Pony Trigger

by Pinklestia


Larry

Then Gilda the griffon guided the two ponies to the Cathedral, which was set miles away from Ponyville in a very wild part of the Everfree forest and looked abandoned. Twilight noted the crescent moon symbol on the top of it and found it interesting; she would have to find out more about that later. Gilda said goodbye and warned them they had better save Posey or she was going to go after them.

Twilight and Rainbow Dash walked up to the front door, finding it unlocked. It creaked as they pushed it open and went inside. The interior was made of wood, and was barely illuminated by some torches. A row of long bench seats was on either side of the center aisle. There was an altar in the front, with a white cloth draped over it. Colorful stained glass windows graced the back of the Cathedral, and off to the left was a pipe organ.

No one was there, no one was praying, yet the lit torches indicated somepony had to be there. There was a broken statue in the right corner, the head was missing, but it had wings, and was a bit too small to be a statue of princess Celestia. Twilight looked at the crescent moon on the statue's flank; it was almost the same as the one she saw on the top of the Cathedral.

Rainbow Dash slowly walked around, looking at the statues on the walls. They were grotesque and horrible, with small versions of Princess Celestia, depicting her as a demon. There were also some beautiful tapestries and paintings. On one of the paintings, she saw a black winged unicorn mare fighting Princess Celestia.

"Come here, Rainbow Dash." Said Twilight. The pegasus turned from the wall and looked at Twilight. She was kneeling in front of the altar, looking at something on the ground. She reached down and picked it up, then held it in the dim light.

It was Fluttershy's pendant? It couldn't be. Sparkle had it, right? Then Twilight Sparkle took out the strange watch device Dash had seen before and held it close to the pendant. For a brief moment, both the watch and the pendant were enveloped in a rainbow glow.

CRACK!

Both ponies looked to where the winged mare statue was, only the statue was now broken. And they saw two beautiful black unicorn mares.

"Hey, what's going on?" asked Twilight.

"You should be home little fillies." One of the black mares said.

"You should be home in bed and not causing trouble!" Said the other.

Both of the black mares burst into a brilliant red flame. Twilight screamed and Rainbow Dash pulled her sword out of her backpack.

When the flames died down, instead of two mares there were two horrible zombie-like ponies in front of them. Instead of hooves they had lions' paws with long sharp claws. Their skinny legs were glowing with a ghostly red aura. They had a gray coat and their teeth were long and sharp, and they had long, purplish, scraggly manes.

"Rainbow Dash!" Yelled Twilight.

The creature on the left let out a hideous scream. It slashed viciously for Rainbow Dash's throat. She held back the creature's claws with her iron blade, trying to push it back. The other creature tried to come up behind the pegasus. It raised its claws, ready to rip into her back.

It let out a scream of pain. Rainbow Dash took her eyes off the creature she was defending herself from for a split second. Twilight had driven a big piece of the broken statue into the back of the other creature and had it pinned to the floor.

That was a bad idea. The free monster took the chance to attack Dash; only her wings saved her as she used them to quickly dodge backward. Then she cut off the creature's front claws. The monster yelled in pain and Rainbow Dash took the chance to cut its head off.

"I... I killed it?" Dash said surprised, the expression of horror in Dash's face distracted her unicorn friend. And the remaining creature got free of its hold and headed right for Sparkle's throat, she panicked and could not react.

Then there was a loud crunch, and the creature's face became distorted. Its eyes rolled back in its head, and it collapsed at the mare's feet. "Wha...?" said Twilight.

She looked down at the corpse and saw a strange creature. It was a two and a half foot tall, purple and green baby dragon. But it had gills at the sides of its neck and membranes between its fingers. It had buried a heavy looking sword deep in the monster's back.

"Lower thy guard and thou art allowing thine enemy in." The strange dragon said in a raspy voice.

"I... I killed!" Rainbow Dash stammered, starting to cry and falling down. "I am not supposed to do this! And... if this goes on, I will probably have to kill again. Every creature deserves to live, this is wrong!"

Twilight Sparkle was also shocked, but unlike her friend, she had seen death before. There was only one thing she could do right now.

The purple unicorn hugged Dash tight. "It's okay; this is a war, Rainbow. You are not a killer. You did it to defend yourself. To defend me, you did it for Fluttershy and for Equestria. And there is more at stake here than just that, you remember what will happen if we fail, right?"

Rainbow Dash stood up, her friend was right. This wasn't just about saving Fluttershy or history as they knew it; if they failed, there was a huge chance of the universe being destroyed. Dash didn't know much about time traveling, but she trusted Sparkle with her life, and if she said the universe would be destroyed unless the Queen was saved, she believed it.

Dash cleaned the tears from her face. "Sorry, I lost it for a moment. I am better now." Dash then looked at the strange creature that had saved Sparkle's life. "And who the hay are you?"

"A friend, thou canst call me Spike."

"So, we do call him Spike or we can't call him Spike?" Dash asked, confused.

"I think he means we can call him Spike." Twilight said, smiling.

"Spike will do. Perhaps a hidden door lurks nigh? Let us search the environs." said the small dragon.

"That sounds OK. By the way I am Rainbow Dash and this is my best friend Twilight Sparkle," Dash said. Once they shacked claws with hooves, the three spread out around the Cathedral, pushing along the walls, searching for a crack that might conceal a hidden door or such.

Twilight pressed against the stained glass windows, looking through them for some kind of other room while Spike checked for loose boards in the floor. Dash looked under the tapestries and paintings. Yet, they found nothing.

Rainbow Dash took off the white cloth of the altar in the front, and found a broken statue of princess Celestia. The search was starting to become frustrating. she silently cursed and pounded her hoof onto the pipe organ. The moment she did, a grinding noise was heard, and a section of wall disappeared next to the organ, revealing a secret door.

Good job, Lady Rainbow Dash!" Spike congratulated, and the trio entered the doorway. On the other side of the door, they found a spiral staircase that led the trio down into the depths of the Cathedral. Several candles cast dim light in the hallway.

Dash glanced to the left and dodged backwards. "Shh!" she said, putting her hoof in front of her mouth. Spike peeked. To the left of the stairs stood three gray three gray gargoyle-like monsters. They were a bit taller than Spike and had sharp claws.

Spike grinned. He seemed anxious for battle, but Twilight pulled him back. "I'll handle this." With that, she threw a green jar to the three gargoyles. There was a green flash, and all three felt asleep. "Sleeping flash potion. Let's go."

"Wait a minute, since when do you know so much about magic?" Rainbow Dash asked, looking suprised

"I don't! I just bought the stuff, OK? That zebra Zecora even have me a discount!"

"Zecora? You saw that witch? But..."

"Just because she is not a pony that doesn't make her evil!"

"But, the rumors say that she's an evil enchantress, that she'll mix up an evil brew and gobble you up. Or something like that! There is even a song!"

"SHE IS NOT EVIL! SHE IS MY SECOND-BEST FRIEND, OK!" Twilight Sparkle screamed angrily

Unfortunately, screaming in a place full of monsters just wasn't a good idea. They soon found themselves surrounded by a dozen green imps, and a chimera zombie pony like like the ones that had attacked them before.

"Sparkle, you got any more of that sleeping flash thing?" Rainbow Dash asked

"No, but I've got this!" Twilight said pulling out a hammer from her pack, just when a big, green one-eyed snake decided to join the fun.

Spike grinned and head for the snake, Dash ducked the evil gray mare claws while Twilight started hammering the imps. That probably wasn't the best way to deal with a place full of monsters, but at least they seemed to be having fun.

Spike was definitely having fun. The giant snake was three times longer than him, and twice as wide, but the dragon's jumps were so frog-like and powerful that evading its blows was like child's play to him.

Dash fought the chimera mare, her sword blocking the monster's claws, while Twilight had already knocked out four imps.

Spike finally decided to start attacking and leapt into the air, then bounced off the wall, heading to the reptile's head, and stabbed his sword into the snake's only eye. The now blind monster screamed and cursed at him.

Twilight seemed to be in trouble, as the eight remaining imps decided to Twilight was surprised as the eight remaining imps decided to attack the unicorn all at once. But then Sparkle took the upper hand when she used her magic to raise two imps and make them crash with the others.

Rainbow Dash was able to cut off one of the chimera's claws, but got herself a bleeding cut slightly above her right eye.

The snake, while blind, was not dead yet. It moved violently and smashed against the walls, trying to get Spike off her back.

Spike leaped off the serpent's head and screamed a vicious battle cry. The snake struck out at him, but at the last minute, the miniature dragon jumped away. The snake crashed into the wall behind him, leaving a big crater.

The blood coming from the wound above Rainbow's eye was making it hard for her to see. She heard something behind her and barely dodged a slash. Speeding herself up with her wings, Dash turned around and charged the monster at full speed, slicing it in half. But it was not a flawless victory, as the monster clawed one of the pegasus' wings before dying, making the blue pony scream in pain.

Twilight had knocked out four more imps, but the remaining four grinned at her, as if they had something planed. They started to run around her in circles. she could only lift two at the same time at most, and if she forced in doing that, she would be attacked.

The imps had managed to land a few hits on Sparkle. But they had gotten so close to her, that one of them had already had its head crushed with the purple pony's hammer.

Rainbow Dash wanted to help, even with her right wing injured, but Spike stopped her. "Let the lady do it herself." The blue mare understood the reason. Whoever had kidnapped the Queen was sure to be a lot tougher than a bunch of imps, and if her friend Sparkle couldn't even beat those, then they would have to put her somewhere safe and just continue the mission as just the two of them.

The unicorn was enraged, and her hammer started to float around her very fast. Twilight was able to knock out two imps that way. The remaining imp looked around scared, finally noticing another imp was dead next to him, and that he seemed to be the last one standing.

Then, he did something no one expected. He bowed to Twilight Sparkle "Please don't kill me, I will do anything!"

Spike put his blade to its throat and looked at Twilight Sparkle, who shook her head. "Don't! Let's question him instead." Spike nodded and shook the imp.

Meanwhile, Rainbow Dash took a few jars of healing cream and started to heal herself. The wound above her eye sealed, but even with medicine, she would have to see a doctor about her damaged wing later. Though at least she hadn't broken any bones.

The scared imp grunted, and its eyes went wide open. "I'll say this for you. You know what you're doing!"

Spike glared. "What be thy name, imp?"

The imp gulped. "Larry. Larry the imp. Please don't kill me."

Spike growled at him, showing him his dragon fangs. "What be the way to the Queen?"

Larry looked at the blade, gulped again, and answered as quickly as he could. "B-behind me, a switch in the wall. It opens a room upstairs. It's behind the broken Celestia statue. There is a spare key; with that key, you can open the door at the end of this hallway. No other way; the door its sealed with magic from Rarity herself! But the spare key is heavily guarded."

Rainbow Dash looked at him, surprised. "Hey, why'd you tell us it was guarded? You could have kept that quiet and had us wiped out by surprise."

Larry shook. "L-look, I'm not a f-fanatic like the others here. I was d-drafted, and these b-bums never did anything for m-me. Quite the opposite, actually. P-please don't kill me."

Spike scowled. "What they are planing to do with the queen? Are the rumors of a sacrifice true?"

Larry looked at him hopefully. "Yes, but she's still alive, I guess. The boss came in just a few minutes ago, and he always takes an hour at least to prepare... sacrifices..."

Spike stood in silence, shocked and cursing Rarity in his mind "Larry. When mister dragon removes his sword, you will leave this place and never come back. Do you hear me?" Rainbow Dash asked. Larry nodded.

Spike disgustedly removed his sword, and Larry ran up the stairs like a bat out of hell. "Cowardly vermin."

Twilight Sparkle glared at him. "It's better then being an evil fanatic like the rest."

"You are too soft young lady, but the time is nigh." Without another word the dragon headed to the secret switch, a candle lamp, and pressed it. They heard a rumbling sound upstairs.

The ponies and the dragon went back to the first floor and noticed that indeed, there was a secret door behind the broken Celestia statue. After moving it out of the way, they headed inside.

The room was made of stone and had a wooden bed in the middle. There was very little in the way of decoration, and the place looked cheap.

"W-who goes there?" called a scared voice.

Spike and Rainbow Dash got out their swords. Twilight Sparkle pulled out her hammer. "Who is there?" asked the unicorn.

A helmeted colt head popped up from under the bed. The colt then went out from under the bed and stood straight. He wore heavy armor, but had no weapons. He studied the trio intently and shook his head. "You guys look too weird to be monsters in disguise," said the pony.

Twilight Sparkle frowned and Spike growled. "What are you doing here?" asked the unicorn."And where is the spare key?"

"I'm one of the queen's knights. I was defeated by Yakra, the... thing that captured the queen and imprisoned me here," said the colt. "He's one of Magus's minions. They took my weapons and threw me in here. I know nothing of a spare key, though; you must have been lied to. Yakra is somewhere in the back of the underground place, and he has the queen with him. You must save her!"

"Yakra..." said Spike. "I faintly recall such a fiend."

"There is something else," said the knight. "Somewhere in this chapel is a shrine dedicated to Magus. There are many weapons and items in there. I suggest you find this secret room."

Twilight looked at Dash. "Hey, that does sound like a good idea. We may need some better weapons if we're gonna take on this Yakra thing," she said. "Let's find that place!"

The knight looked at both of them. "Good," he said, "cause I'm out of here!" He ran right past the secret door closed behind him

"It was a trap! Let's get out of here," said Twilight Sparkle. And just then, the roof above them broke and they were attacked by three purple gargoyles.

"Damn Larry! He tricked us!" Dash said heading right into one of the gargoyles, while Twilight smashed the bed into another and Spike had a sword fight with the only gargoyle smart enough to carry a sword.

The gargoyle Twilight was fighting just fainted after having a whole bed crashing in his head. The unicorn would be amazed of lifting something that heavy if she wasn't so enraged.

Dash had her right wing injured, so she could not fly and had pain even if she was a bit stubborn to admit it. The purple monster was good at flying away of her attacks. Then it screamed as a hammer crushed its head. "Thanks Sparkle" Dash said looking at her unicorn friend smiling at her.

While his fight with the gargoyle seemed at first to be in a stalemate, Spike was gaining the upper hand quickly . As his partners had finished their battles, he remembered what was at stake. As his partners finished their battles, he remembered what was at stake, and with a swift move, knocked the sword out of his enemy's grasp." Thou shalt tell me where the key is or else thou shalt taste the sharpness of mine sword."

"What did he say?" the gargoyle asked, a confused look on its face

"You tell him where the spare key is, or he will kill you," Twilight said.

"The snake that was disguised as a soldier and ran away had it"

Then the door opened, bringing with it a voice the two ponies knew well.

"Hey, are you missing this?"

Gilda entered the room, holding a key in one of her front claws "I found it weird to see a soldier running away, so I stopped it. Then it transformed into a giant snake. Bad move! I eat snakes for breakfast!" Gilda smiled. "Anyway, it had this key."

Rainbow Dash hugged Gilda, making her blush."Thank you! Thank you!Thank you!" screamed the blue pegasus "Will you stay and rescue the queen with us?"

"No, but good luck" Gilda gave the ponies the key and left, but not before Twilight have her a goodbye hug. Spike seemed confused but didn't said anything.

"Eh, can I go now?" asked the scared gargoyle. Spike knocked him out with the flat of his sword.

"He shall not rise for a while" Spike said grinning

The group of so-called heroes went back downstairs and walked the long hallway. There were a few doors to the sides, but they had no time to lose. At the end they found a large set of metal double doors. Spike had the honor of opening the doors. As he put the key in the door and turned it twice to undo the lock, a flash of blue light emanated from the doors, and they spread wide open.

he trio looked inside the big room. An old gray colt stood behind an altar while the true Queen Posey was tied to a long rectangular stone table. He held a bronze dagger over her with both hooves.

Spike narrowed his eyes. "Tis the Chancellor that has captured Queen Posey!"

"Prepare yourself, Queen Posey. It is time!" The Chancellor looked at the queen, too lost in the ritual to have noticed the two ponies or the dragon behind him, and smirked. "You shall be sacrificed to the great-"

His speech was cut short when the dagger was knocked out of this hooves by a flying strike of Twilight's hammer.

"OUCH! Who DARES?" the Chancellor screamed. Rainbow Dash and Spike charged. With one swing each, their swords severed Queen Posey's bonds.

"Oh Spike, you have come to my aid! Thank you!" The queen said. She looked just like Fluttershy but had no wings.

Spike smiled. "Stand back, m'lady, and allow us the pleasure of vanquishing this traitor!"

She nodded and took cover behind the unicorn. Rainbow Dash looked at the Chancellor, who had jumped from behind the altar and had begun walking toward them.

"Ah, Spike." said the Chancellor. "We meet again. I have not forgotten what you did to me upon our last meeting!"

A confused look crossed Spike's face. "Who art thou?"

The Chancellor laughed. "None of you will leave here alive!" he screamed. "TRUE... FORM... CHANGE!" With that, he began spinning wildly in place, and there was a huge flash of green light.

When the light faded away, a huge green bug-like humanoid stood where the Chancellor had been. It had large horns near its tiny eyes and mouth, and it was about four feet long and four feet tall. Three large tubes stood on its back. It had three eyes, but the one in the middle was closed and had a scar over it.

"I am Yakra, Rarity's best Captain! Prepare to die!" the monster said

Special thanks to rhiiazami and H-land from from #mylittlepony at irc.irchighway.net for help editing this chapter