//------------------------------// // Bargaining Cycle: Day One // Story: The Legend of Spike: Discord's Mask // by DiabloGuapo //------------------------------// Dawn of the First Day- 72 Hours Remaining Ding! As before, the watch chimed as Spike found himself in Clock Town. The Element of Kindness was on his right wrist and the Element of Honesty was around his neck. The dragon wondered what the next assignment would be. As an answer to his question, the ball of light that represented Princess Celestia’s power emerged before him. “Well done, Spike,” congratulated the voice of the Princess. “You are making great progress.” “Thank you, Your Highness,” Spike said. “Where’s the next Element of Harmony?” “You must now travel to the northern mountains,” the light instructed. “The Earth Ponies make their home in the fertile valleys. There you will find the Element of Generosity.” “Generosity,” Spike repeated. If this next test is like the others, Rarity will appear during in it. Spike wasn’t sure if he was ready to confront the mare that rejected him, but he knew that she would have to show up sooner or later. He had already encountered this world’s version of the white Unicorn, but it was different. She wasn’t the Rarity that he had grown to love. Soon, he would face the mental image of the mare that broke his heart. Regardless of what he felt, he had to complete his task. The lives of everypony in Trotina depended on him. “You can do it, Spike,” the light reassured, understanding his internal conflict. “Now hurry.” The ball of light swirled around and then shot off to the shrine in the northern part of town. Spike ran after it, following its lead to the northern gate. The ball had easily left him behind and was out of sight before he even reached the northern park. He approached the gate, but was stopped by the guard posted there. “Hold it right there!” the Unicorn guard ordered. Spike had forgotten about the strict guards. “Come on, I got to…” Spike tried to explain. “It’s too dangerous for a little dragon, like yourself, to leave the town alone!” the guard cut him off. “I can’t allow…” “Let him pass,” ordered a powerful voice. Both the Unicorn and the dragon turned their attention to the shrine on top of the hill. Princess Celestia stood there with a commanding look on her face. “But, Your Majesty…” the guard tried to argue. “I will not repeat myself,” she stated with authority. She stared down the stallion and he wilted under her gaze. “Yes, Your Majesty,” the guard conceded, stepping aside to let Spike pass. The dragon ran out the gate and the Solar Alicorn returned to the shrine to rest as she waited for her strength to come back to her with every Element of Harmony that was recovered. Spike was headed towards the towering mountains. The dragon knew that some mountains had snow on their peaks all year long due to their high elevation, but these mountains were blanketed with it! It was the last days of spring, yet the mountains seemed to be stuck in an eternal winter. Dark clouds swirled menacingly over the mountains. Spike could tell that this wasn’t going to be an easy trek. Spike shivered as the arctic wind blew as he made his way up the mountain pass. His teeth chattered and he rubbed his chest for warmth. It’s freezing up here, the other Spike complained. Tell me about, Spike responded. It looks like they missed the past dozen Winter Wrap-Ups! Wait, how are you cold? You don’t have a body. We’re sharing the same body, remember? Yeah, mine. Ours, corrected the voice. Hey, this body belongs to me, pal, Spike declared. I am you, remember? Yeah, the one from this world. This body is one hundred percent Equestrian. Yours was turned into a tree. Oh, right… the alternate Spike mumbled. Besides, I’m the one who’s doing all the work! Do you want me to drive? No! The two Spikes made their way up the path until they came to an obstacle. A sheet of ice had blocked the road. Spike looked at the roadblock and then sneezed, sending frozen snot flying from his nostrils. How are we going to get past this? asked Spike. Um, you are a dragon, reminded the voice. Oh, duh, Spike thought as he smacked himself. The young dragon took a breath and unleashed his breath of green flames. The fire melted the ice, allowing him to continue on his way. The path entered a valley. The valley was covered in snow. The trees had long, dangerous looking icicles hanging from the branches. There was a river that had frozen over. Spike could faintly see houses in the distance. He squinted his eyes and saw that smoke was rising from the chimneys from the cozy looking cottages. Spike imaged himself being nice and warm inside one of them. He made his way the village through the snow. The wind started to intensify as a stormed rolled in. The freezing wind chilled the dragon to the bone. It was getting hard to see due to the sleet and wind. Spike had to hurry, or he would be lost in the blizzard, but the snow was slowing his progress. The snow came up to his waist and had a hard time walking through it. Spike heard a noise in the hollowing wind. It sounded like the whinnying of horses, but it was somehow sinister. Spike looked around for the source of the sound, but only saw snow. He then looked up at the mountains and thought he saw something flying around in the angry clouds. Then there was another sound. This time it sounded friendly. The dragon looked beside him and saw an owl sitting on an ice covered tree. The owl looked very familiar to Spike. “Owlowiscious?” asked Spike, recognizing the bird. The owl hooted and flew off the tree. It circled Spike, hooted again, and then took off, heading into the storm. Spike watched Owlowiscious fly away, but the bird turned around and hooted at Spike. The dragon took this as a sign that the bird wanted him to follow. Spike trudged through the snow to follow after the owl. Every so often, the bird would wait for Spike to catch up and then would continue. Owlowiscious led Spike to a cave, which the dragon proceeded to enter. He turned back to thank the owl, but the bird hooted and flew back into the storm and out of sight. Spike shrugged and looked around the cave. There was a chest in the center of cavern. Spike walked over the chest, opened it, and saw what looked like a magnifying glass lying inside. With the object was a scroll. Spike unrolled the scroll and began to read it. “‘I am Star Swirl the Bearded. Inside this chest is the Lens of Truth. With it, one is able to see beyond illusions and see spirits,’” Spike read aloud. Spike took the lens in his claw and observed it. It was purple with a red lens. The shape of the lens resembled that of an eye. The glass was even tinted to look like it had an iris and pupil. “See spirits, huh?” Spike looked through the lens, but saw nothing but a cave tinted red by the color of the glass. With nothing else in the cave, Spike made his way to the village. When he arrived, he saw that the cottages weren’t as warm as he thought. He could see the ponies inside through the window of the houses. They were shivering from the cold and trying to warm themselves with small fires in their fireplaces. He noticed that the lumber piles beside the fireplaces were minuscule as well. Spike realized that the winter was caused by the curse of Nightmare Moon. The earth ponies were unprepared for the sudden change of weather and were quickly running out of supplies. Spike pulled out the lens, which he had hung alongside the amulet and his flute on the chain, and studied it again. He wondered if it was worth keeping. It seemed to do nothing. He looked through the lens again and panned around. Again, he saw nothing but the cottages and a large Earth Pony stallion staring into a window of one of them. Giving up on the lens, he lowered it, but then the pony vanished! Surprised, Spike raised the lens again. When he did, the pony reappeared. He lowered the lens and the pony vanished again. Could this mean that the lens really worked? If the lens really works, then that pony was a ghost! Spike looked through the lens again, amazed at the discovery. He then recognized the phantom pony. “Big Macintosh?” Spike called to the ghost. The ghost looked to the dragon, surprised that someone called his name. The ghost floated over to him. “Can you see me?” asked the spirit in a thick, country accent. “Yes, this lens allows me to see spirits,” explained Spike. “Follow me,” the ghostly Big Macintosh said as he floated away. Spike followed the incorporeal pony to the outskirts of the village. He led Spike to a field that was surrounded by a stone wall. As Spike followed Big Macintosh, he could see something stick up through the snow all across the field. Spike realized that they were headstones and that he was in a cemetery. Spike shivered from the cold and from the thought of being led through a cemetery by a ghost. They eventually came to a crypt. Outside it were two Earth Ponies standing guard over the grave. They covered themselves in blankets and they were huddled around a small fire. “If only B-b-big Macintosh hadn’t died,” mourned one of the guards. “H-h-h-he could s-save us from this c-c-curse.” “If h-h-hadn’t died,” grumbled the other pony. “We w-w-wouldn’t have to stand guard over his g-g-grave in the cold! Who would r-r-rob a grave of a hero anyways?” “I don’t know, b-b-but it’s tradition to have t-t-two watchponies stationed at the grave of a hero for a w-w-week.” Both ponies moaned in despair. Spike pitied the two ponies for having to stand watch over a grave for a week in this weather. The ghost of Big Macintosh simply phased through the stone walls of the tomb while Spike had to use the door. The guards didn’t stop Spike from entering. They were too distracted by the cold to even notice the approach of the dragon. Inside, the spirit awaited the dragon by a stone sarcophagus. The words inscribed on the lid read: “Here lies Big Macintosh of the Apple Family, the Great Hero of the Earth Ponies.” “Ah am Big Macintosh,” the ghost introduced himself. “Even since Ah was young, Ah have stood up for my fellow villagers. When Ah was alive… Whoa, that’s weird to say that... When Ah was Ah alive, the villagers looked up to me. Ah would chase away Timberwolves, thieves, and anything else that threatened my home. But now… Ah’m dead.” The ghost hung his head and continued. “Ah saw a dark mare fly towards the shrine in the mountains and it started to snow. Ah reckoned that she was responsible it the strange weather, so Ah went to stop her. When Ah was headed to the shrine, a blizzard came out of nowhere and caught me by surprise. The blizzard knocked me off the path into the ravine… and now… here Ah am…” Spike listened to his tragic tale and felt sympathy for the fallen hero. He was about say something, but Big Macintosh raised his head quickly, an angry expression on his face. “How infuriatin’! Ah have to sit here and do nothin’ as my friends freeze their flanks off! Ah would do anythin’ to help them!” His expression fell as he sighed in hopelessness. “But Ah can’t. Ah may have died, but Ah can’t rest.” He faced Spike and gave him a pleading look. “You can see me. Then you must have some sort of magic! Ah beg you, use your magic to bring me back to life!” “I can’t do that!” Spike exclaimed. Sure, he could turn into a Unicorn, but couldn’t bring somepony back from dead with Unicorn magic. “Please,” begged Big Macintosh. “Do somethin’. Anythin’! Ah would do anythin’ if somepony could give me rest and heal my troubled soul!” Troubled soul, Spike thought. That sounded familiar to the dragon. He remembered the strange merchant that taught him the song that freed him from the curse that Nightmare Moon placed on him. If it had worked for him, then maybe it could also work for Big Macintosh. Spike reached for his flute and played the Song of Healing for the lamenting Earth Pony. As Big Macintosh listened to the hauntingly beautiful notes of the song, he saw a vision. He was standing before his fellow Earth Ponies. They stomped their hooves in applause and cheered his name. His eyes scanned the crowd of admiring ponies, recognizing each of their faces. He felt their pride for him and he began to be filled with gratitude. Then the vision changed, and it would have taken his breath away if he could still breathe. He was looking at a farm. There was an elderly, bright green mare sitting on a rocking chair on a porch of a farmhouse. She was smiling as she watched two younger mares: an orange one with a Stetson hat and a yellow one with a bow in her mane. The orange mare was bucking an apple tree while the yellow filly caught the failing apples in a bucket. They were laughing as they work and a dog was happily barking beside them. Ethereal tears fell from Big Macintosh’s eyes as he watched the happy scene. The song ended and a mask of a red stallion land on the floor with a clank. Spike picked up the mask and it vanished. Spike could now feel another presence in his mind. Thank you kindly, thanked the country voice of Big Macintosh. How can Ah ever repay you? We need to find the Element of Generosity, said Spike. It should be in the shrine you mentioned. Alright, let me show you the way. Spike unleashed the power of the Earth Pony Mask and felt his body changing. It was similar to the other transformation, but much worse. The Unicorn foal was about the same size as Spike, but now he was growing into a full grown stallion. Also, Big Macintosh was bigger than most ponies. Spike could feel his muscles stretch and his bones lengthen. The ordeal left him breathless. Okay, let’s go, Spike said to the spirits in his head after he had recovered. He headed to the crypt door and walked out. Uuummm, I don’t think this is good idea, cautioned the other Spike. What do you mean? Spike asked his counterpart. Well, a dead pony is about to… The voice was interrupted by screams of terror. The two ponies that were standing guard over the grave jumped away from the tomb’s entrance when they saw Spike in Big Macintosh’s body standing there. “A zombie!” the two frightened ponies screamed. They fell to the ground with their hooves clasped together as they begged. “Please, Mr. Zombie, please don’t eat our brains!” “Ah’m not a zombie,” Spike denied. It surprised the dragon to hear his voice sounding like Big Macintosh. “Y-you’re not?” one of them asked. “Eenope,” he responded. “You’re alive?” the other asked. “Eeyup.” “Then… that means…” the first said as he tried to figure out what he was looking at. “Big Macintosh is alive!” the second exclaimed. “He’s alive! Come on, we need to tell everypony!” Spike followed the pair back to the village. Well, that went better than I expected. Eeyup, Big Macintosh agreed. By the way, who’s the unicorn? The other Spike introduced himself to Big Macintosh and explained the situation to him as they headed into town. The two guard ponies knocked on the doors and shouted for the occupants to come out. The Earth Ponies grumpily murmured as they reluctantly left their home with their small fire, but their spirits were instantly lifted when they saw their town hero standing in the middle of the streets. “He’s alive!” “It a miracle!” “He’s come back to save us!” The ponies gathered around Spike, hugging him and patting him on the back. Their rejoicing was cut short when a horrible noise filled the air. The ponies covered their ears to shield them from the auditory assault. Spike felt as though his ears were going to bleed. He saw a mare trying to hush to her foals. Spike recognized the blue mare with the pink swirly mane as Cup Cake and the twin foals as Pound and Pumpkin. The Pegasus colt and the Unicorn filly were crying and screaming at the top of their tiny lungs. How can something so small make so much noise!? thought all three of the heroes at the same time. “Sorry everypony,” Mrs. Cake sheepishly apologized. “The commotion must have woken the babies. Ssshhh, don’t cry. Daddy will be home soon.” The ponies retreated back into their homes to find refuge from the blizzard and the sound of the crying babies. Spike went into a house that Big Macintosh pointed out to be his. Spike changed back into a dragon and started a fire. He found some apples and began to eat. Shouldn't we go ahead and make our way to the shrine? suggested the other Spike. Eenope, answered Big Macintosh. The last thing you want to do is to head out at night in the middle of a blizzard. It’s better to rest and try in the mornin’. Spike agreed and yawned as he hopped onto Big Macintosh’s large but simple bed. At least now he’ll be able to get some sleep. Eyes shot back open when the sound of the babies crying filled the cottage. This was going to be along night. Ponyville- Day 2, 10:00 A.M. Rarity exited Carrousel Boutique and headed to Golden Oaks Library. She just had to speak with Spike. Ever since last night, she couldn’t stop thinking about the purple dragon when she saw the fire ruby that he had given to her. However, she didn’t quite know what she was going to say. She would of course apologize to him for what she had said the day before. She was so caught up in her plans for the future and was in such a rush to leave that she sounded to be short with him. That should have never been the case. Spike was trying to confess his love for her and she didn’t even let him say it. She bit her lip at the thought. Maybe the reason she didn’t allow him to express his feelings for her was that she was afraid of her own. The dragon fawned over her every time he saw. He would try to hide it, but she obviously noticed. She was flattered by his admiration and enjoyed the attention she received from him. She would return the favor with little displays of affection. It was so cute the way he would blush and swoon. He would always treat her with utmost respect and would gladly do anything for her. She started to think about the words that she said to him yesterday. Besides, you’re a few years younger than me. That was a moot point to make. She kept forgetting that she was only a few years his senior. His draconic biology caused his body to develop much slower than a pony’s, but he was very mature mentally. I really think you are nice, but I’m a Unicorn and you’re a dragon…. That was just a heartless thing to say, and that was the thing to hurt him the most. Then she remember the words he said. I never should have fooled myself. The look on his face as he said those words when he walked out her door haunted her. So much pain, so much sadness and it was all because of what she said. What did it matter? She knew some ponies that were happily married to donkeys. Of course, their mule offspring may not be very attractive, but she had met many mules, and they were a friendly and pleasant type of equine. Why, she’s even heard of ponies and zebras having zebroids together. Was it so wrong for a Unicorn to be with a dragon? Could she undo the damage she had caused? Could Spike ever forgive her? He made it so easy for you, didn’t he? a criticizing voice said from the back of her mind. He gave and gave, hoping that you could ever love him back, and you just lead him on, enjoying the love that he so freely gave you. When he asked for some of it back, you stabbed him in the heart. You’re a harlot. Rarity was shocked that her own mind called herself that, but she couldn’t find the strength to refute the harsh accusation. She started to cry tears of regret but quickly wiped them away when she saw Pinkie Pie approaching her. “Rarity?” the Pinkie said with a slightly confused look on her face. “You’re back early. Shouldn’t you be in Canterlot with Count High N’Haughty?” “High N’Mighty,” corrected Rarity. “No, I came back late last night.” “Oh, so does that mean the two of you total fell head over hooves for each the moment you laid eyes on each other and you’re already engaged?” asked her bubbly friend. “Can I throw you an engagement party?” “No, darling, it did not turn out quite as I had hoped. Let’s just say that the Count was rather…” “High and Mighty?” “Well… yes. He wasn’t the gentlecolt that I had hoped he would be.” “Well, okay then, no engagement party. But I still have to throw you a ‘welcome home’ party!” the party said cheerfully before becoming suddenly serious. “But first, I have to help Twilight find Spike.” “‘Find Spike?’” the white unicorn repeated, dread filling her heart. Could she mean… No, she couldn’t… “Spike’s missing,” Pinkie explained with an uncharacteristically upset tone. “Nopony has seen him since yesterday morning.”