//------------------------------// // Before the Arrival // Story: Spike's Kingdom // by Guardian Dragon //------------------------------// It's 12:30 in the morning at Canterlot Castle. Princess Celestia is awaiting more intel from her research team regarding the mysterious magical particles Canterlot's Magistry Laboratory couldn't uncover with their vast knowledge and understanding. She refuses to sleep knowing the answer is near, and the devious 'Princess' who led a brigade into stealing Dragon Eggs during her reign without noticing. Weeks ago, Princess Twilight Sparkle transferred all of the books from the Castle of the Two Sisters to Princess Celestia for analyzing the mysterious magical particles. So far, within the investigation, the evidence is inconclusive due to an unknown source beyond comprehension. Star Blaze and her team need additional assistance to decode the magic within. Princess Celestia wished to be more useful despite her royal affairs becoming problematic with the royals and nobles, screwing with her timeframe to help her sister and the investigating teams. A labeled envelope marked 'importance' appears beside Princess Celestia. She unveils it and starts reading the following report: Dear Princess Celestia, My trip to the Crystal Empire with my pupil Starlight Glimmer has been surprising, to say the least; actually, bizarre is the key word to describe today's outcome. Starlight Glimmer and I met with Spike for the first time since he became the Dragon Lord. We found out my brother Shining Armor apologized for initiating an attack on the Dragons when everypony was on edge due to a Changeling sighting. As you know, Changelings feed on love, and the Crystalling became a magnet for one. The Crystal Guards asked Shining Armor if Spike the Brave and Glorious would accompany them to seize the Changeling before it made a move. I acted like Spike's mother and disrespected him in front of his subjects and our family. Spike departed and returned several hours later with his friend, who was actually a Changeling in disguise. Mid-paragraph, Princess Celestia's eyes widen in happiness; she hopes the Changeling will be willing to discuss any secrets Queen Chrysalis shared with her armies. After exposure, everypony except the Dragons got prepared to assail and apprehend the Changeling after risking to devour the love from Flurry Heart; that is what we thought; however, we were wrong. We dismiss the pleas and dismay from Spike's friend because he's a Changeling. Spike's outburst revealed our colors about treating other species differently than Ponies. I have never seen Dragons defend a Changeling in Friendship, Love, and Unity; Spike stood his ground while my brother berated the Changeling. Spike stated how quick Ponies are to attack first, then ask questions later when he reminded everypony in the room how Shining Armor commenced the attack without second thoughts with no hesitation with his decision-making. My brother continued with the ridicule of deeming all Changelings monsters and never thought about finding good within the Changeling Nation. Spike, in his response, brought back an unfortunate tale about my student, Starlight Glimmer's sinful days with depriving everypony of their cutie marks and varying timelines to prevent my Friendship with Applejack, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity; also, each timeline created a pathway for destruction, doom, and desolation. Spike reminded us that we're not perfect, acted in perfection, opposed to other species, and behaved oddly, except for Ponies. He stated that we're inadequate for portraying other species as evil, monstrous, and malicious without knowing them. Lastly, he made me remember an essential Friendship Lesson I forgot years ago; it was when Zecora came to Ponyville, and everypony ran from her, thinking she was evil. The lesson was to never judge a book by its' cover. Spike asked his subjects a vital question about revisiting the Crystal Empire shortly; they said yes but told us, Equestrian Ponies, to get our act together before our racism starts a war. That stung us. We're lucky that the Dragons and Crystal Ponies are in unison with Friendship; otherwise, the Crystal Empire would not have the Dragon Nation as their allies. Now that you know what happened earlier, here's what's happening tomorrow. Spike is bringing his Dragon friends and Thorax to Ponyvile; I would admire you and Princess Luna arriving and introducing yourselves to Thorax, proffering a token of Friendship to the first Changeling setting hoof in Ponyville with love and kindness. We must demonstrate our Friendship to atone for what we did to them. Sincerely, Princess Twilight Sparkle Princess Celestia finishes reading the letter and sighs while imagining the outburst of hurt feelings Spike expressed himself to defend his new friend. Princess Celestia thought to herself. "Twilight, there is still much for you to learn, and it's important to remember the lessons of the past; Otherwise, history will repeat itself." As she yawned, she contemplates her words when she eventually speaks with Twilight tomorrow. Princess Luna navigates all the Dragons of Dragon Town to Canterlot Castle without any headaches; she confirms to every Dragon that they'll spend the night at the castle and then fly to the Dragon Lands after everyone is well rested. Princess Luna sees her sister by the balcony, contemplating the next phase of operations concerning the young Dragon Lord. "CELESTIA!" Princess Luna bellows with her royal tone, alerting Celestia of her arrival. Princess Celestia fixes her gaze at Princess Luna, returning with many new faces. "DRAGONS!" She shouted gleefully and hoped all one hundred forty-one Dragons were present to inform Dragon Lord Spike of the best news since becoming Dragon Lord. Princess Luna lands on the balcony to hold her sister in a loving embrace; Mina takes a snapshot of her favorite Princess having a sentiment moment. Princess Celestia does a headcount and notices that only eighty-six out of one hundred and forty-one Dragons are present; she excludes the younglings within their parents' arms and flying side-by-side. "We're housing these Dragons for the night; then, we'll continue our flight to the Dragon Lands." "That won't be necessary, Luna," Princess Celestia smiles widely at every Dragon hovering in the skies, wondering what will happen next. "Dragon Lord Spike is visiting Ponyville tomorrow! We're all going there; then he'll take you home!" Every Dragon roars in a voice of triumph; this causes panic in the streets of Canterlot as many Royal Guards prepare to defend the Princesses from the Dragons' onslaught. Princess Celestia stands aside, allowing every Dragon to enter the castle through her balcony. Mina is the first to enter and gaze at Celestia's beauty and smiles at her kindness when she sees her fellow Dragons dodging- "SPEARS?!" Mina shouts horridly at the sudden attack. Dozens of spears are thrown at the Dragons by the Royal Guards when many royals and nobles scream in fear about the sudden arrival of Dragons. Princess Luna flies out of the balcony when a Dragon crashes into her after dodging. Some are unfortunate and fell from the skies when they were protecting their younglings. Many children cried for their brothers, sisters, cousins, uncles, aunts, grandparents, mothers, and fathers when the weaponry from the Royal Guards pierced their wings. Princess Celestia attempts to command her Royal Guards to stand down when several younglings crash into her to avoid getting maimed. With the many cries of Dragons in anguish from the attack, Princess Luna's rage ignites; she flies out to confront the Royal Guards who had assaulted honored guests. "CEASE FIRE!" Princess Luna bellows at the charging Royal Guards and realizes they made a grave mistake by upsetting the Princess. The echo boomed and caused windows from many buildings to shatter, displaying her anger towards the sudden attack. Several Dragons collide with the homes in Canterlot after their wings get injured from the attack; Princess Celestia is heartbroken that her Royal Guards attacked first and never asked questions. Reminiscing the letter Twilight mentioned validates the belief within everypony when it comes to other species; Princess Celestia is dismayed with an afterthought after watching the tragedy unfolding. "Mommy!" A young yellow Dragon flies down to see her mother in critical condition. She cries while holding onto her left claw. "GO AWAY!" She barks at the Royal Guards that came by. Princess Luna and Celestia descend to confront their Royal Guards for blatantly attacking the Dragons. The Royal Guards drop their spears and lower their heads, fearing the Princesses' deathly glares that make any brave warrior tremble. Many civilians flee from the Princesses' possible scolding about treating other creatures like how they enjoy the treatment. One Royal Guard removes his helmet after gulping nervously about the punishment awaiting his brethren. "My apologies, Princesses. We were following protocols of removing the enemy upon Canterlot grounds, not noticing the Dragons are visitors and guests..." Many of the Royal Guards nod in unison, concurring with the statement spoken by the only guard of the platoon. "Ugh..., ouch...., my wings hurt....," A teenage Dragon attempts to flap instinctively and feels the pain jolting his body. "OOOOOW! Son-of-a-mother-" A younger sibling covers his mouth from finishing the statement. The Royal Guards of the Pegasi platoon cringe; they understand the sensitivity of having an injured wing from their experiences and feel ashamed for inflicting damage. "Get this one to the infirmary for immediate repairs!" Princess Celestia commanded her subjects to carry the wounded to the Canterlot Hospital. Her direct order implies every other Dragon that fell from the attack. An hour later. Princess Luna is with Doctor Red Cross after he examines the injuries of eleven Dragons that fell. "How long until they can fly, Red Cross?" Princess Luna watches Red Cross trotting with medical documentation. Red Cross is a red Unicorn doctor with a small black mohawk mane and razor tail; his cutie mark is a red plus shape with a black outline. "The spears thrown by the Royal Guards impaled ligaments within the expanded-skeletal wings, thus removing their ability to fly. The estimated recovery time will be three months unless you get the Lord of Chaos for instant healing. We've given these Dragons analgesic to diminish the pain since Dragons' wingspans are different than Pegasi." Princess Luna groans angrily that the Royal Guards caused such a calamity; she doesn't want to tell Spike that the Royal Guards attacked Equestrian Dragons without questioning. "If these Dragons are traveling elsewhere, I suggest the train or other modes of transportation until further notice, Princess," Red Cross states while reading the charts of other Dragons' injuries within the hospital. "Understood..," Princess Luna sighs; she wonders if Celestia is scolding the Royal Guards that attacked the Dragons. In the throne room of Canterlot Castle, Princess Celestia is attended by the Royal Guards who had previously attacked the Dragons. She is livid about the situation getting out of hoof. Princess Celestia commanded the maids and butlers to escort the Dragons unharmed to the guest rooms and alarm them for the morning breakfast. "Princess.., we're-" The Royal Guard hesitates when he sees the anger written in Celestia's eyes. Behind her, flames arose, meaning she was irate. "Why?" It's all Princess Celestia can say about the Royal Guards' impetuous judgment to attack when she and her sister did not authorize the initiative. That one word made every Royal Guard quaver in their armor; they were more afraid of Celestia's wrath than exile. "We...we....we....we...we... were............following.......protocols whenever........fear....spread....in the streets of Canterlot....." A different Royal Guard honestly answers while stuttering with his speech. "I did not instruct the Royal Guards to attack unless mandated by either my sister and me or the Captain of the Guard. Now, I'll ask. Who initiated the attack?" A Royal Guard steps up to answer Princess Celestia's question as firm. "No one commanded us to attack the arrival of the Dragons, Your Highness. We saw dozens of Dragons and thought they were a secret invasion, like the Changelings when they infiltrated Canterlot and nearly dominated us. We wanted to strike before evil spreads once more." Mina is outside the throne room, hearing the commotion since the doors are slightly open. "Like the police, they see us as monsters..." Mina had thought the Royal Guards would be better than Fillydelphia's police department; now, she knows that any protection agency can determine Dragons as villainous. "Is that how you viewed Spike during the years? As a villainous, evil Dragon?" Princess Celestia wants to see how her Royal Guards respond to the claim of Spike being in the category they mentioned about the other Dragons. "Spike is not evil!" "Spike is a good, kind, caring Dragon!" "Spike will do us no harm!" "Spike will never seek to destroy us!" "Spike will never plot to seek the destruction of Equestria, especially the friends he made!" "Spike loves everypony to the fullest and saved the Crystal Empire! He's a hero!" Princess Celestia hears the statements from her Royal Guards; they divulge all the positives and not an ounce of malice from their viewpoints of Spike. It made Celestia frown on certain levels. "So, you're willing to disregard Spike as evil despite being a Dragon?" "Well, not to be rude, Princess. We've got to know Spike and understand who he is," Some Royal Guards answer Celestia's question. Others remain silent after answering the question in their minds. Princess Celestia sadly sighs after hearing the response. She raises her right hoof, pointing at the Royal Guard of the Pegasi platoon. "Royal Guards, I expel you from your position." "No... nononononononononononono no Princess! Please!" The Royal Guards don't want to lose their positions after the hardship they endured to become who they are. "My decision is final!" Princess Celestia stomps her right hoof on the floor, shattering it powerfully to make her point evident. "LEAVE!" The Pegasi leave with their heads down after realizing their deplorable mistake when they answered a question and how their colors exposed themselves to other Dragons except Spike. Mina watches the Pegasi take the walk of shame by their actions and reactions; she feels guilty about them despite what they did to Dragons a while ago. She doesn't wish for anyone to suffer because of the occurrence. Princess Celestia leaves the throne room and notices Mina's reaction to what she possibly heard. "How much do you know?" "Enough to know the Royal Guards sees us as monsters despite living among Equestrian Ponies all these years..," Mina sheds a tear; Princess Celestia wipes it away with her right hoof. "No need to feel gloom, Mina," Princess Celestia reassures Mina. "We need to make necessary changes for the betterment of Equestria since we continue to create bad names for other species living within Equus." "Thank you," Mina smiles; she believes Princess Celestia can help Equestria go in the right direction for making peace with other kingdoms. "You're welcome," Princess Celestia hugs Mina. It's 1:47 in the morning at the Castle of Friendship. Princess Twilight Sparkle couldn't sleep with the possibility of everypony going beserk over Thorax's soon-to-be-sudden-arrival later in the day. Starlight Glimmer watches Twilight sprint back and forth with worry and anxiety running amuck; although she is tired, Starlight uses her magic to hold Twilight still. "Twilight, you need to calm down before you give yourself a migraine," Starlight yawns, watching her teacher pant many times with a paper bag she conjured with her magic. "Spike is coming with his friends! Not only Dragons but a Changeling! Imagine Ponyville rallying as rioters to seize Thorax or attempt to impair him!" Twilight continues to breathe heavily into the paper bag until it pops. "I suggest you gather your friends and strategize a proper way for all of Ponyville to welcome the Dragons and Changeling," Starlight suggests; her eyes flicker more, and doze to slumber. "Great idea!" Twilight teleports to gather each of her sleeping friends without warning for an emergency Friendship meeting at the throne room; she includes Starlight Glimmer since she's still a student. At the throne room, Rarity, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, Rainbow Dash, and Fluttershy are still soundly asleep despite Twilight arriving in each of their homes, using her magic to teleport them to each other's homes. Twilight inflates a balloon to pop, waking her friends with adrenaline and giving them the energy to stay awake for a while. The girls scream in terror except for Pinkie, who knows what balloon pops sound like. Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash turned to Pinkie angrily, thinking she was the prankster of the night; however, Twilight intervenes with an announcement of a Friendship emergency. Applejack, Rarity, and Rainbow Dash apologize to Pinkie Pie for accusing her of a prank. However, in Rainbow's mind, she respected the thought of using a balloon for a pranking spree down the road. "So, what's the emergency, Twilight?" Applejack yawns, tiredly looking at her friend, who seems panicked. "Spike is visiting Ponyville later today," Twilight calmly says. "FINALLY!" Pinkie shouts with glee and jumps up with confetti exploding behind her. "About time," Applejack says with satisfaction. She and her friends have yearned to see their friend after all this time. "I'll have the opportunity to propose to my beloved!" Rarity hasn't given up on becoming Spike's one and only; her friends tried to persuade her, but Rarity didn't listen. She hopes Spike will allow her to become his lover or at least have a harem to share the love! "Is something alright, Twilight?" Rainbow Dash notices Twilight's worrisome facial features written on her body. "Uh..., yea...," Fluttershy realizes Twilight's stillness when she mentions Spike's arrival later today. She's worried about Twilight's well-being. "What's wrong, Twilight?" Twilight lowers her head and remembers the scolding Spike and the Dragons had given her. "He's bringing friends to Ponyville," Twilight sighs deeply, not informing them about Spike's new friend. "Well, the more the merrier, I say!" Pinkie's excitement gets the better of her. "We need to get Power Pony Comics! Gemstone Cakes! Some animals from-" Pinkie Pie gets interrupted by Applejack and Fluttershy. "NO!" They shout angrily at Pinkie for devising the usage of their animals to feed the Dragons. "Sorry! Don't hurt me!" Pinkie quivers at the shout of her friends with stern faces. "So, who's Spike bringing, Twilight?" Rainbow Dash breaks the ice when everypony gets distracted by Pinkie's suggestion of using farm and care animals to feed the Dragons. Twilight looks up at each of her friends; Starlight Glimmer is fast asleep and snores like a gorilla. Her snoring frightens Fluttershy; she has never heard a wild snore before. "Well, don't leave us hanging, Twi. Who's coming with Spike?" Applejack asks her friend calmly after reading Twilight's sickening body reaction. Twilight frowned and wanted to speak so quietly that Fluttershy wouldn't hear the murmurs. "Spike is bringing a handful of Dragons and... and.........." She pauses and imagines the horrid reactions of her friends and sighs heavily. "AND?" Everyone except Starlight Glimmer repeats Twilight's comment, eagerly waiting to hear who else is coming for a visit. Twilight shuts her eyes; she can't see their faces when she announces the species Spike is friends with. "A Changeling..." Twilight finally reveals the truth about Spike's friend. "WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" Everypony shouted in horror at the mere mention of the species' title. Surprisingly, they didn't startle Starlight in her slumber. "You can't be serious?! Why would Spike bring a horrible-looking creature to Ponyville?! Changelings are monsters, not friends!" Rarity exclaims; she refuses to have common sense for the Changeling. "WHY WOULD SPIKE BE FRIENDS WITH A MONSTER SUCH AS A CHANGELING?!" Rainbow Dash is livid about Spike's decision to befriend a love-depriving demon. "THAT CHANGELING COULD BE A SPY, WAITING FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO REVEAL OUR SECRETS TO QUEEN CHRYSALIS AND SLAY US ALL!!" "Nope! Na-da!" Applejack disapproves of Spike's newest friend since she remembers what Changelings had done at the Canterlot Wedding. "That fiend is nothing but trouble." "Changelings..? I'm sorry. I'm really, really sorry. I don't think I can trust a Changeling, not after what happened during the Canterlot Wedding," Pinkie admits, considering the prowess of the Changelings, and could kidnap Spike to become the Dragon Lord to instill massive warfare disguised as Spike. Fluttershy recollects her thoughts and remembers what Discord had mentioned during their tea party. "If Spike trusts the Changeling, I'll try expressing Friendship with him or her." Twilight is stunned to hear her friends' reaction, except for Fluttershy. Since she's friends with an all-mighty Chaos Lord, it made sense for her to accept the arrival of a Changeling. She's glad that Fluttershy didn't express distasteful thoughts and expressions. "I had similar feelings about Spike's Changeling friend earlier today, hostility since everyone but the Dragons wanted to apprehend the Changeling from making any bold moves on Flurry Heart without hesitation; however, Thorax acted on his hungered instincts, apologized for the terror, wept, and pleaded," Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Applejack, Pinkie Pie, and Rarity gasped after hearing the explanation of the Changeling's name and his attempt to resolve a probable issue caused during his hunger state. Twilight heavily sighs after reliving the memory of Spike's outburst for articulating every creature monstrous and not acknowledging some within their boundaries. "So, this Thorax is a good Changeling?" Applejack wanted to be sure of what she heard. She has her disbelief about several creatures seeking change due to a Chaotic Deity that once betrayed their Friendship for freedom. "From what I saw from the balcony, the Crystal Ponies adored and transferred their love to feed Thorax. By now, he's receiving a warm welcome at the Dragons Lands, feasting upon the love Dragons are sharing with him while getting to know him better. From the Dragons' perspective, they view us as racists." "How profound of those ruffians!" Rarity is stunned to hear the horrid statement from Dragons, calling Ponykind racist when they represent Friendship. Applejack and Rainbow Dash concur with Rarity's claim since they believe the Dragons are absurd for calling Ponies racists. "There's no denying that statement, girls. Do you remember how we assumed Zecora was a monster because no one knew her?" Twilight asked her friends the question Spike painfully reminded her of a Friendship lesson she'd forgotten when she first learned it years ago. "That's different, Twilight!" Rainbow Dash knows the difference between knowing who's evil or not. "We fought Changelings and defeated them when they held Princess Celestia cocooned in that gross green slime, roamed the streets of Canterlot, defeating the Royal Guards, weakened Shining Armor, and nearly succeeded in ending us all! All Zecora had done was spooked everypony because of the rumors spread by everypony else. Mainly Pinkie Pie." "HEY!" Pinkie Pie didn't like that accusation. "My point is, there is no such thing as a good Changeling. For all we know, this 'Thorax' could be pretending after an intense training session with Queen Chrysalis to infiltrate our borders, learn more about us, and exploit our weaknesses to seize us! It's a textbook military operation for espionage, Twilight! You have to be pretty dumb to trust a creature that attacked us!" Rainbow Dash stomps her hoof to make her point evident and wake up Twilight about allowing a Changeling she doesn't know about to enter her homelands. "Discord attacked us, and I helped him become better. All he needed was a friend to set him on the right path. I believe the same applies to Thorax when he arrives in Ponyville later today," Fluttershy refuses to accept Rainbow's theory since it's disheartening. Discord unleashed his wrath before and has learned never to allow his ambitions to get the better of him. "Are you listening to yourself, Fluttershy?!" Rainbow Dash glares at Fluttershy for making an absurd statement to trust an enemy of Equestria. "Yes, I am!" Fluttershy raises her voice, startling the proud Wonderbolt Cadet. Everypony but Starlight blinks twice in awe from the sudden uproar; Starlight is still asleep. "From what Twilight said, Thorax sounded sincere, and I believe in giving every creature the benefit of the doubt. We apply that with everypony, so why not every creature?" "Wow, Fluttershy..," Applejack pauses with her statement after rethinking. She had the notion of agreeing with Rainbow Dash's comment when she redrew the conquest of the Changelings seizing Canterlot and not once thought about the few that would be against the idea of a hostile takeover. Discord is living proof of a vile, malicious creature that sought good and became better. Another example would be her friend, Starlight Glimmer after she took her cutie mark and altered several timelines. Applejack knows better than to be judgemental towards the possibility of greeting new friends in her life. "Well, I'll be darned, I reckon I agree with ya, Fluttershy." "SAY WHAT?!" Rainbow Dash and Rarity are dreadful at Applejack's sudden mood change, aligning herself with Fluttershy for trusting a Changeling that may betray them in the long run. "I don't want to be a meanie, so I'll bake an absolutely, totally deliciously cake that tastes like love for Thorax to consume!" Pinkie Pie doesn't want her good nature and reputation to taste sour with the untrustworthiness of a potential new friend. She wants to embrace a new livelihood with another species and understand more about Thorax and his renewed lifestyle. "I made a mistake a while ago when I had the opportunity to present Friendship to Thorax. Now, I have a second chance to undo the damages, turn a new leaf, and welcome Thorax as a brother in Friendship." "Also, I don't want to disappoint Spike a second time in back-to-back days. I need his forgiveness for assuming all Changelings evil when I never consider the one percent chance of goodness in everything." "I suggest you two should rethink your opinions and let go of the darkness Changelings have a hold on you. We can keep our guard up; however, it shouldn't be evident to create awkwardness. Or, is it too much for the awesome Rainbow Dash to overcome?" Fluttershy entices Rainbow Dash by using reverse psychology. "I mean. I guess my awesome childhood friend would drop twenty percent less cool if she opposes the suggestion." "No way, Flutters!" Within an instant, Rainbow Dash refuses to drop her coolness over a silly grudge. "You watch as I'll become friends with Thorax before you can!" She shouts with pride, then covers her mouth with the sudden realization of the commitment she spewed. "Good!" Fluttershy yawns. "I'll look forward to watching you laugh with Thorax," Fluttershy hopes Rainbow Dash stays dedicated to becoming friends with Thorax. All eyes are on Rarity; she's the last to admit her faults about trusting a monster when it's evident with Fluttershy how Discord has become a decent creature to associate with. She has heard many tales during their time hanging out. Also, Starlight Glimmer was a monster that befriended another. Her ideology has started to betray her thoughts, but she remains persistent until further notice. "He'll have to earn my trust first before I'll allow him to befriend me. I am unsure about Changelings since they are love-thirsty demons," Rarity finds it disgusting to associate with Changelings in fear of them draining her dry from magic power then love. The girls sigh with some relief. "Good enough," Twilight yawns. "I would appreciate you girls sleeping over to help prepare for Thorax and the Dragons' arrival." "Sure thing, Twilight," The girls say in unison. They want to help welcome Dragon Lord Spike, the Dragons, and Thorax to Ponyville. Twilight hopes Princess Celestia and Luna extend their love to embrace Thorax as an honored guest and new friend.