Once upon a time, Spike went for a walk.

While on his walk, he was judged by an ancient alicorn, lodged with griffons, parlayed with air pirates, charmed a maiden of a mystical race, and dealt with the scourges of hate, fear, and racism while deliberately drawing the armies of myriad nations to the brink of global war.

Once upon a time, Spike went for a walk, and did all of this so that he could keep a promise to the one that meant the most to him... Twilight Sparkle.

In the first of three books, Pillars of the Sun (Chapters 1-15), Spike is devastated by Twilight's fate and grows more and more despondent as he attempts to understand what has happened to his dearest friend. A gentle nudge from a pony he trusts sends him looking for answers. When that nudge becomes a push he unravels ancient secrets... and risks losing himself before his attempt to rescue Twilight can even begin.

Pinkie Pie's friend, Snuggles, is only the coolest pony ever!

He gives the best hugs, and he's sweet, and gives the best hugs, and he's friendly, and gives the best hugs, and he really is such a great stallion! Also, did Pinkie mention the hugs?

Pinkie's friends quickly figure out she appreciates Snuggles for more than just his hugs. The Party Pony, Pinkie, has a crush. Unfortunately, Pinkie has never had a crush before. Does her crush like her back? What do you do with a crush? Why is it called a crush when it feels more like a squish?

Maybe she needs some help from her friends. Just in case. After all, nopony's ever gotten hurt with a crush? Right? ...Right?

The princesses gave their magic to Twilight to prevent Tirek from stealing it. As a result, they end up stuck in Tartarus.

Marvelous place, Tartarus. Really brings ponies together. The fact that things manage to go downhill here says a lot about the wonders of family and alicornhood.

Spanish translation by SPANIARD KIWI

Audio Drama by Espa_Roba_5 and Ajvasquezbrony28
Live reading by The Living Library
Live reading by Astro-Brony

Proofread by Octavia Harmony

It's been more than a thousand years since the Mane Six's adventures in Ponyville, and things look very different. Equestria is gone, devoured by chaos. Nightmare creatures roam the lands, changelings prey on the few remaining pony settlements, and all trace of the peace and harmony during Princess Celestia's reign has vanished.

Until, that is, a small group of ponies set out to map the Tangle, and find a slumbering dragon inside. Now Spike, a millenium out of his time and with only his memories to comfort him, is ponykind's only hope. Together, he and his new friends set out to find the one pony who can set things right: Twilight Sparkle.

Cover art by the inestimable TheAuthorGl1m0.

Featured by The Royal Guard on February 4th, 2014.

[img]http://tinyurl.com/kaxbtuk[/img]
AUTHOR'S NOTES

- Beware of spoilers in the comment section!
- Currently undergoing heavy revision for chapters nineteen and onward. The "lost" chapters - that is, the story as it was originally published - can be found here.

Cheating. It never leads to anything good. Hearts get broken, trust is lost, and lives are ruined. Unfortunately, even the best of relationships are not immune to it.

When it comes to light that Shining Armour has been in a secret affair with Rarity, it leaves Princess Cadence and Spike stunned and badly hurt. Leaning on each other for comfort, the two devise a plan to not only get revenge on the ponies that hurt them, but maybe even heal their broken hearts along the way.

Note: This fic was written during season 4 originally, so that's why Flurry Heart isn't mentioned.

Coverart by: Not Enough Coffee

Inspired by the album Two-Faced Charade by Famous Last Words.

Spike, like many teenage boys, is at a loss for romance. Kissing girls is as foreign as shedding for a pony. Seeking guidance, Spike turns to the one mare he trusts with such a matter: Cadence.

Taking him under her wing, Cadence sets up practice dates for the young dragon. But with each date, something grows underneath the surface. The dividing line blurs, and practice soon becomes reality...

Thanks to Vexy and The Abyss for kicking this fic into shape.

My name is Kadie, and when I was eight years old, my people, the griffins, went to war with the ponies of Equestria. My mother never wanted me to think about that, so she never talked about it. The Emperor told my father that he had to go off and fight the ponies, though, so I know that she thought about it a lot.

A few months after I turned ten, a messenger came into our town and told us that our emperor didn't want to fight anymore, so the ponies won, and we lost. Mother said that since we lived so close to our capital, we needed to go see the pony army meet our emperor.

I did not like that.

Edited wonderfully by Prak

It's been a week since the Royal Wedding, and Twilight and her friends are back in Ponyville, safe and sound. However, ever since they returned from Canterlot, all of Twilight's friends have gone through large bouts of guilt over ignoring her warnings. But of all her friends, Twilight is most concerned about Spike, who keeps waking up in the middle of the night with severe panic attacks.

Despite all her best efforts, Twilight hasn't been able to get her assistant to talk about his dreams, or make him feel better about himself since that day. But after another restless night, Twilight has had enough, and refuses to let him go until he talks about his dream.

However, when Spike finally confesses his recurring nightmare, he talks about what could've happened if Twilight never saved the wedding. And what she discovers, is much worse than she could've ever imagined.

I want to thank CYOA_Anon on 4Chan for helping proofread this. The original pic was made by sherwoodwhisper on Deviantart here.

Once again, I am alone in my prison. Doomed to spend eternity trapped in this underworld abode. Stuck in my cage without another soul to comfort me.

Except, for the first time during my imprisonment, I get a visitor. That visitor being the last person I'd ever expect to meet down here.

Princess Celestia orders the invasion of Earth. Things don't go as planned.