//------------------------------// // Put To Rest // Story: My Shining Love // by DraconequusMaximus //------------------------------// Twilight barely had time time use her newly refreshed magic to secure Shining, Wordplay, and herself to Spike as he took flight. Spike was wasting no time whatsoever in going for Somblis. It was a good thing Twilight was such an accomplished mage, for it seemed Spike didn't yet have a good grasp on his new powers. The wind created by his wings alone had nearly blown everyone away. As soon as Spike was properly airborne he let loose a pillar of electric-blue flames at Somblis. While the attack would have sent any other foe running Somblis faced the blast head on. It used it's gnarled horn cloaked in dark magic to part the pillar of fire down the middle as it rushed Spike. Somblis moved up above Spike's fearsome jaws and straight toward Shining and company. "No way, ugly!" Shining Armor shouted at Somblis. Shining Armor quickly erected a rectangular barrier and flung it right at Somblis's incoming face as fast as he possibly could. Somblis confidentially continued it's charge against Shining's barrier, but it's surprise Somblis was struck with a solid hit. The barrier only shattered after Somblis had already been knocked backward. Shining Armor was actually rather surprised that a quick-construct shield had done anything so significant. Somblis had seemed far too powerful to stop with normal spells up until this point. Shining had only intended to slow down or deter Somblis. "Was that a new kind of shield Shining? How'd you make it so strong so fast?" Twilight gawked. "I dunno. That was a basic move. I was kinda just going on impulse there." Shining admitted as the group watched Somblis recover. Spike took a tremendous swipe at Somblis with his powerful claws but the monster evaded the attack with little effort. I'm not sure about this, but it might be my magic is a lot more potent than pony magic. I'm more powerful now, but I'm way slower than before. If you guys can use it to keep the damned mosquito in one place I can probably finish it. "I think we can manage that." Twilight agreed with great confidence. Shining Armor conjured up a floating platform and jumped from Spike's head onto the magical lift. Likewise, Twilight took wing and lit her horn to prepare her now even stronger spells. Wordplay watched awkwardly, knowing full well that even with Spike's temporary boost she was only an average spell-caster. "I've got just enough mana to port to the ground from this height, Boss. I'm not a fighter, and I'd like to be in one piece for my date with Twilight." Wordplay decided. Ha! That's way ahead of the schedule I thought up. You rock Wordplay! "Excuse me?!" Both Twilight and Wordplay screamed at Spike. Can't talk now! Fighting monster! Spike answered quickly before flying at Somblis. Shining felt the piercing gaze of his sister burning into the back of his head, telling him it was best to focus on the battle. Likewise Wordplay teleported down to the ground for safety in a huff. Shining was positive that he and Spike would get an earful later, but for now the battle at hoof took priority. Shining flowed more mana into the construct shield and sword he had at his sides, making them much more durable and destructive. With a smile Shining flew toward Somblis at Spike's side. Aside from the normal rush Shining received when he went into battle there was something different about how the situation felt. Shining had never gone into armed combat with a loved one before. Not like this. It was a strange feeling, but Shining Armor's mood had almost never been better than now. Shining sped up his platform, planning to ram Somblis with his shield and hopefully land a blow with his sword. Even Somblis's surprising speed wasn't enough to avoid the attack entirely. Despite the shield bash having failed Shining was able to slash at Somblis, nearly severing one of the monster's back legs. Somblis roared in anger as it tried to flee, only to find Twilight at the ready almost directly behind it. She was already in the process of casting a spell, leaving Somblis little to no time to retreat or counter the attack. Somblis's field of vision soon became nothing but vibrant pink, and any onlookers would have seen something akin to a mushroom cloud explosion in pink. Somblis fell to Earth trailing magenta smoke, crashing through a crystal building in the process. Spike saw his opportunity and dove after Somblis as fast as his tremendous form would allow. Unfortunately it seemed Somblis was far more durable than everyone had thought. The rubble of the building began trembling, meaning Somblis was about to act. Spike let himself drop in front of a large portion of it since there were still ponies strewn about in hiding. Spike wrapped himself around the building, using his bulky form and wings to close the structure off from everyone else. As Spike had predicted the building exploded, the dark magic and shrapnel assaulting Spike's body. Spike panted as he stood in place, feeling the pain caused by the barrage. Spike looked down to see that the sliver of crystal visible through the gash in his scales was still shining brightly. Spike was fairly confident that as long as his new heart had a healthy glow to it things would be alright, and though the shrapnel had hurt it was incapable of actually piercing Spike's armored skin. Spike suddenly realized that Somblis was currently unaccounted for, and a split second later the horrid beast was upon him. Before Spike could react or Shining and Twilight could come in for an assist Somblis had readied it's mangled horn and was sapping energy from Spike's chest. "Let's see if I can pull off a miraculous recovery like you! I'm sure you've got plenty of crystal power to spare in that over-inflated form!" Somblis cackled. Spike could hardly move as he felt his new-found power being siphoned away. Luckily Spike would only need to suffer for a moment before Somblis was forced to retreat. Shining Armor had arrived with new magic-weapons in tow. Lances, four in total. One had already been used to deter Somblis, and the other three were ready to be thrown if need be. Twilight took it upon herself to herd Somblis away so Shining could tend to Spike. "Spike? Are you okay?" Shining pleaded. Yeah, just winded. But I think I'm a liability in jumbo-size. It's too easy for Somblis to drain me, and there's no way I can outrun it. I've gotta unload some of the magic I got from the crystal ponies. It's just too much for someone who doesn't know how to use it. "How are you gonna do that? It's not like you can just take out the crystal heart." Shining asked in concern. I think I know. But you're gonna have to help me. You trust me, right? "Of course I do! What kind of a question is that?!" Shining Armor bellowed without hesitation. Spike reached out with his right claw and took Shining from off of his platform and carefully held him in his palm. As Shining's constructs dissolved Spike brought Shining to his chest and pressed him closely and carefully against his new heart. The reaction was immediate, as the blue-green light intensified many times over until Shining was forced to close his eyes. "W-What's happening?!" Shining cried out as the light and warmth overcame him. Whether my heart is made of flesh or crystal you're what's inside it. I'm just sharing the love. I think you'll be able to use it better than me anyway. Both Somblis and Twilight stopped their attacks aimed at one another as the light coming from Spike grew brighter than the sun. Somblis seemed to start smoking from the exposure to the pure light of love magic, giving Twilight the notion to get out of the way from whatever was on the way. Twilight dove down to the ground while Somblis was distracted, but still she kept an eye on the amalgamated horror. Almost immediately after Twilight was away from Somblis and safely on the ground the light intensified once more. Light pulsated outward throughout the empire, making it impossible for anyone to see precisely what was happening. The only thing that could be heard was the pained howl's of Somblis. When everyone's vision returned the Crystal Empire seemed to be at it's normal luster. The only things different were the destroyed buildings. Somblis was still in the air, but the entirety of it's body was charred black and had cracked in a number of places, releasing purple miasma into the air. It's eyes told of it's suffering, but the pain was to great for the abomination to flee. Spike was now back to his normal size, but his crystal complexion remained. Shining Armor was cradled in his arms, now bearing the same glittering appearance as Spike. Shining opened his eyes to look up at Spike's smiling face. "How's that feel?" Spike asked, already knowing the answer. "Like I could take on the world." Shining beamed. "Would you settle for a has-been villain combo platter? We still need to finish Somblis." Spike replied, pointing up into the air. Somblis was now coughing up ash, and likely resisting the breakdown of it's body's functions. It's damaged wings could only barely keep Somblis in the air now, but the act of moving would likely cause the damaged wings to fail. And another fall to Earth would almost definitely be the end of Somblis. "Can you give me a lift? If you can get me up there I know I can end this." Shining asked. Spike nodded, and repositioned Shining. Spike now held him by his hind-legs in an awkward position. "Oh, the Big-Finish Combo Attack? We've never actually tried this one out. You sure we can do this?" Shining wondered. "We've got this."Spike said with a wide grin. That confidence was more than enough for Shining. Spike began spinning Shining while taking off from the ground. It was rather difficult to keep the rotation and flight steady but Spike was managing. Before they got going to a fast enough speed Spike shouted out to Twilight who still on the ground on the opposite side of Somblis. "TWI! GET READY TO CATCH SHINING!" Spike practically roared. Twilight barely had time to light her horn as Spike reached the optimal speed needed for the move he and Shining had devised during training. With one last spin Shining was thrown directly at Somblis who was forced to watch as Shining Armor lit his own horn. In a magenta flash Shining's form was encased in a shield shaped like an arrow. The shape of the arrowhead itself was that of a heart. Somblis was helpless to do anything as Shining Armor sailed through it at high speed. Somblis was cleaved in two, unable to cry out for even a death rattle. I-Impossible... Somblis wheezed with it's last breath. The last thing Somblis saw was a familiar mass of purple in it's blurring vision. Spike had wasted no time in following Shining's flight path, prepared for the second half of their over-the-top finisher. Spike inhaled with all his might and blasted Somblis's dying form with all the flame and magic he could muster. Both halves of Somblis ignited in the now electric-green flames full of Spike's power. As the fires ate away at Somblis crystals began to form from the burns. By the time Somblis hit the ground what remained of it's two halves were encased in a large green jewel. The only truly recognizable feature was the Somblis's horned skull, forever frozen in anguish among the charred remains of the rest of the it's body. A very tired Spike looked down at the gemstone prison and clutched his still-beating gem of a heart. "That's a new one." Spike exclaimed nonchalantly, no longer surprised. Spike chuckled a little knowing the battle had finally been won for real. He looked over to see Shining Armor was floating safely in a bubble of Twilight's magic. With Shining having been safely caught by Twilight, it seemed as though everypony had come out of the ordeal relatively unscathed. The look on Shining's face matched Spike's own. A look of relief, happiness, and total exhaustion. Neither one of them minded too much as they both passed out for the second time that day. Even as Spike fell from the air to the ground, his durable body allowed him to stay asleep. He and Shining had earned their rest, and nothing would wake them before they were ready.