Spike woke up with feeling very rested. In fact, he felt more rested in that moment than he had the past few weeks. Hunting down those dragon era artifacts can really take it out of a guy, even one such as Spike. Even though he was waking up he did not yet open his eyes. It was partly due to the blinding light he could feel was awaiting his eyes. He opened his jaws for a big yawn and stopped mid way through. Light? He should be sleeping in his house, in his bed. How was there light?
His answer came as he slowly opened his eyes. The first thing that greeted his eyes was the familiar sight of a pink haired pony. He blinked several times to make sure he wasn't still dreaming. He looked around and was surprised to find himself still at the base of a tree on Fluttershy's yard.
“Oh, you're awake,” She said to Spike in her usual soft tone.
“Yeah,” Spike said with some confusion in his voice, “But how did I get here? Why am I at your house and not my own?”
“You don't remember? You fell asleep at the base of that tree after you cured Mr. Bear. I said I would look after you,” Fluttershy said.
Spike went to move to stand up, but found himself confined to the ground. Every muscle from his toes to his tail to his neck was stiff and unmoving. He groaned as another yawn forced its way out. He raised his hand s above his head as he yawned. Fluttershy was startled at how many cracks and creaks his arms made. Even more came from him as he made his way to his feet. Fluttershy winced more than once as some very loud, sharp cracks came from his body.
“You sound very tense, Spike,” Fluttershy said, “I might be able to help with that. Mr. Bear loves my massages.”
“Maybe another time, Fluttershy,” Spike replied, “How long have I been here?”
“Three days!”
The loud shout sent Fluttershy ducking for cover. She was so easily startled. Spike, however immediately recognized the shout and its origin. Fluttershy calmed down and emerged from cover as said origin came hopping over to them both.
“You have been here for three days,” Pinkie said.
“That long,” Spike said questioningly.
“Yep,” Pinkie said, “I came up to check up on you every day. Even though I knew nothing would happen to you. Not with Fluttershy around. She is a natural with all sorts of animals. Even dragons, like you. But one really cool thing did happen. You snored!”
“I snored,” Spike said with a raised eyebrow.
“Yeah, you snored,” Pinkie said, “But it wasn't just any old snore. It wasn't even a smoky snore like most dragons do. No! It was magic dragon snore. It was so cool. You would snore and the rocks would go up and down, like this.”
Pinkie zoomed over to the spot where Spike had just spent the last three days. She laid where he was and faked snoring in an adorable way. Spike watched as she grabbed a pebble in one hoof and demonstrated how he snored. As she inhaled she shook the pebble about in her hoof. As she exhaled she raised her hoof and the pebble with it. When she was done exhaling the pebble dropped down to the ground and she repeated the process. She demonstrated the snoring a few more times before realizing she was in one position for more than a few moments and darted to Spike's side.
“See, it was pretty cool snoring,” She said, “Possibly the most coolest snoring ever!”
Spike left Fluttershy and Pinkie Pie. They had made plans to hang out that day. Now that Spike was awake and moving they didn't have to stay at Fluttershy's cottage. And so they did whatever it was that they were going to do. Spike went back to his own house for a nice long bath. After sleeping for three days he needed one.
Several hours later, after he had just gotten out of the best bubble bath of his life, he headed back into town. Well, to Twilight's new awesome castle to be precise.
He passed through town with relative ease. It took nearly a whole year after he defeated Galeek for the ponies to stop mobbing him in the streets whenever he went out. Now he was just another regular sight to be seen around town. Ponies still waved to him in the streets and he waved back. Every now and then there would be a pony from a small town or some other far away place that would be visiting. He would have to sign a few autographs and perform a small spell or two to amaze them. After a while the Cutie Mark Crusaders had gotten a fan base for him almost as large as the one they had for Rainbow Dash. Almost.
He got to the castle to find Twilight crown deep in royal duties. She was always like this after the big anniversary celebration. Always backed up with with stuff to do and not enough time to do it. And yet she always got every last thing done. She was good like that. When she saw Spike walking past she shoved all papers aside and went to talk to him.
“Hey sleepyhead,” She said playfully, “It's about time you woke up.”
“Hey Twilight,” Spike said, “You looked busy. Are you sure you can hold off on your royal duties? Or do you need me for something?”
“Calm down, Spike. I just want to talk,” Twilight said, “Now that the celebration is over and you have finally finished that business with the dragon era artifacts, where will you be heading off to?”
“Canterlot,” Spike said without a second's thought, “Luna called me not too long ago. She needs my help with . . . something. She did not give me much details. Just that she wanted to see me. I came here to grab my backpack.”
“That's odd. I could have sworn I saw you talking to Luna at the celebration,” Twilight teased, “And then you disappeared with her for the rest of the night.”
“What? No. No! That's- Why, I don't,” Spike stammered as his face got red, “You know Celestia wants Luna at the castle during this time of the year. She could not have been at the party, even if she did want to come.”
“Relax, Spike. I am just joking,” Twilight said with a laugh, “And I still don't understand why Celestia insists Luna stay at the castle this time of year. Do you know what that is all about?”
“It has something to do with Luna being blasted by Galeek. Celestia is worried that Luna will. . .go crazy or something around this time of year, with it being the anniversary and all.”
“Oh,” Twilight said, “I suppose that makes sense.”
Yeah. Right. Spike knew there was a bit of sense behind it. Celestia was not one to worry. She always had pretty good reasons behind the decisions she made. Spike knew this. He also knew that Luna was one of the strongest ponies he had ever met. And she had somebody to talk to. Him. Spike. She talked to him for almost the entire year after because she was having nightmares. He was there for her. He would always be there for her. And to make sure he was not lying to himself when he said that he had to go and board the train to Canterlot.
He made a quick pit stop at his house. He had to grab a few books. These were not the same books that he used to read. No more comic books. No more stories of brave heroes who face certain doom to save the day. No these books were books of knowledge. Most of them came from Zecora. They were all the information she could glean from the artifacts he brought back. He studied them every chance he got. He was determined to learn everything he could about the source of his magic. Riding the train was the perfect opportunity for him to do that.
Unfortunately, he did not get very far with his studies on the ride to Canterlot. He just stuffed the books in his backpack and headed to the Royal Castle. The guards straightened up and saluted him as he entered. If he were any more popular he would hold almost as much power as the Princesses. Luna met him just inside the castle courtyard. She didn't have her usual smile and cheer about though. How odd. Spike waved to her, but she just kept staring at him.
“Hi Luna,” Spike said as he reached her.
“Hello Spike,” Luna said seriously, “It is good to see you again, but I did not call you here for my own personal reasons. We need your help.”
“'We' What do you mean,” Spike asked.
“I mean 'we'. Me. Celestia. All of Equestria,” Luna said seriously, “Something has happened. We need you and your magic once again.”
“I'm here to help,” Spike said happily.
“Follow me,” Luna said.
Luna led Spike into the castle once again. She had done so many times before. But after spending so much time here for his job, he basically knew the layout by heart. Or at least, that's what he thought. Luna led him down a very long, very dark corridor off to the side of the throne room. He had been down there a few times before. The corridor led to the sublevels of the castle. Very old, and very dangerous. Why was Luna taking him there?
As they went farther and farther the corridor gave way to a winding stone staircase that led even deeper underneath the castle. Any farther down and they would end up in the crystal caverns. Spike noticed that the torches that lined the walls were now lit up and lighting the way.
Judging by the way Luna looked this was not good. She did not look bad, but something was off. She seemed tired, and not the type where stayed awake to long. No, she looked drained. Physically, emotionally, mentally. Everything. She was hiding it very well, but Spike had spent enough time with her to see past it. His next thoughts were interrupted by a sudden, and very loud screaming.
Him and Luna rounded the next corner with caution. A very large rounded room with a vaulted ceiling and pillars holding it all up. The whole place was made of old, ancient stone. And the two of then were not alone. Celestia and Cadance were also there. They looked even more drained than Luna did. But that was not what Spike noticed. No, not that. What he noticed was the absolutely gigantic pony in chains in the middle of the room. The pony was almost twice as big as a normal pony. The red eyes and black tainted coat gave it away.
“Ah, Spike,” Cadance said, “It is good that you are here.”
“Yes,” Celestia, “We require your help with this-”
“Madness,” Spike interjected, “This is Madness.”
“Yes, but how did you know,” Celestia asked with some confusion.
“Because Fluttershy's bear friend just had the same thing,” Spike said seriously.
“'Had',” Cadance repeated, “What do you mean? Did you cure the bear somehow?”
“You could say that,” Spike said, “But I lost the Amulet of the Dark King in the process. The black gem shattered.”
“The Amulet of the Dark King is what was used to cure you when you were poisoned by Galeek,” Cadance said.
The others all turned their eyes to her. She said it as if she had said it many times before, almost like it was rehearsed. She looked around to all of them. She was about to say more, but she stopped with her mouth still open halfway.
“What,” She said finally, “Every pony knows the story.”
“That still doesn't help us,” Luna said, “How are we supposed to cure this pony?”
“Who is this pony,” Spike asked.
“This was the captain of my personal guards,” Luna said, “He is a good pony. He does not deserve this.”
Luna took one last look at the Mad Pony before turning away. Slowly, they all filed back up the winding staircase that led to the main castle. Once they were all in the throne room again Celestia addresses Spike once again.
“Spike,” She said with a weary, yet very serious tone, “We need you. Will you help us once again? Please?”
“I will,” Spike said, “But I cannot do it alone.”
“Then I will get to work on getting Twilight and her friends on their way here,” Celestia said.
“No, you won't,” Spike firmly stated, “You all will go and get some rest. You all need it. I can get Twilight and the rest of the girls on my own.”
Spike left no room for the three Princess's to argue. Hos tone was as serious as it ever was. So the three of them walked down separate hallways to their rooms. Spike followed Luna down the hallway she took. The room he always stayed at was just a couple doors down from hers. It was the same room he stayed at the very first time he was here, all the way back when he was just a small baby dragon. The room itself was demolished during the attack on Canterlot. It was rebuilt in the years since. It was now much bigger and much better.
As he approached the room that he had not entered in over a year he was stopped. He heard a voice, soft and tired, from a pony nearby. He looked over to see Luna standing in the hallway. She looked so tired Spike would not be surprised if she fell over right there and went to sleep. She was struggling to keep her eyes open as she tried to talk to Spike.
“Spike,” She said with a yawn, “I want to thank you.”
“For what,” Spike asked.
“Everything,” Luna said sleepily, “For coming here. For helping. For always being there for me, when I call.”
“It's no problem. I will always help, no matter the problem,” Spike said.
Luna closed her eyes just as Spike finished talking. She swayed back and forth a little bit. She was about to fall and break what Spike assumed was a very expensive vase. Spike darted forward and caught her just before she hit the stand holding up the vase. Unfortunately, he was not as graceful as he hoped to be. He caught her in his arms, but knocked the vase off the stand in the process. He launched his tail out as fast as he could to try and catch the vase. He failed. The vase shattered into pieces.
Two of her guards came from around the corner when they heard the noise. The first thing they saw was Spike holding an unmoving Luna in his arms above a shattered vase. The guards stopped with a completely startled look on their faces. They were not sure what to think. Spike just picked Luna up and took her to her room. With a wave and a flick of his tail the pieces of the vase magically rose and came together again on the stand. It was good as new.
Spike got Luna to her room with no trouble. She was not heavy. Not that that would have been a problem at his size and his strength. He was easily able to lift her up in his arms and carry her to her room.
He placed her in bed with care. She curled up a bit at the touch of her cold sheets. Spike pulled the sheets up and over her. He took off her crown and placed it on the nightstand next to the bed. He got up to leave when Luna started moving in her bed.
“No,” She said in her sleep, “Don't go. Stay here.”
Spike smiled at her talking in her sleep. He closed her doors, but didn't lock them. He walked back into the room quietly. He needed to contact Twilight and the others. He had a plan. He magically closed the curtains to the canopy around Luna's bed. He left only a small opening for him to still see Luna. He put a small spell on the bed to reduce the noise that she could hear. That would do.
He turned to the large standing mirror in the corner of Luna's room. Spike stared into the mirror as he spoke the words. The night calls you, Twilight. A swirl of smoke later and Twilight's face appeared in the surface of the mirror. She didn't seem to notice that the mirror was activated and someone was trying to contact her. As usual she had her head buried in a book. Spike whispered her name a few times, but she didn't notice. Spike had to raise his voice a bit before she finally did notice.
“Oh, Spike, what are you doing in my mirror,” She asked.
Twilight got up off the couch she was sitting on and placed the book on one of the many tables she had in her chambers. When she came up to the mirror she noticed something odd. She leaned her head to see past Spike.
“And why are you in Luna's room?”
“Long story,” Spike said, “I need your help. The Madness is worse than we thought. Celestia, Cadance, and Luna all asked for my help, but I can't do it alone.”
“That is bad news,” Twilight said, “I suppose you want me to gather the girls and head to Canterlot?”
“Not tonight,” Spike said, “Let them sleep. I will talk to you tomorrow.”
“Okay Spike,” Twilight said, “See you tomorrow.”
Spike and Twilight said their goodbyes for the night. Spike smiled and said the words to deactivate the mirror. The night releases you, Twilight. A swirl of smoke later and the mirror went back to being the black surfaced object that it was. Spike was feeling almost as tired as Luna looked a few moments ago. He needed to get to his room and get some sleep. But when he got to the doors to her room he was stopped.
“Stay here,” She said in her sleep, “Don't leave.”
What?! That was uncanny! How did she do that? Spike turned the nobs to the doors and Luna groaned. Sigh. It was clear that he was not getting out. Not with the Princess of the Night sleeping and dreaming about what he could only assume to be him. So he closed the doors and locked them this time. Then he made himself comfortable on a couch under the window.
Spike woke up the next morning to Luna tapping him with her hoof. He opened his eyes to see Luna standing there. Her hair was a mess, but she looked rested and full of energy.
“Spike! What are you doing in my room? Did you sleep here last night? Why did you do that,” She asked very quickly.
Spike sat up on the couch. He rubbed his eyes and looked back up to her.
“Because,” He started, “You would not let me leave.”
Luna looked at him with some confusion. Spike took the moment of silence to explain exactly what he meant, It did not take long for her cheeks to turn from their natural dark color to a bright blushing red. They only got brighter as Spike went on. When he finished the rather short tale Luna was silently sitting in the middle of her room. Spike got up only to hear the loud sounds of his back cracking. His wrists cracked the same way. He told Luna about his call to Twilight as he left her room.
He got to his room in seconds. Right away he went for his mirror. Luna had a large one like hers placed in his room. He went up to it and said the words. The black surface of the mirror shifted and swirled as smoke gave way to a familiar face. Just one thing. It was not Twilight's.
Instead of Twilight's face there was a white pony with violet hair checking out her mane in the mirror when Spike called. Rarity jumped back when the black surface started swirling. She leaped behind the nearest pony, Applejack, with a shout.
“Relax, Rarity,” Twilight said, “It is just Spike calling.”
“Oh, Spike, is that really you,” Rarity asked in wonder, “How in Equestria did you end up in Twilight's mirror?”
“It's just an image Rarity,” Spike said, “Did Twilight fill you all in?”
“She told us that you needed some help with something,” Applejack told him, “But she said you told her not to have us all meet up in Canterlot. She said that you had a plan. She said that Celestia asked for your help.”
“But what she did not say was why in the world you wanted us out of Canterlot,” Rainbow Dash asked accusingly, “What, do you want all the glory for yourself? Huh, Spike?”
“Oh, Rainbow Dash. I'm sure it's not like that at all,” Fluttershy stated.
“She's right Dash,” Spike told her, “I need you six to go on ahead to Appleloosa and wait for me there. Okay?”
“Appleloosa. huh,” Applejack said,” Well, it'd be darn good to see ol' Bloomberg again.”
“We can do that, but why Appleloosa,” Twilight asked.
“Not entirely sure. Just a feeling really,” Spike said rather absentmindedly, “A place to start, maybe.”
Spike went through the next morning blankly. He went through the motions, said what he needed to, and did what he had to to. Celestia kept the whole thing under wraps. It was all a big secret. Spike understood why. And that was what was bugging him. This all seemed so familiar. The Madness, the ooze, even him. Somehow it was all connected. And yet, he could not figure out how. Not on his own at least. Good thing he had six good and trusted friends waiting for him in Appleloosa.
He left the Royal Canterlot Castle quickly that morning. He wanted to get to his new mission as soon as he could. He quickly slipped past the guards as quietly as a shadow. Not that any of them would have stopped him. He mostly just liked to test his skills. It was a form of small amusement. Over the years of traveling from castle to palace and back again he had gotten quite good at it. But not good enough, apparently.
“Why must you sneak off so soon,” Luna asked him.
“Luna,” Spike said solemnly, “I have to leave. This is important.”
“Me and my sister gave you this assignment,” Luna stated with a smile, “I know how important it is. But you didn't answer my question.”
“There is something about this, Luna,” Spike continued solemnly, “My instincts are telling me that there is something more going on here than just Madness. There is more to it, and I have to find out what.”
“I know why you must leave Spike, but why is that you feel the need to sneak away from here,” Luna asked, “I always know where you are. I can always find you. So why is that you sneak?”
Spike rested his chin on his chest as he pondered the answer he would giver her. She was his friend, but their was more now. He saw it. He could see all that had changed about her in the last few years. He saw it in himself as well. But he never knew what to do about it. What should he say? What will she say?
Spike looked deeply into Luna's big, beautiful cyan eyes. He took a deep breath in made a decision. One that would forever change both him and Luna. He stepped closer to her. So close that he needed to only whisper the words and she would hear them.
“I sneak away Luna,” Spike said quietly, “Because of you. I see you whenever I go. The sadness and longing in your eyes. I can't bear to see that. I thought that maybe if you did not see me leave, you would not be so sad.”
“Oh, Spike,” Luna whispered.
Spike stepped back and away from Luna. He stood for a moment with his back turned to her. His fists were clenched tightly. He could hear her crying behind him. Then something happened that he did not expect.
Luna placed a hoof gently on his shoulder. He turned to face her once again. Small tears were rolling down her brightened cheeks. Even though her eyes were filled with tears, she was smiling. Spike didn't understand.
“Thank you, dear Spike,” Luna said.
And then it happened. The one thing that changed Spike's very fate, forever. Luna closed in on him faster than he could react. Some part of him knew what was happening, and yet he did not move. Did he actually want it to happen, on some level? He just froze as Luna's luscious lips made contact with his own. It was an instant that seemed to last forever. Spike was unsure if he even wanted it to stop. For in that one single moment, everything was perfect. Luna stopped her kiss and leaned in to whisper something into his ear.
“A parting gift,” She whispered, “So you always know you have something to come back to.”
With that she was gone. She turned and trotted a few paces away before stretching out her wings. With a single powerful thrust she was in the air and flying away from him. Spike just stood there for a moment longer, not sure what to think. However, he was sure on what to do: Travel to Appleloosa.