The sound of the boulder moving roused Spike from his slumber. It was dark, but that didn't bother him. Several shadowed pony figures were waiting impatiently for the boulder to open, and one of them had the tome! "Hey!" he shouted, on his feet in an instantly, "Put that down!"
They turned to look at him. Their faces with gaunt and taught, expressions just... unformed, like they were made of clay and someone forgot to finish making their faces. One of them sneered, exposing its sharp looking teeth, "You have acted against Kara's wishes, but we will minimize the harm."
Spike didn't want to hurt the book by throwing lightning in its direction, so decided to charge at the one holding it with claws at the ready. Another figure lunged in the way as it became Twilight with wide shocked eyes. "Spike!" she cried in alarm. It was enough to make him flinch, even if he knew intellectually it wasn't the real Twilight. The boulder had moved enough for them to start fleeing out into the darkness. The twilight copy turned and moved for the exit as well. Spike jumped at her, raking a claw over her flank with a growl of frustration. She bled the same, but seemed more interested in getting away. He was on her in a second, bearing her to the ground and tearing at her.
The others were starting to rouse. Long Road pulled Spike off the whimpering Twilight copy, "Boy, what's gotten into you?"
"That isn't me," said the real Twilight with an alarmed expression. She was rising and using the wall for support, sleep still clinging to her, "Why is the cave open?"
Spike pulled away from Long Road's grip and jumped back on top of the fake Twilight, holding her down, "They stole the book! I caught this one at least."
They were soon all roused and aware, with a tied up doppelganger between them. Captured, it had let its disguise lapse and return to its natural form.
Twilight circled around the prisoner, "They're like changelings, sort of... Tell us where you brought the book, we need that," she demanded, raising a hoof at the captive.
Dawn shook his head, "Doppelganger. Changelings are another beast entirely. Now answer us. You didn't attempt to cut our throats, we'll return the favor if you answer."
The prisoner frowned at them, "They are already gone, and retreating farther by the moment. I would tell you where they go, but I do not know. Torture me, if it makes you feel better, but you can't get what I don't know." He wriggled a little, testing the strength and security of the ropes against his hooves.
Soft Mane had her eyes downcast and stood by Spike. "Well..." she said in a hushed tone, "I guess I'm back to not knowing anything."
Twilight perked an ear at Soft's words, "Don't say that. Even without the book you are a direct link. We'll figure it out."
Spike lifted his shoulders, "What if they burn the book or something?"
Long Road huffed, "They may try, but any one thing that holds a god down is likely more than a trinket. If Kara could have destroyed it, she probably would have done so by now."
It was decided as a group that they should head back. Attempting to track the book through the wilderness felt like a hopeless task. On Long Road's insistence, they carried the prisoner along for a proper trial when they reached civilization.
The way back was as long and slow as promised. They descended the mountain and hiked to the east, hoping to run into the lightning rail again. On their way down they were stopped by a massive dragon of white scales. It descended from above with a shadow that covered the party before it landed. It was intimidating and covered in scales that glistened in the light, almost making it fade into the snow if not for its dangerous presence. It was easily thirty feet in length, more if you counted its neck, though it was curled up at the moment.
"Hello there, travelers," said the dragon, "I am Snow Scales, in your tongue. You are wandering through my territory. I keep this place free of monsters and ask only for minor payment for passing." The dragon held out a talon expectantly.
While most of the others shied away nervously, Spike grumbled softly, "Not cool, man. We're having a rough day." he was outsized by the other dragon by quite a bit, but put on his bravest face.
Snow Scales leaned in sinuously, his long neck twisting as he looked over the party, "Clearly you are adventurers. Have your ventures gone sour? You cannot win them all, my mother once said. Very well, I only ask for two gold pieces per head. That will be twelve coins. A pittance."
Twilight floated up coins towards the nearest talon, "Say, Snow Scales... I don't suppose you could get us to the Lightning Rail?"
"Why would I do that?" asked Snow Scales as he secured his earnings.
Pinkie bounced forward towards him, "Because you're an awesome cool huge dragon?"
"That I am," agreed Snow Scales, "But I will be that even if I don't give you a ride."
Pinkie nodded her head, "But we would tell other ponies how safe this part of the mountain is and how super nice you are. More travelers, more toll. Maybe they'll even build a road through here if they know you're protecting it!"
A ridged brow raised, "Truly? I would like to be paid on a more regular basis... Very well." He turned around, presenting his back, "Get on and hold tightly, I am not used to passengers."
Pinkie was first up, bouncing up the dragon's back and throwing her fetlocks around his shoulder with an excited giggle. Twilight and Long Road went up, with Dawn Event and Soft Mane last in line to find a spot to hold onto. Spike shook his head, "I can fly on my own. I'll be with you!"
With a great flapping of Snow Scales' wings, the older dragon took flight. Spike discovered he wasn't the fastest thing in the air as he struggled to keep up with the more experienced flyer, but at least kept them in sight as the scenery below them quickly whipped past them. They could see the flat peaks of the mountains slowly be replaced by gently rolling hills as they soared eastwards. Far to the north, a great purplish hued mountain jutted from the landscape, but the land they flew over become more flat the farther they went. The railway could be seen easily, wending its way across the land in a mostly straight line from north to south, though arcing around hills and obstructions. They veered northwards slightly to arrive at a small rail station, where Snow Scales did slow circles on his way down and touched the earth in a smooth landing.
Pinkie slid down past her friends with a 'weeeee' all the way down. She landed on her haunches and bounced up, raising a hoof to wave at Snow Scales, "That was the most amazerrific ride I had in a long time! I'll be sure to tell everypony else about you, Mr. Scales." The others were slower in descending, but everyone made it safely to the ground just as Spike caught up, landing with a loud panting for breath.
"I didn't think I could fly that hard," admitted spike as he gulped air eagerly.
Snow Scales turned to face the group, nodding, "I have fulfilled my part. These low-lands do not suit me, so here we will part. Good travels to you all." He lifted with a powerful flap and was soon lost to sight as he soared back towards his mountains.
Twilight did a quick head count before nodding and trotting up to the small rail station, "Let's get some tickets. I can't wait to get back."
Dawn Event followed after her, reminding, "we must stop at Viljatown first."
"I already planned to go there. We can take the map?" asked Twilight with a puzzled tone.
"Oh no," said Dawn, "I've spent enough on this mad venture. We can ride back, but we have to drop off the foal before we do so."
Soft Mane cringed a little, having been quiet the entire ride. Spike patted her on the shoulder, "Hey, what's wrong?"
Soft stomped a hoof, "It's not obvious? I couldn't see anything but the dragon when we were flying, and I'm supposed to sing praises about a god I don't know anything about, and... mom's going to kill me, and I deserve it." She let her head hang.
Twilight gave a soft sigh, but approached the ticket window and softly rapped at the sill there with a hoof.
The window curtain that concealed the inside brushed open as a human male revealed himself. "Hello there. I don't expect many passengers in the middle of nowhere. How many and where to?"
Twilight gestured northwards, "We're all headed to Viljatown. Seven please, one of them is a foal if there's a discount?"
"One child, six adults..."
Money was exchanged and tickets produced while Pinkie tried to cheer up the despondent Soft Mane, "Come on! Your mom will be super proud of you. You won in a fight where four Seekers got crushed. That's cool right?"
Soft gave a half-smile, "I suppose... but you did most of that, and she has to be so worried. I didn't tell her where I was going." She sank onto a bench and sighed loudly, "She deserves a better foal, maybe one that was a real pony."
Pinkie softly bonked the girl on the noggin with a hoof, "You are a proper pony."
Long Road nodded softly, "And a true companion. We will speak on your behalf when we arrive."
Spike bobbed his head in agreement with the other two, "You're the most awesome satyr I know." Sure, she may be the only satyr he knew, but it was still true, "And I promised to protect you."
Soft's milky eyes went wide, "No! I mean... if mom wants to spank me for what I did, you let her. Don't hurt her." She pulled her hooves up onto the bench, hugging them.
Spike scratched behind his head, "What? No, I wouldn't hurt your mom, sheesh, that would be bad."
The train arrived after an hour of idle conversation and waiting. The inside was as comfortable as they remembered, settling into their bunks. Since Twilight had purchased the tickets, she assigned three to a room, taking Spike and Soft Mane into hers, while leaving Pinkie Pie, Long Road, and Dawn Event in the other. Their prisoner went with Long Road, the paladin promising to keep a close eye on the shapeshifting lawbreaker.
Spike asked once they had settled in, "Why didn't you separate it into mares and stallions?"
"I wanted my number one assistant," explained Twilight. "And I was sure Soft wanted to be near you."
Spike nodded slowly, "You know Long Road kinda has a thing for you, right?"
Twilight's face lit up, her ears and nose most easily seen in their red hue, "Spike! That's not... I mean..."
Spike waggled his brows, "What, afraid of a little attention from a stallion?"
"Spike," said Twilight, tone turning grave, "We're going to leave eventually. How will he feel if I... accepted his advances and then left him?"
Soft Mane's eyes went wide, "You're leaving?!"
Spike went as rigid as a plank, "Uh, eventually... When we figure out how."
Soft Mane was at his side, hugging, "Don't leave me," she whimpered. "You promised, until I got tired of you or died of old age."
Twilight's ears went down as Spike sagged into the embrace. "Soft," Twilight said, "We have to go, eventually. We have friends and duties. We have a whole world relying on us."
A familiar sound suddenly erupted from Spike as it sounded like he had something stuck in his throat. He pulled away from Soft and beat on his chest before a rolled scroll burst from his mouth on a crackling bed of electricity before falling to the ground.
All three pairs of eyes settled on the scroll for a moment before Spike knelt down to pick it up, "I think this is for you, Twilight."