The Equestria Games
The day had finally arrived.
The Equestria Games would begin today and every city in the kingdom intended to take gold home. That included Ponyville, whose team was currently riding the train to the Crystal Empire. Within one of the train cars, the team was busy doing the last minute training they felt was required. The only ones in the car who weren't in the team were Spike and Springer, Spike having rode there to keep an eye on everypony's luggage while Springer was keeping an eye on the CMC. Once they finished their flag waving presentation, Springer would then be dropping them off with Scootaloo's parents before joining the Royal Knights on guard duty.
It wasn't long till the Crystal Empire came into view, Springer then hearing Rainbow speak up, "This just got real!" She looked away from the window and at the team. "Listen up gang! We're almost there, so I've got a few things to say. First off, who here besides me thinks this is the best Equestria Games delegation in Ponyville history?!"
The ponies all began cheering in agreement, Bulk Biceps even giving a hearty, "YEAH!" as he bench-pressed a dumbbell that Fluttershy was sitting on.
Rainbow nodded before continuing, "And no matter what your sport is, we gotta give it our best, because we've all got a genuine shot at Ponyville gold!" This was met with yet another cheer as the pegasus turned to her team. "With the possible exception of Bulk Biceps, Fluttershy, and me. I mean, we're good and all, but we're up against the Wonderbolts in the aerial relay. So, gold's kind of a stretch. Let's not kid ourselves."
Springer chose this moment to pipe in. "Truly, a motivational speech which would stir even the coldest of hearts."
Rainbow rolled her eyes before hearing Scootaloo speak up from across the carriage. "Don't feel bad Rainbow Dash! We have absolutely no shot at getting gold either!
Rainbow raised an eyebrow at this. "Uh, that's because you're carrying the flag for Ponyville in the opening ceremony. There are no winners."
"Winners or not, we still have the chance to be awesome!"
"That's the spirit!" Rainbow told her before pumping her hooves up, "You hear that everypony?! Winners or not, we all still have the chance to be awesome!"
"Now that's inspiration!" Springer cheered, the rest of the car following suit.
"But...uh...let's still try to win lots and lots of stuff too, 'kay?" Rainbow added next, causing the rest to restart their training as the train continued to move.
A few minutes later, it reached the station where the ponies all began to filter out while Spike worked to unload the baggage. He huffed as he carried the last heavy bag out and tossed it onto a trolley with the others, "It's all in there gang! Leave it to Spike, champion gear-carrier for all your gear-carrying needs."
"And the Ponyville flag?" Applebloom asked, Spike nodding back as he patted the cart. "You sure? And what about the flagpole?"
"In with the portable ramp!" He leaned against the trolley, only for it to roll back slightly and make him loose balance. "Whoa!"
Scootaloo took this moment to turn to her friend. "Give it a rest Apple Bloom, we're fine."
"Ow..." Spike picked himself up and brushed his scales off, "Its okay Scootaloo. She's just nervous, that's all. Perfectly understandable." He then patted the filly's side, "Heck, whenever I'm afraid I'll forget something or start to panic, I have a simple trick. I count to ten, and by the time I'm done, I've calmed myself enough to get the job done right every time. Easy-peasy, cider-squeezy!"
Springer rolled his eyes as he crossed his arms. "Mind if I use that trick next time I'm fighting for my life?"
"Go for it," Spike replied as he went back to look over the baggage. Springer was about to say something, only for the sudden rumbling of hooves to catch his attention. He turned to see a pair of crystal pony guards zoom by, scooping up Spike and strapping him into a chair. "Hey! Put me down!"
"What the heck?! What's going on?!" Scootaloo yelped as Springer took this moment to scan the two's aura, but felt no ill intent coming from them.
"Stick with the team!" Springer told the fillies before giving chase. And as he pursued them, he soon found himself going straight to the Crystal Castle. It was here that the ponies finally stopped, Springer doing the same as he noticed Flash, Twilight, Cadance and Ruby standing in front of the Crystal Heart. The guards bowed, causing Spike to slip out of his chair with a thud and a groan.
"Spike!" Twilight called out, "are you all right?!"
The guard gasped and bowed again. "A thousand pardons, O Great and Honorable Spike the Brave and Glorious."
"Huh? Who the what now?!"
"Yeah," Springer added as he walked up to them, "I never thought the words Spike, brave, great and glorious could go in the same sentence."
"How dare you! Bite your tongue this instant!" One of them almost yelled, causing Springer to flinch and jump away. "You dare mock our kingdom's savior?!"
"Err...I guess?" Springer replied, only for the guards to hiss at him. But as they readied to attack him, Ruby walked in front of them.
"That's enough. Let's not get into a fight." The guards backpedaled at this, the Crystal Knight turning to smile at the jakhowl, "Hello Springer, its good to see you again."
"Hiya Ruby!" Springer shined a big grin as the two hugged.
"Its so good to see a jakhowl." Ruby then pulled away from the hug, "Let's talk later, alright?"
"Sure."
Cadance took this moment to walk up to Spike and the soldiers, "Thanks for bringing Spike to us." The two guards bowed before retreating, Cadance now turning to the still very confused drake. "It's okay, Spike." She placed a hoof around his neck and pulled him towards the castle, "We'll have our hoofponies go back for your bags."
Seeing this, Springer turned to Flash as the others walked away, "Say...could you tell me what's going on? Why are they treating Spike like that?"
"I'll explain in a second." Flash replied with crossed hooves. "Where's Scootaloo?"
"With the team. I'll go back and get her after I learn what the heck's going on."
Flash just shrugged. "Spike's being given a special job thanks to what happened here last time. Anyways, we'd better be getting back to work. Go watch over those three, alright?" He spread his wings, "See you at the games." He took to the air as Springer ran off, flying onto a crystal balcony and heading inside as Twilight was busy explaining what was going on to Spike.
The dragon was currently being fed gems by a crystal mare. "Mmmm!" He moaned in pleasure, "So the ponies here think I'm some kind of hero, huh?" He looked up at the crystal pony, "More of the green ones, please? I like the green ones." The pony panicked as she tried to find one of the green gems.
Twilight gave a small smile as she continued, "Last time you were here, you got the Crystal Heart to Princess Cadance in time to save this entire empire from destruction. This is why they're doing this."
Cadance nodded in agreement. "You are known throughout my empire as 'Great and Honorable Spike the Brave and Glorious'."
"Isn't that amazing Spike?" Twilight asked him as she walked over to the balcony, Spike following after. "You're a big shot here, Spike!" She then pointed down at the courtyard. "See that?" Both Spike and Flash looked down, only to go wide-eyed at the sight of a Spike shaped statue holding a remake of the Crystal Heart. "That's you!"
Spike smiled at his look a like before speaking in an accent Flash didn't recognize. "Hello, gorgeous!"
Flash grumbled at the sight. "Never mind the fact that me and Ruby were the ones who held back Sombra long enough for you to do so." He slumped over and rubbed the scar on his chest, "But do I get a cool title and crystal statue? No."
Ruby rolled her eyes at this. "Oh quit being jealous. It's quite unbecoming of a knight."
"I'm not jealous, I'm envious!" he looked away and crossed his hooves, "There's a difference."
Everypony rolled their eyes or shook their heads before Cadance turned to Spike, "This is why we all hope you do us the honor of lighting the torch at the opening ceremony. You'd be the very first dragon in the history of the Equestria Games to do so."
Spike barely let a second pass before announcing, "Of course I'll do it! And, bonus, I can do it with my fire breath!" To prove his point, he unleashed a stream of fire, only for it to torch a leaf fan a crystal pony had brought out for him.
"Smooth..." Flash told him as he took to the sky. "Just try not to blow it. Wouldn't want to make a fool out of yourself in front of thousands of ponies," Flash took to the sky right before Spike or Twilight could reply, the princess espiecally wanting to lecture him. He then headed for the Crystal Stadium, arriving and managing to get through the checkpoint effortlessly while everypony else had to stand in line. With an hour before he was meant to meet up with the others for their positions, he chose to look around and get a good understanding of the place for future refence of his duty.
That is, till he walked up to a certain area, "Sorry sir," a crystal guard told him with a raised hoof, "Restricted access."
Flash raised an eyebrow, "I'm an apprentice knight. Unless a princess ordered this, it ain't restricted to me."
The guard just shrugged. "Sorry sir, rules are rules."
"What's even in there?" Flash asked as he tried to look around him.
"It's the commentator box. Announcers from the different kingdoms are in there preparing."
Flash's eyes went wide with stars, "Ooh! Is EqSPN here? I love their sports magazine?"
"Sorry sir, confidential." The guard saw Flash's pout before looking around, then motioned Flash to come closer. Once their faces were inches apart, he whispered. "I can't say anything officially, but I happened to spot two earth ponies and a strange looking griffon heading into one of the rooms."
Flash smirked at this. "Describe the earth ponies."
"One was blue with a goatee, while the other had a brown and green mane."
"Nice..." Flash shook his hoof and walked away, grabbing a carrot-dog and quickly eating it on the way as he ran up to a nearby hall. There, he found himself with Grand, Skybreaker, Tidal, First, Heather, Iron and Lightning. "Hey everypony, I'm on time, right?"
Grand nodded at his apprentice. "Ten minutes early. We're just waiting on Ruby and Springer."
"We're here," they turned to see the two walked into the room, "The princesses have arrived and are all heading up to the royal box."
"And Scootaloo and her friends are with the other flag bearers," Springer turned to Flash. "We ran into your parents on the way here. They're gonna watch Scoot's show, then rush over to take them to the seats."
"Good," Grand pulled out a pile of papers, "here are your schedules and a map of the stadium. Memorise and destroy them," the younger of the group raised an eyebrow at this. "Security reasons. We can't afford anything from going wrong. We have many dignitaries here, so let's not make Equestria look bad."
"This would be a lot easier if my magic hadn't been suppressed," Ruby complained.
"Tell me about it," First added as he looked the paper over. "But this is to make sure nopony can be accused of cheating. Besides, it is not our magic that makes us Royal Knights."
"It's our skills," Heather finished for him.
"True," Ruby continued, only for the speaker system above their heads to beep into life. It suggested that everypony in the stadium head to their seats, as the flag waving ceremony was about to begin.
"Alright ponies-" Grand stopped when he heard a cough from a certain non-pony, "and Springer. Let make Equestria proud!"
"RIGHT!" With that, the group split up and filtered through the halls, Flash and Ruby heading into the same direction as both were being stationed at the royal box.
Ruby then turned to Flash. "You know, your little dragon friend was having a panic attack after what you said to him."
"Oh really? That's good."
"Good?!" Ruby raised an eyebrow, "Since when are you the mean one?"
"I'm not being mean. I'm just saying if he was panicking at the very thought of it, he'd probably panic when he actually had to do it. Having it happen before is good. I'm guessing Twilight gave him one of her signature pep talks?"
"I did." They turned to see Twilight walking down the hall, the three meeting now in front of the stairs leading to the royal box.
"Shouldn't you be with the other princesses?"
"Bathroom," Twilight replied before giving him a glare, "Now, you were saying..."
Flash did a slight gulp as he readied to grip his ear, "Well, if he hadn't panicked before, than you wouldn't have pepped him and he'd be panicking on stage with nopony there to help. Tell me I'm wrong."
"You aren't," Twilight's horn started to glow. "But do you really mean all that, or are you just making it up to try a make yourself look better?"
"Well...that depends."
"On what?"
"On whether it's working or not." This got both Twilight and Ruby to roll their eyes before heading up the stairs, leaving Flash behind. "What?!" He ran up after them, all entering the box as they took a moment to see the other ponies there. Besides the princesses of Equestria, there was also the dignitaries from Saddle Arabia, the royal Maretonia family and...Blueblood. Looking away from the spoiled prince, Flash looked down at the other occupants and spotted Trixie, Fancy Pants and his wife, Mayor Mare and...Cherry Jubilee. How'd she nab a seat?
Flash shook his head to rid himself of the question as the three turned to Princess Celestia and bowed, the princess of the sun nodding before pointing to Twilight's seat. Twilight sat in the seat while Flash stood beside her, Ruby moving over to stand beside Cadance as the proceeding began. One by one, the competing cities teams came into the stadium as their flag bearers performed.
Then it was time for the very last team, one they'd been waiting for, to have their moment. Shining Armor raised his hoof and announced, "Now, please welcome the delegation from Ponyville!" He pointed to the entryway where Applebloom and Sweetie Belle were holding up a circular banner with Ponyville's flag on it.
"Ponyville forever!" They cheered before Scootaloo ripped through the banner on her scooter. "Yay!"
"Awesome!" Rainbow yelled as she flew after Scootaloo, followed by Fluttershy.
"Yay!"
"YEAH!" Bulk added as he flew behind her, Derpy following him.
The citizens of Ponyville all let out a great cheering roar, including one citizen in the royal box. "Woohoo!" Twilight screamed, only to catch eyes with Celestia and instantly quiet down with a huge blush. Flash chuckled under his breath at his, free of the fear of being ear twisted while Twilight glared at him.
They looked back and watched as Scootaloo placed Ponyville's beside the others before returning to the teams as everypony stared at the ceremonial torch. There, they watched as Spike climbed the ladder up to it. Flash, who had better vision than most, focused on the little dragon and noticed something that made him lean over and whisper to Twilight, "Hey uh...I thought you gave him a pep talk."
Twilight blinked in response, "I did."
"Then why is he shaking like a bowl of jelly?" This caused Twilight to wide-eyed as Cadance spoke up.
"What's wrong?" They turned to back to the torch, Flash seeing Spike attempting to breath fire but having no luck.
When he told this to Twilight, she gulped. "Equestria, we have a problem."
They continued to wait and see if Spike could get it right, but as time began to drag on, Flash could just feel the cringe oozing off the crowd. And when Luna let out a yawn, Cadance turned to Ruby. "Somepony go down and help him!"
As they watched Ruby nod and climb down, Flash turning to Twilight. "We have to do something. Now!" Twilight was way ahead of him and sparked her horn, the torch erupting into flames. "That works." Flash added as Twilight sighed in relief, wiping the sweat from her brow.
As they watched Spike climb down the ladder, they heard Shining announce. "Let the games...begin!" And the crowd went wild, the competitors returning to the entryway while everything was set up for the first events.
Flash then turned to Twilight. "You do realize Spike's gonna wonder how that thing lit on its own?"
"I know, but I'm sure he's figured it out." She got up from her throne, "Let's go find him."
Flash nodded and followed her out of the box. "But knowing Spike, he's probably thinking he lit the torch himself somehow."
This made Twilight giggle, waving her hoof, "I doubt he's that delusional."
"I refer you back to when Rarity was captured by those Diamond Dogs."
"Touché."
Arriving at the bottom of the stairs, they found the corridor jam packed with ponies. As such, the two had to fly over the crowd and out of the first window they could find. Flash did a quick overview of the place and spotted their friends aways off. As they approached, they heard Rainbow say to Scootaloo. "Ya done good, squirt!"
"You three really were wonderful," the princess assured them as they landed.
Flash pulled his sister into a hug. "What she said."
Twilight walked between them and asked, "But does anypony know what was going on with Spike?"
"He sure seemed to be havin a tough time of it out there."
Rarity nodded in agreement, "He put things right in time, though."
"Actually, that was me." Twilight said abrasively, "I didn't want him to be embarrassed, so I cast a secret spell to light it for him."
Hearing this made them all frown as Rarity replied, "Oh dear. That's not good."
Misty Veil stepped up to Twilight, "Have you told him?"
"No," Twilight shook her head as she let out a sigh, "But he might have figured it out on his own."
"Ya'll gotta tell him just in case." Applejack added.
"I know. I'm just afraid of how he'll take it. I know what pride he takes in a job well done."
"But letting him live in denial isn't healthy," Flash told her.
"Psst! Here he comes now!" Rainbow whispered as she sat back a pulled out a pair of shades. "Act casual!" She crossed her hooves next as Spike began to walk by. "Sup?"
"Spike!" the little dragon looked up at Twilight, "Is everything okay?"
"I guess," Spike replied before slumping. "I don't know. The weirdest thing happened down there."
"Yeah...about that, I-"
"I mean, there I was, trying to light the torch with all of Equestria watching and feeling like the hugest failure ever, and then the thing just lit!" He snapped his fingers for emphasis, "It was amazing!"
"Oh," Twilight sighed in relief, "I was afraid you'd be upset."
"Upset?" Spike asked in confusion, "Are you kidding? Why would I be upset to discover I can light fire-" He placed his claws onto his temple, "With my mind?"
"What?!" Everypony except Flash and Pinkie yelped, Flash silently facehoofing.
"I knew it...only way this could get worse is if somepony comes up and-"
"Look! Look!" they turned to see a pair of crystal ponies running up to them. "It's the Great and Honorable Spike the Brave and Glorious!"
"Can we get your autograph?!"
"Sure!" Spike replied before being handed a pencil and some paper.
The first pony looked at Spike starstruck. "How you saved our Empire last time you were here was really amazing!"
"Awww...thanks." Spike placed the pencil behind his ear. "You know what else is amazing?" He held up the autograph, "Watch this!" He began to stare at the paper, obviously expecting the set it a light. The crystal ponies blinked in confusion at this as Spike let out a strained noise. "Don't worry. Once it bursts into flames through brainpower, I'll sign another one for ya. Promise." He placed the paper on his forehead and let out more noises.
"This is just sad," Flash added while Twilight nodded in agreement.
She then stepped up to the baby dragon and whispered into his ear. "Spike, may I have a word with you for a moment?"
Spike nodded and gave the autograph back to the crystal ponies. "You'd better be careful with that! It might burst into flames later! Delayed reaction." He ran off, leaving a pair of very confused ponies.
"That Spike, always the joker. Don't worry, you're safe." Flash assured them, the ponies nodding before walking off. Seeing them leave, Flash walked up to Twilight and Spike.
He saw Spike once again had his claws on his temple. "And I predict that you are about to ask me...to set fire to something with my mind!"
"No, because you can't!" Twilight barked back, her hoof resisting to hit her face.
"Oh really?" Spike pointed at the stadium, "So how do you explain what happened down there in front of thousands and thousands of-"
"I did it, Spike!" Twilight interrupted, "I cast a spell to do it for you."
Flash watched as Spike let what his adoptive older sister said sink in, causing his entire body to lose all enthusiasm. "In front of...thousands and...thousands...?" He stopped speaking as his whole body slumped over.
"I'm sorry Spike," Twilight bent down to his eye-level. "I just couldn't stand to see you stuck like that!" She placed a hoof under his chin, "You understand, don't you?"
Spike's eyes filled with tears, "I...I..." he looked away and started to walk off, "I need to be alone right now."
The drake then trotted past Flash as Twilight called out. "Spike?" But the little dragon didn't reply, "Oh no..."
Flash patted Twilight on the shoulder, "Um...maybe we should give him some time to himself. We can check on him later."
Twilight let out a long sigh, "You're right. We need to get back to the royal box anyways." She began to walk off as Flash followed her, the defender giving Rainbow and Fluttershy a look for their event before they split. He then caught up to Twilight, the princess now have gone through the magic suppressor. Once there, Flash had to bid Twilight goodbye as he was scheduled to patrol the corridor with Iron before keeping an eye on the market outside the stadium.
"See you later," Flash told her as he walked away.
"Try to stay out of trouble!" This caused Flash to turn back and give her a 'you know me' shrug before disappearing down the stairs. Luckily, the stadium hallways weren't as crowded as they were before, allowing him to zip through without flying.
A minute later, he found Iron, who was giving him the a slight glare, "Hey Sentry, mind explaining what happened to the pincushion back at the torch lighting?" Flash nodded and explained as they began their patrol.
"And now he's super depressed," Flash finished.
"Geez, talk about choking under the pressure."
"Spike's always had issues over that," Flash added with a small moan. "He's an overachiever, goes with being raised by Twilight, so finding out he messed up can really knock his confidence."
"Guess it doesn't help that these crystal ponies are putting him on such a pedestal. Going from somepony, or dragon, who only a few ponies rely on, to a dragon with thousands of ponies expecting something great can be too much for most. Especially if its so out of the blue."
"Tell me about it." Flash was about to start something else as they turned a corner, only to see the roar of many ponies filling their ears. They looked ahead and saw a bunch of ponies trying to get snacks from the vendors. "What the heck?!"
"They must be trying to get served before the next game begins," Iron replied as he ran up to the crowd "Hey!" He yelled, "HEY! EVERYPONY STOP!"
But as he screamed, his voice was drowned in the ponies' roars. Seeing this, Flash took out his Celestic Gear. "Allow me," he lifted the blade and activated it, the light filling the room that almost blinded everypony. They all moaned in surprise and slight eye pain, which Flash then cut the power. "Now everypony, are you gonna be orderly, or do I need to double the brightness?!"
The ponies all mumbled as they finally got into an actual line. Iron chuckled at the sight. "Nice to see that lightbulb sword of yours is good for something." Flash smirked as he re-sheathed his weapon. The rest of their patrol was thankfully, uneventful. So when they came to the end of their shift, Flash pulled out his schedule to see where he needed to meet Lightning and Springer. It was then he noticed what he figured was a printing error.
"This says I've got twenty minutes gap between shifts."
"Same here. Wonder why?"
His answer came in the form of Shining's voice, which was being echoed through a speaker system. "Our next event...the aerial relay!"
"That's why!" The two said in unison before running to the stands. It was here they saw Rainbow, Fluttershy and Bulk in line behind the Wonderbolts.
"Flash, Iron!" They turned to see their friends all sitting close by, two open seats by them.
"Come over here. We were worried you wouldn't get to watch," Rarity told them.
The two sat down as Trail blinked at his son, "You ain't playing hooky, are you?"
Flash shook his head, "No." He then helped himself to some of Pinkie's popcorn, "I think Grand knew when this event was and gave us this gap to watch."
"Good on him."
"We'll probably have to head out before the medal ceremony though," Iron pointed out.
Misty nodded at this. "Well, as long as you get to cheer for them as they play, that's what matters." They looked back at the field to watch the competitors all take their positions, Shining blowing the horn that signalled the event's start.
It was here that all the training since the qualifier proved itself, as Bulk effortlessly moved through the rings. Even if he was in last place, he wasn't as far behind compared to a few months ago. He then linked hooves with Fluttershy and passed the baton with ease, allowing her to bolt away instantly. Her as well was doing better, as she didn't seem phased at all of the crowds of ponies cheering her name.
Pinkie took a mouthful of popcorn as she watched, deciding this moment to be the exposition pony. "If Ponyville medals here, we'll have eight medals so far, putting us tied for the lead with Cloudsdale!" She then gasped, throwing popcorn everywhere. "Unless Cloudsdale medals here too!"
Flash, who was currently pulling kernels out of his mane, glared at her. "Hey, whatever happens happens. Nothing we can do about it. This is all about who's trained harder, wants it more, and maybe even has the most luck." The others nodded at this as Fluttershy completed her run, passing the baton over to Rainbow.
"YEAH!" Iron screamed at the top of his lungs, his friends all turning to stare at him. The stares caused the Metal Guardian to turn red before sitting back down. "Shut up..." he told a snickering Flash and Pinkie.
"Don't worry darling, we fully understand." Rarity added, only to get a scowl from the defender.
Back at the race, Rainbow was zooming past one opponent after the other. The team that had been in last place at the start of the match were now in second place, and quickly closing the gap between them and the first place Wonderbolts. Spitfire looked back and saw that Rainbow was catching up, causing her to push herself to her limit as the goal drew closer and closer. The two mares flew side by side, mere inches of one another. Rainbow then pulled ahead, only for Spitfire to retake the lead before losing it again. They kept doing this repeatedly, only for the winner to break through the cloud goal with the second place pony following after her.
The crowd burst into a roar of applause at the close match, Applejack calling out, "We got silver!"
"Nice work Ponyville!" Flash cheered with clapping hooves, right before feeling a tap on his shoulder. He turned to Iron, who gestured his head towards the entry way. "Right...five minutes left, huh?"
Iron nodded, the duo now picking themselves up. Scootaloo saw this and grabbed Flash's hoof, "Hey! Where are you going? You're gonna miss the medal ceremony!"
Flash smiled back, patting her head, "Sorry sis, but I gotta go. Heck, I was lucky to get the chance to watch."
Iron gestured to the rest. "This job is one of sacrifices. But tell Shy I'm proud of her."
"We will daring," Rarity assured him. "Now get going before you're late."
The two nodded and began to make their way down the stands and into the stadium halls, where they split up next. It was here that Flash arrived in the stadium's commerce area, spotting Lightning and Springer waiting for him. "Hey, you two ready to go?"
Springer gave him a thumbs up. "You know it."
And so, the three began to patrol the outside of the stadium, keeping a look out for anything. But as with all things, it wasn't too long before they found something odd. It wasn't a pony acting suspicious or a stall selling a shady product, but a giant sheet covering the what appeared to be a large building. There was a tall fence surrounding it, keeping the public from getting to close.
"Huh. Wonder what they're doing there." Flash commented as he looked it over.
"There's a sign here," Springer said as he pointed to something on the fence. "Says...construction in progress."
"Huh...wonder what they're building?"
"Something you'll really enjoy when it's done Lightning." The three looked through the fence to see a pony on the other side of the fence, the mare now trotting up them with a big grin.
Lightning chuckled back, "Gorgenia. I was hoping we'd run into each other."
"Great to see you too Lightning." She then turned to smile at Flash and Springer, "Hello you two. Its been a while."
"Sup," Flash gave a casual salute while Springer waved. "So, wanna tell us what this is all about?"
Gorgenia shook her head. "Nope, sorry. Trade secret until its finished and ready to be shown to the public. But I'll tell you this, when you see it, you'll be blown away."
"Well now I really wanna see it," Springer added, only for his entire body to suddenly shiver. He seemed to be knocked off balance at this, Flash reacting quickly to catch and prop him up.
"You okay bud?"
"I don't know," the jakhowl replied as he rubbed his arms. "I felt a great disturbance in the aura, as if thousands of voice cried out...in cringe."
The three ponies all looked at him in confusion, Flash turning to Lightning. "We should go check on the stadium." He put Springer on his back before running off, Lightning following after saying his goodbyes to his friend.
They soon made it to the front door, just in time to see them burst open with a crying baby dragon rushing out. "Spike?" Flash asked as he saw the little guy running up to him, tears blinding the drake. Seeing this, Flash opened his wing to stop the running dragon.
"Augh!" He cried as he fell onto his rear, wiping his eyes to see the three staring down at him.
"Spike, what's wrong?" Spike didn't answer, his eyes instead refilling with tears before he got back up and ran past them. "SPIKE! WAIT!"
"LEAVE ME ALONE!" The baby dragon barked back as he disappeared from sight, only for the trio to turn and see the rest of their friends running out the stadium.
"Did you three see Spike?" Twilight asked as they came to a stop.
Springer nodded, "Yeah. We tried to stop him, but he just ran off. His aura was horrible though...it was filled with shame, embarrassment and guilt."
Flash blinked at this, "What the heck went on in there?"
The others all cringed as Rainbow, now wearing a silver medal, asked, "You mean you didn't see...or hear?" The three shook their heads.
Applejack then spoke up. "Maybe that's fer the best. The less ponies know, the better it is fer the little guy."
"Will somepony please tell us what the heck is going on?!" Lightning nearly yelled in frustration.
Rarity shook her head, patting the unicorn's shoulder at the same time. "Let's just say...Spiky wikey was trying to redeem himself from his little mishap and it backfired a little."
"A little?!" Pinkie yelped as kernels flew out of her mane, "Were we listening to the same song?! It was horrible! I just hope there weren't any cameras there."
"What a scoop!" they all turned to see a reporter pony walking past them. "I can see the headlines now! Celebrity dragon makes fool of himself at Equestria Games. Ponitzer prize, here I come!"
As he walked away, everypony sighed, Twilight groaning as she rubbed her face, "Ugh...What was Spike even thinking?"
"That's what I'd like to know," it was here that they saw Ms Harshwhinny trotting over to them. "That dragon has been nothing but a nuisance all day. First he has trouble lighting the torch, then this. This is why I hate celebrities. If he still wants to do some good for the games, he won't show up for the remainder of them."
With that, she walked off as Twilight stopped moaning, "Oh dear. Come on everypony, let's go try to cheer Spike up." They all nodded and headed to their hotel. But when they arrived outside Spike's room, they found it locked, causing Twilight to knock, "Spike? Are you in there? Please open this door."
"Go away," was the response they got. "Leave me to wallow in my shame."
Lightning rolled his eyes. "Acting a little over-dramatic, isn't he?"
Flash just shrugged. "That's what happens when you hang around Rarity to much."
"Hey! I am not over-dramatic!" the fashion pony objected before placing a hoof on her chest, "I am merely enthusiastic about everything."
"Please Spike, just let us in." Twilight knocked again, only for no response.
"Oh dear," Fluttershy added as she put her hooves over her mouth. "You don't think he'll stay in there for the whole time we're here, do you?"
"I hope not," Applebloom continued while crossing her hooves. "He'll miss everything, like the fireworks show during the closing ceremony."
"I'm sure he'll come out eventually," Flash assured them. "We'll just...have to wait and see."
But Spike didn't come out. For the next three days, the room remained locked up tight. His friends tried on several different occasions to try and get him to open up, but there was no success. It wasn't until Springer threatened to simply bust the door down on the fourth day, having spent the last three nights sleeping in the lobby since he and Spike had been sharing a room, that the dragon finally relented and unlocked the door.
But even with the door open, Spike continued to mop around and hardly ate a thing for the remainder of the week. It didn't help that with Spike gone, hardly anything had happened to hamper the games. The only occasion was a small incident that caused the javelin event to be called off.
Now, it was the final day of the games and the CMC looked into Spike and Springer's room. Inside, they spotted the jakhowl enjoying a comic before having to go on duty while the baby dragon was busy pulling clothing out of drawers. "Spike? You comin'?"
"Nah Applebloom," Spike pointed to his suitcase, "I got this stuff to pack up."
"But...you've been moping in here for almost the entire Games."
"And tonight's the closing ceremony!" Sweetie added.
"Which means we leave tomorrow," Spike pointed out as he packed several towels away. "Ergo, the packing." The three fillies sighed at this before slowly leaving, Springer having watched the exchange over his comic.
As Spike continued to pack, he felt the jakhowl's eyes boring into him, causing him to glare at the defender, "What?!"
Springer closed his book and glared back, "You're taking this way too far. So you messed up, who cares?"
"I care," Spike replied as he looked away. "You wouldn't understand."
"And why, pray tell, wouldn't I understand?"
Spike let out a huff, "Because you're respected all over Equestria. We used to be the same, the sidekicks to pony heroes, but now you've made a name for yourself. You protect Ponyville, helped save Equestria from that Doom guy, and even have your own arch-enemy! No matter what you do, ponies are always gonna see you as a hero."
"So?"
"So, I finally had that. For once, I wasn't just the guy who was there to watch as his friends got praised for their heroic deeds. I was actually seen as a hero, but now...now everypony knows what I really am. A failure."
Springer sighed as he walked over to Spike, looking like he was about to put a comforting paw on his shoulder. That is, till he balled it up into a fist and hit the back of his head. "Idiot!"
"OW!" Spike held his head before glaring at Springer, "Why'd you do that?!"
"To knock some sense into you! You are not a failure! Sure, you might not get as much praise for your work, but it's still important! When Twilight was having her little breakdown, you were the one who wrote to Celestia while I was stuck under her spell. When you all got sucked into that magic comic, you were the one who saved the girls when they were captured. You were there to help Twilight get the Crystal Heart to Cadance! You were the hero in all of those situations, even if only one of them got you recognized as one!"
Spike just looked at the floor in response, making Springer sigh.
"You know why ponies see me, Flash or Twilight as heroes?" Spike shook his head, "Because we don't try to be seen as heroes. We just do what we think is right. We don't care what other ponies think of us, or try to be this vision of perfection that others see us as. We just try and be who we want to be." With that, he walked up to the door. "I gotta get going. Just...please come to the stadium." With that, he walked out the door...only to pop his head back into the room, "And don't think for a second that having an arch-enemy is a good thing! It sucks, and it doesn't help make you a hero!"
With that, he left Spike to wallow in his misery while what Springer said echoed in his head.
Later that day...
The final day of the Equestria Games was as action packed as the previous days, the competitors giving their all to earn a medal. And now as Celestia and Luna swapped their celestial bodies, the final event of the games came to pass. Flash and Grand had just finished their patrol and walked up to the stands as Shining announced. "And so, the Games conclude as they always do, with the ice archery finals! Ice archers, take your places!"
This got the crowd cheering as the competitors took their places. "Too bad Ponyville doesn't have any ice archers competin," Flash heard Applejack say as he and Grand stood next to them. "We don't have anypony to root for."
"That's okay," Pinkie told her with a mouth full of popcorn, "Ponyville has thirty seven medals, and Cloudsdale thirty six, so it looks like we'll be medal champs of the Games anyways! Woo-hoo!"
Rainbow took this moment to deflate Pinkie's enjoyment, "but Cloudsdale has two ice archery finalists down there now!" The event began as the archers started firing their arrows. "If they both place, Cloudsdale wins the medal count!"
Pinkie gasped as kernels flew out of her mouth, "So you're saying that it all comes down to this one event?!"
"Pretty much," Applejack added as she flicked a kernel off her hat.
"Omigoshomigoshomigoshomigosh!" Pinkie cried out, hopping so high that you could see her do it from anywhere in the stadium. Flash chuckled at the sight, only to spot Twilight coming down the stairs behind him. "Twilight!" Pinkie yelled while waving her hooves, "Come take this extra seat next to me and freak out over the medal count! I'll show you how!" She started bouncing up and down again. "Omigoshomigoshomigoshomigosh!"
Twilight shook her head, "Actually, I was looking for Spike. Have you seen him?"
The CMC all frowned as Applebloom replied, "He wouldn't come."
"We tried to talk him into it," Sweetie added.
"But he wouldn't listen!" Scootaloo finished.
"You can have his extra seat though," Pinkie said next before looking back at the spot Twilight had been, only to blink at the empty space, "Uh...Twi?"
"She left as soon as Scootaloo finished talking," Flash told her. "Now I think that stallion would like it if you vacated your current standing area." Pinkie shot him a confused look before looking down, seeing the crystal pony who's head she was standing on frowning at her.
"Oops," she hopped off him, "Sorry about that."
Once Pinkie returned to her seat, Flash and Grand continued to patrol the stands as the ice archers drew closer to the end of the match. A few minutes later, the knights walked onto the field near one of the entryways. There, they heard Twilight's voice. "Honestly Spike, I don't see why you're being so hard on yourself." They looked around the side of the entryway and saw them, the two raising an eyebrow when they saw Spike dressed in a hat, coat and shades.
"I let everypony down. Twice. You never let anypony down, so you don't have any idea what that's like."
"Oh please," Flash said to catch their attention. "You have no idea what you're talking about buddy."
"But-"
Flash put his hoof on Spike's mouth. "Stop. Let me tell you how Twilight really is. You were too young to remember, but once when I was first living with Twilight, she fell asleep while working on a diorama and ended up crushing it under her head. You should have seen how embarrassed she was to ask for an exten-OW!" He flinched as his ear was twisted in Twilight's hoof.
"The point," Twilight hissed sharply, "is that the torch got lit, and the aerial relay teams got their medals." She released Flash's ear, "There's no harm, no foul."
"Speak for yourself," Flash grumbled as he rubbed his ear.
Grand then patted Spike's shoulder. "They're right kid. Nopony's perfect. I've made more mistakes than I can count, and some nights I still wake up feeling ashamed about them." He saw Spike was about to say something, "and I'm not just talking about what happened with my son and grandson. I've made even greater mistakes then that before they were even born."
"But...how do you deal with the shame?"
"You accept it," Grand replied as he took the hoof off. "You don't just try and ignore your mistake, you embrace it. You learn from it, and do your best not to make that mistake again."
Spike blinked at the words, but before he could say anything-
"NO!" They all turned to the field and saw what Shining had yelled at. One of the archers had accidently launched an ice arrow into a cloud that was floating above the stadium, slowly freezing it. The process made it heavier, pulling it down to the ground.
The ponies all gasped at the sight, Flash unsheathing his blade before pointing it at the cloud as it illuminated. But before he could fire a Flash Force, Twilight grabbed it the pointed it away from the cloud. "Don't! That thing's a giant prism! It'll just refract your attack back into the crowd!"
Flash growled as he saw a barrage of pegasi fly up to it. "Steer it towards the field, away from the crowds!" Rainbow ordered as she waved at the flying ponies.
"Somepony cut the disabling spell!" Shining commanded.
"There isn't time!" A security guard replied.
Flash removed his blade holder so it wouldn't slow him down. "We really need a knight with fire abilities!" He was about to take off, only to suddenly feel a weight appear on his back. Looking back, he saw Spike sitting on him and looking up at the cloud. He saw determination in his eyes, making him nod before taking off.
"Dash, Fluttershy! Move!" Spike yelled at the pegasi, who all saw him coming. The quickly broke formation as Flash grabbed Spike off his back.
"You got this bud! Do it!" And with all his strength, he threw Spike at the cloud.
Spike took a deep breath, not even noticing everypony in the stadium was watching him, before unleashing the largest stream of fire he had ever released in a single breath. Everypony gasped as the flames struck the ice, melting it with ease as the stadium was now filled with steam.
When the cloud passed, they saw Flash catch Spike on his back. The little dragon then pulled an umbrella out Pinkie style and held it up, seconds before the melted cloud rained down upon them. They landed as the quick downpour ended, the stadium being filled with cheers and applause. Flash looked back to smile at the little dragon. "Hear that Spike? That applause is for you and you alone. You earned it bud." Spike blushed as Flash walked them back to the entryway, all of their friends now waiting for them.
"That was awesome!" Rainbow cheered while the rest gathered around to give the dragon praise and thanks.
Spike then felt himself be tapped on the shoulder, turning to see the three princesses standing behind him. Cadance spoke up first, "I just wanted to thank you personally for saving those ponies and the Games," she then actually bowed as Celestia and Luna nodded. "O Great and Honorable Spike the Brave and Glorious." She looked up at him with a smile, "You must be very proud."
Spike turned away, staring at the ground, "I guess."
"YOU GUESS!?" Everypony around yelped in unison.
Spike shrugged. "I just saw what needed to be done and reacted. Just so happens I can breathe fire and...if any of you could do that, you would have done the same." He looked away, his face still one of shame.
Applejack chose this moment to trot over to the dragon. "Forgive me for bein' blunt Spike, but you're not makin' a lick of sense."
Spike shrugged again. "Well, it's just how I feel."
"Wait a second, I think I get it," Twilight tapped his chest. "You keep saying you let everypony down, but we all keep saying you didn't. You know who's disappointed in you, Spike? You. And only you can make it right with you again. What would that take Spike?"
Spike let out a long sigh, "I don't know....can you turn back time? 'Cause I'd sure like a do-over on that opening ceremony." Twilight tapped her chin in thought, only for Flash to step in.
"Nope! Don't you dare Twilight! The last time you messed around with time magic, I ended up with a broken nose and needing a new mane style."
This made Twilight pout as Cadance spoke up. "We can't turn back time, but would you do me the great honor of lighting fireworks in my place at the closing ceremonies tonight?"
Twilight clapped at this, "That's a great idea! Come on Spike, you saved the Crystal Empire twice! I think you can light some fireworks!"
Spike blinked in response, only to nod, "Hmm...I guess I have to at least give it a shot."
"That's the spirit!" Flash told him. "And hey, this time we'll sneak you a match in case you choke again." This statement was met with a burst of flames to the face, resulting in Flash being covered it soot. He coughed out a black cloud, "Or not."
Later, after the field had been dried out, the announcement for the medal count winner was proclaimed. Everypony watched as the flags were raised up their poles, the higher up, the higher the medal count. "We did it!" Pinkie cheered when Ponyville's flag was shown at the very top, Cloudsdale's being only an inch lower. "Ponyville won the medal count, and only by one medal!"
"Hmm...wonder which medal that was?" Rainbow hummed before holding up her silver medal, "Bam!" Fluttershy did the same, the two smiling at one another.
Everypony cheered again as Applejack pulled her little sister into a hug. "How does it feel to have opened the best Equestria Games in Ponyville history, squirt?"
Applebloom giggled back, "Probably as good as it feels to close them!"
Down on the field, the Royal Knights were marching in front of an array of crystal guards. Flash, Springer and Lightning were watching from the sides, Flash a little sad he couldn't be a part of the parade. But this moment wasn't about him, it was about Spike. He watched as the little dragon moved up to the fireworks, a look of concern on his face. "You can do it Spike," he said despite knowing he was too far away to be heard.
However, Spike's face quickly became one of serious determination before unleashing a burst of green fire. The fire lit each fuses, the ponies soon watching as one by one, the rockets taking to the sky. The display was amazing, not a single pony able to look away as the lights illuminated the sky. Flash glanced at the dragon and nodded, Spike nodding back with a smile as he looked back at the sky.
Later that night once everypony was back in their hotel room, Spike would ask to borrow the friendship journal. He would write about how praise from others was worthless if you didn't think you deserved it. Hopefully, Spike would carry this lesson in his heart for a long time.
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Nice
Wait, did you do a reference of Silver Quill, Buc Brony and Voice of Reason in this chapter as the Announcers, that is a good call back to that episode review, of course I wonder how those three will react to finding out about this, it will be Awesome I bet.
9490886 Feel free to mention this to them.
Another great chapter. I liked seeing Flash and Iron's reaction to the relay and how they handle security during the games, also great shout out to Silver Quill's review for this episode, and his guest stars. Now I am curious by what was under construction and Gorgenia claims Lightning will enjoy. I thought the part with how Flash, Springer, and the rest of the Defenders have no idea what happened with pike's botched anthem attempt, turning it into a Noodle Incident for them. The way Springer felt it through the aura and describing it as a disturbance of cringe was hilarious. Though even Pinkie described it as bad when in the show she was the only one who liked it.
So another shipping chapter is next huh? You always manage to do those well. Half of the Mane Six already have boyfriends, so unless it stars any of them or someone from outside the group my guess is it would probably either be about Flash and Twilight, maybe even them finally getting together, or maybe Lightning and Rarity. Guess I'll have to wait and see.
Someone's getting a victory kiss later.
Well said.
I'm still waiting for the quesadilla chapter.
9491092 9491090 Not sure if you realise this, but the Springer cringe bit was actually a reference. I'll leave you to figure it out.
9491112
Yeah, I noticed. Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope. Classic line. Nice reference.
9491112
Question will Applejack get some love, because we all know you ship FlashLight, SoarinDash, Iron X Fluttershy and Pinkie X Wild with hints of Lightning and Rarity, so that leaves AJ
9491139 Honestly, I have never even thought about AJ having a love interest. I've seen some stories with it being Spike, but that doesn't feel right for me. So unless I see a character who she seems to actually have chemistry with, then no.
9491144
You know strangely enough one person I think AJ has great chemistry with is Timber. I mainly think that because of the Equestria Girls short Turf War, and coming from me that is really saying something. Though another popular pair with her is with the background pony Caramel, though I admit it is a bit of a bland pairing.
9491161 Holy crap, I forgot about him, Caramel I mean. If I ever do a flashforward and I haven't paired Applejack with anypony, I just put her with him.
9491163
Neat, glad I could help. If anyone can make that pairing interesting then it is you.
9491163
I have seen that, and I've never found AJ and Caramel all that inspiring of a choice of a pair.
As for Her and Timber in the EQG shorts... I don't get the vibe that will make a couple, she acts towards him like she does RD, so unless AJ is dating RD... I don't see it.
9491245 True. Maybe AJ just isn't the kind of character to be matched up with someone. She's like Queen Elizabeth.
9491249
Maybe.
9491249
Whatever the case, I just hope you don't do ship between Spike and Rarity. I just never see it working between considering the age difference between them. Once Ember came along, I ended up preferring that ship.
9491555 Isn't Ember about the same age, if not older, then Rarity?
9491557
Yeah, but dragons have a much longer lifespan than ponies, So Spike would inevitably catch up in terms of a age appropriate eventually, I mean look at Ember's father. He looks exactly as he did in back Flash Magnus's time. Besides, by dragon's standards, Ember is still a teenager.
9491570 True.
9491570
I agree with that, plus things are a lot easier since they are both the same species. Not that I have a problem with Inter-species romances, but in this case it makes things better since it would be unlikely for either to outlive each other. Plus it gives a great chances to experience dragon culture while helping with pony relations.
9491249
Well, no matter what you choose to do about it I am sure you’ll make it fun to read. I admit that with every other member of the Mane Six finding love it would be odd for AJ to be left out, but I bet you can make it work. If nothing else you can always make an OC for her to get with, or stick with Caramel like you said.
Shipping you say *Menacing laugh like Discord*
Here I was hoping to see more of the games 😅 Having the EQspn reviewers being more involved would have also been epic