Spider in Equestria

by DarkSpider


Chapter 44

As Dark landed, the small group found themselves back in Twilight’s castle, the crystal walls shined brightly as the sunlight from the window hit it. The group looked around the room they were in, the bedroom was plain with no decorations or any distinctive features that would show who the room belonged to. Taking a few steps forward, Eli spotted a small basket at the side of the bed, a blanket being neatly folded under a small pillow.

    “Well welcome home Dark.” At Dark’s questioning look, Twilight shrugged. “This is your room, I kept it exactly how you left it. Only ever went here to clean all the dust.”

“It's kinda empty… and plain looking.” Eli commented, looking around the room.

    Dark shrugged. “I didn’t really have a reason to really decorate the place. Especially when I gave Cece all the tokens I had at the time.”

After a moment of silence, Twilight frowned in concern. “We should probably go now, everyone is probably worried about us.” The alicorn walked towards the the door and opened it, everyone followed her as she stepped out of the room.

The group then made their way into the throne room. When they made it there, they saw everypony huddled over table, waiting patiently for the group to return. Once they were spotted, everyone’s faces lit up in relief. “You guys are back!” Pinkie yelled, skipping towards them and somehow wrapping everyone in a hug. “It's so good to see you guys return! You all just suddenly disappeared, and while not everyone was that worried, we were concerned because it was so sudden!” Stepping back, she gave them a smile. “So did you make any new friends? See anything cool or interesting?”

Cece looked at them from the wall for a few seconds before saying, “Summoned?”

Dark nodded as he passed Pinkie. “Yeah. Another new one.”

“Anything worth mentioning?”

“Well I can now do a sort of music magic and the rest of these guys can now summoned key shaped swords,” Screwball mentioned before hovering above the map table.

Everyone else blinked. “What?” Cadance asked.

Dark rose a hand. “We'll explain that later. There are more important things to talk about.”

Luna nodded. “Indeed. And it is good that Cadance and Elizabeth are here to hear it.”

Applejack then looked to the feline Displaced. “So you're that cousin of Dark and Cece we heard about?”

Eli nodded. “Yeah. Ended up in the Crystal Empire and only found out Tito and Cece were here a couple weeks ago.” She then turned to the Sisters. “So what's so important that you wanted all of us here?”

Celestia sighed, before straightening her back. “The news I have to share with you all is a hard one to accept, and I ask of you to not panic and save your questions until the very end.” The solar princess began.

Deciding to pick up where her sister left off, Luna crossed her arms and began speaking. “Recently we have became aware of a plot to overthrow the two of us, and so far the only thing we know is that they have pony recruits, why they would join or seek to overthrow us has yet to be made clear.”

“Should be obvious,” Dark said with his arms crossed. “They're a bunch of nuts who wanna take over themselves.” He then sighed. “And that's not all.”

Twilight frowned. “What do you mean?”

“Those guys know who and what I am.”

Everyone except Rainbow blinked in surprise. “Wait, you mean they know you're human?” Cece asked.

“That, and they know I'm the Spider.”

He looked down at Bri and started petting her. “Back at the Daring Do convention, I was attacked by some of those guys. And they made it clear they knew who I was and what I was, and that they planned to kill me and Bri.”

Everyone except Screwball looked at him in shock. “What happened?” Rarity asked.

“Well considering I had no reason to hide my powers, I fought back. And I turned into a wolf and bit into the arm of one of them. That one escaped but I knocked out the rest. Soon after that, I went to look for Rainbow and the others. Didn't think too much of it until I ran into the guy again a few nights ago.”

“So that's why the guy attacked you?” Rainbow asked. “Because you bit into his arm?”

Dark nodded. “But something isn't right. The guy's arm was robotic now and he was able to shoot blasts from it. I even almost died from him.”

“How did you survive?” Fluttershy asked.

“I think I know,” Screwball said, with Rainbow and Eli nodding in agreement.

Dark sighed before placing Bri and Peter down to the table. After that, he took a step away from the group. A moment later, Venom's face came out around Dark’s arm and lifted up to eye level. While those who knew about Venom, as well as Screwball, were unfazed, everyone else took a step back and Fluttershy even drove behind her throne in fear and Cece even pulled out her hammer on instinct.

“Is that who I think it is?” Cece asked, to which both Dark and Venom nodded.

“What is that?” Luna asked.

Dark took a deep breath. “Everyone, this is Venom. He's one of three symbiotes made from my blood who I ended up freeing that night at Manehatten and he bonded to me. He's the reason I was able to beat that lunatic.”

Applejack looked towards the ones who were unfazed. “You all don't seem so surprised.”

“We learned about Venom while we were out,” Eli explained.

“Can it be trusted?” Starlight asked.

“I can assure you that I don't wish to hurt any of you,” Venom said, causing the ones who weren't aware he could speak to jump back in shock. “I simply want to help my host.”

“And how can you do that?” Luna asked.

Venom turned to her and said, “Well I can increase his strength, use tendrils, and give him a much more intimidating appearance, just to name a few things.”

“And how do we know we can trust you?”

Dark shrugged. “Well if he ever turns bad, we can always use his weaknesses.”

“And what are they?” Celestia asked.

“Fire, electricity, and loud noises. Those are the only ones I'm aware of.”

Luna frowned before walking up to Dark and staring at him and Venom for a moment. After a few seconds, she, without warning, said in the Royal Canterlot Voice, “SUCH AS THIS?!”

Dark immediately fell to his knees as he put his hands to his ears in pain and Venom started to vibrate violently before sinking back into Dark for protection. Luna stepped back in surprise as the rest were shocked about how Dark reacted with Bri getting off the table to going to his side before hugging him. After a few moments, Dark calmed down and stood up with Bri in one arm.

“I-I'm sorry,” Luna said. “I didn't think it'd affect you that much...”

“It's fine,” Dark said. “Just...please only do that if Venom ever causes trouble. That hurt like hell.”

Twilight cleared her throat. “You said he was one out of three? What happened to the other two?”

“One of them was freed along with Venom, and according to him, she's a friendly. The other one though…” Dark shivered.

“What's wrong?” Cece asked.

Rainbow looked to her. “Wait, you don't know?”

“I only know about Venom. Never heard of others.”

“From what Venom told me, that other one is a lot like his namesake. And he can never be let out.”

“Why…” Celestia asked as they all felt uneasy.

Dark took a deep breath. “Because then you'll have a symbiote that finds pleasure in causing carnage, to the point that that's his name. And I can safely say that until he's stopped, there will be a lot of blood and corpses.”

The older princesses blinked in shock at that while everyone else paled at the thought, Fluttershy even hugging herself in fear.

“And you said he isn't out?”

Dark nodded. “Apparently while Venom and Toxin were being moved, Carnage was left behind for some reason. So he's not on the loose. At least, not yet.”

Celestia took a deep breath. “We should move on then.”

“Here's a question,” Spike asked. “Do we even have a name for the guys who we came here about?”

“Yeah,” Rainbow answered. “Apparently they go by Hydra.”

Cece and Elizabeth did a double take at that. “Wait, isn't Hydra, like, the Marvel version of Nazis?” Cece asked.

Dark nodded. “Pretty much. And it looks like they exist here.”

“Great. Just great.”

“Shame you don't have SHIELD to counter it.”

“I wish,” Dark said offhandedly.

“What?” Cece asked, confused.

“Oh, sorry. Venom just said something.”

“Wait, he can talk to you without doing...that?” Eli asked.

Dark nodded. “Kind of like he's talking in my head.”

“So what did he say?” Cadance asked.

“He said it's a shame we don't have SHIELD.”

“Shield?” Luna asked. “What good would a simple shield be against an enemy like this? Only one that might help is...” she paused before shaking her head with a frown.

Dark shook his head. “No, it's acronym. It stands for…” he paused as he tried to remember.

“Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division.”

“Thanks,” Dark said before repeating it to his friends. “Basically they were an organization that protected the world.”

Celestia sighed. “I am afraid to say that we don't have something that.”

“It is a shame,” Luna said while shaking her head.

After a few moments of nobody saying anything, Applejack cleared her throat. “Well if there is nothing else on that end to talk about, I'd like to know a few things.”

“Such as?” Celestia asked.

Applejack looked to Dark before taking a small glance to the small blue drake on the table. “Where exactly did you get Peter? And what happened while you all were gone? Screwball wasn't exactly clear.”

Dark sighed as Peter hopped off the table before going up to Dark and climbing to his left shoulder. “I got summoned this morning before Twilight arrived. And in that world, dragons are the dominant species. I even met their version of Celestia.”

That surprised everyone except Twilight, who heard it already. “What did you do there?” Spike asked, curious.

“Well I arrived and next thing I know, I'm pinned to a wall by a large white dragon.” Everyone blinked at that with a few even gasping, to which Dark raised his free hand to calm them down. “After she read my mind and found out I didn't mean to harm her or the eggs in that cave, she let down and explained a few things, like the dragon thing and how I was in Clawterlot.”

Cece facepalmed on that. “You cannot be serious.”

“I'm afraid I am. I talked to the Displaced, who seems to be a normal guy. Hell, he wasn't Displaced by the Merchant. He just went into a cave and ended up taking a one way trip to his Equis.”

Everyone frowned at that. “That can't be good,” Elizabeth said. “I doubt he can survive long if he ends up in dangerous worlds.”

Dark nodded. “Hopefully he can get stronger. Besides that, I was given a book with that world's history and ended up catching the attention of Peter and was offered his egg. I came home a bit after that, Peter hatched, I touched him, and I ended up blacking out. When I woke up, I had this.” He showed his right hand with the new silver scar on it.

“How did that happen?” Rainbow asked.

Dark shrugged as he lowered his arm. “Hell if I know. Only seem to be a one off though. Every other time I've touched Peter, I've been fine.” After looking back at his hand, he sighed. “Though I definitely need a new pair of gloves.”

“I'll take care of that,” Rarity said without hesitation. “And maybe a few extra pairs in case something similar happens to them.”

Dark nodded. “Thanks Rarity.”

“And you don't know why Peter has feathers?” Spike asked.

Dark shrugged. “No. Doesn't help I don't know what kind of world Elwood is in besides the dragon, so I don't know whether that's related a franchise or not. Anymore questions?” After everyone shook their heads, he said, “Now as for the latest summon, what exactly do you wanna hear first?”

“How about about the Displaced and that world, then about these “key swords”,” Luna suggested.

Dark nodded. “Okay. First off, the Displaced, Kairi, is another rookie like I said earlier. But she apparently helped her version of the Elements beat Nightmare Moon not long ago.” Luna blinked in shock at that. “I don't know the exact details. Her world is another one where the ponies resemble humans, and her Celestia is apparently a Keyblade wielder. That's what those key shaped swords are called.”

“And Screwball said you are all wielders now?” Celestia asked.

When the four of them nodded, Cece said, “So? What's the big deal?”

Screwball was the one to answer that. “It means they can summon weapons that unlock any lock, magical or physical. And like your hammer, they can summon their Keyblades whenever they want and dismiss them just as easily. Well, once the rest of them can use theirs. Plus a Keyblade allows its user to perform special spells. And that's just a few of the things they can do.”

Everyone present blinked in surprise from that info before Starlight frowned. “Wait, what do you mean once the rest of them can use their Keyblades?”

Rainbow sighed and crossed her arms. “At the moment, Tito is the only one who can summon his.”

“And we don't know how long it'll take for the rest of us,” Eli added.

Everyone then stared at Dark before Celestia said, “Would you mind showing us?”

Dark took a deep breath before lifting his right arm again. Immediately after, his Keyblade appeared in it. While those who already saw it weren't surprised, the rest of the group were and examined the Keyblade.

“Wait, why-” Cece started before Dark interrupted.

“I don't know why there's a wolf head.” He shrugged. “Maybe it has to do with the fact they're my favorite animals.”

“They are?” Twilight asked.

Dark nodded. “It's why I'm in that wolf form so much.”

“Wait, wolf form?” Rarity asked.

“Oh, right, you don't know. Basically I met a Displaced and his token let's me turn into a wolf.”

“And nearly every morning after that, I've seen you in that form in the gardens as I'm heading to bed,” Luna said with a small smile. “At least now I understand why you enjoyed it so much.” She then looked at the Keyblade. “Does it have a name?”

“Name?” Cece asked.

“Many great weapons are given names,” Luna said. “Or at least back before my descent.”

Dark paused as he stared at his new weapon, remembering a small whisper go through his head the first time he summoned it. “Lycan Web,” he answered simply.

Luna nodded. “A fitting name by the looks of it.”

Dark nodded as he dismissed it. He then looked to Bri and saw that she had fallen asleep in his arm, much to his surprise. “So is there anything else?” When everyone shook their heads, he then started to walk to the door. “Well I'm gonna go put Bri to bed and then find something to do. It was nice seeing you again Eli,” he said with a wave as he left, to which she returned.

After Dark reached his room, Dark placed Bri down on his bed, by the wall, before putting the blanket over her. He then put Peter down on the nightstand. Almost immediately after that, Venom surrounded his arm again and looked at him.

“You sure this is a good idea?” The symbiote asked his host.

Dark shrugged. “It's been a couple months. Plus I barely did anything last time.”

Venom nodded. “I remember. Though what exactly do you expect to do?”

Dark shrugged. “Explore a bit. Maybe meet some people. And if I have to, play hero. Not like I can do much else with how late it's getting.” As Venom nodded, Dark said, “Hey um...can you find a better way for us to talk than...this?” He then gestured to Venom with his free hand. “It's…”

“Creepy?” Venom finished.

Dark nodded. “Kind of, yeah.”

“I'll figure something out and let you know what I come up with. So you gonna leave a note and go?”

Dark nodded his head. “Gotta change first though.” Venom said nothing in response, instead just returning inside Dark. Dark then looked to Peter. “Listen, I'm gonna go somewhere for a bit. Don't worry about it. I'll be back later, okay?”

The dragon simply nodded his head in understanding before curling up and preparing to fall asleep. Dark then walked to his dresser and pulled out the clothes Rarity gave him for Hearth's Warming. After changing into them and putting on the gloves from his costume, he wrote a note and placed it beside Peter on the nightstand. When he was done with that, he grabbed his bag and exited his room. A few minutes of uneventful walking later, he found the room he was looking for and entered it, seeing the mirror portal. After checking to see that it was active, he stepped back a bit and took a deep breath before running through the mirror.