth surrounded me and I felt gravity ceasing to be for a moment. Opening my eyes, I saw the ground lower as I was pulled into the train. The shade was incredible and slowly, I felt the coat around me being removed and the instant the scarf around my mouth was moved, several droplets of water were splashed on my snout. They had forced my lips apart and dribbled water gradually in my mouth until I was able to take in more gulps.
The train must have started moving again since when I first realized what was going on, the cars were jittering and clicking as we travelled down the tracks. When I looked around, I saw they moved me as I zoned out from the exhaustion. I was in what was most likely a medical cabin and the dog was watching me. As he noticed I was able to form words, he cleared his throat. Leaning up, propping my torso with my elbows, I quickly examined myself as he started talking.
"A dragon in the desert. Where you headed?" he asked, sounding curious.
Clearing my throat as it felt raspy, I decided to take another swig of water from the canteen on the nightstand. I glanced out the window quickly, drinking a bit until I felt comfortable letting my throat relax. Turning to the pup, I let out a sigh.
"I'm trying to cross into the next nation," I responded, still feeling phlegm in my throat.
"No train? No air travel? Do you even have a passport?" he asked.
I shook my head, letting it fall back against the awful pillow. It was crunchy... most likely cheap hay.
"Why?"
Why? That was a good question. I never thought about it much at the time, yet somehow I knew my answer.
"I can't go back, not yet," I muttered.
Pursing his lips, the pup rubbed his chin in thought. "Well, I guess there's worse reasons to be fleeing to Equestria."
"Uh uh," was all I could really do. He raised an eyebrow towards me as I arched my back, getting a long needed stretch. "I'm coming from Equestria. I can't go back yet."
He didn't waste a second to respond. "So you must be the murderous dragon."
I shot up, feeling energy come from nowhere. "NO! I'm not, I was vindicated. They caught the real murderer." I paused. "Or what was left of him." Groaning, I dropped my legs over the edge of the bed and sat up, feeling a bit dizzy. "I couldn't let my family or the royals know where I went. I can't return home until I've found the answers."
"Answers?" he asked, reaching for the door. "To what?"
Shooting him a look, one that radiated the determination I felt, I sat up straight. "To myself."
He frowned for a moment before shrugging, returning to a cool expression. "Well, okay. I'm gonna go assist with the lunches and we'll snag you some leftovers. And unfortunately, since you have no ticket, we'll have to hold you in here for now. You aren't the first of your kind that we've found in the continent."
With that, he stepped out of the cabin, closing the door. He locked it for good measure, but I agreed with him. I was typically an upstanding citizen and he's right about me not having a ticket.
. . .
Time passed by and I could smell many of the lunches being served to the passengers. I was starting to get hungry but there was a distinct smell. My superior nose could pick up the obvious fruits and vegetables and hay that was served, as this is part of the Equestrian Railway Services, or ERS. I also smelled something different... and I could only recognize it as meat.
That smell was only in my nostrils once, and it was by freak accident. It was also a Griffon Soldier that was roasted at the prison. It was brief but it smelled like food, then it occurred to me; Griffons, Dragons and Dogs are omnivores. We eat both yet Dragons prefer meats. Soon, I felt my mouth watering and my hunger became apparent. As if responding to my wishes, the door swung open and the dog from before waltzed in carrying food and a proper drink.
"Here you are," he said, setting it on the nightstand. Eagerly, I ripped off the covered top and stared down at the food, feeling disappointment hit me full. "Steamed rice and vegetables with orange juice and a cookie."
I glanced up at him and pleaded with my eyes for a moment.
"Where's the meat? I could smell it, it smelled good. I've never had meat. It sickens me because it's from a living being but I can't help it where is the meat, guy!?" I asked, gesturing with my hands.
He let out a quick sigh. "The meat was all gone and even so, it kind of makes me queasy. Sorry."
Dejected, I leaned my head against my hand and rested my elbow on the table. He apologized one more time and stated when we arrive in the next nation over before leaving once more.
"Two hours and I get to eat this alone with nothing to do," I muttered.
Pulling out a fork, something I've rarely used in my life, I scooped up a chunk of rice and steaming broccoli and put it into my mouth. It tasted better than anything I've really tasted before, probably because I've been starving for several days.
A horrible bang killed the thought as well as any chance to finish; the plate fell onto the floor along with the juice and cookie. Ignoring the bang for a moment, I dove to the floor and shovelled as much food into my mouth as possible. The whole train vibrated and with that, I sighed as I gulped a bunch of rice and veggies while grabbing the cracked cookie before busting out of the locked door.
The momentum I had threw me into what must be another cabin door, just as a crowd of ponies was forcing themselves past. The group threw me back into the next car as everyone rushed to get to this end of the train. Hiding around the corner, I stared down at a hunk of meat on a plate as I jammed the cookie in my mouth. Glancing outside, we were passing a canyon. Ignoring my urge to grab the steaming meat, I pressed my snout up against the window to look upward and as I figured; bandits were on the rim of the canyon, sliding down or simply jumping onto the train. A slew of dogs, dragons, griffons and other various sentient beings boarded the train and denting the ceilings above us. Feeling the rush return to me that I haven't felt since I left the prison a week ago.
The flood of ponies had ceased quickly as they vanished, leaving me as the only one in this car. Peeking around the corner, through several door windows, I could spot several dragons checking each little booth or cabin through numerous train cars. I took a deep breath and relaxed myself quickly. Turning the corner as an armed griffon rounded the corner, I was noticed.
"What do you thi—"
An explosion occurred, this time not like the first. It was colourful, flashy, and above all else; bombastic. It was like a firework. Various colours exploded in the room and several of the bandits rushed out of the car where it all went down, fur singed or on fire while several dropped down to the ground, unconscious. The griffon took his eyes off me and spun around, just to have a sparkler hit him in the face, causing him to dance around and crash through the window. Just as he stepped out of the way, the face of the Great and Powerful Trixie showed herself in the middle of a ring of panicking, singed bandits. Her horn bright and shooting sparkles as she turned her head and finally locked her eyes onto mine. They widened for a moment as did mine from the sheer surprise.
Glass shattered behind me as several bandits jumped through the windows which snapped me out of my gaze as did Trixie. Spinning around, several Dragons jumped through the glass and knocked over numerous tables. Many of them spotted me immediately and they converged on me, holding blades up to me.
"Hand us everything you got," one of them barked.
Instead, I lunged forward, thrusting both fists towards his gut as I pushed off my legs with all my strength. He didn't expect it and keeled over as I allowed my arms to slide around his waist. I pushed off the ground with a foot and began a run, using most of my strength to shove the larger dragon backward. I hit one more dragon, knocking him back as I saw out of the corner of my eye and before the dragon I held could get his bearings, I shoved him back with a powerful thrust, launching him into another bandit as they fell over onto the ground.
I could hear no shouting yet quick footsteps from behind as several dragons attacked. Little combat experience didn't yield ideal results but my mind had superior reactions. I could essentially sense them coming and immediately hopped up, grabbing onto the ventilation graft above as their attacks missed. They didn't waste time and glanced up, prepping their arms for an upward stab. I pushed off the ceiling and stomped my feet against their napes and felt them buckle under the hit, going down easy. Four more in the cabin served to be no more than a bother as one lunged forward in an attempt to use his size. I remembered what I did to instigate that riot in prison and leaned forward. I wrapped my arms around this one's waist as well and used his momentum as my attack; I threw myself back while using my arm strength to pull him over me, smashing his head into the ground below me.
I never let go and once more utilized the momentum to swing my legs back just as the other dragon behind me attempted to attack. With a second to react, I brought one foot down and smashed it down atop his snout. A crack sounded as he stumbled back from the impact and fell over. Allowing my legs to drop, I let go of the dragon I performed the suplex on into the ground and planted both feet firmly. The last two went feral and leapt forward, barring their fangs with a roar. Still bent over from when I planted my feet on the ground, I pushed forward towards one of them.
I dove over the dragon I slammed while staying under the dragon to the right. I planted my hands on the ground, keeping my legs bent until I was clearly under and stomped my foot into his gut. His body almost went limp and our clashing momentum stopped me from flinging him. Instead, I had a second to balance myself before I placed my other foot onto his gut as well. Leaning forward, my body tipped over while I balanced the bandit on my feet until I pushed off the ground, flinging the bandit out the window. He vanished over the window sill but I heard a yelp as he hit the ground.
Behind me, the other dragon prepared to take advantage of my position, and it looked like he was gonna get me. Instead, a firework was launched from the other cabin and impacted the remaining dragon. The force from the burst sent the bandit out the shattered window. Reorienting myself with the ground, I stood up to see Trixie had defended me. Wordlessly, we came to an agreement just as several more bandits landed in the next car over.
Several screams sounded and a rough voice blared out demanding all possessions. Stepping into the centre of the car, I ran along the mass produced red carpet and tackled through the door, breaking the whole thing as a griffon stood in front of it. We both tumbled to the ground and galloping hooves sounded behind me as well as the sound of magic flaring up. Sparks and lights flew overhead and into the car, exploding as the fireworks only seemed to impact the bandits. The dragons fared a little better as they had seemingly heard the commotion and were more prepared. Ten bandits, 14 ponies and six dogs hostage, two of us. The five dragons that managed to tank Trixie's spark stepped forward, a few of them having their eyes on me. I glanced down as the griffon's head turned enough so that he could see me. In a karate chop motion, I slapped my hand down on the back of his head, rendering him unconscious.
Pushing myself up, I took a deep breath and let out a torrent of green flames towards the ground. To everyone's surprise but my own, the green flames stayed on the dragons' feet and started to burn them as they started to howl. I had missed the griffon below me, luckily enough.
"Put them out!" I shouted behind me to Trixie.
She let her shock go and put on a scowl. "Do not order Trixie around!" she declared as her horn lit up.
The flames were encased by her blue aura as they quickly died out and the bandits fell over, grasping their feet in agony as the scales had burned off. A brief moment of peace happened as the bandits were incapacitated. Trixie took this moment to investigate.
"How? How did you burn a dragon, Twilight's dragon!?" she asked, bewildered and looking around.
Cracking my jaw, I let out a low growl as I felt somewhat bad. "That's a story for another day, and my name is Spike."
"Trixie needs no knowledge of your name right now, plus, we're not out yet," she responded.
The hostages were still tied up and both of us stepped over and began cutting the ropes and tape. The dog that brought me food was present. He hurriedly ripped off the rest of the tape and rope around others and once they were free, I approached him.
"Is there anything of value on this train or anything bandits would do to stop them?" I asked quickly, glancing around as more bandits slid down the canyon walls before leaping towards the train.
He shook his head, glancing around briefly as the hostages scurried away. "The train engine, maybe, but some of the passengers are rich. The thing they'd want to do is stop the train, since it's easier for their men to jump on."
Trixie and I briefly contemplated the meaning before several bangs above sounded. Several bandits were already running towards the front. I ran over to the window and peered upward to the roof. Several bandits were entering via the bilevel car over.
"Trixie, I'm climbing up top. You head for the engine and clear out down here, alright?" I stated. Rather than wait for an answer, I reached up and grabbed the ribbed, rounded edge of the top of the train car. "Fun," I muttered.
"Don't order Trixie around!" I heard behind me as she started galloping into the bilevel car.
I had gotten a good hold of a grate above and by the time I pulled myself halfway up, I could hear and see colourful explosions coming from the first floor of the bilevel car. Above, the bandits were too busy focused on entering, fighting for, or jumping over the bilevel car. With one burst of energy, I yanked myself up, surprising one bandit as he was one of the last. The end of the canyon was in sight and there were several bandits at the engine up three cars, attempting to shut it down.
The one that spotted me attempted to stop and almost did too, since he must have been used to running atop trains. I dug my claws into the ridges of the rooftop edge to make sure I wouldn't fall and I grabbed a protruding spike that stuck out of his upper arm and yanked back, the momentum siding with me once more as I threw the criminal off the edge of the train. Finally, I saw what happened as the bandit smacked into the ground, doing several rolls similar to a ragdoll. Fortunately, he didn't seem to be fatally injured and just held his arms in pain.
Glancing up, I was now behind five dragons that were being pushed out of the bilevel car's windows. I stepped forward, making sure the claws on my feet had some sort of dig into the metal roof and I brought my left arm back, slugging it forward into the left side of a griffon. It impacted just on his wing and I heard a crack as the griffon was helplessly tossed off the side of the train. A yelp he made managed to make my presence known and two ponies glanced over at me as did one dog while the remaining dragon was having a flame war with Trixie.
One of the ponies was a unicorn, and their horn was the one place I knew was a weakspot. Before his horn could light up, I lurched forward and wrapped my fingers around the protruding bone and yanked him towards me. He let out several shouts as his magic stopped. The Earth Pony spun around and bucked towards my hand. Letting go, his hindhooves impacted the other bandit's head rather hard and I took this moment to fight dirty. I kicked upwards, hitting the stallion directly in the groin. He let out a yelp as his legs buckled and he rolled off the other side of the train as the unicorn he just took out.
The dog drew a knife as he stood a foot over me, making his stance wide and intimidating. I hesitated for a moment and he stabbed the blade at me. I side stepped and was going to kick if he wasn't so fast with it. The blade crossed my soft underbelly, leaving a red line as the flesh started to drizzle out a crimson liquid down my belly. I let out a shout as the pain registered in my mind as a sharp, sizzling heat that passed through the area around the injury. His body spun around as he sliced me and he brought his fist towards me in a backhanding motion. Clenching my fist in a fit of rage, I screamed as I thrust it forward, directly onto his backhanding elbow. Another crack sounded as his forearm bent backwards limply and the dog howled in pain. He stopped spinning and grabbed his arm, dropping the knife. I reared my other fist back and swung it upwards, connecting with his jaw. It clamped shut with a clack and made him step back, dazing him in the process. Bending my legs, I hopped up, kicking my legs forward against his chest. It pushed me back and pushed him into the other dragon.
I landed on my back as the dragon turned around, his massive form accidentally pushing off his injured companion. His eyes locked with mine as I rode off the stinging pain that I felt and briefly, fear flashed through my body. It was cut short as a blue and violet explosion occurred right next to his face, blinding him and sending sparks everywhere. He clamped his hand over his eye where the burst happened and I pushed myself up, jumping into the air while twirling my body around. I spun my leg as hard as possible and kicked the dragon bandit right where his hand was covering his eye. The impact knocked him back, and like the rest, he fell off the train too.
Landing on both feet, I briefly glanced at my chest and locked eyes with Trixie. She quickly turned around and ran down the stairs back to the first level of the train car. Ahead, the bandits were crowding around the front of the car and at the edge of the canyon was a mob waiting for the train to stop. Glancing down, I spotted the pocket knife, rattling around on the rooftop. I quickly grabbed it and bolted across the raised roof of the bilevel car and landed onto the next one. My feet clanged against the metal top and as I jumped onto the next car, I felt the entire train jerk and a metal screeching sound. The ground below me slowed down a lot as well as the car. I was already on the car behind the engine yet I knew I would hit and roll. I tossed the knife and it spun in the air. Luckily, the blade lodged itself in the back of a dragon's head. He turned around, confused and pulled the knife out, only to see me speeding towards him as the group as well as the train slowed down.
Predictably, my feet landed on the ridged top and I felt myself tumble. I rolled over the gap between cars and directly onto the awning above the gap between engine and baggage car. I smacked into the legs of the dragon that took the knife to the head and he slid off the engine, knife flying away as he let go of the blade. The rest of the bandits atop the engine slid off the roof and only one fell off the train. The rest grappled onto the roof and threw themselves into the front room where the conductor was tied up and pressed against the engine due to the force of the stopping train. The entire thing was almost at half speed and would soon stop, which was a que for disaster. The bandits in the train were all dragons as it seemed this was a dragon gang.
Feeling outnumbered and overpowered, I grabbed the poker and swung it as hard as I could towards the closest dragon out of the quad. It collided with his neck and he stumbled over, leaning against the frame of the window. Another dragon stepped forward as I swung it back over to him. His hand caught it and his superior strength ripped it from my grasp. He smacked it against my head, causing me to fly towards the back end of the engine car. I hit the chain which pressed against my gut, knocking the wind out of me. That wasn't enough as I felt the metal pole slap against my back hard, sending a sharp pain up my spine. I grit my teeth and held in a scream as I clenched my eyelids and teeth shut.
The door to the baggage car opened up and a flurry of fireworks shot out, lighting up the engine room far more than anything else I've seen. I'm facing the baggage car, back turned to the light show and it still hurts my eyes. The noise coupled with the train wheels squealing against the rails hurt my ears but not enough to cripple. The lights died out and I turned around to see the dragons holding their heads, presumably getting a severe headache as well as suffering from temporary blindness. The controls for the train lit up cyan and moved for a bit before the train's squealing stopped. The engine started pumping once more and we slowly picked up speed. By now, we cleared the canyon yet we weren't slowed enough for the bandits to board... luckily.
Trixie and I both recovered from the severe laser show that occurred and we both stepped into the centre of the engine room. She shot a blast of magic from her horn rather than a firework which knocked two dragons on the left side out of the room while I had simply pushed the last two out the window. With that, the train was successfully retaken from the bandits.
[*][*][*]
"Well, I suppose," the dog said as he looked over at all the food on the floor.
Diving forward, I grabbed a chunk of meat that was atop a shattered plate. It was cold now but I didn't care. I took a cautious sniff and it seemed extremely alluring. My mouth watered once more as I opened it and prepared to have my first chunk of meat... but a thought popped into my head. Twilight... and Rarity. This is a creature I'm about to eat. Pulling it away from my mouth, I looked at it sadly before sighing, dropping it back on the floor.
"Well don't throw it on the floor again," the dog shouted as he quickly sweeped it up, plate and all.
"Sorry, but... I just had second thoughts. Meat is... just not right, I guess," I responded, turning away. "I'll just go back to my cell," I stated.
"Well, okay. No door, though. Totally can't lock you in," he responded as he started sweeping up the many shattered plates and food.
As I stepped into the room, my rice was still on the floor, and I was still hungry. I scooped most of it onto the plate and started eating the dirty food. After days without food, I'll take what I can get. In the midst of it all, a clopping sound was heard before Trixie appeared in the doorway. She peered in first before noticing me and stepped in, uninvited.
"Trixie... ah, wonders why Spike is heading towards Doragon Tochi," the mare asked.
Glancing up, I thought for a second. "Doragon Tochi, that the name of the Dragon Homelands?" She nodded and I swallowed a chunk of rice first. "An—"
"Do not say answers. It's so cliche, be original. Trixie figured you'd be with Twilight after the, ah, sentencing."
Trixie didn't seem to have any malicious intent so I responded politely after a brief cringe.
"I don't know where I come from, and I want to find out." Setting the plate on the small table, I looked down at my lap and twiddled my thumbs in burning confusion. My whole brain felt numb as I contemplated the possibilities. "Am I a criminal's son? A love child from a batch of eggs? Thrown away? A long lost prince? Did I just magically form out of thin air, a new phenomenon?" Shaking my head, I drew out a sigh and plopped my head against the awful pillow. "There are many things I don't know and I cannot return to Ponyville until I have the answers, and I don't care how cliche it is. That's what I'm doing."
A pregnant silence overtook the room as soon as Trixie started to hum, deep in thought. I glanced at her now and then until a smile grew on her face as well as a fierce look of determination.
"It's settled then: we travel together." She took on a rather smug look and held her head high, basking in the thought.
Panicking, I sat up. "Woah woah woah woah woooah, nothing is settled. What do you mean? Why? What does my adventure have to do with yours?"
Trixie shrugged. "I'm here to bedazzle. Twilight Sparkle is the most magical, most powerful most magnificent pony in all of Equestria, so I will be the most magical, most powerful most magnificent pony in everywhere but Equestria!" She pointed a hoof at me. "And after today, I've decided we're quite a team so Team Trixie will boost my fame and fortune to superstar status and then everypony will know I'm the most magical, most powerful most magnificent pony everywhere!" She threw her hooves into the air and after a moment, stood normally. "... but Equestria," she whispered.
"Team Trixie?" was all I could ask. "You're selfish, I'm the one going on the quest. Team Draggin' is more suitable," I stated as I folded my arms.
"How about we not call ourselves a team yet, since we're small at the moment," she said, turning away.
"Yet? We're expanding? Says who?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"You, when you learn what Doragon Tochi is like," Trixie said in a knowing voice. Before she walked back to what was presumably her car before, she turned to me with a sly smile. "Trust me."
With that, Trixie walked away, leaving me with my thoughts. I pondered for a moment, shovelling the last of the rice into my mouth.
"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."
"I guess there are severe threats from desperate Dragons in Doragon." Glancing out the window, we were on a long turn with a massive city in the distance. "I guess making a few friends is mandatory."