//------------------------------//
// Dragon's Cry 
// Story: Harmony's Creed 
// by Gapeagle 
//------------------------------//

	Spike was sitting in his chair nervously. He had been on edge all day and the previous day as well. His heart made loud thumbs in his chest and his hands were constantly rubbing his legs. Like everyone else, he could feel the tension growing.

His eyes darted about the mansion room. Minuette was leaning on the wall, throwing a dagger playfully in the air. Amethyst Star was nervously in the corner, whispering to herself something Spike could not hear. Sunset was also sitting down in a chair, keeping a flame in her palm to stay warm. Finally, there was his sister, Twilight pacing around the mansion room.

"He should be back by now." She grumbled. "I gave him one job and he takes this long..."

"He'll be back." Minuette chuckled. "And besides, it doesn't matter. We don't need him anyway."

"We are going to face the wrath of the Brotherhood, Minuette, we'll need everyone we can." Twilight scolded the shard user. 

"Oh! Here's coming, Twilight." Sunset said.

A stream of smoke flowed through the gap of a window. In front of Spike, a man formed out of the smoke. It was Noteworthy, the user of Doubt. His dark robes were messy and his eyes appeared tired. He looked like he had been running all day. With a hoarse grunt, he bowed to Twilight.

"I've evacuated the neighborhood. Our battlefield is clear now." He told her.

"Good job, Note." Sunset smiled. "This battle will be unlike any other. I doubt this neighborhood is going to be left standing."

"That is if we have to fight." Twilight started. "There is still time for negotiating."

"What do you know about negotiating?" Minuette scoffed.

"Well, I read some books on it..."

"Wow...." Minuette shook her head.

Spike stood up from his seat. "Hey! Twilight can do it! She'll make sure that no one has to fight...and make sure Rarity won't be hurt."

"Rarity's not going to be hurt, I promise." Twilight smiled. "All I need to do is make sure Applejack understands."

"She won't." Amethyst spoke from the corner. "She's gonna attack us and we'll die."

Noteworthy placed a hand on his sister's shoulder. "We'll be fine. We have shards, they don't. They are fighting on our spot, so we have an advantage there. Besides, Twilight is the most powerful Bearer. We can't lose with her leading us."

Amethyst merely nodded but said nothing. Her wide eyes stared past her brother and into space.

"Hmm, I sense the other Bearers." Twilight said suddenly. "They are approaching. We should get into position out in the street."

"I actually like it in here." Sunset chuckled. "It's warm, unlike the blizzard out there."

"Ya'll jus' jealous." Minuette sneered. "It's perfect weather out there. So let's get this show started!"

Minuette then opened the door and rushed out of the mansion. Noteworthy and Amethyst slowly followed her out side by side. Sunset sighed and got up out of her chair. With a casual stretch, she exited through the door. This left Twilight and Spike as the last ones in the home.

"Well, Spike, this is it." Twilight tried to sound optimistic. "Pray that it goes well."

"Can I come out with you guys? If it goes south, I want to be there." Spike asked.

Twilight dropped to a knee to be eye to eye with him. "I'm sorry, but you need to get out of here. This building is not safe, this whole part of Canterlot is not safe. Applejack's powers can devastate this whole area and I don't want you to be caught in it. If negotiations fail, as unlikely as that is, I want to know that you are safe. Don't worry, it's all going to be alright."

Spike looked away before returning his worried gaze to her. "Are you sure?"

"Positive. I'll meet you at the Palace Gardens. The Royal Guards will think you're only a normal boy and will not think you're an intruder. There's an inn nearby there if you need to keep warm. You'll do that, won't you?"

The boy nodded. "Yeah. I'll do it."

"That's my Spike! Now run, get out of here."

Spike hugged his older sister once more before fleeing out the door. His mind was not on Twilight's orders one bit. He needed to see what was going to happen. He wanted to make sure Twilight was going to be alright. 

"Now where can I watch this battle from?"





"Rarity's dead, Twilight!" Octavia shouted.

From high on a mansion's crumbling roof, Spike's heart fell at the echo of the Den Master's words. Was it true? His mind refused to think and he slumped over in deep sudden sadness. He could not blink or even breath properly.

He next heard the sobs of his sister, Twilight, as she gave up on the fight. From his vantage point, he could see Applejack talking with her, but he could not make out the words. They were just sounds from where he was. His sadness was slowly turning to anger as he watched Applejack's arms reach back to strike the Bearer of Magic.

"No..."

Applejack reached into Twilight's chest and pulled Magic out with ease. Twilight was now dead as well. Spike could not even utter a sound. He was beyond crying now. In his mix of rage and sadness, he slammed his small fist into the stone, cutting his knuckles badly. His neck became tense and his temples felt like they were about to burst. With a savage growl, he picked up a rock and chucked it with all his might at the Bearer of Honesty. Applejack did not even notice the rock as it fell well short of her, harmlessly landing in the snow below. 

Spike cursed loudly and threw himself on the rooftop. He gazed at the grey sky, asking every question that popped up in his young mind. Why? What should I do? Why? How? What's next? Is it over? 

"You should just run, lad."

Spike's eyes widened. "Who said that?"

The voice did not answer. The boy got to his feet and stared one last time. Applejack was speaking to Octavia as the former carried Twilight's body away. He felt like screaming, but it was if he had no mouth to do it with. With a jerk of his head, he ran away.

He slid down onto the snow and started running down the empty street. All he wanted to was hide and never see light again. All he wanted to do was forget this day for the rest of his life.

He took a turn into a tighter street and stopped dead in his tracks. Before him was Sunset's body in a pool of blood-mixed snow. Her eyes were shut peacefully and she almost appeared asleep if it was not for the deep stab wounds in her chest. 

"Sunset?" Spike asked the body, already knowing she would not reply.

He fell to his knees and reached for her hand. It was cold and frigid, just as he expected. A friend of Twilight is a friend of mine. He did not know what to do with her body, but he thought it wrong to let her lay frozen here.

"A true tragedy, isn't it?" A crafty voice said behind him.

Spike turned around to see a tall, skinny man in unmatching clothes. He had a long white goatee and yellow eyes. His smile was crooked and had one long fang on his right side. He almost appeared handsome.

"Who are you?" Spike snarled.

"Someone who knows the feelings you feel." He said. "Sorrow, anger, remorse, regret, and the best of them all, plain hatred."

Spike stood up. "What do you know? You're just some...some..."

"Not good on the insulting, are we? Hehe, you need to work on that. Look, I saw Twilight die to that awful Applejack. I saw Sunset here be stabbed to death by that annoying Octavia. It's sad, yet humorous, to see them go like that."

"Hey! Don't make fun of them!"

"But that's the point of living, no? We are here to have fun and the best people find fun in every place. Hehe! It's so hilarious seeing your anger. You want to go get revenge? Ha! Your puny fists will do nothing, but I would love to see you try."

"Just go away!"

"Oh, I'm not leaving any time soon. Boy, this is the start of a new life. I mean, I can't let such a story like this go to waste, can I? Here you are, a little orphan boy, saved by an Assassin and raised in the Brotherhood, watch the Assassin who treated you like a brother be killed right before your eyes! It's perfect!"

Spike blinked in confusion. "Perfect for what?"

"Why, it's a perfect time to use your anger to do something amazing. I'll tell you a deep, little, tiny, gigantic secret. You know Sunset wielded the shard of Order? Good, I knew you knew. Well, unlike what others may tell you, you can subdue the minds of shards. You can make them erase their personalities and make them not be able to manipulate your own mind. All it takes is determination and lots and lots and lots of anger."

He leaned close to the boy, his large fang almost touching Spike's nose. "If you want to be something great, then I suggest you rip that shard of Order out of Sunset's hand and take it. Use the anger and sorrow inside you to crush Order's freethinking. Replace Order with Chaos. Make it reveal to you its true powers."

"There's a catch, I know it." Spike said.

"The catch is that your life will never be the same. You will become a dragon of a man. Twilight would want you to strive for peace. However, there cannot be peace if there are such cruelties as Absolute Order in this world. Chaos is what makes the world keep spinning. If you make the shard of Order a weapon for Chaos, imagine what can be done. You can finish Twilight's work. You can crush those who wronged you. You, a mere lad, will be a warrior among warriors. And do not end there. Twilight carries the shard of Curiosity, one of Chaos's children. Take it from Twilight and you shall be unstoppable. But don't do it for yourself, do it for your sister."

Spike turned around and viciously took Sunset's frozen hand. In his rage, he bent the hand in two ways, splitting it up in the middle of the palm. It was hard work, but he kept at it until he could see the glowing shard. Without hesitation, he picked it out and clutched it tightly. He started to feel it bury itself in his hand. He wanted to cry, but he held it in.

The crooked man cackled. "Come on! fight it! Use the pain to your advantage! Show your dominance."

"Gah!" He cried.

"Beat it down! You will not be controlled! Chaos is the master, not Order!"

Spike fell down as the shard of Order was fully enveloped in his small hand. His arm began to tingle madly, but he fought it down. A sudden wave of heat went through his veins, as if fire was within him. Power was at his fingertips. He was no longer a boy, but a shard user.

"I feel it." He said. "I feel...amazing!"

"Do not forget that feeling. Chaos is driven by emotion! Use it to your advantage. Just. Have. Fun."

He stood up and felt the heat in his chest. He tilted his head back and opened his mouth as if to yell. A jet of green fire shot out towards the sky. It lasted over 20 seconds. When he finally ran out of fire, he panted.

"Bravo! You are a natural." The man clapped. "I can see a wonderful partnership in bloom!"

"No..."

The man paused. "What?"

"I will not follow you! You are Discord, Lord of Chaos. You are not my friend!"

"So what? You are perfect! Come with me and we shall make a new Brotherhood!"

"No! The shard has shown me the truth. I am for Order, not Chaos! Twilight never wanted Chaos, but Harmony. I now know that doesn't exist so I'll go for the closest thing."

"You have to be joking!"

"I choose Order and Wisdom! I will seek the Father of Understanding! She still lives!"

"No! You will not aid her!"

Spike's hands were enveloped by green fire. He blasted the man away with a combined blast of flame. Discord screamed in pain as he was burned away. After the attack was done, the Lord of Chaos was standing there, his clothes burning off him.

"Pitiful attack, boy! But I see another opportunity. A very fun one. You shall live forever. You shall always seek your goals but never get them. I look forward to our future encounters. See you in eternity!" 

Discord snapped his fingers and disappeared. Spike was left there, his arms still on fire. His memories were still on Twilight and Rarity. They're gone now, move on!  With a growl he looked down at Sunset's corpse. The next moment, the corpse went up in green flames. He could only watch it burn with a frown on his hard face.

"The Father of Understanding will guide me in a way you could not comprehend, Sunset. You never understood what it meant to be Templar, yet your shard did. Order is telling me to seek the Father. I will do so." He sighed and looked out to the north. "I'm coming to aid you, Celestia."


~~