[Abroad The Lighting Flash.]
Spike sat on the front of the ship's bow contemplating his mission while he idly gazes at the Banshou Fan. The ride to Saddle Arabia was going smoothly. Tien was below the deck. The basement has a built in sparring room, and he thought it would be best to hone his skills. Yamcha was on the left side of the ship. He had a fond expression on his face as he watched the scenery while leaning over the railing. Ember decided to retire to their quarters for some alone time. Although, she made a point to tell Spike that her alone time can mingle with his if he so chooses. The young drake gained a new color tone after that. All was quiet during their journey save for a certain Namekian.
*Grunt* "How much longer does she intend to stare at them?" Piccolo said internally. He had taken a meditative posture to occupy his mind during the voyage. However, a bright pink alicorn filly was currently resting on top of his shoulder guards. She was wearing a simple blue dress with frills around her sleeves. She gazed upon Piccolo's antenna with a great fascination as they twitch very subtly. Flurry's natural until she finally went to poke one of them. With a tentative touch, she watched as the antenna bobbed up and down before stopping. She let out a cute giggle and poked at the antenna again.
*Poke* *Poke* *Poke*
Each time the young princess poked the strange appendage, they respond with an erratic movement that Flurry Heart found amusing. Piccolo felt aggravation slowly creeping in. The little princess was relentless. He hadn't dealt with a child since the first time he took Gohan for his training against the Saiyans. Piccolo was debating just going below deck when the poking finally stopped. But before he could let out a sigh of relief, he felt a sharp tug on both of his antenna. This action caused him to wince and crack open his eyes to find Flurry Heart pulling at them. Flurry noticed Piccolo's stare and gazed back at him with an innocent expression. Spike could feel the growing tension from his position. But, thankfully, there was no cause for alarm. Flurry Heart smiled at the attention Piccolo was giving her and resumed her ministration at his expense.
It still baffled the young Drakes mind that Flurry Heart snuck aboard the Lightning Flash airship. He saw how Flurry was initially curious of the newcomers during their meeting. But none of them compared to the Namekian. Spike could only assume that Flurry slipped under Piccolo's cape when everyone was heading to the ships. Ember was the only one to notice the odd lump clinging to Piccolo's back. The only thing that matched Flurry's squeal of jubilation was the shocked expressions everyone that found her. But, the ship was already far from Canterlot to turn around. Now the crystal princess was coming along for the ride whether anyone liked it or not.
"I hope Cadence and Shining Armor isn't freaking out too badly," Spike said, about their reaction to their missing foal.
[Canterlot - Shortly after the airships departure.]
"Do you think the girls will be alright? This adventure marks the first time they are leaving Equestria's continent," Cadence said.
"Of course they will. Goku and his friends are capable warriors," Shining Armor said.
"The real issue will be drawing out Chrysalis to secure the Dragonballs she's stolen!" Celestia said.
"She cannot hide indefinitely. She will have to reveal herself once our friends return successfully," Luna said before a frown made its way on her muzzle. "Speaking of Goku's compatriots, where has the prince fled too?"
Celestia closes her eyes in concentration before answering. "He appears to be in the Everfree Forest. Sometimes I cannot fantom the thought process of a Saiyan. Why go somewhere that is timing with danger?"
"Truth be told. I'm more worried for the wildlife than I am for Vegeta," Cadence said.
"I wonder what Bulma ever sees in the guy?" Shining Armor asked.
"Their love is somewhat of a mystery even to me. But I can feel that there is a spark or at the very least an attraction between them. It was enough for Trunks to be born,"
"I still can't believe we met the future version of him,"
"It is quite the situation they brought to our doorsteps. I'm eager to hear the full story," Celestia said.
"In the meantime, let's schedule a play date with Bulma and Baby Trunks. It'll be fun, won't it sweetie," Cadence said in a giddy tone.
"..."
"Sweetie?"
The absence of a response from the youngest alicorn in existence caused everyone to stop dead in their tracks. They whipped their heads behind them, expecting to find Flurry, only to stare into space. Cadence felt a rising panic overtaking her. She frantically looked around the hall for any sign of her daughter. When she looked at every possible angle, she turned to her husband who was equal parts nervous over the situation.
"Shining-- Where is our filly?" She asked. The look in the alicorn of love eyes displayed worry, fear and above all; fury. Any unfortunate soul to cross her path would bear the full brunt of the Goddess of Love rage.
Shining Armor responded with the only intelligent thought he could muster at that moment. "Uh..."
[Back aboard the Lightning Flash.]
"I better send them a letter just in case," Spike said. He quickly wrote the letter and sent it to his dragon fire. The response was instantaneous. Cadence wrote in lengthy detail that perfectly conveyed her feelings. Spike was genuinely concerned at what he read as the letter continued. It slowly devolved from praising Faust that her baby was safe to her holding him personally responsible for Flurry Heart's well-being. Spike got a follow-up letter from Celestia who simply gave her best wishes and to watch over niece. After writing back to both of them, Spike got up from his seat and decided to walk around for a bit. His eyes landed on Yamcha who was still enjoying the scenery.
Yamcha noticed his approach and waved at him. "Hey. What's up Dragon man,"
"Actually. The correct term would be Drake, but I'm doing good," Spike said.
"Hehe, well, I was just reminiscing a little bit,"
"About what?"
"This mission we're on is just like all the times Goku, Bulma, Puar, Oolong, and I searched for the Dragonballs. In fact, the desert was where we had most of our adventures. It's how we all met,"
"Bulma went on adventures with you and Goku?" He asked as Yamcha nodded. "Who is Puar and Oolong?"
"Another pair of old friends. Puar is a Blue and light-gray cat that floats. And Oolong is a short pig man. Both of them went to the same shapeshifting school,"
"Wait, as in, a literal pig that walks around like a man?" The skepticism was so thick that even Yamcha caught onto it.
"Is it any different than what you've seen so far?"
"Huh, guess not. Wait! Can they shapeshift? How?"
"I don't know. I never got the specifics. Anyway, we were all pretty young back then. Barely even adults at that point, and we all wanted the Dragonballs for wishes,"
"What did you want to wish for?"
"Um... A girlfriend," He replied meekly.
"Oh, uh, and how did that work work out?"
Yamcha straightened up and put on a cheeky smile. "Well, I got my wish in the form of Bulma. She's an old flame of mine,"
"Isn't she with Vegeta right now? Don't they have a foal together?"
Yamcha instantly deflated at the reminder. "Yeah, That's right..." He bounced back just as quickly. "But, hey, I am Goku's longest running rival. I was there way before Piccolo, Krillin, Tien, and Vegeta showed up!"
In response to this new information, Spike just stared blankly at Yamcha. 'Even as a hatchling, I bet Goku had no trouble handling you,' He thought. "Well, Ima go check on the other's," Spike hurried to the opposite side of the ship; leaving Yamcha to his delusions. However, Spike was curious about the rivalries his mentor experienced. He quickly made his way over to Piccolo and Flurry Heart. The latter of the two currently piggybacking around the Namekian's neck while she continued to pull at his antenna's. Every few moments or so Spike could see Piccolo's mouth twitch in a grimace.
"You two seem to be having fun," Flurry Heart squealed in delight when her cousin arrived.
"Yeah, I'm great with kids. I'm a fully certified babysitter," Piccolo said sarcastically. He opened his eyes and locked onto Spike's gaze. Spike felt a deep sense of foreboding wash over him. The longer he looked into Piccolo's eyes, the more it felt like the Namekian was sizing him up. The barest hint of sweat began to fall from the Young Drake.
'This guy was one of Goku's fiercest rivals! What do I say? How do I approach someone like this?'
'You should just be yourself Emerald flame. I doubt warriors such as him care about formalities,' Ember spoke through their bond.
'Right, right. Thanks, Azural,'
"So are you going to stand there all day or are you going to keep staring into my eyes?" Piccolo asked with a tone of annoyance.
"Sorry, I was just wondering how you and Goku were rivals?" Spike asked.
"Hmph. That's going back ways. But if you promise to take your little friend off my antenna then I'll be happy to fill you in," Flurry Heart titled her head cutely to the side in confusion.
"Deal!"
"It started with my father, the Evil King Piccolo. He--"
"Your father was a king? Your dad was Evil!? Does that make you a prince?"
"...Yes, my father was a king. Yes, he was evil. And No, I am not a Prince. My dad became King when he overthrew the world government--"
"Your father conquered the world!?!" Piccolo said nothing at the young Drakes outburst. Instead, he chooses to glare at Spike who in turn smiled sheepishly. "Sorry, I'll be quiet now,"
"Anyway, my father committed many terrible crimes during his reign of tyranny. One of which was killing several of Goku's friends. Naturally, Goku took some offense to that and challenged my father. He wound up being defeated by Goku. But not before he spat out an egg during his final moments. He instilled into that all of hatred and malice so that the child inside will exact his vengeance upon the world. I'm pretty sure you can put two and two together,"
Spike was silent for a time as he answered cautiously. "So he wanted you to rule the world and get revenge against Goku," Piccolo merely nodded. "But you don't seem like you're full of hate and malice,"
Piccolo scoffs at that. "I suppose Goku and Gohan are to blame for that regard. In the beginning, I wanted nothing more than to kill him for what he's done to my father and I almost succeeded. It was back in the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament. Goku and I were facing off in the finals. Both of us kept exchanging blows. I pulled out every trick I could think of to crush him. But, as you know, Goku is annoyingly stubborn. He managed to defeat me even as I dealt him a mortal wound, and became the champion,"
"Then what happened?"
"When Kami tried to kill me, Goku intervened. He gave me a senzu bean even though I sought to kill him," Piccolo chuckles at Spike's awed expression. He noticed that even Flurry Heart was paying close attention. "He had several reasons as to why though. The first reason is that Kami and I were once a single being. If I were to die that day, then Kami would soon follow,"
"But how did--"
"--Let's just say that Kami had to purge himself of his inner darkness to become the guardian of the Earth. Of course, his biggest reason was that Goku wanted a rival to push himself. And I just happened to fit the bill," Piccolo smirked as he continued. "No matter who Goku faced, he always assumed the best of them,"
"That sure sounds like my mentor. But what about the time you and Goku fought Raditz?"
Piccolo had nodded before his smirk fell into a frown. "Goku's faith in others hasn't always been accurate. There were people that Goku fought that was rotten to the core. Raditz is an excellent example of that. One phony plea for mercy earned Goku some broken ribs. I'm sure he told you how that fight ended, right?" Spike nods in response. "It's funny. That was the moment I began to look at the fool differently. Goku sacrificed his life without hesitation. How could I hate someone with that much honor?"
"And you two are friends now right?"
"I wouldn't go that far, kid. Anyway, stories time is over. Why don't you go bug, Tien? I need to focus on my meditating," Piccolo closed his eyes again as Spike made his way to Tien. But not before Flurry Heart gave the Namekian a hug and flew after the young Drake. The barest hint of a smile graced Piccolo's lips while no one was looking.
[Below the deck.]
Spike and Flurry Heart made their way to the sparring room. Ember bumped into them along the way. And she decided to tag along. "So you're going to talk with the three-eyed one next?" Ember asked.
"Yeah, it's pretty great hearing these stories. I wonder how Tien's will go?" Spike pondered.
"Hopefully, I can get some excitement while on this voyage. This trip is turning out to be painfully droll,"
The two dragons and pony step inside to an unusual sight. Bodies of the crew members littered the floor. Various groans echoed through the room. At first glance, it looked like a tornado tore everything asunder. The new occupants turned their attention to the man in the white shirt and green Gi pants. Tien stood in the center of a square platform. His expression was unreadable as he stared down three opponents. Each of them was earth ponies dressed in protective sparring gear. Not that it would matter since Tien had already gone through what Spike summed up to be 20 combatants.
"Alright you three, prepare yourselves!" Tien fiercely said.
In a blink of an eye, Tien rushed over and kneed the pony on the far left right in the torso. Despite the padding softening the blow, the equine found himself launched into the far off wall. Moving just as quickly, Tien thrust his palm at the pony standing to his left. The strike connected and, once again, sent his opponent out of bounds. The last horse worked up the nerve to attack Tien while he appeared to be vulnerable. He threw out a straight jab at Tien's head. But the three-eyed man swiftly dodges to his right, allowing his assailant to stumble past him. Tien stuck out his foot and made the pony trip. He followed it up with a chop to the back of the neck that brought his foe down to the ground with a hard thud. Tien turns his attention away from the unconscious pony on the field to the new arrivals.
"Nice to see you all. I hope you're enjoying the show, "
"Whoa! That was incredible!" Spike said with a gleam in his eyes. Flurry Heart giggles at his exuberance while Ember shook her head.
"I could hardly call beating a batch of weaklings impressive. Perhaps you would like a greater challenge?" Ember goaded.
"Maybe I would..." Tien said as he sized up the Drakina. However, his eyes fell on Spike. He instantly noticed the Kame Sein-Ryu training Gi and deduced he was Goku's student. Now that he thought about it, that filly back at the meeting was also wearing Goku's Gi. "Hey, you. Spike right? Step on to the platform,"
Spike looked confused but obeyed Tien's request. "Actually. I wanted to hear about your rivalry with Goku,"
"Is that so? Well, how about this; you beat me in a sparring match, and I'll tell all about it,"
"Sounds fair. I could use some exercise,"
"The rules are simple. We fight until one of us knock out of bounds or surrenders. No Ki blasts or flying since we're on a ship and in an enclosed space. Understood?"
"Got it,"
Before the two fighters could take a stance, Piccolo's voice called out. "How about we make this more interesting," He said as he steps onto the platform. "Let's make this a two on two match up. Tien and I versus you and your wife. I want to gauge both of your power,"
Ember shrugs and joins Spike's side. "I think you will find the two more than capable," She said as the two dragons took their stances. Tien and Piccolo noted how Spike had a pose reminiscent of Goku's fighting style. Left arm tucked close to his hip with a clenched fist. His legs spread out and slightly bent while his right hovered six inches from his head with two of his claws bent.
Ember's stance was far more unique. Her right arm was bent over her head with an open palm while her left was close to her lower torso. She slanted her body sideways as she held a look of determination. The two fighter's from quickly deduced that whatever fighting style Ember employed fit her very well.
"Hmph. Taking this seriously huh? I like that," Piccolo said as he took his stance followed by Tien. Flurry Heart flew in the middle of the four fighter's holding a small gong much to their confusion. She held it up to her horn and fires a small burst of magic into it. The sound rang out, and the fighters began their match.
Spike went for Tien while Ember squared off against Piccolo. Tien throws out his left forearm that Spike meets with his right forearm. The two push against each other before Tien aims his knee for Spike's stomach. But Spike catches it with his free claw. He then breaks away from Tien to deliver a spinning back hand. But Tien ducks and grabs hold of the young Drakes arm. He then proceeds to hurl Spike toward the edge of the platform. However, corrects himself in the air and lands on his claws. He counters by sending a mule kick as Tien approached. The bald man manages to block, but the force pushes him back the center. Spike smirks as he landed back in his original position.
"Back to square one, huh?"
"Don't get cocky kid," Tien chided.
"It's not brash if you can back it up!" Spike replied as he lunged at the man.
Meanwhile, Ember was on the defensive as Piccolo rained down a flurry of punches. Despite the pressure, she stayed rooted in her position, blocking or deflecting every blow that came her way. Piccolo switched tactics and launched a round house kick aimed for Ember's head. Ember saw this, dips under his limb, and used her tail to sweep his leg. Piccolo caught himself, rotates his body and scores a hit to Ember's midsection. The Drakina skids across the platform before coming to a stop. She looks back to her opponent only to find Piccolo's heel come crashing down at her. Ember put up her guard and was able to block in time. Piccolo backs off and does something unexpected. His arm stretches from his body and wraps Ember who gasps in shock.
"Something the matter? You're looking a little tied up at the moment," Piccolo snarked. Ember growls in response and struggles to get free. Piccolo lifts her into the and slowly walks to the edge of the platform.
Spike notices this and calls out to her. "Ember!" But before he could make a move to help her, Tien blocks his path.
"I'd be more concerned about yourself if I was you. Four Witches Technique!" He called out as he thrusts his arms out.
Tien began screaming as two lumps grew out of his deltoids. The pieces morph into another set of weapons that burst from his back. Spike stares in awe at this technique. But before he could comment on it, Tien charged him. Spike was now on the defensive as he tried to block Tien assault. But the three eyed man attacked with double the striking power. Slowly but surely, Spike was being pushed back to the opposite end of the area. Blow after blow peppered the young Drake with some of the strikes landing past his guard. Spike glances toward Ember who was now dangling outside the platform. However, Spike got the rhythm of Tien attacks and went to counter.
Using his tail, the Young Drake binds Tien's wrists. Tien's eyes slammed open in shock as Spike launches devastating haymaker to Tien's chin. Thus, disorienting him. From there, Spike pivots on his heel and toss his opponent. Tien was now on a collision course with the two fighters. Things were looking grim for the young Dragon Lord. Ember struggled fruitlessly against Piccolo's grasp. She grunts and squirms, trying everything she could to escape, but to no avail. She glares down at Piccolo who wore an amused smirk.
"If you are going to drop me then drop me!" Ember grunted out.
"Hmm, feisty. But a smart warrior doesn't let arrogance blind them. Perhaps the next time around, you'll learn to read the situation a bit better," Ember was about to retort when she noticed Spike's opponent fast on the approach causing her eyes to widen in surprise. Piccolo caught this and wiped around. Reacting on pure instinct, Piccolo flickers out of the way as Tien sails past him. However, the moment he reappeared, Spike stuck. He shoulder tackled Piccolo right off of the platform. Unfortunately, Ember went along with him. All three fighters were now outside the platform. Spike ran to the edge and began to cheer once he saw that both Tien and Piccolo were out of bounds.
"Alright! We won Ember! Isn't that great!" Spike said. However, when he glances toward Ember, he realizes that she fell out of bounds as well. The dragoness in question sent Spike a flat look as she rested her head on her palm while tapping against Piccolo's arm with her claw. Spike smiled sheepishly in response. "Huh, uh, sorry Azural..."
The Dragon Lord rolls her eyes as Piccolo releases her. Tien slowly returns to a standing position while his extra arms fade away. "I suppose it was a necessary sacrifice to claim victory. However--" Ember walked up to Spike and wraps her arms around his neck. Spike blushed and went a kiss, but Ember had other ideas. She quickly pulled away and placed Spike in a headlock. "--It is not something that will require a repeat performance!" She hissed.
"I-I got it! It won't - *HACK* - happen again..."
"I thought the rules were no flying Tien," Piccolo said.
Tien frowns at the jab at him and mutters under his breath. He turns to Spike who was still struggling to breathe under his mate grip. "That was an excellent move, kid. I was completely off guard. So, what do you want to know?"
Ember finally relents and lets Spike go. He straightened up his posture and went to speak. But someone else cut him off. "Hey, guys. What's going on in here?" Yamcha asked as he surveyed the room. The crew members were beginning to come too after their match with Tien.
"Oh, we just finished having a sparring match. Ember and I won, so Tien was about to talk about his fight with Goku," Spike answered.
"Really. Aw, man. I should have come a little earlier,"
"Don't fret so much. In fact, there is one more fighting looking for a few rounds," Ember said as she gestured toward Flurry Heart. The filly in question hovered in the air with a determined expression as she took a stance. Yamcha thought it was adorable.
"Hehe, alright little princess. I'll take you on," Yamcha said as he steps into the platform.
Spike looks on with concern as he leans into Ember and whispers. "Are you nuts? Cadence is going to kill me!!!"
"Relax, it will be good,"
"The rules are simple; you fight until there's a ring out or if you surrender. No flying or Ki blasts," Tien said. Flurry landed on the ground after she heard the no flying rule.
'Alright, all I have to do is just pick her up and gently place her out of bounds,' Yamcha nodded in acknowledgment. Flurry Heart does the same. The crew members from earlier stayed and formed an audience. There were a few murmurs of concern about letting a filly fight a grown man, but everyone figured that Yamcha would not hurt her.
"Fighters ready? Begin!" Tien said.
"Get ready for my invincible tickle attack!" Yamcha called out. He was poised to pounce as he ran over to the crystal princess. Although, his body came to a halt as his movements became stiff. Yamcha soon discovered a golden aura encasing his entire form. Flurry Heart giggled as she lifts him with the greatest of ease before slamming him down hard against the floor. Yamcha grunted in pain as Flurry Heart repeated the process over and over again. "Hey! I thought you said no powers!"
"Correction; the rules were no flying or Ki blast. No such stipulation barred the use of magic," Ember stated with a sinister grin. Flurry Heart continued to giggle while she manipulated Yamcha's body into various poses.
"HELP!!!"
"I'm sorry. This fight is far too entertaining," Tien commented. "Now then, My greatest fight with Goku was back when we were teenagers. At the time, my best friend Chaoztsu and I studied under the school of the hermit crane. Master Roshi and Master Crane were bitter rivals. They constantly fought for superiority, but Master Roshi would always prevail. However, my rivalry with Goku ran a little deeper,"
"How so?" Spike asked.
"At the time, I hated Goku because he defeated General Tsao; Master Crane's brother. I idolized him. I thought he was the greatest man alive. No one on Earth could touch. But then Goku came along. Master Crane informed that Goku fought and killed his brother,"
Piccolo and Ember furrowed a brow. Whereas, Spike could not believe what he was hearing. "That's a lie! Goku doesn't kill anyone!"
Tien held up his hand in a calming gesture. "I know, or at least I learned after our fight. However, I was young and stubborn. I wanted not only to crush Goku but prove that my fighting style was the best. What better stage than the Twenty Second World Martial Arts Tournament. I was relentless. I blew past every foe I came up against just to face the Turtle hermit students. I even went as far as to maim everyone that held the tiniest connection to them. Heck, I broke Yamcha's leg after it was evident I won the match,"
"Thanks for that jerk - Aah!" Yamcha hollered as Flurry made him pull his nose.
"Hmph. Did your "rivalry" with Goku carry over when I came along?" Piccolo asked with a disinterested tone.
"Surpassing Goku will always be my primary goal as a martial artist. But my hatred for Goku ended when I learned that General Tsao was an assassin for the Red Ribbon Army. It turns out that my master was just using as an instrument of his revenge, and General Tsao was still alive. The experience changed him. I decided that being a killer was not the man I wanted to become. And I renounce the school of the crane on that same day,"
"Then what happened?" Spike asked excitedly.
"I decided to have a real match with Goku during the finals. We went blow for blow in a pure martial art spectacle. We were so even that I had to resort to destroying the to force a ring out. However, Goku surprised us all. Now keep in mind that when he was younger, Goku could not fly and we did not know he was an alien. Plus, he was about the same height as Flurry Heart over there. After I had destroyed the ring, Goku leaped five hundred feet into the air,"
"But if the ring was destroyed then where was he going to land safely?" Ember asked.
"That's what I thought as well. But Goku isn't one for giving up. He used a Kamehameha wave to propel himself right into me. He knocked me out cold with that stunt. From what the officials told me, we were both still in the air, and the match could only end in a ring out at that point,"
"That means Goku won once you two landed!" Spike exclaimed. Tien merely chuckled at this.
"Sadly for Goku, luck was on my side. Right when we neared the ground, a bus came out of nowhere. Goku slammed right into it, thus, causing him to ricochet into the ground before. It was the first unusual victory in tournament history,"
"Oh, Drake. I bet that must of sucked," Spike said.
"Don't worry, Goku took his loss with dignity despite how I may have felt about it. Then he went on to win the Twenty third tournament against Piccolo," Tien shot a knowing smile at the Namekian who in turn scoffs at him.
"It sounds like all of you were once bitter enemies until you fought Goku and then became friends. Your customs on Earth are very different, but in a right way," Ember concluded.
"Sometimes disputes cannot be settled with mere words. It is only during the heat of battle can warriors understand each other," Piccolo said sagely.
"I GIVE UP! I SURRENDER! PLEASE GET HER AWAY FROM ME!!!" Yamcha cried out. Everyone turned to see Flurry Heart making two peace sign as she stood on top of the mangled form of Yamcha. His legs resembled pretzels, and his arms laid sprawled out. The crowd cheered for the young princess as Tien came up to her.
"The winner is Princess Flurry Heart!" He said, eliciting another giggle from the filly.
"I told you it would be good," Ember said to Spike.
"You're too cruel sometimes," Spike replied.
"NOW ARRIVING IN SADDLE ARABIA. DOCKING IN TWENTY MINUTES!" The captain announced.
"It's time to get serious everyone. We have a mission to complete," Piccolo said as he went to the upper deck. Flurry Heart quickly followed after him and sat on his shoulder guards.
"Up we go buddy," Tien said as he hoisted Yamcha's broken body over his shoulders.
"She's a monster disguised as a cute pony..." Yamcha muttered in a daze.
Spike slaps his face in preparation while Ember brings out the Blood Stone specter. "You ready for this Azural Flame?"
"As if you need to ask Emerald Fire," With their banter complete, Spike and Ember joined the group.