HiE - Input needed · 7:38pm Aug 19th, 2015
Okay folks, this is a bit unorthodox, but the new chapter is being incredibly difficult, so I'm willing to be unorthodox.
This scene came to me in the course of writing, and I like it for a lot of reasons. But I'm not sure if it's going to overly complicate the overall story, if it should just be left out, or if it's worth fleshing out all the way, and finding a way to include it in what's already going to happen. So I need feedback from the people who are making this story a possibility.
"I'd be a lot more able to stop being stressed, if I knew I was being useless to everypony," Spike commented unhappily. Granted, the fact that he wasn't going to be experiencing the indigestion of receiving messages was going to be a delightful bonus. But that still did nothing to change the fact that he suddenly had to come to grips with the fact that there was one more thing he couldn't do, because somepony else could now do it ever better than he could. "I can't do correspondence anymore, I can't fight, I can't even find a weapon that I can use should everything go to hell around me. How am I supposed to get better if I've gotta wrestle with all this shit?" he asked them.
The others looked at Spike, and then at one another in response to the points he'd raised. Much as they hated to admit it, none of them had really considered what he was saying until now. It was a lot easier to consider the aspect of Spike being overworked as the cause of his stress, rather than feelings of inadequacy. This was a development that left them feeling really unprepared.
Spike just sighed as he looked at the ground. "The one thing I could do to make myself really useful, that nopony else could do, and it's completely gone now. What am I supposed to do now? Cooking and cleaning? Writing down nightmare reports so somepony else can send them?" he asked them. "I can't even fight. I don't wanna be the useless one around here..."
Being hugged without notice wasn't all that surprising to Spike, considering what had been happening recently. What surprised him, however, was that it was Applejack who did the hugging this time around. And she could hug pretty firmly too.
"If Ah'd known it was that important, Ah would've let ya borrow the corn knife when ya asked," she told him.
"It probably wouldn't have done me much good, even if you had," Spike replied glumly, remembering just how badly things had gone during the evaluation process Ulquiorra had given him. As stocky as he was, he probably would've had to drag the knife along the ground, or carry it slung on his shoulder the whole time since it was about as long as he was tall. "I get that I'll never be a front line fighter like the rest of you are. But there's gotta be something I can do... right?"
Ulquiorra listened as spike spoke. For him, it was impossible to emphasize with the dragon's plight, despite knowing what it was like to find oneself rendered useless. But despite lacking the ability to emphasize, he could certainly understand what Spike was going through. His primary usefulness had been limited to begin with, and had since been drastically reduced even further in the course of just a few days.
But there was very little that could be done about it. While his recommendation of shurikens had validity, they could ultimately prove useless if Spike was encountered in too close a proximity to adequately throw one. And anything approaching a adequately sized melee weapon, to allow for an effective swing to be delivered, would simply prove too large for him to maneuver.
If they were back in his dimension, and had experienced a change in territory, there would be options available. North America supposedly had hundreds of millions of available options for such a situation.
But they weren't back in his dimension, they weren't in North America, and he highly doubted that a gun store existed anywhere in this world. And with Discord's involvement still being questionable... it simply wasn't an option.
Crossbows existed in this world. They could prove to be an option. But the issue of draw strength to the bowstring would prove to render one incredibly slow to utilize in any effective manner. And once again, there was the issue of proximity. What Spike needed was something reasonably small and compact enough for him to wield with one hand if need be, yet would be sufficient in allowing him to strike harder than his fist could accomplish. Something like a combat knife, or a dagger. Or perhaps a wood cutting hatchet, or even....
"What about a hammer?" he suggested. And then all eyes were upon him, seeking clarification.
"A hammer?" Spike asked, being the first to speak up. "You mean like what a carpenter uses?"
"While that would certainly work better than an empty hand, I was thinking of something more stout. When I was being given the tour of Barnyard Bargains by Filthy Rich, I noticed the variety of tools in the hardware department. Among them were sledgehammers of varying sizes, ranging from twenty pounds, down all the way to two pound, short handled models. While not as dramatic as a sword, blunt force trauma is still substantial," Ulquiorra explained.
"Huh," Applejack muttered as she scratched her head in thought. Before readjusting her hat afterward. "Ah reckon that'd smart somethin' fierce. But he'd have ta get mighty close ta somethin' ta do that. Wouldn' that be kinda dangerous for 'im?" she asked.
"No more dangerous than facing a threat while unarmed," Ulquiorra pointed out. "Depending on what magic can be utilized, getting within melee range might not even prove necessary."
"Alright. I know you've got something in mind, Ulquiorra," Twilight spoke up. She had been around the Espada enough to know when he was getting at something. "What is it?"
"Back in my dimension, one region's mythology spoke of a thunder god who wielded a short hammer as his primary weapon. The hammer was said to be magical, could smash a mountain to pieces, and would always return to his hand when it was thrown, among other folklore claims. While I doubt that such a feat could be accomplished, even with significant magical intervention, it stands to reason that at least some of these abilities could be replicated in this world, correct?" he asked.
Twilight looked at Celestia, who looked back at her, each of them contemplating Ulquiorra's words.
"Could... could something like that actually be done?" Spike asked as he spoke up, intrigued by the idea that was being presented.
Spike looked down at the hammer in front of him, noting the differences it now possessed, that separated it from what it had been when they first acquired it. It was still the same new-model single piece steel construction type of sledge hammer, with a supposedly shock absorbing molded rubber handle. The only real difference he could note about it, was the runes that now covered its surface. Many, many intricate runes, all expertly carved into the outer surface, each of them only about as deep as a sheet of paper, and colored in a shade of metallic blue that he couldn't ever remember seeing before.
"So... this is it?" he asked with a fair measure of skepticism in his voice.
"The results are far more impressive than its appearance would suggest, Spike," Celestia replied from where she stood. The process for modifying the hammer hadn't been a particularly difficult task, but it had certainly required a fair bit of concentration and focus to get the runes right. And now it was time to test the results, and see if they would actually suffice. Hence the move to the outside while the others worked. "It wasn't possible to replicate everything Ulquiorra mentioned. But I believe the charms in place will suffice," she explained.
Spike didn't know what to say in response, so he simply shrugged, and picked the hammer up off the ground. As soon as he did, however, he felt a slight tingling running up and down his arm, and the runes started to give off a weak glow. "What's going on?"
"A side effect of the process. Simply placing enchantments on the hammer would be a temporary solution, with no way of guaranteeing how long it would last. With the runes engraved into the hammer's surface, it's more of a permanent modification. The magic in your body fuels their effects whenever you pick it up," Celestia explained.
"Really? That's pretty cool," Spike stated as he looked at the glowing runes, now feeling a sense of pride in knowing that it was glowing because of his own magic, rather than an outside source. "So what's it do?"
"It might be better to show, rather than explain its capabilities," Celestia replied as she activated her magic, and levitated a cinder block into view about a dozen or so paces away from where they currently stood. "You'll still have to figure out distance and trajectory through trial and error. But now when thrown, the hammer should fly further than it would've if it was relying on your physical strength alone," she explained. "Give it a try."
Spike looked at Celestia, then the cinder block, then back at the hammer in his hand. With a nod he pulled back, and threw the hammer forward as hard as he could, doing his best to aim for the target.
Celestia watched as the hammer tumbled end over end, and quickly concluded that it was going to be off its mark. She responded by moving the cinder block into the path of the hammer, letting it be smashed to pieces upon impact.
Right after the block was hit, and subsequently smashed, the hammer quite literally bounced back from the point of impact, traveling back along the same path, before landing at Spike's feet.
"You'll also need to work on catching it, as returning right to your hand on its own wouldn't be possible. But it's a far better option than it just laying there," she explained.
"No argument there," Spike stated as he picked up the hammer and twirled it in his hand. He could definitely see this proving quite useful.
"There's also one more ability that the hammer possesses. Perhaps the most important of the three. And one that must be seen, in order to be believed," Celestia stated as she levitated a new cinder block into view.
Spike was about to pull back for another throw, but stopped when he noticed something. Celestia's eyes immediately turned green, as a flare of dark purple magic appeared form the corner of her eyes like unrestrained flames. The next thing he knew, a black stream of energy was fired into the block as it hovered in place. He'd only seen something like this once before, but he doubted that he could ever forget that one incident.
"Isn't that-"
"It is," Celestia interrupted, "and it was necessary for this demonstration to be done properly. Proceed, and you'll understand why," she instructed.
Spike didn't have a clue what was going on. But rather than question it, he did as was told, and pulled back, before flinging the hammer forward as hard as he could.
Under the impact of the hammer, the first cinder block had broken apart, and crumbled to pieces.
The second one, however, had literally exploded on impact with a bright flash, and a loud boom at the point of impact, making him jump in surprise.
"HO-LY shit!" he yelled as the hammer landed back at his feet. "What the hell was that!?"
"A protective charm, designed to prevent a dark magic user from attempting to use the hammer against anyone else. As you can see..." she paused as she looked back at the smoking remains of the shattered block, "it's quite effective in doing its job."
"I'd say that's an understatement," Spike commented as he picked the hammer up again. He didn't know which should be more impressive to him; what the hammer could do, or that it was the magic he had in him that made it all possible. "So... what would happen if I encountered a dark magic user, and had to use it against them? What would happen then?" he asked.
"Without getting graphic about what the results might be, it would effectively ruin their day," Celestia replied.
I think it'll work. Go ahead and add it.
This seems reasonable enough to add into the story. It will explain how Spike can still contribute in defending anyone or himself.
I don't think it's unorthodox. In fact, it's pretty cool, and in good taste. I mean, you had a magic lantern capable of absorbing a cero, albeit for a certain amount of time
Plus, it'll give that extra boost to Spike's self-esteem.
I, for one, doubt this would be such a good idea... I mean, so far they are not even sure what exactly their opponents is, as the most they have defined so far is a "mistery fog", starting to assume there are going to be dark magic users seems a little far fetched.
And that's not even mentioning how just wrong is to give a Thor level hammer to someone who is still, by most psichology accounts, a child, even if in your story it does seem he, like everyone else, is more mature and reasonable than canon.
Now, probably if you have decided to put this here it will have some importance later in the story, but I feel like in your attempt to make everyone appear more logical and brainiac you are losing a bit of their characters along the way. I can accept this happening with Twi and the princesses, but Spike? He is still a child, and showed to be extremely emotive in many occasions. This eagerness to be useful is understandable, but giving a kid the means to go full Leeroy Jenkins at his own leisure seems just irresponsible of Twi and Celestia.
But then again, if you develop and handle this smartly, it could turn out to be an interesting plot point.
Let's see where you will go with this.
I'd say it was a well done bit of story telling, and would be a good way to help with Spike's issue. Plus I think a hammer better suits him than a sword.
3332623 I can agree with this in most cases and even in this case in spirit. But the fact of the matter is that their town is currently under siege, and Twilight and co. are right in the thick of it. Teaching Spike to defend himself is just being practical, it would be better for him to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it.
But my opinion could be slanted due to my own dad teaching me how to shoot a rifle when I was seven to eight years old. Country folk don't play around with teaching their kids how to take care of themselves.
Spike has dragon strength, agility, dexterity, durability, elemental resistance, claws, and teeth.
He can hulk out by being given a bunch of crap as a horde.
He doesn't need no stinkin hammer.
Just tape a razor blade to the tip of his tongue or something.
Have Pinkie use him as a hoofheld flamethrower like she used Twi as a minigun.
All I am saying is they are so unprepared to deal with this threat that they are putting all their effort into weapon r&d and it is really annoying watching them try to acquire more power to fight something they don't understand so I hope it is an important plot point.