Chapter 13: Memory Thief
Luster Dawn raised an eyebrow at Spike’s request.
“I thought I made it clear that there would be no more favors. If you want my help, we’ll have to talk payment.”
Spike rolled his eyes and let out a hefty sigh.
“What is it you want then?” Spike asked.
“It’s better if we discussed this face to face. If you can make your way to what remains of Sire’s Hollow, we’ll talk terms.” Luster responded as she ended the call. Spike sighed and shook his head.
As cryptic as ever I see. He thought to himself. Making his way out of the castle, Spike made sure to keep his steps quiet so that no one would be disturbed, as it was still the dead of night, only just barely peaking through into the early hours of morning. As soon as he made it outside, he took flight and headed to Luster Dawn’s requested meeting spot. His thoughts drifted back to his companions, and how they had stuck with him through this entire ordeal. And then there was what Opaline had said to him back at the hideout.
You can’t afford to lose them too, can you?
Shaking his head, he redirected his focus to finding his destination. After traveling for some time, he finally saw the remnants of Sire’s Hollow, the early morning just barely peaking over the horizon. A thick fog hung low as he touched down in the town square, with Spike noticing the town’s decrepit and disheveled state right away. He walked towards a building that he noticed had its door open, and looking inside he was surprised to find not one of Luster’s associates, but Luster Dawn herself staring at old photographs that hung on the wall of the entryway.
“Mom always talked about her hometown. Said she avoided coming back here for a long time. I can’t imagine how she’d react seeing it now.” Luster said, her voice laced with regret as her eyes remained locked on the photographs. Spike didn’t say anything at first, letting Luster simply take in the atmosphere of the old decrepit home for a while before clearing his throat.
“You said you wanted to talk terms?” Spike asked.
“If you want my help, you’ll have to do something for me in return.” Luster said as she turned to face the purple dragon.
“Name your price.” Spike said as he crossed his arms.
“An item that needs to be retrieved. An important one.” Luster answered.
“Why not just send one of your associates to do it? Why come out here yourself?” Spike asked.
“The retrieval of this item is… personal in nature.” Luster stated as she shifted her gaze away from him. Spike mulled it over for a moment before giving her an affirming nod.
“Fair enough. Where do we start?” Spike said with a slight smile. Luster gave a nod as she led him out of the house.
“It shouldn’t be too far. We can make it on foot just fine.” She said as they left through the town gates, Luster taking one last look back before leaving the empty husk of Sire’s Hollow behind. It was an overcast day with light rain as they made their way to their mystery destination.
“So, how did this item of yours get stolen anyways?” Spike asked.
“It was a single intruder.” Luster answered. Spike raised an eyebrow skeptically. “I’m serious. And this item was from my personal collection too, which says to me that this thief is quite skilled.”
“Then I’m guessing this thief is around here somewhere.” Spike said.
“Exactly. I got some intel they were holed up not too far from here. If we’re lucky, we can catch them off guard.” Luster said.
“This item must be really important if you came to get it yourself.” Spike said.
“It is. Now it’s your turn. You said you needed my help. Said something about how things have gotten complicated.” Luster inquired. Spike let out a sigh.
“Recently, we infiltrated one of Opaline’s hideouts. I finally had her in my grasp, but now she’s in the wind again. And what’s worse, Garble got seriously hurt and is now in a coma. I need to track her down and end this for good.” Spike explained.
“Well, it’s as I said. You hold up your end, and I’ll hold up mine.” Luster stated simply. They eventually came to a cave that was off the beaten path and saw that it was illuminated by a small fire, the figure sitting in front of it had their back to the entrance.
“Is that our thief?” Spike whispered.
“It is. Now get ready!” Luster whispered back as she strolled confidently into the cave. Spike reached out to stop her but saw that it was too late as he let out an exasperated groan and joined her inside.
“You have something that belongs to me.” Luster declared.
“Maybe your personal collection should have had better security then, Overmare.” The thief responded as they finished bandaging a wound on their shoulder. They turned to face Luster and Spike, revealing that their face was concealed by a simple leather helmet, though he faintly saw piercing purple eyes peering at them from behind the mask.
“Hand it over, before I’m forced to get rough.” Luster said in a low tone.
“What are you waiting for then?” The thief taunted. They stared each other down for a moment until they heard rumbling above them. A few moments later, they heard a voice calling into the cave.
“Emziko! I know you’re in there! You’ve got a lot to answer for you two bit backstabber!”
Spike and Luster took a look back to the thief, who groaned in resignation and removed the helmet. To Spike’s surprise, it was a female dragon around his age with blueish green scales and purple eyes, a set of orange spines running from her head down the back of her neck. She had a tall, slender frame, being only slightly shorter than Spike when standing at her full height. She reluctantly stepped out of the cave with her hands raised to display that she wasn’t a threat.
“Hey Bhutto. Been a while hasn’t it?” Emziko asked as she chuckled nervously.
“Anyone else in that cave?” Bhutto asked as he brandished his sword menacingly.
“Just a couple of unexpected guests. I think you two should come out. Bhutto tends to get grumpy if you keep him waiting.” Emziko called back to the cave. Spike and Luster shot each other a brief look before stepping out of the cave to see a crew of bloodthirsty Lizardfolk pirates with a particularly large one at the front twirling an ornate cutlass between his fingers.
What did I get myself into? Spike thought to himself as he stifled a groan.
Meanwhile, back in the Crystal Empire, the others were panicking as they had found out that Spike was gone.
“I don’t understand. Why would Spike just take off without saying anything?” Smolder wondered aloud.
“I don’t know. It’s not like him.” Ember said.
“Flurry, you were the last one who talked to him. Did he seem off in any way?” Cadence asked as she looked to her daughter.
“No. He seemed a little tired but otherwise he seemed fine. I figured he would just sleep it off or something.” Flurry responded, worrying greatly about what could have caused Spike to take such action.
“I think I may have a theory.” Luna posited. The others looked to her and waited curiously to hear her answer. “He may have done this out of guilt. He feels responsible for Garble’s current condition, and thus wishes to ensure that no harm befalls anyone else.”
“How can you be so sure that’s what it is?” Smolder asked.
“Because I know firsthand how guilt can drive one to reckless action.” Luna responded as she recalled her own past and a solemn silence fell over the room.
“Regardless of the reason, we need to get him back. It’s beyond reckless to try and face Opaline alone.” Ember said as she did her best to refocus herself.
“Has anyone tried to raise him on their communicators?” Cadence asked. Smolder pulled out hers and fiddled with it for a moment in an effort to contact Spike.
“Nothing. He’s not answering.” Smolder responded.
“Then I’ll head out and see if I can find him.” Ember stated as she moved to take her leave.
“I’ll go too.” Smolder said.
“No. It’d be better to have one of us here in the event that Garble wakes up.” Ember reminded her. Smolder reluctantly agreed and gave a simple nod in return. Cadence and Luna gave nods of their own.
“Be safe on your travels. And let’s hope you can find Spike, wherever he’s gone.” Cadence said. Ember gave a short bow as she exited the room. She made her way out the front doors of the castle to see Flurry Heart standing there waiting for her.
“I’m going with you.” She announced to Ember.
“No you’re not.” Ember shot back.
“Look, he’s my Big Bro. I’m not just gonna sit here and do nothing. Please.” Flurry Heart responded, practically begging Ember with the look in her eyes. Ember looked away for a moment and let out a heavy sigh.
“I don’t know how I’m gonna explain this to your mother.” Ember said.
“I’m a grown mare. And besides, what she doesn’t know won’t hurt her.” Flurry Heart said back with a cheeky smile.
“Fine. Let’s hope you can keep up then.” Ember said with a chuckle as she took off into the air.
“Uh, we’ll need a skiff.” Flurry Heart called. “No magic, no flight.”
“Ah, right. Forgot about that.” Ember said as she slowly descended back down to ground level.
“Don’t worry. I know somepony who can get us a skiff without letting my mom know.” Flurry Heart said.
“Lead the way.” Ember replied.
Back at the cave, Spike and Luster Dawn stood patiently as their thief, whom they had learned was named Emziko, negotiated with the Lizardfolk pirate captain Bhutto.
“You really thought that you could just keep all of that treasure for yourself?” Bhutto growled in anger as he gripped his sword tighter.
“Well not all of it. Just a bit of a finder’s fee if you will.” Emziko responded, desperately trying to worm her way out of the situation. Bhutto scoffed at the claim.
“I don’t take kindly to traitors Emziko. You should have known that when you agreed to the job.”
“I knew it. I just didn’t expect to actually get caught, ya know?” Emziko said. Bhutto started to laugh as the other pirates eventually joined in as Emziko chuckled nervously while her eyes darted rapidly between the pirates.
“So, we’re good right?” Emziko asked.
“Not even close. Boys, clip her wings.” Bhutto responded as he snapped his fingers.
The pirates all cheered and drew swords of their own as they began to encroach upon Emziko, though Spike stepped between them.
“That’s far enough.” Spike said as he looked the pirates dead in the eye.
“What do you think you’re doing?” Emziko hissed.
“Saving your life. Give me grief about it later.” Spike whispered back.
“Guess this dragon wants his wings clipped too. Fine by me.” One of the pirates responded menacingly. As he took a swing with his sword, Spike ducked out of the way and threw a strong punch into the pirate’s face.
“Haha, I like you!” Emziko laughed as she engaged a couple other pirates who rushed at her.
“Oh great.” Luster groaned to herself as she joined the fray. As they started to whittle down the number of pirates in the group, Bhutto began looking more and more panicked.
“This can’t be happening! Get down here and kill them you morons! What do I pay you for?” Bhutto shouted up to the rest of his crew on the airship. One by one more pirates descended upon them, fighting more ferociously than ever at the behest of their captain.
“How many pirates are on that vessel?!” Luster asked as they saw their newfound opponents.
“Clearly more than we thought.” Spike responded, a bit flabbergasted at just how many pirates had now set upon them.
“Now this is getting interesting!” Emziko exclaimed with a hearty laugh. As they punched, kicked, and clawed their way through the pirates, Emziko saw Bhutto riding the ladder back up to the airship.
“Aw, leaving so soon Bhutto? I thought we were having fun!” Emziko called out as she spread her wings and took flight up to the airship.
“Better hang on Luster.” Spike said briefly as he picked her up and took flight as well.
“Hey! What do you think you’re doing?!” Luster exclaimed. “Oh fine, but you’d better not drop me!”
Spike caught up with Emziko as all three of them landed on the deck in front of Bhutto. He roared angrily and drew his sword from his belt.
“Fine! Looks like I’ll have to kill you myself!”
“Bring it!” Emziko taunted with a grin. Bhutto charged forward and took a swing at Emziko, who managed to duck out of the way. As she moved to follow up with a kick, Bhutto swung his massive tail and knocked her back. Luster charged in for a massive sweep with her back right leg, but Bhutto blocked it with his arm before throwing a strong kick of his own directly into her face. Spike rushed in and threw a volley of punches, actually putting Bhutto on the defensive as he blocked the dragon’s punches with his sword before kicking him back and slashing at him with his sword. Sparks erupted from Spike’s chest as the sword scraped across his scales and pushed him back. Now Spike was on the defensive as Bhutto swung furiously with his sword, eventually descending into maniacal laughter as he continued to swing. Spike blocked with his arms but soon found himself pushed up against the edge of the ship, though before Bhutto could deliver the final blow, Luster rushed in and delivered a strong mule kick to the back of his legs. As he buckled over in pain, Emziko tackled him and rolled over while using both legs to spring him up into the air. Spike followed up by leaping into the air, grabbing Bhutto by the throat, and slamming him back down into the airship, causing some of the deck to shatter and splinter at the impact. As they all took a moment to collect themselves, Bhutto reached into his pocket and pulled out a firebomb.
“You’re not getting off that easy!” He shouted as he chucked the firebomb at Spike, who was still standing directly above him. Spike managed to deflect the bomb upward just before it hit him, causing it to explode and take out the zeppelin. Everyone on board started to lose their footing as the airship began to lose altitude.
“We have to get off this thing now!” Luster shouted.
“Couldn’t have put it better myself!” Emziko agreed as she took a dive off the side of the airship. Spike grabbed Luster Dawn and dove off after Emziko, dodging the falling rubble and debris on the way down. When they finally landed back on safe ground, they saw that they had crashed near the border to the Bone Dry Desert. They all sat down to catch their breath as Emziko started to laugh.
“What a blast! Man you guys are fun!” She said excitedly.
“That was certainly an experience, I’ll say that.” Spike agreed. After a few moments, Luster looked to Emziko with determination in her eyes.
“Now then, I believe you still have something of mine.”
“Oh yeah. You totally got my respect now, so you can have it back.” Emziko said as she tossed a small object towards Luster Dawn. “Honestly, the thing was kinda tacky anyways. Not sure why it’s so important that it was in your personal collection.”
Spike took a look at the item Luster was holding and saw that it was a small locket. She reached into the saddle bag on her side and pulled out a small key that she then inserted into the locket. It opened up to reveal a picture of Starlight and Sunburst, holding what appeared to be a newborn Luster Dawn. Her smile grew wide as her eyes started to well up with tears, which she promptly wiped away.
“Just a little reminder of where I come from is all.” Luster answered as Spike placed a hand on her shoulder. Emziko’s smile faded as the importance of the locket dawned on her.
“Oh, I get ya. So, how’s about I make it up to ya? We’ve done a pretty good job together so far, may as well ride it out for a little while. You two seem like you’ve got some important business, so how’s about I tag along and lend a hand?” Emziko asked as she scratched the back of her head.
“I don’t see why not. Whaddya say Luster?” Spike asked. Luster put a hoof to her chin and thought it over for a moment.
“I suppose. Though our task isn’t going to be an easy one.” She answered.
“I’d be disappointed if it was.” Emziko said as she gave a wide, toothy smile.
“Well then. Spike, you’ve upheld your end of our deal. Now it’s time for me to uphold mine.” Luster said.
“To Klugetown then. It shouldn’t be too far from here.” Spike said. As the three unlikely companions then set out for Klugetown, Spike’s thoughts drifted back to his companions that he left behind in the Crystal Empire. He felt terrible about having left without warning, but he shook his head and continued moving forward.
I’m not letting anyone die because of me. I have to end this before that happens.
With his resolve hardened, he followed Luster and their new companion Emziko as they made their way to Klugetown, where he hoped he could find the answers he was seeking.
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Ooh, can I see the art?
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https://twitter.com/artistmythical/status/1597783402958053379?s=46&t=UuMXwbaETVkwhogymznIeg
With this being a future story, it’s using the older design. It’s really good!
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Her daughter has a great childhood and a stunning imagination! I wish her a prosperous future.