Spike continued to pace around the royal chambers having a series of arguments in his head. He mumbled something to himself every now and then, but kept quiet so as not to disturb the princess close by. Cadence sat quietly on her bed and watched her purple friend walk quietly to and fro, stopping every few moments to scratch his head. Her nurse, a short but stout mare dressed in white, quietly attended to the various pieces of medical equipment in the room. After having enough of Spike's wandering, she politely asked the nurse to give them some privacy. After the nurse was safely out of earshot, Cadence sighed and shook her head in disapproval.
“Spike, you shouldn’t worry about it so much,” Cadence comforted him.
“But it’s been nearly 3 days since she left, Cadence. How do we know for sure something bad hasn’t happened?”
“Remember what Shining Armor said? She was escorted to the train by a group of guards safe and sound. I’m sure wherever she is, she got there safely,” she said. Spike sighed and scratched his head again, resuming his circle. He took a deep breath through his nose and sighed out a small cloud of smoke that quickly dissipated. A moment later, the doors to Cadence’s stateroom opened and Shining Armor walked towards the two of them in a light trot.
“What a beautiful day!” he exclaimed. “I always love days like this after snow where the sky is clear and the whole city is white and . . .” he stopped as he saw his wife giving him an intense glare and pointing to Spike with her hoof. “Oh,” he said after seeing the dragon walk towards the window in a slump. Clearly he was in no mood to be having bright small talk.
“He’s still concerned about Twilight,” Cadence said from the bed.
“Well if you’re that worried, why don’t you send her a letter?” Shining Armor asked.
“I have my orders. I’m supposed to stay here until she comes back, whenever that may be,” he said and rested his head against the windowsill. He looked out over the city which seemed extra bright with the recent snowfall. A cold breeze picked up a little loose powder off the rooftops and dusted the window he rested against. “Besides, if she wanted to tell me about what was going on, she would have sent a letter by now anyway,” he said quietly.
“Wait a second,” Cadence said. “Did you guys have a fight?” Both she and Shining Armor looked at the dragon who kept his face leaned up against the cold glass of the window.
“I don’t really know, to be honest," he replied. "I guess I said something that wasn't too nice, but it wasn't a lie either. I usually know her so well, but right now I have no idea what was going on in her head, and it all seems backwards,” he said.
“Spike, trust me, she’ll be back and this whole Tribune thing will be far behind you in no time,” Shining assured him. Cadence put a hoof on Shining Armor's shoulder and pulled him in close enough to whisper.
“I don’t think that’s the real issue here anymore,” Cadence suggested.
“Really?” Shining whispered back.
“Try and see if you can talk to him about it. You’re Twilight’s brother, you might be the voice he needs to hear,” she said.
“Alright,” Shining whispered back and slowly walked over to Spike. He sat down beside him and looked out the window as well, quietly gathering his thoughts together.
“Hey Spike," he began, "I know you are worried, but she wouldn’t leave you here unless she really thought it was for the best. I think what you need is to get your mind off of things till she comes back. Come on, let’s do another round with the troops! what do you say?” he asked and waited for Spike’s reply. It never came.
“Spike?” Cadence asked from across the room.
Spike was still up against the window, but now instead of slumping downward, his head was pointed upward. His eyes were wide and intense as he gazed up at the sky.
“What is it?” Shining asked.
Spike’s eyes darted back and forth, scanning the skies. He noticed something odd about one of the clouds and was looking for it again. He took a deep breath in through his nose sharply and caught his breath in his throat with a 'hurk'. His eyes dilated and his vision zoomed inward towards the spot in the sky. Now there was no question about it. One cloud was flying in circles over the city. Spike took a step back and undid the latch on the window and raised it up quickly. A bitterly cold breeze swept into the room and tossed the curtains back and forth.
“Spike! What are you doing! It’s way too cold for Cadence, she’s--”
“Listen!” Spike said, throwing up a hand to silence him. The breeze died down and soon there was nothing but silence. Spike’s eyes focused on the point in the sky with a fierce glare and waited. Just before Shining was about to slam the window shut with magic, the sound of a faint but clear cry echoed into the room. It sounded like it was miles away, but whatever creature was causing the wailing noise, it was large. Another call drifted through the air in the form of a loud snarl bouncing off of the surrounding mountains. Their eyes all widened as the sound died down. Spike closed the window with a thud and looked at Shining.
“It’s a dragon!” he cried out.
“What?! No way, dragon’s never come up this far north! It’s too cold for them,” Shining cried out.
“Well this one does, look!” he said and beckoned him over to the window. Shining leapt to Spike’s side and followed his claw into the sky. After a moment of searching, shining noticed that one of the thin white clouds was moving faster than the others and was banking a turn. The figure was so far away it looked like a fly on the wall, but Shining saw the unmistakable shape of wings flapping. He turned away from the window and sprinted towards the door.
“Guards! Sound the alarm! We have a code black!” Shining called out and two guards rushed into the stateroom to hear more clearly. “It’s a dragon. Summon all 4 companies and get ready to scramble the pegasi! I want them all ready right now!” Shining said and stomped his hoof on the floor. The guards scrambled out of the room with frantic looks in their eyes.
“What’s it doing?” Cadence asked Spike, who kept his eyes on the beast.
“It’s circling the city, maybe a mile up," he explained. "I don’t get it! Dragon’s are cold blooded, we hate snow. What is this one doing all the way out here?” Spike wondered. He wished with all his might that Twilight was there to answer that question.
“Do snow-dragons exist?” Shining wondered aloud.
“Well, ice-dragons, yes actually,” Spike remembered from his studies with Princess Luna. “But they’re not migratory like other dragons. They find a cave they like, build a hoard, and stay there for centuries. Going outside for too long is risky for them, so they only leave to hunt for food or treasure.”
“Which means if an ice-dragon lived nearby, we would have run into it by now,” Shining finished for him.
"Exactly," Spike explained, keeping his eye on the circling nightmare. "Even if this is an ice-dragon, somepony would have bumped into it at some point. Their caves aren't exactly hidden or hard to spot, and they only leave their cave when they absolutely need to. So if it's not from a nearby mountain, why is it all the way out here?"
“Wait a second, how long do dragons sleep for?” Cadence asked.
“Sleep? I usually sleep a few hours into the morning, so I guess 9 hours or so?"
"I meant like hibernation. Twilight told me that Ponyville was under threat of a sleeping dragon in a nearby dragon and he would have stayed there for 100 years," Cadence recalled.
"Well, if their hoard is big enough, and nopony bothers them, they can hibernate for centuries. Why?” Spike asked.
“Think about it Spike. Until a few years ago, the Crystal Empire was sealed away with King Sombra for a thousand years. This dragon could have lived in the nearby mountains for centuries and still have no idea about this place,” Cadence explained. Spike’s eyes went wide again and he looked back up at the circling white figure above them.
“So it could have gone to sleep years ago and just woken up to find this giant city appearing from nowhere.” Shining realize, then looked over to Spike. "So why is it circling the city? Dragon's don't like areas populated by ponies. You told me they'll only fight when provoked."
Spike thought about it. There was no real reason to be hunting in a populated area like this because it was far too risky. If it just woke up from hibernation, then it was likely hungry. Either that, or it was out of gems in its hoard.
Spike smacked his claw on his forehead in shame.
“Argh, I’m such an idiot! Why didn’t I think of this before?” Spike cursed himself.
“What do you mean?” Shining asked.
“This is the Crystal Empire! Everything here sparkles like gemstones, even the ponies! The entire city looks like one giant Dragon’s Hoard!” Spike called out and gestured to the ceiling, which suddenly looked appetizing to Spike now that he realized it. “I can’t think of any place else more ripe for a dragon attack. Why didn’t I realize that before!?” Spike cursed.
The sound of a siren began to ring out into the air outside. Ponies began to head into their houses and places of work seeking shelter. Soldiers began to collect in the middle of the city while police ponies began ushering ponies in the streets inside the various houses and buildings surrounding them. The sliver of white continued to calmly float above the crisis in circles.
“So if that dragon thinks this whole place is a hoard, why is it just circling?” Shining asked. Spike put a claw to his chin and thought about it. What would he do if he stumbled upon a large collection of gems in the middle of nowhere? When he was young, he would have started filling his cheeks with gemstones as fast as he could. But that move nearly got him eaten once. Now he would assume that it belonged to a dragon and run for it.
“He is probably waiting for a challenger to appear. He’ll assume this is some other dragon’s hoard and wait for it to appear to defend it,” Spike suggested.
“ . . . and when that doesn’t happen?” Shining said with a nervous twitch. Spike’s face went pale as he looked back towards the window and out towards the circling beast. It was no longer circling, and was instead getting bigger and bigger. A sickening roar filled the air and rippled around the room even with the windows closed. The beast was still very far away and yet the roar seemed to deafen the sound of sirens.
“It’s charging!” Spike said with a gasp. He reeled away from the window, unable to think about what to do next. He felt so caught off-guard and vulnerable that he froze in place and gazed at the approaching white monster in horror. He wanted to look behind him to find Twilight kicking into action to stop the approaching monster, but he knew she was nowhere near the empire. As another roar filled the air, Spike heard a bright and sparkling sound of magic filling the room. A long and dazzling streak of bright-blue magic soared into the air above them and began to spread into a massive dome around the city. The light cascaded around the entire sky until it draped around the outermost borders of the city. The giant white beast reared upwards and banked a turn to one side dodging the giant shield of magic.
“Cadence!” Shining armor cried from behind him. Spike turned and saw Cadence standing upright beside her bed and closing her eyes in concentration on her shield spell. Her horn was glowing bright with a beam of blue light that buzzed and hummed as her magic poured upward. The spell began to glow a little softer until her focus shifted from her magic to her husband.
“I’m fine,” she assured him. “Go get the troops ready. I can keep the dragon away from the ponies until you can get rid of it.”
“No,” Shining said, "To shield against something that big, you'll need to keep the spell going continuously. It's too much strain for you right now."
"I am Princess Miamoria Cadenza of the Crystal Empire and I can and will protect my subjects!" she stated sternly.
"But honey," he protested
“Just go, Shining. I'll be alright. We’ll be alright,” she said and placed a forehoof on her swollen belly with a soft smile.
“Alright. Spike? Can I ask for your help with this?” Shining said turning to Spike.
“Of course, but what can I do? I’ve never fought an ice-dragon before,” he said.
“But you have fought some kind of dragon before, right?” Shining asked.
“Well, yeah, in Ponyville not too long ago,” he started.
“Then you've fought more than I have. What’s the plan?” Shining asked.
“Well, we lured that dragon away from Ponyville using a really shiny gem as bait, but that won’t work here! No gems could possibly be more appetizing than the Crystal Empire!” Spike protested.
“Then we’ll just have to fight it off,” Shining retorted and turned towards the door. “Between the two of us and a small army of guards, that thing doesn’t stand a chance.”
“Are you sure, though? I mean, maybe with the barrier it will just get frustrated and lose interest?”
“Would you?” Shining asked him seriously. Spike didn’t need to take long to think of his answer.
“No,” he said and took a deep breath. “Let’s go,” he said as bravely as he could. Just as the two of them began to walk towards the door, they heard a terrifying sound from behind them.
“Ooph!” Cadence cried out. She clutched her midsection with a hoof and winced in pain. She soon lost the strength to stand and collapsed onto the floor. “Oh no, not now!” she cried out faintly.
“Cadence!” Shining called out and ran beside his wife. Spike soon followed and watched as the princess writhed in pain. Shining quickly picked her up using his magic and placed her back on her bed with her head on her pillow, though she did not look any more comfortable.
“What’s wrong?” Spike asked.
“It’s the baby,” Shining said. Shining ran over towards the door and called out into the hallway. “Nurse! It’s time! Get the doctor,” he called out towards the door.
“What? Now?!” Spike said and turned his head towards the sky again. The blue shield spell began to dissipate as holes formed in all sides of the barrier which got larger and larger until there was nothing left. The sky was back to it's brilliant and clear self, leaving the city totally exposed. Spike saw the same large white figure wheel around near the mountaintops and begin charging again. The massive beast let out another roar.
“Shining Armor! The shield!” Spike called out and turned to Shining. He leapt up towards the window and saw the dragon charging again. This time it was much closer and was nearly at the boarder of the city.
“Hrrragh!” Shining grunted and shot a bright and loud spell from his horn much like Cadence's. The bright purple glow of his magic exploded into the sky and folded around the city quickly, forming a purple bubble around the empire. This time, the Dragon did not have enough time to dodge the shield and collided with the spell head-first. The shield rung out like a giant gong and the dragon pushed off of the shield with it’s feet, hurtling back into the air. Shining Armor groaned as he stressed to keep his spell in place. A bead of sweat poured from his temple as he strengthened the shield even farther.
“Shining, are you ok?” Cadence asked.
“I’m fine," he coughed. "You should be worried about yourself and the baby now,” he said and stood tall, continuing to pump magic through his horn.
Spike watched as the dragon flew beside the edge of the bubble and bashed the barrier with it's tail. The shield rung out again and Shining groaned as he strained to keep the barrier up.
"Agh! This thing is big. It's a bit harder than keeping out a few changelings. I can't hold him off forever," Shining confessed.
“Captain Shining Armor!” a voice cried from the doorway. “The soldiers are ready to dispatch on your command." A guard came into the room, looking ready to break out into a full sprint if necessary. He motioned towards the grounds surrounding the Crystal Palace and waited for a reply.
Shining Armor looked at the guard, then back at Cadence who was looking worse and worse as the minutes dragged by. He grunted again and kept pouring magic into his shield. He looked trapped and finally took a long glance at Spike, who was waiting for a miracle to happen.
“Spike . . . you’ll have to do it,” Shining said with a grunt.
“Do what?” Spike asked.
“You’ll have to lead them for me,” he clarified.
“Woah woah, what?! Why can’t you?” he called out a little lost for words.
“I need to stay in the palace to keep this shield up. My troops need someone to lead them.”
“Don’t you have . . . I don’t know, a second in command or something?” Spike asked.
“Spike . . . you are the best one for the job. I know it. You know dragons, and the troops will follow you. You’re probably more qualified than me,” he said trying to smirk.
“But I’m not a soldier!” Spike protested.
“These soldiers are well trained. They can work together even without my help. You won’t need to manage them much. Just tell them where to hit, and they’ll back you up,” Shining said. A moment passed as Spike, who was too shocked to come up with any more complaints, looked back and forth between Shining Armor whose horn was glowing brightly and Cadence who was wincing in her bed. Shining’s expression softened as he looked at Spike with desperation in his eyes.
“Spike, please,” he said quietly. Spike sighed and scratched his head again looking at the floor.
“I’ll . . . I’ll try my best,” he said.
"You can do it Spike," Cadence said faintly from her bed. Spike looked over to her, and saw her smile at him. He picked his head up higher and turned towards the door. There was no way he was going to let anything happen to Cadence when she needed him most, and he was not about to let Shining Armor down either. What did it matter how big that thing was? He could out-dragon anything. Or . . . at least he did with Twilight's help. Then he realized something and ran towards a desk of drawers on one side of the room.
"What is it?" Shining asked, then grunted again as the pounding continued on the barrier.
Spike fished through the desk and pulled out 3 pieces of parchment followed by a quill and ink. He hastily began writing down a message on each of the pages, taking no time to be polite or formal in any of them.
URGENT: Crystal Empire under attack.
Ice-Dragon.
Cadence in labor.
Send Reinforcements.
-Spike.
When he was done, he rolled them up blew them into flames one by one. Each one lit into green flames and danced into the air headed off to all 3 princesses, wherever they may be. He hoped by all the chance in the world that they could arrive before anything bad happened. He quickly turned and looked at both Shining Armor and Cadence.
"It's going to be alright. I promise," he said, remembering his dragon-code prevented him from lying. For better or worse, he had to stop that giant ice-beast on his own.
With that he turned and marched out of the chambers leaving Princess Cadence and Shining Armor to win their own battles. The fire in his chest swirled faster and hotter as he focused on the impending fight. No matter how strong or terrifying that dragon could be, there was no way he was letting it anywhere near the Crystal Palace while he drew breath. Before he realized it, two guards were following him on either side marching in time. It was like they already knew Spike was going to help and knew exactly what to do. The thought gave him a boost of confidence as he headed out into the city square.
Before him, there were 4 companies of guard ponies armed literally to the teeth with spears, shields, swords, and armor. As he descended down from the palace steps, they all found their gaze directly on Spike. There was no time to be nervous. Any moment he hesitated in explaining the situation could be enough for the dragon to break through. Spike cleared his throat and did exactly what twilight would do: state the facts.
"There is an ice-dragon assaulting the Crystal Empire," he said loudly and clearly. The soldiers all stood up at attention as he spoke. "You see that shield spell around the city? That's your captain keeping the dragon at bay all on his own. But he can't keep it up forever. We are going to fight that thing off, and he's asked me to help."
Spike took a moment of silence, waiting for the soldiers to start asking questions or voicing complaints, but none of them came. They all had stare's of practiced, well-conditioned troops as if the news did not faze them at all. The sight was impressive to say the least, but there was something mechanical about it that agitated Spike. These were ponies, and they needed to be one hundred percent behind him, or else it would not work. He took another deep breath and belowed loudly.
"You're all ponies of this city. You have family, friends, and homes right here, and that dragon thinks their just shiny objects he can take for himself. Every single one of you have something worth protecting. Even now, at this very moment, Princess Cadence is in the palace giving birth!" he exclaimed, trying to get their stares to feel alive somehow. It worked. Almost all of them broke their gaze and stared up at Spike in astonishment, finally understanding the gravity of the situation.
"That's right. As we speak she is about to bring a new royal foal into the world, and the only thing between them and that giant dragon is us," Spike goaded further. The surprise on their faces soon turned to fire and fierce determination, as if they were being brought to life underneath their armor.
"I promised them that I'd keep them safe. I'm not your captain, I'm not a soldier, and you do not need to follow me. But I can't keep that promise without your help. Is there anypony with me?" he asked simply, hoping for a few hooves in the air. Instead he got a triumphant cry from the entire regiment that echoed in the buildings around them. Spike could not stop his mouth from opening in shock at the sound of so many ponies crying out in support. They raised their spears into the air and some of them were even smiling at him. The feeling stoked his ego-fire something fierce, but he did his best to stay focused.
"Then let's go! We don't have all day. Group up at the edge of the barrier wall," he said and started running out towards main street that lead all the way to the city entrance. All four companies fell in behind him and began running as well. Townsponies on either side of him were waving at them from the windows and doorways to the buildings around them. The earth ponies started to overtake him on either side and the pegasi flew forward in formation. Soon he was completely surrounded by charging ponies who all had his back.
He felt a fire building in his chest as he ran, and a slight sense of nausea. He turned his head upward and belched loudly, emitting green flames in front of him in a ball of fire. Normally he'd be embarrassed by getting caught burping messages in front of so many ponies, but he heard a few guards cheer and holler at the display. Did they think he was rallying them with fire? Not a bad idea. The message flew out from his snout and he skillfully caught in in his claws. He stopped for a moment and read it as quickly as he could.
Hold him off. Help is on the way.
It was Twilight's hoofwriting. He thanked his luck that she got his message and felt secure that they were coming to their aid. He tossed the message to the side and resumed his charge towards the edge of the city with the other ponies.
He could not help himself. In the moment, the tiny dragon inside him that loved comics, superheros, and hoofball could not contain himself any more.
"Let's kick some dragon tail!" he cried out with a smile on his face and began running faster, spreading his wings, picking up speed and taking off.