“Spike, hold on a second! WAIT!” Phoenix screamed.
But all Spike could think of was Starlight. She had one of Starswirl’s relics. She wanted revenge on Twilight. He had to stop her!
With all those thoughts driving him, he launched himself through the mirror, tumbling through a multi-colored tunnel of space and time. His body squashed and stretched like clay, contorting into the more humanoid shape he knew the human form needed him to be in.
As he felt reality reforming around him, he tucked and rolled onto soft grass… right into the business end of a minigun.
“Hands up, turn around!” Jackknife’s voice boomed in his ear.
Raising his hands on startled instinct, Spike suddenly found himself spun around and pressed right against the statue the mirror was situated into.
“Wait, listen to me!” Spike protested, even as he felt cuffs get locked around his wrists. “I’m looking for someone. She came through here!”
“Looking to cause more trouble, eh?” Jackknife’s human version growled, shoving Spike towards a waiting black van. “Well, not today!”
He threw Spike into the back of the van and slammed it shut. Spike was only able to look out through barred windows as the mirror glowed again, and a humanoid Phoenix was spat out onto the grass.
Unfortunately, if Phoenix was going for a rescue, she didn’t get far.
“GET DOWN!” Human Jackknife roared, rushing at her with his minigun held high. “GET DOWN ON THE GROUND!”
“IT’S ME, YOU DUNCE!” Phoenix roared, only for Jackknife to bash her to the ground. “IT’S ME!”
“I ain’t taking chances!” Jackknife snarled, cuffing her as well. In seconds, Phoenix got thrown into the van alongside Spike.
Spike could only stare at Phoenix in shock. Though her form had changed dramatically - she was now a badly scarred human with ratty blonde hair - her pink eyes still had a draconic shine to them as she glared at him.
“Um…” Spike shifted in his seat. “Did you… already go through this?”
“No, you idiot,” Phoenix grumbled. “I managed to get back through the mirror before Sgt. Jackhole back there could grab me.”
Spike’s heart fluttered. “Then… you don’t suppose he grabbed Starlight too, right?”
Phoenix grimaced. “I don’t know, Spike, it’s possible. But if she tricked us…”
“No, she couldn’t have,” Spike insisted, glancing out the window again as the van drove them to who-knew-where. “We had the exits locked down tight. She had nowhere else to go.”
Phoenix looked down, clearly not wanting to burst his bubble. “Let’s hope so. I told the others to stay back and make sure that the exits were still covered.”
Spike nodded, wanting to hope things would still turn out okay.
Spike remembered the human world: how Sunset had turned the human versions of him and his friends into animals.
As startling as Human Jackknife had been, he also gave Spike hope. If security was this tight, surely Starlight had been captured as well.
All they had to do was prove their innocence and Starlight’s guilt, and they could go home certain that the insane mare would never hurt Twilight again.
##
Spike’s plan had seemed great in his head. However, as he was strapped down to what felt like an electric chair, the room dark save for a single lamp swinging overhead, bathing him in light like a searchlight, Spike’s heart was unable to be soothed by his brain.
‘It’s okay,’ his brain wanted to say. ‘These guys are just human versions of our friends. We can work something out.’
His heart still beat hard against his chest, as if muttering, ‘Forgive me if I don’t believe you.’
His fear wasn’t helped when Human Diamondback walked in. Even though she didn’t have the height of her usual dragon form, Spike still couldn’t help but be awed by her regal aura.
Her white hair was tied back into an elegant bun, and her eyebrows had small diamond piercings embedded above them, giving her face a radiant shine and her lapis blue eyes an extra bit of flash.
In the darkness of her pupils, Spike could almost see his reflection: a well built but still rather thin human with green, ruffled hair and purple skin. His shirt was similarly green, with a picture of a dragon on it.
She glared at him for a moment, before unlocking his restraints. “Apologies for Jackknife,” she said. “We’ve been trying to be extra careful ever since Sunset turned us into animals.”
Spike let out a huge breath of relief. “I understand,” he said. “You guys are the protectors of this world, after all.”
“Trying to be,” Diamondback admitted. “Which is probably why you’re back, isn’t it?”
Spike shrugged sheepishly. “Wish I could say differently, but… yeah. one of our criminals tried to take refuge in this world. I’m here to track her down.”
Diamondback raised an eyebrow. “Her? Not ‘them?’”
Spike tensed. “What are you talking about?”
Diamondback turned, a remote control slipping out from the sleeve of her kimono. She pressed a button, and a screen - previously hidden by darkness - flared to life.
It showed three strange girls with red gems around their necks. Gems that flashed and glowed, producing strange fish-horse type creatures.
The creatures tried to attack two groups of people: Spike recognized the human versions of his friends: Jackknife, Swift, Diamondback, Night Fire and Phoenix - and the human versions of Twilight’s friends: Rainbow Dash, Fluttershy, Rarity, Pinkie and Applejack.
Even Sunset Shimmer stood among them, almost like she was leading both groups.
And equally strangely, all of them had instruments with them: Jackknife and Pinkie were beating on drums, Rainbow, Swift and Phoenix were rocking out on guitars, Rarity had a keytar while Diamondback strummed away on a piano. Fluttershy was shaking around some sort of tambourine, and Night Fire…
Spike could only shake his head with a laugh: Night Fire was decked out in a belly dancer outfit, covered with bells and whistles, and performing some sort of elaborate dance. Though there was no sound, Spike could imagine the racket she must put up walking around in that sort of outfit.
Not understanding, Spike could only watch as the two bands' music produced a spectral pony and dragon, which fused together into some sort of dragony or kirin. United, the kirin attacked the three fish-horses, and not only blasted them to smithereens, but sent the three girls flying.
Diamondback afforded herself a smile. “Impressive, weren’t we?” Diamondback asked happily. “Did you see Night Fire’s outfit? I designed that myself.”
“Very impressive,” Spike said, giving her a thumbs up.
“Oh, don’t I know it,” Diamondback agreed, before stopping and snapping her fingers under her own nose. “Er, but anyway…” she clicked another button, and the screen changed to show all three of the girls that had summoned the strange fish-horses now in cuffs and moping about in cells. “So, are any of these girls your criminal?”
Spike peered at the girls, but while one of them had pink skin and dark purple and green hair not dissimilar to Starlight, it was pretty clear she wasn’t Starlight. Her skin was a darker shade, and her face - while humanoid wasn’t quite right.
“I don’t… think so,” Spike finally decided. “No, none of them are her. Do you have any others?”
Diamondback grimaced. “None that have become a threat yet.”
Spike straightened. “What does that mean?”
Diamondback pressed another button, and this time, Spike got to see another human version of himself.
And one of Twilight.
It was uncanny: the version of him looked almost just like him. Though he did notice with a bit of a grimace that Human Spike was more muscular. The black excercise shirt he was wearing didn’t leave much to the imagination, and the camo pants were a lot more intimidating that Spike’s current attire of jeans.
He was currently watching over Human Twilight - who was wearing a pair of glasses - and grimacing as she pored over some sort of artifact. Human Spike stood right alongside her, examining the artifact himself, though neither of them seemed to have any idea what it was.
“What are they doing?” Spike asked.
“Well, ‘you’,” Diamondback explained, pointing to the other human Spike, “Are making sure that she doesn’t poke her nose where it doesn’t belong. By some stretch of luck, this version of Princess Twilight adopted Spike while he was still stuck in the canine form Sunset trapped him in. After her spell was worn off, he managed to integrate himself into Twilight’s home. Recently, Human Twilight has gained an interest in studying the magic from your world. Luckily, Human Spike was able to get in contact with us, and we’re taking steps to try and keep her from causing any more trouble.”
Spike hummed, scratching his chin. “And… you haven’t seen any other incidents?”
Diamondback shook her head.
“No sudden arrivals or…” he pointed to one of the girls in the cells - the one that bore a vague resemblance to Starlight. “Anyone with pink skin or purple and green hair like that girl?”
“None,” Diamondback replied. “Jackknife’s been watching the portal day and night. We sometimes have to drag him away to make sure he rests.”
Another image revealed Human Jackknife scaring Human Twilight away from the statue while Human Spike tried to keep the peace.
“The only path I can see right now,” Diamondback said, “Is that your criminal deceived you.”
Deceived? Spike’s heart hammered in his throat. If Starlight had tricked him into wasting a bunch of time here…
“I need to get back,” he said. “Equestria could be in trouble.”
Diamondback peered at him before nodding. “Phoenix will go with you. Night Fire was tending to her.”
##
It took all of Spike’s willpower not to sprint for the statue. Given how Human Jackknife was glaring at him, Spike imagined doing so would result in him getting a personal date with the ground again.
Though Spike didn’t have time to worry about a marine’s hostility.
“I don’t get it,” Phoenix whispered as they were escorted back to the statue. “I swear I saw the glass rippling after I noticed the relic was gone.”
“You don’t think she threw just the relic through and hid, do you?” Spike asked.
“I don’t know,” Phoenix said. “Maybe?”
Spike growled. ‘Maybe’s weren’t going to keep Equestria safe. “Oh no… what if we’re going back to a wasteland. What if she’s already…”
“Hey!” Phoenix made Spike look at her. “We stopped her griffon mercenaries. We helped stop her from stealing your friend’s mark. Have faith in your friends, Spike. From what I’ve seen of them, they won’t let us down.”
Spike tried to find comfort in her words. And yet, when presented with the statue, Spike couldn’t stop himself from leaping through.
‘Please be okay, Twilight,’ he thought desperately as he returned to Equestria. ‘Please don’t be hurt because I fell for Starlight’s tricks.’
When he opened his eyes, he was back in dragon form. Back in Starswirl’s sector. And the world seemed fine.
The others gathered around, asking where Starlight was. But Phoenix popped out behind Spike and started to explain, grabbing everyone’s attention long enough for Spike to sneak out and make a beeline for Twilight.
‘Please be okay! Please be okay!” was circling his mind, followed by horrid thoughts of Starlight hurting Twilight.
But he barely made it out of Canterlot Plaza before running into Twilight.
“Spike!” Twilight cried out. “I heard that some griffons made an attack on Starswirl’s sector. What…?”
She was cut off as Spike hugged her. Relief flooded his veins.
“S-Spike?” Twilight asked, carefully hugging him back. “Are you… okay?”
Spike sighed. “Just happy that you’re safe,” he said, pulling away and looking at her with worry. “The griffons were a distraction. Starlight Glimmer was there, and she took something.”
Twilight’s eyes widened. “Show me.”
He led her back to Starswirl’s sector. To the pedestal that now stood empty.
Twilight tilted her head. “Huh… this had Starswirl’s notes on time travel spells. But his spells could only ever go back a week at most.”
Spike’s heart began to race again. “Twilight,” he warned. “Starlight’s capable of some pretty powerful spells herself. I mean… if she could remove cutie marks…”
“But why would she want to go back in…” Twilight froze in horror, the answer already dawning on her.
And at that moment, her cutie mark began to flash bright red. Almost like a warning.
“A summons?” Twilight stammered.
“The Cutie Map might know where Starlight is,” Spike declared, grabbing her and sprinting for Ponyville. “Come on!”
But as Twilight’s cutie mark continued to flash like an alarm bell, part of Spike feared that they were already too late.