Spike's Shadow

by DraconequusMaximus

Mission Briefing

Sombra stared triumphantly at his latest, if admittedly smallest conquest. Coffee was brewing, testament to his newly acquired skills at operating his first modern-day device. Spike had not only instructed him on how to brew the glorious substance, but also briefly described the drink's many variants that he graciously promised to allow Sombra to try at the earliest opportunity.

Spike had even delegated Sombra's authority to a specific coffee mug that Lyra used her magic on to permanently say SOMBRA in bold white letters across it's black surface.

Spike had afterwards taken over cooking, meaning Bon Bon and Lyra could eat while Spike made himself, Sombra, and the crusaders food. Spike watched Sombra patiently waiting for his next caffeine fix, a smile gracing his muzzle.

"I'm glad you're at least enjoying some of the small victories in life, Sombra. I was kinda worried that maybe I was introducing you to too many ponies in a short period of time. I'm a pretty social guy, but I've noticed that you get a little anxious now and again around people you aren't familiar with.

"I'd love to give you some solo time, but I'd say it's gonna have to wait till later. Maybe we could play a board game or something? That sound good?" Spike asked, momentarily taking his focus away from the stove top.

Sombra looked at Spike, standing there with his mouth open. He was relatively out of words, what with Spike having voiced everything Sombra hadn't known he wanted to say. Spike's ability to read people was rather astonishing, at least from Sombra's almost alien perspective.

Eventually Sombra realized he was likely looking stupid, allowing him to make the decision of merely replying instead of complicating things.

"I'm not particularly familiar with many games, though I believe I know how to play chess. I would assume the game has survived the ages? Would you happen to have a set?" Sombra asked, intent on taking Spike up on his offer.

Spike nodded, glad to see Sombra hadn't taken offense to the accusations.

"That I do. The pieces look like either the night or day guards and either royal sister. Celestia got it as a gift some time ago, but she wasn't very fond of the implications so she gave it to me." Spike replied, having turned his gaze back to his cooking.

With that simple affirmation, both Spike and Sombra's moods improved whether they realized it or not.

After some serious cooking, Spike and Sombra returned from the kitchen with a cart full of plates for them and the crusaders. The top level of the cart was of course for Spike alone, as Spike had a truly tremendous mountain of assorted breakfast dishes. The wing emergence had eaten up a lot of the calories in his body, and phoenix tears or no Spike's body needed fuel to heal properly.

After making sure everyone had something to eat Spike almost literally inhaled his food at an astonishing rate. It would be rude to talk and eat at the same time, so wolfing the food down beforehand would make reading the mission dossier aloud easier.

Or at the very least more polite.

Spike retrieved the manilla envelope from under his wing once more, laying it out on the table for all to see. The crusaders, Lyra, and Bon Bon all awed at the sterling silver seal of the princess of the night. Sombra wasn't particularly impressed, but believed the envelope's contents would likely be helpful to the mission at hoof.

As soon as everyone had taken in the importance of it, Spike broke the seal and carefully laid it's contents out across the table in front of him.

The first thing Spike went for was a fold-out map of the continent of Equus that held Equestria, The Crystal Empire, and New Griffonstone. Luna, or maybe Celestia, had drawn a red path through the map, with lines breaking the path into small segments, each labeled with dates.

Once unfolded a small piece of paper fell out, revealed to be a more elaborate explanation of the dates and locations. As well as a short summary of the temple's year-round path. At a glance it was easy to see why it took Celestia and Luna several millenniums to track perfectly. The temple never truly stops, just occasionally slows down.

"The hay is this thing?" Scootaloo asked, squinting to read the dates on the map.

"That's the flight path of the flying temple, where the gemstone is. It travels in a continuous path around the world and has for who knows how long. This quarter of the year it's over the continent of Equus, according to the map. But, it's leaving towards The Sundered Lands in less than two weeks.

"It's too high up for ponies to fly up to safely, but Celestia and Luna have kept tabs on it one way or another over time apparently. It's something like three times the size of Canterlot Castle if their estimates are right." Spike replied, taking the map back and laying it out on the table.

Everyone took turns looking over the flight path for a few minutes, seeing it flew over the heavily populated areas much longer than others. Canterlot, Manehattan, Rainbow Falls, and other large cities were the places with the most time. Smaller cities and sparsely populated regions were quickly passed by for an unknown reason.

"So what, it just floats around? Not doin' nothin?" Apple Bloom asked skeptically.

"Apparently. It's been doing it for ages, and it's never hurt anyone. Plus there isn't anyone inside either if Celestia and Luna are right. Whatever it was used for, or whoever it was built for is lost to time. Sombra and I'll probably be the first ones up there in thousands of years." Spike explained.

Apple Bloom picked up the next piece of information from the envelope, a rough sketch of what the temple looked like.

It was a castle-like building made of countless stone blocks.

It wasn't all that remarkable, but it had many small spires with one large spire in the center of the ring. All in all, it was vaguely reminiscent of a crown, but squared. According to the bottom of the page it was done by an explorer named Rock Wall atop Smokey Mountain in western Equestria over a century ago.

The high elevation and the cleaner air in the region's past likely made the mountaintop the only place to see the place clearly.

"Other than the fact that it flies, I fail to see anything truly unusual about it." Sombra remarked.

Spike stared at the drawing a bit longer, as if he saw something the others didn't. Though after a few more seconds Spike dismissed it as paranoia and moved on. However when he looked up from the sketch Spike did notice something that had gotten stuck inside the envelope which was now in the middle of the table.

"Sweetie Belle, check what's left in the envelope. Would you?" Spike asked, pointing to the envelope.

Sweetie Belle levitated two rectangular slips of card-paper from the envelope, examining them with a critical eye.

"Two train tickets, good for a round trip from Ponyville Station to... 'Farrier's Gulch'? Where's that? I've been all over the place for concerts, but I've never even heard of it." Sweetie wondered aloud.

Spike brought the map closer to himself, looking around the area of the San Palomino Desert.

It was a mainly unpopulated area, the lowest population density on the whole continent actually. The whole region was hot all year round, and efforts to import clouds hadn't met with much success. Natural weather patterns had to suffice, making the area a scorcher year-round.

The spot on the map representing Farrier's Gulch so small that even Spike's dragon eyes had difficulty seeing it.

"Farrier's Gulch." Spike pointed out on the map. "Look's like it's the last stop before the San Palomino Desert."

"Why do ya gotta do this while the temple's over there?" Apple Bloom inquired.

"Because it's the only place without any ponies for miles around. Chances are, when I take the gem it's gonna drop out of the sky. Tons and tons of stone dropping fifteen thousand feet in a populated area wouldn't end well." Spike replied seriously.

Nopony disagreed with that reasoning, allowing the group to look over the next item from the envelope. This time it was Bon Bon who took up the next item.

It was a small piece of card-paper. It was just a bit smaller than the train tickets, more or less the size of an average business card one might take from the front desk at a doctor's office.

"Reservation card for one room for two, under reserve by the Crown of Equestria. Credentials must be presented at front desk to receive key." Bon Bon read off the card.

Bon Bon passed the card to Spike for a closer look.

The information Bon Bon had just read was hoof-written, likely by an earth pony or pegasus judging by the penmanship. Flipping the card over, Spike found it was indeed a professionally made business card, complete with the name of the inn and an address.

The Sleep-In Inn.

001 Farrier's Gulch, San Palomino Province

The best, (and only) inn in town!

"Huh, guess that's where Sombra and I'll be staying the night before the mission." Spike said to himself, placing the card back on the table.

Lyra took the opportunity to snatch up the next piece of information.

A small, black, faux-leather booklet with the royal seal of all four princesses in each of it's corners against it's black cover with the seal of the government in the center. It looked something like a passport, but fancier. Upon opening it everyone saw a picture of Spike, or at least his head, and a claw-print in the place a picture of a cutie mark would normally go.

Name: Spike T. Dragon
Titles: Duke of Equestria, Knight (Equestria/Crystal Empire), Heir of Castle Twilight
Species: Dragon
Height: >10ft.
Weight: >3000 Lbs.
Date of Birth: July 10th 990 A.B. (7/10/90)
Citizenship: Royal/Dual - Equestria/Crystal Empire
Magical: Yes
Address: 001 Everfree Place, Ponyville

Lyra read the information out loud, prompting Spike to snatch up the ID in a huff.

"That would be my new ID and new royal passport, which is long overdue. I haven't had it updated since I was twelve when I was only ass-high." Spike complained.

The crusaders and even Sombra laughed at Spike's misfortune while Spike glared pure, unadulterated hate at them. Bon Bon had chuckled into her hoof, but had the decency to keep her manners about her. Spike grumbled, but proceeded to pick up the next item from the envelope.

It was a booklet similar to Spike's passport, but there was only one seal on it's cover. It was the seal used by the Equestrian Government as a whole for any number of things. Instead of black it was a gray color.

Opening the booklet, Spike briefly glanced at it's contents before passing it to Sombra.

Sombra accepted the booklet and saw that it was a passport of sorts, though much different from Spike's. There was a picture of Sombra scowling at someone, likely provided by Discord's magic. In the space a cutie mark would go was a black 'N/A' for not applicable.

Name: Sombra
Status: Probationary Citizen of Equestria
Species: Unicorn
Height: 5' 1"
Weight: 137 lbs.
Date of Birth: Unknown
Parole Officer/Immediate Superior: Spike T. Dragon
Magical: Yes
Permanent Address: Unknown
Temporary Address: 001 Everfree Place, Ponyville

Sombra read his meager stats, unsurprised that they hadn't yielded any significant new information. There wasn't anything about Sombra to know other than some data that could be gleaned from a cursory inspection.

Sombra closed the book and left it in front of himself. To keep their briefing going Sombra grabbed a strange device from the items amongst the manilla envelope's former occupants and gave it a cursory examination of his own.

Once satisfied that he was out of his depth Sombra passed the item off to Spike.

It was what appeared to be a digital watch, but there were no buttons of any sort on it. Spike turned it over, finding a small note taped to the underside. Once Spike had removed the note he unfolded it, seeing what he knew to be Celestia's horn-writing.

Dear Spike,

This watch is set to start itself when you need to begin your ascent to the temple. It has a countdown of twenty-four hours, after the watch hits zero it will be too risky to take the gem. We have complete faith in you, Spike. Just be careful up there, we don't know exactly what to expect.

Your friend, Celestia

P.S. Discord has been acting strange since Sombra returned. He knows more than he's saying, keep an eye out.

Spike read the note aloud, but omitted the last bit. He'd talk to Sombra about it later, but the crusaders were liable to try and get Discord to talk if they knew. It was just in their nature to get too far in over their heads.

More importantly, Spike felt the need to check the map again.

Going over the map with Celestia's note in mind, Spike saw that the temple stayed over the desert for almost exactly twenty-four hours. If he missed this chance, Spike would be forced to wait almost another year to get the gemstone within the temple. Time Spike and Sombra didn't have.

There were too many islands between Equestria and the Sundered Lands to risk an attempt over sea, otherwise that would be a much smarter route. If they risked waiting until it was over the Sundered Lands or another country an international incident could break out, or even war. This really would be the only shot they'd have.

Spike decided to try and not think about the time constraints, and instead picked up the last piece of information that had come from the manilla envelope. The dossier itself.

Upon reading the small packet, Spike's head was abuzz with facts and figures.

Math had never been Spike's favorite subject during his homeschooling. History, dates, stories, names, philosophy, anything other than math was what he was good at. Simple things like addition and subtraction were easy, and multiplication was also doable, along with some division.

Anything more complex was where Spike began to struggle.

Spike was a remarkably bright person, but the cold logic behind numbers was something he couldn't grasp. Any other subject allowed him to get emotionally invested to some degree, but not math. Spike passed the packet to Apple Bloom who was currently working on an engineering degree.

Apple Bloom gladly accepted the dossier, eager to devour the information.

"Flight trajectories an' wind speed estimates, temperature indexes, an' stuff like that. Pretty detailed work too. Musta sent weather balloons and stuff on up to let you know how ya need to prepare." Apple Bloom deciphered.

"I'm glad you can make sense of it. I had no idea what half the stuff even was." Spike said, recovering from the urge to pout.

Apple Bloom nodded, not even bothering to look up from the dossier.

"Accordin' t' this, it's gonna be awful cold up there. You and Sombra really could freeze up there if y'all don't prepare properly." Bloom told Spike, agreeing with the dossier.

Spike nodded, taking it into consideration.

"I'm temperature controlled. By mission-day I'll be back to full health and the fire in my belly can keep me toasty. That just leaves the question of how to keep Sombra warm. He'll have to ride on my back, and I still need to find a suitable harness for him to be able to ride safely." Spike replied, dismissing some of the immediate concerns.

Apple Bloom tapped her hoof against her chin, looking back over the dossier again.

"Ya got some paper an' a pen I could borrow?" Apple Bloom asked Spike.

Without being prompted, Lyra used her magic to open a drawer in the china cabinet across the room. A moment later, the items Apple Bloom had requested floated over to the appreciative mare. Apple Bloom wasted no time in getting to work, using the facts and figures of the dossier as a reference material.

After a few minutes of note-taking, Apple Bloom looked up from her work.

"Scootaloo, there's a tape measure in mah bag. Could you get it and go take Spike's measurements for me?" Apple Bloom asked in a tone that sounded more commanding than asking.

Spike and Scootaloo both stood up, adhering to Apple Bloom's orders. Everyone else watched the scene with interest, wanting to know where things were going.

Scootaloo retrieved the tape measure and began her work, taking all Spike's measurements. Spike blushed the majority of the exercise, embarrassed by how large the figures were when compared to the average pony. Toward the end of the measurement taking however Spike was grimacing in discomfort.

Getting his wingspan and measuring the width of his back and area between his wings caused some rather painful reactions, bothering Spike in his tender state. Spike gritted his teeth and did it anyway, knowing that Apple Bloom wouldn't needlessly subject him to anything painful.

"Now do Sombra, an' try and guess a weight for me." Apple Bloom ordered once her original demands had been met.

"I'd say no more than one-thirty-five, give or take. An extra forty or fifty if he's in full armor. I can carry a literal ton without a lot of difficulty, so weight probably isn't an issue." Spike chimed in, saving Sombra the embarrassment of being mare-handled by Scootaloo that much.

Apple Bloom nodded, while Scootaloo took Sombra's remaining measurements. Sombra was thoroughly unamused, but figured that if whatever Apple Bloom was cooking up could prevent him from freezing it would be worth it.

"Wow, for a stallion you're crazy light. You look a lot bigger than that." Sweetie Belle announced as Scootaloo kept Sombra occupied. While Scootaloo had him in an awkward position Sombra couldn't retaliate when she decided to poke him experimentally," Oh neat. You're like, forty percent fluff, and underneath you're really scrawny."

Sombra huffed, unhappy with Sweetie's description.

"I lived in the Crystal Empire a thousand years ago. It was cold, so naturally my fur must have gotten longer to accommodate me better or something of the like. I've never needed brawn before, since while I was a villain I had more power than any other stallion on the planet." Sombra groused unhappily back at Sweetie Belle.

"No need to get defensive Sombra. Sweetie didn't mean anything by it. Unique qualities are what make people interesting. You're a little more unique than most, but it gives you a sorta mysterious quality, you know?" Spike told Sombra, trying to comfort him.

Sombra's annoyance was smothered to a dull muttering, but a slight blush was evident on his face.

Sombra found himself feeling a little flustered, and without realizing he was doing it Sombra avoided Spike's eyes. Sombra wasn't paying attention to Scootaloo who was in the seat beside him either, not noticing her lean towards him.

"So are you like, Spike's coltfriend or something? I know you're possessed or a demon or whatever, but Spike's a dragon so I imagine he's open to a lot of things. If you two are trying to keep it on the down-low I totally get it. Me and Sweetie Belle kept things quiet for the first few months, test the waters. Right?"

Sombra turned to face Scootaloo who seemed totally innocent, not wanting to alert anyone else. Sombra looked around, making sure no one else could hear him.

"I do not have a romantic interest in Spike. Spike is merely teaching me how to become a relatively normal pony, and in return I am assisting him with destroying the demon within me. Besides, I imagine Spike has enough to deal with, what with saving the world and all."

Sombra felt satisfied with his answer, turning back to face front again.

"That's too bad. I'd say the big guy's got the hots for you." Scootaloo whispered back, catching Sombra off guard.

Sombra chose to ignore Scootaloo entirely.

Even though as soon as that had been said, the empty pulsating sensation in Sombra's chest returned.

Sombra chose to ignore it as well. Sombra knew he couldn't be having feelings for Spike beyond friendship. Sombra barely understood friendship as is, and to think he was experiencing a more powerful emotion was quite preposterous to Sombra.

Even if the beating heart in Sombra's chest might have had other thoughts, if Sombra was capable of understanding it.

"There we go. Ah've designed a lightweight, insulated pod equipped with an oxygen mask fer Sombra. If you front the bill, Spike, I can get the materials and have it made in about five days." Apple Bloom informed Spike, passing him the design.

Spike angled the sketch so Sombra could see it as well.

Sombra was infinitely grateful for the distraction.

The design reminded Spike of the cockpit of the concept vehicle the minotaurs had tried to sell Equestria several years ago. Given the fact that about a third of the country could fly under their own power the minotaurs had gotten laughed out of the throne room, but the design had still been impressive in retrospect.

Spike looked over the included list of required materials: surgical tubing, an air tank, sheet metal, fiberglass, and some other things Spike wasn't familiar with. All in all, the cost seemed justified, and judging by the sketch it wouldn't hinder flight at all. Spike nodded his consent, passing the design back to Apple Bloom.

Spike got up from his seat without excusing himself. Everyone watched as Spike walked over to the china cabinet Lyra had retrieved the pen and pad from earlier.

Spike grabbed either side of the cabinet with his tremendous hands and moved it out of the way rather effortlessly, barely making the glassware inside rattle at all.

Behind the china cabinet was more than just bare wall. There was a large safe built into the wall, set back a bit so the handle wouldn't stop the cabinet from pressing against the wall. Spike closed his eyes as he grabbed the dial and pressed his ear to the wall, turning it either way, listening for distinct clicks.

After a moment, Spike pulled the door open, revealing several bulging bags of gold and various other valuables. To most ponies it was a small fortune, but to Spike it was just a starting finance for a long life.

"Holy crap Spike, is that your hoard?" Scootaloo asked excitedly, literally flying from her seat to the dragon's side in what couldn't have been more than a second and a half.

"No. Just money. I only put about as much value on it as a pony would, but the dragon in me just doesn't trust banks. I keep a savings account with interest for the future, but it's nothing right now." Spike responded nonchalantly.

Spike grabbed a medium-sized bag from within the safe and tossed it onto the table in front of Apple Bloom. The bag made a loud thunk.

Apple Bloom tried to lift the bag, managing with obvious effort.

"I'd say that'd cover it. Probably more than one even. But why'd ya shut yer eyes when ya opened the safe?" Apple Bloom asked.

"I can hear the tumblers shift, so the numbers are irrelevant. That means nopony could steal the combo from me. Plus I like feeling like a safe-cracker." Spike replied, shutting the safe door with his tail.

Apple Bloom giggled and rolled her eyes, slipping the bag of bits into her bag.

"Well, Ah'm gonna need you to fly to Canterlot College of Constructive Arts an' show off the pod t' mah instructor eventually, but other than that Ah'm ready to roll. Ah'll bring y'all the finished product for testin', then Ah'll be able t' iron out any minor flaws before the actual mission." Apple Bloom told Spike and the group.

Apple Bloom packed up her design and the gold and headed for the door. Scootaloo and Sweetie joined her, as the crusaders were still nigh inseparable. Even if neither would have much interest in the business of what Apple Bloom was doing they'd still stick with her.

"Thanks for having us, Spike." Sweetie thanked Spike.

"And for the grub." Scootaloo added.

"And the extra gold." Apple Bloom said gratefully.

"Don't be strangers. Even with all the crazy crap going on, I can always make time." Spike waved as they headed out.

Almost right after the crusaders were gone Bon Bon stood up and kissed Lyra passionately, causing the mare to melt like vanilla-mint swirl ice cream. A seemingly constant reaction, Sombra noticed. Bon was all the way to the kitchen doorway by the time Lyra recovered.

"I should really head out too. I really appreciate you letting me hang around though, Spike, Sombra. We should double date sometime." Bon Bon said sweetly as she walked into the kitchen on her way out.

Both Spike and Sombra looked to Lyra with looks set to kill, causing Lyra to smile nervously.

"Hey Bonny, lemme walk you home!" Lyra yelled out while keeping a nervous eye on her companions.

In a flash of golden light, Lyra was gone. Obviously having teleported into the living room. Spike just face-clawed, while Sombra contemplated whether or not a minor act of revenge was appropriate in this situation. Something non-violent or not harmful, like putting poison joke extract on her pillow or something.

Zecora could likely help him with that.

"You wanna go take a nap, and then maybe play some chess? I'm pretty sure neither of us slept last night, and the next few days are gonna be a lot of work." Spike proposed after a moment.

"Fine. The coffee is beginning to wear off anyway." Sombra grumbled, getting out of his seat and heading out of the room.

Spike momentarily wondered if he was reading too much into things, or if Lyra was getting to him.

Soon Spike pushed it out of his head, hoping to get a little sleep before anything else happened. Spike didn't even notice Peewee land on his comb as he headed out into the hall after Sombra. Right now sleep was all that mattered, and it was a welcome distraction to all sorts of problems.

Author's Note:

For Spike's birth-date I made it ten years before Luna's return, and had originally planned to use the episode Secret of My Excess's air date for the number, but unfortunately it happened in December while the episode clearly took place in summer, so I switched it to July while keeping the number 10 from the air date.

Also, in this head-canon that makes Twilight Sparkle's birthday July 3rd via the same method. The episode Sweet and Elite with her birthday in it aired exactly seven days before Secret of My Excess, making Spike's birthday a week after her's exactly. Or at least for this purpose.

I decided to leave the ID info to the side so it'd look more official. I tried centering it, but it just didn't look right. :duck The formatting still kinda bugs me.

Sombra and Spike are both getting vibes off of each other, but neither one wants to admit it. Sombra because he has literally no idea how to. Spike because he thinks it would be wrong to put that kind of emotional strain on Sombra.

Which, you know, is the right thing to do. It suuuucks, but it is. Spike really likes being with him, but doesn't think the situation allows for it. Even though he wants it to happen.

He also worries that he's projecting feelings onto Sombra because he's the only available immortal. Spike couldn't live with himself if he did something so shallow as to enter an extremely long-term relationship for that reason.

Anyway, more to come. Hopefully I can keep my schedule. I've been tempted to reveal a few things here and there, but I've been good. Lol. A handful of chapters left until the next gem, which the obtaining of will be quite eventful.

Thanks for reading as always, and your support is what keeps me going. See you all next week!

Comments

[Zombificus]

Great chapter, and it's good to see Spike and Sombra beginning to realise they have feelings for each other, even if neither is really ready to accept it right now. I like a good, well-paced romance, and this is certainly moving along at the right pace for me. Keep up the good work, and I look forward to the next chapter.

[DraconequusMaximus]

6164335 You have no idea how much that comment means to me. I freak out about the pacing all the time. Thank you!

[Lord Olympius]

Zombificus is right you right the romance you've written is one of the best I seen.
Personally I thought you were going to make a weight joke on Spike not Sombra but it was funny . Sombra is not fat his fuffy. Also Spike's height was funny to.
Also I can't wait for them to talk about how Sombra doesn't a cutie make that is just going to bleed drama.
Finally I know I've said this before but I feel even more of a Zelda vibe from this, Twilight Princess to be specific. I feel Sombra and Midna have a lot in common.

[Bad_Seed_72]

Pacing is spot-on. Another nice update from you, as always. I'm digging engineer AB. Spike and Sombra have quite the adventure ahead of them, I see...

[Nameless cow]

The design reminded Spike of the cockpit of the concept vehicle the minotaurs had tried to sell Equestria several years ago. Given the fact that about a third of the country could fly under their own power the minotaurs had gotten laughed out of the throne room, but the design had still been impressive in retrospect.

It's that kind of attitude that turns dreamers into nightmares
Just ask Flim and Flam from The Rise of Darth Vulcan