Nearly a week had passed since Maul had helped Taral feel the disturbance. And during that time he had taken it upon himself to learn more about this disturbance. He needed to be as prepared as possible when the time came to deal with it. So, he sent out a few small probes to Canterlot to gather visual and audio information, with the instruction to stick to the less pleasant areas.
He also continued practicing his magic, mainly focussing on producing the green lightning to a stronger effect. He didn't see much need in performing incantations, spells, or a repeat of his manipulation of the rubble. It could have been much more beneficial to him if he did, but he had neither the interest or patience for it. He didn't make the best progress with his goal.
"You are my power! You will do as I command! RRAGH!" The most he accomplished was having the lightning surge all over his hands, only a few bolts being thrown in his frustration. He sighed in disappointment and frustration, extinguishing the smoke and lightning from his hands.
"Patience" he told himself, much as he hated doing so. So many times he had to deal with patience, flipping between annoying and tolerable when necessary. When he waited to strike at the Jedi when he was an apprentice, when waiting for the Jedi to come to him after his return, when building a position in the underworld, etc.
Just then, Maul's probes returned, having gathered everything they could on the nature of the disturbance. He turned upon hearing the sound of their hovering and placed his hands behind his back. "Show me what you've discovered." The probes obeyed Maul and made a large circle in the middle of the room before projecting a video recording and playing the accompanying audio. Maul's eyes widened and his brow slowly raised, not just from the surprise of what he was seeing, or the perfect opportunity it presented, but also from the unexpected feeling it gave him.
Anger.
"Maul!" Spike exclaimed as he rushed into the zabrak's home. "I got your message and flew over as fast as I could. You said it was urgent."
"Indeed it is" Maul replied from his spot in the middle of the main hall, where he'd been waiting. "It concerns the sensation you've been feeling. I have felt it as well."
"You...You have?"
"Yes. It is a disturbance in the Force. They occur when something is wrong. Tell me what is you felt."
"I thought it was just nightmares" Spike muttered to himself. "I felt...fear. And pain. Horrible pain. But it felt different. Like it wasn't my own. And there was too much of it. Almost like-"
"It was the pain of many others" Maul finished for him. He didn't wait for Spike to question how he knew. "Then it is as I feared."
"What do you mean?"
Mail turned around to face Spike and lifted a hand in the air to make a gesture. His probes descended from above, floating behind him. "I felt the disturbance at the same time you did, and I felt the need to discover its source. I sent out these probes in its direction to investigate. And I...discovered something troubling, in the city of Canterlot."
"What is it?" Spike asked with clear worry. He hoped that whatever it was didn't pose a threat to the princesses or the citizens.
Maul hesitated. "You are not going to like what I'm about to tell you."
"Brother, this disturbance has been plaguing me for the last week. Please tell me so we can figure out how to put a stop to it."
Maul waited a beat, took a breath, and told him. Spike wasn't sure he heard Maul correctly, or he was having difficulty processing the information.
"An underground...dragon fighting ring?"
Maul nodded.
"Like...like a fight club, or something?"
"Not in the way you mean" Maul replied. "From what I saw, it is a place where dragons, young dragons, are taken and forced to fight one another for entertainment and profit."
"No" Spike replied immediately. "No, that's not possible. A place like that couldn't exist. Not in Equestria, and especially not in Canterlot. Not with the princesses there" he insisted.
"I have been to many cities in my time, Taral. I learned quickly that they all have two things in common. Dark corners for the scum and villainy to skulk about. And those in high positions of political and social power who turn a blind eye to the suffering these scum cause. Either from corruption, disinterest, or ignorance."
"The princesses would never turn a blind eye to the people that are suffering!"
"Having met them, I'm inclined to agree. But the fact that this place exists tells me they have no knowledge of it."
"But how could they of all ponies not know?!"
"The criminal element always finds a way to hide from those who would stop them. Intimidation, bribery, connections on the inside."
Spike stepped back, putting a hand to his temple, his mind reeling from the information. I don't believe it. I can't believe it. A fighting ring hidden form the princesses? Where dragons are forced to fight?! Like wild beats?! Wait. "By who?"
"What?"
"Who runs this ring? Who makes these dragons fight? Older dragons?"
"I think you know the answer."
Spike furrowed his brow in confusion, until he remembered something. Something from his first nightmare. The laughter of a stallion. How could he know it was a stallion's specifically? "Ponies?"
"Mostly stallions, going by the footage the probes captured."
"But...there couldn't be so many ponies who are that bad. Most of them are nice, or at least don't mean any harm. There's only been a few bad ones, the villains."
"You have been raised in a caring family, and among benevolent rulers, Taral. Your perception of others is kind, optimistic. Inaccurate."
Spike took a moment to consider this, and then he became more aware of a certain detail. Young dragons. Young dragons....like me? "Show me the footage."
"I would advise against that at this moment."
"Maul, show me the footage" Spike insisted as he stepped closer. "I need to see it. I need to see it, now! Let me see it!" He exclaimed to the probes, having stepped past Maul to speak to them directly. They looked to their owner, who gave them a nod.
The probes levitated backward to get enough space, once again making a circle to project their recording. Spike then saw an arena pit, bathed in dim lighting, a cage dome at the top. Around the cage were somewhere around fifty ponies acting as an audience, sitting in bleachers. All of them were cheering with aggressive enjoyment, like an audience at a wrestling match. But what caught Spike's attention the most were the individuals in the arena.
At the very bottom of the bit, which had a mixed black and brown dirt floor, were two dragons. Two very young dragons, not much bigger than Spike was before his transformation, fighting each other. They didn't even have their wings yet.
One of the young dragons was a bit bigger than the other. It had patches of missing scales, with burns and claw scars in their place. Some of its scales were also scratched, while others had bite indents, noticeably around the throat. The smaller one had far less signs of previous fights, but wasn't devoid of them.
The dragons walked on all fours, snarling at each other, swiping at each other with their claws, leaving marks. They tackled each other and tried to hurt one another in any way they could, clawing, biting, tail smacks. They threw each other, slammed each other on the ground, and threw their fire at each other. A magic barrier appeared when the fire touched the wall or the cage, protecting the viewers.
The entire time, Spike's ears were assaulted with the loud cheers of the audience, shouting and yelling encouragement and demands down at their entertainment. They were so loud they almost drowned out the snarls and growls.
"There you go! Get him!"
"Use those claws! Go for the eyes!"
"Sink those fangs into his throat!"
"I bet good money on you, whelp!"
"You're bigger than her! You should've won already!"
"There you go, girl!"
"Earn your food!"
The room seemed to shake for a moment as Spike's hands slowly clenched into fists, trembling with rage. Maul watched from behind, satisfied at his brother's growing anger, but he couldn't bring himself to smile, knowing the internal pain it was causing him.
The recording suddenly froze and the sound cut off. The smaller, apparantly female dragon was on the older male's back, her claws digging in to the side of his head to hold on while she bit his fins. His tail and hands were reaching to pull her off, his eyes directed upwards trying to look at her, his mouth open in a frozen scream of pain and anger.
"That is all they recorded." Spike didn't respond, but he was radiating pure hatred. "Taral?" Maul said as he stepped to his brother's side. He then saw that Spike's eyes were fully glowing green, and they weren't focussed on the dragons, but on the ponies. The ponies who were frozen in their malicious enjoyment of the barbaric spectacle they arranged.
"They need to be stopped" Spike said in low, slightly raspy voice. "We have to tell the princesses."
"No."
"What?!" Spike exclaimed in outrage as he turned to face Maul. The green glow of his eyes had briefly intensified. "What do you mean no?! They won't have any problem dealing with this!"
"I don't doubt it, but it would only be temporary" Maul calmly explained. "More likely than not, that is not the only ring in operation, and if one is shut down, the others will scatter and find a new hiding place. The princesses would surely use every resource they could, and it would surely be noticed, even if they did so discreetly. And I doubt they would want to make this public. If the dragons got wind of this, it would be an international disaster."
"I didn't even think of that" Spike replied in shock. "Ember's been a big supporter of ponies and dragons getting along, but if she or any other dragons found out about this, they would be furious. They would want to take action. Ember might not even be able to stop them. They might burn down Equestria! What can we do?!"
"A situation like this requires covertness. Stealth. I have given this thought, and I have formulated a plan. It will involve infiltrating this ring, but we need to be disguised. Myself especially. I know something of a way to do this, but we will need assistance from someone else."
"Who?"
*knock knock*
"Maul, young Taral. I was not expecting the two of you at all. But you are more than welcome-" Zecora stopped mid sentence as she took note of the serious expressions on their faces. "Is something wrong?"
Maul answered her. "We need your help."