“What are you? What do you mean to me?” Spike directed his questions to the word carved into the rock. Suddenly, he was aware of a tall figure who slipped into the cave unnoticed. He turned around and delayed a happy reunion to ask, “Did I make you up all along, did I make everything up? Did I imagine that creatures die and then live again? Was I really alone down here?”
“You tell me.”
“Because you don’t exist without me?” Spike sulked.
“No.” The knight knelt down and rested a kind hand on Spike’s shoulder, “Because what you believe is what truly matters.”
Spike narrowed his eyes, “I don’t understand.”
“We define our own realities. I can’t force you to believe in me or everything you’ve seen. That choice belongs to you.”
“But even if I believe, that doesn’t mean you exist. Does it?”
“Your choice to believe makes me exist very close and very near to your heart,” the knight smiled.
“But will any of my friends see you? If they can’t see you, doesn’t that mean you’re not real?”
“Perhaps, but then again perhaps not.”
“You don’t know?”
“You haven’t decided.”
“…”
“…”
“Well, you’re real to me. I don’t know if that makes me insane, but I believe in you. Even if you’re not physically there, you’re still there. I know because you’re a part of me or,” Spike nearly lost himself in the thought, “maybe I’m a part of you. One way or another, we’re connected. So you must be real, at least to me.”
Sir Knight gave no response, but nodded in agreement.
“But is the miracle of Underworld real? Please tell me that isn’t my imagination.”
“Did you believe in it before you saw it?”
Spike shook his head, “I only really understood when I opened my mind.”
“Having seen it personally, do you now believe it could exist regardless what your logic says?”
“Nothing down here should exist. This place shouldn’t exist in its own right. But I guess there is a difference between ‘should’ and ‘could.’ Given everything I’ve seen, I think, yes, that miracle could exist in a place like this. Even if it didn’t, this world is a miracle in itself.”
“Even with its flaws and dangers?”
“Especially with its dangers. It makes the existence of beauty so much more precious.”
“Indeed.” The knight chuckled and Spike’s lips unconsciously curled into a smile. Waves of comfort washed over him as they shared a truly enlightening moment. The air around him changed minutely and Spike realized their time together was coming to an end.
“One last thing. You’ve been guiding me since the beginning. Telling me how to survive. Well, I’ve survived. But now, after what I did, I’m not sure surviving is what I want anymore. I want to move on. I want to get back to my life before this whole mess happened. But I don’t know how. Please, tell me how to forget burning those creatures.”
“I can’t make you forget your actions, and even then forgetting might not be the answer. When repress our feelings, I doubt it does anyone around us any good.”
“Then what do I do? If you can’t help me, who can?”
“Think, little dragon. Why did you want to survive?”
“I wanted to get back home to my friends.”
“Face your actions. But do so, knowing they are forever by your side. With them, your task is no longer merely surviving.”
Sir Knight turned to the wall where he wrote “Survive” and motioned Spike to follow him. He drew his sword and plunged the tip into the rock, as though it was butter. He reached for Spike’s tiny hands and placed them on the hilt beside his burly hands. Together, they wrote one new word, slicing through the stone with no effort. As Sir Knight sheathed his sword, he placed Spike’s palm over the newly formed marks, letting him absorb the new message.
The knight turned to Spike, “Your new task will not be easy, but now, you no longer have to rely on yourself alone or me.”
“I’m just,” Spike pulled his hand back, “I’m not sure I deserve to.”
“Your friends certainly want you to. They’ve journeyed all the way down here to give you closure and never once pushed you away. You don't have to forgive or forget but you do have to move on. If not for yourself, then for your friends. They worry about you and will go to any lengths to help you. Friends like that are hard to find,” Sir Knight looked at him with another compassionate smile, “and they love you, Spike. Don’t take that for granted.”
As the vision dimmed and the shadows grew, Sir Knight addressed the drake for the final time. “I’ve done my duty. I’ve helped you survive this world so you could return home. What happens now, is up to you. But remember, there is no greater miracle than reuniting with your loved ones.”
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
“What? Impossible!” Arch Mage stared in horror as the castle doors fell, revealing Sir Knight with a sword in hand. His body was battered, discolored with bruises, but he stood before the wicked wizard like a vengeful phantom. Trapped in her bubble, the princess looked on, bliss evident in her eyes. Arch Mage had yet to complete the power transference and knew he had to buy time, “I cast you into the earth. You should be dead.”
The knight raced through waves of foes, cutting them down with ease. Behind him, monsters from deep within the earth joined his assault, pushing back thousands of soldiers as Sir Knight made a beeline straight for the Arch Mage. The princess grinned. Somehow, her knight had befriended the creatures banished beneath the ground and now led them. She never ceased to marvel at his bravery. Quickly, the princess prepared a spell. All she needed was one chance to empower Sir Knight and Arch Mage wouldn’t stand a chance. The stallion raised his staff, ready to summon a crimson bolt. Sir Knight was feet away when Arch Mage released his lightning; both were staking everything on their next move. Sir Knight intercepted the lightning with his sword, barely halting the flow of electricity from overwhelming his body. Arch Mage intensified his lightning, hairline fractures formed on the blade. At that moment, Sir Knight released a dagger hidden in his sleeve at Arch Mage. The stallion snorted as he easily plucked the blade from midair, but realized the dagger was only a distraction as Sir Knight’s sword imbued with powerful lightning flew into the princess’ bubble.
She was free. In an instant, she threw the sword back to her savior, imbued him with magical strength, and fired a concentrated blast straight at the tyrant. He barely had time to shield himself, as the aura burned his mane and nearly blinded him. Sir Knight swung his sword at the emperor’s staff. They made contact and sent a shrill ringing through the land. Their powerful magic collided, flooding the entire castle with white light. SNAP! In one final burst, the light vanished. The wizard’s staff splintered in half. Deprived of his magical weapon, the princess sealed the mage in her own impenetrable bubble. Seeing their leader captured, the remaining soldiers fled. The monsters howled with battle cries of victory.
“I don’t understand,” Arch Mage growled through the bubble, “How did you survive that fall?”
Sir Knight stared at the emperor, who shriveled as the princess drained his remaining magic. He opened his lips and spoke in a ragged voice that had seen trials, “I don’t expect you to understand. The thought of her majesty suffering under you spurred me on, kept me from dying. Knowing I had to return to her was all I needed to survive.”
“Arch Mage,” the princess glowered, sending dark chills down the wizard’s spine. “For crimes against Equestria and the royal guard, I sentence you to imprisonment in Tartarus. There, you will spend the rest of your days for attempting to usurp the throne.”
In a flash of lightning, the bubble and Arch Mage vanished. With the battle won, she turned to her knight and tackled him, wrapping her hooves around him. Slowly, he returned her embrace, still ashamed he allowed this situation. The princess sensed this reluctance as she took a step back and looked at him with confusion.
“Forgive me, your majesty.” He knelt on the ground and bowed his head. “In my foolishness, I let him take you and nearly endangered Equestria.”
She covered his lips with her hoof and smiled kindly, “None of us could have foreseen these events. Not you or I. The only villain here has been dealt with, and will never plague Equestria again. And you, my brave knight gave me courage when I had none. You’ve ensured peace for generations. I’m happy to have you home.”
They shared another embrace, overjoyed at their reunion, before turning to the castle doors and returning home.
“Twilight, Spike! It’s time for dinner!” Twilight Velvet’s voice sounded from the kitchen.
Twilight removed her crown and turned to Spike, “Thanks for doing this, Spike. It’s been so much fun.”
To her surprise, Spike bowed once again, “Anything for you, your majesty.”
She chuckled then dropped into a fit of laughter, which Spike soon joined. They fell on the floor guffawing. When the laughter subsided, Twilight laid on the floor gazing upon the drake. She couldn’t help smiling.
“Hey Spike,” she tapped her fore hooves nervously, “maybe we could do this again sometime?”
“Anything for you, Twilight,” Spike smiled as they stood back up.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Snapping herself from a daydream, Twilight stared at the cave with concern. After nearly half an hour, there was no visible movement coming from the cave. She did feel a slight change in the air emanating from the cave but no sign of Spike. The alicorn didn’t want to enter the cave and potentially disrupt Spike, but she was getting worried. Just then, Spike’s figure emerged from the darkness. He tackled Twilight in a hug, digging his face into her fur.
“Spike?” Twilight noticed tears on Spike’s face, tempered with a smile. “So, what did you find out?”
“It doesn’t really matter,” Spike wiped tears from his eyes. “Sir Knight told me exactly what I needed to hear. I haven’t forgiven myself, I’m not sure I ever will, but now that I have all of you I’m ready to move on. You’re all the strength I need,” He smiled at his friends and touched his heart. “It feels like a huge weight’s been lifted off my chest.”
Baffled for a moment, the ponies stood confused at the dragon’s sudden change in demeanor but when Pinkie Pie broke the silence with a cheer, the mood quickly lightened. Twilight rubbed Spike’s little head, until Spike looked up with an adventurous grin.
“Hey, Twilight,” he excitedly beamed, “Do you think we could all go around Underworld a little? There’s so much I want to show you. Pinkie Pie’s got to see the Pinkie Pie Sand, AJ could use the sore fruit as pest repellent for her apples.” Spike widened with new ideas, “I’ve got to introduce Rainbow Dash to Speedy so they can race, and Big Cow would love to meet Fluttershy.”
“This isn’t a petting zoo, Spike.” Twilight interjected.
“Come one, Twilight. Ever since we got here you’ve been staring at the glow vines and wonder moss,” Spike teased. “I know you want to collect samples.”
He wasn’t wrong. One of first things on her mind at seeing this world was how the plant life functioned. Of course, Twilight didn’t want to take any risks without receiving her friends’ approval and proceeding with utmost caution.
“I wouldn’t mind doin’ a little explorin’,” Applejack smiled at Twilight.
“Sounds like fun,” Rainbow Dash smirked. Gradually, her friends all voiced their interest in exploring the jungle. The loudest voice was Fluttershy, who so very much wanted to meet the animals.
“Alright, that settles that. But we have to promise to stick together at all times.” Twilight turned to Spike, “I’m sure Fluttershy could handle any creature that comes our way, and I could fight it off if needed, but are you really ready to go through this place again after everything you’ve been through?”
“Yes, I’m ready to face this world with all of you.” Spike led them back into the forest and pointed them to the river where he met Pinchy. Twilight placed Spike on her back and followed his directions, treading carefully across the leaf litter. As they neared the sounds of rolling water, Twilight found herself locked under the forest’s spell.
“I’ve got to say. This place is something else.” She turned to Spike, “There’s really something special about this place.”
“Could we keep it a secret?” Spike asked. “I don’t want anyone to come here and exploit Underworld’s resources.”
“Sounds like a plan.” Twilight nodded her agreement. This world was beautiful and should stay that way.
“I can still keep some Pinkie Pie Sand, right?” Pinkie Pie bounced with eager childlike eyes. They shared a laugh before agreeing so long as she kept the sand secret. Twilight would have to keep her nature samples and future experiments hidden from prying eyes and Rarity would keep her Underworld gemstones as a private token.
“Pinkie, sorry about turning down your party offer earlier,” Spike interrupted the pink pony’s little dance. “When we get back home, if you’re still offering to throw a welcome home party, I’d love to –.”
“You’ll come?” Pinkie Pie grinned, “Yay! A party wouldn’t be any fun if you weren’t there, especially if it was for you.” This prompted another round of laughter. Twilight lead them through the trees to the hidden world, opening her mind to the miracles around her and the most impressive miracle sitting on her back.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Behind on the cave, one new word was written on the wall, a word that summed up Spike’s new task, “Live.”
The End