//------------------------------//
// the Choosing 
// Story: The Cryssaling 
// by storm the castle 
//------------------------------//

Ch 6 the Choosing
For the first time in a week, the Elements of Harmony all stood before Princess Luna, who had told them to assemble in the cave outside Spike’s chryssaling chamber, though she refused to elaborate beyond that. And so, the mane-six sat nervously in the cave waiting for Luna quietly. Soon enough, the Princess of the Night appeared, somehow having donned her royal trappings, but herself looking very haggard.  It was obvious this was no small thing to bear witness to, and a week without food or sleep would wear on any pony, even the indomitable Princess Luna. 
However, this was not a permanent state it seemed, because Pinkie Pie bubbled and waved her over, excitedly. “Princess! I go your sweets!” she pulled a bag from the thin air behind her, presenting it to the Princess, who smiled gratefully. She quickly came upon the bag as a hungry beast might, and began to tear into its contents with fervor.
“MMf, -gulp- Pinkie Pie, we thank thee most heartily for this fulsome bounty.” Luna declared through mouthfuls, bottle of soda-pop in one hoof hovering over a pile of several empty ones. “Verily, we doth hunger most mightily, and tis a welcome thing after so long a fasting.” Pinkie had enough piece of mind to blush at the ravenous diarch, while simultaneously dodging crumbs.
A bit less intimidated around her before such a un-princess-like display, the others relaxed as well and Twilight gathered the courage to ask “Luna? Is it done?” Luna shook her head, barely registering the inquiry. “Then what are we here for? What do you need us to do?”
Resigning her inhaling of the delectables to another time, Luna rose, and after a moment to compose herself (and a bit of cleaning by Rarity) spoke. “Thine presence is required to guide Spike in this final test, to ensure the chryssaling reaches the end we desire of it.” She motioned for them to follow her beyond the sound barrier, and they all immediately noticed the utter silence beyond. Initially, Twilight had indeed hoped the horrid noises from before had passed, but now found them infinitely preferable to the deathly calm that now permeated the cavern. “Thou shalt be expected to perform no task, nor to take any action.” Luna continued. “Thy purpose in yon cavern is not an active one, merely to stand still and allow young Spike to choose what is most important to him.”
Applejack noticed a point she had made. “Choose?” she asked, trotting up to the Princess’ side. “Ya mean he remembers us now?”
Luna seemed to chew on her words before speaking them, thinking them over carefully as though it was something not easily explained. “Yes and no, young farmer.” She finally responded. “He shall have impressions, the barest of idea’s of his history with you all.”
“You said ‘choose.’” Rainbow Dash questioned. “If he has to choose us, what’s he supposed to be picking us over?”
“Soon all will be clear, but first let us see young Spike and prepare the final trial.” She brushed the question off, it seemed, much to Rainbow and Twilight’s chagrin.
In short order, they arrived back in the caver, the same sickly green glow bathing the room in a foreboding light. However, that was all that was the same, for in the center Spike sat unmoving, watching them all and growling, but doing no more. Surrounding him were the evidences of his trials, pools of dry blood and unmentionables, furrows dug by his formidable claws and shards of his old shell scattered everywhere. His appearance had changed drastically as well, even from the last time Twilight had scryed him in the mirror. He appeared to have grown almost half his original length longer, his scales were dull, and now bore a more rugged, tried appearance. His claws had grown thin and long, so too his teeth, and his dorsal ridges had tapered to a point and now gleamed, their sharp, deadly edges promising naught but pain. He now sported a pair of wings, thin but strong, which were spread threateningly to ward them away from him. Most noticeable were his eyes; whereas before they shone brightly with feral rage, lacking any of the boys’ former substance or depth, now they glowed only minorly, following them with a hunters’ intellect behind them.
Twilight dared to hope she could see the barest hints of recognition within, but before she could call to him or try to coax a familiar response from her little whelp, Luna spoke to him herself. “Spike,” she called, garnering a growl of recognition, “We have but one more task of thee. A simple choice in fact, between these gathered friends whom thou once held so very dear, and a more bestial desire.” She gestured them to a small circle, one that branched off from the original barrier spell. Once they had settled within, Fluttershy with considerable coaxing, Luna set her horn aglow. In an adjacent circle, a mass of magic appeared, and when it dissipated there sat a pile of glittering gems and coins, trinkets of the finest gold and armor of the finest craft.
Immediately, Spike set his eyes hungrily on the pile, treating the others as though they weren’t even there. In a low growl, barely audible even, he said “Spike. Want.”
Slightly disheartened at the reaction, Luna once again spoke to the Elements. “He must choose either the hoard of jewels,” she told them “or decide that his bonds with thee run deeper than any vein of gold. Tis not showing good signs, I fear. The greed is obviously no small thing for a dragon.” For the first time since the outset of the chryssaling, she feared for the outcome, truly feared for the small dragon, as well as for those he might leave behind.
But when she again looked upon him, she found that in spite of his proclamation, Spike had not moved an inch, and had in fact been listening quite intently to her explanation. She was surprised to see him actually mulling it over in his head, considering the conflicting feelings of attachment and desire. ‘Perhaps there is hope yet for a more desirable outcome.’ She thought.
Unfortunately, it was clear his sane mind was losing the battle for dominance, and Spike stood shakily and began to creep towards the glittering pile. She had to act quickly. She thought back to the Dame’s story, of how the attachment was tested, and began to formulate a plan. 
“WHELP!” she called, causing him to turn to her in alarm, baring his teeth at her. “Make thy choice carefully, for thou must be prepared to defend it!” she broke into a short run, and took to the air with a flap of her powerful wings. But no sooner had she taken flight than she was engulfed in a dark smoke, and when she landed within the barrier, on the far side, they were all greeted not by the clopping of metal shod hooves, but the padding of scaled flesh and the clicking of sharp claws. When the magical mist cleared, There Luna stood, but changed. 
Now, a small Lunar dragon greeted them, four times Spikes current length and height, it’s harder upper scales a regal dark blue, and its belly plates and inner wings showed a beautiful nightscape. Her mane had been replaced with shining silver dorsal ridges, which looked like captured moonbeams, and her long tail bore a wide crescent of the same material. Her eyes were relatively unchanged (she still had her eye shadow; if one must be a lizard, there was no reason not to make it look good.), but now resembled more the wicked mare of darkness, Nightmare Moon, than the outgoing but slightly awkward Princess of the Night. The protective barrier, designed only to restrain a single dragon whelp, shattered instantly upon the intrusion, leaving the girls open to the vicious potential of Spike’s greed fueled wrath.
“On either side of thee, are the most precious things in thy life, and we want them both.” Her voice had taken on a silky quality, but that was lost when she crouched low and dangerous, growling out “Now which do you defend?”
Spike showed signs of extreme indecision. First he glared at this new challenger, this other dragon, then spent a full fifteen seconds looking back and forth between his friends and what could potentially be his hoard. All held out hope Spike would make the right choice, but when he turned to the horde and scrambled for it, time seemed to slow for Twilight.
He was running on all fours, desperate, it seemed, to get to the jewels. Her jaw dropped, eyes watering, as she watched him choose his greed. Luna too felt her heart drop in that moment, any semblance of the child he used to be seeming to run from him just as swiftly as he ran from his adopted family and closest friends. Luna had failed her first real friends, and worse doomed the child to the life of a beast, and she felt positively wretched for it.
Weren’t they all surprised when, once Spike arrived at the pile, instead of standing to defend it, he promptly turned and swatted it with his now much more powerful tail, sending the sharp Jewels straight for Luna, the glitter shards forcing her to raise a wing to protect herself. When she lowered it, he had flapped and hopped to the other side of the chamber, and now stood between her and his friends.
Twilight was weeping for joy, Fluttershy had fainted (seriously, the poor girl need to see a doctor about that anxiety) and the others were ecstatic. As for Luna, she was simply astounded. Not only had he made the right choice, but had displayed a degree of intelligence and strategy, forcing her to blind herself so he could gain a proper foothold to protect what mattered to him.
Now, it was time to test the strength of that. Again taking a predatory stance, the Luna-gon stalked around Spike, making as though to pounce on the girls. He matched her, pivoting in order to stay between them, growling threateningly. The glow in his eyes had returned, but sharper and more intelligent, and even his scales had gone from the dull sheen of before to a bright, vibrant purple, giving the same poisonous indication a monarch butterfly or poison dart frog might have. ‘Incredible,’ she thought, still stalking and looking for purchase, ‘the boy is near dead from exhaustion and deprivation, yet still he holds strong. Truly, he will be formidable in his later years.’ Satisfied with his strength, as well as with his progress, the Luna-gon stood up straight and regal, relaxing and even smiling (no teeth. Fluttershy didn’t look like she could handle that, the poor thing.) She began pacing toward them leisurely, none the wiser of the danger facing her.
What none of them had realized was that this new sheen Spike had taken on, this sharper gaze, was no idealistic imagery conjured in their own minds to show his heroic triumph over greed, but was a metaphysical change, true and full. The moment Spike had chosen the girls as his hoard, he had begun to metastasize a new magic reservoir, fed directly from their own ambient magic. It was deeper and more refined, bearing traits of all his friends, and filled him with more energy than any of the greatest dragon hoards could have at this moment. So when Luna broke the stalemate, when she crossed the invisible battle lines, she had initiated the fight he had been itching for.
Spike opened his maw wide, taking a deep breath, and launched every bit of this fresh magic reservoir at her, and instead of a jet of green flame, a thick bolt of lightning erupted from him. Luna, bewildered and unprepared for such an assault, took the bolt directly in the chest, and was sent flying four meters, crashing into the pile of gold behind her.
Amidst the cries of alarm for the princess, Spike finally gave in to his exhaustion and collapsed. While Pinkie, Applejack and Fluttershy went to the smoking Luna-gon, Rarity, Rainbow Dash and most importantly Twilight went to Spike.