Chapter II: The Dragonborn
Celestia entered one of the numerous hallways that led away from the entrance hall, with her sister, the Elements of Harmony, and the two dragons in tow. Twilight recognized the path they were on- it led to the royal library.
“Now then, Thorn…” Celestia began, “…why did you come here? Are you one of Alduin’s agents?”
“What? No!” the dragon snapped. “How dare you accuse me of being in league with such a vile…” He trailed off, before taking a deep breath. “Forgive my outburst. But I never thought somepony would ever accuse me of being in league with… him.”
“Then explain yourself.”
Thorn was silent for a moment, before saying “What I’m about to tell you is going to sound absolutely insane, but I promise you that it’s true.” He paused for a moment. “…I’m from the future, two hundred years from now, to be specific. I was… I am part of a group of survivors who fought against Alduin.” He raised a claw to his chin. “…But I don’t understand. Alduin emerged here; I saw… I mean, everything the others told me said he would.”
“You just missed him,” Celestia replied.
“Well where is he now?”
“Currently, the surface of the moon.”
“That won’t kill him.” An unusually long silence fell until Thorn continued, “…will it?”
“Unfortunately, no- I tried it once. But it will give us time to make preparations.”
“Preparations? For what?” asked Applejack.
“…W… who was that big black dragon?” Fluttershy managed to squeak out.
Celestia was silent for a few moments before responding. “Before I answer any of your questions, I need to ask all of you one of my own: what do you know about the Dragon War?”
All eyes fell on Twilight- she alone knew more about Equestria’s history than all of them combined. “The Dragon War?” she asked back. “Um, six hundred years ago, a horde of dragons invaded Equestria from the north, led by the Dragon Emperor… Alduin.” That was where she knew the name from. “Equestria and the dragons fought for seven years, but even though they were also fighting a civil war in the final years of the war, it seemed like the dragons would win. But then, the tables turned and the dragons surrendered when Celestia challenged Alduin in single combat, and managed to defeat him.”
Celestia nodded approvingly, but then said, “Unfortunately, you’re incorrect on one account, Twilight.” Twilight’s jaw dropped- in all her years of schooling, she had never, ever answered a history question wrong. “You see,” the Princess continued, “in spite of what your history books may have told you, I didn’t actually defeat Alduin. Even with all my strength, even with the Elements of Harmony, I was unable to best him.” She stopped in front of a door and pushed it open, revealing the palace library- Celestia and the others stepped inside.
“Well, if you couldn’t beat this Alduin guy, then how are we supposed to stop him?” Rainbow Dash asked as the group crossed the library.
“To put it quite simply… you can’t.” Celestia approached a bookcase, and pulled on a large tome; in response, the bookcase retracted, exposing a narrow staircase carved into a rough stone passageway. “As powerful as they are, even the Elements of Harmony have their limits.” She began to descend the staircase, with her subjects in tow. “They could not defeat Alduin… so instead, it seems they sent him forward to a time when someone could.”
“Wait, I thought ya just said-” Applejack began.
Pinkie cut her off. “All she said was that the Elements of Harmony couldn’t beat Alduin. She never said somepony else couldn’t do it.”
Celestia glanced back, stunned by Pinkie’s sudden display of insight. But after a moment, she said, “Pinkie is right- although the Elements were unable to bring down Alduin, it doesn’t mean that he’s invulnerable.”
“Er, Princess?” Rarity asked. “I know this has nothing to do with our conversation, but… where exactly are we going?”
“On the contrary, Rarity, where we’re going is actually quite relevant to our discussion.” The staircase finally came to an end, terminating on the edge of a vast cavern. Everypony (sans Luna, Celestia, and Thorn) stared up at their new surroundings in awe. “Whoa…” Rainbow Dash said. “I had no idea this was down here…”
The group suddenly realized Celestia had moved up, and scrambled to keep up. “Some centuries ago…” Celestia said, “many years before the Dragon War, Luna and I were making plans to expand the palace library by digging into Mount Canterlot. During the excavation, we found this cavern beneath the palace, but more importantly… we found this.”
This turned out to be a massive wall made from black stone. It was obvious that it wasn’t a natural formation- the smoothness of its surface, the way it curved, the intricate carvings above, the strange but measured scratches that crossed its face… everything about it indicated that somepony had crafted it with painstaking care.
“…A wall? What’s so special about a wall?” Rarity asked.
“The last archaeologist to look at this wall believed it was carved some time during the reign of Queen Aura, maybe even earlier. But its age isn’t as important as what’s written on it: a prophecy that describes the rise of a great black dragon, whose hunger will swallow the world… a dragon who shall take for himself the name ‘Alduin.’ But, it also says that one day, another dragon will be born, one whose strength exceeds any other, even Alduin’s, and that it is his destiny to slay the World-Eater and take his rightful place as the ruler of all dragons. The prophecy calls him ‘Dovahkiin.’” The whole cavern shook. “…Dragonborn.”
At the mention of this, all eyes fell on Spike. “W…What?” he asked. Then he stammered “N-No. No no no no no! There is no way that I can fight that thing. Did you see him? He was huge! He can swallow me in one bite!”
“Believe me Spike, I wish it wasn’t true either…” Celestia began. “…But it is. You are the dragon who will slay Alduin. You are the Dragonborn.”
Spike’s mouth moved, but no sound came out. So Twilight spoke for him. “Y… you can’t be serious, Princess. Spike is… well look at him!” She gestured to the baby dragon. “He’s just a baby! There’s no way he can fight Alduin!”
“It isn’t a matter of whether he can or can’t, Twilight. The fact is, if this world is to survive, Spike must defeat Alduin.”
“But Princess…” Spike was no longer focused on their conversation, however. His attention had turned back towards the wall. The gouges that crossed its surface were strange, but even though he knew he had never seen writing like this in his entire life, somehow it still felt… familiar to him. But that wasn’t all. He could hear… voices. Calling to him. Or, he thought they called to him- their words were strange, unknown to him… but, he still felt as though he’d heard them before. Mesmerized, he walked slowly to the wall, his body moving seemingly of its own accord.
“Spike? Spike dear where are you going?” Rarity asked. The young dragon showed no indication that he’d heard the fashionista at all. She approached him, placing a hoof on his shoulder. “Spike?” He brushed her hoof away without stopping.
By now, Twilight’s conversation with the Princess had ceased as they watched the young dragon. “Spike, what’s the matter?” she asked, receiving no answer. She took a step toward him. “Spike, I’m-”
The Princess suddenly put a hoof on Twilight’s shoulder, pulling her back. “Let him go, Twilight.”
“But Princess-” she protested.
“He’ll be alright, dear. You’ll see.”
As he approached the wall, Spike blinked, then he blinked again. It was impossible, he knew, but he could have sworn that one of the words on the wall was… glowing. And the voices… they became louder with each step he took. He blinked yet again- something seemed to emerge from the word and… and it was flowing into him. He could feel his brain tingle, like when he forgot something and was trying really hard to remember it…
Suddenly, when Spike was just inches from the wall, he doubled over, clutching his head. His vision swam, and his head felt hot, as though somepony had lit a flame inside of it. Something crept across the surface of his brain, overriding his every last thought until Spike couldn’t even remember his own name. Until only one thing remained.
…Fus.
That was what the glowing word said.
Fus.
Force.
Thinking back, he realized that was one of the words Celestia had shouted at Alduin, one of the words that made that weird shockwave thing. Maybe… maybe he could do it too. So, turning around, he closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and shouted with all of his strength “FUS!”
The result was much more explosive than Spike could have anticipated. The… well, the force of his shout knocked him off his feet and onto his rear. A burst of blue energy left his throat, striking the others before dissipating after a few yards. Pinkie Pie and Fluttershy were completely bowled over by the power of Spike’s shout; the others were merely knocked off balance, stumbling for a moment before righting themselves. Only Celestia remained completely unaffected, her mane and tail thrown back by the shockwave.
Spike rose to his feet slowly, in utter shock. “What… what…” was all he could make himself say.
Celestia understood, and answered, “That… was a Shout.”
Spike and his friend simply stared at Celestia in a mixture of shock and confusion. Twilight looked up to the new dragon in their group and asked, “A Shout? What in the world is she talking about?” Thorn didn’t answer; he simply stood, his eyes closed, his fingers resting over his eyes. “Hey… are you okay?”
Finally, Thorn took notice of her. “What? Oh- yeah. Yeah I’m fine.” His claw returned to his side. “Did you ask me something?”
“Shouts. What are they?”
Thorn was silent for a moment before replying. “…All dragons have the potential to use an ability called the Thu’um- the Voice- but it can take years, centuries even to fully master it. But the Dragonborn, according to the old legends at least, has instinctive knowledge of how to use the Voice. What could take other dragons years to accomplish he can do in weeks, days even. If being called Dovahkiin by Alduin himself doesn’t convince Spike that he’s the Dragonborn, that should.”
“I’ve never heard of dragons using something like that before…”
“That doesn’t surprise me,” Celestia suddenly said. “The Voice is one of the dragons’ most closely guarded secrets- in fact, even most dragons are unaware of it.” She looked at Thorn. “So, is that why you’ve come? Were you sent to teach Spike how to use the Voice?”
“Unfortunately, no. There is still a lot about the Voice I don’t completely-” Suddenly, the whole cavern shook violently- dust fell from the ceiling, and a sound of rolling thunder came to their ears. It was followed by a multitude of voices, voices that called, “DO-VAH-KIIN!”
A stunned silence fell in the cavern, until finally, Applejack collected herself enough to ask, “…What in the world was that?”
“A summons,” Celestia replied flatly. “One that would be most unwise for you to refuse, Spike. Come- we need to leave.”
“Wait, slow down…” Spike began, “Who’d be summoning me? And where are we going? And what was that thing that-”
Spike’s questioning was interrupted as the Princess began to levitate him over to her. “Spike, every moment we waste here gives Alduin one more opportunity to succeed. I promise that I’ll explain everything, but right now, we need to go.” The Princess set Spike down by her side. But as her horn began to glow again, Thorn hurried to join them. “Hold on, hold on, I’m going with you,” he said.
Celestia narrowed her eyes at the new dragon. “Really? And why should I bring you with us?”
“I’ve fought against Alduin no less than forty times in the last two hundred years, so I know every one of his strategies inside and out. You could think of me as Spike’s… strategic advisor.” Thorn crossed his arms. “And in any case, if I’m going to be any use in the fight against Alduin, I’ll need all the Voice training I can get.”
Celestia contemplated the new dragon’s words in silence for a moment. “Fair enough.” Celestia’s horn began to glow yet again, but before she, Thorn, and Spike disappeared, Twilight trotted up to her. “I’m going too.”
“Twilight no,” Thorn said. “Alduin is dangerous, more dangerous than you could possibly imagine. The safest place for you is here, away from him.”
“Who do you think you are telling me what to do?” Twilight snapped back. “Spike’s my assistant, and it’s my job to protect him no matter what. And that’s exactly what I’m going to do, even if I have to fight against a hundred Alduins.”
Thorn opened his mouth, but quickly shut it. Arguing with Twilight was a futile endeavor, especially when Spike’s- er, his safety was involved. Twilight came to the Princess’s side with no further comment. “Alright, no more delays,” Celestia said. “We really need to leave.”
“Wait,” Rainbow Dash said, “we don’t even get a chance to say goodbye?”
Celestia was silent for a moment. “…You have thirty seconds.”
Twilight and Spike hurried over to their friends, exchanging hugs and hasty goodbyes until the Princess called them back over. With her protégé, her assistant, and the newcomer at her side, her horn began to glow brightly once more. “Luna, I need you to address the crowd and tell them exactly what’s happened. I’ll be back soon to help you. Can you do that?”
“Of course, sister.”
“Thank you.” And in a brilliant flash of light, Celestia and her passengers disappeared.
Darkness. All Spike could see was darkness.
He was falling. He could feel it. He screamed for help… or, he tried to. He felt the air rush out of his lungs, but no sound came to his ears. All Spike could do was tumble into the void helplessly, end over end, screaming silently… until his feet suddenly touched solid ground. He swayed slightly before falling to his knees, eyes squeezed shut, his hands over his stomach. “Ugh…” he moaned. “I think I’m gonna be sick…”
“Oh stop it, Spike,” Twilight said, irritated. “Now isn’t the time for games.”
“Twilight, be kind,” Celestia replied. “Teleportation sickness is a real condition that most non-unicorns suffer from.”
As Celestia talked, Thorn rested a claw over his stomach, and mumbled to himself, “Nope. Still not used to it, Twilight.”
After a few deep breaths, Spike stood up straight, taking in his surroundings- the four had arrived on what seemed to be a very small, ice-covered island in the middle of the ocean. “Whoa… where are we?” He suddenly shivered, wrapping his arm around himself in a feeble attempt to warm himself. “Hah… it’s so cold…”
“I would certainly hope so, Spike,” Celestia replied. “We are near the north pole after all.”
“What are we doing all the way up here?” Twilight asked. But before Celestia could answer, another, cool female voice said, “Kulaas. We had not expected you to arrive so soon.” The source of the voice was a large, red dragon, not unlike the one that had decided to nap in the mountains outside Ponyville; she wasn’t quite as large, but still dwarfed everypony present, even the Princess.
Celestia bowed as the dragon approached. “Fortune smiled on us, old friend. The Dragonborn proved easy enough to find.”
“So this is him, then? The Dovahkiin?” The red dragon walked up to Thorn, and began inspecting him. “Hmm… he is rather young, but I sense a certain… strength within.” She nodded. “Yes… yes, he will-”
Celestia stepped forward. “Uh, no. That one isn’t the Dragonborn. He is.” She motioned to Spike.
The red dragon looked down at the Princess in shock. “But, I sensed… Oh dear…” She lowered herself down to get a better look at Spike. “…He is… young. Much younger than I hoped he would be.” She looked up at Celestia. “I am aware of what the ancients have foretold, but I sincerely doubt that they envisioned a kiir would slay the Nameless One.”
“Well child or not, he is the Dragonborn, without a doubt. Alduin himself said as much.”
“…I see.” Her eyes fell on Twilight and Thorn. “And them?”
“Friends.”
The red dragon brought herself upright. “I need a moment to convene with the others and pass on this news- I doubt they will be pleased to hear it. Krosis.” She turned, and uttered a strange word- in response, the ice in front of her split open, and she disappeared within.
A moment of silence passed before Spike asked. “Who was that?”
Celestia replied, “Yolvahdin. An ally of mine from the Dragon War, and one of the few masters of the Voice left in the world.”
“…What happened to the others?”
“Alduin killed them. It was in the final years of the Dragon War, and his lieutenants were beginning to openly rebel. So, he killed them. But he didn’t stop there- before long, he began targeting any dragon who had even moderate skill in the Voice so that none would have the strength to stand against him.”
“Princess?” Twilight asked. “You used a Shout at the palace. Why can’t you teach Spike?”
“It was part of an arrangement I and the dragons who had turned against Alduin had made at the end of the War. We realized that our victory over Alduin was only temporary, and that he would eventually return. So we agreed that upon that day, I would seek out the Dragonborn, and deliver him here for training. And in any case, who could be better to teach a dragon in the way of the Voice than another dragon?”
Yolvahdin emerged from beneath the ice. “The others have been informed,” she said. “And we shall take in the Dovahkiin as per our arrangement. In addition the other dovah…” she trailed off.
An awkward silence settled for a moment, before Thorn realized the red dragon had addressed him. “Oh! Um, I… I’m Thorn.”
Yolvahdin continued. “…In addition, the other dovah, Thorn, shall be permitted to learn the Thu’um upon request. Finally, the strunkey will be allowed to stay here as well.”
“Good, good,” Celestia said. Her horn began to glow faintly. “I must return to Equestria and prepare my people for Alduin’s return. I leave the Dragonborn in your hands.”
“I will defend him with my life. Drem kos voth hi, Kulaas.”
“And also with you, my friend.” She brought a hoof to her chest and bowed. “Lok bo.”
Yolvahdin brought a claw to her chest and bowed in turn. “Thu’um tuum.”
With the formalities out of the way, the Princess looked down at Spike and Twilight. “…ten days. That’s how much time we have until Alduin’s return.”
“W-What?” Twilight stammered. “Th-that-that’s all?”
Celestia nodded. “I hope you understand now why time is of the utmost importance now.” Her horn shone brightly now, becoming almost painful to look at. “I’ll return in four days to bring you back to the palace.” Twilight opened her mouth, but Celestia cut her off. “We don’t have the time to make Spike into a master of the Thu’um, even if we used all ten days. The most we can hope to give him is a foundation, something he can build on.”
Spike could feel his heart pound painfully in his chest as he looked up at the Princess- there was no way he could do this. He wasn’t some big hero. He couldn’t-
“Don’t look so worried, Spike,” she suddenly said, nearly making him jump. “I… I know it’s a little early to say this, but I have the utmost confidence in you.” She smiled warmly, calming his racing heart. “You can do this, Spike. You can beat Alduin. I know you can.” Celestia took one last look at her protégé’s assistant, before disappearing in a brilliant flash of light.
Yolvahdin stepped forward. “Come, I will show you where you will be staying during your time with us.” She descended once more into the ice- Spike, Twilight, and Thorn followed. “I would introduce you to my peers as well, Dovahkiin, but they are resting at the moment. You will have a chance to meet them before you begin your training tomorrow morning…”
Much later, Thorn sat on the surface of the iceberg, gazing up at the sky. Above, ethereal green and red ribbons inched their way across the sky, dimming the stars. The spectacle was nothing new to him- Thorn had seen plenty of auroras in his travels- but even now, after everything he’d seen, after everything he’d done, looking up at those lights made him feel rather… insignificant.
He couldn’t sleep. It wasn’t because of the silence, as it was with younger counterpart and Twilight- he had long since grown accustomed to the kind of silence that felt as though something were pressed directly onto your eardrums. Seeing all of his friends together- alive!- it was… he felt… well, happy was too light a word. In fact, Thorn doubted there was a word in any language anywhere that could capture exactly how he felt at that moment. It was just so much to take in all at once… too much, almost. Although his body called out for rest, Thorn’s mind needed time to digest it all.
Thorn… felt the teleportation spell before he heard it, before he saw the flash of light. It was an odd thing about magic- one could feel it working on the world, feel a spell twist its surroundings to suit its purposes before its effects became apparent. “There you are,” a voice said, a voice that he hadn’t heard in centuries until tonight. “I need to speak with you.”
He looked back over his shoulder. “Princess Celestia,” he said. “To what do I owe this pleasure?”
She walked to the edge of the iceberg. “You lied to me.”
Rather than try to deny it, Thorn instantly submitted. “How did you know?”
Celestia sat on the ice next to him, and looked up at the aurorae above. “For one thing, did you honestly think that I wouldn’t know what my own prized pupil’s assistant would look like when he was all grown up?” Thorn said nothing. She looked at him. “And I know that’s only the beginning. So Spike, tell me what happened. And I want the truth this time.”
For several moments, Thorn was silent, carefully contemplating what he was about to tell the Princess. Finally, he said, “Do you remember what I said, about being part of a group of survivors? Well, that was a lie.” Thorn crossed his arms. “There aren’t any.”
Celestia may have tried to hide it, but Thorn still heard her inhale sharply. “…I suspected that might be the case. Tell me, what happened?”
“What is there to tell? Alduin happened. He killed everyone. He killed our friends, he killed Luna, he killed you! Or… he will, at least. We tried our best, but he was always one step ahead of us, picking us off one-by-one. And then, before I know it, two hundred years have passed, and it’s down to just me, Twilight… and him…”
Spike trudged down the broken stone street. It had been many, many years since he’d walked down this road- it was a lot smaller than he remembered it being. The sun dipped low in the western sky to his left, painting the sky a permanent shade of deep red- it had been hanging in that same spot in the sky, unmoving, for roughly a century now. Raising and lowering the sun was no longer necessary- there were no creatures to bask in its warmth, and few plants that survived depended on its rays.
He looked to his right- next to him walked the most beautiful unicorn in the world… not that there would be much competition nowadays. She was tall, much taller than she had once been, just slightly beating him out in height. Her horn was longer, sharper than the little nub it has once been. Her mane and tail glittered and flowed as though caught in a breeze, but even now they remained the same solid purple with a single unmoving streak of magenta as always. Her coat was still the same shade of lavender, and her cutie mark was still an unmistakable six-pointed star.
In spite of the changes she had undergone, the unicorn that walked next to him was still unmistakably Twilight Sparkle.
Before long, they came to a small hill overlooking their destination. Its many spires, once proud and mighty, were shattered, their stumps pointed into the sky like the broken teeth of some long dead animal. Spider webs of cracks lined the outer walls, overlaid by clusters of strange black vines that thrived in the eternal sunset. Its shining golds and vibrant colors had long since faded away, leaving behind only a dull, dingy grey. But battered by the passage of time as it was, the structure continued to stand, no doubt still held together by ancient magics.
“Well, there it is…” Spike began. “…the royal palace.”
Twilight came to a stop next to him, and replied, “It’s hard to believe we’re back here after all this time.”
Spike crossed his arms as he looked down at the crumbling ruin. “Who would’ve thought that Alduin would end up leading us in a big circle?” He looked over at Twilight. “You ready to do this?”
She nodded. “Yeah. Let’s get this over with.” She began to trot toward the palace, when Spike called out to her.
“Twilight, wait.”
She stopped, glancing back over her shoulder at him. “We’ve wasted enough time as it is, Spike. Let’s not waste any more.”
He approached her. “I know. But, Twilight…” He wrapped his arms around her neck. “…Just be careful, okay?”
She didn’t return the hug. “We’ll be fine.” She pulled away from his grasp. “Let’s go.”
They entered the palace grounds a few moments later. They hopped across broken stone slabs as they made their way to an arch where two grand, golden doors had once stood. They could see nothing in the impenetrable wall of darkness that lay just inside the palace. Cautiously, Twilight took a step forward.
As soon as her hoof touched the ground, a thunderous voice sounded, making the world tremble. “YOL… TOOR… SHUL!” A great torrent of fire flew forth from the darkness, but the flames were deflected harmlessly around Twilight’s ward. Her horn glowed, and a great crack sounded as a powerful bolt of lightning shot from her horn and into the darkness. In the flash of light, Spike saw him recoil as the bolt struck him. Spike braced himself, and shouted back into the darkened hall “YOL… TOOR SHUL!” A great burst of fire left his mouth…
…a split second too late. “WULD!” There was a thunderclap, and a black blur streaked out of the darkness and into the sky. Alduin’s roars echoed across the barren land as he circled overhead- Twilight fired another bolt of lightning, but the black dragon dodged the burst with ease. “VEN… MUL… RIIK!”
A thick cloud of mist settled in the courtyard. At once, he heard Twilight’s breaths become heavy and ragged. Fighting against the sudden urge to run away, he reached out to Twilight and put a reassuring claw on her shoulder. “Twilight, stay with me.” Simply saying those words was a struggle. Then, Spike drew in a deep breath, focusing on three words. He staved off the all-consuming fear just long enough to shout “LOK… VAH KOOR!” At once, the fog receded, the fear that gripped his heart receding with it, and Twilight’s ragged breaths came to a stop. They looked up, seeing Alduin circling high above the courtyard.
The world trembled as Alduin shouted; at once, dark swirling clouds filled the sky, blotting out the sun, and great flaming meteors began to fall to earth. Twilight quickly erected another ward before pulling Spike under it. The flaming stones rained down on the courtyard, pelted the palace ruins, smashed against Twilight’s ward, but the two remained unharmed. In a brief moment of safety, he stepped out from under the ward and Shouted at the black dragon. “YOL… TOOR SHUL!” He missed, but when it was safe, tried again. “FUS… RO DAH!” He missed again. “FO… KRAH DIIN!” But no matter how many times he shouted, Alduin dodged each one with ease.
He shouted again one last time before diving under the ward. “This is impossible!” he shouted over the meteor impacts. “I just can’t hit him!”
“I’ll bring him down.” Twilight’s horn glowed as the ward faded. Then, a long strand of magical energy whipped out of it and streaked through the sky, before wrapping around Alduin’s leg. He strained against the magic snare, beating his massive wings furiously in an attempt to break free of its grip. Twilight was tugged a few inches across the stone, but she dug in her hooves and held on. Then, with a powerful tug, she tore the black dragon from the sky and slammed him into the unforgiving stone of the courtyard. Before he could rise, Spike took a deep breath and shouted “FO… KRAH DIIN!”
“FEIM!” In an instant, Alduin turned a ghostly, transparent blue, and the stream of ice passed through him harmlessly. Undaunted, Spike charged the black dragon as he became corporeal once more, claws at the ready. He didn’t even leave a scratch. Alduin easily batted Spike away before taking flight once again- Twilight tried to grab him with another snare, but a quick burst of fire forced her behind another ward. The black dragon dodged several magic missiles before swooping down again, landing on one of the few intact walls that surrounded the courtyard, out of Spike’s reach. He reared back. “YOL… TOOR… SHUL!”
“FO… KRAH DIIN!” Spike shouted, just before the flames reached him. The flames and the ice met, and a powerful explosion of steam erupted forth when the two shouts met, throwing Spike back. In spite of his fresh burns, he quickly rose to his feet. The cloud of steam hadn’t dissipated- if anything, it was even thicker than before. Fear gripped at his heart again, and he fought the urge to run away with all the strength he could muster. Bracing himself, Spike shouted into the mist, “LOK… VAH KOOR!” At once, the cloud of mist rolled back. But Spike was unprepared for the sight that awaited him.
Alduin lay in wait just a few yards away. Beneath him, pinned between his claw and the earth, was Twilight.
Twilight’s horn glowed brightly as she prepared to teleport free of the dragon’s grip. But before she could cast her spell, his grip on her tightened- Spike almost retched as he heard several loud cracks, as he heard Twilight scream in pain. Indignant, but in visible agony, she fired several fireballs at the dragon holding her hostage. They barely singed his scales.
“Let her go, Alduin!” he shouted. “I’m the one you want! She has nothing to do with this!”
“Oh, but she does,” Alduin sneered. “Tell me, Dovahkiin, do you… love her?” Spike merely glared at him. “Ah, so you do. I can see it written all over your face.” He held Twilight up; at the same time, he slowly began to bring up his tail, aiming the tip directly towards her. “…And that is why you will fall to me on this day.”
It happened in the blink of an eye. A great spurt of blood flew through the air, before falling to the shattered stones below. Spike could only stare at the sight before him, his mind refusing to comprehend what his eyes told him. Finally, his mind was forced to accept what had just occurred.
Alduin had stabbed his tail through Twilight’s body. In through her back, and out through her chest.
For a moment, the black dragon continued to hold up Twilight. Then, he tossed her away.
Spike didn’t remember Shouting. He didn’t remember dashing towards the falling unicorn with blinding speed, catching her mere seconds before she hit the ground. He didn’t remember laying her on the stone ground as she gasped and spluttered, coughing up blood onto his chest and arms. He didn’t remember Alduin’s words as he turned to face the black dragon.
But he would always remember how he felt. Anger, fury, rage… none of these words could even scratch the surface of the emotion he felt at that exact moment. And he would always remember what he did next.
“WULD… NA KEST!” Spike turned into a purple streak that raced toward Alduin. As he passed, a deep gash was sliced into the great black dragon’s thick scales. “WULD!” He streaked by again, leaving another deep gash. “WULD!” He streaked by yet again; a small amount of blood spurted from Alduin’s fresh wound. “WULD! WULD! WULD WULD WULD WULD WULD WULD!” Spike darted past Alduin over and over again, stripping off his scales piece by piece. Suddenly, Spike stopped right in front of Alduin. The black dragon reared back, calling “YOL-” But Spike was too fast. He leapt onto Alduin’s chest, digging his claws into the plate that covered his heart, and pulled with all of his might.
A great and horrid tearing sound filled the air as the plate was torn from Alduin’s flesh. The black dragon fell back, clutching his chest. A strange cold wind seemed to cross the now bare section of his chest. Alduin shivered, not because of the cold, but from fear. The possibility that he could die on this day was now very real, standing before him at that exact moment, clutching a piece of him.
Spike tossed the plate away, and began to advance on Alduin. The black dragon began to drag himself away from the enraged young dragon, leaving behind a long trail of blood. He dragged himself away until his back met a wall. “Dovahkiin… no!” he pleaded. “Mercy, please, I beg you!”
“Mercy?” Spike strode up to the fallen dragon. “After everything you’ve done, after everyone you’ve killed… do you really think, that for even one second I would show you any mercy!?” Spike reached back, and with all the strength he could muster, plunged his claw deep into the black dragon’s exposed chest. Nothing could stop his relentless claws- not bone, not flesh, not organs.
He didn’t stop until he’d ripped Alduin’s heart out of his very chest.
Spike looked at the still-pulsing organ in his claw. “…Huh. I figured it would be black.”
Alduin looked up at Spike in a mix of horror and disbelief, gasping and spluttering as the life rapidly left his body. Then, his eyes rolled up, and he collapsed against the ground.
The black dragon’s heart burned away as Spike held it. The rest of Alduin’s body followed suit- flakes of ash rose into the air as flames burned his flesh, until only the bones remained. As his body burned away, wisps of blue and red rose from the dead dragon, swirling through the air towards Spike. Spike felt energy flow into him, felt the fatigue in his limbs fade, felt a pain in his head as new knowledge, new memories were placed there. Then, it was over.
Alduin, the Dragon Emperor, Bane of Kings, Terror of the North, was, at long last… dead.
Now all Spike had to do was get Twilight and…
Wait. Twilight…
Oh no.
“Twilight!” Spike sprinted to the fallen unicorn and picked her up in his arms. “Twilight, speak to me!”
Her only response came as a feeble “Guh…” A white light appeared in his claw, and he held it close to her chest. “Twilight, just hold on! I’m gonna fix you up.”
Twilight looked up at him, blearily. “Uhhn… Spike? I… I don’t think I’ll make it…” she said feebly.
“Twilight, don’t talk like that. Twilight… Twilight, look at me. You’re gonna be just fine, I promise.” But in his heart, Spike knew it was a lost cause- he didn’t know enough about magic to heal a wound this severe, and even if he did, Twilight had lost so much blood as it was…
“…Spike?” she wheezed. “Did… did we win?”
He nodded. “Yeah… we did it. We won.”
She smiled weakly at him- her eyes were already glassy. “Good. I always… knew that you… would…” She fell silent, slackening in his grip.
Spike shook her. “Twilight?” No reply. She shook her again, harder, blinking back tears. “Twilight?” Still no reply. He put his ear to her throat and listened.
He heard nothing.
“No… no, please…” He didn’t even try to hold in his tears. “No, no no no no no no NO!” He held Twilight against him, sobbing into her chest as the world went dark. From the blackness, he sobbed, “Twilight… Twilight, please… don’t go… please… please don’t leave me all alone…”
Thorn wiped his eyes, and took a deep breath. “It took me nearly a decade, but I managed to create a spell that would send me back in time to Alduin’s return. From there, I would help my past self defeat Alduin and prevent this future from ever happening.”
Celestia said nothing for a few moments. “…I hope that you were absolutely certain about doing this, Spike. Even with the Elements of Harmony, there’s no guarantee that we’ll be able to send you back to your own time.”
“It’s fine- it isn’t like I have much of a home to go back to. And besides, I’d probably do more good here than I would sitting around in the future feeling sorry for myself.”
“Fair enough, I suppose.” Celestia stood up. “But Spike? I suggest that you keep this discussion between us, for now at least.”
As she walked away, he looked back at her. “They have every right to know the truth about what’ll happen. If they ask, I will tell them.”
Her horn began to glow. “And you have every right to. But I think we should avoid putting them under any more undue stress. Things are going to be difficult enough for them as it is.”
Thorn felt a ripple, there was a flash of light… and then the Princess was gone.