//------------------------------//
// Zero Hour: Part 6 
// Story: Spike of All Trades 
// by Ariamaki 
//------------------------------//

"I tried to form a Party with Princess Luna through my system, so I could talk to her directly. Turns out we’re too far out of range... But you and I are going to be in the same area. Should we form up?"

The fairly reserved Guard tapped at his muzzle with one hoof for a moment before replying.
"The Princess said that I'm primarily here in an advisory role, as backup: Would having me ‘in the party’ mess up your experience curve?"

Ah, right. Having Pierce nearby probably wouldn't impact it nearly as much as having him in the party itself, and even with the XP splitting options Spike remembered from the other day... Well, most of them wouldn't be accessible due to the level difference. Precise science on how members of the party impacted his gains could wait until he wasn’t burning time on this critical buff.

"Good point! How about this: I'll show you how the system works, that way in case of emergency we can party up reactively."

"Sound strategy: I'm all ears, kiddo."

He flicked his tuft-tipped ears for emphasis, and Spike held back something that was either a laugh or a groan and he wasn't sure which.

Over the course of the next few minutes they repeatedly formed and broke parties, testing out all sorts of configurations that Spike might not have thought of on his own. How did positioning and facing impact the invitation window? How well could other ponies interact with the menus without making 'physical' contact? Between that and Pierce wanting to look over his own character sheet, they stayed up in the crackling light of the burning mountain crawler for a little longer still.

While the pegasus pony was perusing his personal particulars, Spike decided he had to do some research of his own. Those 'monster' sheets earlier (really too small to even be called sheets, he'd need to figure out another name for them...) had a lot of terms and concepts that hadn't shown up before. And he had a skill for exactly that kind of situation, courtesy his friend Fluttershy...

'Behind the Curtain'

His eyes were quickly overwhelmed by one pop-up after another, each branching off of the original windows until they looked like virtual pincushions. The details made a lot of sense and reminded him to stay on his toes: Just because that first encounter went cleanly didn't mean he was in for a cakewalk, or even a pie-limbo... That last one might have just been a Pinkie thing, but he'd seen it often enough because of her that the concept still stuck.


Recommended Combat Level / RCL: The average level where a character could fight a monster one-on-one and win with sufficient assurance of personal safety.

Force: The raw power of the creature's physique and / or magical abilities.
Finesse: The dextrous and precise ability of the creature and its powers.
Fortitude: The endurance, stamina, and durability of the creature.

Force, Finesse, and Fortitude are usually represented as comparative values between two points: The given creature at this point in time, and a similar specimen's peak potential. These values are relative and inconsistent and may vary not just between specimens, but even moment-to-moment.

Insect: A broad category that technically contains not only insects, but many other groups like annelids and arachnids. Categories like this are defined by The Gamer's 'Slayer' Medals and the associated titles, as opposed to rigorous scientific clades.

Regenerator: This creature can recover health quickly and may be able to survive injuries that other species would find fatal.

Versatile: This creature has a variety of unique tricks and behaviors which can be difficult to categorize. This can allow them to be dangerous far beyond what their statistics suggest.

Lithovore: This creature can not only survive the act of consuming rock and stone, but draws sustenance from them.

Hive Minded: This creature is capable of unified behavior with the fellow members of its social group, either through magical or biological means. It may not have individual thought.


The only new question formed by all of this was what, exactly, a 'Slayer Medal’ was. If he had to guess? He knew games that had systems for trophies, achievements, and titles based on specific accomplishments. Sometimes they were just an advanced method of keeping score (as well as providing the arcade operator with useful reference data), but in other games those rewards came with mechanical benefits. One common form was defeating many enemies of one group or faction to get a title that improved your ability to fight further foes.

Spike guessed he'd probably be getting something in the vein of 'Insect Slayer' as a title before the trip was over, unless they were forced to retreat early. Creatures like this were already a dangerous pest to have so close to Ponyville. As such, even if the Diamond Dogs weren't also present? Taking care of these monsters would benefit everypony back home as well.

"Want a written copy of your character sheet before we move on?"

"No thanks: I can remember this much information just fine."

"Fair enough! Onwards and downwards?"

"Yes: We're definitely not in the Dog tunnels yet, this is probably all bug territory. Keep an eye out as we're moving... We'll know we've hit the right spot when we see lights that aren't ours."

Spike nodded and sparked his fire up again, since they'd be leaving the smoldering crawler behind. He did vaguely remember that the Dogs had... torches? Lanterns? They had some kind of artificial lighting down in the tunnels, which the native insects certainly didn't need.

Their journey down was defined in a few words: Musty, dim, chaotic and sulfurous. The caverns cut by the crawlers reeked of acid and reactants, while the bermite tunnels were narrow enough to force Pierce to squeeze through (with much complaining). The intersections were functionally random, and without his fire supporting their natural low-light vision? They would have been tripped up literally by the uneven flooring and random holes.

As surface-dwellers, even with Piercing being a pegasus, they did not have a history of moving straight up or straight down while walking. Burrowing creatures didn't have that compunction, so the route was plagued with strange turns that led to a lot of climbing, kneeling, drops, and frustration.

After an exhausting belly-crawl through a bermite tunnel that was too narrow for Pierce to even attempt entering, Spike found a sheer drop. Unfortunately he found it because the floor under him (which is to say the roof of the cavern below) gave way to his weight. A fraction of a second too late, he saw a message from Sense Danger pop into existence... And then he was falling.

He often day-dreamed about what it would be like to have wings, but this wasn't one of those dreams. The guttering fire he was still exhaling served well enough for him to see the depth of the drop. A hundred feet easily, maybe even more? It's a shame that nopony was around to see the huge smile on Spike's face as he plummeted through the air.

"Fine by me!"

Without a hint of panic or disturbance he shifted as much of his MP as possible into operating the Dragon's Heart while dialing his size down with Dragon's Hoard at the same time. Being larger would definitely mean having more health, but a smaller body with high Vitality should be more suited to surviving a fall. Finally, moments before impact? He activated Dragon's Scales in order to redirect his physical Strength into even further improving his defenses and Vitality.

The result was a hard landing by anypony's standards, the ground beneath him faintly quaking from the impact... But between all the lingering food buffs, the power of his active skills, and his affinity for the Earth? Spike barely took a scratch. His head didn't even rattle as he looked around to take in the new environment. Once he made sure the tunnel was clear, Spike turned his attention to the system.

"Invite Piercing Ammunition."

Everything OK down there kid?

Found the Dog tunnels: Do you have a way to punch through that narrow tunnel, or should I try to get back up to you?

Punching through... Would take a little bit, but I could make it happen. Can you confirm your exact position?

Say 'Map' to the system, not sure how it works with elevation.

The reply took a little while to come back, giving Spike time to check the map himself. While his environment wasn't filled out with any detail, the two markers representing himself and his party member were clear... And clearly a long distance from each other, even without taking the height difference into account.

...Can't lie kid, that'll take more than a 'little bit' of digging. Abort mission?

Nah, just keep the Party active and follow me from above: I bet you'll find a better route down long before you'd break through all the rock in the way.

Good call. Inform the Princess on my behalf, and I’m sorry I wasn't there for the drop.

Spike accepted the apology begrudgingly: There really wasn't anything to apologize for, if anything he was glad to get more testing and experience for the skills involved! A little separation never hurt, even if it did mean his backup was a lot more literally back and up. Hay, maybe the system would recognize that and bump the experience gains! Another letter got dashed off, this time from his inventory directly.

Hello again Princess: No major problems, but me and Mr. Ammo got separated by a very narrow tunnel and an extremely large air gap. We're working to reconvene while progressing forward at the same time: Splitting our search, as it were. Throw a confirmation back when you get the chance just so I can be sure you're OK with this plan.

The reply came quickly enough that he belched it up in a gout of fire out of sheer reflex. At least he still caught the note before it fell! It had been folded quite nicely despite the speed: Princess Luna was truly excellent when it came to sending letters. He almost wished he'd had the ability to talk with her more regularly before getting this power... Well, he could make up for lost time now.

Be safe, young Spike. We would hate to see you unduly injured in the course of our goals. Of course, due injury is natural given the circumstances, but I have the utmost trust and faith in your ability as both mine own relative and as The Gamer. As for Piercing Ammunition... Suffice it to say that he is in no danger what-so-ever. Continue as you were!