”Ugh… maybe I’m having a nightmare. Maybe I just ate one too many of those ’Pinkie’s Super-Special Cupcakes’ and am right now being hurried to a hospital, unconscious and drooling on a stretcher”, Twilight mused. As dream-like as her situation seemed, she didn’t really believe it.
She looked at the retractable ladder fixed to the floor next to the hatch she had just climbed up from. The ladder now led down to the impossible hallway, mocking her with the easy means of escape it had offered. ”’Always stay aware’… believe me, I will. I’ll find the way out of here, whatever it takes. I’m not letting that insufferable snob play with me!” Her fury died down as she looked around. ”The question is – where should I start?”
Around the pony was a cavern – a massive underground area, its walls filled with damp tunnels leading Celestia knows where; gaping holes from ground level to unreachable heights. The place was sparsely lit by strange lamps pointing their harsh cones of light from the walls they were firmly attached to. Twilight walked to the nearest wall – the glowing square of the trapdoor now a barely visible slit from this distance – and inspected one of the lamps curiously.
It was made from a material unknown to the scholar; strong as metal but somehow softer, neither cold from the chilling cave air nor warm near the light source on its end. The light itself emanated from something too bright to see - and too hot to touch, as Twilight found out after bringing her hoof near it. Her magical inspection only found a smooth, seamless surface to the object, not letting her probe inside. Her curiosity remained unsatisfied.
Snapping back to reality, Twilight shivered at the thought of being lost to this maze. But at least there was some hope this time; a more reasonable chance of finding at least something than when trapped in the hallway. She once again extended her magic out, feeling inside the tunnels, slowly turning her head around.
Her work was suddenly interrupted by an echoing sound; a shrill metallic screech that made her wince. It was followed by a voice she quickly recognized, the echo making it multiply confusingly.
”Hello? I know you’re there dear. Congratulations on passing the first test and learning your first lesson here. Don’t get overconfident though – that was the easiest one”, Roue mocked the lost unicorn.
Twilight quickly considered whether it was better to snap back at her tormentor or to ask for help. Before she could open her mouth however, Roue continued.
”It’s no use; I can’t hear you. But you can hear me. Find me and we’ll get you ready for your next test.”
Before the echoes had died down, Twilight started marching in the general direction of where the voice had come, determined to get the upper hand in this game. She couldn’t pinpoint the source of the voice to an exact tunnel, but at least there were fewer choices now. As she neared the wall, she looked around carefully for any clues. And a clue she found.
Leading from one tunnel to another, there was a faint trail of liquid; dried, dark droplets on the ground. If that’s what I think it is… whatever left it? Do I even want to know?
A distant scratching could be heard from one of the two tunnels. It only lasted for a few seconds, but Twilight could tell that whatever creature it was, it couldn’t be very big. And if it was bleeding, it might be weakened from the blood loss… perhaps even something, or someone who would accept the unicorn’s help, and could help her in return. Encouraged by the mental image of a bleeding pony, lost like herself, Twilight started quietly creeping through the dark tunnel.
The tunnel quickly became pitch-black, as the light of the lamps couldn’t reach far into it. Twilight slowly felt her way forward, careful to avoid making any noises herself. Along the way she heard some more scratching; something hard against rock, but it didn’t seem to be receding. She began feeling wetness in her hooves; these droplets farther from the cavern hadn’t dried up yet. It had the strong, coppery smell of blood. Soon after the mare could see faint light ahead. Finally emerging from the cramped space, Twilight took a look around.
This was a cave similar to the first one - actually, Twilight thought, starting to feel dizzy - it could have very well been completely identical. She could now see the trail being clearer and wider, suddenly changing near the middle of the room. Something had been dragged – or had dragged itself – from that point onward all the way to a shadow near the far wall, smearing the blood on the floor along its path. Realizing how visible she was, standing in the illumination of one of the lamps, Twilight quickly escaped to a nearby shadow, listening carefully.
After a while of silence, the unicorn started moving forward, continuing along the blood trail, avoiding the harshly lit areas. She had only taken a few steps before she froze, a hoof still in the air. She heard light sobbing from the shadows; it was a voice she had heard before.
Her dear friend. Her number one assistant.
“Spike?” the unicorn whispered, her voice quivering. The sobbing ended.
A form slowly dragged itself from the darkness, looking at his friend.
“T-Twilight…?”
He looked horrible, bruised and with small bleeding cuts that had already expended much of his blood. “Spike! What happened?” Twilight yelled in a panicked voice and ran to the dragon.
“…I followed you.”
"How? Why?! What happened to you?"
Spike didn't answer. Instead, his eyes glazed over as he started convulsing violently, making weird guttural noises. Twilight jumped back in terror as Spike's body began to grow and change. His neck, limbs and tail elongated. The spikes on his back sharpened and his teeth and claws became the deadly weapons of a predator. The fully grown dragon's wings flew open, eclipsing most of the lights behind him and casting a shadow over the awestruck unicorn below. He roared viciously.
"Spike! What..?"
But the beast no longer recognized her. It bellowed and struck at the pony with his tail.
Twilight barely managed to roll out of the way. As the tail smashed the ground, leaving cracks in the solid rock floor, a claw rose up, ready to strike.
"Stop, Spike! It's me!"
Twilight dodged another attack. She worked her panicked brain as quickly as she could. Teleporting out of the way of a massive burst of green flame, feeling it heat up the entire cave, she knew she couldn't escape. She would be roasted alive trying to maneuver through a tunnel and she couldn't simply teleport randomly, hoping to land in another cave or a tunnel instead of inside solid rock.
Twilight knew she had to stop his friend.
She struck him with magic; several weak blows all over his gigantic body, trying to find a weak spot; something to bring him down with as little force as possible. There was nothing. What had been Spike roared again, furiously biting at the unicorn who jumped to the side, feeling her tail narrowly slip from between his teeth.
Twilight was already tired from the physical strain and her useless magical attacks. She couldn't keep evading the barrage of attacks much longer. Desperate, she tried something she had never done before. She used her magic, trying to find the monster's windpipe. If she could reach her magic through his thick scales and skin and suffocate him for a short while, he would surely faint! Yes, there...
Her concentration was broken as the dragon grabbed her in his claw, but she didn't let go of the spell. He started gasping for air, opened his mouth in something resembling fear... and started crushing the unicorn. She cried in pain, starting to feel her bones break. In blind madness she struck with her spell, upwards, as hard as she could, in a desperate attempt to survive.
She fell on the floor. Momentarily stunned, she awaited for death.
When nothing came, she opened her eyes and looked around. Spike - ...yes, whatever had caused this transformaton, he was still his Spike - lay on the cavern floor, motionless. Twilight ran closer, her relief turning to horror.
He was dead. Her spell had struck him too hard, tearing something apart inside him.
"I... Spike..."
As realisation dawned unto her; the understanding of her horrific act in all its extent, the dead body began transforming once more.
This time, as the dragon decreased in size instead of growing, it was surrounded by a light blue glow. It grew painfully bright, but the numb Twilight couldn't move a muscle, not even close her eyes. Ultimately the light vanished, and in front of Twilight stood the form of a pony.
"Lesson two", she spoke with a triumphant voice, "never let emotion disable you".