Unstable Dream
“...And you’re absolutely certain?” Rarity asked.
“Yes,” Luna answered for the fourth time. “No matter how many times you ask, the answer will not change. Ponyville was, in fact, attacked by Nightmares, and you are, in fact, currently in a dream.”
“And I totally did save you!” Spike added.
Rarity flopped back on her fainting couch. “Everypony in town was captured? And they are trapped just like I was?”
“Indeed,” Luna said. “From the youngest fillies and colts all the way up to Princess Celestia herself. The only pony who managed anything approximating an escape was myself, and even I could not escape entirely.”
“But that means… oh no!” Rarity leaped from the couch and stood in front of the carpet that Luna had manifested in her likeness. “My sister is trapped as well!” She spun around and put her hooves on Spike’s shoulders and gave him a shake. “You must save her! I cannot leave her alone like this! We have to get her out of there!”
“I-uh-what-I-” Spike sputtered as she shook the words out of him.
Luna cleared her throat. “He isn’t going to save anypony if you don’t let go of him.”
“Oh. Yes. Of course.” She released Spike, who stumbled backward and landed on Luna’s face. “I’m sorry,” Rarity continued. “I just want my sister to be safe.”
“I desire the same,” Luna said. Her eyes crossed slightly as she tried to focus them on Spike, who had landed right where her nose was. “Rest assured that we are doing our very best to break this spell and return Ponyville to normal as quickly as is possible.”
Spike stood up, still a bit wobbly. “So, uh, would rescuing Sweetie Belle help us do that?”
Luna was silent.
“Well, would it?” Rarity asked anxiously.
“It certainly would not hurt,” Luna said carefully, “but it would not be the most efficient course of action. There are other ponies to rescue who would likely put us closer to breaking the spell.”
“But I can’t leave her like this!” Rarity wailed. “Could you send me into her dream? Perhaps I could help her while you and Spike are off saving somepony else!”
“Unfortunately, at this point that is not possible,” Luna answered. “Currently, Spike is the only one who can travel from dream to dream. I myself may be able to, but I do not know if it will be possible for anypony else.” She sighed quietly. “I am sorry.”
“I see,” Rarity sat despondently at the edge of the carpet. “I cannot ask you to put your plans on hold for my sake, not if it will keep you from helping everypony else.” Her lip quivered. “At the very least, could you try to check on her? I just want to know that she is alright. Is that possible?”
“Very well,” Luna answered. “Merely checking on her will not be too difficult. I will return shortly.” Her face vanished into the carpet pattern.
“Word of warning, she’ll probably pop back in right behind you,” Spike said, keeping the carpet in the corner of his eye. “I think she likes doing that. So, uh, how are you holding up?”
Rarity delicately tapped her chin with her hoof. “I’m… about as well as I can be, considering everything that’s happening. To be honest, I’m not even sure what I should feel. Everything still feels so dreamlike.” She paused, then shook her head. “And I still somehow manage to forget that I’m dreaming.”
“Yeah, I know how that is,” Spike said with a nod. “I mean, right now, I don’t really feel like I’m dreaming at all.”
“Until you look around, at least.” Rarity surveyed the stage. The music and flashing lights had faded away, and the ensembles that had patrolled the area now rested on mannequins. If anything, the stillness and silence made the place feel that much bigger. “It really is quite odd.”
“Oh, this is nothing. You should’ve seen what it looked like before I got you out of that cage.” Spike said. “Yeah, it’s a little weird now, but it was way worse.”
“It certainly was.” Rarity shuddered and stepped forward to put a hoof gently on Spike’s shoulder. “I really must thank you again for rescuing me. I cannot recall much of that nightmare, thank heavens, but I would not wish it upon anypony.”
“Y-you’re welcome,” he mumbled. He felt like he was starting to sweat.
“And I must admit that I am flattered that you chose to rescue me first.”
“Well…” Spike bit his lip. He wanted to just accept the praise, but his dignity got the better of him. “To be honest, I was planning to rescue Twilight first, but Luna said that it probably wouldn’t be possible. You know, since she’s a princess and all and the spell on her is extra strong.”
Rarity smiled at him. “Of course. She is family after all. It is only natural that you would want to save her first.”
“Yeah,” Spike mumbled, “It is.” They were both silent for a moment. Spike could feel the emptiness of the room pressing in on him. It was unbearable. “So, I was wondering if—”
“I return!” Luna declared loudly as she popped back onto the carpet.
“Gah!” Rarity nearly fell over as she instinctively hopped back. “Does she always do it like that?”
“Yeah, pretty much,” Spike said.
Luna ignored them. “The good news is that your sister is doing as well as could be reasonably expected considering the circumstances.”
“And…?” Rarity asked, raising an eyebrow.
“And what?” Spike said.
“Nopony ever uses the phrase ‘the good news is’ unless there is some not-so-good news to go with it.” She swallowed. “Please tell me. I can take it. What is the bad news?”
“There is no bad news, per se,” Luna said. “There is, however, some unusual news.”
“Unusual…” Rarity tilted her head. “Is that good or bad?”
“Neither, which is why I simply identified it as unusual rather than good news or bad news. Specifically, the dream’s construction is not standard, as all the others are. It appears that the Nightmares have somehow modified the structure of the dream. What is so odd is that when I viewed the dreamscape itself, it did not seem to be unusual. Only those who could view the dream from without would notice the oddity.”
Rarity scratched her head. “And that means…?”
“It means that I have more good news for you,” Luna said. “The unusual spell structure surrounding your sister’s dream bears further investigation.”
“So I guess I’m headed into Sweetie Belle’s dream, then?” Spike asked.
“Indeed,” Luna said. “Rarity, do you know of your sister’s whereabouts in Ponyville at the time the spell was cast? Entering her dream will require Spike to find her.”
“Yes!” Rarity nodded vigorously. “As a matter of fact, she was upstairs at the boutique! I was going to help her get ready before taking her to the celebration.”
“Well, that makes things a whole lot easier,” Spike said. “Don’t worry, Rarity, I’ll make sure that Sweetie Belle is okay. I’ll have her free in no time.”
“Thank you for the reassurance, Spike,” Rarity answered. “I know that you’ll everything that you can.” She stepped forward and gave him a hug. “When you find my sister, you will tell her that I’m alright, won’t you?”
“Sure thing!” He gave her a thumbs up. Then he turned to Luna. “So, uh… What’s gonna happen to Rarity while I’m off helping Sweetie Belle?”
“Rarity will have to remain here, I’m afraid. At the moment there is too much risk in attempting to wake her up or otherwise bring her out of her dream.”
Spike snorted and crossed his arms. “She’s going to die of boredom if she’s stuck here! Isn’t there something you could do?”
“Do not worry, Spike.” Rarity ruffled his spines. “So long as those awful Nightmares have been put out, I am sure that I will be able to occupy myself. Though if there is anything at all I can do to assist you, I would be quite willing to do so, of course.”
“I will continue to analyze the spell, and if there is anything for which I require assistance, I will be sure to let you know.” She turned her gaze to Spike. “It is time that we put our plan into motion. Prepare to be awakened, Spike.”
Spike nodded and turned toward Rarity. “See you later!” Then the dream melted away around him.
Spike turned a corner and found himself in front of the Town Hall. Again.
“So much for making a map,” he grumbled as he crumpled up the paper in his hands. Whatever Sweetie Belle’s special talent was, it wasn’t geography. At first glance, the dream had more or less resembled Ponyville. At second glance it resembled Ponyville decidedly less and more like someone had taken Ponyville and the Everfree Forest, put them in a sack, given it a good shake, and put down the buildings and landmarks without looking.
What was worse, either there were multiple copies of everything, or stuff was moving around whenever he wasn’t looking. He had passed the Town Hall twice already, and this was the first time that Zecora’s hut was next to it. He had sworn that it had been next to a river last time he saw it, and before that it had been mostly hidden by a clump of apple trees. And Zecora’s hut had been growing in the middle of Carrot Top’s garden when he last passed it.
And to top off the whole mess, the sky looked like a patchwork quilt. Different types of weather, sun, rain, snow, day, night, all floated across the sky like clouds. If he looked closely, he could just about see the gaps between them. The emptiness glistened, and he decided not to look at at it anymore.
He had found some paper and a pencil in the schoolhouse (which had relocated next to a patch of Poison Joke, which he carefully avoided), and attempted to make a map of his surroundings, but it didn’t do any good if nothing would stay in the same place. The Nightmare had to be responsible for it. Rather than attack directly, it was hiding in the background, twisting the dream to keep any of the pieces from coming together. You couldn’t fight it if you couldn’t find it.
In the distance, the Clock Tower chimed three times. It was completely useless of course; last time the bell had rung nine times, and Spike was quite sure that it had been less than ten minutes ago. As if on cue, the patch of daylight that had been over his head drifted away, and was replaced by rain.
“Go figure,” he muttered as he kicked at the wet wad of paper that had been a map a few minutes ago. “I’ve got to get out of this rain.” He began to jog forward in the hope that he’d get out from under the shower. The rain seemed to follow him. His feet squished in the muddy path. He sighed, and ducked under a nearby tree. He needed to clear his head.
“Have you found Sweetie Belle yet?” asked a voice at his feet.
He looked down to find a head poking out of the mud. It was doing its best to look like Luna, but the assault of raindrops made the features ooze downward. Every few seconds it paused to reformulate itself, only to begin melting again.
“Not yet,” he said, more confidently than he felt. “This whole dream is kinda… big. Which wouldn’t be that bad if it wasn’t so confusing. This place is enormous and I don’t even know where to start. At least in Rarity’s dream I could find landmarks to work with.”
“It does seem rather… confused,” Luna bubbled. The mud flow made her sound like she was underwater. “What is truly odd is that so far, there does not seem to be a great deal of manipulation on the part of the Nightmare. One would expect that they would attempt to alter the dreamscape to frighten her, but there is remarkably little interference.”
Spike shrugged. “Maybe the dream was just scary on its own? You can have bad dreams without a Nightmare floating around, can’t you?”
“You can, but I have never known a Nightmare who would be content with that. They wring fear from the mind like wringing water from a towel. They will not be happy until they have squeezed out every last drop.”
Spike shrugged. “Maybe Sweetie Belle just has a fear of…uh…” The idea had sounded good in his head, but when he put it in words it just sounded dumb. “...getting lost in a familiar place?”
“Honestly, that is what puzzles me more than anything else,” Luna continued. “I have monitored Sweetie Belle’s dreams before, and I have never seen anything like this. I have helped her deal with her fears, and” —she paused to reconstitute her head, which had sunk halfway into a puddle— “this dream does not at all resemble any previous dreams I have observed. My suggestion would be to attempt to locate a landmark that would have special significance to her, such as her home, or the schoolhouse. Places that would likely figure more heavily in her memories.”
“Or the Library, or Rarity’s Boutique?”
“Yes.” Luna nodded. Or tried to; her chin stuck to the ground. “Wherever she is in the dream, she would likely be in the proximity of something that is familiar to her. That would be most in keeping with her previous dreams, at least.”
“Got it. How’s Rarity doing?”
“I just checked in with her, and she is doing well. Her dream contains more than enough materials for her to pass the time working on her designs, at least for the time being. She told me to tell you to stop worrying about her and focus on finding Sweetie Belle.”
“I guess I’d better get moving then.” Spike poked his head out from under the tree. The rainy patch had drifted off and been replaced by what felt like a warm summer night. “What about you?”
“I will continue to analyze the dream and attempt to discover the nature of its structure. And I will continue checking in with you and Rarity, of course.”
“Great,” Spike said. “I don’t suppose there’s any way for me to get in touch with you if I need help?”
“Unfortunately, no. I am currently working on it, but for now you will simply have to do your best to stay out of trouble.”
Spike snorted. No matter how hard he tried to avoid trouble, he had no doubt that it would find him. “Well, I hope you figure it out soon. Wandering around this place by myself is starting to creep me out a little.”
“Believe me, I would like nothing more than to be able to help you more directly,” Luna bubbled. “I must get back to my analysis. I wish you the best of luck.”
“Thanks.”
He watched her head sink back into the mud and disappear. The dream always seemed a bit bigger when Luna vanished. At first he had appreciated the lack of any loud noises or things trying to attack him, but the longer he wandered around, the more he began to wish that something would try to stop him. That would give him a nice clue to where he needed to go. It sure beat meandering aimlessly through a town where nothing was in the right place.
“I really need to try something else,” he muttered out loud. Hearing a voice made the place seem less desolate, even if it was his own. “I just wish I could get a better” —he paused, and noted that one of the Ponyville Clock Towers stood just across the path from the tree where he had taken shelter— “look at my surroundings. Yeah, that should work.”
He walked around to the back of the structure. Sweetie Belle had been considerate enough to imagine that the door leading to the top of the tower was unlocked. She had not been considerate enough to imagine an elevator.
“When I finally get out of this spell, I’m going to really miss not getting tired,” he said as he clamored up to the observation deck. “Hopefully I’ll be able to see something helpful from up…here...” He blinked. Then he rubbed his eyes. “It… that can’t be right!”
The jumbled up mix of Ponyville, Everfree, and other miscellaneous memories stretched into the distance as far as Spike could see. But he had expected to see that. What he didn’t expect to see was the shape of the landscape. The whole town looked like it was in the bottom of an enormous bowl. But it was more than that. On first glance, he thought that everything sat in a valley, but in the distance, the upward curve of the land grew higher and steeper. Far above where the horizon was supposed to be, the land continued to rise into the sky. Or at least where the sky would be if the sideways mess of buildings and trees hadn’t boxed it out.
He glanced upward to see if the landscape curved around to reach above his head, but he couldn’t. The quilt of different skies and weather conditions got in his way. And now that he had a closer look at it, he could see that it curved away from him, same as the ground. The longer he stared at it, the less it looked like sky, and the more it looked like the the bottom of a giant glass bowl with bits and pieces of sky floating in it.
What the hey is that thing? It’s like somepony rolled the sky up into a… oh. So that’s how it is. That’s interesting, but it really doesn’t help me much. And I thought that this was going to be helpful. Maybe there’s a- wait a minute!
For a moment he thought his eyes were playing tricks on him, but no matter how long he looked, what he saw didn’t change. Off in the distance, at the edge of his vision, was a second clock tower.
“Huh, I guess things weren’t moving around. There’s just more than one of everything.” The longer he looked, the more his suspicions were confirmed. He could see two Sugarcube Corners, two Libraries, and at least three joke shops.
He tried to ignore the giant sky-ball and the concave landscape, and began to trace the path that had led him to the clock tower. A short distance away, was the Town Hall he had seen, with Zecora’s tree-hut standing beside it. As he worked his way down his route, other landmarks popped into his memories. He remembered walking through those streets. High up, so high that the ground was practically sideways, was a second Town Hall. A river coiled around it like a snake.
“I guess I should’ve held onto that map,” he muttered. He turned away and headed to the next window. “Maybe I’ll be able to pick out something from up here. Probably a bit of a longshot, but I…” He paused as he got a good look. “Okay, so maybe it’s not such a longshot.”
On the far side of the tower, there was a clear patch. That in itself was nothing special; there were little patches of grass or trees or flowers or whatever strewn throughout the mass of buildings. What caught Spike’s eye was the fact that this time, he recognized not just the building, but the surrounding area. The Cutie Mark Crusaders’ Clubhouse sat in the middle of a patch of apple orchard. Spike smiled. The area surrounding the clubhouse wasn’t random; every tree, every rock, and every bit of rubble generated by the CMC matched the area around the real clubhouse.
“There’s no way that’s a coincidence. Sweetie Belle’s gotta be down there!” He cracked his knuckles. “By the time Luna checks in again, maybe I can have her tell Rarity that her sister is okay!” He started down the stairs. “I just hope that I can get to her before the Nightmare shows up…”
Yes, that should work nicely.
Luna allowed herself a smile as she reviewed the schematic that floated before her eyes. She made a motion with her mind, and the diagram phased into three dimensions. She nodded in satisfaction, and the now-three-dimensional array of parts collapsed into the device it was a design for. One could construct such things in dreams far more easily than in reality; it was one of many benefits of her abilities.
It was not, of course, an actual object. It was a representation of a spell, the wires and connections simply symbolized the interconnected bits of magic that comprised it. She had always thought that her method of visualization was appropriate. What was a dream if not a representation of a concept? Granted, this particular spell was the magical equivalent of an engine that was held together by a mix of paperclips, gum, and optimism, but it would work, and that was all that mattered.
“So what’s that for?”
She rolled her eyes, but otherwise gave no indication that she had heard. Now was not the time to be distracted.
“Come on, I know you can hear me. You can’t ignore me forever.”
I could, if I wanted to, Luna thought. Though this would be easier if I simply didn’t have to listen.
“It’s all useless, you know.”
No, it isn’t, Luna said to herself. Now she just had to see if she could get the device to Spike…
Under normal circumstances, it would be simple. She could simply glide from dream to dream at will. It wasn’t even a question of having to move from place to place. Dreams were malleable, and the borders between them were wherever she wanted them to be. But now there were barriers that had to be overcome.
She closed her eyes and focused herself on the dream. There were no words to really describe how it worked; it wasn’t as if the dreams were different places. They all occupied the same space, so to speak, it was only a matter of sliding between them. It ought to be effortless, but she could feel the enemy’s spell in her way, trying to push her back to her own dream. To most it would be impenetrable, hard as steel.
To her it was soft. She couldn’t break it, but it could be stretched. Not physically of course, but magically. It could be stretched so far that she could make her way into the next dream without ever truly leaving her own. It was like pushing one’s face into the side of a balloon; if you pushed hard enough the rubber would cling so tightly that your face would show through. She was not fond of using such a flippant analogy, but she couldn’t find a better one. She could only hope that she could manage to force the spell she had constructed all the way through.
The borders of Sweetie Belle’s dream began to fade in around her. The dreamscape was oddly well-contained; dreams did not typically have well defined borders. The edges ebbed and flowed along with the movement of the dreamer. If they could somehow reach the the border, there would not be a wall or a barrier, the dream would simply end.
She began to search the dream for signs of dragon magic. If nothing else, Spike was easy to pick out. Pony magic was ethereal and smooth, flowing like a drop of dye in clear water. Dragon magic was sharp, like rapidly growing crystal, crackling and snapping like the embers in the heart of a fire. As a result, his aura stood out from the dream like a torch. Ponies often blended in a bit more, and whatever spell the Nightmares had put out did not help things. Searching for Sweetie Belle was like looking out into a dark night through a foggy window.
The bright, pointy blur that marked Spike’s location drew closer. Or rather, she came closer to him. Either was correct, really. Dreams were a matter of perception. Moving around was a matter of focusing in; it felt like looking through a telescope to a distant scene, only to find that it was really as close as it appeared to be.
The barrier pushed against her, but she pushed back. The abstract magical blur began to clarify as she forced her way into the dreamscape. Unfortunately, right now her consciousness protruded into the dream in the same way that a mouse caused a lump in a carpet by hiding beneath it. She could move around well enough, but she was still indistinct. The dream rolled around her as she searched for a place to clearly manifest herself. As she searched, a hazy blob of magic rolled past her. It was a pony, there was no doubt about that. She made a mental note of the location; if she found Spike quickly enough, she could inform him of Sweetie Belle’s location.
I suppose this will have to do.
She composed herself, and dove into the dream. If she had any luck at all, Spike wouldn’t ask her what it felt like to manifest in a dream. She had never come up with a comparison she liked. You became, however temporarily, something other than yourself. The manifestation might look like her, but it was only a representation, like trying to turn a taste into a sound, or a solid object into a shadow.
There was a pop, and she found herself hanging from the wall of a small, wooden room. On the wall opposite her, the view through the window told her that she was likely in a tree house. Spike stood nearby, naturally facing away from her. It was surprisingly tricky to place herself exactly where she wanted. But at the moment, it wasn’t important. She cleared her throat. Spike flinched, and turned to face her. He was smiling.
“Spike, I have news for you,” she said. “I believe you will be quite encouraged by it.”
“Great! I have good news for you too!” he answered confidently.
“Really?” Luna tried not to sound too confused. “And what would that be?”
“I found Sweetie Belle!” Spike stepped aside, and sure enough Sweetie Belle sat on the floor behind him, curled in a little fluffy ball, hugging her own tail. “She’s still, you know, dreaming,” Spike continued, “but finding her is half the battle, right? Now we just need to figure out how to… Uh, are you okay?”
Luna blinked. “Huh?”
“You looked like you just zoned out there for a few seconds.”
“How long has it been since you found her?” she asked.
“Um, five minutes or so.” He scratched his head. “Why?”
Luna was rather glad that at the moment she didn’t have a stomach, because if she had it would’ve filled with butterflies.
“Spike, things may just have gotten a bit more complicated.”
“What do you mean, there’s somepony else in the dream?!” Spike stammered. Things had been going smoothly. He had found Sweetie Belle easily enough once he had thought to search the clubhouse, and even better, she even seemed to recognize him. Sure, most of what she said to him was somewhat incoherent, but at least she was talking to him, and not just rambling.
Then Luna’s head had popped out of one of the pictures on the wall, and his vision of wrapping up the dream in a nice little bow had vanished into thin air.
“I meant just what I said,” Luna said. “As I entered the dream, I became aware of another presence in the dream that seems to be neither you nor Sweetie Belle.”
Spike swallowed and asked the obvious question. “The… the Nightmare?”
“I do not think so. The magical signature is almost certainly that of” —she paused, presumably for effect— “a pony.”
“Okay.” Spike shrugged. Clearly he was supposed to react to the revelation, but he wasn’t entirely sure how. “So, is that… good?”
“I must confess that I am not entirely sure,” Luna said. “It may either be an unexpected advantage, or it may be a sign of danger. The spell’s interference makes connections between dreams even more difficult to establish, which makes the presence of another pony to be even more unlikely. Sweetie Belle was not in contact with any other ponies, correct?”
“Nope. She was the only one there.”
“Hmph.” Luna frowned. “I will continue to analyze the spell for possible causes, while you seek out the pony or whatever it is that is appearing as one. I sensed their presence a short way from here, just out the door and straight down the street between the gate and the farmhouse.”
“Okay, but what do I do with her?” He pointed at Sweetie Belle, who was curled up in a fluffy ball underneath the desk. “I can’t leave her here; she might go and disappear on me.”
“In that case, you will have to bring her with you,” Luna said. “Carry her, if you must.”
Spike sighed. “Great. What do I do if I find somepony?”
“Ah, yes. That reminds me, I have something for you. Please wait a moment.” Luna vanished into the paper. In her place, a point of light appeared. It began to grow bigger and bigger, like a balloon protruding from the wall of the clubhouse. Spike stepped back as the ball of magic expanded. It wavered, like it was about to explode.
“Watch out!” Spike grabbed Sweetie Belle and dove behind the desk.
The ball of magic exploded. The sound was slightly more akin to that of a popping balloon, but loud enough that it still qualified as an explosion. He peeked around the edge of the desk just in time to see something small fall to the floor with a soft clunk.
“What was that?”
Luna reappeared on the paper. “My apologies. I had some difficulty getting it through.”
“Getting what through?”
“That. On the floor.” Spike looked down. Lying on the floor was a thing that looked sort of like a wristwatch, only instead of a tiny clock, there was a single faintly glowing button.
“Oh.” He picked it up. “A… bracelet?”
“A communication spell. Or at least, a representation of one. It is quite simplistic, but it will work.”
“Ooh!” Spike’s eyes lit up. “So this is like one of those gadgets from the Con Mane movies! Like the exploding mane brush, or that long distance horseshoe!” He paused for a second. “Does it shoot lasers?”
“No, it does not shoot lasers,” Luna said. “And you cannot talk into it either. As I said, it is a very simple spell. If you ever need to contact me, simply press the button, and it will alert me that you wish to communicate. It is not much, but it is the best we have.”
Spike stared at the device. If not for the distinctly magical glow, it would’ve looked like a toy. Then again, Luna certainly wouldn’t have time for worrying about the aesthetics.
“At least it’s easy to use,” he said as he strapped it around his wrist. “I’ll let you know if I find anything interesting.”
“As will I,” Luna answered. “I must return to my analysis. Best of luck.”
“Good-” She vanished before the other half of the word made it out of Spike’s mouth. “...bye.” He groaned, then turned to Sweetie Belle. “Alright, I guess we should get moving.”
Spike massaged his temples as he trudged along. According to Luna, there was no physiological reason for him to develop a headache, but he had one. Getting Sweetie Belle to move in the proper direction by any means short of grabbing her tail and dragging her along proved to be quite a feat.
At first he had thought she would make it easier for him. She had recognized him, and seemed to be aware of the fact that he was there. Unfortunately, it was becoming steadily more apparent that something was wrong. Whenever he tried to talk to her, she seemed to listen, but it didn’t quite get through. It was like everything he said was muffled, only instead of the words getting muted out, it was the meaning behind them. On the rare occasions that he was able to get her to actually listen to him, she responded to something else entirely. That didn’t surprise him; they were in her nightmare, after all.
“We should go back to the clubhouse,” Sweetie Belle squeaked, for the… Spike had lost track of how many times she had suggested it. “It’s safe there. It can’t get to us in there.”
“What can’t get to us?” Spike had asked at least half a dozen times and never gotten an answer. He still couldn’t resist the urge to try again.
“It’s going to come back! I can hear it. It’s making my ears hurt. We should go back to the clubhouse. I can’t do anything. We can’t get away. We have to hide!”
She darted into a bush by the side of the path. Spike could hear her whimpering. If he was honest with himself, it freaked him out a bit. Not the fact that Sweetie Belle was scared; of course she was. But she barely even sounded like herself. The nightmare had seemingly hollowed her out and left her a shadow of her real self. He could barely even tell that it was her…
He shuddered. Maybe it wasn’t. Maybe it was a copy that the nightmare had created, and the real Sweetie Belle was still wandering around the dream somewhere. Maybe that was who Luna had sensed on her way in.
Another whimper drifted out of the bush.
Or that’s her, and she’s just terrified out of her mind.
“Come on, Sweetie Belle,” he said wearily.
“We should go back to the clubhouse.”
“Ugh.” Spike sat next to the bush and leaned against the wall of the schoolhouse (or rather one of the schoolhouses), where the bush was growing. All he could hear was the sound of Sweetie Belle making sniffling noises. His ears perked up. There was some other sound in the distance. It sounded like voices. “Shh! Do you hear that?”
“Can I go back to the clubhouse now?” Sweetie Belle answered. “If we don’t go back, we’ll be-”
“Shhh!” Spike clamped a claw over her mouth. “Just be quiet for a few seconds! I’m trying to listen.”
She attempted to make a muffled grumble, then gave up. Spike slowly began to make his way around the schoolhouse. On the far side, a chunk of what appeared to be Ghastly Gorge cut through the middle of the town square. Though weirdly enough, the fountain that marked the center of the square was right where it should be, at least in relation to the bits and pieces of the square that hadn’t been wrecked by the Gorge. Of course, the fountain now sat on a floating island that hung in the center of the abyss.
But Spike barely even noticed the oddity of the hovering chunk of earth. There were two moving forms on the island. Atop the fountain, curled around it like a snake, was a smoky, oily shadow. Sitting at the base of the fountain was Scootaloo.
He wasn’t sure which one shocked him more.
That can’t really be her! he thought. There’s no reason that she would be in Sweetie Belle’s dream. But Luna said that it was definitely a pony. None of this makes sense. Maybe she can figure it out. He pushed the button on his wrist. The glow turned from white to blue. I really hope this thing works.
He kept a tight hold on Sweetie Belle as he slowly snuck closer to the gorge, making sure that the scenery stayed between them and the Nightmare. As he made his way closer, he could hear them speaking. Scootaloo sounded like relatively normal, but the other voice, the Nightmare… it didn’t sound like a voice that had lungs behind it. It was hollow and scratchy, like the sound of a bad record player. He crouched down behind a shrubbery near the edge of the gorge. There was a small gap at the base of the foliage, just big enough for him to see through.
Scootaloo stood at the edge of the island, looking into the abyss. The shadowy form was still wrapped around the fountain, but it had stretched itself so that the part of it that most closely approximated a head was peering over her shoulder into the pit.
“You aren’t going to make it,” the Nightmare said. “It’s too far and those tiny wings of yours won’t get you across.”
“My wings are just fine,” Scootaloo said in a voice that sounded like she didn’t believe it. “I have to get out of here. I have to get back to the clubhouse. I have to fly across.”
“Do you really think that you can?” it said. “I think you know perfectly well that you can’t. You might as well be an earth pony for all the good your wings do.”
“I’m not an earth pony,” Scootaloo said.
“That’s true. You don’t have that connection to the earth, or the magic, do you? That’s too bad.”
“But I have wings.”
“Wings that can barely get your hooves off the ground,” it said. Its tone wasn’t mocking, or harsh, or much of anything really. Spike thought that that might make it worse. “Do you really think that one of these days you’ll just wake up and your wings are suddenly going to work? It isn’t going to happen. You can’t fly, and you never will.”
“I have to get over there. I need to get back to the clubhouse,” Scootaloo said weakly. “Even if I can’t fly.”
“You’re a pegasi that can’t even fly. Even if you get back to the clubhouse, what will you do? How will you help?”
“I can… I…” She stared into the gorge. “I don’t know.”
“That’s what I thought.” It extended a vaguely hand-shaped tendril and patted her on the head. “You’re finally getting it. Just keep thinking it over. I’m sure it’ll sink in eventually.”
The shadow whipped around so fast that Spike wasn’t even sure which direction it had gone. It had vanished into the darkness, leaving no trace of its presence. Spike froze, still as a statue. He wanted to poke his head over the edge of the shrub and call out to Scootaloo, but what if the Nightmare was still around?
“Spike!”
“Gah!” Spike’s heart skipped at least half a dozen beats. The voice was literally right in his ear. “What the- what was that?”
“It’s me, Spike.”
He spun around. Luna’s face was sculpted into the shrubbery like a particularly detailed piece of topiary. Her horn was a single gigantic thorn, and her eyes were roses.
“Why are you always behind me?!”
“I was not behind you,” Luna said, her voice rustling the leaves. “I was beside you.”
“Whatever! Either way I couldn’t see you. Couldn’t you appear in front of me for once?”
Luna glowered at him, or at least as much as she could with twig eyebrows. “So why did you contact me?”
“Oh right. I found the other pony. Or at least, I think I did.” He shrugged uncertainly. “She’s on the other side of the bush thing. I thought you could check whether it’s actually her and not just something the Nightmare came up with.”
“I see.” Luna sunk into the leaves. Spike could hear rustling on the far side. A moment later she reappeared. “That is certainly not a dream construct.”
“So it is Scootaloo, then?”
“Yes. Or at least her consciousness.”
“Okay, that’s good to know.” Spike breathed a sigh of relief. “At least that means we won’t have to rescue her later. Do you have any idea how she ended up in Sweetie Belle’s dream?”
“I have a hypothesis, but it bears further examination.”
“Are you going to tell me what it is?”
“Not yet.”
Spike folded his arms and frowned. “I should’ve known. You never tell me anything.”
“A half-realized theory would not help you accomplish anything, even if it is correct,” she said matter-of-factly. “And if it is wrong, it could very well hinder you. Have you seen any sign of the Nightmare that is maintaining this dream?”
“Actually, I did. It was hanging around when I contacted you.” He peeked through the bush. “It was all snakey and smokey and shadowy and it was wrapped around that fountain, talking to Scootaloo. It was bullying her, talking about how she was never going to be able to fly or help anypony in the dream.”
Luna sighed, but it was more than a sigh. It came through what would’ve been gritted teeth, and it had a bit of a growl mixed in. “Yes, that sounds like a Nightmare. They love to play on the insecurities of the dreamers. And I have no doubt that it’s manipulating their consciousness to make them even more susceptible. What truly worries me is that they have discovered a way to place multiple ponies in a single dream.”
“Really?” Spike wasn’t quite sure exactly what he was supposed to be shocked by anymore. “I mean, I know it’s weird, but is having multiple ponies in one dream really that big of a problem?”
“It means that the scale of their plan may be larger than I first thought. As powerful as they are, the Nightmares are finite in number, and so are the ponies that they are able to capture in this fashion. But if they have devised a way to ensnare multiple ponies in a single dream…”
“-they can catch a lot more ponies,” Spike said. “Wait a minute. Why didn’t you think it was weird that both of the Cake Twins were in one dream?”
“Do you remember what I told you about you were able to enter dreams?”
Spike nodded. “Yeah. Something about how the spell could spread through contact, so it caused me to fall asleep, but I didn’t get captured because I’m a dragon. So the fact that the Cake Twins were together when they got caught by the spell had something to do with it?”
“Yes. Or at least, that was what I assumed at the time. To put it simply, the spell works by walling in the dreams of those within it. As the twins were in physical context when the spell hit them, I simply assumed that the dream put them both within the same ‘wall’, so to speak. But this situation is entirely different. Are you absolutely certain that nopony else was with Sweetie Belle when you entered her dream?”
Spike shook his head. “Unless Scootaloo somehow gained invisibility powers since I saw her, I don’t think so.”
“In that case, the Nightmares have somehow managed to travel between dreams even when they’ve filled that gap with obstacles.” Her false face furrowed its leafy brows in thought. “Then again, I have yet to completely unravel the design behind the spell. I will let you know if I find more.”
Spike nodded dumbly. His mouth felt very dry. If Luna wasn’t sure what was going on, it meant that he was even more out of his depth. But like she said, there wasn’t anyone else.
“So what should I do?”
“Continue to search the dream for a way to break Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo out of the Nightmare’s power.” Her flowery eyes narrowed. “We will not let them suffer any longer.”
Spike swallowed, stunned by the sudden harshness of her voice. “O-of course.”
“And keep an eye out for any other ponies who may be caught here. It is extremely likely that we cannot break the Nightmare’s control without finding everypony. I am counting on you.”
“Yeah. I’ll do my best.”
“Good. I wish you the best of luck in freeing them. They need your help.” Her face collapsed back into the bush before Spike had a chance to reply.
He peered nervously over the edge of the hedge. Scootaloo was alone, sitting on the edge of the island, staring into the emptiness below her. The Nightmare was nowhere to be seen. That didn’t mean it wasn’t around, but there really wasn’t much he could do about that. He tried not to think about it. He had more important things to put his brainpower toward. Like figuring out how to get Scootaloo off of that floating island.
He turned to Sweetie Belle, who was hunched over, twiddling the end of her tail.“I don’t suppose you have any ideas?”
“We should go back to the clubhouse.”
“Yeah, yeah, I know.” Spike sighed. Then a thought struck him. “You want Scootaloo to go back to the clubhouse too, don’t you?”
Sweetie Belle nodded. “Yeah, she wants wants to go back to the clubhouse too.”
“Do you want to help her get back there?”
“We should help her. We need to go to the clubhouse.”
Spike grinned. “Well, she can’t get to your clubhouse if she’s stuck on that island over there. Could you help me get her off of there?”
“I…” Sweetie Belle clenched her eyes shut and put her hooves to her head, as if she had a headache. Then she looked up at him. “I think so…”
“That’s great!” He surveyed the area. “Do you see anything that we could use as a bridge?”
“A bridge?” she asked.
“Yeah, something long enough to reach that island and sturdy enough that we could walk across on it.” He scratched his head. “Maybe like a big tree branch, or a ladder or something.”
“A rope.”
“A rope could work too, I guess. It would be a bit risky, but that’s really all we have.”
“A rope, over there.” Sweetie Bell pointed.
She was pointing at an instance of the Golden Oaks Library. It was, quite literally, growing out of the side of a hill, nearly sideways. And hanging from the top balcony, barely off the ground, was the clothesline.
“Oh. Well, that could work, if we can’t find anything else…” He searched the area again, looking for anything that could possibly work. It wasn’t that he was afraid of heights, per se, but even so he wasn’t too keen about tightrope-walking across a chasm that might have who-knows-what at the bottom. Unfortunately, short of dismantling one of the nearby houses and building a bridge out of it, he didn’t have a lot of options. There was probably something in the dream somewhere, but nothing in the immediate vicinity.
I guess I could go look for something, but I don’t want to leave her here… He took a glance at Scootaloo. She hadn’t moved, but seeing her so close to the edge still made him uneasy. What if that Nightmare comes back? That thing could push her off the edge or take her off somewhere. I’ve got to get her out of here now.
“I can’t believe I’m doing this,” he muttered as he began to to unroll the clothesline. “I wish Luna would just make me a jet pack. It would be so much easier. And more awesome.”
The clothesline came free. He dragged it back to the edge of the gorge. Sweetie Belle sat at the edge, staring into the void just like Scootaloo.
“Oh no you don’t.” Spike grabbed her tail and towed her away from the chasm. “I’m not letting you fall in there.” He swallowed. “I’m the one taking that chance. I really wish I knew more about how to tie a lasso. I wish I would’ve paid more attention when I went to that rodeo.” He held up the rope. He was reasonably sure that if Applejack were around, she’d slap him upside the head for such an embarrassingly bad lasso, but as long as it held, it would have to do.
“You think you could use your magic to hook this over the fountain for me?”
Sweetie Belle stared blankly forward for a moment before closing her eyes and shaking her head.
“It was worth a shot, I guess,” Spike said with a shrug. Then he lifted the rope above his head. “Here goes nothing.”
Luna stared coldly at the the tangle of magic that floated in front of her. She hadn’t felt this degree of frustration since she had helped Celestia streamline the Equestrian Tax code. The structure of the dream simply didn’t make sense. The knowledge that multiple ponies had somehow entered Sweetie Belle’s dreamscape had given her a surge of hope that she was nearer to solving the mystery, but in the end it only confused things further.
She knew from experience what magic was supposed to look like when you used it to cross the borders of dreams. That was her affinity; perceiving the borders of dreams and the passageways between them. And there weren’t any. There weren’t any holes in the dream’s skin, no gateways that would enable a pony’s dream projection to leave their own dream and enter another’s. She could believe that the Nightmares were capable of such things, but she could not and would not believe they could do so without leaving any tracks.
“Exhilerating, isn’t it?”
“Not particularly. Why should it be?”
“How often do you truly get to test your skill against an opponent with comparable abilities?”
“If this were a game of chess or some other largely irrelevant activity, perhaps it would be. I don’t suppose you would be willing to help me?”
“Would you accept my help even if I offered it?”
“It would help if you would simply be silent and let me focus. I suppose that is too much to ask.”
“You could say that. It really is getting a bit boring watching you stare at those dreams for so long without making any progress.”
“It would go faster if you helped, you know.” She waited for an answer. As she expected, none came. She smiled slightly. “Actually, I believe you already have.”
Luna sailed through the layers spellwork that bounded the borders of the dream. Now was the time to feel exhilarated. She had spent so long picking at the knot, but she had found the end of the string and now she could begin to unravel it. She would still have to be careful, though, pulling too hard would just make the knot tighter.
She zeroed in on Spike’s location. Fortunately he hadn’t wandered too far from where she had seen him last. And as luck would have it, a suitable vessel for manifestation happened to be right next to him. Hopefully this time he would actually be facing in her general direction. His aura glowed like a hot ember; it was almost difficult to look directly at him.
“Spike! I’ve made a most important discovery!”
“Gah!” Spike spun around to face her. He had, naturally, been facing the other direction. “You did it again!” he gasped.
“I did not intentionally” —she froze as she got a good look at him— “Why is Scootaloo on your head?”
“I’m trying to get her across this chasm!” Spike snapped. “I’m just glad you didn’t show up a few seconds later or I might have fallen in.”
“Oh.” Luna took a moment to study her surroundings. They were on the floating island. It looked as though Spike had used a lasso of some sort to make a tightrope. She could see the far end of it tied tightly to a stone bench on the gorge’s edge, and the other end appeared to be tied around her own neck. It appeared that she had manifested herself in one of the statues that adorned the side of the fountain on the island. “Apologies.”
“You almost gave me a heart attack. Maybe. Can that happen while you’re dreaming?” He gently put Scootaloo down next to the fountain. “Just hold on for a second, Scootaloo. I have to talk to Luna about something.”
“I just want to get back to the clubhouse already.”
“Yeah, I know. Just sit tight.” He patted her on the head before turning to Luna. “So what’s this discovery that you just had to pop in to yell about?”
“Ah, yes, that. I’ve determined exactly how multiple ponies are present in this dream.” She paused for effect. Spike interrupted it.
“And?”
“It is not a single dream. I had been carrying out my analysis on the assumption that this dreamscape was an isolated dream in which multiple consciousnesses had been placed. But it appears that in reality it is actually multiple dreams that have been combined into a single dreamscape. The Nightmares must have manipulated the ponies involved into having dreams that are similar enough that when they were combined they appeared to be one.”
“Kind of like the Cake Twins’ dream?”
“Yes, only that was a side effect of the spell, whereas this is very obviously intentional.”
“Intentional?” Spike asked. “What would the Nightmares have to gain by combining the dreams together?”
“I am not sure, but the fact that they managed to do so and also keep it hidden from me is worrying.” She noted the change in Spike’s face. “Not that you should be worried, of course. It is just that this matter grows more and more confounding. But we will get to the bottom of this sooner or later. Hopefully sooner.”
“Listen, it’s great that you’re making progress, but what does that have to do with me?” he said wearily. “I’m already sort of busy trying to get Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle out of their whole dream stupor thing.”
“Now that I am aware that this is a shared dreamscape, I was able to properly examine the dream’s structure. And as a result I can tell you for sure how many ponies’ are within this dreamscape. You’ve already found two, but my examination indicates that there is one more somewhere in this dream.”
“One more, huh?” Spike glanced at Scootaloo, then across the gorge at Sweetie Belle. “I have a feeling I know who that is.”
“As do I. You will almost certainly need to find all of them if you wish to break the Nightmare’s power. And I hope that you can do so as quickly as possible. I am loathe to let them suffer here any longer than absolutely necessary.”
Spike put his claws on his hips. “Come on, that was my plan from the beginning. Besides, Rarity would kill me if I didn’t do my best to get Sweetie Belle and her friends to safety.”
“Good. In that case, I will leave you to your exploration. If you need my assistance do not hesitate to contact me.”
“Will do!”
“And Spike…”
“Yeah?”
“Please keep them safe.”
Spike nodded silently.
Luna smiled, then vanished.
“Steady. Steady,” Spike repeated as he made his way across the impromptu tightrope. “Don’t look down.” He had looked down once, and it had been a spectacularly bad idea. He just need to get across. Which would be a lot easier if he didn’t have to a wriggling pegasus filly over his head. He had tried a few other methods of carrying her, but the over-the-head method was the only one that didn’t completely throw off his balance.
“We have to get out of here,” she said. “We have to get back to the—”
“The clubhouse, I know,” he interrupted. It wasn’t the first time that the Cutie Mark Crusaders had bothered him; they had a tendency to show up when he and Twilight were in the middle of an important study session. But at least in those circumstances they were an interesting annoyance. The dream was weird, but it was supposed to be weird. But seeing the Crusaders become so dull…
“Almost there.” Or at least he thought he was. He couldn’t tell exactly how far he had come, and he wasn’t about to risk falling by turning around. “I’ve got to be at least halfway.”
“It’s so far down,” Scootaloo said.
“I know that!” Spike forced his eyeballs to stay pointed straight ahead. “I wish I didn’t. Just hold still. We’ll be on solid ground in a few seconds.” He took another step forward. And tumbled forward as his foot failed to land on the rope. He hurled Scootaloo forward as he fell, hoping that at least maybe she’d land on the ground. “NOOOOOOOoof!” His wail was cut short by his face smacking into the ground.
He lay prone for a moment, then groaned and lifted his head. His foot had missed the rope because he had reached the end of it. He had stepped right over the bench the rope was tied to and flopped onto the grass.
“Whew?” He rolled onto his back and took a few deep breaths. “You okay, Scootaloo?”
“I… I don’t know.”
“Huh?” Spike sat up. Scootaloo’s voice sounded different. Before, it had sounded mechanical, like she was pronouncing the words with no comprehension of what they meant. She hardly sounded normal, but she sounded a little bit like herself. She had landed right next to Sweetie Belle, who was staring at Scootaloo with what appeared to be heavily muted concern.
“Scootaloo.” she said. It sounded like she was saying the name in her sleep. Which she was, technically. Spike couldn’t say that she was talking to her, exactly. She didn’t sound like she was addressing Scootaloo, but more like she was vaguely aware of her presence, or like a baby who had finally learned a new word. “I don’t know what’s going on.”
“Sweetie Belle...”
Spike watched them carefully. They stared at each other as if they weren’t sure if they knew each other.
“I can’t,” Sweetie Belle murmured. “I can’t get back there… what can I do?”
“I have to fly,” Scootaloo answered. “I want to… but… I can’t.”
Spike continued to watch as they… it wasn’t a conversation, but they were at least sort of aware of each other and reacting to what was being said, even if they weren’t conscious of it. No wonder the Nightmare was intent on keeping Scootaloo on that island. Now that they’re together it’s like they’re starting to break free of its control. If I get all three of them together, that’ll probably break them out altogether! I just need to find her…
“Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo.”
They turned to him. They stared as if they recognized him but couldn’t remember his name.
“We’ve got to find Apple Bloom. Let’s get a move on.”
“Don’t worry, I’m sure we’ll find Apple Bloom soon!” Spike said. It was as much for the sake of his own optimism as Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo’s. They didn’t seem to really pay much attention to what he was saying. They acknowledged his presence, and followed him without too much trouble, but they didn’t seem to really hear anything he was saying. They were, fittingly enough, sleepwalking.
“Apple Bloom?” Scootaloo said slugishly.
“Yeah, Scootaloo. Apple Bloom,” Spike said with a sigh. “You know who that is, right?”
“Yeah, I do…” Sweetie Belle added. “Her.” She pointed sluggishly.
Spike’s heart jumped as he saw Apple Bloom sitting against the trunk of a dead tree. Then it dropped as he saw that dirty shape of the Nightmare entwined in the dead branches above her. The area was a mishmash of the various farms that lay around Ponyville’s outskirts. Sweet Apple Acres was the most obvious influence, but Carrot Top’s carrot patch seemed to be mixed in, along with some others. The patch of sky overhead was overcast. He motioned for Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle to stay still as he crept closer, trying to keep the nearby cart of pumpkins between him and the Nightmare.
“...And that is why you really ought to give up on that silly idea of working on the farm,” it was saying. “Really, when was the last time you actually accomplished anything useful helping out. You’re only wasting everyone’s time. I would recommend that you…” he paused. “...stop listening in. It really is quite impolite.”
A chill washed over Spike as if someone had just poured a bucket of ice water on his head. He spun around, ready to run, but the Nightmare was already there. It stared at him from a pair of dull glows that weren’t quite eyes, set in a shape that wasn’t quite a face.
“Did you really think that I didn’t know you were here?” it said. It didn’t sound threatening, or angry, or much of anything really. Spike almost wished that it did. At least then he’d have some idea what he was in for.
“Uh…”
“Really, Luna must really be quite desperate if she’s resorted to you for help.”
Spike did his best to meet the Nightmare’s gaze. He couldn’t do anything else. It was too fast for him to run away, and the three fillies were all too deep in its hold to do anything. At the very least he wouldn’t give the thing the satisfaction of seeing him grovel. He racked his brain trying to think of something to say. He ended up going with the first thing that came to his head. A quote from one of his comics.
“It isn’t a good idea to underestimate a dragon.” As he spoke, he felt just the slightest bit more confident. Sure, the quote was technically from a villain, but the Nightmare didn’t need to know that. Besides, it was true. “It usually doesn’t end well.”
If the Nightmare had any reaction at all, it didn’t show.
“A baby dragon,” it said. “A baby dragon raised by ponies. Barely a dragon at all, really.”
“Hey, I might be a kid, but I saved the Crystal Empire from an evil unicorn sorcerer!” Normally he tried to keep his indignation in check, but for now it was the only thing keeping him from suffering a nervous breakdown. “I can handle a bad dream.”
“Ah, yes. The Crystal Empire. A matter of circumstance and nothing more. Anyone could’ve served your purpose had they been in that place at that time. As I recall, your unicorn friend and her cohorts did the majority of the work. You merely happened to be in a convenient location, really..”
“I did what I needed to do!” he snapped. He tried to edge away from the Nightmare, but it moved with him. “Not everypony can say that.”
“Not everypony would’ve nearly been eaten. If memory serves, you were about to land right in Sombra’s hooves. Everything would have been lost if you hadn’t been saved by the Princess at the last moment. Really, in the end your contribution to the whole enterprise was minimal, wouldn’t you say?”
“I did enough,” Spike managed. The Nightmare’s stare felt like a weight pressing down on him. “Maybe it wasn’t a lot, but I still saved the Crystal Empire.”
“And you really think that your one display of convenient happenstance qualifies you to help Luna with her plan? After all, there isn’t anyone who can bail you out now. Go ahead, press that button Luna gave you.” It didn’t have a face, but it smiled. “It really won’t do you any good.”
“Oh yeah? We’ll see about that.” He punched the button.
“What a pointless gesture. Really, what do you expect to accomplish?”
Spike didn’t have an answer. It was a long shot but he had to say something.
“What do you expect to accomplish?” he asked. “Why are you doing all of this, anyway?”
“Do you really think I’m stupid enough to explain that to you?” it said. “If you’re were really any sort of hero you would be able to figure that out yourself. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have other business to attend to.” It turned away from Spike to look back at Apple Bloom. She hadn’t moved.
“Oh no you don’t!” Spike leaped to his feet and charged forward. He kept his eyes focused on Apple Bloom, not even daring to think about whether the Nightmare was still beside him. He grabbed her and ran toward Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle. The Nightmare had to be right behind him, but for some reason, it didn’t seem to be trying to stop him. He skidded to a halt in front of the two fillies. “Ha!” he shouted as he put Apple Bloom down next to them. “I finally got them together! Now your control over them is totally kaput! How do you like that?!”
The Nightmare didn’t say anything for a moment. It simply drifted lazily toward him, twisting through the air leaving a trail of oily smoke in his wake like an airborne snail. Then it spoke. It sounded almost disinterested.
“I wouldn’t like that at all. Really, it’s a good thing that your assumption is so unfounded.”
“Huh?” A sudden lump formed in Spike’s throat. He looked at the fillies. They were rubbing their eyes and blinking, like they were trying to wake up.
“If all it took to break the spell was allowing them to reunite, do you really think I would let you do that?”
“Um…” Spike smiled nervously. “Maybe?”
“Maybe not,” it said. It turned slightly, facing, if it could be called that, towards the pumpkin cart. “It seems we have a visitor.” The shadow slithered towards the cart and reared up like a cobra. One of the pumpkins on the top of of the pile now bore a jack-o-lantern-esque image of Luna’s face. “So nice of you to join us.”
“Spike, what is going on?” she asked.
He smiled sheepishly. “Well, the good news is, I found the Nightmare…”
“And that is also the bad news, really,” it said. “I suppose he wanted you to bear witness to his failure to accomplish anything useful. He hoped you would be able to rescue him, but we both know that’s not possible.”
Luna stared straight through the Nightmare at Spike. The smokey shadow that made up the creature wasn’t completely opaque. Spike winked at her.
“Is that so?” she asked. “I wouldn’t think that he would require my assistance.” She narrowed her eyes at him, watching carefully.
Now or never, Spike though. He mouthed the words Keep it distracted, and began to slowly inch himself in the direction of the Cutie Mark Crusaders. Luna’s gaze did not follow him, and the Nightmare didn’t seem to notice.
“If he needed your help, he really didn’t accomplish much by summoning you,” the Nightmare said. “We both know that your ability to move from dream to dream is limited. That is why you’re a pumpkin right now.”
“Perhaps I enjoy being a pumpkin,” Luna retorted. “I don’t suppose that thought ever crossed your tiny little mind.”
“Princess Luna of Equestria, enjoying manifesting in a pumpkin? Really, that’s ludicrous.”
“It has been over a thousand years since your kind last battled me.” She smiled. “Do you think that I have learned nothing during that time? Do you think I would tip my hoof and allow you to know the limits of what I am capable of?”
“Of course, I don’t. That’s why I don’t believe a word that you’re saying.” It drifted closer. If it had had breath, Luna would’ve been able to smell it. “I think you’re bluffing. Pretending that you still have a chance at victory even though you’ve already been defeated. Don’t you think I know where you’ve spent the last thousand years?”
“It would be a great failing on your part if you did not.”
“And even then it seems that you took your cue from us. Isn’t that true, Nightmare Moon?”
Luna glowered. “I did not give myself that name.”
“Yet you happily accepted the persona, didn’t you? Really, you’re more like us than you think.”
“I would be a fool to not admit the similarities,” Luna said coldly, “but you are a fool if you think that similarities make us the same. Whatever I may have done in the past, I assure that I have no intention of sinking to your level of evil. Or your level of competence, for that matter.”
“You are in no position to comment on my competence. Last I checked, you were the one who was caught unaware by our spell, and you are the one who cannot find a way to escape despite dreams being your specialty. At least that dragon of yours has the excuse of inexperience to fall back on. Really, I don’t know why you thought that involving him would be a good idea.”
“It isn’t a good idea to underestimate a dragon.”
“That’s just what he said,” the Nightmare snapped. “Dragons are supposed to breathe fire, yet all he was capable of was blowing hot air.”
“Maybe, but sometimes that is all that is needed.” Luna smiled. “And at least he doesn’t say ‘really’ all the time.”
“No amount of talking will break the spell,” it said with a hint of frustration. “You might not know how it works, but I’d have thought you’d have at least figured that out by now.”
Luna rolled her glowing eyes. “I don’t expect to break the spell by talking.”
“Then how do you expect to- Gkk!” The spectre’s voice choked, as if the words got stuck on their way out. “W-what...are you…doing…?” It turned, twisting painfully around to look for Spike. The dragon was nowhere to be seen. Neither were the fillies. “W-where…?”
“I don’t know exactly where he went, but I assume he took your captives with him. That is something you would know better than I would, seeing as you were supposed to be preventing him from getting there.” She winked. “You’ve really done a wonderful job with that.”
The Nightmare screeched as the smokey fog that made up its body began to be sucked away into an invisible hole.
“How could you do that!?” it screamed. “How did you break my control!?”
“I didn’t,” she said. “That was all Spike’s doing.”
The Nightmare vanished with a pop. A wave of vibrant color washed across the dreamscape, blowing away the gathering clouds and replacing them with warm sunlight. Luna took a moment to survey the dreamscape. Now that the Nightmare was gone, the scenery was quite nice, if a bit surreal.
“Well done, Spike,” she said with a smile. "Now I'll just have to find him." Her face sank back into the pumpkin and vanished.
"Unstable dream, according to the place,
Be steadfast once, or else at least be true."
~ Thomas Wyatt, "Unstable Dream"
Sorry that this chapter took so long. Life has gotten busy lately. I thought I'd be able to make some more progress after a while, but then Splatoon came out and the rest is history. At least I finally managed to get it posted. 
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To the clubhouse! And beyond!
I feel the same as Luna, get more confounded every time.
Also, this is the second fic I've read with surprise shared CMC dream.
Yay, update!
And great chapter, too!
Alright more Spike-ception antics, and whose next?
Also.. damn that chapter length, you really are just doing this to try and make me regret the commentary aren't you?
Well I could see her having that issue, and wanting that.. and is sweet Rarity thinks of her first but... yeah I can already see why you were having issues with this one. It does feel rather... off. Just, not the same level of "Yeah this is totally the characters" coming through as usual for you.
Good point, and if only it was that easy. Though already covered why that can't happen. Spike can enter and not get trapped because the spells aren't made for a dragon, Rarity would likely just get trapped again.
Wait just a "No you can't"? not even an explanation why? Despite having one already set up? Just "nope."?
Well.. it IS a dream... (cue horribly cheesy 'porn' music.) Of course you know Luna would pop back in just as things were getting good.
But yeah this I can see Spike doing, and he still feels perfect. And also, nice going Spike.
Well, Rarity can't really take issue with that, and makes sense on several levels. And at least unlike Spike, Rarity rated above a new born foal in Ponyville hospital.
Damnit JT.. GET OUT OF MY HEAD! Granted not the Exact situation but, close enough.
I'm with Rarity on this one....
wha?
So was it always this way? Some, aspect because she's a foal? Some glitch in it? or, is this them trying to alter the dreams now that they know Spike is doing something, and Sweetie's is just the first she checked?
Well, that's convenient.
She is in the ultimate Lucid Dream. If you can get bored with that level of ability to do ANYTHING you want.. you have bigger issues.
.... OHHH yeah took me a bit to work out he's already in Sweetie's Dream. Was like 'wait what why is he outside?' Okay nice fake out and, yeah no real point in showing him go upstairs, unless there was something odd about how she was sleeping or something. Also, another good reason for rarity to never have brought Sweetie to Manehatten. You know she'd be lost within like fifteen minutes.
Hmm, possible. Also possible Sweetie's just that weird with her dream. Or that this is a result of whatever oddness Luna detected unrelated to the two..
Huh.. so it's not Sweetie... and not The Nightmare... some other force at work trying to protect her? This is getting interesting. Well even more so then it already was.
Told you. Though she's going to hate it when she manages to have the time and resources to sculpt the greatest fashion line EVER, one that would be world famous and live on for centuries as the ultimate height of fashion. And then can't remember any of it when she wakes up.
Well, can always try climbing up to the top of Town hall or something to get a better look.
.....................................................................................
.. Get out of my head!
Okay.. that is just creepy.. so, the whole dream is inside a giant ball? What the hay is going on?
And before you get lost again. You really need to dream yourself up a PipBuck and get the way point for that set up.
?? Ohhh swapping to somepony beside Spike? nice.. and waan't expecting that. Or... fake out?
?? okay so... who is she talking to? thought it might be Rarity but... ths sure isn't her... her own personal little nightmare? Oh, or her inner issues and self doubt and what not, since she's in her own dreams more or less?
Also, really love the imagery and the idea of her doing things like this. Really nice.
Wait.... if he found Sweetie.. then who was that Pony Luna detected?
Oh also, really loved Luna's whole bit so far, explaining the dream, doing a really good job of it and... damn that was good. Though, maybe drove the point a little harder then needed about how it's not exactly like what she's saying. How the things she using aren't precise metaphors, how things are like this, but not exact.. just trying overplaying that aspect a tad.
Also also.. why is she asleep, in her own dream?
And given it's a dream, that might just be literal. ..... and now I want to see Luna burp out a stream of butterflies.... How do you keep making me say these phrases that I never even thought would exist to not think I'd have to say?
Wait... okay so she wasn't asleep there just, curled up in a ball and not doing or saying anything?
Dun DUN DUN!
Delicious tea.. or deadly poison? Yeah... Spike.... really gotta feel sorry for the dude having to deal with all this.
No laser shooting? Luna!? I am disappoint.
Sweetie is taking all this rather..... quietly.. especially for her...
After all this... who can blame him?
....... yeah.. me either. Unless.. that's NOT Sweetie Belle.. but a decoy from The nightmares, and it's the real Sweetie Luna detected?
......................... what the hell.. seriously.. stop it! I am seriously not reading ahead when I type this stuff...
I'd go with Scoots. The oily snake thing.. that's just the Nightmare being a Nightmare.
Well they have both been taken on dream trips by Luna, maybe that did something that lets them do this?
Wow.. low blow nightmare... and yet... yeah what else would Scootaloo's worst nightmare and deepest fear be but this?
AHHHH Luna is really She Who Walks Behind! RUN FOR IT SPIKE! (Hey it works if you've read The Dresden Files... which you should that series is bucking awesome.)
She's just messing with him now isn't she?
Eh, fair enough.. and yeah figured that was the reason.
...
Well... fuck.. yeah that is a problem. Granted could also be a solution, or a problem for the Nightmares, since being able to team up and be with each other could lead to ponies not giving into their spiel about being hopeless.
AKA, find Applebloom?
.....
So, the lack of active nightmare was because it was dealing with Scoots.. maybe AB. Is Sweetie's whole deal that they are done with her? Have so messed with her head, made her so hopeless and terrified they've drained what they can from her?
Plus, a clothesline isn't exactly know for being sturdy. Bast bet, toss on end to Scoots, have her tie it around herself, and then use her wings to hover/glide over softly, and let Spike pull her the rest of the way up.
It was so bad, Luna took one look at it, and seriously considered going NMM again, just to get banished somewhere far far far away from it.
.... that's Nightmare Moon isn't it? Or at least Luna's own inner struggles that led to her becoming NMM? Even in wholly unrelated jokes... you end up pulling stuff out of my head.
HUZZAH! I found a typo! HOW MANY POINTS DO I RECEIVE!?
Well... okay then....
Yup... so now you get to go find Applebloom too.
Well that was easy.
Oh crap.....
Wow, and going right for the ego shattering... it's efficient.. i'll give it that, going right for the knockout blow.
Maybe?
"The bad news is.. I found the Nightmare."
... Well at least it wasn't the same wording.
OHHHH i REALLY like this. Admitting to things that are obvious, not hiding from the truth, but also fully realizing what it means. And how it doesn't mean just one thing. Similar, sure, but also different.. really like this.
HEY!!!
Well, likely back to the club house.
Really not sure just what happened here, how it broke he spell. Getting them to the clubhouse yeah, but how did that work? Eh either way, interesting chapter. Can see some of the roughness, the CMC were really really really (heh) flat. but that was intended. Rarity also didn't quite come out as well as your characters normally do. Things did feel a tad less polished then normal, but still good.
More "WTF is going on" revelations, and learning more about the bigger plot. And LOVED the Luna segments. So yeah another good chapter. liked this cream better then Rarity's, Cake Twins one was still the best though.
Now to wait several months for more.
6110575 Yeah, this one took me a while. Also, yes, there are some hints at things to come. Heh heh heh...
I'm really anxious to see the rest of the mane six's nightmares. I'm sure you're planning something really devious for them. Twilight is going to be a tough one.