Hero felt as though he was floating in a pool of water. It was completely silent as he drifted through the darkness. He slowly opened his eyes and tried to move. However something kept him from doing so.
As his eyes focused, he could see a small light slowly come into view. When it got close enough it began to speak in a feminine childlike voice.
“Hello, who are you?” asked the disembodied voice.
“Who am I? My name is Hero…” Hero wasn’t sure what was going on at this point, so he figured it would be easier to play along.
The voice giggled at his reply. “That’s a silly name. My name is……”Her voice faded out towards the end.
Hero wasn’t sure what to think of the voice or why he couldn’t hear its name so he decided to just ask another question.
“What are you doing here?” he asked
“Visiting you of course, you might be the one after all.” The voice spoke playfully.
“The one? What do mean?” asked Hero confused.
“Oh that’s easy you are…..And it is……” The voice kept fading in and out for Hero to completely understand.
“What was that? I didn’t hear you.” asked Hero.
“Oh no, I’m growing weaker! You have to help me recover my body! It’s……” her voice faded again.
“Huh help you how? Where are you?” asked Hero in a hurried tone.
“Oh I’m…..and then……go too…..”And just like that, the voice was gone.
Hero’s eyes shot open from a deep sleep. It was still dark in the room, with moonlight flooding the room from the balcony window. Hero was lying on the floor looking up at the ceiling. Twilight and Rarity had paid for the room so they had rights to the bed and that left Spike and Hero on the floor.
Spike would of helped pay but he left what bits he had at the castle. Hero turned to look at Spike who was on the other side sleeping soundly. Hero figured he should try to get some more sleep so he turned over and sighed to himself and closed his eyes.
But before he could get comfortable, he started hearing noises coming from the other side of the room. Listening closely he noted they sounded like sniffles being muffled. Hero slowly sat up slowly and looked around the room. As his eyes moved to the balcony, he saw Twilight standing there looking up at the stars.
Hero merely sighed to himself and slowly got to his feet and walked over to the balcony door.
Twilight had been out gazing at the stars for what seemed like hours, her eyes were slightly red from crying. Suddenly the door opened behind her, as she looked over her shoulder she saw Hero standing at the doorway.
“Oh it’s you.” said Twilight turning away and hurriedly wipe her tears.
“Couldn’t sleep, I see.” Hero said walking up next to Twilight.
“Not really, I’ve had a lot on my mind since yesterday.” Twilight continued to gaze at the stars.
“That’s understandable, want to talk about it?” Hero asked, offering to listen.
“I don’t know. I usually don’t like to bother everyone with my problems.” Twilight looked down at the ground.
“Well the way I see it is if you just bottle it up it will eventually just explode onto everyone eventually and with an even bigger mess.” Hero stated, arms crossed behind his head.
Twilight giggled slightly. “Your quotes are so terrible.” said Twilight making Hero frown a little.
“Well at least you are well enough to critique me.” Hero chuckled.
“I suppose… Ok, I’ll tell you what is bothering me.” Twilight sighed, giving up.
Hero leaned against the balcony rail, facing Twilight.
Twilight took a deep breath. “Well it really isn’t anything that you shouldn’t already know. Seeing all my friends and the Princesses defeated like that really swayed my resolve. It made me feel like I would have no chance to help those precious to me.
“And when Princess Celestia told me that we had this big mission in order to save Equestria itself, it just kind of overwhelmed me. I’m so used to my friends being there for me…. I am afraid I wouldn’t be able to handle it very well.”
“Twilight no matter what, you still have me, Spike and Rarity. And besides, I’m sure we’ll get the crystal before Equestria goes to hell anyway.” Hero said with a genuine smile on his face.
“It’s the Spirit Chrystal, but I guess we never completely explained them to you?” asked Twilight.
“No not really now that I think about it…” Hero thoughtfully stated.
“Well I guess I’ll start at the beginning then. In total, there are eight Spirit gems that harbor the eight eternal elements of Equestria. Fire, Water, Wind, Earth, Metal, Lightning and then there are the two elements that govern over the them which are Light and Dark which are used to define and construct the others.
“Wait, Dark? I can understand Light being Holy magic, so does that mean Dark is Chaotic magic?” asked Hero a little confused.
“Well yes Darkness governs Chaos and is often used for offensive magic like my fire spell or Spike’s lightning attacks are a form of dark magic used to attack and harm our enemies. However Light magic or is used to cure ailments or to make one stronger, you get the idea. That being said there are variations of all magic of course. It just depends on who wields it and what they do with it.
“For instance I use Dark magic to help others and gain knowledge of the arcane arts; however Blue Blood who dipped into forbidden magic and used Necromancy is an evil and dangerous practice that can ultimately destroy and rot his own body.”
“But then if magic is made up that way, then can’t we just win as we are?” Hero said managing to keep up.
“Sadly that isn’t the case, although as I said Holy comes from Light magic, it cannot be reached by normal means. Remember Princess Celestia could only use it once. It is very powerful but that means we need a median to help control such power and that’s where the other 6 spirits come in. They help channel the magic so that it doesn’t over power the user.”
“But how could Light magic harm anything?” Hero was confused.
“Well too much of anything is never good right? Even too much Light magic can harm or even kill its user if the vessel cannot contain it all.” said Twilight knowledgeably.
“I think I’m following along so far. So where are all these Spirit crystals?” Hero asked.
“Oh well I along with all our friends have them currently. I was chosen by the fire spirit actually.” Twilight stated.
“Is it because of that fiery temper of yours?” Hero stated chuckling out loud.
Twilight grumbled angrily then let it subside with a sigh. “Anyway, everyone else got chosen as well, besides Spike. Rarity has the Water Spirit gem, Rainbow Dash with Lightning, Applejack with Metal, Fluttershy with Earth, and Pinkie Pie, oddly enough, with Wind. That made Rainbow a little jealous until I explained Lightning represented her speed and ferocity. Then she went on and on saying how ‘Awesome’ it was to be the holder of the Lightning Spirit.
Hero laughed at that last part, made him think of his friend’s outgoing and pumped up attitude.
“And of course just like how the elements are connected to each other, so are the spirits. That’s how I found all my friends. That was the first time I even bothered dealing with friends actually.”
“Deal with friends? What do you mean?” asked Hero confused by Twilight’s words.
“Well I was a major book worm when I was younger and, besides books, I didn’t find anything interesting in others. Then I found magic and Princess Celestia saw my raw talent for it and took me under her wing. That is also how I met Spike as well. He was the Princesses’ assistant and Princess Celestia brought us closer. And that is how I and Spike became friends. Ah, but I think I got off topic there, sorry about that.”
Hero laughed. “Don’t worry about it. I’m just happy I can help ease your mind.” Hero smiling at Twilight.
Twilight smiled back. “Thank you, Hero it helped a lot. This talk I mean. Anyway, back to the topic at hand, after the elements there is a Chaotic Spirit gem as well as a Holy Spirit gem. The Chaotic spirit is as you saw in the mines is Discord, God of Chaos and Disharmony. Which is what I believe Chrysalis got ahold of and why she has become so powerful as well.”
“Ok, that makes sense. And that means we have to find these “shards” of the holy gem, put it back together and use it to stop Chrysalis?” Hero understood the basics by now.
“Yes, however it won’t be that easy anymore. All of our friends besides Rarity and Spike are captured and I’m not sure how we can free them.” said Twilight going back to a depressed state.
Hero noticed. “Come on Twilight. We will think of something when we get that far, right now we have to focus on getting those Spirit Chrystal shards before Chrysalis figures out where we are.”
“I know that but I am still not sure if we can. I wish Pinkie Pie was here to play one of her cheering up songs…” Twilight sighed to herself.
“Pinkie sings? I didn’t know that.” Hero stated.
“Well there is a reason she is all over the place, she is a Bard.” said Twilight plainly.
“A Bard, really? I’ve never seen her play before…” Hero was curious now.
“Well yeah she was really busy since you showed up, with parties and all that.” stated Twilight.
“Ah, ok then. So does that mean she has the ability to manipulate different songs to do different things, like cause something to fall asleep?” asked Hero.
“Yep, that would be correct. She is actually very gifted at it as well. She even managed to stay a manticore’s rage enough for Fluttershy to capture its heart.”
“Huh? Fluttershy got near a manticore? ...Sweet, timid Fluttershy?” Hero was dumbfounded.
Twilight giggled at Hero’s question. “I know, most people think that after they see Fluttershy. Although she is very shy, she is also very kind hearted and compassionate to animals. This is why she was able to become an Animal Tamer.” Twilight stated, proud of her timid friend.
“Fluttershy, an Animal Tamer. Wait, most Animal Tamers I see use whips to help dominate over the animals…” Hero then thought of an assertive Fluttershy with a whip, which also lead to a very perverted and scary image pop into Hero’s head. He quickly shook his head of such thoughts.
“No, Fluttershy would never use a whip, she doesn’t need one anyway. She wins them over with her big heart and they will do anything for her.” Twilight stated.
“Uh yeah …Anyway that’s interesting. And I already know Rainbow Dashes and Applejack's skills are…”
“I’m sure that was fun. You got them both to help you with your training, which is quite the achievement if you ask me.” Twilight said.
“Training, it felt more like punishment! I never thought I was going to die from training before. I mean Rainbow Dash being a Warrior and Applejack a Knight. That and their constant rivalry almost get me killed half the time!” Hero blurted out.
Twilight laughed at Hero’s outburst. “Well they just wanted you to succeed. And besides you have gotten strong doing so, or at least that’s what Spike tells me.”
“I guess that’s true, I suppose.” Hero modestly said.
“I just hope we have all grown enough to save our friends and the Princesses.” said Twilight.
“We will Twilight, I mean come on; we have the most powerful Mage in Equestria, a Dragoon, a Summoner, and a first class Fighter!” Hero stated pointing to himself at that last part and smiled widely.
Rarity and Spike had woken up and heard their conversation. They sat there and went over the situation in their heads. They also had their own worries about what to do. But after hearing Hero, they knew that there was no reason to worry and proceeded to try to fall back to sleep.
Twilight had a slightly shocked expression on her face. “How do you stay so calm and collected all the time?” Twilight asked curiously.
“Well I want to succeed so I have another chance to go to the hot spring with everyone again.” Hero stated with slight blush and a smile.
Twilight was confused at first until it dawned on her what he was obviously thinking about.
Twilight slightly blushed then looked at Hero angrily. “Hero I was being serious, you pervert!” Twilight hit him over the head causing a loud ‘Ouch!’ in response.
“Ok ok sheesh, I was kidding.” Hero stated rubbing the back of his head. “If you really want the truth Twilight, I may be just as worried if not more then you are. I’m just good at hiding it is all.”
“But then why do you hide it in the first place?” asked Twilight.
“Well if I also showed you my fear and anxiety it wouldn’t of helped you out at all, would it?” Hero nonchalantly pointed out.
“Ok I see what you are saying; you’re a great friend to have, Hero. Thank you. Please don’t worry too much.” Twilight smiled sweetly at Hero.
“I’ll try to and anytime you need me Twilight, I’ll be there.” Hero boasted.
“There is one thing I definitely want to do when this is all done and over with though.” Hero crossed his arms and looked up at the night sky.
“And that would be?” Twilight asked curiously.
“Find a cute girl to ask on a date of course!” Hero blurted out.
Twilight paused for a moment, looking at Hero with a dumbfounded face. “What girl would want to date a careless pervert who tried to spy on mares taking a bath!?” Twilight almost yelled.
“That was only one time! And I apologized for it at least!” exclaimed Hero.
“Doesn’t matter I don’t care!” Twilight fumed.
Hero paused for a moment then grinned evilly. “Oh I get it now, you’re jealous aren’t you?” Hero asked.
Twilight blushed “W-What are you talking about jealous!?”
“Well jealous because not many guys ask you out.” Hero said.
Twilights face was of a dumbfounded expression mixed with embarrassment. “I am not interested in such things so why would I bother?”
“Well I guess so, oh I know! Twilight, will you go on a date-” He was cut off by a swift punch in the face and an angry Twilight walking away.
“Goodnight Hero!” with that she crawled into bed.
“Ouch that hurts; she should learn to take a joke…ow…” Hero dragged himself into the room as well to get a few more hours of sleep.
The sun had risen in Ponyville, and all the residents have begun there normal day to day routine. All was well until one resident noticed that Canterlot had dark clouds slowly forming overhead and spreading out. Soon most of them were watching this as lightning started flickering out of the blackened clouds.
Hero was shaken awake by Rarity. As Hero sat up he noticed that it was darker than he would have figured.
“Hero! You must get up and look at Canterlot quickly.” Hero noted she seemed nervous.
Hero got up and made his way to the balcony where Twilight and Spike were standing in horror, with Rarity following behind him. As Hero walked outside he saw the dark clouds over Canterlot.
“What’s going on?” Hero asked no one in particular.
“I’m not sure… It’s hard to guess with Chrysalis now in control of Canterlot and all.” Spike said.
“We need to hurry! Everyone, let’s gather what provisions we need then meet at Town Square, alright?” Twilight spoke up.
“Alright, Spike and I will go and collect any food rations and water pouches for our trip.” Hero suggested.
“Very well, Twilight and I shall find whatever medical supplies and other items we may need.” said Rarity turning with Twilight and left the room. Spike and Hero just jumped down from the balcony, almost making an older woman faint.
About an hour or so past and everyone made it back to Town Square with their supplies. After splitting them up and giving everyone their own bag to carry, they decided to set off for the Everfree Forest.
As they approached, they all noticed just how dark and wild the Everfree seemed. Trees and shrubs had grown in different directions and the only pathway in was covered with overgrown weeds.
“Oh my, what a dark and dreary place this is. And I was hoping not to get my new dress and gloves dirty too.” Rarity complained.
“I told you before we left, not to buy that dress in the first place, didn’t I?” Twilight sighed annoyed.
“How could you expect me to not travel in a fabulous outfit like this? And besides it was such a darling dress I just simply could not pass it up.” Rarity retorted back.
“Well it doesn’t really matter; let’s just go get that shard piece before this place gets even creepier.” Spike spoke up.
“I agree, this place is always so dreadful.” Rarity chimed in.
They all took a deep breath and headed into the forest to make their way to what they hope will be an easy mission.
~~~~~~~~~~~
Several minutes had passed since they entered the Everfree Forest. Unfortunately for them, Hero stumbled into something that would be make them run for their lives.
“HERO IF WE DON’T DIE BY THAT THING, IM GOING TO KILL YOU MYSELF!” yelled a panicking but angry Twilight.
“I’M SORRY, IT LOOKED LIKE A STRAY CHICKEN WHEN I SAW IT, DON’T BLAME ME!” shouted Hero.
“Guys this isn’t the best time to be arguing. Just run as fast as you can!” Spike shouted, jumping over a stump.
“Whatever you do don’t look into its eyes!” Rarity said nearly tripping over some brush; luckily Spike caught her and continued to run beside her.
A loud hiss was heard behind them, along with the breaking of branches.
“Over there! I see a hollowed out tree!” shouted Hero.
Everyone ran over to it, ducking in and tried to remain as silent as possible. As it passed by the tree, it slowed down and scanned the immediate area. It decided to head off in a different direction, leaving the area. A few sighs of relief followed soon after.
“I wasn’t expecting to run into a Cockatrice this close to the edge of the forest!” whispered a breathless Spike.
“Hero, next time be more careful!” Twilight angrily whispered at Hero.
“Like I told you it looked like a chicken! And besides we got away from it, isn’t that be all that matters?” Hero stated.
“Well I don’t know? Are we going to run into a Hydra or a Manticore while we’re at it?” retorted Twilight.
“Trust me, you’ll be the first to know…”Hero mumbled to himself.
“Guys we need to get moving, the faster we find the ruins on the map, the faster we can get out of this place!” exclaimed Spike.
Twilight sighed to herself before looking back at the map. “Ok from here, we need to take a slightly alternative course thanks to a certain someone, so I suggest this route as it is the easiest.” said Twilight pointing at the map
“Look I’m sorry, but it wasn’t completely my fault.” Hero argued back.
Both Spike and Rarity yelled “SHUT UP!”, making Hero and Twilight go silent.
As they left the tree and headed through the new path, they noticed it was very quiet and still. It took then about another two and a half hours to get to the middle of the forest itself from where they were. Oddly enough there was a decent size clearing along with some ruins in various places.
They also noticed a small dome shaped structure as well with two doors closed shut behind a few pillars of stone. They decided it would be best to waste no time and head inside. As Hero and Spike pry open the old doors, the doors opened up into a small room with a stair case heading down into darkness. Twilight pulled out a small lamp and with Hero and Spike leading, headed down into the darkness. When they all got to the bottom of the stairs they noticed that it lead into a long hallway.
They continued down the hallway, where they were confronted with two more doors. Again Hero and Spike pushed them open and walked into a large room. A stone statue in the middle with two rows of light stands on each side, dimly lighting up the room. There were also doors on the other side of the room as well. The statue was of Princess Luna standing with her hands pressed against her heart with her head slightly arched downward.
“So these are the ruins.” Twilight said looking around.
“Kind of dull don’t you think?” Rarity stated.
“Well, what do you expect from ruins in the middle of a forest?” Hero stated also scanning the room.
“Well we should be looking for that shard of the Light Gem shouldn’t we?” Spike interrupted.
“Ok so we should split up and look around.” Hero said looking around the room.
All of a sudden the doors that they walked through slammed shut. When they spun around there was nothing but a bit of dust stirred up from the doors closing.
“Ok, that was kinda creepy.” Hero said placing a hand on his sword handle.
“Um yes quite, shall we not split up then?” Rarity said a hint of fear in her voice.
“Oh there is no need to panic at all. It’s me.” A figured said in in the darkness
“That voice, there is no way…” Spike said with a shocked expression on his face.
“That sounded like Fluttershy?” Twilight along with the others turned around and watched as the figure walked into the light.
“Hello my former friends, it is good to see you losers.” Fluttershy said coming into full view.
“F-Fluttershy…? What happened to you, and where are the others?” Twilight stuttered.
“Why should I bore you with the details when you’re all about to die?” Fluttershy spoke harshly.
“Kill us, but Fluttershy don’t you remember us, your friends?” Rarity said with a hurt expression.
“The only friend I need is her majesty Queen Chrysalis! You couldn’t even compare.” Fluttershy snaps her fingers, all of a sudden a very large Timberwolf walks out of the shadows on the opposite end of the room, eyes were glowing a green color and had drool coming from its mouth as it glared at Hero and the gang. As it walked closer it let out a low, deep growl that seemed to vibrate the very air around them.
Fluttershy laughed as it slowly inched closer to Hero and the others.
“I found it chained in one of the other rooms and I figured it would make a nice addition to my collection of servant’s. And as an added bonus, I’ll use it to end you all while I find the light shard before you. Kill them all right now!” Fluttershy smiled as the Timberwolf leaped at the others, almost taking Hero’s head off. It jumped back next to Fluttershy when Hero swung his sword towards it.
“Whoa! That was a little close for comfort.” Hero had a bead of sweat drip down his forehead.
“It is very fast for its size! How do we take it out?” Spike asked.
“Well we can always burn it. Most Timberwolves are very sensitive to fire!” Twilight stated.
“I’m on it! After we kill the wolf we need to make sure Fluttershy doesn’t get to that shard!” Hero enchanted his sword with flames that roared up; surrounding the blade with bright orange flames. Hero held the sword above his head before swinging it downward sending a large fire blast at the Timberwolf.
The flames roared on the Timberwolf, spreading all over the place. That made Fluttershy hold her arm in front of her face to protect herself.
But just when they thought it was over, a very angry Timberwolf sprung out of the flames and charged into Hero; slamming a paw into him. Hero managed to get his sword in front to block, however he was violently shoved back into the wall behind them. As he contacted with the wall he spat up a little blood and collapsed onto the ground gasping for air.
“Hero!” the other three shouted in unison as the Timberwolf roared at them.
Spike took a deep breath and jumped into the air above the Timberwolf. Spike then spun around in midair until his body was completely turned upside down. When Spike’s feet connected with the ceiling; he pushed off with tremendous force propelling him downward onto the Timberwolf; slamming his spear into the shoulder of the beast. The Wolf then howled in pain and shook violently to try to shake Spike off. Spike then chanted a spell; feeding lightning down his spear into the Timberwolf’s body.
The Timberwolf howled and all of a sudden threw its body sideways into a rolling maneuver to try to smash Spike into the floor. However Spike saw it coming and ripped his spear out and jumped off the Timberwolf’s back and skited across the floor a few feet away.
Twilight and Rarity ran over to check on Hero, who was slowly getting to his feet.
“Hero, are you ok?” asked Twilight with concern in her voice.
“Oh yeah, just fine; just got knocked around like a ragdoll, nothing new. Being thrown into a wall does wonders for your spine.” Hero said sarcastically.
Whatever concern she had for her friend was gone. “Yeah you’re just fine. Hurry we need your help!” Twilight stated.
“Yeah yeah, I’m on it!” Hero stood up and ran over next to Spike along with Twilight and Rarity.
“Well I’m done watching you pathetic losers struggle and I did not find what I was looking for here so I must go. With that said enjoy your demise!” Fluttershy began to turn and run out of the ruins.
“Damn, what do we do? We can’t just let her go and possibly find the light shard!” Hero stated watching Fluttershy make her way to the door.
Spike looked at Hero, then at Fluttershy. “Hero, you, Twilight and Rarity go after Fluttershy; I can handle this.”
“I’m not going to leave you here by yourself!” Hero stated with an approving nod from Rarity and Twilight
“It’s fine, just go we can’t let her get that shard, if we do; we lose!” Spike retorted back.
Hero, Twilight and Rarity looked at each other with worry. “Fine, I guess you’re right. Just don’t do anything stupid.” Hero and Twilight ran after Fluttershy.
“Rarity you too!” Spike ordered.
“I simply will not! Hero and Twilight will be more than efficient I’m sure, and besides I just can’t leave my Spikey-Wikey behind!” Rarity stood next to Spike proudly.
Spike blushed slightly at her comment. “I guess I can’t really say no to you, can I?” Spike smiled to himself.
As Hero and Twilight got close to the door, the Timberwolf charged them; causing them to stop and prepare to defend themselves. However just before the wolf got to them, a spear slammed into the ground making part of the floor crumble in between the Timberwolf and Hero; lightning licking the air around it.
“I don’t think so, you oversized dog! We are your opponents.” Spike stated, standing next to Rarity who was summoning a being of ice with a powerful will that could freeze even a continent.
Hero smiled and nodded to Twilight, signaling to go. “Be careful you two!” and with that Twilight and Hero ran through the doors and up the hallway to catch up to Fluttershy.
Hero and Twilight ran through the hall and as they got closer to the exit, they saw a light shining through. They ran passed the stairs and through the exit. They looked around but they couldn’t find Fluttershy.
“Oh no! Where did she go?” Twilight asked looking around franticly.
“I had a feeling that you fools would follow me.” Fluttershy moved out from behind a pillar.
“Fluttershy, why are you acting this way? What happened to you and the others?” Twilight pleaded.
Fluttershy gazed at Twilight with a look of resentment. “Nothing happened to me or the others; we just came to our senses. Her majesty Queen Chrysalis simply showed us the winning side and we chose it.”
“Twilight, it may be best not to pay her much mind. Somehow Chrysalis must of put them under a spell or something and is controlling their thoughts.” Hero stated trying to calm her down.
“I know that, but it still hurts hearing Fluttershy talk like this!” Twilight showcased a hurt expression.
“Why don’t you both shut up and pay attention to your surroundings?” Fluttershy laughed.
Hero and Twilight paused when they felt a rumble come from the ground. As they started looking around, the rumbling got louder and louder until it stopped suddenly. A shadow loomed over both Hero and Twilight; they looked up just as the creature roared and lunged at Twilight.
Twilight tried to react but wasn’t quite fast enough; luckily Hero had managed to get between Twilight and the beast; holding it back with his sword. Blood trickled down the sword from where the creature’s mouth was cut.
“You have got to be kidding me! Why is there a Hydra here of all places!?”Hero shouted over the Hydra’s deep grumbles.
“Fluttershy must have called it from the swamp while she was escaping!” Twilight exclaimed.
Fluttershy smirked, “Well of course I knew you would try to follow me, so I called one of my other pets to finish you. Now if you fools will excuse me, I will be going now.” Fluttershy then whistled; as a fully grown Manticore ran out of the woods and kneeled next to her.
Fluttershy jumped into the Manticore’s back and settled into the saddle that was strapped to it. Just before she left she looked over at Hero and Twilight; laughing as she rode off into the forest.
“Great, now we have to deal with this.” Hero said as the Hydra stepped back.
“Well the good news is she couldn’t find the light crystal shard, so we should be ok for now.” Twilight stated as she prepared herself.
The Hydra then swung its tail around, just barely missing Hero and Twilight; whom jumped out of the way. Hero stood up quickly as the Hydra charged again and attempted to bite Hero in half. However, it was held back again by Hero stabbing it in the jaw; causing it to roar out in pain. Hero then ripped his sword from the Hydra’s flesh and then slashed at its head.
The Hydra however, avoided it and bite at Hero again. He managed to use his sword to keep himself from being mauled. Hero noticed his shirt was hung on one of the Hydra’s teeth and tried pulling it loose to no avail. The Hydra threw its head up; flinging Hero into the air.
“Hero!” was all Twilight managed to say as she watched him get thrown through the air.
Hero let out a yelp and looked down just in time to see the Hydra open its mouth and swallow him whole.
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Spike had managed to injure the wolf pretty badly after Hero and Twilight had left. It had blood dripping from its side and shoulder, were he had cut it using his spear. However, this made the beast much more ferocious. Spike was forced to use his enhancement spells to keep them from being damaged.
Rarity had managed to freeze one of the wolf’s legs to slow it down using the Wendigo’s power though it was still too fast for the icy breeze to catch it.
“Spike, if you can somehow keep it from moving I will be able to freeze it completely!” Rarity stated to Spike.
“I’ll try my best, just be ready as soon as I stun it!” Spike twirled his spear around over his head before slamming it down into the ground. Spike began chanting a spell and with a burst of electricity; he dashed forward at the wolf that was staring him down. Spike threw his spear at the wolf, causing it to jump in the air from surprise. This was exactly Spike was hoping for.
With a strong push off the ground, Spike leapt through the air and placed his feet on the ceiling above the now vulnerable wolf that was suspended in the air. Spike then pushed off with great strength and spun around just in time to deliver a devastating kick to the Timberwolf’s throat. He then jumped off the wolf and grabbing his spear that was embedded into the wall; lunged for the wolf again and thrusted his spear into the chest of the wolf.
The wolf let out a blood curdling howl of pain. It violently thrashed around trying to get the spear away from itself.
Without missing a beat, Rarity ordered the Wendigo to charge the wolf and freeze it completely. As its icy breath reached the wolf, Spike pulled his spear free and jumped back, away from the wolf.
In one final effort, the Timberwolf slowly staggered to its feet and looked over at Spike as the ice formed over its body, and then finally freezing it completely solid.
Letting out a sigh of relief; Spike walked up to Rarity who had dismissed the Wendigo back to the Realm of Summons.
“Well, I am glad that is over and done with; Wendigo’s are very hard to control properly and can drain magic fast. The Wendigo would have frozen us all if we did not end the fight quick enough.” Rarity stated walking up to Spike.
“Are you alright, Spike? You are not hurt anywhere, are you?” Rarity asked handing him a rag from her small bag.
“No, I’m fine thank you.” Spike took the rag and wiped the blood that was on his face off.
“We need to hurry and go find Hero and Twilight.” Spike said putting the rag into one of his pockets.
Rarity and Spike started heading for the door when Rarity stopped suddenly and turned her head towards the frozen statue of the Timberwolf.
“Spike, did you hear that?” Rarity asked Spike as slowly walked over to the statue.
“Huh? No I didn’t hear anything. What’s going on?” Spike followed close behind.
As they got closer the voice echoed through both their heads.
“Warriors who seek the power of the light, hear me. The voice said.
“I think it is the Timberwolf, but they cannot talk…Right?” Spike asked.
“I am not simply a wolf, you at times call me…a homunculus.” the wolf stated.
“What? But you look nothing like one.” Rarity pointed out.
“A homunculus is merely the reproduction of a human or beings inner thoughts and ideals that have spawned from using another’s life. In my case, My “Master” used her own life to create me.”
“That would state that this “Master” of which you speak of was an Alchemist correct?” Rarity asked the wolf.
“Yes, an Alchemist. A being that uses different minerals and objects to create something else of high value, such as turning lead into gold for selfishness and greed as well as bringing the dead back to life. However My Master was different, as she used her skills to help cure and heal those in need and was very skilled in her art. Celestia chose My Master to protect a piece of what you desire.”
“A shard of the light crystal you mean?” Spike spoke up.
“That is correct. However, My Master was stricken with a devastating disease and not even Alchemy could cure. Thus knowing her fate, she decided that to help keep her promise, My Master created me using her own life force and chained me to a room and placed the shard into my body. Although I am her homunculus and bound to her will, I did not want to just stay here and wait. I detested what My Master did to me, so I became animalistic by nature. And when that young mare came and offered to free me; I took it. However, I was used by her to cause harm.”
“That is understandable, that would cause anyone great stress. But what does this have to do with what we seek?” Rarity asked the homunculus.
The homunculus did not speak for a moment as it pondered its own thoughts.
“Young mare, you are a Summoner correct? To apologize for my transgression I can grant you my spirit to do as you wish. In return, I request of you to allow me to come with you and be free from this place. Please, I want to see if there is a place for me in the Realm of Summons. ”
Rarity though for a moment before replying to the pleading wolf “I will do as you ask. I humbly ask for your future services to aid me when I see fit.” Rarity placed a hand on the glass as the homunculus began to glow and as it became smaller and smaller the ice around it began to crack and shatter around it. The light became bright enough the shielded their eyes from its intensity. It soon became a sphere and dissipated into the air.
“Hey Rarity, look at that by your feet!” Spike said pointing to the object.
Looking down Rarity could only smile as she leaned over to pick up the object and held it in her hand.
“I cannot believe it! It is the first piece of the Light Crystal!” Rarity squealed in delight.
When all seemed fine however, they both heard a scream off in the distance.
Looking at the door Both Spike and Rarity paused for a brief moment.
“That sounded like Twilight!” Rarity gripped onto the shard as she looked at Spike who nodded at her. They both ran to the exit hoping that the worst has not happened.
As Spike and Rarity made it to the exit they saw an adult Hydra looming over Twilight and Hero was nowhere to be found. They both raced over to Twilight as fast as they could.
As they reached her, they took noticed that the Hydra was swallowing something. They look over at Twilight who was just standing there, frozen in place staring at the hydra. It leaned forward with drool slowly dripping from its mouth.
“Don’t tell me that…That thing ate Hero?” Spike slowly mouthed.
“Y-yes.” was all Twilight could say as the Hydra leaned in further and opened its mouth wide.
Suddenly the Hydra withdrew its head and started making an odd coughing sound, followed by it thrashing its head from side to side. The Hydra started staggering around and thrashing its head as it started writhing in pain as it tried desperately to hack something up from its throat.
They all watched as a part of the Hydra’s throat expanded about half-way down. Suddenly, something pierced through the Hydras neck; as a mixture of blood and saliva poured from the hole the object began making a circle around its neck. As the Hydra made one last bellow from shear pain, collapsed; as its head fell off onto the ground separate from its body; a pool of blood and other liquids quickly filling the immediate area.
Spike, Twilight and Rarity got closer to the now dead Hydra laid out in front of them. As they leaned in an arm shot out of the neck of the Hydra; causing Spike to jump back a bit, as Twilight and Rarity screamed and fell backwards. They stared as a sword slowly slid out and fell onto the ground and another arm came out of the hole and pulled a weary and breathless Hero falling to the ground. As he slowly stood up and looked around, he noticed everyone shocked expressions on their face.
“We… NEVER talk about this….Ever.” Hero picked up his sword and ran it through the strap on his back then walk out of the puddle of blood.
Twilight was the first to speak “Are you alright, Hero?”
“I was eaten by a Hydra, so not really. Ugh, I need a bath.” Hero stated trying to wipe off some of the Blood and whatever else was on his face.
“Well at least you are alive, right? Even though you smell really bad.” Spike stated covering his snout and trying not to laugh.
“You try being swallowed then coming out smelling like roses!” Hero said irritated.
“Hey come on now, everything is fine now, we even managed to get our hands on the light crystal shard, see?” Rarity held out the shard for them all to look at.
“This is great! We’ll be able to make great time to the next place now. Of course we need to make another trip back into town. To rest and get Hero clean and not smelling like digested food.” Twilight giggled while staying back.
“Will you guys stop with that already!?” Hero whined.
“Hero, you walk behind us so we are not downwind from you.” Spike laughed.
Hero just face palmed “By the way Twilight, I thought Hydras had multiple heads; not just one?”
“O well this is a young adult, they typically don’t grow other heads until a few years after adulthood; one every five or so years I believe.” Twilight stated.
“Well I guess we are lucky then, huh?” Hero asked wiping more of the drying liquid off of him.
“There is a bigger problem though, how did Fluttershy know we were here?” Rarity spoke up.
“Something tells me it well Chrysalis that told her, which I think it, is safe to bet she knows that we are looking for the Light Crystal Shards and she wants to stop us. If fact, we probably should assume she knows where the others are as well.” Twilight said in a serious tone.
“Which means we have to get to the second shard as soon as we possibly can, right?” Spike asked.
“Looks like it, I just hope we stay clear of any trouble along the way…” Hero said.
“Well we could always let your stench ward away any trouble we find?” Spike stated with a smirk on his face.
“Spike, don’t make me hit you…” Hero spoke in a threatening tone.
“Come on, you two. Let’s get back to town, I’m tired.” Twilight stated as they all left for Ponyville with Hero following in the back.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Elsewhere in Equestria, two figures were sitting in a small room filled with books, drinking tea as they discussed certain matters.
“So it is agreed then? The one is coming to take the sacred Light Crystal shard and destroy your city. Alamontyr must be stopped at all cost correct?” A tall pure white figure said to the other.
“Yes Princess Celestia, I understand your request and I will stop these evil beings at all cost. I will not allow them to take the shard of sacred light from us.” The other figure stated.
“Excellent, I am sorry to make you handle this, but I have other pressing matters to deal with. You understand I am sure.” Princess Celestia said standing up to leave the room.
“Yes of course, I wish not to keep you for more than needed. I shall bid you a due, Your Majesty.” The other figure said in a deep calm voice as he bowed to the Princess.
As Celestia walked away an evil, toothy grin spread slowly across her face. She shut the door behind her and left the building.